A young Swifte with golden brown feathers perched in a great oak tree on the outskirts of the Forbidden Forrest. She searched the nearby trees for any sign of movement, a flock of sparrows had warned her about giant spiders that grabbed the winged folk right out of the air. She preened her feathers in uneasiness, things around here prickled her feathers with the magic in the air. Salazara had a little magic of her own but not near as much as that coming from the big castle or the group of young humans standing just under the tree.
She studied them and saw and saw that they were all wearing green and silver. She ruffled her feathers, that meant that they were the mean ones, the ones that threw rocks at her and pointed their sticks at her, burning her tail feathers. She should attack them for their meanness. The ones that wore blue and bronze were always very nice to her, if she got close enough they would tell her she was pretty and try to pet her. The red and gold ones usually just ignored her but they were never mean and the yellow and black ones always gave her food, she liked the yellow and black ones. She tilted her head to the side and listened to what the humans were saying.
�What were you doing talking to that Gryffindor, he�s a Mudblood!� said a large, older boy to a girl who was about the same age.
The girl rolled her eyes, �We were just talking about potions, is that a crime now? I can talk to whoever I bloody well please!�
The boy and his friends grinned maliciously and Salazara resisted the urge to flee.
�Wait until the Dark Lord hears about your new little friend. Then we�ll all see what he thinks about you conversing with that foul Gryffindor Mudblood.�
The boy spat at the girl and then he and his friends walked away. Salazara gave an angry chirp, that girl should go scratch his eyes out!
When the boys disappeared into the castle the girl turned and began crying. Salazara hopped from foot to foot.
�Poor human girl-child,� she thought sadly.
The girl sat down on the ground with her back against the trunk of the tree. Salazara studied her, she had curly black hair, brown eyes and fair skin, she was average looking by human standards and Salazara thought that with a few feathers here and there she would look very pretty.
She spread her wings and glided to the ground, landing a few feet from the girl, what she hoped was a safe distance should the girl take out her stick.
"Are you all right?� asked Salazar and the girl looked up in shock. The Swifte was a little shocked herself, it had been a very long time since she had spoken to a human.
�You can speak!� said the girl in disbelief.
�Yes, I can. I am called Salazara.�
�My�my name is Arza. Am I imagining this? Are you an animagi of some sort?�
�No, I�m real and I�m not an animagi, at least I don�t think so, I don�t know what an animagi is, but I am real, see?� she said spreading out a wing and allowing Arza to touch her feathers.
�How can you talk?� asked Arza.
The Swifte ruffled her feathers, �I have magic that lets me speak many different languages, what is Gryffindor? I�ve never heard that word before.�
Arza sighed, �In my school we are divided into four different groups, I�m in a group called Slytherin and we aren�t supposed to like one of the other groups, Gryffindor.�
�Why can�t you like them?� asked the Swifte.
Arza shrugged, �Because we�re better than them, most of them are half bloods or Mudbloods.�
�Like how Swiftes aren�t supposed to like Clawfurs. I don�t understand how you can only have half of your blood or mud in your blood, this is very confusing.�
�Yes it is, but in a year when I graduate I�m going to leave and go far away where no one can tell me what to do.�
Salazara ruffled her feathers in delight, �I�ve been to lots of far away places, we can go together and I can show them to you.�
�I doubt that you�ll still be here a year from now.�
�I could stay, I like it here and I�ll wait for you and we can go off together and have lots of fun adventures all by ourselves.�
Arza smiled, �That sounds like a plan Salazara, we�ll be a team and no one will get in our way.�

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