September 2, 1987
Hogwarts
One thing Katherine was grateful for by lunchtime was the help of Charlie Weasley. Having bumped into him at breakfast, she had accidentally rambled about how nervous she was to find all of her classes, since there was no map to follow.
Charlie, having a free period for his first class, offered to show her where the Transfiguration classroom was. He claimed that it was on his way to another class, but Katherine had a suspicion that he just wanted to be nice. By lunchtime, she had managed to get from Transfiguration to Charms, which was several floors down.
Stalking into the Great Hall, Katherine threw her bag onto the bench next to her, and reached for the first thing she could find. She hadn't eaten much at breakfast, nervous about finding her classes and meeting her professors.
Leah plopped down across from her, and Katherine passed the roast beef over to her, eagerly digging into her mashed potatoes.
"How did you like Charms?" She asked, through a mouthful of potato.
"Wasn't bad," Leah said, reaching for a piece of shepherd's pie. "He was kind of short though. Do you think he has any dwarf blood in him?"
"I wasn't really focused on that," Katherine frowned, cutting into her roast beef. "I was more focused on the actual lesson. Do you think we'll learn more about the Levitation Charm tomorrow?"
"Do you think Snape is going to take points off if we're late?" Leah was checking her watch, absent mindedly finishing the potatoes on her plate.
"My mum said he's absolutely foul," Katherine recalled, slowly reaching for her bag. "We should probably head for the dungeons now so we're not late."
Leah groaned, reaching to swing her backpack over her shoulders, and yanked the last bit of sandwich off of her plate. Katherine joined her, and the two of them headed out of the Great Hall and towards the dungeons.
* * *
Katherine wasn't sure if she liked the dungeons or not. The walls were cold and damp, the only light emitting from weak torches lining the walls. The desks were crammed tightly together in groups of four, and there were stools instead of chairs.
Leah had wanted to grab an open table near the back of the room, but Katherine insisted on snagging a table closer to the front. There were already two people sitting there, but she knew she wouldn't be able to see the writing on the board from the back.
"Do you mind if we sit here?" Katherine asked them nervously, Leah fidgeting behind her.
"Um, sure," One of the girls said, sounding bored. Katherine sat next to her, and nervously pulled out her textbook and some parchment to take notes on.
"What's your name?" It was the same girl again, but this time she seemed much more interested, long blonde hair hanging over her shoulders.
"Katherine," She said. "Katherine MacDonald. You?"
"Sarah Fawley." Sarah jerked a finger towards the other girl sitting with them. "This is Eliza Avery."
Eliza was furiously scribbling into a notebook, mousy brown hair short and wavy.
"I'm Leah Miller," Leah offered, pulling her book out of her backpack and setting it onto the table.
"You do know that you two decided to sit on the Slytherin side of the classroom, right?" Sarah asked, amused as panic flitted across the two Gryffindor's faces.
"Relax," She waved them off. "If anything, it might get Snape to stop from picking on you if he misses the red and gold."
"I didn't know there were sides," Katherine said cautiously. Sarah's blue eyes were shining brightly, and she cracked a wide grin.
"We're going to be great table mates," She giggled, reaching for parchment in her backpack.
"If you'll stop your chattering and look up front, I can begin," Professor Snape's cold voice rang out through the classroom. Katherine quickly swiveled forwards, nervously adjusting her parchment and quill. Besides her, Eliza and Leah had stopped chatting.
"Many view Potions as a limited skill in the Wizarding World," He started, his long robes billowing around him every time he moved.
"Yet they take it back once they realize that they can't brew a Common Antidote to poison, or spend unnecessary money on a Pepperup Potion because they don't remember how to brew one."
"Many of you will hate this class," His dark eyes surveyed the classroom, sweeping over each individual student. Katherine couldn't repress a shiver when his gaze swept over her, seeming to pierce her soul.
"In fact, most people won't continue if they manage to pass their O.W.L.'s, choosing easier or more famed careers. Despite this, I will try my hardest to sink a little knowledge into your thick skulls in the five years that you sit in my class."
"Sounds innocent enough," Leah muttered, nudging Katherine to make sure she had heard her.
"And your name, Ms. - ?" It appeared his robes weren't the only batlike thing about him, Snape having heard Leah from across the room.
"Leah Miller," She gulped nervously, a touch of color blooming high on her cheeks.
"Well, Ms. Miller," Snape said cooly, his eyes burrowing into her. "I see you will be one of the many daft fools I don't see past fifth year. Keep your mouth shut while I'm talking and two points from Gryffindor."
Leah opened her mouth angrily, but it was Katherine's turn to elbow her friend, a warning in her eyes. As Snape continued, Leah closed her mouth, taking to furiously scribbling on her parchment.
The rest of the class continued mostly in silence as Professor Snape went over what he would be teaching them for the year, pointing out which chapters in the book they would be spending more time on.
He only answered questions that the Slytherins were asking, pointedly ignoring Leah's hand and several other Gryffindors. Katherine scribbled her question down on a scrap of parchment and shoved it to Sarah.
Sarah, having been following the increasingly clear discrimination with furrowed brows, immediately took the hint, raising her hand.
"Yes, Ms. -" He asked, facing Katherine's table.
"Sarah Fawley," She introduced herself. "I was just wondering if we're going to go over the differences between antidotes and remedies this year or the next?"
"An excellent question," Snap said, his gaze sliding over to Katherine. His eyes narrowed when he saw the scrap of parchment that she had slid over to Sarah.
"While it is a rather ambitious and wide topic to cover, we will be going over it later this year. Expect to start studying the material over Christmas break."
The class ended with one last question about monkswood before Snape dismissed them, everyone hurrying to pack up so they could get to their next class.
Katherine, still shoving her notes into her backpack, managed to thank Sarah before she left. Sarah had waved her off, stating that it wasn't a big deal before she headed off to her next class.
Katherine hurried to catch up to Leah, who was waiting for her at the door. Leah was scowling, and announced to Katherine that their next class was Herbology, practically on the other side of the castle.
"I don't much care for him," Leah scowled, pausing when Katherine stopped to ask an older student for directions to the greenhouses.
"He was being an absolute git, refusing to answer questions from Gryffindor's like that."
"I was expecting it," Katherine shrugged, as the pair hurried down a flight of stairs. "My mum told me that he was a git when she went to school with him. All her friends with kids complained about him being a professor as well. It's pretty well known that he hates Gryffindors."
"I wonder why," Leah mused, holding a door open so they could make it outside. It was bright and sunny, reminiscent of the summer. The cool breeze thought otherwise, and Katherine was grateful that cloaks were a part of their summer uniform.
"Something must have happened to him to make him so bitter." Katherine stated, as they finally found greenhouse one.
"Now, come on. We're going to be late."
YOU ARE READING
Lumos
Fanfiction"Who is she Albus? She looks so familiar." Severus pleaded with him, thinking of the auburn haired girl that had sat in the Great Hall earlier that evening. "She is your daughter Severus," Dumbledore told him, as his knees went weak. "Wha- that's no...
