❦ 𝐉𝐀𝐍𝐍𝐀𝐇 𝐋𝐎𝐂𝐊𝐇𝐀𝐑𝐓 ❦

On her third Friday at Hogwarts, she starts with Potions.

The Slytherin students share it with the Hufflepuff students, as always. Unlike during Defense Against the Dark Arts, she actually enjoys the presence of other houses.

Their teacher, who they're allowed by the first name (Jorge), and who also teaches charms, is by far one of the nicest teacher. Besides his son, Mr. Romanov also makes it high on the list.

"To be honest, I haven't prepared shit," Jorge starts. He plops down on a table. "Choose: we'll make a strengthening potion or a beautification potion."

Minho scoffs loudly. "I don't need either of those."

"Why, because you've taken an overdose of them both or because you're so awful that neither of them work on you?" Jorge motions for the boy to get up. "Come over here."

Nonchalant, he steps beside Jorge. The class watches, snickers already rippling through the room.

"Well," Jorge says, dramatically tapping his chin, "I'm afraid you'll need at least triple doses of the Beautification Potion. As for strength... perhaps we'll just give you a few extra cauldrons."

Minho crosses his arms. "My beauty clearly made you blind."

"I don't think that was my point," Jorge replies. "How many chromosomes do you have again?"

"More than you."

Jorge stares at him.

Then he bursts out laughing, clapping Minho on the back so hard that Minho pulls a face.

"I don't get it," whispers a girl.

Jannah turns to her. "People with more chromosomes are disabled. He basically insulted himself."

"Alright, alright, sit down, Minho," Jorge waves him off with a grin. "Let's get serious for a moment."

He straightens up. "Both of these potions require a great deal of precision, which is why I'm giving you the choice. You've got two weeks to perfect it, and believe me, we'll be testing them on willing participants."

Minho raises his hand. "By 'willing participants,' you mean yourself, right?"

"I prefer to keep my skin where it is, thank you very much. You'll be testing them on each other. Volunteers, of course. And if there are no volunteers... then that's too bad, and you'll all become participants."

Jannah's attention flickers to her table full of ingredients, already thinking ahead. The Strengthening Potion seemed practical—something decent to demonstrate and measure. But the Beautification Potion? That would be trickier. And showing that off in front of a whole class is not only embarrassing, but also difficult.

When Jorge claps in his hands, she shakes out of her thoughts. "Alright, pair up! You can choose which potion you'll work on, but no switching halfway through. Commit to the process."

Jannah glances around. Most students are already pairing off with their usual partners. "Hey, Newt." She taps him on the arm. "Wanna pair up?"

"Sure." He scoots closer. "Which one are we doing?"

"I was thinking the strengthening one. What do you want?"

Newt places his bag down on the ground. "Sounds fine. I could use some muscle. They've decided I should compete for the tournament, you know?"

She perks up. "Oh, really?"

"Yeah. Don't know why. I'm like a stick, the bloody idiots. Really got a talent for losing."

"You're clever," Jannah points out. "I've noticed after only three times."

"I've heard that Minho will compete, and it will most likely be Thomas for Gryffindor. I'm not sure about Ravenclaw. They've been quiet these days."

Ravenclaw. Gosh, she hasn't even spoken to Maurice. About how his first week went, how he likes it, if he has made friends— Vesper would've searched for Jannah had she really needed her, but she didn't, so Vesper isn't the problem.

Guilt eats her from the inside. She should go talk to Maurice. And soon.

Jorge strolls by, raising an eyebrow as he saw the two of them sitting together. "You two made a decision yet?"

"Strengthening Potion, yes," Newt says. "We were just talking about the Quadwizard Tournament."

"You're competing?"

"Apparently," Newt groans. "Signing in is in two weeks already."

"Better prepare." Jorge turns to Jannah. "And you?"

"Definitely not competing. I'll let Minho do that. Give him a reason to express that ego."

"I heard that!" Minho says from across the room, winking. "Thanks, love—"

"Shut up. Don't say pet names around me ever again." Newt rolls his eyes.

"Jealous?"

"Not at all."

❧

Her next period is Care for Magical Creatures, taught by Mrs. Cooper. A nice woman, with brunette hair that barely hits her shoulders.

"Today, we'll be handling Grindylows," she explains. They're made their way next to the Black Lake, buckets and nets in their hands. "What's the first stage of a Grindylow— no, better question, what is a Grindylow?"

As Jannah's hand shoots up, her elbow very accidentally hits Thomas right in the nose. Offended, his hand also jolts in the air, his shoe stepping down on hers.

"Yes, Miss Vos?"

Both of them sigh when Brenda's the chosen student. "They're green creatures that are found at the bottom of lakes. Usually aggressive."

"Towards whom aren't they aggressive?"

Thomas's hand shoots up before Jannah's does. "Merpeople," he says.

"Correct. Five points for both Gryffindor and Slytherin. Now gather your buckets and fishnets. I want to see at least three Grindylows today."

"But you just confirmed they live at the bottom of the lake," Minho says, as always, without raising his hand.

"Well, you have a wand and common knowledge, don't you?"

"No, he has too many chromosomes," Brenda snorts.

Minho shoots her a glare. "You can never have too many chromosomes."

"Oh, Minho," Jannah mutters.

"I'm not going to be the one to tell him," Gally adds quietly.

"We'll tell him at the end of the year. Because he'll keep this up for a full year," Alby promises. 

All four of them snicker below their breaths.

"Let's go," Mary says, slight impatience hinted in her voice. "Please make notes about Grindylows' appearances or anything you know about them. I'd like a full paper at the end of the class."

The class dispersed towards the edge of the lake with some protests. Jannah, having made up a nice tactic already, carefully wades into the water, leaving her shoes on the grass.

"They eat humans as well," Alby reminds her.

"That's her impulsive thought: getting eaten by them," Minho says proudly. "I got the correct one now, right? It's impulsive?"

Too focused on her plan, she points her wand at her hand. "Diffindo."

A cut small enough to do no permanent damage but big enough to make blood flow appears on her palm. She turns it around, so the drops of blood fade into the lake's water.

"You're crazy," Harriet comments.

"Watch this, though." Jannah grins. In no time, one of the green creatures must appear. They can sense the blood.

Thomas, unbeknownst behind her, reaches for his wand. His Adam's apple bobbles as he chanted softly below his breath, "Locomortor Mortis."

A flash of light shines by as it casts onto the girl. Brenda catches it in the corner of her eyes and turns to Thomas, only to find him very focused on his notes.

"There!" Jannah nearly jumps in the air when she sees something move, then reminds herself that she can't scare it away. She tightens her fists around her net, ready.

But when she tries to step closer, she suddenly felt a strange, tight sensation around her ankles. Before she can fully process it, her legs lock together.

"What the—" Struggling to remain her balance, she tries to move. The water riffles around her, from both the Grindylow and her movements, which are becoming wilder by the second.

Thomas casually turns away, now interested in whatever Jeff is doing.

Harriet's eyes squint at Jannah. "Hey, are you alright?"

"I'm fine," she assures, to avoid any more attention drawn to her. Her face flushes with embarrassment as her feet sink deeper into the mud. If she doesn't make some ridiculous jump out of the water right now, it's either sinking or getting eaten.

Her eyes flash around until they fall on Thomas. It must've been him.

The little—

"Levicorpus," she mutters, directing her wand at him.

She dangles Thomas in the air by the ankles for only a millisecond before releasing him, straight into the water.

While everyone turns to the loud splash, her glued legs work to jump back to the surface. In the process, she makes sure to scoop one of the Grindylows in her net.

"Thomas!" Mary gulps. "What the— what were you doing?"

With his jaw tight in anger, his eyes blaze to Jannah before they go down. "Just... clumsy."

"Professor, I've got one." Jannah holds her net in the air. The green creature inside protests with a ton of guttural sounds and cries.

Mary claps her hands. "Amazing!"

Thomas's scowl is worth everything.