Of Constellations → 𝘥. 𝘮𝘢𝘭𝘧𝘰𝘺

xxi. curious behavior

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chapter twenty one

curious behavior

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The year got progressively stranger. It turned out that the mystery professor of the year was not going to be teaching Defense. Instead, Professor Slughorn was teaching us Potions. The Defense against the Dark Arts professor was Snape.

If he followed Defense tradition, that meant Snape would leave the school by the end of the year. That'd be nice—maybe he'd get chased down by centaurs like Umbridge had last year.

Either way, the switch greatly improved my school experience. Slughorn, though a little strange, was much more fun as a Potions professor. For one, he actually gave out compliments and house points. During our first class, he'd given Ravenclaw ten—five for my potion, five for Justin Derhammer's. He'd also taken over making Pepperup potions for me. He was much more pleasant to speak to after class, and he even offered to make me extra if I ever needed it.

Most of my peers were unhappy with Snape as our Defense professor. And, though he was still his familiar unpleasant self, I actually didn't mind it much. I had always highly valued teachers who had a clear passion for their subject and, though Snape's sheer enthusiasm bordered on unsettling, I couldn't help but respect his expertise.

The fervor with which he spoke about the Dark Arts was simultaneously creepy and entrancing. At the beginning of the year's first lesson, I was transported back to the first class I ever had with him—both times, his introduction had sounded like he was reciting poetry. The Dark Arts— ever-changing, endlessly mutating...eternal. It was hard to not hang on to every word.

Snape was teaching us a lot of the same spells Harry had taught in the D. A., which meant Ginny, Colin Creevey, and I came out at the top for every lesson. Once, Snape assigned me to pair up with Justin Derhammer, and I thoroughly kicked his arse as we practiced Disarming Charms.

There was also a significant focus on nonverbal spells and, on the first day, I was the only one who managed to both cast a jinx and repel one without speaking.

Except for the tremendous amount of homework, I figured my O.W.L. year wasn't going to be so bad considering all of my professors were at least competent. Yes, the bar was very low, but it was cleared.

Every evening before dinner, Ginny, Luna, and I would gather in the library to slog through the mountain of assignments we got every day. Dean would often join us, sometimes with Seamus. Neville would occasionally stop by as well.

I liked having Dean there, but he could be a bit distracting. One afternoon, about a week and a half into school, he dropped his Charms textbook on our table and pulled up a chair. I'd finished my Hogwarts assignments by then, so I was using the leftover time to do my calculus homework.

"Hey," he said, kissing Ginny chastely as he sat down next to her. "I'm not jealous of you. Studying for the O.W.L.s was hell last year."

"Don't even talk about it," said Ginny, pressing her fingertips into her temple. "I'm drowning in assignments. I shouldn't have taken Arithmancy, I hate numbers."

I lifted my head from where it was buried in equations. "I told you I'd help you with it," I said.

"Hey, Star Trek fan," Dean said.

"Hey, Star Wars fan," I replied with a small smile.

He smiled back, opening his book, and then frowned at my notes. "What are you drawing?"