A/N: Hello, folks! Yes, I am back from hell! I'm in a bit of a rush, so I'll keep this short, but I hope you enjoy (you'll probably tear your hair out, but whatever)! You will definitely like how the end of this chapter turns out though.
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.
Beta: Jin95
(V)(°,,,,°)(V)
Chapter 11: Poisson d'Avril
Valeria glared glumly at her seatmates.
The seamstress' measuring tape whirled around Valeria, taking every measurement needed for her new robes. The haughty looking woman muttered to herself, scribbling into her notes and disappearing into the back room. The little girl eyed the curtain she disappeared behind.
They were in a very posh robe shop in France of all places, and Valeria would have to admit she was impressed with the place. She wasn't one for aesthetics outside of artwork, but looking at her surroundings, she could definitely appreciate it here.
Her mother looked right at home, sitting comfortably in a plush armchair and reading a fancy looking fashion magazine. She had up and jumped over the English Channel at the break of dawn, dragging Valeria and Binky, who was waiting outside, along with her. According to the Crabbe matriarch, when doing one's important shopping, France was the place to go. That was the only explanation Valeria received.
The mini adult just hoped the seamstress didn't sacrifice comfort for looks.
"Say, mother, what kind of robes are we getting exactly?"
"Hm?" Her mother hummed from the behind the magazine, and flipped to another page. Valeria was surprised she could read it, but then she supposed she was just looking at the pretty pictures.
The girl sighed as the seamstress came back with the fabric, and decided to drop it.
"Never mind."
Once they were done with the robes, they were walking down the streets of the centre of the French wizarding world, La Ruelle de Fantaisie. Valeria's French from her past life was rather rusty, but she had the impression it meant something along the lines of 'Fancy Alley'.
They sure knew how to name it.
The buildings and shops were built with an elegant design: gilded windows and signs, the walls painted with pretty pastels, near spotless streets, and dozens of different kinds of flowers adorned the windows and corners of La Ruelle. The people were friendly and cultured to top it all off with a cherry.
"Binky," the little girl asked the house elf walking behind them, laden with armfuls of shopping bags. "Do you have any idea what this shopping trip is for?"
The little elf raised a brow, "Miss doesn't know? Miss is-"
"Alright!" Victoria exclaimed, interrupting the pair and coming to a stop in front of a wide area. "I think we're all done here! Binky!"
Her shrill cry was responded with a crack as the elf disappeared along with their haul. The little reincarnation looked around in confusion. They were standing in front of what looked like some sort of airplane runway, only the aircrafts seemed to be carriages drawn by winged horses. Valeria felt suspicion dawn on her as she eyed the crowd of girls and boys in matching blue robes.
What was the date again?
"Oh, isn't this exciting, Valeria?" Her mother squealed and clutched her little shoulders tightly.
No, this couldn't be right. She was only nine, she still had two years left.
"You can change into your school robes inside the carriage," Victoria continued to chatter inanely. "I suppose this is what happens when you get your supplies at the very last minute."
Valeria choked.
"Mother," she began, her voice strained. "What's all this about?"
"Why, you're off to school, silly little thing!" The plump woman pinched the girl's pale cheeks. "It's the first of September, remember?"
"But I'm nine!" The mini adult nearly screamed. "I still have two years left, and this does not look like King's Cross Station!"
"Sweetheart, you're confusing yourself with the school Vinnie will be attending! Besides, the extra two years at Beauxbatons are essential for developing yourself as a lady," Victoria continued nonchalantly. "They teach mostly etiquette and the arts, so, it's perfectly fine that you're going to school when your magical core hasn't finished stabilizing yet."
At those words, Valeria felt her heart drop to her feet and her stomach knot itself into a tiny ball of anxiety. "B-B-Beaxbatons," she whispered faintly, her face even paler than before. "Since when... was I going to Beauxbatons... When..."
"Oh, sweetie, don't you remember?" The woman patted her head gently and uttered the very words that Valeria had grown to despise. "We discussed this at dinner."
We discussed this at dinner...
...discussed this at dinner...
... at dinner...
...dinner...
The girl screamed wordlessly in frustration, garnering the attention of a few magical folk.
"It's always during dinner when you discuss the important life changing decisions!"
"Well of course," her mother nodded sagely. "That's when the whole family is there for the discussion."
"Nobody bloody listens to you during dinner!"
The girl's hands lifted in a twitchy manner, reminiscent of a deranged killer looking to strangle their next victim. Her face was red and unintelligible sounds of fury escaped her in a broken stream, disturbing the nearby families and causing them to slowly inch away from the mother and daughter. After all, it was quite strange to watch a grown woman lovingly pet a child who had such a murderous aura.
"Beauxbatons," the child snarled and the retreating groups involuntarily flinched. "Oh, of all places, Beauxbatons...!"
There was another crack and Binky reappeared, a large trunk in tow. Valeria whirled on the house elf, her eyes twitching. The caretaker took a cautious step back.
"Etiquette classes, Binky. Etiquette classes!" She raged and held up two fingers. "For two years. Two whole years..!"
"Isn't it wonderful?" Victoria agreed happily. "You know, I expected Valere to kick up a fuss about you attending a different school, but he hasn't even said a word!"
At that, the girl became deadly silent.
"He doesn't know, does he?" The girl whispered.
The elf hesitated before responding quietly, "Mistress Victoria assured Binky that Master Valere agreed. But... Binky doesn't think so."
"... Nobody knows, Binky," Valeria breathed, horror-struck. "Nobody knows she's shipping me off to a foreign school. I'll essentially become a missing child until Father puts it all together."
Binky cleared her throat, "Miss' brother knows."
"What..?"
"Master Vincent asked me to give you this," the elf slowly extricated a piece of parchment from her pillowcase, as if careful not to startle a wild animal.
"He can write?" The girl asked dully, receiving the letter and opening it up. Inside was a crude, stick-figure drawing of a girl and a boy holding hands. The word 'me' was written under the boy, and 'Valrya' under the girl. The reincarnation teared up.
"Binky, my own brother can't spell my name," she sobbed. "My mother is forcing me to go through the wizarding world's equivalent of finishing school, my father doesn't know where I am, and my own twin can't even spell my name!"
The Crabbe family's house elf patted Valeria's hand awkwardly in a show of comfort. Victoria was currently humming to herself, oblivious to the display occurring right next to her.
"This is so wrong... I thought I was going to Hogwarts, Binky," Valeria cried to her caretaker. "I thought I was going to meet Charlie's younger siblings, Harry Potter, Dumbledore, Hagrid and the rest of them. I was supposed to attend Uncle Sev's Potions classes and laugh as he terrorized the Golden Trio. I used to have so much time left with Father and you. I barely know him still, Binky. What do I do?"
The sweet, jarring sound of a crystal bell shattered the moment. Valeria's mother squealed excitedly, shoving the handle of the trunk into the girl's hands, and giving her a none-too-gentle push towards the carriage that the mass of blue was suddenly swarming to. She was effectively swallowed into the crowd, and she turned desperately towards her elven companion.
"Binky! Warn my father where they're sending me!" Valeria hollered over the crowd. "Tell Severus I hid his experimental spells notes in my underwear drawer, tell Draco I hope he rots in hell, and... Tell Ms. Crabbe... Tell her I love her!
"Binky!" She gave one last final scream before she disappeared with the blue horde into the carriage.
Victoria frowned thoughtfully and turned to Binky.
"Doesn't Beauxbatons offer an owl service to the students?"
"...Yes."
"Hm."
(V)(°,,,,°)(V)
Valeria glared glumly at her seatmates.
The two of them sat as far away from her as possible, remembering the scene from earlier with the tubby woman and the house elf. She narrowed her eyes at them critically, then down at her own robes, and back to them. The girl muttered and growled. The two children tensed uncomfortably.
The Beauxbatons uniform was a pretty thing, all soft silk and a sweet, yet appropriate skirt for the girls. It included a mini cloak thing - Valeria hadn't a clue what it was properly called - covering the shoulders, and tied at the neck with string. A nice hat sat atop her head, all in the same shade of pale blue.
Yes, the uniform certainly was a pretty thing.
Too bad Valeria hated it as soon as she put it on.
She didn't mind the style at all, though it hadn't primarily been a concern for her. She didn't find it particularly constricting, and she was yet again impressed with the French for designing a wonderful and comfortable uniform. Oh no, she didn't have a problem with that at all.
The mini adult scrutinized her new year mates. The boy on the left had a perfectly fitted uniform for the male students, and the cerulean of the material contrasted nicely with his dark skin. The other girl, seated uncomfortably close next him, wore a faded second-hand uniform, but it still brought out the blue in her eyes and made her black hair seem darker simultaneously. Valeria's lip curled at them, a tad bit resentful.
Cerulean just wasn't her colour. It didn't go well with her sallow skin, and made her appear even more sickly. Not to mention it did nothing for her eyes. Even she, however, could recognize the irony of not really caring much about fashion, yet still end up envying people who could effortlessly pull of their uniform.
These two would grow into beauties, Valeria was sure.
Meanwhile she was stuck with an unflattering uniform and an ape for a fiancé.
'I wonder what Hufflepuff would have been like,' Valeria thought moodily to herself. 'And the thestrals. I wanted to pet a thestral, and Hagrid and Dumbledore are the only ones crazy enough to keep a herd of them. Damn... I really want to go to Hogwarts...'
"I don't even have a wand," she said aloud in disbelief. "My mother sent me to a magical school without a wand."
"I know!" The boy exclaimed loudly, his chocolate eyes wide. "I just found out I was a wizard and they wouldn't even let me have a wand yet!"
Valeria blinked at him.
"You speak English?"
The other girl gave the Crabbe an unimpressed look, the corners of her pale lips tugging downwards. "Of course we do."
"Oh," Valeria blinked again. "Well that's a relief, I haven't spoken French in almost ten years."
"But you're nine like us, aren't you?" The boy asked in confusion. "How could you have spoken French before you were born?"
The girl, on the other hand, ignored that line of question and glared at the mini adult. "Well, I can't speak French well either. I hope you realize that not only French wizards and witches attend Beauxbatons. Students from España, Portugal, and the Netherlands come to this school as well, and their French is broken at best."
"Really?" Valeria asked, intrigued. "What language do they teach in at the school if you have such a diverse population?"
"Oh," the girl seemed taken aback at the question. "Well, French, obviously. The professors are required to provide lessons and homework in English as well, since it is the most widely spoken language. Though mi hermano says they encourage multilingual conversation. He's picked up quite a bit of Dutch and French."
"Ah," Valeria nodded, relieved that there would be English support. "You're from Spain then? Half-blood?"
The girl quickly went back to glaring, blue eyes boiling, and spat, "Vos británicos and your obsessions with blood purity. Es asqueroso."
"As-ke-ro-so?" The boy looked so lost. "Blood purity?"
"You mean to say it's only us people in the UK who are racist arseholes?" Valeria looked surprised. "I thought the idiocy was more widespread across Europe."
The Spaniard stared hard at the Brit.
"I apologize if I hit a nerve," Valeria continued and scratched the back of her head. "Asking one's magical heritage up in British wizarding society is part of polite conversation. I guess people really just don't give a rat's arse here. That's kind of nice."
"Um," the girl blushed and fumbled. "Uh, no. It is polite conversation in the rest of Europe as well. I suppose there's more than one kind of prejudice in wizarding society."
"Huh?" Valeria tilted her head and blinked in confusion. "I'm confused."
"Same!" The boy groaned. "Je suis perdu."
"Nice. An actual native French person," Valeria and the girl turned to look at him. "Would you mind terribly if I practiced my French on you? It's been ten years, like I said."
"I as well," the blue-eyed girl piped in, before scrunching her brows. "Not in ten years, though. You are very extraño, mi amiga."
Valeria furrowed her brows as well, "Huh?"
"Êtes-vous sérieuses?" The boy sighed, exasperated, shaking his head.
"Qué?" The Spanish girl frowned.
"Huh?" Valeria repeated.
"Hein?" The French boy raised a brow.
"Could you maybe repeat that?" Valeria demanded seriously.
(V)(°,,,,°)(V)
The three children continued on in that fashion for quite a few hours, to their endless frustration. After they landed and successfully tore Valeria away from the Pegasus, they had agreed to speak in English until they had a firmer grasp on the other languages. Valeria was deeply ashamed her French had deteriorated to such a degree, seeing as the boy had a hard time believing she could speak basic French. A group of French-speakers from Luxembourg agreed that she was absolutely abysmal at the language, and that she should just consider herself a complete novice.
A little harsh, but then, Valeria hadn't even taken her French past the ninth grade, so she supposed she shouldn't be too insulted.
It was while they were walking into the front entrance of the lavish and exquisite palace that Valeria was struck with a sudden thought.
"What in the blazes are your names anyway?" She asked, surprising the other two. "I've been calling you Spaniard and Frenchie in my head this whole time."
"Adela Rivero," the girl nodded.
"Right," the boy grinned. "Dante Bellamy."
"Valeria Crabbe," the reincarnation smiled, before frowning again in thought. "I think I'm going to name my firstborn son Dante."
"Vraiment?" Dante was shocked. "I'm honoured."
"What?" The girl looked at him incredulously. "Not after you, dimwit. Dante is a cool name."
The two children stared at her in disbelief as the group of first years followed a prefect towards a towering figure that could only be Madame Maxime. The older students streamed past, chatting excitedly as they walked. All the nine-year old eyes, however, were fixed on the giantess before them. One even let out a tiny scream.
Valeria was ninety-nine percent sure it was Dante.
The Headmistress of Beauxbatons smiled invitingly and began to speak animatedly in English to the rest of the students, much to Valeria's relief. She grew bored very fast with the speech, seeing as it was all flowery language, and began to look around the Entrance Hall curiously. The arches were absolutely divine and the Corinthian pillars were so detailed, she was convinced it would have taken muggles months to carve all them so perfectly. The ceiling was covered in murals depicting events in French and European wizarding history.
'I'll have to ask the Rivero girl what they mean...'
Valeria had turned around to look at the detailing on the front door, when she caught sight of a very peculiarly dressed person walking into the palace. She was wearing what looked like rich emerald robes, with even more detailing than the palace itself, as if an entire ancient language had been woven into the material with gold thread. Which would have been quite nice, if the young woman hadn't decided to throw on a chest plate, a wooden katana-like-thing, and a war helmet over top the expensive looking robes. And on top of the helmet was a precariously tipped, matching witch's hat, a strange looking 'B' sewn into the front.
'From the ancient Greek alphabet, I think...' the child mused to herself. 'Are... are those jeans underneath her robes?'
It honestly looked like she couldn't decide what she wanted to wear the most, and just mashed it all together.
The Crabbe watched, intrigued, as a professor walked up to the strange woman and demanded to know who she was. The muggle-witch-warrior-thing, whatever she was, calmly flashed some sort of card at the man. He quickly paled and retreated down a hallway, looking frightened for his life. The woman, just like Valeria, looked around curiously at the palace for a few minutes, before she too disappeared down another corridor.
"What the hell?"
Adela delivered a harsh slap to the back of Valeria's head.
"Language," she said sternly, and Dante grabbed their new friend, dragging her as they followed the rest of the quickly disappearing first-years down the hall.
The trio found themselves seated in the Dining Hall. It was smaller than what Valeria imagined Hogwarts' Great Hall to look like, but it was no less beautiful or mysterious. They even had wood nymphs serenading the students and staff as they ate their lunch. The travel to Beauxbatons compared to Hogwarts was a lot shorter, lasting only a few hours and leaving plenty of time on their first day, and time to eat.
Valeria sighed quietly to herself. Despite the eminent danger that came with attending Hogwarts, she had still looked forward to seeing the legendary school. A small part of her was jealous of her brother, for getting to meet the rest of the cast of the Harry Potter series. All she got to meet were the evil, cranky, and douchey ones.
She even harboured the tiny hope that her father would come right this wrong and have her set back on her original crash course towards the Plot.
"I can't believe we won't be learning any magic for the next two years," Dante muttered while he ripped at his sandwich.
"And we're not allowed any pets," Valeria added quietly.
"Lighten up you two, it's not that bad," Adela said to them while cautiously sipping from a bowl of waterzooi, a traditional Belgian stew. It looked quite tasty, and judging from Adela's expression, it was very much so.
"Etiquette classes, Adela," The Crabbe stabbed at her boeuf bourguignon. "For two years. E-ti-quette classes."
Dante groaned at that.
"If you ask me, you two need it," Adela huffed. "Excuse me if Beauxbatons is too boring and mundane for you."
"What did you say?" Valeria perked up at that and stared at the girl in wonder.
"That you need to learn some manners?"
"No, the other thing."
"Oh. Sorry if Beauxbatons is too normal for you."
"Right," the mini adult murmured to herself in astonishment. "Right, of course."
This was a blessing in disguise. Now it'll be even harder for Valeria to interact with Plot Relevant Characters and interfere with the fabric of fate itself. The reincarnation had been so caught up in every child's dream to go to Hogwarts, she had forgotten her plans to avoid the Plot. She had all but given up on being completely anonymous, what with her brother, his friends, and her Uncle Sev. But now... now she could live relatively peacefully during the school months. She could refuse to go to Hogwarts during the Triwizard Tournament in six years time, so even that wouldn't be too troublesome.
She was safe.
Valeria was safe.
The Plot was safe.
'Thank the high heavens!'
"Pardon me," Valeria said suddenly, emphasizing her polite tone just for Adela, who narrowed her eyes. "But I'm afraid I must go to the loo."
The blue-eyed girl shrugged and rolled her eyes, getting up alongside her. "Mi hermano has been waving me over anyways."
"You're both leaving me?" Dante pouted.
Adela laughed for the first time today, a tinkling sound so pretty, it reminded Valeria of wind chimes. "You can make other friends you know, mi amigo."
Her suggestion was for naught; Dante was already turning to chat up the curly-haired girl sitting next to them. They both went their separate ways, and just before Valeria turned the corner, she looked back at her new friends.
'I quite like the sound of that. Friends...'
Adela was blushing furiously while her older brother ruffled her hair and introduced her to his friends, the group of them grinning indulgently. Dante had a whole gaggle of girls and a few boys listening intently to one of his jokes.
What a Casanova.
'I think I will name my firstborn son Dante,' the mini adult smiled to herself.
(V)(°,,,,°)(V)
"I'm lost, damn it, I'm horribly lost!" Valeria screamed at the walls, her shrill voice echoing down the corridors.
It had been a stupid idea to leave the Dining Hall alone, or even without directions. She had previously been wandering for about thirty minutes when she had run into a helpful upperclassmen, who had given her directions to the nearest girls' toilet. The older girl had reassured her she wouldn't miss the rest of lunch, seeing as the French take their midday meal seriously. She had also said something rather bizarre.
"Poisson d'Avril!" The girl had giggled and ripped off a paper fish that had been taped to Valeria's back. "Exacte jour, mais le mois est incorrect!"
"What?"
"Vous êtes très drôle!"
"Uh... you too."
It was a pity Valeria was bad with directions. After the older girl walked off giggling to herself, the mini adult had wandered for an hour, still lost. She was about to give up and cry herself to sleep in a corner in between the long row of decorative vases, when she caught a flash of green from the corner of her eye.
The muwitchior - shortened form of muggle-witch-warrior-thing - was also in the corridor. She was performing some kind of strange and awkward dance, emerald robes sweeping around her, witch's hat barely hanging onto the helmet that was on her head.
Oh.
No.
It was not some kind of foreign dance form.
She was playing with her wooden katana sword thingy.
Valeria was sure it had a proper name, but she couldn't be bothered to remember it. Peering closer at the stick, she noticed some black Kanji she couldn't decipher inked into the handle. So it was some kind of katana.
The reincarnation watched, mesmerized, as the muwitchior swung her blade too far, knocked over the farthest vase, and somehow managed to catch the hem of her robes on her sneakers and fall into a heap on the marble floor. There was an epic domino effect as the vase slowly tipped over into the next, a monstrous noise erupting and echoing throughout the palace as the simultaneous sound of over a dozen crashes mingled together.
She could practically hear the sound of thousands of Galleons clinking down the gutter.
The muwitchior looked at the mess, bewildered, her helmet askew and her witch's hat and sword clutched tightly in her hands. The young woman looked around nervously for any witnesses, and her green eyes caught with Valeria's. They stared at each other for several minutes, expressions blank as stone.
'Oh, now this isn't awkward at all.'
Valeria wanted to cry. Her first day in school and she was already witness to some kind of misfit's crime.
'Hm? There's something off about-'
A spine-chilling scream pierced the air, and the two girls whipped their heads around to see a senior student shrieking his head off like a rabid banshee. Valeria supposed she might react the same to the vandalism of her precious school's vases. Probably.
Actually, no. She really couldn't care less and would probably be the vandal herself.
Quick as a snake, the muwitchior dove into a tapestry hung on the wall next to her, disappearing into what was most likely a hidden passage. The weird student shot off down the hail, still screaming his head off. Valeria pursued the slightly unhinged boy.
He'd probably lead her back to the Dining Hall, after all.
Or better yet, a girls' toilet.
Or even his nest. Valeria could use a nice nest right about now.
The nine-year-old wheezed as she chased after him. She knew he was older and she had the body of a child, but this was ridiculous. The guy was running at top speed and screaming his little lungs out, he should be slowing down, not gaining speed. He quickly disappeared from sight, but it wasn't that big of a problem. She could still hear his shrill screaming after all, and followed that instead.
Eventually, Valeria finally found herself back at the Dining Hall.
'But no girls' toilet. Damn you, boy.'
Gasping and panting, the girl trudged over to Adela and Dante, who were seated together again. Valeria plopped down next to them, and promptly face-planted into the pudding in front of her.
"I'm telling you, it's a fish!" Dante insisted. Valeria lifted her face from the bowl and caught the tail end of hushed whispers.
"..there's a...ta..."
She looked around tiredly, and noted with complete and utter confusion that the other students were hunched together and looking around fearfully, the staff nowhere to be seen. The only ones who were perfectly fine, albeit confused as well, were a couple of the first years and Dante. The muggleborns, most likely.
"What? Did Voldemort rise from the dead or something?"
Adela hit the Crabbe over the head for the second time.
"No, really. What's going on?"
"They're talking about a breed of fish," Dante replied seriously. Valeria turned back to the Rivero girl.
"That true?"
The mini adult was surprised to see that Adela's face was unnaturally pale, terror hidden deep within the depths of her blue eyes. She opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out. She looked about to reveal a horrifying truth to the two of them, but then stopped. Swallowing down her fear, the girl plastered a smile on her face.
"Adela?"
"Of course it isn't a fish," the Spanish girl answered shakily. "They're obviously talking about a wolf pack."
"No, it's a fish," Dante argued.
"Wolf pack, Bellamy."
"What kind of fish was it again?" Valeria asked suspiciously.
"A b-" Dante was rudely cut off by Adela's hand.
"Don't say the name!" She hissed. "Please, just... don't say it."
Dante and Valeria looked at each other, puzzled, then back at Adela worriedly. She was obviously fighting to keep the smile on her face.
"It's a type of fish, I swear," Dante supplied, helpfully diffusing the tension.
Adela's eyes shone with gratitude, "Wolf pack."
"No, it's a buffalo," Valeria chimed in, causing the two to stare at her incredulously. "What? So we're not talking about animals or something?"
After only a few minutes of this bantering, the staff returned looking the worse for wear, and the prefects swiftly got up and ordered the first years to follow them outside the Dining Hall.
"We'll be going on a tour of the Academy's palace for the rest of the day until dinner," the boy began speaking to the nine-year-olds as they walked. "When you return next year, you'll have this time to settle in and catch up with your friends, vous me comprenez?"
"Luister naar mij, kinderen, there will be no talk of that... creature," the other prefect hissed out the last word. "You are veilig here with us, there is no such thing as... that thing. It is but mythical figure, a legend.
"It is not reëel," she said that last bit harshly, turning to look the first years in the eyes, daring anyone to argue with her.
"Did any of you understand what she was saying?" Valeria whispered to her friends. "Because as far as I got, we're not allowed to speak of the mythical wolf-fish hybrid."
"I think it was Dutch," Dante answered thoughtfully. "Though I do not know what veilig means."
Adela shook her head about to say something, when a shout cut her off and her brother came rushing towards them. He was as pale as his sister, and his eyes an even more vibrant blue. They spoke rapidly in Spanish, too fast for Valeria to catch, not that she'd understand anyways. It was a very beautiful language though, and with Adela as her friend, Valeria was bound to pick up a few basic phrases.
"Peut-être mes petites sœurs ont la magie aussi," Dante sighed to himself. "That would be amazing."
"You have younger sisters?" Valeria whispered curiously while the Rivero siblings argued.
"Yes, four of them," Dante grinned. " We'd have quite the adventure here at the Academy."
"If you see any cases of accidental magic, like random sparks of light or inexplicable things occurring, that's a sign of a witch or wizard child," Valeria grinned back. "Though you wouldn't be able to tell if all of them have the gift or just one."
Adela turned back to them, gesturing to her brother, "Valeria, Dante, this is mi hermano Miguel. Miguel, these are my new friends."
"Pleasure," Miguel nodded seriously, a frown stretching across his face. One of the prefects looked back.
"Miguel," the female prefect looked surprise and slowed down her pace to walk beside them. "Wat ben je aan het doen?"
"De beta is hier. Ik ben niet van plan om mijn zus met rust te laten," he replied easily in Dutch. The older girl frowned.
"Het bestaat niet. Het is niet echt," she insisted. "Je bent belachelijkI."
"Ik ben niet van plan om dat risico te nemen, Amelia!" Miguel nearly yelled in frustration. Amelia gave an exasperated sigh, walked back to the front to her fellow prefect, and resumed pointing out different paintings and rooms.
"What was that all about?" Dante scratched the back of his ear. Valeria shrugged and looked back at Adela, who was grimacing and staring pointedly at the ground.
"I am here to make sure my sister is sa-" Miguel began, but cut himself off when his sister snapped her head back up to shoot him a pleading look. "I am simply here to walk with my sister as she gets her first look at our Academy."
The look of relief welling in Adela's eyes was palpable, and Miguel replied with a strained smile. Valeria in turn frowned at Adela. It was as if she was trying to protect the two them from some terrifying situation they were stuck in. It irked Valeria, being protected by a child. Usually, when she wasn't screwing with their minds, she was the one looking out for the other kids. It was what she had done, even in her past life. Now Adela's actions seemed even more unnatural when Valeria had an older mind.
'She reminds me of myself at that age,' Valeria realized belatedly.
"Adela, do you have any younger siblings?" The mini adult asked quietly. Adela and Miguel were surprised.
"Yes. Arturo, he'll be turning four this year," Adela answered, her forehead scrunching in anxiety and worry. "Miguel and I look after him. I find myself worrying now that I'm away."
"Well that explains your near neurotic need to protect," Valeria snorted. "Trust me, I once knew a girl with a younger sister around the same age difference. You and your little brother are both better off relaxing."
Miguel gave a short chuckle and Adela blushed furiously.
"Are we lost?" Dante stopped and asked nervously. They looked around to find that they had been left behind.
Miguel shrugged. "No matter, they'll be looking at the armoury by now. I will lead us there."
(V)(°,,,,°)(V)
Valeria leaned back into her chair, absolutely stuffed and content. Beauxbatons had comfy dining chairs instead of benches, and if she tried this at Hogwarts, she'd find herself falling out of her seat.
"The food here is incredible," Valeria let out a loud belch alongside Dante. 'You French really do take your food seriously."
"And you two really need those etiquette classes," Adela scrunched her nose up in disgust. "You have horrid table manners."
"I'm actually quite tame next to my brother. He's a beast."
"I find that hard to believe."
"I don't. I've seen things, Adela. Terrible things. My cousins are worse than mon-" Dante's serious face morphed into one of excitement. "Oooh, déserts!"
Valeria quickly snatched up an assortment of Belgian chocolates, "These are mine."
"Those chocolates are the best kind," Dante nodded sagely. Adela rolled her eyes, a small smile on her lips and the tension gone from her shoulders.
Good.
"So, Adela," the mini adult began nonchalantly. "Why is everybody so afraid of this wolf-fish hybrid?"
The girl frowned and picked at her carrot cake, but was luckily relaxed enough to speak calmly, "It is a myth well known around these parts. No one has ever laid eyes on one, but that doesn't mean much when it comes to that creature. They wouldn't remember meeting it.
"Or still exist," she finished quietly.
The reincarnation's spine stiffened. "What do you mean?"
"The very nature of this being bends reality. It can remove you from the very fabric of our universe, every trace of your existence gone from the memories of those that once knew you. With a wave of its hand, it can alter the very course of your life," the Rivero girl continued. "There are many other beings that tie into reality: Fate, Truth, Dream, Life, Death, the list goes on. But the one that is said to interfere the most often in our world, besides Life and Death of course, is the one we speak of."
"Is that why everyone is so frightened?" Valeria inquired. "They're afraid of ceasing to exist?"
Adela nodded mutely.
Dante whispered, "C'est une terrible créature."
"If this thing is powerful enough to bend reality, it can probably do so without encountering you directly," the Crabbe said flatly. "There's no stopping it and there's no sense in being afraid."
The Spaniard blinked, "Well, when you put it like that... I suppose there really is no sense in fearing the b-"
A bloodcurdling scream cut off the little girl, snapping the attention of the entire Dining Hall. The boy who screamed had stood up and lifted a shaky finger to point at the towering double doors of the Hall.
There, stood a strange looking figure.
A strangely familiar figure.
A figure dressed in beautiful emerald robes, armor, and carrying a wooden sword.
It took all of two seconds for the screaming to start, the mass hysteria taking over the entirety of the room. Students jumped up and ran from the room, sobbing, begging for mercy, or just plain shrieking. The cowardly professors Apparated from the room in an instant, along with several students who were of age. The wood nymphs had stopped singing entirely, and were now screeching at such high notes, Valeria wasn't sure if her ears or their throats would start bleeding first.
In all this, the feared mythical being stood calmly at the front doors, ignoring the fearful children darting around her and away from the Dining Hall. She scanned the room, her green eyes caught Valeria's, and she smiled.
Valeria felt her heart stop in fear.
She advanced towards the table at a leisurely pace. A kid, running blindly, knocked into her and they both fell to the marble floor.
"Adela!" Miguel's yell broke her out of her thoughts and she looked at her friends. Adela was frozen with terror, and Dante... was still eating his crème brulée. He even looked content.
'What the hell, Dante!?'
Miguel grabbed his sister and lifted her up in his arms, snapping the Rivero girl out of her own fear.
"Miguel , mis amigos! Es después de Valeria ! Tienes que ayudar a ellos!" Adela screamed over the noise of the Hall and struggled with her brother. "Valeria! I saw her look into your eyes! She is after you! You must run!"
"No hay tiempo para esto, Adela!" Miguel shouted and he tried hauling her off. She grabbed onto Dante's sleeve, the silk tearing at the violent action.
"No puedo dejar a mis amigos atrás!" She shrieked back at him. In response he shouted for Amelia over his shoulder. The Dutch girl came running over, snatching at Dante and pulling him up and away from his food, her face grim.
"Hey!" He pouted. "I thought Valeria said there's no point in running!"
"For her there isn't," Miguel replied harshly, before turning his blue eyes to the Crabbe, his eyes pained. "I am so sorry, but I cannot leave my sister here. I won't let her become a casualty."
Valeria nodded, dazed. He secured his grip on his sister and hightailed it out of there along with Amelia and Dante, Adela's wide terrified eyes the last thing she saw before they disappeared into the crowd, her desperate cries ringing in the reincarnation's ear.
She stared dumly after them, even as the horde quickly vanished and the Hall was emptied.
"Hi," a genial voice greeted her calmly. Valeria blinked and turned to see the muwitchior- fish- wolf- hybrid thing, whatever it was, standing before her. Honestly, she just looked like a regular young woman to the Crabbe.
"Hello," came Valeria's anxious reply. The little girl blinked again, rubbing at her eyes.
"Is this seat taken?"
The Crabbe stared at her in disbelief, "No."
"Oh, goodie," the strangely dressed girl sat down swiftly, and turned to smile at her. "It's nice to finally meet you."
Valeria was most definitely thrown, "Uh... Likewise?"
They sat there in silence, the woman sitting next to her smiling dreamily. The little girl cleared her throat, blinking furiously, "You don't look like a wolf-fish hybrid."
"And you don't look like a crab," the woman quirked an sat in silence again for several more moments.
"Alright, that's enough," Valeria slammed her hands down impatiently, trying to focus her sight on the strange girl next to her and failing. "What the hell are you and why are you here?!"
"Me?" The woman asked, taken aback. "I'm just a regular old beta."
Valeria stared hard, her eyes going cross-eyed for some reason that escapes her. "A beta?"
"Yes."
"Oh, of course. Like a betta fish," the Crabbe slapped her palm to her forehead. "Or a second in command in a wolf's hierarchy."
"I suppose so, yes."
"And why are-" Valeria cut herself off and gaped at something off to the side. "What in the world did you do to that poor boy?!"
The kid who had knocked into the beta earlier was now curled up into a tiny ball, rocking himself back and forth in a catatonic state, muttering incomprehensible things under his breath. The beta turned to look at him as well and cocked her head in confusion.
"He scraped his knee, so I patched him up," she replied, just as confused. "I'm not entirely sure why he's like that."
Indeed, there was a super cool Spider Man Band-Aid slapped onto his knee.
"Fear, perhaps," the little girl pondered aloud.
"You think?" The beta was surprised.
"Probably."
"... How strange."
Valeria snorted, looking back at the young woman, "You're telling me."
She gasped when she realized why her sight had been so awry ever since the beta entered the room. The little girl looked away, then darted a swift glance back, and shook her head at the strange phenomenon.
Her eyes couldn't focus on the beta's face.
It was almost as if she wasn't allowed to see her facial features. It made it all the more confusing when she could distinguish her expressions but not her actual face. Her eyes didn't know where to focus and her brain was having trouble processing what she saw.
'So bizarre...'
"And all I came here to do was fix a little mistake in the continuum," the beta sighed wearily. The Crabbe girl stiffened at those words, apprehensive once again.
"So what Adela said was true then? You can alter and bend reality at your fancy?"
"Well, it's not as simple as that, obviously," the beta frowned. "I can't just change things all will-nilly. I can only fix the mistakes that need fixing, Valerie."
At that, Valeria's heart stopped for the second time to day. She froze involuntarily at the sound of her former name.
"You know."
"Know what?" The beta tilted her head quizzically.
"What I am. Where I come from."
"Oh, that. Yes, I know you are a reincarnation from another dimension. Funny thing, the way it happ- Ooooh, chocolate!"
The beta stopped talking and immediately snatched up Valeria's assortment of Belgian chocolates. She stuffed a handful in her face excitedly, looking up to see the little girl's very unamused face. She held out the box.
"Want some?"
"No thank you," Valeria growled. The young woman quickly snatched back the box and continued snacking.
"Anyways, There was a misfiling somewhere down in the Fate department. When Death got a hold of your soul, she happened to be Life at the time. I can't fathom why he'd drop you in the Universe of Magic though, let alone the Crabbe family."
"'Death happened to be life at the time'...? How could Death and Life possibly be the same being?" Valeria gawked at the beta.
"Well, of course they'd be one and the same. Death and Life are two sides of the same coin, so why not two sides of the same being?" The beta popped another chocolate in her mouth and continued talking nonchalantly. "Although, if you ask me, Life can be such an arse sometimes."
The girl paused to eat yet another of Valeria's chocolates. She smiled.
"Death is so much sweeter."
The Crabbe gulped.
"So, that's it then?" The little girl trembled. "You're going to 'fix' me, erase my existence from this world."
She stared at her shaky hands, hopelessness flooding her. This time, her trouble focusing her sight had nothing to do with the odd magic of the beta, and everything to do with tears forming in her eyes.
This was it then.
Valeria supposed she couldn't complain. Fate had granted her an extra nine years, mistake or not. The reincarnation just couldn't help but feel she had been cheated for a second time, that Fate, Life, Death, and whatever else were secretly laughing at her bleak existence.
After all, what was the point in dumping her in this magical place and taking it all away before she even got a chance to fully explore it? It was obviously to make a joke out of her, to tear her away from a fantastic dream and the new family and friends she'd been gifted with for too short a while.
Her eyes widened when she realized she'd never see them again.
She'd never again take a nap in the sunshine with her brother, never see another fantastical display of elven magic from Binky. Her mother won't smile at the sight of her and pet her hair, there won't be another time when she has to nurse Errol back to health after delivering a letter from Charlie. The engagement agreement with the Goyles will never implode on itself, and she'll never have another brawl with that idiot Draco. She won't get the chance to hide another of Uncle Sev's precious items in some obscure and embarrassing place, and that muggle Alice will never see her again like she wanted.
Valeria will never tame a dragon.
The Crabbe will never see Hogwarts.
She'll never tell Ms. Crabbe how much she loved and appreciated her company.
And she won't ever truly get to know her father.
The mini adult breathed shallowly, trying to recall the faces of those who had so rudely barged into her new life. She could see mournful grey eyes and complicated runes sprawled over a desk, an uncanny smile, black stringy hair. She could feel a tall presence behind her as Charlie read over her shoulder, the parchment of the dragon encyclopaedia, fat fingers wrap around her own and a soft head nuzzle next to her in a crib. The smells of several potions and damp basement filled her nostrils, the faded scent of oil paint accompanying grey eyes lost in thought. The quiet mutterings of Binky were faint in her ears, the screams of a boy loud in her head as she viciously pulled at silky blond hair. Excited blue eyes, pretty strawberry blond hair, chatters of pet dragons.
Wrestling with a little brown-haired girl over a bag of candy, petting her head as the child cried and wept. A gentle smile, brown eyes smiling as her older sister moved a chess piece across the board. Brash laughter and short hair, an argument over every single little thing. The husky timbre of her aunt's voice and manicured nails braiding her hair. Nights with a flashlight under the cover, reading stories and giggling with her twin, a piercing bark ripping through the air.
She didn't want to die again.
She didn't want to leave.
"What?" The beta laughed, the loud sound jarring Valeria. "No, of course not. Don't work yourself up into a tizzy. Nobody wants you gone. Except for maybe Death, but that's just 'cause she thinks Life is unnecessarily cruel to living souls. Not that he isn't, cruel, I mean. Sometimes I wonder how they even manage to share the same existence, they're absolute polar opposites! But anyways, no I'm not here for that."
"So you're not going to erase me from this world?" The little girl asked with wide eyes. "Really?"
"Yes."
"Oh thank god," the reincarnation sagged with relief. "Thank you."
"You're welcome!"
"I wasn't-" Valeria rolled her eyes and stopped. "Never mind. Why are you here then? Why are you even talking to me?"
"Why, because I need to fix you of course," the beta said merrily as she popped more chocolate in her mouth.
Valeria's mouth dropped open and she gaped at the woman. "I thought you just said you weren't here to fix me!'
"Well obviously I'm here to fix you since I sought you out," the beta reached for more chocolate, grabbing at an empty box. She frowned and snapped her fingers, a new box appearing in her other hand. "But I'm not here to erase you. In fact, I only need one thing from you."
"One thing? What is it?"
Was it her memories? A friendship, a bond? Some facet of her personality?
"A day."
"A day," Valeria repeated blankly. "That's it? You'll be taking a day from me?"
"Just the one."
Valeria eyed her suspiciously. She was acting nonchalant, stuffing herself full of free gourmet chocolates, but there had to be more to it. A mythical being didn't just come strolling into a school and sending the entire inhabitants into a mass frenzy of fear for a measly old day.
"Which day?"
"Today."
"Today?" The mini adult scrunched her brows. "My enrollment into Beauxbatons? That's what you're here to change?"
"Mhm," the beta hummed through a mouthful of decadent chocolate and gulped it down. "Fate was having an off day and did something very stupid. The rest aren't very happy with this development and are demanding an immediate change. And seeing as I'm but an unpaid intern - that's what a beta is, mind you- I'm the one that gets to go out and change it.
"You see, Valerie? You're destined for Hogwarts. The castle is eagerly awaiting you arrival," the beta smiled kindly and offered another chocolate.
Valeria didn't feel too happy about that. She gazed at the chocolate piece and the swirls of vanilla meticulously placed on its surface, pondering what this meant for her and everything that has happened in the last twelve hours.
"What if I don't want to go to Hogwarts?" She asked quietly.
The beta shifted uncomfortably.
"I can't really say why you have to go," the young woman finally responded. "But you have to. All I can tell you is that you will regret not going. You will regret it for the rest of your life, and by the time you finally realize it, it'll be too late."
"But... It's a whole day," she whispered. "A lot can happen in a day. You can get hit by a Mac truck and die. Your life can change forever, you can meet new people, forge new bonds. You'll learn things you'll never get the chance to know otherwise. Like, that a muggleborn with four younger sisters hopes desperately that they have magic like him, or that a girl who dotes on her baby brother is doted on by her elder brother."
"I know," the beta replied sadly, her green eyes gentle.
"Will I ever see them again?"
"Only Time will tell," she replied. "That one's finicky though, I'd keep my eye on Time. When you're not paying attention, he'll get away from you without you ever noticing."
Valeria snorted. "Right."
"Well?" The beta asked after laughing for a bit. She held out the chocolate piece again. This time, Valeria noticed the Greek letter Beta in vanilla on the chocolate, same as the letter sewn in gold on the beta's hat. She reached out, paused, hesitating before she decisively took the chocolate from the unpaid intern in front of her.
Silence ensued, the only sound in the Dining Hall the quiet mutterings of the catatonic boy curled up in the breathed, then shoved the chocolate in her mouth. Just before she bit into it, she heard the sound of running footsteps, and two figures skidded to a halt in front of the double doors.
The last thing she saw as she tasted the sweet chocolate were the worried brown eyes of Dante Bellamy, and the hand of Adela Rivero reaching out desperately.
The Dining Hall melted away with her cry.
(V)(°,,,,°)(V)
The reincarnation's eyes snapped open and she gasped, whipping her head back and forth to look at her surroundings.
Valeria Crabbe was standing on the curb of an empty street, the thick lines of a crosswalk stretched out before her all the way to the sidewalk on the opposite side. A lone, iron streetlamp stood tall on the curb across from her, the only light piercing through the fog that surrounded this area.
It looked strangely familiar.
"Where am I?"
"We're in Limbo," a voice sounded from behind her and startled the reincarnation. She turned to see the beta had followed her to this strange place.
Limbo?
Like the place Harry went to after he sacrificed himself?
"So you did end up killing me!" Valeria yelped. "You said you wouldn't!"
The young woman frowned and took off her helmet along with her hat. "I didn't kill you. Limbo isn't only for those passing on into death. It is the representation of transition, the place one goes when changing their fate, their reality. You need to pass through here like you did when you passed away."
"...What?" The beta asked after several moments of Valeria staring at her head.
"Your hair..."
She quickly brought a hand up to pat her brown hair. The top half was completely squished to her head after wearing the helmet for so long, and the ends frizzed out in every direction.
"It looks professionally done if I brush it before it dries," she said defensively. "I just didn't have time today."
"Right, 'cause that one's a finicky little bastard," Valeria sniggered.
"You catch on quick, my friend," the beta chuckled and waved at the girl. "Off you go then."
"Off where?" Valeria raised a brow and looked behind her. "Across the stre-"
The girl gasped, shocked, "No..."
"No what?"
"This is where I died!" The reincarnation shouted. "I was mowed over by a damn Mac truck right over there!"
And just after she was finished shouting, a wide pool of silvery blood spread over the lines of the crosswalk. Spatters of the silver substance reached all the way to where Valeria's feet were standing. She felt sick staring at her own lifeblood.
"Oh, is that what it looks like to you?" The beta cocked her head. "Makes sense I suppose. Bit gruesome, but it makes sense."
"Do I have to cross that?"
"It's either crossing that, or I beat you senseless with my bokuto," the young woman sighed and tapped her wooden sword. "And I'd rather not hit a child."
Valeria quickly went from being green, to extremely pale. The little girl groaned, "There's no helping it then."
She turned back to the street and was about to step off the curb, when she felt the beta rip something off her back. The girl turned around to glare, but ended up staring at the paper fish in the strangely dressed figure's hand.
"Poisson d'Avril!" The beta shouted, laughing.
"Why the hell are people constantly taping paper fish to my back?!" Valeria yelled. "And what the heck is 'April's Fish?'"
"It's a prank the French play on each other on April 1st," she explained. "April Fools!"
The reincarnation rolled her eyes and stomped off, following the lines of the crosswalk and the spatter of her own blood. She stopped halfway, turning around to look back at the beta, trying to focus her eyes on the young woman's face.
"What's your name?" She shouted across the space. The beta grinned at the mini adult, green eyes sparkling.
"They call me Jin, intern number 95!"
A loud honk blared in Valeria's ears. Her heart pounded in her chest, recognizing this sound, this series of events. Two beams of light blinded her eyes, and she raised an arm to block it out. Then, impact as the truck slammed into her body, sending her flying, crashing back into reality.
And now...
(V)(°,,,,°)(V)
APRIL FOOLS GUYS!
No, this day never happened.
A/N: This chapter didn't turn out the way I expected it to, but I think it turned out okay. When I was originally thinking this up, I considered having myself walk in and reap the seams of this reality, but then thought it would be too presumptuous of me. Then I was like,
"I'll just have my beta cameo on in here!"
Thankfully, she agreed (obviously). We had a lot of fun with this, and seeing as how most people up on the poll I put up would be gunning for my immediate demise should I send her to Beauxbatons, I thought this was the perfect prank for April Fools.
Btw, to that one person who voted for Valeria to go to Beauxbatons, can you please PM me so we can be bestfriendsforever, you wonderful troll, you!
One last thing! There was a mix-up with 100th chapter. A guest got that review, but it didn't go up on the review counter due to some moderation rules. Thus I agonized over what to do, before I decided to just write two should the guest somehow get back to me by leaving another review or something. I don't know. You know who you are! That said, to avoid something like that again, guest reviewers: should you happen to get the 50th review, please don't expect a bonus chapter if you don't get back to me and choose the perspective you want. All you need is an email to make an account. That said, if a guest doesn't get back to me, I'll just mosey on over to the next reviewer. Thanks everyone!
Toodles!
-Fiction