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"Calisto, Crystal!"
Again the whisper started among the students as Crystal stepped forward and sat on the stool.
"The Crystal Calisto?"
"She said Calisto?"
"Can't believe she's back!"
Crystal saw people craning their heads, to get a better look at her and everything went blank as the hat was put on her head which covered her eyes.
"Hmm," the hat spoke in her ear and Crystal got goosebumps all of a sudden. "Complicated. Very Complex. Entangled like a web. A Calm mind, brilliant brain, but bigger courage, a high-risk taker that's rare, chivalry, great ambitions, hunger to prove yourself, my goodness, yes -- A leader! -- not common traits, one of a kind, really interesting... So where shall I put you?"
Crystal patiently tapped her index finger on her knee and thought I'm hungry can you just put me anywhere fast, er -- Mr. Magic Hat?
"Ho ho, I cannot make haste. Let's see, Ravenclaw, Slytherin and Gryffindor. A great mind for Ravenclaw but it will overshadow your other talents, Slytherin will be good you have great ambitions set to achieve but again your talents will be held back, hmm... Gryffindor... enough mind to use, aim to follow and very brave. Should we go with Gryffindor? Let me think again, very tricky..."
This went on for one to two minutes, there was whisper such as 'hat stall', 'she got hat stall' going on among the crowd.
Harry was more nervous than Crystal at this point because no Calisto ever got sorted in Gryffindor.
While Crystal on the other hand was giving out suggestions so that this got over fast. She didn't want to wear this old hat on her head anymore.
"Ravenclaw?"
"Can be... Let me think... Hmm... No."
"Hufflepuff?"
"Absolutely not, you cold and cruel little thing,"
"Beware, I'll rip you into bit of pieces, smelly old rag,"
"Listen yourself? No proof needed."
"Fine, Slytherin?"
"You've every qualities of being a Slytherin but your talents exceed to be placed there."
"Gryffindor. Final. I'm going there."
"Hmm... But -- "
"I'm not going back home."
"Little girl -- "
The hat shouted suddenly, startling Crystal herself as it was still making a decision but yelled in the middle without completing even its sentence.
"GRYFFINDOR -- "
"This damn old thing..." Crystal muttered very quietly, after immediately taking the hat off as soon as it was announced.
She raised her hand to chuck it back on the stool but held back as the whole school and teachers were watching her in silence with their jaws open. She very respectfully and awkwardly kept the hat back on the stool, patting a little dust with an awkward smile.
Crystal looked around at the silent hall nervously. What if she had taken more time than expected would she get rejected? She looked at Dumbledore who nodded at her with a smile.
Dumbledore clapped his hands breaking the silence. He smiled at her and the entire hall followed him snapping back and erupting in the loudest cheers and claps.
"Can't believe it!"
"First Calisto ever in Gryffindor!"
"This'll go down in history!"
"We got Calisto! We got Calisto!!"
Cheers on the Gryffindor table got louder as she walked through them avoiding people who tried to shake her hand. She was feeling uncomfortable in all the noise but endured it. The Weasley twins started yelling again "We got the Calisto! We got Calisto!". She sat beside the only girl she at least knew by name, Hermione.
Harry stared at her from a few seats away. He felt betrayed. Crystal wasn't an ounce like he had been told or imagined to be but completely opposite.
Harry would've recognized her eye colour anywhere as he had seen it in photos but they were from the time when they were babies. He couldn't tell it was her because she never properly looked him in the eye for more than a second, desperate to hide herself and even lied about her name.
But then he suddenly remembered the only time he looked her in the eyes was when he introduced himself to her but he was too stupid to notice because he was busy staring at her face.
"You're Crystal Calisto?" said Hermione, "Why did you lie to me that your name was Calliope?"
"When did I lie to you, Granger?" said Crystal. "Did I ever introduce myself to you? Weasley just said my name before I could say anything."
"But why did you not tell your name?"
Crystal shrugged. "I just felt like it?"
"Well! Anyways! Let's begin from the start. I'm Hermione Granger!"
"I know that."
Hermione blinked a few times not expecting that, "You should introduce yourself after that."
"But you know me. What's the point?"
"Well, yeah..." Hermione muttered almost persuaded, "Hey! Come on, say it!"
"Fine! I'm Crystal Calisto." said Crystal, "You have the ability to stir people as you want, huh?"
"Thanks for the compliment!" said Hermione giggling, "We're friends now!"
"It wasn't a compliment...." Crystal muttered under her breath as she shook her hand. Crystal just taunted her to be bossy but Hermione was so innocent to catch it that Crystal felt bad for saying that.
The crowd had calmed down and settled down when Albus Dumbledore had gotten to his feet. He was beaming at the students, his arms opened wide, as if nothing could have pleased him more than to see them all there.
"Welcome," he said. "Welcome to a new year at Hogwarts! Before we begin our banquet, I would like to say a few words. And here they are Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak!
"Thank you!"
He sat back down. Everybody clapped and cheered. Crystal hadn't expected a headmaster to say that.
"Is he -- a bit crack in the head?" she said to Hermione uncertainly.
"Crack?" Hermione said scandalized. "I've read all about him! He's a genius! Best wizard in the world!"
Crystal was a little surprised when the dishes in front of her were now piled with food. At first, she suspected that this was all edible or that it was made with magic but then she saw people gobbling the food down.
She had never seen so many things she liked to eat on one table: roast beef, roast chicken, pork chops and lamb chops, sausages, bacon and steak, boiled potatoes, roast potatoes, fries, Yorkshire pudding, peas, carrots, gravy, ketchup, and, for some strange reason, peppermint humbugs.
The Hudsons had never cared about her meals and from time to time starved Crystal in negligence and she'd never been allowed to eat as much as he liked.
Crystal piled her plate with a bit of everything she wanted to try and began to eat. It was all delicious.
"That does look good," said the ghost in the ruff sadly, watching Harry cut up his steak. Crystal saw the ghost talking to Harry from a few seats away. When their eyes met, Harry instantly turned his face to the ghost.
"Can't you --?" said Harry quickly.
"I haven't eaten for nearly four hundred years," said the ghost. "I don't need to, of course, but one does miss it. I don't think I've introduced myself? Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington at your service. Resident ghost of Gryffindor Tower."
"Sir Nicholas?" said Harry, he remembered his father mentioning him.
"I know who you are!" said Ron suddenly. "My brothers told me about you -- you're Nearly Headless Nick!"
"Yeah! Exactly!" said Harry, then gasped looking at the ghost's expression.
"I would prefer you to call me Sir Nicholas de Mimsy --" the ghost began stiffly, but Hermione interrupted.
"Nearly Headless? How can you be nearly headless?"
Harry rolled his eyes at the obvious question. Sir Nicholas looked extremely miffed as if their little chat wasn't going at all the way he wanted.
"Like this," he said irritably. He seized his left ear and pulled. His whole head swung off his neck and fell onto his shoulder as if it was on a hinge. Someone had obviously tried to behead him, but not done it properly.
Crystal choked on her food seeing that and gulped down the water from the goblet.
"Are you alright?" said Harry and Hermione together.
"Yeah," she said politely to people around her. "My apologies."
Looking pleased with the stunned looks on their faces, Nearly Headless Nick flipped his head back onto his neck, coughed, and said, "So -- new Gryffindors! I hope you're going to help us win the house championship this year? Gryffindors have never gone so long without winning. Slytherins have got the cup six years in a row! The Bloody Baron's becoming almost unbearable -- he's the Slytherin ghost."
Crystal looked over at the Slytherin table and saw a horrible ghost sitting there, with blank staring eyes, a gaunt face, and robes stained with silver blood.
"How did he get covered in blood?" asked Seamus with great interest.
"Don't ask," Crystal muttered under her breath, dreading it'd be a story that would not allow the food down her throat.
"I've never asked," said Nearly Headless Nick delicately.
"Thank God," She muttered, gulping down more water.
When everyone had eaten as much as they could, the remains of the food faded from the plates, leaving them as sparkling clean as before.
A moment later the desserts appeared. Blocks of ice cream in every flavour you could think of, apple pies, treacle tarts, chocolate eclairs and jam doughnuts, trifle, strawberries, Jell-O, rice pudding -- "
As Harry helped himself to a treacle tart, he noticed that Crystal had only picked the deserts that only had chocolate. She had strong-flavoured dark chocolate with coffee flavour ice cream.
With the desserts, the talk turned to their families. On Harry's other side, Percy Weasley and Hermione were talking about lessons. Next to Hermione, Crystal quietly sat not in a mood to talk.
Harry, who was starting to feel warm and sleepy, looked up at the High Table again. Hagrid was drinking deeply from his goblet. Professor McGonagall was talking to Professor Dumbledore. Professor Quirrell, in his absurd turban, was talking to a teacher with greasy black hair, a hooked nose, and sallow skin.
"Ouch!" Harry clapped a hand to his head. Crystal glanced at him.
"What is it?" asked Percy.
"N-nothing."
The pain had gone as quickly as it had come. Harder to shake off was the feeling Harry had gotten from the teacher's look -- a feeling that he didn't like Harry at all. Crystal looked in the direction he was looking at and saw Professor Quirrell.
"Who's that teacher talking to Professor Quirrell?" Harry asked Percy. He had met him at the Leaky Cauldron the day they went to meet Crystal and Hagrid.
"Oh, you know Quirrell already, do you? No wonder he's looking so nervous, that's Professor Snape. He teaches Potions, but he doesn't want to -- everyone knows he's after Quirrell's job. Knows an awful lot about the Dark Arts, Snape."
Harry watched Snape for a while, but Snape didn't look at him again.
At last, the desserts too disappeared, and Professor Dumbledore got to his feet again. The hall fell silent.
"Ahem -- just a few more words now that we are all fed and watered. I have a few start-of-term notices to give you.
"First years should note that the forest on the grounds is forbidden to all pupils. And a few of our older students would do well to remember that as well."
Dumbledore's twinkling eyes flashed in the direction of the Weasley twins.
"I have also been asked by Mr. Filch, the caretaker, to remind you all that no magic should be used between classes in the corridors.
"Quidditch trials will be held in the second week of the term. Anyone interested in playing for their house teams should contact Madam Hooch.
"And finally, I must tell you that this year, the third-floor corridor on the right-hand side is out of bounds to everyone who does not wish to die a very painful death."
Harry laughed, but he was one of the few who did. Crystal brushed it off lightly as she hid her yawn.
"He's not serious?" Harry muttered to Percy.
"Must be," said Percy, frowning at Dumbledore. "It's odd, because he usually gives us a reason why we're not allowed to go somewhere -- the forest's full of dangerous beasts, everyone knows that. I do think he might have told us prefects, at least."
"And now, before we go to bed, let us sing the school song!" cried Dumbledore. Crystal noticed that the other teachers' smiles had become rather fixed.
Dumbledore gave his wand a little flick, as if he was trying to get a fly off the end, and a long golden ribbon flew out of it, which rose high above the tables and twisted itself, snakelike, into words.
"Everyone pick their favorite tune," said Dumbledore, "and off we go!" And the school bellowed:
"Hogwarts, Hogwarts, Hoggy Warty Hogwarts,
Teach us something please,
Whether we be old and bald
Or young with scabby knees,
Our heads could do with filling
With some interesting stuff,
For now they're bare and full of air,
Dead flies and bits of fluff,
So teach us things worth knowing,
Bring back what we've forgot,
just do your best, we'll do the rest,
And learn until our brains all rot."
Everybody finished the song at different times. At last, only the Weasley twins were left singing along to a very slow funeral march. Dumbledore conducted their last few lines with his wand and when they had finished, he was one of those who clapped loudest.
"Ah, music," he said, wiping his eyes. "A magic beyond all we do here! And now, bedtime. Off you trot!"
Crystal raked her fingers through her hair to push it back as she stood up to follow Percy through the chattering crowds, out of the Great Hall, and up the marble staircase. She had a feeling that many eyes watched her as she passed them but decided not to care.
In a few days, hopefully no one would notice her when all hype would calm down and she would be back to her normal life. She thought.
Instead, she attentively listened to Percy's instructions about the schedules and stairs and tried to remember the paths and stairs, and occasionally looked at the paintings on the wall, only to mark them as a 'landmark' in her mind. Just as she wondering how much farther they had to go when they came to a sudden halt.
A bundle of walking sticks was floating in midair ahead of them, and as Percy took a step toward them they started throwing themselves at him.
"Peeves," Percy whispered to the first years. "A poltergeist." He raised his voice, "Peeves -- show yourself,"
A loud, rude sound, like the air being let out of a balloon, answered.
"Do you want me to go to the Bloody Baron?"
There was a pop, and a little man with wicked, dark eyes and a wide mouth appeared, floating cross- legged in the air, clutching the walking sticks.
"Oooooooh!" he said, with an evil cackle. "Ickle Firsties! What fun!"
He swooped suddenly at them. They all ducked.
"Go away, Peeves, or the Baron'll hear about this, I mean it!" barked Percy.
Peeves stuck out his tongue and vanished, dropping the walking sticks on Neville's head. They heard him zooming away, rattling coats of armor as he passed.
"You want to watch out for Peeves," said Percy, as they set off again. "The Bloody Baron's the only one who can control him, he won't even listen to us prefects. Here we are."
At the very end of the corridor hung a portrait of a very fat woman in a pink silk dress.
"Password?" she said. "Caput Draconis," said Percy, and the portrait swung forward to reveal a round hole in the wall. They all scrambled through it -- Neville needed a leg up -- and found themselves in the Gryffindor common room, a cozy, round room full of squashy armchairs.
Percy directed the girls through one door to their dormitory on the right and the boys through another.
Crystal left first trying to avoid crowd. She reached the first year dormitory in one of the towers at top of the spiral staircase. There was four four-posters beds hung with deep red, velvet curtains. The windows had same colour curtains too.
Their trunks had already been brought up and kept near the bed at the end of the foot. There was a dressing table with drawers and a cabinet at the side of each bed with a matching design wooden stool in front of it. A lamp was placed on top of each dresser.
Crystal's bed was the nearest to the window which she was quite happy about. She was touring the dorm room and bathroom, when three girls arrived in the dorm one of them was Hermione and others she remembered from their names being called at the sorting, Parvati Patil and Lavender Brown.
"Oh, Crystal! You're already here!" said Hermione excited.
"Yeah, wanted some peace," she said.
"I'm Parvati Patil -- nice to meet you!" said Parvati beaming.
"So nice to see you in person! I'm Lavender Brown." said Lavender.
"Hello, Parvati, Lavender. Let's get all along while we stay together..."
Crystal found it very weird when the last part came out her mouth. It was totally not in her character.
"Our beds are next to each other!" said Hermione flopping on her bed.
Both Parvati and Lavender were a chatty, but Crystal didn't mind them as mostly talked to each other and Crystal didn't have to say anything so it was as she wanted, just listen to people.
Hermione on the other hand was preparing to sleep for the classes that officially started the next day. Crystal was already lying on bed after cleaning up, changed into night clothes.
For the first time Crystal's mind felt light because there was no one here who would give her a rude wake up call or bully her while sleeping. She felt safe, light headed and slept peacefully under the radiance of moon that come through the window.
𖤍𖤓⌁☍❾¾➵♆△⍎⚔︎
Early in the morning, well rested, Crystal woke up and saw everyone still sleeping. She looked outside the window and saw a little darkness in the sky as the light of sun came from the horizon. She checked the time, nine minutes to six.
Crystal usually had a habit to wake up early. She did feel lazy sometimes only when she hadn't had a good sleep.
The lessons starts at nine, she had almost three hours to spend before that. She thought to go for a morning walk around the castle and see the sun rise and come back in almost one hour get ready.
Crystal changed her pyjamas to Jeanette's old track suit when she was younger which was thankfully almost Crystal's size to fit.
She climbed down the staircase, fortunately, the common room was empty and walked out through the portrait hole.
She didn't know where she was going, roaming around the silent corridors and staircases and eventually found herself climbing stairs of one of the tallest tower. She reached at the very top, panting and went closer to the railings.
Crystal closed her eyes as she kept on her hands on railings, feeling the refreshing breeze of morning. She took a deep breath of fresh air with a smile.
She slowly opened her eyes watching the beautiful landscape of the new land and the sunrise of new beginnings.
"This is the most beautiful scene I ever seen and a best way to start the day," She murmured to herself.
The beautiful day started with Crystal getting lost on her way back. She had memorized the paintings at corners where she had to take turn as 'landmark'.
There was only one flaw in the idea that the people in the portraits could move around from frame to frame. She didn't have a back-up plan for her return. She was sure the coats of armor could also walk so she could not find her way back through it too.
"What a perfect start of first day." Crystal mumbled, "and it's still morning. Trouble number one for today."
Finally, she back retraced the people in Gryffindor house ties back in path, coming from the Gryffindor tower's direction to have breakfast.
When she reached her dormitory, all the girls were gone and it was already quater past eight. Crystal ran to bathroom, brushed her teeth, showered and all the morning routine.
By the time she got ready, robes, hair, packed all books and rushed to the common room, someone ran into her from behind --
BAM! THUD!
"Ow!"
"Ughh!"
Crystal rubbed her arm which hit the ground on impact when someone crashed into her. She saw that Harry was also rubbing his elbow as he tried to get up from the ground. She slowly got to her feet.
"I'm so sorry, Potter. Are you hurt anywhere?" She said apologetically, extending her hand to help him up.
"Harry! You okay?" said Ron, coming down the last stairs.
"I'm fine!" said Harry, taking her help, "Are you okay? I'm sorry, it's all because I wasn't looking and doing my tie running,"
Crystal saw his tie loosely hanging around his neck. She looked up at him again with fierce eyes then roughly snatched the tie from his neck.
She started to make a knot of it and said slowly, "Who the hell... runs down the stairs... while tying a knot... you can get seriously injured... and even worst die!"
She threw the tie at his chest as he barely catched it. She turned around and stepped out of the portrait hole.
Number two on the list of bad day.
Harry gulped. Even though she said it all calmly but it made him freeze.
"What's her problem?" Ron said perplexed.
"It was my fault anyway," Harry said. "C'mon! We're already late!"
When Harry and Ron reached the Great Hall, Crystal was already sitting there with a newspaper in hand and quickly eating the fruits for breakfast.
Harry sat right across from her but she didn't even glance or acknowledge him. They ate their breakfast in hurry silently.
Crystal finished and left her seat stuffing the newspaper in her bag as left for the classroom. Harry and Ron stood up too as there was only a few minutes remaining and followed Crystal out but she was already gone.
"How fast does she walk?" Harry muttered and turned to Ron, "D'you know where to go?"
Ron shrugged.
𖤍𖤓⌁☍❾¾➵♆△⍎⚔︎
There, look."
"Where?"
"She's pretty!"
"The black haired girl!"
"Did you see her eyes?"
"It had mysterious powers that made him disappear!"
This happened at the common room, in the Great hall during the breakfast and now when she was walking towards the classroom. People lining up outside classrooms stood on tiptoe to get a look at her, or doubled back to pass her in the corridors again, staring.
Crystal felt my eyes on her as walked but was used to it, as it happened at her old school too, but for different reasons that's why she didn't liked all the attention. She was not sure whether she was going the right direction but still followed her instincts.
She was again lost and late for the lessons. Number three on bad day list.
Harry and Ron had catched up to her by that time and they tried to search for the classroom together but not so together. They worked together for finding the class with mutual understanding. Crystal told them that her idea to memorize the paths through portraits failed.
Harry and Ron laughed at her portrait navigation method. Harry thought it was not a bad idea but magic was a big drawback in it.
If one was lost on their way, the ghosts didn't help, either. It was always a nasty shock when one of them glided suddenly through a door you were trying to open.
Nearly Headless Nick was always happy to point new Gryffindors in the right direction, but Peeves the Poltergeist was worth two locked doors and a trick staircase if you met him when you were late for class.
Even worse than Peeves, if that was possible, was the caretaker, Argus Filch. Harry, Crystal and Ron managed to get on the wrong side of him on their very first morning. Number four on the list of bad day and still it was morning.
Filch found them trying to force their way through a door that unluckily turned out to be the entrance to the out-of-bounds corridor on the third floor.
He wouldn't believe they were lost, was sure they were trying to break into it on purpose, and was threatening to lock them in the dungeons when they were rescued by Professor Quirrell, who was passing.
Filch owned a cat called Mrs. Norris, a scrawny, dust-colored creature with bulging, lamp like eyes just like Filch's. She patrolled the corridors alone. Break a rule in front of her, put just one toe out of line, and she'd whisk off for Filch, who'd appear, wheezing, two seconds later.
Filch knew the secret passageways of the school better than anyone (except perhaps the Weasley twins) and could pop up as suddenly as any of the ghosts. The students all hated him, and it was the dearest ambition of many to give Mrs. Norris a good kick.
And then, once you had managed to find them, there were the classes themselves. There was a lot more to magic as Crystal quickly found out, than waving your wand and saying a few funny words which she had read in books already. The practical of magic was totally different experience. Harry and Ron seemed a little familiar with this because of their upbringing.
They had to study the night skies through their telescopes every Wednesday at midnight and learn the names of different stars and the movements of the planets.
That was the only subject that Crystal knew about more than the books suggest by the school. She had great interest in space science and planets, stars, galaxies and her knowledge exceeded the book. She completed her star chart with most precision and accuracy that Professor Sinistra, the astronomy teacher, gave twenty points to Gryffindor happily.
Three times a week they went out to the greenhouses behind the castle to study Herbology, with a dumpy little witch called Professor Sprout, where they learned how to take care of all the strange plants and fungi, and found out what they were used for. Crystal found the class interesting but not her favorite.
Easily the most boring class was History of Magic, which was the only one taught by a ghost. Professor Binns had been very old indeed when he had fallen asleep in front of the staff room fire and got up next morning to teach, leaving his body behind him.
Crystal thought it was to a waste of time mostly, but had to study it anyway especially because she had to have knowledge of all the history as she was to succeed the Calistos. So eventually in the end she had to study all that diligently.
Professor Flitwick, the Charms teacher, was a tiny little wizard who had to stand on a pile of books to see over his desk. At the start of their first class he took the roll call, and when he reached Crystal's or Harry's name he gave an excited squeak.
Professor McGonagall was again different. Crystal had been quite right to think she wasn't a teacher to cross. While Harry, on the other hand, waved and grinned at Professor, which she returned with a curt nod. Strict and clever, she gave them a talking-to the moment they sat down in her first class.
"Transfiguration is some of the most complex and dangerous magic you will learn at Hogwarts," she said. "Anyone messing around in my class will leave and not come back. You have been warned."
Then she changed her desk into a pig and back again. They were all very impressed and couldn't wait to get started, but soon realized they weren't going to be changing the furniture into animals for a long time.
After taking a lot of complicated notes, they were each given a match and started trying to turn it into a needle.
By the end of the lesson, Harry had turned it slightly to silver and pointy at the ends but it was not needle; Crystal's match changed to pure silver match; Hermione had done it; Professor McGonagall showed the class how it had gone all silver and pointy and gave Hermione a rare smile.
The class everyone had really been looking forward to was Defense Against the Dark Arts, but Quirrell's lessons turned out to be a bit of a joke. His classroom smelled strongly of garlic, which everyone said was to ward off a vampire he'd met in Romania and was afraid would be coming back to get him one of these days.
His turban, he told them, had been given to him by an African prince as a thank-you for getting rid of a troublesome zombie, but they weren't sure they believed this story. For one thing, when Seamus Finnigan asked eagerly to hear how Quirrell had fought off the zombie, Quirrell went pink and started talking about the weather.
For another, they had noticed that a funny smell hung around the turban, and the Weasley twins insisted that it was stuffed full of garlic as well, so that Quirrell was protected wherever he went.
𖤍𖤓⌁☍❾¾➵♆△⍎⚔︎
Crystal was very relieved to find out that she wasn't miles behind everyone else. Lots of people had come from Muggle families and, like her, hadn't had any idea that they were witches and wizards. There was so much to learn that even Harry and Ron didn't have much of a head start. Harry though was doing good in almost every class.
It was Friday and Crystal had finally got the hang of all the stairs and corridors and easily found her way down to the Great Hall for breakfast.
She was having breakfast while going through the headlines of the newspaper as usual when Harry sat beside her finally decided to talk rather than being awkward all by himself. Ron rolled his eyes. He was still not over how his rat was treated but he still sat beside Harry.
"Good morning, Crystal!" said Harry, with a shining smile. Crystal looked up from the newspaper then back down.
"'Morning, Potter," she said, going through the headlines. She was getting used to see him around at breakfast even though they didn't talk. She did notice Harry sitting somewhere around her everyday.
"What're you doing?" Harry said, trying to keep the conversation.
"Hmm... Looks like I'm reading," Crystal said and turned the page. "What d'you think?"
"Er -- yeah," he said awkwardly, "What have we got today?" Harry asked Ron as he poured sugar on his porridge.
"Double Potions with the Slytherins," said Ron. "Snape's Head of Slytherin House. They say he always favors them -- we'll be able to see if it's true."
"Wish Minnie favored us," said Harry. Professor McGonagall was head of Gryffindor House, but it hadn't stopped her from giving them a huge pile of homework the day before.
"Who's Minnie?" said Crystal confused as she folded the newspaper back.
"Minnie is Professor McGonagall," said Harry "My parents and your mum were close to her and dad calls her that so! I got used to it too when she visited us sometimes."
Crystal nodded and ate her toast and jam, turning the pages of her book now.
"What's that book, Crystal?" said Hermione from behind her and took it from her hand, "Ancient Greek Mythologies and Mysteries? Is it good?"
"No." said Crystal.
"Then why're you reading it?" said Hermione giving it back.
Harry looked at the cover curiously. Isn't that the same book she was reading on train? Was he more boring than a boring book? He thought. It hurt his ego on next level. Why does Calliope have to be Crystal. He couldn't tolerate her arrogance and ignorance of Calliope but couldn't stay away from Crystal. Both are the same person, a fake. He thought.
He sighed, he told himself to start fresh and see her different light but it didn't seem to be working. Crystal had been the same the whole week, distant and talked to no one but her dorm mates.
"I thought you went to class?" Crystal said to Hermione.
"There's still time, so I came to get you." said Hermione sitting on her other side. Harry rolled his eyes, eating his breakfast quietly.
"Thanks. I'm done." said Crystal.
Just then, the mail arrived. Crystal had also gotten used to this by now. It had given her a bit of a shock on the first morning, when about a hundred owls had suddenly streamed into the Great Hall during breakfast, circling the tables until they saw their owners, and dropping letters and packages onto their laps.
Cash hadn't brought Crystal anything so far other than the newspapers early in morning. He sometimes flew in with other owls to eat snacks, nibble her ear but was stopped by Crystal because she was a little afraid of animals, though she didn't hated them. She just needed some time to adjust herself.
She just had some psychological issue with animals that was slowly getting better in Hogwarts were people are friendly and depended on animals. She was opening up to Cash slowly and even patted his head while giving him snacks everyday. That was a good progress in her opinion.
Crystal and Cash had a very peculiar relationship, Harry thought that Cash was an intelligent owl as it looked like he understood what Crystal said to him and tried to reply back with gestures such as flapping his wings. He didn't understand why Crystal gave him coins even though Cash was her own owl.
This morning, however, Cash fluttered down between the marmalade and the sugar bowl and dropped a note onto Crystal's plate. Crystal tore it open at once. It said, in a very untidy scrawl:
___________
Dear Crystal,
I know you get Friday afternoons off, so would you like to come and have a cup of tea with me around three? I've invited Harry too. Hope you got to meet him.
I want to hear all about your first week. Send us an answer back with Cash.
Hagrid.
___________
Hedwig had flew to Harry and held out her leg. Harry got letters everyday from his family so it was not new to him but this time the letter was from Hagrid with same content as Crystal.
"Hagrid invited us, Crystal. Will you go?" asked Harry, trying to strike up a conversation again.
"I'm going." said Crystal and scribbled 'Yes, please, see you later' on the back of the note, but before she tied it on Cash, Crystal questioned the owl.
"Where is the coin I gave you last week?"
Cash turned his back to her, hooted once as if saying goodbye, trying to fly away but Crystal caught a wing of his stopping him.
"You dare fly away! You lost it didn't you?" She got a depressed hoot as reply.
Crystal sighed and took out a small grey backpack kind of pouch from her bag.
"I made this for you. Keep your coins in it." she explained the owl in actions as how one teaches a child and taught him how to store coins in it.
"-- You got that? Just put it here. Now, Show me." said Crystal and the owl stuffed the coin in the pouch with its beak.
"Good owl," she said, fastening the pouch on him again, then tied the letter on his leg, and kept a knut and toast in front of him, "Rewards, take it and off you go,"
Cash picked the knut with his beak and threw it in the air catching it in the opening of the small bag.
"Good. Don't forget to deliver the letter or else you'll be cooked tonight!" She threatened playfully and got pecked on hand in return. "I was kidding!"
The owl quickly hooted once, picked up the toast in his beak, flapped a wing in salute and flew away. Crystal released a breath rubbing her hand where she got pecked.
Crystal shook her head with a small smile and caught many people staring at her, jaw open. Harry's spoon slipped from his hand at what he just witnessed. Fred and George came laughing and pushed Harry and Hermione from her beside Crystal sat on either side of her.
"What -- " Harry muttered. It was first time he saw her smile genuinely. It was cute and beautiful. He almost believed that the girl couldn't smile or talk normally, let alone joke but here she was all buddy-buddy with an owl.
"Little princess, are you training your owl?" said Fred with a grin.
"No and don't call me princ -- "
"Can you teach us your methods?" said George.
"You know, if we could train an owl -- "
"-- it could help us with our pranks --"
"-- and make Filch go mad crazy, he could never catch the owl --"
"-- or punish it! And no detention for us with that stinky bones!"
"I think that it wouldn't be a bad idea," Crystal said, chuckling.
They laughed and Harry and Ron joined in too. Hermione smiled along with Crystal, then they left the Great Hall leaving the boys to themselves playing and joking.
-: ✧ :-
⫷ Author's note: ⫸
Heyyyooo ~
Next will be.... A fight.... Kidding....
Nah... See for yourself!
♞ Adios ~
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