It's Just a Cat. Or is it?
Chapter 2
Rose woke up and stared in confusion at the heavy red velvet curtains. Oh, yeah. She was at Hogwarts, in Scotland, four thousand miles from home. She stared at the top of her bed, wide awake.
She stuck her hand out of the curtains and groped around until she found her clock. Squinting to read the time, she saw it was 3:26 AM. She fell back on her bed, clutching the clock to her chest. In about four hours, she would get her schedule and go for breakfast. She hoped they wouldn't have oatmeal. She hated oatmeal. She tossed over on her side and after an hour of wondering what tomorrow would be like, finally fell back into a dreamless sleep.
It felt like five minutes had gone by when Lily thrust open the curtains and light streamed in from behind her. She squinted up at her new friend.
"Hey, are you going to sleep all day? We have to meet Professor McGonagall to get our schedules in ten minutes. Come on! Get dressed. I'll meet you downstairs."
Rose threw off the covers and jumped out of the bed. She had set out her robes and uniform the night before. Her pajamas flew through the air and landed on the bed as she quickly dressed in her uniform. She gathered her hair into a high ponytail, grabbed her bookbag filled with her new textbooks, and raced down the stairs.
A breathless Rose joined Lily with a smile and a whispered thanks for waking her up. They gathered together with the other first years students congregating in the Common Room. The boy with the glasses that sat next to Lily last night was talking to a tall skinny boy with dark curly hair and a short mousy boy with buck teeth.
Professor McGonagall emerged through the portrait hole with her hand filled with small pieces of parchment. "When I call your name, come up and get your schedule. Do not lose them!"
Rose discovered that the boy with the glasses was James and the dark-haired boy was Sirius. She nodded at Sirius when he caught her staring. James nudged him hard on the shoulder and started laughing. She struggled to not roll her eyes. Boys were dumb.
After passing out the schedules, Professor McGonagall said, "Follow me to the Great Hall for morning announcements and breakfast."
They followed her through the maze of staircases and floors, many muttering that they would never learn their way around the school. Upon entering the Great Hall, they looked in open-mouthed amazement at the ceiling, which was enchanted to look like a sunny blue sky with puffy white clouds. There was a roar of commotion as the students of all ages filed in and greeted their friends, eventually settling into seats at long wooden tables which were decorated with banners for each house.
"Hey, Rose!" Lily called over the din. "Show me your schedule. What classes do you have?"
The two heads bent together as they poured over their class schedules. Lily exclaimed, "One, two, three, four! We have four classes together!" Rose smiled and was about to respond when…
"Quiet!"
A man in pale robes, a long white beard, and half-moon glasses stood with his wand pointed to his throat. The students immediately quietened, and he lowered his wand since it was no longer needed.
"Good morning! Just a reminder that all students are not allowed to enter the Forbidden Forest. ALL students. Also, Filch has kindly asked that you avoid the second-floor bathroom until further notice. It seems Peeves has caused the toilets to overflow."
Lily and Rose jumped when they noticed the long table was now loaded with delicious dishes.
"Now, please, enjoy your breakfast!"
Rose reached for a plate covered with a cloth directly in front of her plate. Her mouth began to water as she discovered a pile of fluffy golden-brown biscuits. Next to the plate of biscuits was a tureen of sausage gravy.
"Oh, yum!" Rose exclaimed.
A boy, James, sitting across from Lily and Rose, reached out and grabbed a biscuit. "What is this?"
He pulled apart the biscuit and steam rose into the air. He sniffed and drew back with suspicion.
"This is a weird scone."
Rose grabbed a biscuit, pulled it apart, and laid it on her plate. "It isn't a scone. It's a biscuit, and they are delicious."
She grabbed the gravy tureen and poured a generous portion of sausage gravy over the biscuit.
"Yuck. That looks like vomit," said Sirius.
"Don't knock it until you try it," Rose replied. Using her fork to cut a small piece, she took a bite, savoring the buttery flavor and spicy sausage. She covered her mouth with her hand so they wouldn't see her food, because she couldn't help exclaiming, "Oh, this is even better than Mom's!"
The boys looked on with suspicion, but Sirius decided to give it a try as they watched Rose enjoy her breakfast. Rose watched with a smirk as he took his first bite. As Sirius chewed, his expression went from disgust to amazement. He dug in and began to eat as if the plate was going to disappear. James watched Sirius, not convinced.
Sirius pointed his fork at the plate of biscuits. "You have to try that." Then went back to eating.
Lily smiled, "Would you pass the biscuits to me? I want to give them a try."
Rose handed the plate of biscuits to Lily. She smiled to herself. She had a feeling her mom was responsible for this little taste of home.