Trance | A Slytherin OC HP Prequel

One ❖ Secrets and Prefects

[Three Years Prior]

Cassia Huxley sat in the main room of her countryside home. Across from her, on a chesterfield sofa, perched the Minister for Magic Millicent Bagnold. It was rare for her to meet people in their own homes, much less on her own, but she felt she had a better chance of convincing her in person.

". . .the matter of your inheritance items. The Ministry is not looking to buy them from you exactly. Rather we're offering to hold on to them for safe keeping, for both of our benefits. And I'm including a reasonable payment as a promise to keep them very very secure."

Cassia's calm dark eyes panned from the Minister over to the sunbathed landscape out the window then back to the Minister as she continued to speak. Her elbow rested on the kitchen table, and she was fighting the urge to prop her chin up with her hand. "I understand the offer, Minister," she cut in. "I am not, just as I have never been, interested in the Ministry's or any other magical organization's involvement in my, ah . . . inheritance. And since I am very unlikely to change my position on this matter today or further in the future, I'd like to end the conversation now. You see, my daughter is arriving any minute now, and I've been looking forward to showing her around the new place. There's a creek just down the road; it's the perfect reading spot—"

"Pardon me, did you say daughter? I was unaware . . . "

"Yes, well going off the radar for twelve years does leave some people out of the loop so I will forgive you for that, Minister. I really must say goodbye now though, as I plan to make the most of my time with Elara before she leaves for her first year at Hogwarts."

"H-Hogwarts already you say," Minister Bagnold said slowly. "This changes a few—" Then she apparated and was gone.

The green mountainous landscape flew by outside the window of the Hogwarts Express. Elara gazed out, feeling a small sense of dread that the summer holidays had ended and classes would start tomorrow. She was about to start her fourth year, but the train nerves never really faded. She already regretted not studying harder over the summer. The prefects were announced at the end of fourth year and Elara was hoping for top grades to give her an advantage over the other Slytherin girls, especially—

"Norah sends you her best glare." A girl with long brown hair and golden brown skin, who was already in her green accented school robes plopped down next to Elara, the compartment door sliding shut behind her. "I think summer with her horrible grandparents always gives her renewed loathing at the beginning of the year."

Elara laughed and shook her head exasperatedly. "I might feel bad for her, both parents in Azkaban, if she didn't seem so inclined to follow in their footsteps."

"Yeah, apparently you don't need to be a Death Eater to be a murderous mudblood-hating backstabbing—"

"All right, Aria," Elara cut in. "Let's talk about something else, please. How was your summer?"

"Same old. Actually, I'd say Diagon Alley was particularly uneventful this year. I got to escape the bookshop for a while though. Dad had to meet with a seller in France, so he took me and we made a vacation out of the trip. Let me tell you, French wizards are hot."

"Thinking of transferring to Beauxbatons?"

"You'd like that wouldn't you?" Aria teased back. "One less competitor for prefect."

"You're on."

The compartment door slid open and a third fourth year entered, this one a red haired boy in Gryffindor robes. He slid into the seat across from them.