𝕋𝕙𝕖 𝔹𝕝𝕒𝕔𝕜 𝕊𝕙𝕖𝕖𝕡

6- Henri's Dorm Mates

"I had a feeling so peculiar
That this pain would be for
Evermore"

Like a breath of fresh air, Andromeda entered the world where magic didn't have to be dark. She found comfort in how welcoming the platform was, no amount of scowls from her sisters or people looking at her would dim her bright feelings.

As she stepped onto the train with only herself and her trunk—her sisters had already abandoned her—a slight wave of panic raised through her with the thought that Henri might've decided she didn't want to be Meda's friend anymore. If this was the case, then Andromeda wouldn't blame her. A life without Andromeda and her baggage would be much easier than with it. Maybe Henri told her amazing mother about Andromeda and got told that she wasn't allowed to be friends with Meda anymore.

Like a rainbow in a storm, Henri tackled Andie into a hug, forcing all those unpleasant thoughts out of her brain. At first, she wasn't sure how to return the hug, but she decided just putting her arms around Henri's back was fine.

"I missed you over the holidays!" Henri said with a large smile. "Let's find a compartment to sit in."

Andromeda nodded and followed Henri after picking up her trunk she had dropped when Henri hugged her. To her surprise and delight, it didn't take long for them to find an empty compartment to sit in.

"So, what's been going on?" Andie asked now that they were sitting.

"Well, my mum had to do tonnes of overtime at Mungo's, so I was at home alone for a while," Henri frowned.

She didn't say this out loud, but a holiday home alone sounded like paradise. Having complete control over the house with only the house-elves to speak to would be like a dream come true for her. She knew though that that was not the case for Henri as her mother seemed to be a genuinely nice human being.

"That's no fun," Meda replied, smoothing her skirt. "Did you get to spend Christmas with her?"

"Yeah, she had Christmas Eve and Day off," Henri explained. "She made the best roast and we had a late lie in. How about you?"

"I spent most of my time with Cissy," Andie replied. "We sat in her room and sewed these patchwork teddy bears-"

She was cut off by the compartment door slamming open, startling them both from the conversation. Andie furrowed her eyebrows at the two Gryffindor girls in the doorway, who, in Andromeda's opinion, looked rather mean.

One of them had strawberry blonde hair pinned back into a tight bun at the nape of her neck, a wicked grin upon her face, and a prim look to her. The other had long brown hair with a messy fringe, wide green eyes, and circular, gold glasses. They were around the same short height.

"You must be the one taking pity on Henrietta," the one with strawberry blonde hair spoke.

Andromeda glanced to Henri for an explanation, but saw that she was cowering away from the two girls, which was quite unusual. She wasn't really sure what was going on at the moment, however, she had decided that she wasn't going to put up with whatever they threw at her. Andie did enough of that at home.

"I'm sorry, who might you be?" Andie asked in a fake polite voice.

The girl scoffed and Meda smirked at her reaction. She found it odd that the two girls hadn't recognized her because everyone at school usually did, and if they didn't they mistook her for Bellatrix.