Chapter by: Elipsa
Godric hid his face in his arms as Flitwick prattled on about the charm. Honestly, learning such simple charms bored Godric to tears. His fingers danced across the desk as he stared listlessly at the texture of the wood.
"Miss Dunbar, you have not yet attempted the charm."
And really, why did they have to spend the whole class on such a simple charm? The first time that Salazar's father had taught them this charm they had been successful and moved on to the next. They were expected to practice outside of the times of their lessons, and they did not sit idly in between. What happened to the rigorous training of witches and wizards in this new era?
"Miss Dunbar?"
When he was their age he knew loads more spells and had even started dueling. He sighed happily: dueling. Maybe he could convince one of the others to duel with him. Or a four way duel with the last one standing the victor. They could go to the Room of Requirement.
"Miss Dunbar!"
And really, they needed to figure out what they could and couldn't do. The new bodies seemed to be more hindrance than -
"Fay!" A hard jab in the side from his fellow Gryffindor, Parvati Patil, who had hissed at him earlier for losing them points for being out of dress code, brought him out of his thoughts. Honestly, though, trousers were a part of the dress-code. Nowhere did it say explicitly that he had to wear a skirt . How Salazar could be content in his new body was beyond Godric. The other man hadn't even batted an eye at their circumstances, simply went along with it because who he was hadn't changed, just the body he had.
He raised his head, wiping the drool off his face. "Huh?" In front of him stood Flitwick. "Hi, Professor." He grinned at the diminutive professor, scratching his chin.
"Miss Dunbar, perhaps you would like to demonstrate the charm for the class?"
Staring at the feather in front of him, Godric's mind went blank. Sure, he could get the thing in the air, but Flitwick expected a wand movement or something of the sort. Magic was supposed to be intent and purpose, but teaching with only wands had people depending on the easily lost or damaged sticks. Godric had learned early on to only rely on his wand for the more difficult incantations. When a child reached eleven, they should be moving onto wandless magic.
He glanced over to the Hufflepuff side and saw Helga trace her finger in the air: a swish and a flick. It was still a bit strange to think of the dark skinned girl as Helga when all he saw was the woman with fair skin, long red hair, and short stature.
Biting his lip, Godric pulled his wand out and pointed it at the feather. A swish, a flick and a muttered 'Wingardium leviosa' had the feather floating up into the air.
Flitwick looked at him and huffed, "Five points to Gryffindor. Good job to you, Miss Granger, and Miss Jones for being able to perform the charm."
Godric lowered his wand and watched as the feather floated down into his waiting palm.
Instead of just dueling, maybe he could convince the others to practice without their wands. If they grew too dependent on using only their wands they could lose their edge.
The girl - Granger, apparently - was trying to help Ron and Harry again, but Ron wanted nothing to do with her.
After the feather landed in his palm, he curled his fingers around it. The edges lazily danced across his skin, tickling his palm.
He missed their time. Where he would already be using spells that they didn't use until the fourth year here. He didn't have to depend on his wand and special wand movements to have a spell work. He wouldn't have to lie to everyone except Helga, Salazar, and Rowena.
He crushed the feather in his hand, fighting back tears.
The bell went off and Godric left quickly, leaving Helga behind. Unlike him, she took her time to put her possessions away. Neatly, just so.
He followed behind Ron and Harry. They made it to the first floor, heading towards Transfiguration class. He didn't notice someone walking beside him until he heard Ron say, "It's no wonder no one can stand her," a soft gasp brought Godric's attention to the girl beside him, "she's a nightmare, honestly."
Granger pushed past Godric, but not before he saw the tears in her eyes or heard her sniff. Godric's anger broke free. He stormed up to Ronald and grabbed him by the shoulder forcing him around, blue eyes locked on blue.
"Why are you being unjust? Because she tried to help you? Because she told you that you were pronouncing the words incorrectly? Gryffindors are based on bravery. On loyalty. She is twice the gryffindor of you both! She has tried to help you, multiple times, even with you looking down at her for it." Godric's voice raised, octave by octave.
"Then you be friends with the know-it-all!" Ronald spat out. Harry shuffled to the side, eyes downcast and mouth tightly shut.
"The both of you are no more than bullies!" He saw Harry flinch at the words, arms wrapping around the black haired boy's torso. Godric couldn't help it, a tear ran down his cheek. He looked up and saw Hermione at the end of the hall, eyes wide, mouth open, and her hair still a mess. "Being smart and trying to help doesn't make her a know-it-all."
"Ric!' He released his hold of the boy and glanced over his shoulder to see Helga making her way towards them, dodging easily around people.
"I have a friend who's smart." He turned back to the two boys and ignored the students who had stopped to listen. "She wouldn't take her nose out of a book if it wasn't for us." Helga reached his side and placed a hand on his shoulder. "She knows things we don't and she's one of the kindest people I know who loves to share her knowledge. You don't take kindness and knowledge and throw it back in the face of who gives it."
Helga squeezed his shoulder and whispered, "Enough, Ric. You have said enough." When he looked at her she smiled, eyes shadowed as if remembering Rowena. Young Rowena, bright Rowena, who had been abandoned by most others because she wasn't the 'proper' lady and strove for brilliance instead of what others expected of her.
And how wrong most others were.
"I'm not sure how they got sorted into Gryffindor. They're just bullies." He hadn't meant to say that loudly, but the two boys flinched and Ron's face flared red. "I'm going to check on Hermione. And I think I'm gonna..." He choked up and smiled wanly at Helga.
She nodded. "Go on." She turned her attention to the boys who were shuffling their feet. "I am sure they are in Gryffindor for reasons we do not yet understand. Give them a chance." She patted his shoulder and continued to walk towards the transfiguration classroom.
Godric went up to Hermione and stuck his arm through hers. "Shall we?" He sniffed as he began walking. "For some reason I feel like crying."
The girl hiccupped through a laugh, pointing at a bathroom nearby. "There's a bathroom there, and I've beaten you to the crying part."
The two made it into the first floor bathroom and went in. Another girl was in there, wearing the Ravenclaw emblem. Godric felt tears streaming down his face and he used his sleeve to swipe them away. The girl saw them crying in the mirror and quickly washed her hands and bolted out of the bathroom.
Leaving Hermione, Godric looked under the stalls to see if anyone else was in there. Sure they were alone, he went to the sink and washed his face. Breathing deeply to try to get his raging emotions under check.
"Umm... thank you."
Looking at the girl's reflection he shrugged. "You shouldn't have to thank me." He smiled weakly. "Now what?"
Hermione joined him at the sink, running her fingers under the cool water. "Well, we're supposed to go to Transfiguration and then the feast, but... I don't feel like doing either."
Godric gasped, pressing a hand over his chest before wrinkling his nose and dropping the appendage as he spoke, "Rebel!"
Hermione giggled, a strained smile crossing her features.
Shifting his weight, Godric scratched his chin, "So... you just wanna talk?"
Hermione shrugged, turning off the tap. "I'm not sure. We aren't... aren't friends yet?"
Huffing, Godric shook his hair out of his eyes and held out his hand. "Hi, I'm Fay Dunbar, but I hate my name. I go by Ric. I'm a Gryffindor, everyone says I have too much energy, and I hate bullies. Also my three best friends are a Slytherin, a Ravenclaw, and a Huffelpuff."
"Hermione Granger." She bit her lip, glanced down, and asked, "How did you get the nickname Ric from Fay?
He stepped closer and scooped her hand up to shake it with his own. "Nice to meet you. I think we'll be great friends."
"Friends?" Her eyes widened and brightened.
"Yeah, friends. We'll get along great. Helga will get along with you because she's Helga. Ro and Sal will love that you'll hopefully temper my radical tendencies."
Her smile widened to a grin before she tilted her head. She finally blurted out, "Why Ric?"
"Oh, right. I've never liked the name Fay, so I go by a shortened version of my middle name." He stuck out his tongue and wrinkled his nose as he jumped up to sit on the sink. "Fay is too... flouncy and... whimsical. And too... too feminine. Richele is ok, but Ric just fits better."
"What's wrong with feminine?"
"Nothing! Both Ro and Helga would skin me alive if I had a problem with it in general. It's me. I'm not, nor ever will I be, anything remotely feminine." Godric gestured to himself. He was rail thin and barely had any curves. His hair he kept cropped in a pixie cut because his mother wouldn't allow him to have a buzz cut. His robes weren't buttoned closed like most, showing that he wore the male version of the school uniform. "I'll eventually get everyone to call me Ric and not Fay." He patted the sink next to him. "Come on, everyone's in class and then they'll all go to the feast. No one to see you be improper."
"It's not that... It's just... is it clean ?"
Godric leaned back and roared with laughter, his whole frame shaking in his mirth. "The place is clean. The house elves take care of it. Nothing nasty to grab at you."
"House elves? What are house elves?" Hermione asked as she carefully pulled herself up onto the sink.
"Little creatures with large heads and eyes, squeaky voices, and bat-like ears. They are intensely loyal and will do anything to protect their masters." He smiled, thinking of all the family of elves they had brought into Hogwarts walls to feed, clean and to protect everyone in the castle.
"Masters?"
"It's what the house elves call anyone who owns them."
"Own?!" Hermione's voice went squeaky.
Godric looked over at her. "Yes, own." Her mouth opened in shock and Godric quickly hurried on, "But don't think they don't want to. Hold on. Give me a moment to explain." He bit his lip, staring at the sink. "House elves serve because they desire to. Like I said, they are intensely and fiercely protective of their masters. They will fight to protect not because they are forced to, but out of the desire to do so." He smiled at Hermione. "I'm bollocks at explaining, how about I show you the Hogwarts elves and you can speak with them?"
"But isn't owning slavery ?"
He nodded. "In a way, that is correct. There are laws and regulations in place so as not to harm them. Once the idea rose to free them all and have them work for wages, but many of the elves - over ninety percent of the population - refused and were scandalized at the very thought. Hence why the regulations were created." At least that's what Bob had told him when they spoke last, but he wouldn't put it past the sly house elf to lie to him so Godric wouldn't get any ideas on freeing him. Perhaps he needed to look more deeply into that. Without Bob finding out...
Hermione stared at Godric. "You know where to find them?"
"Yeah, in the kitchens. Easy to get to. Helga found it." Well, she made the entrance and all that, but details, really.
"Ok. I would like to meet them. You won't... forget will you?"
"Of course not! I promise to take you to the kitchens. Not tonight, they're going to be busy with the feast and cleaning up afterwards. They would be ecstatic to see us, of course, but I don't want them to think they have to serve us after a long day for them. Silly, sweet creatures that they are, they would demand we give them something to do."
The girl hummed, brow furrowed, and nodded before changing the subject. "Do you celebrate Halloween?"
"No." He didn't blink at the abrupt change of subject and he didn't doubt that Hermione needed to think and research before going back to the previous subject. He wondered if Samuel had a hard time placing her in Gryffindor and not Ravenclaw. "All Hallows Eve is not something I have ever celebrated."
"Neither do we - me and my parents, that is. I've apparently never liked dressing up. Mum said I used to scream when I was little whenever they tried. After trying for three years they stopped and we never really celebrated it afterwards. Plus... I never had anyone to go with."
"Dressing up as monsters isn't something I've liked." Godric stared ahead. "Especially since monsters are something that is real and shouldn't be trivialized."
"You know, it's fascinating to see how the tradition has evolved."
"Oh?"
"Of course! You see -"
Godric grinned, leaning back and letting the girl speak. She spoke of the origins from an ancient Celtic festival, one that was called Samhain. How it was a time that blurred the lines of the world they resided on and the Other World. She went on to explain the Other World as one for the dead and how the Celts supposedly survived through the winter against spirits and faeries that crossed over by appeasing them.
She went on to explain how the muggles transformed it into fear of monsters able to come out one day of the year and how it then mutated to children dressing up as those monsters. And then she went back to the wizards and how they once believed that Samhain was the only time to speak with ghosts before they found out that ghosts were actually the spirit of the deceased who, for reasons unknown to the living, were not able to move on.
However, instead of stopping there, Hermione delved into ghosts and how she wanted to talk to many of the ghosts around Hogwarts to get their stories to see if there was a correlation between those who stayed and those who moved on.
The girl strongly reminded the man of Rowena, who could also speak for hours on a few topics if unhindered.
In all honesty, the man had no idea how long they sat there and Hermione spoke, but it was nice. Peaceful. And his mind wasn't such a mess as she spoke.
"Oh! I'm sorry!" Godric blearily opened his eyes at Hermione's quiet gasp. "I must be boring you. You should... should have told me to... stop."
Kicking his legs out Godric shook his head. "Nah. If I was bored you would have known. I'm not one to do something boring if I don't have to. I would have slept through Professor Flitwick's class if I had been able to. As it is, Ro does the same thing at times so it's no big deal. Like I said, you two might get along."
Or clash.
Badly.
The two could be too similar to get along.
Terrifying.
He shuddered.
"Ro?"
"Hmm... Oh! She's in Ravenclaw. Name's Lisa Turpin." He made a face. "Her middle name fits better, hence Ro. It's all I ever call her. I... uh... kinda mentioned her earlier." He felt his face heat up and cursed his fair skin. He sat up straighter, the motion causing the girl to jolt at the sudden movement. "Speaking of things that were talked about earlier, have you heard about the three headed dog?"
Her eyes bugged out, mouth opening. "How did - did you - why did you go there?"
Godric stared at Hermione, before shaking his head and grinning. "I just heard Ron and Harry talk about it. They aren't very subtle, and do they honestly think that talking about the dog at the breakfast table is the best place to speak of such things?" He scoffed.
She blushed a bright scarlet. "I... well... There was a trapdoor under its paw and -" Whatever she meant to say was interrupted by the floor and walls trembling, followed by a loud thumping sound.
The two glanced at each other before slipping off the sink and onto the floor.
"What was that?"
Godric held up a finger to his lips as another thudding vibration trembled the stone beneath them. He crept up to the door and creaked it open enough to stare out. The flush that had stained his cheeks quickly disappeared. Carefully, silently, he closed the door behind him. He crept back to Hermione and grabbed her hand.
"I need you to trust me," he whispered.
"What's going -"
"Shh." He took her hand and entered one of the farther stalls and urged her to stand on the toilet edge, using the walls to keep her balanced. "We have to stay quiet. There's something out there we really, really don't want in here."
Another thudding footstep had Hermione bending her knees to keep from falling.
"What's out there?"
Hermione's whispered words had Godric glancing towards her. "Troll." When she went pale, he patted her hand as he drew his wand. Better to be prepared than not. "They're dumb creatures, but have an excellent sense of smell and hearing. If it comes in, you must keep still, and keep quiet. I'll draw it's attention, and then I want you to sneak behind it and get out of here." The floor once more trembled, and Godric could hear the grunting of the troll and smell the rot coming off it.
"You can't go up -"
"Shush." He glanced at the door and closed his eyes as he heard the thumps of footsteps leading directly towards them. "I said if . Now, once I create an opening for you, you run. There are plenty of places to hide out there, not so much in here. Besides, I'm not trying to fight the troll, just distract it so we can both get out. There's a golden tapestry to the right of the bathroom that you can move and there will be a small hallway, it can't follow us in there. Get in there, fast and silently, ok?"
She nodded, tears welling in her eyes.
"Good. No matter what you hear, don't make a sound. Once I distract it, you run."
Godric waited until she nodded again before he closed her stall door. He then went into the stall closest to the bathroom door, lying down on the stone floor so he could have a clear visual. Once he created a distraction and Hermione ran out, the troll would notice her, but trolls' reaction times were so slow that even if it did hear her land on the ground and the far door opening, she would be nothing but a quick blur of a child running past.
Or that was the plan. If it didn't work, he had other ideas, but Hermione would be safe.
She had to be.
The door shuddered, slowly pushed open before banging on the wall with the force the troll put behind it. Godric waited, and sighed in relief when Hermione didn't make a peep. His eyes trained on the troll's feet, he let spell after spell filter through his mind. Some he immediately threw out: beheading, taking the entrails out, or even chopping the arms and legs off wouldn't work with Hermione to protect.
Instead he could knock the troll out, trip it, or confuse it. None of the options were ideal as that left the troll alive, but he didn't have many options before him.
He waited, staying still except for his eyes as he drank in the movement of the troll.
There were seven stalls between him and Hermione. He waited to see if the troll hit anything with its club because trolls' actions were never ones to be understood. One of the many reasons he had Hermione so far away.
About to cast his spell, he heard a sharp click from the door, and when he turned his attention he saw that the door was... locked?
How? Who put locks on the outside and why would they think a locked door would stop a troll ?
His wand still trained on the troll, Godric pointed a finger at the door and turned his finger, the lock quickly following his movements and unlocking. With a nod, Godric hoped that whoever tried locking the door wasn't the one who let the troll in in the first place as that would put Hermione in more danger.
But he had to get her out now, away from the immediate danger. He would handle what came next when it showed its face.
He turned his attention once more to the troll who now stood in the middle of the room grunting at its own reflection, he pointed his wand to the skull of the troll.
Godric threw out a strong stunning charm.
Well, it was supposed to be a strong stunning charm.
Instead, a feeble, red light left his wand and smacked the troll in the back of the head. With a roar, the troll spun around. Its tiny, beady eyes looking everywhere.
Its attention landed on the young student lying on the floor. It roared once more, raising it's club in the air. Taking a step forward, it swung.
Godric rolled to the side and into the next stall as the one he had been in seemed to explode into debris. He continued to roll, curling his body in so he wouldn't hit the toilet. The troll screamed in rage, but Godric's eyes flitted to the far stall and heard Hermione whisper to herself, "Go... go... Now!"
Her feet slapped the ground as she burst out of the stall and screamed when she saw the troll.
But she ran.
The troll turned to where it heard the noise, but Hermione was already beside it. And when it heard her feet patter next to it, she was already at the door.
Godric crawled from under the stalls and stood, left foot forward and wand held as he once held his sword. How he wished he had it with him, Godric balanced his weight on the balls of his feet.
"Oi! Dumb beast!" He threw another stunner at the troll's face, but once again, his magic didn't react the way he wanted and barely sent red sparks at the creature.
Hermione pulled open the door and screamed as she ran into somebody.
Bellowing, the troll swung its club in a wide arc. Diving to the side, Godric saw Harry, Ron, and Hermione in a pile in the doorway.
"Run!" He screamed. He jumped to his feet and once more faced the enraged troll. He needed the club away from the creature, so he gave a swish and a flick and when the troll went to hit him, the club stayed in the air.
A soft grunt escaped the troll as it stared stupidly at the floating club.
Snarling, Godric slammed his arm down. The club obeyed and slammed into the troll's head.
A rumble of pain escaped the creature's lips and it swayed, eyes closing. It toppled to the ground, but Godric raised the club once more and smashed it against the skull one more time. He glanced at the door and saw the three standing - inside the bathroom - and staring at him with wide eyes.
He pocketed his wand and angrily placed his hands on his hips. "Did I not say to run? I was about to go as well."
"This way!" Professor McGonagall's voice echoed towards them and Godric closed his eyes. The sound of footsteps rushing towards them didn't give them enough time. Time to run, time to plan. Time for anything.
The other three came up to him, Hermione standing next to him and the two boys in front of them.
Seconds later, McGonagall came rushing in with her wand drawn, Quirrell and Snape rushing in soon after.
The limp from the last man had Godric's blue eyes zeroing in on the wound on his leg. The man quickly covered the long, nasty gash on his leg and glared at Harry - who had apparently seen the large cut as well.
"Explain yourselves! The lot of you," McGonagall demanded.
Helga and Salazar were better at this, as Godric tended to make matters worse by opening his mouth, but he hardly sensed any other -
"It was my fault, professor," Hermione whispered. "I... I thought I could handle the troll, I've read about them, you see, so I thought I could... And these three," she pointed at Harry, Ron and Godric in an encompassing gesture, "came after me. If it weren't for them," she turned her head to give a tear filled look at the professor, "I'd probably be dead."
She lied?
Why? For what purpose?
She could have gone for the truth: the two of them were in the bathroom, didn't know about the troll, the boys came in as some sort of rescue attempt - failed, but whatever - and tried to get everyone to safety.
What was the point in lying ?
McGonagall's mouth thinned. "Be that as it may, it was an extremely foolish thing to do. I expected more rational behavior and am very disappointed in you. Five points will be taken from Gryffindor... for your serious lack of judgement. As for you three... I just hope you realize how fortunate you are. Not many first-year students could take on a troll and live to tell the tale. Five points will be awarded to each of you. For sheer dumb luck."
Snape's lips curled up in distaste and Godric couldn't really help but agree. Points taken for going after a troll. That was it? Really? That was all the punishment McGonagall was willing to dish out when the troll could have taken their lives? Not only that, but rewarding them points by not grabbing someone who was more capable than them to take care of the troll... She was just enforcing that they could do things without help and...
Godric wanted to bang his head against the wall. The deputy headmistress was actively trying to make his life more difficult.
"P-p-perhaps you ought to go. It - It m-might wake u-up."
Godric didn't wait to argue, he grabbed Hermione's hand and bolted out of the room with Harry and Ron hot on his heels. Just because he didn't agree with McGonagall didn't mean he wasn't going to demand her to change her mind.
When the professors didn't follow them out, Godric led them to the tapestry he had mentioned earlier and pushed it to the side and entered, the other three following.
Before he could say anything, Hermione asked 'You went after a troll?' to the other two.
Glancing at the three, Godric stayed a few steps behind the trio and listened as Harry shook his head. "No. We saw you two go in the bathroom before class and we didn't see you at the feast so we didn't think you guys knew about the troll. We... wanted to tell you."
"You... came for us?"
"When a troll was loose?" Godric interrupted and Ron raised his chin and turned to glare at Godric.
"You didn't know it was loose."
Holding his tongue, Godric nodded even when Hermione whispered, "Thank you."
The four stood together, before Ron's glare lessened and he grinned at Godric. "And you won against a troll!"
Unable to stop his own grin, Godric shrugged. "I remembered the spell from Charms class and it worked."
Though the stunning spell would have been better if it actually worked . And because of that, he had to choose a spell that he knew he could cast instead of trying a different one and hope it would work. He hated this body.
The four sombered quickly when Harry asked, "Did you see Snape's leg, though? I think he went after whatever is under that trapdoor."
Ron and Hermione nodded, both fidgeting. "We can't do much of anything until we learn some things. So we'll just keep an eye on him until we find solid proof to give to Professor McGonagall or Professor Dumbledore?" Hermione asked, shrinking in on herself as if prepared for the other two boys to shoot her idea down.
But the two nodded.
They had paused in a large part of the passageway, standing in a circle. The four of them looked at each other before Harry blurted, "Now what?"
"Go back to the Common Room." Godric turned his focus on Harry to ask, "By the way, how's your head?" Harry stared at Godric, and just... stared. "What? You're always rubbing your forehead."
The black haired teen shook his head, "'M fine." He started walking away with Ron, who both looked at him funnily.
"What?" Godric turned his attention to Hermione who was giggling behind her hand. "What did I say wrong?"
"Nothing, Ric. Nothing. Come on." The brunette led Godric after the other two, laughing as Godric grumbled the entire way.