┏ ೋღ : 𝐇𝐎𝐏𝐄𝐋𝐄𝐒𝐒 𝐑𝐎𝐌𝐀𝐍𝐓𝐈𝐂. ೋღ ┓

𝖈𝖍𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖊𝖗 𝖙𝖍𝖗𝖊𝖊;
𝔦𝔱'𝔰 𝔎𝔦𝔩𝔩𝔢𝔡 𝔪𝔢!

┗━━ ೋღ : ©-fictophilic : ೋღ ━━━┛

𝓦ALKING WITH DEAN, Neville, and Seamus wasn't as awkward as you thought it'd be. Seamus and Dean were definitely the conversation carriers, Neville chiming in every once in a while. You only talked a few times, usually only when you were addressed as you didn't want to butt in — you already felt like you were intruding.

"Will my grandma really not be okay?" Neville inquired as you all peered down the hill to see Hagrid's hut and the growing amount of students surrounding it. You stood in the area with the Sundial Garden, or the Stone Circle; a hill where large, vertical stones stood in a circle just outside of the Wooden Bridge.

"I think she'll be fine," Seamus asserted and hopped down the steps recklessly. Dean, Neville, and you followed behind, though Neville and you were more careful about falling. "Divination's a bunch of poppycock. Easy class though."

"I think Divination's fascinating. I mean, predicting the future? Don't you think it's quite interesting?" Dean chimed, holding his robe over his shoulder as he had taken it off earlier. He then glanced up at you who walked somewhat in the middle of the group. "What d'you think, (Y/n)?"

"Uhm..." You trailed off, attempting not to stumble as you four walked down the mostly broken and cracked rubble of the stone steps. "I think it's interesting and nice to think about and believe in, but you don't want to completely put your trust in it."

"I see that," Dean mused with a hum. "Divination and fate are nice things to believe in though, no?"

"So my grandma's fate is something bad?" Neville questioned nervously. It seemed the thought had worried him.

"No, Neville," sighed Seamus, shaking his head with a chuckle. He readjusted his grip on The Monster Book of Monsters that he held, careful not to undo the restraints on the book.

"Well, fate and Divination don't necessarily go hand-in-hand. The future's always changing. Fate is a fixed concept. That I don't believe in," you stated, telling a half-truth. Part of you wanted to believe in it, the other said that your fate was probably bad and that you shouldn't believe in it so you could save yourself from disappointment.

"What, so you're saying we weren't fated to be Charms partners last year?" Dean joked, his lips pulling upward into an amused grin. "We were the best group."

"You guys were lucky to get paired together," Seamus mentioned, bitterly remembering the Charms partner project from last year. "I was paired with Nott. Bloody git basically made me do all the work."

"Ha, I remember that. You almost failed," Dean laughed, remembering Seamus' occasional rants of frustration.

"Yo, (Y/n)! Over here!" You heard Kyra call out. Standing on the elevated stone steps and scanning over the heads of students, you spot Kyra and a small group of her other friends — they were all from different houses. You knew them, occasionally hung out with them, but rarely talked to them without Kyra. Kyra waved her hands to garner your attention.

"I'll see you guys later," you said to the boys, waving as you walked away. They waved back, saying 'bye' and 'see you later' before returning to their own conversation.

Kyra's other friends seemed to be caught up in their own discussion, Kyra turning towards you.

"Hey ugly," you insulted jokingly.

"Hey idiot," she retorted teasingly. "So, make any friends?"

"No," you answered instantly, standing next to Kyra. You held the monster book tightly as it had kept trying to escape and bite your fingers.

"Oh yeah? What about Dean, Seamus, and Neville?" She inquired, her hazel eyes flitting over to the three boys before returning to yours.

"Dean was just nice enough to be my Divination partner and offered to walk with me here," you explained, shrugging and holding the monster book to your chest. "I don't think he would consider us friends."

"Eh, one step closer," Kyra said, shrugging off her robe to take it off and hang it over her forearm.

"That's it. Come on now. Come closer. Less talking, if ya don't mind," Hagrid spoke loudly over the crowd, standing in front of his hut and gesturing the students forward. "I got a real treat for yeh today. A great lesson, so follow me."

You and Kyra spared each other a glance that shared the same emotion: confusion. Following the group of chatting students, Hagrid led you through the forest.

The forest tree leaves filtered the sun, little amounts of sunlight peeking through the gaps. The sunlight left bright, deformed shapes on the dirt path. The trees rose tall, reaching high into the clear skies. The tree trunks cast large shadows, providing a significant amount of shade.

Hagrid led everyone to an open area, free of trees — save for the very few thins ones and the large one that was off to the side. "Right, you lot. Less chattering. Form a group over there and open your books to page 49," Hagrid ordered, motioning for everyone to stand off the side.

"Open?" Kyra repeated lowly, her brows knitting together in confusion. She turned her book over and over again, looking for a way to somehow open it without losing any fingers.

"Exactly how do we do that?" Draco questioned, skeptical of Hagrid's teaching.

"Just stroke the spine, of course. Goodness me," Hagrid uttered, sparing Draco a glance before turning back around and walking away.

Flipping the book onto its side, you ran your fingers over the spine of the book gently. The book hummed calmly and you removed the binds that prevented the book from being opened. Holding the book by its spine, the book fell open to reveal its wordy contents, and unlike before, hadn't tried to bite any of your fingers off.

Terrified shouts were voiced out from behind you. Neville had tried opening his book, which resulted in him being attacked by the aggressive book. As much as you wanted to help, he was quite a ways away and the thought of walking all the way over there somehow set off your anxious nerves.

It was like walking to the front of the classroom in front of everyone. Perhaps it was a phobia; a phobia of attention, if that was even a thing.

"I think they're funny," Hermione commented, placing her stuff on a large boulder that was buried halfway into the ground. You and Kyra set your stuff down at the base of the biggest tree in the cleared-out area.

"Oh, yeah. Terribly funny," Draco yammered sarcastically as he put his stuff down on a low stone hedge, though Hermione wasn't even talking to him. "Really witty. God, this place has gone to the dogs. Wait until my father hears that Dumbledore's got this oaf teaching classes."

Some of his friends beside him laughed as though he said something even remotely funny. Crabbe laughed obnoxiously; Goyle let out a chuckle; Pansy giggled into her hand; Theodore rolled his eyes, but nonetheless cracked a smile.

Blaise, Lorenzo, and Mattheo didn't seem to find the comment funny. In fact, they all seemed more entertained with Draco's complaining than the actual comment as they all shared an amused look.

Harry held a harsh expression and stepped toward Draco slowly. "Shut up, Malfoy."

The students were silent during the exchange, surrounding the two boys. Everyone was quite ready to see a brawl — honestly, you were too.

You crossed your arms as your eyes flickered between the two rivaling students, intrigued at the suddenly tense atmosphere.

Draco glanced at his left then at his right, him and his friends oohing at Harry's confidence. The platinum blond lifted his bag off his shoulder and dropped it into Crabbe's arms, who caught it clumsily.

He stalked up to the black-haired boy, who stood his ground cautiously. Draco examined and scrutinized Harry, sizing him up.

"Man, you can really feel the sexual tension," you remarked quietly to Kyra. Kyra let out a loud, single huff of laughter, the others who had heard laughing and chuckling along.

Lavender Brown's shoulders shook from the other side of you as she chuckled quietly. You two were acquainted, having talked a few times as she was friends with Padma Patil, who was your Potions partner last year.

Theodore, who had heard your comment, gazed up in your direction while his eyes shined with amusement. You averted your eyes while your lips straightened into a thin line, acting as if it wasn't you who had made the joke.

The platinum blond peered up at the sky after he finished observing Harry. You curiously glanced up to where he was looking, only to find absolutely nothing but trees. Harry furrowed his brows, confused when fear flooded Draco's gray eyes and he started stammering.

"Dementor! Dementor!" Draco shouted frantically, pointing to the treetops that he was looking at. Everyone gasped and turned to where he pointed his pale finger. You rolled your eyes at his little stunt.

Draco returned to his friends in a fit of obnoxious laughter and most of them draped their black robe hoods over their heads. They lifted their hands and fluttered their fingers, taunting everyone who had looked — specifically Harry. "Oooh..." They teased.

Hermione pulled Harry from their torment and scowled at them. "Just ignore them."

Hagrid coughed loudly, gathering the attention of the class. Once all eyes were on him, he nodded and then turned around. "Ta-da!" exclaimed Hagrid, presenting a majestic animal to the class.

Everyone gaped at the animal with the body of a horse with the head and wings of an eagle. Their expressions were mixtures of wonder and skepticism. Your eyes filled with awe upon recognizing the familiar creature.

"Isn't he beautiful?" Hagrid commented, the hippogriff squawking and trotting towards the half-giant. Hagrid tossed up a large fish and the hippogriff hopped onto its hind legs. Catching the fish in its mouth with ease, he gobbled the fish down and ate it whole. "Say hello to Buckbeak."

"Hagrid, exactly what is that?" Ron questioned as everyone huddled around the same area, away from Hagrid and Buckbeak.

"That, Ron, is a hippogriff," Hagrid explained, taking a few steps toward the hesitant teens. "First thing you wanna know is that they're very proud creatures. Very easily offended. You do not want to insult a hippogriff. It may be the last thing you ever do. Now, who'd like to come and say hello?"

Everyone stepped back. With you being somewhat in the back, you instinctively stepped back too as you didn't want to get rammed into.

Harry didn't seem to get the memo. He remained in the same place, separated from everyone else. "Well done, Harry. Well done," Hagrid complimented. Harry expressed puzzlement, peeking over his shoulder to catch a glimpse of everyone who had left him to stand there alone.

"Come on now," Hagrid urged. Ron stepped forward, nudging Harry forward with a small push of his hand. Harry reluctantly trudged forward. "Now, you have to let him make the first move. It's only polite. So, step up. Give him a nice bow."

Hagrid followed his instructions with a bow of his own to show what to do. "Then you wait and see if he bows back. If he does, you can go and touch him. If not... Well, we'll get to that later."

Everyone else watched with unease. You stood idly on the very outside of the huddle of students with your arms worriedly crossed across your chest, Kyra standing next to you. You shifted your weight onto your right leg tiredly.

"Make your bow. Nice and low," Hagrid instructed quietly while Harry slowly and tensely walked forward. His green eyes flickered to Hagrid's figure apprehensively before he started lowering his head, bowing to the hippogriff. 

The hippogriff gazed down at the boy, flapping his large wings with loud squawks. "Back off, Harry. Back off," Hagrid whispered harshly, glancing between Harry and the hippogriff as he waved his hand for him to step back.

Harry stepped back onto a stick, a resounding crack filling the tense silence. People automatically started stepping back as well, nervousness and concern flooding their systems.

"Keep still," Hagrid said lowly once Harry had stepped far back enough. "Keep still," Hagrid repeated.

Buckbeak tilted his head a few times before bowing his own head. "Well done, Harry. Well done. Here, you big brute, you," Hagrid congratulated and tossed another fish to the hippogriff.

The black-haired boy straightened out his posture and let out an uneven breath of relief. "Right. I think you can go and pat him now," Hagrid spoke. Harry sent him a concerned look as Hagrid ushered him forward to the hippogriff. "Go on. Don't be shy."

The group of troublesome Slytherins shoved their way to the front, earning yelps and quiet exclaims of annoyance from everyone they had pushed aside. Of course, Draco was at the center as he took a bite of his green apple.

Harry took small, unsteady steps towards Buckbeak. "Nice and slow now. Nice and slow. Slow," Hagrid muttered quietly, ready to step in if anything happened.

The boy reached his hand out, continuing to take small and nervous steps. "Not so fast, Harry," Hagrid said. The hippogriff held a staring contest with Harry before biting at the air, making a few students flinch. "Slow down, Harry. That's it... Nice and slow. Now let him come to you."

Harry continued to raise his arm, stiffly approaching Buckbeak as Hagrid kept repeating the same word: "Slowly."

Soon enough, Hagrid and the students were clapping once Harry's hand touched the hippogriff, allowing Harry to run his fingers through Buckbeak's soft feathers. "Well done! Well done, Harry, well done!"

"I think he may let you ride him now," said Hagrid and an alert expression replaced Harry's accomplished grin.

"That's what she said," you murmured to Kyra, who howled with laughter.

Harry protested when Hagrid easily lifted the boy up as if he weighed nothing more than an infant. "Put you over here, just behind the wing joint. Don't pull out any of his feathers, because he won't thank you for that," Hagrid informed before slapping Buckbeak's behind with Harry situated on Buckbeak's back.

The hippogriff raised himself onto his hind legs then raced forward with Harry hugging Buckbeak's neck frantically. Buckbeak lifted his wings and flew off as everyone clamored with excitement and exhilaration.

"Brilliant!" Kyra exclaimed, emitting boisterous laughter over the chatter of enlivened students. "Utterly brilliant!"

You grinned at her feverish elation and followed her as she went to sit beside her stuff that she had laid next to the large tree in the clearing.

Setting yourself down beside her, she went on to chat animatedly about what had happened in her previous class while we waited for Harry and Buckbeak to return.

"And then Alexia Gardner said 'oh you mudbloods, always messing up' and blah blah blah. She's not even pureblood! Her mom's literally a muggle!" Kyra ranted from beside you. You shrugged your robe off, setting it down with the rest of your stuff as you push your sleeves up your forearms. "What a complete twat. Then she absolutely messed up her cheering charm in the library. She accidentally used the spell on herself and she could not stop laughing. Almost passed out from the lack of air."

"Who's she again?" You questioned. You somehow knew everyone's, yet no one's, names.

"A Slytherin fourth-year," one of Kyra's friends, Jamie Monaghan, explained. An attractive and popular dark-skinned Irish from the Hufflepuff house. Spoke quietly and was kind of introverted too, but you think it added to their unique charm. They were also quite the Quidditch fanatic, but was terrified of flying. "I think she hexed someone last year, didn't she?"

"Oh, yeah," Alana Barclay agreed with a chuckle. She was a tall Scottish blonde from the Gryffindor house. Quite smart, she was, but never studied and was usually lazy. Somewhat a natural talent, you could say. Also had high levels of impatience and anger issues. "Earned herself a week's worth of detention."

"Yikes, yeah. I remember her," you said, grimacing as you remembered the harsh 'prank' she had pulled one of the Hufflepuffs fourth-years last year.

"Totally deserved," Isaac Walker, formerly Isla Walker, commented. He was a short, Welsh Ravenclaw with short auburn hair. He's sarcastic 90% of the time and dirty-minded 100% of the time. Kinda stupid, yet surprisingly smart academically. He, for some reason, has a strong dislike for chocolate sweets.

"Should've been more," scoffed Rhys Smith, a tanned British Slytherin boy, as he remembered it was his friend being hexed. He was usually loud and had a figuratively big mouth. You can never tell him secrets; he's bad at keeping them. "But Snape's a bias git."

"Bro, he's literally the head of your house," argued Lewis MacSweeney, an Irish brunette Gryffindor boy with bronze skin. The strong — usually silent — type, but he had strong opinions and was quite stubborn. "You don't get bullied by a teacher in Potions!"

Kyra cackled as Lewis shoved Rhys' shoulder, inciting a small and meaningless brawl. You joyfully and loudly laughed, grinning while your eyes glistened with entertainment as you chanted. "Fight! Fight! Fight!"

It was times like these that made you feel like you had more than just one friend.

Times like these that made you feel like you weren't just another person in the background.

But after this class, you'd return to your silence and your refuge in books.

Outside of class, you wouldn't bother to talk to them.

They were friends, you guess, but they weren't like Luna or Kyra. You wouldn't tell them anything personal. You weren't close with them like that.

You let your eyes wander around your environment, taking in the scenery while the