Chapter 6: Pride and Prejudice
Exceptionally full, I retreated to my dormitory expecting to fall asleep right away. Instead, I found myself turning over the day's events in my head.
I was already starting to miss Mum. This was not altogether surprising; I had never been away from her for an extended period of time. I hadn't expected the feeling to come so soon, however. Already I longed for her reassuring smile, her unwavering kindness. That was not the only thing I longed for, though.
I had fully expected Sirius to be in Gryffindor with me. I could hardly believe that he was sorted into Slytherin. But I supposed since that the hat had considered me for Slytherin as well, it wasn't much of a stretch for Sirius to be a Slytherin. I, having not spent one full day at the school, had no prejudice against the house, unlike my extremely loyal Gryffindor friends. No, my main concern was that it would be that much harder for me to look out for him.
I am very protective over my little brother; at first because I feared he would suffer the same abuse from our father that I did. I quickly discovered that my father quite adored Sirius, and I had nothing to fear from that end of the spectrum. However, it became apparent early on that he had a knack for getting into a lot of trouble.
He loved to trick things out of people. Money, toys, maybe even their confidence or their pride. The reward didn't matter. I could tell that he delighted in the actually process of convincing someone to give up a beloved trinket, or telling a group of first years something terrifying about the Sorting. He usually gave back whatever he took, and it was never large, but he often got in trouble at the Muggle school he attended. If I ever suspected a kid of becoming a tattler, I made sure to confront them. Nobody tattled after I spoke with them.
I hoped that this wouldn't be a problem here at Hogwarts; I could now see how it would get him into Slytherin. Hopefully, it wouldn't get him in trouble in Slytherin itself. Try as I may to be as unprejudiced as I could, I couldn't help listening to some of the stories Harry and Ron told. Therefore, I would have to try to stay away from my brother. I didn't want to cause any rifts between my brother and his housemates.
Thinking about these things didn't really help me get to sleep, and as I was sure I would need some rest for the day ahead, I grabbed a book from underneath my nightstand to distract me. Earlier, while unpacking, I had stored some personal favorites there for easy access. Finding my wand as well, I muttered a quiet "Lumos" and discovered that I had chosen Pride & Prejudice, a Muggle book my mum had introduced to me. Despite being quite a feminist who opposed anything demeaning to women, and struggling to understand bits of Austen's nineteenth century writing style, I had enjoyed the book immensely.
As I reached chapter two, I felt my eyes start to close. I set my book and wand aside as I fell into a peaceful sleep.
I walked out of the dormitory with Hermione, feeling quite cheerful. I was very excited about my first day of classes, and Hermione fed my excitement by describing each class in detail.
"I'm so glad you chose to take Ancient Ruins, Leila, it is extremely fascinating! Professor Horus is a fantastic teacher too, he—"
I snickered at the professor's name. "His name is Horus, and he teaches Ancient Ruins?" That was just too brilliant.
Hermione, on the other hand, looked perplexed. "So what if his name is Horus?"
I sighed. She must not be fully awake yet. "Ever heard of the Eye of Horus, Hermione?"
Her eyes dawned in realization. "Oh! I never thought of that…"
I grinned. "No doubt due to the overexposure to boys who have no interest in the fascinating study of runes. Ah, here they are now." I said, as we reached the bottom of the staircase that led us down to the common room.
"Ready for breakfast?" Harry asked us.
"Heck, I'm ready for classes." I said enthusiastically as we headed towards the Fat Lady's portrait.
Ron rolled his eyes. "I can see how you and Hermione could be best friends. You'll probably find History of Magic interesting."
Ignoring his jibe, I asked "How can a subject taught by a ghost be uninteresting?" I had rarely seen a ghost before entering Hogwarts.
"When he has the most boring voice in the world, and talks nonstop." Harry stated. I couldn't argue with that.
As we entered the Great Hall, I immediately looked up at the ceiling. Unfortunately, it looked like it was about to storm and I shared this with the others.
"Hopefully we won't have Herbology today." Harry said worriedly.
As we walked towards the Gryffindor table, I caught sight of Sirius just sitting down at the Slytherin one with a couple of boys who looked like they were around his age. Fighting the urge to wave, I sighed and set my eyes on my own table.
Hermione laid a hand on my shoulder. "Don't worry about him, Leila. I'm sure he'll be fine."
"As long as Snape doesn't get to him." Harry grumbled.
"Oh, come on, he can't be that bad." I said. I hoped he wasn't, because I rather wanted to meet the man who had pinned my father to the wall that day, and who also brewed the resting potion for me. Plus, Potions was my best subject and I wanted to see if he would be a competent teacher.
"Oh, yes he is." Ron said, his voice full of obvious hatred.
"Why?" I demanded, suddenly annoyed. "Because he might not have the most pleasant of personalities? Because he happens to be Slytherin? If the latter is the case, then I've got to say that I can't believe we are stooping to such of levels of prejudice."
That's when Ron snapped. "It's not prejudice, its Gryffindor pride. And that's not why we hate him. He's a right git to all of us, especially Harry."
"But if I haven't seriously misinterpreted Hermione's letters, hasn't he saved Harry's life on more than one occasion?"
"That was one time in first year, and I seriously doubt it would happen again." Harry said, not nearly as mad as Ron, but still looking at me strangely. I supposed he had the right. I had no idea why I was defending a man who I had barely met, other than that I felt instinctively that he could be trusted.
"What about in third year when found us in the Shrieking Shack? He obviously thought he was saving your life there." This time it was Hermione who spoke.
"That didn't stop him from making us look like idiots the whole time. He chewed you out pretty bad, too." Harry said to her, and it was as if he was daring her to argue with him.
"Maybe, but he's in the Order and Dumbledore trusts him, so I think that should be good enough for us." Hermione replied firmly. We all fell silent after that pronouncement.
As we were eating breakfast, Professor McGonagall came around with schedules for everyone. When Ron got his, he let out a loud groan, causing everyone in the near vicinity to look at him.
"What's wrong?" I asked curiously, all details of our previous argument forgotten.
"This is the worst Monday I've ever seen! We've got a double period of History of Magic, Potions, Divination, and a double period of Defense Against the Dark Arts! Binns, Snape, Trelawney, and that Umbridge woman all in the same day! Ugh!"
I quickly checked my schedule to see that I had all the same classes, except for Divination, which was replaced by Ancient Runes. A chill ran down my spine at the thought of facing Umbridge today. It wouldn't be the first time we've met. As well as being the Undersecretary to the Minister of Magic, she was also in charge of giving exams to children across Britain who happened to be homeschooled. It doesn't seem so bad at first, but she is also in charge of what kind of exam I sit through, and what the exam entails. There are restrictions on that to some extent, but otherwise she has total control. And for some inexplicable reason, she has never liked me. Or she's just a toad faced bitch. After her little speech last night, I was leaning heavily towards the latter.
"Well, it certainly seems like it will be a fun filled day." I said sarcastically.
"Sure does." Harry said dryly.
In truth, I was actually looking forward to Potions, but I didn't want to say that in front of the boys for fear of starting another argument. Ancient Ruins seemed pretty promising, too.
"Well, let's head to Potions or we're going to be late." Hermione said, standing up. We all nodded and headed for the dungeons.
Severus was not at all happy with the way his schedule worked out this year. He was by no means a morning person, and he would have to deal with a Slytherin/Gryffindor class first thing in the morning. To make matters worse, it was also an OWL class, and Potter would be one of the students. Wonderful.
However, Leila would be in this class as well, and he had to admit that he was anxious to see how well she would perform. He already known that she had tremendous ability; what with brewing the Polyjuice Potion and altering it, she was obviously extremely talented. This was not altogether surprising, considering who her parents were. He smirked to himself as he thought the last part.
He broke out of his reverie as his students poured into the dungeon classroom. Severus noted that his daughter, along with Potter and his gang (he refused to think that Leila was part of that gang), took seats in the middle of the room, though they seemed to be arguing about something. He couldn't afford to pay them too much attention, however, and in any case the bell rang almost immediately after they sat down.
Without further ado, Severus launched into his customary OWL speech.
"Before we begin today's lesson," He began, his eyes flickering towards Leila, who was sitting up, giving him her undivided attention. "I think it appropriate to remind you that next June you will be sitting an important examination, during which you will prove how much you have learned about the composition and use of magical potions. Moronic though some of this class undoubtedly are," His eyes passed Potter, Weasley, and Longbottom "I expect you to scrape an 'acceptable' in your OWL, or suffer my…displeasure. After this year, of course, many of you will cease studying with me. I take only the very best into my NEWT Potions class, which means that some of us will certainly be saying goodbye."
And Severus couldn't wait to be rid of some, well, most of them. Especially Potter. He only had one more year to deal with the hated boy, unless the job he pursued required the precise brewing of Potions. He knew that the boy hated him quite as much—if not more than him, so he did not think he had much to worry about.
As he continued with the speech, he could tell that his audience was getting restless. Therefore, he decided to spring the lesson on them unexpectedly; there was no point in droning on with only a couple students (Leila and Granger, of course) listening.
The potion they would be brewing was the Draught of Peace. It was a rather tricky potion, and Severus doubted whether even a third of the class would brew it correctly. The dunderheads had no patience and little understanding of the incredible art that was Potion brewing. It disgusted him. He knew he probably should not have started out the year with this Potion, expecting them to succeed, but this was their OWL year and he wasn't about to cut them any slack. They had been babied far too much by their other teachers, especially Potter. It was time they actually put some effort into their schoolwork.
Severus explained the lesson to the class, and then returned to his desk, letting them attempt the potion without any interference from him. Of course, he would have to keep an eye out, since hellebore was one of the ingredients. The name itself should tell people it was dangerous.
About a half hour into the lesson, Severus heard the door squeak open and he glanced up in surprise, scowling. Who would dare interrupt a Potion class? He could almost feel the incompetent fools forgetting their potions in favor of discovering who the new arrival was.
Scowling even more deeply, Severus saw that it was that sickly sweet Umbridge woman. Her smile was as fake as it was condescending, though it was obvious that she was trying to appear a pleasant figure.
Severus wanted to tell the woman to get the hell out of his classroom, but Dumbledore had warned all the staff to tread carefully when it came to dealing with her. She was getting handed new powers every other week, so it was best to try to stay on her good side, for now.
"Professor Umbridge, what an honor." He said, with a hint of sarcasm he hoped she didn't notice. "How can I help you?"
"Oh, I just stopped in to speak to one of your students. You may not realize this, Professor Snape, but in addition to my work in the office of the Minister, I regularly give exams to homeschooled witches and wizards across Britain."
His face was frozen. Oh no. This could not mean what he thought it meant. But of course it did….
"So you can imagine my surprise when I found out that Leila Evans enrolled here!" She turned to face Leila, who had not moved a muscle since Umbridge walked in. "It's so great to see you again, dear!"
The girl sat down the silver knife she had been using to cut her moonstone and looked Umbridge hard in the eyes. "It is rather nice to see you too, Professor." She said tensely. It was clear that she didn't mean a word of that, and that she expected something to happen between her and the Defense teacher.
"Oh, don't let me distract you from your potion! I know the fascination you have with them. You need not worry about being rude; I assure you it is fine." She continued, but in a considerably sharper tone. "And remember to always keep eye contact when you're speaking to me. It shows respect."
By now, the rest of the class had forgotten about their own Potions and were watching the exchange between Umbridge and Leila. Some of them looked confused about the DADA teacher's words, but Severus understood all too well.
Umbridge was going to make Leila brew the Draught of Peace while forcing her to converse (and look at) with her at the same time! This was bad, this was extremely bad. It was an accident waiting to happen. Gifted though she may be, it was doubtful that she could complete the potion properly with her attention so divided. Any mistake could be disastrous.
Leila's expression didn't change, and she continued cutting up her moonstone, more carefully and precisely than before. She didn't look away from Umbridge's face.
"So how was your summer?" Umbridge inquired. Most students wouldn't notice the disdain in her voice.
"Fine," Leila said, now grinding the moonstone into powder.
Umbridge wasn't happy with this short response. "Care to share any details?" She said, her voice sharp.
"I didn't do very much. Same old, same old." Leila said. It was clear that lying came easily to her. That disturbed Severus a bit.
Umbridge nodded, apparently satisfied. "And how are your parents?" Severus was having trouble keeping a straight face, as did Leila.
"They're well. They were happy when they found out you would be teaching here." Leila said, lying again. She was quite good at it, Severus noted. It was quite impressive for a fifteen year old girl.
Umbridge beamed at that. "I'm glad to hear that. I plan to reshape the whole Defense curriculum to an acceptable standard, and I truly believe that you picked a fantastic year to come to Hogwarts."
At that, the class started to mutter among themselves. Severus couldn't help wondering what she was going to do with Defense class. Nothing good, that was certain.
Leila now had poured the moonstone dust into her cauldron, and now was ready for the next step, the syrup of hellebore. It wasn't a complicated step, but getting the correct amount (6 milliliters) was absolutely essential. Too much of the poisonous ingredient would cause the potion to emit a thick layer of smoke and possibly explode. Too little and it wouldn't counteract the moonstone's peaceful properties, making it a near perfect clone of the Draught of the Living Death. The one difference was that Living Death merely lulled the drinker into a deep slumber; this potion would relax the person so much they almost always died.
Severus decided it was time for him to intervene, but he wasn't sure how. He did not want to appear sympathetic to Leila or the Gryffindors, he had a reputation to protect and his life could depend on that reputation. Besides, he wasn't sympathetic towards the Gryffindors. It wasn't his fault his daughter happened to be one, damn it.
But before he could open his mouth, he watched his daughter take the vial of hellebore syrup and pour it into the measuring cup, still looking determinedly at Umbridge, who had given up all pretenses and was watching the girl with an evil eye. He was sure the measure would be off, but, incredibly….it was spot on.
He shook his head, half in fascination and half in relief. This girl was amazing! She was definitely getting a perfect score today, not that she would know it.
Umbridge must have gotten bored of her little game, or maybe she was just upset that Leila didn't make something explode, because she stomped out of the dungeon as fast as she could.
Smirking, and immensely proud of his daughter, he quickly restored order to the adolescents and soon enough the lesson was over.
"I can't believe she did that!" Hermione said, her voice scandalized. "That was completely evil!"
"She was completely herself. This wasn't the first time she's done something like that, and trust me; it could have been a lot worse." I said, shuddering, remembering a Pepper-Up Potion gone horribly wrong.
"Well, I noticed Snape didn't try to step in." Ron grumbled.
I tried not to sigh as we walked out of the dungeons. "He looked like he wanted to say something, though. He probably would've, had I gotten the measurement of the hellebore wrong."
"How did you get the exact amount, Leila?" Harry asked in wonder before Ron could say anything more about Snape.
I shrugged, smirking. "Simple. I watched Professor Snape's face while I was pouring, and I stopped when his face began to relax."
A few moments of shocked silence followed my pronouncement, and Hermione shook her head again.
"Leila, you are brilliant!" She squealed.
"Yeah, we're going to copy your homework from now on." Harry added.
"Thanks guys, but there is absolutely no way I'm going to let you cheat. Cheaters never win and winners never cheat, that's what mum always says." I said, smirking once again.
"But we're not talking about winning, we're talking about homework!" Ron said, as if it were supposed to be obvious.
I shook my head, smiling. "See you guys at lunch!" I said as we parted ways. The boys headed off to the North Tower, while Hermione and I headed to the third floor for Ancient Ruins.
As soon as we entered the classroom, I could tell this was going to be a fun class. Moving posters were plastered all around the walls, featuring Egyptian pyramids, Greek temples, and Roman coliseums. There was a long table all along the east wall. Set upon it were ancient tablets, fossils, rocks and other ancient items. A bookshelf completely took over the south wall, and from where I stood I could see various books on mythology and history. Ancient Ruins was obviously much more than, well, ancient ruins.
Hermione led me to a table where two Ravenclaw girls were sitting, both redheaded. The one sitting on the inside had her hair pulled back in a ponytail, a very freckly complexion, and an eager face. I would think her a Weasley if I didn't know they were all Gryffindors. Her neighbor's hair was shorter and left down, and red like her neighbor's. She had full lips and pretty eyes. Both looked nice enough.
"Hey Jess, Jezz. Can my friend Leila and I sit here?" Hermione asked the two.
"Sure!" The freckly one said enthusiastically. I was surprised that she had an Australian accent. She turned to me, smiling. "You must be new. My name is Jessica, but you can call me Jess. My friend's name is Jessica too, but call her Jezz so you don't get confused."
"It's nice to meet you both. My name's Leila, you're right, I am new. I was homeschooled up until now."
This time, Jezz spoke. "Nice to meet you too, Leila. Homeschooled, really? What made your parents decide to send you here?"
Well, this was a bit uncomfortable. "I guess they just got tired of my relentless begging. They both went here; I thought it a bit hypocritical that they wouldn't let me go." This last part was actually true.
Jess looked about to say something when a Gryffindor boy from our year bounded towards us. He had black messy hair, brown eyes, and seemed to be holding some sort of drawing pad.
"Hey, here's the newbie!" He said, smiling at me. "Didn't get a chance to introduce myself in the Common Room yesterday. My name is Dorian, Dorian Apple. You're name is Leila, right?"
I nodded. "Yeah. What's the drawing pad for?"
Dorian smirked naughtily, but Jess interrupted before he could say anything.
"It's for drawing his obsession, his entire reason for being…..Ally Wilkes." She said this all very dramatically.
He slapped her with the pad, playfully. "Oh, shut up. You know she's the most gorgeous witch out there, even if she is a Slytherin."
He nodded to a table near the front of the room where three girls (presumably Slytherin) were sitting. Two had beautiful coppery skin, the other had flesh as pale as a ghost's against her jet-black hair. Though they were all pretty in their own way, it wasn't hard to see who Dorian was talking about.
Her beautiful, brown, curly hair danced down just past her shoulders. There was no hint of a blemish on her face, yet she had no trace of make up on. Her brown eyes somehow sparkled, and she didn't seem to be aware of the effect she had on people like Dorian.
The other two Slytherin's were pretty, too. To the left of Ally was a girl with straight black hair, and brown eyes. Her smile was kind, and I noticed she was wearing combat boots. To the right of Ally was a rather short girl with the same skin tone as her neighbor. She had the most unique hair I had ever seen. On one side it dipped down to just below her chin, ending in a bit of a curl. On the other it reached just above her shoulder, also curving at the end.
Dorian noticed my gaze and nodded. "Emily, Ally, and Yasmine. The three nicest Slytherins you'll ever meet."
I grinned at Hermione. "I knew there had to be some nice ones!" I told her enthusiastically, even though she hadn't ever doubted me.
She raised an eyebrow at me. "I never said there wasn't."
I blushed, embarrassed because it was my worry for Sirius that caused me to say that. "I know."
"Wait." Dorian said, frowning at me in confusion. "Wasn't your brother just sorted into Slytherin?"
"Yeah," I told him, my worry not altogether gone just yet.
"He'll be fine," He told me, sensing my worry. "Those three always make a habit of greeting the first years personally, telling them all about Hogwarts and Slytherin, since their prefects seem to forget to do it." It was clear in his tone that the prefects didn't forget anything. I was suddenly grateful for these kind Slytherins.
"Thanks, that's good." I told him gratefully. Before he could say anything, the bell rang and Dorian rushed off to sit by the Slytherins. They didn't protest, but I think I saw Ally roll her eyes.
I turned to my tablemates. "I like him, he seems nice." And I did. He was one of the nicest people I had met since I got here.
"Ooh, crushing on Dorian?" Jess said, giggling.
"Ew, no!" I said, because I really wasn't. I gritted my teeth. Wasn't it possible for a girl to say something nice about a boy without people jumping to that conclusion?
"Ignore her, Leila." Jezz said, peering past her friend to look at me. "She's a bit weird at times."
"Oh, I was only kidding." Jess said dismissively. "But he understands being new, he moved here from Durmstrang a few years ago. Everyone hated him at first, but eventually they came around because he's really a good person, if a bit weird." She finished, using the same words Jezz used to describe her.
"I heard he used to be emo." Jezz stage whispered. I laughed at the thought of it. Emo wizards? This school was just too good.
"Well, not everyone from Durmstrang are dark wizards." Hermione said matter-of-factly. I smirked, knowing she was thinking of Viktor Krum.
We couldn't continue our conversation because the professor entered the room at that moment.
Professor Horus was younger than I expected, in his late twenties or early thirties. He was pretty tall, at least 6 feet. Wavy black hair fell just past his ears, and he his blue eyes were so startling that I blinked when I looked up at him. He seemed to radiate an aura of excitement, of adventure. No one would be falling asleep in this class.
"Greetings, valuable members of the Hogwarts student body!" He said brightly, a wide smile reaching across his face. I was surprised to hear an American accent. Nearly all of the class whooped, cheered, or clapped loudly at his words. Someone even sent up red sparks with their wand.
His smile became more pronounced. "I see you guys haven't changed much over the summer. But you did add another to your number. Everyone, please give a warm welcome to….Leila Evans!" He shouted my name, pointing at me. I could feel my face redden as the whole class applauded and quickly hid my face from the class. I heard Jess and Jezz cheer for me (Hermione was too reserved to do such a thing), as well as Dorian. As I glanced towards his table, the girls looked up at the same time. I smiled shyly at them, and they nodded. I had a sense that they liked me…..at least a little.
The rest of the class clapped politely for a little bit, nowhere near the chaos Professor Horus had received when he had entered. Thankfully, they stopped fairly quickly.
"Nice to have you, Leila! I can almost guarantee that you will love this class. Either that, or you'll run away screaming." Professor Horus told me, smiling. I looked up at him through my hair, relieved that the attention to me was quickly fading.
"Now, it's time we begin the lesson. As a professor, I am expected to teach something, you know." The professor continued, smirking now. Around the room there were gasps of "I never knew!" and "Whoa, really?" I shook my head, smiling. This class certainly was….interesting.
"Guys, seriously, time to focus! It's the first day back, so I won't be too hard on you. But it is OWL year, and whether or not you choose to continue on in this subject is your choice, but it is of the upmost important that you do your best on your examinations this summer. Ancient Ruins is not a subject that is required for many jobs, I'll admit that. But there are ways you can apply it to your life. You can apply anything you learn here at Hogwarts to your life. I'm not going to tell you how. It's up to you to figure it out." Professor Horus finished his little speech with a wink.
The class was staring at him in shock. Some of them looked like they understood nothing of what Horus said. I, however, understood quite clearly.
There are certain things in life that can't be taught. You have experience something to truly know what it is. You can't rely on books or teachers to get you through everything, otherwise, how would you make it in the real world? Here at Hogwarts we're trapped in a safe little bubble, separated from most of the Wizarding World. Most of us haven't had many hardships. It's only a matter of time before we're tested. There are things worth learning that they don't teach you in class. The difference between knowing something in your head and knowing it in your heart, between pride and prejudice, between hearing and listening. Things that seem so similar but are really complete opposites. Little things that can affect your whole life.
When I walked into this class, I certainly wasn't expecting to get a life lesson, much less a life lesson from an American.
The whole class was muttering to itself, probably haven't heard something that deep from their professor before. A lot of them didn't know what to make of it.
"What did you guys make of it?" I whispered to the girls at my table.
"I thought it was brilliant." Jess said, breathless, as if she just witnessed something awe inspiring.
"Impressive." Jezz said in agreement.
"He had many great points, but I don't really see how we can apply Ancient Ruins to our daily lives." Hermione stated, frowning. "I mean, on some occasions I'm sure we'll need it, but in everyday life….?"
"I don't think we're supposed to know what he meant right away." I said thoughtfully. "It's something we'll figure out over time."
"Maybe." Hermione said doubtfully.
"Okay, guys, enough with the chit chat! Our lesson is about to begin!"
Hey guys! Sorry it's taken so long to update, but it is the longest chapter yet, so I hope you're satisfied. :D
I was in the midst of reading Pride and Prejudice when I started writing this, so that's where the title comes from. I haven't finished it though, so please no spoilers!
I'll try to be quicker on the next update, I promise! And if you all could review, that would be awesome! As always, thank you so much for reading! (: