A/N: I don't own Harry Potter.
Chapter 12: Midnight Conversations
As she walked through the wooden door with a bronze eagle knocker on it, Alex caught her first glimpse of the Ravenclaw common room, and it was everything her mum described to her. The room was beautifully decorated and spacious, with a dome-like ceiling and seven arched windows that were permanently Charmed to provide plenty of daylight regardless of the time of day.
Elegant blue curtains hung on each of the windows, and they perfectly matched the midnight blue carpet that stretched across the room. Many tables could be found around the large circular room, and several comfortable couches were placed at its center. The finishing touch to the new House was created by the small but ornate library that was located next to Ravenclaw's statue. All in all, the common room was just like she imagined from her mother's stories.
"Wow, this is incredible," Alex mumbled softly to herself.
Her voice must have been louder than she expected because Alex saw the female Prefect turn around at wink at her. "Indeed, it is, Miss Black. As far as I'm concerned, the Ravenclaw common room is truly a work of art, designed to give our students ample space and perfect lighting so they can study at any time of the day. Along with the small but extensive library that is only available to the Ravenclaw House, our Head of House usually allows us certain privileges that you won't be able to find in the other Houses."
Su's personal moment of awe and wonder at the sight of the Ravenclaw common room was disrupted once she heard the Prefect mention the extra privileges that were afforded to Ravenclaw students. Her curiosity suddenly came bubbling to the surface, and she eagerly asked, "What privileges do we get? Can we check out books from the Ravenclaw library? Are there any House-sponsored clubs or study groups we can join?"
By the time Su finished bombarding the pair with her questions, the Prefects had led the first years to the sitting area of the common room. At this point, the pair turned to face the group of awestruck first years, and the male Prefect answered Su's questions.
"Those are all excellent questions, Miss Li, and I assure you I will answer them in just a moment. But first, please allow me to introduce myself. My name is Jason Delaney, and my colleague here is Melissa Crowley. We are your 5th-year Prefects. On behalf of Professor Flitwick and the rest of the House, we happily congratulate you on joining the House of the Intelligent, and we welcome you to your new home at Hogwarts."
When he saw the curious and excited looks appear on the faces of all the gathered first years, Jason was thrilled at sight. The House cup was won by totaling the combined points earned by all seven years, and he had a good feeling that this year's firsties would be able to keep pace with the upper years in points received.
Jason was snapped out of his reverie from the elbow that he received from Melissa, and he quickly smiled at the group and said, "Now to answer Miss Li's questions. As Ravenclaw students, we are granted certain privileges to help us achieve the standard of scholastic accomplishments that our House is known for. One of these gifts is the dorms that you will now believe in. Unlike the other Houses where all first-year girls are placed in one dorm and boys in another, in Ravenclaw, only two students are assigned per room. Each of the dorms has its own bathroom along with a large bed, a closet for your clothes, and a study table with a comfortable chair. This gives you the personal space you will need to study hard and hope to earn points that will help us win the House cup this year. Unfortunately, since we have an odd number of girls this year, one dorm will need to share three to a room."
At this point, Melissa jumped in to answer the second of Su's questions. "The common room library is for the use of any of the students in our House. The books are available on a first-come, first-serve basis, but sadly you cannot check any of them out. Professor Flitwick has personally Charmed all the items in the common room to stay here. If you tried to take a book or even a chair into your dorms, it would automatically return to this room."
Melissa looked over the tiny first years, and once she was confident they really understood the rule, she continued, "Hogwarts has several clubs that you can join, but none of them are sponsored by our House. For those interested, a list of available clubs can be found on the Ravenclaw notice board next to the common room entrance. As far as study groups go, you are all encouraged to form your own groups. We know that some people work well with others, while others prefer to go at it alone. As such, we leave the decision up to you on how you want to achieve your academic goals. Regardless of what you decide to do, each dorm will be assigned a 6th-year mentor that will help you with any problems or concerns that you might have. This mentor will be responsible for monitoring your scores from all of your classes, and they will also make up a study schedule if you are falling behind in any of them. You will be required to meet with your mentor twice a month, and missing is not an option. Should you miss a meeting, I assure you that your mentor will report this to Professor Flitwick."
Melissa allowed the first years a moment to absorb the news they just received, and then she gave the final announcement of the night. "The two stairwells behind you lead to the Ravenclaw dorms. The one on the left is for the girls, and the one on the right is for the boys. Boys are not allowed in the girl dorms, which holds true for the girls in the boy dorms. Any attempt by the opposite sex to climb the wrong stairway will not be possible. The dorm entrances are Charmed to not let in the opposite sex, so save yourself the trouble and don't bother trying."
After the welcoming speech was complete, the Prefects gave the first years some time to choose their new roommates. It was at this point that Alex looked at the silky-haired blonde to her left, and then the bushy-haired brunette to her right and said, "Looks like one dorm is going to have three people. So, what do you say, girls, do you want to room together?"
Daphne was already expecting this outcome, and so she casually shrugged her shoulders in response, signifying she didn't really care but that she was okay with the pairing. Meanwhile, Su was thrilled that someone actually wanted to room with her, and she eagerly nodded her head in agreement.
By this time, the rest of the first years had also chosen their new roommates, and soon Melissa was taking the girls up to their new rooms. Once they reached the hallway leading to the first-year dorms, the first room was taken by a pretty blonde named Lisa Turpin and Padma Patil, a black-haired Indian girl with a twin sister in Gryffindor. The second room was given to a slightly chubby brown-haired girl named Mandy Brocklehurst and a petite Asian girl Cho Chang.
The last room in the hallway was obviously meant for Alex, Daphne, and Su, and the trio couldn't wait to get inside and start unpacking. Just before the girls could open the door and see their new room, they heard Melissa inform them, "Since three of you are going to be living here, Professor Flitwick took the liberty of enlarging the room on your behalf, and he also added a second bathroom for your convenience. The hamper for your dirty clothes is located inside your closet, and all clean items will be folded and returned on top of it. Feel free to make any changes you want, ladies, and if you don't have any further questions, I'll bid you all a goodnight."
The trio shook their heads in response, and after they all wished the Prefect a goodnight, Alex finally turned the doorknob and walked inside. The first thing she noticed was the size of her dorm. Based on what she'd already seen while sneaking a peek at the other girls' dorms, this room was quick twice the size of her fellow Ravenclaws. With only one extra bed cutting into the added space, it was evident that they would have plenty of room to walk around.
The majority of the room was taken up by three massive 4 post beds surrounded by thick maroon curtains to give the occupant a modicum of privacy. On one side of the bed was a large red closet for their clothes, and on the other side, a matching red desk and a comfortable-looking leather chair. Each desk was large enough to hold three open books on top of it and still allow plenty of space for a person to use parchment and ink.
The wall in front of the desks had two bookshelves aligned in parallel, and it looked like they would allow for storage of up to 10books a shelf. Two doors could be seen on the right side of the room, and it was apparent they led to the personal bathrooms assigned to them. Overall, the room was absolutely magnificent, and neither of the girls thought they would have any problems living there all year.
When she saw the large window on the left side of the room, Alex hoped that her new roommates wouldn't mind letting her have the bed closest to it. "If neither of you minds, could I have the bed near the window?"
As soon as both of the girls shook their heads in answer, Alex squealed in delight and rushed forward to throw her stuff on the bed of her choice. Daphne and Su rolled their eyes at their friends' childish glee and then looked uncomfortably at each other.
"Would it be okay if I took the bed closest to the bathrooms?" Su asked, her tone still shy and uncertain about Daphne's feelings about her.
Daphne thought about the question for a minute and found no problems taking the middle bed. As a light sleeper, she had no desire to wake up every time someone went to the loo, and during winter, her bed would be a decent distance from the draft that would inevitably come in from the window.
"Sure, Su," she replied happily. "You can have that bed. I prefer the middle one anyways."
While Daphne and Su were busy unpacking their things, Alex ignored the trunk on top of her bed and made her way to the large window near it. The sight that awaited her was absolutely breathtaking, and she gasped softly when she saw it. Their room was high up in the Ravenclaw tower, and it allowed for a perfect view of the Forbidden Forest.
Alex opened the window and took a deep breath of the fresh air that found its way into the stuffy room. Beneath her, she could see the meticulously kept gardens leading up to Hagrid's hut, and above her, the stars glistened like diamonds throughout the blackened sky. As beautiful as it was now, she could only imagine how great the view would look once the ground was covered with powdered white snow.
As she continued to take in the beauty around her, Alex's mind began to wander, and she couldn't stop herself from thinking about the actions of her betrothed. Harry had once been her absolute best friend, but a few years ago, things suddenly changed. Out of the blue, he became mean and standoffish, and she never really understood why. When she tried to confront him about his anger, he'd blown up at her and told her he wouldn't continue to sully himself by being friends with a Black anymore. At first, she had been hurt by his words, but the pain turned to anger when he told her he was optimistic that her dad was a Dark Wizard pretending to be Light, so he wouldn't have to go to Azkaban like the rest of her extended family.
Alex had punched him for that remark, and from that day on, she never had anything to do with him again. Over the years, her dad had approached her about the estrangement several times, but she always just made up an excuse and changed the topic. So many times, she wanted to tell her father what Harry had said to her, but she knew her dad loved his godson very much, and she didn't want to cause him any pain.
As the years passed, Harry's actions continued to remain the same, and as a result, her hatred for him never diminished. She was more than content to spend the rest of her life disliking her former best friend, and then two months ago, everything changed again.
Harry somehow found out he wasn't a squib, and then he almost died fixing the problem. While waiting at Gringotts with the others for news about his condition, she was furious with his actions. She hated seeing the worried looks on her parents, uncles, and aunt Lily's faces, and it made her angry to think how little Harry cared about other people's feelings. The damn prat didn't even bother to inform anyone about what he was doing. If the Goblins hadn't contacted aunt Lily, no one would even have known he was there.
Once he was finally cleared to go home by the Goblin Healers, it seemed like he was a completely different person. The long speech he gave to the family upon his return was eye-opening. Many of the things he said helped explain why he suddenly became so hostile, but Alex still wasn't ready to forgive him for his past actions. His words might have been a lie, but she'd nursed her anger for far too long to just give it up in a single day.
The weeks leading up to his birthday were definitely interesting for her. He'd try to corner her several times and beg her to forgive him, but she refused to do so every time. She wasn't ready to buy the new version of him, and she had no problem telling him so. She knew her words had been mean and hurtful, but she didn't care. As far as she was concerned, his act was a lie, and she was the only one in the family that wasn't buying it.
Despite her actions and what she said to him, Harry never got angry with her. It wasn't until her father approached her and told her that Harry apologized to him and informed him about the reason behind their rift that she was willing to give her estranged friend another chance. Two days later, that decision crumbled into dust when she learned she was contracted to marry the eldest Potter. All her dreams of finding her perfect Prince Charming came crashing down around her, and the only outlet she had to release her frustrations; was the boy she'd spent so many years hating.
By the time September 1st rolled around, Alex couldn't wait to leave for Hogwarts because her parents were driving her crazy with their insistence that Harry was blameless about the marriage contracts. Her hurt pride refused to listen to their advice, and she was still angry as she boarded the Hogwarts Express. It wasn't until she explained the situation to Su that Alex finally realized how selfish and unfair she was. As a third party with no allegiance to any of them, she was taken aback by how quickly Su tore through her reasons for hating Harry for the contracts. By the time her new friend was done, Alex had a lot to think about.
During this brief moment of self-reflection, Draco and his groupies came waltzing into their cabin. At first, she was surprised by Daphne's reaction to his presence, but when her cousin began to mouth off about claiming her blonde friend as his wife, she could understand why Daphne decided to taunt him with her marriage contract. However, his reaction to their verbal sparring was not what she expected. The moment he physically struck her friend, Alex had every intention of hexing him right out of the room, but her plans were thwarted by the four wands pointed in her direction. At this point, all the levity she was previously feeling had disappeared, and she quickly became afraid of what Draco planned to do to them.
It was at this point that she heard Harry growl, and when she turned to look at him, she was stunned at the sight of his emerald eyes glowing the color of the killing curse. Soon after, the way he erupted into motion left her spellbound, and she still couldn't believe how quickly he took care of everyone in the room.
While she couldn't see or hear what he had done to Draco, Alex was sure it must have been something awful since it caused the blonde boy to soil himself in fear. The following apology the girls received from the Malfoy Heir was also a first because she had never seen her wayward cousin apologize to anyone in her entire life. The fact that he had done so only because Harry asked was not lost on her at all.
Not only had Harry saved the three of them from inevitable humiliation by Draco and his groupies, he then turned around and apologized to them for not thinking they were capable enough to defend themselves. It was when he said he wouldn't let anyone harm them, regardless of how much they hated him, that she genuinely felt horrible for the way she had been treating him. By the look on her blue-eyed friend's face, she knew Daphne was also regretting her actions towards their intended.
Now, as she stood in front of her dorm room window, Alex didn't know what to feel. A part of her was still upset at being forced into the contract, but a more significant amount was beginning to see that Harry was no longer the boy she once hated. This new version of him was honest, kind, and courageous if his actions on the train were any indication.
If she was being honest with herself, Alex was actually a little jealous of the reaction he got from the older girls during his sorting. Uncertain how she should feel about the boy she would one day marry, Alex finally gave in to her frustrations, and she vented with a scream. "AHHHHHH."
Daphne was carefully packing away her things, thinking about her recent actions towards Harry, and she wasn't liking the conclusions she was coming up with. After what he'd done to save her on the train, she deeply regretted the way she had been treating him. She was trying to determine the best way to apologize to her fiancé when she suddenly jumped up in fear at the sound of Alex's scream.
"What the heck is wrong with you, Alex?" she asked her friend, still angry at being startled by the yell.
Alex turned around to face her future sister-wife and just stared into her blue eyes for a moment.
"Are we going to talk about Harry at all?" she asked, knowing the trio had avoided mentioning the events that occurred on the train during dinner. "I don't know about you, but after what he did for us on the train, I feel like crap for the way we have been treating him."
"I do as well, Alex," Daphne replied with a sigh. "I just don't know what to do about it. Is a simple apology going to be enough for us to be forgiven? I shudder to think what could have happened if we hadn't sat down in his cabin today. I know Draco can be mean and offensive, but I have never seen him resort to violence before. I'm ashamed to admit it, but I was afraid of what he would do to us."
Su was trying not to eavesdrop, but the conversation was too close for her not to overhear. "What was the deal with his glowing eyes?" she asked curiously. "Is that normal for magical because it was downright scary?"
Daphne thought about the question briefly and then shook her head. "That wasn't normal, Su. Some Witches and Wizards can achieve that by fully unleashing their magic, but those people are compelling. That should not have been possible for someone our age, and I have no idea how Harry was able to do it."
The silence that took over the room made Su feel very uncomfortable, and uncharacteristically she tried to lighten the mood by adding humor. "At least you got some good shots in on Draco, Daphne. And after what Harry did to him, I doubt he will bother any of us at Hogwarts or in the future."
Daphne knew the situation had been a bad one, but she still couldn't stop herself from smiling at the thought of Draco soiling himself in fear. The blonde ponce had been the bane of her existence since childhood, and if she was being honest, she loved seeing him get his comeuppance.
"I wonder what Harry did to Malfoy?" she said to herself, unknowingly voicing her thoughts out loud.
Su had been wondering the same thing since the fight ended on the train. Even during dinner, she'd been wracking her brain trying to figure out what Harry did to Draco, but every time she came to a dead end. She had seen Harry use his wand to banish Draco's goons from the cabin and watched as he utilized his speed to disarm the girls. But at no point did she see him actually do anything to the blonde boy.
"I wondered the same thing, but unfortunately, Harry's body blocked our view of whatever he did to Draco."
Alex did think Harry's actions on the train were fascinating, but right now, what he did to Draco was the last thing on her mind.
"That's nice and all, but what do we do about Harry? I don't want to keep being mean to him anymore, but I really don't know how to apologize to him."
"Why is saying 'I'm sorry' so hard for you to do?" Su asked. "You guys have all made mistakes, especially him. Saying you're sorry shouldn't be that bad."
When she looked at her two new friends, Su immediately saw the pair look down at their feet, and she could tell they were ashamed about something.
"Well," Alex began. "Daphne and I might have crossed a line yesterday."
"What did you two do?"
Daphne winced at the question because she was humiliated by what they had done at the party.
"Lord Black had a small get to together for Alex, Harry, and myself at Black Manor yesterday," Daphne reluctantly explained. "It was to celebrate the three of us going to Hogwarts, but somehow Harry became the center of attention for the entire party. He had everyone eating out of his hand, including my dad, and I've never seen him warm up to someone so quickly. It almost felt like Harry had bewitched everyone."
Su knew she was still a newbie to the magical world, but after everything she'd seen and heard today, she wouldn't be surprised if something like that was possible. "Do you think he might have actually done that?" she asked, afraid of what the answer might be.
"We don't think so," Alex replied confidently. "My dad taught me a spell that checks for potions, and the two of us tested a bunch of the food and drinks at the party just to make sure. They were all clean."
Su felt a little disgusted that such tools were available in the magical world, and she was slowly beginning to realize this world might not be as wonderful as she imagined. If her new friends were to be believed, and she certainly had no reason to doubt them, Professor McGonagall failed to do a thorough job in explaining this new world during her visit.
After a moment, the young Ravenclaw began to massage her temples gently with her hands to ease the headache she was getting from all the constant shocks she learned about the magical world. Wanting to know more about what happened at the party, she shelved her worry over the magical community and asked, "So what did you two ends up doing to Harry?"
Alex saw the stern look on her friend's face, and she grimaced at the thought of answering her question. While she had just met the girl, Alex felt strangely drawn to her. She couldn't explain the why or the how behind her feelings, but much like when she met Daphne, the moment she met Su, she just knew the girl would end up being one of her closest friends. Now, as she watched her new friend waiting for a reply, she could already guess how disappointed the Witch would be with her answer.
"It was towards the end of the party," Alex answered. "Daphne and I had just spent the last two hours being ignored at a party that was supposedly being thrown for the two of us. So, while Harry was busy being fawned over by everyone, the two of us just got jealous and angry over the whole situation."
Daphne saw Alex stop at this point, and she decided to help her friend finish the story. After all, she was just as much to blame and needed to take responsibility for her actions. "Before everyone started getting up to go home, Harry came over to where the two of us were sitting and tried to talk to us. He asked us if there was anything he could do to get us to forgive him, and for some reason, after hearing his question, I completely lost my cool. My jealousy over the party combined with my frustrations over the contract, and I told him I would never forgive him. I told him he was barely stronger than a squib and that having to marry a weak Wizard-like him would ruin my life completely. I even let him know how pathetic I thought he was and that I intended to hate him for the rest of our lives."
When Daphne finished with her half of the story, Alex knew it was time for her to do the same. "That's when I took my shot at him. What Daphne said was bad enough, but what I said was worse. I told him I knew he hadn't really changed and that deep down, he was still the selfish prat he'd always been. I told him that I would never forgive him for forcing me to marry him and that it probably would have been better for everyone if he'd just died that day at Gringotts."
Su gasped at hearing her friends' actions, and she couldn't believe how cruel they'd been to the boy who saved them on the train. If it weren't for the fact that she could see how horrible they felt about their words and that they genuinely wanted to repent, she didn't think she could ever be friends with the two of them.
Both Daphne and Alex were disgusted with themselves, especially after seeing the look of horror that appeared on their new friend's face. As soon as their eyes locked in on Su's brown orbs, the judging glare they found there made them look away in shame.
When she saw the tears fall down both of their faces, Su took a deep breath to calm herself and tried to think of a way to help her new friends. Despite her fatigue from the long journey and the anger she felt after hearing what her new friends had done to purposely hurt someone else, she still felt driven to help them.
It almost seemed like a higher power was pushing her to find an answer to help them. The more she thought about the current situation, the more she realized there was only one solution to their problem. They would just have to swallow their pride.
Su saw the pair staring at her, and she could see they were waiting for her to say something. "What do you guys expect me to say to that?"
"I don't know about Daphne, but I want you to say you forgive me, Su. I can't explain why, but I know I don't want to lose you as a friend."
When she saw the girl look at her, Daphne suddenly felt the same thing as her sister-wife. "I agree with Alex, Su. I really am sorry for what I've done, and I feel horrible about it. I also don't want to lose you as a friend either."
Su was touched by the response she heard from the pair. Never in her life had anyone actually wanted to be her friend, and now she suddenly had two people who were worried about losing her friendship. Apart from her wanting to jump up and down and scream how happy she was to finally have friends, first, she tried to help her friends feel as delighted as she was at that moment.
"You two don't have to apologize to me," Su replied. "But you do need to say it to Harry. You don't actually have time for many girls' reactions during the sorting. He could have just kept the way two were behaving with him, and in the school, he would have found a girl for her third wife, and after everything has happened and he still asking for an apology, you have a good chance at a happy future, I know many boys would have not at all cared about both of you." They understood the situation and its importance.
Alex threw her hands up in frustration and began to pace back and forth in front of her bed.
"How are we supposed to do that, Su? We've been so awful to him the past few months. Would an apology even be enough at this point?"
"It's a start, Alex," Su explained patiently. "I've always been picked on growing up, and even a single apology would have made up for some of the torment I was forced to endure. Besides, from everything you've told me about Harry, it looks like he wants to be your friend. I'm sure he would be willing to at least give it a try."
Daphne thought about her roommate's advice, and she knew it was the right thing to do. "You're right, Su. Tomorrow Alex and I will apologize to Harry, and if he forgives us, hopefully, we can all try to be friends."
Alex winced at the idea, but she knew it was the right thing to do. Reluctantly she nodded her head in agreement and said, "Yeah. I'll apologize tomorrow with you, Daphne. I guess I should send a letter home and do the same for my parents too."
"Why do you need to apologize to your parents?" Su asked.
Alex grimaced and replied, "They've been telling me the same thing for the past month, and I've just ignored them. It's funny how much sense it made when you said it."
Su grinned and then tilted her head back and looked down her nose arrogantly like she'd seen Draco do in the train, and said, "Of course, it made sense when I said it, Alex. I'm brilliant."
Alex and Daphne looked at each other in surprise and then started giggling at their new friend's attempt to be arrogant. Within a moment, Su joined them, and the trio soon felt their sides ache from the continuous laughter.
By the time the girls managed to finally contain their mirth, something Su had said earlier seemed to register in Alex's mind.
"Hey Su, what did you mean about being picked on growing up?"
Su turned away from the questioning looks she received from both girls. Her torment at the hands of her peers was simultaneously the source of her ultimate shame and her greatest strength. She didn't want to talk about that part of her past, but after all the personal things her friends had shared with her, she thought it would be fair to do the same.
"Even as a child, I was considered to be extremely intelligent. One of my teachers noticed my intelligence when I started school, urging my parents to have my I.Q. Tested. After the results came out, everyone was a little surprised by how well I had done. The teachers thought I could skip four grades easily, but my parents only wanted me to move up by two levels due to my age. Unfortunately, the kids in my class were threatened by my desire to learn, and I was effectively ostracized by everyone in my year. The meaner kids would often make fun of me and call me ugly or make fun of my hair. That trend only continued every year, so I never had any friends growing up. The only people that talked to me were my teachers and my parents."
Alex couldn't believe how poorly Su was treated all these years. Her own friendships might not have ended the way she wanted them to, but at least she had friends growing up. When she saw the tears begin to form in her friend's eyes, Alex rushed to her side and wrapped her hands around the more petite girl.
"Well, that changes tonight, Su," she stated as a fact. "Starting tonight, you can count yourself as having two friends."
Su looked into Alex's bluish-grey eyes and saw that the girl meant every word that she said. She was so touched by the gesture her tears of pain became tears of joy, and she replied, "Thank you, Alex. I would love to be your friend too."
Daphne watched the two girls have a bonding moment as she tried to imagine how difficult her new friend's life had been. Even though Tracy had eventually betrayed her, at least she could say she had a few good years of friendship with the girl. The thought of growing up all alone sent shivers down her spine, and she couldn't help herself from feeling sad on her friend's behalf.
By the time Su finished crying, Daphne knew precisely what she could do to make her friend feel better. Since her tormentors used her appearance to insult her, it would be easy to fix the problem. As a pureblood girl, she'd been raised how to look and act appropriately at all times, and she intended to impart these skills to her new roommate.
Besides, the black-haired really was a pretty girl. The only distinguishing features that took away from her beauty were her greyish and coarse hair. Luckily both were easily rectified in the magical world.
Once her decision was made, Daphne grabbed a large cream-colored bottle from her trunk and handed it to Su. When she saw the surprised look on her new friend's face, she explained, "The stupid kids who made fun of you were wrong, Su. You really are a pretty girl. Only things take away from your natural beauty...your hair. That bottle is a magically created shampoo that will help tame your hair. I guarantee you will see results starting tomorrow morning."
Su was stunned by Daphne's gift, and she couldn't wait to try it out. Her parents had spent hundreds of pounds trying different shampoos to help maintain her hair, but nothing ever seemed to work.
Secretly she always dreamed of having straight, silky hair like Daphne, and now she prayed her friend was right about the results. With their decision now made, the girls returned to their task of unpacking their things. This time, the silence was comfortable for them since they found a best friend in the others.