Emaline Goode: The Raven Of Ilvermorny: A Secrets Of The Gordian Knot prequel

Chapter 14 - Christmas

The weeks passed. Christmas was coming. One morning in mid-December, the week before Christmas break started, Hogwarts woke to find itself covered in several feet of snow. The lake froze solid. Emaline made the very tough decision to not return home to America for the holidays. Professor McGonagall had come around the week before, making a list of students who would be staying for the holidays, and Emaline had signed up at once. So were Tulip and Margot, who turned down a trip home and wanted to celebrate with their new friend from America. Harry was staying as well. He didn't want to deal with his aunt and uncle and Ron and his brothers were staying, too. Their parents were traveling to Romania to go and see their brother Charlie, who is studying dragons.

Tulip was put in detention for bombarding Snape with Emaline's Boom Boom Balls. While she was absent, Emaline started hanging out with her roommate Margot, probably the most elegant girl in Hogwarts, becoming a welcome alternative as a best friend for Emaline, "So, Tulip got sent to detention?" she said to Emaline. 

"Yep, she pranked Snape with one of my Boom Boom Balls, so if you can't do the crime, don't do the time, as the No-Majs say." Margot chuckled. She then noticed Emaline's Gordian Knot pendant, shimmering in the firelight as they walked down into the dungeons. "That's a lovely necklace you have there."

"Thank you," said Emaline "This is my Gordian Knot pendant from Ilvermorny. Do you know what the origins behind this necklace are?" Margot nodded. "This pendant has many purposes and deep, illustrious history in Ilvermorny. Isolt Sayre retrieved the original Gordian Knot from the ruins of her family's cottage. It remained her only link to her family for the rest of her life in Ireland and later in America. Thus, it became the symbol of Ilvermorny. A form of the Knot is incorporated into the Ilvermorny Crest."

"That's amazing. So, what are you doing for Christmas, Emaline? Are you going home?"

"I might be staying here at Hogwarts. I already left England before going home for Thanksgiving." 
"Where do you live, by the way? I've heard a lot of great things about America," Margot asked
"Portland, Oregon. It's on the West Coast. My family is also pureblood but we hate You-Know-Who."

"Hey, Margot!" said a girl. 
"Hi! Ah, that's my best friend, Alice. I want you to meet her," they made their way to the Potions classroom, in the dungeons. Emaline got her first view of Alice. She was also a sixth-year and a Ravenclaw but she was just as elegant and beautiful as Margot. From what Emaline saw, she seemed to have an affinity for purple. It was the color of her eyes, she had purple highlights in her long black hair. The only thing that wasn't purple was her headband. It was yellow. And she wore a daffodil pin on her robe, which was also purple. "You must be Emaline," she said with a Welsh accent. "Margot told me about you. I'm Alice Evans."

"That's me. I love your daffodil pin."
"Thank you, it's the symbol of my family. I like your necklace."
"Thank you, too. This is my Gordian Knot necklace from Ilvermorny. Did you know the daffodil is the official flower of Thunderbird House?"
"I did not," Alice replied. "So are you enjoying Hogwarts?"
"I am. I love it here. I just hope I can stay until the end of the year."
While the Ravenclaw common room and the Great Hall had roaring fires, the drafty corridors had become icy and a bitter wind rattled the windows in the classrooms. Worst of all were Professor Snape's classes down in the dungeons, where their breath rose in a mist before them and they kept as close as possible to their hot cauldrons. "I hate going down in the dungeons. it's freezing down there!" said Emaline, shivering. She was almost unable to move her hands from it being so cold. Snape walked up to her to check on her potion. Emaline weakly put up her hand. "Yes, Ms. Goode?" Professor Snape said unpleasantly.

"I hate to pry, Professor Snape but doesn't this room have a heater or something? I-i-it's freezing in here!"
"No, Ms. Goode. I'm afraid it doesn't. This castle is over a thousand years old. We never thought to put a heating system in here. Get back to work." he replied and then walked off. He didn't seem cold at all. "Yes, sir," said Emaline.
While he wasn't looking, she took out her wand below the table, summoning a gentle wave of warm air that began to fill the room. This spell was strong enough to last the entire rest of the day, thanks to the thunderbird tail feather that lay within her wand.
"Did it suddenly get warm in here?" Alice asked. Margot shrugged her shoulders. "Well, it feels really good." Everyone in the classroom felt warmer. Snape didn't seem to notice. He continued reading The Daily Prophet as if nothing happened. Everyone in the room was relieved by how warm it was in the Potions Classroom.