In third-year halls, their paths first crossed,
A Raven boy, a Blonde girl lost.
"Stay out of my way," she warned with a glare,
But something lingered in the frosty air.
Crimson with his scar and fame,
Emerald with her secrets untamed.
Two worlds ap...
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The start of December brought wind and sleet to Hogwarts. Drafty though the castle always was in winter, Harry, Aria, and their friends were glad for its fires and thick walls every time they passed the Durmstrang ship on the lake. The ship was pitching in the high winds, its black sails billowing against the dark skies. Harry thought the Beauxbatons caravan was likely to be pretty chilly too. Hagrid, as always, was looking after Madame Maxime's horses with care, keeping them well provided with their preferred drink of single-malt whiskey. The fumes wafting from the trough in the corner of their paddock were enough to make the entire Care of Magical Creatures class light-headed, which wasn't helpful, as they were still tending the horrible skrewts and needed their wits about them.
Aria stood beside Harry, trying to shield herself from the biting wind as Hagrid began speaking. "I'm not sure whether they hibernate or not," Hagrid told the shivering class in the windy pumpkin patch next lesson. "Thought we'd jus' try an' see if they fancied a kip . . . we'll jus' settle 'em down in these boxes..."
There were now only ten skrewts left; apparently, their desire to kill one another hadn't subsided. Each of them was now approaching six feet in length. Their thick gray armor, their powerful, scuttling legs, their fire-blasting ends, their stings, and their suckers made them the most repulsive creatures Harry had ever seen.
Aria gave a sideways glance to Onyx, who looked utterly miserable in the cold as she stood near Blaise. "Do we really have to do this?" Aria muttered under her breath, her arms wrapped around herself for warmth.
Onyx shot her a glance. "Unless you've got a way to disappear, yes."
"We'll jus' lead 'em in here," Hagrid continued, pointing at the enormous boxes he'd brought out, all lined with pillows and fluffy blankets. "An' put the lids on, and we'll see what happens."
But the skrewts did not appreciate being forced into the pillow-lined boxes and nailed in. Within moments, chaos erupted. Hagrid was soon yelling, "Don' panic, now, don't panic!" while the skrewts rampaged around the pumpkin patch, leaving behind the smoldering wreckage of the boxes. Most of the class—Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle in the lead—had fled into Hagrid's cabin, slamming the door shut behind them.
Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Aria, however, remained outside, determined to help. Together, they managed to restrain and tie up nine of the skrewts, though it cost them numerous burns and cuts. Finally, only one skrewt was left.
"Don' frighten him, now!" Hagrid shouted as Ron and Harry used their wands to shoot jets of fiery sparks at the skrewt, which was advancing menacingly on them. Its sting arched, quivering over its back. "Jus' try an' slip the rope 'round his sting, so he won' hurt any o' the others!"
"Yeah, we wouldn't want that!" Ron shouted angrily, backing into the wall of Hagrid's cabin alongside Harry.
Aria stepped closer, her wand ready, when a sharp voice interrupted.
