Freaks: Year One

An Encounter

Bullying.

The first year Hufflepuffs went down to the Great Hall to eat breakfast. Jasper was getting many odd looks from other students due to his bright pink hair. Some of them were snickering, but Jasper seemed unbothered. Maryrose had changed her hair to the same shade of pink to match his, and Dorothy was glaring at anyone who gave Jasper a weird look.

Harry was a bit worried for Jasper. He knew kids could be mean about things that were different. To Jasper the Wizarding World was different, and more accepting, but in reality it was similar to the muggle world. People could be just as mean.

The owls flew in delivering the morning mail. Harry picked up the Daily Prophet, reading through it, and came across a passage that talked about a secret society of dark wizards on the rise, and he was about to read that when Marty squealed. Harry looked up. Marty was holding a box of brownies.

"These are my favorites!" She exclaimed. "My dad sent them." She looked around at the other first years. "Would you like some?"

They all nodded, and Marty handed them each a brownie, she noticed Jasper was holding a piece of parchment. "What do you have there Jasper?"

Jasper looked up. "Oh." He said. "Just a letter. The owl must've found my place!" He continued to read it, murmuring things like "that's good" or "be careful". He looked up. "I'll write them back after classes today." He put the letter down, and continued to eat his pancakes.

Harry was munching on the brownie trying to think about the classes they had that day, but Jasper's hair was very much distracting, along with Maryrose's, they were so...bright.

They all walked to class, Cara very much shocked by Jasper's hair colour, but nonetheless stayed positive about it when she was about to offer to fix it because she thought it was funny looking, but Dorothy glared at her, so she shut up. "Well." Cara said, walking them all through the Transfiguration wing. "Professor McGonagall will be very - er shocked by your hair colour."

"I have met her before," Jasper said. "She is really nice."

They were at the door outside the Transfiguration classroom. "Well, have fun guys." Cara said, and she walked off down the corridor, and up the stairs.

They walked into the classroom, and again Harry, and Jasper sat beside each other. Harry looked around, but he didn't see Professor McGonagall anywhere, and it was almost time for class. "I wonder where she is?" Harry asked.

The Hufflepuffs shrugged. "Look." Penelope pointed to a brown tabby cat sitting behind McGonagall's desk. "Isn't it cute!? I have always wanted a cat...do you think it's stray?"

"I doubt it, Penelope." Said Marty who was sitting beside her. "It is probably another student's." Penelope sighed.

All of sudden the tabby cat hopped on the desk, and jumped, and while jumping the cat started to change, the cat-like features turning into human ones, and there standing in front of them was Professor McGonagall.

The whole class was shocked. Maryrose was mesmerized by this transformation. She could change many aspects of herself, but she didn't have the ability to transform into an animal, she didn't think she did.

"Woah." Harry said.

Jasper stood up, and started to clap. "PROFESSOR THAT WAS AMAZING!!"

McGonagall nodded her head, and gave a small smile.

"Are you going to teach us that?!" Asked Jonathan. "Please tell me you are."

McGonagall shook her head. "Not today Mr. Abbott." She said, "I just wanted to give you a demonstration of what Transfiguration is capable of - Mr. Odair please sit down." Jasper was hopping up, and down with excitement, and Harry tugged him back in his seat. McGonagall looked at him for several moments realizing he had pink hair. "Mr. Odair?"