A few Hufflepuff's
(Sorry for being away)
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Muse: *peeks from behind fourth wall* Um...*cough* I literally have no excuses. None of the excuses. I took a helluva hiatus and started other stories because plot bunnies and then the terrible Teenwolf Tumblr Dash Hit of 2012 slammed me and I was hooked to Sterek and had no idea what else to write (though I still love my lovilies in this story I was sort of turned around) so I've decided to incorporate everything. BTW a warning that other characters are going to have their own arcs. I think a while back I had a few people unfamiliar with Supernatural get a little confused by the characters. So any other crossovers I throw here, bear with me and if you aren't interested in checking out the shows/books/comic/ETC they're from, then just treat them like OC's. It'll make it easier.
Now, to start out honestly, this story had a set middle-ending that wasn't going to change. Now, due to the hiatus well, the plot bunnies demand a completely different take. I'm not going back to change anything, not at all, just well...lets just say, the Ivan/Lovina/Antonio/Cho/ love square may just inherit a few more angles. Newer characters will be introduced. We're going to have both Crowley's (because everyone was so confused last time and well, I can't not have them both here).
So...onward because I seem to remember something about a certain tournament and a particular badgery house that-lets be honest- has the most awesome characters available.
Shall we?
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Leon watched from his cushy nest of pillows as Cedric Diggory regaled the first years with his version of the second task. Heroic as it sounded (fighting to save true love and all that) Leon can't help but wonder how Cedric Diggory of all people landed the title role for the tournament.
Certainly there were other, determined, braver and more intelligent candidates that would have proven better for the task. But, then again, just because Cedric seemed to hear and see everything in vibrant happy colors and a mired of Disney-esq sounds didn't mean he wasn't strong enough, brave enough or intelligent enough to get the job done.
The thing about Leon's House was, Hufflepuff might not be as determined as the snakes, they might not be as brave or particularly brainy but, what they lacked in those areas they made up for loyalty and a pretty good work ethic- their motto being "We start something we damn well make sure to finish it," or something like that.
Lili Zwingli giggled at the arm Cedric placed around her tiny shoulders, smiled brightly as he then hoisted her up over his head in one powerful moment, showing the Hufflepuff first years how he 'lifted' his great and truest love from the bowels of the deep dark lake.
Leon rolled his eyes and looked towards the dorms were Hufflepuff fourth year Derek Hale glowered, eyes glittering in the shadow. Leon, for his part, ignored the obvious glowing eyes like the rest of the Hufflepuffs. They might be a little uneasy with a werewolf in their house but house unity meant family and Derek had taken to the Hufflepuff's like a pup being guided into pack.
The more he watched the Hufflepuff champion who smiled brightly and the werewolf who now slunk into the corner to listen at wrapt attention the more Leon realized that, out of all the houses in the school Hufflepuff was definitely the best and most underrated.
Well, not technically underrated. Not now.
He stood up and walked towards Derek's dark corner, careful not to startle the werewolf who listened with all of his attention. Didn't work, Derek scooted to the side to allow Leon a little room in the cool dark which- touched. Leon really didn't understand why Derek wasn't more popular outside of their house. He was an actual, died in the wool sweetheart.
"So, is it me or are the events our wonderfully talented and extremely popular upperclassmen incredibly dramatized?" Leon asked with a grin as he let his question rise a little higher than a whisper.
"Are they? I never would have imagined." Derek mock whispered as well, eyes shimmering light small blue lights in the shadows. Leon wonders if it's just natural, for Derek to equate sass and an equal amount of deadpan into a simple sentence.
Cedric, who'd heard them pauses in his story and mock glares at the pair. He isn't hurt by the mocking joke or the sarcasm because Cedric is Cedric and he never lets himself get too annoyed by simple teasing. It's a trait that most Puff's have, which just makes getting along so much easier.
"I beg your pardon?" Cedric lowers Lili, patting her on the head as he nears the two smirking puff's in the corner. He stops just in front of them and isn't even bothered by wiggling eyebrows or Derek examining his claws with a bored expression.
"Oh sorry, did we say that out loud?" Derek lifts a thick brow and turns to Leon. "I think we might have offended Cedric's honor."
"Did we? Oh Cedric, are we ever so sorry! Of course you were telling the truth, of course your accounts aren't extremely over exaggerated!"
"Obviously the beating Parkinson gave you with her fists in the water were a hallucination due to the cold-despite the fact that I burn like a furnace."
"Exactly Cedric. Derek and I were wrong."
Cedric looks angry at the mouth but his eyes twinkle, amused because Cedric is that way. He tackles them and by the time he's done (Derek doesn't even know how Cedric manages it) Cedric has them both tied to two soft chairs and continues his story-this time with more embellishments.
Lovina Vargas lets her brow twitch in annoyance for a fraction of a moment before stalking towards the door the leaving. Leon feels a little sorry for her, with the way Antonio just...ended the entire situation, but it doesn't mean that he doesn't completely understand why this had to be the outcome. Ivan let himself be used and a lot of people got hurt just because Lovina didn't use her words. He can only hope that eventually it would get better.
"Pst!"
Leon looks to the side at Derek who waves his freed hand, claws scary sharp and glimmering. He leans forward and cuts Leon out of his binds as Cedric again pauses in his story telling.
"You two!"
"What?" Derek growls causing some of the first years to nervously twitch.
"I was just finishing up."
"Well I'm hungry." Derek pats his flat belly. "Werewolf, remember. I have a high metabolism."
Cedric lifts a brow as his hand twitches towards his wand. Leon, now freed decides to defend his fellow housemate from his other fellow housemates pranks (this is the seventh time this week Cedric has tied Derek up. It's getting a little ridiculous.)
"It's true. If he doesn't get his full he'll faint. It's pretty pathetic."
Derek growls and Leon is nowhere near nervous about it. After all, he was usually Gillian Beilschmidt's chew toy so, growling werewolf? Not even close to getting him scared.
"Oh. Well off you go then!" Cedric waves them off with a smile and Leon decides, screw it. He's kind of hungry anyway.
They make it out the dorm and nearly collide with Castiel Singer, the blue eyes Hufflepuff with the patience of a saint and the temper of a demon. "Excuse me. I wasn't paying attention."
"It was our fault." Derek shrugs. "We were on our way to the kitchens."
"Oh." Castiel tilts his head to the side thoughtfully, blue eyes bluer than they were a moment ago. "The kitchens are unavailable at the moment."
"Huh?" Leon shoves his hands into his pockets and damn it, now he's really hungry. "Why?"
"Professors Crowley and Crowley are there overseeing the preparations for the banquet." Castiel answers. "I had the unfortunate run in with them both and they asked that I inform everyone that the kitchens were unavailable."
Derek sighs dramatically and stalks down the hall. Leon and Castiel follow him with their eyes for a moment. "I think he's pissed."
"Hungry werewolves are particularly touchy. Or so I have heard." Castiel fidgets with the books in his hands. "I should inform the others."
"Yeah. It's cool go on. I'll catch you later?" Leon lets the question drag, listening intently as Derek's steps stop fully. He looks at Castiel and fixes him with a look. "Tutoring? Remember?"
Castiel's eyes brighten. He flushes a bit embarrassed.
"I apologize. I forgot."
"No worries Cas. I'll meet you back here in a few hours and well go over those Transfiguration notes."
"Yes. Certainly. The exam-"
"Is tomorrow and you are totally going to pass with me as your tutor." Leon claps a hand on Castiel's shoulder once and then jogs down the hall towards Derek who is waiting. "See ya!" He waves over his shoulder as Castiel disappears into the dorm. "Yeesh!" Leon says as he catches up to the glowering werewolf. "Couldn't have waited right?"
"I didn't have to wait in the first place." Derek growls the same time as his stomach. "Geeze..."
"Yeah. I'm starved- wait! I know where we can get food."
"I am not asking the Weasley's for candy shares. Fred and George are bad enough with the joke stuff but Ron. That guy is just stingy."
Leon grins. "No. We can go to Honeydukes."
Derek blinks slowly, annoyed.
"It's Tuesday. How are we going to get to Honeydukes on a Tuesday?"
"I have ways."
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Gillian Beilschmidt is a menace. This is a fact of life. Ludwig Beilschmidt is as calm as a cucumber and built like a bear. This too is a fact of life. Draco Malfoy and all the other Slytherins'. Once the elder Beilschmidt showed up during the second task well, now everyone could add Gilbert Beilschmidt as the ruler supreme of menace to being untimate fact-anyone who disagrees can go home.
What Draco didn't account for were the Hufflepuffs, the so-called quiet and reserved duffers Draco taunted once upon a time...
"You want the map? No." Draco said with bleary sleepy eyes. He'd been napping when he was suddenly shaken awake by Leon Kennedy. How had he even... "How did you get in the Slytherin dormitories?"
Leon levels Draco with a look all to familiar, the kind of look that says you don't want to know.
"Easy. We talked someone into letting us in."
"We?" Draco asked and nearly yelped at the sight of the fourth year Hufflepuff leaning against the banister of Blaises' bed, dark eyebrows furrowed menacingly. Draco wasn't certain how eyebrows could be menacing but on Hale... "Why do you want the map?"
"Honeydukes." Hale answers.
"You have got to be joking."
Leon shrugged while Hale glowered dangerously. Draco would rather die than admit that Hale frightened him, really, it was only because Hale was a Hufflepuff and on principle Slytherin's were not even remotely weary of Duffers. But Hale was a different animal all together.
"Fine fine. It's under the mattress. You remember how to use it Kennedy?"
"Yeah yeah. Sure. Just let me-ah! Got it! Derek let's go."
"Oi! Get me a chocolate frog for the trouble, yeah?"
"Obviously."
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Lovina scowled as Antonio and some random Ravelclaw twit laughed at some stupid joke. From her position in the alcove, while she couldn't exactly hear them, she could certainly see them. It wasn't the same kind of hurt that she experienced with Cho and Antonio, but that didn't mean it hurt any less.
"...geeze..."
The girls' pretty blond curls catching in the light as Antonio tucked ringlets of hair behind her ear with a gorgeous stupid smile. Lovina turned-
-and ran straight into a stupidly solid chest. Falling back she cursed herself loudly for not paying closer attention to her surroundings. She wasn't Feliciana, who would bump into someone and giggle cutely and sweetly and 'oops. I didn't mean it, ve~'
By the feel of it, she'd bumped right into the stupid potato. Great. Just what she needed, to bump into that idiot.
"Ch-damn it! Watch where you're going!"
"Likewise."
The voice is cool, a low growl. She looks up and sees a worrisome Leon and an annoyed Derek. Perfect.
"Oh...you two."
She really didn't have time for these idiots. She does take the hand Hale is offering though, and lets him help her up. She looks up at them both and mock scowls which Hale returns with interest. At least he isn't boring.
"What were you doing in the alcove?" Leon asks after a beat. His gray-blue eyes are directly on her, trying to figure something out and its then that Lovina remembers that she'd been silently crying.
Oh hell.
"None of your business!" She crosses her arms and looks down at her feet. "It's not like I was spying on anyone or anything. Geeze!"
Hale chuckles and Leon's eyes soften in a way that reminds her of the stupid potato when he wants to help her. Which is stupid because Lovina doesn't need anyone's help. She's perfectly fine with that's happening, anyway. Antonio is allowed to have girlfriends and Ivan is allowed to avoid her. Whatever.
"You've been spotted." Hale's glassy green eyes are trained on the couple behind her.
Lovina's heart constricts, her hands tighten into fists. She turns slowly and sees...nothing. Antonio and his flavor of the month girlfriend are gone and all that is left behind is an empty bench. Lovina turns back to her upperclassmen, Leon's face is one of displeasure while Hale's face is split into a shit eating grin.
"Bastardo!" Her tiny fists connects with his shoulder. "What is your problem?"
"No problem it was just too easy." He says.
"You scared me. I thought he saw-"
"Oh he did." Hale shrugs. "Why do you think we popped up here? You looked pretty pathetic 'spying' on them."
"Derek!"
Her face is hot, humiliation is something that in the past few weeks she has become so acquainted with. "Y-you're a jerk."
"So I've heard." Derek twirls his wand, head tipped upward and Lovina realizes that he's scenting the air for...something.
Creepy werewolves being creepy.
Only to be made creepier when he leans ever so close into her personal space and take a long whiff.
"What?!"
"You-" His eyes narrow glowing a terrifying blue. "-have chocolate. Don't you?"
"W-what?!" She takes a step back and nearly trips, if not for Leon's hand on her arm. "What did you just? Chocolate?"
"You have chocolate."
"Of course I do. Unlike some other idiots, when I get candy I ration it I don't eat it like a furry pig in the dorms."
"Are you calling me a furry pig?"
"Ch...What do you think?"
Not a lot of people would go out of their way to yell at Derek Hale, on principle the majority of the student body gave Derek wide berth whenever he was in the halls. Classmates who weren't Hufflepuffs' were usually left terrified at being up close with him, although the Gryffindor's and the Slytherin's played it off.
Derek Hale wasn't terrifying he was a Hufflepuff and not worth the effort, was the usual excuse with them. Ravenclaws' were intelligent enough to keep their distance. They had no idea what he really was and didn't particularly care, he was just intimidating. Some Hufflepuff's themselves were weary of him and gave him a distance.
Lovina Vargas was not one of these, or rather, he frightened her but she'd rather save face and tell him to go to hell rather than snivel like a terrified baby.
"Whatever." He crosses his arms and looks to the side, suddenly disinterested. Derek is starving, wants something to sink his teeth into damn it. "Lets go." Derek turns on his heel and stalks away, obviously annoyed (and its mostly not about the fact that Lovina freakin' Varga has called him a gross furry pig. It really isn't she totally doesn't get to him, damn it.)
Leon winks at Lovina before sprinting towards the werewolf with laughter in his voice as he shouts after him. "Hey Derek! You're going the wrong way!"
"Chigi...idiots."
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Harry knows from experience that even under the invisibility cloak, Natalia can still find him. If he weren't (usually) in possession of the Marauders Map he would have assumed she had it. Hermione tells him that he breathes a little loudly when he's excited (terrified) and that's why Natalia gets him. Ron says it's because he walks too loudly, his steps too heavy on the stone floor. Harry has taken to slow breathing and soft tipping steps, and she still manages to find him.
He wonders how his life became this, why he was born to suck unfortunate circumstances and blames his father. Because Harry would have inherited James Potter's bad karma at birth, of course he would have.
Still, he tries and tries to find a way around the Belarusian (or is it Russian? He doesn't quite know) even if its a poor mans dream. He is halfway to Moaning Myrtle's when he hears voices up ahead and deciding that he just doesn't want to be seen by anyone, Harry plasters himself to the wall to wait for the talkative duo to pass.
Leon Kennedy, a Hufflepuff Harry is a bit familiar with comes into view, his golden brown/blonde head nodded at whatever the other Hufflepuff with him is saying. The other leaves Harry with a strange sense of foreboding. Its got to be the eyebrows, all large and expressive (and Harry wonders if, by any chance they usually meet in the middle until being properly waxed off.)
"...seriously you have no taste! I mean, Quidditch is great but nothing beats Quadpot. Did you see the World Cup? Geeze, the Hollywood Harpies are just, they're fantastic."
"I like the Sweetwater All-Stars."
"That's because you're uncle was on the team.
"Why else. Like I said before, I'm more into Quidditch." Derek shrugs. "Its in my blood."
Harry's interest is a little piqued as Derek and Leon pass him. He moves quietly from the wall and follows behind the two, listening intently to the conversation. He doesn't know Derek Hale, no one out of Hufflepuff really does, and its left him curious (well Hermione is curious about him. Harry tells himself that anything he hears he'll tell her.)
"In your blood?" Leon's brow lifts. "Really?"
"My grandfather played for the Heidelberg Harries in the fifties and my father was seeker for the Gorodok Gargoyles until he was traded to the Toyohashi Tengu team in Japan for a year.
My mother was beater for the Fitchbird Finches until she retired last year. I can list more but we'd be here all day." Derek grins. "By the way, you'll notice I didn't mention anything about the part of my family who play professional Quodpot."
Leon low whistles impressed while Harry's mouth gapes in surprise.
"That's got to be scary."
"Why's that?"
"Well," Leon licks his lips, finding words. "-your family is filled with a bunch of Quidditch jocks not to mention Quodpot players. What if you didn't like Quidditch or didn't want to play professionally?"
Derek scratches the back of his neck and shrugs one shoulder.
"I don't think it matter. My older sister did just turn down the Stonewall Stormers team and that was pretty shocking. My parents were more or less confused but accepting of it. Since she could ride a broom all she's ever done is talk, eat, breathe and live Quidditch, so we were all a little shocked when she decided to be a deputy for the BHMPD."
"What about you?"
"Me?" Derek's eyebrows furrow, its like he's never thought about it before. "Well I don't really know. I've thought about trying out for the Quidditch team here, but we're only here for the year for the exchange program. Seems a little redundant."
"What about trying out for your school back in California?"
"The Beacon Hills Institute for Young Witches and Wizards? No thanks. They're all about lacrosse and Quodpot and the wizard chess club." He shakes his head, disappointed. "No team."
"They don't have a quidditch team? That stinks."
"I'll say."
"But aren't you like, Hufflepuff royalty or something?"
"Sort of? Up until my dad and uncle Peter all the other Hale's attended Hogwarts. My grandfather fell in love with my grandmother and decided to just move to America. That's basically that."
"Muggle right?"
"My grandmother? Yeah."
They walk further down the hall, their conversation continuing on but Harry doesn't pay much attention. They stop suddenly, Derek and Leon side stepping into an empty classroom. Leon grabs Harry's arm through the cloak and halls him inside, slamming the door shut.
"Why did you? You knew I was-" Harry's mouth is covered by Derek's hand. For an agonizing moment they hear the soft barely there steps of someone light-footed near the door before they move away. A minute passes before Derek pulls his hand away. "What was that?"
"Natalia," Leon says. "was lingering in the corridors. Since you were hiding in the first place Derek and I decided to help out. You were hiding from her right?"
"Or eavesdropping." Derek growls. "Most probably that." He walks deeper into the room stopping at a blank clean board. "Worse than that Stilinski brat."
"The first year?"
"Who else?"
With a flick of his wand and a mumbled a spell a flock of small brightly colored blue canaries flew from the tip of Derek's wand. He lifted his large hand allowing two to settle comfortably onto his palm.
"Uh..."
"Avis." Leon grinned. "Basically, he's getting out all the rats sneaking about the room."
"What?"
The birds flew from Dereks palm and with a snarl he pointed in the direction of the closed cupboard. "Oppugno!"
The flock flew directly to the cupboard in sync and embedded their tiny little beaks into the wood. Who ever had hidden inside shrieked loudly and tumbled from the door. Two figures, one a first year Gryffindor and the other, fourth year Ravenclaw Heracles Karpusi fell onto a heap on the floor.
"You have two seconds to tell me where your partner in crime is." Derek glares down at the Gryffindor who looks up at him, brown eyes large and pleading. "Scott..."
"I don't know!" The Scott says. "I was studying with Heracles, honest! I don't know where Stiles is!"
"Maybe," Heracles groans out at Scott's side. "he is with Gillian and Draco. They have been spending a strange amount of time together."
The look of absolute terror crossing Leon, Derek or Scott's faces is not lost on Harry. He's never met this Stiles person but by the looks of it...
Fantastic. Another person to be weary of.
"Why were you hiding in the cupboard?"
"Gabriel Ryder and Balthazar Freely locked us inside. Thought it would be some sort of hilarious joke." Scott shakes his head. "I don't get it."
"They rarely make any sense." Heracles says.
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[TBC in a week]
The wand of Derek Hale
Length: 13 in
Wood: English Oak
A wand for good times and bad, this is a friend as loyal as the wizard who deserves it. Wands of English oak demand partners of strength, courage and fidelity. Less well-known is the propensity for owners of English oak wands to have powerful intuition, and, often, an affinity with the magic of the natural world, with the creatures and plants that are necessary to wizardkind for both magic and pleasure. The oak tree is called King of the Forest from the winter solstice up until the summer solstice, and its wood should only be collected during that time (holly becomes King as the days begin to shorten again, and so holly should only be gathered as the year wanes. This divide is believed to be the origin of the old superstition, "when his wand's oak and hers is holly, then to marry would be folly," a superstition that I have found baseless). It is said that Merlin's wand was of English oak (though his grave has never been found, so this cannot be proven).
Core: Dragon
As a rule, dragon heartstrings produce wands with the most power, and which are capable of the most flamboyant spells. Dragon wands tend to learn more quickly than other types. While they can change allegiance if won from their original master, they always bond strongly with the current owner.
The dragon wand tends to be easiest to turn to the Dark Arts, though it will not incline that way of its own accord. It is also the most prone of the three cores to accidents, being somewhat temperamental.
Flexibility: Reasonably Supple
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I have to break this into two parts because I'm impatient and wanted it up. Sorry for taking a thousand and three hundred years but like I said in the note up there. Anyway, this chapter-for those of you who haven't seen teen wolf and aren't interested and might be a bit miffed...this is the most of Derek you'll be seeing here. I'm getting him out of my system. We'll be going right back to the love triangle with added angles after the rest of this chapter is up. See you in a week for the next update!