Chapter 8

I couldn't sleep that night. As tired as I was earlier, now I was wide awake! I went over to the window and looked, leaning against the wall. I had never really had a chance to see Hogwarts. On my way to Herbology I'd been too busy trying to ignore everyone staring at me because of what had happened earlier in Charms. The forest was beautiful. Even though it was called the "Forbidden Forest", it looked so inviting. It looked like such a wonderful place. It was hard to believe that this was where Lupin had changed into a werewolf, Harry and Ron had almost been eaten by Aragog, and Grawp had lived.

Suddenly some bushes moved. Out walked a scaly-skinned, winged creature. A thestral? But how could I see them? I'd never seen someone die. I decided it was because of my other powers.

There was never a dull moment at Hogwarts. All of a sudden, the thestral pounced. A little owl was being attacked by it. I was suddenly down there, outside. Not a portal again! I groaned, running towards the owl. I grabbed it and hugged it close. The thestral glared and galloped back into the forest.

I walked around the school to the front door. As I was walking through the Entrance Hall, another first year ran over. What was she doing down here at 11:00 at night? She glared at me accusingly and hissed through her teeth, "That's my owl! Hive me her back!" I recognized the girl as a Slytherin. She had glaring eyes, long black hair and an olive green night gown.

"You should take better care of her. She was being attacked when I saw her." I said, giving the owl a little pat and handing her over.

"Freak! I'm gonna tell on you for stealing. You'll get a detention for sure!" With that, the girl stomped away. Well, now I'd already made somebody hate me.

The next morning, I was extremely tired. After breakfast, Sorina and I finally found our way to the Potions class. She acted less afraid of me and I told her I was sorry and that I had no control over what had happened. I told her I'd try to control it better though.

So we went down to the Potions class, friends again. I remembered Snape from the Harry Potter books. Potions was a bad class in a bad place. When we walked in, I was surprised not to see a mean, greasy black haired, Slytherin-like man but a nice looking lady.

"What about Snape?" I asked Sorina. She gave me a weird look.

"He hasn't aught here for a few YEARS! He left. I heard from a family friend's son that he was really mean to everyone who wasn't in Slytherin. But I've also heard that this teacher, Professor Liatrix looks nice, but is a total and complete rat when she wants to be." Warned Sorina.

I was about to reply, but a rough, scratchy voice began to say, "Sit down. Sit down. NOW! 5 points from Gryffindor." It was Professor Liatrix. She really could be a total "rat" as Sorina called her. "Now. We're making a growth potion. The directions are on the board. QUIET MR. RAFIACO! Start!" It wasn't all that great of a way to introduce a class, but at least there were instructions. I squinted up at the board. SCRIBBLE! You couldn't read a word she had written.

"Is there a problem, Miss Doyle?" She asked, sneaking up behind me, making me jump.

"Sort of. You see, I can't read the…"

"The instructions are very clear." She cackled at me. "Ten points from Gryffindor. Now, what's your problem?"

"Nothing." I mumbled.

"Good." She walked away. I glared at her behind her back.

"She's such a toad!" Giggled Sorina, seeing me glare.

"What is it with you and comparing people to animals?" I demanded.

"Her father owns a magical creature zoo. That's why." Answered Stella, even though I hadn't asked her.

Sorina blushed. "Yeah. But it's sort of embarrassing, you know, having a dad without a proper job. It's kinda humiliating in a way." She explained.

"That's okay. It' cooler then my parent's jobs. My mom's a doctor and my dad's a lawyer. Not all too great, huh?" I told her.

"Well, my parents work in the Ministry of Magic. My dad's in The Department of Gold Circulation, and my mom's in the Apparation Test Center. They have great jobs." Stella said proudly.

Sorina rolled her eyes.

"Better get back to work." I said, lighting a fire under Sorina's cauldron while she began to decipher the instructions. I glanced at Professor Liatrix. She was explaining the board to the girl who didn't take care of her owl. I nudged Sorina and asked, "Who's that girl that Liatrix is helping over there?"

She glanced up. "Oh, that's Flora Marigold. A true Slytherin if I ever saw one. She's a snobby stuck-up, stupid, rich, brat!" Described Sorina with extreme dislike.

The lesson went on. It was impossible and annoying. We just barely survived.

"Where to next?" I asked, trying to be optimistic.

After another hard day of work and incredibly strict teachers (or boring in Professor Binn's case), I went to Professor Potter's office for my first "special lesson".

I tried to hold back my smile, but I didn't have much luck. When I finally remembered that this was still a class, I stopped smiling and groaned. Why did I WANT another lesson? I continued walking. Oh well. Not like I had a choice or anything.

Finally I made it. I took a deep breath and opened the door. Professor Potter was sitting at his desk, writing. I stepped in. He looked up and his amazing green eyes met mine. He pushed back his chair and stood up.

"Have a seat." He said. I sat at one of the desks, glumly. "Now as you know, you need to learn to control your "special" powers. Not only are some of the other student s bit, erm…disturbed by it, but it could be very dangerous. Although Dumbledore's hoping for me to teach you control and the proper usage, it'll be difficult." He sighed. "Although I've mastered the special kind of magic I have (pg 843, book 5, last paragraph), nobody else in the world that we know of has a type of magic like yours. And nobody else has at least 3 evil wizards focused on kidnapping them and stealing their magic either."