Eric stepped onto Platform 9-3/4 with a few additional books. Corvin, it turned out, was a fairly prolific author. As part of his tutoring, he had to pick up four additional texts, each one being a fairly thick tome. As Eric waited to enter the Hogwarts Express, he started into the first book to get a feeling for his teacher's writing style. He was pleased to find that the book was fairly readable, with many of the initial subjects getting to the point quickly. The text covered practical application, referencing other works for research if background was desired.
Eric loaded his few belongings as absently as ever, then turned to make his way to the passenger cars. He didn't travel far, however, before he heard his name shouted. Turning about, he found himself facing an old problem: Lenora Surrey of Slytherin house. Eric thought for a moment that he could mix into the crowd, but it was too late – surely she could tell he had heard the shout. "Eric! I was hoping to see you before the train started off."
He sighed slightly. "Hello Lenora."
She frowned in response. "That's a sour way to greet a friend. Don't you like me anymore?"
Eric wasn't sure how to answer. Lenora had spent the latter months of the last school year twisting his reputation about, only to apologize for it later. Quite honestly, he didn't know what to think, other than a deep desire that she'd leave him alone. He couldn't think clearly with her around, and it often earned him more pain than he desired.
His salvation came in the sound of the train whistle, drawing away Lenora's attention briefly before she turned back to him. "I guess we should board the train. We will talk soon, I hope?" As she turned a corner into one of the passenger cars, Eric leaned against the train and groaned. A part of him still wanted to like Lenora despite the problems they had, and it just gained a reason.
He made his way to the usual berth to settle in before the train started off. It wasn't long before he was joined by his friends. Dorian and Tylena took up the opposing cushion, while he found himself flanked by Naomi and Luna Lovegood. After the train started off and got up to speed, however, Naomi tossed a folded blanket onto the floor by the window then settled down on it, apparently meditating. It wasn't long, however, before something caught Eric's attention. Ever so often, he would hear a buzzing sound, as if a large locust was passing by. It happened four times before he caught a glimpse of the source – a small figure that tended to shoot back and forth between Naomi and the compartment's upper storage bins.
He waited until the object zipped back to her. "Naomi – what was that?"
She furrowed her brow, irritated that her meditations were disrupted. "A small pain." Pulling back her cloak, she revealed to the group a small round iridescent- yellow bird. It's crimson eyes scanned the room as it's head bobbed back and forth.
Dorian was the first to react. "Naomi – that's a Golden Snidget!" The bird responded by shooting upward then zipping about at right angles before coming to rest in the back of the storage bin.
"I know. I don't suppose either of you have a good idea about how to get rid of them?" Eric could only figure that the bird had been in Naomi's company for some time, based on how irritated she sounded. Usually she made a point of hiding how she felt about pretty much everything.
The snidget resumed zipping about the compartment, buzzing by the heads of everyone there. As Naomi sat complacently, Tylena looked to her. "Why is your bird so upset?"
"It would probably have something to do with the other one."
Dorian's head snapped about. "The other one?"
Looking past the zipping bird, Eric could make out a small huddle of feathers in the back of the bin. "Um, Naomi – there's two of them?"
She didn't bother to look up. "Anny and Irrie."
Eric smiled inside. "You named them?"
"Annoying and Irritating. I got them at the Quidditch tournament. It's a weird story."
Luna finally drew herself out of her father's newspaper. "They're illegal, you know."
Naomi gave her a disgusted look. "Just as illegal for me to hurt them in order to rid myself of them, and just as illegal for that peddler to try selling them to Mister Malfoy."
Eric sat back down. "You broke into a deal Lucius Malfoy was making? I'm impressed."
"Anything he could be trying to buy had to be valuable, and was probably going to be used for some unfortunate purpose. I just warped the cage so that they could escape. They've been following me ever since."
Dorian examined the small bird as it watched him intently. "Hey Eric, you see those lines of feathers on this one's head?"
Turning slowly, he looked above him. "Yeah; the small white ones, right?"
"That's them. Did the other one have those?"
Eric rubbed the small scratches on his cheek, not wishing for another set. "I don't think it did."
"That would make sense. We've got a mated pair here."
Naomi sighed in disgust. "Terrific. That means more of them."
The snidgets settled in for the trip, which was a dismally wet one. As the day grew late and they closed in on Hogsmeade, Naomi became concerned. "What am I going to do with them? I can't keep them with me, and they won't go far."
Eric turned to her. "Will they stay under your cape until we get to school?"
She turned to him hesitantly. "I think so."
Eric gathered his books. "We'll stay with you. That way, if they take off, only we will be around to see it. They're probably looking for a place to roost for the season, so we'll show them one. Once they figure out that they have a safe nesting place, they'll leave you alone."
The weather was horrid heading up to the school, which made things simpler. No one questioned Naomi's cloak, and the chaos of trying to dry off allowed Eric and Naomi to sneak off into the lower corridors, back to the old storerooms and Eric's workshop. There was a back room with a vent leading outdoors. It was narrow and hooded, which would prove ideal for the snidgets. He stacked up a pile of twigs from his broom shop, which the birds began to work on. "I'll sneak out to the stables later. There should be something we can set out for feed, at least initially."
As he turned to leave, Naomi set a hand on his arm. "Um, Eric, ... , thanks. I mean, this really helps."
Eric could feel his entire body shiver as his face flushed. "Look, Naomi; about what I said at the camp..."
"It was nothing. I know you didn't mean it." Although she drew her hood up, he could still see her blushing, too.
"Wait, it's not that, I mean, I ... I didn't mean to embarrass you." He thought for a second that he could boil water on his neck; this was getting difficult. Normally Naomi was easy to talk to, but lately there was a world of things he wanted to say, but could never find the right words.
An eternity seemed to pass before she finally spoke again. "We ... should get back to the others."
The evening feast was filled with surprises. The first was the cancellation of the Inter-house Quidditch Cup. Eric looked about and confirmed his suspicions – Oliver Wood was mortified. He was the captain of the Gryffindor team, and had held massively inflated hopes of winning the Cup ever since they picked up Harry Potter as their seeker.
The second surprise was the arrival of Mad-Eye Moody, who was brought in for one year as the new Defense Against the Dark Arts instructor. Eric wondered if this was a united attempt to both look after Moody ( who had grown increasingly paranoid over the years ), and to fill what was becoming a cursed posting at Hogwarts. The last three instructors had ( in order ) turned out to be a servant of Voldemort, a fraud who ended up hexing himself, and a cursed werewolf. He imagined Dumbledore had a terrible time trying to fill the role.
The third was the upcoming Tri-Wizard Tournament between Hogwarts, Beauxbatons and Durmstrang. Eric had read about the tournament during his studies of wizarding histories. It had generally fell into disfavor due to a relatively high mortality rate. While deaths in wizarding activities – even the ones which are meant as diversions – was an accepted aspect of wizard life, activities that killed children and teenagers were universally disapproved of. Only Quidditch was allowed, and it was kept under tight scrutiny.
The tables were buzzing with junior students plotting how to get into the tournament, even though it was made fairly clear that only adult students would be considered. Eric, however, didn't take it seriously. Of the underage students, the only ones that could possibly defeat the senior students were himself, Naomi, and Neville Longbottom if he could ever get a firm grasp on his potential.
Dorian, however, had greater aspirations. "Do you think we could enter?"
Eric shook his head. "Why would you want to?"
"Gee, the prize isn't incentive enough?" He could see Dorian's eyes gleaming, plotting at what he could do with his own money. He was as much of a merchant as his father, and was more than willing to pursue it.
He smiled back. "Personally, I'm looking forward to the teachers being distracted by the tournament. This means that they won't be watching us as much as before. The potential for creative projects is immense." Eric was already considering ways into the restricted library in order to research a new magical breed. He originally had his thoughts set on a winged snake, even though it had already been done. However, with the arrival of the snidgets, he felt strongly about changing his plans. An annoyingly soft spot in his heart thought they were cute, and he didn't want to do anything to endanger them.
The welcoming feast was to it's usual excellent standards. Eric, though, found that he couldn't enjoy it as much as usual. For two years, sitting with Dorian and Naomi made for a nice social clutch. However, there was a new vibe coming from Naomi, and that was making them all uncomfortable. He knew that there was something growing between them, and that he wanted it to go well. So far, he had managed to fumble every attempt to speak his mind amiably, yet she hadn't given up on him. However, Eric was sure there was something she was holding back, and she was worried.
He wanted to end it – to clear up everything between them so that they could both relax. It wasn't like there really was anyone else. Dorian was happy with Tylena, and Lenora was a pain that Eric really wanted to be rid of. If only he could explain it properly, maybe she would understand. He would have to be careful, though. He had seen her abilities often enough to know that upsetting her could be painful, possibly even fatal.