A/N: There will be time jumps during this chapter.

Chapter 2 – Growing up

Alex was not a happy camper. Things were still too bright, too blurry, too cold, and too loud. His body wouldn't respond the way he wanted it to. He would try to move his hand and his whole arm would jerk around, if not his entire body. He could understand his mother's speech when she spoke, but he was helpless at answering, or pretty much anything else for that matter and he didn't like that, not one bit. The most ignoble part was he couldn't control his bladder or his bowels while his nose seemed to be even more sensitive.

The most amazing thing was when he did have a dirty diaper, either his mother or one of his grandparents would wave a stick at him, mumble something, and then he'd be clean. It was like magic! The first time this happened, he cried because it totally freaked him out and being a baby, it seemed a natural response.

That resulted in all of the windows in the family room to crack, as well as a rather large vase sitting on a side table. They made such a big deal out of his "accidental magic" at such a young age that Alex decided to keep his situation under wraps. He could see himself being examined under a microscope by the government if they found out that he was an old soul that could remember his past life and was now a baby... again.

Well, at least the reincarnation thing has been proven. He thought as he lay there. Why he could remember his old life, he didn't know. Some of the Buddhists he'd talked to in his previous life mentioned that they knew they'd been reborn, but could only remember flashes of their previous life, but nowhere near what Alex could. He could remember everything, at least, what any normal person would remember.

Nothing that had been said within his hearing let him know exactly where or when he was. He heard several other voices which, from what conversations his mother had that he overheard, appeared to be his Granddad and Nana. Listening in on the conversations they had, his father was apparently involved in some kind of war against some terrorist named "Voldemort" and his group but hadn't returned yet.

From the accents of his grandparents and his... mum, he was now British. Which was fine with him, the Green Berets had begun by being trained by the British SAS. Once he grew up, maybe he could join them. That hope was reinforced by some things he'd heard his grandad say, indicating that he had once been in the SAS himself. However, that lay in the future. Right now, he had to grow up.

oooOOOooo

Over time, Alex learned more of his new life. His name now was Aiden Liam Prewett. His dad's name was Fabian while his mother's name was Isabeau. At least his first names started with the same letter. His family lived in the town of Ipswich in Suffolk County to the west of London itself. And, while his dad had red hair, his family mentioned how he got his hair color from his mum. That is, dark brown close to black, and wavy. His eyes were the same color as his dad's, a vivid blue.

Almost all of this came from his mum taking him to Saint Mungos for checkups and her having to fill out forms. The first time his mother used floo travel Alex... Aiden, rather, almost had a heart attack. First the powder she threw into the flames, turning them green, then stepping into them? He thought his mum was trying to commit suicide.

Aiden didn't think that suddenly being able to hold an adult conversation before he turned one would be well received. Especially if he started mentioning reincarnation. So, he kept that little tidbit to himself, at least until he had more information. He'd been trained on how to gather intelligence after all.

Observation proved his thought that his mom and grandparents did magic. After all, he couldn't deny it when it was happening right in front of him and there was no way that he was hallucinating. Instead, as his sight and hearing improved to where he could focus beyond a few feet, he watched as they performed the limited number of spells, they used to keep up their small house.

Aiden woke earlier than normal one morning to hear his mother crying. Turning his head, he could see her clutching a crumpled piece of parchment in her hands while his granddad and nan were trying to comfort her. He was soon able to make out that his dad and his dad's twin brother had been killed in action against the forces of Voldemort.

Aiden seethed inside. He'd lost a father that he would never know to some evil megalomaniac. This was the main reason that Aiden had joined the Green Beret's as Alex. Aiden hated that he wasn't even a year old yet and could do nothing about it. Except plan, learn, and prepare for the day he'd be able to take the fight to this Voldemort person. Unless the Ministry of Magic took care of the issue first. But, according to his granddad, the Ministry was riddled with corruption and incompetence. That was nothing new to Aiden. In his previous life, he'd observed similar instances during his time in Spec Ops.

oooOOOooo

"Have you ever noticed that Aiden always seems to be curious about what's going on around him?" Isabeau asked her mother as she watched Aiden looking around.

"All newborns are like that Isa."

"No Mum, it's more than that. It's like he's analyzing what's going on around him. And he doesn't cry unless his nappy needs changing or he's hungry."

"That just means that you have a good, healthy child Isa. And a strong wizard if his display of accidental magic is anything to go by. I don't know of any other child who had a display like that at such a young age."

Isabeau sighed even as she swelled with pride.

Aiden continued to listen and watch what was going on around him, especially when his family did magic. The words they used sounded Latin in origin, which was a language he didn't know, but he resolved to learn just as soon as possible. Along with the language, he noticed that different spells used different wand movements, which is what he decided the sticks they used were. Each wand was different, but Aiden didn't know how or why, at least, not yet.

Growing up sucks. Aiden thought impatiently as he continued to get better, but not quite proficient yet, at controlling his limbs. He couldn't remember when babies were supposed to start doing things at what age, although he did remember that his previous mother told him at one point in time that he was an early bloomer and started talking when he was six months old and walking at eight months. He had to base his age on his visits to the healer for his regular checkups.

He really didn't like the teething stage, but his mother would put something on his gums that made the pain go away, even though it would make him drool more.

Time passed, as it always will, and Aiden's mother and grandparents marveled at the rate he was learning and doing things.

"Aye." His granddad pointed out when he pulled himself up to start walking at six months. "The wee tyke will be in Ravenclaw, mark my words!"

Of course, Aiden had no idea what or where this 'Ravenclaw' was, but he was making his family proud and that made him happy.

Aidens mother began reading to him nightly before his bedtime as he made sounds to get used to talking again. He would use his facial expressions in conjunction with whatever story she was reading him. If it was too simple for his taste, 'See the cat? Can you say cat?' for example, he'd frown. But if it was a story book, even a simple one, he would smile. His favorite books though, were the magic ones, where his mother would read some and then show a drawing on one of the pages that actually moved! He was fascinated! His mum would privately agree that Aiden would be sorted into Ravenclaw when the time came for him to go to Hogwarts, even though she wouldn't mind if he went into her old house, Hufflepuff. Just as long as it wasn't Slytherin.

Days, weeks, and months passed by, and Aiden continued to watch and gather data. If he wasn't already asleep when his mum put him to bed, he would try and practice magic. But no matter how much he concentrated, no matter how much he focused or strained, he was unable to make any magic he had work the way he wanted it to. Of course, there was the time he really wanted to read a story book The Tales of Beedle the Bard and it flew into his crib. Or the time he was playing with some of his stuffed animals, just to keep up appearances for his family obviously, and he was able to get them to float. The problem was, he didn't know how he did it and, when he tried to replicate the feat, nothing happened.

"I'm telling you Da, I don't think it's spontaneous magic!" Isabeau was telling her father. "Not when he was using a Wingardium Leviosa spell to make his stuffed kneazle float while he giggled at it!"

"Nonsense Isabeau! It's not any different than when he pulled those books off of the shelf to look at the pictures!" Duncan replied to his daughter. While a muggleborn himself, he and his wife did raise Isabeau. Though she didn't start using spontaneous magic until she was almost two years old.

One of the first spells that Aiden had learned was Scourgify. He couldn't do it but moving his hand in the same patterns his family used felt right. That was one spell he really wished he could do so he didn't have to suffer the indignity of having a soiled nappy for longer than absolutely necessary. Oh well, he'd just have to concentrate on getting himself potty trained.

Aiden kept growing and the time came that his mum started potty training him. Given that he knew about potty training already, he 'learned' how to go to the loo within a week. That little milestone made his family very proud. Aiden just wished that he didn't have to let himself have a couple of 'accidents' while doing the training. It wouldn't do to catch onto it right from the off.

Aiden made himself start saying small words at first, 'mam', 'nana', and 'g'da'. Still, his family was ecstatic over his linguistic skills, reiterating that he'd be in Ravenclaw when he went to Hogwarts. Now he knew a little more. Hogwarts was, apparently, a school of some sort, most likely for witches and wizards as he'd heard his family mention. Ravenclaw was one of four 'houses' that he'd heard mentioned, the other three were Gryffindor, his granddad's house, Hufflepuff, his Nana's and mums, and Slytherin. That last was usually said with contempt.

Aiden was careful not to advance too fast, gauging his progress from the comments and expressions from his family. While they labeled him 'gifted', they didn't seem to suspect that he was anything different from any other precocious child. And they seemed to enjoy and appreciate how well behaved he was, not running around yelling or breaking things, instead, he would spend most of his time at his favorite activity, reading. While this, once more, reinforced their assumption that he would end up in Ravenclaw, it was because of a couple of factors.

One, that if he slipped and let something through dealing with knowledge in his prior life, there'd be the excuse that he'd read it. And two, he'd be able to find out more about the world he was now in by reading The Daily Prophet and the Evening Star, the muggle newspaper that his granddad liked to read and usually ended up on the floor next to his recliner.

Of the things he found out from reading the articles, The Daily Prophet wasn't much better than a rag, but comparing articles between the two let Aiden figure out the truth. People, both magic users as well as muggles, were disappearing or being found dead. Homes burned, entire families slaughtered, Ancient and noble houses being wiped out. It seemed this Voldemort person was spreading terror on a scale that hadn't been seen since Grindelwald was active during the second world war.

While The Daily Prophet mentioned a glowing green, cloud-like shape of a snake weaving its way through a human skull in the clouds over these incidents, the Evening Star didn't. The Daily Prophet had started calling it 'The Dark Mark'. Grandad told them that, according to his old Auror contacts, the muggles that had seen the mark had been obliviated, their memories modified to provide a somewhat plausible explanation of the incident.

Aiden learned different things from each of his family members. From his mum, he learned self-help skills even though he didn't really need them. He also learned about Hufflepuff and her school years. And, most important, she told him about his dad, a former investigator with the Ministry of Magic. At first, Aiden thought that he was in law enforcement, but as it came out under his questioning, his dad was in the Department for Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. She told him of how they met, how handsome he was, how deeply they fell in love, and how his dad had insisted they marry in secret so that Voldemort wouldn't target them. That was one of the reasons that his mum moved back in with her parents.

From his Nana, he learned about cooking and what being a Hufflepuff was like. She also taught him about potions, which Aiden could relate to cooking. She told him of meeting such a handsome and dashing young, muggle-born, Gryffindor that had offered to tutor her in Transfiguration. She would giggle about clandestine meetings in broom closets. Aiden didn't press her further, quickly getting the gist of what kind of meetings those were.

He learned the most from his Granddad. He would encourage his granddad to regale him with stories of when he was both an Auror, and a Sergeant in the SAS. Aiden didn't have to pretend to be excited about hearing those stories, even though they gave him an opening to learn more and express a desire to learn combat and other special operations skills. That way he'd have an excuse for the level of skill he could display as he got older.

Isabeau, watching one of these story-telling sessions, and seeing the intent expression on Aiden's face, leaned over and whispered to her mum. "Well, it seems he may end up in either Ravenclaw or Gryffindor mum."

"Oh, I don't know Dear. You know how the sorting hat is, sometimes it likes to surprise folk." Her mum replied.

"True. As long as he doesn't get sorted into Slytherin." Isabeau said, a scowl on her face. It was a common belief that Voldemort and his Death Eaters came from Slytherin house. After all, the snake was a symbol of that house, and it was used in the Dark Mark. And, with the demise of her husband, her dislike for Slytherins had grown to complete enmity.

oooOOOooo

Aiden's first birthday was cause for a big celebration. His Nana and mum decorated the house while his Granddad occupied him. Aiden did overhear his mum tell his Nana that she wished she could invite the Weasley's since they were his family as well. That little fact made Aiden pay close attention, he had more family. When his Nana replied that it just wasn't safe, Aiden didn't need a map to connect the dots. Voldemort had a lot to answer for.

Still, Aiden enjoyed the party, especially the cake and ice cream. For presents, he got more wizarding books and clothes, including his first set of wizarding robes. But the best present of all was when his Granddad handed him a small wand.

"Dad!" His mum exclaimed, "He could put his eye out with that! What does he need a play wand for anyway? He's too young!"

"It won't do him no harm lass. Besides, you're never too young to learn."

Isabeau looked over to Aiden, who was swinging his wand around with a huge grin on his face and said, "Very well Dad, but if I have to take him to St. Mungos with an eye injury then I'm going to curse your bollocks off!"

"Now Lass, is that any way to talk to your Athair?"

"Yes!"

oooOOOooo

More time passed and Aiden slowly grew. Not fast enough for his taste, but he grew nonetheless. His family actually started teaching him spells. Not that he could actually cast them, but he would copy their wand movements and mimic the words of the spells. He was confident that, when he finally did get a wand of his own, he'd actually be ahead of his peers. At least, he hoped so. His family was chuffed at how quickly he learned the wand movements, even if his wording was a little off. The word 'Ravenclaw' was thrown around a lot more.

Months went by and his mum started receiving letters from someone named Dumbledore, asking about them and how they were doing, as well as how Aiden was developing. Sometimes the letters would be met with happiness, if not joy. Other times it was with apprehension. Aiden couldn't discover the reason, even after reading the letters himself. He didn't have enough background or information to make a determination.

His Granddad started sitting him on his lap while he watched the telly. In this fashion, and from reading the papers, Aiden realized that the depredations of Voldemort and his crew of Death Eaters was increasing in both frequency and scope. Wizarding Britain was quaking in terror and there were calls for Minister Bagnold to do something about it. The problem was Voldemort's forces were using guerilla hit and run tactics. The Auror forces would arrive far too late to do more than count the dead.

A little over a month after Aiden's third birthday his mom received a letter via owl post that caused her to collapse into an armchair and begin sobbing. Aiden walked shakily over to his mum and asked, "Mummy? You okay? Why you crying?"

His mum just picked him up and held him close. He tried to comfort his mum as much as possible, his adult mind seemed to realize that the letter didn't seem to contain horrible news, especially as her sobs didn't sound like the ones when she gotten the post about his dad's death.

"Isa? What's the matter, Lass?" His Granddad asked her.

His mum just held onto him and passed his Granddad the letter. About a minute later, his Granddad got a stunned look on his face and mumbled in a relieved manner, "Saints be praised!"

"What is it Love?" His Nana asked him.

"He's dead! The bloody whoreson is dead!" Granddad answered.

His Nana was both so shocked and elated at that news that she didn't admonish her husband for his use of language in front of Aiden.

It turned out that yes, Voldemort was dead, but several of his followers had faded into the woodwork. Dumbledore said that he was worried that they may continue to perform the same horrendous acts as before, but not as blatant. He was suggesting that they maintain hiding out just to be safe.

"Aiden will need to go to Hogwarts eventually, we won't be able to hide forever." His mum mentioned.

"True, Isa. But we'll cross that bridge when we come to it." His Granddad stated.

oooOOOooo

Wizarding Britain celebrated. According to The Daily Prophet, Voldemort had broken into the residence of the Potters and attempted to slaughter them all, only to be destroyed when he tried to kill Harry Potter with the Killing Curse. No one could explain how that happened, but it did.

Several of his Death Eaters had been rounded up and sent to Azkaban, including a bloke by the name of Sirius Black, who was supposed to have been the Potter's secret keeper. Sirius Black gave the secret to Voldemort, then went and ended up killing Peter Pettigrew, another friend of the Potters, as well as killing a dozen muggles with a blasting curse.

x~x~x~x

Aiden's fourth birthday came and went as magical Britain slowly returned to normal. His family had a debate about letting him go to muggle school. His mum was against it, his granddad was most definitely for it, and his nana was waffling.

"What could it hurt Isa?" His grandad asked her.

"You ask me that? What happens if he has a bout of accidental magic? What happens when the Obliviators come in to make all the muggles forget and they found out about Aiden?"

"Okay, okay Lass. You make a good point. But I think that he'd still benefit from a muggle education."

"Then we'll get the books and teach him ourselves!"

Thus, Aiden began two, simultaneous, educations.

x~x~x~x

"OW! Dammit Isa! Stop hexing me!" His grandad yelled while Aiden partially hid behind a tree as his furious mum cast the stinging hex at her father.

"Stop?! STOP?!" His mum yelled.

"OW!"

"I'll not be stopping!"

"OW!"

"What were you thinking?!"

"OW!"

"Teaching a five-year-old HOW TO FIGHT WITH KNIVES?!"

"He needs to... OW!"

"Needs to learn?! Is that what you were going to say?!"

"Ye... OW!"

"I told you I would hex your bloody bollocks off!"

"Isabeau, that's enough. I think your dad has learned his lesson. Haven't you Brodie?" His Nana said.

His mum growled at his granddad before turning in his direction. The fact that he was five years old again had absolutely nothing to do with his attempting to hide behind the tree and out of his mum's sight.

"And you Aiden. What in the bloody hell did you think you were doing?!"

"Now Isa, the lad just wanted to see how we did it in the SAS. And he'd be able to better protect himself if he knows a bit of knife work."

His mum turned and pointed her wand back at her father, causing him to dodge another stinging hex. "He's TOO YOUNG ya duffer!"

"Isa! That's no way to talk to your father." Nana told her sternly.

His mum had her hands next to her thighs, her wand pointed at the ground, breathing heavily. It took a few minutes, but she was able to calm down.

"I'm sorry Da, but he's too young! Teach him spells, not hand to hand combat. At least, not yet please." She said as her body started shaking in reaction.

Aiden's granddad walked forward and enveloped Isabeau in a hug, holding her tight and assuring her that he would wait before teaching Aiden more self-defense. No one but Aiden saw his grandad send a wink Aiden's way, or Aidens wink in return.

x~x~x~x

"Remember lad, magic requires focus and intent. The words and wand movements are only necessary to assist you in getting the spell to work. If you work hard at it, you'll be able to cast silently and wandlessly. Now, try it again."

"Stupefy!" Aiden cried out as he moved his wand in the proper movement, aiming at the makeshift target dummy, and old robe stuffed with old rags and hay stuck on a post, with a metal pot for a head.

"Better, much better. But try and make your wand movements a bit tighter."

"Stupefy!"

"Again!"

Aiden concentrated really hard, imagining himself back in combat only using magic this time. "Stupefy!"

It was hard to tell who was more surprised when a thin red light erupted from Aiden's wand and hit the metal pail with a noticeable 'tink'. Aiden stared at the dummy with his mouth open, matching the same expression his granddad had. He looked at Aiden and said in a stunned voice, "Merlin's saggy ball sack lad, you did wandless magic!"

Aiden looked up at his granddad and asked, "Not bad for an eight-year-old right?"

Brodie closed his mouth and put his hand on his grandson's shoulder saying, "Lad, that's not bad for a wizard of any age!"

x~x~x~x

"When doing spell chains, remember to keep your wand moving from one pattern to the next, don't stop and restart."

Aiden concentrated and went through the spell chain again. He'd succeeded in being able to cast Stupefy, Expulso, Confringo, Expelliarmus,Reducto, several different jinxes, as well as Protego. Unfortunately, the only ones he could do consistently was the Lumos charm, the tickling jinx, the stinging hex, and stupefy. Aiden had thought about it and concluded that, while he had an adult's wisdom, experience, focus, and willpower; he still had a child's magical core, and his body just wasn't up to channeling very much magic yet.

Spell chains was something relatively new for Aiden, as well as silent casting. He hadn't gotten the hang of it yet even though he'd been trying since he was eight. Another spell that he'd been wanting to do was the Patronus spell, Expecto Patronum. The problem there was, he couldn't find a happy enough memory to even attempt it.

While Aiden was disappointed in his seeming lack of progress, his family was over the moon with pride and happiness. At the age of ten being able to cast several spells basically wandlessly, was a feat they felt was only something that Dumbledore would have done. His family would sit in the living room after Aiden was supposedly asleep in bed and talk over his accomplishments. The word "Ravenclaw" was uttered many times.

Aiden was also able to keep up with his muggle education as well, especially since he'd already been thorough it once before. The British educational system was a bit different from what was done in the United States, but the basics were the same. Brodie also continued to clandestinely teach Aiden both knife fighting and hand to hand combat. Aiden actually learned some new things, the training between the Green Berets and the SAS having differed in the years since the Green Berets inception.

x~x~x~x

"Mummy? Why can't I go to Hogwarts this year?" Aiden asked his mum. He'd been waiting for his letter to arrive, but it was the first of October, and it still hadn't arrived yet.

"Because" His mum answered him, not looking up from the rather large tome she was reading from, "you were born on September the twenty-fourth and the cut off for Hogwarts is the beginning of September. I'm sorry Luv, but you'll have to wait another year."

Then she put the tome down and pulled Aiden into her lap holding him close. Aiden made a half-hearted attempt to escape. The truth was, he loved his new mum just as much as his previous. Once he was securely snuggled in her lap, Isabeau told him, "At least I get to have my wee lad for a while longer before I lose him."

"Ah Mum, you'll never lose me!"

Isabeau wished with all her heart that it would be true.

x~x~x~x

Isabeau was not happy when Aiden opened his granddad's present on his twelfth birthday. Wrapping paper flew as Aiden unwrapped the present to reveal a rectangular box. Opening the box revealed three Fairbairn-Sykes double edged fighting knives, the ones used by the SAS since World War Two.

His mum was shocked long enough for his granddad to draw his wand and shield himself from the stinging hexes that his mum started to throw at his granddad as soon as she recovered. His Nana just shook her head, letting the, rather violent, discussion between two of her family members play out.

The highlight of his birthday though, was when a rather majestic owl landed on the sill outside of the living room window and pecked at the glass to be let in. His Nana opened the window, and it landed on the perch provided. Isabeau handed the bird a rasher of bacon and then removed the attached letter. Aiden was practically vibrating in place with excitement. Isabeau looked and saw the Hogwarts seal and smiling, handed the letter to Aiden.

He eagerly took the letter from his mum, and his family gathered around him as he looked at the envelope and began to read.

"Mr. A. Prewett, living room, 18 Chantry Road, Ipswich, Suffolk."

Aiden tore the envelope open, his heart racing. "Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore (Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorcerer, Chief Warlock, Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. Of Wizards). Dear Mr. Prewett, we are pleased to inform you that you have a place at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment. Term begins on 1 September. We await your reply not later than 31 July. Yours sincerely, Minerva McGonagall, Deputy Headmistress."

Aiden slid the letter behind the next sheet and read off the items listed there. A wand! He was finally going to get his wand!

His mum looked at him, her face radiant with pride, as she said, "Well, Aiden, looks like a trip to Diagon Alley tomorrow!"

The next morning, they dressed and got ready to go, Aiden's list of supplies in a pocket of his new robe, another of his birthday gifts.

"Right then, the plan is to floo to the Leaky, have a bit of a nosh, then do some shopping with afters at Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour. Then we'll floo back home from the Leaky." His Nana informed them.

Aiden was in awe of Diagon Alley. He could see and feel magic everywhere! His head couldn't stop moving as he looked at all the wonderous sights. His family was secretly laughing as they watched his reaction.

On the way to Gringotts, his mum explained about the Goblins and that he'd learn more about them in the History of Magic class, if he could stay awake through it if Professor Binn's was still teaching it. Being a ghost, he probably was. Aiden found the goblins to be exactly as him mum had described them. They seemed very prickly but were polite enough in their own way if you were polite, yet firm, with them.

Aiden had never cared much for shopping. He'd been the type of guy to go in a store, buy what he needed, and then leave, not caring about trying to find the best deals or the right colors. But here in Diagon Alley, he was actually enjoying himself.

Aiden was almost jogging down the street, only held back because of his mum's tight grip on his hand. The only thing they had left to get was his wand and he was overcome with excitement.

"Aiden look, There's Magical Menagerie! Your acceptance letter says you can have a pet owl, cat, or toad. If you get an owl, you could send us letters without having to use the school owls."

"But Mum! I want to get my wand."

"Why don't we just go in to look and see what they have? Who knows, maybe you'll find something that tickles your fancy." His Nana said.

Aiden sighed and resigned himself to spending as little time as he could in the place. He'd always loved animals and wouldn't mind getting a pet, but he really wanted to get his wand. "Fine." He groused.

When they entered the shop, the first thing that hit him was the smell of many types of animals all mixed together. Aiden went right past the selection of toads, not interested in the least to own one of them. He paused by the owls that looked back at him and carefully regarded them, weighing which one he'd like to pick.

Then he felt a pull toward the back of the store. Looking toward where he felt the pull, he saw several different breeds of cats. There were even some that were a bit large, with huge ears and tails like lions. Aiden found himself walking to the back, looking in the different cages. Some of the large cats sat calmly and looked right back at him as if deciding if they wanted to choose him for a pet.

The pull led him to a cage in the corner on the bottom row. Inside was one of those cats with the large ears and lion's tails sitting toward the back. The cat was tiny, about the size of a normal cat, with midnight dark fur and tiny white specks scattered across its fur. The blue of its eyes reminded Aiden of a Siamese, but with what looked like more intelligence behind them.

Aiden knelt down and held his hand out against the cage. "Hey there pretty girl! Me family kinda forced me to come in here, but now I'm glad they did! I got to meet you! Were you the one that was pulling me?"

The cat looked at Aiden as if weighing his words. Then it rose up on all four feet and walked up to the front of the cage, sniffing at his hand. When the cat was done sniffing, Aiden stuck his fingers into the cage and the cat began rubbing its head against his fingers and begun to purr loudly.

"Aiden, Where? Oh, there you are! Why, bless my soul! It's a kneazle!" Aiden heard his granddad say.

"Is that what she is?" Aiden asked as he kept his attention on the kneazle that was still purring up a storm.

"How do you know it's a she?" A new voice asked.

Looking up from where he was, Aiden saw a young, dark-skinned lady standing with his family.

Aiden shrugged, "I just do. I can tell she likes me, and she's a little curious about me too."

"Well now, it seems that you've made a friend. I can give you a good price for her too. She's actually the runt of the litter and no one seems to want her since she doesn't have the traditional Kneazle coloring."

"Cobblers! She's gorgeous!" Aiden exclaimed in denial. Why wouldn't anyone want such a beautiful creature?

Aiden missed the look that passed between his family while his attention was on the lady, who's name turned out to be Celeste.

"Aiden? Do you want her?" His mum asked.

"Yes please!" Aiden cried out joyfully. The he felt something from his new friend and added, "And she wants to come with me!"

"Well, you'll have to fill out some paperwork as it's required by the Ministry, but for twelve galleons, she's yours!"

Aiden looked up excitedly at his mum and asked, "Please Mum?"

His mum smiled and said, "Of course. Let's take her home!"

Aiden was so happy when Celeste opened the cage and the cat walked right into his waiting hands. Picking her up, he held her close and began to pet her to the loud accompaniment of her purrs. The paperwork was quickly filled out and the galleons exchanged.

Walking out of Magical Menagerie, Nana asked him, "What are you going to name her Aiden?"

With one of the biggest grins they'd ever seen Aiden display, he answered, "Nyx, after the Greek goddess of night."

Aiden was so busy loving up on his new friend, that he almost missed the fact that they had finally arrived at the one store he'd been wanting so badly to get to, Ollivander's, Makers of Fine Wands since 382 B.C.

Finally entering the store, they walked up to the counter just as an elderly wizard came in from the back of the store. "Welcome to Ollivander's! I take it that young master Prewett is here for his first wand?" The Wizard stated, looking first at Aiden and then at the kneazle in his arms. The cat stared back for several seconds before gently pulling herself out of Aiden's arms and climbing up until she could lay across his shoulders, her eyes still on Ollivander.

Aiden's family knew that Kneazles were very intelligent, but it was Aiden that was the surprise, he didn't seem to find Nyx's behavior strange in any fashion. He may not be aware of it yet, but Aiden hadn't gotten a pet to take to Hogwarts, he'd gotten a familiar.

"Very well," Ollivander said, "let's find you your wand Mr. Prewett. It's the wand that picks the wizard Mr. Prewett, much like your familiar picked you."

Aiden turned his head slightly to be able to get a better look at Nyx, who calmly returned the look and started purring. Aiden grinned and nudged Nyx's head with his cheek.

For the next forty-five minutes or so, Mr. Ollivander handed Aiden numerous wands with various reactions; from exploding chairs and vases, even the windows of the shop cracking and falling to the pavement outside. Many of them were where Ollivander placed the want in his hand just to pull it out almost instantly. One of those made Aiden's hand sting and go numb for a short period of time.

Mr. Ollivander finally leaned back and stared at Aiden, who was starting to feel dejected. He'd been wanting a wand for a long time and now that he was in the middle of getting one, not one had chosen him.

"Don't worry Mr. Prewett, there's a wand for everyone. I wonder..." Mr. Ollivander said thoughtfully before turning and going into the back of the shop to come out a few minutes later with a black felt box covered in dust. Mr. Ollivander blew the dust off and started to open it when he stopped and looked at Aiden.

"I've been making wands for a very long time Mr. Prewett. In my youth, I would experiment with different woods and cores under my father's watchful eye in order to push the edges of my craft. I made this wand more than fifty years ago and I never thought that it would choose a witch or wizard, but this may just be the day."

Mr. Ollivander opened the case to reveal a dark colored wand, delicately carved so that the handle seemed to twist upon itself. Aiden saw the wand and his heart began to beat faster. He reached out and took the wand in hand and instantly felt an icy hot wave course through him. His shoulder length hair moved in a wind that none of the others felt, and sparks flew from the tip as if in celebration.

Ollivander seemed rather stunned at first before a smile spread across his face. "Blackthorn, nine and a half inches, decently springy, with a thestral tail core. I admit I'm a little surprised Mr. Prewett, that the wand seems to work so well for you already with such a core. But as I said, the wand chooses the wizard."

That night, as Aiden slept with Nyx curled up on his pillow next to his head, his new wand on the nightstand next to him, Aiden's family sat in the living room discussing the day's events. The major topic being Aidens wand and what the core meant for him.

"Well, Da? What were you able to find out?" Isabea asked as Brodie closed the tome regarding wands.

"Lass, I think ye need to sit down."

"Da, you're scaring me."

"Isa, do as your Athair says."

Isabeau nervously sat in one of the stuffed chairs next to the fireplace.

Brodie cleared his throat and then said. "Blackthorn wands tis the wand of a warrior. Tis the core that is a bit more difficult to explain. According to the tome, only those who have seen death can even see Thestrals themselves. Wands with those cores are deemed unstable... except for those witches and wizards that are able to face death."

Isabeau felt a cold chill run through her before she asked. "What? How? Why Aiden?"

"I don't know lass," Brodie said, "but it would seem that we were in error believing him destined for Ravenclaw."

"Gryffindor." Isabeau said is a low, shocked voice, terrified of what Aidens wand would mean for his future.

"Gryffindor." Her mum and dad echoed.

A/N: Okay, before people start yelling "OP! OP!" at Aiden using "wandless" magic, let me explain my reasoning. Aiden was an adult in his prior life that had joined the military and operated in the Special Forces. He learned and experienced many things before he was killed. So, he is already intellectually and emotionally mature, he's just not physically mature yet. His body isn't able to control magic without the use of a focus such as a wand (think "accidental" magic).

Second, in the first movie, Hermione stated that she was able to cast spells before arriving at Hogwarts. That means a couple of things: one, the need for a focus at a young age. Two, that the trace doesn't activate until they are at least at Hogwarts since there were no sudden letters threatening them about the use of underage magic.

This chapter was a bit long, but I wanted to get Aiden into Hogwarts in the next chapter. This had been the longest 'introductory' chapter(s) I've ever had in a story, but I wanted the background in place first.

I hope that everyone is enjoying this story. I will add more chapters as my muse directs. I was actually trying to finish the latest chapter of my Serendipity story when my muse directed me here.

Until next time,

Blessed Be

Speaks with Spirits