A/N: Great thanks to the great bumblebee (Mary Sue?!? Yech! I don't like mary-sue's alot, can you tell? hehehehe) and to Person, as well as Severa for reviewing. Iphi, welcome back! Lupin awaits you... IC Fire, have a ball reading this. Input and feedback is greatly appreciated. *HUGS*
Chapter 12: Ode to Cedric Diggory
Harry and Ron walked towards the front of the train at quarter to eleven, finding most of the compartments full. Hermione was struggling with her trunk, but they didn't notice. All that mattered for the moment was finding a compartment. No such luck to be found at this end of the train, however. Hermione came running up, flushed in the face. "I've found a compartment you'll like! Come on..." and she practically dragged them to the end of the train, pulling open the door. The dark haired girl from Diagon Alley was standing in front of the window, arms crossed as she looked out into the station. Ron blushed, clashing horribly with his hair as the girl turned imperiously to look at them. Harry barely heard the introductions as he stared hard at the girl. She looked so familiar...
***
Leena ignored the compartment door being opened as she watched Mina glance about shiftily on the platform. Draco appeared next to her, as if stepping from a mist. Seeing them walk onto the train, she turned to look at the newcomers, putting on a haughty air to conceal how nervous she was. The redhead, Ron, was blushing furiously and the one with glasses...Harry, was it? He was scrutinizing her. She felt like a bug under a microscope. She put forth her hand, smiling coyly, and Ron seemed only too eager to take it. He blinked a few times and said, "Welcome to Hogwarts...Do y'know what House you'll be in? We're in Gryffindor." She glanced at the three of them, a smile still hovering about her dark lips. 'I know what House I'm in and I have a pretty good idea on why you're so keen to find out...' she thought to herself, but said amusedly, "I'm in Gryffindor, too. 5th year" Harry cocked an eyebrow at that, and smiled, emerald eyes lighting up. "We are, too. 5th years, anyway. I hope you like it here. Why are you transferring?"
***
Harry was liking Leena more and more. When Hermione introduced them, Leena hadn't even looked for the scar on his head. He was grateful for that, but he wondered why she hadn't at the same time. He presumed that she was transferring from an American school, given her accent, but was surprised when she said that she didn't have any prior magical experience/education other than this summer past. How was it possible, then, if she was a trained as she said she was, that she didn't know about him and his scar? 'Quit musing. You're being pathetic..." a voice said in his head. Startled, he jumped, causing Ron and Hermione to look at him. Leena was staring piercingly at him already. Hades, that stare was uncomfortably familiar. "I'm sorry, what? I was in outer space," he fumbled. Leena smiled, but it didn't reach her eyes. "I asked you how you got your interesting scar, I hope you don't mind," she said laughingly. "Oh, not at all..." Ron jumped in, telling her about how You-Know-Who had tried to kill Harry. All the while Leena kept picking at her sleeves, which were pulled all the way down. Hermione broke in, "Aren't you hot?" Leena looked at her, perplexed. "Why would I be hot? I'm fine, actually." Hermione squirmed, saying, "Well, you're sleeves are down, so I thought..." Leena smiled, again it not reaching her eyes. "Harry's not the only one with a scar," she said softly, cradling her left arm to her chest.
***
The lunch cart came with the plump little witch and trouble. Draco Malfoy, flanked by Crabbe and Goyle (as usual) were strolling behind the cart, looking into compartments. Draco popped his head in. Harry's and Ron's faces darkened immediately and Hermione scowled, saying, "What do you want, Malfoy?" Draco gave her a withering look and ignored the other boys. "I want to say hello, that alright with you?" and he pushed the door open all the way, sauntering in. "Leena! Haven't seen you since...What, a week ago? How did it go?" he said, holding out his arms for a hug. Smiling broadly, Leena pushed herself away from the comfortable seat, replying, "Hey, Draco! It's great to see you again. Interesting, to say the least. Floo Powder is so fun!" and she hugged him, much to the amazement and disgust to her three new-found friends. Letting go, she continued, "Ren's already at school. I've met the other teachers and most of them are nice." Draco raised an eyebrow, and said, "Oh really? Do you know who the new Defense professor is going to be?" Leena thought a moment. "Umm...Prof. Lupin, I believe..." and Hermione, Ron and Harry broke into cheers. Draco scowled and his cronies grunted stupidly. Upon noticing Malfoy's scowl, Ron looked furious and started to get up, hands balling into fists. Harry pulled him back down, glaring. Draco looked at them with the utmost loathing and said scathingly, "I really must be going. Slytherins are meeting in the last compartment. You're welcome to join us, if you want, Leena," and left abruptly.
Once the door had closed, Ron broke into a furious diatribe about Malfoy's in general. Leena's face was carefully drained of emotion as Hermione shook her head and Harry angrily pushed his glasses up. Cutting him off, Hermione asked Leena, "How do you know Malfoy?" Leena turned to look at her stiffly, eyes a stormy grey, "I met him at my father's house in Little Hangleton. He was the one my sister and I made friends with first." Hermione looked ashamed, Harry looked down, shoving his hands in his pockets. Ron blushed again, muttering, "Sorry. Had no idea..." Hermione tactfully changed subjects, asking about her sister. The result was Leena clenching her jaw, eyes turning black. "Mina isn't what she used to be. She used to be fun, easy to talk to, but when we came to England, she turned nasty. Fraudulent, whatever you want to call it, but she changed. I don't know her as well as I thought I did," she said in clipped tones. Hermione bit her lip, thinking. This obviously wasn't a topic Leena was interested in pursuing at the moment. Hermione tried a third subject, Prof. Lupin. Everyone visibly brightened as they discussed how nice he was and how interesting his classes were. They assured Leena that his classes were among the best in school.
***
Hogsmeade station was lit under a dark sky with brightly twinkling stars, with Hagrid swinging a lantern, saying over and over, "Firs' years! Firs' years this way! Firs' years follow me over here!" Leena looked up at the sky, starlight reflecting in her eyes. Harry pushed her forward, saying, "C'mon, we need to get to a carriage." Leena asked, "What about our luggage? Don't we have to carry them?" Ron grinned and said, "Naw, those are brought up to our dorms for us. Don't worry." Hermione opened the door to a carriage and scurried in, the others following enthusiastically. "Just wait until you see our common rooms..." Hermione started. Ron complained loudly about being hungry enough to eat a dragon, if only they were edible.
The Great Hall sparkled with candles, students flocking to their House Tables, teachers already seated at theirs. All except one, that is. Harry, Hermione, and Ron pulled Leena over to the Gryffindor Table, plunked her in a seat next to them, and promptly started to jabber with everyone else at the table, introducing her to them. Nobody noticed that there was an empty seat at the High table until the usual occupant was right next to the table in all his dark glory. Everyone looked up apprehensively. "Miss Riddle. You're presence is required in my office along with your sister's. If you please..." Snape said condescendingly, looking down his long nose at Leena. With a look of amusement, she pushed back her chair and followed him without a word to the Ravenclaw table. Harry, Ron, and Hermione were speechless as they watched the odd couple stand next to a blonde girl. The girl threw a look back at her table, then got up reluctantly. "She's the complete opposite of Leena!!" Ron gasped, hunger forgotten in the absurdity of the moment. Harry gaped, jaw dragging on the table cloth. Hermione sat musing quietly. This required careful planning if they were going to inquire anything. She watched the trio sweep silently out of the hall, the sisters glaring daggers at each other.
***
Mina threw a glance back at Leena as they were led to the dungeons, away from the light and warmth. She looked dead; her eyes held only aloofness and her skin was practically white. Not to mention the look of stone upon her face... The shadows that were thrown across Severus' face were very intimidating indeed, making the sharp angular face contrast drastically with itself, as well. Mina wondered what had happened to both of them when they came to a door. Once inside the room, she wrinkled her nose: pickled animals floating in jars of who-knows-what were lining the walls. 'Oh, gross...' she thought. Severus motioned for them to take a seat, then pointed his wand at the fire place. Flames burst up and crackled as if they had been there for hours instead of seconds.
"I'm assuming that you were told of your heritage," he started bluntly. The girls nodded and he continued, "Well, that makes it slightly easier for me. Anytime either of you notices that you are feeling faint, snappish, irritable, or looking pale, see me. Don't go to Madame Pomfrey; she doesn't know exactly how to deal with your affliction. To get you off to a good start, both of you are to take a blood substitute tonight." sardonic smile, "Just be discreet when you come to visit me; given my reputation, it looks extremely odd for me to receive visitors, especially ones who aren't from Slytherin." He handed them each a goblet and poured a thick, syrupy liquid into them. Mina arched her eyebrows in contempt, then sipped it. Leena refused to touch it at all. Severus snapped, "Drink it, I haven't got all night!" She folded her arms defiantly, eyes smoldering grey while Mina spit hers back into the goblet. "Yech! This stuff tastes terrible!" she said, horrified. Severus just sneered. "I'm not the one who has to drink it. Pinch your nose if you want, but I really don't see the good in that," he quipped. Mina glared at him and Leena wrinkled her nose, then sighed in resignation. Quickly, she snatched up her goblet and downed the awful, dark violet concoction. "Gak, what is that stuff?" she snipped, sticking out her tongue. Mina's look was one of pure disgust as she regarded her sister's purple tongue.
"Like I said before, it's a blood substitute."
"And that means bup-kiss to me. Explanation, please."
"Blood is composed of iron as well as miscellaneous traces of other things. What you actually could call being a vampire is being extremely iron deficient. Hence this 'blood substitute': it helps keep it under control by supplementing the needed iron. Happy?"
"No, but at least I understand this better."
"Cute..."
"Oh, I'm so glad to know that you think I'm adorable-"
"-Keep dreaming, Leena. The day I find you charming is a very sad day indeed."
"Gee, I didn't know you cared..."
During the whole exchange, Mina struggled to down the mixture. It tasted something revolting, but she wanted to keep drinking it. Maybe she would be better off tomorrow now...She placed the goblet down with a thunk and stood up. "I want to get back to the table, I met some nice people on the train who are in my house," she said with an edge to her voice. Severus glanced in her goblet, then on the floor, then nodded, finally standing up. "What did you do that for?" she snapped indignantly. "What, look on the floor? Some people actually think that they can fool me by dumping their potions on the ground to make it seem as if they've drunk them. It doesn't work, because I always check," he shot back, voice toned perfectly to Mina's. With that, he led them out of the labyrinth under the school.
***
Back at Gryffindor Table, seated next to Harry, Leena spent a few minutes getting aquainted with her House members while Professor McGonagall put the stool and Sorting Hat away. Ron's little sister Ginny was particularly interested in her; but she had her brows knitted, a fearful look on her face. Ron whispered that she was especially shy around new people. Leena tried to smile at her, but Ginny kept her eyes down. Apparently all of the Weasley's had the flaming red hair and freckles, because there was another set of twins that fit that description: Fred and George. Leena didn't have time to talk with them properly, for Dumbledore had stood up. "Before we start with the feast, I would like to say a few words of caution." A ripple went through the crowd and Leena looked up at Snape to see if he knew what it was about. Snape was carefully looking at the Headmaster, lips pursed. "Danger has increased tremendously since last year. All of you should be on your guard more than usual. The mishap that occurred last year was the first of many to come, I fear." Leena was staring intently at Snape now; at the mention of the 'mishap', he paled slightly. Nobody else seemed to notice. Sniffles were heard from one of the other tables, meriting sympathetic looks from every other table except the one on the left. Cold faced, haughty, and arrogant looking, they simply looked at the crying table in disdain. Next to her, Harry closed his eyes, fists pressed to his cheeks in sorrow.
Snape chanced a glance over the House tables and saw the Hufflepuffs crying softly. He felt sorry for them, honestly, he did, but couldn't help thinking that they were still a bunch of fools. Looking to the left of them, he saw Gryffindors. Harry was sitting there, eyes closed, looking miserable and numb to everything else. Snape gazed at him without his usual loathing for once and wondered how on earth Harry could stand it all. He wondered that maybe it might have been better if the Dark Lord had succeeded in killing him in the first place; if Snape had warned Lily and James too late, maybe Harry wouldn't have to bear all the pain now. Then again, if Harry hadn't defeated Voldemort, who knows what would be happening now? Moving onward, Leena was staring at him intently, her probing look firmly in place. She obviously didn't understand any of what was going on. He made a mental note to fill her in when she came to visit him at night some time. He peered at his Slytherins, seeing their faces carefully guarded and drained of all emotions at all. He knew they were recounting what had happened and were mourning in their own way, even if they didn't show it like the others did. They didn't need to show their grief. He turned back to Dumbledore. "...to remember that it is not our actions, but our choices that lead to our ultimate fate in the course of life. Let us remember Cedric Diggory with a few moments of silence before our feast," the Headmaster concluded and sat down.
After a few moments of silence broken by the sounds of gentle weeping, the feast appeared before their eyes. Hermione wiped a lone tear that had leaked out of the corner of her eye and picked up her fork, glancing congenially at Harry. Ron was carefully avoiding all eye-contact with him at all. Leena peered around at everyone else in the crowded Hall, and there were similar faces all around, except at that curious table on the left, where Draco was sitting next to a pug-faced girl. There, the masks were all the same: expressionless. She let her own face go into the same blank state, not having a clue as to who Kedrid Giddory, or whatever his name, was and why they all seemed so sad. Glancing around, she saw Mina with a pout on her face and another girl was sitting quietly, tears streaming while she looked over at the Gryffindors, Harry in particular. Harry didn't seem to notice; or if he did, he didn't care. Leena picked up her fork and started on her steak, tactfully not saying anything for the moment. Ginny kept warily watching her out of the corner of her cinnamon eyes, fear inexplicably haunting the back of them. Slowly the volume crept back up to its usual level and laughter was soon heard above all else as friends caught up with each other. Leena had an unusual conversation with Nearly Headless Nick about Roman blood sports and their influence on the human race.
***
Hermione led the way to Gryffindor Tower for the first years and Harry, Ron, and Leena followed at a distance. Harry was talking, but he was altogether more subdued as he walked the well known path. Leena wisely didn't push for reasons, the truth would hold until it was needed. And she could always ask Hermione. "Woolen Socks," Hermione said to the Fat Lady and the portrait swung forward. Ron looked almost like he did on the train: upbeat and untroubled. Leena had never visited this part of the castle and wanted to explore the whole tower. Hermione wouldn't hear of it. "No, Leena, we need to get some sleep! Tomorrow is when classes first start and we absolutely have to be rested for it..." and she pulled her towards the girl's dorms. Ron and Harry waved good night from the other side of the cozy common room and disappeared up their set of stairs.
The door to the 5th years girl's room opened and revealed a bright and comfortable room, fire crackling merrily in the polished grate, now 6 beds lining the room instead of the usual 5. The 4 other girls were flocked around the 6th bed, examining the trunk like buzzards. "Ahem..." Hermione said importantly, "This is Leena Riddle. She's going to be staying with us for the rest of our time at Hogwarts, isn't that exciting?" Leena raised herself slightly on her toes, trying to see over Hermione's head. 2 of the girls lost interest after that and the two that were left were looking at her like she was some kind of nasty bug. "This is Parvati and this is Lavender," Hermione said, gesturing to them. "Hi," they said together, but they weren't at all friendly in the way they said it. Leena took a few slow steps out from behind Hermione, never taking her eyes off the girls.
"Hullo. Pleased to meet your acquaintance," Leena said coolly. They didn't want to be friendly? Fine, she wouldn't be either. She felt herself going into a stance that she used around Riddle House that Tom had taught her: Make yourself appear taller and more menacing than the rest and they'll heed everything you tell them... Weaklings are easy to manipulate with simple, unnoticeable maneuvers; those who look like the leader are thrust into that position. Leena raised her chin formidably and that was all it took for the dark-haired/skinned girl (Parvati, was it?) to have a thread of respect enter her face. Lavender followed Parvati's lead and actually took a step back. Leena continued to stare unblinkingly at them until they dropped their eyes to the floor. Hermione watched this exchange, playing with one lock of hair uncertainly. This wasn't how Leena had acted with her, but then again, Parvati and Lavender weren't exactly being out going. She put it out of her mind as she showed Leena where the showers and bathrooms were, then went to unpack her own trunk. Crookshanks was already on her bed, like a large fluffy, ginger blanket that purred loudly. 1/2 hour later all the girls were in their beds, curtains drawn, falling fast asleep.
***
Hermione woke up early only to find that Leena was already up and dressed, brushing her teeth. Parvati and Lavender were still snoring while the other girls were sleepily going through the motions of getting dressed. Hermione quickly got ready and went downstairs with Leena to the common room to meet Harry and Ron for breakfast. Ron's hair was tousled and Harry looked a bit cheerier than last night. Ginny was at the table when they arrived, smile fading as she saw Leena. "Hi," she said quietly, avoiding looking at Leena as they all sat down. Nobody noticed except Leena. She decided not to push anything as she helped herself to porridge. Hermione chatted on about how much she looked forward to DADA classes with Lupin again while Ron yawned repeatedly, not paying any attention whatsoever. Harry turned to Leena and said, "How was it last night? That was the first time in three years that it didn't rain when we arrived." Leena thought a moment, then replied, "I thought it was magnificent, but something tells me that that wasn't usually the way things were run around here. What happened that made everyone cry last night?" Harry paused, not exactly sure how he should answer. "W-well..." he stammered, but was saved by the mail. Owls fluttered around the Hall, looking for their owners. Hermione got the Daily Prophet and set about looking over the news, forgetting about her bacon.
Ron revived himself over toast and kippers, saying, "I hope we don't have Care of Magical Creatures with the Slytherins again. They take all the fun out of it." Harry snorted, saying, "I'd rather have them in Care of Magical Creatures than Potions, wouldn't you?" Ron scratched his head, thinking. "Well, when you put it that way," he started as Prof. McGonagall handed out schedules. Leena glanced over hers:
|
Monday |
Charms, Flitwick |
Dbl. Care Mag. Creat., (Slyth's) Hagrid |
Double Herbol, (Huff's) Sprout GH 4 |
Arithmancy, Vector |
|
Tuesday |
Trnsfig, McGonagall |
DADA, Lupin |
Double Potions, (Slyth's) Snape |
Hist. Of Mag., Binns |
|
Wednesday |
Double Potions, (Slyth's) Snape |
Dbl. Care Mag. Creat., (Slyth's) Hagrid |
Double Herbol, (Huff's) Sprout GH 4 |
Astronomy at Midnight, Sinistra |
|
Thursday |
Trnsfig, McGonagall GH 4 |
Hist. Of Mag., Binns |
Double Potions, (Slyth's) Snape |
Arithmancy, Vector |
|
Friday |
Charms, Flitwick |
DADA, Lupin |
Double Herbol, (Huff's) Sprout GH 4 |
Hist. Of Mag., Binns |
" Dammit! Why do they always put the hardest ones first?" Ron demanded of no one in particular. Hermione said, "Care of Magical Creatures isn't hard, what are you talking about?" Ron scowled, then pointed out that Charms and Transfiguration were first practically everyday and Potions was first on Wed. Leena grinned at them bickering. "You know what I think? You two ought to get married, you fight like you are," and Harry chuckled as both of his friends slowly flushed. "Does anybody else have Arithmancy or am I the only one?" Leena added. Hermione assured her that she wasn't the only one who took the course.
Prof. Flitwick's class was mostly review, which was a good thing. Neville could barely remember anything at all. Seamus and Dean sided with Parvati and Lavender, they didn't take too kindly to having an addition to their class. Leena found it funny that so many people didn't trust her and they didn't even know her. She had her work cut out for her and not just in school work. Voldemort wouldn't be exactly pleased if she sent an owl to him saying that nobody from her House trusted her. Smirking at the thought, she forced herself to pay attention to the lesson.
Next was Care of Magical Creatures with the Slytherins. Ron was fuming at the prospect of having to deal with Malfoy so early. Harry and Hermione took a more practical view of things by worrying what Hagrid had in store for them. Fang came bounding up to them and started jumping up at Ron, trying to lick his ears in doggy bliss. After fending him off, they saw Hagrid standing in front of his cabin, looking excited and nervous. "That can't be a good thing..." Harry muttered to the other three. "From the stories you've told me, I shouldn't be surprised if we have to hand raise a hydra," Leena said playfully.
They greeted Hagrid jovially and waited for the rest of the class to arrive. Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle were the last to arrive, scowls firmly in place. "All right, now, evr'one here? Grea'...Got a real treat for yeh today. Leena, yeh can go and attend yer project around back there," Hagrid said once the class assembled. Leena nodded once and slid around the back of his hut, much to everyone's curiosity. "Now," Hagrid said, clapping his hands together, "If yeh'll follow me this way, you'll get to take care of some really special animals." Harry and the rest of the class suppressed a groan and Hagrid looked slightly hurt. "Aw. C'mon, they're not that bad. I'll show yeh, look," and with that, he took off the lid to a crate.
Everyone drew back apprehensively as Hagrid straitened up, holding a bundle of dark feathers and claws. "This is called an Eyrie. Mischievous li'l blighters, they are, so you should where your dragon-hide gloves when you handle 'em," he cautioned, letting the curious thing sit comfortably on his arm, "Three to a crate and don't try to switch once you claim one; they're fiercely loyal once they got an owner." Hagrid gently placed his on Ron's arm, then went to the rest of the crates. Ron looked at the Eyrie. It had deep purple feathers, it could almost be called black, and looked like a hawk with four legs which had paws. It's beak and talons were a satiny shade of navy blue. The whole thing wasn't larger than 1 1/2 feet. Harry's was a fiery crimson; Hermione's a bright gold. Parvati was quick to claim the pink one, Lavender's was a delicate shade of fuchsia. Draco's was perhaps the most stunning of all. Blinding white, with ruby eyes that glittered like jewels, talons and beak silver. Like Malfoy, though, it had a certain arrogance to it.
"Now, careful when you introduce them to another one, 'cause they might try an' attack each other. Back in the day, they were used for fighting each other, kinda like a cock-fight in the Muggle world. People would try and bet on the one which would win. Once an Eyrie has fought with another, however, they never forget it. It' very hard to get them back on friendly terms, so don't even think about staging fights between 'em," Hagrid counseled. Crabbe and Goyle looked extremely put out when he said it. Hermione's made a chirping sound as she carefully sat down on the ground, placing it in her lap. Harry's Eyrie regarded his new owner cautiously, cocking his head to one side, then the other. Ron's immediately nestled into the crook of his arms, looking sleepy. Hagrid came around individually to give pointers and to tell what gender the curious animals were. "Ok, let's see what you three got," Hagrid said, coming over to look at them, "Hermione, yeh got a boy...Harry, yeh got a boy, too. Ron, you've got a female. Start thinkin' up names for them, alright?" and he went over to the next group. Harry whispered, "What do you suppose Leena's got for her project?" Ron shrugged, disinterested at the moment, while Hermione tried to peer around the back of Hagrid's house. "As far as I can tell, there really isn't anything there..." she said disappointedly.
***
When the bell rang for lunch, Leena came back from around the hut, brushing dust off her robes and pulling her sweaty hair off of her neck. "What's your project?" Ron asked right away. All she did was smile, saying, "Taking care of my pet" and she didn't say anything more. Hermione bit her lip, wondering why Leena was being so mysterious about everything. Just outside the Great Hall, Leena added quietly, "If you remind me during the week, I'll sneak you guys out sometime to show you." Harry grinned, hoping it was going to be good.
***
Herbology and Arithmancy passed quickly, but when everyone reached the common room, they were exhausted. Ron was in a bad temper because Prof. Trelawney was making them study how to read tarot cards now. "I'll never be able to keep the Suit of Swords straight from the Suit of Cups!" he complained just before going to bed. Harry just shook his head. Hermione and Leena arrived in their dorm to see Parvati and Lavender raising a ruckus about something. Sparks were flying out of both girls' wands as they shrieked in terror. Hermione tried to calm them down without success while Leena was trying to make sense of events. "Subsisto!" she bellowed and the silence was deafening. As the smoke cleared, Leena took stock of the situation: Hermione, Parvati, and Lavender were frozen to the spot. Hermione had an impatient look upon her face at the time that the other two girls had panic etched on theirs. Leena followed their terrified stare to her own bed where black wings were stretched out, as if they were beating wildly. The raven's beak was open in a noiseless cry. "Agito," she snapped and the room was filled with wails again. This time, however, Leena could hear Loki's raucous calls over it.
"SILENCE!" Hermione roared. Lavender whimpered and Parvati aimed a shaking wand at the raven. Leena was petting him soothingly, much to her roommates' dismay. "What is going on in here?" Hermione demanded. Parvati explained, "That's a raven!" Leena put Loki on her shoulder, sneer in place. "I'm a human, your point is?" she said testily. Lavender spoke up, "Ravens mean impending doom and particularly bad luck to any who come across one," and she shuddered. Parvati nodded fervently in agreement. "Oh..." Leena said, and went back to petting Loki. "Don't you understand? That's a raven! And you're holding it!" Lavender said shakily. Hermione just tutted. Leena raised an eyebrow coldly. "Really, I hadn't noticed," she said shortly. Parvati snapped, "We're not staying in here if that bird is!" and she ran out of the room, Lavender close behind. "Honestly, those two...they spend entirely too much time breathing incense in the old bat's tower..." Hermione said, frowning. "I don't see anything wrong with a raven. What's that?" Leena had pulled a small envelope off of Loki's leg.
A/N: Holy cow, that was quite an escapade. I got writer's block about halfway through, then school started up, leaving me with no time whatsoever! *sighs* Finally, it's done. Enjoy, I'm not sure exactly when I can put up the next chapter. Get ready for the 1st Potions class, it'll be wild! *rubs hands together gleefully*