Harry Potter and the Crystal Song

Chapter 2

Harry and Cedric made their way into the city. It was unlike anything that Harry had imagined. Tall walls made of pitch black stone. The trimming of the buildings were thick sheets of bronze. The city itself was rather quiet, strange for being the middle of the day. Only a few people walked about and the volume was almost that of a graveyard.

"What is this?" Harry asked dazedly.

"This is they dying city of Isanal." Cedric said morosely.

"Dying city?" Harry asked.

"Yes. For the last decade the city has been dying. It's as if a curse was laid upon it. However, dying as it is, it's still the heart of the house of Hufflepuff, which is why I brought you here, to learn from my friends, brothers and sisters." Cedric explained.

"I see."

The two boys turned around a corner, dodged a chocobo pulled cart and continued down the grey cobblestone street.

Eventually, Cedric led them to a large castle.

"Hufflepuff Keep." Cedric said respectfully.

The keep was massive and carved out of yellow stone. The front gate was what Harry thought of as incredible.

"Whoa. This place is huge." Harry blinked as he tried to see the top of the castle.

"It's not very wide, but it's tall." Cedric replied with a grin.

Once Cedric mentioned that Harry noticed it was a simple cylindrical building. Very, very tall, but not as big as Harry had first been led to believe.

"Hufflepuff keep is one of the four great buildings. There is also Gryffindor Castle, Slytherin Fortress, and Ravenclaw Monastery. Hufflepuff Keep is known as the 'shield of friendship'. Hufflepuff has always focused on loyalty, and thus make up the backbone of the Templar Knights, and the Red Wings. They also make up the core of his majesty's bodyguards, because they can be trusted."

Harry nodded in understanding.

"What about the others?"

"Ravenclaw teaches, they are the masters of magic and all sorts of knowledge. Therefore, they are the protectors of history, and prophesy. They're very, very important. Slytherin Fortress is the tactical stronghold and its people are known for their trickery, and in the old days they were the tactical and battle masters. They were usually generals or high ranking officers. Very dangerous people to mess with. Then there's Gryffindor Castle. It's the heart of true nobility. It is where kingly lines descend. Of course, your own house, the house of Potter is a direct force of the house of Gryffindor. They are two faces of the same coin as it were. Only slightly different, but equal."

'Wow, this is a lot to take in."

"Don't worry, once I feel that you've learned what you can here I'll see if I can take you to study at the other locales. You have time to get it all under control." Cedric assured as the gate to the keep raised.

Just as the gate opened completely Harry heard two girls squeal in delight and a moment later pulled Cedric into a deep embrace.

"Cedric! You're okay!" One of them sobbed.

"Susan, it's okay." Cedric soothed.

"I'm so glad to see you!" The other gave him an intense hug before letting him go.

"I'm alright Hannah." Cedric assured.

"Good, otherwise I'd have to beat you senseless." Hannah glared.

Cedric winced.

Harry on the other hand saw her glare as adorable. Like an upset owlet.

"I'm sorry, but it was too dangerous to come and get me. You know how the roads are getting." Cedric replied.

"So that's what you wrote in your letter." Harry said in realization.

Cedric nodded.

"Yeah, it was bad enough that a couple of low level fighters like you and I were out there, it'd have been worse if the girls tried to join us." Cedric replied.

"What about your safety?" Susan glared.

Harry thought her glare was similar to Hannah's. Owlet-like.

"I had a Ranger with me. He's low level but he's talented."

"A Ranger?" Hannah gasped in surprise.

"I was surprised too. He's a swordsman to boot."

"What's a Ranger?" Harry asked curiously.

"Your class." Cedric replied without looking at him.

Susan shook her head ruefully.

"You must have learned how to be a Ranger by self teaching then."

Harry slowly nodded.

"A Ranger is a unique class, very, very powerful, but frail. They combine the best traits of several light classes. They also have the potential to use magic, and even use some inherent abilities such as self recovery, or trickery to deceive or terrify enemies. They can give a severe beating very quickly, and are evasive enough to dodge most hits. However, once they get hit…it hurts."

"That's me." Harry admitted.

"You learned how to be a Ranger on your own? That's really really hard. Most people have to have a more 'basic class' like soldier or thief. Ranger class people are generally taught by a master."

"I see." Harry said.

"Plus, he had to leave his home, so I wanted to train him up. He'd be incredible if he could learn a bit from us and the others." Cedric replied.

"Alright. I can teach him archery and how to properly wield a crossbow." Hannah offered.

Cedric nodded but frowned slightly.

"What's wrong?" Hannah asked.

"I think he should learn how to use a normal bow first. After all, a crossbow has slow reloading speeds."

Hannah thought for a long moment but nodded.

"You're right." She admitted.

"I'll go ahead and see if he can learn how to use cure." Susan suggested.

"That'd be a great place to start, and I'll see if I can Ernie to teach him how to dual wield." Cedric smiled.

"Dual Wielding?"

Cedric nodded.

"If you show the ability to wield two swords at once…well…you'd be really, really dangerous." Cedric replied.

"Rangers typically are single sword wielders." Hannah objected.

"But there is no such thing as a typical Ranger. You know that." Cedric replied gently as they entered the keep.

Harry began to observe the area as the others began to speak again. The walls were decorated with fine banners with several having a badger emblazoned across them and a set of stairs gave a person the option to either go down to the basement or go up to the next floor.

"Well. If he's a ranger we should get him a bow at least." Susan piped in.

Cedric nodded.

"Yeah, every Ranger needs the ability to hit with a bow."

"And a knife." Hannah added helpfully.

"A flail would be handy too."

"Are you trying to turn me into a walking arsenal?" Harry objected.

"Yes." The three said as one.

"Oh no…"

"You'll be a master of all weapons." Susan said with an insane gleam in her eyes.

"Like the legendary Onion Knight!"

"That's just a joke title." Cedric chided Hannah.

Hannah blushed.

"Anyhow, I figure if you learn how to wield a bow, flail, dual swords, and a dagger you'll be well equipped. Spears would be a little too awkward for you to carry around so we'll forego them. Maybe add in a single handed battle axe for safety's sake." Cedric said.

"We should still teach him the basics of using a spear though." Susan added helpfully.

"I suppose that's true enough. I'll see if Justin can teach Harry how to use spears and such." Cedric mused.

"At this rate let's just teach Harry how to use every weapon in existence!" Harry said mockingly.

"That's a great idea Harry!" Susan grinned to Harry's paling face.

"That wasn't my idea." Harry replied dryly as Susan grabbed his arm and dragged him up the stairs several floors.

"Hey wait up!" Cedric protested as he and Hannah attempted to catch up.

"I'm not waiting for you!" Susan replied as she opened the door and led Harry to a training ground on the top of the keep itself.

"We train on the roof of the fortress." Susan explained as Harry took a look around.

"Whoa." Harry murmured as he took in the scene.

The entire forest could be seen from the roof. It was a testimony to the long trek that Harry and Cedric had just completed. On top of the roof there were several 'stations' where weapons or targets or other devices resided.

"Over there is a magi course." Susan pointed to an odd shaped blue structure that was much larger than any of the other devices.

"Magi course?" Harry questioned.

"It's a magical reality that can allow you to practice destructive magic, and also other types of training." Cedric explained as he caught up to the preteens.

Thus, Harry's training began. Cedric set up an intense schedule for the young Ranger. In the morning Susan would teach Harry the basics of how to use the simple white magic spell 'cure'. In the afternoon, Hannah would work with Harry and teach him how to use a crossbow, then in the evening Cedric would oversee him as he learned the basics of the bow and at the very end of the day Harry would practice with his sword. On alternative days Justin would teach Harry the basics of using the spear in the morning and then in the afternoon an older woman that went by the title commander Sprout would teach him how to use both flail and mace while in the evening Ernie would teach Harry the basics of wielding two swords at the same time. On those nights Harry worked hard with two swords, applying what he had learned to his original sword style.

On the one day he was allowed to 'rest' he had to learn math, science, writing, and politics. The warriors and individuals of Hufflepuff had for some reason become obsessed with making Harry a 'perfect fighter' and according to that, knowledge was paramount. Or so they claimed.

Harry just figured that they had gone nuts and wanted to see how much they could cram into his poor head.

But as the weeks passed Harry began to bond with the oddball Hufflepuffs. Susan had a tendency to try to make Harry master every weapon that came to her imagination, but she was very friendly, and loyal. Hannah was very, very shy, but she was just as loyal as Susan and Harry formed a close friendship with the two girls. Justin was obsessively formal, and for some odd reason he was also slightly paranoid.

However, over time Justin relaxed and began to open up to the Ranger. Ernie was okay too, but he wasn't someone that Harry knew as well as the others. Ernie was quite arrogant, perhaps because of his ability to cast black magic. At any rate, Harry wasn't too fond of the fact that he was overly proud just because of that one thing that he could do.

Cedric, of course was a different story entirely. He had become Harry's closest friend and confidant almost immediately and the ensuing weeks only strengthened their friendship. Before Harry knew it the two of them saw each other as brothers.

Harry felt as though he could talk to Cedric about anything and not be judged. Thus, over time, Harry saw him as a mentor, a brother, a friend, and someone that he could trust implicitly.

"Harry, snap out of it." Susan smiled at him, her strawberry blonde hair flowing behind her as she slapped the side of his head gently.

"That's not very nice." Harry complained as he rubbed his skull lightly.

Susan let out a soft musical laugh. It was admittedly, a very pretty laugh. A moment later Susan's eyes peered into Harry's and she pulled him over to the 'magical reality trainer'.

The trainer had been set up so that it was a grassy field with a few trees.

"Okay Harry. This time you're going to practice on that first aid ability of yours. Maybe if you can learn how to control it better then maybe…maybe you'll figure out how to utilize white magic." Susan said with an intent look.

Harry shook his head tiredly.

"Maybe I'm just not cut out for white magic?" Harry asked in despair.

She glared at him cutely before she placed her hands on her hips looking rather upset.

"If you give up on this I'll slap you silly." She threatened.

Harry stared at her in amusement; to which she blushed furiously.

"You'll slap me silly?" Harry asked dryly, increasing the protectorate of Hufflepuff's blush.

"I can't hit you with an arrow. That would hurt, and I don't know basic black magic to give you a sting either." She replied defensively.

"I think black magic might hurt worse than a simple arrow." Harry mused.

"Ever been hit by an arrow?" Susan asked.

Harry shook his head.

"Don't. It hurts." Susan replied simply.

Harry noticed throughout the practices that she would look at him intently when she thought he was busy focusing his magic and releasing it with the word 'cure'. Yet, he saw her glances at him, time and time again.

The night before everything changed while he laid in his bed massaging his sore muscles Harry began to review everything that had happened since he had left the Dursley family.

Why would Cedric have really been there? Was it truly an accident that they met then? Harry felt that yes, it had been. But at the same time it was as if Destiny itself had had a hand in the matter.

So, how did that pertain to Harry? Why was Cedric leaving him in the dark in regards to what happened to Hufflepuff Keep?

Perhaps he was frightened? If that was the case, then whatever it was must have been terrible.

At any rate, the only thing he could do for now was continue training, and building up his strength. Maybe one day soon Cedric would tell him. Either way, he would find out, and when he did…well, he would make a difference.

"Harry, it's time to go practice dual wielding." Cedric called to him.

With a sigh, Harry rolled out of his bed and headed up to the top of the keep for yet another grueling session of having his metaphorical head handed to him by a sadistic Ernie.

Ernie was actually a pretty nice guy, a little too quiet except when he was busy teaching Harry how to use a second sword. Then he was a vicious ogre.

"Alright Harry, lets try again." Which led to several near deaths by Ernie's weapons.

Once dawn broke and Harry made his way down to the banquet hall to eat a man entered Hufflepuff keep and approached Commander Sprout. He bowed with an elegant flair.

The black man was lean with a shaved head and had the crest of the Aurors on his cloak.

Aurors were just as important as Chocobo knights. While they weren't front line soldiers they were excellent combat operatives. They also did many investigations for the king. Aurors were elites with access to black magic, and in some cases geomancy. For many children, it was the ultimate job.

"Commander, his majesty king Dumbledore requests that you assist in the protection of a small caravan holding ambassador Fudge to Ravenclaw manor."

"Even though house Hufflepuff is dying?" Sprout asked with a raised eyebrow.

The man nodded simply.

"His majesty knows of the mastery of Archery that many of your forces have and would appreciate that support."

"If his majesty has indeed requested such a thing then I cannot argue. Cedric; you, Susan, Hannah, and one other must go to provide this support."

"Yes ma'am." Cedric bowed.

Cedric gave Harry a single look and he knew that he had been chosen.

"To the armory." Cedric said.

"Who shall be the fourth?" Sprout asked.

"Ranger Harry."

"But he's not even a part of the house." Sprout shook her head in surprise.

"He's still a powerful warrior, and growing stronger." Cedric defended.

"I trust your instincts Cedric."

"Thank you ma'am." Cedric bowed.

A few minutes later Susan was placing weapons in Harry's hands. A flail was nestled against his thigh, both his swords (his original mithril sword and a steel sword) were secured in sheaths against his back, a small battle axe was placed in a flap in his new black pants, and suddenly Harry realized something with apprehension.

"I'm not even wearing armor." Harry noted.

"I know, you're wearing magic resistant clothing. Armor would be too heavy for a Ranger." Susan said patiently.

"What about all this then?" Harry pointed to the flail, axe, and newly secured longbow at his waist.

"They are light weapons. All together they weigh less than thirty pounds." Hannah shook her head at him.

"I'll still need to carry food and stuff." Harry countered.

"Nope. I'm carrying the food. All I use is a crossbow so I'll be on the back lines. Armor is next to useless for me…unless you all die." Hannah replied.

"Fine…" Harry surrendered to her.

"Good lad. I think you're learning an important lesson." Cedric chuckled.

"What?"

"Don't argue with them. They are women."

"It wasn't that. I just saw that they had legitimate reasons. That's all." Harry replied, ignoring the two girls' adorable pouts.

Cedric chuckled lightly.

"You'll learn eventually." Cedric said as he picked up his bow.

After they made their way down to the kitchens, picked up enough food to feed them all for three weeks, they made their way to the town square where ambassador Fudge was waiting for them.

"You've arrived? Excellent! We must now depart for Ravenclaw Manor." Fudge said to the four of them before he dipped his head back into the coach.

He was a heavy set man, with a balding head and a bowler hat of all things perched upon his skull.

"It'll be a weeklong journey eastward to the Monastery of House Ravenclaw." Cedric explained as the four took up guarding positions around the coach beside the soldiers with the crest of Gryffindor.

"These are Gryffindors?" Harry asked.

Cedric nodded.

"As I once said they typically are swordsman. Rarely do they use ranged arts, be they bow or magic."

"Isn't that…limiting?" Harry whispered.

"A tad yes, but a good swordsman can still best mages and arches even though he has to get in their face to do it."

"How?" Harry asked intrigued.

Cedric pointed to the shiny metal on the guards.

"That armor is really, really tough. Next to impossible to penetrate with a single arrow…or even several. Sure, crossbows can, but they have terrible load speeds." Cedric explained.

"What about those swordsman who don't use armor?" Harry asked.

Cedric nodded.

"They usually just go ahead and use dodging techniques."

"Like I do?" Harry asked.

"Yeah. Kinda." Cedric shrugged.

"Kinda?" Harry asked with a raised eyebrow.

"You'll just have to see for yourself." Cedric replied with a shrug.

With that the coach left the area and headed out of the city from the eastern gate.

For the next couple of weeks Harry, Cedric, Susan, and Hannah made the long trek to Ravenclaw Monastery.

The majority of the journey was quiet, but he did manage to learn a little bit from Fudge's forces.

The tall Auror Shacklebolt was able to teach him how to control his magic. It was something that had always evaded Harry and apparently, had made it next to impossible to use his magic in controlled settings. Thus, magic such as Cure had been nearly impossible. Thankfully, it had been a simple matter.

"How do you know that?" Cedric asked.

"It's a rare condition sure, but I am an Auror Trainer." Shacklebolt reminded Cedric.

Suddenly, Shacklebolt stiffened.

"Ambush!" He screamed as a blast of Blizzard ripped through several Gryffindors' thick armor.

"We have Black Mages attacking!" Susan yelled as she took up a position on top of a nearby hill with Hannah.

At that moment twelve sword fighters rushed over a hill and engaged several knights while Harry had to roll out of the way of a Thunder attack.

"Be careful!" Shacklebolt warned as he fried a fighter with a Fira.

"Why?" Harry asked as he viciously stabbed through a fighter.

The man gurgled and died on the blade.

"That mage is toying with us." Shacklebolt warned as a blast of Fira destroyed eight knights.

"These fighters are bad but that mage is ripping us apart!" Cedric yelled as he fired an arrow into the skull of a thief.

A couple minutes passed and the storm of enemy black magic seemed to recede. The group let off a sigh of relief even as they fought off the sword fighters, however at that Harry encountered his next foe, a man with pitch black armor.

"Well young ranger, it's a pity since you show promise but now you must die." The man said as he swung his blade at Harry's head.

Harry ducked instantly and drew his second blade.

He was then forced to dive to the left as another strike came at him. Immediately, Harry rolled to his feet and stabbed with his right blade where it was deflected by the man's shield.

"You're completely outclassed." The growling voice told him before his blade was coated in crimson energy.

"Accused Sword Consume the blood of thy foe. Shadow Blade!" The man roared and a beam of blood red energy struck at Harry.

Desperately Harry attempted to get out of the way, but instead was only able to make the attack a glancing blow. He stumbled and fell face first into a pile of mud.

Harry clawed the mud out of his eyes before he picked his steel sword back up and brought it up to deflect his enemy's stab.

"Shadow." Harry murmured.

A dozen Harrys appeared and Harry rolled behind one before they began to sprint in various directions.

However, a second later and the pitch black sword nearly took Harry's head clean off of his shoulders.

"Sorry kid, nice trick and all, but I can tell which one is the real you." The man smirked before delivering a glancing hit to Harry's shoulder.

He groaned in pain but was able to focus enough of his remaining "MP" to use first aid.

"Not nearly good enough kid. You'll have to do far, far better." The man chortled before his sword began to glow crimson again.

"Enjoy annihilation." The man said before swinging his sword deftly.

Harry desperately attempted to roll out of the Shadow blade energy again, only to be hit by another painful, debilitating blow to the side.

He struggled to raise himself from the ground as the Black knight approached.

"Harry!" Cedric yelled and arrows began to pelt the Darkened night.

"Useless. Absolutely Useless." The knight chortled as he ignored the attacks from the archer and flung a dagger at Harry who just barely ducked under it.

I'm completely outclassed. Harry thought desperately.

The knight struck another glancing blow against Harry's side.

"You're going to die, and after you die I'll finish off your little friends." The knight promised as he casually deflected the crossbow bolt that Hannah shot at him.

No! Harry roared in his mind. A surge of energy whirled within him.

"I won't let you!" Harry yelled.

The twin blades glowed fiercely, and shockwaves of light emerged from the young Ranger.

"I'll shatter all limits to save them!" Harry screamed.

"Valor Edge!" Harry roared, releasing the tsunami of energy that had consumed him.

A second later twenty Harrys surrounded the knight and glowing white blades bit deep into the Knight's body. Again and again they struck at the figure, tearing through armor, and slashing vicious blows across the knight. Towards the end, only one Harry remained but he slashed off the knight's head in one clean swipe.

The entire attacking force stared at Harry in terror, and ran screaming.

"What…happened?" Harry tiredly asked the corpse.

Of course the headless man didn't respond. He was too busy being dead after all.

Cedric limped over to Harry.

"What kind of magic was that?" Cedric asked in awe.

"It wasn't any kind of magic that I know of." Harry whispered tiredly.

A while later the Gryffindor Knights approached the Hufflepuff convoy.

"While we managed to repel the attack, Ambassador Fudge was killed by an unknown black mage. All we know is that she was incredibly powerful." The knight said sadly.

"We weren't able to save him?" Harry asked miserably.

"No, the female mage overwhelmed the guards and killed them all. She managed to kill twenty knights and severely injure Auror Shacklebolt. We will need to make camp to heal our forces wounds and then continue to Ravenclaw Monastery where the most injured can rest until they are fully healed. We ask for your continued assistance in getting to the Monastery."

Cedric nodded.

"Of course." He promised.

"I failed…" Harry whispered as he sank to his knees.

"No! You did your duty, and fought off the enemy." Cedric disagreed.

Cedric lifted Harry to his feet and placed Harry's arm over his shoulder.

"Don't feel bad Harry. You did your best, and you did well. You did nothing wrong. It's just…sometimes, bad things happen beyond our control." Cedric assured.

"Archer Diggory is correct." The knight agreed with Cedric.

"Make camp. We'll deal with the wounded once it's set."

"Of course." The knight agreed.

Shortly afterwards, the group pitched their protective tents, and started a large bonfire. Thus, the forces rested and healed over the night, safe in their enclosure.

Early that morning, as the sun began to rise the knights broke camp and the Hufflepuffs took flanking positions behind the carriage.

The wounded had been placed in the carriage and the rest of them pressed hard to reach Ravenclaw Monastery as quickly as possible. The monks and white mages would be critical in ensuring that the severely wounded men could heal properly.

The tents had saved the troops' lives, but for them to be able to walk, wield a blade properly, etc they needed to seek medical attention immediately.

The forced march left the group little time to do anything but press forward, words were wasted breath that no one had to spare, let alone a young preteen named Harry Potter.

The terrain, as lush, vivid, and beautiful as it was didn't draw their eyes, there was no time, or so the knight commander claimed.

And so, what should have been a four day journey turned into one. Utterly exhausted, the knights, and Hufflepuffs entered Ravenclaw monastery.

Immediately, they were set upon by the compassionate mages, and monks. Harry was instantly shuffled to a room where he collapsed upon a comfortable bed. That night, he didn't move once.

He wouldn't wake until late the next morning when a gentle knock jarred him from sleep.

He looked around the room as he padded over to the door and opened it curiously.

Harry's room was a simple stone gray coloured room that had a single wood desk and a single seat in front of it. One candle alone resided on the desk, and the bed only had one dull brown blanket.

The door of the room was extremely simple as well, a roughly cut wooden door, on simple hinges and a single latch on its side.

On the other side of the door Cedric grinned at the young ranger, a bandage covering his leg from the knee down to the ankle.

"You look better." Harry noted as he allowed Cedric to enter.

The young archer sat down at Harry's desk as Harry sat on the bed.

"You do too." Cedric agreed.

It was then that Harry noticed that his sides, shoulders and arms had been tended to as he slumbered. His shoulder was still wrapped in the thick bandages.

"So, was there something that you needed?" Harry asked curiously.

Cedric shrugged.

"Not much, however, we'll be staying here for a few months."

"Why?" Harry asked curiously.

"Well, I asked about that nifty ability you pulled off. Turns out is called 'Limit Break'. A limit break is an incredibly powerful attack that can only be used when your body reaches a certain peak. However, it's very, very rare for a person to have the ability, and is extremely taxing to perform."

"That explains why I was so tired afterwards." Harry mused.

"That will become less apparent if you condition your body to utilize it, and the Monks of Ravenclaw can help with that."

"So this is phase two of my training then?" Harry asked curiously.

"Yes indeed." Cedric agreed pleasantly.

"Great." Harry said dryly.

"I thought you might say that."

Over the next months Harry mastered Cure thanks to Susan, learned Esuna from a girl named Cho, and from a couple humble monks learned martial arts, the move chakra, and several other techniques.

Quickly he began to incorporate what he had learned into his fighting style.

Chakra was in many ways a superior form of First Aid. It healed damage, and cured status afflictions such as poison, blindness, and fatigue. It also emanated a healing aura that rejuvenated allies beside him. However, Harry wasn't as quick with using it as he was with First aid, even though it healed more, and didn't use any of his magic.

The bare handed combat moves relied on direct and accurate strikes that hit viciously. They read the opponent's moves and took advantage of any and all weak points.

His blade would now eagerly seek open spots. Plus, even if he lost his blade he wouldn't be helpless. He could still kick and punch after all.

He wasn't a master of bare handed arts by any stretch of the imagination, but if disarmed he might be able to survive now.

As the months ground on, the Knights healed and left in groups. Eventually, the only ones there were Harry and his friends.

It was another intense time for the young Ranger. He again found himself repeating the same training schedule that he had used at Hufflepuff keep. Only this time it was much more magic based.

It still didn't explain one thing though. Why was everyone training him so hard, and so…willingly?

Harry was determined to find out.

He hated being treated like a kid…even if he was one.

Not much to say this chapter, just I've been getting used to my new life, and at the same time living what feels to be a soap opera... (Did I forget to mention I hate soap operas?)

Thanks for reading!