Chapter 12

New Normal

The last night before classes began was spent in the common room. Cody was visiting with the members of the Quidditch team when Ron approached.

'Oi, mate! Whatcha gotta sick Malfoy on me for?'

'That was my bad, Ron. He was crampin' my style, so I had to try to get rid of him. I didn't plan it out that way, just kinda happened. Next time I'll send him at some Claw.'

'You can't apologize—' George started.

'For a great prank like that,' Fred added.

'I think we may have an apprenticeship on our hands, dear brother,' George said, throwing an arm over Cody's shoulder.

'I don't know guys, I seem to find myself in enough trouble, without trying. Nothing came of it, did it, Ron?' Cody tried to sound apologetic in his inquiry.

'Nah, Malfoy's all talk.' Ron waved off his concern.

'Dear Ronniekins and ol' Malfoy have a bit of a grudge against each other,' George said.

'They take the house rivalry to the next level. Did you really call him a muggle lover?' Fred asked in admiration.

'No, I told him Ron said that,' Cody explained.

'That's great! The only thing that he might think is worse would be calling him a squib,' Fred said.

'Squib, huh? What is that exactly?' Cody asked curiously.

'It's a child from magical parents that doesn't have magic,' Ron answered. 'It's one of the biggest fears for magical families.'

'Probably part of the reason magicals don't have huge families,' Katie added.

'Except for this clan,' Angelina remarked, pointing her thumb at the group of redheads.

'How many?' Cody asked.

'Seven,' replied Ron. 'Three more older brothers.'

'Six brothers, and then Ginny? Man, now I really feel bad for her,' Cody commented.

'We all do,' laughed Katie.

'It's a miracle she's survived this long,' Angelina stated.

'I'd say she's done more than survive. Looks like she's thriving to me,' Cody smirked.

'Hey!' Ron cried.

'Oh yeah, sorry, Ron. I forgot I can't comment on the hotness of your sister while you're around.'

'I thought you weren't into redheads?'

'I'm not, but I can still be objective,' Cody replied amidst the laughter of the group, well, the group minus Ron.

That night he sat on his bed, took out his notebook and a pen, he had still brought some regular pens for letters home, and wrote his mom a letter. She would be expecting something, and there was plenty to tell. He thought about writing a letter to Stephanie, but he realized there would just be too many vagaries and the letter would not sound very personal. He'd have to revisit this when he could come up with specific things that wouldn't be too revealing. A visit to the owlery would be in order tomorrow morning.

He was looking forward to his first class Monday morning, Charms. He assumed it would be similar to the description his mother had written in her journal, learning the "Lumos" spell. This obviously wouldn't be difficult for him, but he also didn't want to wow the teacher too much, so he resolved to only do extra magic if prompted.

The diminutive professor certainly was a cheery one, standing on a pile of books at the front of the class, the temptation to send the books toppling over was real. Cody enjoyed learning about the theory behind the wand lighting spell. Then began the practical portion of the lesson, and he wasted no time producing a small light at the tip of his lightsaber wand. The kid next to him gave his wand a second glance, but he refrained from saying anything once he saw Cody could produce the light he had yet to achieve. After a few minutes of watching his neighbor struggle Cody tapped him on the shoulder and asked,

'Clayton, what are you thinking about?'

'Mainly the wand motion, I guess,' he responded.

'Try focusing on the light itself, see it in your head first, then try picturing it traveling through your body to the tip of your wand. Close your eyes even.'

With his eyes scrunched tight, Clayton was definitely focused. He said the incantation, added the loop with his wand and the tip of his wand was alight.

'Open your eyes,' Cody whispered.

'Hey, wouldya look at that,' he said in astonishment.

'Just look at it,' Cody replied. 'When I see something like that, I just wanna look at it.'

'You're kinda weird, you know?' Clayton said.

'Yeah, I know. You don't need to go spreading it around to everyone though, ok?' Cody said playfully.'

'Only since you helped me get the spell,' he retorted.

'And how did he manage to help you get the spell?' Professor Flitwick asked with interest. He had snuck up on them.

'Well, he just told me to focus on what I was trying to do with the spell. When I did that, the spell worked,' Clayton explained.

'Very good. That is very insightful. The intent behind your magic is a driving force for its use. Mr. Langdon, I believe we need to meet in order to discuss your path forward. My office hours are posted, please swing by at your convenience, obviously the sooner the better.'

'Yes, I will stop by as soon as I can, thank you, Professor,' Cody replied, the professor walked away with a nod.

Next was his first lesson in potions. This professor, Professor Snape, was definitely enjoying the intimidation he could invoke over these children. Cody had started to tune him out when he caught the end of a question, followed by silence. Heads were turned his way in anticipation, Snape's dark eyes were boring holes into his skull. Great, had the teacher seriously called on me already?

'I'm sorry, I must've missed that,' Cody said apologetically.

'Five points from Gryffindor for not paying attention. I asked, Mr. Langdon, what would I get if I added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?' Snape drawled.

'Uh, that's what I'm here for, Professor,' Cody tried to sound cheery, as if he was ready to learn.

'Thought you wouldn't need to do the summer reading, eh?'

'I guess I didn't get the memo.' His reply dripped with sarcasm.

'That'll be another five points from Gryffindor for your cheek, Mr. Langdon.'

'Wait! You seriously expected us, who got our books maybe two days before school, to spend those last days of freedom actually reading them?' there were snickers from some students, and gasps from others, at the outburst.

'Mr. Langdon, five more points from Gryffindor—'

'Oh no! Please, don't take the points. Anything but the points,' Cody said dramatically, leaning back in his chair and placing his hands over his heart.

'That will be your last outburst or you will begin your first detention this evening. And five more points,' Snape commanded. Cody couldn't have that, so he finally did shut up, the front legs of his chair landing with a thud on the ground, adding a nod of the head in acknowledgment that he was done.

The actual class wasn't so bad, creating the potion wasn't particularly hard, and almost fun. Snape's hovering intimidation tactics were ineffective against him —he chuckled to himself, as he remembered his wrestling coaches, sometimes inches away from him, correcting hand or foot placement if off by an inch, their hot breath on his face— they were far more intimidating than this vampiresque gargoyle monitoring his work, and he had no interest in knowing what this man's breath reeked of. He made it through the rest of class without incident, and his potion was —while not perfect— better than the rest of the class, Snape didn't even comment when he turned it in. Snape also didn't offer any invitation to visit about his schedule, he was going to have to initiate that conversation himself. He'd let today get forgotten before approaching the professor.

He was enjoying a pleasant start to his lunch before he heard his name yelled from down the table.

'Cody!' Hermione was approaching with rage on her face, her mane of hair billowing around her. 'You said you wouldn't try to lose points! Twenty points before the first day is half over! Do you have anything to say for yourself?' Subtlety apparently was not part of Hermione's repertoire. Anyone in the Great Hall could hear, even if they had no desire to.

'Be glad it wasn't more,' he snarked.

'That is not acceptable! If you think—'

'Hermione, stop. I'm not sorry, he's a —I don't know exactly the word I'm looking for so I'll refrain, for now— but it probably won't happen again.'

'Probably is not good enough,' she said firmly.

'Probably is all I can give you right now. I'll do my best, but I can't make any guarantees,' he said with finality.

'Fine,' she huffed, before finding her seat at the table.

After lunch he had his first Herbology lesson. Neville had quickly agreed to be his tutor, so they also partnered up for the lesson. His lack of any gardening experience was evident, but Neville was a good and patient instructor. Due to Neville's expertise they finished the assigned task well before the class time had expired. Instead of returning to the castle for some free time, they went into one of the other greenhouses where Neville was helping tend other plants. Cody got a whole other lesson, which is what he was going to need, but it sure was a lot of information to try and retain. Neville assured him that with some extra lessons, a couple times a month on the weekends, Cody would be caught up by the end of the year. He had yet to see this lack of self confidence in Neville that people had referred to.

He decided on an early dinner, so he could meet with a professor or two before heading to the library. His plan to visit multiple professors was thwarted by Professor Flitwick's desire to converse. He received a private lesson about magical theory, elaborating on what they discussed in class. He was asked questions about his wand that the professor didn't want to ask in class for fear of embarrassing him, he was grateful for the professor's consideration, and the fact he didn't pry too much. His plan for Cody was to just give him the planned syllabus and have him start working through the material for the second half of the year at his own pace, the faster he could grasp the concepts the sooner he could move on. Cody was planning to have Astoria help him with this class also since Professor Flitwick raved about her Charms abilities. It was those ravings that almost made him late for his study session, fortunately the staircases were in a cooperative mood and didn't disorient him too much on his way to the library.

'Almost late,' Astoria said to him as he sat down across the table from her.

'Well, I'm not late, so the point is moot, but would it be any consolation to you if the reason I'm not here as early as I intended is because I couldn't get Flitwick to shut up about how great you are at Charms?'

'That would be some consolation. And it's Professor Flitwick. You wouldn't want to establish habits that might cause you to lose precious house points in the future,' she said with a smirk.

'You heard about that already?' he asked with a laugh.

'Even if I hadn't heard from others, I couldn't have missed Hermione going all mother lioness on you at lunch. Those house points are like her little cubbies, you can't go losing them or she will rage. What the girl has in brains, she lacks in tact. Don't worry though, you aren't the first and you won't be the last.'

'I'm certainly not worried. I don't give two hoots about having Griffy colors at our last supper.'

'Your opinion is not without merit, but don't go discounting the feelings of your house mates. They could make your life difficult if you go too rogue,' she warned.

'Point taken. So, how do you want to do this studying thing?'

'First, what other class would you like me to help you with?' she asked.

'Charms.'

'Great, I love Charms, though I love most classes, who am I kidding. May I inquire who you will have helping you in other classes?'

'For Herbology, Neville.'

'Obvious choice.'

'Transfiguration, Michael.'

'Corner?' Cody nodded. 'He's good. I'm a bit surprised he'd be willing to help though. He is, what you would call, a bit of a loner.'

'I met him on the train actually, so maybe that helped.'

'Yes, that definitely would have played in your favor, either way, hopefully he can instruct. He is Ravenclaw through and through, but having knowledge or ability doesn't always translate into being able to teach it.'

'I guess I'll find out. Susan Bones is helping me with Defence.'

'Also, a good choice. Everyone knows she receives lessons from her Aunt, as she should. But she does well to not rub her skills in the face of others. And what of the other classes?'

'Uh, I haven't talked to anybody about History of Magic or Astronomy yet.'

'I'll do History with you for free. The class is a complete joke, the half-intelligent students use the hour as a free revision session, you'd do well to do the same, don't waste your time sleeping—unless you had Astronomy the night before. As far as Astronomy goes, there is someone I know that loves the class, though her grades won't reflect that, so there's no way she made your list,' Astoria said pensively.

'Who?' Cody asked with curiosity.

'Tracey. Daphne's friend. Loves the stars, and can tell you anything you'd ever want to know, but she's a horrible test taker. We can't figure it out, but come test day, she flat out chokes, can't remember a thing. The only thing that saves her from complete embarrassment is that Daphne doesn't care a lick about school; "A's or O's; nobody knows," that's their stupid phrase to make themselves feel good about barely passing,' she added with a flair of annoyance.

'So, you think Tracey would be a good tutor for Astronomy?'

'Oh yeah, she'd be great, she knows it all. Not to mention, it would piss off Daph.'

'You're really playing up the fact that I got to her. . . once.'

'Like I said, it doesn't happen much, so I have to get all the play out of it I can. Don't get me wrong, I love my sister to death, but we still have a healthy sibling rivalry.'

'I don't want her to hate me, though.'

'No, you want her to have other strong feelings for you.' She said with a sly grin.

'What!? Is it that obvious?' he asked, a bit stunned.

'No, but she is gorgeous. I would have questions about your sexuality if you didn't have that kind of initial reaction to her. But thanks for the confirmation.' Again adding a small grin.

'You're not going to say anything, are you?'

'I'm her sister, I'm going to hold onto that information until it has the most value to me, then I'll decide how to use it.'

'Great.' And he rubbed his hand across his forehead.

'Don't fret too much, and we are off topic. So, let me explain something about why I revise the way I do; think of your brain as a sponge, reading or revising is like dripping water onto said sponge. After about 20 minutes the sponge gets saturated, any more drops either won't absorb or will displace previous information. At that point the sponge needs to be wrung out into long term storage and prepared to receive more drops of information. So we break up our revising into thirty minute intervals, twenty minutes of reading, then five to ten minutes of discussion (wringing out the sponge).

'We also will study in different locations on different days. It's a routine but not the same every day, I call it "controlled chaos." We will have two sessions a week for just the two of us, one will likely be in the potions lab, the other should be in an extra classroom so we can practice Charms. Once we finalize those times, I will set up the locations for my study group to meet the other days of the week. You are welcome to come study with us during those times. Is all that clear?'

'Actually, yeah, it is. I'm glad I asked you to help me.'

'Yes, as am I actually, because of what we must discuss next.' He gave her a curious look. 'Payment. Don't forget you agreed to this. Teasing my sister is fun, but it won't last, and isn't actually that valuable, just funny. But I do carry a lot of tension in my shoulders. I had considered requiring you to be my personal masseuse, as I can tell you would be more than acceptable, but alas that likely crosses the line. So, I will have to settle for regular back adjustments, and by regular, I mean, whenever I want.' She gave him a pseudo stern look and he smiled in return, nodding his head.

'I see. Well, I guess I can't refuse, it's a deal.'

'Alright, we've still got an hour, we can get two clips in,' and she tapped an hourglass with her wand and the sand started to fall. They each buried their head into the book of their choice until the sand had expired.

'Alright, what are you learning about?' She asked.

'The "Lumos" spell.'

'It's called the Wand-Lighting Charm, "Lumos" is just the incantation. We must be accurate in our speech. Now, let's see it.' She had this professor thing down pat already.

'You want me to do the charm? Here?' She kept surprising him.

'Oh please, don't tell me that now you care about rules.' She deadpanned. 'It's just a light, just do it for a second and then turn it off.'

He paused and focussed his magic before reaching for his "wand." As he brought it up he barely whispered the incantation and the small light appeared at the end of the handle. He extinguished the light and set the piece of wood on the table. Astoria's face was in a state of confusion.

'That's your wand? Let me see it.'

'No, a wand has a very personal relationship with its owner,' he replied with a teasing rebuttal.

'I know you don't actually believe that,' she said while pursing her lips.

'Do you?' he countered.

'Yes, I do. But I've also been raised hearing it my whole life. You're an outsider that thinks everything is a bunch of crock until you experience it for yourself. Now, let me see that thing you claim is your wand.' He relented and handed her the saber handle. She examined it from all sides, taking in some of the fine details.

'The craftsmanship is rather exquisite. Where'd you get it, this certainly isn't from Ollivander?' her tone conveyed genuine interest now.

'Uh, Home Depot, I think,' he said unsteadily.

'You think? How do you not know where you got your wand? I don't feel any pull on my magic. What is the core?'

'Uh, kyber crystals.' It almost came out as a question and he was fighting the urge to laugh.

'I've never heard of those before,' she looked at him suspiciously. 'Are you taking the Mickey?' Then she tried casting a "Lumos" multiple times without any success. 'Ok, what's the deal? If you want my help at all, you will tell me,' she demanded in frustration, as he was trying to hide his grin.

'Let's go.' He said, gathering up his things.

'Where are we going?' A tinge of anger in her voice.

'I don't know, but we aren't having this conversation here. Lead us to somewhere private, where no one can hear us,' he whispered, leaning across the table.

'K, we'll have to go outside then.' She led them quickly through the castle, out to the grounds, under a tree, where she waved her wand and uttered a series of incantations Cody did not hear clearly. 'There is a sound barrier around us, no one can hear anything we say. Now, spill. Why can't I cast the most basic spell with your wand?'

He really didn't want to tell her anything, but she held all the leverage, unless he found a completely new tutor—not really an option. Even then, she already knew, or suspected, too much, there was a high probability she would never give up in her pursuit of an answer. And then there was the relative ease in which she had deduced that his "wand" was more than just a weird shape, it wouldn't take long for others that were around him regularly to become suspicious as well. He hadn't given much thought to how much attention his lightsaber would attract.

'You have to promise not to say anything. To. Anyone.' He said sternly, and he looked straight into her eyes.

'I give you my word.' She replied calmly, holding his gaze, and he sensed no sign of deceit, just pure sincerity.

'Ok—' he started.

'You're really just going to trust me like that?' she asked with slight disbelief. 'Most people would demand a magical oath or something.'

'Uh, I've never heard of such a thing. Do they work, or are they more like a pinky promise?'

'Eh, there are definitely ways around them, and I'm not promising my pinky to anyone, so I suppose having someone's voluntary commitment is just as good, if not better. But I'm quite surprised you're so trusting.'

'I'm typically not, but I have a strong feeling you aren't trying to deceive me. Am I wrong?' he inquired, probing a little more with his mind.

'No, not at all. I can definitely keep a secret. So, your wand. . .'

'It's nothing, it's just a carved down piece of wood. It probably is just from the Home Depot, which is just a hardware store.' He handed it to her again. 'The inside is some plastic crystals and some resin. My f—first wand, there's actually nothing magical about it.' He wasn't sure about her feelings on the statute of secrecy that he had been a little loose with, so he held back the info that his friends made it for him.

'So, that's why I couldn't cast a spell with it,' she softly said to herself. 'That doesn't explain how you could cast your spell with it though.'

'You mean this spell,' and he held out his hand. The small ball of light appeared in his palm. He then changed the color, altered the size and shape, and then sent it floating right in front of her face, before extinguishing the light.

'You did all of that with no wand and no incantations,' she breathed in awe, eyes wide. 'But how?'

'Did you ever do accidental magic when you were younger?'

'Yeah.'

'Did you have a wand when you did?'

'No.' Her eyebrows shot through her hairline as the concept clicked for her.

'Exactly. No one needs a wand to do magic, though I'll admit it makes it exponentially easier. When I use my real wand it pulls my magic out without hardly any effort. When I don't have it, I have to find and channel the magic myself, it gets easier the more I do it, like exercising a muscle. So, I'm going to continue using my fake wand so I can keep developing my magical strength.'

'That makes sense, and you have to teach me.' She was bouncing up and down on the balls of her feet in giddy anticipation.

'I'll try,' he said while nodding his head in agreement.

'You will. But we need to do something about your fake wand. That thing is never going to pass, too many people are going to want to see it. You'll never keep this a secret if that is your ruse,' she said while examining it another time.

'I've realized that, a bit too late,' he said, making a motion to Astoria.

'Not too late, just in time,' she corrected. 'I told you, I can keep a secret. And soon it'll be my secret too.' And she flashed him a big smile. 'Did you go to Ollivander to get your real wand?' she asked, while breaking off a small branch of the tree they were under.

'Yeah.'

'Take this branch and shape just like your real wand, if you need help, come find me. No one will question you using this, and then you can still exercise your magic.' She handed him the branch and his saber.

'Will it matter if the wood doesn't match?' he asked.

'Does anybody know what your real wand is made of?'

'Dumbledore. But if he asks, I think he would understand, if I gave him my explanation.' Though it would be a slightly different version from what Astoria would assume.

'Then you'll be fine,' she intoned.

'Perfect. I'd say this should be enough to cover any remaining payment due.' He suggested.

'Yes, but that doesn't mean I'm giving up my chiropractor.' She said, smirking as she reached her arms around his neck, preparing for her adjustment. He obliged with a tight squeeze, and the "cracks" rang out. 'Oooo, that's never going to get old, you will never be unemployed. Now, we better get back to the castle.'

He spent that night on his bed shaping his new fake wand to match his holly wand, he felt quite pleased with his handiwork, though Victor could've pulled this off without magic, he thought. He got a little nostalgic lying there, thinking about his friends and how they would react to the stories he had already compiled in a short few days. It was the first bout of homesickness that he really had to go through.

The next morning's first class was his initiation into the exhilarating experience that was a class with Professor Binns. He had seen the ghosts floating around, and heard Peeves singing on multiple occasions, but this was his first up close and personal encounter with one of the poltergeists. The class was every bit as boring as described, and staying awake along with paying attention would have been considered a minor miracle. Cody took Astoria's advice and did work of his own volition, so the class time was not a complete waste.

Next was potions class with second year Puffs and Claws. He kept his head down, in a theoretical sense, and got his work done without incident. He approached Snape after the lesson to address his extra study needs. He knew he should probably apologize for his behavior the day before, but whether it was pride or just his desire for this interaction to be as short as possible, he refrained from even bringing up the events of the previous day. Professor Snape fulfilled his part in making the exchange brief, by handing him the papers he must have already had on hand, and only saying, 'It's all there.' It was; a list of potions he needed to complete, along with a list of corresponding essays, and the evenings the lab was open and available for use. Once completed, he would see the professor for the next step, simple enough.

After lunch he had his first class with Professor McGonagall, though she wasn't present in the room as all the students were filing in. The seats were all filled and soft chatter still permeated the room as a black cat leapt onto the teacher's desk, only a few pairs eyes were even drawn to it. Soon the cat descended to the floor and began to transform into her human form. With a quick clearing of her throat the class was silenced and the newly transformed professor began her lecture on transfiguration. She began with generalizations, then gave some overview of what she had recently completed, her Animagus transformation. As she droned on, Cody got lost in his thoughts about the possibilities of transfiguration, a branch of magic he hadn't even considered before.

After the lesson he was due to stay in the classroom as he would join the second years that were coming for their own transfiguration lesson. He spent this time visiting with Professor McGonagall and she gave him his out of class assignments. It seemed the professors were generally of the same idea, he was to essentially do the second half of first year in his free time. If all went to schedule he would be done with all first year work by the winter break. The second year class kept his attention a little better than the first, though it was mainly a review of things the class should've remembered from the previous year, for Cody it was more of a preview.

He wasn't as engaged in dinner conversation at the Gryffindor table as usual. His thoughts were wandering, from the whole concept of transfiguration, to the few other professors he still needed to meet with, and to the girls at the Slytherin table. He needed to talk to Astoria about their study schedule now that he had his potions information; he needed to ask Tracey if she'd help him with Astronomy; and he was hesitant to do either of those before having at least a neutral interaction with Daphne first. By the time he had made up his mind to head over, they were already rising from their seats to leave.

'Leaving already, Cody?' Neville asked, as Cody pushed away from the table.

'Yeah, I've got some things to do.'

'Didn't crash and burn hard enough last time, eh?' Seamus teased, having caught on to where Cody's eyes had been lingering.

'What can I say? I'm a glutton for punishment,' Cody retorted.

'I'll punish you, Cody,' Lavender called from a few seats down.

'Sorry, Lav, I think he has someone else in mind to be his enforcer,' Dean intoned.

'Gotta run, see you all later,' Cody said before walking quickly to catch up to Daphne and Tracey. Fortunately they were headed out to the grounds and not down to the dungeons, or he may have lost them. He followed them just long enough to put a little distance from the castle.

'Hey, Daphne, Tracey, wait up,' Cody called out. Both girls turned around at the interruption, only Tracey smiled, Daphne's face remained expressionless; that was an upgrade from angry or irritated, he thought.

'I'll catch ya later, Dee.' Tracey sing-songed, before skipping away towards the pitch.

'Dee, huh?' Cody raised his eyebrows.

'Yeah, Tracey's dad gave us these nicknames. She's Tee, I'm Dee, some American Football term, he said.' She waved it off as something she didn't have a full understanding of.

'TD, touchdown. Yeah, that is a cool nickname,' he said brightly.

'Well, I'm glad it makes sense to you. So, what's up, Cody?' she asked in a friendly manner, tilting her head to look at him. He looked at her for a moment taking in her features. Golden blonde hair pulled back into a ponytail that fell to the level of the bottom of her shoulder blades. Eyebrows that weren't painted on or overly manicured but still, well shaped; long full eyelashes that perfectly complimented her deep blue eyes. Her nose didn't draw much attention, it was, just a nose, no real defining characteristics, which is the best compliment one can give a nose. Her lips on the other hand, shimmering from a fresh coat of gloss, quickly drew his attention as the soft pink hue shone through. A beauty critic would say her lips weren't full or plump enough, to Cody, they looked perfectly kissable.

'Just want to talk, that's all,' he lied —though this was one of those situations where the truth goes best unsaid— offering her a piece of gum with a sly smile. She returned his smile with a little glare, sizing him up. He quickly jumped into defensive mode. 'Hey, I never actually said anything, you just misinterpreted my gesture. My only fault was going along with the joke, which you can hardly blame me for.'

'I can definitely blame you, but I'll admit to enjoying the gum, so, thank you,' she said pleasantly. 'Though it loses its flavor rather quickly.'

'That's just good marketing. That wizard gum that never loses its flavor, that can't be good for business,' he said confidently.

'I suppose you have a point. So, what did you want to talk to me about?' she asked with an added grin herself.

'This. I find gum to be a most interesting topic,' he said regally. She just rolled her eyes. 'Not even a courtesy laugh? Ouch,' he faked hurt.

'You're not as funny as you think you are,' she teased with a smirk.

'Well, that wasn't one of my better jokes, I'll admit. Really, though, I just wanted to make sure that Neville was right.'

'Right about what?' she asked curiously, her head tilting slightly.

'He said that you were nice. Seamus said that you— weren't,' he replied, catching his last word before completing Seamus' quote. 'I couldn't gather much from our first interaction, other than that you are protective of your sister.'

'Yes, I am protective of my sister. What's going on between you two anyways?' she asked, her tone turning more serious.

'She hasn't told you?' he asked with the corners of his mouth turning upward.

'No! All she's said is that it's not her tale to tell,' she proclaimed with frustration. 'Though she sure came back last night in a good mood. I'm assuming that was your doing.' A hint of accusation graced the last sentence, as if it was a bad thing.

'Yeah, I guess that was, in part, my doing. And, it's nice to know she respects my privacy. Though, all you'd have to do is come to the library and you'd find out.'

'The library? I'd rather mop the floors with Filch,' she said with disgust.

'You really don't like school, do you?'

'You're catching on quick, Sherlock,' she said sarcastically. 'So, you're joining Astoria's study club in the library?'

'Yeah, she's tutoring me in a few subjects. Helping me catch up on all the stuff I've missed over the last four years.'

'You really have had no magical education? That's not just a rumor?' she asked curiously.

'You think I'm sitting in class with first and second years just for fun?' he responded dryly.

'I don't know, maybe you are,' she intoned. 'Perhaps you are one that just likes attention, even if it comes from younger kids.' Again her slight smile removed any malice that might have come with her words. He dropped his jaw and furrowed his brows in mock hurt, she let out a barely audible giggle.

'You got me, I'm a gigantic attention junkie. On that note, I've heard about these Hogsmeade weekends. I've obviously never been, I could use someone to show me around,' he said leadingly.

'Sorry, I can't. And please, don't be like Seamus. I don't want to be rude. I'm just not dating right now,' she responded as gently as she could.

'Who said anything about a date? I'm just talking about giving me a tour of the village.'

'Oh really? Just the two of us?' He nodded. 'That sounds an awful lot like a date.'

'Fine, so it is. But why not?' He asked curiously without making it sound like a demand.

'It's just— I've decided I'm not going to date any English boys,' she said carefully.

'Perfect, I'm American.' He cried with a big smile. She actually cracked a smile herself.

'See, that was actually funny. But Americans are basically just English, with a weird accent.'

'Now, that's just stupid.' She shot a glare at him. 'You misinterpreting again. I didn't call you stupid, just that statement. America is the great melting pot, I'm probably part English, French, Scandinavian, Italian and who knows what else,' he said adding a mixing motion with both hands.

'Maybe you're not English, but I still don't want to date any Hogwarts boys. It's a personal decision. And I made it before you were even here, so it's nothing against you.' She really was trying to take the sting out of her words, and he took it as a positive that she wasn't openly hostile.

'Is it your boyfriend?' He had wanted to avoid this question/topic, as he knew it wasn't really fair to put her on the spot about it. But now that she had officially given him the shutdown, he wanted to know more. With the eye contact they had he was sure he would be able to get an answer no matter how she worded it. She looked at him pensively as she was debating how to respond.

'Like I said, it's personal.' She said calmly, before turning away from him.

'Ok, I can appreciate that,' he said, trying to hide the defeat in his voice. If she had a boyfriend, then he supposed it was a good character trait to not be dating others. But he still wasn't sure, he couldn't read anything from her mind as she was giving her answer, no sincerity but also no deceit, it was like her mind was closed to him. That had never happened to him before.

'Cody?' She asked soberly.

'Yeah?' He responded with a hint of hope, maybe she was changing her mind.

'This gum has lost its flavor. Can I have another?' The corners of her lips turned up in a small grin. He threw his head back and let out a small laugh.

'You are a cruel woman, Daphne Greengrass.' He smiled and placed the pack in her open palm, letting his fingertips rest on her hand for an extra beat before withdrawing. 'Take the rest, I have more. See ya 'round, Daphne.'

'Thanks, Cody. Bye.'

Well, that definitely qualified as a non-neutral interaction, and as far as crash and burns go, the landing was rather soft. On the whole, he was feeling pretty good. He was able to catch Professor Sprout and get his Herbology work without much delay, she had no worries about him learning all he needed with Neville as his tutor. Professor Binns also was quite brief and Cody was not about to make small talk, he was still not at ease with the whole "ghost as a teacher" idea. He arrived early to the room Astoria had picked out for her study group that night, she was already there. There he conferred with her regarding their schedule and they set up Wednesday night as their potions night, and would get started right away, on the morrow.

They were joined by a few other Slytherins from Astoria's year, they didn't spare him a second glance, that was fine by him. After some introductions, they got to their studying routine. Cody didn't contribute much during the conversation portion, as they were mainly discussing fourth year spells and charms. He could pick out bits and pieces of things, but most of it was over his head. When the conversation shifted to more mundane topics, he would chime in. After they finished up and were heading out, they all acknowledged him. They might not ever become friends, but he didn't foresee them becoming enemies either.

Wednesday morning started with Charms, followed by another Charms class with a different group. The fifteen minutes or so between classes wound up being quite productive. With the undivided attention of the professor he could ask questions and receive personal demonstrations as needed. This gave him hope he could get through the necessary material after all.

He had one more task to do at lunch, so he ate quickly, and made his way over to the Slytherin table, where again there was an empty seat next to Millicent —she glanced at him as he approached, he smiled and she nodded— across from Tracey. It was almost as if the seats were assigned with how easy it was to predict where people would be sitting. As he sat, he was greeted, not by words, but by Daphne's open palm outstretched halfway across the table towards him, her face with an expectant smile.

'I've spoiled you,' Cody declared.

'Perhaps you have, but you shan't keep a lady waiting,' she said, overly emphasizing the distinguished tone.

'What happened to what I gave you yesterday?' Cody asked curiously.

'I am not a sow, I shared. And the flavor doesn't last long, we've discussed this.'

'When did you discuss this?' Tracey asked inquisitively.

'Yesterday after dinner, when you abandoned me.' Daphne proclaimed.

'I didn't abandon you, I clearly recall you telling me that—'

'Tracey! Shut it,' Daphne snapped. Then she redirected the conversation, though Cody was intrigued to hear what Tracey was about to say. 'So, what brings you over to our neck of the woods today, Cody?'

'Well, today I have a question for Tracey.' Both girls raised their eyebrows at this, Tracey's face became mischievous while Daphne's suspicious.

'I'm listening,' Tracey replied.

'Well, as you may know, I need tutors for some classes to help with material from previous years,' Cody started.

'Stop right there. You realize you're talking to two girls that get nearly the worst scores in not just our year, but probably the whole school?' Tracey explained.

'But we pass,' and the two girls slapped hands. 'Astoria put you up to this, didn't she? She's always trying to get us to do more school,' Daphne postulated.

'Uh, kinda, but not really. She definitely didn't suggest you, Daphne. But, she did say Tracey is basically an Astronomy know-it-all, and might be a good tutor. So, what do you say, Tracey, teach me Astronomy,' he said pleasantly.

'Hmm, I do love Astronomy. If there's one class I actually enjoy, it's that one. And maybe we could get Sinistra to give us a pass for extra study sessions on say, Saturday nights. Yeah, I think I could help you out, Cody.' Tracey's mischievous grin was only growing the more she thought of the idea.

'Oh, no you don't!' Daphne exclaimed.

'Awesome, thanks, Tracey. I have Astronomy Thursday night, so I'll get there early to talk to the professor then,' Cody said, ignoring Daphne's objection.

'So do we! I'll come early too,' Tracey added excitedly.

'I thought you were only taking classes with first years,' Daphne quipped.

'Just some classes. Others I'm with my year. Like Defence, which I better start going to if I'm gonna get there on time, I've heard this professor is a whack job,' Cody said.

'We have Defence right now too!' Tracey was still excited.

'You can walk with us, so you don't get lost. And I need more gum,' Daphne smirked, holding out her hand.

'You are going to bleed me dry like this. I'm gonna have to start avoiding you,' Cody replied, as they made their way out of the Hall.

'You won't,' Daphne challenged.

'Keep up draining my stores and we'll find out,' Cody teased, and got some disbelieving laughs from the girls.

The Defence professor was everything he had heard, and more. The scars on his face, the peg leg, and the magical eye that whizzed around in his head, all were evidences that this man was full of more than just book knowledge. Then there was the man's voice, echoing and reverberating around the room, penetrating the very souls of those listening. All of these physical attributes —combined with the way he described battle— made Cody feel like he was being taught by a reincarnation —or at least, the wizarding version— of Coach Williams. He closed his eyes and mentally took himself back to his old wrestling room, listening to his now professor, expound on mental fortitude and willingness to do whatever necessary in the face of adversity. If this wizard wanted students to go through tests of mental toughness, Cody was ready to show him what he was made of, this class was something he was going to look forward to.

That evening he met with Astoria for their first potions session. She had a bunch of helpful suggestions, and seemed motivated to help him finish the potion as quickly as possible.

'Copy down the instructions yourself, it helps you get an overall picture of what you're working on. Next, break it up into groups, I generally find the long stirring or simmering portions to be good dividers. The key to a potent potion is eliminating cross contamination, your ingredients must be pure when added to the mixture, so organization and clean instruments are vital. Then there is the down time, sometimes these things have to simmer forever, use that time efficiently. Once you have all the ingredients prepped, start picking out an ingredient or two each time and learn about them. The next time you see that ingredient come up, mentally quiz yourself on its properties. Over time you'll start to understand why certain ingredients are in the formula, and can even predict what should go into a potion based on what it is intended to do. It's also the sort of stuff that is going to be on your written exams, so, two birds and all that.'

As he wrote down the instructions for tonight's potion she told him about each ingredient, giving him examples of what kind of things he should be looking for. She also gave particular instructions about how to prepare each type of ingredient, after some time he would have that memorized himself. She monitored his work and they were able to get in one clip of a study session during the simmering portion. He was truly impressed with her ability to maximize her study time, when she was focussed on learning there was hardly a moment wasted, everything had a purpose.

They finished about 30 minutes early, so he thought he was going to head back to his common room to play some games before bed. He was broken from his thoughts when Astoria grabbed his wrist and pulled him into an empty classroom, closing and locking the door behind them. He wasn't totally surprised by this, he had known there was something on her mind. He just had to recover from the physical jolt of being yanked into a classroom.

'Your turn to teach me something tonight. Wandless magic, what's your trick?'

'Oh, um, well, you said you did accidental magic as a kid, right?'

'Right.'

'Do you remember how it felt when you did it?'

'No.'

'Did you ever do something that you wanted to do?'

'Yeah, a few times I wanted a book from across the room and I was able to summon it.'

'That's it. For me it all started like that. I would just focus on what I wanted to do.'

'I can think about something all day long, it's not going to happen without a spell,' she said with an air of incredulity.

'I never actually vocalized a spell until I came here. Not that I didn't have names for them in my head.'

'That still doesn't explain how you got your magic to work.'

'No, it doesn't. I don't know how to describe it, but I just feel for my magic, then as it builds, I channel it into whatever "spell" I'm trying to do. I think it'll be hard, at first, for anyone that has only ever used a wand to access their magic. Just standing here, can you feel your magic?' They stood there for a minute, Astoria concentrating on feeling for her magic, before shaking her head in disappointment.

'I didn't feel anything,' she said dejectedly.

'Maybe start by casting a spell with your wand, but don't focus on the spell so much as where your magic draws from. Then you can use that as a starting point from where to feel your magic.' He was postulating more than teaching.

She paused to gather herself, then cast her spell, a small Lumos charm. The look on her face told Cody she felt something, but she wasn't confident that it was what she was looking for.

'Well?' Cody asked.

'I felt something, I think,' she said uncertainly.

'That's where you have to start, you have to learn to draw from your magic, so you have to feel where it's coming from. I used to practice a lot while lying in bed, it wears you out, but leads to a good night's sleep.'

'This is going to be a longer road than I thought. I'm not used to not picking things up right away,' she admitted.

'Having patience tried is no fun, but I know you'll get it. Start practicing, and it'll get easier. I better head back to my common room. I'll see you 'round.' Cody started toward the door.

'Hey!' Astoria called out, following him to the door. 'I can't go to sleep with tightness in my back.'