Patience was not a virtue commonly attributed to Rose Weasley. She really tried, but once she was done with her final exams, she found it difficult to focus on anything except the fact that they would finally be discovering who their new headmistress was in only a few short days. The waiting was like torture.
When she first began at Hogwarts, there were plenty of things to be nervous abut. Her parents had told her about their time there and she worried about all of it. Would she do well in classes, like her mother? Would she make friends outside of her rather large family group, or would she be ostracized due to her lineage?
She never worried about the professors themselves, though. It was the one bit of comfort she had entering school. Rose had known a number of the professors most of her life, since they remained in touch with her parents. Even Professor McGonagall had been known to drop in on family gatherings. Rose entered Hogwarts feeling like she had that one thing under control.
She had written her parents during the year to ask about the search for the new head of school, but both of them claimed to have no knowledge of the upcoming appointment. Rose had seen Professor McGonagall walking the grounds with a number of individuals, people who all had their name in the hat to lead Hogwarts for the years to come. She didn't recognize a single face.
When there was only one day left before the announcement, however, an appealing distraction swooped in on the leg of an owl whose appearance made Rose drop her plate, ignoring the food it spilled on the table.
"Selena!" she screeched, unaware of the heads that turned to stare at her outburst.
Selena swooped down in a graceful arc to land in front of Rose, and didn't even make an indignant hoot as Rose piled her into her arms.
"You silly, silly bird," she murmured, petting her feathers like she would a cat, "you had me worried sick!"
"Oi!" said James, plopping down across from Rose with Lysander, whose face lit with immediate interest. "You got your owl back!"
"She has a letter," Lysander pointed out. "Is it...?"
Rose quickly set Selena down and undid the tether on her leg. The scroll was sealed with dark blue wax imprinted with the mark of a raven.
"After breakfast," she said hurriedly, tucking the letter into her pocket. "Can we all go downstairs?"
"Can't we just use the library?" groaned James. "It's not like we're trading international secrets here."
Rose glared at him but nodded. Lysander made a brief visit to the Ravenclaw table to inform Lorcan of the plan, and Rose looked to the Slytherins, where Scorpius was still looking their way. Apparently she had made a bit of a scene with the arrival of her owl. His attention was quickly stolen away by Lily tugging at his sleeve, but Rose figured she had gotten her point across and he would hang behind after the meal.
They all made idle chit-chat on their way to the library, and though Rose could tell that Scorpius had no idea what was going on, he didn't ask why they were all meeting up until they had made certain that they were alone. Clare was reshelving some of the older books and had looked surprised to see students visiting the library after their exams were over, but was far enough away to give them their privacy.
"Dmitri mentioned in his last letter that Selena had been sick," explained Rose once they had all gotten settled, "and that once she was well again, she kept coming back with his letters. He couldn't get her off the grounds. The last letter was sent from a nearby town when a friend of his was there on business."
"Did he mention what town?" asked Scorpius curiously.
"No," said Rose flatly, "and I'm not asking, so don't even think about it. You know how secretive Durmstrang is about their location. Let's see what this one says."
She broke the seal on the letter and read it aloud.
Dear Rose,
You have the most odd friends in all the world.
At this, James began to laugh, but Albus and Lorcan shushed him. Rose continued.
The twins visited Durmstrang this year to help repair old enchanted swimming field. Hard to explain. They look different, but I'm certain it is still the small witch twins from Hogwarts. They also told me how you played with the dragons. I am still thinking you are crazy girl.
I am in the final round of applying for wandmaker apprenticeship. I can go be apprentice starting middle of the next year, after Yule time. We do half of year five before apprenticeship, if we go. I will not go if I do not have this one because all others are boring for me. My scores are very high, and the interview was very good. I am very hopeful, and you should be too. I can write more if I have apprenticeship.
I had visit from old friend two months ago. He would like to speak about my necklace, but I have no interest in that. I do not know why he was allowed in school but cannot ask many things. It is how it is.
I am taking more classes this summer hoping that I can prepare for the apprenticeship. I will try to write more but do not know if the letters will leave. The twins say they will get you this letter and your owl, who I will miss.
I miss you and the others a great lot. Please tell everyone that I send my best regards and wishes. Your last letter was very funny to make sense of. It is in my box with my special things.
I will try to write soon. Do not miss me too much.
Vrana.
Rose laughed as she set down the letter.
"Do not miss me too much," quoted James with a grin. "What a guy."
"I'll see about writing back when we're back at the Grange," said Rose, "but definitely not with Selena. She'll be staying at home for a while."
"Don't blame you," said Scorpius with a frown. "So... Alistair went to Durmstrang to visit Dmitri? What's that about?"
"And sent him something for Christmas," Rose reminded him. "I hate that he's still popping up like that. I can't imagine how it makes Dmitri feel."
"Maybe he's trying to make amends," offered Lysander half-heartedly. "For... you know... the whole Rafael thing."
"Sure," said Rose dubiously, "because that sounds just like him."
They stayed in the library, bouncing around theories about Alistair ranging from the believable to the bizarre for the next hour or so. Clare eventually returned to her desk, which they took as their cue to return to their common rooms.
But when they reached the stairwell, no one was eager to move. After a moment, Scorpius looked towards the stairs and shrugged.
"Not much going on today," he said, shifting awkwardly. "Wanna go down to the lake?"
"Absolutely," said Rose with a relieved sigh. She had secretly been dreading the thought of staying inside all day. She could pack her things later that night. "James, you coming?"
It was James' turn to look awkward. After a moment, he grinned and shook his head.
"Should go see Louis," he said with a half-shrug. "He's going a bit mental about how he did on his O.W.L.s, could use some company."
"Of course," said Rose with a soft smile. "See you later."
They waited until James disappeared before heading downstairs to the entrance hall. Scorpius was still wearing a slight frown.
"I didn't-" he finally began.
"He's fine," Rose interjected at once, "he's still getting used to us all being friends. He's coming around."
"It's been three years," muttered Scorpius crossly. But after that, he seemed to shake off his gloomy mood. It was nearly impossible to be cross when faced with the gleaming sunlight pouring down around the lake. The squid, which was the lake's largest inhabitant (Rose believed- she made a mental note to ask Clare whether or not that was true), was floating some of its tendrils towards the surface, taking in the warmth of the sun.
They spent the rest of the morning that way and then most of the afternoon, only ducking inside when their stomachs reminded them that they should grab some lunch. Rose could practically feel the freckles on her nose and cheeks deepening with every passing hour, but for now she didn't mind. She had found a particularly comfortable stretch of grass and was debating the merits of studying abroad with Scorpius, who lay on his stomach next to her.
"I'm just saying, it's disruptive," said Rose lazily. "When Aunt Luna went to Beauxbatons, she had to spend more time there than she planned because of how different their curriculum is. They don't even take the N.E.W.T.s."
"But that means there's so much out there that we're not learning," countered Scorpius. "Shouldn't we have a chance to find out what other schools are teaching?"
"Not according to Durmstrang," Albus pointed out. "I'm still surprised Aunt Luna was even allowed into Beauxbatons."
Lysander shrugged. "They had just finished the war," he said. "I think all she had to do was tell the Ministry that she wasn't comfortable coming back to Hogwarts and they bent over backwards finding her somewhere else to go."
"Makes sense to me," said Lorcan, his eyes still closed as they had been for most of an hour. "Oh, and the new Headmistress is already here."
Rose sat up sharply, causing her hair to flip into her eyes. Lysander chuckled as she batted the hair away furiously.
"She is?" squeaked Rose. "But I thought we were meeting her tomorrow!"
"We are," said Lorcan calmly. "I guess she just wants to get settled in."
"So your Sight is pretty much back to normal?" said Scorpius, still lounging on his stomach.
"Pretty much," echoed Lorcan. "Mum wants me to go slowly, just in case, but I can already feel that everything is better." He scowled, finally opening his eyes, and added, "I'm going to have a dreadful time catching up with Sibyll next year."
They all laughed at his expression and continued to soak in the sun, moving on to debate which of the potential headmistresses they had seen with Professor McGonagall had won out. Rose could honestly only remember two of them: the Albanian witch, and the woman from the Salem Institute. Neither of them had left a particularly positive or negative impression.
She was actually more concerned with the fact that as her last conversation with the man, there was still no replacement for Professor Slughorn. Potions was such an important part of their curriculum, and they couldn't afford to have a lackluster professor appointed because all of the attention had been spent elsewhere.
However, she seemed to be the only one worried about the more minor appointment. Word had spread throughout the castle that the new headmistress was to be arriving the following day, and the students were all buzzing with the news. Even the girls in Rose's dormitory were discussing it when she returned to change before dinner, her clothes covered in grass and specks of dirt that a certain Potter brother had flung at her on a dare.
"I think it might be that handsome bloke from Scotland," said Kara, leaning against her bed dreamily. "He would be a wonderful choice."
"I heard they chose a witch," said Mary, looking up from a letter she was writing. "Probably the American one. She looked pretty put-together, don't you think Rose?"
"I guess," said Rose noncommittally. "What do you think, Tia?"
Tia shrugged, biting into a chocolate from the tin by her bed. Rose wanted to tease her for eating sweets right before dinner, but then Tia nudged the tin closer to her and indicated that she should take one. Ah, well, what was one chocolate in the grand scheme of things?
"Beats me," sighed Tia once she had swallowed her chocolate. "Dunno if anyone will live up to McGonagall, really. But Hogwarts has had loads of really great headmasters, and I mean... it's McGonagall we're talking about. She wouldn't leave us with someone shoddy, you know? And if they visited us this past year and still want the school, it means they can take on anything it has to throw at them."
Rose realized that she had needed that last bit of reassurance. It wasn't like when her parents were students and the school was run by a well-meaning but ill-planning old wizard who allowed dangerous situations to unwind around the students without properly preparing them to handle them. Professor McGonagall would never walk away from this school without not only filling her role with the best possible candidate, but also taking care of the Potions vacancy. She didn't have a thing to worry about.
Walking into dinner the next evening, Rose felt remarkably calm amidst the tittering students who were eager to catch a glimpse of the new headmistress. Rose immediately spotted the witch sitting at Professor McGonagall's right, chatting with their headmistress animatedly. It was, indeed, the witch from the Salem Institute, which James pointed out as soon as she sat.
"I knew it," he said with a great deal more certainty than he had had the night before when he said he was about thirty-five percent sure it would be this witch. "Oh, this'll be interesting. Did you know it's the only gender-barred school in America?"
"Wizarding school," Rose corrected him automatically, "and I still think there are probably a few smaller ones that no one writes about- or perhaps no one knows about. But yes, that's her."
James' face fell, and she realized that he had genuinely thought he was bringing new information to the table.
"But it's very interesting, isn't it?" said Rose, leaning towards James with a grin. "Maybe she'll make all the boys sleep in the dungeons, and we can have Gryffindor Tower just for the girls!"
James chuckled and gave her a light shove, which still nearly sent Rose toppling into the student on her left.
"Sorry," said Rose hurriedly, straightening herself. "Lost my balance."
"You're so tiny," James complained, "it's not fair. You know, Cameron's leaving at the end of this year-"
"So I've heard," said Rose, raising a brow.
"-and we're gonna have a few open spots on the team," he continued, ignoring her interjection. "You could really whip through the sky like that."
"I'm good, thanks," said Rose, shaking her head with a grin. James would probably try and convince her to enjoy flying for the rest of his time at Hogwarts- and perhaps he would write to her during her seventh year, just in case she was able to be persuaded in the final hour.
Lysander and Albus arrived together, both distracted by the new member of the Head Table. Albus nearly walked into the end of the table, unwilling to look away from the new headmistress. Lysander tugged him over to sit across from James and Rose, where they finally looked away.
"So, the American witch," said Lysander, nodding thoughtfully. "Interesting."
"Rose says she'll put us all in the dungeons," grumbled James. Rose rolled her eyes and ignored him. It looked like all of the tables were nearly full. Everyone seemed to be putting off their emotional exchanges with the departing seventh years in favor of the new arrival.
Professor McGonagall finished her conversation, surveyed the room, then stood, clasping her hands in front of her. There was immediate silence. She grinned and chuckled, the soft sound seeming to fill the room.
"If I knew I could silence you all just by my departure," she said lightly, "perhaps I would have threatened to leave years ago."
Some of the students laughed, particularly the older ones. Down the table, Rose saw Dominique using a napkin to wipe at her eyes.
"As I informed you at the beginning of the year," continued Professor McGonagall, "I have spent the year working to find my replacement to lead you as Hogwarts' head. Throughout my interviews, there was one candidate who stood out, and through our further conversations, I knew that she would due a truly commendable job as the next Headmistress of Hogwarts. Please extend a warm welcome to Headmistress Merryweather Hoff."
Applause rang through the Hall, though Rose was clapping mostly for Professor McGonagall. She would be missed.
Professor McGonagall took a moment to soak in the applause before sitting once more, gesturing to Professor Hoff to stand. Rose turned her attention to this new witch, taking in her appearance.
She was certainly younger than Professor McGonagall, but that was not saying too much. She wore her dark blonde hair clipped in a bob by her ears. She was wearing simple navy robes with minimal embroidery by the wrists and a smaller pointed hat than the other witches at the table. Rose supposed that it must be some American trend. Professor Hoff took a moment of silence to survey the room before speaking.
"Thank you for such a warm welcome," she said. Her voice was warm but reedy, and though Rose was expecting the accent, it still managed to take her by surprise. "As Professor McGonagall said, I am Professor Hoff. I spent ten years as the Chair of Life Magics at the Salem Witches' Institute, which is located in North America. I spent five years before that working as one of the associate professors for Basic Transfiguration and Basic Charms, before finding my passion in Life Magics. I have been traveling for the past three years studying African tribal charms and binding rituals, and recently arrived in Europe- just in time to hear of the search for Hogwarts headmastery. I was honored to receive an appointment with Professor McGonagall, and things took a life of their own from there!"
Rose had managed to adjust to the accent but was now fully enthralled by Professor Hoff's words. She was not the only one: Lysander was leaning so far forward, he was nearly entirely off the bench. Some of the Ravenclaws appeared to be openly drooling. At the mention of the African tribal charms, a few of the Slytherins began to murmur appreciatively.
"Change is difficult for everyone," continued Professor Hoff with a genial smile, "and I am not going to attempt to be Professor McGonagall. I could hardly manage a day of her life! I would like to take next year as a chance to get to know Hogwarts and its students so I can better tend to its needs. Assistant Headmistress Ardenia will be assisting me in all of this, so know I won't be going at it blind!"
On Professor Hoff's other side, Professor Ardenia smiled and murmured something to the new headmistress, who nodded.
"Sorry- Deputy Headmistress," she corrected. "I'm still adjusting to the different names for things on this side of the pond. Anyway, Professor Ardenia will be here to make sure nothing gets overlooked and help run the day to day of Hogwarts, allowing me to get to know the school on a more personal level. I'm sure we'll have a lot more to cover when we return from summer break, so I will leave you to your feast. Please enjoy!"
Professor Hoff sat to more applause. Professor McGonagall stood again, raising her hands for silence.
"A few more housekeeping things before we eat," she said as the students quieted themselves. "First, the time has come to award the Quidditch Cup to Slytherin, whose team persevered throughout the season to come out victorious. Professor Slughorn, you should be proud of your house."
Professor Slughorn was also crying at this point. Professor McGonagall leaned in to him and said a few quiet words, which he waved away with a laugh, taking the ornate golden trophy she was holding out.
"And now," continued Professor McGonagall to the students, "as you may have noticed, we have decorated to celebrate this year's House Cup champions! Professor Randor, congratulations to your Ravenclaws. The point differential this year is… truly staggering."
A loud cheer erupted from Ravenclaw table and Rose looked around, noticing for the first time that the Great Hall was decked in blue and bronze. It appeared that she- along with many of the other students- had been so focused on their new headmistress that they had failed to notice the house decorations hanging throughout the space.
"Ah, well," said James with an unconcerned shrug, "there's always next year."
And there would be.