The Gryffindor tapestry door busted open, and McGonagall barged in. Most of the students were huddled together, whispering quietly and conversing in hushed tones.

"What happened here?" McGonagall looked furious.

Esme, who had been fixing the window with magic, seemed to have taken it upon herself to explain to McGonagall what happened. "All we know is that the window shattered, and something flew inside and landed on the floor."

"We're just fixing the windows now, Professor," said one of Esme's friends.

McGonagall nodded. "Ten points for Gryffindor, Esme. You handled this well." Esme beamed. "Let's take this to my office and figure out what it is, shall we?"

Esme carefully picked up the parcel and headed off with McGonagall. The tapestry door closed behind them.

"Well, at least the head girl knows what she's doing, unlike the rest of you pig heads." Quinn sat down.

Rose frowned. "Okay, first of all; rude. Second, we're eleven. What are we supposed to do?"

Quinn sighed. "I mean, we can't do anything, but there are other students here that are more advanced than us or even Esme. They didn't do anything."

Rose shuffled up the steps of the girl's dormitory. "I'm going to bed, wake me if anything other dangerous things happen."

"A wise choice," Quinn nodded sagely, following Rose.

Cass looked back at Elle, who had sat down in one of the common room chairs. "You coming?"

"Nah, I think I'll stay down here for a bit," Elle yawned. "See if McGonagall comes back."

***

When Cass woke up, a very familiar large white owl was sitting on the edge of her bed. "Oh God, you again?"

The bird tilted its head a little. Once again, the large avian stuck out it's leg for Cass to take the parcel from. As she reached for the parcel, the owl remained completely still.

"You definitely need a name, uhh... How about... Owl?"

Cass rummaged around her trunk. "I'm not great at naming things, okay? I have some owl treats as a peace offering..." Cass looked to the owl, but the large bird had taken off, sailing out the window soundlessly.

"Weird," Cass muttered. She clambered off of her bed, stumbling over to the one next to her, falling through the curtains and landing with a soft thump. It earned her a few good whacks from her redhead friend, who mumbled "Cass, this is the first and last time you will ever do that, or else I will tear out your spleen."

Cass stifled a laugh. "Nothing like a couple good death threats in the morning, huh?"

Rose snorted. "I'd love to see what Quinn's gonna do to you when you wake her up."

"Um, no. I'm not doing that. There's a reason why I woke you up first." Cass cautiously moved the curtains out of the way and moved over to the side of Quinn's bedpost. "After you."

Rose swept the curtains to the side, shaking her head. "She's so weird." Quinn was spread across her mattress like a starfish, her sheets rumpled and half falling off the bed. Cass poked her arm, receiving a minimal response from Quinn.

"Nnnngh," Quinn groaned, her voice muffled. "Leave me alone, you gits."

Cass poked her harder, before Quinn begrudgingly shuffled out of bed and into the bathroom. The door clicked as it was locked shut.

Rose eyed Cass. "You think we should make sure she doesn't fall asleep in there?"

Cass shook her head. "Not if we remind her about breakfast."

***

Cass shoveled food onto her plate. Rose frowned. "You're not possibly going to eat that all, are you?"

"Just don't choke," Quinn mumbled, stuffing her own plate with food. "Pass me the eggs, would you?" she muttered, reaching across the table as Rose handed the plate to her friend.

Cass swallowed. "What class do we have first?"

Rose pulled out a crumpled piece of paper. "Uh, Potions. I think."

"Who's the teacher?" Quinn mumbled. Her plate was almost cleared, with the exception of a piece of toast.

"Professor Frimile."

Elle snickered from beside Quinn. "First class ever? You're in for a rude awakening."

A bit farther down the table sat the Potter boys, who were talking to some fellow Gryffindors when an owl swooped by. Rose covered her mouth. "James got a Howler again, I see."

"Howler?"

"Right, Cass. I forgot. Howlers are enchanted letters that parents send to their kids to shame them. It's probably a good idea to have a bucket of water handy when they go off."

"JAMES SIRIUS POTTER―"

Cass leaned out of her seat a bit. "Does Pumpkin Juice work?"

"Apparently," Quinn laughed, stuffing the last piece of toast in her mouth.

***

Cass shook her head as the group of witches walked to their first class. "I don't get it... people say that Slytherins are evil, but you and your cousin were talking to that Slytherin boy... Scorpio, I think?"

"Scorpius. He's not evil or anything, but he's a bit embarrassing. And a Malfoy, anyways."

"Then why were you talking to him?"

Rose made a face. "Albus dragged me over to him."

"So he's friends with the Scorpion boy?"

"I guess. My father would have a heart attack if I was friends with a Slytherin. They're not all bad now, but most of the Slytherins my parent's age were working for Voldemort."

Quinn tugged on the door to the potions dungeon, gesturing for them to stop talking and go inside.

When the girls entered the classroom, almost every seat had been taken.

There was one open seat seat in the back next to Scorpius, which Rose was directly shoved into by Quinn, a window seat next to Albus, and a seat up front.

Cass was not so subtly pushed into the window seat by her friends. She was about to protest when the Potions Professor strode in.

To say she held the attention of all the first years in the classroom was an understatement. She was pretty enough, with long, dark hair and grey eyes. If Cass had to guess, she'd say Frimile was in her twenties.

But the most entrancing thing about the woman was not her looks. Something about the way Cora Frimile held herself―upright and relaxed, yet as if she knew something you didn't. It should have been eerie, even unsettling, yet the professor made it seem natural.

One thing that that Cass was sure about was that she was intelligent. Frimile wore a blue Ravenclaw pin on her robe, and even without the pin, you would have assumed she was in Ravenclaw: the shelves were lined with rows and rows of books.

"This must be exciting, going to your first class at Hogwarts. Although you may believe otherwise, I am young enough to remember what it felt like." She smiled softly, fixing the class with a warm gaze.

She paused. "All my life, I have been told that I was observant. I base my teaching off of what I observe from my students, and not the older lessons from the book. This will be a class tailored to each and every one of you."

Her eyes scanned the room. "I have a few questions I would like to ask before we decide what we will learn this week. Does anyone know what will happen to someone after consuming a Sleeping Draught?"

Rose's hand reached confidently over her head. Cass let her hands stay folded in her lap, feeling stupid for not knowing the answer.

"Yes, Miss Weasley?"

A toothy smile broke out on Rose's face as she answered with an unwavering voice. "Anyone who consumes a Sleeping Draught will fall unconscious, usually with their expressions mirroring the ones present before becoming unconscious. It is potent enough that given the right amount, you may be able to knock out a dragon."

Professor Frimile clapped her hands once. "Excellent. Thanks to Rose and her spectacular demonstration of knowledge, we will be making a sleeping Draught this week!"

Cries of outrage struck the room, and Rose's beaming face fell. Frimile held up a hand.

"You can handle it. I would not ask you to do this if I thought you would not be able to do it right."

All the students started shouting at the same time, until sparks came out of Frimile's wand, which she was pointing at the class. "Yes, a sleeping draught. If this is something out of your collective leagues, we will start with something more basic.

Most of the class began to calm down, but there were still some students who would not. Quinn folded her arms and refused to sit down. "I'm terrible at potions. I can't make this!"

Professor Frimile shook her head. "Pidgeoncliff? Quimby Pidgeoncliff? I knew your father, Quimby. He was in the same years as I was. Brilliant at potions. I bet you could be just the same if you tried."

Quinn sat down, scowling.

"Alright. Pair up, students. Pick the person sitting next to you. Follow the instructions in the book, and if you need a demonstration, I will give one."

Cass turned to her right, only to find none other than Albus Potter.

"Uh, I'll get the ingredients, you get the cauldron?" Cass suggested awkwardly.

"Right," Albus nodded.

Cass gathered all the ingredients, only to drop a jar of Flobberworm Mucus. Thankfully, it merely rolled underneath a cabinet, not smashing against the floor like she had expected.

As she reached down to grab it, she noticed that a small envelope was lodged between the cabinet door and the floor. Cass dislodged the letter and slipped it into her pocket before collecting the jar of Flobberworm Mucus.

She headed back to the table while Albus was setting up the cauldron.

"Sleeping Draught, here I come," Cass muttered.