Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings.
A/N: And, I'm BBBBBBBAAAAAAAAACCCCCCCCCCCKKKKKKKKKKK! Hello again everyone! Great to see you all!
*Ahem* As fun as the trip was, despite me getting tons of mosquito bites and a few sun burns, I really missed my Wi-Fi connection. But it only took me a few hours to catch up with everything and I was able to browse at my leisure once more. Lately, I've been reading some rather interesting "Dark-Harry" fanfics as their called; "Harry placed in Slytherin", "Harry becoming friends with Draco when they first met", those kinds of stories. I don't mean to be offensive to some, but it can be rather difficult to find good ones. I personally prefer the two examples above, as opposed to "Harry turning Dark (Dark with a capital "D") after Sirius died" or "Harry finding out that Dumbledore is a lying and manipulative old coot". There are a lot of the latter examples, it's rather scary to be honest.
When I was eating with my family in the buffet for lunch, my brother gave me an Idea. This Idea was awesome, and I can't believe I never thought of it before. I don't know if it's been done before, and I apologize if I copied ANYTHING AT ALL. Please notify me if you find anything like it. I will probably post it a bit later this week, the first chapter at least. Then, we'll see what happens I guess. And yes, Idea has a capital "I". Just because it was THAT awesome. Kudos to my younger brother by five years for the great idea, he had me writing in the small black journal that I brought with me for the rest of the day. So, before I post it, I shall give you readers a small piece of my thoughts:
For one, professor Quirrell is NOT evil.
Instead of Sirius, Regulas Black will be the Godfather of the Boy-Who-Lived (I know that I'll be getting a TON of shit from this statement, but hey, how many stories do you have with Regulas Black having a speaking role and Sirius is only a passing mention? I've only read one.)
Our Boy-Who-Lived discovered the Chamber of Secrets in his first year.
He does NOT play Quidditch as a hobby, yet he knows how to play.
Hermione was put into Ravenclaw. I don't know of too many stories with this development, so I thought I would give it a shot.
Some of the pairings that are included in this story, or the ones that I will try to include, are (And I'm only going to give the initials of their names here, figure the rest out on your own!) DM/HG (My fav pairing, don't question it!), BZ/TN (Note: This one is NOT a fem-BZ. It is yaoi. If you don't like yaoi, then don't read.), TB/PP (These two actually make a really cute couple, if you can write PP right.), FW/AJ (Side pairing, not really that important.), GW/LL (Pure and utter CRACK. Don't like, don't read.), PW/OW (I actually read one such story when Harry and pals find out from Ginny about this couple. Apparently, she walked in on the two boys in a rather heated snogging session. Yes, this is ANOTHER yaoi pairing. Very cute, in my opinion.), RW/LB (Urgh, this one will be a pain to write, with me puking up slugs during the entire time.). There will be other pairings, though these are the ones that come off the top of my head.
The Boy-Who-Lived' subjects are in this order, with the grades of each following right behind: Potions, O, DADA, O, Charms, O, Transfiguration, E, Arthimacy, O, Astrology, E, Herbology, E. Our protagonist will be in Slytherin, so naturally Snape will be the preferred professor, with potions as the favorite class (Double-Potions with the Gryffindors = Gryff-bashing galore!)
Finally, concerning the Marauders: Messrs Moony, Wormtail, Longsnout, and Graze proudly present to you some of the Behind the Scenes work of this work-in-progress.
Now, with all that said and done, I believe you want to get onto the story, am I right?
Colin Creevey had been petrified. Huor had heard the news along the Hogwarts grapevine, from professor Sinistra who teaches Astrology no less. Much like the first attack, with Ms. Norris, Huor locked himself in his room and refused to come out for the next couple days. Then, he travelled into the forest. Yet, he never told anyone the real truth, not even Dumbledore about where his travels led. He didn't seek out the elves, though he passed by with the acknowledgment of Celeduil. He instead would travel to a place further in the forest, in a beautiful valley. The flowers that bloomed there were some of the most vibrant he had ever seen, with the varied colours reflecting in the glowing light of the sun, and would glow subtly in the nightly shine of the moon. The soft breeze would always flow past his ears, his silvery blond hair lightly lifting off his shoulders. He would sit down on the soft green grass, bringing his arms and wrapping them around his knees as he thought, staring out into the distance. But he wasn't staring at nothing, oh no, he was staring at a sight that would behold many if only they could see.
For the valley stretched a far distance before the rolling waves of the ocean rose high above the shore. During the day, Huor would sit with his eyes closed as he listened to the cry of the gulls as they flew overhead. The trees that had opened to this area made sure that many would not find him, for they knew that he only came here for peace. The Sea Longing was something that all elves feel, something that calls from inside them that wants to lead them to the sides of the Valar, to the sides of their loved ones. For across the sea lay the Undying Lands, blessed realm of the Valar that they created for the elves, for the land was Undying, much like the peoples it bore. But it was closed off from the elves here in fair Scotland, those who remained with their young king in loyalty unyielding until the day came when the ban would be lifted. Huor knew not when this would occur, not for many years yet, of this he knew. But the Valar could never stop the Longing.
This feeling only grew stronger in Huor when the threat returned, its haunting golden eyes preying on the young ones. He wanted to run, yet he also wanted to fight, to protect the students, for they could not protect themselves from such a creature. Huor knew not what it was, for all he could remember the last time was the fear, and the panic that he felt as he stared in the mirror at the terror that stood menacingly behind him. Its midnight black scales shone in the paleness of the moon's light from the windows, its long form slithering, twisting as it moved. But the thing that shined the brightest was its eyes. The glowing, golden eyes in the mirror. He had frozen, and he dared not move. For he could not, thus he was forced to stare for Valar knows how long at the deathly gaze of the creature. Sometimes, it would return in his dreams, those hauntingly deathly eyes, and he would wake in cold sweat, too afraid to return to sleep. The only thing that could help him was the Sea, and the Undying Lands.
But the children needed him here, and he dared not part from them, not yet. It was too soon, yet the Longing was a powerful force, driving him to go, to sail on to the Lands of the Valar. The Longing burned in his eyes as he sighed sadly to himself, the sea rolling in crashing in the distance.
Soon enough, the Christmas break was coming closer. No more attacks had occurred during that time, though Huor knew that it would happen soon. He did not know when, but he did know how. And this thought frightened him more than anything. The gaze of that creature had killed poor Myrtle, petrifying many other muggle-borns. He didn't want to think of what would happen to another student if they were to suffer the same fate.
Huor also knew what else would happen soon, if from the news that had reached his ears were correct. His outburst in the hallway when Ms. Norris was found spread like wildfire, and soon enough, the students would start asking questions, if they weren't already. He just hadn't been around often during the year for them to get any straight answers. But soon enough, it was his second-year Gryffindor/Slytherin class that afternoon when it was brought up. He had just returned from the valley three days past.
A hand had gone into the air and Huor had called on the girl to ask what question she had. Instead, she asked about the Chamber of Secrets. Huor could remember giving a sad smile to her as he leaned on the edge of his desk.
"Before, a long time ago, Salazar Slytherin was said to have built a Chamber. And within it, a terrible monster," he recalled. His eyes became distant as he spoke softly, yet the class was in a complete silence, all classwork forgotten to hear his tale. "I am not really obligated to tell you this, as a Hogwarts staff member." There were groans of frustration, and he chuckled. "But as a friend, yes, the Chamber has been opened before." He quietly waited until the uproar died down before he continued. "Headmaster Dippet had wanted the matter covered up, for reasons that I am unaware of. But I do know that students were being called to return home, their parents frightful. Hogwarts was going to be shut down, so they said. But one day, a culprit was found. Hogwarts remained open, and the student they say was responsible was expelled."
He sighed, running a pale hand through his hair. "That is what I was told, at least." "What do you mean, professor? Were you not there?" Huor looked to Pansy Parkinson, the young witch looking to him confused and snobbish (Though he wouldn't say so out loud). "I was indisposed," he replied, "Enjoying the rather charming sight of golden eyes in a mirror in my paralysis." This brought everyone out of whatever stupor they were in as they all started talking at once. Huor rubbed his forehead, sighing as the loud noise increased the migraine that he could feel forming. "I do not wish to talk of it," he said, his eyes still faraway and lost, "The feeling is…. Still too near." During the days after, word got out and the subject was dropped.
It was dark, none of the light from the outside world reaching the inside. Huor couldn't tell where he was, even his elven eyes were no match for the darkness was thick and unyielding. He lit his wand, following the tiles of the dark hallway. The blackness he could only compare to Sauron's reign of terror, dark, cold, suffering, and pure hell. He did not know where he was going, for his feet moved of their own accord, the heels clicking and clacking loudly in the still silence. He was on edge, but he knew not why.
As he continued down the hall, Huor could feel the sight of eyes upon his back. It sent shivers down his spine, urging him to walk faster. So he did. His steps increased in speed until he had burst into a full run. There was a sound behind him, as if something was giving chase. The Slytherin beat down the Gryffindor in his heart, the urge to flee winning over the logic of turning to see what was chasing him, even if only a mere glimpse. For he felt an almost death-like chill whenever he thought of turning to see the creature and attempting to fight. He turned the corner, the light of his wand illuminating enough of the area in front of him so he could see the floor and walls that surrounded him. His only hope of escaping was to make it outside, or at least to the higher levels of the castle.
The chase still continued, one flight after another Huor climbed, two steps at a time. Finally, he reached a door, pushing it open and started to slow. Elves had rather high stamina, for they could run for days without food or water or rest while still keeping the same speed. He walked, nervously looking from left to right, however something caught his eye.
A mirror, on the far wall. Huor went close to it. It was dusty and old, from its appearance. He brought up a gloved hand, wiping some of the lingering particles from the smooth glass. And what he saw shocked him. A gigantic snake, black scales reflecting in the light of his wand stood behind him. He was amazed by the creature's beauty, as well as frightened. For its fangs were sharp and rather long when he gazed upon them in the mirror. Then his sight drifted to the eyes. And he froze. Deathly golden eyes stared back at him from the glass and he found that he couldn't pull his gaze away.
Golden eyes, cold and chilling. They showed his death, the grasping hands of the Underlord grabbing at his soul and pulling him down, down, down….
Huor woke, his breath short and heavy as his chest heaved. He was sweating, his hair sticking to his face and shoulders. He brought his hands and saw that they were shaking violently. He crossed his legs, placing his head in his shaking hands as he shuddered and sobbed silently. After a few minutes, finally composing himself, Huor stood, quickly changing from the silk pajamas and into a black dress shirt and black tie, accompanied by matching pants. He then slipped on a pair of travelling boots (he preferred not to call them "winter boots". It seemed like a rather inappropriate name.) and grabbed a dark coat from his wardrobe. Then, after grabbing his wand and sword, he swiftly exited his room and into the dark hallway.
Turning down corridors, racing past the paintings silently so as not to wake anyone, Huor hurried out of the castle into the cold winter air. He slipped the coat on, even if he didn't really need it (elves were naturally resistant to extreme temperatures. Though, he wouldn't really be surprised that they had a bit of trouble with the snow). He practically ran into the forest, ignoring the sudden light turning on in Hagrid's hut as he passed. He quickly scaled a nearby tree, choosing to remain on the lower branches, and then proceeded to leap from branch to branch. The Longing had returned, just as the dream had, and Huor could feel the strong pull of the ocean tides break through his will and clutch at his mind and body. He wasn't thinking, it was just a need to be near the sea, to at least watch and crave for the peace he desired.
He made sure to go the long way, though it pained him. The acromantulas of the forest were rather territorial, though they stayed far enough from elven borders so that a war of some sort wouldn't break out. In addition, there were also the centaurs and vampires, neither which were fond of elves venturing in their land. His body moved on its own accord, the limbs mechanical as he continued through the woods on the familiar trail. He did not encounter any dark creatures, for that he was grateful, even if there were a few close calls.
At long last he reached the valley, the ice cold sea lapping at the shores. Ice drifted in mere patches here and there atop the freezing water. Huor went right to the edge, standing with his hands in his pockets as he stared out into the open sea. He dared not go further. He stood there for a rather long while, though he did not know how long. The sun had risen and set over the tree tops multiple times while he was there, simply gazing out into the clear depths. Finally, he gave a weary sigh before turning and making his way back to the castle. Huor focused entirely on the trip back, suppressing the urge to remain by the sea shore for longer than necessary, and returned to the castle a week after he left. No one asked, though many of the remaining students had curious gazes, for he walked right into the Great Hall just in time for breakfast, sitting at the head table after pulling off his coat as if nothing was the matter.
Huor sighed, rolling his eyes as Lockhart jabbered on about how he was definitely the right person for this job. The elf honestly didn't know why Dumbledore put up with the man's lies (for Huor has a rather high suspicion meter for an elf. He was after all a Slytherin), he would have gotten rid of him by this point. Though the idea of a duelling club certainly peaked his interest, it was a rather important factor in the world for any witch of wizard, after all. The only problem he had was the incompetent teacher, because, let's face it, Lockhart was a fraud, and just about anyone knew it.
Desperately, Huor sent a pleading look to Snape, the Potions master standing in the corner on the other side of the room, watching as the students filed in. The man returned the gaze with a raised eyebrow, the slight upturn of his lips indicating that he was rather amused at the elf's predicament. Scowling, Huor politely excused himself from the DADA professor's nauseating presence and made his way to the door, greeting the rest of the students as they entered. Finally, once all the students had arrived, Lockhart stood on the stage that McGonagall had Filch get. His blinding smile flashed around the room.
"Gather round, gather round! Can you all see me? Can everyone hear me? Excellent!" The man clapped his hands together, Huor rolling his eyes. Draco, who was in the crowd of students, noticed this and snorted quietly. Huor sent a wink back in response before returning his attention to Lockhart.
"Now," the DADA professor continued, "Professor Dumbledore has granted me permission to start this little Duelling Club, (To which Huor then heard one of the Slytherin boys mutter, "No doubt with capital letters and all." He had brought a hand to his face, smirking and quietly muttering to himself, "25 points to Slytherin for amusing cheek against a teacher.") to train you all up in case you ever need to defend yourselves as I myself have done on countless occasions – for full details, see my published works."
Lockhart then swept his arms in the directions of Huor and Snape, his smile getting wider. "Let me introduce my assistants, Professor Snape and Professor Séregon. Professor Snape tells me that he knows a tiny bit about duelling himself and has sportingly agreed to help me with a short demonstration before we begin. Now, I don't want you youngsters to worry – you'll still have your Potions master when I'm through with him, never fear!" Huor sent a gleeful smirk to the hook-nosed man, who sent a rather nasty glare in return, his lip curling. The elf just winked, his own amusement glittering in his eyes.
"Professor Séregon will be helping with observation, to keep an eye on all you youngsters," the blond DADA professor continued, "He says that he's been in quite a few duels, which I don't find surprising! The long life of an elf can be full of adventure, after all!" At this, Huor frowned, raising an eyebrow. Some of the students looked at him, judging his reaction. Snape smirked, before brushing past the large group of students to stand on the stage, opposite Lockhart. They bowed to each other; Lockhart in a flurry of hand motions (which Huor inwardly snickered at) and Snape with a slight tilt of his head. They then raised their wands and holding them in front of them, assumed the customary duelling positions.
"As you can see," Lockhart said, "we are holding our wands in the accepted combative position." The crowd was silent. "On the count of three, we will fire our first spells. Neither of us will be aiming to kill though," Huor felt the tips of his lips twitch upwards at the quiet comments of the Slytherins. "One – two – three –," Huor called out with a loud, clear voice, startling some of the students. Both mentors brought their wands up and over their shoulders.
"Expelliarmus," Snape cried. The bright red light shot straight and true, like an arrow, hitting Lockhart dead on and blasting him off his feet. He flew through the air before hitting the floor with a loud crunch. Many of the Slytherins cheered, while most of the female population gasped in surprise and concern. Huor snorted, rolling his eyes, an action that didn't go unnoticed by Harry and his friends. He winked. Lockhart got back up to his feet, his hair messed up. Finally, after Huor managed to get the man back to the stage, the lesson continued.
"Well, there you have it! That was a Disarming Charm – as you can see I've lost my wand – ah, thank you Ms. Brown." The brunet gave the DADA professor his wand, squealing to her friend Parvati immediately afterwards. Huor felt a sneer coming onto his face. "Yes," Lockhart continued, "An excellent idea to show them that, Professor Snape, but if you don't mind my saying so, it was very obvious what you were about to do. If I had wanted to stop you, it would have been only too easy." Snape's glare was ten-folds the one previous. "However, I felt it instructive to let them see." Huor was having a rather hard time keeping a straight face this time, snickering behind his hand.
"Now, duelling is an art that takes many years to master," Lockhart said, completely oblivious to Snape's rage. "Your opponent is unlikely to give you a chance! So, Professor Séregon if you would," Huor raised an eyebrow, climbing onto the stage. What was he planning? "Your Potions professor and your Hand-to-Hand Combat professor will give a short example of an actual duel." Excited whispers rose from the crowd as Lockhart stepped off the stage. Huor and Snape shared a glance before shrugging and assuming their positions. Unlike Snape, whose legs were farther apart for balance, Huor stood naturally, his wand in his hand and pointed as if it was his sword that he had just drawn.
"Begin!" "Stupefy," Snape cried, striking quickly. Huor dodged out of the way, his heels clacking on the wooden stage. Some of the students that were rather close jumped back in surprise. "Reducto!" Snape blocked it before firing off a spell of his own. This dangerous battle of wills clashed in front of their students eyes as their professors battled in earnest. Even Lockhart couldn't tear his eyes away. It was a real wizarding duel, right in front of them.
"Expelliarmus!" "Protego, Incarcerous!" Snape dodged the ropes that were flung at him. "Reducto, Stupefy,Tarantallegra!" Huor rolled, dodging the first two spells and blocked the last one. "Protego, Incendio, Impedimenta!" "Incarcerous, Stupefy, Petrificus Totalus!" The battle continued on for a few more minutes before Huor blocked Snape's Incendio and hit him with Impedimenta. The Potions master flew off the stage, hitting the floor. The Slytherins winced while many of the other houses cheered. Huor hopped off the stage and offered a hand to Snape. He took it, the elf lifting him to his feet. "20 points to Slytherin for having a capable head of house," he whispered, just quietly enough to the Potions master while Lockhart bade that the students get to practicing. Snape gave a small smile, a slight upturn of his lips. It were moments like these that reminded him of the nighttime conversations with Huor that they would have during his school years. Sometimes, Huor could be a bit biased towards his old house, certainly helping when necessary, but never being obvious.
After the understanding had passed, the two began to put the students into groups of two so they could practice. Though, it didn't really go as planned. Open brawling had started immediately, he had spotted Hermione caught in a headlock by Millicent Bulstrode, a Slytherin not surprisingly. He got the larger girl off the smaller Gryffindor, sighing and shaking his head, not taking any points from Slytherin. This was probably because he silently admired the rather impressive bruise that had formed around Hermione's eye.
Finally, Lockhart decided to teach the children to block, causing Huor to roll his eyes, sighing, and crossing his arms, clearly not amused. He didn't say anything though, even though Lockhart sent him a worried look. Snape volunteered Draco and Harry to act as the scape goats. And unfortunately, the DADA professor agreed. Huor mentally face palmed. But there wasn't much he could do, the two were already getting up onto the stage. After Snape and Lockhart gave a few last minute tips, or in the blond man's case 'attempted', the duel began. However, Draco's choice of spell surprised them all.
"Serpensortia!" A long black snake fell onto the stage. Many screams filled the room as students desperately moved away from the creature, which hissed in anger. "Don't move Potter," Snape said lazily, drawing his wand. "I'll get rid of it." "Allow me!" Huor winced as Lockhart shouted, pulling out his own wand and a loud bang was heard, throwing the serpent into the air before it landed once more, hissing. More screams were heard. It slithered towards Justin Finch-Fletchley, who recoiled in fear. Its fangs were poised, ready to strike.
Suddenly, another hissing sound was heard, and everyone's eyes were on Harry Potter as he spoke. The hissing caused Huor's eyes to widen. Mr. Potter is a Parseltongue? It just didn't seem possible. Yet the snake listened to whatever the boy said, backing down immediately. Huor slowly moved forwards, the calls of some of the students being shocked. Once he was close enough, he kneeled down in front of the snake, who was poised to bite once more. Instead, Huor started speaking comforting words in the elvish tongue, his voice soft and the words flowing off his tongue like music. It calmed, letting him pet it before the snake slithered up his arm and deciding to settle on his shoulders, rubbing its cool head against the side of his face. He smiled, petting it before standing. By now, many of the students were watching Harry with an expression of shock. Huor slipped out of the room, saying that he'll bring the snake outside into the forest.
He didn't get very far though, turning the corner and making his way down the hallway before he lazily surveyed his surroundings. He passed a window, the cool glass showing his reflection. But what shocked him most wasn't him, or the snake around his shoulders. No, it was the golden eyes that he saw. He froze, his heart constricting in his chest and his breathing slowly stopped. The snake on his shoulder gave a sudden cry, as if far off, before falling from his shoulders and onto the floor at his feet. But he couldn't even look down to see why and soon, the darkness consumed him. Yet the golden eyes remained in his sight, its cold death gaze unwavering.
And he found that he really should have just stayed with the elves in the forest all those years ago.
Classic, am I right? Oh sorry, I was talking about the 'Main-Character-Falls-Unconscious-At-The-End-Of-Th e-Chapter' thing. So, how was it? Good? Really good? God awful? Please be honest! Have a good day everyone! I'll be back soon with that new story soon enough.