Rowena stretched and was ready to start her morning.
There were classes to prepare for, and lessons to sit through - and pretend to learn from - then, of course, ending the day with another visit to her favorite room within the castle: the library.
It was a typical fall day for September. Rowena looked up at the Great Hall ceiling and bit back a sigh while noting the grey dull cloudy sky hovering over them. She truly hoped she didn't have Herbology today.
As was her morning ritual, Rowena began her repast with porridge and a poached egg on top. Ignoring the plate of kippers completely, Rowena broke up two rashers into her bowl and plucked two pieces of toast from the ridiculously large pile. Lastly, Rowena poured herself a glass of juice and propped her book up, leaning it against the pitcher of juice, so she could enjoy her meal.
The whispers started shortly after the arrival of the owl post. Students around her were pointing and whispering. Finally, curious despite herself, Rowena looked up from her book to see what the gossips were going on about. That's when she saw it: a strange red envelope in the youngest Weasley boy's hand. When she saw the Longbottom boy stick his fingers in his ears, Rowena slipped her wand into her hand and braced.
"— STEALING THE CAR, I WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN SURPRISED IF THEY'D EXPELLED YOU, YOU WAIT TILL I GET HOLD OF YOU, I DON'T SUPPOSE YOU STOPPED TO THINK WHAT YOUR FATHER AND I WENT THROUGH WHEN WE SAW IT WAS GONE —"
The boy had wisely dropped the screaming parchment at the first bellow. Rowena winced at the sheer volume of the woman's voice. Her shrieking filled the entire Great Hall with a piercing sound. Everyone stopped to stare in various reactions: confusion, amusement, embarrassment, and at least one with curiosity.
"— LETTER FROM DUMBLEDORE LAST NIGHT, I THOUGHT YOUR FATHER WOULD DIE OF SHAME, WE DIDN'T BRING YOU UP TO BEHAVE LIKE THIS, YOU AND HARRY COULD BOTH HAVE DIED —"
Everyone knew about the incident from the previous night. Having missed the train, Harry and Ron arrived late to the school in a flying car. It was all the girls in her dorm could talk about before bed and the gossip continued on till morning. It would seem the rumors were true for once. Fascinating.
"— ABSOLUTELY DISGUSTED — YOUR FATHER'S FACING AN INQUIRY AT WORK, IT'S ENTIRELY YOUR FAULT AND IF YOU PUT ANOTHER TOE OUT OF LINE WE'LL BRING YOU STRAIGHT BACK HOME."
Once the message was complete, the red envelope burst into flames and curled into ashes on the table. Rowena stared at the mess left behind before turning to one of the Prefects. "What was that?"
"That was a Howler," the blonde girl answered. Rowena vaguely remembered the girl from her first night at the school last year. It was hard to believe they had been attending Hogwarts for a full school year already. What was the girl's name? Something that started with a P... Paisley, Petra, Penelope, Pauline? "It's a magical letter in a red envelope which enchants the written message into the writer's voice. They're usually at a very high volume." The Prefect gestured across the Great Hall towards the Gryffindor table. "As you can see from Weasley's Howler, after the message is delivered the envelope then explodes into flames. It's all rather dramatic. Personally, I find them horrifying. A parent shouldn't shame their child in such an open forum. So humiliating."
"I'm not as interested in the message itself, but in the method. Do they always have to shriek that way?"
"Ms. Turpin," a squeaky voice beckoned Rowena.
Looking behind her, Rowena smiled at her Head of House. "Good morning, Professor Flitwick."
"Plan on sending a howler, are you?" He asked with a mischievous glint in his smiling eyes as he handed over her class schedule.
Rowena smiled innocently at the diminutive man. "No, sir. I just find the magic fascinating."
"In that case, come see me after classes and I can steer you in the right direction."
"Thank you, sir!" She gushed as the man moved on to hand over the rest of the class schedules.
The prospect of learning more about this new way of communicating put Rowena in a superb mood... until she read her day's schedule: History of Magic, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Potions, Charms. Starting your day with a History of Magic lecture from Cuthbert was just cruel. Rowena made a mental note to bring along any notes for her latest project. She'd simply use her time wisely and not nap like others have done.
- - - - Founders - - - -
The class was abuzz with anticipation. They were heading into their Defense Against the Dark Arts class and the girls were giggling excitably. Rowena and Helga exchanged an amused glance as they stepped into the classroom. Helga, being the taller of the two, noticed the danger of the clambering students before Rowena and glided to the side, sweeping her friend along with her. The second year girls seemed to be swarming to the front of the classroom, jockeying for seats. Rowena leaned into Helga's side for a beat and softly said, "Thank you."
"These girls are being ridiculous."
"I was thinking the same."
"Shall we sit somewhere safe and not near the gaggle of giggling girls?"
Rowena gave a startled laugh, "That would be wise."
Rowena found a seat near the middle of the classroom, Helga sat beside her. She looked around the room and was taken aback by the decor. It was filled with paintings of all sizes and each of them were of Gilderoy Lockhart, their new DADA professor. He was a first-rate narcissist, if Rowena was any judge of character. Who else would assign each of the students to purchase a full set of their books as mandatory reading, then fill the classroom with their own image? And, if he wasn't a narcissist, then he was a con man taking full advantage of the power of his position to bolster his bank account. Either way, Rowena's opinion of the man was dropping considerably with each grin and wink of his portraits.
A door near the back of the room opened and the professor walked in, paused beside one of his portraits, and grinned at himself. Rowena's brows furrowed with disgust as he began speaking, "Hello, class!"
His voice was surprisingly irritating. He began the class by pointing out all of his accomplishments and titles including, but not limited to, five-time winner of the Witch Weekly's Most-Charming-Smile Award. Was that truly a thing? Rowena shook her head and ignored him as she opened her book, Magical Me . It was the first book of his that she began reading, yet for the first time in her life, she hadn't read the book from cover to cover, something she usually enjoyed doing. Magical Me was difficult to take in. It was an autobiography by the man standing at the head of the class and it was filled with nonsense like his best side for photographs. Was that truly something that was necessary to know about a person?
Parchment filled with questions was set on her desk. Rowena looked up and saw that she was expected to take one and hand the others along, so she did so before turning her attention to the quiz.
"You have thirty minutes - start - now!"
Rowena silently cursed herself for not paying closer attention to the silly man and read the questions on the page:
What is Gilderoy Lockhart's favorite color?
What is Gilderoy Lockhart's secret ambition?
What, in your opinion, is Gilderoy Lockhart's greatest achievement to date?
Rowena was taken aback and looked around at the other students. The majority of the girls were busy scribbling down their answers. Most of the boys were having the same reaction as she was. Rowena was curious as to what that said about her. She then chanced a look at Helga and was relieved to see her huffing at the questions on the page.
How many times has Gilderoy Lockhart won Witch Weekly's Most Charming Smile Award?
In his book Break with a Banshee, how did Gilderoy Lockhart bravely banish the Bandon Banshee?
Which is Gilderoy Lockhart's best side for photographs?
Sighing softly, Rowena was almost disappointed that she knew one of the answers and wrote down: Left.
Has Gilderoy Lockhart ever won the Dunstable Dueling Championship for wizards or just been pipped at the post?
Gilderoy Lockhart winning any dueling championship was laughable. Rowena was tempted to write down: Doubtful. But figured that wouldn't exactly win her any points with the narcissist sitting at the head of the class. She stared at the blank parchment just below the question and smirked, writing her answer anyhow.
Which product does Gilderoy Lockhart use to clean his teeth to achieve his famous dazzling white smile?
Which is the person's name which Gilderoy Lockhart has given to his broomstick?
When is Gilderoy Lockhart's birthday and what would his ideal gift be?
In the end, Rowena jotted down the few answers she knew, put her name on the top and signed it off as a done deal. Not a good start with the new professor, but it was an honest one.
- - - - Founders - - - -
It was a long, grueling day of being a model student before she could escape to the library. There she searched for the books Professor Flitwick suggested she read with the warning that some things may still be beyond her, and if she had questions she was encouraged to seek him out. Rowena found that both kind of him and rather condescending.
Rowena walked down the aisle, sliding her fingertips over the spines of the books as she read the author's names: Blagdon Blay, Daisy Pennifold, Delfina Crimp, Miranda Goshawk. It was so invigorating to see names that she did not recognize. The library was at least ten times as large as it had been in her days as librarian.
"Lisa?"
Her hand stilled and she looked over at the person calling her name. Rowena was surprised to see Hermione standing there with a small stack of books in her arms. "Hermione," she responded.
The Gryffindor girl beamed happily. Perhaps the rumors of the girl were true and she didn't have many friends. It was a shame. She was sweet, clever, and eager to learn. Hermione reminded her much of her own daughter... Rowena swallowed hard and asked, "Is there something I can help you with?"
"Oh," Hermione ducked her head for a brief moment before looking at Rowena again, "I was... saying hi?"
Rowena smiled patiently at the girl. She really was quite similar to her shy sweet Helena. "Hello, it's lovely to see you this evening. What are you studying tonight or is this some secret research?"
Hermione blushed and shook her head, "Just doing some homework and reading ahead." Her words came swiftly and eagerly as if afraid that Rowena would stop listening. "It's always easier to understand the subject if you read ahead before class."
"Well said." Rowena nodded in approval. "What subject will you be reading for tonight?"
"Charms?" Hermione gestured at the aisle they were currently standing in.
Chuckling softly, Rowena agreed, "Charms is a good place to start." She pulled a book by Violeta Stitch and hesitated. While Rowena was accustomed to sitting and studying alone, the girl looked a bit lonely. Making her mind up, Rowena asked, "Have you found a place to study yet?"
"Um," Hermione looked around before shaking her head, "Not yet."
"You're welcome to join me, if you'd like. I warn you now, I'm not much for conversation when I'm working, but it is not a reflection on you... it is simply how I am."
"Okay," Hermione readily agreed and swiftly went to find another book for herself.
In the meantime, Rowena went back to the table she had reserved before wandering the aisles. She chuckled a bit to herself as she sat. If Rowena hadn't known that her daughter's soul still wandered the school, she'd swear Hermione was Helena reborn. With a sigh of sadness, Rowena set the recently acquired book down and pulled out her notes. There was no time to wallow in self-pity, she had a considerable amount of parchment for her communication project to wade through and transcribe into her notebook.
After Godric had trouble getting word to them prior to heading down to save the sorcerer's stone last school year, Rowena decided to find a way for them to converse quicker, safer, privately, etc. While howlers were definitely not the answer, perhaps the theory behind the magic to create one was.
Rowena was skimming the book by Stitch by the time Hermione made it to the study table. The Gryffindor was polite enough not to interrupt the Ravenclaw's reading. Hermione gently set her own belongings down and got busy with her studies.
Other students were in the library as well. There was plenty of commotion around the pair: students walked past their table, chatted at other tables, the distant sound of scratching quills, and sporadic bursts of soft laughter. But Rowena and Hermione sat in a companionable silence.
Having set aside the book as a lost cause, Rowena began transcribing her notes from bits of parchment to her notebook. She longed for her home computer back in Cotswolds. Typing her notes was much easier than writing everything out by hand.
Rowena looked at the girl sitting across from her. Hermione was a muggleborn, she'd understand what Rowena was talking about. She was well learned, clever, and had excellent researching skills.
The girl's quill slowed to a stop. Apparently, she felt Rowena's eyes on her. Hermione looked up and blinked in surprise, before her brows furrowed in concern. "Is something wrong?"
"No," Rowena quashed that concern immediately, "nothing is wrong. I just remembered that you are a muggleborn and would understand what I'm trying to accomplish. Not that my friends wouldn't, they are half bloods after all, but other than Sal, they aren't much for research and Sal has his…tory homework…" Rowena swallowed. She was usually much more careful. She shouldn't grow too comfortable around the girl or she might slip again.
"We have homework in history?" Hermione began panicking and searching through her parchment.
"Have you had History of Magic yet?" Rowena asked in concern. She truly needed to work on her lying.
Hermione didn't stop searching - for whatever it was she was looking for - when she said, "Not yet. Our first class is tomorrow."
"Then simply read the first two chapters and you'll be ahead of the others. The homework is the same as always, but Sal hadn't picked up the book yet…" Rowena sent a mental apology to her friend.
Deflating with relief, Hermione stopped her search, "Oh… alright then…" Rowena looked at the mess she had created with her bits of spare parchment and sighed to herself. Then she began straightening out the notes again to create some semblance of order. Hermione glanced at Rowena while sorting through her belongings and asked, "So, what is it you're working on that I might help with?"
"You're familiar with telephones, but have you heard of pagers?"
"Of course." Hermione looked almost offended by the question. "My parents are dentists, they both have one. If there's an emergency, it's the easiest way to get in contact with them."
"Precisely." Rowena's eyes sparkled with excitement at the prospect of getting some answers. "Last year, you four went down for the Sorcerer's Stone." When Hermione stiffened, she held up a hand and said, "I'm not going to ask you what happened down there… but think about this." She leaned forward in her seat and asked, "You four found yourselves in a bit of an emergency situation. What if there was a magical version of a pager? How different would things have turned out if you could have requested help?"
Hermione frowned and looked down at her folded hands. "We asked for help…"
Rowena winced. "I heard. She truly failed you. I'm sorry that happened." Shaking her head, Rowena said, "I won't apologize for Professor McGonagall. There's no excuse for brushing off your concerns as she had, but I imagine her faith in the Headmaster was stronger than her belief that someone could get past his enchantments.
"Makes you wonder how four first years could manage to do so if his enchantments were supposed to be so strong." Hermione looked up in surprise at Rowena and the woman shrugged, "Think, Hermione. You may be a Gryffindor, but you have the mind of a Ravenclaw."
"It's not that." Hermione blushed at the compliment. "I just…" she hesitated then leaned forward as well. "I just thought I was the only one to wonder about that…"
"You're not," Rowena reassured her, "Ric, Helga, Sal, and I all do." Taking a cleansing breath, she changed the subject, "Now, about a magical pager…"
"There's the Protean Charm," Hermione suggested.
"I thought of that," Rowena agreed. She pulled out two of the rings she had been working with, "The trouble is stopping to change the message." Rowena sat the rings down, tapped one of the rings with her wand. The second ring warmed and vibrated causing the writing to change from 'Testing' to 'This is a test'. Rowena looked at Hermione and asked, "But what if you're in an emergency situation, and don't have the luxury of time to do so? I need something… more. I need…"
"That is a N.E.W.T. level charm." Hermione picked up one of the rings and gaped at it in surprise.
"Yes, but I need this to… react perhaps?" Rowena was momentarily distracted from her thoughts and waved off Hermione's shocked look. "Like a heart monitor of sorts. The type they have in hospitals when a patient is in ICU. But really, how can I put a ward that complicated on something so small and to do what exactly? For what purpose? I can't have it reacting to a flatline, that would be too late… an increase in a heartbeat? No, Ric's would be going off constantly… too excitable, that one…
"As it is, the rings warm and vibrate when the message changes courtesy of the Protean Charm." Rowena said in defeat, "I must put some more thought into this."
Rowena reached out for the ring that Hermione was still staring at, when the girl said, "And I was proud of myself for having learned the scouring charm on my first try…"
"As well you should be," Rowena said with a nod of sincerity and a note of pride in her voice. "That is something to be quite proud of. Well done, Hermione."
AN-Ajellah: Yes, I'm sure you recognized the words coming from the Howler. I used the book, not the movie version. Meaning no side note to Ginevra at the end.