Epitome || H. Potter

EPITOME 02

Those in the compartment with a sleeping Harry were left confused. He woke up shortly afterwards.

"What the actual hell," Ginny said slowly, "was that?"

"Was what?" Harry asked, sitting up quickly.

"Once you were asleep, she told us good luck. There was so much pain, so much... sadness," Neville explained confused. Luna's head perked up.

"Well, I think that, maybe, she's in a situation that she doses't want to be in, and she's trying to get the message across to us that she needs help," Luna explained.

"I will help her when hell freezes over," Harry said, stubbornly. "Merlin, I hate her. She so..."

"Unpredictable?" supplied Ginny. Harry nodded, a thousand thoughts racing through his head. Who was Astrid Matthews? Why was she so evil one second and then sad and solemn the next? Harry didn't know, but he intended to find out.

At the other end of the train, Astrid's moment of weakness was all but forgotten. Crabbe and Goyle has set out to find Draco, and Blaise had finally given in to the temptation he had been holding back since first year. Alone in the compartment, Blaise and Astrid was snogging with a passionate vigor matched only by a couple of seventh year's who never did seem to let go over each other's faces. Pulling away, both of them panting, Astrid scooted over so that she was nearly sitting on Blaise's lap.  He stroked her face delicately.

"I've been wanting to do that for a long time," He said, smirking. Astrid returned his smirk, but not his feelings. However, it would be okay, because Astrid didn't know what love was like.

"Then let's keep doing it," Astrid smirked.

"Will you be my girlfriend, Astrid?" In response, Astrid merely attacked his lips once more.

______

The light of day faded into night as the train sped onwards to Hogwarts. Eventually, when Draco and Pansy returned, Astrid proved to them her status in the new world. If she hadn't been their leader before, she certainly was now. Getting off of the train, they all scrambled behind her, following her like lost puppies, her head held high, sucking on the lolly that she made Crabbe buy for her. She didn't even glance into the carriage behind her to stare at the people she had revealed her true self to. She tried not to think about the horses that she could now see. She just sat in the carriage, silent, like a queen surveying her land. If there had been any doubt in anyone's mind about Astrid's training for a role of power, it was long gone. She was comfortable with her power, assertive.

She and her so called friends, who were really only there because every Slytherin knew that you didn't fight your biggest enemy- you kept them close to you so that they weren't a threat. The moment Astrid lost her power, they would all flock to the next in the power chain- Draco Malfoy. And Astrid knew that. And though the thought of having to put on the face she did every day displeased her, she worried what things Draco would screw up if he once again took over power. And so things stayed as they were.

Little did Astrid know that she had made the mistake that would bring her miserable life crashing down that very evening, on the train ride there.

______

"Why is Dolores Umbridge at the staff table?" Pansy asked, looking up from Draco for a split second to stare at the staff table, where a woman dressed in a horrendous pink colour was in deep conversation with Professor Dumbledore.

"Probably here to keep an eye on Dumbledore, make sure he doesn't do anything stupid. Fudge is scared of him after last summer, thinks he's after the job. And it's far easier to just discredit two people than tell the whole wizarding community that he's back," Draco replied. His father was still in cahoots with the Ministry, so he always knew the inside scoop.