The decision had been a long time coming - the entire three months that she'd spent at Hogwarts, at least - but Noriko had finally decided that maybe she didn't really want to study to be a witch anymore.

The thought terrified her, and she had no idea how she was going to break it to her parents, who had told her gently at first, and then more firmly, and finally in the no-nonsense, verging-on-a-Howler tone that came across even in their written letters that she should stop worrying because she would be a great witch.  But it had taken less than a term for Noriko to realize that she was anything but.  She never wanted to see a broom again, the thought of probably getting hexed for her DADA examination terrified her, and she had broken down in tears during her last Transfiguration class when Professor Morrigan (who was nearly as scary as Professor Bombay) called on her as they were reviewing information for the exam.

The pressure of having to sit the midterm exams was too much.  Even if it meant going home a failure, of having Professor Librarian Morgan snap her wand and tell her that she was unpopular in front of the entire school, Noriko had decided that that was preferable to the endless stress and danger of Hogwarts.  At least if she weren't a witch, the Muggles wouldn't have any reason to want to eat her.

After a tearful night made all the worse by the fact that a frog had apparently followed her back to her dorm and taken up a croaking residence under her bed, Noriko had finally accepted her decision.  It was much better to spend the remainder of the term curled up into a ball under her sheets than to face her classmates and professors again.  With any luck, she hoped she could just hide in her room until it was time to leave for one last voyage on the Hogwarts Express.

But then one of the Slytherin prefects had come by with a note that she was supposed to see Counselor Wickwood, whom Noriko had never heard of before.  Noriko was terrified.  Was she in trouble?  Had Professor Storm gotten angry that she'd been cursing people in class?  Had someone gotten wind that she'd decided not to be a witch anymore, and this was where they sent you so that they could snap your wand?

It had taken all of her courage (and quite a few false starts) for Noriko to make her way to the counselor's office.  She stood outside the door for nearly five minutes, trembling with fear and blinking away watery tears, before she finally braced herself enough to raise a hand and give a tentative, barely audible knock.

"H-hello?" she managed in a wavering voice, silently praying and hoping that no one would answer.

Anna had finally managed to settle into a bit of a routine.  The beginning of the week had been a bit difficult trying to acclimate to the most recent series of changes in her life and she had been given the task of seeing to the last remaining details for the staff holiday party.  She was starting to grow used to being back in the castle and the memories it brought back.

Some of the staff had been more then willing to help identify students who could possibly benefit from her presence at Hogwarts.  After talking for some time with Morrigan Ramsay about a first year Slytherin who had quite literally broken down during the midterm review she hadn’t hesitated in sending a note to the girl via one of the prefects.  Anna had gotten the feeling the red-haired professor wasn’t exactly the nurturing sort, but she didn’t begrudge her that.  Every teacher had their particular style, and it seemed Morrigan’s was to expect only the best from her students.

Sitting behind her desk, sipping a cup of tea as she read, Anna could feel the warmth from the fire keeping the draftiness of the castle at bay.  A knock on the door drew her attention and she set the tea and the book aside as she rose to answer.  Crossing the cozy office, she opened the door to find herself looking at a first year that seemed to be on the verge of tears.  A kind, small smile formed on her lips as she started to try to put the girl at ease.

“Are you Noriko?” she asked, as she moved aside so the girl could enter.  “Why don’t you come in…it’s horribly chilly in the hall with the draft.  I was just having some tea, would you care for any?”

Noriko jumped back as the door opened, swallowing such a large gulp of air that it nearly set her choking.  She looked up at the woman, her eyes wide, trying desperately to assess the danger she was in.  Was she going to start yelling?  Was Professor Storm hiding behind the door?  The young Slytherin would have given almost anything to be able to bolt and run the opposite way down the hallway.

But she didn't.  From what she could see, the woman didn't look like the sort of person who was going to suddenly start yelling at her, and to her credit, she had a nice smile.  Not, Noriko knew, that that necessarily meant very much.  Her mother had a nice smile too, but she could yell louder than a Howler when she got mad, and somehow her unmagnified voice made Noriko feel even worse.

Counselor Wickwood hadn't yelled yet, though.  Noriko wasn't quite sure what to make of the offer for tea, except that maybe that was what they gave you before they snapped your wand so that you got sleepy and couldn't cry quite as much.  Clamping her mouth firmly shut, she shook her head, rubbing at her eyes as she meekly followed the woman's instructions and stepped hesitantly into the room.

The counselor's office was noticeably warmer than the hall had been.  Noriko stole a look around, even as she continued to keep her lips pressed tightly together and tried to avoid meeting Counselor Wickwood's eyes.  If she didn't talk, they couldn't ask her questions, and maybe if they couldn't ask her questions, she wouldn't get in trouble for cursing the horrible Muggle-born cannibal.

Anna thought for a moment the girl might turn and run, but much to the woman’s relief she didn’t.  The lack of a verbal response wasn’t entirely surprising to Anna and she motioned for her to sit in one of the overstuffed chairs on the side of the desk opposite of her own chair.  Apparently Noriko was going to present a bit of a challenge when it came to verbalizing much of anything and she paused for a moment trying to figure the best way to start.

“I’m glad you received the note I sent,” she said.  “I understand you’ve been having some trouble in class lately and I wanted to talk to you about it…I know classes can be stressful and midterms in your first year can seem impossible.  I can still remember feeling that way.”

It wasn’t a complete stretch.  Despite being the typical studious Ravenclaw, she had worked for every grade she earned at Hogwarts.  It hadn’t just come naturally to her like, despite being raised in a magical household.  So when she listened to Professor Ramsay describe how the girl had broken down into tears in class, she had been able to understand just a bit of what Noriko might be feeling.

“I…you’re not in any trouble,” she assured her after a moment.  “I’m fairly good at keeping things to myself so you don’t have to worry about me reporting back to any of your professors.  I’d just like to find out what’s going on and try to help if I can.  You don’t have to be afraid of talking in here.”

She couldn’t be one hundred percent sure that was the reason for the girl’s silence, but experience had shown that fear was usually a large part of why children went silent.  If they didn’t talk, they didn’t get into trouble.  So, hoping for some sort of response she wondered if this was indeed the case.