15

1 week later

Wes

The Ravenclaw common room was always full of people late into the night. For us intelligent people, sleep was a luxury that we never seemed to be able to receive and I didn't think any of us minded. There was too much homework and planning and projects all bustling about and waiting to be completed. 2 in the morning was a perfect time to start writing a book or creating a prototype. It was a known fact in the Ravenclaw house that the best ideas came when the others slept.

So at one thirty on Sunday morning I was lounging in a soft blue chair with my camera and laptop set up before me, editing and watching over my past footage. The past week had been pretty casual and I was starting to get closer to my interviewees which was a blessing I wasn't expecting when I first started the Potter Generation.

Talking with each person felt like entering a different part of my very peculiar life. It was like all of their opinions were mixed with mine until I was five different people depending on what day it was and whose company I was in. The thought of them all being in one room made me feel slightly anxious and extremely stressed but I reassured myself at all costs that it wouldn't happen. All Potter Generation interviewees were secret until the documentary was released and that was final.

In the most recent interviews I asked them all a question that I figured could start world war 3 if they knew each others answers. Especially considering they all thought their own houses were the most prejudiced against.

"Give your opinions on what each house besides yours is like."

The answers were mostly the same which was both surprising and not. The whole point of the Potter Generation was to show that no matter how different the people are we still all think the same things and feel the same way even if those opinions aren't always right or fair. But even as I watched each interview I was sort of amazed at how similar we all are.

"Hufflepuffs are pushovers." Will had admitted, looking slightly guilty. "I mean, they're all really nice and stuff but how is that going to help them in life? Kindness is good but it's not bravery or intelligence. It's something everyone should be anyway. Hufflepuff is sort of just there for the kids who aren't special like Harry Potter. It's a popularity contest."

"Slytherins are jerks everyone knows that." Ian had shrugged not seeming all too ashamed. "How many Death Eaters do you know of that didn't come out of Slytherin? And even if they aren't Voldemort supporters they think they're so superior because they have pureblood and are unbelievably rich. Slytherin is the house for villains, plain and simple."

"Ravenclaws are nerds. Snobby nerds at that." Olivia had apologized before answering for Ravenclaw and I was extremely grateful that she did. "They think they're so smart and above everyone else just because they're the intelligence house when I've met people ten times smarter than the brats in Ravenclaw. And I mean I've met a few decent Ravenclaws but most of them are just arrogant douche bags."

"Gryffindors are the worst." Evie looked the most annoyed I had ever seen her and it was almost funny to see her usually so happy looking like she got caught in the rain. "They're so arrogant you would think they hung the moon in the sky. Everyone thinks they're so brave and heroic when the most outrageous thing they're done is disobey a teacher and get detention. The worst part is that everyone goes along with it and pretends that they deserve all the recognition they get when it's really only one person who carries the slack and that's Harry Potter."

The House prejudice made me cringe but it was a lie to say that I didn't enjoy it. They all thought they were so into equality when really it was only for themselves. I couldn't wait for next week when I showed them their footage and reminded them of what this documentary was really about. It was a trick I had been planning since the beginning and it was something I had wanted to shove into every person's face who thought all Gryffindors were arrogant or all Hufflepuffs were useless. They never realized what other people were saying about their house when they complained about everyone else.

I spent too many hours editing and planning and writing notes and it felt good to have something so concrete to do. My life had become a jumble of haphazardly made plans and loose promises. I thought this year would be quiet without Voldemort but being a normal teenage wizard was pretty hard. Without being in mortal danger there was nothing to distract us from homework or petty drama. The most interesting thing that had happened recently was that Dean Thomas and Seamus Finnigan had finally started dating and I had a feeling that was never going to calm down.

We always wished that we could have a normal school year but somehow it seemed almost boring. Sure, being nearly killed sucked but being normal just wasn't as fun. We were a generation that strived on danger and thrill and when things got quiet we got restless which seemed like a problem but made me feel proud. We were some people you wouldn't want to get in the way of.

Falling asleep in the dimly lit common room felt like the first rest I had had in weeks. Every worry I had seemed ridiculous and I knew it wouldn't last but I was glad I had a moment even if it never came again.