Gundam Wing Fan Fiction / Fan Fiction ❯ Peace, Love, and Family: The Story of the Vanuli Three ❯ Lost? In Hogwarts? Impossible! ( Chapter 32 )

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

Disclaimer: I do not own any things Harry Potter-the characters, setting, plot, everything belongs to the wonderful J. K. Rowling and whomever else she decides. I do not own anything Gundam Wing-the characters, setting, plot, everything belongs to (I think) Bandai and Sunrise.

Spoilers: This fic contains spoilers for books 1-5 of Harry Potter and all of the episodes of Gundam Wing. This fic does not include Endless Waltz.

Rating: NC17

Pairings: Neville/Harry, 2x1

Category: crossover, fantasy, general

Author: Selune

Author's site: http://www.gundam-wing-universe.net/fanfiction/menu.php?id=113

Summary: Two years ago, the One Year War ended. At this time, the five heroes-the Gundam pilots-disappeared from the Muggle world. Three of them-pilots 02, 03, and 05-reappeared shortly after in the Wizarding world, as students at Hogwarts School of Witchraft and Wizardry. Now, twenty months after the fact, Heero Yuy and Quatre Winner are coming to Hogwarts, and they're bringing all of their secrets with them. The world-especially one Harry Potter-will never be the same.

Peace, Love, and Family:

The Story of the Vanuli Three

Chapter 32: Lost? In Hogwarts? Impossible!

"And headded chopped billywig, and the whole thing exploded!" Quatre said, laughing.

"Really? When I knew him, Heero was the type of person to do everything perfectly, correctly, and in order," Daemon said.

The two of them were strolling lazily down the corridors, talking to pass the time until dinner.

"Well," Quatre said, stopping to play with the tassel of a tapestry on the wall, "Heero's changed a lot in the time I've known him." Quatre let his arm fall back to his side and caught up with Daemon. "But I guess we've all changed-those of us involved in the war."

"War does change things," Daemon agreed. "But then again, so does peace."

Quatre thought about that and decided Daemon was wrong. "Peace doesn't stick around long enough to change things much. At least, in the human world," Quatre said. He looked up at Daemon. "You know, my people have a saying that I whole-heartedly believe in: "Peace is fleeting, love is transitory, but family is forever." Peace is quickly broken by war, love fades and flitters away, but your family will always be there. They can't turn you away, no matter what you do. You can abandon them, betray them, hurt them, and they will always forgive you. Family is the only constant."

"Do you really believe that?" Daemon asked, softly.

"Yes." Quatre put all of his emotions-his frustrations and joys and sadnesses-into that one word, attempting to convey exactly how deeply he felt about it. "It is the Vanuli way to care only for family. My family-my brothers, Dorothy, my cousins-is the most important thing in my life."

"And what about everybody else?" Daemon asked. "How important are they in the World According to Quatre? Your friends? Acquaintances? Enemies?"

"I like people," Quatre began slowly. "Of course, I like some people-there are some I count as friends. I can be with other people, occasionally."

"Occasionally?" Daemon asked, eyebrows raised.

"All right, all right," Quatre conceded. "Family is the only important thing in my life. Everyone else can go fuck themselves."

They walked a few paces before Daemon responded. "That seems like a pretty harsh philosophy."

"It's a pretty harsh world." Quatre stopped to stare at a portrait of the three Gorgons. He touched Medusa's hair, and she hissed at him. He'd never seen that portrait before. Looking around, Quatre realized he didn't recognize any of the other paintings. Quatre whirled around to Daemon. "Where are we?"

***

"So that's how the Memory Potion works," Harry said, ecstatic that he finally understood it. "But wouldn't a quick Obliviate be just as good, only faster."

"It's true that the Memory Charm is quicker than the Memory Potion, but the potion is more effective," Zacharias said.

The two were still in the library, actually studying now that the rest of the group-sans Hermione, who was stooped over, reading at her usual table-was gone. Harry was surprised (read: he almost fell out of his chair, screaming, "Pod person! Pod person!"), but he found that Zacharias could actually be sort of okay when they were together one-on-one. Just a bit, though. He was still snarky.

"Also, which you should know by now, honestly, Harry," Zacharias smiled and winked at Harry to show he was teasing, "potions are always better than charms, when available."

"Not too bloody great when you're in a duel," Harry said. "I can just see it now: "Excuse me, sir, but could you possibly wait for me to get out my nasty, never-before-been-survived, more effective potions?" Harry put down his wand and began moving his hands over his robes, as if searching for pockets. Zacharias' smile broadened, and Harry picked his wand back up. "And that's the argument for charms."

"I suppose so," Zacharias conceded. He opened one of the books in front of him to a random page. "So tell me everything you know about werewolves. They're sure to be on the exam."

Harry blinked at the abrupt change of subject (pun intended), before answering. "Werewolves, like most Dark creatures, are nocturnal. They..."

***

"Mmm," Heero sighed as he stretched. "Hey, darlin'," he said to the boy-man with an arm currently wrapped around Heero's torso.

"Dun wanna gerrup," Duo protested, burying his face further into Heero's neck. "Sleepy. Comfy."

Heero laughed, causing Duo to shake with his laughs. "I don't want to get up, either, but it's almost dinner time." Heero checked the clock beside Duo's bed. "It's six, already. Dinner's started. Now, get up, get up, get up." Heero started bouncing on the bed, trying to bounce Duo off of him, but it didn't work.

"Dun wanna eat," Duo said, squeezing Heero more tightly.

"We have to, Duo," Heero insisted. "Maddy's going to be there to check on me, and if I'm not there, she'll hunt me down. And when she finds me, I'm taking you with me."

Duo groaned but let go of Heero. Rolling off the bed, they began to search for their clothes.

Truth be told, Heero didn't want to leave to go to the Great Hall any more than Duo did. The warm bed was comfortable, and he had a naked Duo with him. He was deliciously sore in all the usual places-with several hickeys in very unusual places-and he wanted to do nothing more than lie in bed with Duo, snoozing and making out for the rest of the night. Unfortunately, it just wasn't possible.

Heero found his briefs and hurriedly pulled them on. It took several minutes, but Heero finally managed to find and put on all of his clothes. Duo wasn't able to find his tie-where it went, they would probably never know-and had to get a clean one.

Heero saw Duo with his tie loosely tied, and he pounced, covering Duo's neck and face with kisses. "Ties are so sexy," Heero said, grabbing Duo's and pulling him down for a slow, deep kiss.

Duo pulled back. "We better stop, now, or neither of us is making it to dinner tonight."

Heero smirked and grabbed Duo's proffered hand. The lovers walked hand in hand to the Great Hall, where they were forced to part and sit at their separate tables.

Heero sat dowm in his usual seat, lost in recent events, unaware of his surroundings. It took several minutes of no "Are you going to eat that?"s and "So what are we doing tonight?"s and the ever mature "Somebody got laaid."s for Heero to realize something.

"Where are Quatre and Harry?"

***

"I can't believe we got lost!" Quatre cried out, turning around in a circle, hoping to catch a glimpse of something recognizable. Quatre had no such luck, as every painting, tapestry, and statue was as foreign as the next.

"All right, Quatre, calm down," Daemon said, squeezing Quatre's shoulder.

Quatre shrugged him off and stalked away a few paces. "I am calm!"

Quatre walked back the way they came, yelling at the portraits to please give directions.

Needless to say, none of them obliged. Anyway, none of them spoke English, either, Quatre soon discovered. Every last painting was of some fabulous beast or legendary Dark creature. There were the Gorgons, acromantulas, diricrawls, a wonderful rendering of Bigfoot and family, and an each uisge, but no humans or other speaking beings.

Quatre walked faster and faster, flying past beast after beast, not even bothering to call out to them anymore. Quatre ran, barely seeing anything, but the empty hall in front of him. If I can just get to an intersection, I'll be able to find a way out.

Quatre ran and ran and ran as fast as his human legs could carry him. He tried not to think-Not trapped. Not trapped-but it wasn't working too well. Quatre screamed as he came to the end of the hall. A wall blocked his escape.

Quatre grabbed at the stones in the wall, clawing at them to move. He scratched them with no rational thought, bloodying his hands.

***

"Aah!" Harry screamed when he saw his watch. He blushed as Madam Pince glared at him. "Dinner's almost over. We have to go."

Harry grabbed a stack of library books and began haphazardly putting them back. He was thankful that the shelves were self-alphabetizing, so he wouldn't get in trouble for putting them in the wrong places. (Rumor was, Pince banished a kid from the library for life for just that same offense in 167, before the charm was put in place.) Beside Harry, Zacharias grabbed another stack and began putting them back-in their actual, correct spots, too. After only a few minutes, the two boys had all of the books put away and were gathering their stuff to leave.

Harry lingered at the table as Zacharias shoved the last of his books into his bag. Zacharias looked up and smiled at Harry.

"I had fun," Harry said. He blushed. "Well, you know, for studying and all."

"I understand perfectly," Zacharias said, shouldering his bookbag. "And I agree. This was fun. We should do it more often." He lay his hand on Harry's shoulder and rubbed his thumb in a circle. "There's something I've been meaning to ask you for a while, Harry."

"Yes?" Harry asked. He looked up at Zacharias. Nice, normal Zacharias, who hopefully didn't have one jealous bone in his body and would never want Harry enough to grow bitter and jaded about it.

"Would you go to Hogsmeade with me next Saturday?" Zacharias asked, not a hint of fear or nervousness in his voice.

Without trying to rationalize al the reasons he should decline, Harry's mouth opened all by itself, and stupidly said, "Yes."

***

Dorothy dropped her glass with a crash, the pumpkin juice spilling down the front of her robe. Something's wrong.One of her boys was in trouble, upset, lost, scared. Something was wrong with one of her babies! Quickly, ignoring the sticky mess on her robes, Dorothy stood and scanned the Great Hall. Both Harry and Quatre were missing! Dorothy closed her eyes, concentrating on her missing boys. Show me.

"Miss Dorothy?" Molly Green said. "Is everything okay?"

Where were her boys? Dorothy was seeing through too many eyes. Systematically, like at the Halloween Ball, Dorothy sifted through her spiders turning off the ones nowhere near her Niamos.

There!There was Harry in the library with the Hufflepuff Chaser. Harry had a blush disappearing into his robes, but he wasn't in any kind of trouble. At least, none that he couldn't get himself out of.

So that meant it was Quatre. Dorothy felt another bolt of panic flit through her, and she wasn't sure if it was hers or Quatre's.

"Miss Dorothy, do you want me to get Madam Pomfrey? You're looking a little pale," Molly said.

"I'm fine," Dorothy said. Absently, she tucked a lock of Molly's hair behind her ear. "Don't you worry."

Leaving her seat, Dorothy strode quickly from the Great Hall, searching for her little lost boy the entire time. Quatre, where are you?

Feet clopped in a run behind Dorothy.

"Dotty, what's wrong?" Heero asked. "Are Quatre and Harry all right? Why aren't they at dinner? What's wrong?"

"Nothing, probably," Dorothy said, shutting out Gryffindor Tower and the entire third floor. "I'm sure everything's fine." She ran her fingers through Heero's hair, trying to placate him.

"I know something's wrong, Dorothy. I'm not stupid," Heero said, smacking her hand away. "I know that look on your face, and it's not an "everything's fine, let's all be merry" look."

"You're right," Dorothy admitted, focusing the majority of her attention on finding Quatre. "Quatre's scared, but he doesn't feel hurt. Probably got stuck in another vision or something." Quatre wasn't stuck in a vision. He hadn't been for over two months, and he'd been practicing his Sight almost every night since.

Aah! There he is!Dorothy adjusted her vision to see Quatre better. He was sitting on the floor, his knees drawn up in front of him like a little child. That Daemon guy-of whom Dorothy was still suspicious; one doesn't go from Public Enemy Number One to Everybody's Best Friends in a matter of days-was there, trying to console Quatre. Dorothy panned the area, attempting to figure out where Quatre was. It had to be a dead end somewhere because Quatre was surrounded by three walls.

Dorothy didn't recognize any of the paintings, the tapestries, the statues, nothing! "Aargh!" Dorothy screamed, punching, the nearest wall. She brought back her fist with a little blood and a lot of crushed stone.

"Show me how to get there," she said in her quietest, most calm voice. "Take me to him."

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a spider move. She turned and followed it, Heero trailing behind her like a lost puppy.

***

"Did you find a way out?" Quatre asked, huddling on the floor. Not trapped. Not trapped, Quatre mentally chanted. He did not like confined places. The only place he could take being trapped in was Sandrock. His Gundam, despite being an agent of war, had always had a soothing quality that Quatre picked up on and used to make it through each battle.

"No, Quatre. I'm sorry," Daemon said, sitting beside Quatre, resting his head against the stone. "There's a wall at the other end, too. This must be one of those wonderful, disappearing passageways everyone's always talking about."

"What fun!" Quatre jeered, trying not to hyperventilate. "A hall full of beasts! We're in the friggin' Bestiary!"

"Look, it'll be okay," Daemon said. "We'll figure a way out, or somebody will come find us."

"Yes, well, we'll suffocate before then!" Quatre demanded. He scrambled up and began scratching at the connecting wall again. "Let me out! Let me out!"

Daemon grabbed Quatre from behind picking him clear off his feet. "Shh, shh," Daemon said, patting Quatre's hair. "We'll be okay. There's plenty of air. I saw all kinds of cracks in the stone. See?" Daemon brought a large crack in the wall in front of them to Quatre's attention. "Plenty of air. And we won't be in here long enough to worry about food or water."

Food? Water? Quatre hadn't even thought about that! They could starve to death before anyone found them.

"Shh, shh," Daemon whispered, setting Quatre back on his feet. He rubbed his hands in soothing circles on Quatre's back. "I guess you're claustrophobic, right?"

"Wrong," Quatre scoffed, breaking away from Daemon's arms. What did he know about Quatre? "I'm a Gryffindor. "We're not afraid of anything, remember?"

"Yeah, I know," Daemon said. He sat back down on the floor.

Quatre left him there and paced the hall, never letting the connecting wall with the each uisge painting out of his sight.

"Wait a minute!" Daemon shouted, jumping up. "You're Vanuli, right? Why don't you just turn into one of those creatures and ask them the way out?"

Quatre whirled around faster than it took the tornado to sweep Dorothy out of Kansas. "NO!" he growled.

***

Heero followed Dorothy like an obedient puppy, Duo following silently behind him. Dorothy twisted and turned into so many different tunnels and hallways following some invisible leader that pretty soon, Heero was hopelessly lost.

Heero didn't know what was wrong with Quatre or even how Dorothy knew something was wrong, but he trusted his Naiyama. The triplets had speculated for some time that Dorothy had some system-most likely very difficult and hard to understand by the likes of them-to watch to over them and make sure they were safe and brushing their teeth at night.

After all, most Naiyamas never spent a night away from their Niamos until they reached their majority, and here Dorothy was-sanely, relatively speaking-spending night after night away from them, in a completely different wing of the castle! The only thing the triplets didn't know, of course, was exactly what her system was and how invasive it was.

Heero shuddered to think of his Naiyama-who was more a mother to him than his own mother ever was-spying on him during sex. It was disgusting, unthinkable, and completely up Dorothy's alley.

"Where are we going, Dorothy?" Heero asked. This constant running on stone floors was not going to help the healing process out any. Or his sex life. "Where's Quatre?"

Dorothy stopped in front of a stone wall. She back up and looked around, confusion dancing a jig in her eyes. "Here," she gestured to the wall. "He's supposed to be here."

"There's a wall here," Heero said, even though it was obvious to anyone with working eyes.

"I see that, Imela," she snapped.

Ooh, touchy. Use of the Vanuli name was never good.

"The wall must not have been here when he and Rosencrantz went in. One of those tricky-castle things."

"Wait, Daemon's in there?" Heero asked. "How do you know?" There was no way Dorothy could know someone was with Quatre unless her whatever-it-was told her.

"I know because my spiders told me," Dorothy said, the "duh" being implied, of course. And the "D'oh!"

"You're what?" Heero asked, advancing.

"Nothing," Dorothy said, turning back to the wall. "Besides, we have bigger things to think about, like freeing your brother."

"Dorothy," Heero said in a serious tone.

"Oh, yes, fine!" Dorothy said, throwing her hands up in the air. "I involuntarily enlisted all the spiders in the castle-and possibly the Forbidden Forest-I don't know because I've never tried to extend it that far and-"

"Dorothy."

"Oh, fine. I enslaved the spiders and I keep an eye on you and your brother through them. Are you really that surprised? And no, I don't watch you in the shower of during your kissy-kissy goo-goo stuff with Maxwell. I prefer not to watch my babies in sexual activity," Dorothy said all in one breath.

"Thank you Dorothy. We've been curious about your spying system for a while, now."

"How did you...?"

"I know you just as well as you know me."

"Right," Dorothy said, shaking herself. she turned back to the wall. "Do you think we can get back to the business at hand now?"

Heero smiled and went to the wall, trying to figure out how to get through it.

***

"Why not?" Daemon asked, bewildered. Why wouldn't Quatre do it? It was supposed to be natural and simple for Vanuli.

"Just, just no," Quatre said, stamping his foot.

"Okay, then, do you have a better idea?" Daemon said. Quatre was about two minutes away from a mental breakdown, Daemon could clearly see that. What was he supposed to do?

"No, I don't," Quatre said. He sat down again and patted the spot beside him. "Could you just sit down, please? You're making me nervous."

You're way past nervous, Daemon wanted to say but, wisely, didn't.

"Why are you so scared of small spaces, anyway?" Daemon couldn't help but ask. "I mean, you piloted a Gundam. How much smaller can you get than a cockpit?"

"How did you-Right," Quatre said. "You grew up with Heero. Of course you know."

"That and that little documentary that aired on the news channels this summer. You were only shown the once, but you were clearly a pilot. Especially since you were shown with Heero. I know that Barton, Chang, and Maxwell were pilots, too. That's the only reason I can stand them, you know. War veterans and all that." Daemon scratched his chin. "I've been wondering how they got all that footage of the war for that show..."

"Going fishing now, Daemon?" Quatre said. His voice-and hands-was shaking less. "Well, the footage of Duo in the Oz prison, obviously, came from Oz. Director Une got most of it. If you noticed, she's not shown much. She didn't want her public image tarnished any more than necessary. She needs all the respect she can get as head of the Preventors.

"The, umm, other footage came mostly from the Gundams'-and other Mobile Suits'-recording systems. Sometimes, only the video or audio could be salvaged. That's one of the reasons that song-you know, "Just Communications"-was played so much. And, of course, to make it more dramatic.

"Then, the rest of it was just interviews from everyone, except the Gundam Pilots. No one knew where we were-and we certainly weren't telling."

"Of course not," Daemon said. No one wanted to be associated with that mess of a war.

Quatre looked up at Daemon. His eyes were red, like he was crying. One lone tear fell down Quatre's cheek.

In the portrait, the each uisge whinnied.

"What?" Daemon asked as the demon horse stomped its feet. Why was it doing that? Running through every list of creatures he'd learned about in Care of Magical Creatures-or, more likely, the compound-trying to figure out what was wrong with the each uisge.

Daemon looked at Quatre, and it clicked. "Water!" he yelled, swiping the tear off Quatre's cheek. Laughing, he rubbed it on the painting.

Wild, the each uisge buck itself right out of the portrait.

"What was the point of that?" Quatre yelled, looking at the empty painting.

"Hopefully, a lot." Daemon grabbed two corners of the portrait and lifted.

Selune