A/N: And here's the next chapter! Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I don't own the Harry Potter or Godzilla Series. I only own my original ideas.
Chapter 14: All Aboard
The next morning, Asulmagus woke to see the Limiter Band sitting right in front of him. He placed in on, and immediately noticed it felt slightly different. He activated the Limiter, and then Harry went upstairs. He did notice the slight drain on his power, but it wasn't anything troubling. Harry had breakfast (the manor's House Elves fawning over him), and then used the Floo to head back to Diagon Alley, and then headed to Orthogon Alley. There, he immediately went to the Starlight Wands, and went up to the shopkeeper.
"Ah! Welcome back, Mr. Potter," said the shopkeeper, "your wand is done".
Harry accepted the wand, and as he looked it over he felt it match with him perfectly. The two different woods had been melded together expertly, spiraling up the length towards the tip in four bands. At specific points along the wand, a carefully cut piece of peridot could be seen. When it touched his fingers, it felt like an extension of himself.
"I must say, I've never made a wand quite like this one," said the shopkeeper, "It should be good with transfiguration and some charms, but in particular in should be quite good with elemental magic".
"Thank you," said Harry, "how much to I owe you?"
"20 Galleons," said the shopkeeper.
Harry handed over the money, and then left the shop. He returned to the Leaky Cauldron, and Flooed back to the Manor. There, he showed Charlus his new wand, and explained what went into it.
"Well, Harry," said Charlus, "Whatever happens, you're certainly going to keep up the Potter family tradition of bringing change to the world".
Harry then went to the mansion's practice room with the books he'd purchased the other day, and set about studying. Because of what both Nicolas had told him and Charlus had reminded him, as he was inside a wizarding household, and had a custom-made wand, he didn't have to worry about the Ministry Trace, and as such was allowed to practice magic as much as he wanted. He started with the basics, such as Lumos charms and basic transfiguration. He also looked into elemental magic, as he'd done it twice before. The result were… interesting to say the least. To be specific, the elemental spells Harry tried ended up being stronger than anticipated.
The days went by, and soon enough it was Spetember 1st, time to head off to Hogwarts. Harry Flooed to King's Cross Station, and headed for where he knew the false wall to be. On the way, he saw a large family of redheads. All but two of them had an aura about them which Harry's senses didn't like. Interestingly, the those two who seemed okay were twins. Harry continued past them, pulling his trunk, and walked through the wall. Beyond, he saw the steam train waiting there at platform Nine and Three-Quarters. Harry boarded the train, and selected an empty compartment.
Harry observed as the others boarded the train, and sat quietly until he heard someone talking about him. Harry looked out the window to see the redheaded family, minus the twins.
"Mum, is it true Harry Potter is supposed to start this year?" said the younger of the two remaining boys.
"Yes Ronald," said the woman, obviously his mother, "Remember what you're supposed to do".
"Yea, yea mum," said Ron, "find him and befriend him, so that Ginny can play her part next year".
"Precisely," said the woman, "now, get going. You don't want to miss your chance, especially with how much we stand to gain".
When Harry heard this, he could feel the nuclear firestorm within him get a bit hotter. How dare this woman think she can control his life? He saw a round-faced, slightly chubby boy coming this way, and invited him into the compartment.
"Uh… hi, I'm Neville Longbottom," said the boy.
"Harry Potter," he replied.
"Really?" said Neville, "you know, people have been looking for you for the last 2 years".
"As everyone keeps telling me," said Harry.
"I-I'm sorry," said Neville, "if you want me to leave…"
"No, you can stay. It's just I'm getting tired of people asking me about it," said Harry.
Soon enough, the train got underway, and was soon steaming across the English countryside. A short distance into the trip, a bushy-haired girl came into the compartment, looking a bit out of sorts.
"Um, is anyone sitting here?" she asked.
"No, we've got room," said Harry.
"Thank you, I'm Hermione Granger by the way," she said.
"Neville Longbottom," he said.
"Harry Potter," he said.
"Harry Potter? I've read all about you! Did you really slay the Silver Horror of Holland with a butter knife in 1982?" asked Hermione
"First, I've never been to Holland, second, I would have been only two years old at the time, and third, what in the world are you talking about?" said Harry.
"But I read it in a book!" said Hermione, "What about your biographies?"
"Well, they were obviously works of fiction," said Harry, "Also, I've never been interviewed for a biography, and as I've been pretty much out of contact with the magical world since my parents were killed, no one would have known me well enough to write one".
Before Hermione could reply, the door was opened again, and this time a familiar blond boy was standing there, flanked by two ugly gorillas.
"I heard Harry Potter was on this train," said the boy.
"I am Harry Potter, but I must wonder," said Harry, "have you been poking you head into every compartment on the train looking for me?"
The boy's slightly embarrassed look told Harry everything he needed to know.
"I'm Malfoy, Draco Malfoy," said the boy.
Hermione giggled about that, and while Harry knew why, Malfoy didn't.
"You think my name's funny, do you?" said Malfoy.
"No, just the way you said it," explained Harry, "you spoke it like a character from a Muggle movie".
"Bond, James Bond," added Neville.
Malfoy looked even more flustered, but continued on his previous tack.
"I heard you were away from our world for some time," said Malfoy, "I could show you the right way of doing things, let you learn how certain families are better than others".
Malfoy offered his hand, and Harry looked at it with a frown.
"I may have been away from Wizarding Britain, but the Wizarding World is bigger than that," said Harry, "I know people who helped prepare me for my arrival at Hogwarts".
"Really, who?" asked Malfoy.
"I cannot tell you," said Harry, "I took a magical oath to protect their identity. My apologies, Mr. Malfoy, but I would prefer to judge people based off their actions, not their blood".
The Flamel's had mentioned that stating this would stop any further questions, regardless if such an oath had actually been taken.
"You'll pay for this Potter!" said Malfoy, "You'll see…"
Malfoy and his cronies stomped off, only to be replaced by a blond girl with icy blue eyes.
"Can we help you?" said Harry.
"Good job putting Malfoy in his place," said the girl, "He thinks he owns to school since his father's on the Board of Governors. He's the kind who gives other Purebloods a bad name. Daphne Greengrass, by the way"
"Harry Potter," he said.
"An honor to meet you, Heir Potter, and you as well, Heir Longbottom," said Daphne.
"The same to you," said Neville, "would you like to sit with us?"
"I would glad to do so," said Daphne.
Daphne sat down, and after a few moments of silence they broke down laughing.
"What's so funny?" said Hermione.
"Well, were all speaking with utmost formality with each other," said Harry, "once Daphne started it, Neville and I just went along with it… Us, three eleven year old children, speaking like we were at some sort of high society gathering".
Herminone realized how silly the situation was, and smiled.
"So which house are each of wanting to try for?" asked Hermione, "from what I've read, either Gryffindor or Ravenclaw would be a good fit for me".
"My grandmother wants me to be a Gryffindor, like my parents," said Neville, "but I'm not sure I'm brave enough".
"I'll most likely end up in either Slytherin or Ravenclaw," said Daphine.
"The way I see it," said Harry, "each house has its merits and flaws. While Gryffindors are through of as brave, they also have a tendency to be a bit reckless. Ravenclaws are known for their brains, but many see them as a bit cold. Slytherins are cunning, but due to recent history, they are also vilified. Hufflepuff on the other hand are thought of as hard workers and loyal, but because they weren't selected for the 'specialist' Houses, people look down on them. In the end, I could likely deal with being in any of the four Houses. I think we shouldn't let the fact that we'll likely be in separate houses stop us from talking to each other, though".
From there, their conversation moved on to a different topic: the event in London a year ago.
"Did you three hear anything about those creatures who appeared in London?" asked Hermione.
"Hear about it? I was in Daigon Alley with my parents that day," said Daphne, "They were… I've never seen anything like them before".
"Me neither," said Neville, "Though they make me wonder".
"What do you mean?" said Daphne.
"Well, I live with my grandmother," said Neville, "most of her friends are much older than me. I… sort of spend my time working in the greenhouses, tending to plants to relax. On the day after these creatures appeared, I couldn't keep my mind off of them… what they might be like if we could speak to them".
"I know what you're talking about!" said Hermione.
"Yes, that would be interesting, wouldn't it?" said Harry knowingly.
The train trundled on, carrying it passengers towards their destination.
A/N: And there we go! Next time: Sorting. See you then!