Charlie woke to pale morning light slipping through the window. He rolled onto his side and opened his eyes.
The first thing he saw was a tiny figure standing on Alice's back, one small hand braced against the rabbit's fur for balance. She wore a dress woven from green leaves, her hair twisted up in a neat bun topped with a delicate white six-petaled flower. Her face was fine-boned, her body slender, and she was staring at him with wide, curious, slightly nervous eyes.
Charlie blinked hard. Then blinked again.
Am I still dreaming?
He drew in a slow breath and blew a sudden puff of air straight at her.
The little sprite yelped and darted behind Alice's shoulder, peeking out with only one eye visible.
Charlie let out a soft laugh. He sat up, reached over, and gently scooped her into his palm. She didn't struggle. She simply sat there, watching him with that same mix of curiosity and caution while he held her between both hands.
Her skin felt cool and impossibly smooth beneath his thumbs. He couldn't resist. He pressed his thumbs lightly against her cheeks and gave them the gentlest squeeze.
Her face squished adorably, cheeks puffing out, lips pushed into a tiny pout. She looked utterly bewildered, sitting perfectly still in his hands while he played with her face like it was the most natural thing in the world.
When he finally stopped, Charlie glanced around the sunlit dormitory to confirm everything was real.
Not a dream.
"What are you?" he asked, voice still rough with sleep.
"I'm not a thing," she said, sounding mildly offended. "I'm the strawberry flower's sprite."
Charlie stared. "You came out of that giant bud?"
She nodded quickly, eyes bright.
"Then why didn't you show up yesterday? When did you start following me?"
"I didn't follow you. I wanted to, but I couldn't keep up. Last night I—"
She launched into the story with sudden excitement, wings fluttering as she flew in small, erratic loops above his palm. She described the long climb down the stairs, the moving portraits that ignored her, the terrifying rat with glowing red eyes, clinging to Hermione's boot, the sweet smell that led her to Lely's shop, and how no one could see her no matter how hard she tried.
Charlie sat quietly on the bed, listening without interrupting. She used her whole body to tell the tale—hands flying, wings buzzing, face shifting from fear to anger to exhausted triumph.
Five minutes later she ran out of words. Her wings gave out mid-sentence and she dropped in a loose zigzag, landing on the blanket like a kite with cut strings.
"You okay?" Charlie leaned forward, concerned.
"Stomach… hurts… no strength…"
She flopped onto her back, one finger weakly pointing toward the window.
"Sun… not out yet…"
Early spring mornings in the mountains were wrapped in thick white mist. Sunlight usually didn't reach the castle properly until nine or ten.
Charlie thought for a moment, then swung his legs off the bed and crossed to his desk. He opened the drawer and pulled out a bottle of golden Sun Dew. Sitting back down, he uncorked it and coaxed a single glowing drop onto his fingertip with a flick of magic.
He held the drop in front of her.
"Want some?"
The answer was obvious. The moment he opened the bottle her eyes had gone huge and a thin line of drool appeared at the corner of her mouth. She nodded so fast her flower bobbed.
Charlie gave permission. She leaned in and drank the drop like it was the world's most delicious jelly. When it was gone she collapsed backward again, both hands patting her rounded stomach.
"Stomach… hurts…"
"Still hurts?"
"So full… hurts…"
Charlie rolled his eyes and sighed.
"I'm gonna… I'm gonna throw it up—" she warned.
"Don't do it on the bed."
"Throw it up at home," she said seriously.
Charlie paused. "Home meaning the flowerpot you were born from?"
She nodded.
"Alright. Stay right here and don't move. I'm going to wash up, then we'll go back."
He glanced at Anthony and Hector, still dead asleep.
"You should be careful. Try not to let anyone else see you. I have no idea how I'd explain where you came from."
She gave a dazed little nod, then wobbled over to Alice and flopped into the rabbit's fur like she'd just eaten an entire feast.
Charlie shook his head, grabbed his things, and headed for the bathroom.
In the mirror he rubbed his face hard.
What the hell. Grow a plant and get a tiny sprite for free?
And the little gremlin had apparently been wandering the castle all night without him noticing. Lucky nothing bad had happened.
Still… she'd found her way straight to him. That couldn't be coincidence.
He finished washing up quickly and returned to the dormitory just as Anthony was climbing out of bed.
"Charlie."
"Char~lie~" the sprite sang, zipping around his head like a bee that had found its favorite flower.
Anthony froze mid-step, staring at him. "You okay? You just… twitched really hard when you walked in."
"Char~lie~ good Char~lie~ let's go home~"
Charlie met Anthony's eyes without blinking. "You feel any flies in here?"
Anthony looked around. "No? Should I?"
"Never mind. Where are you headed?"
"Workshop. Gotta give that plant some Sun Dew before it dies on me."
Anthony nodded. "Cool. Hector and I'll grab breakfast without you then."
Charlie stepped aside to let him pass. Once the door closed he turned to the sprite still circling his head.
"Only I can see you, huh?"
"Seems like it," she said cheerfully.
He changed into fresh robes, then held out his hand. "Come here for now. Anthony might not see you, but someone else could."
She landed obediently in his palm and started humming in a sing-song voice. "O~kay~ An~thon~y~ Char~lie~ Hec~tor~"
Charlie carried her out of the tower. Halfway down the stairs he finally pulled her out of his robe with a deadpan look.
"You don't have a name, do you?"
"Name!" Her eyes lit up like he'd offered her another drop of Sun Dew.
"Yeah, I figured. Was that you hinting earlier?"
She tilted her head, clearly not understanding the word "hinting."
"Never mind. I was thinking Lily at first, but…" He shook his head, banishing the mental image of a certain red-haired witch. "How about Fiona?"
"Fiona?"
"Mm. From Fragum. Latin for strawberry. We'll use the root."
"Yay! Fiona~ Fiona~"
She launched into an excited little dance right there in his palm. Charlie couldn't help the small smile that tugged at his mouth.
By the time they reached the Room of Requirement she was still chanting her new name under her breath like a spell.
Charlie had tested her visibility on the way—pulling her out when students passed, holding her openly in his hand. No one reacted. Not even a glance.
So the sprite could stay hidden from everyone except him.
Inside the alchemy workshop, Fiona shot off his hand the second the door opened and flew straight to the flowerpot on the desk.
The thick central stem that had supported the giant bud was gone, reduced to gray flakes scattered around the soil. The rest of the plant looked tired but alive.
"I'm back," Fiona told the plant softly.
She hovered above it, palms outstretched. A wave of warm golden light rippled outward from her hands and washed over the leaves and stems.
The plant responded almost immediately. The leaves deepened to a richer green. The smaller stems straightened. Even the tired-looking flowers perked up.
Charlie pulled out his notebook and started writing without looking away.
Plant-nurturing talent. Needs further testing on other species.
Looks like I'm going to need a whole new notebook just for sprite-related discoveries.
He checked the time. Classes were about to start. He turned to Fiona, who was still floating above the plant looking pleased with herself.
"I have to go to class. You'll stay here for now, alright?"
She nodded, though her wings drooped a little.
Charlie pointed at the large clock on the wall. "When the shortest hand moves past three marks, I'll come back. Don't leave this room."
"Okay," she said quietly.
He raised his wand and gave it a gentle flick.
"Lumos."
A small, glowing light sprite drifted out of the tip and bobbed cheerfully in the air.
"You two can play together," he told Fiona with a small smile. "I'll see you later."
History of Magic was its usual slow crawl. Professor Binns droned on from the front of the room, half his ghostly body already sunk into the desk. Charlie's quill moved across the page, but the lines he drew had nothing to do with goblin rebellions.
He kept thinking about the tiny sprite waiting in the workshop.
When the bell finally rang he was the first one on his feet. Anthony and Hector exchanged a look as Charlie practically bolted for the door.
"Professor! Wait a moment!"
Binns, who had already started drifting through the wall, paused with half his head still inside the stone. "Oh. Mr… Charlie. Did you need something?"
It had been decades since any student voluntarily spoke to him after class.
"It's Wonka, Professor. My last name is Wonka. First name Charlie."
Binns pulled himself fully back into the room and tapped his own head. "Right. Forgive me. These old memories…"
The rest of the students filed out. Charlie nodded at Anthony and Hector to go ahead without him.
Once the classroom was empty, he turned back to the ghost.
"Professor, I've been wondering about something for a while. Before I came to the magical world I heard stories about dragons and witches and goblins. Since arriving I've seen all of those. But there's one thing I haven't seen yet. Do fairies exist here?"
Binns regarded him with ancient, cloudy eyes.
"Fairies," Charlie clarified. "The kind born from nature. Small sprites that live in fields and flowers. Pointed ears, little wings, human faces."
Binns was quiet for a long moment. Then he shook his head.
"I believe what you're describing is something Muggles invented after catching glimpses of Cornish pixies, goblins, or doxies. There are no true nature-born fairies of the sort you mean."
Charlie tried again. "Are there any small, helpful magical beings? Ones that aren't pests? Creatures that live alongside wizards and nature without causing trouble?"
The look Binns gave him was almost pitying.
"Mr. Wonka… nothing lives peacefully alongside wizards for long. If something were genuinely beneficial, it would already be under Ministry protection, the way dragons are. As for the fairies you describe—nymphs existed in ancient Greece, but they were gone long before my time. I have never heard of any small, helpful sprites the size of goblins that bring only good things."
Charlie nodded slowly, absorbing the answer.
So according to the oldest ghost at Hogwarts, creatures like Fiona simply didn't exist in recorded history.
Which meant either she was something entirely new…
Or she had been forgotten for a very, very long time.