DISCLAIMER: I own my character Gryphon, everything else revolves around
J.K. Rowling.
NOTE: iitalics/i indicate thoughts.
Gryphon danced around her new classroom to the Celtic folk music coming from her magic music box. It was two weeks before Hogwarts opened for classes and Gryphon needed to get ready for her first year of teaching.
For the past 6 years she had been travelling the magic world, studying creatures and doing what she loved best. Before then she was home-schooled in witchcraft by her parents and their gryphon friends. But travelling doesn't make for a stable income or a stable life so Gryphon decided to put her knowledge to good use when she heard that Hogwarts wanted to start an Advanced Creatures course.
Ebony wood wand in hand she fluttered around the dingy dungeon, which obviously hadn't been used in a very long time.
The cobwebs cleaned themselves up, following the faintly glowing tip of Gryphon's wand. Shelves and cages aligned themselves on the walls, waiting for her shipments of specimens to arrive at the school.
Her hair was held back by a bright red bandana. She was wearing her pajamas: a black tank top and purple flannel pants with yellow polka dots. The pants were at least one size too big for she kept having to stop and pull them up to keep from revealing her neon green underwear. Bright blue fuzzy bunny slippers kept her feet warm.
iShould I invite him in, or let him stand there a while longer? I do wonder what is so interesting... I've never been gawked at before.../i
"I do know you're there. You are welcome to come in." Gryphon smiled over her shoulder.
Professor Severus Snape had been smirking in the doorway for at least five minutes, gawking at the very odd young woman. "I take it you're the new Advanced Creatures teacher?"
"That would be me." Gryphon pointed her wand at the music box and it shut off. "Professor Gryphon Siani. And you are?" Gryphon wiped a dusty hand on her pants and then extended it.
"Professor Severus Snape, the Potions master." he shook her hand.
"Well its nice to meet you, but from what I have heard about you from former students you surely didn't come here to politely introduce yourself." Gryphon smiled and crossed her arms in front of her, shifting her weight to one leg.
Snape coughed and grimaced. "Yes. Well I came back to the castle early to restock my cabinets and I'm out of rinthern feathers. And every bloody apothecary seems to be out of them for at least two more months. Considering your reputation for collecting animals, I was wondering if you have any rinthern birds from which I may pluck a few feathers."
"I do have rinthern birds, but my animals don't start arriving here until tomorrow. And my rintherns have only hatched 10 weeks ago. They won't have any feathers worth using for at least another two weeks." Gryphon turned and motioned for Snape to follow her. "But I might have some feathers stored in my samples, come on in."
Snape followed Gryphon to the back of the classroom where she started rummaging through a large wooden trunk. She pulled out a journal and started flipping through it. Snape watched as odd drawings of plants and animals he didn't know passed over the pages.
"Ah Ha!" Gryphon pulled out three purple and white striped feathers which had been pressed in the journal. "This is all I've got. They've been in this musty old journal for about a year and a half, but they should still be potent."
Snape took them and was about to say a thanks but instead his mouth just gaped open. "What in the fires of hell is that doing here!?!" he bellowed, pointing at the large snake making his way across the room.
"Dinderwall! DINDERWALL!!!! DIN-DER-WALL!!!!" Gryphon screamed. "What have I told you about coming out of your cage without permission?" The last statement she hissed in Parseltounge. The snake stopped and looked at his master. "I am sorry Professor Snape. Dinderwall knows that he shouldn't be out of his cage."
"But thats a basilisk!"
"True. A blind and fangless and deaf and runt basilisk who is over three thousand years old. He couldn't harm a lacewing if he wanted to, let alone find it." Gryphon smiled, scratching the basilisk under the chin. The snake slipped his forked tounge out through his gums and back in pleasure.
Snape let out a giant sigh of relief. "You could have said that in the first place... "
"I do apologize..." Gryphon said.
"He still doesn't belong in the school." Snape straightened his black robes. "You're a Parseltounge?"
"Not a very good one, though. You really only have the knack for it if it comes nautrally. Being self-taught I still miss some parts of the dialect." Gryphon sighed, shooing Dinderwall the basilisk back towards his cage. The cage had an expanding charm on it, giving it the ability to hold such a large animal.
"You can be taught to be a Parseltounge?" Snape asked.
"Its extremely hard work. Harder than any other animal language I've learned. It took me four years to get this far, and I'm still not as good as I could be." Gryphon raised an eyebrow at him. He was staring at her in amazement at this new revelation. "You wanna learn?"
Snape straightened himself again. "I'd love to, but there isn't time for it. Once school starts I'll have all I can handle with classes and papers." Snape snorted slightly, thinking of a whole new troop of Gryffindors skipping into the school. "Well it is time for me to get back to preparing for the school year. See you around. Goodbye."
"Goodbye." Gryphon whispered as he walked out the classroom, robes flowing behind him like water.
"If thats what all the teachers are like, this is going to be an interesting year." Gryphon mumbled to herself, watching Snape's form as he turned out of the room and licking her lips.
"Hagrid, you can put that last crate over there, that should be all of them." Gryphon directed, the last of her animals coming in over a week late.
iDamn these stupid post workers... I'd have rather paid for a hundred owls to carry the crates than trying to have dragons do the work!/i
Hagrid's eyes were glowing, he looked like a kid in a candy shop. A very large kid in a very noisy candy shop. "De shipment says there is one more comin'. You don't want me t' get that?"
"No, thank you Hagrid. Thats going to be Shan, my ravix. I can get him myself." Gryphon continued to cataloge and count the shipments of animals before putting them in their respective cages.
"You're wha?" Hagrid asked, eyes glowing brighter.
Gryphon turned to him and looked up from her floating parchement. "A ravix."
"Where do ya expect to keep such an animal? They've got powers like noth ya ever seen!" Hagrid asked, wondering how she could have gotten permission from Dumbledore to keep such an animal on the grounds.
"Well, Shan is my best friend and companion. He is safe and wise and will be extremely helpful in teaching my classes." Gryphon went back to counting the leaf pixies sealed in a glass container. They were sneering at her and making ugly faces.
"Is there anything else, Professor Siani?" Hagrid asked, hoping to get a chance to spend more time with the animals.
"No, that's all. Thanks very much though. Shan and I will come and visit you when we get situated." Gryphon smiled at Hagrid and he left.
After a few more hours of organization Gryphon sat back at her desk and looked at the creatures that lined the walls with pride. Except for the sneering pixies, who always acted like that to everyone, all the animals had agreed to become part of her collection and she valued her friendship with each individual.
Finally, the last delivery arrived, by special Screech Owl post. Gryphon opened the box, removing the sleeping and air-providing charms from the container.
A pitch black bird walked out, about the size of an eagle but with the form of a raven. A tiny pair of round black spectacles balanced on his beak. "Thank you ever so much. I really could have flown here on my own, you know." The ravix huffed, ruffling and then smoothing its feathers.
"Oh nonsense, with the show you make while flying?" Gryphon petted the bird. "I love you dearly Shan, but a Muggle couldn't miss a huge raven with a shining turquoise tail fly by."
Shan just huffed again and stretched his wings. "At least you could find a more comfortable way to transport me, that was bloody painful!"
"Oh don't be such a chicken, Shan! You're fine!" Gryphon smiled, leaning back in her chair.
"You're not me now are you? How many times have you travelled in a cramped box with charms all on you carried by a bloody bumpy screech owl?!? Huh!?!!"
Gryphon just smiled. "Classes start tomorrow. What do you think I should start my new students with?"
"The leaf pixies seem to be healthy." Shan sneered at the little dots of light making faces at him.
"Seriously now, Shan..."
"You could scare them all to death with Dinderwall." Shan moved himself to Gryphon's shoulder and settled down.
"I'm afraid I've already done that to a teacher." Gryphon smiled, laughing a bit.
"Oh do tell..."
"Well the Potions master came in here to see if I had any rinthern feathers and Dindy decided it'd be a good time to come out of his cage and greet the new classroom. The charm hasn't been invented that can keep a basilisk cage closed."
Shan chuckled in his crow-like crooning. "Making an impression already?"
"Well you know me..." Gryphon poked the bird and he laughed. "But it really too bad if that Potions master turns out to be all his former students says he is. Such a waist of human beauty."
"Dost my little birdy ears decieve me or does it sound like Gryphon Siani has a -gasp- crush!?!"
"Oh come off it, Shan! He is gorgeous though. Hair as black as you... eyes to match... smooth pale skin..." Gryphon shook her head and Shan stifled a giggle. "But if he is anything remotely like what I've heard about him, I couldn't stand to be in the room with him."
"Ah, but you have been in the room with him!" Shan let out his giggle.
"Oh, you silly bird!"
"Silly bird?" Shan pretended to be offended. "I like to think of myself as a rather level-headed bird actually..."
Gryphon burst into laughter. "But seriously now, what should my first lesson be on? You?"
"Sounds good to me, since I am your better half..."
"I'm glad my better half is modest..." Gryphon poked him again. "But basing the lesson on you might actually be a good idea, since you are my companion and will be teaching along with me."
"I don't remember signing any teaching contract!"
"But you agreed to come with me to Hogwarts. Just as good." Gryphon smiled. "Besides, you can't write."
NOTE: iitalics/i indicate thoughts.
Gryphon danced around her new classroom to the Celtic folk music coming from her magic music box. It was two weeks before Hogwarts opened for classes and Gryphon needed to get ready for her first year of teaching.
For the past 6 years she had been travelling the magic world, studying creatures and doing what she loved best. Before then she was home-schooled in witchcraft by her parents and their gryphon friends. But travelling doesn't make for a stable income or a stable life so Gryphon decided to put her knowledge to good use when she heard that Hogwarts wanted to start an Advanced Creatures course.
Ebony wood wand in hand she fluttered around the dingy dungeon, which obviously hadn't been used in a very long time.
The cobwebs cleaned themselves up, following the faintly glowing tip of Gryphon's wand. Shelves and cages aligned themselves on the walls, waiting for her shipments of specimens to arrive at the school.
Her hair was held back by a bright red bandana. She was wearing her pajamas: a black tank top and purple flannel pants with yellow polka dots. The pants were at least one size too big for she kept having to stop and pull them up to keep from revealing her neon green underwear. Bright blue fuzzy bunny slippers kept her feet warm.
iShould I invite him in, or let him stand there a while longer? I do wonder what is so interesting... I've never been gawked at before.../i
"I do know you're there. You are welcome to come in." Gryphon smiled over her shoulder.
Professor Severus Snape had been smirking in the doorway for at least five minutes, gawking at the very odd young woman. "I take it you're the new Advanced Creatures teacher?"
"That would be me." Gryphon pointed her wand at the music box and it shut off. "Professor Gryphon Siani. And you are?" Gryphon wiped a dusty hand on her pants and then extended it.
"Professor Severus Snape, the Potions master." he shook her hand.
"Well its nice to meet you, but from what I have heard about you from former students you surely didn't come here to politely introduce yourself." Gryphon smiled and crossed her arms in front of her, shifting her weight to one leg.
Snape coughed and grimaced. "Yes. Well I came back to the castle early to restock my cabinets and I'm out of rinthern feathers. And every bloody apothecary seems to be out of them for at least two more months. Considering your reputation for collecting animals, I was wondering if you have any rinthern birds from which I may pluck a few feathers."
"I do have rinthern birds, but my animals don't start arriving here until tomorrow. And my rintherns have only hatched 10 weeks ago. They won't have any feathers worth using for at least another two weeks." Gryphon turned and motioned for Snape to follow her. "But I might have some feathers stored in my samples, come on in."
Snape followed Gryphon to the back of the classroom where she started rummaging through a large wooden trunk. She pulled out a journal and started flipping through it. Snape watched as odd drawings of plants and animals he didn't know passed over the pages.
"Ah Ha!" Gryphon pulled out three purple and white striped feathers which had been pressed in the journal. "This is all I've got. They've been in this musty old journal for about a year and a half, but they should still be potent."
Snape took them and was about to say a thanks but instead his mouth just gaped open. "What in the fires of hell is that doing here!?!" he bellowed, pointing at the large snake making his way across the room.
"Dinderwall! DINDERWALL!!!! DIN-DER-WALL!!!!" Gryphon screamed. "What have I told you about coming out of your cage without permission?" The last statement she hissed in Parseltounge. The snake stopped and looked at his master. "I am sorry Professor Snape. Dinderwall knows that he shouldn't be out of his cage."
"But thats a basilisk!"
"True. A blind and fangless and deaf and runt basilisk who is over three thousand years old. He couldn't harm a lacewing if he wanted to, let alone find it." Gryphon smiled, scratching the basilisk under the chin. The snake slipped his forked tounge out through his gums and back in pleasure.
Snape let out a giant sigh of relief. "You could have said that in the first place... "
"I do apologize..." Gryphon said.
"He still doesn't belong in the school." Snape straightened his black robes. "You're a Parseltounge?"
"Not a very good one, though. You really only have the knack for it if it comes nautrally. Being self-taught I still miss some parts of the dialect." Gryphon sighed, shooing Dinderwall the basilisk back towards his cage. The cage had an expanding charm on it, giving it the ability to hold such a large animal.
"You can be taught to be a Parseltounge?" Snape asked.
"Its extremely hard work. Harder than any other animal language I've learned. It took me four years to get this far, and I'm still not as good as I could be." Gryphon raised an eyebrow at him. He was staring at her in amazement at this new revelation. "You wanna learn?"
Snape straightened himself again. "I'd love to, but there isn't time for it. Once school starts I'll have all I can handle with classes and papers." Snape snorted slightly, thinking of a whole new troop of Gryffindors skipping into the school. "Well it is time for me to get back to preparing for the school year. See you around. Goodbye."
"Goodbye." Gryphon whispered as he walked out the classroom, robes flowing behind him like water.
"If thats what all the teachers are like, this is going to be an interesting year." Gryphon mumbled to herself, watching Snape's form as he turned out of the room and licking her lips.
"Hagrid, you can put that last crate over there, that should be all of them." Gryphon directed, the last of her animals coming in over a week late.
iDamn these stupid post workers... I'd have rather paid for a hundred owls to carry the crates than trying to have dragons do the work!/i
Hagrid's eyes were glowing, he looked like a kid in a candy shop. A very large kid in a very noisy candy shop. "De shipment says there is one more comin'. You don't want me t' get that?"
"No, thank you Hagrid. Thats going to be Shan, my ravix. I can get him myself." Gryphon continued to cataloge and count the shipments of animals before putting them in their respective cages.
"You're wha?" Hagrid asked, eyes glowing brighter.
Gryphon turned to him and looked up from her floating parchement. "A ravix."
"Where do ya expect to keep such an animal? They've got powers like noth ya ever seen!" Hagrid asked, wondering how she could have gotten permission from Dumbledore to keep such an animal on the grounds.
"Well, Shan is my best friend and companion. He is safe and wise and will be extremely helpful in teaching my classes." Gryphon went back to counting the leaf pixies sealed in a glass container. They were sneering at her and making ugly faces.
"Is there anything else, Professor Siani?" Hagrid asked, hoping to get a chance to spend more time with the animals.
"No, that's all. Thanks very much though. Shan and I will come and visit you when we get situated." Gryphon smiled at Hagrid and he left.
After a few more hours of organization Gryphon sat back at her desk and looked at the creatures that lined the walls with pride. Except for the sneering pixies, who always acted like that to everyone, all the animals had agreed to become part of her collection and she valued her friendship with each individual.
Finally, the last delivery arrived, by special Screech Owl post. Gryphon opened the box, removing the sleeping and air-providing charms from the container.
A pitch black bird walked out, about the size of an eagle but with the form of a raven. A tiny pair of round black spectacles balanced on his beak. "Thank you ever so much. I really could have flown here on my own, you know." The ravix huffed, ruffling and then smoothing its feathers.
"Oh nonsense, with the show you make while flying?" Gryphon petted the bird. "I love you dearly Shan, but a Muggle couldn't miss a huge raven with a shining turquoise tail fly by."
Shan just huffed again and stretched his wings. "At least you could find a more comfortable way to transport me, that was bloody painful!"
"Oh don't be such a chicken, Shan! You're fine!" Gryphon smiled, leaning back in her chair.
"You're not me now are you? How many times have you travelled in a cramped box with charms all on you carried by a bloody bumpy screech owl?!? Huh!?!!"
Gryphon just smiled. "Classes start tomorrow. What do you think I should start my new students with?"
"The leaf pixies seem to be healthy." Shan sneered at the little dots of light making faces at him.
"Seriously now, Shan..."
"You could scare them all to death with Dinderwall." Shan moved himself to Gryphon's shoulder and settled down.
"I'm afraid I've already done that to a teacher." Gryphon smiled, laughing a bit.
"Oh do tell..."
"Well the Potions master came in here to see if I had any rinthern feathers and Dindy decided it'd be a good time to come out of his cage and greet the new classroom. The charm hasn't been invented that can keep a basilisk cage closed."
Shan chuckled in his crow-like crooning. "Making an impression already?"
"Well you know me..." Gryphon poked the bird and he laughed. "But it really too bad if that Potions master turns out to be all his former students says he is. Such a waist of human beauty."
"Dost my little birdy ears decieve me or does it sound like Gryphon Siani has a -gasp- crush!?!"
"Oh come off it, Shan! He is gorgeous though. Hair as black as you... eyes to match... smooth pale skin..." Gryphon shook her head and Shan stifled a giggle. "But if he is anything remotely like what I've heard about him, I couldn't stand to be in the room with him."
"Ah, but you have been in the room with him!" Shan let out his giggle.
"Oh, you silly bird!"
"Silly bird?" Shan pretended to be offended. "I like to think of myself as a rather level-headed bird actually..."
Gryphon burst into laughter. "But seriously now, what should my first lesson be on? You?"
"Sounds good to me, since I am your better half..."
"I'm glad my better half is modest..." Gryphon poked him again. "But basing the lesson on you might actually be a good idea, since you are my companion and will be teaching along with me."
"I don't remember signing any teaching contract!"
"But you agreed to come with me to Hogwarts. Just as good." Gryphon smiled. "Besides, you can't write."