𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝖌𝖗𝖎𝖒 [h. potter]

III

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II: THE TAROT CARDS

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The next morning was quite an easy one for Pippa. She woke up around six o'clock — she had always been an early riser, something she attributed to being the youngest in a four-child household — and by six fifteen, she was already ready for the day. All of her roommates were still sound asleep in their beds, giving Pippa free reign of their shared bathroom. She showered, brushed her teeth, changed, and did her hair and makeup in record time. Pippa sat down, playing around with Fitz and staring at the canopy above her bed, until she heard Padma and her other roommates begin to wake. She fed the puffskein one last pellet of food before putting him in his enclosure, sealing the door with a small click.

"C'mon sunshine, wakey wakey," Pippa teased as she walked by Padma's bed. "I'll be in the Common Room."

She trotted down the stairs, satchel in hand, and sat on one of the nooks, gazing lazily around the common room. It was rather empty — that much was expected considering most students were still getting ready — but Pippa could hear the echoes of a few conversations bouncing off of the domed ceiling, painted to look like the night sky and adorned with navy curtains that hung loosely and flowed in the perdurable breeze that always seemed to be in the Common Room. The dewy morning sun seeped in the tall windows, casting long shadows across the marble tiled floor and illuminating the statue of Rowena Ravenclaw that guarded the library. Pippa quite enjoyed having a little personal library for the House; it had saved her quite a bit of trouble whenever a big assignment came up and everyone in her year raided the library for the one book they needed. Besides, it also served as a nice place to do homework, Pippa found it quite easy to focus among the tall, mahogany shelves.

Her gaze drifted out the arched window. The Ravenclaw Tower uncontestedly had the best view in the castle, at least to Pippa. From where she was sitting, she could see the entirety of the southern grounds. Pippa could see the sunlight catching on the Black Lake, causing the water to glimmer as it gently rippled, likely due to the movements of the giant squid that inhabited it. Pippa smiled reminiscently, thinking about her first year, when she first saw Hogwarts as she crossed the water via boat. She had heard about the aforementioned creature from Michael, who she had met on the train earlier that day, and spent the entire trip trying not to soil her pants.

After a short while, around quarter past seven, more students began milling about in the Common Room, and eventually, Pippa spotted Padma making her way downstairs.

"Merlin, Padma, I forgot how long you took in the morning to get ready."

"What can I say? A lot of work goes into being so beautiful." Padma flipped her hair over her shoulders. They waited by the stairs for Michael and Terry for a bit, then decided to head down to the Great Hall so that they didn't miss breakfast. The boys would catch up eventually.