Author's Note: To all those living in the United States, I would like to wish them all a Happy Thanksgiving, which is tomorrow.
After lunch, the Gryffindor quintet headed outside for their Care of Magical Creatures lesson. It looked as if they were sharing the class with the Slytherins, for a group of them was walking in the same direction. A rather weedy-looking boy that Alex recognized vaguely as Theodore Nott glared at him, then at Beth, and hissed angrily, "It's because of you that my father and his friends ended up in Azkaban!" Crabbe and Goyle turned around to see who he was talking to, and when they saw Alex and Beth, cracked their knuckles threateningly and also glared.
Draco Malfoy, who was walking a little ways away from them with Daphne Greengrass, Tracey Davis, and Blaise Zabini, looked up. "Nott, they didn't have anything to do with your father or mine being in prison. It was the other students that wrote about the rumors to their parents, which led to my father being investigated, and then led to him telling on your father and some others under Veritserum. Before Father was sentenced, he told me that he had made some mistakes in life, and warned me to not do the same and to work to redeem the family name. Perhaps you should do the same."
"Besides, why are you so upset now, Theodore?" Daphne added. "Your father was only in Azkaban for two or three weeks before he escaped. Just because he's now on the run and hiding somewhere doesn't change the fact that he's no longer in prison."
"Not being in prison anymore doesn't make things better, Daphne!" Pansy Parkinson retorted. "Theodore has every right to be mad over what happened to his father, and you should be sympathizing with him. And I'm surprised that you, Draco, aren't angry over it."
Draco sighed. "I am upset that Father was sent to Azkaban, but he and Mother explained to me who was really to blame." He walked over to Alex and Beth and said, "I'm sorry for my previous behavior to you two. It was very rude of me, and Mother and Uncle Sirius gave me this entire lecture on it. Longbottom, Weasley and Granger, I apologize for my behavior towards you as well." He hesitated, then said quietly, "I don't expect that we'll ever be friends, but we can at least form a truce and be civil to one another. Deal, Alexander Romanov?" He awkwardly stuck his hand out.
Alex looked at the extended hand for a couple of seconds, then extended his own and shook Draco's hand briefly. "Deal, Draco Malfoy."
Ron, who was very shocked at the development, opened his mouth to either comment or protest, but Beth nudged him and reminded him, "We're not becoming friends Draco Malfoy. We're just going to leave each other alone and not be enemies anymore. And he did apologize."
"Fine," said Ron. "Malfoy, I accept your apology, and I'll just leave you alone as long as you do the same." Neville and Hermione said the same.
Draco nodded curtly in agreement and then walked back to his original place between Daphne and Blaise.
Hagrid was waiting for the class outside his house. He greeted them cheerfully, then led them around the edge of the Forbidden Forest to an empty paddock. After showing those students that hadn't learned how to calm down their books how to do so, he set off into the forest to get the creatures they were studying today. He returned a few minutes later leading a dozen hippogriffs on chains attached to thick leather collars on their necks.
Alex stared at them in awe. He had seen a picture of a hippogriff before, and had read a bit about them, but that wasn't the same.
"Gee up, there!' Hagrid roared, shaking the chains and urging the hippogriffs toward the fence where the class stood. Everyone drew back slightly as he reached them and tethered the hippogriffs to the fence.
"Hippogriffs!" Hagrid roared happily, waving a hand at them. "Beau'iful, aren't they?"
Alex could sort of see what Hagrid meant. Once you got over the first shock of seeing something that was half-horse, half-bird, you started to appreciate the hippogriffs' gleaming coats, changing smoothly from feather to hair, each of them a different color: stormy gray, pinkish roan, gleaming chestnut, and inky black.
"So," said Hagrid, rubbing his hands together and beaming around, "if yeh want ter come a bit nearer-" No one seemed to want to, but Alex and Beth approached the fence cautiously, and after a moment of hesitation, Hermione, Ron, and Neville did the same.
"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't bow, then get away from him sharpish, 'cause those talons hurt. Now- who wants ter go first?"
Most of the class backed farther away in answer. Even the Gryffindor quintet had some misgivings. The hippogriffs were tossing their fierce heads and flexing their powerful wings; they didn't seem to like being tethered like this. "No one?" asked Hagrid, with a pleading look.
Alex, knowing that Hagrid wouldn't let anyone get hurt if he could help it and that hippogriffs weren't that dangerous so long as you were careful and polite, raised his hand. "I'll do it."
There was an intake of breath from behind him, and both Lavender and Parvati whispered, "Oooh, no, Alex, remember your tea leaves!"
Beth sighed and snapped, "Remember what I said about it not being true? Furthermore, I haven't had any bad feelings about this, only good ones."
Alex felt better at hearing that his sister sensed that this was going to turn out well and climbed over the paddock fence.
"Good man, Alex!" roared Hagrid, "Right then-let's see how yeh get on with Buckbeak." 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. Pansy was glaring at him, and Nott's eyes were narrowed maliciously.
"Easy now, Alex," said Hagrid quietly. "Yeh've got eye contact, now try not ter blink... Hippogriffs don' trust yeh if yeh blink too much..." Alex's eyes immediately began to water, but he didn't shut them. Buckbeak had turned his great, sharp head and was staring at him with one fierce orange eye.
"Tha's it," said Hagrid. "Tha's it, Alex...now, bow..."
Alex did as told. He gave a short bow and looked up. Buckbeak was still staring haughtily at him. It didn't move. Hagrid, sounding worried, told Alex to back away, but then, to Alex's enormous surprise, suddenly bent its scaly front knees and sank into what was an unmistakable bow.
"Well done, Alex!" said Hagrid, ecstatic. "Right -yeh can touch him! Pat his beak go on!"
Alex slowly moved toward the hippogriff and reached out towards it. He patted the beak several times and the hippogriff closed its eyes lazily, as though enjoying it. The class broke into applause, except for Pansy, who was still glaring at him, and Nott, who looked deeply disappointed and nudged Crabbe and Goyle, who looked at him blankly for a second and then stopped clapping.
"Righ' then, Alex," said Hagrid. "I reckon he might let yeh ride him!" This was more than Alex had bargained for. He was used to a broomstick; but he wasn't sure a hippogriff would be quite the same. Hagrid explained how to get on Buckbeak's back, warning him not to pull out any feathers, and then slapped the hippogriff's hindquarters.
Without warning, twelve-foot wings flapped open on either side of Alex; he just had time to seize the hippogriff around the neck before he was soaring upward. It was nothing like riding a broomstick, and quite uncomfortable, for he had to deal with the wings beating on either side, making him feel like he was going to be thrown off, and the rising and falling of the hindquarters made him rock backwards and forwards. Also, the glossy feathers slipped underneath his fingers and he didn't dare get a stronger grip for fear of pulling on the feathers and angering Buckbeak.
Fortunately for Alex, Buckbeak only flew once around the paddock. However, the landing wasn't particularly pleasant. Alex leaned back as the smooth neck lowered, feeling he was going to slip off over the beak, and almost lost his handhold as Buckbeak's hooves and talons hit the ground with a thud. Alex somehow managed to hang on and push himself straight again.
"Good work, Alex!" roared Hagrid, as everyone except Pansy, Nott, Crabbe, and Goyle cheered. Emboldened by Alex'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 had to run backwards from his half a dozen times before it finally bowed in return. Beth was partnered with him, while Ron and Hermione practiced on the chestnut.
The rest of the lesson passed without incident, though Theodore Nott kept glaring at Alex and Beth every so often. On the way back to the castle, Nott snarled, "I hope my father and his friends show up at Hogwarts and do something really horrible to you!"
Ron and Neville pulled out their wands, no doubt to retaliate, but Hermione and Beth grabbed their arms, the former hissing, "You'll get in trouble for fighting!" Alex opened his mouth to make a retort, but Daphne spoke first.
"Oh, that's really brilliant, Theodore Nott," she said sarcastically. "With the dementors stationed at the entrances, that's a surefire way for your father and the other escapees to get caught. The only one that has any chance of getting past the dementors is Pettigrew, and since pretty much the entire wizarding world knows he's an Animagus, the wards would have been modified to keep him out or Stun him if he tried to show up here in his rat form."
"And I wouldn't go around acting all high-and-mighty," Tracey David added. "After the disgrace your father ended up in, the Nott name doesn't have influence any more. You were lucky the Ministry saw you as innocent in all of this and let you keep the family home and money, minus what went towards fines and legal fees. And that they found a distant cousin willing to act as your guardian so you didn't end up as a ward of the state."
Nott glared at the two girls, then strode off in a huff. Tracey rolled her eyes, and Daphne said, "Just ignore Theodore in the future, Alexander and Elisabeth. He's going to be saying stuff like that as long as he keeps blaming you two for what happened to his father. I'm siding with Draco, and would just like to stay out of any animosity between our two houses. Besides, my sister seems to have become friends with your cousin, and I would like to not force her to choose between my family and yours. And your family can't be all that bad if there's a couple of Slytherins in the group." She flashed a crooked smile.
Beth returned the smile and said, "I already knew that not all Slytherins are evil or bad. It's just the reputation that Salazar Slytherin and Voldemort gave it." She ignored the flinches from her friends and Daphne, and continued, "My cousin's main reason for persuading the Sorting Hat to put him in Slytherin was to work to change the dark reputation it had."
"That's good of him," said Daphne. "I think I'll do the same." She turned to her friend Tracey and they walked off, whispering to each other.
The Gryffindor quintet exchanged looks, then headed to the Room of Requirement so they could get started on their Transfiguration homework and do some research on possibly becoming Animagi one day (Alex having convinced his friends during lunch that it was worth looking into).
Author's Note: I have no intention of Draco Malfoy becoming friends with the Gryffindor quintet. Nor will Daphne Greengrass and Tracey Davis. Only Astoria Greengrass (of the Slytherins) will ever be friends with someone in the Romanov-Petrov clan, and that is Jonas. However, Draco, Daphne, and Tracey will be neutral, and Blaise Zabini will probably do the same. I just wanted to show some other fairly decent Slytherins, and I figured that Draco would call for a truce after a talk from his parents and Sirius (who offered Draco and Narcissa protection under the Black family name so long as they behaved themselves.)