Prompt #2 - "Just what I need" (June '18)

[ｒａｂｂｉｔ]

June's 2nd prompt is
"Just what I need"

---

If you have any questions about how to participate in this event,
please visit the The rules and Guideline thread or PM Karma.

Feeling like offering us a prompt?
Do you want to see your idea featured as one of the Month's prompts?
Click here to learn more!

[ArtisticVicu]

They called it growth.

Actually, the technical term was House Adjustment. With so many years gone since the war ended, and after so much had changed - good and bad - it was deemed important that students that grew out of their house were properly resorted the next year.

Rumor had it that it wasn't a choice made by the Education Board or the school staff. Students were just suddenly being reassigned houses and people were trying to hide that it was the castle's doing.

The first time it happened, there had been severe backlash. It had been so long ago, it's only in the words of those in their last year, those that were told by those long since gone from the castle grounds. The backlash didn't come from the parents till after the events in among the student body itself but by that point, it was too late.

Twenty students of varying years over the span of three months woke up to find that their school attire had changed color. The first three - a Sixth Year Ravenclaw, a Fourth Year Gryffindor, and a Seventh Year Slytherin - thought that their housemates were pulling a prank till their Head of House came for them. The Slytherin was now a Hufflepuff, the Ravenclaw now a Slytherin, and the Gryffindor now a Ravenclaw. Out of the three, surprisingly the Ravenclaw had the easiest time adapting. The Gryffindor supposedly had things to prove but it was nothing compared to the backlash the Slytherin got not from Hufflepuffs, but from their old house.

Despite the teachers doing their best to put things back, none of the students were able to access their old houses. Despite the teachers doing their best to run interference, Hufflepuffs proved to be not only loyal but brave and cunning during those short months of turmoil. It worked out better for all in the long run.

The next batch of student gained their new colors two weeks after the first and changed everything. Suddenly there was a camaraderie among the Turncoats - the label placed upon them regardless of their lack of choice in the matter - and it wasn't uncommon to see groups of mixed houses all over the castle. Classes were suddenly blended and at the start of the near year, the schedule system had been completely revamped.

Shift quickly replaced Turncoat.

After a few years, Shifts were common. They didn't happen as regularly after the initial onslaught of recoloring but they were common enough that each house had grown to creating certain rituals for reintroduction into a new house, some kinder than others and the more severe generally being apart of the highest most years. First Years never became Shifts. Only a small few - a very small few - of Second Years had ever become Shifts and the stories surrounding why they were Shifts were never pleasant.

But to find that one has shifted out of the house system? Now that was unheard of.

That is, till he was staring at the solid white tie in his hand.

"Just what I need," he muttered, clenching the tie. The robe still on his trunk had a blank white crest, void of any other color beyond the initial black of the robe itself. The sound in the room told him that the others hadn't noticed yet as he carefully wrapped the tie in the robe and made it a little package before anyone else could notice.

"Where you going?" one of the other boys called out. "We've still got a few minutes before we were planning on hitting breakfast."

The smile came easily to his face as he half lied. "I want to stop by the library before class."

"With your robes under one arm?" There was a spattering of chuckles and his smile grew.

"Hey, got to hang on to the last of the weekend somehow."

That got a riot of laughter out of them and he took the chance to truly step away and close the door behind him. His heart was pounding in his chest but the relief of not quite getting caught was calming his nerves.

He quickly left his house - ex-house, if what he had bundled under his arm was anything to go by - and prayed that if they did gather his belongings, they found all of them. He had items stashed for a reason and he wasn't about to leave them behind.

He nearly ran face first into his Head of House. There was a stern expression on the woman's face but he could see the worry and concern that created the off putting look. He took a step back, aware that there were two other Head of Houses present and one student. She looked to be a Fourth or Fifth Year if he had to guess.

"Professors," he greeted.

"Ah. Good. Just the student we were looking for. We will be going to the Headmaster's office shortly. There is one other Shift we must go collect first," his Head of House stated.

He nodded and fell into step behind the professors next to the younger year.

It wasn't till they were nearly to the final house that she whispered, "Which house?"

He looked to her. "Ravenclaw," he lied, because it was believable. "You?"

She sagged, looking relieved. "Ravenclaw." A hint of despair returned to her expression. "Do you think their Welcoming will be a test of knowledge or something? I hope not. I don't even know why I was Shifted to Ravenclaw in the first place. I'm not studious like they are."

He looked at her, truly looked at her, and it wasn't hard to discern which house she had been from. Her Head of House kept glancing back at her, worry in the man's gaze. He reached over and touched her arm, offering softly, "You'll fit in just fine. Hufflepuffs are treated far kinder in Ravenclaw as Shifts than any other."

That had been what she had needed to hear even if he had been making it up. He barely paid any attention to Shifts and the different Welcomings. He had never believed he would ever experience that. He pressed the bundle of fabric against his side more. It seemed he had been wrong, though.

They stopped outside the final house. Minutes passed but the Professors didn't seem to be concerned. He was certain it was because they had been through this countless times and knew that sometimes it took a while. Word had made it even to his ears that sometimes students were very stubborn about Shifting or a party was thrown. The in-betweens never took long to gather.

By the ruckus that was starting to reach their ears, he wasn't sure of a party was being thrown or a riot. The Seventh Year that exited the house was proudly sporting his new colors so he was going to lean towards a party.

The group moved on and he let the Seventh Year and Fourth or Fifth Year talk. He found his words echoed by the ex-Ravenclaw Seventh Year, stating that the Welcoming for her Year - she was a Third Year, of all things - was very easy and there was no quiz, not that a few of the older wouldn't try and get her to do a few tests so that they could help her get up to par in her classes.

He wondered how accurate the Seventh Year was being or if he was being kind.

He was tempted to grab for his wand and send a stinging hex at the thought. She didn't need to be lied to by the house she was entering.

The Headmaster was waiting for them outside the Headmaster's Office. He was one of the oldest in the school but was far younger than many of the past Headmasters and -mistresses. There was still a sense of power and knowledge behind him, though, that had none doubting that he was well prepared to handle a school full of children and the staff that went along with it. He'd been there since the First Shift, after all.

"Congratulations on your new Houses," he offered the three of them warmly as the Professors stood behind them. "I expect that you will bring great things to each of your new House as well as your old. Do not forget that friends of any color are just as important as those of the same, alright?"

The Seventh and Third Year on either side of him nodded, their expressions determined. He found himself unable to respond. His Head of House placed a heavy hand on his shoulder and gave it a squeeze. The Headmaster's gaze fell on him at the peak of her gesture.

"If you would be willing, I would like to speak with you in my office before you move on," the Headmaster implored. He was surprised that it truly was an offer by the older man and found himself unable to deny the request regardless. He nodded and the soft smile grew a bit. The Headmaster looked to the Heads of Houses. "If you would be so kind as to escort the others to their new Houses, I would be very grateful. I am sure they will have lots of questions on the way."

He and the Headmaster stood in the hallway watching the others leave the way they had come till they had all left their sight. He turned back, meeting the Headmaster's steady gaze. There was no smile on that face but the expression was nothing but kind. "Come," the older man spoke, gesturing towards the Headmaster's Office. "We have much to discuss and another to discuss it with."

He frowned at that and found the answer to his unasked inquiry seated in one of the chairs before the Headmaster's desk. He recognized her as his Year but from Hufflepuff. She gave him a nod in greeting and he returned it before seating himself in the other chair. He did not miss the fact that she too was not in her school robes.

"Do you both have your ties?" the Headmaster inquired, leaning against the front of his desk rather than sit behind it like he had expected.

The girl pulled hers out of her pocket as he started to unwrapped his. Where his was still a solid white tie hidden by the robe in his lap, she held out a gray based tie patterned by every house color. It was artistically done, the colors not grouped by house but rather by what looked good, seeing as there was a bit of clashing between the bolder house colors that was negated by the design.

The Headmaster hummed, taking her tie with a careful hand as he wondered what her tie meant and what that meant for his. He didn't miss the fact that the Headmaster didn't ask for his.

"It would seem that you are stuck between Houses, Miss Alphaeus," the Headmaster offered genially, admiring the tie's pattern. "An easy matter to attend with, truly. Would you like to choose a new house or remain where you are?"

She gave him a flat look and the tie in his hand shifted its pattern. He wasn't sure if she had noticed but he would bet that the Headmaster had.

The Headmaster chuckled. "You do not have to answer right away, Miss Alphaeus. You are welcome to sit and ponder it as long as you wish."

"Why would I want to change houses?" Again, another shift in the pattern, equally subtle.

The Headmaster's expression turned somber. "Corinth." She didn't drop her glare. "I am aware of the hardships you are experiencing in your house. Moving houses may be what you need to finish out the rest of your years here at Hogwarts."

"But what if I don't want to?" she challenged and suddenly only two house colors were on her tie. "What if I want to leave and never come back? I don't want anything to do with this stupid school anymore!"

The colors in her tie settled and he wasn't sure if that house was going to be any better if she was having issues in Hufflepuff. The Headmaster simply offered a soft smile, handing the ex-Hufflepuff back her tie. "If you would be willing to finish out these last two years, I'm sure your new House will help you through what is left of your education."

She laughed, the sound tight and full of disbelief. "Slytherin. Really."

The Headmaster shrugged. "You would be surprised."

Neither moved, the Headmaster's calm gaze holding Corinth's incredulous one till at last Corinth reached out and took the tie from him. The Headmaster smiled at her. "I will send for your new Head of House. Please wait out in the hall for them."

Corinth nodded, standing. She left without a word.

The Headmaster's gaze turned to him and he reluctantly revealed his tie. The plain white tie was far too bright against the black robes.

"I was wondering when another student would have such a Shift," the Headmaster offered gently, taking the tie and leaning against his desk once more.

"Sir?" he questioned softly, not understanding.

The Headmaster smiled at him. "Do you have an idea of what this means, compared to Miss Alphaeus's tie?"

He opened his mouth to say no but a thought came to mind, one that he wasn't sure he believed. He let it roll passed his lips. "I no longer fit at Hogwarts."

The Headmaster laughed and he jumped, equal parts surprised and offended. "No, not quite." The Headmaster beamed at him. "It simply means that Hogwarts has nothing more to give you."

He gave the still beaming Headmaster a flat look. "I still have another year of schooling left, Professor."

"Indeed you do!" the Headmaster readily agreed. "But that doesn't have anything to do with the House system, now does it?"

He frowned. "I don't understand."

The Headmaster placed the tie on the edge of his desk, humming in thought. "Do you know why this school is set up with a house system, rather than just having all the same year in a single dorm?"

"I could guess," he responded. "But I'm sure you'll just tell me anyways."

The Headmaster laughed again. "Awe, the cheekiness of the youth. I can see why there is no color to your tie. Intelligent, brave, loyal, and cunning all in one." He opened his mouth to ask what the Headmaster meant by that, uncomfortable by the notion, but the Headmaster was already continuing on. "The Houses have become a way to allow students a safe space with like minded students they can turn to for aid. The house rivalries were always student driven, though I dare say that Quidditch and the House Points do not help with the staff partaking of the rivalries. The striking hatred between house has thankfully dwindled since the First Shifts as everyone has learned that the traits of each house are not as black and white as everyone seems to think they are."

The Headmaster gestured at him with his own tie. "This simply means you have reached the point where the house system no longer benefits you. You have reached a point only two other students have ever managed, a fact that is both impressive and disconcerting." He frowned as the Headmaster gained a wistful look. "I do not think the house system is a bad way of doing things, but it creates a separation among the students that I do not think is helping. I do not want to completely rid the school of the four Houses because that is what the Founders had created, but I do want to change it into something far better than a 'Them' and 'Us' mentality it currently creates. This-" the Headmaster hefted his tie up in emphasis, "allows me to gain a bit more insight on how the students not only benefit from the current system but surpass it. You are, however, the youngest so far to surpass the system. The others were Seventh Years. It would seem that the mark has gotten lower and I expect I will see a number more of white ties in my office in the coming months."

"So then what happens now?" he asked, only half understanding what this had to do with him and a white tie.

"I can have the sorting hat place you in a house once more or..." The Headmaster reached behind him, riffling through the mess of scrolls, parchment, paper, and files on his desk before turning back around with a few pages trapped in hand. "I have a few ways you could finish your schooling while starting into a career field. Apprenticeships, internships, other schools and whatnot."

He blinked at the Headmaster, only gaining a patient, warm gaze in return. He opened his mouth again. "And if I want to finish my schooling here? Do I have to get resorted?"

The Headmaster's expression turned mildly surprised. "You want to remain a White Tie?"

He looked at the tie, finding it hard to give up his last years at Hogwarts just because he wasn't part of a house anymore. "I don't want to leave."

"I can offer you a private room in the castle, if you would like, as the start of a new dormitory for White Ties, though we'll need a house name at some point if more do Shift till I can sort things out properly." He looked up, startled by the Headmaster's words even as the latter bits were mutterings of a thought process. The expression he found there was serious, edged with wariness and worry. "It will be isolating, seeing as you are the only White Tie for now. I am sure that will not last beyond the middle of your Seventh Year but there is no guarantee you will find another that Shifts into the White Tie as you have before you graduate."

He looked at the tie and the thought of that kind of isolation - the kind that came with being shunned by friends and fellow students - was daunting, but he couldn't get beyond the thought that he wanted to stay a White Tie and finish off his years as Hogwarts. He stood up, taking the tie and offering the Headmaster a smile. "Guaranteed or not, I don't mind being the first to wear their White Tie proud."

The Headmaster beamed at him.