Break Down My Walls

Chapter One

Lauren's POV

I stepped onto the Hogwarts express, ecstatic for my fifth year at the rebuilt School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The war had ended and Harry Potter was alive, with the Dark Lord defeated.  Everything was new and fresh, and everyone had refreshed hope for the new year.  I guided myself to one of the last rooms on the train, with a bright smile on my face.  I slid the door gently shut and leaned against the wall next to the window in the seats.  I opened my book and started reading peacefully.

Oh, how I missed Hogwarts.  It had been a long summer without the castle and the cozy Hufflepuff common room and the homey dorms.  I was too excited to read properly.  I kept daydreaming and then having to re-read the paragraph.  My hand ran over the words and I tried my best to sink them into my brain.

But not after long, a group of Slytherins decided to enter my peaceful room.  Very loudly.

"So?  How was your summer?" my friend, Skyler asked to her Slytherin best friend, Jax, completely ignoring my existence.  I didn't really feel very comfortable around him.  The only Slytherin I really liked was Skyler.  I made the bad decision to make friends before the sorting, so almost all my friends are in different houses.  Lucky, lucky me.

Skyler sat down across from me, Jax at her side.  They were the craziest people I ever met (besides myself).  And finally, in came Ace, also a Slytherin 5th year.  He was kind of the actual bad kid in their little trio.  He sat beside me, but didn't acknowledge me at all, like I was wearing invisibility cloak.

"Uhm....Skyler?" I asked in the smallest voice, but she couldn't possibly hear me over all that laughing and loud talking.  "Skyler?" I asked a little more loud and firm.  "Skyler."  She didn't even look at me.  "SKYLER!" I yelled.  She turned to me with a sweet smile.

"Oh, hey!  Sorry.  I just saw them at the train station and we stuck together.  Sorry!" Skyler said, ignoring my existence again afterwards.  I rolled my eyes and crawled under the table to the open door and sat on the step, my peaceful and happy energy ruined.  I opened my book and tried my best to glue the words into my brain, my brow furrowed.

But all I could think about was if she remembered the incident with Theodore Nott right before the war.  He cheated on her for this really pretty girl, Angelina, also a Slytherin.  Seems like Slytherins like Slytherins best.  Hufflepuffs are just like, "I love everyone!  No matter what house, what creature, or what species!  All are good at heart!  Heeheehee!"  Oh my lord.  I mean I do like mostly everyone....but there are exceptions.  And I'm not always happy-go-sunshine, sometimes I'll get a temper.  Even though I don't like to.  

Every once in a while, I would hear footsteps behind me.  Laughing and talking about their summer, and how they went to this, and that.  What did I do over the summer?  I read inside, I read outside.  I watched some TV, and I swam.  That was it.  Nothing special.  My parents were out with my 8 year old little sister, Emma, all summer.  My older brother, James, who was in 7th year now, was like the most popular person ever.  He was a lady's man, a jock, good looking, and nice.  He was off collecting offers for being on the Britain Quidditch team all summer.  How much better can it get?

Well, for starters, maybe I could get a little attention.  I am the Hufflepuff Seeker on the Quidditch team, for lord's sake!  But, maybe it's just because I am a Hufflepuff, and a middle child.  I am not popular.  I am anything but.  It's like I live in the shadows.  Also, because my brother James is a Gryffindor, and I'm basically living in his shadow.  Emma, no way.  She won't live in someone's shadow.  She can't, it's not possible, she shines too bright.  She draws too much attention.  She's 8 years old and she's already pretty!  All the boys at her school fight over her, and all that crap.  When have I ever had a boy fight over me?