There were a few more owls than usual this morning in the Great Hall. Being a Sunday, there were generally plenty, but three owls who were not regular visitors came to Hogwarts, delivering an envelope, a parcel, and a small package.
Flora Winterstead was now a grown witch, turning seventeen three weeks after the start of first term of her seventh year. She smiled as the three owls dropped off their deliveries to her place at Slytherin table. She looked at the envelope first, that was the polite thing to do, and her gran would give her a stern look if she were at Hogwarts with her.
Inside the envelope was a handmade card from her gran. Flora's mother was muggleborn, making her gran a muggle. Flora smiled. Growing up with both magical and muggle cultures, Flora learned to appreciate the two of them. Flora opened the card and there was a small paragraph of how her gran was so happy and proud, leaving a little 'I love you' at the end before her signature looped underneath.
Flora untied the string holding the parcel to find a new dress from her father. Being the daughter of a Winterstead, a respectable name in the British wizarding world and her father, Carson Winterstead, being the Head of the Department of Defense, Flora sometimes had to make appearances and had to maintain a status quo of Winterstead being a name of success.
She opened the box to find an arrangement of teas and coffees from around the world, magical and muggle. Flora's grandfather, Clyde Winterstead, enjoyed his retirement travelling the world, muggle and wizarding, where he would find peculiar things. Flora found a little note in the box that read.
'Some of these teas will come in handy for a powerful young woman such as yourself, I trust you'll use them well.
Have a wonderful birthday, and beware of your new defense against the dark arts teacher, your father has angrily ranted and raved about her for the past twenty years, I hope you don't find out why from her.
Best of luck,
Your giddy grandfather.
P.S., Grandma Lucy wants a family reunion come Christmas, I hope you are ready for quite a holiday.'
Flora smiled and put all her gifts away before returning to her common room to put them away. She took a quick glance in the mirror before leaving the Slytherin common room for her first class of the day.
N.E.W.T. potions.
Flora, being a Slytherin, had an easy time in any potions class. She was talented in potions, she had to be to reach the O expectation Professor Snape had for his N.E.W.T. students.
Flora actually got along well with her house head, probably because she was a modestly intelligent Slytherin who didn't cause trouble. Flora never had so much as a detention during her time at Hogwarts. Most thought it was because she was a goodie-two-shoes. In reality, it was because she was mostly a well behaved young woman, but when she did commit vice, she was smart enough not to get caught.
Flora entered the classroom and set her book bag down at her assigned seat. She was early, like always, reading any and all notes her potions professor had up on the board. Flora sat patiently as her other few classmates came in, sitting down and taking a mental note of what was on the board.
Then Professor Snape entered the room.
Severus Snape was not a beautiful man, most would call him ugly. Even with his long, greasy hair, sallow skin, and overlarge, hooked nose, he had intrigue. Flora was drawn to him, attracted to him.
Was it his height? Was it the fact he had been a strong, supportive figure through a very formative time of her transition from childhood to adulthood? Was it the soothing depth and calmness of his voice when he praised her potions and academic efforts? Was it her going completely mad?
Either way, Flora was confused about her feelings for her professor. Surely they would go away after she left Hogwarts. Flora, for now, had a dull ache for her professor she had since she started her fifth year.
Perhaps her attraction to her professor was a fantasy of rebellion from the demands her mother and father placed on her. Behave, excel in your exams, talk to the right people, don't disappoint your family and ruin their reputation. Perhaps Flora's fantasy was to be found by her father and all of his ministry friends in her potion professor's office bent over his desk and-
"Today, we will be making the draught of living death." Professor Snape said before Flora could finish the often visited thought in her head.
Flora listened to her Professor explain the potion and waited for him to give the page number. Once he did, Elizabeth used a spell so she didn't have to flip through the pages, read the instructions, her lips mouthing the words, and she got out her ingredients to make the potion.
She worked silently, as did everyone else, but she was more concentrated, more aware, and taking a peek at the instructions to make sure she was doing everything right.
When finished with her potion, she waited. Professor Snape tested each potion by dropping a small maple leaf.
"It would seem that Mr. Fitzpatrick and Miss Winterstead have two equally excellent draughts. Fifteen points to Ravenclaw and Slytherin." Professor Snape finished with before the bells rang. Flora packed her things and went to her next, and most awkward class.
Defense against the dark arts.
Professor Umbridge did everything in her power to create an unspoken tension between her and Flora. Flora hated it, especially as she was reading from a textbook and not actively using spells. She would much rather have Professor Dumbledore grant Professor Snape the position as the defense against the dark arts teacher and made Professor Umbridge potion's professor.
After Professor Umbridge sentenced two Gryffindors and a trio of laughing Slytherins to a week's detention, she also called Flora up to her office after class, despite Flora not doing a single thing wrong.
Once class was over, Flora did her best to ignore her nausea. Was the fact she got a warning from her grandfather about Professor Umbridge and now was called to her office on the same day a coincidence? She hoped it was.
Flora sat and waited for Professor Umbridge to shut the door behind her and took her seat at her desk. Flora looked around. The room was too immature to be called feminine, but it was too filled with antiquities like old hand painted, moving cat plates to be called girly.
"Miss Winterstead. Your father is Carson Winterstead, is that correct?" Professor Umbridge asked.
"Yes, professor." Flora answered.
"And your mother being Helen Winterstead?" Profesor Umbridge asked another question. Flora simply nodded this time. "The ministry has a sharp eye on your parents. More your mother than your father. I'm sure you know your mother's involvement with the Order of the Phoenix."
"She was once a part of it, professor." Flora corrected.
"Wrong." Professor Umbridge said plainly. Flora looked up at her professor confused. "Your mother has obviously been hiding from you that she had reunited with the Order of the Phoenix. Your father has reported this to the ministry out of duty."
"What has this to do with me?" Flora asked. She kept her appalled annoyance out of her voice, but it was building up inside of her the more she had to look and listen to the old toad.
"I have been asked by our Minister of Magic to investigate whether you have any involvement in this new reunion of the Order of the Phoenix." Professor Umbridge said.
"I'd like to think that our minister would have the common sense to piece together that someone who has turned seventeen today would have had any involvement beforehand with a magic organization." Flora said flatly. She watched Professor Umbridge get a visible twinge of irritation not at the tone of her voice, but when she eventually pieced together and understood the meaning of Flora's words.
"There are several underage witches and wizards involved with the Order of the Phoenix as we speak. It is not unreasonable to think you might be among them." Professor Umbridge's voice had the slightest bit of heat.
"Actually, it is. If my father reported my mother to the ministry, wouldn't have he reported me?" Flora asked.
"Clever, but I am sure that the father would give his wife's name to the ministry before he gave his child's name." Professor Umbridge said.
"Just slip some veritaserum in my water goblet and be done with it." Flora said. "I do have other classes, my next one being transfiguration, which I enjoy very much. Can you please not drag this out?"
"Be careful what you wish for, Miss Winterstead, you might just get it." Professor Umbridge said before filling out a pass for Flora and handing it to her. Flora took it gently.
"Have a good day, Professor Umbridge." Flora said, knowing flattery would improve her reputation with her defense against the dark art's professor. Flora walked out the door and to her next class.
She would be having a very long discussion with her parents come Christmas.