Chapter 10

[Vincent Crabbe]

'I'm a fucking idiot,' he thought to himself, rubbing his face with his hands before dragging them down. Frustration was something he was very familiar with those days, considering how shitty their overall situation was. However, it was often frustration directed outwards because of that. It was frustration with their environment, the people around them, the unlucky situation, and such. Now, however, Vincent was frustrated with himself.

'Why did I do that?! Damnit!' he cursed internally.

There'd been no reason to try winning that duel. He could have just half-assed it and it'd have been fine. It'd have been preferable. Hell, he could have fake-messed up one of his dodges or something. Losing miserably would have been what was expected of him. When Gregory lost to Patil, nobody had batted an eye.

So, why had he actually tried?

Maybe it was the aforementioned frustration getting the better of him and pushing him to try and get a win somewhere in his shitty new life. He didn't know if that was the case, but it had certainly felt good to get that victory. The duel itself felt pretty great, actually. At the moment, he'd been too focused to notice, but after the fact, he knew that blood had been pumping through his veins and he wouldn't be surprised if someone told him that he'd grinned through the whole thing.

It was so nice to have power over something for once since waking up in Vincent Crabbe's body.

In that duel, it had just been him and Weasley, nobody else. He'd had control over his life, over himself. It'd been just him and the chance of a win being dangled in front of him. Victory that he'd seized with both hands and it had been great.

'Still though…' he lamented, groaning again. 'God, I wish I hadn't gotten so much attention brought my way with that stunt. I'm an idiot.' And so his mind went on and on as he recriminated himself for his poor choice.

Eventually, he sighed.

'What's done is done…' he told himself, slumping on the chair he'd had the Room make for him once he got there while Gregory was in detention. 'It was bound to happen. We wouldn't have stayed in character even if we wanted to.' Which they didn't because the original Crabbe and Goyle's lives sucked. Hell, the original Crabbe died, so that was a clear no for him.

Still, though, it'd have been preferable to wait a bit before starting to really show changes.

From there, there was also the post-duel mess that Malfoy had dragged them – mostly him – into. Once he'd been put on the spot like that, there was no way to escape. He couldn't try to go through the good guy route in that situation, not with Malfoy – and likely the other Slytherins – right there watching. That'd just make his bad situation worse.

Malfoy was the top dog in Slytherin at the moment, after all, at the very least in their year, but even older years wanted to earn some favor with the blond, from what he could gather. So, if they got on the other boy's bad side, then they would be screwed. Not only would the school year be much worse, but there would likely be repercussions outside and Vincent wasn't eager to see how bad things could get.

So, he'd have to play the bad guy, it seemed.

Not like he thought they had many chances of befriending the Golden Trio anyway, really, or anyone not-Slytherin, for that matter. A year and a half of being Malfoy's tagalongs had surely painted a very clear picture in everyone's perception of them, nevermind their likely terrible performance in classes. Nobody would care for them, at least until they could fix their skills and maybe slowly improve their standing somehow. However, it needed to be a process…

Not whatever the duel shitshow had been.

'God, I'm an idiot,' he repeated in his mind once more. He was unlikely to be able to let go of that fuck up anytime soon, was what he was gathering at that moment. Not that he should. It'd be a good thing to keep in mind next time he got the urge to be so goddamn dumb.

"Nothing to it," he muttered out loud to himself, picking up a book and starting to study once more. He'd more or less learned by heart what little occlumency theory he'd need to get started. It was just a matter of practicing and he could do that at night before going to sleep or whenever he could tune out Malfoy's nonsense.

Besides, he wasn't in the right state of mind for that. So, it was better to focus on something else that wouldn't be too influenced by his frustration. Thus, he went for the DADA books. The Red Sparks spell had come to him fairly easily from that book, unlike Charms or Transfiguration. He kind of needed something going his way for a bit to calm down.

The Green Sparks seemed a bit useless, considering he had the Red ones already. Sure, they were mostly used for signals, but he didn't think he'd need that kind of stuff anytime soon. He'd rather have more useful stuff under his belt. There were the Jelly-Legs or Bee-Sting Jinxes, but, as he continued reading, he came across something more useful. 'The Knockback Jinx,' he read and after checking the specifics of it, Vincent found that he rather liked it.

Not only would it be useful in a duel… although he wasn't sure he wanted that at that point, no matter how good the thought of winning again sounded to him. However, it could also be used to push things around, so it could definitely see some use in other situations. Better than trying to use the Levitation Charm to tug things around, that was for sure.

So, he read through the information on the spell and he found the idea of using it more and more appealing the more he did so. Nothing quite like smacking things around to feel better, after all. With that in mind, Vincent stood up, book still in hand, and had the Room summon a huge block of wood in front of him, double his height, just as wide and also just as long. 'Heavy enough I shouldn't be able to push it, I think,' he mused, setting the book back down on the table behind him and taking out his wand.

'Diagonally left and down, diagonally left and up and then flick in a half-circle downwards and up again,' he thought, as he mimicked the wand motions. Then he did it again a few times until he got a good feel of it. Then he looked at the huge block of wood in front of him.

He pulled on his emotions, the frustration and anger he'd been feeling so far. He thought of all the things that annoyed him since he woke up. He thought of all the hardships he was likely to face in the future because luck or fate or some random deity had decided to screw him over. He thought of all that and he focused on pushing all that shit away.

"Flipendo," he chanted, going through the wand motions once more and then he felt the energy coursing through him. There was a gust of wind around him and the room and then he heard the smack of his spell hitting the block of wood… and the thing flew backwards until it hit the wall quite a ways behind. The crack of broken wood reached Vincent's ears as he looked at what he'd done with wide eyes.

That was a lot stronger than the book had said or what he'd predicted.

There was a moment of silence then, as he stared at his spell target for a long moment as if trying to discern if that had actually happened. When he realized that the answer to that was yes, however, a grin spread over his face. Then he raised his wand once more and went at it again.

Because oh had it felt good to push all the things that weighed on him onto the spell.

Truly a cathartic experience.

He wanted more of that.

"Flipendo!" he cast once more and the block of wood was smacked against the wall once more, splinters flying off to the sides and up from the points of contact. "Yeah, this is great for destressing," he commented to himself, almost feeling like laughing.

That had certainly helped his mood, that was for sure.

[}-o-{]

[Tracey Davis]

"He did… decently," she whispered, glancing sideways towards Crabbe's attempt at the Softening Spell. Not that she could see much of it, really, since it wasn't a very visibly noticeable piece of magic, but it brought to her mind what she'd heard Professor McGonagall say about it. He'd managed a partial success, very partial, but a partial success all the same. "He didn't fail, at any rate," Tracey added.

"That is… concerning," Daphne mumbled, her expression giving nothing but mild annoyance away at best. Although, to be fair, Tracey was probably the only one that could pick even that much up and that was after years of spending time with the eldest Greengrass sister. "Malfoy will be insufferable, at any rate."

'When is he not?' she wanted to ask, but she refrained. Even whispered conversations could be dangerous, so it was better not to say unnecessary things. Daphne and her were already playing risky games by openly opposing Malfoy, there was no need to worsen things for themselves.

Especially out of the Slytherin Rooms.

"Do we do something?" Tracey asked, glancing to the side and checking the blond idiot's little group. Once upon a time, she'd looked down on them… Well, mostly the two gorillas. Malfoy was absolutely awful and downright comically mean, but there was a reason behind all his confidence. He could definitely get away with everything.

Crabbe and Goyle though? If there were textbook examples of people riding on someone else's coattails, then those were Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle. They were useless and dumb as rocks, but their families were allied with House Malfoy, so suddenly everything was fine for them.

Tracey would admit that she was a little bit bitter about that. Bitter enough that she'd be down if Daphne said they would sabotage them somehow. How was it fair that those two were considered above her when she could run circles around both of them together when it came to… literally anything?

"Not for now," Daphne told her instead, which wasn't really what she wanted to hear. "They haven't done all that. Malfoy will milk this moment for as long as he can, like he does with everything, and then it'll pass and things will go back to normal," her best friend explained for her, making her nod as they both picked up their bags and moved out of the classroom. Transfiguration was over and next was DADA, which would be awful enough as it was.

Fortunately for Tracey, she was a girl, and girls could have a fairly easy time in DADA as long as they acted a little awed and like they cared about the nonsense that Lockhart spat out. It was basically History of Magic, second edition, as far as they were concerned. Not ideal, but definitely usable. Daphne and her often did some self-studying in both classes.

"For now, better to just keep an eye on them," Daphne told her, which really meant that she was the one that'd keep an eye on them. That was fine though. They were a team. There were a lot of things only Daphne could do, since she was the pureblood princess and Tracey was the "filthy" half-blood. "Did you manage to find those books?"

"... I found one that mentioned it," she answered hesitantly. That was a bit of a shift in conversation, but she'd rather stay focused on Crabbe, of all people. At least that was better than realizing that she'd failed.

Daphne was trying to get in the good graces of some older year students. Well, she had been doing that since first year and she'd had… moderate success at that. However, House Greengrass had only so much influence and House Malfoy had more, so it was a little complicated, to say the least. Daphne needed to put more effort into getting people on her side.

One such instance was them helping a seventh year look for material for an extra credit project so that they could apply for an apprenticeship. Thus, the reason Tracey had had to stay back for the Christmas break. Not that she missed much at home, she supposed, but it still sucked that she had to spend half her time looking through books she didn't understand and the other half having to put up with the likes of Malfoy and Nott. Not a good time, but if she could help Daphne rise in the ranks, then they would be the ones beneath her.

"That's more than I expected, really. This is a nightmare," Daphne huffed, breaking character with the clear complaint cracking her ice mask. "We can continue looking together now that I'm back," she said, running her slender fingers through her blond locks. "I think I might have made progress on someone else during the Yule party, by the way. We'll just have to play ball with them for a bit and help a first year next year."

One of their easiest deals then. It was hilariously sad, really, the way they had to do so much so that they'd have some favor and have some peace of mind. Then again, anything was better than having to join Malfoy's side and become less than a person. Tracey would rather have to work for it than give up everything and get insulted every few seconds.

"Ah, Mr. Cab!" they heard Lockhart exclaim. It wasn't difficult to tell who he was talking to, even with the mistake on the surname. Tracey wondered how much it irked the purebloods that the buffon of a teacher got more names wrong than right. It surely had to wound their pride, especially because most of them couldn't do much, considering the man's reputation and the fact that, as a teacher of Hogwarts, he was indirectly under the protection of Albus Dumbledore himself.

Truly, the man probably didn't know how close he was to getting himself killed.

Walking into the classroom, Tracey resolutely ignored the way their DADA teacher of the year spouted more nonsense, this time playing up Crabbe's "accomplishment", if it could be called that. 'He's not going to let that go, is he?' she wondered to herself, sharing a weary look with Daphne.

A moment later, both of them took out books on DADA that weren't Lockhart's nonsense books and started studying.

She needed to do well if she wanted to continue being sort-of respected for her magical ability and smarts if nothing else. Tracey wasn't what one would call an intelligent child, but she had to work with what she had and she had great motivation for staying at least on the above average line. Otherwise, she suspected that not even Daphne would have been able to keep her safe.

As much as she hated Crabbe and Goyle, she'd reluctantly admit – in the privacy of her own mind – that she envied them too. What she wouldn't give for Daphne to have Malfoy's pull. Then she would be the one that could do whatever and not have a single worry in her mind.

Well, in a way, she guessed she was giving plenty to try and make that a reality. It was why she needed to do her part, be Daphne's eyes and ears, on top of another capable wand and pair of hands. Between the two of them, they'd bring Malfoy down; she swore that much. Even if it didn't last, Tracey would be happy if she got to lord things over that idiot for at least a little bit.

"You are glaring again," Daphne pointed out and Tracey sighed, letting the frown bleed off her face. "We are getting there."

"Merlin, I hope you are right," she mumbled, focusing back on her book. The worst part was that she couldn't even put the gorilla duo out of her mind, because now she needed to keep an eye on Crabbe. Why did he suddenly have to show the possibility that he was more than a rock that could move?

They really annoyed her.

[}-o-{]

[Ronald Weasley]

"-And this is Flitwick's homework…" Ron said as he haphazardly threw the stack of papers on top of the clean white bed without decor. Hermione let out a squawk and glared at him as the notes spread all over her covered lap, with some falling to the floor.

In Ron's humble opinion, Hermione deserved it for having him be the one to deliver her homework after class.

He already had plans for that afternoon, after all.

The redheaded boy knew that Ernie Macmillian had gotten his hands on a rare Ptolemy card with the secret starry sky background design and he was rearing to see if he could get the Hufflepuff to trade it to him. Now, that seemed impossible since he had to waste his time acting like a delivery boy. He was sure that card would be already gone by the time he found the Hufflepuff. It was quite a rare card and the guy was known to ask for too little. A card of Professor Dumbledore with the sun robes would have done the trick. Ron had like four of those anyway.

Alas, the last few days had been rather terrible for him. So, this was just par for the course.

First, he lost against that git in Gilderoy's mockery of a class – totally by luck, had his wand been in good condition he would have crushed Crabbe's troll face – and now he had to act as an errand boy for Hermione who continued to be hospitalized due to the Polyjuice incident. Even though they could simply make the homework appear anywhere, the teachers had somehow decided that making him lose his time delivering the daily homework to Hermione personally was a more efficient method.

The worst part was that said homework was something she had asked for. She could have skipped it if she wanted, but she insisted otherwise for reasons Ron would never comprehend. She even asked if the professors could double her assignments.

Who even asked for more homework?

Moments like this were when the young Weasley realized he was probably the only sane person in his group of friends.

"I need to catch up on my schedule! I only managed to finish winter homework a week after classes started. I'm falling behind!" Hermione had said in a panic when he and Harry had visited her during the new year. The girl's still transfigured cat nose twitching in distress and her tail standing straight. She had lost most of her fur by then, which made the whole thing look even more weird.

It had taken Ron's best efforts not to laugh then and there. His thoughtfulness for his friend's troublesome — albeit, still hilarious — accident, hadn't been appreciated by the brunette though. Instead, she had just glared at him as he doubled over and cackled a few seconds later. In his defense, Harry was totally about to crack too.

Hermione had then proceeded to volunteer him against his will to deliver the homework to her… Every single day until she was out of the hospital next month.

His luck truly sucked as of late.

"Ron! Are you even paying attention?!" Hermione brought him back from his brooding with a screech. The redhead could have sworn the girl was trying to burst his eardrums.

"Not really, no," he responded easily, leaning back against the chair's backrest at the side of the girl's bed. His hand played idly with the bouquet they had gotten her as a gift for her during the break. It let out a pleasant smell. Girly, but still quite relaxing. Not to mention that it was way better than the normally sterile air of the infirmary.

He wished Harry was here with him at the moment. Blasted Quidditch meetings and practices allowed him to skip visits to the infirmary… Actually, Ron wished he was with Harry on those practices instead of there talking about homework. His friend was just lucky that way.

"Ugh!... Just!... Whatever. I was asking you-" Hermione said, emphasizing her words like she usually did when annoyed. It ticked Ron off quite a bit when she did that to him, talking slowly as if he were a small child. "-where is the homework for Defense Against Dark Arts? I don't see it here."

Oh, that.

"No homework there. Well, Gilderoy told us to write an essay about our favorite part of his books… again. And it is not like the hack taught us anything in class in the first place, so no notes there either. Just say that you couldn't think what the best part to write about was because there were too many options and he will let you pass." It was what Ron had been doing since day one, after all, and it had worked perfectly.

"Ugh, you-" Hermione screeched yet again, grabbing her hair in annoyance, only to flinch when she accidentally pulled the fur of her receding cat ears. "Professor Lockhart is giving us that homework so we study the inner details of his experiences! It's important, Ron! There has to be a particular scene and lesson he might want to teach us."

For someone so smart, Hermione could also be quite stupid sometimes. She still fervently believed that Gilderoy was somehow a master of wizardry even after she assisted multiple of the shams the man called classes. How did she manage to twist her own view of things that much? It was kind of impressive… and scary.

"The guy is a total loser, Hermione. Get over it."

"Once again, Ron, He's not a loser. I am sure the lessons have hidden meanings that we fail to comprehend. Perhaps some kind of build-up for the final part of the year where all of it will tie together? Similar to what happened in 'Holiday With the Hags' when he discovered that the duchess castle was in fact under an illusion spell that could only be broken if one-"

Ron rolled his eyes as the girl continued to ramble on and on about the barmy idiot that was Gilderoy Lockhart. Harry had already tried to gently tell her that the man wasn't what he claimed to be. It hadn't worked, at all.

Ron, on the other hand, had no qualms about saying the truth to her face as raw as it came. It was the best way to get through her stubbornness sometimes. Even if he had to repeat it to her a million times, he would do so until it got inside her thick skull that just because a book said something, it didn't mean it was true.

A concept his smartest — something he admitted with much reluctance — friend didn't seem capable of comprehending.

That was why Ron didn't read in the first place. You never knew if what was on the pages was real, so he didn't bother to study if he didn't have to. Who knew what kind of wrong knowledge some scammer was trying to pour into his brain? Or at least that is what he once heard Fred say to Mum when she found out they didn't do any of the holiday homework last year. It seemed sensible to Ron, so he stuck to that lesson.

"Is this about the whole fight thing from yesterday? Is that why you hate Professor Lockhart so much?" Hermione asked.

"I didn't lose, Okay?! The troll just got lucky and also cheated. I could totally kick his ass if I wanted to," he defended himself, posture stiffening in frustration.

He was tired of hearing about the topic over and over and over again.

He had already had to hear about it from the whole school because Malfoy wouldn't stop parading his dog around. That wouldn't have been so bad by itself though. It was Malfoy, after all. Everything he said was barely registered and then ignored by everyone who wasn't a slimy Slytherin. Give him some time to boast, notice that nobody cared, laugh at him as he fumed like the spoiled child he was and then one could just go on.

"Ron, it was just one loss. It doesn't mean anything," Hermione told him with a roll of her eyes. "Besides, your wand was broken. It's practically a miracle your spells even left from the correct end."

That didn't make him feel any better.

"Well, yeah! If I had my wand fixed I would have beaten him in one spell. But unlike him, I can't afford to buy a million state-of-the-art wands to cheat my way through."

Ron hadn't failed to notice how Crabbe's wand was completely different from the one he had before. He would bet his entire card collection that the troll face begged Mommy and Daddy to buy him a super powerful wand.

He had seen Crabbe duel before and his spells weren't that strong. That Levitation Charm felt like a bloody giant grabbed his wand, hand, and arm and threw them to the side. Ron was sure he would have stumbled out of the arena had he not let go.

"... It doesn't help that everyone keeps reminding me about it…" he grumbled with a huff.

That morning should have been the end of it. Ron would have just to withstand some unimaginative insults from the blond idiot and his meatheads and then continue with his life. Then he and Harry would send him packing like they had always done. Conflict over.

Or at least that was supposed to be the case.

By lunch, he realized that the rumor had not only persisted but spread out like fiendfyre.

The cause of it being none other than the golden, stupid, pretentious, narcissistic, creep, tosser called Gilderoy Lockhart.

As it turned out, the man had not only drilled his entire class about that stupid Hiccups Almonds spell, or whatever it was called, and how masterfully Crabbe had used it. At most, the Professor had only commented that he could have done a better job at it. No, the man had somehow topped himself by deciding to do the same thing on Every. Single. Class. That he taught. That meant that most years that had classes with the man that morning – and that afternoon too – had heard an increasingly ridiculous and exaggerated tale of his loss for at least two hours straight.

By lunch, he was approached six times and asked, or in some cases mocked, about his loss to Crabbe in different scenarios, each wondering which one was the truth.

No, he didn't get sent flying through a window.

No, he hadn't pissed himself and begged for mercy while kissing Crabbe's feet.

No, he didn't lose because he was too busy eating slugs during the fight.

It didn't help that Malfoy had jumped at the opportunity to be the little arse he was and had not only claimed most stories true but also spun them to make him and Harry look even worse.

A part of him now understood what Harry had been going through with the whole Heir of Slytherin debacle. Being the center of attention sounded nice, but it was bothersome when it was for something negative. At the very least this new rumor had taken some of the heat away from Harry. He had even finished his food in relative peace without running off when the hushed whispers grew too much for him. So, at least something nice had come out of the whole thing.

Now, if he could only find a way to stop them from making fun of him, the situation would be ideal.

"Well, I think it's stupid," Hermione said with a huff. "If they knew half a thing about wand theory, they'd know that fighting with a broken wand is a great disadvantage… and that there's no such thing as a wand that makes you more powerful. If they are too busy laughing to realize something so basic, maybe their opinion doesn't matter anyway."

Ron let out a chortle and took the support for what it was. Hermione might be a know-it-all, but she was still a good friend when it counted. He guessed that coming here wasn't entirely a bad thing.

"... Thanks," he smiled at the brunette, who smiled back.

"You are welcome," she said. "I guess I'll make do with this. I already prepared emergency reports on Professor Lockhart's books just for cases like this anyway."

Ron rolled his eyes once again.

"Are you going back to the dorms now?" Hermione asked.

"I guess I should. Harry said he would stay with the team until curfew, so might as well just relax." Not to mention that he would rather be at Gryffindor Tower than be subjected to more mockery. Just because they were stupid, like Hermione said, didn't make them any less annoying. Even the Ptolemy card was barely worth the hassle.

No, it was better to go to the tower, where things were mostly normal. Partially because the twins had made sure to let everyone know that anyone messing with him would end up as their daily prank target. A fourth-year Slytherin that pushed more than he should was now crying while walking around with an engorged nose for running his mouth more than he should.

It was still annoying, that he had to depend on the twins to fight his battles. Ronald Weasley wasn't someone who liked to be pitied. He wasn't a little kid who needed to be bailed out. Yet, just this time, he would take the help just because they were family. The redhead would make sure to repay them by bailing them out with Mum the next time they got in trouble. He needed to get even with them to gain some peace of mind.

"Alright, Ron… thanks for this," the girl said awkwardly. "I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"

"Sure," he said, just as awkwardly, unwilling to meet her eyes. He always got uncomfortable when people thanked him for something like this. It wasn't like he had done much. "I'll see you tomorrow. Harry is probably coming too."

He rose from his chair and waved at the girl while making his way toward the exit.

"Alright, see you both tomorrow… Oh! Ron!"

"Yeah?"

"Can you get me a book from the library tomorrow?" Hermione asked.

Ron let out a groan at the added task. Just when he had started feeling like this wouldn't be as much of a hassle.

"Don't you have enough homework already?" the redhead asked with some annoyance, but still turned around to pay attention as to what book she wanted. It better not be one of those massive tomes she liked to call "light reading". He didn't think his back could take it.

"No, it is not for homework. It is just some light reading I want to work on, to clear some doubts. Don't worry about it," the girl said, completely ignoring his unwilling tone.

"... Alright, I'll get it for you. What's the name?" Ron acquiesced with a sigh.

"Fantastical Beasts And Where To Find Them, by Newt Scamander… If you can, ask Madam Pince for the Reptile edition."

"Why do you want a book about lizards?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Just want to check some information. Now are you going to do it or not?" She asked. This time, it was her turn to roll her eyes.

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever. I'll get you your nerd book tomorrow," he responded with a drawl and turned towards the exit. He didn't bother to ask again what it was about, Hermione didn't like to talk about stuff unless she was absolutely sure she had all the information she needed. And that meant days of heavy study if she could get away with it. Ron would rather not get involved in that.

With that, the redhead made his way toward the dorms, walking through the empty halls of Hogwarts and taking a long way around to avoid as many people as he could on his way to the dorms.

He hoped the next day would be better and everyone would forget the stupid fight already.

He wasn't holding his breath though.

[} Chapter End {]

Adrian: A little more aftermath from the duel (was kind of a big deal, if it wasn't obvious) and some other perspectives, about our guys and in general.

Arc: Also Hogwarts' most favorite activity appears once again, gossip. Just that, instead of being about Harry being the Heir, it is now about Vincent beating Ron in a myriad of increasingly ridiculous ways. Courtesy of good ol' Gilderoy.

Adrian: Because of course it is. The man couldn't do something useful if he tried… Unless…

Arc: We also got some new character perspectives this chapter! Now that class started and with that, the main plot of the year, things will slowly but surely pick up speed.

Adrian: That said, hope you guys enjoyed the chapter!

Random Adrian Question: We've seen a bunch of side characters so far. Any favorites?

Discord Link: discord .gg/UTDransjJZ