Zinnia Seeds (part 1)
Chapter Seven- Zinnia Seeds
Cassius didn't attempt to continue the conversation.
And well- it was hard to tell if Harry felt relieved or if a small part of him longed for the fact he was being listened to.
But no matter- besides enough time had seemingly passed, they met the others heading out for dinner and simply tagged along.
His friends pretended nothing had happened and continued with small talk about classes and subjects. It was normal in a reasonably comforting way.
They weren't required to sit with their house once dinner was served, though most did regardless.
The only snake that Harry noticed had moved was Marcus.
After being beckoned over by Percy, who was seated alongside Penelope, Oliver, and a few others Harry didn't recognize at the Ravenclaw table.
Marcus made a big show of rolling his eyes- all the while making his way over to the table.
He seated himself between Percy and Oliver, only to ignore them and begin talking to a Hufflepuff boy.
The feast wasn't as grand as the night before, but it was still an outrageous amount of food.
Adrien had said the house elves made it all; just how many were there to be able to make so much?
Then again, with magic involved, maybe it wasn't as big a feat as he thought.
"You want some more pumpkin juice? You've been staring at an empty cup for like a minute straight," Blaise offered, taking a bite out of a gold-hued red apple.
"No thanks- pumpkin juice is a bit rich for me."
"Well- suit yourself."
One too many comments about how thin he was were beginning to make him more aware of his eating habits.
Especially if he needs to start training for Quidditch, if a poorly timed gust of wind was a threat now, he didn't want to consider how he would cope with balls and players flying at him when the season begins.
Harry did his best to try and eat what he could, maybe taking a few glances at his friend's plates to try and gauge what was good to eat.
Blaise seemed to prefer a lot of fruit, with it making up most of his meal, outside some vegetables and chicken. He would finish off each one completely before taking another.
Not to mention, each fruit was hand-picked- with him examining each closely, maybe going through two more, before settling on whichever he wanted.
On the other hand, Theo had half his plate full of meat and would pick around each bite a different thing as he slowly worked down his entire plate.
He also seemed to prefer his meat more red, practically sneering at a piece of well-done beef.
Daphne had, at least what Harry considered, a healthy mix and seemed to eat however she pleased.
Though she avoided the mashed potatoes as if they had personally vexed her.
Harry pushed a few peas onto his fork- but the light that danced across the metal went dark. He turned around, and to his relief, Harry was met with a familiar and frankly welcomed face.
Neville Longbottom.
The boy's eyes kept shifting towards the rest of the table, and he seemed none too eager to be on the other side of the grand hall and as close to the snake den as he could get.
But he smiled at Harry with something akin to the determination he assumed only a lion could have.
"Heir Potter, um- I was informed of what you did a-and want to offer both my thanks and con-congratulations for joining your house's team." Neville stumbled over a few words, but Harry offered a small smile.
"Thank you, Heir Longbottom, was it"?
He nodded, shifting forward slightly and balancing on his toes. "Yes- though I would be honored if you called me Neville."
"Neville then, and call me Harry."
Harry held out his hand to the boy, trying to avoid one of his wrists covered in a small white bandaged cast.
Neville shook his hand, his smile pushing against plump cheeks; his previous nervousness seemed to have faded.
"O-oh, well, I better get going, um- I hope to speak to you again soon." His gaze flitted over to the trio, who had been silently watching the entire interaction, faking disinterest.
Without another word, Neville turned heel and returned to the lion's table, though even he could feel the gazes tamed on the boy from all directions.
"Harry's attached~" Daphne huffed, adjusting her headband, only stopping when she got a slight nod of approval from Theo.
"First the Weasley and now Longbottom. You best not be collecting such uncivilized company," Blaise warned; it was hard to tell if he was joking.
"I told you guys just to call him Percy- and of course, Neville, he offered his alliance to all of you," Harry protested. "Also, Oliver Wood is nice-"
"There's a difference between offering alliance, a political bond, and building friendship ties-" Theo sighed. "Then again... I doubt we can stop you."
Harry stubbornly nodded and earned an eye roll from Blaise. "Okay, okay- so Percy, Neville, and I guess Wood- but that's it, Harry, promise no more lions. We have a reputation to uphold."
Harry smirked but nodded; that seemed reasonable, especially since there weren't other lions he knew enough to consider associating with.
And well, if he did. It's easier to ask for forgiveness than permission.
"Also- after you left with Cassius, I sent a letter to Ellie." Theo lit up at the mention of his cousin. "She said to meet with her this weekend on the quidditch pitch."
"I didn't know she played quidditch"? Daphne lifted her brow.
"She just joined the team this year- before she helped Jordan with the announcements before getting banned."
Harry had no idea who Jordan was, but then again, he'd learned that he'd figure it out sooner or later. "Sounds like a plan- I must check out the pitch regardless."
"Oh, absolutely- can't have you making a fool of yourself, but by the way you flew, it might be in your blood," Daphne assured
"Maybe so- Hey Harry, were either of your parents on the team"? Blaise questioned.
…
Were they?
He was the least qualified person to ask.
Even if they were his parents, he knew nothing about them.
Heck, he learned their names from Hagrid.
Petunia always called his mom "That bitch” and then his dad just "That Potter boy" or what Harry still assumed was a slur.
Where was his dad from anyway?
Harry shrugged. "I don't know-"
He spotted Cassius gazing at him intently; their eyes met momentarily before Olympia waved her hand across his line of sight and began signing quickly and effectively, stealing his attention away from Harry once more.
"Also, um- do you guys know how the whole owl mail works? I need to send a letter," Harry asked. "I also just want to check up on my owl; I haven't seen her since we started, and I don't want her to be lonely."
"I doubt she's lonely- she's likely in the owlery, and I can take you. Blaise and Daphne won't want to come, and I would also like to see my ást," Theo said.
"Why do you assume we wouldn't want to go"? Blaise pointed accusingly
"Pointing is rude," Daphne chided but turned on Theo. "But he's right, why are we excluded from this adventure"?
But instead of being deterred, Theo's eyes twinkled. "Oh, you are welcome to join us, especially since you both handled my grand uncle's Augury barn so well."
Whatever an Augury was, just the mention made Blaise and Daphne pale. "On second thought, I'm quite tired and would prefer to turn in; besides, I'm sure Tylluan Fach will show up in the morning," She assured.
Theo leaned over to Harry, a very satisfied look on his face, and whispered, "Her dad is Welsh- and I think she said little owl."
Harry nodded, grateful for the context and allowing the group to fall back into silence.
He was grateful they did not question his intentions for the letter- Though he couldn't imagine how common it was for a kid at Hogwarts to owl the Gringotts bank.
But he had more questions for Dripfang- especially with the whole blood thing.
Sure, Theo and Blaise said to ask Daphne, but he wouldn't be surprised if she would make him more confused or try to dance around the subject.
Not to mention their whole silent language thing- they seemed to have known each other for so many years that he could easily be left in the dark.
Besides- Dripfang seemed to know a lot about the muggle world and was connected enough to probably know the answers he needed but not connected enough to care about his reaction to them.
It also gave him a reason to go check in on Hedwig. He hadn't seen her since arriving at Hogwarts, and despite knowing she was likely in safe hands- he had spent the time leading up to arriving defending her from the Dursleys.
His justified paranoia over her safety didn't seem to fade even now, and of course, he wanted to see his friend above all else.
—
Dinner finished pretty soon after, with everyone seemingly exhausted from the first day's events and either eager for a night to continue bonding with friends or to likely collapse into silk sheets for a dreamless slumber.
Harry was equally exhausted, but he still had things to do, and the idea of going to sleep first, even around his friends, left him feeling uneasy.
"We can go tomorrow- you haven't got your letter prepared yet," Theo said as they said farewell to Daphne and Blaise, making their way through the building.
"I still want to check on her if that's okay-"
"Of course it is- but let's hurry. I'd rather make curfew."
"You and me both-"
Harry let Theo take the lead, once again moving through twisted corridors and passages until being spat out on the castle's outer grounds.
The owlery stood proudly in the distance, the stone building nestled on an almost mountainous rocky hill. But it was unmistakable, even more so with the dozen or so birds circling the skies above.
"Well, come on then- shouldn't be more than a stroll," Theo declared as he followed a gravel-lain path that curved along the countryside leading up to the tower.
Harry looked at the distance and hoped it was one of those 'looked further away than it was,' but he wasn't about to complain when Theo had already gone out of his way to help him.
Unfortunately for Harry, that was not the case. If anything, he soon discovered no direct path to the tower. The beaten path up the hillside zig-zagged across the mountain face.
You'd think that after years of running away from Dudley and his friend "Harry Hunting," he would be used to exercise.
But it seemed without fear-fueled adrenaline rushing through every inch of his body, his endurance was shit.
Harry was bent over, half-wheezing breaths forced out of his lungs. Holding onto his knees to keep from keeling over completely, but it barely seemed to help.
Theo was miraculously unphased, maybe a little flush, but otherwise, he was just silently staring at Harry with an unreadable expression.
"How- are you so okay right now"? Harry wheezed
"Well… where are you from originally"?
Um well-
"London-"
Theo nodded as if that explained everything. "You aren't used to this altitude, and I wouldn't be surprised if your lungs might be infected with the smog of living in a muggle-infested city."
Harry momentarily forgot his exhaustion as he looked at Theo with the most confused glare he could muster.
Sure, the altitude thing made sense- He remembered from something about air being thin, but the ' muggle infested' comment threw him for a loop.
"But you will adjust with time, as much as I'd like to sympathize." Harry doubted how much that was. "We better hurry. Even now, we can't stay long."
Right. It wasn't the time, especially when he wasn't on the verge of collapse and dying to see Hedwig again.
Theo seemed to take his silence as assurance and stepped up to the giant stone archway, a decorative owl head looming at the top and seemingly staring down at them. With magic involved, it was anyone's guess if it genuinely was.
Inside was distinctly unlike the rest of the school. The air around it was still magical but not as breathtaking. It was even quaint, outside of a few wondrous wooden carvings of owls and other bird motifs.
The wooden steps inside the tower, while still not in any way short, were a sigh of relief to Harry when compared to the earlier trek. Up the staircase, as it circled across the side of the tower, he could hear the birds before he saw even a feather.
It was loud, so loud that he couldn't stop himself from slamming his hands over his ears when they reached the first landing.
At this rate, he might go deaf- but that would be a dream compared to experiencing this.
Theo had a sympathetic look and winced at the racket when the doors split open, and suddenly, the noise got even louder as they were now surrounded by dozens upon dozens of owl nests nestled into the stone walls.
Slowly, the noise dissipated as it seemed the birds clued into the student's arrival. Harry could see dozens of curious eyes and felt even more unseen from higher up in the rafters.
Once it had finally calmed down enough for him to hear himself think, he took the time to take in the scenery before him. It was much smaller than he expected, but then again, he read that the owlery was built about a decade after Hogwarts.
Apparently, they used to use a form of magic ball, but they were… proneto starting fires.
The stone walls had dozens of holes, each with a miniature decorative archway. Quite a few of them had owls tucked inside, an impressive range of sizes and colors, and overall, each had an unmistakably unique air about them.
"Are the owls magic"? Harry asked as he stepped further away from the staircase, meeting the eyes of one remarkably small bird he couldn't imagine carrying more than a small parcel at best.
"Insightful," Theo remarked. "Yes, they were specifically bred with a bit of magic; some tales suspect the original ancestors were a gift from Artemis to one of her more... favored priestesses." Theo let out an amused chuckle, and again, Harry felt he was missing some context.
But before asking any more questions, he felt a pull deep in his chest, but it was softer than what he had accustomed to a warning.
Still, he knew better than to ignore it; mid-turn, a gust of wind jostled his hair. He whipped around and couldn't help the smile that stretched across his face as a familiar Tawny-colored owl landed on a window perch just a few feet away from him. Her big black eyes seemed to look into his soul, but he only felt warmth in her presence.
"Hello, pretty girl." Harry knew his voice was soft, something that would normally cause him anxiety, knowing they weren't alone, but he couldn't help it; he really had missed her.
Hedwig fluffed up her chest feathers and let out a coo-like sound as Harry approached, gently running his fingers across the top of her head and down one of her wings.
Theo's footsteps echoed across the now quiet stone tower, but Harry didn't take his eyes off Hedwig. "You just got her right"?
"Yeah, why"? She spread her wings just a bit, and Harry quickly glanced them over, his chest settling as she looked completely fine.
"Most new owls aren't as trusting with their owners right away; it's why most people use their family or a school bird for mail and wait until they are older to get their own," Theo remarked, looking at Hedwig with a curious expression. "I just think it's neat she's grown to trust you so soon."
Harry looked away, suddenly feeling a bit bashful and a strange sense of pride for Hedwig to trust him so strongly.
It felt nice.
"You know, you can probably bring her to the dorm; I've heard from the upper years that the owls can get in and out without a problem. Even for our dorm being in the dungeons, I'm not surprised they found a way- beautifully clever they are."
Hedwig seemed to preen at Theo's words, and even without giving Harry time to debate, she was already using his arm to climb onto his shoulder and perch.
Harry sighed, but it was nothing but fond.
"I guess she's already decided for me." Hedwig let out a small hoot. "Are you sure you and Blaise won't mind sleeping with an owl? I saw how he reacted to the um... Aquary barn"?
Once again, Theo's eyes flashed with something mischievous. "It's Augurey. They are giant birds similar to hippogriffs, um- well, you wouldn't know that either- don't worry, there's a painting I know I can show you."
Theo had already started down the steps as he spoke, and Harry was quick to follow, especially noting that the owls were beginning to get loud again. Guess they had only quieted out of politeness.
"My Great Uncle raises them. He had a grand ball, and a bunch of noble families were invited, the Greengrasses and Zanbinis included- but we were at an age where we weren't expected to socialize outside of with the other kids. My father insisted I give them a tour."
"Most people view me as extremely proper, but as I said before, my roots differ from most among the upper class here, and in that culture, it encouraged a more... intimate connection to nature that Blaise and Daphne lack. There's a muggle saying I've heard- not afraid to get my hands dirty"?
Harry nodded, gently stroking her feathers as he listened.
"My idea of a tour included the barn, something my great uncle was very proud of and would, of course, bring honor to our family."
"Oh, of course," Harry snarked back and got a smirk from Theo.
"Yeah, it was a mess, not that Blaise and Daphne didn't make things worse by offending the poor creatures."
The hike back to the castle was about a thousand times better than the hike up. It might have been the fact they were now going downhill,
or that he now had Hedwig on his shoulder,
or perhaps Theo's reenactment of Daphne's horrific screech when an Augury had almost torn her new dress kept his mind off the journey itself.
Much to Harry's relief, no one batted an eye at Hedwig. She happily sat on his shoulder, grooming her feathers and attempting to groom his hair- though she only succeeded in tangling it more. He didn't mind, though Blaise might.
Blaise did, in fact, mind, but when he offered to fix Harry's hair, Hedwig had gone as far as to hiss at him, or well, the owl's equivalent.
She puffed up her feathers, trying to seem as menacing as possible.
But as quickly as she began to brandish her beak at him, the boy backed off, hands up in defeat, and Theo only snickered at his distress.
Harry was too preoccupied with how Hedwig had tried to protect him. Sure, Blaise wasn't much of a threat, but it was nice to know his protective attachment to her was mutual.
"Well, as fun as today has been, I am exhausted; Blaise insisted we wait for you both to return, but much longer, and you both would have missed curfew,"
Daphne chided. "So if it is the same to you- you are here unharmed, and I need my beauty sleep."
"Oh, you need more than sleep," Blaise muttered.
Daphne gasped and, in almost practiced percussion, whipped out her wand. She shot a small blast of white light that struck Blaise right on his shoulder.
The boy jumped, and his hand shot up to rub the spot.
Daphne looked pleased and turned up her nose at him. "Goodnight, Harry, Theodore-" she ignored Theo's slight glare as she turned her heel and walked down the hall towards her dorm.
Blaise seemed to recover from whatever spell he was hit with and placed his hand on Theo and Harry's shoulder, hesitating momentarily with Hedwig's look, but she seemed to allow it.
Harry caught Cassius talking with another upper-year he didn't recognize. The boy raised a brow at him, and he just smiled back and gestured to Hedwig, now perched directly atop his head.
Cassius blinked, but even from a distance, Harry could see him roll his eyes as he continued his conversation without any other reaction.
Back inside the dorm, next to Harry's bed, stood a sizable brass-colored owl cage with a purple velvet pillow gently placed inside.
"Ah, it seems one of the house elves noticed our guest and decided to make preparations," Blaise remarked before swiftly disrobing and laying his clothes out with care not to wrinkle them.
Harry needed to meet these elves; their usefulness seemed increasingly apparent every day, and it would help to satiate his growing curiosity towards the creatures.
Hedwig hooted, pulling gently at a few strands of his hair in a way that almost tickled. "Alright, alright, I've got it-" he carefully undid the latch, using a small string from his desk to tie it so the door would say open and let her climb inside.
She did a slight spin, carefully pecking the pillow and adjusting it to suit her preference. With a satisfied-sounding hoot, she quickly nestled into the velveteen fabric and looked up at Harry.
A yawn forced itself out of his throat, and the thought of collapsing into his usually soft bed was becoming increasingly tempting, watching Hedwig get comfortable so quickly.
But Blaise and Theo were still awake. It would be a while before they got into a deep enough sleep to be undisturbed if any of his nightmares made an unwelcome appearance.
Harry sidestepped from Hedwig's cage and approached his bed stand.
A plain black feather quill sat at his desk. The same quill Percy had swindled from Marcus and swapped for his schedule earlier.
Should probably find the time to give it back.
Harry watched both Blaise's and Theo's curtains shut, though Theo had what looked to be a history textbook in hand.
Well, speaking of- he should probably at least take a little time to study, especially if he wished to avoid another potion disaster.
Harry crouched down and reached under his bed, using his foot against the bed frame for leverage as he pulled out his trunk.
A fluttering sound and Hedwig now sat by his knees as he propped open the case "I think Hagrid bought some treats for you- they should be somewhere in here"
Seemingly on command, one of the mini compartments began shuffling around until one popped open; it was filled to the brim with a miscellaneous assortment of small treats wrapped in metallic paper.
He grabbed one covered in small yellow stars and slowly began unwrapping it. "If I didn't know better, I would have assumed this was a sweet- wouldn't that have been a fun surprise?"
Hedwig let out a little hoot in response before nipping impatiently at his fingers. Thankfully, he managed to undo the wrapping pretty quickly and handed over what looked like a piece of jerky, which she gobbled down eagerly.
The small writing inside the wrapper said, "Owlishious rat intestines." Well- he's handled worse, helping Aunt Petunia with Thanksgiving dinner.
Hedwig tried to poke her head in the case for another treat but Harry gently moved her away "I'll give you some more in the morning girl- but I don't imagine too many treats will be good for you"
She didn't need eyebrows to convey a pretty harsh glare, but she seemed to accept his word and hopped away to explore the rest of the room.
As long as she didn't get too close to the furnace, there was no harm, though he kept a side eye regardless.
Harry closed the treat compartment and paused as he looked at the bottom of the trunk; the long beech wood wand stared back at him.
His Holly wand lay flat against his covers.
A quick glance around the room, no movement outside of Hedwig fluttering around.
He reached in.
The wand felt almost warm in his hands as if it welcomed his presence, and it felt wonderful.
"Lumos" he whispered with such care, as a soft light sprung to life and illuminated the room. Shadows danced across the walls, the white light of his wand mixed with the soft orange from the furnace as they spun in a beautiful ballad.
A small crash made him flinch, whipping around and clutching his wand with both hands. Hedwig looked up at him with big apologetic eyes right next to a now spilled container of ink from Blaise's desk.
Harry's shoulders dropped, though his heart still pounded harshly. "It's alright, girl- I'm always jumpier at night."
Hedwig cooed as he approached, the light of his wand illuminating the total damage by the desk. A few scattered papers and knocked-over quills were quickly picked up and returned to the same place as before.
The ink, however, seemed like it was soaking into the wooden flooring, and well- Harry didn't know where they had a mop, let alone any chemical cleaners.
Thankfully, before he could stress much longer, Hedwig pulled at his sleeve and hopped over to some of his textbooks stacked atop his desk.
"You really are brilliant," Harry praised as he grabbed the charms textbook. Surely, there had to be an easy cleaning spell that would at least prevent things from getting worse until the morning.
Flipping through a few pages, he found what sounded close to perfect. A small cleaning charm. Harry carried the book back to the spill and sat down just a foot away, book in one hand, wand in the other.
He pointed his wand at the ink puddle in a quick s movement. "Scourgify"!
But- much to his disappointment, nothing happened.
Deep breath in, Harry sensed the magic buried deep in his chest and reached out to it. It took a few tries, but a very weak buzzing began to simmer.
He cast again, but this time, he was blinded by a large flash of light emanating from his wand. A startled hoot from Hedwig told him it wasn't his imagination. As soon as the spots from his vision cleared he checked to ensure Blaise and Theo were still asleep.
The mess was completely gone. Heck, the wood looked even better than it had earlier that day. "Well- guess that's a success, say that's enough training for one night"?
Hedwig puffed up her feathers, barely sparing him a glance before she flew towards her cage.
Harry made quick work of tidying a thing or two, even picking up a few stray owl feathers and replacing Blaises ink with one of his own.
He stuffed both his textbook and wand back into the trunk, though a small part of him ached to let it go.
But it was already late by the time they had called it a night and it had surely been at least an hour since then.
Harry climbed into bed, moving his other wand onto his nightstand and moving Hedwig's cage so it stood next to his bed, even with the curtains drawn
"Goodnight pretty girl-" He placed his glasses beside his wand.
Hedwig gave a small hoot in response, ruffling her feathers, and her beautiful eyes slowly slipped shut.
The thought of nightmares was distant, knowing that this life really wasn't a dream and that he had Hedwig at his side at least until the morning.
(Word count- 4,730)