So, here's how this book is going to work.
I'll be posting this all at one time. That way, there'll be no suspense for the next chapter of this book. Now, granted, this won't be the way I'll be uploading the future books in this series. I'm only doing it this way because I've already completed all the chapters. After this book, all chapters will be uploaded one chapter at a time. Oh, and thank you for taking the time and reading this. It means so much to me. Oh, and before I forget...
Disclaimer: I'm not the owner of Harry Potter, just the OC characters.
Now let's get started!
Chapter 1: Destined Meetings
Marcus Williams awoke with a start, having that same nightmare as before. He really couldn't make heads or tails of it, though needless to say that he tried.
Ever since that day, he wasn't the same. He tried so hard to make friends, to regain his old self, but just couldn't trust people. No matter what, eventually, they did something that would isolate him from everyone else, belittle him, or call him names that felt like someone was slicing him open. Eventually, Marcus Williams kept to himself and closed himself off as much as he could. He didn't interact with anyone other than his parents and a few select others and he didn't make himself emotionally vunerable.
And then there was his hair.
His chin-length spiky, yet wavy pure white hair was nothing short of a spectacle for Muggles that gawked and gaped at it, something that completely unnerved him. Of course, he did everything possible to get his hair a different color: went to a salon, dyed it himself, had his parents use magic to regain his hair color from before. Absolutely nothing worked, and therefore had to endure every old age joke there was to make from Muggles, something that further deteriorated his social confidence.
Naturally, Michael and Brynn did everything they could to have their son open up to people again. They had him take every kind of class and lesson imaginable and, while he was good at all of them, it didn't do anything to open himself up, or even smile.
Yes, that was what his mother missed the most: His smile. It was as if he had forgotten to smile altogether and, even if something good were to happen, all he would allow himself to do was smirk.
Well, today would prove whether or not he would smile for something Marcus has wanted for a long time.
"Well, we're already running behind, so we've got to get moving," Michael said. He turned to the stairs and said, "Son, get up!"
"I'm coming right down, Dad!" yelled Marcus, who hurried up and threw on his favorite sweatshirt and jeans and hurried downstairs to the living room, where his parents were waiting for him.
"It's finally time," said his mom. "Are you excited?"
Marcus gave a smirk and said, "Yeah, I'm pretty excited. After all, all eleven year olds get their first wand."
He truly was excited about today, July 9th, 1991. Today, he turned eleven years old. The only thing he wanted for his birthday was to get his own wand and school supplies and his mom and dad made sure to get today off.
"Then, let's hurry up and get going to Merlin's Village already," said his father with a smile.
Making sure to grab onto his sleeve, Michael Williams apparated his family to Merlin's Village.
"Fantastic," said Brynn. "I'll never get used to how amazing Merlin's Village really is."
It really was a sight for both newcomers and frequent visitors. Unlike it's outside surroundings, Merlin's Village looked like it stayed in the past, with it's straw-roof houses and medieval decor. There was even a castle that overlooked the village, which in fact was the local bar, "The Dragon's Maw."
"I wonder what type of wand I'll get," said Marcus. "Do you think I'll get dragon heartstring like you, Dad?"
"Who knows?" he said. "Like Ollivander told me when I got my wand, 'The wand chooses the wizard, Mr. Williams'."
"Well, here we are!" Brynn said.
Marcus opened the door to Mr. Fredrick's, the best wand store in the entire U.S., right there in Merlin's Village, and immediately, the shop owner said, "Well, it's about time you entered my store, young Mr. Williams!"
Marcus gave a smirk as he said, "Hello, Mr. Fredricks! I assume you know why I'm here?"
"Of course I do!" said Mr. Fredricks, who gestured to the counter, where five wand boxes were already opened, waiting for Marcus.
Marcus, not wanting to waste any time, went to the leftmost wand and asked, "What's the combo on this one?"
"Oak and unicorn hair, 10 inches, sturdy," said Mr. Fredricks proudly. "And a fine unicorn it was, too! Gave me a run for my money, it did. Go on, Marcus! Pick it up with your writing hand!"
So, Marcus picked the wand up with his left hand and, as soon as he gripped the base of the wand, it shot out of his hand and closed itself in the box.
"What just happened?" asked Marcus, who looked to his parents for an answer.
"I wouldn't let it bother you, Marcus," said Michael. "Many witches and wizards don't get their wands on the first try."
"That's right!" said Mr. Fredricks. "As my mentor always told me, 'The wand chooses the wizard.' Now, let's try this one: Birch and dragon heartstring, a little stubborn, but loyal, 11 inches."
As Marcus grabbed the wand, the same thing happened as it did with the first one.
"Okay, this is getting wierd," said Marcus.
"Perhaps that wasn't the right combo," mumbled Mr. Fredricks. "Well, how about this: Hawthorn and a phoenix feather. 12 inches, nice and flexible."
When the same thing happened to this wand, Marcus was starting to get a little depressed.
"Oh, don't look so down!" said Brynn. "You'll definitely get a wand, I'm sure of it."
All of a sudden, the four people in the room heard a thud behind the counter and Mr. Fredricks looked to find a wand box had fallen off the shelf.
"Must've not placed it firmly," said Mr. Fredricks as he went to look in the box. When he did, however, his eyes grew wide and he hoarsed, "There's no way."
He took a glance at Marcus, who gave him a confused look and said, "Is there something the matter?"
Mr. Fredricks rushed back to the counter with the wand box in his hand and said, "Try this wand."
"What about the other two wands you've placed here?" asked Marcus, gesturing to the counter top.
"Never mind those wands," said Mr. Fredericks in a hurry. He took the cover off the box and Marcus looked inside to find a dark red wand of twelve inches, the wood looking as if two separate pieces were spirling to the tip like a vine, yet it was very distinctly one piece of wood.
"Well, the wand almost matches my mother's hair color," remarked Marcus.
"Please, young Mr. Williams!" exclaimed Mr. Fredricks.
"Right, right, sorry," said Marcus as he grabbed the wand with his left hand.
The moment he grabbed the wand, he felt a great warmth course through his body. He pointed the wand straight to the ceiling and great sparks shot out from it.
"I'd never thought I'd see the day," said Mr. Fredricks in a hoarse whisper.
"It feels good to finally have my own wand!" said Marcus with a smirk. "What's the combo?"
"Um, I'd rather not say," said Mr. Fredricks, who was in awe of Marcus. "But, know that I will be expecting great things from you, young man."
As they paid Mr. Fredricks and walked out the store, Marcus asked, "Is it wierd for a wandmaker to not describe a wand?"
"It's certainly very peculiar," said Michael. "But, at least you got your wand now, Marcus."
"That's true, I did," he said.
As he was inspecting his wand, Brynn whispered to Michael, "I thought for sure he would do it this time."
"Do what, darling?" asked Michael.
"Smile," she answered. "He hasn't truly smiled in six years to the day. All he ever does is smirk. I thought for sure that he would smile when he got his own wand."
"He will smile when he's ready to, darling," Michael stated.
"Michael, Brynn, there you are!" said a voice from behind them.
All three of them turned around to find Mr. Charles Jackson, American Minister of Magic and Michael's Boss.
"Mr. Jackson, what are you doing here?" asked Michael.
"I came looking for you two, truth be told," said Mr. Jackson. "Ah, young Marcus! I didn't see you there!"
"Hello, Mr. Jackson," said Marcus, who looked indifferent about seeing him.
"Actually, something urgent has come up at the Ministry," said Mr. Jackson.
"If it's about that wannabe dark magic group, that can wait," said Michael sternly. "I'm spending the day with my family."
"I'm afraid it's not that," said Mr. Jackson, who looked a little worried. "It's the British Minister of Magic. He's currently waiting in my office, wanting to speak to you and your wife. He says that it's very urgent."
"The British Minister of Magic?" said Michael, who was caught off guard by his boss's announcement. "Damn. What could he possibly want with me and Brynn?"
"Dad, is everything okay?" asked Marcus.
"We're going to the Ministry," said Michael. "I don't want any arguing, just grab my left sleeve."
Marcus, knowing better than to anger his father, grabbed his sleeve as him, Brynn, Mr. Jackson, and Michael apparated to the Ministry.
Once they arrived in Mr. Jackson's office, however, Marcus just knew something didn't feel right.
He was looking at a short old man with a suit and bowler hat standing by the window, talking to a tall man with long, blonde hair, wearing a black suit holding a cane with a snake at the end that Marcus believed to be his wand.
The short man looked towards the door and said, "Ah, hello again, Michael and Brynn! I'm very glad to see the both of you!"
"It's nice to see you too, Minister," said Michael, but Marcus could tell his father didn't honestly think that way.
"And this must be your son, Marcus!" said the Minister. "My word, he's a spitting image of you, Brynn, but I can see Michael's traits in you, Marcus. You've certainly gotten the best of both worlds, I must say."
"Thank you, Minister," said Marcus, who didn't really care what he thought.
"Fudge, don't you think we should get down to business?" said the man with the long, blonde hair. "I'm sure Michael wants to spend the rest of the day with his family."
"Why don't you keep that forked tongue in your mouth where it belongs, Lucius Malfoy?" asked Michael, who was getting irate with his mere presence.
"Please, men, settle down," Fudge implored, clearly wanting to get whatever business he had over with. "Now, to business. We have a bit of a situation over in the British Ministry of Magic, you see. Alastor Moody is retiring from his position."
"Mad-Eye's retiring?" asked Brynn.
"He was quite adamant on the matter, I dare say," Fudge stated. "Anywho, it leaves us in a quandry, considering he was the head of the Auror department."
"Go on," Michael said, wondering where this was going to lead.
"So, we were wondering if you were willing to take the position as Head of the British Auror department," Fudge announced.
Marcus, merely listening up to that point, realized what Mr. Fudge was asking of his father and said, "You have got to be kidding me!"
Everyone looked at Marcus while Michael said, "Not now, son!"
He then looked at Fudge and said, "You're really asking the wrong man, Fudge. Why don't you try Scrimgeour? I heard he's really pining for the job."
"He did show a lot of interest," admitted Fudge. "But, I'm afraid he's not as well rounded and talented as you are."
"How do you figure?" asked Michael.
"Well, let's look at your work so far, shall we?" asked Lucius as he took out a parchment from his robes and started reading it off. "Ah, here we go. In your time as Head of the US Auror Department, you've trained more than 50 top-notch Aurors, solved 10 high-profile cases that no one else could solve, never lost a duel against a dark witch or wizard, and reduced American wizarding crimes by 85%. This and your history in the First Wizarding War makes you a prime candidate for the Head Auror job."
"And let's not forget your contributions, Brynn!" exclaimed Fudge. "I've heard that American wizarding criminals call you 'The Red Siren'."
"Greatly exaggerated, Minister," said Brynn, who was uncomfortable with that title.
"So, what say you, Mr. Williams?" asked Lucius. "Will you take the Head Auror position? And Brynn, will you become a British Auror?"
"No," said Michael immediately.
"What?" said Fudge exasperatedly. "Why not?!"
"Marcus is attending Salem Academy in the fall," said Michael, who proceeded to stand next to Marcus and put his arm around his shoulder. "I cannot put that on him."
"Ah, well, I do have a proposition for young Marcus," said Lucius.
"For me?" asked Marcus, feeling very skeptic about anything this man had to say.
"Yes," said Lucius, smiling. "Of course, Salem Academy is a very prestigious school. However, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry has produced more excellent witches and wizards than any magic school in the world. You do want to be an excellent wizard, don't you?"
"I can achieve that anywhere I go," stated Marcus.
"You can," Lucius stated, "But, the truly powerful have come through Hogwarts. Merlin, for example."
"Merlin?" asked Marcus, his interest slightly increasing.
"Oh, yes," said Lucius, now smiling. "The founders, your parents, even the Dark Lord and Dark Prince went to Hogwarts."
"Did they now?" Marcus asked, his blood beginning to boil.
"If you want to be just as powerful, you would choose wisely and go to Hogwarts."
"That's enough, Lucius!" exclaimed Michael.
"Dad, is it true?" asked Marcus.
"Well, Hogwarts does have a reputation for good education," Michael admitted.
"You want to go there, don't you?" Brynn asked her son.
Marcus was silent for a minute before replying, "Well, as much as I don't want to move from America, both of you always go on about how amazing Hogwarts is. So, I think I should put this school's reputation to the test."
Michael, feeling defeat, said, "How soon would we need to move, Fudge?"
"Mr. and Mrs. Williams, you mean you'll take the positions?" asked Fudge excitedly.
After they nodded their heads, Lucius gave a smirk and said, "As a governor of Hogwarts, I'll be sure to streamline the necessary paperwork to ensure Marcus's transfer goes smoothly."
"You'll be starting out next week," said Fudge quickly. "You'll have a press conference announcing your acceptance as Head of the Department, and afterwards get started!"
"In that case, my family needs to start packing," said Michael. "Brynn, Marcus, let's go."
With that, they left the room and went straight home.
July 20th, 1991
"Marcus, please come out of your room," Brynn said to him. "There's something here to see you."
Marcus, who previously holed himself in his new room, opened the door and said, "There's someone to see me?"
His mother nodded his head and brought him down to their unfurnished living room, where a familiar face greeted him.
"Uncle Remus, is that you?" Marcus asked.
"Yes, it is," said Remus with a smile as he hugged Marcus and continued, "I've just heard about you and your parents moving back to England, so I thought I'd stop by and catch up."
"Oh, well, not too much to catch up, really," said Marcus. "I did get my wand, though. Do you want to see it?"
"Well, of course," said Remus.
While Marcus went to grab his wand, Remus looked to Brynn and Michael, who just emerged from the kitchen, and asked, "Does Marcus still -"
"-not smile?" finished Brynn. "It seems that way."
"Well, naturally, we tried everything to get him to smile, but nothing seems to work," said Michael.
"Well, perhaps going to Hogwarts will remedy that," Remus said to them.
"I sure hope so," Brynn said. "He used to be such an energetic boy, full of joy and laughter. Now, there are some days where you can't even get him to speak."
"Something that tragic should've never happened to him," said Michael. "If only we had been there, or taken him into town with us."
"You can't change the past, Michael," Remus told him. "Otherwise, James and Lily would still be with us today, as well as Sirius being a free man. Does he ask about his hair?"
"At least once a week," Brynn said. "I can't say I blame him, though. But, it's not like like we can tell him it's because of that prophecy. He's just not old enough to -"
At that point, they heard Marcus coming back down from upstairs and silenced themselves as Marcus said, "Sorry about that, Uncle Remus. Can't believe it took me forever to find my wand."
"That's quite all right, Marcus," said Remus with a smile.
"So, here it is," said Marcus, holding up his red wand. "What do you think?"
Remus examined the wand in his hands and said, "This is a very peculiar wand, Marcus. Did Mr. Fredricks mentioned what the wand was made of?"
"Not at all," stated Marcus. "So, I did a little research. I'm able to determine that the wood is American Redwood, but I don't have a clue about what the wand core could possibly be."
"Well, I'm sure you'll figure it out, Marcus," Remus said as he handed Marcus's wand back to him.
They spent the remainder of the evening unpacking, Remus helping out with whatever he could do.
"Well, I'm sorry to say that I've got to get going," Remus said. "I have to start bright and early for my job search, but I'll be sure to drop by again when I can."
"Please do, Remus," said Michael. "The door's always open for you."
"Now, Marcus," Remus said to him, "I know you're unsure about Hogwarts, but I assure you, you're going to love it there."
"Well, I'll just have to go find out for myself, won't I?" Marcus asked, his face neither happy or sad.
Remus, who wished there was more he could do, said, "Have a good night now!"
With that, he left the house.
July 30th, 1991
"Well, that's the last box," said Brynn as they just finished unpacking.
They officially moved to the countryside, just outside the town of Cambridge, putting the finishing touches on their new home.
"Now, when are we going to go shopping for my school supplies?" Marcus asked.
"Hopefully soon," said his mother. "Your father hasn't been able to break away from the office long enough to go shopping. Neither have I, unfortunately. They're working us like crazy."
Sure enough, they heard the door open and Marcus saw his father before he said, "Well, things are a little rough around the edges with the department, but it's nothing that can't be fixed."
"And, to think, they're looking to us to shape up the department," said Brynn. "It's going to take all of us."
At that moment, all three of them heard knocking at the door.
"What the heck?" asked Marcus, who went to the door. As soon as he got in front of the door, he asked, "Who is it?"
"An old friend," replied an old and familiar voice to Michael and Brynn.
"Open the door," Brynn said to Marcus.
Once he did, he found a wizard whose white beard was as long as the white hair on top of his head, and Marcus could immediately tell that this man was a powerful wizard.
"Ah, Marcus, you've grown immensly since the last time I saw you," said the old man with a twinkle in his eye and a smile on his face.
When Michael saw the confused look on his son's face, he said, "Marcus, this is Professor Dumbledore. He's the headmaster of Hogwarts."
"Oh, so you're the guy my mom and dad won't stop talking about," said Marcus, who stuck out his hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you, sir."
Dumbledore returned the gesture and said, "The pleasure is all mine, Marcus."
"Why don't we all have a seat in the living room?" asked Brynn. "We just set up the furniture."
Once they did all this, Dumbledore looked to Michael and Brynn and said, "It is very nice to see the both of you again. I'm sure Remus is delighted to know that two of his best friends have returned to Great Britain."
"We've talked to him and he said he'll be able to come out again sometime this weekend," said Brynn. "But, I don't think you came out here just for small talk, Dumbledore."
"Straight to the point, then," he said with a smile. He took an envelope from his robes and handed it to Marcus.
"You'll find your list of school supplies in here," said Dumbledore. "First years are not allowed their own broomsticks and be sure to wear the school uniform before the train arrives at the Hogwarts Platform."
"Understood, Professor," said Marcus.
"And also, I need to ask you a favor, Marcus," stated Marcus. "A certain soon-to-be student hasn't been getting his acceptance letter and I've asked the gamekeeper of Hogwarts to ensure that this letter gets to him. I was wondering if you would be willing to tag along with him."
"Why me?" asked Marcus.
"This boy has no knowledge of the Wizarding World or even that he's a wizard," stated the headmaster. "It would be good for him if there was a boy his age that was able to fill him in."
"Who is it?" asked Michael.
"Harry," he simply stated to Marcus's parents.
"Oh, Harry Potter!" exclaimed Michael. "James's son!"
"It certainly sounds interesting," Marcus stated. "All right, I guess I'll go. When would I leave?"
"Oh, right away, I dare say," said Dumbledore. "In fact, the gamekeeper is waiting just outside."
Marcus hurried outside where he faced the biggest man he had ever seen in his life, which was remarkable considering he'd seen a lot of big guys at that point.
Once Dumbledore came outside, he said, "Marcus, this is Rubeus Hagrid, Keeper of Keys and Grounds at Hogwarts. Hagrid, this is Marcus Williams."
Hagrid stuck out one of his big, meaty hands and said, "Hello, Marcus! A pleasure to meet yeh!"
"It's a pleasure to meet you too, Hagrid," said Marcus, who felt that his right arm was still shaking long after he was done shaking Hagrid's hand.
Hagrid noticed Michael and Brynn walking out of the house and said, "Merlin's Beard! Michael and Brynn! It's been far too lon'!"
As he almost crushed Michael and Brynn in his hug, Michael replied, "It's great to see you too, Hagrid! Now, can you let us down and breathe?"
"Right, right, sorry about that," said Hagrid.
Hagrid walked right next to an impressive motorcycle, sat on it, and said, "All righ' there, Marcus. Ready ter go?"
"I'm not so sure," said Marcus, who gave Dumbledore a skeptic look.
Knowing Marcus's doubts, Dumbledore said, "I trust Hagrid with my life."
Marcus took a look at the motorcycle and the giant man on it, who was giving him a hearty smile. After a few seconds, Marcus said, "Well, should be interesting," hopped into the side car of the motorcycle and they took off towards the skies.
Once they were in the air, Marcus said, "So, how are we able to fly without having to worry about Muggles seeing us?"
"There's sum clever enchantments on it," Hagrid explained. "Dumbledore put them on himself."
"And where exactly are we going?" asked Marcus as he noticed they were going closer to the ocean.
"Well, this Muggle family that Harry lives with, they've retreated to this hut on the rocks out in the middle of the sea," Hagrid stated. "We'll be going there."
They seemed to have been flying for hours on end, and by this point, Marcus was unsure if they were going to ever get to their destination.
It was very dark before Hagrid shout out, "There we are, Marcus! Jus' over that way!"
As he pointed to a dinky little rock with a house on it, Marcus wondered to himself, "Just what drove this Muggle family to come out here with Harry?"
Finally, they arrived to the rock and made their way to the front door.
"Well, it's a minute away from midnight," said Marcus, looking at his watch. "Do you think we should knock?"
"Nah," said Hagrid. "Best if we jus' get this over with."
Marcus was about to say something when Hagrid punched the door.
"Hagrid, surely, we can knock!" exclaimed Marcus.
"Not worth botherin'," stated Hagrid. "These Muggles wouldn't answer."
As he punched the door again, Marcus said, "Hagrid, we really should knock!"
Hagrid, ignoring him, gave the door one last punch, which fell flat on the shack floor.
"Or we could just bust down the front door," said Marcus, facepalming himself.
With that, Hagrid and Marcus made their way in the shabby hut.
Thank you so much for reading! Next chapter should be up soon!