Headmaster Lorence had been making a few rounds when he found Professor Cronus lurking outside of his office.
"Kajora, are you well?" His dark brown hair, which was usually down to his shoulders, had been cut short. His new haircut looked good on him; he was a handsome wizard with a kind face.
"Oh, yes! I have something to speak with you about."
"Let me guess, you want to talk about the elven girl?"
"Elven? Well assuming you mean Aura, yes."
"Come into my office," Lorence mumbled 'parsnip' to the gargoyle and the spiral staircase appeared behind it.
Kajora Cronus followed the headmaster into his office, quiet until the door shut behind them. "She's very intelligent, one of my favorites! I mean…I know we shouldn't have favorites…Uh…" He smiled sheepishly and didn't talk again until Lorence returned his smile.
"Anyways she can perform every spell ever mentioned in her textbooks and, from what I've observed; it only takes her a try or two."
"I believe it is the two magics within her that make her so powerful. But, unlike the ministry, I do not believe she is potentially dangerous. Her magic isn't out of control, she's very strong mentally as well," He smiled as he talked about her, something about the exotic girl sparked a fatherly sense in him. He felt proud of her as each day passed and she grew and learned.
"Uh, yeah, so because of her intellect, I think she needs more of a challenge. I was hoping to place her in my third-year class?"
Lorence smiled, "Other teachers have wanted to move her up as well. I think, from what I hear, that she is capable of handling a higher class. I'll arrange it with the teachers, then."
"Great! I'm so excited, finally I'll have a peer model! Those third-years are just at the age of rebellion. I can't complain, though, I was worse than all of them!" He laughed, holding his stomach as he did.
The headmaster smiled at the good-natured teacher, he had a strong liking for him. He was odd and didn't always follow the rules as he should, but his students excelled and made excellent progress and he had an air of fun about him.
Aura sat on the floor in the Ravenclaw common room, reading through one of the books that Professor Cronus had given her. She held out her wand and performed a spell to make the fire flare up. It worked, nearly catching a picture frame on fire.
"S-sorry!" She cried to the woman in the picture who glared and stormed off through a door.
She quickly turned back to the book, committing it to memory. Most of the other Ravenclaws had already gone to sleep and only one other remained in the room with her.
"Ha ha! How long will you be at it? We should sneak down to the kitchen and have a snack." The blonde-haired boy grinned at her.
"Go by yourself, Census! I have studying to do."
"But the elves worship you, that's why you're the Elf Girl! If you're with me then I'm sure to score a lot more food!"
"Oh, I see, you don't want me to come with you for the mere purpose of my company," She said with a teasing smile. Through her time with Census and Raven, her two best friends, she had learned how to joke around and smile.
"Oh, you make me sound so cruel, Elf Girl. Come with me, please?" He slid to his knees beside her and clasped his hands together, "Don't make me beg!"
Aura giggled, her naturally rosy cheeks puffing up as she smiled. "Alright, alright. I'll come along, but we'd best hurry!"
"You gonna use that concealing spell again? Or got something new up your sleeve?"
The elf girl smiled and set her book aside as she stood up. Without moving her lips, without the slightest whisper, she disappeared from the room.
"Wicked!" Census clapped at her new trick.
After reappearing, she took Census' hand and tried again. As suspected, he disappeared from sight, too.
The two made it down the dark hallway, afraid to light their wands. As the giant picture of fruit loomed before them, so did two figures.
"Shh," Aura whispered to Census, whose hand she was still grasping. They walked closer to the two figures.
Aura smiled as she recognized one of them. Raven Malfoy, along with an older-looking girl with brown hair, seemed to have the same idea that they did.
"Sis!" the Malfoy boy let go of Aura's hand and hugged onto his twin, getting a loud 'eww, get off me!' reaction.
Aura willed herself visible and soon reappeared, "Hello," She said shyly.
Raven willingly gave the elven girl a hug and glared at her brother.
"Ah-hum! Ravey you forgot to introduce us!" The other girl crossed her arms and smiled. She was beautiful, just like Raven, with brown hair that was sleek and shiny. She had a scar on her left eyebrow that oddly didn't take away from her beauty.
"Oh, right, sorry. Guys this is Sephora Zabini, I met her in my Care of Magical Creatures class. Um, the orange-haired girl is my friend Aura and the retard next to her is my brother."
Census rolled his eyes "Who cares if I'm stupid or not? I'm hungry. Let's get in the kitchen, already!"
Aura gave the new girl a shy smile and followed everyone into the kitchen where, just as expected, the house elves shoved parcel after parcel of food into her arms as well as everyone else's.
"Friends of Aura are friends of ours!" Maisy, one of Aura's favorite house elves, chirped.
The group left the kitchen and split ways, muttering goodbyes. Raven and Sephora left to Slytherin while Census and Aura concealed themselves once again with Aura's odd magic, making it back to Ravenclaw.
Census stuffed his mouth while he continued to question Aura.
"Wry you go' stu'y so ush," He spoke gibberish due to the pumpkin bread that he stuffed in his mouth.
"I'm studying so much so that I can be in your class starting next term."
"WHA?!"
"Oh, that's right, I haven't told you guys yet. Professor Cronus is going to talk to the headmaster to see if I can switch classes. I have to make up for the year's worth of work by studying and learning the spells."
Census swallowed his mouthful and grinned. "Sounds great, I'll be able to copy your answers!"
Aura sighed and went back to her book, a ghost of a smile on her face. She was working hard so that she could be with her friends, it didn't really matter to her whether or not the work was challenging. What was most important to her was taking the little time she had left and making something of it. Soon everyone would go home for Winter Break and she would have to return to the ministry. She feared that they would perform more tests than ever…
