Delicate | James Potter

1.27

~

Alice giggled lightly as Flitwick was knocked off of his feet by the sheer mass of paper that flew at him. His summoning charm had been a little too eager, and now he was being lifted back up by a few students closest to him.

"Thank you... thank you," Flitwick panted. "Very well, everybody, you're free to go."

Alice took her time getting up. She was slowly learning that rushing out of the Great Hall as soon as an exam was over wasn't the best idea as everyone tended to do that. She almost got crushed leaving her transfiguration exam just yesterday, only surviving because Dorcas yelled at some Slytherin boy before pulling her quickly away.

"How did you find that one?" Said Hufflepuff asked once they'd reunited in the corridor. June appeared for just a second before stating she needed to talk to Flitwick then vanished again.

Alice sighed. "I don't think I got the ghouls question, maybe one or two marks."

Dorcas nodded. "Neither. I hate when they're worded weirdly like that, makes everything so much more confusing for no reason at all. What about the one on Werewolves? I reckon I named three accurate ones, not too sure the other two will count."

Alice had been quick to write down yellow eyes. She was probably one of the only people in her class to have actually seen a werewolf (excluding the obvious), despite it being only for a few seconds, and so she knew exactly what to write when the question came up. She'd found herself temporarily distracted when she'd begun to think of Remus answering the question; was he offended he was classed as a 'dark creature'? Alice didn't think it was all that fair to put them in such a category, especially now she'd done her own reading. The Daily Prophet did a nasty job at portraying them as monsters all the time, not just on full moons.

"Yeah I got that." Was the reply she settled on.

The duo left the castle to go sit on the lawn by the lake. The sun was shining, glittering against the lake surface. Some students were even paddling in the shallows; Alice spotted her dormmates among them. There were people laughing, chattering excitedly most likely because of how summery it all felt. Plus they were nearly done with exams now, which added to everyone's happiness. Each day it was like a weight was being lifted from her shoulders.

Once sat down in a comfortable corner beneath a tree, both Alice and Dorcas took off their robes. Apparently it was mandatory O.W.L ruling to be dressed in full uniform whilst completing the tests, but it was horridly uncomfortable in the June heat. She flopped down onto the grass and exhaled sharply, happy to finally be able to stretch out in the fresh air.

"I hate how stuffy it is in that hall."

Dorcas scoffed, and Alice felt her lie down beside her so that they were both looking up at the clouds together. "You'd think at a magic school they'd find a way to not make it so humid."