~Hey guys, I know it's been taking me forever to update! I have had the worst case of writer's block! Anyways, here goes!~

Ginny found Marie sitting in the common room with a gigantic book in her hands.

It was late. Nearly two in the morning. The fire was dying, and Marie had lit a candle.

She turned a page of her book, but didn't seem to be reading it. Instead, she was gazing

into the glowing coals in the fireplace. Ginny approached her timidly.

"Are you okay?" she asked softly. Marie didn't move a muscle. After a few

seconds pause, she murmured, "Yes, I'm fine."

"Why are you down here?" Ginny asked, suddenly suspicious. Marie just

shrugged and muttered, "I couldn't sleep. Why are you here? Ron would be really mad if

he knew you were up so late."

"I heard a noise. I guess it was just you. I'll leave you alone, then." Ginny turned

to leave. As she was going upstairs, she saw a piece of parchment lying on the ground.

Without thinking, she picked it up and opened it, but when she saw what was written on

it she stuffed it in her pocket and left without so much as a backward glance at Marie.

Marie was silent at breakfast the next morning, and hardly argued when Ron

forced her to eat a rasher of bacon. Then she left and did not come back.

"Goodness, what happened to her?" Hermione wondered. Ginny mulled it over

for a minute, then pulled the piece of parchment out of her pocket and handed it to Harry.

"I found it last night."

Harry read it, and his face turned bright red. "Ginny, I don't think Marie would be

very happy if she knew you took this."

"I didn't know it was hers!"

Ron snatched it away from Harry and he, too, read the letter. "Oh! No wonder

Marie is so upset."

Hermione read the note over Ron's shoulder.

"Dear Marie,

I am in the hopsital. I had a asma atack yesterday. Daddy didnt

want to worry you, but I thougt that you would want to know. I am fine.

Dont be worried. I love you.

Angel."

"Oh no! This is awful!" Hermione cried.

"I can't believe she didn't tell us," Ron grouched. Hermione hit him. "What?! I

was just being honest!"

"I think that Marie really needs our support right now," Harry stated. Ron,

Hermione, and Ginny all nodded.

"Let's go and find her," Ginny suggested. They exited the Great Hall in search of

Marie. They didn't have far to look. She had Pansy Parkinson cornered just outside the

doors, waving her wand threateningly and yelling something about her book bag. Harry

had trouble deciding whether to help Pansy or not. But when he managed to make out,

from among the indecipherable shouts coming from Marie, the words "Unforgivable

Curses," he quickly grabbed her arm and pulled her away.

"Hey!" Marie demanded angrily. "What was that for?"

"We need to talk," Harry stated simply. Marie look confused, and asked, "What

about?"

Harry led the group back to the Gryffindor common room. Marie complained and

questioned them the whole way there. Finally, when they were all sitting in armchairs in

front of the fire, Harry pulled the paper from his pocket and handed it to Marie. She

stiffened.

"We're really sorry about what happened to Angel."

"Where did you get this?" she asked.

"I found it on the floor," Ginny admitted timidly. Marie held the paper up so that

all of them could see, and pointed to the upper right corner.

"I see that none of you took the time to check the date," she observed. "See? It's

an old letter. She sent it to me last year, around Christmastime. I wasn't lying when

I said I couldn't sleep, Ginny. I just wasn't tired. I keep all the letters that Angel writes

me in a book. That's what I was reading last night, and I guess this one slipped out."

She laughed at the shocked look on their faces. Ron began to stutter, "But.but

you didn't argue with me when I made you eat breakfast!"

"What was wrong, then?" Hermione wanted to know. Marie shook her head and

said, "It's not important any more."

"No, it's got to be," Ron insisted. Marie frowned.

"It's not," she snapped. Ron made a face at her.

"Don't mind him, he's an idiot," Ginny whispered to Marie. Marie nodded

slightly, but said to Ron, "I'm telling the truth, you know."

"If you were, you'd tell us what it is."

"Why are you so determined to poke your nose into my private lifestyle?!" she

cried.

"Guys-" Harry began, only to be cut off by Ron's angry shout of, "Maybe I just

want to know because I was actually starting to consider you my friend, and that means I

care if something happens to you!"

"I know you care, Ron," Marie sighed, sinking back into her chair. "If you must

know, it's just that my dad might get transferred again."

"What?!" everyone cried at once. They all began hollering at once.

"You can't leave!"

"But you just moved here last month!"

"You couldn't possibly move again!"

"What on earth for?!"

"Where would he go?!"

"Quiet!" Marie said, holding up her hand. "I'm not going to leave! It's not certain

if he'll get transferred or not. And I have no idea where he'd go."

"But I don't understand," Ron muttered. Marie shook her head.

"I don't completely understand it either. I just know that he's- he might be

leaving. I wouldn't go anywhere. It's set that I'm going to finish the rest of my school

here at Hogwarts."

"Then I don't see a problem," Hermione mused.

Marie sighed. "If he got moved again, he'd take Angel with him."

There was silence, broken by Ginny asking, "Where would you go over the

summer, then? I mean, if it's so far away.."

"He wouldn't be able to get me from King's Cross," Marie finished. "I don't

know where I'd go. I wouldn't have anywhere to go. But that's not my biggest issue. I

don't think it would be good for Angel to be moved again." She sighed. "But there's nothing I can do about it. I guess I'll just have to wait and see what happens."
Harry nodded, but hoped that Marie's dad did not have to move again. He knew that it would make her miserable if she was separated even more from her sister. Marie shrugged, grabbed her backpack, and shuffled out of the room to their first class.
Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Marie made their way to the dungeons for Potions. As they rounded a corner, Marie felt her bag get caught on something and tear, everything spilling onto the floor.
"Go on ahead of me," she told them. "I'll deal with Professor Snape later."
She scrambled to pick her things up. She could mend the backpack easily, but if she didn't hurry she would be late. She'd fixed the tear and was stuffing everything back in the bag when she heard footsteps behind her. Turning, she saw Malfoy approaching.
Marie jumped up and prepared to leave, not wanting a fight. But something made her stop. Something was wrong. What was it?
"Marie Beck," she heard Malfoy drawl softly.
"Yes?" she asked politely, turning and plastering a smile to her face. He frowned and snapped, "I wasn't talking to you."
"Yeah, well, the hallway's empty and I don't know of any other Marie Becks in the school," she shot back. Malfoy held up something, and Marie moved closer to get a look at what he had in his hand. It was her picture of her great-grandmother. She reached for it, but he pulled his hand away. Marie scowled at him and demanded, "How do you know I'm named after her?"
"Much as I may look it, I'm not an idiot," he snapped, shoving past her. She stamped her foot and shouted, "What the hell are you talking about?!"
"You can't honestly say that you don't know what I'm talking about," he said, turning to face her.
"I don't know what you're talking about!"
Malfoy gave her a confused look. "Remember back on the train, when I asked you if you were a Mudblood and you lied and said that you were?"
"What do you mean, I lied? I have Muggle parents."
Malfoy waved the picture at Marie and asked, "This woman, she's your..great-grandmother, right?"
"Yes."
"Didn't your parents ever tell you that she used to teach Charms, here at Hogwarts, before she died?"
Marie grabbed the picture back. "You're lying!"
"Suit yourself. If you go to the trophy room, she won an award or something. Her picture is in there, too."
"Liar!"
"Whatever." He started to leave, but turned around and said, "Don't tell anyone about this."
Marie watched him leave. Once he was gone, she headed for the trophy room. Snape would kill her for skipping class, but she decided that this was more important. True, she did not trust Malfoy, but the way he'd spoken to her made her wonder. Was she really Muggleborn, or could she possibly have a wizard for a father?
She searched the trophy room, but found no sign of the award Malfoy had mentioned. She was just going out the door when something in the corner caught her eye. It was a plaque, quite small, and obviously very old. She couldn't make out the words on it at all, except for two. "Marie Beck." Under the words was a small, faded picture. She rubbed the dust away and gasped in surprise when she saw her great-grandmother smiling and waving at her. ~Sorry it's not that long, and doesn't relate at all to OOTP. I just decided to throw in a challenge for Marie. The actual story will come back next chapter, I promise! Tell me what you think!~