Hello, Felicia
The mediwitch checked over Nathaniel and stated he'd have to stay in bed for the remainder of the day. Which meant he'd miss the rest of his classes that day.
"No!" he wailed. "I can't miss my classes! Please, it'll set me behind!"
"It'll do you no good if you faint in any of your classes, Mr Larson!" she scolded. "No, you'll stay here and rest!"
The Ravenclaw slumped in the bed he had been given to use, pouting.
"Tell you what," Draco said in an offering. "After supper tonight, I'll teach you the lessons you will have missed today."
Nathaniel's face lit up. "You will?!"
"Sure. Your grades reflect on my class. I can't have you falling behind."
"Thank you, Professor!" he said in great relief.
"7pm, in the F.E.R.R.E.T classroom," Draco told him firmly. "Don't be late."
"I'll be there!" Nathaniel promised.
"Well that was nice of you," Granger admitted when the mediwitch rushed them out of the infirmary. They had Care of Magical Creatures together, and they were a few minutes late for it because of Nathaniel's event.
Draco shrugged it off. "I'm giving Fleesled detention tonight anyway."
"The grapevine says you threatened the entire Slytherin house with a bar of soap."
"What is it that you want to ask me, Granger?" he asked bluntly. He hated when people tiptoed around subjects.
"What did Fleesled say to you to earn such a threat?"
"You know very well what he said. I'm sure the rumours didn't leave that specific detail out."
She went quiet. Draco glanced at her, watching her wet her lips. He sighed and dropped onto a nearby bench, setting his face into his hands.
"Hold up," he stopped her from walking on.
"Malfoy, we've already missed a quarter of our lesson—"
"I never properly apologized—"
"Yes, you did, " Granger cut him off, stiffening. Her voice had climbed a couple of notches. She was completely uncomfortable with the subject.
"No," Draco said firmly. "I didn't. Not to you. I was most horrible to you." His stomach was sour now.
Guilt.
He definitely deserved to live with this sick feeling for the rest of his life.
"I owe you a personal apology, Granger. I treated you like dirt, and if I could go back in time to correct my pathetic, young piece-of-shit-self, I would. I really am sorry. And I'm going to try my damndest to ensure no one else acts how I did." He looked her directly in the eye to show her that he was serious.
Granger pulled her eyes from his to look up the hall. She furrowed her eyebrows in thought. Her bottom lip tucked into her mouth, held between her teeth.
"I'm not asking for forgiveness, I just felt you needed to know that I do regret all those filthy things I said to and about you. I regret it every day."
"I forgive you," Granger quickly said, closing her eyes as she did so. Draco could tell Granger blurted it out in a haste, as if she was afraid that if she thought too much about it, she'd change her mind.
"Now can we get to our lesson?" Granger asked when Draco couldn't think of anything to say, momentarily shocked by her words.
He nodded and joined her to continue their journey outside where the CoMC class was being held. As they traveled together in an awkward silence, Draco wondered: since it was possible for Granger to forgive him, would it ever be possible for him to forgive himself?
He truly didn't think so.
"Ah, there ye are, Hermione!" Hagrid greeted her when the two finally approached Hagrid's hut. His home had since been rebuilt after the Death Eaters had set fire to it at the end of Draco's sixth year. "I was gettin' worried about ye."
"Sorry we're late. Had a small mishap with a first year, but everything's fine now."
"Well, I be apologizin', but everyone's been paired off in teams already, so ye two be stuck toge'er." Hagrid sent Granger a look of pity causing Draco's eyes to shamefully shift to the ground.
"We'll be fine," Granger assured Hagrid warmly.
"Okay, o'er there is a box." He pointed a few feet away to a wooden create. "Ye see it? It has a baby rosesana in it, and ye be takin' care of her until she is grown— tha' takes six weeks."
"Malfoy and I will be a team for the duration of these six weeks?" Granger asked to confirm.
"Aye, but I can see if anyone would like ter switch with ye." The half-giant scanned the crowd of combined seventh and eighth years, but everyone seemed content with their partner. He frowned.
"No one's going to want me," Draco announced flatly. Zabini and Nott were a team, and so were Greenglass and Parkinson. None of the Slytherins from his year wanted to even associate with him anymore, and the younger two Slytherins were a dating couple. Anyone outside of Slytherin definitely was not going to switch to be Draco's partner for six weeks.
He didn't at all blame them, but he surely pitied Granger for getting stuck with him.
Granger plastered on a smile. "We'll manage, Hagrid. Don't worry."
Hagrid nodded grimly before he went into heavy detail on how to take care of the baby creature. Draco allowed Granger to take the lead as she lifted the creature from the box. She smiled at its cuteness. It was a two-foot in height, egg-shaped creature with a sunken-in face. It had fluffy pink fur, two legs, two arms and short, dog-like ears that wiggled happily as Granger pet it.
It started to pur. Like a cat.
Granger, a fan of cats, was absolutely in love with the thing already. She clicked her tongue at it and it pawed playfully at the hand that stroked her.
"They've been imported from China," Hagrid went on to explain. "They on'y come in one gender; female."
"Yes, I read all about them in the Fantastic Beasts book," Granger said excitedly.
Draco hadn't yet read the book all the way through, only reading about the most dangerous of creatures, since that seemed to be Hagrid's speciality. He wondered how the creature populated itself if there were no male counterparts.
"When ready to have young, a rosesana will present an egg to the love fairies who will use their magic to fertilize the egg," Hermione explained, as if she could read Draco's mind.
"Righ' ye are, Hermione!" Hagrid said proudly.
"What's her name?" Granger was now rubbing the creature's belly with her knuckles. The rosesana closed her eyes, seemingly being pulled into a slumber.
"Ye two get ter pick it toge'er."
Draco scratched at the rosesana's ears. The fur was incredibly soft. It felt like fleece. "Do we just keep her in our dorms or something? As if she's a pet?"
"Aye," Hagrid confirmed. "She be needin' food, res' and affec'ion. I can' give 'em all the righ' atten'ion, so I'm trus'in' ye seventh and eighth years ter have enough responsibility ter care fer 'em fer me."
"We won't disappoint, Hagrid," Granger promised.
He nodded approvingly. "I know it, Hermione. Ye are a good caregiver."
Draco would have to prove to the giant that he, too, would also take good care of his precious rosesana.
As per Hagrid's instructions, Granger and Draco sat down on the grass to get acquainted with their new assignment.
"Before anything, we should name her," Granger said immediately. "Any suggestions?"
Draco was surprised she was going to let him have a say. He figured she would decide a name and that was it.
He shrugged, considering the question. "She's an awfully happy thing. Maybe we can name her something to do with happiness?"
"Rosesanas are usually always happy," Granger informed. "It's part of their nature."
"I skipped over that chapter after reading that they were tame," Draco admitted. "I only have time for the essentials this year."
Granger grinned. "Took a gamble that Hagrid would introduce us only to creatures that leave behind scars?"
"So it seems to be his habit," Draco muttered. "Until now, at least. Be just my luck he'd go soft!"
"It's probably because rosesana eggs treat depression."
"Oh," Draco said, realizing the true reason as to why these creatures had been imported to their region. Suddenly this caregiving task had become much more than just a silly school assignment.
"After eating a rosesana egg, a person is greeted with luck and happiness. We can name her Felicia," Granger suggested. "That's the male equivalent to Felix."
He nodded. "Sounds fitting enough."
"What do you think?" Granger whispered to the sleeping creature. "Should we call you Felicia?"
The rosesana stretched momentarily before taking a deep breath, not at all waking up from her slumber.
"Felicia it is," Granger stated.
"Should we swap caregiving duties every twenty-four hours then?" Draco asked, wondering how they should address sharing the responsibility of caring for Felicia.
"I suppose," Granger said indifferently. "We could switch hands every night. Before bed?"
"I'm good with that arrangement."
"Read up on that chapter tonight, if you find time."
"I will," he promised. He didn't want to be a bumbling idiot about his newest responsibility.
Draco already had the lessons for the F.E.R.R.E.T class planned out for the next week. Besides helping Nathaniel and disciplining Fleesled, his nights for the upcoming week were free to study.
"You take Felicia for the first day," Granger directed, holding out the creature for him to take.
"I would have figured you'd want the first shift? You've been cooing over her since you laid eyes on her."
"I actually have patrol duty tonight, best if you take her first."
"Alright," he simply agreed. He wasn't about to argue with her.
The rest of the day went by smoothly until Draco returned to the F.E.R.R.E.T classroom with Felicia in tow. The rosesana had been sleeping peaceful all day, but just as he placed her in a corner of a room, so that she could sleep in a box he had conjured up, she opened her eyes and started wailing. Her cries sounded between a cat and an owl, high pitched and squeaky.
Draco hadn't gotten a chance to read the complete chapter on rosesanas. During dinner, he had managed to read a couple pages. Hagrid's lesson did tell him that the creature enjoyed eating baked goods, especially muffins. Draco took a guess that Felicia was hungry after sleeping.
"Here you go, Felicia," he said, forcing himself to sound chirpy. He wiggled the apple muffin he had conjured.
Felicia ran around, bashing into the furniture in her tantrum. She didn't at all seem to care about the treat Draco offered to her.
Draco sighed and attempted to walk to his desk where he had set the Fantastic Beasts book at. Felicia darted right into his path though, nearly causing him to trip.
"Hey!" he cried out. "What's your problem?!"
Felicia wrapped all her arms and legs around Draco's own leg and proceeded to scream out.
Draco grunted, trying to shake her loose. "Get off!"
"Cawrks!" Felicia protested, tightening her hold around him.
With the added weight of her, he limped across the room, hoping the book would have a solution to Felicia's issue. She continued to cry as he tried to read the words. He was having severe difficulties doing it. Felicia's clamor was disruptive.
"What on Earth is that atrocious noise?"
Draco looked up from his book, rubbing at his head that was now developing an ache. "Sit down, Fleesled." He pointed to a desk, not even giving the Slytherin an answer.
Fleesled's lip curled up in annoyance, but he threw himself into a chair and glared at Draco. "Well, I'm here. What's my detention?"
Draco's eyes dropped back down to the book, skimming over the words, looking for anything to shut up the ruckus that Felicia was making. "Four feet of lines —"
"Four feet?!" the boy gasped. "That'll take me hours!"
Draco ignored Fleesled's outburst. "You will write, 'I will not call other people names.' I expect your penmanship to be neat and clean. Begin now."
Fleesled huffed, but he knew he had no choice, and so he began the task that Draco had assigned him.
"Hi, Professor!" Nathaniel came rushing in, out of breath. "Oh good! I'm not late! I was afraid that I wouldn't make it in time! It's a far travel from my common room, you see—' He paused to look between Draco (who was trying with all his might to read between Nathaniel's rambling and Felicia's screeching) and Fleesled (who was eyeing him with incredible loathing).
"Are you teaching others too?" Nathaniel asked. "I thought about inviting Delilah, but she seemed more interested in the Gobstones game that she was playing with her dorm mates, so I didn't think she'd want to bow out."
"Give me a minute, Larson," Draco spoke stiffly, on the brink of losing his patience, suppressing his deep annoyance at this point. "I'm trying to see what I can do to shut this beast up!"
Nathaniel cautiously peeked around Draco's desk, not knowing if he was allowed behind it or not, to take a look at the rosesana that was thrashing her head back and forth in a tantrum.
"Oh, what's this thing?!" Nathaniel asked, excited. "It's cute!"
"Hagrid's brilliant idea, is what this is!"
Nathaniel had no idea what Draco was talking about, and he didn't ask. Instead he got on down all fours so that he was at eye level with Felicia. "What's wrong with you, sweet thing?" he asked her gently.
"Awkiss!" Felicia cried.
"Did you feed it?"
Draco huffed, insulted. "I'm not an idiot, Larson! That's the first thing I've tried— and anyway, she's a she, and her name is Felicia!"
"Hi, Felicia!" Nathaniel instantly directed at her. "I'm Nathaniel!"
Felicia responded with an actual howl. She sounded too much like a bloody cat.
Nathaniel heaved himself back up onto his feet, stretching so he could see the words in Draco's Fantastic Beasts book. "Well, if she's not hungry, what is her problem? Do you think she's injured?" Worry suddenly plastered to his face.
Fleesled slammed his palm to the desk. "Would you give her a bloody marble already?!"
Both Draco and Nathaniel looked at Fleesled who was scribbling away with a harsh look on his face. He was determined to get his detention over with before curfew.
"Marble…" Draco said to himself, searching for the word in the book. He finally found it on the next page.
Rosesanas love collecting things. Their favourite things to collect are particularly glass marbles— the old fashioned kind. Each rosesana has her own favourite colour, but most typically favour the colour green (the shade doesn't matter).
When your young rosesana develops an unhappy demeanor (and don't think that she won't), try giving her a glass marble to hold. This is an equivalent to the dummy that we give to our human infants to silence their cries. As she ages, your rosesana won't have demanding outbursts, but she will still enjoy the occasional gift of a marble!
Nathaniel had also been reading the text. He immediately opened his knapsack, digging through it. "Got it!" he exclaimed, showing off a marble belonging to a Gobstones game set. It wasn't green, it was blue, but Draco sure hoped it would calm the rosesana down.
"Oh, Felicia!" Nathaniel sang out, coaxingly. "Look what I got for you! A Favourable Exquisitely Round and Radiant Elegant Toy!" He held out the marble for her to see, and her wails instantly ceased. She snatched the marble and clutched it into her paw, as if it was the most precious thing she'd ever touch.
"Shoteez!" she said happily and began purring.
"Oh thank Merlin!" Draco released a sigh of immense relief, snapping the book closed.
"Are you still up to teaching me my missed classes, sir?" Nathaniel asked hopefully.
Draco downed a potion that cured headaches. He nodded, popping a mint into his mouth to mask the awful taste. "Indeed. Let's begin!"