I Don't Give a Fuck about My Family Name
Kara sighs softly as she makes her way through the hall, head down, Runes book clutched tightly to her chest. Her sister, Alex, had managed to win the Quidditch cup for Gryffindor and of course everyone wanted a chance to talk to her; which meant most were bugging the younger girl. She glances up only to make sure she doesn’t miss her hallway, internally cringing as a small group of Slytherin girls make their way toward her, blocking her path.
“Oh, look it’s little Danvers,” A red head sneers, clearly the leader of the childish girls.
“Uh...can I help you?” Kara asks softly, hugging her book tighter as the three move into her personal bubble.
“We were just wondering how you managed to turn out to be such a disappointment, I mean you are a Danvers after all, we all thought for sure you’d be good at something ,” The girl snorts and Kara can feel her lower lip tremble as she tries to step back, only to find that she's not that far from the wall.
“Leave her be, it’s not her fault that she’s not real Danvers,” One of the other girls chortles as Kara’s back hits the stone behind her.
Before they can advance further, before Kara’s defenses break, there’s a voice to her left, strong and commanding, echoing off the flagstone. “Leave her alone or I’ll make sure you all spend the night in the hospital wing,” The girl demands and soon the girls are scrambling to move, disappearing around the corner.
Kara turns slowly, eyes going wide as they land on her savior. “L-Lena?” She stammers, all but cowering into the wall behind her. “Why-you helped me...”
“Why wouldn’t I? Just because they’re in my house doesn’t mean I condone them bullying people,” Lena answers, stepping back so the girl doesn’t feel cornered. “Besides...it’s the least I can do.”
Kara pushes away from the wall slowly, nodding a bit as the tone of Lena’s voice settles in her head and she knows this girl is trying to make up for something far out of her control. “Thank you,” Kara says warmly, offering the sixth year a bright smile. “I’ve got to get to Runes, but we should hang out sometime, talk.”
And with that she’s all but bouncing away, thoughts straying to dark hair, blue-grey eyes and lips the color of cabernet. Kara had never really understood the young Luthor, or perhaps it was other people’s opinions of Lena that she didn’t understand. While she understood why some would cringe at the name simply because of Lex, she couldn’t quite grasp why people would use it against her. Lena was not her brother, nor her corrupt mother, she was simply herself and Kara was determined to make sure Lena knew she would not hold the actions of her family against her.
Once classes are over, Kara happily makes her way to the common room to drop her things off, jumping when her sister pops out right in front of the entrance. “Merlin! You scared me to death!” She huffs, shoving the older girl.
Alex grins wide, waiting for Kara to open the entrance, arms crossed. “Your face is doing that serious thing it does when you’re about to chew me out,” Kara groans after tapping the correct pattern on a seemingly random barrel, allowing the brunette to crawl through the small passageway first. “Please don’t lecture me today, I didn’t even do anything...”
“I heard you and Luthor talked today,” Alex says softly as they head to the dorms, settling on Kara’s bed when they do. “What did she want?”
Kara lets out a hard sigh as she drops her things on her trunk. “She didn’t want anything, she kept a few Slytherin girls from being jerks to me,” She huffs out as she changes out of her robes, pulling on a pair of jeans and a sweater before settling her glasses back onto the bridge of her nose. Trying to ignore the pang in her chest as she thinks about what the girls had said.
“Oh? A Luthor just stood up for you then?” Alex asks incredulously, throwing her arms up as Kara continues to get ready for dinner.
The blonde audibly growls as she rounds on her sister, glaring at the older girl. “Her name is Lena and she had nothing to do with what her brother did to my family, she is not her last name and I will not listen to you sit here and act like she is a monster just because of her name!” She shouts, magic dancing across her clenched knuckles. “Names do not define us,” Is the last thing she says before turning on her heel, storming out of the dorm.
Kara is in such a huff that she doesn’t pay any mind to the rush of students coming through the Entrance Hall, promptly running head first into a body, the force of which lands them both on the floor. “Merlin’s sagging left-Lena...wow, I’m so sorry!” Kara exclaims as she scrambles to move off of the older girl, cheeks burning red.
“Don’t apologize, are you alright?” Lena asks softly, brows raised at the flustered witch as she moves from the ground, offering the blonde a hand. “Where are you off to in such a rush?”
“I’m fine, promise,” Kara replies, taking the offered hand with a grateful smile, allowing the other girl to pull her up. “Uh-well, Alex and I had a fight but she was in my dorm so I ran out, which probably sounds stupid considering but...I needed out of there or I might have lost my temper,” She rambles out, her nose wrinkling as she thinks back on the argument.
Lena frowns slightly, but nods nonetheless, “Well, since it’s nearly dinner time, I suppose there are worse places you could have run off to,” She murmurs in an attempt to lighten the mood.
Kara smiles slightly, head tilting as Lena’s brow furrows at her and before she knows it there’s a wand pointed in her face. Her heart stops in her chest for a moment before Lena utters the charm, a warm smile on her lips. “Oculus reparo,” She murmurs with a slight flick of her wrist. “Your glasses were a bit bent.”
Kara pulls the spectacles off her face to inspect them, fingers running over the smooth frames. “T-thanks,” she murmurs, cursing the nervous stammer.
“I actually didn’t know you wore glasses, I don’t think I’ve ever seen you with them,” Lena says as she gestures toward the entrance to the Great Hall before starting toward it.
“Oh! I usually use a charm for my vision, but it’s a strain after a while, not just on my magic but on my eyes, I’d usually wait until after dinner, but today has been a bit...taxing,” Kara explains, frowning just a bit.
“Why not just wear glasses all the time?” Lena asks as they walk into the Great Hall and she finds herself being towed along by the blonde toward the Hufflepuff table. She doesn’t argue though when she’s all but plopped onto the bench next to the fifth year, because Kara is flashing a smile at her that makes her feel warm and she’s not sure she could ever bring herself to part with this feeling.
“I got bullied a lot as a kid for them, that and they fog up during potions so...” Kara explains with a shrug, settling into her seat, ignoring the looks she receives from a few of her housemates, though she’s proud to see that her friend Winn is not among them.
“You can charm them to not fog up, you know that right?” Lena asks with a chuckle, shaking her head as she leans her head in her hand, watching this human ray of sunshine pull food toward them. “And for what it’s worth, I think they look good on you.”
Kara blushes at the compliment as she shrugs a bit, trying to play off her embarrassment. “I guess I never thought about charming them...” She admits before all but stuffing a roll into her mouth, giving her an excuse not to talk for a moment.
Lena smiles at this, shaking her head a bit. “Use the impervious charm on them before you go into potions, should help,” She says, glancing around the hall to find that most people were staring. “But, I think I’ve overstayed my welcome, perhaps we could meet by the lake tomorrow during a free period?”
Kara swallows down the dry mess in her mouth, wincing a bit before nodding. “Yeah, I have one for my fifth block, if you can do it, we could meet then, I can bring snacks!” She replies excitedly, thinking of her house elf friends who would gladly help her make a picnic basket.
Lena nods, running a hand through her hair. “That’s my free period too,” The lie comes easily, knowing her professor won’t even notice she’s missing. “I’ll meet you under the big tree then, okay?”
Kara grins, getting up when Lena does to wrap her arms around the girl, pulling her into a tight bear hug. “Thank you again for helping me today, I’ll see you soon,” She murmurs before releasing the brunette.
Lena can feel everyone’s gaze on her as she smiles at the blonde and pats her head affectionately before taking her leave, that warmth from the fifth year lingering in her chest long after they’ve parted.