THC/The Houses Competition
House:None
Category: Standard
Class: None
Prompt(s):[Couple] Rubeus Hagrid and Tom Riddle (not Voldemort)
Word Count: 1477
Summary: A small story depicting Rubeus Hadgrid and Tom Riddle time together at Hogwarts. Sometimes it's better to be an outcast then to have friends, a lesson Rubeus will soon learn.
Title: How it all Started
It was no secret that Rubeus Hagrid was different from all the other students at Hogwarts. Being half-giant came with challenges that set him apart from everyone else. For instance, he needed to get his robes professionally made since even the year seven robes wouldn't fit his eleven-year-old body. He needed a special desk in his classes since he was too big to fit into the ones that were made for 'normal sized' students not to mention a bigger-sized bed in his dorm room. Everything needed to be sized up for him and because of this he was bullied and mocked for how big he was.
Even classes were a challenge for Rubeus. Being the size that he was he couldn't participate in flying classes, the one time he sat on a broom it ended up cracking under his weight. He ended up having to spend the classes on the ground, watching as all the other students got to learn how to fly. Herbology was another class he had difficulties in, it all started when they were repotting mandrakes and Rubeus accidentally ended up squishing one in his hands. He tried explaining to the Professor that he was sorry and that he felt awful for what he did but when you're the size of Rubeus, you sometimes forget just how strong you are. Other classes were just plain difficult. Being half-giant meant that Rubeus's IQ was lower than the other students' which caused him to struggle in most of his classes. The one class he didn't struggle in was Care of Magical Creatures which started during his third year at Hogwarts.
It didn't matter how big he was, creatures just seemed to bond with him. He could hold the tiniest bowtruckle in his hands and the creature would only look at him in awe. There was no fear or judgment in those eyes, just complete trust. As Rubeus's father used to say, "The bigger the person, the bigger the heart" and for Rubeus it was true. After his first Care of Magical Creatures lesson he was taking in any creature that needed help. It didn't matter how big or how small, if they needed help Rubeus was there for them which only made him more of an outcast to the rest of the students. Rubeus started to spend less time with his peers and more time with his creatures. Rubeus would look for any chance he could to get away from all the looks so he could spend time with creatures who didn't see him any differently.
Rubeus accepted that he was different from everyone else and did his best to ignore the mean names that students would come up with for him. He would spend his days with his creatures when he wasn't struggling to keep up with his classes. But no matter how many creatures he would have hidden in his school robes he still felt alone which was why when a boy named Tom Riddle came to him he jumped on the chance to have a friend even if everything inside of him told him not to.
Tom was strange but Rubeus put that down to being an outcast, afterall, he was an outcast himself so it wouldn't be right to judge Tom just because he was a little weird. But sometimes it was more than just the weirdness that told Rubeus that something was off with Tom. Whenever Tom would enter the room Rubeus could feel a cold shiver go down his spine. The room would drop several degrees and he was sure that it wasn't just his imagination playing tricks on him.
Whenever Rubeus looked into Tom's eyes he saw nothing except blackness. His eyes were evil pits of darkness where only cold and uncontrollable cruelty could be seen. Even though Rubeus could feel and sometimes even see that something wasn't right with Tom, he still welcomed him as a friend and shared all of his secrets with the man who would soon become one of the darkest wizards that wizardkind had ever seen.
Rubeus never realized that Tom was using him to gain information. During a rainy day at Hogwarts, Tom and Rubeus sat in the back of the library. Rubeus was trying to bottle feed a baby Chupacabra that he found behind the Three Broomsticks, cowering in one of the back alleys, and Tom was fingering though a Dark Arts book. Another sign that told Rubeus that something was wrong with him. It was obvious that Tom didn't care about much, in fact he didn't care about lots of things. The only thing he seemed to care about was getting as much information as he could about the Dark Arts. That rainy day, Tom asked Rubeus about Unicorns.
Rubeus was more than delighted to tell Tom everything he knew about unicorns. How they were amazing creatures, as the majestic equines possessed potent magical properties and their tail hairs were used as wand cores. Sadly, Rubeus had never been able to get close to one since Unicorns did prefer females over males. He hoped that one day he would be able gain one's trust so that it would allow him to touch it. Rubeus must have gone on about these amazing beast for hours, until Tom said something that made Rubeus fear for his life. "And what can you tell me about their blood?" His voice was cold, emotionless. Rubeus had never heard anything like it before.
"The…the blood of a unicorn will keep you alive, even if you are an inch from death," Rubeus couldn't help but to stutter. "But only one who has nothing to lose, and everything to gain, would commit such a crime. The blood of a unicorn comes at a terrible price. If you slay something so pure and defenseless to save yourself, you will have but a half-life, a cursed life, from the moment the blood touches your lips," Rubeus explained not realizing he just gave the feature Dark Lord the key to survival. It would be years until Rubeus discovered his mistake but by that time it would be too late.
Time passed and Rubeus tried to keep his distance from Tom but it never seemed to work. Tom always seemed to be able to find him no matter where Rubeus tried to hide. It got to the point where Rubeus considered that Tom had the ability to read minds but he just put that down to him being paranoid. He never even considered that he might be right.
One day when Tom asked about another creature, a Basilisk, once again Rubeus told him everything he knew about the beast. "A Basilisk, also known as the King of Serpents, is one of the most fearsome beast to roam our land. Its methods of killing are wondrous. Aside from its large venomous fangs, the Basilisk has a murderous stare, and all who are fixed with the beam of its eye will suffer an instant death," Rubeus explained, watching as a wicked smile crossed Toms features. It made Rubeus take a step back.
It wasn't until a girl named Myrtle Warren was murdered in the girls bathroom that Rubeus realized what a grave mistake he had made in trusting Tom. He hoped, he prayed that it wasn't true but all the praying in the world couldn't change what Tom had done. He murdered a girl all because she was a muggle born. Rubeus knew that Tom despised muggle borns like much of his classmates but he never thought Tom would go as far as to murdering one.
Rubeus knew what he needed to do, he needed to tell Professor Dumbledore all that he knew about Tom. It hurt him greatly to turn in a friend but he knew that didn't have a choice. He knew, as much as he disliked it, that Tom would kill again. Sadly, Rubeus never got the chance to go to Professor Dumbledore, as Tom was waiting for him. Rubeus could have never seen it coming, and the betrayal he was about to experience would forever change him.
Tom set his beloved pet, Aragog, an acromantula who he had come to care for deeply, lose in the school, and the girl's death was easily blamed on a harmless creature who didn't seek to attack anyone. Tom played the victim and told the Headmaster that the acromantula belonged to Rubeus. Rubeus was expelled from Hogwarts for endangering human life and his wand was snapped in two. Luckily, by some miracle, Professor Dumbledore was able to keep Rubeus out of Azkaban and later hired him as gamekeeper.
It was decades later that Rubeus saw the downfall of Tom who by then was going by the name of Voldermort. But he always carried the death of Myrtle Warren on his shoulders, Tom Riddle's first kill.