Eloise Midgen sat at the end of the Hufflepuff table, a few seats removed from the other students. She had a simple plate of food that she was rapidly shoveling into her mouth. Her eyes were focused on the table, averted from even the possibility of making eye contact with one of the many people in the room. All around her, people were joking and sharing the daily gossip, but Eloise was trying her hardest to remain unseen. If she could just make herself invisible, she might be able to escape breakfast unscathed.
As soon as she finished eating, Eloise stood up and began the long walk out of the Great Hall. Even though no one was paying much attention, she felt like everyone in the world was staring at her. She sped up her steps, trying to make it out of the door without a problem. She was almost there when Pansy Parkinson stepped in front of her.
"Where are you headed in such a hurry, Eloise? Going to accidentally jinx off your nose again? Maybe this time Madame Pomfrey could make it a little less pig like when she re-attaches it."
Eloise stared down at her feet and said nothing. Flush crept up her neck as people throughout the Great Hall turned to watch them.
"Maybe while she's at it she could find a way to cure that grotesque acne that's covering your face. It really is revolting to look at."
Again, Eloise acted as if she couldn't hear what Pansy was saying, but she could feel the tears threatening to fall. She swallowed hard, trying to choke down the emotions that were rising in her throat. She made an attempt to step around Pansy, but was roughly shoved back.
"What's the matter? I haven't even had the chance to ask you about your Valentine's Day plans. Are you and your imaginary boyfriend going to do something or are you just going to sit in your room by yourself crying because you're too ugly for anyone to want?"
This time the words struck home. Tears began to fall down Eloise's cheeks. Year after year she had spent Valentine's Day alone and this one didn't look to be any different. All of the other girls in her house would spend the morning getting ready for the evening and then one by one they would disappear to Madame Puddifoots for an afternoon of romance.
"Aww look at poor ickle Eloise. Crying because she's such a pathetic, ugly loser and nobody likes her."
Pansy was getting set to continue on when Justin Finch-Fletchley stepped between the two girls.
"Back off Parkinson before I make you regret everything you said."
"Oh. What's this? Maybe ickle Eloise does have a boyfriend after all! Honestly Justin, I thought you could do a lot better."
Justin blushed bright red, but he stood his ground. "Pansy, I know you're just mad because you caught Draco snogging Millicent Bullstrode earlier. How does it feel to find out your longtime boyfriend is messing around behind your back? And on Valentine's Day to boot. That must really hurt."
This time it was Pansy's turn to feel foolish. She looked to the Slytherin table where Draco had his arm draped around Millicent's shoulders. Her eyes started to well up, but before anyone could catch her crying, she turned and ran from the Great Hall. A handful of students cheered as she fled.
"Are you okay?" Justin said as he turned to face Eloise. He studied her for a moment noticing how she refused to look at him. Instead of giving him a verbal response, she just nodded her head and scurried away.
Later that evening, Eloise was sitting in a cushy, golden armchair in the empty common room. She held a mug of hot chocolate in her hand and a book sat in her lap. The only noise she could hear was the occasional crackling of the fireplace. Her thoughts were focused on the events from earlier. She couldn't fathom why everyone treated her so badly, particularly when she always tried to stay out of the way.
Eloise was so deep in her thoughts that she didn't hear Justin Finch-Fletchley enter the common room. In fact, she didn't even notice his presence until he plopped down into the armchair next to her and started talking.
"Hi there. Feeling a bit better than you were this morning?"
Blush crept up Eloise's cheeks at the memory of the scene from earlier that morning. "About that…"she said, her voice barely above a whisper. "Thank you for sticking up for me."
"It was no problem really. I hate to see my fellow students bullied, particularly by that miserable git, Pansy."
The two students lapsed into silence. For the first time, Justin noticed just how uncomfortable social interaction seemed to make Eloise. He watched as she fidgeted in her seat. She seemed intent on not looking at him at all. He thought back to all of the times he had witnessed her getting bullied and realized that it was probably the cause of her shyness.
"So it looks like it's just you and me tonight. Want to play some Wizard Chess?"
Eloise stared down at the table. She wasn't used to people talking to her or really even acknowledging that she was alive. Tentatively, she shook her head yes. Justin summoned a chess board and table over to where they were sitting.
As all of the pieces flew into place, Justin asked "Do you want to be white or black?"
"Black" squeaked Eloise.
"Ok. Black it is." Justin turned the board so that each player had the proper color in front of them.
Once the game was underway, Justin learned that Eloise was a more than adequate chess player. Every time he made a move, she sent one of his chess pieces limping off of the board. It didn't take long before the game was over. A look of amazement crossed Justin's face.
"How in the world did you get so good at chess?"
For the first time that Justin had ever witnessed, a smiled spread across Eloise's face. When she spoke, she seemed to find a bit more confidence. "Well, my father won the National Wizarding Chess Championship ten years in a row. When I was a child, he would sit at the kitchen table with me and we would play game after. At ten years old, I entered the Junior Wizarding Chess Championship and won. I've held the title for six years since. It's the only thing that I feel like I actually do really well."
"Wow. That's spectacular. I would've never guessed. Maybe you should start a Wizarding Chess Club here."
"Oh no. I couldn't do that." Eloise shook her head as if she had just walked through cobwebs.
"Why not? I know Ron Weasley's always going on about how great he is at chess, but I bet you could teach him a thing or two."
At the mere mention of teaching other students about chess, Eloise looked horrified. "No. You don't understand. I get bullied badly enough as it is and I stay out of everyone's way. If I suddenly started putting myself out there it would only get worse."
"You know, you only get bullied because you don't stand up for yourself. They all do it because you make yourself an easy target. If the next time someone said something mean to you, you jinxed them, everyone would stop. Why do you think no one really messes with me?"
"It's not the same. You're everything everyone wants to be; popular, kind, intelligent, and…" She stopped herself before she blurted out handsome. She didn't think she could live with herself if he knew she fancied him. "Me on the other hand, I'm slow, weak, and unattractive. If I tried to stand up for myself, the people picking on me would only see it as an opportunity to beat me back into submission."
Justin couldn't believe the words that were coming out of her mouth. "Eloise, how can you say that about yourself?"
"Because it's the truth! Pansy was right. My face is grotesque and I'm a complete loser. Even worse now I'm making a prat of myself in front of you." Normally, Eloise would've never said these things in front of Justin or anyone else for that matter, but the frustration from the morning just came tumbling out before she could stop it.
Justin sighed. "Eloise, listen to me and really try to hear what I am saying. You are beautiful, one of the most beautiful girls in this school in fact. Most of the boys in this school seem to think so anyways. And as for the girls picking on you, they only do it out of jealousy."
"That's a sweet thing to say Justin. I really appreciate you trying to make me feel better, but you don't have to lie to me. I know who I am. I'm ugly Eloise, the person that nobody wants."
A sound similar to a chuckle emanated from Justin's throat. "Are you kidding me? I've been trying to work up the courage to come and talk to you for weeks. Every time I've tried to approach you, you've gone running off, so I just thought you weren't interested in me. Then this morning, I saw Pansy being awful and I thought it might be my chance to catch your eye."
Eloise didn't know what to say. Justin seemed so sincere, but deep inside she was terrified that this would all be a cruel joke, that maybe when the other Hufflepuff boys returned he would tell them how he tricked poor Eloise into thinking she was special.
"I want to believe you…" she started to say, but was cut off as Justin touched her cheek with his hand.
"Then believe me. Any guy in this school would be lucky to have a girl like you."
The way that Justin was looking at her made Eloise feel terribly nervous, but also underneath there was a sense of exhilaration. Her stomach was tying itself in knots and her heart was banging against her chest. Against her better judgment, she was beginning to believe that he was being honest, although that thought terrified her even more than the idea that this might all be a joke. She had no idea what to do.
Eloise was lost in her thoughts, analyzing how to respond when Justin leaned forward, gently pulling her face to his. Their lips met and her sense of panic turned to a sense of amazement. He kissed her softly at first, but when she responded he let his enthusiasm show. He wound his hands into her soft, curly, dark hair and kissed her passionately.
After several moments, he pulled away. The two of them smiled shyly at each other, not knowing exactly what to say. Eloise re-set the chess board and spent the remainder of the evening teaching Justin some basic chess strategy. Laughter filled the room as they shared stories and for the first time in her life Eloise opened up.
It wasn't until much later, when all of the other Hufflepuffs started returning to the common room that the pair decided to call it a night. Justin walked Eloise to the entrance of the girl's dormitory. She whispered "Goodnight" and was about to walk through the door when he grabbed her hand and pulled her to him. Justin held Eloise in his arms and said "I hope your Valentine's Day was as good as mine!" He leaned in and kissed her once more before letting her go.
Eloise walked into her room, smiling from ear to ear. As she headed toward her bed, she stopped for just a moment to look into her mirror. For the first time in ages, she saw herself as she truly was. Her horrible acne had long ago cleared leaving flawless porcelain skin. Her nose was slightly off center, but it made her face look a bit more exotic and her bright green eyes shone with the happiness that she had long ago forgotten. She felt like a new person entirely and decided that her days of being bullied were coming to an end. With that she turned off the lights and went to bed.
Hi there!
This story was originally posted on HPFF for the Valentine's Day Challenge (2015). I'm honestly terrible at writing fluffy stories, which is what was required of the story, so I tried to temper it a bit with some real life issues. I have very strong head cannons for Eloise Midgen and this is just the tip of the iceberg.
I'd love to know what you thought of this, so feel free to leave a comment!
Thank you for reading!
~Kaitlin/TreacleTart