The Queen of Vipers || Fred Weasley

vi.

Electra woke to Professor McGonagall's heels clicking as she entered her room and whisked open the curtains letting in the blazing sunlight.

"Up and at 'em Miss Black." She turned and saw the groggy face of the young witch as she lifted her head off the pillow and wiped drool from the side of her face. She sighed at the sight. "Look alive dear, we have to be at King's Cross in two hours. And muggle clothes please, we need to be discreet."

Professor McGonagall took her leave as Electra rolled out of bed, books tumbling to the floor, and she padded to her trunk. A yawn tore through her as she sleepily riffled through her things for an outfit (she was up late the night before looking over her new textbooks).

When usually Electra was a beast in the morning, after her shower, she was in rare, excited form; quickly brushing her teeth, dressing and repacking her new trunk in record time.

She stood up and looked at herself in the full length mirror and frowned.

Electra was skinny and sickly looking her whole life, with pale skin and heavy, weighed down black curls. She'd always had dark circles under her eyes, but they looked extra prominent this morning after a restless night of little sleep. The nuns used to call her a ghost with the contrast of her dark hair making her skin paler and her light eyes shine almost unnaturally.

Electra didn't own any clothes (or robes) that weren't uniforms so she had no choice but to put on her slightly tattered Our Fair Lady clothes. She added a cardigan as London was far colder than Manhattan in the summers (kind of like the Big Apple's autumn).

She was about to put her white ribbon around her head when she spotted her new wand on the nightstand through the mirror. Her own wand. The only time she'd seen a wand up until now was the woman in her nightmare. The golden woman's face flashed in her mind and she got a spark of inspiration.

She grabbed her pretty new wand, twisted her curls messily behind her head and secured the knot with her wand. A few damp curls fell out in the back and tumbled down her shoulder blades, but she didn't care, she'll just have to practice until she gets the hang of it.

Electra grabbed her new school bag and slung it over her shoulder. She'd have to get used to the crossbody rather than her backpack, which Professor McGonagall had called 'holier than the Catholic Church itself'. Electra had to agree (and you would too if you heard some of the curses these nuns muttered when they thought no one was listening).

As she stepped out of the bedroom she caught Professor McGonagall reading a funny paper with moving images and changing headlines while enjoying a cup of tea at the small table by an empty fireplace.

"Your hair's falling ou—," the professor said over her teacup as Electra flopped onto the seat across from her, eyes on her plate full of food, and clearly not paying the professor any mind. "Oh forget it," she grumbled and returned to her paper.

Electra ate her toast and jam (which she found out she was not a huge fan of) quietly watching the moving images and glittering text on Professor McGonagall's paper. She downed a glass of orange juice just as the professor snapped her paper shut. She set it down and looked down at the young witch. "Trunk all packed?"

"Yes, professor."

"Your wand?"

Electra pointed to her knot. The professor looked stunned by Electra's choice in accessory. "Not the best place for a wand. Be very careful if you insist on tucking it away like that." Electra nodded and the professor sighed heavily. "Have you got your ticket?"

She held up her golden ticket.

Professor McGonagall nodded. "Hold onto that ticket Electra, you don't want to lose it."