Detention that night had initially been more eventful than both (Y/N) and Sirius expected. For one reason or another, James had been given detention mere hours before by one of the head boys, as had Allegra's courtesy of McGonagall. The four had spent detention together in the transfiguration classroom, and McGonagal personally oversaw their progress after she had assigned them individual tasks. James and Allegra's was simple enough; both had been sitting at desks near the front of the room, writing lines repeatedly and ensuring they would learn from their mistakes. Sirius, too, was sat at one of the desks; his only task was to properly brew the potion he had intentionally turned into an acidic sludge earlier in the day.
(Y/N), On the other hand, was tasked with repairing the school books stashed away in the closet at the back of the room. After which, she would polish the goblets. For both tasks, she had found a comfortable spot on the floor in front of the large cabinet. McGonagall anticipated that (Y/N) would finish both tasks, but she had another, more meaningful one in mind before the determination ended.
Of course, Allegra had complained about her punishment's unfairness, having to sit silently and write the exact words repeatedly. She and James had been forbidden to speak unless it was to ask for a small break or to use the bathroom. James didn't complain much; his only comments were directed at Sirius and (Y/N) before he started writing. He instructed one to follow the recipe for the potion correctly this time and wished the other good luck regarding her clumsiness. To McGonagall, it appeared James was happy to do what was asked of him, especially knowing two friends were close by.
"Gosh, this is so pointless," muttered Allegra when she put her quill down and shook her cramped hand. She'd only written a few lines, already bored of the task and wishing she could get up and leave if only to do something more fun. A sigh escaped her. She knew the desire to leave was impossible, given McGonagall was the Head of Gryffindor House. On the other hand, Professor McGonagall sent Allegra an unamused glare until the second year picked up her quill again and began to write, sighing loudly as if to protest against such a tedious task without uttering a single word.
"You can always spend detention in Mr. Pringle's care, Miss Smith," spoke Professor McGonagall after several minutes of the pointless signing. Her words were sharp and suggested she was in no mood for the attitude Allegra typically displayed when things were going as she wanted. Allegra soon froze, quickly thinking over her options as McGonagall glanced at the other three spotted around her classroom. Noting how each followed her instruction without question or protest. James sat quietly on the opposite side of the room to Allegra, continuing to write the lines given to him. Besides the earlier comments, his only sound was the quill dipping into the ink pot and the occasional cough and sneeze.
Likewise, Sirius was quietly brewing his potion now, occasionally looking at the potion book to ensure he was putting the right ingredients in at the right time. Meanwhile, (Y/N) was sat quietly on the floor at the back of the room, two piles of books in front of her and the goblets lined up to her side. One stack of books had already been repaired, whereas she was slowly working through the other. Neither Sirius nor (Y/N) spoke a word, although the latter did hum a song. Sirius had become distracted by her several times; however, it was not enough to prevent him from completing the task. McGonagall noted (Y/N) wasn't aware she was using her metamorphic abilities.
"Mr Potter, you may take a break from your lines," stated McGonagall after walking around the room. She'd completed her task of marking the first year's written work. Afterward, she'd walked around the room to check up on the four in her company. Finding James had written two whole parchment pieces of lines and was midway down his third. On the other hand, Allegra wasn't even a quarter of the way down her first. Instead, she'd wasted time doodling and protested the detention by laying her head on the desk.
James nodded before standing to stretch his protesting limps; shortly thereafter, he made the quiet request to go to the bathroom. A request that was granted with a silent nod. McGonagall walked to the back of the room soon after, finding (Y/N) was now polishing the goblets, still humming songs. Sirius wasn't too far from her, carefully brewing his potion while subtle bobbing his head to the music (Y/N) hummed. Now and again, he'd turn his attention to the potion recipe if only to ensure he got it right this time.
"Miss Wolffe," called McGonagall, noticing neither she nor Sirius had seen when she'd left her desk at the front of the class, both being too preoccupied with their tasks; she unintentionally gave them a fright when she'd spoken. "After you've finished polishing the goblets, please see me at my desk," requested the Head of Gryffindor House, receiving a silent nod from the young metamorphic witch. With that the transfiguration professor waltzed off to the front of the room once more, but not before complimenting Sirius on his potion. Once at her desk, she picked up an old, thick, heavy book, stepped over to Allegra's desk, and slammed it down next to the childish girl, startling Allegra and the remaining two at the back of the classroom.
"Tell me, Miss Smith," began McGonagall, her voice even despite her rigid and unyielding glare. "How is it Miss Wolffe and Mr. Black and Potter can complete their tasks without complaint while you can not?" she asked, ensuring her voice matched the coldness of her eyes and annoyance. Allegra had tried to say something in response several times, opening and closing her mouth as if she were a fish out of water. During this time, James returned and silently went back to writing his lines, unknowingly proving McGonagall's point and killing any attempt Allegra had to use him in an argument.
"It's not my fault it's so damn boring," confidently spoke the muggle-born witch after regaining her ability to communicate. The moment the words left her lips, she felt as if she was on top of the world, although that feeling vanished just as quickly when her hazel eyes landed on the Deputy Head and Transfiguration Professor. "I have to write boring lines, while Sirius gets to brew a flipping potion and (Y/N) does meaningless tasks. It's not fair; I shouldn't even be here in the first place. I didn't do anything wrong," complained Allegra, comparing her punishment to both minding their own business at the back of the classroom. It was as if she had somehow tricked herself into believing she was above the school rules and, therefore, resolved to take no responsibility for her actions.
"I didn't see anything appropriate about your behavior either, Miss Smith," commented McGonagall, briefly turning her attention to the remaining three students. "I have yet to understand how you believe bullying Miss McKinnon and trying to force others to do as you want is anything but wrong," she continued, once again her voice stern as she reminded Allegra why she had ended up in detention in the first place. However, upon further thought, McGonagall questioned if writing lines was suitable; perhaps the young witch deserved a harsher punishment, especially when the transfiguration professor was so sure Marlene was neither the first nor the only victim of Allegra's bullying.
"How is what I supposedly did any worse than what these three idiots have done?" Allegra said with little respect or care. She was angry and bored and wanted nothing more than to leave. She knew she couldn't, so she was happy to voice her displeasure and make it everyone else's problem.
"Mr. Potter is here because of his actions regarding Mr. Snape and Miss Evans," began McGonagall, once again taking note that James never argued with the punishment, nor had he protested in any way. "Likewise, Mr. Black is here to catch up with the rest of the potions class by correctly brewing the one he intentionally messed up; as for Miss Wolffe, she is here because of something out of her control; nevertheless, she has accepted not all will understand her abilities or effects it has," added the transfiguration professor, at least giving a reason why (Y/N) had been given meaningless tasks instead of writing lines.
When Professor McGonagall returned to her desk, Allegra pulled a face at her, wrongly believing she wouldn't be punished further for her childish behavior. McGonagall sent another cold glare in Allegra's direction, only turning her attention to (Y/N) when Allegra picked up her quill and began to write her lines again. Upon turning her attention to (Y/N), McGonagall gave her a small stack of envelopes before giving her instructions and sending her off to complete the final task. This time, with the knowledge, (Y/N) wouldn't return to the classroom but to Gryffindor Tower once her task was done.
"James, Sirius," called Allegra, just minutes after (Y/N) had left the classroom; once again, the entitled girl disregarded the spoken rules and actively ignored the professor overseeing detention. Instead, she chose to do her own thing to end her eternal boredom faster and escape from the haunting, quiet room. "Want to hang out sometime? Maybe walk around the grounds or talk?" she asked, her hazel eyes switching between both boys, although she failed to see the identical expressions of horror pass over their features.
"I'd rather kiss a Niffler," voiced Sirius from the back of the room, quickly refocusing on his potion; he was so close to finishing it. A yawn soon escaped him. The boring class with Professor Bins still plagued him, as if it had somehow drained him of all the extra energy he usually had. The sudden quietness did nothing to help; now (Y/N) wasn't there humming songs, and time seemed to slow down to a painful drag or stop altogether.
James failed to hold his amusement over Sirius' comment, especially with how quickly he'd spoken and with nothing but a matter-of-factly tone. No humor had rung through his voice or sarcasm. McGonagall had only shot a soft warning glare in Sirius' direction, ensuring he knew his comment wasn't appropiate even if it was justified. She'd noticed many students actively avoided the muggle-born witch, although they were at least subtle about it, as long as Allegra took the hint and left them alone.
"Mr. Black, when you're finished, you may find Miss Wolffe and return to Gryffindor Tower," announced Professor McGonagall, suspecting Sirius was close to completing the potion and the task required of him, thrust the only thing that awaited him was to find (Y/N) and help her finish the delivery task. There was little doubt in McGonagall's mind that Peeves would find (Y/N) eventually; the poltergeist had seemingly been attracted by the chaos so often associated with her.
When Sirius quietly left the classroom, Allegra soon began to complain again, quickly stating it was unfair both (Y/N) and Sirius could go before her, even more so when she was still stuck doing something she had expressed no interest in. Her complaints soon included her offense to James and Sirius ignoring her and Sirius's harsh comments in response to her kind-hearted question. It soon became evident Allegra didn't care if her constant complaining, entitlement, and bullying behavior didn't endear her to others. Even more apparent, however, was Allegra's lack of care when it came to paying attention in classes and the adverse effect it would have on her plans post-graduation and possible career choices unless she planned to reintegrate into the oblivious muggle world, as many had chosen to do before.
