The Slytherin Transfer

00: "I always wanted a tattoo."

It's lucky that my father never comes in my room, or else he'd have one more thing to be angry at me about. He despises anything to do with Muggles, and I got this at an old junkyard in the village nearby.

It's not like we don't use stereos in the wizarding world, it's just that we don't have access to Muggle channels, and I have to tell you, I've been missing out.

The small radio is bewitched to still pick up the signal from the city no matter how far away you get, meaning that I can even bring it with me to school this fall. I've fallen in love with all the music that they play, which is all a lot better than anything the Weird Sisters sing.

Right now, I lie on my mattress, eyes closed and blankets beneath me as I listen to Billy Joel sing Piano Man. It's also lucky that my bedroom is all the way up in the North tower of the Manor, meaning the sound won't carry down to where my brother and father have been arguing for the last half hour.

It also means I can play the music loud enough to mask the sound of their shouting.

I got the radio fixed up to my liking with the help of a small old woman by the name of Ms Delgado. She works in the town at a clothing store for Muggles, but if you come to her needing a spell cast, she's always happy to help. It's good because otherwise I'm not allowed to use magic, since the school I go to, Hogwarts, doesn't allow it. Ms Delgado's shop is where I've spent most of my days this summer, mainly to get out of the house and away from the angry burden of my dad, or my brother.

Or both.

When the song ends, the crashing downstairs carries up to my ears, and I groan in annoyance. My vibe has officially been interrupted, so I switch off the radio and swing my feet off my unnecessarily large bed, opening the door to my room and descending the spiral staircase that leads to the main floor.

"It doesn't matter!" My father is shouting, sounding slightly drunk, "Because you're off to Hogwarts in two days! And you're gonna cut it off with her!"

"Like hell I am!" Joshua shouts back from where he's standing on one side of the dining room table and raking an angry hand through his dark hair.

"What's going on?" I ask, but they ignore me.

"I cannot have my son with someone like that!" My dad slurs his words with such disgust that I almost feel offended, and I don't even know what they're arguing about.

"I love her!"

"Oh, bullshit!"

"Shut the hell up!" I yell, finally getting them to be quiet. I bask in the silence for a minute as they stare at me in shock and anger, "What is this about?"

"Your brother has been seeing a Muggle girl in the village," my dad says, glaring at Josh as he speaks to me.

I can't help the laugh that escapes my lips, "Oh that's rich, Josh. Remember what you did when I made friends with a kid from there?"

"Shut up, Cass," Josh growls at me threateningly, and I smirk.

"Remember, Josh? I know you do," I taunt joyously, happy that for once my dad is mad at him and not me as I approach my brother's side of the table, "Does this mean that I get to hit you in the gut with a baseball bat? I mean, if that's the punishment."

"Shut up!" He shouts angrily in my face, and I swerve under his spit.

"Don't get your panties in a bunch." I put my hands up in defence.

"Cassidy, you best stay out of this," my dad says through grit teeth, and I just grin, hopping over the table and heading to the door that leads down to the kitchen.