Chapter 2: A Matter of Education

"Despite the long history of institutionalized educational establishments in the world, the public has never fully embraced the idea itself. Latest estimates by the Ministry of Magic (Britain) place national enrollment for magical education at 34%, while approximately 37% continue to seek out apprenticeships and a further 29% remain home-taught. This is a significant increase from the "Dumbledorean Period" (Pre-Purity Regime) which had enrollment at a mere 26%. Also of note is the fact that this is well above the international average (19%) and the European average (24%). There is now a growing inclination among parents to choose magical institutions to further the magical education of their children - given the advantages of a well-rounded education over immediate specialization - but it remains to be seen if this method will ever be the norm."

-Annual Report on Magical Education (1993) by the Department of Magical Education

17 October 1990

"Please," Lily said, smiling brightly at the son she hadn't seen for seven years, "call me Miss Lily. It's a pleasure to meet you, Harry."

"So tell me, what do you know about magic?" Miss Lily asked.

"Well, you move your wand," Harry gave a demonstration, imperfectly mimicking a motion he'd seen his parents do countless times, "and say a Latin phrase, then it just sort of...happens."

Miss Lily's laugh was warm and disarming with a melodious ring to it. It was different from the high-pitched, haughty laugh of his mother and the deep, friendly chortle Dad had.

"That's one way of looking at it. Magic is, above all else, a gift; one that allows ordinary people to do extraordinary things." Her willow wand was in her hand in an instant and a miniature dragon appeared on the table between them, snarling and biting at the air.

Harry's eyes grew wide with amazement as he watched the conjuration stretch its wings, before taking flight around the room. "Wow," he breathed out when the lizard spat out a small, relatively harmless fireball. "Can you teach me to do that?"

"In time. You've got to learn the basics before we get to that." She smiled sweetly. Harry could've sworn it was just his imagination, but her eyes seemed more…alive? "Which subject would you like to start with first, Charms or Transfiguration?"

He gave the question careful thought. First Impressions were everything, or so Mother insisted. "Charms?" he said, not all too certain.

Lily's smile grew even wider, if that was possible, the white of her teeth showing now. "That's my mastery," she said, trying to sound casual, yet the hint of excitement intertwined with her tone was unmistakably there.

"Charms," Harry repeated.

"Well, the first charm they'll teach you in Hogwarts is the Levitation Charm." She demonstrated on the empty chair beside him, going through the wand motions and incantation slowly for Harry's benefit. Harry copied her actions as well as he could.

"Make your flick sharper, keep your wrist firm."

"Put the stress on the 'O', not the 'Sa'."

"No, no, the swish has to be softer, like sweeping the floor with a broom...there you go."

At last, she conjured a feather with effortless ease and placed it in front of him. Harry stared at it, frowning.

"It's best to start simple," Miss Lily said.

"Why?"

"A spell doesn't have to be cast perfectly to work properly, especially for simple tasks," she said. "The first step in learning a spell is to get a feel of the magic; perfection can come later."

"But…" he hesitated for a moment, before plowing forward. "If a spell does what it's supposed to already, why would anyone work harder than they needed to to perfect it?"

"That a good question," she said, nodding. "It's considered bad practice to work on a spell just so it's barely passable. Aside from the risk of forgetting how to do it, sloppy spellwork can fail you when needed the most." There was a pause, before she added, "You never know when a situation might require a perfected spell."

"Oh." He bit his lip, wanting to ask more. Lily seemed to sense this and waited patiently for him to ask. "What things affect a spell though?"

She glanced at something behind him, the clock probably. "The topic's a broad one, we don't have the time to cover this now, but I can give you a book about it the next time we meet, if you like?"

Harry nodded eagerly. "Yes, please."

"Now, try out the Levitation Charm."

The remainder of the two hour session passed quickly and Harry could honestly say he was a bit disappointed when their time was up. It was partly because he wanted to learn more magic; partly because Miss Lily was nice and pretty and supportive, unlike his mother, who had nothing but harsh words.

"So, what do you usually do in your free time?" Lily asked as she held open the study's door.

"I play Quidditch with my brother, Robert. We're on the Godric's Hollow team, you know," said Harry.

"That's impressive," she said, and Harry grinned, puffing out his chest like a peacock. "What position do you play?"

"Depends on what the Captain says. Seeker's my favorite, but I'm decent at Beating and Chasing." His easygoing smile turned into a grimace. "I hate playing as Keeper though."

Lily's brow arched. "Every position is important. I remember that much about it."

"Yeah, but playing defense is so boring."

A small smile tugged at Lily's lips. "Do you have practice today?"

"Nah, practices are on Wednesday mornings and Friday afternoons." There was a moment's silence. "Do you like Quidditch, Ms. Lily?"

"Sure, though I'm more of a spectator."

"That's great! I actually have a game next week against the Hogsmeade Hippogriffs, but Dad can't make it because he's busy, and Mother," -a look Harry couldn't quite distinguish flashed on her face- "well, Mother doesn't like Quidditch. Did your family like Quidditch? Or the muggle equivalent?"

Miss Lily's smile seemed pained, somehow. "I suppose they do like flying." Her look seemed more pointed, and Harry got the feeling they weren't talking about the same thing.

"You aren't sure?".

Something lurked beneath her eyes he couldn't quite place. "I'm not close with any of my family. I've only gotten in touch recently."

"Oh, well that's good." Harry nodded. "Family's important."

"It is, isn't it?" she said, softly. She blinked. "You were saying about Quidditch?"

"Oh, right! Would you like to go to my game? I mean, only if yo-"

"I'd love to go."

-The Magnate-

Lily found herself braving the chilly autumn morning winds of Cornwall on the elevated Millennium Stadium, which itself was a stone's throw away from the growing wizard district of Bodmin Moor. As expected of an amateur match, there weren't many people in the audience. Mostly, it was just parents of the players spread out among the more Quidditch-avid locals.

"Hullo there!"

The bench groaned in slight protest as a weight dropped beside her. Lily turned her head, a startling pair of grey eyes locking her in place. "The name's Joshua Bell," he said, a smile accompanying his extended hand.

"Lily," she replied, shaking his hand.

"Now comes the big question, Lions or Hippogriffs?" he began conversationally, the grin he wore never quite fading.

"Godric's Hollow Lions, of course." Lily gestured to the lion motif decorating the crimson Gryffindor scarf wrapped around her neck. It was convenient how well her old Hogwarts scarf matched the occasion perfectly.

Joshua withdrew an identical one from his robes. "Excellent. Then we can be friends." He nodded satisfactorily, as if judging her worthy. "Ah, a Hogwarts scarf? If you don't mind me asking, what class are you?"

Lily supposed this was a "nicer" way of asking for her age. "Hogwarts Class of '78. You?"

"Class of '73. Funny thing is I don't remember ever seeing you at school."

"There were plenty of students at school," she pointed out. "I don't think you'd remember everyone. Besides, you had your OWLs and NEWTs to worry about."

"True, but a lady as stunning as you? I'm sure it would have made a lasting impression on me." This elicited a perfectly raised brow from Lily, who struggled to keep her lips still.

A sudden cheer erupted from the stands, signaling that the players had taken to the field. Joshua, in sync with his Gryffindor raucousness, joined in, loud and unabashed. The match was a series of haphazard passes, off-target Bludgers and failed shots, but the atmosphere remained lively and light, punctuated with encouraging cheers when the rare shot went in.

Joshua tugged at her sleeves excitedly. "That's my daughter!" he shouted over the crowd's roar of approval, pointing to the feminine figure that had just gotten the red, football-sized Quaffle past the Keeper.

Lily watched her play, noting she had some talent after her second goal in the span of a few minutes. "She's very good. What's her name?"

"Katie!"

Lily nodded, before a thought occurred to her. She glanced around, before asking, "Where's her mother?"

A pained look passed through his eyes and the smile he wore faltered. "She, um, passed away, during the war."

"Oh." Lily replied, feeling awkward all of a sudden. "I'm sorry for your loss."

"Thanks you, and it's really quite alright. It was...a long time ago." A moment of silence passed.

Strangely, she saw his ever-present grin threaten to break into a frown – a phenomenon she had thought impossible at this point. "Do you have anyone on the team?"

"Yeah!" She squinted, making out the familiar mop of black hair among the mass of flyers executing a fancy overhead pass. "That one! Harry Potter!"

"Your son?"

She hesitated. Harry's status as a bastard half-blood, while not a state secret, wasn't exactly something they liked to share with people. For one thing, there was a stigma on illegitimate children within the relatively small magical community. If there was one thing Lily knew as a muggleborn, it was that being discriminated by your peers didn't make for the most pleasant childhood.

On the other hand, she couldn't quite bear denying her own child. It felt too much like condemnation and betrayal. "I'm his tutor," she finally replied, deciding that the answer was a sufficiently ambiguous compromise.

His eyes seemed to gleam at that and his smile returned in full force. "Listen, a couple of the parents wanted to go grab a bite at Diagon afterwards. Do you want to come with?"

Naturally, she chose the option that would let her spend more time with her son, much to Joshua's delight.

The fact that the Lions lost (though it was a close game at 200-180) didn't deter them at all.

-The Magnate-

2 November 1990

James Potter decided he had not been in a situation this dangerous in quite a while. It was daunting to be alone with two angry, armed witches who would not hesitate to do him bodily harm. The only saving grace he had was that they hated each other more than him…probably.

Maybe he should have rescheduled this meeting – more like Dueling session in his unbiased opinion.

"Evans." Melissa greeted, as cold as a Dementor's chill.

"Selwyn." Lily replied, tone clipped and measured.

The opening shots were exchanged in short bursts that left him with hope that all three would leave the room alive and generally unharmed…

"It's Potter now." sniped the smirking Selwyn.

…Never mind.

"Not really something to brag about," commented the redhead airily. James winced, stung by how nonchalantly she had just disregarded him.

The brunette's eyes narrowed into vicious slits. "Like you would know anything about that, whore!"

"Is that the best you can do, inbred? How's that son of yours?" She smiled in a sickeningly sweet manner. "Anything odd about him?"

Melissa scoffed, trying to pull off an air of indifference. It would have fooled them, had her trembling form not betrayed her. "At least he isn't a bas-"

"SHUT UP!" James exploded. "The both of you!" He shifted his glare towards Lily when he saw her smirk from the corner of his eye. "For Merlin's sake, can we please just talk about Harry's progress without any unpleasantness?" The two women glared at each other, but the insults had stopped at least.

"In the past month, Harry has shown progress in the three major fields – Charms, Transfiguration and Dueling. He has shown the most promise in Charms," Lily paused, no doubt to take delight in the disappointment James showed, before continuing, "being able to cast, with great proficiency, the Levitation, the Wand-Lighting and the Unlocking Charm. More importantly, he has begun to study in his own time the most basic principles of Charms and Spell theory."

"Does he understand it?" Melissa interjected.

Lily frowned. "Not yet." Melissa snorted and rolled her eyes. She might as well have poured oil on the fire known as Lily Evan's temper. "It's the fact that he's trying that's important!" she bristled. "Most children never start until-"

"Is that all? Three charms are all you've managed in the month we've given you?" Melissa made a show of sighing. "James dear, I told you this would be a waste. Why, I heard from my cousin that her daughter, the delightful little Hannah, managed a most excellent transfiguration last week."

"Let her finish with the report." The blue-eyed brunette harrumphed, crossing her arms. "His Transfiguration?" James asked, slightly hopeful.

"He's mastered the first exercise, matchstick into needle, but he needs more practice with changing the material and increasing the dimensions of his transfiguration. That said he is doing rather well. In Dueling, I haven't taught him too much, but he does have superb aim. He was able to hit moving targets with ease and we were going to work on his speed next."

James leaned into his chair with fingers steepled. "As his tutor, would you recommend, given his interest in Charms, that we arrange for an apprenticeship when he turns eleven?"

"What?" both women said in chorus, shocked faces perfectly identical.

That's one way to get them on the same page.

"Would you recommend we arrange for his apprenticeship over pursuing a formal education?" James rephrased in an even tone.

"What happened to Hogwarts?" Melissa demanded. "The Potter family have sent their children there for generations!"

James ignored his wife. "Lily, please answer the question."

"I, err, no." Lily shook her head to shake off, James suspected, the shock. "While Harry shows a greater interest in Charms, he hasn't expressed his decision to pursue a career in the field. Even if he had, I'd be against it. Objectively, it's a bad idea to restict his career flexibility at such a young age, when he's prone to changing his mind. You know how children can be."

"What happened to Hogwarts?" Melissa repeated, refusing to let up. Lily continued to stare at him.

"I've given this a lot of thought over the past few weeks and I just don't think Hogwarts is right for the kids." Harry especially.

The crease in Lily's forehead disappeared as realization dawned on her face. "This is about Snape, isn't it?"

"...Maybe."

"Definitely Snape then."

Melissa alternated her gaze between the two, still confused. "What's this about Headmaster Snape?"

"Have you met the man?" James asked.

"Once or twice," she said, "he's a very…intense individual."

James snorted. "That's understating it. The man can hold a grudge. Bloody prick."

"Like you're one to talk, Potter," Lily said.

"Hey, I grew up!" Her stare of utter disbelief forced him to amend his statement. "Sort of."

"You were in the same batch as him?" Melissa asked. "And I'm guessing you didn't part on good terms?"

"We were never on good terms," corrected James.

"So now you're afraid he'd let his enmity affect his treatment of the children if we sent them to Hogwarts," Melissa said.

"I wouldn't put it past him."

Melissa narrowed her eyes. "Do you agree with this?" she asked Lily in a semi-civil tone.

Slowly, she nodded. "He's not one to let go of the past so easily." She turned to James. "If Hogwarts and apprenticeships are out, how about-"

"International schooling," Melissa interjected smoothly. "Beauxbatons and Durmstrang are fine second choices."

"Durmstrang it is," said James.

"Why not Beauxbatons?" Lily's brows furrowed deep.

James scoffed, giving her a look that shouted "Are you serious?"

"They require children to start at the age of ten, at least. Something about mandatory etiquette classes. I don't need them to teach my children how to behave," Melissa said.

"And they're French," James added dryly. "Do I need another reason?"

-The Magnate-

21 December 1990

"Buongiorno Harry, Daph," The Italian boy nodded to each in turn, before taking a look around. "or I suppose it should be Buon Natale now."

"Buon Natale?" mouthed Harry to Daphne, not all too clear on the term. She shrugged, either because she didn't know or didn't care to know; possibly both.

Blaise must have noticed their wordless conversation, because he rolled his eyes. "It means Merry Christmas."

"Right," said Daphne. "Why do you even bother with Italian?"

He frowned at her. "It's important to be in touch with your heritage."

Harry and Daphne shared a look.

"What? It's true!"

"We've heard you say like four things in Italian." Daphne pointed out, bringing a hand up to count off. "Buongiorno, ciao, grazie and boon natalie."

"Boon natalie?" Blaise repeated incredulously. "It's buon natale, you dolt! 'sides, every time I add a word you guys do this all over again."

Daphne fluttered her lashes innocently. "Do what, Blaise?"

He glared. "You know what."

"I really don't," she insisted, brushing a lock of gold behind her ear.

"Yes you do!"

"No, I don't!"

"Yes!"

"No!"

Harry, happy to watch them go at it, leaned into his chair when he noticed a certain someone standing beside him. "Hey Harry." Lavender said softly, twirling a loose strand of hair that reached just below her shoulder.

"Hi Lav!" Harry stood to give her a small hug. "Merry Christmas!" When they parted, there was a bit of red on her cheeks.

"How long have they been at it?" she asked, nodding towards their two friends, who somehow had managed to throw in a "Hey Lav!" in the middle of their fight.

"They just started, so this could take a while. How've you been?"

Lavender gave him a small smile. "Got my wand yesterday!"

"That's great! Told you you had nothing to worry about," Harry said. "Have you tried anything with it?"

"Does shooting colored sparkles at someone count?"

"Well," Harry stroked his chin, "it is Christmas after all. I suppose I could consider it." She slapped him playfully on the arm, before turning to watch the show.

"-don't want your gift then?"

"Now Blaise," the shift in Daphne's tone between critical and charming was instantaneous, "you know you're my best friend, right?"

"I thought that was Lav," Blaise said.

The blonde waved her away. "You're my best guy friend. Completely different."

"What am I supposed to be then?" Harry deadpanned.

"The other friend." Daphne laughed when he crossed his arms, indignant, before she turned to Blaise again. "Gift. Now."

He rummaged through his pack for a couple of rectangular packets and handed both Lavender and Harry one each. Then, he looked through it again, before carefully lifting out a hexagonal thing, carefully wrapped in green foil.

Lavender eyed the gift in her hands. "What do you think it is?" she whispered to Harry.

"Too small to be a magazine." He weighed it in his hands experimentally. "Something light. Honeydukes chocolate? And since Daphne got the odd-shaped one he picked out specifically, I'd say hers is special. Maybe the new mint flavored one."

"Why do you think Daphne got Honeydukes like us? It could be something else."

"Because Blaise always gives us different kinds of the same thing for Christmas. It's his thing." He reached for the knapsack hanging behind his chair and pulled out a palm-sized purse mirror. "Sorry it isn't wrapped. I couldn't figure out how to do circles."

"It's fine, Harry." She examined the sleek, silver exterior curiously. "What is it?"

"Miss Lily, my tutor, said it was a vanity mirror." He shrugged, having no idea what that meant. "I guess it's charmed to give you advice or something?"

"That's probably it," she said.

Harry handed out the rest of his gifts (Daphne got a nice, leather-bound diary with her initials embossed in front and he gave Blaise a Travel Guide) and received his in turn (the two latest editions of Quidditch Weekly, which suggested the girls had talked it over). After all this was done, they still had half an hour until Mrs. Bridgemoot, their supervisor, would return with the floo powder.

Blaise ended up being the one to instill some excitement into the room. "How about some magic?"

"We're not supposed to," Lavender said, biting her lip.

Harry's head bobbed in agreement. "Lav's right. We could get in trouble."

"What's life without a little risk?" asked Blaise. "You in, Daph?"

Daphne was already drawing her wand. "You are so going down."

"In your dreams, Greengrass." Blaise turned to Harry, peering at him. "Harry? Come on, what's a little friendly competition? It's not as if we're going to be dueling."

"Fine," he gave in, "but if we get in trouble, I'm blaming you."

Blaise rolled his eyes. "Lav, you can judge. Agreed?" Daphne and Harry nodded. "Right, Ladies first."

"Watch and learn boys." Daphne placed a quill on the table they had circled around and drew her wand in an exaggerated fashion, before drawing an invisible pattern on the desk that Harry strongly doubted was an actual spell-casting movement. "Motus exemplar!"

Some unseen force dragged the unfortunate writing device across the surface by its tip, the faint lines sketching a rough, star-like shape. It repeated this twice before the quill keeled over, flopping around like a fish out-of-water.

"Is that all?" Blaise sighed in an exaggerated fashion. "I thought you said you were practicing."

Daphne glared at him, jaw clamped tightly as Blaise stepped forward. A minute passed in silence without any change visible.

"Sometime today would be great," Daphne said.

Blaise's eyes narrowed, but his singular focus remained on the quill. His hand was in motion before she could get another jibe in and it ended in a sharp jab that transformed the feather and tip into the model of an eagle with a steel beak.

"And that," Blaise said, "is how you do it."

Harry looked over the figure critically, paying particular attention to the wings. "Give the feathers a bit more spruce next time."

Confidence morphed into confusion. "What?"

Harry's reply came in two parts: the first a light tap that caused the forelimbs to stretch and spread; the second was an elegant twirl that ended in a flick. Splashes of color washed over the figure in waves, giving it a picturesque quality. The final product was an eagle in midflight that could be mistaken for a live one, if it wasn't for its stillness.

Harry tentatively picked it up, presenting it to Lavender as if it was a crown jewel. "If I'm being fair," she began, "Blaise's transfiguration tops both of yours."

"Zabini reigns supreme!" Blaise shouted, both hands up in a "V", as he addressed an invisible crowd.

"It's hardly fair," Daphne grumbled to Harry. "He had three months on me, and nearly a year on you."

"Could you imagine if he actually lost," Harry said, grinning at the mental image of Blaise sulking.

Blaise didn't let their remarks ruin his mood.

-The Magnate-

18 February 1991

Knock. Knock. Knock.

"Come in!" Harry called out, though he didn't look up from his book. He heard the door swing open and the sound of shuffling feet. "Yes, Rob?"

"How did you know it was me?"

Harry offered a small smile. "Mother calls before coming in, and Dad doesn't knock."

"Huh, I never noticed before." Robert said, scratching his head. "Watcha readin'?"

"Perfecting Your Spell by Heifer."

He could see Robert frown from the corner of his eye. "Heifer? That's it?"

"It's a pen name."

"Oh…is it any good." Harry hummed in response. "So how do you perfect it? Your spell, I mean?"

Harry marked the page he was on, deciding that it was a good time for a break. He set down the book on his study desk, next to an Abraxan stuffed toy that had been with him since he could crawl. "Well, there are a lot of things that affect it. You've got the spell-specific factors, like how the wand motion, the incantation and how well you understand the magic behind it."

"Makes sense."

"Then you've got the general factors that affect all spells, not just a specific one," continued Harry. "They split this one between Understanding of Magic-"

"Wait, hold up." Robert's brows furrowed. "You just said that understanding magic was a spell-specific thing."

Harry stood up to stretch his cramped muscles. "No, no, the first one is about the understanding the magic behind the spell itself. This is about how well you understand magic in general."

"I don't get it."

Harry sighed, trying to come up with an example. "It's like…Quidditch, I guess?"

"Okay?"

"Specific understanding is like knowing when to pass and when to shoot. General understanding would be understanding the roles of Chasers and Seekers and how each is important to winning."

"You mean like when the Cap'n starts talking about position aims?"

"Exactly like that," Harry said. "Next is mindset. It's here that smartness, willpower, creativity and similar things come into play. The book basically lists all these things and explains the differences, as well as the importance of each."

"Sounds boring."

Harry snorted. "Tell me about it. But I promised Ms. Lily I'd give her back the book soon."

"Oh." Rob sounded disappointed. "Do you...do you like Ms. Lily?"

"Yeah, she's really nice!" Harry said with a grin. "And she's smart. You'd like her. Want to meet her on Tuesday?"

"D'you think that'd be alright?"

"I don't see why it wouldn't." Harry scratched his head. "Any reason you're so curious today?"

Rob suddenly found the floor quite remarkable. "I just wanted to spend some time with you. You've been so busy lately."

"No I haven't." Harry said on impulse. Then again, he had requested more weekly session after the New Year. It wasn't uncommon for him to have three to four of them nowadays. Between the Youth Center and his readings, the only time Harry had spent time with his brother was during meals and Quidditch practice – a big difference from the previous year.

"I won't even get to see you next year when you're at school." Rob despaired.

"Sorry," Harry said sheepishly, "I guess I just got caught up in all the work. How about we go play some Quidditch right now?" He was mostly done with the book and it was a Sunday.

"Oh, oh! Teach me how to do the reverse pass!"

-The Magnate-

Before Lily knew it, it was Tuesday already and she walked into the study, not expecting to find two boys instead of one.

"Morning Miss Lily!" Harry greeted cheerily.

Lily raised a brow at him. "You're here early."

"I wanted you to meet my brother, Robert." A small wave accompanied Robert's shy smile.

"Oh. Um, hello Robert." She cleared her throat, suppressing the flare of anger she felt towards that woman. "Would you, er, like to stay for today's lesson? You might find it interesting. Your brother's starting on basic animations."

He glanced at Harry for approval before answering. "If…if that's ok?"

"As long as you don't disturb Harry's work, I can allow it." Lily turned to Harry. "I need to tell you something by the way. Your dad was supposed to do it, but he had to go to Switzerland for a Transfiguration Summit."

James Potter was a well-renowned expert in human transfiguration and he had to make trips like this at least twice a year from what she had gathered.

"What about?"

"After talking things through, your dad and I think it's best if you go to Durmstrang." She waited for the outburst.

And waited…"You're not surprised." she said, surprised.

Harry tilted his head. "I kinda knew already. Uncle Sirius has been rambling about how great Durmstrang was and the differences between the three schools all of last month."

"The last time he went on like that, we were going to get sent to the Centers for the first time," Robert added.

"And you don't really care you're not going to Hogwarts?" Lily asked.

Harry shook his head slowly. "Hogwarts sounds great, but Uncle Sirius made Durmstrang sound pretty awesome too."

"They speak German there." Lily stated.

"There's a spell to help with that."

"How did you know?"

Harry and Robert shared a look. "Mrs. Bridgemoot," they chimed together.

"Your supervisor from the center?" she asked, vaguely remembering him mention it in passing. "Do you just ask her everything?"

"Pretty much." Robert said.

"She tells us everything we want to know," Harry added.

-The Magnate-

2 April 1991

"This is bloody outrageous!" Lily swore uncharacteristically, drawing curious looks from her companion. "Necessary education indeed!" She threw down her innocent copy of the Daily Prophet onto the table with excessive force.

Alice Longbottom snuck a peek at the offending newspaper, searching for some hint as to the source of her friend's outburst. "Ministry to impose Necessary Education Act." she murmured to herself. "Children gifted with magic are henceforth required to undergo proper training to hone their abilities."

She frowned at the paper, sliding it closer to get a better angle. "I don't see anything particularly wrong with it."

"What happens to muggleborn kids who don't want to join the magical world?" Lily asked, an ugly scowl marring her normally fine features.

"Who in their right mind would refuse magic?" The very suggestion was preposterous! Especially to someone from the magical world. "And I suppose they'd be made to attend anyways. I mean, they won't be able to counter compulsions without training."

"So how do you stop them from running away in case the compulsion fails or when they manage to break it over the summer?"

"Oh!" Her eyes turned grew into saucers as the implication hit her. "They…they wouldn't dare use the Imperius on children, right?" asked Alice. Lily knew her friend well enough to know that the argument sounded weak even to her.

"It's either that, memory charms to make them forget about their parents so they'd have no one to run to, or placing tracers and hunting down runaways." Alice looked ill suddenly.

"It's 1982 all over again."

Alice remained deathly quiet.

"They trapped us." Lily gritted her teeth. "The Ministry, the Death Eaters, the 66 Signatories, and those thrice damned Protocols of theirs."

"This world will be a prison for them." she declared with finality, grim and ominous.

-The Magnate-

12 June 1991

"What's it like, living in the Muggle World?" was a question Lily Evans had never heard in her thirty years of living. She never considered anyone would be interested. It never even crept into her head when she was thinking of hypothetical life scenarios.

So when Harry James Potter asked, she was taken aback.

"It's very different from that magical one. Children there start going to school when they're five."

"Five?" Disbelief colored his tone.

"Yup. And all the chores around the house have to be done by hand too. My parents always made my sister and I do them."

He made a face. "That sounds terrible."

"Well, it did have its perks."

"You mean like watching the tully!"

"The telly," she corrected. "I guess your Uncle Sirius told you about that?"

"A little bit. He called it a magic mirror that was charmed to show you things from around the world and some people would dress up and do plays in them. Oh, he also said muggles had a magic called electicity."

Lily briefly pondered whether she should engage in a discussion about electricity, but decided she wasn't in the mood to play twenty questions today.

"It sounds really cool." There was a pause. "Do you think you could show me the muggle world one day?"

Lily considered it. "Ask your dad on your birthday."

One's eleventh birthday, as it turned out, was a very big deal in their society. It was a loud, crowded affair and Harry had never been more thankful towards the inventor of the Interior Expansion Charm. Close to a hundred people had invaded their home, most of whom Harry had never met, yet they all seemed to know who he was.

"I don't think I've ever seen this many people in one place. Outside of Diagon Alley that is," Harry said to Sirius, who was eyeing his purple-hued drink distastefully.

"This is nothing. You should see some of the sweet seventeens." Sirius took a sip, and immediately grimaced at the taste. Harry laughed at his expense. "I hate grapes. Your seventeenth party is going to be like this, but with more people your age and booze." It took him a moment to realize just how old Harry was. "Uh, don't tell your parents I said that."

"Sure, what about Miss Lily?"

Harry wasn't sure why, but his Uncle turned even whiter than his already pasty complexion. "Especially Evans, I mean, Miss Lily."

"Did you know her from before?" Harry asked. "You sound like you do."

"Yeah, same House same year at Hogwarts," SIrius said.

"So she knew Dad as well?"

Sirius grinned. "Oh most definitely. Lily and James were close once." His eyes became distant and unfocused.

They were friends then? That's odd, they don't act like it anymore. I wonder what drove them apart?

Sirius' heavy sigh interrupted his thoughts. "Too bad Moony couldn't make it."

"Moony? That's a funny name." Harry tried to spot some familiar faces in the crowd, to little avail. "Is he one of your friends from work?"

"Moony was your Uncle Remus' nickname when we were still in Hogwarts."

Harry accepted the answer without prying further. He had long come to terms with the fact that his dad and his friends were weird when it came to nicknames. "He went away to teach, right?"

"In Bulgaria," Sirius answered. "Which reminds me, he wanted me to tell you that his gift would be arriving in the mail later today. The courier owls over there aren't quite up to British standards."

They continued to watch people from their corner of the room. Occasionally, a few strangers would come up to greet him a happy birthday. Very occasionally, they'd hand him a present.

"Harry!" two girly voices he was well-acquainted with squealed. Lavender was the first to envelope him in a lung-crushing hug. Daphne's, thankfully, posed less of a threat to his internal organs. At this point, his beloved uncle had left him to go chat up a fair looking witch on the other side of the room.

They were followed by a "Salve, Harry" spoken in soft baritone.

"A new word, Blaise?"

"Well, someone gave me a 'Dummy's Guide to Italian' for my birthday." He shot Daphne – who looked completely unrepentant - a pointed look. "I'd rather my grasp on Italiano not be questioned again."

"Can't believe you're finally eleven, Harry." Lavender said.

"It's about time too. 'lil Harry's all grown up." Daphne wiped a crocodile tear from her eye.

A matching grin passed between them. "Are you guys thinking what I'm thinking?" Daphne started.

"One more time then," Harry said.

"I guess I should give you guys another chance to top me. Not that you will, of course." Blaise smirked. He was in the lead over both of them by a half-point after he tied with Harry the last time.

"Prepare to be toppled." Daphne was already on her way to Harry's room.

"Wait, hold up," Harry said. "Who's going to judge?"

"How about your brother?" Lavender suggested.

Soon, the four of them – plus Robert to judge – were gathered around Harry's study table. They placed a match in the middle then Robert gestured for Lavender to start. Her choice was to transfigure it into a simple, not-quite-living bonsai tree.

"Does that count as semi-animate transfiguration?" Harry asked, peering at it. "I don't think it's alive."

"Dead tree isn't quite the same thing as a tree," Daphne answered. "Doesn't count."

Daphne's work was executed with a sharp, twisting move that killed any hope for the tree being alive. Her charm began to take effect from the roots, and they watched, entranced, as veins of biting hoarfrost crept along the entirety of the tree, bathing it in crystalline glory.

"Got a few cracks in your ice sculpture, Daph," Blaise teased.

She glared. "Go on then. Let's see you top my freezing charm."

"Piacere mio!" Harry guessed it meant something along the lines of "my pleasure". It did manage to make the blonde's glare all the more intense. "Blink and you'll miss it," he warned, his wand already beginning a slow, upward arc. Without warning, he swiped down, akin to a commander beckoning his army forward with a saber.

"Incendio!" Azure tongues lashed out from the wooden tip, just as it reached the top of the frozen plant. The heat was concentrated enough to both melt and vaporize ice and trunk, leaving nothing but dancing fire for a few precious seconds.

Harry, recognizing his window of opportunity slipping, acted immediately by catching the fire with his own wand to ensure it wouldn't die. Most of the base material had burned already, leaving him little to work with. Transfiguration of plasma into a solid or liquid was also out of the question. Such a feat would be closer to conjuration than transfiguration, and he was far from capable of that either.

The answer, as always, turned out to be in Charms. Hours of study and dedicated practice paid off as he placed the dying flames within the most basic stasis charm to buy him more time and temporarily free his wand for the next part of his task.

"Vita locomotor!" he jabbed the fire swiftly; once, twice - the strain on his mind increased with each attempt. Third time's the charm, as the saying goes, and Harry felt assured he had gotten it right with his final stab.

Animating an already animate object was several degrees more challenging than animating inanimate things. Fire, having a lifelike quality, but no impulses, fell in between the two.

It morphed first into a cocoon of harsh, flickering maroon, before changing its form into that of a phoenix with wings wide and free. The fiery construct hovered aimlessly, seeming to enjoy the attention from its captive audience. The rhythmic up and down of limbs left afterimages, coating the air in red.

The phoenix nosedived abruptly, pulling up at the last second before it hit the table. The imitation of the Wronski-Feint made Robert clap approvingly. The lap it did around the table before fading away seemed more of a victory lap and less an effort for last-minute points. Harry flicked away the beads of sweat streaming down his nape.

Lavender had to pick up her jaw. "That...that was amazing!"

Blaise patted his back. "You're going to show those upstart mudbloods their place when you get to Hogwarts."

"Um, yeah. About that." Harry scratched the back of his head. "I'm not going to Hogwarts." Lavender's smile did a complete one-eighty.

"It was my parents' choice," he said weakly, edging backwards.

"Beauxbatons or Durmstrang?" Blaise asked. He seemed unperturbed by the situation. Happy, even.

"Durmstrang."

"Yes!"

Daphne spun towards him so quickly her neck nearly snapped. "Wait, you too?"

His glee died a painful death, murdered by Daphne Greengrass's glare.

"How long have you two kept this from us?" Lavender's face promised painful retribution if their reply was not to her liking.

"…"

"Unbelievable!"

-The Magnate-

"On this thirtieth of August, of the year Nineteen Eighty Two, I, James Charlus Potter, Head of House Potter, do hereby agree to uphold, to the best of my abilities, the points set forth below:

To promote and propagate the ideals of Blood Purity

To swear allegiance to the Society and the ideals it rests on

To support the Regime's actions, whatever they may be

To protect the sovereignty of the Society and its members, in part and in whole, during times of both peace and war

To maintain the hierarchy of our most glorious Society

To produce an Heir befitting of my line, in both blood and magic

To do my duty as a member of the Society and as a practitioner of my craft

On my House and Line, I do so swear."

-Purity Protection Protocols, Pledge of the Signatories, 1982