Morgan le Fay Institute for Magic

Chapter 17 - Disastrous Disagreement

Ravenna pushed bits of scrambled egg back and forth with her fork. Somewhere down the table a few students were speculating on what Dumbledore had been doing at Morgan le Fay. One suggested he might be helping the Ministry in shutting down the school, while another said he probably came to tell Slughorn what the Ministry had decided on, after what happened with Dankworth. Dumbledore's surprising visit was still a favourite topic of conversation for most students. But not for level five. They had something much more important on their minds.

Her thoughts drowned out the chatter of the other students in the dining hall. It had been days and Ella still hadn't shown her face. Earlier that morning, Professor Trindine had told them she talked to Ella every day and that she simply wasn't ready to see her friends yet. That they should give her time and not to worry. Ezra, of course, had furiously asked how she expected them not to worry when all their friend did nowadays was sit alone in her room and cry.

Mealtimes were depressingly boring without Ella. The students of level five were so worried about their classmate that they barely ate and talked even less. Ravenna chanced a look up, but none of her classmates were eating their lunch. Ezra had bags under his eyes that were darker than his hair. Even Dan's permanent smile had finally made way for a frown.

Or was that because of what he'd been through because of her the other day? She still saw that snapped branch pierce right through his leg every time she closed her eyes. Did he see the same thing, even though he kept saying he was fine?

She shook her head. Right now, Ella was the one she should focus on.

"Do you think we should go and see if she's okay?" Ravenna asked nobody in particular.

"I tried this morning. She said she needs more time." Ezra dropped his fork onto his plate, ignoring the loud clatter as he pushed the palms of his hands against his eyes. "Merlin, I know I sound like a twat saying this, but I wish it was my family instead of hers. Her family meant the world to her. At least mine are arseholes."

"Same here," said Dan. "Ella's parents sounded like genuinely nice people. Mine are the most selfish people in the world. All they think about is their money and their status."

"Ha! Sounds exactly like my parents," said Ezra. "They'd probably get along splendidly."

"I reckon they would." Dan narrowed his eyes curiously. "Are your family purebloods then? I've not heard your surname mentioned at home. You're not part of the Sacred Twenty-Eight, are you?"

Ravenna couldn't stop her face from contorting even at the mention of it. The Sacred Twenty-Eight were the only twenty-eight British families that were still truly pureblood. They didn't have a drop of muggle blood in their bloodline. For some reason that fact made many of them feel superior to other witches and wizards.

It was also the very reason Dan's parents hated his weak magic so much. He was too close to being a Squib, or a muggle, for their taste, and to them that was a stain on their almost-pureblood legacy.

"My father's a pureblood," Ezra grumbled. "They gave me my mum's surname. I was an accident. My father wouldn't have married my mother if she hadn't gotten pregnant."

"Oh," said Dan. "That sucks, mate. I'm sorry."

Ezra shrugged. "Not as if I'm alone in this. All families suck. Except maybe Ella's," he added quietly.

Ravenna considered her classmate's statement. It was true that many Morgan le Fay students didn't have a great home life. That was why almost everyone stayed over during the Christmas holidays, rather than going home. But that didn't mean all of them had bad parents.