𝟏.| ✬ 𝒟ℯ𝒶𝓇 ℬ𝒾𝓁𝓁, ✬ {ℬ. 𝒲ℯ𝒶𝓈𝓁ℯ𝓎}

\ℯ𝓁ℯ𝓋ℯ𝓃\

~

Every time Eleanora saw Harry around the school during that first week, he had a small crowd of people trailing after him. Everyone in Hogwarts wanted a look at the boy's scar, to meet the Boy Who Lived. Eleanora felt more sorry for him than anything. She couldn't stop thinking about how scared he'd looked on the platform, so small and alone. He reminded her of herself when she'd first come to Hogwarts, but even she'd had her dad to accompany her. She figured the best she could do for little Harry was to leave him alone. She offered him only a reassuring smile every time she crossed him. The twins left him alone too without being told by Eleanora. Though they never said it, they felt bad for him too. They'd always had each other to rely on, never knowing what it was like to truly be alone. They could remember finding Eleanora alone in a train compartment on the first day of her second year, and decided to look to her for guidance on how to treat Harry.

Eleanora's second class on the first day was Potions, something she was actually looking forward to after a morning of History of Magic. She was pleased to see that she had Potions with the Hufflepuffs for the second year in a row.

"Oi! Eleanora!" Cedric Diggory called, waving to her from his seat. She walked over, slipping into the chair next to him.

"How was your summer?" she asked, smiling at him.

"It was alright, my dad took me to a few quidditch games. Wimbourne Wasps vs Ballycastle Bats and Puddlemere United vs Chudley Cannons-"

"Ooohh, I was talking about seeing that one with Bill Weasley before he left for Egypt, I wish we could've," Eleanora said.

"It wasn't as good as I thought it would be, Puddlemere crushed the Cannons."

Eleanora gave him a superior look. "Well, of course they did, they're the best team in the league."

"Don't even get me started, Marks, you know the Cannons'll crush Puddlemere in the cup," Cedric laughed, leaning back in his chair.

"That's ridiculous, the Cannons won't even make it to the cup!"

The door to the classroom slammed shut. "Take your seats and open your textbooks to page twenty. We'll be starting with Wit-Sharpening potions, which I'm certain some of you could use," Snape said drily. Cedric and Eleanora exchanged a look before opening their books.

The class went by rather fast after that with Snape droning on and on about methods and ingredients. When the bell finally rang, Eleanora approached Snape's desk instead of leaving for Herbology class. She sat down on the closest desk to Snape's. "So, Professor, what'll we be learning this year?"

"Shouldn't you be on your way to class?" he said, not looking up from the paper he was grading.

"Well, I was hoping you might write me a pass? It's for herbology, which I think is similar enough to Potions-"

"Fine, fine. We'll be studying calming draughts, shrinking solutions, pepperups potions, ageing potion, Weedosoros, Skele-Gro, and more antidotes."

"Weedosoros? That's that poison, isn't it?" Eleanora asked.

An uncommon smile twitched at Snape's lips and he humored her. "Which posion?"

"Ummm, well, I know it causes convulsion and it's really hard to brew, so I doubt we'll actually make it-"

"I've had classes make it before."

Eleanora shrugged. "Well yes, but it should be illegal now, shouldn't it? It's a doxycide potion, so it'll contain some deadly ingredients."

"It's a highly potent poison to which all of the effects aren't known. It's known to cause convulsion along with some other rather unpleasant bodily side effects. We won't be making it this year, but we'll learn about it near the end of the year."

"Professor, if you don't mind my asking, why can't we make it this year? If it's not illegal."

"My supplies are low and I won't have another shipment in time."

Eleanora stayed to talk to the professor for almost an entire period before he signed her a pass and she strolled leisurely down to the greenhouses for the second period of double Herbology.

~

Eleanora didn't have a Defense Against the Dark Arts class until that Thursday. She was dreading it until Fred and George snuck up behind her in the halls and George said, "We were thinking about checking out the third floor tonight, you in?"

Eleanora's face broke into a smile. "Absolutely."

Eleanora was expecting the usual glare she received on arriving in Professor Quirrell's room, but it never came. Instead, the man gave her a jerky nod as she took her seat. She didn't think much of it. She did notice, however, that the teacher seemed more nervous this year, that his stutter was more pronounced, and that his classroom smelled more strongly of garlic than ever.

Eleanora broke into the twins' dormitory that night. She'd gotten bored of waiting for them in the common room and decided to see what on earth was keeping them. When she knocked on their door, she heard a loud crashing noise, followed by, "Just a moment!" and a scuffle from inside.

"It's only me," Eleanora said, sighing impatiently.

"Oh," she heard from inside, and the door opened. Fred was standing in the doorway, blocking the room behind him. "We'll be out in just a minute, Nora," he said, leaning to the side as she tried to peer over his shoulder.

"What're you hiding?" she asked, standing on tiptoe and holding onto his shoulder for stability.

He moved his head to block her vision. "Nothing, don't worry about it" he tried to push her out of the door. She waited until the last second before jumping, tackling him back through the doorway. "Nor- agh!" The two of them fell back onto the floor.

"Really, Fred, I thought you'd be able to keep her out since you're about twice her size," Lee called from across the room.

Eleanora sat up, looking around. Aside from the usual mess that followed the twins, nothing looked amiss. "What were you hiding?" she asked Lee. "And where's George?"

At that moment, George nonchalantly stepped out of the closet in the corner. "Oh, hello Eleanora, fancy seeing you here. You ready to go?" He took one of her hands, pulling her up. She looked from boy to boy, finally giving up.

"Alright, fine. Let's go, don't forget the map."