Everybody Loves Leprechauns
Chapter 1. : Somewhere Past Next Tuesday
AN: I realize Pod is the name of the dad is the book "The borrowers", but I didn't remember this until after Pod came to me in the night and demanded to be a character, so..... take it up with him. Anyway, I am going to expect a review for every hit to this story, so flex your fingers while you read, ready to type. No copyright infringement on J.K's stuff is intended, because everything except the plot, Tik, Pod, and Gar
is hers. Oh, by the way, Don't flame my timeline, it's always going to be
messed up. Subtitle and title credited Verbum.
Tik sighed and trudged along behind the stern witch. A few of his fellow first-years could be heard sniffling behind him. Under normal circumstances he would have been interested in studying his famous new school, as the walls
were adorned with many fascinating tapestries and paintings. Instead, something, or
rather someone, dampened his mood considerably.
"R'lly, th' should put a centr'l heating system in, 'm freezing my nose off here, laddy!" came a familiar voice. Professor McGonagall, the stern witch,
spun around and scanned the group, her eyes searching for the bold child that dared to speak. The whimpering students cowered under her glare, for she was obviously in a foul disposition.
Understandable, in this freezing weather. Tik lowered his eyes, hoping he wouldn't be spotted. The
real perpetrator let out a tinkling laugh. "Sh's a strict one, that one is. Put a slow on m' tricks, sh' will!" Tik tried to turn his head to look at the speaker, a difficult feat
since he was standing on Tik's own shoulder. "Oh, don't worry, m' lad. Sh' can't hear me n' more." Tik just rolled his violet eyes and
resumed followed his new teacher. Pod, for that was the talker's name, could make himself heard or not heard, depending on his mood.
His comments often got Tik into trouble, and it didn't help that he was only visible to Tik's eye.
Tik had known Pod since he was born, since Pod was his father. Pod was a leprechaun, making Tik half-leprechaun, half-human. And not the kind of leprechaun you can sometimes see around, the kind
who has gold that disappears in a few hours,
who are shout and stout and wear little green hats. The true leprechauns, the Little Folk, are the real natives of Ireland, and have real gold. In fact,
even today, if someone's got quite a bit of money in Ireland, an old gaffer might proclaim, "That's a
righ' Leprechaun's stash, th't is," referring to the true leprechauns' legendary fortunes.
Also, true leprechauns really don't look much like the false
ones. They are short, yes, about eight inches for a full-grown
male, but they are thin, and have green hair, purple eyes, pointed ears, a long, pointed nose, and squarish features. Pod was the perfect example of a true leprechaun, for he had the customary green fringe around his bald spot, startling violet eyes, a square face with a pointed chin, long nose, pointed ears, a
mischievous gleam in his eye, and a favorite piece of clothing. He was never seen without his
strange red hat,
which consisted of a flat brim that circled a pointed tower with a windmill-shaped spin on top that shot sparkles into the air when he played a prank. Tik didn't know where he got it from, and he didn't want to
ask.
Anyway, because there is such a large difference between human and leprechaun heights, Tik ended up being four feet, three inches and unlikely to grow more than an inch taller, making him the shortest of the first years, and
definitely shorter than everyone else. His pointed nose, squarish (though not as square as Pod's) face, slightly pointed ears, and bright purple eyes set him apart, too. He was thankful he at least had red hair, instead of
green. Who knows what the Slytherins would do to a green-haired Gryffindor.
Gryffindor, Tik knew, he was sure to be, because back when Hogwarts
first started and for about two hundred years later, true leprechauns actually
attended it, and all of his bloodline had been Gryffindors. As leprechauns
are immortal unless killed, he still heard stories of Hogwarts pranks by
graduates of the British school.
Suddenly, Tik was startled out of his thoughts by a herd of ghosts
floating through the wall. McGonagall had already left, and was returning
now to usher the children into the Great Hall. As Tik entered, an
overwhelming feeling of awe swept through him. The ceiling was amazing; a
perfect picture of the sky outside. He was awestruck even after his relatives stories, for until you saw the ceiling itself,
you would tell yourself unconsciously that of course it wouldn't really
look like the sky, there would be something different, it couldn't be that
realistic. Tik shivered, just looking at the freezing moon above his
head. He only listened to the sorting song with half and ear, not
interested. He probably looked odd, standing there, staring at the ceiling in
the middle of the sorting ceremony, but he couldn't tear his eyes away from
it. Until he heard his name, that is.
"Scruff, Jonathan Tik!"
"Get a'movin', lad! Don't stand there like a
tree, get a'movin'!" Pod yelled cheerfully. Tik winced, then
noticed no one had heard. He remembered himself, and walked to the ragged
hat perched on a three-legged stool. He sat, pulling the hat down over his
ears. As he stared into the blackness of the inside lining, a voice
began to speak, and Tik sighed, exasperated. Then he realized it wasn't
Pod, but the hat. His ears burned red.
"Well, well, well..... two of you. I'm
sorting you, Tik. What's Pod doing here? You're too old Pod!"
A creaky old voice, bursting with laughter, came from Tik's
left shoulder, and Tik groaned, recognizing it. "Too old, eh? Well, wh't's too
old? Y're no spring chicken y'rself, Pug!" It was Gar, Tik's
great-great-great-grandfather. Tik assumed he must have just arrived. Gar was one of those who had gone to Hogwarts in the
beginning. Much to Tik's chagrin, he had christened the Sorting Hat 'Pug'
in his first year. Remembering this, the Sorting Hat laughed.
"Three of you, now? What am I to do, what am I to
do...." 'Pug' laughed again. "Well, Gar's already been sorted
and graduated, Pod's
too old, so Tik's the only one left, and he's easy..... just remember Tik,
don't anger the Gar."
"GRYFFINDOR!"
As he walked to the cheering Gryffindor table, Tik grinned in spite of himself. 'Don't anger the Gar' was actually one of the laws of the leprechauns. Gar didn't get mad often, but when he did, you didn't want to be on the same world. Atlantis fell when Gar got mad at the age of three days.
AN: That's all for now, sorry it's so short. I'll have the next bit up in a few days. Or maybe I won't, if I don't get reviews!