Three
Classes
The Ravenclaw tower was a circler room, airier than any other room at Hogwarts. Graceful arched windows punctured that walls which were hung with blue and bronze silks. By day, they would have a spectacular view of the surrounding mountains. The ceiling was domed and painted with stars, which echoed the midnight blue carpet. There were tables, chairs and bookcases, and in a niche opposite the door stood a tall statue of white marble. It was Rowena Ravenclaw. There were doors on either side of the room, probably leading to the dormitories.
Albus stared blankly at the room. This was going to be where he belonged! This was Ravenclaw Tower! His head was buzzing. How could he have been sorted into Ravenclaw over Hufflepuff or Slytherin or something? Or even Gryffindor? And Rose had been sorted into Hufflepuff! It felt incredible, but it was also sort of nerve wracking. How could he be smarter than Rose? Rose was smarter than everyone!
"Okay," said the female Ravenclaw Prefect, Penny Ashatoka. She clapped her hands together to get everyone's attention. "Girl's dormitories are on the right, boys are on the left. You'll find your names on the doors. That would be your dormitory. You will find your things already there."
"You'll get your schedule tomorrow morning at breakfast." Said the male Ravenclaw Prefect, Xavier Jarvis. "But now, I suggest you get some sleep."
Almost in a daze, Albus and Scorpius headed up the stairs and arrived at their dormitory. They were sharing it with four other boys. There was Adam Morrison, Cal Montague and Lysander Schemander. Lysander's twin brother, Lorcan was also in the dormitory.
"I suspect that we'll have a long day tomorrow. I'm going to bed." Adam said, after they'd gone through all their introductions. Albus already knew Lysander and Lorcan. They were like second cousins. Their mother, Auntie Luna, was the new Astronomy Teacher at Hogwarts, since the old professor retired. She preferred to be called Professor Lovegood, since that was her maiden name. Albus nodded and rubbed his eyes. He'd eaten himself full, and talked all through dinner with A.J., Scorpius and Molly.
He was more than happy to crawl into bed and fall asleep.
The next morning, awoke feeling overjoyed and happy. He was at Hogwarts! He was finally there! And he wasn't in Slytherin! That was possibly the best part. He'd proven James wrong and beaten Rose. Rose! Albus suddenly sat up in his bed. He'd have to seek her out and ask her how she liked Hufflepuff.
"Good morning." Scorpius yawned. He was sitting up in his own bed, rubbing sleep out of his eyes. Albus grinned.
"Good morning, Scorp." He said. "Are you unhappy you got into Ravenclaw not Slytherin?" he asked.
"No. I never wanted to be in Slytherin! It was all my grandfather's idea, not mine! I can't wait to tell Mum and Dad! They've probably sent me a letter to demand me to tell them." Scorpius said. Albus grunted.
"Mine too." He said.
"What about Rose? Do you think that she likes Hufflepuff?" Scorpius asked.
"I don't know. I was sort of just proved smarter than her… She won't like that." Albus said. "But just in case we see her today, don't rub salt in the wound, okay?"
"Sure thing, Al." Scorpius said. The two boys got up and got dressed in their Hogwarts robes. Albus had to have Scorpius show him how to tie his tie.
"I wonder if we'll take to A.J. today." Scorpius said.
"Oh, do you like her?" Albus cooed. Scorpius groaned and rolled his eyes.
"No. She's just really sweet, with a sort of sarcastic side." He said. Albus nodded. It was true. The metamorphmagus has a sense of humor, that was for sure.
"Let's go." Albus said. "We should go to breakfast so we're not late for classes."
"Good point." Scorpius said. Both of them took their bags, filled with books, parchment, wands, quills, and ink, and headed down into the Ravenclaw Common Room. To their surprise, A.J. was waiting for him. She had short, pixie cut blonde hair today with a turquoise blue streak in the front. Her eyes were crystal blue. Albus would have never guessed it was her except for the fact her face was exactly the same. She was reading a book calmly by the window. She looked up as Albus and Scorpius came down the stairs.
"Good. I thought you'd stay up there forever. I've been up since six waiting for you." A.J. said.
"Uh… sorry?" Albus said. It for sort of a question, sort of a statement. Albus wanted to smack himself on the head. Why in the world had he gotten into Ravenclaw again? A.J. got to her feet and tucked her book into her bag. She smiled at the two boys.
"Well, come on them. I'm starving. Let's go down and have breakfast." She linked arms with both of them, like Rose had done the night before. Strangely, Albus found A.J.'s style more comfortable. She didn't drag Albus and Scorpius along behind her.
"I barely recognized you, A.J." Scorpius said as they walked out of Ravenclaw Tower. "You'll have to leave your eyes the same, or something, so that I can recognize you!" A.J. thought about this for a minute.
"Well, first of all, I am sorry. Now that everyone knows I'm a metamorphmagus, I guess I shouldn't hide it. How about this, I'll leave my eyes the same green they've always been?" Albus and Scorpius had to shift to see her face, because A.J. kept looking straight ahead. Her eyes suddenly shifted back to the green they had been yesterday. Suddenly looked much more like A.J. and less like someone else. But somehow, Albus could almost sense it was her. She had a sort of calm presence around her.
"That's… incredible." Scorpius said as he watched her eyes shift from blue to green. A.J. looked at the ground and blushed.
"Well, I've been practicing. But I can't always… I can't always control it. Like at the Sorting Ceremony." A.J. explained. "Being a metamorphmagus isn't easy, especially when you want to be part of muggle society."
"Why would you ever want to do that?" Scorpius asked. Albus and A.J. laughed. Albus shook his head in bewilderment.
"Why wouldn't you? Muggles are actually pretty cool." Albus said. Scorpius shook his head.
"Sorry. Maybe that was my pureblood side talking." Scorpius said. A bit of color flushed across his cheeks. Albus smiled.
"It's fine." Albus said. A.J. looked at the ground, and nodded halfheartedly.
They arrived at the Great Hall just in time for Professor Longbottom to shove their schedules into their hands. He smiled at Albus.
"Hello, Albus. Glad to see you made it into a decent house. Here is your schedule. Ah, Amelia-Jane and Scorpius. Here are yours. I'll see you three in Herbology." Professor Longbottom said, and rushed off to deliver more schedules. Albus, Scorpius and A.J. made their way to the Ravenclaw table. They found three empty seats and sat down.
"It's so incredible to be here." A.J. said. "The thing is, Mum was betting on me getting into Gryffindor because of… well, let's say I've got some nerve and I speak out a lot. But I'm not brave. Dad was thinking Slytherin all the way. He says I'm resourceful and cunning. Me, I was betting on Hufflepuff. I've been told I'm very loyal. But… I got into Ravenclaw." A.J. said, smiling.
"Well, my brother thought I was going to be in Sytherin." Albus said. "I was hoping for Gryffindor." He glanced down at his schedule. "Ugh. We've got Potions first. Not that I don't like Professor Slughorn but… well, I don't like Potions. James was telling me all about it and I've decided I hate it. Let's finish our breakfast and head for the dungeons." Albus said with a sigh. A.J. looked at her schedule.
"But then we've got… Defense Against the Dark Arts! That should be fun. Dad said that it always was fun when your teacher wasn't trying to kill them. This teacher should be sane, though. He's an old man named Dobifer Kirke." A.J. said. "And Potions can't be that bad. You've never done it before." She said in a singsong voice. Albus crossed his arms.
"I just know I'm going to hate it." He said.
As a matter of fact, Albus did hate Potions. As soon as he stepped into the dungeon, Professor Slughorn descended on him, A.J. and Scorpius like a hawk.
"Mr. Potter, Mr. Malfoy!" Slughorn said, completely ignoring A.J. She probably didn't have famous parents. "So good to see both of you finally friends! Your families have made peace, I assume. Good, good. And you… Ms. Kemmington!" Slughorn turned to A.J., who was frowning at the room around her. She jumped when Slughorn said her name.
"Hm? Yes?" she asked.
"Well, I've been expecting the Kemmington girl to come into my classroom for some time. Muggle mother, quidditch star father. Metamorphmagus! You're going to be the greatest witch of this age. And you two boys can be the greatest wizards." Slughorn said, waving his hands. "Now, I have to go and prepare the lesson so that when everyone arrives we can begin." With that, he swept away, leaving the three of them gaping.
"Um…" A.J. said, tucking some of her blonde hair behind her ear.
"You're dad's a quidditch star?" Albus asked.
"Not really. He just likes to say he is. He's on a professional team and everything. He's a beater, but that team has never made it to the Quidditch World Cup. Besides, who remembers beaters?" A.J. said.
"But he is a professional player, right?" Scorpius asked.
"Yep." A.J. said crisply.
"That's so cool!" Scorpius said. "My dad just works for the Ministry." A.J. pursed her lips a bit as they sat down at a desk. She chose to pair off with Wendaline, or Wendy, Jamrik. Wendy was a smiley blonde girl. Albus and Scorpius got to work together.
"I wonder why she's so… like that about her Mr. Kemmington playing professionally." Albus asked Scorpius as he got a scroll of parchment out.
"I dunno. Maybe you should avoid bringing it up though." Scorpius spoke, watching A.J. carefully as she chatted with Wendy.
As the Potion Class started, Albus disliked it immediately. It wasn't Slughorn. He was actually very encouraging and very nice. It was the class itself. Luckily though, Scorpius proved he had a natural affinity towards Potions. He managed to effectively complete the potion they were supposed to be making (a lightening potion), in half the time they were supposed to use. Slughorn had everyone clap for Scorpius and Albus for taking to Potions so quickly. A.J. and Wendy were the next to complete it, with a few others. Soon, Potions was over. But Albus still hated the class, no matter how well he had done.
"That was fun." Scorpius said a few minutes later after they walked out of Potions.
"No it wasn't." Albus snapped.
"Oh, come off it. You're not still on about how you hate Potions are you? It isn't that bad!" Scorpius said. A.J. caught up with them, and walked on Scorpius's other side.
"He still doesn't like Potions?" A.J. asked. She grinned. "Don't worry; I don't think Potions like you." Albus frowned.
"What?" he asked. A.J. cracked up, leaving Albus and Scorpius confused.
"Next we have Defense Against the Dark Arts!" A.J. said, pulling her schedule out of her bag. "We better hurry over there. Wendy told me that her older brother told her that Professor Kirke doesn't like it when people are late."
"Good to know." Albus said. "But, I will never be on time."
"Well, join the club." A.J. said. "Neither have I. What about you Scorp?"
"Well, my grandfather insists that I am always on time, and so does Father. So yes, I am always on time." Scorpius said.
"Well, Mum is usually busy. And Da is never around to tell me that I need to be on time." A.J. said.
"Ah." Albus said.
When they arrived at the Defense Against the Dark Arts Classroom, they were greeted by the fact they would be having the class with the Slytherin first years. Potions had been with the Hufflepuffs. Albus, Scorpius and A.J. slipped inside and found seats near the back due to Scorpius's suggestion.
"Father used to work at the Ministry with Dobifer Kirke. He said that he spits." Scorpius explained. And so they sat in the back of the room to avoid getting spat on. The rest of the class filed in and sat down. They got out their text books and put them on their desks. That was when Dobifer Kirke entered the room. He was an old man with a grey beard that reached the floor. He had scraggly white hair and grey eyes. His skin was pale and wrinkly.
"Hello Class." Kirke said.
"Hello Professor." Everyone replied in a loud tone. Kirke smiled.
"I see you've been taught how to use proper educate. Good, that will save us a good deal of practicing. Please turn to page five and read the introduction and the first chapter. Then, we will discuss it." Kirke said. Slowly, A.J. raised her hand.
"But I've already read the entire book. I found it quite fascinating too! Learning about Redcaps was truly entertaining." A.J. said.
"Ah. You have? Would you be so kind to tell us what a Redcap is, Miss…?" Kirke studied A.J.
"Kemmington." A.J. provided.
"Ah. The metamorphmagus." Kirke said. A.J. cleared her throat as murmurs ran through the room.
"Redcap, also known as a powrie or dunter, is a type of malevolent murderous dwarf, goblin, elf or fairy. They are said to inhabit ruined castles found along the border between England and Scotland. Redcaps are said to murder travelers who stray into their homes and dye their hats with their victims' blood." A.J. said. Kirke frowned a little.
"Tell me the traits of a kobold." Kirke said.
"Although usually invisible, a kobold can materialize in the form of an animal, fire, a human being, and a candle. The most common depictions of kobolds show them as humanlike figures the size of small children. Kobolds who live in human homes wear the clothing of peasants; those who live in mines are hunched and ugly; and kobolds who live on ships smoke pipes and wear sailor clothing." A.J. responded almost immediately.
"And Bluecaps?" Kirke demanded.
"A bluecap or blue cap is a mythical fairy or ghost. They inhabit mines and appear as small blue flames. If miners treat them with respect, the bluecaps lead them to rich deposits of minerals. Like knockers or kobolds, bluecaps can also forewarn miners of cave-ins." A.J. responded calmly.
"Hobgoblins?" Kirke was almost yelling. He had approached A.J. and was glaring pointedly at her now. He was probably frustrated someone knew more than he did.
"Hobgoblins seem to be small, hairy little men who—like their close relative, brownies—are often found within human dwellings, doing odd jobs around the house while the family is lost in sleep. Such chores are typically small deeds, like dusting and ironing. Often, the only compensation necessary in return for these was food. Attempts to give them clothing would often banish them forever. They are very similar to House Elves in this way, Professor." A.J. responded.
"It isn't fair for you to ask her so many questions." Albus blurted out. Kirke turned to Albus.
"Excuse me?" he asked. "I am the Professor."
"You should at least be giving her points for each answer that she has answered correctly." Albus said. He remembered reading something about that in Hogwarts: A History.
"Very well. Ten points for each correctly answered question, Miss Kemmington. Ten points from Ravenclaw for speaking out in class – Mr. Potter, yes I know you are. Also, detention. Do not speak until my class is done." Kirke said