ELISE HAD never felt more powerful than she did that day.

She walked through the station by herself, luggage in tow. She had planned matching outfits with Tracey for the ride to school: black knee-length skirts, gray button-up blouses tucked in, hair pulled back into a sleek low ponytail, and thin eyeliner across both eyelids. Out of the five girls, they desired attention the most.

Elise had planned their outfits for each Muggle party they went to, focusing on the goal each girl wanted to achieve. Wanted to make some party friends? Simple and cute. Wanted to meet some boys? Something a little more scandalous. Without their parents there, they could do whatever they wanted when they wanted to, but they still kept an eye out for each other. Anyone over seventeen was rejected, anyone overtly creepy was given Sleeping Drought that Daphne had brewed, and anyone who recognized them was dealt with accordingly.

During the summer, it was like Elise was the leader. She liked having the power as it made her feel invincible, even if it went to her head most of the time.

Platform 9 and 3/4 was packed when they arrived. Tracey walked as close to her as she could, sometimes latching on to her hand. It was normal for them to hold hands too, usually to help another out, but Elise couldn't help but feel something in her stomach every time Pansy grabbed her hand. Maybe it was just the alcohol talking.

They walked past crowds of parents and first years, most of whom were too busy hugging and crying to notice the Slytherin girls strutting past.

"We have to find Milli, she knows what compartment we're taking." Tracey whispered, leaning in toward Elise's left ear.

She nodded in response, scanning the crowd ahead of them for Millicent.

She wasn't hard to spot, she easily towered over the girls, and a lot of the boys, in their year, and she always had a resting bitchface.

Instead of seeing her, they spotted Pansy, who was looking bored as ever.

"Pansy! Pansy Parkinson!" Tracey yelled, freeing her hand from Elise's and waving it high in the air.

She looked around, finally spotting them walking to her, and her face lit up. Her lips formed a grin and her hazel eyes had a warmth in them that few people ever saw.

"My girls! I missed you."

Pansy hugged Tracey first, both of them squealing as they grabbed each other tighter. She hugged Elise after, a slightly calmer hug this time around. Elise still felt something in her stomach, making it backflip two hundred times before they left their hug. Her nails were painted green, like the lipstick the girls had adopted as their signature.

"What shade is that? Did you bring it?" Elise asked, grabbing her left hand and examining it.

Pansy had long fingers, ending in perfectly rounded nails covered in dark green polish. They had a gloss to them, like she had put a coat over them.

"I did. I figured it was only fitting that I found a polish to match our lips." She waved her fingers in their faces, the two of them gawking at the shade.

"What're we looking at, loves?"

More squeals, more hugs, and more exclamations over nail polish. Daphne had joined them, easily the most fashionable of the five. She wore a cream sweater with black, tight jeans and small shiny black flats. She already had her robes halfway on, probably so she could save room in her luggage for another piece of clothing.

"Pansy's polish. It matches our lipstick so accurately, I'm in shock." Elise said, grabbing Pansy's outstretched hand and pulling it closer to Daphne.

"Oh, I'm impressed Ms. Parkinson." Her faux pompous accent made the four girls giggle, their semi-circle slowly breaking out into laughs.

The train whistle blew, signifying one of the last calls for students to get on the train. With Millicent nowhere to be found, Elise assumed she had already gotten on. Besides, Pansy and Daphne both knew the specific compartment they were going to sit in, so they didn't need to rely on spotting her.

The girls climbed on, heading directly toward the back. A few older Ravenclaws, Anthony Goldstein among them, gave them dirty looks as they walked past the compartment. Elise smirked and wiggled her fingers at them, watching the boys in the compartment roll their eyes.

It was so wonderful to be so powerful, even if she was part of the most hated girl's group at Hogwarts.