A Grim Tale
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. If I did Harry would have been an introvert and a sociopath for being abused and thrown in a cupboard for years.
After watching Netflix original The King, and a binge watch of the series You. I decided to make a HP story with Timothée Chalamet, the actor, as the main character in mind. And this was what I got for the first chapter. Here's to my first ever HP story.
Warning: Very graphic and violent themes. Read at your own discretion.
Chapter 1: Like father, like son
May 10, 1980, Binns Orphanage
This was it for Kai. All of his previous misdeeds had finally caught up to him. Now he was going to be shipped off to prison, or maybe an insane asylum. Most eleven year old's would sob, wail and cry "why me". But he knew that he wasn't the most perfect cookie in the batch. The only question that needed to be answered was why the asylum decided to send a fellow patient to retrieve him.
"Hello Mister Black. My name is Minerva McGonagall. I am a professor from the Wizarding School of Hogwarts." The name of her place of employment actually explained her choice of clothing.
The old woman had the most ridiculous outfit he had ever seen. She was dressed in black robes and a pointed black hat. If Kai actually ever celebrated Halloween, this ladies house would be his first stop.
"I'm sorry to drop this all on you but I'm not actually eleven. Even though I have the stature of a small boy, I am actually forty-eight years old. You see elves age differently than normal humans." Kai spoke sincerely, "It's the reason we are able to make toys for Saint Nick for so long."
The woman obviously didn't have a sense of humor as her brows tightened even further.
"I assure you Mister Black, I am a wizard. And so are you." said tersely.
"If you actually think I would believe that, you truly must be insane. Well let's get on with it, what institution are you with?" Kai always liked a good joke, but if this really was his last day of freedom he'd rather spend it not talking to the insane witch patient.
"My time is short so this will have to validate my claims." McGonagall took out a wooden stick from underneath her sleeves and gestured it at his nightstand. And just like that, the numerous books that were on the stand began to slowly float into the air.
Kai stood from his bed in shock and awe, "How are you doing that?" He gaped at the levitating books that began to encircle him.
"Wizards are able to do a number of different things through the use of magic." McGonagall gestures toward the books again, making them float back onto the stand.
Kai stared at the motionless books for a moment before bringing his attention toward McGonagall.
"And you are from a school of wizards?" Kai looks at the wooden stick in McGonagall's hand curiously, "Do you need to have that stick in your hand in order to do magic?"
"That is a very astute observation, . Yes, wizards do in fact need a wand to channel their magic." McGonagall tucks her wand back underneath her robes, "And the school I represent is called Hogwarts. It's a place for young wizards such as yourself to learn more about magic."
"Interesting, so how many wizards are there? How did you know I am a wizard?," At this point, Kai was rambling, "Why haven't I heard of wizards? Do I have to pay for this school?."
"One question at a time please. There is an entire Wizarding World, and we know you are a wizard because your parents were wizards." McGonagall spoke, "Our world is hidden from muggles under the Statute of Secrecy. And no, you do not have to pay for school. Your school tuition has already been paid for."
"Who would pay for an orphan to go to a school?" Kai asked skeptically. No one ever did anything out of the kindness of their hearts. Except when he wanted them to of course.
"You may want to sit down for this next part ." McGonagall's suggestion was promptly ignored, "Your father is from a very noble and wealthy family. For reasons unknown, your mother decided to drop you off at an orphanage when you were a baby. Your seven years of Hogwarts has already been paid for by your father's house."
"So who are my parents and where are they?" Kai asked, he had long since given up on ever having a family. But he could at least find out more about his wayward parents.
"Your father is Sirius Black, he was the Heir of The Noble and Most Ancient House of Black. I'm afraid I only know that your mother's name was Hestia Jones. She went to America after she left you here." McGonagall's permanent scowl softened a fraction at that information, "Sirius Black is imprisoned for life inside the wizarding prison Azkaban."
Well that was not what Kai was expecting. He was fully ready to accept the fact that his parents just didn't want him. While that was true for his mother, apparently his father had done something terrible enough to be imprisoned. Hopefully the saying, 'Like father, like son' wouldn't be applied anytime soon.
"Well then, that's a lot to think about. So what now?" Kai awkwardly played with his white t-shirt, "How do I get to this school? And where do I buy my stuff? I'm sure there is a specific place to buy magical things."
"I will take you to Diagon Alley, where most wizards of Wizarding Britain shops." McGonagall turned around to open his bedroom door, "I will be back to take you shopping for your school supplies tomorrow. Goodbye, ."
Kai's brain was still reeling from the meeting with the old witch. He couldn't believe that he was actually a wizard. And what was even better to him was that there was an actual school for him to go to. At Least that meant he didn't have to stay in this dreadfully boring orphanage.
A small sniffle from inside his closet brought Kai back to reality.
"Oops, sorry about that darling." Kai opened the door to the closet, inside sat a small eight year old blonde girl in a pink frilly dress, "You can go little Susie, I have other more important things to think about right now."
"Y-You don't want to play anything else, Kai?" Susie tilted her head up, showing blue eyes shining with unshed tears.
"I believe are recent games are enough for now." Kai kneeled down at eye level and brought the girls face into his hands, "Go back to your room little Susie, remember nothing about today or anything you might have heard. You only remember having a lot of fun, Ok?"
"Yes, Kai." Susie eyes glazed and she picked herself up, smiling as she exited the room.
"Hmm, I guess now I have an answer as to why I'm special." Kai wondered if every wizard could do what he could. He thought of asking McGonagall but then she would probably question how he found out about it and how he used his ability. Those questions alone would be the end of him. Better to play it safe and try to get answers on his own tomorrow.
The next afternoon, McGonagall arrived just as she said. Kai had already been ready to leave because he had spent the last hour placating his doting caretaker Miss Binns . The old woman really did get on his nerves with her constantly checking to make sure he was fine. Even worse, there were only nine other orphans living in the house and he was the oldest, so her attention was almost always focused back toward him after a while.
So sadly, all he could do was smile like the good little boy he portrayed himself to be to his caretaker. It made getting favors and privileges far more easier to gain when you were already known as the 'perfect child'.
"Hello . We have much to do today." McGonagall greeted him in front of the orphanage.
"Are we going to take a taxi or something? I don't see a motorcar." Kai made a show of looking around the empty street.
"We will be apparating to our destination. Please hold my hand ." McGonagall held out her hand towards him.
"What's apparating? Is that some sort of word for-" A sudden feeling of being sucked through a chute occurred the moment Kai grasped the old witches hand. One moment they were in front of the orphanage, and the next they appeared in front of a bar with an audible 'pop'.
"Ooh, that was fun. That made my stomach all tingly." Kai stared around at his newfound surroundings, "Did we just teleport someplace else Miss McGonagall?"
"It's Professor McGonagall, . And yes we did, now follow me closely please." McGonagall quickly walked into the bar labeled The Leaky Cauldron.
"What a stupid name." Kai muttered, as he followed behind the old witch.
Inside the bar was a various assortment of people. All of them were dressed similarly like Professor McGonagall though. Kai even picked out a few people dressed in clothes with dead animals wrapped around them.
"Professor McGonagall, it's always nice to see ya!" An old bartender called out to the duo from behind the bar.
"Hello Tom, I'm just passing through with a new student." McGonagall said, primly walking up to the man.
"Ah, a new Hogwarts student eh! What's your name lad?" Tom grinned at Kai.
"Malachias Black, but you can call me Kai. It's very nice to meet you, sir." Kai smiled innocently.
It was never a good idea to start off making enemies when you just started in someplace new. And this new world could be a fresh new start for him. So Kai was adamant to show everyone in this new Wizarding World, that he was a kind hearted boy. Sadly, it seemed like he would be having a hard time doing that.
"Oh, Black you say? Like, erm, you mean like Sirius Black?" Tom shuffled nervously.
"I was informed that Sirius Black was my father." Kai noticed the rather heated glares and nervous glances he was receiving from the nearby occupants around him, "Do you know him by any chance?"
"I'm sure everyone has heard of your father, lad." Tom chuckled nervously before picking up a wet towel, "Well I got to get back to work. This place doesn't run itself you know. It was nice to see ya Professor McGonagall and, erm, you too Black."
Well that was an odd reaction. Kai had never met someone who hadn't liked or felt at ease around him before. But he thought it best not to stick around a bunch of people who looked like they wanted to skewer him.
Kai followed Professor McGonagall to a hallway that led to a dead end blocked by a brick wall. Before he could ask why a brick wall was in the middle of a hallway, McGonagall brought out her wand and tapped on the wall.
"Well that was totally unexpected." Kai said as the brick wall opened up into a bustling road.
"Follow me please. Our first stop is to Gringotts." McGonagall says as she begins leading them through the crowds of robe wearing people.
All of the stores Kai walked past looked very interesting. There was a candy store that had floating cotton candy that morphed into different shapes of animals. He also saw a store that sold flying brooms for some reason. Of all the things to make fly and these wizards chose a broom. If that was the only way to fly in the Wizarding World, Kai would definitely have to find a new way to fly by himself.
Eventually they made their way to a huge white building with the gold words 'Gringotts' emblazoned on the front. They walked up the large white stairs and entered through big golden doors, guarded by a small green creature in a red uniform. As they walked inside a small hallway, they were met by smaller silver doors with a rhyme written on them.
Enter, stranger, but take heed
Of what awaits the sin of greed
For those who take, but do not earn,
Must pay most 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.
"It started off strong but the ending there is a little bland." Kai tapped his chin thoughtfully, "Maybe they should have said, "Thief, you have been warned, beware. Of finding nothing more than despair." Yes, that sounds much more ominous."
"Please try and keep your ridiculous comments to yourself." McGonagall said dryly.
The duo entered a hall of white and gold. There was only one lane and on either side were rows of counters with tiny vicious looking green things in black suits doing paperwork or weighing gems.
"They look very... goblin like." Kai muttered as he followed McGonagall to one of the nearby green creatures' desks.
"Hello master goblin, I would like to gain access to Mister Black's vault." McGonagall told the goblin.
"We would need to verify that he is a Black." The goblin brought out a gold dagger from under his desk and presented it to Kai. "We will require you to put some blood on this parchment."
Kai took the dagger from the goblins hand and sliced open his palm across the middle. Clenching his hand over the parchment he let his blood pour on the parchment nearly soaking half the page before the goblin snatched the parchment and dagger away.
"We only needed a drop." The goblin looked at him with a peculiar gaze.
"Oh, then why such a big knife?" McGonagall shook her head, took out her wand and waved it over Kai's palm. And to his wonder the pain, wound and even the blood vanished.
"Just for decoration really. It seems you are indeed the heir of House Black." The goblin stood from his seat, "You are a very important client. Your account manager will have to speak with you. One moment ."
For a few nerve wracking moments the two waited until a new goblin, dressed in the same black suit as the rest of them, approached them from behind.
"Hello Mister Black. I am Ragnok, the manager of the Black family finances. Please follow me." Ragnok led them through dark hallways to a personal office filled with expensive looking furniture and antiques.
Ragnok sat behind a dark wood desk and gestured for the two of them to sit in the two chairs in front of him.
"You are the last member of House Black, other than your father who is in prison. So you have become the sole heir to the Black family fortune." Ragnok took out a small black ring from under his desk and a single piece of parchment, "This is your Black heir ring, normally this wouldn't allow you to access your family vault. But since your magical guardian, which is Sirius Black, is incarcerated you are freely able to access it as the last Black."
Kai took the ring which was a black obsidian band ring with a silver engraving of a skull and the words Toujours Pur under it.
"What do these words mean?" Kai asked as he slipped the ring on his left index finger, he felt it shift and tighten to fit him perfectly.
"Always Pure. The Blacks were widely known pure-blood extremists. This is an overview of your finances and estates." Ragnok handed him over the parchment. "If you need anything just come to me directly, ."
"Erm, sure thing Ragnok." Kai didn't know what to say honestly. He had his own financial adviser and he was the last living member and heir of a wealthy house. His life was really taking a turn. Though he did need to find out what a pure-blood extremist was. It might be good to learn some of the family history.
"Griphook will take you to your vault . He's already waiting outside for you." Ragnok said obviously dismissing them.
Kai didn't even register the exhilarating ride down to his family vault. He could only think deeply about what his father had been thinking before he was sent to prison. The man had seemingly all the money he could want. From what he read from his finance report the amount of these galleons and sickle things he had was enormous. And the exchange rate of them into pounds was ludicrous. Kai had never seen such a number! The Black family even owned an ancestral home called Grimmauld Place in London. So what would make such a man throw away such a lavish life like that?
When the ride ended, they were taken to a big black door with a number of gears and locks on its surface.
"Place your hand on the door, it will only open for a Black or a goblin." Griphook growled.
Pressing his hand against the cool surface of the door, Kai stepped back as the doors locks began twisting and turning before the door opened wide.
Stepping inside the massive room, he was almost blinded by the light reflecting off of the literal mountains of golden coins and smaller hills of silver spilled around the room. The inside of the room was big enough to fit the entire two story orphanage home he lived in including the back and front yards. Old paintings, antique furniture, bookcases filled with old books, gems and jewelry and an assortment of medieval weapons like swords and shields were everywhere.
"Bloody hell, my family is loaded!" Kai whistled. He read the amount on the paper, Ragnok, had given him. But seeing it for himself was another matter entirely.
"Language, . Grab what you need so we can go." McGonagall said archly.
"I wouldn't touch most of the books and weapons if I were you. Even though your heir status protects you from most of the dark magic in here, some of these items hold very nasty surprises." Griphook grinned toothily, handing him a small pouch.
"How am I supposed to fit anything inside this pouch?" Kai looked at the small bag skeptically.
"That's a mokeskin pouch, it can store anything inside and it is bottomless. Only the owner can retrieve items. You only need to think about what you want to pull out and it shall appear in your hand." McGonagall explained.
Sure enough, Kai's entire arm disappeared into the pouch and it even expanded to fit his arms width. As he started shoveling literally thousands of galleons from one of the numerous mountains of gold into the pouch, McGonagall heatedly informed him that he had more than enough to buy his supplies. He also decided to sneak in a silver red-gem hilt dagger with a slightly curved blade, which came with a intricate black leather sheath that he could strap around his forearm.
It was for symbolic reasons of course, who wouldn't want something that belonged to their family after all. And while he wanted to grab some of the books he saw, something told him it would be a bad idea to do that right now.
"So where to next Professor McGonagall?" Kai asked, as the two walked out of the doors of Gringotts.
"We need to get you a trunk first so you can carry all your things." McGonagall, and Kai, began walking back into the busy road of Diagon Alley.
After passing a few stores, they walked into a simple looking store called Wiseacre's Wizarding Equipment.
Inside the store were many different items on display. Instead of exploring however like Kai wanted to do, McGonagall took them straight to the stores counter.
"This student needs a trunk for his first year at Hogwarts." McGonagall told the old man behind the counter who looked toward Kai.
"Would you like a two compartment, four compartment or six compartment trunk?" The store clerk asked Kai.
"I believe I'll go with six compartments." Kai planned to get far more things than what was just on the school supplies list after all. If he could without McGonagall hovering over him at least.
The man nodded before he left to retrieve a large black leather trunk.
"There's a feather light on it so no matter how much stuff is inside it won't weigh a thing. Also there's expanding charms on all the compartments, along with standard preserving charms and water proof charms." The clerk smiled.
"What if someone were to steal it?" Kai asked curiously.
"Well I could put a standard locking charm on it but any adequate wizard will be able to unlock it unless you yourself put better protections on it." The man said.
While it wasn't very reassuring, Kai could only hope there weren't any competent students at school. He'd hate to have to make an example out of someone who decided to get sticky fingers.
Kai paid the man 18 galleons and followed McGonagall out of the store carrying his new trunk. It was still bright but the sun was very clearly beginning to set.
"I will go to the Apothecary and Amanuensis Quills to pick out all of the equipment you will need for your first year. While I do that you can go to Flourish and Blotts and get the books on the list." McGonagall handed Kai a piece of parchment that held all of the supplies needed for a first year student. Afterwards, Kai handed the older woman enough galleons to buy his supplies.
Secretly elated at the fact that he wouldn't have McGonagall hovering over his shoulder, Kai quickly made his way to Flourish and Blotts.
When he entered the bookstore he was instantly hit with the smell of old books and leather. There were numerous rows of bookshelves inside the store which looked to be magically expanded because the outside was not nearly as big as the inside. Kai was a very fast learner and reader but even he wouldn't be able to scour through this many books before McGonagall came back.
After a moment of standing and looking around the store wondering how he was going to get enough books to sate his thirst for magic, his problem was seemingly solved by the appearance of a store clerk.
"You look lost, do you need help with anything?" Kai turned to look at the pretty young brunette who had walked up to him.
"Ah, yes sorry about that. I'm new to the Wizarding World. Would you be able to help me acquire the book list for Hogwarts first years?" Kai put on his most charming smile.
"Of course we have those pre-made for Hogwarts students. I'll ring you up." The young woman smiled, leading him to the store counter.
"Would you by any chance have the second year book list pre-made too, Miss?" Kai trailed off.
"You can just call me Vanessa. I can only get you The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 2 since the books change every year after the first depending on your professors choice." Vanessa said with an apologetic smile.
"That's alright. My name is Malachias by the way, but my friends call me Kai." Nothing like a little charm to get what you want. "I'm sure someone as smart as you would know if there are any other books on spells that would be recommended?"
"W-Well I guess there is one book I could sell you that's not too advanced." Vanessa reluctantly looked through a few books behind the counter, "Basic Hexes for the Busy and Vexed, this one isn't too advanced. That'll be 9 galleons."
Kai struggled to not snap irritably at the girl for recommending a 'basic' book to him. It seemed that he would have to find more books somewhere else.
"That's great, thank you so much Vanessa." Handing over the galleons for his new books, Kai moved his dark curls away from his eyes with a dashing smile, "Don't overwork yourself too much. You're far too pretty to wilt away in a place like this."
When all else fails, turn the source of your irritation into a bumbling school girl. Perhaps next time she would be more willing to recommend more advanced books.
After putting his new books away inside his trunk he left the store. The moment he walked outside of the bookstore, Kai saw Professor McGonagall making her way over to him carrying a cauldron filled with vials, scales and his other school equipment in her arms.
"I believe all that is left now is to buy your wand, robes and an owl." McGonagall handed the cauldron and supplies to him and waited for him to put his new things inside his trunk.
"I guess I can save my wand for last." Kai shrugged.
They walked to a nearby store called Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions, where McGonagall decided it was best to split up again. Kai was beginning to get the feeling that the stern old Professor didn't want to be around him any more than necessary. But he didn't like interacting with old people much anyway so he gave her some galleons to buy him an owl at Eeylops Owl Emporium.
Walking inside the robe store, Kai was immediately tended to by an assistant who ushered him onto a stand next to some other kid his age so she could take his measurements.
"You a first year too?" Kai turned to look at the pale skinned, short dark haired boy who was also being measured.
"Yes, I am." Kai replied shortly, wanting to get a feel of the boy's persona.
"I am a pure-blood. My name is Theodore Nott, Heir of The Noble and Most Ancient House of Nott. And yours?" Theodore raised an imperious eyebrow.
So the boy was obviously apart of a wealthy family. Did all the children of these families sound so arrogant? Oh well, maybe if he played along he could find out more of the Wizarding World.
"My name is Malachias Black, Heir of The Noble and Most Ancient House of Black." Bloody hell, he sounded absolutely ridiculous saying that out loud.
"B-Black!? I didn't know there were any more Black's left. The last one was Sirius Black and he's in Azkaban." Theodore sounded surprised.
"Sirius Black is my father, and my mother abandoned me in an orphanage and left for America." Kai said uncaring about sharing that he was an orphan.
"Why would she do that!? You are a part of the House Black, one of the most prestigious and oldest pure-blood families. I'm sure any pure-blood family would have taken you in." Theodore said aghast.
"Most don't know that I was even born. The same as you, I presume." Kai shrugged.
"That's horrible though, a Black shouldn't have been forced to be raised with muggles." Theodore spat.
"Would you mind telling me what a pure-blood is? I already assumed a muggle is a non-magical person." Kai listened intently.
"A pure-blood is a wizard, like us, whose parents were both wizards. They are always linked to the pure-blood houses that can trace their ancestry back and have always been pure of blood." The boy readily explained. "Half-bloods are children of a pure-blood wizard and a muggleborn. A muggleborn is a first generation wizard, we pure-bloods call them mudbloods."
By the heated looks Theodore received from the assistants and customers at the word 'mudblood' Kai was sure it was a dehumanizing slur. This was a very useful and interesting discovery. It seemed Wizarding Britain was a society that had blood supremacists.
"That's very interesting, do you think I am a pure-blood?" Kai didn't particularly care about these things but if it gave him a leg up in the Wizarding World he would gladly take it.
"I doubt a Black would ever have a child with a mudblood." Theodore again ignored the glares he received from the store's occupants. "Your mother probably fled to America after your father was sent to Azkaban. It wasn't a very good time for the spouses of Death Eaters."
"What's a death eater?" It sounded like some kind of mythical monster.
"They were the followers of You-Know-Who, the Dark Lord. Your father was his right hand man in the first Wizarding War. Sirius Black betrayed his friends, the Potter family, and gave their location to the Dark Lord." Theodore spoke in a hushed tone. "He went mad after his lord was vanquished by Harry Potter and was captured after he killed his friend, Peter Pettigrew, along with a dozen muggles."
This was just a whole new level of crazy. Kai's father had been the right hand man of a Dark Lord and betrayed his own friends. Then he proceeded to go mad and kill a dozen muggles and his other friend when his master was killed. No wonder the occupants in the Leaky Cauldron had given him death glares. He couldn't blame them either, Kai had done some pretty morally ambiguous things in his life but he had never killed anyone.
"That's a lot to take in Theodore." Kai replied slowly.
"You can call me Theo, I could speak with my father about getting you out of that horrid muggle orphanage if you want?" Theo offered.
"That's alright, Theo. I'll think of something to do. You can call me Kai, I absolutely hate my name." Kai said lightheartedly. While he wanted to get out of the dreadfully boring orphanage, he wouldn't be in anyone's debt.
"You're all done, dears. Would you like the normal cotton set of robes?" A pudgy woman walked over to the two boys, addressing both of them.
"I'll have all of my robes made from Acromantula silk, three sets of basic robes, one winter cloak, and two pairs of dragon hide gloves and boots." Theo raised his nose in the air haughtily.
"And for you dear?" Kai didn't care much for flaunting wealth since this was the first ever time he had it, but if he was a part of one of the oldest pure-blood families he might as well play the part for now.
"I'll also have all my robes in Acromantula silk, five sets of basic robes, five winter cloaks, and five pairs of dragon hide gloves and boots." Kai smiled.
"A-Are you sure? That will be expensive." The woman asked hesitantly.
"Of course he is sure, he's a Black!" Theo said angrily. The woman blanched at the revelation.
It seemed his name inspired mostly negative reactions from most wizards and witches. That made Kai's plan of starting fresh and being seen as the perfect child, ten times harder. That didn't mean he wouldn't try though and he would be damned if he would fail. If his name would ever inspire fear he wanted it to be of his own doing, not his lunatic of a father. And he didn't plan on inspiring fear anytime soon.
Once he had paid for his items, he said goodbye to Theo with a promise to find him on the Hogwarts Express when school started. A promise he most likely wouldn't keep but he made it anyways. McGonagall was already waiting for him outside of the shop carrying a brown owl in a cage.
"Let's go and get your wand now, ." Now that Kai knew why his father was imprisoned, he could clearly hear the slight resentment in Professor McGonagall's voice.
"Of course Professor McGonagall, thank you for getting my owl for me." It was worth a shot to try and change her mind about him.
"Think nothing of it, ." McGonagall replied archly, as she began to walk toward their last destination.
The moment he entered Ollivanders, Kai felt like he was being watched. It was an old dusty store with shelves of boxes and displays of different wands all around. Oddly enough, he couldn't see anyone actually behind the counter of the store.
"Minerva, it's always nice to see you. How is your wand treating you?" A voice behind him almost made Kai jump into the air from shock, "Nine and a half, Fir wood, dragon heartstring core I believe." A white hair old man with misty grey eyes watched the duo with a piercing gaze.
"Hello Ollivander, my wand has proven to be more than satisfactory. here is a first year in need of a wand." Ollivander turned those grey eyes to Kai.
"Ah, Mister Black. It is nice to meet you, young one. Let's begin shall we? What is your dominant arm?" Ollivander walked up Kai with a tape measure seemingly appearing in his hands.
"It's my right arm, sir." Kai says holding out said arm.
After a few moments of getting Kai's measurements, Ollivander went behind the counter and grabbed one of the many black boxes from a shelf.
"Try this one Applewood and dragon heartstring. Give it a wave." Ollivander handed Kai a red colored wand.
Waving the wand toward a nearby plant, the plant immediately burst into flames. Ollivander snatched the wand from Kai's hand.
"No, that won't do." Ollivander muttered, walking back to the shelves of wands.
It only took four more tries before Kai finally found a match. It was a black wand, with three intricate silver swirls wrapping around the wood from bottom to top. The moment Kai touched the wand he felt a cold feeling inside of him, like he had gulped down ice cold water. And the air around him felt heavy.
"Hmm, very interesting. Thirteen and a half inches, Yew but this wand has a very special core. It is a strand of hair from a Grim." Ollivander stared at Kai with a shrewd gaze.
"A Grim!? That's impossible, Grim sightings are beyond rare. And no one has lived long enough to tell the tale." McGonagall looked beyond shocked.
"What's a Grim, sir?" Kai continued looking at his wand. It had a malevolent feeling to it but it's beauty would nonetheless draw you in.
"It's an omen of death, my boy. A great black dog, the size of a bear, with glowing yellow eyes. My great-grandfather died getting just one strand of fur. He was found dead in a forest with only a hair clenched in his palm. It is highly believed that one who ever sees a Grim dies almost instantly." Ollivander frowned thoughtfully, "There can only be one thing that a wand like this would specialize in."
"And what would that be, Mister Ollivander?" Pale green eyes met misty grey.
"Death, Mister Black. Death." Ollivander said gravely.
Kai was quickly sent back to the orphanage after Ollivanders little revelation. It was already nighttime anyway but Professor McGonagall had barely spoken a word to him until she apparated them back to the orphanage.
"On September 1st, be at King's Cross Station in London at 11am sharp. Platform nine and three quarters." McGonagall stonily stared at him, before she briskly disappeared with a resounding 'pop'.
That meeting could have definitely gone much better in Kai's eyes. Not only did the general wizarding populace think he was a walking time-bomb, the first teacher he met now thought he was just like his father. And he couldn't even minimize the damage with his ability because she hadn't even spoken to him when he tried to make small talk.
At Least he now had his magical stuff to read and learn over for the next 3 months. Hopefully it would get him by until he went to Hogwarts.
Kai wasn't very used to being widely disliked. Everyone in the orphanage loved and adored him. Most of it was due to his ability but he still thought he was a decent enough kid. He just had a few… quirks. This newfound experience of being widely disliked, put him in a very irritated mood.
"Kai, your back!" Walking inside the sitting room of the orphanage, he was greeted by Susie and three other boys.
"Hello, everyone. It's nice to see you guys still up." Kai smiled at the four eight year olds, the oldest of the nine orphans.
"Is that an owl, Kai!?" A dark skinned boy, Vincent, gasped.
"Yes it is, sadly I can't take him out right now. He might just nibble on your fingers." Kai proclaimed dramatically.
"You're just trying to scare us." A small blonde haired boy, Jacob, giggled.
"Oh, you caught me. Say, where's Miss Binns?" Kai made a show of looking under a table, earning another round of giggles.
"She's with the little ones in the back, teaching them about the constellations." A sandy haired boy, Timothy, grinned.
"Why don't you three go out and join them? I'm going to play with Susie in my room." Kai smiled warmly.
"Aww, can't we play too, Kai. Please?" Vincent pleaded.
"Not today, Vincent. Don't worry I'll play with you all tomorrow." Kai promised.
"Pinky promise?" Jacob held out a small pinky.
"You got it buddy." Kai grinned wrapping his pinky around the other boys briefly.
The three boys cheered loudly and quickly ran out of the room. Kai picked up his trunk and owl and slowly made his way upstairs to his room, with a silent Susie behind him.
Entering his room, Kai set his new owl cage next to his window and pushed his trunk under his bed for now.
"I've had a very long day, Susie. It started off very fun at first but then it just ended so badly." Kai sighed as he laid on his bed letting his legs hang over the edge.
"Why did it end bad, Kai?" Susie fumbled with her dress standing in the middle of his room.
"Apparently my father was some kind of mass murdering lunatic. And now everyone thinks I'm like a miniature version of him." Kai sat up, "You know I'm not like that, Susie. Right?"
"Of course not, Kai." Susie shook her head rapidly.
"I know you mean it, Susie. You always make sure I'm happy, don't you?" Kai smiled sweetly.
"A-Always, Kai." Susie mumbled.
Reaching into his pocket, Kai took out his mokeskin pouch and willed his newly acquired silver dagger into his hand. Unsheathing the blade, Kai admired the smoothness of the metal. Testing the blade edge against his finger, the blade easily slice through the skin of his finger as he expected it to. What surprised him was when the cut itself slowly closed itself, leaving unblemished smooth skin and a bit of blood.
"It seems my family really knew some interesting magic." Kai giggled as a cut he made on his palm also slowly healed itself.
The blade inflicted pain and cuts like a normal blade but it must have had some kind of enchantment to heal the damage it dealt.
Pale green eyes fluttered to the blonde haired girl who stood rigid.
"Take your dress off, Susie." Kai's eyes gleamed, the glint of dark, malevolent eyes.
"I-I don't think I want to play today-" "Now." He coldly cut her words off.
Susie's eyes glazed over as she methodically began to take off her dress. Leaving her in only her undergarments.
Kai stood and stalked menacingly toward the rigid Susie, grasping her arm, he pulled her to his bed. He laid her face forward and straddled her lower waist.
"You will not scream, little Susie." Kai whispered in the trembling girls ear.
Bringing the silver dagger to the girls back, he cut a small line into her back and to his satisfaction it healed after a few moments.
"I read a book about old Chinese traditions once, little Susie." Kai monologues, ignoring the girls soft whimpers, "Criminals used to be executed in a very slow and interesting way. They called it, Ling chi or rather in English, 'death by a thousand cuts'."
Susie openly sobbed and began struggling to get Kai off of her back, but to no avail.
"Stop struggling." Her movements ceased immediately, though her cries were still heard, "Shh, I'm not going to kill you little Susie, I swear it. It's enchantment will heal you as good as new, see?" Kai demonstrates by slicing a new bloody line across the girls back, she was only able to yelp and whimper in pain. And he watched it fade a moment later.
"P-Please, Kai. I don't wanna play this game anymore." Susie pleaded tearfully.
"You always make me happy when we play our games, little Susie. Don't worry, you won't even remember any of this after tonight. It'll be like it never happened." Kai promised with sincerity, as he stood and walked to his bedroom door.
"This is w-wrong, Kai. You're crazy if you enjoy this!" Susie cries.
"I'm not crazy, little Susie. I just have my...quirks." He grinned, locking the bedroom door.
The months passed by… very slowly. Kai had already finished his first year reading material in the first month. He even finished the Standard Book of Spells, Grade 2 and Basic Hexes for the Busy and Vexed. Although he couldn't actually practice any of the spells yet. Thankfully he read about the Statute of Secrecy and the Trace on him that prohibited him from doing magic. He would have been very irritated if he had gotten his wand snapped for trying a simple spell. He also hadn't found anything regarding his ability to make people do what he wanted. So he decided to give up looking until he went to Hogwarts.
Kai had been stuck rereading his books and practicing wand movements for the last two months. But the day had finally arrived, September 1st. He couldn't have gotten ready any faster. He had woken up around 7am and quadruple checked all of his things. He also read that magical owls instinctively knew where their owner was and always came back to them. So he let his brown owl out weeks ago so he didn't have to feed it or bring its bulky cage to the train station with him. He decided to name the owl, Griflet or rather he let Susie name it Griflet and didn't care to come up with his own name.
After a goodbye to all the children, Kai and Miss Binns were on their way to King's Cross in her motorcar. The ride was filled with overbearing questions about where Hogwarts was and what he would be learning there. These were questions he couldn't answer due to the Statue of Secrecy and because he didn't want to answer them anyway. So after a few long minutes, Kai subtly used his gift to make Miss Binns stop talking.
When they arrived at the busy train station, Kai rolled his eyes at the tearful hug he received from his caretaker and quickly grabbed his trunk and said his goodbyes. The station was filled with people making their way into trains and different platforms.
But when he got to platform nine it skipped straight to platform ten. Stepping back a few feet into the ninth platform, Kai looked at a red brick wall that was just before the tenth platform.
"Hmph, that's nine and three quarters alright. What's wrong with wizards and brick walls?" He shook his head, walking up to the red wall.
Tentatively reaching a hand forward, he was shocked when his hand went through the wall. He could feel the open space beyond from where his submerged hand was. Deciding it was safe, Kai strode through the wall and walked into an entirely new station with one big red train labeled, Hogwarts Express.
There were children of various ages all around the platform talking with friends or parents. Kai spotted a trio of platinum blond haired people a few ways down the platform. The woman looked to be making sure the youngest, he assumed was their son, hair was nice and slicked back. The father just stood and observed the other families with a cool gaze, and even a few disgusted glances at particular families. They practically screamed pure-blood and wealthy.
Before Kai could take his eyes off of the group, the mother's eyes met his and she immediately looked to have been frozen in shock. The only way he could guess this was from the slight widening of her eyes, the rest of her face was impassive. She briefly spoke to her husband and nodded toward him directly. The man's hawk-like eyes landed on Kai's along with the small blonde haired boys who looked confused as to why his parents were looking at a random muggle dressed kid.
Deciding to break the little stare off, Kai only raised an eyebrow at the trio and then confidently strode towards the train and boarded it.
The aisles were all crowded with children finding a compartment and it took Kai a few minutes to find himself an empty compartment. Setting his trunk up on the rack inside the compartment, he decided to change into his school robes early on.
After he was dressed and the train had finally begun to take off, he sat and closed his eyes with a content sigh. Kai was finally going to Hogwarts to learn how to use magic. He didn't care about what house he got into either, though he did have a clue on which ones he would most likely be sorted into based on the requirements.
Ultimately deciding to relieve some of his pent up excitement, Kai unsheathed the silver dagger that was strapped to his left wrist under his robes long sleeves. Staring out the window at the passing scenery he began making small cuts on his fingertips that healed within moments.
After a few minutes of silence, his compartment door opened and a boy with raven dark hair and glasses that framed emerald green eyes walked in.
"Mind if I sit in here? Everywhere else seems to be full." The boy asked.
"Of course, no problem. I'm just sitting here alone anyway." Kai grinned.
"Thanks a lot!" Kai discreetly sheathed his dagger under his sleeve, while the boy put away his trunk, and continued staring out the window.
The boy sat down and awkwardly looked around the compartment for a few moments, "My name is Harry, by the way, Harry Potter."
This must have been some divine joke. The son of the people who his father had betrayed and gotten murdered by a dark lord was sitting across from him. But Kai did read that Harry Potter had vanished from the Wizarding World after he somehow defeated the dark lord Voldemort. So that meant that Harry must have been raised in the muggle world since no one had seen him in the Wizarding World. Kai could salvage this situation.
"Malachias Black, I know it's a dreadful name, just call me Kai." Harry laughed a bit.
"So are you excited for Hogwarts, Kai?" Harry asked.
"Very much so, I nearly lost my marbles waiting for three months to get here." Kai chuckled.
"At Least you had three months, I was told only a month ago. It came as a surprise to me to learn I was a wizard." Harry said.
"Where have you been all these years? You know you're pretty famous." Kai asks.
"I've been living with my aunt Petunia, uncle Vernon and my cousin Dudley. They were pretty mad to find out that I was a wizard." Harry said sadly.
"Why is that, Harry?" Kai frowned.
"It's nothing really, just some family stuff." Harry shook his head.
"Why were your relatives angry, Harry?" Kai used his ability this time, he was far too curious at this point.
"My uncle Vernon doesn't like fre-." Harry's eyes refocused, "Wait, why was I just about to say that?" Harry frowned confused.
"What do you mean, Harry? You kind of blanked out for a second there." Kai said with concern.
"Nothing never mind. But yeah, just some family stuff." Harry sighed, before looking out the window.
Well that was interesting, did that mean all magical people could resist his ability or was it because Harry was special? If it was the former, Kai would have to find a way to somehow strengthen his ability. It had been far too useful so far to be considered obsolete now.
The compartment door opened again and a red headed boy with freckles walked inside.
"Mind if I sit in here? Everywhere else is full." The boy said lamely.
"Please, feel free to join us. This is the "Everywhere else is full" compartment." The ginger boy and Harry laughed at the joke.
After he put his trunk on the compartment rack, he sat next to Harry.
"My name is Ron Weasley." Ron introduced himself.
"The names Kai." He decided not to use his full name in case this boy knew who his father was.
"I'm Harry Potter." Harry said, suddenly becoming uncomfortable when Ron's eyes lit up.
"Bloody hell, your Harry Potter?" Ron gaped.
"Erm, yeah." Harry mumbled. Ron peered openly at Harry's hair covered forehead.
"So do you have the scar? Do you remember anything about that night with You-Know-Who?" Ron whispered, not caring that he was sounding like an insensitive jerk.
"Do I remember the night my parents died? No, I can't say I do." Harry said heatedly.
Way to go Ron. That definitely made its way into Ron's thick skull.
"Oh, I'm sorry." Ron looked down to his feet.
Hearing the sincerity in Ron's voice, Harry's features softened.
"Here, look at this." Harry pushed his hair away to reveal an angry red lightning bolt scar on his forehead.
"Wicked!" Ron gasped, Kai didn't see the appeal of having a lightning bolt carved into your forehead.
After a few minutes of small talk, a lady pushing a trolley full of candy opened their door.
"Anything off the trolley, dears?" The lady smiled sweetly.
"Um, no thank you." Ron muttered, looking at his packed sandwiches embarrassedly.
"I'll take something." Harry stood up and bought a load of candy from the lady, easily forking over the necessary galleons.
He had forgotten that he read about how Harry was supposed to be the last heir of the Potters, a wealthy pure-blood family just like him. And while Kai could have bought something, he didn't want to flaunt his money in anyone's face and potentially make enemies on his first day.
After the trolley lady left, Harry poured all of his acquired candy onto the side table of the compartment. He offered Kai a chocolate frog which he politely accepted. Even though it almost hopped away from him the moment he opened it, it tasted like normal chocolate. Ron however obviously wanted a licorice wand based on the glances he was giving the candy.
"Here, have one." Harry held out a licorice wand to Ron.
"Um, I have sandwiches." Ron muttered looking dreadfully at the covered sandwich in his hands.
"Here." Harry rolled his eyes, jabbing the candy forward.
"Blimey, thanks a lot Harry! Do any of you want a sandwich?" Ron offered.
Kai declined and let Harry eat a sandwich with Ron. For another major portion of the ride, the three boys played a multitude of wizard games like gobstones and wizards chess. Ron was an absolute genius when it came to the game of wizards chess. He easily beat Harry multiple times and gave Kai a few hard won losses as well. Kai was really enjoying himself and the challenge Ron gave him in wizards chess.
Then their compartment door opened again, and a bushy haired girl with large front teeth walked inside flanked by a pudgy dark haired nervous looking boy.
"Has anyone seen a toad? Neville here has lost his." Her voice was the epitome of bossy and smart sounding.
"Who the bloody hell has a toad?" Ron whispers to himself.
"It's nice to meet you, I'm Harry Potter." Harry smiled.
"I can't believe it, your Harry Potter! I'm Hermoine Granger and… you are?" Hermoine looked disgustingly at Ron who was loudly munching on another sandwich.
"Ron Weasley." Ron said with his mouth full.
"Pleasure...and who are you?" Hermoine looked toward Kai.
"My name is Kai, nice to meet you." Kai smiled warmly.
"Is that really your name?" Hermoine asked skeptically.
Kai inwardly cursed the overly inquisitive witch.
"My full name is Malachias Black. It's a dreadful name, so I go by Kai for short." Kai instantly noted the startled reaction of Ron.
"B-Black!? Like you mean, Sirius Black?" Ron stammered.
"Yes, he is my father." Kai could already see how this was going to go and it was beginning to annoy him.
"Bloody hell, Harry, his father was a death eater!" Ron paled pointing a finger at Kai.
"Your father is a follower of You-Know-Who?" Hermoine asked in horror.
"I didn't grow up with my father, he's been in Azkaban my entire life. My mother abandoned me at an orphanage and left for America when I was born." Kai growled.
Harry and Hermoine's features softened at the revelation, especially Harry's. Ron on the other hand was having none of it.
"His father betrayed your parents, Harry. Sirius Black is the reason they are dead. Get out of here, you junior death eater!" Ron practically yelled. Harry's expression hardened a bit at his words and Hermoine frowned looking uncertain.
Kai gritted his teeth and his hand almost instinctively drew his dagger from his forearm before he caught himself.
"It seems I am no longer welcomed." Kai says briskly, before retrieving his trunk from the compartment rack.
He roughly shoved past Hermoine and Neville and into the aisle. This was quickly becoming a recurring problem. Every time he wanted to try and make some friends they instantly hated him once they found out about his father. He cursed his old man and if he wasn't already imprisoned, Kai would probably plot to murder the lunatic.
Sirius Black was somehow ruining his life from inside of a cell. That must have been some kind of requirement for the 'worse father of the year' award. And he didn't even want to think about his whore of a mother. Who leaves their newborn son at an orphanage and takes a plane to America?
Deciding to skip looking for a compartment, Kai barged into a restroom and locked the door. He turned to the mirror and stared at his reflection. His eyes were brimming with smoldering rage and his whole body was shaking violently.
"You fucking piece of shit. Damn you both to hell, you fucking lunatic. And you goddamn filthy whore!" He roared and punched the glass mirror at every syllable.
He broke the mirror into fractured pieces until his right hand became bloody. He stopped and looked through the mirror at his broken reflection, still trembling with rage though there was a lot less of it now.
Kai hoped dearly that this situation with his father would blow over after a few days. Because if it didn't, he just might end up sharing a cell with his old man.
And that's a fucking wrap ladies and gentlemen. Tell me how the first chapter was for you. Did you love it? Did you hate it? Do you think I'm a sick fuck who needs to get help? Write it all in your review, pour it all out from the depths of your soul. And if you're curious how many galleons and sickles Kai has in the Black vault, I exchanged 15,000,000 galleons, 35,000,000 sickles and it amounted to 85,294,117.65 British pounds sterling. Which he will indeed use in the future. Until next time!