"Now Nigel, you haven't introduced me to any of your lovely friends!" Margaret Moon scolded her brother. He looked around the train station, saw Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny approaching, and groaned. "Hello Nigel" said Harry.
"Hello" he replied, Margaret nudged him and he added dutifully, "Oh, this is my sister Margaret. Margaret, this is Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, Ron Weasley, and Ron's sister Ginny Weasley."
Nigel looked at the boys and wanted to bang his head against something really really hard. Why did he have to have a, supermodel looking, dancer for a sister. The boys were practically drooling. Luckily, Hermione dragged them away quickly enough.
Nigel breathed a sigh of relief when they walked off but soon discovered that Margaret intended to meet every student in the entire school. "Why, oh why was i born!" Nigel though to himself. Twenty minutes later he was talking with Hannah Abbot, a pretty girl, with curly blonde hair, when Margaret exclaimed, "Why if it isn't Lilah! Hello Lilah dear"
Nigel turned around and found himself face to face with Lilah. He wondered if this was anywhere near as embarrassing for her as it was for him, and reaalized it was most definatly not. "Hannah. You know Lilah, don't you?" Nigel stammered, trying to regain his composure.
"Yes. You introduced us the night of the Yule Ball" Lilah snapped, "Oh look! There's Harry! I believe I'll go have a chat with him! Oh by the way" she added, "I meant what I said the night of the wedding."
Nigel couldn't figure out why she was being so hostile. They had been broken up for ages and were still friends, weren't they?. After all they'd been through, he would have thought she'd be at least a little more civil. He turned around to find Hannah walking away. If Lilah's point had ben to alienate the girl, it seemed to have worked, "but why would she want to do that?" He thought to himself.
"Well Nigel, I'd better let you get on the train" Margaret sighed.
As he finally got on the train, Nigel wondered where he would find to sit. for the last 2 years he had been constantly with Lilah, and her friends, and now he realized that he really had no friends of his own anymore. Lilah had pretty much demanded he stop hanging out with the hufflepuff girls. He didn't think Harry, Hermione and Ron would mind his sitting with them. However, he didn't want to spend the entire train ride with Lilah, if her performance earlier had been any indication of her mood, expecially since she would inevitably be flirting with Harry. Fortunatly, when Nigel found Harry, Hermione and Ron, Lilah was not with them. On top of that, no one seemed at all suprised when he joined them. Nigel soon was involved in a discussion with Harry. Nigel had not actually wanted to talk to Harry, since he had felt that it was in a way Harry's fault that he and Lilah had broken up; but once he began, he quite enjoyed it. Really, he thought to himself, Harry had done nothing; it wasn't Harry's fault if Lilah liked him. Nigel had just resolved to give up any feelings of resentment, towards Harry for ruining his relationship with Lilah, when he heard the compartment door slide open and Lilah say, "Hi Harry" and then in a completely different tone, "Oh Nigel. I didn't realize you were here"
Nigel felt humiliated beyond belief. He muttered something about not staying where he was not wanted, and left. As he closed the door, he saw Lilah leaning towards Harry.
Dissolutely, he walked down the corridor, trying to think of somewhere he could go. He passed Parvati and Lavender, who turned bright red and began to giggle when they saw him. He waved and they turned even redder and hurried off. He saw Ginny and informed her that, "Your brother, Harry, Hermione, and you know who are in the last compartment to the left"
Ginny looked extremely gratefull and while thanking him managed to trip over her own robe. Nigel helped her up and she looked embarassed and said, "You're so kind, you're all so kind!"
"Is someone playing some enormous trick on me, which everyone on the bloody train knows about but me?" Nigel thought.
Nigel was just about ready to curl himself up in a very tight ball and stay that way for all eternity, when, all of the sudden, he turned around to find Cho Chang sticking her head out a comapartment door asking him if he wanted to sit with her and some of the Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw seventh years. Cho Chang! The Ravenclaw seeker Harry had liked, who had graduated the year before....What was she doing here! Nigel wasn't sure, but he didn't really care. All that mattered was that she had offered him a way out of his hellish search for somewhere to sit. He also couldn't help but think of how much fun it was going to be to casually mention it to Harry. This day had certainly improved in the last thirty seconds.
Nigel went in the compartment with Cho, and found himself staring at Hannah, the girl from earlier that had been there for Lilah's performance. He had known Hannah since first year, they had been friends before he had taken up with Lilah. He remembered how in second year she didn't tease him about liking Morag, and how he had wondred if she liked him herself. He thought to himself that she really looked quite like an angel. She was sitting there engrossed sketching something on a little pad of paper. His attention was distracted by Cho asking, "So Nigel, are you going to do quiddich this year?"
"Ummm...I really don't know if I'm good enough" he replied
Ernie snickered, "Then you really would be Cedric"
"Oh ... Cho how come you're here on the Hogwarts Express with us since you graduated last year? If you don't mind telling me." Nigel quickly added.
"Oh of course, I'm training to be a teacher. Professor McGonagall has agreed to train me"
"Really, is that the usual way of things? You know I'm from a muggle family and don't-"
"But apparently you're not really from muggle ancestry" Cho cut him off, "I'd hardly call Helga Hufflepuff a muggle!"
So that was what they had all wanted to say, why the Gryffindor girls had giggled; when Ginny said "you all", she must have meant him and Harry, the heirs. Nigel blushed. How had news of this spread so fast? To tell the truth however, he really didn't mind. He told them all about what had happened, and how he turned out to be the heir to Hufflepuff. After that he found he felt surprisingly at home with the Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws. He had not hung out with them much in the last three or four year, choosing instead to spend time with his Slytherin girlfriend and her Gryffindor friends. Now he wondered why. The girls weren't prettier and they certainly weren't any nicer. He was still talking to Cho when he looked over and saw Hannah, staring out the window. She really did look like an angel. Hannah looked up at him and smiled, and suddenly Nigel felt more giddy than he could remember being. "I think I'll just go to the loo" Cho said.
Nigel got up and sat next to Hannah. "How was your summer?" He asked kindly, and earnestly, but mundanely.
"Hello" he replied, Margaret nudged him and he added dutifully, "Oh, this is my sister Margaret. Margaret, this is Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, Ron Weasley, and Ron's sister Ginny Weasley."
Nigel looked at the boys and wanted to bang his head against something really really hard. Why did he have to have a, supermodel looking, dancer for a sister. The boys were practically drooling. Luckily, Hermione dragged them away quickly enough.
Nigel breathed a sigh of relief when they walked off but soon discovered that Margaret intended to meet every student in the entire school. "Why, oh why was i born!" Nigel though to himself. Twenty minutes later he was talking with Hannah Abbot, a pretty girl, with curly blonde hair, when Margaret exclaimed, "Why if it isn't Lilah! Hello Lilah dear"
Nigel turned around and found himself face to face with Lilah. He wondered if this was anywhere near as embarrassing for her as it was for him, and reaalized it was most definatly not. "Hannah. You know Lilah, don't you?" Nigel stammered, trying to regain his composure.
"Yes. You introduced us the night of the Yule Ball" Lilah snapped, "Oh look! There's Harry! I believe I'll go have a chat with him! Oh by the way" she added, "I meant what I said the night of the wedding."
Nigel couldn't figure out why she was being so hostile. They had been broken up for ages and were still friends, weren't they?. After all they'd been through, he would have thought she'd be at least a little more civil. He turned around to find Hannah walking away. If Lilah's point had ben to alienate the girl, it seemed to have worked, "but why would she want to do that?" He thought to himself.
"Well Nigel, I'd better let you get on the train" Margaret sighed.
As he finally got on the train, Nigel wondered where he would find to sit. for the last 2 years he had been constantly with Lilah, and her friends, and now he realized that he really had no friends of his own anymore. Lilah had pretty much demanded he stop hanging out with the hufflepuff girls. He didn't think Harry, Hermione and Ron would mind his sitting with them. However, he didn't want to spend the entire train ride with Lilah, if her performance earlier had been any indication of her mood, expecially since she would inevitably be flirting with Harry. Fortunatly, when Nigel found Harry, Hermione and Ron, Lilah was not with them. On top of that, no one seemed at all suprised when he joined them. Nigel soon was involved in a discussion with Harry. Nigel had not actually wanted to talk to Harry, since he had felt that it was in a way Harry's fault that he and Lilah had broken up; but once he began, he quite enjoyed it. Really, he thought to himself, Harry had done nothing; it wasn't Harry's fault if Lilah liked him. Nigel had just resolved to give up any feelings of resentment, towards Harry for ruining his relationship with Lilah, when he heard the compartment door slide open and Lilah say, "Hi Harry" and then in a completely different tone, "Oh Nigel. I didn't realize you were here"
Nigel felt humiliated beyond belief. He muttered something about not staying where he was not wanted, and left. As he closed the door, he saw Lilah leaning towards Harry.
Dissolutely, he walked down the corridor, trying to think of somewhere he could go. He passed Parvati and Lavender, who turned bright red and began to giggle when they saw him. He waved and they turned even redder and hurried off. He saw Ginny and informed her that, "Your brother, Harry, Hermione, and you know who are in the last compartment to the left"
Ginny looked extremely gratefull and while thanking him managed to trip over her own robe. Nigel helped her up and she looked embarassed and said, "You're so kind, you're all so kind!"
"Is someone playing some enormous trick on me, which everyone on the bloody train knows about but me?" Nigel thought.
Nigel was just about ready to curl himself up in a very tight ball and stay that way for all eternity, when, all of the sudden, he turned around to find Cho Chang sticking her head out a comapartment door asking him if he wanted to sit with her and some of the Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw seventh years. Cho Chang! The Ravenclaw seeker Harry had liked, who had graduated the year before....What was she doing here! Nigel wasn't sure, but he didn't really care. All that mattered was that she had offered him a way out of his hellish search for somewhere to sit. He also couldn't help but think of how much fun it was going to be to casually mention it to Harry. This day had certainly improved in the last thirty seconds.
Nigel went in the compartment with Cho, and found himself staring at Hannah, the girl from earlier that had been there for Lilah's performance. He had known Hannah since first year, they had been friends before he had taken up with Lilah. He remembered how in second year she didn't tease him about liking Morag, and how he had wondred if she liked him herself. He thought to himself that she really looked quite like an angel. She was sitting there engrossed sketching something on a little pad of paper. His attention was distracted by Cho asking, "So Nigel, are you going to do quiddich this year?"
"Ummm...I really don't know if I'm good enough" he replied
Ernie snickered, "Then you really would be Cedric"
"Oh ... Cho how come you're here on the Hogwarts Express with us since you graduated last year? If you don't mind telling me." Nigel quickly added.
"Oh of course, I'm training to be a teacher. Professor McGonagall has agreed to train me"
"Really, is that the usual way of things? You know I'm from a muggle family and don't-"
"But apparently you're not really from muggle ancestry" Cho cut him off, "I'd hardly call Helga Hufflepuff a muggle!"
So that was what they had all wanted to say, why the Gryffindor girls had giggled; when Ginny said "you all", she must have meant him and Harry, the heirs. Nigel blushed. How had news of this spread so fast? To tell the truth however, he really didn't mind. He told them all about what had happened, and how he turned out to be the heir to Hufflepuff. After that he found he felt surprisingly at home with the Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws. He had not hung out with them much in the last three or four year, choosing instead to spend time with his Slytherin girlfriend and her Gryffindor friends. Now he wondered why. The girls weren't prettier and they certainly weren't any nicer. He was still talking to Cho when he looked over and saw Hannah, staring out the window. She really did look like an angel. Hannah looked up at him and smiled, and suddenly Nigel felt more giddy than he could remember being. "I think I'll just go to the loo" Cho said.
Nigel got up and sat next to Hannah. "How was your summer?" He asked kindly, and earnestly, but mundanely.