desiderium | t. riddle

iv. ebony leaks

On the surface, it was a normal moment, a normal sight.

Two schoolgirls with tousled locks falling over themselves in repressed giggles as they hurried along the hallways, desperate to get to their first lesson of the year on time. Their uniform black shoes tapped furiously against the stone floor, the anarchic rhythm interlacing with the girls' heavy, humored breathing to stitch together a melody that might whisper into the everyday lives of most.

However, if one was to allow their toes to dip even slightly under the surface, they would know that to Evangeline, the slightly taller of the two girls that could be spotted in the moment, it was not normal. In fact, it was anything but.

And if said person were to venture even further past the surface, submerging their heads in the water, they would see that for the first time in her life, Evangeline truly felt human. She felt fine with being human — more than fine, even.

It was alright that her spine wasn't ruler-straight, it was fine that her footfalls could be heard from a mile away and grew further and further away from graceful with every second that passed. The ringlets in her hair were no longer locked into place the way metal coils around nails to form screws, but had twisted apart in the wind and spiraled into the wild vines that curl aimlessly up wooden posts to decorate their unremarkable brown rinds.

The pair finally hurled through the archway that led to the classroom they needed to reach and came to a stop at the back of the room, their chests heaving under blue and black robes and hands clutching their stomachs as they caught their breath.

Professor Merrythought, a petite witch with curly greying hair and an easygoing look about her face, stood at the front of the room, looking at the two pupils with a single raised eyebrow. Cassi and Eva each sent her a sheepish look in return before sidling into the only empty seats left in an attempt to not draw too much attention to their delayed arrival.

Evangeline peered over to identify the brunette on her right. It was Myrtle, but she seemed adamant on not making eye contact with Evangeline. The half-angel's brow furrowed, but her confusion was cut into by an assertive voice.

"Good morning, fifth years. My name is Professor Merrythought, and I will be your Defense teacher this year. As most of you know, this is O.W.L. year..."

Eva puffed air into her cheeks in boredom, as she was quite sure she would be back in Heaven long before exams rolled around, and therefore shouldn't need to pay attention. Tuning the professor out, she resorted to examining the markings on the desk made by previous students.

One that caught her eye looked like a strange arrangement and rearrangement of the same sixteen letters over and over again to form different words, all looking like gibberish.

The Ravenclaw didn't make much of it, musing that it was most likely some student trying to create a new enchantment, and returned her attention to Professor Merrythought.

The older witch was now explaining the plan for their first lesson. "I'd like to hold a bit of a duel amongst the class, purely so I can evaluate all your skills and get a general idea of where I should begin my teaching."

A field of murmurs, some excited and some apprehensive, rose amongst the students.

"Your first opponent will be your desk partner. From there, it's winner against winner. Losers will come to the red circle drawn at the front left corner of the room and take notes on the main duels. Understood?" Professor Merrythought scanned the room with inquiring eyes before a placid smile settled on her thin lips. "Now, I will ask you all not to use anything too harmful, though. I've just met with your school nurse and would rather not get on her bad side on the first day. I think that's all there is to be said, then. Get on with it and good luck!"