Hufflepuff Concerto

This is the story of a girl--or perhaps two--who came to Hogwarts and were sorted into Hufflepuff. This is a story written about Hufflepuffs, by a Hufflepuff. After all, we Hufflepuffs are more interesting than you think... read on and you will see.

DISCLAIMER: That Harry Potter Universe and Characters are not, alas, my own.

A/N: It takes me hours to write a chapter. It takes you seconds to review it. So, come on, do your part and let me know I've got readership!


Chapter Eleven: Pretend

"Wake up, girls!"

Jaci rolled over and pushed aside her bed curtains. The prefect girl--Niobe--was leaning through the doorway waiting for some signs of life. Laura got up and opened a window. The fresh September air felt good.

"Eleanor, you too," the prefect said. Eleanor mumbled something unintelligable and Niobe closed the door behind her, satisfied that the girls would make it to breakfast.

It had been a long night. Jaci had stayed up until they gave Hannah a sleeping drought and a sedative and was sleeping almost peacefully. At that point, Madame Pomfrey and Professor Sprout told them to go to bed, too and went down to the common room to talk. Niobe stayed to watch Hannah.

Sometime, hours later, Jaci had woken to Cedric--he had apparently taken over for Niobe--carrying the mage away while Professor Sprout held the door.

It was all almost enough to make Jaci forget to dread the morning mail.

Day two of her own humiliation had begun. She donned her uniform with only mild contempt for the Hufflepuff crest and colors. It could have been worse. It could have been Gryffindor. The hat had given serious consideration to putting her there. It seemed to think she was brave. But with just a bit too much common sense, thank goodness. I got off easy with Hufflepuff. There was, of course, no way her father would ever be consoled with that explanation. And no way he would ever find out about it either.

She waited for Eleanor and Laura to finish getting ready and followed them downstairs. The weren't a very talkative lot this morning.

But everyone else seemed to be. Hufflepuff House was abuzz with questions about homework, anticipation for the day's new classes, and--most bothersome--people trying to figure out what happened after lights out in the girls dorm last night. Someone had heard Madame Pomfrey and Professor Sprout talking in the common room, and others had noticed the commotion before lights out. The prefects were exhausted, but keeping quiet.

Of course, they knew that it was the first years' room, and they knew Eleanor had been the one to come running down the stairs demanding, "I need a prefect!"

"Eleanor!" Kevin Whitby was the first to approach them, "What happened up there last night?"

"I don't want to talk about it," Eleanor said, somewhat more curtly than neccessary. Kevin glanced at Laura, who shook her head. He darted a glance at Jaci, but it held no question. He'd been a bit nervous around her ever since she'd glared at him at dinner for saying something bad about Patricia Adams. It was comforting to know that despite having the wrong badge, she could still do her family proud.

Or, at least, it would have been comforting if she thought they would notice or it would matter. Being able to control weak minded Hufflepuffs with a look seemed a dreadful waste of her upbringing. There was no challenge in it. Not only that, but they didn't understand that it was part of a game so then she just ended up feeling mean. Feeling mean was most unSlytherin-like.

Mean had it's upsides, though. Eleanor and Laura were getting barraged with questions from the first year boys and she wasn't getting any. Her roommates could use lessons in being unapproachable.

"Come on," she interrupted, putting her hands on Laura and Eleanor's shoulders, "We'll tell you all at the same time, in brief, at breakfast. Let's move." And move they did.

The Great Hall was waiting and the food smelled comparable to home. Jaci's stomach gurgled with anticipation, but she ended up not really wanting any of it once it was already on her plate.

"Are you going to tell us, now?" Owen asked pointedly. Jaci nodded and the seven Hufflepuff first years huddled in over the table.

"I'll do it," Laura said. Jaci kept an eye outside the circle. This would be the stuff of delicious rumors at the Gryffindor table by this evening, she was sure, but her own House deserved to know what actually happened to their fellow Hufflepuff.

"It was Hannah. She had another breakdown and they took her away." It was brief. It was to the point. And--since they had all been present in Charms the day before--it required little explanation.

"Is she coming back?" Owen wanted to know.

"We don't know."

"What's wrong with her?"

"We don't know that either," Eleanor said, "but when we got back from tag last night she was acting really strange. Her wand was floating and she freaked out when I tried to touch it. She said it was stuck in a wall and trying to kill her."

"Is that possible?"

"No, but that's what she said," Jaci said, putting an end to the stream of details, "We don't know what's going on, but it's very serious so don't go telling everyone about it, right?" She fixed them with a look, especially Eleanor. If you do, I'll know it was you and I know at least the general vicinity where you sleep.

Each of the other students nodded. They would keep Hannah's secret for now--probably more out of fear of Jaci than any real loyalty to the mage. Or, maybe she was just cynical. Mage spawn don't belong at Hogwarts aside, the Slytherin felt kinda guilty for freaking the poor girl out before. And, if nothing else, protecting Hannah's reputation could at least distract her from the most dreaded thing of all.

"Look. The mail."

Nevermind on that last point. Her father's rare blue faced owl stood out among the others not because of its blue face, but its sheer size. After dropping a boxy package into her lap, the bird glided away again. Somehow, it managed not to hit any other birds in the process.

"Showy," she sniffed, but there was no heart in it. With a final glance at her fellow Hufflepuffs, Jaci strode out of the Great Hall with her package. Yesterday, while playing tag with the other first years, she had scouted out a bench by the lake that would be a suitably private place to open this package. Two feet out of the hall, she broke into a run.

When she reached the spot, she tore open the box by stabbing the tape with the butt of her wand. Oddly, it held only a sheet of paper.

Daughter, it read, Your grandfather's condition has deteriorated further and I fear your unfortunate choice of House may put him over the edge. Your mother and I have spent all day calling in favors to keep this quiet, but I fear it is impossible. I suggest you write to your mother immediately to apologize for all the heartache you've brought on her. Deeply Saddened, Your Father.

Heartache. Grandfather's health. Deeply saddened. Of all the reactions her father could have, this was the one Jaci had feared the most. Anger would have been easier to deal with. She carefully folded the letter as her stomach wound itself in an uncomfortable knot. He thinks I have done it on purpose, she stared out over the lake, the weight of familial guilt resting heavily on her Slytherin-intended shoulders, And the worst part of it is . . . I did.


It was empty here, whatever here was. Nothing to see, feel, smell, or hear. The place was not and was at the same time, which was intensely interesting for about two seconds. Now, Hannah was bored. She couldn't remember how she'd gotten here or how to get back.

Once or twice she thought she heard her brother or her parents calling to her, but for all her screaming they didn't seem to hear her. But they said useful things anyway, like, It's going to be okay, and when the new potion is ready they're going to let you wake up all the way. And that, at least explained some things.

So she pretended she was in her bedroom at home, making a pretend picture of Hogwarts for her older brother, Phil. But mostly, she just waited, pretending to hug her pretend knees and trying to pretend she was not bored. Sooner or later, something would happen. It had to.