Taylor's Story

Time for the Feast

Taylor looked up from the back of the room and met her Uncle's eyes dead on. What the heck? Was this some kind of joke, because it is far from funny. Uncertainly, she slowly began to walk towards the front of the hall. So much for a perfect plan. Now they'd all definitely notice her. Millions of thoughts ran through her mind as she made her way towards the group of 1st years. The group she now belonged in. It wasn't right, something must have gone wrong. Whenever a magical child is born there name goes on some sort of list - her mother had told her that much. Her name shouldn't be on a list. She had never done magic. She was incapable, she was a squib, as squib as squib can be. Not another child she knew had shown as little ability as she had, and yet; uncle Charlie had just read her name from the sheet. She couldn't be sorted - she just couldn't. Stunned, she climbed up onto the stool and sat.

"Aha!" Taylor gave a startled little jolt as the hat spoke seemingly inside her head. "Lillyanne Potter, I was wondering when I would see you. Now let's see what's up inside this head of yours shall we? Hmm... You're smart, that's for sure, and are not afraid to express yourself - there's no doubt you get that from your mother. A long line of Gryffindors, that's where she's from. I see your father here too, his bravery and courage. But I also sense something different - could it be ambition? Pride? My, my, we are going to be difficult, aren't we?"

I will not go to Gryffindor. I will not go to Gryffindor. Not Gryffindor. Not Gryffindor. "Really, now?" spoke the hat softly. "Are you sure? Not a bad lot, some a bit too reckless than for their own good. Well... then, it better be... "SLYTHERIN!"

Taylor breathed out a sigh of relief, and marched proudly to join the table of the snake. As she walked past her mother, Charlie, and even McGonagall, she kept her head high and, her gaze at her new house table. She sat down, and waited patiently for the sorting to be over with, vowing that nothing would surprise her for the rest of the feast.

Soon enough it was over, after adding Rander, Mckale, Sands, Deanne, and Temple, Kyler to Gryffindor. Stevens, Bretly went to Hufflepuff along with Taylor's cousin, Fred Weasley, which surprised the majority of the teachers as well as Taylor. He was a shoe in for Gryffindor! Gabrielle Weasley was made the last Ravenclaw, which was a little less disconcerting. Two more Slytherins, Zabini, Shay and, Zeller, Owens came to join Taylor.

Taylor looked around at her class size. Not too small, but not to large, either. Each of the children of this year were born during the height of the second war with Voldemort, and many parents were probably criticized greatly for bringing a child into the world at such a dark time.

After all the students were sorted, into their respective houses, McGonagall stood up and gracefully made her way to the center of the head table. Taylor noticed; she seemed to take note of each and every one of the students and where they had been placed while, quietly, waiting for the assembly to notice her. As her gaze fell on Taylor she forced herself to hold her head high, and look McGonagall straight in the eye. She denied her of the right to be anything but accepting, in Taylor's choice of house.

McGonagall merely nodded in silent approval of where the new students were placed before moving on, "Welcome to Hogwarts. As usual, every year, we have a few start of the term announcements that it would benefit you greatly to listen to. First off, the Dark forest, is strictly Forbidden, this includes first through seventh years. Third years need to turn in their permissions slips to their head of house in order to visit Hogsmeade. Also, a small reminder to those who choose to exercise your rights of trickery, take note that a large list of restricted items can be found in Filch's office. That will be all. Enjoy your feast."

Immediately platters of food appeared on the four house tables. Taylor, now that she was finally at a house table where she had so desperately longed to be for so many years, suddenly felt awkward to the point where she lost most of her appetite. She timidly looked around at her fellow classmates feeling quite out of place, even though she knew deep down this is where she belonged.

Most of her classmates had already started up small conversations in between large bites of roast this or that. Gathering up her courage, she turn to the girl next to her, and was just about to say, "Hello" when none other than the Bloody Baron stole the words right from her mouth. "Taylor Weasley," he spoke her name, not quite criticizing, yet not quite supporting, "I was not expecting you to end up here."

"Hey, but I thought your name was called out as Po-" a girl began, but was promptly cut off by a quick "Taylor Weasley, nice to meet you."

"Ha! You're no Weasley, Weasley's have been in Gryffindor for generations, and, by some intolerable fact of nature have red hair and freckles, you couldn't possibly be a Weasley!" The blonde boy, the famous Malfoy's son, spoke from his seat across from her.

Taylor glared at him long and hard before continuing, "If all of you must know!" She placing a great emphasis on the word, must and drawing the sentence out in case someone cared to save her, "my full name is Lillyanne Taylor Weasley Potter. I prefer the middle two, and would appreciate it if you used them."

"Oh, and here I thought we were going to hear some tragic story about a father who abandoned you, a -" but Taylor didn't have the chance to hear what he said, nor did anyone else for that matter, for Taylor did the first thing that came to her mind, and lunged across the table.

Taylor heard yelling in the background, but she didn't care, the only thing she concentrated on was wringing the pale weakling's neck. "Don't you ever talk about my family! You don't know me, and you certainly don't know them!" Taylor screamed as she was magically pulled away from Malfoy. A silence charm was placed on both Aaron and Taylor, so now both children were left glaring daggers at one another.

Both Professor Malfoy and Professor Potter had jumped up at the sight of their children fighting, but it was McGonagall who responded the quickest. With a small, "watch the rest, give them 20 more minutes, then to bed," she took off to deal with the two. Draco Malfoy looked to Ginny Potter, and both simultaneously shrugged before watching their children disappear.

"I guess some things never change" was the last sentence Draco could get in before succumbing to a fit of laughter. Ginny merely slapped him playfully on the shoulder, which only served to make him laugh more. "Now, now, Ginny, you don't want us to get sent to Headmistress McGonagall, now, do you?"

With that Ginny finally let out a laugh and turned back to her meal. The students, most of which had grown slightly unnerved after the fight, joined in eating shortly there after; that is, all of the students present for the feast.

"Lillyanne Potter!" McGonagall began, "I will not have you causing a ruckus during my feast! What is the meaning of this!?"

She gained no response from Taylor, whose head was facing the floor, and mind wondering how bad she was going to get in trouble in with her mum. "I see. And Mr. Malfoy, what have you got to say for yourself?" He, too, chose a lack of response as an answer, content of staring at the table in front of him. He wondering yet again how his mouth had got him into trouble - and on his first day, no less! His dad would definitely kill him.

"Very well then, I have no reason not to deduct 50 points from your house and remind you that you will be classmates almost constantly. If you do not choose to get along I may have to take more drastic measures. Oh, and you will both receive a weeks worth of detention, report to Professor Malfoy on Monday after class to discuss this matter further. That will be all."

Of all her time at Hogwarts the children had never ceased to amaze her. Most Slytherins who were sent to her were a hopeless case that didn't care. The other half of them simply took their punishment and went on, knowing there was no possible way to change her mind. The Ravenclaws who managed to get themselves into trouble mostly tried to convince her to switch the punishment to something that fit their crime more, and succeeded. And the Hufflepuffs, well - those who ended up in her office were normally in a fit of tears, full of fear, apologizing profusely, and saying they will never do it again. Then there are always the Gryffindors - more often then not who have gotten into trouble by jumping into something impulsively, try to convince her that they were in the right, to which, she merely tells them there are other ways to go about solving their problems if they were to only think for two more seconds.

With one last fleeting thought of what will happen should young Malfoy and Potter choose not to get along, and yet still inhabit the same house, McGonagall sighed, and prepared to go and discuss start of the term with the teachers in the staff room.