Born Evil

Chapter 1 - To Hogwarts

"Madame?" There was a rap at the door, followed by a pause. Then, more tentatively, "madame?" Fae arranged herself neatly in the bed, half propped up against the pillows, before replying.

"Enter." The door creaked as it opened, and shut again with a faint click. From her position, she was unable to see the early visitor, but she knew who it was anyway. A house elf soon appeared at her bedside and placed a tray of food on the table there.

"Today is the first of September, Miss. You should get up soon if you want to catch the train." The elf squeaked.

"I shall be ready by the front door at precisely half past 10 o'clock. Is my trunk packed?" The House Elf nodded. "And my broom is ready?"

"Of course, Miss Flint."

"Then that shall be all for now. Thank you." The House Elf exited with a deep bow.

Fae yawned and stretched before eventually getting out of bed. She didn't want to be late for the train, after all. She sped through as much of her breakfast as she could stomach and got dressed in traditional plain black robes, ready for travelling. She retrieved the snake that had managed to climb to the top of her four-poser bed, placed it in a cage and brought it downstairs. Rather inconveniently, her bedroom was on the top floor. This did, however, mean that she was able to sneak in and say goodbye to her younger siblings on her way downstairs. None of them were awake yet but she didn't feel the need to wake them, instead giving each a kiss on the forehead and whispering her goodbyes.

Fae walked with a permanent limp, which was less than useful. The accident had happened when she was barely old enough to walk, so she didn't really remember it. She'd been told it involved a broom. When she reached the bottom of the many flights of stairs, she was greeted by two of her seven siblings. They were already in their fourth year at Hogwarts, being the second and third oldest (although only separated by a matter of minutes). The oldest sibling had already left the school and gone on to become an auror - Mercury was a name completely forbidden under their parents' roof. Vulcan and Venus had redeemed the siblings by being sorted into Slytherin and selected for the Quidditch team in their second year. Not only this, but Venus had caught the snitch in record time in her first season, and had received a shiny 'Team Captain' badge by owl this summer.

"Ready to start Hogwarts?"

"Ready as I'll ever be." She picked up the a walking stick from the umbrella stand. It was jet black all the way down with two snakes encircling it, getting gradually lighter until they were silver at the top. "Do you think I'm allowed this?"

"What can they do?" Her brother replied with an air of mischief. "If they tell you no, just hit them with it."

"Vulcan." Venus said reproachfully, but she smiled all the same. The door at the end of the hall creaked open and two House Elves walked through, carrying three brooms between them. Vulcan took his broom and Venus took hers and Fae's.

"I thought you didn't want me to bring it? After all, first years 'aren't allowed them.'"

"Well you're going to bring it anyway, so I might as well smuggle it in for you."

"Are you ready, Master Flint?" One of the House Elves squeaked, holding up her hand. He picked up his trunk and she grabbed his wrist. They disappeared with a crack. The other House Elf did the same with Venus, and Fae was left alone in the hallway for a moment before both reappeared with the same loud noise. One of them took her trunk and the other took her arm. She closed her eyes, preparing for a sensation she could never get used to.

There was a loud crack and Fae felt as though she'd been sucked into a vortex. It was as though she were being stretched out and squeezed in at the same time. The feeling was over almost as soon as it had begun, and she found herself in a dark, empty alleyway.

Vulcan and Venus came round the corner pushing two luggage carts. One had a trunk, a broom, an owl cage and a cat carrier, whilst the other had two brooms and a trunk. The House Elves lifted Fae's trunk onto the second cart before disappearing again with the same loud crack. Her sister insisted she put the snake cage on top as well.

"I can take my own luggage..." she began, but her sister frowned and she didn't complain any further. They walked through the station with their heads held high. Don't look at anyone. After checking no one was there, they each walked through the barrier between platforms 9 and 10.

Fae had only been on the platform twice before, but the atmosphere never ceased to amaze her. Suddenly, it was so much more busy. No one looked at her weird, and she could even spot a few familiar faces in the crowd. The Malfoys, the Prince family...

"Come on." Her thoughts were interrupted by Vulcan, who led the trio through the crowd to a carriage not far behind the scarlet engine. Fae sat down whilst her siblings ferried all the luggage onboard. She looked out of the window at the large ornate clock on the platform. Fifteen minutes. They pushed the last of the trunks up onto the racks above and flopped down on the seats.

The door slid open and Fae was surprised to see the young Malloy boy - Draco - standing in the opening.

"I see the carriage is taken." He remarked rather awkwardly, and went to shut the door.

"See you at Hogwarts." A few minutes passed before the next disturbance. This time, there were three people stood directly in the doorway. She recognised the girl, who went by the name Iris Prince, but didn't know the two boys by name.

"Don't tell me." She looked the two boys up and down once. "Weasley." The red hair and old robes gave it away.

"They may be Weasleys, and all three are in Gryffindor." Vulcan began.

"But they're also all on the Quidditch team, and rather good, at that." Venus finished. She gave them a nod. "I look forwards to competing against you again this year." As she said this, she made sure that her 'House Captain' badge was clearly visible. They slid the compartment door closed. "And winning." She muttered after them, a subtle smirk written across her features.