Chapter One: Growing up Heir
Growing up with the Waynwoods was a great childhood for young Harry. He had a doting mother figure in his cousin Lady Anya Waynwood, a widow who lived for the betterment of her seven children and growing brood of grand children. He had three pseudo-older brothers in his first cousins Morton, Donnel, and Wallace, which he looked up to and constantly pestered for attention and training. He also had a gaggle of four semi-sisters: Alys, Margaret, Anna, and Beth, who alternated between loving companions that doted on him, and annoying girls that tried to drag him into they and their friends' silly games.
With a Frey aunt, her adolescent daughter Cynthea Frey, the various Waynwood men-at-arms, a Maester, a Septon and a few Septa, servants, and various factors he had a whole village looking out for him. Not just because he was a growing happy boy that was a quick study with a friendly disposition, but because he was House Arryn's heir. Harry was being groomed as such, so at four he started learning his letters in earnest, at six he began training in arms, as well as lessons on the faith of the Seven with the middle-aged balding Septon Horus. He also received instruction in history, business, and geography with the elderly Maester Olaff. At eight he also took on the responsibilities of a page for Lady Waynwood. He liked that position because it mostly consisted of running errands for her or providing small services to his foster brothers. It also let him meet all the people of Ironoaks while delivering messages and spending more time with the knights and sworn swords of House Waynwood.
But at eleven years old, in the year 292 AC (After Conquest) a great many things changed for young Harry Hardyng. The one that would have the most impact on his long term prospects but the least on his current situation was the birth of Robert 'Robyn' Arryn, supplanting him as heir. As an eleven year old mostly focused on daydreams of becoming a renowned knight like his deceased father or foster brothers he didn't care overmuch. So what if he was only the spare now, it didn't really change anything in his daily life.
His focus was more on two much more important developments. The first was becoming Ser Morton Waynwood's squire. His eldest foster brother was a large sturdy man six feet in height with the physique of a professional soldier accustomed to fighting on horseback with the weight of full plate armor. He had brown hair and eyes and a well groomed beard that was a slightly darker color than his hair. Morton had refined features, labeled a noble bearing which to Harry meant his face wasn't fat and it was mostly symmetrical. His look was purportedly gained from his father.
The second foster brother Donnel was clean shaven, and with his mother's pale green eyes though a mirror image to his brother's size. Wallace, the youngest at twenty and four years was the spitting image of Morton though a few inches taller and wider and a mustache in place of a beard. His many sisters were taller than average with dark hair of varying shades and all had willowy builds, supposedly like Lady Anya when she was a young maid.
Harry had hoped to squire for Donnel, who was a bit more fun even though he took more after his mother Lady Anya in the face, but that job had been taken the previous year by a weedy young Frey named Sandor. Donnel, as well as Wallace, rarely stayed in Ironoaks anymore as they sought their fortune abroad as any good second and third born sons should. Between tourneys, service to the Arryns, and overseeing the Waynwood's interests abroad they brought a good income back to the keep that sheltered their growing families. Being a squire ended young Harry's days of scampering around Waynwood keep and Ironoaks township as a page, as well as his lessons on the Faith of the Seven. Something he was secretly happy about because he found them awfully boring and a bit...unrealistic in their expectations.
Instead he spent a great deal of time now training in combat as well as an even greater amount of time humbling himself doing all of the tedious and dirty jobs Ser Morton required. He also was gifted with the responsibility of a very young roan mare pony he named Athenor after his favorite star in the falcon constellation. She was to be his to raise and learn horsemanship as they both grew. Even as the spare heir he still had to set aside time with the Maester and now Lady Anya for continued lessons on governance and history. While the memorization could be tedious, Harry had gotten so used to seeking acclaim from his foster mother and instructors that he craved their respect quite a bit. So he strove to be successful even if he wasn't that excited with the subjects they trained him in.
But even all of those developments paled in comparison to a secret discovery Harold made in his own room. He returned after dinner one evening after his eleventh nameday to find a large book, bound in a strange green-toned scaly leather with a brilliant clear crystal affixed to the entire length of the spine. It bore no title, and looked nothing like the few books and scrolls the Maester used in his lessons. But someone had left it here for him and with the irresistible curiosity of youth he opened the tome to the first page. 'Hello Harold Hardyng, look more closely below' it read in bold lettering in the common tongue.
Below this odd sentence was a strange pattern that swirled and fractured drawing the eye ever inward. Harry was mesmerized by it's intricacy and was swept up in it's flourishes and designs. So involved that he barely notice the room around him change into a different setting. Gone were his stone walls and rug covered wooden floors, replaced by a smooth and tightly fitted flagstone covered with a carpet bearing a sigil he had never seen before, with a snake, badger, eagle, and lion each in different colors on a white shield. It was the carpet's lush texture on his legs that first alerted him to his changed environment.
He wanted to drop the book but found it was no longer there. He frantically rose and looked about the room. At one side was a roaring fire in the biggest fireplace he had ever seen. Bright overhead lights illuminated the room's impressive couches and finely crafted tables and chairs. It looked like the finest, and largest, Maester's study imaginable. Just as he was about to call out for help a man entered a door which quickly disappeared after the man had crossed its threshold.
He knew he should be concerned about the stranger approaching but there was something familiar in his look. It then hit him, this was what he might look like when he was older. They had the same eyes and hair. The same slim but muscular build. He thought the older...person was a bit on the short side though. The stranger also had a pretty dramatic lightning bolt scar on his forehead. He started to open his mouth for a second time but the stranger beat him to it.
"Who am I? What's going on? Oh the humanity! Where are we?" the stranger smiled as it took most of the words right out of his mouth. Harry just shrugged and nodded. "Well, first things first. I'm the book you just found. I'm called a Grimoire if you want to be fancy about it, and I contain all your future lessons in learning how to use Magic. Now I know what you're going to say. Magic's not real, this is all a dream," it rattled off in a fakey dumbed down voice.
"Well the fact that you are here, in this nicely furnished study suggests otherwise now doesn't it. Also, when you ... wake up...or re-emerge from this interactive training room you're imagining, the Wizard's wand that you'll find should also be a clue that this is really happening. There's nothing like a solid shaft of holly wood firing off sparks as it bonds to you that shows you that Magic is real and you are a Wizard." the man said with a nod and a smile.
"How am I a wizard? For that matter what is a wizard? And while we're talking why do you look like an older version of me?" Harry questioned.
"Well wizards are born first off, meaning it's inherited. Your magic comes from within and grows as you do. You'll find that most of the other magic users in this world, Warlocks, Maegi, Priests, etc. draw their powers from outside themselves through the elements, pacts with gods, or natural magical forces. I suppose you could learn how to do all that stuff they do, but why bother. I could teach you things your own body can accomplish for the rest of your life, and you still won't have learned everything I contain. Why go begging for outside power when you can do more yourself without all the strings attached?" he questioned conspiratorially.
"As for why I look sort of like you. Well that's a bit of a long story. One that's certainly far fetched, and I'd like you to think about whether you really want to know the answer. The short version is that there exist other worlds, and in some of them there are other you's. One of those other Harry's made me, and when he was through with me, he sent me to you to help you learn magic. The rest you might not believe, and even if you did, it'll change how you feel about some pretty important things. So if you're happy as things are, I'd wait until I was a bit older and focus on the new and exiting world of magic I'm going to start teaching you. Huzzah!" It shouted with a mocking glee to help diffuse any tension over it's cryptic explanation.
And thus begun his secret tutelage in the wizarding arts. He did not receive the structured magical education that this other Harry had received, whom he and the book began to refer to as Archmage Potter or just Potter. Instead they operated within the confines of the practical. Harry was a busy squire and so he and the book initially worked on methods to free up his time for magical instruction, self-study, and practice. That began with what the book called household charms. Neither he or the book thought he should skimp out on his combat drills or sleep, but both agreed that his unsupervised time maintaining Ser Morton's gear, horses, and clothing was the perfect opportunity to use some practical magic that would allow him to work on other magical training down the line.
It was not an easy time for Harry. He was initially quite terrible at focusing the cleaning, animation, repairing, and mending charms. He also struggled with the strange words and wand movements necessary to cast the spells. Especially when the Grimoire made the mistake of telling him that eventually he would lose the need for both movements and incantations for many of these spells. This lead to much whining and procrastinating in the learning of said movements and spell words on Harold's part. That is until the book was able to give him enough magical theory to explain why he needed the wand movements to train the flow of magic through his body and into the focus and the words were there to aide training his brain to visualize each component or affect of the spell. The strange words then were a precise representation of the spell itself, and as such were chosen quite exactingly to facilitate the learning process. The Grimoire found ultimate success in convincing his recalcitrant student by couching the theoretical terms in context of what Harold was already doing with his martial training.
With Harold's growing frustration at his poor spellwork and Ser Morton's disappointed rebukes, punishments, and his own drive to succeed he eventually become adequate then adroit with these time saving spells. He only ever messed up badly once after gaining mastery of these charms when at twelve he ruined one of Ser Morton's plate greaves by over polishing it until it grew thin enough to crack. In his defense he was focusing on a new spell he was learning, and his animated polishing cloth soaked up some particularly exuberant magic he was leaking in his excitement and went into overdrive. A week of slaving at the forge to replace the armor, followed by grueling heavy combat drills taught him the importance of prioritizing his focus and attention.
Harry fell into a routine on most days. He would retire to his room immediately after dinner with the family in the Keep's great hall and enter into the Grimoire's interactive training illusion. There they discussed his progress and Harry would question the Grimoire about what he could learn next. The book never would tell him what he should be learning so he would come with requests for things to learn and the book would let him now if it was possible, if he was strong enough to cast a spell, if he had to learn something else first, or if it was advisable for him to learn at this juncture. Once they agreed on the next lesson the Grimoire would instruct him using the Socratic method to help spur young Harry's analytical thinking. Then upon exiting the imagined study, Harry would find the book full of reading materials on the spell or magical theory they agreed upon.
The style of teaching used by the book had the added benefit of enhancing his learning in other areas, as he was now full of questions rather than blindly accepting whatever he had been told. Since Harold's dreams still revolved around finding glory and fortune in battle like every other red-blooded Westerosi male he pestered the Grimoire incessantly about combat spells. As a wizard just starting out he was forced to recognize that much of the offensive repertoire of jinxes, hexes, curses, area effect charms, conjuring, or transfiguration combinations were beyond him. The book also stressed the need for silent or quiet casting to keep young Harry's magic hidden.
But he did learn some basic defensive charms, including a couple he figured out how to cast with training shield in hand. This led him to the realization that for him to be the true warrior wizard of his dreams, Harry would need to learn how to utilize both sword and wand simultaneously. Since he could hide his wand behind a shield and casting at this stage required his dominant hand, Harry would have to relearn to use weapons in his non-dominant hand. The next three years of his squire training were a painful challenge as he had to redo all of the muscle memory he'd already acquired as well as any new exercises, weapons, and maneuvers with his left hand.
He wasn't daunted though by the beatings he received from his fellow squires and training men-at-arms and banner men. Nor the jeers of his foster brothers, sisters, and extended household. Harry learned he could be damn stubborn when it was called for and persevered. He told the Waynwood knights and Master of Arms that he wanted to switch hands for the benefit of being a surprising lefty against unfamiliar opponents. While at the time it was the excuse he and the book had created it turned out to be quite true. Once he became comfortable with shield and wand in his right hand and sword or mace in his left, Harry became quite formidable.
In his sixteenth year he participated in a tourney in Runestone sponsored by House Royce with a promise from Ser Morton that if he did well he was to be knighted. Harry did better than well, winning the melee. He didn't even use much magic to win. Only a weak kinetic shield charm immediately beneath his shield to lessen the brunt of incoming attacks. Even though this minor tournament was sparsely attended and the more skilled knights only entered the joust, Harry was still greatly pleased with his win. His opponents were all older and at least heavier than him, the bulk of his opponents being other squires, hedge-knights, and local sworn swords rather than full fledged knights. Upon returning to Ironoaks with his eight hundred gold dragon purse he found presents from both the Waynwoods and Lord Jon Arryn waiting for him in response to his knighting.
The Waynwoods had chipped in for a yearling grey-dappled destrier stallion, already fifteen hands high, as well as a very useful chain mail tunic (Hauberk) with boiled leather pauldrons, greaves, vambraces, gloves, steel Barbute helm, and boots for everyday armor he could wear over or under his clothing. The Hand of the King, or more likely his steward Ser Nestor Royce, had sent a full set of unmarked heavy steel platemail with great helm, and a set of padded armor he could use underneath either set. The Arryn's had also sent a painted shield with the red and white checkered Hardyng sigil in its upper left half, the Waynwood sigil in black and green in the lower left half with an added royal blue Arryn Falcon taking up the entire right side of the shield. Harry realized it was now to be his personal sigil. There was also a brand new long sword with thick leather scabbard and belt to complete the ensemble. The belt was nothing to scoff at with a steel and silver buckle as well as multiple loops one could affix pouches or sheaths for sword, mace, dagger, or a quiver to.
Having his own armor spurred on questions for the Grimoire about the mystical rune-covered bronze armor of Lord Yohn Royce. This led to the beginning of Harry's instruction into runic languages and the runic arrays they can be used for. It also started Harold on the groundwork for enchanting and magical rituals that he would hopefully be knowledgeable enough to attempt in the coming years. Young Harry Hardyng was all for making both sets of armor invincible and powerful, but the book had to caution him about how that would look.
The famous bronze armor was an heirloom but his sets had been forged recently at Moon Gate and if they suddenly turned up enhanced, that would lead to a lot of questions. Not to mention how draining on his reserves truly powerful runic arrays would be. So the eventual results were subtle runic patterns gracing the inside of his mail and plate sets. He had a hell of time designing runic arrays that would fit on each item of the armor sets. Especially the chain mail which he had the Ironoak smith add interior thin sheets of steel to the front and back torso so he'd have somewhere to etch his runes.
The armors were now lighter, climate controlled, and much tougher internally once he had charged the runes. But they would still scratch, chip, or dent when they received powerful blows. Only Harry wouldn't be damaged unless the blow was particularly powerful or made it into a chink or gap as well as besting any defensive charm work he employed. He also unwound his sword's grip to etch hidden runes into it's handle to make it manifest a variable weight. Heavier to train with and lighter if the fight was in earnest. He might do something similar to a war hammer when he grew big enough to wield that weapon.
His sword was another area where the Grimoire preached restraint in his alterations. Harry did not want to listen, but following the books instructions in practical arithmancy, he calculated that forged steel would grow brittle as the chaos of residual magic weakened the bonds between matter. The constant charging and discharging necessary in purely runic alterations created this unavoidable consequence. With arithmancy Harrold could now calculate how many arrays could be safely applied simultaneously to a given material's volume or surface area before the magic would weaken or even destroy the object. If Harry wanted to have his dream weapons he would need to learn enchanting, a style of magical application which would provide a stable and lasting magical alteration to enchanted materials.
His new found freedom as a knight provided many opportunities to grow as a wizard. While living with the Waynwoods he was expected to contribute. So he traveled the surrounding areas on patrol. He was also expected to hunt and provide meat for the Keep's larder. Harry oversaw some of their mercantile interest in the area and the port of Gulltown, and he was expected to win purses at tourneys to maintain his gear. He was also to oversee his inherited lands which Lady Anya had been doing for him before his knighting. All of these new responsibilities allowed him chances to venture out into the foot hills and woods surrounding Ironoak's farmland. Chances to be alone in remote areas to practice the grander magics he was now old enough to perform.
As a squire he had been forced to focus primarily in three areas of magic. First were the time saving charms already mentioned. Second were concealment charms, either to better allow him to sneak around so he could train, or spells that would hide any repercussions from his magical tutelage. So he learned to disillusion himself or take on the hue of a shadow. He could silence his footsteps and his breath, as well as mask his scent. He also learned the Obliviation charm, although he thought it should rightly be called the day dream jinx since it really just made the person think they'd imagined whatever magic they had seen while spacing out.
The Grimoire would also likely teach him the Confundus Curse soon, so he could more easily escape instances of being caught using spells. That spell planted a permanent idea into the person's mind unless dispelled. So Harold could for instance insert the idea that he was not sneaking around, or magic wasn't real and it would stick in the persons mind while otherwise leaving them completely unharmed. Of course if too much contradictory information were presented to the Confunded their brains would work around the inserted thought and make the curse moot. Still it would certainly beat constantly casting spells at his family and household.
The third area of magic he studied were the mental arts as they were safe to practice since no one would be able to see any effect. Primarily the book felt they would help his focus, attention to detail, and memorization. Using a form of internal magic, Harry began to construct organizational structures that with instinctive internal manipulations could be used to recall information or memories. These magical representations allowed him to file and save important information consciously. Without the full milieu of thoughts, emotions, memories, and sensations rampaging around his conscious mind it did allow him to focus his attention more fully. As well as split his focus more effectively.
Once his final binding seal lapsed at thirteen the book began training him how to read the emotions and thoughts that others unknowingly broadcast. This instruction also including reading facial expressions and body language to help him corroborate what he could garner with passive legilimency. The book stressed that it was only teaching him this branch of magic so he could better recognize if someone suspected he was a magical. They also put some effort into mental defenses, called occlumency, but it was sporadic since they didn't expect to encounter any telepaths or other mind reading magics in Westeros. The book didn't think he was ready at thirteen for active legilimency, the delving into other's minds to discover their secrets and view their memories. Harry didn't think that form of magic was very moral to use anyway.
HP-aSoIaF
Harry was extremely careful in hiding his spellwork. While he had been tempted to play pranks on his older foster sisters he refrained from such youthful hijinks. Yet no one is safe from Murphy's Law, and he couldn't forever hide his magic successfully either. It was actually infatuation that led to his being caught, and what saved him from widespread discovery. One of the Waynwoods maids was a very handsome blond woman who had apparently been quite the beauty in her youth. As well as quite...giving to handsome knights and soldiers. She'd come home from a tourney with an unspecified Lannister gift in the form of soon to be infant Kara Stone, born one year after Harry's assumed birthday.
Growing up in Waynwood keep there had been much speculation on whether or not the beautiful blond haired, blue eyed daughter would take after her promiscuous mother. Even as a child her big eyes, high cheek bones, full lips, and cute upturned nose set her apart from the other low born children running around Ironoaks. Many a young squire or man-at-arms had boasted he would be the first to garner her affections when she came of age.
But Kara was either more chaste than expected or perhaps more ambitious than to follow in her mother's promiscuous footsteps. She very clearly set her sights on Harold Hardyng at the age of twelve and would not waver from her target. At first Lady Anya tried to intervene in the early stages of a budding romance between the spare heir and low born bastard, but her Frey good sister convinced her to let Harry have his youthful indiscretion. And thereby learn what he needed to know of the relations between man and woman in a safe environment rather than a Gulltown brothel. Over the years Lady Anya and Ser Morton had multiple talks with Harry about not fathering any bastards with Kara as well as his duty to marry a high born lady when he got older.
Harry appreciated both Kara's attentions and her hobby of stalking his steps since it was an aid to his practicing his stealth and precautions against discovery. He also found her quite attractive and a good companion when he finally let her find him. She was the recipient of his first kiss on the evening of his fourteenth nameday, and a great many other firsts after that. So if ever there was someone in a position to see his magic at work it was her if it wasn't to be Ser Morton or Lady Anya.
Ser Harold was out in the foothills around Ironoaks hunting wolves that had been menacing a Waynwood tenant's grazing flock of sheep. It was his practice to use disillusionment, enhance his sense of smell, and then tag prey with tracking charms to "hunt". He would then alternate been stealth exercises to get point blank to stun and then kill his targets or alert them to his presence so he could work on aim and mobility. It was just as difficult to fire a spell as an arrow from horseback, if not more so. Once the stag, wolf, boar, or bear was downed with a combination of mobility damaging jinxes and immobilizing hexes he killed them with the appropriate spear or arrow. He was also always very careful to return with less arrows than he'd started with if he was bow hunting.
Once the reason for his trip was accomplished he ventured further out to work on curses, area effect charms, and conjuring/transfiguration combinations selected for him by the Grimoire. And so it was that on the day when Harold achieved his first ever fireball, a conjuration of highly compressed explosive gas hurled towards a target quickly followed by an Incendio hex, visible as a mana bolt of fiery red, which would catch the ball of gas on fire and cause it to explode, spreading fire and a pressure wave in every direction. Of course the timing was a bit tricky which is why he was eager to get out and work on this powerful combo.
The resulting explosion was what allowed a horny Kara, who'd been attempting to follow him for a possible romantic interlude to finally locate him. He quickly hit her with the Obliviation charm, but the surroundings were still destroyed and aflame. He couldn't let his foster family's domain be ravaged by a forest fire of his own creation so he launched his most powerful water conjuration at the burning wreckage. Once he saturated the area with water he turned back to the astonished Kara and hit her with another Obliviation charm. But after just one more look at churned up and soggy scenery she shook off the charm.
Marching towards him in a fury she shouted, "What the hell are you doing Harold Hardyng?! What is this mess and what sort of sorcery did you attempt on me?! This is...I...demon...Maiden protect me," she trailed off into tears, collapsing to the ground, her anger fading into fear and sadness at her discovery. 'Not good', thought Harry. He tried approaching her, but she scrambled along the ground to get away from him, calling for help and protection of the Seven.
He was considering using the Obliviation curse for the first time, which would completely remove her memory of this event, but the book had cautioned that not only could too much be taken but permanent damage might result from it's use if done improperly. He was supposed to learn to target it better after getting more experience with active legilimency. He couldn't use his girlfriend as a guinea pig.
He also wouldn't let her run away hysterical and destroy his life or hers with wild claims of magic in the forest. He quickly hit her with the Body Bind hex and approached her beautiful paralyzed form. His passive legilimency was very easily picking up her panic and heartbreak. 'I guess she really does care for me and not just my possible title. That's really going to make marrying a lady much more complicated.' He wished he and the Grimoire had had the freedom to explore potions because he could really use a calming draught for Kara right now. 'Oh well, we'll get that done next year.' he thought.
"Kara! Calm down please. If you can't get it together I'm going to have to remove your memories from today. I really care about you and don't want to do that. But I cannot have you running around telling tales about me practicing magic. Now, if you're willing to listen and not run away all hysterical I'll level with you. I won't hurt you, but I may have to make you forget, and then we probably won't be able to be a couple anymore. So just think to me if you willing to listen," he asked with a serious demeanor.
The talk about making her forget really hadn't helped as she was still a panicked mess from what he was picking up. Unfortunately every avenue to truly alter someone's emotions the Grimoire had mentioned involved a potion. Truthfully it wasn't a branch of magic Harold was all that interested in since he had no real desire to manipulate others much less mess with their thoughts or emotions. He decided he would have to do something, so he picked up her stiffened form and carried her away from the aftermath of his overt display of magic. Once they arrived at a clearing with no view of his practice field he placed her down and hugged her from behind.
They stayed like that for over thirty minutes before her panic ebbed and he got the impression she was bored and emotionally exhausted. He laid her back on the ground and faced her, crouching in front of her prone body. He quickly dispelled his Body Bind hex and replaced it with a Leg Lock jinx followed by a Silencing hex in case she wanted to scream. Judging by the her demonstratively opened mouth she was doing just that.
"You can stop that. I silenced you, so yelling won't do much. You have two options. First, I hit you with that same spell again and now that you are away from the devastation it'll probably work. You'll think you just had a weird daydream and we can go back to how things were." He paused gauging her apparent feelings towards this option.
"Second option. I remove the silencing spell and we talk about me being a wizard and being able to do amazing magic. Since I'm falling for you quite a bit, I'd prefer this option because I wouldn't have to hide so much of myself from you. I'll require that we stick close together for the near future so I can be sure you'll keep my secret. If you can do that you'll have my trust." he said to her slowly, willing her to understand the serious situation.
"Being honest with you, if you don't think you can stay quiet about me having magical powers, or you don't really want to have a relationship with me going forward, I'd say take the first option. I will break up with you soon, but your life won't be very effected. So shake your head in a no if you want to forget about all this, and nod a yes if you want to talk about it. I really want you to think hard about which avenue you want to take." Harry then sat down with his legs crossed and waited for her response, casually looking about clearing so he wouldn't stare at her tear streaked face. Though she was certainly still distraught he picked up an intense concentration that he hoped boded well for his adolescent love life.
Finally, after what felt like ages but was probably only a couple minutes, Kara nodded her choice. Harry quickly countered the silencing hex.
"I knew that falling for you would force me to make some concessions. I knew you'd eventually have to take a lady wife...although lately I been kind of turned on about the idea of sharing you with another gorgeous woman, of us sharing her..." she trailed off with a ferocious blush that was matched by Harry as well as his eyes glazing over with a small stupid grin. Kara had to snap her fingers in his face and slap his shoulder to bring him back from la-la land.
"What I was trying to say is I knew that I'd need to give up some things to have you. Such as marriage or legitimate children. And I'd already decided I was willing to do so. But this is something else. I need to know Harry, how can you do these things. It isn't from like...sacrificing children or pacts with demons. You know black magic." She was very cautious about asking this, but his patient demeanor and apparent affection for her made her bold enough to risk the wrath of a possible dark warlock.
"What?" he scoffed. "No! No, no, no. No way," he stated emphatically. "I was born this way. Like some people are born as good artists or excellent swordsman. I was born a wizard, as well all the rest of my traits you already know," he summarized with a smirk.
"I didn't even really know I was any different until I turned eleven and this magical book showed up. It proved to me that I was a wizard and started showing me little spells I could try out that might be useful. I was a bit skeptical at first, a bit wary it was trap to lead me to damnation. But the book, it's kind of alive I'd say, it doesn't ever tell me to do anything. And if I ask to learn about something potentially harmful or morally questionable it won't teach about it. It'll say something like not until I'm older or wiser. Or never. I hardly think something that conscientious about abusing power or doing bad things could be evil," he reasoned sagely.
"Are you sure? Cause maybe the price comes later, like it's hidden until you're too deep and can't back out," she reasoned.
"Well, the thing that really helps me trust a book that can think for itself is the author. Apparently there are...uh...other worlds out there. Like say there's a world where the Targaryens won Robert's Rebellion or where Valyria still exists. So um apparently in one of those other worlds that's a bit further along than ours, a Harold Hardyng wrote this magic book and then sent it to me. The Harry Hardyng that is in this world. It's kind of hard to imagine a different older me would be evil or want to sabotage himself...myself? Right?" Harry looked at her earnestly hoping she'd agree.
Kara looked at Harry intently trying to divine if what he'd just said was true or not. She eventually just shook her head and shrugged. Now smiling at him she asked, "Well what can you do, other than blow up the forest and then drench it in water?" she asked smiling.
"That's actually a new thing I'm just starting to work on. Growing up I mostly just used magic to do all my chores faster so I could learn the basics of magic or work on other spells. I know some spells to better protect me, some to make me extra stealthy, the memory stuff that I try really hard not to use, and I can get reads on people. Like if they're lying or feeling a really strong emotion. It's pretty useful, and I expect the more I learn the more useful and amazing it'll get." Harry was getting excited. This was his first ever opportunity to actually talk to a non-book person about his big secret.
As he explained what he'd learned, and what he felt he would probably learn about, Kara's expression changed from one of trepidation and concern to awe. Then..."So what strong emotion am I feeling right now, Ser Wizard?" she asked saucily.
Warning - Minor Lemon - Warning
Harry didn't bother responding. He knew that he wasn't either literally or figuratively out of the woods yet with Kara. This could be their last time together if she was just telling him what he wanted to hear. But he was a sixteen year old male with a gorgeous, possibly bi-sexual, blonde bombshell throwing herself at him. He quickly countered the leg locker jinx and then hit her with the contraception charm. When she asked what he had just done that got her even more aroused that she wasn't risking pregnancy by laying with him.
Kara pounced on Harry kissing him passionately with an arm around his neck and her other hand running through his wild black hair. As she kissed him from above he holstered his wand. Then his hands roamed down below her dress and shift, pushing both upwards until he could grab two handfuls of naked toned rear. He started to grind her core against his growing arousal.
Kara broke the kiss to finish the job of removing her clothes, leaving her just in white cotton socks and soft leather boots. Harry would never get tired of drinking in her lithe fifteen year old body. She had a natural bronzing to her skin that must have come from her Lannister father. She loved to dance and her legs were slim and toned. To Harry they were pleasant avenues for his eyes to follow to her womanhood. It was only sparsely covered with downy blond hairs with a slightly fuller patch just above it.
As his eyes honed in on her small barely glistening slit his hands trailed with caresses over her hips, up her sides to fondle and then grasp her growing breasts. They were barely a handful, but perky with dark red areola and nipples that stuck out like pearls for him to gently circle with his thumbs and lightly pinch between thumb and fore finger. To her immense pleasure, as her moans revealed as well as a renewed onslaught of open mouthed kisses.
When their grinding became a bit more intense, Harry bid her pause and he quickly removed his leather jerkin, thick woolen pants, and cotton shirt as well as his boots and woolen socks. He spread out his clothes on the sparse grass and leaves of the clearing and laid his nearly naked lover on them. They were recent initiates of full intimacy since his knighting so their love making was quick and without extended foreplay.
Kara eagerly spread her legs and wrapped her arms around Harry's neck as he approached. With one hand he rubbed his cock against her slightly open channel to gather a little lubrication then slowly entered her as she pulled him tightly to her to renew their kissing. Whatever gods or genes blessed Kara with her beauty had also gifted her with a sensitive womanhood that was quick to moisten. This was especially beneficial to the neophyte lovers since Harry knew little better than to start thrusting away to his cock's rhythm as soon as he'd bottomed out. But for Kara that was more than enough to get her off.
Kara held Harry close to ensure his pelvis rubbed her clit and the penetration felt incredible for both of them. He reached his orgasm in under ten minutes, and she found hers twice in that time. They stayed enmeshed for a while, kissing and holding each other, before separating to get dressed again.
Warning - End Lemon - Warning
She joined him as he returned to the two wolves he already killed and hung from a tall tree to keep them safe from bears. Harry was extremely happy, both in post coital bliss, but also from the very intense feelings of...well he hoped that emotion was love that Kara felt for him. For some reason, whether a subconscious barrier he had placed after a lecture from his foster mother, or perhaps the deepening of their connection, Harry was getting much better readings from Kara now. If this new sensation was love, then his first fireball would certainly be the second biggest discovery he'd made that day.
HP-aSoIaF
Harold Hardyng spent a little over a year after earning his knighthood in the Vale of Arryn carrying out duties for House Waynwood. Steward Nester Royce, an older man starting to bald and gain a gut but still big enough to show his past as doughty knight, brought him to the Eyrie and Moon Gate a couple times in that year to continue his education as potential heir as well as introduce him to a wider circle of Vale nobility. The dual structures were perhaps the strangest and yet most secure fortifications in the Seven Kingdoms. Moon Gate was actually a relatively small town bordered on the west by it's giant namesake, the Moon Gate, the final stop of the only road connecting the Vale to the rest of the seven kingdoms.
That road linking the Vale and the Kingsroad in the Riverlands traveled East into a narrowing in the first valley of Mountains of the Moon. The road then encounters the free standing wall known as the Bloody Gate, a fortification always manned by the forces of House Arryn. Beyond that the road travels through a rocky path that takes at least a day's journey on horseback, to a similarly narrow ravine that ends with the towering Moon Gate. The town lies behind this free standing wall as well as two other gates that lead to passes containing the roads heading north and south into the Vale itself.
Moon Gate keep isn't even really a traditional keep, but a fortification carved directly into the North face of the steep cliffs the town is sandwiched between. The eastern edge of Moon Gate township ends in a wagon wide trail that steeply rises in elevation nearly a thousand feet before one reaches the Eyrie. What was once a rocky isolated foothill now boasts a circling road that rises around it to the top, an additional four hundred feet in elevation. The top of the hill was hollowed out, it edges shored up and topped with fortifications while the materials taken to give the walls height were rebuilt into the keep known as the Eyrie. Within the man made depression lies a small village worth of barracks, workshops, and homes to service the keep, while the inner Fort rises an additional eight stories. But due to the Arryns living in King's Landing, the Eyrie was at this time uninhabited, sporting only a skeleton crew of sworn swords and servants to upkeep it's facilities.
Instead, Harold met with Nestor Royce in the excavated cliff-face fort, Moon Gate keep, every couple of months for a few days of instruction and shadowing the Arryn's steward. He was also treated to several feasts and introduced to any visiting lords, knights, or merchants that had traveled to Moon Gate for some business with the Vale's capitol or it's nominal leader, Steward Royce.
Harry was forced to fend off a bevy of noble maidens and widowed ladies at these "impromptu" gatherings. He knew he would eventually be forced to choose, but he wanted Kara's input, and they both wanted to explore each other and the wider world a bit before settling down. His marriage was also a matter to be decided upon by Lord Jon Arryn since it could have great impact on the future of the Vale.
Harry also had hopes of earning or winning himself a keep or holding beyond the small and deteriorated Hardyng House with its attendant acreage bordering Ironoaks. His father had only been gifted enough land to maintain four peasant families, and their labors in farming and shepherding earned him less than a hundred silver stags annually in rent. As well, the home had been barely constructed before his father passed, and no one had lived in it since his birth. Without the Waynwoods support in his childhood or the small salary of fifty gold dragons annually they paid him since his knighthood, he would be on the edge of poverty after his expenses of maintaining him, his horses, and his gear. For an individual of his skills and abilities it was not a situation he would countenance for long.
His trips to the Moon Gate did seem to endear him to the Vale's Lords and Ladies as a viable successor to Lord Jon Arryn. Especially in contrast to the rumors that were trickling back to the Vale from King's Landing of Robert Arryn being a sickly boy that was possibly dim-witted. Little Robyn's poor health and his own unlikely role as alternate heir started a curiosity in Harry that would plague his sleepless nights in the coming months.
He frankly wondered if the Arryns were cursed but could find no magical residue in the Eyrie, Moon Gate, or Waynwood Keep that the Grimoire urged him to look for. If they were not cursed then they clearly had a subtle and deadly enemy that could turn his or her sights on him eventually. Eleven heirs and three spouses dead before their time was too much of a coincidence to ignore, even in the deadly and treacherous Seven Kingdoms. Harry and the Grimoire suspected a poisoner since there were also an inordinate amount of purported illnesses, stillbirths, and barren spouses.
So he did his duty with the Waynwoods and for the Steward. He was even able to travel to a tourney at Harrenhal where he received a humbling defeat in his first competitive joust against Ser Balon Swann, as well as a runner up finish in the melee to gain a consolation purse of a cool five hundred gold dragons. His subtle use of charms and jinxes, his enhanced gear, and his south paw fighting style served him well in a field of warriors who'd never faced him before. He also was very strategic in his movements, avoiding many of the more imposing knights, letting them take themselves out of competition while he whittled away at the melee's lesser warriors. He would have won, but couldn't decide how to handle Thoros of Myr's flaming blade without exposing his magic. His indecision allowed the wily brawler to kick his legs out from under him as he blocked a powerful fiery swing with his shield. He yielded rather than risk greater injury or exposure of his plate mail's added features.
More importantly during this year of knighthood, he honed his battle magics, both the grandiose and the subtle. He also started on transfiguration magic. Kara was ever eager to provide his training sessions with a cover story. Their romance was one of the worst kept secrets in Ironoaks. They actually did end up rendezvousing over half the time they claimed to be. Once Harry learned that Archmage Potter had been able to shift into a Zephyr Falcon at will, an extremely similar bread of bird to the Vale Falcon he would barely rest until he achieved the status of an animagus. Partly it was for the symbolism, but mostly he had a great desire to fly.
The Grimoire was not surprised by Harry's frequent requests for magics to get him in the air. Apparently it was a shared obsession of Archmage Potter's. The book was unwilling to provide him with the runic arrays and enchantments required to manufacture a flying device such as a broom, carpet, or boat. The book felt he didn't need one, being seen on one would be disastrous, and he didn't have the required components even if the book did agree on teaching him the process.
On his seventeenth nameday the book finally made the recompense for not teaching him to fly, outside of his animagus form, with the two key charms for Wizard mobility: Apparation and Port Keys. The first would shove him through a magically conjured...tube thing. Taking him from point A to point B, him and anything or anybody he could drag with him. Port Keys did the same with an object, but they could be delayed on a timer and transport anyone or thing that could hold onto the temporarily enchanted object. The Grimoire related that in the larger magical societies Archmage Potter had visited, they would lay a grid across the land with runes and enchantments. This preparation allowed Wizards to teleport anywhere within the grid if they had the proper coordinates.
Westeros and the Vale had nothing similar so the Grimoire provided him with two methods to utilize these powerful charms. First involved line of sight. If the destination could be seen it could be targeted. The second was for him to augment a specific runic array with an addition of his own design to mark his personal transportation keys. He would also have to include a raw runic letter to designate that key from others he might create.
Using this method was dangerous. One of the features of the array was to push anything over the array to the side to clear space for arrival. But if the object or person was heavy enough or moved back into position, severe injury leading to imminent death or destruction would occur for both parties. Mistakenly creating identical keys would tear him to pieces if he tried to use them. As well, an enemy could discover his key and move it to a dangerous place like underwater, in a rocky crevice, or the middle of their prison. As a blind teleporter he would have to suffer whatever fate waited for him on the other end. The book recommended he place them on inaccessible roof tops and only travel while disillusioned.
Harry placed one on the highest roof of Waynwood Keep which usually had a cover of fine grit, leaves, or snow. He also placed a key on the rooftops of a remote home in a village outside the fortifications for Moon Gate. Another he placed on the roof of the Eyrie's barracks. He hoped he would never have to explain how exactly he circumvented the keep's gate and defenses. Harry did this on his trip to meet with the steward to gain approval for his upcoming journey. With the gold he saved, Harry and the Book desired for him to get away from the Vale so he could learn potioneering, active legilimency, and healing charms in anonymity. Anywhere in the Seven Kingdoms would be difficult, either because he could be recognized or due to the Maester's stranglehold on herb lore and the healing arts.
So the Free Cities were to be his training ground. Ostensibly he was going to pay for further tutelage in warfare from one of the sellsword companies that recruit out of Braavos. Rumor had it that Prince Oberyn Martell of Dorne had actually signed on to a company. Neither Harry nor Steward Royce wanted him beholden to any mercenary contracts. While the Seven Kingdoms were at peace, warrior companies from the Free cities were constantly being hired throughout Essos for minor or even major conflicts like the constantly brewing war between Lys, Myr, and Tyrosh over the Disputed Lands.
For a small fee some Westerosi lords in the past had followed sellsword companies as observers to learn what they could from their tactics, training, and logistics. Obviously not everything would be applicable to the feudal militaries of the Seven Kingdoms but quite a bit would. The sellsword companies saw it as some easy coin and advertisement for their services down the line. Doing this would make Harry more valuable to the Vale Lords. It would also get him out into Essos where he could explore the foreign apothecaries and herb merchants to learn along with the Grimoire what potions might be possible for Harry to brew beyond the pedestrian few he could make from local ingredients found in Ironoaks or Gulltown. Learning what poisons could be purchased abroad might also help him uncover the Arryn's hidden enemy down the line as well as protect himself from similar attacks.
As a potential future Lord of the Vale he would require an escort to hopefully prevent him becoming a hostage or an inadvertent casualty. The Waynwoods offered three men-at-arms including the probable future Master of Arms Edric Hillis. Harry would pay their way in return for the Waynwoods monitoring the Hardyng lands and stabling his two horses after he left Gulltown. The Arryns would also have a say in his education and protection so he was forced to journey to the Moon Gate to gain permission and aid from the steward.
Luckily Nestor Royce saw the potential benefit of his request. He also saw a somewhat sheltered and naive young man eager to see the world and have adventures. When Harry yet again refused to entertain any marriage proposals until he "broadened his horizons" Steward Royce reluctantly agreed to sign off on his trip. He provided six men-at-arms including two Valemen who had traveled extensively in the Free Cities on missions for Lord Arryn. While the knighted Hardyng would have command it was understood he better well listen to his escort.
Harry was also encouraged to take up the page Willum Royce as his squire when his party returns to Gulltown after his trip. Lord Yohn Royce of Runestone had been petitioning the Vale's Steward and his kinsman to see that his grandson squires for a worthy knight. Harry suspected this move was merely to get a pesky relative off Nestor Royce's back. Ser Hardyng figured it would certainly help his long term prospects to earn both Royces goodwill and readily agreed. A knight should have squire.
