Things began going downhill the morning of September 2nd.
It all started when Mara overslept as she usually did. Except for this time, Hermione hadn't woken her up. With only twenty minutes to eat before classes started, Mara had to rush to pull on her clothing, say goodbye to Breena (who wasn't allowed to accompany her to classes), and rush to the Great Hall without getting lost.
Luckily, the map Harry had made for them had done wonders in helping them memorize the way to most of their classes and the Great Hall. The ever-changing staircase, which constantly shifted the stairs, was a lost cause, though.
Despite feeling rushed, Mara was in a better mood after a night's rest. She'd made it to Hogwarts and nothing was going to stop her now. Especially not Dobby and his threats.
The Great Hall was just as she remembered it. Four long tables decorated in each of the house colors- Red, Yellow, Blue, and Green and massive platters of food all along each one. Porridge and kippers, toast and eggs, bacon and pancakes- anything a growing teenager could ever want to shovel into their mouth for a hearty nutritious breakfast.
The enchanted ceiling was a dull, cloudy gray. Not exactly the sunny day she wanted but better than rain or lightning - as it sometimes was prone to do.
And for once, as she entered the Great Hall, nobody turned to stare at her.
Everyone was preoccupied with something else. Snickers came from every corner of the hall, eyes on the Gryffindor table decked in red and gold. Mara quickly found the center - her group of friends.
Hermione sat on one side, her copy of Voyages with vampires propped open against a milk jug. She ate dainty bites of buttered toast with a steaming cup of tea, a smug look on her face. On the other side was Ron, who was picking bits of scrambled egg from his bright red hair, the shame coming off of him in waves.
Neville meanwhile, was pale in his seat, picking at his porridge like a face was about to sprout out of it.
Harry, however, sat relaxed across from Hermione, an almost pleased and amused look on his face.
Mara sat next to Hermione with a bright chipper, "Good Morning!"
"Mornin'," Ron said, flicking another piece of scrambled egg out of his hair. It landed on his empty plate with a squish.
Neville only sighed, staring depressed at his bowl of porridge.
"Morning," Hermione sat stiffly, not even sending her a glance. It was clear she was still disapproving of the way they had arrived.
"Why Good morning, my lovely sister," Harry grinned, a mischievous twinkle in his eyes.
Mara stiffened. "Did something happen?" She asked, cautiously, looking from Harry's cheerfulness to the glum looks on both Ron and Neville's faces.
"Why nothing special," Harry smirked, "The mail just came in."
Mara paled.
"I'm not really hungry so I'll skip breakfast for today," Mara was halfway out of her seat when Hermione clamped a hand on her wrist, lips pursed with a glare that was too resembling their head of house Professor McGonagall.
"Not so fast, sister of mine," Harry said, looking way too much like their father before he pulled off a prank, "I have a letter for you."
In between two fingers, he held up a scarlet letter- a very, very familiar scarlet letter.
"You don't have to do this," Mara begged Hermione, lip wobbling but her best puppy eyes did nothing to soften the ruthless girl beside her as she pulled her back into the seat.
Hermione didn't say a word but Mara knew there was no getting out of this.
The letter was still in Harry's fingers but Mara knew the moment she touched it, it would awaken.
"Better get it over with, Mara," Seamus snickered from down the table, "Can't be worse than those two."
He pointed at Ron and Neville and suddenly their weird behavior made sense.
Mara gulped as Harry set the letter on her plate but Mara only stared at it. A howler would only activate once the recipient touched it - then it would time down until they either opened it or it opened itself.
Neither option was a good one.
She could hear Lavender and Parvarti's giggles as Mara reached for the letter with trembling fingers.
She'd gotten howlers before, she thought, fresh tears springing to her eyes, she could do this.
But once she just barely grazed the red envelope - it shook violently. She yelped, bringing her hand back like she'd been burned, watching sickly as the letter shook off the plate like it was having a seizure. Smoke began to blow from the corners - a warning to open it.
Mara bit her bottom lip, gathered all of her Gryffindor courage, and pulled the seal off the envelope.
Neville and Ron both plugged their ears with a grimace and the letter began to roar -
"-BLOODY FANTASTIC! WHERE'D YOU EVEN GET A FLYING CAR? NEVER THOUGHT OF IT IN A MILLION YEARS! I'D HAVE LOVED TO SEE SNAPE'S FACE! BAD LANDING STRATEGY BUT A FEW LESSONS AND YOU'LL BE FLYING LIKE A PRO-"
It wasn't her mother's shrieks that came from the letter. Mara stared open-mouthed and shocked as her Uncle Sirius's screams rang through the hall.
"SIRIUS!"
That was Uncle Moony.
"-FINALLY, A WORTHY HEIR FOR THE MARAUDER'S THRONE-" Her dad's voice came out now, the bickering between her uncles still heard in the background.
"JAMES!"
"ER -CAN'T BELIEVE YOU'D BE SO IRRESPONSIBLE- FLYING A CAR AND NOT TAKING ME! WHAT'D I RAISE YOU FOR-"
"THEY NEARLY KILLED THEMSELVES- DON'T PRAISE THEM!"
"OI, IT'S NOT PRAISE, IT'S CRITICISM! NEXT TIME, YOU DO IT AT NIGHT SO YOU'RE LESS SPOTTABLE - DID YOU RUN INTO ANY PLANES BY THE WAY? HOW'D YOU EVEN FOLLOW THE TRAIN?-"
"-SHUT IT BOTH OF YOU!"
"-WHAT'S MY NUMBER ONE RULE FOR YOU TWO? IF YOU'RE GONNA DO SOMETHING STUPID - DON'T GET CAUGHT! HAVE I TAUGHT YOU NOTHING ON GETTING AWAY-"
"-ATMOSPHERE AND TEMPERATURE LIKE? ON A SCALE OF ONE TO TEN- HOW DIFFERENT WAS IT FROM RIDING A BROOM-"
"-AM I THE ONLY SANE ONE HERE?"
"-OI, MOONY- GET BACK HERE!"
"YOU'RE NOT SENDING THIS!"
"-HELL WE ARE! ACCIO LETTER-"
"LOVE YOU TWO! SUPER PROUD! DON'T GET CAUGHT AND LISTEN TO YOUR TEACHERS! LOVE YOU- BYE!"
"PRONGS- DON'T YOU DARE! I'VE GOT MORE QUESTIONS-"
A ringing silence fell. The red envelope then burst into flames and left only a small pile of ashes on her breakfast plate. For a moment, Mara could only stare unblinkingly at the ashes, wondering what the hell just happened.
And then, someone snickered.
And all hell broke loose.
Laughter rang from almost every house, the Weasley twins slapping the table hard enough to rattle the goblets, one student had fallen out of his seat unable to breathe, and another was literally rolling on the floor, clutching their stomach.
A girl was sobbing into her porridge, shifting between laughing and crying. Soon enough, there were hundreds of students giggling and chuckling and chortling and snorting and cackling and howling and roaring and hooting of all different sounds.
Mara's face turned bright red, as she absorbed what had just happened.
"Well," Harry said looking disappointedly at the ashes, "I should've expected that."
"No fair!" Ron stared at her betrayed, crossing his arms like he'd been wronged. "Mum threatened to send me home and you get that? Double standards."
Neville stared emptily at the ashes, a haunted look in his eyes. "Gran told me she'd burn my greenhouse."
Mara shifted guiltily in her seat.
To be fair, this was the same group who'd - according to themselves - jumped into the lake in zero-degree weather to find and ride the giant squid. They won if you listen to Sirius. They got hyperthermia if you listen to Remus.
Injuries aside, they'd honestly done stupider things last year. Like trying to smuggle a baby dragon out of the castle after raising it in secret for a month, or willingly going into the death trap that was the third-floor corridor to fight he-who-must-not-be-named as first years.
They'd taken on a Cerberus. A clubbing tree was nothing.
Mara's thoughts were interrupted by the slamming of a book on the table next to her. Hermione got to her feet, sent Mara an absolutely livid look, and then stormed off, taking her book with her.
Mara slumped in her seat.
A bright flash nearly blinded her and Mara had to blink to clear it from her eyes, confused as she saw a small blonde-haired boy standing next to her seat- a massive oversized camera in his hands. He grinned brightly, and Mara noticed the red and gold shield on his chest.
"Hi, Amaryllis! I'm Colin Creevey! I'm your biggest fan! I've collected every one of your headlines and news clippings. Wanna see my album?"
Mara slammed her head on the table, ignoring as Colin snapped another photo of her.
"Let this day be over with," She groaned into the table.
"Lily!" Mara grinned, launching herself onto her friend as she spotted her in the line of Hufflepuffs outside the greenhouses.
The redhead was stronger than she looked as she didn't even flinch, merely turned around and caught Mara into a hug.
"I'm so glad you're alright," Lily said happily. Mara was quite pleased to know that Lily's hugs had improved quite a bit from last year. They were warm and comfortable just as they ought to be.
Hermione stormed past them with an indignant scoff, already carrying her books for 'Herbology year 2.'
Mara didn't pay her any mind.
"A little tree can't take me down," Mara grinned at her friend.
Lily giggled as Harry, Ron, and Neville joined them.
They had double Herbology with the Hufflepuffs this morning.
"Where's Professor Sprout?" Mara asked, noticing the witch's absence. It wasn't unusual for Professor Sprout to be late, but normally she'd already been working in the greenhouses, just on some other project.
Lily winced. But before she could answer, the Professor came striding across the lawn with arms full of bandages and other ingredients.
Ron and Neville both gulped at something in the distance and Mara leaned over and spotted the Whomping Willow- now with several of its branches covered in slings.
Mara bit at her nails guilty. They hadn't meant to hurt the sentient tree.
But that doesn't mean it wasn't hurt.
Unfortunately, Professor Sprout was also not alone. Dressed in obnoxious turquoise robes with a matching wizard hat on top of his perfectly coifed golden hair- was Gilderoy Lockhart.
"Oh, hello there!" He called, beaming to the group of second years as the two professors approached.
Harry groaned, turning away from the sight but Hermione on the other looked nearly starstruck as several of the girls began to giggle.
"Just been showing Professor Sprout the right way to doctor a Whomping Willow! But I don't want you running away with the idea that I'm better at Herbology than she is! I just happen to have met several of these exotic plants on my travels-"
Mara wasn't sure what face she was making in response to the man's boasting but Lily started giggling quite loudly, smothering her face behind her hand to keep quiet. Unfortunately, Professor Lockhart couldn't tell the difference as he sent her a wink.
"Greenhouse three today, chaps!" Professor Sprout said, the cheerful woman looking quite unlike herself- disgruntled and annoyed.
"We've only worked in Greenhouse one," Justin Finch-Fletchley, a Hufflepuff murmured to his friend.
"That's where they keep the Venomous Tentaculas!" Neville said brightly like that was something to look forward to.
As Professor Sprout opened the door to Greenhouse three, Lockhart's hand landed on Mara's shoulder.
Mara stiffened and eyed Lockhart in warning while five other pairs of eyes shot him glares in varying degrees.
The worst was Harry's, who looked like he was about to murder Lockhart right then and there.
Lockhart coughed, removing his hand carefully, with an embarrassed look. Though the prophet hadn't published their last encounter, Mara could still do it again.
"I apologize," Lockhart avoided Harry's gaze, "I've been wanting a word with you- you don't mind if she's a couple of minutes late, do you, Professor Sprout?"
Lockhart shot the witch his most charming grin but judging by her scowl, it didn't do a damn thing.
"I'm sorry, Professor," Mara said amicably, "But I mind. My mother made sure I knew that I'm not to be alone with you at any point, Professor. You wouldn't want to get in trouble with her, right?"
Mara smiled, a hidden threat behind her shiny teeth.
Lockhart flinched, quickly paling.
"Ah, but I-" He stammered.
"Thought not," Mara cut him off firmly and then turned around and entered the Greenhouse.
Professor Sprout sent her a beaming smile as she passed and Mara considered that her good deed for the day.
Ron followed behind her, snickering while she could practically feel Harry's smirk.
Greenhouse three was much different than Greenhouse one. There were much more interesting and probably dangerous plants all over the place. It smelled of damp earth and fertilizer- along with a sweet smell she couldn't place.
Umbrella-sized flowers dangled from the ceiling and Neville gasped at one of the potted plants with wriggling vines - most likely the tentacula.
"Alright, everyone! Pick a partner and come stand in front of a pair of earmuffs!" Professor Sprout announced, happily shutting the greenhouse door in Lockhart's stunned face.
Mara made a look towards Hermione, hoping she would be willing to partner but Hermione had already made off towards Sophie Roper who was standing awkwardly to the side.
Sophie looked relieved for half a second and then sent Mara a confused and apologetic look as Hermione dragged her to the table.
Mara frowned.
"Wanna partner with me?" Lily offered with an understanding smile.
At least Mara still had one friend.
"Sure, thanks."
The two took their spot as Neville claimed Harry as a partner and Ron ended up with Justin Finch-Fletchley somehow. Neither boy looked happy about it either.
"Today, we'll be repotting Mandrakes. Now, who can tell me the properties of the Mandrake?" Professor Sprout asked once the kids were all paired and comfy.
To nobody's surprise, Hermione's hand was first into the air.
"Mandrake or Mandragora is a powerful restorative. It is used to return people who have been transfigured or cursed to their original state." Hermione said, sounding as though she'd written the textbook herself.
"Excellent. Ten points to Gryffindor," Professor Sprout nodded in her direction, "The Mandrake forms an essential part of most antidotes. It is also, however, dangerous. Who can tell me why?"
As most of the students leaned back, not even bothering to put their hand up with Hermione in the room, Professor Sprout eyed them for a minute and then pointed at Susan Bones.
"Miss Bones?" Professor Sprout asked, ignoring Hermione's waving hand. Hermione's hand shot down with a disgruntled look.
"Huh?" Susan Bones looked bewildered, downright shocked that she'd been called on.
"Why are Mandrakes considered dangerous?" Professor Sprout repeated.
"Oh, don't they kill you when they cry?" Susan said with a frown. "Or something like that."
"Exactly! Ten points to Hufflepuff. The Mandrake releases a high-pitch cry which is fatal to anyone who hears it. Now the Mandrakes we have here are still very young."
She pointed to the row of trays as she spoke. Inside were about a hundred purplish little plants growing in even rows.
"They look like turnip leaves," Mara whispered to Lily, who giggled.
"Everyone take a pair of earmuffs," Professor Sprout instructed, "Make sure your ears are completely covered and when it is safe to remove them, I will give you a thumbs-up. Right- earmuffs on."
Mara grabbed a pair of fluffy white ones and snapped them on her head, making sure they were on good and tight by whipping her head around and smacking her brother in the face with her ponytail.
"Sorry," Mara sent him a sheepish grin. He rolled his eyes, making sure to pat down his earmuffs tightly. It was nearly impossible to hear now- not a single thing getting through as Mara watched the other kids pull on their earmuffs.
Mara watched in surprise as Ron and Justin-Finch Fletchley argued silently across the room, both having a hand on a pair of blue earmuffs. Justin Finch Fletchley must've said something bad for Ron turned red and spat something even meaner. Justin pulled the blue earmuffs away from him, smugly and Ron sulkily grabbed the remaining pair- an ugly color of puke green with various spots of what Mara only hoped was dirt.
Neville's eyes were gleaming in excitement as he stared at the pots. Professor Sprout had a pair of pink fluffy ones and they watched in anticipation as she rolled up her sleeves, grasped one of the plants, and pulled.
There are some things you hear about that you're like 'oh, I know what that's gonna sound like.' Mara was absolutely wrong.
Out of the dirt, their professor pulled out a small, dirty, and extremely ugly baby. Like if the Whomping Willow and A house Elf had made a baby- this would be their children. It had ugly green skin- mottled and wrinkly like a newborn. It was covered in dirt from the potting soil and had a wretched smell and worst of all it was wriggling. Entirely made of roots, the so-called mouth opened up and then let out a horrible cry.
Professor Sprout held it from the leaves growing out of its head, leaning back as it swung back and forth in the air- bawling as loud as it possibly could.
Even with the earmuffs, Mara felt faint, clutching her hands around the muffs like they could afford her better protection.
Luckily, Professor Sprout was a veteran. She pulled out a large pot from under the table with her foot and plunged the Mandrake into it, using her hand to dig out some of the soil so it fit nice and tightly in its new home- until the shrieking had stopped and only it's little wiggling leaves her visible. Their Professor then dusted off her gloved hands and gave them all a thumbs up.
Mara breathed a shaky sigh of relief, removing her earmuffs. All around them, the other kids were pale as well- except for Neville and Lily who looked intrigued and kept trying to look into the other pots of Mandrakes. Peyton, who looked unaffected by everything with her partner- the energetic Hufflepuff Megan and Harry, who waved his hands over his ears with a secret grin to her. Down his sleeve, she spotted his untraceable wand.
Mara kinda wanted to deck him in the face.
"As our Mandrakes are only seedlings, their cries won't' kill you yet," Professor Sprout said calmly as though she'd only just watered a begonia. "However, they will knock you out for several hours and as I'm sure none of you want to miss your first day back, makes sure your earmuffs are securely in place while you work. I will attract your attention when it is time to pack up."
Through the lecture, long red feelers began to inch sneakily over their Professor's shoulder, drawing the kid's attention.
Wait, wasn't that the plant Neville had pointed out?
"Four to a tray - there is a large supply of pots here - compost in the sacks over there -" Right as the feeler curled around her neck and Mara was about to jump to her feet- wand in hand despite the rules, Professor Sprout gave a sharp slap to the feeler- making it withdraw immediately. She sent them a friendly smile. "And do be careful of the Tentacula. It's teething."
Mara and Lily ended up with Harry and Neville on their tray while the other kids surrounded theirs as well. Hermione and Sophie ended up with Ron and Justin, much to Ron and Justin's annoyance.
Harry brought over a massive sack with Lily's help and when they opened it, a horrid smell wafted out. Mara pinched her nose, eyes watering.
"Dragon-dung," Neville explained with an excited look, "It has nourishing properties for magical plants. It even changes color depending on the breed they use."
"Good to know," Mara muttered, waving the smell away. They took gardening shovels to fill up their pots and once they were all filled and ready- Professor Sprout gave the signal for their earmuffs to go back on.
Mara triple-checked to make sure hers were on good and tight.
Professor Sprout motioned to grab the leaves and Mara made sure her dragon-hide gloves were tightly on before she did so. The leaves wiggled beneath her fingers and Mara knew this wasn't going to be as easy as Professor Sprout made it seem.
As Professor Sprout counted down from five with her fingers, Mara caught sight of Ron and Justin arguing again despite their earmuffs being on. Neither was listening one bit, hands not on the Mandrakes but flourishing in the air with their argument.
And then Professor Sprout hit one.
All at once, sixteen students lifted up their Mandrakes from the pots and the screeching was worse than anything Mara had heard before.
The Mandrakes did not like to come out of the earth and they did not want to be handled. They wriggled and squirmed and kicked and flailed their little fists and gnashed their teeth and even with a sturdy hand on their leaves, it was hard to control their wiggling without getting too close. The bawling, though, had to be the worst part. If one was bad, then sixteen of them were horrendous.
It felt like her ears were going to bleed out of her nostrils.
And then Neville turned to them, his Mandrake perfectly potted into the dirt. He beamed and she cursed him silently in her mind.
After a few minutes of maneuvering, both she and Lily managed to get their Mandrakes put away into the dirt - even if they didn't want to go.
That's when she caught sight of a flash of red in the corner of her vision and before she understood what was happening, both Ron and Justin had hit the floor- rolling over and over on the dirt while punching and kicking at one another.
"Ron!" Mara cried, horrified as she watched her friend punching the Hufflepuff in his face.
Professor Sprout was quick to grab them both by the back of their robes, obviously saying something with a scowl on her face but then Justin sneered, and even from across the room- Mara knew whatever he said wasn't good.
Ron's face went bright red, and he seemed to have lost all of his reason as he pulled out his wand in a flash and though he'd obviously tried to patch it with Spellotape, there had been no saving it.
Ron cast the motions of a familiar spell - seemingly innocent until the room freaking exploded. The table fell over with a great crash, and the Mandrakes which had been freshly potted spilled over onto the ground- screaming louder than anything Mara had heard in her life.
And Ron and both went propelling backward, hitting opposite ends of the greenhouse and crashing into various plants. What was most damning, however, was that in the chaos, two pairs of earmuffs fell to the floor.
Ron and Justin both toppled over onto their sides, knocked out.
Luckily, Mara was wearing her earmuffs because whatever string of curses Professor Sprout let out just then, she didn't know but by the pale and horrified looks on Hermione and Sophie's faces, it wasn't anything friendly.
By the time they marched into their next class- Transfiguration, they were down two Gryffindors and three Hufflepuffs.
Justin and Ron would be unconscious for several hours at least while Seamus had gotten a little too close to one of the Mandrakes during clean-up and it had bitten him on his ankle, sending him straight to the hospital wing in case of infection. Sally Smith had nearly gotten bit by the Tentacula if it weren't for Neville's thinking. She did lose a pigtail though and a butterfly hair clip.
Kevin Entwhistle had incredibly bad luck when he slipped on one of the rolling Mandrakes and fell into a sleeping sneezing Puffapod and suffered from a bad case of Puffapod allergies.
None of the washed Gryffindors were happy and Professor McGonagall's classes were always very difficult to work. Luckily, they shared this one with the Ravenclaws, which made it easier.
Professor McGonagall seemed to already be having a bad day by the scowl on her face.
"I've had two students sent to the hospital wing this morning and I don't need anymore," She warned them, "So, in case all the knowledge I taught you last year has somehow leaked out of your ears, I will give you a refresher."
She then spent twenty minutes going over everything they learned last year. Which was helpful if you didn't already have it memorized. After that, she'd place a small black beetle on each of their desks and demonstrated how to turn them into a button.
While Transfiguration wasn't her worst subject, it did not come naturally to Mara. She wasn't at all surprised when Hermione managed it on her first try and Harry on his second. Peyton hadn't even attempted it, simply playing with it on her desk.
Neville meanwhile, who sat next to her in this class, wasn't having a good time. He tapped his beetle for the ninth time and nothing happened once more.
"Maybe you should try with your other wand," Mara suggested. "Nobody will be able to tell."
"No, I can do it," Neville said and firmly he recited the spell once more- tapping the beetle. For a moment white smoke came out of the end and both Mara and Neville leaned close to see the results.
It was a button- a little black button with black legs and arms. And two of the little holes had eyeballs staring back at them.
Mara blanched, horrified at the beetle-like button.
"I'm sorry!" Neville cried to the poor little beetle who kept trying to run on its button-shaped back, legs flailing in the air and eyes twisting this way and that.
"Turn it back!" Mara cried, unable to even look at the thing. She felt like she might vomit.
"Ellie?"
At Neville's confused tone, Mara turned back in time just to see the little gray kitten climb onto the desk, little tail wiggling in the air. She was so cute.
The little kitten's eyes narrowed on the wiggling beetle button.
"Ellie, no!" Neville cried but it was too late.
With a sickening CRUNCH- poor Mr. Beetle's button was gone.
Ellie licked her lips, almost looking proud of herself as she sat back lazily.
Mara swallowed uncomfortably.
"Mr. Longbottom!" Professor McGonagall came up to them furiously, "No animals in the classroom!"
"I'm sorry, Professor," Neville stammered, palling as she glared down at him, "I don't know how she got in here. She must've followed me or something."
"And where is your beetle?"
Neville turned white at the question.
"I-well, see-"
Mara only sighed until she caught the little gray kitten's eyes narrowing on the beetle still skittering on Mara's desk - she'd turned it back to a beetle after a successful transformation, still too freaked out about using it as an actual functional object when it used to be breathing.
Mara saw the little cat's wheels turning in its devious little mind -she had her own cat after all. And before she could stop it, Ellie launched onto the beetle right as Mara's hands came over it into a dome shape to protect it.
The beetle, sensing danger, did what any reasonable beetle would do. It scuttered into the nearest hidey-hole.
Unfortunately, that just happened to be Mara's sleeve.
September 2nd of 1992 would be remembered for the high-pitched wail that had rebounded around Hogwarts castle- shocking even the poltergeist who lived in the walls.
Some of the students still insisted to this day that a banshee had gotten loose and still roamed Hogwarts' halls.
Others remember it as the day Mara Potter nearly destroyed their eardrums. And for one particular class of second years, they remember it as the day of the Beetle Bloodbath.
By Charms, another four students were downed. Lavender Brown fainted after a group of desperate beetles had jumped into her nose to save themselves and they weren't sure if Lisa Turpin would ever be the same. Terry Boot had taken an unfortunate hit to the noggin and Neville still couldn't hear out of either of his ears.
Flitwick seemed utterly shocked by the traumatized looks on the class's faces. Unfortunately, they shared Charms with the Ravens as well, so the class kept sending dirty looks at Mara, who sunk into her seat.
Harry sent her an unsure glance.
"Uh, we'll start off with something easy, and non-destructive," Though Flitwick probably meant that last part to be whispered, everyone heard it.
By now, Mara was pretty sure something was going to go very, very wrong.
Luckily, Charms was her best class.
"Today, we'll be learning the softening charm. The incantation is 'Spongify' and it's performed like this," Professor Flitwick gestured to a rock laying on his desk, which was on everyone's desks actually, and performed a slightly crooked S in the air while declaring "Spongify".
There was a purple light and the rock turned a lighter gray. Professor Flitwick put away his wand and then squished the rock.
None of them could believe their eyes as the solid rock collapsed under his hand and once he removed it- it sprung back up.
"The Softening Charm can be used to soften the ground to prevent falls or even be used as a way to propel individuals into the air, as it's a quite springy material. It has a sponge-like material and is relatively harmless though it does weigh the same and contain the same properties of what it had before."
Professor Flitwick grinned at their looks of awe as he threw the rock at the wall and it sprung off it with a high velocity, but Flitwick barely moved as far as they could see and caught it in mid-air.
"Of course, there will be no throwing in this class," He gave them a stern look, "They are still rocks, and thrown at another person would still hurt, even if it softens the object. It's a spongy and bouncy rock but it's still a rock."
"Yes, Professor," They chorused, now used to it by now. Mara twirled her wand in her hands excitedly, happy to try out a new charm.
Harry sent her an amused look.
"Now you all try!" Flitwick said happily.
Mara grinned, reading from her textbook as she shut her eyes and got into her headspace. Imagine the firm rock turning soft like one of the kitchen sponges. She performed the motion and said loudly and firmly "Spongify!"
When she opened her eyes, her rock was a lighter color but no different from before. Until she poked it testingly.
It jiggled.
Mara grinned, grabbing the rock. It felt squishy and kinda like really firm jello in her bare hand. She squeezed it a few times but it always came back to shape, bouncing right back with no worse for wear.
"Congratulations, Miss Potter!" Professor Flitwick cried, clapping his hands, "Ten points to Gryffindor! I'd expect nothing less from your mother's prodigy."
Mara blushed under the Professor's attention but frowned when she caught Hermione's glare.
"She'll come around," Harry said softly to her, "She's just upset."
"I know," Mara said sadly, "but I wish I could fix it somehow."
"You can't fix everything." Harry sighed, "Besides, We'll probably need to have a meeting sometime soon to discuss some things. Like why the platform didn't work."
Mara stiffened but didn't answer, even as she felt Harry's eyes narrow on her.
"Still nothing to say about that? Uncle Moony wouldn't tell me," Harry crossed his arms like he knew she was hiding something.
"Not at all," Mara laughed nervously.
She always was a terrible liar.
"I can't help you if you don't let me," Harry said.
"That's a laugh coming from you," Mara spat out bitterly.
Harry's lips twisted into a deep frown.
"What do you-"
He didn't have time to argue with her as something flashed between them and hit the wall with a BANG! And then was flying up to the ceiling.
"What?" Mara gasped, looking around at the object now flying around the room.
"Who threw that?" Flitwick yelled, ducking behind his podium, "I wanted you not to!"
He thrust his wand out, trying to get an eye on the object but it was too fast. As soon as it hit a wall, it sped up even further and was too fast for their naked eye to see.
Mara squeaked as it hit the desk in front of her, the wood caving under the pressure and shot off. Looking at the wood, it'd left a massive crater in the wood. It could do some serious damage if it hit anyone.
And then, startlingly, Mara watched with wide eyes as her own spongy rock lifted off the desk with a familiar presence of magic around it and then shot off to the wall.
Alarmed, Mara swirled around in the classroom, checking for any sign but Harry grabbed her arm, pulling her down as more and more of the spongy rocks joined the room- hitting walls and floors and ceilings and doors. Piles of books toppled over and Mara spotted Michael Corner hiding behind one of the books- until a rock went straight through it and he went down like a bag of bricks.
She heard him groaning so he was most likely still alive.
Watching the chaos unfold, Mara pushed back the hidden suspicions she had, even as Sue Li toppled into a massive pile of books and hit the desk with a thud.
She bit her lip and only thought.
This is fine.
It was painfully obvious in History of Magic, a class all the second years shared together, that they were missing quite a handful of students.
Five Ravenclaws, Seven Gryffindors and Three Hufflepuffs had vanished. And by the confused looks of the Slytherins, who were immaculate and had all their members, they hadn't heard yet.
The remaining 8 Hufflepuffs and 6 Ravenclaws sat as far away from the Gryffindors as possible.
Mara moped in her seat- feeling lower than ever until Hermione sat down next to her. The teary, pitiful look she sent her female best friend must've melted her icy-cold heart because Hermione only sighed and offered to share her notes.
Harry sent her a proud look on Mara's left and Hermione's cheeks dusted a light pink.
Parvati, the only other surviving Gryffindor girl after Peyton had disappeared sometime between Transfiguration and Charms, took Hermione's right. Dean took Harry's left and all five Gryffindors sat in a single row with room to spare.
Luckily, History of Magic passed by smoothly and the five Gryffindors trudged along to their last class of the day.
"Hermione?" Harry said warningly as they took their seats in the class with the Slytherins. They were greatly outnumbered and he was tense as Draco and Blaise kept looking over at them curiously.
"Yes?" Hermione asked, getting her quills and ink ready.
"Why did you outline all of Lockhart's lessons with little hearts?" Harry asked, dryly, looking up from her schedule.
Hermione turned a bright red as Mara leaned over to see. Sure enough, every single one of Lockhart's lessons was covered in little drawn hearts.
Hermione grabbed her schedule and stuffed it back into her bag- blushing as Pavarti giggled.
"He won the Weekly Witch's Most-Charming-Smile Award five times in a row, you know," Parvati sent her a wink making the bushy-haired girl blush that much harder.
"I don't see what's so great about this dude," Dean scoffed.
"Agreed," Harry and Mara replied at the same time.
At Hermione's glare, Mara replied, sweating in a monotone voice, "I mean, he's obviously the most handsome, best wizard ever. I particularly enjoyed page 241 of Wanderings with Werewolves where he found the Nordic relic that proved that Denmark was the capital of werewolves."
Hermione nodded, looking pleased, even as she gleaned over what Mara had said.
"You read it?" Harry whispered bewildered.
"No," Mara whispered back, "Pavarti and Lavender just talk really loud."
"Lockhart is a great wizard!" Hermione told him firmly.
Harry scoffed. "We'll see."
Luckily, Lockhart chose that time to enter, his smile gleaming full force. It dimed only a bit when he realized there were fewer students than normal but regained its full luster.
He reached down and plucked Pavarti's copy of Travels with Trolls, showing his own winking portrait on the front.
Mara was dizzy to realize that Lockhart had also put up a huge painting of himself on the back wall, showing the same practiced pose and smile as the real one and the one in the book.
"Huh," Mara whispered to herself, "Do you think he practiced in a mirror to get that right?"
Harry snorted beside her.
"Me," Lockhart said, pointing at his portrait and winking at the class in the exact same way and time.
"Astute observation," Harry whispered back. Mara stifled her giggle behind her hand, ignoring Lockhart's eyes flickering to her.
"Gilderoy Lockhart. Order of Merlin, Third Class, Honorary Member of the Dark Force Defense League, and five-time winner of Witch Weekly's Most-Charming-Smile Award–"
"Told you," Parvati sent them a smug smile.
"But I don't talk about that."
"You just did," Harry deadpanned.
It wasn't only Mara but Dean and one of the Slytherin boys, Theodore Nott across the row who stifled their laughs.
Lockhart didn't seem to notice.
"I didn't get rid of the Bandon Banshee by smiling at her!" Lockhart joked, falling flat across the room.
"She probably died laughing from your matching lavender underpants," Dean snickered.
Mara snorted into her hand, as behind them, a few more Slytherins began to snicker quietly.
"I see you've all bought a complete set of my books - Well done!"
"I burned them but go on," Harry smirked.
A few of the Slytherins' desks were also suspiciously empty including Blaise Zabini, who grinned at them.
"Harry," Hermione seethed.
"I thought we'd start today with a little quiz. Nothing to worry about - just to check how well you've read them, how much you've taken in-"
When he handed out the test papers, Mara couldn't believe her eyes as she read the first question.
What is Gilderoy Lockhart's favorite color?"You've got to be kidding me," Harry said, staring in disbelief at the paper.
"You have thirty minutes!" Lockhart grinned, "Start now!"
Mara hesitantly picked up her quill. Harry sat back in his seat, not even reaching for his quill despite Hermione's death glare.
Half an hour later, Lockhart collected the papers.
"Tut, tut - Hardly any of you remembered that my favorite color is Lilac-"
"I put bubblegum pink," Mara whispered sheepishly. Harry and Dean shook with silent laughter.
"I say so in Year with the Yeti. And a few of you need to read Wanderings with Werewolves more carefully - I clearly state in chapter twelve that my ideal birthday gift would be harmony between all magic and non-magic peoples- though I wouldn't say no to a large bottle of Ogden's Old Firewhiskey!"
"Darn. I thought it was a unicorn turd."
Hermione was the only girl besides Pavarti staring at Lockhart with rapt attention. She gave a start when he mentioned her name.
"But Miss Hermione Granger knew my secret ambition is to rid the world of evil and market my own range of hair-care potions- good girl! In fact, full marks! Where's Miss Hermione Granger?" Lockhart said.
Hermione raised a trembling hand.
"Excellent!" Beamed Lockhart, "ten points to Gryffindor! Unfortunately, the rest of you fell short-"
"Like you," Mara coughed into her hand.
A few people chuckled behind their hands, now it was turning into a game as Mara sent Harry a grin.
"And so- to business-" Lockhart bent down behind his desk and lifted a large covered cage onto it. It rattled as he did so, tiny squeaking interrupting his grin.
"Now- Be warned!" Lockhart said dramatically. Dean Thomas gulped, his eyes on the rattling cage. "It is my job to arm you against the foulest creatures known to wizardkind! You may find yourself facing your worst fears in this room. Know only that no harm can befall you, whilst I am here. All I ask is that you remain calm."
While Harry actually leaned forward, intrigued, Mara could've sworn the squeaks sounded familiar- like she's heard them before but couldn't place where. It's almost like a language if it weren't for the words being gibberish and played backward.
'Fairies?' Mara thought, the deja vu hitting her hard.
Parvati leaned back in her seat, a fearful look on her face.
No, Fairies were more soft and airy.
'Gargoyle Imps?' Mara thought, remembering the fiendish stone creatures that roamed in Spain and Italy.
Nobody in the class was laughing. Even the Slytherins were quiet, staring intently at whatever was hidden behind the white sheet. Hermione was almost vibrating in the seat next to her.
"I must ask you not to scream," said Lockhart in a low voice.
'Gargoyle Imps were more screechy,' Mara thought but then it came to her all of a sudden, hitting her fist into her palm at the realization.
'Oh, they're-'
"It might provoke them!"
"Cornish pixies!" Mara shouted, just as Lockhart whipped off the cover, revealing the devilish creatures underneath.
A dozen of eight-inch electric blue pixies rattled along the cage- gnawing at the bars, fighting with one another, flying and ramming into the top of the cage, or just laying limp on the floor. Their pointed faces and large grins were just as Mara remembered and their voices only got shriller like listening to twelve tiny people who all spoke different languages speaking at the same time. One of them stuck his tongue out of the bar, wiggling it at Pavarti who reeled back, disgusted.
"Yes," Lockhart said dramatically and quite proudly, "Freshly caught Cornish pixies."
And the class of Slytherins couldn't contain themselves. Snorts of laughter burst from everywhere. Pansy and her group of lackeys burst into shrieks of mocking laughter, while Crabbe and Goyle had bellowing laughs that shook their massive sizes. Blaise and Theodore, close lackeys to Draco Malfoy were both snickering, looking at Lockhart like he was an idiot.
Harry sighed disappointedly, leaning back in his chair.
"Can't believe I got my hopes up," Harry muttered to himself.
Hermione, Dean, and Sally-Anne Perks from the Slytherins' side still looked confused, while Pavarti only stared disgusted at the creatures. The only other Slytherin not laughing was Daphne Greengrass, whose most extreme reaction was an eyebrow raise. She wasn't called the 'Ice Queen' for nothing.
"Cornish pixies? They weren't in the book," Hermione frowned, looking at her "textbooks."
"That's because we didn't get textbooks this year. Cornish Pixies are Triple rated by the Ministry. They're as scary as a Niffler or a kneazle; that is to say, not at all." Harry told her boredly.
"Don't be so sure!" Lockhart stepped forward, as the laughter died down, waggling a finger annoyingly at Harry, "Devilish tricky little blighters they can be!"
"They are considered a pest by some because of how mischievous they can be," Mara recalled, "Remember when we came across a flock on our trip to Ireland? They stole all our clothes and almost dropped a sword on my head."
Harry's face darkened, "I completely forgot about that."
Lockhart grumbled at the still mocking faces of Malfoy and his friends and stood right beside the cage with a sudden, terrible idea.
"Right then," He announced loudly, "Let's see what you make of them!"
"Uh, Harry?" Mara paled, pointing to Lockhart.
"Shit."
And Lockhart opened the cage.
If Pandora had opened her box and created a world of sin, Lockhart had opened the cage and created a world of Pandemonium.
Chaos in every fiber of the word. The pixies shot in every direction. Two shot straight through the window, showering the back row with broken glass. Pansy screamed and ducked as the shards reigned down on them. They proceeded to tip over desks, throw the paintings on the wall and devour all of their textbooks with an efficiency that a lawnmower would be proud of.
They tipped the waste-basket full of Lockhart's discarded lunch onto Crabbe and Goyle's heads. The smell was rancid. One of them grabbed an ink bottle and shattered it on Millicent Bulstrode's head, causing the ink to drip into her eyes.
"My EYES!"
"Ow!" One of the pixies had bitten Dean's ear and refused to let go, hanging there like a makeshift earring.
"Come on now- round them up, round them up, they're only pixies," Lockhart's shouts fell on deaf ears as the chandelier above them swung back and forth. When he rolled up his sleeves, the class watched as he brandished his wand saying, "Peskipiksi Pesternomi!"
Nothing happened.
"That's not even a real spell!" Malfoy shouted, outraged and red in the face. Blaise and Theo were fighting off Pixies with their books.
Lockhart gulped as one of the pixies grabbed his wand and threw it out of the window. He dived under his own desk.
"My hair!" Hermione cried, as one of the pixies dove into her curls to make a nest. Mara lunged over to untangle the creature but every time she got close, it bit her with its sharp pointy teeth.
"Under the desks!" Harry roared, using his overturned desk as a cover. Mara spared no time as she tipped over as many as she could and hid underneath them. Luckily, a few students followed their lead.
"Believe me now?" Harry snapped at Hermione, wand in his hand as he sent hexes to any pixie nearing them.
"I'm sure there is a perfectly reasonable explanation," Hermione said, finally pulling the pixie out from her curls, even if there were chunks of hair still stuck in its grubby hands. It wriggled and Hermione called "Accio Cage!"
Harry caught the cage and together, they wrestled one pixie back in.
"He's a fraud, Hermione," Harry scowled, "Half of his books are outright lies and the other half are garnished exaggerated stories! His proof is circumstantial at best and downright misleading at worst."
"Excuse you!" Hermione gasped, facing burning, "They don't publish liars to spread false information, Harry. I have personally fact-checked several of his books and those misleading stories actually happened. They were reported in their countries at the same time, with the same details. You're just jealous!"
"Of him?" Harry snorted, sending a glance at the Professor now cowering timidly under his desk, wandless and helpless. "Please."
"I have to agree with Harry on this one," Mara grimaced, trying to pull one of the pixies from where it had grabbed onto Dean's nostrils. Dean was near tears as the thing refused to let go, stretching out his poor nose until it was a reddish-purplish color. "No teacher is this stupid."
"Potter!" Malfoy shouted from across the way, "catch!"
Harry barely had time as he caught the blue pixie thrown his way but yelped and nearly dropped it. The pixie was frozen, eyes still moving - not petrified but actually frozen. He thrust it into the cage without letting the others escape.
Daphne Greengrass seemed to know the freezing charm.
Things were going well.
Until the bell rang and they heard the door open. Neville stood in the entrance, wide-eyed and open-mouthed with the door still open behind him.
"SHUT THE DOOR!" Several students yelled at him. Neville did so, looking over at Harry confused as he asked "What the bloody hell is going on?"
"It's a long story!" Mara called out, "Now get over here!"
But it was too late. Neville was a target. Two of the pixies grabbed ahold of him by his ears and lifted him off the floor.
"Uh, Harry?" Neville cried, looking down at the floor.
Mara watched wide-eyed as they lifted their friend onto the swinging chandelier, leaving him to hang there by his robes.
"Bloody hell," Dean said.
Lockhart straightened, dodging one of the swooping pixies and shooting a terrified look at Neville. He then caught the eyes of Harry, Mara, and Hermione.
"Well, I'll ask you three to just nip the rest of them back into their cage," And then he sprinted to the door and shut it quickly behind him. They caught sight of a blue pixie stuck to his back as he left.
"Wait a minute-" Malfoy yelled, "He can't just-"
"Obviously, he can!" Blaise shouted.
"Get this thing off of me!" Pansy screamed, being dragged across the room by her hair. One of the pixies was stuck to her face, licking her. She grabbed onto one of the desks but it only propelled with her, exposing Millicent Bulstrode and Sally-Anne Perks.
"Pansy!" Sally-Anne shouted and then she grabbed one of the fallen wooden shards left from a shredded desk, stood up like a baseball player right as they pulled Pansy past where she was, and - WHAP!
She knocked both pixies out of the air with a single swing.
Daphne was quick to freeze one of the pixies while Hermione used the Freezing Charm on the other. They stuffed them back into the cage. Over half were caught now.
Meanwhile, Sally-Anne was busy trying to pry the remaining pixie off of Pansy's face.
"Maybe he just wants to give us some hands-on experience," said Hermione, trying to remain positive about their teacher.
"As if!" Malfoy was the one to shout at her now, fury all over his face.
"There's too many of them!" Tracey Davis cried, seeing the number of pixies still to go, and they were getting smarter. They'd taken to pelting the children with debris now, pulling everything they found off the walls and floors to throw.
It was hopeless.
Or so they thought.
A ball of fire crashed through the window and Harry grinned, spotting the familiar trill of Aura as she caught one of the pixies' in her talons and landed on the desk, feathers aflame in the sun pouring out. She screeched, her fury pounding like a headache through their bond.
While distracted, a pixie latched onto Mara's ankle and began to lift her in the air. Her surprise caused her to drop her wand and she screamed to alert Harry, who dove for her but another pixie landed on his face to distract him.
'Ooh, Lunch,'
And then a white and black creature jumped over the turned desks and launched into the air to grab the pixie by the teeth. Hermione and Dean managed to catch Mara before she hit the ground neck-first while Breena landed on all fours, wriggling pixie in her mouth.
She pinned it with her paw and quickly and efficiently twisted. A tiny splatter of blue blood went onto the floor.
"I'm gonna be sick," Theodore said, holding a hand over his mouth in horror.
Mara grimaced but was thankful nonetheless.
She'd seen Breena eat worse.
"Uh? A little help!" Neville called out from above.
The chandelier began to wobble, Neville with it as he still hung there. He looked up at the hook coming undone, about to crash above the Slytherins heads.
"Why's it always me?" He said pitifully.
And then it snapped.
"Neville!" Harry cried.
"Draco!" Blaise shouted as the chandelier was set to land straight on top of the platinum-haired boy.
Draco looked up, pale.
"Wingard-" But Mara's incantation wasn't fast enough this time. A shadow darted out and faster than they could blink, and the chandelier crashed, crushing both Draco and Neville.
A few screams rang out but Harry was only numb.
Until he spotted a dark canine standing on top of the Professor's desk, Malfoy hanging onto the dog's back and Neville in its mouth, dangling by his collar still.
"Uh," was all Neville said, blinking a few times.
The Dog dropped him and Mara rushed forward to grab him, pulling him into a hug.
The red-eyed creature eyed Harry, then Aura and Breena for a second almost like they were communicating, and then raised its head to the remaining pixies hovering around the ceiling.
It barked- deeper and louder than anything else, enough that Harry could swear he felt his bones vibrating. He shivered, from the feeling.
And all at once, the remaining pixies squeaked and dove for the cage, undoing the lock by themselves and shutting the door after they were all inside. They hovered together at the back of the cage, the farthest point away from the dog.
Harry didn't blame them. He wanted to do the same thing.
"Thanks, Faelan," Draco sighed, getting off his familiar's back.
"Malfoy has a familiar?" Mara asked, astonished. "And nobody told me?"
Malfoy sent her a dark look.
"You missed the train and the sorting," Harry told her dryly, "How else were you supposed to know?"
A door slammed open and Professor McGonagall and Professor Snape stood there, both fuming as they took in the state of the room.
"What in Merlin's saggy left toe happened here?" McGonagall bellowed. "What is Professor Lockhart?"
Their Head of House cursing wasn't great, but at least, Mara thought, it wasn't their fault this time.
As the students got to their feet, the chaos over, for the time being, all attention then turned to the door Lockhart had thrown himself through.
Mara took the charge and opened up the broom closet Lockhart had hidden in. Clutching a mop and waving it back and forth at the remaining pixie.
Mara was done though. Her volcano had erupted and she had no more patience for this foolish, selfish prat.
She plucked the remaining pixie right out of the air, fury rolling off her in waves and Lockhart turned to stare at her, wide-eyed.
"So you got them all back in, then?" He attempted his signature smile.
Mara smiled but it clearly didn't reach her eyes.
"You know, I was wondering why Lilac was your favorite color, Professor," She said the word mockingly, "when it matches so horribly with your complexion."
Lockhart's smile dimmed as he looked at his robes self-consciously.
"But then I realized it's because lilacs have one of the shortest blooming seasons- Just like your career."
A few gasped. Harry's jaw dropped open. Dean swore. Hermione squeaked, turning pale.
Lockhart floundered for words- looking much like a fish gasping for air.
Mara turned on her heel, smiled at her Head of House as she placed the immobile pixie in the older woman's hand, and said, quietly calmly, and brutally,
"I really hope our Headmaster hasn't gone senile in his old years, Professor, because I can't see any other reason to hire someone so incompetent."
And she left, leaving the room in utter silence.
"Oh, snap," Blaise whistled, eyeing the devastation on Lockhart's face.
