Amelia Merlin

Part Eighty: Salamanders

The first Care of Magical Creatures class back was amazing. Hagrid had created a bonfire with salamanders running gleefully through the flames. It was their job to keep the fire burning by collecting leaves and logs from the edge of the forest. Amelia was walking along the side with Lavender and Parvati.

"Do you think the salamanders appreciate everything we're doing?" Lavender groaned as she accidently knelt down in a muddy patch.

"I'm sure they do." Parvati smiled and helped her to her feet.

"They'd better." she grumbled slightly and Amelia couldn't help but laugh lightly.

"I think it's fun. This is better than the flobberworms." she said.

"Oh my god. I hated the flobberworms." Lavender said dramatically.

"Flobberworms made me question my existence on this earth." Parvati added.

"If there is one creature I could wipe from this planet, it would be flobberworms."

"I would rather light myself on fire than look at a flobberworm."

"If the only thing I ever achieved was killing one flobberworm, I would be satisfied with my life, because I made this place better for my children."

"Just talking about flobberworms has made me an uglier person." Lavender said seriously and the girls burst into laughter. They walked back towards the fire with leaves and twigs in their arms.

"Hey Merlin!" Dean called, Amelia turned just to get a face full of dried leaves.

"Oh now you're dead!" She laughed and threw a handful of leaves back at him. Dean slung her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes and carried her to the fire.

"Got a log here for ya Hagrid!" He shouted and Amelia tried desperately to stop laughing. "It's pretty fat so it'll burn for a while!"

"I choose to take that as a compliment!" Her voice came out all weird because she was upside down and the blood was rushing to her face. Dean put her on the ground in a not so gentle way. "Ow!"

"Sucks to be you!" He teased.

"Your mom sucks."

Dean roared in laughter. "Good one Merlin. Great comeback!" She stuck her tongue out at him. Behind Dean she could see Seamus carrying a massive log, his face was bright red from the effort and Amelia thought to herself he was definetly going to get hurt. Just as she voiced this to Dean, Seamus dropped the log on his foot.

"Bloody hell!" He shouted.

"Should we go help him?" Amelia asked Dean.

He shook his head. "Nah, let's just watch him struggle."

Eventually Seamus got the log to the fire and as he put it on he boasted. "Did anyone see that massive log I just added! Because let me tell you, it was probably the best thing anyone has put into that fire."

Amelia snorted a small laugh and went to go look at the salamanders. Lavender and Parvati were trying to build little houses for them while off to the side she saw Dean and Seamus had started throwing acorns at the little reptiles. Fortunately neither of them were particularly accurate in their aim.

The heat radiating from the fire made it impossible to stand too close. If Amelia concentrated she could will the salamanders to walk along the logs closest to her so she could get a better look at them. Amelia found she had a way with smaller animals, insects were easiest. She could get them to do things, like if a wasp was buzzing around her she could just ask it to leave and it would.

"What are you up to?" a silky voice said behind her. She turned to see Draco Malfoy.

Amelia groaned. "Can I help you with something? Maybe you need assitance crawling into the flames so you can slowly burn to death?"

He chuckled and stood a little too close to her for comfort. She could feel a strange energy between them that she wasn't sure she liked at all. "I just though we could talk or something. I would like to know what's going on in that pretty little head of yours?"

"You see Malfoy, it started off good, and then somehow you became repulsive. Its a weird talent you have there." Amelia folded her arms and refused to look at him even though she could feel his gaze on her.

"Oh come on Amelia! Talk to me." He urged her.

"Fine. But only so you'll go away!" She looked at him to see Draco smirking like he'd won some great achievement. "What did you want to talk about?"

"Tell me about these salamanders."

"Salamanders? You want to talk about salamanders?" She said incredulously.

"Why not? You got something against salamanders?" He chuckled.

Amelia glared at him. "No! Nothing against salamanders."

"Are you sure? You seem awfully upset at the idea." Draco teased.

"Oh stop it." She said. "I don't want to do this."

"Do what?" He innocently replied.

"This." She motioned between them. "This talking. I don't believe that your intentions are honourable at all."

"I've told you before, I can be a nice guy." He said softly.

She looked at him hard. "And I've told you, I don't believe you."

"Amelia-" he protested.

"No. I'm not gonna let you stand there and sweet talk me when I know that you don't care about me at all. You just want to prove some stupid point. So just stop." Amelia said firmly.

"Fine." He shot back and stormed away. She sighed gratefully and looked back into the flames. But her serenity lasted only a moment before she heard a shriek. Amelia whipped around to see Lavender's sleeve on fire.

Her friends scream radiated through her body and it took less than a second for Amelia's power to kick in and the fire to be extinguished. She rushed to Lavender's side and hugged her.

"Are you okay!" Amelia whispered into the curly hair.

"I'm fine I think!" She replied breathlessly. "I'm okay."

That night Lavender went on and on about the terrifying incident. Which only made Amelia smile and Parvati roll her eyes. When she went to bed, Amelia found a small piece of parchment under her pillow.

Dear Amelia,

I hope Lavender's arm is going to be alright. Fire can be a feisty thing. Reminds me of you.

Akkedis sends his regards.