Disclaimer: Trust me guys, I don't own anything.
Okay, well, first off, I'd like to thank everyone who is reading this (that means you clicked on my story! Yay!). Thanks a bunch!
Yes… Now, to everyone who has been reading Downtrodden, I'm SO sorry I haven't updated for a month. I've been working on the chapter, I swear. It's just that trying to fit schoolwork, a social life, and writing into such a tight schedule is really hard, especially since I take so long with all of my work, trying to edit all of the rough areas… This is sort of like my [very] belated New Years present to everyone, okay? Do with it what you wish… (eh, scary thought)
Last, but not least, I dedicate this little ficlet to my bestest friend Jen, because it was she who gave me inspiration for this story - unknowingly, of course. ^.^
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It was actually a beautiful day for their Care of Magical Creatures lesson that afternoon. The sun was shining, the breeze was warm and comforting, and the clear cerulean sky was completely cloud-free. Only the Forbidden Forest looked threatening, sitting darkly against the blue backdrop, and that, in itself, wasn't much of a difference.
Harry, who forever remained faithful to Hagrid, glared darkly at Hermione whenever she glanced wistfully back at the castle; or at Ron, who was continually scratching his head in a nervous sort of way, not entirely meeting Harry's eye.
Yet even Harry couldn't overlook the fact that Hagrid himself had dubbed the day's lesson "very interesting", and everyone within earshot of the declaration knew how "interesting" it would be. Claws and poisonous fangs were petty playthings compared to what a seventh of the school population was bound to face, and Hermione had already pointed out that since they were Hagrid's first class, they were initially targeted as guinea pigs - test subjects for whatever lesson Hagrid had in store - and would, theoretically, prove if everyone else was to live or die. Harry thought this a bit harsh of her, but Ron had taken it quite seriously, and had even gone so far as to ask older Gryffindors what Hagrid might show them.
Unfortunately, no one knew.
They reached Hagrid's hut a few minutes before the lesson began, but no one was there yet, save Hagrid, who was busying himself with something that looked like a large basin. When they got closer, he turned, and, waving merrily, strode towards them, looking breathless. Fang bounded after him, his tail wagging happily.
"Excited fer the lesson?" he asked, patting the dog's head affectionately. "Yer all in fer a treat."
Ron's face looked a tinge green, but Hagrid didn't seem to notice.
Hermione was eyeing the basin warily. Harry noticed that it was broken into two giant slabs, and Hagrid had apparently been trying to glue them back together; the edges were coated in what looked remarkably like…
"Urgh…" Ron sputtered in recognition, "Are those troll boogers?"
Was the lesson about trolls? thought Harry desperately, racking his brain. Who would want to learn about trolls?
To his relief, Hagrid laughed. "Nah, it's glue. Special order from Hogsmeade to repair Fang's food dish here." He gestured towards the basin. "I could've had one o' the teachers repair it with magic, o' course, but since he is my responsibility…" Fang licked his hand. Hermione shot Harry a horrified look.
"Er… Hagrid? What exactly ruined Fang's dish?"
Hagrid turned to Hermione, rubbing his hands together. "I didn' really see… but, er… ah… well, don' worry. They jus' don' like Fang, that's all…" he muttered something. "Well, no wonder." He gave the boarhound a reproving look. "Sniffin' where yeh don' belong… They won' hurt nothin' livin', o' course," he added. Harry didn't need him to explain what exactly they were; somehow the lesson had become even more foreboding.
"That's just dandy," said Ron sarcastically, "I'm sure our lesson will be perfectly accident-free!"
Hagrid ignored him.
Harry felt unpleasantly apprehensive as the rest of the class walked toward them, each wearing an expression of badly disguised terror. The Slytherins looked hopeful, however - Harry knew it would just give them a good laugh if his fellow Gryffindors were mauled during a Care of Magical Creatures class. Draco Malfoy was smirking, and his cronies, Crabbe and Goyle, were chuckling stupidly, pointing towards a group of terrified-looking Gryffindors.
"Everyone here?" Hagrid called, looking over the crowd, "Okay, righ'. Follow me!"
He turned and started walking towards the Forbidden Forest. Harry heard a few people whimper in protest, but they followed reluctantly. Hermione clung to Harry's arm so tightly that her nails dug into his skin. She whispered frantically, "Harry, we'll be killed! The centaurs…" Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Ron turn from green to white. He hadn't been there when Harry and Hermione had led Umbridge away into the Forest last year, but Harry had told him all about it later. "What are we going to do? We can't go in there!"
But Hagrid didn't go into the Forbidden Forest. The class walked around its boundaries after Hagrid, some glancing into its depths with horrified moans. Harry had never been this way, but it seemed that they were still on Hogwarts grounds, because Hagrid kept calling out, "C'mon! Still got a ways to go now!" Though by now, even the bravest of people were beginning to feel slightly concerned. Hermione kept glancing up at Harry as if she expected him to turn Hagrid around himself. When he ignored her, she crossed her arms in frustration.
Finally, the class took a sharp left towards the Forest, and instead of going into the Forest like Harry anticipated, Hagrid led them into a clearing, where two halves of the Forest stood threateningly on either side of them. At the far end of the clearing was the dark, mossy opening of a cavern.
Hagrid stopped and looked around. "I have a treat fer everyone today," he said loudly, so everyone could hear, "Special request o' Professor Dumbledore's."
Malfoy didn't bother raising his hand. "I never knew dying was a treat, Professor," he said in mock surprise. Harry and Ron glared at him.
"Oh, yeh won' die, Malfoy," Hagrid said cheerfully, "But they certainly won' help yeh." He turned back to the rest of the class; Malfoy looked livid.
"Now, what we'll be learnin' about today can' be caught, so we'll have to observe in pairs - don' wanna scare `em off." He sounded near to bursting with excitement. "I've never seen one before, so it'll be a learnin' experience fer me too…"
Ron hissed to Harry and Hermione, "he can't be serious."
Hermione shushed him.
"… Okay, guess I'd better tell yeh what we'll be learnin' about…" He paused dramatically. "Fairies!"
"Fairies?" Malfoy repeated scathingly, "Fairies?!"
"Yeah, Malfoy, fairies. Bloody interestin' ones too." Hagrid looked around. "Anyone know anythin' `bout Moerae fairies?"
To everyone's surprise, Hermione looked puzzled. Harry and Ron glanced at each other, both wearing identical expressions of amazement.
However, Hagrid looked thrilled at everyone's lack of knowledge. "Moerae fairies are very rare, see? They live in deep, dark caves… like to keep themselves to themselves, mostly… Won' hurt anyone, o' course - they love livin' things. A long time ago people used to come to `em fer help, yeh know… brought gifts an' such… Moerae fairies are well known for determinin' the fate of children, an' have also bin known to help out people in tough situations…" He smiled dreamily. "Brilliant little creatures…
"So, we'll pair up - girls with girls, boys with boys…" He grinned. "… Don' want them messin' with anyone… there yeh go now…"
Soon, after a lot of violent pushing and shoving, the pairing was done. Only Hermione was alone, standing in front of Hagrid, looking around for another girl to pair up with. Unfortunately, all of the other girls had partners, and the only person left was a nasty-looking Slytherin boy, who was glaring threateningly at Hermione like he was daring her to come any closer.
Hagrid, fortunately, spotted her dilemma.
"Okay… can' have this… Hermione, yeh can go with Harry…" he muttered, guiding her over to him.
Ron looked horrorstruck. "What about me? I can go with them, right?"
"Sorry Ron," Hagrid said quietly, "Professor Dumbledore said pairs - anythin' else will intimidate `em… Yeh can go with that nice Slytherin boy over there…" He pointed in the direction of the glowering boy. "Off yeh go now…"
Ron looked angry and horrified at the same time. Grumpily, he stormed off towards the Slytherin. Hagrid smiled fixedly at the pair, who glared furiously back at him. Ron's face was redder than his hair, and the Slytherin was muttering angrily under his breath.
Hagrid motioned for everyone to follow him, and soon, the class found themselves in front of the cave Harry had seen earlier. Though, he thought, it looked much bigger from where he was now standing… The entrance was at least a few feet taller than Hagrid; it was covered in moss and stray, fallen leaves, smelling faintly of mildew. The sunlight filtering through the Forest seemed to avoid the cavern completely, and left it looking dead and damp - though the sight didn't dampen Hagrid's spirit in the least. On the contrary, he was beaming, looking at the gloomy sight with gusto.
"Okay," he said excitedly, "We'll go into the cave one pair at a time. I'll tell yeh what to do when it's yer turn. Righ'. Dean and Seamus, you firs'."
Harry watched Dean and Seamus walk towards Hagrid. Then he turned to Hermione.
"Shall we sit somewhere?" he asked. She nodded.
He looked around, but there didn't seem to be anywhere extremely comfortable. Most people were scattered on the ground, lying atop their cloaks, but some brave souls were leaning against the trees of the Forest. Harry decided not to take his chances with the Forest however, and found a spot secluded from the other pairs. He unclasped his cloak and laid it down upon the warm grass. Hermione did the same, and they immediately sat down.
They sat in relaxed silence, waiting for their turn. The sun was pleasurably warm, and at the same time, the breeze was cool. It was very comfortable, and Harry began to feel pleasantly drowsy. He dropped onto his back, hands behind his head, and closed his eyes. He briefly noted that the inside of his eyelids were red from the sun before a shadow loomed over him, and he opened his eyes. Ron was standing over him, grinning.
"Thought you'd take a nap before the lesson started?" he asked, still grinning. "I just barely got away from that Slytherin nightmare… you'd think being a wizard could help him out a little…" Harry sat up to give him room, and Ron sat down. "I can't believe I have to work with a Slytherin! Slimy git… I'll never get anything done!"
He sighed dramatically.
"Fairies, though! Who would've thought?" Ron shrugged. "I've heard they're really hard to catch. Like leprechauns."
Harry saw Hermione roll her eyes. "Ron," she said, not able to contain herself, "Leprechauns are fairies. And they're almost impossible to catch, you have to -"
"Hermione, spare us your lecture, okay?" Ron interrupted, pulling up some grass by its roots uninterestedly. "We were already saved once today… Speaking of which - I'd never thought I'd see the day when Hermione Granger didn't know the answer to a question…"
"Of course I knew the answer!" she snapped crossly, "But Moerae fairies are very uncommon, and they can be awfully meddlesome… I don't understand why Dumbledore would even let us near one!"
Ron raised his eyebrows. "He's always been off his rocker, you know that…"
"Do you even know the properties of a Moerae fairy?" she spat, ignoring him.
"Well… it determines fate… and, er… helps people," Ron muttered.
"Somehow Hagrid forgot to mention one important detail!" said Hermione shrilly, looking utterly distressed. "If you must know, Moerae fairies are most famous for prying into people's love lives, and supposedly determining who their lifelong partner will be!"
Harry and Ron stared blankly back at her. "So…?"
She let loose a howl of frustration. "I'm Harry's partner!"
Ron choked on the piece of grass that he was absently chewing on. Harry's stomach gave a strange, pathetic flop.
"No bloody way," said Ron in disbelief, his own eyes widening. "So you're saying -,"
"Listen, Moerae fairies have been known to concern themselves with human romance for hundreds, maybe thousands, of years. Their wings, when found, are used in the strongest love potions ever created by wizardkind… They're practically cave-dwelling cupids!"
Ron sniggered. "Cave-dwelling cupids? Are my ears deceiving me?"
"You're completely missing the point!"
But all Ron did was ignore her, laughing hysterically. Tears of mirth streamed down his face. Unable to talk, he laid there on Harry's cloak, clutching his throat, trying to breathe. "Y-you and H-Harry," he choked out finally, reducing his roars of laughter to abnormally girly giggles, "T-that is the funniest thing I have ever heard!"
Hermione flushed angrily. "Fine. If you're not going to take this seriously, Harry and I can leave!"
Ron laughed even harder. "C'mon Harry darling, let's go have a nice snog in the woods…"
With that, Hermione seized Harry's wrist, heaved him off the ground, grabbed her cloak, and stormed off in a huff, muttering under her breath. Harry distinctly heard Ron call after them, "Don't come back too soon!"
She trudged a good way across the clearing until she reached a spot where Ron was out of view - in the shade of the Forest's old, moaning trees.
Harry caught something like, `curse him in his sleep' before she turned around abruptly, and, without a word to Harry, spread out her cloak on the ground.
"That's better!" said Hermione brightly, "Much, much better!"
She faced him with a little shake of her head. "I'm sorry, Harry, but I had to leave. Ron drives me mad sometimes…"
"So that's why you took me along with you?" said Harry, grinning.
"You keep me sane," she said simply.
Suddenly, a large booming voice rose above the faint chatter of students.
"Harry! Hermione! Yer turn!"
"That's us," Hermione sighed, swiftly gathering up her cloak.
Together they made their way over to Hagrid. Harry felt a tug of nervous fear inside his stomach; he looked to Hermione for consolation, but she was fiddling awkwardly with her cloak clasp.
"Okay, there yeh two are," Hagrid said loudly. The chatter began again. He motioned them closer, and said in a softer voice, "Yeh alrigh'? Bit of a nasty shock, havin' yeh go together, but I think yeh'll be fine."
"Hagrid, I think you're making a huge mist -,"
"Shh!" he said harshly. A few of the students closer to them were raising their heads in interest. "I suppose yeh know all about Moerae fairies, eh?" he whispered edgily. She nodded. "Knew yeh would…"
Hermione peered intently up at him. "I suppose you know all about them too?" she said severely, like she was scolding a naughty child.
"Now, don' yeh get yourself in a knot," Hagrid said gruffly, "Professor Dumbledore himself gave me permission ter teach yeh about these fairies, and I have all reason to. Jus' because of a little dilemma…"
Hermione looked about to tell him off again, so Harry said quickly, "It's okay Hagrid, we'll be fine."
"Good, good…" he breathed. Hermione pursed her lips, but didn't say anything. "Now, jus' go inter the cave, and write down what yeh see on this…" He pulled out a piece of parchment and a frayed feathered quill, "… sheet. We'll be discussin' characteristics later, an' all… Oh yeah." He handed them a clipboard. "Don' get too close, keep yer eyes open, and be on yer guard."
He gave them a friendly push, and they stumbled into the cave. Harry determinedly walked forward, and had to pull Hermione by the sleeves of her cloak when she stalled to glare back at Hagrid's waving silhouette. He didn't want to make this excursion last any longer than already expected.
Hermione caught up with him, and side-by-side, they walked forward.
The cavern certainly started off monstrous, but as they got deeper and deeper, Harry noticed that the ceiling seemed to angle downward. It gave the impression that they were walking ever closer to their doom. Stalactites grew down from the ceiling like mighty stone spikes, and from the ground in mounds of rock rose stalagmites of all shapes and sizes. As they ventured deeper into the depths of the cave, the air around them chilled, and all was dark; the stalagmites and stalactites looked eerily like creatures lurking in the shadows.
Harry shivered as the cold air hit him. He briefly wished that he had remembered to grab his cloak from Ron when Hermione grabbed his hand, tilted it upward, and slid something warm onto it. Harry glanced at his hand, and almost gasped aloud. Flames the color of Robin's eggs were flickering in his hand, licking his skin; yet he could feel nothing but heat and warmth. He stared at it for a second, bracing for the sudden burst of pain that came from holding fire in your hand, but it never came. Instead, a pleasurable sensation coursed through him, and he felt warm all over.
Harry looked over at Hermione, who gave him a small smile before whispering, "Lumos." Her wand tip alight, she moved in front of him and ran its glow along the sides of the cavern.
"Well," she said, pointing her wand forward, "I don't see anything… C'mon, we'll keep going…"
"So, are there any spells to repel fairies?" asked Harry, minutes later, as they walked onward. Hermione shrugged, casting her beam of light upon the walls.
"I don't know - I get the feeling that nobody would ever have to use them, though. Fairies are generally good creatures, a little obsessive over things, perhaps, but good nonetheless." Her light hovered for a moment over a rock that looked remarkably like the outline of a roaring lion, and then continued. "Fairy tales, you know. Little winged people… Rather silly now, when you think about it. I guess most people don't really know that there are so many different kinds."
Harry thought for a moment. "What do Moerae fairies look like?"
"I'm not sure," said Hermione, sighing. "There are very few books on them. Though I imagine -"
Hermione suddenly stopped talking in mid-sentence, her mouth slightly agape, her eyes wide and anxious.
Harry turned around, tracing Hermione's open-mouthed stare, and found himself gazing, enraptured, into the innocent blue eyes of a young girl.
For a split second, it seemed as if time itself stood still. The turquoise flames felt cold in his hand.
The girl smiled a slow, meticulous smile.
"We knew you would come."
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Yeah, yeah. Cliffhanger, I know. I'm so sorry. *grins evilly*
The second portion should be up soon - I have everything right here *points to brain*, I just have to type it out. I'm not sure if I should have this be a 2-part story or a 3-part story… I'm still deciding. Hmm.
Anyway, thanks for reading! Have fun browsing! *winks*
-Lauren
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