A Second Draft

Sola nodded at her shock, it made sense. Both the shock at the pictures, and their contents. "I figured you might have noticed the moving portraits by now," she said, but shook her head.

"Azkaban is a wizard prison. The only wizard prison is Britain, I might add. I don't know why there are others... there should be." She frowned. The pictures made one sad at first, but she knew most of those people deserved to be there. Former Death Eaters, yes, and those who used magic on Muggles. But there should've been an alternative.

"It was built by this evil wizard who liked to lure in sailing Muggles and do bad things to them. He had these things called Dementors that served as his guards." She shrugged. "I don't know much about them except that they feed on happy thoughts and can kill you if you kiss them. When the Ministry found the evil Wizard, they took the prison, and they had this brilliant idea: let's use this as our prison. That sounds like a great idea."

She couldn't help a bitter, humourless laugh. "It really bit them back when the Dementors turned on them in the Second War," she said. "They've become less than guards, now. Aurors guard the prison now, but the Dementors are still there, and no one has really put any effort into getting rid of them."

Heather let a small laugh. "So it's like a kiss of death...honestly, it sounds quite cruel. But I guess those wizards did some really bad things," answered the girl, remembering she had read something about The Second War, just before she came to Hogwarts. Yet, she still didn't really understand what happened back then. "Still, I think they could have done something else to punish them. I mean, if they keep torturing and killing the prisoners, how are they better than them?" Trailing off, and letting the rhetorical question unanswered, Heather smiled softly at Sola, and suddenly she realized that tonight, she may have made her first friend. Though, it was too early to tell that. Shrugging, the blonde inhaled some air and looked at the sky. It was getting late, and some stars could already be seen up there, shining brightly. Soon, she would have to go back to the castle, there was still a little more time. Trying to move from this subject, which she felt it was getting way too darker for two eleven-year-olds, she turned to her new acquaintance. "Anyways, why are you so anxious about writing to your father? I bet he cannot wait to hear about your experience at Hogwarts. Was he a student here, too?"

"Oh, they have done some really bad things," she said, pointing out a few of them. "This one," she pointed to a pock-marked grey-haired wizard, "leaked secrets to You-Know-Who from the Ministry, and this one," she pointed to a man with a crown of bushy grey hair, "he killed an entire family.

"And this one," she pointe to a toad-faced witch with mousy brown hair, "she had countless Muggleborns imprisoned during the second war. I also heard she used to teach here. And that one--"

Her finger landed on a picture of a man who looked like he was once handsome, but was now hollow-cheeked with sunken eyes. He had long, dark hair that now looked mangy, and black eyes. Despite his position, he was smiling at the camera, not in a deranged way, but not quite pleasantly. Sola paused, not speaking for a moment. "They've... they've all done pretty bad things," she finally said.

The girl, seeing her discomfort, decided to change the subject. "Yes, he actually began his First Year in 1998, the year of the Battle of Hogwarts. It was definitely a hard year, but after seeing all that he had, he was determined to become an Auror." She smiled fondly, remembering when she visited the Ministry once on Bring Your Kid To Work Day. Of course, the Ministry was as far as she got to see. "He was in Hufflepuff."

Even though she acted as if she didn't, Heather noticed Sola's pause in speech and instantly seemed to understand that something is wrong. Though, she wasn't close enough with the girl to actually pry into her life; she felt something was different about that prisoner. Deciding that there will be another time to ask her, Heather focused back on what Sola was saying, having spaced out for a moment.
When the girl mentioned the Hufflepuffs, the taller girl lightened up visibly. "Santo Cielo! My father was in Hufflepuff too, though he always wanted to be in Gryffindor," the girl suddenly stopped, awkwardly. "Actually, to be honest, at first, when I was at the Sorting Ceremony, I really wanted to be in Gryffindor, too. You know, so I could live the life my father always wanted. And the hat almost placed me there, but..." Heather smiled, seeing a falling star on the sky. She felt her father was there with her, closer than they've ever been. "But in the last moment I understood that my father would have wished for me not to live what he couldn't, but what I was destined to live. I guess, and I have a hunch that I don't speak just for my dad, that even though some wizard parents prefer one house over another, they are still happy for their children, no matter where are they placed.", finished Heather, winking and giving a knowing smile. She did not know what upest Sola, that was true, but she felt it was something related to the house she had been placed in.



Santo Cielo= Goodness Gracious

Sola noticed the shooting star and smiled. She'd never seen one before... well, not a real one. Wizards sometimes made shooting stars for celebration, even though they really weren't meant to.

"My dad just wished me luck when I went off. He said he hoped I studied hard and that all I hoped would come true... but so far, none of it has." She frowned, folding up the prophet, setting it aside before she laid back, letting her head rest on the grass. "I'm in Slytherin, and I'm not sure what to do about it. I barely have any friends, and I know it's only a matter of time before someone starts calling me a Blood Traitor or something."

She sighed. "Do you ever just feel alone, or at least isolated? Like, you have to stay alone to stay safe?" She didn't know why she was telling her feelings to a person she just met, but it wasn't like she could put them on the message boards in her Dorm. She felt like she was stuck with no way forward, and she couldn't move. Maybe it would've been better to talk to someone about it, but she didn't know who. She couldn't be sure no one would judge her.

@Heather Blair Moretti

Heather stared at Sola. Strangely, she felt like she understood the girl. Not completely, but in a similar way, they were facing the same problems and had the same feelings. Nodding and smiling bitterly, the blonde girl inhaled. "I am always afraid to get closer to people, the ones who I love the most get hurt. Once, I really started to believe that I bring misfortune. You know, an unlucky child. And I still believe that sometimes, but I try...I try to be positive. Looking down, Heather continued Truth to be told, I think that Slytherins are pretty cool, you know? And I'm not saying this just to make you feel better, I really like how ambitious they are! It's just a matter of time until you will find your path here, trust me. And about friends, I am sure that you will find many more, once everyone gets settled in. You are a nice girl, so it won't be hard. And if not...you have me. We'll be both two blood traitors, I guess" finished Heather, looking down and laughing. Standing up, and giving Sola her hand, she glanced at the Castle. "Let's go, it's getting late, and the prefect is already mad at me!"

Sola smiled a bit at the encouragement. She could understand what she was saying. But Sola's real worry was that she would eventually like where she was, and she didn't want to. She felt she belonged in Hufflepuff, but she couldn't really tell any of her fellow Slytherins that because they might reject her.

Maybe she could get along with this girl, though. She wasn't in Slytherin, so they wouldn't see each other all the time, but it was a start. She also seemed like she didn't know much about the magical world, so perhaps Sola could be of help to her.

She accepted the girl's hand and stood up, being sure to scoop up her letter and her copy of the Propher. "You're probably right," she said. She didn't feel like returning to the Common Room, but it was definitely getting late and she didn't want the attention of being in trouble. "Thanks," she said to the girl - Heather. "Maybe we can eat together in the Great Hall or something." Though as she pondered that, she didn't know if it would be a good idea for a Ravenclaw at the Slytherin table, or a Slytherin at the Ravenclaw table.

Heather smiled, happy about how she spent her evening. Looking at the Slytherin girl, she nodded enthusiastically. "I would love to! But, erm, it would be weird if we left our tables to come to each other. We could meet in the Library, or just like tonight, by the Great Lake" proposed Heather. Walking along Sola and making small talk, the girls arrived at the end of their road together. Turning to Sola, the taller girl pondered her next step. What was their relationship now? Were they friends? Aquaintances? Or was she annoying the Slytherin girl all this time? This thought made blood rush to Heather's cheeks. What if she was too nosy? I, well, I apologize if, you know, I was too nosy or annoying." Looking down at her feet Heather frowned a little and shrugged. "But I want you to know that I enjoyed talking to you, even though our chat wasn't about the happiest subjects." Hesitating a moment, unsure if she was overstepping her boundaries, Heather bit her lip, and awkwardly hugged Sola. "I really hope we'll see each other soon!" Saying this, Heather bid goodbye to the girl, and returned to her Common Room. There, she thought about the events that happened that night. Even though she didn't understand her fully yet, after all she had a lot of things Heather only could dream of, Sola made an impression on the Ravenclaw. Smiling softly, she decided to try to get to know her more next time they met.

"Oh, no, not at all," Sola said. She wasn't too nosy. Of course, she didn't probably wouldn't know even if she was."I really enjoyed meeting you." And she meant that. She hadn't really made any other friends this year. Well, there was that one awkward talk with that Hufflepuff in the Clocktower Courtyard, but they didn't really talk much at all.

"Maybe when we meet next we can talk about Hogwarts. It's pretty confusing, but I've read some history books and I'm definitely dying to share what I know." She assumed a Ravenclaw would appreciate that.

After they parted ways, Sola headed back to her Common Room in the Dungeons. The route there was always cold and chilly, and she had to bundle up her robes around her. Of course, once one was out of the passageway it warmed up. She headed over to the bare stretch of stone wall she knew to be the location of the Common Room and spoke the password.

That night had to be the one night she felt cheerful. The Parkinson Dorm didn't look too foreboding. She actually spoke to some people. She was quite proud of herself. And before she went to bed, she took out her letter and her self-inking quill, and finished her letter to her dad.