Gio was tactless, perhaps thoughtless, but he didn't come across as mean-spirited. He also had Eoin and Dorian as friends, who seemed to know how to deal with him, so Gideon decided to give him the benefit of the doubt.

'Just an injury,' Gideon responded to the boy's blunt question about his eye patch. 'Actually, thanks for reminding me—I was supposed to go to the Hospital Wing to get it changed. See you all in a bit.'

In the corridor, Gideon bumped into his former dormmates.

'Congrats, Gideon,' said Harjeet.

'Yeah, good luck, Gideon! It's going to be weird with you just gone all of a sudden,' added Jaden.

'Thanks, guys,' Gideon replied.

'It's good riddance if you ask me!' sniped Vinny as he entered the first-year dorm.

'Nobody asked you!' asserted Brendan most uncharacteristically, bringing a smile to Gideon's face. Despite his rocky start at Hogwarts, it was nice to know he had made an impression.

***

'Hmm,' said Madam Longbottom as she examined Gideon's eye in the Hospital Wing. 'I'd say you're almost healed. I'll want to see you one last time to confirm, but you can do without the full patch now!'

Instead of reapplying his usual dressing change and re-affixing his headband, the matron covered Gideon's injured eye with a considerably smaller patch, even more like a stereotypical pirate's.

It was something of a relief to be done with the large band. The new patch was dotted with many tiny holes to let in a small amount of light, and Gideon was able to blink with it on. Although, the holes were too small to see much through, and his vision was still blurry.

'There. Much better!' the matron said, giving Gideon a hand mirror.

There wasn't much to see as Gideon checked his reflection. He supposed it was better than the big black band, but in truth, he hadn't thought much about his appearance in the last few weeks. The band always messed up his hair, so he had given up on trying to keep it tidy.

He had been wearing his fringe differently, though, parting it down the middle. This was more out of necessity than anything else. After all, he couldn't very well cover his one functioning eye the way he used to. With that thought, it occurred to him that he would soon be trading in "eye patch kid" for his former title of "freaky eyes". His heterochromia would be exposed for all to see again.

***

Gideon had stayed up late with his new dormmates, discussing the upcoming Quidditch trials, which Gio and Dorian were both signed up for. That had turned out to be a mistake, as he was extremely tired for his first third-year class on Tuesday morning. Thankfully, it was History of Magic and many of the other students looked like they, too, could fall asleep at any moment.

Those that were paying attention were shooting Gideon looks of perplexity. He had expected Professor Binns to explain to the Hufflepuffs why he had appeared among their ranks, but it hadn't seemed to have occurred to the ghostly teacher. He had arranged some catch-up work for Gideon, though. It was a good thing, too, as the parts of the lesson Gideon had been fully awake for were not familiar at all.

Usually one to look over the year's class material ahead of time, Gideon hadn't started on the third-year books. He didn't even have some of the books he needed for his subjects, a fact that was made clear in Defence Against the Dark Arts. Seats had already been assigned, so Gideon took the only empty one next to a Ravenclaw girl at the back of the room.

She had extremely messy, shoulder-length, black hair. However, judging by her heavy eyeliner and black fingernails, Gideon figured it might be intentional. Noticing his lack of a textbook, she silently moved hers between them, so they could share while Professor Maxwell lectured them about dealing with salamanders—small, lizard-like magical creatures that fed on fire.

His father's plan to keep Gideon from doing any magic—if that was his intention as Gideon suspected—had hit a hurdle with the boy's move to the third year. The third-years would be performing the Frost Spell, which the other students had been practising for homework.

'Do you know the Steam Spell, Fumus?' asked the Ravenclaw girl as the students began to stand and separate into pairs, to which Gideon nodded in reply. The girl spoke with a slight accent, not unlike Professor Voronov's. 'Good, you'll be able to defrost me, then.'

'Defrost you?' Gideon said quizzically. 'You don't mean we're casting the spell on each other?'

'Yeah. This new professor's a little crazy but I like him. It raises the stakes, don't you think?' she said in a maniacal sort of way.

'Someone should do something, Verity!' Gideon overheard a girl nearby say. 'She's going to turn the new kid into a snowman!'

'It's not our problem, Kate!' her partner replied. 'If little miss princess of darkness wants to get detention again, just let her!'

'But she might lose us points!' the first girl protested, apparently not so concerned for Gideon, after all.

Gideon couldn't help looking a little concerned.

'Don't worry, I only have those sorts of accidents when I'm partnered with people that bug me!' the girl assured him, then added a wink. 'I'm Talia by the way AKA "princess of darkness".'

'Gideon,' he replied with a smile. 'I'll bear that in mind, your highness!'

'The incantation is Glacius. Give it a go!' she dared, crossing her arms.

Gideon pointed his wand at the girl's folded arms and uttered, 'Glacius!' A visible stream of frosted air burst from his wand tip and a layer of ice quickly formed over Talia's robes.

'Not bad!' she commented through chattering teeth. 'Now defrost me, quick!'

'Fumus!' Gideon followed up, releasing a jet of steam that removed the traces of ice almost instantly.

'You sure that was your first time using the spell?' Talia asked. 'I got the hang of it pretty quickly over the weekend, but it still took me a few goes to get the temperature low enough to actually freeze.'

'Beginner’s luck?' Gideon suggested.

'Maybe so...' she replied with a raised eyebrow. 'Okay, my turn!'

The class continued practising for a while until it appeared like everyone was performing the spell adequately. Gideon noticed his father's watchful eye on him as they did, but he tried his best to ignore it. Unfortunately, ignoring his father completely was no longer an option.

After class ended and everyone was eager to get to the Great Hall for a hot lunch, Professor Maxwell remained seated at his desk for the first time. Gideon waited for the other students to finish filing out before approaching him. 'I'm supposed to collect some make-up work from you—' he said sheepishly.

Gideon barely finished the sentence before a scroll of parchment was thrust in his direction without a word. 'I... I wanted to say...' he started as he took the scroll, but on noticing that his father's eyes remained focused on his desk, he shook his head and added quietly, 'Never mind.'

Gideon left the room unsure of whether his courage had failed him, or his guilt had overtaken him. Either way, the Frost Spell was nothing compared to his father's icy treatment.

***

'Sorry you got saddled with Natalia, Gideon,' said Eoin as the boys at lunch.

'How do you mean?' Gideon replied.

'Well, there weren't any other empty seats in Defence, so—'

'No, I mean, what's wrong with Talia?' Gideon corrected himself.

'Oh, you know, she's a bit weird. All that makeup!' Eoin asserted. 'And sometimes she overdoes it with the magic. I lost an eyebrow the last time I partnered with her!'

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

'Oh,' said Gideon in faux surprise, wondering what Eoin might have done to offend the girl. 'Well, thanks for the heads up!'

'Did you decide on your options, Gideon?' asked Dorian.

Gideon quickly swallowed a bite of his sandwich and answered, 'I was thinking Care of Magical Creatures and Divination.'

'Divination?' exclaimed Gio, who had been talking with Sasha Barrington across the table. 'I wouldn't if I were you!'

'Don't listen to him!' said Eoin.

Gio put his hand up in front of Eoin's face and continued, 'It's a dead subject, that's all I'm saying! I'm surprised the new Head didn't sack that old fraud, Trelawney! Ask Tim if you don't believe me!'

'It's true,' Tim interjected, 'If I still had the choice, I wouldn't pick Divination, knowing what I do now. Old Trelawney's completely batty! When she's not predicting one of us is going to have an accident, she's falling asleep in her chair!'

Gideon decided to take their word for it, 'I guess I'll go with Ancient Runes, then.'

***

Over lunch, Gideon informed Professor Voronov of his subject choices. He then sent a letter to Caroline, explaining that he might be staying on at Hogwarts, after all, and asking if she could purchase and post the third-year books he needed. However, knowing that her mail was being checked, he had no idea when they might arrive. He also sent a quick letter of thanks to Mr Ollivander, though, he didn't commit to stopping by the shop any time soon given what had occurred last time.

Double Herbology was held in Greenhouse three that afternoon. It was noticeably different from Greenhouse One, where students handled only the most basic of magical plants. The windows were partially obscured by the many climbing vines and stalks. Gideon didn't recognise any of the flora, which made him hanker for his new textbooks.

'Good afternoon, everyone!' said Professor Longbottom. 'As you know, today we're going to be potting Valerian cuttings, a very useful plant if grown properly. You should know from your homework that it's not dangerous, but it can be very temperamental. Bringing it to bloom will be one of your projects this year. Oh, forgive me, Mr Maxwell, I almost forgot!'

The Slytherins and Gryffindors simultaneously craned their necks in the direction the professor had been looking. Gideon blushed and wondered whether Professor Binns and his father ignoring his presence, intentional or not, had been preferable.

'Gideon will be joining us from now on. I hope you'll all make him feel welcome. O'Leary, Thompson,' he addressed Eoin and Dorian respectively, 'perhaps you'll assist him?'

'Yes, Sir,' Dorian replied.

'Now, where was I?' Professor Longbottom asked himself before he proceeded to explain the lesson.

'What's he doing here?' Gideon heard someone whisper behind him.

'How should I know!' another voice hissed in response.

Gideon didn't feel the need to turn around. He knew who the voices must belong to, though, he hadn't known when he would encounter them. Being in the third year, Jason Crawley and his fellow Gryffindors were now his peers. The chunk of yellow in Gideon's peripheral vision, which was undoubtedly the blonde head of Alex Grimsby, confirmed it.

Soon enough, the class split into pairs and the professor handed out numbered pots, so they could keep track of which belonged to each. Gideon paired with Dorian, who took the lead. He showed Gideon how to prepare the complicated soil mixture and performed the spell needed to activate the ingredients. Then, he let Gideon plant the cutting while measuring out a precise amount of water to add.

If done correctly, the brown Valerian cutting would slowly begin to green-up. After a few minutes, the boys were happy to see a difference. They were the first pair to have any success and Professor Longbottom recognised it by awarding Slytherin ten points.

Gideon felt a little guilty since Dorian was the one who did the hard work. Judging by the other students' results and the jealous stares from Jason and Greg, the spiky-haired boy had a knack for Herbology.

'Typical Dorian!' Gio vented on the way out of class. 'Can't charm his way out of a paper bag but give him a plant to grow or a potion to brew, and he's Merlin without the beard!'

'I'm not that bad at Charms!' Dorian responded jovially while pointing his wand at the boy. 'Wanna see?'

Gideon, Eoin, and Tim laughed as the other two began to jostle playfully.

'You're lucky to get partnered with Dorian, Gideon. Not that I mind!' Eoin assured him, 'Though, I got saddled with that blonde git from Gryffindor. He's always showing off in other classes, but when it comes to Herbology, the guy doesn't know a twig from a Bowtruckle!'

'What's a Bowtruckle?' Gideon asked when out of the blue, he was almost knocked to the ground by a hard shove.

'Oi! Watch it, Stevens!' Eoin roared.

'Oh, sorry, Gideon! Are you okay? Did I hurt you?' said Greg the Gryffindor in his recognisable condescending tone. His housemates gathered up behind him. On seeing this, the Slytherin boys who had been walking ahead turned back.

'What's this about?' Gio asked.

'Just an accident, Gio! Gideon bumped into me, and he crumpled like a piece of parchment!' Greg responded. 'You sure you're okay, little guy?'

'I'm fine!' Gideon asserted.

'You should probably watch where you're going in the future!' Jason warned before their gang departed, snickering down the length of the corridor.

'What was that about?' Tim wondered aloud.

'I don't know, but I've always hated that guy!' said Eoin, 'You okay, Gideon?'

'I'm fine, let's go,' he replied.

'Have you got a moment, Gideon?' a different voice asked politely. Standing behind them was Alex Grimsby.

'You want us to wait?' said Eoin, flexing like he was prepared for battle.

'Err, no, it's fine. I'll catch up!' Gideon said as the boys moved on, Eoin shooting back glances as he did. 'What's up?'

'Did you really meet with my dad?' Alex asked apprehensively.

Gideon sighed. Greg had recognised Mr Grimsby in the Entrance Hall.

'Erm, yeah,' he confirmed, unsure of what to say in this situation.

'Why?' Alex questioned impatiently.

'It's... Private.'

'No, it's weird! What are you doing meeting with my dad when I'm not around?'

'Maybe you should ask him?'

'I'm asking you!'

'Well, I can't say,' Gideon answered a little snappier than intended. He had no desire to share the details of his meeting with Grimsby, but he understood how strange it must look to the man's son. He felt bad that he couldn't explain but now seemed as good a time as any to give the boy his books back.

Gideon reached into his bag and pulled out the carrier of spy novels. He had been carrying them around in the hope of a quiet moment where he could pass them off, though this was hardly the scenario he had imagined.

'What's this?' Alex demanded.

'Your dad asked me to return these to you,' said Gideon, extending his arm with the bag. 'Thanks, I guess...'

Alex remained still; his furrowed eyebrows visible below his messy fringe as he looked from Gideon to the bag. After a few awkward moments of silence, the boy snatched the bag from Gideon's hand and stormed off, leaving Gideon feeling thoroughly conflicted.

***

Gideon had to skip Tuesday's Art extracurricular and spend the time, and most of the evening, in the library. He was glad he had as without it, the following day's Transfiguration lesson could have been a complete disaster. Even with the last-minute reading, Gideon's attempts to transform a mouse into a small inanimate object were barely passable.

Why he had chosen to focus on a matchbox, he didn't know, but the subsequent sparks that the half-transformed mouse started giving off meant Professor Voronov had to step in. It also meant Gideon was given rather a lot of make-up work from the Transfiguration professor.

It occurred to Gideon on the way down to the edge of the Forbidden Forest for Care of Magical Creatures, that he had done some basic spells well and with surprising ease. However, when it came to more complicated magic, it wasn't just his lack of knowledge that was a problem, it was also his lack of experience. Reading wasn't going to be enough. He was going to need a lot of practice to catch up to the other students.

'Right, you lot! You'll be carrying on with yeh sketches. Sort into groups and collect a Bowtruckle and a tub of woodlice,' announced the monster of a man who had led Gideon and the first-years from the train to the school.

Professor Hagrid gave out the materials and ensured that the Bowtruckles were handled gently as the students separated and took out sketching materials. Gideon laughed to himself, suddenly understanding Eoin's joke from the day before. Bowtruckles were curious little plant-like creatures, which did indeed resemble twigs.

'You'd be Maxwell, then, eh?' said the man. 'You alright working with these fellas?'

'Yes, Sir,' Gideon responded. Tim was the only Slytherin boy who wasn't present, having chosen Divination. As they sat down, Gideon exchanged a casual wave of hello with Talia, who he noticed across the grass sitting noticeably far apart from her Ravenclaw group members.

It felt like ages since Gideon had drawn anything and it was fun to have a moving subject. The Bowtruckle was fascinating. It would stand relatively still for them so long as it was supplied with insects to munch on. Gideon was filled with wonder as he imagined how the little creature lived.

Having missed the previous day's Art class, the boys were surprised by Gideon's sketching ability and showered him with praise. Gio turned out to be a good artist, too. Eoin, however, was far from a dab hand, which Gio and Dorian teased him relentlessly for. When even the Bowtruckle seemed perturbed by the boy's depiction of it, they broke into a laughing fit.

***

After Muggle Studies, Charms and Magical Theory, it became clearer how much Gideon needed to do. Learning about electricity wasn't as simple as flicking switches; counter spells were far from straightforward; and the effect of emotional stability on energy transfer made Gideon wonder how he'd ever cast a decent spell.

He spent another evening in the library, finishing the make-up work he had received so far, and starting on the first few chapters for each subject. It took his stomach rumbling and his eye sore from strain for Gideon to realise he had forgotten about dinner as well as, once again, visiting the Hospital Wing.

Determined to be done with his eye patch, Gideon packed up his belongings and darted out of the library, hoping that Madam Longbottom wouldn't be too cross with him. When Gideon arrived, he unintentionally interrupted another private moment between her and her husband. Far from being cross, she tended to the boy with embarrassment as Professor Longbottom strutted away.

'Hmm. Everything looks okay,' the matron said. 'How does it feel? How's your vision?'

Gideon blinked a few times and tried moving his eyes around before answering, 'It feels fine. Still a little blurry, though.'

'That's natural. Even with the holes in the patch, you haven't adjusted to the light yet,' she explained, handing Gideon her hand mirror. 'Okay, then. I want you to come straight to me if you have any issues! Otherwise, I think our work here is done! Take a look!'

Gideon resigned himself to facing his naturally creepy reflection for the first time in months. However, as he raised the mirror to the right angle, he thought he saw someone else staring back at him. Gideon squinted and looked closer. The boy in the mirror had deep blue eyes. Two of them.