Short chapter and really a filler for the important stuff

Enjoy nonetheless!

Chapter 8: Hippogriffs and Pansies

Hermione had not been any help to Alexis. In fact she had only made Alexis even more confused.

"Hex," said Hermione with a giggle. "I think Cho's jealous."

"But what does that have to do with me?" asked Alexis a little louder then necessary.

Hermione rubbed her temple, clearly trying to think of a better way to explain this to Alexis. She gave Alexis a very affectionate mother look, not that Alexis knew that's what the look was, before trying again.

"Hex, I think Cho is jealous of you," Hermione said slowly. "You're relationship with Cedric anyway."

Alexis nodded her head slowly before saying, "Oh, now I get it."

"You do?"

"No!" said Alexis, once more louder then necessary. "What does my and Cedric's friendship have to do with Cho not liking me?"

Just then the Weasley twins decided to take a seat on either side of Alexis. They were both grinning broadly and Fred went as far as to wink at Hermione who blushed.

"Our dear, dear Hex," started Fred.

"Why didn't you tell us you were having trouble?" said George.

"Because it's girl trouble," stated Hermione matter-of-factly.

The twins ignored her.

"So puberty," said Fred.

"Nothing like it," added George.

"All these new, fuzzy feelings running through you-"

"Your body changing, making you feel... Different from everyone else."

Alexis dared a questionable glance at Hermione. She discovered her to be a beat red color with her head buried in her Arithmancy book.

'Why does she look like that?' Alexis thought. McPherson's laughter did not comfort her.

"Now you've got a new body," continued Fred.

"And sometimes," said George.

"Especially in the case of Georgie and I-"

"People, especially those who are less..."

"Fortunate as you-"

"Get jealous," stated George. "And in other words, they feel threatened by you."

"Especially the girlfriend of a boy who openly showed affection to another girl in front of everyone-"

"No matter how wrongly that girl took that affection," added Hermione, much to everyone's surprise. "I mean, honestly, Cedric sees you as his little sister."

"Welcome back to the conversation, darling," teased Fred, making Hermione blush again. "I'm glad to see you're only as red as an apple now instead of a tomato."

"Oh, shut it," Hermione snapped, standing up. "Come on, Hex. We're going to be late for Hagrid's class."

Before Alexis could protest, Hermione was pushing her out of the Great Hall. Harry and Ron were waiting for them in the Entrance Hall. Alexis tried to get Hermione to explain what Fred and George had meant but Hermione refused to speak in Ron's presence and Ron just refused to speak. Harry was never one to start conversation so Alexis just let out a sigh before continuing with her friends in their silent march to class.

Only a few paces ahead of them, Alexis recognized Draco walking with a Slytherin girl Alexis safely assumed was Pansy Parkinson. The sight of the two talking made Alexis grin, remembering full well how last summer Draco had written letters to Pansy religiously. How they were talking in hush tones and walking so close together told Alexis he had continued writing her.

Hagrid was waiting for his class at the door of his hut. He stood in his moleskin overcoat, with Fang the boarhound at his heels, looking impatient to start.

"C'mon, now, get a move on!" he called as the class approached. "Got a real treat for yeh today! Great lesson comin' up! Everyone here? Right, follow me!"

Hagrid strolled off around the edge of the trees, beckoning the class to follow, and five minutes later, they found themselves outside a kind of paddock. There was nothing in there.

"Everyone gather 'round the fence here!" he called. "That's it - make sure yeh can see - now, firs' thing yeh'll want ter do is open yer books-"

"How?" sneered a Slytherin boy Alexis didn't recognize.

"Stroke it," said Alexis as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. Evidently it wasn't, seeing that only Alexis and Harry's books weren't bonded close in some way. Nonetheless Hagrid beamed at her.

"Five points ta Gryffindor," he said rather jolly. "Now, I'll be right back with yer first Magical Creature."

Hagrid ran off into the forest and out of sight.

"What a oaf," jeered Goyle, ironically. All the Slytherins minus Draco, who knew Alexis was fond of Hagrid, and Pansy, who didn't because Draco hadn't, laughed.

"Real creative, Goyle," Alexis hissed. "I can really see that silver tongue you Slytherins are so proud of."

"You would know, wouldn't you, Pherson," chuckled Crabbe before earning a rough elbow from Draco.

Before Alexis could demand an explanation, Lavender Brown, a fellow Gryffindor, let out a loud 'Ooooooh!'.

Trotting toward them were a dozen of the most beautiful creatures Alexis had ever seen. They had the bodies, hind legs, and tails of horses, but the front legs, wings, and heads of what seemed to be giant eagles, with cruel, steel-colored beaks and large, brilliantly, orange eyes. The talons on their front legs were half a foot long and deadly looking. Each of the beasts had a thick leather collar around its neck, which was attached to a long chain, and the ends of all of these were held in the vast hands of Hagrid, who came jogging into the paddock behind the creatures.

"Gee up, there!" he roared, shaking the chains and urging the creatures toward the fence where the class stood. Everyone besides Alexis drew back slightly as Hagrid reached them and tethered the creatures to the fence.

"Hippogriffs!" Hagrid roared happily, waving a hand at them. "Beau'iful, aren' they?"

"Wow," breathed Alexis. She most definitely saw what Hagrid was talking about. She was fascinated by them, admiring each of the Hippogriffs' gleaming coats, changing smoothly from feather to hair, each of them a different color: stormy gray, bronze, pinkish roan, gleaming chestnut, and inky black.

"Now, firs' thing yeh gotta know abou' Hippogriffs is, they're proud," said Hagrid. "Easily offended, Hippogriffs are. Don't never insult one, 'cause it might be the last thing yeh do.

"Yeh always wait fer the Hippogriff ter make the firs' move. It's polite, see? Yeh walk toward him, and yeh bow, an' yeh wait. If he bows back, yeh're allowed ter touch him. If he doesn' bow, then get away from him sharpish, 'cause those talons hurt.

"Right - who wants ter go first?"

Alexis didn't even use words to answer Hagrid's question, instead, she practically flew over the fence.

"Hex, wait!" Harry warned.

Alexis grinned.

"Oh, come on, Harry," she said. Reluctantly, Harry followed her.

"Get on you two!" roared Hagrid. "Right then - let's see how yeh get on with Buckbeak, Harry."

He untied one of the chains, pulled the gray Hippogriff away from its fellows, and slipped off its leather collar. The class on the other side of the paddock seemed to be holding its breath.

"And Hex, let's see how yeh get on with Blackwing. Mind you, he's a little bit of a trickster."

Alexis was bouncing on her heels as Hagrid brought around another Hippogriff, this one with inky black feathers instead of grey.

"This is so awesome," Alexis whispered. Harry looked at her as if she was crazy.

Slowly, the two Gryffindors approached their Hippogriffs but the reactions of them said Hippogriffs were different. Alexis's almost immediately bowed while Harry's seemed to take longer to size him up. When it finally had, Alexis had already been petting Blackwing for five minutes.

"Righ' then," said Hagrid. "I reckon they migh' let yeh ride them!"

Alexis watched in amusement as Hagrid hoisted Harry onto Buckbeak's back. However, when Hagrid moved over to help Alexis onto her Hippogriff as well Alexis was already mounted. In every way, she looked ecstatic.

"This is going to be great!" Alexis exclaimed, scratching just above Blackwing's wings. He made a squawking noise in agreement. Harry, on the other hand, looked like he was forcing a calm face.

"Go on, then!" roared Hagrid, slapping both the Hippogriffs' hindquarters.

Alexis let out a whoop as she and Blackwing left the ground along with Harry and Buckbeak. She had never flown on anything other then a broomstick before, but Alexis would be lying if she said she didn't enjoy riding Blackwing. Harry, however, looked like he was putting on a very brave face.

'Having fun?' Alexis thought, grinning.

'Don't talk to me right know,' thought Harry, gripping Buckbeak's feathers tightly.

Alexis couldn't help but to laugh. The two Hippogriffs flew them around the padlock twice before landing them. It wasn't a very graceful landing, Alexis had definitely had smoother, but it was impossible to tell with how wide she was grinning.

"Good work you two!" roared Hagrid as everyone except the Slytherins cheered. "Okay, who else wants a go?"

Emboldened by Alexis and Harry's success, the rest of the class climbed cautiously into the paddock. Hagrid untied the Hippogriffs one by one, and soon people were bowing nervously, all over the paddock. Neville ran repeatedly backward from his, which didn't seem to want to bend its knees. Ron and Hermione practiced on the chestnut, while Alexis and Harry watched.

"That wasn't too bad," Harry breathed finally.

"Yeah," snorted Alexis. "You looked like you were having a ball."

Harry elbowed Alexis playfully. They continued watching their fellow classmates with the Hippogriffs. Draco and Pansy had taken over Buckbeak. He had bowed to Draco, but Pansy was shaking with fear.

"You got to show it respect, Pansy," said Draco encouragingly. "You can do it."

"I-I don't want to bare my neck at that bird monster," said Pansy.

It happened in a flash. Draco pushed Pansy out of the way just as the insulted Hippogriff swiped his great, steely talons. Next thing everyone knew, Draco was clutching his arm as Hagrid wrestled Buckbeak back into his collar.

"Merlin!" screamed Pansy. "He's bleeding to death!"

"Pansy, I'm not dying," grumbled Draco, wincing as his bleeding arm was grabbed by his hysterical girl-that-was-a-friend. "It's just a scratch, see?"

But Pansy was screaming and so was most of the girls in the class. Draco's arm was bleeding badly, covering his and the hysterical Pansy's robes.

"Someone get the gate," ordered Hagrid.

Hermione ran to hold open the gate as Hagrid lifted Draco easily. Blood splattered the grass and Hagrid ran with him, up the slope toward the castle.

The rest of the class followed a great deal slower. The Slytherins were all shouting about Hagrid.

"They should sack him straight away!" said Pansy Parkinson, who was still in tears.

"It was Malfoy's fault!" snapped Dean Thomas. Crabbe and Goyle flexed their muscles threateningly.

"It was an accident," stated Alexis. Wisely, no one dared question her.

"I'm going to see if he's okay!" said Pansy, and they all watched her run up the marble staircase. The Slytherins, still muttering about Hagrid, headed away in the direction of their dungeon common room; Alexis, Harry, Ron, and Hermione proceeded upstairs to the Gryffindor Tower.

"You think he'll be all right?" said Hermione nervously.

"Course he will. Madam Pomfrey can mend cuts in about a second," said Harry, who had had far worse injuries mended magically by the nurse.

"That was a really bad thing to happen in Hagrid's first class, though, wasn't it?" said Ron, looking worried. "Trust Malfoy to mess things up for him..."

"Draco wouldn't do that," spat Alexis. She looked apologetically at her friends. "Sorry."

"It's alright, Hex," said Harry, patting Alexis's shoulder. Alexis nodded her head.

"I'm going to check on him, okay?"

"Are you sure that's a good idea, Alexis?" asked Hermione. "I mean, Pansy is going to be there and after Cho-"

"Yeah, I was thinking the same thing," said Alexis with a sigh. "But I'm going to anyway. Draco's my friend."

"Wait," said Harry. "What's this about Cho?"

Alexis smiled at her friends.

"You can explain, Moony," she called hurrying down the stairs.

Alexis quickly made her way to the hospital wing. She was hesitant to enter at first but finally gave in. She was very surprised by the welcome she received.

Pansy's eyes lit up at the sight of Alexis entering the hospital wing.

"Oh thank Merlin it's you," she said taking Alexis by surprise. "I was afraid I'd have to leave Draco with Vincent or Gregory. You'll watch him while I write my father and tell him what happened? Thank you so much, Alexis!"

Alexis's was down right dumbstruck when Pansy hugged her before running off. Wasn't she supposed to think Alexis was trying to steal her boyfriend or were girls only like that in public? Either way, Alexis was confused and Draco could tell.

"What's wrong, Alexis?" he asked, lifting a pale eyebrow. His right arm was wrapped with clean bandages.

Alexis shook her head, still rather surprised. She took a seat at the end of Draco's bed, opening and closing her mouth as if she was about to speak but changing her mind last minute. Draco smirked, clearly amused by Alexis's bafflement.

"Well?" he asked once more. This time Alexis replied.

"So this morning Cho threatened me because she thought there was something going on between me and Cedric," started Alexis, "but then Pansy just leaves me alone with you like it was nothing. What did I miss?"

Draco smiled at Alexis, clearly seeing something she didn't.

"Pansy knows you and me are like brother and sister, Alexis," he stated nonchalantly.

"But so are me and Cedric!" shouted Alexis.

Draco merely smirked at her. It was easy to see he was going to be as much help as Hermione was when it came too her problem with Cho. So instead of trying to get him to explain why Cho was acting the way she was, Alexis instead kept Draco company while they waited for Pansy to return. When she finally did, it was during Draco and Alexis's third game of exploding snap.

"Thank you, Alexis," said Pansy. Alexis was surprised by how genuine she sounded.

"You're welcome, Pansy?" Alexis said more as a question then a statement. "You keep an eye on him, okay?"

"Don't worry," said Pansy, beaming. "I'll take care of him and father will too."

Alexis wasn't sure if she wanted to know what Pansy meant by that so she waved goodbye and left. She was heading towards the Great Hall for dinner when she quite literally ran into someone.

With a thump, Alexis landed on her bum. Towering over her was Remus Lupin, his hands grasping a pile of book he had just nearly spilt on the floor after their collision.

"Oh, my apologizes," said Remus, smiling warmly. "Shouldn't you be at dinner, Alexis?"

"I'm heading there now," said Alexis. She climbed to her feet, brushing off as she did. "I was in the hospital wing with Draco."

"The blonde Slytherin boy?" Remus asked. Alexis nodded her head. "Why is he in the infirmary?"

Alexis took some of the books out of Remus's hands and helped him carry them. As they made their way to his office, she told him what had happened during Care for Magical Creatures class. She had only just finished explaining everything to him when they arrived,

"No doubt you have a healthy fear of Hippogriffs now," chuckled Remus.

"Not really," said Alexis with a shrug. "I'm not allowed to be afraid of anything so I'm not."

Remus looked at her pleasantly surprised.

"Tell me, Alexis, do you know what a boggart is?" he asked, stacking the books on his desk.

"It's a creature that takes on the form of what it thinks would scare its victim the most," said Alexis.

Remus nodded his head approvingly.

"Do you want to face one?"

"When?" asked Alexis. She had always been curious what form her boggart would take seeing that she wasn't afraid of anything.

"Well, if you're free Thursday afternoon, your fellow classmates will be facing one I found in the teachers' lounge," said Remus. "Of course, I do hope you're not planning on telling them my lesson plan. It's meant to be a surprise."

Alexis nodded her head rapidly, clearly excited.

"I have Divination in the morning but it's my only class except Astrology and that's at midnight. I'd love to see a real boggart."

Remus smiled fondly.

"Excellent, well join us on Thursday then?"

Alexis nodded her head once more, heading towards the door.

"Yes Remus- I mean sir- I mean professor," she called running down the hall. She couldn't wait to tell Harry and them that she was going to be in another class with them this week.

.

After dinner, Alexis, Harry, Hermione, and Ron made their way to the Common Room to do their homework. However, with Alexis and Ron still not on speaking terms and the uneasy feeling that Hagrid wasn't okay, the four Gryffindors found it increasingly hard to focus.

"There's a light on in Hagrid's window," Harry said suddenly.

Ron looked at his watch.

"If we hurried, we could go down and see him. It's still quite early..."

"I don't know," Hermione said slowly, and Alexis saw her glance at Harry.

"He's allowed to walk across the grounds," Alexis said pointedly. "Sirius Black hasn't got past the Dementors yet, has he?"

So they put their things away and headed out of the portrait hole, glad to meet nobody on their way to the front doors, as they weren't entirely sure they were supposed to be out.

The grass was still wet and looked almost black in the twilight. When they reached Hagrid's hut, they knocked, and a voice growled, "C'min."

Hagrid was sitting in his shirtsleeves at his scrubbed wooden table; his boarhound, Fang, had his head in Hagrid's lap. One look told them that Hagrid had been drinking a lot; there was a pewter tankard almost as big as a bucket in front of him, and he seemed to be having difficulty getting them into focus.

"'Spect it's a record," he said thickly, when he recognized them. "Don' reckon they've ever had a teacher who lasted on'y a day before."

"You haven't been fired, Hagrid!" gasped Hermione.

"Not yet," said Hagrid miserably, taking a huge gulp of whatever was in the tankard. "But's only a matter o' time, I'n't, after Parkinson..."

"Pansy?" said Harry, Hermione, and Ron. Alexis's mouth formed an O, finally understanding what Pansy had meant by her father taking care of Draco.

"Yeh," sniveled Hagrid. "Her father's a member of da school gov'nors, so da know. They reckon I started too big. Shoulda left Hippogriffs fer later...one flobberworms or summat...Jus' thought it'd make a good firs' lesson's all my fault..."

"It's all Pansy fault, Hagrid!" said Hermione earnestly.

"She got scared," added Alexis. "She insulted it."

"We're witnesses," said Harry. "You said Hippogriffs attack if you insult them. We'll tell Dumbledore what really happened."

"Yeah, don't worry, Hagrid, we'll back you up," said Ron.

Tears leaked out of the crinkled corners of Hagrid's beetle-black eyes. He grabbed both Alexis and Harry and pulled them into a bone-breaking hug.

"Ah, maybe she's right," said Hagrid, letting go of Alexis and Harry, who both staggered away, rubbing their ribs. Hagrid heaved himself out of his chair and followed Hermione unsteadily outside. They heard a loud splash.

"What's he done?" said Run nervously as Hermione came back in with the empty tankard.

"Stuck his head in the water barrel," said Hermione, putting the tankard away.

Hagrid came back, his long hair and beard sopping wet, wiping the water out of his eyes.

"That's better," he said, shaking his head like a dog and drenching them all. "Listen, it was good of yeh ter come an' see me, I really -"

Hagrid stopped dead, staring at Harry as though he'd only just realized he was there.

"WHAT D'YEH THINK YOU'RE DOIN', EH?" he roared, so suddenly that they jumped a foot in the air. "YEH'RE NOT TO GO WANDERIN' AROUND AFTER DARK, HARRY! AN, YOU THREE! LETTIN' HIM!"

Hagrid strode over to Harry, grabbed his arm, and pulled him to the door. Alexis, Hermione, and Ron hurried behind him.

"C'mon!" Hagrid said angrily. "I'm takin' yer all back up ter school an' don' let me catch yeh walkin' down ter see me after dark again. I'm not worth that!"

'What?' was all Harry could think. Alexis didn't blame him.

"What indeed."

Another short, simple chapter but it's building up to the important stuff. Remember, Alexis and Ron haven't made up and Alexis is at a lost with why Cho feels so threatened by her.

Please, please, please tell me what you think Alexis's greatest freak is going to be. My sister and me have been arguing about it for a while now and I'm torn between two specific ideas.

Luna the HP fan: OMG I love you! Your idea is great and I just might use it but I can't make any promises. It would be a great way to turn the school against Alexis but Cho doesn't hate Alexis so it might be a tad too much. (I still absolutely love the idea though) As for what the slimy Slytherins are talking about you're probably right, probably ;P As for Trelawney's prediction, well, that could be discussed forever and a Tuesday but I promise you you'll be surprised by what it means. (Hint: all predictions in this story actually happen just usually not how you expect)

Kuroi-Akuma-no-Okami: haha, yep, I'm not dead! thanks for the review and I'm glad I'm not the only anti-Cho. Now, with that said, I'm not exactly a Cho hater so you may get disappointed on a few occasions.

Remember, next chapter is the Boggart Chapter so I'm going to be working extra hard on it and hopefully I decide on which fear to use. (It will not be Dementors but it will be traumatizing to Alexis and unRidikulusable)

Please Review!

DCF