Sabra stomped into the Great Hall, this time not crashing into objects due to her eyesight, but in as sore a mood as before. Her anger, however, evaporated as soon as she saw the occupants of the Gryffindor table. Allie sat next to Neville, talking across the table to Dennis while Ginny, next to him, conversed animatedly with the boy from down the table; Dean, Sabra remembered his name was.
She walked over and slid into the seat next to Neville.
"Morning," he said sleepily, and stifled a yawn. The Great Hall was not even half filled, but as Sabra watched, she saw a steady trickle of students enter, some with the same look of sleep upon their faces.
"Boker orr," Sabra replied, and Neville turned to her with a question in his eyes.
She opened her mouth to answer him, but was stopped when a voice said behind her, "she said good morning back to you."
Sabra spun around and saw, at her eye level, a green and silver snake wrapped around an ornately decorated 'M.' Looking up, a pair of brown eyes sat over a mouth the was lightly twisted in a sarcastic smile.
"Mheera!" Sabra said happily, waving up at the, for now, taller girl.
"Hey," Mheera said, then turned to Allie, her smile becoming more meaningful. "Mornin' Als. How's your first night?"
"Fine," the redhead answered, stealing a glance at Sabra, who smiled gently at her.
Mheera caught the look, and laid a sympathetic hand on Allie's shoulder. "It'll get better, I promise," she said. "Remember how sad I was the first time my parents left, and I stayed with you? We were having fun in no time!"
Allie nodded happily, and patted the seat beside her. "Come sit down, have breakfast," she said. "Look; strawberry muffins!"
Mheera shook her head, and took a look around. "We can't do that," she hissed. "I'm prolly gonna get in trouble just for talking to you! Slytherins hate Gryffindors!
"Do you hate me?"
"What?" Mheera looked at Sabra like she had grown horns.
"I said, do you hate me?"
"No," Mheera shook her head. "Why would I?"
"Then you're not a Slytherin; you just sleep in the same dorm as them. Sit down, have a, what's that called again? Oh yes. A moofen."
"Muffin," Dennis and Neville chorused, and Allie reached over Neville to hand her one of the pastries from a platter, shaped like a cylinder with a poofy bit on top.
Not bothering to remind them that it might not be kosher, Sabra shook her head. "I already had breakfast," she said, declining the strange British food.
"What?" Dennis said. "But we were down really early; we'd have seen you!"
"Early?" Sabra laughed as Mheera shrugged and sat next to Allie, grabbing the muffin out of her hand. "You were still asleep when I finished my food. The house elves were setting the tables when I came in."
Dennis looked at her in disbelief. "You saw the house elves? I mean, in here and not the kitchens!"
Sabra raised her eyebrows. "That's a great deal?"
"Big deal," Neville whispered, and Sabra blushed slightly. English wasn't as easy as all those Brits thought it was…
"Well," Ginny said. "What time did you wake up? Maybe the house elves forgot the marmalade or something."
Sabra thought about the sun rising over the Forbidden Forest. "About five-thirty or six. I was tired so I woke up later than usual."
"Six?" Allie and Dennis chorused.
"Later than usual!" Neville and Mheera said together.
They were interrupted by a hand dropping a stack of papers on the table between them. The looked up to find Ron Weasley, best friend of Harry Potter, The Boy Who Lived.
He yawned and rubbed his eyes. "Too early, he mumbled, and made as if to walk away, but Ginny reached out and tugged his sleeve.
"Ron," she said. "You pig. Where are your manners? Didn't you notice Sabra here? You know; the new girl…?"
Sabra sunk down into her seat, but it was too late. Ron had already turned back. "Hey, Sabra!" He said. "We missed you coming down this morning; where were you?"
Sabra bowed her head and muttered something while Ginny said matter-of-factly "Sabra came down for breakfast at six."
"Six? Wow," he shook his head grinning good-naturedly. "Well, I'm off. I have more schedules to deliver. McGonagall stopped me as I can in and asked me to pass these out…"
Ron walked off as they all reached out to take the papers with their name on them. Allie and Mheera looked over theirs, then swapped and looked over each other's. Mheera smiled. "We have Defense Against the Dark Arts first, Als, Then Herbology after lunch!"
Ginny looked over hers silently, as she was the only fifth year, as did Dennis, but Neville looked over his and groaned. "Sabra! We have double Potions with Snape first!"
"Is that…bad?" she asked looking over her schedule. She half listened to Neville talking about how bad Snape was, as she reviewed it.
9:00 - Potions
10:00 - Potions
11:00 - Magical Theory
12:00 - Lunch
1:00 - Transfigurations
2:00 - Transfigurations
3:00 - Divination
"Sabra? Are you listening?" Neville waved his hand in her face, rolling his eyes as she snapped her head up; startled.
"Mah? Itkavanti, ken. What? I mean, yes I mean, yes. Sorry. So what's wrong with him?"
Neville seemed to be searching for the right words to describe the dark professor who had been glaring so harshly at the new DADA teacher last night.
"He hates all Gryffindors and takes away points like there's no tomorrow. And he's an oily faced bastard."
Sabra thought for a moment, then asked, "what's a bastard?"
"In this context? An evil malicious asshole."
Even as Sabra protested, Ginny and Dennis nodded emphatically. "But he can't be that bad! And you shouldn't talk about a teacher that way!"
"Well," Ginny said, covering another morning yawn and looking at the clock on the wall. "You're about to find out."
Sure enough, the great bell rang, signaling the end of breakfast. In moments, the Great Hall was nearly empty and Sabra grabbed her bag as she trotted after Neville, trying to catch up. "Regah; regah! Wait wait! "
Entering the cool, dark potions classroom, Sabra chose a seat by the front, next to a boy Ginny had mentioned briefly last night; Dean. She un-collapsed her new cauldron and set it on the low table in front of her, sitting down just as the late bell rang on the door opened.
In swept Hamoreh Snape, his black robes billowing behind him as he stalked to his desk.
"A new year has begun, bringing back last year's bumbling idiots. Hopefully this year I can force some sort of knowledge into your thick skulls, but as it seems quite unlikely, I am required to put up with you as is."
Sabra found it hard to keep up with the professor's low, quiet speech in English, but she caught the notion of it. She winced, thinking perhaps Neville had been correct in his description.
As Snape called role, Sabra heard Harry, Hermione and Ron's names called. She sighed. They were so nice; even to stupid foreigners such as herself who didn't even know he was The-Boy-Who-Lived.
She smiled bitterly, but was interrupted out of her thoughts by the professor flicking his wand at the blackboard and the list of ingredients appeared, under the potion's name; The Spirit Revealer Potion.
"This potion," Hamoreh Snape said, "is much like the transformation into Animagus form and the patronus charm. Even though both animals may be different from each other, they show the true spirit of the casting witch or wizard. This potion, when properly prepared, and in the correct dosage, will turn the person drinking it into their muggle animal equivalent.
"An example: A very cowardly and cruel person would perhaps turn into a hyena." He surveyed the class for a moment, then asked "does anyone know the difference between taking the spirit revealer potion and turning into an Animagus?"
Two hands shot up, Sabra's and Hermione Granger's. Snape looked down at Sabra. "Yes?"
"The Animagus transformation can be taken off by the person using it at any time, and they retain all of their human consciousness. The Spirit Revealer Potion is in a specific dose for a specific amount of time, and the drinker's humaness is gone; they actually become the animal, for a while at least." Sabra recited what she had been taught, stumbling over a few of the English words, but still proud of herself.
"Five points off Gryffindor, Miss Levi. Humanness is not a word."
Sabra gaped at the professor smirking down at her. "Now," he continued. "Take a partner and begin the potion. Instructions are on page 176 of your potions textbook."
Sabra turned around to find everybody paired up. The Slytherins had gone with themselves and the Gryffindors had, too. Two girls wearing make-up and giggling with each other had paired up; Hermione with Ron; Harry with Neville, who smiled apologetically at Sabra; Dean with another boy who Sabra had seen in the common room last night.
The professor swooped down on her and raised an eyebrow.
"No partner, Miss Levi?"
"No, Professor," Sabra said quietly, bowing her head. Snape looked around the room, then back at her.
"Then you'll do this potion on your own," he said smoothly, "as a test of your skills. Regardless of numerous transcripts on your profile, I'd like to be sure that Akiba is really…up to speed."
Sabra glared at the professor as soon as his back was turned. The nerve of him! To suggest that Akiba hadn't been a good school!
She angrily collected her ingredients and almost took flobberworm juice instead of leech juice before she realized that she needed to be calm to make a complicated potion such as this one. After taking a few deep breaths, Sabra went back to her table and began the potion.
After an hour or so, Professor Snape got up from his desk where he had been grading papers to walk around the room and inspect various potions. He stopped by Draco Malfoy's and peered into the cauldron. "Very good, Mr. Malfoy. Your potion is perfect."
As he walked around, Sabra stole a glance at Draco to find him staring nastily at her, smirking. Sabra hurriedly looked away, and suppressed a gulp; he seemed angry at her, maybe she shouldn't have locked him in yesterday.
She felt a presence over her shoulder and a tall dark shadow fell on the light green of her potion.
"Do you believe yourself finished, Miss Levi? Or do you simply find yourself incapable of completing a simple on-grade potion?"
Sabra bowed her head to him, trying to remember to be respectful towards hamoreh Snape. "No, Sir," she said, reaching for her knife, "I still need to add the Gala root."
There was no expression on his face. "Then do so."
Shaking slightly under the harsh gaze of the potions master, Sabra carefully cubed each root, then dropped them delicately into the cauldron three at a time. Stirring it counter-clockwise seven times, Sabra finished the potion. It was now an ethereal pearly white, steaming gently as she put out the fire and ladled a portion into a vial. After labeling and stoppering the vial, she turned to the professor, still standing over her shoulder.
"Finished, Professor."
He strode up to the front of the room and cleared his throat. The students finished up their potions and faced the professor.
"Miss Levi will now demonstrate the spirit revealer potion." Sabra gulped. He beckoned to her to come to the front and looked at the vial in her hand. "That will last about one hour. take only a sip; that will last for the rest of class."
He motioned for her to drink it, and she unstoppered the vial. She was about to drink it when something occurred to her. "Sir?" she said tentatively, aware of the impatient stares of her classmates.
"What is it?" Snape asked, glaring.
"What if I turn into something like a fish, or a jellyfish?"
He looked at her as if she were daft. "If your personality is so simple that you turn into some manner of sea life, then I'll conjour you some water," he said between gritted teeth. "Now drink! You're wasting class time, and you wouldn't want to be late to your next class, now would you." It was not a question.
Sabra took one last nervous look at the steaming vial in her hand before taking hesitant sip.
Nothing happened for a moment or two, and Sabra swallowed again, grimacing as the over sweet taste of the potion lingered in her mouth.
Then one of the boys, Dean, pointed at her shouting "look! Look at her head!"
Sabra crossed her eyes to find that her nose was getting longer. And furrier. And golden!
Her robes seemed to bag out and she quickly let them drop to the floor. Her feet got rounder, feeling tight in her shoes and in a matter of moments, a large animal stood in the middle of a pile of clothes. She looked around the classroom, opened her mouth--
And barked.
Wagging her tail and prancing from foot to foot stood a large golden retriever.
Looking down at the creature, Snape raised an eyebrow. "The golden retriever. Known for its loyalty and friendliness, along with creativity and a desire to explore." He smirked scornfully. "Often, they are unable to control their emotions, as is evident."
Sure enough, Sabra was wagging her tail ferociously. He's talking, he's talking, he's talking, he's looking at me! He loves me, OH he loves me! Still talking, Ooh, maybe he's talking about ME!
She danced in place and sniffed enthusiastically. Wow, smells! They're so COOL! Look! More people; they must love me too! Ooh, I love being loved!
"Here Sabra," Neville said, barely holding in a laugh. "Here girl."
No!" Snape said, holding his hand out for them to stop, but it was too late.
Oooh! My NAME! Sabra bounded into the rest of the classroom, her waving tail knocking supplies and vials to the floor. She jumped up on Neville, bowling him over in her enthusiasm. Slurping his face, Sabra barked loudly and ran around in a small circle.
Snape rolled his eyes and glared at the scene before him while everyone else laughed uproariously. 'If you can't beat them," he thought grudgingly, 'join them.'
"Sabra!" He called sternly. She turned around and stood at attention, looking eagerly at him. "Come here right now!"
Sabra's ears flattened slightly as she made her way to the front of the room, her tail wagging only slightly; hesitantly. He said my name; oh...But he sounds MAD! Oh no, he's mad! I did something wrong! Oh no oh no oh no oh no! I better make him HAPPY! Sabra walked up to the potions master and nudged his hand with her cold nose. He looked down at her, sneering.
"Bad dog! Very bad dog!"
Sabra whined, big brown eyes looking pleadingly at him. He's mad, oooooh I was a bad dog! Bad bad bad bad bad!
Snape waved his wand at the wall and a door appeared and opened. He pointed at the door and glared at the dog before him, pitifully wagging her tail. "Go!"
He hates me! I was bad oh no oh no bad bad, uh oh bad!
Snape gave a cold look toward the dog as she whined softly and entered the side room.
"Misses Patil and Brown, take Miss Levi's clothes and stay with her until she reverts to her original form."
The two giggling girls quickly cleaned up their area and picked up Sabra discarded robe, shirt, tie, socks and shoes, and (discreetly) her bra and underwear. They brought them into the side room just as the bell rang.
"I'll give you three a pass," Snape said grudgingly, as if each kindness he preformed would take a year off of his life.
They came in to find Sabra sitting in the middle of the floor, eyes limpid and tongue hanging out as she panted. She whined once and ducked her head as she panted.
"I don't know if you remember me," one of them began slowly. "But I'm Lavender, and she's Parvati..." she trailed off as Sabra still looked uncomprehending at her and thumped her tail on the ground.
"Don't be stupid," Parvati hissed. "Professor Snape said she'd be like a real dog; dogs don't understand English!"
"Oh. Yeah."
"Leave her to me," Parvati said. "I have a dog at home, remember?" She put the bundle of clothes on the floor and snapped her fingers. "Here Sabra! Come here girl!"
Oooh! Love! My name! Love love love love love! She loves me yay hooray!
Sabra leapt over to Parvati, tail waving furiously, and gave a happy bark. Parvati laughed and scratched behind Sabra's ears; Lavender smiled when the dog dropped to the ground and rolled around, tail sweeping the floor and eyes happy.
But the door opened and Professor Snape walked in. "The potion should be wearing off within a minute or two; leave after that."
Sabra was ecstatic that there was another person in the room. He does love me! LOVE! He came back! I wasn't bad; love! Love love love! Yay!
She jumped up and stood on her hind feet; planting her paws on Professor Snape's shoulders, she happily washed his face with her tongue, barking enthusiastically between slurps.
Snape stepped back, a hateful sneer on his face, and glared at the dog standing happily before him. "And inform Miss Levi that her potion was far too strong, as is quite evident." He strode out of the room, the door shutting itself firmly behind him.
There was a moment of silence, then Lavender looked down at Sabra. "Oh!" She gasped, startled.
Sitting in the middle of the floor was Sabra, human and looking wistfully at her clothes. "Tazrili help ?"
"What? Oh! Of course," Parvati said, and quickly tossed the darker skinned girl her underclothes, then her shirt and skirt.
As Sabra got dressed, Lavender said suddenly, "what're you, like a D-cup?"
Parvati looked unbelievingly at her friend. "Lavender," she hissed. "That's so rude!"
"S'okay," Sabra mumbled, getting dressed at quickly as possible.
"Then..." Lavender prompted.
"Triple-D," she muttered, knotting her tie and slipping her robe on; buttoning it up securely, she slipped her shoes on and headed to the door.
Opening it, she stepped out and stopped. Sitting at his desk was Hamoreh Snape, grading papers.
He looked at her and sneered. "Human again Miss Levi?"
She nodded mutely.
"Pity."
"Professor - Sir I...Oh!" Sabra covered her red face with her hands and dashed out of the room, closely followed by Lavender and Parvati, walking quickly and giving nervous smiles. Parvati took the note that Professor Snape proffered and hurried out the door.