A muggle-born Slytherin whose parents are terrified of her.
A pureblood Gryffindor whose parents are disappointed in him.
The arrival of her Hogwarts letter was meant to make everything better.
Asteria Halloway finally had an explanation for her p...
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Asteria sat with her legs crossed on the bench, a book open in her lap but her eyes were not focused on its pages but instead the rolling hills that shot past the window beside her. Gently, the snow fell down onto the window momentarily before being wiped away by the vicious winter winds. The Hogwarts Express chuffed along rhythmically, shaking the floor slightly and humming beneath the boards.
"Ria?" The compartment door slid open slowly and Lily Evans stepped inside.
"Lil?" Asteria looked over. "What're you doing?" Lily sat down opposite Asteria and eyes her friend with concern and worry. Lily would have been lying is she didn't admit she spent far too long worrying about Asteria - it couldn't have been healthy.
"Nothing... I thought you were doing prefecting stuff." Asteria shrugged nonchalantly. "I was, that's where I've been the past couple of hours." Lily started, "And you're lying."
Asteria widened her eyes at Lily, "I'm lying?" She asked. "Yes. Now, what's wrong?" "Nothing is wrong." She shrugged again.
"You're scared about going home to your parents." Lily stated. She was smart, too smart for her own good and she'd do everything within her power to help any and all of her friends if they needed it - whether they asked or not.
"I'm fine." Asteria insisted, although her slightly shaking knees said otherwise. "You don't have to lie to me. Just, talk about it because it might make you feel better. If you really need, I can ask if you could stay over at mine for a bit." Lily offered, desperate to help.
Asteria closed her book and opened her mouth to speak before the door slid open once again. And in walked Severus Snape.
"Sev! I looked all over for you, where did you go?" Lily asked, standing up to greet her friend. "Not hanging out with Malfoy again were you? Or maybe Avery or Rosier?" Asteria eyed his suspiciously. "You don't hang out with them do you?" Lily looked between the two. "No! No I don't." Snape became flustered as he shot Asteria a cold glare.
"I was just talking to Asteria about going home for Christmas and she might come over for a bit, right? That'll be fun." Lily nodded as if repeating it over and over would make it true. "Why?" Snape frowned slightly as he sat next to Lily. "Well you don't want to be around your family, do you?" Lily looked to Asteria. "Oh... Of course, mummy and daddy still scared of you? You know it's not all that bad, there's worse things that have happened and I honestly think you should just get over it. Nothing is going to change." Snape folded his arms.
Asteria opened her mouth to speak but the words became stuck in her throat. It was as though the confidence she had slowly been gaining over the year had suddenly vanished and she felt so alone. Maybe Snape was right, her parents would never change and there was nothing she could do about it.
