𝐏𝐑𝐄𝐓𝐄𝐍𝐃𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐓𝐎 𝐇𝐀𝐓𝐄~ {The Lestrange Daughter #1}

𝐀 𝐃𝐚𝐲 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐋𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐎𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐚 𝐁𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐨𝐧

The loud sharp knocking was what awoke Olivia that morning. She could have recognised that knock out of a dozen and immediately sat up in bed.

"I want you up and downstairs in two minutes!"

"Yes, mother!" Olivia was already throwing off her blanket and pulling off her nightdress.

The cold floor under her feet made her shiver. The sun was barely starting to rise outside her window but early mornings we're status quo in the Benson household. She knew she had slept in a little longer then she should have. At Hogwarts she usually had about a full extra hour in the mornings, however, her mother didn't believe in wasting a second off sunlight.

She had always been taught that it was extremely poor manners to wear pajamas to breakfast. She needed to be dressed and ready for the day before she sat down to eat. She's already laid out her clothes the night before as she always did, doing up the buttons with one hand while reaching for her hairbrush with her other. When her mother said two minutes, she meant two minutes.

She slept with socks on to make things easier and laced each shoe in between making her bed. Then she was out the door, straightening her dress collar as she went and wiping the sleep from her eyes.

The house was small and so it was seconds before she was hurrying down the stairs to the first floor. The walls were wood painted beige and as plain as the colour itself. The only thing hanging from the walls was the painting of a waterfall over the mantel on the right side of the space. The left side was the dining area where are parents sat each at the head of the table.

"You test my patience, girl." Her mother's bright green eyes settled on her.

"I'm sorry," Olivia spoke quickly, "I promise I'll be quicker tomorrow."

"See that you are." Was all her mother said, tone dismissive.

"Good morning, darling." Olivia's father gave her a cheerful smile, a stark contrast to the cold words of his wife.

"Good morning." Olivia returned his smile and pressed a kiss to his temple as she passed him.

She sat in her place between her parents and begun to eat away at the plain porridge. Her mother didn't like to spend money frivolously which had never given Olivia reason to pause in the past. Then after experiencing the abundance of food and flavours that Hogwarts had to offer, she found herself longing for a single drop of honey. She ignored that longing without complaint. Her mother was just being responsible after all. Why should they have more when they didn't need it? The porridge was warm and thick so she found no reason to risk sounding ungrateful.

"Did you have a good sleep?" Her father asked, sipping his tea.

"Yes, thank you."

"Did you dream of bunnies?" He gave her a knowing grin.

He had asked her that every morning since she was three. Olivia opened her mouth to answer, to concoct some wild make up a story for him when her mother cleared her throat.

"She's far too old for you to treat her like a child." She narrowed her eyes at her husband. Olivia dropped her head and kept her mouth tightly shut. "She has responsibilities and duties that need her attention. Not bunnies."

"Sorry, dear." Olivia's father smile wavered.

Selena and Ray Benson were two very different people. Selena, Olivia's mother was all sharp edges with her pointed cheekbones and jawline. Her blonde hair was pulled back tightly in its usual braided bun and her startling lime green eyes contrasted again her pale complexion. Her temperament had always been cold and brisk, Olivia couldn't remember it any other way and her father never liked to talk about how they had met or what they were like in their school days. Olivia certainly didn't feel she could ask her mother. She had more important things to think about than in the past.