Mitigation

Wizards Are Dumb

It was midnight when the whole entire situation fell on the brunette like a dead weight.

The questions came at once, then the sheepish excuse of answers and then the frantic gathering of information, trying to figure out what to do or what was going on. She could hardly breath.

She was an orphan now. Her father's murderers were still out there. Why wasn't she finding them? How was she going to return to school? Her chest locked up and she turned over in bed, and screamed as loud as she could into her pillow, which muffled out everything. No sound came out of her mouth. She couldn't scream. She opened her mouth into her pillow, and screamed a soundless wail again.

She was an orphan, living in her house that she hadn't been in for five years, living with someone that she doesn't remember, and wasn't doing anything.

Her dad had been murdered and she wasn't doing anything. She was a werewolf, a phoenix, a witch, and she still didn't have enough power to face her enemies. She wouldn't face her enemies.

And what of the Time Turner? She had only now begun to wonder where the small dangerous object had come from, blinded by the complete faith she had in her father.

She was from this time. She was Stiles' and Scott's age, not fifty, sixty years old. And her father was probably from this time.

Who had made the Time Turner? Did the Ministry or MACUSA know about it? Probably not, or she probably wouldn't have possession of it anymore. How had her father gotten it? Was it from knowing someone at the time he went to Hogwarts? When did he even go to Hogwarts?

All this hurt her head. Stupid time paradox, she thought, her head pounding as she went downstairs for a drink of water.

Maybe it was all the stress. Tomorrow would be the first day she would be going to a Muggle school in all the life she could remember. She did study things Muggles would, and learned about science and math and history and such, but not actual school learning. Elana missed her owl, Pidge, who would always be there when she needed her. She desperately wished she could return to the past just to get her, but she had sent the elf owl to stay with James until she returned.

Elana sighed, running a hand through her hand through her long hair. Maybe she should cut it. It was getting a little too long. Maybe she should get it up to her shoulders. Meh, she thought. You know you're way too lazy to get it cut.

She waved her hand and her hair pinned itself up in a loose up do.

She smiled at the calm feel and the ease she used wandless magic, then mentally smacked herself at getting out of bed to get a glass of water, when she could've easily summoned it. God dang it, she said, pushing the cup against the button on the fridge, watching as it filled with water.

She walked back to her bed, closing her eyes, deciding she'd figure it out later.

After all, she may not have everything she wanted, but she did have time.

~O~

"Alright," Laura said, finishing Elana's braid and rechecking her eyeliner. "Twirl for me?"

Elana twirled, smiling lightly at the way her floral dress worked with her leather jacket. She readjusted her aconite necklace and then smiled at the older girl.

Laura hugged her, "Have a nice day at school," she said, handing her her lunch and her backpack.

"You didn't have to do all of this," Elana said sheepishly.

"I wanted to," she said, hugging her again. "I'll pick you up after school," she called, as Elana waved and sat in Lydia's black car, and drove away.

"You ready for the first day?" Lydia asked.

Elana nodded.

"Nice outfit," Lydia said as she turned out of the neighborhood.

"Thank you," Elana beamed. "I like your bracelet."

"Thanks," she said, her eyes on the road. She looked at her cousin, "Who are you going to be at the school?"

"What?"

"Like who are you going to be? The popular girl? The social butterfly? The overachiever? The jock?"

"Oh... I dunno..."

"If you want to be popular, you're going to want to hang out with me," she said, turning left toward the school.

"I don't really think... I mean, we didn't really have those types of things, to be honest."

"Oh well. Well, if you're alone, come to the cafeteria and sit with me."

"Okay. Thanks, Lyds," she said, looking out the window at all the teenagers walking around. Lydia parked the car silently and the two got out of the car, Elana dazzled by all the people.

"There are so many," she murmured.

"Let's go," Lydia said, looping her arm in her cousin's and walking up the stairs.

~O~

Elana entered the English class, watching as Scott and Stiles chose a seat by each other. They sent an apologetic look at her and both got up to move. She shook her head. She was going to have to make new friends at one point. How hard was it going to be? She was a Hufflepuff.

She slid in a seat right behind the two boys, and next to another boy. He said nothing, so she silently waited for class to begin. The syllabus was passed back, and the brunette absentmindedly wrote her name in the top right corner.

"Elana Abernathy?" Came the teacher's voice.

"Yes?" She asked, looking up.

"Roll call, honey."

"Oh. Here," she said. A few of the classmates snorted. Stiles shot them a dirty look.

The teacher continued with the roll call.

"Elana?" The boy next to her asked. "I think we might have gone to elementary school together. What school did you go to?"

"Oh, um..." Elana did not know.

Obviously.

"Danny Māhealani?" The teacher asked.

"Here," the boy next to her said. His paper fell to the floor.

"Scott," Elana whispered. He turned around. "What elementary school did I go to?"

"Charles Newman," he whispered back.

"Charles Newman," she repeated to Danny, who had picked up his paper.

"Oh, we did! Wow, that's cool! Where have you been these past few years?"

"Abroad," she replied, slipping the syllabus into her three prong folder.

"That's cool."

"Yea," Elana suddenly wanted all mention of Hogwarts out. She was getting increasingly conspicuous.

Elana sat quietly in her chair, twiddling her thumbs. She tapped Scott's shoulder.

"When we get to your house, can you tell me everything you remember about me?"

He turned around and squeezed her hand. "Of course," he smiled sadly.

The teacher began to talk and she began to listen.

This was going to be a long school day.

~O~

*updates five years later* sorry!!