Quest of the Seekers: Animals Within
Year Two at Hogwarts
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Chapter 13: Slytherins and the Seekers
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As the crowds cheered for Jacke, Tyler pulled Brad and Reggie away and told them to all meet in the cave tomorrow morning before breakfast. When Tyler separated from the massing crowds and got out of the Great Hall, he was tapped on the shoulder. It was Matt but he wasn't alone, he had the other slytherins behind him and each of them was looking at him expressionless. Tyler actually started to get nervous at the sight and tensed up.
'Are they going to be aggressive at me for losing the tournament to Jacke?' he thought with a hint of fear.
Then Matt brought him arms up and slowly clapped. One by one, the second year slytherins went into claps and one even smiled.
"Good dueling Tyler, you really gave it your all for Slytherin out there. You went all out on Walker. You were so close mate." Matt narrowed his eyes and smiled at him.
"Hey Solemn," came a female voice, which turned out to be Morgan Stellers. "Don't feel so bad on losing. I know how tough Walker is personally, remember?"
"...Thanks Stellers," Tyler said with a little feeling of unease at all the attention. He was not used to girls or any other students talking normally to him other than the seekers and his slytherin trio of friends.
Tyler then turned for the common room but found that the other second year slytherins were behind him. It seemed they were really impressed with Tyler's performance and it was the fact that most of them tried to ignore him that made Tyler get nervous again. He pulled Matt away and took him into a bathroom to talk privately. The others kept going on route to the common room.
"Matt, are they ALL supportive of me out there?"
"Well...they're impressed with you that's all. You see, from their point of view, they all thought of you as a weak oddball since you're a slytherin and you are best friends with guys from other houses and had to have Severus watching over you. But you were dueling hard against that same gryffindor that you always hang around with, with advanced spells, nevertheless, they're surprised that there seems to be more to you than they thought."
"Really? I didn't think they would look at me like that just because I had a duel against my best friend." Matt looked at him with very confused eyes after he said that. "Oh come on, not now Matt, we discussed this already," he said clearly annoyed at Matt's attitude towards his friends and especially Jacke.
"Fine, I didn't say a thing. But, back on with the others, I think they might not act the same way towards you. I think you just got their respect but I doubt they will line up to be your pals, after all, you did make Slytherin House look good out there but you still cheered for your friend's victory."
"You won't see me going up to them and begging them to like me. Oh...and Matt, sorry about your lost to Hawkster. I was sort of looking forward to dueling you snake to snake."
"Yeah well, I kind of did too but seeing you in action against those out of house friends of yours I think it was better that I lost," he said with a hint of relief which made Tyler snort. "Come on, let's go tell Regulus."
Tyler and Matt arrived back to the common room entrance before the sliding stone panel.
"Viper Eyes."
The panel moved to the side revealing the passage to the Slytherin Common Room. They climbed in and looked for Regulus but didn't see him in the common room; they looked all over and even checked at the 5th year dorms but he wasn't there either.
"Where is he?" asked Matt. "I thought he would be here to hear from us about how it went."
"Maybe when the other second years got back and he saw that we weren't with them he went to go find us?" he guessed.
"So lets go find him Tyler."
They went to leave the common room to look for Regulus but before they could get to the exit, Regulus came bursting in looking like he had been running for a while.
"Regulus," said Tyler. "Where were you? We were hoping to tell you about how we did in the tournament."
"Oh there's no need. I heard from the second years that came in that your friend Jacke Walker from Gryffindor won."
"Yeah he did. But didn't you hear who he won against Regulus?" asked Matt with a hint that there was a big secret in the air.
"No, when I heard your friends name Tyler, I just went out of the common room to look for you because I didn't see you. I thought you two went to celebrate with them."
"Come on Regulus. Me with the Gryffindors. I don't know about Tyler here but I wouldn't hang out with them if you paid me a thousand galleons."
"Matt," Tyler said with a hint of warning. "No, I thought Jacke needed to celebrate with his own for a change. Also, I didn't feel the need to celebrate my defeat with the other Gryffindors."
"Wait, your defeat? Does that mean you...?"
"Yes, I was in the final match against him but I lost."
"Congratulations Tyler. Oh no, not your defeat," he said quickly, "but your progress. Very good."
"Thanks."
"Wait," said Matt suddenly. "I just remembered something that I wanted to ask you. You used two spells that I know are advanced. Er...a protecto and a stubefy?"
"You mean Protego and Stupefy? Tyler, you used the shield charm and the stunning hex?" Tyler nodded answering Regulus' question. "But that's fourth year stuff! How did you learn those spells and perform them?"
"Oh, my dad shows me different spells during the holiday. I...practiced them before the tournament so I could have a bigger list of stuff to deal with."
"And you used it against your friend Jacke?"
"He didn't only used it against Walker Regulus. He used them on Falkner too in the semi finals."
"Semi Finals? Oh Matt, did you lose in the semi finals to Walker."
"No!...I didn't get to the semifinals."
"What happened?"
"Oh,...he...lost in the second round, he didn't even make it to the quarter finals," Tyler said to save his friend from telling about his own downfall.
"Oh, sorry," said Regulus with apology in his voice. "Who beat you?"
"A stupid hufflepuff named Jones," Matt said solemnly.
"Well, did you take care of him for him Tyler?"
"No, my friend Brad eliminated him."
"So, wait, You, Jacke, Reggie, and Brad got to the semi finals? All four of you guys?"
"Yeah, it was one that we won't forget."
Then Matt and Tyler went into better detail with Regulus on their experience on the dueling platform and the other parts of the tournament.
...
The next day, Tyler immediately ran off to the cave and saw that the other seekers were there and already talking but stopped when he came in.
Reggie came up and gave him a pat on the back while Brad went and shook his hand hard.
"Well, I got to hand it to you Tyler. You were very impressive out there yesterday. Though, you were a little too confident for your own good," Reggie said with a little amusement. Clearly, he was trying to tell Tyler off for his mistake in the form of a joke.
"Thanks Reggie, and, no hard feelings for the defeat?"
"Nah, you got me fair and square. I was really surprised myself when I didn't think you would use that shield charm to help you when you were stuck."
"Wow, Tyler, you actually outSMARTed Reggie," Brad said with laughter and mock praise which made Tyler laugh and Reggie glare at him.
Jacke, however, hadn't moved at all. Jacke looked at Tyler in the eye while Tyler stared right back. Reggie and Brad looked on at them until they went and shook hands.
"Jacke, I didn't get to tell you yesterday but that was the best duel I ever fought."
"Me too, Tyler," said Jacke a little slow. "So, what was that last spell you threw at me?"
"Oh, that was a stunning spell. It's supposed to keep you completely stunned until you're revived."
"Oh...well, thanks for telling me. It got me a little scared when I won into thinking what would've happened if I hadn't dodged it."
For some reason Jacke seemed to be a little shaken after this but Tyler couldn't place why. The stunning spell was actually pretty harmless. Why was Jacke still looking nervous? Brad and Reggie looked intrigued that Tyler knew such an advanced spell. Reggie even asked if he could show them how to do it and he gave a promise to show them next Sunday. He smiled at this but still looked a little gloomy. Tyler decided to go on to another subject and one immediately popped into his head like his lightning.
"Jacke, I was wondering," he said with a little hint of teasing, which surprised Jacke a little. "Were you blushing when you went up against my fellow house mate Morgan Stellers?"
"No," he said a little quickly making Brad snort and Reggie elbow him. "...I was just a little...it was just strange because I never dueled with a girl before in the entire tournament, that's all." Tyler saw that Jacke was still getting red during and after he said this, which made him snort too.
"Are you sure?"
"Tyler!...ah, let's go, we'll be missed because breakfast is starting." Tyler had the hint he only said this to both change the subject and to avoid more questions.
...
The following days had been very cheerful for the seekers. The tournament had given Tyler's friends what he thought they deserved: the chance to interact with those in their own houses. Before, Jacke, Reggie and Brad were completely ignored but now they were being talked to (as long as Tyler wasn't seen or mentioned). They were still respected as loners but still; it was a bigger improvement than being completely shunned on sight.
Tyler was also getting regular talks by a few slytherins other than Regulus and Matt but it was only by the first, second and third years. Matt was right, they all felt like they underestimated him.
Morgan Stellers was also starting to talk to Tyler a bit, more than the others in fact. She claimed that the loss to Jacke connected them. Tyler got a little nervous around her but was able to ignore it and they soon became regular friends on a first name basis. She seemed to like a few of the things that Tyler did; Quidditch, dueling, defense spells and curses were among them. She gave off the aura of someone who could seriously take care of herself.
...
Before the seekers knew it, March had come with warmer weather but was still cool which demanded everyone to always be in jumpers. The seekers put more into using the cave for practice. Tyler showed them the stunning spell and also showed Jacke the shield charm, which he had promised him. They were still rusty but with a little more practice, Tyler thought they would be able to get it. Their animal forms were also being trained with and they were always waiting for the next chance to train with them after they finished. The four of them liked being animals, (literally) and starting to come up with new uses for their animagus forms. Jacke revealed that he had been running as fast as he could in his lion form and had used the speed that he built up in the tournament. Brad and Tyler went into digging and loved to use their new forms to play tag, a muggle game that Brad taught them, underground with Tyler. Reggie went into loving to fly without a broomstick. He loved it and surprised them all by leaving the cave and trying it out in the open. Apparently, Reggie was opening himself up more and not being so attached to rules.
One day, when Tyler and Matt came into the common room after classes, they were approached by Captain Oakmire.
"Solemn, suit up, we have training right now. You especially are going to be needed."
"What? I don't remember you scheduling a practice for today."
"I just made it. Our next match against Ravenclaw is on Sunday so we're training right now. Now move it!"
After Oakmire left, Tyler and Matt shared a look that plainly said that they were surprised at the slytherin captain.
"Whoa, Oakmire is really out of it. I'm glad I'm not on the team, you have my deepest pity."
"You said it Matt. I think he's training us extra hard because he's worried about the ravenclaw chasers. Remember when they played against Hufflepuff? They're unbelievable so Oakmire would be worried that he, Gansley and Crump would have their hands full. But, I wonder what he meant about especially me needing it?"
"Well," Matt said touching his chin in thought. "Like you said, those chasers are unbelievable. He's probably counting on you to catch the snitch before Ravenclaw can outscore us to win."
"Great, knowing Oakmire is depending on me I bet he's going to give me a rigorous training session," Tyler moaned. "Well...it's a good thing I have this for luck out during quidditch training." He pointed to his chest and pulled out a pendant.
"What's that?"
"Oh...Matt, this is a pendant that Regulus gave me last Christmas. I've kept it close to me for luck since it has a potion in it."
"A potion? What potion's in there mate?"
"One that heals deep natural cuts and bruises. Very powerful and if Oakmire is planning what we think then I may need it."
Practice was hectic and Tyler was completely exhausted. Oakmire made Tyler fly nonstop through a constant bludger attack from Dellen, going for the snitch, for a solid five hours. Gansley and Crump had to be put in an exercise of putting the quaffle inside the goals at least 5 times in 10 minutes avoiding Oakmire's attempts to steal it, Tanner, and Mefist the keeper.
However, as tired as he was he still went to a table in the common room to write a letter. He had told his father that he would write them a letter about the next quidditch match so they could watch.
Dad, Mom,
I'm going to be in the next quidditch match, which is on Sunday. I hope you could make it. Tell grandma and grandpa because I would love for them to see this too. I'm going to be playing against Ravenclaw and actually be up against one of my friends and I could use your support because he's a tough player.
Best to Yenze, Serpentine and Grandpa's Fissure,
Tyler
Tyler took the letter and went up to the owlery. He whistled for Pandy and after handing him a good, fat owl treat, fastened the note to his leg and watched him take off for home.
...
One day before the game, Pandy came with the morning mail and was carrying his parent's reply. The letter said that they were coming tomorrow with his grandparents. Tyler was excited at this but then his face fell when he read on. They, apparently, also wanted to meet his friends. Regulus and Matt weren't the problem; it was the seekers that worried him. Sure, they knew about his family but what if they were uncomfortable and let it slip that they know. His family would not only be worried but they would probably never forgive Tyler if they found out that he told them all willingly.
He gathered the seekers in front of the lake to talk to them.
"Guys, I have to ask something really important from you."
"What is it?" they said in unison.
"Well, my parents are coming to watch the game tomorrow and they want to meet you guys."
"Oh, well, I would like to meet them too," said Reggie.
"Yeah, I know you told us about your dad and grandpa but it still would be nice to see how they are." Brad added.
"Well, you see, that's the problem. Remember, they aren't to know that I told you about us. If they find out then they would probably never forgive me and they would most probably wipe out your memories before I could get them to see that you won't tell."
"So, what do you want us to do?" asked Jacke in a serious tone they all rarely heard.
"I want you guys to not let it slip that you know, okay? That's all I'm asking, just be careful around them."
They all assured Tyler that they would be careful around his family and not say anything that would give them away.
When they returned to the Great Hall, Tyler went over to Regulus and Matt at the Slytherin table and told each of them, since Regulus was with the older guys that he would like them to meet his family, which they both agreed that they would love to.
...
Sunday was here and Tyler was getting geared up for the game. Oakmire came in to the room with a big sneer on his face.
"Alright, we may have lost our first match against Gryffindor but that's going to change. We will still win the cup and we are going to start by defeating Ravenclaw. Gansley, Crump, you two better not screw up your throwing out there. Dellen, Tanner, you two make sure that those bludgers stay off all of us and only land on a Ravenclaw! Mefist, you better not let us down and fail to block those goals out there or else. And Solemn," Tyler gave a gulp that he hoped none of them saw. "You better be the one who catches the snitch. If you don't then you'll have to answer to my wrath."
Tyler gave a good noticeable nod of understanding and tried to not look at Oakmire by admiring his shoes and the bottom of his quidditch robes.
The game was in full force. The ravenclaw chasers were just as unbelievable as in their last match. Oakmire had been trying to elbow their heads at every possible chance he got while the beaters hit the bludgers at the blue colored players with a vengeance. Oakmire's words really had the team playing with ferocity. The snitch had still not been seen yet and Tyler was getting worried. Reggie was circling the pitch like Tyler was on his Comet 200 broomstick, which was a pretty good one. The ravenclaw team was up by 130 points. Every time Oakmire flew by him, he shot Tyler a demanding look. Suddenly Reggie had shot his way toward the east part of the pitch, close to the stands. Apparently, he had spotted the snitch and Tyler leaned on his broom and went on after him. They sent themselves on the fronts of their brooms, trying to push themselves to the snitch before the other could catch it. Reggie had a lead but Tyler was right behind him. The snitch then went on against the wall of the bleachers and Reggie was on it's tail closing in. Tyler soon realized that there would be no way to catch the snitch if he kept going the way he was going. Another ding sounded meaning that another score had been made but Tyler couldn't pay attention to which team it was. Tyler then got an amazing but crazy thought. He pulled out of the path around the wall and headed into a straight line to intersect with Reggie and the snitch. Hopefully he could catch the snitch that way and beat Reggie but the downside was that he could miss the snitch and bash into Reggie. If he did get the snitch then he could bash into Reggie anyway. Tyler just hoped that Reggie would get cold feet at seeing he might connect with Tyler and pull out. Tyler launched toward a part of the surrounding wall where the snitch and Reggie were heading. Tyler was closing in and Reggie looked up and saw him going there. Tyler picked up the speed and Reggie sped up as well. Both were coming close to the snitch and both were set on catching it. Tyler put his hand forward and Reggie stretched his arm further. Both closed their eyes ready for impact. Their hands closed in on the snitch and it was...Tyler's hand around it. But Tyler became completely in Reggie's path and they rammed into each other. Their brooms stayed in the air where they made a letter T in the air while Reggie and Tyler headed for the ground. They screamed their lungs out and it looked like the impact with the ground was inevitable until they froze in mid-air. They both looked up and saw that the two Ravenclaw beaters Jasper Sagat and Lionel Clorkinski had them by the top of their robes. Tyler showed the stadium the snitch and heard from Villar the announcer that it was a tie game at 320 points apiece.
When they went on the ground Tyler shook Reggie's hand in front of their teams. Oakmire wasn't happy and Tyler had the feeling that it was because of the tie or his attitude with Reggie, or both. Reggie said he'll go change later and went with Tyler who said that he was going to find his folks. Jacke and Reggie came over to them followed by Regulus and a reluctant Matt. The other players were all already in the changing rooms and the students were being escorted back to the castle so no one saw this gathering. Tyler told them to wait there while he went to get his family. After about 4 minutes of jumping and squeezing through the exiting crowds of witches and wizards, he spotted his father and mother. They were walking with his grandparents and even had Yenze with them.
"Dad, Mom, hi!" he said giving a hug to each and then to his grandparents. "Grandpa, Grandma and Yenze too. It's great to see that you all came to see my match."
"Yes, we wouldn't have missed it for the world."
"Are you okay, son? That was a real nasty hit you and that other player had."
"No, I'm okay, have a little headache but I'm fine. Here, come and meet my friends. They're over on the other hill."
He took his family to where his friends were and introduced everyone to everyone. Whatever nervous feelings that Tyler had washed away. His fellow seekers didn't act in any way that was suspicious to his family. He thought the meeting went fairly well. When they all left, Regulus spoke out.
"Tyler, your family really seems great," he said sounding a little too happy. Tyler remembered about what Regulus said about his mom and dad. They were pureblood fanatics and always put pressure on Regulus to do the same and Regulus told Tyler that he was scared to not support them...in their company anyway.
"Yeah, I especially liked your grandpa, he seemed like a really cool guy."
"Thanks Regulus, Matt. So," Tyler said turning to his friends, "What did you guys think?"
But before they could answer a voice rang out.
"Hey! Shouldn't you all be heading to the castle at this point." It was Professor Arnold.
"Oh yes, sorry Professor," Tyler said trying not to sound too hateful. "We lost track of time, we'll go now."
They all went for the castle to avoid another shout from Arnold. Regulus and Matt went on ahead while the seekers headed for the changing rooms. Jacke and Brad waited for Reggie and Tyler to change outside. When they all got back together they went to the castle and went straight to the library on Reggie's suggestion.
"Well, it is after a quidditch game, I'm sure no one will be there right now."
And as usual, Reggie was right. The library was empty and they grabbed a table.
"So," said Tyler getting ready to repeat his earlier question. "What did you guys think of my folks."
They all said basically the same thing. They were all a little nervous but once they started talking to them, they realized that they were quite normal. They went on about how cool they thought his dad and grandpa seemed to be and were surprised to know that they were parselmouths.
"They weren't what I was expecting."
"What WERE you expecting Jacke."
"Oh...it doesn't matter anymore."
Before Tyler could comment on that Reggie spoke.
"Look, let's all head back to our common rooms now. I'm sure that our housemates will miss us especially ours," he said indicating Tyler and himself.
They all went for their common rooms but not before Tyler and Jacke shared a look that told them both that the matter which they could've argued on about was gone...for now.
End of chapter 13
Nightlit: Glad you liked Brad and Jacke's duel during the tournament. I hoped I finally answered your question about Flippendo that you keep wondering about.
SwollenFridge: So, you liked Jacke and Tyler's duel, well, I'm glad that I made it enjoyable for you.
Author Notes:
Well, chapter 13 has been done. I didn't go into detail of the meeting because it seemed of little importance too. The meeting itself was put in because it's a factor of the story that will be important later on. Jacke seems really preoccupied about something doesn't he? To you readers, I'll tell you why. He hasn't really been the same go easy guy that he was before the whole "finding out about Tyler speaking to snakes thing". Ever since then, he's just done a lot of thinking.
The next chapter will be up once I'm done writing it. "Letters and Blank Words" Things are starting to go down at Hogwarts which seems to be connected to Tyler's secret. How will he react and who is responsible? He immediately has suspects that make him hurt to the core. Also, I haven't updated in a while because I've been going back and doing a little rewriting in my first book. In the third chapter of Elements of Transformation, I've extended the sorting scene revolving around Jacke, Brad's, Reggie's and Tyler's sorting so feel free to go back and see the new stuff. As for this chapter just hit the review button.
Year Two at Hogwarts
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Chapter 13: Slytherins and the Seekers
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As the crowds cheered for Jacke, Tyler pulled Brad and Reggie away and told them to all meet in the cave tomorrow morning before breakfast. When Tyler separated from the massing crowds and got out of the Great Hall, he was tapped on the shoulder. It was Matt but he wasn't alone, he had the other slytherins behind him and each of them was looking at him expressionless. Tyler actually started to get nervous at the sight and tensed up.
'Are they going to be aggressive at me for losing the tournament to Jacke?' he thought with a hint of fear.
Then Matt brought him arms up and slowly clapped. One by one, the second year slytherins went into claps and one even smiled.
"Good dueling Tyler, you really gave it your all for Slytherin out there. You went all out on Walker. You were so close mate." Matt narrowed his eyes and smiled at him.
"Hey Solemn," came a female voice, which turned out to be Morgan Stellers. "Don't feel so bad on losing. I know how tough Walker is personally, remember?"
"...Thanks Stellers," Tyler said with a little feeling of unease at all the attention. He was not used to girls or any other students talking normally to him other than the seekers and his slytherin trio of friends.
Tyler then turned for the common room but found that the other second year slytherins were behind him. It seemed they were really impressed with Tyler's performance and it was the fact that most of them tried to ignore him that made Tyler get nervous again. He pulled Matt away and took him into a bathroom to talk privately. The others kept going on route to the common room.
"Matt, are they ALL supportive of me out there?"
"Well...they're impressed with you that's all. You see, from their point of view, they all thought of you as a weak oddball since you're a slytherin and you are best friends with guys from other houses and had to have Severus watching over you. But you were dueling hard against that same gryffindor that you always hang around with, with advanced spells, nevertheless, they're surprised that there seems to be more to you than they thought."
"Really? I didn't think they would look at me like that just because I had a duel against my best friend." Matt looked at him with very confused eyes after he said that. "Oh come on, not now Matt, we discussed this already," he said clearly annoyed at Matt's attitude towards his friends and especially Jacke.
"Fine, I didn't say a thing. But, back on with the others, I think they might not act the same way towards you. I think you just got their respect but I doubt they will line up to be your pals, after all, you did make Slytherin House look good out there but you still cheered for your friend's victory."
"You won't see me going up to them and begging them to like me. Oh...and Matt, sorry about your lost to Hawkster. I was sort of looking forward to dueling you snake to snake."
"Yeah well, I kind of did too but seeing you in action against those out of house friends of yours I think it was better that I lost," he said with a hint of relief which made Tyler snort. "Come on, let's go tell Regulus."
Tyler and Matt arrived back to the common room entrance before the sliding stone panel.
"Viper Eyes."
The panel moved to the side revealing the passage to the Slytherin Common Room. They climbed in and looked for Regulus but didn't see him in the common room; they looked all over and even checked at the 5th year dorms but he wasn't there either.
"Where is he?" asked Matt. "I thought he would be here to hear from us about how it went."
"Maybe when the other second years got back and he saw that we weren't with them he went to go find us?" he guessed.
"So lets go find him Tyler."
They went to leave the common room to look for Regulus but before they could get to the exit, Regulus came bursting in looking like he had been running for a while.
"Regulus," said Tyler. "Where were you? We were hoping to tell you about how we did in the tournament."
"Oh there's no need. I heard from the second years that came in that your friend Jacke Walker from Gryffindor won."
"Yeah he did. But didn't you hear who he won against Regulus?" asked Matt with a hint that there was a big secret in the air.
"No, when I heard your friends name Tyler, I just went out of the common room to look for you because I didn't see you. I thought you two went to celebrate with them."
"Come on Regulus. Me with the Gryffindors. I don't know about Tyler here but I wouldn't hang out with them if you paid me a thousand galleons."
"Matt," Tyler said with a hint of warning. "No, I thought Jacke needed to celebrate with his own for a change. Also, I didn't feel the need to celebrate my defeat with the other Gryffindors."
"Wait, your defeat? Does that mean you...?"
"Yes, I was in the final match against him but I lost."
"Congratulations Tyler. Oh no, not your defeat," he said quickly, "but your progress. Very good."
"Thanks."
"Wait," said Matt suddenly. "I just remembered something that I wanted to ask you. You used two spells that I know are advanced. Er...a protecto and a stubefy?"
"You mean Protego and Stupefy? Tyler, you used the shield charm and the stunning hex?" Tyler nodded answering Regulus' question. "But that's fourth year stuff! How did you learn those spells and perform them?"
"Oh, my dad shows me different spells during the holiday. I...practiced them before the tournament so I could have a bigger list of stuff to deal with."
"And you used it against your friend Jacke?"
"He didn't only used it against Walker Regulus. He used them on Falkner too in the semi finals."
"Semi Finals? Oh Matt, did you lose in the semi finals to Walker."
"No!...I didn't get to the semifinals."
"What happened?"
"Oh,...he...lost in the second round, he didn't even make it to the quarter finals," Tyler said to save his friend from telling about his own downfall.
"Oh, sorry," said Regulus with apology in his voice. "Who beat you?"
"A stupid hufflepuff named Jones," Matt said solemnly.
"Well, did you take care of him for him Tyler?"
"No, my friend Brad eliminated him."
"So, wait, You, Jacke, Reggie, and Brad got to the semi finals? All four of you guys?"
"Yeah, it was one that we won't forget."
Then Matt and Tyler went into better detail with Regulus on their experience on the dueling platform and the other parts of the tournament.
...
The next day, Tyler immediately ran off to the cave and saw that the other seekers were there and already talking but stopped when he came in.
Reggie came up and gave him a pat on the back while Brad went and shook his hand hard.
"Well, I got to hand it to you Tyler. You were very impressive out there yesterday. Though, you were a little too confident for your own good," Reggie said with a little amusement. Clearly, he was trying to tell Tyler off for his mistake in the form of a joke.
"Thanks Reggie, and, no hard feelings for the defeat?"
"Nah, you got me fair and square. I was really surprised myself when I didn't think you would use that shield charm to help you when you were stuck."
"Wow, Tyler, you actually outSMARTed Reggie," Brad said with laughter and mock praise which made Tyler laugh and Reggie glare at him.
Jacke, however, hadn't moved at all. Jacke looked at Tyler in the eye while Tyler stared right back. Reggie and Brad looked on at them until they went and shook hands.
"Jacke, I didn't get to tell you yesterday but that was the best duel I ever fought."
"Me too, Tyler," said Jacke a little slow. "So, what was that last spell you threw at me?"
"Oh, that was a stunning spell. It's supposed to keep you completely stunned until you're revived."
"Oh...well, thanks for telling me. It got me a little scared when I won into thinking what would've happened if I hadn't dodged it."
For some reason Jacke seemed to be a little shaken after this but Tyler couldn't place why. The stunning spell was actually pretty harmless. Why was Jacke still looking nervous? Brad and Reggie looked intrigued that Tyler knew such an advanced spell. Reggie even asked if he could show them how to do it and he gave a promise to show them next Sunday. He smiled at this but still looked a little gloomy. Tyler decided to go on to another subject and one immediately popped into his head like his lightning.
"Jacke, I was wondering," he said with a little hint of teasing, which surprised Jacke a little. "Were you blushing when you went up against my fellow house mate Morgan Stellers?"
"No," he said a little quickly making Brad snort and Reggie elbow him. "...I was just a little...it was just strange because I never dueled with a girl before in the entire tournament, that's all." Tyler saw that Jacke was still getting red during and after he said this, which made him snort too.
"Are you sure?"
"Tyler!...ah, let's go, we'll be missed because breakfast is starting." Tyler had the hint he only said this to both change the subject and to avoid more questions.
...
The following days had been very cheerful for the seekers. The tournament had given Tyler's friends what he thought they deserved: the chance to interact with those in their own houses. Before, Jacke, Reggie and Brad were completely ignored but now they were being talked to (as long as Tyler wasn't seen or mentioned). They were still respected as loners but still; it was a bigger improvement than being completely shunned on sight.
Tyler was also getting regular talks by a few slytherins other than Regulus and Matt but it was only by the first, second and third years. Matt was right, they all felt like they underestimated him.
Morgan Stellers was also starting to talk to Tyler a bit, more than the others in fact. She claimed that the loss to Jacke connected them. Tyler got a little nervous around her but was able to ignore it and they soon became regular friends on a first name basis. She seemed to like a few of the things that Tyler did; Quidditch, dueling, defense spells and curses were among them. She gave off the aura of someone who could seriously take care of herself.
...
Before the seekers knew it, March had come with warmer weather but was still cool which demanded everyone to always be in jumpers. The seekers put more into using the cave for practice. Tyler showed them the stunning spell and also showed Jacke the shield charm, which he had promised him. They were still rusty but with a little more practice, Tyler thought they would be able to get it. Their animal forms were also being trained with and they were always waiting for the next chance to train with them after they finished. The four of them liked being animals, (literally) and starting to come up with new uses for their animagus forms. Jacke revealed that he had been running as fast as he could in his lion form and had used the speed that he built up in the tournament. Brad and Tyler went into digging and loved to use their new forms to play tag, a muggle game that Brad taught them, underground with Tyler. Reggie went into loving to fly without a broomstick. He loved it and surprised them all by leaving the cave and trying it out in the open. Apparently, Reggie was opening himself up more and not being so attached to rules.
One day, when Tyler and Matt came into the common room after classes, they were approached by Captain Oakmire.
"Solemn, suit up, we have training right now. You especially are going to be needed."
"What? I don't remember you scheduling a practice for today."
"I just made it. Our next match against Ravenclaw is on Sunday so we're training right now. Now move it!"
After Oakmire left, Tyler and Matt shared a look that plainly said that they were surprised at the slytherin captain.
"Whoa, Oakmire is really out of it. I'm glad I'm not on the team, you have my deepest pity."
"You said it Matt. I think he's training us extra hard because he's worried about the ravenclaw chasers. Remember when they played against Hufflepuff? They're unbelievable so Oakmire would be worried that he, Gansley and Crump would have their hands full. But, I wonder what he meant about especially me needing it?"
"Well," Matt said touching his chin in thought. "Like you said, those chasers are unbelievable. He's probably counting on you to catch the snitch before Ravenclaw can outscore us to win."
"Great, knowing Oakmire is depending on me I bet he's going to give me a rigorous training session," Tyler moaned. "Well...it's a good thing I have this for luck out during quidditch training." He pointed to his chest and pulled out a pendant.
"What's that?"
"Oh...Matt, this is a pendant that Regulus gave me last Christmas. I've kept it close to me for luck since it has a potion in it."
"A potion? What potion's in there mate?"
"One that heals deep natural cuts and bruises. Very powerful and if Oakmire is planning what we think then I may need it."
Practice was hectic and Tyler was completely exhausted. Oakmire made Tyler fly nonstop through a constant bludger attack from Dellen, going for the snitch, for a solid five hours. Gansley and Crump had to be put in an exercise of putting the quaffle inside the goals at least 5 times in 10 minutes avoiding Oakmire's attempts to steal it, Tanner, and Mefist the keeper.
However, as tired as he was he still went to a table in the common room to write a letter. He had told his father that he would write them a letter about the next quidditch match so they could watch.
Dad, Mom,
I'm going to be in the next quidditch match, which is on Sunday. I hope you could make it. Tell grandma and grandpa because I would love for them to see this too. I'm going to be playing against Ravenclaw and actually be up against one of my friends and I could use your support because he's a tough player.
Best to Yenze, Serpentine and Grandpa's Fissure,
Tyler
Tyler took the letter and went up to the owlery. He whistled for Pandy and after handing him a good, fat owl treat, fastened the note to his leg and watched him take off for home.
...
One day before the game, Pandy came with the morning mail and was carrying his parent's reply. The letter said that they were coming tomorrow with his grandparents. Tyler was excited at this but then his face fell when he read on. They, apparently, also wanted to meet his friends. Regulus and Matt weren't the problem; it was the seekers that worried him. Sure, they knew about his family but what if they were uncomfortable and let it slip that they know. His family would not only be worried but they would probably never forgive Tyler if they found out that he told them all willingly.
He gathered the seekers in front of the lake to talk to them.
"Guys, I have to ask something really important from you."
"What is it?" they said in unison.
"Well, my parents are coming to watch the game tomorrow and they want to meet you guys."
"Oh, well, I would like to meet them too," said Reggie.
"Yeah, I know you told us about your dad and grandpa but it still would be nice to see how they are." Brad added.
"Well, you see, that's the problem. Remember, they aren't to know that I told you about us. If they find out then they would probably never forgive me and they would most probably wipe out your memories before I could get them to see that you won't tell."
"So, what do you want us to do?" asked Jacke in a serious tone they all rarely heard.
"I want you guys to not let it slip that you know, okay? That's all I'm asking, just be careful around them."
They all assured Tyler that they would be careful around his family and not say anything that would give them away.
When they returned to the Great Hall, Tyler went over to Regulus and Matt at the Slytherin table and told each of them, since Regulus was with the older guys that he would like them to meet his family, which they both agreed that they would love to.
...
Sunday was here and Tyler was getting geared up for the game. Oakmire came in to the room with a big sneer on his face.
"Alright, we may have lost our first match against Gryffindor but that's going to change. We will still win the cup and we are going to start by defeating Ravenclaw. Gansley, Crump, you two better not screw up your throwing out there. Dellen, Tanner, you two make sure that those bludgers stay off all of us and only land on a Ravenclaw! Mefist, you better not let us down and fail to block those goals out there or else. And Solemn," Tyler gave a gulp that he hoped none of them saw. "You better be the one who catches the snitch. If you don't then you'll have to answer to my wrath."
Tyler gave a good noticeable nod of understanding and tried to not look at Oakmire by admiring his shoes and the bottom of his quidditch robes.
The game was in full force. The ravenclaw chasers were just as unbelievable as in their last match. Oakmire had been trying to elbow their heads at every possible chance he got while the beaters hit the bludgers at the blue colored players with a vengeance. Oakmire's words really had the team playing with ferocity. The snitch had still not been seen yet and Tyler was getting worried. Reggie was circling the pitch like Tyler was on his Comet 200 broomstick, which was a pretty good one. The ravenclaw team was up by 130 points. Every time Oakmire flew by him, he shot Tyler a demanding look. Suddenly Reggie had shot his way toward the east part of the pitch, close to the stands. Apparently, he had spotted the snitch and Tyler leaned on his broom and went on after him. They sent themselves on the fronts of their brooms, trying to push themselves to the snitch before the other could catch it. Reggie had a lead but Tyler was right behind him. The snitch then went on against the wall of the bleachers and Reggie was on it's tail closing in. Tyler soon realized that there would be no way to catch the snitch if he kept going the way he was going. Another ding sounded meaning that another score had been made but Tyler couldn't pay attention to which team it was. Tyler then got an amazing but crazy thought. He pulled out of the path around the wall and headed into a straight line to intersect with Reggie and the snitch. Hopefully he could catch the snitch that way and beat Reggie but the downside was that he could miss the snitch and bash into Reggie. If he did get the snitch then he could bash into Reggie anyway. Tyler just hoped that Reggie would get cold feet at seeing he might connect with Tyler and pull out. Tyler launched toward a part of the surrounding wall where the snitch and Reggie were heading. Tyler was closing in and Reggie looked up and saw him going there. Tyler picked up the speed and Reggie sped up as well. Both were coming close to the snitch and both were set on catching it. Tyler put his hand forward and Reggie stretched his arm further. Both closed their eyes ready for impact. Their hands closed in on the snitch and it was...Tyler's hand around it. But Tyler became completely in Reggie's path and they rammed into each other. Their brooms stayed in the air where they made a letter T in the air while Reggie and Tyler headed for the ground. They screamed their lungs out and it looked like the impact with the ground was inevitable until they froze in mid-air. They both looked up and saw that the two Ravenclaw beaters Jasper Sagat and Lionel Clorkinski had them by the top of their robes. Tyler showed the stadium the snitch and heard from Villar the announcer that it was a tie game at 320 points apiece.
When they went on the ground Tyler shook Reggie's hand in front of their teams. Oakmire wasn't happy and Tyler had the feeling that it was because of the tie or his attitude with Reggie, or both. Reggie said he'll go change later and went with Tyler who said that he was going to find his folks. Jacke and Reggie came over to them followed by Regulus and a reluctant Matt. The other players were all already in the changing rooms and the students were being escorted back to the castle so no one saw this gathering. Tyler told them to wait there while he went to get his family. After about 4 minutes of jumping and squeezing through the exiting crowds of witches and wizards, he spotted his father and mother. They were walking with his grandparents and even had Yenze with them.
"Dad, Mom, hi!" he said giving a hug to each and then to his grandparents. "Grandpa, Grandma and Yenze too. It's great to see that you all came to see my match."
"Yes, we wouldn't have missed it for the world."
"Are you okay, son? That was a real nasty hit you and that other player had."
"No, I'm okay, have a little headache but I'm fine. Here, come and meet my friends. They're over on the other hill."
He took his family to where his friends were and introduced everyone to everyone. Whatever nervous feelings that Tyler had washed away. His fellow seekers didn't act in any way that was suspicious to his family. He thought the meeting went fairly well. When they all left, Regulus spoke out.
"Tyler, your family really seems great," he said sounding a little too happy. Tyler remembered about what Regulus said about his mom and dad. They were pureblood fanatics and always put pressure on Regulus to do the same and Regulus told Tyler that he was scared to not support them...in their company anyway.
"Yeah, I especially liked your grandpa, he seemed like a really cool guy."
"Thanks Regulus, Matt. So," Tyler said turning to his friends, "What did you guys think?"
But before they could answer a voice rang out.
"Hey! Shouldn't you all be heading to the castle at this point." It was Professor Arnold.
"Oh yes, sorry Professor," Tyler said trying not to sound too hateful. "We lost track of time, we'll go now."
They all went for the castle to avoid another shout from Arnold. Regulus and Matt went on ahead while the seekers headed for the changing rooms. Jacke and Brad waited for Reggie and Tyler to change outside. When they all got back together they went to the castle and went straight to the library on Reggie's suggestion.
"Well, it is after a quidditch game, I'm sure no one will be there right now."
And as usual, Reggie was right. The library was empty and they grabbed a table.
"So," said Tyler getting ready to repeat his earlier question. "What did you guys think of my folks."
They all said basically the same thing. They were all a little nervous but once they started talking to them, they realized that they were quite normal. They went on about how cool they thought his dad and grandpa seemed to be and were surprised to know that they were parselmouths.
"They weren't what I was expecting."
"What WERE you expecting Jacke."
"Oh...it doesn't matter anymore."
Before Tyler could comment on that Reggie spoke.
"Look, let's all head back to our common rooms now. I'm sure that our housemates will miss us especially ours," he said indicating Tyler and himself.
They all went for their common rooms but not before Tyler and Jacke shared a look that told them both that the matter which they could've argued on about was gone...for now.
End of chapter 13
Nightlit: Glad you liked Brad and Jacke's duel during the tournament. I hoped I finally answered your question about Flippendo that you keep wondering about.
SwollenFridge: So, you liked Jacke and Tyler's duel, well, I'm glad that I made it enjoyable for you.
Author Notes:
Well, chapter 13 has been done. I didn't go into detail of the meeting because it seemed of little importance too. The meeting itself was put in because it's a factor of the story that will be important later on. Jacke seems really preoccupied about something doesn't he? To you readers, I'll tell you why. He hasn't really been the same go easy guy that he was before the whole "finding out about Tyler speaking to snakes thing". Ever since then, he's just done a lot of thinking.
The next chapter will be up once I'm done writing it. "Letters and Blank Words" Things are starting to go down at Hogwarts which seems to be connected to Tyler's secret. How will he react and who is responsible? He immediately has suspects that make him hurt to the core. Also, I haven't updated in a while because I've been going back and doing a little rewriting in my first book. In the third chapter of Elements of Transformation, I've extended the sorting scene revolving around Jacke, Brad's, Reggie's and Tyler's sorting so feel free to go back and see the new stuff. As for this chapter just hit the review button.