Sunlight was just beginning to filter through the high, arched windows of the Ravenclaw dormitory, painting the blue silk hangings with stripes of gold. Talora Livanthos was already awake, lying on her stomach and propped up on her elbows, idly tracing the constellations on the enchanted ceiling with her finger. Her strawberry-blonde hair, a chaotic mass of golden-brown curls, was a bright splash of colour against the dark pillow.
In the other bed, Shya Gill was a motionless lump buried under a mountain of duvets. Only a single, black bob poked out from the top.
A soft *tap-tap-tapping* sounded from Shya's nightstand.
Talora's head swivelled. A piece of parchment, neatly folded, lay there. It hadn't been there last night.
"Shya," she whispered. No response. "Bob. Wake up. Something's happening."
A low, unintelligible groan emanated from the duvet mountain.
"Shya, seriously. I think a house-elf left us a present."
The lump shifted slightly. One dark, sleep-filled eye cracked open, glaring balefully in Talora's general direction. "Tell it… to come back… in two hours," Shya mumbled, her voice thick with sleep, before burying herself deeper.
Talora rolled her eyes with fond exasperation and hopped out of bed. She padded over, snatched the parchment, and unfolded it. Her green eyes scanned the contents, widening with every line.
**HOGWARTS SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDLY**
**First Year Weekly Schedule - Miss Gill & Miss Livanthos**
### **Monday**
**8-9 AM:** Breakfast
**9-10 AM:** Charms (L)
**10-11 AM:** Transfiguration (L)
**11-12 PM:** Free Period
**12-1 PM:** Lunch
**1-3 PM:** Double Potions (P)
**Evening:** Dinner/Free
### **Tuesday**
**8-9 AM:** Breakfast
**9-10 AM:** History of Magic (L)
**10-12 PM:** Double Potions (P)
**12-1 PM:** Lunch
**1-2 PM:** Astronomy (L)
**2-3 PM:** Free Period
**Evening:** Dinner/Free
### **Wednesday**
**8-9 AM:** Breakfast
**9-10 AM:** Herbology (L)
**10-12 PM:** Double Herbology (P)
**12-1 PM:** Lunch
**1-3 PM:** Free Period
**Evening:** Dinner/Free
### **Thursday**
**8-9 AM:** Breakfast
**9-10 AM:** Flying (L)
**10-12 PM:** Double Charms (P)
**12-1 PM:** Lunch
**1-2 PM:** History of Magic (L)
**2-3 PM:** Free Period
**Evening:** Astronomy (P) - Midnight
**Friday**
**8-9 AM:** Breakfast
**9-10 AM:** Transfiguration (L)
**10-12 PM:** Double Transfiguration (P)
**12-1 PM:** Lunch
**1-2 PM:** Free Period
**2-3 PM:** Free Period
**Evening:** Dinner/Free
**(L) = Lecture, (P) = Practical**
"Shya!" Talora practically launched herself onto her friend's bed, landing with a bounce that made the springs creak. She waved the parchment in front of the single visible eye. "Look! Our schedule! We have Charms and Transfiguration today. And a *double* Potions after lunch! A double! And look at Thursday—Flying! And Astronomy at *midnight*!"
Shya groaned again, this time with a hint of interest. She emerged from her cocoon, her sharp features softened by sleep, her perfect black bob miraculously unmussed. She squinted at the parchment Talora was thrusting under her nose. "Potions… double… ugh. Too early for so many words, Bob."
"It's not early, it's practically late! We have to get ready!" Talora was already off the bed, pulling their uniforms from the wardrobe. "Who do you think left it? A house-elf?"
"Obviously," Shya grumbled, swinging her legs out of bed with the grace of a sloth. She moved slowly towards her clothes, picking them up as if they weighed a ton. "Rude little thing, waking people up." She began to dress with a methodical, unhurried slowness that made Talora want to vibrate out of her skin.
"I think it's lovely," Talora declared, already half-dressed, her curls bouncing. "It's like having a magical, invisible personal assistant." She tossed Shya's tie to her. "Come on, slowpoke! I want to see if the Great Hall has those chocolate-filled croissants again."
Shya caught the tie with a lazy hand. "If they don't, I'm going back to bed," she muttered, but a small, anticipatory smile was finally touching her lips. She meticulously fastened her tie, smoothed her already flawless hair, and slid her heavy gold bangles onto her wrist. "Alright, alright. I'm ready. Let's go see what all the fuss is about."
The contrast was perfect: Talora, a whirlwind of golden energy, and Shya, a portrait of calm, deliberate motion. They were a balanced equation, and their first real day was about to begin.
The Great Hall was a cacophony of noise and smells. The ceiling was a clear, cheerful blue, and sunlight streamed in through the high windows. Talora, buzzing with energy, practically dragged a still-sleepy Shya to the Ravenclaw table.
"Look! Chocolate croissants! And kippers! And about six kinds of jam!" Talora said, piling a bit of everything onto her plate.
Shya, with a yawn, selected a single croissant and a cup of tea with precise, unhurried movements. "It's too bright in here," she murmured, squinting.
They found two seats next to Padma Patil, who was neatly eating a bowl of porridge.
"Good morning," Padma said politely.
"Morning!" Talora chirped back. "Can you believe this? A whole week of classes mapped out. I'm most excited for Potions, I think. What about you?"
"Herbology, probably," Padma replied. "It seems very structured."
Shya, who had been silently observing the Gryffindor table, gave a noncommittal hum. "They're all a means to an end. The magic is the point, not the subject." She took a slow, deliberate sip of her tea.
Their peaceful breakfast was interrupted by the arrival of the Gryffindor first years. Harry Potter and Ron Weasley walked in, looking a bit lost. A moment later, Hermione Granger hurried past them, her nose already buried in A History of Magic.
As Ron passed their table, his gaze drifted and landed on Talora. He stared, his mouth slightly agape, until his ears turned a brilliant shade of pink. Talora, ever polite, caught his eye and offered a warm, if slightly distracted, smile before immediately turning back to Shya and Padma.
"Honestly, does he have to be so obvious?" Talora muttered, not unkindly, but with a hint of amusement.
"He's just impressed," Padma said with a small smile. "You two do stand out."
"I think Potter was looking at you, too," Talora said, nudging Shya's foot under the table with a mischievous glint in her eye.
Shya's head snapped up, her languidness vanishing for a second. "He was not."
"He was! He looked right at you and then pretended to be very interested in the floor." Talora grinned. "Maybe he senses a kindred spirit. The 'Boy Who Lived' and the 'Girl Who Can't Function Before Ten AM'."
"Ha ha," Shya deadpanned, sinking back into her sleepy slouch. "Very funny, Bob."
Breakfast passed in a flurry of questions and excitement of their first day!
---"Right," Talora said, swallowing the last of her chocolate croissant and brushing crumbs from her robes. "We've got Charms first. Professor Flitwick seemed nice." She turned to Padma. "Are you ready to go? We don't want to be late on the first day."
Padma nodded, neatly folding her napkin. "I've heard he's one of the best."
Shya, who had been watching the enchanted ceiling shift from pale gold to a brighter blue, snapped her attention back to them. "Do you think we'll actually get to cast a spell today? A real one?"
"God,, I hope so," Talora said, her eyes sparkling. "I've been waiting my whole life for this."
****
**Charms Class - 9:00 AM**
The Charms classroom was on the third floor, filled with sunlight. Desks were arranged in neat rows, and at the front, Professor Flitwick stood on a tall stack of books, beaming at them as they filed in.
"Welcome, my new eagles! Find a seat, find a seat! Today, we begin our journey into one of the most fundamental branches of magic! The charm!" His squeaky voice was full of enthusiasm. "Can anyone tell me what distinguishes a charm from, say, a transfiguration?"
Hermione Granger's hand shot into the air, but before Flitwick could call on her, Talora's hand went up too, a confident smile on her face.
"Yes, Miss Livanthos?"
"A charm alters an object's behavior or properties, Professor," Talora said clearly. "But it doesn't change what the object *is* fundamentally. Like making it fly or light up. Transfiguration changes its form entirely."
"Precisely! Five points to Ravenclaw! A textbook definition!" Flitwick chirped. Hermione's hand slowly lowered, a slight frown on her face.
"Today, we begin with a simple yet essential charm: the Wand-Lighting Charm! The incantation is *Lumos*! Now, the wand movement is not a flick, not a jab, but a single, deliberate, counter-clockwise loop. Like so!" He demonstrated with a tiny, precise motion. "The magic is in the intent! You must *will* the light into being! Now, everyone, try the movement. Wands at the ready! No incantation yet!"
The classroom filled with the sound of swishing wands. Shya practiced the loop slowly, her brow furrowed in concentration, ensuring the circle was perfect. Talora did it with more gusto, her loop a little wider.
"Very good! Now, with feeling! *Lumos!*"
A chorus of "*Lumos!*" filled the air. Sparks, sputters, and faint glows appeared up and down the rows. Next to Shya, Talora focused, her knuckles white. "*Lumos!*" A warm, golden, diffuse glow bloomed from the tip of her cherry wood wand, illuminating her desk.
"Yes! Excellent control, Miss Livanthos!"
Shya took a deep breath. She didn't force it. She simply pictured light—cool, sharp, silver light—and made the perfect loop. "*Lumos.*" A beam of brilliant, silvery-white light, sharp as a laser, shot from her wand tip, so bright it made several students nearby blink.
Professor Flitwick clapped his hands in delight. "Oh, bravo! Miss Gill! Such clarity and power! Five points to Ravenclaw! You see, class? Intent and precision!"
From a few desks away, Hermione Granger, whose own wand had only produced a weak, flickering light, let out a frustrated huff. "It's the wrist," she muttered to Parvati Patil, a little too loudly. "It has to be a relaxed but firm wrist, or you're constricting the magical flow."
Talora, overhearing, leaned over to Shya and Padma and whispered, "Or, you could just do it right the first time." Shya giggled, a rare, light sound, her proud smile still firmly in place.
*******
**Transfiguration Class - 10:00 AM**
If Charms was bright and cheerful, Transfiguration was solemn and imposing. Professor McGonagall stood waiting in silence until the last student had taken their seat.
"Transfiguration," she began, her voice crisp and carrying to every corner of the room, "is some of the most complex and dangerous magic you will learn at Hogwarts. It is not merely changing how an object looks. You are altering its very nature."
She waved her wand without another word. Her desk shimmered, folded in on itself with a series of sharp, clicking sounds, and transformed into a large, live pig that grunted and snuffled before, with another wave of her wand, it turned back into a desk. The class was utterly silent, mesmerized and terrified.
"For the next six weeks, you will be working on Match to Needle. Do not be fooled by the simplicity of the objects. This spell requires absolute mental discipline." She spent the next forty minutes drilling them on theory—the Four Principles of Transformation, the importance of visual mass equivalence, and the sharp, decisive thrust of the wand, completely different from the loop they'd learned in Charms.
"Visualization is paramount," she stressed, her eyes boring into each of them. "You must not only see the needle in your mind, you must *feel* its coldness, its sharpness, its metallic nature. You are not wishing it to happen. You are commanding reality to change."
She had them spend ten minutes just holding their matches, their eyes closed, focusing. Shya was in her element. This analytical, precise magic appealed to her. She imagined the needle in exquisite detail: the sharp point, the smooth shaft, the tiny eye.
Finally, they were allowed to attempt the incantation. "*Vera Verto!*"
Talora, her face a mask of effort, thrust her wand. "*Vera Verto!*" Her match shivered, and the tip sharpened into a perfect, silvery point. The rest remained wood, but it was a clear success.
"A very promising start, Miss Livanthos. Five points."
Shya took a steadying breath. She focused, channeling all her will through the ash wood. "*Vera Verto!*" The match in front of her turned a uniform, dark metallic grey and tapered at one end, though it lacked the perfect point of a true needle.
Professor McGonagall examined it. "A strong transformation, Miss Gill. You have successfully altered its material nature. The final form will come with practice. Well done."
Shya felt a thrill that was entirely different from the joy of Charms. This was the satisfaction of solving a difficult equation.
********
**Free Period - 11:00 AM**
As they left Transfiguration, buzzing with intellectual energy, Talora looped her arms through Shya's and Padma's.
"That was incredible," Talora breathed. "But my brain feels full. Let's do something fun before lunch. Let's go exploring!"
"Where should we go?" Padma asked, looking intrigued.
"The dungeons!" Shya said immediately, her dark eyes alight with curiosity. "We passed the entrance on the way here. It looked so mysterious. I want to see what's down there."
"Perfect! A proper adventure," Talora agreed. She spotted two other Ravenclaw girls from their year, Mandy Brocklehurst and Lisa Turpin, looking a little lost in the corridor. "Hey! You two! We're going on a reconnaissance mission to the dungeons. Want to come? Girls only."
Mandy, a girl with long, dark hair, looked relieved. "Yes, please! These corridors all look the same."
Lisa nodded eagerly. "I heard the Potions classroom is down there. And the Slytherin common room."
"Then let's go find them!" Talora declared, now leading a small squad of five Ravenclaw girls.
They made their way down a sweeping marble staircase that shifted just as they reached the bottom, making them all gasp and laugh. The air grew cooler as they descended into the basement level. The torches here burned with a greener flame, and the shadows were long and deep.
"Whoa," Lisa whispered. "It's like a different world."
They crept along a stone-flagged corridor, their footsteps echoing. They passed heavy, iron-bound doors with no markings.
"Shh," Shya said, holding up a hand. She pointed to a door that was slightly ajar. A pungent, chemical smell—a mix of bitter roots and pickled eggs—wafted out. They huddled together and peeked inside.
It was a long room lined with shelves of glittering ingredients and stone workstations. And there, his back to them, was Professor Snape. He was moving between the stations with a silent, bat-like grace, setting up pewter cauldrons and arranging glass vials with unnerving precision.
"He's so… quiet," Mandy breathed.
"He looks like he'd deduct points for breathing too loudly," Padma observed wryly.
As if he heard them, Snape paused. He didn't turn, but his head tilted slightly. The girls froze, holding their breath. After a tense moment, he continued his work.
Talora pulled them back, her heart pounding with a mixture of fear and excitement. "Okay, we've seen it. Let's get out of here before he turns us into potion ingredients."
They scurried back down the corridor, a chain of giggling, nervous girls, their bond solidified by their shared secret mission. They had faced the dungeon's bat and lived to tell the tale. As they emerged back into the brighter, warmer main castle, they felt like a proper team, ready for whatever the rest of the day—and Professor Snape—would throw at them.
The five girls emerged from the dungeons like explorers returning from a treacherous journey, their faces flushed and their eyes bright with shared adrenaline. The warmer, brighter air of the Entrance Hall felt like a welcome embrace after the chilling silence of the dungeons below.
"I can't believe we did that," Mandy Brocklehurst breathed, a hand on her chest. "He didn't see us, did he?"
"He sensed us," Shya corrected, her voice low and certain. Her analytical mind was already replaying the moment Snape had paused. "He knew someone was there. He just chose not to acknowledge us."
"Well, I choose to never be on the receiving end of his attention," Lisa Turpin declared, shuddering dramatically. "He looks like he could curdle milk with a glance."
Talora laughed, looping her arms through Shya's and Padma's again. "But we survived! And now we have a secret. The first of many, I bet." She beamed at the group. "Come on, let's get to lunch. I'm starving, and we have to be in top form for Potions."
The Great Hall was buzzing with the chatter of hundreds of students. The enchanted ceiling now showed a few fluffy white clouds drifting across the bright blue sky. They found a long stretch of the Ravenclaw table and slid onto the benches, the five of them forming a cohesive unit.
As platters of roast beef sandwiches, hearty soups, and fresh salads appeared before them, the conversation erupted, all of them talking over each other to dissect the morning.
"Charms was brilliant," Talora said, loading a sandwich onto her plate. "Professor Flitwick is just so… joyful about it all."
"Your *Lumos* was so bright, Shya," Padma commented politely. "Was it difficult?"
Shya, who was more interested in a bowl of tomato soup, shook her head. "Not really. It just felt… right. Like the magic was already there waiting. Transfiguration was harder." She looked at Talora with genuine admiration. "Yours was better. You got the point."
"But yours changed colour and material all at once!" Talora countered. "McGonagall said that was the harder part. You're a natural."
"We're going to have to practice that one," Lisa said, looking slightly worried. "My match just got a bit warm."
"We can practice together," Talora said instantly, the organizer in her coming to the fore. "We can claim one of those little courtyards we passed. A proper Ravenclaw study group."
The other girls nodded in enthusiastic agreement. It felt good, Shya thought as she sipped her soup, to be part of something. It wasn't just her and Talora against the world anymore. They were building a foundation, a circle of clever, like-minded witches. She watched Talora effortlessly draw Mandy and Lisa into a conversation about the best quills for note-taking, and felt a surge of affection for her best friend. Talora was the sun that their little solar system orbited around.
"Right," Talora said finally, checking the delicate watch on her wrist. "Five minutes until we have to face the dungeons for real. Everyone ready?"
A collective deep breath went around the table. The lighthearted mood of lunch settled into a more determined, slightly nervous energy.
"As we'll ever be," Shya said, squaring her shoulders. The thrill of the morning's magic was now mixed with a healthy dose of apprehension. Professor Snape's silent classroom and his formidable reputation loomed large.
They stood as one, a unified front of blue and bronze. The first half of their day was over. They had learned magic, forged new friendships, and explored the castle's secrets. Now, the real test was about to begin.