Hello! Let me start off by saying, thank you for even clicking on this story. I'm not the best at interesting teasers or summaries. Also, this is my first fanfic! I am so excited (and nervous) to post this! I don't want to have a really long Author's Note, but there are a few things you should know.
1. Any misuse of grammar or punctuation is solely my fault, so I apologize in advance. (You can blame Grammarly, as I don't have a beta.)
2. Of course, I appreciate criticism, but don't try to bring me down while reviewing. (I also like compliments... *wink wink nudge nudge*)
3. I am a young teenage girl. As such, my writing style and word choice may reflect this. Keep this in mind if you decide to review.
4. This won't be a fast-paced fanfic. I'm not a fan of rushed relationships, as they seem too unrealistic. (i.e. Hinny) Also, more pairings will be added along the way!
5. I do not mean to offend anybody with remarks about the houses. Keep in mind that this is my characterization, so this is what the characters are thinking, not me. :)
6. I will respond to every review that comes my way before the next chapter goes up!
7.. R/R (Pretty please?)
If I owned Harry Potter, all of the houses would have gotten their fair share in the books. So, no, I (sadly) do not own Harry Potter.
Okay, sorry for the long A/N. On to the story!
Chapter One: The House Secrets
"Sometimes you can learn things from the way a person denies something. The choice of lies can be almost as helpful as the truth." ~ Laurell Hamilton
~ Hermione Granger ~
The parchment left my hands as quickly as it had entered them, fluttering down to rest upon the Gryffindor Table in the Great Hall. My loyal best friends noticed this and immediately started asking questions, concern lacing their words.
"'Mione, what's wrong?"
"What'd it say?"
"Are you alright?"
"Here, can I read it?" These words jolted me back to life.
"No!" I shouted, picking up the parchment before Ron's freckled hand grabbed it. He looked at me, bewildered, hurt and concern evident in his bright blue eyes. "I'm fine. I have to go." I flashed them both a quick smile. Harry and Ron looked at me for a few seconds, before Harry finally spoke.
"Well, okay... I believe you, 'Mione." Harry told me. I smiled gratefully, giving them each a quick hug and rushing out of the Great Hall, The parchment still crumpled in my fist. Before I was all of the way out I heard Luna's serene voice.
"What's wrong with Hermione? Oh, I do hope the nargles aren't bothering her..." It wasn't until the double doors had slammed behind me that I stopped. I had no clue where I was going. I had just felt so horrified, so trapped. No one, nobody, could ever find out what was on this parchment. I knew I should discard it, use Incendio and be done with it. But at the same time, I knew I needed to keep it, even if it was dangerous. And Harry's words rang in my ears. We believe you. I felt so bad because my best friends should not have believed me. I had lied to them way too much in the past two years, and they believed me every time. A small, depressed voice in the back of my mind whispered that if they were truly my great best friends they would have noticed something by now, noticed that I wasn't alright. Almost as soon as the thought came into my head, I pushed it out.
Harry and Ron were my best friends, who loved me more than anybody, It's not their fault they didn't notice. 'I guess I'm just that good of a liar' I thought sadly. I slid down the smooth stone wall, fighting back the oncoming tears. I pushed my hands down on the parchment in an attempt to smooth the wrinkles out. When the words were finally legible, I spent a few seconds skimming over the ghastly words again. It hardened my resolve. I needed to get as far away from the Great Hall as possible. As far away from people as possible. So I gathered my belongings, rolling up the parchment, trying to fix the damage my feelings had caused and set off towards the one place of solitude I knew. And unlike what many, many, people think, my sacred haven, my place of solitude is not the library. (There are too many Ravenclaws.) (A/N: I am a die-hard Ravenclaw. Don't be offended, please.)
~ Draco Malfoy ~
I frowned as I watched the Mudblood Princess run out of the Great Hall. Not that I, pureblood Draco Malfoy, cared about the bookworm's issues, I was merely intrigued by the events. She had received a scroll from an owl that nobody seemed to recognize. It was a lengthy letter, it must have been at least two feet long. At first, I had just assumed it was from Victor Krum and went back to my pointless, yet amusing, flirting with Pansy. I found myself glancing over at her, watching as her hazel eyes filled with panic, fear, and sadness. Yes, that scroll was not from Krum. Part of me hoped that Krum and Granger weren't in touch anymore, as he was ruining his reputation among the purebloods, mingling, touching, dating, the filth that the Golden Girl was. I've gotten good at reading emotions over the over the past two years. Just like I have gotten good at other things: curses, potions, putting on a mask and lying. You know, just the basic Death Eater requirements.
I watched the next part as if it was a show: the Weasel and Scarface trying to talk to her, Weasel trying to grab the parchment, Granger talking with her idiot friends, and, last but not least, Granger hugging (how can they stand to be touched by such filth?!) them, before practically sprinting out of the Great Hall, surprisingly unnoticed by her many peers.
"Draco, what do you say we skip Potions for today? We can have some fun." Pansy purred, obviously trying to get my attention back on her. When I looked her way, she flashed me a look that clearly said 'What's wrong?' While many people believed that Pansy and I were in a relationship, we were not, not even in the slightest. Pans was my best friend, my pretty-much-might-as-well-be sister, and she thought of me in the same way I thought of her. She decided to keep up the act of the dumb girl who is in love with Draco Malfoy, as it is definitely easier to brush away when you are an outsider. It was the one thing that would keep Pansy safe. From marriage arrangements, from people trying to talk to her about me, from my father, from the Death Eaters, from the upcoming war. From everything I had to deal with and survive through. Lying was easier in that situation. Lying was easy when it came to talking about my health. Lying was easy when it came to talking about my feelings. Lying was easy when it came to talking about my thoughts on the impending war. Lying was getting easier and easier, as of late. After all, it was just another skill needed to be a Death Eater. And because of my charisma, everybody believed all of the lies I told.
I flashed her a charming, obviously fake, (yet not to the people around us) smile. "Nothing Pans. Don't worry about it." Yet I gave her a look, a look that clearly asked 'Did you just see Granger?'
"Oh, okay Draco," she said, nodding (but not for the reason her fellow peers thought), "Whatever you say." She then grabbed his hand, and gently squeezed it. A friendly gesture. Yet of course, not to the peers around us. Blaise Zabini looked at me, looked down hand Pansy and I's entwined hands, gave me a look that said, obviously as the daylight 'You could do better.' with a smirk. I just rolled my eyes.
~ Cho Chang ~
I stared longingly over at their table, watching as they laughed at a joke their friend made. Not for the first time, I wished they were laughing at a joke I had made, laughing with me. I was startled out of my reverie by the sound and sight of silver painted fingernails snapping in front of my face.
"Earth to Cho-o." Marietta was saying. I turned to face her.
"Sorry. Lost in thought." I replied sheepishly. She rolled her eyes, a slight smile, more of a smirk really, coming to rest on her boldly painted, bright red lips.
"Obviously. Don't tell me you were staring at Potter again. I swear I will put a blindfold on you, sister." She said his name as if she had a bad taste in her mouth. I mean, I know she didn't like Harry. Everybody knew that. I just wished she wouldn't be so... blunt about it, I guess. Yet then again, she was a Ravenclaw. And that is kind of our thing, saying whatever's on our mind.
"I waaasn't" I whined, putting up my drama queen front. To my dismay, Mar saw right through it. She really was my other half. I had gotten good at pretending. Oh well...
"Mmm hmm, you just keep telling yourself that sister," she replied, rolling her eyes.
"Keep rolling your eyes, maybe you'll find a brain back there." I teased. She stuck out her tongue at me.
"Love you too, Cho, love you too," she responded. We both laughed. I randomly glanced at my watch, on which there were white dots in place of numbers.
"Oh no, I have got to go!" I told Mar urgently. She looked at my watch, and a look of understanding passed through her eyes.
"Go," she whispered. "The same place as always. I'll distract them." I gave her a grateful smile and a hug, before sprinting out of the room. I didn't have much time. I only prayed that the supplies were ready. Otherwise... I shuddered. I didn't want to think about otherwise. I simply wouldn't let it happen. As I ran up the spiraling staircases toward Ravenclaw Tower. 'Why'd Rowena have to put the tower to damn high up. Oh damn, then there's the knocker...' I thought, feeling annoyed. I finally reached the door, winded and gasping for breath. I tapped the Eagle knocker on the door three times. Thee mystic voice asked:
When new, he can't be seen at all
But he grows with each nightfall
And as he looms over the wall
Hark and hear the lone wolf's call
I groaned. At least it was an easy riddle. I gave the answer (to which the knocker replied, 'Wisdom and fate can be very similar, my dear.'), then rushed up the stairs, taking two at a time, to reach the girl's dormitory. Reaching under my bed, I grabbed everything I needed and flew down the stairs, somehow crashing into a wall. I fell down my supplies crashing out of my hands, falling on my bottom with m leg twisted beneath me. Yet then, the wall talked!
"Oh no! I'm ever so sorry! Are you okay?" A serene voice asked. I looked up into the face of Luna Lovegood, whose hand was currently reached out towards me, silently offering to help me stand.
"I'm fine, thank you," I replied, using her hand to pull myself up. She smiled.
"Were the nargles bothering you? I think they were bothering Hermione Granger earlier. She left the Hall, so I went to follow her, but I couldn't find her! Yet then, I remembered that I had left my book of the Crumple-Horned Snorkak up here, so I came to get it!" She rambled off brightly. I smiled weakly in reply.
"That's nice, L, but I've really got to go." I gestured at all of the supplies gathered around me. Luna, the ever so kind person that she was immediately going to help pick the stuff up.
"Oh, it's okay, I've got it," I said, holding out a hand. I quickly picked them all up again. Luna tilted her head.
"What are they for?" she quizzed, ever the curious one. I smiled.
"Oh you know, just potions ingredients for class," I said, partially lying.
"But we haven't got Potions until -" she started, but I was already at the door.
"It was nice talking to you L! Yet I have to go! Bye!" And with a sinking feeling of guilt in my stomach, I left a slightly confused Luna Lovegood standing all alone in the circular common room.
~ Susan Bones ~
I poked at the Elf made food, pushing it around on the golden plate. I hadn't been eating much lately. Not that anybody had noticed. The thing about Hufflepuffs is that they attempted to see the good things, the best of the best, in every person they saw. Susan loved them for that, and she tried to do the same. Yet the thing was, in doing that, the kind students often overlooked the... bad aspects of somebody. (A/N: Of course, I do not mean to offend anybody.) For example, say Hannah was good at Herbology, but she never talked. (Hypothetically, of course. Dear Hannah Abbot could never be a quiet girl, *no matter how hard she tried.) The Hufflepuffs would choose to look and talk about her skill rather than her was for this reason that I hardly needed to lie, to my housemates at least. Then, I suddenly realized that my boyfriend was speaking, most likely to me about some Herbology plant or another. I smiled at Justin, making a vain attempt to appear as if I had been listening to him.
"-Of course, the Fanged Geranium is dangerous in the wrong hands, but Grandma Darlene can make the best soup..." he was saying, with an eager tone to his voice, as it always adopted when he was talking about anything that was related to Herbology, his favorite subject.
"You'll have to have me over sometime, so I can try it. It would also be a nice way for us to hang out over the summer!" I replied enthusiastically. While every word I had just spoken was genuine, this was also a test of sorts for Justin. Not that he was aware, but lately it felt as though Justin was not comfortable with our dating, our relationship. I would try to hold his hand, and he'd subtlety pull it away. I'd try to talk about hanging out, and -
"Sorry sweetie, but I don't know if that'll work out," he said, his face gradually taking on a magenta tint. "I expect we'll be very busy over the holidays..." I crushed the disappointment that was welling inside me. This was what he did every single time. Hannah told me I should just have a talk with him, but I'm worried that I am just overthinking everything. I would hate to falsely accuse him of anything that he's not actually doing...
"Oh, you know what you're doing already? It is only November, after all." I replied, trying to keep my disappointment out of my tone, just like every time. He blushed even more fiercely, reminding me of Ronald Weasley. I glanced over at the Gryffindor table and waved. None of them saw me. Oh well.
"I..um...we...are...uh..." he stammered, clearly unsure what to say. I doubt he was expecting me to ask questions. Knowing him, he'd probably chalk it up to me just being a cute and curious Huffle. Like everybody did. They all asked me 'Oh, are you okay?' or 'I'm sorry for your loss.' People who didn't even know me. They acted like they were sad for me, felt bad for me. Yet the thing was, they only asked once. Never twice. If I lied through my teeth, saying 'Oh, I'm fine, thank you.' they all believed me. As if somebody who's whole family has just been murdered could be fine. The thing is, the thing that nobody would ever admit, as long as they were alive, is that they were relieved. I knew because it was how I had felt. Whenever we heard that someone's sister was killed, or another's parents had gone missing, there was always that sense of relief. Horrible, ashamed relief that the news wasn't for you, that your loved ones were safe. I had hated herself for it, wished it away, even though it never did disappear.
Until Professor Sprout took me outside of Greenhouse Three during class one day and gave me the news. It had taken two minutes for me to ask questions, ten to pass out, thirty to wake up, and 40 until it registered. I was alone. Everyone I knew loved me, everybody that I was sure cared, was gone. Sure, I had my fellow Hufflepuffs, and of course, my friends from the other houses. Yet those were the same people, the people who only asked once. And, if I was completely, truly honest with myself... Well, I hoped they hated themselves. For the sense of relief, I was sure that they felt. I hoped the felt guilty and ashamed. Just as I had.
I smiled at Justin. "Well, it's okay. Let's just enjoy our time here." I said, lying through my teeth, and holding back tears.
A/N: Well, that was the first chapter! I really hope you liked it, I tried to keep a little mystery to it. Can any of you guess what Cho's emergency was? How about what was on Hermione's Scroll?
I got inspiration for this story from my life. As of 12/31/17, I am a pathological liar. I wish to stop lying, as it has ruined many aspects of my life. If you feel like you have problems with lying, PM me on here or on my Instagram ( ) and I'm more than willing to talk with you about it. I am taking therapy lessons now. I hope that by 12/31/18, I'll have stopped lying for good.
Final Word Count (excluding words in bold): 2,621 (Kind of short, sorry.)
(From Hannah's Section) *i couldn't help but think of that song from Moana... Do you guys know what I'm talking about?
Anyway, please review, it would be an amazing way to start off the New Year! I should have the next chapter out in a couple of days! Until then...
~RW