Finally a Place for Peace

Leighton sat in one of the comfy chairs in the library. It was just after dinner, so Leighton knew that sooner or later people would be flooding the library for studying. Leighton didn't mind it though. As long as they weren't noisy or annoying, they wouldn't bother her. After her family died, Leighton became less uptight. She learned that there was no point in being high strung. It was just better if Leighton let things go and let people do as they wanted. Leighton knew that there was a way to manipulate people without causing a fuss. Now all she needed to do was figure out how. Her aunt Astoria would surely help her. Astoria was about as Slytherin as they come, which was saying a lot.

Flipping through a book about runes, Leighton scowled darkly. They held no interest for her anymore. Before everything bad happened, Leighton was curious about everything. She had that childhood curiosity that made her want to learn about everything she could get her hands on. Now, she didn't have an interest for most things. Instead of hating Quidditch, she loved it. It gave her a thrill that learning used to give her. Only it required less thinking. She was the seeker on the Slytherin team and she was good. It was an egotistic thing to say, but it was true. Leighton still loved Potions, but that was the only thing that she loved anymore. That and Quidditch. Leighton was disgusted in herself, but she couldn't help it.

Suddenly, she heard a loud bang. Jumping at the sound, Leighton snapped her head up, the scowl still on her face. "What the hell?" She seethed to herself, to softly for the person to hear. Looking at the person questioning, Leighton waited for them to apologize or explain their actions.

Lavender hadn't been paying attention as she walked along the bookcases, running a finger along the bindings curiously. Every so often she'd pick a book up and flick through, reading the first line, then the last line, before sticking her nose in it and sniffing. Something she did to see if the book would be any good. She was in the process of breathing in a books scent when she dropped it and it landed on the floor with a loud thud. This caused her to jump and knock an arm into the book case, causing another loud bang.

"Ouch! Bloody-" Lavender rubbed her arm, wincing. When she heard a voice her head snapped up to see Leighton looking thoroughly frustrated sitting in a near by chair. "Sorry," She put a hand up to indicate her apology before bending down to retrieve the book.

When Leighton noticed the girl was Lavender, her scowl dropped. She liked Lavender. The third year Slytherin was very tolerable and Leighton didn't mind being around her. Leighton felt bad that she snapped and someone who she was on friendly terms with.

"It's fine," Leighton stated, setting her book on the floor, looking up at Lavender. "I just snap when things surprise me." Leighton explained her actions. Spotting Lavender picking up the book, Leighton raised an eyebrow. "Found any good books yet?" Leighton wondered, subtly tilting her head to look at the title.

Lavender let out a breath she didn't know she'd been holding when Leighton's stern look disappeared.

"No worries, I am pretty clumsy," She shrugged admittedly. Lavender straightened herself up and brushed herself down, glancing back at her book when the blonde asked her question.

"Quite a few, yeah. This one's Quidditch Through The Ages, and I saw The Tales Of Beedle The Bard back there," She gestured over her shoulder. "I don't know whether you've read either of them?"

Leighton smirked at Lavender's statement. "That's one thing we have in common. I can't seem to walk without tripping over my own feet." Leighton stated, without much humor in her tone, just a nonchalant sarcasm. Leighton's voice sounded like that most of the time. And not just because she had an American accent.

"I've read The Tales of Beedle The Bard. It was my favorite book when I was younger." Leighton stated, feeling a bit winded thinking about her simple childhood. With her family still around. "I haven't read Quidditch Through the Ages though." Leighton said, snapping back to reality. "To be honest, when I was younger, I despised Quidditch."

Lavender made her way closer to Leighton, taking the seat opposite the blonde.

"Despise Quidditch? I could never," She shook her head, a small smile on her lips. "Yeah, my brother used to read it to me," There was a small silence as Lavender remembered what had happened to Leighton's family. She didn't want to upset the girl, or make her feel uncomfortable so changed the subject. "You haven't read it? You should give it a go, here," Lavender slid the Quidditch book across the table. "I've read it so many times I know it off by heart,"

Leighton laughed slightly at Lavender's statement. "I feel sort of guilty for not being a crazed Qudditch fan. I love playing the sport, yet it's boring to watch." Leighton smiled when Lavender mentioned her brother. "Tell me about your brother." Leighton wanted to hear about Lavender's family. Leighton's family was long gone, but she didn't mind hearing about others' families. It made Leighton feel like she had one again.

Stopping the book with her hands, Leighton flipped through it while Lavender talked. "I'm sure I'll enjoy this. It seems mildly interesting." Leighton said, setting the book back down. "Reading is one of my favorite pastimes. So, this won't be too much of a chore."

Lavender smiled, though a little hesitant about mentioning her brother. But Leighton didn't seem to mind so she wouldn't either.

"His name is Excalibur, he works at the Ministry. He's the only person I really get on with at home," She didn't really want to get into that. "I love reading too. I'm sure you'll enjoy it," Lavender smiled.

Leighton looked down at the book when Lavender talked about her brother. Deciding to bite the bullet, Leighton glanced up at Lavender. "Excalibur is such a unique name. My brother was only named Alyxander. I guess you could say it was unusual. Considering it was spelled A-L-Y-X-A-N-D-E-R." Leighton shrugged, surprised by how easy it was to talk about him.

Smirking, Leighton chuckled. "Finally, someone else who enjoys the beauty of reading!" Leighton fake exclaimed, earing a glare from the librarian. Leighton sneered when the librarian turned around. People around here were so uptight.

Lavender listened to the blonde intently.

"That is a very unique spelling," She nodded with a small snigger, it was a nice name though. "I've met a few people who like reading, and a few who don't. It seems to be a bit like marmite," Lavender then stopped herself, not knowing if Leighton would have heard of the saying. She'd only heard of it when her brother had explained it to her one day.

Leighton smiled. "My cousin hates reading. She is supposed to be here this year, but I have a feeling she convinced her mom to transfer her to another school. Lachlan didn't seem to like it here that much. I miss her, but it's nice not having her here." Leighton explained. "A marmite?" Leighton wondered, suddenly feeling very stupid. She had no clue what Lavender was talking about. Hopefully the girl would explain it for her.

Lavender nodded smiling, until Leighton asked about the marmite comment. So she didn't know.

"Oh, sorry. It's a muggle thing. They say that people either like marmite or they don't 'love it or hate it'," She shrugged slightly. "It's a sandwich filling," Lavender added quickly, in case the blonde didn't know that either.

Leighton made a little 'oh' with her mouth. "Is it a English thing? Because, while I'm well aware of Muggle things, I live in the States which explains my American accent." Leighton explained, rubbing the top of her nose. "I'm only educated with American Muggle things." Leighton stated with a slight chuckle.

"Have you ever been to the States?" Leighton wondered politely.

Lavender made an 'ahh' sound when Leighton explained. How did she not pick up on the accent before?

"Maybe it's called something else in America?" She shrugged. "I have, once. We mainly stayed in Las Vegas then Florida. Where abouts are you from?" Lavender rested her elbow on the table and her chin on her hand. America had been an amazing place, she'd loved it. Excalibur had taken her out just the two of them many times while there parents had stayed in the hotel. The memories were wonderful to behold.

"Well, I'm not from American necessarily. I was born in Ireland, but moved to New York when I was four. I consider myself from American since I've lived there for most of my life." Leighton stretched out her legs and set her chin on her hand. "I've been to Seattle. I love it almost as much as I love New York. The roads are so confusing and it's just so... different." Leighton didn't know if Lavender knew about Seattle. Even though it was a major city, it wasn't very popular.

Lavender held the wrist under her chin with her other hand as Leighton spoke.

"Oh right," She smiled with an understanding nod. "I've always wanted to go to New York," Lavender stated with a grin. The blonde girl in front of her was very pretty, she couldn't help but stare. Until a flash of red hair crossed her mind and she looked away from Leighton quickly. Pretending to find something on the wood of the table very interesting.

Leighton smiled at Lavender. "I would invite you to my house, but I don't have on there anymore." Leighton stated, smirking bitterly. "You probably have heard about my family's death. Yep, they burned to the ground along with my childhood house." Leighton sighed softly before smiling at Lavender.

Yawning slightly, Leighton rubbed her eyes. "I'm going back to New York soon though. I'm excited since I'm going with my aunt. If you want, I could ask if you want to go." Leighton offered, not minding if she agreed to it or not. It wouldn't be a big deal to Leighton either way. It was completely Lavender's choice.

Lavender nodded sadly.

"I did," She felt sorry for the girl. Though couldn't help but admire how strong she seemed to be. How well she was coping with it. If her family died, and she knew this sounded awful, but she possibly wouldn't mind. They were all horrible people. Except her brother. If her rbother died...she didn't want to think about it. When Leighton spoke again a smile crossed her lips. "Really? I would love that," Lavender grinned.

Leighton nodded in acknowledgement. So, Leighton was right, people have heard about her family. Well, that was just great. Now people were going to give her sympathy. Yet, Lavender didn't seem to be offering any apologizes. Which was exactly what she wanted. Leighton felt oddly grateful for that.

When she accepted her invitation, Leighton grinned, revealing her unusually sharp canines due to her... issue. "Awesome, I'll owl my aunt soon. It will be nice going with a friend."

Lavender grinned, surprised at the invite but very glad to accept it. Leighton and herself had become quite good friends in a short time, though she didn't mind, it was nice. There was also something nice about hanging out with someone other than Hester. Of course, she enjoyed being with Hester, how could she not? But they needed to be apart for some time at least. She still wasn't sure if anyone knew about her and Hester, surely people wouldn't be talking to her if they did. Maybe Leighton would retract her invite when she did.

"Okay, great!" She smiled gratefully.

Leighton smiled happily. She was glad that she had a friend other than Lyssa and her cousin. Even though Lyss was her best and closest friend, she needed others considering Lyss didn't go to Hogwarts anymore. Neither did Lachlan. So, having Lavender as a friend was a good thing.

Deciding something very quickly, Leighton leaned forward. "Alright, since we're become good friends it seems, I feel like I should tell you something." Leighton took a deep breath. "My mom, before she died, was a little bit of a mad potions experimenter. She wanted to invent a potion, similar to Poly Juice. Well, it would make her an animagus without having to go through all the training. She didn't know it when she drank it, but she was pregnant with me. Now, I am an animagus in a way. I can't transform at will and it's rare. But, I am." Leighton hoped the girl didn't think she was crazy. "I have a birthmark to prove it." Leighton lifted up her long blonde hair and showed Lavender the dark purple rose petal birthmark. "Now you know."

Lavender listened closely as Leighton seemed to divulge a personal secret. She felt honoured. It was a slight surprise, but interested her more than anything. They lives in a world full of magic, so not many things did surprise her these days.

"That's pretty cool," Lavender smiled. "When does it happen? Is there anything that triggers it? Like strong emotions or something like that?" The questions kept coming, but she didn't want to overwhelm the blonde or seem too nosy.

Leighton digested Lavender's questions, happy that the girl wasn't freaked out. Lavender was a lot like Alyssa and that made Leighton happy. "I honestly don't know. It happened when I started getting magic, I know that much. I can remember sitting in my family's old library and instead of lighting the books on fire like most kids who are discovering their magic first do, I turned into black panther cub. My mother, father, and friend Lyssa are the only ones who know about it. Well, and now you." Leighton stated with a smile. "The last time I changed was last summer, with Lyss actually. I kind of just woke up and was like that. I want to master it, but I have no clue how." Leighton admitted, smiling sheepishly.

Lavender nodded in understanding, finding it all very interesting.

"Oh I see," She tried to think of something to help the blonde. It was proving difficult. "I'd be happy to help you master it. I'll look for some books on the subject, that seems like a good place to start," Lavender smiled, glancing around at the bookcases surrounding them. It was even a surprise to herself, offering to research. It wasn't something she usually did, especially not when she had to like for class. So now offering to do it for no such reason... Lavender baffled even herself sometimes.

Leighton smiled when Lavender offered to help. "Thanks, that's great." Leighton said to her. Leighton hadn't even thought of looking to books for help. She didn't like research all that much and she thought, since her mother had made a hybrid potion, that there would be nothing to help. Yet, maybe there was some books that could help her. And, if she needed, she would ask a teacher for a pass for the Restricted Section. Even though she doubted she would need it.

"How about you, any secrets?" Leighton joked, smiling at her friend, wanting to keep the conversation rolling.