Originally Posted by steflegan

Melina chuckled along with her friend as Ari laughed off the idea of having a fortune. She was stuck with her own, and couldn't care less about it either. Of course, she'd never known anything but wealth. Even her friends were well-off. It's just the circle her family was part of.

Being here at school was Melina's first chance to know people from all walks of life, and she loved how different the world actually was! Ari may not have grown up with the trappings that Melina had, but she sure turned out swell enough. Too bad her stupid father can't see past his own bigoted nose to appreciate the daughter he could have, she thought darkly, feeling incredibly protective of her best friend.

Shaking it off for the time being, she grinned in excitement as Ari agreed to come up to the Tower. "Let's meet tomorrow night at 8, ok? Do you want me to come down to the Gryffie house and we can go together? I don't know if we can eat up there, but pack a snack in case!"

She had never heard of any of the music groups that Ari mentioned, but laughed at her friend's description of them as "old". "Hah, you call that old? I dance to music written by men in powdered wigs from the 18th century!"

"I'd love to hear your music, though. I'll owl my dad and see if he can find any of it to put on my iPod for you," she smiled.

Giving herself a mental smack in the forehead, Melina remembered that not everyone grew up with a house elf in residence. "Oh, yeah," she replied, feeling a little self-conscious. "Our house elf, Mimsy, has been with us since I was one- she's really awesome! She used to always stop to play with me when I was little, as long as she thought she was "working" while she did it. It's really weird- I used to try and help her do things around the house- I didn't want her feeling like a slave- and every time she would just freak out about it. It like completely hurt her feelings! So it's weird, but they really do take such pride in their work that to stop them is, well, mean. I just make sure to thank her for everything- it's the only thing I can do for her that she's comfortable with." It still didn't make total sense to her.

"Oh my Godric, would you?!!!" Melina grasped Ari's hands with utter relief and gratitude. "You'd come with me to the Headmaster's office? Oh, you are the best friend ever!!!" she cried, hugging Ari again. "When do you think you can go? Maybe I can pull this off if I know you're there with me!"

Yeah. She knew it when she saw Ari in Ollivanders that they were gonna be great friends.