Catch The Snitch

Amelia hummed to herself as she walked along the path in Hogsmeade, smiling and waving at the people she recognized, just being her usually chipper self. She skipped a few steps before stopping outside one of the shops, one with snacks and the like. She went inside, humming again as she looked around at the options. As well-known as her parents were, there were several people who knew her and waved to her. Politely, she waved back, even if she didn't entirely know who half of them were. But she couldn't have them going back to either of her parents and commenting on her being rude.

After purchasing some snacks, she went outside and found a place to sit in the square. She started to eat while watching people go back, smiling and waving still. She had plenty of friends out and about, but every once in a while, it was rather nice to have some time alone. It was nice that magic allowed for the village to pop back up so easily after the fire. That had been a rather terrifying event, just to see from a distance. She would have been a little sad about it if some of these places didn't survive.

"Fascinating..." He whispered to himself as he was within a couple of feet of the Moke that he'd spotted just about an hour earlier. Previously he'd just planned to pop into Hogsmeade to gather some seeds and browse a few of the other spots...maybe even grab some fresh pumpkin juice to enjoy as he watched people scurry about the village around him. But when the incredible opportunity presented itself, he found himself up in one of the trees around the square, notepad out, and full of enthusiasm. It was just recently he'd discovered that there was new research being done on both mokes and occamys in order to see if there were any similarities in their abilities to shrink. Things were going fine and he'd gotten some pretty good notes until...

Whack!

Theo groaned in pain as the play bludger whacked him right in the face, sending him sprawling down toward the ground from the branch he'd been laying across. As he hit the ground, the breath seemed to leave him and he had to blink for a few minutes before he could really sort out what had happened. "..." he sighed as he sat upright, looking around for the more. "I missed it!" He was clearly disappointed in something, so much so that he didn't realize he'd fallen not too far off from one of his classmates.

Amelia jumped when suddenly one of her classmates came crashing out of the tree she'd been sitting under and looked over at him, alarmed, "Are you alright!? Don't move too fast, you'll knock yourself out!" she said alarmed. She tucked her things into her bag as she moved over toward him, "Are you hurt?" she asked again before looking up at the tree, "What the blazes were you doing up there?" she blinked before looking back down at him.

She looked around again, "Also, why did you-" she saw the bludger go by, "Oh never mind, that's answered," she looked back down, "Do we need to get you back? It's a bit of a ways back to school, but I'm not sure there's a healer in the village proper," she said.

A normal person might've been embarrassed by the clumsy fall from the tree, but Theo didn't seem to pay it any mind at all. "I lost the moke," he sighed with disappointment, seeming to scan the perimeter rather than immediately recognizing his classmate. Once he finally came to terms that it was out of sight, his amber eyes settled on the source of the questions. "Oh, hello there." He sat upright and brushed himself off, a small amount of dirt lingering on his nose. "Don't worry, I am quite alright. Excellent, really. Aside from my observations being cut short."

He flashed a smile full of wonder and his eyes danced with excitement, "Well isn't it obvious? I was studying the shrinking habits of mokes. Surely you saw the most recent article in Magical Creatures Weekly?" Any normal student probably understood that most of their classmates did not keep up with the latest magical creature news and most definitely did not do extra reading on the latest studies. But to him, it was absolutely normal.

"I think I'm okay. My apologies if I startled you. Never really cared for those types of toys." He motioned to the little miniature version. "At least it was just a toy and not an actual bludger. Probably would be in the hospital wing if it was." There was only a pause long enough that he realized he hadn't properly introduced himself.

"I'm Theodoric Delacroix. You can call me Theo," He added, the faintest smile on his face as he spoke.

Amelia watched him as he got himself together, putting her hands on her hips. When he said what he was doing was obvious, she raised a brow, "Afraid not," she said, "My parents don't really do magazines, they hardly believe the newspaper," shook her head, "And as someone on the Quidditch team, yes, you would be," she commented on his bit about potentially being in the hospital wing.

She gave a smile as he introduced himself before extending her hand, "I recognized you Theo, but for official introduction's sake, I'm Amelia Hawthorne," she said, puffing her chest a bit with pride at the family name, "My friends have a variety of nicknames for me, but Amelia is fine," she added.

Theo, in all honesty, didn't understand how it was not obvious what he was doing. It was a social skills flaw. But, it didn't phase him much as he just continued on. "Oh, here!" He pulled out the article that was conveniently folded up and stuffed into his back pocket. "I've got multiple copies, you can have this one. It's incredibly interesting." He smiled and nodded, "Yes, quidditch is a brutal game, isn't it? I suppose that is what gives it such an appeal. People love a good adrenaline rush. I get it. Even if I'm not on my house team, dad loves to watch matches. We've seen a few professional matches actually."

"Oh, my apologies." He shook her hand. "I do recognize you from around school. I just didn't think you'd know who I was." He didn't seem disappointed by the idea that she may not know him, just seemed more to be accustomed to having people who didn't remember who he was. "Hawthorne. Yes, you're well known among the wizarding world. It must make you proud to come from such a legacy." His smile was kind and genuine as he spoke with her, "It is a pleasure to meet you Amelia."

After a short moment, he looked around, "Er...did I interrupt...whatever it is you were doing?"

Amelia did actually take the article, actually kind of curious what it was about, tucking it in her robe pocket to read at another time, "I'm a Chaser on the Gryffindor team, it really is quite fun," she smiled, "The flying teacher and ref we have now used to be on a professional team!" she bounced a little at that.

"I try to make it a personal effort to at least remember as many people as I can in my own year," Amelia said, "Ya know, see if they get into anything interesting in the future, see if I'm living up to the potential or our age," she shrugged a little, "I am proud of my parents legacy, so I have to make sure not to let them down." When he looked around, she laughed, waving her hand, "Nah, I was just enjoying some candy. You want some?" she asked, pulling some pieces from her pocket and offering it to him, "Every once in a while, I just like to get out, not stay cooped up inside. So I walked out here to get this," she smiled.

"Really? I didn't realize he was a professional. That's incredible!" He seemed pleased that she'd taken the article from him. "Now that you mention it, I recall seeing you flying around the pitch sometimes in the afternoons when I'm feeding the Puffskeins. Did you know there is a den near the pitch?" He asked. "How is quidditch going anyway? I am excited to see the first match of the season."

Theo nodded with a smile, "That's very nice for you to make such an effort. Though I'm not sure you should really measure your potential by all of our classmates." He thought of the nicest way to put it, "Er...some of them are not near as...ambitious as you seem to be." Theo took her up on the candy offer. "Besides, I doubt you could let your parents down, you seem to do well in your studies and you participate in extracurriculars. I'm sure your parents would be proud no matter what." From his experience, this was how family operated. They were just biologically programmed to love you as you were.

"It's dreadful to be locked up inside all the time. I make it a point to get out of the castle at least three times during the day, though most of my time outside is well after classes have ended for the day." As he enjoyed the piece of candy she'd given, he continued on. "This is delightful though. Very well a good reason to venture out," he replied, thinking that he may need to stop in for some candy of his own before he decided to head back.

"I'll be honest, I'm surprised you're not here with friends. I reckon you're very popular with your housemates."

"I didn't know there was a den there, that's cool. And I think we're pretty ready, the 6th years are really competitive with each other, so they're all doing a lot to practice and make sure we're on top of our game, no pun intended," Amelia laughed a little.

She popped a piece of candy in her mouth as he talked about not comparing herself to their classmates. She snorted at his comment about some of them not being as ambitious, "I mean that's fair," she said, "I just feel like I have to be at the top as much as I can, which is probably why I need a break sometimes," she said as she looked around before looking back as he said it was delightful, "Isn't it? The quality is always top-notch. As for why I'm alone, being popular is not always what it's cracked up to be. People are always vying to be the one you notice for anything," she shrugged a bit.

“If you ever have a few moments to spare you should stop by and see it. There are babies right now. They’re absolutely precious.” He spent his afternoon yesterday feeding them and playing with them, enjoying the fact that he could interact with magical beasts even at school. “I’m happy to hear about your quidditch preparation. I’ve heard some people saying that your team has two of the best beaters around.” He laughed at her statement And gave her a warm smile. “I’m sure you’ll soar above the competition.”

He listened to her talk with interest, quiet for the most part until the last little bit. Theo wondered what it would be like to think people were always just out to get your attention for their own personal gain. It must be rather lonely to live that way. In that Moment he was grateful for the life he was able to live, quiet and free to live and explore his interests with others not watching his every move. “Well. I hope that you find someone who makes you feel differently than that. I imagine that it’s terrible to always second guess people’s motives.”

He scanned the square as it began to fill with more groups of people out to shop or get butterbeer or simply just to get out. “What’s your favorite shop? Or is it Honeydukes?”

Amelia smiled at the idea of going and seeing the baby puffs, "You'll have to show me how I've not got much experience with the magical creatures outside of what we see in class," she said, then grinned at what he said about them soaring above the competition, taking it as a comment about the team as opposed to about herself, "I'm so ready, we're gonna trounce the other teams," she laughed a little.

"Yeah, I mean, there's some I don't worry about so much, so it's not all bad," she shrugged a bit, "But thanks. I'm always looking for people I can trust, truly," she smirked a little before moving to sit back down where she had been before he fell, which was only a few inches away really, patting the ground to insist he sit with her, "Mmm, Honeydukes is definitely in the top three, the shop that has Quidditch stuff is another, and I guess the other would be the Three Broomsticks," she said, "What about you?" she asked

"Oh happily! I enjoy showing people the beauty of seeing creatures out in their natural habitat. Most people see Pygmy Puffs as pets or only see them in Care of Magical Creatures, but they're even funnier to observe out in nature. I go down to the pitch in the evenings usually." That was his way of extending the invitation to her. As far as quidditch, he found the Gryffindor team to be quite intense, but quidditch did tend to have that effect on people--whether participating or just being fans. Last season he recalled a time that the Gryffindor and Slytherin fans spent the whole time harassing one another. He appreciated being in Hufflepuff in that time.

"Well, I hope you trounce everyone. Except for Hufflepuff, of course." He gave her a polite smile. "Go Badgers." It wasn't really full of enthusiasm, but he found it was best just to go along with it all. When she patted the ground he decided he could afford a break from his studies. He'd been at it since he woke, so now was as good a time as any to give it a rest. "Seems everyone appreciates the Three Broomsticks. I imagine it's the warm, welcoming feel it has to it. I do love Honeydukes, but I also enjoy the Magical Menagerie--well, the magical creature shop and there's a place up toward the north of the village that has all sorts of seeds and plants you can check out."

Amelia smiled brightly as he talked about the Pygmy Puffs, nodding at the unspoken invitation. She'd have to try and catch him one night to try and see what he meant. She did find magical creatures interesting, so she was certainly up for it. When he mentioned not trouncing Hufflepuff, she giggled a bit at his "enthusiasm", "I'd say we'll go easy on them, but I don't see Laguna or Zeke ever going easy on anyone," she laughed a little more, shaking her head.

She listened as he talked about the shops he liked to visit and she nodded, "I've been by the Menagerie before, I was looking at the Fwopers, but I realized they're not exactly indoor birds," she smirked a bit, "I'll have to check out that seed place. I'm trying to not be completely horrible with plants, but to say I'm impatient might be an understatement," she shook her head at herself, "Always been more of an active person than a passive one, so I'm no good at waiting."

Theo was in no way friends or even acquaintances with Laguna or Zeke, but you'd have to be completely checked out from life at Hogwarts not to at least know who they were. Amelia was right, they weren't likely to go easy on anyone if it meant the different in securing a win for the Gryffindor squad. The young Hufflepuff reflected back on the Gryffindor and Slytherin match last season and how Zeke and Laguna somehow managed to communicate so effortlessly on the field that they managed to hit the same player from two different angles. Needless to say, that player was out for the remainder of the match. "They are certainly intense." Theo shuddered a bit at the thought of that injury. "Though that must indeed be part of the reason they are so successful."

In his experience, most times it was the intense people that ended up in influential roles. Sometimes that was a good thing. Sometimes it was...questionable. "Anyway, I'm eager to see." He smiled politely as she spoke about Fwoopers. Now she had his interest.

"In my first year I heard a tale about a student who stole a Fwooper feather once to put into his Wiggenweld potion. Caused a bit of a fuss and nearly a mini explosion." He seemed amused by this tale more than anything. "I think exploration is natural and the only way that we grow, but when experimenting with ingredients from magical creatures..." Theo let out a low whistle. "He must have been a Gryffindor." And he was indeed a Gryffindor! What you gathered from that observation, well, that was to your own interpretation.

Magical plants were just as fascinating in Theo's mind, but his parents being who they were it was no surprise. "Perhaps you just haven't found the right plant?" He suggested, "There are plenty out there. Some that grow nearly instantly...others that will follow you around on your adventures. Healing plants, deadly plants. Plants that will give you good luck and some that are just fun to look at." He was referring to the plants that he often passed on the way to Hogsmeade. They hummed a little tune to anyone who passed. Most people didn't take the time to notice.

"I have a little spot behind the greenhouses I use. It's overgrown out that way, but there's a little spot in the middle where I tend to some different plants. If you ever need some tips, I've got all sorts of notes that I can lend you."

Amelia made a face at the mention of the feather in the potion, having heard more about that being in Gryffindor herself, "Yup, it was," she said, shaking her head, "Though, why does it always seem to be in potions when people decide to get curious about things like that," she laughed a little, "Probably the worst possible time."

When Theo went into talking about the different kinds of plants, Amelia looked surprised, "Oh wow," she murmured, "I didn't even know there were so many different kinds. I might take you up on that. Though, it sounds like I'm leaning on you to learn all this stuff, I'll have to think of some way to pay you back," she laughed softly again, "Can't be the only Hawthorne to accrue a debt to someone while in school!" she said in a joking manner.

"Magical creatures and plants, is there anything you're not good at?" she teased.

He nodded, eyebrows raised, "Yes, quite unfortunately people do tend to have their experimental side inspired in potions. I couldn't quite tell you why that is. Maybe it's the element of surprise?" Theo thought that was a perfectly logical reason for people to be so enthusiastic about potions. "Even with basic ingredients, you never know how the brew could turn out just based on the way you choose to prepare it. People have been brewing things since the beginning of time and yet you can still find new and better ways to go about it. And new uses for some ingredients!" He chuckled at her last bit, "It can certainly be a terrible time to get inspired in a classroom full of others. Not sure if you were there, but one of the girls in potions actually managed to melt her cauldron." In the end, he wasn't sure if it was terrifying or impressive that the girl had managed such a thing.

Theo nodded his head enthusiastically, "Oh yes, there are plants for just about anything." He smiled at her. "Sure, anytime you need some extra help with creatures or plants, I'm your guy." He looked pleased at the idea, proud of himself and the knowledge he'd attained up to this point. "Don't worry, I just enjoy being able to spread good things about both subjects. Sometimes they're frowned upon or misunderstood." In an odd way that was part of what drew him to them in addition to being raised around the subjects. He wasn't the best at socializing or understanding people sometimes. Being an oddball himself, he felt that sometimes people didn't take the time to understand him either.

"Er....essentially everything else." Theo answered, a sheepish smile. "I'm incredibly average to lower than average in just about everything else." He held a finger up, "Well, I do read about a lot of subjects, I just...don't always excel in the application of the knowledge. But that's okay with me. We can't be good at everything. Otherwise why would we ever need to go to anybody else for assistance?" His curiosity got the best of him. "What subjects are you good with anyway?"

When Theo mentioned the girl who managed to melt her cauldron, she tilted her head, "Oh yeah! I do remember that!" she said, "Luckily it wasn't me this time!" she held her hands up, "Was at my table though, that was actually rather terrifying, I think it started on the table too before the professor got it under control!" she said, shaking her head.

She smiled when he talked about liking to spread good things about the subjects and nodded. When he said he wasn't good any everything else, she giggled a little, shaking her head, then shrugged at his comment, "Well I don't know if I excel at anything more than Quidditch, but I try to maintain a passing grade in all my classes, though my Potions grade may be a pushing the boundary of what's considered passing. I do pretty well at Charms and I do enjoy Transfiguration a good deal, but I wouldn't say I'm good enough at either of them to teach anyone anything," she shook her head again, leaning back onto her hands now that she had finished her sweet treat, "Just gotta make through our OWLs this year and then we can get into some more specialized classes and I can get out of History," she said then groaned as she let her head fall back, being a bit dramatic at her feeling towards the class.

"Right in the middle of the excitement. Just like a Gryffindor," He said with a light laugh. "I'm just happy to know that everyone ended up being okay after. Do you know the student?" From what he'd heard she was still in the hospital wing. It would be strange for him to go and visit her being that he didn't know her, but he did leave a nice chocolate frog for her with the nurse.

Theo smiled and shook his head, "No way. Your family is known for their greatness. I'm sure your legacy will be just as impressive as all that came before you." It was a genuine compliment. Her type didn't allow theirselves to come up short of what they strived to be. "What's your favorite thing we've done in Transfiguration?" OWLs were actually something he wasn't stressed over, but he felt that whatever was meant to happen would happen.

"What classes are you looking to get into?"

"No, not personally," Amelia shook her head, "Not too good at making friends outside the house, though I do try," she said, making a face at her own lacking ability. When he mentioned her family she made a different face, one that seemed rather unsure of whether or not she could live up to the hype.

So instead of addressing it, knowing he meant well, Amelia decided to address the questions he asked, "Well with transfiguration, I just think it's really cool that you can make something into something else with just a flick of the wrist. Aaaand I kind of like making things and then animating them, it's pretty fun," she smiled at the idea, "And I kinda want to just get into the more advanced stuff and stop taking classes that I have no interest in. Maybe give alchemy a go, but just a dabble, I imagine with my struggles at potions that it wouldn't go much better in there," she laughed softly.

"What about you? Any future classes you hope to take?" she asked, tilting her head.

Theo nodded, understanding the lack of friends outside of his house. Or...making friends at all. He was a bit of a loner, and that was okay with him most of the time. As he listened to her talk about transfiguration, he noted the excitement in her voice, smiling at her passion for the subject. "What is your favorite thing you've made?" He inquired, genuinely interested to hear more about her accomplishments. Even if it wasn't his top subject, simply getting an opportunity to learn more about what people were inspired by was nice all the same. He chuckled at her comment about potions. It seemed to be a difficult subject for many of the students at Hogwarts.

"Me?" He seemed surprised to hear that she was asking him about his own interests. "Well, I'd really like to get into advanced classes for Care of Magical Creatures. Maybe some Herbology too. I'd like to be able to help my parents grow the sanctuary. Maybe be able to go out and help rescue creatures on my own. Bring them back home." Theo paused, his hazel eyes glancing to the ground, then up to meet Amelia's gaze. "There are a lot of bad people out there. Creatures are much too pure for this world."

As dark as it seemed, it was something that was a real problem and not many people were willing to face it straight on. It wasn't like he didn't care about people too, his heart just ached at the thought of such innocent, helpless creatures that typically fell victim to greed. "Poachers are growing in numbers. I want to save as many creatures as I can."

Amelia thought for a moment about what her favorite thing was that she transformed, tilting her head a little and looking up like she could look into her own mind for the answer, "I mostly enjoy getting to change the size of things, helps me get some heavy things to places when I can make them the size of a toy instead," she laughed a little, "I kind of want to ask the professor if he can teach me about being an animagus, buuuuut I don't know if he'd be down for that," she mused, a bit nervous of speaking to the professor one-on-one.

She looked to Theo as he answered her own question, smiling as she listened, giving him her full attention, "That's really cool," she murmured when he said he wanted to help his parents, then frowned a little as he mentioned the bad people, "Maybe I could help," she offered after a minute, "I mean, I'll probably be expected to become an Auror like my dad, but I'd rather help with that, helping innocent creatures against people with bad intentions," she said, shaking her head, "I can fight the bad guys and you can save the critters," she smiled at him.

"Very clever," he said in response to her use of her transfiguration. "Why bother anyone else when you can just move your belongings around at the size of toys." He chuckled a bit. It made sense, but it just hadn't been what he thought she'd say about the topic. That next bit, though, was more than what he'd anticipated hearing from her. "Animagus?" His whole demeanor seemed to perk up at the mention of the topic. "I've always been very curious about that." Theo peered around as if he was expecting some eavesdropper to want to hear two Hogwarts students conversing about their studies. "You know...if the professor didn't want to assist..." The thought seemed to trail off there. Theo was quite familiar with the library as it was where he spent a great amount of free time and he knew there were other ways to learn.

Theo sighed at her response. "That's disappointing to hear that you've already thrown in the towel." He wasn't sure if she would follow what he was getting at, but he continued on anyway, "It was my impression that Hawthorne's created their own legacies." Sure, he father may have created his as an auror, but Amelia could still carve out a great legacy of her own and make the Hawthorne name proud. Theo smiled and nodded, "Answered like a true Gryffindor."

"Hey, Amelia...just remember that it's easier to go where the path was already forged." He didn't have much room to talk. In fact, his choice of career was very similar to his parents. But that was just it. It was HIS choice.

Amelia caught where that trail off of an offer to help her with learning how to be an animagus, "I'll keep it in mind," she said, even though he didn't finish saying it. When he called her out at making her own legacy she gave a humorless laugh, "Yeah, that may in some families, but there's this ridiculous pressure on me to take up the mantle. That I'd be helping wizard kind and it'd be selfish to not do it. But I don't want to go to far-flung places and help in extreme cases. There are people and creatures every day that need help," she muttered.

She hummed a little after that though and looked to Theo as if that had turned on a light bulb for her, "Clever play, Hufflepuff," she smirked a little, before standing up from where she'd been sitting, finishing the candy she had in her hand, "Well! Who would think! I needed a Hufflepuff to light the fire under me!" she laughed lightly, "You busy? Maybe you could show me those plants," she suggested.