Disclaimer: see chapter 1
Chapter 4: Chicken Blood and More Brandy
The first period of the next week was (wouldn't you know it?) double Potions with the Slytherins. If there was anything the Gryffindors loathed more than the Slytherins, it was their Head of House, Professor Snape. He was keen on taking loads of points off Gryffindor for either a very invalid reason, or no reason at all. The previous week, Harry, Ron and Hermione had warned Fira about Snape. Fira then calculated how she was going to get through double Potions without dropping dead first, like any and every Gryffindor would. She took a seat behind Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle. Ron sat beside her, and Harry and Hermione sat right behind them. While Snape started to babble on about the efficiency of dragon blood to a Animalium potion (a potion which was a lot like the Polyjuice Potion, only it's used only for turning into an animal, and nothing else), Harry fixed his attention on Fira. So far, she hadn't ceased to amaze him. How many more secrets and talents was this new girl hiding? Surely after that past weekend, he'd seen everything. He didn't know how wrong he was.
Harry noticed that every time Snape said "dragon blood," he would cast a glance at Fira, and Fira would cringe, wince, squirm or fake a cough. Harry started to wonder why.
Snape suddenly put his students into pairs, one Gryffindor and one Slytherin each pair ("Yes, Ms Granger, you WILL be working with Mr Crabbe. That way I won't be irritated by your incessant hissing and whispering of instructions to Longbottom. That'll be another 5 points from Gryffindor if you complain again."). Fira got paired up with Malfoy, who had a curt yet unreadable expression on his face. Harry and Pansy Parkinson, who wore the same expression on his face, sat behind them. Harry watched Malfoy's every move, as if expecting him to do something really stupid to Fira.
When they were finished reading the instructions for the potion, Fira and Malfoy set to work without saying much to each other except for a few cases like, "Pass me the snail shells, Black," or, "get outta my way, Malfoy, this gibstone worm is about to self-destruct," and, lots of times, "leave off, Malfoy/Black! Mind your own beeswax!" Harry figured she seemed to be getting along just fine for their first Potions lesson…
A loud clanging sound broke Harry's attention. Malfoy had accidentally (yeah, right!) knocked over their only beaker of dragon blood. "Oh, great, now look what you've gone and done!" Fira said angrily to Malfoy, trying to keep her voice down. "What I'VE gone and done?" Malfoy said. "You're the one reaching out all over the table as if you there was no tomorrow, Flash!" "What's going on here?" Came Snape's cold voice. Fira felt her blood curdle. "Our beaker of dragon blood fell over, Professor," Fira said before Malfoy could say anything. "We were just trying to figure out which one of us had accidentally knocked it over." "Well, then," Snape said, "since you can't figure out which one of you did it, I'm deducting 5 points from both houses. Mr Malfoy, 10 points to Slytherin if you clean that up. Black, you come with me to the supplies room." Fira followed Snape quietly as he went to the back, her cape swishing behind her. Harry tried to follow her with his eyes, but almost knocked their (his and Pansy's) cauldron off the table. If Pansy hadn't called out to him, that would have been 10 automatic points from Gryffindor.
A little while later, Snape and Fira came back from the supplies room, a beaker of dragon blood in Fira's hand. Harry noticed that one of her sleeves had been rolled up, and that there was a bandage around her lower arm. A wet kind of coloration on it told Harry that her arm was, as he suspected, bleeding. He started to wonder what had happened back in the supplies room. Did she hurt herself? Did she knock something over? Did Snape do something to her? And, if she did cut herself, why wasn't her blood red? Whatever it was, he was sure he was going to find out at lunch.
Once lunch came around, Fira had disappeared. Harry had just started to wonder where she had gone when she came into the Great Hall, a brandy bottle in one hand and a flask with a red liquid in the other. She again had that tired look in her eyes, and she looked paler than the first time Harry'd seen her this way. Without a word she plopped down beside Harry (her usual seat), took her goblet and poured some brandy and some of the red liquid into it. She then picked it up and drank everything in one gulp. Harry could see the thick red liquid lined on her lips. "Fira," he said. "Are you all right?" Fira set down her goblet. The tired look and paleness had left her. "Yes," she said, "perfectly fine." She smiled at him after she wiped off the remaining liquid from her lips. She noticed Ron and Hermione staring at the red liquid. "What's that?' Hermione said. "What's what?" Fira said. "Oh, that! That's chicken blood." Hermione and Ron glanced over at each other. "Chicken blood?" Hermione, Ron and Harry said in unison. "Yes," Fira answered as she just kept on eating, as if there was nothing wrong with drinking chicken blood. "I have to drink some every hour. I don't think I want to tell you why just yet." Harry nodded. "Didn't know you liked brandy so much," he said, trying to veer the topic (and Hermione and Ron's stares at the chicken blood) away from the flask of chicken blood. "Well, I've been drinking it since I can remember," Fira said. "I've gotten used to the taste of both. Had to, if I wanted to stay alive." At this, Ron looked incredulously at Fira. "You sound like you're a dragon or something," he said. Fira just shrugged. Hermione seemed lost in thought.
A/N: sorry, I know this is a bit short…don't worry, the other chapters are much longer…
Chapter 4: Chicken Blood and More Brandy
The first period of the next week was (wouldn't you know it?) double Potions with the Slytherins. If there was anything the Gryffindors loathed more than the Slytherins, it was their Head of House, Professor Snape. He was keen on taking loads of points off Gryffindor for either a very invalid reason, or no reason at all. The previous week, Harry, Ron and Hermione had warned Fira about Snape. Fira then calculated how she was going to get through double Potions without dropping dead first, like any and every Gryffindor would. She took a seat behind Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle. Ron sat beside her, and Harry and Hermione sat right behind them. While Snape started to babble on about the efficiency of dragon blood to a Animalium potion (a potion which was a lot like the Polyjuice Potion, only it's used only for turning into an animal, and nothing else), Harry fixed his attention on Fira. So far, she hadn't ceased to amaze him. How many more secrets and talents was this new girl hiding? Surely after that past weekend, he'd seen everything. He didn't know how wrong he was.
Harry noticed that every time Snape said "dragon blood," he would cast a glance at Fira, and Fira would cringe, wince, squirm or fake a cough. Harry started to wonder why.
Snape suddenly put his students into pairs, one Gryffindor and one Slytherin each pair ("Yes, Ms Granger, you WILL be working with Mr Crabbe. That way I won't be irritated by your incessant hissing and whispering of instructions to Longbottom. That'll be another 5 points from Gryffindor if you complain again."). Fira got paired up with Malfoy, who had a curt yet unreadable expression on his face. Harry and Pansy Parkinson, who wore the same expression on his face, sat behind them. Harry watched Malfoy's every move, as if expecting him to do something really stupid to Fira.
When they were finished reading the instructions for the potion, Fira and Malfoy set to work without saying much to each other except for a few cases like, "Pass me the snail shells, Black," or, "get outta my way, Malfoy, this gibstone worm is about to self-destruct," and, lots of times, "leave off, Malfoy/Black! Mind your own beeswax!" Harry figured she seemed to be getting along just fine for their first Potions lesson…
A loud clanging sound broke Harry's attention. Malfoy had accidentally (yeah, right!) knocked over their only beaker of dragon blood. "Oh, great, now look what you've gone and done!" Fira said angrily to Malfoy, trying to keep her voice down. "What I'VE gone and done?" Malfoy said. "You're the one reaching out all over the table as if you there was no tomorrow, Flash!" "What's going on here?" Came Snape's cold voice. Fira felt her blood curdle. "Our beaker of dragon blood fell over, Professor," Fira said before Malfoy could say anything. "We were just trying to figure out which one of us had accidentally knocked it over." "Well, then," Snape said, "since you can't figure out which one of you did it, I'm deducting 5 points from both houses. Mr Malfoy, 10 points to Slytherin if you clean that up. Black, you come with me to the supplies room." Fira followed Snape quietly as he went to the back, her cape swishing behind her. Harry tried to follow her with his eyes, but almost knocked their (his and Pansy's) cauldron off the table. If Pansy hadn't called out to him, that would have been 10 automatic points from Gryffindor.
A little while later, Snape and Fira came back from the supplies room, a beaker of dragon blood in Fira's hand. Harry noticed that one of her sleeves had been rolled up, and that there was a bandage around her lower arm. A wet kind of coloration on it told Harry that her arm was, as he suspected, bleeding. He started to wonder what had happened back in the supplies room. Did she hurt herself? Did she knock something over? Did Snape do something to her? And, if she did cut herself, why wasn't her blood red? Whatever it was, he was sure he was going to find out at lunch.
Once lunch came around, Fira had disappeared. Harry had just started to wonder where she had gone when she came into the Great Hall, a brandy bottle in one hand and a flask with a red liquid in the other. She again had that tired look in her eyes, and she looked paler than the first time Harry'd seen her this way. Without a word she plopped down beside Harry (her usual seat), took her goblet and poured some brandy and some of the red liquid into it. She then picked it up and drank everything in one gulp. Harry could see the thick red liquid lined on her lips. "Fira," he said. "Are you all right?" Fira set down her goblet. The tired look and paleness had left her. "Yes," she said, "perfectly fine." She smiled at him after she wiped off the remaining liquid from her lips. She noticed Ron and Hermione staring at the red liquid. "What's that?' Hermione said. "What's what?" Fira said. "Oh, that! That's chicken blood." Hermione and Ron glanced over at each other. "Chicken blood?" Hermione, Ron and Harry said in unison. "Yes," Fira answered as she just kept on eating, as if there was nothing wrong with drinking chicken blood. "I have to drink some every hour. I don't think I want to tell you why just yet." Harry nodded. "Didn't know you liked brandy so much," he said, trying to veer the topic (and Hermione and Ron's stares at the chicken blood) away from the flask of chicken blood. "Well, I've been drinking it since I can remember," Fira said. "I've gotten used to the taste of both. Had to, if I wanted to stay alive." At this, Ron looked incredulously at Fira. "You sound like you're a dragon or something," he said. Fira just shrugged. Hermione seemed lost in thought.
A/N: sorry, I know this is a bit short…don't worry, the other chapters are much longer…