Monday 3rd January 1994

"AHHHHHH!"

Holly jumped so much at the sudden burst of noise from Liv that she spilt the spoonful of beans that was heading towards her mouth. Liv stood up suddenly from the breakfast table and, leaning over the breakfast food, grabbed her best friend in a violent hug.

"They've accepted me! I got it! I got it!" Liv's voice was an uncontrollable wave of excitement. Holly, being entangled in Liv's arms, was struggling to keep her balance. Eventually, she managed to break free.

"What are you on about? What's happened?" she asked with a sense of urgency, smoothing her hair back down and looking around at the other students beginning to stare at the commotion.

Liv, smiling broadly from ear to ear, shoved the letter that had just arrived by owl in front of Holly's face, and taking some deep breaths began to explain.

"I applied to a bunch of work experience placements over the holidays – for summer – at different marine biology centres – Muggle and Magical – and one of them wants me!"

"Oh, wow! Liv, well done!" Holly, after reading the letter, was catching up with her friend's excitement, and returned her hug. The letter was from an organsiation called The Magical Awareness and Research Facility of Aquatic Animals, or M.A.R.F.A.A for short, and were offering Miss Olive Jones a two-week work experience placement with them at their Sidmouth station.

"Where's Sidmouth?" Holly asked, looking over the letter again as they both sat back down to resume their breakfast.

"On the coast. Down by Devon way."

Holly looked up. "Well, I knew it'd be on the coast, dummy," she said sarcastically. "Is your mother planning on being based there over summer or something?"

Liv's smile dropped along with her stomach. Holly caught the change immediately.

"What? You didn't tell her you applied?" Liv shook her head like a schoolgirl caught doing something naughty. "Why the hell not?"

Liv sighed. "I wasn't sure any of them would take me on. And you know what me mam's like, she gets too excited about stuff. I didn't want to have to give her bad news."

"Well, it's no problem, is it?" Holly said, reaching for more toast. "Write to her and tell her. It's enough time for her to arrange to be in the area, surely."

Friday 7th January

My lovely Olive,

It's times like this I wish I could call you at school. First of all – WELL DONE! I am so proud of you for taking the initiative to pursue this without any adult help at all. You really are so clever and mature for your age (I don't know who you get that from – certainly not me!). I'm so proud of you for taking the steps to make your dreams come true and pursue your passions. That's a rare quality in people these days – hold onto it! Don't let it go! You're a star. I love you.

And now this is where I wish I could tell you this over the phone or face to face. I can't be in Devon for the summer this year. I have to be in Scotland for the season to shoot the ospreys. They're so difficult to shoot in winter because of the rain, it disguises them. And the company I've agreed to work with on this project has a deadline – I can't postpone it to next summer. I am so sorry.

HOWEVER! Do not despair!

Just because I can't be there doesn't mean you can't. If you haven't done so already, write to the work experience people and ask them if they have any on-site accommodation. Maybe they do, maybe they can put you up. I'm going to start looking at B&Bs in Sidmouth, see what the rates are and if I could put you up in one for the two weeks. You won't mind living by yourself for that amount of time, will you? You could always take Holly with you – though, I won't be able to afford the both of you. I'm sorry.

I love you I love you I love you YOU'RE A STAR! The brightest one I've ever seen! I'm so proud of you and we will figure something out together. Write to me once you know anything. I'll be looking at my end.

Mam xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Monday 17th January

Fred's hope had come half true. Gryffindor and Ravenclaw did indeed have a class together this term, but he wouldn't have the opportunity to share a desk with Liv this time, as the class was Care of Magical Creatures.

Huddled together against the January icy wind, the group of students looked like a fight between water and fire, the red and gold bobble hats contrasting against the blue and bronze. Professor Hagrid stood in front of them, seemingly unbothered by the cold, cradling a Porlock and explaining what wizards and witches used them for. Students then were allocated their own Porlocks in pairs and attempted to groom the shaggy hair.

"I wish I was covered in fur like this thing is," Holly grumbled beneath her scarf. "It looks so warm."

"Let's move over here, I need to ask them something," Liv mumbled as she began walking towards the Weasley twins, who were tickling their Porlock behind it's ears. She was in a bad mood and had been ever since Ravenclaw's narrow loss to Slytherin the day before. Her worries about her work placement were adding to it.

"I'm not sure you're supposed to do that," Holly said disapprovingly, as she attempted to coax her own Porlock into letting her brush it, to little success.

"You guys live in Devon, right?" Liv asked the twins, a little more sharly than she intended. "Do you live anywhere near Sidmouth?"

"Uh - yeah, only about five miles as the crow flies," George responded absentmindedly as Fred tried to feed the animal some bonfire toffee. "Why? Thinking about paying one of us a visit?"

Liv chose to ignore the last comment. "What's it like for B&Bs and hotels and stuff? Are there many? Is it an expensive place to stay?"

"It can be pretty touristy for Muggles in the summer, so yeah there's loads of them, but they're probably pricey," replied George.

"Thinking of booking a holiday?" asked Fred, not looking up from the Porlock.

Liv explained to them both about her work placement offer and about how her mother had to be in Scotland.

"That sounds fun – being adult free for the summer holidays," George said with a mischievous grin.

"George," Holly said deadpan, "she's going to be working, and besides Liv couldn't get herself into trouble if she tried."

"Cheers, Hol," Liv said sarcastically. "But that's not the point – M.A.R.F.A.A don't offer any accommodation, and I know my mother can't afford-"

"I've told you," Holly said sternly, cutting her off. "My parents will happily-"

"And I've told you-"

"Liv you're practically my sister at this point, my mum would want to-"

"And my mother would absolutely not-"

"Everyone gerrin' on okay 'ere?" Hagrid's booming voice had interrupted the girl's argument at just the right time as their volume levels had begun to rise and the Weasley twins stared on awkwardly.

"It doesn't like me!" Holly exclaimed, throwing down the brush she had been using in her grooming attempts.

As Hagrid showed Holly how to coax the little creature into consenting to be brushed, Liv stared into space, frowning, her mind occupied and thus not taking any of Hagrid's words in. Holly's family was wealthy, there was no denying it. She was the only child of her pure-blood parents who had both come from a long line of old money families. Her parents both worked in the Ministry – her mother in something legal, her father in something finance related – and they lived in a too-big-for-them house on the outskirts of London. Her parents were loving, kind people and Liv knew that they would happily put her up in a B&B for a fortnight without a second thought if it would help her out. Holly was right, both their parents treated the other as their own child. But Liv also knew her own mother very well and knew without a doubt that she would never accept that kind of generous help, that she would rather give up her current summer work contract and forego the wage, work in a pub or something for the season, than take money from them.

Liv also knew that if it came to that, she would resent herself for putting her mother in that position.

As the lesson came to an end and students began to pack away their things, Fred approached Liv.

"Poor luck in the match the other day," he said cheerily.

Liv was still in her own thoughts, and her delayed response showed that. "Hm? What? Oh – yeah, that." She shrugged. "We just need to train harder I guess."

"You know, as cute as you look when you frown, it really looks like you're giving yourself a headache."

"Mmm, yeah, thanks," was Liv's response, being so consumed by her thoughts she had not at all heard what Fred had said. "See you," she said distantly, walking back towards the castle and leaving Holly to run to catch up with her.