━━━━━━━━━not a monster━━
━she couldn't love━━━━━━xxxWhen people heard her name, they usually gave no reaction, or at least, not one different to what they gave everyone else. No one but the people who came to her family's shop, or knew one of the member's of her family personally would know who the Deornes were, and she supposed that she was lucky her mother had taken her father's name when they married, for the name of Aubelle would incite something very different amongst the world of wizards. Once her family had held a level of prestige and importance, not at all unlike the Malfoys, but for completely different reasons than the ones theirs had been found on, but now her family was seen as disgraced. Their downfall started when they moved to America, to the new world, so long ago, when they had caught the smallest of whispers on the wind about a magnificent magical school across the sea called Ilvermorny. Part of the allure to such a place had in fact been that Ilvermorny was partially founded by a muggle, James Steward, a man who had fallen in love with a pureblooded descendent of Salazar Slytherin from across the sea, that had fled to the new world to escape her villainous aunt, Isolt Sayre. The two had found each other, deep in the woods, after Isolt had returned to where she and the Pukwudgie William had found a witch and wizard murdered by the same Hidebehind that she had saved William from, and their two sons, whom James and Isolt soon called their own. She found him burying the boys' parents, and they had been together from that moment until the end of their days. It was a beautiful story really, one of her favorite tales of love, and she liked William too, naturally. No one really knew if the Pukwudgie who called himself William at Ilvermorny was that William, but Leona had befriended the grouchy, rather cantankerous creature, and she had her suspicions that they were the same. He would let no other clean the statue of Isolt, and she could see the reverence, and fondness for her, in his eyes. Pukwudgies most certainly weren't what drew her family to the Americas though, although it was certainly a very large bonus for her. It really was the fact their school was partially founded by a muggle, and the way magical beings across the ocean didn't seem to care as strongly for blood purity as those in Europe did. They felt like they could help more people there, too, and that they could do more, so they went, and their downfall began not long after. It was the second time her family had moved from one country to the next, but it had been the first time that her family had traveled to, and moved to, an entirely different continent. Her family was originally from France, but they had been attending Hogwarts long before Beauxbatons even existed. Her family eventually made the move to the land it was in, a few generations after they began attending, and started to make a name for themselves there. They got involved in the Ministry of Magic, or whatever was in place back then, and while Leona didn't know much about that time, as the history of it had been clouded over the years of it being past down and had been muddied with the fading memories of age, she knew that her family had been quite well off at the time, and a name to be known. They had importance, their name was known, and they had some power. The family had a strong presence at Hogwarts, and everyone who was married to, or born to the name Aubelle, save for aunts and uncles of ages past, had been sorted into Gryffindor. They were known for their history with the house, and for their odd ways of seeming to always be sorted into it, not at all unlike a certain young Malfoy's family with Slytherin. As far as it as able to be traced back they were all Gryffindor, through and through, and even now, they still were really. Thunderbird favored adventures, people who wanted to explore, to see, a house of soul, and what her family had been sorted into ever since their move to America. Truly, it wasn't at all that different from the Hogwarts house of courage and bravery, and save for her grandmother, a Pukwudgie, and herself, a Horned Serpent, her family had stuck to their core values, their core roots, and had remained in the same vein that their family always had. Along with all of that though, the Aubelles were pureblooded as well, which seemed to be an important thing at the time, and even now, much to her personal distaste. While her family didn't particularly care about blood purity, they had still made an effort to maintain their own, and they had succeeded, at least, until her parents. She and Percy were the half-bloods of a ruined line, and their mother was the pureblood who had fallen in love with and married a muggle. Few knew of that though, and those who did didn't exactly seem to care. Blood purity wasn't as important in her home as it was here, and really, with how much her family interacted with no-maj, it was a wonder such a thing hadn't happened sooner. Her family had always been known to love, and be rather fond of muggles, no-maj, and non-magique, whatever one wanted to call someone without any magic or history of it running through their blood. They had always carried a fondness for them, and the world of witches and wizards knew that very well. Her family gave to muggle charities, and helped where they could when they couldn't help with coin, and a few even made it into high positions in their non magical world. Their love for muggles and common friendship with them was a main thing they were known for to begin with, but it became even more noticeably present when they opened their shop, and found their home in America, and that was where so many would say it went wrong.
xxxIn a way, things had already started to go down hill when the Statute of Secrecy was put into place. Her family had protested it from it's first moment as a mere thought, vehemently opposing it when they could without the risk of a horrible outcome, but despite that, and the efforts of the other families and individuals who had a opposed it, it still went through, and the stupid thing was still around today. She understood it's purpose, to protect the wizarding world from a kind of human that had not exactly been known to take kindly to strange, unknown, and scary things, and to keep them from using them and all of that. She got it, she understood it, she did, but that didn't change that Leona hated it, especially when it came to children. There was no way in hell she was going to obligate a child that had caught a glimpse of her doing magic, or her creatures. There was no way she was going to take such a wondrous thing away from them, something they would never forget, a moment they would hold onto and treasure, as proof that magic did exist, as a hope, a light. Children's books, and so many things, were filled with such magic and wonder, how could she take away a magic from them that was real? If they said anything, who would believe them anyway? It would be taken as make believe and play, or childish fantasies they perceived as real, not truth, or fact, and even then, she knew that a lot of times, they were happy to keep and guard important secrets. Not many people seemed to put trust in children in that way, and from the few times it had happened with her, she had found that magic and her creatures were a secret they were most eager to keep. It gave them the biggest smiles, as did seeing it to begin with, and she refused to be the one to take that away. Some heartless asshole could do that if it was really needed, not her, she wasn't doing it. That particular statute, no matter how much she wished it gone or at least amended, wasn't what had gotten her family into trouble, and dragged their name through the mud as they became want many would say was disgraced. That had been the doing of Rappaport's Law, enacted by the MACUSA in 1790, by the fifteenth president, Emily Rappaport; an incredibly backwards law that all together separated and segregated the no-maj from the witches and wizards, and allowed no more than the bare minimum daily, or necessary interactions. Thank god that horrid thing had been appealed, though she wished it had come about far sooner, so her family wouldn't have had to endure what they did. It came about after a horrible breach of the Statute of Secrecy, one of the very instances that it was created to prevent, which again, her family had opposed. They had been with the MACUSA then, although most left after it came to pass. It had caused a truly, horrifying thing, but that was no reason to go to such a terrible extreme. Blocking out all possibilities of something likely good through barring interactions between them altogether was no way to solve things. It had people hiding, being fearful, afraid, and perhaps, if it hadn't been around during Grindelwald's reign, things wouldn't have been as horrible as they ended, and some people on his side, would never have been swayed by the temptations he offered, by the whispers of a world where witches and wizards could love whomever they pleased, magical or not. This wasn't some preschool filled with toddlers, punishing everyone with the worst extreme, because someone did a bad thing and made a mistake that ended far worse than anyone could have ever imagined, wasn't the way to go. It was like someone calling another a name, and then saying no one could talk to anyone again. It was stupid, and too much, and just all around terrible. She hated it, and she was so glad that she didn't have to follow such a ridiculous thing. Her family had never really followed it though, in truth, and that was what had gotten them into so much trouble. The only reason they likely hadn't been thrown somewhere awful for all the times they broke it and very openly protested it was that they still had connections to people rather high up in the MACUSA, and even that had barely been enough. Everything had just seemed to go wrong for her family after that dumb law was put in place, and she hated the damage it had caused to her kin, to her blood. Her grandmother had lost her sister because of it, and so many in innocent people had been hurt because of it. It had never been worth it, never, and now if was just a mess she did not enjoy recounting, and didn't want to at all, while she was in the presence of someone like Draco. She didn't want to tarnish her moments with him, or bring herself down with bad memories and a past that was done with and over, when she so wanted to smile with him near. Even so, regardless of all that, the name Aubelle was one she wore with pride. Leona was hesitant to share it with Draco though, due to the Malfoy family views and values she had heard so much about. She doubted that after all he had been through and seen, that Draco would still carry and share those same sentiments, and he just didn't seem to be the type, now at least, but there was still the fear that if she mentioned it, he would go, and she didn't want him to leave so soon. If he knew what her family had done, and of their fall from grace, she so worried that he would go, and she didn't want that at all. She wanted to talk with him, just a little more, and if she ever saw him again, she could tell him then.
xxxAt the sound of his response, she gave a smile, and an agreeing nod, glad that she seemed to have gotten the facts correct in that. "Yes, definitely not in a traditional sense." Leona agreed. If the toe houses could be described as close with one another at all, it was probably more in a way of keeping one's friends close and their enemies closer sort of way, or that they knew of each other, obviously, and just despised each other. She didn't know why the two houses didn't seem to quite get along, but it wasn't something she was going to question, and she didn't quite understand either house to begin with anyway, past the common knowledge and what most knew. She'd ask Draco, but it was probably a ridiculous question, and she didn't want to bother him with things she could easily find the answers to in a book, or during the time she was about to spend at the home of the two houses. If she truly wanted to figure out why they disliked each other, she could do that then, but not here, not now, when she was so enraptured by Draco, and didn't want him to go and leave because she had asked a particularly dumb, boring, and obvious question that he wouldn't want to answer. Leona was relieved that he agreed with her words though, and that he hadn't left yet and the knowledge she had just shared hadn't scared him away. Of course, there was a chance he didn't at all believe her, and that he thought she was just crazy, which she knew could be very likely, as she knew she definitely looked it, especially after talking to an invisible creature resembling and ape and wittering on as she had. She really did hope that wasn't what he thought though, she really did want to see him again if she ever got the chance, and if he thought she was an absolute nutcase, it was incredibly unlikely that he'd give her that chance, or allow her even remotely near. She had been called crazy before, but she really didn't want to hear it from him.
xxxLeona gave a nod at his next words, the words he used to respond in kind to her own, and even though his response felt like a natural one, and nearing dismissive, she hoped that he meant it, that some part of him, had found their encounter pleasurable. She knew it was too much to ask or hope that she would see him again, yet she still wished she could, and that perhaps there would be a promise of them meeting again at best, and a promise that they never would cross paths again if he had a say in it at worst. It appeared that some small piece of him at least had enjoyed talking with her, or something, though, as instead of leaving like he had prepared to, and like she thought he would, he instead stayed, and they had some more time to talk. Leona truly couldn't hide how happy she felt that he wasn't going just yet, and honestly, it was probably far more than she should have had in this situation, and definitely more than the normal. She didn't care though; he was staying a little longer, and she would get to talk with him some more, for as long as it took her to answer his question at the very least, and she was more than a little pleased about that. Their truly was just something about him, something she couldn't define, that drew her to him and left her wanting to know more about him, more about who he was, and not from the rumors and whispers she had heard that had not come from his lips. He had not been cast a fair hand of cards in his life, and horrible things had happened, and he had been caught up in them, and helped, and people had not exactly been kind in what she had heard. She wanted to know him before she believed an ounce of what they said aside from the facts she already knew to be true, and even then, she wanted to hear it from his side, not an outsiders, not anyone else's, his. Had anyone ever even asked him what he had gone through, what it had been like? He didn't look to be this horrible being, this evil death eater with a blackened, rotting heart. While admittedly he was a bit intimidating, he didn't strike her as scary, or fear inspiring. He struck her as someone who had been through a lot, who had gone through unimaginable trials, and was unjustly painted as someone who had done nothing but wrong. He was special, and like no one she had ever met before; unique. He was handsome too of course, very handsome, but that was besides the point. He wasn't what people said he was, that she knew, even if the truth of it was hidden beneath a surface she would never reach. Maybe, just maybe, with him staying, she'd have the tiniest of chances to glimpse who he really was, who the true Draco was, but she knew that wouldn't happen without getting to know him a lot more. He was closed off, blocking her, and everyone else out, and she knew she would not get the privilege of reaching that when they had only just met. He was likely a person who had never been told that it was okay to feel, and let it out, no matter what it was, and people like that didn't give away their secrets and hidden pieces so easily. It took more than a simple first meeting to learn who they were. Still, despite all of that, it was hard to let go of the happiness she felt when he decided to stay, and ask her another thing, and she could not wipe the smile from her features. Admittedly, because of that, after probably sounding incredibly confusing and odd as she usually did with people who didn't also work in the field of animals by claiming that all understood, that happiness likely allowed her to get a bit carried away in her proving and demonstrating that animals could indeed understand, and now she had ended up with her cheeks bright red, and an immediate worry that she had done wrong in that. When he spoke, observing the trick her owl had just done, she knew that she had. She gave a slight grimace at his response. Yep. Definitely not necessary. She hoped that he would forgive her for that. "Right, sorry. That probably wasn't necessary." Leona apologized softly, biting the right side of her lower lip. That had definitely been a blunder. Of course she had badly blundered while given a second chance to know him a little more. Of course she had. Of course she did. Darn it. Why wasn't she better at interacting with people, especially when it was most important to and the person she was talking with was so uniquely special and someone she truly wanted to know and see again? People had never been her favorite thing, and it was rare that she met someone she wanted to meet again, and enjoyed talking with so much. Draco was one of those special people whom she absolutely did want to see again, and messing up was not something she felt that she could afford, but of course, as usual, she already had, and now he probably thought she was a show-off, or even crazier, or something. Why did she have to be like this? Would Draco forgive her for that at all? Godric had done wonderfully, and she didn't regret that at all, but she just wished she had done something different. Maybe something with Dewitt would have been better? Maybe she could have had the Demiguise do a magic trick or something of the sort? No, muggle magic tricks would probably be offensive to a great wizard, or at least one who had grown up in a family that wasn't exactly fond of them as hers had been. Maybe she could have told Dewitt to shake his hand in French or something like that? Or talked about how Dewitt helped her out like an assistant would? No, definitely not, most certainly not, if he didn't already think she was crazy, that definitely would pose the thought to his mind. Gah, why did she have to be this way? She knew that it was pointless to dwell on it now that it was done, but she couldn't help it; she didn't want to repeat it again, and she so wanted her interactions to be perfect with the Malfoy wizard standing in front of her. She so did not want to mess this up, she really didn't.
xxxThankfully though, as she continued on- probably too much in her attempt to answer what he had asked-, after her blundering mishap, Draco seemed to continue listening as she went on, which she appreciated, truly, utterly, completely, and it was such a huge relief. She hadn't horrible ruined this all, and he was still staying, listening, with even a small smirk pulling at his lips as she spoke. She really liked the sight of that but- oh, right. He had played Quidditch in his Hogwarts years, he probably already knew about the Snidgets. She felt herself blush again, and her gray blue eyes linger on the smirk gracing his lips a moment too long. It really was a good look on him, and she liked it quite a lot, and she was glad that he had some sort of smile at her words, and that there was proof of it upon his attractive face, and even a little amusement leaking through even after she had committed a very small little blunder once again, which she quite liked as well. Leona more than liked the look of it all upon his features as she spoke, which was why her heart fell as they slipped away with the reality of her last few words, as the realization that she had likely kept him from something donned on her features. She felt even worse for bringing it up now, and mentioning that he too likely had some where to be, because he had lost something so nice because of it. Why couldn't she had waited until Percy came out? Why couldn't she have waited until then? If he truly had somewhere important and pressing to be, he wouldn't have chosen to stay and ask something, and she had a feeling he would have cut her off before she was done if he had felt he only had a short moment and she was taking too long. He probably did have somewhere important to be, something imperative that he do, but now she simply wished she had waited, and given the choice to return back to reality and the things they had to do and the responsibilities that came with it, to him. He'd know his schedule better than she ever could, and now, she had probably just lost a few moments more with him, and that only had her heart sinking deeper from her chest. He had already contemplated leaving once, why would he not take that chance again? He likely did have somewhere to be, and she had probably already made him late, so he was going to leave, and she'd never see him again, right? Had she messed this up all over again? He was going to say goodbye, wasn't he? Then she'd never see him again, and the goodbye would be too soon, and she probably messed it all up, and when he opens his mouth, it's going to be a goodbye, he's going to- oh. When he spoke again, though, she found herself very surprised, and quite rapidly pulled from her thoughts in what felt like a horribly quick woosh that left her eyes round and wide open. She blinked, somewhat startled, very surprised. It wasn't a goodbye? He wasn't saying goodbye just yet? He had asked her if her brother was getting his wand from Ollivander's, his stormy eyes eying the storefront they stood near before falling back to her, and her startled gaze. She had definitely not been expecting that, that he'd be willing to stay another moment. She was glad of it though, very glad; she'd take any moment that she got with him. Did that mean he that was he going to stay a little while longer, though? Was he going to talk with her some more? Had she been wrong, and he didn't have somewhere to be, and this was just some leisurely stroll or he was simply coming back from a trip to fetch something? Slowly, she gave a nod in answering, her gaze flickering to the golden curls of the shop's lettering against a backdrop of dark hues, before settling back on him, on Draco. Leona found a smile working away at her lips as he continued, giving a little possible explanation as to why it was taking so long, finishing with a small shrug before a pause. That was sweet of him, really sweet, to offer up a plausible explanation. Her smile widened. "Either that, or my brother is the one rattling on. Or my Bowtruckle has found a wand he likes and is refusing to give it up, though I doubt that's the case, he is much better behaved than that." Leona added, sending him another smile. It was then her smile faded though, as he spoke up again, thanking her for the demonstration with Godric, his eyes flicking briefly down to the owl. This was it, this was the goodbye. He hadn't been planning to stay at all after all. She wasn't even sure if he meant what he had just said, or if he had just been trying to be polite, or kind. Her features fell as he went on, and she felt her heart fall with it. There it was. The goodbye. He did have somewhere to be. It felt weird, and rather odd really, to hear him speak her surname as he said his goodbye, but she found herself liking it nonetheless, though she'd have been lying if she said she wouldn't prefer him to say her first. His voice had turned formal once again, but it seemed to soften with his five departing words. She really hoped that it had been a pleasure. "The pleasure was all mine, Draco." Leona replied, taking her turn to give her goodbye. Her voice was soft, and she wasn't even sure if he had heard. She liked the way his name sounded on her tongue, and the way it felt to speak it. With that, he turned back in the direction he had been heading, melding back within the crowd with only a few steps, before suddenly apparating away. She already missed his presence, their few moments. She was never going to see him again, was she? The type of moment they had shared was a kind meant to be ephemeral, transient, not long, or lasting, and theirs had already gone on far longer than it probably should have. That didn't stop her from wishing otherwise though, wishing that their meeting had been of an instance meant to last awhile, so she wouldn't have to say goodbye so soon, and so there would be a higher chance that she'd get to see this special man once again. She didn't want to lose him so soon, and she had, and now, it was incredibly unlikely that she'd ever see him again, and all she could do was wish that she'd have another chance to speak with him again, and soon, before he inevitably forgot her, and the words they had shared. Leona doubted that she'd ever be able to forget him though, there was something about him that was just too distinct, too wonderful, too special, for her to ever forget. Her gaze reminded on the spot where she had last seen him, and Dewitt slowly followed her gaze, holding onto her tighter, comfortingly, like the good friend he had always been. Hopefully some day their paths would cross again.
xxx"Leona?" Her eyes remained on the spot, her thoughts still lingering on him. She hadn't even noticed that a few moments had passed, and that her brother was at her side. Would she ever get to see Draco again? Would he even remember her if she did. "Leona!" Percy raised his voice so she would snap out of her thoughts and head, a slight whining tinge to his voice. She gave a jolt and then turned her head to look down at him, her expression apologetic, but forlorn. Dewitt turned to look at Percy, and Hollivander seemed to perk up at the sight. "Oh, sorry Percy." Leona spoke softly, her words only half there. She looked away again, down the street, to where she had last seen Draco before he disappeared into the crowd and then apparated away. She let out a gentle sigh, her hand coming back up to stroke the Demiguise's soft, long fur. It was silky to the touch, and free of tangles. It was white too, but not the same white as Draco's hair, which as it crossed her mind, was probably quite the creepy thought. Her thoughts were really only on Draco though, and a guilty feeling for not hearing Percy the first time, she couldn't help it. She just couldn't shake the feeling that she had just met someone wonderful, someone important, special, and that she had let him go, when she should have held tight, and tried to keep him there, just a moment more, to ask if she'd see him again. She glanced back down at Percy, for the briefest of moments, and then returned her blue gray eyes to the spot. Her younger sibling looked up at her quizzically, his head tilted, and an eyebrow raised, as Hollivander looked rather displeased that he was not getting the comfort he felt he had been promised just yet. "It's just, I just met the most divine person." Leona's voice sounded distant as she continued, far away, clouded by thought. Would she ever see him again? It was so terribly unlikely, but she so hoped that she would. There was something special about him, and she didn't want to meet him once, and then never meet him, or see what made him seem so extraordinarily special, ever again. Her brother wrinkled his nose and made a sound of disgust. "Ew, you're already beginning to talk like them!" Percy exclaimed, making a face. That definitely drew her attention to him, and she gave him a gentle nudge. "Percy!" Leona fixed him with a stern glare, and he ceased making the face with a sigh. She saw his wand for the first time then, or more accurately, finally noticed it being waved in her sight. It was an odd dusty, somewhat creamy pink color, with Celtic markings and patterning on the delicate handle. It was think and longer than her own, and oddly suiting, regardless of the fact she'd have never painted Percy for having something the color of pink. It was always red, bright fiery reds, oranges, and yellows, never pink. She noticed that he seemed to be struggling with himself when her gaze landed on his face, and she tilted her head to the side. A moment later, he appeared to have won whatever mental battle he was fighting, and he looked up at her. "Who was it?" Percy asked hesitantly. She let out a soft sigh, and without even telling it to, her eyes returned to where he had last been. "Draco Malfoy." Leona replied softly. His eyes lit up. She saw the way his features became alight at the mention of the man's name out of the corner of her eye, and for the first time since he had said goodbye moments ago, she cracked her smile. Of course that's what would make him excited, the name if a Quidditch player. She playfully shook her head with a sigh. "Draco Malfoy? He played quidditch! He was a seeker for the Slytherin team! Are we going to see him again? Can you introduce me?" Percy asked excitedly, his whole form excited and ready. She couldn't help but give a small laugh. She didn't know how, but some how he knew every single person that had played in the Hogwarts Quidditch teams up to years more than twice his own age. If only he put such enthusiasm and memorization into things like math, or manners. The weight of his words hit her a moment later though, and once again, the amusement faded from her features. She couldn't introduce him, she didn't even know if she'd see him outside of old newspaper clippings. "I don't know Percy. I don't know if I'll ever see him again." There was a sadness to her voice that he didn't miss, and before she had even finished speaking, he had already scrunched up his nose again, and was looking even more grossed out than before. "Eww, do you like him?" Percy took a step back as her eyes fell on him again, and she looked at him in confusion. She didn't like Draco, did she? Of course she didn't, she couldn't, she had only just met him. Sure he was handsome, and seemed quite special and so many other wonderful things she couldn't even begin to explain, but she didn't know him, not at all. "What? No, Percy, of course not! I just met him today!" Leona quickly replied, dismissing his words and the idea that she did before it could work it's way into her brain and become a reality. She couldn't entirely fool herself however, with how much she wished to see him again. "I would like to see him again, though." Leona admitted quietly, her head hanging. Percy's gaze softened at that, noticing the way his sister's shoulders fell, and he began to reach out a hand to place reassuringly on her arm, before the creature on his shoulder gave a tug on his ear, and his hand flew to cover it from the creature, cupping it where it now ached. He gave the creature a glare, and then turned back to his sister.
xxx"Ow! Leona? You should probably take Hollivander back now. He's kinda upset." Percy let the moody Bowtruckle climb onto his hand, and he held it out to Leona. It took her a moment, but almost as soon as she saw the creature, a flip within her seemed to switch, and her sorrow over Draco seemed to disappear. "Oh, right. Hollivander come here my sweet." Leona murdered, holding her hand out for the creature to climb on. He climbed onto her palm, and began waving his arms about and making quiet sounds that she vaguely understood after knowing him and her other Bowtruckles for so long. She didn't perfectly understand him, but he didn't need to know that, not when she got all she needed to. She raised her hand closer to her face, and her hand fell from Dewitt's fur to comfortingly stroke along the creature's small back. It seemed he had been insulted, and he was not at all pleased. "Oh Hollivander, she didn't! She did? Oh Hollivander, that must have been so horrible." Leona dramatically clutched a hand to her chest with a gasp, feigning horrified surprise. He seemed to play into her reaction, and gave a sorrowful nod while Percy watched with a shaking head, and an expression that seemed very done with the stick creature's dramatics. Leona very gently pulled Hollivander closer, and he out his hands onto her cheek. "You poor, poor thing. Come here, It'll be alright." Leona cooed comfortingly, somewhat cradling him with her hand. They stayed that way for a moment, before he climbed over her hand and onto her shoulder, leaning to examine his reflection in a button. Finally, her senses seemed to fully return, and she remembered that they too resell had somewhere to be, and now definitely couldn't spare a moment to waste, or they'd be late. "Oh! Now we really should get going, come on Perce. We don't have time to waste." Leona lifted up Godric's cage, and Percy took it carefully in his arms, his wand held awkwardly in one hand, and then they were off, walking to the station.
xxxFor awhile, they walked in content, and hurried silence, weaving between the people they passed without a word. It stayed that way, until Percy spoke up, and Leona couldn't help but give a groan. "You know, the way you were looking after him was a lot like the way you looked while reading the Narnia books whenever Prince Caspian was mentioned. Except you aren't clutching the book to your chest and falling backwards onto your bed with a dreamy sigh." Percy commented slyly, looking up at his sister with a mischievous grin. Why did she had to have him as a brother? Why did he have to be the little brother? Why did he had to be like this sometimes, so often? "Percy!" He ignored her, not even bothering to acknowledge the faintly warning torn in which she spoke his name, save for his grin growing larger. He just carried right on, and it was all she could do to not stop right wear she was and stare at him with her mouth wide open, agape. "You were so sad when he got married to that star lady. I thought I saw you crying at one point." Percy grinned, pushing against her buttons a little harder. Oh, he didn't, the little- "Oh would you shut up Percy? I was fifteen, and I definitely didn't cry because of that. It was just heartfelt, and reminded me of Grandmama." Leona defended, crossing her arms as she walked. That was a lie. She had shed a few tears. For the reason Percy had mentioned. Of course she had known he wasn't real, and that they could never be; he was a character in a book, written words upon pages, but she had hoped to find someone like him some day, and for him to fall for a woman of stars, someone she could never even hope to compare to in her wildest dreams, had struck a crack into her heart. The crack had since healed, but she still remembered it. Prince Caspian hadn't been as stubborn or inclined to fight as Peter seemed to be, and he had struck her as someone with a truly good heart, who cared where many did not. He was a good king, a great one, even, and she still secretly hoped that she could find someone like him to spend her forever with. Draco came to her mind at that, but no, she had just met him, she could not allow her thoughts to go there. He was handsome, and certainly special, but she barely knew him, and she'd likely never get to know him past the rumors and talk of what he had done that she ignored, that most certainly did not paint him in kind. She wanted to know him, though. Percy's eyes sparkled knowingly, and his dark orbs shifted from her to the street in front of him with a satisfied smile. "Sure it did." Percy teased, grinning as if he knew all the secrets she tried to hide. She shot him a glare. Why did her brother have to know her so well? And why did he have to snoop in her room for things like this so often? He was her little brother, that's why, it's what he was meant to do. "You know, if we weren't surrounded by people, I'd be chasing you all over the place right now." Leona threatened playfully, giving him a light push. His eyes sparkled again, and she didn't like where this was going. "You still could." Percy made a lunge forward to start running, but her hand shot out and grabbed him by the back of his robes, catching him before he could run away, and causing him to jerk back with a scowl. "Percy, don't you dare! I need you not to get lost." Leona meant that, sincerely, but he just stuck his tongue out at her, and she rolled her eyes with a sigh. "Percy I'm serious! I can't lose you, you little ass." Leona pulled him closer with her arm resting on his far shoulder. "Hey!" Percy squirmed out of her hold, and sent her a glare. This time it was her who stuck her tongue out at him. "I know you love me anyway." Percy shot back, teasing. She lifted a hand to ruffle his hair before he could stop her as she spoke, grinning triumphantly as he mussed it back into place, "Of course I do, you're my pesky little brother. I have to." Leona's hand found his shoulder again, and she gave a squeeze. He just stuck his tongue out, and danced away with Godric's cage. She rolled her eyes. Even though he was being a tiny bit irritating and pesky in a way that only a younger sibling could be, she was glad to see that he was feeling well enough to be himself, and that his nerves had melted away to reveal his usual annoying little brother tendencies, which allowed them to go about their usual teasing back and forth. It was a relief to see him excited again, and not rattles with nerves and worries and uncertainties as he had been before he stepped into the store. He could definitely be annoying at times, but she loved him, so very much, and she was so happy and relieved to see him being himself again, and happily partaking in their normal rather childish actions and banter. It was nice to see. It was familiar, comforting almost, and showed that he was doing so much better, and ready to take on Hogwarts and what was to come without a worry in the world, as he did with every other thing that confronted him.
xxxSilence returned to them again as they continued walking, their sibling teases and antics temporarily ceased for now. The only conversation passed between them was Percy telling her of his experience getting a wand, and the new friend he had made named Rosie, who had been the one to upset Hollivander, after she had prompted him to tell her by asking how it had gone, because in his excitement and her meeting with Draco, he had completely forgotten to tell her. Now he was practically vibrating with anticipation and excitement at what he was no so very close to that he tried to keep locked in and held inside, and failed miserably at. He looked like he wanted to bounce off the walls and just leap and run, and if he wasn't holding Godric in his cage, she had a feeling that he would have done exactly that. He seemed to calm a little, and allow a few nerves to creep back in when she told him they were close, but his excitement still seemed to by far outnumber the nerves he felt, which she was quite relieved by and pleased with. She didn't want his first time to Hogwarts clouded by such an unfun thing like anxiety that had sucked the fun and excitement for this very day that he had been harboring for years. She wanted him to enjoy this to his fullest, and not worry, he shouldn't have to go through that. He was a kid, and her little brother, worrying was her job, and she could most certainly worry enough for the both of them.
xxxOnce they neared the station, and entered an area filled with muggles, Dewitt disappeared from view, and Hollivander hid under pushed down collar of her coat as he continued working away at a button on fabric imitating a pocket cover on the shoulder of her jacket, which she had felt him working on since they had begun walking. He had sent she button before, many times; it was an old jacket. What was so special about it now? What had him wanting to free it from it's holding strings so badly? Whatever it was, certainly had him quite determined, she had to give him that. Maybe that button was extra shiny and he liked the way his reflection looked in it? She strongly doubted that was it, but it was still a possibility, and the feel of him working at her coat didn't leave even as they entered the station, and became surrounded by noise. Percy stuck closer to her than he had before, and reached for her hand, which she gladly took. If he needed a little extra support, and some of her strength, she would gladly give it and help him out. He had never seen a train in person before, or been so close to one, or in a place so swarming with people without magic. He was used to busy streets, but this was different, and she could feel him press closer. Her hand came to rest on his far shoulder again, giving a gentle squeeze of comfort to assure that she was right there, and not going anywhere. She hoped that his ears were alright too. Trains and their stations were not exactly known for being the most quiet things, and being next to a train could get unbearably at times, especially to the more sensitive ears of her creatures. She wished she had remembered to take some precautions and make sure the ears of three beloved creatures outside of her bag were protected and not pierced by such a loud sound, but of course, that had been the one thing she had not been prepared for. She had forgotten that the machines and their engines made quite the boisterous racket, and now her brother, and likely her creatures were affected by that. Of course she had forgotten something she knew so very well. Of course. Next time she'd be sure not to forget, to remember this well. All she could do now because she had forgotten was hope that they would be okay, and that they weren't too troubled by the sounds. Hollivander at least seemed alright, as he was still contentedly working away at that poor button on her jacket, and Godric seemed only to care for preening his feathers and keeping steady as he was jostled about whole Percy carried him, so that was a relief. She couldn't see Dewitt, but he seemed to be doing alright too from the way his tail wrapped comfortingly around her arm, and he shifted, as if he were curiously looking around from the safety of her shoulder, so she hoped that meant he was alright too. He wasn't showing any signs of discomfort that she recognized, and she knew that he would let her know some how if he was, so she allowed herself to relax on that matter, and for now, let go of the worry that their ears would be damaged. These trains were quieter than the ones she was used to as well, so really, it seemed like she had been worrying about nothing, and that all would be just fine and none of her creatures would experience pain or discomfort in their distinct ears.
xxxSoon, Leona came to a stop before the entrance to the platform with a heaving sigh, her brother at her side, and their creatures with them. Hollivander still doing his thing with the button, and Dewitt watching from where he sat invisible upon her shoulder. Godric was looking around, awake and attentive from within his cage, and Leona gazed at the arch of bricks. Here they were, at the wizarding world platform between platforms nine and ten, nine and three quarters, an impossibly made a very possible reality by their magic. "Okay, we're here." Leona breathed. "I can see that." Percy responded, sounding very unimpressed with the wall they stood in front. She just ignored him, and resisted the urge to give her eyes a roll. "We just have to run through here, and then were there. You can meet up with the friend you made and I'll get your luggage and Godric to where they need to be and then find a seat away from you so you don't have me hovering over your shoulder with you new friend." Leona explained, gesturing to the wall. He looked quite confused, and his eyes were wide, but he nodded any way. She knelt down carefully to his level, and he set down Godric's cage so they could talk without bars in the way. "Okay, I'll see you really soon once we're through alright? I love you, Perce, be safe, and don't get into trouble just yet." Leona wrapped her arms around him, and he retuned, wrapping his arms around her in a sibling hug. She gave him a tight squeeze, and he had to choke the first couple words out. "I won't make any promises, but I love you too." Percy told her, trying to return the squeeze she had given him with the same amount of strength. He failed, and after another moment of a hug, ignoring the people who gave them looks as they passed by, they stood, and Percy was the first to run through the wall with Godirc. Leona followed right after, and before he could just pass her his owl's cage and go off to his friend, once Godric was in her hand, she pulled him close, and she planted a kiss on the top of his head once they were both through before he could get away, before standing, and watching him go find his friend. She turned her attention to the luggage car in the distance, where a man in uniform was loading trunks in, and she made her way towards him. Percy thankfully didn't have much, only a few small cases, one containing all he needed for school, so it would all be quite easy to retrieve from her bag. Dewitt slowly became visible again as she knelt down near the man with the bag being set on the floor, and Hollivander only took a moment's pause of his work to see what was going on. She pulled her wand from her boot, and opened the book bag wide with the password, and after warning her Snidget's to stay down and out of the way, which they thankfully did, on the second try of the accio spell, she stopped back, and watched the cases fly out from the bag, and land in a neat stack before the man waiting to load them in. She closed the bag so none of the creatures within could come out, and slipped her wand back in her boot and the bag on her shoulder before standing, and lifting Godric's cage from where she had set it on the floor. She didn't like the idea of him being in a cargo hold type place with the other owls, but he had chosen to travel like this outside the bag, rather than within, and truthfully, she wasn't sure when she'd be able to get Godric to Percy once they were there if he went in her bag; they wouldn't see much of each other, and because this place was new and strange, she wanted the owl to go to his person directly, not an Owlery to wait. Besides, at least this way, he'd go to where he needed to. "I'll see you soon Godric, alright? Be a good bird my darling, I'll miss you." Leona pressed her forehead to the bars of the cage, the owl doing the same, before she handed him off to the waiting man, and watched him give a chirp of goodbye. She waited a moment, before entering the train in a car several cars down the one Godric was now safely in, so she didn't risk entering at a place she wasn't meant to be.
xxxGetting on the train, was not at all a new experience for her, she had done this so many times before. In fact, she quite enjoyed riding trains; they were her favorite method of non magical travel, and she took them quite a lot to get to places within the same country, because she was incredibly not find of cars, and she did not want to risk apparating with her creatures in case something went wrong. If the train had sleeper cars that made it even more wonderful too, and if really was just an all around lovely experience, and she was sure the Hogwarts express, with it's painted colors of black and red, would be no different now that she had boarded it with a practiced step. She already looked forward to seeing what it's rhythmic thrumming and the way it swayed would be like, and she quite liked the story of how it had gotten where it was, and how the adventure of wizards stealing it from a muggle station had gone about. She was glad to be on a train again though, in all honestly, she had begun to miss it.
xxxShe was about to enter the next car, after spotting no empty compartments in the one she had entered in, but a voice stopped her. "Excuse me miss?" It was a timid voice, sounding quite shy. She stopped, and turned, and looked down to see a young girl, likely a first year, as she lacked the colors of a house, with ginger hair and green eyes, and a light dusting of freckles upon her nose and cherry red cheeks. "Yes?" Leona asked, offering a smile. The girl bit her lip, seeming to consider, and then opened her mouth to speak again. "What's that creature on your shoulder, the white one?" She inquired softly, her voice nearing a higher squeak. Leona bent down to her level then, giving a large, wide smile. She loved it when people genuinely asked about her creatures, especially the children, and most of the creature's, including Dewitt, liked it too. Hollivander normally would, but he didn't even bother looking up from his place by the button, seeming to have finally made some very significant progress on whatever his mission was with it. Leona extended her arm toward the girl, so Dewitt could climb out to her if he wanted to, and they both watched as he leaned toward the sweet girl. "This is Dewitt. He's my Demiguise, and an excellent assistant. He can see the future sometimes, and turn invisible. I think he likes you too much to disappear though." Leona answered, still smiling as she watched the girl gaze at Dewitt with her round, green eyes. She began to raise her had to pet him, before she drew it back shallot, and Leona tilted her head. "Go on, you can pet him if you like. It's alright, and he's very soft." Leona urged gently, nodding her head in Dewitt's direction. The girl regarded her for a moment, watching her closely, and then looked back to the kind beast. The demiguise leaned into her freckled hand as the young girl gingerly reached out to stroke his silky head. A wide smile came to her face, almost giddy, and after a moment, she pulled her hand away, still grinning. "Thank you, miss!" She gave a dip of her head, and then disappeared into a compartment not far away that Leona assumed she had come from. Leona stood with a nod and a smile, and Dewitt returned to where he had been on her shoulder, if not a littler closed to her than he had been before. She then went back to continuing her search for a seat. Percy had said he was going to sit near the front with Rosie, so she wanted to avoid there, but after she passed through another car and found no empty seats, she began to worry that she have to sit with him and his friend. At least she could just spend her time in the bag so she didn't disturb them, but Percy probably wouldn't appreciate that, or her weirding his new friend out by stepping into a freaking book bag and coming back out without her creatures. He had seemed so excited to see her again, and he didn't want to ruin it for them. She entered the next train car carefully, and almost right away, she spotted a compartment that looked empty, however, as soon as she got close enough to look fully inside at it's upholstered cushions of striped deep blue, she noticed immediately that it was not empty, and that within it, was someone she had least expected to see, but was overjoyed to see all the same.
xxx"Draco? What are you doing he- oh!" Hollivander managed to pull the button free in that moment, cutting off her confused words and knitted brow in an instant, but the force used to pull it from it's strings sent it flying into the open compartment, and the Bowtruckle made a move to jump after it, leaping from her shoulder and into the air. Before he could fall to the floor and injure himself or worse, her hand shot out to catch him, careful to not roughly grab him in a fist, and he landed on her fingers, slipping until he hung from her pinky with his little arms. Her heart was racing in her chest now, and her eyes were worried and wide. She had just discovered Draco on the train, and one if her precious friends had nearly jumped to his death for a button, a button that was exceedingly normal and not at all unique or spectacular, she might add. "Hollivander, no! We do not rip off buttons and then leap into someone's space to catch them. You could have hurt yourself." Leona scolded, her heart and worry pouring into her words. She hated scolding her creatures, or anyone or anything, but could have very nearly died, and she couldn't risk losing him. She loved Hollivander so much. He stuck his tongue out at her, with the same noise he had directed at the girl earlier slipping out. Leona gave a defeated sigh, a very unamused look taking hold of her face. "Oh yes, how charming. Right proper gentleman you are, aren't you? You know, this is exactly why Pickwickett gets to spend more time with me than the rest of you, he actually knows how to mind his manners." Leona reminded pointedly, her words dripping with sarcasm at their start. He simply ignored her, and gave her a look as he dangled from her pinky. She was about to roll her eyes and say more, but it was then that she noticed the button had landed on his lap, and her cheeks turned a very bright shade of red, made even more prominent by the lighting of the train. Her face immediately became nothing but apologetic and sorry. Of course this had to be the way they met again, her stumbling to his compartment where a Bowtruckle proceeded to launch a button at his face. She felt awful. "I'm so sorry, Draco. Once again I'm going to have to ask you to forgive me. This is Hollivander, one of my Bowtruckles, and he seems to be in quite the foul mood today." Leona let him dangle from her hand another moment for Draco to see, and then carefully flipped her hand so he was carefully scooped onto her hand and standing on her palm, before she moved her hand so he could step onto her free shoulder, near Dewitt's fingers. He huffed and sat himself in front of the Demiguise's fingers, staring daggers into the button on his lap. How crazy must he think she was now? Would he think that she had come on the train and boarded without knowing she wasn't meant to, or worse? God she hoped not, she so so hoped not. He was clearly going to Hogwarts for something, and if she was lucky enough to get to know him through that, she just hoped he didn't think she was too crazy now and had already decided to run from her as far as he possibly could. Was there a chance, a possibility, a likelihood, a hope, that he'd allow her to sit with him, however? Maybe they had been pushed together again by fate? Or something else? She was so happy to see him, so she would adore sitting with him, but she had a feeling he wouldn't want her to. She wanted to ask, but she really shouldn't, though she so felt she should, even though she shouldn't- "But, oh! Do you mind if I sit with you? I've been looking for awhile and not yet found an empty compartment, and as I'm helping out Hagrid with his class this year, what with the Triwizard Tournament being held, I doubt that any student, especially my brother and his friend-" Hollivander gave a yank to a stray strand of her hair. She looked at the creature with a questioning expression, silently asking what he had done that for. Except, she already knew. "Yes Vander, I know, the girl who called you a twig. We'll deal with that later." Leona rolled her eyes and bit back a less pleasant retort, and then turned her gaze back to Draco. He still felt so wonderful, so special. She so hoped that he'd say yes. "Anyway, I doubt anyone here would want to sit with a teacher. I can stay in this bag the entire time if you'd like, so you're alone, and I'm not disturbing you. Whatever you'd prefer." Leona bit her lip as she finished speaking, and her eyes searched his handsome features for an answer, anxiously awaiting what it would be. Her cheeks were still flushed from embarrassment, and surprise at seeing him again. What was he even doing here? Was he a new teacher, helping out with a current teacher like she was? Perhaps something with potions, or Defense Against the Dark Arts? Whatever the case, she was glad, so glad that this had allowed her to see him again, and that maybe she'd have some sort of chance at getting to know him and figuring out what made him so special after all.
━mischievous and brave━━
━━━━━━━and quidditch━━━xxxHow was he supposed to act around girls that weren't his family? Was he supposed to say her name was pretty? Because it was, it was a really pretty name, and he liked it, a lot. It really suited her too, in his eyes at least, but that was probably creepy to say, so he didn't want to open his mouth and blurt that out just yet. Did she even like him saying her name was pretty though? Oh god, he really, really hoped she did and that he hadn't just seriously messed something up. At least he hadn't said something like she had cooties or that girls were gross or something mean and dumb like that. He had never really gone through that weird phase where he thought girls were contaminated like his best friend Brandon had; he was around his sister and his mom too much for that, and it had always confused him and seemed really pointless and unnecessarily childish and nasty. What was the point of it anyway? It was just dumb, they weren't any different really, there was no point. At least even if he had messed up with the compliment, he knew at least that he hadn't made that grievous blunder, and that he knew that was a huge no on what to say at least. His mother had taught him to be kind and treat everyone with respect, and not be so dumb and childish like that, and he wasn't going to forget his manners and disregard how he had been raised to keep them, especially in front of someone as wonderful as Rosie, and her beautiful braided brown hair and pretty name and pretty eyes. If he had, and his sister was here, she would have definitely scolded him for it and told him to apologize immediately; while she didn't care if he forgot his manners and how to behave around her, she wasn't going to accept him doing that around others, or him being rude and impolite and just like a jerk. Some of her creatures would reprimand him for it too, like Winks giving a glare and Dewitt just giving a long look. He wanted to say Hollivander would too, but considering his current mood and the way she had insulted him by calling him such an inferior thing, he doubted the offended little creature would care much if he said she had some stupid imaginary germ or something like that. The others would yank on his hair scoldingly or disapprovingly he was sure, but not Hollivander, at least not right now, with his little grudge against her. Would that ever go away without an apology from her? Probably not. Maybe Leona could make him forget or feel better or something? Probably, she seemed to always know exactly how to comfort her creatures with every little thing they could possibly ever be upset with. He didn't doubt that she could fix it somehow, or help the Bowtruckle to feel a little better at least. Right now he had a feeling he needed some dramatic, exaggerated coddling to feel better, and he was sure his sister would happily give that to the creature who was currently nursing a wound in his heart from being called a twig. A twig. The creature was this upset over being called a twig. Why did he have to get stuck with the most dramatic little green thing he had ever known? Why hadn't he named another of hers Hollivander, a calmer one, that was sweet, and open, and friendly, and didn't make rude noises at his hopefully new friend for not knowing what he was and then proceeding to call him what had insulted him the first time because she now knew it bothered the creature. He was sure Rosie was just playing and it was harmless with no malice behind it, she didn't at all strike him as someone that mean, so really, he had no need or reason to be so offended, yet he was, and Percy was responsible for it and making him feel better until Hollivander was back with his sister. It was a twig though, a twig, come on. He literally was a small bright green stick creature, like a collection of saplings that didn't grow quite right. A twig wasn't even a completely wrong description. Blegh. Why him? Why the overly dramatic Bowtruckle? Why did all that have to happen just as he was making a new, wonderful friend? Why couldn't he have gotten stuck with one of his sister's animal friends that actually wanted to help him make a friend rather than hold such a petty grudge over a really stupid thing. Bowtruckles honestly really were a lot like enchanted twigs, it was an honest mistake and Hollivander had just gotten ridiculously offended by it, and even more so when she purposely repeated it again, which was likely meant kindly and to tease and have some fun. Really, was it such a horrible thing? Were the feelings of the Bowtruckle really as fragile as he physically was? Good grief. First he had broken a lamp, and now this, and everything else. Why did things have to happen and make it harder for him to make a friend? Would she have even talked to him if she hadn't taken an interested in the green beast on his shoulder though? He remembered how she had seemed to ignore him and just barely acknowledge his existence before she saw it. She probably wouldn't have said anything to him other wise then, and he had a feeling he would have been to nervous and shy and unsure to start a conversation and say anything to her, so when he thought about it, he really did have the somewhat infuriating little creature to thank. Darn it. Of course. Well, he'd just have to never tell the creature about it then, so it didn't go to his head an inflate his ego to an even more outrageous level. So far the only truly reasonable things Hollivander had done came before Rosie walked in, and his hiding with the wands. He didn't blame the creature for that at all, and honestly, he wished he could hide too. He still felt the tiniest bit shaken and startled from his lamp incident, and the papers and boxes Rosie caused to fall down with the first two wands that weren't quite right for her and made their dissatisfaction at the clashing match known. Why were wands so startling? Would things like that happen often at Hogwarts? He really, truly hoped that they wouldn't, though he knew that was too much to hope for and ask. A bunch of eleven year olds just learning magic for the first time did not exactly spell for perfection and no startling surprises as things inevitably went wrong and exploded in his face. Great. Wonderful. Dandy. Just dandy. Ugh. He was not looking forward to those magical mishap surprises, not a single bit.
xxxAs he finished up with the kind, elderly wand making shopkeep, he could feel her green eyes on him, watching as they conversed and completed the monetary exchange, not unlike he had done while she was talking with the man, even if he had started to zone out and become distracted with other things toward the end of their exchange. He made his way to her, to ask if he'd see her again, and when she looked up at the sound of his voice, and a small smile grew on her lips, he felt his own widen. He decided that he liked her smile. A lot. She was fascinating, quite fascinating, and he really wanted to get to know her so much more, and at the very least, know enough to confidently call her his newest friend. When she responded, though, his smile faltered a moment, and his cheeks turned red. She was right, the question was definitely an odd one, and he already knew why. He swallowed. He listened as she continued, reasoning that they would obviously see each other again because they were both going to Hogwarts. His question had been really stupid, hadn't it? He felt really silly for it, and he really hoped that she wasn't upset with him for it. "Right, yeah, we are. Sorry, that was probably a really dumb question." Percy apologized sheepishly, his gaze falling down to the toes of his shoes, and the hard wooden floor. It's cracks and crevices were old, definitely older than even the man manning the shop, and probably far older than anyone but it's maker and the shop's owner possibly could have known. He really hoped she wasn't mad at him for his question or anything, although he really was glad that he would definitely see her again, and that it seemed she wanted to see him again too, since if she hadn't, she probably would have said something far different in answer. So his question had been okay maybe, and he hadn't just horribly messed this all up? Why was he even worrying about it? He never worried, but he liked her, and wanted to be her friend. That's why he worried. He liked her. Gross. He didn't like this worry, or the feelings. He really wanted to know her more though, so he supposed that he'd have to put up with them for a little while longer at least. Percy could do that, and he gladly would, as long as it meant he could be her friend. At least she seemed happy with his next question, and the smile he liked didn't leave her lips, so that was relief, and he felt some of his nervous feelings trickle away like a stream. His features lit up when she agreed to sit with him with a nod, saying that that sounded lovely, and his smile returned in full. She did want to sit with him then, and he'd get to sit with her on the train! He'd not be stuck with his sister and her creatures and the moody green one on his shoulder as he had assumed he'd be before. He'd get to sit with someone who hopefully saw him as a new friend. "I really look forward to sitting with you, then! I'm sure the ride will be really fun if I'm with you." Percy replied, likely sounding a bit to ecstatic about it as he gave another enthusiastic nod. What would sitting with her be like? Would he get to know a lot more about her? Would she have anything special to show him? Maybe they'd even get to walk together if he was lucky, or at least walk or head to the school together and sit together when they were there. He really hoped that they'd be able to. He perked up again at her question, though his excitement drooped a little as he realized they wouldn't get to walk to the train together, but it returned when she asked if he'd see her there. He gave an excited, energetic nod again, and had to stop himself from rolling on his feet and giving a happy skip or something in excitement. She'd find her sister, he'd go to his, and then they'd find each other again at the train and get to sit together, and talk, and do whatever else she wanted to do. "I hope you find your sister okay, I'll see you then, on the train! For sure." Percy promised nodding again in affirmation, and also excitement. He wasn't the best at keeping still when he was excited and really wanted to show the world and let it all out, much to the unpleasant dismay of Hollivander who had to hold on tight so he wouldn't fall. He watched as she paused, and her fingers tightened around the handle of the case he had seen her come in with, as she seemed to think of something, or tried to recall something. He wasn't sure which it was. He smiled even bigger when she told him she'd be near the front. Got it. Near the front. The front. "I'll remember that. I'll see you towards the front." Percy gave a happy nod, and watched as with her final word, she cast him one last look, and then left, walking out of the shop. He really looked forward to seeing her then. He watched the bells jingle as the door closed behind her, and while he missed her, he knew that he'd see her again soon, so there was no need to be sad about it, and mope about for not being able to see her for a little while before they'd get to ride the train together, and then live in the same castle until the school year ended, and they parted for the summer, and then saw each other again when their second year began. If they were lucky, they'd get to be in the same house too, or at least have classes together since something told him that she definitely was not a Gryffindor like he hoped to be, so they could see each other even more, if not all of the time save for sleep times and other things. He really hoped they shared classes at least, if they had to pick partners for things he'd much rather end up with her than anyone else, or someone he probably wouldn't at all get along with. He didn't really work well with a lot of people his age, but he really got along with her, and she really intrigued him and he wanted to know all that he could about who she was. He lingered in the place he stood a moment longer, staring thoughtfully at the door, and then followed in Rosie's elegant steps, and left, pushing the door open and hearing the bell's song behind him as he let the door close. He exited the shop with a skip in his step, and went to stand by his sister at her side, who looked to be quite distracted and wrapped up in her thoughts, and appeared to not be fully with him on Earth. Her mind was clearly in the clouds, and now he'd be struck trying to get it out. He just hoped that it wouldn't take awhile or too terribly long to snap her out of it and back into reality so he could tell her what happened and give her back the moody creature on his shoulder that continued to insit on messing with his hair. He really hated it when people touched and messed with his hair, he really, really did.
xxxSome time later, as he walked to the station with his sister in silence again, after they had talked and teased each other for a bit, he finally heard his sister's voice again, springing up from the surrounding sounds of the world around them. "So Percy, what wand did you get, and how did it go? Anything interesting happen?" Leona was looking down at him curiously, fixing him with a little smile, and he glanced down at the wand in his hand through the bars of Godric's cage. He still didn't know quite where to put his wand, so he was still holding onto it, but he didn't mind it that much. Percy liked the way it felt in his hand and the sort of warm tingle it spread throughout his arm. He tilted his body a little so she could see the wand better, and then answered proudly. "It's dogwood, with a Pheonix feather core, and 13 1/4 inches, and flexible, unless I'm remembering wrong. I like it though." Percy watched as she took a moment to look it over after listening closely to his words and perking up at the mention of it's core, her blue gray eyes scanning the wand, and examining it carefully. Finally, she looked to him again with a wider smile. "It's pretty, like something Grandmama would have loved. She'd be so happy to see you with it. It suits you." Leona commented, her voice soft and gentle, and more than a little loving. He could hear the fondness, and the sorrow in her voice as she mentioned their grandmother, and how she'd have loved it, but he was too happy that his sister thought it suited him to put much thought into it. He beamed up at her, his grin wide and large and filled with mirth, and then allowed his thoughts to fall back to the rest of his question, and his position to return to normal. She had asked what else had happened, and if anything interesting happened, not just about his wand, so he really should answer that too. He wanted to tell her about how pretty Rosie had been and about how much he loved her name and enjoyed her company, but he didn't want to tell Leona everything; he wanted to keep that as a little secret for himself, and for Rosie, if he ever told her the first part too, which he doubted that he ever would. His grin grew even more at the thought of her again, almost too wide for his mouth to stretch. "I also met this really lovely girl. Her name is Rosie, and she's from around here and a wizarding family. She got a cool black wand with thorns, and I'm going to sit with her on the train. She said she'll be near the front! She was also the one who upset Vander by calling him an enchanted twig when she didn't know what he was and was asking. She also compared him to some chocolate frog candy or something. And I may have sorta kinda, brokenalamp." Percy slurred the final three words together quickly in a mumble, hoping that his sister wouldn't hear them or pay them mind after the rest of his excited, hurried, babbling. She heard it though, she heard it crystal clear, and he was caught. He noticed Leona tense, all else he said forgotten for the time being, her older sister instincts rising up to show themselves as clearly as his words apparently had been. Her hand came to his shoulder, and she came to a halt, stopping him with her, and they stopped walking. She looked into his eyes, her demeanor instantly switching from cheerful to concern. He swallowed. "Percy, you broke a lamp?" Leona questioned, her hand tightening on his shoulder. Her voice was stern, and worried, and very concerned, eyes rapidly searching his own. His features fell, and he bit his lip. Why had he said that? He had to tell her, he couldn't lie or leave that out. Guilt took hold of his features, and he resisted the urge to look down. He wanted this to be sincere, and for her to trust and believe him, and she wouldn't do that if he avoided her gaze. "It was an accident I swear! He was having me test out a wand before this one and it just kinda zapped the lamp when I waved it. I promise I didn't mean to! I tried paying for it with the extra you gave me, but he wouldn't take it. He said it was an easy fix with magic so there wasn't a need." Percy explained, his voice almost pleading her to believe. He was telling the truth, he really was. He bit his lip as he waited for her to reply. She regarded him carefully for a moment, her expression filled with worry and a mix of things he couldn't quite detect, before relenting with a sigh, and letting her hand fall back to her side. He let out a sigh of relief. She believed him, she did. "If you're sure it's okay. We just need to be really careful, we don't want to worry mom if something happens." Leona warned gently, searching his features a moment more, until she knew that he had heard and understood, and then began walking again. He followed her, but a little slower than he had been before, his earlier excitement falling away.
xxxSilence surrounded them again, before he piped up a few minutes later, testing the waters a bit to see if he could ask her something again, and if she was still upset. He looked up at her cautiously, and caught her questioning eye. He swallowed again. Here goes. "I think the wand that broke the lamp when I used it was silver aspen, the really elite dueling wand one? Do you think I'll be good at dueling?" Percy inquired softly, searching her face as she looked to him. He could see Hollivander working away at a button on her jacket, but his focus was on the way her lips changed into a smile, and she gave a faint shrug. Phew, she wasn't too upset, or still upset with him. "I have no idea Percy, I'm really not the person to ask." Leona responded, tilting her head. She was right, she really wasn't the person to ask about that. Spells of any kind had never been her strong suit, and the patronus charm was still the only one he had ever seen her cast perfectly every time without a single fumble, and that was really only useful in guarding against dementors, and making creatures bat at it in the air like it's real as her little owl patronus flew around, so he wasn't sure how much that showed either. Dementors weren't an issue where they were and where she went, so really, while it was pretty, and she adored it, to him at least, it just seemed pretty useless. She hadn't been able to answer his question though, and he felt his smile fall a tiny bit. Dueling was another thing that really sparked his interest- of course not nearly as much as Quidditch, but still-, and if a prestigious dueling wand had rejected him, did that mean he was going to be absolutely terrible at it? Leona saw his expression falter and gave him a little nudge with a growing smile, looking down at him lovingly, and playfully too. "But, hey, in a few years, who knows. I'm sure you'll get to learn it when you're a little older, and then we'll see if you're any good. I'm sure you'll do great at it Perce." Leona added, sending him an even wider smile. That helped to ease his worries right away, and his smile returned to where it had been before it faltered. She may have some weird creatures, and not be home a lot, but Leona really was a good sister, and she always knew how to cheer him up, and exactly what to say to erase his worries and get him excited for things again, which he now was, and it showed prominently as they continued walking, and he found it increasingly difficult not to so with skips and hops between each of his steps.
xxxSoon, the both of them and the three beasts left the area of wizards, and arrived at the streets leading to the no-maj station, it's looming walls close and in their sight. He watched as Dewitt vanished from all sight into what looked like thin air, and felt himself shiver. He really never was going to get used to him doing that, even if he had grown up with the creature doing it. Hollivander did little to hide save for crawling under her folded jacket collar and continuing to pull at the button, but he was small enough as to wear no one would even notice him without a second glance, and if they'd just see him, they'd just see a blob of bright green, which they could easily perceive as a trick of their light of their eyes, or some ghastly scarf sticking up from the material of what appeared to be a pocket. Godric wasn't magical so he didn't need to hide, but it still probably looked really weird to the passing people, and he wasn't sure how he felt about it. Owls weren't normal pets, and were probably illegal for no-maj to own as far as he knew, but were the people used to seeing them brought here? Was it common to see, often? Were they used to it? Or was it hidden by one of the spells that seemed to make no-maj look away from certain magical instances, or forget they happened altogether? He didn't know, but so far it all seemed to be alright, so he just had to hope it was okay.
xxxA little later, and they were inside the station, moving carefully around the bustling people it was filled with. He thought he saw a few witches and wizards with their things heading to the train as well, but he didn't know enough about what it normally looked like to be sure, and himself and his sister weren't exactly a normal enough instance to at all go by or use as an example. She had a bag filled with creatures and an invisible one on her shoulder, and a moody green Bowtruckle on the other, and he had no luggage, but an owl in an oversized cage so he'd have more space to stretch his wings. It was odd walking amongst so many people in the station though, which was what drew and demanded most of his attention, and he wasn't sure if he liked the sounds or how loud it was, especially near the trains. It hurt his ears a bit honestly, and he could see that it bothered Leona too, and that her brow seemed to be knitted in worry for her creatures. Why did trains have to be so darn loud? And why did there have to be so many people? He didn't like it. It made him feel nervous, and weird, and he stuck closer to his sister, finding comfort in the way her hand found it's way on his shoulder, and pulled him closer to her side. She really was being a great sister, and he was so very thankful for that.
xxxFinally, after some more walking, and nearly getting lost, and then a brief goodbye with a big hug and kiss on the forehead from his sister, he was at last on the right platform of the train, and staring straight at the Hogwarts Express. It was a lot older than he was expecting honestly, but he liked the colors. It was painted in a long since faded black that in his opinion, was in need of a little touch up, and a bright, almost fire engine red that was just to his liking. Red was his favorite color, and he loved the way it looked on the train. It was fitting too, he really liked it, and it did well as a stark difference from the black, or however that was meant to be said. He had a tendency to zone out and think of other things when his mother started talking to him about things like that when he helped her with the shop; he found talk of design and room colors and palettes and ways to improve the shop kinda boring. He didn't care, and he didn't really have an eye for design, or colors, or things like that at all. When Leona had been a teenager she had asked him which outfit was better a couple times, and all he had been able to do was shrugged. They always looked equally weird or exceedingly normal and positively un-extraordinary, and very much the same to him, so he had never been able to help her, and he didn't even know why she was asking him anyways. He was a kid, what did he know about women's fashion and what looked good and what didn't? As long as someone wasn't wearing a barrel or a burlap sack he didn't really care what they wore, it largely looked the same to him, and didn't matter in his mind. A suit was a suit and a dress was a dress, they weren't that special. He just didn't get it. Regardless though, he did really like the train and the way it looked; it was cool, and he was excited to ride in one for the first time. He didn't get to think on that much more though, as Rosie returned to his mind, and his nerves started to creep in again. He still felt a little weird and discombobulated after running through a wall, but he hoped that no one would notice, or that Rosie at least wouldn't. She had grown up in a magical family, she was probably used to this and much more, and he didn't want to seem like an idiot or a weirdo or anything like that in front of her. Swallowing, he took a deep breath, and then boarded the train after making his way to the front, and carefully minding the large step it took to get on. He could feel his heart beating rapidly in his chest, hammering away at it's cage if his ribs, and the blood rushing through his ears as he walked along the isle, the hand not holding his wand absentmindedly trailing along the wall and skipping over the compartment windows as he searched for Rosie, and if he found her, he really hoped that she wouldn't be able to hear the sound of his rapidly beating heart, that would be really embarrassing, and awkward to explain. Thankfully, it wasn't long before he found Rosie in the quickly filling train in the second coach, and his heart had calmed by then, and entered the compartment she was in with a huge smile. "Rosie!" Percy greeted as he stepped inside, grinning gleefully at her from ear to ear He plopped down on the seat across from her with a slight bounce, his form springing slightly back up after it collided with the soft cushion, his fingers running along the striped bluish colored fabric as he leaned forward eagerly, all excited and ready to talk. He hoped that he hadn't made her wait, or that she had been here for awhile, bored and alone. "When did you get here? I really hope I haven't made you wait too long." Percy asked, his hands finally settling in place at his sides as he eagerly watched her. Her case was on her lap, so he hoped that wasn't a sigh she had been here for ages without him. He was so very excited to see her again though, and it really showed in his smile, or at least he thought it did. He was just so happy to see his new friend again after looking forward to sitting with her for the entire time it took him to get here, back to her. "How did finding your sister go?" Percy looked at her with his head cocked to the side, and then his mind returned to his own sister, and how off and odd she had been when he found her outside Ollivander's. "Mine was acting all weird." Percy frowned as he pictured the look he had seen in her eyes, one of a longing of some kind, like she was missing an old friend. He had never really seen her with that look before, it was hard to explain. "I think she's in love, or has a crush or something. It's really weird, I'm not sure I like it." Percy confessed, leaning back as his brows furrowed further in thought, and his arms folded against his chest, his wand falling onto his lap as his fingers at last let the wood go. "I do like Draco Malfoy though, she was talking with him before he left or something. He played Quidditch, so I don't mind it too much if she is." He knew she would never admit it, but he knew that his sister already definitely had the biggest, gigantic crush on Draco Malfoy, and he had only just meant. A moment later, after the words had slipped from his mouth though, he realized that Rosie probably didn't want to hear about that, and he felt his cheeks heat up again. He looked to Rosie again, his dark eyes focusing on her, and he leaned forward again. "That's probably really boring and gross though, I'm sorry." Percy sent her an apologetic look, and then leaned forward a bit more, excitement creeping quickly back onto his features, and a bright smile taking hold of his lips. "Anyway, are you excited? I am, I think anyway. I've been waiting for this for years." Percy hoped that she was excited to, and that he wasn't the only one ready to bounce off the walls with excitement and joy. She had a sister who went here, or at least he assumed his sister did, so she had probably known about it a lot longer than he had, and had a longer wait to get here than the few years he had known this was coming. It was finally the day though, the day he'd get to Hogwarts and hopefully find his home in the house of red and gold, Gryffindor, and now he had a friend to share that excitement and anticipation with, so now, how long he had been waiting didn't really matter all that much, or at all in comparison. Either way though, he was so excited, and even more excited to be spending it with her, hopefully, if he didn't accidentally annoy her way first. He really hoped he wouldn't. He was about to open his mouth to ask another thing, forgetting that he was probably talking too much and asking things before she had any chance of catching up again, but before he had the chance, another strange voice spoke up, an unfamiliar one, and stole the words from his throat. His head snapped to the source, and his eyes widened. "Hi. Do you think I could sit with you two? There aren't any seats left." It was a boy, around their age, with curly hair longer than his own, and he seemed nervous, and a little shy. He bit his lip. The train was filling up really quick, he wasn't that surprised someone would need to sit with them, Rosie seemed incredibly lucky to have snagged an empty one. He looked to Rosie then, searching her gentle features that carried a sharpness to them as well, and felt his brows furrow. He didn't want to put the pressure onto her, but he also didn't want to make the descion without her, and make a choice she wasn't happy with. Slowly, he turned back to the boy, and let his lip free of his worried teeth. "I'm okay with it if she is." Percy told him softly, glancing back to Rosie. He really was alright with it, completely, but he wanted her to be okay with it too. He was a bit bummed that he might not get to have Rosie all to himself to get to know for the trained, but someone new also meant another new friend, and he wasn't about to say no to another friendship. The boy seemed nice enough, if Rosie agreed, maybe all three of them could become really close friends? Maybe they could all spend a lot of time together and have fun, and they'd get to spend time with him too? It all depended on Rosie really, but he didn't mind what her choice was either way. He'd be happy with whatever she answered honestly, as long as he still got to sit wit her at least.