Ariadne awoke just outside a huge forest, lying on the dewy grass of the early morning. The sun was just rising and everything was slightly blue-tinged. She stood up, realizing that the damp ground had made her thin gown stick to her body. She unstuck it, annoyed, but it just returned to cling to her skin. She let out a low noise of irk and stomped towards the huge castle that lay in front of her. She was completely at a loss as to what to do in the mortal world. She had no direction and didn't know where she was.

"It was just a joke!" She shouted to the sky, making several birds fly from trees into the pink sunrise. She swung open the doors to the castle and stomped inside. The first thing she saw when she entered was a huge, ugly gargoyle in front of a doorway. "What are you staring at?" she cried. It didn't move. "Yeah, I'm talking to you, you… big, ugly cockroach cluster!" She had no idea what made her say those words but they seemed to be a password of sorts, as he jumped to life and let her pass. She didn't know why, but for some reason she went up the spiraling staircase, reasoning that she had no better plan than to wander around aimlessly. At the top of the stairs, there was another door. She pushed it open and stepped into the room apprehensively.

There were many tiny silver trinkets scattered around the room on shelves and tables, doing curious things and whizzing. A huge, beautiful bird snoozed in a cage next to the window, and an elderly man with an impressively long beard was sitting at a desk, papers held stationary in his hand as he stared at the girl who had just burst unannounced into his office.

"Good morning," he said, bewildered. "And who, may I ask, are you?"

"I am Ariadne Evadine, and I am goddess of spring… or at least I was…" she started off boldly but trailed off when the reality of her situation hit her. She collapsed into a sitting position on the ground and started to cry. She heard the scraping of a chair on the ground and footsteps, and felt a hand clasp her shoulder and gently draw her to a standing position. She wiped her face and attempted a smile. "Sorry."

"Dear girl, you have nothing to be sorry about. Here, sit before my desk and we shall discuss this, for I have become most curious," he said. "Oh, and since we're doing introductions, I am Albus Dumbledore, headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."

"Oh," was all Ariadne could think to say. She had to admit, she liked wizards. They tended to need less attention than ordinary mortals. She saw that Dumbledore was looking at her expectantly, so she poured out her tale. She told him about the god of death cajoling her into creating the tidal wave, then the trial, then being sentenced, up until her arrival in his office. "… so you see, I don't know what to do," she finished, then got an idea. "I could… I could maybe attend the school? Be a regular Hogwartsian," She said hopefully.

"I'm sorry, Miss Evadine, but I cannot allow that. What would be the point of you attending lessons with your powers as they are? You would certainly intimidate the other students and they would have a severely reduced performance. I'm sorry but this is my final word."

"What am I going to do?" She wailed, collapsing into sobs.

"You may stay at Hogwarts," Dumbledore said, causing Ariadne to jerk her head up and stare at him. "You have my express permission to live within the castle until you figure out what you want to do in the mortal world. Since you are in no house, you may have a room in each house's section of the castle. This is, of course, if you wish to stay."

"I do, I do!" Ariadne cried, feeling a burst of joy. "Thank you, Dumbledore. I'll be gone before you know it."

"Oh, there's no need for that," he replied pleasantly. "You are here as my guest for as long as you see fit."

Ariadne smiled and left his office to explore the castle. She had a naturally inquisitive mind and wished to see every part of the ancient building as soon as possible. By breakfast the next day, she had thoroughly worn out her dress and was proud to say she had a basic idea of the entire castle's structure. She wasn't particularly hungry, though, when she arrived in the great hall for breakfast, so just took a slice of toast and a goblet of pumpkin juice outside, smiling politely at the teachers seated at the singular table in the centre of the room. Term hadn't begun yet and thus there were no students to fill the house tables. She sat by the lake, watching the placid surface reflecting the forbidden forest on the other side. The summer sun had made the once lush grasses of the Hogwarts grounds dry and prickly on Ariadne's legs, so she waved an arm absent-mindedly and the dry grass under her turned an eerie Technicolor green and was soft as a dewy pillow. Power over plant life was something she had retained after her fall from grace, along with other powers she had used as Spring Goddess.

Every so often a huge tentacle would break the surface of the lake, creating ripples. "Stop that," she said, and the giant squid rose out of the water and replied in the gurgling voice that marked the language of the squid. You speak to me, it gurgled, Ariadne understanding every word as if it were plain English. I have met no one who possesses this strange gift. Ariadne sighed. "Yes, well I do possess this strange gift," she called in the same gurgling voice, making fun of the squid, "but I was also enjoying the reflection of the forest on the lake's surface, which you have ruined. Please abstain from doing so in future."

Very well, the squid said, and sank down into the water, creating minimal ripples as it found another place to relax. Somebody sat on the dry grass next to Ariadne. It was Dumbledore. "You know the language of the squid?" He asked quietly.

"Apparently," Ariadne said with a smile. "I can speak the language of animals. Spring isn't just about new flowers, you know."

"Apparently," Dumbledore echoed. "I like what you've done with the grass, too."

"Thank you."

"Your dress is looking quite the worse for wear. Today, if you've nothing else to do, we can go to Hogsmeade and get you some new clothes. The rest of the student body won't arrive until dinnertime and for once, I am up to date on my paperwork, so we can take as long as you wish."

"That would be nice," she replied. Usually she was always armed with a sarcastic remark, but in the face of such unwavering kindness from this man who had offered her so much and asked for nothing in return, she could only be polite. On the short walk into the town, she thought about the kind of clothing she would buy. Most of the other gods in the heavens wore the same toga style of white dress, and so she was quite excited at the prospect of some variety. Before she knew it, they were standing in front of a shop called Madam Malkin's, and Dumbledore was holding open the door for her to enter. She did so, smiling at the old man, but her face fell when she entered the shop. It was… robes. Nothing but robes. Sure, they came in different colours, but most of them were black, the kind the god of death wore. She didn't want to spend eternity in these boring, figure-hiding clothes.

"I don't want to be rude, but…"

"Then I suggest you cease speaking, for rudeness usually follows that particular sentence," Dumbledore replied. Ariadne stared at him, but started laughing after she realized he had a very large smile on his face.

"No, I just mean… these are all so boring. Can we go to a shop that sells interesting things?"

Dumbledore nodded and accompanied her out of the store, casting an apologetic look to a scandalized-looking Madam Malkin.

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Ariadne stood in her room late that night, trying on her new clothes and marveling at herself in the mirror. She had ignored all of Dumbledore's suggestions and bought varying designs and cuts of summer dress. This was her favourite. It was a white dress with large yellow flowers patterned onto it. It gathered together at her breasts and was quite a cozy fit to the narrowest part of her waist, where it fanned out. It went roughly down to her knees and Ariadne was in love with it. She spiraled around the room, gazing at her reflection whenever the opportunity arose.

"These are all lovely, Ariadne," Dumbledore had said in the store when she had handed him her choices. She had nodded enthusiastically. "But don't you want to purchase some clothing for when the weather cools down? You'll be quite cold in just dresses all year." Ariadne had waved his concerns away with a flick of her hand, rushing to gaze at the mannequins who were modeling her chosen dresses.

Once Ariadne had finished modeling her dresses for herself, she realized her eyelids were closing. Why are they doing that? She wondered to herself. She felt the overwhelming urge to lie down. Barely registering what she was doing, she swept all her new dresses onto the ground and flopped down onto her bed in Gryffindor Tower, a lavish four-poster with red velvet drapery and gold linen. She didn't notice the colour scheme though, for her eyes were closed and soon she was drifting off to sleep…