Friday, late morning.


Fauna glared at the stacks with the expertise of a moody teenager. She really hated trying to find things in the Hogwarts library, and hated asking for help even more. Besides, it would look suspicious if every single book she wanted to find related to werewolves and werewolf laws. The list of sources Akiva had owled her was extremely helpful, and she was embarrassed to discover that the Hogwarts library did indeed have a decent amount of literature on werewolves. Now, the problem was finding those specific books in the library. She shuddered and walked down the narrow aisle, peering at the call numbers printed on the sides of the stacks with a bewildered, unhappy expression.

Nibbling anxiously on her lower lip, she studied Akiva’s neat scrawl again, and then paused by one of the stacks that seemed to match the numbers on her list. Fauna ducked in, craning her head at the high shelves and hoping that she wouldn’t have to find a ladder. It didn’t take as long as she thought it would to find the right set of numbers- or at least, what she thought was the right set. She didn’t look too closely at the titles and instead pulled out the first book in the set, flipping it open excitedly.

The Magical Properties of Hippogriff Feathers, the title read.

She swore under her breath and glanced at the list once more. She’d mixed up the ‘A’ with a ‘4’. Which meant… Fauna glanced up darkly. It meant she had to go up. And she’d have to find a ladder. Mumbling another curse, Fauna shoved the book back into the empty slot between the rows of dusty spines. The shove was a little too forceful, because it nudged another book off the opposite side of the shelf! She heard a muffled sound- probably human (unless the book could talk, which was all too possible). Fauna cringed and tiptoed over to the other side of the stacks.

She peeked around the shelves guiltily, prepared to sneak away if it was someone she didn’t like. But it was Alden, her housemate- a guy who definitely didn’t deserve to be assaulted by a heavy book about hippogriff feathers.

“Sorry!” Fauna moved forward, checking to see if he was okay. “I was… uh… putting a book back, and… yeah,” she explained lamely, crossing her arms and giving him an apologetic look. 

Alden thoroughly enjoyed perusing the library bookshelves on Fridays - there was something magical about being able to check out a book for the weekend and learn something new. This of course was atypical for the average Hogwarts student who normally would have plans to hang out with friends, go to their Quidditch practice, or anything that didn't involve the the use of one's cranium. Alden never commonly followed that school of thinking.

So, there he was minding his own business searching for a new and interesting topic to read about that late Friday morning, humming a casual tune to himself as his eyes scanned the available texts when a book fell from the heavens and unto his head with a slight thud. Alden, surprised by the rebel book stumbled over rubbing his head and let out a groan. What had happened? Were the books possessed, conspiring against him? He had only turned in a book late once in his seven years! What vindictive volumes!

The shock of being attacked having subsided, Alden picked up the offending book and examined it for a second before a head peeked in from around the corner. He recognized her to be a girl in his house and year, Fauna Blake. He didn't know her well, but she seemed nice enough.

“I was… uh… putting a book back, and… yeah,” she explained lamely, crossing her arms and giving him an apologetic look.

Alden blinked a few times before his stupor ended and he was able to reply. "Oh uh, Fauna." He said dumbly, standing up with the book in hand. "Oh it's okay, mistakes happen..." He said uneasily, having difficulty making eye contact. He was truly terrible with the fairer sex.

Fauna shifted from foot to foot, trying to decide if she should just nod, accept his forgiveness, and go back to her mission of doom. Yet, she was curious. Alden was an avid reader, and she wondered what books he’d be checking out on a Friday morning.

The thing she liked about Alden was that he often seemed as shy and nervous as she was, which made it easy to relate to him. When she saw him in the common room or Great Hall, they’d greet each other and then play the game of ‘avoiding eye-contact’ and overusing the word ‘um’. Fauna didn’t mind it, but it was funny. Now, though, she felt like she should know more about someone who was in her same house and year. To her embarrassment, she realized that all she could comment on was that he read a lot of books and kept to himself.

Fauna walked a few steps closer and gave him another apologetic smile. “Um, so… what, uh, books are you looking for?”

She wasn’t as familiar as she should be with the library layout, even as a seventh-year. Fauna rarely read for fun and mostly stuck with the required textbooks from her classes.