38: Brainless Git

[3rd Pov]

In the Gryffindor common room, a crackling fireplace embedded into the stone wall shone a comforting glow around the plush red and gold furniture that dotted the room.

Lysandra and her friends chose seats as close as possible to the fireplace while taking care of their homework.

Ron and Harry were in a bad mood, so much so that they kept blotting their Charms homework.

One of Ron's older brothers, Percy, had caught them sneaking around the corridor where Ms. Norris was petrified. When they tried to explain that they were searching for clues, Percy had the gals take five points from each of them.

Fuming almost as much as his homework, Ron slammed The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 2, shut. To no one's surprise, Hermione followed suit.

"Who could it be, though?" she asked in a quiet voice, looking around carefully. "Who'd want to purge the school of all Muggle-borns?"

Hearing her question, Ron rolled his eyes. "Who do we know that thinks Muggle-borns are scum?" he asked her in a mocking tone.

He looked at Hermione. Hermione looked back, rolling her eyes the same way he just had.

"I swear if you're talking about Malfoy—"

"Course I am!" Ron exclaimed. "You heard what he wanted to say! If it wasn't for Lysandra, you know he would say 'Mudblood' again!"

"Malfoy, the Heir of Slytherin?" said Hope, skeptically, who had just finished her homework. "He may be a git, but I doubt he's a murderer,"

"Just look at his family," said Ron. "The whole lot of them have been in Slytherin. He's always boasting about it. And — you know — Slytherin is Slytherin,"

A sudden thud disrupted the peaceful atmosphere that encompassed the room. All eyes turned towards Lysandra, her face contorted with a deep frown, clearly reflecting her frustration.

"By that logic, then my brother could also be the heir!" Lysandra exclaimed angrily, her voice filled with a mix of irritation and defiance. "Just because you have a silly vendetta against them doesn't mean they're all evil."

Ron, taken aback by Lysandra's unexpected outburst, recoiled in his seat, his mouth closing shut in surprise.

Harry, choosing his words cautiously, responded, "Well, for all we know, he could be..."

Lysandra's voice dripped with fury as she interrupted, "Are you that thick-headed, Harry? He WAS WITH ME the entire time when Ms. Norris got petrified."

The intensity of their conversation drew the attention of most students in the common room, their curiosity piqued by the heated exchange.

"But some people have been saying that—"

"Some people!? So you simply believe every baseless rumor you hear?" Lysandra's voice crackled with exasperation. She sat up abruptly, her gaze fixed on Harry with a mix of disappointment and anger. "You know what? I don't care anymore. If you're so clever, I suppose I don't need to offer my help."

Lysandra turned on her heel and marched towards the exit, her footsteps heavy with frustration. Along the way, she brushed past anyone who didn't move from her path, making her way back to her dormitory.

"Nice going, you moron," Hope spat, her tone laced with sarcasm. Rising from her seat on the sofa, she followed Lysandra toward the dormitory, determined to offer her comfort and support.

Hermione sighed while she looked at Harry. He should've known by now that if there was one thing you shouldn't speak ill of Lysandra, it's her family.

"Blimey, Harry. Not cool," said Ron, realizing he should've articulated his words better when he was speaking about Slytherin. "He saved us last year. I doubt he would do something like this,"

Shrugging his shoulders, Harry closed his eyes and reclined in his seat, not bothered by what happened. His father always told him that Slytherins were untrustworthy, so even if Alaric was Lysandra's brother, Harry would keep an eye on him.

"Back to Malfoy," Hermione sighed again. "There might be a way to—"

"Prove it's him?" completed Ron, in a dark tone.

"Yes," said Hermione slowly, dropping her voice still further with a quick glance across the room. "Of course, it would be difficult. And dangerous, very dangerous. We'd be breaking about fifty school rules, I expect —"

"If, in a month or so, you feel like explaining, you will let us know, won't you?" asked Harry irritably.

"All right," said Hermione coldly. "What we'd need to do is to get inside the Slytherin common room and ask Malfoy a few questions without him realizing it's us,"

"But that's impossible," Harry said as Ron laughed.

"No, it's not," said Hermione. "All we'd need would be some Polyjuice Potion,"

__________

[Alaric's Pov]

Since the disastrous episode of the pixies, Professor Lockhart had not brought live creatures to class. Instead, he read passages from his books to us and sometimes reenacted some of the more dramatic bits.

Unfortunately, he still thought I was one of his fans, so he would pick me more often than not to help him with those reconstructions.

He was lucky I had a very good reason to keep him happy, or else his recently grown hair would already be on the floor.

In the middle of one of these theatrics, the bell rang, and Lockhart got up to his feet.

"Homework — compose a poem about my defeat of the Wagga Wagga Werewolf! Signed copies of Magical Me to the author of the best one!"

As the class began to leave, I stayed back. When everyone had left, I approached Lockhart's desk, a piece of paper in my hands.

"Professor Lockhart?" I said in the tone the git usually liked. "During my studies in one of your books — Gadding with Ghouls — I couldn't exactly understand the properties of the ghouls' slow-acting venom. Would the professor mind explaining it to me?"

The smile he had, in the beginning, faltered when he heard my question.

"A-Ah, y-yes. The ghouls' venom..." Lockhart said. His thoughts wandered between giving me a made-up answer or obliviating me, but before he could act on those thoughts, I spoke again.

"If the professor deems my question unworthy of your time," I said, feigning my disappointment and sadness. "Perhaps you could sign this permission?"

He took the paper I presented from my hands and just skimmed through it.

"The restricted section?" He questioned in a doubtful tone.

"I'm sure the books in that part of the library would explain to me my question," I noted. "That is unless the professor—"

Before I even finished speaking, Lockhart was already scribbling on the paper. He scrawled an enormous loopy signature on the note and handed it back to me.

"Alaric, Alaric," Lockhart began, his tone oozing with false charm. "I've heard that tomorrow marks the first Quidditch match of the season. Gryffindor versus Slytherin, isn't it? I've been informed that you're quite a skilled player and that you're the main seeker, even if you're in your second year,"

"I, too, was a Seeker in my time," He continued. "They even invited me to join the National Squad, you know. However, I made the noble decision to dedicate my life to combating the Dark Forces. Nevertheless, if you ever feel the need for some extra training, a little private session, I'm always here to impart my expertise to players of lesser ability..."

Lockhart's words dripped with a mix of arrogance and false modesty, his demeanor suggesting he believed himself to be the pinnacle of Quidditch's prowess. I couldn't help but roll my eyes internally at the absurdity of the man's self-proclaimed greatness.

The man continued with his ramblings, failing to notice that I had left long ago.

Exiting the classroom, I grinned. Some praises here and there were enough to trick him into signing permission that granted me not only unrestricted access to the restricted section of the library but also allowed me to be out past curfew.

This way, I could more easily search for traces of the magic related to the pendant, not to mention the fact that I could find some books I'd never seen.

Yet, I knew I had to be cautious, especially around Albus. If he caught wind of my newfound permission, he would undoubtedly revoke it without a second thought. He was always too concerned about rules and regulations, never willing to explore the darker corners of magic.

Walking in the direction of the Slytherin common room, I brushed off the foolish rumors that seemed to swirl around me. I paid no mind to the whispers and gossip that followed my every move. Sometimes, though, I couldn't resist giving a menacing glare to those who got too comfortable speaking of me, mostly to mess with them.

But I had learned long ago not to let such petty chatter affect me. If I allowed every trivial comment to get under my skin, I would have snapped ages ago. I had far more important matters to attend to than the petty opinions of others.

"Pureblood," I muttered when I approached the dungeon wall. The snake revealed the door, and I quickly pushed it open.

Walking down the stairs, I was faced with an almost full common room. Whether by playing chess, studying, discussing quidditch, or simply conversing, if you forgot that most were there to build connections between noble houses, the atmosphere seemed almost merry.

After some time, I spotted Blaise and Theodore sitting by the windows with a view of the waters of the Black Lake. Both were sporting annoyed expressions on their faces, probably because Carrow was sitting beside them.

"Al!" Blaise's frantic wave caught my attention as if I were some sort of savior descending upon them.

Zoe, too, locked eyes with me as I approached, her mocking grin widening even further.

"Grindelwald! Took you long enough," she sneered, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "I was just discussing tactics for tomorrow with your pals here,"

Slipping into an available armchair, I raised an eyebrow and stared at her. "Well, it's the first time you've done something remotely productive since we met you," I retorted.

A faint twitch appeared on Zoe's forehead as she forced a smile. "Let's pretend I didn't hear that," she muttered, fishing three papers out of her pocket. "These contain the plan for tomorrow's game,"

Handing us the papers, her expression grew serious. "It's the opening match of the season, so we need to secure a victory,"

She turned her attention to Blaise and Theo. "Even if you two didn't make it into the starting lineup, be prepared. We might need to substitute a player at any moment."

Finally, she faced me. "And I hope you perform as well as you have in practice," she said. "Otherwise, we'll have to make do with Malfoy,"

Zoe groaned, clearly unconvinced by her own words. Draco had never been particularly adept at being a Seeker. He would rather be my substitute than play any other position, even if he had the skill set to at least play as a Chaser.

"In any case, make sure to wake up early for warm-ups tomorrow," Zoe added, before leaving for her dorm.

We sat in silence for a while, each absorbed in reading the notes she had given us. Their strategy seemed solid — the Beaters were going to relentlessly target Potter to give me more freedom in catching the Snitch, while the Chasers disrupted Gryffindor's defensive line.

However, deep down, I knew none of their tactics would be necessary. Such strategies were rendered futile in the face of my flying skills, not to mention my custom broom.

Glancing at my two nervous friends by my side, I spoke in a gentle tone, attempting to ease their apprehension. "No need to be nervous," I reassured them. "We've trained for this. When you step onto that pitch, just play like you always have."

Blaise looked at me, a smile breaking across his face. He playfully punched Theo's shoulder, rousing him from his trance. "Alaric's right," he chimed in, turning to Theo. "If we stick to our game, they won't stand a chance!"

It took a while, but a confidant smile appeared in the otherwise timid Theodore. "You're right! Let's destroy them!" he exclaimed, sitting up from his chair with a raised fist.

I and Blaise weren't expecting such a strong reaction from him, causing us to break down in laughter.

With a shade of pink in his cheekbones, Theo sat back down, embarrassed, before he opened his notes again and resumed his study for tomorrow.

**********

A/N: Did you know that Dumbledore's favorite flavor of jam is Raspberry? Now you do.

Hope you enjoyed it and don't forget the stones!