Brutal. | Fred Weasley

two!

Aurelia is back at Beauxbatons before most of the people in the care home have even risen. Finn had Apparated them to the Portkey site that is authorised for her triweekly visits home. She'd grabbed her old trainer that had been turned into a Portkey and had been transported back to the elegant castle of Beauxbatons.

A second home to Aurelia, it encapsulates all she loves about France. Art, culture, architecture— there is something so right about living amongst it all for her. It lifts her little history-crazy heart, feeds her academic soul just a little more, and makes her feel more at peace than she does anywhere else. She swears up and down to Fleur that it also has something to do with the language, but Fleur always laughs at her playfully and calls her a nerd.

The only problem for Aurelia is that Madame Maxime is back and waiting for her when she arrives at the doors of the castle. She doesn't show it, but she can feel the oncoming of a lecture (or three) for her recent behaviour.

"Ah, Miss Riddle. How was your trip home?" The sound of French words makes her much happier than she lets on, even as her headmistress looms over her.

"It was lovely, thank you," she replies, the words slipping easily off of her tongue. "May I ask why you're back so soon? Is Fleur okay?"

"Fleur is fine. Follow me to my office, please. You can put your things in your room afterwards," she requests, beginning to sweep down the halls. Aurelia follows obediently, glad that Madame Maxime didn't request that someone else takes her things up to her dorm. She's rather protective over her belongings. Madame Maxime's office doesn't differ too much from the rest of the castle, but it's much more personal than someone would expect from someone like the headmistress. Trinkets and awards litter a small table to the left of her desk. The windows on the back wall bring copious amounts of natural light into the room, something that is not in short supply in the south of France (Aurelia's many summer tans from Beauxbatons can attest to that). Madame Maxime takes her large seat behind her desk, her back to the window and Aurelia takes the seat in front of her, placing her bag by her feet for the moment.

"I've heard that you've been causing rather a lot of trouble in my absence," she mentions. "Including turning Professor Dubois's desk into a pig."

She flashes the headmistress a smile. "It was a piece of high level Transfiguration, I thought she'd be pleased to see that I'm coping with the higher level work." Another of Aurelia's favourite things about Beauxbatons is that they provide additional and harder work if talent is shown in a subject area. Aurelia handles a lot of higher level work, just one of the many reasons that her teachers tend to like her.

Madame Maxime surprises Aurelia by smiling. "I'm impressed with the Transfiguration. In fact, I'm impressed with everything you've been managing here. You're an immensely talented young lady."

Aurelia's smile falters slightly. "But?"

Madame Maxime sighs slightly. "I have been speaking to Headmaster Dumbledore. He believes that you would be... better suited to Hogwarts, especially as you get older."

"I didn't choose Hogwarts," she replies stubbornly, crossing her arms over her chest. "I chose Beauxbatons."

"I know that. He knows that too," she nods. "I told him you wouldn't like it, but he insisted that I tell you that the option is there."

"Well, I trust you'll make my answer clear," she answers. It's in moments like these that Madame Maxime is reminded of her heritage but it's simultaneously the moment that the future hits her with clarity. This girl is a leader in the making, regardless of parentage. The headmistress nods and Aurelia allows herself a small smile. "Besides, why would I want to leave here? You haven't even mentioned the fact that I magically dyed that portrait's hair pink. Anyway, I've got to go and unpack!" She's up and gone as soon as Madame Maxime's head has turned to see that she has, indeed, turned Nicholas Flammel's hair neon pink. The portrait in question looks fairly amused and Madame Maxime finds herself laughing in her empty office. Because, even though she resembles her father, there are clear streaks of Aurelia's mother present, and nothing can dampen the spark of goodness produced by the Caideux genetics.