Inadvertent Adventure
Chapter one
Cue Dramatic Entrance
Again the halls of Hogwarts began to fill with the bustle of students shuffling in to the Great Hall. The same excited chatter rang throughout, as well as the hushed rumors of the disappearance of the Boy-Who-Lived. Still they were no more than hushed rumors, only expounded upon by his curious absence from the Hall and from the sides of Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley, his ever present companions, who looked no more indifferent than everyone else, with traces of concern spring up with every mention of his name.
Rumors were abound within the Wizarding world, as his pictures seemed to pop up in tabloids and even respected publications, though they only produced blurred pictures and possible accounts of his whereabouts. His name seemed to spring from all over the world, some attached with outrageous claims, and others sounding exactly like something Harry Potter would do. He would be many places at once, rescuing kittens and young maidens, saving lives and raising the dead. Even accounts of eating lunch with the Prince of Japan and tea with the Dalai Lama. It seemed to be the new trend of wondering where his name would appear next.
The head table which seated the teachers and professors seemed unconcerned and chatted amongst themselves. Professor Snape looked as out of place as usual, preferring to sip his wine until the feast began. Hagrid himself seemed unconcerned and even cheerful as he drank from his goblet; which seemed to ease many fears as his emotions were so easy to read, and his closeness with Harry unquestionable. Headmaster Dumbledore silenced the students with a wave and the grand double doors opened.
Led by Professor McGonagall, wide-eyed first years scuttled along, feeling the eyes of every student upon them. Some were confident as the sight of it all seemed nothing more than familiar, where as others, muggleborns and such, could not stop looking around. Their small eyes were desperate to inhale the fascinating surroundings of their new world.
"I will place the sorting hat on your head, you will be sorted into your houses and you may take you place among them."
From a scroll of parchment, Professor McGonagall read off the names and the Hat would do its business. Roaring applause went up from House Ravenclaw when the first of them was sorted into their house. Simply an old superstition that meant they would win one of the cups at the end of the year. Each house applauded for each new member of their house, and welcomed them with open arms, much to the relief of the young first years.
With the last one going to House Gryffindor, Dumbledore stood up from his seat, quieting the Hall for his announcements.
"Welcome to another fine year at Hogwarts. Simply a few announcements before we begin. Firstly the Forbidden Forest is off limits to all students. Second, Mr. Filch, our caretaker has informed me that the list of forbidden items, found on his office door, has grown to include all Weasley products, as amusing as they all are."
This stifled a round of laughs from everyone, recalling the antics of the twins.
"I would also like to welcome back Professor Remus Lupin. He has kindly retaken his position as our Defense against the Dark Arts teacher."
The handsome professor stood up slowly and waved rousing another round of applause.
"And lastly-."
He paused in mid sentence and looked up to the ceiling. The floating candles flickered and the night sky faded away. Every face in the hall turned their eyes skyward to see what had stopped the Headmaster.
From above, muffled sounds could be heard. Two sounds to be precise. One the sound of an animal, and the other a person, seemingly struggling with it. The sound began to shift around darting around the castle, but still loud enough to be heard. Then suddenly the sounds grew their loudest and with a crash, tiles, stone came crashing down. A black indistinguishable mass tumbled between it all, crying out in surprise.
With the spreading of his palms Dumbledore quickly spread the tables apart, the students now shaken from their shock at being moved. Voices now cried out from being moved and now at the sight of the roof crashing down. And again with a casual raise of his hand, Dumbledore cushioned the fall, containing the stones and the man within a sphere of safety.
Slowly the person rose up, stretching his back and dusting himself off before raising his face. Gasps resounded as Harry Potter pushed his glasses upon his nose. He gasped himself when he realized just exactly where he was. His jet black clothes and robes contrasted highly with the robes of his professors and schoolmates. He had felt out of place ever since his had attended school, but now it seemed ridiculously more so than ever.
He turned about trying to get his bearings, finding his friends and nodding before turning to the head table, where all of the teachers were on their feet, all eyes upon him. He cracked a grin and ran a hand through his unruly hair.
"This looks kinda weird…but there's an explanation for it I swear and…I'm not in trouble am I?"
He gave a hopeful look up to Dumbledore who had the same serene smile he had had on since the day began.
A small few pieces of stone began to fall and rustle from the roof before Dumbledore could answer and from the gaping hole, appeared the head of a dragon, much smaller than anyone had seen at the Tri-Wizard Tournament, but shocking nonetheless.
It snorted a bit of smoke and Harry glared up at it.
"That wasn't funny you know! You could've gotten me killed you son of a-."
Harry managed to stop himself once he realized again where he was and looked back up at the head table.
"Uh…crap…"
TBC
A/N: Well here it is, one of "on break" pieces. I really am trying to work on "Of Kings And Commoners". I am making some progress, albeit slow, but some. I've had to rewrite the next chapter completely. This story is just a side project. As such I really have no idea where it will be going. Only a vague inkling. Actually that's how I see OKAC. So I guess I can only see this one as like a More Vague Inkling. But I do have an idea. This is just supposed to be an adventure/humor piece. I've been taking ships WAY to seriously and needed a break not only from the WAFF and FLUFF but from serious writing in general. If kings and commoners is an assignment, than this is just for fun. You know I'll probably end up updating this story more than kings and commoners…not likely though. Still I hope to have fun with this piece and I hope whoever reads this will enjoy the ride, however long that may be. I don't take criticism well, even constructive ones. But I'll enjoy any feedback that isn't negative. Hence why it's called negative. Negative = Bad. I'm rambling. Sorry. And if I'm on your author alert I'm sorry that this isn't the latest of kings and commoners. Like I've been preaching, read Jamie Wilde's fics "Chasing the Wind" and "Saotome Gambit"