Oculus Reparo!

Rosina Morelli



Jason Monroe



Alaric Sephiran



Gwendolyn "Gwen" Vanderbilt

@ FlyAway;
Rosina walked down the crowded hallways of the Hogwarts Express, feeling like she was walking on air. She moved her hair from in front of her Prefect Badge. It had been a year since she was given the position, but she still felt immense pride. Her family had a long line of prefects and she was glad to carry on the honor in her family's house: Hufflepuff. After the meeting that always started every school year, with passwords to the bathroom and expectations made clear, Rosina was excited to start the school year.

"Now is a good time to think about getting dressed in your robes," Rosina said to a group of first-years as she passed. "It's a wet one out."

The thunder outside rumbled as if on cue. Rodney Grail, the other Hufflepuff 6th year prefect gave her a soft smile. "They're so cute when they're little," he said and they both laughed. Though Rosina and Rodney weren't friends before last year, she felt grateful for them to both be prefects. He had become a close friend and a source of support. Believe it or not, there's a lot more that goes into being a Prefect than wearing the badge and helping lost first years. Without him, and a few others, Rosina would have possibly drowned in the pressure of it all.

The train lurched forward, barreling towards Rosina's favorite place on Earth. She was excited for this year. She received Outstandings in all her core classes, except for Defense Against the Dark Arts where she received an Exceed Expectations. She also received an Outstanding in Study of Ancient Runes. She was excited to continue all her coursework, though she knew it would be overwhelming. It felt good to be excelling the way her family expected. Especially now that they were all in higher position in the ministry after, well, you know, the Wizarding War.

Rosina entered her compartment to find her best friend, Gwen. They didn't often have class together because she was a Ravenclaw, but Gwen and her connected. Besides, the days of sticking to your house were relatively over. "I wish we were there already," Rosina said, plopping down next to Gwen. Her cat, Winston, peaked up at her and purred. "I think this is going to be a great year."

---

Alaric sat, watching the raindrops trickle down the window. The energy felt so different here in the Slytherin half of the train. He felt, not to be cliche, but darker. It was like it was lined in a layer of shame. The actions of the people who came before him, the people he called friends and allies. Alaric glanced down at his fingers and to the compartment of empty people. They seemed to be trying to do what he was doing: ignoring the reality of coming back to Hogwarts after everything that happened. Everyone that was arrested and put on trial. The fact that the Slytherin house, as a whole, seemed and was so much smaller. They had thinned out either because they died or they were shamed into hiding.

Alaric, who somehow came from a Mudblood line, felt more alone than he had ever felt before at Hogwarts. He wondered why he was even back here, aside from his parents insistence. They were both wizards, but his Grandmother was Muggleborn. She was the first witch on his maternal line. He wondered how that never came up last year during the reckoning of it all. I guess being a Slytherin used to have its merits. Now, it felt strange.

In fact, even his robes felt strange, like he should be ashamed of wearing green and silver. That wasn't fair though. He was proud of himself and his house and the work he done. He just was not proud with what being a Slytherin was associated with now. He wondered how this year would go. If people would lump together all Slytherins. If they would whisper and stare like the themselves were snakes. He wondered who would be the Head of House, now that Slughorn was gone too. At least, he found comfort in knowing McGonagall would be true and fair to them all. That was the only thought that brought him comfort as the train stopped in the Hogsmeade.

@ oldbook;
Jason heard the prefect chittering away and laughed softly to himself, running his hair throughout his perfect blonde hair letting his blue eyes glance around. He knew that Hogwarts would never be the same after the past year, and was still hoping that for once it wouldn't be Slytherin against Gryffindor, he was so sick of the rivalry against the two houses. It was almost suffocating the way the two houses were always arguing and battling one another. He knew that they were the bolder houses, personality wise, but he found it ridiculous that they continued to just have this absurd fight against one another.

He didn't understand the point of fighting against one another, when they were all there for the same reason, to learn witchcraft and wizardry. He smiled at the thought pulling on his crimson and gold robes. He grinned softly at his friend making jokes with him. He looked down at his own pet cat Lila and stroked her fur knowing she was quite the spoiled thing. He heard girls giggling and turned around seeing a few of the fourth years blushing as they looked at him.

He turned to his friend confused by the sudden show of attention from people. "What happened?" He questioned with a small frown. His friend laughed and said, "Since Harry and his class are gone, you're the new popular dude." He grinned. He shook his head rolling his eyes. "Absurd." He replied but grinned at him. His O.W.L.S had come in and the only Outstanding he had was in Defense Against The Dark Arts. He was a little upset seeing as he had worked hard to get his scores, but he was alright in it, since he had been told he had made the highest score in class, meaning he had beaten Rosina and he was going to gloat to her about her when he found her, knowing she strived to be the perfect student.

Gwendolyn kept to herself usually. She was known to get into quite a few fights while at Hogwarts. She didn't believe in using her wand in a fight and was quite a physical person. She never started to fight, but then again she had been in detention more than most people. She was wondering how this year would be since McGonagall had been chosen as the next Headmaster. She smiled at the thought, knowing that at least everyone was going to be treated all the same. She had gotten her blue and silver (bronze if we are talking about the books) robes on already and smiled softly glad to be back. Anywhere but at home where her parents constantly fought over how well she was doing in school, and what she could achieve. She tried her best to ignore it most of the time.

Hearing the thunder sent a shiver down her spine, knowing that she didn't prefer thunder whatsoever. Her gorgeous mouse brown hair fell into her face, covering her hazel eyes. She smiled moving it from her face as she walked towards her compartment, noticing that Rosina was gone, she gave a small laugh knowing her friend had her prefect duties to get on with. She knew she couldn't be attached at the hip with her, even though Gwen wanted her to be. She stretched feeling her back pop continuously. She couldn't wait for Herbology class and could feel her excitement growing more and more as she looked out the window seeing the village coming closer knowing that she would be able to go to Hogsmeade again this year.

Gwen looked over seeing Rosina and smiled and laughed hearing her, "I agree, Rosi." She smiled once more, her lips tilting at the edges as she used her nickname for her friend. "I hope so." She replied laughing hearing Wintson. "Hi, Winston." She whispered softly her eyes glittering happily as she gently stroked the cat's fur. Hearing her own animal, her ferret, Franklin, chittering. She laughed and picked him up kissing his soft fur and stroked his fur. "I didn't mean to let you be forgotten." She told him smiling setting him on her shoulder. "What other Prefect duties do you have?" She questioned, turning her greenish brownish gaze towards her friend her head tilted slightly as she did so.

@ FlyAway;
Rosina smiled, scrunching her nose a little at Franklin. She would never tell Gwen, but she hated the way Franklin smelled. She must preferred Winston, even if he sometimes didn’t prefer her; cats were so temperamental. She let her fingers brush Winston’s fur as she rested her head on the back of the seat. “Oh, you know, I should walk through one more time and then just make sure they get to their dormitories. Although, I’m pretty sure we’ll let the 5th year prefects do that last walk through. There has to be some advantages to being in 6th year, right?”

She tried to sound bright, but Rosina was far more nervous than she would ever let on about 6th year. OWLs weren’t a breeze and NEWTs only get harder. Even worse, Rosina had no idea what she wanted to do after school. She had her meeting with Professor Sprout, but she lied her way through it. She still wasn’t sure what she wanted to do. All she knew was that she was good at school, but there aren’t always position to teach. After all, half the professors at Hogwarts have been there for years or until death do they part. She bit her lip for a moment, but tried to push the negativity away.

As the train rolled to a stop, Rosina stood. “I got your bag, Rosi,” Rodney said, a beaming smile on his face. He was a tall for his age, with bright red hair. Sometimes people asked him if he was a Weasley, but they were mainly joking. Weasley’s were easy to identify. Ginny was still here after all and she was certainly cooler than Rodney. Rodney was just, well, exactly what you expect a Hufflepuff to be. She smiled at him kindly though.

“Oh, thanks,” she said, casting Gwen a curious look. “I wonder what will be different this year or what the Sorting Hat will have to say. Everything is different,” she said, almost under her breath. “It can’t be all bad. It has to be good, but I wonder if Hogwarts even looks the same. There was,” she paused, “Just so much damage. I just wonder what McGonagall did with it all, you know?” She said to Gwen. For a moment, she felt a pang of sadness when looking at her friend. She used to be equally close to another Hufflepuff who died in the Battle. Sometimes looking at Gwen reminded her of all that.

“Stop running and put your wands away! The weather is bad enough. No need to be idiots,” she spat, at some second year Gryffindors running by.

Alaric stumbled behind these Gryffindors though their confidence and zeal made him want to vomit. He hated the idea of holding onto old animosity, but sometimes Gryffindors really did only care about themselves. After all, Harry Potter was a Gryffindor and Ron and Hermione. As if we all didn’t know. Yet, every Gryffindor acted like they were best friend with those three. That was what he hated most about Gryffindors. He passed by Gwen and Rosina, but cast his eyes quickly down as Rosina’s voice pierced the air. Her and Gwen both intimidated him so. They stuck together and didn’t care to cross house lines. They were smart, brilliant even, and strong willed women. Alaric wasn’t really the kind of guy to bother either of them, whether or not he could actually match them.

He just wanted to survive these next two years and it didn’t seem like getting on either of their bad sides was a good idea. He just wanted to take his classes, survive them, and get into NEWT classes. He wanted to be a Healer so badly that he wouldn’t let his own House get in the way. He certainly wouldn’t get in any trouble. He had too much on the line. He had too many people expecting him to go sour. In truth, he was lonely. He looked up to Draco for a long time. He was gone now and had made mistakes. Alaric felt ostracized now by those in school. Most of his friends did not return. He was stuck between being evil and being good; even he did not know where he stood. So, instead, he looked down and moved forward off the train.

@ oldbook;
Jason watched brooding Slytherins pass him and sighed shaking his head. It was quite difficult not to make fun of them since they always acted so closed in and almost like they were just angry at the world. Then, there were the Slytherin's who thought they were better because they had pureblood in them. What a bunch of bollocks if you asked him. It was so stupid. What blood you had in your body didn't match up to your personality or the way you behaved yourself -- that was what really mattered. The way you conducted yourself and how much kindness and gentleness you were able to show as well as strength and courage. At least, for him that was what mattered. He knew the only thing he was excited about was Quidditch and everyone told him he was good enough to get into the professional teams and that was what he wanted to do. He knew a bunch of people wanted to do it, but over the summer, Quidditch was honestly the only thing he did.

He laughed with his friends getting into a carriage with them. Hearing Rosina yelling at second years had made him laugh and knew for a fact that she was laying into them. He didn't mind, they needed to be put into their place, even if it was done by another Houses' Prefect. That just meant their Prefects needed to step up their game and start taking care of their house. He sighed looking at his hands before being torn back into another conversation. He frowned hearing them start to talk bad about another house. "Hey, stop." He told them shaking his head. "Just because their house is different, doesn't mean we are better than them. Everyone is different." He told them shaking his head sighing at their ignorance. He didn't understand it msot of the time. He just didn't. He wondered how much hardered NEWTS would be compared to OWLS. He hoped not much harder, considering he wasn't that fond of studying and wasn't the greatest at it.

Gwen cooed towards Franklin with a smile on her face giggling when he licked her cheek. She laughed and put him in his little cage, that was probably the most spoiled looking thing ever. She doted ridiculously towards her pet. She knew he smelled, but she had grown used to it and knew for a fact that she would never get sick of her pet. She looked up and laughed hearing her friend, "Well, that's what they are there for, to learn that is." She told her with a smile as she ran a hand through her soft hair. She bit down on her plump lips and looked around knowing she was far kinder than she let on to be. She didn't want people to think she was a pushover though, so she kept her hardass attitude.

Gwen stretched once more and saw Rodney wrinkling her nose up. She didn't particularly care for him, and she was quite aware that he stole her nickname for Rosina. She detested the fact that he wasn't quite bright enough to come up with his own nickname. She crossed her arms over her chest raising an eyebrow at Rosina giving her a slight roll of her eyes when Rodney wasn't looking. She heard her words shrugging her shoulders, "Well, with magic, I'm sure the repairs are already done." She pointed out with a smile. She didn't quite care for most of the other Ravenclaws, they weren't creative enough for her taste. All they cared about were their wit. She didn't understand. She would rather just be drawing and creating pictures rather than doing anything to do with work.

Gwen gave her friend a smile, knowing that she was one of the only people she even spoke to. She looked around gently and said, "I hope, the animosity between the houses has finally just subsided." She admitted to her before laughing hearing her fussing over the second years. She stood up and followed the rest of the people getting into a carriage smiling softly as she watched the castle drawing closer. She couldn't help herself as she stared wonderingly at the castle. Everyime she saw it, it brought a warm feeling in her chest, as if she were home once more. She sighed happily. She looked around and saw that there was only one more person in the carriage with her. From his robes, he was a Slytherin. She tilted her head recognizing him slightly. She turned away not the sort for small conversation.

A small sigh released from her lips as her mind began to wander. She didn't know what she wanted to do in the wizarding world, knowing that she didn't fit in with muggles, and even now didn't fit in with witches and wizards. It felt quite lonely most of the time. She looked at her fingers picking at her nails softly before looking back at the stars wishing that she could just remember this moment forever, the way the September air felt swirling around her making her hair fly around her shoulders and back, the way the stars twinkled within the night sky, and the way she watched it all beneath the beautiful night sky.

@ FlyAway;
Rosina nodded at Gwen. She was right. Hogwarts was probably, most definitely, back to its normal magical atmosphere. Rosina tried hard to focus on the positive aspects of Hogwarts because that was what had to be awaiting them at the end of this carriage ride. Rosina smiled at Gwen and it was like an unspoken agreement between them. They always rode in silence, looking at the forest and the tower as it loomed larger and larger. They both appreciated the silence and the building anticipation of heading to school. Rosina grabbed Gwen’s hand and smiled as if to say, ’That’s right. It is going to be a good year.'

Rosina caught a look at some older Gryffindors and Jason Monroe. He was laughing and smiling. He seemed so care free. It must be nice to be Jason Monroe. He was basically another righteous hero in the making. Rosina shook her head. What did she care. She'd probably barely have any classes with him this year. He would just become another wizard she once knew. She had to focus on more important things.

Alaric sat down in the corner of a carriage. He leaned his head against the lamp post and stared at the thestrals. He wondered who else was able to see them now that couldn’t before. Alaric sighed when Gwen and Rosina joined his carriage. He should have seen it coming. They were right behind him and yet, he was still so frustrated. He just wanted to be left alone. These two girls were just the shining beacon of what you were supposed to become through Hogwarts. He was somewhere along the line of the opposite.

When the carriage came to a halt, the girl took their time. “I don’t know if you guys forgot, but dinner is waiting. Could we maybe not chit chat?” Alaric spat, slugging his bag over his shoulder. He saw Rosina physically retract away from him and she raised a brow at him. She so clearly had something to say, but instead, she cast Gwen a fleeting look before hopping down. They hadn’t even started talking yet, but he knew it was coming. That annoying gleeful squeals that some girls did. He couldn’t stand that either. “Just you know, for the sake of everyone. Let’s move it along,” he said, with an exasperated sigh.

Rosina stepped down and her eyebrows probably couldn’t reach any higher than they were. She wondered if Gwen would say anything and hovered, waiting for her for just a moment. Gwen was both sensitive and strong. She was quick witted, as a Ravenclaw would be, but was soft and loyal and creative. It was made her the best friend she could possibly find. She bit her tongue, hoping Gwen would say something. If not, those were the moments that Rosina really wished she could take points from other houses.

@ oldbook;
Jason noticed Rosina looking at him and gave her a gentle smile. He didn't know her personally and didn't know her that well, but he figured it couldn't hurt to be nice. He got out of the carriage to see Gwendolyn Vanderbilt basically spitting venom towards a Slytherin. "Woah, chill out." He said frowning as he walked up seeing it was Alaric. They weren't friends or anything, but the fact that Gwendolyn was just going off on him was a little absurd. "Come on, Gwendolyn." He got a dirty look for using her full name. He flinched seeing teh way she looked at people.

He glanced at Alaric and whispered, "What did you do to her?" He then asked carefully, "Or rather what does she think you did?" He gave him a grin before having his robes tangle up making him fall on the ground. He looked back surprised seeing Gwen with a smirk. He frowned and said, "I'll get you during Quidditch." He smirked and she just kept walking. He shook his head standing up dusting himself off. He looked at Alaric. "You good?" He asked just tring to be nice at this point. He didn't want to have any bad relations with anyone. Being the type of person that normally got along with people, he disliked it greatly when someone didn't like him.

Gwen felt her hand in Rosina and smiled back at her. She looked at the Thestral and smiled at it softly leaning over and gently touching it's head. She had been able to see them since she was eleven. Her first year she had been the only one in her class to be able to see them. She hadn't understood why but then a few years ago she had figured it out. She felt the carriage stop and was about to exit with Rosina when she heard Alaric practically spit at her. She turned her head her eyes firey.

Hearing him say his words with such venom towards someone whom he didn't even know made her blood boil. "Could you maybe come to reality to realize that we haven't spoken a word." She spat back with just as much venom. "Or were you so much in your angst you didn't even notice that no one was speaking." She shook her head disgustedly. "Don't be rude to someone you know nothing about." She grabbed Rosina's hand and started to walk, before hearing him speaking again.

Without her best interest in mind she spun around. If she was an animal her fur would be bristling. She went up to him getting in his face just an inch from him. "What are you going to do if I don't?" She asked him. She knew it was the only first day but she didn't appreciate someone acting this way towards her for no reason. "Why don't you take a moment and reflect for a moment. No one spoke. Don't get pissy for something that hasn't happened. It's not cute." She turned around again and walked off grabbing Rosina's hand her eyes almost burning from the fact that he had the audacity to say something like that. What the hell was his problem. "Bollocks." She muttered under her breath. "Wanker." She kept just muttering under her breath. She knew for a fact that she had anger problems, but having people call her out on something that hadn't occurred made her just exasperated.

@ FlyAway;
Rosina felt herself smirk a little as Gwen unleashed on Alaric, or at least she’s pretty sure that’s who he was. She never really had any classes with Slytherins, so she never really bothered to learn any of their names. Rosina almost wasn’t sure what happened because it all happened so quickly. Gwen spun around that for a moment Rosina was afraid she’d have to punish her own friend for using magic. Instead, she was relieved that all she had to say was something sassy. She hovered, waiting for Gwen to finish him off.

Alaric rolled his eyes, “Ah yes. My ultimate goal in life is to be cute. You caught me,” he said. He pushed past them all, including Jason. He really didn’t care for the sympathy or to feign some sort of friendship with these people. He just wanted to go sit down and maybe see if there was anyone in all of Hogwarts that he really wanted to be friends with. He could practically feel Gwen fuming behind him, but he didn’t care. Let her be angry. Sometimes people like her and Rosina need to brought down a few levels.

“Gwen,” Rosina whispered, as they walked up the snowy banks. “Just let it go. He isn’t worth it, even if he is such a wanker.” For a moment, she almost felt bad for him. Alaric walked alone, his shoulders slumped down and it was almost like he cloud hanging over him. Rosina did pity him a bit. She wondered if he lost people too, in more ways than one. They had all lost someone. They all lost a sense of security, a sense of innocence. Maybe it’s just hard to pretend it was all normal again. At least, that’s how Rosina often felt.

“When we walk through these big wooden doors, we’re officially NEWT students. 6th years. Apparition tests and real challenging magic awaits us. Take it in, Gwen,” she said, stopping in front of the doors as Alaric slipped through with a large group of other students.

Alaric pushed forward, finding his seat haphazardly in the middle of the Slytherin table. He sighed. It looked so much emptier than before. Draco and Pansy were both gone. Who would be prefects now? Who had McGonagall selected? There was so much about this year that he didn’t know. He wanted so badly to shake off this foreboding feeling, but he couldn’t. There was so no way that it was all over. There was no possible way for everything to be normal, for Hogwarts to have a year of just education and nothing else. Harry Potter may have graduated and moved on, but he left more scars than he had himself. The Slytherin’s waning table was one of the deepest.

@ oldbook;
Jason knew he had messed up when he heard Gwen's remark. He cursed sighing, before shaking his head seeing Alaric walking away. He just couldn't make new friends it seemed. He didn't understand why he just didn't stick to his old friends. He knew they were great and all, but he couldn't help but feel as if something was missing. For a brief moment, he stood in the grass that seemed to be hidden beneath the glittering white snowflakes. Giving a shake of his head, he continued on. He sat down at the table and smiled with his friends once again, feigning the fact that he had just admitted to himself that they didn't give him the feeling of best friends. Watching the first years stumble him brought a smile to his face.

One corner of his mouth rose higher than the other, arranging his face in an awkward look brought from his crooked smile. Amazed, by the fact that everything looked the same, he was unable to shake the feeling that something was off. Smile fading, he disappeared into his thoughts, and the memories of last year, everyone fighting simply to survive, then finding out loved ones had fallen admist the battle. His heart began to race at the memories clouded amongst shadows. He shook it away hearing a loud clang. Turning his head, he saw McGonagall and knew everyone, as well as he, were all taken back to the great battle. Many things ended that day, but as a phoenix rising, he knew that something new had been brought to life.

Gwen rolled her eyes at his smart ass remark. "I'm pretty sure your ultimate goal is to be an ass to people that have done nothing to you." She shook her head watching as he walked away. Turning back to Jason she said, "We'll definitely finish this at Quidditch." She knew he was better than her, but he shouldn't have gotten into her business. "Next time, mind your own business, Monroe." She told him turning back around sighing as she walked with Rosina.

Hearing her say to let it go she hissed, "Fine, but I swear to god."She shook her head and sighed trying to make herself relax. "I'm fine. It's fine. Everything's fine." She said as she walked with her. Hearing Rosina she smiled softly, her features softening as she shrugged and said, "Magic is always challenging." Glancing up, Gwen closed her eyes whispering something to herself before smiling at Rosina and walking inside with her. She looked back at Rosina and said, "I wish we could sit together." She pouted before waving to her before going to her table. She sat down being greeted by no one. She sighed before resting her hand on her chin looking at the table before getting out her sketch book. She started to gently draw the features of someone. She didn't know who it was, but it was a faint memory as she drew their face. When she saw who it was, her features hardened as she snapped her book shut stuffing it into her robes.

Gwen noticed there were far less Slytherin's this year and that made her frown. She had always enjoyed their cunning minds, especially when she worked with them. She had had a friend in Slytherin, and now she was all alone. Her own shoulder slumped slightly as she looked down at her fingers. She shook her head looking back up watching the first years gather into one line and smiled softly. She remembered her first year -- the sorting hat had whispered to her telling her she had a dark soul and that she would do well in Slytherin, but she had always loved drawing and the creative side, and had begged the old ratty looking brown hat to put her in Ravenclaw. Now, as she glanced around looking towards the ceiling watching the grey clouds swirl around, the water droplets hitting an invisible barrier, she smiled biting her lip as she got her sketch book back out and started to draw the curves of the clouds smudging every now and then to get the detail she craved.

@ FlyAway;
Rosina gave Gwen a soft smile before parting ways with her. She headed to Hufflepuff table with a feeling of immense pride. Her house should basically be up to the reputation of Gryffindor at this point. She waltzed over and sat down amongst her few friends in Hufflepuff, Rodney included. They exchanged pleasantries about the summer, about recovering, about the expectations, and about OWLs. She did not realize until this moment how much she had missed her fellow Hufflepuffs. They were all so genuinely interested in each other and their kindness rated through the words and soft smiles. She was proud to wear yellow and black and be a prefect for this house.

The first years stumbled in, led by none another than the Hogwarts Games Keeper and professor, Hagrid. He was such a large and looming man that the first years looked even smaller and younger following behind him like little ducklings. She wished she could experience how it felt again to see Hogwarts for the first time, to look up at the ceiling in bewilderment. She would settle, at least, on looking at first years excited and scared faces. “See, told ya. They’re so cute when they’re little,” Rodney whispered and Rosina giggled.

Alaric leaned back in seat. He watched the first years struggle to make their way in and he smirked. They were led by Hagrid. Alaric scanned the table of professors, wondering who had replaced those lost. McGonagall moved to Dumbledores old spot, Flitwick, Sprout and Trelawney all remained in their seats. Three new faces were amongst the professors, probably Potions, Defense Against the Dark Arts, and Transfiguration. He sighed. Sorting was exciting, but it did take forever.

“Good evening,” McGonagall voice rang loudly. She looked exactly the same, sharp and intelligent with hawk like eyes. She wore shiny emerald robes and glasses perched on her nose. “I would like to welcome you all back to Hogwarts this year. I know we have faced many challenges, but I am positive that this year will be one of education and of growth, both personally and in the magical arts. Before the sorting begins, I would like to introduce some new staff. I would wait until the sorting was done, but these changes in staff are vital. Professor Bronwyn Craft, Defense Against the Dark Arts. Professor Osan Rex, Potions, and Professor Aurora Leblanc, Transfiguration. Professor Rex is now Head of Slytherin House. Professor Craft will take over my position of Head of Gryffindor House.”

The respective professors stood, waved politely, and returned to their seats. Alaric’s interest was peaked. He scanned over Professor Rex. He was a tall and lanky man with a mop of curls sitting on top of his head. He had a large nose and stubble. He took little notice of the other new professors. He had not gotten the grades to continue in Transfiguration and he cared even less about the Head of Gryffindor House.

“With those introductions complete, let us get on with our age old tradition. I shall let the Sorting Hat take us away,” McGonagall said, sitting gracefully back in her seat.

@ oldbook;
Jason smiled at Hagrid, but looked back as McGonagall started to speak and nodded his head. He studied the new professors, frowning at one of them since they appeared to look a little odd. He didn't mind odd teachers, he minded odd teachers teachers that were secretly evil, like almost all of the old one's he had had especially Umbridge. He shuddered with the thought of her toad like appearance, as well as the overwhelming amount of pink and all the cat pictures. Hearing that he had a new Gryffindor Head made him a little critical. Glancing over, he saw Craft and watched the way the man carried himself.

He was a redhead, but also had his hair almost slicked back as he looked at the people around his brown eyes and his hair almost as perfect as his face, as if chiseled from stone. He sighed shaking his head before looking back down at his food, hearing the rest of the first years being called. He cheered and dug into his food. He finished up and sighed as he grabbed his stuff heading up to the Gryffindor common room grinning when he saw the Fat Lady was back at it.

Gwendolyn watched listening to McGonagall speak a small smile coming onto her face as she glanced over seeing him looking towards the first years. He was quite a gentle giant and she hoped he wasn't lonely this year knowing the trio was gone along with the others in that class that were kind to him. Turning her head, she watched the sorting hat cheering whenever it called Ravenclaw. She blinked hearing that there were a lot of Slytherin's this year. She nodded gently knowing that it was fine since the Slytherin table had almost diminished. She gently cheered when a Slytherin was called before going back to her drawing.

Sighing, she didn't know what to do. She watched the new professors for a moment wondering how they had gotten chosen, but also knew that she didn't mind. She saw one of them looking at her, having met her eyes by sweeping the crowd. She gave a small smile before looking back down at her drawing. She looked around for a muse to sketch. She would paint it later. She noticed Peeves and took her pencil pressing the graphite to the paper starting to sketch his face, trying to make it seem as though he were an apparition in the drawing as he was in the real world. Finishing up, she smiled hearing that the last of the first years were done. She put her book up but it accidentally fell out of her bag, and she didnt notice. She started to eat her food once the feast began and stood up with the rest of her group her book full of her drawings laying open on the foor as she had been sketching the train before she had gotten on.

Gwen made her way up the stairs and wondered if she could just stay out of her common room for awhile and then go and sleep. They thought she didn't hear their small whisperings about her and about how much of a freak she was. All of them forgot that she heard everything. All the awful words they said. She had to pretend they didn't get to her, and had to make herself feel like they didn't hurt her. She went into the library and watched the clouds.

It seemed like the sorting went far faster than it ever had before. Alaric felt such joy when there were more Slytherins at the table. It almost renewed his faith in his house. These wizards were so young. They had to be untainted from the world or at least not as tainted as the rest of them. After the sorting came the feast and some beginning semester remarks and the regular rules repeated. Somehow, it still felt strange that Dumbledore was not speaking these words. McGonagall was amazing though and he had to respect her for that.

Alaric pushed himself up from the table and walked the whole way down to the Slytherin common room. He whispered the password (serpents sleep) into the wall and felt an immediate sense of relief. The common room was a awash in soft blue light from the lake. He climbed down the stairs to his room and was greeted by three new faces.

“Alaric, man. It’s so nice to see you. How are you? I thought you weren’t here,” his roommate, Paxton said.

Alaric smiled, “Yeah, I’m sorry I didn’t see you either. Did you not come to the feast?” He asked.

“No, I just came here. Just felt weird. I’m going to bed. Night man,” he said, hopping into bed and pulling the covers up. Alaric followed suit. He changed quickly and slid back into bed. He pulled the curtain around his bed closed and laid his head back on the pillow. Maybe if he stayed right here, everything would stay the same. He wondered where the other two students will be or if first years were going to be joining the two empty beds in this room. After a little while, he heard two people bustle into the room and quietly get into bed. Eventually, the room settled and the only sound was that of Paxton’s gentle snoring.

Rosina cheered gleefully as more Hufflepuffs joined the table. She laughed and caught her roommates (Vanessa, Marjorie, Lea, and Courtney) all about her summer. She felt suddenly less anxious about this semester. It felt like falling back into the same old patterns that they have always been involved in. Rosina gorged herself on the food. Her mother wasn’t much cook, so it was nice to be back at Hogwarts where the food was delicious and the laughter seemed to be boundless now. When her stomach was quite full and mouth hurt from smiling, she listened to the final remarks before standing.

“First years, follow me, please,” she called loudly. She heard Rodney calling as well and the other prefects. A small group of them joined around her. “So, if you’ll follow me please. Keep up!” She moved quickly towards the kitchen and the smell of cinnamon from the dessert from this evening still wafted in the air. She smiled and glanced behind her to watch the continued shock on their little faces.

“So, if you’ll pay attention. This stack here is how you get into the common room. If you look two from the bottom, middle second row. You tap on this with your wand Hel-ga Huff-le-pufff. 1-2, 1-2-3. Got it?” She said with a smile as the door slid open. “Room assignments are the on the board by the fire. Have a good night. Classes start tomorrow,” she said with a smile.

She climbed up the stairs, letting the fifth year prefects deal with any room problems. She walked into her room and jumped into bed. She had to get to sleep. Tomorrow was going to be a great day. She just knew it. “Night ladies,” she said to her roommate, turning over and falling quickly asleep.

@ FlyAway;

@ oldbook;
Jason spoke with the Fat Lady for a few minutes before telling her good night. He headed into the common room and popped his neck sighing and stretching before seeing his things back in their rightful place. He grinned and brushed his teeth figuring he was going to go to bed soon. He had been ecstatic to see that there were several Gryffindor newcomers. He spoke with his roommates for quite a while for falling asleep.

In the morning he yawned waking to the sound of chatter. He stood up and stretched. He went into the bathroom taking a quick shower before coming back and changing into his robes. He dried off his hair before combing it gently. He then messed it back up laughing as it laid the way it always did. He shrugged and grabbed his satchel. He started towards the great hall. Once there, he set his things down and sat down at the Gryffindor table beginning to get his food on his plate and wondered when they were to get their schedules knowing it was going to be more than a little hectic. He hoped he had Defense Against The Dark Arts later in the day so he could end his day on a good note.

Gwen watched the stars and the moon and smiled listening to the rain. After a while she stood gathering her things. She went into the common room and went upstairs to her room she shared. She saw Franklin and let him out giggling when he immediately wrapped himself around her shoulders and snuggled before laying his head down. She kissed his little head and smiled before sitting down on her bed. She heard her roommates speaking and knew they didn't like her. She could always hear them whispering about her when they thought she was asleep or couldn't hear her. She sighed and then set Franklin down before changing into a tank top and a pair of shorts.

She crawled back into bed letting Franklin nestle himself on her chest and smiled before pulling her blanket over her and kissed him once more before falling asleep. She awoke in the morning and found Franklin still curled up on her. She smiled down at him lovingly and then let him lay on the bed as she took a shower getting her own robes on. She dried her beautiful dark hair before putting some eyeliner on since she was normally wearing it. She grabbed her bag and shoved her sketch book into it before heading to the Great Hall. She grabbed a quick breakfast and then started towards where she knew the schedules were. She grabbed hers so as to avoid the crowd and hummed as she looked over it. Her classes were; Potions, Astronomy, Defense Against The Dark Arts, Herbology, Alchemy, Apparition, and Care of Magical Creatures. She smiled knowing she was going to like all of her classes but probably not apparition. She shrugged before nodding at the professor who gave her her schedule. She hummed going down towards the basement to get to potions.

@ FlyAway;
Rosina woke in the morning with an exasperated sigh. Even though she was excited to start classes, she was exhausted. She rose, chattered with her roommates as they dressed. She pressed her prefect pin onto her robes with a surge of pride, once more. She smiled, “Gonna go make sure the little ones will be ready soon.” She walked out of her room then.

“First years,” she called, “Classes begin at 9:30am. Schedules can be found in the Great Hall during breakfast. I’d suggest getting there early. If anyone is ready, they can follow menow” she hollered. A group of girls were gathering by the door. She smiled at them and beckoned for them to follow her. She then, quickly, exited the common room and lead the way to the Great Hall.

She walked over to the schedules with her group. “We’ll just wait a minute and then grab ours. They’re separated by house and year. So yours will be in that box,” she said, pointing to the black and yellow box labeled with a 1. She went to the box labeled 6 and searched for her own. With excitement,
she opened the schedule. Eventually, she knew that Aparation would be an option, but not until Spring. Either way, she was excited for her schedule:

Double potions
Transfiguration
Charms
Lunch
DADA
Ancient Runes
Herbology
Care of Magical Creatures

Alaric awoke, grumbled to himself because his new roommates were loudly clattering around the room. Frustrated, he threw the curtains open and grabbed his robes from his trunk. He got dressed quickly, ignoring everyone in the room. Before he left, he smacked Paxton. “Wake up,” he said as he headed to the Great Hall.

The Great Hall smelled like syrup and coffee which, actually, made him feel quite happy. What started as a rotten and loud morning suddenly felt like it was turning up. He had made it to breakfast before too many people. He sat down, drinking a cup of coffee and reading a leftover copy of the Daily Prophet. He munched on some toast as he read and relished the lack of people in the Hall at this time. In fact, he ate quickly to make sure he left before they all came. He finished and walked over to the schedule box:

Potions
Astronomy
DADA
Herbology
Lunch
Alchemy
Charms
Care of Magical Creatures

He decided it wasn’t bad and with rotating classes through the weekdays, he had a couple breaks each day. As he scanned his schedule, Rosina and a group of Hufflepuffs walked over. He rolled his eyes, walked away from them and headed along towards the Potions room. He plopped down into a seat, a little early, but attempted to ignore everyone in the room.

Rosina, excitedly once again, ate, made sure the first years weren’t too confused and then grabbed her books. She descended the steps towards the Potions classroom. Upon arrival, she noted that Gwen was in the class. She almost squealed and ran over to the other seat next to her friend.

“Oh I’m so excited to see you! What else is on your schedule?” She said, dumping her stuff onto the table. In the past Hufflepuffs had more classes with Gryffindors than Ravenclaw, but still they had some. She hoped that McGonagall, in an attempt to lessen the conflict, had allow students to mix more freely in class. When she looked around, it did seem like a healthy mix of students in class.

Alaric resisted the urge to huff at them. He, of course, had to sit behind Rosina and Gwen. He didn’t want to listen to them chatter, but after last night, he didn’t have the energy to argue with Gwen. If anything, he could at least show her and Rosina up at potions (this was his one Outstanding). He did peak his ears a little bit to listen to the rest of their schedules.

@ oldbook;
Jason yawned as he got down into the great hall. He drank four cups of orange juice and finally felt himself actually awake. He ate his food before grabbing his schedule. He frowned seeing that he had been put into Ancient Ruins. He groaned before shouldering his pack and starting towards his class. He was a little iffy with his schedule considering it was; Potions, Transfiguration, Charms, Lunch, DADA, Ancient Ruins, Herbology, and Care of Magical Creatures. He was excited about a few of them, and the other ones that he didn't really care for were just there. He waved towards his friends with a friendly smile. He was last one getting into potions and saw only one chair open and it was beside Alaric. He sighed before going over and plopping down into it.

Looking at Rosina and he poked her before scooting his chair closer to the table as he asked, "How did you do on your OWLS?" He had a small smile on his face and a certain kind of mischievous gleam in his eye. He noticed Gwen had put her hair up and was a little taken aback about how pretty she was. He shook his head before looking back at Rosin thinking that she was prettier, but he figured she'd want Rodney or at least was dating him already. He watched her waiting for her answer. He hoped the Quidditch season would go well for Gryffindor this year. He knew that it was going to be difficult since they had to have a new seeker now that Harry was gone. He just hoped that he didn't carry the team as much as it was thought. He turned his attention back to Rosina a sweet smile on his face as he pushed his hair out of his face.

"I got Excellent on most of them. I got an outstanding in Defense Against The Dark Arts." Jason explained to her. "I don't know how though." He admitted shrugging. He knew it was his favorite class, but he also knew that Rosina excelled at it. Though, he didn't know if she got the spell portion of it down correctly. He figured there were many possibilities and he shrugged before saying, "I'm sure you'll do better on NEWTS." He laughed smiling before fixing his robes lightly feeling them having been tangled.

(Ignore Apparition and replace it with Charms so that her and Alaric will have matching schedules xD)

Gwendolyn hummed softly as she drew one of the beakers in front of her. She bit her lip before whispering a charm a smile coming onto her face as she watched the paper turn into a ferret and watched it scuttle around the table. She giggled a small blush coming onto her cheeks as she watched it. She hadn't even noticed Alaric sit down beside her, she was so consumed with watching the ferret. She didn't mind though, she thought of Franklin and sighed. It was such a pity that he couldn't come to classes with her, but she knew why considering they would be testing out spells all day mostly.

Hearing Rosina's voice she laughed hearing her friend and smiled and said, "I have Potions, Astronomy, DADA, Herbology, Lunch, Alchemy, Charms, and then Care of Magical Creatures." She told her friend with a smile. "I can't wait for Alchemy. It's my favorite class." She admitted. "That and Astronomy. Oh - I like all of them." She told her with a grin. "I've been waiting to get my hands on potion stuff all summer and finally i'm back." She laughed. Looking up she smiled and said, "I debated putting art on my schedule, but I've already taken it three times." She shrugged before looking back at her, "What's your schedule?" She gave her a smile as she did so and waited for her to speak. She didn't even realize she was still controlling the ferret and didn't notice as it had gone behind her. She gassped suddenly remembering in time to save Alaric from being attacked. "I'm sorry." She said not looking at him she was looking at the paper. When she looked up she blinked and said, "It's you. You're Alaric, right?" She asked him, tilting her head gently. She didn't know why but she felt like he was more than his witty comments.

Gwen pushed away her hair before figuring she would tie it up considering it was a potions class. She grabbed her hair tie before gathering all of her hair and gently putting it into a pony tail at the top of her hed. With her hair out of her face, you could now easily see her jawline that marked where her skull was as well as her gorgeous features. She looked at him waiting for a response.

@ FlyAway;
Rosina smiled at Gwen, listening intently to her schedule. “Hm, okay. It looks like this is our only class together. At least it’s a double period! We’ve barely ever had classes, aside from art. This is really exciting,” she said, with an even bigger smile. “And yeah, I understand. If you like art, take it! It won’t hurt you and maybe you can talk to Professor and if she can give you harder challenges, you know?”

Alaric sighed when Jason sat next to him. He realized it was the only spot in the class, but Jason was already trying to do some weird nice-guy routine. It was only going to get worse if they were sitting next to each other. It was like he pitied him a little which was something that he really did not need. For a moment though, when looking at Jason, Alaric wondered if he should try out for the Quidditch team again now that it was lacking. Within minutes, Alaric was confirmed in Jason’s nice guy routine when he reached out to Rosina.

Rosina stopped when she heard Jason’s voice. She was surprised. Her and Jason never really talked, despite have many classes together. Sometimes they battled against each others to answer questions, but not something so casual. She corked a brow as he explained his grades on his owls. Was this another competition that she wasn’t even aware of? He looked a little nervous which was also surprising.

“Um, I got all O’s, except for DADA and Alchemy. I dropped Alchemy, wasn’t my thing. Got an excellent in DADA. That’s really brilliant of you to get an Outstanding though,” she said. She really did mean it. She was trying to feel a bit less competitive. They were all just trying to do their best and succeed and become, like, real people. She wanted to do well, but she wasn’t as worried about doing better than others anymore. “I’m sure that you’ll do well on NEWTs too and in Quidditch this year. What position are you again?” She asked. She used to pay attention, but when Harry Potter played it was hard to watch the other players, especially if they were not Hufflepuffs.

Rosina was distracted though when Alaric jumped backwards, almost knocking his chair over. She wanted to laugh a little because she knew that Gwen's ferret was harmless. Yet, Alaric's face was twisted with disgust and shock. Others in the class were laughing a little and that made it even harder to stifle the laughter. Gwen was holding her ferret as it fidgeted in her hands. “Dude,” Alaric said, looking down at the ferret a little disgusted as his face grew hot. “He was going straight for my fingers. Shouldn’t you get better control over your animals?” He spat, ignoring her question.

@ oldbook;
Jason didn't try to be a nice guy, he just liked making friends. He tilted his head listening to her and said, "I don't want to try Alchemy, it doesn't look like it would be much fun." He frowned before looking back at her and nodded hearing her. "My one Outstanding compared to your five is a little outdone." He laughed and said, "But thank you." He nodded listening and said, "I don't know if I will or not. I play as a chaser." He laughed shrugging. "We rack up points to give the seeker a chance to get the snitch." He told her with a smile as he waited for her to speak.

He spoke with her casually laughing every now and then, knowing that they were the few people he really knew in the class. He heard Alaric jump back and saw a ferret and blinked. "Have we learned that?" He asked and was surprised when she shook her head and said, "That's bloody brilliant." He noticed that Alaric did not think so. He blinked and said, "It's not a real ferret, dude." He nodded his head at it.

Gwen heard Alaric and flinched. "It's paper." She muttered sighing. "My real ferret is upstairs. Try not to look so disgusted." She saw the disgusted look on his face, her own face getting hot and she just turned around ignoring him. She answered Jason and blinked hearing him say it was brilliant and just shrugged before sighing and taking the charm off of the paper watching as it fell lifeless onto her page. She had made it come to life from her drawing, but now it was back to paper. She took her pencil out from behind her ear and started to sketch. She ignored everything around her. She shook her head trying to get his face out of her head.

Gwendolyn shook her head ignoring them as the class started. The new Head of Slytherin's was their teacher. She smiled softly hearing him ask them to make a simple potion. She had it memorized from making it so many times. She had it done in record time before going back to sketching. She was drawing Winston the cat at the moment. She bit her lip trying to recal the way his eyes looked. Their glassy orb like eyes were a challenge to draw and make realistic. She enjoyed it, though. She smiled as she continued to draw before she had a nearly identical drawing of Winston. She turned and showed it to Rosina, her drawing being seen from the seat behind her as she showed her. She said, "I thought his whiskers were the hardest part." She laughed with her friend a smile on her face.

@ oldbook;
Alaric was embarrassed, his face heating up when he realized none of it was real. He gave a scathing look to Jason as he laughed. He didn’t think any of it was funny and it only made him feel even more embarrassed. He crossed his arms and leaned back in his chair once more. He didn’t want

When the commotion between Alaric and Gwen settled, Rosina turned back to Jason. Rosina smiled at Jason and laughed a little. Usually, she (like Gwen) would snap at people. She did this especially when people would underestimate her because she was a girl; sports were a trigger for her. She had to remind herself that Jason was just trying to be nice. She had asked after all. She was trying to be more positive and open this year, so this was probably a good start. Besides, she actually appreciated the athleticism involved in Quidditch, although she was the farthest thing from athletic. In fact, she was the farthest thing from graceful. She was smart and artistic, but clumsy. So, if Jason was able to play Quidditch in such an essential role than she had to appreciate his skill.

“I know what Chasers do. I just wasn’t sure what you did,” she said, a little sass coming her as she smirked. She would have said more and egged him on a little more. Before she could, Professor Rex came in. He greeted the students politely and wrote the instructed potion on the door. Rosina knew the potion was simple, but she felt a flutter of nerves in her stomach. For whatever reason, she wondered how well Jason would do and if she had to beat him. Though she felt herself feeling a little embarrassed because she wasn’t sure if it was competition or to impress him. She flicked her braid behind her and began stirring her potion (4 turns clockwise).

Alaric was actually quite skilled at potions, so now that his face finally cooled down, he could focus. Plus, like the past, the potions instructor was a Slytherin. Inherently, that made him feel more comfortable. The potion he asked for was simple, a potion made for a 3rd year and not an OWL student. He wondered if this was a test of some kind, but figured he better stick to basic technique. The better he can prepare the potion, the more likely the new professor will recognize him and he felt like he needed some academic confirmation when he was surrounded by Gwen, Rosina, and Jason. His insecurities were poking him, like a pin in his robes that he can’t find. He finished eventually and leaned back in his chair, lifting up onto two legs.

Rosina couldn’t help but glance at Gwen after she finished. “Show off,” she muttered.

@ oldbook;
Jason saw his look before rolling his eyes and then said, "Glare at me all you want. It won't make me stop being nice to you, so get used to it." He then turned back quite annoyed at Alaric to face Rosina. He heard her and it was his turn to look embarassed. "Sorry, I didn't mean for that to sound like I was belittling you." He rubbed the back of his head and then smiled at her. He watched her for a moment before looking up at professor Rex. He nodded knowing he should be able to make the potion.

Somewhere along the way, it went wrong and he frowned to himself. He saw that Rosina's was looking perfect and that Gwen and Alaric were pretty much done at the same time. He sighed and shook his head. He glanced at Alaric and then put his pride aside and asked, "Would you mind helping me?" He didn't want to ask Rosina because he knew she wasn't done yet. "Or at least, tell me where I've gone wrong?" He bit down on his lip as he looked down at his potion. It was a dark murky color and he was sure it wasn't supposed to be as coagelated as it was. He frowned once more, hoping that Alaric would help him. Hearing the professor he flushed with embarassment at his own potion and said, "You three are brilliant and mine just looks like something out of the terrible lagoon."

Gwen heard Rosina and blinked before smiling softly, "I don't mean to. I just like to finish quickly so I can draw." She gave her a smile. "That's why I was always last to finish in art." She watched her potion and said, "It looks great." She gave her a smile happily. She heard Jason asking Alaric for help and glanced back to see if he would help. Professor Rex was going around the room inspecting the potions. He looked at Gwen's and then at Alaric's and was quite surprised. "You are my two top students. I would like you two to be partners in the future." Gwen bit down on her lip almost to the point of drawing blood.

Glancing back at Alaric she just gave the professor and nod before turning to see his reaction. She frowned before shaking her head and looked back down at her sketch. She looked at Rosina and muttered, "I think yours is much better than mine." She sighed shaking her head. She looked at the ceiling before looking back down and making the paper ferret come back and her face changed. The wrinkles on her forehead disappeared as well as any frown she had before and she smiled almost giggling and blushing as she watched the ferret run around on her desk and chase it's own tail.

@ FlyAway;
Alaric watched Jason out of the corner of his eyes and rolled his eyes. He was watching Jason as he went, wondering if he could hack it at the OWL level. Obviously, he must be mildly good at potions otherwise he wouldn’t have made it this far. Alaric just liked to watch because if there was one strength he had, it was potions. He bit the inside of his lip when Jason asked for help. He made some sort of self-depreciating joke, comparing himself to the rest of them. Rosina was still working, though she was doing quite well. Alaric noted the swirls of black steam coming from her cauldron which indicated she was almost done.

“You forgot to add the bicorn horn again. You added 1/3 in the beginning, but you have to add the another 1/3 before stirring. You can still add it now and stir it counter-clockwise until it turns black instead of brown, and smooth,” he said, passively. In time, Jason’s potion seemed to settle and he was back on track. “Now just keep reading carefully and you’re almost done. See the steam from Rosina’s potion, when you get that you add the last bit of the bicorn horn and it’s done.”

As he said, Rosina tossed in her bicorn horn and the color shifted from a deep back to a magenta. She glanced at the instructions, knowing that she was done now. She transferred it into a potion bottle and pressed the cork inside. She felt triumphant, even if she hadn’t finished early. She was still successful and that was what really mattered. “I know you don’t. It’s okay! I’m glad you have time to draw,” she said with a smile. She sat back down, awaiting Professor Rex.

Professor Rex walked through the desk, assessing the students’ Pepperpup Potions. Madam Pomfrey needed more of the potion and he thought it was the perfect opportunity to see the different levels of the students. Some of them he was surprised by their inability, but others really surprised him. This included Gwen and Alaric. He mentioned them sitting next to each other. He also offered praise to Rosina and Jason, who executed a perfect potion in less time. He moved on quickly as his suggestions were not up for debate. Alaric bit the inside of his lip again and stared at Gwen’s ferret drawing. Her charm was impressive, but annoying. If that was a constant thing, he was suddenly going to hate potions.

“Whatever,” he said with a shrug.

Eventually, the class concluded and everyone sighed. Some of their classmates looked frazzled and others beamed with success. Professor Rex smiled at the students. “I am so proud of all of you. You have worked really hard and I am glad to see your levels of skills. I’d like you all to read in your book One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi and identify the healing properties of bicorn horn. Thank you. Oh, and 10 points to Slytherin and Ravenclaw for such successful potion making, Alaric and Gwendolyn.” With that, class was dismissed.

Rosina glanced back at Jason. “Off to Transfiguration?” She asked, offering him a small smile. “Bye, Gwen. See you at lunch!” She called, grabbing her things and waiting for Jason to walk off with. Alaric lifted himself off his chair, lazily grabbing his books. He sighed, frustrated he had to climb the stairs to astronomy in the middle of the day. Either way, he made the trek with his head down.