A Touch of Magic

Care of Magical Creatures

The sky was grey and stormy as the students walked through the grounds, looking about ready to pour on the whole assembly. The group's normal chatter was slightly put out by this gloomy weather, though they still conversed softly. All different colors of cloaks were present, as opposed to the monotone black normally exhibited in past years.

Gaspard walked alone, his friends all a year younger and with a different class schedule. As he tried not to trip over the rough path towards the stone cottage, his mind wandered to the stone cup in the great hall. He couldn't remember the English translation, no matter how hard he had studied that confounded language before coming here. Le gobelet de feu. Something about fire. Which made sense, because the cup was constantly brimming with blue licks of flame. The night before during dinner he had watched several of his fellow Beauxbatons students scribble on pieces of paper and drop them in the cup, amidst cheers. They had been few in comparison to the Hogwarts and Durmstrang students. He stuck a hand in his pocket and felt the scrap of paper he had written on the night before, before second guessing himself and failing to toss it in.

As the gate to the garden behind the cottage swung open, a large burst of laughter sounded and a figure fell past Gaspard, falling backwards into the mud, her red robes stained with brown. Lifting her mud covered hands she angrily blew wisps of dirty blonde hair out of her eyes and scrambled to her feet. "Gryaznaya svin'ya! Idi syuda ty little- YA budu borot'sya s vami!"

Her angry shouting drew many eyes, but few with pity. They returned to their activities quickly as the boy who had pushed the girl and his friends pushed past, almost shoving her to the ground again. Gaspard stood without moving until they had gone. Moving to stand next to the girl he noticed she was at least a head shorter than him.

She wrinkled her nose in disgust and wiped her hands on her cloak, probably figuring it couldn't get any dirtier. She took it off and threw it on the fence. Looking up to see Gaspard still there after everyone had gone, her temper flared again. "Ya? Staring now?"

He held up his hands in defense. "Under no circumstances. Who were those boys?"

She shrugged. "Fellow Durmstrangs. They're making fun of me for putting my name in the goblet last night when I'm so small."

Gaspard snapped his fingers. "That's what it was called! The goblet!"

She looked at him out of the side of her eyes, still trying to wipe the dirt off her hands. "Name, french boy? I'm Anya."

"Gaspard."

She waved a hand towards the class that had already started. "Hogwarts starts without us."

They walked through the gate and stood at the back of the class. The teacher paid no mind, only really assigned to teach the Hogwarts students, who were to help the others. A potted tree stood next to the teacher, who was explaining in a heavy Scottish accent that neither of them could understand about some branch that she had on top of her hand.

As a large group streamed forward Gaspard and Anya hung back. As the people once again dispersed several minutes later they warily made their way toward the tree. As they approached they could see that the branch on the teacher's hand wasn't a branch at all. It was a little creature with knobby joints that blended right in with the wood of the tree. As Anya stretched forward her hand and pulled one off the tree, she looked almost childish with the glee on her face. "Gaspa-I can't say that. Gus. Gus! Look!"

She hurried towards him and held out the stick creature. As she got farther from the tree, however, the creature started poking her hand and trying to crawl up her arm. "OW! Owowoww!"

Gaspard grabbed her hand and arm with both of his as she tried to shake the creature off. "Don't do that!"

The teacher ran over, hearing the commotion. "Aye, gie it back tae th' tree. Feed it these wood lice. Calm it doon a bit."

They set the knobbly creature back on the branch it had come from and Gaspard held out a hand of the small wood lice. The creatures ran over and started taking the offered food, now ignoring the two interlopers. He turned to the teacher. "What are they called?"

"Bowtruckles."

As she turned to help another student Gaspard turned to Anya. She was shivering slightly from the cold without her cloak, and still covered in mud. Her handed her his blue cloak as he spoke. "Funny. You're so covered in earth I thought they'd accept you as one of their own."

She punched his arm hard.