Arnavon thumped his chest with a bright smile. "Of course I am." He dug in a pocket and produced a scrap of paper. Unfurling that revealed a moving image of Dumbledore nodding approvingly. "See, I was allowed in and everything."
"Let me see that." Hermione snatched the paper to read the words that came with the moving image. 'The one carrying this card is to be treated as an especially talkative, but cooperative, owl.' She read that out loud as her eyes scanned over it. "You realize, technically--"
Ron burst into a fit of laughter. "You're a very nice owl, Hermione."
"Not funny!" Though that had been what she was about to note. She didn't admit that, giving the card back to Arnavon. "How did you get that? It still doesn't make you an owl. You're just treated like one."
Harry set his wand down on the end table beside his new bed. "I learned my first wizard spell today!"
Arnavon's attention was captured entirely. "Show me!" He clapped his hands eagerly. "I must see, please!"
Ron joined in the encouragement, ribbing Harry on the side of his barrel. "Go on, show Arnie your new trick. You know you want to."
Well, with encouragement like that, he leaned in, lipping up his wand. His eyes darted about, considering what to try lifting. Ah ha! "Arnavon, did it ever bother you that you couldn't fly like other owls?"
Arnavon's eyes widened. "Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh!" His clapping only grew in intensity. "Do it. Do it!" As magical subjects went, he was quite agreeable, bouncing a little in place on his legs, still reared up as he was.
"I'm still new at this," warned Harry, but he began to move his wand, just for Hermione's hand to grab it suddenly. "Wha?"
"We've only floated a little quill around," she chastised. "And you're going to go on to that?" she waved a free hand at Arnavon's much larger form. Larger than a quill at least. Larger than a person, really. He was a big bouncy bunny boy. "You sure that's a good idea?"
Harry danced away with a clip clop, drawing his wand from her reach. "Don't be like that. It should be fine."
"You can do it," encouraged Arnavon, giddy with excitement. "Will I be able to fly on my own, or will you, uh, fly me?"
Ron snickered at the idea. "Pretty sure the second one of those."
Hermione had her arms crossed, as if waiting for it all to go wrong. Harry wasn't about to accept that. "Just a swish and a flick," he assured, himself partially. "wing-GAR-dee-um leh-vee-OH-sa," he carefully announced, directing the wand at his giggling tsuki friend.
"Woah!" Arnavon lifted an inch, but he wasn't entirely supported, swinging forward sharply, slapping his chin on the floor with a pained yelp. Despite the stars dancing in his vision, he was laughing through the discomfort. "That was so strange! You have to show me how to do that." His feet pumped in the air as if to bounce, but his back end was lifted from the ground. "Um?"
Hermione hissed a breath. "Are you alright? That looked like it hurt."
Harry was trying to get his spell right, changing the angle of his wand this way and that, moving Arnavon's rump with the gestures and doing little to get his front in order. "Trying..."
Arnavon pushed against the ground with his hands, performing a great bounce with them, which sent him in the other direction to thud against the wall with his back. "Oof, alright, upright now," he proudly declared. "This is... not exactly flying?" Sure, he was hovering, leaning against the wall. Sort of flying? Kinda?
Harry released him, drawing him back towards the ground and letting go with a huff. "Well, that's what practice is for, right?"
Ron slapped Harry on the back. "Right nice for your first try at something so large, no offense."
Arnavon inclined his head confusedly. "Is being large a bad thing?"
Hermione rolled her eyes at that. "Only if they were implying you were overweight, which you are not." Not that she was an expert on the expected fat content of a tsuki, but the eager Arnavon sure seemed not terribly pudgy. "Harry, good luck with your 'owl', but I'm going to go settle myself in."
"I really should too." Ron vacated, bumping into another student on the way. "Oh, hey. You got a roomie to tell stories about mate." And he was gone.
Harry closed with Arnavon, looking him over. "Really sorry about that. Are you alright?"
"No." And yet, he was still smiling so brightly. "I need a wand. You can't cast wizard spells without one, and I don't have one."
Harry could but smile, turning instead to the person who had just entered. "Hey, sorry for the fuss."
Arnavon was still focused on Harry. "Do you think your mom'd get angry if I asked her for the bits for one? She's usually pretty nice."
"I can't even imagine my mom being mad." Harry struggled to imagine it. "Well, other than when Flurry or I got into trouble. We deserved that though."
With an excited squeal, Arnavon got to writing a letter. Sure, he'd have to deliver it himself. That's a thing owls did, which he was, despite also being a tsuki. Who said anyone couldn't be both of those things?
Harry tried to hold the plant steady in his magic, but it twisted and jumped against it, defying his arcane grasp with surprising skill. It wrenched free and fell to the ground, not to splatter, but to bounce off of it sharply, right at him. With a dull thud, he reeled back, smacked right across the snout by the angry vegetable. "Ow!" he got out eloquently as the thing came down, ready to bounce in a follow up strike.
"Incendio!" he cried as he gestured with the horn atop his head, imitating the wand movement at the same instant he was hurrying to get his wand back in readiness. His horn was an acceptable replacement, flames engulfing the angry vegetable, stopping it in its tracks at it burned and shriveled away. "Phew..."
"Young Potter," There was Herbert, professor of botany. "Good use of the defensive spell, but let's handle the plants more carefully." As Harry shrank a bit at the chastisement, Herbert pat their strange equine student on the shoulder. "Also, while the form was great, I suggest using your wand."
"It all happened so fast," defended Harry, lifting his wand into readiness. "I'll keep this in reach while I'm here."
"That would be wise." Herbert Beery went on to continue his instructions, "As you can see, bouncing bulb is quite lively. Whenever it senses a threat, it will use its mobility to attack the source. However, properly raised, it's quite useful for potion making."
"On that topic, smaller bulbs, like the one that attacked Mister Potter." Herbert gestured at the small bit of ash that had once been an aggressive plant. "Can be warded away, but you haven't learned that spell yet, so I don't fault anyone for not using it. The knockback jinx, you'll hear it called that, and you can use it on any bulb smaller than yourself."
Ron inclined his head a little. "They get larger than you?"
"Oh, quite a bit so," warned the teacher. "When they get that big, and they're angry, burning them really is the only option if you don't want to be battered quite badly." He wandered off, helping a student with the flaming spell they had just learned but that student clearly was having issues with.
Ron closed with Harry from the side. "Good thing you got that spell down. I'm not sure what I'd do if one of the things tried to take me down a peg."
Harry laughed at the mental image, even if it still hurt where he'd been thumped into. "You would have figured something out, I'm sure of it."
"That makes one of us." Ron was smiling despite that, clearly not that put out. "You did the spell with your horn. Can you use your horn as a wand all the time?"
"Well, uh, technically?" His horn was magic. Saying the magic words and making the magic gestures with it seemed to work. "It's a bad habit though. I don't want to hurt my horn."
Ron waved his wand through the air in a meaningless swipe. "You're the only wizard allowed to whip around his built in wand in public and not get in trouble fer it."
"Gross." Hermione had heard the crass joke. "Nice spell, Harry. You were a little off on the second part."
Harry's ears danced. "I was?" The fire had been bright and done the job. "Really?"
She showed the motion, the up and down and over of the fire spell, but she didn't follow with words, lest she set something ablaze. "Like that, see?"
Harry watched the motions carefully, following along twice, his wand and his head following in sync. "Oh... I did miss that little swerve there."
"It's subtle," agreed Hermione. "Better." And off she went, looking vindicated.
Ron shrugged softly. "She's such a know-it-all. Like she was born knowing magic or something. You're not that far behind, but you're way less stuck up about it, you know?"
"Don't be rough on her." Harry sat on his haunches with a smile. "She's nice enough."
"Yeah yeah." Ron gave a single wave off as he turned to look at the collection of plants on the table near them. "I know some of these."
"You do?" Harry perked at that. "Well, someone else knows a lot then. Care to share?"
"I think those are puffapods." He indicated towards a purple flower. It was a pretty thing, and not puffed at all.
A thing that confused Harry, approaching to peer at it from different angles. "Why's it called that?"
"Careful, Mister Potter." There was their teacher. "We haven't gone over them, but you should assume all the plants here could cause issues if not handled properly." He gestured to the same purple plant. "Since we're looking at it." Much of the class had looked over at the mention and his warning. "This one is not terrible, but when touched, it releases quite a number of spores that can cause dizziness. If you're not in a hurry, just waiting will let it pass."
"So that's the puff," determined Harry with a nod, regaining his sense of understanding.
The class went on.
An owl arrived. An actual owl. It had a letter attached to its leg. Arnavon reached out and detached it carefully. "Thank you, fellow owl." It was kinda funny, having an owl bring him a message. Or maybe it was for Harry? He'd pass it on if it was! The owl hooted and took off, wings silent as owl wings tended to be. It was gone in a moment. "Good luck," Arnavon bade, waving at where the owl had been.
He unfurled the paper quickly, eager to know what it said, but he almost didn't need to read it as, when unfurled, a long slender stick unfurled from it and fell to the ground with a clatter. "You are the best!" he cried with joy, snatching up the wand and hugging it tight.
Warmest Regards, Arnavon,
Hello! I loved your letter and am delighted to hear Harry is doing so well! Keep an eye on him, not that I imagine I need to remind you. You two are good friends, and I can think of few others I'd trust more to the task. You must have noticed the wand. It's a gift, from Star Swirl. He said he used to use it, as a foal. It's a trick, to help unicorns that have difficulty focusing on their horns internally. So we give them a wand to hold, and sometimes that helps.
Of course, you don't have a horn. I do hope it works out for you. Do your best.
Wishing you both the absolute best,
Cadance
He slashed the air with the new wand. "I wonder what it's made of." The internal makeup of a wand could have an effect. "I can't wait to try it!"