Opening Author's Notes
Okay...here goes. I really hope I get this right because this is one of those things I've been building towards when it comes to this story and it involves me writing two original verses. Dedication for this chapter goes to Katherine (GoldsberryDiggs on Wattpad) – the only person who knew I was going to include both of these songs – with secondary dedication to Mikki (Her_Tulip on Wattpad).
Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we've been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.
–Barack Obama
Operation Rochambeau – Ilvermony Reception
Ilvermony School of Witchcraft and Wizardry
Mount Greylock
Near Adams, Massachusetts, USA
Both the ground floor of the Ilvermony entrance hall outside of the center of the hall and the circular balcony above the entrance hall were filled with students and teachers chatting excitedly with their fellows and gazing raptly at the various delegations and members of the strike team. Their eyes went to Hogwarts' Golden Trio – including Britain's Boy Who Lived, on American soil for the first time – and to the namesake and descendant of the Hero of Two Worlds, who had come to study with them from Beauxbatons for a time in the past.
Then, without exception, they went to the luminary of theirs who had transferred to Hogwarts and then revealed himself to the world as the descendant and namesake of one of their Founding Fathers.
If they weren't already, then they were when the fair kind-faced woman from Alex's photograph that he'd shown Hermione and Harry with long dark hair and a warm smile got to the front and saw him.
"Alex!" Eliza shouted, and she ran as quickly as she could towards him across the Gordian Knot.
Having previously worn his Hogwarts robes at Beauxbatons, Alex had donned his regular blue Ilvermony robes with cranberry trim, fastened with the Ilvermony Gordian Knot brooch and bearing the Thunderbird crest on one side in gold. On the other side was a red and gold Gryffindor patch as a nod to his time at Hogwarts so far, and his sleeves bore the American flag and the patches of both the Sons and Daughters of Liberty and Dumbledore's Army. His eyes lit up as he yelled, "Eliza!"
People around smiled at the sight as she reached him and shared a huge hug. Alex savored the feeling of seeing Eliza and being in her arms again before she shifted turned, still holding him, and they looked around at the other students and faculty looking back at him.
It was then that something sunk in for Alex. When he had first arrived at Ilvermony, it had been as Alex Schuyler, and even when he had left for Hogwarts, his identity and lineage were still a secret to many even though there had been those who had started to connect the proverbial dots. Now he was Alexander Hamilton, and not only the school but also the country – even if it was just its magical community – looked to him as they never had before as a Founding Father reborn – a living, breathing link to their storied roots. One of the older students even briefly played Hail to the Chief using charm work.
He allowed himself a brief laugh and smile and thought, History has its eyes on you, indeed...
Each member of the strike team who was not an Ilvermony student or alumnus was also ceremonially Sorted at the Gordian Knot in the center. The Hufflepuffs including Madam Bones tended to favor Pukwudgie, while the Ravenclaws tended to favor Thunderbird although there were a fair number who were Sorted into Horned Serpent. Meanwhile, the Gryffindors including McGonagall tended to favor Wampus. There was also a great stir when Hermione and Harry had all four House statues surrounding the Gordian Knot respond, meaning that all four Houses wanted them. Much to John's happiness, both of them chose Wampus.
"You two are in very select company!" Alex exclaimed. "One of the few people accepted into all four of our Houses was Seraphina Picquery, who was MACUSA President back in the 1920s."
"No kidding!" One of the Thunderbird prefects, who Alex knew, exclaimed. Then she turned to him and said, "But back to you, Alex...I know this is a tough question – or actually, a tough set of questions – but many of us were wondering and we figured there won't be a better time to ask than now..."
Alex looked at her and understood that she had been asked to be a spokeswoman of sorts for the curious, and he couldn't blame them. It was the reason he had been working on something for that situation with Hermione, Harry and someone else.
"Now that you've taken up the Hamilton name," the female Thunderbird prefect asked, "what do you think of him? What about him do you want to emulate and avoid?"
Alex looked at her intently, and she shrunk slightly, clearly fearing she hadn't done it correctly. However, Alex then gave a small smile and said, "I'm glad you asked, because I do actually have something ready for a time like that."
As a murmur ran through the whole crowd, he looked over at Hermione and Harry, who both nodded. Hermione then said, "Everyone, give Alex some space behind him. He'll be needing it."
As people moved aside behind him, Alex pulled the box from the inside of his robes. When the onlookers saw that only one keyhole was lit up, everyone's eyes widened except Alex's, Hermione's and Harry's, for they were the only three who knew what was going to happen.
Alex lined up his wand with the lit keyhole and turned it – and the click that sounded was again ominous. He then turned the crank, and not only did music start, but there was a sudden flash of lightning and a rumble of thunder. As the others apart from Hermione and Harry were startled, those who had been part of Operation Rochambeau found themselves reminded of the melody from the song at the British Ministry after their victory, only more ominous and more somber. Alex also put the box, now having a spectral silver light coming from within, down on a small stand that Hermione and Harry had conjured beside him.
The light level in the hall also dimmed slightly – it was still enough that everyone could see each other, but it leant a further gravity to surroundings. Alex was singing, and for the first time that Hermione, Harry or any of their Hogwarts classmates could remember, pain was the dominant emotion in his voice:
[Alex] In the eye of a hurricane, there is quiet
For just a moment, a yellow sky
When I was seventeen, a hurricane destroyed my town
I didn't drown – I couldn't seem to die
The thunder and lightning then disappeared, and there was a small, gentle spotlight on Alex like a ray of sunlight, though Hermione and Harry thought the light was as eerie as it was inspiring. He then drew in the air with his wand, and letters began to appear. They quickly vanished, but letters in gold then appeared behind him in what struck the onlookers as the original writing. Many of Alex's close friends – especially Hermione, Harry, John, Hercules, Lafayette and Eliza – recognized it as the account that the original Hamilton had written about Hurricane Maria's destruction of St. Croix:
The roaring of the sea and wind, fiery meteors flying about it in the air, the prodigious glare of almost perpetual lightning, the crash of the falling houses, and the ear-piercing shrieks of the distressed, were sufficient to strike astonishment into Angels.
Meanwhile, Alex continued to sing, with sounds from a harp and a violin now accompanying,
I wrote my way out
Wrote everything down, far as I could see
I wrote my way out
I looked up and the town had its eyes on me
They passed a plate around
And total strangers moved to kindness by my story
Raised enough for me
To book passage on a ship that was New York-bound
Alex changed to rap at this point, and his voice grew more emotional and frantic as it went on. The sunlight-like rays had vanished, and in ghostly gold and white now appeared headers, titles and passages of documents that Hamilton had written, contributed to or defended. Hermione recognized some of Hamilton's love letters, some of the Federalist Papers and especially the US Constitution with its heading of We the People. She also recognized the Reynolds Pamphlet near the end of this part, which had been the document that had guarded his reputation at the price of ending his political career.
I wrote my way out of Hell
I wrote my way to revolution – I was louder than the crack of the bell
I wrote Eliza love letters until she fell
I wrote about the Constitution and defended it well
And in the face of ignorance and resistance
I wrote my ancient systems into existence
And when my prayers to God were met with indifference
I picked up a pen – I wrote my own deliverance!
The first time Hermione and Harry had seen Alex do it in private, they understood more than ever why Alex was timid about taking up his true identity before he was ready. Harry had, unbidden, found himself reminded of something that Sibyl Trelawney had said when she predicted Pettigrew's escape and aiding in Voldemort's return: Greater and more terrible than ever before...
The lightning and thunder had returned once again as Alex sang, almost sounding like he was about to cry. Gone was any sense of power as he allowed himself to be vulnerable, much more like the scared boy Hamilton had often been before coming to America.
In the eye of a hurricane, there is quiet
For just a moment – a yellow sky
I was twelve when my mother died – she was holding me
We were sick and she was holding me – I couldn't seem to die
Alex saw many looking at him in shock and knew what he was about to do next would shock them further. He pulled out his wand, pointed it sharply at the box and shouted, "Finite Incantatem!"
The light coming from the box faded and the light level in the hall returned to normal as the onlookers gasped. It was the last thing any of them except Hermione and Harry had expected. Many had their mouths even more agape as Alex began to speak again.
"I'm proud of my ancestor and proud to bear his name, but I knew if I ever wanted to take the name, I had to make sure I learned from his example completely. That means I had to learn from his failures as well as his successes. He did a lot of great things for this country – and some Americans have not only forgotten but even tried to deny him credit – but his ambition ran unchecked and it ultimately cost him things that he held dear."
John, Hercules and Lafayette all had wide but approving looks, but Eliza had all of them beat. Hearing that from Alex had told her how much he was different – in a good way – from the original Hamilton. Even if the situation was serious, Hermione swore she saw stars in her eyes.
"Not taking the name until I felt I was ready was probably the best decision of my life that I've made so far. I had to spend some time thinking about it, but..." Alex took a moment and then continued, "Anyone who knows me – not my ancestor, me – knows I didn't have it easy when I was little and when I arrived. Instead of relying on the Hamilton name to get me somewhere, I decided to write – and work – my way out of the difficulty I'd been placed in because I looked back over his life and felt that's what set him apart more than anything else. He didn't wait for a miracle to help him or for success to come."
He added, "If there's something I want the world to learn from Hamilton – from me – it's that it doesn't matter what situation you're in or if the world seems like it's against you. You can pick up that pen – literally or figuratively – and write your way out and strive for something better. I'm very lucky to know I'm not alone in that because of people I've met – both here and at Hogwarts."
Nods and applause were seen and heard at this, and Hermione and Harry felt Alex's gaze linger on them as he looked around and knew he was singling them out for praise. They smiled at each other before he finished,
"I'm also lucky to have some help from someone who will be performing at the MACUSA ball tonight. Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome Celestina Warbeck."
There were gasps of surprise followed by applause, especially from the British contingent, as she came forward, clad in a robe that looked a lot like a slim but not overly showy dress. Hermione and Harry were the only others who knew she would be there but were excited all the same because they knew what was about to happen.
Alex tapped the music box with his wand and the music started back up. The melody was very similar to the one before, only it was uplifting –and the box seemed to know or acknowledge it, as the light coming from within was warm gold, not spectral silver. One of his previous lines led Celestina back in, and she sang soulfully,
[Alex] (I wrote my way out)
[Celestina] When the world turned its back on me
I was up against the wall
I had no foundation
No friends and no family to catch my fall
Running on empty with nothing left in me but doubt
I picked up a pen and I wrote my way out
As eyes turned back to Alex and the beat temporarily dropped out, many of the onlookers felt goosebumps that only got bigger. Alex resumed rapping, and the eyes of the Hogwarts and Beauxbatons visitors – especially those brought up in the non-magical world – were widening as they heard him using modern references for the first time. Even those present from Ilvermony were taken aback because they'd never heard Alex sounding like he did at that moment or being as demonstrative as he was at that moment:
[Alex] High-speed dubbing these rhymes in my dual cassette deck
Runnin' out of time like I'm Jonathan Larson's Rent check
My mind is Where the Wild Things Are, Maurice Sendak
In withdrawal, I want it all – please give me that pen back!
The beat kicked back in even harder than it had even in the previous version of the melody as Alex continued, sounding even more fervent as he dug back into a story that was his alone,
Y'all, I caught my first beatin' from the other kids when I was caught readin'
"Oh, you think you smart? Blah! Start bleedin'!"
Pops tried in vain to get me to fight back
Sister tapped my brain, said, "Pssh, you'll get 'em right back!"
Alex was drawing in the air with his wand again, and the letters were once again vanishing as he wrote them. Unlike with earlier, though, when Hermione and Harry had felt something great and terrible, all they felt was Alex's determination.
Oversensitive, defenseless, I made sense of it
I pencil in the lengths to which I'd go to learn my strengths and knock 'em senseless
These sentences are endless – so what if they leave me friendless?
(D-d-damn, you got no chill) Fuckin' right, I'm relentless!
Even John, Hercules and Lafayette had never heard him put that much into a verse as he had as he finished,
I know Abuela's never really gonna win the lottery
So it's up to me to draw blood with this pen, hit an artery
This Puerto Rican's brains are leakin' through the speakers
And if he can be the shinin' beacon
This side of the GWB and shine a light when it's gray out?
(I wrote my way out)
He took a step backward here and was stunned but happy to hear applause break out and resonate around the hall as Celestina stepped forward and sang the chorus once more,
[Celestina] When the world turned its back on me
I was up against the wall
I had no foundation
No friends and no family to catch my fall
Running on empty with nothing left in me but doubt
I picked up a pen and I wrote my way out
Hermione and Harry shared a look that nobody else caught until it was too late. There was deviousness in their grins, but with no mean spirit, and then there was shock as Hermione stepped forward.
"No way! Is she going to...?" Parvati asked, her mouth agape.
"I think she is!" Ginny replied. Then, turning back forward, she said, though not too loudly, "Get 'em, Hermione!"
[Hermione] I was the daughter of dentists, itching to step in
Armed against critics since I knew I had a weapon
My mind was a sword waiting to be unsheathed
But I was fighting against pain like pulling teeth
It was surreal to see Hermione – who the Ilvermony students and faculty knew as a Gryffindor prefect, the presumptive Hogwarts Head Girl in waiting, the brightest witch of her generation in Great Britain, part of the Golden Trio and a hero of both the latest war against Voldemort and the struggle against the British pureblood faction – standing in the middle of the Ilvermony entrance hall in Hogwarts robes laying that out there.
Harry, Ron and Alex looked around and noticed that while the whole crowd was watching raptly, the ones who were leaning forward the most were Muggleborn, female or both and thus looked up to her even more for those reasons. Hermione continued, almost as if she was aware of that,
People said both my blood and my name was mud
I didn't have control to cope and thought I was a dud
I'd almost had enough when I encountered that troll
And met the friends who changed my life and soul
She smiled here at Ron and especially Harry here, and they smiled back with Harry also going red. They momentarily casted their minds back to that Halloween night, when Harry and Ron rescued her when the best they knew to do was distract the 12-foot monstrosity, followed by Harry jumping on its back and accidentally putting his wand up its nose and Ron levitating the troll's club and using it to knock it out. She then turned back to the crowd and adopted a bit of her lecturing voice, which suited what came next:
Want to write your way out the Granger way? Here it goes:
When they say two feet, you give 'em two rolls
Respect authority, but don't hold your tongue
If you know they're wrong, though you're under the gun
Harry, Ron and McGonagall had the biggest smiles at that, knowing better than anyone how Hermione acted when assigned essays.
"You reckon we corrupted her?" Ron asked Harry, Fred and George with a grin as they heard those last two lines.
"No, we haven't," Harry replied with a brief laugh. "I certainly like to think we've loosened her up, but I think she's found more of a balance. She's not against breaking rules to help people in need now, so it's more like a healthy balance."
"Agreed," Fred and George said together, their smiles growing.
It may not be easy, but it's right, and that choice
Can let you save and speak for those with no voice
Last but not least, be the best friend you can be
I have a special one 'cause to me, he's just Harry
[Alex] (I wrote my way out)
Even though Harry knew Hermione had included that, he still found himself turning red, but he didn't shy away from the looks people gave him because he was paying much too much attention to the loving look that Hermione gave him and that he returned. She mouthed at him, "Ready?"
He mouthed back, "You bet!" as Celestina stepped forward again and sang the chorus with even more emotion, almost desperate, in her voice,
[Celestina] When the world turned its back on me
I was up against the wall
I had no foundation
No friends and no family to catch my fall
Running on empty with nothing left in me but doubt
I picked up a pen and I wrote my way out
"Oh, blimey, Harry too?" Justin asked as everyone else was stunned once more by Harry stepping forward.
"Oh, bloody hell, yes!" Dean said. Similarly to how Ginny had called out quietly to support Hermione, he said, "Talk to 'em, Harry, bruv!"
Harry didn't start too loud, but the expression on his face and the pained but brilliant fire in his green eyes spoke volumes.
[Harry] Listen...I may be my world's hero
But my dreams of happiness once numbered zero
Escape and survival were my only cares
My Hogwarts letter went to my cupboard under the stairs
If it had been surreal to see Hermione do and say what she had in the middle of the Ilvermony entrance hall, it was even more so to see Harry himself – the Boy Who Lived (And Won) – joining in as well.
Any mouths that weren't already open were ajar at what he said, but the British contingent was shocked most of all. Though it was no longer a total secret, people were still wrapping their heads around the fact that Harry had been neglected and bullied by Vernon, Petunia and Dudley Dursley until Hagrid had personally delivered his Hogwarts letter.
I didn't know why people expected great things
But I was glad to have been given my wings
Then came some scary times, then it got worse
I learned Voldemort would kill me if I didn't kill him first
Ron, Ginny and especially Hermione looked as if clouds had passed over their faces, but their pain was nothing compared to Harry's as he remembered the anguish he had felt when Dumbledore had finally told him the prophecy that Trelawney had made about him and Voldemort just after Sirius's death. He didn't break stride, though, as he continued with fresh resolve as he put more energy into his remaining lines,
Our Ministry abandoned us and I heard my friends' cry
And I knew then that I would never leave them to die
I'd teach them how to fight – Dumbledore's Army was born
To defend those who can't is to what we're sworn
"Dang, Harry and Hermione have some skills!" John breathed, awestruck.
"First thing people need to know about them is that they're even better magically than they are at this," Hercules said, nodding energetically. "I'm so glad they're on our side and that Alex has been able to spend so much time with them."
John and Lafayette also nodded and turned back to see Harry finish.
People ask me, "How'd you win your war?"
I'd lost so much but had even more to fight for
I had friends to watch and love to give
I had the name, but only then did I become The Boy Who Lived
[Alex] (I wrote my way out)
As he finished, he looked around at his fellow DA members who had fought Voldemort as well as the Ministry and finished by looking back at Hermione, who had a tear of joy rolling down her face and a smile that mirrored his. As he stepped back and more applause and cheers sounded, Celestina stepped forward once again and let her voice ring out:
[Celestina] Oh, I was born in the eye of the storm
No lovin' arms to keep me warm
This hurricane in my brain is the burden I bear
I can do with that – I'm here (I'm here)
'Cause I wrote my way out
As the song finished, Alex, Hermione and Harry went to a bare wall behind them, took their wands out and waved them. When they had finished, people could see that each had magically written, "I Wrote My Way Out" and signed his or her name.
"They'll have started a tradition by doing that," McGonagall remarked to Madam Bones as she joined the enthusiastic applause and cheers.
"If it does, that'll be as powerful as it is fantastic!" Madam Bones answered as she also applauded.
Both of them were right. It would quickly become tradition for wizards and witches who had overcome great odds, whether they be Ilvermony students or visitors, to magically write "I Wrote My Way Out" and sign their name on that wall.
And despite all that, after what happened that night, some people believed that that was not the most amazing thing to happen around the Operation Rochambeau heroes...
Closing Author's Notes
The Ravenclaw leaning towards Thunderbird bit actually came from the fact that both Evanna Lynch and Katie Leung (Cho) both revealed that they'd been sorted into Thunderbird on Pottermore. It darn sure is worth mentioning that J.K. Rowling herself was sorted into Thunderbird at Ilvermony via Pottermore as well!
I also cast Shaullanda Lacombe as Celestina since she played her at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Next chapter will be the last one and will involve Eliza's ring and one more song. You get one guess as to what the song is!
For those who don't know, Wrote My Way Out is a song on the Hamilton Mixtape that is inspired by Hurricane and samples the melody and the title line. Lin-Manuel Miranda performs on it alongside Nas, Dave East and Aloe Blacc – Alex of course has Lin-Manuel's verse while Celestina gets Aloe's parts. The official music video came out back in January right about the time that I was starting to write this and definitely fueled my writing. If you haven't yet, I definitely recommend checking it out.