Forgotten Girl

Meetings and Misheard Names

"Come on, Ellie, Let's go! The match is starting soon!" Winna said, stepping into the first-year dorm. Elliana grabbed her scarf, joining her friend.

They joined the last of the stragglers on their way to the Gryffindor vs Slytherin Quidditch match. Winna led the way through the stands, finally spotting someone and pulling Elliana with her. As they reached the boy, the Gryffindor team was walking onto the pitch and the crowd around them was screaming.

"Leo, meet Ellie," Winna yelled over the noise, "Ellie, this is Leo."

They nodded at each other, neither really caring to yell over the noise. Boos had taken over when Slytherin had walked out, and Elliana had shrunk down slightly. It wasn't that she was ashamed of her house, but it wasn't exactly encouraging to hear people booing your housemates.

Leo noticed, and leaned down so that she could hear him, "Don't worry, they do this for every house. Ravenclaws are incredibly competitive. Before the match, most of them made bets, and now they want to win."

She smiled at him and pulled a small book from her coat pocket. While Elliana knew the rules of Quidditch, she preferred playing to watching. Taking her wand, she whispered Engorgio, restoring the book to its original size.

"Whatcha reading?" Winna asked. Elliana tilted the cover toward her so that she could see it. It was a worn copy of A Wrinkle In Time and the muggleborn grinned, leaving her younger friend to read.

~

During a timeout called by Gryffindor (Slytherin led 40 to 20 and had just knocked out a Gryffindor Chaser), Leo turned to the girl beside him. 

"So, Lilli, you're a first-year, right?" She began to nod before her mind caught on something.

"I'm sorry, what did you call me?" 

"...Lilli?" He asked, confused, before the realisation hit, "I heard her wrong, didn't I?"

She nodded, "It's fine. You can call me Lilli if you want."

"Are you sure? I don't want to make you uncomfortable," Leo said as the match began again. 

"It's fine. It's just... that was my mother's name," she sat quietly for a few minutes, "Actually, yeah, I'd like it if you called me Lilli."

~

"Hey, Lilli!" Leo jogged up to her two weeks later, slinging an arm over her shoulders. She grinned at the Ravenclaw.

"Hello, Lion. What's up?" He shrugged, continuing to walk beside her.

"Where are we headed?"

"The library," Lilli grinned as he groaned.

"Why? It's a Saturday, Lils! You know, the one day you don't need to worry about schoolwork."

"Are you sure you're a Ravenclaw, Leo Jones? You're sounding an awful lot like a certain Gryffindor second-year." Leo laughed at her allusion to Ron Weasley, who was notorious for complaining about school work.

"I'm vexed, Elliana Simmons. Simply vexed."

"Ah, there's the Ravenclaw."

~

Lilli sat in the common room one night, when the rest of the house was asleep, even the NEWT obsessed seventh-years. She sat staring into the Black Lake, silently wishing that someone was still awake to keep her company. But no one was, and her thoughts ran wild behind her mask of indifference.

Is it alright for me to be called Lilli?

Should I tell Leo I've changed my mind?

Would it hurt Uncle Remus and Aunt Thia if they heard me be called Lili?

Would Mum be uncomfortable if she were here?

Will it make Harry uncomfortable if I ever do tell him?

Am I comfortable with it?

How would Snape react? This thought brought a grin to her face, knowing it would surely give the Potions Master a heart attack. But her mind almost immediately went back to the other questions, pondering them over and over.

"What are you doing awake, Simmons? It's almost 3 am," A voice grumbled from behind her. She didn't turn, only catching a glimpse of bright blond hair as they sat down.

"Couldn't sleep." She looked at Draco from the corner of her eye, "Why are you up?"

"My mind has the terrifying capability of being dark and demented."

"You're afraid of your dreams?"

"Yes."

"What was it about? The one that woke you up?" She turned to look at him. For a brief second, there was actual emotion on his face, a shot of pain that seared his ghostly eyes.

"It was nothing." He stood again, closed off. Lilli grabbed his hand.

"Hey, take off that mask when you're talking to me." He looked at her, collapsing back down next to her.

"Only if you take off yours."

"Deal. So?"

"It was my father," he said quietly, "Torturing my mother because I didn't do as he said." She squeezed his hand, appalled by what he was saying and knowing she couldn't say anything to comfort him.

"Why couldn't you sleep, Simmons?" She laughed slightly, looking up at the ceiling.

"It's going to sound idiotic," she warned him, "But somebody called me Lilli, and that was my mother's name. I'm just not sure how I feel about it."

"What do you mean, was?"

"As in, I'm not sure if she's alive anymore. My godfather got custody of me when I was little, so I've never met her."

"Oh. I'm sorry." She tilted her head to look at him, a look of mock surprise on her face.

"Did the great Draco Malfoy, heir to the Great and most Noble House of Malfoy, just apologise?" Lilli asked teasingly. The boy groaned, pushing her away.

"Okay, if we're going to drop the masks, then we need to call each other by our first names," he said, pushing back his messy hair.

"Fair enough, Draco." He grinned a little, pulling on his sweater sleeves so they covered his palms. 

"Do you think you'd be able to sleep, now?" He asked, looking over at the girl. She shook her head.

"Still too many thoughts," Lilli tapped her head, "My godfather says I think too much. And that I get it from my dad."

"Want me to read to you?" Draco flushed when she raised an eyebrow, "It's what my mother always does for me."

"Aww. Draco's got a soft side," she teased, and he groaned, "But I'd like that."