Chapter 4: Chapter 4 - Gryffindor
"Cloud!" "Cloud!"
"You are in Gryffindor too!" "We are in Gryffindor as well!"
"Good, isn't it?" "Yes, totally good!"
"You two are loud," Cloud gave them a look, walking faster to create distance between them, but Fred and George laughed, rushing over.
"Say, Cloud, did anyone tell you that you look like a pretty girl?"
"Yes, very pretty!"
"There are many girls interested in you, especially the upperclassmen. Would you mind posing a little so we can sell your pictures?"
"Sell my pictures?" Cloud's footsteps stopped in between. They had been at the first-day feast and been sorted in the four houses. Tifa and Aerith, the three of them, were sorted in the Gryffindor.
The current Head of the House was taking them to the Common Room and their rooms.
Tifa and Aerith were also in the crowd, but they tried to make friends, unlike him, who used to be alone.
Still, for the past few days, money has been the only thing that has been on his mind, and hearing them talk about it piqued his interest.
"How much?"
"What?" "What?"
"How much can you get from the pictures? I want to earn some money too."
Fred and George exchanged a look and a grin spread through their face, "Haha, yes! Sure! I am sure that we'd get along well."
While these two were excited about their prospects, Tifa was walking at the back of the crowd with a worried expression.
"You are so worried about a boy on the first day. Is he your brother?"
"What? No! No…Cloud is from the same hometown as me," Tifa gave the hasty explanation to the black-skinned girl beside her.
"Right, from the same hometown?" The girl beside her smiled, introducing herself, "I am Angelina Johnson."
"Tifa Lockhart," Tifa smiled, and Aerith leaned forward with a grin, "I am Aerith Gainsborough."
"Lockhart…as in Gilderoy Lockhart?"
"Oh, him? I have heard of him, some of the Teachers asked me the same thing, but we are not related, the same surname as all."
"Then you will hear a lot about it since he's so famous. Even I know of him," Angelina shrugged, "Like the two your boys are hanging out with. They are from the Weasley Family."
"Weasley? We came across them in the Diagon Alley," Aerith thought back to the red-haired couple; it was hard to forget them. Seeing them is what motivated, or should she say, pushed Cloud to think more about how to get money.
"They are of the Pure Blood Wizarding Family, although they are much better than the other Pure Blood Families. Although, that is why they are poor too," Angelina chuckled, "I heard that even though their family has Three Wizards, the three children currently in Hogwarts have to use secondhand things. I don't understand how that is even possible. Still, they seem pretty fun, the two of them."
Aerith sighed like an adult, resting her cheek on the palm of her hands, "Oh, I hope that they don't spoil innocent Cloud."
"Spoil him?" Angelina blinked, curious as to what she meant by that.
"Hehe," Aerith placed her finger on her lips, "You'll understand when you meet them."
The three of them were talking when they heard whispers and their eyes turned forward towards the portrait. The one guiding them told them the key to open it, and the portrait opened, revealing the path to the Common Room.
"Wow, this place is amazing," Aerith joyfully jumped up, clapping her hands together, "I want to learn how to do that."
"Open the door?"
"No, silly. How to make the door," Aerith grinned at Angelina, taking Tifa and her hand, "Let's go and see what's inside."
Cloud entered the standard room in the front, and Fred and George went crazy, "It's amazing! It's like brother said!"
"They are always the right size!"
"It's so big right now," Fred commented, hastily running to the couch, sitting down on it with a bounce, "Sooo soft…this is so much better than our house."
George pushed him to the side, sitting down, "I am never leaving here, not even in the holidays."
"Cloud!"
Cloud looked over his shoulder, seeing Aerith's joyful face, and he looked towards the side, seeing Tifa. The moment their eyes met, they both blushed and looked away, and Angelina giggled with Aerith, "Oh, I think I get it."
Aerith chuckled, nodding, saying hi to Fred and George, before whispering to Cloud, "They didn't do or say anything weird to you, right?"
Cloud glanced towards her, meeting with her stern gaze, scratching his cheek. He sighed, leaning forward to whisper in her ears, telling her the situation.
Aerith widened her eyes, making Tifa more curious and pulling Aerith to ask what it was. Angelina didn't understand either, so Aerith pulled them close, whispering.
Tifa's gaze turned stern when she turned towards Cloud, putting her palm on his upper arms, gripping them, "Cloud, you will do nothing like that! We will find some way, so don't, ok?!"
"Weren't we doing the same thing before?" He talked about when they dressed up before being teleported here.
"No means No!! No way, Understand?! It's a big No!"
Aerith watched him with stars in her eyes, "I think you should do it, Cloud! Go for it!"
Angelina whispered near Aerith's ear, "I don't think he needs anyone else to spoil him when you are here."
Aerith giggled, raising her chin, proud as if Angelina had given her the biggest compliment.
"Cloud!"
"Ok, fine," Cloud pushed her hands away, "I won't. I'll wait and see if Aerith could do it."
Aerith made a peace sign, "Hehe, believe in me."
Even though they wanted to stay and talk, they were sent to their rooms to settle down, and Cloud lay down on his bed, closing his eyes, falling asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.
There were three more boys with him in the same row, two were Fred and George, and the other one, he didn't care to ask, not tonight.
The next day, he woke up earlier than others and went to the Hogwarts grounds for a run; after an hour, he started exercising in the standard room as per his regular schedule before taking a bath.
"Cloud?"
Cloud raised his eyes, meeting with Tifa, drying her wet hair like he was drying his, "Tifa, morning."
Tifa smiled, "Good morning. Were you up early?"
"Yes, to train," Cloud looked at the watch in a standard room, "There is still an hour before the breakfast."
"Oh, they aren't going to wake up for a while," Tifa shrugged, "You must have slept early. Everyone in our room was talking about it last night."
"About what?"
"That we are from the lucky batch that comes every seven years. The Sorting was on Friday, and today is Saturday, so we start the school with two days' holidays and get the time to adjust."
"Hm," Cloud sat down on the couch, holding the tower, "Have you decided? What do you want to do?"
"Hmm," Tifa interlocked her fingers, cracking them, stretching her hands, "Mm, I want to learn magic, but I am not sure I'd be good at it. I have never been great at magic, more at martial arts and limit breaks."
"You were great, much better than most others, so I am not worried about that," Cloud barely managed to compliment her.
Tifa chuckled, taking the palm of his hand, gripping it, and looking into his eyes with a bright smile, "Cloud, let's do this together."
Cloud gripped her hand back, looking away, "Mm."
Tifa softly smiled, watching him smile on her lips, and she raised her body, pulling him up, "Ok, let's go see Aerith."
"Aerith? I can't go to the girl's quarters, right?"
"Oh, she's not there. She went to Hagrid's early in the morning. You must have missed her," Tifa walked with him, not realizing that she was still holding his hand, "She asked Hagrid if she could grow some plants. Hagrid does grow of his own, but Aerith is sure that she can increase productivity with her innate magic, and then Hagrid can sell them, providing them with profits."
"Hm, I know that," Cloud was thinking something when a smile appeared on his lips.
"What?"
"I thought that while others find it lucky, Aerith must be fuming. Since our first class was that of Herbology."
Tifa chuckled, "Now that I think about it, she probably is furious. Say, is there any class that you are excited about?"
Cloud's mood went down a little, confusing Tifa when he replied, "Hm, it's simple. One of the voices I heard…the way she talked like a scientist. So I wonder if she could learn Potions faster than any of us. I heard that Potions are a good way of earning money."
"Cloud, I asked which class are you interested in," Tifa softly smiled at him, asking again.
"Class I am interested in…hm, maybe Flying? That sounds interesting," Cloud turned at the bottom of the stairs, realizing that he was still holding hands with Tifa, and pulled away, "Sorry…."
"MmMm," Tifa shook her head, took his hand, and turned his palm to get a better look, "Your palms are so much softer now…."
Cloud watched the palm of his hand, "I have to train more. The first thing I want to buy is a sword, or maybe one of those heavy brooms."
Tifa chuckled, "That's not what I meant, Cloud. But now that you say it, maybe I should get some equipment too? It wouldn't be great if I am out of practice."
"How about making a training gym of a kind? I wonder if Hogwarts has anything like that," Cloud wondered.
"Probably not," Tifa giggled, "I don't remember seeing any teachers with muscles."
"But there is Quidditch, isn't that like a sport? If it's a sport, there must be something there for training. We should check it out later," Cloud had a smile on his face, almost looking forward to it.
Tifa gripped his t-shirt, "Let's go; Aerith must be waiting to show off her results."
"If there are any."
"Come on, you should believe in her more," Tifa whispered, "That girl…she's unbelievably amazing."
Cloud stepped under the sun, seeing it brighten up Tifa's face, the smile on her lips, "So are you."
"Huh…what?"
"Nothing," Cloud turned his face away, walking towards Hagrid's Cottage, hiding the smile that appeared on his lips.
"No, you said something!"
"I didn't."
"Oh, you did," Tifa puffed her cheek, hiding the joy in her eyes.
The two of them made their way to Hagrid's, but they were in for a surprise when they were reached.
Hagrid was standing in a field of flowers, white flowers, many of them.
"Cloud! Tifa, you are here!!"
Hagrid waved his hand, and they could tell that he was filled with joy even from afar. Aerith seemed tiny beside him, waving her hand with a grin covering her face.
"There are?" They hastily made their way over, and Tifa asked, looking at the flowers.
"These are Moly!" Aerith puffed her chest out, proudly telling them.
"And that means?"
"That means you are going to be rich!" Hagrid clapped his hands, turning their attention towards him.
"This plant is used to make Healing Potions and against the Sleeping Spells! It is always in high demand! Aerith somehow grew these one morning, and they'd sell for much!"
"I can't do this every day," Aerith shrugged, "This sand would need some rest before I can do this again, and even these plants would need about a week or two before fully maturing."
"Right, right, when they do, we can sell them for enough money to buy anything you like," Hagrid laughed, "Even I can get a few things that I have wanted for a while."
Cloud heard a scratchy voice, and then the woman's voice appeared again, 'If I remember correctly, then you have potions on Tuesday, right? If you can somehow figure out which potion this is and the recipe, then with my expertise, I should be able to make it.'
"Hagrid, do you know of any recipe? For the healing potion that Moly makes?"
"I have no idea about that," Hagrid scratched his beard, "And Professor Snape…I'd suggest you don't ask him, and the books in the library might not be accessible to you…."
"Not by us? Then by who?" Tifa asked.
"Let's see…I do not know…but there is someone who might know it," Hagrid slammed his fist on his palm, with a shine in his eyes, "Professor Sprout! She's a kind one, and she'd love Aerith, so if there is someone you should ask, then her. But…even if you knew, how would you get the book? Let alone; it's dangerous to make potions without knowing it."
"We'll find some way," Cloud turned around, "Let's go, Aerith. Let's find the Herbology Professor."
"Can we? This place is so big," Aerith hung on his hand, "I am tired. Cloud, carry me?"
"No."
"Please? I did good~!"
"No."
"Hey, you three!! Take a left from the gate, and then a right! There is Herbology Lab and Greenhouses there! Professor Sprout might be there!"
"Right! Thank you!" Tifa and Aerith waved their hands while Cloud kept walking, glancing back at Hagrid, watching him wave his hand.
It didn't take long before they were near the Herbology department, searching for Professor Sprout, and they found her in one of the greenhouses, tending to the plants in the morning.
"You children, you shouldn't be here. Didn't anyone warn you?"
Hearing the voice, Cloud looked up at Professor Sprout, walking towards them to shoo them away when Aerith apologized, "Sorry! It's just that Hagrid said he successfully grew some Moly, and we should call you!"
"Moly?! Did he manage to grow some? How is that possible? They need a proper environment and care!"
"Right, right, that is why he feels that they might wither if we didn't call you soon!"
"Oh, good, good, let me see if they are Moly or something else," Professor Sprout took off her gloves, throwing them on the slab walking towards them, hurrying along.
"So, are you three the first years?"
"Yes, we joined yesterday. All three of us are in Gryffindor," Aerith sweetly said, "Professor, Hagrid said that we could make Healing Potion from Moly? When are we going to learn that?"
"Not until the sixth-year girl," Professor Sprout laughed, "Are you interested in Herbology?"
"Yes, very much!" Aerith excitedly said. Although, only Cloud and Tifa knew the real reason why she was so excited.
"Sneaky," Cloud whispered under his breath, but Aerith probably heard it. She looked over her shoulder, grinning, showing a peace sign.
"Sixth year…I think I know someone who might be able to help us," Cloud whispered in Tifa's ear.
"Let's go after this," Tifa whispered back.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone