A/N: Essentially, what you recognize belongs to the goddess that is J.K. Rowling, and what you don't belongs to lil' ol' me.
Dally'sTUFF: Thank you so much for the kind words! It means a lot, considering this is my first fanfiction, ever. If you at any point have any suggestions, please tell me and I will consider them.
The ride back the Hogwarts after the break was vastly different than Genevieve's original one. Instead of pulling out her Muggle fiction, she played several rounds of Exploding Snap with the twins, Charlie, and Lee Jordan, a fellow Gryffindor who sometimes aided in their mischief.
She'd already reviewed the material that the first years would be studying after the break, and felt confident that she would maintain her role as top of the class. She and Lee also helped the twins study Transfiguration and Potions, which were strengths of theirs while they showed her a few tricks for Defense Against the Dark Arts, easily their best class. Their exams were coming up, and Genevieve wanted to be sure to ace them.
"So expelliarmus Disarms your opponent, and petrificus totalus is a Full Body-Bind curse?"
George nodded.
They looked over their notes for a while. "What's that thing that's an antidote for most poisons? I can't find it," Fred asked.
"A bezoar," Genevieve provided.
"Oh yeah."
The ride seemed exponentially shorter now that she had companions to quiz her, and with whom she could share her thoughts.
Soon, they had arrived at Hogwarts. Fred, George, and Lee disappeared, likely to grab sweets using a tunnel they now knew to connect to Honeydukes, while Charlie and Genevieve visited Hagrid.
" 'Lo, Charlie, Genevieve. I was jus' abou' ter go feed Buckbeak. Wanna see 'im?"
"Yes," Genevieve and Charlie responded together.
Approaching the hippogriff slowly and bowing in respect, Genevieve was soon flying along the edge of the Forbidden Forest, holding tight to Buckbeak's neck. The two had bonded immediately and were almost inseparable.
After, the two students had tea with Hagrid, Genevieve even showing him Snowflake, who, despite loving to snuggle with her, had also proved to be a feisty young cat. The three joked and laughed until it was past time to return to the dorms, and, after all, "Prefects should be responsible."
"Tarantellegra!"
Genevieve's pineapple sprung to life, tap dancing all over the desk. She laughed as she performed the counterspell, and the pineapple bounced out a stunning finale.
Professor Flitwick smiled. "Very entertaining, Ms. Snow. Twenty points to Gryffindor for achieving the desirable results on the first attempt!"
"Teacher's pet," teased Fred as they packed up.
Charms was easily her favorite subject, as Genevieve often found the spells quite useful. She made a mental note of exploring how to use Tarantellegra as means for revenge on Fred for his comment.
The school year was quickly coming to an end, and end of year exams were just around the corner. Even the twins could sometimes be spotted studying. Genevieve spent hours poring over her schoolbooks, hoping to master all the spells the teachers had hinted would be on the exams.
The night before exams started, Genevieve had been practicing a very tricky spell, to no avail. Her frustration was multiplying by the minute. Fred and George took one look at her and pulled her away for some much need stress relief the only way they knew how - pranks.
With the Marauder's Map at their disposal, their schemes had become increasingly elaborate, with a bigger and more permanent impact. They had also used it to, sometimes very narrowly, evade capture countless times.
They snuck through the school (curfew had long since passed), ducking out of the way of patrolling teachers and Prefects and gradually made their way to the Slytherin common room. It took less than five guesses to enter, and, to their glee, the group discovered the room empty. They set up buckets of long lasting slime, rigging them to where certain actions made by the Slytherins the next morning would cause their detonation, and snuck away, cackling under their breath.
The next day, Genevieve arrived at breakfast early, wanting to watch the Slytherins trickle in, as well as squeeze in some last minute revisions for her classes. Charlie, also studying for his inevitably difficult tests, followed soon after. He entered the Great Hall.
"Hey, Gen," he started sleepily. "What are you waiting for?"
"Shh!" Genevieve hissed. "Look!"
Just then, an exquisitely green Marcus Flint slithered in, a furious expression gracing his face. The rest of the Slytherins entered after him, and the other Houses choked down laughs, forgetting about their frantic studying for an hour.