Mayhem - G.Weasley

62. Flowers for your Grave

"Shadow I presume?" Dumbledore bent down and exposed his palm to the mighty beast. If he was afraid, he didn't show it. In fact, he truly seemed more interested in interacting with the cat, rather than keeping all of his fingers.

Ivy had skipped lunch in lieu to meet with the headmaster. Their talk was long overdue, and her false confident persona would only last so long. Better their talk to be now rather than later.

Ivy always had a bad feeling about later.

Shadow just sniffed the headmaster precariously, but didn't let Dumbledore touch him. Although her feline companion did relax a smidge, perhaps deeming the old man as a lesser threat. . . For now.

With a wave of Dumbledore's hand, the chairs in front of his desk pulled themselves out for his guests. And two plates came floating with heavenly aromas.

"He's quite fascinating." Dumbledore observed as Shadows large body conformed to fit within the tight space of the wooden chair.

"He is." Ivy leaned over his desk to get a view of the food that placed itself in front of them. It was unnerving how much he understood Ivy. There was a plate of raw meat for her beloved pet, and on the other was her favorite food.

Even the smell was similar.

It was a Cajun pasta, like her mother had always made. It was inspired by their time in New Orleans. Ivy quite liked that place. It was lively, and despite the hardships, people were happy.

Dancing in the streets. Her father twirling him around merrily, like she was a rag doll.

It brought memories flooding back to the surface, much too quickly for her brain to stop them. Tears threatened to brim in the corners of her eyes.

She blinked them back and steeled her nerves.

It's just magic, she told herself. He couldn't possibly know her this well. That thought had her eyeing the headmaster suspiciously.

Instead of diving in as her empty stomach so loudly begged, she sniffed at Shadow's plate first. The raw meat was fresh and she couldn't detect any tamperings with the meal. And if there were, it was an benefit to have a great wizard on her side to step in should the situation arise.

Unless he was the one with the poison.

Ivy picked up a piece of red meat, still dripping with blood, as if the animal were just killed moments ago. She placed the meat in front of Shadows face, allowing him to smell the meal as well. When he deemed the kill clean, he devoured it within seconds.

"You know what they say about his kind?" She shook her head as she watched the cat chomp through the tendons of whatever raw meat sat still warm on his plate.

Ivy always seemed to forget how sharp his teeth were. Normally, she'd be weary of her appendages so close to those knives people mistook for teeth. But a death by Shadow would be merciless and quick, something she was sure was scarce for her future.

She was also sure he'd never do that to her. Even if she had begged him to.

"Bulgarian Ghosts cats are one of the most feral and dangerous creatures known to existence. They tend to stay away from humans." He watched Shadow lick his lips menacingly. "Though the Bulgarian Ghost cat is most widely known for its relation to the royalty of this world."

As far as Ivy was concerned, these facts were utter nonsense. They meant nothing to her. Her attention was still focused on the familiar aroma in front of her.

"It has been some time since we last spoke." The headmaster only watched as Ivy eyed her own plate. She was weighing what to do.

Should she taste it? Would it be just like the one her mother made?