A/N: Hello, people!
I don't own Harry Potter.
I have no beta.
ENJOY!
CHECK ME OUT ON TUMBLR. HELLY-WATERMELONSMELLINFELLON.
-Tom and Bella don't talk in this chapter. Sorry.
~.O.~
Severus handed over the new schedule for the girl in front of him. Her guardian had sent it on over through Black and it seemed to be even more detailed than the last one had been. Because she'd lowered the amount of her expected muggle courses by at least half, she had more time on her hands, and that meant intensifying her training schedule.
On an every other day schedule, she would be participating in Tap Dancing at home, and then Rink Practice which would be followed by some light weight lifting. And on the days she was at school, she would do her stretches and then run the Quidditch Pitch exactly five times every morning at a moderate pace. Her twin didn't even practice as often. She left the school for hours every Thursday for team practice and was gone until dinner. She didn't have such a grueling schedule to keep up with. He had to wonder how the child was keeping up.
When he'd first laid eyes on her on her first day back, he'd noted the small changes. Her face had thinned out just a bit around the cheeks. She'd managed to lose the excessive chubbiness from her childhood and was transitioning into a young teenager. Her jaw certainly seemed a lot sharper than it had been before and the cleft of her chin was more pronounced now. Her hair had been cut and no longer reached her hips. It was allowed to hang freely and had curled up considerably without the excess weight pulling it down. It barely reached her mid-back and it resembled a more tamed version of Granger's mess.
Belladonna Potter had also grown taller if only a little bit. And she would remain that height until the following summer.
She wasn't the only student to change over the summer. Every child did. Constantly using their magic during the school year sort of forced their body into a stasis of a sort. Over the summer, they weren't allowed to use their magic at home for specific reasons, and it was in that time where the body had time to rest and grow again. So everyone grew quickly over the summer.
Considering the girl's height, compared to Granger who had shot up quite a bit in only two months and was as tall as Blaise Zabini now, she wasn't going to be a tall individual.
Severus had grown nineteen centimeters in the summer after first year. He'd ended up being taller than many of his classmates and had hated it at the time because it made him stand out and capture attention very easily. He liked it now because of the height advantage intimidating everyone who came near him. If only his younger self could have realised that ahead of time.
He was feeling old and he didn't like it. He wasn't even old by wizarding standards! He hadn't even reached his middle age years!
"Your guardian wants you to pay proper attention to your sleeping schedule. She emphasised the importance of you getting enough sleep. She has also forwarded an eating schedule to me and I have alerted the House Elves. She wants more citrus in your diet and the proper fruits will be closer to where you sit during meals."
"Awesome. Vitamin C is super important and I've been drinking orange juice all summer. Can you make sure they give it to me without the juicy bits? I don't like it like that and I don't have a strainer on hand in the morning."
Severus nodded, and pulled out the schedule to make note of it quickly. "You will also be eating more lean meats at dinner and your are allowed one incredibly sugary sweet a day, so plan wisely."
The girl nodded. "Got it. Anything else, sir?"
He briefly considered asking after her summer, but then decided against it. He was her professor and Head of House, not her best mate.
"No. Make certain you continue the output of work you maintained throughout last year and we will have no need to speak with one another more than what is necessary. Continue to do well this term and next term, and you may qualify for use of a Time-Turner next year. It will all depend upon your actions during your second year here."
Bella was not one for Herbology. She and plants just didn't get on and since magical plants tended to have minds of their own, they were deliberately obstinate. Neville was obviously horrified by her treatment of the Mandrake she'd been given to deal with, and shook his head many times at her as she threatened the bugger she'd been trying to re-pot.
He ended up having to re-pot the poor thing for her because she just sucked at it so much. Sprout couldn't seem to choose whether to be pleased by Neville's skills, or disappointed at how poorly Bella performed in her class.
But it wasn't her fault! She just wasn't good with plants! She didn't have a green thumb!
There was pride for Neville's accomplishments though. His understanding of plants had him at the very top of the class. The Mandrakes didn't scream when he touched them. It was like magic. But not.
She really didn't like plants all that much. That might be why Herbology was one of her worst classes overall. Bella would never even get an EE she was certain. The expectations were low as they should be.
"You are all here for the same reason."
Hermione looked around at the group of girls. She had honestly expected to only see students from her year, but in fact, the Hospital Wing was filled with first, second, third, fourth, and even fifth year students. It showed how the human body varied from person to person. A first year, an eleven year old, had already gotten her period while a fifth year, a fifteen or sixteen year old, had only just gotten her period.
The familiar faces she recognised personally were Pansy Parkinson, Daphne Greengrass, the Patil twins, first year Ginny Weasley, first year Luna Lovegood, and Sue Li. There were thirteen other students Hermione had seen before but didn't know.
Madam Pomfrey was looking upon them sternly. In her hands were packets of information that she handed to one girl and ordered her to pass them along. Each of them were to get one.
"The magical menstruation cycle is different from our muggle counterparts," the woman began. "The first thing you need to know is that those of us with uteri will ovulate twice as much naturally. For muggles, they ovulate once a month, and the ovary that ovulates is completely random every month. One month it's the left, the next it could be the right or it might be the left again. The cycle repeats up until the body cannot do so any longer. They can menstruate from anywhere between three days to seven days. Individuals have had up to ten or eleven days in some cases, maybe even more."
Behind her was a massive diagram of the uterus, and in her hand was her wand, which she used to point to the different body parts. "For most muggles, only one egg is released every month except in some cases where each ovary releases an egg and if both are fertalised, fraternal twins will come of that miracle.
"We are different. Both ovaries are working at the same time, all the time. And each ovary releases an egg every month. Essentially we have twice the chance of getting pregnant than muggles do. There is a problem however in the health of the eggs. They generally aren't capable of being fertalised for reasons we have yet to understand, which is why pregnancy is such a struggle for us and why having multiple children is incredibly rare. Large families like the current Weasley Clan are almost unheard of in our history."
Hermione had already learned everything about the menstrual cycle for muggles. She was a curious person and wanted to know everything about everything. She knew all of this basic information already. Because of that, her understanding was broader compared to the others in the group. It also meant that she grasped the implications faster.
"This leads to more blood, more cramping, higher emotional output, and often times, the body is more tired and our magic tries to compensate for that which leaves us weaker. It can be very stressful. Luckily for us, our periods last exactly four days. In everyone. No one has ever had one that lasted longer or shorter to our knowledge, and if such a thing occurs, people are encouraged to report this anomaly immediately for further study."
Curious, Hermione had to raise her hand because of something she'd noticed while skimming through the pamphlet she'd gotten. "When it comes to the body, I don't see a lot of gender defining pronouns used in the pamphlet you gave us. Is there a reason for that?"
Pomfrey nodded slowly, looking shocked that such a question was asked at all. "We often forget that muggles are still... a bit behind certain ways of thinking or understanding. Magical Creatures come in more than just female and male. More genders than we can even describe for some that don't wish to impart that knowledge upon us. When certain creatures copulate with humans, their offspring tend to have the same reproductive system as the creature parent. The Metamorphmagus comes from such a union, but distantly. Someone in their ancestry was a creature and they passed on this ability. For a time in the 1800s, we had dozens of Metamorphs attending Hogwarts at once.
"Metamorphs are never truly one gender. Their body is ever changing and it can take almost two decades for them to gain control enough to have a set appearance that they prefer. And most have been on every side to get a full feeling of what they choose to identify with. We had our first Metamorph student in the last century, graduate last year. She chose female but most cases made no specific choice and remained unbothered. We have chosen not to make assumptions. Most of our students choose to fall along the binary line and how they identify determines where the castle itself chooses to place them in their dorms. Hogwarts is sentient to an extent and is connected to the Sorting Hat and your magical signature. These all work together to help decide where the student in question should be placed so everyone is content."
Wow. That was a lot. And interesting.
And now she had more questions that there probably wasn't enough time for!
"We have a potion that can stave off the menstruation cycle for an entire thirty days, but it cannot be taken several times in a row. At most. you can take it for three months but it can quickly harm you by then. It's basically like a petrification spell to the reproductive system and going too long without giving your system a chance to breathe, might shut it down entirely and poison you in the long run."
Lovely. Magical bodies had the potential to be terrifying.
"Now there are people who either don't have the reproductive system necessary for birth, have a partially formed one, or have a malformed one. There is an expensive potion that can Transfigure the body long enough for a proper pregnancy however pregnancy for us is rare already so there is a chance it won't work at all, and if the person does not connect magically with the main ingredient of the potion, it can't be used, so this option is not necessarily available to everyone."
Hermione. Had. So. Many. Questions!
"I will be giving you an assignment. You will read through those pamphlets and explain in your own words, the menstruation cycle for magical humans. If you fail, you will do it again until you get it correct. I would like it handed in to me personally by this coming Monday. No longer than one foot is you please."
That was way too short for everything Hermione intended to touch upon! She'd have to make her writing extra small to fit everything.
So the pedophile was the newest teacher at school and Bella wanted so terribly to curse him. And the thing was, she wasn't a violent person by nature. Bella would gladly defend herself if it came to that, and she kind of liked the rush she got from putting other people in their place below her, but she didn't actively go out searching to harm others. She preferred to err on the side of subtlety and caution. But after the whole literally groping Prunella in front of like a hundred people, Bella felt like her old methods weren't right for the situation and she felt the most violent desires she'd ever experienced.
Thankfully, Aaliyah had already talked to Sirius and Remus about this situation and Remus had been hired on the sly as a tutor for Defence. Bella would not be sitting in the same class as the pedophile and the invitation was extended to all of her friends as well. And Prunella would also be taking the class with them because neither Sirius nor Remus wanted her near the creep either.
Meaning Bella's future was going to have more of Prue in it. She wasn't sure how things would go, but she had high hopes, especially since Prue wasn't trash in human form. The other girl did her own thing, spent all her time with her friend or training, and that was that. No peacocking, no fighting, no bullying. She was very tolerable if truth be told and save for Potions, she gave the teachers no hassle. But Batman did single her out verbally during every class so Bella felt it was deserved in a sense.
At least with Remus she knew they would be learning and actually enjoying their class time. It was such a shame that the wizarding world was so biased against magical creatures. Remus would be a better professor than probably any of the DADA teachers in the last half century. He simply got it and then was capable of translating that to children and helping them actually learn. A lot of people were good as specific subjects, but that didn't mean they had the capability of teaching that subject. Batman was a perfect example. One of the youngest Masters of a precise art in the entire world, and yet had no patience when it came to children at all. Obviously he was a genius who hadn't grasped the the fact that not everyone could make the same leaps and bounds as he could, and it frustrated him enough to rant.
He had moments of immaturity, much like Sirius did actually. Both were inherently decent individuals on the inside she was certain, but they had certain triggers that would devolve them to childish antics in a second. Such was the way of human nature.
Bella's wandering attention was snagged by Lockhart's ugly arse hair as it gleamed in the light of the sun streaming in through the stained glass windows. She sneered in his direction, the revulsion twisting her stomach around. The Daily Prophet articles from Rita had not been letting up in the least and she had painted a disgusting portrait worse than what had actually happened. It was enough to cast suspicion on the blond twit, but not enough people believed him to be the creep that he was.
Already, just that morning at breakfast, he had appeared out of nowhere when Prue stepped into the Great Hall, and proceeded to wrap an arm around her shoulders and start talking her ear off and his head joggled from side to side. And no matter how much Prue was obviously trying to slip away from him, he wouldn't let go.
It eventually came down to the Weasley twins hexing the blond twat behind his back in order to free Prue from his grasp. His robes suddenly turning orange and blue had been horrifying enough to send him running back to his rooms, screaming himself hoarse.
There had been a moment of laughter where the students got in a good chuckle at the creep's expense. Bella did not join in simply because he was disgusting and she hated his very being. Probably as much as she did James and Lily Potter.
It was in the returning silence after the laughter, that Batman's voice could be heard over the low din, saying, "Ten points to Gryffindor."
The entire student body fell into another round of laughter at that, since it was obvious Snape hated Lockhart and he never gave points for anything ever. Bella had to crack a smile at the absurdity of it, but the smile vanished when Fred and George escorted Prunella to the Gryffindor Table and proceeded to sit on either side of her like a pair of ginger bookends.
Apparently it was going to be a full on mission to keep Lockhart away from Prunella. Whether he wanted her fame or her... other things didn't matter. He needed to stay the hell away.
Amara,
For future reference, I named the owl Hedwig. I got the name from our History
of Magic book and as she was an instrumental person in Magical Britain's own
formation, I felt it a good name for such a nice but strong owl. Hedwig seems
to agree too. She's very smart and doesn't appreciate being treated like she's
just an animal, so beware of her temper and how you talk to her.
I want to take a moment to discuss Bella. As I'm sure you've learned, she now
knows what is wrong. She seems to have accepted the information for what it
is and isn't even all that angry that there is no way to fix the problem, but she
still seems so unhappy. But every time I ask her if she's alright she says she's
fine and not to worry. So I guess I just wanted to know if something happened
while I was away? She's been a bit sad lately. Like she's languishing and it isn't
because of her ailment. There was finality in her tone when she spoke of it. It
isn't because of that.
I don't know what to do. Neville's bad jokes aren't working. Blaise said he saw
her just randomly staring out a window for several minutes without moving. I
can't get a peep from her at all. She's been a bit spacey and only really reacts
to something whenever Lockhart is involved. She doesn't trust him and she'll
do a 180 if he comes around. Not that I blame her. We have a man suspected
of pedophilia among other thing, teaching children. That's enough to rile any
sane person up.
Onto other matters.
I'm top of my year again. Barely any time back but I have established myself
as the best in most of my classes. Bella and Prunella are better at DADA but I
hold best output everywhere else so far. I've already gone through this year's
curriculum and memorised the wandwork and pronunciations. I figured it was
better to be prepared. My Housemates are still rather horrible to me. None of
them talk to me, and are glad to take credit for my efforts, but they do sneer
when I come around. And they have mostly focused their attention on a new
girl.
Her name is Luna Lovegood. She's a firstie and she doesn't seem to be very
together. She wears a bottlecap necklace, radish earrings, and walks around
perpetually dazed almost. And because her father own some publication no
one takes seriously and she proclaims the existence of creatures no one has
ever seen, they've taken to bothering her instead. I do find what she says to
be impossible to believe, and she certainly is a bit on the odd side, but I do
not want her to be bullied!
They call her Looney and mock her even when she's in ear shot. They have
not done more, I'm certain, but when I told a Prefect they said there wasn't
any proof. That perhaps I'm 'projecting because I'm angry no one wants to
be my friend'. Obviously people want to be my friend. I have Bella, Blaise,
Theodore, Neville, and you. And I would never make something like that up
as there's no reason for me to. The Prefects simply aren't doing their jobs.
Sometimes I wonder if I was sorted into the wrong House. Ravenclaw isn't
what I had hoped it would be. I tolerated this treatment last year because
I was just happy to be able to come to a magical school, but this just isn't
what I wanted.
Anyway, how are you doing so far? Are Yon and Shi getting on? Will there
be a litter in their future? I've been thinking of getting a Kneazle and I'd
love to adopt one from you! Let me know!
Hoping you are well,
Hermione.
There was a grandfather clock in the room. It had been there since the very beginning. It never worked, though since the Diary wasn't a physical space and time did not exist inside of it, of course it would never work. The clock forever remained frozen on Roman Numeral X with no change in the sixty plus years Tom had been trapped.
Never had he hated the clock more than now. He hated everything it represented and everything it was not.
Bella had stopped talking to him. He didn't even know how long ago it was. He'd counted up to four million at an accelerated pace before giving up, and that had been some time ago.
He didn't know what was happening in the real world. He didn't know if Bella ever planned to speak with him again. He didn't know if he was going to be destroyed any time soon.
All he knew was that Bella hadn't touched the Diary in what felt like forever, but she also didn't give it to someone else. And since Tom was still in existence and free of pain, he was assuming that she hadn't told anyone about him either. At least he hoped that was the case. He'd sensed no one new come near him ever since their communication dissolved.
He couldn't think of why she wouldn't tattle the moment she found out he became Lord Voldemort. If it caused her to avoid him for this long, then his true self had to have done something horrible. Whether it was a personal slight against her, or just the overall morality conflicting with her, he didn't know. And it bothered him to not know things! Especially not knowing what his other self had done!
Tom tried to organise everything he knew about Belladonna Pandora Potter-Michaels. Tried to make everything make sense even though it wouldn't when he was finished.
Born 31 July 2000 to James Charlus Potter and Lily Potter née Evans. She had a twin sister named Prunella Alula Potter. Her twin had been the favourite throughout their first year together. The family was attacked and it resulted in Prunella being hailed as a wizarding hero and Bella being abandoned with muggle relatives who hated magic. And the reason had been because her parents assumed she was a Squib because they were too daft to pay attention to their other child.
Bella was systematically abused for four years up until she was left at an orphanage in London and had to go through the muggle drama of a police investigation. She became a citizen of England legally, had to get therapy to make certain she wasn't mentally ill from her experience at the hands of the muggles, and started figure skating when she decided she wanted to be an athlete.
She got adopted not long after she turned eight, by her current coach, and she only found out about magic on 31 July 2011. Her life was turned upside down and she learned of her family's actions, and her magic in greater detail.
Her parents were taken to court by her godfather/third parent. They were sentenced to ten years that they had enough money to shorten to a year each. Her godfathers weren't doing their job in regards to Prunella and Bella was disappointed from what she'd last told him of the situation.
Bella was a hard worker and was dramatic. A product of her generation and unabashedly outspoken about her interests. Found a lot of magical things pointless. Openly criticised the wizarding world for backwards practices, but she also criticised the muggles too because while things were better, they still weren't what she thought they should be.
She had similar beliefs to Tom but they also clashed in other places. Like how she considered muggles to be fine. But from what Tom had learned of the present day, muggles were a lot better than they ever had been before and she got to grow up in such a world. No war and bombs raining down on London every bloody day had to be one hell of a peaceful life to live. Muggles, in Bella's opinion, were more interesting than wizards.
They dreamed of magic and created content such as films and books based around magical concepts and history. People seemed more accepting of things labeled as other, now. They wanted to fly without muggle technology, and wanted monsters to be real. They dressed up as such beings on Samhain because it was the one night a year where they could be something they wanted to be a not be mocked for it.
Compared to Tom's childhood, the world was just a better place now. Of course Bella would support muggles. Though she didn't support the idea of telling them about magic, thankfully. She had told him that while a majority of the human population, all seven billion of them now, would accept magic without a second thought and would gladly support magicals, governments would see wizards more as weapons to be forced under control to one up one another.
Technically any government would do that when faced with something that seemed to provide and endless amount of power, but she wasn't wrong. Human nature dictated that you needed to rule the roost. Even Tom fell prey to this simple biological urge. So of course governments who held power over municipalities, would want more power when it came along, in order to goad the others into submission. And the bigger ones would prevail in such a scenario obviously and with such would come prestige and the like.
Bella was an interesting person to speak with. Childish but mature at the same time. Still holding on to that innocence of her youth despite everything she'd gone through, but maturing in certain areas far ahead of time, and having to cultivate a level of control over herself for every day of her life if she wanted her dreams to come true.
Hard working toward her own goals didn't fully encompass Bella. Dedication played a massive part as well.
He'd heard of the injuries. Despite her issues with Quidditch, figure skating did not seem any more safe to Tom. Bella had so far broken her arm, her ankle, her left metacarpals, and concussed herself many times during practice. She was lucky her Healing factor was so strong that it began fixing any injuries the second they occurred. Even with healing spells or potions some of those injuries could take ages to fix and might even leave nasty side effects behind if not caught on time. She was lucky.
There was something more respectable in being the cause of your own pain and knowing full well that it had the potential to get even worse in the future, and having the perseverance to continue on because your goals were more important to you in the long run, compared to persevering through pain when someone else has inflicted it upon you and you want to prove them wrong by outlasting them.
It bordered on self-destructive in a way.
If Bella had been a fellow student in Tom's day, he would have done whatever he could to get her on his side as a member of his Knights. She was the kind of person who would be good as a follower. Loyal, honest, and hard-working when it came to what she believed in. If he left out the manipulative streak she had and the level of her ambition, he'd say she'd have been a fine Hufflepuff.
Hufflepuffs made the best allies and while rare, Hufflepuff/Slytherin friendships were a dangerous sort. Almost as dangerous as Slytherin/Slytherin partnerships.
And whichever best suited Bella, Slytherin or Hufflepuff, they'd have been an interesting partnership. Tom never struck deals with people because he just preferred their compliance, but Bella made him reconsider. Perhaps being on equal footing with someone could have its advantages if that someone was like Bella was.
All he had to do was get her to speak with him again. And he was rather limited in the book because he could not latch onto her soul at all and no one else in the house could be controlled because of their lack of magic. So he was stuck just feeling the barest brush of her warm soul and magic when they came around, but never getting the full, blinding force of them.
And on the subject of Bella's soul, there was a piece of Tom's soul stuck to hers. It made him wonder if maybe that was what was making it impossible for him to establish any connection to the girl. And it also could explain why she had this familiar feeling to her whenever she laid hands on the book.
Like Tom was recognising himself in a way. And from how she'd described her situation, the soul piece was very much aware of what it was and what it could do. Was it deliberately refusing him the connection, or was that simply how it was naturally? It was deliberately causing her pain.
Tom was still confused over how a piece of his soul could possibly thrive in another living being. It was so strange. And the concept kind of reminded him of Horcruxes, but there had never been a living one. And why would his real self turn a child into a Horcrux anyway? Humans were mortal and would all fall into the embrace of death at some point. Having a link to immortality that was capable of dying, seemed rather foolish.
He wanted to talk about these thoughts with Bella. He wanted to know what she had to say about it all. He wanted the dreaded silence to bloody end already! Never before had he hated that it was quiet!
The waiting was tense and he could feel a strange sensation in his stomach, which shouldn't be possible because there were no such things as that in the Diary. Sixty years or so inside the book and yet only now he was feeling such an odd bodily reaction?
Maybe this was divine retribution for all the questionable things Tom had done in his short life. He wasn't the best of people. He didn't necessarily think of himself as evil, but he wasn't good.
Tom didn't start things, he finished them. That was how he handled everything in life. And yes, sometimes mistakes were made, but rarely did Tom regret anything because in his mind, he was justified for what he did. That didn't mean anyone else would feel the same of course, not that he cared usually.
He would even accept a half-arsed greeting so long as Bella acknowledged him.
Tom was used to having people's attention for many reasons. Being ignored was something rare and annoying for him personally. One truth he could admit to, was the fact that he loved to perform for an audience and his narcissism played a massive part in that. He liked being admired by others. He liked it even more because he knew he was something admirable compared to the dullards he was surrounded with.
Just a word. An emoji even. Tom would take anything so long as Bella gave him her attention.
His dependence on Bella unnerved him more than anything in recent months ever had. He needed her, but she didn't need him, and it was an uncomfortable truth that settled into the marrow of his bones and refused to let him be.
Prue was not having a good day. She'd been told without hesitation that she would not be taking Defence with the rest of the students, and that she would be receiving personal tutoring from Remus alongside Belladonna and possibly some of her friends.
This was great. She had no qualms about the situation and her only worry was the possible amount of written work ahead of her. Prue was still not the best at writing. Her hand cramped very quickly, her writing was atrocious, and most teachers didn't seem to like quills that wrote by themselves. As if they didn't let the student truly learn or whatever.
On another note, was Lockhart. The idiot didn't seem to be affected by the horrible words printed in the Prophet about him. He simply smiled everywhere he went, as if there were no problems in his life. And he would brag about this award and that award, and offer his unsolicited advice to anyone within reaching distance. And he never got the hint when people tried to get away from him!
Prue was more famous than him and had been dancing to the tune of fame for a very long time. Far longer than Lockhart had, that was for certain. And yet she had never done anything remotely like him.
She gave autographs with a special quill only when asked. She agreed to photos only if asked. She liked having nice things because that was what she was used to having. She didn't randomly expect everyone to want anything but money from her and she didn't go around bragging about how amazing she was to anyone who would listen.
Honestly, if the whole groping thing wasn't terrible enough, his character was what made him all the worse in the end.
He was grabby!
So far, in the very first week back, he'd somehow found his way into Prue's personal space dozens of times! So far, Ron, the twins, Belladonna, Black, Snape, Sprout, Flitwick, and a handful of Prefects, had managed to get her away from him in time. But he would just appear and place an arm around her shoulders and pull her in close, where she didn't want to be!
Prue had taken up the habit of bringing the Marauder's Map with her everywhere. And while she had the advantage of seeing him coming thanks to the map, he somehow always knew where she was. His little footsteps would always be turning in her direction somehow.
With a sigh of annoyance, Prue did a one-eighty and made her way toward Black's quarters. She would have gone to McGonagall if the woman hadn't already proven to be a lacklustre Head of House who was never around or never believed anyone when they had problems.
Black would check her over for tracking charms. He might even have to put some charms up to block such things just in case.
There was no way Lockhart just instinctively knew where she was all the time. She refused to believe it! He was not that smart!
Her first competition of the new season. Bella and Aaliyah had been working nonstop all summer to prepare her for harder and more thought-provoking choreography. They wanted to showcase Bella's newly obtained knowledge and skills as much as possible. She didn't spend an entire four months focusing mostly on Presentation over her Technicals, for nothing.
Her theme for this season was Fairytale and she was content with the choice.
Bella's costume was like the common figure skating costume. Same basic design one would expect. Her chosen colour had been lavender of course, and the sleeves were bedazzled with fake, blue and green rhinestones. There were small, blue and green lavenders sewn into the fabric around her wrists. The lycra around the V of the neck was a peachy colour as it was supposed to match her skin tone. It managed to match her stockings though, so only her pale neck and face didn't match the ensemble.
Bella wasn't going to get into mesh for a while yet. She didn't feel comfortable in it.
The song she'd chosen for her Short Program, was the instrumental version of a lullaby called [Lavender's Blue]. It was a sweet song based off a poem from centuries back, and it gave her visions of fairytales and happy times. So Bella and Aaliyah choreographed a story to that which was uplifting and sweet.
There was more story in this program than there had been in any other Bella had done so far. She hoped the judges took note. Specifically, Ms. Kitteridge who was the one to advise her to focus on her PCS because her TES was fine enough for her current division. If Bella managed to slay this hurdle, then she could focus on something else with the knowledge that she was doing well all around finally.
Aaliyah handed her a bottle of water. "Drink slowly. You've stretched out enough, yes?"
"Yep. I'm doing the Y Spiral instead of the third Camel Spin."
"How about you pay attention to how your body feels when you skate, and if you think you can handle it, then you do it. And if you don't feel ready, simply do the spin instead."
She could agree with that. Skaters did things like that all the time. Though really it was more for jumps and whether they were physically capable of doing it at a certain point, but it was still relatively the same concept. She had only just gotten the Y Spiral down after all and it wasn't super perfect as of yet.
Bella removed her skate guards and handed them off to her coach as the announcers called her name. The gathered crowd of locals all applauded and some every screamed. There were flashes of light everywhere from cameras and mobiles.
She took position in the direct center of the rink, arms held against her chest as if clutching her heart. The music began with a, dare she say, magical fluttering of wind chimes.
She breathed in slowly, and spread her arms out wide, but gracefully, as if expecting an embrace from someone.
It was such a pretty song, and while the content wasn't sad in the least, it still hit her emotions more than anything else she'd ever performed to.
Bella ended up walking away with first place, and beamed during the entire car ride home. Especially since Ms. Kitteredge had only good things to say after the performances.
Hermione,
Bella was a bit off in the last week of summer. She wasn't talking as much and
she usually calls me every night but she didn't seem all there whenever we got
to talking. She didn't say anything else though, so I don't know what could've
gotten her mood so down if she's accepted the whole illness thing.
She'll tell us when she feels ready.
You know Hogwarts does offer a re-sort as an option any time you want. It's
a rare thing since most apparently love their Houses, but it does happen. You
might just be one of the people who would do better in another House. I have
always thought that the Sorting thing was ridiculous because no eleven year
old is fully grown yet. Most have yet to be influenced enough to already have
a set personality. People can change from anything and forcing children into a
House filled with only one way of thinking promotes stagnation to me. You've
noticed how rare inter-House friendships are I'm sure. People don't associate
with anyone outside their House so it all seems very backwards to me. Maybe
it worked centuries ago, but times are changing and 11 is too young imo.
You seem to hold no loyalty to Ravenclaw and they obviously hold no loyalty
to you. Just keep that in mind.
Shi and Yon have in fact gotten on quite well. They are always frolicking or
napping together. I am hoping for a litter from them some time soon. And
if you're allowed to get a Kneazle, I'll make certain to keep you up to date.
I also really like the name you chose for your owl!
On the subject of the pedophile, the Daily Prophet has been relentless and
their articles have been coming every day. I feel like something big is going
to happen but I don't know what yet. Just stay away from the creep if you
can.
Bella just had a competition and there is a clipping attached to this letter,
from the newspaper. I think you'd be interested. Her YouTube channel has
gotten a few thousand more followers and she'll be super excited to learn
that the video of her routines has gotten hundreds of comments and most
are actually good ones! I read them all because I wanted to know what's
going through the minds of the fans.
There is some growing hype. Bella's right on the edge of joining the Junior
Division. So more attention will be on her in the coming years. It's going
to be stressful because athletes are always watched closely for everything.
I'm worried about how she's going to handle all of this plus Hogwarts on
top of it all.
Good luck this term! What are you doing for Christmas?
Amara.
"Are the other students actually learning anything?" Hermione had to ask, feeling like she had just been hit by a lorry. Bella insisting on her not buying the DADA curriculum for that year had been shocking enough, even with all the reasons why she shouldn't waste her money. But now she had learned that none of Lockhart's classes were doing anything!
The very first day, according to Ronald Weasley, he gave the second years a quiz about himself. And Percy Weasley confirmed that he did it to the sixth years as well, meaning he most likely did it to all the other students of every year too.
From the examples of questions she'd heard, they were the kind that you'd find on an online quiz to see how big of a fan you were of some celebrity. And her patience had been truly tested with, 'What is Gilderoy Lockhart's favourite colour?'. That honestly had absolutely nothing to do with anything in terms of Defence! How was that going to teach the students how to defend themselves?!
A few complaints were made, especially from Percy Weasley who was usually the kind of person to simply follow a teacher's footsteps because he was a bit of a brown noser.
A Howler from Mrs. Weasley had erupted in the Great Hall during the beginning of the second week, and it ended up adding her children to Mr. Lupin's tutoring sessions because she didn't want her children in the same classroom as the pedophile.
A week of school passed and nothing had changed, and with a new week starting, no one had any faith that it was going to get any better any time soon.
"The Headmaster isn't even going to do anything about it?" she asked, bewildered that he would be allowed to continue this incompetence.
Theo snorted. "After the whole Dark Lord situation last year, are you really shocked he's letting Lockhart continue?"
Well… he wasn't wrong.
"Maybe he knows something and is once again hoping to trick the DADA professor or whatever," Bella suggested. "Though I'm annoyed 'cause so many people wasted money on those books and there was a very limited window if you wanted to return them. That window is gone. They've all wasted money that they'll never get back."
"You know," Blaise began, a devious smile stretching his cheeks, "Draco's dad is on the Board of Governors. I'm certain he'd be angry to learn that his son is receiving a sub-par education this year. He could probably raise enough of a fuss to get people to look into the situation and the Board has the power to overrule Dumbledore's decisions at any time. They'll even sack him if they feel the need to."
Hermione had to stamp down the urge to correct the boy on using the man's proper title. The Headmaster had lost a lot of the respect she'd held for him and hadn't done anything to get it back. So she'd keep her urges to herself.
Bella was grinning. "I can get Sirius to talk to Lucius and we can politely ask Draco to send his father a letter expressing his worry over how his grades will be by the end of the school year should this continue."
Her emphasis on the word 'politely' told Hermione that it would be anything by politely requested. She didn't feel too bad about it honestly. Draco Malfoy was an annoying prat.
Going into the third week of the school year was when Bella, Theo, and Blaise pulled the mini Malfoy aside in the Common Room and had a nice chat with him. Very sweet and all. Nothing concerning in the least.
"Your father is on the Board of Governors, right?" Bella asked, a misleading smile on her face.
The blond looked immediately wary as he answered, "Yes," hesitantly. His gaze trailed between her and the boys, wondering who he should be most worried about obviously.
"And wouldn't he want you to get the best education possible? Malfoys don't take second-rate, do they?"
His chest puffed out a bit as he answered more firmly, "Of course not!"
"Do you think you can send him a letter about how worried you are for your education ever since Lockhart stepped foot in the school? And possibly add in that he's been getting a little too friendly with certain students so he makes you uncomfortable?"
Draco stared her in the eye for a few seconds before going wide-eyed and slack-jawed. "Did he really molest Prunella Potter? I thought Skeeter just made that up for the drama, but if she and you aren't allowed to attend his classes then it makes sense!" His eyes went even wider as his jaw dropped even further. "He touched Pansy's waist a lot yesterday. Even when she tried to move away, he wouldn't let go."
Bella's face contorted into a look of disgust. What a creep! He needed to go immediately!
"Okay, here's the plan. I'll tell my mother. She'll pick up on the questionable interest in young girls better than father will. And then she will take the issue to him and get him to do something about it. She's very persuasive and would manage it far better than I ever could. She also really likes Pansy."
"That's good," said Blaise. "Don't make it sound like you're embellishing though. Just write it as you remember it and add details of what you've learned in his classes."
Draco nodded. "I know what to do!" He sounded eager.
Mum,
School has been rather dull as of late. DADA is even worse than it had been last year and
I can't even begin to tell you everything. But Lockhart only ever talks about himself. And
he mentions his awards multiple times a lesson! Actually, he hasn't taught us anything at
all from the books we had to purchase for his class. Every day we've been given quizzes
on the information in his autobiography, which none of us have. And then he'll grade the
quizzes loudly and whinge about how no one knows anything like his favourite colour or
his favourite fruit.
I would have preferred Quirrell, even if he was a Death Eater in disguise. He at least told
us valuable information and he didn't touch us all the time. Yesterday, Pansy couldn't get
Lockhart off her and spent the whole day clinging to Daphne afterwards. She would not
say why though.
And you know, even though Quirrell tried to murder Prunella Potter, he didn't stalk her all
the time like Lockhart is. I don't get the favouritism but Professor Black doesn't like it and
won't let either Potter take his classes. They and their friends now get special tutoring. It
isn't fair! I don't want to be in Lockhart's classes either!
May I get special tutoring too? I don't want to be in his class anymore. He's unnerving and
makes all the girls complain.
Love,
Your Dragon.
Narcissa Malfoy was a woman with self-control that was simply unparalleled. She'd been groomed specifically for the duty of being a Pureblood wife. She knew the requirements for a woman of her station and was unflappable in the extreme.
And yet even her legendary self-control splintered down the center when she read her son's words.
There was some truth to Skeeter's words after all, and cousin Sirius knew it, which was why he had made certain to remove his children from Gilderoy Lockhart's influence so he couldn't do anything to them. And there was no proof beyond a photo, so there was nothing that could be legally done yet, which was why the rest of the school was still taking classes with him.
Still, the fact that he was allowed to teach at Hogwarts when someone had raised suspicions of him being a pedophile, didn't sit well with her.
Narcissa stood and moved toward her husband's office with haste. She wanted the situation looked into immediately.
FAMED AUTHOR or FRAUD?
Dearest readers, I have been looking into the history of our newest celebrity sensation,
one Gilderoy Lockhart, because I honestly find his character to be something concerning
to the general public. Ever since his hand travelled a little too close to Prunella Potter's
derrière, I have been studying him near religiously for any other signs of questionable
behaviour. I've researched every public appearance he's ever made, every interview
he has ever given, and talked to some of his friends.
My exploration has lead me to a bit of travelling. I found myself interested in speaking
with the people who've interacted with him before. Former classmates and Housemates
strangely enough, could not seem to remember a thing about a Gilderoy Lockhart ever
attending Hogwarts the same time they did. When shown photos of him, they didn't even
recognise his face. When given descriptions of his character, none could recall even his
famed method of slow and descriptive speech.
Of course this was strange, so I decided to go abroad and speak with the people in his
books. Perhaps to get a more personal account since they ended up working so closely
with him to defeat such great beasts! Surely one would come to understand a person
after a near-death experience!
What I have found thus far unfortunately, is disappointing. No one seems to remember
anyone by Gilderoy Lockhart's description. In fact, I have shown his photo to dozens of
people and no one, not even the people he worked alongside, knew who he was. With
great concern in my heart, I delved even deeper into this and found that certain people
listed in his books, do not exist at all.
That's correct. And something that might shock you even more, Pfaeterfjord, the town
in Norway which Wandering with Werewolves takes place in, does. not. even. exist!
Neither on the magical side nor the muggle side. And no one in the magical community
has heard of anything like the Wagga Wagga Werewolf. In fact, Wagga Wagga would be
connected to Australia, not Norway. And nobody in Australia knows about a Werewolf
terrorising their people.
My efforts have shown me that many "facts" in Mr. Lockhart's books just don't add up.
And many are simply made up. I'm curious about what you all have to say about this,
and I have forwarded all of my findings to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement
here in Britain so that they may get to the bottom of this mystery.
Additionally, as if potential theft and even murder aren't incriminating enough for him,
Hogwarts' newest DADA professor has been caught multiple times, singling out Prunella
Potter and getting very handsy with her. Certain witnesses have expressed worry over his
deep interest in a twelve year old girl, and I must admit that these worries are not exactly
unfounded. It wouldn't be the first time a man used a position of power to get to a child
at Hogwarts. I'm sure we all remember Belgremmin Blabberfort of '67, or most recently,
Quirinus Quirrell of this very year.
I can only hope the the Auror Office plans to get involved in these situations in order
to lay our worries to rest. Madam Bones surely wouldn't allow this to continue without
at least looking into it just for the sake of our well being and well being of the children.
With questions still burning,
Rita Skeeter.
Special Correspondent to the Daily Prophet.
~.O.~
A/N: Another is done!
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