In which everything is different from the end of second year on. This will be a Harry/Daphne story. This will cover from the end of 2nd year and go until conclusion unless it gets too long. Expect complete AU, and a lot of OOC-ness. Harry will be powerful, magically, financially, and politically, however he will not be all powerful, and Voldemort will still be at least equal in magical power to him. His build up isn't going to be sudden either. It'll be a process that seems relatively fast but actually isn't once you read. Make sure you read the "exerts" at the beginning of a chapter and sometimes at the end as well as they provide important context for the chapter and sometimes for the next. I believe that's all. Enjoy.
Chapter 1
Exert from the Introduction to 'The Rise of the Order of the Phoenix'...
History is filled with many great wizards and witches of ordinary talent. And in each generation a select few are gifted with powerful magicks. But in times of great strife, and great danger to our kind, Mother Magic blesses a select few with extraordinary gifts, not all of them obviously magical in nature. Perhaps one of the most famous examples of this would be Merlin and the Knights of the Round Table. Merlin is widely known as the most powerful sorcerer to have walked the Earth. Powerful in magic, but weak in almost all other aspects, he held a title that has been challenged but not quite beaten for more than a thousand years. He came at a time when magic was being hunted to an extinction. Following the Battle of Caamlan, Arthur's son was hidden away by Merlin and the knights of the round table. Each gave oaths on the tripple goddess to protect and defend that son and the Pendragon line for as long as their lines exist. And so the Order of the Phoenix was founded. Always watching, always protecting the hidden line of the King. Only those whom descended from these great knights know of whom they protect.
The next was the Four Founders of Hogwarts. Into power in a time when the Non Magical world was hunting us to extinction once more. Together they built the Castle of Hogwarts, and from there protected our kind, eventually turning it into a school. Gifted in different aspects of magic, these four witches and wizards held more power together than even Merlin at his height. And so a pattern was borne, every generation had a small group of extraordinarily powerful people protect and defend the wishes of Mother Magic. More recent examples include Albus Dumbledore, who at the height of his power, could potentially rival any of the two founders together.
There are more, many many more, but not all of them were well known.
May 29th, 1993
Harry was about to walk out of the Headmaster's office when Dumbledore called his name. "Harry."
"Yes professor?" he asked.
"There are topics regarding your family, responsibilities that you will be coming into when you turn 13. So for that reason, I will have you come up everyday for a couple of hours, and I will visit in the summer to insure that you are ready. I will tell you more on our first session tomorrow evening. For now, go enjoy the feast, and once again, thank you for protecting this school."
"Yes sir." With that said Harry made his way down to the Great Hall to enjoy the feast. And when he saw Hermione, all his thoughts about anything other than his friends disappeared and he was unaware of the bright blue eyes belonging to a girl his age watching him. But another set of blue eyes did. And they wondered about the possibilities.
May 30th, 1933
Harry approached Dumledore's office a little apprehensively. When he got to the Gargoyle he found Professor Dumbledore waiting for him there. "Ah, Harry my boy, right on time. Come, we have much to discuss and little time to do it in." Harry nodded and followed him up the stairs into the Headmaster's office. However, instead of going to his desk, Dumbledore pulled back a curtain exposing a cozy sitting room and gestured for Harry to go in. Once they were both seated, Dumbledore made them tea, and only once it was served did he begin. "Tell me Harry, what do you know of our History, the History of Magical's and the rule of Merlin and the Knights of the Round Table?"
"Not much Professor."
"I thought not. I'm going to give you several books that I want you to read. For now, I will explain. After the death of King Arthur, Merlin took the bastard son of Arthur, who was not Mordred by the way, Mordred was his Cousin twice removed, not his son. No his son was named James Arthur Pendragon. Merlin feared, correctly, that any son of Arthur's would be in terrible danger, more so if that son had magic. So he and the knights hid him away. They all swore an oath on the triple Goddess-you'll learn about her later." he said in response to Harry's questioning look. At Harry's nod, he continued, "They swore on the triple goddess to protect the line of the Pendragon for as long as their own lived. Every child of the Pendragon line has since had magic, powerful magic, and the children of the knights were all gifted with magic as well. At that time there was a great fear of muggles, and with Arthur dead, the magicals feared that they were to be hunted and killed as they had been before. So Merlin to the noble families, anyone who had magic, or whose children had magic and created the Council of Warlocks which in time became the Wizengamont. There were a total of 75 families on that council. The knights were each given a magical title and land corresponding to this. For almost 500 years the magical world had a feudal system much like the muggle one. Then the International Confederation of Wizards came and they banned any magical from having a private army and muggles under their protection. And so these 75 families, most with different names from Merlin's time, lost a large portion of their land, wealth and power. They kept their titles but not much else. Throughout all this time, the knights and their families protected the true heir to the throne of Magical Britain, regardless of the fact that there is no longer a throne. Their names are no longer the same, but they did protect them. Take the Weasley's for example. Descended from Sir Percival, they have remained firmly on the side of the light that Merlin and Arthur stood for. They are well known for producing many children, smart and quite powerful ones at that. But not all families stayed good.
"With the enactment of the Statue of Secrecy, some families began to rebel, not violating their oaths but more less not enforcing them and mostly forgetting them. The Malfoy's are a prime example. Descendants of Sir Lancelot, they have, for 5 generations now, done everything possible without directly violating their oaths, to kill the heir. Supporting one dark lord after another."
"So who are the families left? How many of them? What does all this have to do with me?" Harry asked, speaking up for the first time.
"Of the 75 families on the council perhaps 40 remain. Due to the nature of the Charter, no new families can be added without the approval of the heir. He is the only one who can add or remove families. So the 35 other families were absorbed into the remaining giving some families multiple votes, others, with just one. Of the Knights families, those that remain firmly on the side of the light only the Weasley's, Dumbledore's, Moody, Longbottom's and Lovegood families remain. Of them, only the Weasley's have not been almost killed off. Those who have, for all intents and purposes betrayed their oaths, are the Black's, Lestranges, Malfoy's, and Nott's. A couple of families have become neutral however like the Greengrass, Davis, Bones' and Abbott families. As to what this has to do with you?
"James Arthur Pendragon and his son Francis, kept the Pendragon name. But Francis' son changed his name to Gryffindor. Godric Gryffindor's only child, his daughter married the son of a man named Peverell. 3 generations later, the last daughter of that line married a man named Charles Henry Potter. 12 generations later and you were born. You are the last and final heir of the once and future king. You are the last of the Pendragon line."
Exert from "The Gifts of Magic"
There are many types of magic and many varying power levels and skills as well. This is a well known fact. What is often not known however, is that there are different types of magic users.
The most common are those who are not particularly powerful at certain bit of magic. They might be slightly more skilled in some areas than others but for the most part magic works the same for them. This is a typical Witch or Wizard. The Second, more rare, but still common type is the Warlock. They are more powerful magically at magic, but are extremely skilled at one type a it or another. These are the ones who usually get a Master's in their particular field. While not weak in any type of magic by any means, but are clearly more skilled at one compared to the others. The third and slightly rare kind are Sorcerers and sorceress'. They typically are gifted with a high amount of magical strength, and are skilled with magic in most types. They are people who can hold multiple Masteries as their skills in each type of magic of a certain branch are above average. Next, you have the Grand Sorcerer. Skilled in every single type of magic in a particular branch they are often the most powerful people in their generation and for every 1000 magicals only 1 is born. In times of great peril more may be borne than normal to assist the next kind in their tasks. And after that is the Mage. Skilled in all types of Magic, across all the branches but perhaps not quite at the mastery level, they are the second rarest kind and typically only come about in times of great peril These Mages are usually known to have not just a Destiny, but a fate as well. Many confuse one having fate as having Destiny and vice versa, but this is not true. To have true fate, the world must rest in the hands of one touched by Death. The Grand Mage. A Master in all types of Magic, there has never been a true Grand Mage in history, but Merlin is rumored to be the closest to have become one. The appearance of a Grand Mage is rumored to be the sign of the impending apocalypse.