I'm running short on time tonight, so I'm just gonna make this quick:
Thanks everyone.... not only for the reviews but for all the support... You guys rock.
Disclaimer: I created Kelly, her family, Adele (well, I helped create Adele) and I put Dante in this story (didn't create him tho).
ps. please dont kill me if i make dray sound too.... um, god like or anything.... i luv him, and i can't help myself! i promise to make him as in character as possible though! ;-)
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Harry Potter and the Fire Hawk
by hollie
Kelly's sharp eyes looked the other transfer student up and down, searching carefully for something. She smiled as she noticed the silver charm that hung on a thin chain around the girl's neck, a shimmering outline of a cat. She then turned her attention to the other three that stood beside the timid girl. There were two boys that closely resembled large boulders due to their expressionless faces and slouched postures. The third boy was opposite his companions. Strands of shoulder length silver-blonde hair fell past cold, unblinking gray eyes. He stood, arms crossed, staring at the group of students in front of him, a sneer curling the corners of his lips. A shiver ran down Kelly's back as she stared at this boy; it was as if he was made of ice.
"That's right Weasel, she's my cousin. And close your mouth won't you? The drool is a bit disgusting." All the Slytherins laughed as Ron's mouth snapped shut, the color rising in his cheeks. His normally warm eyes shot daggers at the pale boy who merely snickered in return. The girl identified as Adele blushed also and fingered her charm. She looked as if she wanted to disappear and she took one practically unnoticed step to the left, placing half of her body behind one of the boulder boys.
"Why don't you just stuff it Malfoy." An anger filled voice shouted over the laughter. The boy Malfoy stopped his sniggering, glaring down at the owner of the voice; Hermione.
Kelly could practically feel the rage that issued from Hermione's body as she stepped forward to confront Malfoy.
"Why should I?" was the icy reply. Hermione stepped forward so that she was almost nose to nose with Malfoy.
"Remember your time as a ferret, Malfoy? I've learned an awful lot of handy spells from Professor Moody... Don't tempt me."
There were several moments of silence as the Gryffindor and the Slytherin stared at each other in pure hatred. The silence was broken however as a husky voice interjected.
"Hullo! Sorry tha' I kept yer waitin' so long 'ere," the familiar form of Hagrid stepped out of the cabin, smiling broadly at his students. Everyone was surprised to see a slender figure follow him. A young woman, sapphire eyes glinting, raven hair cascading down her back, followed the half-giant out to greet the students. She stood by his side, which was a rather odd sigh, she being around five feet five inches, and Hagrid standing tall at around eight! Two more figures followed the woman, these being the forms of animals. The first was a golden coloured animal that resembled a terrier dog, save for the forked tail that wagged anxiously. The second creature appeared to be a cat, but a very odd looking black one with large ears and a long tail like a lion's.
The students barely had time to wonder about the strange woman and her creatures when Hagrid began to speak again.
"This yer we're very lucky ter have Miss. Filly Black assistin' me with yer Care o' Magical Creatures class. She's quite skilled when it comes to critters," he motioned to the animals that surround her, "and I expect yer teh treat her with respect." With the last phrase, Kelly noticed his eyes sweep over to some of the students from the Slytherin house. Filly gave the class a smile that reminded Kelly strongly of someone, but she just couldn't quite place who.
Shrugging it off, she followed the two teachers as they led the students around the back of the cabin, where the class discovered a large corral. Penned up inside were approximately twenty-six round balls, covered in fluffy custard coloured fur. There was a soft humming sound coming from the little balls as they rolled aimlessly around the pen.
"Puffskeins!" Ron exclaimed as he dashed over to the corral. He leaned down to stroke one of the furry creatures.
"Ron, be careful!" Hermione exclaimed, concern on her face as she sprinted to his side.
"Not ter worry Hermione," Hagrid also came over to the corral wall, leaning down and scooping up one of the puffskeins with his large hand. "They're quite harmless," he explained.
"Oh," Hermione's cheeks went slightly pink at the fact that she hadn't known something. Both Kelly and Harry guessed that there was a second reason for her blush, but they kept their opinions to themselves.
"Now, as Ron's already informed ya, these here are puffskeins. Real gentle creatures, don't do no harm. Yer can come and hold some of 'em if ya like, jus be careful with 'em." All of the Gryffindors and most of the Slytherins approached the pen, reaching down to grab a puffskeins. After several minutes, the remaining students realized that the creatures really weren't dangerous, and joined in the fun. Except for Adele.
She still stood by her cousin, as timid as ever. He reached over the pen and had grabbed, rather gruffly, one of the larger puffskeins, petting it lazily. Draco then noticed that Adele just watched him and he motioned for her to stroke the animal. Very cautiously, she reached out a thin hand, fingertips gently brushing the soft fur. She withdrew her hand almost immediately, as if she was afraid the creature would bite, but when nothing happened, she dared another pet. After a few moments of fear, she was soon joining her classmate's laughter with her own tiny giggles.
The puffskein rolled around in Draco's arms, then suddenly, without warning, a long pink tongue escaped what must have been the creatures mouth and began to lick Adele's face. She shrieked in horror, practically flinging herself away from the yellow ball, crashing into Harry, who promptly dropped his puffskein, who began wailing, which upset the others. Soon there were wailing creatures everywhere, and the students tried hard to clam them while blocking their ears.
Hagrid tried his best to calm students and animals, but failed miserably. He shot a look over to his assistant, Filly, who nodded once before muttering something under her breath and waving her wand sharply. All went quiet. Hagrid breathed a sigh of relief and walked over to the tangle of bodies that was Harry, Adele and Kelly. When Harry had fallen, he had bumped into Kelly who had fallen on a rock and gotten the wind knocked out of her.
The three students sat up, massaging elbows, foreheads, or in Kelly's case, her stomach. Adele had a fearful look in her eyes as she got up.
"I'm so sorry," her frightened voice was scant above a whisper, "it... it was an accident."
Harry and Kelly looked at her, unnerved by her severe anxiety.
"It's alright," Harry started, Kelly beside him nodding, "it wasn't your fault." Hagrid reached down two hands, one to help the shaking Adele, and the other for Kelly, who was still short of breath. Harry, who hadn't landed on anything painful, got himself up quickly.
"Are you okay?" Hermione and Ron came rushing over to Harry and Kelly.
"I'm fine," Harry reassured them, smiling. He turned to Kelly, "sorry that I bumped into you though."
"Oh, that's alright. I just love falling onto rocks during class, keep things interesting." Kelly replied in a slightly weakened voice. She smiled at him to show that there were no hard feelings.
Near to them, another concerned voice spoke. "Are you okay Adele? Do you need to see Madame Pomfrey? She's the school nurse," Draco kept his voice low enough so that only his cousin could hear him. His reputation would be ruined if it got out that he was concerned about anyone other than himself. Adele shook her head at him, her body still trembling.
"I'd just like to lie down a bit," she replied meekly. Hagrid came over to them, and he kept his voice gentle as he addressed Adele.
"How're ya doin'? Do yeh need to see Madame Pomfrey?" Draco answered for her.
"She'd just like to lie down for a while. That thing," he pointed with disdain to the puffskein that was now happily rolling around with it's fellows, "scared her. I'll take her back to the common room, if that's alright." His last words were spoken more as a statement than a request, as if he were just being kind enough to let his professor know where he was going instead of asking for permission.
Hagrid didn't seem to notice that boy's tone though, and he nodded once, then turned back to the rest of the class. Filly Black had taken over while he had been talking, and she was now instructing the fifth years to collect the puffskeins and place them back in their pens. Once they were finished, she began to speak to the class about the creatures.
"Puffskeins are harmless creatures that are most often found as pets in wizarding families, especially those with young children. They..."
Hagrid stopped listening as he drifted into his own thoughts. Dumbledore had found a good assistant in Filly Black. He watched as she spoke to the fifteen year old wizards, each and every one of them listening intently.
"She'll be able ter handle this class quite well when I leave," he thought to himself. Hagrid began to think of Olympee and what she might be doing, when a shadow overhead interrupted his thoughts. He looked up to see a large bird, a wingspan of at least six or seven feet he guessed, fly over the class. No one noticed, they were all too interested in Filly's lecture, but Hagrid did notice that the other new girl, Kelly, who had previously been standing rather slouched, leaning on the side of the corral, now stood up straight and tall.
"Odd," Hagrid thought, looking back up at the bird. It was then that he noticed the vermilion color of the eyes on the bird. "No," he whispered, mesmerized now by this mysterious creature, "it can't be..."
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Hermione, Ron, Harry, Kelly, Dean, Seamus, Neville and several others of the fifth year Gryffindors walked excitedly across the lawns to their second to last class of the day, Herbology.
"Ron," Hermione asked rather shyly, "how did you know what those puffskeins were?"
The redhead boy grinned broadly, proud that he could finally teach his dictionary of a friend something. "When I was little, mum and dad bought me one," he smiled again, remembering his childhood friend. "I called him Puffy... Not the most creative name, I realize, but hey, I was only three."
"What happened to it?" Kelly asked, "I think I've read somewhere that puffskeins often outlive their masters." Ron's smile faded from his face to be replaced by a very depressed frown. "Fred... Fred used it one day as a bludger for Quidditch practice."
Everyone in the group shuddered, horrible images springing into their minds. Kelly winced, "sorry I asked."
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"Just what do you think you're doing, Mr. Potter?" The normally calm voice of Professor Sprout increased by an octave as she rushed over to the table where Harry sat splicing Moeledona roots. "These are very fragile, you can't just chop at them like that!"
Harry apologized quickly, trying to force his mind back onto the class work. He still had the disgusting image of one of those sweet little puffskeins being smashed all over a Quidditch field by Fred Weasley... not a pretty sight. Neville, sitting next to him, gently removed the knife from Harry's hand.
"Like this," he said softly, demonstrating to Harry how to cut the precious root without ruining it. It was sometimes amazing just how skilled the boy was in Herbology, especially since he was such a klutz in his other subjects. Kelly watched his hands fly as he worked, smiling inwardly.
"This school has everything that I need... now I just have to find that book and then I'll be able to begin my work." She made a mental note to herself to be extra sweet to this boy, Neville, as his Herbology skills would most definitely be needed in the future. Kelly had trained long and hard in the use magical herbs and roots, but not even she was as capable as Neville.
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"Now," the misty voice of Professor Trelawny wafted through the stuffy classroom, "as you gaze into the crystal ball, don't forget to clear your mind."
Kelly and Harry sniggered as Ron imitated the overly dramatic professor. They in turn pretended to be Lavender Brown and Parvati Patil, who always clung to each fabricated word that came from the professor's mouth. A louder than intended giggle escaped from Kelly's lips, earning her a reproving glare from Trelawny. The three students stifled yawns as the class dragged slowly on. Kelly was so relieved when the final bell rang, releasing her from the endless boredom.
As they ascended the silvery ladder, the students felt consciousness return to them, as if a sleeping spell had been removed. Ron blinked several times, then yawned loudly, following the other Gryffindors down stairs to the Great Hall for supper.
"Could she bloody be any phonier?" he asked Harry and Kelly as they stepped into the Hall. Harry rubbed his eyes, nodding his agreement.
"Yeah she's alw," Kelly caught herself just in time, "almost like my old Divination teacher." She smiled broadly at them, then said farewell, taking her usual seat at one end of the table with Ginny, while Harry and Ron went to the other end where Hermione waited.
"Was she about to say always?" Harry thought to himself. "I think I should talk to Hermione tonight."
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so... how was that? I hope that it was okay... I kind of like it!
I have several thank you's today...
Torrential Zephyr- I'm so glad to have you back! glad that you liked the Mrs. Figg idea (thanks to T.H for that brilliant idea :) and I think that it is soooo cool that you have her as your DADA teacher too! thanks for pointing out some of my mistakes... I've since fixed them! you are sooooooo sweet... glad to have kept you guessing! I really wish that I could tell you what's going on... but that would ruin the fun! Yes, I'm pretty sure that I have the same definition for Lamya's name... it's gotta be after that last chapter! really cool definition tho... I wish i'd though of making my characters names mean something special... Kelly means.... woah.... this is sooooooooooo freaky... I just looked up Kelly, Adele and Dante's names..... I must say that it is very ironic..... *hint hint!*
T.H/J.K.- can u blame me for coming back so soon? ~tee hee hee~ especially when you've been cranking out the chapters! how could I stay away! oh, I'm glad I'm doing Hermione right... sh'es such a great character to write about... her common sense and book sense helps (and will help) an awful lot over the course of this story... *g* *to Artemis* nooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I won't let you kill him or mame him!!! *hugs Draco protectively, who looks bewildered and totally freaked out* "will you get off of me?!" I'm saving you. "well, could you not save me so tightly!!!" oh, sorry. *loosens grip around perfect Draco* ;-) anywhoo... it's a good thing that you like long reviews, cos that last one was the LONGEST review I've eva written! I reread it ad was like 'geezums, thats long!'... well, I think that it was long anywayz ;-) cant wait to read the next installment of Master's Mirror.... I'm dying to see what happens next!!!!!! (specially with the Yule Ball... like I said before... I'm more than willing to take Dray to the Ball.... *Dray looks concerned* "uh... do I wanna know?" probably not. well, my offers still there!
Fawksnflame- Did I portray her correctly!? Please tell me asap, and if there was anything out of place, lemme know so if I did anything wrong I can fix it rite away! and thanks again for letting me borrow Filly! heh heh heh... I luv the part with Remus... they'd be so cute together! (hmm... mayb she should have some pictures of him on her desk or something... :)
Quiet One- Thank you bunches!!! to answer your questions: 1. you'll see, 2. yes, 3. yes, 4. no. hope that helps *g* and you must!!!!! find some way to repost your HP story and post another chapter of you LotR and Tut stories... they are all soooooooooo awesome! It's actually kinda weird, cos I neva read any historical fictions (thinking they'd be boring) but I am luvn yours! You just write so realistically and vividly that I forget Im reading about historical events... it feels like an actual story. so, to make a long complement even longer.... GREAT JOB AND KEEP IT UP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
RedRaspberry- thank you sooooooooo much! you are such a sweet reviewer! hey, and they good news is... you didn't have to wait till November 10th! (I'm so glad that I nixed that idea... fanfic deprivation isn't fun ;-( thank you for being a great reviewer!
aloof elf princess- *bangs head on table* oh my gosh... how did I miss such an important detail!?! thank you three million and two times for informing me of that!!!! gosh I feel stupid now! thanks also for reviewing, I'm glad that you enjoyed this... and ur very welcome... I really luv your writing!!
thanks again everyone!!!!!!!!!!
oh, and I'm sorry if the ending to this was lame, I've developed a severe case of writer's block... ick!!!
luv always,
hollie
