A/N: I don't own Harry Potter.

And I also want to apologize for disappearing for so long. For a while it was because I was facing a busy semester and things were going really, really well, but everything in my schedule was just too packed to write. Then everything just sort of fell apart for me, and it was too difficult for me to even try writing. I just didn't feel like doing that or anything. I'm still trying to pick things up and deal with putting myself back together, but your support and understanding means the world to me. I love Ella's story and know where I want to take it. I guarantee I will finish it one day. It just took me a minute to get back on my feet. Thank you all again for your wonderful support. I hope this chapter can make up for my absence.

The House Elf Liberation Front

The amount of food the twins and Ella managed to smuggle back to Gryffindor Tower was truly a feat. It was amazing they hadn't been caught, and even more so that they'd managed to get it all there without some enchantment. They had a new record. The Hufflepuffs also seemed to be celebrating because they hadn't been the only House in the kitchen with the House Elves happily dashing around to make them food and grab butterbeers.

As they entered the Common Room, there was a loud commotion, until they realized it wasn't Harry who walked in. After that it was a loud commotion because they had the food with them. Lee was getting ready to set off Filibuster's fireworks while a fourth year boy drew Harry on his broom, flying around the dragon's head. There were a couple of small drawings of Cedric with his head on fire, but Ella didn't feel like telling him off or anything. It was still pretty accurate to how the events played out. She, George, and Fred began to set out the food and drinks on all the available surfaces around the room.

Harry finally arrived with Ron and Hermione several minutes later. Everyone in the room began cheering wildly for the fourth year who'd tied for first place. Lee let the fireworks go, and they streaked colorfully across the Common Room. Harry looked around in awe at all the food and decorations they'd put together to celebrate his success. Many people were already eating, and Harry wasted no time filling his plate with food. Ella laughed at the amount he piled on; it looked like he hadn't eaten in months. Ella stood beside one of the food tables and watched as Ron, Hermione, and Harry all took a seat together.

Lee dashed towards her, "Look what we have here!" His excitement was directed towards the large golden egg that Harry left on the table.

"What d'you think you're doing?"

He smirked at her and picked the egg up, "Blimey, this is heavy." Ella took it out of his hands and was shocked that Lee wasn't exaggerating. It was much heavier than she expected. Ella handed it back to Lee, who moved towards Harry, "Open it, Harry, go on! Let's just see what's inside it!" Ella nodded enthusiastically with a couple other people around them.

"He's supposed to work out the clues on his own. It's in the tournament rules," Hermione began to protest. Harry quickly leaned over and whispered something to Hermione causing her to blush and smile sheepishly.

"Yeah, go on, Harry, open it!" Ella shouted seeing Hermione give in. Several others began to cheer and echo what she said.

Lee handed Harry the egg, and Ella watched as Harry tried to wrench the thing open. Everyone leaned forward to get a better look at what was inside the golden egg. For a fraction of a second, Ella recognized that nothing was in the egg, but the next moment, her hands were covering her ears as it let out a horrible screech. It bounced off the walls, and it didn't seem like it wanted to offer any sort of reprieve.

Fred moved beside her and bellowed, "Shut it!" Harry slammed it closed and several people cautiously took their hands off their ringing ears.

"What was that?" The sandy-haired boy Ella had threatened when telling Ron off yelled. "Sounded like a banshee… Maybe you've got to get past one of those next, Harry!"

"After a dragon? Not likely," Ella scoffed to the twins, who snorted in agreement.

Across the room, Neville had gone extremely pale, "It was someone being tortured! You're going to have to fight the Cruciatus Curse!"

"Don't be a prat, Neville, that's illegal," George said. Ella elbowed him hard in the side. He looked at her before saying a little nicer, "They wouldn't use the Cruciatus Curse on the champions. I thought it sounded a bit like Percy singing…maybe you've got to attack him while he's in the shower, Harry." Ella laughed imagining Viktor Krum sneaking up on Percy as he was singing.

"Want a jam tart, Hermione?" Fred asked offering up a plate of very appetizing pastries they'd knicked from the kitchen.

Hermione was looking at the plate suspiciously, which Ella figured was a smart idea, but she knew they were fine. She carried the plate up herself, and the last she heard, the twins needed to develop their products instead of just adding an ingredient to something already made.

"It's all right, I haven't done anything to them. It's the custard creams you've got to watch–"

Neville who had just bitten into one of the custard creams choked and spit it back out onto the floor. Fred laughed. Ella looked at the custard creams hesitantly. She didn't remember the House Elves giving those to them.

She walked over and grabbed a jam tart, taking a bite as Fred said, "Just my little joke, Neville…"

Hermione, seeing Ella with one, took a jam tart and asked, "Did you get all this from the kitchens, Fred?"

"Yep," Fred responded proudly. Ella's eyes widened and she looked at George only to notice he was joking around with Lee. Fred continued imitating the House Elves, "'Anything we can get you, sir, anything at all!' They're dead helpful…get me a roast ox if I said I was peckish."

"How do you get in there?" Hermione asked in an innocent voice. One Ella had used herself once or twice. The clever girl.

Fred didn't think twice, "Easy, concealed door behind a painting of a bowl of fruit. Just tickle the pear, and it giggles and –" George had finally noticed his brother's conversation, and Ella was trying not to giggle as Fred slowly realized what Hermione was doing. "Why?"

"Nothing."

George looked at her suspiciously, "Going to try and lead the house-elves out on strike now, are you? Going to give up all the leaflet stuff and try and stir them up into rebellion?" A couple students chuckled at the idea of a House Elf rebellion; most of them were well-meaning purebloods, but that only made Ella feel more protective. She moved forward and placed a comforting hand on Hermione's shoulder.

"Don't you go upsetting them and telling them they've got to take clothes and salaries! You'll put them off their cooking!" Fred said.

Hermione was about to retort when Neville let out a loud squawk. Everyone watched him turn into a giant canary, feathers and all. The Common Room burst into laughter, even Ella couldn't help herself.

"Oh – sorry, Neville! I forgot – it was the custard creams we hexed!" Fred shouted above the roar of laughter. It only took a moment for Neville to lose the feathers and join in on the laughter. The bright feathers were scattered around the floor, and a couple people picked them up to see what they were like, only to be delighted as they disappeared completely.

"Brilliant," Ella said to herself with a grin, watching the feather in her hand disappear into nothing. George smiled at her before looking back at his brother.

"Canary Creams!" Fred yelled out to the Common Room. "George and I invented them – seven Sickles each, a bargain!"

As Fred began selling the Canary Creams to the Gryffindors, George bumped into Ella teasingly, "Brilliant." He mimicked her with a mischievous grin.

Ella stuck out her tongue, "Don't make me take it back. The two of you have a good idea once in a while. It's only fair I recognize it; though I doubt I want to inflate your egos so much."

George ignored Ella's tease for the most part, "But it's not me you find brilliant. Fred came up with the idea of the creams. I helped him with actually creating them. You might think I'm smart, but I can tell which of us you find positively brilliant."

"You're impossible."

"I'm right though."

She thought for a moment, "So what if you are? I think he's brilliant, and? If I'm right, that took an impressive charm to transfigure Neville and make it disappear so completely. It was impressive."

"I can't deny that, but look at him…" Against her better judgement, Ella turned to look at Fred. He was standing in a crowd of several excited people. They were all laughing and turning into giant canaries as they ate the Canary Creams. He stood in the center of it all, looking every bit as excited as all of them. His smile infected the crowd, and everyone seemed to be swept up in the fun.

"He's brilliant, George. He really is."

George smiled softly, "Tell him that."

Ella watched Fred as she answered his twin, "Do you seem his smile? You know how carefree you both are. I can't be that way right now, not with O.W.L.s, not with... There's too much going on to drag him down to where I am."

He placed a hand on her shoulder, "Maybe you could let him raise you out of where you are."

She sighed, "I'm sorry, George. I can't do that to him."

"But you think he's–"

"Brilliant, happy, free…"

"He can be an idiot sometimes, you know."

Ella laughed, "Absolutely. A complete and utter idiot."

"And yet, you still fancy him just as much as if he had the brains of Rowena Ravenclaw herself. I think Rowena the owl has smarter moments than him," George laughed nudging her in the side.

She returned the nudge, "He's bird brained for sure, but at least I'm not the one related to him. I could stop fancying him whenever I please, but you will always be related to him."

"Oh, the horror," George cried out before Ella shushed him through her giggles.

The party ended around one in the morning despite classes being the next morning. Ella knew she'd regret staying up that late once the morning rolled around, but she couldn't find the will to drag herself to bed and nightmares when there was so much fun happening in the Common Room. As everyone moved up to get into bed, Ella remained in the Common Room, until she was the only one left.

She could feel everything building up, not matter how much she didn't want to face her nightmares, she could feel them bubbling like a cauldron ready to boil over. It would be a rough night, much like most others this year. Ella looked at the couch near the fireplace, wondering if she should just stay there, but she knew it was too close to the portrait hole to even consider. If she slept walked that night, it'd be a clear shot out of the room, and even though Ella didn't know where she was subconsciously trying to go, she knew she couldn't allow herself to get there. It was difficult, but Ella managed to climb the stairs to her dormitory and quietly get ready for a night of restless sleep.

Ella gripped her wand tightly. She hardly thought about it or the smooth movements she had as she easily shot off spells that should've been well beyond her fifth year knowledge. It felt like the wand and her arm were the same entity, and the sheer force of each curse made something in the back of Ella's head reel with surprise. She'd never felt so in control of her magic, or focused on a task. She could only imagine that this is how it felt to really duel against someone.

The exhilaration of the duel was the only sensation Ella could feel racing through her blood. Wherever this intense battle was supposed to take, Ella couldn't see it. At times, she felt the heat of a jinx barely missing her, but she moved with so much grace and skill. It was almost mechanical, yet flowing at the same moment. Everything about the vision fascinated her. It wasn't like her typical dream.

A searing pain spread across her shoulder. She hadn't dodged a spell quick enough. Ella didn't know what spell hit her; she just knew it hurt. Despite what Ella felt, her other self continued to battle with the same intensity as before the injury. Would this kind of injury be second nature to her in the future? Was it only Ella's dream-self feeling it, or could the Ella who was in the middle of a battle feel the horrible stinging pain radiating through her shoulder sending throbbing pulses all the way to the tips of her fingers.

In an instant, she felt herself turn, the urgency from the battle quickly shifting into something else entirely. Ella could feel the panic race through her veins. A fear unlike anything she'd ever felt striking into the pit of her stomach with enough force to leave Ella choking. She was no stranger to fear, but this was entirely new. She was drowning in utter terror for that instant until a burning pain arced across her back.

Ella fell to her knees and finally found she could see what was around her. The first thing she noticed was the dead grass beneath her knees and crushed in her fists as she barely held herself off the ground. She could feel an echo of the pain she'd been in before on her shoulder and back. A stale breeze rustled some of the grass around her; Ella shuddered as it passed through her.

"Failure."

Her head shot up at the nearly inaudible whisper. Gravestones sat all around her in crude half circles. Nothing seemed to differentiate one grave from the next. It was one of the oddest gravesite Ella had ever come across. Everything about it felt wrong.

"Failure."

She whipped around just as a breeze lifted her hair. No one was in sight. Just hundreds of awful gravestones that seemed to close in around her. She couldn't figure out why she was there. Ella knelt down to see how old the grave was or if it was supposed to mean anything to her.

DRACO MALFOY

Ella blinked rapidly at the name chipped into the stone. Why would Malfoy be in this graveyard? He must have had a relative he was named after that had been buried in this graveyard. It was the only explanation that made sense. Even as the thought crossed her mind, Ella knew it didn't feel right. She turned and marched down the rows of graves before stopping at another.

RONALD WEASLEY

It felt like her heart stopped. Not Ron. He couldn't be in the ground beneath that gravestone. He had just been in the Common Room hours before laughing with Harry after they made up. That was where Ron was, not in the ground. Not here. He couldn't possibly be. Not now, and not ever.

"Failure…failure…failure…"

The wind began to pick up and the ghostly chorus began chanting more frequently. Ella stumbled backwards into another grave. She fell from a mixture of surprise and the wind knocking her over. She placed a hand on top of the grave to help stand. Her eyes fell on the stone without meaning to.

ARTHUR WEASLEY

A sob forced itself out of her mouth before she even had the chance to form a coherent thought. Her shoulders shook as she tried to compose herself but failed miserably. Her family couldn't be dying. They couldn't possibly end up dead; she wouldn't let them be. The 'failures' were harsh bellows within a fierce wind that pulled her hair all around. She took her hand off the gravestone and found herself staring at her palm.

Blood coated her hand and dripped off the tips of her fingers. Ella's breathing hitched. She could already tell there wasn't a cut on her hand causing this amount of blood. She looked back at the grave to see it dripping with tiny drops of red. Ella held her other hand to her face and found the same amount of blood covering it. The grave stones were all turning a murky red color. The blood was on her hands. Their blood was on her hands.

"FAILURE…FAILURE…FAILURE…"

Ella screamed.

December started with a lot of wind and sleet. It was very fitting for Ella's mood over the past week. She didn't know what to do with herself, so she did the only thing that seemed to shut out everything in her head, she threw herself into her work with a ferocity Hermione had yet to reach. It was the only time the roaring in her mind could be dulled down to a whisper. She clung to the words in her lectures and she managed to push herself in almost every instance. The only thing that really suffered was her friends, but she couldn't get herself to go near them. She'd managed to wake herself up whenever she appeared in the graveyard after that initial encounter, but she could still hear the whispers following her everywhere she went. She wondered if any of her friends' names were also on the list of never-ending gravestones that seemed to be there because of her.

She currently sat in Divinations listening to Trelawney discuss the positions of the stars and the potential for terrible things in come in the spring. Typically, this conversation would've bored her and she and Cormac would be rolling their eyes at Marietta and Cho who had yet to stop gossiping about the First Task despite the fact it had been two weeks since it happened. McLaggen had already given up with trying to get her to act differently. He'd nearly been hexed after that first time he tried coaxing her back into interacting with people.

Katie was becoming so upset with how distant Ella was getting that McLaggen even picked up on that in their other classes. Ella knew Katie wasn't happy, but Ella rationalized that she'd rather see Katie sad and concerned than dead because of a mistake Ella made. She'd rather not interact with anyone if that meant saving her friends.

"Good, Worthington. Significant improvement from last time," Moody growled as she beat the Slytherin she'd been paired against. The feeling of her dream-duel still flowed through her for the most part, and it made the duel seem much easier. Her lack of emotion seemed to make her a lot more clearheaded for the fight. Katie unfortunately lost, but Ella was glad she wouldn't have to face her. She would've thrown the match rather than attack Katie. They would have one more class to duel until a winner was chosen.

The Gryffindor students moved towards their Transfigurations class as soon as Defense Against the Dark Arts had finished. Ella kept her head down and moved quickly between the classes. Katie and Cormac stayed back and walked together instead of trying to keep up with her.

"She won't talk to any of us."

MacLaggen looked at Katie, "She's probably just stressed about O.W.L.s."

"No. I'm stressed about O.W.L.s. Half of our year is stressed about O.W.L.s, but Ella is definitely dealing with something more. She won't talk to any of us, so we have no way to know what it could be."

"Maybe you should just let her open up when she's ready for it? If I've noticed anything with Ella, it's that she doesn't like to be pushed. It stresses her out more."

Katie nodded her head and they followed the crowd of fifth years to their next class. Ella had already made it to Transfigurations and slid into a spot at the front of the room. Her stomach had started to twist and it felt like someone dropped a brick on her forehead. She couldn't figure out what had made her sick all of the sudden. Her hands shook as she took the books out of her bag and placed them on the table. She could feel tremors going up her back and wondered if she was getting sick from the weather, but this didn't feel like a cold or anything she'd experienced outside of her dreams. The only reason she didn't think it was her dreams was because that sickness she'd wake up with, this came out of nowhere.

"Miss. Worthington, are you feeling alright?"

Ella looked up at Professor McGonagall wondering when she got there. The classroom had completely filled with students, but only seconds before Ella could've sworn she'd been alone in the classroom. When did they get there?

"Did you hear me, Miss. Worthington?" McGonagall asks again her voice softening slightly. Ella's head snapped in her direction and she could feel her classmate's eyes on her.

Her fingers played with the end of a quill, "I feel a little sick, Professor. I'm sorry."

McGonagall didn't look entirely convinced, "Why don't you go to the Hospital Wing and pick up some nerve draughts. They may help out a little."

"Yes, Professor."

Ella gathered her things into her bag and pulled it on her shoulder as she left the room. She tried to ignore the eyes that followed her out of the classroom, especially Katie and McLaggen's worried stares. She wondered how she lost track of time like that. She knew the classroom was empty when she got in there, and she couldn't have been lost in thought for more than a few seconds. Ella moved slowly towards the Hospital Wing hoping she wouldn't run into Peeves or any other students.

"Miss. Worthington, are you feeling alright?" Madam Pomfrey looked up from the potions she'd been brewing. By the smell, Ella could assume they were to fight off the inevitable way of colds that the weather would bring.

"I haven't been feeling well lately. Professor McGonagall sent me here to get some calming potions," Ella explained.

Madam Pomfrey nodded and stood up from her desk. Ella watched her move across the room to a little cabinet that was typically filled with all sorts of potions that could solve nearly any problem a student might have. She didn't even know what all the potions did, she wondered if Alicia was getting close to knowing them all.

"Do you think you'll need more than two? I don't want to give you more than you need because these really shouldn't be overused, but I know this is a stressful year for you, and O.W.L.s mixed with your other abilities…well, I don't want you to struggle by any means. I just don't want you to get addicted to these."

"Addicted? What do you mean?"

The nurse put two potions into the bag, "The potions themselves should not be addictive, but I have experienced witches and wizards who got used to the potions handling their problems for them. They found it easier than learning to handle it themselves."

Ella took the bag in her hands, it felt a lot heavier than it should have, "I'll be sure to watch myself." Madam Pomfrey handed Ella a calming potion and she drank from the small vial.

"Back to class with you now. You don't want to get behind…that certainly wouldn't help your stress at all."

The rest of her classes passed without much trouble. She felt much better after her calming potion. Even her final double Divinations class couldn't make her feel too upset. She and McLaggen climbed the ladder into the overly perfumed room and sat on the little poufs around their table. Cho and Marietta crawled up a few minutes later. Ella pulled her journal out of her bag but didn't dare open it. She really only let Trelawney skim through the pages once a class before quickly tucking it away. Marietta eyed it disdainfully.

"I still don't see why you can't even share anymore. That's hardly fair for the rest of the class. Who cares if you can actually see anything. Who even says you can?"

Cho looked at Marietta startled, "Ella can see the future. I've heard it before, and I've told you she can."

"Alright, so what does it matter? She could still share her dreams with us, I'm sure. Do you even write anything in your journal…" Marietta reached across the table and grabbed the journal. Despite Ella's calming potion, panic immediately shot through her.

"Give that back!"

Ella ripped the book out of Marietta's hands just as she cracked it open. Trelawney walked into the classroom just as Ella had got the book in her hand. Ella and Marietta glared at each other. Marietta's face was flushed with anger while Ella's hands shakily set the book back down on the table.

"What's going on?"

"Marietta stole Ella's journal, Professor," Cormac said glaring at the Ravenclaws.

Cho quickly jumped to Marietta's defense, "She was only curious, Professor Trelawney."

The Professor held up her hand, "Journals are only meant to be seen by those interpreting them. If Ella has not shown you her journal, then you are not to touch it, understood?"

Marietta glared at Ella before turning to Trelawney with her head bowed, "I understand, Professor. I apologize." The other students in the class whispered around them and a few snickered. Ella kept the journal tightly held in her fingers as Trelawney began to lecture the class about Seeing Beyond what the average eye does.

"Ella, may I see your dream journal?" Ella looked up at Trelawney. She had told the groups to use a new method of interpretation for each other's most recent dreams, but Ella hadn't been focusing on that. She'd been drifting off in the cozy room. McLaggen let her, feeling like Ella might need the break.

She handed her journal to Professor Trelawney who looked over some dreams. Ella had most recently been dreaming about a hall filled with people speaking over top of each other. She couldn't focus on what anyone was saying and whatever words she did catch seemed to be part of a riddle. It was a loud dream that left her confused. Luckily, she hadn't seen Voldemort in a while. She knew he'd be still trying to break into her dreams, but she also felt like she was strong enough to keep him at bay. Not that she included Voldemort in her journal. She was fairly honest with it, but there were some things she couldn't include.

"I've see some of these things myself. Keep your chin up."

Marietta's glare intensified across the table as soon as Trelawney had left. Ella just looked at her without any expression. She could have tried to see something in Marietta's future and predicted it, but Ella didn't feel like wasting the effort on someone like her.

Ella sat in her corner of the Common Room that evening doing homework until everyone else had gone to bed. As soon as the last person went to bed, Ella closed her book and sank back into her chair. Her hand felt cramped from writing so many essays and she gently rubbed her eyes. The calming potion was still in effect, but Ella wasn't sure it would do her dreams any good. There was a part of her that wanted to sleep in the Common Room, it meant she wouldn't wake anyone up in her dormitory if she did have a nightmare, but she was terrified of sleep walking. She hadn't done it for a few days, but the fear was certainly there still. She didn't even know what caused it or where she was trying to go, but she didn't want to find out.

She covered her face and sighed. It was important that she got some sleep that night. Her last duel was the next day with the Slytherin boy who seemed to be nothing but ruthless. Ella knew Moody expected her to win, but if Ella didn't sleep, the Slytherin boy would automatically have the upper hand. He obviously wanted the additional training, all the students did, but Ella needed it. With Moody's help, she could really set herself apart from the competition she'd have with being an Auror. If she could channel the same feelings she'd had the past few classes, she'd be more than fine, but Ella was tempted to take a calming potion before going to keep her nerves in check. Madam Pomfrey's warning about getting addicted to the potions still echoed in her head, and Ella pushed the idea away. She wanted to win her duel, but it wouldn't feel right if she did anything ahead of time to help give herself a leg up. Ella needed to be able to control her emotions and be brave.

"Ella…Ella?"

She opened her eyes to see Katie looking at her concerned. Ella glanced around the Common Room and saw it was still dark, but Ella knew she'd been asleep. The fireplace across the room seemed to have died out a while ago.

"What time is it?" Ella asked hesitantly. Katie looked surprised. "What is it?"

"You talked to me." Katie looked at her sadly. "You've hardly said a word to me all week. You haven't really talked to anyone."

Ella looked over at her books, feeling her throat constrict, "I've just been busy…"

"Stop lying to me, Ella," Katie snapped. Ella turned to face her and saw tears in Katie's eyes. "I know you're not busy. You've got the same homework I do aside from Divinations, and Cormac says your work load is basically equal with Muggle Studies. You saw something…"

"Katie…it's complicated…" Ella managed to choke out. Her throat had gotten unbelievable tight.

She looked at Ella, "I don't care if it's complicated. None of us do. We're worried-"

"You're always worried."

"Can you blame me?" Katie burst out before quickly bringing her voice back down. "I live with you; I've lived with you for five years now. I hear you whimper in your sleep, I wake you up when you start screaming. None of the others know how bad it can get, but I've seen it. I pretend not to notice when you have a horrible night because I know you don't want to talk about it, but that doesn't mean I don't know it's happening. It's horrible to hear and I know I can't understand your experiences, but I'm still here. I'm still trying to be your friend. Please just be my friend, Ella."

Ella took a shaking breath, "Graves."

"What?"

"I saw graves one night… It wasn't a real graveyard, so to speak, but there were names on the headstones. Names I recognized, names I know and love, and I knew the graves were there because of me. Because I failed and those people were dead. No one is dead yet, but everything I see keeps getting worse. I don't know how to protect people anymore. I don't want people to be killed because of me. I don't want to see your name on a headstone, Katie. I'd rather see you be sad or angry… I'd rather see you hate me instead of dead. I don't want anyone to die because I'm not good enough…"

Katie's arms wrapped around Ella and pulled her in close enough to almost feel like she was being crushed in the embrace. Ella could hear Katie sniffling, but because of the hug, she couldn't see Katie's face. Ella could feel tears forming in her eyes, but she pushed them away.

"We want to be your friend, Ella. These people are still alive, you don't know that they'll actually die and if they do it's not your fault. You're worth the risk. Being your friend is worth it because we care about you, Ella. We want to be with you. I've heard from everyone how much they miss you and how scared they are about what's going on with you. We've chose to be your friend; it's our choice no matter the consequences. Please, let us be your friends. You need friends, Ella, and we need you," Katie held onto Ella like she was afraid Ella would pull away and reject her if she didn't put everything into it.

Ella slowly brought her hands up to wrap around Katie. In her desire to keep her friends safe, she hadn't realized how important she was to them, or that they had been so hurt by her not wanting to be with them. She knew she had to keep them safe, that she would do whatever she needed to in order to keep everyone she loved safe, but the idea that they felt the same way was beyond her.

"I'm sorry…" Ella whispered into Katie's shoulder. Katie gave one last squeeze before breaking out of the hug.

"Come on, we need to get you to an actual bed. You've got a big day tomorrow," Katie led her up the stairs to their dormitory. Ella didn't even try to argue. She felt exhausted and dazed after talking to Katie.

The next time Ella opened her eyes, the sun was just beginning to peak through the curtains in her room. She slowly pushed herself to sit up. Katie looked over at her from her side of the dormitory as she was getting ready.

"I was just about to wake you…probably best you did it on your own though," Katie said. Ella nodded shyly and got ready herself. She felt uneasy, but it no longer had anything to do with being near Katie or even her other friends. Ella knew immediately what her class schedule was, and how her last class would be spent fighting a Slytherin for the coveted private lessons, as long as Moody didn't decide the Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw student deserved it more. Ella hoped she could prove her worth to Moody.

Ella looked over at Katie as the two headed towards the stairs that led to the Common Room. Some of her worry must have carried over on her face because Katie quickly reached out for her shoulder and have it a reassuring squeeze. Katie moved in front of Ella to go down to breakfast. Ella was glad that Katie didn't try making her talk again. She didn't know whether words would come out of her mouth or whatever was left in her stomach.

Her day felt like a rush of one class filled with notes and lectures after another. She paid attention, hanging on to each word, taking notes as she typically would, but the nerves flowing through her never died down, no matter how much she tried to force it into the back of her mind. She'd record a note about which giant began what battle, and then she would think of one of the spells she'd been studying for her duel and what its use would be.

It took every ounce of Ella's self-restraint to keep her book of jinxes and counter-jinxes closed in between classes and while at lunch. She'd read them all so often she could see the words on the page if she closed her eyes. Each spell and wand movement flowing behind her eyelids. She was just worried that they would all disappear as soon as the duel began.

"You're shaking."

Ella nearly jumped out of her skin. She turned to face Fred who she hadn't even realized had sat beside her for lunch. George was next to his brother and Ella heard him stifle a laugh. Ella looked down at her hands and clasped them together to try and hold them still. Her leg began to bounce instead.

"I'm fine," she said trying to keep her voice level. She wanted to keep running through her spells. She could remember the proper movement for the jelly legs jinx, and she had a feeling that could certainly be a useful curse if she was fast enough to perform it.

"We both know that's a lie," Fred told her. "But Katie already explained the duel to us so I see why you would be."

"There's a lot at stake…"

Fred gave a small smile, "If anyone could do it, it's you."

"You don't know that-"

He laughed, "I do though. You helped me study for O.W.L.s last year when you were just learning fourth year things. You're better at it than most of the fifth years who are currently taking the course. Don't doubt yourself, Ella. You know what you're doing, and if you've got enough confidence, you can do just about anything."

Ella kept chanting those words in her head as she and Katie went into their Defense Against the Dark Arts Class. The Slytherin boy who bumped into her in an earlier lesson was already in the classroom when she got there. He stood in the corner of the room with several other Slytherins who all glared at her as she walked by. McLaggen quickly appeared in front of her and Katie grabbed her forearm to drag her to the other side of the room where the Gryffindors were standing.

"They're not going to cheat. I'll hex them myself if they try," McLaggen huffed. All the Gryffindors were watching the Slytherins with distrust. Ella hesitantly peaked over in that direction to see her classmates sneering at her. The tension between the houses was almost as bad as the Quidditch Cup. Even Jennifer looked like she was prepared to jinx the Slytherins to keep Ella out of harm's way, which wasn't something Ella expected.

Moody came hobbling into the classroom and barked at the students to get into desks. With only one last duel to complete, they'd work on some notes about improving accuracy and precision when working in a fast-paced setting such as a duel. Ella held on to every word Professor Moody said, trying to internalize everything so she could improve her dueling to a level he approved of.

"Worthington, Montague… in your positions. I want to see you both trying your hardest. One of you will get the lessons. I was unimpressed with the result of the final match in the other class, I expect you'll do better." The students moved the desks and themselves out of Ella and the Slytherin boy's way. Ella recognized Montague as one of Slytherin's Chasers for Quidditch. He was a brutal player who, like most of the team, didn't play fair. She had horrible feeling that the duel wouldn't be any different. Then again, it was a good assessment of her opponent. According to Moody, it was pivotal for any witch or wizard to be able to size up their opponent. Ella had been doing that since the beginning, but it never hurt to keep practicing so she could get better.

"Impedimenta!" Ella cast as they began. Montague appeared to be just as bulky as the boy in her first duel, maybe a little less so, but the same idea was there. If she could slow him down, she could end the duel before it began. To her displeasure, he quickly dodged it and sent his own curse in turn for Ella to narrowly avoid.

Her mind was alight with different possibilities, but Montague seemed to be very closely matched. She tried to keep Moody's tips in mind as she worked on her duel. None of their classmates made any noise aside from a sharp intake of breath during close calls on either side. While Ella was appreciative of that, she also wished they'd make a lot of different sounds. It was extremely unlikely it'd be this quiet in an actual duel, her dreams showed her that much.

Ella side stepped a very well-done finger removing jinx. She wasn't sure if that was allowed, but Moody made no comment on his tactic. Ella could see him out of the corner of her eye at different times during the duel. He stood behind her classmates looking at the battle imposingly. Even when she didn't see Moody, she could feel his eyes on her. It made her skin crawl in a way she didn't want it to. Ella pushed the idea out of her head and channeled all her focus into her duel.

Montague sent a curse flying into a foe glass located on the side of the room. At first, Ella was confused how he'd managed to accidentally send a curse to the wrong side of the room, but then she watched him begin to manipulate the glass shards towards her. He didn't seem to be in control of the glass because several pieces headed towards the other students.

"Protego!" Ella shouted. The shield charm burst out of her wand and expanded across the class room. Each piece of glass turned to dust as it hit the barrier. As soon as there was no threat to her or her classmates, Ella brought the shield down and immediate threw a jinx at him. He blocked it and shot one back at her.

It took several minutes of shouting curses at each other for Ella to gain the upper hand in the duel. Montague was panting and looked furious. Ella felt ready to shout the disarming charm when a spell hit her left shoulder causing a stinging pain to light her nerves on fire. She quickly shot out her wand arm without opening her mouth and managed to catch Montague's wand in the same hand she held her wand. As soon as her classmates realized what happened, they rushed forward to make sure Ella was alright. It was obvious that in his haste to win the duel, he used a stinging jinx to have the advantage once more.

"Detention, Montague. In a real duel, it'd be quick thinking, but the fact you nearly injured half the class is reckless and stupid during a lesson. You're lucky Miss. Worthington is far above the bar with her shield charms and was able to protect the class from your idiocy. Otherwise, I would've had to impale you myself." Moody growled at Montague who seemed to be struggling with whether to look angry, upset, or resigned. The Professor turned to Ella and muttered something under his breath. She felt a rush of relief spread through her. "You, on the other hand, have earned the private lessons more so than any other student I've seen in your year. You've got the makings of an expert duelist in you. The fact you were able to use a non-verbal charm to win the duel makes it all the more apparent. I'd like a quick word with you in my office about the nature of our meetings. Your friends are free to go to dinner with the rest of the students."

Katie and Cormac looked at Ella worriedly. She suddenly felt her heart begin to beat faster. Being alone with Moody shouldn't have made her feel this way. They had worked out that her previous fears about him were only a misunderstanding. Ella for some reason couldn't remember why she decided to trust him anymore. She placed her wand in her pocket, trying to busy herself with something in order to stop shaking. All of her classmates left the room, some glared at her while others congratulated her. She didn't know why she suddenly had the urge to leave the room with them. These lessons were what she'd had her eyes on for months now.

"You look frightened," Moody said as soon as the last student was out the door.

Ella turned towards him trying to appear confident, "I'm not…or I have no reason to be at least."

Moody nodded slowly, "Good. You should keep telling yourself that. But I can see you don't entirely believe yourself, do you, Miss. Worthington."

His blue eye turned on her and she felt the urge to throw up, "Sir, I believe-"

"You don't," he said. Several images began slamming about Ella's brain with a ferocity she hadn't felt in years. Some mental barrier was in the way, but she knew something was horribly wrong. "Don't worry, Miss. Worthington. I'm not going to hurt you. You'll get your training, while I keep my safety. What a brilliant plan, yes? The Dark Lord gets a stronger prize and I continue my work."

Ella moved to pull her wand out of her robes, but Moody was quicker. She felt her mind going blank. Everything clouded over once more.

I know I don't have much of a right to ask, but please review and let me know your thoughts. I'd like to see if you all are still out there for me. I know it was a long hiatus. Hope you enjoyed!