Karkat Vantas and a Fucking Cherry-Red Stone.
Chapter Four: Do Not Judge the Book by Its Cover.
A/N: Hey all! I am very sorry for this huge pause and I will try to not make it happen again, but life came and shitted on everything, but you guys didn't come to hear my sob story, now did you? No, you didn't, so here is the new chapter!
Ps: If you have any good ideas of insults for Karkat to use, it would be super awesome if you would write me them! I am in dire need for some! Thank you all!
Pps: I need to thank all those who reviewed/followed/favorited my story! Thank you people! It is all thanks to you that I came back. I also owe all of you an apology for my huge absence.
Chapter ohoy!
Karkat walked out of the bookshop as fast as he could, yet not quite running. His new books were under his arm, shrunken, in a little bag. He had only just managed to purchase them before his temper ran loose. He tried to take a calming breath, but the anger was still burning inside him like an Incendio. How dare he? Just insulting him without even knowing him! If Karkat had not been so angry, he would have snorted at the irony; was that not what he did himself? Insult people almost day in and day out, without ever knowing any of them.
Karkat crushed the traitorous little voice and tried to ignore the obvious point. But this is different! He thought. The older boy had been so cheerful in one moment, and in the next looked at him in blatant disgust, but with a tint of fear. As if… as if he was some kind of a freak… just like the bullies always called him. And here Karkat had thought that the magical world was better! Hah! How naïve could you be?!
He let out a deep sigh, and tried to calm himself down. There was no reason to beat himself up over this. So what if others thought him a freak? So what if he never got any friend? He could handle himself… he was fine on his own… who needed friends anyway?
Another deep sigh escaped him. Who was he kidding? He had always wanted friends. Yes, he could handle himself alone, but he didn't want to. He didn't want to be alone.
It was all that Jake-Fucking-Idiot-English's fault!
~Flashback~
The girl, Jade, continued to beg her father so Karkat turned away from the scene and was face to face with another boy, older than Karkat by five years or so. He looked a lot like the girl with the dog-book; black hair like her (but short hair instead), buckteeth, glasses (these on the other hand, were square) and the same facial structures. He had dark-green eyes and a huge, dopey smile that put Karkat on an edge. Nobody sane could be that ridiculous happy and show it. He frowned deeply.
"Blimey! What is such a little fella doing all alone here?" he asked, still smiling. How in the ever-loving fuck, was it possible to talk while showing so many teeth? The retarded kid was obviously years older than Karkat, as the fucker had the nerve to crouch in front of him, so the psycho could look him in the eyes without needing to look down. If Mr. Fucking-Fuckface had any idea, how much he pissed Karkat off, he would most likely have backed away, fearing for his life. Unfortunately, he didn't have any idea, as the Great Idiot stayed in the same FUCKING position, smiling the same cheerful smile.
"For starters, I am not alone, you fucking piece of shit, so back away, before I kick your balls off! And I am NOT a 'little fella', as you so nicely put it." Karkat inwardly cringed at the word 'fella' and promised himself that he would never utter the word again. So if the other boy would just leave him THE FUCK ALONE! After, Karkat had calmed himself down a little; he realized just exactly, what he had just said. To the other boy that was much older and stronger than him. He was screwed.
But instead of getting offended, the boy, who looked to be around seventeen or eighteen, laughed, causing him to get the attention of the begging girl and her father.
"Sorry chum. You just looked so small, so I thought that you were lost!"
"And you look retarded and insane." Good retort, Karkat. Best insult. Karkat almost wished that the other boy would be angry at him, or something, as that would be more familiar to him, but the fool kept laughing.
"What the fuck are you laughing at you dumb fuck?!" Karkat was getting really annoyed, most of the kids in their town, hated him, and even when they laughed at him, it was mocking and not like this, genuine, amused laugh. It was fucking weird. What would happen next? Would the other boy start sprouting rainbows out of his ears and leave for a magical (pun not intended… much) adventure on his unicorn? The fact that unicorns existed made this thought neither ridiculous, sarcastic nor amusing in any way…
"Your anger, of course!" Karkat was about to attack this annoying, cheerful person, when another boy bumped into him. Another bucktoothed person. This one in blue clothes, though, but also with square glasses. Was it Annoy-the- Shit-Out-of-Karkat-Day, or what?
"Oh my gosh! I'm so sorry about that! I wasn't looking! I am really sorry! Are you okay? I'm John Egbert, by the way! What about you?" the boy that had bumped into him said and shyly held his hand out for a shake. Mr GoofyFace was almost forgotten. Karkat frowned. He didn't know what else to do. He was surrounded by people, he didn't know, and he certainly didn't like them either. He took the hand, nevertheless.
"It's not nice to meet you, Egbert, but can you tell me, who that mindless fool there is? By the looks of it, I would guess that you were family," Karkat was proud. That was the second time today that he didn't swear as the first thing to do, after being introduced to a stranger. Insulting them? Well, it was better than nothing, so shut up! John frowned by the insult of the green-clothed boy, but answered anyway.
"His name is Jake English and he is my cousin. He is going to be a seventh year here to September. The girl in blue, over there, is Jade Harley. She is also my cousin. Jake and Jade are siblings. They also have another sister. Her name is Jane Crocker, but she is not here right now. She is Jake's twin, but who are you? You never gave me your name."
"One big, happy family, huh? Well, I'm Karkat Vantas. You're a first year, right?" the handshake was about to have another round, when John was quickly dragged away by Jake, before anyone could do anything. Karkat only got a bit of the whispered conversation "-bad influence. Stay away-" and then, they were gone, taking the girl, Jade, and her father with them, only sparing him a hostile glance.
~Flashback end~
Good riddance, Karkat thought angrily. Now he was here, outside the bookshop, waiting for his brother and "babysitter", while he tried to cool off.
~naknak~
It didn't take Droog and Kankri long, before they too exited the shop. Without any trouble of any sort, they bought parchment, new quills and inkwells for both of them, as well as their potion ingredients (Kankri got a re-fill). They only needed one set of crystal phials, a cauldron and a telescope for Karkat.
It was when they was in Ollivander's (an old, creepy man that even seemed to freak dear, old Droog out), buying a wand for Karkat that they ran into a bit of trouble; no wand seemed to want the eleven year old. Twenty-two wands were already lying on the desk, not one of them had accepted Karkat.
The old man had measured him, just as if he was measured for clothes and asked which arm was his wand arm (his right), but even with these helping tools (did it actually help, or was it just for show? Karkat had no idea), they didn't get any further a new wand, or so it seemed.
Karkat was about to get nervous, okay, he was already nervous, so it would be close to the truth to say that he was about to panic, but he did his best to hide it. He was after all going to be a Gryffindor, and Gryffindor's were brave. They didn't fear anything, but why didn't any of the wands want him? Was he after all a Dark Wizard? Could it be that he was not good enough for any of these wands?
Karkat came back to reality, when Kankri stepped forward and whispered something in the old man's ear that made Ollivander's eyes snap wide and pierce Karkat with a stare. It would have been funny. The man that could scare even adults with his silver-pale eyes and his seer-like abilities was shocked over something. No one else seemed to find it funny and Karkat might only have found it funny because of his near panic attack.
"Are you sure?" Ollivander asked and Kankri nodded in response.
"Ah, yes I can see it now. Looks like his father, all down to the eyes. I knew both Miss Paint and this boy's father, but I had never imagined that they would end up together. I remember the little girl, always caring about others. Yes, she was something special, even the wands that didn't accept her, didn't damage anything like normal wands. Not because of a low magical core, but because of the kindness in her that could sooth even unchosen wands. Defiantly different from your father that was nothing more than a troublemaker, was he, but cunning and sly enough to never get caught. No one ever guessed he could be behind the pranks and so-called accidents. No surprise that he ended up in Slytherin." Ollivander said, looking like he was in his own world, apparently not remembering that he had a costumer in front of him. A wand would be nice. Karkat thought sarcastically, not caring an inch about his parents. In addition, why should he? They were dead and gone, with no hope of ever returning. It wouldn't matter how much knowledge he gained about them, they would still be cold corpses, buried six feet under. A piece of him actually wanted to know more, get to know them, but he crushed the thought, before it became strong. At least, he had now learned the last name of their mother, which Kankri would never speak of, and Crabdad most likely knew nothing of.
As if able to read the first of Karkat's thoughts, Ollivander 'came back' to the present.
"Yes, yes. A wand for young Mr. Vantas! I am sorry for the wait. I was lost in my own little world. I will be right back!" with those words, he went thought the door that led into the back of the shop, probably, a place filled with even more wands.
"What did you tell him?" Karkat asked his brother.
"Who your parents were, because he didn't seem to recognize you. Sometimes it helps him to know, who ones parents are, when you get your wand. Sometimes a family helps Mr. Ollivander with a magical core for his wands and that special wand is for one of their descendants, maybe hundred years after," just as the last word was spoken, Ollivander entered the shop again, holding a long box (like all the other boxes, hiding and securing a wand) covered in dust.
The old man held the box, like it was a precious treasure to him, but Karkat couldn't see anything special about it, not even when he took the wand out. The wood was a deep dark brown, but other than that, it didn't look any different from the other wands he had tried, more the opposite. Some of the other wands had symbols engraved, a special colour, or abeautiful handle. This wand looked ordinary. Plain. Nothing compared to the others.
Without another word, not even saying, what tree gave wood to the wand of or anything about the wand core, Ollivander handed the wand to Karkat. The second, Karkat touched the wand and he could feel something. Something was different about this one. He felt light like he could fly, he felt magical, as if he could do anything now. He felt powerful; nothing could stop him from reaching his dreams. He was whole. He was a whole piece again.
While Karkat was occupied with his new wand and these new feelings, the others saw the magic sprout from the boy, though the wand like fireworks, lighting up the shop, before the magic settled around Karkat like dust in both red, green and black.
"Magnificent… That I would ever live to see this day with my own eyes…" Ollivander whispered. Before Karkat could ask him, what he meant, the old wand-maker continued.
"I am sure, we will see some extraordinary things from you, young Mr. Vantas," he said, not whispering anymore. Karkat was sure; it wasn't the intention of the wand-maker to let him hear his whisper.
"Yeah, whatever. What is the wand made of?" Karkat asked, trying not to sound shocked. A lot of things had freaked him out the last weeks and an insane wand-maker, who wouldn't tell him about his wand, but would instead ramble about how an eleven-year old boy was expected to do great things, was close to be the last drop for him. Soon he would lose his cool (liar, you have never been able to keep your head cool).
"Oh, yes, yes! This wand, you see, is very special, indeed. It's nine inches long and the wood is oak, which is not that abnormal, no, but you see, normally, I only use hair from a unicorn, phoenix feathers and dragon heartstring, but this wand has a core of scales from an ashwinder snake. A member of your family gave them to me and made me make a wand of it. He must have known that this day would come. And to see that amount of magic! It was everything worth! That will be seven Galleons, young Master," shocked, Karkat handed him the requested money and without another word, Droog and Kankri dragged him out of the shop, apparently wishing to get out of there in a huff.
Just as they were outside, they almost bumped into a man and a boy. Both had smooth, black hair and green eyes. The man was wearing a green suit and robes that matched his eyes, while his son wore dark green robes and pants with a black shirt with some red symbols that Karkat didn't have the time to decipher.
"Move out of the way, peasants!" the man said with a cold voice and without thinking twice, Karkat & co. did so. This was clearly a man you shouldn't stand in the way for.
The little group of three had only managed to walk for about a hundred meters when, they heard shouting from the wand shop, which made many people turn around and stare. While being dragged further away, Karkat wondered, what happened inside.
~naknak~
Without Karkat's knowledge, the man, named Calious Umbrage Uranian had had that wand in mind for his son, as soon, he heard about the rare scales in it. Uranian was furious. The core of the wand was very special and the old man had just handed the wand out to the first and best costumer! Uranian was mad, although none of it showed, except a tightening around his eyes, to show his displeasure at the wand maker, who countered by showing his worth of not cowering before him, but instead said, that 'the wand chose the wizard, not the other way around' with a raised eyebrow. The lord sneered at those words. Just because the wands helped wizards and witches to wield their magic, it didn't give them a consciousness. That was just sheer idiocy, like saying that mudbloods could be equal and even stronger than purebloods in magic! Blasphemy! How could that ever happen, with dirty, muggle blood running through their veins?
Uranian was very close to just dash out on the street, hunt the boy down and make him give up the wand, with force if he needed to, but he restrained himself. The wand had already chosen its master, there was no way he could make it accept his son, unless they fought and his heir won, which he would, of course, if such a situation ever arose, but that was plotting for another time.
Instead, Uranian's son, Caliborn Calious Uranian, got another wand that chose him for its master. Ash, eight and a half inches and Dragon Heartstrings. Not bad, but still not the desired wand. The red-eyed boy would pay. As well as the wand-maker. Soon, but not now.
A/N: I hope that you all enjoyed this chapter after the long wait. If you, my dear reader, find any mistakes of any kind, please tell me, and I will fix it, so this fanfiction can be even better. Again: if any of you have any insults or cussing, you would like Karkat to use, please message me and I will put them in, when I find them a good spot. (you can also chose to have this insult/cuss directed at a specific character and/or in a situation of your choice and I will try and see, if I can match your choice with my plotline). Thank you for hanging on and reading!
Over and Out - TL