Belladonna

“Come on, Bella!” Filipe insisted running through the King’s Cross Station. “We will be late. We have to arrive before the train leaves!”

“The train is not going to leave us” she calmed him down, as they walked through the muggles in the other stations.

They were alone. Their father had to work and she was old enough to walk through the streets of London with no adult supervision. Plus, Braulio started his medicine practices that very same day. So, it was Ofelia and Filipe only, as they traveled through the English muggle station.

“Tom says it is important to arrive on time to give a good impression” Filipe explained before crossing the magical barrier that took them to the Hogwarts Express.

“See? I told you the train was not going to leave us” Ofelia pointed to the big, scarlet locomotor, which stood bright in front of them. “And Riddle can kiss my arse.”

Filipe laughed to himself and then whispered. “He said you would say something like that.”

This was Ofelia’s year. Not because she had an Outstanding in all of her OWLs -mind you, beating only Minerva in Potions-, but because this year for the first time in her studies carrier there was no Tom Riddle. Free was the best word to describe the feeling she had walking inside the train with her little brother behind her.

“I have duties to fulfill” Ofelia turned to her brother when they arrived to the prefects’ carriage. “But I'll look for you at lunch.”

“Yes, yes, I’ll find the first years. Don’t worry about me.”

As she watched her brother walk down the small corridor, she wondered if she was doing the right thing. In her first year, Braulio wouldn't let her alone for more than five minutes. She remembered hating that feeling of restriction, so maybe it was for the best if she did not add that kind of pressure to him. At the end of the day, she wasn't Braulio and Filipe wasn't her.

“Oi, oi!”

“You don’t need to be that loud, Potter.”

“You don’t need to have that silly, old frown in your face, but you do” he grabbed her cheeks and squeezed them.

“I’m just worried about my brother.”

“Don’t be” he declared like it was as simple as that. “This is going to be the best year: no Tom Riddle to bother you, plenty of ladies to bother me. We have a band, you’re joining the D-Club and we’re part of the Scamander’s army. Best year.”

“Who said I was joining the D-Club?”

Potter stared at her wondering if she was only kidding, so that he could punch her in the arm. It was nice the relationship that they had developed over the past few months. Potter was an only child. The closest thing he had to having brothers were the lads he shared a room with at Hogwarts. Ofelia knew very well what it meant to have siblings, specially brothers. Stinky, lunatic, annoying brothers. But with Potter, she had developed that fraternal link without all the misfortunes of having an actual brother. It was similar to her relationship with Druella and Walburga.

They entered the Prefect’s carriage were the new Head Boy and Head Girl were waiting to give the instructions. The new fifth year prefects were there as well, excited to take the new step. Abraxas had not arrived yet, but the Slytherin fifth years did. They waved at her, looking for her guidance as the older prefect. But she decided to stay with Potter. She was not particularly fond of Mulciber and Lestrange. All of a sudden, she heard a distant laughter coming from the other side of the carriage. Was it too much of a stalker to admit that she would recognise Minerva’s laughter anywhere? Eager burned her chest as she turned to see the girl, she had been dreaming of her all summer long. After their encounter in the Black’s beach house, they had not spoken ever since. She was not sure if she was supposed to write to her, maybe it was a one-time thing and she did not want to look desperate. But she couldn’t help to feel disappointed when she never received a letter from the Gryffindor girl either.

This is going to be my year, she told herself as she turned to McGonagall, only to find the reason she was laughing. There she was, leaning towards Poppy Pomfrey laughing about something that she said. Ofelia felt her world collapse.

“Oh, yeah, I was going to talk to you about it” Potter said with a soft voice. “But you never brought Minerva into our conversations, so I figured you didn’t care.”

“Are-are they back together?”

“Yes...” he nodded carefully. “They got back like a week or so after our weekend in Hastings. I don’t really remember.”

So, while she was wondering about their little moment, McGonagall was snogging her ex-girlfriend, who didn’t understand her like she could.

“Do you mind?”

“No, no, they can do whatever they want...”

Ofelia never cared for the sorting ceremony before. Of course, she had cared when it had been her turn to stand up and wear the magic hat. However, for the following years, the sorting was just a procedure that took place right before dinner time. It was something that was keeping her from tasting the sweet, delicious pork. That night she could only wonder what her brother was thinking. Was he nervous? Had he already made friends with the other first years? But even years past that moment, she would keep on wondering what her brother felt when he was sorted. 

“You deserve to be upset about it, y'know?” Druella whispered in her ear.

“About what?”

“About McGonagall and Pomfrey.”

She hadn’t told her friends about her encounter with Minerva, she didn’t know how to explain it to them. But Chuck had told Potter about it, so the possibilities of him telling Walburga were high. And if Walls knew, she had probably told it to Druella as well. What a bunch of gossip addicts her friends were.

“Well, you deserve to feel upset about marrying Cygnus too, but you keep on pretending like everything’s fine."

“Don’t need to be so rough about it” Druella retorted and then went back to look at the sorting ceremony.

“Rizzo, Filipe.”

The youngest of the Rizzos appeared in front of everyone’s eyes, as one of the professors handed him the hat. Braulio and Ofelia had grown up thinking that they would study in Beauxbattons. That they would go to the same house as all their family had done: Ombrelune. Imagine the disappointment when they arrived at Hogwarts. Every old family belonged in a house already, but they were like a blank space on paper. No history. But Filipe didn’t suffer that, he didn’t even remember the night his mother died. He was a baby! Of course, that didn’t make him less part of the tragedy. It just made him different to his brother and sister.

“GRYFFINDOR!!”

Ofelia couldn’t believe her ears. How was she supposed to take care of her brother when he was in the other side of the castle? Even worse, she and Braulio had said bad things about Gryffindor for years. Her Slytherin friends couldn't help by laughing, mocking the Italian girl for her luck. After the feast, after leaving her trunk in her room, she left her common room and climbed the stairs to get to the Gryffindor tower. At the end of the day, she was a prefect and she was allowed to walk wherever she wanted.

“Password” the portrait of the heavy lady sang when she got close. “Oh, go away, you are no Gryffindor!”

“Listen, I need to talk to someone inside. Can you go look for them?”

“That is not how it works” the lady barked and then went back to her horrible singing.

“Bitch” she murmured and she went back to the dungeons.

She had to wait until the next day to see her brother. He was sitting in the Gryffindor table right next to his roommates, she assumed.

“Hey, Rizzo! Came to say good morning?”

“I’m busy, Potter” she ignored him. “Hey, fratellino! Are you Ok? I tried looking for you yesterday, but you were already in your common room.”

“Bella! Lads, this is my sister” he introduced her with such enthusiasm that she noticed she was worrying for nothing.

“So, are you Ok then?”

“Yes, we start with Transfigurations in 20 minutes” he smiled.

“Great! Don’t listen to anything that Professor Dumbledore says. The man is nuts.”

“Oi, stop sharing fake propaganda with our first years, Rizzo. That’s sabotage!” Longbottom yelled at her. “Don’t listen to what she says, kids.”

“Don’t listen to him either. He doesn’t know his butt from his elbow.”

“Oi!”

“Well, she’s right about something” Minerva agreed, which made the two girls share a smile.

It was the first time since summer that they would be near each other.

“I swear I hate this new friendship that is going on between you two” Ames lamented, as he went back to his breakfast.

“Good luck on your first day” Ofelia wished to his little brother and then she grabbed Potter so that he would stand up. Not letting him finish his meal.

“Bella, I’m hungry!”

“Please, promise me that you’ll look after my brother” Ofelia begged when they had left the Great Hall. “He’s a sensitive boy, y’know. He is a Pisces.”

“Yes, of course” he accepted in a serious tone and then he smirked. “Relax, mumma bear. I’ll guide him from water sign to water sign.”

“Remind me again why I’m friends with a Scorpio.”

“Why I’m friends with an Aries is the true prerogative.”

In response, Ofelia punched him in the arm and they went to class laughing. A safe space free from acolytes and Tom Riddle.