Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. J.K. Rowling does.

August 31st, 1991

Tomorrow Link will board the Hogwarts Express. It's been around a month and a half since he first saw Professor McGonagall and was 'introduced' to the magic world. Not much has changed in his life. He was still found reading, he was still studying. The only difference is that the books and subjects changed from mundane to magical.

Link read through all the books he acquired with a scary intensity. Pouring through each page three times before moving on to make sure he had every nook and cranny of the book memorized and understood. He scribbled on a piece of paper his every understanding. His every theory. As well as his comparisons between this world's magic and his own.

The similarities and differences he found were staggering. Enough to fill a book. Which he did. Will and intent were both important, as well as imagination. The casting methods were vastly different. In his old world, each spell required a specific spell structure. The slightest of mistakes could cause a backlash from the unstable spell, from minor injuries to death. It's the reason why it was hard to progress from level to level. On the other hand in this world, spell structures still exist, he learned it was called arithmancy, but it was not necessary for everyone to truly understand the structure to cast the spell. Wand movement and incantation were a sufficient alternative to cast the spell.

What this means is that, while harder, the spells in his old world were stronger but less versatile. Whereas the spells of this world were much more versatile and easier to learn. This allows a greater concentration of magicians that progressed to level 6, compared to his old world, but the level 6 of his old world were more knowledgeable and more powerful (This was all conjecture through the aura reading he had on McGonagall. He would need to observe more to truly make the comparison). However, in both worlds it was difficult to progress beyond level 7 without stringent study and understanding of spell structures. Which makes it easier for his old world to have level 7 and higher mages. Easier, not easy. It was still incredibly difficult to break through the gap between the two levels.

He learned the entirety of the level 0 spells within his books. It seems year 1 here is for level 0 apprentice magicians. He tried to determine the spell structures through trial and error, as they had not shown the structure yet. He convinced his parents to buy the 3rd year Arithmancy book for him. He was able to teach himself the structure process of this world. He would need to further research the subject in Hogwarts, he doesn't have the time here.

The mind magics reminded him of soul magic but less aggressive. Many a time he used soul magic to extract knowledge from enemy generals and lords. Though the unfortunate result of using soul magic is the immediate death of the victim. Since he is very familiar with the spell, he created a counter and defense. Occlumency is very similar to his spell but again less aggressive. So it was easy for him to learn both Occlumency and Legilimency. He just needs to practice a bit.

He read up on this world's Magical history and customs. He was baffled and disappointed with the magical world with their segregation due to blood purity. He understood nobility and segregation of classes, he was a lord after all. Even then he was respectful to all those that were respectful to him, noble and commoner alike. However, to mages, magical capability is the most important thing in the world. Blood had little to do with your accomplishments. In fact, aside from tracking someone or protecting someone, blood had very little it could contribute. Excluding enchantment and alchemy of course, but then again those do not focus on blood purity but rather ingredients or to key in ownership.

It matters little in the end, power is the one true key to all doors regardless of 'blood purity' or social class. He was born the son of a third-rate nobleman and a servant girl he impregnated. Being the bastard son of the baron, it was difficult for Link to attend an academy. However, after years of doing odd jobs here and there, scraping all that he could and sacrificing his meals, Link was able to purchase a few level 0 magical books by the time he was 17. He studied alone, extensively and managed to master a few spells. He joined a mercenary troop of 3 and was able to accomplish a few jobs, quickly becoming the leader of the troop due to his strategic mind and magical abilities. As even with being only a level 0 mage he was able to best level 2 opponents due to his ingenious spell casting and multi-layered planning. He was also very well known for his incredible speed in casting spells. With the money he earned, he was able to attend the best magical academy of the monarchy. With the library available and other resources, Link was quickly able to rise to level 9 by the time he was 19, becoming the youngest and most powerful mage in the country. A year later he comprehended the law of Fire making him a legendary mage. The pride and joy of the human race.

The only problem he encountered was that his body is still too young. It can not contain as much magic as it would need to become a level 9 within two years. At most he would need to be 14 years of age before he could achieve it. This was also due to the enormous amount of exercise he's been doing since a young age (Enormous for his age, and mostly speed and stamina rather than strength). He doesn't have overly defined muscle or anything, just enough to be considered very athletic. He also re-trained his material skills, he was very adept at swordsmanship in his old world. Though he only learned the basics, used in a certain way they were very useful to buy him enough time to cast his spells. In fact, his last 'wand' was his sword. He used them in conjunction and only ever used a secondary wand when he was surrounded by enemies.

All in all, he figured he was level 1 in magical knowledge of this world, and level 4 in magical power. With access to the library at the school, he's sure his knowledge would shoot up to level 5 within the first year. He would have to see the books available in the library to determine how much further he could get.

Either way, it was time to sleep. He had a busy day tomorrow.

September 1st, 1991

They arrived early, at around 8 am. Simply due to the fact that the Granger Parents were completely booked that morning. They gathered before the wall between platforms 9 and 10. There were a few tears accumulating in the parent's eyes. It will be the first time that they will be away from their child for such a long time. At least until Christmas. That's 3 whole months and a few days away.

"Link, I'm not going to talk about the academic part because we know you will be the best of the best" started Dan, pride clearly showing in his words and expression. "Your mother and I are so proud of you. What we want you to do is, find some friends. Only a few are fine, as long as they are genuine."

"Exactly, also write to us from time to time. Let us know how you are doing" continued Emma "We're going to miss you"

"I'll miss you too, father, mother. Don't worry, I'll write back at least once a month. See you in Christmas" said Link fondly.

With that, he pushed his trolly forward right through the wall, into what he saw as a hidden space. 'Fascinating, they too have a spell that could bend space to hide a certain Location? It appears to be a rune formation. So there are some spells that touch upon a little bit of the laws of the universe, but it needs the use of runes in order to hold and is not a single mage powered spell. How ingenious.' he thought. This world has some interesting applications for magic.

He walked towards the back of the train, he placed his trunk overhead, with no struggle as he used the levitation spell. Very similar to his world's magicians hand spell, but less versatile.

He sat down, pulled out a fiction book (He was quite fond of these), and read, as he had completely memorized every single magic book in his possession. Page for page and word for word.

When he finally becomes aware of his surroundings again, the platform is full of families wishing their kids goodbye as they board the train. He looks at the time and realizes the train would leave in a few minutes.

Just as he was about to resume reading his book, there was a knock on the door. Opening shortly after, revealing a cute but skinny girl. She was shorter than average standing at 130 cm. A bit shorter than his average 140 cm height. Her hair was short reaching just above her shoulder, messy as though she had never combed it. Her emerald green eyes were pure and innocent. They were beautiful eyes, covered in glasses. Her face was marred only by the scar on her forehead, but it did little to detract from her cuteness. Her clothes were baggy, making her appear even smaller than she is.

He recognized her, of course, having read the recent history of this country's magical world. Rose Potter, The-Girl-Who-Lived. What happened to her was a tragedy but he was more interested in the curse stated. The Killing curse they called it, an Unforgivable. He wishes to read up on such a powerful spell.

"Hello, can I sit here?" she asked a bit shyly.

"Have a seat Miss Potter" he invited cordially.

Rose Potter had a difficult childhood. She's an orphan, she didn't know her parents, and until a month ago, she thought they had died due to a car crash. The Durselys, her only living relatives (she prefers to call them her wardens), had lied to her, her entire life was a lie. She had good parents, not drunkards, and they loved her. She was loved. She wasn't a freak. She was loved, and a witch. She wasn't useless. She was loved, a witch and famous. Even if she didn't like her fame.

A month ago, letters started pouring into the Dursley house, and they were addressed to her. She never received letters before. It was a nice experience at first. Then her Uncle went crazy and pulled the family along on a cross country drive to try and escape the continuous stream of letters. They finally stopped in a dingy old shack that was in the middle of a pond. Vernon seemed almost smug with his assurance that no one would get here. She was inclined to agree.

Until of course the door was literally blown away by a giant of a man. Hagrid, he was called, brought her first-ever birthday cake, and later her first birthday gift. It was the best day of her life.

Hagrid introduced her to the wizarding world. What her parents were, how they really died, and what she was in the world. The-Girl-Who-Lived. Wasn't that a surprise? Almost literally from rags to riches. Her parents left her quite a fortune.

After returning from such a magical day, she stayed in the small room (much better than the cupboard) and read a few of her books. She was very interested in the subjects.

Today, early in the morning at around 9 am, her uncle dumped her maliciously in front of platforms 9 and 10, leaving her stumped on how to board platform 9¾. She was on the verge of panic.

Thankfully, an hour later she spotted a family of redheads that were kind enough to guide her through. Once through the wall, she was amazed at the platform. Magic was awesome. She was a bit saddened though at the families and their warm exchanges. She couldn't help but wonder what if.

She dragged her trunk through the magnificent red train, heading towards the back. At the last booth, she saw 1 person inside. She knocked, waited a second for him to raise his head before opening the door.

Once inside she got a good look at the boy. He was average looking, with nice brown eyes and heavy brown hair, probably just as messy as hers. He was sitting, so she didn't know how tall he was, but he couldn't be much taller than her. He was wearing the Hogwarts uniform, only without the robe. He seemed to be fit, but not overly so.

He was reading a book, something called the Lord of the ring. 'I wonder if it's any good' it's not her fault she barely had time to go to the library. The Dursleys would kill her if she didn't finish her chores after all. Not that they were physical, at most a few slaps, but mental abuse is sometimes worse than physical. They last longer at least, and they aren't always obvious.

She noticed he was looking at her now. 'Okay don't panic, I got this'

"Hello, can I sit here?" She asked shyly, 'smooth'

"Have a seat Miss Potter" he invited cordially.

'How did he know who I am? Oh right… scar'

He helped her with the luggage, though he did it physically, no need to show off his magical prowess yet. 'I don't want people keeping too close an eye on me'

For some reason, he can feel a taint in her scar. It reminded him of the time a friend of his had been poisoned by a god-tier weapon. He was able to purge the poison by draining his entire magical reserve into a purging spell. It was a level 8 spell, at the time he was level 6. It was a pure light spell. Very powerful. Well, it isn't affecting her, if he is her friend in two years' time he can help her remove it, otherwise it isn't his problem.

"So, umm... What's your name?" She asked, softly.

"My name is Link Morani, Miss Potter. A muggle-born"

"Call me Rose" he nodded.

A bit of an uncomfortable silence stretched, with Rose fidgeting slightly. She was distracted by the conversation with the family of redheads just outside the window.

"So, what has Miss celebrity been doing the past few years? I highly doubt it's been as colorful as they were depicted in your books'' started Link, surprising her slightly.

"There were books about me?" She asked incredulously.

"Yeah, quite a few. I wouldn't be surprised if you were a favorite bedtime story for all wizarding kids" snorted Link, snickering at her mortified expression.

"I hope not, but no my life was nowhere near book-worthy. I lived with my Aunt and Uncle since I was one"

"I take it you don't like it there"

"They're horrible"

"Mhmm"

"What are you reading?"

"It's a fiction novel called Lord of the Rings. Very entertaining series. You can borrow the first book if you wish"

"Thank you, maybe some other time"

"As you wish"

Although the conversation was light, it was comfortable. The original awkward silence slowly became warm. They moved from topic to topic, although most came from Link with Rose throwing her opinion from time to time, it was pleasant. Link was able to deduce, through her answers and body language, that Rose was in a bad home. At the very least, it was neglectful. He would have to think of a way to help her with that.

Without realizing it, the train had started moving an hour ago. They were interrupted from their conversation by a knock on the door. Which was promptly opened by a redhead that was their age, whom Rose recognized as being part of the redhead family that helped her at the entrance.

"Hello, can I join you here? My brothers and their friend just brought out a box with a tarantula in it" he said.

"Sure, have a seat" said Link nodding, Rose also agreeing.

"I'm Ron, by the way" the boy said after he sat next to Link.

"Link Granger"

"Rose Potter"

Ron's eyes shot wide open, he looked toward the girl, eyes drifting towards the forehead.

"Do you have... The ummm... The scar?" he asked tentatively.

"Yeah" she removed her hair away from her forehead to show it.

"Do you remember how you got it?"

Rose was a bit uncomfortable with the line of questioning, all she remembers is a green light and high pitched laughter. Even if she did remember, why would she tell a stranger how her parents died and then being cursed by a madman?

"Have some tact will you? Change the subject" interjected Link calmly. He noticed her discomfort with the line of questioning, so he gave her a lifeline. "What house do you think you'll be in?" She shot him a grateful smile, one he returned with a nod.

Ron looked as though he was about to continue regardless of his interference, but seemed to have thought better of it and answered:

"Gryffindor. My entire family was part of the house. Hopefully not Slytherin, I don't know what I'd do if I was placed in such a slimy house. Though I suppose Hufflepuff won't be too bad. Definitely not Ravenclaw, a bunch of book reading know-it-alls."

"What's wrong with Slytherin?" asked Link, he knew the stigma of course but that is unimportant. "A house that embodies cunning and guile, very useful traits in a lot of things"

"They're evil, every death eater was a Slytherin. They say even you-know-who was a Slytherin. Slimy people."

"Do not be biased towards an entire house simply because of a few bad apples. Either way, I believe I might be in either Ravenclaw or Gryffindor."

Rose watched the by-play and was more inclined with Links way of thinking. She knows how upsetting it was when people judged her without even knowing her, all because of the lies her relatives spread.

"I don't know which house I'll be in"

"Nonsense, you'll be in Gryffindor. Your family were, plus you're the girl-who-lived. Where would you be if not the house of the light" dismissed Ron, as though that were a forgone conclusion.

Rose frowned a bit at that. She was still being judged before being known. Although she wanted a connection with her parents, she didn't like having expectations shoved on her like that. She thinks she has a bit of cunning, she had to if she wanted to survive her relatives.

"Regardless where you end up, Rose, we could still be friends" Link smiled at her, something she instantly returned.

She preferred that better. Open acceptance of what she is, and what she may become. Less pressure on her. She didn't like being put on a pedestal.

They were interrupted from further conversation when the carriage door was swung open, revealing three boys. The scrawny little one in the middle, though he was good looking, seemingly the leader was flanked by two burly dimwitted looking fellows. They looked like bodyguards more than students. Though not that threatening either.

"We heard that Potter was on this train. You her?" the middle one asked, his tone condescending and arrogant.

"I am"

"This is Crabbe, that's Goyle" he gestured to each with his head, arms still crossed. "I'm Malfoy, Draco Malfoy." he finished in what he hoped was a suave manner. Though that was ruined when Ron snorted to the side.

"Think my name is funny do you?" Draco scowled. "I don't need much to know who you are, cheap clothes, red hair, you're a Weasley aren't you?" he sneered, glancing at the last member of the booth. "And who might you be?"

"Link Granger"

"Never heard of the name, must be a muggle-born" his sneer, if possible, became more pronounced. "You'll learn, Potter, that some wizarding families are better than others, I can help you there." he extended his hand.

"I think I'll manage on my own, thank you" she replied coolly. She didn't like this boy, he reminded her too much of Dudley, if Dudley was skinny.

"Best keep in check Potter, lest you end up like your parents"

"That's a bit much for a simple snub, isn't it Malfoy?" said Link, calmly. Not at all bothered by the boy, he knew of the prejudice already after all. Though he disliked when people made threats of any kind. The prestige of an Archmage should never be sullied, and even though he doesn't have that power yet, he still has his memories and his confidence/arrogance. Threatening someone in his presence is like an insult to his ability, something he would never tolerate.

"Who spoke to you? Be quite"

"You will first have to apologize to the slight against her parents. It is unbecoming of the Malfoy heir to behave in such a crass manner"

"That's none of your business Granger. You think you can order me around?" he was getting angrier by the minute.

"That was not my intention, but I do stand by my insistence you apologize. You may be on your way thereafter"

"You know what? I don't think I will. Crabe, Goyle get him" 'This will teach that damn muggle-born, who does he think he is?'

Link stood up calmly, gesturing for the other two to remain seated, which they did reluctantly, though they would interfere if it seemed Link was about to be overwhelmed.

Link, being well-practiced in martial combat, hit the two big boys in specific pressure points as fast as he could, which is considerably fast. Dropping the both of them within a minute of the confrontation surprising everyone within the booth. Even the two boys on the ground were surprised, they didn't know what happened.

"I will ask one last time Malfoy, will you apologize for your slight?" Link asked, as calm as ever, but it sounded like a death knell to the Malfoy heir.

Begrudgingly, Draco apologized half-heartedly, before beating a hasty retreat with the other 2 boys.

Link returned to his seat under the awe-filled eyes of two first years.

Rose was touched, no one had ever defended her from a bully before. 'Is this what it means to have friends?' She was so happy she teared up slightly.

Ron on the other hand:

"That was awesome, how did you do it?"

"Thank you, I learned a few martial arts before attending Hogwarts" Link replied Calmly, with a small smile gracing his features.

"I'm the youngest son in the family. I have 5 older brothers, and a younger sister. Bill is a curse breaker at Gringotts, Charlie is a dragon handler in Romania, Percy is a stiff know-it-all but he is a prefect. The twins are known as pranksters, very crafty. Finally my sister is a year younger, she'll be joining Hogwarts next year"

The ride to Hogwarts was smooth sailing after the confrontation. They were interrupted only twice more. The first was from a pudgy first year that asked if we'd seen a toad somewhere. Link had suggested he look for an upperclassman as they may have a spell that could locate him. Which had the boy thanking him profusely for the help before leaving to do just that. The second and last interruption was from the food cart lady. Rose jumped at the opportunity and was finally able to accomplish a little wish she had since she was much younger. She was able to buy sweets for her friends, and share them together. Something she was incredibly pleased with.

Now here they were eating sweets and talking about themselves.

It wasn't long before a voice blared from overhead.

"We will be approaching our destination in 5 minutes. Leave your luggage on board"

The boys left the booth for Rose to be able to wear her clothes first, then Ron changed into his uniform, Link only had to wear the robe on top.

Soon the train stopped moving, and students were making their way out of the train.

A/N: What house should I put Link in? Ravenclaw? Gryffindor? Let me know your preference.

The fight was a small scuffle and didn't need a full-blown fight scene.

Ron would be friends with the two, though nowhere near as close as canon. There will not be any golden trio, more of a dynamic duo.

I'm trying to think of a way for Link to gain possession of the Gryffindor Sword and change it into a wand/sword combo. Without having Dumbledore on his back.

Thank you