Hogwarts Is Where The Heart Is

Chapter 13

Genevieve had gotten back late the previous night meaning she'd avoided questions regarding the troll. This did not go for the following morning.

"MERLIN'S BEARD!" exclaimed Evelyn and Genevieve winced slightly as she got ready still waking up. "You really do manage to turn the simplest things into an adventure straight out of a storybook. Ever heard of laying low?"

"Did you or did you not encourage me to join an illegal dueling club?" asked Genevieve as she put on her new robes.

"There a difference between excitement and chaos my friend. A little stupefy never hurt anybody. A troll on the other hand..."

"A little stupefy...Run that one by Professor Hecat and get back to me," said Genevieve who was beginning to feel slightly more comfortable with her housemate. Evelyn laughed.

"Well it's a good thing I grabbed us breakfast because not only did you sleep in late but you'd have been bombarded at breakfast."

"My eternal thanks," muttered Genevieve taking the pumpkin pasty offered as they headed to the greenhouses for herbology.

They walked down the stairs of the glass greenhouse which was warm and quite obviously full of many strange plants. At the bottom of the stairs stood a young woman dressed in green with a pointed green hat decorated with orange flowers which complimented her bright red hair that was set in two very long braids.

"Ah hello! I'm Professor Garlick," the woman said cheerfully, holding out what looked like a basket of cotton balls.

"Hello Professor," said Genevieve as she and Evelyn both took cotton balls. Too her slight embarrassment the professor turned to the rest of the class and said,

"Class please welcome the newest rose in our garden!" Genevieve felt everyone's eyes (or at least the remaining ones that hadn't been staring) turn to her. "We do look forward to growing together," added Professor Garlick. Evelyn felt the heat rise in her cheeks and wanted very much to sink into the floor.

Fortunately, Evelyn seeming to feel her embarrassment tugged her over to a table shooting a stern look at everyone that made most (bar a few like Sebastian) turn their attention back to Garlick.

"Garlick's quick enthusiastic. We're all pretty much convinced she's the embodiment of sunshine." Whispered Evelyn with a fond smile, just before the Professor began to speak.

"How thrilling it is to have everyone back here together again! This year will be filled with enchantment and excitement but the most important thing cultivated in herbology is knowledge! The prudent Herbologist is no more afraid of the venomous tentacula than the bouncing bulb!" she walked by and tossed something into a plant which looked like it had large fanged mouths. She walked up to the front of the class.

"Today we will be acquainting ourselves with the mellifluous tuber known as the mandrake root!" she summoned what looked to be a fairly ordinary potted plant. Though Genevieve reminded herself that there was no such thing as ordinary in this world.

"Now let's see if we can make our fibrous friends a bit more comfortable. First let's protect our ears. Does anybody know why?" A dark haired Hufflepuff girl's hand shot up.

"Yes, Miss Everleigh?"

"The mandrake cry can kill if fully mature or simply knock out at younger stages."

"Correct five points to Hufflepuff." Genevieve idly wondered how many of these plants could actually kill you as they all stuffed their ears with cotton and reached for the leaves of their mandrakes. Professor Garlick made a gesture and all at once they pulled.

Out of the soil came what looked like a distorted dirty baby screaming its lungs out the glass on the roof began to crack as they all hurriedly shoved their mandrakes into new pots smothering them with soil.