Magic Theory

Chubby Bunnies Really Break the Ice

As the end of November drew near and Mount Greylock grew icier, Stephanie felt pressure. With the end of the term coming up, her teachers, for some reason, thought it was a good idea to pile on more work. Stephanie struggled to keep up with her school work, swim practice, and her friends. If they were not on her team or did not sit with her in class, she rarely saw anyone. Courtney Cross was an exception. She had managed to will her way into Stephanie's life, coming to support her at competitions and pairing up with her on every potions project they had. Stephanie liked Courtney but found it hard to study when she was around. Courtney did not like to study and would often get distracted, staring into space. She also seemed as if she were about to ask Stephanie something, but would shut her mouth or move onto a different subject leaving Stephanie feeling perpetually curious.

Winter fell upon Ilvermorny on the eve of Thanksgiving. Snow blanketed the grounds. Courtney was dissatisfied with it. Being from the south, she did not often see snow, and the winter before had only brought ice upon the castle. The snow was not fluffy and white as she had seen on television. It melted in her palms and mixed with the dirt on the ground. "This isn't snow," she told Stephanie one day. "This is just brown slush."

"That's what snow is," Stephanie replied before sipping a big spoonful of soup. The warmth radiated through her immediately. The castle itself was about as warm as Stephanie expected a giant stone structure to be. It was lunch and Stephanie was nervous about the essay she had to turn in during her next class. She had asked Courtney to read over it, and to her surprise, had gotten rather detailed edits and suggestions back the next day.

Stephanie looked up from rereading her paper once again to find Courtney staring at her. Her face felt hot as her cheeks reddened. "I was wondering... Um..." Courtney's hesitation alarmed Stephanie. Her stomach dropped. Courtney opened her mouth to continue, but the alarm on Stephanie's watch went off. She had to get to class. She looked at Courtney and motioned for her to continue as Stephanie hurriedly finished her soup. "You should get to class," Courtney said sadly.

"Just spit it out," Stephanie mumbled behind a napkin as she wiped her mouth.

Courtney shook her head. "It's not important. Go on. You'll be late." Courtney's face was ruddy and she nervously pulled at the edge of her shirt, but it could not go down any further. Stephanie sighed and gathered her things up. "I'll see you later," she said, and made her way to Defense Against the Dark Arts.

Stephanie could not concentrate during Azalea's lesson. She worried about the paper she would hand in at the end of class, she was worried about what Courtney had to say, and she was worried her exams would be too hard. She scribbled her notes furiously, trying to catch anything she could grasp. The lecture made no sense to her anymore. It was as if Azalea was speaking another language.
Stephanie was glad when Azalea called for them to put their essays on her desk as they left the class. Defense Against the Dark Arts was not Stephanie's forte and Azalea was intimidating. Stephanie was glad to go to Charms afterwards. She felt like she could relax much more, as Professor Tildrear was soft-spoken and charms did not drain Stephanie as much as defensive spells. While they practiced wand-work, Stephanie tried to figure out why she felt so panicky.

When the class ended, Stephanie decided to go for a walk outside, despite the chill. Perhaps the cool air would help her clear her head. She braced herself as she stepped out, wrapping her cloak tighter around her.

Stephanie liked to explore the grounds when she could find time to herself. Her favorite place to explore was the nearby river. She knew the story, of course. This was the river where Isolt Sayre-Steward met the famous Horned Serpent, after whom she had named her house. Stephanie was not, of course, expecting to see one herself, but she liked to be near such an important part of history. She slipped her bag off of her small shoulders and hung it on a nearby tree. She hugged her cloak around herself as she walked down the bank of the river. The icy leaves littering the ground crunched beneath her feet.