Janna Black and The Cite of the Dead

Newtclaws

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   "This way!" Barked Snuffles as he ran through a field of wheat with crows flying out from within the rich golden grasses "follow me, Janna!"

   "I'm coming! The others are still catching up so slow down, can you?" Janna panted as she followed Snuffles around a corner into a dead end but she could still hear his toe nails clicking down a corridor, though.

Everyone then stopped behind Janna, some of the girls were angry with Janna "You must be joking" Sighed Aimee Miller.

Snuffles then ran out into the painting by Janna's ear where two people sat on a blanket staring at a forest "well, run through it. There's nothing to it" Snuffles panted. Janna reached forwards, her hand went through the wall—she pulled it back and then stepped through into a dark tunnel that echoed with her footsteps, as she took a second step flames shot down the tunnel lighting torches on the walls, showing a bright path through the darkness.

   "Snuffles?" Janna called as she looked around for a painting, she heard people coming in behind her so she moved on.

   "I'm still here" Snuffles reassured Janna as a little doodled black dog on the wall, he took long bounds as Janna followed him down. A left then a sharp right where they waited for everyone else who walked slower than Janna. As Snuffles regained their herd members he lead on to where the tunnel took a dip.

    "Are you sure you know where we're going?" Janna inquired as Snuffles galloped with his tongue lolling out his mouth.

    "Yes, I've been down these tunnels loads of times" Snuffles then looked back to make sure Janna wasn't alone, behind her was Jake followed by Rose who had a suspicious look on Janna's back "The ginger there seems like a real bucket of sunshine" Snuffled sarcasticly commented as the tunnel ended at a wooden door.

    "You have no idea" Janna stopped at the door, she pressed her thumb onto the latch and the door swung open, a flash of light blinded Janna but as she blinked she spotted a few greenhouses lined up with each. "Thank you" Janna turned her head to Snuffles but he seemed to just disappear, Janna then heard a tattering on her shoe and saw a grainy dust fall to the floor and blow back into the tunnel.

The Gryffindors flooded out of the doorway, Janna stared at the thick ivy on the cobbled wall, she shook her head in amazement I'm going to need to remember this place. Jake slapped Janna's back "Good one, Janna" he then ruffled Janna's hair "how did you know where to go?"

   "There was a black dog who went through the paintings and lead me" Janna explained as they began to walk to Greenhouse number five where the timetable told them go.

   "A black dog? I didn't see a black dog" Juno frowned, ruffling his scarf on around  neck to loosen it from his hot neck.

   "Maybe he was too fast for you" Janna said as they walked through the greenhouse and met Mr. Longbottom at the head of a banged and bent wooden table where fresh teeth marks and claw strikes showed the wood under caked dirt.

    "Good morning class. You got here faster than I expected... Can anyone tell me your secret?" Longbottom smiled as he put on a pair of dragon hide gloves. Everyone looked at Janna who flushed, the boys tried to hide their grins while Professor Longbottom nodded in amazement "Amazing, ten points to Gryffindor for early arrival for the first year's very first lesson" the first years in the riled up with excitement, except for Janna who wanted to give credit for Snuffles for helping her, but the thought was knocked out of her as Orion patted her shoulder.

   "I think you're a legend now" Orion grinned, Janna shook her head and pulled out her gloves as per Professor Longbottom's request to the whole class..

As the class gathered their equipment Professor Longbottom pulled out little pots with small plants that had huge maple shaped leaves, the plants hissed as though it were on fire. "Alright, hand these down the table and do not touch the leaves, I'll tell you why later"

    "I wonder why" Orion whispered under his breath as he passed a pot of the strange little plant, which on closer inspection was sitting in a bed of small shiny rocks which shimmered under the leaves like embers through glass.

    "Does anyone one know what these plants are?" The Professor asked when he saw everyone had their own pot with the hissing little plants. Rose, Juno, Jake and Yann Fredricks had their hands shoot up into the air. "Who to pick..." Professor Longbottom then picked Rose who snickered at Juno and Jake before answering the question.

    "I believe this is the Newtclaw Hissing Pod" Rose boasted her knowledge, oozing her pride through each word.

    "Well done, Rose. This is also known as the Planta triturus efeta unguis" Professor Longbottom then looked down at his little plant, Janna stared down at hers too. Hers hissed at her viciously, she noted the pinkish-purple mottle around the fiery purple veins, she saw little bumps under the leaves which had little spikes dotting the surface of the leaf like a warning so no one could prick themselves.

There was a yelp next to Janna, Orion had jumped into the air and pulled off his glove where a seed of some sort was clinging to the glove. The leaf was now missing a bump and had a small welt had formed where the leaf had been touched.

   "Are you alright there?" Professor Longbottom asked Orion who quickly shook his fingers together.

   "Yeah, it just jumped at my fingers, I didn't even touch the leaf" Orion explained, Longbottom then took the glove and chuckled.

   "You set off the trigger... I'm afraid I'll have to give you detention... For not listening to instructions..." Longbottom said as he then sat the glove by a jar of water "well, now at least I don't have to do that myself, you see these seedlings love to latch onto dragons, when the dragons fly off and try to burn the pod the salamander sapling will wait until the host flies over water before letting go" Longbottom then pulled out his wand, the end lit up under the seed which began to chuckle and shiver. As he leaned the glove where the seedling was over the jar the seedling shot out the burnt crush with a pew.

In the water the seedling looked like a bean with a tail but as it flipped a salamander head, then arm like roots, a long belly then a pair of back legs of roots showed before a long sprout tail came swishing behind the body. The creature had a pair of eyes, he watched everything through the glass.

   "Amazing little plants" Longbottom smiled, Janna watched as it tried to grow over the jar's wide lips by floating on his back with his toes stretched upwards but he couldn't reach so a  few small leaves grew to form toes. "But these are what we are looking for" Longbottom pulled out the claws of the seed from the glove "the Newt claws... Used in potions... But you'll learn about those ones in your later years, for now open on page ten"