Edith Cahill and the Two Slytherins

‘I have two essays due already.’ Rhea groaned, sitting across from Edith at breakfast the next morning. ‘I think they are actually trying to kill us this year.’

‘I already got started on my Transfiguration essay.’ Edith informed her. ‘It’s absolutely killer.’

‘Oh god don’t say that!’ Siad Rhea. ‘I haven't even sniffed at mine.’

Edith was about to respond but was cut off by a very concerned looking Nadia Phillips, one of their dorm mates who came over and plonked herself down next to them. ‘Did you hear?’ She asked dramatically.

‘Hear what?’ Rhea asked.

Nadia drew in closer and rather dramatically. She was a nice enough girl, but had always had a flare for gossip. ‘A muggleborn first year in Ravenclaw was just taken into the hospital wing! Word is Avery tried to use an unforgivable on them!’

‘What?’ Edith said, shocked.

‘An unforgivable!?’ said Rhea, looking at Edith wide eyed. ‘Surely they’ll be expelled for that!’

‘Who knows?’ Nadia shrugged. ‘I mean that group has been targeting muggleborns since last year and nothing has really happened so far.’

Rhea shot Edith a worried glance that she ignored. ‘But Dumbledore can’t ignore that,’ Said Edith. ‘I mean it’s a step up from the usual hexing.’

Nadia shrugged, picking at some toast as she leant in again, ‘From what I’ve heard half the Slytherin lot are singing up.’

‘For what?’ Rhea asked.

Nadia rolled her eyes dramatically, ‘To be death eaters! Duh!’

Edith snorted. ‘Death eaters? Most of them aren't even seventeen yet! Plus Avery is an idiot. What’s You Know Who going to do with him? Scare muggleborns with his acne?’

Rhea on the other hand seemed to take the news much more seriously. ‘I don’t know Eddie. Haven’t you noticed how close they are this year? Always in corners whispering about stuff.’

Edith looked at her in mild exasperation. ‘Oh come off it. The Slytherins have always been like that! Look I’m not saying they aren't all on the road, that much is obvious. But death eaters now? Half of them still can’t turn a hedgehog into a pincushion.’

‘Well either way.’ Rhea said, still looking very worried. ‘You will be careful around them won’t you?’

Seeing her friend’s concern she nodded. ‘Of course I will be. But it’s not me I'm worried about. It’s Marty.’

Nadia, who both girls almost forgot was there, looked at them with interest. ‘Your brother? He’s in Slytherin right? I would be worried. If there's any truth in this they are stepping it up this year.’

Edith glanced over to the Slytherin table where Marty sat, his head buried in a book. The small Asian boy who sat next to him kept whispering to him under his breath, before looking around the room terrified.

‘I will check on him before class.’ Edith decided.

~

Edith did not in fact end up checking on her brother before class. She had managed to completely lose him in the rush of students leaving the great hall. She had tried to check on him after Herbology, but the boy seemed to disappear from sight as soon as she set foot in the corridor. Finally after a grueling double Transfiguration session, she managed to track him down as he was leaving Potions.

‘Marty!’ She yelled out, running over to him before she could lose him again. ‘Hey Mart. How was Potions?’

‘Good.’ Her brother said stiffly, avoiding her eyes completely.

Edith paused, growing slightly concerned. ‘Are you sure? I heard about what happened with that Ravenclaw first year and thought I’d make su-’

‘I told you I'm fine!’ He cut her off, glaring at her annoyed.

‘Okay.’ She said slowly, glancing at his friend who was looking around the corridor avoiding her eyes. ‘Are you sure? You know you can tell me if-’

‘Can you just leave me alone?’ He huffed. ‘I’m not a baby and I don’t need you smothering me every five bloody minutes!’

‘Mart-’

‘Seriously Edith!’ He said, with increasing volume. ‘There's nothing wrong! The only person giving me any trouble is you!’

‘I didn’t mean t-’

‘No you never mean to do anything.’ He huffed. ‘Just stop babying me okay? It’s hard enough without you following me around like a bad smell. If I want to talk, I’ll come to you, got it?’

And with that he huffed off toward the directions of the Slytherin common room, not looking back once. Leaving Edith completely shocked.

~

‘And then he stormed off in a complete huff!’ Edith whispered to Rhea while the two of them attempted to make a draught of the living death.

‘Well I did tell you to back off him a little.’ Rhea muttered back. ‘I mean he’s an eleven year old kid. Slytherin or not, no one wants their older sister poking around. It doesn't add many cool points.’

‘I’m cool!’ Edith protested.

Rhea just raised her eyebrows.

‘Okay well maybe not cool, cool. But he’s never had a problem before.’ Edith rolled her eyes. ‘No, something was off. He seemed almost scared to talk with me.’

‘Why don’t you ask Black?’ Rhea suggested, shrugging.

‘What?’ Edith stared at her, dumfounded. ‘What would he know about anything? They're not even in the same house.’

Rhea rolled her eyes, ‘Not Sirius you dolt. I meant Regulus Black! You know, the one you have perfect duty with tonight? The thing you’ve been complaining about all bloody week!’

Edith stole a glance at the boy in question. Regulus Black seemed to be more of a topic of conversation this year than in the last five years at Hogwarts combined. Black though, was blissfully unaware of the commotion he was causing as he stirred his potion.

‘Spouse, it’s not a bad idea.’ Edith muttered. ‘was nice enough about getting him for me after the sorting.’

‘There you go!’ Rhea said. ‘Just ask him tonight if he’s noticed anything. If that doesn't work, let little Cahill calm down a bit and try to talk to him again on the weekend.’

‘Okay, that actually sounds like a good plan.’ Edith muttered.

‘Brilliant.’ Said Rhea, peering down at their cauldron. ‘Wait were we meant to turn it anticlockwise or clockwise?’

‘Anticlockwise.’ Edith said, looking at the grey potion.

‘Shit.’

~

If Edith was being completely honest, she was shitting herself. Why? Even she didn’t really know. She had had very few interactions with Black over the past few years, none of them memorable whatsoever. But the boy was intimidating, and not one for conversation. Edith on the other hand, didn’t really know when to shut up. Something Rhea made her aware of quite often.

It was probably due to the fact she had to speak with him, and she wasn’t sure how receptive he would be to that. So as she rounded the coroner to meet him outside the prefect's common room for their patrol, she did what any good Hufflepuff in her situation would do, and decided to kill him with kindness.

‘Hey Black!’ She grinned widely, rounding the corner to find the boy already slumped against the wall.

‘Cahill.’ He replied, looking slightly confused.

Brilliant, great start Edith, she thought to herself. Still she plastered a wide smile on her face and addressed him again. ‘So ready to start?’

‘Sure.’ He said, gesturing for her to take the lead.

The two walked the track they had been given, an uncomfortable silence settling over them. Well Edith found it uncomfortable, Black on the other hand looked completely at ease.

‘How are you enjoying Potions?’ She tried.

‘It’s fine.’

‘Great.’ Edith muttered, looking down.

The silence took over them again. A suffocating silence that made Edith twitchy. Playing with the loose button on her cardigan, she tried to think of the best way to get the boy talking.

‘Not much of a talker aye?’ She said, before internally cursing herself. Why? Why in Godric’s name had she blurted that out?

‘Not when it’s unnecessary, no.’ He said in a frosty tone, eyeing her suspiciously.

‘My aunt Chrissy says I could talk to a brick wall and not notice it wasn’t responding.’ She said, sounding a bit deranged, even to herself.

‘Clearly she holds the brains of the family.’ Black responded, blank faced.

‘Ha ha, yeah. Well it definitely isn't Marty. Not that he’s dumb or anything he jus-’

‘If you want to ask about the wellbeing of your brother you can just cut to that. The back story really isn’t required.’ Black cut in, clearly fed up with her chatter.

Edith stared at him, slightly embarrassed he caught on so quickly and that she had made herself sound like a blundering idiot in the process. ‘Do you know how he’s holding up?’ She asked softly.

‘He seems fine mostly. Keeps to himself, doesn't talk to many of his pairs. I think most of them don't approve of his being there, so he stays alone a lot.’ Black explained, watching her out of the corner of his eye.

‘That's horrible!’ Edith gasped, guilt eating her up when she thought of how much it contrasted to her first few weeks at school.

‘Is it?’ Black replied, sounding genuinely confused. ‘I told him to avoid them. It’s his best chance.’

‘Why on earth would you tell an eleven year old that?’ Edith asked, outraged.

‘Because it’s the truth, and you know it. Or else you wouldn’t be following him around all the time to make sure he’s okay.’ Black rolled his eyes, looking slightly exasperated.

Edith opened her mouth, then paused. ‘I know.’ She conceded. ‘But I still worry. He won’t tell me anything. And he completely blew up at me today, saying I was embarrassing him.’

Black sighed, tiredly. ‘Look Cahill. The reality is your brother is in a very unique, if not unfortunate situation. You're right to be worried, but he’s right to tell you to butt out, you’ll only make it worse for him.’

‘But how else do I make sure he’s okay?’ Edith asked, the exhaustion from the last few days out weighing her embarrassment.

Black eyed her. ‘He needs to figure out how to survive. All Slytherins do. And having an older sister who is a Hufflepuff and a muggleborn bouncing around, screaming after him, will only re-establish that he’s different from the rest of them.’ He said rather bluntly.

Edith went to argue but thought better of it. As much as she didn’t like it, he had a point. One she had trouble accepting. ‘What do I do then?’ She said, sounding helpless.

Black looked very uncomfortable. ‘Let him be for a bit. If anything changes I’ll let you know.’

Edith nodded looking at him gratefully, which seemed to make the boy even more uncomfortable. ‘Thanks Black. I appreciate it. It’s hard, you know, being the older one. I can’t help but worry about him.’

‘Right.’ Said Black, sounding bitter.

Edith looked at him curiously before realizing the error of her words. Feeling slightly mortified, she decided to keep silent for the rest of the shift, not wanting to put her foot in it anymore than she already had. Soon enough they were back at the prefect’s common room.

‘Well thanks Black, for uh ya know.’

He nodded his head, though it looked more like an uncomfortable twitch.

‘Right, well. I’ll see you then.’ Edith smiled, then turned to leave, but his voice made her pause.

‘I’m sure he appreciates you trying.’

She turned to look at the boy, not hiding her curiosity, Black avoided her eyes completely.

‘Thank you. Good night Black.’ She smiled once more, and walked away.