September 28th, 1888 — the Great Hall

Somehow she had managed to avoid the appearance of the house elf that had accosted her the day before. Likely because she had gotten a student to put a note on the door stating they'd be having class outside. She was banking on the fact that the elf couldn't read the note to know where she was with her students. She'd had her classes all morning outside, which was lovely, they were able to see how the earth magic they were learning was able to affect the earth around them in action.

But by the time lunch rolled around, she was starving. She couldn't eat in her classroom like she usually did just in case he was waiting in there for her. So she'd ventured into the Great Hall and found a seat at the head table for the professors in a very public spot so that if the elf decided to approach her, there would be witnesses to see that she wanted nothing to do with him and maybe someone would be able to get the Headmaster there to take control of the situation.

She was eating quietly, watching the Gryffindors at their table. If she hadn't had her kids and Xander had died with them being childless, she would have applied to be their matron in an instant. But Beth and Zachariah were more important to her now more than ever. And then she felt it. Eyes on her. More intense than that of anything she'd felt for the rest of the day so far. It was here. The house elf was here and he was watching her. Rather than cringe away, she straightened her back and turned to a professor next to her. She was determined to avoid Woopy as much as humanly possible. That was the key: as much as humanly possible.

  

It was dire. The world had been turned upside down. Every second away from her was a second of his life wasted. Gone. Poof; like a bubble popping against the heat of the sun. And that was the crux of it, really. She was his sun and he was the bubble.

And when she went, so did the light in his life. A cold, sombre darkness had washed over him the moment she’d left him the night before though when classes came around the following day, Woopy was astonished – no, distraught – to find that she wasn’t in her class. There was some parchment on the door but it was all scribbles.

She had vanished.
His heart: - broken.

Until it wasn’t.
Until he saw her in her complete splendour talking to some monster who thought to take her away from him!
Of course, he knew that was a silly notion. She was his in utter devotion.

Moving hastily toward her the moment she noticed him, Woopy climbed clumsily onto the table and grinned wider than something that was designed to do nothing but grin did.

“Woopy miss you,” Woopy said quietly as he leaned in close toward her, “but now you here and Woopy happy.” He then jumped up as if clinging toward the sun.

“You need Woopy to clean?!” He offered excitedly.

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When the house elf climbed up onto the table in front of her, Ellie sighed loudly and tried to look away. She didn't want to deal with this right now. But he was there, smiling at her. And then talking. And she couldn't avoid him because the professor she'd just started talking to was staring at them with curiosity. The house elf stated that he missed her and a light cringe caused her to hunch over for a second. Why? Why did he miss her? He didn't even know her!

"You don't know me well enough to miss me, Woopy." she protested weakly. "How can you be happy when you literally met me yesterday? What if I'm a murderer? What if I hate all other beings besides humans? How could you love me if I hated the very sight of you?" Which, right now, she kind of did. It wasn't that she was race-ist, she wasn't, she had students who were half-vampires for goodness sake, but a house elf shouldn't love a human. There was no way they'd even be able to get married, let alone procreate. Besides, she was still in her mourning period for a man she had loved desperately.

When Woopy asked if she wanted him to clean, Eleanor took the moment and seized it. There was a pie on the table nearby and Ellie picked it up and hurled it into the shadows behind the table. "Yes, Woopy, please go clean that up. I admit, I am rather clumsy at times." There. That oughta get rid of him.

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Well, that didn’t matter! Her questions were silly. Woopy furled his brows and huffed a little. He had been at the castle for years and she had also been there for… a period of time, he was sure. It only made sense that she had seen him and subsequently fell in love with him, wrote a love letter to express her feelings, and now that Woopy was willing to reciprocate she was acting shy.

“Woopy help you hide body,” the elf said assuredly with a nod before asking about the cleaning.

She was happy to obliged and hurled a small pie behind her. He looked over her shoulder and snapped his fingers causing the pie to reappear in front of her.

Woopy then crumpled into a laughing fit, “Hahaha! You funny!” He said rolling onto his back, “Woopy help… with clumsy!”

Merlin, his future wife was hilarious!

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For a split second Ellie thought that Woopy was going to dart off to go clean up the pie she'd thrown but then... then... he snapped his fingers and the fecking pie was right back there in front of her. How was it that she couldn't even get him to go do his job? He claimed he loved her-- how and why she didn't know, something was seriously fishy about this-- but he wouldn't do as she asked. Ever.

"Woopy!" she admonished. "Why didn't you do as you asked? You were the one who wanted to clean, I found a way for you to be nearby and still do as you are supposed to do. And for the record, I don't need you to help hide a body because I am no murderer. Yet. But if you do not leave me alone," she hissed as sweetly as she could, all venom and sugar at the same time, "I will find a way to make you the body I bury. Please go find somewhere else to be, Woopy. I don't need you here. I was trying to enjoy some time with my fellow professors. Who are human. And smart. And can read. And write. And aren't house elves!"

  

Stopping dead in his fit of laughter, Woopy darted to sit upward and looked at her with a quivering lip. He’d never been spoken to like this before.
Wait.
He had been. A lot.
Thinking on it, Phineas Black often threatened murder when Woopy was around though Woopy often took it with a pinch of salt. Woopy was far too valuable an elf. That was like a sponge telling water it would murder the water but it couldn’t because sponges needed water to clean effectively and also they were sponges and sponges are inanimate objects. They can’t talk.

Though this was different. She was stern and he did not like that for a moment. Allowing his emotions to fully take over, Woopy began bawling – and loudly – at every word she said. Each word was like a dagger in his heart and he couldn’t do anything to stop it.

He did clean! He just made sure he was still right next to her when he did so! He did do what she asked! Why was she so perfect and yet so hurtful!?

Why, Merlin on a broomstick in the middle of a full moon, why!

“Woopy sorry!” He yelled as he headbutted the wooden bench about four times, “Woopy… awful house elf!” He continued as he rolled off the table, still crying, and landed on the stone floor – which he proceeded to then also headbutt.

This was hard. Love was hard.

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Eleanor cringed as Woopy began to slam his head against the bench she was on and wail loudly. People were turning their heads and she could feel their judgment as they watched him fall onto the floor and slam his head against the cold stone floor. What they wouldn't know was how the elf stalked her to where she was, and how annoying he was and how his head was making the bench quiver.

"Woopy," she whispered loudly, trying to get his attention. She needed him to stop. She needed him to go away. She needed him to stop wailing! "Woopy, look. If you stop screaming, you can sit beside me while I eat. And then you can come to one class. One. And then you must go do something else. Do you understand?"

Would it work? Would he stop wailing and slamming his head? Oh dear goodness she fecking hoped so. She stared down at the floor, hoping he would stop. Praying to God that she'd gotten into his head and he'd be quiet. People were staring, after all.

  

OH.
MERLIN.
One class!

Woopy immediately jumped up and leapt on her without even thinking on how appropriate it was (or, rather, wasn’t). Of course that was okay! One class meant… meant… it meant he could watch her for one class and that was amazing!

Oh boy, oh boy! What would he do? Would he try to learn as she spoke? Would you set her shoes on fire? The possibilities! He could even lock the door so it was just them two and no students could enter! He could show her his sponge collection and boy did he have a few!

The elf then stepped back from her, knocking over several glasses and plates from the table before nodding profusely.

“Woopy think that okay, Woopy do anything for you! Woopy think you the best!” He nodded again only this time it was an over-exaggerated nod a child does when asked if they want something they really wanted.

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Again with the touching. Why was he so adamant about jumping onto her torso? Sighing, Eleanor turned to her companion and apologized quietly as she stood up, forcing Woopy down onto the ground. "Just because you can watch a class doesn't mean you get to ride on my chest the entire way there. Walk or apparate, I don't care, but you're not going to touch me the entire way. If you must, you can hold onto my skirt." That last was said with a beleaguered sigh.

Off she went, not caring if Woopy followed her. She was doing him a favor by letting him follow her around, she assumed he'd do one or the other and likely beat her to the classroom. She thought about dragging her feet there, but she had a class to teach and she didn't want to disappoint her students. Likely she'd be cancelling her next class and giving the students a pass on their assignment, instead of failing them for not turning it in on time. She was sure that instead of using the time to study, they'd be outside doing God knows what.

Once she entered the classroom, Ellie pointed out a spot near the front where he could sit and watch. "There, Woopy, it's close enough that you can see me and listen, but you can't touch me because I have spells to teach. I'd hate to make your skin harden to a rock because you interrupted my class." She said with a warning to her voice.

  

Oh, how she was stern and lovely and beautiful and everything he could have hoped for in his lifelong partner! Woopy happily obliged and walked alongside her as they went to the class clinging fiercely onto the hem of her skirt as they walked.

They say that opposites attract and as sure as he was in love, Woopy was certain this was why these two loved each other so dearly. She had weird looking ears with an odd shaped head. Everything about her would have normally made his stomach churn and, as he thought about it, it kind of did but he reasoned that he felt sick because he was deathly in love with her. That was, he would die loving her and knowing this made him happier than he’d ever been.

Once they were at the classroom…

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