Chapter 49

Disclaimer: If you recognise it, surprise, I don't own it.

Chapter 25– A Single Step.

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Walking through the abundant crowd, I struggle to find the one man I am actually trying to find. Which I should have expected to be honest, given that the man I am looking for is less than half the height of the average man, and there are so many people here that I wouldn't even be able to find an average-sized person.

Realising that I won't be able to find the diminutive little man in this throng, I give up on my efforts and instead move to the place I was directed towards when I first arrived and was told the order of things. I wanted to find Flitwick before it started, wanting to get some last-minute advice and ease my nerves, but unfortunately, it looks like that won't happen.

Still, I have to say, this is a bigger crowd than I had expected, especially for an event that is as underground and regular as this. For my first proper duelling tournament, I have come to an underground event that Flitwick referred me to. I am not here to win or dominate or anything. I am here merely to gain experience. I have learned the spells and the theory, and my physicality is up to standard, but I have no proper experience, which is what I am here to gain.

Still, when Flitwick told me about this place, he described it as a weekly event where people went to have some duels, anybody being allowed to get on the stage, and have drinks and bet on the fights. Given that this was described as underground, I was expecting around thirty people to be here, tops. However, there are actually upwards of a hundred, and they are all lively, waiting for the duels to begin. Overall, much bigger than the understated get-together Flitwick convinced me it was.

When I got here, I went up to the bar and talked to one of the officials there, signing up to be one of the contenders in the upcoming tournament. The requirements were not even that strict, all I had to do was give my name and then hand my wand over so they could weigh it and record it down, and then they told me where to go to prepare for my match.

Flitwick did say he would be here, but I could not find him anywhere, so I can only continue on. The match will begin in ten minutes. Walking through the crowd, I finally reach the double doors through which the waiting rooms are, where I will ready up for my bout, and low and below who is waiting in front of it for me. Filius is there, his small form waiting patiently in front of the door, clearly waiting for me though he doesn't seem to catch my approach.

"Hello, Filius. Shall we go in? It won't be long before my first match starts." I say to him, shining my dazzling smile at him, which glistens in the dim hall. Flitwick, seeing my smile, looks surprised but still calmly follows me as I hold the door open for him and then enter the room. And then spotting the door labelled six, I enter that one and close it as Flitwick follows me in.

"Gilderoy? I nearly didn't recognise you. I wouldn't have even known it was you if you did not approach me and if you did not display that signature smile of yours. I assume some form of charm to give off the twinkle?" Flitwick says, clearly addressing my current appearance. Because, if it was not obvious, I do not look one iota like Gilderoy Lockhart right now.

"Haha, yes, that is right. I use it mainly for photographs from the press, the twinkle looking to be a reflection of the light of the camera off my teeth. Though it does make itself useful on occasion, such as now." I explain, embellishing the truth slightly. Because while the original Gilderoy did come up with this teeth-sparkling charm purely for his photographs, he liked it so much that it would be applied almost constantly, first thing in the morning and last thing at night. I only use it on occasion because it can be helpful at times, such as now,

"Yes, quite ingenuitive. It is, at most, a millisecond of light flashing on your teeth, not too little to be unnoticeable and not too much to reveal its falsity. Excellent charm work. However, I am confused why you have concealed your identity. Also, can I ask what method you have used because if you have put up a charm, there is a high chance of it being disrupted in the middle of your match?" Flitwick inquires, though I do admit I am more caught up on the compliment he gave, praise from a charms master, and it pisses me off. This little charm was praised, and the original Gilderoy was the one that made it, showing he had a natural talent, and yet he squandered it. Well, I won't make the same mistake.

"Well, I can't duel looking like Gilderoy Lockhart, famous adventurer and masterful wizard. I am not here to win, after all. I am here to gain experience, and while I will give it my all, I most likely won't win or even get that far in the tournament. If I were to do this as myself, then Gilderoy Lockhart would officially have a loss on his record, and I can not afford that. I have a reputation and brand to uphold. If that reputation were to fail or be destroyed or damaged in any way, then all of my businesses would be impacted. Profits will be down, and all future business will be affected, which affects not just me but all the people behind the scenes." I explain.

"This is why I have decided to come as someone else because I have more than just my reputation being in danger if I were to irrevocably lose. It would be selfish of me not to consider all of my workers and employees. That is why I went out and procured the hair of a random muggle and used a Polyjuice potion to change my appearance. I took it right before I got here, and I have some more prepared if this thing drags on." I say, not mentioning how I procured such a potion, but I think he believes I did it myself, and I am not going to disillusion him of that.

In actuality, I had known about this event for a while already, and so I had enough time to get all the ingredients needed and set up the brewing station in my building, in a closed-off room. Of course, that is well and all, but I do not have the proper skills to adequately make such a potion, and I don't want to overestimate myself and end up permanently disfiguring myself or, even worse, killing myself. Which is why I did what all great men do when they come upon a problem they find hard to solve. They delegate it to someone else.

Thankfully, I had Andromeda on my side, who is actually a very skilled Potioneer, having wanted a career in the subject before running off and getting hitched. So approaching her, I clued her into my duelling training and how I did not want any results I get in my new career to negatively affect my businesses, which she understood and agreed to help me with. And so she helped me brew the Polyjuice potion for the month before this event, and now I had an ample supply of Polyjuice potion that I put in stasis. I also went ahead and fully shaved the head of the muggle I chose, and now have enough hair that if I ever want to use this identity again, I can.

"Alright, well. I am pleased to see that you are thinking ahead. Truly, you have become a good man Gilderoy. Now, sit down and ready yourself. I am going to give you some advice, and also, you can't duel in what you are wearing." I take my seat as he directs me to, but then stand up again as he calls into question my form of dress, being just black clothes underneath a black robe. I don't see what is wrong with it; it is plain and allows me to move.

"First of all, remove your wand holster. You will carry your wand onto the stage and then do the rituals. The holster is just extra weight on your arms. And your current clothes, while adequate, are not made for duelling, and foreseeing this, I prepared the proper battle robes for you. Here you are." Saying so, he reaches behind him and pulls out a black and grey set of form-fitting robes and hands them over to me, taking me by surprise. I don't even know why he is doing this, I mean, I asked him for help, but he has gone above and beyond that.

"I-Thank you, Filius. But why? I know I am your former student, but pretty much all wizards in Britain under forty can attest to the same. I am not even paying or giving you anything in return, so why?" I ask, bringing forth the question that has been bugging me for a while. I mean, from the beginning, I was expecting an uphill battle where I would constantly bug the man and eventually wear him to until he agreed to teach me in exchange for me paying him a hefty amount, but none of that was necessary.

Professor Flitwick delivered those books to me the next time we met, and then after that, he contacted me and arranged for our next meeting. Obviously, I was confused and wanted to question it, but this had worked out for me, and so I didn't look a gift horse in the mouth and carried on, more focused on making the best of the situation and learning and absorbing as much as I could from the master duelist. But with this, I can't keep it at bay anymore, and I clearly ask him for his reasoning.

"Well, to be honest, Gilderoy, after our first meeting, I had only planned to deliver some books to you and give you some information and advice before leaving you to your own devices, and that was only because you were a Ravenclaw that I didn't manage to properly teach in your time at Hogwarts." So he says, confusing me further. I had no further contact with him after that meeting, so something must have happened to change his mind, and I had nothing to do with it.

"Coincidentally, I mentioned our meeting in passing at a Hogwarts staff meeting, and Albus took some interest." I swallow nervously hearing that because originally, Dumbledore was supposed to find out about Gilderoy's fraudulent behaviour and then invite him to be the second-year DADA teacher. Before that, he had no interest, but now, he is suddenly paying attention to me. I thought I covered up all my tracks, but maybe I missed something, or perhaps my covering things up is what clued him onto it.

"You see, there is a rumour that the position of the Defence Against The Dark Arts professor is cursed and that whoever takes it will leave in one year, one way or the other. This has resulted in injuries and once a death, though I believe it is sort of a self-fulfilling prophecy, and they have all done it to themselves. So, needless to say, the position is constantly being exited, and we need someone new every year." I- I do not like where this is going, not in the least.

"...And what does that have to with this?" I say, dreading the answer. I am pretty sure I already know what the answer is, but unless I hear it aloud, I don't want to bring myself to believe it.