MUGGLEBORN

7 | HO HO- OH NO.

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MUGGLEBORN:
CHAPTER SEVEN
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"He had it coming, being muggleborn and all." A snotty, girlish voice sounded, interrupting Esther's sleep. "Thank Merlin I'm not a filthy little mudblood like that."

"Pansy, stop it-"

"What're you gonna do, Pippa? Tell on me to your dumb little Hufflepuff friends?"

Esther sat up groggily, blinking the sleep out of her eyes. She felt Honey, her cat, roll over in her sleep from the end of the bed. As Esther's vision came into focus, she saw Pippa on the opposite side of their dorm, standing across from Pansy Parkinson and Milicent Bulstrode. They were all already dressed in their robes. Pansy was leisurely brushing her hair as she made her nasty comments.

"Oh, Esther, I assume you're heard." Pansy turned to her now-awake roommate. "You must be pretty terrified - enough to leave Hogwarts and never come back." The girl cocked her head, with a mock frown. "What a shame." Milicent giggled.

"Shove off, Pansy," Esther grumbled, rising out of bed. She slipped off her pajamas, pulling on a clean white shirt and a slate-colored skirt.

"Don't you have somewhere to be?" Pippa asked Pansy with irritation, then tied her golden hair up into a curly ponytail. "Chasing after Draco, perhaps?"

Pansy tensed as sour look crossing her pug-like face. Esther pressed her lips together, fighting the urge to laugh at how rigid Pansy became.

"Come on, Milicent, we're gonna be late to breakfast." Pansy huffed, whisking out of the dorm room with Milicent on her heels.

Esther fastened her emerald tie around her neck. "Thanks for helping me out," she said, giving her friend a sad but genuinely grateful smile.

"No problem. I know all too well how Pansy can be; I knew her growing up. I guess Draco told her what happened to Justin." Pippa hesitated. "I'm sorry about that, by that way. I know you two are good friends."

Esther nodded, glancing at her shoes. "Erm, we should get down to breakfast."

"Yeah," Pippa sighed, but smiled.

"So you and Pansy grew up together?" Esther asked as they walked, and began to climb a moving staircase.

Pippa hesitated. "Yeah. My parents dragged me to a lot of playdates at the Malfoy estate. It was mostly me, Pansy, Draco, Nott, Crabbe, and Goyle. They've never been much fun, but my mum always told me to just ignore them whenever they were being bullies."

They entered the Great Hall. "That must've been tough - having to be around them all the time like that. I would've gone insane." Esther commented.

Her friend giggled. "Yeah, it was definitely interesting. They used to be alright - kind, even. I don't know what happened."

The two sat down at the Hufflepuff table. Immediately, Esther was engulfed with a feeling of absence. Justin's usual seat across from her had been left empty. Hannah and Ernie, who usually sat on opposite sides of him, had left a space open. They both seemed grim. In fact, the whole group of friends seemed to do little more than pick at their food.

"Has anyone been to check on Justin?" Esther asked softly. Hannah nodded.

"Hannah, Amanda, and I left early to go check on him," Ernie answered. "A lot of the older Hufflepuffs have brought him gifts from Hogsmeade. Sweets from Honeydukes and whatnot. The whole house is pretty worried."

Esther smiled. She loved how much of a family the Hufflepuffs were. They genuinely cared about everyone in the entire house and beyond; they all seemed to embody how an accepting, true Hufflepuff should be.