Disclaimer and warnings: refer Chapter One.
Chapter Two
Rowena had high hopes for her brother from the beginning. This only came to be after she had to seal away his memories of his parents. Not that she wanted to, but Rowena had realized that Harry's brain was more developed than an average brain of his age. His memory was quite good, and he could comprehend that "gone to a far off place" (that was what Rowena told him to get him to stop crying when he woke up) meant that they won't be there for him anymore.
Which had sent him into another tantrum. Except this time his magic had also lashed out, breaking almost all of her easily breakable items in his vicinity. It was at this stage she realized that her brother would be traumatized for life if she did not seal away those memories.
Of course, the seal was not permanent. Once he was ready to recall them without suffering mental trauma, only then would the seal be lifted. And even then, the memories would simply replace the ones she had implanted: that she was his older half-sister, and their parents had passed away before he was old enough to remember them. Also, he would only recall the memories of his parents when he focused on them, and not actively.
And that was what had taken the entire morning.
"Finally he stopped crying!" Salazar said through his portrait.
"Quiet, you." Helga chided. "He somehow still remembers his parents' deaths. It is only natural that he would cry. And now Rowena seems to have planned his future..."
"Yep," Rowena answered. "He is going to Beacon Academy of Magic. Or he dies trying."
"And she claims not to have inherited her mother's personality," Godric muttered. "And why not my school?!" He yelled after a second.
"OUR school, Godric!" Helga corrected.
"My castle makes it My school!" Godric retorted.
"And there is Zeus's logic bursting forth," Salazar muttered. "And didn't we spilt it between the four of us after Duke Gryffindor died?!"
Rowena decided to cut in before their argument would wake Harry up. He had just fell asleep, and there was no telling for how long he would cry if he woke up abruptly. "I would not send anyone to Hogwarts, much less my own brother. Remember when I visited the place in disguise a few years ago? It is more of a political playground than a school, and the lessons are quite lacking in... everything. Most teachers don't even ensure whether the students have actually learnt the subject or not! And don't even get me started on their joke of a government."
That practically ended all conversation. All four of them were quite saddened to what had happened to their collective efforts. Hogwarts', and even Magical Britain's downfall began sometime in the 1500's, when ideas of "purebloods" being better than "muggleborns" began to come forth. Even then, it was a slow, gradual decline that anyone with enough brains would have been able to avoid. But when old and powerful families - like the Blacks and the Greengrasses - began to accept these ideas, the downfall only became inevitable. There wasn't much Hecate or Merlin could do; after all, no direct intervention, no matter how badly they might have wanted to do so. Rowena's options were also limited, as she was only one person.
And it wasn't as if Beacon Academy was not a good school.
Beacon Academy was a very prestigious school, and the only one that required an entrance exam to get in. It had an international rank of 1 in magic schools. Universities that taught magic (for your Masters/PhD courses) had different rankings. Beacon's entrance itself was quite tough, as the rate was amongst hundred students, only ten could enter. Sure, the entrance exam didn't have any magical related topics - given how the students would not have learnt any before joining - but rather Science, Math, History and Geography, English and one other language amongst Latin, Ancient Greek, French, or German as the test subjects. The Entrance usually takes place over three days, one day for two subjects. The Math exam was the only one on the last day.
And while Rowena could, homeschool Harry, the best universities preferred students from magic schools over homeschooled ones. Rowena did not want to take any such chance where her brother's education would be compromised. That did not mean she was not going to teach him, however. She was a thousand year old witch (stuck in a body of a twenty five year old) after all.
(Summer of 2001; Harry's age: 10)
Rowena had started teaching Harry magical theory at this age. She felt it was the best time; he was going to be eleven in a week or two. It was then she understood her brother was not gifted like she first estimated him to be. No, he was a once in a century genius. In all fairness, she had underestimated his intelligence. He soaked up everything she taught him - the basics of the basics - like sponge to water. In fact, she was forced to teach him some of the advanced (for his age) stuff because of his quick learning. She kept her lessons to once a week, and for one hour only. She didn't want him to be bored in Beacon when he goes there, neither did she want him to be ahead of his class by a whole year or two. She had already suffered because of this; she was barely 14 when she was selected to be tutored under Merlin, while Godric, Helga and Salazar were 18.
And Rowena was quite lonely because of the fact that her father pushed her well beyond her fellow age-mates. If she had not known Godric from her childhood - Duke Geoffrey Gryffindor (Godric's stepfather) and Baron Robert Ravenclaw (her father) were quite close friends - she would have almost no friends in her childhood, her half-siblings not included. Even when under Chiron's tutelage, she preferred to keep to herself. Sure, she knew who Salazar and Helga were, but they were just acquaintances, and not as close when they would be after Merlin took them in.
Rowena did not want to make the same mistake with Harry. She had done a similar thing with Helena, and her neice had stolen her diadem and hid it. Not that Rowena cared about the diadem; the diadem was bought from a trinket shop, and the enchantments on it were easily reproducable. She did have close to a thousand years to search for it, but she did not because it was of no value to her.
There were many signs throughout his early childhood about his genius - given how he hated fairy tales because the stories were 'illogical'. Every time she decided to read one to him before he went to bed, he would point out the mistakes in the story she was reading. Which was why she would tell him interesting (for a child, that is) tales from her own past. She had tried telling him the tales of Ancient Greek, but that either got him so interested that he would refuse to sleep, or continuosly ask why didn't (insert god's name) do (insert logical action) instead of (insert actual event).
And in the beginning he was held back by dyslexia. But while dyslexia was not curable completely, it was treatable if the treatment began from an early enough age. The treatment was simple: you just had to read and write over and over again. Eventually, your brain got the hang of it, allowing you to read and write normally.
Of course, many kids his own age were rather intimidated by his intellect, and he was often bullied because of this. And the fact that he was a demigod made it worse sometimes - Rowena had sensed about three monsters in his first school alone, which she had gotten rid of before they could become a threat. And as a result, he didn't have many friends. His closest friend was the daughter of Rowena's colleague, and Rowena was pretty damned sure that Harry's friend was a demigoddess. She was too young for Rowena to properly ascertain whose daughter she was - demigod kids all had similar aura until the age of ten or so, and after that, anyone who could sense aura could make certain of whose kid it was without going by the behaviour.
Rowena did have her bet on Aphrodite, though. The young girl's father, Edward Beauregard, while not being a very powerful wizard, was the seven time winner of the annual 'Most Handsome Wizard Contest' and held the spot of 'Most Elgible Bachelor' for three years in the Witches' Weekly magazine that was popular with the younger witches. Of course, he, like most of the world, knew her as Anastasia Rivers. Both names were chosen completely at random.
And yes, his first school, because even Athena kids were sometimes subject to expulsion on unfair means. Harry was expelled because he had scored higher than the principal's kid, and the spoilt brat decided to beat Harry for that. When Harry had fought back, he was expelled 'for unprovoked attack on an innocent child'. Luckily the next school Rowena enrolled him in had no such problems. If the one incident with the teenage Cyclops was to be ignored. Seriously, that monster had rampaged in the chemistry lab of the school, and almost leveled the building. Most of the destruction was caused by the chemicals exploding rather the monster itself. Luckily, this was over the Summer vacation, so no one was hurt.
But despite his genius, Harry was a lazy kid.
And possibly did things no child of Athena did. Like stay up all night to clear one of his many video games, or to watch anime, read comic books, etc. the night before his tests and the like. His teachers had complained to Rowena that he slept in classes, mostly in History.
And he still had straight A's. The lowest grade he had received was an A-minus. And boy was Rowena angry when she saw the report card. If it hadn't for Helga's intervention, Rowena probably would have grounded Harry for two months at least.
And so, even right now, the night before his last entrance exam for Beacon, he was too busy defeating the Elite Four in Pokemon (Silver) rather than to review the subjects.
Sure, he had taken an official 'study leave' from Camp, which he began two years ago, but that was because Ashley Franklin, the Athena Counsellor, kept nagging him to go back so that he would not be distracted.
Harry was sure he was going to get killed if either of his older sisters found out what he was really doing. He did not know whose wrath was more frightening. The only time he had incurred Ashley's anger was when he decided to 'ensure his cells were respiring at their bare minimum so as to conserve energy for the next activity' (aka sleep) during her Ancient Greek class.
But he was a son of Athena. And possibly the only one who was using his intellect to slack off. He knew his sister's schedule. And he knew the general order of which the Founders appeared in what part of the house. Salazar was not a problem; he was actually all for it. Godric and Helga, not so much. They would instantly call Rowena.
At this time, Rowena would be watching the evening news. If she were to get up and check up on him, it would take her exactly 5 seconds to make it to his door, open it, and process what he was doing. Of course, Harry would not be able to ascertain if she has gotten up from her TV or not. The floor was carpeted, so no hearing footsteps.
So, the solution? One would have said, 'lock the room door.' But Rowena did not allow him to lock his door, and even if he did, she was a simple spell away from unlocking it. Harry had instead used one of his many science fair trophies to act like a SONAR. He did have a device that created a sound wave that was undetectable, and he had used it to create a SONAR in the project that had won him the very trophy he was using. If Rowena were to come near his door, the trophy would vibrate. A small LED placed on the circuit would also be lit for a short moment when that happened.
Ironically, it was Rowena who had taught him how to do that.
Of course, the back up was that Salazar had agreed to tip him off, but Harry had learnt a long time ago that Salazar was as trustworthy as Hermes in a bank with minimal security.
And with all due respect, he had a genius level intellect and an eidetic memory. Why would he need to study the same thing, over and over again? He could recall everything he had read, heard, seen, tasted, felt, and experienced in his entire life.
He had this one in the bag.
"What do you think you're doing?"
Or maybe not... the sensor would fail for the portraits, after all. And it had to be Helga. He was so screwed.
It was the day of the results.
They came by post, and Harry's was no different. The result was no schock to any resident of the Ravenclaw household. Rowena and Harry were both over the moon when they read the report. It didn't save him from the previous punishment; he was still grounded.
Beacon Academy Entrance Report
Name: Hadrian James Potter
Ancient Greek: 99/100
English: 99/100
History & Geography: 100/100
Mathematics: 100/100
Science: 100/100
RANK: ZERO-ZERO-ONE
Congratulations, you have been selected into Beacon Academy of Magic. Please show this Report Card to Michael Cruz, (head of Admissions Department), by 18th Sept, 2001 as proof of your selection. The Academy begins by 19th Sept, 2001. No student will be accepted beyond 18th Sept, 2001, irrespective of name or rank.
Signed: Professor Ozpin, Headmaster.
The past ten years had not fared well for Albus Dumbledore.
His bad mood had begun when he found out that Harry Potter had never spent a minute in his Petunia's house. He was informed so by Mrs. Figg, who was a Order member told to keep an eye on Harry Potter. But how was this possible? He had left the babe on the porch at two in the night... Ok, maybe in hindsight he should have waited until morning.
His bad mood had gotten worse when the Potter vaults were inaccessible and had been shut down. Little did Dumbledore know that the Goblins had been intrustucted to inform that the Potter vaults were under lock down to anyone who asked about the Potter vault. Dumbledore had tried to gain knowledge on who had shut them down, as he was the magical guardian of the Potter heir, but had been refused. The goblin teller even had the audacity to tell him, that he, Albus Dumbledore, was not allowed to question on the status of the Potter Vaults.
Now how was he supposed to get the Weasleys firmly into his scheme? Sure, they already worshipped him, but if he was paying, sorry, helping them in their time of need, then they would be completely devoted to him. Molly was quite angry when she was not getting the money she was promised.
The least he could do was provide free education to her kids.
And if that was not enough, he also had no idea on Harry Potter's whereabouts. It was almost as if the Boy-Who-Lived never existed. And Dumbledore had gotten through all that trouble to put Sirius Black in Azkaban just so that Harry's godfather would never get his hands on him. Harry Potter, a Light member, being raised by the new Lord of a predominantly Dark family? Preposterous. It was never meant to happen.
Of course, he had to give the media something else, so that his image would not be spoiled. Dumbledore had convinced everyone that Harry was being trained in secret so that he becomes the sort of hero the good people of Magical Britain deserved. Ironically, this was partially true; not that Dumbledore knew. Luckily that had also worked when he had to explain to Fudge why Harry Potter could not come to Hogwarts.
And on this particular day, the Cloak of Invisibility he had "borrowed" from James was missing, and so was a particular sword that he kept encased his glass. Interestingly, the glass had no signs of being broken into, or being repaired after that. It was almost as if the sword had vanished. Both were very important artefacts, the Cloak being a Deathly Hallow and the sword's original wielder was none other than Godric Gryffindor.
Even Fawkes, the phoenix that was always at his side, could not tell him if anything was wrong.
It was almost as if God had taken them. The irony of that was lost on an ignorant Dumbledore.
In the Ravenclaw household, the usual routine was going on. Harry and Rowena were engaged in a gruesome chess match that was ongoing for the last hour or so. The TV was turned on for Godric and Salazar, who had taken opposote sides in the ongoing Celtics vs. Lakers game, and were cheering for their chosen teams quite boisterously. Helga was also watching the game, but did not pick any side.
All were interrupted when a package arrived in Harry's name.
After Rowena inspected it - she and Harry were the only ones who noticed - and both suspected that it was their mother and Hecate who sent it. The other three were too engrossed in the intense basketball game.
The reason for this was because the package contained a baby snowy owl, which was a few months old, a wand (olive and phoenix feather; 11.5 inches), a very recognizable sword, and a cloak, no, the Cloak of Invisibility. The owl was kept in a statis spell that was widely used to safely transport animals and birds.
Rowena had heard that the Peverell clan had married and eventually assimilated with the Potters, so it was obvious that the Cloak would be passed down. But it was not present in the two of the three boxes that Merlin had gotten that had the belongings of James and Lily Potter.
The wand was also a bit odd. Hecate gave wands to her children as a gift when they turned, or were about to turn 11 – the first age of magical maturity. Of course, the wands were one of a kind, but still not overpowered like the Deathstick. They only had one special ability besides the usual functions of a wand: if the user lost or misplaced it, then the wand would find its way back to the user, quite similar to most demigod weapons. The Mist was then manipulated by the Goddess to make it look like the local wandmaker had made the wands. The wands were even registered this way.
And while all children of Hecate could use any wand ever made, their magic was at their strongest while using a compatible wand.
But it would make sense that Hecate was interested in Harry. The Potter clan used to be her favourite when the Gods were still in Europe. Harry was her grandson, the last Potter alive (though Rowena had heard a rumour that a Potter girl was in the Hunt) and the only survivor of the Killing Curse. Also, on top of all this, Hecate had also frequently heard a lot about him through Rowena, whether the goddess asked about him or not. Harry was her brother, and he did make her proud even though he had a penchant for slacking off.
That was something she blamed on Salazar. The Hermes was quite strong in the long-dead wizard.
Rowena brought herself out of her thoughts as she glanced at Harry, who was examining the owl. He was trying to find a way to break the statis spell. He had already picked up the wand, and had instinctively known it was meant to be used by him. His own magical core had accepted the much, much smaller one in the wand.
But the owl was still frozen! How was he supposed to get her - he somehow knew the owl was a female (possibly because of his mother) - to be free? His pride would not allow him to ask for help, and his sister had not yet covered breaking of spells. Only the basics to Charms, Transfigurations, and a bit of Arithmancy and Runes.
Spell breaking was not on that list.
But if he remembered one of his sister's lessons correctly, then intention was everything. If magic recognized your intention, then it allowed you to perform the task you wanted. Without a clear intention, it was impossible to cast any spell. And this was also seen in how spells were created: imagine the effects of the spell, then the intention to see that effect become reality, and magic would allow you to do so by channeling that magical power through a focus (a wand, sword, staff, etc.). The naming of the spell came later.
Of course, the limitations to this were your own imagination and strength of the magical core. A strong imagination and a clear intent but a weak magical core were not enough to create a powerful spell. Similarly, a strong magical core, but with weak imagination and unclear intent would not even create a weak spell.
Therefore, in theory, he should be able to create, or rather recreate, the spell that is used to break another spell, if his intent and imagination were clear and strong enough, and he knew his core to be powerful enough. Rowena had told him he had about the same amount of magic in his core as would a seventeen year old. Demigods in general were more powerful than normal humans, and Harry's lineage certainly helped that.
And so Harry got to work. He imagined the owl flying around, and made it clear to his magic that the owl flying around was reality. Then when he felt his magic reacting after a while, he pointed his wand at the owl. A streak of red light hit the owl, and she began to fly.
Before Harry could celebrate, however, she fell into his arms, her body going back into stasis.
Where most children his age would have been frustrated or started to cry, Harry was not like that. He would first ascertain his mistake, try again and again till his patience runs out.
Unknown to him, Rowena and the other Founders were watching him with great interest. Rowena herself was quite proud; her brother had managed a temporary spell-breaking charm. It was just like the Finite Incantatem spell, but only broke the target spell temporarily, and hence used a lot less power.
"That was a wonderful first try," Godric commented. "A little more power into your spell and the stasis will break."
Harry either did not listen or out right ignored him, lost in his thoughts.
"Leave him, Godric. He's lost in his own thoughts. I doubt he can even register what you said," Rowena commented.
"But won't this act of magic alert the authorities?" a concerned Helga asked. America was a lot more lax about underage magic - as long as you were a registered student of any magic school, you could use magic anywhere, as long as it was not made public. Sure, the Mist was a lot more potent here than in Britain, which was why even if one did perform magic in the open, it would most likely be hidden. But Harry was not a registered student in any magic school. He may have rank one in the entrance exam, but the 'registered' part of it only came after attending the first day of school.
"Alerting the authorities," Salazar scoffed. "Please! Nothing gets in or out of here - magical energy included - without Rowena's explicit permission. Surely you know that! And besides, it's not everyday that a child of Athena walks down the right path."
"Doing illegal things is the right path?!" Godric, Helga and Rowena asked.
"Within reason and limit, of course! Can you imagine how boring it would be if everyone stuck to the (beep)ing rules!" Salazar replied, before frowning. "Okay, the censoring rune was fun for sometime, but now its just getting old."
"I'm not going to even argue with the flaw in that statement. And you do remember that he learnt many slangs from you?" Rowena retorted. "When he was three years old, no less."
They were all interrupted by a "hoot-hoot!" that came from the owl. "Finally!" Harry happily cried as the owl flew up and landed on his shoulder.
"You shall forever be known as Hedwig," Harry declared. Hedwig happily hooted again, voicing her approval. She was a bit confused, not used to the stasis charm placed on her. But if she was meant to be under the care of this boy, the son of the Great and Powerful Athena, then she will never complain and protect her Master with her dying breath.
"Congratulations, Harry. The spell you used was a Finite Incantatem," Rowena said proudly. "But the specialty of this counter is that it differs in its properties against different spells. And I'm glad that you actually can apply your knowledge to everyday life."
Harry beamed at his sister. She rarely praised him like this, so it was a big achievement for him to receive such acknowledgements. "But I recreated that spell... and understood quite well how it works... why aren't each and every spells taught this way?"
"They are," Rowena said. "The only difference is, the way a student is taught a spell is a recreation of how the original creator created it, down to the wand movement. The way the four of us were taught, we were shown the effect of a spell by Master Merlin. Then we had to recreate that effect. How we did it was up to us. Of course, we were allowed to ask for help, but it was cryptic for the most part."
Harry nodded. The way his sister was taught, Harry felt, was the best way; by doing it yourself, you could completely understand the inner workings of a spell.
Then he turned his attention to other things. More specifically the sword.
It was a Knight's sword, with rubies encrusted at the hilt, and the blade was made of silver. The blade had two engravings on its either side. Godric Gryffindor in English and Stormbreaker in Ancient Greek. "Ahh. Stormbreaker... So many memories," Godric commented from his portrait, a far-off look on his face. That is when he saw Harry reaching for it. If the blade did not recognize you as the wielder, then the hilt would send a mild or a large shock through your body depending on your intentions. This was avoided if you wore gloves, but only if your intentions were pure. "Wait! Don't touch the -"
Harry picked it up, giving it a few experimental strikes. As soon as he picked it up, the rubies on the hilt glowed a bit, before going back to normal. Godric's name that was etched on to the side was also changed to Hadrian Potter.
"-blade. Huh. It recognized you as the wielder. Congratulations... I guess." Godric muttered.
Harry turned towards the ancient wizard. "Will it destroy monsters?"
"That sword, Stormbreaker, is made of Athenian Silver," Godric told him. "Which is simply normal silver blessed by all the twelve gods. Very, very, very rare to come by. Zeus only wants the best for his children, which is why I got my hands on it. The blade is rumored to have crafted by Hephaestus, but the god has neither confirmed nor denied this. Also, like Celestial Bronze swords, it can cut through monsters, demigods and even gods. Unlike Celestial Bronze, it is also effective against mortals."
"But why name it after mother?" Harry asked. "And why Stormbreaker?"
It was Salazar who answered. "Athenian is derived from Athens, as the silver was mined there. And Stormbreaker because his wife was a storm!"
"Gods dammit Salazar..." Godric muttered, and turned to Harry. "It was named because it once cut through a thundercloud, and Thundercloud-breaker was too long." Then he turned to his rival again. "At least I did not undergo performance issues!"
"That is a lie!" Salazar yelled indignantly. "And my 'snake' has 'slithered' into every clan there was back in the day!" The son of Hermes then turned to an irate Rowena, and smirked. "Ha-ha! I always find a way around everything. You seriously thought that a censoring rune can hold me! Female dog, please! I'm Salazar freaking Slytherin!"
"How did he get into Elysium again?" Harry asked rhetorically.
"I conned those three idiots!" Salazar grinned.
"I totally believe you," Harry said sarcastically.
"It is true," Godric said. "He was supposed to go in Asphodel. For almost every heroic act he committed, him acting according to his lust, and the fact that he conned quite a few people of their money, were enough to cancel each other out. The earthquake in Canterbury in the year 1382 was caused when Hades found out... And once the three judges have given a verdict, it is eternal with no way to overturn it."
"But he died in 997!"
"If you thought that Hades kept an eye on each and every soul to cross the river, you are dead wrong," Salazar said. "Get it? Dead wrong?"
"Gods dammit Salazar..." The rest of the residents muttered.
Harry then asked about the Cloak, the final object that had arrived. "That is the Cloak of Invisibility. As in it is a Deathly Hallow," Rowena answered.
"I don't recall you ever telling me about those," Harry said with a frown.
Rowena sighed, before telling him The Tale of the Three Brothers.
When she finished, Salazar was crying. Apparently portraits could do that. "A-Are you crying?" Helga asked, confused.
"Sniff-sniff... 'It was only when he had attained a great age that the youngest brother finally took off the Cloak of Invisibility and gave it to his son?!' Ignotus Peverell... was able to have a son while being invisible! That guy had some mad game," Salazar said. Godric, Helga and Rowena palmed their faces while Harry was a bit confused. What did games and having children have to do with anything? Salazar then added, "He is my one true hero! Even Zeus cannot defeat such manliness!"
That sent Salazar and Godric into another argument. Only Helga had returned to the Basketball game. At the same time, Rowena banned Harry from taking the Cloak to school. Camp was fair game, however.
"So.. Uhh.." Harry began, turning towards his sister, who fixed him with a look.
"You're still grounded. No going to Camp."
Acknowledgements: Beacon Academy and Ozpin are taken from RWBY, which is owned by Rooster Teeth.
A/N: I hope this chapter does not piss too many people off... I'm mainly worried about Harry not going Hogwarts, and creating an impromptu SONAR device. And Salazar being sneaky enough to trick the Three Judges. That should not cause too many problems right? Right?
But if you're worried about Hogwarts and its residents not getting any screen time, don't be. There is an entire arc planned for when Harry goes there (though I won't tell you when and why, though you can make a few educated guesses about both), and I plan to either include "Hogwarts without Harry" segments either in between chapters or at the end of chapters as an omake. Though I won't make any promises about these segments appearing in every single chapter.
Also, I hope my explanation about the creation of spells makes sense... if it doesn't, well, my other explanation is... MAGIC!
And thank you to all who fav'd , followed and reviewed! Hope you enjoyed, and stay tuned!