Silence met me as I opened the door to the Great Hall. It was very much empty, since most of the students were still at Hogsmeade. I sighed, and took a seat by the door. A few kids that were sitting a few feet away whispered urgently to each other as I sat down, but I didn't mind very much.

I ate quickly, not wanting to linger in the depressing room. It was very well lit, but most every room to me seemed depressing lately. I sighed.

Just as I finished my last bite, a person tapped me on the shoulder. I glanced up quickly, feeling intimidated.

"Hey, Lily!" I relaxed; it was my cousin, Hugo.

"Hi, Hugo," I said numbly. "How are you?" My voice was dead sounding, and he frowned.

"Fine..." His voice trailed off, and his eyes were full of concern. "Lily, what's wrong? Everyone's been noticing that you're sad."

Who did he mean by everyone? Probably just my family, judging by the fact that I didn't have any friends. "Don't worry, Hugo, I'm fine." I tried to smile, but I only succeeded in a grimace.

He didn't seem convinced, but to my relief, didn't press the subject. "Why aren't you going to Hogsmeade?" he asked quietly.

I shrugged. Who would I have gone with? No one liked me. "I have too much to do..."

Hugo blinked, staring at my face. Could he see right through me? Feeling intimidated, I looked down at my feet.

Eventually he cleared his throat. "Well I'm going down to Hogsmeade to buy a few things," he said clearly. "Want anything?"

I shook my head, still looking down at the ground. "Bye," I murmured, as I heard his footsteps retreating.

After I was sure he had gone, I got up silently, glancing around briefly. I along with a few first years, was the only one here. I slung my bag over my shoulder, and walked slowly out of the Great Hall, walking down a hallway that I usually didn't go through.

Hogwarts was so big, and I loved to explore it when I was sure that I was alone. This was one of these times, and my spirits rose as I walked swiftly through the corridors, singing softly to myself.

Singing was something I would only do when I was completely by myself, and since now I was by myself, I welcomed the happy feeling.

After a long while of exploring, I felt almost as if the hole that Scorpius had left in my heart was mended.

~*~*

When I reached the common room a few hours later, most of the students that had been out were lazing around, chattering about what a good time they had had. I quickly walked by the large throng of students, and went over to the dormitory steps, taking them two by two. Just as I was about to open the door, it opened from the other side, to reveal a girl with bright orange hair, who had tears in her eyes. I took a step back, tripping backwards slightly, but regaining my balance quickly.

To my surprise, the girl was my cousin, Rose, and she was crying. When she saw that I was at the door, she quickly slammed the door and ran back in, where I heard sobs from behind the door.

I shifted my weight from one foot to another, wondering if I should go by anyway. What if she beats me up? I wanted to go to my dormitory, but I didn't want to risk getting a black eye, or a bruised self-esteem. After debating for awhile, I mustered up all of my courage, and pushed the door open.

Rose was crouched on the floor, hugging her knees to her chest, crying harshly. My eyes widened to see such a scene- my cousin was usually too tough to ever cry- and I found myself frozen with shock.

She didn't look for awhile, and continued her sobbing. My eyes softened as I saw her like that. I'm not a mean person, and even though my cousin had brought very much pain upon me, I couldn't just leave her like this.

I knelt down beside her, careful to keep my distance. "Rose? What's wrong?" I asked in a small voice.

She glanced up, and her tearful eyes flashed. "Go away!" she screamed, hiding her face in her knees again.

I fell backwards at the force of her voice, but I couldn't obey. "What's wrong?" I tried again.

She didn't answer, just shook her head, tears tricking down her leg from where they had fallen from her face. The sight of her made me want to cry, but I told myself fiercely to get a grip.

"S-s-s-corpius," That was the only thing my cousin was able to say through her tears, but I understood instantly.

"He rejected you?" I asked quietly. Though I should have been happy, I couldn't help but feel sorry for her.

"No!" Rose choked out. "He didn't- didn't-" Her voice broke off with another sob.

"He didn't what?" I asked patiently, patting her awkwardly on her knee.

"H-he didn't ask me out."

I raised an eyebrow. "Is that why you're crying?" I asked scathingly.

"Y-yes!" Rose sobbed, wiping her eyes with a hand, trying to stop the flooding tears. "W-what if he doesn't like me?"

It would serve you right! I breathed out sharply. Why was I feeling pity for this cruel person?

"What if he liked someone stupid like you?" Rose cried.

All the sympathy and pity I felt vanished, and I stood up to leave.

Rose saw me get up, and tears streamed down her cheek. "He was looking for you today, not me."

I didn't comment, just picked up my bag and pushed my hair behind my ears. "I know."

She looked surprised. "H-how?"

I shook my head. "Rose, pull yourself together." My voice was strong, and it took me by surprise.

She sniffed, and dabbed at her wet eyes with a tissue. Rose finally stood up, towering over me, and suddenly I felt small and vulnerable. Not wanting to get beaten up, I left her there. I heard her blow her nose from outside of my dormitory, and she finally left, going into the common room, I guessed.

I sighed and collapsed onto my bed, my hair stretching out around me. The room was empty, as it usually was; my room-mates thought I was very strange, and spent as little time in here as possible. It didn't bother me very much to be myself, but I did feel loneliness tugging at my heart. I felt slightly as if I wanted to hang out with someone, but the only person I could think of was Scorpius. I angrily pushed that thought out of my mind, and pulled out my notebook.

I only wrote a few pages before I put it away again. It was odd, but I wasn't feeling very inspired. My favorite author, Jane griffith, once said in an interview that whenever she didn't feel inspired, she would go hang out with friends, and later on she would get that same inspired feeling. I smiled, remembering my favorite book written by her, which was titled 'The War of the World'.

Suddenly I stopped dead, and sat up erectly. Jane griffith. Neil griffith.

My heart skipped a beat. Was it just a coincidence that Neil had the same last name? Or could they possibly be related? I desperately wanted to find out, but I didn't think I had the courage to ask him.

I sighed. If Neil really was Jane's son, would I try to befriend him? I didn't think it was right to be friendly to him only because of his mother being an author, and I didn't want him to think that would be the reason. My mind raced; Neil seemed nice enough, and after a while of thinking it through, I decided I would ask him.