I wrote this story a while ago, but I only managed to finish it just now.
Just to let you know: I've been working on my longer stories, but I want to finish Yours in Sickness first, can't seem to write the second chapter of To be, or not to be (though I finished the third :/ ) and I've absolutely nothing for Unbreakable Ties...
Summary:After defeating Voldemort, a lot of students went back to Hogwarts to finish their education. Most graduated. Two words said by Harry meant for Draco Malfoy suddenly change everything anyone thought they knew about them.
Disclaimer: not mine.
Warnings: ooc-ness, not to be taken serious...
Enjoy!
The Bet
It was the end of their seventh year. Voldemort had been defeated just a year ago and he, Hermione, Ron and all the other students who had missed a year had been asked – more like forced – to finish their schooling so they could become useful members of their society.
And that was why he was standing on the stage during their graduation ceremony while the other graduating students were all seated were the teachers were normally sitting during meals. Only for today were the teachers sitting where the students were normally seated. They had been joined by the parents and other family members.
It was considered an honour to stand on the headmaster's – or headmistress' – spot during graduation but he would've liked to be seated with the rest. He didn't have the highest marks. That honour went to Hermione. But he was the most popular and well-known individual in the school.
"I would like to start my speech with the fact that it shouldn't be me standing here. That honour should go to my good friend Hermione Granger who has managed to gain the highest marks and the most NEWT's of our year," he started with a grin as he turned towards the mentioned girl, "I'm just the guy with the pretty face and the famous name."
He saw most of the people laugh at his remark and some of the Gryffindor girls catcalled.
He turned serious not soon after, "nor should it be just the small amount of students you see here."
People shared glances and he could see smiles slip away.
"Before I continue I would like a moment to remember those who should have been here but aren't due to Battle of Hogwarts," he stated almost harshly.
A respectful silence fell as even those Slytherins who had fought on Voldemort's side stayed silent.
"Thank you," he disturbed the quite after a little over a minute.
"All of us here have managed to gain our NEWT's," he said, "all of us are therefor finished with our education. Though, some may not agree with that statement."
He could see some Ravenclaws and Hermione nod in agreement.
"Most of us have our teachers to thank for the fact that we have graduated," he continued, "others have to thank their friends. I fall under the last category myself."
Hermione blushed at his words as everyone in the know turned towards her but it was clear to him that she was pleased with his words.
"Before we leave this hall to celebrate the fact that we have graduated and drink ourselves into a stupor there is one thing I would like to say," he said and a mischievous smile appeared on his face as he turned towards Draco Malfoy.
Everyone looked surprised at his next words, "I win."
He could almost feel the confusion come from both the other students in front of him and the teachers and parents but his entire attention was on the grey eyed Slytherin.
Malfoy appeared almost as confused as the rest but he had always been a bad actor and he couldn't quite hide his annoyance or the fact that he wasn't confused or surprised at all.
"Thank you for your attention," he finished his speech and with an exaggerated bow he left his place and sat down next to his friends.
The silence that had fallen was soon broken by the soft, murmured conversations as teachers and students alike tried to guess why had said what he had said before he had finished his speech.
It wasn't long after that one of the students – Ron to be exact – finally thought to ask softly, "you won?"
"We had a bet going," he stated nonchalantly but he couldn't quite hide the smugness, "I won, he lost. I'll explain what I meant later this evening if you are still sober enough."
His friends studied him briefly before they nodded.
oOo
"A more in-depth explanation would be nice, Potter," Malfoy Senior stated as soon as he had reached their small circle consisting of Hermione, Ron, Seamus, Neville, Dean, Ginny and her current boyfriend. His son and wife stood behind him and they were closely followed by the Greengrass family. Their own families were standing nearby but far enough away that they couldn't hear their conversation.
"Why don't you explain, Dray-Dray?" Harry asked with a razor-sharp smirk as he turned towards the Malfoy Lord, "seeing as how you have lost."
The nickname – which had caused some snorts and amused sniggers from his friends – was close enough to the name he carried on the moment that nobody would wonder about it.
"I hate that name, you fis a putain!" the blonde grumbled as he slumped down in one of the chairs near the table they had been standing at, "why did I even accept that bet? Blasted Silvertongue."
"You love me," he stated with a seemingly genuine hurt look," you know you do!"
The other snorted and opened his mouth to retort but the clearing of a throat made him close it and sigh.
"All right," he stated with a sigh, "all right."
He stood and walked until he stood next to him.
"A couple of years ago we had a fight about something – no clue what it was about – which somehow ended in a bet," he told them somewhat defeated, "we would walk in each other's shoes and the best actor – he who wouldn't do something the other wouldn't do – would win."
He glared at his smirking companion.
"I still do not know why I took the bet as the scullion next to me has ages of experience in acting," he snarled, clearly angry at himself.
"What do you mean 'a couple of years ago'?" Hermione asked with confusion in her voice, "how could you have made a bet a couple of years ago without anyone knowing?"
The dark haired wizard cleared his throat, "he means almost twenty years ago."
"Neither of you is twenty," Greengrass pointed out, "so either the two of you have been hit with a spell or you are not who you say you are."
"Five points to Slytherin!" the green eyed teen said with a smirk. To everyone's surprise the soft tinging of the stones representing the housepoints could be heard even from their spot.
Suddenly wands were drawn and pointed towards the duo. Much to the surprise of those present it was the blonde-haired wizard who drew his wand and not the black haired hero – the one everyone would have believed to draw his weapon.
"Don't do anything rash," the hero of the wizarding world drawled, "rule number one of diplomacy: never act before you know all the facts."
The blonde growled out a bunch of unrecognizable words in an unknown language but it was clear to everyone that he had just insulted his companion if the smirk on the other's face was anything to go by.
A spell was fired towards the black haired teen courtesy of one Lucius Malfoy but he just shifted sideward, "rule number two: never assume an enemy is harmless even if he or she is unarmed."
A small fireball appeared in his left hand and he slowly raised it before he snuffed it out.
"So you have to use that same trick time and again?" the blonde asked with a roll of his eyes.
"Why of course my dear brother," he taunted lightly, "why should I change something about myself if it works?"
It was clear to everyone present that it was a quote.
"Why you!" the grey eyed teen exclaimed.
"I demand to know who you are!" a voice interrupted their bantering. Both turned towards the speaker – Malfoy senior – before they shared glances.
"Aw, no guessing?" the green eyed hero asked, "Hermione, why don't you indulge me? See if you can deduce who we're."
The girl searched his eyes briefly before she nodded.
"Malfoy mentioned that the two of you would walk in each other's shoes," she started slowly, "so that would mean that you would be a Slytherin and he a Gryffindor. So you would be cunning, ambitious, traditionalistic, resourceful, determined, clever and powerful and you would have leadership qualities and a strong sense of self-preservation and you would want to be a part of the group. He, on the other hand, would be brave, have nerves, be chivalrous, courageous, daring and strong of will."
"Besides that he called you a 'scullion' and 'Silvertongue'," she continued, "a scullion is a term for the lowest male servant. For him to use it as an invective means that you're supposed to be insulted by it. Therefor both of you are of a higher class."
"The job has fallen out of use after the Renaissance so you are at least from before that," she said pensively, "Silvertongue was the title the Norse god Loki had gained, but so did Salazar Slytherin, Morgana la Fey and a lot of other people."
The blonde clapped slowly as he snarked, "well done. You have him all figured out."
"Don't be hasty," the other said easily," she isn't done yet."
"The two of you are brothers," she stated surely before she hesitantly said, "and you are a fire elemental and a diplomat."
She turned towards the blonde, "you on the other hand are rash and not used to acting. You can act well enough that people aren't too suspicious, but not well enough and sometimes you forget your act. You're also used to fighting and winning and being the centre of attention."
Hermione studied them both briefly before she added, "Harry, you gave points to Slytherin so you are connected to the school."
"Everything together would make the two of you powerful wizards raised together in a time where being insulted with your class was normal," she concluded, "add that you are connected to the school I would say that you used to be teachers here once upon a time."
"And our names?" the green eyed teen asked.
"I- I don't know," she finally admitted.
"Anyone else wants to add something?"
"Fis a putain means 'son of a bitch'," one of the Greengrass parents offered, much to the shock and amusement of the students present.
"And what does that tell you?" the dark haired hero wanted to know.
"I don't care what it means," Malfoy senior suddenly growled out, "I want to know who has been masquerading as my son all this time!"
"If that's what you want," the blonde said with a sigh before he bowed theatrically, "Godric Gryffindor, at your service. Next to me is the ever changing Salazar Slytherin."
"Or Thor Odinson and Loki Laufeyson," the green eyed teen added with a smirk, "Laufey being my mother, not my father."
Everyone gaped at them.
"Ho-," Lucius managed, "why?"
"How? Easy, we are fully trained wizards and a de-aging charm or potion isn't that hard," Salazar said with an elegant shrug, "and why? Well, Godric or Thor here claimed that being me wasn't hard so I challenged him to try. And with that I didn't only mean: acting like a self-obsessed, rich person with daddy-issues. I meant the complete 'everyone-thinks-you-are-evil-because-of-your-name-or-because-you-prefer-magic-over-swords' thing."
He smirked at the other, "and he failed, spectacularly."
"I did not!" Godric exclaimed, "you almost lost in the beginning with your flying and your parseltongue!"
"Did I truly?" Loki asked with a raised eyebrow, "I do carry the title 'Skywalker' if you remember and Albus was completely convinced that I had a part of that idiotic Dark Lord in me so it was only logical that I would be capable of speaking parseltongue."
"Is that how you survived the Killing Curse when your pa- Lily and James were killed? Because you are a god?" Arthur asked softly from behind them. Everyone whirled around to see their parents standing behind them.
Thor and Loki exchanged looks at the seriously asked question before they burst out in laughter.
"We aren't gods," Salazar finally managed to say while Godric was still laughing his head off, "we were normal wizards, born somewhere around what you would now consider to be 550 BC. I was working on a potion – though you wouldn't see that as making a potion nowadays – when that idiot came storming in holding some kind of plant. He managed to stumble over something and – surprise, surprise – the plant he had in hand went flying. You can guess where it ended up in."
"Your cauldron," Neville stated wryly.
"Cooking pot, but yes," Godric said through his tears.
"Yes, thank you Goatboy," Loki said with a roll of his eyes, "anyway, the potion exploded, we were covered in it and something in our very make up – what you would call DNA nowadays – changed."
"And now we are immortal gods who go around destroying peoples and cities and who abduct maidens and give birth to monsters," Thor said with a grin, "it's great fun!"
A loud thud of a body hitting the floor signalled the fainting of Lucius Malfoy.
"Was it something I said?" Godric asked surprised.
Fis a putain = trickster/ liar (it also means 'son of a bitch' or 'son of a whore' but I'm going with trickster).
I hope you enjoyed this story!
Reviews are appreciated.
~Marwana