( TEARS BECOME A SEA ✩ ── higgle/nunavik

[Nunavik]

everett's footsteps were heavy as he raced down the castle corridors from the hufflepuff dormitoties. his potions book was locked in the croak of his arm as he bounded elegantly down a series of stairs. down, down, down, he ran. his breath billowing around his nose as he made his way to his first class of the day. after the morning bicker between everett and dahlia, everett had made use of the gossip at the table to eat his own breakfast. eating, actually, was not the proper term. he had practically inhaled his morning meal, filling his plate and then refilling it until he felt like he might combust.

all the late night adventuring in the forest seemed to have finally caught up to him. after breakfast, he had gotten up only to remember it was potions he had first thing in the morning, and he had haphazardly threw that book in his nightstand just the other night. he had been given a rather harsh tongue-lashing from professor slughorn after he had mistaken two ingredients to mix a common antidote potion for review and nearly blew up his lab station. embarrassed, everett had thrown his potions back at the wall of the boys' dormitory after class and forgotten about it. he later recalled spotting it in his dresser, probably placed there by another student.

after realizing he needed his book for class, everett had raced out of the great hall, brushing past bodies of students despite their protests in order to get to his dorm and back without being late to class. unfortunately, being late was his only option. he finally reached the classroom for potions and he could already hear professor slughorn going over the material for the day. groaning inwardly, he lowered his head as he walked into class. he sent a silent prayer that no one would notice his tardiness.

even more unfortunate than being late, his usual seat by ginger, a fellow hufflepuff student had been stolen. glancing around, he could only see a spot open beside dahlia. already, he could hear her shrill voice berating and annoying him. this was definitely going to be a long day. with a heavy sigh, everett walked over and took his seat on the stool beside her. he was careful to remove his shoulder bag and place it on the floor next to him before turning his potions' book to the appropriate page.

[higgle]

dahlia had resigned herself to a quiet potions class, a desk alone, just as she liked it. this meant she would get extra attention from slughorn, who favored the girl. as professor slughorn began his lesson, her quill flowed across the paper in sharp, pointy strokes, making sure to note down the potion they'd be working on that day. it was mundane, a simple energy potion meant to help the user perk up. dahlia sighed, hoping for something more entertaining, but nonetheless listened to every word that came out of the professor's mouth. not many noticed, but of course, dahlia did, when the classroom door creaked open and inside slipped a late student. wrenching her vision from slughorn, she flicked her gaze over to see who had joined the lesson at such a time, and of course, made eye contact with him. why was it always him?! dahlia swore there was some sort of force in place that kept the two together like magnets. sure, she didn't try to avoid him, but out of everyone in the massive castle, she saw him the most of all.

dahlia was frustrated even more, when the only seat available was the one at her table. there went her hopes of special attention from slughorn, she thought to herself. she knew everett's reputation in potions, or lack thereof, and hoped that he wouldn't screw this assignment up for her. "can't get enough of me, huh, boy?" she whispered, quiet enough as to not interrupt slughorn's lecture. as he finished listing the required ingredients and prompted the students to begin, she looked over at him, making eye contact. "do not mess this up, alonzo. i won't have a bad mark in this class because i had no other choice but to partner with an imbicile like yourself." she stood to head to collect the proper ingredients, leaving the other behind.

when dahlia returned a few moments later, it was with an array of jars and vials filled with various potion ingredients. she arranged them neatly on the table, in the order of which they would go in to the concoction. she pulled a ribbon out of her leather satchel to tie her soft curls up off her shoulders, out of the way of any potion-making. "would you measure out the essence of light? surely you can handle that, hm?" she smiled mockingly, deliberately giving the boy the easiest task, and set to crushing the dandelion seeds with a mortar and pestle, humming softly to herself as she did so, glancing everett's way every few moments to ensure he was doing his job correctly.

[Nunavik]

There it was! The insults. It had taken all but one minute for Everett to receive more backlash. He tried his best to ignore her as she whispered to him about not messing up her perfect marks in this class. The boy sighed deeply as he picked up his quill to write a note in his book, doing his best to ignore the voice in his head that told him to snap. What had Professor Slughorn just said? Adding wormwood to an energy potion? That did not seem right. Using the quill dipped in a new spot of ink, he scratched out the marks he had made, replacing it with a big WHAT? underneath and then replaced his quill.

At that time, Dahlia had rubbed further salt into the wounds she had already begun to cut earlier this morning. As Professor Slughorn finished running through the list of ingredients needed to brew today’s potion and completed the last minute questions from various students, Everett finally turned his golden-brown eyes to Dahlia. The expression on his face was neutral. “Please”, he scoffed, his tone dripping with sarcasm. “The only reason you have such good marks in potions is because Professor Slughorn dotes on you. It’s actually pathetic.”

Everett refused to say anything more as Dahlia left her seat to collect the potion’s ingredients. He continued to thumb through his textbook, trying his best to figure out what Professor Slughorn had said. Was it wormwood? Or something else? Everett was no doubt horrible at potions. It was his least favorite subject. No matter how much he studied, he never could quite get it right. Furthermore, Everett was positive Professor Slughorn hated him and made his assignments slightly more challenging due to allegiance to Slytherin house. Everyone knew the two Houses did not get along. Even more, everyone knew Dahlia and Everett did not get along. Obviously, Professor Slughorn held a glimmer of professionalism and wasn't actually out to get him, but Everett stayed fixed on the idea. Anything to keep him from realizing the truth: He was horrible at Potions.

Everett rolled his eyes but quietly took the jar of essence of light. “I can measure ingredients just fine, thank you.” His eyes flickered between the jar and his textbook as if deep in thought. He could do this. Pulling out a small measuring spoon, he began to measure out the contents, referring to his book more often than he found himself actually measuring. He could do this.

[higgle]

"of course you can, pet. i wouldn't dare imply otherwise." dahlia smirked, the words dripping with sarcasm. she kept a sharp eye on his progress, of course noting that he seemed nervous at even the simple task. sure, professor slughorn's favoritism- something he did not hide well- did help her in the class. she was quite good at potionmaking. not a master, of course, and a few slytherin boys tended to place out above her, but she was up there. while potions certainly was not her favorite subject, it was one of the few she did actively enjoy. creating something so delicate with her own two hands and reaping the benefits of the results certainly was a pleasant feeling.

when dahlia finished crushing the dandelion seeds into a fine powder, she moved on, setting to measuring out the proper amount of other ingredients in the recipe. she dropped a few things into the cauldron, making sure to follow the instruction's specific way of mixing back and forth. "are you quite done, over there? i need that." dahlia stretched her hand out, awaiting everett to place the jar of light essence into her hand. "don't you worry your pretty little mind about the actual mixing, hm? i think it'd be better for the both of us if i took over. wouldn't want a repeat of last week, would we, darling?" she smirked at the thought of everett's cauldron smoking and bubbling over, casting a dreary blue haze all throughout the classroom, one that most definetly was not supposed to come of the red antidote potion. "this is not me doing you a favor." she said sharply, pouring the last ingredient in.

the potion shimmered with the addition of the last jar, creating a smooth gold sparkle that seemed to glow in the darkness of the dungeon classroom. "very good, hawthorne!" professor slughorn called as he made his way to their workstation, placing a firm hand on dahlia's shoulder. she smiled proudly at her success, (in her mind, hers only, not everetts.) and of course, the attention it brought her was quite a welcome reward.

[Nunavik]

Everett threw her an annoyed glance. Somehow, she always managed to get underneath his skin. And not in the way that most did. It was like she was toying with him. Saying just enough to rile his feathers, but not enough to justify the response as he wanted. If he did, he knew it would cause more trouble than it was worth. Often, when he thought about saying something intense, Everett had to think about just how far he was willing to go. In this moment, potions would be over soon and Dahlia would be a thing of the past. That was, of course, if he wasn't forced to partner with her again in their next class of the day.

Dahlia made quick work of brewing their potion. Bits and bots of ingredients were tossed into the cauldron. Each added amount from the recipe receiving a satisfying hiss from the cauldron, almost as if it rumbled in satisfaction from a job well done. Everett, although he would never admit it openly, was intrigued by the the way Dahlia seemed at ease for the potion-making. His soft, golden-brown eyes watched the brewing intently every once in a while. His gaze glancing over in between the measuring of his own ingredient.

He was quiet when she asked about the last portion of their potion. He wordlessly handed over the jar of light essence, trying his best to avoid getting too close to the cauldron. With just his luck, he might knock it over and create another catastrophe of the dungeon. Everett could only imagine his robes catching fire by fanning the smallest of flame. The pair were one of the first to finish their potion. Naturally, Professor Slughorn was quick to praise Dahlia on a job well done. Everett scoffed quietly to him as the professor sauntered off to check in on the other students.

His golden-brown eyes peered at Dahlia. "I guess you really are a teacher's pet, huh?" He said. He stood from his stool and make quick work of collecting his books and potions material. "See you later." Just beneath the surface of his being, Everett could feel his desire to run. The forest of the lands that surrounded Hogwarts calling to him. In Dahlia's presence, he desperately wanted to flee to the comforts of his animagus form. Without another word, Everett made his way out of the dungeons, taking the stairs two at a time. Maybe, just maybe, he'd have a small amount of time to himself before his next class with her.

[higgle]

dahlia was having quite a lovely day, in her opinion. she would never admit it, but she got a good bit of enjoyment out of her time with everett, though this was definitely at the expense of the other. their quite one-sided banter brought her more enjoyment than watching a quidditch game ever had. as her partner hurried off, she took her time tidying up her workspace, making sure it was the neatest in the room. satisfied, she said a quick goodbye to professor slughorn as she walked past, and made to leave the dark classroom.

her heavy boots quietly thumped as she walked along the halls. transfiguration was the next class she had on her schedule, taught by professor mcgonagall, but she had a moment before the class started, so she took her time navigating the winding hallways of the castle. the eerie dimness of the dungeons slowly morphed into brightly lit hallways with autumn sun streaming in through the windows as she walked further on. mcgonagall's classroom was located far from the dungeons, so it was quite a journey. dahlia took time to take in the scenery outside the windows, orange and yellow leaves painting the forest in hues of fall. autumn was almost the girl's favorite season, though it could not be beat by the lovely chill of winter for her.

finally arriving in front of mcgonagall's door, dahlia was much dismayed to be met face-to-face with a seating chart tacked to the outside of the door. as her eyes flickered over each name, searching for her own, she noted that every pair was one slytherin and one hufflepuff. surely, it wouldn't be again- yes, it would be. right there, written side by side, were her and everett's names. dahlia was looking forward to sitting next to crimson, her normal transfiguration seatmate, but of course mcgonagall had different ideas, surely in the name of "house unity". dahlia thought it was a load of crap.

[Nunavik]

After his surprisingly uneventful potions class, Everett had made a quick departure. He found himself only having a few moments to himself before Professor McGonagall's transfiguration class. It was one of the few classes he enjoyed. Not just because it allowed him to really hone his animagus form, using the skills he learned from Professor McGonagall to hone his own, but also because unlike many professors, she was fair. Somewhat harsh and definitely a no-nonsense type of individual, but treated everyone as an equal. Annoy her enough, each student would receive the same punishment including her own house.

With that in mind, Everett had made himself stay close to her classroom before he sat down. His black robe drifted in the breeze of the open hallway, allowing in the brisk morning winds of autumn. The stone windowsill which he sat was cold, sending a shiver down his spine, but was also welcoming. A help to calming the fire rising inside him after his morning dealings with Dahlia. He couldn't understand why she was getting under his skin so much today. Most days he could ignore her through their courses. They rarely were partnered and when they did, one or the other would make it a point to only speak when absolutely required. Today, however, just felt off.

Somewhere down the hallway, voices rang out and alerted Everett that students would be making their appearance shortly. Through golden-brown eyes, the boy began to pack away his reading material. A book, A Collection of Above Three Hundred Receipts in Cookery, Physick, and Surgery, placed quickly into the leather confides of his bag. As Hufflepuff and Slytherin students filtered into the hall of McGonagall's class, Everett stood to his feet and shouldered the mailbag.

He already knew of the seating arrangement for the day. A cruel joke, he told himself against a scoff as he entered the class. He didn't so much as whisker a hello to anyone as he took his seat at the front of class, where he had been assigned. He was curious to figure out how this class would go with Dahlia once again being his assigned partner. Perhaps, now, the playing field was even. Potions was definitely a nuisance of his, but here, he was the master.

[higgle]

Dahlia strode her way into the classroom, once entertained by her and Everett's banter for the day, but now simply annoyed by the growing nuisance that came with the continued closeness of the two. She promptly set down her things, taking her place beside the golden-eyed boy. She tucked a loose strand of hair back away into it's place behind her ear before setting her bag down onto the stone flooring. ""Everett.", she said quietly, before closing her mouth and folding her arms across her lap.

Mcgonagall walked around the classroom, handing each student a cold metal spoon. Once finished, the old woman strode back to the front of the room and delivered instructions. They'd be turning the utensil into a ribbon- preferably one of soft material and bright color.

Dahlia picked up the spoon between her fingers, examining the object before setting it down and drawing her wand. She concentrated hard on the metal, conjuring the image of a brilliant red velvet ribbon in her mind. However, when she cast the spell, the spoon turned rubbery and held its shape and color. She scoffed, angry at herself. She had always been utter rubbish at transfiguration.

[Nunavik]

Upon Dahlia joining him at their assigned desk, the hufflepuff student only offered a brief nod. Words seemed to utterly fail him as he set aside his textbook and placed his messenger bag on the ground again. As he got settled, Professor McGonagall had begun to pass out metal spoons to each student around the classroom. The boy's golden-brown eyes lit up at the prospect of what this lesson would be. He collected his spoon between his fingers, letting the cold metal bite into the warmth of his hand.

This, he hoped, would be easy. Easy enough to transfigure it into what Professor McGonagall wished. Perhaps if this was easy, his own pains of shapeshifting could be just as so. Everett set down the spoon, the sound of it reverberating off the wooden desk. Everett shot a glance to Dahlia, wandering how she was going to take this assignment. Would it be just as painful for her as Potions had been for him?

Professor McGonagall had begun to instruct the students on how to transfigure their metal spoon into ribbon. Once her instruction was complete, Dahlia had immediately began her spellwork. Everett watched her in silence. The swish of her wand mesmerizing him as the tip of it tapped again the spoon. It immediately turned rubbery but remained relatively the same - except for the fact it could no longer be utilized as a spoon. A soft chortle left his lips. "You're supposed to swish your wand more." Everett said matter-of-factly.

He lifted his own wand. His fingers were loose against the hawthorn wood. His wrist moved clockwise, and then suddenly and sharply down, mimicking the example Professor McGonagall had done moments prior.

[higgle]

”I don’t need your help.” Dahlia scoffed, though her cheeks dusted pale pink with embarrassment. She sat the disappointment of a ribbon, if you could call it that, down on the desk, noticing Professor Mcgonagall’s sharp gaze watching her. Ever the teacher’s pet, she gave the woman a sheepish smirk and focused back into her work, mumbling incoherent obscenities under her breath. Everett’s precise spellwork frustrated her even more, bothered by the fact he was, and had always been, leagues above her in the transfiguration subject work.

Dahlia took a sharp inhale, consciously gathering her thoughts and pointing the all towards the spoon in front of her. She, much to her own disappointed, conjured the image of Everett and the way his hands gracefully and yet precisely moved through the air, holding the wand at the tips of his fingers. She copied the thought as best as her wrists would allow, successfully changing the spoon into a thin ribbon, albeit one dull in color and texture.

Though a small, unremarkable victory, to Dahlia, this was a triumph. Satisfied in herself and her work, she delicately picked up the ribbon, letting it dance across her fingers as she twirled it through them. Once content, she laid it out carefully on the wooden table, so that Mcgonagall may inspect it when the woman passed by once again. She found herself letting her mind wander in the free space of time, her eyes flicking to observe Everett every now and again.