What's my age again?

[innocent_insanity]

WHO: Baby Kurloz and YOU
TONE: Cute?
RATING: PG-13
WHEN: Morning of 1st
WHERE: School halls, starting around the dungeons
WHAT: Kurloz has been turned into a very young boy - he escapes the Slytherin dorms and wanders around the castle looking for anything he might recognize.
STATUS: ONGOING



Okay, his mam had warned him not to follow strangers since he might wake up somewhere weird someday. 8 year old Kurloz had woken up in the strange green decorated bed in clothes way too big for him and snoozing big boys in the other beds. He'd tried to wear the trousers but they were simply too big so he'd just stuck to the flannel pyjama shirt which draped down to his knees anyway. Who's clothes were these anyway!? The guy must be a giant or something geez. So now Kurloz is creeping around the school hallways, lost and confused, barefooted and just a bit hungry, peering around corners with BIG BAMBI eyes.

Comments

[innocent_insanity]

"Oh, that fancy wizarding whatchamacallit place? Mam was a student here when she was a kid and all but she sure isn't a teacher these days," he answers easily, moving just a bit closer to Rhys. "Are you a student here?"

[grandhighwizard]

"Obviously," Rhys says, not really sure what to do about the boy moving closer. He looks maybe his sister's age, perhaps a little older? "Someone must have spelled you here. Myrddin knows why."

[innocent_insanity]

Kurloz pushes some of the hair back from his face and chews on his lower lip. "Who's Myrddin? I thought this might've been a prank by one of the fae again but they've never sent me this far before..."

[grandhighwizard]

"Myrddin! Greatest wizard of all time, don't you know anything, boyo?" Rhys asks impatiently, though the comment about the fae - "You've seen the Twylwth Teg? Really?"

[innocent_insanity]

"I'm only little, haven't had time to know everything yet, deartháir," he answered, sticking his tongue out at the older boy but smiling a bit at least. "I dunno about no Twillie's teg but I play with the Aos Sí that are near my village." He grinned brightly and added, "Them's what taught me how to play the fiddle right, even if mam doesn't believe me."

[grandhighwizard]

"They're the same thing, of course. Your word's just the Irish word for it," Rhys said a little disdainfully. "Fairies. Why wouldn't your mam believe, is she a Muggle or something?"

Of course, plenty of wizards didn't have fairy encounters, either, but Rhys was from an older pureblood family who still left milk and cake out for the bwca on occasion. Not that he'd ever seen them, and he thought maybe they were just wild house elves, anyway.

[innocent_insanity]

"Where's your word from then?" he asked, with all the curiosity of a child and moving closer as if seeing Rhys up close would tell him all his secrets. "No, she's a pureblood, it's just the ones what are close to the village don't usually talk to the people there."

He shrugged and grinned, indigo eyes sparkling with amusement. "It's actually just that they like playing with kids. Well," he paused, correcting himself, "some of them want to play with the adults too but the adults don't want to be rolling with them and making halfbreeds, whatever that all means."

[grandhighwizard]

"It's Cymraeg, of course," the older boy said, narrowing his eyes and cocking his head to one side. "And it means the adults don't want to copulate with them and make half-fae babies for the women. I don't know what happens if fairy women get pregnant by human men. They might eat the babies or something, at least some sorts. Or raise them to cause mischief."

[innocent_insanity]

"That might be it," he agreed, wrinkling his nose. "A lot of them like eating people because the meat's softer. They don't attack so much these days though because of Aurors and stuff. One of the sídhe likes me though so they're not allowed to eat me."

His stomach suddenly growled with all this talk of eating, and he glanced down at it, giving it a gentle pat. "Uh... is there anyplace here you can get food?"

[grandhighwizard]

"The Great Hall," Rhys said, then huffed out a breath through his nose. "I'm headed there, anyway. You can come along, I suppose."

[innocent_insanity]

"Really? Buíochas!" he replied, grinning brightly. "Thanks bro- hey, what's your name? I'm Kurloz!"

[grandhighwizard]

"Rhys Rhydderch," he told the smaller boy, jerking his head. "Come on, then. I expect we'll have to find your parents at some point. What kind of name is Kurloz? It doesn't sound Irish."

[innocent_insanity]

"I dunno, mam picked it, not me," he answered with a shrug, moving closer to Rhys. "Rhys Rhydderch's a cool sounding name though. Is that Wel- you spoke Welsh before right? Does that mean you're Welsh?"

[grandhighwizard]

"Cymraeg," he corrected, with a certain pride. "Yes. You couldn't tell by the accent?"

Rhys was teased a lot for his accent. He'd only been speaking English on a regular basis the last 6 or 7 years, after all. But he supposed little kids couldn't tell, maybe.

[innocent_insanity]

"Cymraeg," he repeated, scratching the back of his head. "Not really, I don't see none too many people from outside of the village to tell with accents and stuff, you know?"

[higherthaneverybody]

"How do you even imagine you got here?" Rhys asked, because really, then boy didn't seem very upset for being magicked away from a home he never really left.

[innocent_insanity]

Kurloz shrugged, smiling and completely at ease with the situation. "Dunno. Might've stepped on someone's portkey? Or maybe it is a prank from the faeries, but at least I know where I am. Means if you're keen enough it's not up and impossible to get a-wandering back home."

He glanced around at their surroundings, bare toes wriggling on the stone floor and smiling. "Besides, s'kinda cool being here and all, knowing a bit more about mam's past, you know?"

[higherthaneverybody]

The older boy snorted, leading Kurloz into the Great Hall and over to the Ravenclaw table, because why the hell not? "That's one way to look at it. Though I don't see too much learning going on right now."

Nor did he see any of his classmates, or anyone he recognized at all, which was very disturbing. He didn't say anything about it, though, ignoring the looks he was shot by other Ravenclaw students. There were at least some other little kids in here, so he supposed Kurloz wasn't an isolated event, but what had happened to all the other students?

[innocent_insanity]

"I'm learning heaps just walking around," he answered cheekily, grinning and following Rhys. "You're the one what's meant to be studying."

The seats are a bit tall so he partially climbs onto the bench next to the older boy, glancing at the other students curiously. "There's a lotta little 'uns here besides me - isn't it meant to be 10 up here or something?

If he happens to sit a bit closer to Rhys for comfort in this sea of strangers, he doesn't mention it, just reaching over the table for a breakfast scone.

[higherthaneverybody]

"Yes. There's something going on, something more than just you showing up," Rhys admitted, snagging a plate of butter and absently handing it to the younger boy for his scone. "This happens sometimes. Strange spells and effects for no discernible reason. Didn't your mam tell you about that?"

[innocent_insanity]

"Buíochas," he chirped as he accepted the butter. He split the still hot scone in half and began to butter it as he answered, "Yeah but she didn't mention nothing about random folks just popping up everywhere."

He glanced at the other significantly younger children for a moment, licking a bit of butter from his thumb before chomping down on his scone. "Has it happened a lot while you've been here?"

[higherthaneverybody]

"Not quite this total," Rhys said thoughtully, still looking around. He wasn't bothering to get any food himself, too distracted by the strange students around, and the unfamiliar teachers at the staff table. Well, except Dumbledore ... but why does the man have white hair, and why does he look so old?

With slowly dawning realization, he asked Kurloz, "What year is it?"

[innocent_insanity]

"What kinda question is that?" he asked, wrinkling his nose and giggling. "It's 2004."

[higherthaneverybody]

"Malu cachu!" Rhys swore, looking around more intently now. "How can that be?"

[innocent_insanity]

Kurloz frowned, pausing in his breakfast. "Didn't you know that?"