Chapter Three — Pretty Little Psycho
A/N : Generally no ships in this fic except for the canon HP ships. Normal stuff.
I apologise once again, I was lazy and basically took a large chunk of the DADA lesson, edited a bit of the dialogue and added Kaneki in
Frick I just reread some of the scenes and now I'm cringing.
It was a relief that he wasn't actually expected to do anything except to sit and survey the students. Immensely boring, sure, but he had picked up Hogwarts: A History from the library so he could understand the history of magic better, and was now completely immersed in the book. Ah, the joy of reading.
However, he did notice something off. First of all, Kaneki was quite sure Dolores Umbridge had to be a joke. He'd privately asked Dumbledore about it, and got the vague story—the Ministry throwing a hissy fit and all. Really, he thought to himself, They should be mature enough to know the warning signs.
Secondly, Umbridge was one of those strictly disciplined and good lap-dog kind of teacher, only seeking the recognition and favour she would get from the Ministry. When she had said, "Wands away," he suspected something was up. Judging from other classes he'd previewed and the gloomy and shocked looks on the students' faces was enough to tell him that this was not a daily occurrence. Didn't the point of defending oneself against dark arts stemmed from basic wand magic? He found it silly that Umbridge, or rather, the Ministry thought a theory-based education would keep them in check. That was just looking for rebellion.
When Umbridge had ordered the class to start reading Chapter One of Defence Magical Theory, Kaneki noted, with a certain degree of amusement, that Hermione (he was trying to get the names of Harry's friends and acquaintances) had not opened her textbook and was resolutely sitting straight with her hand in the air. Umbridge was looking just as resolutely the other way, refusing to acknowledge the question.
Kaneki smiled behind his coffee cup as people started looking at Hermione instead of their books. He turned towards the pink woman, "Professor Umbridge," he stated softly. "Ms. Granger has a question."
Hermione sent him a surprised look, as did Ron and Harry. It was one of the first times that a teacher had sided with the students.
There was no way Umbridge could ignore the situation.
"Did you want to ask something about the chapter, dear?" She asked, as if just noticing Hermione.
"Not about the chapter, no," said Hermione.
"Well, we're reading just now," said Umbridge. "If you have any other queries, you can ask them at the end of the class."
"I've got a question about your course aims," said Hermione. By now, the entire class had stopped futilely attempting to read the book, and was staring at them, fascinated.
Professor Umbridge raised an eyebrow. "And your name is?"
"Hermione Granger."
"Well, Miss Granger, I think the course aims are perfectly clear if you read them through carefully," Umbridge said with sickly sweetness.
This was going to be interesting.
—
Harry watched Hermione. "Well, I don't." She said bluntly. "There's nothing up there about using defensive spells."
There was a short silence where many members of the class turned their heads to frown at the three course aims written on the blackboard.
"Using defensive spells?" Professor Umbridge repeated with a little laugh. "Why, I can't imagine any situation arising in my classroom that would require you to use a defensive spell, Miss Granger. You surely aren't expecting to be attacked during class?"
Harry saw Kaneki rubbing his forehead in the background.
"We're not going to use magic?" Ron exclaimed loudly.
"Students raise their hands when they wish to speak in my class, Mr.—?"
"Weasley," said Ron, thrusting his hand into the air.
Professor Umbridge turned her back on him. Harry and Hermione immediately raised their hands too. The brightly dressed professor's gaze lingered on Harry for a while before she addressed Hermione.
"Yes, Miss Granger? You wanted to ask something else?"
"Yes." Hermione answered. "Surely the whole point of Defence Against the Dark Arts is to practise defensive spells?"
"Are you a Ministry-trained educational expert, Miss Granger?"
Harry saw Kaneki closing the book he'd been reading.
"No, but—"
"But I am." Kaneki stated. Professor Umbridge whirled around to face the white-haired boy.
"Mr. Kaneki, I have not seen your name listed in the Ministry officials."
"I am part of the Japanese Ministry." Kaneki said stiffly, meeting her gaze evenly.
"Well then, I'm afraid you cannot interfere with my class. We will be learning defensive spells theory-wise—"
"What use is that? If we're attacked, we—" Harry blurted, furious.
"The point of being a teacher assistant is to aid in creating a better learning environment," Kaneki cut in smoothly, shooting Harry a look that told him to drop it. "And I do not agree with your new programme of study."
Before Umbridge could reply, Dean was speaking. "Harry's right, if we're going to be attacked, it won't be risk free,"
"I repeat," said Umbridge, "Do you expect to get attacked during classes?"
"Excuse me, Professor." Kaneki spoke up again. "But there are many other dangerous creatures. Take Tokyo for example. Humans coexist with a deadly sort of creature called ghouls. They feast on human flesh to survive, and they possess superhuman abilities. They are responsible for most of the human deaths in Japan. If you were not properly defended, you would die for sure." Kaneki fixed his unwavering single eye on Umbridge. "Learning the theory is not enough. Putting it in practise will help refine spell casting ability."
"Mr. Kaneki, this is not Tokyo—"
"Ghouls are not the only danger."
"And what good's theory going to be in the real world?" Harry said loudly.
"This is school, not the real world." Umbridge uttered softly.
"The purpose of school is to prepare students for the real world." Kaneki said just as softly.
"There is nothing out there in the real world—"
"Oh yeah?" Harry retorted. His temper, which had been boiling under the surface for the entire day, now reached its point. "How about Voldemort?"
"Ten points from Gryffindor, Mr. Potter."
"Ten points to Gryffindor, Mr. Potter, for your wonderful insight and excellent precautionary." Kaneki interjected, and faced Umbridge. "Mr. Potter raises a valid point. And whether or not Lord Voldemort exists or not is not the only point of this lesson."
Umbridge ignored him. "As I was saying, you have been informed that a certain Dark wizard is at large again. That is a LIE."
Harry opened his mouth, ready to shout, when he caught Kaneki shaking his head, a finger against his ghastly mask. Harry's mouth snapped shut of its own accord.
Umbridge inhaled and exhaled. "The Ministry of Magic guarantees that you are not in danger from any Dark wizards. If you are still worried, by all means come and see me outside class hours. If someone is alarming you with fibs about Dark wizards, I would like to hear about it. I am here to help. I am your friend. And now you will kindly continue your reading. Page five, 'Basics for Beginners'."
The rest of class was silent, until it was time for the next lesson. Harry, Ron and Hermione had just left the classroom with Harry still silently fuming when Kaneki appeared.
"Thank you for defending me just now, Professor Kaneki," Harry said. He had no idea why someone like Kaneki would help him out, but it was better to make allies than enemies.
Kaneki brushed it away. "Call me Kaneki. I am no professor."
"But—"
"I do not expect thanks. I was merely saying my piece. However, I do hope you will be more careful in the future. Misbehaviour in Professor Umbridge's class will cost you more than just detention and lost house points."
"What do you mean?" Harry demanded.
Kaneki sighed. "It's time for your next lesson. You can find me in the Astronomy Tower if you require assistance."
With that, he melted into the shadows as if he had never been there.
—
Kaneki appeared in Dumbledore's office."Did you call me for a reason, Headmaster?" Kaneki bowed in greeting.
"I have informed Arima of your current status." said Dumbldore.
Kaneki almost stumbled.
"He decided that you can continue your job, however someone else will come and help you."
Kaneki didn't like the sound of that.
The door to the office opened, and Kaneki found himself facing Ayato Kirishima, brother of Touka.
Ayato was clearly just as shocked. "Eyepatch…? What…"
Kaneki stared at Dumbledore, then shook his head. "He's even more likely to slip than I am."
"Who are you—"
"Ayato!" Kaneki snapped, nerves frayed. He cracked his knuckle. "Do you want a repeat episode of what happened last time?"
Ayato paled, then grew furious again. "No, you shut up, you fu—"
"Boys." Dumbledore said placidly.
"You can't help me, Ayato."
"I don't even know why I'm here!"
"Dumbledore, contact Arima to get him out of here. Touka will have my skin if anything happens with the doddering idiot."
"Arima? Doddering idiot?!"
"Slow down." Dumbledore held up a hand for silence.
Ayato scoffed at him. "Who are you, old man?"
"What has Arima told you?"
"Arima?" Ayato lookes surprised. "He only told me to 'finish my mission' and 'help Kaneki out'."
"Has he told you anything about magic?"
"No. What's magic got to do with this?"
Kaneki blinked. "It's got to do with everything."
—
The jumble of whispers seemed louder than ever, and Harry could tell that not all of the commotion was because of his lesson with Umbridge. Students were openly staring at the figure standing in front of the staff table—an eighteen-ish year old boy, with dark purple hair and a mask, like Kaneki. Speaking of which, they seemed to be arguing heatedly…or rather, the new boy was waving his arms to emphasise his points, while Kaneki calmly rebutted.
"They look like they know each other very well." Harry said.
"Mhm."
As Harry walked past the feasting tables, he caught the mutters and gossip.
"He says he saw Cedric Diggory get murdered…"
"He reckons he duelled with You-Know-Who…"
"Come off of it…"
"Who does he think he's kidding?"
"Pur-lease…"
Harry tried his best ignoring them. "What I don't get," he said, pulling the bench open for them to slide through, "Is why they seemed to believe Dumbledore when he announced it two months ago."
"The thing is, Harry," Hermione said grimly, "I'm not sure they actually did." She glanced at Dumbledore as he raised a hand for silence. The whispers took longer than usual to quiet down.
"Before we start our meal taking," Dumbledore started, "I would like to introduce a new transfer student from Tokyo's Aogiri Tree Academy, Mr. Ayato Kirishima. He will be joining seventh year." He gestured the purple haired boy to the stool, where the Sorting Hat sat in all of its tattered glory.
McGonagall placed the Hat on Ayato's head. When nothing happened for a few minutes, the whispers started to grow, only to be silenced by McGonagall's harsh glare.
Finally, the Hat shouted, "Gryffindor!" and the applause started as Ayato made his way to the Gryffindor feast table. His eyes swept over Harry, and he started over. Harry gulped, the expression on the boy's face wasn't very friendly. At least what visible part of it. It all changed though, when he took the mask off and revealed a wide smile splitting his face. "Hi. I'm Ayato, as you know from that overly embarrassing intro." He bowed.
Harry scratched the back of his head. "I'm Harry Potter—" he waited for the accusatory stares, the recognition lighting up his face, but nothing happened, so he continued, hoping the latter didn't hear the pause, "And those are Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger."
"Also Gryffindor prefects. If you need anything just ask. It's easy to get lost here, so you might want to stick to us for a while." Ron pipped up.
Ayato breathed a sigh of relief. "Finally, some nice people who decide to help the poor fellow from Japan out. I've met a few Professors. Can't say they're glad to see me." He leaned in. "Especially that pink Professor…Professor Umbitc—"
"No swearing!" Hermione chastised.
"Okay, okay." Ayato raised his hands in mock surrender. "She's one of the Ministry, right?"
"Yeah." Harry confirmed.
"So, you're from Tokyo as well?" Hermione asked carefully.
Ayato nodded. "Kaneki's my partner. We work together eradicating the ghoul problem." His smile turned wry with a touch of irony.
"Kaneki did mention something about dangerous ghouls in Tokyo…" Harry said thoughtfully. "So how's it like, living in constant fear of them? Do they really survive on human flesh?" Ron shuddered.
"Yup. There are some friendly ghouls, but you do not want to meet a hungry one."
"Wow…" For a moment, Harry could only imagine how hard life must've been in Tokyo.
"But anyways," Ayato dismissed it. "Could you guys show me the dorms?"
"No problem."
—
Kaneki sensed it when he was passing, no, dropping by Umbridge's office. The Dark taint of magic that his enhanced ghoul senses had picked up, quite faint but still there nonetheless, seemed to be coming from the drawer of Umbridge's desk. In a flash, he was in, wrinkling his nose in distaste at the poor colour choice—the bright splatters of pink positively blinded him. He really felt bad for the kittens on the walls. He didn't have a thing against pink, but when it was on Umbridge, he couldn't help but feel agitated; he wanted to tear her throat out, just to see her scream and writhe on the ground in pain. He cleared the gory thoughts out of his mind as he opened the drawer, and was met by an ordinary sight : a few stacked quills, but surprisingly with no ink visible. The quill tips were stained red with…
Blood. Kaneki exhaled. A pang of hunger hit him hard, and he gripped the pink embroidery tablecloth tightly, enough to tear chunks of it out without even him noticing. He released the tight grip, pink pieces falling gently to the ground.
That vile woman was using blood quills on innocent students.
That vile woman was using blood quills on innocent students.
That vile woman was using blood quills on innocent students.
The anger hit him harder than hunger, his vision tinted completely red and he knew without a doubt that his kakuja was out, gleaming and scarlet against his pale skin. All he could focus on was the fact that Umrbidge, an acclaimed teacher of the Ministry, was using blood quills on students for detention. Alright, as a ghoul he had probably spilled more blood than Umbridge could ever imagine. But he was a sick, twisted and sadistic creature.
For a moment, he remembered his mantra : As the strong, I have the right to devour the weak.
Then he thought, screw it. His mission was to protect Hogwarts, and however he was unwilling to accept this option, he had in fact given Arima the word that he would protect Harry Potter with his life. Arima hadn't exactly voiced it out loud, but Kaneki knew he was allowed to eradicate all threats and enemies, as long as he did it quickly and quietly and cleared up the mess.
Dolores Umbridge was most definitely a threat.
The nerve of that—
He calmed himself down. There would be no use killing her right now, no purpose would be served except for the fact that she would suffer. He toyed with the idea for a moment before disposing it.
Footsteps echoed down the hall, slow and clicking. It was Umbridge.
Kaneki grabbed a handful of quills, closed the drawer and vanished.
Later, Umbridge would wonder why her tablecloth was torn into pieces.
—
Kaneki found Ayato in the Gryffindor dorm early in the morning. It seemed he had a knack for waking people up at the worse timings, though Ayato refrained from punching him. Barely.
"What?" Ayato stared at him in disbelief. Here was Eyepatch, the notoriously merciless and ruthless killer, an SS-rated ghoul, who was angry over the fact that a few children got their hands scratched. He knew it probably went much deeper than that, but right now it was four in the morning and his sleep deprived and cranky brain could not help but make that pessimistic comment.
"Did you listen to what I just said the past minute?" Kaneki blew an exasperated breath. He tended to loosen up more around Ayato, due to the numerous life and death situations they had pulled through.
"Yes, I did. Are you nuts?"
"I am, in fact, taking mental stability potions." Kaneki said flatly, Ayato had clearly hit a dead end. "I do not wish to rip the school apart."
Ayato rubbed his forehead, trying to ease the growing headache bursting beneath his eyelids. It was way too early for him to deal with it.
"Look, Kaneki, how about I find you after class later? I can't think right now, and you can tell me whatever wicked plans you have then."
Kaneki just glared at him and disappeared.
Ayato smiled as he curled back into his warm, welcoming blankets. "Glad to know you still have some humanity left."
