take on the world
just say the word,
we'll take on the world
just say you're hurt,
we'll face the worst
nobody knows you
the way that i know you
look in my eyes
i will never desert you

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"I'VE NEARLY GOT YOU NOW, SILLY LITTLE FIRST YEARS!" Peeves called mischievously, terrorising Anastasia and Pandora, chasing after them with magic snowballs he tried to throw at them. The weather had begun to cool drastically in recent times, they'd had the first snow of the year only days before and it was yet to completely melt away.

"Quick, run!" Anastasia laughed as she flung around the corner, Pandora in tow. His hysteric cackles started to fade as the girls lost their energy, collapsing to the floor in a heap and huffing to catch their own breaths.

"I think we lost him!" Pandora finally said after she finally managed to bring air back into her lungs. She peered around the corner. "Yep, he's definitely gone." She confirmed. "Wow, that was such fun!"

"I agree." Anastasia giggled. "You know, I wish you were my sister." She admitted, smoothing her skirt out from where it had crumpled when she'd dropped to the floor. "Cissy would never do that with me. Bella might, but she's so rough she'd end up actually hurting me. And Andy- well Andy really isn't even my sister anymore."

"Well, how about this?" Pandora offered. "We can be sisters." She held her pinky out for the other girl in a true sign of childhood innocence. They did not know what was to come in the future, they did not know of the war brewing. In that moment, they were just the children they were meant to be. "Anastasia and Pandora, pretend sisters, always and forever."

"Anastasia and Pandora, always and forever." Anastasia repeated, interlocking her finger with Pandora's. They smiled at each other quietly for a moment, before they slowly began to stand up, still out of breath from earlier.

"I need to go speak to Professor McGonagall before we go back." Pandora explained, and the two walk in silence until they reach McGonagall's office. "This is my stop. I won't be long, I just have to ask her about an assignment. I'll meet you back in the common room."

Anastasia nodded with a "see you later," watching as as Pandora disappeared into the office. She continued on her way, enjoying the peacefulness of the evening. The halls were silent, with most students off at dinner or back in their dorms, save for the last few stragglers coming back in from Hogsmeade.

Her tranquility was soon interrupted by someone tapping her on the shoulder. She spun around instantly in alarm and found herself face to face with a group of Slytherin boys. They looked much older, sixth years, at least, and the leader was a blonde boy that she vaguely recognised but couldn't figure out where from.

"Anastasia and Pandora, always and forever." The blonde boy mocked. The other Slytherins began to laugh like it was the funniest thing they'd ever heard, one even dropped to the floor in tears. The blonde shook his head at Anastasia. "How pathetic." He snarled, shaking his head in disapproval.

"What do you want?" Anastasia asked, trying her very best to mask the fear that swallowed her entire body, her hair involuntarily shading a light purple. "I'm very sorry, but I really need to leave, my friend is waiting for me. I'll be on my way." She phrased as confidently as she could.

She tried to move forward and push past him, be he pushed her back with force and knocked her straight off her feet and she was sent sprawling to the floor. As she did, her skirt flew up. Embarrassed, she fixed it quickly.

The other boys laugh and congratulate the blonde. The one who was previously on the floor wiped away a tear that had fallen down. "Good one, Lucius." He said.

Lucius. Of course! How could she forget? That was Lucius Malfoy, the boy who her parents had their eye on to marry Narcissa. Anastasia thought he was gross, but Narcissa clearly didn't, because she had the misfortune of walking in on them once, completing rather intimate activities with each other. That was a quick lesson in always knocking.

"Well, come on now. Up you get." Lucius demanded, making Anastasia feel as though she was his pet and he'd grown bored of her. "This is not going to be much fun if you just lie there like that. Get up." He repeated.

Anastasia quickly rushed to her feet, scrambling to get her wand out. She raised her wand at him, wracking through her brain to find any spell that could help her, but her mind blanked, and Lucius was faster than she was.

He raised his own wand, pointing it at her. "Petrificus totalus." He casted, watching smugly as the spell took effect.

Instantly, her hands snapped to her sides, the wand slipping from her grip. She fell backwards, hitting the stone floor with a thump, frozen in place. Tears sprang to her eyes from the pain, but she was unable to door anything but watching helplessly as Lucius moved closer and close to her, completely at his mercy.

Lucius laughed again, kicking her in the side. He walked away, his friends in tow, leaving her entirely alone, this time at mercy to the cold air and the building pounding in her head. She was sure it was going to at least leave a bruise.

Time passed impossibly slow as she laid there on the cold, hard ground, until finally her saving grace in the form of a boy finally stumbled upon her. Upon spotting Anastasia, he quickly ran off with the promise of finding help.

He returned soon later, followed closely by Narcissa who instantly ran over to Anastasia. She drew out her wand, casting the counter spell and holding her hand out to help Anastasia up. "Are you alright?" She asked.

Anastasia didn't take her hand, instead jumping to her feet. She took slow steps backward until she collided with the wall, shaking her aching head. She couldn't trust Narcissa now. Not after what Lucius had done to her.

"Anastasia..." Narcissa asked cautiously, walking closer, holding her hand out gently. The alarm was clear in her expression. "Annie, what happened, my love? It's okay. I can help you, but you need to tell me."

Anastasia just shook her head again, her hair flashing a deep crimson-red. She glared at her sister as she wiped the tear that had made its way down her cheek. "Your stupid boyfriend happened, that's what." She spat out angrily.

"What?" Narcissa tilted her head in confusion, stepping closer and attempting to take Anastasia's hands into her own. "What ever could you mean, Anastasia? Do you mean Lucius did this to you? Why would he do that? Was there a reason?"

"No, Narcissa!" Anastasia slapped her hands away, refusing to make eye contact. "There was no reason. Your boyfriend cornered me, with his friends. He knocked me to the ground, paralyzed me and left me here to die in the cold!"  She turned around to leave. She grabbed the arm of the boy, who had stood shell shocked and frozen in place the entire time, and dragged him along with her.

"Anastasia, Anastasia, come back!" Narcissa called after the two. "Tell me more about what happened. Don't leave." She pleaded, following them. "At least let me walk you back to your common room. It is getting quite late, you can't stay out like this on your own!"

Anastasia sighed, but stopped in her place. "Fine." In all truthness, she did not feel very safe walking alone, Lucius and his friends could still be around. And although she was mad at Narcissa, Anastasia knew she was at least safe under her watch. "But stay away. And don't talk to me."

Narcissa nodded her head, and the three walked back in silence. When they got to the entrance of the Ravenclaw tower, the boy went in first, leaving Narcissa and Anastasia alone. Narcissa didn't say anything at first, instead silently pulling Anastasia into a hug.

Anastasia pulled away, looking down.

"Please, stay out of trouble. I won't be able to save you every time. Go inside the tower, and maybe don't leave for the rest of the night, yeah?" Narcissa instructed softly. "I'll talk to you tomorrow, okay? You'll feel better then, and we can discuss what happened more." She placed a gentle kiss on Anastasia's forehead. "Goodnight Annie, sweet dreams."

"Goodnight, Narcissa." Anastasia mumbled, refusing to meet her eye. She turned and entered the common room, feeling immediately comforted by the sight. The inside was empty, bar the boy from before, and Anastasia wondered how long she was stuck for as everyone seemed to be in bed.

The boy jumped up from the sofa, practically running over to Anastasia. "Hi, I'm Rory Hemworth. I'm a first year too." He introduced. "I hope it's okay that I got your sister for you, you looked quite angry at her."

"Oh, uh, it's okay." Anastasia nodded. She was angry at her sister, but that wasn't his fault. He saved her. "Thanks for your help," She smiled. "Who knows how long I may have been stuck lying there if you hadn't have walked past when you did."

"Anytime." Rory smiled back with a nod. He lead her over to the fire where they both sat down, Anastasia immensely grateful for the warmth. "If you don't mind me asking, what exactly happened? It's not everyday you end up lying paralysed on the floor."

"I suppose it isn't." Anastasia hummed, reaching her hands out to the fire. "It was my sister's boyfriend, Lucius Malfoy. He was with his friends, and he started mocking me for something I'd said to Pandora. He pulled his wand out and used the full body-bind curse on me, and then just left me there."

"That's awful!" Rory exclaimed, his eyes wide in shock. He unwrapped his scarf from his neck, placing it around Anastasia. "Here, you look freezing. I can't believe he did that to you. Do you know how long you were stuck there for?"

"Thanks." Anastasia smiled, her cheeks burning. "I'm not sure, I think it was around 5 o'clock? It was not long after dinner had finished. I don't know how long that makes it, I have no idea what time it is now. It's quite late, I would presume."

"Oh, wow." Rory shook his head. He counted on his fingers silently. When he was done, he looked up at her in shock. "You were stuck there for three and a half hours! You were lucky I was there to help, and that Narcissa just so happened to be nearby."

Anastasia just shrugged, suddenly feeling awfully tired. "Well, thank you very much, Rory." She said. "I'm sure I'd've been stuck all night if you didn't find me. But, I think I must retire to my dorm. Night night." She gave him a smile, before moving past him into the girls dorms, ready to sleep off the day.

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