Ch. 3: Odd Conversations
...
"It won't be so bad."
Maddie glanced at Ignatius as they neared the Arithimancy classroom. She was adamant about not taking Arithimancy, but Ignatius was insistent upon dragging her to class with him. Apparently Julia was the only other Gryffindor taking it, and the two of them didn't get on well at all.
"Oh, but it will be. I'll have you know that my homeschooling curriculum had nothing to do with Arithimancy, so I'm ages behind, and I shouldn't be here, and it's a class for geniuses anyway, so-"
"Bloody hell, Mads, you aren't an idiot. You did awesome in Care of Magical Creatures."
"But that's the only class I'm good at," said Maddie. It was true; she'd gotten an O in it seventy years in the future, and the curriculum was a lot easier in 1944. By the time class had let out that morning, she was answering questions as quickly as Professor Kettleburn could ask them, and the (extremely) frightening teacher had taken such a liking to her that she swore his lips curved into something almost like a smile as she walked away. "Besides, Arithimancy is nothing like Care of Magical Creatures; it's all brain stuff, and given that I have no brain-"
"You wouldn't be able to breathe without a brain."
"There's an invisible pixie that hovers near my ear and tells me when to inhale and exhale." They reached the Arithimancy classroom, and she screeched to a halt. "And now the pixie is telling me to run the other way if I value my life or sanity-"
Ignatius ignored her and stepped through the door, and Maddie sighed and followed after him. She really was coming down with a dreadful headache, and it was a terrible time for her to have to deal with something such as Arithimancy, what with her not getting much sleep the night before and then her furry little problem acting up so terribly on top of that.
"Fine, but if I die…"
"I promise I'll pay for the flowers," Ignatius said. He then took a seat at one of the many tables scattered across the classroom. Maddie moved to follow, but a gentle tap on her shoulder stopped her.
"Miss Dumbledore?"
Maddie turned to see that a smiling young woman was standing behind her. Glistening black hair fell in curls down her back, and her dark eyes glittered with warmth. Maddie liked her immediately. "I'm Professor Clearwater. It's a pleasure to meet you."
"A pleasure to meet you, too," said Maddie.
"I'm afraid," Professor Clearwater went on, "that we just started a partner-activity, and Mister Prewett is already paired with Miss Henderson-"
"I was hoping I could work with Maddie instead, since we really haven't started anything quite yet," Ignatius cut in.
"You've already selected your project," Professor Clearwater reminded him. "However, Miss Dumbledore, there was one student who was left without a partner. I'm sure you've met our Head Boy, Tom Riddle."
For the first time, Maddie noticed a head of immaculate dark hair sitting near the back of the classroom.
Tom smirked.
Maddie barred her teeth.
Screw Ignatius.
"Actually," Maddie said quickly, forcing a smile, "I just wanted to tell you that I know much too little about Arithimancy to possibly take the class at such a high level; my uncle was woefully misinformed regarding my abilities pertaining to the subject, and I think it best that I take something such as Muggle Studies instead. If you don't mind, I'm going to go talk to Uncle Al about getting my schedule switched up…"
Maddie rushed off to the sound of Professor Clearwater chuckling behind her.
"Such an odd girl," she heard her say. "Just like her uncle."
"I didn't do anything, did I?" asked Tom innocently.
Maddie growled to herself the whole way to Dumbledore's office.
…
"This is Charlus Potter."
Maddie opened her eyes to see Ignatius hovering in front of the sofa she'd taken over for a short after-class nap. Behind him stood a strangely familiar boy with shaggy black hair and hazel eyes.
It took a second for the surname to register, and another for her to realize why the boy appeared to be so familiar. Then the light bulb flickered on, and Maddie nearly went into shock. She hadn't ever seen Harry Potter in person- not except at the speeches he made at the memorial services Hogwarts held each May- but she had seen pictures, and other than the absence of glasses and the fact that this boy's eyes weren't green, well… Charlus Potter looked exactly like him.
It was shocking, and although Maddie vaguely registered that she should perhaps say something, she was too busy going star-struck over a boy who was almost certainly Harry Potter's grandfather.
"Oi! Mads!" Ignatius said, and Maddie shook her head sharply to clear it.
Forcing an awkward smile, she looked at the Harry Potter look-alike and said, "Er, nice to meet you. Sorry about the terribly awkward staring… I've been homeschooled my whole life, and I'm still learning people skills."
Ignatius laughed. "See, Charlus? I told you she's charming."
Charlus pursed his lips as though he weren't entirely convinced, and after a long moment, he asked, "I think I heard Julia talking about you. You're the one who called Riddle all sorts of nasty things, right?"
"Well, er. Yeah, kind of. Not to his face, mind you… although that hardly matters, since the eavesdropping git heard me anyway." She ducked her head, worried that Charlus was going to snap at her for going after Tom- everyone at the school seemed to think him some kind of God, so she'd hardly be surprised- but, to her shock, his lips split into a wide grin.
"Brilliant," said Charlus. "If you aren't head-over-heels for Riddle yet, then you're an introduction away from being my new best friend." He glanced at Ignatius. "No offense, mate."
Ignatius rolled his eyes. "None taken."
"Anyway, I'm Charlus Potter, and you're quite obviously Madeline Dumbledore- though I've been told on good authority to call you Maddie- so there's that introduction I mentioned, and I suppose we can now get around to making those shiny friendship bracelets and the like."
"Don't run away, please," said Ignatius to Maddie. "He's not as mad as you'd think."
Maddie frowned. "How disappointing. I thought he was quite delightful."
If possible, Charlus's grin got bigger.
"Perfect, Ignatius. She's bloody perfect." He glanced at Maddie. "You don't happen to like Exploding Snap, do you?"
Maddie grinned toothily.
They played until the sun began to descend, and Maddie was forced to make up a lie about a meeting with Dippet. Her upcoming change not entirely able to kill her good mood, it was with a smile in her heart that Maddie slipped into the darkness of the Forbidden Forest.
…
She spent the next day in the hospital wing, supposedly recovering from a nasty bout of the flu. The matron had taken one look at her that morning and wasted no time in administering a host of strength-replenishing potions and all but forcing Maddie into bed. The entire day was spent resting and stuffing herself with potions, and by the time evening rolled around, Madam Churchill decided that Maddie was well enough to return to Gryffindor Tower.
One more pepper-up potion was provided, and then the Matron sent Maddie on her way, conspiratorially dropping a hint as to how she could sneak into the kitchens and grab a bite to eat if she wished to make up the meals she'd missed. Maddie thanked her as she made her way out of the hospital wing, smiling broadly and feeling rather good about the situation as a whole.
She'd gotten through the first full moon, or at least it appeared so, and now she was finished for another thirty days, by which time, if all went well, she'd be well on her way back to 2018.
The knowledge that she could push her secret to the back of her mind for a short time put a spring in her step, and even though she was still rather tired and achy, Maddie all but skipped the entire way to the kitchens, whistling to herself as she did so.
Said whistling stopped as soon as she slipped through the portrait of the pear. Sitting innocently at a large table was Tom Riddle in all his much too good-looking glory. Maddie froze in place and her smile faltered at the sight of him.
"Is my presence really perturbing enough to garner such a reaction?" asked Tom.
Maddie pretended to think it over.
"I suppose not. Really, you've been quite nice to me since I've gotten here, apart from the whole condescending, 'I'm smarter and better than you' thing that you seem to have going for you. I'm just less apt to whistle for an audience."
Tom apparently didn't wish to dignify that with a response. Instead, he watched with critical eyes as Maddie politely asked a house elf for a sandwich and plopped into the seat next to his own. Maddie waited about two seconds for something to come out of his mouth, then, deciding the silence had gone on long enough, asked, "How were classes today?"
"Enlightening."
"Wish I could've been there."
"I'm assuming you were ill?"
"Yup. Thankfully Madam Churchill fixed me right up."
"I'm glad to hear it."
A house elf came then, and deposited an enormous sandwich on the table in front of Maddie. She thanked the elf friendlily before picking up the sandwich and taking as big a bite of it as possible. When she glanced up, Tom was frowning at her. She assumed he didn't appreciate her lack of table manners.
Maddie swallowed her bite of sandwich.
"I had a friend once-"
"Shocking."
She ignored him.
"-who told me my patronus should be a pig."
"I wouldn't be entirely surprised if it were," said Riddle.
"I managed to cast one last year," Maddie said, not mentioning that it was too weak to so much as withstand the boggart they'd been practicing on in class. "It was a platypus. Not a pig."
"Your patronus was a platypus?" Tom asked dryly. He was smirking, and his eyes were shining with that look of condescending amusement that she was already starting to grow used to.
Maddie took a big bite off her sandwich. "Don't judge. They're supposedly violent. And venomous."
His amusement increased. "They are also, without a doubt, unquestionably the oddest creatures in existence. Funny, how well a patronus reflects the person who conjures it."
Maddie wanted to ask Tom what his patronus was, but she wasn't so certain he had one. It was doubtful that one of the darkest wizards of all time would be able to make use of the purest kind of magic there was, so instead of cracking a joke about how his patronus was probably a worm or something equally degrading, she laughed as his comment.
"I do believe that's the most impolite thing you've said since I've met you. I'm shocked, even keeping in mind that our first meeting was all of two days ago. Odd, you say?"
"Don't act so offended; you revel in being… unique."
"I usually do. Just not when it's accompanied by an expression that clearly says you think uniqueness is a disease of some sort. I don't care how much you deny it. You're clearly under the assumption that you're leagues smarter than everyone else, and that I'm the biggest idiot in the school. It's maddening."
"I'm afraid that I still have no idea what you're talking about. I would never think such things."
"You wouldn't be in Slytherin if you were all milk and cookies."
He very clearly gave her a look that said, 'And you wonder why I think you're an idiot?'
She supposed that last statement could've been a bit more sophisticated.
"There are good Slytherins, as much as I'm sure you've heard otherwise."
"My dear sister is in Slytherin," said Maddie, even though she didn't think Azaria was very dear at all. "So I very well know that not all Slytherins are bad. You just happen to be one of the not so good ones."
"Which is a conclusion entirely based on the fact that I look at you oddly? Didn't you just defend the merits of oddity?"
"It isn't that you look at me oddly. People look at me oddly all the time. It's that you tend to get this expression on your face, kind of like you're a king and I'm a drooling little peon, and it's insulting, quite frankly."
Tom stared at her for a long moment, and Maddie returned her attention to her sandwich, munching on it to give her something to focus on other than those midnight eyes that saw way too much. Though she supposed it was her fault he looked at her like that; she was probably, stupidly, encouraging him to look more closely than he would if she pretended to fall for his act like everyone else. She couldn't help it, though; he was such a ponce that the thought of playing dumb for him chafed every Gryffindor moral she possessed. She physically couldn't let a snake walk all over her. Especially not one like Tom Riddle.
"You have a very active imagination, Madeline," said Tom finally.
"Must you call me that? I remember very clearly that I specified 'Maddie' when I introduced myself."
"I disprove of diminutives, especially ones so inelegant as 'Maddie'. Your real name is fine; I fail to see why you seem to dislike it."
"It's three syllables. That's too many." She peered at him. "And you don't like diminutives? Would you quit looking at me like an idiot if I took to calling you Thomas?"
"My name is Tom. Not Thomas."
"How odd. Odd like having a platypus for a patronus, I mean. Not bad odd... Although I suppose I could still call you Thomas, if it'd make you feel better about yourself."
Tom peered at her for a long moment, then shook his head.
"I'm afraid that I generally am not the most talkative of persons, and our conversation has stretched on for an inane amount of time."
"That's a nice non sequitur you dropped into the conversation right there."
"I was politely trying to hint that this tête-à-tête has reached the point where continuing to drag it out would be a disservice to the both of us."
"Because you're uncomfortable with the notion of someone calling you Thomas? I suppose if it's not your name, it would be quite awkward… What's your middle name? I could call you that."
"Marvolo."
Good Merlin. No wonder the poor boy turned evil. What was his mother thinking?
"Ew. After that, I feel just bad enough that I'll let you leave. Good night, and I look forward to seeing you in potions tomorrow... Marvolo."
Tom scowled. "Tom works quite well, thank you."
"What about Marv?"
He left without another word.
…
Maddie frowned when she entered the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom the next day. The words, 'DUELING TOURNAMENT' were scrawled across the board in messy handwriting, and Professor Merrythought, an elderly woman with what seemed to be a permanent smile, sat at her desk and beamed at her work, as though it were something to be proud of.
"Does she want me to die?" Maddie moaned.
"Of course not," said Charlus. "She wants us to have untold amounts of fun kicking some Slytherin arse. Why? Are you still sick? Or are you just dreadful at dueling?"
"I'm dreadful at dueling," said Maddie. She was still frowning at the board. There'd never been any dueling tournaments in 2018, and, as far as Maddie was concerned, that was a good thing. She wasn't a dueler, and that's all there was to it. Now, on her first day of class, the fates naturally had to toss her into the one thing she hated the most. "Not to mention that I despise it. I'd rather snog Tom Riddle than participate in a bloody dueling tournament."
"So would most of the girls here, Mads," said Ignatius. "I'm afraid that's not saying much."
Charlus slung an arm around her shoulder. "In Maddie's case, it is. She's immune to Riddle's nasty charms and fully realizes that a manipulative mind lurks behind that pretty face of his."
"Charlus-"
"It's true," said Charlus. "Any Slytherin who behaves like that is either acting or empty headed, and as much as I'd like to think the bloke doesn't have anything going on upstairs, I'm not quite that stupid."
Maddie laughed.
Professor Merrythought called out, "Listen! Listen! I am going to list the first round match-ups, nad I want you to get with your partner as soon as you hear your name!"
Her laughter died.
"Don't worry. If you're paired with me, I'll go easy on you," said Charlus.
"I'm not that lucky," Maddie muttered.
"…Tom and Ignatius, Gertrude and Elizabeth, Atius and Madeline…"
"Do I know an Atius?" Maddie asked Charlus quietly. The other boy was grimacing.
"I don't think you've met him yet… luckily. He's one of Riddle's friends, but not half so polite as the Master of the Constipated Smile."
Maddie had to resist the urge to let out another groan. Great. Not only did she have to duel, but the guy she was dueling was probably a junior Death Eater. How wonderful.
"Which one is he?"
Before Charlus could respond, Professor Merrythought said, "Madeline and Atius are up first. Take your places."
Maddie's question was answered when a tall Slytherin boy came into view. He definitely didn't have the abnormally large presence that Tom did, but he had to have been close to him in height. He was built like a seeker- lean and athletic- but completely lacking in grace of any kind. With extraordinarily dark, curly hair, a too-long nose, and dull brown eyes, Atius Lestrange was possessing of an intimidating but unremarkable appearance, although the smirk on his face clearly said he thought otherwise; he carried himself in a way scarily similar to the Veelas Maddie had seen at the World Cup seventy years in the future. Maddie hated to admit it, but his apparent belief in his own appeal was enough to make him almost attractive.
It was also enough to make her want nothing more than to wipe the disgusting, cocky smirk off his face.
"A Dumbledore. Should I be scared?" drawled Atius. Even his voice was obnoxious.
"Probably not," Maddie said honestly. "I've never much been one for dueling."
"Some kind of pacifist gibberish?"
"Sure," said Maddie. "Let's go with that."
"Face each other," Merrythought instructed. Maddie and Atius positioned themselves in the middle of the room, lining up directly across from each other. "Now bow."
They did, then proceeded to each take three steps backwards. With that, the duel began.
Atius hit her with a knockback jinx immediately, then lazily flicked his wand and drawled, "Tarantellegra."
Maddie's legs began moving rapidly in what would've been an awkward dance if she hadn't been sprawled across the floor. Maddie grimaced and tried firing several stunning spells in his direction, but he shielded them all nonverbally with very little effort, sauntering closer and closer to her with each deflected jinx. No doubt he wanted to be standing over her when he finished her off. His eyes were gleaming with mirth, and that stupid smirk of his had grown about a thousand fold. Maddie knew he figured this was going to be an easy victory.
Teeth gritted against spewing out something that would be nastily unhelpful, Maddie pointed her wand at her legs and muttered, "Finite incantatum." They stopped moving, but it appeared to be too late for her to do anything. Atius was standing above her, wand only inches away from her face, clearly reveling in the moment.
Then Maddie did what no pureblood wizard would expect; she completely abandoned magic. Without really considering the potential consequences of her actions, Maddie grabbed Atius's arm, pulled him down to her level and clanked her forehead against his as hard as she could. The surprised Slytherin stumbled backwards, cursing and grabbing at his nose, and Maddie brought her wand up, said, "Expelliarmus," and beamed when his wand flew into her hand.
"I win," she said, still laying on the floor.
Everyone was completely silent.
Then Atius, his nose bleeding and his face beet red, snapped, "That can't be legal! She can't possibly be given the victory… hell, that should land her in detention. This is why blood traitors shouldn't be allowed into the school, because they fight like rabid apes-"
"Enough, Mister Lestrange," Merrythought finally cut in. "No one specified that the duel had to be won using entirely magical means. You lost." She frowned at Maddie. "However, from this point forward, the duels will have to be fought with magic. The point of this tournament is to perfect the art of fighting with spells, and I'm afraid head-butting will teach you nothing."
Maddie nodded, but she was having trouble keeping the smile off her face. "But I won this one though, right?"
"Yes, Miss Dumbledore. You won this one. Now, please stand aside so that we can move on to the next duel. I would like to get through this tournament by the end of the hour."
Maddie listened, retaking her previous place between Charlus and Ignatius. Charlus immediately muttered, "You weren't wrong when you said you were a dreadful duelist."
"At least I won."
"Against one of the best in the class, too, funnily enough."
"I'll lose next round, though."
"Probably," said Ignatius, "but you beat Lestrange, so you can hardly call it a bad day."
As it turned out, she could actually call it a rather good day. Maddie did lose her next duel, but she also got to see Charlus blow everyone he faced out of the water. The championship wound up being between Charlus and Tom- Maddie almost thought it was funny, the whole Potter vs. Voldemort thing- and even though Tom won after a well-fought duel, Charlus had managed to give him green hair and a black eye, which just about made Maddie's life.
And if she'd gotten a patented Dark Lord glare when she laughed at him outright, well… Maddie was in too good of a mood to care.
…
A/N-
And there's the chapter. I guess I really have nothing to say, oddly enough, but I hope you all liked it. Once again, anything you have to say it listened to and much appreciated, even if you're sure I'm doing everything wrong; I love getting helpful criticisms, so please review whether you had problems with it or absolutely loved it.
Also, a quick thanks to those who reviewed chapter 3: Leopard Gecko, Iluvyou95, Wishing on Fireflies, Misses Prongs, xxthethieflordxx, Benedict-Addict Holmes, xSiriuslyPadfoot, Ara95, Colette Hyuga, and brooke13243546.