She was not a pretty girl. Millicent had never thought that she was, and throughout her life she had been reminded of that fact by several others. She always wondered what it was that made people feel the need to remind her that she was not pretty; did they think she hadn't noticed? She shrugged, picking at her school robes, and leaned back against the stone wall. It didn't mean much at the moment, expect that once again she was the last to be thought of when partners were being chosen. For a House built on ambition there were far too many Slytherins who looked at appearances rather than substance. They weren't much better than the sheep from Hufflepuff that shared this class.
She ignored the petty squabbling and started working on the assignment, on her own, instead. She had learned that to seek out a partner from a position of weakness only led to more trouble, so whomever was left after the others made their declarations would be forced to seek her out. She would be ready, and she would also be prepping the required work. It would give her an advantage.
It was surprising then that she didn't have to wait out the movement of her classmates before someone approached her. Susan Bones looked her right in the eye and asked if she would partner for the assignment, and Millie found herself nodding agreement before she had consciously made the decision.
"Good, you seem to be one of the few who actually knows what they are doing in this class." Susan gave her a sly smile and glanced over the work table, "Mind if I get the rest of our tools?" She didn't wait for an answer this time, immediately seeking the cabinet that held the advanced arithmancy charts.
Millie sat back, watching her new partner and wondered if perhaps not all Hufflepuff were sheep after all. Bones might actually be interesting.