By the time Friday arrived, Rigel wanted nothing more than to just lie down and relax. Hogwarts was incredible and the lessons were fascinating but it was a big adjustment and he just wanted to relax a bit and let his brain calm down.
Professor Flitwick, the Charms teacher, was a tiny little wizard who had to stand on a pile of books to see over his desk. At the start of their first class, he took the roll call, and when he reached Eliza's name he gave an excited squeak and toppled out of sight. Then toppled again when he heard Harry's name
He had taught them one spell. Lumos the wand lightening charm and the easiest one. Then they learned the counter charm 'nox' and by the end of the day, many muggle-borns and muggle-raised were excitedly muttering 'Lumos'
Rigel had even done something wheat he couldn't achieve in muggle schools. Making friends. He was on excellent terms with Eliza and if minus the bossiness, Hermione Granger. Harry was also a good acquaint and so was Dean Thomas but Harry spent most of his time with Ron, who barely spoke with him, and Seamus Finnegan sent him disgusted looks. Most of the Gryffindor common room resigned the fact that Sirius Black's son was in their house. After all, Black himself was a Gryffindor. But that didn't stop with people throwing insults at him with 'Death Eater spawn!' Murderer's brat!' 'And Inbred bastard!' were the top three.
He had also found out what a metamorphagus is. Apparently, they were really rare shapeshifters, and apparently, his family was known for producing metamorphagus witches and wizards but somehow, the talent was lost. He had a good time entertaining his friends into turning into several teachers.
Speaking of the teachers, they were much more different than their muggle counterparts. Here they were more helpful and other than Snape didn't try to make his life miserable.
After a miserable potions lesson, Rigel, Harry, Eliza, and Ron made their way down to Hagrid, the Hogwarts gamekeeper hut. The house was on the edge of the forbidden forest. A crossbow and a pair of galoshes were outside the front door.
When Harry knocked they heard a frantic scrabbling from inside and several booming barks. Then Hagrid's voice rang out, saying, "Back, Fang —back."
Hagrid's big, hairy face appeared in the crack as he pulled the door open.
"Hang on," he said. "Back, Fang."
He let them in, struggling to keep a hold on the collar of an enormous black boarhound.
There was only one room inside. Hams and pheasants were hanging from the ceiling, a copper kettle was boiling on the open fire, and in the corner stood a massive bed with a patchwork quilt over it
"Make yerselves at home," said Hagrid, letting go of Fang, who bounded straight at Rigel and started licking his ears. Like Hagrid, Fang was not as fierce as he looked.
"This is Ron," Harry told Hagrid, who was pouring boiling water into a large teapot and putting rock cakes onto a plate. "And Rigel?"
"Another Weasley, eh?" said Hagrid, glancing at Ron's freckles. "I spent half me life chasin' yer twin brothers away from the forest. Haven't met a Black in years though."
The rock cakes were shapeless lumps with raisins that almost broke their teeth, but the four pretended to be enjoying them as they told Hagrid all about their first lessons. Fang rested his head-on Rigel's knee and drooled all over his robes but the latter didn't mind scratching Fang's ears.
The four were delighted to hear Hagrid call Filch "that old git."
"An' as fer that cat, Mrs. Norris, I'd like ter to introduce her to Fang sometime. D'ye know, every time I go up ter the school, she follows me everywhere? Can't get rid of her — Filch puts her up to it."
Harry told Hagrid about Snape's lesson. Hagrid, like Ron, told Harry not to worry about it, that Snape liked hardly any of the students.
"But he seemed to hate us three," Harry said pointing to himself, Rigel and Eliza.
"Rubbish!" said Hagrid. "Why should he? Well, Sirius did trick yer dad-" Hagrid shook his head but Rigel wanted to know what his father did.
Hagrid turned away and Rigel noticed that he seemed uncomfortable. He saw a copy of the Wizarding newspaper that Hermione received each morning. Hagrid had it opened on a page about a break-in at Gringotts.
Rigel gave the paper to Harry who read it quickly.
"Hagrid! That Gringotts break-in happened on our birthday! It might've happened when we were there!"
Hagrid started talking about the weather and Eliza and Harry shared a look with Ron and Rigel? Just what was going on?
And so the time passed at Hogwarts. Lessons took up a lot of time, but Rigel found he quite enjoyed most of them. He wasn't exactly top of his classes, but he was in the top five in most of them, with transfiguration and astronomy being his favorite lessons. Rigel had started to take a bunch of books out at a time and read them in his spare time instead. Some days he felt like his brain would just explode from all the new information, but then he would go to the common room where there was always someone playing exploding snap or chess, or otherwise just relaxing and talking nonsense. All in all, he felt completely at home.
The following week all the first years seemed to be incredibly excited by the prospect of, not only the upcoming Halloween feast but also their first flying lessons. Unfortunately, the Gryffindors would be learning with the Slytherins and nobody was not looking forward to it one bit.
At breakfast Hermione was talking non-stop about everything she had read about flying, Ron and Harry found it irritating but Rigel found the flying tips useful.
At three-thirty that afternoon, Harry, Ron, and the other Gryffindors hurried down the front steps onto the grounds for their first flying lesson. It was a clear, breezy day, and the grass rippled under their feet as they marched down the sloping lawns toward a smooth, flat lawn on the opposite side of the grounds to the forbidden forest, whose trees were swaying darkly in the distance.
The Slytherins were already there, and so were twenty broomsticks lying in neat lines on theground. Rigel had heard Fred and George Weasley complain about the school brooms, saying that some of them started to vibrate if you flew too high, or always flew slightly to the left.
The teacher, Madam Hooch, arrived and looked at the two lines of students with hawk-like eyes. Her faze faltered on Neville and Rigel and had no trouble guessing why. Neville already had a reputation for clumsiness and Eliza was easily the smallest in the group.
"Well, what are you waiting for? Everyone stand by a broomstick, hurry up." Rigel stepped up beside the broom, it didn't look very new, it only had a few twigs and he thought it wouldn't even be good at cleaning the floor.
"Stick out your right hand over your broom, and say up!" Everyone started doing as they were told. Rigel's broom shot straight into his waiting hand, as did Harry, Eliza's and Draco's.
Madam Hooch walked between the students giving instructions and the Gryffindors enjoyed it when she started correcting Draco Malfoy.
They were then told how to mount their brooms but Neville was so nervous that his broom took off quickly, he reached twelve feet before the broom shook him off and he plummeted to the floor with a sickening thud.
Hooch ran over to Neville and warned them all to stay on the ground whilst she took him to Madam Pomfrey.
Malfoy and the Slytherin's immediately began mocking Neville and the Gryffindors predictably jumped to his defense. Rigel noticed Neville's Remembrall that his Grandmother had sent him and Eliza bent down to pick it up, Malfoy beat him to it.
"Give that here, it belongs to Neville," Rigel said, firmly, moving to stand next to Eliza.
"And what if I don't?" Malfoy smirked.
"You will end up with broken kneecaps and a Black eye." Rigel practically growled. His hair turned vivid red.
Malfoy rolled his eyes though Rigel did notice a tinge of fear in them. "Come and get it, Potter!" Malfoy shouted, looking at Harry this time. Harry immediately mounted his broom and Eliza reached out to stop him, her eyes flashing angrily. "No! Madam Hooch told us not to move! You'll get us all in trouble, besides you don't even-"
"What a bleedin' idiot!" Rigel finished as Harry flew up to meet Malfoy.
Eliza laughed before much to Rigel's surprise followed suit.
Rigel had to admit that Harry and Eliza looked like they could handle the broomstick well. When Malfoy threw the Remembrall however Harry flew after it at such that everyone gasped. Harry grabbed it just before it hit the wall, but Malfoy was right in front of him, attempting to grab the Remembrall.
"Eliza!" Harry yelled, and threw the Remembrall at her. Eliza caught it in one hand perfectly, swerved around Malfoy easily, and headed for the ground.
Every Gryffindor cheered.
"HARRY AND ELIZABETH POTTER!"
Oh darn.
At dinner, Rigel could not believe that the twins not only escaped punishment but were now members of the Gryffindor Quidditch team! Harry was the seeker while Eliza was their new chaser.
"Don't tell anyone though, Wood wants to keep it a secret," Harry whispered to him, Eliza and Ron. Just then the Weasley twins arrived and congratulated them (quietly of course) they were also on the team. When they left Rigel saw Malfoy start to make his way over so he and Eliza slipped out of their seat and walked to the hospital wing.
Neville was sat up in bed looking perfectly happy, he smiled when he saw the two and waved them over.
"How are you, Neville?" Rigel asked sitting on the foot of Neville's bed.
"I'm fine although I heard about Harry, did he get into trouble?" He asked, his smile slipping.
Eliza shook her head. "No. but you forget something."
Nevill look confused and Eliza shook her head and pulled the Remembrall out of her robe pocket and passed it over, it immediately turned red and Neville's face fell.
"I think it might be faulty, I couldn't have forgotten something already!"
When they returned to the common room later that night he saw Harry and Ron playing chess, they appeared to be in a serious discussion so he decided to have an early night and leave them to their game.
He was woken hours later by the sound of Harry Ron and Neville coming into the dormitory, clearly out of breath. Rigel sat up and pulled open the curtain, making the three boys jump.
'What were you doing out of the dormitory and in the middle of the night?" Rigel asked.
"You won't believe what's just happened," Harry whispered, walking over to Rigel's bed and sitting on it. By the time Harry had finished the tale, Rigel was astounded by several things. First of all that Harry could be stupid enough to allow Malfoy to get him into trouble, Second of all that Hermione and Ron had risked getting into trouble to accompany them, thirdly that poor Neville had been dragged into the adventure, and finally that there was a three-headed dog on the third-floor corridor.
"Well," Rigel said, "Dumbledore did warn you."