I don't even think I can apologize for this delay. Suffice it to say that I'm unbelievably sorry, and I hope my readers are loyal enough to forgive me.

So here we are again, this time with Molly.

The main problem I had to face here is...her age. Why?

A. I want her as young as possible, because let's face it, Percy probably wouldn't have found a girl fast enough to marry early. XD

B. She can't be younger than Al and Rose, because Percy was at the station in the book. I mean, I could always find a lame excuse to get around that, but it'd end up being ridiculously contrived.

C. She can't be James' age, because then she probably would have been mentioned in the epilogue.

D. Ditto for Albus.

E. Which means she's stuck with Dominique, one year above James. Except I didn't plan for this in advance, so she wasn't mentioned in Dominique's letter.

Hence my dilemma. XD Well, as you can see, I...well...took the easy way out.

So happy reading, and pleasepleaseplease review if you missed me! Come on guys, I need incentive here. XD

Dear Dad,

Please don't tell Mum - I don't know how she can work in St. Mungo's and still be afraid of injuries- but I'm in the Hospital Wing. And it's my own fault. No, I mean, it's literally my own fault. I...purposely...turned my whole arm a disgusting green, and everyone thinks I got bitten or cursed - or worse. But I weighed my options, and this seemed like the best course of action. After...after Domi stopped speaking to me, I figured I needed to do something drastic to get her back.

And this supposedly drastic plan seems beyond drastic in retrospect. Also beyond stupid. But it really all started with the Head Boy. Raymond Davies, idiot extraordinaire. Dominique thinks (well, she thought) he's absolutely brilliant, but in my opinion, natural brains just aren't comparable to intelligence cultivated through study and hard work. The word 'effort' has no place in his dictionary, and he still happens to be so infuriatingly perfect! But I digress. Point being, the aforementioned idiot and Dominique went out for a grand total of twenty-two days, during which she behaved like a brainless and starry-eyed romantic. But she was so ridiculously happy that I couldn't find it in my heart to criticize her. (No, that's...unfortunately not true. She just couldn't find it in her heart to listen to me criticize her.) And then after he typically got tired of his woeful state of monogamy, he ditched her. Regardless of his so-called 'brilliance', I don't believe he's anything more than a playboy at heart.

But Dominique, however much of a daydreaming butterfly she might seem, wouldn't go off her head merely because of a breakup. The thing is...immediately after Raymond broke up with her - it was in the library - he walked over to my table and asked me out. It was ridiculously out-of-character for him; he usually waits precisely two months before finding the next object of his affections. (No, of course I don't keep track. It's an approximation, honestly.) But he told me, in Domi's hearing (shamelessly stupid, in my opinion), that I was unconventionally gorgeous. Gorgeous! It would be a lie if I said I wasn't flattered. So I suppose I lied to Raymond, because my response was that I wasn't in the least bit flattered. He then proceeded to fling ten tonnes of adjectives in my face - 'intelligent', 'witty', 'charismatic', and the like. And after that I think he started to run out, because he was forced to resort to 'whimsical' and 'ethereal', neither of which I am at all. But then, as if he hadn't done enough damage, he told me I was infinitely less 'flighty' than Domi, and therefore I made 'much better girlfriend-material.' It made me sick, so I told him just that and drew my wand. He had enough brains to run at the sight. (And Dad, I swear, I wouldn't have gone out with him anyway, even if he asked me less...crudely. It'd be a distraction from my N.E.W.T.s and all. And no, I'm not just saying this to make you happy. Seriously.) But still, Dominique was...a bit...shattered. I suppose she believed every last word of his spiel, and was angry enough to blame me for it. She didn't merely vow never to speak to me again, she proclaimed that she'd forget my very existence.

She kept this promise for less than a week, but that less-than-a-week was pure hell. I was completely and utterly ignored by my very best friend, if you can imagine how that feels. And by the transitive property, I was given the cold shoulder by James, that girlfriend of his, the girl who should be his girlfriend but isn't yet, and Dominique's new boyfriend. (Yes, she's already gotten a new boyfriend. The poor thing's been her lapdog for ages; I think it's time she gave him something.) Honestly, I'm used to being shunned by James - he doesn't particularly like my lectures - but this was absurd. Because Dominique kept the incident in the library quiet out of pure mortification, he didn't even know why he was ignoring me. I suppose he assumed it was Raymond-related, because all of Dominique's tempers have been Raymond-related for the past two years. But there's something magnetic about Dominique that inspires the blindest of loyalty. And so I was literally ostracized.

I decided that enough was enough by last Thursday. A near-death experience was my first choice, but I quickly realized the impracticality of that. Because actually dying would certainly put a hole in the plan. Then I decided to duel Raymond in Domi's name. Except that concept's archaic, not to mention more humorous than daring. And I'd probably end up getting a detention. (As you know, my record, as of now, is spotless. I hope you're proud.) I contemplated wandering into the Forbidden Forest to get bitten by a thestral, except I can't see thestrals and the textbook's unclear on whether or not they eat humans. That was when I hit upon the idea to turn my arm green.

It worked beautifully, particularly because it's such a putrid shade of green. Dominique wept over me and begged pardon a thousand times over. So that's over and done with. James actually cried too, and I probably shouldn't have told you that, because he looked so ashamed afterwards. Everyone else is panicked too, which is an unfortunate complication, seeing as they're not in the least involved. And to top it all off, Madam Pomfrey's at her wits' end. She's tried everything, and obviously none of it's working. And I've missed about five days of schoolwork by being in the Hospital Wing. The guilt's at horrific levels, and I don't know what to do. I would just change my arm back in the middle of the night, but my wand's in my dorm. And if I confess, everyone will hate me all over again. I'm coming up with a plan to sneak out, but that's ridiculously difficult, and I'm in such a quandary.

Put simply, I need help. Please, please don't send a lecture; I've scolded myself enough already. But a spare wand, or an invisibility cloak, or something like that would do wonders for me. Thanks in advance, Dad, and I do love you. Very much. In spite of all...this. (Lu sends her love too. She's so scared for me that she never leaves my side. It's pathetic and disconcerting at the same time.)

Sincerely,
Molly