Slytherins Golden Girl

Chapter 45

Eleanor had lay awake in her bed hours after Pansy and Daphne had dropped off, simply staring up at her emerald canopy until it made funny swirls dance across her eyes.

She couldn't sleep, something was keeping her up, something was bothering her. She possibly knew deep down what it was and she didn't want to admit it to herself. Why would she want to do that?

The only way she could describe how she felt is, it's like hearing bad news that causes your stomach to drop, leaving you with that sick like feeling as your body doesn't know how else to react. It was like news she didn't want to hear.

Eleanor pushed the covers aside and slipped on her slippers, she needed to rant her frustrations to someone, without telling them the whole story as she fully didn't understand what was going on herself. Someone who would listen no matter what and play with her hair as she lay on their lap as that tended to relax her.

She needed Hermione.

The dreaded walk across the castle early morning was the awful, the only thing worse than the constant creaks and groans from the old structure was the moans coming from portraits telling her to put her wand out as they were trying to sleep. Miserable sods.

By time she'd reached the Gryffindor tower they'd just about driven her to the edge.
Although it's worth the nag as Gryffindor tower made her feel safe, it was warm and inviting and didn't have the skull of a powerful but evil wizard encased above the fireplace staring down at her.

Eleanor stepped through the doorway to the common room and rounded the corner half expecting to find Hermione already up in the armchair reading. Ever since Dumbledores Army commenced Hermione would notably stay up later in the common room studying new techniques to teach the group, she'd be so motivated to stay up that Ron would practically have to drag her kicking and screaming to bed in the early hours of the morning.

But what Eleanor found was unexpected, instead of Hermione curled into a book, she found Neville in his pyjamas, hugging his plant pot as he aimlessly stared into the fireplace.

"Neville?" Eleanor croaked. The boy practically jumped out of his skin to the sound of her voice.

"Eleanor? Wh- what are you doing here?" He stuttered, clutching onto the rim of his plant for dear life his knuckles looked like they were going to burst through his skin.

Eleanors toes wiggled in her slippers, she probably looked ridiculous stalking into their common room this early in the morning. "I came to see Hermione, I thought she'd be here."

Neville cast her a look of confusion, his jaw hung ajar from his lip. "They've gone." He simply said.

Eleanors eyes brows bunched at his words. "What do you mean gone?" She quickly replied to him in an eager tone.

"They all left an hour ago. The Weasleys, Harry, Hermione, something to do with Mr Weasley being attacked at work but Harry didn't say much as he packed."

Eleanor slumped onto the sofa next to Neville unable to say anything she just gawped, with an uneasy smile on his face Nevilles arms reach out across Eleanors chest and dropped the plant pot into her lap.

Eleanor hugged the plant tight, she couldn't believe what she'd just heard coming from Neville but she knew it wasn't good if Arthur had been attacked at work. This had to be down to Voldemort.

Families clustered in groups spanning across the usually busy road as their children crunched snowballs from the freshly fallen snow. It was a beautiful Christmas morning as Eleanor watched the muggle children make snow angles on the ground as their parents watched on. They always fascinated her, from the strange casual choice in clothing to the songs she hears them sing from the open bedroom windows of the house. Everything was new, different.