First Year Potions Free Closed

Eris burst into the room, panting heavily with sweat running down her face.
"this bloody castle is so confusing! I've been lost for the past hour," she wiped red hair out of her face, "Thank god that I woke up early." She said, almost to herself.

Eris finally stopped talking and looked around, seeing the other students. "Oh.." she muttered, face turning bright red.

She trudged towards an empty desk, eyes downcast and face still flushed with embarrassment. Sitting down, Eris brushed sweat off her face. She sat there for a moment, studying the board. Nothing she couldn't handle. This class was basically magical cooking right?

Shrugging her book bag off, Eris pulled out her books. What kind of potions would they make? Maybe one to turn people into toads. That would be awesome. What would I look like as a toad, Eris found herself wondering again.

With a little grin, Eris opened her book and started looking for a potion to turn people into frogs. There had to be one somewhere.

After a few minutes of searching, Eris gave up and turned her attention towards the other students again. They all looked bored, or tired. Searching around the room, Eris tried to catch the eye of another student.

Kaegen looked at the newcomer, and his head twitched a bit to one side. To say something... Or to not say something. He was desperately trying to be invisible in the only way he knew how: Get out of the immediate line of sight and then don't move, they'll forget you're there. But it didn't seem to be working. He should have said something to that girl he sat next to, and he should say something now... But what if he messes up?
Well, people are noticing him, so the plan wasn't working anyway. Might as well give it a shot.
His dad had told him a fool proof thing to say, hammered it into his head. What was it again... Oh yes!
Kaegen went off the mental checklist, and gave a slight smile. "hello" his voice also seemed soft, like he didn't want anyone around to hear, or maybe he didn't want to disturb the rest?
On a second thought he turned his head slightly to one side, and looked at the girl he was sitting next to. "Hello" That was twice! Kaegen was feeling pretty good about things. Back where he grew up there was never a need for introductions to be started by him. There was never a need for any of this. And sitting sucked. Like, really sucked.

Eris was slightly taken aback by the boy's shy demeanor. It was so unlike her loud self that she had to think for a couple of minutes before formulating a response. She didn't want to spook him and ruin her chances of gaining a new friend. She really did need some friends.

Smiling faintly, she turned her head all the way towards the boy who had just said hello very quietly. Perhaps he was shy, or maybe scared of her. Eris did come into the classroom late, and embarrassed herself in front of everybody. Oh god! What if he hated her already, and that's why he said hello quietly, because he didn't want anybody to know he was talking to the crazy red-headed freak. Or maybe she was just making up things.

Dismissing her fears, Eris's smile widened just a tad bit. "Hello, my name's Eris." She paused for a second, making sure the boy wasn't going to turn away from her. Satisfied that he wasn't going too, she added, "What's yours?"

Eris sat patiently, waiting for his response, shaking her leg under the desk as something to do. She was quite bored, just sitting. Where was the professor anyways? Oh well, maybe talking to another student would take away some of her boredom.

Kaegen looked at the girl in confusion, trying to process what she just said. 'why does she want my name... oh, right. I said hello, this must be because of that. I hope being asked for a name is good. My father always did the talking, he gave them my name for me. Should I even say it? What if it's a trap, or...' Kaegen cursed inwardly, realizing how stupid he was being right now. Names are nothing but smoke and sound, how could it trap him?
In a voice that had noticeably dropped a few decibels, and now sounded oddly like wind rushing through some cattails by the edge of a bog. He finally responded to the girl. "Kaegen, kaegen deathmote."
The embarrassment was making kaegen want to fidget, to run away, to be anywhere but here, among these strange people in this strange class. Where were the plants that he knew so well, the fish he could catch swimming around in little pools he dug to trap them. He felt free there, serene. But here it was the opposite. The floor didn't give way when he stepped, and made him look like an idiot. It took him at least a minute to respond to that one girl, and he only said hi to the other as a second thought! But the door was open... Maybe he should make a run for it?

"Keagen." Eris repeated the name than grinned. The poor boy--Keagen-- looked more nervous than she was. "You look frightened. Don't worry, I don't bite." Eris laughed, hoping he would get that she was joking. Looking at his scared expression Eris added, "That was a joke, sorry. " Wow she was really bad at this friend-making stuff.

For a second, Eris wished she was back at home, in her room with all her books about fantasy worlds to keep her company. That would be much easier than making friends. Then she remembered was now living in a fantasy world, and that she was never going back home. Not after her mother's breakdown.

After all, why would Eris want to go home when her mum had been lying to Eris since the day Eris was born about everything?

Snapped out of thoughts by the quiet bubbling of cauldrons and the flipping of pages as other students read their textbooks Eris blurted out, "Did you know about magic before you came here?" That was always a good conversation starter.

Pure bloods and half bloods loved to talk about their childhoods and how strange muggles were, whilst muggle borns could always relate to Eris's awe of the magical world. Either way, it was a good topic to chat about and break the ice with.

Eri thought the boy had been talking to her since she sat next to him. She was relived when the newcomer talked to him. She smiled. Its not that she didn't like him she just hated talking and she could see that was the same case but more extreme for him. She realized he was actually talking to the new girl so she picked up her book and read.

She wasn't rude but she just liked people to think she wasn't a talker or she wasn't very social. That was what she liked. Honestly she could talk she just didn't want to just in case she needed her quiet and shy personality to get her out of things.

She let the boy and the newcomer talk. She went back to her book to read ahead again. Eri probably has read that potions book fifteen times. She just liked to be prepared.

It looked like potions class was about to start soon. She put her book up and smiled. She couldn't wait to learn more and possibly improve on her potions.  She smiled at the newcomer and the boy wanting them to think she was friendly and she said quietly, "Hi, I'm Eri."

Eris looked at the other girl curiously, as she was still waiting for Keagen to answer her. "Hello," she answered, "my name's Eris." After a minute, she laughed to herself. Not wanting to seem odd, Eris quickly shared what made her laugh. "Our names sound awfully alike. Eri, Eris." Eris talked quite fast. Not because she wanted too, just because she had an awful lot to say.

Noticing Eri was reading the potions book, Eris frowned. "Have you found a potion to turn people into toads, or do you think we'll be doing that in transfiguration?" It was a life goal of Eris's to turn her mother into a toad. Forever preferably. How nice would it be if her mother looked like the ugly toad she was on the inside. "I hope there's a potion for it," She said in a matter of fact voice, "I would like to turn my mum into a toad." Eris shrugged, acting like that was a perfectly normal thing for an 11 year old girl to want to do to their mother.

Clearly unlike the two other kids she was talking too, Eris was a talker and thrived off chatting to others, even though her leg was still shaking under the table. Not out of being bored anymore though. No, Eris was worried the other children wouldn't like her. Not that she would admit that. She forced a smile onto her face, and waited for a response.

Kaegen seemed surprised for a bit, wondering why the girl thought he was worried about her biting him. But the look of surprised faded when she said it was a joke, he could deal with jokes. They were supposed to be funny, right? Funny was good.
"Did I know about magic? I didn't know it was called magic. Thing happen, where I come from. It doesn't really matter why. But this place claims to be able to explain it, I find that interesting." His voice was still quiet, still barely there, but at least the small smile seemed less forced. He liked interesting things, and magic was very, very interesting.
His eyes darted like lightning to the other girl, the one who said her name was eri. He listened in a bit, but then his eyes fastened back on the first girl, eris. "Is that your goal?"
He thought about it more to himself, trying to figure out why a young girl his age would have the single goal of turning her mother into a frog. He wonder what it would be like to be a frog. It would certainly be interesting. Thinking about things always helped to relax kaegen. He slumped a bit in his chair, his muscles loosened. But he still didn't seem to move any, he didn't sway, or stir. And his chest didn't seem to rise or fall.

"Yes, it's my goal to turn my mother to a toad." Eris said, drawing herself up in her seat, as she addressed the two others. "You see, my mother fought in the battle of Hogwarts. On the wrong side," Eris said with pursed lips. "She was a death eater. After all the trauma of the battle, she decided magic was evil so she ran away and had me and my sister. She kept my heritage a secret from me and my sister, and made us think we were freaks when magical things happened around us." Eris's face was contorted with pain and rage.

Eris risked a look at Keagen, seeing that he looked calm. Maybe he liked her story or something. Either way, he seemed calmer. That was good. "So yeah, I'd like to turn her into a toad because she's one on the inside and I think her appearance should reflect that." There was no hint of the loud girl Eris had been just minutes before, instead she looked profoundly sad. She sat there for a moment, foot no longer shaking.

After a moment, she shrugged, her seriousness gone. "Oh well. The past is the past. I'm here now." She forced a smile, looking at her audience again. "Families suck sometimes."

"Well its more of a transfiguration thing. If you would like I will teach you. I would advise to you to remember the spell that would turn her back. It is a very difficult spell though. Your mom hid your heritage? That is worse than your parents leaving you behind because they think you aren't worthy to help them in their work." She clamps her mouth shut realizing she just told them something  very personal to her. "S-sorty." She grasps her locket absentmindedly thinking of her parents. She forced a smile although her face was blood red embarrassment.

She picked up her book and read her potions book trying to forget her embarrassment.

Eri felt bad that the girl's mom had fought on the wrong side at the battle of hogwarts. That wasn't a great thing. She really meant what she said but now she felt bad.

She started getting sucked into her book and started becoming unaware of her surroubdings. 

She snapped back to reality and muttered an apology for acting so strange.  She prepped herself for taking notes and opened her book to todays lesson. 

"So what is like where you guys are from? I basically spent all of my time with my aunt who taught me everything that she learned at hogwarts on transfigurayion."