My first day at Hogwarts was uneventful so far. For me at least. People were talking about how Malfoy was turned into a ferret by our new Defense teacher this morning after breakfast. It seemed like a peculiar punishment, but as I passed by Malfoy and his two followers in the hall there seemed to be no permanent damage. I spoke with my Head of House this morning. We talked about electives, and I told him I was interested in Ancient Runes and Care of Magical creatures. He said I would be enrolled in both, but as they were electives, I would be in the classes for third year students. That didn't matter to me. He handed me my schedule and sent me off.
My first class was Care of Magical creatures in half an hour. I had no idea where the class would be, but I knew it would be outside. As I walked outside, I enhanced my hearing with touki. The nearby forest was a cacophony of noise. I could hear horses inside the forest and the chatter of gathered kids nearby. I walked over to them and noticed both Ginny and Luna in the gathered throng. Ginny waved me over once she noticed me.
"What are you doing here," she said. "This is the third years class."
"Both of my electives are with the third years," I replied. "Electives weren't something I was tested on. The professors must have figured it would be easier for everyone to stick me in the beginner's class. I'm glad to see the two of you though, I was worried I wouldn't know anyone."
"Aww. I think that's the sweetest thing I've ever heard a slimy Slytherin say. What about you Luna?"
"Liam is a nice boy. I think that's why the wrackspurts like him so much?"
"A wrack-what?"
"Wrackspurts," she explained, "are tiny invisible creatures that float through your brain and make your brain go fuzzy. I can feel them every time you're around, you're practically infested with them."
"Uh-huh," I replied. I could see Ginny smirking behind her hand and wondered if the two of them were playing a joke at my expense. "And if they're invisible, how can you see them?"
"Oh no, I can't see them, I can sense them. You need a pair of Spectrespecs to see them. Daddy said he was sending me a pair this year."
Any reply I had was cut short by the appearance of our teacher. Professor Hagrid looked even larger in the daylight. His face was barely visible behind a mane of hair, and his accent made him hard to understand. Thankfully Luna was more than happy to translate. Today we would be taking care of Flobberworms. He explained that later in the month we would start taking care of a more interesting creature, and these would be what we fed them. The class went by slowly and no one seemed enthusiastic, but I had hope for the future. The curriculum mentioned all sorts of fantastic creatures we would learn about, and since some of them were carnivores it made sense that we would raise their food.
As the class progressed I spoke more with the two girls. Luna told me about her father's magazine, The Quibbler, and how it spoke the truth about society. I was sure she had no bias at all. I told her I would subscribe though, it cost next to nothing and made my new friend happy. Plus, it reminded me to order the local newspaper here. It was always important to keep up to date on current events. I found out that Luna also had Ancient Runes, while Ginny had Arithmancy.
After class ended I asked the girls for directions to Transfiguration, and they walked me there. We had a little over an hour of free time so the girls decided to give me a small tour of the castle. They showed me where the main classes would be along with the library. I thanked my lucky stars that I could remember things so easily; this castle was massive and seemed to shift around. The girls assured me it wasn't random; rather there was a pattern I would learn with time. As my free time neared its end I thanked them for their help and headed to my next class.
It seemed my first day at Hogwarts was doomed to be mundane. Our first Transfiguration class was a recap; we practiced the spells from the previous three years to ensure we still knew them. It was simple, and as the class ended we received our first assignment; an essay on what we knew of Vanishing spells. There were a few groans as the class emptied and we headed to lunch.
The rest of the day was similarly uneventful. Herbology was another recap, I headed to the Library to get a head start on the Transfiguration assignment, we had dinner, then Astronomy which was, yet again, a recap.
I went to bed early; tomorrow I will start my morning workouts again.
Our first defense class turned out to be highly interesting. Instead of this being a recap like every other class had been, I assumed this was due to Defense never having a consistent teacher, our first class started off as a practical lesson. Professor Moody instructed us to put our books away as he stumped over to his desk.
"So," he said, "straight into it. Curses. They come in many strengths and forms. According to the Ministry of Magic, you all aren't supposed to be taught what illegal curses look like until sixth year, when you're supposed to be old and mature enough to handle them. However, the Headmaster and I have a higher opinion of your nerves and believe that you can cope. I say, the sooner you know what you're up against, the better."
The class was quiet for a few moments as they digested his words, and I was excited. Day one and we would be learning about combat.
"UNFORGIVABLES!" Bellowed professor moody to the Slytherin-Gryffindor class. In response, nearly the entire class jumped slightly, both in response to the subject matter and the force of Moody's exclamation.
"We call them that for a reason," he continued. "The three unforgivables are the only curses for which proven use is grounds for an automatic life sentence in Azkaban. The circumstances don't matter. This isn't just because they can be used to hurt or kill people; there are hundreds of spells that can do that if used creatively. Rather, it's because that's the only use for these curses. Worse, using them makes you want to use them more! Regular use of an unforgivable strips away the users morality and makes them more inclined to use the curse in the future. In a very real sense, they are addictive! So, with that in mind, see who's done the reading. Who can name one of the unforgivable?"
The class was silent for a moment before Malfoy spoke up.
"The imperius curse, sir."
"Yes," Moody drawled, "you would know all about that. I reckon he taught you everything he knew about the curse." Malfoys face soured at that, and I wondered what the history was there. It sounded like his father had experience with one of the Unforgivables, yet hadn't landed in Azkaban, whatever that was. "We'll get to the Imperious curse in a few weeks, after I get a special lesson set up. On to the next. Longbottom! What's another curse?"
Longbottom's face was pale, and he shook slightly as he answered; "The c-cruciatus curse, s-sir."
"Aye," Professor Moody said in a softer tone, "The cruciatus." He was quiet for a while, seeming to gather his thoughts.
"It hurts," Moody finally said. "It hurts so much that calling it pain is inadequate. It's like every nerve in your body flaring in pain at once. The cruciatus curse manifests as a barely visible red flash when cast by someone inexperienced. When cast by someone who knows what they're doing, it's barely visible. Very difficult to dodge. If hit by even a glancing blow the caster can maintain that pain indefinitely just by keeping their wand trained on you. Only the most powerful and experienced dark wizards can hold the curse longer than a few seconds, but an average of three to five seconds under the curse can cause lasting psychological damage, and long term exposure can…."
Professor Moody trailed off and I noticed he was looking at the Longbottom boy again. The boy's face was even paler than before, and he shook even harder. Either he must have suffered under the curse himself, or someone he knew was intimately familiar with it.
"The third unforgivable is the killing curse. While the killing curse is not particularly hard to cast, few people ever manage to properly cast it. The incantation is well known, often used as a synonym for the curse itself. Avada Kedavra, derived from Aramaic for 'I destroy as I speak.' When cast properly, the curse manifests as a coherent pulse of green light that travels in a straight line out of the wand towards the target. Upon contact the curse causes instant death, with only one recorded survivor in history." The class turned, in unison, to a dark-haired bespectacled Gryffindor boy who looked suddenly nervous at the attention. He must have been powerful to survive a deadly curse like that. I wondered if he would spar with me.
"What classifies this as the most lethal out of the three Unforgivables isn't its effect; no, what makes this curse deadly is the fact that no shield spell can block it. The curse passes through the strongest Protego spell as if they were paper, which means your greatest chance of surviving the curse is to dodge. If dodging is not a choice, place something between you and the curse. A chair will stop a particularly weak killing curse, but for a powerful caster it will require something substantially bigger. Most importantly, the object must be real. It can be transfigured, but not conjured. A killing curse will rip through a flock of birds conjured by Avis Oppugno as if they weren't even there, but if you transfigure something in your pockets, such as a quill into a table, it should stop the curse."
"Now, get up and stand in the back of the class. It's time for the practical portion of the lesson."
We all got up and moved back. I ended up standing near Daphne and Tracy, both of whom looked uneasy. In fact, the entire class looked uneasy, although I noticed there was a clear divide between Slytherin and Gryffindor. With a flourish of hid wand Professor Moody caused the desks to lift and fly over to the sides of the room where they stacked atop each other.
"Now, I wont be showing you the Unforgivable curses or their want movements," Professor Moody said. "I don't want anyone to get ideas. Instead we'll be practicing with a spell Aurors created to train; the paintball spell. The incantations are Viridis and Rubrum orbe. Can anyone guess what they do?"
A bushy haired brunette raised her hand. "Yes, miss Granger?"
"It creates a red and green orb?" she asked.
"Correct. The Auror corps created these spells to train their recruits to avoid the curses without actually casting them. Just like the Unforgivables, these spells are able to bypass shields. Can anyone guess why that is?"
I thought about what I knew about the Protego spell, as a shield it was one of the first spells I learned during independent study, and I raised my hand.
"Mr. Quarta?"
"The Protego spell translates to 'I protect,' and since these paint spells are harmless a shield spell doesn't recognize it as something to protect against?"
"Correct, ten points to Slytherin. A necessary flaw in the Protego series is the necessity for certain spells to pass through because they are inherently harmless. Now, divide yourself into groups of two and begin practicing. The first person will cast the spell, the other will dodge or block it. Once both spells have been cast, switch. Questions?"
When no one spoke up the professor barked at us to get to work, bringing back fond memories of Instructor Ian. The class burst into action, and I once again noticed the divide between Slytherin and Gryffindors. I noticed the black haired boy from earlier didn't have a partner yet, so I strode over to him.
"Hey," I said, 'want to be partners?"
He looked wary, probably about the rivalry between the two houses I constantly heard about, but didn't seem against it.
"Sure," he replied with a look at his house mates. "I'm Harry, Harry Potter."
We went ahead to practice the spells. Potter had good reflexes, able to dodge both spells with ease. I was able to do the same, and without either of us noticing it turned into a competition. We went from casting the spells one at a time to sending a barrage at each other. Not only did Potter have good reflexes, he also had decent reserves. We had sent dozens of spells at each other by this point and he didn't seem tired in the slightest. Without us noticing most of the class had begun to watch us.
"Want to take this up a notch," I asked him.
"Gladly. What do you have in mind?"
"We cast the spells non-stop. The first to get tagged loses."
"Bring it."
I grinned at the challenge; it was always good to have a rival.
My first week at Hogwarts had gone tremendously. While it had started off slow, it quickly picked up. The classwork was far from fun, and I still failed to understand the logic behind assigning scroll length since people with larger handwriting would fill the essays out quicker, the work itself wasn't particularly difficult. Now it was time for something I had been looking forward to all week; going back home.
Professor Snape approached me earlier in the week and gave me a Hogsmeade form. Hogsmeade was the local wizarding village that students could visit on certain weekends, and visitation required a signed permission form. Professor Snape suggested I send the form to my Guardian by owl, but I knew that wouldn't work, not that I would tell him that.
On Friday night I gathered some supplies after we all turned in for the day and prepared to teleport home. I closed my eyes and concentrated on the clearing that I would meet Gabriel in and gathered the familiar feeling. Yet as soon as it gathered the energy fizzled out. I repeated the attempt, concentrating on different areas only to get the same result. Confused, I continued to try, yet no matter what I did the result was the same; I couldn't teleport out of here. I turned in for the day, resolved to find out what the problem was tomorrow.
At the library I was having no luck. I had read through half a dozen books to find information on apparation, what they called teleporting here, yet I couldn't find a single one. I was starting to stress; Griselda would tan my hide if I failed to show up. Part of the reason I was allowed to come to Hogwarts was the stipulation that I would return every weekend.
"Excuse me," a voice said from behind me. "You seem stressed. Can't find something?"
I turned to see Hermione Granger staring at me.
"Yes," I replied. "I'm looking for information on apparition, yet I can't find a single book that mentions it."
"Books on that would be in the restricted section," she told me. "It's supposed to be very dangerous to practice unsupervised, so no one below sixth year is allowed to practice it. Why are you looking for information on apparation anyways? You cant apparate in or out of the castle. It says so in Hogwarts a history."
As Hermione continued to talk about what she read in Hogwarts a history, I began to brainstorm. That…was a problem. If I couldn't apparate within castle grounds I would have to leave it to get back home. My best bet would be going through the forest, which wasn't as bad as it sounded since I already planned on visiting it. I would be able to knock out two birds with one stone.
As Hermione continued to talk I considered her help; without her who knew how long it would have taken me to figure out my problem. I knew from the classes we shared that she's an intelligent girl, a veritable font of knowledge. She would be useful as a friend.
"Hey Hermione," I interrupted her tangent, "how would you like to go to Hogsmeade with me?"
Sneaking out of Hogwarts was surprisingly easy. There were no guards stationed at the castle, just teachers and Prefects who patrolled.
The Forbidden Forest was far less dangerous than the Professors made it sound. The Acromantulas were certainly dangerous, but they were still beasts. Individually they were easy to kill, and I had yet to find a group larger than two. It seemed they weren't social creatures. They were magic resistant, which I found out after a stupefy bounced off their carapace, but my maul would split them open without issue. Their webs were easy to avoid, few strands reached the forest floor, and I could outrun the spiders themselves. I would have to come back and harvest their venom at one point, but I was in a hurry now. There were supposed to be other more dangerous creatures in the forest, but it seemed they lie further in. For whatever reason, the Acromantulas populated the outer fringes of the forest, which would make them the creatures most encountered by people.
I wasn't sure how far the Hogwarts wards extended, but after about a half hour of walking I was finally able to apparate. After the quick, unpleasant sensation I found myself in the clearing I frequented with Lady Gabriel. I made my way over to the church, where I found Griselda and Xenovia training. After some greetings they asked about my week at Hogwarts. I told them everything that happened, and they seemed happy that I enjoyed my time there. Of course, all good times come to an end.
"I have a mission for you," Griselda told me. "We just received word of a deplorable experiment performed by an Archbishop, Valper Gallilei. We will be joined by the Sanguine Saints in this mission, and they will be claiming the Archbishop."
AN:
A short chapter again. I've been busy, and before I realized it had been a whole month since my last update.
The sanguine saints are my own creation. They were inspired by the band powerwolf, and groups like The legion of the dead from Dragon age.
To answer my one review form last chapter, I chose the HP world because it's an easy one. There are only a few powerful people there, none of which Liam should come into contact with. I only plan on taking the HP world until book five, perhaps six (although I doubt it). Its just a place for him to learn magic, but also learn how to be a teenager. He spent most of his childhood as a child soldier. As we saw from Irina and Xenovia, that childhood left them ill adjusted for the adult world. Here Liam will also learn how to interact with the people around him, which I think is important because he will be older than the main cast of DxD by the time that comes around.
I also know which worlds he will be going with next, but I am always open to suggestions if you all can make a convincing argument.
Next will be Overlord (the video game, not the light novel), and after that will be DxD focused. I'm not sure how far I will be taking DxD, but I'm thinking of starting it around the attack by Kokabiel. But I don't plan on spending too much time in any one dimension, instead Liam will be hopping around, learning and refining his skills.
I do want to go by A sword of ice and fire world at some point.
Ill try to write more often, I shouldn't be as busy the next few weeks. Please leave a review, see you next time.