Caught in Action PV Serena Towers Closed

"The one time I go... ah, such a dumbass," Serena muttered under her breathe, cursing herself as she walked down one of the corridors in the Fourth Floor. She rarely visited this floor, in all honesty. It was not one that appealed to her for any particular reason and none of her classes seemed to be here either. However, she had gone to the library earlier in the day to continue doing some research on something she needed to know. Not for class but for her own safety: healing spells. The girl wanted to find some basic healing spells that she could learn. With the amount of times she seemed to get hurt, it was necessary. More than that though, she wanted to know the spells for her friends - who seemed to also get hurt around her.

Unfortunately, she had managed to leave one of her textbooks in the library. Hopefully no one had put it away on the shelves, because she would never find it if they had. It would take her ages to find it if someone had moved it. With class tomorrow though, she needed that textbook or she would probably end up in trouble with the Professor. With her strict parents watching her every move, getting in trouble with teachers was probably something to avoid. 

The Hufflepuff sighed as she reached the library. She slowly pushed the door open. It was quieter than usual. A library was always quiet but usually you could hear people walking around, quills against paper, pages turning... Today, she heard nothing. It was perhaps too late. However, the library seemed to still be open so she pushed open the door and peeked in. A frown crossed her forehead. The librarian was nowhere in sight. The easiest way to find her book was to just ask him but she couldn't actually see him. 

Well, I'm here now. She thought to herself, deciding she may as well have a look on the table she had sat at earlier. She must have left it on there. If she was lucky, no one would have moved it. Walking into the room, she moved deeper in. Serena reached the table and a look of disappointment crossed her face. There was nothing there. Sighing softly, she turned on her heels and decided to see if she could find one of the elves or the librarian instead. They would be able to help her. "Ah-" She started under the breath as she saw a figure move from the corner of her eye. Quickly glancing down the aisle, she rushed forward to try and catch their attention and ask about the book. 

As soon as she hit the end of the aisle, the girl's eyes fell onto a student. She caught a glimpse of her face and that long dark hair of hers. Serena quirked her eyebrow. It was a student she recognised instantly. Their families had had plenty of meals together. Far too many for her liking. Kendra Ackerman. The Hufflepuff watched her for a second. What's she doing here- Her eyes widened as she noticed the section ahead of the girl in front of her. The Restricted Section. That was definitely not somewhere the girl was meant to be. 

"Ackerman," Serena's curt voice appeared behind the Slytherin, "What exactly are you doing here?" She questioned, though she had a feeling that she already knew the answer.

It felt as if the air froze for a second. There was a female voice, calling her name, her last name to be specific. She never introduced herself by her last name, people wouldn't usually know it. Kendra's mind sped up trying to put the pieces together. 

The first thought that came to her was potential escape plans. She scanned her brain for any spells that could help but her level in magic was still too low for such tricks. Confronting the unexpected presence seemed to be the only reasonable choice at that moment. She turned around to look at the girl, she was a Hufflepuff and her face was familiar, oddly familiar. 

"Towers?" she exclaimed struggling to maintain her composure. 

Serena Towers and her family had been rather close to the Ackermans. Kendra could still remember how her mother chased her around the house to get her to join the boring dinner parties they would throw. She did remember Serena and her brother and how Kendra's mother enjoyed comparing her to them. In truth there had been recent letters from her mother concerning that matter. 

I was informed that Towers' daughter Serena is already a Prefect. You should do well to take her as an example and act accordingly. We can't afford to have other families asking, If you can't I will contact the Headmaster. 

These words had hurt Kendra deeply. She knew she would never be able to get such a high position in Hogwarts. Why could her parents not simply accept that? Kendra and Serena had never been close, they had barely even spoken a word to each other. They had always been exchanging angry looks while sitting across the table as their parents went on about politics and blood status and other matters of that sort. Kendra's brothers had been rather close to Serena's though. Not that that mattered anymore, since Kendra hadn't seen them in more than five years. 

"I was just... leaving. " she said making a futile attempt to cover her true intentions up.

Serena's eyes hit Kendra's face as she turned around, confirming that it was definitely her. There was no doubt about it anymore. She knew that face all too well. In fact, she knew her whole family too well. She referred to the Ackermans as the Spawns of Satan. Of course, not verbally or out aloud in any way. However, Kendra's parents were awful. They were similar to the majority of her relatives on her maternal side though. So she was used to these pureblooded elitist views. But Serena hated it. She hated everything about her own family when it came to these mindsets, so it was only natural for her to hate it in others too.

The Ackermans probably loved Serena's older brother though. He shared the same views as they did. In fact, the boy studied in Durmstrang probably to learn dark arts. She did not put it past him. There was a reason that they did not speak very much or get along all that well. Perhaps her family were hoping she would turn into them too. She was loyal at least. The question was, what side did her Hufflepuff loyalty truly lie? Only time would tell...

"Leaving what, exactly?" She asked with a raised eyebrow. It looked very much like she had no intention of leaving the library right now. The restricted section was not exactly close to the exit, "Leaving the Restricted Section, perhaps?" She continued curtly. In all honesty, it looked more like Kendra was trying to enter the Restricted Section but perhaps she had already visited the area before Serena had appeared.

"I imagine you're aware that this area is, well, restricted to students," Serena continued in a firm voice. It was weird, she was never normally like this. However, her Prefect duties were kicking in. Combine her duties with her dislike of the girl in front of her, you get a pretty serious Serena, "I hope you have a permission slip, Ackerman?" Though she honestly doubted that Kendra did. It was very unlikely that any first year had received permission to enter this area - especially not by themselves. At the very least, you would have expected an adult present with them. However, fairness ran through her blood. She gave the girl a chance to explain herself. Perhaps she had managed to get permission somehow. Her parents could have paid someone a lot of money for it, after all. 

Kendra lowered her gaze as her usually innocent, daydreaming expression had now turned into a dark frown. She had gotten in trouble with Prefects in the past but had always found ways to avoid serious trouble. Why did it have to be Towers this time? What if she told Kendra's parents about this? The Ackermans may have been muggle-haters but they were by no means rule-breakers. 

"Why would I have a permission slip? I wasn't in the Restricted Section nor had I any intention of entering..." she mumbled looking at her feet.

She knew her lies couldn't be more obvious but she had to work with what she had. She took a small breath before raising her eyes again to glare at Serena.

"But I would think that if you weren't a Prefect and all, you would be more than excited to join me in such an expedition..." she said making sure to give the word 'Prefect' the sarcastic tone she felt it deserved. "But I guess you can't afford to disappoint anyone can you Towers?"

Kendra found it hard to locate where all that was coming from. Her usual polite, helpful and even awkward attitude had been replaced by something much darker. She was jealous and frightened but Serena could never know that, Kendra  would never forgive herself in that case.

"Oh? Ah yes, you're right. That direction is clearly the exit," Serena replied rolling her eyes as the excuses continued, her tone of voice suddenly dripping in sarcasm as she pointed past Kendra to the restricted area of the library. They both knew she was about to enter it, denying this seemed foolish. The Hufflepuff Prefect was not one for sarcasm usually. She was bouncy, kind and happy for most people. The Ackermans were definitely an exception to that rule. They sucked the happiness out of her. They made her curt, restrained and kind of rude at times. Though she would never dare to be rude to Kendra's parents - but it was acceptable to be rude and sarcastic to the young girl if she warranted such a reaction.

Serena quirked an eyebrow before breaking into a smirk. The girl's sarcasm was not lost on her but it was just so amusing to see her try. "Join you in the expedition that you... weren't intending to do?" She asked, "Hm? Do you know a lot about the topic of disappointment, Ackerman?" Serena retorted back, brushing off her insult.

The Hufflepuff Prefect knew full well that she was a constant disappointment to her parents. They never failed to tell her so. Perhaps if she was a Ravenclaw or a Slytherin, she would finally have their approval. However, breaking into the Restricted Section would never get her into trouble with her parents. They did things like that all the time. Getting caught, however, would. Getting caught and being suspended - or worse - would definitely anger her parents. It was their reputation on the line. If she successfully did things without getting caught - or at least, avoiding serious punishments if she did get caught - they would be fine with her doing it in the first place.

Their ethics were definitely different to her own. There were things she knew better than to do. Going into a dangerous area, restricted for very good reasons, was one of them. Serena had no intention of breaking the rules and ended up annoying her Head of House. He had been good to her. He was kind and friendly, she liked him. And a Hufflepuff was loyal to the people she looked up to. He was one of those people. "Now, let's see, was there a reason for this?" Serena asked, believing everyone deserved the chance to explain their actions. Based on Kendra's reply, she could formulate a suitable punishment and the severity of the case in hand.