Silver Lining

Chapter 2

"Vi! Violet! Wake up! Violet!"

I groaned loudly as Lily's green eyes and freckles came into view. A pillow collided with my face and I let out a sleepy laugh, pushing up onto my elbows.

"Alright, alright, I'm up..." Lily stood back, a satisfactory grin on her face and walked into the bathroom, already changed into her uniform. As soon as I thought she was gone, I closed my eyes and pulled the covers back over my shoulders, smiling at the welcoming warmth before they were unceremoniously ripped off of me.

"I said up, Violet!" Lily demanded. "You'll miss breakfast," she added tauntingly, and I sat up hurriedly. I was not going to miss any meal of the day, especially with six, hour-long classes a day and O.W.L.s exams at the end of the year. Take it from someone who's not a fan of studying and an expert procrastinator - food is vital.

I shuffled over to my trunk and pulled out a fresh uniform, pulling it on slowly. It felt good to be back in this uniform again, even if it meant being back with all my classes. No-one could complain about returning to a place like Hogwarts.

The thought of a Hogwarts breakfast brought a smile to my face, and I followed Lily out the door and down to the Great Hall. We found an empty spot on the long benches and I immediately began pulling food onto my plate. Waffles, fruit salad, pumpkin juice, chocolate sauce... My stomach was growling for me to eat some of that incredible food. I heard Lily gasp and jumped, dropping my fork onto the floor at my feet.

"What is it? What's wrong?" I looked over at my red-haired friend, and rolled my eyes as I caught sight of the paper in her hands.

"Class schedules!" she smiled, handing me the sheet marked with my name.

"Really? I can barely contain myself." I could almost feel the sarcasm dripping from my voice as I ducked under the table to retrieve my stray fork. It was quite dark under there, and it took a lot of fishing around amongst other students' feet to try to find my missing utensil. I could hear muffled voices above me, and when I realised who it was, I hoped I never found my fork at all and could stay under the table forever. Unfortunately, Lily's foot found the fork before I did and slid it over to me, meaning I had no choice but to return to my seat.

"...tried to explain it to them, but they still don't seem to understand. You can't jump from one staircase to another while they're moving, or you'll hurt yourself and get detention. Simple enough, right?" Remus ran a hand through his hair, seemingly stressed about something. I caught his eye as I sat back up, a silent agreement between us that neither wanted to go through the usual awkward greetings this morning. He glanced away quickly, and I was glad he did.

"I'll try to talk to them," Lily answered, nodding reassuringly. I became very interested in my plate and rearranging my food on it until Remus had smiled gratefully and walked away with a promise to discuss the issue further later on. I looked up when he disappeared and let out a breath of relief.

"Don't you start," I said pointedly as Lily opened her mouth, and she shut it quickly, picking up her class schedule again.

"We've got Transfiguration first. At least McGonagall usually goes easy on us on the first day..."

---

Lily could not have been more wrong.

McGonagall's class was full of hardcore revision, and before I could decide I would need to repeat my fifth year, it got worse.

"This year you will be working harder and faster to achieve better results. I expect this year level to receive results to be proud of by the end of the O.W.L.s, and I know you are all perfectly capable. So, to get you started, I want a two page essay on the transformation of animals into inanimate objects and the consequences of the opposite process, due next class." Professor McGonagall pursed her lips as loud groans rang out through the classroom. "Dismissed."