Alyssa walked into Professor Hadley’s office when she was invited to do so. She didn’t know how to broach the subject of why she needed to speak with her Head of House. All she knew was that she had to or else it would always be in the back of her mind bothering her. She did know that this was a delicate subject and that at all cost, she had to remain respectful of Professor Hadley’s position as a staff of the school.

She didn’t dare look at the Professor but instead stared at her hands that were trembling. She took a couple of deep breaths and reminded herself to speak calmly…and that no matter what, she would not cry.

When she thought that she was ready to speak, she raised her head and spoke.

"Professor I had surgery during the summer. I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to come back to Hogwarts. Even my parents wanted me to stay home just this term to rest."

"But all through my recovery, I received Owls from friends telling me that I needed to come back, that the House needed me, that I need to tryout for the Quidditch team this term again. Then more Owls arrived telling me that I might make Quidditch Captain or Prefect. I didn’t want to believe them, because I never believed that I was good enough to be either."

"But as more OWLS came in with the same rumors, I started to believe it. And so I started waiting for the OWL from Hogwarts to arrive. But they never came. That’s when I knew I shouldn’t have believed those rumors." Alyssa’s voice broke as she tried to hold back the tears.

"One week before school term was about to start, an OWL arrived with a note telling me that Nessie and Stephanie had been picked. I was happy for them because I knew that they deserved it. But I could see the disappointment on my family’s faces. And then I started to feel the disappointment too."

"I always thought I was doing everything right. I had attended all classes, completed all my homework, attended every possible Quidditch training session, but it seems that I was wrong. All my hard work was for nothing. Again, I hadn’t been good enough."

"To make my misery complete, an OWL arrived from Salem Institute. My eldest sister had been made Head Girl, while Cody, MY twin, had been made Quidditch captain.."

Alyssa couldn’t hold back her tears anymore. She looked up at Professor Hadley, tears trickling down her cheeks.

"Ever since I joined the school, I made sure that I didn't disappoint the school and my housemates. I didn’t want to be a disappointment to anyone here. But I must have done something wrong. Someone must not have liked what I was doing. What did I do wrong, Professor? Why wasn’t I good enough?"

"All this time I was worrying about the school and my friends, but now I know that the people I let down the most, is my family. I let my family down by being the first person to not make prefect or Quidditch Captain. They told me that it was okay. But I know they were saying that just to make me feel better."

She paused to take a breath trying to hold back the tears. "I’m a disappointment to my family like I knew I always would be and now I don’t know what to do. I feel like giving up and just be an average student because that seems to be what the school wants." and with those last words, Alyssa broke down and sobbed into her hands.