SWNOVELXO Chapter 15: Franklin
Hope sparked inside him, and he wanted to trigger another outburst right away to test the idea. But common sense stopped him, letting loose that kind of magic in the dorm would cause serious trouble.
Professor Flitwick had clearly warned him not to practice magic experiments in the dormitory. Even though Flitwick's tone had been a bit teasing, Aldric took the warning seriously.
The teachers liked students who followed the rules and got good grades, and Aldric had already caused Flitwick enough trouble that day. Setting off a big explosion in the dorm wouldn't help. It was better to wait.
Aldric had the perfect place in mind: the Room of Requirement. Holding himself back, he decided he would go there tomorrow.
Even if visiting so soon might draw the attention of the ever-watchful Dumbledore, who always seemed to know more than he let on, time was running out. As Aldric grew older, those unpredictable magical surges were becoming rarer, and he couldn't afford to waste the chance to study them.
Aldric used to have to hold back his emotions carefully to avoid sudden outbursts. Even though he had vented his feelings openly at school and tried some emotional magic techniques, he hadn't caused a single magical explosion since he arrived.
Now, he wasn't even sure if he could trigger one anymore. But he knew there was no way to be certain without giving it a try.
With his plan for tomorrow set, Aldric's mind shifted to another term Flitwick had mentioned: meditation. He didn't know anything about meditation, today was actually the first time he'd ever heard the word.
'Wait,' he suddenly remembered! His ex wife, had talked about it before. She used to be really into yoga.
During that phase, besides cheating on him with her yoga instructor, all she did was sit cross-legged on her mat, completely still. When Aldric asked what she was doing, she said she was meditating.
'So, was meditation just sitting cross-legged with your eyes closed?' Aldric decided to give it a try.
He sat on his bed, mimicking how his ex wife had looked, but soon a wave of sleepiness took over. His head, topped with short blond hair, drooped slowly forward, and before long, with a heavy nod, Aldric fell asleep.
The next morning, Aldric woke up to bright sunlight streaming through his window, casting a warm glow across his face. His short blond hair caught the light, shining brilliantly.
Outside, shadows flickered on the windowsill as owls returned from their evening deliveries. These hardworking birds had flown all night and were eager to reach the Owlery on the west side of Ravenclaw Tower, where they could rest and eat.
A knock at the door pulled Aldric out of his thoughts. Squinting, he sat up and scratched his head, realizing it might be time for a haircut, his once-close-cropped hair had grown uneven and wasn't as comfortable anymore.
Adjusting to the sunlight, Aldric didn't rush to open the door. Instead, he grabbed the water glass on his bedside table and took a sip of the leftover water from the night before. Then, he smoothed out the wrinkles in his clothes.
The deep meditation from last night had left him falling asleep without changing, and now his outfit was a crumpled mess. After tidying himself up, he opened the door to find a tall young man standing there, Franklin, a fellow first-year in the same house.
Franklin was nearly half a head taller than Aldric, which was impressive since Aldric was already considered tall among his peers. "Hey Aldric, good morning," Franklin said patiently, showing no sign of irritation despite waiting outside for a while. "Looks like you're ready. Let's go, we're already late for Defense Against the Dark Arts this morning."
Aldric was a bit surprised. "Oh, right, Franklin," he said. "I didn't expect you to come wake me up, especially if it means you might be late too. Sorry, a lot happened yesterday, and I ended up sleeping longer than I planned."
Franklin smiled, his bright white teeth showing. "Don't apologize. We're friends, aren't we? Friends help each other out. But yeah, we should hurry, we're really late."
Aldric shrugged off the concern. "Don't worry about it. Professor Quirrell teaches Defense, and he's so jumpy he hardly notices who comes in late. They say he wasn't always like that, something must have happened when he went abroad."
Franklin let out a relieved sigh but tilted his head, looking puzzled. "What do you mean? Did something happen to him?"
Aldric just grinned knowingly and lowered his voice. "You'll see. He used to be clever, but now… well, he's definitely not the same."
They strolled down the castle corridors, chatting and laughing. They even stopped by the Great Hall to grab some breakfast.
As they walked, Aldric shared all sorts of stories about Hogwarts, the rivalries between the four houses, strange happenings around the castle, and other interesting tidbits. When they finally reached the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom, Quirrell was already standing at the podium, nervously reading from a book with his usual stammer.
The students sat below him, some looking sleepy but all trying to pay attention. When he noticed Aldric and Franklin arriving late, Quirrell quickly set his book down, about to speak, but Aldric cut in smoothly, "Respected Professor Quirrell, please forgive our lateness. Hogwarts is so huge, we got a little lost."
"Ah... alright, Aldric, and... and you, please come in," Quirrell stammered, clearly flustered.
The class was shared by Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff students, and the room was split between blue and yellow. Everyone naturally sat with their own housemates. Aldric didn't care about that, though; he led Franklin straight to the most secluded corner of the room.
There, a short Hufflepuff boy was sitting nervously. When he saw the two tall Ravenclaws approach, he immediately straightened up, bowed politely, and quickly moved to an empty seat near the front. Aldric didn't even acknowledge her and just sat down calmly.
Franklin hesitated for a moment but, seeing Aldric's ease, settled him. Their blue patches stood out clearly among the sea of yellow around them.
Aldric pulled two slices of bread from his robes and a sausage wrapped in wax paper from his pocket. He quickly unwrapped it, made a simple hot dog, and started eating. Franklin looking a bit nervous, was encouraged by Aldric's casual move and took a bite of his own hot dog.
After taking a few bites, Franklin paused and said, "I really admire you, Aldric. You get along so well with both the professors and the other students.'"