Harry Potter and the Children of Slytherin ((Open!!!!))

((no objections here.))

(I'm good with a time-skip.)

((Excellent. We'll move forward tomorrow, or Monday. Depending.))

(Skipping to the middle of the night...)

Kami couldn’t do it; she couldn’t sleep there, in the room, with a bunch of strangers. Each moment spent there, listening to everyone’s steady breathing, was nerve-wracking. Who knew when they would wake, and what they would do then, if they thought her asleep?

Her bare feet hit the ground. She had to get out of here. Her head turned, to scan over the sleeping forms of her fellow Gryffindors. She had to find Kingsley.

“It’s rude to wake people up in the middle of the night,” the Fat Lady muttered as she swung open to let Kami out of the Gryffindor Tower. The sudden voice spooked the young werewolf, and she shot off like a rocket down the dark hall. Somebody was there; somebody was after her.

The ground disappeared out from under her and she let out a shriek as she found herself falling. Her arms flailed out, catching the banister of the staircase. Her silver eyes widened as she found herself only centimeters from the stairs, and then her momentum carried her into the banister. With an oomph! she lost her grip and hit the stairs below, her heart pounding wildly in her chest.

Somebody had to have heard that. She had to get out of here, find somewhere safe to hide, before they caught her and killed her. Where was somewhere safe…?

The frantic beating of her heart slowed, as she thought of Kingsley. That’s right—she was at Hogwarts.

Slowly, wincing, Kami rolled herself over and sat upright, blinking as the blood rushed back down into her body. She had to find Kingsley; he would keep her safe, like… No, she wouldn’t think about… about him.

((The Time-skip will take place once this deal with Kami is finished.))

Alastor Moody

"You there!" Mad-Eye Moody boomed, as he awkwardly walked over to Kami. "What are you doing out of bed, girl?"

Kami barely bit back another screech as she tried to scramble away, but she only ended up tripping over her own hands and feet and crashing back into the steps. Pain flared up on her lower back, but she ignored it as she pushed herself back upright, her eyes wide as she stared at the approaching form of the stranger.

Should she flee?

“K-k-k-ki-kings-sley,” she managed to choke out.

Alastor Moody

Moody stopped and stared at the girl. Hm. Was she the Werewolf Cub Kingsley had brought to Hogwarts? Most likely, yes, considering how jumpy she acted. Well, if she wanted to see her Acting Guardian, it wasn't a problem with him.

"You're going the wrong way. Take the third corridor from the next set of staircases, and you'll find his room at the end." he stated.

Kami quivered under his gaze, feeling vulnerable and unprotected—a far cry from how she had been only a few short months ago—and then shot to her feet at his answer. She wasn’t in trouble; he wasn’t going to kill her.

She opened her mouth to respond, to say anything, but no words came. After a moment more, she turned, scrambled back up the stairs, and was off.

Third corridor… Third corridor… Third. What was a third? Wait. That was three. He had taught her that. She took the turn at a run, not coming to a halt until she came across a door at the very end. She stared at it, her head tilted slightly to the side. Was it safe? This wasn’t some kind of trap, was it?

The young girl took a step forward and pressed an ear to the door. After a few seconds, she heard the sound of steady breathing. Her left hand wrapped around the handle and she slowly twisted it open. Her head peeked inside the room, and it took her only moments to make out the bed where Kingsley lay, sleeping.

She stepped inside, her heartbeat dropping by the second. The door slid soundlessly shut behind her, and then she was moving forward. Everything was okay now. Nobody could hurt her, not when she was here. And nobody would think less of her, if she woke up screaming. The potion she had been given was supposed to stop that, but that didn’t guarantee the nightmares would stop.

Kami lifted up the edge of the covers and slid underneath them, curling up against Kingsley. Her silver eyes closed and she let out the breath she hadn’t realized she had been holding.

The professor wasn’t… wasn’t him, but this still felt good.

The Professor stirred slightly in his sleep, alerted by the rustling of his sheets and the warmth of a small body close to him. He opened one eye lazily and finally noted it was Kami sleeping with him. Kingsley smiled tiredly at her, and put an arm around her in comfort before slipping back into sleep.

------------------

In the early hours of the morning, before the students stirred, Kingsley awoke and gently got out of his bed. He sighed softly and looked down at Kami's sleeping form with a twinkle in his eye. He bent down and lightly kissed her cheek, figuring he could get away with it while she slept. The Professor then scooped the Gryffindor First Year into his arms, and proceeded to carry her back to her Dorm. He cast a silent spell to make them unnoticed to any early-morning roamers, and after a bit of walking he finally arrived at the Gryffindor Common Room. No one was up and about yet, thankfully.

Kingsley carried her up the stairs to the Girl's Dorm (the stairs buckled slightly at his steps but given he was a Professor, Kingsley was allowed to pass) and into the Dorm itself. Kingsley spotted the only empty bed, and carefully placed Kami onto it, lightly pulling the covers over her.

With his job done, Kingsley gave Kami one last affectionate kiss and left to go back to his own room.

Kami stirred slightly, giving a light groan and rolling over, but her eyes remained shut. There was no danger to wake her, but instead a sense of safety to lull her back into a deep and dreamless sleep.

((Time-skip, away!))

General Narrative

Soon enough, morning dawned on the students of Hogwarts. Many started to reluctantly awake, and prepare for the day. And since they would be having their first classes for the new school year, they would not have much time...

Alissa

Of the First-Year Gryffindor Girls, Alissa was one of the first to come awake. She straightened up from her bed with a yawn, and slowly shuffled out of it, as she and the other awakening girls changed from their nightclothes to their school-robes. As she changed, Alissa noticed that Kami was still asleep. Since no one else seemed to notice, the young girl took it upon herself to rouse the rough girl.

"Wake up, Kami." Alissa whispered gently. "Classes begin in an hour. We haven't much time!"

Kami's brow furrowed. A voice, and female? Her silver eyes snapped open, and then widened as they took in the form of Alissa. That was right, she was at a school full of strangers. But where was Kingsley? Why was she here? Had she screamed?

The werewolf sat up, quickly pulling her body and the bed covers close to her. For a moment, she could only sit there, with her eyes flickering from girl to girl as they got ready for the day. No, they weren't staring at her for screaming, so she couldn't have. And she didn't feel the dream panic, like she had since...

"C-classes?" she stammered out.

Andrew entered the Slytherin Common Room, fighting back a yawn. He was one of the first to get up and he looked less than thrilled about it. It had taken him longer than usual to get to sleep and he was feeling its effects.

With a grunt, he headed out into the dungeons and began the long trek to breakfast. He grimaced, Who got the bright idea to put the Slytherins in the dungeons. Next they'll be locking our doors.

Alchemy stumbled into the gryffindor common room, barely conscious. She was excited for the new school year, but already yearning for the weekend so she could sleep in. She laid down on the plush sofa, not seeing the need to go to breakfast, when there was barely anybody awake. Instead she laid back and stared at the ceiling as her brain slowly woke up.

----

Nikola woke up quite easily. She had always liked to get up very early, when it was still dark, and go down to the common room. She would sit there in the darkness and quiet and think about nothing and everything. Sometimes she liked to sit by a window and watch the stars. At any rate, by the time breakfast came around, she was quite awake and ready for the day. Most of her housemates seemed to still be asleep, but that had never stopped her from going to breakfast. The halls were silent in the way that they usually were when everyone was either not awake, or too tired to speak any louder than a hushed whisper. She found her way to the great hall and entered through the large doors as she had done so many times before.

Alissa

"Yes, classes!" Alissa replied cheerily. "Breakfast begins in fifteen minutes, and an hour from now we have our first classes for the school-year. I believe the Gryffindor First Years have Potions with the Slytherins, for our first class. Then Magical History after that, I think. And after that....well, I'd have to recheck the schedule."

Monica was already awake and sitting in the common room, her books for the day sitting in front of her like a snake awaiting to strike; not that a snake would, seeing as Gorgons eventually took on snakelike features as they matured, but still.

The one class she didn't look forward to was Mrs' Hooch's class, Flight Class or Broom Riding Lessons...whatever it was. She always had a dislike for heights, seeing as she wasn't old enough for her wings to support her weight for flight.

They were barely good enough for gliding as it was.

She also glanced at her Care of Magical Creatures book, wondering if it was supposed to be a personal jab against her, and trying to ignore her Charms and Defense against the Dark Arts books. She wasn't sure how she'd fair in those classes; she had been up most of the night looking through them, and was extremely nervous on what she was supposed to do.

She had tried getting a wand from Olivander's; the wand crafter was genuinely surprised at the result, commenting that in all his years, he had never seen a wand react so hostility. He had further commented that she may either need to get a staff crafted, as a staff might better channel her magic than a wand, or she may need to learn to cast without.

Her mother didn't have the money to afford a staff to be crafted, but Sally-Anne had mentioned she would see what could be done...

Her head jerked to the side as she heard the movement of students making their way downstairs, and she gathered up her books, tucking them inside her robes.

A small whimper escaped from Kami's lips, and it was all she could do to stop herself from throwing the covers over her head and retreating into the relative safety of her bed. She couldn't panic, not while others were watching; she had to be tough.

"O-oh," she stuttered out, and then bit her lip as she stared down at the bed covers before her. What else was she supposed to say? To do?

"Y-you... pr-probably think I'm... w-weird, d-don't y-you?"

Ugh... Could she have asked a worse question? Kami tensed, as she waited for the answer.

Quinton

Quinton had not already been up before his fellow Ravenclaws, as one might have expected from his studious nature. He was actually still in bed, sleeping soundly even as his fellow sixth-years began their day. He liked to sleep, and it was difficult for him to wake up. He had been late to classes before, though this had never truly hurt his grades. He was not a morning person either, taking up to an hour before he would be ready to talk to someone without pouring on sarcasm and being hostile.

Alissa

"Weird?" Alissa questioned, tilting her head at Kami. Well, yes, she was a little odd, but weird? Alissa certainly didn't think so! And Kami sure needed to know that!

"I don't think you're weird at all, Kami!" Alissa exclaimed cheerily. "You're a little odd, maybe, but you seem like a fun and normal girl to me! I'd be lucky to have you as a friend even, if you allowed me!"

"Odd"

So she was weird, after all. The girl before Kami was just to polite to say so. How could anybody think her anything but weird? To think her a monster?

She collapsed backwards, landing on her pillow, and pulled the covers back over her head.

"I'm not going," she mumbled.

Alchemy finally groaned and sat up on the sofa. She figured she should go to breakfast now, but realized she hadn't brushed her hair yet. She went up to the common room to fetch her hairbrush and schoolbag.
"Morning, All." she greeted the other Gryffindors. She went over to her bedside and brushed out her hair quickly.

~* Ash *~

Ash was already up and ready to go, looking forward to the day, though not so much for the studies. The classes usually bored Ash to death, but she could endure it. She just mostly looked forward to going outside and being in the warm daylight. The one class Ash did enjoy was Defense Against the Dark Arts.

Ash was just sitting on the bed until she saw Alchemy, her fellow fifth year, enter the dorm.

"Morning," she greeted as she walked up to her. "Ready for our first day?"

~* Quinn*~
Quinn woke up bright and early. She made her way down to the common room, carrying her book about magical creatures she got during the summer and saw Monica sitting alone.

"Good morning," she greeted her.

"I suppose, except for Transfiguration. I was always awful at Transfiguration." She mused.
"How about you?" She asked in return as she straightened her tie in the mirror, "ready for breakfast?"

Alissa

"You're not?" Alissa questioned with a puzzled look. "But you have to go! You're not sick or anything, are you, Kami?"

Edward

"You probably ought to wake soon, Quinton." Edward said to his fellow Sixth Year, giving an amused grin as she attempted to shake the boy awake. "Best to not be late to our first classes for the year!"

Nikola bounced into the Great Hall, humming to herself. Nothing in particular, just whatever notes popped into her head as she sat down. She looked around her to see if there was anybody she knew well enough to sit with after helping herself to a muffin and some pumpkin juice.