September 8th, 1888 — Ravenclaw Tower

School had started again and Orinda was thrilled. She was back at Hogwarts and in her rightful home, the Ravenclaw Tower. Ever since the fog had lifted, all Orinda could think about was going back to Hogwarts. Now she was with her friends, and more importantly, her sister. Flouncing onto a chair in the common room, Orinda looked with a satisfied smile at the few people around her. She knew at some point Acacia would be around and she was completely content to sit there and wait.

A book was sitting beside her, and since she had time to spare she picked it up. It was a textbook for charms and she had enough time to sit there and practice what she had learned her first year. Pulling her wand out, Orinda flicked it in front of her and whispered "Lumos." The tip of her holly wand lit up and she giggled to herself. Sure, it was a simple spell and she'd grown up around magic and the supernatural her entire life, but the fact that she could do it herself still amazed her.

"Wingardium leviosa!"

The book in her lap levitated upwards and then she grabbed it with a squeal. Looking around, Orinda spotted her sister entering the common room and waved enthusiastically. "Acacia! Over here!"

  

Summer had been a bit overwhelming. Far from how she had imagined it would be. Though it had been nice to get to know some of the girls better. And meeting two of the first years before school begun was quite interesting. Their houses hadn't surprised her too much. It had once again brought thoughts of Dunstan back to her head. What would his house have been? She assumed that it would have been Hufflepuff. But that was only a simple guess.

Reminding herself that he wouldn't want her to be sad, she took a deep breath and looked back at the hallway around her. She hadn't even realized that she had stopped. Even if it had been over a year, she still had many things on her mind. Memories of what happened plagued her. Not that she would share such information. Why would she wish to worry anyone?

Continuing to walk over to the Ravenclaw common room, she said the password before calmly stepping inside. Not too late, she was glad that she could still have time to relax before heading to bed. Looking over when hearing her name, she smiled at Orinda with kindness. "Good evening, Orinda." She said as she approached.

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Magic by Elaine!

Beaming at her sister as she approached, Orinda indicated the seat nearby. Though they were in the same House, they had none of the same classes and didn't even get to room together since they were grouped by years instead of rooming individually with people. It meant she had time to spend with her fellow yearmates, but not much to spend with her sister. Though, like now, they were able to see each other. If they had been in different Houses, they would have really only seen her older sibling during mealtimes.

"Guess what," she squealed, "I learned something new the other day in class. Charms, I mean, I learned something new there. We learned about Reducio and Engorgio. I've not quite got the knack of Engorgio yet, but I managed to learn a lot about reducio. How are your studies going?"

Giving her sister barely a second to take in what she'd said, Orinda barreled on. "I cannot believe you had to repeat a year. Or me, for that matter, but you were so close to graduating! At least we have another year together. What classes are you taking?"

  

Sitting next to her sister, she looked at the book that was beside the fellow red head. It was sad that she couldn't have as much time with her sister, but at least they had the common room and the Great Hall. It was different with Chrysanta, but the Slytherin liked her space.

Nodding proudly to her sister's words, it was good to hear that her sister was enjoying her classes. "I'm sure grandfather is pleased by your hard work." She responded. It was still interesting that their grandfather was the charms professor. Professor Ruskin, it had a nice ring to it.

"My studies are going fine. I'm glad that a few of my professors had agreed to let me gather a few more advanced things to learn last year. I'm hoping this shall continue this year." She added. Perhaps she would be well prepared for her NEWTs. The more Os, the better. "I'm taking astronomy, care of magical creatures, charms, defence against the dark arts, herbology, potions, and transfiguration."

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Magic by Elaine!

Orinda's mouth gaped open at the classes her sister was taking. So many courses! She was still in the original classes, with all the same classmates she'd had before. No real changes in her schedule since she started at Hogwarts. She expected that if she had been allowed at Hogwarts at the start of the school year last year, she would have more time for electives this year as a third year. Oh well. No use crying over spilled milk, right?

"Acacia," she breathed reverently, "How do you manage all of those classes? You're basically about to graduate next year and you're still taking so many." If there was one thing that Orinda loved more than her family, it was learning. It was where she and Chrysanta had differed and where she and Acacia were similar.

"Tell me," she said conversationally, tucking her legs underneath of her, arranging her robes over her knees. "Which is your favorite class? I think mine, of course, since Grandfather is teaching it, would be charms."

  

While some might raise an eyebrow towards how many courses she was takings, she had been taking more last year. She would have continued taking the others if she could. Even if not every class was her favorite, she still saw the benefit of learning all she could of each of her courses. "With patience and plenty of planning. Studying is a good thing to add to one's personal schedule. Always remember that." Graduating next year meant facing the world of careers and marriage... hopefully. She needed to be prepared for that. Having a busy schedule was actually a very useful tool of learning. It helped her prepare for a busy schedule regarding both work and raising children.

Thinking over her sister's words, it was hard to imagine one particular class as her favorite. "In all honesty, I am not entirely sure what class I would say is my favorite. If you count the classes that are not tested by OWLs and NEWTs, I must say that my favorite class would be art." A busy schedule indeed. Which reminded her of something. "Well, I should get on with studying. As should you." Not leaving her sister too much of an option, Acacia gave Orinda a friendly smile before grabbing her own books and some papers from her potions class and begun her work. While she was a warm and kind soul at heart, she was stern when it came to her responsibilities. Including making sure her sisters stayed on track with their studies... as best as she could.

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Magic by Elaine!