Chapter 17
"What do I plan to do Hermione? What Dumbledore can't. Make Parkinson's life hell." said Sirius as he found out what had gone on Care of Magical Creatures on Wednesday.
He had picked on people when he had been at school, sure but they had been able to take it. Ariana was a fragile, scared, sweet girl trying to make the best of what she had been given. And they had to face it wasn't a lot. He was going to help her in every way he could. No way was she going to be bullied on his watch.
Harry, who thought he was quite like his god father, nodded in agreement. Damn right, seeing Pansy get what she deserved was going to be good. Sirius was going to do the right thing by her; Ron seemed to have the same sentiments.
"I am sorry Hermione but I am not going to stand by and watch as some Slytherin gits wreck the confidence she has got. " he said as he saw the 'but you're a teacher' look cross her face. No way. "The Slytherins are going to get what's coming to them." he said and he walked in to the great hall for breakfast on Friday morning.
"Were is Ariana any way?" as asked Ron, who despite being freaked out by her to begin with was getting quite used to having her about.
"She said she was going to met us down here." said Harry who ha been the only one to see her before she had left the common room.
"Translation," sighed Hermione." I'm skipping breakfast."
-
Albus Dumbledore walked in to the library. Not many people were there yet, but he knew one who was.
"If you are not going to go to the toast, then the toast is going to come to you." he said as he walked over to the table where he saw Ariana sitting.
She scowled at him.
"I don't want it." she said to him.
"You have not had one decent meal week. Don't think I haven't been watching you from where I have been sitting at the top table."
She sighed. Pushing the book she had been trying to read asides she looked at the buttered toast her brother had brought her and sighed. "Every one is going to notice you aren't at breakfast."
"There are more important things in life, Ariana." he shrugged it off. He watched as she begun tearing off little bits of bread and eating them. "I got an owl from Aberforth last night. He is going to come and collect you for the weekend tonight."
For the first time that day her face lit up. The green eyed monster visited Albus at that moment. Why couldn't he make her that excited? Why couldn't the thought of spending time with him make her so happy?
"What time."
"Five o'clock."
"Brilliant." Ariana picked up her toast and begun eating it properly. Five could not come quick enough. There was only one challenge in her way as farqas she was concerned. Care of magical creatures…
-
Ariana walked down to the hut. She was not going to run out the time. She was going to see the lesson through. The Slytherins weren't there when she arrived. But when they did she was going to front them out.
"Ari!" said Hagrid to her as he saw her.
"Sorry, professor - last lesson."
"Weren't yer fault." he said to her. His kindly face was lit up and his beetle black eyes were full of warmth. "Don't worry 'bout it lass. You jus' see it out ter'day." he advised her.
"I'm going too."
When Parkinson arrived, Ariana turned away from her and remembered what Harry had told her in the common room. She was stronger than she was. She just had to believe it.
Getting into groups of five as they had been told too, Neville and Ariana joined the trio.
They were going to be observed the behavior of baby blasted-ended-Skrewts. That was all they had to do. Wands aways.
Through out the lesson they could hear the Slytherins laughing at them. Each of the Gryffindors had cause to think it was them for some reason. Ariana was clearly agitated.
Swallowing, she focused on the fact by that night it was all going to be over and she had two days of peace with her brother ahead of her. He was going to make it ok for her, he always did.
"Look at her." Ariana heard Pansy say. Just block it out, she thought to herself. Harry who was sitting by her covered her hand with his to give her courage. She look at him and nodded. They were going to get through the class if it killed them both.
Just as Pansy got up and was about to start mocking them though, something happened. She feel straight back down.
"Ariana did you see that?" asked Harry. She shook her head and turned to the Slytherin group. Pansy was back on her feet. But not for long. She was down again.
"What's happening to me." she shrieked at Draco not understanding.
"Revenge Padfoot style." Harry said to his group of friends.
By now, the whole class was watching her and they were roaring with laughter. Finally she got to her feet.
"It's the Dumbledore girl!" she shrieked.
"But I cant even read and write. How could I do that?" she said to Harry. The entire class had heard it in curiosity over what her response would be. They laughed even harder. She had a goof point.
They all took it for sarcasm but Harry knew it was not. She was worried this was her. That she was doing accidentally magic. And she wasn't laughing with every one else.
"It isn't you don't worry." He reassured her.
Finally Pansy's torture stopped and it was her turn too run off to the castle. Out of the corner of his eye Harry saw a big black dog run off to the Quidditch pitch. Harry got the distinct feeling that Sirius wasn't done with her yet. But she'd keep.
-
"That's good. That's very good." he praised her. "Do you know what it says." he asked.
"No. Read it too me Al." said Ariana. She had just done a dot to dot.
"It says, 'my name is Ariana. I have two brothers. One is called Aberforth and the other Albus. I am a Gryffindor student at Hogwarts school.' That's good." he said to her. Her letters were clearly defined. She was going to have good hand writing.
It was all little steps. But they were little achievements. When you put little things together they came together as something big. "I'm proud of the way you have tackled this week. You know the sorting hat had never made a better decision than when it put you in to Gryffindor house."
She blushed but continued to beam. She had had a good day. But one thing troubled her. What had happened to Pansy. She had been humiliated. No one deserved that. She had told Albus when she had got to class and he had given her comfort and assurance that who ever did it was going to be punished.
Two wrongs did not make a right.
-
The sun light was beaming through the grounds as Ariana walked down to met Sirius for flying. She had been rather looking forward to it, though nervous.
Sirius was in the middle of the Quidditch pitch looking about mournfully. He had just been told it wasn't going to be there all year for lessons, especially in the summer. He was going to have to teach on the lawn.
"You alright?" he asked as he saw her coming towards him.
"I think so. You?" she checked.
"As good as I get." he nodded. "Right young lady lets not waste time." he walked over to the broom he had got out for her. "Comet 360. Not the best brooms but there are far worse, and it's a good starter." he explained to her as he put down on the floor by her side. "Put your hand over it and say 'up'."
"Up." she said to it.
"Nom Ariana say it like you mean it. Forceful." he said to her.
"Up!" she said with a bit more meaning. The broom moved, but side to side, not upwards.
"Louder."
"UP." she said giggling, and then she felt some thing in her hand as if it was drawn by a magnet. She had got the broom to come up. Unfortunately as soon as it had hit her hand she had dropped it.
"Sorry." she muttered to him.
"Go once more, and be ready for it." he advised her.
"Up." fourth time lucky.
Sirius smiled. It had taken some of his first years earlier that week a lot longer for them to get to grips with it. Mostly because they were too nervous of him, he thought grinning. Honestly there had been one lad who he was sure had just been waiting for Sirius the mad mass murderer to kill him. They were going to have fun that year.
"Good girl. Now get on it." he said to her. She did as she was told.
"I want you to hover for a moment. Then lean forward and touch back down ok?"
That was the first lesson of the week that she came out of happy with what she had done. Sirius was an even better teacher than she thought Hagrid was and Sirius believed she was going to be a pretty fast learner when it came to flying. He had over heard McGonagall and Dumbledore talking about the transfigurations lesson. She had it tough and was working so hard on the theory they had got on to none of the practical stuff yet. He dreaded to think how Snape was treating her join class.
When she was told to go Ariana run up to the common room. It was four. One hour to go till she got to go home for the weekend. Quickly she packed her bag and then went to the common room to sit with Harry and the others till quarter to five came.
She said good bye to them for the weekend and after assuring Harry she was going to get to the gate fine by herself, as she had walked down there most days in the summer when she had been going between her brothers, set off.
It was only once she got in to the corridor it occurred to her she might met the Slytherins on the way. Thankfully, there were none though, and when she got to the gate, she saw her brother wondering up to get her. He was on time as always and looked delighted to see her.
"Aba." she cried as she run down to him. He hadn't seen her the day before and he had worried for her.
"My Ari." he beamed as she run in to his arms.
He picked her up and spun her about the young girl who was thrilled to be back with him.
"Did you have a good week in the end?" he asked her as she settled into his arms.
She thought about the question for a while. Had it been good? Not all of it for sure. But there had been some good parts.
"It was alright." she said to him.
"Well you can tell me about it on the way home!" he said as he turned and carried her away from school. He could feel she had put no weight on. He had hoped she would, after all she needed more energy if she was going to be working. Still it was early days.
They were both unaware of Albus watching them from the castle as they went off together in to the village. He sighed. The rest of the world had no idea how much he would have loved to abandon the castle for the weekend and go and be with his family. They had no idea either.
--
By the time they had got back to the Hogshead, Ariana had given Aberforth a blow by blow account off all the important moments from the first week.
From Pansy's bullying (that made him boil with anger), to the way she had been accepted in to her friendship group (which made him feel more relaxed) to her struggling in class (which made him glad he had got her away from the castle).
"Well we don't have to worry about any thing this weekend." he said as he got her home. "Just having a good time."
"I have to do my home work." she said to him.
"Well I can give you some help if you need me too." he said to her.
"Yeah, but not tonight." she smiled.
"No we can have some fun." he agreed. She had worked enough this week. "The goars have missed you. You going to feed them for me tonight?"
"Yeah." She said to him.
"Ok, go and put your books and clothes in your bed room then we can go down to the pen."
She did as she was told and went to her room. They had done it up for her in the summer. It was now a pleasant green. Though not big, the room was cozy and felt more like home to her than Hogwarts castle did.
Running back out she went Ariana to where she knew the goat feed was before going to the pen. Her brother watched her from the pub, and sighed with relief.
Aberforth felt better for having her back with him. He had hated it when she had been at school. There were so many things in term time at the castle that might set her off. When she was with him, she was safe.
By nine o'clock that evening Aberforth found himself having locked up and sat on the sofa with his sister having a cuddle. She had come to him as she might when their parents had told her off when she was in need of comfort. Taking her in his lap he kissed her forehead and tried to forget everything else. Nothing else matter to him. He shut out the world. She was safe.