It was quite obvious to Cora that when Katrina entered Herbology she was still in a very, very bad mood. She hardly talked, no matter how many times Cora tried to strike a conversation, and it was honestly getting on the poor Hufflepuff's nerves. She held her tongue, however, knowing that surely next period Katrina would be accompanied by the twins and could only hope that they would apologize.
Transfiguration began with the usual silence as Professor McGonagall stood before her desk. Today, though, the quiet was suffocating. With it being the start of their Fifth Year, the Gryffindors and Ravenclaws all knew that they were about to be lectured about the dreaded Ordinary Wizarding Level Exams.
"Good morning," McGonagall began, pursing her lips like she did every day. The classroom dare not reply.
"As you all know, this is the year that you begin your OWL Examinations. I trust that each and every one of you pass, including you, Misters Weasley," she stared sternly at the twins, who merely grinned in response. Katrina grimaced. "You will study, you will participate, and you will pass. We will be learning Evanesco this year, or the Vanishing Spell. Jordan, pass a snail to every student as I demonstrate —"
Katrina's attention was swiftly drawn away from McGonagall as something hit the side of her head. Pausing a moment and clenching her jaw, she turned and saw Fred and George raising their eyebrows at her expectantly, subtly levitating paper balls with their wands.
"What?" Katrina whispered coldly. They grinned.
"That was brilliant, what you said to Percy," Fred breathed, leaning over the gap between their tables with an air of admiration.
"I told him to bugger off," she mumbled back and furrowing her brow.
"Yes, and it was genius," George continued, propping himself on his brother's back. "We applaud you as to being the first girl to stand up to his fat arse."
They pretended to clap quietly and grinned ear to ear as they noticed Katrina's mouth twitching.
"Don't take anything he says seriously though, love," Fred whispered with what he believe was a meaningful look, but Katrina, not understanding, only cocked a brow. "He's a bloody prat is all."
"I was under the impression you Gryffindors are all bloody prats," she said. The twins and Lee, who had just handed them their snails, frowned.
"As we were about all Ravenclaws being snobby know-it-alls." Katrina inhaled sharply and glared dangerously at George, whose frown deepened.
Lee handed her a snail, and Katrina pointedly looked at it instead of the twins. She willed herself to focus on McGonagall's demonstration, but failed as Fred and George's eyes bore into her mind.
Raising her wand, she began to recite "Evanes —", but was interrupted as another paper ball hit her temple. Frustration rising, she faced the boys with cheeks aflame.
"What in the name of Merlin's beard do you two want?"
"To say sorry," the chorused.
Katrina was clearly taken aback and closed her mouth the minute she realized it was open.
"E-excuse me?"
"Well," said George, straightening himself, "You were clearly upset by something at Breakfast."
"Dunno what about," Fred continued, propping his elbow on his knee and supporting his chin, "but we figured we probably caused it."
"Why would you want to say sorry, though?"
"You were a trifle distraught, love," Fred replied, raising his own eyebrow at her. "That's what people do, you know, apologize after they've done something wrong."
"Oh," Katrina murmured softly, staring down at her snail and allowing any anger or stubbornness to evaporate. "Then — er — thanks, I guess. . . ."
"No problem," George replied, grinning once again with Fred.
"Misters Weasley!" McGonagall suddenly shouted, and the two of them looked up at her rather lazily. "I do hope you're conversing about the useful properties of the Vanishing Spell with Ms. Rhinehart?"
"No," they replied. McGonagall's lips formed a thinner line than before, if it was possible. Katrina felt her whole face burn as she absentmindedly turned her wand in her fingers.
"Then surely you would gratefully write me a twelve-inch essay of the importance of Evanesco due tomorrow!"
"Alright," they smiled, leaning into their chairs and folding their arms behind their heads in unison.
"Ten points from Gryffindor," the professor said reluctantly.
By the end of the period, Katrina has successfully vanished two snails. Fred had half a snail left, while George's and Lee's had both lost a quarter of a shell. Professor McGonagall was sincerely impressed with all of them (though she didn't tell the twins so) and said that, at their current rate, they should be vanishing mice in the next two weeks.
"Next is Charms," Lee said as their group of four shuffled out of the Transfiguration classroom. "We'll be able to talk in there, Flitwick doesn't mind it as much as the other teachers, I don't think."
"It's because he's the most understanding," Katrina replied haughtily, smiling as they turned a corner. "He's the Ravenclaw Head of House, you know. He's got these little cakes for when you get upset, makes them dance around for you. Only does it for us though, knows that we wouldn't be so brash as to fake it."
Fred, George, and Lee snorted. "What?" Katrina asked.
"As if, Katrina!" Lee replied, "Just because you Ravenclaws are supposedly smart, it doesn't mean that you can't have a few lying gits here or there —"
"Supposedly?" she inquired with a small, unbelieving smile. "Lee, that's our main prospect! Every Ravenclaw is intelligent as to every Gryffindor is brave, likewise, every Hufflepuff is loyal while every Slytherin is ambitious!"
"Yes," chimed George, "but that doesn't mean there can't be a bad apple here or there, does it?"
"I suppose," Katrina grumbled as they entered an outside courtyard. "Wait a moment, what are we doing here?"
"Going to Charms," the three of them replied.
"But this is in the opposite direction!"
"No it's not," Lee said as they continued on to a far wall, entering a different corridor. There was a portrait there, where a man stood with his dog. "Hello, Giffard!"
"Good day!" replied the portrait of Giffard Abbot. Katrina was still clearly confused.
Fred rolled his eyes. "Dragon's Egg," he told the portrait, and it swung open obediently. Raising her brow, Katrina followed as the boys filed into the small passageway and, withing moments, found herself on one of the many marble landing in the Grand Staircase. She may have been gaping a bit.
"I never knew that was there!" she said airily in awe, looking at Lee, Fred, and George with wide, bright eyes. "How'd you know of it?"
"Oh, you know —" Fred began.
"Ran around a bit during first year —" George continued.
"Set off a few Dungbombs —"
"Had to get away from Filch, see —"
"Mrs. Norris saw us, the —"
"Anyways!" Lee intervened as Katrina looked around, still somewhat bewildered. "We really must get to the Charms Corridor, wouldn't want Gryffindor's points to go into the negatives on the first day, would we?"
"Guess so," Fred replied.
"I wouldn't mind it," Katrina said with a smile, earning playful glares and a light punch on the shoulder from George.
" 'Course you wouldn't, you little twit," he said with a laugh. "Go on then, your precious Head of House is waiting!"
"Bugger off," Katrina replied with a laugh of her own. She was suddenly very glad that the twins had apologized.
Lee groaned.
Snape was patrolling around the Potions classroom as per usual, spitting out insults at every Gryffindor possible. Most of these were directed at Fred and George, but Lee was unlucky enough to be their friend, therefore gaining a good half of condescending comments from the Professor.
"Is there a problem, Mr. Jordan?" Snape drawled, pacing up to him again.
"No, Professor," Lee replied with a small scowl, returning to his potion. It was a sickly green rather than bright turquoise. Katrina heard him mutter "Stupid git," under his breath and fought a smile.
"Here," she whispered to him, leaning over the table as Snape turned away from them, "Add another bit of Valerian root, then the Unicorn Horn — yes, that's right — now stir it gently, but quickly —"
"Miss Rhinehart," Katrina jumped and looked wildly about until her eyes locked onto Snape's unamused expression, "I trust you're not assisting Mr. Lee?"
"N-no, sir," she replied shakily, running a hand through her hair as to calm her prickling scalp, "I was just explaining why the Unicorn Horn is such an important ingredient, sir, as when added into the potion at the precise amount can cause all anxiety to dissipate from the drinker —"
"Yes," Snape droned, "And I assume that because of this brilliance of yours, you would gratefully write me a one and a half-foot long essay as to powdered Unicorn Horn's properties?"
"Of course, sir," Katrina said with a frown, and turned back to her perfectly-brewed Draught of Peace with clenched teeth.
"Good," said Snape, and continued to roam the classroom.
"Brilliant, more homework," she mumbled as she stared at the back of his head. Fred and George looked rather miffed, but faced Katrina with small grins nevertheless.
"I though you Ravenclaws fancied homework?" Fred asked.
"No," Katrina snapped impatiently, "We fancy learning things that we're interested in. We don't fancy work that won't give us any gain."
"Time is up," Snape announced as he strode behind his desk, "Bottle your potions and label them with your names before handing them to me."
Lee and the twins audibly grumbled along with multiple others in the room. Everyone, reluctantly or otherwise, slipped a bit of their potion into a vial and gave it to Professor Snape, most with grimaces on their faces. As they left, Fred, George, and Lee began to lead Katrina through another secret passage, this one behind a portrait of Salazar Slytherin (who did not seem very happy to move).
"What's your next class?" George asked her as they entered the side room of the Entrance Hall. Katrina pulled out her timetable from a pocket of her schoolbag and looked over it quickly.
"Muggle Art," she stated, and the twins made a sort of odd face. "And you three?"
"Ghoul Studies," they all stated happily, but Katrina frowned.
"You don't know a portrait to the fifth floor, would you?" she asked. The twins grinned.
"You're catching on," Fred stated and clapped Katrina on her shoulder as she bashfully smiled.
"It's just easier. . . ."
"Hengist Rawkes, he's not far from here," Lee pointed off toward the Grand Staircase as they walked into the Entrance Hall. "Password's 'Horseradish'."
"Should lead you up around the Prefect's Bathroom," George continued as they began to climb a few steps. "Here he is! Hello, Hengist!"
"Boys," the man in the painting nodded. He seemed oddly domineering.
"Must be off, love," Fred said as he gave Katrina a bit of a two-fingered salute.
"Stay out of trouble," she replied playfully, and the four of them grinned at one another until the boys finally went up to get to Ghoul Studies.
"Horseradish," Katrina then relayed to the portrait, which obediently swung open. Clambering inside before she gained much attention, she closed it behind her and walked a bit, emerging in the fifth floor corridor with a grin on her face.
Katrina entered dinner with her fingers covered in Muggle paint. She seemed rather pleased with herself as she sat beside Padma Patil, who was currently in a deep conversation with Terry Boot. Raising her wand, Katrina waved it around her hands a bit and murmured "Tergeo." Immediately, the paint vanished.
"Well done," Cora said as she walked by the Ravenclaw table. Katrina looked up at her with a smile. "I've just met the twins. I do hope they apologized, because they've invited us 'for dinner'."
"Oh really?" Katrina laughed lightly as she peered over the Gryffindor table, where, indeed, Fred, George, and Lee were all waving her over enthusiastically. "I suppose we could join them, don't you?"
"Absolutely," Cora replied, positively beaming. Katrina stood up from her seat and followed her down to their little group, where the two of them sat across from the boys and beside some bushy-haired girl. Percy was down a ways and scowling in their direction, no doubt thinking something along the lines of different house students at his house's table. Meanwhile, Harry Potter was sitting beside Fred (or George, whichever one it was) and across from the bushy-haired girl, talking to another redhead beside him who had an odd resemblance to the twins.
"Well go on," George piped and waved a hand at Cora and Katrina. He was the one beside Harry. "Introduce yourselves!"
Cora rolled her eyes good-naturedly as Harry and his friends looked at them along with a few other Gryffindors. "Cora Calloway," she said, "Hufflepuff, fifth year."
After a quick glance at Katrina, who was sitting just the slightest bit stiffly, she continued, "And this is my friend Katrina, she's a Ravenclaw. Excuse her, she's a bit quiet at first —"
"But a right loud git when she's comfortable," Fred piped with a grin. Katrina shot him an exasperated — yet somehow grateful — glare.
"I am not a git," she stated matter-of-factly, straightening her back and raising her jaw. The boys snickered.
"What're you sitting here for, then?" The redheaded boy beside Harry asked. Out of the corner of her eye, Katrina say the bushy-haired girl give him a look. "What?"
"You're being rude!" she stated. The redheaded boy shrugged.
"I was just asking," he said.
"That's Ron," said Fred.
"Our brother," George explained.
"He's a bloke, sure you've noticed."
"Hey!" Ron exclaimed, looking past Harry and at Fred, "I'm as much of a bloke as you are!"
"You must be quite a bloke then," Katrina reasoned, sipping a bit of pumpkin juice from her goblet to hide her smile as Ron looked confused. Harry laughed along with Lee and George.
"Oy!" Fred said.
"Well you are," Katrina reasoned, setting her goblet down with a sly smirk, "You and your dear brother said so in Diagon Alley, remember? 'Most handsome blokes in Hogwarts', if I remember correctly."
"You're the one who said that, love, I thought we already established that?"
"You said what?" Cora asked. Katrina flushed violently.
"Nothing! I never said anything —"
"She did knock over a bowl of pea soup, though," George snickered. Katrina set her jaw and felt her scalp boiling under her hair. Cora was laughing politely behind her hand.
The bushy-haired girl, apparently noticing how embarrassed Katrina was becoming, said, "I'm Hermione Granger, third year. Pleasure to meet you."
Silently, Katrina thanked Hermione for being so keen. "Pleasure's all mine, Hermione. And you," she turned to Harry, who seemed surprised, "I know you already, so don't worry about introductions." Harry smiled in greeting and what might have been relief. Indeed, the whole school knew him; with Katrina knowing of him since her third year, he was much less of an icon and more of a student at this point. Though, she had to admit, the rumors surrounding his adventures in Hogwarts were rather interesting.
"And they," George said, pointing to a group of girls beside Lee, "Are Angelina, Alicia, and Katie." They all waved in turn. "They're going to be your new girlfriends so you two can squeal about how cute we are."
"Are you assigning us friends now, George?" Cora asked as Katrina gave him a perplexed sort of look. "If I didn't know better, I'd say you were concerned, of all things!"
Lee chuckled as George waved off the comment offhandedly. "Nah, we just know how you girls work is all! Need to gossip, you know, things like that —"
"Come off it!" Angelina barked from beside Lee with a grin. "You know we'd much rather send a Bludger to your head than talk about who's going out with who!"
"Or would you?" Fred asked as he chewed on a scone, "I do believe just last night you were talking about McLaggen being 'open', am I right?"
The three girls began to blush, and Katrina found herself giggling with Cora. It was odd how, suddenly, she felt more at home with the Gryffindors than with her fellow Ravenclaws. They had a much more welcoming atmosphere, she figured.
"Your hair!" Ron exclaimed suddenly. Katrina jumped at looked at him in surprise. He was wide-eyed and his mouth was open. Finally taking notice, she saw that the others at the table — besides Cora, Fred, George, and Lee — were all looking the same. "It's green! But it was just blue a second ago!"
"What?" she asked, then look a lock of her hair and, to her surprise, it had indeed turned bright green. She had let her guard down. As her cheeks began to burn, it became a violent violet.
"And now it's purple!" Ron gasped. George reached over and hit him over the top of his head.
"We're not blind, you divvy," he muttered.
"You're a metamorphmagus, aren't you?" Hermione breathed. Before Katrina could reply, Harry spoke up.
"Sorry, a what?"
"A metamorphmagus, Harry, it's a sort of — well — er —"
"She can be anything," George concluded.
"Anything?" Harry and Ron asked. Deciding to actually be confident in herself (boy, were the twins getting to her), Katrina forced the color in her hair and face to return back to normal.
"Anything," she said with a small smile. "I could show you, if you'd like?"
"Please!" Ron said, now clearly excited. He and Harry leaned forward expectantly, while Hermione sighed and groaned something along the lines of "You idiots!" Katrina, however, began to grin.
Cora seemed thoroughly pleased as Ron asked for a dog.
Scrunching up her face, Katrina thought of a single image in her mind. At this point, the others at the table were also on the edge of their seats. Within a moment's notice, her face had contorted in some sort of human snout with a wet, tomato nose. The twins and Lee clapped and whooped appreciatively as Katrina gave a snarl, and was back to her usual rounded face within a moment's notice. She was, once again, blushing.
"Wicked," Ron whispered, then said, "Another!"
"Do you think you could do a cat?" Hermione asked in undisguised amazement. Katrina laughed lightly, and scrunched up her face again. Her nose and mouth was replaced with the muzzle of a Persian's. As the boys clapped again and Harry mouthed a "Wow," Cora moved over and whispered into Katrina's ear.
"See, it's not so bad," she said, and as Katrina looked at her, normal once again, she winked. Katrina beamed.
"A Duck!" Katie requested from beside Alicia, who was beginning to clap with Fred, George, and Lee. Katrina easily complied, quacking a bit as her lips and nose elongated into a yellow duck bill.
"Pig!" Fred exclaimed and began to howl as Katrina snorted around with a wide, flattened snout.
More and more wild requests came about, and here or there would be a student from farther down the table looking her way. Oddly enough, Katrina found herself enjoying the attention. She didn't feel like a source of laughter at all, but more of a friend to laugh with — to be blunt, they were laughing with her rather than at her. And, for the first time in a long while, she felt a surge of pride pulse through her body as her face turned into a replica of Snape.
END OF CHAPTER FOUR
And there you have it! At first I was a bit worried about having Katrina sit with the Gryffindors so soon, but I don't think that it matters much so long as she's not there every meal of every day (that would be sorta dumb, wouldn't it?).
Anyways! Homework, what a bore, am I right? Bluh. Also, kudos to anyone who noticed the Homestuck reference in the last chapter, eheheh. Insuffereable pricks. Aren't I gr8? o; (not really)