Olive with a twist

There was a lot more to Olive Hornby than met the eye. Most people's first impression of her was that she was a spoilt little rich girl with no aim in life but to mock people for their ethnicity, features and beliefs. I must admit that's what I thought the first time I met her. But Olive was different, she wasn't like the other snobby Slytherin girl I had ever known. Her best friend was Minerva McGonagall, an intelligent girl who I would give anything to ask to Hogsmeade, but I'm not that brave. Besides, as a Gryffindor she harbors all sorts of grudges against me, and I would never have a chance with her. Olive on the other hand would give anything to be with me. She dotes upon me constantly always finding excuses to seek me out in hallways. The girl even waits outside the lavatory when I need to go. It's not that I don't like being adored, in fact quite the contrary. But when I'm in love with the girl's best friend, it complicates matters. Well it was an ordinary day, no different from any other, when I was walking with Olive and Minerva and we spotted Myrtle. You know I actually feel bad for her, the poor thing, she's constantly ridiculed for no reason. Myrtle is one of Olive's favorite people to pick on, partially because there's no risk, everyone knows Myrtle is too intimidated to stick up for herself. But on that particular day Olive was really giving Myrtle hell, if I recall correctly she was teasing her about her glasses. As usual Myrtle just bowed her head and didn't react to any of the insults Olive was throwing at her.

They were the usual ones: "Mudblood", "Toad", "Hag" etc... I looked to Minerva to do something but realized she had already gone. Minerva was hoping to become prefect next year and it wouldn't look good if she was seen with Olive when she was in one of her moods. After what seemed like an eternity of waiting I realized it was up to me to stop her.

"Olive, c'mon, let's go to the Great Hall," I begged her, tugging at her arm. She shot me a venomous look and then continued her incessant bullying.

"Oh is Myrtle crying?" "Does baby want her mommy?" Olive kept at it until Myrtle in a flood of tears ran away toward the girls' lavatory.

"Olive, why do you hate her?"

"I don't hate her."

"Then why do you make fun of her all the time?"

"Because she's inferior to us, Tom."

I was only a first year then and to this day I still believe it was Olive Hornby that guided me in my hatred of Mudbloods. After Myrtle died at my hands a year later I was surprised she haunted Olive instead of me. After all I was the one that opened the Chamber of Secrets. Minerva never looked at me in any other way than "Olive's friend" and she, like everyone else, grew to loathe me over time. She was a conquest for me, the girl I could never have, and then she turned into the woman I could never hope to be with.