So this is just my idea of how it may have been if the wizarding world was like Loveless. I am not incorporating all of Loveless' components and I have had to fix some technicalities in order for it to work with the story. In the true sense of a 'Crossover', this story doesn't really qualify as there are no Loveless characters present. Regardless, I still put it in the Crossover section.
A MASSIVE thanks to Zakyla who helped me with this concept, give it flesh, and make it come to life :) I owe much!
As is normal for me, I don't care much for writing out books one and two. I will give the prologue and then I will skip to book three.
For those who are incapable of realizing this: I do not own Harry Potter or Loveless and I am most certainly not making a profit from this. If either of those things were true, I'd be a much richer, much fatter, and a much lazier person. :D
Hope you enjoy.
Harry knew he was different from everyone else and it wasn't just because strange things always happened to him, like his hair growing back by morning after his Aunt had cut it all off and manage to find himself on top of the school kitchens when he had been running from his cousin and his gang of pals. There was another thing that set him apart from everyone he knew: he had a pair of fluffy ears atop his head above his regular ears and a long tail. They were the same color as his hair, black, and he couldn't decide if they were cat ears or dog ears. He settled on neither.
This wasn't even the strangest part. It seemed he was the only one who could see them. When he had asked his Aunt why she didn't have them, she had been furious, calling him crazy and a freak. From then on, Harry had learned not to mention the ears and tail for fear of being treated even more like a mental case. It frustrated him though that no one could see them and every time he looked in the mirror, he would double check them, make sure they felt as real as they looked. As far as he could tell, they were really there. Even worse than no one believing him, Dudley had figured out they were really there even if he couldn't see them and he made it a game to try to grab them and pull on them as this was very annoying and painful to Harry, which was something Dudley would therefore enjoy immensely.
When he first met Hagrid, Harry was sure he would melt from joy at not only learning he was a wizard and hearing that having ears and tail were normal for them and that Muggles couldn't see the ears and tail, but also from discovering that Hagrid had a set of enormous ears, doppy looking and cute and matching his hair in color. His tail was long and fluffy and knocked into anything that got in its way, which seemed like everything. It was heavy enough to sideswipe Vernon to the floor, much to Harry's amusement.
They had gone to Diagon Alley together and his eyes had been near bulging at the passing people with ears and tails. Of course, he noticed so many didn't have such ears and tails and he had to ask about them. Hagrid had turned very red at this and mumbled something about him learning about it at school. Harry had taken this answer and run with it.
As long as he was not going to be a freak anymore where he was going, he was fine with it.
Aboard the Hogwart's Express, Harry met Ronald Weasley and they instantly struck up a friendship. It was during this conversation that Harry learned, much to his embarrassment why, people lost their ears and tails.
"You lose them when you...you know...lose your...you know..." Ronald was very red. "When you and a...girl...or a boy...get...to...try...to try...to make a baby!" He said this last part very quick and Harry had instantly blushed, knowing what Ronald was trying to convey.
Knowing this put a whole different light on the people he started to see with or without ears. All the students he was seeing seemed to still have theirs. In fact, so did Hagrid...and Albus Dumbledore...and Severus Snape. He learned quickly that it wasn't a joking matter. People weren't supposed to make fun of those who still had their ears. The Slytherins still seemed to find it hilarious that Hagrid still had his and it was only under constant vigilance that Harry, Ronald, and Hermione were able to keep them from saying it too often.
Harry, abashed by his lack of knowledge, just hoped the Slytherins didn't find out about how naive he was.
Harry had survived his first year at Hogwarts, barely. Of course, he'd put himself in the situation, he realized, but what else was he supposed to do? He wasn't just going to let Voldemort take the Sorcerer's Stone. He had survived and saved people and the day and that was what mattered in the end. He didn't care if it meant getting more sour looks from Severus Snape and the Slytherins as long as everyone was safe.
At the start of the following year, the second years were all coralled into the Great Hall to meet with the Heads of Houses and the Headmaster for a very important announcement and Harry, trying not to look like he was as naive as he felt, pretended not to be surprised by this since most everyone else didn't seem to be.
"Everyone on the Ravenclaw table please." Dumbledore asked and quickly, everyone moved to sit on the Ravenclaw table and face the teachers. "As most of you should be aware, next year will be very important. Following your thirteenth birthday, a connection begins to grow between you and another. This connection will form a name on a part of your body and this name will match another. They are, in essence, your soulmate, which the wizarding community calls Animusparticeps. You will share a nearly unbreakable connection and a name, which will give you power. You are unable to attack them for your wands will have sensed the connection as well. Over time you will begin to feel their pain and their emotions. The more you accept the connection and develop a friendship with your partner, the stronger these sensations will become, as will your strength as a wizard. It is very important to nurture this friendship, no matter what House they come from."
Fear spiked up into Harry's heart and he tried not to stiffen.
McGonagall began to speak. "For those who are unaware, yes, it is true that cross-House connections emerge. It seems to be that they either do not happen in a year or many do. If they do emerge, you are to embrace it and know that Fate has a better understanding of you both than you do."
Snape straightened and started talking, "It is also important to note that if a name does not appear within two months of your thirteenth birthday, you are a Blank." Many people seemed nervous upon hearing this. "Blanks are incredibly rare and nothing to be ashamed of. It means you are not born with an Animusparticeps, but may choose one, taking on their name instead and creating a connection this way."
"At the start of your next year," Sprout put in. "You will submit your second name to your Head of House and the Head of Houses will look over and match you with your partner."
"It is vital for you to know," Flitwick squeaked. "That you may not be with someone in your year. The connection can go ten years in either direction, though this is uncommon. In extremely rare cases, your partner may also be in another country at another school. These connections are hard to trace and it may take a few years before you get to meet your Animusparticeps."
"We are all wizards and witches." Dumbledore reminded them with a smile. "And each pair is a wonderful thing. Embrace the connection and do not try to shake it. It has always been proven that severing the connection, either magically or through neglect, does more harm than good."
Lavender raised her hand and Dumbledore gave a pleasant nod to her.
"Is it true that you can call your partner?"
"Only if the connection is strong enough." Dumbledore told her. "But regardless, your partner should know if you are in danger or need and they can always find you."
Dean raised his. "Can a Blank and a Blank make a connection?"
The Slytherins all laughed at this.
"No." Dumbledore shook his head with a silencing glance at the Slytherins. "The name is the connection. In order to connect, a Blank must take on the name of another."
"Is it true that you f-fall in...you know...love with your partner?" Ernie asked.
There were some snickers and a lot of blushing.
"This is incredibly common." Dumbledore was smiling with twinkles in his eyes. "Which is to be expected when you share such a bond with you partner, but it isn't rare for people to remain only as friends with their Animusparticeps and marry others."
"Is it true then that people can be partnered with...the...same gender?" Lisa questioned, her cheeks brilliant red.
"Yes." Dumbledore gave a singular nod. "I believe that covers everything. Now, off to bed, so you don't miss out on all the ruckus you could be making for your professors in your first few days back at school."
As they made their way up to Gryffindor Tower, the trio couldn't stop talking about it. Hermione, whose birthday was first of the three, was very excited about this, but she tried not to act it.
"We have to wait until the beginning of our third year to find out." Hermione explained. "Most everyone won't have their name until then, so what's the point in being excited?" She grinned. "But it is exciting, isn't it?"
The two boys exchanged a grin. It really was...in a scary sort of way.
Lying in bed, staring at the canopy above him, Harry wondered with excitement and worry who he would be partnered with. For some reason he kept imagining Hermione as she seemed to make the most sense to him, but she also seemed like she'd be a good partner for Ronald, if it wasn't for all the fighting between them. Then he thought, with a jump in his stomach, maybe he was with Ronald. After all, they were best friends already and this made much more sense than any other person.
"Fate has a better understanding of you both than you do." McGonagall's words made his gut twist and he closed his eyes, hoping against all hope he wasn't paired with Draco Malfoy.
Hope you enjoyed. More soon!