Hogwarts Part 9
Spell Study Group
Lunch found Duo sitting on one of the moving stairways. He could no longer stand being in the same room with his group. He'd spotted Heero in Potions, but he had yet to see Trowa and Quatre. He smirked at the mental image the pair presented. He doubted anyone would try and separate them.
"Duo?"
'Speak of the devil...' He turned and smiled at Quatre, almost laughing when he saw Trowa not too far behind the blonde. "Hey! What's up? You guys are late for lunch! Decide to get a little smooching in?"
Quatre shook his head. "I forgot my wand in my last class. What are you doing here? It's not like you to miss a meal. You'll worry your aunt if you lose weight."
Duo shrugged. "I guess I didn't like the way everyone was staring at me."
Trowa sat down next to Duo. "Explain."
"I had a nightmare last night. They moved me into an unused room so I wouldn't keep the other students awake."
Quatre's eyes widened. "Don't they have any common sense? You should never shove someone having nightmares into a room by themselves!"
Duo shook his head. "They don't know me, Quatre. They don't know what we went through... what I went through. How could they?" He sighed. "Apparently I struck a student last night. And this afternoon, I kinda threw a fit during Flying class. I forgot about broomsticks."
Quatre placed a hand on Duo's back. "You can't skip meals, Duo!" He looked over at Trowa for any suggestions.
Trowa nodded. "You'll eat with us. We'll study in the courtyard after classes and compare notes."
Quatre beamed at the idea. "I'll pull Heero and Wufei in. It'll do us good to work as a group again. It's been so long since we've done that! You don't have a problem with it, do you Duo?"
Duo shook his head with a small smile. "Not at all. I've offered my friendship to Heero, and he's willing." He chuckled at a recent memory. "Just this afternoon..."
~FLASHBACK~
Duo was really uncomfortable. The one time he tried to talk to the boy sitting next to him, he'd gotten a look that would freeze Hell over. Duo was not up to trying again.
"MISTER Maxwell" The Potions professor was a small man, but his attitude made you think he was looking down on everyone as if they were beneath his contempt. His hair was black with a werewolf streak of silver that ran down his right cheek. "Since you have such a hard time keeping still, I will assume that you already know all of the material in the book. Tell me in the ancient days... why would a dog bite after pulling a mandrake out of the ground?"
Duo HAD read his books, and he was blessed with a photographic memory. "Pardon my language, sir, but that is a bullshit question."
"You can't answer the question?"
"NO ONE can answer that question."
Heero, who sat a few seats away, snorted. "Professor... the only thing a dog would bite after pulling a mandrake out would be the proverbial dust." He looked up. "Knowing Duo, he probably wanted to save you the embarrassment of learning the hard way that he has a perfect memory and anything on death interests him."
~END FLASHBACK~
Quatre giggled. "What happened next?"
Duo shrugged. "I was too busy forcing myself not to laugh to notice. But Heero was smirking the next time I glanced at him. I think he would have laughed if it had just been me in the class. He's loosened up a bit since the last time I saw him."
Trowa stood up. "Well... come on. You'll be impossible later on if you don't eat something." He held out a hand and smiled slightly when Duo took it.
*****
Heero would never admit to the sigh of relief he let out when Duo entered the dining hall between Trowa and Quatre. He'd heard the rumors, and it angered him to see that Duo was being avoided because of something that no one would have been able to control. He'd seen the looks Duo's Potions partner had been shooting at the American... a look that said: 'I would rather be sitting with a Slytherin than with you'. Heero nodded at the memory of that look, "Ryoukai!" He stood up and walked towards the Ravenclaw table.
Duo stiffened as he had the feeling of someone staring straight at his back. He turned slowly and blinked when he saw Heero standing behind him. "Hee..."
Heero cut him off before Duo could get too far. "You are going to be my partner in Potions from now on."
Duo let his jaw drop before stammering out an answer. "Um... okay!"
Quatre chose the perfect moment to pipe up. "Heero! Meet us in the courtyard after classes so we can study together!"
"Ryoukai!" With that, Heero turned and walked towards the Gryffindor table to talk to the boy that Duo had been sitting with in Potions.
Duo watched Heero talking to the Gryffindor youth. After a few gestures, the boy nodded and Heero went to talk to his own Potions partner. It took some more doing, but the Slytherin boy finally nodded. Duo blinked in shock. "If I didn't know better..." The shock faded, and a small bubble of happiness made itself known. "Well I'll be... he actually cares." He let out a small laugh and turned back to the table. "Chalk up another point to Heero."
A red-haired girl sitting across from Duo winked. "I think he digs ya! I had him in Charms class and he simply shrugged us all off! I'm Tabitha Snooks, by the way." She motioned to the Gryffindor table. "They're a buncha closed-minded morons right now. It's the shock value. They'll chill after a bit."
Duo smiled at the redhead. "Thanks. I guess you already know who I am."
Tabitha snorted. "Better than your housemates do, at any rate. I was very little at the time, but I remember my parents being upset about the Maxwell Church Massacre. Being the only survivor of that tragedy would give ANYONE nightmares." At the shock in Duo's face, she smiled sadly. "My parents... studied current events in the Muggle world. I still shudder at some of the pictures that were in the newspapers they had on the subject." She pulled something out of her pocket. "I kept one of the pictures. It reminds me why I study magic. I wanna prevent something like that from happening again."
Quatre looked over Duo's shoulder and gasped when he saw the old and yellowed newspaper clipping. It was a picture of a little boy, with long hair pulled back in a braid, standing all alone and looking lost in the middle of the carnage around him. "Oh Duo..." He had known Duo was the only survivor of the massacre, but he had never before seen how it had affected the child Duo had been.
Trowa simply put a hand on Duo's shoulder and gave it a squeeze of understanding. He knew the feeling of survivor's guilt.
Duo gave them a strained smile as he handed the picture back. He hated thinking about that day... more than he blamed himself for what happened. He took a deep breath and nodded before eating his lunch.
-HEY! A little beef for the lady!- Shi-chan hopped up onto the table and rubbed against Trowa's arm briefly before sitting down. -So THAT is Heero?- She indicated where Heero was talking to someone at the Slytherin table.
Duo smiled and placed some pieces of meatloaf in the bread plate. "Yup! That's him!"
-You've got taste! His owl's not so bad, either. Not like Featherbrain at all! Although the creature DOES have a glare that could kill.- She lapped up some gravy. -So... how long are you gonna play with him until you pounce?-
Duo's eyes budged. "WHAT?"
If cats were capable of smirking, Shi-chan would have been doing just that. As it was, her eyes simply narrowed a bit in what could be called satisfaction. -I can smell the pheromones. The two of you match perfectly! Plus I could tell that you like him from the way you reacted to his... demand... that the two of you sit together. Fess up!-
Duo flushed a little. "Okay! You're right! I just... don't wanna get hurt again. I'm going to take artistic liberty with an old saying. Hurt me once, shame on you. Hurt me TWICE, shame on ME."
Tabitha blinked. "You... and him..." she pointed over to Heero "had a thing going?"
Duo sighed and nodded. "We never took it beyond flirting, but I had thought..." He shook his head. "And then he left for no reason that I know of." He decided to change the subject, no longer comfortable talking about his failed romance with Heero. "You don't seem shocked that I'm talking to Shi-chan."
Tabitha shook her head. "I was raised in a wizarding family. It isn't as rare as it used to be for new students to have had spells cast so they could understand their familiars. I SO dislike the word 'pets'." She giggled as Shi-chan rubbed against her arm. "I take it she agrees with me."
Duo smiled as Shinigami went back to eating. "Well... she doesn't REALLY belong to me. She chose me, as my aunt said it should be."
Tabitha beamed, as if happy to learn Duo had a family. "Your Aunt?"
Duo nodded. "My mother's sister."
Tabitha bounced a little. "Do you mind if I told my parents? I mean... they've always wondered what happened to you! They'll be so thrilled that you found your family!"
Duo nodded, suddenly feeling much better. He might not have friends in Gryffindor, but it seemed like his old charm was winning people over as always.
*****
"So the pronunciation of spells is very important and... Duo, you're falling asleep again." Quatre smiled to soften the already gentle scold. He couldn't really blame Duo for dropping off in their company ... seeing as Duo had gotten so little sleep the previous night.
"Nah! I'm listening, Quat. I just..." Duo paused to emit a long yawn. "Just can't keep my eyes open. Go on... The pronunciation is important, I got that."
Quatre shook his head. "The pronunciation is extremely important... as well as the wand motion. You need both in order to successfully cast a..." He broke off again as he noticed that Duo was leaning against Heero with his eyes closed. "Poor Duo."
Wufei shook his head. "If only we could bring him into one of the other houses. He thrives on companionship. It is unjust that he must do without it simply because those in Gryffindor choose not to understand him."
Heero fought the smile that wanted to form on his lips. Duo really had no idea of the effect he had. He looked up and noticed that Quatre and Trowa were giving him odd looks. "What?"
Trowa cut right to the point. "Why did you leave him?"
Heero's eyes grew sad. "It was the worst mistake I ever made, but... he smothered me. I couldn't go anywhere without him acting like a hyperactive puppy as soon as I got back. He made me feel guilty for going out to places I knew he hated going to. I was starting to feel trapped." He caressed Duo's face gently. "I don't deserve him. He should be with someone who makes him laugh. Someone who won't care that other people are looking. Someone who will put him before the mission." Then he sighed. "After about a month, I realized that there was something missing from my life. Sure I had my missions, but... no one was there to welcome me back. No one was there to worry about me. No one was there to make me feel warm inside." He took a deep breath. "You have no idea how... SCARED... I was when Hilde told me that Duo had been there, briefly, and then left without a trace. That the only thing he left behind... was his cross." He shuddered and fought the urge to hug Duo close. Duo had once explained that his cross was the symbol of his dreams of happiness because it represented a time of his life when he had been happy. As long as he had his cross, Duo had some semblance of faith in humanity. When Hilde had handed him Duo's cross, he had feared the worst. Heero shook his head to clear it. "He deserves better than me. I'm still living for the mission. I can't let myself get close to him until I move past being the perfect soldier."
Trowa remembered Duo's crestfallen expression from when Duo had told him and Quatre what had happened. "Did you ever stop looking for him?"
"No!" Heero looked horrified at the idea of giving up on finding Duo. "But to make matters worse, I treated it like another mission. A mission I feared I would be unable to accomplish."
Quatre frowned. "But you came to Hogwarts, so you HAD to have given up."
Heero shook his head. "I can't explain it, but... something told me that coming here was going to be a key factor in accomplishing my mission. I..." He gave in and held Duo close. He had nearly fainted with relief during the sorting ceremony when he had seen Duo alive and well.
Wufei frowned. "You keep talking about the mission. You never joined the Preventers, Yuy."
Heero shook his head. "No... but everything became a mission. Going to the store became a mission, and it annoyed me whenever I couldn't accomplish it. There was one time I couldn't find a cereal, and went driving all over town to get it. Duo had worried himself sick. He deserves better than that, and I can't give him what he needs yet."
Quatre smiled brightly. "Well... sounds like you're on the right path to me!" His smile faded a little when Duo shivered in his sleep and curled closer to Heero. "We'd better get Duo inside. It's starting to get cold out and the light is fading."
Wufei nodded and shook Duo gently. "Maxwell... it's time for dinner."
Duo blinked sleepily. He had the vague feeling that he had just missed something. "Hmmm?" He suddenly realized he was in Heero's arms and was practically cuddling up to him. He blushed and pushed himself away, thinking that he'd gone WAY further than he'd intended. "Oh! Oh, Heero, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to do that! it's just that I ..." He crossed his eyes to see where Heero had placed two fingers on his lips to still them. "Heero?"
"Don't worry about it. Let's go." Heero gathered up his books and helped Duo to his feet.
"Heero... what just happened? I mean..." He felt his breath leave him when Heero gave him a small smile then turned and walked away. "What?"
Quatre giggled. "You'll find out sometime, Duo." With that, he took Trowa's arm and followed after Heero.
Duo watched the four former Gundam pilots with an air of confusion. He suddenly KNEW that he had missed something. He just wanted to know what it was he had missed. He shrugged and followed his team to the castle.
TBC...
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