Ella slunk through the door; you would have had to have been watching to notice. Ella was good at being invisible without an invisibility cloak. The shadows of the castle were often filled with the students and didn't want to draw attention to themselves. The 17 year old brunette strode through the library her dark robes with the faded blue emblem on them just noticeable. She supposed it could of been worse, being in Gryffindor would have made it impossible to go anywhere unnoticed, they were next to muggleborn in the their eyes. Dull straight brown locks were pulled back in their customary pony tail, while her hazel eyes darted around library. She was in no mood today to be taunted; she had just come from detention from Malfoy. Her hands smelt disgusting after scrubbing down the day's cauldrons they had been using. She clutched her bag to her side and skulked past a group of chattering fifth year Slytherins. She was trying to find a quiet place to do her work. She had three that needed doing, Potions, Arithmancy and the Dark Arts. Well of course the class was called Defence against the Dark Arts, but it was more, the Dark Arts in this day and age.

An empty corner bar one person who was working quietly came to her attention and quickly made her way, light on her feet. Ella had no outstanding beauty or extraordinary features upon her, to which she had been thankful; it made her blend in better. She sat down at the table the other was on. She noticed it was in fact Professor Charbonneau, her Arithmancy teacher. Now sense would tell any other to do the homework while the teacher was present so if you got stuck you would have help. However as Ella pulled out the three subject's books, Arithmancy went to the bottom. Hogwarts was not a place for sense, she had to do potions first or be in detention or worse, then Dark Arts, which would have the same consequence. Then Arithmancy would come last, if she still had time or was able to stay awake. Professor Charbonneau was impure so was the least of her worries. Don't get her wrong, she had respect for the teacher, it was just She wouldn't chastise Ella unfairly because she was muggleborn, unlike some of her other teachers. Arithmancy NEWT was hard, however Ella found the challenge an interesting on, and she was up-to-date in her work in the subject and had a god grasp of the subject. Ella sighed and opened her potions text book grabbed some parchment, ink and quill and set to work.

The only noise the filled her was the scratching of her pen and the professor's, plus the distant chit chat of the Slytherins she had noticed before. She worked silently, her hand flying across the page. Potions despite having the worst blood snob of a teacher was her best subject. Suddenly she noticed something; the chatting Slytherins had stopped chattering. Maybe they had gone, that was wishful thinking. Suddenly her quill jumped out her hand, she let it, sighing and sitting back in her chair as the quill began to write 'MUDBLOOD' all over her work. She didn't bother to try and stop it she had seen the spell before, if she tried, the quill would stab her in the hand until she just let it do what it going to do anyway. She looked around lazily with a bored kind of expression on her face to see one of the Slytherins with his wand out and pointed at her. She shot him a dry smile then looked back at her ruined work. Suddenly her bottle of ink flew to Professor Charbonneau and smashed itself on her work. The Slytherins’ rumbling laughter filled the library. Ella was counting her head to cool her anger giving her the bored look she now wore. Ella had learned it was best not to react if she could. The boys turned to leave library shouting after them “IMPURE SCUM". She knew the professor would not be able to punish them; they were pureblood Slytherins, most of them probably with parents who are death eaters.

Ella pulled her wand out of her inside pocket of her robes and pointed it at her quill; suddenly the quill jumped to life again and as through it were on rewind, unwriting all that it had done. Unfortunately for them this was not the first time someone had used that spell and she had had her quill and ink charmed to be able to be removed. Charms and Potions were her favourite classes. She suddenly pointed her wand at the professor's work. She was learning to perform spells without saying a word. Suddenly the ink from her ink bottle vanished leaving the broken pieces of the glass bottle it had been in behind with the teacher. Her ink was also charmed so it can only be removed by herself; others had tried to undo her work by making the ink vanish. It also meant the teacher would not have been able to get rid of it. She then spoke " I charmed the Ink so no one but myself can remove it professor" as though in explanation for feeling the need to aid a teacher. Ella was one of the last muggleborns left in her year. Normally by 7th year they have got the message and dropped out but Ella had put up with the blood snob rubbish for so long she was not letting it go to waste, she wanted to finish Hogwarts. She looked down at her work the quill was still unwriting 'Mudblood' from her work and she sat back.

Ella's quick eyes had noticed the professor scribble down what looked like names. She kept her face impassive so not tempted to smirk. Of course if the professor hassled them too much she knew she would be in trouble with the other teachers as the boys would certainly go Malfoy, the Slytherins treated that professor like god. She sometimes wondered why she put up with Malfoy in her classes. The boys went, and her quill flew across the page unwriting the boys enchantment, she sighed and looked back up at the professor as she began to speak. She had an expression of boredom as though nothing had happened and she was merely taking a break from her work. Ella listened and chuckled dryly as the professor said about nonverbal magic, although there was definitely no humour in the noise. " Some pureblood Ravenclews were talking about it in the common room and I got the basic jist, I have been practicing at every moment since professor" her voice held a sceptical tone although it was perfectly polite. To be honest who could blame her for her attitude, when she had been putting up with that and worse kinds of behaviour for 7 years nearly " And I am sure had I been at Hogwarts when you were my age, I would have too" then again that dry smile that held no humour. Her time at Hogwarts was a living nightmare. However her voice held an Irish lilt to it. Suddenly her quill felt on the desk just as it finished writing the last of "MUDBLOOD" off her work, she looked down at it, checking all of it had gone then sighed " The Sad thing is professor, they think they’re so original in their pranks but they’re all the same, hence why" She held her now pristine work so she could see she had managed to get rid of all the scribbles on it " All they do allow me to practice my magic". Ella eyed the quill, she proud of the charm she had managed to put on it for it to be able to unwrite what it writes.

Ella sat back in her chair then her face softened out of its stony look " Professor, you will understand to a point, Impure you maybe but I am guessing you are not Muggleborn if they are letting you teach here" she paused her, her face softer, and her Irish lilt more apparent as she relaxed more. She had never really spoken to this professor outside of class. Ella knew better then to group or talk to other impurities for a long length of time. The purebloods got paranoid if any impurities got to friendly. Due to this fact Ella did not have any close friends. Ella suddenly began to write again, she wrote about a paragraph, her smooth script flying over the page, she used quick drying ink because of her nature to write quickly. She then stopped, quickly read through it and set it aside, putting her potions book to the bottom of her pile and then picking up Dark Arts book, Arithmancy was now in the middle. Ella opened the book, got a new piece of parchment.

[Ella held up quill up and dipped it in the ink and began to title her work as she listened to the professor's response. She paused looking up at her thoughtfully, her hazel eyes watching her before looking back down at her work and beginning to write. However she did not ignore the professor or intend to be rude by not looking at her while speaking. But her work needed to be done. However when she had looked up she had caught a glimpse at what she was doing. Ella hid a knowing smile. It was her little tests, Ella was alright at them, and she often got the points only to have them taken away in her next class however. Ella responded to her words however. Just writing and keeping her eyes on her work as she did so " well you have to remember that these are the people who think I somehow stole magic when I was seven years of age" She was writing fast again and her downcast face suddenly grew sullen, it was rare people other than muggleborns and of course the bloodsnobs involved knew what happened to muggleborns when they finished school. She dreaded it, no, she feared that outcome above all else. She sighed concentrating on her work, but listened some more to her Arithmancy professor. She looked up however when she started whispering an amused smile slid across her lips and Ella kept her own voice low " That helps, unlike me however, Smith one of the most common muggle names ever" She hated the fact she one of the most common names ever. Then a she let a dry chuckle escape her lips as she went back to her work " oh god as blue as Professor Malfoy? Now that takes some beating" she smiled innocently wondering if the professor would get the slight pun in her words. The pun being many people would love to beat Draco Malfoy black and blue.

Ella continued, her full attention going to her work now, it was getting late and some of the younger students were leaving the library. Ella had written an entire side of parchment when a Ravenclaw Girl walked over. The girl held a haughty expression and held herself up proudly. She stood over Ella, ignoring the professor. She did not take Arithmancy so the professor meant very little to her. However she stood over Ella " oi Ella have you done that Charms due in tomorrow" Ella looked up from her work, and saw what was coming. She sighed raised one eye brow at the girl and spoke lightly " Yes". It did not matter what Answer she would have given the next thing to come would still have happen. The girl smirked down at Ella " Well I have had Quiddich Practice and I am now tired. Do mine" and then dropped with a thud a book on top of her Dark Arts work, and then stalked of being joined by her other gang of girls.

Ella eyed the book and then moved to her pile of books and then eyed the professor " looks like there is no sleep tonight for me" She eyed her books, at least potions was done and dark arts was getting there. The girl's charms now sat on top of Arithmancy. She pulled out some more parchment out of her bag and continued with her defence against the dark arts. She had done her own charms work a few nights ago and it was difficult. However Charms was one of her favourite subjects. She sighed when the library closed she would just have to risk the common room. At least the younger ones would have gone to bed, and if there was Quiddich practice when maybe they would have gone as well. She sighed; she liked flying on the broom and one boy and blurted out without thinking that she would make a good chaser. However he then remembered what she was and took it back. She would never make the team, she was a muggleborn.

Ella was eyeing the charms book then her professor as it was taken away from her. She assumed she was just interested and continued to write her Dark Arts work. She needed to get it finished, as well as Charms and Arithmancy. To be honest she had had worse loads of worse to do in smaller amounts of time. However the professor caught Ella's attention when she spoke and Ella looked up from her work again. Shock appeared on her features for a few moments. Was this professor really going to do the work for her? Why? Why was she being so nice? Ella eyed it, seeing the professor write what she assumed was the essay. Ella looked back up at the professor's face. No one was ever this kind to her here, well no one except Seph, they were two outcasts together. Also Seph was mentally Ill, trust Ella, the only friend she could make was mentally Ill, but Ella had taken a liking to Seph. She was a very good, decent person; others didn't see it because they assumed she was crazy.

Then the professor spoke, any other student would have whooped with joy being let off work. Of course Ella felt a sense of relief when the professor said about Arithmancy but the rest only made her worry. Ella had thought she was writing the Essay but no, she was writing to her teacher? She froze and she tried to keep her features straight, years of threats were catching up with her all at once. She froze, was this teacher so ignorant of the true extent of would that would mean. Ella appreciated the kindness, in fact cherished it, but however it would result in worse. Ella spoke slowly and also with a tint of the fear that had rushed through her " Erm Thank you Professor about the Arithmancy, I am glad I meet your expectations, but I think I should do the Charms" She looked down at her nearly finished work she was already doing " I don't want to cause trouble for you " Ella knew if the professor kicked up a fuss with a pureblood teacher her job was on the line, fancy name from France or no name. Plus there would be other effects. The teacher would only lay it hard on Ella more, of course that girl would hear about it and then she was doomed. She would never hear the end of it. Then she remember the threats, as well as the beating she would get form those at school, Ella had her parents to consider, they were vulnerable. Many of the parents of the purebloods knew or were related to a Death Eater it seemed, one that Ella knew would be al too happy to take out her parents. Plus Ella did not doubt they would do it over a petty little thing such as homework.