The University of Avalon
A Harry Potter UNIVERSE/ Sasporilla Bucket Fan Fiction
by Darren Kelly
Chapter 18
Designing a wand on an Abbicum felt foreign and unnatural at first to Sasporilla. Up was down and down was side ways. Some days she thought she would never get the hang of the blasted system. More than once someone had to hold her back from casting "BOMBARDA" at the Ponyo 3400.
Angelo was very patient with her, bless him, spending many long hours with Sasporilla going over the basics again and again until one day they just seemed to click! And once the basics sunk in, the rest poured in like a dam had burst! It was a matter of days before Sassy finished the full outer wand design. Of a strange pink flamingo umbrella wand design, the handle of the wand a flamingo’s head. Sixteen inches, red oak and water oak with hippogriff feather and crystal core.
"Now all I have to do is provide the materials." Sassy said, "and the Abbicum Lathe will do the rest. How boring. I love that I could design this wand for Hagrid... but I would love to know how the wand chooses its wizard. Make it so we could design wands for a wizards personal style and needs. Like eye glasses."
This was a heavy thought on Sasporilla's mind. The things she wanted to change about wands. How they ripped at the fabric of magic. That would have to stop! She wanted wizards and witches to be able to pick a wand based on their choice of style or needs, within options available to them. No more searching all day for a wand to pick you. Even to have a custom wand designed based on your needs... right off the street first time. Not based off your old wand. There must be some way of figuring out a witch or wizards wand need? Some formula? If not then she would have to figure it out! If she could do it for this project that would be wonderful! Then of course so would world peace. What ate the chances?
Sasporilla woke a bit early for class and got dressed. Flossy lay at the base of her lamp looking dull and a bit limp. Her bright pink fur was duller these days, as was Sasporilla's hair. Something she'd noticed since Christmas. Strands of her hair seemed to be fading from pink to the same dull red as her mom's. Perhaps the last effects of her fathers protection spell were wearing off. Perhaps she no longer needed them or perhaps it was something else?
"What's wrong Flossy?" Sassy asked her listless pillar cat. "Are you not feeling good?"
Flossy crawled slowly onto Sassy's arm and looked at her with a small pout and just blinked. Laying her small head against Sassy's hand.
"Poor thing." Sasporilla said. "We'll stop bye professor Hannah's and see if she can fix you up? She always knows what's wrong with every creature. She'll know what to do."
Sassy was worried about Flossy but couldn't help but thinking about her wands as she walked. What made up a wand? The body was wood or metal, or wood and metal. Sometimes bone or crystal or sea shell or.. this is ridiculous!!!! It could be made of blood pizza pockets and cheese strings with a bloody apple sauce core and it would choose some wizard some where!!! Sasporilla was clearly feeling the effects of the frustration of the task she'd placed upon herself.
Perhaps the smallest and simplest of mercies in a day can be a bit of music, played by a musician on a quiet street corner. The music wafted through the early spring morning air and fell upon Sassy's ears with great pleasure. The music was warm and soothing and very welcome indeed. She followed it to the corner where she stopped and listened to it's very talented player until the end of the song. She dropped some coins into his open guitar case with a loud clank and a smile.
"Thank you miss." The old Guitarist smiled. "Every little bit helps. Don't play as much professionally anymore."
The old man held up his left hand to show he was missing two fingers.
"Oh dear." Sasporilla gasped. "That's horrible."
"A cursed guitar pick from a rival." The musician sighed. "Lucky I didn't lose the whole hand."
"You still play beautifully." Sasporilla said.
"I use a custom tuning now." The old man said. "Makes it easier to play chords I don't have the fingers for."
"A custom tuning?" Sassy enquired.
"Yes." The man smiled. "There are more than one way to tune a guitar. Didn't you know that?"
"No." Sasporilla said. "I've played for years and never knew that."
"Different musicians may use different tunings to play different songs." The old man said. "Some just play different styled based of different tunings. Why I'd say that a guitar tuning for some musicians is as personal as the prescription in your eye glasses miss!"
"Thank you so much." Sasporilla smiled as she walked away muttering to herself. "How would you personalize and personally tune a core though???"
It was a little past eight when Sasporilla found Professor Hannah in front of the Avalon University Zoo undoing the mischief of last nights pranksters on the sign.
"If I get my wand on the little basta..." Professor Hannah exclaimed as she shuffled lettet's back around properly in "SEE THE ERUMPANT EXHIBIT"
"Professor Hannah?" Sassy interrupted.
"What?" Professor Hannah said dropping the X. "Who? Oh Ms.Bucket! What can I do for you?"
"It's my pillar cat Flossy mam." Sasporilla said worriedly. "I don't think she's well?"
"Oh dear." The professor said walking over to have a look at the little pink creature who seemed to be sleeping feverishly. I haven't seen this I'm afraid my dear. There is a lot we don't about the pillar cat, especially what they go through between this state and there next. Some how I don't think this is good. I wish I could offer you better news but I think your pillar cat is dying dear. A faery may know a cure but there are none in the city. You'd have to go out into the wild and honestly, their are few you can trust."
"I know one!" Sasporilla said opening her bag and digging deep inside until she came out with a small silver bell. "I've kept this until it was needed for something just like this. If it will save poor Flossy, I'll gladly use it!"
Sassy rang the silver bell Gooseberry had left for her. With in seconds the small faery appeared before her.
"Sassy?" Gooseberry smiled. "Is it really you?"
"Yes Gooseberry." Sasporilla smiled. "I'm so very happy to see you. I need your help. This pillar cat Flossy is sick. We don't know what to do for her? I thought you might know?"
"You would trade your one time great favor from a faery to save a sick faery worm?" Gooseberry laughed. "Gosh I have missed you my Sasporilla. Of course, only you would!
"Gooseberry please." Sasporilla begged. "She needs to feed on a golden cherry and the crystslis in that tree and soon by the state of her. It's her time."
"Great!" Sassy smiled.
"Not great." Professor Hannah said. "The botanical garden doesn't have one, the nearest in the wild are three days broom ride and deep in wild faery territory."
"Gooseberry can't you take her there?" Sasporilla pleaded.
"I'm sorry Sasporilla." Gooseberry said. "I can not. For me to go there is not allowed. I am not of there Fae. We are not friendly."
"I can't just let Flossy DIE!" Sasporilla shouted. "There must be a bloody golden cherry tree somewhere?"
"There is," Professor Hannah said, "but you're really not going to like it when I tell you where it is."
************
It came as quite a shock to the witch queen when the Queen of the House elves showed up the front gate requesting a special and immediate emergency audience. Especially when she announced herself humbly as just Sasporilla, the Queen's niece. Dressed like any other retched commoner, the witch Queen wondered just what her niece was playing at. Especially at eight forty- five am on a Tuesday morning?
The royal couple were announced with trumpeted fanfare as they stepped out of the castle and walked hand in hand toward the front gates.
"Why aw the gates not open?" The Warlock King demanded of his guards, motioning to them to open them.
"I have not commanded it yet." The Witch Queen over road his command, politely.
"But Bougenvaweeaia my sweet?" The Warlock King said quite shocked, "She is famiwee? She is youa niece? Shuawe you intend yo wecom ha with open ahms?"
"She is also Queen of the House Elves husband and love of mine." The Witch Queen said through clenched teeth as they approached the Royal gates. "My Royal welcome depends on her reasons for her surprise visit?"
"I'm not here on any official business." Sasporilla said. "I ask only a personal favor. Access to a golden cherry tree in your court yard."
"That's all?" The Witch Queen smiled. "The Queen of House Elves? Who has single handedly crippled the Elven city? You seek access to a... tree. Why?"
"Sweet hawt? " The Warlock King Pleaded. "Pweese! It is a simpew weequest? The twees aw mine to dea with, I see no weason why not?"
The Witch Queen held up her hand. "I simply want an answer... WHY?"
"My pillar cat." Sasporilla sat holding Flossy up. "It's her time to change. She needs to feed on one cherry then build a cocoon in the tree so she can change."
"Oh my." The Warlock King said holding a handkerchief over his nose and mouth. "Into what?"
"A faery Dragon." Sasporilla smiled. "Without the cherry tree, Flossy will die. Yours is the only one for three days flight and that won't start a faery war getting her too."
"I see." The Witch Queen mused motioning to the guards to open the gates. "Well I am not the kind of Queen to deny an innocent creature the chance to be all it can be."
"You aw most genawus and wuving my Queen." The Warlock King praised his beautiful Wife.
"However I feel that this favor I do for you my niece just may require you to repay me in kind some day." The Witch Queen smiled. "Perhaps some day I will ask a simple favor of you?"
"Agreed." Sasporilla said. "If you require me to repay you in kind then I shall. I give you my bond as Elven Queen by the Stilskin Name."
"A solid bond that is Sasporilla Bucket." The Witch Queen smiled. "Stronger than an unbreakable Bond!"
"Yes but we must shake hands on it in clear agreement." Sassy smiled holding out her hand stating. "I Sasporilla Bucket promise to repay The Witch Queen, Bougenvallia Bent, in kind for her favour to allow my Flossy access to the Golden Cherry Tree."
"Good." The Witch Queen grinned with Cheshire malevolence as she shook her nieces hand. For the first time the Queen noticed the young girls hair. The stripes of changed colour. "My dear, what is happening to your hair?"
"Not sure." Sasporilla shrugged. "Seems to be changing to my mothers colour. Ever since Christmas."
"Perhaps it's that cheep House Elf Crown." The Witch Queen laughed walking away. "Next it will turn your scalp green."
It really was everything Sassy could do not to shove her wand up the Witch Queen's turned up nose.
"Come with me Sasporwiwa!" The Warlock King smiled taking her arm. "I wiw escoat you to the coat yawd wah we wiw put yowa poo wita cweetua into the twee!"
The Warlock King leads his young guest proudly through the walk ways and paths, showing Sassy the many statues and plants that rare plants they have collected and cultivated over the years.
"I am happy you've paid us this visit Saspowiwa!" The Warlock King said excitedly.
"Why is that Sire." Sasporilla asked.
"Oh pweese don't be so foamah hea, away fwum eveweeone! You can just caw me uncaw! Pweese???" The Warlock King insisted.
"Very well." Sasporilla smiled. "Uncle."
"Oooo that wahms my hawt!" The Warlock King smiled. "I want so much fowa youwa Aunty to have famawee awound. Peepo to waff with and wuv!!! I fee a some days she woozes hewasewf in being Queen."
"To be honest I think your simply a better person than she is Uncle." Sasporilla said. "And you hope for to much from her."
"Pehaps." The Warlock King sighed. "but I do wuv hea you know? And I do see good in hea, some times."
Sasporilla smiled politely. Everyone had good days and showed it. She assumed even snakes smiled at mice when they were full.
The court yard with the Golden Cherry tree was at the very heart of the great castle. The single tree stood radiant in a magical glow between a circle of three stone benches.
"WEESPWENDANT!" The Warlock King smiled gesturing grandly to the tree, "Is it not?"
"It truly is." Sasporilla said taking Flossy over to it eagerly. "May I pick a cherry to feed to her, as I must?"
"Yes of cose my deea niece Saspowiwa!!!" The Warlock King insisted.
"Thank you Uncle." Sasporilla nodded.
The joy and prided beamed from the Warlock Kings face. There was an innocence and a decency to this man, somewhere behind the vanity, Sasporilla thought. Perhaps she could learn to like him. Sasporilla pulled a single golden cherry from the tree and placed it gently to Flossy's mouth. Flossy licked at it slowly but weakly.
"I may be to late." Sasporilla said sadly.
"Sire!" A Royal guard interrupted. "You are needed in chambers."
"Oh dea." The Warlock King sighed. "I'm going to have to weave you hea, I'm affwaid Saspowiwa!"
"Thank you for your help Uncle." Sasporilla said giving the Warlock King a much surprised and much needed hug.
"You my dea aw weacom in my castew anytime!" The Warlock King smiled with a tear in the corner of his eye. "You awe most wuved famiwee."
The Royal Guard lead the Warlock King away leaving Sasporilla alone in the court yard with Flossy, at the base of the Golden Cherry tree. Flossy suckled weakly on the cherry but to no end.
"She's just to weak." Gooseberry said popping in. "She can't bite through the skin. You'll have to start it for her."
Sasporilla placed the cherry against her lips and bit just hard enough to break the skin. She felt a bit of nectar flow over her teeth and pulled it quickly from her mouth and placed it against Flossy's lips. Within seconds the pillar cat went from a weak suckling to munching at the cherry enthusiastically!
"The nectars strangely bitter on the tongue." Sassy said about to swallow it.
"Spit it out!" Gooseberry screamed. "It's a deadly poison to MAGI!"
Sasporilla spat six, seven, eight times then cast HYDROXIC on her mouth and a jet of water splashed from the end of her wand spraying her mouth clean.
"Now you tell me!" Sassy spat.
Flossy coiled happily up her arm to her shoulder and mewed in the pink haired witches ear.
"You should be ok now Flossy." Sasporilla smiled as the pillar cat blinked happily at her and hopped onto the golden cherry tree, winding its way up into the highest branches. With a single push a barb shot from Flossy's back end which nailed her firmly to a branch from which she hung. Mucus seeped from between her fur and covered her body until she was just a pinkish slimy ball.
"Soon that slime will become like armour." Gooseberry said. "Don't worry Sasporilla. I'll look over her until she hatches out. She'll be fine."
"Thank you Gooseberry." Sasporilla said. "I love you my friend."
"As I Iove you." Gooseberry smiled. "My friend."
Sasporilla turned and walked away from the tree with a confident smile. Knowing that Flossy was safe and left in good hands she exited the court yard and found the Royal guards left to escort out of the palace.
It was nearly half past ten by the time Sasporilla Bucket made it to her nine thirty class with Professor Splatterpalette.
"Nice of you to join us Ms.Bubbles!" Professor Splatterpalette said as Sassy entered the class.
There was little the young witch could do but apologize for her tardiness, despite being so far ahead on the Abbicum end of the wands design of her project.
"I'm sorry." Sasporilla said taking off her bag and heading for her design station at the back of the class room. "I was unfortunately and unavoidably detained as Flossy wad very sic...."
Sasporilla turned to see professor Splatterpalette Standing up before the class, who were all desperately focused on their own projects, stark naked!!! An artist with large canvas and chalk pastels drew wild lattices of colour upon the canvas around the professors nude form.
"Professor?" Sasporilla asked holding back a most bemused chuckle. "Did you forget your robe this morning?"
"No!" Professor Splatterpalette said rolling her eyes, stopping and thinking about the situation for a moment, then letting out a very reassured relaxed breath, "No! I am having my AURA DRAWN!"
"Oh mine gott." Christin said embarrassed from the front row.
"Now now Christin!" The professor smiled. "There is no shame in the nude Body!"
"Oh Gott!" Christin said as he put the hood up on her robe and synched it tight.
"You're all so repressed for young people!" The professor said waving around wildly, "You should be uninhibited and free! Perhaps I should have each of you pose for Aura's."
"Oh gott, oh gott, oh gott!" Chtistin said grabbing her paints and running out of the room beat red with embarrassment.
"What exactly is an AURA?" Sasporilla asked walking over to observe the artist.
"Good question Ms.Bubbles!" Professor Splatterpalette smiled. "It's the personal energy field we all have! Witches, wizards, even muggles have them apparently. Though I'm lead to believe muggle auras are much less interesting."
"Very true Professor." The artist said looking past his easel. "Please try and stand a bit more still Dina?"
"Sorry Chester." The professor apologized returning to her pose. "Oh dear! I have not properly introduced you! Here I am naked before the world being rude not introducing my dear friend, the great Aurist Chester Whitechaple Hill. I was quite lucky he was in town! He squeezed me in for this special sitting."
"Or standing as it were." Sasporilla cracked wise.
"Indeed." The professor smiled.
"What a charming, child." The Aurist smiled politely. "I see they let just anyone in the university now Dina?"
"Now now Chester." The professor scolded, "Our Ms.Bucket is a most promising wand designer. Maybe the next Olivander, so just you mind your manners."
"I'll take that into consideration." Chester said. “Yes I happen to be in town for a series of portrait sittings with no less than the Froggai Lamma himself.”
“The Froggai Lamma?” Sasporilla said. “I thought he was just a story?”
“Oh no, no, no!” Professor Splatterpalette said. “Not at all! He is a very real being of great spiritual and magical power! A very wise frog indeed!”
"I do find this fascinating though." Sasporilla said looking at the swaths of color and how they interacted with each other, but more important how they seemed to form strands and wove with each other. Most of all how they formed more complex lattices, like knot work in the weave, close to here professor Splatterpalette held her wand. "The way these colours, do what they do. You see them this way do you?"
"Yes." Chester Whitechaple Hill said in a rather huffy way. "It's a well documented and rare gift that very few Wizards have. We are known as Aurapathics."
Sasporilla looked at the professor with her glasses off. She of course saw no colours but saw the fabric of magic. The strands in places similar to where the Aurist had drawn them and suddenly she wondered, just wondered about the wand.
"When you drew the Aura around the professors wand hand, what was she casting?" Sasporilla asked.
"You mean to tell me you are not a skeptic?" The Aurist said surprised.
"Oh no!" Sasporilla said. "I do apologize, no! Not at all! If I made you think so I didn't intend to do so!"
"Your earlier comments?" The Aurist said. "I thought you were... mocking me."
"No." Sasporilla insisted. "To be honest I was just a bit surprised to find my Professor buck naked in the class room!"
"OH GOTT!" Christin's voice echoed from somewhere in the corridor.
"Fair enough!" Professor Splatterpalette smiled. "Repressed, repressed, repressed! I was just holding my wand like this!"
Sassy had watched, many a time, how wands tore up the fabric of magic but she rarely paid attention to anyone just holding it.
"Do you see the same sort of lattice now?" Sassy asked.
"Yes I do." The Aurist smiled.
Sasporilla strained to look at the fabric of magic. She found she needed to get closer to Professor Splatterpalette than made her comfortable but she saw it. There it was! The same sort of spiral in tje fabric of magic! They were both seeing the same thing only what the Aurist was seeing was in vivid colour!
"That is positively brilliant Mr.Whitechaple Hill!" Sasporilla smiled. "Thank you so much."
"You're quite welcome!" The Aurist said.
"Now my windey little lattice," Sasporilla said walking over to her Abbicum, "Something about you looks bloody familiar. Where have I seen you before?"
Sasporilla turned on her Abbicum and accidentally knocked her bag over spilling out some of its contents. Her pink wand journal landed open under wand and her bag. When she lifted her bag, with a slight curse on her lips, she noticed her journal was open to a page she had scribbled in some notes on Biorhythmics and Arithmantics. What caught her eye was the biorhythm she had graphed out as a presumptive test she rolled the page around and saw how the lines crossed, projecting where they might go.
"Professor," Sasporilla asked not taking her eyes off the page. "What's your Birthday?"
"Are we planing a party, all ready?" Professor Splatterpalette asked excitedly. "I prefer a big cake! Vanilla rainbow cake with butter cream icing! Perhaps with seventy-five types of ice cream and nine types of sherbet. I'm not as fond of sherbet and don't get me started on sorbet! Oh but then there's Gillato!"
"Professor FOCUS!" Sassy yelled. "I need to know the date of your birth?"
"It's nice to ask a lady her age!" The Professor said coyly. "It can make her feel vulnerable!"
"You’re standing in your birthday suit before the entire class!!!" Sasporilla shouted.
"Well then letting you in on my birthdays in order I guess." The professor shrugged.
Within moments Sasporilla had the date put into the Ponyo 3400 and watched it calculate the biorhythmic graph. With a quick exporting of graphs information she put it into the Abbicum’s three dimensional modeler and formed it into a lattice. Before her eyes she saw it form. The same lattice in the fabric of magic at the base the wand where professor held it was equal to the biorhythm of the professor herself! Where the wand is held was clearly and always the most intricate place in the aura according to the Aurist. That is the point of HARMONIC RESONANCE!!!! The Witch/Wizard's own biorhythm is part of the Equation. A quick Aritmantic breakdown of the professors birth date confirmed what she suspected. The wands wood types and materials were arithmanticaly linked to the placements on the standard chart of wand materials by number! It could be a coincidence, but Sasporilla suspected deep down that it was not!
“I can test my theory at home. I have everything I need by testing the balance of the wands to witches and wizards around me. This will give me the calculation!!!!” She thought to herself as she packed up her bag excitedly, "Eureka!" Sasporilla yelled. "That's it!!! I've got it!!!"
"Good!" The professor smiled. "As long as there's enough cake for everyone!"
Sasporilla jumped for joy screaming with delight as she ran out of the room excited and ecstatic!
"Somehow," professor Splatterpalette pouted, "I don't think there's cake?"
Designing a wand on an Abbicum felt foreign and unnatural at first to Sasporilla. Up was down and down was side ways. Some days she thought she would never get the hang of the blasted system. More than once someone had to hold her back from casting "BOMBARDA" at the Ponyo 3400.
Angelo was very patient with her, bless him, spending many long hours with Sasporilla going over the basics again and again until one day they just seemed to click! And once the basics sunk in, the rest poured in like a dam had burst! It was a matter of days before Sassy finished the full outer wand design. Of a strange pink flamingo umbrella wand design, the handle of the wand a flamingo’s head. Sixteen inches, red oak and water oak with hippogriff feather and crystal core.
"Now all I have to do is provide the materials." Sassy said, "and the Abbicum Lathe will do the rest. How boring. I love that I could design this wand for Hagrid... but I would love to know how the wand chooses its wizard. Make it so we could design wands for a wizards personal style and needs. Like eye glasses."
This was a heavy thought on Sasporilla's mind. The things she wanted to change about wands. How they ripped at the fabric of magic. That would have to stop! She wanted wizards and witches to be able to pick a wand based on their choice of style or needs, within options available to them. No more searching all day for a wand to pick you. Even to have a custom wand designed based on your needs... right off the street first time. Not based off your old wand. There must be some way of figuring out a witch or wizards wand need? Some formula? If not then she would have to figure it out! If she could do it for this project that would be wonderful! Then of course so would world peace. What ate the chances?
Sasporilla woke a bit early for class and got dressed. Flossy lay at the base of her lamp looking dull and a bit limp. Her bright pink fur was duller these days, as was Sasporilla's hair. Something she'd noticed since Christmas. Strands of her hair seemed to be fading from pink to the same dull red as her mom's. Perhaps the last effects of her fathers protection spell were wearing off. Perhaps she no longer needed them or perhaps it was something else?
"What's wrong Flossy?" Sassy asked her listless pillar cat. "Are you not feeling good?"
Flossy crawled slowly onto Sassy's arm and looked at her with a small pout and just blinked. Laying her small head against Sassy's hand.
"Poor thing." Sasporilla said. "We'll stop bye professor Hannah's and see if she can fix you up? She always knows what's wrong with every creature. She'll know what to do."
Sassy was worried about Flossy but couldn't help but thinking about her wands as she walked. What made up a wand? The body was wood or metal, or wood and metal. Sometimes bone or crystal or sea shell or.. this is ridiculous!!!! It could be made of blood pizza pockets and cheese strings with a bloody apple sauce core and it would choose some wizard some where!!! Sasporilla was clearly feeling the effects of the frustration of the task she'd placed upon herself.
Perhaps the smallest and simplest of mercies in a day can be a bit of music, played by a musician on a quiet street corner. The music wafted through the early spring morning air and fell upon Sassy's ears with great pleasure. The music was warm and soothing and very welcome indeed. She followed it to the corner where she stopped and listened to it's very talented player until the end of the song. She dropped some coins into his open guitar case with a loud clank and a smile.
"Thank you miss." The old Guitarist smiled. "Every little bit helps. Don't play as much professionally anymore."
The old man held up his left hand to show he was missing two fingers.
"Oh dear." Sasporilla gasped. "That's horrible."
"A cursed guitar pick from a rival." The musician sighed. "Lucky I didn't lose the whole hand."
"You still play beautifully." Sasporilla said.
"I use a custom tuning now." The old man said. "Makes it easier to play chords I don't have the fingers for."
"A custom tuning?" Sassy enquired.
"Yes." The man smiled. "There are more than one way to tune a guitar. Didn't you know that?"
"No." Sasporilla said. "I've played for years and never knew that."
"Different musicians may use different tunings to play different songs." The old man said. "Some just play different styled based of different tunings. Why I'd say that a guitar tuning for some musicians is as personal as the prescription in your eye glasses miss!"
"Thank you so much." Sasporilla smiled as she walked away muttering to herself. "How would you personalize and personally tune a core though???"
It was a little past eight when Sasporilla found Professor Hannah in front of the Avalon University Zoo undoing the mischief of last nights pranksters on the sign.
"If I get my wand on the little basta..." Professor Hannah exclaimed as she shuffled lettet's back around properly in "SEE THE ERUMPANT EXHIBIT"
"Professor Hannah?" Sassy interrupted.
"What?" Professor Hannah said dropping the X. "Who? Oh Ms.Bucket! What can I do for you?"
"It's my pillar cat Flossy mam." Sasporilla said worriedly. "I don't think she's well?"
"Oh dear." The professor said walking over to have a look at the little pink creature who seemed to be sleeping feverishly. I haven't seen this I'm afraid my dear. There is a lot we don't about the pillar cat, especially what they go through between this state and there next. Some how I don't think this is good. I wish I could offer you better news but I think your pillar cat is dying dear. A faery may know a cure but there are none in the city. You'd have to go out into the wild and honestly, their are few you can trust."
"I know one!" Sasporilla said opening her bag and digging deep inside until she came out with a small silver bell. "I've kept this until it was needed for something just like this. If it will save poor Flossy, I'll gladly use it!"
Sassy rang the silver bell Gooseberry had left for her. With in seconds the small faery appeared before her.
"Sassy?" Gooseberry smiled. "Is it really you?"
"Yes Gooseberry." Sasporilla smiled. "I'm so very happy to see you. I need your help. This pillar cat Flossy is sick. We don't know what to do for her? I thought you might know?"
"You would trade your one time great favor from a faery to save a sick faery worm?" Gooseberry laughed. "Gosh I have missed you my Sasporilla. Of course, only you would!
"Gooseberry please." Sasporilla begged. "She needs to feed on a golden cherry and the crystslis in that tree and soon by the state of her. It's her time."
"Great!" Sassy smiled.
"Not great." Professor Hannah said. "The botanical garden doesn't have one, the nearest in the wild are three days broom ride and deep in wild faery territory."
"Gooseberry can't you take her there?" Sasporilla pleaded.
"I'm sorry Sasporilla." Gooseberry said. "I can not. For me to go there is not allowed. I am not of there Fae. We are not friendly."
"I can't just let Flossy DIE!" Sasporilla shouted. "There must be a bloody golden cherry tree somewhere?"
"There is," Professor Hannah said, "but you're really not going to like it when I tell you where it is."
************
It came as quite a shock to the witch queen when the Queen of the House elves showed up the front gate requesting a special and immediate emergency audience. Especially when she announced herself humbly as just Sasporilla, the Queen's niece. Dressed like any other retched commoner, the witch Queen wondered just what her niece was playing at. Especially at eight forty- five am on a Tuesday morning?
The royal couple were announced with trumpeted fanfare as they stepped out of the castle and walked hand in hand toward the front gates.
"Why aw the gates not open?" The Warlock King demanded of his guards, motioning to them to open them.
"I have not commanded it yet." The Witch Queen over road his command, politely.
"But Bougenvaweeaia my sweet?" The Warlock King said quite shocked, "She is famiwee? She is youa niece? Shuawe you intend yo wecom ha with open ahms?"
"She is also Queen of the House Elves husband and love of mine." The Witch Queen said through clenched teeth as they approached the Royal gates. "My Royal welcome depends on her reasons for her surprise visit?"
"I'm not here on any official business." Sasporilla said. "I ask only a personal favor. Access to a golden cherry tree in your court yard."
"That's all?" The Witch Queen smiled. "The Queen of House Elves? Who has single handedly crippled the Elven city? You seek access to a... tree. Why?"
"Sweet hawt? " The Warlock King Pleaded. "Pweese! It is a simpew weequest? The twees aw mine to dea with, I see no weason why not?"
The Witch Queen held up her hand. "I simply want an answer... WHY?"
"My pillar cat." Sasporilla sat holding Flossy up. "It's her time to change. She needs to feed on one cherry then build a cocoon in the tree so she can change."
"Oh my." The Warlock King said holding a handkerchief over his nose and mouth. "Into what?"
"A faery Dragon." Sasporilla smiled. "Without the cherry tree, Flossy will die. Yours is the only one for three days flight and that won't start a faery war getting her too."
"I see." The Witch Queen mused motioning to the guards to open the gates. "Well I am not the kind of Queen to deny an innocent creature the chance to be all it can be."
"You aw most genawus and wuving my Queen." The Warlock King praised his beautiful Wife.
"However I feel that this favor I do for you my niece just may require you to repay me in kind some day." The Witch Queen smiled. "Perhaps some day I will ask a simple favor of you?"
"Agreed." Sasporilla said. "If you require me to repay you in kind then I shall. I give you my bond as Elven Queen by the Stilskin Name."
"A solid bond that is Sasporilla Bucket." The Witch Queen smiled. "Stronger than an unbreakable Bond!"
"Yes but we must shake hands on it in clear agreement." Sassy smiled holding out her hand stating. "I Sasporilla Bucket promise to repay The Witch Queen, Bougenvallia Bent, in kind for her favour to allow my Flossy access to the Golden Cherry Tree."
"Good." The Witch Queen grinned with Cheshire malevolence as she shook her nieces hand. For the first time the Queen noticed the young girls hair. The stripes of changed colour. "My dear, what is happening to your hair?"
"Not sure." Sasporilla shrugged. "Seems to be changing to my mothers colour. Ever since Christmas."
"Perhaps it's that cheep House Elf Crown." The Witch Queen laughed walking away. "Next it will turn your scalp green."
It really was everything Sassy could do not to shove her wand up the Witch Queen's turned up nose.
"Come with me Sasporwiwa!" The Warlock King smiled taking her arm. "I wiw escoat you to the coat yawd wah we wiw put yowa poo wita cweetua into the twee!"
The Warlock King leads his young guest proudly through the walk ways and paths, showing Sassy the many statues and plants that rare plants they have collected and cultivated over the years.
"I am happy you've paid us this visit Saspowiwa!" The Warlock King said excitedly.
"Why is that Sire." Sasporilla asked.
"Oh pweese don't be so foamah hea, away fwum eveweeone! You can just caw me uncaw! Pweese???" The Warlock King insisted.
"Very well." Sasporilla smiled. "Uncle."
"Oooo that wahms my hawt!" The Warlock King smiled. "I want so much fowa youwa Aunty to have famawee awound. Peepo to waff with and wuv!!! I fee a some days she woozes hewasewf in being Queen."
"To be honest I think your simply a better person than she is Uncle." Sasporilla said. "And you hope for to much from her."
"Pehaps." The Warlock King sighed. "but I do wuv hea you know? And I do see good in hea, some times."
Sasporilla smiled politely. Everyone had good days and showed it. She assumed even snakes smiled at mice when they were full.
The court yard with the Golden Cherry tree was at the very heart of the great castle. The single tree stood radiant in a magical glow between a circle of three stone benches.
"WEESPWENDANT!" The Warlock King smiled gesturing grandly to the tree, "Is it not?"
"It truly is." Sasporilla said taking Flossy over to it eagerly. "May I pick a cherry to feed to her, as I must?"
"Yes of cose my deea niece Saspowiwa!!!" The Warlock King insisted.
"Thank you Uncle." Sasporilla nodded.
The joy and prided beamed from the Warlock Kings face. There was an innocence and a decency to this man, somewhere behind the vanity, Sasporilla thought. Perhaps she could learn to like him. Sasporilla pulled a single golden cherry from the tree and placed it gently to Flossy's mouth. Flossy licked at it slowly but weakly.
"I may be to late." Sasporilla said sadly.
"Sire!" A Royal guard interrupted. "You are needed in chambers."
"Oh dea." The Warlock King sighed. "I'm going to have to weave you hea, I'm affwaid Saspowiwa!"
"Thank you for your help Uncle." Sasporilla said giving the Warlock King a much surprised and much needed hug.
"You my dea aw weacom in my castew anytime!" The Warlock King smiled with a tear in the corner of his eye. "You awe most wuved famiwee."
The Royal Guard lead the Warlock King away leaving Sasporilla alone in the court yard with Flossy, at the base of the Golden Cherry tree. Flossy suckled weakly on the cherry but to no end.
"She's just to weak." Gooseberry said popping in. "She can't bite through the skin. You'll have to start it for her."
Sasporilla placed the cherry against her lips and bit just hard enough to break the skin. She felt a bit of nectar flow over her teeth and pulled it quickly from her mouth and placed it against Flossy's lips. Within seconds the pillar cat went from a weak suckling to munching at the cherry enthusiastically!
"The nectars strangely bitter on the tongue." Sassy said about to swallow it.
"Spit it out!" Gooseberry screamed. "It's a deadly poison to MAGI!"
Sasporilla spat six, seven, eight times then cast HYDROXIC on her mouth and a jet of water splashed from the end of her wand spraying her mouth clean.
"Now you tell me!" Sassy spat.
Flossy coiled happily up her arm to her shoulder and mewed in the pink haired witches ear.
"You should be ok now Flossy." Sasporilla smiled as the pillar cat blinked happily at her and hopped onto the golden cherry tree, winding its way up into the highest branches. With a single push a barb shot from Flossy's back end which nailed her firmly to a branch from which she hung. Mucus seeped from between her fur and covered her body until she was just a pinkish slimy ball.
"Soon that slime will become like armour." Gooseberry said. "Don't worry Sasporilla. I'll look over her until she hatches out. She'll be fine."
"Thank you Gooseberry." Sasporilla said. "I love you my friend."
"As I Iove you." Gooseberry smiled. "My friend."
Sasporilla turned and walked away from the tree with a confident smile. Knowing that Flossy was safe and left in good hands she exited the court yard and found the Royal guards left to escort out of the palace.
It was nearly half past ten by the time Sasporilla Bucket made it to her nine thirty class with Professor Splatterpalette.
"Nice of you to join us Ms.Bubbles!" Professor Splatterpalette said as Sassy entered the class.
There was little the young witch could do but apologize for her tardiness, despite being so far ahead on the Abbicum end of the wands design of her project.
"I'm sorry." Sasporilla said taking off her bag and heading for her design station at the back of the class room. "I was unfortunately and unavoidably detained as Flossy wad very sic...."
Sasporilla turned to see professor Splatterpalette Standing up before the class, who were all desperately focused on their own projects, stark naked!!! An artist with large canvas and chalk pastels drew wild lattices of colour upon the canvas around the professors nude form.
"Professor?" Sasporilla asked holding back a most bemused chuckle. "Did you forget your robe this morning?"
"No!" Professor Splatterpalette said rolling her eyes, stopping and thinking about the situation for a moment, then letting out a very reassured relaxed breath, "No! I am having my AURA DRAWN!"
"Oh mine gott." Christin said embarrassed from the front row.
"Now now Christin!" The professor smiled. "There is no shame in the nude Body!"
"Oh Gott!" Christin said as he put the hood up on her robe and synched it tight.
"You're all so repressed for young people!" The professor said waving around wildly, "You should be uninhibited and free! Perhaps I should have each of you pose for Aura's."
"Oh gott, oh gott, oh gott!" Chtistin said grabbing her paints and running out of the room beat red with embarrassment.
"What exactly is an AURA?" Sasporilla asked walking over to observe the artist.
"Good question Ms.Bubbles!" Professor Splatterpalette smiled. "It's the personal energy field we all have! Witches, wizards, even muggles have them apparently. Though I'm lead to believe muggle auras are much less interesting."
"Very true Professor." The artist said looking past his easel. "Please try and stand a bit more still Dina?"
"Sorry Chester." The professor apologized returning to her pose. "Oh dear! I have not properly introduced you! Here I am naked before the world being rude not introducing my dear friend, the great Aurist Chester Whitechaple Hill. I was quite lucky he was in town! He squeezed me in for this special sitting."
"Or standing as it were." Sasporilla cracked wise.
"Indeed." The professor smiled.
"What a charming, child." The Aurist smiled politely. "I see they let just anyone in the university now Dina?"
"Now now Chester." The professor scolded, "Our Ms.Bucket is a most promising wand designer. Maybe the next Olivander, so just you mind your manners."
"I'll take that into consideration." Chester said. “Yes I happen to be in town for a series of portrait sittings with no less than the Froggai Lamma himself.”
“The Froggai Lamma?” Sasporilla said. “I thought he was just a story?”
“Oh no, no, no!” Professor Splatterpalette said. “Not at all! He is a very real being of great spiritual and magical power! A very wise frog indeed!”
"I do find this fascinating though." Sasporilla said looking at the swaths of color and how they interacted with each other, but more important how they seemed to form strands and wove with each other. Most of all how they formed more complex lattices, like knot work in the weave, close to here professor Splatterpalette held her wand. "The way these colours, do what they do. You see them this way do you?"
"Yes." Chester Whitechaple Hill said in a rather huffy way. "It's a well documented and rare gift that very few Wizards have. We are known as Aurapathics."
Sasporilla looked at the professor with her glasses off. She of course saw no colours but saw the fabric of magic. The strands in places similar to where the Aurist had drawn them and suddenly she wondered, just wondered about the wand.
"When you drew the Aura around the professors wand hand, what was she casting?" Sasporilla asked.
"You mean to tell me you are not a skeptic?" The Aurist said surprised.
"Oh no!" Sasporilla said. "I do apologize, no! Not at all! If I made you think so I didn't intend to do so!"
"Your earlier comments?" The Aurist said. "I thought you were... mocking me."
"No." Sasporilla insisted. "To be honest I was just a bit surprised to find my Professor buck naked in the class room!"
"OH GOTT!" Christin's voice echoed from somewhere in the corridor.
"Fair enough!" Professor Splatterpalette smiled. "Repressed, repressed, repressed! I was just holding my wand like this!"
Sassy had watched, many a time, how wands tore up the fabric of magic but she rarely paid attention to anyone just holding it.
"Do you see the same sort of lattice now?" Sassy asked.
"Yes I do." The Aurist smiled.
Sasporilla strained to look at the fabric of magic. She found she needed to get closer to Professor Splatterpalette than made her comfortable but she saw it. There it was! The same sort of spiral in tje fabric of magic! They were both seeing the same thing only what the Aurist was seeing was in vivid colour!
"That is positively brilliant Mr.Whitechaple Hill!" Sasporilla smiled. "Thank you so much."
"You're quite welcome!" The Aurist said.
"Now my windey little lattice," Sasporilla said walking over to her Abbicum, "Something about you looks bloody familiar. Where have I seen you before?"
Sasporilla turned on her Abbicum and accidentally knocked her bag over spilling out some of its contents. Her pink wand journal landed open under wand and her bag. When she lifted her bag, with a slight curse on her lips, she noticed her journal was open to a page she had scribbled in some notes on Biorhythmics and Arithmantics. What caught her eye was the biorhythm she had graphed out as a presumptive test she rolled the page around and saw how the lines crossed, projecting where they might go.
"Professor," Sasporilla asked not taking her eyes off the page. "What's your Birthday?"
"Are we planing a party, all ready?" Professor Splatterpalette asked excitedly. "I prefer a big cake! Vanilla rainbow cake with butter cream icing! Perhaps with seventy-five types of ice cream and nine types of sherbet. I'm not as fond of sherbet and don't get me started on sorbet! Oh but then there's Gillato!"
"Professor FOCUS!" Sassy yelled. "I need to know the date of your birth?"
"It's nice to ask a lady her age!" The Professor said coyly. "It can make her feel vulnerable!"
"You’re standing in your birthday suit before the entire class!!!" Sasporilla shouted.
"Well then letting you in on my birthdays in order I guess." The professor shrugged.
Within moments Sasporilla had the date put into the Ponyo 3400 and watched it calculate the biorhythmic graph. With a quick exporting of graphs information she put it into the Abbicum’s three dimensional modeler and formed it into a lattice. Before her eyes she saw it form. The same lattice in the fabric of magic at the base the wand where professor held it was equal to the biorhythm of the professor herself! Where the wand is held was clearly and always the most intricate place in the aura according to the Aurist. That is the point of HARMONIC RESONANCE!!!! The Witch/Wizard's own biorhythm is part of the Equation. A quick Aritmantic breakdown of the professors birth date confirmed what she suspected. The wands wood types and materials were arithmanticaly linked to the placements on the standard chart of wand materials by number! It could be a coincidence, but Sasporilla suspected deep down that it was not!
“I can test my theory at home. I have everything I need by testing the balance of the wands to witches and wizards around me. This will give me the calculation!!!!” She thought to herself as she packed up her bag excitedly, "Eureka!" Sasporilla yelled. "That's it!!! I've got it!!!"
"Good!" The professor smiled. "As long as there's enough cake for everyone!"
Sasporilla jumped for joy screaming with delight as she ran out of the room excited and ecstatic!
"Somehow," professor Splatterpalette pouted, "I don't think there's cake?"
PLEASE REMEMBER
I am in no way affiliated with Warner Bros. or with J.K.Rowling. My work is purely that of fan fiction & do not ask for, nor accept money, gifts or other compensation for my work. If you really feel you must do something, donate to J.K.Rowling's charitable foundation LUMOS! Link below! ( https://www.wearelumos.org/ )
I am in no way affiliated with Warner Bros. or with J.K.Rowling. My work is purely that of fan fiction & do not ask for, nor accept money, gifts or other compensation for my work. If you really feel you must do something, donate to J.K.Rowling's charitable foundation LUMOS! Link below! ( https://www.wearelumos.org/ )