The Life and Times of Eleanor Lemivull

by Marie McKinnon

The story of a Hufflepuff girl who was good friends with Lily Potter, from her own pov. Told to Ron, Hermione, and Harry.

The Life and Times of Eleanor Lemivull
by Marie McKinnon

Why am I here? I asked myself. Immediately I was answered, Because your family can't
afford to keep you, that's why. You're here to catch that train and go live with Aunt Lydia in
Cokeworth and become a stupid seamstress. I was at King's Cross Station, waiting for the 11:30
train to Cokeworth. My ticket phrased it as ' September the 1st, 11:30 A.M to Cokeworth,
Platform 10.' I was near Platform 10, waiting for the train. My family had dropped me off early
with the instructions to watch the time carefully and to send home a check when I got paid by
Aunt Lydia. My legs were tired, so I leaned against the ticket barrier between Platforms 9 and 10.
The station slipped out of view, and I saw a large red train that hadn't been there before. I had
fallen through the barrier.

Please allow me to introduce myself. My name is Eleanor Lemivull, and I am 11 years
old. My hair is long and black, and I have dark blue eyes. My family is very poor, and as I am the
oldest, I was charged with trying to help out our situation by living with my Aunt Lydia, in
Cokeworth, who would pay me and teach me how to become a seamstress. I have two brothers,
Henry and Thomas, who are seven and three years old. My father is a carpenter, but his business
moved to another, less competent, company. Anyway, on with the story.

I picked myself up and stared around me. A large red train with the words 'Hogwarts
Express' on it in gold was puffing steam out through a funnel. Children were running
everywhere, and their parents were trying to follow them. The parents were dressed in a most
peculiar fashion. They were all wearing long robes, some of black, some of red, or green, or
purple, and what amazed me the most was that they showed no sign of being embarassed of the
strange clothes they were wearing. Suddenly, a girl who looked about my age with dark red hair
and green eyes ran up to me.

"Hi, my name's Lily Evans. D'you want to sit together on the train? I didn't know there
were magical people at all, I was so excited when I got the letter. My sister, Petunia, was fuming
at the very idea of a society of wizards underneath Muggle London. What's your name, by the
way? And why don't you have any school things with you?"

I considered telling Lily the truth about why I was here, but decided against it. Living at a
wizarding school sounded much more interesting than working as a seamstress. I introduced
myself, and replied, truthfully, that I didn't have enough money to buy any school things. One
thing led to another, and soon we were chatting like old friends. At her suggestion, we went in
search of a compartment that was empty of other kids, and especially boys. The ride was
uneventful, until we were nearing the school.

Two boys walked in, panting as if they had been running for a long time. They locked the
sliding door, and then stopped to look around.

"Oh, hello. I'm Sirius, and this is James. Could you keep your voices down while we
explain ourselves, okay? Right, we need to hide here from the Prefects. We set off some
fireworks and it upset them for some reason, so they came chasing after us, pointing their wands
and yelling curses. The spells kept missing us, and we escaped. Don't tell on us, please?" he
begged. Sirius, who had been doing the talking, had longish black hair and dark eyes. James had
black hair as well, but it stuck up untidily in the back and flopped into his face whenever he tried
to move. Behind delicate glasses his eyes were bluish gray, and more serious than those of his
companion. Lily was glaring angrily at James, but I told them they could stay, although they
shouldn't expect any help from us if the Prefects returned. Soon a whistle blew, warning us to get
ready quickly. As I didn't have any robes, Lily lent me a set of hers to wear for the ceremony.

"It's called the Sorting," explained James after Lily allowed him back in (we had sent them
out while we were changing). "You just put on a hat and it tells you what House you're going to
be in. Hope I'm in Gryffindor, that's the House Professor Dumbledore was in." Sirius agreed
with him, and added that he wouldn't be in Slytherin if someone paid him a hundred Galleons.
Galleons, what are Galleons? I wondered. I knew that a Galleon was a type of sailing ship, but I
was pretty sure that he meant something else.

The train ride ended more quickly than we had thought. When we stepped outside, I saw
a giant of a man with a bushy black beard and smiling eyes.

"Firs' years! Firs' years over here! Get in th' boats, I'm ter take yeh to Hogwarts! Four
to a boat, thas th' ticket!" Smiling wickedly, Sirius handed me in, and James handed Lily in.
Blushing, I murmured a 'thank you', and turned to watch for the school. Lily, however, glared
even more fiercely than before and turned up her nose at him. I had been expecting a preparatory
school of some sort, in a large brick building with spacious lawns and a pool or two, as well as
some other things, like greenhouses and tennis courts. We came near to a large cliff, and I
thought we were going to crash right into it. Instead, the giant pushed aside the curtain of ivy and
the boats sped through the opening. Our first glimpse of Hogwarts was from inside the tunnel,
and I was completely incorrect. Hogwarts wasn't a school building. It was a castle, flanked by
wrought iron gates that had winged boars on the posts. Innumerable towers rose out of the mist,
and the lake was the only water body in sight. A large forest, dark and forbidding, went to the
left as far as the eye could see.

Once we had landed at the dock, the other first years formed a single file line and trudged
through the mud to the front doors. The giant, who was at the front of the line, knocked on the
doors, which noise was answered by a young witch in emerald green robes. She surveyed the
line, and then led us inside to a hall. I think that what she was explaining was the Sorting
ceremony, but we weren't paying attention. Sirius had let loose a nose-biting teacup, and other
students started jumping in the air without making a sound. When the witch was done talking,
Sirius collected his teacup and stuffed it into a hidden pocket in his robes. The people ahead of us
started to move, and soon we were single file across the front of a large room. Four tables were
evenly spread in a square shape over the large, white rugged floor. Behind us was a platform, on
which the teachers sat, adjusting their spectacles and peering down their noses at us. The young
witch who had brought us in unrolled a large scroll and started reading names from it. When she
called their name, the person walked down and put a hat on their head. The hat later shouted out
a name to the crowd, and one of the tables cheered.

James and Sirius got sorted into Gryffindor, but Lily got sorted into Hufflepuff. Soon
there was only one other person standing up there with me, and after she was put into Slytherin,
the witch rolled up her scroll and took me by the arm. A tall, silvery haired man stepped down
from the teacher's table, and came after us. He led me to a brightly colored room, and he pulled
out a stick of wood. I had no idea what it was, but it looked interesting. The man pointed it at
me, and said "Obliviate." I saw a flash of light, but nothing happened.

I continued to stare at him, and then asked, "What was that thing you just did? Is that
your wand?" There were many other questions I wanted to ask, but I stopped and waited for his
reply.

"That was a Memory Charm. It's supposed to make you forget things. And yes, that is
my wand. Could you wait here for a minute while I discuss this with Professor McGonagall,
Miss... ?"

"Lemivull. My name is Eleanor Lemivull," I supplied.

"Right, Eleanor. We'll be back in a minute,"he said, and swept out of the room with the
other teacher trying to catch up. I waited and waited, wondering what was going to happen and
whether or not I would be allowed to stay. Looking around the room, I noticed a tapestry that
had a black badger on a yellow background. I liked badgers, so I went up and fingered it
lovingly, wishing it would come to life and tell me what was going to happen. It didn't move, so I
went back to the center of the room and waited some more.

Finally, the teachers came back in, carrying with them the Sorting Hat.

"Put this on,"directed the lady. I did, and it started talking to me.

"You didn't get a letter, did you, Eleanor? Well, no matter, because I can plainly see
that you should be here if you want to fulfill your destiny. You're wondering what's going to
happen, and you hope you'll be allowed to stay; I can see hard times for you, but if you're
patient, you will accomplish what you must in order to stay at this school. The magic you have
isn't normal, but it should be enough to get by. Just tell the Professor that I said you'd be in
Hufflepuff--I think you're related to her, by the way. You don't know what I'm talking about?
Then I'll tell him myself. HUFFLEPUFF!!" The last word was shouted to the empty room, and I
wondered why it had yelled. And it said something about magic? I don't have magic. Magic is
getting good grades and turning people into toads.

"Well, Miss Lemivull, I suppose you had better get a supply of schoolbooks. Don't
worry, we will purchase them for you. I believe," and here the teacher tried to stifle a grin, "that
your friends Miss Evans, Mr. Black and Mr. Potter are looking for you. Go along, go along.
And Eleanor, please tell your friends the truth. They'll trust you more if you do." Shrugging
slightly, and very dazed, I walked out of the classroom, and ran right into Lily and James and
Sirius.

"This is all your fault! I bet she got in trouble because of your dumb nose biting
teacup!"yelled Lily to James, who was turning a bright red.

"Oh yeah? Well, you know what I bet? I bet she got in trouble for hanging out with you!
The stench is strong enough!" he yelled back.

"Actually, I didn't get in trouble at all," I interrupted. They stopped in their tracks, and
rotated on the spot.

"Y- you haven't been expelled?"gasped Lily, seemingly hyperventilating from shouting so
much, but it might have been the shock.

"No, I haven't. There is something I need to tell you,"I gulped, and told myself that if I
didn't do it now I would never tell them, and therefore break my promise to the tall teacher. "I-I'm not a witch." Lily didn't see anything wrong about this, but James and Sirius gaped, mouths
wide open, until I started to blush. Stop it! I told myself. You aren't here to turn a bright red,
you're here to tell them what happened! I took a deep breath and started to talk.

"I fell through the barrier," I explained nervously. "I was going to Cokeworth, because
my family couldn't afford to keep me,"I looked down and turned red again. "I fell through, and I
decided to stay. Lily was so nice to me, I didn't want to leave. That hat told me I belong here,
and something about Hufflepuff. I take it you don't want to be friends with me," I added, and
started to walk away. "I'll just leave now."

Lily hugged me tight and started bouncing up and down, as if she was shaking with mirth.

"Oh, Eleanor, I wouldn't do something like that. They probably would, but I wouldn't.
Besides, we're in the same House! I couldn't just leave you without any knowledge of magic! I
know-I'll help you with your homework!

"You can't do that! It's against the rules!" said Sirius, looking mortified.

"Since when have you cared about the rules, Black?"asked Lily disdainfully. "You can
butt out, while you're at it." Looking down her nose, Lily led me along the passage and across
the Great Hall to a small statue.

'Um, um, exploding snap,"said Lily nervously, to no one in particular. The statue yawned,
and stepped aside. Lily looked as shocked as I did, her mouth hanging open in disbelief. A
moving statue? I asked myself. What is wrong with you? You're in a magical school, you can't
be surprised by every new thing! I stumbled through the doorway, following Lily closely. She
tailed a group of older girls, and walked up a marble staricase to the left of a big fireplace and
large, cushy chairs. In the room up the stairs, she found a door that said 'First Years', and went
in.

It was amazing. The room itself was in the shape of a semi-circle, and large four poster
beds with black velvet hangings lined the wall. Night-tables with silver pitchers and basins stood
between the beds. A large window looked out on a shimmering blue mass, which I believed to be
the lake. Lily looked as surprised as I did, because boarding schools are notoriously bad about
bedding and rooms. She turned around, shrugged, and jumped onto a bed. Following her
example, I hopped onto the one next to hers and promptly fell asleep.

The next morning, when I woke up, there was a large, silvery trunk at the bottom of my
bed and robes laid out for me to wear. Lily was still asleep, and so were the other two girls in the
room. I slid out of the sheets, wincing at the icy floor. Tiptoeing, so as not to wake the others, I
grabbed the robes and looked around for the bathroom. A small door to the side looked
promising, so I went in there. It was, indeed, the bathroom. I used it, and then took a short
shower. Feeling much cleaner, I put on the robes and combed my hair. Now that I was awake, I
looked in my trunk for things I would need during the day. In a velvet case was my wand, shining
slightly green in the early morning light. I had a large bag of books, two more sets of robes, a
pointed hat, ingredients for something that looked very disgusting, and a letter. I pulled it out,
and noticed that the paper was thicker than usual, and saw underneath it a pile of scrolls and other
things that looked like feathers. Unfolding the note, I sat on my bed and read :

Dear Miss Lemivull,
All of your supplies were ordered to fit you perfectly. The wand, if you wish to know, is
willow and powdered vervain. You will take classes with the Hufflepuffs. You will be kept in due secrecy
about the Hufflepuff passwords and other secrets that you may be tempted to tell your fellow students.
The Sorting Hat has informed me that you will have some trouble fitting in, so please, don't hesitate to
ask Miss Evans about anything. I will, I hope, see you at breakfast.

Professor Dumbledore

I was surprised at the note, and wondered what on earth powdered vervain was. I
grabbed the wand, and it emitted several yellow and black sparks. Happy with myself, I dug
deeper into my trunk. I found gloves, a long black cloak, and bottles of a dark colored substance
that I thought was ink. A rumble in my stomach telling me it was time for breakfast, I wondered
how I was supposed to get there. I didn't know my way around, I didn't want to wake Lily up,
and I would never stoop so low as to ask that boy with the glasses, what was his name? Oh,
right, James. Stumbling over my feet, I sighed, and decided I might as well wake Lily up. I tried
to get her up by talking to her, shoving her, and knocking on the bedpost, but I finally resorted to
pulling off the covers.

"****! What'd you do that for?"she yelled. I backed away slightly, and mumbled
something about not knowing how to get to breakfast and needing her help. When she realised I
was the one who had woken her up, she quieted down a little and apologised for her rudeness.

"Sorry, Ella. You don't mind if I call you that, do you?"I shook my head no. "I'm really
grouchy in the morning, if you hadn't already guessed. Just a second, I need to find some clean
robes. Wait for me by the portrait hole, will you?" I scurried out the door and down the stairs,
amazed by the mass of people that were lounging around in the main room. Some boys our age
glared at me and poked their tongues out. I glared at them and stuck my tongue out as well, then
turned my back to wait for Lily to come down the stairs. When she did, she looked a lot gentler
than she had when I had woken her up. Her hair was brushed and she had on a new pair of robes.
Seeing me, she rushed over and we walked out the doorway together.

At breakfast, we were given the Hufflepuff timetables. We had Potions first, with the
Ravenclaws. Lily was disappointed, because she had wanted to give the boys a piece of her mind.
Potter and Black, I couldn't help noticing, were whispering something to two other boys, one tall
and shabby looking, the other short and pudgy. They giggled, and then Potter got up and walked
next to Lily.

"I wanted to apologise for bothering you two on the train, and for accusing you of getting
Eleanor into trouble. These are for you,"he added, holding out a box of little candies.

"I don't trust you. Why don't you eat some first? If you refuse, then I'll know there's
something wrong with them,"she added, glaring ferociously. James paled, and then took a small
chocolate out of the box and popped it into his mouth. Nothing happened for a second, so I
grabbed one and popped in into my mouth. As soon as the candy was in my mouth, James
sprouted purple antennae, and his hair turned green. I tried to spit out the chocolate, but it was
too late. I could feel stick-like objects pushing out from under my scalp, and took a furious swipe
at Potter. He ducked, but his friend, Black, was behind him, doubled up with laughter. I got
Black square on the chin, and he fell over, toppling everyone who had come to see the spectacle.

"I'll get him for that,"growled Lily, taking me by the hand and rushing out of the hall.
"You're going to the Hospital Wing, if I can find it..." We raced up and down passageways,
going by a group of girls our age who laughed rudely in my face. When I thought we'd never find
it, a large sign appeared out of nowhere, and a motherly looking person ushered me into the
room. Pulling a bottle of orange tonic off the wall, she spooned it out and made me swallow. It
felt slimy, but the antennae started to shrink, and from Lily's face my hair turned its normal shade
of black. Potter obviously hadn't gotten here yet, his so-called friends preferring to laugh at him.
I got up and walked out. In the Great Hall (I'd heard some second years call it that) I finished
breakfast and ran back to Hufflepuff dormitories for supplies.

"Okay, I need my potions book, my cauldron, my ingredients, and I need my wand," I
muttered under my breath, reading off the needed supplies from the timetable. Finding all I
needed, I raced through the corridors downstairs to the dungeon, where, the card said, was the
Potions classroom. Sitting down just in time, I pulled out my Potions book and looked for
anything that could be of use later.

Potions was a disaster. I spilled my potion all over the floor, and it was one that gives
others boils, so I was covered in painful sores and had to go to the Hospital Wing for the second
time that day. The rest of the morning was spent in bed, with sores vanishing and smoking every
time I turned around. The nurse, Madam Peniciett, clucked about dangerous potions and silly
teachers before letting me go to lunch. Lily was annoyingly cheerful, bouncing up and down
about Transfiguration,which, it seemed, she was ptetty good at. This made me feel a little jealous,
because so far that day I had had only bad luck, but I tried to look pleased for Lily's sake. I'm
not a very good actor, so she saw right through me.

"Ella, what's wrong? You don't look well,"asked Lily, fixing me with a penetrating stare.

"I'm just-I'm just-I'm just no good at magic, you saw what I did to my cauldron in
Potions, and I bet I'm even worse in Transfiguration! I shouldn't be here, I belong in Cokeworth
with Aunt Lydia,"I sobbed, the despair that had been building up in me all day finally pouring out
through my mouth and into Lily's open ears.

"You poor thing, the transition must be really hard for you. You'll find something you're
good at, don't worry. Once you do, just concentrate on that and you'll feel better in no time,"Lily
soothed, her kind words making me feel better almost immediately, but in my head, an angry
voice kept saying : You don't belong here, you'll never be a proper witch, you just fell through
the barrier and happened to have a slight magical power! No, I whispered back, I'll prove I can
be a witch, and I'll do it the good old fashioned way. With hard work. Noddng vigorously, I ate
my lunch and grabbed my books for Herbology, which Gryffindor and Hufflepuff had together.
Lily and I walked outside to the greenhouses, and found a tiny witch in dirty robes trying to
control the large crowd.

"Attention, students! Attention! Today we're going to repot a plant called a Hogmatien.
It is the official Hogwarts plant, so mind you be careful. Does anyone know the properties of the
Hogmatien?"

To my complete surprise, I did. The answer had just popped into my brain when I saw the
plant for the first time. I raised my hand, and Professor Flitwick called on me. "The Hogmatien
can tell you what House you should be in, if the Sorting Hat didn't do good job, and it can tell
you what your abilities are,"I said, stunned at my knowledge. Lily was stunned too, because she
knew I had never known there was magic before I fell through the barrier.

"Correct,"replied the professor, and we all walked over to Greenhouse One. Once inside,
it seemed as if the plants were calling out to be fed, or watered, or maybe even loved. Many
extended their creepers towards me, but I willed them to act as if everything were normal. The
emotions of the plants seemed to be slightly subdued after this, but I put it out of my mind and
concentrated on repotting the Hogmatiens. Needless to say, I was able to do it without any
problems. The plants warmed to me, and did exactly as I wanted.

I was horrible at all of my other classes. In Transfiguration, I accidentally exploded my
match and it burst into flame, scorching me and Ivy, another Hufflepuff, with whom I was
beginning to get along quite well. We were both fine, but Professor McGonagall got very angry
at me. I worked through my homework slowly, making sure of the answers before writing them
down. Lily was a great help, guiding me through simple charms and transfigurations. In return, I
helped her with Herbology, because she wasn't able to tell the difference between a Hogmatien
and an Impatien.

Potter and Black were soon joined by Lupin and Pettigrew, taking especial pride in
pranking the two of us.

"Evans, McGonagall told us to give you this," Sirius said innocently one day in April. he
handed her a small package, and she shook it. Thinking the professor had something for her, she
opened it at the table.

KABOOM!!

The box exploded, the words 'Lily Evans Has Purple Underwear' flashing across the
ceiling. Furious, Lily jumped on Black, smashing him with her weight. Angry at the injustice to
my friend (they weren't purple, they were lavender!) I hit Potter and Lupin with all my strength.
Whether they were shocked, or just hurt, the boys all scurried up to their dormitories before the
teachers could catch them. Lily planned to get them back, but with something she had invented
to get the Slytherins, because they were so mean. The Slytherins take great pride in being able to
deflect curses, but they can't stop potions once they've swallowed them. Being able to do magic
helped our cause greatly, so Lily and I brewed an Itching Potion, that made people itch furiously,
and mixed it with a potion that made you do anything to the opposite of what you would normally
do.

"Oops, did that spill in your pumpkin juice? I'm sorry, it was only water though, don't
worry,"Lily exclaimed after dripping the solution into James's, Sirius's, Remus's , and Peter's
juices. All of them sipped, to be sure it was all right, and suddenly they were hopping up and
down with itchiness, their hair blue and their skin orange.

"Well, I didn't know that an Opposite Potion counteracted an Itching Potion,"I remarked
slyly, eyeing the boys with a lightness in my head that I had never felt before. Professor
McGonagall ushered them to the Hospital Wing, yelling "Double detention, Evans! You too,
Lemivull!" Detention wasn't so bad, except we had to dissect frogs and separate the body parts.
It was disgusting, and by then we had come up with many new ways to get the Potter squad, as
we called them..

Unfortunately, they got us first. In Herbology, they cursed our tools do the opposite of
what we needed them to do, and ended up cutting ourselves instead. The plants reached out and
blinded James and Sirius, who were the main troublemakers. Coughing and sputtering, the boys
dropped their wands and headed to the Hospital Wing. We walked together, as Lily and I had
been cut all over and needed the imperfections dealt with.

"We'll get you for that, Potter! Most people have enough brains to leave Ella alone while
she's with plants--but you don't have any brains, do you? Or did you not realise that plants really
like Ella, and protect her when she's in trouble?" yelled Lily as we walked.

"That *****, have special plant magic? Are you kidding me? She can't do any magic at
all, much less be good at something. Save your lies for Dumbledore, he'll want to know why a
bunch of us are out of Herbology and need to go to the Hospital Wing,"snorted Sirius, beckoning
for James, Remus, and Peter to hurry up and lose us.

"It's your own fault, you cursed the knives that cut us, and the plants somehow smacked
you in the face! And they were Cofflowers, they can make you really sick if you make 'em
angry!"I retorted, seeing red because of the name he had called me and because of the taunt about
my magic.

"Why are you out of class?"drawled a tall, greasy haired boy with sallow skin, rounding
the bend and accusing us with his look of contempt.

"Hospital Wing. The geniuses that are having the hack attack tried to get Ella--in front of
the Cofflowers," explained Lily, eyeing the boy with distaste.

"You're going to the Hospital Wing? Then go to the Hospital Wing. Go along, move it!"
he ordered.

"Aren't you a Slytherin? Do they all avoid the showers as much as you do? Because if
they do, I think we'll need air fresheners for the Great Hall,"laughed Potter, sneering at the boy's
lack of hygiene. Remus and Sirius were laughing at James's comment, and Peter looked nervous.

The boy glared. "I'll get you for that, Potter--watch your back."

"Once you've all finished being idiots, we were supposed to be at the Hospital Wing
twenty minutes ago," I said, trying to remind the boys of where we were going and trying not to
lose too many points from Hufflepuff. I wanted Gryffindor to lose just enough, so Hufflepuff
would win.

"And who are you to tell us what to do and when? You can't even use your
magic,"replied Black. I glared, and he marched off, muttering curses under his breath.

"Let's just go. I hope they get detention,"she added, after making funny faces at Potter
and Lupin.

For the rest of the year, I struggled through my subjects. They were so frustrating! I
would say the charm, perform the movement, do everything correctly, and nothing would happen!
Lily almost gave up on me, but I helped her a lot with Herbology, which was easily my best
subject.

The exams were excruciating. I stuggled to remember everything we had done all year,
while everyone else did it with ease. I barely passed most of my subjects, but I got a perfect score
in Herbology. A lot of Ravenclaws found this funny and usually taunted me about not being able
to do magic. Slytherins found it funny too, and cursed me whenever they found a chance.

I was glad when the school year was over, but wondered where I would be going. Finally,
on the last night of school, before he announced the winner of the House Championship
(Huffelpuff--I was excited), Dumbledore came over and asked if I wanted to go home with Lily
over the summer. I said yes, and he smiled. Lily, across from me, smiled, winked, and gave me
the thumbs up.

That summer was amazing--we could do most anything we wanted, and my visit wasn't a
strain on the Evans' money supply. I couldn't believe it. We rode bicycles, ate ice-cream, drank
soda, and at the last minute, did our homework.

I got my supplies in the normal way that year, going to Diagon Alley with Lily's parents.
It was huge! The shops had everything anyone could ever want, and I needed a lot of things. We
had to buy 'The Standard Book of Spells, Grade Two', 'Plants With Magical Powers',
'Intermediate Transfiguration', and 'Complex Potions'. Many of the shops were small, yet still
seemed to be able to hold a lot of people. I didn't really care, but wondered just the same.

Getting onto Platform 9 and 3/4 was a lot scarier this time around. I knew it wasn't a real
barrier, but it looked so solid that I thought I would crash any second. We found a compartment
on the train that was empty of boys, and we told jokes until the train started.

Lily said, "I heard a funny version of the book of Genesis, from one of my Muggle friends.
D'you want to hear it?"

I nodded, and she began telling. "My favorite bit is ' God created woman in the image of
himself, and created man in the shape of his dog.' There's more, like ' on the whatever day, God
created vicious sea monsters. Luckily, these destroyed each other. He also created lawyers,
which, unfortunately, didn't destroy each other. On the fifth day, God created beer, and He got
so drunk He had a hangover. The next day, God was still so drunk that He created
telemarketers." I found this very funny, and was gasping for breath when the sliding door
opened. The train was about to leave, and I was surprised that these people hadn't gotten a seat
yet. Just my bad luck, it was the Potter squad. They looked as annoyed about it as we did, and
picked the seats as far away from us as possible. Even so, the compartment was small, and we
couldn't avoid them if we had tried.

"Do we really have to sit in here?"whined Peter, smushed between Remus and James.

"If you don't want to be sitting on someone's lap, we do," replied Sirius grumpily.

The train ride was just the start to another bad year. There weren't many new Hufflepuffs,
so we were the smallest House in the Great Hall. Professor Sprout was disappointed, she had
wanted a big bunch of newbies to teach.

"LEMIVULL!" yelled McGonagall the next day. "You really should be paying attention.
You know you barely passed last year, and it was because you don't apply yourself. Now get to
work transforming your teacup." I got angry. I was so paying attention, and I barely passed the
exams because I'm no good at anything except Herbology ! Trying to apply my anger to my
teacup, I found that I no longer had a teacup. I had a small, willow patterned cat, with delicate
looking limbs. Wow, I thought. I guess anger is the key to my Transfiguration skills. Right,
what makes me mad? Oh, come on, there are plenty of things that make you mad. Like Potter,
that's right, think about Potter. In a moment, I had a tabby cat purring against my legs.
McGonagall looked up, about to yell at me for not transfiguring my teacup, and almost fell over
with shock when she saw that I had a small tabby cat weaving around my ankles. Gasping like a
fish, she walked over and took the tabby from me.

"How-why-when-what-(gulp). Explain how you got this tabby, Lemivull. You couldn't
turn a match into a needle, and suddenly you have a tabby cat where you used to have a teacup! I
am not a genius, I need things explained. So explain, in 20 words or less,"she ordered, while the
other Hufflepuffs turned around and stared. They too had been having trouble with their teacups,
but at least they knew how to turn a match into a needle! And there I was, not able to do
anything correctly, with a tabby where a teacup had been.

"Um, well, I just followed the directions, and I had a tabby cat,"I struggled, wondering
how to explain what had happened.

"Don't lie to me, Eleanor. You did more than just concentrate, because I know you've
followed the directions, and they don't work for you, do they? Elaborate on that idea. Did you
do anything other than stare at the teacup and will it to turn into a tabby cat?" McGonagall
pressed.

"I, er, well, I um, I know this sounds stupid, but I got angry at it. I thought it should have
been a tabby cat by then, and suddenly I had a cat. I thought of something that made me really
angry, and used my anger to turn the cat into a tabby, that is, change its color," I stammered,
knowing I was using more than 20 words, but not caring.

"Are you telling me that you turned a teacup into a cat by getting angry at it? I am sorry,
but that is an answer I just cannot accept. You are going to Professor Dumbledore's office,
immediately. See if you can avoid telling him the truth, and then we'll see what you did,"she
replied, eyeing me suspiciously. I lowered my head. I thought she would be proud of me! I
could transfigure things now, couldn't I? McGonagall marched me up the stairs, to a large stone
gargoyle.

"Ice cream soda,"she snapped to the gargoyle. It hopped aside, bowing slightly. The
professor opened the door and pushed me in, locking it behind me.

I looked around, amazed. The Headmaster had a pheonix in a cage, all red and gold
plumage, really quite magnificent. In the corner was the sorting hat, and in the center of the room
was a large mahogany desk. Behind that desk sat Dumbledore himself.

"Ah, Miss Lemivull, I'm glad you're still with us. What are you doing in here? Surely
you haven't gotten in trouble?" he asked, concerned. His light blue eyes were darker than usual, a
sure sign that he had been deep in thought before I had disrupted his work.

"I think I am, but I don't understand why. I was able to transfigure a teacup into a tabby
cat, and when I explained to Professor McGonagall, she sent me to you for lying to her, but I was
telling the truth! Please don't expell me, I really didn't do anything wrong!" I cried desperately,
hoping that Dumbledore would see the truth. He nodded, and hope washed over me like a warm
breath.

"What did you say to make Professor McGonagall doubt you?" he asked interestedly.

"I just told her that getting angry helps me transfigure things, and that it worked to
transfigure the teacup, and she sent me up here,"I replied.

"That explains the dear Professor's lack of faith in your method. Has anyone ever told
you that you bear considerable resemblance to the Founder of your House, Helga Hufflepuff?"
Dumbledore commented.

"Me? Look like Helga Hufflepuff?"I stammered. What the heck was he talking about? I
was a Muggle, and now they're saying I could be related to Helga Hufflepuff? I'm not that
good, I just figured out Transfiguration, and I've been here for a year already.

"Not exactly look like, but you bear a magical resemblance to her. Did you know that
Helga Hufflepuff had a great deal of difficulty with Transfiguration, and many other subjects that
involved waving wands and saying spells? Or that she was extremely good at Herbology and
could manage Potions better than any of her other subjects, not including Herbology?"
Dumbledore was starting to scare me now. I couldn't be the long-lost heir of Hufflepuff, I just
couldn't.

"But I can't be, you know I can't be related to Helga Hufflepuff. I'm a Muggle,"I blushed
at this last part, but Dumbledore only looked stern

"Who has been telling you that you are a Muggle?"he asked severely.

"The Slytherins, Potter, Black, those sort of people," I replied, wondering what he was
going to do.

"There is a difference, Miss Lemivull. A Muggle has no magic at all. None. A Muggle
born, however, was born into a family of non-wizards and has some magical powers. You, of
course, are a Muggle born. This actually is the second proof that you could be related to Helga
Hufflepuff. She was a Muggle born as well, and had great difficulty learning her lessons. Once
she found a way to deal with them, like getting angry at them, she became one of the greatest
witches the world has ever known. The point of telling you this,"he added, "is to tell you that you
are not a Muggle, that the way you transfigure things is fine, and also to tell you that just because
you aren't good at something doesn't mean you aren't a witch. One last thing, Miss Lemivull.
Please don't go shouting this information about. The other Hufflepuffs would become quite
jealous."

Shocked, I tripped over my feet and tumbled down the stairs, to find Professor
McGonagall waiting for me at the bottom of the stairs.

"Well? Are you ready to tell the truth now?" she asked.

"Professor McGonagall, I was telling the truth before. Dumbledore agrees with me, and
you could talk to him if you don't believe it,"I answered.

Somehow I managed not to fall down the stairs, and traipsed down to lunch. Searching
out Lily, I found her at the end of the Gryffindor table, in a heated debate with Black and Potter.

"She can so do Transfiguration! She turned a teacup into a tabby cat last class!" Lily said
angrily.

"As if! I heard that the last time she tried to transfigure something, it exploded. Forget
her, Evans. She's nothing but a Muggle,"snorted Potter.

I was getting really angry now. Remembering that that was the key to my Transfiguration
skills, I looked at Black and Potter, waved my wand, and imagined them as little white mice.
They stopped arguing, and two white mice tried to scurry away from the table. Lily pounced,
grabbed them by the tails, and put them on the table.

"Now, do you have anything to say to Ella?" asked Lily, looking stern. She caught my
eye, and winked.

They squeaked angrily, and I thought, oh, great, now I'll have to change them back so
they can apologise. This made me angry as well, because I was really enjoying the shocked looks
on their mousey faces. Being angry, I waved my wand and thought of the two boys in their
normal forms.

CRASH!
We had forgotten to get them off the table before we changed them back. Potter had
fallen off, slamming into a third year, and Black had collapsed one end of the table. Lily replaced
it lazily, and smiled at me.

"About that apology..."she hinted.

James and Sirius chorused, "Sorry, Ella!" and went scurrying back to the Gryffindor table.
One glance, and the two of us were helpless with giggles.

"That (hee hee) was so funny (hee hee)! I bet (hee hee) they'll think twice (hee hee)
before telling you ( hee hee) that you can't transfigure (hee hee) anything!"

"Well, if they ever start taunting about my magic, they'd better remember the experience
of being a little white mouse. They'll be repeating it a little more often than they would've
wanted to," I replied, managing to keep a straight face for once.

The Quidditch trials were in November, and Lily wanted to try out. I thought I'd better
keep my feet on the ground, so I went out to watch her.

"Go Lily!" I yelled, at a lack for anything more intelligent to say. She ducked and weaved
over and under the other players with ease. The professor, Madam Hooch, gave her a little red
ball. Lily took it and tried to make some goals with it. The Keeper wasn't there, so she got it in
pretty easily. When the Keeper cam back, he blocked almost every shot. I was so angry, the
Keeper almost turned into a hedgehog. I turned away, and transfigured a blade of grass into a
flower with a flick of my wand. When I turned back to watch Lily, she was on the ground,
disappointedly trudging towards the castle. I ran over to see what was the matter. As if you
don't know, said the voice in the back of my head. She didn't make the Quidditch team, duh! I
shook my head in disgust, and ran up to Lily.

"Hey,"I said, wondering what I could do to cheer her up.

"Hey," she replied listlessly. Her head hung heavily, as if it were trying to fall off.

"For what it's worth, I think you really should have made it,"I encouraged her to look up
at me, at least to get angry or cry.

"No, I shouldn't have. I can't get the ****** Quaffle past the Keeper! I'll never be any
good at Quidditch!" Lily looked up at me, eyes brimming with tears. Gosh, I thought. She must
have set her heart on this position.

"Someone very wise once told me that I could find something that I was good at and
concentrate on that one thing to make me feel better. If you will allow me to,"I grinned
fiendishly, quoting back at her what she had told me, "I will give you a list of things you are good
at." Sniffing a little, Lily nodded slightly, lost in the depths of disappointment.

"Right, here we go. I apologise in advance if this list continues for a year and a day, but
you are good at many things, my dear," I waved my arms like a windmill, trying to make her
laugh.

"I'm not good at anything," Lily muttered.

"You're good at stuff if I say you are. Kindly remind yourself that I am the person who
cannot do very many things correctly. Okay, you're good at Transfiguration, Charms, History of
Magic, Astronomy, Potions, Defence Against the Dark Arts, making me laugh, flying, thinking up
good tricks to play on the Potter squad, helping me understand my magic and my homework,
doing your own homework, arranging your hair, getting us out of scrapes that would look rather
embarassing if we were caught in them, and, last but not least, you're good at giving me advice I
can use. There are probably gazillions more that we don't know about, like, I don't know, maybe
you're a good kisser..." She took an angry swipe at my head, and I danced out of her reach, glad
to have her paying attention to me again.

"I'll just have to take that highly expert advice and pummel you before you think of any
more strange lists," Lily tossed her head, drying her tears, and racing me to the Hufflepuff
Common Rooms.

In the months afterwards, a Dark wizard started growing more powerful, gaining
supporters and killing off families and other people as if they were flies. His name was Lord
Voldemort, and I didn't know how much he would affect me until I got an owl one morning. I
didn't usually get owls, and it looked like the one Potter and Black used, so I was very cautious at
first. Then I saw the black ribbon tied around its neck, and my eggs started churning inside me.
Other people had gotten these owls, from the Ministry of Magic, telling them that their families
had been murdered by the Dark Lord. Praying to God that the owl wasn't for me or for Lily, I
closed my eyes tightly and hoped it would go away if I wanted it badly enough. It didn't. The
owl landed in front of me, and dropped a heavy parchment almost on top of my toast. Shaking
madly, I slit it open with my butter knife and read the letter.

Dear Miss Lemivull,
We are sad to announce the death of your late family, Mr. and Mrs.
Alexander Lemivull. The village they were living in was attacked by Death Eaters.
Your young brothers were killed in the attack also. You will be living with Miss Lily
Evans until further notice. No money was left to you. The house was destroyed also.
We extend sympathy and hope you avenge the deaths by fighting with all of your
heart against the Dark Arts and the wizards who practice them.

Yours sincerely,
The Ministry of Magic

Lily saw my face pale, and tried to take the letter and see what it said. I wouldn't let her,
and ran up to the dormitory bawling as if the world were coming to an end.

They're dead! They're dead! They're dead! Nothing you can do will ever bring them
back! They died thinking you were safe and happy with Aunt Lydia in Cokeworth! The last
thought made me bawl even louder. I had betrayed my parents, and they had died thinking I was
safe! Even Dumbledore couldn't bring them back! And Thomas and Henry dead too! They
were only children! What had they done to deserve this end? What did any of them ever do to
deserve the end given them by the Dark Lord? No, not lord, never lord. Lords do what's best
for the people they're in charge of. He causes havoc and distress wherever he goes. I will fight
his power, or die trying! I promised myself this over and over, weeping myself into an uneasy
sleep. Fevered dreams of my parents and brothers haunted me. I thrashed, trying to tell myself
that the letter was a dream but knowing inside myself that they would never come back.

When I woke, it was to my own racking sobs. I had cried myself to sleep, and I had cried
myself awake, too. Lily, Ivy, Emmie, and Susie were standing around my bed, with Professor
Sprout. She had heard about my family, and come to comfort me. The rest of them were there
because they were my friends. Either that or they couldn't get to sleep through the sound of your
crying, a nasty voice suggested in the back of my head. No! I told it fiercely. They're all my
friends. Ivy is my Transfiguration partner, Lily is my best friend, and Emmie and Susie help me
with everything I ever had trouble with! They'll stand with me, even if no one else does. I sat
up, staring blearily at my surroundings.

"Oh, Ella! I'm so sorry!" cried Lily, throwing herself onto the bed and crushing me in a
hug. All the others followed her example. I was buried under a pile of girls when Professor
Sprout cleared her throat, warning them to get off me.

"They're dead," I sobbed again. " I just can't believe they're dead. What'd they ever do
to anybody? And my brothers-they were only children! Not even ten!" I buried my head in the
soft fabric of Lily's robes. She stroked my head and started singing softly to me. Sprout sighed
sympathetically, and pulled my head up.

"Ella, I'm so sorry for your parents, and Dumbledore knows that this must be hard for
you, the last time you saw them was the day you got on the Hogwarts express," I burst into tears
again at this, trying to visualize their faces and seeing them, thin and miserable, watching me walk
to the train station for Cokeworth and Aunt Lydia, " But you have to pull yourself together. Who
will help me take care of the Whomping Willow?" I had been working with the Herbology
professor on a system that could warn us whenever someone got hit by the willow, because the
sooner the teachers got help for them, the more chances they would have to make a quick
recovery.

"The plants in the greenhouses are wilting,"added Emmie, seeing what effect this would
have on me.

"They miss you, so please, come cheer them up with me, come back to class tomorrow
after breakast,"suggested Susie, handing me a tissue. I nodded, dried my eyes and blew my nose.


"I look forward to seeing you in class tomorrow, Ella. Good day,"finished Professor
Sprout, exiting the dormitory with what looked like great relief.

Right, first thing you should do is take a shower, DON'T drown yourself, and put on
clean robes. Once you look better, you'll feel better. Hop to it! I decided to follow the
directions that my conscience was giving me, grabbed clean robes and strode towards the
showers. The hot water was comforting, and by the time I was done I had decided to go down to
breakfast and them visit the plants. I can't let them wilt, now, can I? I told myself, trying to
banish thought of my family from my mind.

The other Hufflepuffs were infuriatingly cheerful. How can you smile, and talk, and laugh
as if nothing has happened? A voice in my head screamed at them, even at Lily. How dare you
insult me like this! You'll see, you'll see, one day when you get a letter telling you that your
parents were murdered without thought for their innocence, murdered thinking you were
somewhere safe and sound, in no strange circumstances! Then you'll understand how I feel
right now!

The end of the school year passed in a daze, everything being done because it had to be
done, not because I really felt like doing anything other than cry my heart out at the unfairness of
the world. I passed some of my classes, more than last year, but I got to stay because I improved
in Transfiguration and aced Herbology again. I had barely passed Charms, History of Magic,
Astronomy, and Potions, but had gotten surprisingly good marks in Defence Against the Dark
Arts. Lily, of course, did very well in everything except Herbology and Astronomy, both of which
she passed with a less than perfect score. Before the exam results came out, we had to pick
which extra subjects we would be taking, so I used my wand and jabbed it down onto the page to
help me figure out what to do. Lily used the same method, and we switched our picks around so
that we would have the same classes. I picked Ancient Runes, and Lily picked Muggle Studies.
We knew that doing Muggle Studies was rather stupid, as we were both Muggle-born, but we
didn't want to take anything too strenuous.

The end of year feast took place amid banners of bronze and sapphire blue. The Slytherins
were furious, and had their wands out, ready to curse anyone who mentioned their defeat to their
faces. I was depressed, but I didn't really care about the House Cup. My mind was still on my
parents, how they had died, and the fact that I had misled them, to the point where they had no
idea what I was doing, or what I was. They hadn't even known that I was a witch, hadn't known
that I loved them...

After the food had melted off of the golden plates, Professor Dumbledore stood up and
looked around at us very seriously. " Students, I have some information for you that is neither
pleasant nor exciting. All of you, I am sure, have heard of Lord Voldemort," many people winced
at the pronunciation of You-Know-Who's name, and many growled their disgust for him, "He
has affected us in ways some do not realize. You have lost parents, siblings, family members.
The magical world is in ruins, trying to prevent the Muggles from finding out about us. I ask all
of you, even those who think this will not affect them, to do your best to support the Ministry of
Magic and any friends that are having a hard time, during this time of need. This is the
Depression of the magical world, and it will take a miracle to bring us out of it. You are the
future, and we need the future to be educated and strong willed. I know it will sound alien to
your ears, but if ever we needed your help, it is now. Our lives may one day depend on the things
you learn here, so pay attention to your lessons, do the right thing, and, most importantly,
discipline yourselves to stand up for your rights. Even now I can guess that some of you will not
heed me and join the Dark Lord in his quest for world domination, while others will die in the
cause of protecting the weak. Follow your hearts, and you will be better than you ever imagined.
Consider these things as you lounge around in the summer sun, and do what is best for
yoursleves. Go to bed, and remember these words. I trust all of you to uphold us in our journey
through the dark times." Potter, Black, Lupin, Pettigrew, Lily, many other students I didn't
know, and I sat up straighter in out seats, defiance to the Dark Lord burning through our eyes and
into Dumbledore's serious face. We will stop him, somehow, some way, we will stop him and the
wreckage he has made of our lives! I screamed in my mind, anger raging like a maddened bull.
He will rue the day he destroyed the family of Eleanor Lemivull, the heir of Hufflepuff! I
wondered why I had added that last bit, but thought nothing of it, trudging out of the Hall and up
the passage to the statue of Uric the Oddball. Lily seemed to be having the same thoughts,
because her chest was stuck out defiantly and her eyes burned hatred.

When I woke up, the euphoria Dumbeldore's speech had inspired had left, leaving in its
place the thoughts like You'll never help the cause against You-Know-Who! He's nearly all
powerful, and you can't even do a proper Levitating Charm! Oh, shut up! I will so! I'll find a
way to help, and I don't care what it takes! The battle between the angry and realistic sides of
my mind had become all too familiar. Not bothering to tell my mind to stop playing games with
me, I finished packing my clothes and pocketed my wand.

Lily and I planned a lot of pranks over the summer, but it was hard because Petunia, Lily's
older sister, crept around and listened in keyholes, trying to get us in trouble.

"Right, here's one. What if we get a large box, and label it with Potter's name, and have it
pretend to be from his parents. Then we give it to a school owl and when he opens it, it explodes
and a boxing glove hits him in the face?" I suggested.

"That's a great idea, Ella! Here's another one: y'know how they hate that Snape kid?
We send them a letter and sign it with his name. It's insulting, you know, that type of thing, and
then they go over and curse Snape, and you know how many curses he knows, he'll get them so
badly! Yay! I am good," she grinned fiendishly, writing up the letter on a spare piece of
parchment. Other than having Lily there, and being able to plan all these pranks, I couldn't stand
being in her house. Around every bend were her parents, smiling, laughing, acting like a pair of
perfect parents, always wanting to help. Then there was her sister, bullying, tattling, and all
around being obnoxious. I didn't mention anything, because it was really nice of them to have me
to stay all summer, but I just wanted to get back to Hogwarts, where my school problems would
occupy my mind.

The ride to school was uneventful, and all we did was to plan our pranks so they would be
perfect in every respect. Even though nothing had happened, I was filled with a dread that
couldn't be explained. The weather was rainy, large drops lashed the windows and the sky was
pitch black. Inside the Great Hall, we waited with increasingly loud bellies, telling us it was time
to be fed.

A boy with sleek white-blonde hair swaggered up to the hat, nose high in the air. He
grabbed the hat and it had barely touched his head before it yelled " SLYTHERIN!" Lily thought
he looked kind of cute, but didn't like his attitude.

"Prewett, Alexandra!" shouted McGonagall.

"HUFFLEPUFF!" shouted the hat. I clapped loudly, because she looked as forlorn as I
felt, and I wanted to help her feel better. Alex andra sat down at the other end of the table, so I
didn't get to introduce myself. The food was good, but many more were missing from our
number. The attacks by He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named had grown more frequent during the
summer, and wizards wearing masks had killed quite a few families. They were getting the name
'Death Eaters,' eating death for breakfast and lunch and dinner, thriving in its offspring, like some
sort of sick cannibal. I had sort of grown used to the fact that my parents were dead, because I
wouldn't have seen them for a long time anyway. I guess it's better that they died thinking I was
safe, if not happy, and if they had known where I was, they might not have felt that way at all.
Thoughts like this crept into my mind unbidden, when I was least expecting it.

I thought like that when I was in Muggle Studies, learning about the reasons why Muggles
need electricity, and what substitutes are used for magic. Some of it I hadn't known before, while
the rest was familiar.

Druing Christmas break, Lily and I decided to play one of our pranks on the Potter squad.
They were all staying at school, because their families didn't want them to come home.

"Their parents must think they can't take care of themselves," sneered Lily, failing o
mention the fact that her parents had asked her to stay at school for the same reason.

"Okay, here's what we do," I said, laying out the plan in the Hufflepuff Common Room.
"Every month, Lupin leaves. While he's gone, the rest of 'em cope with the boredom by trying to
prannk the teachers. So, while they're busy trying to get Professor Sprout, we get them with the
Charm you invented, that Ripping Noise one. And when you do that, I'll get the plants to look
dejected, as if Potter and his friends weren't paying attention. With luck, Professor Sprout'll give
them detention!"

"Just one problem, Ella," giggled Lily, "We won't be in classes for them to be trying to
prank the teachers! Why don't we try that later and do the ones we were thinking about over
vacation? I like the idea of that boxing glove one, but instead of a glove, why don't we use that
curse, what's it called? Just a second, it's on the tip of my tongue, um, got it! The Dream Curse!
It shows the whole Hall what they're thinking about right now, and if it's a trouble thing,
McGonagall will swoop down on them and-" We glanced at each other, and dissolved into
giggles. Later that day, we grabbed a big box, addressed it to Potter, Black, Lupin, and
Pettigrew, and put the curse in it. I had no idea how to put a curse in a box, but Lily did it, so I
didn't have to worry about it. My part was to give it to a school owl and make sure it got to
Potter, Black, Lupin, and Pettigrew. I did my part, and the next morning, they were gleefully
pulling off the brown paper, when the box exploded.

"What the ****?" shouted Black. One of those thought bubbles that you see in Muggle
cartoons was above his head, and it showed Snape blowing up into a million pieces, and then a
great big curse word, and then a worried face, hoping it looked innocent enough to fool
Dumbledore.

James, however, had a giant Dumgbomb, and was throwing it at Snape, who looked like
an oily Loch Ness monster. Peter was just looking embarrassed, his thoughts displaying Sirius'
boxers, which happened to have little smiley faces all over them. Lupin was deathly pale, trying
to cover up his thought bubble. It had something to do with the Whomping Willow, but
Professor McGonagall counter-cursed them before we could figure out what it was. Lessons
started too quickly for me, bringing with them the frustration and panic that only exams can
inspire.

The Slytherins and Ravenclaws were bugging me worse than ever. My Transfiguration
was getting better, now that I knew how to do it for myself. My Potions were always runny and
explosive, my Charms blasted out of the wrong end of my wand, History of Magic put me to
sleep, Astronomy had me thoroughly confused, and Defence Against the Dark Arts was so painful
I didn't like having to think about it. We had started curses, and we practiced on each other.
Needless to say, I usually left the classroom nursing small injuries.

One afternoon in mid-April, I was leaving the Hospital Wing ( Potter and Black had
cursed me so that I would turn bright blue whenever anyone said the words 'underpants') when a
group of fourth year Ravenclaws cornered me. I considered running, but they thought of that as
an excuse for open fire, so I stayed put. First came the taunts, mostly about how I couldn't hold a
wand straight and that sort of thing. Next came the jeers about my family, about me being a
Muggle and not having any family.

"I bet your parents were so poor and stupid, they couldn't afford for you to come to
Hogwarts even if they had known you were a witch! Face it, Lemivull, you are a *******, and a
Hufflepuff ******* at that!" Then they started cursing me, Jelly-Legs and stuff like that. It got
worse, into the Impediment Jinx, stopping me in my tracks. I was so angry and scared, I couldn't
see straight. What was I supposed to do? The only way to get them to leave me alone would be
to scare them off, but you can't do that in this state, can you? I told my self, dodging the Full-Body Bind. My anger seemed to come off me in waves, taking form as a great barrier. I thought
I was just imagining things, but I saw a wall of brambles explode out of the floor and lash the
Ravenclaws into submission. Run, you idiot, run! yelled my senses, urging me to flee while my
opressors were occupied. Run I did, racing back to the Hufflepuff common room and my
dormitory, where I could at least attempt to get my fears under control. When I got outside the
common room, I thought it only a matter of time until Professor Sprout came and got me to send
me to a Muggle orphanage. Delaying the meeting will only make it worse, so I might as well go
back to Professor Dumbledore's office and explain to him that I can't explain what happened.

Sighing heavily, I turned around and raced for Dumbledore's office. I reached it quickly,
adrenaline racing through my veins. The stone gargoyle seemed larger and more terrifying than
usual, and it was with a shaky voice that I said, "Ice cream soda?" It seemed forever before the
gargoyle bowed me into the office, as magnificent as it had been on the day that I had been taken
there by Professor McGonagall.

Dumbledore was bent over some papers, and didn't notice me until I squeaked out his
name.

"Um, Professor Dumbledore, Sir? Could-could I talk to you for a minute, or are you too
busy?"

The Headmaster looked up, startled, and, seeing it was me, smiled patiently and beckoned
at a chair for me to sit down.

"Ah, Miss Lemivull, how are you today? You seem distressed. Please, tell me what is
troubling you," Dumbledore said.

"Well, I don't know what happened, but the Ravenclaws, a briar, it hurt them, I don't
know how I did it, please don't expell me, I didn't do it on purpose, it was a mistake, it just grew
out of the floor, I didn't mean to hurt them, I lost my temper, please don't expell me, please,
please, please--"I babbled for a while, until the Professor looked me in the eye.

"I assure you, you will not be expelled. Could you please begin at the beginning, so I can
understand what has happened?" he asked, smiling slightly at my fear of expulsion.

I told him how the Ravenclaws had been taunting me about my family, and calling me
Muggle, and then had started cursing me. Then I continued, about how I had somehow created a
wall of briars that attacked them so I could escape. All the while Dumbledore was looking
thoughtful, smiling as if he had expected this to happen. How can he smile when it's obvious that
I am in distress? I asked myself angrily.

"As you did not consciously harm these students, there will be no punishment. However,
I suggest you work with Professor Sprout on controlling the plants when you are with them. I
may be incorrect, but I think that your need to be saved brought the briars from underneath the
school and into your defense. Now that your worries are put to rest, is there anything you wanted
to tell me?"

There were many things, but none of them seemed important enough to bother the
Headmaster with. I replied meekly, " Nossir," and left in a hurry.

A few weeks later, in Ancient Runes, I had almost fallen asleep, but jerked myself awake
at the mention of a certain plant.

"Now, this rune here is in the shape of the deadly nightshade. Can anyone guess what it
means?" Professor Gallagher was fond of drawing on the chalkboard, and had done a large, yet
mostly accurate sketch of the Deadly Nightshade. I thought hard, and it came to me in a flash.
The rest of the class had their hands high in the air, and I was pleased to add mine to the group.
Lily grinned, she hadn't figured it out yet.

"Um, Mr. Diggory, could you tell us what it means?" Gallagher had picked a handsome
boy, with a straight nose and gray eyes.

"The nightshade is a dangerous weed, but it looks very pretty. Does it mean deception or
trickery?" he guessed, knowing the answer but trying not to seem like a know-it-all.

"Good job, Diggory, take ten points to Hufflepuff. This plant, while very lovely to look
upon, has many dangerous properties. Purplish white flowers cover the stalk, while berries that
seem to be lovely and firm can be seen in the autumn. These berries are highly poisonous, so this
plant is a symbol of deception. The rune, in the shape of a stalk, blossom, and berry, means that
the person will be deceived by something or someone they think was a friend, like a backstabber.
Copy down the notes, and for homework write a short story, in Cyrillic runes, that uses the new
symbol. Class dismissed!" she shouted as the bell rang loudly, signaling the end of the school day
and the beginning of dinner.

At the Hufflepuff table, most of the other Hufflepuffs were talking about our improved
chances for the Quidditch cup.

"Have you seen Diggory fly? He's brilliant!" said one of the sixth years that I didn't
know.

"Gryffindor have got Potter, though. And Black. I've seen them fly--they're good, no
getting round it. They have good offense, but I don't know about the defense. We're still short
one Chaser, and Diggory doesn't know who to pick. I'm betting it's that Evans girl though, she's
got a good broom, and can play pretty **** well, if you ask me," said Mike Abbott. I looked
across at Lily, and she seemed really excited about what Mike had said. Forget excited, she was
bouncing in her seat. I grinned at her, hoping to hide my jealousy with a smile or a nod. She
grinned back, spilling her tomato soup on her lap.

Diggory sighed. " How did you know? I was going to tell you later, Lily, but seeing as
he's spilled the beans already, I want you to come to practices from now on. You have a broom,
right?"

"Yeah, it's a Silver Arrow. I bought it in Diagon Alley last year," she replied.

"Great. See you at practice tomorrow, then," Diggory said happily.

Third year I studied really hard for the exams, and passed a few more than I had the year
before. I actually got good marks in Defence Against the Dark Arts, my will to work against
You-Know-Who urging me to spend more time on my studies and not to let my mind wander in
class. My electives weren't hard either, and I got okay marks in Ancient Runes. I would never
be top of the year, but I wouldn't get kicked out either. I got to stay at school for the summer,
explaining to Lily that I wanted to get ahead for the next term.

"Look, Lily, I'd like to come with you, but my grades need boosting and I can do that by
staying the summer. Besides, I don't want to inconvenience your parents again, you've done too
much for me already." No matter what I told her, the real reason was that I couldn't face her
parents again, they were too much like what I had wished for in my own.

Out of term, I got some Potions help from the professor. She told me to think of it as a
cake or a food, and adding all the ingredients helped make it into a lovely bit of confectionery. It
worked a little bit, at least the Good Day potion I made didn't blow up.

I spent most of the time in the Hufflepuff common room, doing my homework and trying
to memorise new charms and curses. The rest of my summer was in the greenhouses, with
Professor Sprout and the plants. Plants really are better than people, I thought. They never give
you detention or make you feel stupid. The Whomping Willow needed a lot of attention, so I
stood next to it for afternoons on end, stroking its branches and singing to it. I knew the tree
couldn't hear me, but I wanted to practice my singing; I sounded like a sick poodle.

The summer came to an end slowly, each day seeming longer than the last. I was glad to
have Lily and Emmie and Susie and Ivy back, the dorm had seemed really empty while they had
been gone.

"Hey, Ella! How was your summer? I had a great time, my grandmother came and took
me to an amusement park in Yorkshire. It's too bad you didn't come with me, you would've
loved it," Lily said, plonking some of her books on the bed and taking out her pajamas.

"Well, I got a lot of work done, and Professor Brown helped me with my Potions work.
At least they don't blow up anymore," I replied.

"You're missing the point, Ella,"said Ivy from the safety of her bed. "Vacation is to relax,
not to work. I know we're Hufflepuffs, and supposed to toil and all that stuff, but once in a while
we can take a break, okay?"

"I know, I just needed a bit more help with my studies. Anyway, the plants were glad of
the extra attention,"I said, sighing. They don't understand. I want to get rid of Voldemort, so
I've got to have top grades, which means I need to study hard over the summer.

After Ivy, Emmie, and Susie had fallen asleep, Lily pushed open the hangings on her bed
and came to sit on the edge of mine.

"Ella, do you know what I heard on the train? Potter and Black and their little crew
needed a compartment, and they left it to the last second before the train left. I heard almost
every word they said. Here's what I heard:

'"We need help with this thing! We have the books, we have some of the ingredients, and
we have the stuff from ourselves, but none of us are good at Charms or Herbology! Do you
know how many things could go wrong with that? The Animagus Change is not an easy thing to
do, you know. If only we knew someone who was good at Herbology and Charms,"'whispered
Sirius, looking his name for once.

'"He's right, James. I don't know how you figured it out, but I can't have you hurt
helping me when I transform! I would feel like I was a murderer, and Dumbledore would kick me
out of school! Do you know how much Dumbledore's trust has meant to me? I wouldn't have
been able to come to school if it weren't for him, and I need this education! Please, just admit
you need help, and we'll find someone who can do it for us,"' said Lupin anxiously.

"Wait a darn minute, boys, I can hear everything you're saying, and if you're doing the
Animagus Change, I'm going to have to report you to Dumbledore. It's illegal, for Heavan's
sake!" said Lily clearly, standing up.

"Hold it-"Lupin remarked, as if he had a good idea. He whispered something to his
companions, and they glared at him. He took a little more time talking, and by the end, everyone
but Sirius looked convinced.

'"Do you really think we can trust them? After everything we've done to each other?
And you of all people know we don't get along. How would it sound to have boys and girls
yelling at each other from within wherever it is we're going to be? Do you want another set of
antennae? Or more different colored skin? 'Cause I don't, and I think we should just try this on
our own,"'said Sirius angrily. I could almost see the smoke coming out of his ears. Wondering
what they were talking about, I edged a little bit closer. They saw what I was getting at, and
moved away again. This time James was talking, and I couldn't hear them speaking. Sirius finally
nodded, and they came over to my side of the carriage, holding out a white handkerchief.

'"Truce,"'Peter said, waving the hankie. I decided not to jump them, but hear what they
had to say.

'"Okay, so we're doing the Animagus change. And we need your help. From what we've
heard, you're good at Charms, and your friend is good at Herbology. If you can meet us on
Saturday nights in Moaning Myrtle's bathroom, we'll see what help you can be of to us. If you
blab, I'll..."'warned James, shaking his fist.

'" Don't worry, we won't. Meet you in Moaning Myrtle's bathroom on Saturday. My
friend's name is Ella, and you know it, so use her name if you're going to talk to her, 'kay?"'

So, d'you want to do it? They promised on the Four Founders that they'd never tell on us
and that we'd never tell on them. I'm going, even if you're not. And I'm sure you'll meet some
exotic plant once we get to work," she finished, still whispering so Ivy, Emmie, and Susie
wouldn't hear us.

I thought it sounded neat, and the idea of meeting exotic plants was definitely the
clinching deal. I nodded, and smiled grimly. "If they didn't need our help before, they definitely
were doing something wrong," I sneered, glad to have the Potter squad twisted around our little
fingers.

Classes began as usual, and I did a little better than before. Transfiguration was going
okay, and Potions was slightly better. I wasn't blowing things up anymore, but my potions
usually had the opposite of the intended effect. Ancient Runes were okay, because the runes we
started studying had plant symbols and meanings. Astronomy was so frustrating, I didn't know
where to begin. Which way was north again? I asked myself on top of the tower, trying to locate
the Dog Star. Defence was getting a tiny bit better, at least we weren't doing curses anymore.
CoMC got a little interesting, Professor Kettleburn was giving lessons on Manticores and Fire-crabs, without actually bringing any to class. Saturday came all too quickly, I definitely wasn't
looking forward to spending an evening in a bathroom with the Potter squad. We had promised,
though, and I couldn't back out.

By 11:00 we were discussing (our fancy way of saying we were yelling at each other) how
to get these plants called Exfhadsens, that are vital for the Animagus change. One drop of liquid
from the stem of the Exfhadsens can call your essence from your body and store it in the roots of
another plant. Obviously, I was going, but Lily needed to stay and work on the charm with
James. Lupin wasn't there, so Pettigrew came with me. Luckily, Exfhadsens like wooded,
crowded areas, so I led him into the forest. After two hours, I had found a patch of the plants and
was attempting to coax them into giving me a drop of their nectar. Remembering something
Professor Sprout had said over the summer, I tickled the Exfhadsen on the upper left hand leaf,
and it dripped a drop of nectar into the phial Peter was holding. Trudging back to the school, I
looked out at the moon. It was full, and so beautiful that I couldn't believe nature was dangerous.
The full moon only made Peter more nervous, so we headed back to the school quickly. I left
Peter with the nectar, and crept up to my dormitory.

Lily was asleep, so I didn't bother her and undressed silently. I accidentally dropped one
of my shoes, and I thought Emmie would wake up (she's a light sleeper). Emmie turned over and
sighed, but stayed amid dreams of who knows what.

"Hey, Lily! How did it go last night? Was it horrible, being with Potter and Black all
night long?"I asked her quietly, under the noise of breakfast.

"It was awful. We tried to stay in a cubicle, so I was scrunched against Potter. Black
seemed to find this very funny, so I had to threaten him with about twenty hexes before he'd shut
up about the two of us dating and ending up marrying each other. As if! I hate Potter, I wouldn't
marry him if he was the last man on earth,"Lily glared fiercely at the Gryffindor table, and Sirius
winked at her.

"I don't know, Lily, you and Potter would make a cute couple..." I ducked, barely missing
a slap on the face. "I was joking, come on! I was up later than you were, what's wrong with
you?" Lily grimaced, and went back to her toast.

The work in fourth year definitely increased, because we had to pass the O.W.Ls the next
year. How we managed, what with all our homework and the potion and everything, I will never
know. It was definitely hard on Lily, because she had to practice Quidditch on top of everything
else. They beat Gryffindor, 190-220. The other Chaser made a lot of goals, but Lily did too.
Potter caught the Snitch when we were 180 points up, though I guess he wanted to prove that he
wasn't worthless. They snubbed each other ceaselessly while we were working, until finally I had
to threaten them with the briars I had made friends with so they would get to work and not ruin
the potion.

I revised for hours on end for the end of year exams, and passed a few. My Defence score
was average, and Herbology, as always,was perfect. Potions was barely passing, as was
Astronomy. History wasn't hard, and neither was Transfiguration. Charms was a little iffy, but
he gave me the points anyway.

I stayed at school again that summer, practicing the skills I would need as an Auror ( Lily
had told me that Dark Wizard catchers were called that). She sent me some owls, which I
responded to faithfully. Dumbledore came to my common room, and told me some news that was
quite relieving.

"Miss Lemivull, are you in here? Yes? Good. I'm sorry to say that I have found some
historical evidence that the true heir of Hufflepuff will be in Slytherin, so that rules out the
possibility of you having the extreme power that comes with that bloodline. However, you are
related to her in some way, perhaps a cousin of hers. Just wanted to let you know. Enjoy your
holiday!"he said brusquely, and exited past the statue. I was rather glad, as if a tremendous
weight had been taken off of my shoulders.

My last years at Hogwarts are blurred. We finished the potion the next year, and Lily fell
for James. I had a hard time watching them, so perfect for each other, but I found several things
out about myself. The other Hufflepuff boys liked my eyes and hair, so I dated some of them for
a while. The longest was Amos Diggory, we were togther for a year and a half. Anyhoozle, I
continued my studies, greatly improved in Defence Against the Dark Arts, got eight O.W.Ls, and
seven N.E.W.Ts.

After Hogwarts, I headed straight to the Ministry with Lily, James, and Sirius. Remus
worked for a Muggle firm for a while, then went into a firm about the prevention of werewolf
bites and how to treat them. We understood, he told us a little while after the boys had
transformed. Peter tried a lot of different things, and finally moved a little bit away from the rest
of us, saying he had found a high paying job somewhere else.

James and Lily were of the highest qualifications of Aurors, I was among those
specializing in different types of magic. Sirius was up at the top with Lily and James, always
teasing them about their relationship. James proposed to Lily after a difficult battle that had killed
several of our number, and she broke down and wept. When they married, I was the Maid of
Honor and Sirius was the Best Man. Even while You-Know-Who was getting stronger, they
were able to raise their little family. A black haired, green eyed baby boy was born to them on
July 31, 1980. Sirius, of course, was the Godfather, and I was Godmother.

October 31, 1981, there was a giant skirmish in London. I fought hard, cursing and
summoning plants from all gardens and forests. There were too many Death Eaters, with too
much magic. They used the Unforgivable curses, so strong that we almost couldn't hold up.
James and Lily were at home, they hadn't been summoned for some reason. We were starting to
head downhill, dirty, dishevelled, and tired, our magic wearing out, refusing to give in. I was one
of the last among our number, standing up against the Dark forces. It was horrible-too horrible-the Cruciatus curse, it stripped me of all defences, and it stripped me of all my magic. I was
powerless. I managed to struggle to a hospital, and got treated.

Dumbledore came to visit me. He said there was no way for me to get my magic back. I
was desperate for some relief from the pain of being without magic, I had been used to carrying
my wand, used to fixing broken bones and things with my magic. In real need of distraction, I
asked him how James and Lily were.

To my surprise and shock, his eyes teared up and he turned away, before saying that
"They're gone, Ella. Gone to a better place. May God grant them rest."

I was in disbelief, numbed. What? They're dead? But-Lily, James, you were my best
friends, my very best friends, how dare he do this to me? No, no, not again, why must everyone
important to me be destroyed without knowing how I am, if I'm okay? Why me? Why me? What
have I ever done? What have they ever done? And Harry-Harry- he was only a baby, is he gone
too? I cried and cried and cried, tearing at my sheets.

"Harry-Harry's gone too?" I finally managed, looking into Dumbledore's bright blue eyes.

"No,"he whispered. "Voldemort (I winced) couldn't kill Harry. Whatever happened,
Voldemort's gone and Harry is with his aunt and uncle in Surrey."

"Let me take Harry, please, I'm his godmother, Lily told me, I promised her I'd take care
of him, please, please..."

"I'm sorry, but the decision has been made. It is better for Harry to live with his aunt and
uncle until he is ready to face the wizarding world. I cannot allow you to take him, it would
distort his chances of ever fitting in," Dumbledore replied seriously. He swept out of the room,
and I sat there, wondering why the world was so unfair.

To take my mind off being magicless, I went to dentist's college. I understood teeth, and
I managed to graduate with good grades. One of my colleagues, Mark Granger, and I got
married a few years later. We continued in the profession, but I didn't tell him I had been a witch.
Then we had you, Hermione, and I thought you would be all Muggle too. I had to pretend I
didn't know anything about the magical world so you wouldn't be shocked and afraid. You
graduated, and now you're married, and Harry, you know I tried, you know I did, Dumbledore
wouldn't let me, I couldn't believe it..."'

"Mum, you never told me? I understand why, but did you have to wait until I was four
months pregnant, married to Ron, and happily settled in a house near the Ministry? I could have
handled it after I graduated, you know," Hermione was sitting in an old house in Gloucester, her
best friend Harry on the sofa, and her husband, Ron Weasley, in a rocking chair near the fireplace.

"I couldn't face it, Hermione, I couldn't face the wizarding world. I didn't think you'd get
in, so what was the point of breaking your heart? Pretending I didn't know about magic had
become a habit, and I didn't want to turn back to the power I had had. It was too much, and your
bringing Harry to meet me triggered the story. Please forgive me, I did it because I love you,"
Ella Lemivull (now Granger) said sadly, trying to find the words that expressed her feelings.

"You knew my mum? I-how-can I see her as you saw her, do you have any
photos?"Harry had kept quiet, but couldn't stand it. Ella handed him a photo on the table, and
left the room.

Harry stared at the picture and thought about all he'd heard. Turning to his best friends,
he said, " You've got one heck of a mum, Hermione," and started to laugh. Ron joined him, and
once more the old house was filled with the laughter of witches and wizards.

Disclaimer: Ella, Ivy, Emmie, and Susie are all mine. If you borrow them, I want $50 a
story, with interest if you use them more than any other character. Kidding, you can't have 'em.
I know Lily was in Gryffindor, but it's a fanfic, isn't it? I'm allowed to do other things. That's
the point, right? The rest of the characters belong to the Marvelous, Magnificent, All-Powerful
Joanne Kathleen Rowling! All hail! *bends down on her knees and touches her head to the floor*
Enjoy! I will be continuing the 'Harriet Potter' thingamajig, but needed a rest and wanted to type
a story from the MWPP time. I live on reviews, but if you could get them to me somehow, it
would be greatly appreciated. My web address is
http://www.harrietpottersworld.homestead.com/index.html . That address will get you to my
Mbs, so tell me what you think on there and I'll find it somehow. Put 'em on the 'Everything'
board, 'kay? Thanx!