You Only Live Once

CHAPTER 9

"Okay, I wasn't expecting this turn of events"

The sorting ceremony had finished only half an hour ago, yet Mira already felt like her world had been tilted on its axis. She was currently tucked into a corner of the entrance hall, once again surrounded by the familiar faces of the Gryffindors. Just a short while earlier, she had walked into the Great Hall with the tiny, wide-eyed first years. She had waited with her heart in her throat until Professor McGonagall finally called her name.

Sitting on that stool in front of the entire school had been nerve-wracking. A sixteen-year-old girl being sorted was a rare sight, and she could feel the heavy weight of hundreds of curious stares. When the Sorting Hat had barely touched her head before shouting the word "Slytherin" across the hall, Mira had actually gasped out loud. In her mind, she had prepared herself for Ravenclaw or maybe even Hufflepuff. Slytherin had felt like an impossibility.

Pandora had been the first to react, waving enthusiastically from the green-and-silver table. Hesitantly, Mira had made her way over. Her guesses about the group from the train had been right. Pandora had immediately pulled her into the conversation, introducing her to the four boys and the Carrow twins—though Pandora had made a funny face behind the twins' backs as she did it. Barty Crouch Jr. and Pandora were clearly the talkers of the group, while Evan Rosier and Theodore Nott threw in occasional comments. Regulus Black, Sirius's younger brother, hadn't said a single word to her, though he did snigger once or twice at Barty's jokes.

"Well, no one was expecting it, Ro" Lily said now, her voice soft and full of concern. She reached out to brush a stray hair from Mira's forehead, her smile tinged with sadness.

"Well, I did" Sirius interrupted. He was leaning against a stone pillar, looking incredibly smug. While everyone else looked worried about Mira being stuck in the dungeons, Sirius looked like he had just won a bet.

"Ignoring that" Marlene snapped, pointedly flipping Sirius off without looking at him.

"Look, guys" Mira said, trying to find a silver lining. "The way I see it, it's actually a good thing. Being one of them might give me a better chance to survive the year. They won't want to hurt one of their own, right?"

"Ro's right, guys" Mary agreed, nodding slowly as the others remained lost in thought. "It's like built-in protection"

"Mira" a voice called out from behind them.

Mira turned to see Barty and Pandora walking toward them. Most of the other students had already cleared out, heading toward their respective towers and basements. "Everyone else has gone down to the common room" Barty said, his hands shoved deep into his pockets. "Are you coming?"

"Just a minute" Mira replied, giving them a small, reassuring smile. She turned back to the Gryffindors. "See? It'll be alright"

The group was silent for a long moment until Remus let out a deep, heavy sigh. He looked like he wanted to argue, but instead, he just opened his arms. "Alright, come here"

He engulfed her in a warm hug that smelled like old books and chocolate. As he held her, he leaned down and whispered into her hair. "Sleep with your eyes open"

Mira couldn't help but chuckle as she pulled away. "See you in the morning, guys"

The walk to the Slytherin common room was a stark contrast to the rest of the castle. As they descended the stone steps into the dungeons, the air grew noticeably chillier. The walls were damp and the lighting was dim, provided by flickering green lamps that cast long, dancing shadows. Mira felt a shiver run down her spine as they entered the final corridor.

However, when they stepped through the hidden entrance, she was struck by the room's cold beauty. The common room was a long, underground chamber with rough stone walls and a ceiling hung with silver lamps. The most magnificent part was the windows. They looked directly out into the depths of the Black Lake, and the greenish light from the water filled the room with a surreal, majestic glow. Mira watched a giant squid tentacle drift lazily past a pane of glass and found herself daydreaming about sitting in one of the high-backed chairs with a book, watching the underwater world.