Harry Potter Enshrouded

The morning air was crisp and fresh, the stillness of the early hours giving Adrian the peace he needed to focus. He had set his alarm before dawn, determined to wake up early and head to the Room of Requirement. Today was an important day for him; his practice had put him closer to mastering his own spell, Involvus.

Upon entering the Room of Requirement, it greeted him as it always did, its shelves and equipment appearing as if asking Adrian to start practicing. Adrian soon moved to the centre preparing his wand with quiet confidence, as the dummies stood ready, waiting to bear the brunt if his spell was successful.

Adrian whispered the incantation with a flick of his wrist. "Involvus."

A thick yellowish beam spread from his wand taking the shape of a laser. The dummy went flying backwards as yellow sparks were etched onto its body. The sparks being the signs of the confusion taking effect as the dummies movements soon came to halt, becoming more erratic. It was at this moment that Adrian knew that his spell had succeeded.

His chest tightened and out came a deep breath that showcased his satisfaction of accomplishment. He had done it—Involvus was now his spell, a spell that could combine the elements of confusion and force. This could be a lethal spell in his arsenal as the combination of two spells meant that the power of Involvus far exceeded other spells. A normal Protego could not stop it, no normal protection spell could solve it.

"Finally," he murmured, a proud smile creeping onto his face. 

Later that morning, the castle came back to life as the students headed to their classes. Adrian met Draco,Theodore and Luciano outside the greenhouse for their first ever Herbology class. 

"Ready for Mandrakes?" Theodore asked 

Adrian grinned. "I think I've got this." He said before glancing at Draco,"well Herbology is not my best subject".

"Well, finally something at which you are not the best at." Said Draco who looked unusually happy.

As they entered the greenhouse, a scent of damp earth and green life filled Adrian's senses. Today's Herbology class was shared with the Hufflepuffs as Adrian noticed Hugo Fontaine. The French student who looked unusually comfortable in the greenhouse.

Luciano caught Fontaine's gaze from across the room as he, gave Adrian a small smile before leaving to introduce himself to the Frenchman.

 Soon ,Professor Sprout arrived with a bright smile, immediately setting the class to work. "Everyone! Today we'll be focusing on the Mandrakes. Please wear those ear muffs as those screams can cause some proper injuries." She then glanced over at the students with an approving nod. "It's good to have so many diverse faces in Hogwarts this year. Welcome to Hogwarts, everyone!"

Adrian's attention wandered for a moment as Sprout continued explaining the Mandrake's properties. His mind wasn't fully in the lesson; instead, it was as though he suddenly realised something. He had known for a long time that there were so many new faces at Hogwarts this year. Yet, what are their stories? What brought them to Hogwarts? How were they going to affect the original plot? Adrian needed to know what changes these new characters would bring.

He shook off the thoughts and returned his focus to the task at hand. The Mandrakes were always a challenge and Herbology was not his best class. After spending a while struggling to deal with the mandrakes, Adrian was done after, half the people in the class had already finished."Uh my Herbology skill sucks" muttered Adrian. "At least I managed to deal with those horrendous screams."

The bell soon rang, signaling the end of class and Adrian left the greenhouse with his friends as they headed to the great hall for lunch. As they entered the great hall, Adrian noticed the Spanish Felix Navarro hanging out with Potter and his group. So far, Adrian had not caught any site of him due to how quiet he had been so far. Right now however, he really seemed to be gelling well with his new friends.

"Navarro," Adrian greeted, which caught Felix's attention. "Mind if I join for a moment?"

Felix looked surprised but gestured for Adrian to sit. "Blackthorn, right? The Slytherin prodigy?"

Adrian raised an eyebrow. "Prodigy? Naa that's an exaggeration. Though, I am curious-how are you finding Hogwarts so far?"

"It's different," Felix admitted, his dark eyes thoughtful. "Home was much stricter. Spain does not have a great and large school like Hogwarts. Most of it was teaching via hired tutors. The ministry of magic there only has a small training centre for the muggleborns."

Adrian nodded. "Seems rigid. So do you like this school or your private tutor better?

"Here," Felix said with a small shrug. " The freedom here cannot be compared. Obviously a personal tutor means more attention however, the level of most tutors in Spain cannot match the teachers here.

Adrian smiled faintly. " Sounds interesting... Freedom is a powerful tool when used correctly. What do you want to do with this freedom?"

Felix grinned, a glint of mischief in his eyes. " Just wanna play some Quidditch right now. You know? Potter asked the professor to let me into the Quidditch team. I was a fantastic chaser in Spain yet, my tutor limited the times I could practice. I have always wanted to go pro. Watch us win the house cup this year."

"No way that's happening.Gryffindor's team is overrated," Adrian smirked "But if you're any good, you might actually give Slytherin some competition."

Felix laughed. "Challenge accepted, Blackthorn."

As the two exchanged a few more remarks about Quidditch, Adrian found himself liking Felix's easygoing nature. It was refreshing to talk to someone who wasn't a pureblood ideologue. 

When Adrian finally returned to the Slytherin table, he noticed Hermione Granger glancing at him from across the Hall, her quill poised over her parchment as though she'd been mid thought. It looked like she wanted to approach him. Their eyes met briefly as she offered him a small yet uncertain smile before returning to her notes. 

"I'll have to speak to her soon," Adrian mused silently.