Chapter 10: Kenna's First Day

Kenna sat on a high chair behind a desk in the front of the room, right next to the Professor's desk. McGonagall had adjusted the chair's height so that she could see the things laid out on top just for her, like her coloring book. The Transfiguration Professor was in a side room pulling items out of shelves and walking them to the main table in the front of the class. She had only been there for a few minutes before students started to trickle in and take their seats. They were the older kids, 5th years, and therefore she was classified as safer from any wayward spells. Also, it was McGonagall, and the woman had been exceptionally protective over her in the short time they'd spent together. After the second night of classes, Minerva had a meeting with Dumbledore that Kenna got to sit on her lap. Afterward, they read a book together. The woman was warm-blooded and didn't mind Kenna curling into her like a cat. She'd invited the two Dumbledores to visit her and her husband for dinner in their Hogsmeade cabin home at the end of the month.

According to both her and Albus, Her husband Elphinstone apparently had a secret recipe for Spaghetti. Kenna had liked every pasta she had tried. She hoped that one day she would get a chance to learn how to cook on her own. It had to be a little like Potions making, and as long as you followed the recipe book it couldn't be too difficult.

That day McGonagall had come to pick her up from Dumbledore himself before her first class. When they arrived in the room Kenna and the Professor had sat down and had a very straight forward discussion on the expectations for sitting in her classes. She needed to be quiet and work on her own. If she had a question, she would raise her hand like a student. Kenna was glad to be doing something in a different place, she could almost count on her hand the number of times that she'd been in rooms other than Dumbledore's office and private quarters. She'd agreed to the conditions of her sitting in on the 5th year class and seemed understood the reasoning behind it.

It was odd having to do something like raising her hand when instead she could just reach out her mind to ask questions. However, Dumbledore had told her this was not an appropriate form of communication. He'd repeated it to her just before classes started. Her voice wasn't fully developed, but she could figure out how to shorten her sentences and still make sense. For this class lesson though, she wouldn't have any questions. It had been agreed in the final staff meeting that her schooling would start the second week of term, just enough time for the teachers to get all their ducks in a row with the kids and their own lessons. Until then, she had coloring books and novels to work on when she sat in their classrooms. Her box of colored pencils was laid out carefully from light colors to dark colors. She was excited by the prospect of having classwork and new information to learn. They had suggested giving her a few more formal tests to see where she was at academically. She'd never taken a test before.

She hadn't gotten the chance to interact with any students in the first two days of classes either. Dumbledore mostly was checking in with specific students on this day and he had a few meetings with teachers, so the routine was really beginning. Her own timetable and schedule were still being edited a little bit to include someone accompanying her to different rooms and so she wasn't a distraction in the classroom. She had a small notebook with the schedule on the front. Hagrid was normally reserved for Wednesday mornings, but this morning Dumbledore said she could stay in the office and prepare herself for classes that would occur after lunch.

She'd be lying if Kenna didn't admit she was a little excited to watch the 5th year Hufflepuff's and Gryffindor's practice magic too. She knew it would still be a few years before she'd get the chance to do so with a wand, or in public for that matter. That was another rule Dumbledore had told her. Most kids were not allowed to use magic at home because of Wizard laws. Her magic was probably masked by the magic in the halls of the school. He told her he wouldn't forbid it, but as long as she kept it in spaces where no one could see. The adults didn't seem to use it too often, but when they did it was usually for things Kenna didn't realize you could use magic for.

Dumbledore sometimes shrunk items to fit into his pockets, or the drawers in his desk had been enchanted to be larger on the inside. Those were the spells she wanted to know how to do. If she could make her pockets bigger, and candy smaller, she could fit more into them.

The last of the students trickled in and the door shut. Once the class was seated, the Professor began to lecture the students on the things they would need to know before their OWL exams, including vanishing spells and inanimate conjuration. Kenna focused on coloring the Puckwugie on the page, but she couldn't help but think about wanting to know what inanimate meant, she made a mental note to ask later. During the lecture, when Kenna looked up, she could see some of the kids looked extremely nervous at the prospect of OWLS in their futures. One or two were already writing things in their notebooks. She paused her coloring to listen McGonagall review some of the major topics for their year, and then provide students with the spells they would need to practice for review. She had the students write out some of the important things they needed to know for the year, as well as several spells they needed to master. The words she used sounded foreign, but when she listed some of the concepts Kenna understood.

"These spells were all taught because there are aspects in them that will follow you for the rest of your life as a Wizard or Witch. There are hundreds of other books with Transfiguration spells that you will learn as you get older, according to your profession and your life. We want to see a mastery of these skills, and that's what they will be looking for." As she finished talking about some of those skills, matchboxes and a few other materials were handed out for students to practice a list of reviewed spells.

One by one the summer assignments were collected and set on the table in a big stack. Kenna glanced at the title of a student's essay: Transfiguration at Home. It looked like it was about different uses for some of the basic spells that they had learned previously. Some were more like lists than they were essays. Kenna wondered if there was a proper format. She also noted the different loops for different letters, the scrawls, and in one or two cases the writing looked almost illegible. The students at each table took turns waving their wands in intricate fashions. Kenna couldn't help but think that it usually seemed excessive. You could easily shorten the movements with your wand and changing a mouse into a teacup didn't look difficult at all. The thing that did both her though was that the mice didn't really understand what was going on. Did no one tell them?

She looked at the small cage of critters for a while, watching them run around on their wheel. What a boring life they had. Did anyone play with them? Did they have any other things they did aside from running and eating and sleeping? What about cats?

Since the students had arrived, she noticed cats were also in the school more often. They were different from Mrs. Norris, some of them were a lot friendlier and some of them a lot dumber. She saw one cat almost fall through the fake step on the staircase. Her quick magic usage had stopped it and she'd fretted over it for almost fifteen minutes with her adopted father. Dumbledore told her that some of the students elected to bring a Cat, Toad, Rat, or Owl to school. They had yet to go to the owlery again, but Kenna was sure there would be many more owls than normal.

At breakfast they had swooped in with letters and small packages for the students, placing them down on the table. Dumbledore got his daily newspaper that morning as well in the same fashion, as opposed to the owl that usually came to his office. Kenna also debated how the owls were trained to find the person they were looking for. If you didn't have an address, or if the location of Hogwarts was technically secret, did the owls just have maps in their minds that told them where to find people? She took a brief break from her coloring to stare at the students again. They were mostly distracted, but a few of them waiting on their turn for a spell watched her as well. Kenna made brief eye contact before looking down at the paper. She was supposed to be quiet. What if the students got mad if she spoke to them?

McGonagall glided around the room and critiqued some of the wand movements of students, giving them the occasional bits of advice and then moving onto the next ones. Every little while Kenna knew that she would double-check to make sure that she was still there. An agreement was an agreement, so Kenna wasn't sure why the transfiguration professor was expecting her to suddenly disappear from her seat. She couldn't apparate anywhere. The fifth-year course was a single hour anyway, and time seemed to move a little quicker with the flurry of movement from the students.

When the class ended Kenna waited for Professor McGonagall to gather some of her things. The two of them walked down the steps to the library where she was left with Madam Pince. The strict woman led her to a table near the check out for the books and went back to organizing. Dumbledore was still busy for the day, so she would stay there until dinner time. The number of the students increased as the afternoon went on and classes began to finish. Most students didn't need to check out books just yet, so the voice level in the library varied extremely. Loud 'Shhhh's echoed through the room. Sitting at the table with a book open Kenna still struggled to focus. She really liked watching the students interact. Her eyes were focused on a table of Slytherins laughing at a kid who fell out of his seat because his friend pulled it away before he sat down.

Sitting alone made her feel a little lonely, away from the rest of the kids. Normally Dumbledore provided comfort by just being in the room with her, but for some reason, surrounded by people it didn't feel the same. She couldn't help but wonder if it would be okay if she sat with other people to read her book or continue her coloring.

Kenna was watching the Slytherin students again, and she almost didn't hear the girl sitting down at the table next to her until she spoke, "What are you reading?" She was a younger student, in her first or second ear with a yellow marker for Hufflepuff on her robes. Kenna couldn't help but stare at her short hair, on top it was a brown like hers, but at the tips, it was colored yellow. This was the first person close to her age to ever speak with her. Hufflepuffs were famous for their friendliness and loyalty according to the Sorting Hat.

Kenna bit her lip and showed her the cover of 'A Wrinkle in Time'. Her voice- she could respond but what if the girl didn't like how she sounded? The girl tilted her head after she read the cover. "Is that a muggle book?" Kenna nodded.

"Cool! I haven't read many Muggle Books. Have you read Babbitty Rabbity?"

Again, Kenna nodded. There was an awkward pause as she racked her brain and built up the confidence to speak. Her mouth opened and shut but nothing came out.

"I'm Nymphadora Tonks!" Her voice raised a little, and a few people looked over at her. "I'm a first-year, call me Tonks. You're Dumbledore's new daughter yeah? Do you live with him? Here in the castle?"

The girl didn't seem to be too worried about her responses, and Kenna nodded her head again.

"You're a quiet thing." The girl laughed nudging her. It was a friendly movement Kenna had watched students give each other in the library. She pulled her bag onto the table and opened it. "I've got some homework. Wanna help?" Kenna stared at her. She wasn't sure if she was even allowed to help with homework. Nymphadora set out her book and opened a page. She flipped through the charms book to the first few pages, glancing down at how she needed to levitate a feather. She pushed her bag back and put another quill down, giving a very clear 'Leviosa' spell a try. The feather lifted a little bit, and then floated back down. Tonks looked at her book again and read the next few lines about making larger things float. She wrote something in her notebook. Then shut her book and tried making the book itself float. It took a few tries and it looked like it was just review, and the spells weren't too challenging for her.

Kenna wasn't sure what she meant by helping, but she watched the other girl. Her book was totally disregarded even though she still had it open. When Tonks let her book fall she then told Kenna to place her book on top to make a stack. After a few moments, they were joined by her dormmate and a Ravenclaw who also wanted to do some of the charms homework. They both introduced themselves and greeted Kenna like a normal student, giving her a polite smile and trying to include her in their conversations. Kenna listened carefully to how they spoke to one another, curious if they were new friends or old friends or just classmates.

They got off topic and away from charms as they chatted about their lives out of Hogwarts, "My mom's a Wizard, pure-blood and all. My dad's Muggle-born though." Tonks explained. The Ravenclaw was totally muggle-born, to the surprise of her family, and the other Hufflepuff had a family similar to Tonks'. They glanced at Kenna to see if she wanted to share. For a moment she fidgeted with her hands. Kenna could remember the magic in the house she lived in before the streets, but as for her family, she wasn't sure who was magical. She couldn't remember the first magic she had ever seen or ever being connected to anyone with familial bonds before Dumbledore carried her onto Hogwarts grounds. After a beat of silence Marian, the other Hufflepuff, changed the subject.

"I'd loved to have Professor Dumbledore as my dad- I mean, my dad's great but Dumbledore is so cool, he's one of the most decorated wizards in modern history. Do you do things together?"

Kenna smiled. Her voice was small but it didn't crack when she told them, "We read. And play chess." All the girls cooed like she was a five year old. Kenna knew she looked small, she'd heard kids ask about her age in passing.

"You're a book worm then! Will you be sitting in on any of our first-year classes?"

Kenna shook her head. She was pretty sure that staff was trying to avoid spoiling too many fun things for her first year in school, but if levitating a feather was the first day, Kenna wasn't sure if it'd be all that exciting anyway. Still, she watched the three girls practice with the feather, and then smiled with them as their stack of books became larger and more difficult to lift into the air.

Marian looked over at her, "Do you want to try?" she asked. She motioned to her own wand.

Kenna glanced over at Madam Pince, who was checking books. The woman had better eyes than a hippogriff and would occasionally glance at their table. Figuring it'd be a bad idea she shook her head. No magic for her. The girls all noticed what she glanced at too. "Yeah, that was probably a bad question to ask. I'm sure you're not supposed to do magic." The girls all awkwardly chuckled but moved on.

For a half an hour longer, they sat at that table and chatted about everything, their dorms, and classmates and first two days of classes. They'd already decided their favorite courses and least favorite courses, and Tonks showed them her special wizard blood ability to change her appearance at will. It caused their table to erupt in giggles. Kenna didn't say much but rather watched their reactions to one another and how they spoke and told stories. This is what friends did? She wondered if she would one day be as relaxed around other people like these girls were. She did manage to ask them what kind of wands they had, a question that they all were excited to share the answer to. Madam Pince eventually made her way over to the table.

"It's just about dinner time now. Do you girls mind escorting miss Kenna to the great hall?" The girls jumped up at the chance and packed their bags quickly. As a small group, they left the library and made their way down the stairs. They chatted a bit longer. Upon entering the hall, about a quarter of the student body already sat at their tables, munching on the food that magically warmed itself. Dumbledore and most of the staff seats remained empty, so the girls looked down to the 8-year-old.

"Do you want to sit with us at the Hufflepuff table?" Tonks asked.

Kenna nodded her head. Did this make them friends? The Ravenclaw said goodbye and walked to meet some of her own housemates. Kenna, Tonks, and Marian all took seats at the table. The older girls helped the younger dish up a decent plate and settle in. Housemates across the table also listened in and tried to chat with Kenna. They were all very curious about what it was like living with Dumbledore and asked her a lot of questions. She only responded to two, as the others took turns arguing over the right question to ask, or their own assumptions of her life. She didn't mind though.

"Lay off," Tonks eventually laughed. "Let her eat,"

Kenna was curious if the older girl had noticed that she was getting tired of answering questions. She liked the fact that she was always telling people exactly what she thought. Kenna didn't think that was something she would have the courage to do. The great hall was always so full of people that Kenna's mind struggled to stick on one thing. She wanted to see everyone, but it was much harder when she sat at a table among the masses. The only thing that gave away she wasn't a student was her dress and lack of robes.

For dinner, most of the kids had taken off their robes and were wearing clothes that were slightly more casual. The conversation changed to other topics, like Quiddich and the odds of Hufflepuff doing well, apparently, Slytherin was on a House Cup winning streak. Kenna's attention fell to the table across from them, where the orange-haired boy seemed to feel her eyes on him. He looked up and around the table eventually making eye contact with her. He offered her a wave and small smile before the others at his table also looked at what he was staring at. It set off more whispers and looks to the Hufflepuff table, students curious about what her schedule was like and some 5th years talking about how she'd sat in their Transfiguration lesson.

Kenna took another bite and looked up at the main table. McGonagall had taken her chair, and Hagrid and Flitwick had also entered while she was busy paying attention to the other people at her table. As she finished her main course, Dumbledore walked in. He made his way to his chair and said something to Flitwick on his way over. After their conversation, his eyes searched the filling tables of students.

Here! Kenna told him from the distance.

While she was in his mind, she was able to send him a picture that served as almost a homing device. She told Tonks where she was going and slipped away from the table and around to the front, climbing into the seat beside him and giving the old man a grin. He winked at her as he began to dish himself up. Aloud, he asked her how her day was. Kenna reached for a brownie. With a little voice, she said a few things, but mostly she filled his mind with clips of her day and the conversations she had. She distinctly took a few minutes to talk about Tonk's ability.

A Metmorphmagus. He explained, giving her a better word to describe Tonks. "I think I have a few books on things like that as a matter of fact." He noted mentally to keep an eye on the young girl, in the case she had an affinity for causing trouble. Students at Hogwarts were always sneaking around, and the teachers had to be on their toes to keep them safe and out of trouble. While considering this he watched his young daughter munch on her desert, he couldn't help but feel a great relief, knowing that she had somehow managed to make friends in the short day she'd spent on her own without him. It sounded like she hadn't spoken much to them, but just being in the presence of other people closer to her age was healthy.

Her chattering in his mind and even use of her voice box were positive signs that she wouldn't be too far behind her peers. She still had nightmares, and there were moments he could see the hesitation and nerves, not to mention her maturity. But it was moments like these- when the child in her made an appearance, when she got excited, when she played with Fawks- these moments were the ones that gave him faith and admiration for her resiliency.

When she ran out of things to talk about, she turned to McGonagall who asked her a little more about her day even though she'd been silently listening to the conversation Kenna had given with Dumbledore. Kenna repeated what she'd told him.

"What is inanimate?" The young girl asked. Both the professors on either side of her turned their heads at her question. Dumbledore shouldn't have been surprised, but he always was when she caught words or things and asked about them hours later. She had a lot of self-control for finding the right time to ask a question.

"Inanimate means not alive."

"Matchboxes?" Albus and Minerva glanced at each other. He hadn't been wrong when he had suggested that Kenna would be absorbing more about their classes than they expected her to. She had only been in a single class that day but was picking up on vocabulary. Dumbledore had to admit that he was worried she would be too far ahead of her peers when classes came around. However, it wouldn't be prudent to prevent her from seeking out her interests as a child. He wanted to be as honest as possible with her when she asked questions. He'd found that people underestimate children and their ability to understand things, Kenna being a prime example.

"Yes, that would be an inanimate object. Or a chair. Or a suitcase. Did you eat any of the greens when you were at the Hufflepuff table?" Minerva navigated the conversation to Kenna's eating habits. Kenna ate just about anything that was put in front of her, but almost never went in for seconds. Dumbledore always tried to stack her plate with a healthy mix of food, even things that he himself was not a huge fan of. Sitting at the head table between the Headmaster and deputy headmistress always meant they dictated much of what she tried at the table.

Kenna nodded her head. "Tonks gave me carrots!" she said.

"Tonks?"

Dumbledore smiled at her, "Ted Tonks and Andromeda Tonk's daughter. Nymphadora. Apparently, she goes by her last name."

The woman gave a small smile. Nymphadora was quite the name, but the Black family had always been fans of both names based off of stars, flowers, and relatives. Despite her knowledge of Andromeda leaving the family, some habits and affinities she couldn't totally shake.

"She's a Metmerphmagish." Kenna explained.

"Metmorphmagus?" Minerva asked, clarifying. She also looked up at Dumbledore for confirmation. The man smiled. He knew she was thinking the same thing about the young girl sneaking around the castle. "She was Hufflepuff right?" Both the Dumbledores nodded. Kenna looked down at the Hufflepuff table. Her two friends seemed to be finishing their food and preparing to leave for the evening.

"Carrots make your eyesight better you know." Dumbledore smiled down at her trying to distract her. He leaned down and whispered to her just loud enough for McGonagall to hear "that's why Madam Hooch has such good eyesight on the quidditch field"

Kenna gaped at him and then turned and asked Minerva for another carrot—the biggest one on the pile. The woman just smirked.

Dumbledore laughed.

A/N: Thanks for reading! Now, I may be changing the ages of characters by a little bit to fit the story but it'll all work out. Thoughts? Comments? Predictions? Want to Beta? Let me know! Reviews make me post quicker.

Lots of love from the Middle of Nowhere Asia!