Chapter 06: Early Christmas

Transfiguration ended up to be a blast for Rick. He had earned 20 points for Gryffondor in total. 5 for answering a question correctly, 10 more for being the first to turn his match into a needle and 5 more for doing it on his first try. Granted he had spent fifteen minutes practicing the wand movements and nothing else. When McGonagall asked him if he would ever cast the spell, he did it on the spot and quieted her. Marlene nearly strangled him when he said ‘the wand movements were the only thing he wasn’t confident about and everything else was easy’. As a result he helped her with her own match and a bit before the end of class she succeeded in using the spell properly.

Other students performed impressively as well. Lily and Severus in particular, who seemed to approach the challenge with a mix of skill and playfulness that made their transfigurations look almost effortless. James Potter, however, arrived late with his usual entourage: Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, and Peter Pettigrew. Their dramatic entrance might have been entertaining if it hadn’t cost Gryffindor twenty points, five from each of them. Rick couldn’t help but feel a jolt of irritation, the hard-earned points he’d gained wiped out in one fell swoop. At least Lily’s contributions helped cushion the loss, preventing the session from being a total wash. Still, he had to resist the urge to mutter something unflattering under his breath when James winked like nothing had happened.

Marlene took the lead, confidently guiding the group including, somewhat unintentionally, the Slytherin students, toward their next class. Rick matched her pace, walking closely by her side, his expression unreadable but his gaze sharp. The route wasn’t far; they exited the Transfiguration courtyard, turned right, then immediately took another right upon entering the main hall, bypassing the more scenic central corridor in favor of practicality. Their footsteps echoed down a long, dim corridor until they reached a sturdy oak door. Ahead, two paths presented themselves: a spiral staircase leading downward and a smaller door on the right, already slightly ajar.

Rick didn’t hesitate and veered toward the open door, knowing from his reading that this was the entrance to the Potions classroom. Just as they were about to enter, a burst of noise echoed from behind, raised voices, hurried steps, maybe even the clatter of something hitting a wall. Marlene instinctively turned her head, curiosity piqued, eyes scanning over her shoulder. Rick, on the other hand, didn’t so much as blink. He stepped into the classroom like the sounds behind them were wind on a closed window, irrelevant and unworthy of his time.

“Good morning, Professor.” he greeted the head of the Slytherin house.

“Good Morning, Mister Wald. Come on in, and take a seat.”

Rick followed the professor’s direction and set his schoolbag down beside one of the nearest potion stations, claiming a spot that gave him a good view of the classroom. Moments later, Marlene slid into the seat beside him, her expression immediately catching his attention. She wasn’t just frowning, her lips were pressed into a tight line and her brows were knit in restrained irritation. Rick shot her a questioning look, but she didn’t speak. Instead, she jerked her chin subtly toward the doorway.

As more students filed in, Rick’s eyes followed her gesture. Lily entered with a troubled look of her own, her arms crossed in front of her chest like a shield. Right behind her, Snape mirrored her scowl, his usually brooding face even more closed off. A trickle of unfamiliar Slytherin students came next, faces unreadable, but the tension in the air was unmistakable. Finally, Potter and Black strolled in, uncharacteristically subdued, their usual swagger dulled by barely concealed annoyance.

Whatever had happened outside the classroom, it had left ripples. And Rick was starting to get the sense it wasn’t going to be a quiet morning.

“What happened?” he whispered, leaning toward his blonde friend.

“Potter and Black couldn’t help themselves,” Marlene muttered with a scowl. “They started heckling Snape the second they saw him. Called him names, made jabs at Slytherin like it was their job. Potter especially wouldn’t shut up. He told Lily she shouldn’t hang around ‘greasy gits’ like Snape, then immediately tried to flirt with her like it would wipe the insult clean. Honestly, it was pathetic.”

“Why? We barely know each other. Is it because of their fight on the Hogwarts Castle?”

“What Castle?” she asked in confusion.

“The train—that’s its... nevermind.” Rick shook his head before frowning in disbelief. “Are they seriously still fighting because they disagree on which Hogwarts house is better?”

“Yep.”

“They’re stupid,” he declared in a flat and tired tone.

“Yep.” Marlene’s response was so breezily casual it caught Rick off guard, earning a low chuckle from him. She grinned back at him, clearly pleased with his reaction, and for a moment, the tension melted into shared amusement.

Horace Slughorn began his class with an animated and honeyed speech, clearly thrilled to be back in his element. He spoke passionately of the subtle power of potions, describing them as a refined art, sometimes more potent than any spell, and occasionally more dangerous. Elixirs, tonics, brews, he painted them as tools of elegance and peril, capable of healing, transforming, or killing with the right, or wrong, flick of the ladle.

He reassured the wide-eyed first years that while the discipline had a fearsome reputation, much of its difficulty came down to focus and precision. “Follow the instructions, measure with care, and you’ll be just fine,” he promised with a twinkle in his eye. “Especially for the simpler potions.”

But his tone shifted slightly as he added a grave warning: brewing without care or attention could lead to disastrous consequences. “Potions brewed half-heartedly,” he said, voice suddenly weightier, “have sent more students to the hospital wing than any duel I’ve ever seen.”

Their very first potion assignment was the classic Cure for Boils, simple in theory, but deceptively easy to mess up. Marlene struggled at first, hesitant and unsure about the order and precision required. After Rick intervened three times to save the brew from disaster, she finally sighed in frustration and ceded the cauldron to him. Instead, she focused on ingredient prep, measuring and sorting under his direction. To her surprise, this made things easier. Watching Rick work was oddly calming, his movements were clean and confident, his stirring methodical, and he even explained what he was doing as he went, not in a bragging tone but like someone teaching a sibling. During the brief lulls in brewing, she noticed him scribbling in the margins of his textbook, pages already dense with notes. Her curiosity piqued, what exactly was he writing so intently?

“Tips and knowledge about how to do things that the textbook doesn’t cover.”

“Such as?”

“Take Pungous Onions, for example. If you carve out a precise half-circle section near the base—right here—you channel all the juice toward the exposed area. Then, when it’s time to slice, you set it down with that cut side facing downward. That keeps the juice from smearing across the table and minimizes the stench. Plus, when you grip it by the top, your hands stay a lot cleaner, you avoid soaking your fingers in that eye-watering funk and don't need to levitate the pieces just to handle them. The best part? Because the juice is already pooling toward the base, the onion reacts faster and more efficiently with the potion when heated. Better extraction, cleaner reaction.”

“10 points for Gryffindor for such an insight, Mister Wald. Excellent work.”

Slughorn was visibly delighted by Rick’s ingenuity, his round face lighting up with unfeigned enthusiasm. He made an exaggerated show of jotting something in his notebook. The professor leaned over the cauldron, eyebrows arching with approval as he inspected the potion. It had settled into a rich, velvety blue, with delicate pink smoke curling lazily into the air like rose-scented silk. A perfect result, and one that clearly exceeded his expectations.

“Take 10 more points, Mister Wald. This cure for boils is perfect.”

“Thank you, professor.”

“Now, since you’re done, why don’t you share with Miss McKinnon your findings so she can more easily brew the potion by herself next time, hmm?” Slughorn suggested, his voice laced with jovial warmth. Marlene’s face went crimson in an instant, her ears practically glowing.

“Oh, don’t be embarrassed, dear,” Slughorn added with a hearty chuckle. “You did admirably for your first potion. I assure you, I’ve seen far, far worse. Why, once I had a student melt his entire cauldron into the stone floor and end up in the hospital wing with boils all over his hands and face. The whole classroom was enveloped in a vile green mist, it took days to get the stench out of my robes! Dreadful experience, I tell you.” He gave a final chuckle at the memory, then shuffled off to inspect another group, still humming in good spirits.

Marlene felt a weight lift from her shoulders as she listened to Slughorn's anecdote. The exaggerated tale, complete with cauldron-melting chaos and lingering green fog, was ridiculous enough to nudge her nerves aside. Her lips curled into a reluctant, amused smile, the tension finally beginning to melt from her posture.

“You just need to know the key steps to the recipe and practice. You’ll get it.” encouraged Rick.

“How do you know so much?”

“Besides reading from hell and back the manual? I spent a few days in Diagon Alley asking questions about ingredients at an apothecary. That and I’m used to helping cook.”

“I thought you were muggle-born? How can you visit Diagon Alley that much?”

“I live two street blocks away from the Leaky Cauldron.”

“Let me guess, you spend your whole summer there?” she asked knowingly.

“Yup.”

She rolled her eyes but let the topic drop, instinctively sensing that asking more questions would only open a door to answers that might either confuse her or give her a headache. Besides, it felt wrong to pry, not because she didn’t want to know, but because they barely knew each other. They had clicked easily, sure, but that didn’t change the fact they’d only met the day before. There was a line, and for now, she was willing to respect it.

Class came to an end with only one other pair managing a perfect brew, Lily and Severus, whose teamwork was as fluid and precise as if they had rehearsed it a dozen times. The rest of the students produced potions that ranged from barely passable to outright disastrous, with several cauldrons emitting questionable steam and one mixture congealing into a suspiciously solid lump. Fortunately, no one managed to blow anything up or melt their station, which Slughorn seemed genuinely relieved by. All in all, a successful first lesson, if only by narrow margins.

At lunch, Snape separated from Lily and joined his housemate, leaving the redhead to join her own friends.

“Do we stink or what?” Marlene asked as they flopped onto the Gryffindor bench, fanning herself with exaggerated flair. The lingering scent of smoke, sweat, and questionable potion fumes still clung to their robes, and a few nearby second-years gave them a wide berth with crinkled noses.

Rick leaned toward her with an exaggerated sniff, brows raised in mock suspicion. Before he could get too close, Marlene smirked and firmly shoved him back with one hand pressed against his face, effectively palming him like an overzealous older sister. The abrupt motion made Lily burst into giggles, her laughter spilling across the table.

“I’m pretty sure I don’t, I had to check you.”

Marlene ignored Rick’s answer then turned to face Lily. “I don’t! It was a way to ask why your friend doesn’t speak to us, Lily!”

“Oh!” exclaimed the named witch. “Severus is… shy around people he doesn’t know.”

“How do you even know him?”

“We live in the same town. He’s the one who told me I was a witch when I was nine. We’ve been friends ever since.”

“Yeah, well your friend’s out of luck tomorrow because I’m stealing you as my partner! Rick keeps making me look bad over here!” she said with theatrical indignation, throwing a mock glare at him.

“I do not!” the dirty blonde wizard protested.

“Yeah sure, Mister I-earned-forty-points-in-one-morning.”

“So did I.”

Marlene's face twisted into an expression of theatrical betrayal the moment Lily spoke, eyes wide, mouth slightly agape, and eyebrows shooting up like she'd just been personally cursed. It was a mixture of shock, mock indignation, and the barely-contained urge to throw a dramatic fit, which only made it all the more hilarious for everyone watching.

“Merlin, why?! Why did I befriend brainiacs!” she wailed in mock despair, throwing her hands up as if the universe itself had betrayed her. The overly theatrical performance sent Rick and Lily into fits of laughter.

“Maybe Rick and I should partner-”

“No! The two of you together are going to leave me behind! Absolutely not! Besides, girls should stick together!”

“Now that’s mean. You’d leave Rick alone with Potter and his clique?”

Marlene opened her mouth to say yes but paused, her eyes flicking between Rick and Lily. “Maybe... maybe we could... the three of us, I mean... ask to partner up together?” she offered, her voice tentative but hopeful, as if the idea had only just occurred to her and she wasn’t sure if it was brilliant or ridiculous.

“I won’t die without you by my side, Marlene,” Rick said with a smirk, his tone dry but laced with enough sarcasm to make it clear he was teasing, even if the words held a hint of something softer beneath the surface.

“... I don’t know why, but something about this just feels completely unacceptable to me. Like a matter of principle, even if I can’t put my finger on it.”

“Is it me or did we get a glimpse of her heiress persona?” he whispered loudly to Lily who giggled.

“It’s not you.”

“Hey!”

They spent the rest of lunch in a lively blur of chatter and laughter, trading jabs and swapping stories until the bell loomed close. As students began drifting away from the Gryffindor table, Rick sprang to his feet like someone had cast a mild propulsion charm on him. Without waiting for the others, he bolted toward the corridor, clearly on a mission.

“What is wrong with him?” inquired Marlene to Lily.

“We have flying lessons and of course he’s excited.”

“Do muggles fly?”

“We can. We use what is called a plane but it’s very expensive and not nearly the same. It’s also for very long distance travel.”

“Oh.”

The blonde didn’t press the topic any further. She had already noticed the signs, Rick’s robes were a bit too thin for the weather, his books secondhand, his supplies basic. None of it bothered her. Marlene had never been the type to flaunt her heiress status, and she certainly wasn’t about to judge him for his. But she was mindful of the quiet disparity between them, and careful not to make him feel it more than he already might. Instead, she simply let the moment pass, understanding more than she let on. His excitement about flying made perfect sense, it wasn’t just something new for him. It was something he’d never had access to. For someone from the Muggle world, flying wasn’t a childhood memory, it was a dream, now made real.

“Let’s put down our bag quickly before he leaves without us.” Lily said and walked with a fast stride towards the stairs to the girls dorm.

Marlene followed her and in less than five minutes they were back down the common room. Just in time to see Rick hurrying outside.

“HEY! Wait for us!” Marlene shouted, but Rick was already out of earshot. Huffing in frustration, she threw her hands in the air. “Ugh! Boys and their bloody broomsticks!” she groaned with exaggerated annoyance before charging after him with Lily close behind. The comment drew a round of snickers from a group of older girls lounging nearby.

“Aaaah! First years… So innocent.” one of them said, making the others laugh even more.

They caught up to him just before they reached the Grand Staircase area. In fact instead of turning right towards the stairs he went left.

“I swear, if you even mention Quidditch, I’m gluing your lips shut with a sticking charm!” Marlene panted, still catching her breath. The threat was dramatic, but her tone held a playful edge. She didn’t want to ruin Rick’s joy about flying, it was infectious, really, but invoking Quidditch felt like the safest way to reel him in without raining on his excitement.

“I’m not interested in Quidditch, so you won’t have to worry about that kind of obsession from me,” Rick said, offering a sheepish smile. “And… sorry for rushing ahead. I got a bit excited.”

“It’s fine, Rick.” replied Lily with a smile. “I’m more interested in the way you’re going. Are you sure it’s the correct path?”

“Oh, yes. There is a suspension bridge behind that door which leads directly to the Astronomy Wing. I saw it when we were crossing the Viaduct this morning.”

To prove his point, Rick stepped forward and pushed open the door with a hint of theatrical flair. Sure enough, the view beyond revealed a narrow suspension bridge swaying gently in the breeze, exactly as he’d described. Without a word, the girls followed, each of them casting a quick glance over the impressive drop below as they crossed into the Astronomy wing.

Their journey took them past towering windows, spiraling stone columns, and the airy stillness of the Transfiguration courtyard, where afternoon light painted long shadows across the flagstones. From there, they continued into the Library Annex Wing, the air growing cooler as ancient tomes and whispering parchment surrounded them. Finally, they exited the castle through a side passage and stepped into the bright expanse of the Bell Tower courtyard.

Off to their left, no more than thirty feet away, a group of students their age had already begun to gather. The scene was unmistakable: a couple dozen broomsticks laid neatly in rows beside a wooden rack, sunlight glinting off polished handles. Excitement stirred in the pit of Rick's stomach.

Their flying class instructor was Madam Rolanda Hooch, a sharp-eyed witch with short, spiky grey hair and piercing yellow eyes that gave her a hawk-like presence. Rick couldn’t help but wonder if those eyes were natural or the result of some magical enhancement, either way, they were intimidating. That idle thought vanished the instant she uttered the word ‘broom.’ From that moment on, Rick’s brain tuned out every word she said, overridden by a surge of giddy anticipation that made it nearly impossible to focus. He was practically vibrating with excitement by the time she instructed the class to summon their brooms.

“Up.”

It was said with authority and the broom immediately obeyed. Rising up in a flash it ended in Rick’s firm hand and quickly found itself between his legs.

On each of Rick’s side, Marlene and Lily were amused by his antics with the former even wondering if he wouldn’t just fly away because he couldn’t hold himself back anymore.

When everyone had their broom in hand, Professor Hooch’s sharp whistle cut through the air, signaling the next phase of the lesson. At her command, every student’s feet left the ground, some shakily, others with more confidence. The sensation of hovering was met with squeals, laughter, and a few nervous gasps. Over the next ten minutes, she demonstrated the fundamentals, how to move forward with a lean, how to pull up with gentle pressure, how to descend without diving like a rogue Bludger.

Fifteen more minutes of controlled practice followed. Rick absorbed every second with a laser focus, leaning into the turns, testing the balance, already pushing the broom just a little harder than the others dared. So when the command came to fly freely, within the boundaries of the lawn, he didn’t hesitate. The moment the invisible leash dropped, Rick launched himself into the sky like a fired spell, a blur of excitement and speed. Marlene and Lily barely had time to react before he vanished above the treetops, his laughter trailing behind him like a second wind.

“I think we lost him.” commented Lily looking up at Rick and making Marlene laugh.

“At this rate he’s going to fly to the moon.” the blonde witch stated, then diverted her eyes from Rick to Lily. “Fancy joining him?”

A sudden loud shout of happiness was heard and everyone looked at Rick flying fast everywhere he could.

“How about we take things slow?” replied nervously the redhead.

“Gladly.”

Rick spent the entire flying lesson soaring like a man unchained, reveling in the wind in his face and the freedom beneath his feet. He looped, dove, and zipped across the sky with wild abandon, drawing more than a few jealous stares, and a warning or two from Madam Hooch. It was as if a piece of him had been waiting his entire life for this moment, and now that he had it, he wasn't about to let go. When the lesson finally ended and she called them back to the ground, he descended with visible reluctance, the joy bleeding from his face the closer he got to the grass. He looked utterly heartbroken.

Lily and Marlene both tried to lift his spirits, throwing jokes and light teases his way, but nothing worked, until Lily mentioned that after dinner, they could explore the castle... once they finished their homework.

That word alone sent Marlene’s mood plummeting like a rock off a broom. The very thought of a six-inch essay on Transfiguration and a ten-inch one on potions was enough to ruin her appetite. The sparkle in her eye dimmed instantly, and by the time they returned to the Gryffindor common room and sat down at one of the tables, she was slumped in her seat like she’d been hit with a jelly-legs jinx. The idea of studying tonight, on their first day, was clearly unbearable.

“Come on, Marlene, it’s not that bad.”

“I don’t want to work after a day of studying. Our very first day at Hogwarts!”

“It’s only half an hour at best.”

“Rick! Help me! Make Lily-”

“Sure. Here.”

With a calm, deliberate motion, Rick closed the book he’d been reading on charms, the faint snap of the cover punctuating the moment. He reached into his bag, pulled out two neatly rolled parchments, and handed them to Marlene with the casual air of someone offering a snack, not academic salvation.

“What’s this? Wait! Is that our homework?!”

“Let me see!” Lily said and took the parchments instead of her blonde friend. After carefully reading them, she handed them back. “When did you have the time to do them? We were with you all day!”

“In class.” Rick replied nonchalantly, returning to the reading of his book.

“Merlin’s beard! You’re crazy!”

“I’d rather say that I’m time savvy, Marlene. Now give them back if you don’t want-”

“I want! I want!” She exclaimed with urgency, clutching the parchments to her chest like a priceless artifact under siege. Her expression was a perfect storm of mock defiance and overacted drama, as if Rick might truly wrest them away at any second. Lily burst into laughter, unable to hold back a snort at the sight of her friend's over-the-top antics.

“Just don’t copy word for word and use your own words for what you understood instead.”

“That completely defeats the point of homework, Rick,” Lily said with an exasperated sigh as she snatched the essays from Marlene’s hands, her tone caught between a prefect’s indignation and a sister’s teasing scold.

“If those grades were worth something then yes, but they aren’t. We just have to pass the exam at the end of the year.”

Marelene supported the argument fully. “He has a point.”

“Which do you prefer? Working a bit every evening for the whole year or having to work the whole year in a week before the exams?”

“Good point, Lily. Sorry, Marlene, but it’s the academic wilderness for you now.” Rick said with a mischievous grin as he plucked the parchments from her hands and slid them back into his bag with exaggerated care, like a librarian retrieving rare scrolls.

“Noooooo! Don’t let me hang out to dry like that!”

Rick and Lily chuckled at Marlene’s theatrical despair, their laughter easing them all into a rhythm of shared focus. They dove into the homework together, offering tips and encouragement as they worked through the dull assignments. As Marlene scribbled with increasing confidence, Rick leaned over now and then to offer guidance, his tone patient and his instructions practical. By the time they finished, he was deep into explaining the finer points in both her and Lily’s potion textbooks. The three of them had become so engrossed, so wrapped up in the quiet comfort of studying together, that they never realized how much time had passed. Their grand plan to explore the castle after dinner had quietly evaporated.