The First Task - Part One

The dungeon was filled with idle chatter as students shuffled along to their class. One student in particular stood apart from the crowd in her own way – Georgina Smyth. The amply curvaceous brunette sauntered through the corridors, her full hips swinging hypnotically, to the delight of the hormonal young men and the vexation of the young women in her midst.

Boom. Chicka-boom. Chicka-boom-boom.

One wily student – undoubtedly a Ravenclaw – had cast a musical charm whose sultry beat kept perfect time to Georgina's gait. After a few moments she idly swished her wand, ending the spell, and she smiled inwardly at the audible groans of disappointment elicited by this simple action. As she continued on, she noticed Cedric Diggory passing by at a somewhat faster pace; he slightly turned his head and grinned at her. That was interesting, she mused. Now, if only she could turn the Potions master's head.

"Ugh, double Potions on a Friday morning," someone lamented. "This day will never end."

Georgina had a natural affinity for Potions, making it her favourite class. Double Potions also meant double time with her favourite dark-eyed professor. Taking her usual seat beside Penelope, she reached into her bag to pull out her textbook, only to discover it was missing. There wasn't enough time to return to her room retrieve the book, and a feeling of dread washed over her.

"Bloody hell, I forgot my book," she groused.

"You really ought to be more organised," Penelope replied off-handedly.

"It's said that hindsight is twenty-twenty," Georgina mumbled.

She was a Slytherin, damn it, and she would make the best of the situation. Taking a deep breath, she pasted a mask of indifference onto her face as Professor Snape walked through the door.

"Your latest essays were abysmal with a few notable exceptions," Snape said, returning the red-marked parchments. "I expect much more from my NEWT-level students. To that end, you shall be brewing the Elixir of Enlightenment. Perhaps then you may be able to better utilise that mass of lumpy gray matter between your ears and perform to your full potential." As he finished handing out the parchments, he continued, "Mr Crenshaw, please explain the theory behind this potion."

"Um, it enlightens... sir?"

The boy's tentative tone and insipid answer caused Snape to halt in his tracks and close his eyes in exasperation.

"Your ability to state the obvious is astounding," said Snape, a sharp edge of irritation evident in his voice. "However, your answer is decidedly lacking." He turned to face the class. "The stimulant alkaloids present in the Elixir of Enlightenment dispel fatigue, thus allowing clarity of mind and introspection. The leaves of the Maidenhair tree contain a property which enhances memory. It bears mentioning that caution should be exercised whilst brewing this particular potion. Any missteps could result in rather unfortunate side effects. You would do well to keep that in mind when it comes to testing your endeavour at the end of class."

He paused for a moment to look about the room. "The instructions for this potion are located on page two-hundred-and-ninety-four. No working in pairs; I want to see your individual efforts. Begin."

As the quiet rustling of turning pages filled the room, Georgina approached the front desk. "Sir, I seem to have forgotten my book," she said. "Do you have a spare I may borrow?"

A pause fell. Georgina waited. Snape had never lent out one of his books, not even to one of his own den of snakes; most Slytherins weren't foolhardy enough to make such a request. He drummed his fingers upon his desk as he appraised the young woman in front of him. She was aloof, unconventionally alluring, had a small, albeit tight circle of friends, and – well, there was no other way to put it – was quite cunning when she put her mind to something. In short, Georgina Smyth was a consummate Slytherin. Aside from that, she had a knack for Potions and had yet to melt a cauldron. He nodded his head and curtly pointed to the small bookshelf behind him. Georgina released a small sigh of relief.

She dragged her fingers across the book spines until she came across a battered copy of Advanced Potion-Making. She removed it from the shelf, returned to her seat and flipped to the appropriate page to skim over the potion's directions. She was surprised to find that the entire book was thoroughly marked with notes, annotations and what appeared to be experimental variations to many of the potions, including the one she would be brewing shortly. There was something vaguely familiar about the spiky scrawl which she couldn't quite wrap her mind around.

After she had selected her ingredients, taking care to choose a slender piece of Ashwagandha root and a healthy, bright green sprig of rosemary, she took a closer look at the hand-written adaptations to the formulae. The alterations seemed minor enough, and she wondered if it would result in a superior final product. Yes, she just might have the advantage needed to gain Professor Snape's hard-won praise and succeed in accomplishing the assigned first task of the tournament. She glanced slyly at Penelope, and her lips curled in a slight grin as she lit a moderate flame beneath her cauldron.

The dull sound of knives thudding against wooden cutting boards and faint whispers were the only noises to be heard. Penelope frowned as she watched Georgina slice the fresh khat leaves into a chiffonade.

"The khat should be minced," the Ravenclaw said softly.

"Believe it or not, I know precisely what I'm doing, Penny."

Penelope caught a glimpse of her friend's book page, thoroughly covered in writing, and noticed that changes had been made to the instructions.

"You're making alterations to your potion based on some stranger's notes?" she whispered, clearly mortified. "Have you gone mad?"

"Let's just say I'm making minor adjustments, and I assure you I'm of sound mind." Georgina tossed the leaves into her cauldron with a flourish and watched the potion shimmer to a clear lavender hue.

It was obvious that her table-mate had a clear advantage. Penelope narrowed her eyes and craned her neck to better view the handwritten script. "Let me see that book."

"No."

"That's not fair!" she hissed.

"This is a competition," Georgina smugly replied, jingling the charmed bracelet on her wrist. "All is fair in unfettered infatuation and war."

Penelope opened her mouth to reply, but quickly shut it again as she noticed Snape making his customary rounds to observe their work. Clearly, she would need to find another way to gain the professor's praise. Penelope faintly smiled as an idea quickly formed in her mind.

"Mr Blair," Snape hissed as the boy's cauldron started spewing orange bubbles. "How many times do you have to be told that anticlockwise is the other direction? The devil is in the details. Five points from Gryffindor."

Once more, he moved on to the next table to continue his critiques. When he approached their table, he quietly studied Georgina's potion. Snape cocked his head as he recognized the variation as a concoction of his own devising. She had obviously picked up his old Potions book from his student days and used his improvements to her advantage. He found her Slytherin guile inwardly amusing. Picking up her ladle, he dipped it in the cauldron and made a show of closely scrutinizing her potion.

"The clarity and hue of your potion is exceptional, Miss Smyth," he said wryly as he looked her in the eye. "Five points to Slytherin."

Georgina tried to keep her gaze even; however, Snape was able to discern brightness in her eyes, revealing her duplicity. He gave her a slight nod before moving his attention to Penelope.

The seventh-year Slytherin quickly glanced at her wrist and noticed the first bead of her bracelet had changed colour in achievement of accomplishing the first task of the Four-House Tournament. Georgina smiled at her success.

Outside the Potions classroom door, Penelope had been lost deep in her musings, waiting to get inside to begin her attempts to earn her teacher's praise. Thoughts of what she could do to prompt Snape into giving her potion more than just a silent, emotionless glance, which in itself was a form of praise, were interrupted by her angry, recurrent thoughts about Percy. The stupid prat had not only stood her up on her birthday, but he hadn't even chosen the bracelet himself; Penelope didn't have the nerve to tell anyone that particular aspect of the debacle. Clearly, Percy hadn't opened the box for more than a second to see what was inside; he had missed the note from the saleswoman at Garnett and Trump, which had been placed inside the lid.

Percy,

Based on the five Galleons you sent us and a description of what your friend might like, I find this bracelet suitable enough. The bracelet is only three Galleons, so I am returning two Galleons. I do hope you will stop by again sometime. I enjoyed our chat, and I'm eager to learn more about the Department of International Magical Cooperation.

Audrey

Penelope's first thought had been to chuck the bracelet and keep the money. She was incredibly angry that he hadn't bothered to choose the bracelet himself. However, being the good Ravenclaw that she was, Penelope decided to sit down and think about the situation logically before doing anything rash, and in the end she felt a little guilty for being annoyed with Percy, since he was extremely busy with the Triwizard Tournament. Nevertheless, Penelope was determined to discuss the situation with him when he next came to Hogwarts, and she had not sent him a thank-you note.

Let him suffer a little, she had thought with a smirk.

Penelope was brought back to reality when Snape threw open the classroom door with a bang, allowing the seventh-year NEWT students to enter.

As Penelope walked past Snape, she drew in his scent of herbs and spices and shuddered slightly at the intoxicating effect it had on her. She intended to recall the aroma later that evening, in the privacy of her curtained bed. While a couple of students groaned quietly about today's double period timetabled for Potions, Penelope inwardly relished the extra time. It allowed her to not only gaze at her sexy teacher, but to study his attitudes and methods. She admired how his strong hands and his long, thin fingers had tenderly chopped roots into fine pieces or roughly torn apart a nut shell without magic. Images of his dextrous fingers alone had already been enough to send Penelope into alarmingly good orgasms during the first few weeks of the school term. She sometimes felt guilty that it was not her boyfriend who fuelled her desires, but her self-reproach had lessoned somewhat since her birthday.

Taking her seat, she began pulling out her book, quill, parchment and scales from her brown shoulder bag. Within moments, Georgina sat down next to her and began removing the same items from her own bag, moaning about having forgotten her own textbook. Penelope, who was still preoccupied with thoughts of Snape's beautiful hands exploring her body, commented distractedly that Georgina needed to be more organised.

Penelope forced herself to pay attention whilst at the same time taking enjoyment from Snape's deep voice as he began talking about the properties of the Elixir of Enlightenment. Within minutes, however, she was compelled to focus on the practical job at hand, gathering the necessary supplies to brew her potion to a degree sufficient to earn his praise.

Or so she hoped.

While Georgina strutted off to ask Snape if she could borrow a copy of Advanced Potion-Making, Penelope set to work, bringing the water in her cauldron to a boil. She intended to follow the directions precisely, triple checking them if she must, in order to brew the best potion in the class. A quick perusal of the text showed the elixir was just as complicated as Snape had described.

She had just started mincing her khat leaves when she noticed that Georgina was chopping her own khat leaves incorrectly. Penelope's eyes wandered over to the book which Georgina had borrowed and saw that the pages were covered in writings; someone had crossed out portions of the formulae and amended the instructions. Penelope shook her head; Georgina had obviously lost the plot. While she was likely to get praise regardless of what she did, just by being Slytherin, Penelope still thought Georgina was taking a huge risk.

However, when Georgina added her khat leaves, her potion changed to the precise hue of lavender that the text described. Penelope immediately wanted a part of the action. Never doubt a Slytherin, Penelope told herself as she began to beg Georgina to allow her access to the book, only to be swiftly rebuffed.

Penelope realised she needed to think on her feet; if she couldn't use these new and better instructions, she would have to think critically about the ingredients' properties and how to improve efficacy. She decided refine her strategy by observing what other students were doing wrong. At the next table, a girl was stirring her potion in the anticlockwise direction, as instructed, and the liquid was the correct hue of lavender. When the girl stopped to check her Potions book, she recommenced stirring in the wrong direction. After one stir, the lavender became even brighter, but after another stir the potion turned black.

Penelope recalled that anticlockwise stirs were best for herbs originating near the equator or further south, especially when the potion was brewed in the southern hemisphere. She hypothesised that the gravitational pull of the northern hemisphere might be a hindrance, so perhaps an occasional clockwise stir would improve the potion. Holding her breath, Penelope added one clockwise stir, and to her delight, the lavender hue brightened.

Gaining in confidence, Penelope continued to make minor changes to the instructions, deciding to grind the Ashwagandha root into a powder instead of chopping the tuber into slivers. She hoped this would speed up brewing time and form a better suspension.

When Snape approached their workbench, Penelope held her breath, grinding her root with extra force as she heard the Potions master complimenting Georgina's work.

Bloody cheat, Penelope thought savagely.

She failed to notice Snape moving to admire her own work with a smirk. She added the Ashwagandha root and began stirring twenty times, the potion turning more blue than purple, as the instructions stated. Once again, she added a clockwise stir after her twentieth anticlockwise, causing her potion to become the exact shade of deep blue described.

"Miss Clearwater," Snape began, an expression of mild surprise on his face, "why would you deviate from the instructions so greatly when I plainly informed the class of the difficulty of brewing this potion and the potential for irreversible error if the instructions were not followed precisely?"

Penelope started at his voice and looked up into Snape's black eyes, which seemed to bore into her. It was almost as if he were attempting to read her mind.

"Well, sir, the Ashwagandha root infuses into the potion better if it's not in big pieces, but added as a powder instead. The brewing time should be cut in half for that particular ingredient," she said, her heart pounding in her ears.

"And the additional clockwise stir?"

"After working against the northern hemisphere's gravity, it's better to go with the pull and add one clockwise stir to help combine these ingredients. However, more than one stir has a negative effect on the potion."

Snape watched her for a moment, his expression indecipherable. Finally, he nodded and walked off, resuming his scolding of those who had failed. Penelope let out a sigh of relief before moving onto the final two ingredients: rosemary and Maidenhair leaves. She peeked at Georgina, who was happily following the directions from the textbook, her right sleeve rolled up just enough to show Penelope that her bead for the first task had turned green. Penelope quickly checked her own bracelet, whose beads where still white. The last bit of motivation she needed kicked in as she set to chopping the rosemary and Maidenhair, determined to beat Georgina.

Twenty minutes later, Snape was making his rounds of the class to examine everyone's final products. One boy had already been sent to the hospital wing after his potion blew up and covered him, causing angry boils to arise all over his body. Three people had large vats of orange paste, and one girl had a black substance resembling tar. Georgina, Penelope and two other students were the only ones with Elixir of Enlightenment close to the shade of blue described by the textbook. After giving the two successful Gryffindors a quick glance and a sarcastic comment expressing amazement that they had made the potion correctly, Snape moved on to Georgina, who was smirking with delight at her excellent brewing.

"Well done, Miss Smyth. Ten points to Slytherin for an exceptionally well-brewed Elixir of Enlightenment and for taking the initiative to be creative," Snape said, making sure his comment was pronounced loud enough for the classroom to hear.

The two Gryffindors rolled their eyes and made gagging sounds. Slytherin had now gained a total of fifteen points from Georgina's potion, and Snape's second offering of praise had been even more voluble.

Penelope's knees were shaking as Snape moved on to her own elixir, whose blue was slightly brighter than Georgina's. Penelope wasn't sure if this would be good or bad news. Snape scooped up part of the liquid, sniffed it gently, and then slowly poured it back into the cauldron.

"What did you do with the rosemary, Miss Clearwater? The scent is much stronger than normal," Snape asked, crossing his arms over his chest and looking down at her with mild interest.

Penelope looked down at her potion instead of her professor, afraid of what he might see in her expression.

"I chopped the rosemary, sir, rather than putting it in whole. It dissolved better, and then there was no need to strain it out. I did the same for the Maidenhair leaves, sir."

Penelope lifted her gaze to meet Snape's own, and he assessed her for what seemed like an eternity.

"I must admit," Snape began, getting closer to Penelope's desk and speaking softer than he had when praising Georgina's brew. "This is the best Elixir of Enlightenment I've seen in my thirteen years of teaching. Twenty points to Ravenclaw, and you will be excused from the essay I am about to assign, as you clearly understand the properties of this potion."

Penelope thought she might faint on the spot. She couldn't believe it – Snape had praised her more than Georgina. Trying not to look too thrilled, Penelope thanked the professor and smiled over at Georgina, who was noticeably miffed.

"Professor? Do I need to write the essay? I mean, I did adjust my potion as well." Georgina attempted a sly smile and tossed her hair behind her shoulders.

Snape walked over to Georgina and spoke in a voice that was barely audible to Penelope.

"You will write an essay to explain why the directions you followed were superior to the original instructions from the textbook's author."

Georgina's smiled faded immediately, and she grew slightly pink in the cheeks.

Snape picked up their phials of freshly-brewed elixir and the textbook which Georgina had borrowed, and then walked to the front of the class, placing the four correctly-prepared potion samples on his desk, ready for testing. He then addressed the students, instructing them to write two rolls of parchment on the properties of the Elixir of Enlightenment, to be handed in at the next class.

While everyone groaned and began packing away their supplies, Penelope peeked at her bracelet. The first bead was a bright shade of blue and seemed to sparkle. Penelope noticed Georgina looking at her own bracelet. The first bead was still green, though the colour had lost some of its intensity.

"Well done, Georgina. That was a serious competition, though I do feel you cheated," Penelope whispered.

Georgina snorted under her breath, but said nothing as she wrote down the assignment from Snape. The Slytherin might have assumed she'd be the winner of the first task, but Penelope realised her own victory was not guaranteed; Luca and Alicia still had the opportunity to earn even more lavish praise from Snape.

Secretly, Penelope felt they didn't stand a chance.

"Wait a minute. Let me get this straight," Luca said. "You forgot your Potions book, and by the grace of Merlin, managed to borrow a spare from Professor Schadenfreude?"

Georgina glared at her friend and reluctantly nodded her head.

"And this book contained experimental alterations which you chose to blindly incorporate in your potion... successfully?"

"Yes," she bit out.

"So, what's the bloody problem?"

"The bloody problem is that the potion in question was the bloody Elixir of Enlightenment," she replied testily. "The variation of which was brewed so successfully as to be deemed 'exceptional' by our dear professor. He awarded Slytherin House fifteen points."

"And this is a problem because...?"

"It is a problem because I was one of three students selected to demonstrate the damned thing," she huffed.

Luca merely arched his brow at her outburst and silently waited for her to continue.

"Cedric managed to brew a standard sample, and his demonstration was used as a baseline for Benny's and mine. Cedric's reaction was splendid, and he became thoroughly enlightened on a transfiguration issue which he'd been struggling to understand," she explained. "Let's just say, when it came time for me to test my sample, it worked exceptionally well. So well, in fact, that it only took a matter of seconds for the potion to take effect."

"And?"

"When I'd first opened the borrowed book, it was covered front to back with scribbled notes, ideas and experimentations." She sighed. "There was something about the writing that seemed familiar, but I was unable to put my finger on it. However, the second that the potion cleared my mind, it hit me. The handwriting was familiar because I had been staring at it on a regular basis on a blackboard for over six years – it was Snape's student book!"

"You're joking!"

"Oh, how I wish that were the case." She could scarcely raise her head. "Not only was it Snape's book, it was his variation of the potion I brewed, and he bloody well knew it."

At this revelation, Luca doubled over in glee. When he finally stopped laughing and caught his breath, he asked, "Does he know you know?"

"He's the Potions master," she cried. "Of course, he knows. I could see it in his eyes when he asked me if there was anything in particular I was enlightened upon, and I blushed like a schoolgirl."

"You are a schoolgirl!" Again, Luca laughed, this time to the point of tears.

"Oh, shut up, you ponce," she said while smacking his shoulder. "It gets worse."

"There's more?"

"Benny's potion was too strong. So strong, in fact, that when he downed his sample he immediately started blathering like an idiot."

"Oh, pray tell! All the juicy details!"

"Benny turned towards me and dropped on bended knee," she stated matter-of-factly while examining her fingernails. "Then he loudly proclaimed that I was his 'bovine beauty' and an 'ox-eyed princess'."

Luca stared at her incredulously. "He called you a pretty cow?"

"In a manner of speaking, yes," she replied. "He then went on to declare that odes should be composed in honour of my 'creamy, ginormous breasts' and attempted to compose a limerick, on the spot, glorifying that particular part of my anatomy. It seems his talent for metric prose doesn't quite stretch that far – he couldn't find a word that rhymed with 'milk'. Needless to say, the class were in uproar over his lack of eloquence, and the good professor only managed to silence the room after docking nearly a hundred points across the board and assigning poor Benny a month's detention with Filch."

"Bloody hell," Luca stammered. "Are you alright?"

"Yes and no. If I hear one more person 'moo' in my general direction, there will be hell to pay. On the bright side, I was able to salvage one positive thing from the entire fiasco." She lifted her wrist and jingled her bracelet with its newly coloured, charmed bead. "I won Snape's praise."

Luca awoke from a rather vivid dream, prominently featuring his ex-boyfriend, Oliver Wood, resplendent in all his Puddlemere United glory. Bastard. Tuesday morning had rolled around, and the rain was cruel, relentless and unwelcome. The poor weather only served to further add to Luca's grey mood. He tried his best to push Ollie out of his mind, but some things were easier said than done. Ollie still sent the occasional letter; however, they hadn't crossed paths in person since their breakup over the summer holidays.

"I'll just have to learn to find some other way to entertain myself... Some other man to amuse me," Luca muttered under his breath.

He didn't have to be at breakfast for another hour, so he closed his eyes determined to chase away the bittersweet dreams with his one of his more recent fantasies...

He was standing in the middle of what he imagined to be his obsession's private potions laboratory. The room was dimly lit, except for the empty worktable directly before him. A silky voice from behind him drawled, "Mr Caruso, it seems to me that your technique for preparing potions ingredients lacks finesse. What do you have to say for yourself?"

"I humbly beg your pardon, sir," Luca replied. "I would do anything to improve my technique, if only to please you."

"Anything?" He subtly asked with a hint of insinuation. "Well, in that case, remedial lessons are in order."

A moment later, the table in front of him was laden with all manner of raw plant material. Luca could feel the heat of the Potions professor's chest pressed against his back and watched in anticipation as an elegant, pale hand reached around him to pull forward a peculiar-looking root. "Do you know what this is?" Professor Snape asked quietly. Luca stood silent as the rich voice washed over his senses in a heated wave. The professor leaned in closer and whispered against his ear, "This is ginseng, also known as man root. It has several medicinal properties, chief among them, those as an aphrodisiac." He took Luca's hand in his own and stroked it slowly along the length of the tuber. "Tactile sensation is also important when determining the proper preparation of this ingredient. Notice the somewhat smooth texture of this root. The moisture content has kept it hard, yet supple. If it was overly dried, it would feel coarse and callous to the touch."

"Touch seems very important, sir."

"Touch is extremely important," Snape replied hoarsely, his lips grazing Luca's neck. A strong set of arms embraced him as...

"Mr Caruso!"

Luca snapped from his reverie and mentally groaned, realising his cauldron was on the cusp of boiling over. He knew better than to daydream in class, especially Potions. Lowering the flame, he steeled himself for the professor's wrath.

"I'm sorry, sir."

"Attention is pivotal during the brewing process." Snape looked at him levelly and continued, "Such carelessness is the primary cause of fatal brewing accidents. Ten points from Hufflepuff for your lack of concentration."

Luca sighed and wondered how he was going to manage to win the professor's praise if he couldn't even manage the simple task of remaining focused on his work. It appeared his obsession with Snape was driving him to distraction in more ways than one. He really needed to get laid – and soon. That was all there was to it.

As the class wore on, he turned his attention back to his potion and feebly attempted to salvage his work. Luca added the ground willow bark and continued to stir until the potion turned a sickly shade of green. It quickly became apparent that his work was ruined, further lessening his chances of completing his first task. Disappointed, he set aside his stirring rod and turned toward the next workstation to check on Alicia's progress, only to notice that her table-mate's cauldron was bubbling dangerously; Jared Simpleton seemed oblivious that his potion was on the verge of exploding.

"Get down!" Luca yelled. Without a second thought, he ran towards their table, tackling both students to the ground and shielding them with his body. A moment later, the cauldron exploded with a dull boom that slightly shook the room, sending the students screaming and scurrying for cover.

In an amazing display of damage control, the Potions master had successfully cast a containment shield around the workstation mere seconds before disaster had struck. "Enough!" Professor Snape raised his voice to cut through the din of panicked students. "Return to your seats and resume your work."

The students gathered themselves from their places of shelter and proceeded to talk in hushed tones while they returned to attend their cauldrons. On the stone floor, Luca extended his hand toward Alicia and helped her up. "I hope I didn't bruise you up too terribly," he said with concern. "Are you alright?"

Alicia ran her hands down the side of her arms in a slight daze. "Yes, I think so. Thank you, Luca."

"Hey, mate," Jared groused while dusting off his robes. "There was no need to knock us about like that."

"On the contrary, Mr Simpleton, you should be thanking your classmate." Professor Snape had silently approached the table – the sharp edge in his voice belied its quiet delivery. He shrewdly assessed the remnants of the young man's cauldron which was caked with a brittle, yellow substance. The table, which was littered with shards of twisted metal, attested to the strength of the blast. "If I had not been able to properly contain this explosion, you and Miss Spinnet might very well be dead if not for Mr Caruso's heroic, albeit foolish, effort."

Luca felt a small surge of satisfaction at the professor's backhanded compliment.

Jared trembled beneath the professor's glare as the severity of the situation began to dawn on him. With a deft flick of his wand, Snape caused the caustic mess to vanish from the workstation. "Thirty points from Gryffindor for nearly blowing your fellow classmates to smithereens, four feet of parchment detailing the properties of each ingredient in this potion along with any adverse reactions that may result from the use of improper ratios, and one week's detention."

The young man faltered at this pronouncement. The professor then turned his attention toward Luca.

"I'm surprised the Sorting Hat didn't place you in Gryffindor, Mr Caruso," Snape drawled softly. "That was the most absurd display of gallantry I've witnessed in a long while. Ten points to Hufflepuff for remaining level-headed under a volatile situation, and twenty points for placing the wellbeing of others above your own. You have proven to be a true testament to your House."

"Thank you, sir." Luca flushed at the unexpected praise. Professor Snape slightly nodded his head in acknowledgement and returned to his front desk.

"Dear Merlin," Alicia whispered, touching his wrist. "You've done it, Luc!"

Both students watched breathlessly, Luca's eyes blinking in disbelief, as the quartz bead on his bracelet turned a vibrant shade of amber.

Authors' Note:

Written by rosewood and snapesgirl21

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