Abyssals visit their favorite uncle 3
darthcourt10
Well worn.
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Harry Leferts
Examining the hallway with curiosity, in particular the moving portraits and the like, Tanith blinked before turning back to the Headmaster, "You have somewhere for us to stay?"
With a hum, the elderly wizard nodded, "Yes, I had it remodeled over the summer as I expected something like this to happen as a matter of fact." Seeing the frowns, Dumbledore shook his head, "By which I mean large numbers of young Harry's family or friends stopping by among others. It also nicely dovetailed into some ideas that I have had about having the families of other students visit, thus they would need to stay somewhere in the castle."
Head tilted to the side, Harry frowned at that, "But where, Professor?"
Smiling slightly, Dumbledore gave a small nod, "And that was the question that met me and I have been considering for the past few years. Where would I put such a place in the castle..."
Eyebrows furrowed, Regalia looked around in confusion, "Is there an issue with placement? The castle seems really big... So wouldn't there be plenty of room?"
Arms crossed, the black haired wizard nodded with a frown, "I'm not sure, I mean... there are a lot of empty, disused classrooms all over. Though it was never mentioned why there seems to be more classrooms then are being used."
Rather amused, Dumbledore chuckled and stroked his beard, "Ah, yes, there are a rather large number of disused classrooms in the school. Granted, some are used by groups of students for various things when they come across them. From what I know, there is a 'Secret' dueling club for example that meets in different rooms as one example. Other classrooms might well be used for special lessons or one on one lessons from teachers, such as the ones that you are taking, my dear boy."
Frowning, Harry shook his head, "But that still does not explain why there are so many and that they look like at one point they were all being used."
Just nodding, Albus gave a small smile, "Correct, two points to Gryffindor. And while there are a number of theories tossed around, ranging from there being far less magicals than there were in centuries past, to Rowena being paranoid in her old age and changing classrooms every few months, the true reason is rather mundane, I am afraid." Making a gesture around him, the elderly wizard continued, "The current age of admission is actually relatively new from the 1500s. In fact, before that time Hogwarts taught students as young as five as there far more subjects. For example... reading and writing were among those lessons taught, both in English as it was then and Latin. Some arithmetic as well was added."
More then a little intrigued by what she was hearing, Ritou raised an eyebrow, "Really? You used to teach reading and writing here?" At his nod, she frowned, "Why stop then?"
Softly sighing, Dumbledore shook his head, "Many reasons, I am afraid. At that time it was not just magicals that we taught, but also a number of non-magicals. After all, the Scottish nobles did like having a school to send their children to where they could learn. They also paid very well. But the establishment of other schools slowly drew them away, especially as those schools did not also have magic being taught. As well, we also taught such things as the usage of swords and other weapons. There is an old archery range within the school besides the one where students now practice flying broomsticks. By the time that the 1900s rolled around though, we stopped teaching reading and writing as muggleborn went to public schools to be taught, as did the poorer Purebloods and Halfbloods. The richer ones simply hired tutors to teach their children instead. Same with many more lessons as they became no longer needed. Hence, those classrooms now standing empty."
Hands behind her head, the Battleship Water Demon blinked some and then shrugged, "Okay, this is sort of interesting and everything. But... what does this have to do with where we're staying?" At the looks from her sisters, Sunny shrugged, "What? It's a good question!"
That got a chuckle from Dumbledore as he tilted his head, "It has to do with finding a spot as despite appearances, space is rather limited. Thankfully though, there was a solution."
Coming to a stop in front of a dragon made of marble that was curled up as if asleep. Each of the Abyssals seemed confused about where they were and there were various paintings watching them. Clearing her throat, Regalia leaned forward, "Mister Dumbledore? Why are we here...?"
A twinkle in his eye, Dumbledore gave them a smile, "Because, as it turns out, this is the guest quarters that I had made." Walking up to the dragon, he ticked it which made it grumble before it opened eyes made of star sapphires and looked down at them as it rose up, "Good day, Dominic, mind letting us past? These are our first guests." Blinking its gem eyes, the dragon bowed and moved to the side to reveal a door which Dumbledore opened, "Thank you, my friend."
Eyes wide, Sonata boggled a bit before looking from the statute to Dumbledore who entered the room and back, "That... is so cool..."
Light laughter escaped from Harry as he followed Dumbledore in, his nieces following. Upon entering the room, they all stopped and looked around. The whole room was done up in warm, wood panelling with large, squishy, red armchairs and couches with tables in front of them and thick, red carpeting. One wall had a massive fireplace that was burning merrily while above it sat a shield with the Hogwarts crest on it, while the opposite wall had a picture of Hogwarts itself with bookcases on either side. Besides that, there were torches in scones while light came in through windows that looked out onto the grounds and the lake. Turning to the Abyssals, Albus smiled a bit, "We are currently in the new guest quarters which is located in the Turris Medius, a tower that has been out of use since the 1600s"
Bemused as he looked around, the black haired wizard shook his head and gave Dumbledore a look, "Gryffindor colors, Headmaster?"
Rather amused, Dumbledore laughed a bit, "In this case, yes. There are a number of copies of different furniture after all, so if someone whose family is in Slytherin, or was in said House themselves, the furniture would be in said colors. Same with any of the other Houses as well." Another light laugh escaped him as he noticed Tanith looking unsure at one of the chairs, "Go ahead, my dear. All of them are reinforced to handle those of above average sizes."
Glancing at Harry, who nodded, the Northern Water Princess lowered herself down into the chair and gave a squeak as it enlarged to be proportional to her size. Looking around, a blush then appeared on her face as some of her sisters snickered. She then gave a nod towards Dumbledore, "This is comfortable."
Lips curling upwards, the Headmaster bowed slightly, "Thank you, Miss Tanith, though there is more to it than just this. If you will all follow me..." As he lead them up some stairs, he continued, "The tower is four floors and the lowest is the Common Room as you saw. The two above are the family quarters." Gesturing to one room, Dumbledore opened it to reveal a finished room, "Each room on this level is about the size of a bedroom at the Leaky Cauldron, though I would say that it was somewhat nicer I would think."
Poking their heads in, the various Abyssals gave nods with Sunny walking in and laying one of the beds, "These are some nice beds..."
Dumbledore gave a nod to that, "Yes, they are rather nice... though for the most part, these rooms are for those who want some, ah, privacy. Especially couples." While his nieces looked lost, Harry had a small blush on his face and coughed into his hand. Gesturing down the hall, the elderly wizard chuckled, amused at the embarrassment on Harry's face, "There are two bathrooms mind you, but there is not all that much to them. They simply have a shower stall in them with a small bath as well as a toilet with sink."
Slowly nodding, the last of the Potters looked upwards, "And the next floor?'
It was less then a minute later that Dumbledore opened the door and showed them the room. Said place was done up much the same way as the Headboy's and Headgirl's was, but with a number of beds there. Each one of which was large by most standards and it was obvious that even Tanith could lay on one with room to spare. Walking in, Regalia looked around in awe and spun around, "Wow!" Tripping, she wind milled her arms, but thankfully flopped back on the bed and grinned, "These are some soft beds, Mom."
With a good natured sigh, her mother simply gave her a fond smile. Once they saw the bathroom though on the fourth floor, that smile changed to one of shock at the massive tub which was about the size of a pool with over a dozen faucets as well as the shower stall. Walking over to it over the dark tiles which was decorated with seashell designs, Yoko stared down into it with a surprised expression before turning to her sisters and pointing at it, "Is this really a bath? Really?"
Nodding as he walked around it, Harry chuckled, "It is, and each of those taps has something different from bath salt infused water, to different scents, bubblebath with different colors, different temperatures, and so on. Trust me, they're really amazing."
A grin on her face, Patty shook her head as she placed her hands on her hips, "Well, Uncle Harry, you might be getting more visitors then more often."
That only made the teen shrug and chuckle some with a smile on his face.
______________________________________________________________________
Having been shown around the school, the Abyssals followed Harry into one of the greenhouses after getting permission from Professor Sprout. As they stepped into one, warm, humid air hit them heavy with the scent of compost and soil. Eyes wide as she looked around, Regalia barely held back a small squee of glee, "This is amazing, Uncle Harry! And all of these plants can be grown here even in winter?"
There was a smile on Harry's face as he gave a nod to her, "That's right, greenhouses allow for various magical plants to be grown in winter even when its cold out." He pointed towards the glass panes, "See, the sun comes through those and warms the greenhouse with the glass keeping the heat in. There's smaller heaters here and there though that help keep them warm during the night." Scratching his chin, he glanced around, "Sort of been considering about putting forward for one."
Eyes practically sparkling, Regalia turned and looked at her mother who shrunk back a bit, "Could we Mom? Because this would be great for winter and... and I could grow seedlings in one before planting, even when there's frost on the ground! It would really help out!"
Unsure, Tanith turned to Harry who gave a shrug, "It would help to be honest, I guess. You could grow tomatoes and the like during the winter including..." Pausing, he frowned in thought before giving a nod, "How about I show you one of the plants that we're working on this year."
Intrigued, they followed him until he showed them what looked like small trees, But it was what was hanging from them that caught the Abyssals attention with Ritou tilting her head in complete befuddlement, "... Are those barnacles? Hanging from a tree? How... what?"
Snickering, Harry shook his head, "They only look like barnacles... but really, they're something else."
About to say something, Sonata stopped and looked at one of the pods which was shaking a bit, "Uncle Harry? What's inside these-"
Before she got much further, the pod split and a black, feathered head flopped out. Eyes blinking, the goose honked a bit as it looked around. Slowly, his nieces turned towards Harry with disbelief on their faces as he shrugged, "Goose barnacle trees, their fruits produce barnacle geese... or what looks like them. They taste like geese anyways, but only live a few weeks before dying, a seed inside of them."
Opening her mouth, Sunny tried to say something as the goose continued to honk only to close her mouth. With a glance at the goose, she tried again several times before shaking her head, "Yeah, I got nothing. There's magic, and then there's geese growing on trees."
Extremely amused at the reactions, the thirteen year old jerked his thumb in a different direction, "Well, there is always the vegetable lamb of Tartary."
For several moments the Abyssals stared at him before leaning in the direction that he was gesturing in. Sure enough, there was an odd plant there with a lamb growing out of it. Rubbing her eyes with her fists, Ritou pulled them away and blinked, "Its still there... why is it still there... Why does it even exist?!"
Just shrugging, Harry snickered a bit, "Not a clue, but probably because some wizard or witch thought them up somewhere. Generally, that seems to be what happens."
Pinching her nose, Nuri shook her head in disbelief, "But... why? What could make a human even come up with this sort of thing."
Yet again, the wizard gave a small shrug, "Like I said, not a clue. I mean, this sort of thing is really odd, but its happened." Scratching his head, Harry frowned in thought, "Not quite sure what the thought process behind having an animal grow from a tree would be... but it has happened as you can see." Then he gave a smile to Regalia and a wink, "Maybe you could grow some in your own greenhouses. Besides which, the Tartary lamb can also give wool as well as meat."
A thoughtful look on her head, the Re-Class tilted her head some, "That is true..."
Still utterly confused by the plants that she was seeing, Ruadri noticed movement out of the corner of her eye and blinked. On a nearby table were several flowers of different colors, some of which were moving around. Leaning, she tilted her head before pointing at them with her finger inches from one, "Uncle Harry? What are these ones?"
Turning, Harry's eyes widened and he winced, "Blistering blue barnacles, someone left the fanged geraniums out... Ruadri? Move away from those..."
More than a little bemused, the Battleship laughed, "Come on, Uncle Harry. I can handle some plants-" she felt an odd clamping sensation and turned to find that one of the flowers was now biting her finger with a mouth full of fangs. Eyes wide, she jerked her finger away and there was a tearing sound, "Oops?"
Eyes wide, Harry rushed over, "Ruadri! Are you alright?" Upon seeing the "Skin" hanging off the black metal of Abyssal bone, he cursed, "Okay, just give me a moment to get the first aid kit and we'll get you to Madam Pomfrey and she can fix you up. I am so, so sorry!" Looking around, the teen hit himself in the head, "Ugh! I am so stupid!"
Quickly realizing what was wrong, Sunny grabbed his shoulders, "Whoa, Uncle Harry! Everything is fine and Ruadri isn't hurt."
Looking at her, he gestured at the other Abyssal whose own eyes had widened, "Sunny, the flesh on one of her fingers just got torn off because I screwed up! I-"
A hand on his shoulder though made him stop and turn to find a sheepish Ruadri there, "Um, Sunny's right, Uncle Harry, I'm not hurt... just look." She brought up said finger to eye level and Harry had to blink at how there was no blood or anything, in fact, it looked like a torn glove more than anything else. Unknown to him, Ruadri was more embarrassed, and a bit pleased, that her uncle was worried about her being okay. Though she did not like him blaming himself for her mistake, "I... don't have anything there and my skin is latex."
Gently, as if worried that he was going to hurt her, Harry took the hand and examined it. Sure enough, it was actually latex and seemed to be covering her hand and arm, "What in the world..."
Biting her lip, the Battleship looked away, "I... don't really want to talk about how it happened, Uncle Harry. But... I'm adopted and when Tanith found me and brought me back to Mom, I, well... my arms were gone and so were my eyes. Mom managed to replace my eyes and she made me new arms with the metal from my ruined turrets. But... she couldn't connect my eyes fully and that is why they don't glow. And no matter what Mom did, every time she tried to replace the flesh on my arms it would die and fall off within a few minutes, rejected by my body. So she came up with the covering because, well... no one wants to see a skeleton arm."
Now relaxing, Harry slumped some in relief, "So you're really not hurt?"
Just shaking her head, Ruadri smiled some and gave him a hug, "No, I'm not hurt, Uncle Harry. Mom's going to be angry about it since she'll have to fix it, but..."
Bringing out his wand, her adoptive uncle shook his head, "Here... Reparo." The latex "Skin" on her repaired itself and was as good as new. Something that got him another hug... though what she had said got a thought rolling along in his head, 'I wonder...' Putting away what was in his head though, he gave a weak smile, "Anyways... maybe we should check out the other greenhouses?"
With a glance to the fanged flowers, Patty gave a small nod, "That... might be a good idea..."
A few minutes later found themselves outside another greenhouse with Harry looking through one of the panes where Professor Sprout could be seen with earmuffs on. With a small nod, he turned to the curious Abyssals, "She's transplanting mandrake roots."
That got him a confused look from Tanith, "Mandrake roots?"
Harry gave a nod to her, "That's right, they're a special magical plant. We use them in potions and, well... the cries of an adult plant can kill a human. Young ones can stun a person and, well... depending on how old they can cause nosebleeds and the like. That's why she's wearing earmuffs due to how dangerous they are. We were handling them last year."
Just blinking, the Abyssals turned to the glass and noticed the Professor smiling at them and waving, which they returned only to freeze as she pulled the plant from the pot... Mainly due to the plant looking like a cross between a really ugly human baby and a normal root. Complete with it wiggling and wailing though they could hear nothing outside while from its head, a green sprout grew. Then, the Professor placed it into a bigger pot and covered it with soil with the sprout shuddering a bit and then stopping.
Slowly, the Abyssals just turned to each other with completely befuddled and confused expressions on their faces due to what they just saw.
Examining the hallway with curiosity, in particular the moving portraits and the like, Tanith blinked before turning back to the Headmaster, "You have somewhere for us to stay?"
With a hum, the elderly wizard nodded, "Yes, I had it remodeled over the summer as I expected something like this to happen as a matter of fact." Seeing the frowns, Dumbledore shook his head, "By which I mean large numbers of young Harry's family or friends stopping by among others. It also nicely dovetailed into some ideas that I have had about having the families of other students visit, thus they would need to stay somewhere in the castle."
Head tilted to the side, Harry frowned at that, "But where, Professor?"
Smiling slightly, Dumbledore gave a small nod, "And that was the question that met me and I have been considering for the past few years. Where would I put such a place in the castle..."
Eyebrows furrowed, Regalia looked around in confusion, "Is there an issue with placement? The castle seems really big... So wouldn't there be plenty of room?"
Arms crossed, the black haired wizard nodded with a frown, "I'm not sure, I mean... there are a lot of empty, disused classrooms all over. Though it was never mentioned why there seems to be more classrooms then are being used."
Rather amused, Dumbledore chuckled and stroked his beard, "Ah, yes, there are a rather large number of disused classrooms in the school. Granted, some are used by groups of students for various things when they come across them. From what I know, there is a 'Secret' dueling club for example that meets in different rooms as one example. Other classrooms might well be used for special lessons or one on one lessons from teachers, such as the ones that you are taking, my dear boy."
Frowning, Harry shook his head, "But that still does not explain why there are so many and that they look like at one point they were all being used."
Just nodding, Albus gave a small smile, "Correct, two points to Gryffindor. And while there are a number of theories tossed around, ranging from there being far less magicals than there were in centuries past, to Rowena being paranoid in her old age and changing classrooms every few months, the true reason is rather mundane, I am afraid." Making a gesture around him, the elderly wizard continued, "The current age of admission is actually relatively new from the 1500s. In fact, before that time Hogwarts taught students as young as five as there far more subjects. For example... reading and writing were among those lessons taught, both in English as it was then and Latin. Some arithmetic as well was added."
More then a little intrigued by what she was hearing, Ritou raised an eyebrow, "Really? You used to teach reading and writing here?" At his nod, she frowned, "Why stop then?"
Softly sighing, Dumbledore shook his head, "Many reasons, I am afraid. At that time it was not just magicals that we taught, but also a number of non-magicals. After all, the Scottish nobles did like having a school to send their children to where they could learn. They also paid very well. But the establishment of other schools slowly drew them away, especially as those schools did not also have magic being taught. As well, we also taught such things as the usage of swords and other weapons. There is an old archery range within the school besides the one where students now practice flying broomsticks. By the time that the 1900s rolled around though, we stopped teaching reading and writing as muggleborn went to public schools to be taught, as did the poorer Purebloods and Halfbloods. The richer ones simply hired tutors to teach their children instead. Same with many more lessons as they became no longer needed. Hence, those classrooms now standing empty."
Hands behind her head, the Battleship Water Demon blinked some and then shrugged, "Okay, this is sort of interesting and everything. But... what does this have to do with where we're staying?" At the looks from her sisters, Sunny shrugged, "What? It's a good question!"
That got a chuckle from Dumbledore as he tilted his head, "It has to do with finding a spot as despite appearances, space is rather limited. Thankfully though, there was a solution."
Coming to a stop in front of a dragon made of marble that was curled up as if asleep. Each of the Abyssals seemed confused about where they were and there were various paintings watching them. Clearing her throat, Regalia leaned forward, "Mister Dumbledore? Why are we here...?"
A twinkle in his eye, Dumbledore gave them a smile, "Because, as it turns out, this is the guest quarters that I had made." Walking up to the dragon, he ticked it which made it grumble before it opened eyes made of star sapphires and looked down at them as it rose up, "Good day, Dominic, mind letting us past? These are our first guests." Blinking its gem eyes, the dragon bowed and moved to the side to reveal a door which Dumbledore opened, "Thank you, my friend."
Eyes wide, Sonata boggled a bit before looking from the statute to Dumbledore who entered the room and back, "That... is so cool..."
Light laughter escaped from Harry as he followed Dumbledore in, his nieces following. Upon entering the room, they all stopped and looked around. The whole room was done up in warm, wood panelling with large, squishy, red armchairs and couches with tables in front of them and thick, red carpeting. One wall had a massive fireplace that was burning merrily while above it sat a shield with the Hogwarts crest on it, while the opposite wall had a picture of Hogwarts itself with bookcases on either side. Besides that, there were torches in scones while light came in through windows that looked out onto the grounds and the lake. Turning to the Abyssals, Albus smiled a bit, "We are currently in the new guest quarters which is located in the Turris Medius, a tower that has been out of use since the 1600s"
Bemused as he looked around, the black haired wizard shook his head and gave Dumbledore a look, "Gryffindor colors, Headmaster?"
Rather amused, Dumbledore laughed a bit, "In this case, yes. There are a number of copies of different furniture after all, so if someone whose family is in Slytherin, or was in said House themselves, the furniture would be in said colors. Same with any of the other Houses as well." Another light laugh escaped him as he noticed Tanith looking unsure at one of the chairs, "Go ahead, my dear. All of them are reinforced to handle those of above average sizes."
Glancing at Harry, who nodded, the Northern Water Princess lowered herself down into the chair and gave a squeak as it enlarged to be proportional to her size. Looking around, a blush then appeared on her face as some of her sisters snickered. She then gave a nod towards Dumbledore, "This is comfortable."
Lips curling upwards, the Headmaster bowed slightly, "Thank you, Miss Tanith, though there is more to it than just this. If you will all follow me..." As he lead them up some stairs, he continued, "The tower is four floors and the lowest is the Common Room as you saw. The two above are the family quarters." Gesturing to one room, Dumbledore opened it to reveal a finished room, "Each room on this level is about the size of a bedroom at the Leaky Cauldron, though I would say that it was somewhat nicer I would think."
Poking their heads in, the various Abyssals gave nods with Sunny walking in and laying one of the beds, "These are some nice beds..."
Dumbledore gave a nod to that, "Yes, they are rather nice... though for the most part, these rooms are for those who want some, ah, privacy. Especially couples." While his nieces looked lost, Harry had a small blush on his face and coughed into his hand. Gesturing down the hall, the elderly wizard chuckled, amused at the embarrassment on Harry's face, "There are two bathrooms mind you, but there is not all that much to them. They simply have a shower stall in them with a small bath as well as a toilet with sink."
Slowly nodding, the last of the Potters looked upwards, "And the next floor?'
It was less then a minute later that Dumbledore opened the door and showed them the room. Said place was done up much the same way as the Headboy's and Headgirl's was, but with a number of beds there. Each one of which was large by most standards and it was obvious that even Tanith could lay on one with room to spare. Walking in, Regalia looked around in awe and spun around, "Wow!" Tripping, she wind milled her arms, but thankfully flopped back on the bed and grinned, "These are some soft beds, Mom."
With a good natured sigh, her mother simply gave her a fond smile. Once they saw the bathroom though on the fourth floor, that smile changed to one of shock at the massive tub which was about the size of a pool with over a dozen faucets as well as the shower stall. Walking over to it over the dark tiles which was decorated with seashell designs, Yoko stared down into it with a surprised expression before turning to her sisters and pointing at it, "Is this really a bath? Really?"
Nodding as he walked around it, Harry chuckled, "It is, and each of those taps has something different from bath salt infused water, to different scents, bubblebath with different colors, different temperatures, and so on. Trust me, they're really amazing."
A grin on her face, Patty shook her head as she placed her hands on her hips, "Well, Uncle Harry, you might be getting more visitors then more often."
That only made the teen shrug and chuckle some with a smile on his face.
______________________________________________________________________
Having been shown around the school, the Abyssals followed Harry into one of the greenhouses after getting permission from Professor Sprout. As they stepped into one, warm, humid air hit them heavy with the scent of compost and soil. Eyes wide as she looked around, Regalia barely held back a small squee of glee, "This is amazing, Uncle Harry! And all of these plants can be grown here even in winter?"
There was a smile on Harry's face as he gave a nod to her, "That's right, greenhouses allow for various magical plants to be grown in winter even when its cold out." He pointed towards the glass panes, "See, the sun comes through those and warms the greenhouse with the glass keeping the heat in. There's smaller heaters here and there though that help keep them warm during the night." Scratching his chin, he glanced around, "Sort of been considering about putting forward for one."
Eyes practically sparkling, Regalia turned and looked at her mother who shrunk back a bit, "Could we Mom? Because this would be great for winter and... and I could grow seedlings in one before planting, even when there's frost on the ground! It would really help out!"
Unsure, Tanith turned to Harry who gave a shrug, "It would help to be honest, I guess. You could grow tomatoes and the like during the winter including..." Pausing, he frowned in thought before giving a nod, "How about I show you one of the plants that we're working on this year."
Intrigued, they followed him until he showed them what looked like small trees, But it was what was hanging from them that caught the Abyssals attention with Ritou tilting her head in complete befuddlement, "... Are those barnacles? Hanging from a tree? How... what?"
Snickering, Harry shook his head, "They only look like barnacles... but really, they're something else."
About to say something, Sonata stopped and looked at one of the pods which was shaking a bit, "Uncle Harry? What's inside these-"
Before she got much further, the pod split and a black, feathered head flopped out. Eyes blinking, the goose honked a bit as it looked around. Slowly, his nieces turned towards Harry with disbelief on their faces as he shrugged, "Goose barnacle trees, their fruits produce barnacle geese... or what looks like them. They taste like geese anyways, but only live a few weeks before dying, a seed inside of them."
Opening her mouth, Sunny tried to say something as the goose continued to honk only to close her mouth. With a glance at the goose, she tried again several times before shaking her head, "Yeah, I got nothing. There's magic, and then there's geese growing on trees."
Extremely amused at the reactions, the thirteen year old jerked his thumb in a different direction, "Well, there is always the vegetable lamb of Tartary."
For several moments the Abyssals stared at him before leaning in the direction that he was gesturing in. Sure enough, there was an odd plant there with a lamb growing out of it. Rubbing her eyes with her fists, Ritou pulled them away and blinked, "Its still there... why is it still there... Why does it even exist?!"
Just shrugging, Harry snickered a bit, "Not a clue, but probably because some wizard or witch thought them up somewhere. Generally, that seems to be what happens."
Pinching her nose, Nuri shook her head in disbelief, "But... why? What could make a human even come up with this sort of thing."
Yet again, the wizard gave a small shrug, "Like I said, not a clue. I mean, this sort of thing is really odd, but its happened." Scratching his head, Harry frowned in thought, "Not quite sure what the thought process behind having an animal grow from a tree would be... but it has happened as you can see." Then he gave a smile to Regalia and a wink, "Maybe you could grow some in your own greenhouses. Besides which, the Tartary lamb can also give wool as well as meat."
A thoughtful look on her head, the Re-Class tilted her head some, "That is true..."
Still utterly confused by the plants that she was seeing, Ruadri noticed movement out of the corner of her eye and blinked. On a nearby table were several flowers of different colors, some of which were moving around. Leaning, she tilted her head before pointing at them with her finger inches from one, "Uncle Harry? What are these ones?"
Turning, Harry's eyes widened and he winced, "Blistering blue barnacles, someone left the fanged geraniums out... Ruadri? Move away from those..."
More than a little bemused, the Battleship laughed, "Come on, Uncle Harry. I can handle some plants-" she felt an odd clamping sensation and turned to find that one of the flowers was now biting her finger with a mouth full of fangs. Eyes wide, she jerked her finger away and there was a tearing sound, "Oops?"
Eyes wide, Harry rushed over, "Ruadri! Are you alright?" Upon seeing the "Skin" hanging off the black metal of Abyssal bone, he cursed, "Okay, just give me a moment to get the first aid kit and we'll get you to Madam Pomfrey and she can fix you up. I am so, so sorry!" Looking around, the teen hit himself in the head, "Ugh! I am so stupid!"
Quickly realizing what was wrong, Sunny grabbed his shoulders, "Whoa, Uncle Harry! Everything is fine and Ruadri isn't hurt."
Looking at her, he gestured at the other Abyssal whose own eyes had widened, "Sunny, the flesh on one of her fingers just got torn off because I screwed up! I-"
A hand on his shoulder though made him stop and turn to find a sheepish Ruadri there, "Um, Sunny's right, Uncle Harry, I'm not hurt... just look." She brought up said finger to eye level and Harry had to blink at how there was no blood or anything, in fact, it looked like a torn glove more than anything else. Unknown to him, Ruadri was more embarrassed, and a bit pleased, that her uncle was worried about her being okay. Though she did not like him blaming himself for her mistake, "I... don't have anything there and my skin is latex."
Gently, as if worried that he was going to hurt her, Harry took the hand and examined it. Sure enough, it was actually latex and seemed to be covering her hand and arm, "What in the world..."
Biting her lip, the Battleship looked away, "I... don't really want to talk about how it happened, Uncle Harry. But... I'm adopted and when Tanith found me and brought me back to Mom, I, well... my arms were gone and so were my eyes. Mom managed to replace my eyes and she made me new arms with the metal from my ruined turrets. But... she couldn't connect my eyes fully and that is why they don't glow. And no matter what Mom did, every time she tried to replace the flesh on my arms it would die and fall off within a few minutes, rejected by my body. So she came up with the covering because, well... no one wants to see a skeleton arm."
Now relaxing, Harry slumped some in relief, "So you're really not hurt?"
Just shaking her head, Ruadri smiled some and gave him a hug, "No, I'm not hurt, Uncle Harry. Mom's going to be angry about it since she'll have to fix it, but..."
Bringing out his wand, her adoptive uncle shook his head, "Here... Reparo." The latex "Skin" on her repaired itself and was as good as new. Something that got him another hug... though what she had said got a thought rolling along in his head, 'I wonder...' Putting away what was in his head though, he gave a weak smile, "Anyways... maybe we should check out the other greenhouses?"
With a glance to the fanged flowers, Patty gave a small nod, "That... might be a good idea..."
A few minutes later found themselves outside another greenhouse with Harry looking through one of the panes where Professor Sprout could be seen with earmuffs on. With a small nod, he turned to the curious Abyssals, "She's transplanting mandrake roots."
That got him a confused look from Tanith, "Mandrake roots?"
Harry gave a nod to her, "That's right, they're a special magical plant. We use them in potions and, well... the cries of an adult plant can kill a human. Young ones can stun a person and, well... depending on how old they can cause nosebleeds and the like. That's why she's wearing earmuffs due to how dangerous they are. We were handling them last year."
Just blinking, the Abyssals turned to the glass and noticed the Professor smiling at them and waving, which they returned only to freeze as she pulled the plant from the pot... Mainly due to the plant looking like a cross between a really ugly human baby and a normal root. Complete with it wiggling and wailing though they could hear nothing outside while from its head, a green sprout grew. Then, the Professor placed it into a bigger pot and covered it with soil with the sprout shuddering a bit and then stopping.
Slowly, the Abyssals just turned to each other with completely befuddled and confused expressions on their faces due to what they just saw.