Novalie hadn't even bothered showing her mother the letter Howard had written.
Nor had she mentioned it to her eldest brother, Malic, because she already knew exactly how they'd react.
Her mother would have widened her eyes, clapped a hand over her mouth, gasped and demanded every single detail about the strange man who wanted to take her daughter on a trip to see a dragon, only to then insist that Malic accompany them.
Which brought her to Malic, who, upon reading the letter, would have gone absolutely mental with words along the lines of 'What the fuck does a grown-ass man want with an eleven-year-old girl on a one-on-one trip?!'
They just didn't understand.
But Novalie wasn't a liar, so she hadn't lied about the trip, she simply... hadn't mentioned it. Staying silent didn't count as lying, after all, right?
Fortunately, the Ravenclaw was quite skilled at forging her mother's signature and once the permission slip was signed by herself, she tucked it into her worn-out, dark-red backpack, casually announced that she'd be spending the day with a friend and left it at that. No need to go into details.
The train ride took a while, but Novalie had made sure to leave early enough and buying a ticket for the fastest train with the fewest stops. Where she'd gotten the money was an entirely different story - she had, however, made absolutely certain to sneak every last penny back to where she'd taken it from afterward.
Soon enough, the Metamorph spotted Howard waiting by the trailhead where they'd agreed to meet.
Obviously, she'd never doubted he'd be there. Ever since they'd first met outside the library, they'd exchanged letters regularly and Novalie had loved every single one he had sent her. Whether the future tracker wrote about his day, his training, or whatever else crossed his brilliant dhampir mind, reading them was always a highlight of her day. They were completely on the same wavelength, she could feel it! And he was just so, so cool. How she wished he attended Hogwarts with her. The two of them would've had so much fun in class and outside together!
Alas, he was an adult and it at least had its advantages. Like now, he could take her on adventures like this.
Ah!! The redhead was so excited!! A broad grin spread across her face as she imagined the adventure awaiting her - a chance to see a real, living, fire-spitting dragon!
How many people ever got to do that?
She was so ready.
And, secretly, the girl wanted to take home the only right souvenir after the event: a scar.
That would be badass. Every one of her friends would stare at it in amazement and ask where she'd gotten it and she could proudly tell them that it had literally come from a dragon. No Metamorphmagus tricks involved.
More than anything though, she couldn't wait for the adrenaline rush. She wanted to know what it felt like to stand before one of the most dangerous creatures alive, to possibly be chased by it and to feel the encounter bleed into her skin!
Novalie had done a bit of research on the Welsh Green, of course. The moment she'd learned that they primarily preyed on sheep, she'd immediately known what to do.
Before walking over to Howard, she altered the appearance of her hair. Her long, fiery-red locks curled up, while their color gradually faded, transforming her hair into one enormous, fluffy cloud of yellowish-white poof.
Then, happily skipping the last few steps toward her friend, she came to a halt at his side, looked up at his pale face and announced her arrival like a sheep would do,
"Baa-a-a-a."
