Errand In the Mood for Gardening PV Reid

WC: 311

WC: 633

"Yeah, even though it is getting a bit more fresh outside... Obviously w-winter is approaching...", he muttered, smiling softly at the Hufflepuff. He had barely time to speak with the other during the last time so it was really nice for Reid to help him sort this things out.

He tried to listen at what Reid was explaining to him and nodded now and then as he tried to look at the stems that were pictured in the illustrations after Reid had pointed them out to him. For him it looked like a plant, but he recognized one of them as weeds. "I know that this is a bad one, so not gonna pick that one right? It can make some creatures sick", Alan said suddenly, pointing at one of the illustrations, leaving a smudge of soil on the page. "But how can I know whether something is a herb or a weed? What if it is both? Is there a possibility it is both?", Alan shook his head in confusion, staring at the taller kid helplessly. He really he would be better at the subject as it was sometimes important.

Well for Alan it was usually only important if they were edible or had some special healing properties... that was all he needed to know so he could take care of creatures; right? Alan had no idea actually. What would he need to know and how was he supposed to keep all of this inside his head? A sigh escaped his lips as he tried to look at the pages, glaring at them in the hopes that might be able to help him. Of course the knowledge did not suddenly appear inside his mind and he huffed.

He tilted his head and nodded at Reid, when he offered to pick a sample of herbs for him and he smiled slightly as he watched the Hufflepuff work. Meanwhile he just attempted to do something, comparing every single plant in the soil with the illustrations on the page, before he plucked them out of the soil. He kind of hoped for it to be the correct choices and that he was not just picking weeds.

"Are these okay like this?", he asked as he showed a few herbs he had plucked fro the dirt and showed them to the badger with an insecure look. There were probably one or two weeds mixed in between that would be useless for the professor, however Alan had tried his best to slowly but surely work himself through the herbology bed in front of him. He looked over at Reid, waiting for him to check over the bundle he had plucked from the ground, hoping he had not messed this up completely.

Sometimes Alan wondered how this could even be so difficult. The images were there and he had the plants right before his eyes. So why was it this so difficult to actually find out what is what with the actual herbs. Maybe he should read the text beneath? Then again there would nnot be more in the text than in the images right? What could teach better than a visual image? Alan saw no reason to actually read the texts with the description that was underneath each of the illustrations. That would just take so much more time and would hence slow down the process and increase the time spend on the task. And if he thought about it, he had done pretty well so far. He usually only read the full texts in the school books, if he had no other choice than to do so and this book had enough images to help him find out on his own... and Reid was there helping him and Alan thought that was pretty nice of him!

Alan glanced at Reid, grateful for the other students help as he hoped that would help him manage to do this errand. He had just wanted to help the professor with it, as it seemed like the thing to do, since he had the time and it had sounded like fun at the very moment he decided to help; he now slightly doubted that decision. Then again it meant that he met Reid again, a boy that he had not met in a while and one of the first people he interacted with from the other houses. 

The third year watched the Hufflepuff curiously and kept silent as he saw that Reid was concentrating on what he was doing and Alan did not want to distract him or cause him to make a mistake. When the other boy sat down next to him in the dirt, Alan grinned slightly as he nodded at the explanations. When Reid broke one of the stems of the weed and held it close to him, Alan leaned forward slightly to sniff slightly, only to instantly scrunch up his face in disgust at the smell. "Th-that smell is awful... no wonder it isn't used for herbology...", he muttered and shook his head. His words did probably not make much sense, potions tasted horrible too which meant that there were probably some bad smelling ingredients in them too, but at that moment his words made sense to him.

Now that he knew what to look out for he looked through the bundle he had taken from the herb bed and slowly took out the kinda plant that the Hufflepuff had pointed out to him. A frown on his face as he had to concentrate not to throw away the good ones too. "U-uhm... like this then? Or do I need to take out more of the herbs- I mean weeds, are there more weeds in this bundle or can I bring them inside?", he held the bundle of herbs to the Hufflepuff, a bundle he would probably need to tie into two or three smaller bundles so that they would dry properly once he brought them into the greenhouse.

The third year would look over and nod happily, when the Hufflepuff said that his bundle of herbs seemed fine. He was kind of relieved and had not assumed this task to be as difficult. When he read the errand he had assumed, he would just have to randomly pluck some plants from the herb bed, but Reid proofed him differently. There was more to this task, than he thought there would be and Alan had learned a lot.The bad-smelling stuff was weed, bad weed that would not be good for a batch of herbs and probably should be plucked from any kind of flower or herb bed, before it spread. Surely Alan would not be able to forget that horrible smell either, so it was knowledge he might have for life. 

"I just spend a lot of my time outside nowadays", he answered the Hufflepuff's question, when he took the offered hand. Alan gladly used the other boy's assistance to get back on his feet; both of their hands covered in mud and soil. Alan would let go of Reid's hand as soon as he regained his footing and examined his hand, his fingernails were caked with dirt, which the Gryffindor tried to lightly wipe of at his pants. Normally he wouldn't have bothered, but his pants were covered in the mud he was kneeling in, so he had to change his clothes before breakfast anyway. After all he did not want to bring all the dirt into the dining room or look as if he had just bathed in mud.

"I just like being outside, I don't even mind the rain much around this time of year! I even do my homework out on the Grounds, if it is not too cold or rainy. It also helps that the stables are closeby!", he explained with a sigh, as he began to make his way towards the greenhouse in the hopes, that the Hufflepuff would follow him along. "I didn't even know you joined Quidditch, do you like it?", asking this, he would glance over at the other boy, as he pushed open the door to the greenhouse in which they would find the professor, Alan's eyes shining curiously.

@Reid Kovacs

It was kind of amusing, really, to listen to the taller Hufflepuff talk about Quidditch. He seemed quite passionate about the game Alan was scared off and amazed by at the same time. He loved the thought and how it was fun for other people to play, but the young lion was scared of it. Humans weren't meant to fly or they would have wings and while Alan could probably transfigure himself to have wings, he would still not be able to fly. "I am glad you enjoy it so much! I wish you all the luck for the next game!", he chirped, smiling up at the other boy.

"I do not plan, but I kind of began to learn how to fly- or at least I am trying to learn it...", he admitted to the other, rubbing the back of his head nervously. A soft, yet nervous smile lingering on his face. Alan just walked up to where the herbs were dried to put his bundle there, before walking back to Reid, done with the errand.

"Wanna head back to the castle for breakfast? Catch up and stuff?", he asked, curiously. He kind of wanted to continue talking to the Hufflepuff for a while, since it had been a while since they last had the chance to talk with another. Alan's pants were covered in dried dirt and mud from sitting on the ground, but the Gryffindor could not care less. But he might want to at least wash his hand, so they probably would need to stop by the restrooms if they were to go the breakfast together. He wondered if the third year badger would like to catch up some more.