CHRISTMAS WOES

Chapter fourteen

Christmas woes

The next few days were the worst Rick had known at Hogwarts and that was taking into account all the days Peeves had pestered him. It seemed as if the entire school was against him because it seemed Garron, despite being a Slytherin, was quite well respected by all students alike and they all made sure Rick knew that.

"Attention seeker."

"Cry-baby."

"Wanker." They called him and it wasn't just the students. Rick noticed several professors acting way cooler towards him than before. Even professor Harewell, who was always kind to the point of being annoying, now regarded him with a disapproving look. Worst of all though, were the Mordaunts and Atia Rydell, who found exceptional pleasure in pestering Rick about the humiliating experience. Whenever they passed Rick in the corridor, Mordaunt would take a few steps back in pretend fear and warn his friends to watch what they were doing or they would find themselves accused of having a dark object.

"Ignore that idiot." Terri would say but Rick found it harder and harder to do so. He knew he was right and he was determined to prove it, he just didn't know how. He had tried talking to Garron but whenever Rick saw him, he was surrounded by others who booed and mocked him on the rare occasions he caught him alone, Garron always quickly made himself scarce. It should have been heartening to know that Garron was afraid of him but instead, Rick found it annoying. It was just another reminder that although he was right, Garron remained unpunished and there was little he could do about it. Rick's mood didn't improve when, about a week after his accusation, word came that Cormac was finally leaving Hogwarts.

"He can't leave!" Rick cried out, splattering Terri's face with mashed potatoes as he did. Terri wiped her face unamused but Rick found it hard to worry about that. If Cormac left, to who would he expose Garron? "What about the ring?" He asked.

"He must have decided it's not here." Rigel answered with a shrug.

"But he's wrong!" Rick said adamantly.

"I know, but we can't prove otherwise. Not yet, anyway." Rigel said dejectedly. The news about Cormac leaving darkened Rick's mood even more so when they passed Maeve Domville in the Entrance Hall, he was in no mood to tolerate her pestering.

"Watch out, the Gryffindor accuser has arrived, no Slytherin is safe from his accusations!" She shouted so that everyone in the Entrance Hall could hear. As usual, the Slytherin girl was accompanied by her friend Atia Rydell and their drudges Trevill and Zayne, who sniggered stupidly at the joke.

"Put a sock in it, Domville." Rick barked, making several people hold their breath. No one ever talked back to Atia Rydell and Maeve Domville if they wanted to survive the day. Rydell, however, looked almost amused.

"What are you going to do?" She mocked. "Accuse us of having a dark object?" The Slytherins laughed again and Rick felt the blood rush in his ears. Without thinking, he lunged for them, only to be held back by Rigel and Terri. It was just bad luck that professor Selwyn chose that moment to cross the hall.

"What is going on here?" He demanded.

"He was trying to attack us, professor." Rydell supplied with an evil smile at Rick. An unpleasant little smile appeared around Selwyn's mouth.

"Detention tonight, Mr. O'Connell."

"Detention?" Rick echoed incredulously. "But I didn't do anything?"

"I'm sure you had every intention." The professor replied coolly. "Run along now."

"One of these days, I'm going to learn a curse that will maim Rydell so bad her own mother won't recognize her, her and Selwyn." Rick gritted his teeth as he plonked down at the Gryffindor table.

"I know mate, I'm with you." Rigel joined in.

"Look at it on the bright side." Cedric whispered, trying to cheer him up. "If you're lucky, you'll get Garron for detention and you can confront him about the ring again." Rick, however, was still too angry with Selwyn and Rydell to feel pleased about anything.

Rick's mood that evening didn't improve when he found out his detention wasn't with Garron but with Whifferdill, who had him scrubbing toilets all evening with nothing but a toothbrush. When he finally got back to the common room, smelling of detergent, Cedric was the only one still up scribbling away on a piece of parchment.

"Hey, how was detention?" He greeted Rick.

"Horrible." Rick replied, nursing his left hand. "People should really learn to aim better when they use the bathroom." Cedric pulled his nose in disgust.

"Did you at least get to talk to Garron?" He asked.

"No." Rick answered as he joined his friend at the table. "Whifferdill had the honours."

"Too bad." His friend sympathised.

"What are you doing up so late?" Rick asked. Cedric wasn't usually one to stay up this late alone.

"Nothing." Cedric replied, rather unsettled. "Just doing some homework."

"I thought you had all your work done already?" Rick asked confused. He recalled Cedric saying something like that earlier this evening.

"Just finishing up, adding a few more details, you know." Cedric explained, turning red, which seemed a bit odd. What was even more odd was that Cedric was trying, not so subtly, to cover his homework with his arm.

"What are you trying to hide, Cedric?"

"Nothing." The boy answered alarmed.

"What is it you don't want me to see?" Rick asked amused. "Are you writing love letters?" Rick made to grab the parchment but Cedric pulled it away. "Come on, let's have a look, who's the lucky girl?"

"No one." Cedric replied, still furiously trying to keep Rick from seeing the parchment but he was too slow and Rick plucked it out of his hand.

"This is homework." He said disappointed as he read the first few lines. "Why are you trying to hide homework from me?" Cedric sighed in resignation.

"Because it's not my homework." Rick scanned the parchment again, looking for a name and was surprised to find his own.

"You're the one who's been handing in my homework?" He asked and Cedric nodded. "Why?" His friend shrugged.

"I was trying to save Gryffindor from losing points again." He explained. "And then we became friends and I kept doing it because you saved me from Mordaunt. I was hoping… in time… you would start doing it yourself?" He trailed off. He looked almost embarrassed but Rick was sure it was nothing compared to how he felt at that moment. Cedric had been working tirelessly on all the research on the dragon ring and he'd kept at it, never complaining, while doing all his homework, plus all the extra work the professors had given him to practise his wand work and now it seemed he'd been taking on Rick's homework as well. All because Rick just couldn't be bothered.

"I'm sorry, Cedric," he apologized. "I should have done this myself a long time ago."

"It's okay, you can do it now." Cedric said cheerfully but Rick didn't reply. He knew he couldn't let Cedric continue like this but it wasn't going to be easy. "What's wrong?" Cedric asked when he saw the look on Rick's face.

"It's just…" Rick hesitated to continue. He had never told anyone this. "Reading isn't … easy for me." He choked out. He could feel his face redden and lowered his voice even more even though no one was around to overhear them. "The words just look all jumbled up to me." Cedric regarded him surprised, his mouth opening and closing, too stumped to utter a reply. A feeling of slight panic overtook Rick.

"If you tell anyone I told you this, I will-" but Cedric vehemently shook his head.

"I won't." He assured him. Rick regarded him seriously, trying to make out if Cedric was telling the truth but the nerdy boy continued cluelessly. "And I never said you would have to do it alone. Terri, Rigel and I do homework together all the time, you could join us." Rick still didn't feel very sure about it. He wasn't keen on telling Terri and Rigel about his trouble reading. He didn't want them to think he was stupid. It was bad enough Cedric knew.

"I'll help you." Cedric reassured him when he noticed Rick's reluctance. Rick bit his lip.

"Rigel and Terri can't know about … you know." He trailed off helplessly. Cedric looked surprised but nodded nonetheless.

"Ok." He agreed.

"Thanks, Cedric." Rick replied, a little more at ease. "I'm not stupid, I'm just -."

"I'm not saying you are." Cedric quickly interrupted him. "On the contrary, you're one of the best in our class when it comes to actual spell work. Maybe, in return for helping you with your essays, you can help me with my wand work?" He looked hopeful and Rick couldn't see why he could not do that so he agreed.

"Now," he said, grabbing a piece of parchment and quill and turning to Cedric. "Tell me, what does Waffling have to say about charms?" They finished Rick's homework together and Rick was quite proud of the seven he got on that essay afterwards, even though Cedric had done most of the work. From then on, Rick began to join his friends in their study hours. Cedric turned out to be a great teacher, explaining things in a way that wasn't boring and helping Rick stay focussed on the task at hand and if Rigel and Terri were surprised by this new development, they didn't comment on it. On the contrary, they pitched in to help and Rick soon realised he didn't dread homework as much as he used to and actually came to find the hours they did homework together enjoyable. For his part, Rick kept true to his word as well and helped Cedric with his wand work. He showed his friends the abandoned class room, which Rigel and Terri immediately thought was great and even Cedric, who initially had some doubts about the legality of coming there, soon saw the advantage of having a practise room. Nearly every day, the four of them would head down there to practise magic or just generally hang out without the noise and hustle of other Gryffindors to distract them.

As the weeks progressed, the commotion around the accusation quieted down and even the Slytherins got bored of harassing Rick about it. Rick himself still had his mind set on proving Garron had the ring but realized that for now at least, the head boy remained out of his grasp. Cedric was still looking in the library for any information on what Garron could try to accomplish with the ring but the hope of still finding anything was faint. Rick could only hope his accusation had deterred Garron from trying to use the ring or if not deterred, at least delayed. They kept their eyes and ears open for anything that suggested Garron was trying to use the ring but so far nothing peculiar had happened.

Outside the castle the weather changed, the hales and rains making way for snowstorms and blizzards. In the first week of December professor Griffiths took down the names of the Gryffindor students who would be staying at Hogwarts for Christmas. Rick immediately signed up, not in the least interested in spending his holidays with Mad Maggie but he was one of the few. Cedric, Terri and Rigel were all going home to spend Christmas with their families. Terri and Cedric were looking forward to it, Rick knew, but they refrained from happily chatting about it for his sake, which he was grateful for. Rigel, on the other hand, made no secret of it that he was about as excited about going home as he would have been if someone told him he would have to transfer to Slytherin. According to him, Christmas with the Baileys was as dull as a History of Magic class.

"So why are you going then?" Rick had asked him.

"My parents sent me a letter saying I need to be on that train or I'll be in big trouble." Rick wasn't at all looking forward to having to spend Christmas alone. Still, alone at Hogwarts was still far better than going home to Mad Maggie. On the final day of term, Rick, Rigel, Cedric and Terri enjoyed a quiet evening in the common room before the train left the following morning. Cedric had, for once, put down his books and had joined them in a game of Exploding Snap. After a few games, they all had singed eyebrows and were all laughing at each other. The mood was so amiable, Rigel addressed the issue they had all been skirting around somewhat the last few days.

"So Rick, what are you going to do while we're gone?"

"I don't know." Rick replied. In truth, he hadn't given it much thought. "Sleep in, perhaps practise some flying, enjoy having the common room to myself."

"You could continue to look in the library for the dragon ring." Cedric suggested.

"You've been looking for nearly two months, I don't think I'll find anything in two weeks." Rick replied dryly.

"Well, you'll never know if you don't try." Cedric answered with a wink.

"I'm going to miss your jokes, Cedric." Rick said amused. "Anyway, I heard Garron is going home for Christmas so we won't have to worry about him doing something with that ring for a while."

"That's good, you'll have time for my Christmas present then." Cedric said and Rick regarded him with surprise. Cedric has gotten him a Christmas present? His friend handed him a piece of parchment, which Rick found to be a list of spells they hadn't practised yet.

"Something to do when you're feeling bored." Cedric said with a smile. "And when you've mastered them, you can teach me." He added with a wink.

"Thanks, Cedric." Rick uttered, feeling a bit overwhelmed. He hadn't received a Christmas present since his parents had died and he was touched that Cedric had thought to get him one.

They finished their game of Exploding Snap and called it a night but despite the prospect of having to celebrate Christmas alone, Rick went to bed feeling warm and loved.

By midday the next day nearly all students had left and Rick had the common room to himself. He relished the opportunity to lounge in the best chairs in front of the fire but quickly found that having the common room to himself wasn't as much fun as he'd thought it would be. He couldn't play Wizard's Chess or Exploding Snap by himself and although he could pass the time building exploding snap card houses, it wasn't fun if you didn't have someone you could laugh with when the whole structure exploded in your face. He'd tried flying, using one of the school brooms but quickly found that wasn't as much fun without his friends either. Cedric's spells did keep him busy for a day or two until he mastered them and became bored with that as well. In the end, he took to roaming the halls and grounds in an effort to relieve his boredom.

Christmas morning brought a nice surprise when Rick woke up to find three presents at the foot of his bed. He couldn't even recall when he last had presents for Christmas so he tore into them excitedly. The first package turned out to be a box of Chocolate Frogs from Rigel and he happily munched on a frog as he opened the second package, a bag of Dungbombs and a Christmas card from Terri. The third package was from Cedric and contained a box of his mother's homemade cookies. Rick placed the Christmas cards on the table next to his bed and a warm feeling enveloped him as he stared at them. In relative good spirits, he went down to the Great Hall that evening for the Christmas Feast. He had been looking forward it but although the Great Hall was every bit as beautifully decorated and the food equally as delicious as during the Halloween feast, it just wasn't the same. Without anyone to share it with, the feast was quite a dull affair and Rick went to bed early feeling empty, despite having stuffed himself. He lay awake for hours that night, his mind involuntarily thinking of his parents, wondering what his Christmas would have looked like if they still lived. He would probably be sitting in front of the fireplace with his family (without Mary or Mad Maggie, off course), enjoying the last of his mother's delicious Christmas pudding and regaling his parents with stories of his adventures at Hogwarts. That last thought sparked his ire again. What would his mother have said about that? Would she have told him about her time at Hogwarts? Or would she have kept that fact from him forever? Angrily, he turned around in his bed and tried to catch some sleep.

A few days after Christmas Rick was roaming the halls, looking for something to do when he passed the library and remembered Cedric's joke on their last evening together. He hesitated a moment but decided to have a look, not that he expected to find anything but he really did not have anything better to do at the moment. The library was abandoned and Rick wandered between the rows and rows of books, randomly pulling books off the shelves and leafing through them. Most of them were full of text and utterly uninteresting and he was just thinking how foolish he was thinking the library could relieve his boredom when he found a book with what appeared to be pictures in it. He checked the cover for the title. 'Wizarding Families, A Geneaology'. Intrigued, Rick flipped through the pages and found the pictures were actually depictions of family trees. Rick leafed through the book, looking for a specific name until he found what he was looking for: the complete family tree of the Aplin family. Rick's gaze immediately went to the bottom of the rather long family tree and saw that Angela Aplin was the last heir of the family, with no husband or children listed. Rick stared at the name for some time, as if expecting it to spout some answers but none came.

"Well what do you know, Rick O'Connell is reading a book." Rick startled at the voice.

"What are you doing here?" He called out, pleasantly surprised when he saw Rigel standing in front of him.

"My parents decided they didn't have time for me after all so they sent me back early." Rigel said with a shrug. He motioned to their surroundings. "This is about the last place I expected to find you. What are you doing here?"

"I'm trying to find my family." Rick answered.

"Your family?" Rigel replied confused. "I thought you said you were muggleborn?" Rick told his friend about the picture he'd encountered in the trophy room during detention three months earlier.

"I always thought she was a muggle," Rick explained. "I never saw her doing magic and I was eight when she died, so I would remember if I'd seen her do magic." He finished with a frustrated sigh.

"That's strange." Rigel replied, frowning. "Why would she have chosen to live as a muggle?"

"No idea." Rick replied. Why indeed. None of the reasons he could think of made any sense. Why would anyone give up magic? And why would she keep magic from him?

"If your mother was a witch and you didn't know, do you think your father was a wizard as well?" Rigel asked. Rick had to admit that the thought had crossed his mind as well but he knew better.

"I don't think so." He replied, thinking of Mary's reaction of fright whenever he had done accidental magic as a child. "Judging by my grandmother's reaction to magic, he was a very much a muggle."

"Do you suppose then your mother gave up magic for him?" Rigel suggested.

"Maybe." The thought had crossed his mind too in the hours he'd spent lying awake thinking about it but he did not really want to believe his mother had to give up magic because his father hated it. He did not want to believe his father hated everything Rick loved, everything he was.

"Wow, I can't imagine ever abandoning magic for anything." Rigel said, oblivious to the turmoil in Rick's head at that moment.

"I know, me neither." Rick agreed, somewhat dejectedly.

"What about in the book?" Rigel suggested, trying to be helpful. "Did you find anything about your father in it?"

"No, he isn't even mentioned." Rick turned back to the family tree. "Look, Angela Aplin is the last on the tree."

"No way." Rigel exclaimed, a smile forming on his face as he scanned the page. "Look at her parents." He said. Rick followed the small line up the page where Angela's parents were listed as John Aplin and Alice Bailey.

"Bailey?" He read. He hadn't even noticed that before.

"I believe she's like my dad's second cousin once removed or something but basically, that means we're actually cousins." Rigel explained excitedly and a smile began to form on Rick's face. It may not have been the family he had hoped to find but learning he and Rigel were actually related was certainly the next best thing.

"So what do you think, cousin?" Rigel said cheerfully. "Shall we celebrate by ditching these stuffy books, get ourselves a nice hot butterbeer and get started on the enormous bag of sweets I got from my uncle for Christmas?" Rick couldn't help reciprocate Rigel's enthusiasm.

"Sounds great, cousin."

They left the library to head for the Great Hall, still chatting about the discovery they'd just made but they fell silent when they heard angry voices coming from the Entrance Hall. Curious, they followed the noise and found it coming from around the corner near the great oak doors leading outside the castle. Careful not to make a noise, they looked around the corner and found professor Griffiths talking to a man they did not recognize. The stranger was rather largely built and had a long scruffy beard and a deep scar running along his right cheek. He looked rather menacing and not at all someone you would normally see at a school. He looked like he was threatening Griffiths.

"Look, Purcell, I'm going to get you the money, I promise." Griffiths pleaded. "I have something that I can sell and it will make me enough money to pay you, don't worry. I just need a little bit more time."

"You're running out of time, Griffiths, I want my money now." The stranger – Purcell - hissed but before Griffiths could reply, he caught sight of Rick and Rigel watching them. The stranger Purcell noticed as well and immediately covered his face with his hood.

"Sorry, professor, we didn't mean to interrupt." Rick apologized.

"No! No need to apologize, you didn't interrupt." Griffiths said and Rick thought he sounded rather relieved. "I suppose you have some questions about that essay I asked you to write, don't you?"

"Uhm..." Rick and Rigel looked at each other, wondering what Griffiths was talking about.

"Well, I think we'd better discuss that now." Griffiths said, quickly moving away from the hooded man.

"This conversation isn't over, Griffiths." The man called after the professor but Griffiths dismissed him.

"I'm afraid it is, my students need me, talk to you later. Follow me, boys." The stranger hesitated a few seconds but there was nothing he could do so reluctantly, he turned around and left.

"Uhm, professor? What was that about? I didn't know we had a paper to write?" Rick asked.

"No, you're right, you don't. I just needed an excuse to get out from under that conversation." Griffiths replied with an embarrassed chuckle. "Thank you for that by the way."

"Who was that man? What did he want?" Rick asked intrigued.

"He's nobody, it was just a misunderstanding." Griffiths answered evasively and he suddenly sounded rather nervous. Rick and Rigel looked at each other disbelievingly.

"Didn't look like a misunderstanding to me." Rigel remarked.

"Well, it's really none of your business, is it Bailey?" Griffiths snapped, making the boys jump in surprise. They'd never known Griffiths to lash out like that.

"Sorry, professor." Rigel apologised.

"Now go to your common room and we won't speak of this again." Griffiths dismissed them. "In fact, it's probably best you don't mention what you saw to anyone at all. People might get the wrong impression. You know, they might think there's something going on when there isn't." Rick and Rigel didn't understand what he was saying but Griffiths didn't stick around to explain himself and walked away in the direction of his study.

"What do you suppose that was all about?" Rick asked his friend when their professor had gone. Rigel shrugged.

"Beats me."

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