Not The Case by Madame_Meow

Standard Disclaimers Applied
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Parvati and Padma Patil were twins, and they had everything in common. At the age of five they had asked their parents if they could share a bedroom, even though they had the option of having their own. They agreed that the room should be painted pink, and there were teddy bears all about the place. The twins shared a favorite, however. His name was Mr. Cuddles, and he was the fluffiest of all.

At the age of six, the sisters asked their parents for their very own tea-set. Their parents thought this would be a wonderful gift to give their daughters, who received the set not a week after they had asked for it. They sat around it for hours every day, with Mr. Cuddles in between them in their pink bedroom.

When the twins reached the age of seven, they decided it was time they asked their parents to teach them how to fly on a broomstick. Mr. Patil brought his out, a brand new Comet 150, and sat both his daughters upon it. He then stood behind Parvati- or was it Padma? He was never able to tell- and ran down the hill, pushing the broom in front of him as his two precious daughters giggled and waved their arms in the air.

At eight years old, Parvati and Padma realized how much they loved reading. They would sit in their room for long periods of time, one twin sitting on the bed with a book in her hand and reading aloud, the other on the floor with Mr. Cuddles. After the story was over, they would run back into the library of their manor and get another children’s book. Then they would scurry back into their bedroom and switch places, so one of the girls was on the bed and the other on the floor. They never argued, because they always knew they would get their turn.

When they got to be nine years old, Mrs. Patil took Parvati and Padma to Diagon Alley for the very first time. They ran amuck in the streets together, losing their mother almost immediately. They weren’t afraid, however, even when they ran into Knockturn Alley, because they knew they had each other. No matter what, nothing would separate them. That way, they knew they would always be safe.

At age ten, Mr. and Mrs. Patil allowed the girls to redecorate their room. The twins agreed that it should have purple walls and a blue carpet, with golden drapes on the windows. They kept their tea-set, which now had a few chips in it, just for nostalgia’s sake. Mr. Cuddles remained as well, as they would never give him up.

When they were eleven, Padma and Parvati finally went to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, just as their parents had years before. The twins had, of course, planned everything out before they got to school. They would share Mr. Cuddles; every night, one girl would take him in her bed, and the next night the other twin would take him. It would be very easy, as they would be sleeping just one bed away from each other.

Padma went up to the Sorting Hat, her name having been called out before her sister’s had, and sat down. The hat sat atop her head for a moment before calling out, “RAVENCLAW!” Padma ran down to her table, shooting her sister a smile as she did so. Parvati went up next and sat under the hat for a bit longer than Padma had. Finally the hat shouted out, “GRYFFINDOR!”

It had taken a few moments for this word to sink in for the twins. Professor McGonagall ushered Parvati to her table where she sat down, looking awestruck, beside a girl who immediately introduced herself as Lavender Brown. Parvati talked back to her enthusiastically, though on the inside she felt numb. She and Padma had never slept in a separate room before, now they were expected to have different dormitories, different classes, even different tables to eat at! There was so much that was going to change, what were they to do?

After the feast, Parvati ran up to her twin and asked her what they were going to do with the situation. Padma’s reply would stay with her forever, as she hadn’t expected those words.

“Everything changes, Parvati,” she had said. “If you’re worried about Mr. Cuddles, you can have him. He’s just a toy, after all.”

Parvati had cried herself to sleep that night. She knew Padma had just said that in an attempt to be strong, but the words still stung. For almost the first time, they were feeling different about something; Parvati was desperately afraid of being alone, while Padma seemed a bit more optimistic about the future. As they were now sleeping in separate rooms, Parvati had no idea that Padma was crying herself to sleep as well.

Parvati and Padma didn’t see each other at breakfast the next morning; Parvati had gone to Professor Dumbledore to ask if she could be sorted into Ravenclaw as well.

“My dear,” he had said kindly, “the Sorting Hat knows what house you will do best in. You and your sister will have to make new friends. You will have some classes together, I assure you, so do not fret.”

The twins only had one class together per week, which was Charms. They always partnered up and, as it was such a noisy class, were able to catch up on their weeks. Parvati admitted that she was quite enjoying her house, and introduced Padma to her best friend, Lavender. Padma, too, introduced her own best friend, Anthony Goldstein.

Parvati and Padma both sensed it; they were twins, after all. As the school year passed, so did their reasons for needing to see each other. They started to grow apart that year, and Parvati discovered she’d much rather discuss makeup tips with Lavender than read a book. Padma, on the other hand, decided that she would rather spend her time studying with Anthony and Lisa Turpin than messing with her hair. With Lisa’s help, she realized that purple wasn’t such an amazing color after all, and she much preferred yellow. Parvati insisted that pink was her favorite color, and started wearing pink eye shadow.

By the end of the semester, Parvati and Padma realized they hadn’t spoken with each other much throughout the year. When they went home that summer, they insisted on having their very own bedrooms, as they simply couldn’t agree on the colors and furniture they wanted. They threw out the old tea-set, as they were old enough to make their own tea in the kitchen now, and they bought separate owls with which to send letters to their friends.

Mr. and Mrs. Patil both saw the changes in their daughters and were very disappointed. The twins had always gotten along so wonderfully, and now they almost never even had time for each other. When they spoke they were more polite than necessary, as though afraid to hurt the other’s feelings. Even when they went away the next year and returned in the summer after their second year, nothing was different.

And so it was that the Patil family realized that time truly did change people. Two sisters, who had been closer than most siblings could ever wish to be, now rarely spoke to each other. In years to come, both would come to regret their decision, as the war would tear them apart more than they could ever imagine. At the time, however, they lived for the moment with their friends, believing that their family would always be there no matter what happened.

But during times of war, that was just not the case.
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A/N: I hope you liked this! It was a bit sad, I know, especially if you understood what I meant in the ending. I believe that maybe one or both of the twins may die in the final book, so that’s what I was hinting at. Please review! :)