Two Sides of Me
Chapter Four: First Lessons
Maurice opened his eyes and found himself in a familiar place. He wasn't inside the Slytherin Common Room, but instead, the familiar setting of the living room from his home. Looking around, he turned to see a dark, shadowy figure sitting on a sofa chair in from of the fireplace, with glowing red eyes and his form covered in darkness.
"It's good to see you again, old friend." The figure spoke in a sinister voice.
"You interfered in my life." Maurice frowned. "Again."
"I did you a favor." The figure countered. "You were panicking, indecisive. How else were we going to get through your sorting?"
"But I wanted things to be natural for once." Maurice shooked his head. "For once I wanted to do something without you holding my hand…Adrian."
"You make it sound like you don't want me around." The figure, Adrian, accused, the darkness retreating from him, revealing his true form; same clothes, same pale skin, with the only thing different is Adrian's black hair to Maurice's auburn hair and Adrian's red eyes to Maurice's blue eyes.
"Of course I want you around!" Maurice said. "I just don't want you to do everything for me!"
"Except I'm not." Adrian rolled his eyes. "And you also seem to forget that there are some situations that are beyond your control."
"But I can't have you always interfering in my life," Maurice interjected.
"Same old Maurice." Adrian shooked his head. "Always wanting to do things his way." He looked up at him. "And besides, isn't that what you want as well? For all to be treated as equals?"
"Adrian…"
"Don't worry," Adrian assured. "I will only step in if I find it absolutely necessary." He then frowned. "However, I ask that you beware of that Malfoy character. I'm getting dangerous vibes from him."
"Maelstrom! Do you plan on sleeping all day?!"
Maurice woke up and sat up with a groan. Sometimes he would have that dream of his other self, like he was talking to himself, except this reflection of himself looked different and act different, and every time he had that dream, he would wake up feeling worse.
"I said get out of bed!" Someone shouted from outside his door. "Don't think I won't take this door down!"
"Alright, alright." Maurice groaned, tossing his feet to the floor. "No need to get hostile."
Getting dressed, he went up to the door and opened it, seeing the hazel-eyed girl from the sorting ceremony the other day, her black hair tied up in a neat bun. She also stood a head taller than Maurice, looking two years older than him.
"About time you woke up." She grunted. "I was beginning to wonder if you'd ever get out of bed!"
"What time is it?" Maurice asked, letting out a yawn.
"Seven o' five." She replied, before grabbing his arm. "Now come, or we'll be late for breakfast."
She practically dragged him, still half asleep, out of the Common Room and down the halls towards the Great Hall.
"I didn't catch your name, by the way," Maurice spoke up.
"Bethany Barbarous." She said nonchalantly. "I know who you are, Maurice Maelstrom. In fact, I still remember your speech from yesterday." She gave a smile. "I have to say, I was impressed."
"Really?" Maurice raised an eyebrow.
"Of course." Bethany nodded. "I believe that everyone deserves to be treated equally, despite their race or blood status." She then frowned. "But not everyone agrees."
"Like Lucius?" Maurice added, remembering what the silver-haired Malfoy had said to him yesterday.
"Especially Malfoy." Bethany rolled her eyes. "He's a blood purist, so of course he would have something bad to say about your speech."
"What's a blood purist?" Maurice asked. "And why would Lucius say anything bad about what…I said?"
"They're someone who believes that they're superior because they're pureblood." Bethany scoffed at this. "And Lucius? Well, he thinks Muggle-borns have no place, so that adds to his prejudice." She turns to Maurice. "I've heard how he torments helpless Muggles who can't even fight back and even practices the Dark Arts."
"Is that legal?" Maurice asked. "The Dark Arts thing, I mean."
"Not really, no." Bethany shooked her head. "I mean, it depends on how you look at it. It isn't exactly encouraged though."
Maurice wasn't sure what to think about dark magic. How was it different from regular magic?
The two finally arrived at the great hall, heading over to the Slytherin table and taking their seats, stacking their plates high.
"Try not to eat so much, Maelstrom," Bethany advised. "Don't want to get a stomach ache."
But Maurice paid no mind, as he dug in, shoveling food into his mouth, not even caring if the crumbs fell onto his robes, only that his hunger be sated, which hasn't come up until now.
As the students ate breakfast, Dumbledore gave his morning speech and the teachers handed out the schedules. After breakfast is concluded, Maurice figured he'd go to find Severus, but he was stopped by Bethany.
"Your face and robes are a mess." She frowned, pointing out the food crumbs all over his face and robes. "Even a Gryffindor knows to look presentable!"
Before Maurice could object, Bethany already pulled out a handkerchief and started wiping his face, gently and with care.
The way she did it reminded him of how his aunt did, whenever his face was messy with crumbs.
Bethany finished, putting away the rag and smiled.
"There, much better." She said with a cheery tone. "You look much better, not to mention cuter."
Maurice blushed a little bit at this.
"Anyways, the first class we go to is potions, so brace yourself for Professor Slughorn." Bethany said, taking hold of his arm. "Come, I'll show you the way."
Before Maurice could even protest, Bethany grabbed him by the arm and prepared to drag him along, before James and Sirius approached, followed by Remus and Peter.
"Oi, Maelstrom!" James called happily, but frowned when his gaze set on Bethany. "Barbarous."
"Potter." She replied sternly. "Shouldn't you lot be headed for class?"
"We will, in a bit." Sirius waved her off. "We're just gettin' to know our surroundings a bit."
"For what? Causing mischief?" Bethany said with her hands on her hips. "I know you two are infamous troublemakers."
"You make it sound like a bad thing." James chuckled, before turning to Maurice. "Anyways, how've you been, Maelstrom?"
"I've been doing well." Maurice nodded, before frowning. "But we're in different houses. Does this mean we can't be friends anymore?"
"No mate, that don't mean nothin'!" James quickly said, before smiling. "It doesn't matter what house we're in, we'll always be friends."
"Really?" This brought a smile to Maurice's face.
"Just be wary on any shady characters in Slytherin." Sirius warned. "They'll take advantage of you if you're not careful."
"You don't have to worry about that, Doggy," Bethany smirked, putting an arm around Maurice. "I'll make sure he stays away from the wrong crowd."
Maurice blushed a bit at this, the way she held him close so protectively, so…motherly.
"Well, we'd best head to class now." She said, tugging Maurice along. "I suggest you lot do the same."
With that, she dragged Maurice along the castle hallways, reaching the dungeons, before finally arriving at the potions classroom; the class was lined with several shelves with a wide variety of ingredients for potions, and at the far end of the room.
"This, as you can see, is the potions classroom." Bethany declared. "Professor Slughorn, the Head of Slytherin, is in charge of this class." Looking around, she spotted two available seats next to Severus and Lily. "There!"
She practically pulled Maurice over to the table, setting him next to Severus, while she sat next to Lily.
"Oh, hello, Maurice!" Lily greeted with a smile. "I hope you slept well!"
"Yes, I slept fine." Maurice nodded, not planning on telling his new friends about the dream he had.
"I slept fine as well." Severus chimed in. "Much better than I did back home."
"I see you've met Bethany." Lily pointed out. "She's always been a good friend to me. Even if she can come off a bit forceful."
"I'm just making sure you stay away from bad influences is all." Bethany said. "You never know when someone might try to take advantage of you."
"Never change, Bethany." Lily chuckled. "I don't know where I'd be, if not for you."
After the teacher arrived, class began, going over basics of brewing potions, then had the students brew a cure for boils potion. Severus, Lily and Bethany seemed to have little trouble with their potions, though Maurice seemed to struggle a bit, unsure on how to use the brewing kit properly, so they had to walk him through it. Thankfully, with the assistance of his three friends, Maurice was able to brew the potion without causing an explosion.
After another hour of class, the students were dismissed, and the four decided to hang out between classes, mostly Bethany and Lily talking about the times they used to hang out, while Severus was trying to tutor Maurice in using his brewing kit, though Maurice was still having trouble. After an hour, Lily had to leave for Herbology class, much to the disappointment of Severus, though Maurice assured that he would see her again.
The three Slytherins made their way to the History of Magic class, the class that the majority of students considered the dullest class in Hogwarts. An hour of agonizing boredom of trying to survive Professor Binns class without falling asleep, and the ghost's monotone voice made it no better. Maurice was more curious of how a ghost could be a teacher. As the ghost droned on about the Gargoyle Strike of 1911, Maurice was feeling the temptation to shut his eyes; it took several pinches to the cheek from Bethany to keep him awake.
After that, the three Slytherin's met with Lily on the way to the Great Hall for lunch.
"So, how was History of Magic class?" Lily asked.
"Dreadful." Severus groaned. "I swear that ghost is trying to bore the class to death!"
"I'm still confused by the Gargoyle Strikes," Maurice spoke up. "What did it mean by 'strikes'? Was there an attack by gargoyles?"
"Not that kind of strike," Bethany said, amused by Maurice's lack of knowledge. "More like a protest against unfair working conditions."
"Didn't you learn about these kinds of things in Muggle school?" Severus asked.
"No, my aunt could never afford it." Maurice shooked his head.
"Well, no need to worry!" Lily said with a beaming smile. "We'll be more than happy to help you out!" She looked at her friend. "Right, Sev?"
"Of course we will." Severus rolled his eyes. "We can't have an uneducated dunderhead among us, can we?"
Maurice cocked his head in offense at the 'uneducated dunderhead' comment, but he regardless felt glad to have such friends.
The next class Maurice attended was Transfiguration, taught by Professor McGonagall, which teaches the art of changing the form and appearance of an object or a person. She taught them about the transfiguration alphabet and the transfiguration formula, nothing too difficult to understand.
Next up was Charms class, where Maurice met up with Kevin, who was more than ecstatic about attending this class, something about wanting to learn Wingardium Leviosa, but Maurice was happy to see him again regardless. During class, during Professor Flitwick's lecture on the spell, Kevin whispered to Maurice about the way of using the spell.
"So basically, when the Dark Lord comes to fight yeh and yeh wanna float 'em up in the air, just pretend yer surrendering," Kevin would say, which would earn a chuckle out of Maurice, which earned them both the stink eye from the stout professor.
After the lecture, the students were tasked with casting the spell on the feather to make it levitate. Being an expert on spells already, Severus and Bethany had little trouble in casting the spell. Kevin, after several tries, had managed to cast the spell. Maurice had a little bit of trouble pronouncing the name of the spell correctly, before managing to cast the spell, watching in awe as the feather swung back and forth, as it floated into the air, before slowly levitating back down.
After Charms class, the four had the rest of the day to themselves, as they walked down the corridors.
"Well, today has certainly been an interesting first day at Hogwarts." Severus declared. "Already we've learned several things."
"Potions, Herbs, and spells; not bad for the first day!" Lily said with a smile.
"Not to mention some of the new people." Bethany chimed in. "Philips McGonagall has been somewhat rude, but he seems a good fellow."
"I'm just glad to run into Kevin again." Maurice beamed.
"Yes, glad to see you've become friends with the class clown." Severus rolled his eyes, earning an elbow to the ribs from Lily.
"Speaking of class clown," Bethany frowned, gesturing to a familiar group of Gryffindor's who approached.
"Maelstrom, 'aye there!" James called with a smile. "Hope you've been havin' a good first day!"
"I am, actually!" Maurice nodded.
"Great to hear, mate!" James smiled, though he frowned upon turning his gaze to Severus. "Snape."
"Potter," Severus said bitterly.
"We were on our way to explore the rest of the castle, now that we have free time." Sirius declared. "Wanna come with?"
Maurice was about to respond but was halted by Bethany.
"He can't, actually." She stated firmly. "He has studying to do."
"I do?" Maurice asked, giving a quizzical look.
"Yes, you do." Bethany nodded, taking hold of Maurice's arm. "You need to work on your spell pronunciations."
"And your potion's skills are heavily lacking," Severus added. "Honestly, the way you performed in Potion's class was worse than mediocre."
"But-" Maurice tried to protest.
"No 'buts'," Bethany said firmly. "Study first, play later, mister!"
Bethany practically dragged Maurice off, with Severus and Lily following close behind, while the Marauders simply shrugged before walking off, while unbeknownst to them, Evan Rosier was watching from a distance, intrigued.
Finally, a new chapter! I'm so sorry for keeping you guys waiting with this one, I've been busy with working two jobs and I've been working on my other stories, so I apologize if it seemed like I neglected this story. But now I'm back and I'm gonna do my best to catch up my other stories. Anyways, thank you for tagging along and being patient with me, reviews are greatly appreciated!