FHB: Chapter 20

Lucius shifted his weight uncomfortably, contemplating on making a move. When he found a short burst of bravery matching up his desperation, he strode up to Tanya.

“Tanya,” Lucius greeted.

Tanya turned to see who it was and replied, “Why am I not surprise?”

“I take that as a compliment,” Lucius replied.

“Well, you should go find someone to pair with.”

Lucius shifted his weight again, this time too obvious too ignore.

“Wait, are you here to ask me to be your partner?” Tanya asked, drowning the pride Lucius was attempting to keep afloat.

Before Lucius could reply, Tanya added, “But I already have a partner.”

The girl standing with them smiled and said, “It’s alright. I don’t mind making new friends.”

When the girl left, the sharp pinch from her words remained. But instead of defending his already hurt ego, Lucius turned to Tanya.

“You didn’t have to say that,” Lucius said.

“Say what?”

“Point out that I’m here to ask you to be my partner,” Lucius answered almost immediately.

“Why? Isn’t that so?”

Lucius narrowed his eyes, and then he said, “Sometimes, I’m not sure if you’re really that naïve or just playing me.”

Tanya shrugged in reply and began walking towards the exit. Lucius simply followed her, and continued doing so as the group broke off in their pairs and headed to the ministry headquarters.

The city was bustling that day, and it took Tanya only ten minutes to find the lifeless boutique they were instructed to find. Her sense of direction amidst the rushing muggle crowd was rather impressive.

Once in the shop, Tanya whispered the numbers ‘62442’ to the shopkeeper and they were immediately led to a fireplace in a hidden room behind an old bookshelf.

“Ladies first,” Lucius said.

Tanya took a handful of floo powder from a deep bowl, stepped into the fireplace, and said the magic words. When the flames shot up and died down, Lucius went next.

The heatless flames engulfed Lucius and a second later he arrived in the ministry headquarters. The ministry was as busy as the streets above, and Lucius began imagining what it would be like to be a minister. He could see himself climbing his way up and achieving greatness, and the thought of controlling the magical community gave him shivers of excitement. Unfortunately for him, his imagination was cut short with Tanya’s call.

“Lucius, come on! Which department are you in? We can’t be late.”

Despite the urgency in her tone, Lucius took his time. When they finally arrived at the elevators, Tanya said, “You could walk faster.”

“We’re not late,” Lucius replied with a shrug.

“We have five minutes to get to our departments. We will be late. Anyway, which department are you going?”

“Department of Magical Education,” Lucius replied.

The answer gave Tanya a strange look on her face. She seemed to be having a hard time digesting his words.

“Don’t look so surprise. What department are you in?”

“I’m hoping you have no ulterior motive for choosing that department.”

“You can’t choose where they place you,” Lucius pointed out.

Tanya chuckled and said, “I’m sure YOU were given an option. Well, I’m off to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. I don’t want to be late, so you can take the next ride. Meet you here at five!”

With that, Tanya squeezed into a crowded elevator and waved goodbye. The elevator shot backwards and then sideways, with Tanya’s startled scream bouncing down the tricky elevator tunnels. Shortly after that, Lucius found a rather empty elevator and headed to his department.

The first day as an intern was rather satisfactory for Lucius. He was the only one placed in that department so there were no other interns outdoing him. The people also knew who he was, and they praised him for his little act during the O.W.L.s and N.E.W.T.s examination. Lucius was sort of an ideal intern in their book, and they treated him way better than he had expected. He did not have to make the coffee or copy letters, he simply sat in their meetings and discussions, taking in more information than he should.

When the clock on the wall finally ticked five, Lucius left his bare desk and met up with Tanya at the atrium.

“So, how was your first day?” Tanya asked excitedly.

“It was fine. How was yours?”

“Splendid!” Tanya continued on with how much she had learned about the dark arts, which made Lucius a little uncomfortable. He was no stranger to it, but the fact that the ministry knew so much was not comforting.

Tanya recited her whole day while they had dinner in a cafe in the ministry headquarters, and then she went into the littlest details as they made their way to their muggle apartment. Tanya only stopped her ‘daily report’ when they entered their living quarters and found it ten times larger than what it seemed from the outside. That would explain why they placed all the interns in one place.

“This is amazing!” Tanya said in awe. She was acting like a typical mudblood the whole day and Lucius was feeling a little sick from it.

Excusing himself, Lucius went to look for his room. When he finally found it, he wondered how he was going to survive for the whole month. Sharing the tiny room with a stranger put a lump in his throat.

Muttering under his breath, Lucius dragged his legs in and slumped on a bed. Just as he did, an envelope bounced off the soft comforter and landed gently on the floor. Was the letter for his roommate, or was it for him? It was addressed to no one and Lucius wondered if he should take a peek.

To Be Continued…

(Leave a comment below or vote on whether Lucius should read it or leave it!)

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FHB: Chapter 15

Lucius thought over what Tanya had said and though he disagreed with the way she looked at things, he decided to make it up for his failed attempts at cheating. In all honestly, Lucius would have dusted his palms and pretended nothing happened if not for the sudden arrival of a clever idea. He had a special gift of turning things around for himself, and his gift was about to make his situation a win-win.

Walking past the perfect’s lounge, Lucius headed straight for Professor Slughorn’s office. With each step came a string of words he could use to buy favour, words his father failed to teach him while the Dark Lord did.

No, Lucius never had a real conversation with the Dark Lord before. Lucius had only seen him a few times when he came to stay in Malfoy Manor. But every time he came over, Lucius would stand outside the hidden room door and listen to the discussion he had with his followers. Everything he said was full of confidence and conviction, and Lucius wanted to emulate him.

Even though Lucius was not sure if he really wanted to join the Death Eaters, he knew he wanted to be as great as the Dark Lord. If it meant making a name for himself and bringing pride to his family, then he wouldn’t mind being under a ludic lover of power. How bad can things go, right?

By the time Lucius was outside Professor Slughorn’s office, the door opened and the two found themselves face to face.

“My dear boy, what are you doing here?” Professor Slughorn asked.

“I need your help, Professor. I think I made a mistake,” Lucius replied.

“Come on in. Would you like a drink?” Professor Slughorn said, as he ushered Lucius to the armchair near the fireplace.

“No, thank you.”

“Very well. Tell me what happened.”

“As you know, students have been buying O.W.L and N.E.W.T papers for the upcoming examinations. I happen to be one of them.”

“My God!”

“Sir, you know I’m not a cheater,” Lucius quickly continued, “I only bought the papers to find out who was distributing them. I know it was foolish of me to take things into my own hands, but I knew the culprit had to be caught.”

“I see,” Professor Slughorn replied. He showed no expression of belief or disbelief, which made Lucius a little worried.

“This man does dealings in The Three Broomsticks. I don’t know his name, but I remember his face. I was planning on telling Professor Dumbledore tomorrow, but the spot check this morning made me look guilty.”

“Who found the papers you bought?”

“Tanya Lovegood. She did not report me, but she told me to admit to my actions. If I told her I am innocent, she would not believe me. That is why I came to you, Professor. If you tell them you told me to find out who the culprit is, we could both get a good rapport with the ministry,” Lucius said. His words were a mess and they came out all wrong, but it seemed to be working.

“Well, honestly boy, you shouldn’t have gone snooping around. You will make your parents very disappointed with you! But I won’t let a good student ruin himself over the urge to be a hero. Tell me who this man is and we will see Dumbledore together.”

Lucius nodded and described the man to the best his memory could recall. When Professor Slughorn bewitched a quill to draw according to Lucius’ words, the result was surprisingly identical. After Lucius confidently said the drawing was spot on, the two of them went to see Professor Dumbledore.

That night, Professor Dumbledore’s office was graced with stacks of illegal exam papers and the company of a few Ministry of Magic officials. Lucius had seen them in newspapers before, and by the way they tilted their heads upwards he knew they held quite a status.

When Professor Slughorn handed them the drawing of the man, they were rather shock. They questioned how certain he was and Professor Slughorn gave Lucius the chance to explain what had happened. Though Lucius knew Professor Dumbledore was sceptical, the officials looked pretty convinced.

“This is shocking, Albus. He is one of our trusted advisors in our education department,” one official said.

“Are you very sure this was the man that sold the papers to you?” Professor Dumbledore asked, still unsure on what to believe.

“Yes, Professor. I have never seen the man prior to purchasing the papers.”

“Trust me, the boy has a good memory,” Professor Slughorn said.

“We believe you, young man. What is your name?” another official asked.

“Lucius Malfoy, sir.”

“Ah, Abraxas’ boy. Your father would be proud.”

Lucius replied with a smile and a nod.

“Well, then. We better get this issue sorted out. Thank you for your effort, Horace. We could use people like you in the education department.”

Professor Slughorn chuckled before saying, “My heart is with my students.”

“You taught a fine one,” the official pointed out.

“Why, thank you.”

“You know, the ministry is looking for fresh faces,” the official said as he turned to Lucius, “would you be interested in an internship? It would do you good if you ever want to work with us in the future.”

Lucius could not believe what he was being offered, but at the same time he was unsure if he should take up the offer. His father wanted him to be a Death Eater, and there was really no need to get a job after graduation. If only Lucius could ask his mother what she thought… she always had the best answers.

To Be Continued…

(Leave a comment below or vote on whether Lucius should accept or decline the internship!)

FHB: Chapter 14

“He’s my father’s friend,” Lucius replied.

“Oh, he is? Does he work in the ministry?” Tanya asked.

“Yes. My father asked me to return him some money.”

“Can’t your father do it himself?”

“He’s busy.”

“I see. Well, I thought you should know that the professors think some students are buying papers. Apparently, the deal is always struck here.”

“Really? I didn’t know.”

“Of course not. You’re not the type to be buying papers.”

Lucius chuckled and said, “You know me so well.”

Tanya replied with a smile and Lucius nodded before hurrying down the stairs. When he was back on his chair surrounded by his housemates, he found the uneasiness had not left him.

Entering the great hall the next morning, Lucius took quick glances at the professors and found them acting suspicious. He briefly wondered if his perception was altered by his cautiousness, and found it to be true when Professor Dumbledore left the hall just before the arrival of the owls.

Lucius caught himself heaving a sigh, as the professors did not act out of the ordinary when the parcels began falling. His attention was so focused on them that when a parcel fell onto his lap, he jumped out of his seat.

Students turned their heads almost immediately, but when Lucius glared back they quickly looked away. Not thinking twice on how suspicious his next action may seem, Lucius slid the parcel under his cloak and left the great hall.

There was some time before his first class, so Lucius hurried back to the common room and unwrapped the parcel on his feathered bed. Beneath the string and brown paper, Lucius found three thick parchments, each binded with string. The cover page had the official ministry chop and right below it was the name of the subject.

Lucius flipped through the pages quickly and was convinced he was holding the real deal. Hiding the papers at the bottom of his trunk, Lucius hurried back to class and lied about handling a sick student.

As the day carried on, Lucius found himself counting down the hours. He was both fearful and excited at the same time, and that concoction of emotions sent him straight to his feet when the last class of the day ended. But as he strode out of class, he found himself stopping in his tracks. Down the hallway were three older prefects, and they were storming towards them.

In his mind, Lucius weighed out the option of running or waiting, and when he chose both he walked towards the perfects and asked, “What’s the matter?”

“Do you know who Gilbert Puffett is?” the Gryffindor prefect asked.

It was hard not to know Gilbert Puffett. He was the Hufflepuff boy that bragged about his mother’s self-soaping dishcloth all the time.

Nodding his head, Lucius led the prefects to the group of Hufflepuffs he just had class with and pointed at the unsuspecting boy.

“Gilbert Puffett, you’re called to the disciplinary office,” the Hufflepuff prefect said with a croak, clearly embarrassed at whatever offence Gilbert had made.

“Why? What did I do?”

“You know what you did, unless you want us to tell your friends?”

Lucius saw Gilbert hesitating, but eventually he nodded his head. Just as the prefects were about to escort Gilbert, one of them turned to Lucius and said, “We need an extra hand. Could you head to the prefect’s lounge right away?”

Lucius was tempted to ask what for, but instead he said, “Sure.”

The prefect’s lounge was just beside the teachers’ office. As Lucius entered the cosy room, he saw a group of prefects his age. An older prefect was briefing them, and when they saw him they gestured him over.

“Split up in twos or threes and take a list. Leave the N.E.W.T students to us,” the older prefect ended.

“What’s going on?” Lucius asked.

“There was a spot check and O.W.L and N.E.W.T exam papers were found in students’ possessions. Weren’t you assigned to do the checking?” a Ravenclaw prefect asked.

Lucius shook his head as his throat dried up. He wished he was among those assigned for the spot check and couldn’t help but wonder if his name was on the list.

Just as he decided to find out, a group of prefects returned and among them was Tanya. Tanya waved him over and gestured to leave the room. Without hesitation, Lucius hurried after her.

Once outside and out of earshot, Lucius asked, “You knew about the spot check?”

“I told you at The Three Broomsticks didn’t I?”

“Well, not exactly,” Lucius replied, struggling to hide the internal turmoil.

“Why are you so nervous?” Tanya asked.

“Were you assigned to do a spot check?” Lucius asked in reply.

“I was given the Slytherin common room.”

“Did you find anything?”

“We found quite a fair bit. I found yours too,” Tanya answered so casually that Lucius felt his heart falling out of his chest.

Immediately, his head began ringing with his mother’s disappointed voice and his father’s angry shouts. A wave of nausea also swept over him but before it did any damage, Tanya said, “I burnt them.”

“You… what?”

“I burnt them. Or did you want me to hand them in?”

What she did was very unlike her. Lucius could not believe how a law-abiding witch would break the rules for him. But just as he was about to thank her, Tanya added, “So, are you going to turn yourself in?”

“What?” Lucius asked in disbelief.

“What you did was wrong. You should turn yourself in.”

“I’m grateful you helped me, but you can’t tell me what to do. Friends don’t tell each other what to do,” Lucius quickly replied.

“I’m telling you as a friend, you have to make up for it.”

“Hey, what you think is wrong might not be wrong to me.”

“Your choice, Lucius,” Tanya simply replied.

“Is that a threat?”

“I burnt your papers, what can I threaten you with?” Tanya asked before turning on her heels and heading back to the prefect’s lounge.

Lucius knew the easiest decision was to return to the group and pretend nothing happened, but something inside him urged him to do the right thing. Lucius hated his conscience but in order to shut it up, he had to make a firm choice.

To Be Continued…

(Leave a comment below or vote on whether Lucius should say something or leave it as it is!)

FHB: Chapter 13

“Friends?” Lucius paused and with slight hesitation before he continued, “sure.”

“Great! Well as a friend, I’m encouraging you to do your prefect duties,” Tanya replied with a small smile.

“Right,” Lucius simply said as he awkwardly waved Tanya goodbye.

Of course, Lucius didn’t return to his duties but straight to the common room instead. Friend or not, nobody told him what to do. As he lay in his bed that night, he found himself wondering what being friends really meant. By the time his eyes shut, he still did not have the right answers.

The following morning came as fast as the end of Quidditch season. Slytherin took the Quidditch cup with Hufflepuff not too far behind. The Slytherins found no reason to rub salt into the Hufflepuffs’ wounds, so they jeered at the Gryffindors instead. Slytherin and Gryffindor were always rivals, and many being friends with each other made no difference.

Lucius who went along with the celebration still did not understand the meaning of friends. He was too proud to ask and he decided that it was best if he continued pretending not to have any. When those around him asked about Tanya, he simply said he was being nice to her for the sake of her intelligence. After all, O.W.Ls was nearing and Lucius was not the best at every subject.

As the months flew by, Lucius found himself studying more than he usually did. Tanya had encouraged him to work hard instead of cheat his way through, and he had no idea why he thought it was a good idea to do as she suggested. Clearly, after days of pouring over boring Divination Lucius realized it was a bad idea.

Jumping from the armchair near the warm fireplace, he headed to the older group of Slytherins gossiping at a corner.

“Interesting conversation,” Lucius merely said.

“Er, yes. Would you like to join us?” a male student replied.

“No.”

“Then how can we help you?” a female student asked.

“Slytherin was second to Ravenclaw last year in the Owls outstanding grade. I want to know who helped,” Lucius answered.

“Helped? Well, we studied,” another male student said.

“Everyone in this group did not study. The ones that actually did are asleep now,” Lucius replied.

“We didn’t use a memory spell if that’s what you’re wondering.”

“I’m not wondering. You’re telling me,” Lucius went straight to the point.

There was a moment of hesitation, but it didn’t last long.

“We bought the papers before hand,” the same student replied in a lower voice.

There were only a few people in the common room that night and Lucius wondered why he was whispering.

“From who?”

“You don’t know him, but I can introduce him to you. You have a trip to Hogmeads coming up, right? I can sneak out to join you,” the student suggested.

“Sound good,” Lucius simply replied. He patted the boy on the shoulder before heading up to his room.

On the day of the Hogsmead trip, Lucius headed out with the usual boys. A lot of the students decided not to go, as they preferred staying indoors to study, but Lucius went mainly to find a way to make him breeze through a few of the subjects he was struggling with.

Surprisingly, as Lucius and his posse settled down in the Three Broomsticks, he saw Tanya entering with her friends. Tanya was behind in her studies, so she must have caught up being that she was out. As he watched her, the Slytherin boy that promised an introduction came walking in.

Lucius did not wait for him to walk over as he headed to him instead.

“Let’s make this quick,” Lucius said.

“Of course,” he replied and went straight to the stairs.

Lucius took one look at his fellow housemates and gestured for them to remain seated. Once he and the other student were on the first floor, the student pointed to a man in a suit at the table near the window.

“He knows you’re coming,” the student said.

“Good,” Lucius replied and thanked the student with a nod.

Lucius swaggered to the table and took a seat. The man acknowledged him with a fake smile and said, “So, how can I help you?”

“I need papers…owl,” Lucius said.

“One paper does not come cheap.”

“Money is not a problem, and I only need a few.”

“Oh? If you’re so clever, why don’t you just study?”

“I don’t need you to tell me what to do.”

The man chuckled and said, “Sorry, I didn’t mean to offend you. I’m just trying to do business here.”

“So how much for a paper and when can you deliver?”

“20 galleons, 13 sickles, 13 knuts. And I’ll deliver tomorrow if you pay today,” he replied with a sly smile.

“Fine. If you cheat me, you will pay for it.”

“Oh, I’m not the cheater here.”

Lucius narrowed his eyes before paying the man and informing him on the papers he needed. When the deal was done, he did not stick around and headed straight for the stairs. That was when he bumped into Tanya.

“Hey,” Tanya greeted.

“Hello,” Lucius replied as he edged towards the steps.

She looked at him and then at the man in the suit. Casually, she asked, “Who is that man? What were you paying him for?”

Lucius’ head screamed at him to cook up a lie, but he had a strange urge to tell the truth, as though lying was just going to make things worst. It now came down to what he was going to say to the only friend he had.

To Be Continued…

(Leave a comment below or vote on whether Lucius should lie or tell the truth!)

FHB: Chapter 5

After class was over, Lucius lingered outside the classroom waiting for Tanya. His gang insisted on staying with him, but he told them to go on without him. Yes, he did not want anyone to know what he knew. Lucius was a very self-preserving person and he didn’t want someone else reaping from his special privileges.

When Tanya finally exited the classroom, she did so with Professor Slughorn.

“What are you still doing here, Mr. Malfoy?” Slughorn asked.

“Oh, just waiting for Tanya. She’s new and I thought I should help her, lest she gets lost,” Lucius answered with a genuinely fake smile.

“Ah, how kind of you boy,” Slughorn said before he turned to Tanya, “Don’t forget our extra class on Friday. But before that, you should get some tips from Lucius. He’s my best student!”

“You think too highly of me, professor,” Lucius immediately said.

“I know talent when I see one,” Slughorn replied with a wink before he walked off.

The two of them watched him disappear down a hallway before Tanya turned to Lucius. But before she could speak or say something Lucius did not want to hear, he asked, “So, you’re having extra classes with Professor Slughorn?”

“Yup. Home schooling makes me a little behind, and I need to catch up,” Tanya answered.

A little behind is an understatement, Lucius thought to himself.

“You’re so kind to be waiting for me, Lucius, but we have different classes now and I know where it is,” Tanya added.

“Well, I thought I should inform you about the cure to mudblood-ism,” Lucius said. “But, if you want to head on to class first…”

“Oh yes, I almost forgot! What is it?” Tanya was eager to know.

Lucius pulled her to a corner, away from the crowd that was slowly dispersing to their classrooms.

“You need to get something from Professor Slughorn, but he must not know about it. It’s an ingredient list to a potion that can cure you,” Lucius said softly.

“A potion? Why can’t I just ask him for it?” Tanya replied.

Lucius quickly shook his head.

“You have to know something about Professor Slughorn. He doesn’t like mudbloods. If you tell him what you are, he won’t give you extra classes and you’ll eventually fail your OWLS,” Lucius explained so confidently, one would never be able to call it a bluff.

Tanya looked at Lucius with conflicted eyes. Lucius knew she was thinking really hard about it, and her goody-two-shoes values were kicking in.

“You can think about it, but don’t think for long. Imagine what would happen if you keep spreading your mudblood curse.”

Her eyes grew more worrisome and after a short moment of silence, Tanya nodded her head. “I’ll do it. What potion is this?”

“It’s the polyjuice potion,” Lucius immediately replied.

“But, isn’t a polyjuice potion for physical transformation?”

Lucius was not expecting that reply, especially when Tanya claimed to be behind in her studies.

“My grandfather said he used it once,” Tanya added.

“Er, well, it is for physical transformation but a little tweak in the ingredients would make it perfect for supernatural transformations.”

Lucius had to thank his quick thinking as Tanya bought his answer. This Ravenclaw was not as smart as she thought she was… especially when she’s so easily fooled.

“O.k. I’ll get it then.”

“You’ll have to get it by tonight, and you’ll have to give to me. Understand?”

“But why?” Tanya asked, as she slowly raised an eyebrow.

“You can’t delay any longer, Tanya. I’m afraid you might cause trouble to others. And I want to help you. After all, I’m the only one who knows how to tweak the ingredients.” Lucius’ answer immediately doused her suspicion

“O.k. Thank you, Lucius. I’ll get it before dinner,” Tanya said confidently.

“Good. And be careful,” Lucius replied.

Lucius had no idea how she was going to do it, and was a little afraid she might fail. If she did fail, he would have to send someone else and that would be a waste of time. Lucius had no choice but to have faith in a naive girl who might just find out he was lying from the very beginning. Those thoughts left him standing there until the hallway was almost quiet.

When he finally had enough of thinking in one position, Lucius turned towards the direction of his next class. That was when he spotted a small sized boy with black hair, standing not too far away from him. That boy was probably close enough to have heard what he told Tanya, but from the looks of it, that first year could not have known what they were talking about.

Lucius decided to play safe with this one and called out, “Hey, boy!”

The boy took one quick glance at him before he began to run. Lucius had barely caught his appearance as the boy took off at top speed.

Why did he run? Lucius wondered. It couldn’t be his sudden realization that he was late for class, could it?

Lucius was too suspicious now and he was tempted to chase after him.

To Be Continued…

(Leave a comment below or vote on whether Lucius should go after him or let him go!)

Dear Professor

“Where’s her letter?”  Alyssa Figg asked in a hush hush manner.

“We didn’t receive any,” Adrian, her husband, answered worriedly.

“What do you mean? It should have arrived by now!”

“I’ve checked the mail a hundred times, we didn’t receive any.” Adrian took a quick glance at the stack of mail on his work table.

“I don’t believe this. Sure, she might be slower than the other kids, but she’s one of us, she has our blood!” Alyssa began pacing up and down the small home office as she squeezed her palms together.

Arabella, who was peeking through the key hole of the room door, watched as her parents began discussing on what to do with her.

“What are we going to do? There’s nothing wrong with our daughter Adrian! They are mistaken!” Alyssa was now close to tears.

“I’ll send the school an owl tomorrow, maybe they are mistaken.”

“The school IS mistaken! She is not a squib! My daughter is not a squib!” Alyssa said with new found faith in her voice.

Arabella, who decided she had done enough spying for the night, tip toed back to her room. She was suppose to be asleep an hour ago, but when she had heard of her cousin receiving his letter earlier that day, she couldn’t stop thinking why she had not gotten hers. Now she knew.

She was a squib. Or at least, that was what her mother feared she was.

Arabella Doreen Figg was an ordinary girl, perhaps too ordinary. Unlike her cousins, she could not make funny things happen. She could not make flowers bloom when she felt happy, nor could she crack teapot sets when she was angry. Her cousins seem to be doing pretty well in that area, while she tried and failed every time.

But just like her mother, Arabella refused to accept the fact that she was not like her parents and cousins. She had convinced herself that the owl carrying her Hogwarts acceptance letter had died or lost its way. And if so, she should at least write to the headmaster of Hogwarts, to ask him to send another.

With that new goal in mind, she grabbed for a parchment and began writing.

“Dear Professor Scamander,

I would like to inform you that I have not received my Hogwarts acceptance letter. I am pretty sure the owl you sent have lost its way, or worse, died along its treacherous journey to my house.

If you could so kindly send me another, I would truly appreciate it.

Yours sincerely, Arabelle Doreen Figg. “

Once she had read her written letter ten times, she folded it up and slipped it into the nicest envelope she could find in her desk drawer.

Careful not to alert her parents, she sneaked into their living room and attached the letter to their tawny owl, which sat by an open window.

“Hogwarts ok?” she said to the owl in a whisper.

The owl hooted lazily and took off into the night sky. As she watched its silhouette disappear among the stars, Arabella was sure she would get an apology letter by tomorrow.

With her mind finally at peace, she went to bed and fell straight to sleep the moment her head hit her pillow.

True enough, when morning came, she found her parents staring at a Hogwarts letter in her father’s hand.

“What’s that? Is that my letter?” Arabella made a dash to her father, grabbing the letter from him.

Her parents smiled widely at her, they too could not believe what they had just received.

“Can I open it?” Arabella’s eyes glistened with excitement.

“Go ahead!” her mother said as she continued making breakfast with a smile she couldn’t wipe off her face.

Arabella ran to her room, shut the door and slumped on her bed staring at the letter in her hand.

“It’s finally here!” she squealed.

Slowly and carefully, she tore the envelope open. Her heart was racing like the orient express as she unfolded the letter and began to read.

“Dear Ms. Figg,

It is my deepest regret to inform you that you have not been accepted to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

We are sorry to say that your lack of magical abilities has made it hard for us to accept your entry.

I hope you have a nice day.

Yours truly, Professor Newton Scamander.”

Arabella read the letter again, and again, and again, hoping she had read wrongly. But she had not. She felt like crying, but she somehow knew she saw it coming. What could she do if she lacked magical abilities?

As she entered the living room, in which her parents were happily waiting for the good news, she placed the letter on a side table and confidently said, “I didn’t want to go there anyway.”

Striding out of the room, with her head held high, Arabella tried to shut out the voices of her angry and upset parents. It was bad enough being confirmed as a squib that she didn’t need to hear her parents’ distraught at her non-magical self.

Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad, she convinced herself yet another time. And as long as she could stay convinced, she never looked back.

Then again, the truth was never as harsh on her as it was on her parents. After all, she was only 11, barely understanding the vast difference between a magical life and a non-magical one.

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