mid- morning

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The week of midterms was just coming up, and Addison couldn't have been any more stressful. Being the herd that she was, she liked to have an elaborate study technique. This was put off a bit yesterday, since she was asked to the Yule Ball by fellow fourth year Gideon[1]. This meant that she had to be efficient today to finish up her studying. So far, for a weekend, she had a rather efficient morning. After dressing in a comfortable outfit, she had spent an hour and a half outside studying Herbology, while it snowed lightly on her. She only just came back into the castle after it started to snow heavily on her. 

Brushing off a couple of snowflakes that were still stuck to her hair, Addison sat down on one of the couches in the room and dropped her bag on the floor. Propping up her feet on top of a table, she noticed an empty basket nearby. Picking back up her bag, she rummaged through her bag for a few moments. She emerged with a fistful of pebbles and rocks from her trip outside earlier. They were collected with her reasoning that she would find some use for them. As it turned out, she was able to pretty fast.

Looking from the pebbles and rocks to the basket, she figured that now was as good as ever to practice that spell the fourth years learned in Charms class[2] and that she casted during an extra credit session[3]. It may prove useful for the midterm, after all. The Depulso charm could certainly be useful. Setting the pebbles and rocks down on the table, Addison took out her wand.

Concentrating on the basket, she flicked her wand. "Depulso!" One of the pebbles flew from its spot on the table, landing directly into the basket. She smiled, noticing that she managed to cast the spell correctly.

1.	Perfect Studying is Perfect
2.	An Apple a Day...
3.	Extra Credit and Tutoring

Antonia sat against the wall, eyes focused on her book. It was an old muggle textbook she had found in the basement of her home, and Antonia had been desperate to bring it to Hogwarts. So, when Antonia received her letter, that textbook was one of the first things she packed. It wasn't for the sentimental value, of which there was none, but the fact she still hadn't finished it. It was about physics, and that was the part Antonia found most interesting. How did muggle theories work if you equated magic into them?

Antonia glanced upwards when she heard someone say a spell, and she was fascinated to see a pebble fly away from a table and into a nearby basket. Although both of her parents had magic, it was rarely used at home, mostly because of the fact her father worked in the muggle industry of inventing, and Antonia was adjusting slightly to the everyday use 0f magic.

"What's the likelihood of a first-year being able to pull that off?" Antonia mused aloud, a small frown on her face. She always wanted to know more, and now seemed like a good time to indulge that interest of hers.

It appeared as if all of the practicing that she completed before was paying off, so far anyway. Addison knew oh too well that casting spells didn't exactly come easily to her. Being raised in a muggle household did not prepare her for magic. But, she had noticed that the amount of time it took her to actually perform spells correctly had diminished since when she first came to Hogwarts. She was a determined girl, to make sure that she was able to get the most out of her time at Hogwarts as she was able to.

She pointed her wand at another pebble. "Depulso!" she began to cast, but she was immediately interrupted by a new voice.

"What's the likelihood of a first-year being able to pull that off?"

The pebble soared into the air, landing in one of the farthest corners of the common room. Looking up, Addison tried to notice the person who just interrupted her. Spotting a first year girl close by, she assumed that the girl was the one who voiced that frustration. She shrugged at he question. "I'm sure that any first year could do it, with practice ... After being able to master other spells first," she offered with a smile. Depulso was not a spell that she yearned to learn in her first year. She focused on more simpler spells, but still managed to study up on the effects of others.

Antonia hadn't realised that the girl had been about to cast the spell again when she had interrupted, but Antonia didn't particularly mind. It wasn't as though it was going to kill her, not being able to cast the spell again, but if Antonia could pull that spell off, it would be good for her to watch and learn. Well, mostly the watching, since reciting charms were usually more easy than performing them successfully.

I'm sure that any first year could do it, with practice... After being able to master other spells first."

Antonia sighed, annoyed. That made sense, as much as it infuriated her too. Why did she have to wait years to be able to perform some spells? Antonia speculated that magic must mature with age, a bit like wine, and become more powerful as the user aged, or perhaps it was to do with psychological maturity.

Rolling her eyes at her inner monologue, Antonia looked over at the older girl. "Ah, the restrictions of being so young," Antonia sighed dramatically, ignoring the slight disappointment she felt. "Anyway, do you have any good ideas for a spell I could use on metal?" She asked, thinking back to the muggle watch she had bought just before term started. Hopefully, Antonia could be able to discover a spell she could use to make it more useful in the magical world.

Glancing in the direction that the pebble flew in moments ago, Addison frowned slightly. Concentration was always a problem for her when she casted spells. She really had to learn how to concentrate better on that. After all, she was able to concentrate on other things just fine. Like studying muggle subjects, reading, studying in general. She could do all of those with ease, unlike casting a spell.

Pointing her wand in the general direction of the stray pebble, "Accio Pebble." The pebble flew in the air, and she caught it as it came closer to her.

Looking back over at the younger girl, Addison couldn't help but to give a small smile at the girl's sigh. "Learning magic takes time," she offered with a shrug. In her case, she came to Hogwarts with absolutely no magical knowledge. The fact that she could cast any spell was an improvement for her situation.

Thinking for a moment, Addison gave a slight nod in response to the girl's question. "That depends on what you want to do to the metal. What were you planning to do with it?" she asked with a curious hint to her voice.