Gryffindor's Flame || Fred Weasley

His equal

Maeve stared at him and then burst out laughing.

"I've heard a lot of things in my life but that, that is crazy," she said, still chuckling. "Godric Gryffindor is dead, dude. He's been dead for centuries."

"Really?" The man challenged, not amused. "How did he die?"

"Godric Gryffindor died because of –" That was when Maeve realised, she didn't know. It was never specified in the history books. "Well, I don't know exactly, but he had to have died at some point. No one lives forever. Unless you have the Philosophers Stone, which is impossible because Harry Potter destroyed it in first year."

"You're right. No one lives forever unless you're cursed to live as long as it takes for me to find someone I can train to be my equal, which is impossible." The man, Godric, or whatever his name really was, said.

"There are no curses like that." Maeve pointed out.

"And how would you know? You're, what, twelve?"

"Thirteen."

"Exactly, you dont even know half of the spells there are yet."

"I actually do because I have a best friend who likes to read. A lot." Maeve said, thinking of Hermione and her rants.

"Well, you wouldn't know of this curse anyway. They dont teach half of the stuff they did a few centuries ago." The man said, sitting down on the sofa.

"And you would know that because you're Godric Gryffindor?" Maeve put the emphasis on his name as she still didn't really believe him.

Though, a part of her thought he was telling the truth. Does anyone really know how Godric Gryffindor died?

"Yes," he deadpanned. "You wanna know the full story, kid?"

Maeve shrugged. "Sure."

"Rowena Ravenclaw put the curse on me. After I had a fight with Salazar Slytherin –"

"Is that when he didn't want muggleborns to be accepted at Hogwarts?" Maeve interrupted him.

"Yes, may I continue?" He said irritably. Maeve nodded. "After I had a fight with Salazar Slytherin, I became careless. I wanted to prove Salazar wrong. I wanted to prove that muggleborns could go to our school. It made Salazar disappear. He left the castle without a word to any of us."

Maeve studied the man before her carefully. As much as she wished this was some sort of sick joke, she could see in his eyes that he was telling the truth.

"Rowena, even though she had the same beliefs as me, thought I had the wrong approach. She tried talking to me at first, but I wouldn't listen. After her daughter's death, she got tired of my recklessness and cursed me. She wanted me to find my equal. It doesn't matter how long it would take. So long as I haven't found them, I'm still alive." He finished.

Maeve stayed quiet for a moment. She didn't know what to say.

"What did she mean with equal?" Dhe asked hesitantly.

"Someone I can train. Someone who can handle the power I would give them when they're ready." He snapped his finger, and a small flame appeared at his fingertips.

"Wow."

"Yes, very nice, right?" He stood up again, making Maeve tense up a little. "Now what I don't understand is, after centuries with no problems with this room I created with my own magic so that no student or Professor could enter, how did you pass that barrier?" Godric said, walking circles around Maeve.

"I have no idea. The door just appeared when I needed it." Maeve said quietly, feeling uncomfortable under his gaze.

He stopped in front of her, thinking.

"No, it can't be that." He muttered to himself.

"Uhm, may I ask what it can't be?"

"Well, the only thing that pops into my head is that the universe has chosen you as my equal, but I thought Rowena needed me to find my own." Godric said, pacing up and down in front of Maeve.

"Um, no offence, but have you ever really left this place?" Maeve asked, her uncomfortable feeling gone.

"... No, why?"

"Don't you kind of need to leave this place in order to search for your equal?" Maeve asked.

"Well, I –"

"I think that Rowena Ravenclaw knew you wouldn't put in the effort to find your equal because you don't think there is one. So she probably put some kind of spell on the school that can somehow sense the potential of each student and, seeing as you designed this room for only you to see and live in, reveal a door only they can see and enter, leading to this room so they can meet you." Maeve said, thinking it was a pretty smart theory.

"What makes you so special then?" Godric said, sitting back down on the couch.

"Wha– I wasn't talking about me! I meant some other student. Someone who has the capability of having... well, wielding fire." Maeve said, fiddling with her fingers.

"You got in here through a door, right? You're basically describing what happened to you." Godric pointed out.

Maeve opened and closed her mouth like a fish breathing for water, but no words came out.

"Rowena was always one to help someone without physically helping them, given Rowena's death. Your theory might very well be true," Godric moved forward, leaning his elbows on his knees. "So, let me ask you again. What makes you so special?"

Maeve looked down at her shoes. She didn't know what to say. She couldn't actually be the Godric Gryffindor's equal, right?

"Nothing," she finally said, sitting down on the armchair across from the founder of Hogwarts. "Nothing is special about me. I come from a family of Slytherins, and I'm the only Gryffindor. My mom died when I was only a few months old, and my dad hates me with a passion. My whole life, all I've ever known is pain," she didn't know why she was telling him this. A part of her still didn't want to believe the whole scenario was real. "Hogwarts is the only place I ever had the pleasure of calling home."

Godric stayed quiet. He knew lots of students who went to Hogwarts had felt more at home here than at their own house, but every single one of them never admitted it to anyone except for maybe one of their closest friends.

"Wow," Godric said, not saying anything for a few seconds, making Maeve think that was all he was going to say. Until he clapped his hands together once. "Well, it was nice meeting you, Maeve, but I think it's time for you to head back to bed. Lessons start again tomorrow, and I think you'll hate yourself in the morning if you don't leave now."

"Wha- I just poured my heart out to you, and you're shooing me away?" Maeve said in shock.

"For now, yes," he said, waving his hand, making a door reappeare. "But you're coming back. Training starts tomorrow before dinner."

"I'm sorry, what?" Maeve finally stood up. "Training for what?"

"Did you not listen to my story? There has to be something special about you whether you know about it or not. I'm going to train you to be my equal."

Maeve opened her mouth to say something, but he put up a hand to stop her.

"And before you say 'but I'm not your equal, I can't wield your gift'. I feel some sort of energy radiating off of you, I just can't put my finger on what it is. There's something about you that doesn't immediately make me believe you'll fail."

"Wow, that makes me feel so much better." Maeve said sarcastically.

"Tomorrow. Before dinner. Don't be late."

Godric waved his hand, and a strong wind made Maeve slide back into the corridor of the castle.

Looking over her shoulder, Maeve saw the door disappeared again.

"What the fuck did I just get myself into?"