Dirty Mouth, Dirty Blood [h.g]

sixteen

16

Then

Carina looked down at the small kitten in her arms. It was cute; she quite liked it.

Carina was five years old and still hadn't shown a glimmer of magic. Her parents were holding out hope for her, praying she wasn't a squib. But Carina really didn't seem magical. She didn't seem like much at all. Carina didn't particularly like to speak, she would much rather point at the things she wanted. And even then, Carina didn't ask for much.

So when Carina had asked to take in the stray kitten, Narcissa was all but thrilled.

Carina stroked the kitten roughly, not understanding her own strength. She liked its light green eyes, they reminded Carina of her own. When the kitten, content, took a small nap on the ground beside the girl, Carina was upset. She wanted to see the kitten's eyes again.

Carina pried the kitten's eye open with her fingers, much to the kitten's displeasure. The kitten bit down on Carina's finger, drawing blood and causing the young girl to let out a screech.

Carina pointed the bloody finger at the kitten menacingly, and a drop of Carina's blood dropped into its fur. The kitten keeled over, as if hit by the killing curse, and Carina's parents watched her with wide eyes.

Carina was more powerful than they had imagined.

She just preferred to do things as simply as possible.

Now

"So, is Draco a Death Eater?" Harry asked again, causing Carina to take a deep, settling breath. It was their first Hogsmeade visit and she had been hoping to enjoy herself, but to no avail.

"For the last time, Potter, I don't know. I know my parents want him to be, but I don't know if he's taken it yet."

"So he could have!"

"I don't know what you want from me, Potter," Carina snapped, "if you couldn't tell, I've been disowned. So excuse me for not having inside information."

"I just thought..." Harry trailed off, clearly stressed.

"It's okay, trying anything for the first time is hard."

Hermione gave Carina a look, and the Slytherin's expression softened. "If I find out anything, Potter, you'll be the first to know."

Harry nodded, satisfied, and started to chatter about Quidditch to Ron, leaving the females to themselves.

"I don't know you put up with them, 'Mione."

Hermione slapped Carina lightly. "Excuse you, I happen to like them. Even if they are a tad moronic at times."

Carina murmured her agreement, smiling down at Hermione who returned the look tenfold.

A piercing scream brought them back to reality as Katie-Bell was lifted into the air.

Carina, sensing they were in harm's way, grabbed Hermione by the arm and pulled the two a few feet away so she could analyze the situation.

A glint caught her eye, and Carina recognized the jewelry around Katie-Bell's neck as the same necklace Draco had purchased at Borgin and Burke's. "Oh, fuck," she whispered.

Carina's moment of shock was enough for Hermione to tear herself away and help Ron pull Katie-Bell down. Within a minute, Harry was back with Hagrid who immediately scooped up Katie and turned back towards the castle in a sprint.

Carina's hand was shaking as she stood off to the side, scared for her brother and the trouble he would be getting into if they traced the curse back to him. Carina wasn't about to tell on him, but Hermione would without looking back. The girl was ruthless when she wanted to be, and while Carina had to respect Hermione for it, she could only hope there would be no proof.

Draco ended up getting off scotch-free as McGonagall confirmed his alibi: that Draco had been in detention all day with her. But as soon as Carina could breathe easily once again, Hermione went off on her.

"Why in the world would you pull me away from Katie? She was hurt! Why are Slytherins all such cowards?"

Carina laced anger into her voice, though it stayed at a deadly whisper. "Being a Slytherin doesn't mean we are cowards, it means we know when to be brave and when to keep ourselves out of danger. For all we knew, that curse would spread to whomever touched Katie. And, though this may come as a surprise to you, I don't give a fuck about Katie's well-being. I do, however, give a fuck about yours."

Hermione pouted before kissing Carina softly. "I get it. And I guess I forgive you. But if you ever try that again..."

Hermione didn't need to finish her sentence; the meaning was evident to Carina.

But Carina was never going to stop trying. Not in the middle of a war. Not when one move could be the difference between life and death.

Carina kissed Hermione again, the only way she could think of doing: like there was no tomorrow.

In a war, tomorrow was never guaranteed.