Rowena's Quill

One lazy morning at the end of her summer holiday, Rowena and her mother were having brunch over a game of Rack 'n Rune when a Hogwarts owl flew into the house and dropped a letter onto her mother's lap.

"Hmmph," said Mother, reading and signing it. "Well, I can't say I'm surprised."

"What?" asked Rowena.

Her mother handed her the letter.

Dear Sophie,

I hope you and Rowena are well.

Knowing as I do that Rowena's third year, the start of her formal study of Runes, is a fulfillment of one of your most cherished dreams, it pains me to tell you that the school governors have been exerting some pressure on me. Because you are the author of the textbooks used in our classes, many have claimed that Rowena has an unfair advantage over the other students. Some have even demanded that she be barred from classes altogether. Of course I would not hear of it, but I must ask you to sign this note to show your promise that as long as Rowena studies Runes at Hogwarts, you will not tutor her in any way.

Thank you and I look forward to seeing Rowena at Hogwarts.

Albus Dumbledore

"That's not fair!" cried Rowena as her mother sent the owl off with the signed letter. "Keith Rantipole's father manufactures brooms, and he gave the best models to the Slytherin Quidditch team!"

"But this is academics," said Mother calmly.

"I'll bet there are loads of kids who get help from their parents in all kinds of subjects. Nobody's sending them any notes."

"First of all, you don't actually know that to be true; you are just assuming, and second, the author of a textbook is something more than simple parental expertise in one area or other."

Rowena pouted, but Mother ignored it. With a wave of her wand, she cleared away the Rack 'n Rune game.

"The note didn't say anything about Rack 'n Rune!" whined Rowena. "And we were playing in English!"

"We are going to be extra careful," said Mother. "Professor Dumbledore should not have to suffer any added stress for our sake. Goodness knows he has more serious problems on his plate."

Rowena pouted some more. She couldn't make a fuss against an argument like that, but it still seemed unfair.

Mother walked over to her side of the table and hugged her. "Sweetie, I'm probably more disappointed than you are. I wanted to be with you every step of the way as you acquired new languages, discovered new texts. But it's just a few years. After you graduate, there'll be plenty of time for our late morning games of Rack 'n Rune."

But as soon as she was back at Hogwarts, Rowena soon discovered that her problems had just begun. When the results of the first Runes exam came in, there were more cries of "Unfair!" Luckily, Professor Stockard took her side.

"I have no doubt that Miss Rockrimmon earned her grade with hard work," he said. "Without it, the exposure she has already had would not have done her any good. Also, I should point out that Mr. Cresswell also excelled on the test, which proves that a prior Runes background is not necessary for success in my class."

"It proves that she let her mudblood boyfriend copy off her test scroll," whispered Rantipole.

But the professor heard him. "Twenty points from Slytherin. I will not tolerate such language in my class. This is your last warning. If it happens again, I will give you detention."

Rantipole kept quiet after that, and when class was dismissed, Dirk caught up to Rowena and Alice.

"Don't worry about Rantipole," he said. "Eventually he'll figure out that he's too stupid to keep up, and he'll drop out."

"I suppose," said Rowena quietly, looking over at Alice. The three walked in silence for a few moments, and finally, Dirk shrugged and walked away. After he'd gotten out of earshot, Rowena asked, "Why does everybody call him my boyfriend? And why doesn't he ever deny it?"

"Oh, please," said Alice. "You're can't be that blind."

"What?" demanded Rowena.

"My gosh, you really don't see it," said Alice. "All right. Here's a news flash for you. Dirk likes you. A lot."

"Me?"

"Yes, you. And I think you should give it a try. You'd make a cute couple. Two Ravenclaws, both quiet intellectuals. He's not bad looking. A little skinny though."

Rowena would not consider it for a minute. "No. He's very intelligent, of course, and I suppose he's nice enough, but he just doesn't . . . I mean, he doesn't make me feel . . . you know."

"Far be it from me to push," said Alice. "But listen, I'm sorry to do this to you, but I think I'm going to have to drop Runes."

"You failed the test?"

"No, I passed, but just barely. I guess I just don't have the knack."

"I'll tutor you," said Rowena.

"I don't think so. Not as long as Rantipole's in the class anyway. He'll make life unpleasant for both of us."

Rowena could not hide her disappointment.

"C'mon, Rowena. We already have so many classes together. And it's not as though Runes is something I'll really use in my life. Let's face it, it's not a subject with many practical applications."

"How can you say that?" cried Rowena. "All the ancient spell scrolls are written in Runes."

"How likely am I to run across any ancient scrolls?"

Rowena lowered her voice. "They say that You-Know-Who learned most of his dark magic from ancient scrolls. The Ministry hires translators all the time to read them and work out the counter-curses."

"Your mother does that?" asked Alice, clearly impressed.

"She's only done it once. She says she doesn't have the stomach to read about how to torture people."

As Rowena finished speaking, Severus Snape, the least popular boy in school, passed them by. Both girls giggled nervously. Severus was a year ahead of them, and in neither of their houses, so they didn't know him well, but everyone in school knew he'd ben unofficially dubbed "Most Likely to Become a Death Eater."

"Do you think he heard me?" whispered Rowena.

"It didn't look like it, but he gives me the creeps anyway. Let's get started on that tutoring. I don't want the likes of him translating any ancient spells."

Under Rowena's tutelage, Alice began to improve. They did most of their studying outdoors and away from the prying eyes of classmates like Rantipole, so Rowena was paid back. Alice taught her how to identify most of the surrounding flora, far surpassing the Herbology requirements of their year. Pooling their strengths still further, they devised a complex system of mnemonics, associating the different plants with the Gaelic vocabulary words they were required to learn.

"Wouldn't it be something if we could make the plants sing the words? Songs help you remember things better, you know" said Rowena.

"That sounds like highly advanced magic," said Alice.

"But a fun challenge," returned Rowena. She began to speculate about how to go about it, but she soon lost her audience to an informal Quidditch game that was forming nearby.

"I guess this spot has been discovered," grumbled Rowena.

"Yeah," said Alice vaguely as she watched the boys choose sides.

Rowena knew a lost cause when she saw one, but instead of going away, she entertained herself by experimenting with the plants. After a long while, she was able to get some low but tuneful hums. She became so engrossed in what she was doing that she didn't even notice that Dirk Cresswell had walked up to them, and was standing right near her, watching her every move.

"That looks interesting," he said.

"It's just silliness, really," said Rowena, pulling her wand back shyly.

"Well, yeah," said Dirk, "but creative silliness. Got anything planned for the Hogsmeade weekend?"

"Alice wants me to help her pick out a new dress robe."

Alice turned around at the sound of her name. "I'm sorry. What did you say?"

"I said that we'll be robe shopping in Hogsmeade this Saturday."

"Oh, I've been meaning to tell you about that. I can't go. I'm doing a favor for Professor Sprout."

"On a Saturday?"

"So go around with me then," Dirk jumped in. "I hear Madam Puddifoot's is really nice."

"I've heard that, too," said Alice.

If they had been sitting at a desk, Rowena would have given Alice a kick to keep her quiet, but out in the open, the only thing she could do was glare, and that would have hurt Dirk's feelings.

"You wanna go, Rowena?" Dirk asked anxiously.

"Ummm . . . all right, I suppose," she said.

"Brilliant! I'll meet you in the common room Saturday morning." and with that, he ran back to the castle, unwilling to stick around lest his luck should change.

"I thought you said you weren't going to push!" cried Rowena. "You two had that planned!"

"I promise you we didn't," said Alice. "I'll admit I'm glad you have a date, but -"

"So what's this story about Professor Sprout? Are you telling me you made that up on the spot?"

"Well, no. But I didn't make it up for Dirk's sake. It's my official excuse for missing Hogsmeade. You see, I have a date, too."

Rowena opened her mouth to argue and then closed it again. After a few moments, and in a much softer tone of voice, she asked, "With who?"

Alice grew very serious. "You must promise never to tell anybody. You're the only person I'm telling, and it absolutely must not get back to Darius. You understand?"

Rowena nodded. Then Alice smiled and said breathlessly, "Frank Longbottom." As he was one of the boys playing Quidditch, Alice turned back to the game.

Rowena felt a bit jealous. Dirk didn't make her want to get all dreamy like that. But once she was through indulging those feelings, she considered what Alice had told her.

"You're staying at school while everyone's at Hogsmeade weekend just to keep your date a secret?"

"That's right," said Alice.

"But don't you think that's taking things a bit far? I mean, Darius can't really object to him. They're friends, aren't they?"

"All the more reason," said Alice, her eyes still on Frank.

"But Frank is Head Boy!" said Rowena.

"You're such a Ravenclaw. Academic honors may impress you, but that's not the way my family thinks. They want me to date boys from," she screwed up her face distastefully, "our social circles. Frank's parents are working class."

"That's ridiculous," said Rowena.

"Isn't it?" said Alice. "So we have to keep it a secret. It'll be harder when he's out of school. I don't know how or when we're going to meet. But we have a few months till then."

Rowena wondered how Alice could speak with so much certainty. Most Hogwarts relationships lasted only a few months. But here was Alice, only thirteen and a half, confident that she had a future with a boy of seventeen. Perhaps this was what her mother felt when she first met her father. Rowena always assumed that she'd fall in love exactly that way, but instead, it was happening to Alice.

The Quidditch game ended. The boys on their brooms descended to the ground in a mass of hand shakes and pats on the back. Frank glanced over once at Alice, but when Darius patted him on the back, he turned around and did not look back again.

Darius gave Alice and Rowena a friendly wave. They returned it, though Alice continued looking Frank's way.

"He's already been recruited by the Auror Department," she said proudly. "It's dangerous work, especially now, but it only makes me love him all the more." She turned toward Rowena with the same seriousness as earlier. "My parents would never approve of my marrying an Auror. They want You-Know-Who defeated, of course, but they'll leave the fighting to someone else, never risking themselves. When I come of age, I'll live by my own values, but until then, I'll do what I need to do to keep them happy."

Rowena nodded silently. Already she was talking about marriage. The adults in their lives often said that the war was forcing them to grow up too quickly. Alice was living proof of it.