Guest: I'm so glad you're enjoying! Thank you for reading & reviewing! I wanted to give Aurora a less direct interjection into canon, while still having her present, which is why she found Hermione before the troll was let loose. She's still a little too nervous to be telling people off too much…but she's getting more confident :) There will be more canon-deviating, especially as we get into later plots & more established friendships!
It was very nearly Christmas!
In mid-December, as if overnight, Hogwarts found itself covered in several feet of snow. It sparkled in the morning sun, blindingly white and untouched. The lake had frozen solid as well, thick enough for students to ice skate without worry. The once bustling owl mail had all but ceased, as the last few owls to brave the snowy skies had had to be nursed back to health by Hagrid.
Many students had taken to spending their breaks between classes in the snow. Aurora could barely make it halfway to class without having to dodge an ill-aimed snowball, or without tripping over a new snow-creature or fort, many of which had started to disfigure under the footsteps of students. Snowmen stood sentinel across the grounds, often decorated with House memorabilia and food that had been smuggled out of the Great Hall. A few of the snowmen blinked or waved when students passed by, while those built by more advanced students sang Christmas carols on repeat.
In fact, practicing magic on the snow had become something of a new challenge for the students, much to the chagrin of the professors and Filch. Seemingly the leaders of the chaos, the Weasley twins had been punished for bewitching a handful of snowballs to follow Quirrell around anytime he was outside. Aurora had seen it for herself: the snowballs would launch themselves against the back of his turban and crumble to the ground as the professor searched for the culprit, only to reform into perfectly good snowballs the moment he turned around again.
Aurora detested this weather. While she thought the snow was pretty and, like the rest of Hogwarts, couldn't wait for the holidays to start, she absolutely hated being cold. It made her teeth chatter incessantly and, despite knowing she needed to, she felt silly being so bundled up - her eyes barely visible between the thick hat and scarf she would wear on the particularly blustery days.
Luckily, much of the castle was kept warm and cozy. The Great Hall was always toasty, with mugs of warmed cider and snowflakes that would dissolve just before reaching the platters of piping hot food, and the Slytherin Prefects had cast warming spells on all lake-adjacent windows in the dormitories, to keep the chill from getting inside. And yet, Professor Snape preferred to keep the potions classroom icy.
Aurora drew her robes tighter around her shoulders and cursed herself for not wearing thicker socks the moment she saw her breath mist out in front of her. All she, Theo, Pansy, and Daphne could do was huddle as close to their bubbling cauldrons as they dared,holding their fingers to the flames to keep them from going numb.
"I do feel sorry," Draco said during one of these lessons, his voice loud enough to purposefully be overheard, "for all those people who have to stay at Hogwarts for Christmas because they're not wanted at home."
He was looking directly at Harry as he spoke, Crabbe and Goyle chuckling on either side of him. He had been acting even nastier than usual, ever since Slytherin had lost the Quidditch match to Gryffindor, and of course, most of his jabs were directed at Harry. He had tried making mocking comparisons - soup ladle, wide-mouthed tree frog, butterfly net - but nothing he said could distract from how impressed everyone still was at how Harry had remained on his bucking broomstock, while still managing to catch the Snitch. So Draco had gone back to taunting Harry about his family - or, lack thereof.
"Not everyone staying at Hogwarts is unwanted, Draco," Aurora called back, her voice light. She shot him a piercing glare over her cauldron. "Some of us have family members traveling on Ministry business, and can't leave at all."
Draco's ears flushed pink. He tried stammering out an excuse, something along the lines of how "he didn't mean Aurora was unwanted, he would never…", but she tuned him out in favor of grinding her lionfish spine into a fine powder. She wasn't angry at him, but Draco had been bringing up the topic for weeks now, ever since Snape had hung up the holiday sign-up in the common room. When she was the first person to sign the list, Snape had raised an eyebrow at her quick decision, but hadn't said a word about it since. Draco, on the other hand, was beginning to sound like a broken record.
"Just ignore him, Rora. He's being a prat." Theo glanced over to Draco, who had quickly moved on from the slight and was back to whispering something to Goyle. He shook his head and slowly stirred his simmering potion. "A truly annoying prat."
"He is a little right, you know," Daphne sighed and rested her head in her hand. Aurora remained focused on her potion, but she could feel Daphne's eyes focused on her and knew that if she looked up, the blonde would be making puppy-dog eyes at her. "It's sad to not go home for Christmas."
Aurora shrugged. Pansy leaned in closer.
"Be honest, Aurora. You'd rather go home, right? If you could?"
"Not really," Aurora replied, carefully adding a pinch of the crushed lionfish spine to her cauldron. The potion sizzled before turning a very light shade of periwinkle. Aurora wrinkled her nose - it was supposed to be lilac.
"But won't you be bored?" asked Pansy.
"And lonely?" Daphne chimed in.
"No more bored then I'd be at home. At least here I can explore the castle and do as much magic as I'd like." Aurora smiled. "And I don't think I'll be completely alone, Daphne. Everything will be fine."
"But what about the cold? You hate the cold!"
"I'm not camping outside. It'll be plenty warm in the castle."
"And what about all your presents?"
"My uncle will have them sent here."
"Won't you miss your family?"
"Of course I will." Aurora finally looked up from her textbook. "Pansy, Daphne, it's fine. I promise, everything will be okay."
"Now hush up, you all sound like a bunch of squawking hens," Theo groaned. His potion was bubbling happily in front of him, the exact shade of purple the textbook said it should be. "Just leave it alone."
Daphne sighed again and shook her head sadly, as if Aurora's choice to stay at Hogwarts was the most devastating news she had ever heard.
Aurora was more than happy to be staying at Hogwarts over the break. She had gotten a letter from her uncle at the start of the month, before the owl post had halted, explaining how he had been called away on urgent Ministry business and wouldn't be available to collect her from the train. Aurora had been expecting a letter like that - she couldn't remember a year where Marius had been home on Christmas for longer than a few minutes. He was always busy at the Ministry and, in actuality, just wasn't much of a 'holly, jolly' person. Usually, her holidays were spent with the Diggorys, but this year they were traveling to Wales to visit Mrs. Diggory's non-magical side of the family. They had invited Aurora to join them, but she hadn't wanted to intrude on their family reunion.
And Aurora knew she hadn't been completely honest with her friends about her choice to stay at Hogwarts. When she had signed the list to stay for the holiday, Aurora had told them that with her uncle away on Ministry business, there was no way to get herself home but, the truth was, she easily could have. She knew how to floo to and from the train station, and since the cottage was Unplottable, she had always felt safe there when she was alone. But going home meant trading in the excitement of the castle for the quiet of her bedroom, and Aurora wasn't sure she was ready for that to happen just yet.
She had made her decision and was standing by it, excited to have a magical Christmas at Hogwarts!
After giving their final potions a once-over, Snape dismissed the class with a wave of his hands. Aurora took her cauldron over to the sinks to clean it out. Snape always had them drained at the end of class, to ensure nobody was sneaking out vials of potions to use outside of the classroom, but Aurora had plans to practice brewing a few basic potions during the break, and wanted her cauldron as neat nd as ready as possible.
As she was scrubbing dried flecks of salamander blood from the rim, Daphne and Pansy joined her. With a sigh, Daphne wrapped her arms around Aurora, leaning her head against her shoulder.
"Are you absolutely, positively sure you can't come home with us?"
"Sorry, Daph," Aurora laughed and flicked some water at the blonde. "I'm staying."
"You're no fun at all." Pansy stuck her tongue out playfully as Aurora flipped her cauldron over to dry.
The three girls linked arms and made to leave the classroom, when they were stopped in their tracks by the shout of -
"WEASLEY!"
Frozen in the corridor was an odd sight. Ron had Draco by his robes - the blonde's face was pinched with fear as Ron's fist hung threateningly close to his nose. A giant tree with Hagrid's worried face sticking out of it towered behind them, while Harry, Hermione, Crabbe, and Goyle stood by.
"He was provoked, Professor Snape," said Hagrid as Snape approached the scene. A few pine needles bobbed in his beard as he spoke. "Malfoy was insultin' his family."
"Be that as it may, fighting is against Hogwarts rules, Hagrid," said Snape, sneering down as Ron released Draco. "Five points from Gryffindor, Weasley, and be grateful it isn't more. Move along, all of you."
Draco, Crabbe, and Goyle pushed roughly past tree-Hagrid, scattering needles in their wake. Snape turned back to the classroom and stared down at the three girls.
"All of you. Out."
With a flick of his cloak, Snape disappeared down the steep stairs that led to his private quarters. Daphne and Pansy shared a look.
"We have to finish our packing for the break," Daphne sighed, giving Aurora a final puppy-dog look. "Are you absolutely -"
"Yes!" Aurora laughed, bumping Daphne's shoulder gently with her own. "You two go and pack, I'll see you at lunch."
Arms still linked, Pansy and Daphne rushed off. Aurora followed them out of the classroom, stopping beside a still fuming Ron. Harry and Hermione had knelt to try and scoop up as many fallen pine needles as they could.
"Alright, Hagrid?"
Aurora had developed a sort of friendship with the groundskeeper as the weeks had passed. She had visited his hut on occasion, always with Hermione, Harry, and Ron, and had enjoyed discussing all types of magical creatures with him. He was quite knowledgeable about magiczoology and was always friendly to her, if not a little odd.
"Aurora! Good to see ya." Hagrid beamed down at her through the tree's needles. "Heard you'll be stayin' at Hogwarts this Christmas. If ya need anythin', anythin' at all, you know jus' where to find me. An' of course, Harry and Ron'll be here too."
Aurora nodded her thanks as Ron let out a frustrated groan.
"I honestly don't know how you stomach being in the same house with that git," Ron fumed, his arms crossed. His jaw was ground together so tightly, Aurora was worried his teeth would turn to dust.
"Draco's not that bad, once you get to know him." At Ron's disbelieving look, she shrugged. "I'm serious. Think about it - you didn't like Hermione all that much when we got Sorted, and now you're friends. It's kinda like that only…it's Draco."
Ron shook his head, muttering under his breath about it being 'some daft Slytherin thing'.
"Well, no offense, but I hate them both," said Harry as he stood, brushing a stray pine needle from the knee of his pants, "Malfoy and Snape."
"Oh, come on, cheer up, the lot of yeh. It's nearly Christmas!" exclaimed Hagrid. "Tell yeh what, come with me an' see the Great Hall, looks a real treat."
So the four of them followed Hagrid and his massive tree off to the Great Hall, where Professor McGonagall and Professor Flitwick were busy with the Christmas decorations.
"Ah, Hagrid, the last tree - put it in the far corner, would you?"
Hagrid was right - the Great Hall really did look spectacular. Aurora spun around slowly, taking it all in, her mouth agape. Long garlands of holly and mistletoe hung along the walls, dotted with ribbons the colors of the Houses and shiny baubles and what seemed like actual stars twinkling between the leaves. No less than twelve towering Christmas trees stood around the room, some sparkling with tiny icicles, some glittering with hundreds of candles.
"How many days you got left until yeh holidays?" Hagrid asked once the final tree was properly in place.
"Just one," said Hermione. "And that reminds me - we've got half an hour before lunch, we should all be in the library."
"Oh yeah, you're right," said Ron distractedly. He was enraptured, watching Professor Flitwick adorn the newest tree with golden bubbles that blossomed out from the tip of his wand.
"Aurora," Hermione asked, turning to her, "care to join us?"
"Sure!" Aurora grinned. She hadn't visited the library in some time, not since Theo had convinced her to help him find a very specific book near the Restricted Section, only for the two of them to nearly be kicked out when Peeves pushed over a nearly eight-foot stack of books behind them. But now, with Pansy and Daphne packing for the holiday, Theo with his nose buried in a book, and Draco and Blaise off doing Merlin-knows-what, she had plenty of free time.
"The library?" asked Hagrid, following them back out into the corridor. "Just before the holidays? Bit keen, aren't yeh?"
"Oh, we're not working," Harry told him brightly. His eyes shone behind his glasses as he grinned slyly. "Ever since you mentioned Nicolas Flamel, we've been trying to find out exactly who he is."
Aurora's eyes went wide. She knew the trio had been curious about who Nicolas Flamel was ever since Hagrid had let the name slip - she too had been wondering the same things -, but she didn't know they'd go as far as to research him on their own time. If she were being honest, with their classes growing more interesting every day and the excitement of the upcoming break, she had nearly forgotten all about it.
"You what?" Hagrid looked at the four of them, shocked. "Listen here - I've told yeh - drop it. It's nothin' to you what that dog's guardin'."
"We just want to know who Nicolas Flamel is, that's all," said Hermione.
"And the more you tell us to forget about it, the more curious we get." Ron grinned.
"You could always just tell us and save us the trouble?" Harry added. "We must've been through hundreds of books already and we can't find him anywhere - just give us a hint - I know I've read his name somewhere."
"I'm sayin' nothin'." said Hagrid flatly.
"Just have to find out for ourselves, then!" cheered Ron, and the four left Hagrid looking disgruntled as they hurried off for the library.
"I feel bad," Aurora announced once they had claimed a more secluded table near the edge of the library.
The four of them sat around a wide, circular table. A collection of books had already been spread out on the table, and Hermione was hard at work pulling down more from the surrounding shelves. Ron was lounging across from Aurora, his feet propped up on the table, with Harry on his left, absently adjusting the stacks of books. Ron narrowed his eyes as he spoke.
"Why?"
"Well, Hagrid obviously doesn't want us snooping around like this." She gestured to the stacks of books on the table that only grew as Hermione moved between shelves. "Maybe it really is too dangerous, and he doesn't want us to get into trouble."
"We're just researching," scoffed Ron. As Hermione brought another armful of books to the table, she swept Ron's legs back down to the floor, giving an irritated huff before disappearing between another set of shelves. He glared at her retreating back before he continued. "It's not like we're breaking any rules. Isn't that the whole point of the school library - to do research?"
"No, I know, it's just…" Aurora bit her lip. "There's a three-headed dog guarding it. And what about the troll? What if it's all connected?"
"I had the same concerns too, Aurora." Hermione whisked back into their nook, the tallest stack of books yet balanced in her arms. She had to crane around them to be seen. "But all of that happened before Hagrid told us about Flamel. We really aren't doing anything wrong. To anyone else, we just look like a group of extremely studious students.
"Giving those Ravenclaw prats a run for their money, eh?" Ron laughed, nudging Harry's arm. Hermione rolled her eyes at his joke and dropped the final stack of books in front of him with a loud whomp, making his jump.
"Besides, the sooner we figure out who Flamel is, the sooner we can figure out what that dog's guarding," said Harry, sitting up to attention. "Then we can stop Snape from trying to steal it."
Aurora was impressed. "You're all very invested, aren't you?"
"Obviously. Now, are you going to help us or not?" Ron eyed her over the books. "Because we've been doing just fine without you, and we don't need -"
"No, no, I'll help! Where can I start?"
It turns out, what they had said to Hagrid earlier hadn't been a lie. Ever since Hagrid had let the name 'Nicolas Flamel' slip, the Gryffindors had been spending practically every free moment and, in Hermione's case, a good amount of mealtime, scouring the library. And so far, they hadn't found a single mention of the name anywhere. The trouble was, it was hard to know where to look, without knowing anything about Flamel. What had he accomplished? What deeds had he done that were so great, he had gotten himself into a book? They had already searched Great Wizards of the Twentieth Century, Notable Magical Names of Our Time, and A Study of Recent Developments in Wizardry from cover to cover with no luck. Hermione had even spent an entire weekend in the library, scouring the records of recent Hogwarts sortings, but there hadn't been a Flamel listed anywhere in the last five decades. And then, of course, the vastness of the library was another challenge in itself.
Once the books on the table had been organized, skimmed, and put to the side, the group split off to explore the library. Hermione set off with a list of subjects and titles she wanted to search for, while Ron went off in the opposite direction, seemingly pulling books from shelves at random and scanning their covers. Harry trailed off slowly in the direction of the Restricted Section, leaving Aurora alone and extremely overwhelmed.
Deciding to try and see what she could find, she headed off in the direction the Gryffindor's hadn't. Following a rather twisty path of shelving, she eventually ended up in the center of the library. It was a rather open space with an elevated platform directly in the center of the room where the librarian's desk was. The desk itself was circular and gave Madam Pince a perfect view of the library from all directions, so she could watch each and every student like a hawk. She was perched there now, and Aurora immediately felt the librarian's eyes snap to watch her as she crossed through the center of the room. Even as Aurora wandered through the next section of shelves, the hairs on the back of her neck still tingled, as if Madam Pince was still watching her. She even glanced over her shoulder a few times, to ensure the library hadn't followed her.
Figuring it was as good a place as any to search, Aurora grabbed the closest book from the shelf and flipped it over. The cover was a dazzling display of oranges and reds, with a golden title that read 'Famous Fire-Eaters'. She pushed it back into place with a sigh, glancing around at the surrounding titles. It seemed that she had wandered into a more mystifying section of the library. As she walked, Aurora noted books about fantastical feats and daredevils of the wizarding world, all with bright covers and titles that seemed to pop off the pages.
If she had to wager, she wouldn't find Flamel anywhere near here.
As she ducked through an archway made of books, a hand reached out from the shadows and grabbed her wrist, making her yelp. A harsh 'Quiet!' echoed throughout the library and Aurora spun furiously around - coming face-to-face with Draco.
"Draco!" she hissed, slapping him on the shoulder. Her face burned red with embarrassment as Draco practically doubled over in quiet laughter. Behind him, smirking and leaning against a column of twisting books, was Blaise.
"You should…have…seen your…your face," he wheezed out. "Too…good, Aurora. You're too funny."
Aurora rolled her eyes. "What are you two doing here?"
"Looking for you, of course." Draco caught his breath and composed himself, giving his robes a tug to straighten them. "It's nearly lunch."
"Daphne thought you had forgotten. She was in quite a state," said Blaise.
"I guess I lost track of time," Aurora muttered. She looked at the two boys, nodding. "Well, you found me. I guess I'll get my things and meet you there?"
"You're acting weird." Draco gave her a look, wrinkling his nose.
Aurora's cheeks flushed again. "No I'm not."
"Are too."
"Am not."
"You kinda are," Blaise added, helpfully.
"What are you even doing in the…" He grabbed a random book from the shelf, squinting at the title. "Olde Forgotten Bewitchments and Charmes? I don't even know what section this -"
"It's for holiday reading," she lied. She didn't want to bring up Flamel in front of Draco. There was always the chance he would recognize the name (he had once told her how his father had made him memorize the names of important pureblood wizards when he was younger), but Aurora was near certain the Gryffindors would want him as far away from their search as possible. "I need something to keep myself busy. Since I'm not 'wanted at home'."
Draco sneered, but the flush of pink on his cheeks gave away his embarrassment. Beside him, Blaise chuckled.
"She's got you there."
"Shut it, Zabini." He took a breath. "Whatever, just…" He thrust the book into her arms. "It's the final lunch before the holidays. Meet us in the Great Hall?"
Aurora smiled and bumped Draco with her shoulder. "I promise."
"Good." He smiled back before turning on his heel and leaving. Blaise followed close behind, giving Aurora a wave with just the tips of his fingers.
She waited in the aisle until their footsteps disappeared. Once she was sure they had left, she slid the book back into its place and left the library. Out in the hall, Harry, Ron, and Hermione were gathered beside the doors. Harry looked annoyed, and both Ron and Hermione were shaking their heads miserably.
"No luck?" Aurora asked as she joined them.
"Not even a little," Harry sighed.
"You will keep looking while I'm away, won't you?" asked Hermione, her voice hopeful. "And send me an owl if you find anything."
"And you could ask your parents if they know who Flamel is," said Ron. The idea seemed to perk him up. "It'd be safe to ask them."
"Very safe, as they're both dentists.," said Hermione.
There was a pause as Ron and Aurora shared a confused look. After a moment,Aurora was the one to speak up.
"Hermione. How, exactly, do you den a tist?"
We're so back baby!
The busy season at both of my jobs has come to an end, which means it is fanficiton time!
Very veryglad to be back to writing. This chapter was going to be much longer, but I wanted to get something posted before we got too far into August lol so this is the first half going into the holidays, and the next chapter will actually be Christmas at Hogwarts!
As always, thank you all for the support and love! Read & review & enjoy, & I'll catch in the next chapter!