The next day, the second year students gathered in the green house. All the students wore a beige cloak over their uniforms; a piece of clothing that would be able to get a little dirty during their greenhouse lessons. The students were talking to each other until their professor entered the greenhouse.
Their greenhouse professor was a rather short lady. She had a well-rounded and she was short in size. She had very short, curly grey hair that bundled up underneath her brown witch hat. She had big brown eyes and she had a big soft heart. She was the Head of the Hufflepuff House.
She stepped into the greenhouse and stood at the end of the table. She reached over and tapped her wand on one of the clay flowerpots, drawing the attention of her young students. They turned towards her and stepped up to the table.
"Good morning, everyone." She yelled due to the fact that she had earmuffs over her ears.
"Good morning, Professor Sprout." All the students said simultaneous. The one little girl (who could not speak) looked around the room, pursing her lips together in defeat. She turned her head towards her professor, leaning forward in eagerness.
"Welcome to Greenhouse Three, second years. Gather around, everyone. Today we're going to re-pot mandrakes," Professor Sprout said, picking up a rather large pot and setting it on the table. "Who here can tell me the properties of the Mandrake root?"
Instantly, Hermione's hand shot into the air. The professor looked right towards her, lifting her hand and calling on her name. The other children turned his heads and looked towards the young girl who knew-it-all.
"Yes, Miss Granger?" Professor Sprout questioned.
"Mandrake or Mandragora is used to return those who have been petrified to their original state. It's also dangerous. The mandrake's cry is fatal to anyone who hears it," Hermione stated. The professor nodded her head in confirmation.
"Excellent! Ten points to Gryffindor," Professor Sprout announced. The other Gryffindor students smiled to themselves, nodding towards their fellow student with thankful eyes. The Slytherin students rolled their eyes in annoyance, mentally scoffing to themselves.
While Professor Sprout was explaining some of the properties of the mandrakes, Draco looked across the table with narrowed eyes. He took a single step back so that the professor would not see him. He cupped his hands around his mouth.
"Hey! Psst! You little mute mouse," he whispered loud enough for the other children to hear. In response, Rose whipped her head towards him and looked at him with glaring eyes. He nudged his two friends in their side, pointing towards her. She gritted her teeth together, spinning her head towards her professor. She raised her head in the air, paying no mind to the teasing boys.
In response, Ron and Harry turned their heads towards the Slytherin students. They shook their heads in disapproval. "Leave her alone, Malfoy." Harry said in a low whisper. The Malfoy boy raised his eyebrows in amusement, mentally stating what they planned to do if he didn't stop. They sent him some warning glares.
"The little mute mouse can't even speak for herself. She has to have a translator speak for her," Draco said in a low chuckle. In a second, Harry's fists clenched together in anger. He wanted so badly to punch that spoiled boy in the nose. He kept his anger to himself.
"Is there something you would like to share with the class, Mr Malfoy?" Madam Sprout said, raising her voice. The blonde haired boy turned his head and looked towards his professor. His cheeks burned a fierce pink from the embarrassment of being called out in class. He swallowed thickly, looking down at his feet.
"N-No, Professor Sprout." Draco mumbled under his breath.
"That's what I thought. Five points from Slytherin," Professor Sprout announced. The other Slytherin students groaned to themselves, cursing their foolish classmate for his endless teasingly. The Malfoy boy turned his head and looked at the young girl with no name.
Her lips curved into a wicked smile. He reached up and grabbed his ear, pulling them tightly. He puffed his cheeks with air. He made his eyes cross over one another, pulling a rather ugly face. In retort, her little nose scrunched up and her jaw locked in place. She leaned forward and stuck her tongue out.
"As our mandrakes are still only seedlings, their cries won't kill you yet. But they could knock you out for hours, which is why I have given you earmuffs for auditory protection. So could you please put them on, right away? Quickly," Professor Sprout said quite loudly.
The students reached down and grabbed their earmuffs, placing them over their heads to cover their ears. Slowly, Rose picked up the earmuffs and placed them on top of her head. She could barely hear anything with the muffs. That must have been a good thing though.
"Flaps tight down and watch me closely," Professor Sprout said. She picked up a pot, grabbing the stem of the plant tightly. "You grasp your mandrake firmly. You pull it sharply up out of the pot," she said.
In that moment, Professor Sprout yanked the mandrake out of the flowerpot. The roots of the mandrake were formed like a infant, crying to itself as if it had just been born. It wailed to itself loudly, causing the children to place their hands over their ears. They winced at the loud cry.
"Got it? And..." Professor Sprout's voice trailed off. She reached over and flopped the crying plant into the flowerpot, tossing a bit of dirt in to cover it up. "Now you dunk it down into the other pot and pour a little sprinkling of soil to keep him warm," she explained.
Suddenly, Neville's eyes rolled into the back of his head. He dropped to the ground with a loud thump, fainting near the feet of his fellow students. The professor looked up, breathing a small sigh of defeat.
"Longbottom has been neglecting his earmuffs," Professor Sprout sighed.
"No, ma'am, he's just fainted." Seamus explained.
"Yes? Well, just leave him there." Professor Sprout said with a wave of the hand. "Right, on we go. Plenty of pots to go around. Grasp your mandrake and pull it up," she instructed.
All the students yanked their mandrakes out of the pot at the same time. The obnoxious screams filled the entire air, forcing the students to wince in pain. Each mandrake looked a little different from the rest. They varied in different shapes and sizes.
In result to the cries, Ron's face scrunched up in an uncomfortable manner. He pushed his mandrake away from his face, frowning in utter discomfort. Even Rose looked slightly uncomfortable while handing one of the mandrakes, blinking a couple of times to keep herself from fainting at the cry.
The Malfoy boy brought his mandrake close to his face, ticking the mandrake's chin in a teasing way. The mandrake bit down on his finger, forcing the boy to pull away sharply. He glared down at the plant before shoving it into the flowerpot.
~~~
The children were gathered in the great hall, eating their lunch for the day. However, Ron took care of his free time. He wrapped a long string of tape around his broken wand, sighing to himself in utter defeat. He turned towards his closest friend, frowning at his loss.
"Say it. I'm doomed," Ron groaned. In agreement, Harry nodded his head slightly. The two girls lifted their heads, looked at the boys with saddened eyes. The red haired boy breathed another sigh of defeat, lowering his broken wand onto the table.
"You're doomed," Harry stated.
"Hi, Harry!"
There was a bright flash of light. In result, Harry and Rose turned towards the source. They blinked a few times to regain their blurry eyesight. A little boy with mousy hair lowered his camera from his face. His big brown eyes were bulging out of his head, staring at the famous boy. His white teeth were pushed forward, sticking out of his mouth.
"I'm Colin Creevey. I'm in Gryffindor too," Colin said with a nervous chuckle. Slowly, Harry lowered his writing quill and closed his workbook. His lips curved into a soft smile, nodding his head in acknowledgment.
"Hi, Colin. Nice to meet you." Harry confessed.
"Say..." the boy's voice trailed off. "Do you think your friend here could take a photo of me and you standing together? You know, to prove I've met you. It's for my dad. He's a milkman, you know. A Muggle, like all our family's been until me. No one knew all the stuff I could do was magic till we got our Hogwarts letter. Everyone just thought I was mental," Colin laughed nervously.
"Imagine that," Ron said.
"And you!" Colin exclaimed. He quickly stepped to the side and lifted his camera to his eyes, snapping a quick photo of the girl (with no name). She blinked a couple of times, regaining her eyesight. "Y-You're Rose Black. Gosh..." his voice trailed off. "You're even prettier than I had imagined. I-I mean...I-I...did I say that out loud?" He said, stumbling over his words.
"Afraid so," Harry grumbled to himself under his breath.
"Oh gosh. I-I am always s-so nervous around girls, especially the pretty ones. N-Not that I think y-you are pretty. I-I mean...you are p-pretty, but I-I...I-I..." Colin's voice trailed off. In response, Rose looked down at her book and smiled to herself behind the pages.
Slowly, Harry leaned over towards her and whispered in her ear quietly. "I think you have an admirer. If I didn't know any better, I'd say he fancies you," he stated. She reached up and nudged him in the stomach. He chuckled to himself, moving away from the book.
Some of the Gryffindor students turned their heads upon hearing a loud squawking. They lifted their heads and looked towards the ceiling, seeing an owl flying into the great hall with a letter in its mouth.
"Ron? Is that your owl?" Dean Thomas asked.
The grey and black owl swooped low, flying over the long tables. He flapped his wings once, hovering over the plates of food. He swooped a little lower, slamming into a bowl of chips. He flipped over on his back, laying perfectly still in the pile of chips. The children laughed to themselves.
"Bloody bird is a menace," Ron exclaimed. He reached up and grabbed the crimson letter from the bird's mouth. The owl scrambled to its feet, flying off into the distance. The boy lifted the letter, staring at it with widened eyes. "Oh, no!"
"Look, everyone! Weasley's got himself a howler," Seamus said. He motioned his head towards the terrified boy, eagerly waiting for him to open the letter. The red haired boy swallowed thickly, reading his name on the front.
"Go on, Ron. I ignored one from my gran once. It was horrible," Neville admitted with worried eyes. Slowly, he flipped the letter over. He reached up and opened the letter with trembling hands. He dropped the letter onto the table out of fear.
"Ronald Weasley!"
The letter jumped up from the table, hovering in the air. It shifted around to take the form of a mouth. It's lips were made of the red envelope. It's teeth were made from the paper. It even had a tongue which was made from the red ribbon holding the whole envelope together. The letter was standing in front of the boy's face, screaming at him in rage.
"How dare you steal that car! I am absolutely disgusted! Your father is now facing an inquiry at work and it's entirely your fault!" The letter (with his mother's voice) jumped closer to him. He trembled in his place, staring at the letter with a quivering lip. "If you put another toe out of line, we'll bring you straight home!"
The red haired boy nodded his head frantically, mentally stating how he understood. The crimson letter turned towards the young Weasley girl sitting farther down the table. It seemed to smile at the very sight of her.
"And Ginny! Congratulations on making Gryffindor. Your father and I are so proud," Mrs Weasley said. The students at the table turned their heads towards their fellow student, leaning over to see her. She gave a small smile of embarrassment.
The crimson letter turned back towards the youngest Weasley boy, sticking its tongue out and blowing a raspberry at him. It bit down on its lip, tearing itself up into a few pieces. The tore letter fluttered towards the wooden table, breathing a small sigh.
The poor boy looked absolutely horrified. He could feel his cheeks burning in utter embarrassment, turning a bright shade of red. He nervously looked at the other students staring at him. He sunk into his chair, cowering away from their rude stares. He could feel his face turning into the shade of his own fiery red hair. He had dropped his gaze to stare down at his hands in his lap, feeling the strong sense of embarrassment flooding through his thoughts.