Challenge prompt: Write about an OC (Original Character)

Setting: Hogwarts, Herbology class, 4th year, prior to the Yule Ball.

Sometimes Derek wished he didn't have Herbology with the Gryffindors. Sure, they didn't pick on the 'Puffs as much as Slytherin did, but having Harry Potter in the same class as you had a way of changing things. As much as they wanted to focus on the material, there was always this sense of… tension, like something could happen at any moment.

Derek didn't think Harry had cheated to get his name in the tournament, not really… it grated on him that Harry Potter wound up in the Tournament, taking away one of their house's few chances for a bit of glory, but it wasn't his fault everything seemed to happen to him. It didn't even seem like he wanted it, really.

Hermione wasn't too bad… a swot, yes, but that wasn't always a bad thing, and she usually kept her two friends under control… mostly. She could be a bit overbearing sometimes, but she never talked to him anyways so Derek wasn't really worried about it.

Ronald Weasley, on the other hand….

"I mean, you saw them, right Harry? They're hideous. I don't know how she can expect me to show my face in public wearing robes like that!" Harry shrugged and kept his eyes on their shared pot.

The hideous dress robes his mom had sent him. It was all Ron had talked about for the past week. Derek didn't doubt that they were ugly, but the way Ron went on about them… well, best not to pay attention. He still had another dozen roots to transplant.

Ron let out a huff. "I don't mean to keep on about it Harry, I just…. Sometimes I just hate being poor."

Derek felt his hand get wet. Looking down he saw the root he had been shifting was crushed, but he couldn't bring himself to care. He walked over to Ron and before he realized what he was doing found himself punching Ron in the face. Ron fell down and for a few moments all hell broke loose, until Professor Sprout immobilized everyone and stepped in.

"That's quite enough! Mr. Greene, I'm surprised at you! 30 points from Hufflepuff and detention with me tonight at 7, and you'll apologize to Mr. Weasley this instant!"

Derek felt the spell on him shift, letting him move his head again. "Sorry Professor; I'll take the detention, but I'm not going to apologize to him. Punish me more if you want, I don't care."

"Bloody hell, what'd I ever do to you?" Ron asked.

"You get a set of hideous dress robes and you think you're poor, Weasley? You wouldn't know the first thing about it."

Ron's face darkened, and it was obvious that Professor Sprout's spell was the only thing holding him back. "What are you saying, everyone knows we're poor! We're…"

"You're a wizard." Derek spat. "You think because you and your siblings have to get a few hand-me-downs that you're poor? Maybe compared to the Malfoys, but you know nothing about what it means to be poor. You've never fallen asleep knowing that your parents didn't eat because there wasn't enough food for all four of you, so they gave food to you and your brother and just went hungry that night! You've never had to sleep in a shelter with 20 other people because you didn't have a home anymore!"

Ron's face had gone pale, and his mouth was moving like he wanted to stop this, but he couldn't find the words.

"You've never watched your mother get attacked by random thugs in the street because she didn't have any money to give them ... you've never had to watch her bleeding in the street, get told by the doctors that..." Derek stopped, his breathing ragged. "And then Professor Sprout comes and tells me there's this other world I'm supposed to be a part of, but my family can't come. I get to be here and have all the food I want, all the medicine I want, and my dad and my brother are still back home, alone… and they're happy because I got out, I have this other world I can be a part of, and my dad only has to worry about feeding one kid, but your world says that I can't use any of my magic to help them because they're muggles, and nothing I'm learning here will let me do anything in the muggle world, so when I graduate how am I supposed to take care of them? Your world hates me because I'm a mudblood, do you think I'm going to get a job that pays enough to take care of me and my family straight out of Hogwarts?"

Derek dimly realized that everyone in the room was staring at him, that at some point the spell holding him in place had faded, but he couldn't bring himself to care. He knew he wasn't supposed to talk about this… it was somehow understood that you didn't talk about your family much if you were a muggleborn, especially if there were problems, but everything he'd been holding back for three years was spilling forth and he wasn't sure if he wanted to stop it anymore.

"So I'm sorry you have to wear some ugly robes to this year's Yule ball, and I'm sure you'll be miserable, but don't sit there talking about how horrible your life is. Your life is a paradise compared to a lot of muggles, and there's not a single pureblood in this school that knows poverty the way we do."

Derek turned to Professor Sprout. "There, I guess I apologized after all. Punish me as much as you want, but I can't be in the same room as him right now. I'll meet you for detention tonight."

"Derek, wait, I…" Ron spoke up. "I didn't know it was like that for muggles. I…"

Derek laughed. "For muggles? Like we're all the same? Your friend Hermione there hasn't ever had to deal with any of this, I'm sure… her parents are dentists, so they're probably rich. Even if they're not, they'll certainly never have had problems affording food or clothes. We've got rich and poor, same as you Weasley… only when we're poor? We don't have magic to fix all our problems."

"That's not his fault." Hermione spoke up, her eyes were glistening but her voice was steady. "It sounds like your situation was horrible, but it's not his fault he didn't know any better, or that his family has magic."

Derek sighed. "Didn't stop him from complaining, did it? I'm sorry I dragged you into this Granger…. Hermione. I don't hate you because your parents are better off than mine, I don't, it's just... "

Hermione nodded. "I get it. I do. Just…. You've had it hard, but you're not the only one that's had problems."

"Derek." Professor Sprout spoke up. "Why don't you go back to your dorm? We'll talk later."

Derek nodded, and walked out of the classroom.

Derek never did make it to dinner that night, he just laid in his bed until it was time for his detention. A few of the other 'Puffs had tried to speak to him, but he had ignored them. What could he say? He never wanted their pity, and they weren't allowed to help his family any more than he was so what good would it do?

He knocked on Professor Sprout's door, and when she called he opened the door, only to stop just inside her office. Professor Sprout was seated at her desk, but another woman he didn't recognize sat in front of the desk, leaving only one empty chair.

There was something familiar about the woman, though… and her clothes looked very expensive, her brown hair neatly pulled back in a single braid.

"Professor Sprout? What's going on?"

Professor Sprout gestured to an empty chair; when he sat she appeared to collect herself for a moment.

"Derek, first I feel I owe you and your family an apology. I had no idea you didn't live in the home I found you in. I knew there were others there, of course, but.."

"It was a Night Shelter, Professor. There are programs that try to help the homeless, but… it's been hard. That was one of our better nights, all things considered."

Professor Sprout nodded. "Well, even still. There are measures in place that are intended to help families in need, but I confess I was a bit lost at first when I heard about your situation earlier. None of them are really set up to help a family that's homeless, you see. Then Miss Granger contacted me, said she wanted to speak to her parents and… well, perhaps I should let Mrs. Granger take over?"

Mrs. Granger nodded. "That's probably a good idea. I'm Helen, Hermione's mother, and I've been told you're Derek? Derek Greene?" Derek nodded. "Right, well let's get straight to it then. Hermione told me about your little… incident, earlier today, and you were right about one thing. We are well off, well enough off in fact to have a house with not one, but two guest bedrooms. We also have our own private practice, which as it turns out is in need of an assistant, someone to help with filing and so on. I'm not sure exactly how your situation came about, but this isn't a physically demanding position if that's the problem... "

Derek's eyes narrowed. "We don't need charity, ma'am."

Helen nodded. "Of course not. We're British after all, have to keep our pride, don't we?" Derek blinked, and Helen laughed. "You're a classmate of my daughter, and your family is clearly in need of a bit of help. My own family was in a similar situation once, a long time ago… and if they hadn't accepted help when it was offered, I doubt I would have ever had the opportunity to go to school at all, let alone become a dentist."

Helen held out a small card; taking it, Derek saw a few numbers printed on it, with a handwritten address on the back. "Our numbers, at the office and at home, and our address. Given your… situation, I wasn't entirely sure how to go about contacting your father, so I thought it might be easiest for him to contact us. You, your father, and your brother are welcome to stay with us as long as you need to, and we don't expect anything from you. I'm a firm believer in paying it forward; someday, you or your brother is going to find someone who's in need, just the same as you, and all we want is that you help them out in turn."

Derek stared at the card, trying to wrap his head around what was happening. He opened his mouth to say thank you, to tell her to forget it, to say anything, but he couldn't actually make the words come.

Helen stood up. "Well, it's been a long day, and I confess I'm not looking forward to the trip home. It's convenient, certainly, but I can't say I'm fond of…. Apparating, you called it?" At Professor Sprout's smile, Helen sighed. "But I suppose it beats the tube, and there's certainly no other way I'll be back home tonight. Please do have your father contact us, I wasn't lying when I said we need an assistant."

With that, Helen walked out of Professor Sprout's office, Professor Sprout following behind her. At the door, Professor Sprout stopped and turned back to Derek. "For your detention tonight, I want 100 lines: 'I will not set a bad example for other students.'"

Derek felt confused again. "Professor?"

Professor Sprout smiled. "It seems that on their way in for dinner, Mr. Malfoy was making some very loud comments, sharing his opinion on your situation. Mr. Weasley apparently took exception to this, and chose to share his displeasure with his fists."

Derek blinked, then grinned. "Yes ma'am, 100 lines, I will not set a bad example for other students."

Professor Sprout nodded, turned, and walked away. Derek looked to Professor Sprout's desk and saw a blank parchment and quill waiting for him. Sighing, he sat down and started writing… though the grin never left his face. A possible place for his family to stay? Maybe things wouldn't be as bad as he'd feared.

And Weasley punching Malfoy? Maybe he should apologize after all.