KILLER | H. POTTER

1. TRAIN

September 1, 1996

Cass stood on the train platform alone.

It was by choice. She'd insisted on her mother staying behind, in fact. But there was still the smallest twinge of something forlorn in her chest standing there surrounded by parents fussing over their children.

It was better this way. If Narcissa Malfoy were here, it would all be stares and sneers. Not that Cass hadn't already gotten her share of those in the three minutes she'd been here.

She didn't linger on the platform, quickly climbing into the Hogwarts Express and heading to her usual compartment.

Her feet almost betrayed her a few times on the way. She didn't want to see her friends. Not because of anything they'd done but because she would be forced to act like her regular self around them, or they'd notice something was up. And that was the last thing she wanted.

It seemed so impossible though. That no one would notice this new version of Cass.

She could just see it now. She'd act weird and Pansy would pester her about what's wrong and Cass would snap at her and say something stupid like, 'Oh, I don't know, maybe my real father who no one knows is my father is dead and my sister is dying and she will die if I don't somehow fucking kill the most powerful wizard in the fucking world. That's what's fucking wrong, Pansy.'

Not that Cass hadn't thought about telling some of this (in slightly nicer words) to one of her friends before. But she knew full well that it wasn't a good idea. This was her burden to bear.

Cass's hands shook as she opened the door to her compartment.

"Cass! I'm so happy to see you!"

It was Daphne who'd stood up first and enveloped Cass in a hug.

Delia squeezed her next.

Cass knew exactly why they were acting like this. Lucius was in prison. They thought she must've been heartbroken over it.

Not that she didn't care. She did, she couldn't help it. But honestly, Lucius being in prison was nowhere near the top of her priority list at the exact moment.

But if it at least partly explained any of Cass's behaviour, she would milk the shit out of that excuse.

Cass sat across from Daphne and Delia. Pansy wasn't here yet. Probably due to her chronically late nature.

Daphne's soft brown eyes examined Cass's face. "Are you okay?"

Cass tried her best to give her friend a reassuring look. "I'm okay. Really."

Daphne let her be.

It took a second, but Daphne and Delia stopped looking at Cass like she was a ticking time bomb and started chatting about their usual subjects—clothes, boys, gossip.

Pansy made it just as the train started to pull out of the platform. She hugged Cass but didn't ask after her well-being, which Cass appreciated.

Everyone treated her like normal. As if her life wasn't completely spiralling.

But sitting there with Pansy and the rest of her fair-weather friends, Cass just... could not do it. She couldn't pretend like everything was fine. Not even an hour passed before she excused herself to go to the bathroom and then... didn't return to the compartment.

She sat in a spare compartment by herself, reading a book, and trying her best not to wallow. At least until Zabini found her.

"Your friends sent me. They're worried you never came back to your compartment," he said.