A/N: Hello everyone! Welcome back to another fic :) This story struck while I was in the shower, go figure. For the purpose of this fic, I am fudging birth years a bit. In canon (according to the wikis), Minerva and Tom are separated by 8 years in age. I have reduced this to 1 year, so Minerva would be one year behind Tom and two years older than Hagrid. Minerva is Gryffindor's 5th year Prefect. This takes place in Tom's 6th year. As such, this story will make a deviation from canon, but you can obviously see how it happens here. Makes me wonder what will happen in the future to follow this storyline?
This one is for Round 6 of The Houses Competition, where I'm in Slytherin House and writing for Transfiguration. This competition, we have to write a drabble (500-1000 words) as well as a standard (A themed story this round) (1000-3000 words). This fic is the Standard (Theme) of the two. I've chosen the prompt [Object] Candle, and the theme Misunderstanding somebody/something
Thank you kindly to Tasha, Dhrish, Hope, Aya, and Ash Juillet for betaing this.
Word Count: 1347
Disclaimers/Warnings:
Summary: Minerva comes across Tom trying to frame Rubeus Hagrid for petrifying the Muggleborns and doesn't realize just how much history she changes because of it.
"Changing History"
The lit candle in her hand sputtered as Minerva walked down the seventh-floor hallway. She had been awoken ten minutes ago by a third-year boy who wanted to complain about Rubeus making noise as he left their dorm room in Gryffindor. As the fifth-year Gryffindor Prefect, Minerva was the lowest on the perfect hierarchy, and as such she insisted on being the one woken with anyone's nighttime concerns. She had charmed a piece of parchment at the bottom of the girl's staircase so the boys, who weren't allowed up in the girl's dormitory, could fetch her if they needed her. The student would write their name on the parchment, and the brother parchment under her pillow would vibrate, waking her up.
This was the fourth time this week Rubeus had left his bed at one in the morning, and Minerva was beginning to tire of having to fetch him.
There was urgency in her steps, as the flame of the special candle in her hands leaned more towards the staircase she just passed than further down the hall. Poor Myrtle Warren had been murdered just this morning, and here Rubeus was wandering around at night while Slytherin's monster still roamed free!
So here she was, using her mother's Wayward Child candle in the middle of the night, searching for a wandering third year. This candle, when lit, was enchanted to show the location of any child out of bed. The flame would lean in the direction of the wandering child, and Minerva had to use it several times this year to find wandering Gryffindors after curfew. She wasn't exactly sure how it worked, but she couldn't argue its results. It was one of her most closely guarded secrets; not even the Head Boy and Girl knew she had it. Once the missing child was found, Minerva often extinguished the candle to preserve its magic. Once its wick ran out, its magic would be spent and her mother wouldn't be able to redip it for the next year. It was a warning Minerva took to heart, not wanting to give up one of her advantages as a prefect.
As she neared the dungeons nearly half an hour later, the staircases vexingly moving to make her take the longest route, Minerva heard voices just around the corner. Extinguishing the candle and banishing the melted wax, she tucked the candle away before heading forward, lighting her wand and holding it high. Tom Riddle, Slytherin's sixth-year prefect, stood with Rubeus, who looked scared upon being caught out of bed by not one but two prefects.
"Rubeus!" Minerva scolded as she drew closer. The panic in his eyes seemed to increase before the third year suddenly looked relieved to see her. She held an arm out to him and tucked Rubeus into her side before she faced Tom with a smile.
"Oh, thank you so much, Tom!" Minerva gushed, willing to overlook the green on his robes in order to thank him sincerely.
"Oh, yes, I had just caught Hagrid here after curfew and—" he replied with a grin that didn't seem to reach his eyes. Minerva could only assume it was from annoyance at having to be out this late.
"And I so appreciate the help in corralling him," she interrupted. She looked at Rubeus at her side and missed the slight glare Tom shot her way. Rubeus looked at Tom worriedly and shivered. Minerva rubbed his shoulder, misinterpreting his movement as him being cold. "He's been wandering around too much lately, and I wholly appreciate the help in finding him."
"Yes, and—" Tom tried again, but Minerva kept nervously talking over him. Despite them being in different houses, she did see him as an attractive boy. The only thing that could make him hideous to her, she figured, was if he played Quidditch for Slytherin.
"Anyway, it's really late and Rubeus needs to get back to his dorm and get some sleep. You have potions with Professor Slughorn tomorrow morning, don't you?" she asked, and Rubeus barely managed to nod before Minerva was looking at Tom again. She reached forward and squeezed his forearm fondly before drawing back again. "Thanks again, Tom. We'll leave you to the rest of your round." She then wrapped an arm around Rubeus and started to lead him back to the Gryffindor Tower.
"Minerva, I—" Rubeus started but clammed up when he saw the disappointment in her eyes.
"Rubeus, this is the fourth time this week I've caught you out of bed at all hours of the night. And in the Dungeons tonight, no less! No doubt you were trying to pull a prank or steal something when Tom caught you, weren't you?" she accused.
"No, I just…" he replied before pausing, unable to gather his words.
"You just what?" she asked after a beat, pausing to wait for the staircases to reach their position so they could continue forward. Minerva held her wand higher as they finally ascended the first staircase, letting the silence stretch between them.
"It's nothing," Rubeus finally replied as they reached the next landing.
"Well, you can think about all of this in detention with Professor Merrythought tomorrow after dinner," Minerva said. She quelled any hint of protest with a stern look. "I'll also be taking twenty five points off on top of any Tom Riddle took tonight for not only being out of bed after curfew but also being in a place you have no reason to be in at this time of night." Rubeus slumped beside her before nodding his head. "I'm very disappointed in you, Rubeus. I expected better from you."
"I'm sorry," he said quietly from beside her and Minerva had to suppress a huff. They had gone through this spiel at least three other times this month alone, and nothing else had changed.
"Sometimes I wonder if you are. You continue to wander despite my warnings. Slytherin's monster is still out there! What if you had gotten caught and gotten petrified! Or worse, what if you ended up just like—" She choked on her words, emotions thickening her voice and she had to take a moment as they paused once more for the last staircase to reach them to continue to the seventh floor. "What if you had ended up like poor Warren? She had been in a bathroom for Merlin's sake! No one would have found you for hours! Is that what you want? To never be found again?" The staircase aligned in front of them and Minerva moved forward to continue, but she stopped short when she realized that Rubeus was no longer beside her. She turned to look at him intently studying his shoes.
"I am sorry, okay?" he stated stubbornly. "I just… I had a pet spider hidden in the dungeons, and I was trying to sneak him out when Tom found us. Aragog got away, but then Tom started saying something about finally catching Slytherin's monster and how he hated to do this, but that Myrtle being my last victim was the last straw! Acromantula can't even petrify people! I don't know why he would accuse Aragog of being Slytherin's monster!"
Minerva stilled at this sudden explanation coming from this third year before a wave of protectiveness surged through her. "Rubeus, an Acromantula? And Tom was accusing you of sicking this creature on the students?" she exclaimed, incredulous at this turn of events. Her eyes hardened as she pulled her specialty candle out of her pocket and lit it with the touch of her wand. The flame on the candle leaned towards the way they had come.
Extinguishing the candle and putting it away once more, Minerva grabbed Rubeus' arm and pulled him forward just before the staircase pulled away to move to a new position.
"Come. We need to go see the headmaster," Minerva ordered. Little did she know that, as she marched Rubeus Hagrid to the Headmaster's office to let Dippet know what had just happened in the dungeons, she would be changing the course of history forever.