Maisy Wigglington
July 06, 2024 4:00 AM
Puffskeins- Beginners by Maisy Wigglington
Magnus yowled from the supply closet that Maisy had shoved him in before class. She hadn’t had time to run him back to her rooms, but she hadn’t expected the troublesome kneazle to try to eat her curriculum, either. He’d been doing better lately, normally snoozing on her desk as she taught or strolling amongst the students, monitoring as they took a test. He was starting to grow out of his kitten-hood, and becoming more mature, or so she’d thought. The moment Magnus had laid eyes on the ball of fluff sitting on her desk, he’d pounced, and Maisy had been forced to tackle him to keep from traumatizing a bunch of first- and second- years with a half-eaten puffskein. Not to mention the fallout from her beast supplier if she allowed Magnus to maul any of the animals she brought in. She’d rather have him pissed off in the closet than ruin her job. Which he was. Loudly.“Ignore him,” she instructed the students as they filed in, “He’s just mad at me. Take your seats.”
Puffskeins were not an incredibly exciting animal, but she tried to build some simpler lessons into her class throughout the term, both to give her students a break and to give herself a chance to catch up on grading.
Once all her students were seated and mostly quiet, Maisy picked up the puffskein, noticing with a little guilt that it trembled in her arms. She scratched behind its ears, a silent apology for her rottenly behaved half-kneazle.
“This is Heidi, and you guys should recognize what she is, if you’ve done your reading,” she raised an eyebrow at her less-studious students, “But just in case you’ve been too busy, she’s a puffskein, and she’s one of the more popular magical creatures to have as a pet. If you’ve grown up in the muggle world, she’s basically a really fluffy guinea pig.” Maisy winced at a particularly loud crash from her supply closet.
“Magnus is not a fan,” she acknowledged, “But normally they get along with all manner of other beasts. Does anyone have one of these at home? And how do you take care of it?”
She allowed enough time for a few hands to pop up and a few explanations to be made. She set Heidi down on the nearest student’s desk, addressing the whole class.
“For five points, who can tell me how large puffskeins grow, and based on that, how old you think Heidi is?”
Before she could gather any answers, the door of her supply closet burst open, a tumble of odds and ends exploding into the classroom. Magnus was a flash of orange as he barreled towards the puffskein. Maisy bit back a distinctly unprofessional torrent of curse words, snatching Magnus up by the scruff of his neck mid-leap. He struggled against her grip, clawing out at her arms.
“I should’ve named you Menace,” Maisy growled, holding him as far away from herself as she could as he battled for his freedom. So much for an easy class. She weighed her options.
“Gently, but quickly, put Heidi back in her crate,” she told her students, “It’s the blue one in the corner. Make sure the door is secure.”
Once Heidi was safely put away, Maisy set Magnus on her desk, pinning him with one hand so he couldn’t go bother the poor little puffskein. She fished his harness out of her desk drawer, slipping the loop over his head before snapping the buckle behind his shoulders.
“I’m sort of glad this happened,” she said as she wrangled Magnus, “It’s a good reminder that the creatures we study can be dangerous, even those that are pets.”
She held Magnus on her desk by the handle on the back of his harness, noting the numerous scratches weeping red down her arms. She’d have to grab some antibacterial ointment from the hospital wing after class. The half-kneazle sat calmly like he hadn’t been a wild ball of fur just moments before. He stared at Maisy with gold-green eyes. His spot. Heidi had been in his spot.
“Kneazles are known to be fiercely loyal. I suspect Magnus saw Heidi as a threat to his status as my pet, which he has made clear will not stand.”
“When you take care of creatures,” Maisy went on, “It is your responsibility to not only understand their nature but respect it. I failed Magnus today. I was inconsiderate and impatient. These marks,” she held up her arm, showing her students the already-scabbing scratches, “Are my own fault. I forgot what Magnus was, and expected behavior from him that is anti-Magnus. It was foolish, and now these marks are a reminder of what can happen when I become complacent.”
It was not a mistake she’d thought she would ever make again. That was why she’d had to leave the field in the first place. Dragons were far less forgiving than Kneazles and far more deadly.
“In lieu of our planned lesson, I’d like you to pair off in twos or threes and talk about one aspect of safety that we’ve gone over so far this year, whether it’s protective gear or nonthreatening behaviors or something specific to a creature, such as bowing to hippogriffs. We’ll do that for about fifteen minutes, and then we’ll present your discussions to the class and write them all on the board to remain for the rest of the semester. If you have any questions, raise your hand and I’ll come over.”
Maisy made sure her students were on task before turning her attention back to Magnus. Those gold-green eyes narrowed at her. She held out her hand, palm up, letting Magnus sniff her before scratching his chin.
“Sorry, buddy,” she whispered, “You’re not a menace. You’re you.”
Magnus rubbed his cheek down her palm in what might have seemed like a snuggle, marking her with his scent glands. To keep others away. Maisy nodded.
"I'll get another table," she told him, "You can keep the desk."
Subthreads:
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Maisy Wigglington
Puffskeins- Beginners
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