Walden MacNair was not a noble, decent or kind wizard. Walden MacNair had to live alone in a dingy and gloomy old cottage in Salazar's Fen, the hidden Wiltshire village which was said to be the birthplace of Salazar Slytherin himself. Even the Malfoys, who lived in the most hard-to-miss mansion he had ever set eyes on, were never quite so infamous.
This village too, was home to the Maynard Family for centuries, but Maynard Hall was for the time being, completely vacant and shuttered up. Ever since Lord Voldemort had disappeared, for the past eleven or so years, MacNair had to return to his job at the Ministry, disposing of magical creatures that were deemed too dangerous to be kept alive.
He had been instructed by his old friend and comrade in wands in service to the Dark Lord, that is, Pyrus Maynard, that should anything unexpected ever happen to befall him, Walden was the man who needed to make sure that no one else from the outside world, let alone any foolish and insignificant muggles ever dared approach it. Not until the day either Pyrus returned to Salazar's Fen or their master returned to full power, whichever came first. But on this day, MacNair had something else on his mind.
Ever since he had acquired three house-elves from Master Maynard, MacNair had been getting nothing but trouble in one way or another from the smallest one, who was apparently named Tiny. It wasn't so much her daily chores that she fell short on. If she had proven incapable even of that, McNair would have disposed of her on day one. But every time he saw the little house elf, every time he commanded her to do something for him, she always had a way of looking at him with those bulbous eyes of hers. Looked at him with so much of a certain defiance, which would have been bad enough by itself. But ever since the night Tiny disappeared to the filthy hovel the Weasleys called home and found Victoria, no doubt, the elf also seemed to carry a glimmer of hope, even in spite of the punishment when Tiny returned. Hope that somehow, things would only get better for her lot.
He had to stomp it out of the wretched creature, and quickly. There was only one place for house-elves, one purpose, to serve their masters. Their superiors. The desire, or the dream of anything more was false hope. And false hope was just one thing among others that Lord Voldemort had actually once stood in the Slytherin common room and warned Pyrus and other Slytherins aspiring to be Death Eaters against when he and Pyrus Maynard were in their fifth year at Hogwarts.
The very first thing MacNair needed as he arrived home on that evening was a hearty supper and something warming to drink. Tomorrow would be a day off and away from the Ministry to turn his mind to other, more important matters.
The coiled black snake that branded his right arm used to burn so much whenever the Dark Lord would summon him to his side in the glorious days before the Potter children's destiny came to be prophesied and his master was nearly, but not quite, destroyed. Just one moment of that pain and MacNair would be disapparated to his side, for that pain would have been nothing compared to what punishment would await the fool who so much as hesitated.
MacNair opened his front door and walked inside to find his fireplace already lit and a tray of supper waiting, covered for him at the dining table. "Topsy! Trinket! Tell your daughter to come hither at once!" MacNair commanded, "There are some important topics that must be discussed, and lessons that are to be learned here this night." This he commanded as he lifted the elegant cover off his plate of supper, which on this evening was salmon baked in a flaky pastry with a creamy dill sauce and a colourful medley of vegetables on the side.
"Yes Sir!" They squeaked in unison. "Topsy and Trinket shall bring Tiny to you at once Sir!" And they both scurried down into the dingy and often cold house-elf quarters where MacNair expected them to stay put during the nights when their hard days' work had been finished and MacNair had gone off to bed. Tiny herself had been resting at the time as much as she could, for as long as she could avoid being around such a frightening and cruel master, though Master Maynard could often be a hundred times worse. It was still not a happy life to live, or any life to live at all. Tiny had to get out of there somehow...
"Tiny, you must wake up at once, Master MacNair requests that you come upstairs to have a word with him. He is most angry." Trinket explained to her only elflet as she got up and stretched herself. "Tiny wishes that she could only be free...free to always be with Miss Maynard! She is a witch who knows to be kind to house-elves!"
But both of Tiny's parents only told her again, "Tiny had better put that idea from her mind. House-elves are meant only to serve their masters, not to be their friends." Her father reminded her. And her mother would say, as she did now, "Please, Tiny must learn to bow down and do as she is told! Tiny does not want to end up like the Malfoy elf Dobby. He is now up to getting at least five punishments in one day! Sometimes, he is even expected to inflict punishments on himself! Such a disgraceful, bad elf...don't be like him."
Tiny sighed, because even though Dobby was her friend and yearned for freedom every bit as much, if not more than Tiny herself, and she didn't, and couldn't believe that this would forever be the lot of house-elves, she currently had no alternative. So, Tiny began to climb up the stairway to the upstairs areas where her current master lived and waited for her. Little did Tiny know how many things were already set in motion to change...
***
The very first time Violet Potter had ever watched a Hogwarts Quidditch match of Gryffindor vs. Slytherin had of course, been during her first year, and Gryffindor had won that match, though unfortunately not the Hogwarts Quidditch Cup that year because of her brother being too busy saving Hogwarts and spending so much time in the hospital wing afterwards. Not entirely unlike what Violet herself had ended up doing, which was battling to rescue her best friend from her psychopathic and murderous Death Eater father.
So far, though no other attacks had occurred since Mrs. Norris had been petrified, Argus Filch was now being nastier than even his usual self. He had already driven several first years to hysterics and gave older students detentions for things like "breathing loudly," and "looking happy." And Filch wasn't the only one being so intense. Percy Weasley had found Harry and Ron had returned one day to the very same corridor Mrs. Norris had been found petrified in.
The entire telling off had been extremely unpleasent. Percy yelled at both of them about how they could possibly even think it was okay for them to return to the scene of the crime when all it might do if anyone else had caught them snooping around there would make them, Harry in particular, look even more guilty.
Percy also told Ron that he was being incredibly selfish to play along with it and that he ought to be thinking about Ginny, who was already terrified that Ron was about to be expelled, especially since he already had a strike against him that year for illegally flying Mr. Weasley's car. Then he proceeded to take five points from Gryffindor and warned Ron that if he ever caught them doing any potentially dangerous 'saving Hogwarts' detective work again, he would write home to tell their mother. But as time would soon tell, this wouldn't stop them.
Violet and Victoria just happened to be passing through the same corridor as well as a shortcut on their way to their first Junior Potioneers' Club meeting and Percy started in on Violet and Tori as well. He wanted to know why, as Harry Potter's sister, Violet wasn't keeping a better eye on him or making sure he didn't get into any more trouble, refused to believe that Violet and Victoria weren't also looking for trouble, and only allowed them to continue on their way when Professor Sprout showed up and informed Percy that both girls were now part of the Junior Potioneers' Club.
But on this day, the sun was shining brightly and it was a more favorable kind of autumn weather for playing Quidditch, though the most popular sport in the Wizarding World was well known to be played in all seasons and even through some nasty storms. But it wasn't the weather that was the problem during this Quidditch match. Somewhere halfway into the game it became apparent to Violet and Tori that something was funny about the largest ball in used in the match, the bludger. Instead of flying where it was supposed to, it was flying after...
"HARRY! He's in trouble, someone needs to stop that bludger!" Violet stood up and cried when the bludger kept on zooming toward Harry, but Duncan Boggs, who was seated directly behind Violet only said warningly, "Quiet Miss Potter, or I shall fetch Professor Snape to have you removed for causing a scene. There is nothing any of us can do. Potter had better pray at least one of his Gryffindor friends know what to do and that they don't wave a rubbish wand about like that Roger Weasley thickhead---"
"It's Ronald!" Tori snapped.
"And if you won't do anything other than sit on your lazy arse, and shame on you being a prefect, would you at least allow us to find help so my brother doesn't get seriously injured by this rogue bludger?" Violet asked the Slytherin Prefect with a glare on her face, and he just threw up his hands and said, "Fine, do what you want, but I'm taking points from Slytherin for your language and your blatant disrespect of authority, Miss Potter, and Professor Snape shall get a full report on this behaviour, even if one of you manage to save the Famous Harry Potter."
But Violet and Tori didn't care. They hurried down the exit steps from the wooden Slytherin bleachers, and they were sprinting through the Slytherin's green and silver painted wooden exit tunnel from the Quidditch pitch, and then almost back outside and halfway to the small magical aid tent Madam Pomfrey had set up to determine if any of the Quidditch players on either team suffered minor wounds or needed to be taken to the hospital wing in the castle when---
"Where would you two be running off to in such a hurry? What's the matter Violet? Are you terrified that your blood traitor brother might actually get hurt?" Pansy Parkinson was now blocking the path to the first aid tent, along with Millicent Bullstrode, Daphne Greengrass, and Cecilia Payne. Violet was irritated. "Pansy, if you and your stupid friends don't let Tori and me pass through---"
"Ah ah ah." Pansy said, smirking. "You need to lose that tone and learn to communicate respectfully to your superiors Miss Potter. You were warned last year to stay away from the Gryffindors, and yet here you are, forever not doing as you're told. You're just like any other Potter. Your father had a serious problem with doing as he was told, and he washed out at his Auror training, so my parents have said. He couldn't even take care of your mother properly. And they defied him. Over and over and over again. But he made them pay, the one and only sorcerer who is meant to lead us back to the natural order of things. And now he will make all the mudbloods and the other riff-raff pay too, just like your worthless mother. Then he will come after you and your brother---"
"I really don't have any time for this, and don't ever use that word again. EXPELLIARMUS!" Violet cried, her wand pointed directly at Pansy, who was blasted backwards by the full force of the defensive spell and fell to the ground behind Millicent and Daphne. Both of them cried, "Are you all right Pansy?" As they hurried forward to help her. But Pansy picked herself back up off the ground almost immediately. Pansy yelled with a look that was rather bloodthirsty, "Prepare to have your ugly face look even uglier Potter!" and she was about to cast what sounded like a very unpleasent counter-defensive spell against Violet when all of a sudden, there came a distinctive noise between a snap and a pop, that could only be made by a house-elf apparating.
And suddenly Tiny was standing in between Violet and Pansy, bravely facing her down. "You shall not do any harm to Miss Violet or Miss Victoria!" Tiny squeaked fiercely, right before hitting Pansy with an elven jinx which made her nose turn bright red and grow to an alarmingly ugly size.
"MADAM POMFREY!" Pansy shrieked in alarm while running for the magical aid tent, Millicent, Daphne, and Cecilia following their ringleader. Tori meanwhile unzipped her now mostly empty schoolbag, save for a water canteen, a Teen Witch magazine, some personal essentials, and a few light snacks for later and said, "All right. In you go you little mischief-maker, and don't come back out until it's safe!" And Tiny quickly climbed in.
Of course, it was a magical schoolbag, which meant Tiny would be much more comfortable hiding away there than it appeared on the outside. Violet and Victoria soon hurried back towards the Quidditch pitch when they realized Madam Pomfrey wasn't available at the magical aid tent.
Much to Violet's dismay, no one was able to prevent Harry from getting injured by the rogue bludger, though Hermione did manage to destroy it before it could do something much worse, that is, until Professor Lockhart came along before Madam Pomfrey could get near Harry and instead of magically mending the arm Harry had broken, he incompetently managed only to remove all the bones instead.
But as Ron would tell it, Gryffindor still won the match in the end, and when Draco Malfoy tried to pull a last-ditch cheat move on Harry, Harry nonetheless quickly and skillfully managed to dodge it while Malfoy ended up crashing off his brand new Nimbus 2001 and managed to do a karmically painful and ridiculous looking split on the ground. Harry was being levitated away on enchanted stretcher by Madam Pomfrey, with the entire Gryffindor Quidditch team following along back towards the castle.
Ron and Hermione explained it all to Violet and Tori as they also hurried along.