Serpent's Tongue

Two

"First years, follow me to the common room!" Both Camila and Keana called out as they left the Great Hall. They were both prefects for their houses, and Keana could already feel herself jinxing Camila if they were stuck on patrol together. She had heard of Camila's flirty antics with girls when she had been on patrol with them last year, from the grotesque details Keana had received from Hailee Steinfeld, Camila was huge and had a lot of stamina.

Camila turned her head to the Gryffindor and winked playfully before shifting away from the staircase and leading the Slytherin first years down to the dungeons. After a few steps she stopped and looked up to watch Keana climbing the stairs. "Hey Issartel!"

A sigh of annoyance escaped the brown eyed girl and she smiled tightly at her first years. "Just a second guys," she leaned over the railing of the staircase and looked down to where Camila was calling her. "What do you want?"

"I talked with Slughorn, you and me are on patrol together tomorrow night!" Camila was smiling devilishly at Keana, an arrogant smirk plastered on her face.

Keana groaned. "Dear Dumbledore help me." She turned around again and continued leading the first years up the stairs and towards Gryffindor tower. Bits and pieces of their conversations filled Keana's ears and she smiled to herself as she listened to their excited ramblings and whispers.

"Harry Potter was in this house, he's my hero!"

"Oh my god, look at the paintings!"

"The stairs are moving, holy harpies!"

"Do you think if I ask Hugo Weasley for an autograph from his mom, he'll get it for me?"

The girl made sure that no first years were lost as they climbed the multiple sets of moving stairs until they reached Gryffindor tower. When they finally arrived to their destination, Keana cleared her throat and spoke to the kids.

"Guys, this is the entrance to our common room. Our password is very simple, for this month it's 'padfoot'. Any questions?"

None of the first years rose their hands, most likely too nervous to do so. The response was good enough for Keana so she shrugged and turned to the Fat Lady.

The woman in the painting stopped stroking her dress and looked down at the sixth year. "Well hello Miss Issartel, did your summer holiday treat you well?"

"It was great my dear Lady, thanks for asking. Padfoot."

Without argument, the painting swung open, revealing the scarlet walls and soft gold light that shined down onto the beautiful rugs that littered the floor. Keana led the young children into the common room and breathed in deeply, feeling the familiar scent of firewood and vanilla filling her senses. She moved to the side and allowed the first years behind her to filter in.

"Now, the dormitories are up the stairs. Girls to the left, boys to the right. If you attempt to go up the stairs that do not correspond with the gender you identify with, the stairs will convert into a slide and you will fall. Don't try it, Professor Longbottom will find out and we will lose house points."

All of the kids nodded and quickly sprinted up the stairs towards their dormitories, Keana followed behind them and went up another set of stairs to her dorm, which she shared with Dinah, Ally, Lucy, and Lauren. It really sucked that Normani was a Slytherin and couldn't share a room with them.

"Keeks! You're here! Finally!" Dinah's cheerful voice filled the room and her strong arms engulfed Keana in a tight hug. Keana didn't really get why she was doing that when they'd spent almost the whole day together.

When the Polynesian finally let her go, Keana managed to catch her breath and smile at her other friends she hadn't seen today. "Hey guys!"

Both Ally and Lucy sprinted over to her and hugged her tightly as well. "Oh my gosh Keana! I missed you so much! How was Spain, France, and Greece?" Lucy's excitement made the brown eyed girl smile and she hugged both girls even tighter than before.