𝑬𝑼𝑷𝑯𝑶𝑹𝑰𝑨|| 𝐉𝐀𝐌𝐄𝐒 𝐏𝐎𝐓𝐓𝐄𝐑

~34~

James was still chuckling to himself as he walked into the Gryffindor common room after terrifying Asteria by flying her around on his broom.

"Where did you go?" Sirius asked as he lay on the crimson sofa. "Oh, just practicing down at the pitch." He replied as he perched on the arm of the chair. "Alone?" Remus asked with furrowed eyebrows which made him nod.

The four boys then headed up to their dormitory but didn't get under the covers as it was so warm. Whilst Peter snored loudly, James sat up on his bed with the Marauders map in his hands.

This map which they had made the year before and showed where everyone in the castle was. In his hand was his wand which shone a light so he could see.

He furrowed his eyebrows when he saw the name of a familiar Hufflepuff student. James glanced up to find that all of the boys were asleep so he crept out of his dorm and followed the name through the hallways.

-☘︎︎-

Asteria was walking back from the kitchens with a steaming cup of tea in her hands and several biscuits in her pockets. When she heard footsteps behind her she looked around with wide eyes but let out a sigh of relief when she saw the Gryffindor.

The Gryffindor attempted to quickly stuff the map into his pocket. "Are you stalking me with that little map, Potter?" She asked which made his eyes widen. "How do you know about that map?" The Gryffindor asked.

"You really think you're sly with hiding it?" She asked with a smirk. "I can see it in your pocket." She then said, pointing at the parchment which was hanging out of his pocket.

"Fine, fine. You caught me." He said as he jokingly put his hand up in surrender. "Well then, night Potter." She said as she continued on walking. "Creep." She added with a whisper which the boy heard. "Hey!" He shouted which made her snicker. "Are you saying I'm wrong?" She asked with an eyebrow raised before turning the corner.

-☘︎︎-

Asteria woke up early, excited for her first lesson which was Care of Magical Creatures. She hurried to get ready which resulted in her messing up her tie a few times.

She quickly wrapped her hair around her wand into a bun, grabbed a slice of buttered toast from the Great Hall, and headed down the dirt path to a clearing in the trees.

She was the first student which wasn't unusable for the subject. "Mornin' Asteria." The groundskeeper greeted with a wide grin. "Good morning Hagrid." She replied before they waited for all the other students.

Once they all arrived, Hagrid cleared his throat to catch their attention which made them fall silent except for James and Sirius at the back.

"For this lesson, we will be learning how to care for Thestrals." He began to explain. "As you know, only those who have witnessed death can see these creatures and it believes that it is very unlikely that any of you can see them." He added as he held onto his belt.

As these magical creatures naturally lived in the forest, they had an area where they all herd together. All students peered at the soil to see hoofprints and the occasional twig be snapped.

Hagrid continued to explain the origin of the creatures, expecting the class to write down all of these notes which most were doing. They then watched as Hagrid took an apple from his pocket and rolled it across the ground until it suddenly stopped and it was lifted up into the air and eaten by the Thestral.

"That's the end." Hagrid suddenly said as he clapped his large hands together and ushered the students out of the forest however Asteira stayed.

This was because these magical creatures could be seen by the Hufflepuff girl. The herd was all the same storm grey colour with leather wings similar to a bat.

Carefully, she held out her hand as the skeletal creature approached her. Her hand then touched its forehead as the thestral lowered its head.

However, a sudden rustle in the trees made her jump and turn around to see James standing there. In his messy hair were leaves as Sirius had pushed him into a nearby bush.

"You can see them?" He asked with wide eyes. "What? No!" She replied with a scoff as she started to walk away. "I just watched you pet one with ease!" He exclaimed back at the Hufflepuff. "The teen drinking really needs to stop, Potter, before you become even dumber," Asteria replied as she walked away, leaving the Gryffindor alone in the trees.