A/N: Hey guys, I'm so sorry for not updating in god knows how long, but here's a chapter! I've had half of it written for months, but I've only just got around to finishing it. It's been a piss take to type since my keyboard broke but perseverance am I right? Anyway, this is my first chapter in Connor perspective so I hope it's not shite! Thanks for reading, big thanks to Midori Yuki for commenting! I'm so glad you're enjoying it so far! pls comment as they really butter my egg roll x
oOo
The alarm beside his bed buzzed when it turned 9:20AM but Connor Sparks had already been awake for two hours and seven minutes. He didn't know if he was buzzing with excitement or terror, and a part of him didn't want to know. Ignorance is bliss and all that; maybe he'd be better off not traipsing off with Cara and that famous headmaster into a world he'd never be able to leave behind.
"Con." Da said. Connor turned to him. Da had always been this tall, large figure of power to Connor with energy thriving in his palms and warmth swimming in his hazel eyes. He noticed that Da's beard had been trimmed and he had more greys in his hair, now tied into a loose bun. "Com'on lad, nearly time to skedaddle."
"Ma doesn't want me to go." Connor replied, standing up with his backpack on both shoulders "Why doesn't she want me to?"
Da sighed and walked further in, robes swaying by the blue carpet. He had never seen his healer's robes before, he had assumed it would be like the usual NHS uniform but these were old fashioned robes that swung as he walked with his confident gait. They made his da look like a mage. "Your ma wanted to protect you." He admitted, it looked painful to do so. His eyebrows scrunched and his lips pursed.
"I don't get how caging me from your world is protecting me." Connor sneered, crossing his arms over his chest. "You lot walk on eggshells around me like I'll blow any fucking second."
Da sat down heavily on Connor's unmade bed "Not saying this to hurt your feelings Con, but you do blow any second. You're like a ticking time bomb, and that was probably our fault."
Connor back-tracked "What?"
"When we found out, we didn't know what to do, to be honest. We already knew Cara had magic so we just assumed you would too, maybe you were a late bloomer or something."
"But I wasn't."
"Yeah." Da looked weighed down by something, scrubbing at his cheeks with his rough hands that he knew were talented at delicate handling "We were devastated for you, Con, and when we kept you from everything, we thought it was so you wouldn't feel like we were mocking you to your face."
Connor kept quiet, pressing his bare foot on the extendable ears on the floor. "Having to keep mum about it all." He finally said "Was it hard?"
"This isn't about me, Con." Da said "We made a mistake hiding the world from you. We messed up big time, but Cara always saw it. That you should've been a part of it since we found out. That shouldn't have been a gamechanger."
For a split second, an image of his big sister popped into his head; shoulder's low and eyes heavy with a fat cat resting on her shoulders. "I'm scared." He found himself saying, feeling his cheeks flush at his sudden confession.
"Of what?" Asked da, voice soft as butter.
"I finally get to experience your world, but, what if I do get jealous? What then? Does that mean I can't be a part of it 'cos I can't deal with it?" A heavy hand fell onto his shoulder, and it felt like it grounded him. "What if they kick me out?" He said, but it was more of a whisper. "What if they find out what I am and never let me come back?"
Da's quiet for a moment before saying "The caretaker at Hogwarts, he's a squib. He gets to see it all and be a part of it, nobody hates the man for what he is, they just don't like him 'cause he's a bit grouchy."
"I read that squibs are looked upon with disdain." He added, dryly. "Cara's school books are shit, I bet they don't even use biros there."
Da laughed boomingly "That is a major downside, I'll give you that. It's like going back to the 1800's." Da stood and grinned down at Connor with the same heaviness in his frame as before "I'm sorry we kept it from you Con, but see how this is. If you hate it, then don't look back but if you do, then, awesome. I can show you so much stuff."
He quickly put a pair of socks on and shoved his feet into his trainers before he followed da down the steps with his backpack on, and for the last five minutes of the wait, sipped overly sweet tea with ma in the living room whilst perched on the footstool.
Ma looked troubled, and sickly. She had been like that since yesterday, and it made Connor feel familiar yet uncomfortable. She gripped his hand tightly, as it afraid to let go.
"Are you sure?" Ma asked, breaking the silence in the air.
"Yeah."
"Because you don't have to go." She added "If it makes you uncomfortable, or scares you, or if you think Cara's mocking you-"
"Lex!" Da yelled, sitting up straighter in his seat by the fire. His face was lined with age, eye's aflame with a fury Connor had never seen before. "Stop giving her a hard time for Merlin's sake!"
"For God's sake!" Ma shot back.
"She's trying, she's always been and you never lighten up, do you?" Da practically snarled "Getting angry when Cara tries to include him in the world he always should've been a part of, bruising her wrist-"
"That was an accident!" Ma's voice sounded pleading, strained. Her hair fell from the bun it was tied in and stuck to her sweating pink face
"That doesn't make it okay!" Da exclaimed. Suddenly, silence descended over the room, quiet enough to hear a penny drop. Connor wanted to say something, but he couldn't bring himself to.
Cara. Low shoulders. Heavy eyes.
He wanted to say something.
Cara. Fat cat on her shoulders. Low shoulders.
He wanted to say something-
There was a cough, and all three heads spun to the source. Cara stood beside the bearded professor, it was odd see the mighty figure in their rinky-dink living room. Cara's hair was windswept, and her uniform looked a bit messy. "Ready to go?" She asked. He couldn't make out the expression on her face.
"Yeah." He nodded, eyes owlishly wide.
"You are in for a treat, Mr Sparks." Dumbledore's eyes twinkled, so blue and so bright that Connor felt like the man was looking straight into his soul and giving it a kind pat on the head.
"I'm sure he is, sir." Da grinned, standing up and reaching out to shake the man's hand before pulling Cara into a giant bear hug. She laughed, and squeezed him back as tightly as him. "Kor, it's been too long!"
"Get off me, old man!" She guffawed, but didn't let go. "God, distance makes you cuddly, it's revolting."
"Y'know what? I renounce my offer that you can share the garage." He huffed, letting her down and smiling so widely his cheeks looked sore.
"Oh well, that place is a shithole anyway." She replied.
"Lies and slander, Cara." He crossed his arms "Lies and slander." He patted her shoulder twice before turning back to the headmaster "Sorry to keep you, sir." He quickly said, a bit bashfully.
"What's this sir, nonsense?" Dumbledore laughed good heartedly "We've met already, Tyr, no need to be so formal." His eyes gleamed and Da grinned good-naturedly. "Anyways, as lovely as it is to see you and Mrs Sparks, we really must be off. Young Mr Sparks and Miss Sparks have a tournament to be getting to! I'm sure Miss Sparks will have a lot to show him afterwards as well."
"Course." Cara said, hands on her hips "He's missed out on a lot." Connor's heart beat hard in his chest when she glanced in his direction. Watching her now, it felt like she was like the means to an end of his constant anger that thrived through his veins.
"You can't miss anything out." He replied.
"Not a thing." She vowed, lips tweaking when Dumbledore placed a hand on her shoulder, then reached out her pinky towards him "And I won't forget our promise, either. Never forget."
His eyes widened. "Never." He echoed, hooking his pinky in hers. There was a choked noise from behind him, but he ignored it because it was definitely ma.
"This is going to be a rough start, but I'm sure it will get better." Dumbledore stated, and then suddenly the world became a blur and it felt like he was being forced through a very tight, rubber tube. His stomach jolted and contracted and when he finally felt his knees collide with solid ground, his stomach tightened and he threw up on the marble. He gagged and spat out vomit-slash-spit then wiped his mouth on his jumper sleeve. He sagged, barely noticing that his puke was gone.
"That is normal, Mr Sparks, up you get, now." Dumbledore said as Cara helped heave him to his feet. He wobbled slightly, but managed to keep his balance. Once he gained back enough awareness, he realised he was standing in a large, old-fashioned, circular office, the walls were shelves shoved full of books, the stairs spiralled up to a platform holding god-knows-what. All Connor knew was that it was brilliant.
"Is this your office?" He asked, awestruck.
"Indeed." He smiled knowingly "Now, Miss Sparks, the task begins at 10 o'clock sharp, make sure you arrive early to get a good seat." He smiled and off they went, walking down a stone, spiral staircase and into a corridor lined with painting's, all having a chat with one another.
"Are they sentient?" Connor asked, voice filled with something akin to awe, pressing his fingertips to the canvas. The woman in the hideous pink dress with a thick veil trailing behind her gasped, cupping her hands over her mouth as she swatted at her hand.
"Off me, scoundrel!" The woman screeched.
Connor snatched his hand away from the canvas like it burned, holding it to his chest as he watched the woman huff and sneer like he was dirt on the bottom of her perfectly pointed heel. Could she somehow feel that he was different? He felt a hand pat his shoulder, and once again felt grounded.
"Don't take it personally." Cara said to him "The Duchesse doesn't like anybody except Malfoy. He's the only one prim and proper enough to deal with her."
"Where is my boy? It's been ever so long since he has come to visit me. You would think he would never want to leave my company!" The Duchesse exclaimed as Cara began to drag Connor away from the painting.
"Where are we going?" Connor asked, dazedly. Eyes drawn to everything around him. The castle was extraordinary, bustling with students in robes or a uniform, all chatting excitedly about the task to come. The paintings covering the walls all spoke to one another, laughing or groaning or grimacing or yelling. Connor was enthralled. This reminded him of his school, but with the extra bonuses of speaking paintings and a tormenting ghost. He wasn't sure if he was jealous or not, as this wouldn't help him be productive, if anything it would only distract him.
"We should head to the stands now to be honest, it's nearly 10." She told him, and led him through the castle grounds, outside into the chilly outdoors and to wooden stands circling a large area of ground where the task would be taking place. He huddled in his coat and scarf, ignoring the theory that he wasn't actually shaking because of the cold, but the all-seeing eyes of the students in the stands.
They all cheered, screeched, chanted, laughed, and he knew logically that they weren't focusing on him at all but actually on the arena yet he still felt as if their eyes were boring a hole into his soul.
A shoulder nudged his and he jerked his head up. There was a smile on Cara's face that he was familiar with. Tough around the edges, a tenseness in her eyes, forced. His eyes locked on her slumped shoulders.
He had so much he wanted to tell her. He wanted to thank her for holding her hand out when no one else did. He wanted to tell her this meant the world to him, being included in the world he was born into, raised in. Connor wanted to reach out a hold up her shoulders, he wanted to tell her that everything he ever said he meant it in that moment but now? Now.
But his lips were stiff, tongue weighty in his mouth, his throat felt dry and his mind was scrambled, no words came to his head when standing in the crowded, deafening stands. All he felt was weightless and heavy at the same time.
"What's with that face?" She laughed, smile crooked although it seemed off. Had he ever seen a genuine smile on his sister's face since they fell out? Had he ever smiled at her genuinely since?
How could he enjoy this time in a world he was rejected from without ever having lived in it? Experienced it? HOW could he ENJOY his time with his sister after all the shit he shoved on her when it wasn't her fault?
"Con? Com'on, you're alright." He felt nimble fingers ruffle his hair, and jerked up. She smiled down at him, more a twitch of the corners of her lips but he felt a burdening weight lift from his chest at the comforting, painfully familiar smile.
He could spout some shit about how she reminded him of their gentle giant of a father, or their over-protective mother. But no. In that moment, she only reminded him of Cara.
"Your attention please!" Dumbledore exclaimed from the podium, wand to his throat. He whipped his head to watch the powerful figure speak. He had met this man, he reminded himself that Dumbledore was an incredibly famous, powerful and brave wizard, who faced enemies head on. And I met the guy, Connor thought in disbelief.
"This is a great day for all of us." He continued, his sentence faded amongst the ferocious roar of a scaled beast. Connor's jaw dropped and he leapt to his feet at the sight of the four dragons lead onto the arena, each terrifying in its own right with snapping jaws of sharp, blood-thirsty teeth and claws; some thicker and blunter, some thinner and razor sharp. He wasn't sure which was worse, to be honest.
"Each of the three tasks involves very considerable danger. Please keep at your seats at all times." There was an underlying warning in the headmaster's tone that made him immediately plonk back into his seat almost violently. His neck flushed red when Cara snorted and elbowed him.
"Mind out, brat." She said with a smile, showing off the gap in her teeth. Always a distinguishable feature she had had.
"This will minimise any risks you might be exposed to. I'm sure we all wish our champions the greatest of luck." Cheers screeched from the crowds around him, Cara also cupped her mouth to shout her hope for success, though she seemed to root for Potter the most.
Potter. He'd read about him in a newspaper dad left under his pillow in his room once, that after his years of pure silence about the wizarding world. Nobody said a peep about it, nobody dared look Connor in the eye back then but when it was over, dad and Cara became more lenient. The paper spoke of the Chosen One, and after he'd read it, he'd thought 'poor sod' and left it on the bed to go and play video games.
"Dunno how I feel about authority putting teenagers in danger for glory and fame," Cara began, voice loud over the cacophony of excited voices "But it sure stirs the crowd, huh?"
"Couldn't tell!" He called back "We could place bets, y'know. Win some dollah." Cara laughed, head tilting back and he felt himself grin with pride at the success "See, there are two identicals asking for bets."
She lifted her head and turned to where he was pointing, and rolled her eyes "They're my mates, Fred and George. Don't call them the 'Identicals,' they'll love it and won't stop calling themselves that."
"I'm a good influencer." Is all he said.
"I know." She replied.
When the task commenced, Connor watched with bulging eyes and a clenched jaw to stop it from dropping open. A boy with hard eyes in a yellow and black outfit exited the tent first. At the sight of him, the dragon let out a rumbling grumble from within its chest, circling the arena.
"Come on, Diggory." Cara muttered, hands clutching at her denim-clad knees.
He lurched to the side where the golden egg lay amongst the white, regular eggs. He had forgotten to ask what the task was to actually do, but he assumed that it was to get the golden egg past the dragon who would assume it was just one of the regular eggs and try to stop him from stealing it. The dragon screeched, lunging forwards as Diggory rolled on the bumpy floor, he yanked a wand from his pocket and shot it at a nearby rock, transforming it into a rottweiler, which distracted the dragon into chasing the barking dog.
"Clever boy!" Cara cried, voice intermingling with the crowd that cheered and whistled. Diggory clambered towards the eggs with his face set with determination. It looked like he would succeed with flying colours, up until the dragon twisted its neck back to him and let out a sickening shriek, storming across the arena to stop him.
The crowd of students were on the edge of their seats as Diggory catapulted forwards to curl around the golden egg. In mere seconds, the dragon opened its jaws wide and let out a mouthful of boiling red. There were cries of disbelief humming amongst everyone around Connor, leaning over to see if Diggory survived his mouthful of fire.
And there he stood, clutching the golden egg, standing tall albeit a bit wobbly, with a burnt face but success and achievement in his eyes. The crowd exploded with applause, Cara joined in with those standing to cheer the boy on, so Connor quickly stood up to join her in clapping.
"Is he a friend of yours?" He asked her, once Diggory was back inside the tent to get healed.
"Acquaintance." She answered "He was great though, I'll congratulate him soon, bastard deserves it after that successful mess."
"Too right." He replied. The next contestant was a girl, Cara whispered to him that she went to a French school and was called Fleur Delacour. She put the dragon to sleep with an enchantment that made all the girls in blue clap and smile and the rest of the student's 'ooh' and 'ahh'. The dragon snored and set he skirt alight, but it was put out easily and she succeeded without much issue.
"Anticlimactic." Cara stated.
The famous Quidditch player was next – the air football man; Krum. He used a spell that made the dragon screech and stumble around as if it couldn't see. Cara grimaced, telling him that he used the conjunctivitis curse that actually did blind the dragon.
"That's messed up." He muttered, eyebrows furrowed.
"I know, right? Poor dragon." She mumbled in reply.
Connor nearly laughed at the karma of it all when the dragon, who was still stumbling around, smashed half of the real eggs which meant Krum got deducted points. "Dragon got it's justice." He commented.
"I hope they can heal it, would suck to be blind forever because of a dumb tournament."
"Yeah."
Lastly, Harry Potter. When he walked out of the tent, the clapping, chanting crowd fell silent. If he looked out of the corner of his eye, he could see Cara frowning deeply, looking around the stands as if in shock that nobody was cheering for him. Connor turned away to look at Potter, who scanned the arena, then the stands with eyes that Connor could only describe as fearful.
Potter's eyes landed on them, and Cara stood up straighter, waving at him with a grin that made the contestant's eyes set and send her a hard nod. What the fuck was that? For a second, he wondered if in the absence of her real brother, she set out to find herself a new one that actually liked her.
He discarded the thought. Cara looked far too serious to be dealing with her jealous little brother.
Potter began walking towards the eggs, making Connor wonder why the hell he was walking so slowly and not running. The dragon struck a claw down into the ground behind him, knocking him off his feet and making the crowd gasp simultaneously.
He heard Cara swear loudly and colourfully, shouting into the crowd with her hands around her mouth. Connor leant against the wooden rails, watching with eyes blazing with the red of the fire spilling from the dragon's mouth. Potter only narrowly dodged the shot, diving behind a boulder to hide from the beast.
It was just a constant symphony of the dragon nearly hitting the boy, and he just narrowly avoids it and continues despite having a beast of death trying to slaughter him.
"Your wand, Harry! Your wand!" A girl from the crowd shrieked, knocking sense into him enough to yank his wand from his pocket and point it at the dragon.
"Accio Firebolt!" He exclaimed, then ran behind a boulder.
Connor jumped halfway into the air when Cara shouted at the sight of the broom shooting through the air "Harry!" She yelled, pointing at it "Quickly!" The boulder he was hiding behind seemed to get smaller and smaller the longer the dragon's fiery breath bore on it, and the second it stopped he leapt up and onto the broom, flying ahead of the creature.
"YES!" Cara clapped, eyes bright with relieved glee. He couldn't help but feel it too, clapping and feeling his shoulders sag in happiness that he didn't have to see a kid get burnt to a crisp with a live audience.
The dragon attempted to chase potter, and tore the chain from its neck when it held it back. Connor gasped, watching it follow him and felt a sense of dread. He was dead, surely? No way Potter could survive this.
Potter flew into the stands, the dragon on his tail, tearing the little fabric tent apart and leaving behind startled teachers and screaming students "YES! YEAH! WELL DONE DRAGON!" Two voices cheered. Cara beamed, looking up to find the source of the voices, but looked away quickly.
"So we just wait for him to come back? If he comes back." Connor said, earning a stern glare from her that reminded him of most of their childhood enough that he sent a deadly glare back as well. She wilted.
"Yes. I suppose so." She said, sighing "Just a matter of waiting."
He went to his next question "Will the Diggory guy be scarred for life?"
"He can get that healed up in no time. Like nothing ever happened really." She told him "Imagine having a scar on your face, no thank you."
"Don't jinx it." He smirked.
Potter flew over the tree's moments, later, earning a painful amount of cheers and screaming from the crowd. Despite the badges he saw that seemed to be hating on Potter, these people sure seemed supportive of him. Cara was shouting as loud as she could, even Connor was clapping so hard that his palms stung and he'd never even met the bloke!
When he scooped up the golden egg, the crowd lost it. Connor was sure he would have trouble hearing after this all was over. Cara turned to him with a wild smile and asked "What did you think? Good first experience?"
Connor blinked once. Twice. Three times before his lips stretched into a giant grin, and he nodded "The best." He said "You've got more to show me though, right?"
"An absolute fuck tonne." She told him "C'mon, there's a party we've gotta get to."
"Party?! I'm not that kind of boy." She laughed at him, grabbing his bicep so that he followed, hot on his sister's heels until he was beside her. She looked down at him and he looked up at her, and it reminded him of a simpler time, a time in which his big sister protected him from the monsters under his bed, the crawlers in his wardrobe, when she was right there next to him, reading stories at night, teaching him football so he could play with the boys in the park around the corner. A time that was occurring now, the only welcoming hand into a world that should have been theirs.
And during that moment, Connor felt all the tension, fear, anger, anguish, grief and loneliness seep out of him – maybe not forever, but like when you slowly feel better after a cold. These horrible feelings would come back like the cold too, and cling to him like burdens but for now, he relaxed.