Everyone was busy at the start of the new term, especially Severus. He also had to serve as the substitute teacher for Defense Against the Dark Arts. His Potions workload had already been heavy, which meant Bill Weasley had to substitute for the lower years' Defense Against the Dark Arts classes again.
By the second half of Bill's seventh year, it would be time for the International Potions Tournament. Pomona was still unsure whether Bill would participate or continue being a Curse-Breaker. If he still refused to change his mind, he would spend his entire seventh year occupied with arrangements for his Gringotts internship.
But even more surprising was Elena Aiken. Pomona truly did not know much about her, just as Elena did not know much about the Wizarding World. She still wore the unassigned black robes and attended classes alongside the other eleven-year-old children.
Elena's parents were both university professors. At only eleven, she was already coming and going from university and attending lectures with students in their twenties. Her parents had high expectations for her. Before receiving her Hogwarts acceptance letter, they had apparently been preparing to apply to university for her.
For certain reasons, she had not followed her parents' arrangements. Instead, she chose to attend a wizarding school, learning how to become a witch from the very basics—waving a wand like a baby who had only just learned to walk.
Pomona had once seen a performance at a Muggle elementary school. A group of little girls in fluffy dresses danced clumsy ballet, all hoping to become the "princess" in everyone's eyes. Their parents below encouraged them, cameras in hand as they filmed.
Aiken, however, kept a very low profile. She never raised her hand to speak, always kept her head lowered, and even seemed somewhat afraid