Hi there. I'm Corruptmonk's sister. You can call me Rachel for now since I don't have an alias yet. (and yes, that's my real name, pretty no?).
Anyway, since my brother is currently too lazy to be my secretary, I am forced to do this. Oh woe is me. Thanks to those who reviewed and here is my reply to some of them.
DZ2: I have always loved Alnwick Castle after I checked out the pictures in Google. It's a dream for me to visit or live in a place like that. Oh well. Life goes on. Oh, thank you for putting this story in your Top 10. I'm working on chapter 6 now so hopefully I can have my brother correct it later and uploaded immediately or tomorrow.
konatachan603: I knew i forgot something. Well, in my plot, the Dursleys are subjected to a Telepathic Suggestion that Harry is away at a boot camp. He he he. Sorry, I forgot to put that in. Anyway, here's a new chapter for you. Enjoy.
Tachi Kagahara: You're query should be answered in this chapter. Enjoy reading.
deadkid23: Regarding Shadow Walking and Weasley Twins, Great minds think alike. He he he he.
RebeliousOne: Here's another chapter to spoil yourself with. I wholeheartedly agree with your point. I don't like a too-noble Harry saving everyone out of their own problems. My version of Harry will be different. He will be more focused in enjoying life, learning new stuff, making friends. Saving people will just be a blip in his personality though he does love to help.
gaara king of the sand: No matter how much I want for Harry to call Voldemort 'Tom'. He can't as of yet since he doesn't know anything about the Dark Lord's past. He will, however, discover it in second year to fit the timeline.
blaham: You know, I was also thinking the same thing. Maybe they need Sickles and Knuts as chump change. ^_^
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter
Harry Potter: Shadow Sorcerer
Chapter 05: A Year of Discovery
Hedwig flamed into the Master Suite of Potter Manor directly on the bed where she deposited her master who immediately curled up on himself, sobbing his heart out. With sadness in her heart, she landed on the bed and hopped nearer to caress her master's cheek as he cried his heart out. She left him alone for now since she instinctively knew that crying was a way of release. She stopped herself from singing out a calming song since it would only do more damage than help.
Phoenix Song was undocumented. Witches and wizards assumed that it got rid of any negative emotions and empowers a person. They were wrong. Phoenix Song doesn't make any negative emotions disappear. In truth, the song suppresses these emotions until the person is in control of themselves. This worked well with anger and rage, but for a person suffering from a broken heart, it is necessary to let the hurt run its course before healing could truly begin.
With nothing else to do, she continued to accompany her master until he cried himself to sleep. Hedwig made herself comfortable and joined her master in Morpheus' embrace.
Harry woke up with an odd feeling in his chest. He felt light...carefree even. It was as if something heavy had been lifted off his shoulders. It was a confusing, yet welcoming feeling.
He opened his eyes to see where he was. He looked down and saw he was hugging his staff which was currently humming in contentment, emerald pulsing in rhythm to his heartbeat. Smiling, Harry raised his head to see Hedwig sleeping on his pillow. He raised an eyebrow at the sudden change of his familiar's sleeping position but the memory of yesterday crashed into his mind.
His confrontation with his aunt.
Cutting all ties from his only blood relative.
Harry's heart ached a bit when he remembered her words but he realized that Petunia hasn't been his aunt ever since he could remember. He should have expected that the admission from her would hurt...a lot.
Shaking his head, he got up while sending thankful wave to his staff knowing that his trustee foci helped in comforting and protecting him while he was out.
He smiled at the sleeping Hedwig before looking out the window. He saw that it was night but didn't know what the exact time was. He cast a quick tempus charm causing a smoky outline of the current time to appear in the air in front of time. It was already half past 7. He yawned for a bit before waking his beloved familiar.
"Hedwig. Wake up Heds." whispered Harry as he softly poked the sleeping bird on the chest
"Master?" came Hedwig's sleepy reply.
"Good evening, Hed. I suggest you wake up. We need to eat something since we didn't eat any lunch…or dinner for that matter." said Harry with a chuckle. Hedwig gave out a small yawn which looked ridiculous on an avian before releasing a sleepy trill, stretched her wings, and flew to Harry's shoulder before nipping him affectionately on the ear.
"How are you master?" Hedwig asked in concern. His sobs last night broke his heart. There was nothing she could do but be there for him when he needed her.
Harry looked at his familiar sadly before scratching her neck.
"To be honest? I feel happy and sad at the same time. I mean, I already know how Aunt Petunia felt about me and hearing how she didn't want me directly from her really hurts a lot but I should have expected that considering how I was treated when I lived there. I have a lot of questions and I know she couldn't answer them for me now since we already cut familial ties with each other."
"Everything will be alright master. I'll be there for you." said Hedwig as she nipped at his ear before trilling out a song of love that immediately lifted Harry up from his bout of depression.
"Well, why don't we just put that behind us and start living our life without any emotional baggage bringing us down?" suggested Harry which Hedwig immediately agreed to. "I don't know about you but I'm really hungry. Care to join me, Hed?"
After getting a nod from Hedwig, Harry called Flippy who immediately appeared with a worried look on his face. He immediately told the elf what happened and assured him that he was alright except that he was very hungry. The excitable elf immediate popped out for a few minutes before returning with a tray full of food along with some fruits for Hedwig. The three of them shared a meal for the night before Harry and Hedwig went back to bed determined to enjoy tomorrow and the days to come.
Flippy didn't go back to the kitchens or the elf room. After popping the empty tray back to the kitchen, he popped back to Harry's bedroom and slept by Harry's feet wanting to be with his master for the night.
Harry James Potter woke up in a particularly good mood the next morning. He felt so light and free all of a sudden but chalked it to having a good night's sleep.
In truth, Harry's mood stemmed from the release of his pent-up emotions. Despite his intelligence and aloofness towards his relatives' treatment of him; the wanting of a family, a loved one, and their mistreatment of him piled up in his heart. His crying stint last night allowed him to release all those pent up emotions that was slowly tearing him apart from inside out.
Harry yawned and stretched before pushing himself off the bed and looked around. Hedwig was sleeping soundly on her perch, head tucked under her wing, while his staff was beside his bed, emerald glowing softly. A quick tempus told him that it was already 9 in the morning. Deciding to prepare for the day, he called for Flippy who appeared immediately with a silent pop.
"Master Harry Potter sir be calling Flippy?"
"Good morning, Flippy. Would you be so kind as to prepare the bath for me, as well as my clothes for the day? I'll be taking my breakfast in the study since I'll be going through the items from Griphook." said Harry as he rolled his shoulder to work out the kinks in his muscles for sleeping too long.
"Bath is ready, Master Harry Potter sir. I'll prepare your clothes as you bathe and bring your food to you in the study." replied the elf as he pulled Harry off the bed and shooed him over to the adjoining bath much to Harry's amusement.
Harry luxuriated in the gigantic tub that served as the Master's Bath. He wasn't in a hurry and used the time to think of what he would be doing before his schooling at Hogwarts. He only had 8 months left of free time before having to go to Hogwarts so he needed to set a schedule on what he would be learning ahead of time.
He decided that his first order of business was to go through the papers Griphook packed for him regarding his account. Sure, he already knew his Family Vault inside and out; but judging from his other two inheritances, he needed a list of the items inside the Gryffindor and Ravenclaw vaults to see what he had at his disposal. He made a mental note to send Hedwig to Griphook later for the list of the two vaults, and if it isn't available, opt for a service to let the goblins sort them for him.
He shuddered at the prospect of spending another month or two inside a vault sorting it out.
His next order of business was to confront Albus Dumbledore regarding his placement with the Dursleys. He somewhat understood the Headmaster regarding his placement but he wanted to know if there were other reasons, especially why the Chief Warlock allowed his godfather to be incarcerated in Azkaban without a trial – well, he concluded that Sirius didn't get a trial since he was totally innocent. After all, the Wizengamot had a method in pulling out the truth so why didn't Sirius' innocence come to light?
Harry finally concluded that confronting Dumbledore now might not be to his benefit. He would have to wait to meet the Headmaster or until such a time that the Headmaster comes looking for him.
Next on the list is his study schedule. Harry did a mental list on his abilities and found out that he was already satisfactory in a majority of the core subjects offered at Hogwarts with the exception of Potions, Herbology, and History. He was well-versed in theories of both potions and magical plants. History was another matter. He might need to read through the boring history texts if he wanted to increase his free time for self-study when he gets to Hogwarts.
Harry also thought of learning to fly on the broom but decided against it for now since he was currently unsupervised and any accidents that might occur could be his undoing. Harry also made a mental note to ask Philip to give him a tour of the grounds. If his hunch was correct, there should be a greenhouse somewhere or even a place where magical animals are found.
Since Potter Manor was now his home, it's only natural to get to know his neighbors.
Harry sighed at having a busy 8 months ahead of him but the idea of learning new things and cementing his control over his life made him giddy.
Harry sighed in contentment as he finished a delicious brunch courtesy of Flippy. The elf was really an amazing cook and spoiled him rotten when it came to feeding him. Deciding to try something, he sent out a telepathic pulse calling for Philip and Flippy to meet him in the study. His experiment worked since the two elves suddenly appeared looking at him in bewilderment.
"Thanks for coming guys." Harry greeted the duo with a smile.
"How did you do it young master? I didn't hear your voice but I could feel you calling for us." asked an awed Philip.
Harry grinned.
"Both of you know that I'm a sorcerer, right?" both elves gave a nod. "One of my abilities includes Telepathy. I can use my mind to communicate over distance to anyone I want. What I did was to send out a telepathic pulse specifically targeting you two since I know both of your signatures. The pulse carried my thoughts so you were able to hear it when the pulse reached you." explained the Potter Lord with a smug grin, mentally patting himself on the back for a job well done.
The elves nodded at the explanation. Their master was powerful so who were they to question him. If he calls, they come. Simple as that.
Flippy saw Harry's empty food tray and immediately banished it to the kitchen. Harry saw this and smiled at his personal elf. Always the attentive one.
"Okay guys. I think we need to go over some things that need to be done." Harry looked at Philip. "Can you show me the Ward Room so I can recharge the wards? And can you call the elves afterwards so I can bond with them…wait…how many did you get anyway?"
"We got around 50 elves, master Harry Potter sir, under recommendation of Philip." Flippy informed him.
Harry was surprised at the number of elves the Potter elf recommended. One elf was a powerhouse unto itself but having 50 more? It was overkill. But the little guy might have a point in getting so many considering the size of the Manor and the surrounding grounds.
"Can you explain the need for so many elves Philip?" asked Harry. He didn't begrudge the old elf company and it would be satisfying to have the Potter Manor have living beings inside it aside from him and Hedwig but he needed to know their jobs in order to manage them properly and not to sound aloof. He is the Lord Potter after all.
"Yes, young master. In the past, there were always 50 house elves here in Potter Manor. Ten of the elves will be in charge of the upkeep of the Manor, five will be for the owlery since there are plenty of mess there since the number of owl grew over the years. Another ten will be for the grounds to tend to the garden and some of the creatures that lived within the wards. Another ten of the elves will take care of the greenhouse you have. Since there are two, then twenty elves will be taking care of them. The last five will be on kitchen duties to prepare meals for you and the rest of the elves since Flippy told me that young master wanted us well fed before working." explained Philip with a smile.
Harry was shocked at the revelation that it took a lot of elves to take care of Potter Manor which is a testament to its size.
"Amazing. You mentioned I have a greenhouse?" asked a curious Potter Lord.
"Yes young master. Your greenhouses are huge since one of your ancestors had a hobby in Herbology. You have all the known plants in the magical world and require expert tending to make sure that they grow healthy and harvested for potion ingredients before they become useless." explained the Potter Head Elf.
"How about the animals on the grounds?" asked Harry. "Are they all magical?"
Philip nodded enthusiastically.
"The power of the wards attracts all kinds of creatures, young master, though only Light creatures are allowed within the wards and Dark creatures are restricted access. You have a pack of hippogryff nesting in the forest behind the grounds. There be some merfolks on the lake since the previous Lord Potter gave them a home when theirs was invaded by muggles."
"I have merfolks? I have a lake?" asked Harry in disbelief.
Philip nodded.
"Yes, young master. There be a big lake east of the Manor. According to the merfolk, there is a cave system underneath that leads to the sea and uses them sometimes to bring in food so they don't need feeding."
"Uhhhh sure. Continue please." said Harry in a daze. He knew that Potter Manor was big. He just didn't realize that it was THAT big.
"Ummm you have also have unicorns, some dragons that drop by from time to time during their nesting season, a few griffins, a nest of fire salamanders living under rocks behind the big hill, abraxans come down and graze from time to time though they never stay long enough to live here…and…ummmm a particularly nasty runespoor." Philip finished the list of creatures though he did shudder a bit when he mentioned the snake.
"What's wrong with the runespoor?" asked Harry curiously. Ever since he discovered that he was a parselmouth, he wanted to meet a magical snake to talk to or possibly befriend.
"Well, runespoor being very big, bigger than normal snake. She sometimes come out of forest and sleeps in greenhouses when it gets too cold outside which make it hard for Philip to go in and tend to the plants." Philip said dejectedly.
"Oh. Well, that's not a problem then. If she comes back and threatens the elves then make sure that you bring it to my attention. I'll take care of it." suggested Harry, giddy at the prospect of meeting a magical snake one as rare as a runespoor according to the Care of Magical Creature books he read.
"Young master, if Philip be making a suggestion?" Philip asked hesitantly.
"Sure Philip. Don't be afraid to suggest things I might need. I know that you'll only tell me what to do if it is really important." said Harry with a smile which the old elf returned.
"Philip suggests that you bond with the elves first before going to the Ward Room. It is possible that you will be too tired later to do so." the old elf suggested in confidence.
Harry nodded, finding the elf's words a good idea.
"It is a very good idea Philip. Why don't you call them in by groups, starting with the kitchen elves?" suggested Harry, preparing for the bonding ahead.
After an hour, Harry bonded with all 50 elves employed in Potter Manor. It didn't diminish his magical core but the stress of the bonds as they connected to his core made him a bit weak. Harry rested for an hour and a lot of food from a concerned Flippy to put him back into shape. When he felt that he was in top form, he called for Philip to lead him to the Ward Room.
The Ward Room was located under Potter Manor. The entrance was behind a portrait sporting a particularly grumpy griffin named Elder. To gain entrance, Harry was required to press the Potter Family Ring to Elder's head to open the hidden door to the catacombs which housed the stone that held and powered the wards.
Harry could help but feel awed when he took his first step into the Ward Room. The room was as big as his bedroom in the Master's Wing.
In the middle of the room was an obelisk made of white marble which Philip told him was the Ward Stone of Potter Manor. Runes and unknown glyphs decorated the walls, ceiling, and floor all interconnected to the runes surrounding the Potter Crest in the middle of the stone, which according to the elf, allowed the stone to interact with every mortar and stone of the Potter home. Instead of a barrier-like ward, the ones in Potter Manor were in every brick, rock, and soil inside and outside the home until the very boundary of the property.
"Finally, a Potter came to power the wards. Who be ye lad?" a voice addressed Harry. It was a voice that you were hard-pressed to ignore.
Harry looked around to trace its source until he looked beyond the Ward Stone to see a portrait hanging on the wall behind it.
"My name is Harry Potter, sir." Harry introduced himself to the man behind the frame.
The portrait released a disgruntled sigh and gave Harry a pointed look.
"State your full name lad. We Potters are proud of our lineage and we should never hide who we are…be it friend or foe. Now again I ask ye lad, who be ye?"
Harry drew himself up and released his hold over his magic, washing the room with a tidal wave of power.
"My name is Lord Harry James Potter, Lord of the Houses Potter, Gryffindor, and Ravenclaw. I command you to reveal your name to me." commanded Harry in a voice that brooked no nonsense. There was something that the portrait said that stung him. He was hiding his true identity and it was making his family weak. He needed to correct this and accept his heritage.
The portrait nodded and gave Harry a huge smile.
"My name is Godric Gryffindor, lad, the patriarch of the entire Potter line originally of Gryffindor. It would be safe to say that you're the only one left?"
Harry nodded.
"Yes grandfather." Harry decided to consider Godric as his grandfather since he technically was with a lot of greats added to it.
The portrait chuckled and gave Harry a happy grin.
"My great grandson." said Godric with an odd lilt to his tone. "Anyway my child, I think a little bit of history is in order to understand the nature of the wards I created. You will pass this knowledge over to the next Lord Potter to make sure that the chain will never be broken. As our creed, to life and beyond."
Harry nodded, conjured himself a seat before settling down.
"I think you're already aware that I'm one of the Founders of Hogwarts, correct?" Harry nodded. "What the history books didn't say was that the wards of Hogwarts required me and Ravenclaw to create them. Unlike Hogwarts, however, the Potter Manor hosts a sentient ward scheme maintained by the collective thoughts and experience of those who powered them. This means lad that the Potter Manor itself is alive, more alive than that of Hogwarts. The previous Potters add their own essence into the ward, thus increasing its power and capability. It will use the knowledge to protect those within it, which was one of the reasons why it automatically went into lockdown when the Dark Lord attacked your grandparents."
"Despite its sentience, however, the wards cannot manipulate anything outside its boundaries. This is the reason why your father didn't find out about Potter Manor. If it was up to the wards, it would have used its energies to try to bring your father within its confines to power it and protect the family. However, this is not possible."
"You mean to tell me that Potter Manor is...alive?" asked Harry in awe.
"No, lad, though would be a whole lot better if it was but magic has its limitation. No spell or rituals could ever create life, sentience yes, life no. Potter Manor is not alive per se. I prefer to use the term 'aware'. It is similar to your staff, which is quite powerful considering I could feel your power emanating from it." explained Godric as he eyed the staff.
"Wait…what? You can sense magic even if you're a portrait?" said Harry while giving Godric an incredulous look.
"Yes I can sense the magic but I can only do so since I am connected to the Ward Stone. If you look behind the stone, you will see a golden line of runes connecting me to it. Thanks to this connection, my essence in the portrait can tap into the Ward Stone and its collective experience. This means that I know EVERYTHING in Potter Manor and control all the Wards within it. To put it simply, lad, the Ward Stone is the heart, Potter Manor is the body, and I - the essence behind the portrait - is the head. You, and the other Potter Lords, served as its magical core. Together, the Potter Manor is sentient. Aware of those within its confines and act accordingly if needed. "
"Wow." said an excited Lord Potter. His books on Wards never talked about this. If the rest of the Wizarding World discover the truth about the Potter Manor wards then they will be clamoring around to find out how to replicate the feat, which Harry decided to be a secret and never to be revealed to anyone outside the family. "How to do I power the Ward Stone, grandfather?"
"Usually, the only thing required is for a Lord Potter to draw blood on his palm and have it touch the Ward Stone via the Potter Crest on its face. The stone will pull out the necessary power it needed to sustain itself and its form of sentience. However, in your case, it will be a little different."
"I was the last one to power the wards with more than your level of power and you dwarf the other Lord Potters in comparison. You are the first ever sorcerer to grace these halls and it will require a different touch considering your unique abilities. Come I will guide you."
Harry stood up from his couch and banished it with a thought. He walked over to the face of the Ward Stone facing the Potter Crest.
"You'll see that the Potter Crest is surrounded by 13 runes with the first rune being the largest. I want you to make a cut on your finger to draw blood and trace the runes starting from the top clockwise until all the runes are covered in blood. Make sure that you channel your magic to your fingers to help activate the runes."
Harry did as instructed and used a small cutting hex on his finger to form a deep enough wound. He ignored the pain and began to trace the runes starting from the top. The runes glowed as Harry traced them with his blood and magic. After he was done, Godric spoke again.
"Perfect! I never felt so much power in one so young. You make the Potter and Gryffindor line proud." stated Godric with pride in his voice that lifted Harry's spirit. "Now, I want you to cover the Potter Crest with your blood. Make sure that no blood leaves the circle that covers the crests. Do it now lad."
Harry decided a bigger cut was necessary. Since he needed to be careful, he conjured a bowl and let it float in front of him. He cut his palm and let his blood flow into the bowl. He made sure that he had enough since the crest was quite large, about 2-feet in diameter. After healing the cut, he used his fingers to cover the Potter Crest with his blood, making sure that it doesn't leave the boundary. Harry banished the bowl and blood while waiting for the next set of instructions."
"Very precise. You will be great in the future lad." complimented Godric. "Now, all that's left is to connect your essence to the stone and power it. Now, I want you to take your time to think of what protection you need to add to the wards. Think of these protections and place the gem of your staff on the Potter Crest and channel as much power as you can. I will do the rest."
Since he wasn't in a time limit, Harry decided to go into his mindscape and think thoroughly what protection he needed to add to the manor. It didn't take long for him to appear inside his mind-library and sat down on a couch.
In terms of protection, Harry learned from his brief stay in Potter Manor that the defenses held Anti-Apparation and Anti-Portkey wards. A Dark Creature ward was also present judging from what Philip told him earlier that day. A Blood Identification ward might also be present since he needed blood to deactivate the defenses to allow him entry.
It took five minutes for Harry to realize that his grandparents died because they didn't have any Intent-based ward active at that time. These types of wards were difficult to cast since it covered a wide variety of rune sets to determine the exact scope of the intent. Size was also a factor consider for such a ward which is why most who utilize this defense system simply install it on their homes, and not the entire grounds.
In most cases, these wards were created in simplicity – making sure that anyone with ill-intent towards the family, unable to cross and enter the property as long as it is within the boundary of the ward.
Harry also toyed with the idea of a Fidelius Charm but he didn't want to hide the entire manor to everyone since it would be cumbersome to keep telling people the secret over and over gain just to grant them entry. He needed a modified Fidelius that would only show the Manor to people who have no ill will towards the Potters.
He also toyed around the concept of an attack ward or coined as an offensive ward. He read from a book on wards that such a ward would require more power to create and keep active, especially if you keep them on 24/7 but it was a surefire way to make sure that intruders would think twice to enter the warded property again.
Grinning, Harry created a new book inside his mind-library that would hold the specification of the wards in his mind. He conjured a quill and an ink bottle before starting to write down the wards he needed to add to Potter Manor.
Intent-based Wards tied to a modified Fidelius;
Attack Wards targeting those who were thinking of attacking a Potter inside the wards or anyone under the protection of the home;
He also decided to include a Spirit Ward to protect the property from being invaded by poltergeists, wraiths, and ghosts…well except if they were Potter Ghosts anyway;
An Elf Ward so no elves could enter the property without his permission except for the 52 who are already bonded to him. Harry knew that the little blighters mode of transportation were unique in the Wizarding World, making it hard for them to ward against. Besides, if their master gives the right order, the elves could literally kidnap the entire Wizarding Population before they could even blink.
Harry tapped the feather of the quill to his chin and thought of more defenses to add to Potter Manor. He knew that Voldemort was still alive so it might be best to add a ward specifically keyed to him and his followers but he didn't know how to do that. However, since Godric told him to think of defenses without having to bother making them himself, he'll just add that in anyway. He wrote it down on the book and decided to be more creative.
Harry added a Mail Detection ward to make sure that no cursed mail enters the property. Owls were free to come and go as they please since they are usually free of ill-intent unless controlled, but the mails they bring were non-sentient so it might bypass the Intent Ward. He immediately added that in immediately. Harry shuddered at the thought of getting a deluge of letters when the Wizarding Britian or beyond discovered his entry into the world.
Deciding that he had enough wards listed down, Harry placed the book on the table and exited his mindscape. He opened his eyes and tightened his grip on his staff that was glowing as if excited to do what they were about to perform.
"I'm ready grandfather." Harry addressed Godric who was waiting for him.
"Good lad. Now, I want you to place the gem of your staff to the Potter Crest and channel as much power as you can into the stone. Make sure that you are thinking of the protections you want to add. The Ward Stone will break it down and incorporate it into its knowledge bank. I'll guide your power to make sure that it is equally distributed to everything within the boundary of the wards."
Harry nodded and took a deep breath. He released all of his power, carefully dropping the shield he came up with in the past year to make sure that his power doesn't overflow to those around him. He started to glow and a non-existent wind billowed around the room. He placed the emerald of his staff on the Potter Crest and channeled all of his magic into the staff and out into the stone.
There was a flash of blinding light before darkness claimed him.
Harry Potter woke up with a groan.
The first thing he realized was the monstrous headache he was sporting.
The second thing he realized was his weakened body, feeling as if all his energy was sucked out of him.
Third, his mental shields were down which was the reason why he was suffering a headache to begin with.
He didn't know what happened why his Occlumency shields disintegrated; he wanted to dive into his mindscape to find out what happened but his headache was stopping the action from being realized. Occlumencers NEVER suffer from headache but if the amount of pounding in his head was anything to go by then he might need to start his defenses from scratch...and soon.
"Uggghhh…." He groaned as he tried to open his eyes but cannot due to the weakened state of his body. "Where am I? What happened?"
"Master! You're awake! I was so worried." came the frantic voice of Hedwig. The volume of Hedwig's mental voice pounded on his already aching head.
Harry winced.
"Keep it down Hed. My head is acting as if it wants to blow up or something." whispered Harry followed by another groan when a sharp pain lanced through his head.
He felt someone, or something, lift his head and opened his mouth, poured something that tasted like used moldy socks down his throat. He choked but was forced to swallow when a hand rubbed his throat, relaxing the muscles. He was coughing when he felt the headache disappear. He groaned again but opened his eyes, seeing everything blurry. Harry felt his glasses slide into place, forcing the images to become crystal clear. He saw Flippy looking down at him with a worried look on his face.
"Master Harry Potter sir, are you alright?" asked Flippy, ears drooping in worry.
"Yeah, I'm alright though I feel as if I was run over by a bus…multiple times then by a bulldozer whichever comes first." whispered Harry. "What did you make me drink that caused the headache to disappear?"
"A Headache Relief Potion, sir. I bought in Diagon Alley when you passed out. Master Godric told me to." explained the elf.
"Master Godric?" Harry asked the elf who was about to answer when a voice echoed around him.
"Greetings, grandson. I see that you're awake. I hope the potion got rid of the headache." Godrics voice boomed around him. Harry was thankful that the potion did its job or Godric's voice would have finished him.
Harry looked around and saw that he was still in the Ward Room but there was a slight change from the first time he entered the place. For starters, the Ward Stone was glowing pure white and the runes and glyphs on the walls were glittering as if they were showered in pixie dusts.
"What happened?"
"Nothing much." came Godric's amused voice. "You just overcharged the Ward Stone and accidentally branded your unique magic into its matrix making it a part of you."
"Oh…is that all?….wait what?" Harry half-shouted half-asked. He would have jumped up but his weakened body prevented him from doing so.
"Are you up for an explanation or maybe we can postpone that later?" Godric asked in a worried voice.
"Nah I'm good. Though I would love to sit on something other than the floor." As the words left his mouth, Harry found himself lying down comfortably in a very soft couch. "That was different. I didn't know you could do magic being a portrait and all."
"It is, isn't it?" said an amused Godric with a hint of pride in his voice. "What you did practically changed the entire scheme of the wards, my boy, changes that should have been possible to do, changes that gave me physical control over everything in it. To put it simply, my beloved grandson, your powers practically turned ME into Potter Manor itself with the added exception of utilizing magic using the Ward Stone as a focus."
"Can you run that past me again, granddad?" said Harry in a daze, unable to believe what happened. Well, he believed it since the proof was there in front, or under him to be precise but he didn't know how it happened.
"Let me put it this way. You poured almost your entire magical core into the Ward Stone. The accident came in the form of a fusion. You fused my essence in the portrait, the Ward Stone, the Runes, as well as its conduit to the manor. Suffice to say, my child, you practically used my explanation earlier when I explained the Ward Stone to you and made it into a reality."
"I think I understand what happened. Let me get this straight…" Godric was silent, waiting for the coming monologue. "…I overcharged the Ward Stone matrix causing an accident that fused all the pieces together making sure that you became Potter Manor? Is that it?"
"Simply put, yes. Thanks to you, I can now control Potter Manor down to the last brick. The Wards are under my domain, I can talk to anyone inside without restriction or jumping from one portrait to another; I can utilize the magic in the Ward Stone to affect reality inside the manor, or in this case, I can use the magic as if it was my own without the need to use a wand or being alive for that matter."
"But, if I understand the nature of wards, doing so will take too much energy. I would need to recharge you every few months if that was the case." Harry almost screamed at the voice of his grandfather.
An amused chuckled echoed throughout the room.
"No lad. Potter Manor will no longer need 'recharging' as you put it. Another thing you did was to fuse the Ward Stone with a Magical Ley Line right beneath the manor. Simply speaking, you just gave me an unlimited supply of power for me to tap into." explained Godric with a slight giddiness to his voice. It was like a child given chocolate for the first time. Lots and lots of chocolate.
"So it's a good thing right?" asked Harry, relaxing on the sofa since it was too comfortable to do anything else.
"Well, what you did to me was a good thing but what it resulted in you wasn't. You almost KILLED yourself by pouring ALL your magic into the Ward Stone. I just asked you to CHANNEL the magic into the stone not push it in. I was supposed to grasp the magic and distribute it but what you did was like releasing a deluge on a half-empty dam instead of letting it run through pipe. We were lucky you didn't cause the manor to explode from the amount of magic you were pouring into the stone." Godric's screamed in agitation. "Potters were known to be foolhardy but I wasn't that of a FOOL when I was your age, lad."
"So what happened to me and where's my staff?" Harry asked his grandfather, ignoring the rebuke though he did feel bad in almost destroying his family home. Why couldn't he just follow instructions like a good boy. No! He had to follow his gut instinct. Well, it didn't do anything bad but the result was somewhat shocking.
"I'm here Harry." A feminine voice drifted over his mind. This shocked Harry since the essence of the voice was similar to that of his beloved staff.
"WHAT THE BLOODY HELL WAS THAT?" Harry shouted.
"LANGUAGE LAD!" Godric shouted back. "You used too much power through your staff that you practically made her sentient just like the manor. She's been talking to me for an hour now since you were knocked out. Your magical energy is too low as it is and you need a week to recover it fully."
The shock of the day coupled by his exhaustion caused Harry to faint but not before hearing three voices yelling for him in the background.
Harry woke up the next day literally strapped on the bed thanks to the efforts of Flippy, Hedwig, and his beloved staff. Since they didn't have any healer in Potter Manor, Godric informed Harry that he would have to heal the old-fashioned way – eat a lot of food, drink foul-smelling vomit-inducing potions, and lots of bed rest. He tried to resist but with Hedwig and Godric watching him, he didn't have a successful way out.
Even his staff was in on the whole thing, warning them that he was up to no good by flaring up like a bloody siren with her voice screaming bloody murder throughout Potter Manor that Harry was out of bed. That was the exact moment Harry thought if it was a good idea to give his staff its own vocal chords though he didn't expect that to happen before the ward stone accident.
With much grumbling, Harry decided to just to follow their 'treatment' program but he did wrangle one condition while he was metaphorically chained on the bed – he was to be given free access to read ANY books he liked.
In the end, everyone was marginally happy with the arrangement.
During his treatment, Harry found out that his mindscape was a mess. His memories were scattered all his mind library as if a tornado appeared in the place and happily wreaked havoc. He also discovered that his defensive and offensive measures were non-existent. Thankfully, the vault was untouched thanks to the reinforcements he laid on the thing to keep the Soul Fragment out of his conscious mind and magical core.
Resigning to the long work ahead of him, Harry started sorting his memories before repairing the damages on his walls.
It took a week and a half for Harry to finish repairing his Occlumency shields, as well as making sure that his offensive measures were up and running. During his confinement, Harry had an in-depth discussion with Godric regarding the wards.
Godric informed him that aside from his control of the Wards, Harry can override anything since it was literally his magic running the place though it did renew itself through the Magical Ley Line.
The essence of Potter Manor also told him that the protections were boosted with what he was thinking when he literally bonded with the Ward Stone.
For starters, Potter Manor now had a sophisticated Intent-Based Ward tied to a Modified Fidelius. Only those without ill-intent can find and see the manor. Other than that, all they could see was the forest that Harry first saw before he deactivated the defenses.
Also, the Offensive Wards were up and running. If anyone was able to circumvent the Modified Fidelius - which was an impossibility in itself - then they would have to face a very irate Offensive Ward controlled by a very sadistic Godric Gryffindor.
Voldemort would get a wake-up call if he ever planned to storm Potter Manor with his crew of misfits.
It was also during his bed rest that Harry bonded with Aria, his newly-named staff.
Aria explained to him that the deluge of magic that Harry channeled towards the Ward Stone caused an echo to feed back into her, allowing Aria to have a 'voice' similar to that of a magical portrait though it requires a direct link to Harry's magical core to use which was inconsequential since the link has always been active between them.
Speaking of Magical Core, Harry's own grew after the debacle with the wards. Godric theorized that Harry's somewhat 'aware' magic decided that Harry needed a boost that caused it to grow in size to compensate for the lack of magic to sustain his life. It literally saved Harry's life, as well as giving him a permanent power boost outside Magical Maturity which was another set of growing up for his core.
Harry shuddered at the thought of all that power inside him but the thought also made him giddy.
Aside from reading books, resting, and fixing his mindscape, Harry also used the time to go through the documents Griphook sent him. He found out that he had partial ownership with a majority of the businesses in Diagon Alley. It seems that the Potters loved to dabble in economy so they invested in shops that they found interesting; which means that he was earning money without doing anything, let the business do all the work and Harry just needs to relax and enjoy the income being generated by the businesses he co-owned.
Harry wisely let Griphook deal with the money matters though Harry did tell the goblin via letter to consult or inform him of any major decisions regarding the money.
Harry got a simple reply from the goblin, a large 'obviously' written in the middle of the parchment.
All-in-all, it took Harry two weeks to heal completely and he practically ran away from the bed vowing that he will never be stupid enough to do that ever again much to the amusement of everyone who heard him.
Harry's remaining months before Hogwarts was spent in three parts: exploring, exercising his body and magic, and reading.
For starters, he didn't bother much with learning new spells since he could do that at Hogwarts. He focused more on his current abilities, honing them to the point that he could bring out each spell in a moment's notice.
Godric provided Harry with a schedule to follow considering he was experienced in the field of magical and physical training back when he was alive. His schedule includes:
5:00AM – 6:00AM: running laps around Potter Manor
6:00AM – 7:00AM: Freshen up/Breakfast
7:00AM – 9:00AM: Spell Practice (Location: Training Room)
9:00AM – 12:00AM: Mental Exercise (Telekinesis and Telepathy)
12:00NN – 1:00PM: Lunch
1:00PM – 5:00PM: Free time
5:00PM – 6:00PM: Dinner
6:00PM – 9:00PM: Library Time (self-study/projects)
9:00PM: Sleep
When Harry saw the schedule, he leveled Godric's portrait a look that spoke volumes. However, he was forced to follow it when Godric threatened to put the library into lockdown for the duration of his stay in Potter Manor before entering Hogwarts. This shut Harry up and endured.
Godric didn't tell Harry that the boy could easily override the wards since he was the current Lord Potter. Harry was also obliviously to the whole thing though Godric was confident that the boy would realize it sooner or later.
Harry was used to waking up early due to his stint at Privet Drive. He would have loved to sleep in but the idea of enjoying the cool morning air pushed him to follow his physical routine with gusto.
Harry found out that running laps around the Manor gave him the chance to observe many of the magical animals living on the grounds – like a stray unicorn observing him from the shadow of the forest, hippogryffs teaching their young, sightings of dragons or fire salamanders enjoying the cool morning air when he gets too close to the hill where they usually hang out.
Breakfast was prepared by Flippy so Harry enjoyed the healthy meals that his personal elf cooked for him.
Spell Practice was held in the heavily-warded training room of Potter Manor. He was confused at first why he needed to practice since he was in perfect control until Godric explained to him that he needed to train so he could easily control his power output with and without the staff. To prove his point, he asked Harry to cast a simple levitation spell on a training dummy which ended up getting smashed on the ceiling when it flew up like a rocket.
Harry dove into the exercise after that without any questions.
The Mental Exercise was a fun time for Harry. The 3-hour session was divided into two:
First session was for fine-tuning his Telekinetic abilities, floating multiple objects or in different weights. Harry noticed that the heavier the object, the more power and concentration is needed. Harry also noticed that guiding the movement with his hands took less concentration since he had a visible reference in guiding the object with his mind providing the power and direction with his hands.
The second session was the improvement of his Telepathy. This practice involved increasing the range of his magical scan. The goal was to be able to let his scan encompass the entire castle, not counting the entire grounds since it would be too much of a strain on Harry's magical core no matter how large it was.
This session also involved practicing mental speech, finding the signatures of your targets, and most importantly, improving his Telepathic Suggestion. House-elves were used as test subjects due to the lack of witches and wizards in the area though Godric informed him that there would only be a slight difference, more in the patterns of their mental signature than thought patterns.
Harry noticed that he needed to fight with his target's magic before he could implant suggestions compared to muggles. The young Potter Lord theorized that it might be due to the person's magic fighting against the intrusion. The same also applies to translocation - the ability to magically transport any object from one place to another in an instant. He tried this out with Flippy with the instruction of resisting it with everything the elf got at his disposal.
It was like a mental and magical tug of war with only Harry winning by a small margin. If Harry could barely translocate an elf, what more if it was a witch or a wizard with more magical powers in their bodies.
Harry's free time was spent in a variety of subjects, starting with his education of his Shadow Abilities.
According to the books he bought from Borgin, Shadow Mages could manipulate shadows at will. In other words, the mage was required to push his magic into the shadow and command them to do what he wanted. This was the basis of Shadow Walking - the mage needed to push his magic into a patch of shadow opening a wormhole from point A to point B. The book states that the distance between A and B is non-existent since the 'Land of Shadows' are known to be everywhere and anywhere at the same time. Well, as long as there's shadow of course.
Practice was also spent utilizing his shadows to act as extra limbs. It was like Telekinesis but he used shadows instead of his mind. He was a bit clumsy and slow at first but the speed of his shadow manipulation improved as he practiced.
Another ability of a Shadow Mage that Harry found interesting was the ability to control Shadow Creatures, namely Dementors and Lentifolds. Since these creatures were made from shadows, Harry could easily control them if he was strong enough to do so. In most cases, it would end up as a battle of wills.
Aside from learning about being a Shadow Mage, Harry also took the time to divide this period to pursue other subjects, like a trip to the Potions Room learning about the ingredients and trying his hand at the various techniques involved in brewing. He didn't attempt any potions without supervision but nothing was stopping him from learning how to dice, cut, mash, or gut a toad to get to their liver. Harry hated the latter or anything similar he needed to endure if he wanted to be the best in the subject. Maybe not to a level of being a Potions Master but enough that he could brew any potion without blowing himself up in the process.
Also, Harry used his free time to check out the two greenhouses around Potter Manor. The greenhouses were huge, practically half the size of the manor itself. All manner of plants were there, from magical to mundane. He did, however, to stay away from plants that attacks, like the Venomous Tentacular and Devil Snare.
Much to Harry's dismay, the runespoor hadn't show up while he was around though the elf who took care of the plants that the snake was somewhere in the grounds, possibly hiding.
Harry's favorite time, however, was his daily trip to the library before going to bed. Unlike what most of the occupants of Potter Manor thought, Harry spent most of his time in the library reading the journals of his ancestors. Learning about history through the eyes of his ancestors was better compared to the garbage taught in Hogwarts which mainly focused on the biased views of witches and wizards on goblins. Harry's short stint with the creatures was a novelty and Harry really liked them despite their gruff exterior towards witches and wizards.
Harry assumed that it was a defense mechanism than a custom among the goblins.
It was during his 4th month into training that he received a letter from Griphook concerning the ritual to exorcise Voldemort out of his mind. Due to the nature of the ritual, it was decided that Harry needed to be at least 13 years old before attempting the ceremony or risk damaging his magical core which was the source of his powers. Harry was saddened at this but he had all the time in the world considering the Soul Fragment was no longer eating at his magic.
Harry was satisfied that he would be finally free from Voldemort's influence before his third year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
Albus Dumbledore was worried.
When he discovered the broken clock that monitored the wards at Privet Drive, he immediately portkeyed out of his office to visit Petunia and her family. When he got there, the Dursleys were preparing to move to another home much to his consternation.
Of course, he confronted Petunia to get the whole truth out of her and why Harry was no longer in the house.
He cringed at the volume of Petunia's monologue telling him that the 'freak' was no longer her problem and cut ties with him. A brief legilimency probe confirmed his fear.
The wards were down thanks to the mutual consent of Petunia and Harry, and there was nothing he could do to reactivate it. The wards were down for good.
Dumbledore also noted that the treatment of the Dursleys, especially Petunia, towards Harry ensured that the wards were at its lowest power. Not getting enough affection for Harry to feel loved would not provide enough to power the protection his mother gave him.
Heck, Albus thought that a low-level flunky of a Death Eater could easily breach Harry's 'powerful' defenses with ease.
He also noticed the power Harry Potter exuded during the boy's confrontation with his so-called relatives. He couldn't believe that Harry knew about magic despite how he tried to shield the boy from it before coming to Hogwarts. Not only does Harry know about magic, it seems that he had perfect control over it. He also noticed the staff he was holding, as well as the rare white phoenix perched on his shoulder.
He sighed in defeat and returned to Hogwarts to make some sense out of the whole thing. To put it simply:
Harry knows about magic.
Harry can do magic.
Harry has a staff so it means that he visited Diagon Alley and Ollivander helped him create one, and shopped around considering the clothes he was wearing during the confrontation. So that means money and that pointed to Harry having access to his inheritance at Gringotts. Too bad he wasn't able to determine if Harry was wearing his Lordship rings since he was basing everything according to Petunia's memory of the event.
Harry has a phoenix as a familiar which made Dumbledore happy since Harry was a Light Wizard.
Albus was worried, however, when he saw the anger Harry exuded when he read his letter to Petunia. He gulped at the possibility of angering a very powerful lad, not to mention the Phoenix and the staff. He might a very powerful wizard but an emotionally-powered magical boy was not something to scoff at.
The only problem right now was where in the world was Harry Potter?
Edited by Corruptmonk
May 25, 2012