When They Meet

Chapter Six-Hero

John's POV-

"The kids love you," Minerva told me as a particularly rowdy group of students left the classroom.
"That's just because of everything they've been told about me, by you actually. They have this mistaken idea of a hero in their heads," I informed her.
"What's wrong with that?" she asked, confused.
"I may be many things, but I'm not a hero, hero's don't exist." She seemed shocked at that statement.
"What gave you that idea?" she questioned.
"War. I've seen so many die believing I was some kind of hero, someone worth fighting for, worth dying for. I've met men that make me want to lay down my life so they can live on and once there was one, he told me that I had mistaken him for a hero and that I had got it wrong, he was no hero. That even if heroes existed, he would not be one. If he isn't a hero then no one is," I whispered to her quietly.
"I can understand why people would die for you, you are one of the most brave men I have ever met. Many in our world would sacrifice themselves for you," she told me.
I placed my hand on her shoulder and said, "That's why I had to leave. I don't want that."
"You're going to leave again, aren't you?" she asked.
"As soon as this war is over I'm gone. Back to my life," I told her sadly.
"I understand," she whispered sadly back.
"Let's go, we have one more class to teach," I told her.

~Time Lapse~

In the middle of class I heard a scream. Minerva looked at me, we shared a look and I nodded, "I'll go check out the situation. I may or may not come back by the end of this class." I then quickly transfigured into the fastest animal I could think of. As I raced through the halls. Nudging between students that happened to be in the halls. As I was running I heard the scream again and tracked it to the "Defense Against the Dark Arts" classroom. I knew there was no class going on right now but that didn't explain the screaming. I burst into the classroom and paused as I took the scene in front of me in. There were five seventh year Slytherins standing around a seventh year Gryffindor, who was writhing around on the ground as the leader of the group pointed his wand at him. The other four Slytherins were laughing loudly and the main one was looking at the Gryffindor boy in pity. He seemed like he didn't want to be hurting the boy but he had to pretend to enjoy his pain. When I burst in they all turned to look at me, well except for the one on the floor. I transfigured into my normal body. They looked at me shocked as I let out an animalistic growl. "Back away from the boy now. Sixty points from Slytherin, for each of you." I went to pick the boy on the floor up. I looked up the reluctant Slytherin, "Don't make same mistake as your father. Do what's right." I then picked up the boy and ran to the Hospital Wing. When I ran in Poppy was treating a girl with blisters all over her face. When she saw the limp boy in my arms she rushed over. I waved her away as I sat him on one of the beds. I pulled out my wand and started murmuring a bunch of spells.
Poppy looked over my shoulder the whole time and when I was done and had backed away from the boy she rushed to me. As she handed me a glass of water she said, "Where do you learn all those spells. I have never even heard of over half of them."
"Of course you haven't," I informed her, "I invented most of them and I never had them made public."
She looked at me shocked, "Could you possibly teach me a few?"
I smiled at her, "Of course," I paused for a minute, "Now, he needs to rest. When he wakes up come and get me or contact me in some way."
"Yes, okay, thank you," she said.
I walked out of the Hospital Wing and back to the Transfiguration room. Right as I walked in all of the students were dismissed and they rushed out of the class. I moved quickly out of their way. When Minerva saw me she quickly rushed over. "What happened?" she asked quickly.
"A Gryffindor boy was being tortured by way of one of the unforgivables. I shooed the boys away and took sixty points from each of them, then I took the boy to the Hospital Wing," I told her quickly.
"And you say heroes don't exist."