Chapter Nine
Numbers, Letters, and Runes
Lucky hopped onto the train with one last wave towards Ben, who was too busy attempting to get the fascinated Janus to say 'train' to really notice. She shrugged it off and started looking through the compartments with a bag in one hand and Houdini's cage in the other, until she noticed an unusual amount of girl students gathered in the doorway of one of the compartments. She scowled, knowing before she went past the car that Dale was most likely in there. But as she somehow managed to shuffle past the back of the group, she heard her name called and saw red hair up ahead, quickly working her way to where Connie, Helena, and Pimra were saving her a seat. Quickly, Connie pulled her in and slammed the compartment door with such a worried look on her face that Lucky paused, glancing at Helena and Pimra who also looked concerned.
"What?" Lucky asked.
"How are you holding up, Lucky?" Connie asked, sitting back down. "We heard about Dale." Lucky frowned, glancing at the door and back again.
"He seemed okay to me a moment ago," Lucky said.
"She means about what all the Muggle papers and magazines are saying about Dale's new girlfriend," Helena explained. Lucky stared at her. "What happened, did you two fight or something?"
"What? I don't care about what Dale does, we're just friends!" Lucky protested. "I hope he is seein' somebody, it'll keep him off my case! Who is it anyhow? Lindsay?"
"She wishes," Connie snorted, pulling out a teen magazine and flipping it open. The article had been read so often that it had automatically turned to the right page as she handed it to Lucky. "Look for yourself," she said with a sigh, and Lucky glanced at the article headline of Dale Scores with Duffy at Galaxy Game.
"Oh, it's just her," Lucky snorted. "She's nuthin'."
"Nothing? Are you crazy? She's even more popular than Second Chance, she even bumped their album down to second over the summer!" Connie said.
"Only in Muggle circles," Pimra put in. "Second Chance is still number one on our charts."
"Yes, that's true, she's a Muggle for sure," Helena agreed.
"Yeah, I know. I met her, and I know she's nuthin' to Dale either. It's just somebody his father put up for publicity," Lucky assured them. The three girls gazed at her skeptically. "I can prove it, too! I was at that game. See? That's my elbow!" The three girls peered over with interest at the elbow at the other side of him and even insisted she pull up to sleeve so they could compare it. "What, you don't trust me? Just ask Dale, or Jackie or Alicia since they're who took me."
"Why would he have you along on a date with Duffy?" Helena asked.
"It wasn't a date! It was a publicity stunt!" Lucky said with exasperation.
"Then how come all the interviews with Dale lately has him admitting that they're going out?" Helena asked, glancing at a newspaper.
"Gimme that!" Lucky scowled, snatching the newspaper out of Helena's hands. "This ain't a paper, chica, this is just the Sun, it's trash. You can't rely on that. Besides, it's probably just his father's doin' again. So let's just drop it, okay?" she snapped, carefully putting Houdini away.
The other girls shrugged and started fiddling with their own carryons, looking for something to preoccupy themselves with as they pulled out of the station. A few minutes later there was a knock on the door and Laura slid it open, looking in.
"There you are! Just thought I'd say hello! I've been sitting with Dale, Bobby and Gary and I needed a breather, it's been crazy in there," Laura said with exasperation. "Everyone keeps asking about that Duffy Dakota thing."
"Gimme a break!" Lucky groaned.
"We were just talking about that," Connie put in. "Lucky thinks it's just a publicity stunt of some kind. Is it?"
"A publicity stunt?" Laura said thoughtfully, but then shrugged. "I don't know really, he just kept telling everyone that it wasn't anybody's business who he's dating, and even if he was seeing her, he wasn't the sort who would kiss and tell." Lucky blinked.
"Sorry, Lucky, sounds like this time the paper's right," Pimra said sympathetically.
"He's not seeing her!" Lucky said firmly.
"Well, he never said he was seeing her, that's true, but it sure sounded like he was," Laura admitted apologetically.
"Fine! Believe whatever ya want, it's not like I care anyhow," Lucky snapped, and then pulled out her Arithmantics book to look over.
"Well, I'd better be getting back, I want to catch the trolley on the way through," Laura said, waving and working back to her spot. Lucky sighed in annoyance and decided to pretend to ignore everyone while the other girls quickly changed the subject.
"So what electives did you take this year?" Helena asked Pimra.
"My grandfather is making me take Ancient Magic," Pimra sighed. "And I'm taking Muggle Studies and Divination to get them over with."
"Great, me too! Maybe we'll have some of the same classes then!" Helena said enthusiastically. "Though I'm not taking Ancient Magic, just the other two."
"Nobody in their right mind would take that course if they had a choice," Lucky snorted. "The Professor's teachin' it."
"Not surprising, really, considering he's the only one in the school qualified to teach it," Pimra pointed out. "Really, though, is it all that bad?"
"Haven't your parents ever told you any horror stories of how Snape taught when they were going to school?" Connie asked. "He wasn't exactly a popular teacher."
"Yes, but he supposedly got better at the end from what Joanie's told us, so maybe it won't be all that bad," Helena put in.
"Well, I'm glad I didn't take it," Lucky said emphatically.
"Why, what do you have?" Connie asked.
"Tangent for three classes, then that dumb Magical Creatures thing they're makin' me take because of last year," Lucky explained.
"Tangent three times?" Connie gawked at her. "You're taking three math classes?"
"Two, but I took Ancient Runes too figurin' I could get another good mark in," Lucky explained.
"Uh, oh, Lucky, didn't anyone in your family tell you that Tangent wasn't teaching Runes this year?" Pimra said with a frown.
"Huh? Tangent's always taught that course, it's the only reason I took it," Lucky said, but Pimra shook her head somberly.
"Grandfather says Professor Snape is teaching that as well. In fact, I'd have ended up taking it too if Mum hadn't intervened," Pimra said.
"What! But I'd never have taken it if I thought he was teaching it!" Lucky shouted jumping up.
"Not good, Lucky, I'd talk to Aunt Hermione about getting you out of that class first thing in the morning if I were you," Connie warned her. "It'll be harder to drop it later."
"I am definitely droppin' it, too, there ain't no way I want to be in the same classroom with him. Bad enough havin' to have Jackie for Potions two more years," Lucky said.
"I thought you always liked that class, Lucky," Helena said.
"Formulas and coffee, si. Labs and preparation, no," Lucky said, plopping back down in an even worse mood than before. "Man, what else could go wrong?"
"Did you happen to hear that Laura and Dale made prefect?" Pimra added, deciding to get it over with while Connie and Helena gave her a dark look. "They're only sitting up front today because Dale wanted to sit with the March brothers."
"I hate overachievers!" Lucky shouted and began muttering in Spanish. Helena nodded in agreement, while the other two remained quiet and didn't say a thing when she broke out in mutters during the rest of the trip.
Had that not been bad enough, Reggie, it seemed, had noticed Lucky's foul mood from the moment she got off the train, and rather than follow the rest of the Gryffindors' lead and giving her a wide berth went out of his way to taunt her mercilessly.
"What's wrong, Lucky, did your star boyfriend finally get the hint?" Reggie said as they walked to the coaches. "That's fame and fortune for you… it'll corrupt anybody after awhile. He's living the high life with the best of everything and surrounded by tall thin California girls, not that I blame him, really, can you? Let's face it, you're better off without that sort of chap, you need someone down to earth, more right for a slightly pudgy little tomboy of a girl…"
Reggie, who was well aware of her temper, had not, however, developed the expertise that Dale had dodging her violent streaks and immediately found himself flat in the mud and holding his hands over his left eye while Connie and Helena tried with limited success to back Lucky off.
"What is it with you? Why do you always lead off with your fists? At least have the decency to pull a wand so I can defend myself," Reggie said.
"What's the matter, can't fight without a stick in your hands?" Lucky asked vehemently, ignoring the fact that the area was quickly getting surrounded by students, and the prefects including Laura and Dale were trying to push their way past.
"I'm not going to hit a girl! Besides, I didn't mean that, I was just teasing…"
"If you call me pudgy again, I'm gonna knock your teeth out!" Lucky snapped.
"You didn't waste any time, did you?" Dale snorted at Reggie, trying to get a look at his eye.
"Lucky! Come on, Lucky, time to cool it, this is not any way to start the first day of the school year, and your parents are going to hit the roof as it is when they hear about it," Laura said.
"No… I don't want her getting into trouble over this. I was out of line, so let's just forget it," Reggie insisted.
"Easy enough to say until you get in to the Great Hall and someone gets a look at that shiner," Brittany sighed at him. "Come on, let's get to the coaches, all right? We'll respect their wishes and not say anything for now. Hopefully with the Sorting Ceremony going on there will be enough of a distraction. Come on, Reggie, sit in my coach so I can take a look at that eye."
"We'll take this one," Laura volunteered, Brittany simply nodding in return, while Reggie suddenly seemed quite pleased with the current turn of events for some reason. Dale simply shook his head at him and climbed in behind Laura, Connie jumping in behind them. "Really, Lucky! Couldn't it have at least waited a couple of days before you got into trouble again?"
"He started it!" Lucky complained.
"He did start it," Connie agreed. "He was calling her names and stuff."
"What exactly did he say that got you worked up, Lucky?" Dale asked.
"Nuthin'," Lucky muttered. Dale looked over at Connie, who suddenly became fascinated with watching the lights of the boats on the lake.
"Why do I get the feeling it's going to be a really long year?" Laura sighed.
"You can say that again," Lucky said dryly.
When they arrived, Ambrose and Lindsay were both hanging out just outside of the Great Hall with Bobby and Gary already having run ahead to try and get them caught up on what had happened. Lucky scowled when they grew quiet when they approached.
"You all right, Lucky?" Ambrose asked worriedly.
"Sure, fine, let's just not talk about it, okay?"
"Well, not right now, at least, let's talk about it in the Owl Room after dinner," Ambrose suggested. "Boulderdash will have our schedules, of course. I hope we have more classes together this year, Lucky!"
"Don't count on it," Lucky recommended as they walked into the hall and took their places. Brittany had made certain that Reggie was surrounded by other seventh years by the time they had gotten there and as far away from the staff table as possible, and Connie helpfully found a seat closer to the other end of the table.
"This way we can scope out the new Gryffindors, we do need one more this year," Connie said conversationally, despite the fact that Lucky was eyeing her knowing full well she was just using it as an excuse. A moment later Gary sat down across from them.
"Well, they did a great job covering it up, didn't they?" Gary said, leaning over the table. "A'course it'll be worse in the morning. Well done, Lucky, you wouldn't believe how many times I wanted to hit the bloke, but he's so much bigger than me…"
"Hush, would you stop talking about it?" Connie hissed as the staff began to wander in and stand beside their seats.
Lucky looked up to see the Professor come in with Craw on his arm, the two of them conversing with Weasley who came in carrying the Sorting Hat. After a moment, Weasley excused herself and put the Hat on the stool before walking up the aisle next to the Gryffindor table, many of the students waiting nervously for her to pass, especially when she stopped a moment to greet the prefects before continuing on. Almost as one they seemed to breath a sigh of relief as she passed by. The Headmaster squinted, wondering what was going on, but was pulled into another conversation as Professor Scribe had stopped to ask him something.
"Looks like it's going to be your lucky day, Lucky," Connie said with a grin as she glanced around and noticed that all the other students had settled into place. "We should be starting soon."
"Ack!" Gary said in horror. "What's he still doing here?" Lucky glanced up to see Aurelius coming in the main doors, closing it behind him.
"Oh, he's teachin' Defense this year," Lucky said unconcernedly.
"You realize if he comes down this aisle you're sunk, don't you, Lucky?" Gary hissed at her. Apparently the seventh years had realized it too, for as Aurelius strode by they all huddled against the table or bowed their heads or covered them with their hands so obviously so that Aurelius couldn't help but slow down, wondering what was going on. His eyes darted up towards Craw, who shrugged unknowingly, and then he decided to slow even further until finally he stopped at the end of the table to see Gary and Connie doing everything in their power to hide their faces while Lucky simply stared at him straight on. Aurelius sighed with exasperation.
"I should have known," he murmured in annoyance. "I think you had better meet me in my office first thing tomorrow morning, Miss Snape, unless you want to take this to a higher level," he added in warning.
"Will there be coffee?" Lucky asked.
"The last thing you need is more caffeine. Don't be late, or I will be taking it upstairs, is that understood?"
"Ya," Lucky said evenly, the three of them watching as he walked away before Gary made drew his thumb across his neck pointedly.
"Don't worry, he wouldn't kill relation. I think," Connie murmured in a low voice, while Lucky's eyes were busy following him to the table. But when the Headmaster questioned him, he simply shrugged and said something quietly back, and Lucky quickly turned to Connie as if in conversation with her when Craw gazed at them curiously.
Lucky hadn't remembered there being so many students to be Sorted before. In fact, she was so anxious to get out of there she barely even acknowledged the first years at all. Gary and Connie had made a more heartfelt effort to find out at least who some of them were in case they knew any of their parents or siblings. True, there were a fair number of Muggleborn too, but most of them were staring at the ceiling or gawking at the teachers or even too busy marveling over how the cups refilled themselves to have any sort of decent conversation with any of them anyhow. Over at the Hufflepuff table, Ambrose seemed to be chatting up a storm with a few of them, apparently having known some of them from Hogsmeade. Lucky suddenly found herself missing the closeness she and Bill had had their first year at school, and spent the rest of the dinner wondering if she'd get that back after their falling out the year before.
As the feast came to the end and the others began to work their way to the dorms, Connie, Gary and Lucky hurried to the library, soon running into Helena and Pimra and chatting casually with each other until dutifully falling silent as they hit the library door, knowing that Librarian Boulderdash would likely give them an earful in the Owl Room if they were heard. Bobby, Lindsay, Ambrose and Winnie were not long behind them as they took their seats, automatically going to the same ones they had gotten the year before.
"Laura and Dale will be a few minutes late. They had to show the first years upstairs and all that," Pimra said.
"I wonder how much that's going to cut down on their time this year," Ambrose mused, waving at Beth, Veronica and Dirk as they followed up the rear.
"Well, I know Laura cut back on her classes this year to help compensate," Lindsay said.
"Dale said something about cutting back too," Bobby nodded. "But he was pretty torn as to what he was going to drop."
"He was talking about dropping the newspaper and choir earlier," Pimra put in.
"Really? I bet Professor Scribe's going to hate to hear that," Ambrose grinned.
They looked up as their goblin advisor came in, busy juggling a stack of papers with a stack of envelopes.
"Good evening," Boulderdash said, putting the stack of envelopes on his work desk momentarily. "Mind if I go ahead and start passing out schedules while we're waiting for everyone to arrive, since we've only limited time this evening?" he asked, and began to do so. "Mr. Atchison… Mr. Bailey…"
Ambrose eagerly looked over his schedule as Boulderdash went around the table, tossing Dale and Laura's at their places when he got to them. Lucky took hers with a sigh, frowning deeply when she saw the name, "Snape" by her Ancient Artifacts entry.
"Man, I need to drop a class. I don't suppose you can authorize that?" Lucky asked. Boulderdash paused thoughtfully.
"I have no idea," he admitted. "But I'll help you set up an appointment with your house advisor in the morning if you'd like, Miss Snape."
"Don't forget you have to go to Professor Aurelius' in the morning too, Lucky," Connie reminded her. Lucky gave her a dirty look.
"Yeah, good job getting in trouble already, Lucky," Gary said with a supportive grin. "Hope you didn't cost us too many points, though."
"It's gonna be double the amount if you keep talkin'," Lucky snapped at him, waving her fist.
"I hardly think that sort of persuasion is necessary, Miss Snape, and definitely not in here," Boulderdash warned with a sneer. "Although a more appropriate environment might be arranged if required. Would it be too much to ask just how you managed to get in trouble already?" Lucky shrugged, but Connie gazed between them before turning to the goblin.
"It wasn't her fault, really. My cousin was mouthing off to her. If you ask me, he deserved to get punched," Connie said supportively.
"Hm, well, you know that I have no qualms about acting in self defense," Boulderdash said, handing Connie and Helena their schedules. "Although she should have probably picked a more appropriate weapon."
"Which means what?" Helena asked.
"Meaning, you don't bring explosives into a knife fight," Boulderdash sneered. "When someone attacks with words, you should defend with them as well."
"That just makes them wanna fight more," Lucky argued. "At least if they're busy pulling out broken teeth outta their mouth, they can't talk back anymore."
"Well, there is that," Boulderdash admitted with a strange snarling chuckle as he went over to his desk. "I'll see if Professor Weasley is free at lunch."
"What class are you thinking of dropping, Lucky? Can I see your schedule?" Ambrose asked, pulling it over.
"Ancient Runes. I got enough to deal with having to take Magical Creatures and a second Arithmantics course this year," Lucky said.
"That and she doesn't want to sit class with the Headmaster," Gary snickered, earning another icy glare from Lucky.
"Really? That's one of the reasons I took that class, besides the fact Professor Scribe thought I should take it. I took Ancient Magic too," Ambrose said.
"Not me, no way," Lucky said emphatically, but Ambrose hadn't noticed. Instead, he was staring between their schedules with growing excitement.
"Wow, Lucky, look! We have nearly every major class together, all except for Herbology! Even one where I'm not with my normal class because of my Higher Divination course!" Ambrose said. "That's why we're in Transfiguration together!"
"I got switched on Potions because of Magical Theory," Lucky said. Connie blinked, peering over Lucky's other shoulder.
"Oh, great, I still have it with Slytherin… and without a Potions partner!" Constance scowled, while Lucky glanced at her, only partially sympathetic since in turn she was going to have Ambrose as hers. On her other side, Dirk gazed at Connie's schedule thoughtfully.
"Eh, we'll still have Herbology," Lucky said with a shrug, although it was obvious from Connie's expression that she would have preferred the other way around.
"Looks like we'll have Ancient Runes together too," Ambrose said. "At least that'll make it easier to study together."
"I'm dropping Runes, remember?" Lucky said firmly.
"Assuming they let you," Lindsay said.
"I think you should just take it," Ambrose suggested.
"I'm not taking it," Lucky said again.
Just then Dale came in, followed by Laura. She smiled warmly at them, proudly displaying on her collar the golden owl pin she had earned for having the most feathers the year before.
"Sorry we're late! Did we miss anything?" Laura asked.
"Not yet, we've just been looking at our schedules," Ambrose said as the two of them took their places and looked over theirs as well.
"I have something else for you tonight, if you don't mind," Boulderdash said, getting up once more and grabbing the envelopes.
"Our new goals?" Ambrose asked with a frown. "Because I didn't finish all mine."
"You'll find only the finished goals have been replaced, Mr. Bailey, but no, those are over there in your boxes underneath the Owl achievement board," Boulderdash said, nodding over at scroll case under the glass feather box, emptied and ready for the new year. "What I have here concerns your last years group goal, the pen pal service between schools."
"Professor Craw mentioned it upstairs," Laura beamed. "There was a sign up list, but she told us to come talk to you before signing up."
"That is because I happen to already have your pen pals' first letters in my hand, Miss Lupin," Boulderdash said with an enigmatic glint in his eyes, everyone breaking out in a murmur. "After all, it was because of Miss Glass and the rest of your efforts that this new cooperation exists, so the Headmaster arranged for you to have your pen pals assigned first. Miss Glass?" he said, handing an envelope out to Pimra, who smiled shyly back at him as she took it. "Now, don't be surprised that the schools these students came from is not included in these letters, although I imagine some of you will be able to tell from their names which school they might be from," he said, handing Lucky hers with such an amused look that she was certain he meant hers specifically for some reason. "Still, looks can be deceiving, too. It'll be interesting to see how things progress," he continued, handing one to Dirk.
"Why do I suspect that some of us who finished goals last year are going to get stuck with something like 'continued correspondence' or something," Dirk said dryly, glancing at the envelope.
"In some of your cases, I'd say it's a good guess," Boulderdash admitted with a sneer, handing one to Helena. "Don't worry about having to translate, that is already handled in the system. You'll find mailboxes in each of your common rooms and here…" he said, tapping a simply wooden box with a slit that was attached to his workbench. "When you are ready to write back. Magic will do the rest of the work; the Owl Service will get them to you from there. Yours, I believe, Mr. Robert March," he said, pausing to hand Bobby his. "Read them at your leisure, but I hope you remember that behind each of these letters is a very anxious student hoping that you'll respond and worried that you won't. As for finishing your goal, you may find when you get up in the morning that each of your Owl armbands has a colored bar on them, signifying that you finished one of your group goals, along with a small parcel, although I imagine you know not to make too big of deal out of that. Now, Mr. Bailey, a brief meeting, if you please, since everyone really needs to get back upstairs or downstairs to their dorm rooms to rest up before their first day."
"Yes, Mr. Boulderdash," Ambrose said. "There are only a couple of things I wanted to touch on tonight. First, obviously, we should be thinking of coming up for a new group Owl Goal for the year, and second, Hufflepuff and Gryffindor both need a fourth," he said, glancing at where Connie, Gary and Lucky were all gazing at him with somber expressions. "I know last year out of respect we left that spot open, but it's a new year, and it's time we moved on. And, perhaps being a new year and all, we can find a forth Hufflepuff that either nobody's going to fight over or we can come to an agreement on," he said, glancing at Lindsay.
"I still think we should invite Delia," Lindsay said.
"Let's not get into that again," Connie sighed.
"She's a total pain in the ass," Lucky agreed.
"She's really not that bad once you get to know her," Winifred said quietly. "And she could use some friends."
"Let's not be naïve, please," Dirk sighed. "She only wants in here so she can get dirt on us. We really don't need that sort of riff raff in here."
"Hang on a moment. The whole reason this group came to exist in the first place was because there are a lot of us students who don't really conform in some way or another to our houses and all of that," Ambrose said. "I'd say that's Delia in a nutshell, wouldn't you?"
"I'm sorry, Ambrose, but this time I agree with Dirk," Connie said. "You can't let her in here. She'll do nothing but try and cause us trouble!"
"Ya, I think you should just give up and try somebody else, 'cuz we're not changing our minds," Lucky said.
"Everyone deserves a chance, Lucky," Ambrose said, but simply earned a dirty look. "But all right, we won't get into it for now. Any ideas on who you might like as your fourth Gryffindor?"
"Well," Connie hesitated, glancing at Lucky. "Before what happened earlier, I was thinking it'd be nice to invite Reggie, actually."
"What!" Lucky said, scowling at her. "Oh come on, haven't any of you got any sense? First the queen of gossip is mentioned, now the king of fools? We don't need that kinda person in the order, we need good people! The last thing we need is some loud mouthed bully in here!" Lucky was suddenly aware that everyone else at the table was staring at her critically. "What?" Lucky asked defensively.
"I think we should probably call it a night," Ambrose said quickly. "We'll meet again Saturday afternoon once everyone's settled in so we can set up study groups and try to get those seats filled."
"Make sure you walk back to your rooms in house groups. You're less likely to be questioned being out late that way," Boulderdash suggested as they started to get up, some of them going over to their goal boxes.
"Do you want me to get yours?" Connie asked Lucky.
"Nah, it can wait a day," Lucky shrugged, using the time while Connie went to get hers to take a peek at the carefully blocked letter she had gotten from her pen pal and glanced at the name at the bottom. Smirking slightly, she glanced over at Boulderdash, who returned it before sitting back down at his worktable.
"I got a goblin," Lucky had told Connie once they got up to their dorm room.
"Really? Are you sure?" Connie asked, finally folding up her goals to grab her own envelope.
"Well, how many humans do you know have a name like Eyecleaver?" Lucky snorted, then glanced over the note again and smirked. "Think he'd let me call him Ike for short?"
"You would," Connie said, shaking her head at her before opening up her own letter and glancing at the bottom. "My pen pal is named Kim Scott. She could be from anywhere, I suppose… no, she mentions she's at a school 'famous for its gardens.' Do you know what school is famous for its gardens?" she asked, but Lucky simply shrugged.
"Mine is asking what my assets are like," Lucky said.
"Do you have assets?" Connie chuckled before putting hers on her nightstand and getting ready for bed. "Maybe just having the name of Snape counts," Connie teased.
"Oh ya? Then why do I think that's not gonna save me from whatever it is that's gonna happen tomorrow," Lucky said, simply kicking off her shoes and socks before putting the note aside and staring at the ceiling.
