Closed History of Magic? More Like History of... PV Nellie Lam and Melisande Lennox

Would Nellie be good at Quidditch? Only time would tell, really, but she hoped so. There was something poetic about the daughter of two squibs being good at the quintessential wizard sport. Duelling, though, might be even more poetic. Beyond that, duelling was sensible. It was something she could use if she were ever in a position to need it. Decisions, decisions.

Dennis's reply made her laugh. There was something to be said about being comfortable enough with someone to be able to banter like this, but her retort would never come. The professor entered in that moment and drew Nellie's attention away from Dennis and towards the front. The supplies she'd picked up for this class were all neatly laid out and as the other students in the room scrambled for their stuff, Nellie dipped her quill into the inkwell and prepared to write. This level of preparedness might have made sense for a Ravenclaw, which Nellie most certainly was not. It was not her thirst for knowledge that fueled her, but her anxiety. She found it easie to manage when she was prepared, so prepared she usually was.

"Good afternoon!" A Hufflepuff couldn't not return a salutation! At least not this Hufflepuff.

The class would pass, uneventful for most but full of interesting stories for those that were not born in this world. Nellie's attention would remain fixed on the professor the entire time, not even tempted to lose points by chatting. It would remain that way until the class ended and students began to pack up their things. Her attention returned back to her friend with a smile. "Get all that, Denners?"

@Dennis Tumberton

Class had started and Dennis found himself in a hard place. He was trying really hard to pay attention to the lecture but try as he might, he found his hand uncooperatively drawing little wands all over his paper. There were some interesting facts that peaked his interest from time to time but the little boy was distracted. Winks, and duels, and girls, and aging like the professor, and Nellie, and spells, and charms, and girls, and Ne- wait, muggles had history? Throughout the course of the lesson, Dennis was becoming increasingly agitated and his workspace increasingly chaotic. He needed some fresh air but he was stuck in this stuffy classroom and he couldn’t seem to focus. All the thoughts came in and out however which way they wanted.

He glanced over at Nellie a few times to say something but each time found her focused on the lesson. What did he even want to say? This whole thing was driving the poor boy batty. Through all his growing and new found angst, the lesson actually was pretty interesting. Despite all the desperate doodles, he managed to catch all the salient points. He was typically a sharp note taker but for whatever reason on this day, his mind just wouldn’t cooperate. He scrunched up his nose and was about to violently shove all his papers and books into his bag in retaliation for their mere existence when he heard Nellie call him ‘Denners.’

A warm feeling came over him, thoughts of family and home. Perspective. Dennis let out a deep sigh that seemed older than he was. He put his right hand on his neck to massage…a cramp? Why does an 11 year old have a cramp? Kids sure grow up quickly these days. He finished shoveling his books unceremoniously into his bag and answered, “Maybe? I think so?”

He paused a minute and watched the professor through the red hair that drooped over his eyes and waited for her to leave. “Did you see the look the professor gave? Do you think she heard me?” Dennis asked a little worried. He leaned back in his chair waiting for Nellie. “I hope not. I mean…maybe she isn’t that old…and maybe History of Magic isn’t that bad after all?”

It was rare for Nellie to be so focused in a class. It this case it was simply because she was interested in the topic. Unfortunately, this meant that she missed the pre-pubescent melt down of the boy beside her. By the time he turned to he, the nickname seemed to have worked wonders to calm him down. Her almond-shaped eyes drifted to the chaos that had become of his work space and back to him. She watched as he massaged his neck and her brows furrowed in concern. As he packed up, so did she, though she was much less messy about the process.

Luckily, he spoke his mind before Nellie had to touch him to feel for a fever. A touch like that might really have sent the poor boy into a spiral. In any case, his concern over having been heard by the professor was a valid one. Nellie would have been just as anxious, if not more if it had been her. "She might have, but honestly? Shes a teacher. I'm sure she's heard worse about herself. My mum and dad have told me all sorts of things their students say." The girl suspected that there was also very often things said that her parents did not share with their innocent little girl. "If you think you upset her, go apologize." Simple as that, right? Certainly no eleven year old would dread apologizing to a professor that may not have even heard them, right?

@Dennis Tumberton

Dennis thought about it. The room was filled with people, she could have been looking at anyone. Professors were confusing. He shook his head when Nellie said about apologizing and shrugged. The moment had past and so did his guilt about calling the professor old. Now it was on to bigger and better things. It was nice having a friend like Nellie in the class so he was sure that he would enjoy the class. Even the best classes can be dull if you don’t know anyone.

“That’s alright. Her hearing probably isn’t very good now anyway. I’m sure she didn’t hear,” was Dennis’ only justification for why he din’t want to approach the teacher. He let that be that and finished packing. He got up from his seat first and turned around to invite Nellie on another adventure, However, homework was piling up. Perhaps another time. He was sure there would be other opportunities in the future. “Well…I’m gonna head out. I’ll see you around! I send you an owl if I find some adventure!”

With that Dennis turned and exited the classroom. In the end History of Magic was pretty ok, he thought going through the door way.

@Nellie Lam

Nellie was glad that her friend seemed to calm down after she'd suggested speaking with the professor. Really she couldn't blame him for not wanting to apologize when he wasn't entirely sure the woman had even heard what he'd said. "You're probably right." Despite the assurance she'd given the boy, she couldn't help but think the professor didn't really look that old. Besides, if she had trouble hearing, the Hufflepuff imagined she'd have some sort of sound augmentation spell or something. Either way, she imagined it wasn't that big of a deal.

They both finished packing their stuff around the same time, her belongings a bit neater than Dennis's. Nellie figured that was boy's for you. Messy. "See ya later, Denners!" She gave him a wave in return. "Maybe I'll find adventure first and send you that owl." She grinned. She exited the room after her friend and moved off in the opposite direction. That had been her final class of the day. So the goal was a bit of solitude in her dorm before the other students came pouring in to get ready for dinner. Maybe she'd get a letter or two written. Or maybe she'd read a bit. Either way, she was looking forward to it.

@Dennis Tumberton

Finished