A/N: This story is a kind of Prequel to Friendships by my good friend The Maine's Pioneer (please R&R it!) . But it is written from a different point of view (Ruby's) and there will be lots of different plotlines in each chapter (hopefully) Enjoy!
The tension in the Great Hall was rising as silence fell. The remains of the end of year feast vanished from sight, leaving the golden plates sparkling. Professor McGonagall, my Headmistress, stood up and cleared her throat. I glanced around the room and saw several people looking as nervous as I felt. The House Cup meant everything to me but my house hadn't won in centuries. Well, no time like the present.
McGonagall cleared her throat again and I immediately turned my attention on her. No way was I getting my first detention at Hogwarts so close to the end of the year.
"Students of Hogwarts…" she began, her powerful voice echoing off the walls and the star-filled ceiling. Out of the corner of my eye I saw my best friend Hugo at the Gryffindor table, rolling his eyes; she made this speech every year. "You have come to the end of your year at Hogwarts. Tomorrow, you shall all board the Hogwarts Express to spend the summer at home…" I grinned, home, where my crazy little sister was waiting to hear all about my year. God, I missed home. Hogwarts is amazing, and I have the greatest friends ever, not to mention the maddest! But nothing in the world can beat sinking into the sofa at home and having a massive family hug in which my sister is thoroughly squashed!
By this time McGonagall had finished her speech and was pausing for effect before announcing the results of the House Cup.
"Take your time Prof. It's not like the tension is killing us or anything." I smiled; trust Fred Weasley to make a joke at a time like this. I suppose he gets it off his dad. He's the one who runs the amazing joke shop, Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes.
McGonagall glared at him and he shrank back slightly. I have never come under 'The McGonagall Glare' as Hugo puts it, and hope I never will.
"In fourth place with two hundred and eighty-nine house points its Ravenclaw house!" There was a polite scatter of applause.
I looked over to the Ravenclaw table. They were all looking forlorn and I scanned the sea of faces and found the familiar messy brown haired boy. It was Lily's best friend Lysander. He looked disappointed and ran a hand through his already messy hair. I could see why. He must have earned at least half of all those points. He was the brainiest of the brainiest.
"And in third place with three hundred and twenty four house points is Gryffindor!" I stuck my tongue out at Hugo and then sucked in a breath. My house had never come third, let alone second or even first!
"In second place with an amazing four hundred and one points is…" she paused dramatically.
Carmel, my great friend and fellow Hufflepuff, was bouncing up and down on the bench, making it shudder and causing a few of our house members to frown at her. I put my hand on her arm to try and calm the force of The Bouncing. She looked at me, her blue eyes wild with excitement.
"SLYTHERIN!"
I heard a scream and realised it was me. We had won! For the first time in centuries, the house which Helga Hufflepuff had founded had won!
The room erupted. Hats were flying everywhere and every house was cheering except Slytherin. Well, they were just sore losers. I think the other houses are fond of us because they think us bumbling and stupid. This proved them wrong! I looked over to Carmel who looked like she was about to say something when…
BANG! Everything disappeared into black.
My eyes snapped open and the light filtering through my purple polka-dot curtains blinded me. My door was open, revealing what had woken me from that wonderful dream. My heart sank when it truly hit me that it was just a dream, Hufflepuff were never going to win. I'm aware that Hufflepuffs are supposed to be positive, but they are seen as duffers as well and no matter how many times Hugo may tease me, I am not a duffer.
It was my little sister, Eleanor, or Ellie to her friends. She was dressed in her white pyjamas with multi-coloured butterflies all over them. She shuffled quickly over to me, her slightly too big fluffy bunny slippers slowing her down. She leaned over my bed and beamed at me, her golden blonde hair tickling my face and making me sneeze. I looked at her with half-open eyes; I am not a morning person.
"Good Morning Ellie. How may I help you on this fine summer holiday morning?" I yawned, my throat dry.
Unable to contain her excitement any more she started jumping around the room.
"Guess what! Guess what!" she said, her small frame dancing around the room. Without giving me a chance to guess she blurted out. "I got my letter from Hogwarts!"
"Oh yay, well done!" I said, swinging my legs out of bed and pulling my starry dressing gown on. "I'm starving" I said, sniffing the air for a trace of what was for breakfast. I found it. "Croissant!" I yelped, sprinting down the stairs, I called over my shoulder "Race you there Ellie!"
One hour later we exited our house. Now I don't give a damn about blood status and all that, but being a pure-blood and having the massive family mansion can have its advantages. Ellie skipped ahead, her constantly grinning face still covered in crumbs. My mum tutted and flicked her wand. The crumbs vanished, leaving Ellie's face clean and shiny.
We turned a corner out of the grounds and through the wrought-iron gates, out onto the Muggle street. I scowled at the gates, they were not exactly to my taste but my great-granddad, who was a member of the Ministry, at the same time as Muggle Prime Minister Winston Churchill was in power, seemed to like that kind of thing.
Once we had passed the Anti-Apparating charm placed over my house because of my dad's position as an Auror, my father grabbed my hand and my mother grabbed Ellie's and we spun into darkness.
I realised I had squeezed my eyes closed, but I kept them closed, using my other senses to drink in the atmosphere. The air was filled with chatter, old friends meeting up, people discussing business and, above all, the very distinctive laugh of my friend, Lily Potter. My eyes snapped open and I began scanning the crowds in the Leaky Cauldron, looking for a flash of flame red hair. I thought I saw something out of the corner of my eye when my vision was impaired by a pair of pale hands.
"Guess who." Someone whispered in my ear, tickling me with their breath.
"Hugo Weasley, if I wasn't still underage I would hex you for surprising me like that!" I spun round to see Hugo standing there, hands in his pockets, the floppy red hair which he inherited from his father hanging over one chestnut brown eye, grinning at me. I grinned back. Hugo and I had been friends for many years as our fathers both worked in the Auror department and as soon as we met, we clicked. Once we got to Hogwarts, to my great disappointment, he was sorted into Gryffindor and me into Hufflepuff. We still had many lessons together, even more so this upcoming year as we had both chosen the same OWLs. Luckily Hugo was a brainbox and he promised me he would help with my revision.
I felt someone skid to a halt next to me.
"Oh sorry, don't let me interrupt anything." I turned to see Lily waggling her eyebrows meanfully.
"Oh shut up Lil, you know, and have done for many years, that there is nothing going on between us." said Hugo, an exasperated tone in his voice.
"Suuuurrrrre… Anyway, want to go a grab a Butterbeer?" Without waiting for an answer Lily grabbed my hand and pulled me over to the bar where Tom, the barman, was chatting to some warlock about how he had the famous Harry Potter in his pub. Lily rolled her eyes, I know she found it annoying that her achievements were overshadowed by the fact her dad was Harry Potter.
"Three Butterbeers, please Tom." She said, sliding onto a green velvet barstool, her long red hair falling into her eyes. She pushed it behind her ears irritably. I slid next to her (Not that you can really slide on velvet) with Hugo on my other side. As we drank we discussed our holidays. Lily had been to France with her family and had stayed in their house there for 3 weeks. She was describing how her cat Otsoa had attacked James when he teased her on her Quidditch skills, when a blue-eyed boy came and tapped her on the shoulder.
"What?" She spun her tall body round, her green eyes sparkling.
"Hey Lily." Lysander Lovegood said, perching on the edge of her seat.
"Ly! I didn't know you were coming!" Lily exclaimed.
"Well, turns out I do need some new robes and stuff so I thought I would come and join the merry congregation." The last part of his sentence spiralled into sarcasm.
Lily rested her head on Lysander's shoulder.
"Aww, and you said Hugo and I looked like a couple." I teased.
"Shut up shortie." Lysander snapped back.
Hugo's head whipped round and there was a fire in his eyes that I saw rarely.
"Just because she is vertically challenged…"
"Oi!"
"… Doesn't give you a right to tease her!"
"Prat." Lysander got up and walked towards the entrance to Diagon Alley, calling over his shoulder.
"I'm headed to Quality Quidditch Supplies. Come if you want Lily."
Lily sent an apologetic look to Hugo and I then hurried after him.
Hugo looked at me and opened his mouth- probably to start some long-winded apology for what Lysander had said but I cut him off.
"Look, Hugo, it's not your fault I'm so flipping small, okay?"
"Fine. But I won't let HIM tease you like that!"
"Mm Hm." I was glancing around the Leaky Cauldron to find my family. I saw them, looking for me. I waved them over and as I did Hugo put his hand next to mine and said,
"However, it is fine for me to tease you. Aww, your hands are so tiny!"
"Shut up ginger." Using the hand he had called tiny I slapped him on the arm, hard.
While he was clutching his arm in feigned agony, I hopped off the stool and went over to my parents.
"We are just going to Ellie's stuff we can meet you in Ollivanders later, okay?" My mum smiled at me.
"Okay mum. Byyyeee!" I watched my family disappear through the archway, my little sister's face lighting up at the sight of the bustle of Diagon Alley.