A/N: Well we hit a milestone, two reviews!
P.S. JK Rowling owns all of this.
First years, the moment has come;
It's time for me to decide,
Which house you will fare best in,
And this, you may be surprised.
Before the time of present,
When our ancestors walked the halls,
The founders discerned a problem with those offspring yet to come,
"When our time has come and we leave this place, who will decide the houses our students will be placed?"
Hufflepuff spoke out, "I will find someone to take our place, and they will burden their fate"
Ravenclaw spoke out "I will create a test, and their brains will be those to decide"
Slytherin spoke out "I will teach the lot to be one house, and equals all shall become"
It was Gryffindor who was the best, he took of his hat and cast a spell,
And for once the quarrels of the four, farewell.
"The sorting hat will put the students in their rightful place"
The famous founders, years ago,
Bequeathed me with this task,
A thousand years I've carried out their will,
And experienced I have become,
I know what you'll make of your magical careers,
You cannot hide your thoughts from me,
I'll put you all where you belong,
In this sorting ceremony.
"Zales, Helen"
Connor wasn't paying attention tot he sorting, he was too busy staring at the ever changing forecast of the ceiling. He could see the outline of the magic weaved intricately into the castle; it rippled with color and vibrated with power. He wondered how much power it took to properly keep that type of illusion up, and idly he wondered who did it. It dawned on him that now that Helen sat on the stool, he was the last person left to be sorted.
"HUFFLEPUFF" The hat screamed out and the crowd thundered with applause.
The man who had introduced himself as the Deputy Headmaster, Professor Longbottom, took the hat from the girl's head and she scampered towards the table she had been sorted to.
"Our last sorting is a bit different. We have for the first time in over a century, a transfer student Connor Walker. Connor will be joining our 7th year students and I will appreciate you all showing him the manners and the appreciation of Hogwarts. Connor." He said the last bit beckoning the boy towards him.
All eyes were on him and whispers rippled through the assembly. Some had seen him in the paper, and a few had witnessed his incident with Scorpius Malfoy. Some were just excited to see an American wizard for the first time. A small percentage just thought he was hot.
A wallflower at the center of attention. Perfect.
Connor traipsed up the aisle and sat on the small stool and thought he looked like an idiot as Professor Longbottom placed the hat on his head. He was startled when he heard an old weary voice in his head.
"You are not of this world." Said the hat.
Connor scoffed, "You're a talking hat and you think I'm weird?"
"Echoes of the ancient ones. Merlinus?" Questioned the hat. "No no. But something close. Something more. Curious."
Connor didn't understand what any of that meant," What are you? How are you able to see in my mind?"
"I am the conscience of Godric Gryffindor. I know what he knew." said the hat. "You are much like his master. You even control his beast."
"Umm okay? What does this have to do with where I get to eat my meals?" Asked Connor impatiently. He didn't enjoy the hat being inside of his mind very much.
"Nothing at all my lord, where do you wish to be placed?" Asked the hat.
This caused Connor to pause, "It's that simple, I choose?"
"You are like no other I have sorted before. It does not matter where you are placed, the results will be the same. You are brave but not fearless. Smart but not wise. Humble, but not hard working. Cunning but not ambitious. You fit everywhere and nowhere. An embodiment of Hogwarts herself. I think what you choose says more about you than anything. After all you are no mere schoolboy." Said the hat concisely.
"And if I choose nothing?" Said Connor.
"You will destroy the world." Said the hat casually before it broke into a fit of giggles. Imagine a hat giggling. "Our time is coming to an end, where would you like to spend your time?"
Connor grinned, "You are in my head, you should already know ass hat."
He could feel the hat grinning in his mind and it mildly freaked him out.
"GRYFFINDOR!"
The applause was immediate and Professor Longbottom lifted the hat from his head and shook his hand, he was after all his new head of house. Connor made a beeline towards the Gryffindor table where Donnie and Rose were waiting with a seat open in front of him. He sat down and received several handshakes and pats on the back.
The Headmaster, a stern looking witch named McGonagall who Connor really wanted nothing to do with, stood up and told them to tuck in. A spread of food appeared in front of them and the feast begin with plenty of good spirit.
"Never doubted you for a second mate, though you were up there forever." Said Donnie while reaching for a plate of roasted chicken.
Connor was spooning mashed potatoes onto his plate, "What do you mean? I was only up there like a minute and a half."
"Try fifteen my friend. Longest sorting I have ever seen." Said Donnie.
Rose nodded in agreement, "The hat is filled with sentient magic, time works differently when you have it on. Godric Gryffindor was one of the greatest wizards of all time and one of Merlin's' apprentices, the hat is obviously above our level of understanding."
The girl to his left rolled her eyes as Rose began to prattle on about the hat. "You will have to excuse our Head Girl, she can be long winded." She held her hand out to him. "Alice Longbottom."
Connor shook her hand, She was pretty, and her body was much more filled out than the other girls he had met so far. She had curly brown hair and brown eyes. "Yes, Professor Longbottom is my father." She said before the question could roll off his tongue.
"Hogwarts, Home of the Privileged" said the boy directly to his right. He had sandy brown hair tied in a ponytail and Connor could see the silver studded earring on his left earlobe. "Jackson Bale, Mudblood filth and scourge of Gryffindor."
Donnie snickered and Rose glared at Jackson while he pointedly ignored her gaze instead choosing to eye his corned beef with a smile.
"What's a Mudblood?" said Connor.
"Its A stupid and ignorant WORD." Started Rose.
Jackson cut her off, "Its a word that means im inferior to some of our more noble bloodlines. Mostly because neither one of my parents are magical and I live in the muggle world."
Connor paused for a second, "I guess that makes me a super Mudblood then. I've only spent a month in the wizarding world."
"You're practically royalty mate. You're an heir to a major house." Said Donnie matter of factly. "Around here that makes you a king. Welcome to the battle."
"Battle?" Asked Connor?
Jackson rolled his eyes, "Yes sir. Just like out there the politics exist in here. The heirs run the school, you need to gather some subjects mate."
"Im sorry I really don't get it." He said spearing a green vegetable.
"You know of the twelve right?" Connor nodded. "Well most of them have kids here now jockeying for position. Right now Potter and Malfoy are at the top." Said Jackson.
"Albus and Scorpius you mean?"
"Indeed. And Lily, but she does what she wants. Personally we all know Potter is king, he's powerful and smart. His dad is Harry freaking Potter and he even has the crown princess here as a girlfriend." Said Jackson pointing at Alice who blushed And said "ex girlfriend."
"The Weasleys all share a modicum of power for different reasons." Said Donnie taking over. "Rose and Hugo's parents are Department Heads and part of the golden trio. Ditto that with Molly & Lucy whose parents are politically savvy as well. Dominique and Louis are children of the Lord Weasley and a hot French veela. Roxanne is an heiress to the biggest joke shop on the isles and smoking hot to boot. Both the Macmillan and Jugson kids are second years so they aren't really involved. Phillip Nott is the wildcard and as a seventh year Slytherin he's constantly in competition with Scorpius."
Rose flinched for the second time as the boys name was used. "Can we stop talking about this? Its stupid, like I said on the train just be yourself Connor."
Alice nodded her head in agreement.
"Any who I heard what you did to Malfoy on the train." Said Jasper. "That took balls mate."
Connor had the decency to blush, "My hands slipped."
"Yeah and they put the tosser in his place. Sorry Rose." He added.
Rose huffed, "I am Head girl you know."
"I know." Said Jackson cheekily. "Don't let it go to your head, girl."
"You're awfully quiet Dom, cat got your tongue."
Dominique looked up from her plate where she had been pushing a broccoli floret around her plate. Her cousin, Albus, sat in front of her leaning towards the table looking as confident and bored as ever.
Dom responded lazily, "Your point?"
"You've been ruffled ever since the incident on the train." Responded the Potter heir.
"Its not everyday you see one of your friends being choked to death. Why didn't you step in anyway? Rose already hates us enough as it is."
Albus smiled that Cheshire grin at her that she hated, "I saw no reason to step in on both accounts. You didn't tell me you were on a first name basis with the Heir of House Dumbledore?"
"Because its none of your business Al! He's just a stupid boy I met at Mungos when he got his MT read." She hissed at the boy.
This interested him a bit, "And his score?"
"Better than yours im afraid dear cousin." She said with a laugh.
Albus frowned at this; "Interesting, but we both know im the top wizard around these halls by leagues and bounds. By any means I will have to check that out"
"You're so full of shit Al." She said nibbling the broccoli.
Albus simply smiled at her and waved his hand lazily at the opposite end of the table. A roasted platter of duck began a fight with a platter of roasted turkey. "You were saying?"
"Nothing at all oh great one. What are we going to do about Rose and Scor?"She asked raising an eyebrow as turkey went on an offensive.
"We, I don't know about. I will be doing nothing. I've got woman problems of my own before I deal with his. They will be fine and also its none of our business. Butting in is his how we got to this point. "He said ignoring the glare the Headmaster was shooting him.
Dom rolled her eyes, "Says the mind reading manipulator, find a c9nscience over the summer?"
"No way to tell, im more interested to know what you found with Walker over the summer." he said with another wave of his hand. The meats found themselves at a standstill. "You like him."
"Speaking of which, why the sudden interest in him? Scared of the competition?" She could see him chatting with Alice from her seat. Albus turned to look and the smile returned.
"Of course not. I welcome it, now let's see what our esteemed Headmaster has to say."
McGonagall had risen to the podium and with her, the food and desserts had all disappeared. Her mouth drew a thin line and always she looked stern. There were talks of her retiring soon and leaving the school to Professor Longbottom. But right now she was in her element.
"To those of you entering these hallowed halls for the first time, welcome. To those of you returning, welcome back. First let us applaud our new Head Boy and Girl. Albus Potter of Ravenclaw, and Rose Weasley of Gryffindor." She paused as for a second as the students and teachers clapped. "These two will be responsible for organizing all student related events and coordinating with the faculty. Also this year we will be conducting our first ever dueling tournament." Excited murmuring whipped through the crowd and McGonagall raised her hands, "A committee from the ICW will arrive here to pick 12 participants in exactly one month. The winner shall go on to a countrywide tournament and then an international tournament that will coincide with the Quidditch World Cup. Due to international rules and regulations, all participants must be of 17 years of age to compete. As per usual, there is a list of banned items in each house common room and no student is allowed in the Forest without a staff member unless they want to suffer a horrible death. With that said, Prefects please round up the students and escort them to there houses!"
There was a great amount of shuffling and yelling as the students began to matriculate from the great hall back to the dormitories. Dom however was looking for her cousin Rose in all of the chaos; she needed to apologize to her. She found her directing some first year Ravenclaws to their house prefects.
"Rose!" The girl turned around when she heard her name being called. She frowned when she noticed it was Dominique.
"Can we talk? "She said quietly.
Rose nodded and beckoned her to follow just right outside the great hall doors. She folded her arms and watched the students funnel out.
"You look good Rosie." She started.
"Dom" but she would not be deterred.
"Im sorry Rosie. I know I should have told you or owled you or done something. I was just so busy with everything and I met this guy. I mean we are all friends, and you cant just avoid us by hanging with weirdoes like on the train. Then Albus-"
"You mean the same weirdoes who defended me on the train?" Said Rose defiantly. "How can you even sit in the same compartment as him after what he did."
"Well Albus told me to stay out of it!" Said Dominique getting upset. "We are your friends Rosie. We are family, just because Scor was an idiot doesn't mean you have to ruin everyone else's lives."
Dom expected Rose to yell, to scream at her in response to this but she only sighed and shook her head.
"That's the problem Dom. It's a shame it took me six years to figure it out. We aren't better than anyone. We're just a bunch of spoiled brats with mommy and daddy issues. This little kingdom we live in," she waved her hands around the room, "Its all bullshit. People hate us Dom. Al thinks he's some sort of God, Scorpius is a bigot, and everyone else is too busy to care because they are all getting fucked up. Why can't I hang out with whom I want to? I don't want to be remembered as this just another Weasley, riding her parent's coattails! I want real friends, I want a real relationship! I can't do that with you guys. So take your apology and keep it to yourself, I don't need it Dom. I just need to focus on me for a while."
Dom had not been expecting that, "I know what Lily-"
"You don't get it do you. Its not just Lily, its all of you. Its this privileged lifestyle we've been given. We haven't earned anything. And I don't blame Lily. She's just a stupid girl looking for something that she has never found. I feel sorry for her actually. See you around Dom. "She turned to walk away but Dom grabbed her arm.
"Rose you are being irrational, what's gotten into you?" Said Dominique. Rose had always been the quiet, reserved one amongst them. Never going against the tide, just flowing with it.
"Is everything okay Rose?" Said a voice from behind Dominique. She turned around to see the stoic face of Connor Walker looking at between the two of them. Rose wrenched herself from Dominique's grip and walked to his side.
She grabbed his hand, "Everything is fine, come on, I'll show you the way to Gryffindor tower."
They left and Dominique felt as angry as she had in years as she watched them walk away. Connor sent her a look of confusion over his shoulder as they walked away towards the stairs. She was angry at Lily for not having the sense to close her legs. Angry at Scorpius for being such an ass hole and thinking with his dick. Angry at Rose for saying all those things about her, and for holding Connor's hand! Wait, where did that last one come from?
"I really am sorry to hear about you and Scorpius."
Rose sighed, she really hated girl talk, but here she was seated on her bed in her pajamas surrounded by girls. Alice sat beside her providing what she probably thought was support. Iris Holloway sat on her bed next to her braiding her brown hair and looking on sadly, while Deirdre Finnegan nodded along with what Alice was saying.
"Its okay, but I owe you girls an apology as well. We have been dorm mates for seven years and I've spent all my time with my cousins instead of getting to know you girls better. I mean I know we are all friends and share classes but I've spent more time with family than with the girls I sleep with every night. Just don't treat me like a victim or something; I knew what I was getting into with him. And I know you guys thought it was a bad idea when we got together and im just sorry I didn't value you guys' opinions."
Alice rubbed her back and Iris was the first to speak, "Rose don't be silly, we all love you. Your like the Gryffindor poster girl."
"Not to mention you are the smartest girl in our year, you earned that." added Iris as she finished up her braid.
"You just have terrible taste in boys. Now that American you waltzed in here with, he's the kind of bloke I would let-"
"DD!" Said Iris admonishing the Irish witch seated beside her.
Deirdre shrugged, "I'm just saying."
Alice rolled her eyes, but Rose snickered. "He is quite fit isn't he?"
Rose watched as the other three girls burst into a fit of giggles of their own which soon descended into a conversation about all the attractive boys in their year. She found herself quickly caught up in the chatter and enjoying herself. It was nice to be around genuine people who were not out looking for political gain or a boost in social standing. If only everyday was like this.
"Fancy a drink Connor?"
Connor nodded and watched as Jasper produced two glasses from his drunk and a long slender bottle filled with a silver liquid. Earlier in the summer he had stumbled upon a chest filled with bottles of wizarding alcohol and quickly found it to be more potent than regular alcohol. This bottle however looked like your run of the mill normal liquor. Jasper poured himself a decent amount and passed the bottle to Connor who took it and took a sip directly from the bottle. Jasper was eyeing him from his bed.
"Family recipe, Bales' Finest Gin. My dad owns a distillery in London." He said producing a carton of cigarettes from his slacks and stepping over to the window. Donnie had left them a few minutes earlier saying only that he had plans with a Hufflepuff girl. There were two other beds and Connor had only met the occupants on there way out as well. Jasper had told him that traditionally most of the students only spent half of their time in there own beds once they became 5th years. Connor then asked if the teachers and prefects knew about any of this and Jasper had only laughed.
Connor now satisfied that the gin was normal and wouldn't cause steam to come out of his ears poured a healthy volume into his own glass. It was like being back home drinking alcohol with his few friends, except he was at a school for magically gifted children.
"This place is not what I expected. It feels very..." He paused for lack of finding the right word.
Jasper blew a ring of smoke out of the window, "Elitist?"
Connor nodded, "Yeah I guess that's the word. Everybody's parents are somebody famous and rich or something."
"The war with Voldemort left a lot of openings after all the Death Eaters and supporters were kicked from the ministry. I would say just about everybody close or in contact with Harry Potter has benefited from it. This is the golden age for wizards to make money I think. I mean take the Weasleys for example; they were a poor family before the last war. They've had their Wizengamot seats restored, opened up the biggest chain of joke shops, and have several family members in high-ranking positions. Hell even Malfoy's dad benefited. He was a bad guy and then made friends with Potter. Poof! Rich with a cushy job and a beautiful successful wife. And with all the other magical schools that have popped up in the last twenty years this place became more and more selective. You're either somebody's kid or really good with magic to get into Hogwarts."
Connor pondered on all of that for a moment, "So which are you?"
Jasper gave him a wry smile, "Really good with magic, I'll be going for my potions mastery after the school year. I make a pretty penny concocting some of the more interesting one for our classmates."
Connor had learned from the goblins that a lot of potions were looked at like drugs in the U.S. Like most other kids he had dabbled with drugs in recent years though never trying anything that involved needles. He was quite fond of marijuana and hallucinogenic mushrooms though he figured he would find none of that at Hogwarts.
"So you're a drug dealer?" Said Connor.
"Im a salesman." Replied Jasper.
Connor laughed at this and took another sip of his gin. He could just taste the hint of juniper berries. Jasper flicked the remainder of his cigarette out of the window before walking back over to his trunk and beckoning Connor to join him. He produced two small vials and handed one to Connor who looked at it.
"Hangover cure for the morning."
Connor accepted that and placed it on his bed making sure the stopper was secured. When he turned around the boy was holding out a slightly longer vial filled with red liquid.
"And this one?" Said Connor opening the vial and sniffing the liquid. It smelled faintly of cinnamon and something bitter.
"An upper of my own invention, it's going to give us some much needed energy for our next task. Have a look." Said Jasper downing one of the vials himself.
Connor looked into the trunk and saw that Jasper possessed what was probably an illegal cache of drugs. They were of several varieties, both muggle and magical, and obviously the trunk was enchanted as it had more room than possible.
Connor cocked his eye, "Our next task?"
Jasper began loading a backpack with several potions and other pre-packaged drugs. "Oh yes. I've been taking back to school orders over the summer and now we are going to deliver them to our esteemed student body. Im sure you aren't surprised that teenagers like to get trashed."
Connor shrugged, "Not really. I know in real life teenagers fuck and get fucked up. I wasn't expecting a fairy tale."
"Good. You probably wouldn't get one here anyway. Down that and let's go." He said indicating the vial in his hand.
"Cheers." Connor downed the potion and immediately felt like running through a wall. "Holy shit this feels like."
"Cocaine. I know. Less expensive but much harder to make and a whole lot more addictive. We will take another one around Christmas I think." Said Jasper as he began making his way to the stairs.
Connor grabbed his jacket and followed behind him, "I love magic."
"We should talk."
"No we shouldn't."
"You can't run from this, we made a mistake, we have to live with this."
"Live with it? Is that why you almost overdosed on coke?"
"I don't need a lecture about drugs from you of all people."
"Then enjoy the party and get the fuck out of my face Lily."
"You're an arse!"
Lily quickly stormed away from Scorpius vowing to shed no tears over the spoiled prince. She hated that she had slept with him most of all. Here he sat in the midst of the annual Slytherin welcome back party. Music played loudly and Slytherin's and students from several other houses danced and partied in the dimly lit common room. If only that stupid boy hadn't stopped her on the train she wouldn't be going through all of this. The boy she now knew as Connor from the sorting ceremony. Of course he would be a Gryffindor.
"Lils!"
Lily turned to see her older cousin Roxanne trotting towards her in a lacy black dress that left little to the imagination on her curvy body. Lily thought Roxie to be her prettiest family member with her tan skin and dark flowing locks. Roxie was a bombshell and she knew it, boys never stood a chance.
"Roxie...Slumming it with us snakes tonight I see." She said as a way of a greeting.
Roxanne appraised her for a moment, "Aren't we just full of teenage angst little cousin."
"Shut up. If you're here to scold me trust me I've heard more than enough." Said Lily shifting her weight.
"Geez Lily you're always so downtrodden. I don't care who you blow around here, we are still family. What goes on between you two is between you two." She said offhandedly. A seventh year Ravenclaw named Dominic walked up and handed Roxanne a drink and she took it without offering a thank you. Dominic stood there awkwardly for a moment before Roxanne cleared her throat. "My cousin needs a drink too. Chop chop."
The boy took off like a puppy searching for food.
"Roxie, Roxie, Roxie. Your mastery over the male species is quite entertaining." Said a voice from behind them. The two turned to see Jasper Bale and the new guy Connor standing behind them.
"Can it Bale! You got my stuff?" Said Roxanne looking at him excitedly.
Lily simply stared at Connor who stood there looking around uneasily before zeroing in on her and giving her a little wave. Jasper held the bag out to Connor who held it while he took several potions out and handed them to Roxie who accepted them gratefully. She fished out a few galleons and gave them to Jasper who pocketed them quickly. He then pulled several small Baggies out and handed them to Lily who placed them in her purse.
"Aren't you going to introduce your friend Jas?" Said Roxanne staring at Connor with a flirty smile.
Jasper had taken his bag back, "Oh yeah, Connor this is Roxanne Weasley and Lily Potter. There's Malfoy, he's got a big order. You wait here; ill do that one without you. Wouldn't want your hands to slip again."
Connor nodded, "Sure. That's probably for the best anyway."
Jasper slipped into the crowd and Roxie saddled up beside him while Lily looked on hoping the boy didn't blab about the train incident.
"You know Connor, if you are looking for a tour guide, I would be happy to fill that slot." She said huskily in his ear.
Connor laughed at this, "I'll keep that in mind, but id like to figure it out for myself first. Hopefully I will manage not to jump off a tower or something."
He had directed that last part at Lily meeting her gaze with his blue eyes.
"Well I know there are plenty of towers I'd like to jump on." Said Roxanne slowly.
"Roxie." Said Lily with a sigh.
Roxanne moved back over to Lily's side, "Im just playing with our future Lord here."
"Im just Connor. No lord or any of that other stuff." Said Connor with a shrug.
"Handsome, rich, and humble. I think I'm really going to like Americans." Said Roxanne. Dominic had returned and distracted Roxie enough for Lily to grab hold of Connor and drag him off to a corner of the common room.
"What the hell are you doing here?" She said hissing at him.
Connor looked affronted, "Trust me, I didn't come looking for you! Especially after that heartwarming appreciation I received earlier."
"You think you did me a favor?" She said quickly. "I told you, you don't fucking know me!"
Connor finally lost it, "And you don't fucking know me princess! I just tried to help someone who seemed like they needed help. You've got some real issues man, shit I am not equipped to deal with. Get over yourself and stop this pity party shit."
Smack!
In hindsight, slapping him was wrong and when their eyes met she was fearful for the first time in a long time. Power radiated from him and his gaze penetrated her right to the core. This was her second time striking him in the face today.
"Con-" She said, her voice catching in her throat.
He held his hand up and walked away from her and watched him disappear in the crowd headed towards the door.
Jasper walked up a few moments later and spoke, "Have you seen Connor, Roxanne said he disappeared with you. I figured you two would be tongue wrestling by now."
Lily only listened half-heartedly and pointed in the direction of the door.
"You okay?" Said Jasper as he spun to leave. "You look a bit pale. Take it easy on the pills."
Lily nodded and Jasper walked off looking for his new friend.
Connor stood in the empty classroom attempting to calm himself down after the incident with Lily. He had felt himself on the brink of doing something foolish as he had earlier on the train with Scorpius after she had slapped him. It scared him because he usually didn't really have temper issues, but now the slightest things were causing him to snap. Though being slapped wasn't usually what he would call slight.
Ares sat in front of the door in wolf form almost as if he was guarding Connor from intruders. Maybe he just sensed that he needed some alone time. He produced his twin-cored wand from his pants and aimed it a desk in front of him. The magic had been itching to be released ever sense he had stepped on the campus and he could feel it calling to him. With a wave the desk turned into nothing more than a pile of saw dust on the floor. With another wave the desk stood back where it had been before.
During his training with the goblins Connor was noted to be extremely at this type of magic. He could break down and rebuild most objects and Pye had suggested that through this same process he grasped magic so quickly. Inherently his mind simply understood the process of using magic. Pye had called that branch of magic transfiguration and it had quickly become Connor's favorite. The goblins had also seen fit to introduce him to elemental spells, which Connor caught on to even faster. He was probably more talented with those than transfiguration but he never really felt in control while using those spells.
Also with a thorough background in all things sci-fi and fantasy Connor had been attempted to mold his magical style into something akin to all his favorite heroes of youth. He wondered if there was a spell to choke someone like Darth Vader?
Clap clap clap
Connor spun on his heel to find Albus Potter sitting in one of the desk clapping as he watched him perform magic.
"You scared the shit out of me man, how did you get in here?" Said Connor lowering the wand he didn't know was raised.
Albus simply shrugged, "Magic?"
"Right. Forgot about that." said Connor lamely.
Albus indicated the desk, "Impressive transfiguration. Nonverbal." With a wave of his hand the desk transformed into an leather couch.
"Whoa. You didn't even use your wand for that." Connor was genuinely impressed. Donnie had said Albus was powerful.
Albus shrugged again and stood up which caused Ares to growl from the door. This caused Albus to pause before pointing out the obvious.
"You know wolves aren't on the list of accepted pets here right?"
Connor smirked back at him, "Takes a wolf to tame one."
"I look forward to testing myself against you Connor. I do hope you will consider competing in the tournament." He said as he approached the door.
Ares padded over to Connor and stood their watching Albus approach the door to leave. "I'll think about it."
Albus simply nodded and opened the door before adding. "I hope so...Oh and if I were you, I would stay away from my sister." He walked out without sparing a glance. Albus Potter was a strange one. He would spend about 45 minutes before bed attempting to figure out if that had been a threat or a warning.
