CHAPTER TWO
Initiation
On the outside, Harry was the picture of tranquillity.
He lay on a grassy hill, just a mile away from Brightstone House, underneath an early morning sky that was ablaze with pinks and reds. His eyes were lidded, as he was still rather sleepy, and his hands were folded comfortably across his chest. A light breeze swept across the grass, playing with his hair, but Harry didn't so much as twitch. He was hard at work on the inside.
He realised that he needed to be alone to properly practice his new sensory exercises after their brief stay in Australia and he'd convinced Nicolas of the same. His master had been surprised, as Harry had always preferred having him around during training for tips and guidance, but he'd left him to it without a word of complaint. Harry appreciated that, as he suspected that much like his success in Occlumency, he needed to be alone to achieve any initial success with Mage Sight.
He had chosen a time of day when he had nothing to do- even if it meant waking an hour earlier than he would've liked- and came to a part of the forest where he could be alone without distraction. When he first found the small hill, he thought it was a rather nice spot, especially as the winding river and overhanging trees reminded him of his secret spot behind St. Gregory's.
The concept he was working on now stemmed from that very thought.
It had been so much easier to do this when he was younger, and Harry suspected that almost two years of wand use had stunted his ability to access his own Mana without an amplifier. In fact, he'd begun to fear that he'd lost the ability altogether.
Harry was breathing slowly as thoughts of fire and the sensations that came with it flickered through his mind. What he was attempting was more difficult than Occlumency in a way, as he needed to focus both on how his body and mind felt at the same time.
Just as he'd done when he'd been nothing more than a ghost scraping a meagre existence in Little Whinging, Harry raised his right palm slightly and intensely focused on the images of fire in his mind.
A fire danced merrily in the fireplace, filling the airy Ravenclaw common room with heat. Orbs of blue flame floated around his bedroom, illuminating his textbooks as he studied late into the night. The aftermath of his Exploding Curse leaving out of control fire in his wake.
Warmth. Light. Danger.
A warm, almost nostalgic sensation came to life in his chest, and it grew with each passing memory. He thought of how the fire should be, warm but not hot, harmless even, and flickering against the light summer breeze. He could almost feel the warm sensation trickle autonomously down his arm, ready to ignite a burst of flames in the palm of his hand, but Harry gently halted it.
As he knew from a few days' worth of practice, he would lose track of the warm sensation if the fire came to life in his palm but, more importantly, he would lose track of its place of origin.
Slowly, as though he were afraid of spooking it, Harry followed the sensation back to its source and found what he was looking for somewhere that was both within him and outside of him at the same time. The source was an incredible well of power, one that was somehow both familiar and alien but was undeniably his.
For so long he had considered his Mana to be an invisible enemy, something that was holding him back from fulfilling his potential, but that wasn't true at all. Mana wasn't something he needed to struggle against, but a power that would reward his trust and practice with increased skill and control. He just needed to work on it.
Harry opened his eyes fully and smiled in triumph.
0-0-0-0-0-0-0
Susan visited her mother a lot that summer.
Harry's prediction of events had come true. The Aurors had helped relocate her mother and grandmother from their imposed isolation in The Ossuary to the supervised care provided by St. Mungo's. It wasn't the life she wanted for her mother, but she hadn't been left with any other choice.
Besides, it was better than what had happened to Agnes.
Her grandmother, already shaken due to the loss of her eldest son and his family during the Sixth Great Wizarding War, had not made a full recovery after being woken from her long sleep. A decade spent under the Draught of Living Death was hard for a healthy, young witch to bounce back from and it had been too much to ask from her.
Agnes Bones had been put to rest on the last day of June.
Much to Susan's frustration, Amelia had organised a small, quick funeral for her mother. Perhaps she felt betrayed that she had been duped by an imposter, or even guilty, but Susan felt it was no excuse for having a funeral with only two mourners.
"She wasn't your mother, Susan." Amelia had snapped. "You never even met the real her."
That had been a bitter pill to swallow.
Still, at least she had been able to meet with her friends afterwards, where she was immediately greeted by her brother's open arms.
True to form, Amelia had refused to join her in her regular visits to the hospital. Logically, Susan knew that it was too painful for Amelia to see her best friend in such poor condition, but she couldn't help but resent her aunt for the distance she had built between them, especially when her mother asked after her in both her lucid and deteriorating states.
Michael was not much help either. While the two of them were finding living together under Amelia's lacklustre care to be far smoother than she had initially expected, Michael remained fixated on keeping himself distant from anything Bones related. This was especially prevalent in how he resisted her efforts to have him join her in her visits to St. Mungo's. No matter how many times she tried to reassure him, he remained stubborn in the idea that her mother would resent seeing her husband's illegitimate child.
Susan thought she'd caught a lucky break when she bumped into Anthony in the Long-Term-Care Ward, and she managed to talk him into joining her for some hospital tea. But while Anthony had no shame in his father's condition (unlike her), she could also sense his need to be alone with him. So, she left him to his silent vigil at his father's bedside.
Desperate then, she turned to Megan for company, even though she was unsure if they were that close of friends. Fortunately, Megan had joined her at the hospital, and her presence gave her the strength to go through with the visit this time around. She was glad she did, as that first visit was picturesque due to her mother's lucidity, and she took pleasure in introducing her to a friend for the first time.
They spoke about school that sunny afternoon, as well as her mother's favourite Quidditch team, bands and Odeon shows, taking special care to avoid current events that could trigger another one of her episodes. It wasn't easy, especially when Sadie somehow directed the conversation to boys, which left her daughter red-faced and Megan doubled over in laughter, but Susan wouldn't change a single moment of that visit. It remained perfect in her mind.
Especially as the second visit left her dashing out of the room in tears, with Megan running after her.
Her eyes were still a little blurry when the tears finally stopped, and she felt a wave of shame slowly wash over her, both due to what her mother had said in her poor state and for how she had reacted to it. She let her gaze move through the room to avoid Megan's worried eyes, hoping to find something to distract her with, but when it finally settled on the newspaper someone had left in the waiting room, she only felt worse.
"You were so happy when we met up earlier," Megan said softly. "I should've known you couldn't have seen the paper yet."
Susan felt her stomach sink at that, and she wasn't even sure why. The news of her father's flimsy two-year sentencing had been printed on the front cover of almost every newspaper, so thousands or perhaps even millions of witches and wizards around the world had read it. It was stupid to think that Megan wouldn't be among that number. All her friends would be.
"He has friends everywhere," Susan said quietly. "He told me that often enough and tasked me with cultivating a similar sphere of influence."
Megan had placed her arm around Susan's shoulders for comfort, but now they tightened almost uncomfortably for a moment. "Parents should be the ones who protect us, but it seems like they're the ones who hurt us the most," Megan said darkly. "Even when they're not around. Especially then." She slowly shook her head, and the soft ends of her curly strands brushed against Susan's cheek. "We just have to be better than them."
Susan blinked. "Or better versions of them," she muttered, as she felt the inkling of an idea come to her but decided to save it for later. She could make an educated guess at what Megan was referring to and decided to focus on her for now. "How are things?" She asked, before adding tentatively, "With your mum?"
Megan grimaced and, for the first time, began to discuss her own family drama with someone other than her sister.
0-0-0-0-0-0-0
Harry had developed a habit of talking about the duels he'd seen at the World Cup in the weeks since their brief trip to Backe Waters. On one cool evening, as they ate dinner on the veranda, he went over the duel that had captured most of his attention for the umpteenth time.
"The fog turned out to be corrosive!" Harry waved his fork in the air for emphasis as he spoke, although for what he couldn't say. "-and then it turned out that he hid killer bees-"
"-in the flower petals." Maia sighed as she reached for the salad bowl. "We know. You've said." Harry's mouth snapped shut out of embarrassment, but she didn't seem to notice. "I don't know why you think that's so impressive. I could do that."
Nicolas hummed from across the table. "Of course, you could." He took no care to hide the doubt in his voice.
Maia narrowed her eyes at him. "I was an Auror Lieutenant, I am an Animagus-"
"Didn't James have to walk you through the process?" Remus asked.
"It's still impressive!" Maia insisted. "I was fourteen!"
Nicolas snorted. "I once knew a young witch who had accomplished the feat you're so proud of when she was only thirteen."
Maia looked back and forth between the two men, seemingly realising that they were teaming up to take the mickey out of her, but instead of tapping out, she turned to Harry. "You're not going to back me up?"
Harry shook his head. "I only back people up who listen to my stories without complaint." Even Maia laughed at that.
Harry really had been inspired by the Duelling World Cup though. His dedication to the Mana strengthening exercises and awakening his Mage Sight was beginning to pay off, as he could now sense his own magic and was learning to measure the individual costs of the spells he used on a daily basis.
Of course, it had taken him weeks just to wean himself from the lengthy exercise of summoning his power for a wandless bit of magic, only to halt it and follow it back to its source. While that had been fine just to get a grip on his own sensing abilities, it would be no use to him in any real-world context. It had been difficult at first, but he was now able to come into contact with his Mana Reserves almost instantaneously, as he'd grown used to the feeling of it.
Now all that remained was learning to control his output. However, that was easier said than done.
Upon initial contact, Harry had reflexively perceived his reserve as a well of enormous power, one that grew infinitesimally every day, so he decided to make that his foundation in his mind's eye. A well where the stone walls symbolised his body, which was the container, and the water symbolised his Mana, the precious resource that needed to be carefully measured.
During his usual strengthening exercise- where he would throw every spell he knew at the tree line to exhaust himself and grow his reserves ever larger- Harry took a brief break after each spell to examine the cost of it by analysing how much "water" it took to cast that single spell. It was a lot more than he would have liked.
Then came the interesting part. Harry would repeat the same spell, over and over again, while reducing the amount of Mana he put into it, and he only stopped when he noticed the spell's effects suffering for it. As Nicolas had said, he needed to know just how little Mana he could get away with using when it came to casting spells to keep hold of his power for longer periods of time.
Harry raised his wand again. "Incendio!" A jet of bright orange flames lit up the back garden on their way towards the tree line, where they were stopped by the Barrier Nicolas had erected to protect the forest from Harry's destruction.
After the forest fire he had started last summer, they didn't want to take any chances.
Harry lowered his wand, both pleased and displeased. On the one hand, he'd figured out just how little Mana he could use for the same intended result for his Fire-Making Spell, and he took care to leave a mental marker on the now-depleted stone walls of his well. But on the other hand, it had taken him an entire evening to figure it out. While he was normally fully healed, fed and beginning to rest by sunset, he'd only just finished figuring it out as midnight loomed.
Harry sighed. He knew he was going to have to do this over and over again with every spell he knew to turn it into second nature and something he could reliably use in real combat. But he wasn't too upset by this either, as he now had so much more power available to him than he had before.
0-0-0-0-0-0-0
Harry's thirteenth birthday party had a couple of unexpected guests.
The first arrived as he and the rest of his guests were busy swimming in the river that wove around Brightstone House. He'd been in an excellent mood until then, as Nicolas had surprised him at breakfast with a completely repaired Invisibility Cloak, which had been useless since they'd been ambushed in Camden.
Even more than that, Harry was beginning to get a feel for what birthday parties were all about. The presents were great and everything but having everyone he cared about in one place and knowing it was all for him was even better.
Harry had invited all the Ravenclaws in his year, every Marauder he knew- including the ones that had graduated- as well as Hagrid and Terry's cousin Callum (who was spending the summer with his cousins and would have been rude to not invite).
"How do you know all of them anyway?" Lisa asked. "You've never struck me as a social butterfly."
"Hmm?" Harry asked, distracted by the glossy sheen of her purple toenails. "Oh, most of us met through Quidditch, and the rest are friends of friends."
The two sat on the grassy riverbank, allowing the scorching sun to dry their skin after growing bored with the tyre swing Eddie and Maria had fashioned. Neither had been tempted to join Fred, George and Lee in their increasingly daring dives from whatever high surface they could fashion.
While the others were busy playing around in the water, Harry was struggling to keep his attention away from Lisa's bare legs and on her words instead. He was saved from this losing battle when someone called his name.
"Happy birthday, Harry!" Cedric called as he walked over to them across the grass. "Sorry, we're late! It took ages for her to get ready." As she was walking alongside him, Eliza was able to elbow him as soon as the words came out of his mouth. "Okay, it took ages for me to get ready." He corrected. Harry found that easier to believe.
Cedric was too polite to forgo making chit-chat with the host before enjoying a party, so he and Eliza sat down beside them on the grass. But Harry found it difficult to focus on what Cedric was saying as Eliza stared at him unblinkingly. "What?" he finally demanded, interrupting Cedric halfway through his retelling of a dark wizard that had been selling cursed toys to Muggle children.
"Do you still want to duel me?" She asked abruptly. Cedric sighed, while Harry and Lisa only stared.
"Why?" He thought he had an inkling, but he needed to hear it from her before he answered.
"I didn't know you were being trained by a Sage." Eliza was regarding him differently than she had before, as though he was finally worth her time. "I would have accepted your challenge if you'd told me that," she said accusingly.
Harry was annoyed and he wasn't even sure why. Maybe because she thought he wasn't good enough to be a rival on his own merits? Whatever the reason, he managed to keep his cool when he gave his answer. "Not right now," he said calmly. "When school starts up again-" He stopped speaking when Eliza got up and walked away as soon as she heard the word "now". He watched as she headed for the shade underneath the nearest tree.
Cedric made a noise of exasperation. "Sorry about her," he said as he climbed to his feet. "The reason I bring her to get-togethers is to force her to socialise." He tried to make it sound like a joke, but it was clear that there was a kernel of truth to it. Harry and Lisa watched as he joined Eliza underneath the tree and tried to speak to her, but she remained stubbornly silent.
"That was intense," Lisa said at last.
Harry raised his eyebrows. "Was it?" It had just seemed awkward to him.
Lisa was incredulous. "They're the two top duellists at Hogwarts," she said slowly, as though she were explaining a simple concept to a dim-witted child. "Two-thirds of the Triumvirate right there, and one of them tried to start a fight with you."
Harry smiled. "Yeah, but I'm a Sentinel too."
Lisa smirked. "Ranked twelve, though. Couldn't even crack the Top Ten."
Harry gasped with outrage that he didn't truly feel. "So that's how it is, yeah?" He poked her in the side, causing her to yelp. They both froze: Harry because he found her weakness, and Lisa because she hoped he wouldn't notice if she failed to react. "You're ticklish?" He asked innocently.
"Harry, no," Lisa warned. "Don't you dare-" But she was cut off as he began to tickle her in earnest, causing her to burst out in involuntary laughter. "Stop!" She wheezed.
"You have to say, "I'm a great duellist and I'm easily Triumvirate material" before I stop." Harry threw down his terms, thinking she wouldn't be able to get the word "triumvirate" out through her giggles.
"I'm a g-great duellist and I'm easily T-triumvirate material." Lisa wheezed, technically meeting his conditions.
Harry grudgingly stopped his tickles. "Not the way I meant it, but I'm a man of my word." He smiled at her. "Well played."
"Thank you." Lisa smiled back at him from where she lay on the grass, her face pink from laughter and her chest rising and falling as she fought to catch her breath. Only then did Harry realise he was still leaning over her. He noticed how her shining eyes flickered down to his lips before meeting his. Without thinking, he leaned down and-
"Harry?"
Harry and Lisa jumped away from each other. It was clear he wasn't the only one who'd forgotten they weren't alone. Looking up, he saw Susan and Megan walking towards them.
Lisa narrowed her eyes and stood up. "I feel like taking another dip." She brushed past the Hufflepuff duo without another word.
Harry groaned and slumped back onto the grass. "Her too?"
Susan grimaced. "I tried apologising, but she wasn't interested."
Harry shook his head. "Considering how many people hate your guts, I would've thought being a bully was your full-time job." He regretted the words as soon as they left his mouth as Susan looked genuinely hurt. Megan spoke before he could apologise.
"We don't know where the bathroom is," she said evenly.
Harry nodded and climbed to his feet. He would have told her to ask one of the adults once they got inside, but he could understand how asking an ex-convict, an immortal, and your Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor for directions to the loo would feel awkward at best.
As they made their way to the house, he tried to apologise. "Sorry about that. I know you're trying to be a better person, it's just-"
"We interrupted you when you were about to have a snog?" Susan asked cheekily, and she and Megan descended into wild laughter at his mortified expression.
"We weren't-" He cut himself off from an obvious lie. "Do you have to phrase it like that?" They kept laughing, so Harry changed the topic to something he needed to discuss with her anyway. "Have you given any more thought to enlisting with us?"
"Are the Auror Corps paying you for recruitment or something?" Susan asked. "I've already said no."
"I know, but you have just as much reason as the rest of us to fight." Harry countered. "I would have thought you'd have been the first to say yes considering how much you hate Death Eaters."
Susan paused before responding. "I think I know exactly what I want to do with my life, and it's not being an Auror."
Harry was surprised. He glanced at Megan only to find a knowing look in her eyes. "Well? Don't keep me in suspense."
Susan opened her mouth, before closing it again. Finally, she said, "Ask me again when we get back to school. I'll have a more concrete plan by then."
Harry briefly wondered if she was just playing him and trying to wait out the rest of the summer so the enlisting deadline would pass before revealing that she had no alternative plan. But then he decided it was her life and she could do what she wanted with it. "I'll hold you to that," he said, as he opened the kitchen door and walked right into an uneasy atmosphere.
On one side of the kitchen, Remus was speaking with both Hestia- who'd brought Megan- and Professor Vector (Harry wasn't even sure when she'd arrived or who'd invited her). On the other side, Hagrid was busy catching up with Maia.
It was only Nicolas, who was sitting beside Maia but kept flitting his gaze between her and Hestia, that let Harry know the tension was coming from the two of them.
We know each other from school. That was what Remus had said when he first introduced Hestia to him. Had she and Maia held onto an unresolved grudge since then?
Megan touched his arm, snapping him out of increasingly wild theories as to what his godmother and Healing Professor could be fighting about. "The bathroom?" She reminded him.
"Oh. Yeah." He'd forgotten why they'd come inside. Harry led them through the kitchen and to the hallway where the downstairs toilet was. Susan went in first, and he started to guide Megan toward the stairs. "We've got another one upstairs if you don't want to wait-"
"No, that's fine." She waved him off. "I don't need to go anyway."
Harry stared at her for a moment before it clicked. "She didn't want to confront Lisa alone then?"
Megan nodded. "From hanging around Susan, I've learned that most people are willing to let the past go, but your girlfriend knows how to hold a grudge."
Harry grunted. Lisa had ignored him for most of their second year. "Tell me about it." As they stood there, awkwardly waiting for Susan to finish her business, his mind drifted back to the weird vibe he'd gotten from the adults. "You have any idea what that was about?" He asked. "Back in the kitchen, I mean?"
Megan shrugged uncomfortably. "Sorry, but Septima is the jealous type, apparently."
"What?" Harry felt like he was missing a few things. "Who's Septima?"
Megan rolled her eyes. "Professor Vector."
Harry grimaced. "I don't like having her in my home." He admitted. "You know, she never apologised for trying to get me expelled-" He stopped when Megan's words finally registered. "Wait. Jealous?" He sucked in a breath when he remembered how Nicolas appeared to be having the time of his life as he observed both Maia and Hestia. "Maia and Hestia were a thing? Hestia and Vector are a thing?" He felt like his brain was about to melt from the sudden information.
Megan looked at him with wide eyes. "You didn't know?" When Harry shook his head, she clamped down on his arm with both hands. "Don't tell anyone." She half-threatened, half-pleaded. "If it gets out-"
"-they'll probably lose their jobs or something equally as stupid." Harry finished. Way back, when he still considered Robert Hillard a friend, the older boy had told him much the same. "The Wizarding World isn't much better than the Muggle one in that way, is it?"
"Not in a lot of ways," Megan said, her hands still squeezing his arm. "Promise me you won't tell anyone."
"I promise," Harry assured her. "I hate Vector's guts, but I wouldn't sink so low. No one will hear about it from me."
Megan relaxed and let go of his arm. "I thought you'd be in the know and we could speak about it together if we had to." When Harry looked confused, she elaborated, "Your godmother? I thought she would have told you."
Harry blinked. He only now realised that when Maia had spoken about her dating history, she'd taken great care to avoid details. Like genders, he thought humorously. She hadn't lied, but she went out of her way to omit details that would have made the truth obvious. Why? Because she didn't know how he would react?
Before he could come to a conclusion, Susan rejoined them and the three returned to the party outside.
Later, once presents had been opened and everyone was lounging around in the early evening sun, Harry wandered over to Cedric with a folded piece of parchment. "It came with a note," he said as he handed him the brand-new Marauder's Map. "It said "heard you kids needed another one" or something. It burst into flames as soon as I read it."
Earlier that day, before the first of his guests had arrived, his godfather had given him a brand-new Marauder's Map to replace the one they'd lost a few months ago. Both he and Maia had been surprised to learn that The Marauders were still going. They'd been certain that the teachers had discovered the group and shut them down during the intervening years. Maia had been excited at the idea of introducing herself as Padfoot, but Remus had put his foot down.
"It would undermine me," he argued. "How can my students take me seriously as an authority figure if they find out what we used to get up to?"
He was right. Remus had always been a serious man in Harry's eyes, but he was now unable to look at him in the same way. One day, when he returned from his morning swim, Remus tried to tell him off for dripping water all over the floor.
"I can't take you seriously as an authority figure now that I know what you used to get up to!" Harry called back as he fled upstairs. Remus had only groaned in despair.
To keep their secret, Harry had been told to present the new Map as a gift from the original (and seemingly omnipotent) Marauders. "I mean, how else would they have known about the old Map being destroyed?" Harry asked when Remus protested his use of the word omnipotent. "If that's your story, Remus, then you need to stick to it."
Cedric was clearly suspicious, but he was also too happy to question it right now. "Honestly, the number of detentions these idiots were getting was starting to worry me." He jerked his thumb at the Fifth Year crowd, where Maria and George were competing to see who could fit the most moving Chocolate Frogs in their mouths while Fred, Lee and Eddie egged them on. "They're not used to wandering around the castle after hours without this."
Later, after night had fallen and Remus served his now traditional sticky ginger and treacle cake, the guests departed one by one. When they'd all left, Maia asked Harry to join her in the garage. "Oh, leave the cleaning up to us then?" Nicolas complained.
Harry rolled his eyes. "You're both wizards. I think you'll be fine." Remus seemed interested in what Maia wanted as well and he followed them to the garage.
"Are you serious? I'm supposed to do this all by myself?" Nicolas called after them.
"You have an Automaton!" Harry shouted back.
"I know that!" Nicolas bellowed after them. "But it's the principle of the matter!" All he got in response was their chuckles.
"So, what's up?" Harry asked when they made it to the garage.
Maia smiled back at him as she opened the door. "I just wanted to give you your present."
"You didn't have to get me anything," Harry said unconvincingly. Even though he'd received more presents today than he had collectively in his entire life, he'd still been a little disappointed to not find Maia's gift among them.
"Uh huh," Maia said doubtfully. "I just wanted everyone to leave before I gave it to you. I haven't had the papers filed yet with the Department for Muggle Artifices."
Remus pinched his nose as though his worst fears had been realised. "Maia, tell me you didn't."
Maia ignored him and gestured toward the motorbike they'd finished enchanting a couple of days ago. "Here you are then, Harry. Happy birthday."
It took him a few moments to understand and when he finally did, he still couldn't believe it. "You're giving me a motorbike for my thirteenth birthday?" He wanted to remind her in case she got the years muddled up in Azkaban.
"Yes," Maia said smugly. And why wouldn't she be smug? She had just given him the best gift ever.
"Maia, he can't fly a motorbike." Remus groaned.
"Why not?" Maia asked indignantly. "If he can fly a broom, he can fly a bike." That was a sentence Harry was certain no one had ever said before. "Besides, I'm not an idiot. I've already taught him how to build and maintain it, so now I'll teach him how to drive and fly it."
"I thought it was for you," Harry said after Remus left the garage with his hands thrown into the air. "To replace the one that was destroyed."
Maia shrugged. "I've already got one on the way for myself. I want you to have this one."
Harry smiled as he stepped forward and ran his hand along the side of the bike. "I'm looking forward to you teaching me, you know." It was true. He thought there was something nice about his godfather teaching him to ride a bicycle and his godmother a motorbike. That gave him an idea. "I'm going to call it Hugo II."
Maia didn't even blink at the bizarre name. "You can call it whatever you want." She put her arm around his shoulders and hugged him. "And I'm looking forward to it too."
Harry smiled cautiously up at her. Even though it risked ruining the moment, he felt that this was the best time for it. "So…you and Hestia?" He felt her stiffen against him, so he quickly added, "Must have been awkward seeing her again, but you know what they say, always more fish in the sea." The tension left her just as quickly as it had arrived.
"Yeah, I suppose," Maia snorted. "It's just a bit awkward is all. We were together for so long, and then…" her eyes grew distant, as though she were lost in memory. "Well, it was silly of me to expect her to not find anyone else."
Harry was a little conflicted. He was glad that she felt comfortable enough to be so open with him but felt terrible for bringing her turmoil back to the surface. "If it makes you feel any better, Vector is an absolute cow."
Maia perked up. "Yeah?"
Harry nodded enthusiastically. "She tried to get Dumbledore to expel me during the whole Chamber of Secrets fiasco, and she kept telling her Slytherin students to avoid me. Everyone took the idea of me being the Heir of Slytherin more seriously with a teacher bad-mouthing me." He scowled as just the memory was enough to irritate him a little. "She never even apologised for it."
"What a bitch." Maia smiled, seemingly happy to have a justifiable reason to hate her ex's new partner, and Harry was more than happy to give it to her. Vector was the worst.
0-0-0-0-0-0-0
Days after his birthday, Harry was back at the same hill, staring up at the pink, early morning sky through lidded eyes.
If anyone asked, he was focusing on decreasing the amount of time it took for him to access and activate his Mage Sight. In reality, he'd simply come to enjoy the hour he spent outside before breakfast. No exercises. No studying. Just nothing at all. Dedicating even just a little time to doing nothing felt oddly wonderful.
Harry was jerked out of his lethargic state by the sudden squawking of hundreds of birds. They had taken flight from their nests, fleeing from something massive. Something that was headed his way.
Its size was only known to him by the increasingly heavy tremors in the ground. Unfortunately, the birds seemed confused about which direction to flee in, as there was more than one interloper, and they seemed to be coming from multiple directions.
He was surrounded.
Harry shot to his feet and summoned his newly repaired Invisibility Cloak, throwing the hood over his head just as the first of them came into view.
It was a colossal earthen golem, at least fifty feet tall and half as wide. To enter the clearing, it had to push several trees out of its path, most of them snapping from the strain that was put upon them. To make matters worse, it wasn't alone, as three more emerged from the forest from all four cardinal directions, blocking his escape.
Harry narrowed his eyes. It was a good thing he was on a hill.
"Confringo! Expulso! Reducto!" Harry wasn't entirely sure what was going on, but on the off chance he was in any real danger, he made sure not to hold back for even a second and immediately let loose with his most destructive spells. Not that it did him much good. The golems didn't even slow down as bits of their bodies were blown away.
Needing to buy himself some time, Harry spun on the spot and cast, "Silano!" A wave larger than any he'd conjured before crashed down on all sides of the hill towards the golems. "Glacius!" He added, and the crashing waves turned into massive walls of ice that separated him from his attackers.
Harry took a breath and tried to think of an escape route, but just as he was wishing that he owned a broomstick so he could summon it and get the hell out of there, the ice wall was obliterated on all sides by simultaneous blows from the golems. "You've got to be joking," Harry muttered. "Accio! Alarte Ascendare!"
He decided to go with his broomstick idea anyway, only sans the broomstick. He leapt onto a summoned chunk of ice and- with the Enchanted Flying Spell- flew it toward Brightstone House.
If I make it home, I'll be safe, he told himself. Nicolas will take care of it, and I can-
His thoughts cut off as things went from bad to worse.
Harry wasn't sure what had alerted him, perhaps it was the whistle of air or a shadow as the sun was momentarily blocked, but he was suddenly aware of an incoming projectile. He glanced back in time to see a piece of ice larger than his bed hurtling towards him.
"What the actual-?!" Harry swore as he threw himself off his flying chunk of ice. He didn't have enough time to blow up the incoming projectile without risking serious injury. Unfortunately, the ice-turned-missile had been thrown with such force that it shattered both itself and the flying block he'd been riding, battering him with ricocheting fragments of various sizes.
This wouldn't normally be a problem as he could take a little pain, but one chunk struck his wrist which caused his hand to spasm, and he dropped his wand as he fell a hundred feet out of the sky.
Wand! Harry demanded silently from his Ouroboros as he fell through the air. Give me my wand!
He felt his Ouroboros burn against his skin, and something dark from the corner of his eye darted towards him, but it was too late. The ground was already here.
Harry had just enough time to realise that an immediate death was the most likely outcome from the height he'd fallen. He was almost grateful that it would end quickly, and he wouldn't have to suffer when he hit the ground.
Only he didn't die.
The ground swallowed him, taking the force of his momentum like a trampoline, before throwing him back into the air. The cycle repeated a few times until he finally settled on the unnaturally springy earth. Harry's first thought was that he'd somehow saved himself through accidental magic, but as he looked around the clearing, he noted that the golems had vanished and the destruction they'd caused had been repaired.
If it wasn't me, then- Harry's thoughts were cut off by the sound of clapping echoing around the eerily still clearing.
"Well done!" Nicolas called as he strode over the hill to where Harry was still sitting on the spongy ground. "I knew under the right conditions you would-" Nicolas stopped talking as Harry scrambled to his feet and slashed his wand through the air.
"Waddiwasi!" The closest pieces of ice that had fallen around him were suddenly launched at Nicolas by the Projectile Jinx, forcing him to draw his wand in a hurry to block it with a Shield Charm.
Nicolas dropped the shield when the last of the shattered ice fell at his feet. He started to ask, "What are you-?" but stopped when Harry punched him in the stomach with all his strength.
"Are you out of your fucking mind?!" Harry roared. "What is the matter with you?!"
"What?" Nicolas wheezed, doubled over from the unexpected blow. His pain earned him no sympathy from Harry, who was contemplating kicking him to the ground. "I just wanted to see how your Mage Sight was coming along."
"What do you…?" Harry trailed off. He realised that he'd only seen the incoming ice missile by sensing the Mana that had first created it. His own. "You could have just told me you were testing me!"
Nicolas waved his wand over his abdomen, before standing straight again. "You've never had a problem with surprise tests."
"I never thought I was about to die in those surprise tests!" Harry scowled. "I dropped my wand, and I was falling-"
"I was always going to catch you," Nicolas assured him.
"But I didn't know you were here!" Harry breathed deeply, trying to calm himself down. "I thought I was under attack."
Nicolas scoffed. "My defences are impenetrable."
"I'm not willing to bet my life on that," Harry said darkly. "I can't afford to." He couldn't believe it had taken a surprise attack from four giant golems for him to realise he'd grown too comfortable here. Brightstone House was the only place in the world where he hadn't been attacked or treated with disdain, so he'd come to think of it as a haven. It was a shock to have that ripped away from him.
Nicolas' expression softened, and he raised his hands. "I'm sorry. From now on I'll be sure to warn you before I attack."
Harry's lips twitched involuntarily. "That's all I ask."
Nicolas tried to return his smile but grimaced when he noticed Harry's still shaking hands. "Why don't we skip physical training today and go over a more rational way of developing your new sensory ability?"
Harry nodded. He was so shaken by what had just occurred- especially the moment when he'd accepted his own death- that he didn't even raise a protest at being coddled. "Sounds good to me."
0-0-0-0-0-0-0
The very next day, Harry was abruptly awoken by an annoyed squawk in his ear.
He shot out of bed so fast that he got tangled in his sheets and tumbled to the floor. Glancing up, he saw his smug owl perched on his headrest with a roll of parchment attached to his leg. "What the hell, Argos?" He groaned as he struggled to untangle himself. "You couldn't have waited until I was awake?" Argos thrust out his leg dutifully, letting Harry know that he'd been instructed to give him this letter as soon as possible.
Not trusting the mercurial owl's judgement on who was and wasn't trustworthy, Harry hit the parchment with all the revealing spells he knew, but it came up clean from any magic. Summoning it over to himself, he unfurled the parchment and quickly read the instructions within, eyes narrowing as he did so.
It was still early in the day, even by his standards, and while Nicolas could be found in his laboratory whenever the sun was coming up, his godparents enjoyed a nice lie-in every morning. Not wanting to disturb them, Harry left Brightstone House without telling anyone.
He would almost immediately come to regret that decision.
"Any idea what this is about?" Harry asked the moment he saw the others. He'd arrived at the London Citadel as soon as possible, just as the letter instructed. After examining his wand licence, an on-duty Sentry had guided him to the massive gardens that bordered the hedge maze. There, he found that he was the last to arrive, as Anthony, Terry, and Michael were already waiting.
"Not a clue," Terry grumbled. "But for how early they made us get up, it had better be important."
"At least you two had an easy journey." Michael yawned. "Try taking The Knight Bus first thing in the morning."
"I think you'll find that I had the worst journey." Harry pointed out. "The Knight Bus doesn't work over water, so I had to Floo to The Leaky Cauldron and then take The Knight Bus."
Anthony snorted. "That makes me feel a lot better actually. Thanks." Harry was about to respond with something rude when an unfamiliar voice made them all whirl around.
"If you're all done yammering, we can get started." The speaker was a young woman of diminutive height, with short blonde hair and delicate features that contrasted heavily with the deep scowl and Auror uniform she wore. When none of the boys made to move, she prodded them along. "You will line up and stand at attention when a superior officer addresses you."
Awkwardly, the boys did so, with Harry and Michael watching Terry and Anthony to learn how to do it properly. Harry noticed that the positioning of their arms revealed both their hip holsters and Ouroboroses, allowing their superiors to see both their weapon and their threat level at the same time.
When she stepped forward to inspect and forcibly correct their stances, Harry realised that she was even smaller up close, smaller than any of them bar Terry.
"I am Captain Alexandra Solace," she said when she was finally satisfied with their stances. "I will be your Squad Leader." Harry had never heard of her before, but from their minute reactions, it was obvious that Terry and Anthony had. "I have not accepted this role out of any desire to teach. As you might know, a newly minted Captain must guide a team of Cadets through their five years of training before they can even be considered candidates for command over a Citadel. This is just a formality for me."
Lovely, Harry thought sourly. A teacher that doesn't want to teach.
"Now, it's your turn to introduce yourselves." She looked at them each in turn, and when none of them spoke, she urged them again. "Tell me your name and why you want to enlist in the Corps." She pointed at Michael. "You first."
Harry couldn't see Michael's face from where he was still standing at attention, but he could imagine the sour look he was wearing at being addressed first. "Michael Corner," he said firmly. "I want to be an Auror so I can arrest my mother if she ever comes after me again." Harry was impressed that he didn't try to avoid the elephant in the room and, judging by Captain Solace's considering look, he wasn't the only one.
Anthony was next. "I want retribution." He said this just as boldly as Michael had. "But I don't want to break the law doing it." Solace looked far less surprised now. She stared silently at Anthony for much longer than she had at Michael.
Then she turned to Harry. "You."
After his friends had been so open with their desires, Harry decided not to hold back with his. "I want to become Magister of the ICW." He stated bluntly. He could feel the weight of his friends' eyes upon him. "You need to serve in the Corps for at least ten years to even qualify for eligibility." He couldn't resist adding, "This is just a formality for me."
Solace twitched at his cheek. "Oh? You don't want to hunt down Death Eaters like your friends?"
Harry forced himself not to shrug. "I can't become Magister if they take over so of course I'll have to fight them. I thought that went without saying." For some reason, this seemed to exasperate her.
"Now that we all know why we're here-"
"What about me?" Terry interrupted.
Solace was so surprised she didn't even reprimand him for speaking out of turn. "I thought this was a familial obligation for you. The London Citadel has been under the command of the Boot family for three generations."
Terry shook his head. "I'm here because I want to look out for my friends," he said quietly, as though embarrassed to admit this in front of them. "They're going to be fighting with or without me, so I'll feel better if I had their backs."
"So, this has nothing to do with your family?" Solace asked doubtfully.
"Of course, it does." Terry's voice was firm now. "They're a part of my family."
"Oh." For the first time, Captain Solace's scowl disappeared. Everything else that had been said likely fell within her expectations, but Terry's response had not. However, she snapped back into her original state so quickly that Harry almost thought he'd imagined the whole thing. "When I give you Initiates an order, you will follow it. Do not ever question me. From now on, your lives will be in my hands."
Harry didn't like the way she said "from now on" but he didn't want to speak out of turn.
Again, Terry had no such concerns. "What do you mean from now on?" He asked. "It's August."
Solace narrowed her eyes at him. "You will go home when I say you can go home." She turned on her heel and walked towards the Citadel gates. "Follow me." They all stared after her.
"What about our stuff?!" Terry yelled at her back.
"You have your wands, don't you?" She shouted back, and Harry could detect the slightest bit of mischief in her voice. "What more do you need?"
The four boys glanced at each other before hurrying after her.
This isn't exactly an auspicious start.
Author's Notes:
I'm not sure if I've gone into Auror Corps rankings before, but I'll explain it here just in case. From lowest ranked to highest (you don't have to read this. You can pick this up from context in the story):
Initiates: Third Years who got thirteen outstanding WOMBATs are the only ones who qualify. If they earn their captain's approval and pass the standard test of ability, the move on to Cadet. If they fail, they're kicked out and have to try again after they get at least five NEWTs. They only get one chance.
Cadet: The lowest ranked official Aurors. They're basically assistants to a Captain who doesn't have their own Citadel. It's a five year course (from Third Year to Seventh) and they shadow their squad leader in their work and mostly learn from real world experience. They're not allowed to go on missions without their captain and any action they see is low stakes, as Cadets are a prized group. Because of their talent, they're treated as the future leaders of the Auror Corps. Because of their age, Cadets are the only official rank that is allowed to leave at any time, or opt out of missions.
Sentry: Lowest ranked and most common of the "real" Aurors. They do most of the menial work, such as guarding and patrols. They operate in squads, but the most talented of them are allowed to work in pairs or even alone as long as they report back to their S.O.
As a reward, Cadets who reach this rank are given a five year journey period where they can serve in any Citadel they want in the world, a year in each one in order to learn about various dark creatures and wizard cultures. They can only leave the corps after their yearly contract has timed out and have to take any job given to them before then. Many stay in this rank for their entire careers.
Lieutenant: Second in command in most Citadels and leaders of Sentry squads. Only skilled and reliable Aurors are promoted this far and this is treated as a testing ground for future leaders.
Captain: This rank is almost divided in two. Lieutenants that have proven themselves are promoted and given a Cadet squad to teach. If they manage to get all squad members to the rank of Sentry alive and well, then they are promoted. Those that manage this are given their own Citadels to command (or are put on the wait list for when a position opens up).
Commander: The leader of all the Aurors in a country and the commanding officer of the capital city Citadel. Anything Dark Magic related in his nation is his business and they, along with the Chief Warlock (head of courts) and Minister of Magic are the countries representatives in the Coalition (ICW government).
General: The five most powerful soldiers of the Auror Corps. Each of them watches over the former territories of the Wizarding Empires that used to exist before the Confederacy. Every Commander in their territory reports directly to them, and though they move from Citadel to Citadel, they tend to favour either the biggest one under their control or the one they used to work at. For example, the General of Europe and west Asia currently prefers the Berlin Citadel. They report directly to the Magister.
Magister: Supreme Commander of the Auror Corps. As long as an Auror reaches the rank of Sentry and has served for ten years, their eligible to be nominated for the ballot. Every adult witch and wizard can vote for the Magister in the election that happens every decade (wizards have longer lives so their time in office is longer than Muggle governments). Despite this, it's a precedent for only Sages to be put forward, as only the most powerful witch or wizard of the age is chosen in order to intimidate any aspiring dark sorcerers.