Tried to make this one a bit more humorous. Hope it worked. This was at around one in the morning, so...hope it isn't too bad. Isn't it weird though? Personally, I think I write better when I'm half asleep...

Also, my previous chapter has been changed from the unhappy announcement into chapter 27, so if you haven't already figured that out and gone back to read it, you should.


Severus learned many things in the short distance's walk to the barn. One: Wren was extremely happy to see her family again. She couldn't stop bouncing around. Two: Top was rather klutzy. He tripped twice over nothing but air, and kept randomly stumbling and losing his balance. Three: Wren's parents were very crazy. Obviously. But in a good way. And once again lastly, Fourth: That Theo and Wren were like twins. Only they were nine years apart in age.

Wren seemed even more excited when they entered the barn. She ran ahead of the group and vaulted over a wooden fence with the grace of many year's practice. A strange sound came from the other side of the enclosure, and Wren almost fell over in her haste to bow to the maker of the sound. Moments later, she leapt back into a standing position and threw herself against a huge half-eagle, half-horse creature.

It took Severus less than a second to register that this was indeed, Stoneears or Stoney, the hippogriff. He smirked as he watched the gigantic hippogriff prance around and around Wren and as she hugged and patted him. Although…he looked a lot bigger than in the pictures…

"Sev! Bet you can guess who this is!" Wren had finally come back over to his side of the fence, with Stoney looking extremely upset about that fact on the opposite side.

"Is it…a man eating turnip?" He asked, frowning in a serious thinking way. Wren rolled her eyes and Severus grinned. "It's Stoney."

Wren smiled, "Yep! And this," She moved over to the other side of the barn, in front of which was a tethered hippogriff. "This is Tipp."

Severus seemed confused. "Why's she tethered and Stoney isn't?"

Wren leant closer to Severus, grinning. "Because Stoney isn't pregnant and doesn't have huge mood swings that can tear off your face."

"Oh."

They moved on in their tour of the barn, Wren showing him their six horses and then the tack room, the feed room, and the loft. The tack room was rather haphazard, and made Severus feel really dizzy trying to figure out what went with what and the difference between this and that. He gave up soon. The feed room was more organized, and Severus liked it. It smelled sort of like a potions classroom to him, with the smells of molasses, bran, grain, alfalfa, and cob mixing together in different ways. The loft though, was by far his favorite part of the barn. It was up a huge ladder, above everything else, and had hay EVERYWHERE. He sneezed a few times, which made Wren giggle. There were big piles next to smaller piles, and Theo demonstrated that it was possible to scramble up one side of the large piles and leap into the smaller ones. The way down from the loft unnerved Severus a bit. There was an old, unused hay wagon on one side below the loft, that was filled with a large pile of hay. Wren told him it was tradition to jump down onto it instead of climbing back down the ladder.

"You're joking." Severus groaned as he was told about this rather queer tradition.

"No, I'm not." Wren replied, motioning towards the edge.

"C'mon!" Theo piped up, "It's fun!"

Severus backed away nervously from the edge. "Jumping off of hay to land in more hay six feet below I can do. But not twenty feet!"

Wren smiled, "Fine. I guess I'll just have to fall by myself with no one to catch me." She stepped to the edge…and walked right over it.

Severus squeaked and ran over to the edge. Looking down, he could see Wren right below him, lying on the hay in the cart. She smiled up at him and waved, before getting up and hopping out of the cart. "Come on!" She called.

Severus shook his head. "No way in hell. You're insane."

Wren's family laughed, except for Theo. Wait. Theo hadn't been quiet since they'd arrived. Severus turned around to see where the kid had gotten to, just in time to see a devilish grin plastered on Theo's face. Theo then deemed it the right moment to step forwards and push Severus over the edge, which sort of worked. He lost his balance, regained it but overcompensated, overcompensated again, and fell off the edge anyways.

He tried not to scream. He REALLY did. But he couldn't help it. When he dared to open his eyes, he was safely encased in hay, and was being pulled out by Robert. He nodded briefly to him, and turned to see Top smirking, Wren's mom smiling widely, and Wren doubled over laughing. She was clutching her stomach and Severus glared at her.

"THAT WASN'T FUNNY."

"Y-yes it…wa-was…" Wren choked out, unable to breathe properly. She took a few deep breaths, glanced up at Severus, and dissolved into laughter again. Severus looked at her disgustedly.

"Your face…" Wren managed again, and fell apart once more.

Severus looked murderous. "I don't like heights, okay?"

Wren looked up, startled. "You never told me that." The shock momentarily stopped the flow of giggling.

"Yeah…well…I don't. I don't mind the height, I just mind the thought, OR action," At this point, Severus glared at Theo, who didn't seem to care, "of falling from the height."

Wren nodded, but couldn't help grinning again. "Sorry."

Severus couldn't help it either. Wren's smile was infectious, and he'd caught the disease. "No you're not."

"I am."

"Aren't."

"AM."

"AREN'T."

Wren decided on a new approach. "Well then, what if I was?"

"You weren't."

"AAAGGGGG!!! SEEEEEEEEEEEVVVVVVVVVV!!!!" Wren hugged him fiercely.

Severus smiled again at the reaction he'd provoked.

"Okay…so maybe you are…" He agreed grudgingly, hugging her back.

"I think we should go show Severus around the house eventually…" Top said, and everyone, much to Severus' surprise, groaned.

"Later." Wren said. Quickly, before anyone could say anything else, she said, "I've gotta take care of Bran and Boulder."

Robert nodded and smiled, "That's right. Well, I'll see you in a bit. I've actually got some paperwork I need to fill out."

Top and Theo followed him outside, but Allie hung back. "It's great to have you here Severus. It really is." She smiled at him, then turned to Wren. "While you're at it dear, would you mind feeding everyone?"

"That's cool." Wren smiled.

Allie embraced her daughter, "It's great to see you again, my dearest." Then she hurriedly walked away, trying to discreetly wipe her eyes with her sleeve as she went.

Wren grinned at Severus and led him back outside to Bran and Boulder, and then they returned inside where they commenced to unsaddle them. Severus took one look at the saddle and all of its many buckles and turned to Wren.

"Help me, my Potions failure." He said, grinning. At the look Wren gave him, he quickly improvised on it. "My Potions failure and unsaddling saviour."


Just noticed...that last line ryhmed! WOOT!! I may be a poet after all. ;)

I think you should review and tell me how I did. You really should.

Pleeeease!??