Diary of a Forgotten Girl

Of Secrets and Saviors

~Holly's Point of View~

Date : 2 November 1991

I sat on the bench, wearing my scarlet and gold Quidditch Robes and holding my borrowed school broomstick - nicknamed Amelia, after the famous Muggle pilot.

"And your Seeker - the youngest in a century… HARRY POTTER!" announced Lee Jordan, a friend of Fred and George. I cheered for Harry, and he took off, flying around the pitch before coming to a stop.

"Let the game… begin!"

An hour later, Gryffindor was losing 60-40. I watched through a pair of binoculars for the Snitch, but Harry caught my eye.

"What's he doing?"

He was jerking on his broom. It appeared to be out of control - but it couldn't be, could it? Brooms don't do that - especially not Nimbus Two Thousands that Professor McGonagall buys for star Seekers. But it appeared to be trying to throw him off - he was now only hanging with one hand - and I leapt up, mounting my broom and taking off, getting to a height of about ten feet and hovering.

"Harry, you're good!" I shouted. He looked down, then cast one last look up at his broom before letting go of it.

I moved around a little, before he landed, right on target. My broom flipped with the added weight, but I was able to right it, flying down to the ground.

"Harry, are you alright?" I asked, shaking him. He didn't respond, instead slapping a hand over his mouth. "Harry - what's wrong?!"

His body hurled, and something came out of his mouth, falling into his hand. He carefully stood up, holding the tiny golden ball above his head.

"HARRY POTTER HAS CAUGHT THE SNITCH!" The crowd went wild, and Harry grinned at me.

"Taste good, then?" I joked.

"Not as good as victory," he replied. The rest of the players landed, thumping Harry on the back and congratulating him. Fred had Harry's broom, now still as a statue.

"Odd," he commented. "Stopped jerking a couple of moments before you let go."

Hermione and Ron came rushing out of the stands, hugging Harry. Hagrid followed them, grinning.

"Yeh did it, Harry!" he exclaimed. "Come on - I think it's time for a spot o' tea."

"Someone was cursing his broom," insisted Hermione. "And we think it was Snape!"

"And Snape wouldn' do such a thing!" replied Hagrid.

Apparently, Snape had been staring at Harry, mumbling, and not blinking - a sure sign of jinxing.

"It doesn't make sense," I mumbled.

"Hagrid, what can you tell us about the three headed dog on the third floor?" asked Harry. I stared at him, bewildered.

"What?" I spluttered

"You didn't tell her, Hermione?" She shook her head.

"You said you would!"

"How on earth did yeh find out abou' Fluffy?" asked Hagrid.

"Fluffy?" asked Ron. "That… thing is called Fluffy?"

"Yeah - he's mine," replied Hagrid. "But what 'ave yeh been doin' on the third floor?"

"We just want to know what he's hiding!" insisted Hermione.

"What 'e's hidin' is nobody's business 'cept fer Dumbledore and Nicolas Flamel!"

"So Nicolas Flamel's involved?"

"I shoul' not have said that," muttered Hagrid as we leapt up, leaving his hut.

"What on earth is a Fluffy?" I asked desperately after we had left.

"Well, let's start at the beginning. Malfoy and I got to arguing, and we agreed to meet up in the trophy room for a duel at midnight."

"We?"

"Malfoy and his second, and Ron and I. So we made to leave the common room-"

"You're a bloody idiot-"

"But Hermione stopped us, and tried to convince us out of going - she couldn't, so she tagged along."

"Hermione!"

"I had to, Willow!"

"Carry on, Harry."

"And then Malfoy wasn't there."

"Big shocker, that one."

"But Filch started coming - so we ran away, and ended up on the third floor."

"From the trophy room?"

"And we found a locked door, so we unlocked it-"

"-Nice logic-"

"And behind the door was a giant three headed dog - kind of like the Cerberus from Greek mythology."

"Cool."

"Obviously, we ran out of there quick as we could-"

"-Good thinking there-"

"But Hermione saw something beneath one of its paws."

"No way! Was is a skeleton?"

"No - it was a trapdoor," replied Hermione. "It's guarding something - something that involves Nicolas Flamel."

"Nicolas Flamel the alchemist?"

"Alchemist?" asked Harry. "What do you know about Nicolas Flamel?"

"He's an alchemist, philosopher, and the only known maker-"

"Of the Philosopher's Stone!" finished Hermione. I nodded. "Why didn't I think of it sooner?"

"I don't know," I replied. "Same reason you didn't tell me sooner?"

"Oi, Willow!" called Oliver Wood. I turned around.

"Yeah?" I asked.

"Congratulations," he said, catching up with me.

"On what?" I asked.

"The Gryffindor Quidditch team has a new Chaser." I grinned, lighting up.

"Really?" He nodded. "You'd be creeped out if I hugged you, wouldn't you?" He nodded again. I literally bounced up and down in excitement. "Ah, what the hell."

I threw my arms around him. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

"Wouldn't want me to throw you off the team for creeping out your Captain, now, would you?"

"Sorry! Won't happen again until we win the next match!"

"That's the spirit."

Date : 24 December 1991

I sang merrily under my breath as I helped Hagrid put up the Christmas trees in the Great Hall.

The castle was being decorated for the students who had stayed, and it was really coming together. It was Christmas Eve in the castle - and there were hardly any students here for the holidays.

Just the Weasleys, Harry and I from Gryffindor, and then a few more from the other houses. It was rather cosy in the common room, sitting in front of the fire late at night with mugs of hot chocolate (which the Weasley twins had gotten from a location they wouldn't disclose).

"What're yeh singin', then?" asked Hagrid curiously.

"Have a holly, jolly Christmas!" I replied in song, using my wand to hang ornaments on the higher branches of the fir tree. "Say, Hagrid, are you celebrating Christmas Eve tonight?"

"I wasn' plannin' to," he replied. "Why do yeh ask?"

"No! I won't let you spend Christmas Eve all alone!" I exclaimed. "You're going to have company this evening, whether you like it or not!"

Hagrid flushed red. "Yeh don't have ter do tha' for me-"

"I insist!" I flashed him a broad grin. "After all, you are my friend."

I finished up with the last of the decorating and skipped out of the Great Hall, still humming.

"And tha' is where the Blas' Ended Skrewt came from," finished Hagrid, taking another swig of tea. I frowned.

"I still don't quite understand what that has to do with the Crumple-Horned Snorkack," I commented confusedly. "Alright then, Hagrid, it's getting late, I guess I should be going - merry Christmas, by the way!"

"Merry Christmas!" he called back as I left the hut, running back up to the castle and through it, all the way up to Gryffindor Tower. I entered the portrait hole, finding Percy, who had a watch in his hand and a grim smile on his face.

"You're cutting it close," he said, showing me the time. Ten seconds to curfew.

"I made it!" I danced.

"Where were you, anyway?" asked Fred from the sofa.

"Hagrid's Hut," I replied, sitting down and taking the hot chocolate George offered me. "Say, do you think the presents will still come if we sit here all night and stare at the Christmas tree?"

"I guess there's no harm in trying," replied Harry.

Date : 25 December 1991

"Man, we suck at staying up," I mumbled, sitting up. At what point did my head fall into Harry's lap? "Ooh! Presents!"

This woke everyone up. Immediately the Weasleys (aside from Percy, who obviously hadn't stayed up in the common room with us) lunged for the tree. Harry and I laughed as they fought, tussling and tossing on the ground. Finally, Fred emerged victorious.

"I win!" Ron and George sat back down, muttering about unfairness.

"What was that about?" asked Harry. Ron shrugged.

"Whoever wins is the Present Hander-Outer," he replied. "They get to hand out everyone's presents and open the first one. We've done it for ages. Mum eventually gave up and let us do it."

"I see."

Percy entered. "Oi - you aren't supposed to start without me!"

"You really think you could best me?" asked Fred.

"Indeed, I do!" challenged Percy. The Weasleys all got into another fight, which Percy won. Surprised, Fred, George and Ron took their seats.

"Here we go… One for Willow, another for Harry - here are yours, Fred, George, one for Ron… and of course, one for me."

I had already opened mine, making the Weasleys all stare at me murderously.

"That was a challenge," informed Ron.

"Very well," I replied.

Once again, a bunch of redheads tussled, myself included this time. I was pinched, poked, and punched, and still managed to come out on top.

"Ugh," I said, looking at my hand. "I think I chipped a nail."

I tossed my tangled hair back over my shoulder, ignoring the boys' stares. "What? Surprised you got beat by a girl?"

I proceeded to open the box, which contained a bunch of Chocolate Frogs. Hermione's work, as Harry and Ron had gotten them as well. I took one out, and proceeded to bite its head off.

"Why do you always execute them?" asked Harry as I violently chewed.

"It's rather merciful, really - I eat their brains so they can't feel the pain from my eating the rest of them."

Ignoring his raised eyebrow, I got down on my knees, noticing a stack of identical boxes. "What'll these be, then?"

"No," said Percy immediately. I raised an eyebrow, handing him his.

"What's wrong with it, then?" I asked. Fred and George laughed.

"Yeah, what's wrong with it?" they chimed. Percy didn't answer. I handed them out to the twins, Ron, and Harry, who took his with a raised eyebrow. I opened mine, taking out a tin of fudge to reveal an emerald green sweater with a 'W' on it. I raised an eyebrow as the others took theirs out. Fred and George had quietly swapped theirs.

"Go on then - put it on!" said Fred, pulling George's over his head.

"Silly Mum - she always puts letters on ours," added George, pulling Fred's over his head. "As if we'd forget our names."

"But we know we're called Gred and Forge," they finished together. Ron, with a look akin to horror, put his on, as did Harry, whose color matched mine. I pulled my jumper out and put it on.

"Come on then, Percy!" exclaimed Fred, elbowing his older brother.

"We're all wearing ours - see, even Willow got one!" added George.

"I don't- want-" mumbled Percy as the sweater was pulled over his head, knocking off his glasses.

"And no way you're sitting with your friends today," said Fred, replacing the glasses.

"Christmas is a time for family!" added George, and the two marched Percy out of the room, who was only made possible by the fact that his arms were pinned to his sides by the sweater they had forced onto him.

"Merry Christmas, then," I said to Harry with a grin.

"Merry Christmas."