The Badger and the Snakes || A Poppy Sweeting Love Story

Chapter 2

As Poppy regaled them with tales of her adventures with her Gran in America, Alfie listened with rapt attention, his eyes wide and mind filled with wonder.

Ominis, on the other hand, maintained his calm and composed demeanor, listening attentively but not showing much emotion. He was intrigued by Poppy's stories but being a reserved and private person, he didn't show it openly.

Poppy's eyes sparkled with excitement as she recounted their encounters with fascinating creatures like the Thunderbird and the Sasquatch. She described the magical landscapes they had explored, the spells they had used, and the challenges they had faced. Alfie hung onto every word, his imagination running wild.

Alfie commented, "It seems like you were quite occupied, Poppy. That could be why I didn't hear much from you over the summer."

Poppy lowered her gaze apologetically and responded, "It takes quite a while for owl post to travel from America, so I didn't bother to send any. I'm sorry for not keeping in touch."

Alfie reassured her with a chuckle, "It's alright, Poppy. I had plenty to keep me occupied, and besides, Ominis was my pen pal all summer." Ominis grinned at the comment.

Poppy noticed Ominis' quiet demeanor. "You've been rather quiet, Ominis. "

Ominis acknowledged her observation, realizing that he hadn't contributed much to the conversation. "Yes, I apologize. I don't have much experience with magical beasts. I'm exempt from Beasts class, so I don't have much to add to the conversation," Ominis explained.

There was a moment of awkward silence that Ominis picked up on, and he attempted to remedy it. "B-But I do enjoy hearing about your adventures, Poppy. It sparked a curiosity in me about magical beasts more than ever before."

"Oh really? It's a shame that you haven't had any real exposure to magical beasts. I could introduce you to some of my beast friends sometime if you like! I'll make sure you're perfectly safe as well," Poppy said with a smile.

She loved showing people how gentle and amazing beasts can be and it made her sad knowing that Ominis never knew the feeling.

Ominis smiled at how considerate she was. "Very well then."

"What about Sebastian? How's he faring after the death of his uncle?" Poppy asked, unknowingly making things awkward again. No one could really blame her. After all, she was only close with Alfie and not as involved with everything that had gone on between the three boys the previous year.

"Well, after Solomon's death, Anne and Sebastian haven't been the same. Anne left to grieve somewhere privately and Sebastian is trying his best to move on," Ominis answered, choosing his words carefully.

"How awful! I feel horrible for them," Poppy said with sadness in her voice.

"Ominis, have you been receiving owls from Sebastian?" Alfie asked. Sebastian hadn't written to him all summer, but to be fair, Alfie hadn't made much effort either. Alfie had time to reflect on the events that transpired and couldn't help but feel manipulated by Sebastian. Granted, Ominis had told him that Sebastian wasn't himself and that his involvement with the dark arts had led him to do what he did, but he still couldn't shake the feeling of being used.

"I have. I've been corresponding with him as well over the Summer. As his oldest friend, I figured he needed someone to be there for him. To console him despite-," Ominis stopped abruptly, realizing that he almost let slip Sebastian's transgressions. He corrected himself, "Despite his insistence on wanting to be alone."

That was a close one.

Alfie felt guilty about having to dance around the sensitive topic with Poppy present. He didn't like excluding her, especially after she had confided in him about being shunned by others in the past. "Let's take him to the Three Broomsticks. Maybe a good Butterbeer or two will cheer him up," Alfie suggested.

He remembered when Poppy had told him she had never been to the Three Broomsticks before they went together for the first time last year. "You're welcome to come too, of course."

Poppy smiled. "I would love that!"

She felt touched that Alfie invited her to join his friends, even though she wasn't particularly close to Ominis.

Poppy used to be somewhat close to Sebastian, as they sat next to each other in Beasts class during their 3rd year, and he often helped her tend to Professor Howin's beasts after class. However, shortly after Anne fell ill in the summer of their 4th year, something changed with Sebastian, and he stopped spending time with her outside of class. Poppy wasn't bothered by this sudden shift for long, though. She was accustomed to being alone and always preferred the company of beasts over humans.

That changed when she met Alfie. Poppy considered Alfie to be her best friend if not her only friend.

Alfie opened a chocolate frog container and took a bite from the confection. As he examined the card inside the box, his eyebrows shot up in surprise.

"What is it? What's that look for?" She asked.

"Your family name is famous, Poppy. Havelock Sweeting. A Magizoologist famous for starting unicorn reservations in Great Britain," he recited from the card, mouth partially full of chocolate.

"Must run in the family I suppose," Ominis remarked.

Poppy giggled. "There is a portrait of him in my Gran's study. He used to speak to me for hours about unicorns when I was younger. He's quite the character."

"He sounds fascinating. I'd love to meet him someday," spoke Alfie, his mouth stuffed with chocolate.

"Can you stop talking while eating Alfie? It's rude," Ominis complained.

Alfie opened up a box of Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans. "I'm absolutely starving. By the time you arrived at the station, the market barely opened and I didn't have time to grab anything to eat."

"So you're stuffing your face with candy? Be careful not to get yourself sick from all that sugar. We have a long ways to go until we get to Hogwarts," Ominis warned.

"Ick! Gross!" Alfies face contorted in disgust. "I don't know what that was, but it wasn't pleasant."

"You're eating Bertie's, you dumb oaf. Nothing in that damned box is edible." Ominis's senses were keen and his nose wrinkled at the subtle smell of the vile capsules.

"You're no fun," pouted Alfie. "Here Poppy, would you like some?" He gestured the box of beans towards Poppy and the girl obliged, grabbing a single light green bean, hoping it would taste something like a tart apple.

"What fun!" Poppy exclaimed before she popped the candy into her mouth. Her face started to scrunch up in reaction to the flavor. "Tastes almost like...troll bogeys. Ick!"

The three teenagers laughed and the rest of the train ride to Hogwarts went on pleasantly as they shared memories and laughter.