4 Monday

Noelle straightened her robes and her green tie, turning to look at herself up and down in the mirror. Salem meowed from atop her bed and she smiled, picking him up and holding him close under her chin. "You know you aren't allowed to come with me until transfiguration class right? That isn't till Thursday." She scolded. Salem meowed again plaintively. Noelle caved. "Oh alright. Hold still then."

It was the morning after the opening feast and students were up and getting ready for the day's classes to begin. It was about 9:20 and her first class would start at 10. After dinner the night before, she'd seen Brooke long enough to compare schedules, and knew that they shared most of the same times, including their first class of the day, Charms.

She placed the cat on the bed, who sat staring expectantly as she pulled her wand. After a moment she flourished her wand, and the cat's shape twisted into a fuzzy hair barrette, black with little points at the end resembling ears, and green eyes which followed her movements. She put it in her hair and stood once again in front of the mirror to admire the results.

Her owl, which she'd left temporarily at Hogwarts the year before, flew through the open window, circled once, and landed on her bed banister, dropping a sealed envelope onto the sheets. She picked it up and turned it over, the front addressed Noelle Lestrange.

Sliding her finger under the seal she opened it and pulled out the pages inside. They were her O.W.L results from the year before. These were what would determine her status in this year's classes, and whether she would move on to N.E.W.T level difficulty.

Slowly, a smile widened on her face and she threw her hands up in the air. "I passed all of my O.W.L classes!" She allowed herself a little dance of victory and then stopped, smoothing her hair back and collecting herself.

She left the envelope and pages on her nightstand and tucked her wand into the inside pocket of her robe, rushing out of the room and in the Slytherin common room. A few students were loitering about, either not caring to make it on time to their classes or waiting, as their classes started later. From there, she went in the dungeon halls and up the stairs to the more brightened hallways of Hogwarts.

She made her way to the third floor, Classroom 2E, stopping periodically as the stairs shifted and moved about. Pictures she recognized from years she waved to and smiled, saying "hellos" and "how are yous?"

Brooke waited outside the classroom, holding her books. Noelle smiled and waved as she drew near. "Hey."

"You were almost late you know!" Together they went into the room, where Professor Flitwick was just climbing onto his stack of books in order to be tall enough to direct the class.

"I told you yesterday to expect nothing less. You know how I feel about my sleep."

"If you went to bed earlier, you would have no problem." They found two empty seats and sat, spreading out their books.

"But I live for my nights. That's when all the fun happens." She grinned at her friend impishly.

"You're crazy."

Flitwick tapped a book with his wand to get everyones' attention. Once he had it, he began. "This year students, we will be learning the Aguamenti charm, how to turn vinegar into wine, and nonverbal spells. These are the spells you've all learned thus far, but without the use of words to cast them." An arm shot up in the air down towards the front and Noelle tried to sit higher to see who it was. "Hermione Granger?"

The young girl stood. "If it's possible to cast a spell without using words, is it also possible to cast one without a wand?" Several students looked interested in this prospect.

Flitwick shuffled his feet. "Well, some wizards and witches have been known to cast magic without wands, but while it is possible, it is ill-advised." He cleared his throat. "Only the most powerful and best trained are able to cast like this without consequences, and even then, most cannot cast high-level spells." He motioned to Hermione to sit once again and then continued. "And now, on to the lesson. Today we'll learn vinegar to wine."

Brooke leaned over to Noelle. "That's really interesting. You think Dumbledore casts without a wand?"

Noelle pondered it a moment. "Possibly. He is known to be pretty powerful." Truthfully, she was also intrigued by this notion. Would she ever be able to cast magic like that?

After Charms class, there was a small break in which Brooke and Noelle went to lunch, the seating much freer than the night previously. They finished eating together and split ways, Noelle heading outside to the greenhouse.

Professor Sprout smiled widely at the class, her hat askew on her head. "Good afternoon class. Today we will be learning about Venomous Tentacula. Next week we will focus on what to do should you get into a tangle with one."

Noelle worked her way over until she stood next to Paul, smiling his way briefly. "Good to see you finally."

He nodded back. "Brooke said she met up with you after the train last night and that you'd both had a weird experience in the hallway."

"Yeah, it was strange… The hall was completely dark." She sucked in a breath, "Do you think-"

Sprout cleared her throat, looking at the two of them. "If you two are done…" Noelle blushed. "This is the Venomous Tentacula." She pointed out a green, spiky, toothy looking plant. "It has a head with fangs, which I will now show you how to point out. The shape tends to vary but will be surrounded by the most leaves."

Noelle continued to listen, but her thoughts were spinning. Even just from today her brain was already overloaded with information, with the possibility of nonverbal and wandless spells at the forefront of her mind.