International Love | Fred Weasley

Chapter 3

A few things go wrong the next morning.

First, I oversleep. At first glance, I am perfectly on time, but then I remember the classes at Hogwarts start an hour earlier than at Beauxbatons. After that realisation, I jump out of bed and quickly change into my uniform. My hair is done with a few quick spells, and I snatch my bag from where it hangs over a chair. I run out of the carriage towards the castle and the Great Hall where breakfast is served – dodging students roaming the halls and ignoring the glare Madame Maxime sends me when I brush past her. I grab an apple from a nearby table and turn around.

That is when I realise the second thing that goes wrong.

I am the only student from Beauxbatons who met the criteria to take Potions at Hogwarts. That may not sound too bad, but I am standing in a castle I don't know the lay-out from and I have to find my way to the dungeons.

With Madame Maxime's words about keeping Beauxbatons's reputation high during our stay at Hogwarts echoing through my mind, I decide to ask a nearby Hogwarts student for help. Surely, they must know the fastest way to the dungeons.

The student I ask has platinum blond hair and wears a green tie. His friends smirk when I ask him the way. "Go up these stairs, then two times left, three times right, two stairs up and then one stair down. You should arrive at the dungeons there."

My first thought is that it's weird to take the stairs up when the dungeons are often located underneath a castle, but I decide not to question him and begin ascending the stairs. I heard people laugh but I have already rounded a corner and I really don't want to be late to Potions. After turning left two times and right three times, I end up in a hallway with no stairs.

I went two times left, didn't I?

As I wander through the corridors, I wonder if I understood the boy correctly. I only speak English with my uncle during the summer so perhaps I misunderstood the directions. I am now clearly lost and am slowly regretting taking Potions.

"Good morning, what are you doing here alone in the corridors?"

A voice helps me out of my thoughts, making me look up. A few feet away from me is Albus Dumbledore, the headmaster of Hogwarts.

"I think I am lost," I smile sheepish, "I have Potions in the dungeons, but I think I took a wrong turn."

The headmaster laughs and smiles warmly, "That happens to me as well. I will help you."

Albus Dumbledore holds out his arm for me and winks when I take it, "Don't tell anyone, alright? I am not supposed to do this."

Before I can respond, we apparate out of the corridor. Since I was a child, I have had a bad reaction to Apparation. The sudden feeling of dizziness and nausea overwhelms me. When my feet touch the ground again, I stumble and lands on a hard, cold floor. When I look up, I see rows of tables with smoking cauldrons on them.

"Good morning," a monotone voice says. When I turn my head, I look up to a man with black, greasy hair, a big nose. He is wearing a long, black cloak and looks at me with an unimpressed expression on his face.

I scramble up from the floor and start rambling in French without thinking: "Je suis vraiment désolé d'être en retard, professeur. Je ne suis pas familière par ici et j'étais perdu. Les étudiants avec les cravate verts n'étaient pas très utiles, parce qu'ils m'ont conduit dans le mauvais sens. Puis j'ai rencontré le directeur et heureusement il m'a aidé à venir ici."

The students sitting in the room look at me like I am crazy, but the professor doesn't look like he is impressed. He crosses his arms in front of his chest.