Chapter 7: Together Works Better

The sun was just starting to rise when Lena woke up to the sound of birds chirping outside. She smiled contentedly as she looked over at Jasmin, still fast asleep next to her. After a few moments of admiring her girlfriend's peaceful expression, Lena gently leaned over and planted a soft kiss on Jasmin's forehead.

"Good morning, my love," she whispered.

Jasmin stirred and opened her eyes, a sleepy smile spreading across her face.

"Good morning, Lena," she murmured, snuggling closer.

They lay there for a few more minutes, simply enjoying each other's company, before Lena sat up and stretched.

Lena and Jasmin quickly got dressed and headed down to the common room. They had a Potion class that day and wanted to get some practice in before they headed off. Lena had brought her book on Potions and was eager to try making a Strengthening Potion that she had read about.

As they made their way down the stairs, they bumped into Lucas, a fellow first-year student who was also in their Defense Against the Dark Arts class with brown hair and amber eyes.

"Hey guys, heading to class already?" Lucas asked, smiling at them.

"Not yet, we're just going to practice making a Strengthening Potion before we go," Lena replied, holding up her book.

"Oh, I see. Well, speaking of books, Jasmin, I've overheard you and Professor Ravenwood in Defense against the dark arts." he pulls out an ancient and grand tome, larger than any ordinary book, with a thick and heavy black leather cover that feels smooth to the touch. Etched onto the cover are intricate and mystical engravings, as well as mysterious runes that seem to pulse with a faint glow. The golden lettering on the cover spells out the title of the book, "Spells and How to Form Them," in a script that seems to dance and shift as if alive. Holding the book in your hands, you can feel the immense power contained within its pages, and as you open it, the air around you seem to crackle with energy.

Jasmin's eyes widened as she suddenly remembered. "Oh my gosh, the book Professor Ravenwood told me to get I completely forgot about it!

"You're most welcome if you return it for me afterwards and please don't tell Stonebridge how you got it" he says and hands it over to Jasmin who gladly accepts it and takes the ancient tome.

"Sounds fair to me!" Jasmin replies and smiles at Lucas. "Thank you!" she says and brings the book quickly back into her and Lena's dormitory before the two girls head near the potion classroom where the school provided some cauldrons and other brewing equipment. It was just the basics but was enough for most potions.

As Lena and Jasmin made their way to the Potion practise room, they saw another girl alone practising her brewing on one of the stations and the air was smelling really bad almost burning in the nose while breathing.

The girl was not looking happy. "No, what is happening?" She looks scared as she looks into her cauldron.

As the cauldron contents begins to bubble and froth, the air is filled with a pungent, acidic smell that burns the nostrils. The scent is a combination of rotten eggs and burning rubber, causing Lena and Jasmin to wrinkle their noses in disgust. As the mixture continues to boil, the sounds of the bubbling and hissing become louder, like a cauldron of boiling water on the stove. Suddenly, the potion starts to sputter and spit, shooting out of the cauldron in all directions. Causing the girl to scream and back off but she still got some of the liquid on her robes.

"Are you okey?" Lena asks as she and Jasmin arrive closer to the girl. "Yeah, I'm fine, stupid book can't be more unclear about what and how to mix it all together. I'm Amber" she says looking at them with her green eyes while pulling out her wand and cleaning her robe, "Scourgify." she whispers, and her robe suddenly looks like she had just been washed. "Let's also clean up this mess, Tergeo." She says and points at the mess on the floor, cleaning it all up.

"Handy spells." Jasmin and Lena both say as they watch Amber clean herself and the place before turning her attention towards them.

"Yeah, only if you keep messing up like I do." Amber says and looks down into her empty cauldron.

Lena approached Amber with a smile on her face. "Hey Amber, I noticed that you seem a little under the weather. Would you like me to show you how to make a minor healing potion?"

Amber looked up at Lena with a grateful expression. "Yes, please! I've been feeling a little off lately, and I could really use something to help me feel better."

"She's really good, she even managed to teach me how to make a potion and that says something." Jasmin says trying to cheer up Amber's mood.

Amber smiles and Lena walk her to the Ingredients. She explains her that only the garlic like root and the green mushrooms are required and the book fails to express the ease of access to some ingredients as it only lists rarer ones.

After successfully brewing the minor healing Potion Amber looks much happier than before and thanks Lena for her help.

"You're welcome, Amber." Lena says and offers her to also learn the strength potion with her and Jasmin together. To which Amber smiling agreed.

As Lena helped Amber and Jasmin to work on the potion, she couldn't help but feel grateful for the opportunity to share her knowledge and skills with her friends. They worked very well together but made a few minor mistakes that caused their mixture to do the same as it did for Amber before.

Amber also uses that situation to make sure to teach the two girls the two spells and let them practise them on the mess they've created.

"This makes causing a mess almost fun." Jasmin laughs and they tried again to make the potion.

After a few intense moments they could smell the distinct vanilla smell and saw their mixture turn silver and glow slightly.

"I think that’s it." Lena says and inspect the mixture while filling it into a potion.

They agree that its brewed correctly and fill some small potions for themselves before cleaning up and leaving the potion practise room together to attend their next potions class right next door.

While they walked outside where the light was brighter Jasmin and Lena see Amber much better, bright green eyes and long black curly hair and they also realize that she was from the Earth house. As the three girls walked into the potion’s classroom, they felt a newfound confidence in their potion-making abilities. Lena watched on as Jasmin and Amber expertly measured out the ingredients and stirred the cauldron with ease. The classroom was filled with the familiar scent of brewing potions, and the sound of bubbling cauldrons mixed with the scratching of quills on parchment as other students took notes.

Unlike their previous potions class, there was no sense of apprehension or fear of failure. The girls worked together in harmony, each contributing to the creation of the potion. As they added the final ingredient, the liquid in the cauldron began to change color, a sign that their potion was successful.

Professor Sarb walked over to their table and peered into the cauldron.

"Excellent work, ladies. You've created a perfectly brewed potion," she said with a nod of approval.

The girls beamed with pride as they bottled their potion and cleaned up their workspace. As they walked out of the classroom, they couldn't help but feel a sense of accomplishment and a newfound appreciation for the art of potion-making.

"Good job you two." Lena says as the three were walking their way to the mists common room where Amber waited with Lena outside until Jasmin returned with the Book in her hand and the three made their way to the library to inform Stonebridge about the Book from Lucas.

The girls entered the library and made their way over to the librarian's desk. Stonebridge looked up from his work and greeted them with a smile.

"Hello, girls. How can I assist you today?" he asked.

Jasmin stepped forward and held up the book. "I found this book." She says slowly, her fingers slowly moving over the Book cover. Feeling the fine engravings and runes under her fingers and doesn't make signs that she wants to hand over the book. "Professor Ravenwood recommended me this book and told me about the potential dangers behind it, can I borrow it?" she adds and looks at Stonebridge with pleading eyes.

"This book is from the restricted section! How did you just find this? this is dangerous lecture." He looks into Jasmin's blue eyes. "Professor Ravenwood recommended it to you?" he asks her and raises his eyebrow.

"I can't tell you who gave it to me, but you can ask Professor Ravenwood, please." Jasmin begs.

"Fine, how can I deny my favourite new student, but please, be careful." He says giving in and nods at Jasmin.

The Girls smile thankfully and leave the library towards the great hall to eat.

As Lena, Jasmin, and Amber made their way to the Great Hall, Lucas joined them from a different direction. The group exchanged greetings and small talk as they walked, but Lena couldn't help but notice the way Lucas kept stealing glances at Amber. She nudged Jasmin discreetly and tilted her head towards Lucas and Amber, silently communicating her suspicions.

After they finished eating Lena and Jasmin exchanged a glance and both of them stood up.

"I think we're going back to the common room until dinner. See you later." Lena says while starting to walk away and Jasmin waves quickly following her.

Once they arrived, they settled onto the couch and Lena turned to Jasmin. "Did you notice the way Lucas was looking at Amber?" she asked.

Jasmin nodded. "Yeah, I did. Do you think he likes her?"

Lena shrugged. "It certainly seemed that way. But we shouldn't jump to conclusions. We don't really know them well enough yet to make assumptions."

Jasmin nods and they sit on the couch near the fireplace and Jasmin puts the book into her lap and opens it. "I am excited to read this book." She explains to Lena who looks at Jasmin’s enthusiasm and smiles while resting her head against Jasmin's shoulder.

As Lena and Jasmin flip through the pages of "Spells and How to Form Them," they come across a chapter on advanced spellcasting. While they're not quite ready for those spells yet, they do find a section on spell variations that piques their interest.

They learn that by slightly altering the incantation or wand movement of a spell, they can create variations with different effects. For example, they discover that by saying "Scourgify Maxima" instead of just "Scourgify," they can create a more powerful cleaning spell that can even remove stains that are normally impossible to get out.

Excited by this new knowledge, they decide to practice creating their own spell variations with some of the spells they've already learned. They spend the rest of the evening experimenting with different incantations and wand movements, and even manage to come up with a few unique spells of their own.

one thing they managed to create was a sort of Hush Charm: This spell creates a small bubble of silence around the caster, muffling any noise they make. Lena and Jasmin might use this spell to have a private conversation in a crowded room or to avoid being heard by someone they don't want to overhear.

It's late when they finally call it a night. Lena and Jasmin are exhausted from all the practicing and reading, both of them yawned as they closed the book and put away their wands. It had been a long night of studying and practicing, and they were ready to get some sleep.

"I can barely keep my eyes open," Lena said, rubbing her tired eyes.

"I know, me too," Jasmin replied with a yawn. "But at least we got a lot done tonight. We're going to ace our exams."

Lena smiled. "Yeah, we definitely will. I'm so glad we have each other to study with."

Jasmin nodded in agreement. "Me too. And I'm really glad we're roommates. "What do you say we go to bed?""

After agreeing to go to bed, Lena and Jasmin stood up from the couch and stretched their tired muscles. Lena looked over at Jasmin and grinned. She grabs Jasmin's hand with one and the book with her other hand and starts to walk towards the door leading to their shared bedroom. Jasmin follows closely behind.

Once they reached their dormitory, they dropped their books and wands on the nearby table before Lena turned to Jasmin and hesitated for a moment. "Jasmin, would it be okay if we slept together in the same bed again tonight?" Lena asked, her heart pounding in her chest.

Jasmin smiled softly. "Of course, Lena. I would love that," she replied, patting the space next to her on the bed. Lena's face lit up with a grin as she sat down next to Jasmin, feeling a rush of warmth as their legs touched under the covers. They both settled in, facing each other, their eyes locking.

As they lay in bed, Lena turned to Jasmin and gently placed a hand on her cheek. "Jasmin, I just want you to know how much you mean to me," she said softly.

Jasmin's heart fluttered as she looked into Lena's eyes. "You mean everything to me too, Lena," she replied, taking Lena's hand in hers. Lena leaned in and gently pressed her lips to Jasmin's, their kiss deepening as they wrapped their arms around each other. They broke away, breathless and smiling at each other.

"Goodnight, my love," Lena whispered, nuzzling her nose against Jasmin's.

"Goodnight, Lena," Jasmin replied, snuggling closer to her. They drifted off to sleep, wrapped in each other's arms.