A/N: …Yeah, so I don't really have anything to say. Thanks for reading!

Chapter 10

Tuesday Classes

After dinner, the girls decided to spend to rest of the evening in their room doing homework, teach Diana about the Wizarding World, and staring out into the waters of Black Lake to see if they could find a mermaid.

The next morning after breakfast was Charms, where they met Professor Flitwick. He was the tiny teacher that they had seen at the Head Table, and he was apparently the Head of Ravenclaw. He was very excitable and his love of Charms was quite apparent when he caused a pair of pineapples to go tap dancing across his desk. They began working on the Lumos charm in class. Belinda got it on her first try and immediately began coaxing Diana through her sudden worries that she couldn't do magic.

"Diana, it's only our second class where we cast spells. Charms is entirely different than Transfiguration." When Diana weakly spoke the incantation again to no effect, Belinda said pointedly, "Lack of confidence will ensure the spell doesn't work."

Diana scowled at Belinda.

Belinda shook her head. "Here, let's try something. Close your eyes." Diana sighed, but closed her eyes anyway. "Now, I want to you reach out and feel your wand. Really know every inch of it. Give it a little wave if you have to, to get a feel for the balance." Belinda saw Diana wave her wand slightly. This time, sparks flew out of it. "Got that?" Diana nodded. "Good. Now, I want you to reach deep inside yourself and you should find the source of your magic. It might be warm and bright, or it could be cold and dark. Whatever it is, it'll feel different than the rest of you."

Diana groped around for several minutes before she realized that Belinda was talking about that wonderful electric sensation of her Quickening.

"Once you find it, grab it and push it into your wand as you twirl it and say…." Belinda trailed off as she saw Diana's wand begin glowing. There had been a twirl, but no incantation.

"Very good, Miss Adamson!" Professor Flitwick exclaimed, startling Diana into opening her eyes. "I heard your tutelage, Miss Black. Ten points to Slytherin for helping out a classmate." He moved onto the next group.

Diana stared at her wand. "How'd I get it to light without saying anything?"

Belinda shook herself. "Your wand must be one that's good for non-verbal spells. And you must be powerful. Not everyone can master non-verbal magic."

Diana laughed self-consciously. "Don't consider that mastered," she warned. "I was more than half in a trance and just doing as you told me." She shook herself. "However, now that I have an idea of what I'm looking for…Nox."

Her wand tip went out.

Diana nearly squealed in joy as Belinda looked on indulgently. Diana looked back up at Belinda. "Together? 1…2…3…"

"Lumos!" Their wands lit up together.

After lunch was Herbology with the Ravenclaws. The class was taught by Professor Sprout, who was the kindly Head of Hufflepuff House. The class was mostly lecture about safety equipment, although they got to wander around Greenhouse One when she was finished. Diana found herself fascinated with several of the plants, as they moved in ways that she found quite odd for supposedly immobile plant life.

That night, the pair did their homework in the Common Room after dinner, and so were there when Theodore Nott came storming in. He threw himself into a chair in front of the fire and proceeded to glare into it like it had made his best friend cry.

Belinda frowned a bit from where she and Diana were sitting at the table closest to where Nott was. After several minutes, Diana prompted, "If you're worried about him, go ask if he's alright."

Belinda stared at Diana. "I…I don't know if I should…."

Diana gave Belinda a Look. "You haven't written a single word since he came in five minutes ago. Go talk to him. It's okay to be concerned about a classmate."

Belinda hesitated another moment, then screwed up her courage and headed over to him. "Hey, Theodore," she said quietly, perching on the edge of a nearby chair.

The thin boy transferred his stare to Belinda. "Belinda."

Belinda wasn't exactly encouraged by this and glanced at Diana for a bolster to her courage. She looked back at Nott. "Are you alright?" she finally asked.

He stared at her for several moments before transferring his gaze back to the fire. "I just had my physical."

"Ah," she said. She sat silently for several moments. "If it helps, I had mine yesterday."

He turned back to her. "What did Madame Pomfrey say?"

"I'm on a regimen of Nutrient Potions twice a day until further notice. And if I stop by the Hospital Wing before summer break, she'll give me some Bruise Balm and other healing potions."

Nott turned back to Belinda in surprise. "You mean…you still…."

Belinda shrugged slightly as she looked away. "Avery wasn't so bad, but a lot of the others haven't been as easy. And I don't know where I'll be this summer."

The pair sat in commiserating silence for several moments before they remembered there was another person in hearing range. They both winced and looked towards Diana.

The look on her face as she met their gazes wasn't one of pity. It was one of empathetic pain. "Belinda, I already suspected. Nott…." Diana shook her head to clear it. "If there's anything I can do," she said seriously, "let me know." When Nott scoffed, Diana admitted, "I may not be able to do much, but if there's anything I can do, let me know." With that, she turned back to her books to give the pair the illusion of privacy.

Belinda smiled slightly at Theodore before she stood to rejoin Diana. "Belinda," he said impulsively. She paused. "…Thanks," he finally finished. "And if you would, both of you. Call me Theo."

Belinda blushed a bit before nodding her head in acquiescence. Diana looked up with a small smile of her own. "Long as you call me Diana," she agreed.

The two girls returned to their homework as Theo got up and headed back to his room to get started on his own.

That night, while preparing for bed, Diana remembered something Belinda had mentioned during the Opening Feast. "Hey, Bel?"

Belinda turned to Diana. "Yes?"

"You had mentioned something the Hat had told you during your Sorting. You still willing to talk about it?"

Belinda shrugged as she sat down on her bed in her nightgown. "It said I should stick with you. That…oh, what was it… That you'd do me more good, than I'd do you harm." She shrugged. "This was right after a bit about it putting me here in Slytherin for 'not the reasons I thought.' It said it was putting me here because of me, not because of my parents."

Diana blinked a couple times. "Your parents? I'm sorry, but…I got the impression they weren't around anymore," she said delicately.

Belinda nodded once. "Dad disappeared ten years ago. Most people are pretty sure he's dead. My mother is Bellatrix Lestrange." She watched Diana carefully.

Diana frowned a moment in concentration. She remembered that name from somewhere…. Then it hit her. "Wait a minute. Bellatrix Lestrange…the Death Eater!?"

Belinda pulled her pride in her bloodline around her like a shield. "Yes."

Diana goggled at Belinda for several moments. "Wow." A thought entered her head with all the force of a Quickening bolt. "Have you even seen your mother since she was put in prison?" she asked.

Belinda shivered. "Yes. Once or twice a year, for the last five years."

Diana tried to remember why that was a bad thing. There was something about the Wizarding prison, but she couldn't remember what…. "What am I not remembering?" she finally asked.

Belinda smiled sourly. "Azkaban is guarded by dementors. And they don't just shut off their powers because a child is nearby."

Diana remembered what dementors were: she was pretty sure the whole Azkaban set up would qualify as cruel and unusual punishment in the States. "And you visit there once or twice a year!?" she exclaimed.

Belinda nodded unhappily. "I don't know if Mom even recognizes me anymore. She did at first: she was thrilled I'd been found. As well as pissed at what had happened."

Diana shot Belinda a questioning look.

Belinda sighed. "After the Dark Lord disappeared, Mom left me with a babysitter while she went out to try to find out what had happened. I was five years old at the time." Diana frowned. The math didn't work out right, but she didn't interrupt. "An auror by the name of Richard Longbottom broke into the house, killed my babysitter when she tried to protect me, and kidnapped me as 'leverage against the Lestranges.' He didn't know I wasn't Mom's husband's child," Belinda added as an aside. "Well, he decided to 'put me storage' for a while so he could take care of Mom and the other Lestranges; so he dosed me the Draught of Living Death. He got killed, I wasn't found until three years later. Professor Snape was the one who revived me. After a long time in St. Mungo's to recover from the Draught, I was given to Uncle Lucius who generally decided he didn't want me around. So he passed me off to various friends and acquaintances to care for me. End of story."

Diana shook her head, amazed. "That sucks," she finally said.

Belinda couldn't help it. She laughed. "Yes, yes it does," she finally managed.

The pair lay on their beds in silence for several long minutes.

"The Hat said I was a definite match for Hufflepuff," Diana admitted.

Belinda rolled over and faced Diana. "So why aren't you there instead of here?"

Diana shrugged. "Near as I can tell, the Hat takes into account your own preferences. Frankly, I'm thrilled. Sensei would be pissed at me if I wound up a Badger. I need to write to him," she realized.

"I'm pretty sure the school has postal owls you can use," Belinda told her, putting out the lights on her side of the room.

Diana followed suit. "Yeah. Hopefully they have one that can go to France. If not, I'm not sure how I'll get a message to him."

"You can always ask Professor Snape. He might be able to answer that question."

Diana yawned once. "Only after asking a Prefect," she recited.

Belinda giggled sleepily. "Right."

Moments later, the only sound in the room was that of two girls sleeping.