The following day, and their first day of lessons, went by in a whirlwind of quills, spell books, homework assignments, and above all, tons of new information. Mackenzie felt that her brain was like a sponge and could only hold so much before it could retain no more.
Her favourite class, by far, had been charms. They were being taught by Professor Flitwick who, as rumour had it, had been teaching at the school for almost a century. In any case, he taught them the levitation charm on the first day. They were combined with the Gryffindors and while Kenzie wanted to stay within her small Hufflepuff group, she also wanted to get to know students from other houses as well. The girl she had met on the train, Rosie, had been sorted into Gryffindor house (where both of her parents had been, she had told them excitedly). Kenzie was happy to see her in class and went over to talk to her. She was also introduced to Megan and Patrick Fosbrook, Abbie's friends, a girl named Kira Ambleton, another girl named Janet Sellinger, and a boy named James Potter. Everyone kept whispering after his name came up in attendance but she couldn't for the life of her figure out why.
By the end of the class, Kenzie had earned 10 points for Hufflepuff, being the first and one of only three people able to make their feathers levitate in the first class. Rosie and Megan tied close for a second. She felt so accomplished. She could only remember one other time when she had been number one and even in that instance, Maddie managed to take the spotlight off of her. She liked Hogwarts already for this very reason.
Defense Against the Dark Arts was another class Kenzie thoroughly enjoyed. They were combined with the Ravenclaws this time which meant a new batch of people to meet. Kenzie sat with Scorpius, with Abbie and Alison across the aisle to their left. Kevin seemed to prefer to sit close to the front to pay very close attention. He also wore glasses so it seemed that a magnified view was an asset.
There were two girls sitting behind Mackenzie and Scorpius. One was named Simone Harvey and the other Ayden Murray. Kenzie was honestly slightly intimated by these girls. They were deeply immersed in a conversation involving when they were going to use a needle to pierce their noses, the "muggle way'. She turned around and looked for more people to meet. There was another Ravenclaw girl talking to Abbie and Alison. She introduced herself as Sarah Werner. She had a contagious laugh that resonated through the classroom, causing Kenzie and the other girls to giggle as well. Sarah went to take her seat, also near the front.
It was just before the bell when three more boys jaunted in. They looked flustered. They had clearly run here and had most likely gotten lost along the way. As they passed the cluster of Hufflepuffs they introduced themselves quickly.
"Hi, I'm Louis Biscuit." A sharp-looking boy had a briefcase in one hand and extended the other to shake all of theirs. They introduced themselves in turn. Abbie laughed as though he was making a joke although he didn't realize it. "Pleased to make your acquaintance. This is my friend Darrell Chambles." A shorter boy, who was not as sharply dressed as the first waved at them then slumped to his seat, followed by Louis who had finished shaking hands with everyone and opened his briefcase to retrieve a fresh piece of parchment and quill. The third and last boy to come in was wearing thick square-shaped glasses and had wavy bleach blonde hair that hung into his eyes. He was also carrying a cute fluffy dog with him, which he told everyone was named Nibbles. "Oh yeah, and I'm Camille." It was as though he felt his dog's identity was more important than his own. He laughed. So did everyone else. "Camille Oattez. Call me Cam though." He then attempted to tell his fellow Ravenclaw, Louis, about the creative processes muggles use to make their theatre stunts come to life. Louis was clearly having none of this. He looked like he wanted to focus.
Professor O'Kelly came into the class and began her lesson. It was honestly a very boring first class, as all they did was take notes. This was a task that Louis seemed quite up for, although when Cam's dog decided to go for a run, he seemed less than pleased. Kenzie chuckled to herself.
"Mr. Oattez, kindly leave your canine friend in the dormitory for future classes. Thank you." Professor Okelly was also less than pleased, a disposition that Louis smugly approved of with a curt nod.
Despite the workload, it had been a very satisfying day and the Hufflepuffs set off to dinner and then straight to the common room to have a crack at their homework.
Mackenzie continued on with her classes as she had done the first day and was quickly beginning to excel in each subject. Her teachers praised her on her improvement, saying that it is often the case that muggle-borns have a bit of catching up to do, but that Kenzie was actually one of the top in her year. She was so jubilant with the idea that she was finally successful in something that Maddie could not take away from her.
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Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Great Hall
September 23, 2015
As Mackenzie dug into another delicious Hogwarts breakfast, the owl post began to arrive. Ollie made a crash landing in Alison's pumpkin juice, splattering it all over the table. Mackenzie had not expected there to be a letter, now soaked in pumpkin juice, for her this morning. It was the first one she had received via owl at school. Ollie hopped toward her and stuck out his tiny leg. She peeled open the envelope.
Dear Mackenzie,
Professor McGonagall has given you and Maddie permission to leave the grounds and meet Abby, me, and the Junior Elite Competition Team for your training and rehearsals on weekends scheduled by Abby. I will be outside the school gates to pick you up. We begin this weekend. I hope you've been practicing.
Love,
Mom
Kenzie's stomach dropped. In her attempt to learn everything she possibly could about the new world in which she was immersed, dancing had clearly slipped her mind. How could she be so stupid? She shot a glance in the direction of the Slytherin table and saw Maddie reading a letter too, likely the same one she had received, as a big smile stretched across her face.
Every weekend?! How could they do this to her? Didn't they know that she had the highest grades in her first-year class? That she spent the weekends studying and spending time with her new friends? Another thought came to mind. She hadn't danced at all in at least a month. She was supposed to have remembered some choreography that had been set in the summer. She was afraid her technique had suffered too as she hadn't even stretched once.
As Maddie left the Great Hall after breakfast, she walked past Mackenzie. "Hope you've been practicing, Kenz. Oh but I guess you're in Hufflepuff. That means you've been sneaking into the kitchens before bed and getting snacks, doesn't it?"
Mackenzie looked away from her sister. It was true. Scorpius knew of the painting that led to the kitchens. All you had to do was tickle the pear and you were in. She had ventured there with him and Abbie most nights. A house elf named Steepy had grown fond of them and made them a tray to take back while they studied. Kenzie felt ashamed now with Maddie's scornful look piercing her like a knife.
"Well, you'd better pray Miss Abby doesn't kick you off the team. I bet your technique has suffered, you haven't been practicing." She scoffed at her younger sister.
"Neither have you!" Kenzie shot back.
"Yes, I have." Maddie turned her nose up at her. "Dance is the most important thing. I could never let Miss Abby down. I've been doing legs and feet class and stretching every night and going for a run around the grounds every morning! Plus I rehearse in my common room."
"What?!" Mackenzie didn't know there was space like that. There certainly wasn't in the Hufflepuff common room. "You don't have room!"
"In Slytherin we do," Maddie retorted. "There's a long hallway with no furniture. If you wanted to practice, you could have found a way. It's not my fault you're lazy."
At this Mackenzie fumed with white-hot rage. "It's not my fault your bad at magic!" She had blurted it out without thinking. She had seen one of Maddie's essays sticking out of her book bag the previous week bearing the N for "Needs Improvement". She hadn't meant to say anything about it but Maddie had provoked her. Mackenzie was extremely proud that, due to her hard work, she had received solely "Outstanding" marks thus far.
They stared at each other, both furious, and then began to scream and hit each other. They drew the attention of many students still finishing their breakfast. When Professor Okelly pulled the girls apart they were both crying angry tears and looked as though they wanted to rip each other's hair out. They were both deducted 10 points from their respective houses and told to go about their day and ignore each other.