What does it mean when a twister hits Hogwarts?
It's time for a Wizard Of Oz parody of course!
Disclaimer: Unfortunately, I don't own Harry Potter, or anything Harry Potter related. The Wizard Of Oz isn't mine either. Too bad, eh?
Here it is, my first story at last! WOOT!
Hedwig, I Don't Think We're At Hogwarts Anymore…
.:)1(:.
.:) Chapter 1: Not At Hogwarts Anymore (:.
It was one of the worst storms in the history of Hogwarts. Thick black clouds billowed across the sky. It was so dark that one would have thought that it was late evening, when in truth it was barely noon. Wind howled among the turrets of Hogwarts, and cold rain fell like stones. If things were bad for those on the ground however, it was nothing compared to the state of those in the air. It was hardly ideal Quidditch practice conditions.
Harry knew that a little storm had never stopped Oliver Wood from holding a Quidditch practice before, but even Wood couldn't deny that things were getting more than a little out of hand. It was a complete disaster. The rain seemed to come from every direction at once. The wind was so strong that even Harry's Firebolt couldn't fly straight. Wood had been blown off into the stands, the chasers had lost the quaffle, and Fred and George kept hitting everyone, mistaking them for bludgers. Harry couldn't even find the ground, never mind the snitch.
Suddenly, a great gust of wind like a small hurricane pummelled Harry and whipped him right off the pitch. As his Firebolt jerked violently beneath him, he struggled to keep a hold on it. Once he righted himself, he looked up only to have something hit him in the face. Something white and soft. Something that cried "HOOT!" in his ear.
"Hedwig!" He quickly put an arm around her before she could blow away.
"You should have stayed at the owlry. What are you doing here?" She gave a feeble 'hoot; in reply and perched on his shoulder. She swayed dangerously in the fierce wind. Harry winced as her talons dug into his shoulder.
Harry looked around vainly trying to identify his surroundings. He was being tossed like a quaffle by the wind.
"Don't worry, Hedwig," he called over the wind. "I think I can see the castle up ahead! Yes! Wait…no? No! That's the Whomping Willow!"
-CRACK!-
The willow dealt him a vicious blow, knocking him from the sky. He fell to the ground, winded and dazed, gasping for breath. Hedwig began to 'hoot' in alarm. Quickly, Harry held her close in the folds of his robes to shield her from the wind and rain. Unable to see past his own nose, Harry began fighting through the storm in what he prayed was the direction of the castle.
Harry was immensely relieved when his outstretched hand touched a wall. A moment later however, he was dismayed to discover that this couldn't possibly be the castle because it was made of wood. Fervently hoping that this was not the broom shed, he began to feel his way around the perimeter of the building. Upon reaching a large wooden door, he realised that this must be Hagrid's house.
"We're safe now," he told Hedwig. "We'll be able to wait the storm out with Hagrid." Heartened by this thought, Harry heaved open the heavy door and quickly slipped inside before the wind could shut it.
Once inside though, Harry was disappointed to see that the house was deserted. At least, he thought it was. It was hard to tell. Harry was surprised to find that he was having almost as much trouble seeing inside as he had had outside. Something, he realised, was missing. Bringing his hands to his face his suspicions were confirmed. He was no longer wearing his glasses. But when had he lost them, and how had he not noticed before?
"Of course," he groaned. "They must have fallen off when the willow hit me, but since I couldn't see anything even when I had them, I didn't even realise that they were missing!" After being released from his robes, Hedwig flew across the room to a small table on which she happily perched. No sooner had she landed though, when she was forced to take flight again as the table toppled to the floor. Harry jumped at the sound of a teapot smashing.
"Be careful, Hedwig!" he scolded. He began to get seriously worried however, when more of Hagrid's possessions began to drop from the shelves, seemingly of their own accord. He looked up and felt a fine cloud of dust settle upon his face as the rafters rattled. The whole house groaned against the rage of the storm.
"Hoot hoot!" Hedwig called from somewhere over his head.
"Yes, I hope the house can hold out too, Hedwig." Harry replied, though privately, he thought their chances seemed pretty slim at this point.
As if on cue, the window behind Harry burst open allowing vicious gusts of wind to tear through the room like a herd of angry hippogriffs. Instantly, Harry's already blurry world became a flurry of colour and noise. Feeling as though the world was collapsing around him, Harry staggered across the hut, buffeted by the wind. He cried out in pain and surprise as his shins came in contact with an overturned chair. The last thing he was able to make out before his world went black was the ground rushing up to meet him.
.:)-(:.
Harry moaned softly as he regained consciousness. The first thing he became aware of was a dull ache in his shins. The next thing he became aware of was the fact that he was sprawled on a hard floor with a large cushion on his head.
"Why is there a cushion on my head?" he wondered aloud, shoving the cushion aside. He sat up and observed his surroundings. "And why am I in Hagrid's hut?" he questioned, rubbing his sore head. Once his vision had stopped swimming, he was able to clearly see the wreckage around him. Memories came flooding back to him. Quidditch, the storm, Hedwig, the willow. Then it occurred to him just how very odd it was that he could see anything clearly at all.
"How very odd," he murmured, bringing his fingers to his face. As expected, he did not feel any glasses, yet the room before him was clear as veritaserum. He got slowly to his feet and surveyed the room silently. He was speechless, half with shock at the damage around him and half with amazement at his miraculous clarity of vision.
He was startled out of his silent thoughts by a large, wool blanket that had begun to hop towards him, hooting angrily.
"Hedwig!" he exclaimed, rushing to free her from the blanket. "Are you all right? You'd better stay up here." He motioned for her to perch on his shoulder. But Hedwig, it seemed, was not in the mood to perch on his shoulder. Instead, she began hopping up and down, and flailing her wings in a rather lopsided fashion. Thoroughly puzzled, Harry bent down and picked her up. On closer inspection, he discovered that her left wing was looking a little mangled.
"Did something land on you?" he asked, concerned. Hedwig blinked at him and wondered why he asked so many rhetorical questions. "I can't hear the storm anymore, so we'd better get you up to the castle to see Madame Pomfrey."
Weaving through the disaster that was Hagrid's hut, he place Hedwig on his shoulder and strode purposefully out the door. The next instant however, he stopped dead in his tracks, as if he had just seen a basilisk. Had he actually seen a basilisk snaking its way towards him from Hogwarts, he wouldn't even have been half as surprised as he was by what he saw now. Not only could he see no basilisk, but he couldn't even see Hogwarts.
Gone was the forest, gone was the lake, gone was the castle and all its students along with everything else that Harry had expected to see. He turned to look at the building that he had just exited. There was no doubt about it. Though more than a little worse for the wear, it was definitely the ever familiar (if somewhat battered) home of his good friend Hagrid. Utterly bewildered, Harry turned back to view the bizarre fantasy that had suddenly become his reality.
Small brightly coloured houses were scattered out around him like a bag of gobstones strewn across the floor. There was no sign of life anywhere, but Harry seriously doubted that any people could live here. He was sure that he could not have stood up straight without hitting the roof inside any of the houses that he could see. He wouldn't even be able to get through their front doors without crawling on his hands and knees. A strange, shiny path made of small yellow stones wound its way haphazardly among the buildings, as though it kept changing its mind about which way it wanted to go. To top it off, the entire scene looked as if it had been painted by a five-year-old. This place had more colours than a box of Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans.
Once Harry had managed to pull his jaw off the ground, he turned to the silent snowy owl on his shoulder.
"Hedwig, I don't think we're at Hogwarts anymore…"
What do you think? I'd be really grateful if you leave a review, to let me know that you've read it. This is my first story, so please tell me how I'm doing! I hope to keep the updates coming at a steady pace.
I'd also be interested to hear your guesses as to who the characters will be played by. Every character has been replaced by someone from Harry's world. I've already decided them all though (unless you've got a much better idea! I'll credit you if I change my idea to yours). Also, it could be the Wicked Witch of the West or the Wicked Wizard of the West! Anything goes!
.:) PotentialDarkWizard (:.
MWA HA HA HA HA!