Melody Aira Snow - Hogwarts Assistant!

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"It's not... really made out of Nixus manes, is it?" Harry whispered to me as we made our way up the stairs.

"Don't be silly; of course it isn't'!" I whispered back. "McGonagall just wanted to scare her. It's artificial fur." In front of us, Kientra trotted grandly, looking around with a mixture of curiosity and arrogance.

"Good morning, both of you!"

"Aaahhh!!" Kientra shot up the stairs like a whirlwind and stayed at the top, quivering like a leaf.

Harry and I started laughing and slapping our knees . "Good morning, Mr. Smokey," I replied to the portrait, still laughing, "You just scared our snobby little guest right out of her snobby little wits! I salute you!" I grinned.

Mr. Smokey stared at us through his pale grey eyes and puffed at his pipe thoughtfully. "Guest...? What 'guest'?" he enquired.

Still chuckling, Harry climbed up the steps and knelt down beside the shaking Nixus, who had covered her eyes with her wings. "Come on, Kientra, it's only Mr. Smokey," he assured, grinning. "He's a friend of ours."

Cautiously, Kientra peeped out. "Are... are you sure?"

Harry nodded. "Absolutely, no need to be afraid."

"But... but he gave me a scare, and... " And then she caught sight of me leaning against the wall, still laughing hard while Mr. Smokey looked on amusedly . Immediately, a nasty frown crossed her face. "Mr. Potter... " she said slowly, "You must be somewhat mad to think that I am ever scared of anything." Spreading her wings, she flew down the stairs with arrogant grace, sticking her nose up. "So you," she scowled at me, touching down, "can just be quiet." Harry quickly turned his laughter into a disgusted frown.

"Why, you little... !" I cried, shaking my fist at her. It is a well-known fact in Hogwarts that I, Melody Aira Snow, simply cannot tolerate rudeness!

"Ahem... and this is our... 'guest'?" Mr. Smokey interrupted.

I lowered my fist, muttering. "Unfortunately, yes."

The thin but jolly old man in the portrait observed Kientra for some time, puffing his pipe and probably thinking about her manners. Finally, he spoke. "Well, my beauty, I'm very sorry to have scared you like that. Hope you forgive old Smokey here." He tipped his grey-striped, floppy hat politely.

Kientra, however, didn't seem to appreciate his grace, for she merely rolled her eyes and slurred, "Whatever... can we all get a move on now? I see no reason whatsoever to stay here talking to an unintelligent picture that goes around scaring people whenever he likes."

Mr. Smokey looked aghast. "I beg your pardon?"

"I'm extremely sorry, Mr. Smokey," I gasped, equally aghast. "I apologise profusely on her behalf. Now," I started pushing Harry and that... that... creature up the stairs again, "I think we'd better leave."

Safely up on the second floor, Harry and I turned angrily to the little horse, our eyes blazing . "Listen here, you little spawn of Satan!" I yelled, "Hogwarts has never seen such rudeness since that Malfoy slime-ball, and I sure as Hell am not going to let you shock the hair-roots out of everybody here! If you don't watch it, I'll... I'll... "

"You might not have noticed," Kientra sneered, "but it is your peppery temper that's shocking the hair-roots out of everyone." A look of smug triumph crossed her face .

Seething, I looked around. True, everyone in that hallway was staring wide-eyed and open-mouthed, even though they'd seen my temper before. Some terrified First-Year newcomers who had peeked out their classroom doors hurriedly ran back inside the minute they caught my gaze, while some others quickly looked in another direction, pretending to look busy.

I faced Kientra again, still sizzling, my eyes glowing red. No, really glowing. As in fiery, striking red. You see, when Rhondella tried to possess me during my first years here, she accidentally left a 'mark'; the ability to change my eye colour. This is because whenever she... how do I put this... 'attacked' me, my eyes would turn a frightening, horrifying blood-red, scary even to the most morbid of beings. Now, of course, there's not a colour in the universe I can't change them into. Harry was left with a scar; I was left with this! Hah! In your face, Potter!

But anyway... back to my sizzling senses...

Kientra seemed completely unmoved by my anger. In fact, she stuck her tongue out at me!

That's it!! I thought to myself. I raised my hand, ready to slap that smug white mug sore. However, Mr. Saint Potter stopped me. "Mel!" he hissed, frowning slightly, "we'll be rid of her before you know it! Now calm down."

"Hello, fuming Gryffindors and a horse."

I hardly had to turn around. That kind of greeting could only, and ONLY, have come from well-known Christopher Louis Barog.

"Hello, Chris... " I muttered half-heartedly through gritted teeth.

Chris was a Fifth-Year Gryffindor student well liked for his cheery, funny personality (like me, hehehe). He was tall, with a mop of blond hair that was always immaculately neat. His strange bottle-green eyes had earned him the nickname 'Bottles' years ago. His was a face of cheeky matureness, and he always hung out with me and Harry.

"So," he began, "what's all the fuss abou... holy bog-monsters, is that a Nixus?" he exclaimed, cutting his own sentence off . His tone had clearly indicated disbelief, which was what prompted me to say, "Believe it, Chris (I never called him by his nickname), you are staring at the rudest, most arrogant, snobbish Nixus that ever graced this blessed Earth! Oh, and guess what? It talks, unfortunately!" I threw my hands up in disgust, getting worked up again.

Harry nodded and smartly added, "Yes, and all in one tiny package! Some things are just not worth being free... "

Chris raised his eyebrows doubtfully. "It talks?" he said. Then, he grinned. "You really think my common sense is the size of baby bacteria? Everyone knows that talking Nixai are just a rumour."

"There is truth in rumours, Mr. Brainless," Kientra huffed, making Chris jump. "And I'll have you know that I have a... "

"Mane... I mean, name! She has a name, did you know?" I mocked, sizzling again. " 'Kientra', it seems... oh, and 'in the future, please address me properly'," I said, mocking the monstrosity's high voice. Clearly, I didn't exactly regard her as the apple of my eye. Sour apple maybe... no, 'rotten' is better.

Chris nudged a still frowning Harry and whispered discreetly, "She's funny when she's in a temper."

"I heard that, Barog."

Kientra huffed at me again. "You're very irritating, did you know?" she scowled.

"Oh, shut up, you bloody abomination!!" I hollered, shaking my fist again. Everyone stared for the third time (the second time was when I mocked Kientra), and the First-Years came running to their classroom doors once more to behold the scene. Considering the classes were only a few feet away, it was amazing that I hadn't been told off by the Professors teaching in there yet. ('We could've been killed! Or worse... expelled!')

"Mel... come now... " Harry said gently, patting my shoulder. "Calm down, will you?" I could see that he was holding back a fit of laughter. Wonder what happened to his anger...

Chris laughed lowly. "Oh, great and legendary Melody Snow," he snickered, "you do realise that you're letting a mere horse get to you." He shook his head in amusement.

Kientra snorted. "A mere horse?! Excuse me, I am... "

"A bloody abomination! How many times must I repeat myself?!"

"Mel!" Chris laughed , his lip quivering, "It is just a horse! Besides," he added, "you were the one who... "

"Ahem," Kientra interrupted, "I think I prefer the term 'elusive Nixus'." She shook her long mane grandly.

"Alright, alright, I'm sorry," Chris dismissed. "Mel, I thought you were the one who put down 'pet Nixus' on your wishlist every birthday and Christmas."

I frowned. "True, but I certainly didn't wish for the spawn of the Satan of all Satans!"

That did it. Harry and Chris burst out laughing and had to lean back against the wall for support , making the peeping First-Years jump. "Can we not start cursing again?" they laughed. Don't you just hate it when you're throwing a fit and the people around you just laugh?

I drew a long breath and tried to calm my sizzling senses (I love to say that, don't I?). "How'd you... get her... anyway?" Chris managed to say, wiping tears of laughter from his eyes.

Before I could answer. Harry piped in. "Long story. Mel, you go on to Hagrid's, and I'll join after I've explained to Bottles here." He started ushering me off. "But Harry," I protested, "you know that I might just impale her on Anya's horn if you're not there to stop me!"

Harry just smiled. "You wouldn't do that," he said.

"Oh, and why ever not?" I challenged.

"Because," he grinned, "Anya doesn't have a horn. Nice try, though. Now go on."

Grumbling, I started to stalk off, the bloody beast trotting reluctantly behind. Passing the still-peeping First-Years, I stopped and flashed them a look. "Back... in... class," I hissed through gritted teeth. In they ran and slammed the door. From behind me, I heard two voices almost shouting in laughter.

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I sat with Hagrid on the few smooth rocks beside his hut, watching Anya and the little devil trying to interact... maybe even get along. I had been grumbling softly to myself, and now Hagrid looked up at me. "Well, blimey, Melody, yer the one who wished fer a Nixus a few yeers back," he stated, rubbing his beard. It is another well-known fact in Hogwarts that Melody Aira Snow has always wanted a pet Nixus almost more than anything else.

I sighed . "I know, Hagrid, but not one that... bad." I pointed to Kientra, who was flying around Anya's head, scrutinising her every inch. Not surprisingly, Anya seemed irritated.

Hagrid gave a grunt of affection. "Well now, yer gonna 'ave tuh give 'er time tuh grow out of it, then. She's just a baby, after all. No need to be so hard on 'er, alright?" he winked , then continued sharpening the knife he used to trim tiny plants.

"Hello," came a familiar voice beside us. I turned, slightly surprised. "Eranoy?" I laughed, "When did you get out of hospital?"

He shrugged. "About ten minutes ago." Then, he smiled. "Hello. Hagrid."

"Hello there, Eranoy. See yer wrist's all fine now," greeted the gentle giant. "Well," Eranoy smiled, climbing up to sit on the rock beside me, "Madam Pomfrey is a miracle." He watched the two animals in fascination. "Harry told me all about Kientra," he whispered, "She's a beauty."

Hagrid coughed. "Well, uh, looks can be quite the deceiving little devils, young Malfoy, and in this case... " He paused. "Well... yer gonna 'ave tuh see fer yerself. And yuh won't 'ave tuh look close tuh see what I mean," he added, nodding.

"Speaking of Harry... " I said, "Where is he? He was supposed to join us."

Eranoy fidgeted with his robe, like he always did, and looked at me. "He told me to tell you that he has to go, uh, 'kill some players'... and he said that you would know what he meant."

I grinned. "Quidditch practise. Tomorrow's the first game."

The three of us sat in silence for a while, watching, as an obviously bored Anya made her way back to her stable (Hagrid built it, by the way), yawning . Shooting a bored look at Kientra, she shut the door, pulling it with her teeth. The Nixus was outraged, and threw a fit.

"Anya!!" she bellowed, "Open this door now, for pity's sake! I can put up with your mistress's yelling, but I'll have you know right now that I will not be ignored! Anya... Anya, do you hear me?! I know you do, so open up! Are you not much honoured to have me as an acquaintance?! How dare you do this to me!! This is dishonour!! I command you to open this door! This is Keintra you're being rude to!! I'll have you know that I'll... "

As she ranted and raved on, I shot Eranoy a look. "There you have it... she's a beauty."

Eranoy grimaced and shook his head, while Hagrid stared and commented, "I'm telling yuh, Melody, that horse o' yers can be stone deaf when she wants to."

"You are putting the name of all Abraxans to disgrace, missy! I bet Hogwarts has never seen such attitude!! I'm pounding on the door now... you hear it? Anya, you're worse than your mistress, and I can assure you that that isn't a very good thing! For the millionth time, open this door!!"

I sighed. "A Nixus has many magical powers... and I suppose one of them is not being able to run out of breath."

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"Another ten points for Hufflepuff!" Enthusiastic Gryffindor announcer Ernest Smith reached down and pushed the right side score button, receiving an equally enthusiastic response from the Hufflepuff supporters.

Chris clapped his hand over his eyes. "Do me a favour, all of you," he groaned, "Until this match is through, don't tell me the... "

"Just great, we're behind forty to sixty!" exclaimed Amanda Byrnes above all the noise. Chris flashed her an irritated look. "... score," he finished through gritted teeth.

Harry, standing next to Amanda, looked around. "Well, at least they're making good effort," he sighed, but his tone clearly betrayed his growing worries. "Yer tellin' me," nodded Hagrid, getting a good view from his trusty old binoculars. "They're really goin' downright mad!"

"Come on, Gryffindor," I whispered softly.

A long, pearly-white tail brushed against my nose for the third time. I swiped it away roughly and looked up. "Kientra!" I cried, "Get down here at once! We don't need tails as head-decorations!" Grumbling, she hovered lower until she was level with my shoulder. She had been complaining earlier on about being dragged to the Quidditch field, but after Harry threatened to put her in place of the Quaffle, there was less noise... especially after she discovered that the Quaffles get hit.

A loud cheer arose from the Hufflepuff side of the field. No doubt, something good had happened, but what?

"Blimey, what are they so happy about now?" Hagrid puzzled, searching the entire Quidditch field with his binoculars. The four of us craned our necks, trying to spot what all the fuss was about. I had hoped that my guess was wrong, but no...

"That!" I pointed, "Hufflepuff's seeker is after the Snitch!"

A few Gryffindors behind me gasped . "Where's our seeker, then?" someone cried. Hagrid grunted. "Hold yer horses, now," he said, "I'm lookin'!"

"Bernie's over there!" Amanda yelled, brown eyes wide, pointing to... the other side of the field?! Oh, great. Anyway, my worries were short-lived... for a while.

"He's spotted it!" hollered Chris excitedly, pumping his fist in the air (yes, we Hogwarts people really do love our Quidditch matches). All of us, even Kientra, watched, wide-eyed and leaning so far out we could've fallen, as Bernie Smith blazed across the field, dodging Bludgers and players left and right.

Hold on, I thought, Isn't that a...

"Bernie, watch out!" yelled Harry at the top of his lungs. So he'd spotted the speeding Bludger too! It was coming fast from behind Bernie, and judging by the speed of it, it was highly possible that there would be a very nasty collision soon.

It was impossible for Bernie to hear Harry, of course, but someone else did; Ferdania Ferbott, one of the Gryffindor beaters. "Don't worry," she cried, flying past us, "Freakin' Fantastic Ferdania's on it!" She flew off fast, dark ponytail streaming behind her. Chris coughed. "She'd better BE Freakin' Fantastic!"

Harry, Chris, Amanda, Kientra, Hagrid and I watched in suspense as Bernie flew straight on, determined to catch the Snitch... oblivious of the approaching Bludger! "HURRY, Ferdania!" Amanda shrieked. Hurry she did, waving wildly at the players to get out of her way. Never have I seen a Silver Arrow broomstick go that fast!

Kientra frowned and rolled her eyes. "I don't see what all this fuss is about... it's not like that thing is going to harm him."

"Oh, shut up!" said Amanda, not bothering to hide her dislike. Kientra's mouth dropped open.

Bernie was flying on...
The Bludger was flying closer...

"This is not good!" I cried. In my calculation, Ferdania might be too late; she was quite a distance away! But then...

"Yes!" Happy cries emerged from a few Gryffindors as Ferdania gave a burst of speed and made a rocket dive upwards behind Bernie, beating the yapping Bludger out of the way just in time! Alright then... I was wrong. But then again, I've never been good in Arithmancy...

"Talk about the last second!" clapped Harry. "Go, Gryffindor!" cheered Chris excitedly. Loud hoots and whistles emerged from us Gryffs as Ferdania waved her beater's bat in sweet triumph. Bernie, meanwhile, had turned around in surprise and now gave Ferdania an appreciative nod and a thumbs-up . Kientra merely rolled her eyes. "Anyone could have done that," she slurred.

I was watching the dear seeker so closely that I didn't realise something else had happened... something 'good'... something that made Ernest Smith holler into the mic, "Gryffindor scores! Ten points!" Surprised cheers, but cheers nonetheless, arose again, only to stop abruptly at Ernest's flustered words, "Sorry... sorry! I meant 'Hufflepuff'!" Hufflepuff's cries of protest quickly turned into happy ones, followed by loud groans from us. The score was now at a difficult forty to seventy.

"Blimey," muttered Hagrid, lowering his binoculars, "Ernest had better watch what he says, or there could be a real riot!" For a while, the five of us stared at the circle marks the binoculars had left on Hagrid's eyes. Think 'giant panda'...

Chris turned back to the field. A surprised look crossed his face. Straightening himself up, he nudged me. "What does Smith think he's doing?"

I shot a quick look. "Keeping score, like always."

"Not that Smith," Chris groaned. He grabbed my shoulder and turned me around "That one!" he pointed. "Oh," I said, and looked.

Indeed, what was Bernie doing? He had stopped in mid-air and was looking around frantically, a panicked expression on his face. It dawned on me then; That could only mean one thing. "I think he's lost the Hufflepuff seeker... AND the Snitch!" I cried.

"Damn you, Smith! He's near the hoops!" yelled ever-wild Amanda, pointing crazily and jumping up and down.

It might have been a miracle of some sort, but amazingly, Bernie seemed to hear, for he zoomed straight to the three tall hoops, where the other seeker was chasing the Snitch around and around the poles. He flew on faster, robe and blond hair streaming behind him, dodging the Quaffle, a player, the Snitch... hold on, the Snitch?!

"Damn you, Smith!" yelled Amanda again.

Hagrid gave a snort. "Ye might have thought that he had SEEN the other seeker flyin' toward 'im, but no... That boy needs glasses!"

Realising his mistake, Bernie made a speedy U-turn, his broom skidding sideways roughly from the sudden force. He just managed to brake to avoid smashing into some of the Professors in their seats (I saw Professor Sprout crossing her heart in shock). Regaining control of the broom, he flew out into the middle of the field and blazed on determinedly, eyes on the Snitch, wherever it was... I couldn't see it.

A slow feeling of despair crept into me as Johnny, the Huff's seeker, flew up behind Bernie and overtook him quite easily. Bernie wouldn't have it; he looked up, frowned, leaned further out and overtook Johnny impressively. Johnny wouldn't have it either; he sped on remarkably fast.

Overtake after overtake happened until Johnny finally got irritated and knocked Bernie hard to one side, sending his broomstick flying off and spinning in the air rather harshly. It must've been horrifying, especially since Bernie once had to bear with the name 'He-Who-Is-Scared-Of-Heights'.

Harry gasped and Hagrid looked through his binoculars again. "Alright now, it's slowin' down... " He peered anxiously into them. "Slowin'... ."

"Look; the seeker's going to fall!" I heard someone cry. Too true, he WAS going to fall, and very soon at that! The broom had been spinning in the air and was now slowing down... and finally coming to a halt. Bernie didn't look so good, though. He was swaying slightly, dazed, and his head was hung in dizziness . He put his hand to his head.

While the other players continued their jobs, Bernie's broomstick suddenly started to dip low, jerking and swaying dangerously. The poor boy's mouth dropped open and he hung on for dear life, desperately trying to control the broom. It didn't seem to work; the broom continued it's scary descent.

Kientra huffed. "Well, that's what comes of having nothing better to do than to chase a stupid golden ball." How heartless can you get?!

Down he went! "Seeker overboard!" yelled Harry, signalling wildly to someone on the field. That 'someone' was Kirk Crane, Gryffindor team captain, who was closest to us. With a nod, he sped off.

It was amazing; Kirk managed to fly halfway across the field in two seconds flat (Speed all around today!), zipping left and right, dodging the scattered players and balls expertly. Speeding, he made a diagonal dive downwards... just in time to catch the doomed youth on his broom! "An amazing rescue!" Ernest yelled, not caring if he made anyone deaf. "Let us all salute him!" Relieved eyes watched as Kirk brought a pale and shaking Bernie down to solid ground, while amazed cheers erupted from the enthralled audience.

While all this was going on, what else had been happening? Well, guess for yourself...

"He's got it!" Ernest shrieked.

Heads turned in his direction. Even Kirk and Bernie looked up, surprised, Bernie growing paler for some reason. "Eh?" Hagrid looked confused. "Who's got what? Who's got what?" His question was soon answered by our overly-excited announcer. "Johnny Erlong catches the Snitch, scoring 150 points for Hufflefupp... I mean, Hufflepuff! This match is over!"

What?
What?!

A shrill whistle blew. "Hufflepuff wins!" Screams of joy were heard from the Huffs as they jumped up and down happily, waving their house flags and hugging each other . On the field, Johnny Erlong's back was being patted sore.

It was no question that Gryffindor was disappointed; shoulders sagged and heavy sighs emerged . Amanda clapped Harry's shoulder (this she had to stand on tiptoe to do) and gave him a reassuring smile . "Don't worry, coach," she grinned, "Gryffindor's teamwork will always be a million times better than Hufflepuff's guts... or Slytherin and Ravenclaw, at that. We all know that." She grinned again, braces showing, and clapped his back again.

"That's right, Harry," nodded Hagrid affectionately. "Teamwork's a lot more important than winnin'... " He flashed Chris, who was teasing Kientra, a look, since Chris had bet someone two Knuts that Gryffindor would win, "... and I bet ye can drill that into 'em even more." He patted Harry's shoulder. "Just ye... uh, remember that now, eh?" he winked . "Now come one." He lumbered off.

Following Hagrid down the wooden steps, I nudged Harry. "You seem to be proud of yourself... coach." I grinned.

He shook his head. "No... I'm just glad that Bernie wasn't hurt. And besides," he added, "I'm proud of them, not of myself."

Chris grinned and turned to Kientra, who was looking sulky as usual. "And you," he said, "should remember that no matter what you say, the spirit of Quidditch can never be dampened. Now," he laughed, "Let's go see that unfortunate seeker of a Smith."

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