Fandom: Harry Potter
Main Pairing: Daphne Greengrass/Harry Potter
Side Pairings: Pansy Parkinson/Parvati Patil; Lavender Brown/Ron Weasley; and mentions of Astoria Greengrass/Luna Lovegood/Neville Longbottom
Warnings: alternate universe; het; femslash; threesome (female/female/male); and out of character'ness (Daphne Greengrass, Pansy Parkinson, and Ron Weasley)
Prompts: (Setting) Madam Puddifoot's; and (Word) Rain

Pure Ambition
003. Hope and Faith

Standing up from the Slytherin table, Daphne Greengrass fought to maintain her emotionless mask as she prepared for the day down at Hogsmeade. She was meeting someone special at Madam Puddifoot's today. As a result, she was nervous and hopeful – mostly nervous. There were butterflies in her stomach.

Daphne offered a smile to her best friend, Tracy Davis, before she left the Great Hall. She needed to stop by her dorm room to retrieve her bag and that special iris. They had agreed on very specific instructions. She chose the location of Madam Puddifoot's and he chose a blue iris as their symbol. Curious, Daphne looked up the meaning of a blue iris. It meant hope and faith. The meaning made Daphne's heartbeat increase and it made her stupidly hopeful – like some naive Hufflepuff.

As she walked down to the Slytherin dorms, her mind wondered back to how this all begin. In an effort to promote "Inner House Unity," Headmaster Dumbledore had decided to assign each student an anonymous pen pal. No one knew how Dumbledore assigned the pairs. Some students thought it was random, but Daphne was confident otherwise. While Dumbledore was mad, he was brilliant and he thought several moves ahead. Daphne's pen pal used the name Stag while she used Laurel.

Daphne knew a lot about Stag. He was smart, loyal, and selfless. While he was smart, he was self-conscious about his own intelligence, which effected his classwork performance. Through their letters, Daphne encouraged Stag to apply himself and do better.

While they had never met, Daphne was hopelessly in love with Stag. She knew she was gone when they started talking about their friends and family. He wrote with such passion and love. Stag was an orphan, having lost his parents in the first war against Voldemort, and he considered his best friends to be his family. In fact, the parents of one of his best friends had basically adopted him.

When Daphne reached her dorm, she was surprised to find Pansy Parkinson seated on her bed. She looked up, offered Daphne a quick smile before returning to a pile of letters.

Daphne raised an eyebrow. "Your pen pal?" she asked.

"Yeah," Pansy answered with a small smile. "She's amazing."

Her eyes widened at the sound of Pansy's tone. It sounded like she was in love. "Are you guys meeting?" she asked.

"I don't know," Pansy replied, sounding defeated. "She wants to, but I–." She shook her head. Sighing, she said, "I don't know."

Daphne walked over to her own bed. She grabbed the dark cloak and the blue iris. Holding the blue iris, she turned to face Pansy. "Go for it," she told the other young woman. "If you don't, you'll regret it." Meeting Pansy's eyes, she offered her an encouraging smile. "This is your chance at finding true happiness."

Pansy nodded, her eyes shining with emotions. "Are you?" she whispered.

"I am," Daphne responded with a smile. "We're due to meet at Madam Puddifoot's in an hour."

"Good luck," Pansy smiled.

Daphne nodded. "I'm not leaving here without you," she said. "I know if I leave, you'll sit here and think about it all day. You'll miss the meeting."

Pansy opened her mouth to argue before quickly closing it. She remained silent for a moment before nodding. "What should I wear?" she asked, panic in her tone.

Daphne smiled, slipping the blue iris behind her ear.

Together, the pair raided Pansy's closet for a cute outfit. They selected a purple robe with a scooping neckline and long sleeves with a pair of purple and black flats and a black cloak.

"I think you're ready!" Daphne declared thirty minutes later with a smile.

Pansy returned the smile.

"Where are you meeting?" Daphne asked.

"She wants meet at The Three Broomsticks," Pansy answered.

Together, Daphne and Pansy left the Slytherin dorms. They walked through the dungeon corridors and up the stairs to the main level, headed out of the entry hall and into the courtyard where they were greeted by the rain. Daphne frowned before grabbing her wand, using the Umbrella Charm.

"Hold on," Pansy ordered, crowding in close. She casted a few silent spells on her feet and Daphne's to keep them from slipping in the weather or getting mud on their shoes.

"Now we're done," she declared, looping her arm through Daphne's. She huddled in close, crowding in under the umbrella.

With a fond shake of her head, Daphne walked down to the magical village with her friend.

They parted ways in the center of the village, Pansy headed towards The Three Broomsticks while Daphne turned towards Madam Puddifoot's. She resisted the urge to gag at the sight of the awful decorations inside as she walked over to a small table by the front window.

Removing her cloak, Daphne placed it over the back of her chair. She check the blue iris placed behind her ear before she carefully sat down. Glancing around, she tried to find someone to take her order.

Daphne laced her fingers together and placed her hands on top of the table, trying to project the image of a confident young woman. She was nervous. She resisted the urge to watch the door and glance up every time she heard someone enter.

"Laurel?" asked a male voice, making Daphne's eyes widened and her heart skip a beat as she looked up. Her eyes met green eyes, and her eyes widened further.

"Stag?" she asked, shocked at the sight of Harry Potter standing in front of her.

Harry smiled, taking a seat. "I am," he told her.

Daphne nodded. She couldn't leave it. Out of everyone, she didn't think Harry Potter would be her Stag.

The pair sat in awkward silence for moment. Daphne wasn't sure what to say or how to act, waiting for a cue from Harry.

"Was it the Weasleys or the Grangers that have adopted you?" Daphne asked, curious.

The question or the sound of her voice seemed to startle Harry. "The Weasleys," he answered.

"Do you want a big family?" she asked.

"Maybe," replied Harry with a shrug. "I haven't really thought about it. I think I want to adopt."

Daphne nodded. "You have a big heart," she said, blushing as soon as the words left her mouth.

Something flashed in Harry's green eyes at her words, making him smile and leaning forward on the table. "What about you?" he questioned. "You've said you want a large family."

"I think I want two or three of my children," she answered, "and I want to adopt just as many."

"Your parents adopted Tracy, right?" he asked.

Nodding, Daphne explained, "Her mom was best friends with mine. When she died, she wanted Tracy to go to us."

Harry smiled, reaching out to place his hand on top of hers. "Do you want to get out of here?" he asked, sounding nervous. "Maybe we could join Hermione and Ron at The Three Broomsticks."

Daphne glanced around once more, looking for any sign of an employee. She couldn't find one. Turning to Harry, she said, "That sounds great."

The pair stood up. Daphne pulled on her cloak as Harry reached out to take ahold of her hand. With a smile, he led her out of Madam Puddifoot's and across the village to The Three Broomsticks.

Inside, Daphne looked around for her roommate. Her eyes widened when she caught sight of Pansy sitting with Parvati Pati, Lavender Brown, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger. Pansy had her pinkie finger linked with Parvati's. She barely had time to think about what she was seeing before she was being led over.

"It looks like there's another Slytherin in our group," Lavender Brown stated with a smile.

Ron groaned, "Not you too, mate." He offered Daphne a wink.

"What Ron means to say is welcome to the group," Lavender said.

"I hope you can make room for another one or two," Daphne said, taking a seat.

"We'll make room," Hermione Granger promised. "I'm guessing Tracy Davis and your sister?"

Daphne nodded.

"Luckily, I think your sister will fit in just fine," Hermione stated, nodding to the left.

Turning, Daphne followed her line of sight. Her eye widened. There was her little sister making out with Luna Lovegood. Her eyes widened further as she watched Astoria end the kiss before kissing Neville Longbottom.

"That's new," Daphne managed to say.

Harry chuckled, hooking his thumb under her chip. He forced her head back in the direction of their table. "Maybe we should go somewhere else for a little privacy," he whispered.

Daphne smiled, relaxing against his side. "We can, if you want to," she began, "but I'm happy here with our friends."

Words: ~1,400

This was written for

Build a Zoo Challenge
Meerkat (Enclosure): (Setting) Madam Puddifoot's

Character Boot Camp: Favorite House
37. Rain