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HUFFLEPUFF COMMON ROOM, JANUARY 1998
TWO DAYS AFTER THE RETURN TO HOGWARTS AFTER CHRISTMAS BREAK
Hannah looks around the common room she just entered, searching for her classmates. She can feel the mood in the room is no better than before the Christmas break. She’d hoped that there would’ve been some cheer after the Christmas festivities, but if possible it is actually worse. She can see empty chairs where there had been kids before the break. She can see the empty chair amongst the third years where Rose Zeller used to sit. The half-blood girl hadn’t returned to Hogwarts two days ago, most likely having fled the country with her family, her father being a muggleborn. The sixth-year James Walker hadn’t returned either. She’d seen how his face had paled at breakfast three days before Christmas break, the letter he had just received in his hand. He’d told Ernie that his parents’ house was attacked the week before. His mother, a muggleborn had gone into hiding in September. Clearly the Ministry, if she could even still call it the Ministry, more like the Death Eaters, were looking for her. In their anger for not finding James’ mother, they murdered his father, who had been present in the house. Order members had found his maternal grandparents and took them into hiding. Now Hannah assumed he had gone into hiding as well, the minute he got off the train in London.
“Hannah,” a soft voice says to her left. She turns to see Susan call her to a corner away from the fireplace. All the seventh years were huddled together in chairs around an enlarged coffee table. On the table were papers filled with names and photographs corresponding to said names. On top of the entire pile, laid a photograph of Justin taken only last year. Hannah could vividly remember the day that photo was taken. It was one of the first sunny and warm days of spring last schoolyear, and her, Susan, Ernie and Justin had set up a reading spot next to the Lake. They hadn’t read much though, mainly joking and lazing about, simply enjoying themselves and each other. Susan had taken the photo just as Justin laughed at a joke Ernie had told, the photo slightly out of focus as Susan was attempting not to laugh herself. Hannah feels a tear run down her cheek.
“What’s the new status?,” she states as she wipes the tear away.
“It’s not good,” Ernie responds, shuffling through the papers. “As we already saw last night, we lost Rozie and James. I talked to Terry to get the update on Ravenclaw. No one has heard anything from Luna since she was dragged of the train. We can ask Ginny if she knows more, as the Lovegoods live close to them, but that would require some planning.”
“I spoke to Neville and Ginny,” Susan cuts in, “and they know nothing about Luna either.”
“That means she gets added to the ‘Missing – Presumed Captured’ list,” Ernie continues, tone emotionless and flat. It’s been a long time since Hannah had seen Ernie smile last. “Terry said Ravenclaw had another third year not return besides Luna. He’s a half-blood, but his father had been resisting some new laws the Death Eaters had been wanting to implement. Most likely, they finally decided they had enough of his dilly-dallying and tried to off him, resulting in the entire family running.” He produced a photograph from his pocket, adding it to the many photographs already on the table. Two boys of about thirteen year old smile at the camera, both wearing Hogwarts uniform robes with the Ravenclaw crest on their chest. A circle is drawn around the boy on the right, indicating that is the boy who disappeared.
Susan produces three photos and puts them on the table. The first has a young boy of eleven years old, his face tense, a haunted look in his eyes. Hannah surmised he must have been a first year, and that the photo was taken not too long ago. The second were two sisters, hugging and laughing, a castle in the background. The oldest appears to be about thirteen, the youngest ten. The third, Hannah recognises as one of Colin’s friends, David.
“All four of them have not returned,” Susan says. “All half-bloods, all with at least one muggleborn parent. Ginny hasn’t heard of any attacks on their houses, so we’re assuming they simply went into preventative hiding. All the parents that were at risk had already gone into hiding. Ginny couldn’t tell if the Order had a hand in it, as her parents don’t want her involved.”
Ernie adds the names to the various lists. Hannah just reads over all the names, blinking away the tears threatening to spill over. She has to be strong, not just for everyone else, but for herself. Hannah knows if she allows herself to break down even once, she will never be able to put herself back together enough to function. Her hand twitches involuntarily, a leftover from last night’s Crucio. She closes her eyes to block out the memories and clenches her fist. Alecto used her and Ernie walking past Neville and Seamus as an excuse to give all four of them detention for “gathering together”. She had gotten off easier than the boys, Neville goading Alecto into focussing on him instead in a foolhardy attempt to be gallant. Hannah had walked back to the common room alone as Ernie helped Seamus carry Neville back up to Gryffindor Tower. Susan had been waiting in the common room for both of them, with a pain relief potion. It was a less than great start to a term that wasn’t going to be good anyways.
Hannah focusses back onto the papers on the table. The list of the dead had been updated last night, and every name on there is one too many. The top of the parchment is filled with holes with the amount of times it had to be taken down from the message board to add yet another name. The Presumed Captured list is the only one with only one name on it. Hannah considers it a small victory, a tiny flicker of light in this dark period. The list of people who’d gone into hiding is too long for comfort. Once again her eyes are drawn to the photo of Justin. Out of all the missing, he is what really drove it home to her that this war is happening. Sure, Dumbledore was murdered last year, and more people hadn’t returned after the summer, but Justin wasn’t just a Hufflepuff or a classmate. Justin was a friend, the person who she shared the most with outside of Susan. Probably because she saw Justin staring after Harry in fourth year and point-blank asked him if he was gay. Justin had been so flustered, trying to play it off as if he were looking at Hermione, but Hannah hadn’t bought it. After that, they had discussed boys often enough. Justin’s crush on Harry fading, and instead being exchanged for a muggle boy from home. Hannah shakes her head, to get Justin out of her head, simply wishing that he, and his boyfriend if they ran together, is safe.
“We won’t forget any of them, Hannah, as long as we remember any of them, they live,” Wayne reminds her. He takes the lists and pins them onto the message board, renewing the spell that prevents all professors from seeing the actual text. A trickly little bit of glamour magic that Luna had come up with when they had first decided to keep the lists. Each house keeping the same lists, photos kept somewhere a little more inconspicuous so that everyone can at least find them. The Hufflepuffs had decided to keep them in an old boardgame box of which most pieces had gone missing. The corner of Hannah’s mouth twitches as she remembers that it’s a muggle boardgame even, making both incredibly ironic and dangerous. Although, she doubts the Carrows would ever even bother looking in their games cabinet, so it feels safe.
Hannah turns around and looks around the common room again. Despite it being only nine, most students have gone to bed already. She can’t blame them really. Somehow, not even the common room feels like a safe space to talk anymore. In front of the hearth, she sees a lump of blankets moving in one of the chairs. She moves to the chair, seeing what is going on. Coming closer Hannah starts to hear sniffles.
“Hey,” she says softly, kneeling next to the chair. “What’s this? A moving pile of blankets?”
The pile of blankets stills, and a hand appears pulling the blankets away, revealing the tear-streaked face of Alys. Hannah’s heart instantly breaks seeing the crying second year. The girl is supposed to be happy, enjoying her time, being excited about learning magic. Instead the girl is crying, scared and terrified of magic. Looking down, Hannah sees the top of a plushie peeking out between the blankets.
“Who’s that,” she asks, pointing towards the plushie.
“Detti,” Alys whispers, showing a worn and loved plushie of a duck.
“Hello Detti, it’s very nice to meet you,” Hannah says, giving the duck a small, one fingered caress over the beak.
Alys clutches the plushie tighter to her chest. Clearly scared that Hannah will take Detti away from her.
“I have a bear down in my dorm. His name is Bear, and don’t tell him, but I think Detti is much more beautiful a name than Bear. The only reason I still brought Bear was to have something of home, but I’ve been hugging him more and more this year. I wish that you didn’t have to go through any of this, that I could protect you from all of this, but I can’t. I can’t promise you that it will get easier, but I can be here for you. If you want to talk, to cry, to get a hug, to simply have someone be there for you, I can try to be there for you.” Hannah looks back at the table she came from, before looking at Alys again. “And if I’m not here, you can go to Susan or Megan, or Ernie or Wayne. We’re Hufflepuffs, and Hufflepuffs take care of each other.”
Alys starts sobbing and moves forward slinging two arms around Hannah’s neck. Hannah holds the girl tightly, lifting her up and moving into the chair Alys was sitting in. She tucks the girl into her lap, blankets around her. Alys is technically too big for this, and Hannah knows for certain that her legs will go numb if she stays like this for a while, but it is worth it if it means the young girl is soothed for the night. Hannah just softly rubs her back while setting the chair to rock gently with a quick charm.
Hannah has no idea how long she’s been sitting there, until Alys has finally fallen asleep. Susan, Megan, Ernie and Wayne have sat down with the two of them, leaving room around them for others to join them. A third year girl had sat down next to Susan and snuggled into her side. A first year boy had shyly walked up to Ernie, who simply patted the space next to him to invite the boy. Wayne and Megan both saw a few older years look enviously and had gone to talk to them. Hannah simply looks around and once again wishes for things to be different. At least here, in the comfort of their common room, they can create a little safe space for everyone, where they can find solace and comfort in each other. She gives the sleeping Alys in her arms one last look, resolving to do whatever she can to protect her young badgers from the Carrows. If that means she’ll have to endure more Cruciatus curses, so be it.
She looks at Ernie, catching his eyes before giving a quick look at Alys again. Ernie nods, picking up the first year boy. Hannah shifts the girl in her arms and gets up as well. Time to end the night and go to bed. Tomorrow will be as hard as today most likely, but at least they’ve got each other.