Catch Me If You Can
Chapter Thirty Two ll Life At Beaux
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At breakfast that morning, there were two sudden changes with the group. Di had gone back to being quiet and lifeless, while Paige seemed to have recovered from her Sirius blow and was her usual, chirpy self.
The only bad thing, though, was that she became rather flirty. She smiled and sweet-talked with every cute Beauxbaton boy she had seen on their way to the Hall of Regals.
To their relief, they found quite normal dishes on the deux table for breakfast; nothing fancy and odd like frogs legs with chick peas that had been served at dinner that previous night.
All the same, Lily tucked appreciately in a chocolate-chip bun. They didn't have anything like that at Hogwarts.
"So, so, so, what classes do we experience today?" Sirius asked joyfully, ladling thick porridge into his bowl.
"You're in my class," Cloudeia flashed them a smile and the others faked a groan, "And today we have Metamorphose, Histoire De Magie, Muggle Comportement, Etudes D'herbe et Comprehension De La Defense, aka Defense."
The Hogwarts students looked utterly lost.
Cloudeia laughed, "Basically we have Metamorphosis, History of Magic, Muggle Behaviour, Herb Studies and Defense Understanding."
Remus figured everything out in a tick, "So in Hogwarts, that'd be Transfiguration, History of Magic, Muggle Studies, Herbology and Defense Against the Dark Arts."
Lily and the others looked relieved.
"Tell me," Lily asked Cloudeia, as she bit into another choc chip bun, "You're not French, are you?"
"No," the blonde answered bemusedly, helping herself to a muffin, "Why do you ask?"
"Well, how did you adjust to this place? It's like another country -- well, it is. But you all speak English, though most of the things like classes and names come from the French language."
Cloudeia laughed musically, "Yup. Believe me, it was excruciatingly hard at first -- but you soon adjust. After a month you know everything off by heart, even if it is in a different language."
James had been listening to them talk.
"Do you know any French?" he asked Cloudeia, who smiled.
"Yup, a few basics. Many students here are French, and they talk in the language sometimes and it gets so irritating for the people who come from another country!"
"Can you teach me some French?" he begged.
Cloudeia laughed again, "Sure. Do you know how to ask for someone's name?"
"Nope."
"Comment t'ut appelles?"
"C'mon toot pell?"
"No, comment t'ut appelles?"
Sirius laughed as he watched his friend's feeble attempts in learning French.
Ten minutes later, a beautiful melodic tune sounded throughout the hall. It enraptured Lily and she found herself wonderfully sleepy and tired when it finished.
"Lily! Lily!" Anna was calling, "That was the bell and we have Metamorphose first. I wonder who teaches it... Come on Lil!"
"Oh what --?" Lily blinked, "Alright, I'm coming!"
They hustled past the rainbow fountain and sidestepped their way down a marble staircase.
"In here!" Cloudeia finally said, leading them into a rather chilly classroom.
A middle-aged lady was sitting at a chocolate-brown desk, arranging many scrolls of parchment. She looked up and smiled at them as they entered.
"Bonjour, you must be 'ze 'ogwarts exchange students?" she asked politely, her brown curls glistening every time she moved her head.
They nodded.
"Velcome to Beauxbatons," she said, nodding at Cloudeia and the few other students that had already arrived, "I am Madame Fernandez, Metamorphose Head."
"Howdy," Sirius said nervously.
Madame Fernandez laughed and gestured with a heavily bangled arm to a table for eight in the corner.
"I 'ope you enjoy your stay."
The Hogwarts newbies went scuttling forward in their nervousness. They fell into their seats, ignoring the stares from the other students.
"You're in class Deux A," Cloudeia whispered to Lily as she brushed past, "There are four classes in each year; A, B, C, D. Legend goes that A is the smartest... but that's just a rumour."
Lily and Anna grinned as Cloudeia walked away to her own table.
When the remainder of the students of class Deux A had came, Madame Fernandez began her class.
"Bonjour Deux A, please make 'ze 'ogwarts exchange students feel velcome. You all know 'ow it felt when you were Un students yourselves."
There was a general murmur around the classroom.
"Alright now, today we vill be learning 'ow to morph carrots into umbrellas..."
The Hogwarts' students found this quite easy, having already mastering the basics of the spell before. Madame Fernandez was very pleased that James could do the spell perfectly, and crowned him the Metamorphose King for the morning.
After Metamorphose, they had a small break. Sirius was completely fascinated to find out that there was an actual food-intake-time between breakfast and lunch -- it was morning tea.
"Glorious, I could stay at Beauxbatons forever," he said in a sort of longing moan, rushing towards the deux table and grabbing a chocolate biscuit.
The girls rolled their eyes.
Lily took a slice of currant cake and bit into it, just as the melodic tune sounded again.
"Come on!" Cloudeia said a bit breathlessly, "It's time for Histoire De Magie!"
They all groaned, and Christina looked at them quizzically.
"Don't you like histoire?" she asked, as they jumped past icicles.
"It's really boring," Remus said loftily, swallowing a raspberry tart.
"Not at Beaux it isn't," Christina said softly, "We 'ave lots of fun, we play games and sometimes Monsieur Kam gives us rewards when we answer 'ze question correctly."
Cassandra, Laine and Melanie nodded vigorously.
"Histoire is possibly 'ze most popular subject at Beaux," Melanie explained, "We also 'ave pop quizzes, and zhey are so much fun."
Sirius and Remus exchanged glances; well that could only be an improvement.
When they arrived at the classroom, their teacher, Monsieur Kam, welcomed them with a beaming face. When Lily politely asked where they were to sit, he simply waved it off and said they could sit in a circle on the floor.
"No need to take out quills and such carry-ons!" he said cheerfully as the rest of Deux A arrived, "Today we will be revising the Hopgoblins reuniting period with wizard Archibald Latex.
"Partner yourselves up quickly -- Madamoiselle Thomas, no need to push -- now, there we are."
Monsieur Kam beamed again. When he had given out requests that everyone be partnered up, James had immediately grabbed Lily. Anna and Remus were also paired up, as well as Paige and Di, and Peter and Sirius.
"Now, we are going to have a race Muggles call the 'Three-Legged Race'--"
There were exclaims and cries in the classroom as Muggle-born students heard this.
"--and it is quite simple. First of all you--"
Monsieur Kam explained it quickly.
"Now, we can't have the whole class against each other at once; there are too many of you. What you are going to do is rival against three other pairs. Now, you will all line up -- like so -- then I shall ask a question concerning the Hopgoblins and Archibald Latex. When I blow my whistle, you will all try to race up to the blackboard, and with a piece of chalk, will write the answer to the question I read out. Understood?"
Everyone nodded.
"Alright then..."
After a quick revision and a frenzied ten minutes of magically conjuring up ropes that tied the pairs up together, they were ready.
James and Lily were the first to race. They and three other pairs from the class were standing behind an orange line that was a few good feet away from the blackboard.
Monsieur Kam and the rest of the class, including Paige and the others, were standing on the side of the room.
"Okay!" the teacher called clearly, "What year did the Hopgoblins have the peace conference with Archibald Latex? Are you ready -- get set -- GO!"
They immediately began to hobble and amble forwards, hastily to the blackboard.
"What year is it -- what year is it?!" Lily shrilled at James, as they fell forward and grabbed onto the ledge of the blackboard.
"Um, um, um," James racked his brain while the redhead grabbed a piece of chalk frantically.
"1846!" Lily hissed under her breath, as she remembered. She scrawled the answer quickly, and immediately put down her piece of chalk when she had finished.
James high-fived her, and they glanced at the other pairs; who were either looking lost, had a completely wrong answer or were still trying to reach the blackboard.
"Monsieur Potter et Mademoiselle Evans are the winners!" Monsieur Kam beamed, "Congratulations you two -- better luck next time, you six. You wouldn't want to be beaten by Hogwarts students, would you?"
He winked as the Beauxbaton students scowled.
"After everyone has raced, the winners from each race will race each other at the end. The finals, they call it. There'll be a terribly difficult question then!"
Everyone groaned.
"Alright; where did the Hopgoblins inhabit before Latex argued for their freedom?"
The next four pairs hobbled across the floor, occasionally chanting "left, right" as to help them in their three-legged race.
The winners were two blondes who had answered the question correctly and within a reasonable length of time.
When it was time for the finals, Lily and James were up against Remus and Anna, and five other pairs of Beauxbaton students. Among them were Cloudeia and Christina.
"And the question is -- name three reasons Latex put forth for the freedom of Hopgoblins in the Wizengamont in 1851? Ready -- get set -- GO!"
Lily, who knew at least two reasons, took a step forward. James, who was at lost, stayed behind.
She yelped as she got dragged back, and he yelped as he was tugged forward. They fell over each other's feet and fell into a heap on the floor.
"Get up!" Lily yelled angrily, and James chuckled quietly and managed to heave himself up.
With alot of bickering and shoving, they finally managed to "teamwork" their way to the blackboard. Lily took the piece of chalk and hastily scribbled the answer.
James looked around, stuck his hands in his pockets and tried to look like he had something else better to do.
Just as Lily was about to start her third reason, Monsieur Kam gave a shout.
"And Mademoiselle Charley and Monsieur Lupin are the winners! Well, Hogwarts students, hey? Better luck next time, Beaux. Well, here is your prize..." he conjured up a box of Cadbury chocolates, just as the tune sounded, "... and that concludes our lesson! See you next time!"
"Oi Cloudeia--" Sirius tried to tug on Cloudeia's robes but he got separated from her as the swarm of students came.
"Cloudeia--" he tried again, but she was too busy talking to Cassandra. She was almost out of his sight down at the corridor when--
"CLOUDEIA IS IT LUNCH NOW?!" Sirius bellowed.
Everyone turned around and looked at him.
"Yes, Sirius."
"Oh boy, oh boy!" he said enthusiastically, zooming down the corridor, before stopping halfway.
"Hey, which way is it to the Great H--, I mean, Hall of Regals?"
Surrounding people laughed, and James and Remus caught up with him to drag him back to "safety".
"Off to lunch we go," Peter said half-heartedly.
So thanks to Paige's okay memory and feeble pointed directions from the Beauxbaton students, they made it to the Hall of Feasts.
The girls and Remus thought Sirius and James, not to mention Peter, were going to pass out with happiness when they saw all the food.
"I have never seen anyone in need of food so much," Lily said dryly, dumping her bag down and settling in her spot.
Anna and Di nodded in agreement.
They experienced 'Muggle Comportement', which was all very new and interesting for them as they were only in their second year, and it was only when you were in third year or above that you could choose Muggle Studies.
"I think I'll choose Muggle Studies next year," Paige said comfortably, "That was fascinating! I mean, microwaves."
Anna and Lily laughed.
As soon as they had bolted down their lunch and had a leisurely chat, it was time for, what it would be called at Hogwarts, Herbology.
It was a very boring and tedious subject. A bit like History of Magic would be at Hogwarts.
The teacher was Madame Sareal. She liked conducting classes by plopping whatever plant or herb they were studying that lesson in front of each student, then rattling off endless facts and properties about the plant.
And the students of course, would take down notes. Or rather, fall asleep.
"Oh Merlin, that was despicable," James moaned, once that beautiful tune had finally sounded, "Absolutely boring. What's next? Naptime?" he added hopefully.
Christina chuckled, "No, we 'ave Comprehension De La Defense."
"Ah yes, DADA," Remus said at once, one of his best subjects of was Defense Against the Dark Arts.
"Fun or boring?" Lily queried Christina.
"Fun," she answered, pushing her hair back as it had came cascading in front of her face, "Our teacher iz Madame Vlorence, and sometimez for our entertainment she producez Patronusez."
"Wow," Remus remarked, looking awed.
The others were impressed as well, and they had high expectations as they trooped down to the classroom.
"Good afternoon Deux A, please be seated. Good afternoon, Hogwarts students. Could I please have your names on this parchment?" Madame Vlorence conjured up a scroll of parchment and sent it over to them.
The class had assembled in quietly, and was now seated quietly, looking eager to learn.
"Today we will be learning how to shield jinxes and curses sent to you by unpleasant enemies. This spell will not only shield you from the jinx, but will also reflect it on the one who sent it. It is highly useful, but very complex. I don't expect anyone to master it, not in a few months time, and that's only if you work and try hard."
According to Cloudeia, that was how Madame Vlorence was. She was a very nice teacher, but... honest. She'd speak out the truth straight away; say your work was excellent or... other things.
If she had high expectations, she'd say so. If she thought you were doing poorly, she'd say so.
Honest.
"You are doing it wrong. Very wrong. Please demonstrate it again. Oh that's really bad," Madame Vlorence was criticizing Sirius in a playful sort of way.
"Madame!" he complained, "You just said my swishy wishy was really bad."
"Oh, I know. I only speak the truth," with a dusky smile, the teacher left.
Remus did quite a good job on the 'Protego' charm, and was rewarded with one of Madame Vlorence's more positive comments and smiles.
When it was time for dinner, not even Sirius showed much enthusiasm in eating. It had been a long day.
After dinner, it was off to bed.
Lily snuggled into her pillow, pulling the covers right over her tightly. She smiled lightly.
Life at Beauxbatons...
It wasn't so bad.
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A few days passed smoothly. The group was settling into the school nicely. After dinner one evening, Lily decided to have a walk. She knew her ways all right; the corridors and paths were becoming familiar to her eyes. She wouldn't have dared before to venture out alone, but she felt sure she knew her way.
Lily had planned on a walk by herself, but James decided to tag along as well. "Wanted a bit of a stroll", so he had proclaimed.
So, of course, bickering away, they walked around.
"I think I'll go back now," Lily finally said, checking her watch that read almost nine o'clock.
James nodded, woving his arm protectively into hers, much to her chagrin.
As they prodded back, three boys emerged from the corner.
With a skip of a heartbeat, Lily recognised the middle boy as Sebastian Valvic.
"Hey Lily."
"Hi," she said anxiously.
"Will you go--?"
"No," the redhead said at once. James tensed up a little.
Sebastian did not look at all put off; on the contrary, a small smirk began to form.
"Would you like a little persuasion--?" he glanced carelessly at the two beside him, who worked forward, flexing their muscles.
James stood in front of Lily protectively.
"Hey, jokes man!" Sebastian laughed and punched James' shoulder lightly.
His only response was to raise his eyebrow.
"Alright then... see you around," with that, the three boys left.
Lily nor James said a word, he just continued to tug onto her arm and led her back to the Visiteur Chamber.
It was empty.
Lily made no movement to walk to the girls room.
"You know... I felt scared when they came up," she said softly.
James looked up at her and gave her a tiny smile.
"Yeah, lucky I was there to protect you."
Lily chuckled.
And then there was silence.
"Do... you know what I want?" she finally asked.
James grinned, "A bowl of ice cream?"
"No," Lily retorted, "A... a hug."
And with an even bigger grin, James bounded across the carpet and wrapped her up into a tight bear hug.
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---->A/N: AWWWWWWWW! Madame Vlorence (teacher who called Sirius' work really bad) is modelled after my VA teacher. Lol, she's really cool yet HONEST. She called some guy's work crap. LOL. --MSQ.