𝐅𝐑𝐄𝐍𝐄𝐌𝐈𝐄𝐒.

II

•

I quickly dressed up in a plain white buttoned shirt with a yellow-themed tie in thick stripes; a grey knitted v-neck jumper on the neckline, simple black shoes, grey socks, and an open black buttoned robe with the house emblem on. I threw my hair in a glossy and elegant slicked-back bun topped off with jeweled pins and light makeup to comprehend my facial structure; however, brown-nude lipstick was my thing.

Today was my first day attending a class, and I wanted to look presentable if we had to take school photos or if something significant happened. That was always my motto back in my old school - always look good if it depends on your deathbed. Silly, but true.

Michelle sprung inside the room and spoke with her angelic accent, yet a pressing voice impatiently inquired. "You can't be serious, Alora. We have to go now, or we will sit in detention."

My hands slipped around the books I needed for today and strolled off to her. "My bad, I wanted to look good," I said softly with the outer corners of my mouth slightly lowering in my face.

Michelle held her hand in the air and dismissed my apology, brushing it off with an empty glance. "It's okay, but we have to hurry. Severus Snape won't be happy if we're late."

I arched an eyebrow out of curiosity. "Is that the creepy one?"

Michelle peeked over with rounded eyes in shock, and scoffed in disbelief. "Are you giving teachers' pet names to remember them?"

A chuckle slipped out of my lips nervously, gripping the book tightly between my hands. "Maybe..."

Tiana wasn't going to class because she had a meeting with Professor McGonagall regarding her papers. We weren't sure what it was about, but it didn't bother me.

We walked through the hallway and led the way towards the long staircases that rotated around each entrance before it landed on ours. Once the stairs completed their descent upwards, we stepped off the last step one after another. Michelle then opened the wooden double door and led me inside the dungeon. It's large enough to hold at last twenty students, our cauldrons, and our work tables. The classroom was quite scary, with pickled animals in glass jars along the walls and a blackboard on which the instructor could write directions for student work.

"Here we are," Michelle declared as we walked inside. We took a seat behind a black wooden desk and set our books down, gazing at everyone from different houses gradually stepping inside.

The Gryffindors, Hufflepuff's, and Ravenclaws. It came to my notice Harry, and Ron wasn't here, but Michelle explained to me I was in a higher class and couldn't be put in the minor ones. Cedric and his familiar friend strolled inside with laughter parting their lips. They found their seat in front of our desk, whispering into each other's ears like two school girls having an admire. It wasn't clear what they chatted about, but it must've been something 'hilarious.'

The last ones to roam inside were the Slytherins. An extremely tall, intimidating guy with beautiful features took the group's lead. His piercing eyes, his facial structure is perfection, a perfectly shaped nose, and brown hair matching his eyes. He found his seat beside our desk with one of his friends and flickered his eyes to me. I cocked my head in his direction and squinted my eyes curiously. The light faded from his eyes until they were dark and empty, followed by a sly smirk appearing on his lips.

"Alora Celestina, right?" He asked with a thick English accent.

I gave him a knowing look. "Yes, how do you know my name?"

A smooth line of ill-humored contempt played with the corners of his lips."It's not every day you hear about a new student with a terrible background."