Rose and Danny were some of the first people at breakfast. They put their hair up in the high ponytail like usual.
"Hello ladies." Rodger Davies sat opposite of them.
Danny smiled, "We have a proposition for you."
Rodger's eyebrows went up, "Now that is something I enjoy hearing in the mornings. Continue."
Rose rolled her eyes, "You remember when you, your brother, Terrence, Randolph, Jeremy, Oliver, Danny, and I played Quidditch?"
"Do I? You two were bloody fantastic! At all positions!"
"Yes well," Danny's eyes were smiling, "We want to be beaters."
"That's great! Your on!" His smile faded, "Will you be able to take on the Weasley twins and the Slytherin team though?"
Danny and Rose smirked, "They won't know what hit them."
"Okay okay. Its creepy when you talk together. Anyways, tryouts are this Saturday morning, seven o'clock. Don't be late."
"Why so early?" Rose asked.
"Sorts out the slackers."
"Makes sense."
"Danica! Rosalie!" Both cringed at their first names.
"Mione, we told you not to call us that." Danny glared.
"Sorry, I was just wondering what classes you were taking."
Rose smiled, "Transfiguration, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Charms, History of Magic, Potions, Herboloby, Astronomy, Music, and Arithmancy were taking together. Then I have Ancient Runes while-"
"-I have Art. I'm making her take Music, because she's making me take Arithmancy."
"Well your better at it than I am. You didn't even take it last year and you still helped teach me."
Danny shrugged, "So what's up Mione?"
"Nothing other than that I guess. I just hope I have classes with you." Danny snorted.
"You just want competition Mione." Hermione blushed, it was the truth. Out of the whole school her only competitors were Danice Higgs, Rosalie Higgs and Blaise Zabini.
Danny was more blunt with things, while Rose would sugarcoat. Both would tell the truth, but Rose was considered nicer as she tried to ignore things that Danny would point out.
Rose nudged her to shut up, "So how are things in the romance department Mione?"
"Viktor writes me, but we decided to be friends, I have a question for you two though." Danny smirked. They were the eyes and ears of the school. They didn't gossip, they were just observant, and people talked loudly.
"Ask away Miss Mione." Rose rolled her eyes at Danny's enthusiasm.
Hermione bit her lip, "Who is Blaise Zabini?" Rose decided to take the eyes and ears of Hufflepuff and Gryffindor, while Danny took Slytherin and Ravenclaw.
Rose shifted through her mental files then shook her head, "Don't know. Any more information you can give?"
"He's in our year."
Something clicked in Danny's head, "Got it. Tall, Italian, fifth year, Slytherin, curly black hair, olive tone skin, indigo eyes, quiet, calmer than anyone else, friend to Draco Malfoy."
"How did you get all of that?" Hermione said shocked.
"Photographic memory." She smirked, "And the fact that he's right over there." She pointed and the two girls (and a nosy Rodger) looked, "So why are we interested in Mr Zabini Miss Granger?"
Hermione looked back at Danny, "No reason."
Rose smiled, "I smell a story. Tell."
"Its just.. Last year I asked Professor McGonagall who has the top scores. She said, you two, me and Blaise Zabini were all tied."
"Only you would want to know that." Danny rolled her eyes and went back to her food.
"Don't listen to her Mione." Rose nudged Danny again, "She's still a little cranky. Inside she's laughing and smiling."
Danny rolled her eyes again, "Can we go? Class starts in five minutes."
Rose stood up, "Yeah let's have Charms first thing and we both know Professor Flitwick doesn't tolerate late Ravenclaws."
Hermione stood up, "I'll see you there, I've got to get Harry and Ron."
The three all walked away, "Hey what am I chopped liver?" yelled Rodger.
After Charms with the Gryffindors, there was Potions with the Hufflepuffs.
Danny was paired up with a Hufflepuff named Ernie Macmillian. Rose was with Hannah Abbott. Ernie was a nice guy, a little bit of a follower, but he had a good soul.
After Potions, they had a break before lunch, Danny used this time to go see her Art teacher.
She knocked on the door and popped her head in, "Ah! Miss Higgs! I was wondering when you'd come to pay me a visit! Come in, come in!" Professor Victoria Robbins was like the cool aunt that Danny never got. She wore long flowing skirts that followed her around, a muggle band shirt, kept her hair in a bun with paint brushes, and danced around barefoot. Some thought she was strange. But Danny didn't. She loved the way she taught. Kids were taught to be themselves and express themselves. Miss Tori (as she insisted on being called rather than Professor) was often seen at the end of the day with paint or clay all over her arms and sometimes on her cheek. She had music on in class, and designed her classroom like an art studio. Windows were open in the perfect weather, it was a circular room that had easels around the room like an open U, she never sat at her desk, she sat on top of it. The best part was, she let Danny come in whenever and treated her like she was her niece.
"Class this is Miss Danny Higgs. She's one of my fifth years still taking this class." Danny smiled, "She's the best. You'll do well to learn from her. Danny you may take the floor."
Danny set her stuff down with her coat, "Okay now who is a Ravenclaw?" Two girls raised their hands. They reminded her of mini Rose and Danny, "Great, I'm obviously from Ravenclaw too. Sometimes I think most ravens are more into books, when wit and intelligence aren't just books." She sat down at her own easel that gave her the perfect light and space to see the whole classroom, it had her name engraved in it. Miss Tori clapped.
"Excellent, now class today just paint on your easel or do whatever. Over there are some sketch pads, feel free to take one. You never know when an inspiration will hit. I do believe Miss Danny has an everlasting one in her bag." Danny nodded. Miss Tori walked over to her, "So how was your summer kiddo?"
"It was summer."
"Any inspiration?" Danny handed over her sketchbook to the only person she trusted with it, "Ah I see you took pictures too. Its quite beautiful. But rather dull." She looked up at Danny with sober bottle glass green eyes, "You lack inspiration in these pictures."
"I know, whatever I drew was just something there to draw."
"You know not to just do that. You have to look at something, open up and let it touch your soul. And that advice doesn't just go for sketching."
"Thanks Miss Tori."
"No thanks required, now tell me what your painting?"
"I'm just going with it."
"Sounds good to me." She patted Danny's leg, "Don't forget to stop before lunch."
The lunch bell rang Danny looked up, "Crap." Miss Tori smiled at her
"Yes Crap. You might wanna hurry up." Danny packed up her stuff and left.
"There you are! Where were you? And why do you have paint on you?" Danny shrugged off Rose's questions and sat down next to her with Harry, Ron and Hermione.
She opened her bag and started doing her Potions homework.
"You need to eat Danny."
"Stop mothering Rose."
"Please." Danny grabbed what was closest to her (which happened to be a roll) took a bite then put it on Rose's plate.
"Done."
"How can you eat like a bird?"
"I don't. You've seen me eat."
"Good point. You eat like a teenage Quidditch boy during the summer. I think your storing it for school."
"Ha. Ha. Ha. Can we get off my eating habits now?"
"Yes, when you tell me where you were?"
Danny hit her head against her Potions book, "No."
"Just tell me. Its not like you were making out with a guy I hated."
"Rose, one, you don't hate anybody other than Edgecombe, two, I would never even think about doing that. Three, I was at Art class."
"Thought you didn't have it till last class?"
"I don't. I just wanted to paint something."
"Got it." Danny got up.
"I'm not really hungry." Rose pulled her down.
"Yes you are. Eat something then I'll leave you alone."
"Whatever Rose."
"We have Arithmancy after lunch, then History of Magic, then I have Ancient Runes, you have Art. Then tonight we have Astronomy."
"Great."
Soon, but not soon enough, Danny was back in the Art Studio.
"Ah, there she is!" Danny was the last one in, "I was wondering when you'd get here Danny."
"Sorry Miss Tori, I had History of Magic."
Miss Tori wrinkled her nose, "Never liked that class, found it a bore and dropped it after I got my O.W.L. in it. Decided I didn't need it for whatever I planned to do."
Danny smiled and walked over to her easel.
"Now, I'm glad to see my usual students." The seven art students cheered. Danny was the only Ravenclaw girl in Art. The other Ravenclaws were Anthony Goldstein and Elliot Lexington. The other four were Hufflepuffs. Susan Bones, Hannah, Justin, and Ernie, "And I'm glad to see some new faces." The seven turned to see three Slytherin boys and one Slytherin girl.
"Tracey Davis, Blaise Zabini, Adrien Pucey, and Draco Malfoy. Now you four will definitely have to get used to this classroom, because it is very different." She turned smiling again, "Well these four will need help getting used to everything. Elliot you'll take Tracey. Hannah you take Adrien, Susan you take Blaise and ah, Danny you take Draco."
Danny's eyes widened, "I don't think that's a good idea Miss Tori."
"Nonsense, your the top artist I'm sure you'll be able to take a student under your wing." Danny sighed, knowing she wasn't get out of this, "Danny why don't you get back to the painting you already started. Today is your only free day, so paint whatever!"
Draco scooted his easel and stool close to her, "Hello."
Her eyes were furrowed and she only stole a milli second glance at him, "Hi." Draco leaned over to see the painting, but he got hit by a paintbrush,
"Mind your own Mr. Draco." He looked up to the professor, "We respect each other here and don't look without the other's permission. Also I must warn you. The last person you want to sneak a peek at is Miss Danny, she'll tear you a new one in less than five minutes."
Danny didn't even seem like she heard the conversation till she put her paintbrush down and turned to look at Draco, "Look. I'm trying to find inspiration here, and your just staring. Do you know how annoying it is to be watched all the time? What Miss Tori said was the truth, so please, just paint your painting and stop staring at me." She went right back to work, finally been hit with inspiration.
In the middle of class Miss Tori walked up, "So how we doing Danny?" The only answer she got was a thumbs up, "Great, I wanted to know when you had music class?"
Within seconds Danny's schedule was in her hands.
"Ah, thank you Miss Danny." She smiled, "It seems it doesn't collide with the days I have you like last year." She put the schedule on top of Danny's bag then walked over to Hannah.
About an forty minutes later, "Okay class its time to wash your brushes out, take off the smock and turn your painting into the front." Danny grabbed Draco's and her brushes and washed them out. She hung her smock on her easel, then put her painting on a stand. Draco followed.
Miss Tori smiled, "Okay first up is Susan's." The picture was of the Black Lake's shore and the cliffs, if you looked closely you could see the squid's arm, "Wonderful Susan. Next is Blaise." It was a picture of a wand on the ground of a white staircase, "Not bad for a first timer in this class. Hannah had a sunflower, Adrien drew a dove, Tracey had a picture of her pet kitten, Anthony had a picture of his prefect bage, Elliot has a picture of a cello by itself, Ernie had a picture of a badly done street lamp, Justin drew the Hufflepuff crest, "Next is Draco's." It was a stick figure, "Draco you lack the artistic eye and inspiration. Next is Danny's."
Everyone stood back in awe. It looked like a photo, but not moving. It was of her brother and her. He had his right arm around his sister, who was slightly positioned in front of him, and with his left holding the snitch. He was wearing muggle clothes and so was she. You could see the laugh lines and smiles, and the spark in their eyes. You felt as if you were there.
"Now that is art. Class dismissed, Danny, Draco stay here." The others left while the two grabbed their bags, "Mr. Malfoy I meant what I said before you lack the inspiration and artistic eyes, but with the proper teacher you can learn those two things. Since I'm too busy for such a task, I leave you in the hands of my best student, Miss Danny. Danny would you please?"
Danny nodded, everyone deserved a second chance, "But where would we meet?"
"Here of course. During a common break maybe? Or after classes?"
"After classes work perfectly." Draco smiled. Now he got to talk to this mysterious, captivating girl.
Danny, "Tomorrow and Friday work good. Other than that I'm busy."
Rose and Danny walked up to the Astronomy tower and got in their places. Right next to each other.
Professor Sinistra, "Welcome to Astronomy Year 5. We're going to be studying the constellations. First up is Andromeda."
Rose noticed Danny had started working, "Danny, are you okay?"
Danny didn't bother looking from her telescope, "Yeah I'm fine."
"Please be honest."
"Fine." She looked up at Rose, "Do you think that everyone deserves a second chance?"
"Yes, its only fair."
"What if their parents were known Death Eaters?"
"Well.. I'd be a little bit more paranoid, but people aren't their parents Danny." Danny twirled the hair behind her ear.
"I know.. But what if this person has been nothing but a total git to your friends?"
"Like I said everyone deserves a second chance.. Danny what does this have to do with anything?"
"Well, Miss Tori asked me to tutor this .. Slytherin, and I don't know what to do."
"If Miss Tori asked you, you should do it. It will look on applications, and it means she trusts you. But tutoring doesn't mean you have to be friends with them."
"So what do I do?"
"Just watch your back. If they want to be your friend, then they have to prove that their not going to be a git to your friends." Danny hugged Rose.
"Thanks Roe-roe."
"No prob Day-day. Your my best friend." The two got back to work, and thankfully soon, it was time to go back.
"Hey Danny!" Danny turned around to see Draco Malfoy, "I was wondering if I could escort you to your common room?"
Rose smiled, "She'd be delighted. I'll meet you back in the common room, I'm going to walk with Anthony and Elliot." Rose walked up ahead.
"So.."
"So.. That was your friend?"
"Best friend. In every way but blood." Danny corrected.
"Ah. How did you too meet?"
"Our mom's were in the same labor room."
"You were born on the same day?"
"Yeah.. Just different times, she was born at 2 a.m. I was born at 2 p.m."
"That's weird."
"Yeah, her name is Rose by the way. Rose Parker."
"Ah. Have any other friends?"
"A few.. It just depends what class I'm in."
"For example?"
"Well, I only have one class difference with Rose, so we always sit together. But we hang out with Rodger Davies and Luna Lovegood. Then out of Hufflepuff there's Hannah Abbott. Out of Gryffindor there's Hermione, Harry, Ron and Neville. Those are our mutual friends. Then I have my Art friends, she has her Ancient Runes friends. I hang out with Anthony and Elliot more than she does, and I hang out with Susan more too."
"Are you in Music?"
"Yeah. I just play the guitar. Rose is the singer."
"Have you ever tried singing?"
"Only to my shower head." She laughed embarrased and Draco laughed politely, "How bout you? Do you sing?"
"Oh, no. No way." She poked his side.
"I bet you do. And even worse, I bet your good." She laughed and he found the sound infectious.
"So why Art?" Draco asked her. Danny bit her lip and her brow furrowed.
"Honestly.. I don't know."
"How do you not know? Your magnificent at it!" She blushed.
"Thankyou Draco, but I don't know. Its just... Its like.. Its like using breathing to me, it comes second nature. My Grandpa got me started. He was just looking for something to shut me up with when I was five. Ever since, its been apart of my soul." She smiled fondly.
"That sounds.."
"Crazy I know." She brushed a stray strand back.
"No," He grabbed her hand with his right and fixed the strand with his left, "I was going to say," He looked into her eyes, "Amazing." She blushed, and he let go. They started walking again.
"So what's your passion Mr. Malfoy?"
"I don't really think its fair that I don't know your last name, but you know mine."
"Ah, yes, everyone knows Draco Malfoy's name."
"What's your real name Danny?"
"Nope. I asked you a question first."
He sighed, frustrated, "I don't have a passion like that. I've never found it."
She gave him a half smile, "You will. Trust me. Honestly, I don't like painting, I prefer sketching."
"But your painting was so great."
"Thanks."
"I didn't know you knew Terrence Higgs."
"Yeah, we go way back."
"Oh... Did you two ... Date?" Danny looked at him and started laughing. Then stopped, still laughing. She wiped her eyes.
"Thank you Draco I really needed that laugh."
He pouted, "I didn't think it was funny."
She touched his face, "Draco, that was probably the most funniest thing I have ever heard." She straighted up, "Well this is me." The knocker opened its beak.
"What has no true form, but takes many?"
Danny smiled, "The answer is love."
The door opened.
"Thanks again Draco. For walking me back too." She saw his frustration in his eyes, gave him a kiss on the cheek, and walked back up to the door, but before it closed she looked at him, "Draco my real name is Danica."
"Danica." He liked the name.
"Yes," She nodded, "Danica Higgs." She smiled and shut the door.
Rose smiled, "So how was it?"
Danny smiled, "Bloody funny if you ask me."
Rose ran up to her and laughed, "Come on tell me everything!"
Draco stood outside the door, Danica Higgs.. Hmmm... She had captivated every inch of the Malfoy heir's mind.
REVIEWS ARE AMAZING!REVIEWS ARE AMAZING!REVIEWS ARE AMAZING!REVIEWS ARE AMAZING!REVIEWS ARE AMAZING!REVIEWS ARE AMAZING!REVIEWS ARE AMAZING!REVIEWS ARE AMAZING!REVIEWS ARE AMAZING!
REVIEWS ARE AMAZING! enough said.
BlueRose22 has a disclaimer on her profile. : )
