A Feathery Tale

by Renart de Mal Herbe

She is a bird thing. Locked up in a little shed at the end of the garden and no one must see her. She dreams of the sun of the sky and the clouds, hears its call. Soon she will take flight. Myosotis Potter is a Veela. How did such a thing happened ? What does it mean for her and the wizarding world when they'll discover their "savior" is not what they belived her to be?

15. Chapter 15: Feathers and old stones

The corridor in front of the potion room was cold and damp, Myo had Luna against her, hoping to protect the little blonde from the visible dankness of the place. Luna wanted to let her flames out and envelop them both, banishing all traces of the icy dungeon air, but Myo understood that for some inexplicable reason, the other students seemed particularly intimidated by her fire... At least in this position, Luna seemed more relaxed, (and Myo wasn't complaining, there was something soothing about having Luna close to her.) discussing what kind of legendary potion she was going to discover the secrets of today. Myo was betting on the Philter scrutantur oculis, a potion from one of the books in her lab that, according to its description, allowed her to see the magic around her. Luna was thinking more about deliciosa, a potion she had never heard of but which Luna believed was used to bait certain magical creatures. Her father sometimes used it on his expeditions. Elvetia had simply said that, being a very bad cook, she hoped that today's potion would be to make a vervain tea.

As Elvetia passionately defended the magical power of vervain tea as the ultimate panacea, to the amusement of Myo, Luna and a few Hufflepuffs interested in their discussion, the door suddenly opened. Silence fell over the corridor like a shroud, the last murmurs vanishing as if blown away by an autumn wind. In the frame of the wide black door stood their teacher, Severus Snape. He was dressed entirely in black, such that the line between the shadows and his robes was tenuous. His cold, stern face showed no expression other than deep boredom, and what Myo dared to say, sadness. His eyes fell on the faces of each of the students in the hallway, all of them frozen in place. For a moment they lingered longer on Myo than on the others before finally settling on Luna, with only her head sticking out from under her feathers.

"Come in," he said curtly, his face a cold, impassive wax mask. All the students hurried inside, not daring to utter a word under the eyes of the imposing teacher. "Two to a table... except you, Miss Lovegood, please join a group," he added, closing the door silently.

Myo didn't hesitate, settling down with Elvetia and Luna behind a table at the back of the room. Unlike the corridor, the classroom was dry, but the cold made Elvetia shiver. The room had no windows, lit only by a few black iron lanterns housing small pearly white mushrooms that gave off a diaphanous light. The bare stone walls were covered with shelves filled with tinted glass jars full of strange monstrosities, some of which made her shudder.

At the other end of the room, Professor Snape stood behind his desk, straight, his tall, dark form barely standing out in front of the blackboard behind him. He watched the class for a moment before speaking, his voice quiet and low, but inexplicably able to be heard throughout the room. "Welcome to your first Potions class. No inane incantations or silly wand movements here. I could teach you how to bottle glory, distill greatness, and even seal death in a vial. That is, if you turn out not to be as much of a bunch of dunderheads as your predecessors.

Myo saw his gaze roam the room before settling on the side of it where the Hufflepuffs had gathered. "Miss Abbott, what happens if you don't let a boil-cure potion cool down before adding the porcupine quills?"

The questioned girl seemed completely caught off guard but quickly pulled herself together. "The... the potion becomes unstable and sprays everywhere, creating boils on the skin." she said. Professor Snape merely nodded.

"Mr Macmillan tell me what solvent is the basis of the potion we are going to make today?" The questioned boy stammered before blushing and bowing his head in a whisper, "I don't know, sir."

"That'll be two points taken from Hufflepuff for not bothering to read to the end of the introduction to this year's book. A solvent is the liquid that serves as the base for a potion. It is usually distilled water, oil or alcohol, but other rarer solvents exist, such as mercury. Today, it will be water." The professor said coldly, before his eyes fixed on Myo's.

"Miss Potter, let's see if you take your education more seriously than Mr Macmillan. Where can we find a bezoar and what is it for?"

Myo answered instantly, after all, she had already been lucky enough to find one of these stones during one of her hunts. "In the stomach of a goat, sir, and they serve as the basis for most antidotes, and can counteract many weak poisons," she recited proudly from what she had read about them in "Traveller's Potions and Decoctions."

At her answer, Professor Snape raised an eyebrow and nodded. "Well, I see we are not completely surrounded by fools. Today, as I'm sure the least moronic of you have noticed, you will be performing a boil-cure potion. The instructions are in your book on page twelve and on the board. The ingredients are in the storeroom, so don't rush or break anything. You may begin." He said in a cold and gloomy tone. Myo had the unpleasant impression that this man was far too sad and depressed, so much so that she could feel a pang in her heart when she saw him watching the students hurry to the storeroom.

At their bench, Elvetia took on the role of fetching their ingredients, Luna concentrated on setting up the equipment, and Myo began to carefully read the instructions in the book and on the board and compare them. Strangely enough, the instructions on the board differed in many ways from those in the book, and Myo took care to amend the errors in their own text, since the teacher must have had good reason to give different instructions after all.

A few minutes later, their potion had taken on a pearly hue and was bubbling gently, Myo was fascinated by the multi-coloured tendrils swirling in the liquid. Luna had taken seriously her task of preparing the ingredients, and Elvetia, their incorporation into the potion and the number of turns and the fire. Myo had fallen naturally into place with the book in her hand, supervising and giving directions, as well as monitoring the times. A smile had settled permanently on her lips, their little group was working wonderfully well, all three of them coordinated almost perfectly. Luna seemed particularly happy to be able to handle the fresh, unprocessed ingredients.

Their teacher paced back and forth between the rows, his face still sad and stern, watching with concentration all the potions being brewed. Myo couldn't help but wonder once again what could be causing such sadness and apathy in Mr. Snape. From what little she had seen of him, he always seemed sad and lonely, the only person she saw give him a positive expression was Mrs. CatGonagall.

She glanced at her small mechanical pocket watch, and motioned to Elvetia to turn down the heat, it was almost time to add the dreaded porcupine quills. As Luna was about to pass the quills to Elvetia, a bright blue light surrounded their bench for a moment. Dazed, the three friends looked around, seeing nothing in particular.

"Mr Entwhistle." Professor Snape snarled. "Can you explain to me why you tried to sabotage the potion of Miss Lovegood, Miss Morelle and Miss Potter?"

"I...I..." Entwhistle stammered, "I wanted to help, she forgot an ingredient."

Snape bent down and picked up what looked like a reddish, twisted root. "And you were going to do that by slipping an emaflore root into their potion? My class is not a playground, the art of potions is as serious as it is dangerous. Hence the presence of isolation wards around each bench. This will be your first and last warning before you are permanently expelled from my class. Twenty points off Ravenclaw, two weeks detention every night, and get out of my class immediately. I'm sure Mr. Goldstein will be able to return your belongings."

As Entwhistle ran out of the classroom with a pale face as Severus Snape returned to his supervision, Myo turned admiring eyes on the back of the departing professor, he had saved them! Her resolution was made, by the end of the year she would have made Severus Snape a cheerful man!

A few minutes later, their potion finished, and bottled, and after receiving a nod and an "acceptable" from the professor, the three friends left the room, Myo resolved, one clear goal in mind, she had to discuss with Luna and Elvetia how to help Mr. Snape!

oOOOo

The second course of the morning was Defence Against the Dark Arts. Or DADA, as Nym, Penelope and Michael affectionately called it. When Myo entered she was shocked by the intense smell of garlic taking over her nostrils. Luna also had a coughing fit, and Elvetia didn't seem to be feeling any better than they were. Morag and Padma didn't seem to mind much, showing their discomfort only with a small frown before moving away to sit as far away from their group as possible. Myo couldn't help but smile. Morag was probably afraid that she would feel cornered in this room, which was much narrower than the others. As for them, the group of Ravenclaw boys went around her at a distance, Goldestein and Entwhistle giving her nasty glares. Myo almost felt like throwing a fireball at them as retribution for trying to sabotage their potion! Luna could have been hurt!

Their trio moved to the back of the room, near the window, which she hurriedly opened, as far away as possible from the strange, lanky, turbaned professor arranging his papers on the desk. A few moments later, the Slytherin contingent entered, with whom they were apparently going to spend the course. The blond boy, whom Myo couldn't help but find adorable, yelped again when he saw her, hurrying to the front row as far away from her as possible. The others did not react as strongly, but gave her looks of fear and concern. Except for a tall blonde with icy eyes and a regal appearance who did not give her a single glance, accompanied by a small brunette who gave her a furtive glimpse full of curiosity.

Once everyone was settled, the professor, a certain Quirrell, according to Elvetia, stood up and began to call the roll. Myo winced, his nasally, squeaky voice and abominable stammering, coupled with the smell of garlic, was beginning to give her a headache.

As he was about to begin his lecture, Goldstein raised his hand. "Professor, can you tell us about the Veelas? We need to learn how to defend ourselves against them, what with one in the castle and all!"

Quirrell seemed caught off guard for a moment, before raising an eyebrow. "Mr. Goldstein, the Veela are not dark creatures, therefore, out of my area of expertise, I suggest you speak to our professor of zoology instead." He said.

At this, most of the class laughed, Myo looking from left to right without understanding what was so funny about it. Luna looked totally normal, more interested in something going on outside, while Elvetia had blushed in anger. Not knowing how to react, Myo simply took Elvetia's hand from under the table and clasped it in her own. Perhaps she would ask her what it all meant later.

Other than that event, the class went on in a fairly normal fashion, though the attempt to have the professor stammer his way through his lecture on vampires in a pathetic and exaggerated fashion could be described as normal. Myo had read in the Tonks' library about vampires, and from the little she had learned, she could tell with certainty that the bloodthirsty savage beasts described by the professor had nothing to do with real vampires. Perhaps she should simply not return to this class, if only to spare Luna's innocent ears from this kind of nonsense and spend their time on something more instructive. Like a hug, yes, a hug would be more instructive about vampires than an hour and a half in a room reeking of garlic with a teacher babbling nonsense to a class either fascinated or in the same state of scepticism as her. The blonde princess of Slytherin, for example, had long since stopped taking notes and used her time to read what seemed to be a novella.

Elvetia had probably had the same thought, since she had started just reading the book and having fun writing comments on it. She and Luna looked at each other for a second, then Myo shrugged and took out a sheet of drawing paper from her bag and began to draw a picture of the professor, trying to figure out this riddle in the form of a man with her graphite tip capturing the roughness of his skin, his round face, and his frightened eyes on paper. Luna had imitated her, but as usual, began to draw the landscape she could see from the open window.

When class ended, Myo lingered in the classroom for a while, until only she, Luna and Elvetia were left. She then approached the teacher with her drawing in hand. "Professor?" She said.

He gasped with great surprise and a little bit of fear, before turning back to her. "Miss Potter, what can I do for you?"

Myo looked at him one last time from head to toe, his mysterious turban, his haunted brown eyes, his pale complexion, his oversized robes covering his lean body. "Professor, neither I nor Luna will be coming back for your next class," she declared in a calm voice. Why waste their time with this teacher, who unlike Snape, Catgonagall, Flitwick, and even Sprout, seemed to have nothing to teach her.

"Miss Potter, you're not allowed to do that, my class is compulsory, I - "

"I'll study alone." Myo interrupted him. "Here's a parting gift," she added, handing him her drawing. The teacher took it, stammering something incomprehensible, his eyes wide. Myo gave him a bright smile before turning to leave, once at the door she turned one last time, to see the professor, her drawing in his hand, looking at her in a lost, perplexed and outraged way. "Goodbye teacher." She finished before trotting off to join Luna and Elvetia who had gone ahead of her. She didn't turn around at the muffled sound of the professor's voice calling her name. Her time with Luna was too precious to be wasted spending hours in a garlic-stinking room listening to a man babbling nonsense.

That said, would Luna want fish and mushrooms for lunch? And would Elvetia want to eat in the great hall? Or would she prefer to come? Maybe Nym would like to go with them too.

oOOOo

She was comfortably seated in a chair in the Hufflepuff common room. She was lucky, she didn't have any classes this afternoon, so she could spend her time having fun with her friends. Today had been a beautiful day. Transfiguration and ancient runes this morning, then lunch at the lake with her little adopted sisters, and their new friend, Elvetia Morelle. No wonder a Morelle had befriended the only openly creature person in the school, she thought. She would keep an eye on the young Morelle, but for now, approved of this new friendship. And from what she'd seen of Myo hanging out with Penelope Clearwater and Michael Norwan, Myo had surrounded herself rather well.

Her little Myo had impressed her once again. She had known for a long time that her little sister had lived completely alone on hunting, gathering and plundering in her tower, and she had several times witnessed Myo easily catching small game to bring home as a sign of gratitude to Andy, but she had never witnessed Myo fishing. She spun in the air over the lake before swooping down like lightning and scouring the dark waters to return to her with a fish squirming in her talons. It had been a wonderful time, perhaps she should think about joining them more often for lunch, as she seemed to disdain meals in the great hall. Maybe even suggest to one or two friends from the lower years to join her, in order to form a bigger group around Myo.

During this good time, her little veela had made a strange request. "What do you do when you're depressed to cheer yourself up?" She had asked, with her adorable big eyes, which she hoped Myo would remain unaware of their devastating effect for a long time to come, because if she didn't, no one could resist her little sister. When she had started to list things, such as going to the cinema, a box of chocolates, a good book, going out somewhere, talking to friends, she had been surprised to see Myo take out a notebook and take notes. When she had asked, Myo had simply said that it was for a secret project. She had to keep an eye out.

It was now a good hour since she and three friends had begun a frenzied game of exploding snaps. She had just won the box of chocolate frog that had been bet on and was enjoying her due when Mavis, who had been strangely silent for a while, looked at her with concern. "Tonks?" she asked. Causing Iris and Evelyn to stop talking, she turned to look at her curiously, not expecting their friend's serious tone. "Are you sure you're okay?"

Tonks raised an eyebrow. "Do I not look okay?"

Mavis swallowed. "It's just... you've been hanging out with the Veela a lot."

Her hair darkened. Turning from candy pink to a dark purple. "So?" She said with a frown. She knew Mavis was from a pureblood family, but she'd known her for years, she wasn't going to...

"She's a veela, are you sure she hasn't put a spell on you or something? I've heard they can bewitch people. I'm worried about you, have you seen her flames? Her talons? She could kill you!"

Her hair turned from purple to black. "Mavis... Are you serious?" Iris and Evelyn watched the exchange dumbfounded.

"Don't you see the way she's fooling everyone? I'm not duped! She's dangerous Tonks! You shouldn't hang out with her."

She got up slowly from her chair, her anger was rising, and she knew it would be really bad to let her anger speak. "Mavis, I'm going out for some air. When we meet again, I hope you'll never say such stupid things to me again. I haven't told you explicitly, but I consider Myosotis my little sister. Don't ever speak of her as if... as if she were... some kind of wild animal. I, if I stay, you're going to be hurt... I have to get out." She walked out of the common room, taking deep breaths to stay calm. Mavis would eventually realise the enormity of what she had just said. In the meantime, she had to get away, otherwise she might end up in a fight.

oOOOo

She was sitting at one of the many desks in the room. Next to her, Luna had her head in her arms and was fast asleep. Elvetia was also struggling with the prospect of a sweet early afternoon sleep right after lunch. Most of the other students did not seem to be doing any better. Some were asleep, others were chatting without paying attention to the class.

In the middle aisle, the ghost was slowly going back and forth, his voice monotonous and floating, like a continuous hum of words that had long since lost their meaning. He spoke of revolts, blood, fighting and death. Of the oppression of a scorned people, of people described as savage and brutal barbarians. All this in a voice devoid of all feeling, reminding her of the dusty old gramophone with scratched records that she had managed to make work one last time in Andy's cellar, before the last rune of the formula emptied itself of all magic, silencing forever the ancient device.

Myo had the vague impression that the ghost was describing the old Goblin revolts, from the time before the wizards gave them full power over their economy, or as Ted put it, admitted defeat without admitting it, thus retaining a form of dignity, but a hollow one, drained of all real substance. But Myo saw no connection between the savage creatures the ghost described in his dead voice, and the proud creatures with finely crafted armour, blades as magical as they were deadly, grandiose architecture, and terrifying underground tunnels, which Myo would never return to if she had the choice.

It had been a good half hour since the "history" class had begun, and Myo couldn't take it anymore. If her Luna needed to sleep, it should be between her wings, on comfortable cushions, not on a hardwood table! This was unacceptable! This class was like Quirrell's, except that the ghost didn't stink of garlic, and she didn't have enough respect for an after-image of a being who once lived, as Hogwarts: a history had described them, to wait until the end of the class to announce that she wouldn't be returning.

She stood up, and stepped into the central ranger to face the ghost, it didn't even seem to notice her and just passed through her, with it a cold chill shaking her shoulders. Her flames appeared immediately, as if to chase away the chill of death, engulfing her briefly before continuing to burn calmly under her clothes. The few Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws still awake watched her wide-eyed, but without saying anything. Myo returned to Luna and Elvetia.

"What are you doing? hissed the latter.

"I'm leaving, and I'm taking Luna with me, it's like DADA, we have no time to lose here. If you're going to sleep, you might as well sleep somewhere comfortable."

"I... I... I'm at least trying to finish the first class before I decide whether to come back or not." She said resolutely.

"Are you sure?" Myo asked.

"Yes, now disappear traitor." She replied with amusement.

Myo huffed, and lifted Luna, taking care not to wake her, as she instinctively clung to her like a koala bear, which made Elvetia giggle in turn. They left the room, without the ghost even interrupting his lecture or seeming to notice their absence. Myo jumped out of the first available window to get to their tower as quickly as possible, Luna would need some sleep after all, so she wouldn't fall asleep in the middle of tonight's astronomy class.

oOOOo

Myo hadn't planned to do much this afternoon, now that she was free, Luna hadn't even woken up during the flight to the tower, bearing witness to the powerful sleep-inducing effect of the ghost's voice. She had tried to lay her down in the nest of cushions and blankets, but she hadn't been able to unhook her, Luna just squeezing her arms and legs tighter around her. So she had resigned herself to reading her history book with a deeply sleeping and tightly clutching Luna in her lap.

An hour and five chapters later, Luna woke up, full of energy, too much energy.

She already knew that a rested Luna could sometimes mean a demon. It had only started out mildly, Luna just wasn't interested in reading, or any other solitary activity, so she had started to braid her hair in pigtails, buns, braids and other extravagant hairstyles. This went on for a while before her young friend got tired of this activity and started to do everything she could to distract her, stroking her feathers, making her try on scarves, drawing on her face with coloured inks among other things. Not being able to take it anymore, she closed the storybook and asked what her little moon could want to justify such harassment. So, a few minutes later, they were flying over the green mountains surrounding the valley in search of interesting places to explore, Luna having rightly pointed out that it was too sunny to spend the afternoon locked in their room.

From the sky, Hogwarts, the Forbidden Forest, the great lake, and the high, rugged mountains, smoothed out by rain, time, and wind, were a magnificent sight. Being guided by Luna's curiosity, they flew to a high pass where an ancient, almost faded path seemed to lead. On the other side of the pass, a high plateau appeared before their eyes, in the centre of which was a small lake, with waters clearer than the great black expanse at the foot of the fortified school. With a small cry of excitement, Luna pointed to a circle of large monoliths on the other side of the lake, towards which they flew.

The stones were large, covered with moss and lichen. In places she could still make out strange carvings in their bluish-grey rock. In the centre of the circle was a collection of stone slabs overgrown with weeds and mosses. Perhaps she would ask Nym about it, for she had no idea what this place was for. Her curiosity satisfied for the moment, while Luna seemed determined to explore the surroundings of the lake in search of various creatures, Myo perched herself at the top of the highest monolith, sat cross-legged and took out her drawing materials.

oOOOo

The astronomy course would have been fascinating, if the many nights spent under the cupola of the Lovegood house with Luna and the huge telescope observing things that their small portable telescopes could never show them, did not make her feel as if she were relearning things already learned under worse conditions. At least her and Luna's impressive knowledge had quickly endeared them to Professor Sinistra.

Myo had tried to invite Hermione to join them, but once again the young redhead whose name she still hadn't caught had interfered, pulling Hermione away from her. Something was wrong with Hermione the girl she would have liked to talk to more than once in the Diagon bookshop and the redhead.

Elvetia had found herself in a pairing with Neville, the future herbalist, and from time to time she gave them dark looks. Myo had been taken aback at first, not understanding the reason for their new friend's sudden hostility. Fortunately, the conundrum had been quickly resolved by the fact that when class finally ended, Elvetia had pinned her against a wall before accusing her of abandoning her at dinner. Apparently the atmosphere had been tense, Elvetia had explained that Morag didn't like her family and that Padma was more interested in visiting her twin than being a buffer. Myo didn't understand, even with Elvetia's explanation, why Morag had a problem with the Morelle's, but either way, she admitted defeat and apologised. An apology which was accepted on the condition that Elvetia would accompany them on their next trip to explore the mountains.

Now it had been a while since they had returned to their tower, and Luna had finally fallen asleep. This was the perfect opportunity for Myo to get the answers she was looking for. By now, the headmaster must have been out of his office for a while. She took one last look at Luna's sleeping form before jumping out of her window and taking flight into the starry darkness of the moonless night. The tall spires of the towers stood like shadowy titans against the star-studded blue background of the sky. At this hour of the evening the currents of warm and fresh air crossed, flowing over her feathers, guiding her through the labyrinth of stone and gothic architecture surrounding her. At times, she could see through the windows of the building, the flicker of a dancing flame from the lantern of hooded figures slipping silently through the veins of the slumbering stone colossus.

Her feathers vibrated in the air currents of the night, like an inky tide on which she glided, bypassing towers, crossing under great stone arches, avoiding grimacing gargoyles and discreet turrets.

She was beginning to despair of ever finding her goal through the aerial maze of the absurd architecture of this impossible citadel, when her gaze was drawn to an orange-red glow behind the window of a large tower. Gliding gently towards her target, she clutched the wall, plunging her sharp talons into the ancient joints between the stones, clutching at the window sill, the nails of her hands, sharper and stronger than she would have thought herself, digging into the wood of the window frame. Behind it she could see the source of the light, the Headmaster's bird, the phoenix, as Luna had told her, perched stoically on a golden bar, its feathers glowing like the embers of a sleeping fire. From what she could see, the Headmaster's office was quiet, no presence, just the expected darkness and shadows of a room of a sleeping castle.

Of course, the window was locked. And, of course, Alohomora and all the spells in her first year book and library also failed to offer her entry to the coveted riches of the Headmaster's office, the antique hat and the sleeping firebird. Myo considered for a moment melting the window with her flames, but the goal was stealth and loot. After all, stealing was perfectly moral, as long as the one being stolen was not a friend. Besides, did the Headmaster really need so many pretty shiny little things? His magical hat? Or his phoenix? She was sure he could do without it. After all, wasn't he a powerful mage? Myo frowned, she was running out of options, but breaking or damaging the window that offered her so much resistance and frustration would only cause the entire population of the castle, the hills and the surrounding villages to flock to it because of the sheer noise it would cause.

It was then, after several minutes of reflection, clinging to the wall, that she remembered the demonstration Pandora had given her months ago. It would be risky, but Myo could try! She concentrated, clutching her wand between her fingers, feeling the flames of her feather and dragon's sing in her hand, she had to remember the incantation and the series of movements correctly. This would be her first tier two spell, she thought fondly. Pandora would be proud of her... when she was done slaughtering her for her recklessness in attempting such magic without supervision. But Myo didn't have a better solution at the moment, and she knew she was far too impatient to give up now and go find a spell that would allow her to get past that damned window in the library she'd heard so much about.

She repeated the incantation three times in her head, went through the motions twice, before concentrating, the delicious adrenaline coursing through her veins. She could feel her magic vibrating under her skin as she began to recite the incantation. Her wand forming the most precise circles, curves and swirls she was capable of. "Adsurgere per aera, levis ut pelumis, ventus. Choro sensibus et mea. Aeris non erras. Maior, sublimior, ventos et procellas reddunt. Per virtutem et voluntatem meam, meus fiet, spiritus meus regit te. Serva coeli, in vento et astris, salta." she recited, her voice singing the spell more than saying it, the words leaving her mouth like leaves blown by a swirling autumn wind. She felt her magic taking shape around her and her wand, she focused on the window and its cursed lock, letting her magic be guided by her voice and the best Pandora imitation she could do.

Suddenly she felt her magic take hold, as if each piece of the window was a part of her body, as if each screw, piece of wood, and piece of glass was an integral part of her. As if her consciousness had expanded to encompass all the parts that made up the window object. She could feel the spells etched into it, the magic forming a solid block, inscribing the window as closed in the reality.

Myo smiled, delicately, she turned its lock, opened its hinges, never touching the hard, inscribed magic still believing the window to be closed, while like a limb of her own body, it opened up to her. She sighed deeply, it had worked! She had successfully cast the spell! From memory! Pandora had certainly shown her once or twice more at her request, but still! Myo felt that at this moment, she could be proud of herself.

She jumped inside, letting her partially extended wings break her fall, her talons making only a slight click on the floor as her claws met the wood. At night, the atmosphere in the headmaster's office was completely different. The many mechanical artefacts that during the day had been noisy, cackling, smoking and bubbling seemed to be asleep. The steady ticking of the great clock was the only sound to disturb the thick silence.

A big smile came over her face. She took a large canvas bag out of her flight bag and began to stuff almost everything she was interested in inside. Pretty things, stones, strange devices, books she could read the titles of, mostly cookbooks, and a promising looking book on runes. When she had finished, the office was unrecognizable, everything was upside down. Fortunately, she had been able to maintain enough composure to collect her dues in silence. She had taken care to sort out the objects that had belonged to the headmaster, leaving all the ugly ones, and those she had noticed making noise or emitting strange fumes. She had made a pile in the middle of the carpet. Once her bag was well filled and in her pouch, she turned to the real goal of her nightly expedition, the magic hat still slumbering atop a shelf.

She grabbed the old leather hat, and pushed it onto her head. At last, at last, she would find out what all the other students had been lucky enough to find out at the welcoming feast. A few seconds had passed without anything happening and Myo was beginning to doubt the value of the hat when she heard a voice echoing in her head.

"Who? What?" The hat, she realised, sounded surprised. He was really talking in her head! She could hardly believe it.

"Ah, it's you... and to think I was hoping to be left alone for at least a year... What do you want Nightbird?" The hat grumbled.

"Talking to you," she thought without thinking.

"Yes, I understood that."

"I wanted to know why you placed me in Ravenclaw even before being placed on my head and talking to me." She thought, trying to calm her excitement.

"Because I didn't want to waste my time when it was obvious where to sort you out."

"What do you mean? I could have gone to Gryffindor, I'm brave." She thought a little offended.

The hat gave a deep mental sigh. "You in Gryffindor, and in less than two months there would have been deaths. And put you in Hufflepuffs or Slytherin? Ridiculous! Their common room is underground. Putting a bird underground would have been at best stupid, at worst malicious."

"I wouldn't have killed anyone." She took offense.

"Even if you found out Luna was being abused, alone in her new home because of who she is? Even if you were attacked as a traitor for daring to be a Veela by the most vehement of Gryffindors?"

Myo was speechless at this, she could only too well envisage turning someone to ash if they dared to attack Luna.

"Ah, exactly! In Ravenclaw, they will observe you, study you, but they will not attack. And your young friend is there under your aegis. Ravenclaw was the only option from the moment I saw you in the hall. Besides, you fit in pretty well with the values of this house, breaking into the headmaster's office at night isn't for everyone."

"Can you see?" Myo asked, his curiosity getting the better of him.

"A Ravenclaw from talon to talon! From everything I've said, you're wondering about my nature! Yes I can see, my enchantments were not made by amateurs my chick."

"Is it true that you were worn by Godric Gryffindor himself?"

"You're too curious for your own good, you know that? Did you really come here just to interrogate me?...and ransack the headmaster's office...I said nothing, you're not losing it."

"You won't tell anyone it was me, will you?"

"And what's in it for me, you naive little thing?"

Myo thought for a moment. "If you don't say anything, I won't stuff you in my bag with the rest, and leave you here in good shape."

She had never heard a mental laugh, the sensation was strange. "All right, little negotiator, I'll keep quiet."

"hm... so? Godric?"

"You're impossible, no, it's a legend, I was created a century after their deaths to ensure the privacy of the students. Before, the method of sorting was more... invasive."

"oh..." Myo was a little disappointed at that, but it didn't ruin the excitement of having a thinking hat on her head. "How were you created?"

"Stop! No more questions! Put me down immediately or I'll scream!"

Myo shuddered at the tone of the hat and reluctantly put it back on top of the shelf where it seemed to fall asleep immediately.

As Myo looked around the room one last time before leaving, a movement on the periphery of her vision startled her. The phoenix had just poked its head out from under its wing and was watching her. She could see surprise, but also amusement, tenderness and a touch of pride in his eyes. How she could read all this in the bird's eyes, Myo did not know, but the strange connection she had felt the day before during her brief visit had returned, stronger. She reached out and placed her hand on the bird's plumage, her blue flames mingling with the bird's golden flames as they shot up between her fingers to form a beautiful green fire. She could see flashes of images pass before her eyes. She, with the phoenix on her shoulder, a tree with a sublime braided dome top, the immensity of the sky, snow-capped mountains, a circle of stone. The phoenix spread its wings and the images faded, then it jumped on her shoulder.

What the...? The phoenix looked at her with joy and hope. Was it really what Myo thought it was? She couldn't believe it, she had to ask Mélusine and Isabelle. She was dying to take the phoenix away too, but if the bird was subsequently seen in her company, she would immediately be recognised as the culprit for the intrusion into the office. "Next time I come by the office, when the headmaster is there, okay?" She whispered to the flame-feathered bird. It looked disappointed at this, but strangely enough, it nodded... were birds supposed to know what a nod meant? It was a phoenix, not a normal bird... It seemed awfully smart... It hopped off her shoulder to its perch, and Myo stroked its head, her fingers brushing the soft, warm plumage, before taking one last look back and jumping out the window.

oOOOo

That morning, Myo and Luna were joined by Nym, Elvetia, Penelope and Michael around the Ravenclaw table. Their schedule took into account the previous day's Astronomy lesson, so classes would not begin until that afternoon. This left the whole morning free. Nym had suggested that she go flying with her, since Luna had explained that she wanted to spend some time alone. Myo understood, it's true that since their arrival, she had behaved in a rather smothering way with the little blonde, and the latter hadn't been shy about pointing it out to her. Myo understood, of course, but she didn't have to like it! She couldn't help but worry about her young friend. Luna had told her about many of her excursions alone into the woods near her home, getting away from her parents on their travels, meeting creatures as fantastic as they were strange. Myo had her flames and talons to defend herself, and her wings to flee. But Luna was defenceless. Yes, she understood Luna's desire to explore without her, after all, Myo needed some solitude from time to time, but letting her go off on her own, at the mercy of the other wizards and the dangers of the castle, did not appeal to her. It was only with Luna's explicit promise to be careful that she had finally agreed.

That was why, this morning, at the breakfast table, she had captured Luna and refused to let her go until the last second. Fortunately, she didn't seem to mind, as she pretended nothing had happened and was discussing the latest issue of the Quibbler with Elvetia, who happened to subscribe to it.

No sooner was the great hall full than Myo was drawn out of her thoughts by the crystalline sound of the headmaster tapping against the side of his crystal glass reverberating in the hall. "Your attention please." He said in an unusually low tone that immediately made all heads turn towards him, silence settling in as the last murmurs died. "Last night, something serious happened. My office was vandalized and pillaged." At this statement, countless sounds of shock were heard, a hubbub of murmurs rising. The headmaster clapped his hands and silence returned. "We don't know who the culprit is, or how he got into Hogwarts. Don't worry, we have already concluded that the culprit could not be a student, only an adult wizard could have broken in and left without being caught. I'm telling you all the same that the Hogwarts wards will be reinforced and two aurors will be sent by the Ministry to investigate. I'm asking you to be careful for the next few days." At that he sat back down and let a myriad of discussions erupt.

Myo let out a breath she didn't feel she was holding, she wasn't suspected, her new treasure would remain hers. This unfortunately did not go unnoticed by either Luna or Nym who gave her an inquisitive look as for Nym, and a secret smile on Luna's part.

oOOOo

The forest was beautiful, the sun filtering through the thick foliage, peppering the ground covered in fallen leaves with spots of light. At first, faithful to Myo, Elvetia had not wanted to let her walk alone, but she had finally managed to convince her. At first she had walked leisurely along the lake shore, listening to the lapping of the water, then she had spotted a wulbigwoot between the trees, its beautiful pearly white fur reflecting the sunlight. She had followed it, hoping to get a closer look. She had only seen one once before in the woods near her home. But after following it for a long time, she had finally lost track of it. The beautiful creature had vanished.

And now Luna was completely lost, far away in the forbidden forest. But it didn't matter, the forest was beautiful, the weather was good, and there was so much to see. She was even lucky enough to see three trippilat making their nests. She continued to walk between the trees, humming a happy tune, letting her fingers slide against the rough bark of the old oaks and elms. Since arriving at Hogwarts, Myo had been strange, always worried and on guard, refusing to let her get more than half a metre away from her in the presence of other wizards. It was a bit tiring in the long run, but Luna knew that Myo didn't even really realise it.

Myo had to learn that Luna was a big, strong, independent girl now, let her explore and experiment on her own, trust her. That said, maybe Myo was right to worry about her like that, given that it had taken her less than an hour alone to end up lost in the forbidden forest... she blamed the wulbigwoot for that, he didn't have to be so fascinating.

A little further on, the woods had become darker, the cover of fallen leaves giving way to nettles and brambles, a smell of mould and dampness permeating the air. Luna stopped humming and raised an eyebrow, the temperature had dropped a few degrees. A cloud of condensation formed in front of her mouth, and she shoved her small hands into her pockets. She sighed, she didn't think she'd run into one in this forest, she should have known better, the forest had to be off limits for a reason. She walked calmly towards an old tree with a large trunk and crouched behind it. All she had to do now was wait. As the cold and rotting smell became more intense, Luna began to play with a few twigs, amusing herself by piling them up in whimsical architectural outlines.

The sound of something large dragging against the ground, of a thousand demented paws scraping madly, could be heard. The cold, distant echoes of a flute with discordant chords, a complaint, a rattle. On the other side of the trunk she could hear the thing crawling, the sound of branches breaking under its weight. Luna smiled, she had just finished assembling a miniature unicorn shelter from twigs.

The sound of the earth being ploughed by the thing ceased, the sound of ragged breathing, a putrid breath. Luna gathered more twigs for her next construction.

The song of the strange, distant flute grew louder, and the scraping resumed, twigs, branches and trunks breaking off nearby. The thing was moving away. The temperature returned to normal and the birdsong resumed. Luna took the time to finish her miniature twig hut, then stood up and stretched before emerging from her hiding place. This one must have been quite large, she thought as she looked at the wide furrow of ploughed earth, toppled or broken trees, and puddles of black, putrid, slimy liquid remaining on the ground.

This part of the forest wasn't very inviting, she decided, before resuming her journey and changing direction. A few kilometres, a nice huge spider that had kindly allowed itself to be caressed, and a poisonous tentaculae further on, she squealed with joy, at the bottom of the trunk of a large oak, mushrooms that Myo liked to put in her recipes. And big ones at that. After politely asking the oak tree for permission, she picked up one out of two, which she carefully put in her bag. Myo will be happy to have some for tonight.

As she was about to get up, she felt something hard and cold and sharp against her neck. She stood still, and simply stroked the blade with her fingers, feeling the arabesque and floral patterns on the silver. "Give me a reason not to cut off your head and then devour your flesh, intruder? Said a crystal clear voice.

Luna sighed, were the wizards of Hogwarts even aware of the presence of háir álfar in the forest? Or had she just walked longer and further than she thought? Or had she just walked longer and further than she thought? "Because I'm spoken for." she said simply, before slowly pointing with one of her hands to Myo's lovely feathered brooch, which she only took off to sleep.

At this statement, she heard a gust of wind, and the blade had disappeared from against her throat. She stood up and turned around, there was nothing left but a few dry leaves fluttering gently in the breeze as witness to what had just happened. Luna smiled, when Myo came for her later she would be able to say goodbye to any form of autonomy for at least a week, her friend would not let her out of her sight, and she might even have to fight for the right not to be given the beak. She couldn't complain about it, she would have it coming and deserved, poor Myo would soon start to worry. But there was nothing she could do about it now, she was, after all, completely lost, so she might as well make the most of her last few hours of autonomy before a raging ball of feathers swooped down on her from the sky.

She turned her gaze to the sky, the sun was in the middle of its course, she was inevitably going to miss the afternoon classes. Fortunately, it was only botany, and Professor Pomona's head was always too full of wrackspurt to teach properly anyway. At least, when Myo was in the room. Maybe she could suggest that Myo ask Neville for help? He was touched by nature.

She wandered around for a good two hours at least, meeting a friendly dryad and narrowly avoiding an ugly lecherous satyr. She was walking between the trees when she came to a large clearing. The ground was covered with tall grass, and dozens of filina floated lazily in the air, greyish, nebulous orbs, vaguely reminiscent of jellyfish without tentacles. They sometimes came into the garden at night, this was the first time she had seen them in daylight. She let her fingers caress one of them, it glowed with a golden light when she touched it, she could feel its magic singing at her touch. She glanced up at the sky, she could feel it, myo would be here soon. Maybe two or three hours before she found her.

A little later, Luna was overjoyed! After leaving the clearing and walking through a particularly dark undergrowth for a while, she had just arrived at a set of hot spring basins! Here the ground was sandy, covered with rock and rounded pebbles, smoothed by time. And in front of her, more than twenty pools of various sizes, from marshes to small ponds, all steaming slightly. She could hear the water flowing towards a river invisible from where she was standing.

Without further ado, she undressed, carefully folded her robes before placing them on a large dry stone, then dipped a toe into the water to gauge its temperature. The water was to her liking, and she slipped entirely into the warm water with a sigh of relief, the warmth relaxing her tired legs from so much walking.

Her mind was lost in the steam of the hot water. After a long moment, her mind wandered back to Hogwarts, that old castle brimming with life, but especially the incredible amount of wrackspurt it inhabits. She sees the wrackspurt whispering nasty things in the ears of those who look at her and Myo with dark looks. As wonderful, respectable and ancient as the fortress is, it's no place for her and Myo, and they'll be leaving it, she hopes, soon enough. The wrackspurt stirred, the nargle gathered, how long would it be before they became enraged and came out of the shadows to attack them more directly? She sighed, if only it could be simpler, if only the idiots Mumy was talking about had just let Myo go to Beaubaton with her people... But no, they'd done the stupidest thing. Maybe she should write to Dady, this stupidity was undeniable proof that the rotfang conspiracy had formed an alliance with the Dursley clans to overthrow the ministry.

Luna felt a little guilty for going off on her own like that, and then letting her curiosity get the better of her, especially since she hadn't even gotten a good look at the wulbigwoot as closely as she'd liked. Now Myo would worry, and go looking for her. She knew she would later regret getting lost like that. When, inevitably, Myo wouldn't let her walk alone for a long time. But for now, in the delicious warmth of the water, she couldn't blame herself for getting lost. Perhaps she should learn the 'point me' charm, or the 'compass' charm, though she doubted their effectiveness in a forest as densely magical as the Forbidden Forest.

As Luna, completely relaxed, pondered whether she could ask Hagrid if she and Myo could go and see the Thestrals, a series of splashes drew her from her thoughts. In front of her, a beautiful white-skinned face with large black eyes and long eyelashes had just emerged from the water, long blonde hair surrounding the face of the girl who was obviously about her age. Luna smiled, she had not expected to see a naïad curious enough to approach her. She had of course seen them at the pond and river near their home, but they knew her and Mumy well, and therefore weren't afraid to come and play with them. But this naiad didn't know her, and yet... Luna held out her hand towards her gently. The naiad stepped back a little, but after a brief hesitation, she took hold of her hand and began to examine her fingers with her webbed hands, which tickled Luna and made her giggle.

This naiad must be younger than she thought if she wasn't talking yet. As Luna began to let her mind drift again, softened by the heat, she was surprised to receive a splash in the face. She blinked for a moment to see the naiad laughing happily at her undoubtedly bewildered face. Without hesitation, with a burst of laughter, Luna sent the splash back at the young naiad, war was declared! A memorable splash battle ensued, with the naiad obviously emerging victorious. The naiad, visibly exhausted by their game, came to stick to her. It wasn't as good as a Myo hug, if only for the lack of soft feathers, but Luna never says no to a cuddle.

She couldn't tell how long later she was awakened from her torpor by the naiad uttering a high-pitched squeal as she looked up at the sky, before diving and disappearing into the waters of the hot spring, leaving only a few ripples behind. Luna looked up, and a shiver ran down her spine. Myo must have been more worried than she had expected. A few feet up, between the treetops, a huge raptor of blue and white flame was slowly descending, its eyes two incandescent, unfathomable shafts of light fixed on her. The huge bird was a little larger than she remembered from the storm, its wingspan over twenty metres. Luna shuddered, if Myo had put herself in such a state, she should expect exemplary retribution.

Luna stood up and climbed out of the water as the huge firebird landed in the moss a few feet away from her. In a powerful wave of hot air that dried her instantly, the flames dissipated, and Myo materialized in her place, her face pale, dark circles visible under her eyes. Luna's heart sank. She knew Myo would worry, she knew she would come for her. But she had no idea that Myo would react like this. Luna almost wanted to run away, so frightened was she by the look Myo gave her. However, before she could even think about moving, she was in Myo's embrace, her arms and wings closing around her. Luna awkwardly patted her friend's back in an attempt to soothe her.

"Don't ever do that to me again, promise. If you want to go off on your own, tell me where you're going and how long before I have to start worrying. Promise." Myo said gravely, holding her tighter.

"I promise."

Luna felt the embrace loosen. Myo looked at her from every angle, searching for any sign of injury or bruising, and then, clearly satisfied, nodded before gesturing to her pile of clothes. "Get dressed and explain."

Luna didn't let herself be told twice and quickly put on her clothes, now was not the time to ignore Myo. Her eyes burned with an intense bluish flame that had devoured their usual soft green. She could see her flames coating her form, her contours distorting as her wings wavered between their physical and elemental forms. "I was walking by the lake when I saw a wulbigwoot in the forest, I wanted to follow it and got lost." Another shiver ran down Luna's spine, it was not without reason that the háir álfar let her go immediately after seeing her brooch. Myo could be a little intimidating at times.

No sooner had she said this, Myo grabbed her again and with a mighty sweep of her wing, she took her high into the air above the forest. The sun was already low on the horizon. Luna had been stuck in the forest for longer than she thought she might be. "You know I'm exchanging letters with Pandora?" Myo whispered in her ear, as she climbed higher and higher into the sky.

"Yes."

"You know, in her last letter, she told me that I now have her full support to act, and decide what to do, if you ever do this sort of thing."

Luna swallowed, nodded, and resigned herself to her fate. Maybe she should look on the bright side, she would be very, very comfortable for the next few days.

oOOOo

Albus rested his head on the high back of his chair. It was only Thursday, and he was already exhausted. Minerva had been quick to pass on to him all the letters from parents worried about the safety of their children with a Veela in the school. He had written letter after letter to reassure them. No, Myosotis Potter would not prey on their daughters' innocence. No, she would not corrupt the minds of their children by forcing them to engage in unnatural acts. No, she would not set anyone on fire. No, Lord Malfoy, your son is just having completely absurd reactions out of all proportion in the presence of young Myosotis.

Not to mention the usual difficulties of finding a teacher of defence against the dark arts and saving his reputation from being dragged through the mud for leaving the young Myosotis, a XXXXX creature in the presence of muggles, where she was obviously abused. The worst part was that his former allies and teachers now looked at him with suspicion.

The highlight of the show was the robbery of his office earlier in the week. Albus was certain that whoever had broken in was after the stone, surely a servant of Vodelmort. After all, a tier two spell had been used very creatively to cleverly bypass the powerful wards around his office. Not to mention that the intruder had managed to slip past the hat and Fawks, who otherwise would have immediately warned him. A feat beyond the level of a student at his school. The only piece of the puzzle that left him completely in the dark was the strange fact that the intruder had ransacked the office and stolen so many insignificant objects. Decorative books of low level spells and cooking, purely decorative items... it didn't make sense!

He threw a lemon drop into his mouth, thinking about this now was not going to help him at all. He was waiting for a visit from the biggest headache he'd had in a long time. Myosotis Potter. Not only had she managed to illegally enrol her young friend Lovegood in Hogwarts, and threatened to just... leave, if she wasn't accepted. But that wasn't all. He had received very positive feedback from Minerva, Filius, Severus and Aurora about the politeness and hard work of the young Potters and Lovegood. But Pomona had bemoaned the fact that such a fire disaster was allowed in her greenhouses, and Quirrinus had complained that she'd stayed just the first class before telling her straight in the eye that she wouldn't be coming back, deeming his teaching style inadequate.

He could try to convince her to make more of an effort in Herbology and return to DADA, but how could he pressure her? His plan to place the young Potter in a house where she would have a difficult childhood so as to make her dependent on him had backfired spectacularly. Now he found himself with a proudly independent young Veela, who, as he understood it, saw her magical education as merely amusing and potentially superfluous, and could live very well on her own. He was even beginning to doubt his ability to convince her to stay on next year instead of going to Beaubaton. How many concessions would he have to make to get her to stay so that he could slowly mould her into the heroine his world would need when Tom would come out of hiding?

He was drawn out of his thoughts by three knocks against the door. He sighed, here was the so-called troublemaker. "Come in, my girl." He said in the calmest tone he could muster at the moment.

"You wanted to see me, Headmaster. Said Myosotis as she entered. She was accompanied by young Miss Lovegood, pressed against his side, hand in hand, one of young Veela's wings draped around young Lovegood.

He raised an eyebrow, his eyes twinkling with amusement. There was something going on here that he didn't know about. Young Lovegood's rosy cheeks, and her eyes turned to the ground, told him a lot. "Yes, my girl, but tell me, in what honor are you accompanied by Miss Lovegood?"

" She did something stupid, now she's grounded, and she's not allowed to get more than three feet away from me until further notice. "

"And what has she done to deserve such... magnitude of punishment?" he asked with amusement. If the young Potter was giving him headaches, he might also get a laugh out of it.

"She got lost for hours in the mountains across the lake. I was worried sick when I finally found her." Albus had a hunch that there was more to the story, but he wouldn't get more out of the two girls in front of him.

"I see, Miss Lovegood, I'm afraid I can't do anything to help you. Your punishment seems... justified. Now, Miss Potter, I have called you here because of several of my concerns. I hear you've dropped out of the DADA class. Could you enlighten me as to your reasons?"

"I found Professor Quirrelle's class a waste of time. Time that would be better spent in self-study or playing outside. I'm sure if we took a walk around the lake, we'd learn more about how to defend ourselves from the dark arts."

"That's... disturbing. What made you take such... drastic measures?"

"His lecture is useless because of his stammering, the smell of garlic literally makes me sick, and he's talking nonsense. According to him, vampires are bloodthirsty beasts with no intelligence. But I know that vampires are people first and foremost!

"I see, however, I can't do anything at the moment until I receive more complaints. However, I can give you one test per term which will allow me to ensure that your self study is going well and thus validate your year. Are these terms acceptable to you?"

"Yes sir." Both girls said in unison.

"Well, one other thing, your head of house, Professor Flitwick has informed me of a disturbing fact. He has noticed that you are not occupying the dormitory, how come?" Albus was both curious and worried about this fact. How could he convince the young veela to stay another year if she had been excluded from her own dormitory in the first week, surely because of the refusal of a child of pure blood to share their dormitory with a... creature.

"I can't sleep with anyone but Luna in the same room as me. It's impossible." Declared the young Potter.

"And you've found a suitable alternative? If not, i'm sure I can help..." Interestingly, he had of course noticed the closeness between the young Lovegood and Miss Potter, but he hadn't realised it was that close.

"We've found another spare room perfect for our needs. Thank you."

Albus nodded, he wasn't pleased but he couldn't risk to push, the young veela might just fly away out of his reach. "Well then, I think we're done here. I wish you both a good weekend. Ah yes, Miss Lovegood, Friday after school, drop by my office, the floo will be open for you to return home."

As the two girls left the room, Fawks flew down from his perch to rest on the young Veela's shoulder. The bird looked him in the eye, before the two girls left his office, taking his phoenix with them. Albus was stunned, rendered speechless by what he had just seen and felt. He had always known that his bond with his phoenix was weak, that for some reason it had never crystallized into a stable familiar bond. And now he had felt it break, like a punch to the gut. Yes, his relationship with Fawks had never been the smoothest, especially with the bird unable to see the big picture and understand the reason for his actions that some would consider immoral. But then the phoenix decided to leave him for a baby veela?

Albus slumped in his seat and buried his face in his hands. His week had just gotten worse. At least the phoenix hadn't joined Tom's forces or something equally ridiculous. He had to regain control, and fast, everything was getting out of hand.

oOOOo

The Hogwarts library lived up to its reputation. It was a much larger room than the Great Hall. A genuine labyrinth of shelves overflowing with books over several floors. Walkways, ladders and platforms provided access to the thousands of volumes and books carefully stored there. In this maze of wood and paper, after many ladders, catwalks and stairs, in an alcove illuminated by the golden light of the morning filtering through a high ogival window, comfortably seated in this cosy little corner of paradise was Hermione. The silence of this little hidden corner, isolated above the paper maze, was a real blessing to her. Here she would not be disturbed by the insulting whispers of her classmates, or feel crushed by Ron's incessant requests.

Since the beginning of the week, she had been experiencing one wonder and one disappointment after another. The castle was a real gem, a place as wonderful as it was magical. Ghosts with exciting stories to tell about the time of their lives. Living paintings and portraits. Mysterious suits of armour, some of which had shown her the way to class. The scenery around the castle, the gigantic octopus in the lake... So many wonderful and mysterious things, so many secrets to discover, things to learn and understand. His teachers were wonderful too, her head of house, Professor Mcgonagall had been happy to answer her many questions. Even Professor Snape, though very strict, was a rare talent for those who could ignore his cold demeanour and compare what he wrote on his blackboard with the contents of their book.

However, the other students did not seem to share her enthusiasm for all this magic. The other girls treated her like a know-it-all nerd recluse and almost immediately excluded her from their group. Admittedly, Hermione had little interest in cosmetic spells, unicorns, quidditch players and other things that seemed to excite her counterparts. Only Lily Moon, a tiny, thin girl, seemed to like her, or at least be neutral towards her. Among the boys it was no better, Ronald Weazley, a red-haired boy had got it into his head that she needed him to discover the wizarding world and that she should therefore offer to help him with his homework. What was worse was that he seemed to feel entitled to dictate who she could and could not be with. Several times now he had stopped her from approaching the angel, telling her that she must not speak with "the veela" as she would put a spell on her and become a "dyke" under the influence of her dark magic. It was really beginning to eat away at her patience. Yes, she knew the prejudice of wizards against veela, she had read enough about them to know, but that was no reason to treat the angel like that.

The other boys wanted nothing to do with her, and perhaps that was for the best. After all, all they talked about was quidditch and stupid games or pranks! The only one she really liked, and it seemed to be mutual, was Neville. Despite his shyness, once he started on the subject of the flora, he seemed to be unstoppable. They had had a fascinating debate about the possible common origin of venomous tentacula and devil's snare.

It had been an eventful week, with no culprit found for the ransacking of the headmaster's office. The two aurors had returned empty-handed. What the Weazley twins, Ronald's older brothers, had explained after their investigation was that the headmaster's office had been turned upside down, and that books and objects had been stolen seemingly at random. The strangest thing was that in total contrast to the crude looting, the thief had left no trace that could lead to him. The wards were completely untouched, as if no one had entered. The main suspect was, according to them, Peeves, the poltergeist.

Apart from that, Hermione had tried several times to approach the angel, but she had proved particularly elusive. She was absent from most lunches and dinners, and on the rare occasion that she was present, she was surrounded by a tight group of older students and two girls her own age. Hermione had noticed something strange, the angel always seemed to be in the company of a tiny girl with long blonde hair and a dreamy attitude. At the beginning of the week nothing had seemed strange, but in the last few days the angel seemed reluctant to let the little blonde sit anywhere but on her lap, at least in the Great Hall. This relationship seemed strange to her.

She forced herself to turn her thoughts away from the angel, after all, she had just found a book in old English, (bless her passion for old untranslated texts having pushed her to learn how to read old books) as this book spoke of simple rituals that seemed to be achievable without being magical herself, with only magic coming from magical elements of the ritual. The one that had so far caught her attention was the ritual enchantment of creating a cold flame candle. Not very useful in the age of electricity, but the ritual seemed extremely simple and spectacular enough to interest her parents. Even more so when a few lines down she discovered the possibility of varying the colour of the flame's light by changing one component of the ritual.

"What are you reading?" a soft, melodious voice whispered in her ear, making her jump and shudder at the same time. She reflexively turned around, her eyes meeting a pair of soft green ones looking at her curiously.

"Daeglic sida... that's the title." Hermione replied automatically "Hello, it's been a long time..." she continued before blushing without knowing what to say, her angel was there, right in front of her, she had come to talk to her, and she had to act like an idiot. But her angel didn't seem to mind at all and just smiled at her.

"Hello, sorry. I wanted to see you earlier in the week, but that weird redhead hanging out with you wouldn't let me near, plus, Luna was misbehaving and I couldn't leave her alone or she'd end up someplace absurd or in danger somewhere..."

"Really? You wanted to come and talk to me?" Hermione's heart was pounding hard in her chest and she didn't want to get her hopes up stupidly. It had to be a misunderstanding, Myo was popular, had friends among the witches not being stupid about her being a veela, what could she possibly want with a bookworm miss know it all like her?

"Yes! When we met in the library you seemed really nice! And not stupid like all the others who are afraid I'll eat them or something... I try to be nice but they're too stupid."

Hermione couldn't help but giggle. Yes, her angel could be a bit intimidating, with her talons, and the flames she made to toast what she ate during the rare times she was in the Great Hall at mealtime. But who can really believe that she would hurt anyone when you see her making such an adorable pout. "Do they really behave like that?"

"Yes!" Said Myosotis with the most scandalized look and the most adorable pout. "Especially the blond Slytherin, I don't know his name. I try to help him, I've tried to introduce myself at least five times, but he always runs away with pitiful little cries. Did you see when he fainted before the sorting on the first night! He's more sensitive than a princess!

Hermione couldn't contain her mirth at that and laughed out loud. "His name is Draco, Draco Malfoy." She said, doing her best impression of the young Slytherin. "And yes, he's totally a princess," she concluded as she wiped away a small tear of laughter that had beaded at the corner of her eye.

"So, I wanted to ask you, how was your week? It must have been weird for someone who grew up with Muggles."

Hermione frowned, in one short week she had already grasped the rhetoric of blood purity that some of the students seemed to pride themselves on. Myosotis's comment stung her, was she one of those who thought she was better because she was born into a wizarding family? "Not really, I acclimatise quickly.' She answered a little curtly.

Myosotis didn't seem to realise the subtlety in her answer, for she grabbed a chair, turned it around so that its back was facing the table, before sitting astride it, surely to accommodate her wings and tail concluded Hermione. "Really?" Myosotis asked sounding genuinely surprised. "You know, I grew up with muggles... well... I don't think they were really human but that's beside the point, they were creatures who lived without magic and I lived with them until I managed to escape. And I can tell you that if I hadn't met Luna, Nym and their families, I would be completely lost right now. I think I would have even chosen to stay in my tower rather than mingle with the wizards."

Hermione was completely caught off guard, she blinked a few times, and looked at Myosotis. Her angel couldn't possibly have lived with non-magics. It wasn't possible. Not with a physique like that. Not with the importance that wizards seemed to give to the status of secrecy! "How? I mean... with the status of secrecy. How could you grow up with non-magics." She caught herself saying before she could stop herself. But to her surprise and relief, Myosotis didn't seem at all offended by her question.

"Oh you know, I don't think they were non-magical humans. They were Dursleys, inherently chaotic creatures who pretend to be human. They had a shed at the back of their garden in which I lived. I was not allowed to go out, and I was absolutely forbidden to be seen. Then I ran away and everything was better."

Hermione didn't know how to take this, she was horrified, was it really? How could people, or creatures, as Myosotis seemed to think, treat someone like that? How could Myosotis speak so freely about it? In such a detached way. She had never heard of such a creature, maybe there was information about them in the library. She would have to look it up. But she had a hunch that it wasn't what Myosotis seemed to think. Not really. Dursley was a not so rare English surname after all. Deciding to change the subject, and having realised that Myosotis was a complete stranger to the discrimination she had been experiencing since her arrival, she decided to be more honest. "I see, it's not easy to fit in, apart from Neville Longbottom, I don't get on with anyone. Luckily all the classes and magic are interesting enough to keep me busy.

Myosotis looked particularly sad at this admission. "You know, you're welcome to hang out with us, I'm sure Luna, Nym and Elvetia will like you."

"Really? How are they?" Hermione asked hopefully and curiously. It was the first real offer she'd received since arriving, and she certainly wasn't going to ignore it.

Myosotis gave her a big smile. "Luna is great! She's super nice, knows a lot about all the magical creatures, visible or not, she's really talented in drawing and charm! Right now, as she's a year younger, she's gone home to her parents for the weekend, and should be back on Monday. Elvetia is more serious, she wants to be the best in her class to show the other idiots that the Morelles are not inferior or something like that. But apart from that she's very good company. Nym, you have to call her Tonks, she says that calling her Nym is a great privilege reserved only for the chosen ones. She's a fourth year and tends to worry too much, but other than that she's amazing. She's a shapeshifter, and she's trained herself to grow wings just so she can fly with me without a broom!"

It would be a lie to say that Hermione wasn't totally won over by the idea of being part of such a group, but she'd never had any friends before. How was she going to do it? Would they realise after a few minutes that she was insufferable and exclude her? She tried to swallow her anxiety to concentrate on what Myosotis had said. "Wait, Luna... is that the little blonde you're always with?"

"Yes."

"The rules say you have to be eleven to join the school... it's not normally allowed."

Myosotis gave her a glare. "Yes, but I didn't give them a choice. Luna and I wanted to come together, and I told them that if Luna couldn't stay, I would just go home and wait a year to go to Beaubâton with her."

"And they agreed to those terms?" Hermione couldn't believe her ears, had the faculty really just bent their rules to accommodate Myosotis?

Myosotis rolled her eyes as she crossed her arms. "Yes, I originally wanted to go to Beaubaton, a French magic school, where there are plenty of other veelas, but from what Ted told me, the British magical government absolutely wants me to do at least a year at Hogwarts because I'm the 'girl who lived' or some such nonsense. So since I have the perfect ability to tell them all to fuck off and live quietly on my own, they have no choice but to agree to my demands."

Hermione nodded, she had read quite a bit about 'The girl who lived' after meeting Myosotis, and the British magical community seemed to worship the ground she walked on since the mystery of the Dark Lord's death. The situation seemed to have become more complicated since the discovery of Myosotis' nature, but the fact that they wanted to keep her in Britain at all costs made sense to her. "And how complicated is that? Being 'The Girl who lived' and all that."

"Frankly I don't care, the only difference is that Ted told me that if I wasn't, I'd be deported to Europe by the Department of Magical Creatures for the crime of being a dangerous and naughty Veela. Most people are afraid of me, and at the same time, know the story, so I guess it's a balance, most stay sympathetic. Like Morag."

"I see... I suppose..."

"So, in the Muggle world, you were in a shed too?"

"No, Myosotis, it's not normal for Muggleborns to live in a shed. It must have been something that only creatures like the Dursleys would do." She said, deciding to play along. "I grew up normally, with my parents, in a small house, near their workplace. It was... normal." Myosotis looked taken aback by the 'normal' but decided not to question, and Hermione was glad of that. How do you explain to someone what you think is normal and obvious. So obvious that it wasn't worth mentioning. Maybe that was one of the difficulties wizards had with muggleborns like her...

"So, this book, daeglic sida, what is it about?" Said Myosotis obviously wanting to change the subject.

Hermione blushed, "It's a book of simple little rituals that don't require magic yourself. It's for my parents, so they can experience what magic is, so they'll understand better what's happening to me.

"Really?!" Myosotis looked excited. "You know I have a book at home that has potions like that..." Their discussion then drifted into the realm of the academic, first the contents of the book and what potions her parents might try to make, before drifting to what they had learned this week, and then to the differences between their houses. Hermione had been jealous of the Ravenclaw common room's private library and shocked to learn that Myosotis had been practically kicked out of the dormitory, but as she seemed to have taken it more than well by choosing to move into a disused tower (which Hermione doubted was allowed, but wasn't going to point out, as Myosotis seemed sincere in saying that she was unable to sleep with anyone else in the same room as her friend Luna).

The morning ended in pleasant silence, both of them working on their transfiguration essay. Exchanging questions, advice and thoughts from time to time. Hermione never thought that working with someone could be so pleasant. She had always had the image of group work sessions invariably ending in silly laughter, the seriousness disappearing like snow under the sun. In short, she'd had her best time since arriving at Hogwarts. And maybe, if she was lucky, she'd even made a friend.

oOOOo

Myo was sitting cross-legged on the footstool. Her eyes rested steadily on the clock hanging on the wall of the small room in the Hogsmead flat. Sunday, 2pm. This was the time of her weekly appointment with Isabelle and Fleur. Frankly, she was looking forward to seeing them again. There was something wonderful about being in the company of another Veela. And then today she would have a surprise for them. Her new familiar! She herself could hardly believe it. But the warm ball of feathers on her shoulder was hard to ignore. Eldur, as he had asked her to call him, had only left her the last few days when other students were present.

She had no idea how Dumbledore had treated the poor phoenix, but he seemed to be in tremendous need of touch as he spent most of his time with her demanding that she look after him. She had even caught him being jealous of Luna when one morning he had demanded to be stroked while Myo was busy braiding Luna's hair.

Fleur and Isabelle would be here soon, if she wanted to surprise them, Eldur had to hide. She turned to him and concentrated, thinking hard in her mind about what Eldur could do to surprise her two friends. Communicating with the phoenix was something as strange as it was fascinating. No voice, no thoughts, just images, and Myo was slowly learning to communicate like that. The phoenix had scolded her several times for imposing images too hard, or not hard enough. It was complex, and her feathery teacher was intransigent. Eldur must have gotten the message, because he nodded and disappeared in a spray of golden flames.

Myo would have preferred her meeting with Isabelle and Fleur to be at the Lovegoods' or the Tonks', but their home was several hours away, and with her inability to use the floo circuit, it would take far too long. She wished Luna were here. Ever since the little demon disguised as an angel had gotten 'lost' in the forbidden forest, Myo hadn't let her escape again. Keeping her at arm's length all the time. The worst part was that Luna seemed to enjoy her 'punishment', taking advantage of the fact that she wasn't allowed to wander off to take advantage of it and climb on her constantly. Myo was beginning to wonder if her friend had been more willing than she thought to let herself get 'lost' in the forest... Luna really was a demoness. A harmless, lovable demoness, but a demoness nonetheless.

She was drawn out of her thoughts by a loud crack in the room. Fleur and Isabelle appeared in the middle of the carpet. In the blink of an eye, Myo was upon them, hugging Fleur, her wings trying to encircle her. Myo could feel the auras of the two veela covering her like a soft, warm blanket. She felt as if she had just been presented with water after days of not drinking. She felt their emotions, surprise, joy, tenderness, amusement, covering her, resonating with her own aura.

She felt Fleur's chest shake against her cheek as she laughed and stroked her head. "I feel like you've missed us." She said, the amusement audible in her voice. "There, there, we missed you too, you know?" Myo just nodded. She could feel it in their aura, the relief of being with her, finally.

It was Isabelle's voice that ended the moment. "You take your role as big sister too seriously, Fleur. You can't adopt every lost baby Veela in the world."

"Even if she's as cute as this one?" she replied, pinching Myo's cheek with affection.

Isabelle chuckled. "I'll give you that, it's hard to resist our little Myosotis.

"What are you hiding from us, Myo?" Fleur asked, raising an eyebrow. "I can feel the excitement in your aura."

"Right." She said, giving them a bright smile. It felt good to be with another Veela again. It was as if she had been holding her breath since the last time she had seen Isabelle. To feel their magic, their emotions mingling with her own was beautiful. She projected the image of Eldur on her shoulder into her mind, and a moment later, in a cloud of fire, the phoenix materialized.

Isabelle and Fleur let out a small cry of surprise before watching it with wide eyes, their feathers ruffled. "Myosotis... I believe you have a phoenix on your shoulder." Said Isabelle.

"I know, his name is Eldur. I think he's my familiar now. He was with Dumbledore before. I'll have to ask Mélusine to be sure."

Fleur cleared her throat. "Isabelle, I read in the archives about the Taivala during my trip to Hymgaabal, and apparently it's not uncommon for her to have phoenixes or salamanders as familiars. But you say he was with Dumbledore? That's strange. Phoenixes remain loyal until their master dies, as far as I know."

At that, a host of images passed before Myo's eyes. A broken chain, a lock without a key, a fragile rope. She let out a long breath. "Right, Eldur told me that his connection to Dumbledore was fragile, incomplete, or something like that. It's hard to interpret."

Isabelle nodded. "It makes sense. Now little one, this session is not about your new familiar, interesting as he is. It's about you. Stand up, and let me examine you."

Myo complied, and let Isabelle inspect her from every angle. She cast spells that felt like a warm breath passing through her, touching her wings, manipulating their joints, inspecting her feathers, checking the condition of her leg scales and talons, feeling her abdomen, back and shoulders... Meanwhile, Fleur was cooing over the phoenix, stroking its flaming plumage, scratching under its chin, congratulating Myo on having such a beautiful familiar. The phoenix swelled with pride.

"Myo, you're in perfect health, that's good, you're taking good care of yourself. However, two things. Have you transformed recently?" at this, Fleur stiffened, watching her with concern.

"Yes, on Wednesday, Luna got lost in the forest whilst wandering. I panicked a bit and transformed while looking for her."

Fleur looked relieved, but remained tense. Isabelle was no better. "What's wrong?" Myo asked, not liking the sudden tension and sadness in their aura.

Isabelle sighed, "It's just... you shouldn't be able to transform yourself at your age. The fact that you seem to do it so easily... it's cultural, you'll find out when you read the books I brought. But it's still heartbreaking."

Myo nodded, she didn't really understand, but she supposed she could wait to read the books to find out. "The second thing?" she asked to change the subject.

Isabelle jumped at the chance. "The scales on your talons are damaged, I guess from having to walk on the castle stones so much."

Myo pressed her lips together, Fleur looked sorry. "I know, but I don't know what to do, I can't fly between classes."

Isabelle turned and began to rummage through her bag. "Two things. The first." She took out a jar and handed it to her. Curious, Myo opened it quickly. It contained a green cream with a lavender scent. "Apply it morning and night to your scales. Tell us next Sunday if there is no improvement, or contact Pandora if there is an adverse reaction."

Myo grinned, "Thank you!"

She then took out a pair of strange shaped boots made of fleecy leather from the bag. "And here are some special claw shoes. If you know you're going to be walking a lot, you have to wear them, I guarantee they're comfortable.

Myo looked at them suspiciously, then took them in her hand, feeling their soft and pleasant texture. "Thank you, Isabelle, Fleur!" the joy radiating in her own aura echoed and amplified in those of the other two veelas.

"Don't forget the books!" Fleur said.

Isabelle nodded and pulled five thick leather-bound books from her bag. "Here, a history of the veela of Europe in three volumes, customs and culture in Western veela society, and, the volume dedicated to the Taïvaalta in the veela encyclopedia."

Myo looked at the five large volumes, she'd have a lot of reading to do with them. "Don't take them out of your room. They are enchanted to only be legible by a veela or a mate, but it's not worth the risk," added Isabel seriously.

Myo looked at the books for a moment longer before nodding seriously. "Thanks again."

Fleur sighed, "Please don't thank us for bringing you things you should have grown up with. Well now that all the boring stuff is done, do you want to go stretch your wings together? I'm sure your new familiar would be happy to come with us."

At this, Myo couldn't help but bounce with excitement. She couldn't wait.