Done another Rewrite, some scenes deleted, some clarified, others added and a few shuffled around. I will eventually post the previous work as a separate story and mark it as complete, update chapters as needed in future updates and rewrites. Chances are it'll be called "Fighting Chance: Legacy Copy" or something.
Extended notes and broad review replies at bottom.
OooOooO
Chapter 10: Day 2
The Professor was minding her own business, finally having a moment to look over the summer work of her now seventh years. At least get through some of the more... enthusiastic of students. She was on the verge of dropping their homework grade by one at this point. Surely after several years at Hogwarts they'd learn by now to turn in homework within the set regulations, right? Instead, she was going through a scroll that exceeded her demands of two feet of work, in small writing at that.
"I think I shall, and I'll have to call them up anyway, I ask for opinions, not to copy entire sections of a textbook! The nerve of some students!" McGonagall rarely took out her red ink, but felt that this instance was one of those moments. Just as she dipped her special quill there was a knock on her office door. Cursing and blessing the distraction in equal measures she set aside the work. "Come in!"
It was her first years, with Harry at the front carrying something in his hands. For a second she was worried something had happened, perhaps they had all tried the Forest on a dare? She hoped not.
"Sorry to interrupt Professor McGonagall, but we had a question and a request, it might be important." Harry showed her Scabbers.
"A decent transfiguration I must say, you haven't been reading ahead and trying spells on your own now have you? I may need to dock points and assign detentions if such were the case!"
"No! No professor, this is supposed to be a pet, Ron's pet to be exact. We were going to ask if you could check it over, but you already confirmed that for us." Harry was quick to answer.
"Maybe we should have gotten Fred and George, it could be a prank by them." Ron interjected, slightly more convinced now.
"Those twins, I swear they'll be the death of me. Very well, one of you go and track them-"
"Fear not Professor!" "Here we are! My my my, what has ickle-ronnikins done now!" "Already in trouble on their second day of school! Gred this may be a new Weasley Family Record if I do say so my self." "Indeed brother, indeed, so, what has Ron and company done now?"
"Fred, George, enough. Lets get to the bottom of this, Professor, my brothers here fetched me just moments ago, claiming they thought Ronald might have gotten in trouble." Percy strolled in after them.
"Pray tell why you might think Young Mister Weasley here is in trouble, anywho you are all here now so lets get to the bottom of this. Did either of you three transfigure the likeness of this pet and trade it off as some kind of prank?" McGonagall was now beyond suspicious of everyone here now. At least the first years took to heart about their house being family.
"Why would I do that? I gave him Scabbers after receiving my owl Hermes. Fred, George!"
"Hey, don't drag us into this! We haven't even learned this kind of transfiguration yet!" "Yeah! Why would we even do such a thing. What do you take us for!"
The rest of the first years were watching this all happen, glancing back and forth between the Weasleys and the professor. McGonagall waved her wand over the 'pet', probably looking for something. Although now she was quite confused.
"Perhaps I have misjudged the situation. Tell me, were you aware that this transfiguration is now a few years old? Perhaps a forgotten 'pet' from either of your parents?"
All four Weasleys shared looks, sort of having a quick silent sibling conversation. Apparently Percy was the spokesperson this time, "We were not, surely I would have noticed? I found Scabbers in our garden back in the 80s."
With another wave of her wand McGonagall scanned the rat, "Strange, there's evidence that this was a near flawless transfiguration once upon a time, more lifelike... I don't like this... This signature is familiar somehow. This is not either of your parent's signatures, nor is it your elder siblings... Let me get your parents and the Headmaster. Take a seat and please wait."
With a sweep of her wand seats appeared for everyone, McGonagall had gone to her connected room presumably to do as she claimed. There was only half a moment before Percy took charge.
"Right you lot, what is going on. Fred and George here only ever approach me when something major happens. So spill." He didn't raise his voice once.
"Well, we were trading stories about magic in the courtyard when Scabbers started acting up apparently. Ron?" Harry handed off the topic easily enough, no need to drag everyone into wandless lessons now in his opinion.
"Gee thanks. Perce, Scabbers was acting weird and I didn't notice until Harry brought it up. Well, last night he started chewing on the bedsheets, so I put him away. Earlier he bit through my pocket so I took him out to stop. When Harry asked to see him he noticed that Scabbers was colder than normal. It was Parvati that said that he was acting like a transfiguration. I thought those two might have been pranking me by switching Scabbers. I wasn't sure though, Parvati thought maybe he was a 'replacement' pet or something?"
"Well, it happens! Sometimes pets die, and the kid doesn't know, so the parents quickly replace them with another that looks the same. I thought it was something similar. I only noticed it was a transfiguration because mother would sometimes make us pets to play with when we were too rowdy." Parvati explained. "Also, rats don't live that long, two years is quite generous."
Percy gave it some thought, the rest of the first years were curiously staring at small rocks. He decided to ask about it.
"Harry can do wandless magic! He changed my robes a rainbow of colors without a wand! Do it Harry, show him!" Lavender was excited to see it again.
With a sigh Harry tapped her on the shoulder, from his finger the black material changed colors to a pastel pink, spreading out along the entire robe. The house colors changing from red and gold to a deep purple and a grey silver. it would have easily changed with a gesture, but at this point he felt a little dramatic. He was watching Percy's reaction.
The prefect only watched with only a small widening of his eyes, but nothing more. Even Fred and George were watching intently, not exactly the right response either according to Harry. "Sorry, but she did ask."
Harry tapped her shoulder again, instantly reversing the process much to her dismay. "I know more than that, obviously, but I'm having them start with color changing and levitation. I don't want to teach everyone and their grandmother, just yet. So please try to keep this quiet."
"You have our word as a Weasley." Percy solemnly replied. "So, nothing new then. I can't believe Scabbers was a fake this entire time."
"C'mon Perce, you heard McGonagall!" "Yeah, she said a few years!"
"Percy, you know Mum or Dad would have said something at this point if Scabbers was a replacement, or a fake. Don't go blaming yourself. You know Bill or Charlie will do anything like this either." Explained Ron.
"Oh my god! I did it!" Everyone looked over at Hermione, who's pebble now had a blue tint to it. Everyone crowded around her to get a better look, everyone congratulating her.
Harry was impressed, it had taken him a fair few tries before he had gotten to that point. He did have to wonder though if they would learn it faster without the Gamer thing going to for them. The pressure of checking the skill and seeing a small level up, worried that he might not master that level and what not. By now he had largely ignored tracking skills that had level up stats, they only served as a reminder of his progress, he was more concerned about watching for the 'mastery' of that level up than every little gain.
He almost didn't want to burst her bubble, but decided to just get on with it anyway, "Very good Hermione! Now, was it the color you wanted?"
The girl stopped short, "Well, no, it isn't."
Nodding along Harry continued, "That's your goal now, to get this pebble to the right color and shade. It's a great start though! Keep it up, it took me a week before I got to that stage, maybe you'll get there faster than I."
Emboldened by success of one of their own the others grew more determined to get this down.
Soon enough McGonagall arrived back once again, "The situation has been resolved. Do not worry about it much... what are you doing?"
Harry was in the process of showing Parvati how to levitate her pebble. Of course their concentration broke as soon as McGonagall came through the door. Seamus too lost his concentration, somehow turning his robe a faded gold, the edges started to smoke lightly.
"Argh! I'm on fire!" he cried out, patting himself down.
The Professor simply waved her wand, reverting the change. "Mister Finnegan calm yourself! You are not on fire, that is simply an illusion, apparently."
She was quite impressed, so too was Harry apparently, "That's impressive! I didn't think that was possible! Maybe I should try that."
"No one will be trying anything! Now, explain yourselves." Minerva was told what was going on, all the while she was casting spells on each. "Well, it seems nothing bad is happening at the least. You may continue practicing this color changing spell, however Mr. Potter you will inform either myself or Professor Flitwick the next time you wish to teach any wandless magic. Just a precautionary measure I assure you. Perhaps this weekend you may show us what you have learned so far."
The other students whispered to each other excitedly, Harry though was surprised, "You don't want me to stop?"
"Heavens no, it is refreshing to see if I'm being quite honest. Who knows, perhaps you will usher in a new age of wandless magic, the likes that hasn't been seen since the time of Merlin!" McGonagall seemed excited at the prospect.
"Professor." Hermione began sweetly, Harry felt all his hair stand on end, "Perhaps I should remind you, Harry had a request."
"Oh? I had figured it was to do with the pet rat. Very well, what is it Mr. Potter?" Professor settled down.
"Well, Professor McGonagall Harry-"
Harry put a hand on her shoulder, freezing her once again for a moment. "Hermione, Not. Now." Seeing McGonagall's stricken glance at his hand he was quick to elaborate. "This has to do with Family business, and should not be addressed in mixed company besides you, me, and... relevant parties." with the last glance being at Hermione. "I was going to do this all proper like, yet she insisted."
McGonagall pursed her lips, before coming to a decision. "All of you are dismissed with exception to Mr. Potter and Ms. Granger.
There was of course only some grumbling, this was a conversation they were willing to stay away from. The only one who seemed to truly pout about it was Lavender.
Once McGonagall secured the room she turned expectantly back to the two. Harry was quick to explain what had happened.
"-and that is all that happened. I shouldn't have worked on my family work at the great hall, I know that now. I just didn't expect this to happen, it is supposed to be like, really rare!"
"Mister Potter, that is quite enough, I understand. You are in luck, as Deputy Headmistress it is my duty to know many diagnostic spells should the Headmaster be unavailable for one reason or another. Also in loco parentis of muggleborn students I can authorize a diagnostic scan, with permission of the student in question. I have been in contact with your Aunt Mister Potter, and she has given me permission to as well. So, I must ask, do I have permission to scan you two?"
"What is going on! Why do you need to scan me! What about what ever Harry did!" Hermione burst out, still wanting answers for his behavior.
"Miss Granger, you will settle down, I am trying to get to the bottom of this. Mister Potter may have better handled the situation, but he was well within his station as Heir of House Potter to do as he did. Also I am scanning you both Ms. Granger. So I ask again, do I have your permission?"
Pursing her lips Hermione nodded, "You do."
Harry simply nodded.
"Very well." McGonagall muttered through the spells quietly, going through an intricate pattern of sorts, steadily her frown becoming more pronounced. Harry noticed more windows pop up and out too quick for him to read. Finally with a flourish she stopped. "This is... simply amazing. Such hasn't been spoken of in almost... eight hundred years at least here in the Magical U.K.! My word Potter, you certainly don't do things by half now do you?"
The boy in question felt vaguely insulted, not that it cleared up the confusion much.
"Well, I have some good news. It would appear that you two have a Compatibility Bond-"
"A What!?" Harry exclaimed
"I'm too young to be married!" Hermione continued to babble.
"Miss Granger, calm yourself immediately! A Compatibility is not in anyway a romantic bond, so you had best get that through your head now. No, it is a rare phenomenon, more like finding a great friend in most cases. A new sibling in many other cases. Rarely ever do the compatibles ever get married. This simply means that should you two ever cast magic together it has a higher chance of success, and will be powerful, potions more potent, things like that. That is about the extent of such capabilities that have been observed. Perhaps there is more, however it may be locked in some family library, or lost to time." Satisfied that they were both calming down McGonagall continued,
"Though keep in mind, such bonds when they turn sour, will lead to the most bitter of rivals. Strong Potential Companionship is what this is. Should you both choose to embrace it, this will mean you have found friendship in the likes that will last a lifetime."
Harry was now in a bit of a bind. with how observant Hermione was, surely she would be asking questions about his gestures and what not. Made all the more exasperating with the bond thing. Thankfully McGonagall set Hermione straight, the girl was worried about being married at the tender age of twelve.
"Perhaps Mr. Potter I should relate how this should affect your House status."
Harry tried to recall what he had read so far about that before he realized, "Me or you?"
"That is yet to be decided, House Potter doesn't have an active Regent, as far as I'm aware. As Heir you can accept the position, however it will be up to you to se- Mister Potter I might have a solution. For now though I'll keep this as quiet as possible. There is a letter I must write to someone, we will get this sorted out. For now this still under my care Mr. Potter, now if you kindly step out of the room so that I may bring her up to speed. We will have a conversation ourselves later."
This was one topic he would happily step out for, there were some things that he couldn't teach, and much that he didn't know regardless. At least the poor girl had someone looking out for them unlike him. Their topic after hers was done was more stern, it had to be. He was to hold a higher standard, and his actions reflected badly against his house. He knew it wasn't exactly fair, but then again he did have a few more extra privileges afforded to him when compared to others. This did not mean he was to flaunt it about, it would be crass and tasteless to do.
McGonagall expressed her displeasure to Hermione as well for rushing these things, that it just wasn't done like that here and that attitude would see to her early ruin. McGonagall also scolded Harry that he could have handled that much more better, "-and I will see to it that you will improve if I must assign you detention for a year and teach you how to comport yourself as a proper heir! Am I clear Heir Potter?"
Yes, their talk would take a bit longer to complete. At least it finished before dinner.
Hermione sat well away from him, and he noticed some dirty looks from the girls in his year. He knew that he would have to explain that it was Family business, and to clear the air. The boys didn't seem too bothered, Neville knew better than to ask. He had a few moments to himself after dinner so he quickly opened the notifications, the golden quest was automatically accepted.
Life Quest: Compatibility, once in a while some people have a near matching of magical compatibility, when working together these people can create Legendary Enchantments that last a long time. With such compatibility the magics may confuse it for Familial Magic. Beware! Breaking such a bond will cause a deep resentment from both parties. You and the Other Person must decide from here!
Harry gave it a small frown before dismissing the window. There were downsides to the Gamer System he felt, that they gave little in the way of details most of the time. For now he decided that the two would simply approach this step by step. Besides, there should be many benefits to both of them with this ability, right?
With that thought he finished up dinner and made his way back to the dorms.
With an exciting day so far Harry simply got ready for bed and crashed instantly. He could only hope that this was a one off event and that he wouldn't find any more such events.
OoOoO
At this point Harry was deciding that entering the wizarding world was... weird. Barely into the first week of school and already he had found another Life Quest of sorts. He was hoping that nothing too crazy was going to happen today and that he could get through Herbology, Flying, and Astronomy without issues. Perhaps even find an instance to scout out later. Even a small quest would be welcome. Surely yesterday's events were just some random happening.
Unfortunately his day hit a snag upon making it to the common room, all first years were crowded around the bulletin board.
First year's Flying Class rescheduled!
All first years flight class has been postponed until Thursday.
There was many exclamations about the news. Even Harry was looking forward to his first flying lesson. The older students were also baffled, surely there was a reason, right?
The first years had their breakfast, bemoaning yet on the flying class, they eventually made their way to the greenhouses for Herbology.
Professor Sprout knew what she was teaching, and took no nonsense. She had explained that magical flora and fungi were more dangerous than their mundane counterparts. Also she gestured toward the other greenhouse which had various plants pressed against the glass, explaining that some plants seek out the sun, while others hide in the shadows, pointing out the part of the greenhouses that were blacked out slightly. Currently they were in the relatively 'safe' greenhouse for first years.
"This year we will go over nonmagical plants and the process to grow and harvest them. These range from flowers, vegetables, a few fungi, and a couple fruits. Also the proper attire, equipment, and favored fertilizers for plants. I hope you were smart enough to bring a pair of clothes you don't mind dirtying. At least for today's class you won't be needing such items, remember to come prepared for your next lesson please." Explained the Professor, with that they learned the steps, and took notes. The Gryffindors shared the class with the Hufflepuffs.
Harry didn't mind the class, it reminded him of Joyce's garden back at Privet Drive, also the times he helped his aunt with her own garden. It was one of the chores he could mindlessly do, sort of keep himself busy when he wanted to be left alone. Well, when it came to the practical part of the class. The way future classes were handled they took notes, and learned the theory of the things they were going to be working on. The next class they would actually handle the plant they learned about.
Of course there were exceptions, such as double periods of Herbology, there they would need to do notes at the start of the period, and the next half spent working on the project. "You won't need to worry about double period Herbology until at least your Third Year, by then you should have a basic understanding and should be able to keep up with the curriculum. Keep in mind, sometimes we will be working on various projects in the same class, you will be notified ahead of time. Some plants need intensive care, others more meticulous care instead."
Professor Sprout spent the rest of the class laying out future classes, and what they would be doing. It felt like a short class, already they were preparing to leave.
"Right you lot, your first homework assignment is as follows!" Professor Sprout's assignment was essentially to find three magical and three non magical ingredients and write a paragraph each on them. There was no bonus points. "I mean it! Three of each only, any more will see your grade fall, any less will have the same result. I will also not tolerate anyone going past the limit of a paragraph either. Each paragraph should have at least four sentences, no more than eight!"
Harry suggested going to the library to get started on some of their assignments. "Well if we complete our work first, we can do whatever we want later. Besides, flying class was cancelled and lunch isn't for another three hours."
The Hufflepuffs simply went their own way, probably back to their house. Some of the Gryffindors wanted to laze about, or explore. He had to point something out, "I'd rather spend my weekends and evenings exploring rather than studying. Besides, we could go for a walk around the lake after lunch. Don't forget we have Astronomy class tonight."
It was with some grumbling that the first year Gryffindors made their way to the library.
Tonight was their first Astronomy class looking through the schedule Harry understood why where were no morning classes on Wednesdays. At least it was for the first years apparently.
As a group they decided to work on the charms assignment first, being on of the easier assignments. It couldn't be that hard to look up a handful of spells, right?
Harry shouldn't have questioned the universe on that one. Although the standard book of spells had many spells in it, some of the students wanted to learn higher grades of magic, and those weren't found in their books. He had to remind them to also name the book they found such spells from, and their reasoning. From the eye rolls he also knew that he should probably tone it down a bit.
"Alright, I'm just saying that it's easier to start off with good habits than to fix sloppy ones later." Still, it was all good fun as they debated which spells are more fun to learn, and which ones were cooler. Madam Pince only had to come by once so shush them. For whatever reason Hermione was looking up magic that substituted power tools. Parvati wanted to know seamstress stuff. Of course no one was completely surprised Seamus wanted to learn about explosions at this point. It took some prodding to get Ron to work, who decided to look up comfort spells.
"You can't find a blanket all the time, and besides, it gets cold in the winter! Some warming spells would be great for that!" Ron reasoned, as he wrote down the couple of spells he thought would be neat. "Besides, cloaks can only do so much, imagine how awesome a cloak will be with warming spells on them when it starts snowing. It can keep your food warm for longer, like hot sandwiches!"
Even Parvati had no comeback for that one, although Hermione couldn't help but tease a little, "You just want hot food on demand."
Dean and Neville didn't really have a preference either way for charmwork and would pick one at random once they studied a bit.
There were many good natured grumbles, but they managed to keep busy up to lunch time trading spells and notes. They decided to split up and enjoy lunch. Harry somehow found himself across from Percy.
Harry thought it was odd that they only had Herbology and astronomy today, especially since he was looking forward to his first flying lesson. The rest of the first years were in agreement. The Flight Class was postponed until their next one on Thursday. They would have flying classes twice a week for a few months. It was apparently mandatory learning at least until winter break for all first years. Harry asked Percy about that, hoping for more information.
"Hm, that is strange. Maybe they found something wrong with the school brooms. I'll look into it Harry, don't you worry about it." The boy was snacking on a hasty improvised sandwich as they read some book. "You might want to start getting into the habit of studying during your free time, anything really, but especially so when it comes to classes."
He was a little bit torn about that, he wanted to explore, and today would be the perfect time for it. With a sigh he pulled out his potion's book, he had finished eating at least. He did remember the assignment at least, "Hey Percy? Why is cauldron care so important when we have magic that can clean them easily?"
The Prefect stopped for a moment to ponder the question. "Hm. It may come to a shock to you Harry, but potions are magical. You don't want to use magic on potentially volatile substances. The ideal thing to happen is the last of the potion is vanished, cleaned, and what not. That isn't going to be the best thing to happen though. If you decided to scourgify a cauldron with residue left inside it could vaporize, releasing dangerous fumes. Maybe it'll explode, catch on magical fire, it's hard to tell what reaction you might get. Best not to risk it. Any particular reason you ask?"
"Ah, well, Professor Snape wanted a quote from a student about cauldron care. Do you mind if I use your name?" Harry was a bit surprised about the explanation.
"Of course! You know Harry, you just reminded me about that. I'm preparing for OWL tests this year, I'm pretty sure that'll be in the test, probably." Percy took out a journal of sorts, and made a note. Harry too wrote down what Percy said.
"Recommend any books to read about it? I currently have 'Magical Drafts and Potions'. It doesn't have anything about proper care, the book only has potions, their explanations, and recipes." The boy lifted the book showing the title.
"You might want to look for 'Potioneering for the Practical' by Thomas Pewsey. Although it may be hard to find. The book was published back in 1780s I believe. No one took much belief in their work, instead passing down knowledge from master to apprentice. Many have tried to republish the book, mainly because it explains the bare basics of potioneering, as well as the care of equipment. You must remember, back then hygiene and cleanliness wasn't much of a thing. Many of their peers rejected the book as 'baseless' and 'a waste of time and soap'." The both scrunched their face at that.
"Anyway, there should be a copy in the library somewhere. I doubt you'll be able to purchase a copy from anywhere else besides private collectors or families. There might be one in your family library, the Potters have been around for a while, so it's a possibility."
Harry simply nodded, adding the title to his personal notebook.
"Besides that, it seems like something 'everyone should know'. Hogwash I say, with the occasional potions mishap some people just don't learn it until it is pointed out, in detail using small words. If you ask me, muggleborns and muggle raised usually don't have that problem, which I find fascinating. Not to mention there isn't really a 'standard' when it comes to cauldron crafting. Oh surely there are varying sizes, but the thickness of them? It's down to luck on which cauldron will be thicker than the other. Improper cauldron care could lead them to degrade faster at the bottoms." And so it went, Percy explaining to Harry about cauldrons.
A subject Harry didn't particularly care about, until it was pointed out that a 'slightly thinner' bottom could cause a potion to heat up faster than intended, same said for the opposite that it could take longer. Some potions required precise timing, and these imperfections could cause problems. So Harry took notes during this little surprise lesson.
Finally Percy was winding down, "-that is why I intend to apply for the ministry, I'm hoping to at least bring up this subject at some point. Goodness me! I'm going to be late to Transfiguration! Sorry to cut this short Harry but I have to get to class!"
That said the prefect hastily gathered their stuff before booking it down the row, much to the bemusement of various students and annoyance of others.
Some time after lunch Harry would be dragged on another outing by his dormmates.
"Come on Harry! We're going to look at the lake!" Lavender was tugging at his sleeve, "Parvati invited her sister and some Ravenclaws. You looked busy with Percy I decided to wait for you. Come on!"
Harry just hoped that he wouldn't have to teach another set of students. Still, he wouldn't say no to making more friends, especially from other houses. As far as he could tell there wasn't really any 'inter-house relations' in the upper years. Something he found odd, surely outside of competitions and various competitive clubs there'd be more mingling... right?
As he passed various groups of older students he didn't notice anything of the sort. Sure there where cliques and groups of students, but they were all divided by house colors. It was more pronounced the further they went. Frowning slightly he decided to give it to next Monday to decide if something should be done about it. Just then a timer popped up
Six Days: Find evidence of inter-house interactions outside of classrooms and clubs!
It had minimized itself above his selected quests, denoting high priority, one of the few to do so to date. It sort of surprised him, although not too much. Usually he would stumble upon quests by thinking about a situation. Usually they were World Quests that he had yet to see results of, or Life Quests. Either way, it meant experience at some point so he put that out of his mind for now.
There was a shaded rock outcropping near the lake that they made it too, others were already there. Not the full year group he wasn't really expecting, but enough to surprise him still. Surprisingly so too was Susan Bones and her probable friend Hannah Abbot. He only assumed probable, they could have simply been available for this meet up.
He was slightly disappointed that Daphne and Tracey weren't there. Something he'd have to remedy later on. Nothing too serious happened, and Harry promised Professor McGonagall that he wouldn't be able to teach his new techniques, just yet.
He did have to remind them that he said that he couldn't, but made no promises that the other's couldn't. "Besides, I might not be able to teach it, I can however help other's if they ask first about it."
With renewed enthusiasm they continued practicing. Besides Padma there was also Anthony Goldstein, Lisa Turpin, as well as Michael Corner. Apparently the others decided it was better to study ahead or explore than to "-sit around and do nothing much but waste time was what Entwhistle claimed, apparently they wanted to go look around, Terry joined them saying that they might find 'something cool'." Padma explained. "Roger just wanted to read in peace. Brucklehurst, MacDougal, and Roper decided to look around the castle as well elsewhere."
Everyone nodded along, it made sense, Lavender turned to Susan "What brings you two here?"
"Oh, Neville invited us on the way out. We were actually going to go with the group to explore the grounds. They might stop by in a bit, maybe."
"C'mon Susan, did you really want to pass up a lesson from Harry Potter! This is so exciting!"
There was much approval from the others that Harry couldn't really refute that. It was something his mother could do when she was younger, so why couldn't anyone else? Surely though he would not be teaching his more destructive spells to them, probably. If they can get started with the basics though?
"Remember, visualization is just as strong as the want for something to happen!" Harry encouraged later on. By now Hermione's pebble was slowly turning a more deeper shade of blue than previous. Harry thought it was more like clay currently, but simply encouraged her to keep at it. Seamus wasn't exactly having problems with visualization but rather focus. The boy managed to make it appear the pebble was smoking and ready to explode in a moment's notice. When prodded Seamus simply said he wanted the thing to look like it was on fire.
"Well, be careful with that! There's a difference between something looking like it's on fire and something that is... well, actually on fire."
Despite it being another teaching lesson Harry had fun, especially hearing more about the wizarding world from the other students. Their first magic, and what others thought about it all. The rest of the Hufflepuffs arrived, and apparently they thought they seen a unicorn, or a centaur. With a glance at the Forest Harry didn't doubt them.
The new comers too were excited to learn some new magic, and it was with much enthusiasm that everyone continued working at it.
Evening was upon them and they had to split off to prepare for dinner and the last class of the day.
OoO
The sun had gone down a couple hours ago, and the first years all made their way to the Astronomy Tower. Professor Sinistra had already set up the class, there were writing stations set up along the edges of the room.
"Welcome to your Astronomy class. Glad to see your brought your equipment, lets get started." From there they learned how to set up the telescope and put it away. The class had to do this five times. "Good! You will now learn how to adjust the settings."
On the class went by, Harry marveled at the clarity of everything. Of course whenever cloud cover would obscure the view, it was like peering through a veil of some kind. He was going to have to try this with a normal telescope to compare the differences.
"Keep in mind, the enchantments will allow us to peer through light clouds. Viewing classes will be cancelled during storms, and during such nights we shall instead focus on charts, reading, and what not on one of the lower levels."
Astronomy had more uses than just knowing positions of planets and constellations apparently. "Most ritual magic usually revolve around the lunar cycle, as well as the sun's position. Other rituals require certain position of the celestial bodies in the sky. And that is the fairly 'well known' methods of using Astronomy! There are a fair few potion's ingredients that rely on the celestial bodies as well. Especially when it comes to harvesting."
The class went just a bit beyond curfew, and they did manage to free look around the night sky as a calibration exercise. Harry felt though that these telescopes were fairly... inferior to any muggle one he could purchase. However, he could not deny that the enchantments were very helpful. There would be no homework tonight for Astronomy.
The fifth year Prefects of each House escorted their respective students back to their dorms, Harry later learned this was because they were scheduled for the first patrol that evening and were available for the task.
"For all I know next time it'll be the seventh year prefects, or even the sixth years. Just know that this is only done for the first year students. Next year you are expected to know the routes and be back in the dorms in an orderly fashion." Percy explained as they took the direct path that day back to the Gryffindor tower, Percy once again explaining some stationary landmarks along the way, his prefect partner sulking in the back.
Harry figured that it was a decent day, and looked forward to the next, although he was itching to go exploring.
Reviews:
-Thank you for the notification of mistyped words, grammar, misused words, and other such reviews. However, some of you aren't good at reading notes are you. I have no secondary reader, and I understand that it could be better. I am improving, if slowly. Also, it helps if you actually expand upon your review and how to improve, at least in your eyes. If you can't do even that simple task, well, we have a block feature and I'm not afraid to use it. To those sincere with actual helpful criticisms, Thanks! I'll take those words under advisement!
-Undecided yet on this particular story what Harry will be besides vague notions of being a mage/sorcerer magic user. I do know though that he will not be a tank or guardian of some type. He is a ranged magic user, for now. Perhaps he'll be a thief? Maybe a heavy magical support character? Perhaps I may send him through as a healer. Your guess is as good as mine currently, later chapters will see how this plays out.
-Snape scene, I am in the process of rewriting the entirety of the beginning. The point is someone added a minor curse to cause Hufflepuff and Gryffindor to have more accidents. Sure Snape could've easily dispelled it, but then it could show up more insidious later on, maybe with added notice-me-not schematics. (Post Rewrite: I have changed many chapters, once again. this review reply is now moot, the point has been clarified, sort of.)
-Blue hair, in London? That was a bit of an Easter Egg as homage to the book. Merely background fluff for our Investigator to overhear and prove that not all cases are caught by the DMLE-OD(Obliviation Department).
-Encouraging One-Liners: Thanks! Much appreciated!
All said and done, I do look forward to all reviews, y'all sort of help direct the flow of the story to some degree. Now and again I consider making a forum but then decide against it. I have no intention of upkeeping one, when I barely got a handle on writing as it is.
Moving on!
NOTES:
Ok, so last chapter's scene went beyond what I wanted, so I most likely had to push the Flying classes to the next chapter. This will of course push the interlude chapter back one more. Keep in mind Interlude chapters are for various secondary characters and background stuff and will probably be longer than these standard chapters. They are fairly optional reading and an excuse to world build with secondary characters.
-I know, Astronomy was on Wednesday according to the book, but I'm going to stick to a fan schedule, it makes sense, it also has open gaps for electives and miscellaneous classes.
Also why we're droning on during these classes? Well, I just want to introduce them to start with and sort of set up the schedule for Harry and you readers. We probably won't go too in-depth about classwork or lessons for every chapter. Chapter 12 will likely have the schedule in full at the end. Not the Interlude II, the title chapter 12.
-The "Potioneering for the Practical" is a made up book, as is the author. Feel free to use it as needed.
-You know, I feel that Percy was a very underutilized character. So chances are he'll be around more often to start out with. Besides, imagine how far he could go if he was a 'Confidant of The-Boy-Who-Lived'.
-Having some time to reflect on it, I'm coming to the realization that the reason I skip out on 'stats' and gamer frills is because it annoys me when I read it. I catch myself skimming past it all. So why would I subject you all to that? Granted I'll try to add more stat stuff, but don't expect to see every little level gain every chapter. For sure I'd hit my personal word count easily, but it's essentially be copy-paste with a few words added. Who knows, maybe I can still do that like, every other half dozen chapters, post it as a 'filler' scene or something.
-Compatibility bond, the idea came out of of left field last chapter, and I didn't want to 'soul bond' it up. Besides, it might be interesting to see where this goes, I do know Hermione will be a secondary character. I imagine that third year will be interesting at least should the two work together, especially when it comes to runes if not other magic by that point. I just wanted a reason to ensure the two will end up working together at some point, this sort of just speeds things along. As I said, we will figure this out as we go.
Is there more I could have done for this chapter? Probably, but I just wanted to get the classes listed up before going forward. Next chapter will have the full Schedule probably. I think I'm done with the rewrite as well at this point. I don't want to change much if at all the last couple of chapters. I did overhaul Chapter 1, 2, and some touch ups here and there on the rest. Could last chapter and this one have been a single chapter? Probably, all classes are basically introduced, and now we can get into more Gamer things! Probably Harry's first Hogwarts Instance next chapter.
On a side note: I have a full-time job as of writing this sentence anyway. It is time away from writing, but it also allows me to have a fresher look.
All things said and done? I know the important parts, plots, peoples involved, we just gotta get there first!
