POV of Parvati Patil

The weeks crawled by as we spent not only our evenings but every free minute in the Room of Requirement, scouring through hundreds of books in search of a helpful one. After the initial frustration, we had rallied ourselves and continued our search with renewed hope. However, that hope had slowly faded away.

It was early February when I finally reached my breaking point. Without a word, I stormed out of the Room of Requirement. James followed me seconds later, grabbing my arm as I was about to leave. Annoyed, I turned to face him, meeting the blonde boy's green eyes.

"Let me go!" I snapped, immediately regretting my harsh tone. Composing myself, I added more gently, "It's hopeless, isn't it? We've been searching for weeks and haven't found anything at all. Starting next week, we'll have no time left between homework assignments and Quidditch practice. You heard Wood's announcement – he wants to train four times a week. He's determined to win the Quidditch Cup at all costs!"

James looked down sheepishly, seemingly searching for the right words. After a moment, he raised his eyes and spoke in a calm voice:

"I know it seems hopeless to you, but I believe Hermione is slowly developing a knack for identifying helpful books. At least now they're all somehow related to Animagi. I think we're close to a breakthrough. They'll continue searching even without us – there are still seven of them, after all."

"And if they do find something?" I interrupted impatiently. "You won't have time to learn the transformation with them."

James smiled reassuringly. "Let that be my concern, Par. If I have to pull all-nighters to finish my homework, so be it. It's worth it."

I couldn't fathom how he planned to manage it all. I was already swamped with homework alone, and I knew I'd have to burn the midnight oil more than once to complete my assignments.

I was struggling to concentrate on the numerous essays I still had to write as I sat with James in a quiet corner of the common room later that day. My mind was racing with thoughts, but the biggest mystery remained Cat-Lee's absence since the Christmas holidays.

It was as if she had vanished into thin air, completely untraceable. Was she avoiding us? Had she begun to doubt our plan to become Animagi? Would she betray us to a teacher?

Multiple times in the Room of Requirement, I had searched the Marauder's Map for her in vain. She was simply nowhere to be found. Given the map's complexity, with its many rooms and people, I might have overlooked her. In crowded areas like the Great Hall, names often overlapped, becoming illegible.

I was growing increasingly worried that Cat-Lee might not have returned to Hogwarts at all, perhaps attending a different school now, or that she had suddenly taken a dislike to us.

I had always gotten along well with Cat-Lee, despite not spending much time with her. Being a Ravenclaw, she naturally spent more time with her housemates than with us Gryffindors. Nevertheless, I had considered her a friend and found it disheartening that we apparently weren't as important to her as she was to us.

The resumption of the Quidditch season came at a perfect time. I had desperately missed flying, and it left me no time to fret about Cat-Lee or the Animagus situation. However, Wood's first scheduled training session was far from ideal. Our lack of practice was glaringly obvious, prompting Wood to constantly berate us for our mistakes. After two grueling hours, we were all so exhausted and frustrated that Wood dismissed us, seeing no point in continuing.

Post-training, I settled in the common room to work on an essay while James headed off to help the others in the Room of Requirement. The boy was clearly mad! How did he expect to manage his homework with so much on his plate? He'd be burning the midnight oil, which I couldn't bear to see. I resolved to help him later, offering my notes at the very least – it was the minimum I could do, given his dedication.

Throughout the evening, I felt watched, glancing up from my books every few minutes. Hours passed before I caught Veatrix staring at me, apparently lost in thought. When she noticed my gaze, her expression quickly shifted back to its usual disdain before she turned away. As always, she sat alone in a corner of the common room. Inexplicably, I felt a surge of pity for her. It must be incredibly difficult to be in a house where everyone condemned her family. True, she condemned us too, but her loneliness was palpable.

On impulse, I gathered my things and approached her. As I sat down across from her, I realized we'd never had a normal conversation. For a fleeting moment, her face registered surprise before reverting to its usual expressionless, indifferent mask.

The atmosphere was tense. Lacking a better idea, I opened with a friendly "Hi." Veatrix didn't even look at me as she responded seconds later with a toneless, disinterested "Hey."

Before I could formulate my next words, she abruptly stood up, curtly announcing her intention to sleep, and vanished towards the dormitory.

THAT was undoubtedly the most uncomfortable situation I had ever experienced. She hadn't even given me a chance to speak.

For a fleeting moment, I considered following her but quickly dismissed the idea. Why should I? I had made the effort to reach out, offering her a chance to be included, to have her say. And what had she done? Fled immediately.

If she was determined to be an outsider, then no one could help her. She'd forever remain the student who ended up in the wrong house, liked by no one. Those who reject opportunities have only themselves to blame. SHE should be the one approaching us.

I was just penning the final sentence of my Potions essay when Hermione, Ariana, and James climbed through the portrait hole. Relieved to see familiar faces, I waved them over, and they joined me.

I glanced expectantly between the three, but my hopes for good news were quickly dashed. Given that we weren't alone in the common room, Hermione simply shook her head sadly before burying herself behind a large book, likely from the Room of Requirement. Ariana, who had apparently already completed her homework with Hermione, bid us farewell to join her cousins. James, with a weary sigh, pulled out his Potions book and writing materials.

"Here, use these. I've just finished the essay," I mumbled, discreetly sliding my notes to James. Hermione, of course, noticed but surprisingly only gave me a reproachful look before returning to her book. Even she seemed to understand that James couldn't possibly manage the homework alone in such a short time.

James smiled gratefully and began writing. It was just after midnight, and we were the last ones in the common room when he finished all his essays with my help. We'd only draw the Astronomy star chart the next day, but that was the least of our concerns.

He mentioned that the Room of Requirement had changed again, growing larger and housing even more books. I had suspected this too but thought I was imagining things.

When I told him about the Veatrix situation, he smiled. "You're too nice sometimes. Don't worry if she doesn't want anything to do with us."

"I know," I replied. "But how does she manage without friends? I'd go crazy without you all."

"You already are," James grinned, nimbly dodging my playful swat. His reflexes never ceased to amaze me.

"We should get some sleep," I suggested.

"Yes, we should," he agreed, meeting my eyes. He hesitated for a moment before wishing me goodnight and heading towards the boys' dormitories.