#6 - Bird Versus Snake

Amara was enjoying some peace and quiet, having climbed the tree to rest hammock-style in its huge branches. Out of view, and away from anyone who might annoy her today. Which was basically everyone, with a few rare exceptions.

So of course, some random Ravenclaw brat was simply a pest to be ignored in hope she'd go away. Amara had her wand out, resting on her stomach and loosely in hand should she ever need it, and was perfectly willing to zap away any bugs.

She opened her eyes, frowning at the mention of her name. Followed by the fact her boyfriend had apparently sent this brat to her, and would later be getting some firm words regarding this. Why would she care even the slightest about this kid, enough to waste even a minute of her time on her?

If only curiosity didn't take hold of her.

Amara rolled her eyes, putting away her wand for a moment as to not risk it coming to any harm. Even in her robes, she repositioned herself so she was crouched -- hesitating to calculate the right timing and angle. Then she dropped down from the tree, landing in front of the brat. It would look as if she'd fallen from the sky to confront or attack her, which Amara may as well have.

'What?' she snapped venomously, wand back in hand though she crossed her arms -- glaring at the kid. 

Well, if nothing else, that was not what Amara expected. She scrutinised the kid for a moment, but figured she had to be telling the truth. Especially if Lucas sent her, though Amara was a bit suspicious of that... knowing what Lucas was like.

'The expert? Sure.' Amara nodded, as it was absolutely true. 'I can get you a knife. But why would I?'

She scoffed at that. Seriously, this kid just came up to her asking for a knife and expected her to care? Sure, it was for ingredient gathering and that certainly caught her interest, but Amara didn't even know this kid's name. So far, she still wasn't hearing anything that made this whole thing worth her time.

'What potions do you want to brew?' she asked, curious but also wondering what level she was dealing with here. If she said something lame, then Amara was certainly leaving. 'At least you have enough sense not to use magic on ingredients.'

Amara would loved to have watched this brat attempt to ask Professor Snape about obtaining a knife. She also had a smirk of knowing something related to that, which this kid had no idea of. No way was she about to tell her she was relatively on the right track, even if she doubted Professor Snape would simply hand it over in that scenario.

'Antidotes? A pity.' Amara was intrigued by the plan, and a bit surprised that she just babbled it all out to her -- before catching herself, apparently. 'And Broom Polish?'

The last one earned an eyeroll. This kid was a bit dense. Amara was Captain of the Slytherin Quidditch team... why in Merlin's name would she want to enable broomstick care for another player? Still, the antidotes were interesting and no easy feat. No matter how hard she tried, Amara couldn't fault someone for being that prepared.

It was also useful information; this wasn't a brat she could easily poison or hex, should she ever need to. That was fine; she had other means. But knowing this in advance, yes it was good to know. Not that brats like this were usually worth her time and effort -- or so she'd thought, until that irritating Twiggs boy got up on his house table that day.

Potions was her favourite class? Ugh. Amara relaxed her posture a bit, sighing as she couldn't believe she even gave this proper consideration. Lucas had sent her as well, and either there was a genuine reason for that or he was about to be sorry later.

'Fine.' Amara conceded but still managed to look rather bored about it. 'What's your name, anyway? I have backup spare, but you're not getting it without a price. And I don't care for gold. So the question is: is this knife worth enough to you that you're willing to make a deal with me?'

There was a malicious glint in her eye as Amara said it. She reached for her bag, hanging on the branch nearby, and tracked down one of her spares. As proof, but also knowing the blade added to the tension and intimidation. Its blank handle was sleek and easy-grip texture; everything about the item was well-made and probably quite expensive.

She knew what often crossed people's minds when they saw it; where did one even buy that? Not Diagon Alley or Hogsmeade, that's for sure.


[ooc: this is staff-approved.]

Short first name. Long surname, and not one she recognised. Amara made mental note of that, but so far wasn't too impressed. But it was difficult to be impressed by one of these brats, anyway. What was she? 1st year? 2nd year?

Amara smirked when MJ agreed to make a deal with her, though had to quickly halt an amused and disbelieving scoff behind her fist at the mention of not only trusting Lucas, but also being willing to trust her. The kid was either incredibly brave or absurdly naive. Still, it worked in her favor so Amara fought to compose herself -- and nodded in shared agreement.

'All right.'

One problem, though. Amara saw this for the opportunity it was, and of course wasn't going to just hand over the precious knife to some kid without MJ having proven worthy of it... but how? She didn't immediately have a task in mind. She hadn't exactly expected a kid to just show up and agree to do her bidding. Maybe a favor...?

No. That wasn't the way to handle this. She needed to think of something. What did she need, but didn't want to get? Or that was annoyingly tricky to obtain? Nothing interesting had happened lately, so she didn't need information. MJ was a Ravenclaw, anyway. 

Amara eyed the girl for a moment, keeping her expression neutral as to not give herself away. It'd seem more like she was sizing the kid up, rather than trying to find some use for her on such short notice. But use that was worth handing over this knife.

'You want to use this for Potions?' Amara's confidence grew, as she expertly fiddled with the knife and an idea came to her. 'Fine. Prove it won't be wasted on you. Bring me some ingredients, and I'll give you the Knife. Not just anything will do, of course. These.'

She went through her bag for some writing supplies, then noted down ingredients for MJ to collect -- thinking which ones were too much of a hassle to get herself for her to pass up this opportunity. Amara had no idea of the kid's skill level or experience though. With no desire to waste time finding out, she tried to keep them at a ranking that most could collect even in the early days of getting their Potion Kits.

Assuming they, and therefore MJ, had any semblance of basic skill.

• Wolfweed
  
• Jippi Seeds
  
• Tarrow
  
• Eglower
  

• Mercy's Lace

'Think you can manage?' Amara handed the list off to MJ, eyebrow raised as if daring her to object. That would make things more interesting, as she was already tired of this interaction. 'You have until the end of the day; I'm not waiting around for you any longer than that.'

Amara sighed. Now she had to make herself available? That was so annoying, and no way was some brat going to influence where she was or ensuring she could be found. MJ managed to find her once, so whatever.

'I don't care,' Amara said, which was also evident in her harsh tone. 'If you want the Knife, you'll figure it out. But no, don't go running to my boyfriend for answers. I've got a busy day, so don't expect me to be waiting around somewhere. If you can't figure it out, then that's your problem. Now get lost. You're ruining my quiet time.'

Amara made a dismissive gesture, and hung her bag back up in the branches. Not that she planned to stick around long in the Private Courtyard, mainly out of spite at the concept that she was easy to track down, but she would be damned if she skipped what remained of her rest period because of this.