A New Beginning

by Mizukey

The Grangers adopt Harry when he is four and raise him as a brother to Hermione. They will later attend school together, but Hogwarts may not be it... AU no pairings at the moment. disclaimer not mine.

11. Chapter 11

A.N -Sheepishly- ok so… I know it has been a while and I'm very sorry about that. I really just wanted to get this week at Diagon Alley over with, but I was having trouble finding inspiration for it. I'm not going to promise a date for an update because that always seems to get me in trouble, but I do hope that it will be faster than this one. I think in the next chapter or two they will finally be getting to school. I hope you enjoy this chapter though! –Mizukey

A New Beginning Chapter 11

The second day of the orientation started quickly and before Harry realized what time it was Hilary was calling for the lunch break. They had been having a very interesting discussion on the differences between the world and both children were sad to see it end. They met up with their parents in the Leaky Cauldron for lunch again today and had a light lunch of cold sandwiches and crisps. After they had eaten the entire family re-entered Diagon Alley to meet the rest of the group in front of Gringotts where they would be this afternoon.

"Hey guys," Hilary called, standing on the steps leading to Gringotts. "Come over here so I can talk to you." The group moved over to her, excited to be getting started. "Ok, I'm going to tell you the agenda for today and give out some warnings before we go in. First, the goblins are going to talk about setting up an account if you wish to do so and about changing muggle money into wizard money to spend here in Diagon Alley and then they will let you do whatever you need to take care of. Let me know before you leave and then the rest of the night is yours. Now, I should warn you that goblins are easily offended creatures and won't tolerate any funny business. As you may see as you are entering the building, there is a poem on the door of the bank. I think you all need to hear it so you don't get any bright ideas," she finished, as she glared at a few of the more mischievous students.

Enter, stranger, but take heed,

Of what awaits the sin of greed,

For those who take, but do not earn,

Must pay dearly in their turn.

So if you seek beneath our floors

A treasure that was never yours,

Thief, you have been warned,

Beware of finding more than treasure there.

She finished with a solemn note. "Now, let's get in there!" she said with enthusiasm to lighten the mood that had fallen over the crowd.

As they entered, the beauty of the lobby took Hermione by surprise. Harry noticed the sumptuous furnishings and was a little afraid to touch anything. The group was greeted by three goblins who motioned for them all to gather close. One of the goblins cleared his throat before beginning. "Hello all, and welcome to Gringotts, the only Wizarding bank in existence today." He continued to talk about the history of Gringotts, but it didn't hold Harry's attention very well and his mind wandered over everything they had learned in the past two days.

Harry and Hermione's parents had decided the night before that they would be setting up both of their children accounts at Gringotts. When the goblin was finished talking, the Grangers joined the small groups of people that were going to set up accounts. After waiting in line for about 10 minutes they were called into the office of one of the Goblins. Ellen and Fred took seats and the children stood beside them.

"I'm Griphook and I have been assigned to assist you today. Your names?" he asked.

"My name is Ellen Granger and this is my husband Fred."

"I'm Hermione Granger."

"And I'm Harry Granger," Harry finished.

"We need to set up accounts for both of them today," Fred explained.

"Place your thumbs on this pad, one at a time." Griphook motioned toward a small black box on the mahogany desk, "for recognition purposes later on. Who's first?"Hermione stepped forward and placed her thumb on the block as instructed, holding it there until they heard a small ding from the box. Griphook looked at the back side of the box intently for a moment, writing down some valuable information for the vault sheet he would have to fill out later. "You next," he said, nodding to Harry.

Harry walked up to the box and placed his thumb down. It sat there for a moment before dinging several times in rapid secession. "My, my…. how unusual. Mr. Granger, were you by any chance adopted?" Griphook questioned after reading the back of the box with wide eyes.

"Yes, back when I was four."

"Do you know your original surname?" he asked curtly.

"Umm…." Harry paused, trying to think.

"It was Potter," Fred said unexpectedly.

"I deduced as much. It turns out that Mr. Potter here already has a vault at Gringotts. Several, in fact, though he will not be able to make withdrawals from most until he is of age. You have one trust vault that you may access now, containing enough money for all of your school fees and plenty of extra money. We will have someone take you down later to see it."

"What about the other vaults?" Ellen asked.

"They are being watched over by his magical guardian, Albus Dumbledore. Do you wish to change this?"

"How has he been managing Harry's finances?" Fred asked. He didn't know much about finances, but he knew it was easy to see if someone was managing them in a positive way.

"He has been making large withdrawals for himself as Harry's guardian and not keeping up on all the bookkeeping, so I couldn't tell you. If you wish, you may appoint a goblin to take over because of the neglect he has been showing. Do you wish to do this?"

"Yes, I think we should. We wouldn't want our son's fortune to be stolen by this man. Why, may I ask, does our Harry have so much money?" Fred asked.

"Harry is the head of a very powerful family that had been in the investing business for several generations. They were a very powerful pureblood family who has always fought on the side of the light, making them major targets in this last war. All were wiped out except for Harry here, and he is, in fact, the one who defeated the Dark Lord."

"What do you mean I defeated a Dark Lord?" Harry questioned as he sat down. This was a lot to take in all at once.

"I'm not sure I'm really the person to tell you. Maybe you should ask someone else," finished Griphook, just the slightest hint of compassion in his voice. "I'll have someone take control of your vaults and we will send you a summery of what you own within the week. I will get you a copy of Harry's vault key and a key for Hermione's vault. If you will follow me," he said, getting up out of his chair and walking toward the door. The family followed him, slightly in shock of what they had just heard. They would have to look into this more. Harry decided that he would talk to Hilary once they were done and see if she would tell him anything.

Griphook led them through a door and directed them to climb into a cart. The underground dungeon, for lack of a better word, was musty smelling as if the same air had been circulating through its walls for at least a century. Everything was dimly lit, making it hard to see more than just a few inches in front of your face at any given moment, though it was better closer to the door.

Almost as soon as they started moving, the cart came to a halt. "This will be Hermione's vault, but as you have not deposited any money in it yet, it is empty. So we will just head down to Harry's vault," he finished as the cart began to move once again. It took them down deeper and deeper into the mine-like cave until it came to a halt in front of one of the vaults. Griphook motioned for them to get out and put Harry's key in the hole. The great stone moved aside and Harry was amazed at the piles of money before him. There were piles of gold galleons, silver sickles, and even a few bronze knuts.

As the whole family stood in shock for a moment at how rich their son was. "If I may make a suggestion," Griphook said, "perhaps one of our 10 galleon bags would be best for you. They keep a constant supply of 10 galleons in your bag and if you need more you either wait 10 seconds for the bag to refill itself or you can tap it with your wand and say how much you need and that amount will appear in the bag. Only you and anyone you decide to key into the bag will be able to access it, so you won't have to worry about someone stealing it and having access to all the money in your vault. Is that acceptable?"

"Yes, I think that is a good idea. When I will I be able to get this bag?" Harry asked.

"Right now up in the main hall if you wish. I would guess that you have many purchases to make for the school year, correct?"

"Yes," Harry replied.

They followed the goblin back into the cart and rode back up to the main hall. Once there, they split up. Harry and Fred went to stand in a line to get Harry's bag and Ellen and Hermione stood in another line to make their initial deposit into Hermione's account. Half and hour later they were done and decided that they still had enough time left in the afternoon to get the children's wands from Ollivander's. They walked the short distance to the wand shop and were surprised to find it empty, except for a single man. He looked to be older in years with fuzzy white hair and glasses and he was behind the counter that covered the entire length of the store, looking over several long boxes that Hermione guessed contained wands. The old man turned around to look at them, pulling the glasses off his nose and rubbing the spot where they had been.

"Hello," he greeted, "May I help you?"

"Umm… is this where we buy wands?" Harry asked. His voice wobbled a little bit; unsure if the question would make him look stupid. He wrung is hands, popping one of them and causing the resounding crack to fill the shop, or so it seemed to him.

"Yes, that is the primary function, though if you went to the back you might thing it was a giant rubbish bin. Are you both getting a wand today?" he asked, directing his attention to the children.

"Yes," they replied in unison.

"Well, I do believe the saying is ladies fir….My God, its Harry Potter," he said, clearly stunned at the sight of Harry.

"Well, I guess I am, or more correctly was," Harry replied. He wasn't really enjoying all the attention that he was getting lately. "I was adopted when I was four by the Grangers. This is my mother Ellen, my father Fred, and my sister Hermione," he finished, wishing people that people would realize that he wasn't really Harry Potter anymore; he was Harry Granger and had been since the Grangers had adopted him; about as far back as he could remember.

"Ahh yes, but I do remember you're other parents coming in here to get their first wands. James's wand was Eleven inches, mahogany, pliable, excellent for transfiguration and Lily's was Ten and a quarter inches, willow, swishy, good for charm work, but that was in the past I suppose and it would do more good to dwell on the future. Hermione, was it? I believe I said you were first. What arm do you write with?"

"My right."

Ollivander flicked his wand at a tape measure that was lying on the desk and it floated over to Hermione. It started by measuring her arm, then moved on to other places such as the bridge between her nose, before he ordered it to stop. He grabbed a few of the boxes off the wall and set them down on the counter. Lifting the top one off the pile, he opened it to reveal the wand inside.

"Mahogany, unicorn hair, 13 in, rather whippy. Give it a try," he said, handing her the wand. She grabbed the wand and held it for a second before Mr. Ollivander took it and put it back in the box. "No, that's not it. The wand chooses the wizard, you know. I'll know when we find the right one for you." He had her try a few more; all of them unsuccessful. "Vinewood, dragon heart string, 14 inches, springy," he said handing her the wand. Almost as soon as she touched it, Hermione's face lit up.

"This is the one," she said.

"Try giving it a little wave," Ollivander said. She did so and purple sparks shot out the end. "Yes, this wand seems to suit you very well. Next?" he asked, looking toward Harry.

Harry stepped up to the counter and held out his arm for Ollivander to measure. After taking the measurements, Mr. Ollivander grabbed a few boxes off the wall behind him. Harry tried a few wands without any luck. After about 10 wands, Harry was wondering if there was even a wand in the store for him. "I wonder…." Ollivander started before venturing into the back of his shop. He returned a moment later, holding another wand box. "Try this one," he instructed.

Harry grasped the wand with his right hand and immediately felt warmth spread through his finger tips and flow through his entire body and he knewthat this was the wand for him. "This is it," he said, almost echoing Hermione's earlier words.

"I wondered if it would not be…" Ollivander said. "This wand is very interesting. It's core is phoenix feather and the phoenix that gave it gave only one other and that makes up the core of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named's wand."

"You mean Voldemort?" asked Harry, trying to make the connections to this person that everyone seemed to know about but him.

"Do not utter that name!" Ollivander said sternly, turning to face Harry. "Yes, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named is the one who gave you that scar," he said, pointing to Harry's forehead where his lightning bolt scar was fixed. He then proceeded to give them a slight history of the rise and fall of Voldemort after seeing the confused looks on their faces. ((I'm not going to give the whole history here. If you want to know what happened with Voldemort, go re-read the first book))

They left the wand shop that day a few Galleons lighter and with much to think about. I can't believe that this happened to me… Harry thought as he left. What does this mean for the future? He resolved that as soon as he could get Hermione alone, they were going to have a talk about it.

-Wednesday-

The third day of the Diagon Alley week was just as interesting as the first two, with one very important thing happening that day, the letters from Supirittsu. After the class portion of the day was finished, Harry and Hermione met with their family for lunch in the Leaky Cauldron as they had the days before. While they were waiting on their lunch to be served, an owl flew through the window, unnoticed by the family and most of the other diners. It perched high in the ceiling and seemed to look around for a moment before spotting the Granger family and flying towards them, landing gently on the table.

Hermione was the fastest one to grab the owl, noticing the two letters attached to its leg. She relived the barn owl of its burden and began to look over the letters. One was addressed to her and the other to Harry. She handed him his, which he accepted, and turned hers over to open it. It was sealed with wax, something that neither of the children had seen before. Hermione carefully split hers, making sure not to rip any of the envelope or the letters inside. Once it was open, she pulled out three pieces of a parchment-like paper and read over the first one. It was short, sweet, and to the point.

Supirittsu Academy for the Gifted and Talented Witch or Wizard

Headmistress- Chihami Ruka

Dear future student,

We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted into Supirittsu Academy for the Gifted and Talented Witch or Wizard. Please note that this high honor only goes out to the best, and it seems as if you have met our fine schools standards as to attend in this oncoming school year. You will be among some of the talented young minds that are already attending; we hope that you will enjoy your education into the matters of witchcraft and wizardry. Enclosed is a forum designated for your scheduling, book fees, dress code regulations, and other various informational guides that are necessary for a proper schooling. We look forward to seeing you September first. Also enclosed is the information pertaining to getting you to Japan and to the school.

The Supirittsu Board of Education

"Yes!" Hermione shouted, causing several diners to look her way. She backed down a bit; her face now beat red and muttering apologies. Harry laughed at Hermione's antics, but he was also smiling from ear to ear, a clear sign that he had also been accepted.

"I take it that you both made it?" Ellen asked.

"Yes, I think it is safe to assume that, considering Hermione's behavior," Harry replied.

"Well, congratulations. What else does the letter say?"

"It says that enclosed we will find other important information," Harry responded, but Hermione was already deep into the second, third, and fourth pages of her letter.

Second Page-

Classes- You will need to select at least 3 but no more than 6 of the following electives. Please choose wisely as it is very difficult to pick up a class after your first year but you can always drop one as long as you are still taking at least three electives.

Ancient Runes

Arithmency

Care of Magical Creatures

Divination

Dueling and Healing

Estate Management

Muggle Studies

Spell Construction

You will also be required to take the following Core Classes:

Astronomy

Charms

Defense Against the Dark Arts

Herbology

History of Magic

Potions

Transfiguration

If you wish, you may also decide to take a series of muggle classes. If you decide to take them, you must take them all. They are:

Japanese

English

History

Science

Math

Please send a return owl with which electives that you want to take by August 30th.

Third Page-

Please purchase the following books if you wish to take that class.

Ancient Runes- Ancient Runes Symbology

Arithmency- Arithmency: The Math of the Wizarding World

Astronomy- A Wizard's Guide to the Stars

Care of Magical Creatures- Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

Charms- The Magical World of Charms

Defense Against the Dark Arts- Defense: The How To

Divination- Seeing the Future

Dueling and Healing- How to Beat Your Enemies and Healing the Human Body

Estate Management- How to Protect your Families Estate

Herbology- How to Grow Your Magical Garden

History of Magic- History of the Wizarding World

Muggle Studies- The Muggle Lifestyle

Potions- The Potions Handbook

Spell Construction- The Language of Spells

Transfiguration – This to That: A Guide to Transfiguration

The Muggle class textbooks will be provided for you at school.

You will also need to purchase the following supplies:

Robes-

Supirittsu Academy Uniform

Girls- Navy knee-length pleated skirt, silver sweater with school logo, white short sleeve shirt with school logo, navy blue blazer with school logo, white knee-length socks, and brown shoes

Boys- Navy dress pants, white short sleeve shirt with school logo, navy blue blazer with school logo, black dress shoes, and black socks.

Both- Navy cloak with school logo. One in cotton and one in wool to be worn around the school at all times.

Other Supplies

Size 2 pewter cauldron

Brass scales

Beginners Potion Kit

Telescope

Wand

1 Set Glass or Crystal Phials

Writing Supplies (parchment quills for Magic Classes and notebooks and ink pens for the Muggle ones)

You are allowed to bring a pet- Cat, Owl, Snake. Any other requests may be sent in writing to the office for approval

Page 4-

It has come to the attention of the staff here at Supirittsu that you are coming from outside of Japan. Special arrangements will have to be made in order to get you to Japan. Someone will arrive at your residence on August 31 at promptly 9:00 a.m. to transport your family to Japan. You will be given a hotel to stay in for the night and then will proceed to the tram-station with the other students in order to get to the school. The person who comes to pick you up will speak English so that everyone will be able to understand him/her. We look forward to meeting you there.

It was almost too much information for one person to take in at once. All Hermione could think about was the fact that she couldn't wait to go shopping and decide what classes to take.

"Harry, what classes do you think you want to take?" she asked.

Harry noticed Hermione's immediate mind on the academics and laughed inwardly about it. Some things about Hermione were always the same, no matter which world you were in.

"Well, I haven't really thought about it since we've only had the paper for about five minutes." He smirked at her in a very sarcastic way to let her know that he was just kidding and she humped and pouted a bit.

"You don't have to make fun of me you know," she replied in an equally sarcastic manner.

"I know. Why don't we look at the course books when we go to the bookstore tomorrow and look at what some of the subjects are about," Harry suggested. Hermione agreed and they finished off their lunches. After safely tucking their letters in their pockets, they ran off to the make shift classroom to join the rest of their class for a tour of the Ministry.

-Thursday-

Their morning class had passed rather quickly on Thursday. They had discussed the previous day's trip to the ministry and had also made a simple boil potion. All the students were given a book, provided by the ministry, which told them some of the basics of the school subjects that all magically-raised children just knew, like how to properly hold a wand, the difference between charms, curses, and transfiguration, etc. for them to look at and to cover some of the stuff they wouldn't have time to cover during the week.

The afternoon was bright and sunny, one of the best days of the year weather-wise. It was a breezy 72 degree afternoon and everyone was ready to shop till they dropped. Most students were heading off towards the robe shop or the Apothecary, but not Harry and Hermione… they knew exactly where they wanted to go.

Hermione hurriedly pushed open the doors of Flourish and Blotts with much enthusiasm. As she blasted through the doors, she froze as soon as she entered the magnificent building. Her eyes grew wide and her jaw almost fell to the floor in sheer amazement. Before her lay piles upon piles of books. They covered every imaginable surface and then some. For an instant all thoughts stopped passing through her head and she was silent. Then, an explosion of joy and emotion and off she ran. As fast as she could, she started to get the lay of the land, scouting out the different sections. She found entire sections for something called Potions that looked a lot like Chemistry and Arthimancy which reminded Hermione of math. There was a section of books about cooking, sewing, and other things that looked, what was the word Hilary had used?... muggle like.

Harry entered the store a moment after Hermione and couldn't help but laugh at her reaction. He knew that she was in heaven and he wasn't about to bring her back to this world.

It took a few minutes, but eventually Hermione returned to her family, her eyes still wide from trying to take in all the sights. "I think I got it. Where's the list of books? There's a section of school books at the back on the right so we can go look them over."

The family walked back there and began to look at the books. There were so many new subjects to choose from, and, after about two hours in front of the books, Harry and Hermione had decided what classes they were going to take. Harry had decided on Care of Magical Creatures, Spell Construction, Ancient Runes, Dueling and Healing, and the surprise, Estate Management. After learning from Griphook about his wealth, he thought it might be a good idea to learn to manage that wealth, and hopefully this class could help him do so effectively. Hermione decided on Care of Magical Creatures, Spell Construction, Ancient Runes, Dueling and Healing, and Arthimancy, as she was very good at math. They also decided that they would take the Muggle classes that the school offered, so that they would keep up with what they had been learning so far, along with the required classes of the school. They also browsed the isles a bit, picking out a few books each that caught their attention. Harry picked up a book about Quidditch, among others, and was interested to see what the sport offered. Hermione had picked up a book on Wizarding Traditions from all around the world, thinking it would be interesting to see how different wizards acted from Muggles in any given place, among others. They ended up with all their school books, plus about 20 extra books that just looked interesting. Their parents started to get a little worried when they saw the amount of books, but Harry assured them that he would pay for it with his new found fortune. They went to the cashier station and bought all the books, but took the clerk up on his offer of being able to leave them there until they finished their shopping, as they were quiet heavy.

The next shop was the robe shop, where they got their first look at the uniforms for Supirittsu. They were both fitted in separate rooms and then sent to the main foyer so that they could admire each other's outfits. Hermione was wearing a silvery-white sweater. The neck was a V-neck and the sleeves were larger at the bottom than the top. Her skirt was navy blue and pleated, falling just below her knees. She also had on knee-high white socks and brown dress shoes.

The next shop was the robe shop, where they got their first look at the uniforms for Supirittsu. They were both fitted in separate rooms and then sent to the main foyer so that they could admire each other's outfits. Hermione was wearing a silvery-white sweater. The neck was a V-neck and the sleeves were larger at the bottom than the top. Her skirt was navy blue and pleated, falling just below her knees. She also had on knee-high white socks and brown dress shoes. Around her shoulders rested a navy blue cape held across her front with a small silver clasp. It delicately brushed across the floor; just the right length for it to cover her legs, but not so long that it would be stepped on. To the right of the clasp on her chest was the school's emblem, a beautiful picture of the four elements coming together.

Harry was dressed in navy blue dress slacks and a white collared shirt, covered by a navy blazer and completed with a necktie and brown shoes. He too wore a cape, much the same as Hermione's, but built more for his male form.

They admired each other's outfits and the whole vision was starting to become real to them. They really were going to go to Supirittsu, and very soon. They stood patiently until the ladies at the shop were done fitting them and then placed their orders for the year, to be picked up later that night or early the next day. The next shop was the Apothecary where the siblings picked up some basic supplies for Potions class; a set of scales each, a cauldron, and other essentials before exiting the store. Harry's money bag was quite handy, as they had spent quite a bit of cash today on lots of new things for the upcoming school year and it would have been a pain to carry it around that much.

The next stop on their shopping journey was a small luggage shop where they both needed to purchase a trunk that could hold all of their belongings for the year. The outside of the shop was slightly dark, but not menacing. Harry led the way, giving the front door of the shop a slight push. It creaked a bit, but the sound of a small bell drowned it out quite nicely. The interior of the shop was crowded to the brim with luggage, from backpacks all the way up to large trunks and everything in between. Some thing stuck Harry as familiar, but he couldn't really place it.

"Hello, may I help you?" a voice called from a back room, a few seconds before a head appeared in the doorway, followed by the body of a tall gangly man, who looked to be in his early thirties.

"Yes," Ellen spoke up, "We are looking for a pair of school trunks. What do you have available?"

"Off to school for the first time are we? Well, let me see what we have…" he trailed off, walking toward the right hand side of the shop. "This is a very basic model, with no extra features. What you might call a basic muggle model." He moved down the row a bit, directing his attention to another model. "This one may look the same as the other, but it comes with many more features. All the space inside the trunk is magically expanded to be 3 times it's normal volume. It also comes with the option of adding an additional compartment that would act as a closet were you could hang up your clothing so that it doesn't get wrinkled. Instead of a key to lock the trunk, there is a fingerprint recognition device that you can key people into so that they can also access you trunk. Does either of those sound good?"

After some discussion, they decided on two of the higher end models. They would be using them for years to come, so it made sense to get the better trunks. It wasn't as if Harry didn't have the money.

The family made a few last stops before picking up all their purchases and calling it a night. All the shopping had gotten both siblings excited for the school year to come.

-Friday-

Friday passed in a blur of excitement for all the students of the school. They had their last class and had a party that everyone enjoyed. Many people made promises to write to each other or see each other in the coming school year. Harry and Hermione were the only ones going to Supirittsu, but they still promised to write some of their new friends. Before anyone knew it, the day was over and they were on a train back home. Now they would just be bidding their times until the school year started.