3rd Person POV
Since Wren wanted Raven to surprise her for her gift, that is exactly what he did. The next day he had sent her a snowflake necklace, and it cost him nearly all of my Christmas money he had gotten from his godfather, as it was mostly made of diamonds.
Maybe she won't scold me if she doesn't find out how much it cost me. Raven thought.
That same day after lunch, Daphne and Raven brought their pets to the tree by the lake, as they had planned to do. Chase was being affectionate to Raven, and Uri was not liking it. Every time Chase would rub up against Raven, Uri would do it too and glare at Chase, and every time Chase climbed Raven's shoulders, Uri would climb them as well and try and push him off.
"So, how did go in Hogsmeade?" Daphne asked, as Uri began chasing Chase, who was enjoying it.
"It went well." Raven replied. "Mum was happy to see an old friend. Both of them are worried though; with Harry and I being in this tournament, Snape and Karkaroff, and Barty Crouch's recent activity."
"I don't blame them, it's hard to not be worried when someone you care about is so close to danger." Daphne said.
"Yeah, I understand where they're coming from. I'd be worried too if I was in their shoes." Raven said. Then Chase climbed his shoulders and a running Uri dived into Raven's neck. "Oof." He said, then pulled her off.
Daphne giggled. "Seems like they're getting along, even if a little bit."
"Chase seems to be enjoying the thrill of being, well chased." Raven chuckled. Daphne laughed getting the joke.
"I named him well then." Daphne said.
After playing around for a bit more, Uri and Chase cuddled up and were now resting together. "Aww, aren't they just cute!" Daphne squealed, admiring them.
"I'm so taking a picture." Raven said getting his camera from his bag. One he got in a good spot he snapped it.
"Show it to Uri later, maybe she'll gag." Daphne joked.
"Ha ha, she'll say she was framed." Raven chuckled. "She probably likes Chase, but is too stubborn to admit it."
Raven then looked to some rocks near the water. He got up and walked to them, and Daphne gave him a confused look. Raven picked up a rock and skipped it in the water. "How did you do that?" Daphne asked surprised, as she got up and quickly walked over to him.
"What, you've never skipped rocks before?" Raven asked, turning to her.
"Skipped rocks?" Daphne repeated. "Is that what that was?"
"Yeah, watch." Raven said, picking up another rock and then skipping it on the water.
"I wanna try!" Daphne said excitedly. Raven gestured both of his hands to the water. Daphne picked up a rock and tried to do what he did, but the rock sunk into the water when it made contact.
Raven let out a small laugh, and covered his mouth to hide it. "Don't laugh!" Daphne said embarrassed. "I've never done this before."
"Sorry." Raven chuckled. "Here, let me show you." He picked up another rock and demonstrated how he threw it. "You've got to find a flat rock, and hold it with your thumb and middle finger, then firmly hook your index finger along the edge. Your thumb goes on the top of the stone, not around the edge." He explained. He threw it and it skipped a good distance.
"Alright, I think I can do that." Daphne said, and then grabbed the flattest rock she could find. She then did what Raven did to the best of her ability, though it wasn't quite perfect. When she tossed it, the rock skipped three times before sinking. "Did you see that? I did it!" She cheered.
"Way to go, you're getting the hang of it." Raven said clapping.
"I'm going again." Daphne said, as she was clearly enjoying this. She threw another rock, and it like the last one only skipped three times. "Hmm, I really don't know how you skip it so many times."
"Here, I'll help you." Raven said, grabbing another rock and putting it into her hand. "You don't mind, do you?" He asked, getting close up behind her, and almost touching her hand.
"O-oh, um, no I-I don't mind." Daphne said, her face going red. She was lucky Raven couldn't see it.
"Alright." Raven said, guiding her right hand gently, and holding her left hand around her waist. "Now, index finger along the edge, and thumb on top of the stone." He said, placing her fingers in the correct spots. Daphne was having a hard time focusing. "Now, you want to release it with a spin with your index finger so it goes further. Ready?"
"U-uh, y-yeah." Daphne stuttered.
C'mon, Daphne, focus! She told herself.
"On three." Raven said. "One...two...three!" They released the rock together and it skipped eight times on the water. "See, that's more like it!"
"Wow..." Daphne said softly. Then, much to her disappointment, Raven let go.
"Now have a go again." Raven said watching her.
"Okay." Daphne said picking up another rock. This time she managed to skip it six times. "Ooooh, that was better!" She squealed.
"See, you can do it." Raven said giving her a pat on the back. Raven then looked down. "Hey, you two, have a good nap?" Raven asked. Daphne turned around and saw Raven talking to Uri and Chase.
"Are you two getting hungry?" Daphne asked, smiling at the animals. Uri gave a meow and Chase gave a dook.
"We'll take that as a yes." Raven said, and picked Uri up. "I guess we should take them back to our dorms."
"Yeah." Daphne said picking Chase up. "This was fun though, we should come skip rocks again. Make it a friendly competition next time."
"Prepare to lose." Raven cooed.
"You're on, I'll catch up to you one day." Daphne challenged, as they made their way back up to the castle.
At breakfast the next day, Hermione had received hateful letters from anonymous senders. One read:
You are a wicked girl. Harry Potter deserves better. Go back where you came from muggle.
"They're all like it!" Hermione said desperately, opening one letter after another. "'Harry Potter can do much better than the likes of you...' 'You deserve to be boiled frog spawn...' Ouch!"
She opened the last envelope, and yellowish-green liquid smelling strongly of petrol gushed over her hands, which began to erupt in large yellow boils.
"Undiluted bubotuber pus!" Ron said, picking up the envelope gingerly and sniffing it.
"Ow!" Hermione said, tears starting in her eyes as she tried to rub the puss off her hands with a napkin, but her fingers were now so thickly covered in painful sores that it looked as though she were wearing a pair of thick, knobby gloves.
"You'd better get up to the hospital wing." Harry said.
"You haven't received anything like that, have you?" Raven asked Daphne, as Hermione ran out of the Great Hall. Raven was worried that people would target her as well, since him and her were both mentioned in the Daily Prophet.
"No, I haven't gotten any letters." Daphne replied. "I think they're only targeting Hermione, because she's muggle-born. I'm a Pure-blood like you, so I think I'll be alright. Though if I receive an anonymous letter, I'll throw it in the fire."
"Good idea, and be careful, they can use other means to get to you. I don't want you hurt because of me." Raven said, getting up. "C'mon, we've got Care of Magical Creatures soon."
"That's sweet of you." Daphne said, getting up and walking with him. "But I'll be sure to be cautious."
Harry and Ron joined them and as they got closer to Hagrid's cabin, they saw the other Slytherins whispering and giggling. Catching sight of Harry, Pansy called, "Potter, have you split up with your girlfriend? Why was she so upset at breakfast?"
Harry ignored her. Raven, however, began to take out his wand until Daphne stopped him. "Don't." She said. "I'll get her with some dungbombs when she's in the shower."
"Oooh, how evil." Raven whispered. "I love it." Daphne giggled quietly.
Upon arriving at Hagrid's was a fresh supply of crates at his feet. "Oh no, not more skrewts." Daphne whimpered.
"Don't worry, it's just nifflers." Raven assured her. "Hide anything shiny."
Daphne looked confused. "These're nifflers." Hagrid said, when the class gathered. "You find them down mines mostly. They like sparkly stuff...There you go, look." One of the nifflers jumped at Pansy and tried to take her watch. She shrieked and jumped back. Daphne, now knowing what Raven meant, took of her emerald bracelet he had gotten her for Christmas and pocketed it.
"Useful little treasure detectors." Hagrid said. "Thought we'd have some fun with them today. See over there?" He pointed at the large patch of freshly turned earth. "I've buried some gold coins. I've got a prize for whoever picks the niffler that digs up most. Just take off all your valuable, and choose a niffler, and get ready to set them loose."
Raven didn't have anything shiny on him, except his father's wedding ring that was on a chain around his neck. Though a niffler wouldn't be able to see it as it was underneath his robes. Raven and Daphne went down to the crates and picked a niffler.
"Hello, little guy, aren't you adorable." Raven cooed, scratching the niffler's belly.
"Are you planning on naming him like you did Sylvie?" Daphne asked.
"Good idea!" Raven said enthusiastically. Daphne couldn't help but giggle at Raven's enthusiasm. "I'm going to call you Teddy." He picked his up and Daphne picked up hers. "You going to name yours as well?"
"Um....how do I tell what gender it is?" Daphne questioned looking around her niffler.
"That one's female." Raven said. "They tend to have lighter fur colors."
(A.N. - I don't know if this is actually true, as I couldn't find anything on how to identify their gender online.)
"Oh, well...how about Isla?" Daphne suggested. Her niffler seemed to be happy with it.
Everyone seemed to be having a good time with the lesson. All of the nifflers were down diving in the earth except for Ravens. Teddy was laying in Raven's lap as he was sitting on a log. "Looks like your not getting the prize." Daphne chuckled noticing them.
"This is a prize of it's own." Raven said relaxed, scratching Teddy's belly. Hagrid didn't seem to mind. He knew how magical creatures were around Raven.
"Can you buy these as pet, Hagrid?" Ron asked excitedly.
"Your mum wouldn't be happy, Ron." Hagrid said. "They wreck houses, nifflers. I reckon they've nearly got the lot, now." He added pacing around they patch of earth. "I only buried a hundred coins. Oh there you are, Hermione!"
Hermione walked towards them across the lawn. Her hands were heavily bandaged. "Well, let's check how you've done!" Hagrid said. "Count your coins! And there's no point trying to steal any, Goyle." He added. "It's leprechaun gold. Vanishes after a few hours." Goyle emptied his pockets, looking extremely sulky.
It turned out that Ron had won, so Hagrid gave him an enormous slab of Honeydukes chocolate for a prize. The bell rung, and the class headed back to the castle except Harry, Ron, Hermione, Raven, and Daphne, who helped Hagrid put the nifflers back in the box.
"You missed a really good lesson, Hermione." Harry said, as they headed back up the castle. They're good, nifflers, aren't they, Ron?"
Ron, however was frowning at the chocolate Hagrid had given him. "What's the matter? Wrong flavor?" Harry asked.
"No." Ron said shortly. "Why didn't you tell me leprechaun gold disappears. I gave you some at the Quidditch World Cup for the Omnioculars."
"Oh..." Harry said remembering. "I dunno...I never noticed it had gone. I was more worried about my wand, wasn't I?"
They climbed the steps into the entrance hall and went into the Great Hall for lunch. "Must be nice." Ron said abruptly, when they sat down and started eating. "To have so much money you don't notice if a pocketful of Galleons goes missing."
"Listen, I had other stuff on my mind that night!" Harry said impatiently. "We all did, remember?"
"I hate being poor." Ron muttered, spearing a roast potato at the end of his fork. Raven and Daphne looked to each other as did Harry and Hemione, not knowing what to say. Raven felt a little awkward as he and his mum always made it by just fine with her working. Daphne felt even more awkward as she came from a wealthy family.
"Look at it this way, Ron." Raven said. "Your family may not be rich in money, but they're rich in love. You've got a big family who all love each other. Most of the time it's just Mum and I. We don't know what we'd do without each other, but you've got all your siblings."
"At least your mum loves you." Ron said.
"Your mum loves you, Ron. She just has a lot of kids to give that love to, she just doesn't have enough time to show it all the time." Raven said. "And...at least you still have your father. I never got the chance to meet mine." He added sadly. "Mum once told me, 'you don't know the value of something until it's gone.'"
Raven obviously knew she meant his father even though Wren never took Qrow for granted. But after losing him, she then realized how much he meant to her. After a long silence Ron spoke. "Yeah...I suppose you're right, Raven." Ron said getting his point.
Later that night, Daphne was in her dorm waiting for Pansy to go take a shower. She was on her bed and had the curtains closed so no one could see her. Millicent Burstrode was asleep and Tracey Davis was removing her makeup. Once Pansy departed to the bathroom and Daphne heard the water run for a few moments, she turned to Chase.
"Alright, Chase." Daphne whispered, handing him some dungbombs "Takes these and put them under Pansy's pillow."
Chase seemed to understand and sneakily made his way to Pansy's bed. He avoided being seen by Tracey and was able to plant the trap. He snuck back to Daphne's bed and then they waited.
Tracey soon went to bed, and Pansy came out of the bathroom in her pajamas. She saw that her dormmates were already asleep and went straight to bed herself. Getting settled in she didn't hear the dungbombs go off underneath her pillow.
A few moments later she smelt something bad. "Ugh, what's that smell?" She questioned, holding her nose. "Ugh, what the hell?!" Pansy yelled jumping out of her bed, waking up her dormates. Daphne, of course was already awake but she played it off rubbing her eyes as she pulled back her curtains.
"What's with the yelling?" Daphne asked, faking her sleepiness.
"Who did it?" Pansy shrieked. "Who put dungbombs on my bed?!"
"What are you talking about, Pansy?" Tracey asked. She then noticed the smell. "Ugh, that reeks." She said holding her nose.
"You did it!" Pansy shouted angrily, pointing at Daphne. "I just know it was you!"
"I didn't plant dungbombs on your bed, Pansy." Daphne said, sleepily. "I've been asleep since before you went to take a shower."
"It's true, Pansy." Tracey said. "She went to bed before I did, and I didn't see her get up once."Pansy then looked to Chase, who was cuddled up next to Daphne. "It had to have been your stupid little ferret then!" Pansy yelled stomping up to Daphne's bed. Pansy tried to snatch up Chase, but Daphne slapped her hand away.
"Don't touch, Chase!" Daphne barked at Pansy. "He didn't do anything! It was probably a younger girl, or one of the boys found a way to sneak them in to prank you. Go back to bed." Daphne closed the curtains, and laid back down. She kept her grip on her wand, which was under her pillow, in case Pansy decided to try anything else.
Luckily it seemed Pansy went back to her bed. She tossed and turned all night, as she wasn't able to get rid of the smell. She wasn't going to resort to sleeping on the floor as she was too good for that.
The next morning, Pansy had bags under her eyes and the rest of her face looked exhausted. She hadn't slept well last night. Daphne noticed this and gave an evil smirk, to which went unnoticed by her dormmates.
Serves you right, Pansy. Daphne thought, heading to the common room.
May finally came and it was Daphne's birthday today. When she went down to the common room, she found Astoria waiting for her with a gift in her hand. "Happy birthday, sis!" She said, handing her the gift.
"Thank you, Astoria." Daphne said, taking the gift. She sat down on a nearby chair and unwrapped it. Her sister had gotten her sweets, treats for Chase, and a new pair of emerald earrings. "These are beautiful." Daphne said admiring them.
"I thought they'd go great with that emerald bracelet you're always wearing." Astoria explained.
"Yeah, I think they will." Daphne said. "Raven got me this for Christmas." She touched the bracelet with her hand.
"No wonder you wear it everyday." Astoria cooed, causing Daphne to go slightly pink. Daphne then put the earrings on and looked to her sister. "They look wonderful on you, sis."
"Thank you, Astoria. I love my gift." Daphne said giving her a hug.
Astoria soon disappeared after breakfast, and Daphne was confused when she didn't see her sister for a while. She also wondered where Raven was.
He didn't forget what today was, did he? Daphne pondered.
Astoria was nowhere to be seen as she had just made her way down to the kitchens. She saw Raven leaning against a wall waiting for her. "You sure took your time." He said noticing her. "Did you get lost?"
"Three times!" Astoria said exasperated. "You didn't exactly give me the best instructions."
"Well, at least you didn't end up at the Death Day Party." Raven chuckled, turning to the kitchen door.
"The what?" Astoria questioned, feeling a little scared.
"Nothing." Raven cooed, taking out his wand. Astoria just took it as him teasing, as Daphne mentioned he liked to do that. Raven tickled the pear with his wand, and Astoria couldn't help but grin like an idiot at the sound it made.
"Welcome to the kitchens." Raven said as the door opened. They walked in and Astoria saw all of the house-elves working. She had seen only one house-elf before, as her family had one at home.
Dobby came up to them and said, "Greetings, Raven Mordecur, how can Dobby assist you today?" He asked.
"Hello, Dobby." Raven greeted. "This is my friend, Astoria." Raven gestured to her.
"Hello, Dobby, I'm Astoria Greengrass, nice to meet you." Astoria greeted.
"Greeting, Miss." Dobby said.
"It's her sister's birthday today, so we were wondering if you could assist us in baking her a cake?" Raven explained.
"Of course, sir!" Dobby said happily. "Dobby would be happy to help you and the Miss bake a cake. What kind would you like?"
Raven turned to Astoria for an answer. "German chocolate is her favorite." Astoria stated.
"Very well, Miss." Dobby said. "Dobby shall prepare the ingredients, please follow Dobby." Raven and Astoria followed Dobby to a table where they could prepare the cake. Dobby brought the ingredients and the three of them got to work.
Once the cake was baking in the oven, they sat down and drank some butterbeer. "I've never seen so many house-elves in one place before." Astoria said. "We only have one at home."
"Oh yeah, what's their name?" Raven asked.
"Her name's Milly." Astoria replied. "Mother and Father aren't always kind to her, but Daphne and I like to play with her given the chance."
"That's sweet of you and Daphne to do that." Raven said. "I'm sure Milly appreciates it."
"She does." Astoria said. "Milly is always happy when Daphne and I return home."
Once the cake was baked, they began decorating it. Raven wrote Happy Birthday Daphne on on it and Dobby added a number fifteen candle at it's center. "It seems to be ready." Dobby said.
"It sure is." Raven said. "Thank you, Dobby."
"Yes, thank you, Dobby." Astoria said.
"Dobby is happy to have helped." Dobby said. "Dobby will be here if you need help again."
"I will keep that in mind, Dobby." Raven said, as Astoria and him left. "Thank you for your help as well." He told her.
"It was your idea, and I had fun." Astoria said. "Plus you can bake me a cake next year. My birthday's December nineteenth, and I like red velvet cake."
"I'll see what I can do." Raven said. "I'll be waiting at the spot while you go get your sister."
"Alright, see you in a bit." Astoria said as the two departed.
Astoria made her way to the Slytherin common room to find her sister. Once she entered and made her way in, she found Daphne reading a book on a chair. "Astoria, there you are, where have you been?" Daphne asked looking up at her sister.
"I've been here and there." Astoria said unconvincingly, causing Daphne to raise a brow in question. "Come with me, I've got something to show you." She closed her sisters book for her, set it on a nearby desk and pulled her sister off her feet.
"Something to show me?" Daphne repeated, as her sister held her hand, dragging her out of the common room. "Where are we going?" She asked, being guided up the stairs.
"You'll see." Astoria cooed.
Astoria led her sister out the front doors and down to the lake. Daphne recognized the spot she was being led to. It was the tree by the lake that her and Raven spent time together at. It had a picnic table next to it. When they stopped, Raven emerged from behind the tree with a cake in his hands.
"Surprise!" Astoria and Raven both said. Daphne covered her mouth in shock.
Raven walked up to her presenting the cake, and said, "Happy birthday, Daphne."
Daphne looked down and saw that he had her favorite flavor of cake in his hands. "And here I thought you had forgotten." Daphne joked, not being able to stop smiling.
"Ahh, c'mon you know me better than that." Raven chuckled. "Now c'mon," He gestured his head to the tree. "We've made a cake for you that's not going to eat itself."
All three of them sat around at the tree. Raven used his wand to ignite flames on the candle. "Now, make a wish." Raven said. Daphne smiled, getting close to the candles.
I wish for Raven and I to always be together. She wished blowing out the candle.
Astoria and Raven clapped. "What did you wish for, sis?" Astoria asked.
"If I tell you it won't come true." Daphne stated. And oh how she wanted her wish to come true. Her and Raven weren't a couple, but she knew that could always change.
Raven took the candle off and cut three slices, setting each one on a plate. Daphne took her first bite and let out a moan as she tasted the cake. "Wow, sis, I didn't know cake could do that to you." Astoria joked at the noise Daphne made.
Daphne's cheeks warmed, and she looked to Raven who was letting out a small chuckle. Astoria soon followed. "You guys!" Daphne said embarrassed. Raven and Astoria then burst into laughter, and Daphne began giggling herself. "I can't help it, German chocolate's so good."
After they had eaten the whole cake, Raven pulled out a gift from his bag. "Here's my gift to you." Daphne smiled taking it. She opened it to find three books that were titled The Lord of the Rings. "These books are a sequel to The Hobbit book that I got for you last year."
"Thank you, Raven." Daphne said smiling. "I was hoping there was more to the world of Middle-Earth."
They stayed out their for a little while longer, played some exploding sap, talked about what they thought was coming next for the tournament, and how Raven and Astoria went to the kitchens to bake the cake with Dobby.
"Thank you, both of you." Daphne said, wrapping an arm around both of them. "This was a wonderful birthday." Raven and Astoria hugged her back, and they soon departed back to the castle for dinner.
In the last week of May, Professor McGonagall held Raven and Harry back in Transfiguration. "Both of you are to go down to the Quidditch field tonight at nine o'clock." She said. "Mr. Bagman will be there to tell the champions about the third task."
At half past eight that night, Raven left the Ravenclaw common room, and met up with Cedric and Harry at the entrance hall. "What do you reckon it's going to be?" Cedric asked as they made their way outside. "Fleur keeps going on about underground tunnels; she reckons we've got to find treasure."
"That wouldn't be too bad." Harry said.
"Maybe we have to duel each other in a free for all." Raven suggested. Harry gulped thinking about that. He probably guessed that he was the worst dueler out of all the champions.
When they made their way down to the Quidditch field, they saw that it had been covered in hedges. "What have they done to it?" Cedric said indignantly.
"Hello there!" Ludo Bagman called. He was standing in the middle of the field with Krum and Fleur. Raven, Harry, and Cedric made their way toward them, climbing over the hedges. Fleur beamed at Harry and Raven as they came nearer. Her attitude toward them had changed completely since they had saved her sister from the lake.
"Well, what d'you think?" Bagman said happily. "Growing nicely, aren't they? Give them a month and Hagrid'll have them twenty feet high. Don't worry, you'll have your Quidditch field back to normal once the task is over!"
We better. Raven thought
"Now, I imagine you can guess what we're making here?" Bagman said.
"Maze." Krum grunted.
"That's right!" Bagman said. "A maze. The third task's really very straightforward. The Triwizard Cup will be placed in the center of the maze. The first champion to touch it will receive full marks."
"We seemply 'ave to get through the maze?" Fleur asked.
"There will be obstacles." Bagman said happily. "Hagrid is providing a number of creatures..."
That'll be easy for me. Raven thought.
"Then there will be spells that must be broke." Bagman continued. "All that sort of thing, you know. Now, the champions who are leading on points will get a head start into the maze." Bagman grinned at Raven, Harry, and Cedric. "Then Mr. Krum will enter...then Miss Delacour. But you'll all be in with a fighting chance, depending how well you get past the obstacles. Should be fun, eh?"
Everyone nodded politely. "Very well...if you haven't got any questions, we'll go back up to the castle, shall we, it's a bit chilly..."
Bagman strode past everyone, heading to the castle first. Krum said he wanted a word with Harry. Raven looked suspiciously at Krum, but Harry said he'd be fine. Raven nodded and made his way back over the hedges. Fleur who was next to him started a conversation.
"I'm zorry if I upset your girlfriend ze 'ther day." She said.
"Girlfriend?" Raven repeated.
"Yes, zee blonde girl you zaved from zee lake." Fleur said. "Iz she not your girlfriend?"
"No, Daphne and I are just friends." Raven replied.
"Oh, zo you are zingle then?" Fleur asked surprised. Raven nodded. "Zat is a zurprise, I zee many girls looking in your direction."
Raven hadn't noticed the 'many girls' looking at him as his eyes were only on one. "Well, goodnight, Raven." Fleur said, as they had made their way to the Beauxbatons carriage.
"Good night, Fleur." Raven said, and then departed back to the castle.