Helen stayed stone silent and still as Giselle slid into the seat next to her. She tried not to snicker. That girl was nice, and all, but hardly observant. Helen froze, looking straight ahead, until Giselle realized her company and let her words burst forth. Only then did a small, sly smile spread across Helen's face.

She laughed quietly, then waved lightly. She was about to say something, when an older voice cut her off, as well as the murmuring conversation in the rest of the room. A tall, spindly man in a black robe walked quickly to the head of the classroom, a tall stack of books under his arm.

"Ah, hallo. Sorry. Sorry about that," he kept saying on his way. His voice was calm and clear, but his tones made his word an odd, disjoined mess, like random notes on a page. He didn't seem nervous, judging by the clarity, but a piece of his mind was on something else. He finally reached the head of the room, then set his books down on the wooden table. He then placed his hand on the top, and finally calmed, giving a slow sigh, staring at the back of the pale appendage. Under his robe, he wore a black suit with a white shirt--the color of his skin nearly melted into the latter.

Helen stared in curiosity, as did most of the class.

"I am Professor Grimm," the man suddenly piped up, his dark eyes flicking up to survey his students. A few of them jumped at the sudden voice. "I will be your teacher for Defense Against the Dark Arts, perhaps the most important class you will ever take." He turned away to a nearby blackboard, but threw one more sentence over his shoulder. "And that's not bragging."

His clawlike hand scrawled two words across the board as he continued to speak.
"Now, to find what you already know, and work from there. What is the difference between a charm and a hex?" He left the words on the board and went back to his books. Hands shot up all around Helen and Giselle.