𝐚𝐝𝐨𝐧𝐢𝐬 [𝖍.𝖌]

six | daisy roots

There was a big commotion in the Great Hall this morning, especially because of the third years.

Dahlia had just finished spooning the leftover syrup into her mouth before Julie ran up to her, her dark brown eyes shining.

"Dahlia! Did Mum and Dad sign your slip?" Dahlia cracked a smile and waved her permission slip teasingly in the Hufflepuff's face.

"They did," she said slyly, licking the syrup off the spoon. "What of it?"

"Lucky," sighed Julie, looking at the permission slip in awe. "You have to get me loads of stuff from Honeydukes and Zonkos."

It was a permission slip for Hogsmeade. Dahlia's foster parents had signed her form (albeit reluctantly) but they had nonetheless. Third years and up were allowed to go to the nearest magick town and spend a whole day there once in a while. And over the years, the town had grown to accommodate teenage interests, making it something for every student to look forward to.

Dahlia raised an eyebrow. "It'll be you next year, don't forget. Soon, I'll be an old fourth year, making you get me mint fudge from Honeydukes."

It was a good idea to collect permission slips now. Sirius Black was on the loose, and every day Dahlia's classmates checked the paper for any signs that Black was at the castle. Having everyone turn in their slips early could bring everyone's focus away from the Black situation and onto something more manageable and controllable for the teachers. And it was a good thing, too.

Dahlia didn't visit Minnie as often, on the first Tuesday of every month as she used to in the first year, but whenever she saw her in Transfiguration and random tea breaks, dark circles shadowed her eyes and her pale skin seemed gaunt. The other teachers weren't faring as well either.

The dementors had taken over the school. As Headmaster Dumbledore had announced at the start-of-term feast, there would be dementors posted at each entrance of the castle to prevent Black from getting in or out. Though most of the protection was for Harry since everyone figured that Black was likely coming after him.

But there were some ups. For the rest of the school, at least. The first Hogsmeade trip was on Halloween, a month from then. Quidditch was back on this year too. Dahlia was ready for it. She'd been itching to go out and play, but it was nothing compared to Oliver Wood, who was now a seventh year and itching to win the cup for Gryffindor before he graduated.

And as well as the ups, there were some real cons to the start of the school year. Last year under the school, Dahlia had revealed herself to Ron... and the result was worse than she had expected. He'd shied away and called her names and his eyes burned with rage. So after she got through, she erased Ron's memories (after holding Ron's wand backwards), hoping Ginevra and Harry were too far behind to see it. She had no idea if the memory loss was permanent though, given her abysmal practical skills. So she would have to wait and see.

Dahlia's ears had also become very sensitive. The Basilisk's voice grated on her ears like metal scraping against metal, and the acoustics of the cavern hadn't been beneficial either. But Dahlia's hearing conked out for the stupidest things—and she had started to wear a scarlet Gryffindor jumper nearly everywhere because scarlet was a ridiculously easy colour for concealing blood.

Hermione was also a big problem too. Dahlia had benefitted from the summer away, but they were roommates, and sooner or later they were going to clash. All she wanted was to forgive and forget, but a little voice whispered in her mind that Hermione would do it again. So she stayed away.

Finally, Professor Lupin. That was going to be a pain in the arse. There was something wrong with him, and she knew it because his greeting in the train compartment was very aggressive for a new teacher. The way his eyes filled with animalistic rage... and the way she'd had him four times, and he still had yet to call on her on even look at her... Dahlia had her suspicions, and she wanted to investigate. Perhaps it was another Quirrell situation?