Growing up Pureblooded

Brooms and Tomes

     Towards the end of the following week, seven long, thin packages were delivered to the members of the Gryffindor Quidditch team. Oliver Wood nearly fainted when he saw the note on his.

Dear Mr Wood,

Best of luck on winning the Quidditch Cup this year! We hope this might help a bit. It's your very own brand-new Nimbus 2000. Use it well!

Cordially yours,

Sirius Black, Gryffindor Beater, 1973-1978
Abraxas Malfoy, Slytherin Chaser, 1937-1943, Team Captain, 1938-1943

Every member of the team received the same broom and basically the same note, except for Aries. His note read as follows:

Dear Aries,

Granddad used his connections at the Nimbus Racing Broom Company to get you a fully working prototype of the Nimbus 2001, which won't be entering the market until next year. We have both tested it - for safety reasons, naturally - and we are pleased to report that it flies beautifully and is a good bit better than the 2000 model. If there are any problems, let us know and we can replace it immediately.

Affectionately yours,

Dad and Granddad

     After Potions, Aries and Draco ran up as quickly as they could to their dormitory in order to examine the new broom. "It's beautiful, Aries," Draco exclaimed, lightly caressing the wood with his fingers. "You're not allowed to have a broomstick, Black," Ron scoffed. "You'll get in trouble." "I've got special permission from McGonagall, Weasley," Aries replied evenly. Ron snorted. "Figures. That what you Death Eaters do, isn't it? Your dad bought his way out of Azkaban, and now he's bought you a broomstick, even though it's against the rules." Fred and George walked in, carrying their own new broomsticks over their shoulders. "Lay off it, Ronniekins," Fred said. "Aries is cool." "Be sure to thank your dad and granddad from us," George added. Aries smiled. "I'll pass it on." "Wood told us to let you know he's scheduled practice for this evening, so we can all get used to our new brooms," Fred said. "I'll be there," Aries replied with a nod. "You're on the Quidditch team, too?" Ron moaned. "In your first year? I hate you."

     While his cousin was occupied at Quidditch practice, Draco decided to go to the library in order to begin researching three-headed dogs, and pored through several musty old tomes in the hope of finding some clue. Some three-headed dogs were described as having a mane of serpents, and Draco wondered briefly whether his cousin's Parseltongue ability might help them to get past the dog, but he couldn't remember having seen any serpents on this dog, nor had he heard any hissing. Hercules, for his part, had supposedly got past a three-headed dog by wearing a magical lion skin that protected him from the dog's bite while he wrestled it into submission, but the boys hadn't any magical lion skins, and Draco thought that, even if they had, they would hardly be able to wrestle the monster.

     Granger, the Muggle girl, was also in the library, studying—she didn't seem to have made any friends at school, and spent most of her time among the books. She looked miserable, but Draco had a hard time feeling sorry for her. If the Muggle wanted friends, she should try not to be such an insufferable know-it-all. Draco's eyes were beginning to blur from fatigue, and he was nearly ready to call it a night. However, he forced himself to try one more book, and opened a thick leather-bound volume. He found what he was looking for on the first page. "Eureka!" he exclaimed loudly, earning him a disapproving stare from Madam Pince and a curious look from Granger. The blond boy was astounded that he had not thought of it before. It seemed so obvious now. He re-shelved the books with a flick of his wand and ran back to Gryffindor Tower.

     Aries whistled as he walked back up to the castle from Quidditch practice. For the first time since he had come to Hogwarts, he felt as though he belonged. Wood and the rest of the team had been ecstatic about his family's donation, and everyone had been thrilled to see how well Aries could fly. He made his way up to his dormitory and found Draco in bed, already wearing his pajamas. "How was practice?" he asked. Aries changed out of his Quidditch robes. "It was wicked! You should have come." Draco shook his head. "No thanks. I love Quidditch as much as anyone, but coming to practice is a bit much if I'm not even on the team." Aries pulled on his pajamas and sat down on his own bed. He frowned. "Do you mind that I made the team?" "Why should I mind?" "Well, you're a good Quidditch player too," Aries said. "It's not fair that you should have to take flying lessons with everyone else. And it would be nice if you could play."

     Draco rolled his eyes. "Believe it or not, Aries, there is more to life than Quidditch. Like stealing the Philosopher's Stone." Ron walked into the dormitory and the boys switched to French. "Qu'est-ce que tu as découvert? [What have you found out?]" Aries asked. Ron muttered darkly as he searched for his jumper. "Tu te souviens d'Orphée? [Do you remember about Orpheus?]" "Bien sûr [Of course]," Aries replied. "Pourquoi Cerbère l'a laissé entrer l'Enfer? [Why did Cerberus let him into Hell?]" Draco replied smugly. Ron grabbed his jumper and left the dormitory, growling about "ruddy foreigners".

     Aries grinned widely. "You mean we have to sing to it?" His cousin nodded. "But that's so simple!" Aries exclaimed. "I should have thought of it myself." "You were too busy thinking about broomsticks and Quidditch glory," Draco retorted. "Someone had to keep the important things in mind." Aries laughed. "Whatever should I do without you, Draco?" "I shudder to think," the blond boy replied primly as he crawled into bed.