Eternal Patience

New Friends

Just then, Sarah arrived. A boy was walking with her, gazing around the library in wonder, as if he'd never seen it before. He had jet black hair and wore a yellow jumper. Barnaby recognized him as a Gryffindor in their year, but couldn't remember his name. 

"Oh, hi guys," Sarah said to Barnaby and Rowan. "How's studying going?"

"Brilliant," said Barnaby before Rowan could respond. He didn't want her to tell the others about his breakdown a moment ago. 

"Good," she said, smiling. "Well, don't let us distract you. We're going to be researching about Beatrice's curse."

"I can help with that," said Rowan. "Barnaby could use a break anyway."

"I want to help too," he said. 

They all looked at him closely. "You want to do more studying?" asked Sarah, perplexed. 

"I can provide moral support," he said, grinning. 

Sarah grinned back. "Perfect." She sat down. "Oh, this Jae Kim, by the way. My new detention buddy."

Jae sat down next to Sarah. "Good to see you again, Tulip."

"You too," said the Ravenclaw. 

"Of course, you two would already know each other," said Sarah, chuckling. She looked around at them all, her smile falling. "Where's Penny?" They all shrugged. Sarah sighed. "Guess we'll have to start without her..."

"Is there a way I can help without studying?" asked Jae. "It's not that I don't like studying...Actually, I take it back. I hate studying. Do you know what I mean?"

"Yes," said Barnaby. At the same time, Tulip said "Nope," and Rowan said, "Absolutely not!"

Jae rolled his eyes at Barnaby. Barnaby decided he really liked Jae Kim. 

"Sorry, Jae. But studying is a necessary evil if we want to help Beatrice," said Sarah, placing a hand on his arm. Barnaby felt the dark cloud return. Maybe he didn't like Jae Kim.

"Alright," said Jae, smiling. "Bring on the textbooks!"

They spent a couple hours researching together. The others combed through books while Barnaby made himself useful by carrying large stacks to and from the shelves. He enjoyed it at first, but each time he returned to the table, the others were laughing at some joke Jae had made. He wasn't sure why, but this made him feel...funny. Not exactly angry, but something like it. 

Finally, Jae beckoned Sarah over. "Look at this!"

Sarah read from the book. "That's not a bad idea," she said. Barnaby sat back down to listen. "The portrait might be trapping Beatrice with some sort of advanced undetectable extension charm."

The others pondered this. Barnaby tried to remember what that charm did. 

"That could be possible," said Rowan.

"I've only ever seen that spell used on luggage and stuff like that," said Tulip. 

"They're restricted by the ministry because of the potential for infractions on the international statute of secrecy," said Jae. "You won't come across them very often."

"That's...correct," said Rowan, surprised.

The other girls gave Jae curious looks. "What? You have to know the rules to get around them," he said. 

Tulip patted Jae on the back. "I believe Jae Kim will make an excellent addition to our group."

Sarah nodded. "Impressive." Barnaby felt his fists clenching. "Well, its the only lead we've got so far. I'll go speak to Flitwick and see if he can tell me any more about extension charms."