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Tàm let himself drift off into the song he was singing, green eyes watching the grass move and sway, almost in perfect harmony with the words. Beside Áedán, a small yellow flower opened its petals to the sky. His only thought was how soft Áedán's hair was when brushed through with Tàm's fingers. Somewhere near, someone was talking, but their words simply drifted along on the breeze.

For a beautiful, blissful moment, all was calm... then chaos! Out of nowhere, Honey bounded from the tall grass, pouncing to jump on the redhead's tummy. "Aaah!! Honey-Pop!" Tàm squeaked out, song halting in quick succession. Áedán seemed a kip annoyed about the situation as well, though the shorter boy was more focused on hiding the redness in his cheeks.... and probably ears, if Fina's words had informed him of anything. "Och Honey-Pop! Ye mist be 'ere tae speil! Silly pup!" He moved his hand from the red hair, instead petting Honey's soft tawny fur.

He laughed a bit at the dog's antics, then noticed something dreeping over his shoulder. "AAH!!!" Tàm yelped once more, his hand moving to clutch at his heart. "Och ye scared me! Mah hert cannae tak' it, BonBon!" He huffed a bit, then looked over at the redhead as Babs asked about joining him. Tàm flushed again, thinking that his lap certainly wasn't comfortable enough to have one person, let alone two, napping on him. Luckily Áedán spoke up before he had to, though he sat up holding Honey. Why was Tàm suddenly missing the taller teen's warmth?

Áedán asked about siccing the dog on him, claiming Honey to be a monster, though the dog seemed far more interested in giving the boy lots of slobbery kisses. Tàm reached a small hand over to scratch the pup atop the head, jiggling her soft ears. "O' coorse she likes us! We're wonderfully likeable fowk, BonBon!" He sent up a dazzling grin to the blonde, green eyes sparkling in the warm sunshine. He scratched the dog's cheeks, laughing as her ears bounced with the movements.

Tàm watched as Áedán loved up on Honey the corgi, and he was able to push himself to a more comfortable sit. Watching Honey made Tàm a bit homesick, wanting to get to love on Bodaigh too. After mentioning that no one could dislike himself or Áedán, Barbara simply changed it to no one being able to dislike Tàm alone. But the redhead agreed, though his voice was a bit soft. "Och! Na, ah wis thinking a' o' us! me, Áedán, Wull, Gian, Aurias 'n' Fina, 'n' ye tae, Bonnie lass! We're a' juist bonnie." He nodded a few times, though he couldn't help but think Áedán was a little extra lovely...

Another round of chaos ensued when Honey leapt off of the redhead's chest, running to chase after something in the sky. Apparently no one could quite tell her plan. "Ah think she's juist bein' a silly pup." He nodded, grinning as the dog bounded around. Green eyes looked over at the other two, then back at the dog just in time to watch her scoop up a bird into her maw. Babs shouted an "oh no!" while Áedán sprung into action.

He called the dog over, issuing her to drop the bird. Luckily, the dog was pretty obedient and did just that. Tàm struggled to push himself up to his feet as well, to try and help as best he could. Babs asked if the bird was okay, and Áedán struggled to say it wasn't dead. It was probably quite hurt, especially if that droopy wing was any indication. "Kin ye save him, Áedán? Is... Ur we able tae mak' him okay again?" Tàm asked, his voice breaking over his words as tears filled his eyes. A small hand reached out to gently pet the bird on the head, breath hitching as he looked over at his friend to see if he could save the day. He wiped his tears on his sleeve, sniffling quietly in hopes the poor soul could be saved.

It was a beautiful afternoon here in the garden beside the school. Today specifically, Tàm had implored for Áedán to join him. Ever since Will told him he was a nymph, Tàm had gone to their Herbology professor (and the only nymph he knew), and she confirmed he did indeed have "a nymphic aura" .... whatever the heck that meant. Since then, he'd been working with the Herbology professor to try and learn nymphic magic. Apparently it was largely emotion-based, and since he pretty much only had one emotion, his current assignment was to "get in touch with his core".... which apparently had nothing to do with his abdomen... despite his guess.

So, in effort to have a judgement-free sort of practice, he brought along the one human he knew wouldn't ever judge him... well, beside Pa, but Pa couldn't exactly mosey on over. "Okay. Sae mah goal is tae huv a go 'n' mak' mah emotions wirk, richt? Tae uise thaim tae mak' th' environment react tae me. Bit howfur th' heck does that wirk, ye ken? Why'd she gie sic vague instructions? Tis a'maist lik' she doesn't pure ken howfur tae blether tae fowk, richt? Lik' howfur whin ah wis a foremaist year. 'n' fowk wur confusing." Tàm rattled off happily, before plopping in the grass of the garden. It was always a struggle to get back up, but at least he had Áedán, who never seemed to mind lifting him back up.

"Okay. Ah hae tae titch th' earth. 'n' let mah... heartsong oot? Surely that means something important...." He clucked his tongue softly, putting his palms against the dirt in front of him. Green eyes stared at his hands, wondering exactly what it meant to "use your heartsong to grow the world". He hemmed and hawed for a second, before a proverbial lightbulb went off. He looked all around, eyes searching for any humans that may come nearby. "Dinnae... Tell a'body, okay? " When no such danger was found, the brunette kicked off his shoe, followed by his ghost sock. A small blush touched his cheeks and ears, but he curled in a way to press his foot against the grass too. As if by his nervous guidance, the grass seemed to fluff up, hiding the burn scars that interlaced his foot and ankle. A gasp escaped him, and green eyes quickly looked over at the redhead. Unbeknownst to him, the gold rings in his eyes seemed a bit brighter by the joy from his moves.

Tàm blinked a few times when asked what Áedán would even say, before the redhead teased him about his spooky sock. "Foremaist aff, pat some respect oan Halloween's name. Seicont, this is th' coolest sock. Th' ghosts? yea. Thay glow in th' mirk. Sae. Yea." He tried to sound serious, but ended up tittering over his words and sending over a toothy grin. In fact, both teens knew Tàm's so-called terrible secret, and neither would move to use it against the other.

After accidentally making grass curl up his foot and ankle, the Slytherin seemed fascinated. He noted that the grass around Tàm was always softer, which earned a confused look from the brunette. "Is it pure? Ah juist thought ah wis aye comfy enough tae nap anywhere. Ah ne'er thought ah wis th' yin making it comfy..." He pondered a moment, recalling laying with Áedán in the grass of their back garden, soaking in the sunshine. Had the grass actually grown to his comfort?

Tàm tried to explain what Professor Aza had taught him, but noted that he had no clue. Luckily, his more logical pal had a few ideas. Maybe it was indeed all about his emotions? He asked how Tàm had felt when the grass grew around him, then asked if he were upset, would the grass wither away? The brunette gently pet the grass beside himself, eyes filled with curiosity. He nodded, sighing softly. "A dinnae ken howfur tae cop ither emotions. Richt efter break... Whin Wull tellt me aboot bein' a nymph... He worded it pure weird, richt? A-and mah foremaist thought wis... Juist... Sae crabbit! 'N' Ah hated it! 'Twas th' wirst thing! Mah hert wis a' dowie 'n' doilt. 'N' then Wull wasn't even bein' a butt! Sae then ah felt... Pure weird ben 'n' it hurt mah tummy." He sighed softly, but in the corner of his vision, Tàm noticed one of the tulips wilting over a bit.

Tàm perked up, leaning forward to investigate the little yellow flower. "Did Ah dae that?" his voice was soft, another pang of guilt surging through him. He didn't want to accidentally harm any plants! Green eyes looked back over at the redhead, who was asking about what else the nymphic powers could do. "Weel, fae whit a've learned... Ah shuid be able tae hulp graw ony plants. Ah think. Bit an' a', if ah git scared or something, parntly true nymphs kin caw intae trees. Ah dinnae think ah dae that... Richt? 'N' thir's an' a' parntly something aboot nymphs huvin tae follow ony commands issued by folk, bit that's... Likelie a myth, richt?" At least... he was pretty sure he'd never been forced into following commands. But his mind was whirring, trying to think if anyone had ever actually issued any commands over him. Pa had before, but it was mostly forge safety. The big rules, the yellow lines... Tàmhas had never really given it much thought, since Pa's "serious voice" was enough to make anyone follow orders. Especially if the consequences involved being kicked from the forge.

It was then that Áedán noted that their quirky professor may very literally be speaking of singing. That seemed to catch the attention of the green-eyed teen. "Dae ye think thay hae tae be in a certain leid? Dae nymphs hae thair ain tongue? Or wid Gaelic wirk? Sassenach? F... French?" He questioned aloud, before pausing a second and hanging his head.

"Ah dinnae even ken ony French..."

Tàm laughed along with his pal at the remark about the halloween socks deserving their year-round praise. "Darn richt thay dae. An' a' ah coudnae fin' mah bunny socks. Otherwise ah would've bin perfect fur springtime. Mah flower sock hud a nook, richt in th' toos." He laughed happily, the little chirpy sound making one of the nearby daisies perk up toward the sunshine. Green eyes looked over, glad that Áedán didn't mind when he was being a sassy-pants. Or... would it be sassy-pant? That one was a thinker.

As the brunette recounted the ordeal with Will, Áedán noted that it sounded like Tàm felt guilty for doubting his pal. The brunette drooped a bit, feeling like he was being told off... even as the Slytherin said it was okay. "It didnae cop okay, though..." The shorter teen mumbled, gaze still turned toward the ground. It was then that Áedán shuffled a bit, brushing their shoulders as he moved. That earned a look of curiosity from the brunette. Áedán mentioned that not every emotion was going to feel good, but were all still important. He even smiled to try and punctuate. Tàmhas knew that he and Áedán often had differing expressions, as well as emotions. Where Áedán was hard pressed to smile (and was probably often a grumpy gus), Tàm never felt quite complete without a grin. Even when he wasn't feeling his best, he always tried to smile so everyone around would be happy.

While he was explaining some of the other nymph magic things he'd learned, Áedán interjected, saying if ever he'd be turning into a tree, it'd have been when they plummeted to the earth flew earlier that year. Apparently he'd looked more ghostly than anything. "Weeeeeeeel... Actually... Ah think mibbie ah did? Nae in stowed oot, o' coorse, fur ah'ament a stowed oot nymph... Ah think. Bit ah ken that whiles whin ah git scared - lik' that day in Arden? Wi' Stewart 'n' Hamish? Ye wur duin tae rammy, 'n' th' ither option tae` is tae flight? Tae run aff. Bit ah... Cannae. Whin ah git scared, it feels lik' mah bones ur fuul o' concrete. Bit whit if tis nae concrete... Bit wood?" Green eyes blinked a few time, the gold seemingly dulled down with his worries. If anyone could make him feel less like a weirdo, he was here.

Áedán asked if Tàm knew if he was being compelled, the brunette shrugged. "I donnae." Maybe they could practice? Nothing wild, of course, but just to experiment. Tàm knew that Nymphs had roughly no ability at all to deny these commands, but apparently, half-nymphs had the ability, even if it would be uncomfortable. Maybe practicing would be a good plan, just in case he was ever in danger? What if Stewart and Hamish wanted to try lighting him on fire again? Tàm wanted to be able to deny orders. As he was thinking, it seemed Áedán was as well, though he was the first to act on his thoughts.

A soft, yet callused hand brushed up Tàmhas' pointed ear, sending a shiver down the brunette's spine. Apparently, Áedán was worried they'd miscommunicated the ear piercings that summer. Had he in fact been compelled? Another soft shiver as Áedán continued moving down his ear. "Aye...." The word escaped him, though it was rather breathless. Green eyes looked into blue, followed by a small head-tilt. Something inside him fluttered, like a butterfly taking flight. Without allowing his brain to talk down his heart, Tàm pushed himself up a bit, just enough to gently press his lips against those belonging to Áedán. It was only a second, but when he pulled back, the gold of his irises had nearly overtaken the soft green. Around him, a few flowers blossomed with his lovestruck mood.

Tàm nodded once at Áedán's question. A frown fell on the redhead's face as he pondered. At his question, green eyes blinked a few times, long lashes fluttering with the movement. "Honestly... Na? it doesn't hurt, bit it feels... Odd. Ye ken howfur lik'..." His brows furrowed as he struggled to figure his words. How was he supposed to describe the feeling he'd only come to realize? "Ye ever wake up in th' nicht, mibbie efter a spooky dream, 'n' juist... Cannae shift? lik', ye ken whit's happening. Yer aware o' lee, bit tis lik' an invisible haun is haudin' ye doon? tis kinda lik' that. A'm feelin' lik' me, bit if ah weighed a thousand tons." He nodded, messy curls bouncing a bit. He sort of zoned out, trying to mentally come to grips with the fact that he'd probably been stumbling into his nymph powers this whole time... But if ever Áedán found out just how many times Tàm had been so afraid he couldn't move... well, Tàm worried the whole of Arden might be wiped away.

He knew eventually they'd have to work together on his nymphic powers, both good and bad. From making flowers grow to trying to learn if he actually could deny a command... somehow they'd all need to be tested. And Tàm wanted one specific person the whole time. After his little emotional bubble caused him to gently kiss the redhead, Áedán simply spoke his name. Immediately, the brunette's heart raced, terror that he'd damaged one of the most important relationships he'd ever known. "Áedán, a'm sae sorry. A dinnae ken--"

“Do that again.”

A blink was the only hesitation he could muster. Áedán had asked him to do it again... and honestly, Tàmhas couldn't care enough to try and decline the command. He wanted nothing more than to kiss the redhead again. So he did. Tàm pushed himself back up, hands resting on the redhead's lap to try and even their heights a bit. Their lips pressed together once more, though this time, Tàm wasn't the only one acting. No, Áedán pressed back, and after they parted, they went back together once more. A wonderful collision of emotion between the two. Apparently both had feelings that previously Tàm had struggled to deny. No, this was the most beautiful moment. And Tàm never wanted it to end.

A third kiss, a fourth, a fifth.... Neither seemed to be keeping count, though their soft kisses turned a bit more heated, more passionate. It always seemed an entirely foreign concept to Tàm, but something about it filled his heart with his own little sunshine. It seemed like every happy moment he'd ever known was colliding here, fireworks exploding in his mind as his emotions tumbled. Áedán's soft, yet calloused, hands brushed down the brunette's arms, sending shivers up his spine. Their fingers interlaced, Áedán pulling Tàm's arms up and around. He pushed himself up a bit more, arms wrapping around the redhead, fingers curling in the sunkissed fabric that the taller teen was wearing.

Another movement, this time a hand settling in the small dip of Tàm's back, drawing the two even closer. The two carefully rolled, Áedán forward, Tàm backward. They stayed carefully like that, with Tàm's small hand curled in the fabric of the redhead's jacket. Another kiss, now in between words that Tàm was too lovestruck to really hear. When their lips parted, a soft kiss was placed at his jaw, followed by a soft voice. The words, though innocent, sent shivers up the brunette, who was trying to figure out these new emotions.

“You made the flowers bloom.”

Eyes, now more vivid gold than green, took a second to look around. The grass, once only a few inches, was now well over a foot high. A sea of technicolor flowers were bloomed all around them, a symphony of their beauty surrounding them. A small smile touched his lips, before green eyes turned to look back into blue. Tàmhas leaned forward, gently placing a few soft kisses on Áedán's cheek. It was his turn to whisper, their cheeks gently pressed together as he spoke.

"Sae we did..."

Tàmhas had been entirely stressed out the last several days. A lot of his emotions were still on edge, leading to lots of teary moments. Luckily for him, Tàm had a lot of friends all willing to be there for him when he needed someone. Unfortunately, the few people he wanted to be with most couldn't be there. Pa was home in Arden, unable to even see Hogwarts, much less appear. Maggey was expected to have the baby any day, so she couldn't come... even though Tàm didn't know her very well at all yet. But she was at least a connection to home.

Then of course... the person he'd most like to be with, especially in the garden, working on Nymph stuff. As he walked through the grass to the garden, the grass seemed to fluff up a little bit, which was nice. It meant that perhaps he was more in control. Tàm thought back to when they'd been in the garden shortly before their first kiss. Áedán had told him to just let emotions happen, and to feel them in the moment. That was still difficult, but the brunette had been forced to confront feelings other than just his normal optimism.

These past few weeks, he'd been working with multiple people. Friends, teachers, nurses... basically everyone had been trying to help him cope with his loss and regain his normalcy. One of the hardest things to deal with was being unable to go anywhere near the greenhouses after an emotional breakdown had accidentally wilted a significant radius of plants around him. Pretty much all of Greenhouse 3 had been lost, along with lots of NEWT projects... and so Professor Azalea had had to place a temporary ban. Though, to her credit, she had been kind enough to work with him to try and get himself back into the plants he so wanted to work with. Unfortunately, she wanted to test his skill in the garden where Tàm had spent countless hours with Áedán, talking, studying, and just being together... not to mention the dozens of kisses they'd shared amidst the flowers.

This lovely afternoon, Tàmhas had donned some comfy clothes and headed out. Once there, he already felt his heart clench up, but he forced himself to keep breathing. "Guid efternoon, professor. Ah hawp th'day is treating ye weel." He spoke softly, hoping that he could keep his composure. Professor Aza, kind as usual, pulled him into a hug, before sending over a bright smile. "I'm doing just lovely! I've got your dear Úna here, and I know she misses you." Sure enough, the little bowtruckle popped up from the flowers in Azalea's messy hair.

"Bonnie. Dinnae ye worry, Úna. A'm aff tae prove a'm okay, then ye kin come alang wi' me. Professor, whit dae yi''ll need me tae dae?"