"So, how's Harry doing?" Leo asks Hermione beside him outside the Potions classroom the Monday before the First Task. He looks back to see Harry and Ron behind them joking around, distracted with their shenanigans. Harry seems relaxed despite the upcoming tournament.
"He had dramatic improvements the past two days and he completely mastered the Summoning Charm just last night. He can even do it wordlessly now! Good, too, he's been practicing nonstop since three weeks ago," she whispers beside him. "I guess seeing the dragons last Saturday really made him determined to fully master it."
Leo hums in satisfaction. "That's good. He'll be okay, then."
"He did mention something Sirius told him last Saturday though. We were going to tell you yesterday but we couldn't find you," Hermione says, giving him a look.
Leo laughs uncomfortably. "Ah, I was just wandering around the castle, still trying to get a feel of the new environment," he lies.
He was in the Forbidden Forest, working on Festus despite the centaurs' pleas for him to leave. He can take care of himself, thank you very much!
Hermione hums in a tone Leo doesn't understand but she replies no further.
"What were you going to tell me?" Leo asks.
Hermione tells him. "The Durmstrang Headmaster—the Scandinavian one," she adds at Leo's confused look, "apparently, he was a Death Eater before."
Leo tilts his head in question. "What's a Death Eater?"
Hermione looks at him questioningly but doesn't ask and instead answers, "Followers of You-Know-Who."
"No, I don't know who," Leo answers.
"You don't know who—"
"American, remember?"
Hermione nods then whispers, "Voldemort."
Leo nods. "Ah, Darth Vader."
Hermione laughs. "You know Star Wars?"
Leo's eyes widen. "You know it?"
Hermione smiles. "I grew up in the Muggle world. I admit I never watched it but I did hear about it with my classmates in primary school."
Leo nods and smiles back. "I like it."
Hermione laughs. "Of course, you would. You grew up in the muggle world, too?"
Leo nods. "Yeah, my mom is a muggle." Hermione nods. Leo pauses. "So, he was a follower of that dark lord guy, huh?"
That sobers Hermione up. "Yes. We have to keep an eye on him. He could be the one who put Harry's name in the goblet of fire. I don't know how much you know, but You-Know-Who would very much want to see Harry dead."
"Poor dude," Leo sighs, taking a quick look at the still laughing Harry. "I kinda get what it feels like to have a target on your back. It sucks."
"You do?" Hermione asks.
Leo nods. "I may have… not been good with the, er, authorities back in the U.S. I basically fought gods."
Hermione clicks her tongue. "Maybe putting you and Harry together is dangerous," she jokes.
Leo laughs. "He's my twin. I mean we even have the same hair."
Hermione hums. "I don't know. Yours is curly and his looks like a chicken slept on it."
Harry and Ron give them a look since Leo almost died laughing. Leo waves them dismissively and the two turn back to their conversation.
After Leo sobers up, he tells Hermione, "You know, he's getting better in Ancient Greek, too. Honestly, I really can't hear him speak Ancient Greek because it just kinda sounds like English to me. But his broken Ancient Greek before sounded like broken English to me. Now, it sounds like how he usually talks in English, so I assume he can speak it now."
"It's amazing how dragon language and Parseltongue work," Hermione says. "You never told us how you learned to speak dragon."
Leo shrugs. "I was just born with it. From my father's side—whom I never talk to," he adds the last part just as Hermione opens her mouth to probably ask a question about him.
"And your mom?" Hermione asks concernedly. "You at least talk to her right?"
Leo visibly winces. "Yeah, but, er, she's dead."
"Oh," Hermione gasps. "I'm sorry, Leo, I didn't know."
"Like I said. Harry and I are basically twins. Both orphans." Leo shrugs.
"Your dad's alive, though, right? Maybe someday you two can be close."
Leo shakes his head. "Impossible. He has no time for me and he's far away. Okay, I admit, we talked once. Bold of him to talk to me after ignoring me my whole fifteen years, and he told me he'd rather be alone than talk to any people, even his own children. He's an ugly awkward jerk, sure, but I understand it. Plus, I mean, he had been looking after me from afar. The asshole just didn't try to talk to me even after mama's death."
"Language, Leo, and I'm so sorry for that, both for your dad's absence and your mom's death."
"It's fine… At least, my mama wouldn't be restrained upon learning I'm being thrown around in schist by other people," he jokes but only winces after, because his mama would definitely be forced to be restrained if someone dared hurt him. He shakes his head. "Can't say the same for the dragons, though."
"Harry won't hurt the dragon, Leo. He promised you, and Harry always keeps his promises," she tells him softly.
He sighs. "I know. I know. But I kind of understand where he's coming from. If something attacks you, you go for the defensive then the offensive. I wouldn't really blame him if he hurts the dragon to save himself. It's just… depressing. It's not fair to the dragons. They should have as much rights as we do."
"I know, Leo," Hermione says. "Like with the house elves in the—" Hermione was interrupted by Professor Snape letting them in the classroom.
—oOo—
"Valdez, we need to talk," he sees Farley say behind him.
"Uh-oh, what's this an intervention?" he jokes at the prefect.
"Yes," she answers seriously.
Leo blanches. He just left the Slytherin table to head to the library where Hermione, Harry, and Ron will meet with him after they finish lunch. But it seems Farley had followed him.
"What's… going on?" he asks nervously.
"Look, it's come to our attention that your rivalry with Malfoy has become quite public, and it's breaking the first rule of Slytherin house."
Schist. I guess it'll happen sooner or later, he thinks.
"If you think I'm just going to sit by and let that racist mother-insulting bastard be his racist slur-speaking supremacist self, then you're talking to the wrong guy," he tells her.
"Yes, I know he can be a git but that's no excuse to attack him in public," she says.
"Hey, he attacks me, too!" Leo defends himself.
"Yes, but subtly. Your relationship with the Gryffindors, especially the Golden Trio, just shows where your loyalty lies. And the fact their number one enemy is Malfoy doesn't help," she counters.
"Look. I'm gonna be honest with you. I don't give a schist about your house politics, okay? Besides, I'm already an outsider in Slytherin. Everyone knows it. And at Hogwarts. I'm literally the one of the few Americans here, if not the only one. What's the harm in making myself the biggest Slytherin weirdo by befriending Ron, Harry, and Hermione?" he rebuts.
Farley hums. "Okay, you make a point. But you're still a Slytherin. Sure, be the Slytherin weirdo, but you need to lessen the public fights with Malfoy. I heard you even almost attacked the head of house. You're shaming Slytherin!"
"Look, you don't really have the authority to scold me about all this. Sure, fine, I'll play nice with Malfoy unless he provokes me first, but my little mishap with Professor Snape? No, you don't have a say in it," he tells her. "Besides, I already talked this through with Professor Snape."
"What do you mean?" she asks with a slight furrow of her brows.
"It was just a few days since I started here at Hogwarts…"
With a sigh, Leo entered the Head of House's office. The professor was on his desk, grading papers, and Leo went on to sit on the chair just in front of the desk, waiting for the other to start.
With an aggressive clink of the quill's tip hitting the inside of the ink bottle, the professor turned on Leo. He couldn't deny that the man has some menacing aura, but he had literally met the Gods of Olympus, who are way worse. Still, he can tell the man was slightly disappointed that he wasn't as intimidating to him as the first time.
"Let's talk about the spectacle you performed this afternoon," the professor said. Leo let out a deep breath. "Will you please explain what happened?"
"I told you before, professor, my, er, magic, it's still not controllable—especially when it comes to fire," he told him.
"At this age?" the professor asked curiously. Leo shrugged. "Don't shrug."
Leo internally screamed.
"Besides that point, I'm not asking how it happened. I'm asking what happened," the professor pointed out.
Leo's brows furrowed. "You were there."
The professor let out a frustrated sigh. "I'd like to hear it from your own mouth. Perhaps hearing it yourself would make you realize the ridiculousness of the situation."
Leo closed his eyes and counted to three so he wouldn't jump over the man's desk to sucker punch him in his stupid face.
"A female student was in trouble and needed help from a respectable and reliable adult. You didn't do that and instead insulted her. I got mad because the act was unnecessarily cruel and doesn't give any benefits except some petty laughter, which isn't an ambitious and successful result because it only gives off a short level of sadistic satisfaction. Not very Slytherin of you lot… so my magic went haywire and my body started flaming up blue fire because my magic can detect stupidity," Leo replied in an even tone.
The murderous look on the man's face only satisfied Leo but he didn't show it.
"Why you insolent no-good—Detention! Detention for the rest of the year!" the man hissed.
Leo hummed. "I doubt I'd stay that long."
"And why would that be so, Mr. Valdez? I shouldn't be asking. Your goal must be to get expelled, isn't that right?" he spit.
Leo sighed. "Sir, look, I'm an outlier in Slytherin. I'm an outlier in Hogwarts. An American. A Mexican. I apparently started school about two months late. And you all think it would be easy for me to understand the rules of Slytherin when I've only been here for three days? I'm fifteen. I have a mind of my own now. I've barely been adjusting to British customs. And I haven't been in a school in years. Your house hasn't given me any reason for me to be loyal to you. You think I'd bend my own personal beliefs for you guys?" Leo laughed, completely missing the look of understanding on the professor's face at the last two sentences. "Nah, I don't think so." With that, he made a decision. "Sir, I think we need to talk to the headmaster."
Leo was able to detect the glimpse of emotion from the man's eyes after his rant, before confusion appeared.
"And why is that, Mr. Valdez?" he asked, but his tone seemed… different.
"It will be easier for you to believe about my… origin. You're my head of house. If we're going to tolerate each other, you need to at least understand where I'm coming from."
The professor raised a brow. "That may be so, Mr. Valdez but I fear the Headmaster is quite busy with his duties for us to squeeze in for some tale. I will manage on my own."
Leo hummed. "Sir, I really think it'll be easier with the Headmaster here, and the Gryffindor Head of House," he added the last part, not wanting to reveal that he still hadn't been able to remember all of the professors' names, including his own Head of House.
"Why would you need her?" he asked.
"She was the first person of authority I was able to talk to when I arrived here last Sunday so she knows where I come from. She was also the one who brought me to the Headmaster… who confirmed everything I said," he told him.
"Mr. Valdez, we don't need to disrespect the time of the other professors just as you should not disrespect the time I am allotting for you," the professor replied.
Leo grumbled. "Fine! You really wanna know? You think you can handle the truth without pure evidence? You think you know everything about your life? It's not! You don't know anything! What's my secret? I'm a demigod! There! You happy? Yes! Half man and half god! My mother is a mortal and my father is the god, Hephaestus. Yes, Greek gods exist. They're real and they're still ruling us from Olympus! I don't have magic except the fact that I do my best to train myself with the Mist to manipulate your minds but I can control fire! Wanna see? Here!"
He opened his palm and let fire emerge from his fingertips. It started to go unstably angry so Leo closed his palm to dissipate it.
He was still so unbelievably angry at this professor, for saying something so mean to Hermione—his student, whom he should be attending to. He wanted to break his face so hard that his hands started reaching for the hammer inside his toolbelt which was hiding under his untucked shirt in his robes.
He was breathing so heavily that the calm look on the professor's face stopped his angry mind from continuing on.
Feeling like all the energy left his body, he flopped back down on his seat, not noticing that he had stood up at some point. The professor had rested his elbows on his desk with his hands positioned by his lips as if praying. He was just there, observing him, the mierda.
"What? Don't believe me?" he asked sarcastically with a huff, looking straight at him.
"As a matter of fact, I do," the professor said.
It was as if his brain short-circuited.
"W-what?" he asked stupidly.
"I believe you are a demigod, yes," the professor said.
"You crazy or something?" he asked in surprise.
The professor leaned back on his seat casually, as if they were talking about the weather. "Since you were sorted into Slytherin, I immediately talked to the Mediwitch after the Feast about giving you a full health check-up. It's a requirement amongst my Slytherins for several reasons. Imagine my surprise to hear her say that she had already done a full diagnostic but that I was to ask the Headmaster for approval. This wasn't standard procedure, of course."
Leo listened intently.
"I went to the headmaster, and he told me of your situation right there and then. In all honesty, I wouldn't have believed him either if it wasn't for the diagnostics. So, yes, Mr. Valdez, I believe you are a demigod."
Leo narrowed his eyes on him. "So, all this time you were just… what? Waiting for me to snitch on myself? What about me spreading fire in the dorms? You were just faking the whole 'Oh, oopsie daisy you're too old to have accidental magic, woopsie.' You were like so mad I thought fire would come out of your nose."
The professor interrupted him. "Speaking of madness, again, the reason I called you here. It was not just to berate you about your show of power around underage wizards, but the fact you were directing it at me. Do not, ever, glare at me, or look at me as if I am beneath you. You may be more powerful than I but I am still your professor and head of house and I will be respected. Second, never go against me in front of the other houses. Weren't you taught the first rule of Slytherin, Valdez? We are one. There are lots of prejudices against our house and I will not have you add more. And with that comes this problem you have caused: your public display of fighting with Draco Malfoy."
"Hey, I'm not the one starting it!" he said.
"Do not interrupt me, boy!"
Something triggered within Leo at the nickname. The face of his abusive foster mom, Teresa, entered his brain. He quickly shook the memory from his brain.
"I have already talked this over with him," the professor said, bringing Leo back to reality. "And you two will be fighting this rivalry out in private. I will not have you two ruining the reputation Slytherin has been holding for decades. And don't think I haven't seen you with Potter and his friends," he spat Harry's name as if it's a curse.
"I'm one of his friends," Leo replied nonchalantly.
"I beg your pardon?" the man asked in a less calm manner. Leo immediately knew one of the man's pressure points.
"I'm Harry's friend. Nothing in the rules said I can't befriend a non-Slytherin. Just so happens to be Harry, Hermione, and Ron. I mean, I'm kinda okay with Susan, too, I guess, and she's a Hufflepuff. I don't see anyone complaining about that. Also, come on, are y'all blind? I'm not the only Slytherin with a Gryffindor friend. I see plenty of them around the halls chilling and hanging out. Y'all are just mad that Harry's famous or something."
The man before him had become the epitome of rage. More so than when he was directly insulting him.
"You little—" The man had stood up towards Leo. "You will not be friends with Potter!" He said, pulling Leo up from his seat by the collar in anger.
"You're not my dad!" he countered.
This only made the man even angrier since the man literally shook him. "No, I am your head of house which means I am law and order, and I forbid you from meeting them!" He threw Leo on one side and in normal circumstances, Leo would not be affected by the man's weak strength, but he was so surprised by it that he actually fell.
Something in Leo snapped.
"Have you ever killed, professor?" he asked.
That seemed to confuse the professor slightly.
"Killed with no remorse, I mean."
That definitely struck a nerve. "Out! Valdez, you—"
"I have."
That sobered the professor up immediately.
"I mean, I've never seen blood. All the ones I killed turned to dust. I don't regret those."
"Valdez—"
"How many did I kill? How much bread have you eaten in your lifetime?" he asked. "Now, if you will excuse me, professor. I will live by my own rules." He stood up.
"I will dismiss you when I say so, Valdez!" he spit his name as if it was a curse. The same way he does to Harry's.
"Didn't you tell me to go out? You really should make up your mind," he said coldly.
As he reached for the door, it suddenly locked. No matter how much he turned the doorknob, it won't budge. He was just about to kick the door down when he felt the man move.
"Valdez, you are crossing a line," he heard behind him.
Leo turned to see the professor standing over him. It was unfair considering his height but he wasn't intimidated at all.
He glared at him. "I'm a teenager, sure. But I am a war hero, too. I burned down a primordial being. Stronger than gods. Stronger than titans. I killed her children with no remorse. I'm not saying I am above you. I'm just saying you better treat me as an equal. I kill monsters, professor. Beasts. Monstrosities. Sure, they bleed gold and dust. But let me just say: I don't want to have a human as part of that list."
The professor looked at him in shock before he turned around.
Leo heard the door unlock behind him and he left without looking back.
As soon as he left the office, he leaned back on the wall beside the door. He felt out of breath. He wanted to throw up.
His whole life had been messed up.
Dead mother. Absent father. Abusive relatives. Abusive foster parents. Bullying. Being homeless. Living with gangs to survive.
But he had NEVER had any intention to straight up kill someone. He would never even consider it.
Leo knew the professor would eventually realize he was bluffing with his death threat, but he still felt so inhumane from even trying to threaten someone.
And for what?
For being annoying and imposing authority?
Leo had to admit he wasn't really thinking when he said all that.
Sure, he can tolerate people throwing crap at him, mistreating him, even abusing him. But if it's his friends? His family?
Oh, he's definitely burning them down.
A splash of water on him brings him back to the present.
"What the—"
"You were on fire. Again," Farley says, drying him up with a wordless spell.
"Oh, oops," Leo says. "Where was I?"
"You said you were telling Professor Snape that you were an outlier and that you're not changing yourself for a house you haven't benefited in," she informs him.
"Ah," Leo nods. "Yes. The professor felt that was reasonable. I compromised that I won't be hostile to Malfoy in public anymore but I won't stop being friends with the Gryffindors."
She hums in reply. "I guess you made a point. It's very Slytherin of you to not bend your life for something you don't have use for. Calculating. And you're right. You're new to Europe. You don't have loyalties here yet. But you're with us now."
He sighs. "Yeah, yeah, I know. I said I'm not shying away from Slytherins anymore. But I'm not giving up my friends for the greater good. I'm no martyr."
She sighs as if she's tired. "Okay. Okay. I get it but I have to warn you: the Slytherins won't be so happy and understanding."
He shrugs. "I don't give a schist. I've always been the seventh wheel."
He doesn't miss the look of confusion on her face before he goes to the library.