The life and lies of Vera Sweet
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Hello I'm Kara and I love HP so I decided to write a FF. It's been a long time since I have written one, so I hope this is good I started writing it before DH but stopped at the part where Vera went to bed. I couldn't figure out a reason for what I wrote until I read DH...So If you have not read Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, do not read this. I do not own Harry Potter or any of the other characters, places, spells, or other things but my own characters I made up. The person who does own HP is a wonderful writer. Gotta love J.K.R.
Alright, here is my 1st chapter…please review and tell me what you think. I've really enjoyed writing what I have so far, and if you like it I will go on. I love Reviews.
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Vera Sweet was a fourth year student at Hogwarts, a school of witchcraft and wizardry. Hogwarts was a boarding school that had four houses, upon your arrival you would be sorted into one of the four.
There is Gryffindor which values courage, chivalry and boldness; Hufflepuff which values hard work, loyalty, determination, patience, friendship and fair play; Ravenclaw which values intelligence, knowledge and wit; and Slytherin which values ambition, cunning and resourcefulness.
Vera was in Ravenclaw no doubt for her book smarts and good grades. She was a Muggle-Born unlike her friend who had come from a long line of Ravenclaw witches, every woman in her friend's family, as far back as anyone could remember had been in that house.
Vera looked around the Ravenclaw common room, everybody in there was poring over books, or pieces of parchment. It wasn't a very exciting place to be, all Ravenclaws seemed to do was study, not like the Gryffindors; she had heard rumors about how fun it was to be a Gryffindor. They always threw parties and broke about every school rule.
Her best friend Ginger Faye who was sitting beside her was working on a potion's essay for Professor Slughorn. Her quill scratching the parchment with ever word she wrote. Not looking up from her work she spoke to Vera.
"Honestly Vera you've been sitting here for hours, and haven't even written a single word! That essay is due tomorrow and it's supposed to be a foot long! It's already ten-thirty and you know lights out is at midnight, which makes it only an hour and a half until we have to go up to our dorms! You can't write a foot long essay in that amount of time."
Vera looked down at her parchment which she had absent mindedly let her quill drop ink all over. Sighing she tried to clean up the mess she made with her robes.
Her friend spoke again, this time looking up. "You shouldn't do that! Now look, you smeared it all over the place and gotten it all over your robes."
Vera spoke for what seemed like the first time in ages, her voice cracked from lack of use. "S-so what, my robes are black and so is my ink. Black can't stain black."
"What if they're two different shades of black? Really Vera, you should think before you act. You should have let me take care of it." Sighing the girl took out her wand and pointed it at the smeared mess on Vera's parchment and muttered "Evanesco." In seconds the black smears vanished from her parchment.
"Thank you, I should have thought of that. I don't know what's gotten into me, maybe it's just because I've already written an essay on this subject once before. In our first year Snape made us write one about the Draught of the Living Dead, and now Slughorn is too."
"I think Slughorn believes that Snape didn't teach us very well, and I'm beginning to think that as well. He never paid attention to anyone unless they were in Slytherin. The only reason he gave people from other houses any attention, was to yell at them. Professor Slughorn isn't like that, he likes all houses."
Vera sighed looking down at the blank piece of parchment and dipped her quill into her inkwell, and she wrote the words "The Draught of the Living Dead is" the door to the common room slammed open, before she could write any more. A tiny old man came shuffling into the room. Professor Flitwick was standing there with a parchment held out in front of him. He cleared his throat as everyone looked up from their work.
"I am sorry about this." He squeaked in a high pitched voice. "This notice has just been issued from the Ministry of Magic." Clearing his throat again, he squeaked on. "From this day fourth, until further notice all Muggle Born students will no longer be allowed to study magic at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry." Angry shouts could be heard all across the room. "It's not my doings!" Professor Flitwick squeaked nervously. "The Ministry it just trying to keep everyone safe, until all of this is over." He said rolling up the parchment he was holding.
Everyone stood up and started talking all at once; you could barely hear Professor Flitwick's squeaks for they were being drowned out by all the yelling. "Quiet please…stay calm...it's not my fault…I'm sorry…no, no, don't do that…please! Everyone go pack your things and go to bed…Professor McGonagall will explain it in the morning!" He stammered as people where jumping up and down with anger, knocking into him, ignoring what he had to say.
Finally after what seemed hours people started to quiet down, but had the same question on all of their minds, and on the tips of each of their tongues. "What was going on?" Professor Flitwick hadn't explained very much, but maybe that was because he didn't know the answer to that question himself.
The night grew on while Vera tossed and turned in her sheets. As morning dawned her tossing ceased just in time for her alarm to go off. Fumbling for her wand she tapped her clock with it, making the alarm turn off. She groped around on her bedside table for her glasses and put them on. Blinking she sat up and shook her head clear. Her long black hair flowed around her for a few seconds then fell flat again. Letting out a sigh she got up and started rummaging around in her trunk for some clean robes.
Her trunk was already packed, so she shut the lid and started dragging it down the stairs into the common room. About ten other students where standing around whispering to their friends, with scared looks on their faces as they held onto their trunks.
Professor Flitwick was standing by the door trying to get everybody's attention. "Professor McGonagall will explain everything to you in the Entrance Hall after you eat breakfast, and just leave your trunks here; they will be taken down for you."
Everyone sat their trunks down and started shuffling out the door. Vera dragged her feet and held her head down as she walked; with Professor Flitwick bobbling along behind her.
Vera slumped down at the Ravenclaw table and peered around the room. About 14 people from every house were sitting at every table. The sun was barely up, so she knew all these people must be all the Muggle-Born students at Hogwarts. Nobody else would get up this early unless they had to.
After thirty-minuets of barely touching her food, Vera swung her feet over the bench and got up. People stared after her as she walked into the Entrance Hall. In the Entrance Hall she flopped down on the bottom step of the staircase and waited for the others to finish eating.
Feeling sick to her stomach; she clutched her it as she looked around the room, taking in very little detail. She never really appreciated its beauty until now; the time that it was all being snatched away from her. She took Hogwarts for granted; she never realized how lucky she was to be there.
After what seemed ages, the other students started to file nervously out of the Great Hall. They all gathered around where Vera sat staring at each other. None of them knew what was going on, and why. They were all wearing the same scared nervous looks on their faces, and everyone took turns looking over their shoulder into the Great Hall, as they waited for Professor McGonagall to finish eating.
Five minuets later Professor McGonagall walked out of the Great Hall with the few remaining students tailing behind her. She stopped in the entrance to the Great Hall and looked around at everybody hovering in the Entrance Hall. After a moment or so, she spoke.
"I am sorry about this, but we have no say. The new Minister of Magic has made it a new law. All Muggle-Born students have to be evaluated and put on a Muggle-Born count record. After that, your wand will be snapped and you will be sent home. The new law states that Muggles can no longer learn magic at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."
Protest rang out around the room, echoing like a broken record. Professor McGonagall was trying to shush everyone so that she could talk. Finally the last echo died into thin air, and she continued to speak.
"After you are filed into the record your head of house will help you to the horseless carriages, which will take you to Hogsmeade Station, there you will board the Hogwarts Express. The Hogwarts Express will take you back to Platform Nine and Three-Quarters, where your parents will be waiting to pick you up."
"They will call your names one by one; and you will go into this room here." Professor McGonagall said indicating to a small room off the Entrance Hall. "While inside this room, a Ministry of Magic official will ask you some questions, and put your name into a Muggle-Born log, and.." She paused looking flustered, her lips in a thin disapproving line. "They will snap your wand."
Another round of unhappy shouts rang though the hall, as she tried to calm them down. "I am sorry; I have no power over them, though I wish I did… I don't. Again I am sorry; I can't do anything about it."
Many of the students gapped at her, they couldn't believe that she had no power over these proceedings.
A seventh year Gryffindor spoke up above the crowd "But Dumbledore would never…"
"But Dumbledore isn't here is he? He's dead…He can't do anything about this," Snapped a Hufflepuff, cutting the Gryffindor girl's sentence short. People started defending Professor Dumbledore's name, arguing with the Hufflepuff boy. Vera recognized the boy as Justin Finch-Fletchley, he was a seventh year also, but the girl she did not know.
Just as McGonagall had said, students were called out one bye one, in alphabetical order. The crowed grew smaller and smaller; after what seemed to be a year the name "Sweet, Vera" was called out.
Gulping, she slowly stood up, her legs wobbled under her weight; she had not been on her feet for over and hour.
"It's ok, it's alright; just be you, and nothing will go wrong" She told to herself as she passed though the doors. Her own reassurances seemed hallow. What was going to happen after she got registered? She had no idea; the thought of not knowing what was to come scared her, and made her shiver. She stopped just inside the doorway and hugged herself; the cold terror that was washing over her would not subside.
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Alright that is all for now, in the next chapter she will be evaluated by a Ministry worker…But that's all Im going to tell you. ) Please tell me what you think so far.
- Kara