Clara was sitting on the bench at the top of the stairs, in the hallways leading to the individual rooms. Her skirt was askew, her tie equally so and she had kicked her shoes off and kicked her stocking clad feet as she sat. It was her favorite study spot. It actually had been since she was a first year. She actually used to sit in the seventh year dorm imagining a day that she would be so close to being a “real witch”; at least, that was how she thought of it at the time.
She was engrossed in her Arithmancy reading when she saw someone practically stumble through the door. Looking up, Clara raised her eyebrow then discovered it was her new friend. And her friend was not looking well…
“Sara?” she asked tentatively. When it was clear that she was doing far worse than she first thought, Clara shot to her feet and drew her wand. “What happened? Are you all right?” Her voice was tight and controlled as she looked at the younger girl.