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Bold = Parseltongue
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November 7, 1994
The Beginning
Harry had been alone before, or very nearly alone; Hogwarts and the wizarding world often treated him differently as every week went by. He could be a hero one day and a villain the next, such was the inconsistency of not only the Prophet but his friends as well. Truly, he didn't understand how Ron and Hermione could go through so much with him only to bail when they assumed he found a way to enter his name in the tournament.
Wouldn't a real friend believe you at face value when you told them your side? When you told them the complete truth that you hadn't entered your name into that damned Goblet?
He tossed a rock at a nearby wall in an attempt to expel some anger, but it didn't work. If anything, Harry found himself growing angrier and angrier at the lack of interaction he'd had with his friends. Sure, he could try and relieve it by going for a fly at the Quidditch pitch or toss spells whilst on the grounds outside, but it wouldn't accomplish much; he wanted somebody to speak with, somebody that would listen to him and believe him as a real friend would.
His mistake, as he now knew, was to limit himself to Ron and Hermione. Had he spent more time with Gryffindor housemates or even those outside of his house, he would have more close friends to speak with — Neville, Dean, Seamus… none of them really counted considering they all had their own close circle that excluded Harry. It didn't help that those girls from Beauxbatons weren't very fond of him either, nor did the students from Durmstrang seem predisposed to like him.
Was it too much to ask for one person to be on his side?
Dumbledore had barely defended him, McGonagall did little as she always did, and the rest of the Hogwarts staff in addition to those not from Hogwarts did nothing to the increase in bullying he'd received.
Briefly, oh so very briefly, did he wish for everyone to be in the tournament. They would see how horrible it would be alongside him, and when they failed their tasks with injuries the likes of which he received from Quidditch, the jokes would be replaced by pitiful sounds- Harry very quickly shook himself free of that desire for revenge that came from the darkest depths of his mind and stood up.
He was better than them, he was better than all of them, and so he wouldn't satisfy himself in their suffering as they currently did to him. What he would do is what he always did, and that would be to prove them wrong by winning or otherwise putting forward a performance that showed how gifted he was.
Harry turned the first corner needed for his path to the library, a newly formed happy smile on his face when he bumped into a larger figure and very nearly fell to the ground if it weren't for the hands that shot out to stabilise him.
"Careful," Came a girl's voice, a deeper and lightly-accented one. "Running into guests isn't the sign of a very good host, Harry Potter."
He narrowed his eyes at her use of his name, expecting hostility or a form of dislike from the foreign girl. "Sorry," He said, only partially meaning it, "I'll be more careful, thanks."
Just like that, he attempted to make his way from her grip and to his destination, but the girl didn't let up her hold of him. It almost felt like her hands tightened their hold on his shoulders, perhaps a mark would be present on her left one especially, such was the force behind her hold.
"You don't need to be leaving so quickly," She said to him in that same deep, accented voice. "You are a champion of Hogwarts, are you not? I have heard tell of the adventures you've gotten up to from the Slytherin table, would you not speak of them with me?"
Great, Harry thought as he sighed and looked up at the older girl's face, Malfoy or his goons told her about me… here's another bridge burnt before we've shared real words.
Harry blinked a few times, sagged his shoulders and finally, stopped trying to move away from her. "I'm not really a champion of Hogwarts, that's Cedric…. I guess I could speak with you for a little bit though, depending on what you'd want to hear."
"Wonderful," She said before a slight frown marred her features. "My apologies, my family would be furious had I gone this long without telling you my name after using yours — I'm Alice Rosier, two of my cousins go to this school with you… or did. We're not particularly close thanks to a difference in where we live."
Harry remembered a couple of Rosiers, but as this girl, Alice, had said; he wasn't at all close to them and likelier, they had a preconceived dislike of him thanks to the poison that their housemates would so often say about him. He was honestly surprised that Alice had spoken with him as long as she currently had, for he would've figured Draco would've had nothing but horrible things to say about him.
"It's nice to meet you, Alice," Harry started, his curiosity getting the better of him as he asked what he previously thought. "Why are you talking to me? Merlin, that sounded rude, but I mean… didn't Draco speak poorly of me? You said you heard about me from the Slytherins so I assume anything they said wasn't all that flattering."
He really made himself seem like the epitome of a dolt based on how he spoke, and Merlin, did he hate himself for it. Truly, how could he sound so stupid when speaking to the first person that hadn't insulted or ignored him in the past few days?
Well, granted Hermione and Neville still spoke to him, but it wasn't the same; Ron would always hurry either of them away before he could so much as ask a question of his own to those housemates of his. Gryffindor Tower had almost overnight turned into Slytherin, at least for Harry, as there was seldom anything positive in that space for him.
Alice hadn't responded for nearly half a minute while she watched him think, he only barely registered that. When that time came to an end and she did speak to him, it was with a small smile on her face. One that seemed as Katie's did, only a splash darker than her motherly expressions and speaking.
"You would be right to think that those Slytherin schoolmates spoke poorly of you, Harry Potter," Alice said, his fears realised. "Yet, unlike many, I like to make my own opinions and draw my own conclusions. Is that not the freedom we have, no? That is why I am here, in this hallway that was previously deserted, and that is why you bumped into me, so that we may get the chance to speak."
Harry was confused; had she meant for him to run into her or was she speaking metaphorically? Whatever the truth of the matter was, she seemed queer to him, for her likeness had yet to be met by him. He supposed he stayed that day due to that weirdness of her personality, and for the months that would follow, he would be ever thankful for his decision to do so.
Others, on the opposite side in which he'd chosen, wouldn't be.
"It is… it is the freedom we have, I guess," Harry was on edge around the older girl, but he was just so intrigued by her. "What do you want to talk about then? I have a lot of time, I'm not busy, not really."
Alice shrugged and finally released her hold of him. "Topics will come up as we walk to our destination," she said as she began to walk in the direction he'd been headed.
Harry followed after her quite quickly, already asking another question. "Where are we going?"
"To the library," Alice said with a cocking of her head as she glanced at him. "That was where you were headed, was it not?"
He swallowed as her eyes bore into his. "I don't recall saying so."
"Oh," Alice said as a small, knowing look settled on her face. "I don't suppose you did… still, wouldn't you like to prepare for your first task? If you would like, you could use the library aboard the Durmstrang ship or my private one in my cabin. Either would be fine with me and my classmates, for we limit not our friendships or bonds that have yet to be formed."
"You'd let me use your books or the ones on your ship? Really?" Harry asked suspiciously, continuing with another question or two. "Is there something different about them than the ones in Hogwarts? Are they even in English?"
Alice laughed angelically, the noise clashing with her dark features and darker clothing. "Books can be translated very easily — Durmstrang is unlike Hogwarts in the sense that we take children from all of Europe, that would be hard to do without magic involved, wouldn't it?" Alice's face then took on a more serious expression as she nodded her head a few times. "To answer your other question too, there are differences in our books when compared to yours. Chiefly the differences in magical classifications or the 'darkness' taught."
Harry found himself curious, or rather, more curious than he already was. He had heard all about Dark versus Light during his time at Hogwarts, so when Alice spoke of her school having differences regarding it at the same time he was to compete in a tournament… every little bit of an edge helped, right? It wasn't like the Durmstrang Champion, Krum, wouldn't be using what he'd learned from his school out of fear that he'd get in trouble for it anyhow.
"What're those differences? Could yo-," Harry cut himself off, he was too trusting with this girl and so he wouldn't ask for her help before he was what she wanted in return or what she offered in the first place.
He would not be scorned again, not by her, not by those who'd called themselves his friends.
Not by anyone.
"Differences are hard to speak of when I know not the classifications of Hogwarts," Alice said, no hint of a lie in her tone, not that he'd know how to pick it up anyhow. "All I know is that there are differences, the minute details or any at all are beyond me. I do suppose I could tell you that what we learn is meant to be practised and read in the safety of our ship out of respect for Dumbledore's rules — your Ministry too, as neither are especially fond of what Durmstrang teaches. Mother told me that was why she insisted that I go to Durmstrang rather than Hogwarts too, for those from my school are safer when fighting than those from yours."
Harry made a noise of offence out of habit, but he didn't try to argue for Hogwarts. Why would he when the school had turned its back on him?
He wasn't even representing them in the tournament, not really.
"Can we head to your ship then?" He asked, his curiosity getting the better of him despite the tickling sensation that the girl before him wasn't exactly what she seemed to be.
Perhaps what was what he needed too, for all those that he'd known hadn't been helpful in the slightest. Not when they were so quick to crown him king one day and launch a coup the next.
Obviously, Ron would come back to him as he always did, Hermione would follow when she didn't feel so split… but did he want them back? Did he want an—
Harry was cut off from his thinking when the girl slithered her arm around his shoulders and pulled him closer, their course changing as she began leading them in a different direction.
"Yes," Alice said to him with a grin on her face.
And like that, Harry found himself in the Durmstrang ship only fifteen minutes later.
"It's a lot bigger on the inside, isn't it?" Alice asked from behind him, the older girl's breath tickling the back of his neck thanks to her closeness.
Harry found himself nodding initially, but he voiced his agreement a few seconds later. "Yeah, yeah it's a lot bigger inside… is this what Durmstrang is like? Where's everyone else?"
Alice moved past him and then turned so that she could see his face. "This is similar to the feel that Durmstrang has, though obviously not the wooden interior — we're very similar to Hogwarts in the castle-like feel, but our decor is far more historically accurate," Alice motioned towards the entrance and exit they'd just walked through before answering his second question. "They're all on your Hogwarts grounds or inside, not many of us spend our time in here lest it's required. Warm open-aired rooms and the grounds of Hogwarts are far nicer than the ship we'll be calling home this year."
He had hung on her every word, for he'd only ever known Hogwarts and the feeling of England. To think that it was similar, Durmstrang to Hogwarts, was a bit disappointing. Harry had hoped the schools would be incredibly different, moreover, he had wished to meet Alice's friends to see what they were like; as nice as the girl had been thus far, he still didn't trust her further than he could throw her.
Why had she been so nice and helpful? She still hadn't asked him for anything, and she certainly hadn't been plain with what she wanted, so it left him wondering and nervous. That latter emotion was especially true, for he found himself alone in a large space within the ship with the only exit closed off.
Had he been a fool to come aboard the Durmstrang ship all by himself?
Maybe.
"That makes sense," He finally said to her words. "Where are we going then?"
"Down towards the bottom of the ship where our library is, unless you'd prefer to visit the room I share with three other girls in my year. Normally it would be two per room, but our spaces are rather cramped considering our accommodations for the year," Alice tutted and shook her head, then, she turned to face him again with a raised eyebrow as she held out one hand. "Aren't you coming?" She asked.
"Which one are we going to?" Harry asked back, his hand partially raised to reach for hers.
Alice smiled softly, it was the first welcoming and pleasant look she'd had about her since they'd met; in a way, she felt as Katie did again. "You may pick, for I know my way about either choice equally well."
Harry wanted to say her room, for the library would be further and deeper aboard the ship. He didn't go with that though, for he knew if anything nefarious were to happen, it'd likely be in her room. He wasn't that stupid, or at least he didn't think he was.
Then again, if you asked Ron or his other 'mates' then that very well could be the case.
Yes, his mind still lingered on that, for he would continue to toil relentlessly on those thoughts until something happened regarding them. Ron could apologise, Hermione could show him reason or Dumbledore could clear him… any one of those scenarios that would see Harry cleared of 'wrong-doing' would be welcomed. Really, he just wanted people back on his side, as being alone was never fun.
He may as well be back under those stairs if the year continued its course.
"We'll go to the library then," Harry finally said, earning himself a grin from the older girl.
It didn't last very long. Her face very quickly morphed back to its stoic albeit slightly pleased expression as she gripped his hand in her larger ones, the age difference once again brought to the forefront of his mind as he took in her generally larger size as she led him down the various corridors. She hadn't told him her year or the Durmstrang equivalent, nor had she given her age, but Harry would guess she was sixteen or seventeen in comparison to his age of fourteen.
Arthur Weasley had warned him last year of older witches too, and this seemed the perfect example as Harry found himself whisked away in silence by the taller girl. She was rather good-looking; tall, dark brown hair, mature and dark features, a sharp nose, pink soft-looking lips…
Harry felt his hands grow damp as his heart began to race the more he took her in. Would she snog him? Did she simply mean to help him similarly to how Katie used to?
Why was his first thought about snogging her?
She's pretty fit, His mind thought, betraying him.
Alice giggled and squeezed his hand just a touch. "You are worried, no?" She asked as she looked back at him from over her shoulder. "Could you be thinking that I mean you harm, or is it a different sense of worry? Maybe you have not held the hand of a beautiful witch before?"
Harry tried to voice protest, or voice anything really, but he couldn't. Not when she was peering into his soul with those dark eyes of hers — it felt like he was getting the 'in-trouble' stare, only from a girl slightly older than him and with a teasing lilt to it.
"I'm not worried," He said, a hitch in his voice betraying him. "Not that you'll hurt me, and not that a beautiful witch is holding my hand. It's just different surroundings, you know?"
Alice looked vaguely offended, and her hand partially slipped from his. "Am I not a beautiful witch?"
Harry blinked in response. "What?" He asked as they began to descend what seemed like an unending staircase.
"My beauty," Alice said, using her free hand to gesture to her figure and face. "You said not that a beautiful witch is holding your hand, am I not that?"
He didn't know what to say and so the seconds went by in silence. When that silence stretched for nearly a minute, Alice finally took enough pity on him to speak again.
"I'm joking, Harry Potter," Alice said, motioning towards the furthest door when they emerged from the staircase. "There, our library at last… how much time can you spare for our first lesson?"
Still with a blush on his face, a strong one at that, Harry asked what she meant by 'first lesson'.
Alice cocked her head and furrowed her brows at him. "You didn't think we would have one lesson, did you? No, Harry, we will have many lessons together, else how'll you go about completing your tasks? Do remember they were made for those of an older age, and as such, they will be more difficult for a younger student — are you so confident in your own abilities to pass up these free lessons?"
As much as he didn't like the points that she raised, he realised at the same time that she wasn't wrong; these tasks and the tournament as a whole were meant for older students, he wasn't particularly confident in his abilities on his lonesome either, as he typically had a few friends to help him on his way.
Hermione especially had come in clutch a fair few times over the years, the Basilisk case in particular had been solved by her and dealt with by him. It was together that anybody was stronger.
"No, no I guess not. We can think about those other lessons after this first one though, just to make sure it's right for me," Harry very nearly said 'good', but he didn't want to offend the older girl.
He knew he didn't need his friend to be wholly good so long as they weren't wholly evil. All he needed was someone who would help him and believe in his abilities. If that so happened to be this older girl from Durmstrang — which he would have never guessed — then who was he to decline her?
"You will come to enjoy these lessons greatly," Alice assured as she flicked open the large wooden door with her wand. "Believe me."
Nearly two hours later and alone again on the grounds of Hogwarts, Harry recollected his first lesson with Alice Rosier; older Durmstrang girl and relative to one of his bullies.
Her magic, or rather the spells that her school taught, were 'darker' as she'd said. They weren't the same as the lesson that Moody had taught where he showcased those illegal curses, obviously not, but the magic taught by Durmstrang still went far more in depth than Hogwarts in relation to the darker things. One of the first spells she showed to him despite the advanced nature of it was one that made a person's bones turn brittle.
It wasn't dangerous by itself, and eventually, one's body would naturally recover… but, when used with a spell that hurt via force or simpler, something that tossed objects at a person, it could be devastating. That was but one example of the differences between Hogwarts and Durmstrang, and many more were spotted throughout his introductory lesson with Alice.
Introductory.
Harry hadn't been sure that he could trust Alice, and even after his first lesson with her, he still wasn't sure. Call him paranoid or grudgeful, but having his friends bail on him again had damaged his trust further than it'd previously been thanks to the Dursleys. That was saying something too, for the Dursleys had greatly hindered his ability to communicate with others and thanks to that, it was why his friends were so outgoing in comparison to himself.
There was no doubt in his mind that if it weren't for Hermione and Ron picking his cabin, he wouldn't have known them as well as he currently did; Harry had latched onto those two from that moment on, even if Hermione hadn't been nearly as strong a friend until the Troll incident.
"You forgot your satchel, Harry," Alice's voice came again, her tone lower and more tired-sounding as her hand came to rest on his shoulder from behind him.
Had she touched him before speaking, Harry would've likely pulled his wand on her. As it was, he still felt somewhat nervous with how easily she'd snuck up on him whilst he'd been deep in thought. Perhaps the Chamber… no, no it wouldn't do to spend time tucked away in that horribly dank, dark, dusty and death-ridden dungeon. He would have to find somewhere else that was equally as undisturbed to hide himself from others.
"Thanks," He said with a shake of his head, pushing that thought to next in line whilst he dealt with Alice and her reappearance after their lesson.
Half of him, or mayhaps a slightly smaller portion, expected that this was the time she'd use to get him or make a demand; after their lesson and before follow-up one.
"No problem, I was half assuming I'd see you in the Great Hall but you have not made it there yourself," Alice said, a hint of interest plain to hear in her voice as she took hold of his arm and began walking them up the path towards his school. "Did you find yourself missing the satchel, or were you as lost in thought as the first time I met you?"
Harry shrugged, but with an incessant look from the older girl, he gave an answer. "I didn't notice I'd lost it, not yet, I was just thinking about the spells you showed me and the one you ended up teaching me."
Alice gave him an amused smile and brought her opposite hand to mess with his fair for a few seconds, she spoke whilst doing so. "You're too cute," she said. "I wonder how long it will take for you to successfully cast that spell… oh, I nearly forgot to mention, please keep these spells to yourself even if you speak of our lessons with others. Many from your school would expect similar treatment that I would care not to give, I doubt many from my school would. Can you do that for me?"
"Is that all?" Harry asked before he gave his answer, the suspiciousness he felt towards her finally making its way into their conversation. "There's nothing else you want from me? No deal or something like that?"
"If you mean to make an offer, do so whilst knowing I expect nothing from you," Alice said to him, answering his question just like that. "If not, then yes, that is all that I'd like for you — others from your school don't hold my interest as you do, and a vast majority seem too simple from the minor conversations I've had with them."
"Aren't you worried they'll see you speaking with me and won't let you sit at the Slytherin table again?" Harry asked, another question on his mind coming out thanks to how quickly she'd answered the first; there had to be something she'd lose or something she'd get at, everybody seemed to want for something.
Alice scoffed and shook her head, her grip of his arm getting slightly tighter as they continued their walk up the path. "No, I don't believe they would say anything to me out of fear of offending others in my school. Think not that I'm the only one from Durmstrang with interest in you, Harry, or even that I'm the only one from a foreign school. Others would have just as easily sought you out should they have overheard where you were by yourself," Alice nodded her head before he could ask what she meant too, signalling that she'd answer that question too. "One with your colour robes spoke of seeing you alone near that courtyard furthest from the hall, the name of it eludes me but I knew the location well enough thanks to a little cousin of mine. With such a prime chance to meet you without others listening in or trying to disrupt our meeting, I took it."
Harry nodded a few times, maybe half a dozen, thanks to how lost in her words he was.
Their meeting hadn't been planned, not extensively at least and she'd said as much earlier, but to hear that one of his housemates had been speaking about his location. He wondered who and why, but neither reason mattered much when it came down to it. Whoever it had been hadn't cared enough to speak with him and really, had gone far out of their way to avoid him.
How else could he have not seen them when they'd seen him?
"Why wouldn't they want to," Harry paused as a group of three Ravenclaws made their way by him and the Durmstrang girl — one passing glance was all any of them shot him, and when they were far enough away, he picked up where he'd left off, "Offend others in your school? How would they do so by having you sit somewhere else?"
Alice pulled out her wand before she answered, and Harry almost instinctively went for his when he saw how she'd raised it towards head level. When he saw her aim it at the top of her head instead of his, he quelled the impulse and watched in wonder as her hair moved by itself until it looked beautifully done up like a girl going to a ball. As she lowered her wand back to its position, she caught him looking and sent him a wink before she finally deemed it fit to give him an answer.
"Friends of mine would be insulted by them telling me to sit elsewhere, and as a result, they too would leave. Their friends would do the same and on and on it would go until almost all of Durmstrang would've felt a touch of insult — those who wouldn't would leave too, for why would they choose to sit with others instead of those who they share sleeping spaces with?," Alice brought that opposite hand of hers around again to wipe at something on Harry's cheek, and she spoke again whilst doing so. "Unlike Hogwarts, those belonging to my school are very unified despite coming from all over. We may not have many a French, Belgian or English Magical with us, but with most of the rest of Europe going to Durmstrang, we are close."
Harry nodded and decided to stop asking questions. There weren't many more that he had and those that remained weren't nearly as interesting as the three that he'd put voice to.
Alice didn't stop speaking though, and when she noticed that no more questions would come from her younger companion, she asked him one of hers. "Are you nervous to be in the tournament?" She asked, her gaze still looking towards Hogwarts.
He shook his head in the negative. "No," He said, pausing to think before again giving an answer. "Not really. I don't think it's sunk in… or maybe it has and it's not as dangerous as other tasks I've found myself stuck in. You've probably been in danger before, right?"
"Yes," She responded curtly, not going into details.
That was fine for Harry's purpose, and so he continued. "I've been in a bit too, I suppose that's why I'm not as nervous as I probably should be."
Alice smiled at him and rubbed his hair again. He could see amusement and something else in her eyes as she watched him. "I would not credit other experiences more so than the simple fact that you're brave, Harry. Many, many others your age would be quietly in despair at the idea of having to compete, yet you're without worry — if anything, to me and not that I know you all that well, you've used it as a means to improve yourself. Continue to do so, continue to learn from me, and we'll see you not only survive, we'll see you win this mistake of a game."