Meanwhile, back at Hogwarts, Daphne got her long-awaited reply from Anastasia on the first Friday of October. Her face glowed as she hastily opened the envelope and read its contents:

"27 September 1991

Dear Daphne,

It's good to hear from you again! I can't believe September is almost over – it practically flew by! In just a couple of weeks, our first Quiz Bowl competition starts – I could use some good vibes! I'm not going to lie, I'm actually quite nervous… I don't want to look like an idiot in front of the whole school! I'm the only second-year student of all four houses so I feel a lot of pressure to succeed.

How many different uniforms do you have at Hogwarts? We have three – in addition to our formal robes and our daily uniforms, we also have workout uniforms for mandatory physical exercise each weekday morning. I don't know if Hogwarts has anything like that…

I've included a picture of my cat Scaggs. He's a big ball of fluff – he's always kept me warm on chilly nights! He can be a bit of a stinker sometimes, but usually he's a sweet baby.

I also like the name of your furbaby. Erebus was the primordial Greek god of darkness, so it is pretty fitting for a black cat! I've also heard of Kneazles – according to legend, they can 'sniff out' suspicious people. Does Erebus react to shady people at times?

Let me know if you and your family ever decide to visit! My family lives near Chicago, to give you an idea where I'm from. They might not be magical, but I promise they're good people.

I can't wait to get your next reply. Please pay attention and study hard – I'm sure you already do, as you come across as a very bright girl – but the stickler in me just wants all my friends to succeed, whether at Ilvermorny or Hogwarts!

With love from Ilvermorny,

Anastasia"

"Oh, what a pretty baby she's got," cooed Daphne as she admired the photograph of Anastasia's massive brown and grey-striped Maine Coon.

"Hey! Let me see," came a high-pitched squeak from across the table. Daphne covered her mouth with a hand to stifle a giggle before handing the photo to Hermione. A large, rare smile appeared on her face, exposing her orthodontic work in all its glory. "Wow, what a cute, fluffly bundle of love… I wish I had one like that."

"Didn't you say you had allergies?" asked Parvati with an arched eyebrow.

"I don't have allergies, but my parents do," Hermione clarified. "Hence the reason I'm not allowed to have pets besides goldfish."

"Or perhaps the real reason is, your parents thought your brace-face might scare away those poor animals," snickered Lavender. Daphne cleared her throat and threw Lavender a look of clear disapproval.

"Would you stop teasing Hermione about her teeth already?!" she growled; her last few words crescendoed into a near-shout. "That poor girl can't help it; she's self-conscious enough as it is without getting commentary from the peanut gallery! How would you like it if she made fun of that big old birthmark that runs from behind your ear and down your neck?"

"I wouldn't like that at all," huffed Lavender. "I've been teased about it when I was younger… it was a little hurtful."

"See, it can go both ways," replied Daphne in a much gentler tone. "And since you have a frame of reference, you really should be a bit more sympathetic."

Lavender turned toward Hermione. "I'm sorry for making fun of your teeth. I know you don't like the way you look right now, but Daphne is right… you're a beautiful girl exactly as you are, and you will have a lovely smile once those things come off. I promise to do a better job of not making fun going forward, okay?" Daphne nodded approvingly, and Parvati offered Hermione a friendly smile.

"Thank you," murmured Hermione.

"We really ought to do something about that persistent bedhead of yours," added Parvati. "Like Daphne said before, if you want us to give you a bit of a hand, just let us know! We might not know a lot of makeover charms yet, but we'll do what we can to help."

Hermione's eyes looked upward in thought. "Hmm… maybe a French braid, or a halo braid would be nice…"

"How about tomorrow morning?" offered Daphne. "We can see how things go tomorrow, so you can wow your parents when you see them for Christmas break! They'll hardly recognize you!"

"That's fine," sighed Hermione. "Just try not to take all day… we do have a fair bit of studying that we really need to get done."

Daphne giggled. "With the three of us, it shouldn't take long at all."

Back at Ilvermorny that same day, once she had finished her last class of the afternoon, Ana darted to Professor Frye's office to attend her second Quiz Bowl meeting of the term. Frye was deep in discussion with Professor Goode, ostensibly about the upcoming Quiz Bowl, but she noticed the girl in the corner of her eye and addressed her with a warm smile.

"Make yourself comfortable, Miss Harrison," Frye said, gesturing toward her office door. "Don't worry about waiting for me – we'll start at 4:30 on the nose."

Ana plopped her heavy bookbag on the ground and took a seat in one of several plush armchairs. She quickly took out a quill, some ink and some parchment just in case there was anything important for her to write down. She waited quietly for the rest of the team to assemble; to pass the time she buried her nose in a classic Agatha Christie mystery novel.

As luck would have it, Morgan Doolittle was the next student to take her seat in Frye's office. She threw Ana a sharp, spiteful glare. "I see you haven't taken my advice to quit the team. If you're so insistent on being on the team, then at the very least keep your mouth shut and let the upperclassmen handle everything. Your presence is neither wanted, nor needed."

Ana didn't even bother giving Morgan the satisfaction of a response; she didn't even look up from her book.

Morgan's sneer grew so large that if it was any larger, it would have engulfed the entirety of her face. "Did you hear what I just said, Poindexter? Your sole purpose on this team is to be seen and not heard… I will not have a measly second-year tarnish the good name of the Horned Serpent house!"

Ana gave Morgan a brief, impassive glance before returning to her mystery.

Morgan stormed over to Ana and looked ready to tear into the smaller girl. "I'm talking to you, Harrison. Don't you dare ignore me, you pitiful…"

A sharp, yet familiar soprano growl emerged from behind Morgan. "That's enough, Doolittle. That's the second time you've stepped out of line regarding Miss Harrison. She has earned the right to be here; as such, she deserves a far higher degree of respect than what you've shown so far."

Morgan turned around to address the stern figure. She rolled her eyes at her ponytailed blonde classmate. "Ludwig," she hissed. "I should have known you were prowling the halls, eavesdropping on conversations that don't pertain to you… ever since you've gotten what should have been my trustee sash, you've been practically bucking for a chance to pull rank on me."

"It is my business if I catch one of my fellow Horned Serpents harassing another student," retorted Missy. "And I don't care if you have a problem with Ana being on the team. You can either accept her as your teammate, or you can take it up with Professor Frye." She narrowed her eyes and drew her wand. "For the record, I don't need to pull rank on you, Doolittle. If you think yourself so much better than me, then name the time and place and prove it." She enunciated her final words in a low, deliberate manner. "I really don't think you'd like the outcome should you try to push your luck."

Morgan's fingers waggled as she considered reaching for her wand, but just as quickly retracted after giving it a moment's thought. A greasy smirk crept on to her face. "Tut tut, Ludwig. Were you just trying to goad me into a witch's duel? That's conduct rather unbecoming of a trustee, wouldn't you think?" The smirk then evaporated, and she turned her nose up in the air. "No matter. I reject your proposal on the grounds of you being my social inferior." Her nasty smirk returned with a vengeance. "But don't worry… you'll get your just desserts one day, whether by my hand or by fate."

Missy didn't back down. "The next time you harass or threaten another student – I don't care if they're a Horned Serpent or not – you'll have me to deal with. And the sash will come off."

"And I'll make sure the sash stays off," grumbled Morgan as Missy turned around and left the office. "For good."

Just as Missy and Morgan finished their spat, the rest of the Horned Serpent Quiz Bowl team made their way into the office, followed by Professor Frye.

Frye clapped her hands once and nodded toward the members of the Quiz Bowl team. "Thank you all for coming this afternoon – as you all should know by now, our first competition is coming up two weeks from today. For those of you who are not familiar with how Quiz Bowls work, there are three rounds per competition. The first round is what's called the 'toss-up' round; that is, any player from any team may hit their buzzer to answer the question. It consists of thirty questions, and each correctly answered question is worth ten points."

She paused momentarily, then continued. "The second round is what's known as the 'lightning round'. All four houses, in turn, will be asked a series of questions – worth five points each – and the goal is to answer as many correctly as possible within two minutes. Remember that your buzzers will be turned off temporarily when another house is up. And finally, the third round is the 'bonus round'. Each team may wager as many – or as few – points as they'd like. The final round consists of a single question, and all team members – including alternates, as this the only round they may take part – may be included in a one-minute huddle to discuss and answer the final question. Is everyone with me so far?"

After a few nods and rounds of "Yes, Professors," Frye then handed out parchments to each of the Horned Serpent team members. "The scope of the questions will be limited to those of the six core classes: Charms, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Herbology, History of Magic, Potions, and Transfiguration. In addition to your textbooks, questions may also come from these volumes, all of which are unrestricted in the school library. You may have to share as there is a finite number of copies."

At dinner that evening, Harry noticed that Ana was a bit quieter than usual; not that she was a particularly loquacious girl to begin with, but there was something about her demeanor that was a bit odd to him.

"Hey Ana," Harry said in between bites of his meatloaf. "You're kinda quiet this evening… is everything alright?"

Ana gave Harry a thin smile. "Yeah, Harry… just busy is all. I have my first Quiz Bowl competition coming up in two weeks, and I just have a lot to prepare for is all." She sighed. "I promise I'm not forgetting about you, but the Quiz Bowl is a pretty major commitment… I probably won't be able to study with you as much."

"Oh," replied Harry with some disappointment. "I mean, I s'pose you gotta do what you gotta do…"

"I'll still study with you guys some, it's just not going to be as frequent," Ana clarified. "It'll probably be that way until the spring at least, and then we can resume our normal routine again, or at least find something close to it."

"Unless the Horned Serpents win the Quiz Bowl cup, and you get to go to Scotland," chimed in Tallulah. "You'll probably have to study harder than ever for that."

"That's in April, so there'll be well over a month for us to go over the final exam material when I get back," said Ana. "Assuming the Horned Serpents win the Quiz Bowl cup, of course. The other three houses have some sharp players too, don't forget." She smiled at her friends. "Look, you guys are all pretty bright. I don't mind helping you, but I also don't want you to depend on me to pass all your classes. You need to learn to study for yourselves… it's not all that hard. It just takes some discipline is all, and the three of you can quiz each other."

"So, what do you recommend we try?" asked Othniel. "Do you have any studying suggestions?"

"Weeellll," replied Ana, "there's SQRRR – survey, question, read, recite, review… pretty tried-and-true. That's what I fall back on if I don't have a 'study partner'. There's also the Feynmann method, or 'teach-it-back', where you go over what you just learned in class and try to retell it to a friend as if they were listening for the first time." She smiled sweetly at her friends. "We can try those in person this weekend if you'd like. I can probably spare an hour or two, but not much more than that."

"All right," sighed Harry. "I appreciate whatever help you can give us, but it's just not going to be the same without you."