Well, this one comes from a rather bizarre hybrid of two of whitetigerwolf's challenges, the 'Tamaran Contract' challenge and the 'Potter/Trinity' challenge. I wanted to do a story pairing Harry with Kara Zor-El (Supergirl, in other words) in the style of megamatt09, and I wanted to do a story pairing Harry with Koriand'r, aka Starfire. This story will do both. It's also going to have no Dumbledore-bashing either: I'll be honest, I'm a little tired of writing Dumbledore-bashing fics for the moment.
The phrase is not Latin, but Italian, coming from Dante Aligheri's Divine Comedy, and means 'born to soar', an apt description of Kara and Kori's powers.
EDIT (22/7/2017): I've decided I'm not going forward with this version of the fic. Another fic under the same name, with a strict Harry/Kori pairing (no Kara) and set during Year 5, will be worked on and published in The Cauldron. Watch this space...
PER VOLA SU NATA (ORIGINAL)
CHAPTER 1:
THE WITCH, THE WIZARD, AND THE KRYPTONIAN
On the grounds of Hogwarts, near the outskirts of the Forbidden Forest, a pair of teenagers were waiting. One, a glasses-wearing boy of about fifteen, with messy dark hair and emerald eyes, a lightning bolt-shaped scar zig-zagging out from beneath his fringe. The other, a bushy-haired girl of about the same age, perhaps older, with a bossy demeanour. "I still don't get why we're out here, after curfew," the girl said as she set up privacy charms.
"Hermione…I trust you. You're my friend. I thought Ron was too, but…well, he wouldn't understand this, even if he wasn't jealous. He might blab."
"But why the big secret? I know you've known this Kara girl since you ran into her a year ago. And you went on a vacation with her before the Weasleys picked you up from the Dursleys. Not to mention that laptop…seriously, I didn't think WayneTech had a laptop shielded against magic. I'm grateful you managed to get another one for me, mind, but still…why?"
"You'll see," Harry said. "I was surprised when I learned of this too."
"But she's a Muggle. How would she know where Hogwarts is?"
"Like I said before, Hermione, she has her secrets. She's not a Muggle per se, anyway."
"How right you are."
The voice nearly had Hermione leap into the air, not least because it came from above them. She looked up, and couldn't help but stare. After all, it wasn't every day that one saw a teenaged girl flying right above them, all but silhouetted against the star-speckled sky. Okay, they were in Hogwarts, but the girl wasn't even riding a broom.
She seemed to be dressed in a blue and red long-sleeved leotard, with red boots and a red cape(1). Across her chest was emblazoned a symbol, what looked like a stylized 'S' in a wedge-like frame. Blonde hair framed stunningly beautiful features, which were currently set in an amused smirk as she gently floated down, landing in front of them. Harry and the newcomer promptly embraced, even kissing briefly.
After a moment, Hermione, struggling not to scream in surprise or astonishment, managed to get her brain into working condition once more. "Okay, I think I'm insane now," she said quietly. "I did not just see you kiss Supergirl."
"You're not insane, Hermione," Harry said gently. "This is really Supergirl."
Kara stepped forward, and gently shook Hermione's hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you. Harry's told me a lot about you. If you wish, you may call me Kara."
"Kara?" Hermione asked.
"My full name…well, back home," she said, her face falling at the reminder, "it was Kara Zor-El. Supergirl's just what the press dubbed me, because Superman's my cousin. We're amongst the few survivors of Krypton."
Hermione nodded. "It's a pleasure to meet you too, Kara. Sorry about that, it's just that I've never met a superhero before, never mind one of the Titans."
"Well, most of us are in the US," Kara said. She looked over at Harry. "Anyway, you said in our last chat before I could arrange a time that you'd been pressganged into some tournament they're holding. I couldn't come here sooner because we were having trouble with a certain mercenary."
"Deathstroke?"
"Yeah. Plus, Kori's still settling in." On Hermione's look, Kara clarified, "That's Starfire. Her name's Koriand'r, and she's a Tamaranean. Nice girl, very nice, but a bit clueless when it comes to Earth things. I picked up things somewhat quicker than she did, though admittedly, I had my cousin's help."
"Hey, when we first met, you were still stumbling over your English," Harry said. "Not to mention avoiding your cousin and his parents."
"And you were staying as much out of your house as you could because of that aunt of yours," she said, folding her arms underneath her chest.
"Yeah, but at least your relatives care about you," Harry retorted.
Kara sighed, conceding the point. "True. Anyway, what seems to be the problem?"
Harry then began to explain his problems, in brief. About a week ago, there was the selection of chosen representatives of three wizarding schools to compete in the Tri-Wizard Tournament. A fourth Champion, however, unexpectedly came out of the Goblet of Fire: Harry's name. Supposedly, he was obligated to compete via magical contract.
Most of the school believed that somehow, Harry had cheated his way in, including his supposed best friend, Ron. Dumbledore and Professor Moody believed that someone else had entered Harry's name, but they were in the minority, along with Hermione. And the only information Harry had about the upcoming First Task was that he needed to face it alone, with only his wand.
Kara leaned against a nearby tree. "Well, you're in a pickle, and no mistake, Harry. Though you haven't told us much that we haven't found out already. When Constantine told me, he did some digging around, and so did Zatanna. Sad thing is, you need to be a really powerful wizard to trick an artifact like the Goblet of Fire. What's more, the Goblet would probably make a contract to you based on intent. So, while you may not have intended to enter this, whoever entered you intended to do so. This is pretty old and powerful magic, apparently: neither Constantine or Zatanna want to touch that with a ten-foot pole. Tampering with it the wrong way could rob you of your magic, if not outright kill you. Or level Hogwarts."
"What about Raven?" Hermione asked. "I thought she was a witch herself."
"Wrong kind of magic, Hermione," Kara said patiently, before looking back at Harry. "That being said, if you want, I can have you brought over to Jump City so that you can train with us on weekends, as long as there's no missions. Raven may not use your type of magic, but she can help you refine its use. Plus, Robin can help you with more mundane physical training."
"Anything else?" Harry asked.
Kara nodded. "Actually, I've saved the best until last. Constantine's been keeping his ears to the ground. He's pretty sure he's found out what the First Task involves. Apparently he heard from someone in a bar…well, he called it a pub, that they may be transporting dragons to Hogwarts. He's done some sniffing around, and apparently they need dragons transported here by no later than the 24th."
"That's the date of the First Task," Harry groaned. "So dragons are involved?"
"Probably. Look, I can't swear to it: Constantine was getting it out of a drunk, but…"
"It's not surprising," Hermione said, though her scowl showed she didn't want it to be so. "I've done research on the Tri-Wizard Tournament myself, and a popular task is to set the Champions against a magical creature with a level of XXXX or greater. So facing off against a dragon is plausible, even if it is insane."
"Oh, you're good," Kara said with a smile. "You remind me a little of Batgirl. She's got a mind like yours, loves to research as much as she loves fighting crime. You'd probably get along well with her. Anyway, like I said, the offer's there. You want to take it?"
Harry, after a moment, nodded, a little hesitantly. "I dunno whether I'd be able to keep up to you guys physically or magically, but…"
"Harry, it's fine. Not all of us are Kryptonians or shapeshifters or trained by a paranoid vigilante wearing a bat costume," Kara said, before looking at Hermione. "Hell, you can come along if you want too. Zatanna's going to try to be there if nothing's turned up for the Justice League to handle. Just keep an eye on the chat feed for it, okay?" She handed a piece of paper over to Harry. "This is a Portkey to Titans Tower in Jump City. Keep it safe. The activation phrase is 'Titans Go'."
"Gotcha," Harry said. "By the way, any word from Padfoot or Moony?"
"They're both being vetted by the Justice League as we speak. Don't worry, they'll be fine."
"I'm not exactly reassured. Please tell me Batman isn't interrogating them."
"No, just the Martian Manhunter," Kara said. "Look, I'd better get back. I don't want you two to get into trouble for being out this late. Hopefully, I can talk to you some more, Hermione." She hugged the bushy-haired girl, before she then laid a kiss on Harry's lips, a gentle kiss. "See you later, Harry," she said.
"See you later, Kara," Harry said with a goofy smile and a blush. Then, Kara soared into the starlit skies.
Hermione watched her go with her eyes, and then looked at Harry. "Your girlfriend is Supergirl," she said flatly.
"And some of the others. When Kara took me over to the US earlier this year, I met the Titans, and a few of the Justice League. Yes, that means Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman, amongst others."
"Wow. And…they're fine with me coming along?"
"Kara knows you're my friend. At worst, they'll have Miss Martian have a look through your mind, that's it," Harry said. "Anyway, besides Batgirl, you'd probably click with Raven. She loves books, and as long as you don't pester her with too many questions, she's fine to be around."
Hermione nodded absently. Her head was whirling. "You've met the Titans and the Justice League. I'm actually a bit jealous."
"Not enough to not speak with me? You know, like Ron is doing?" Harry asked wryly.
"Of course not! It's just…even before I learned I was a witch, I loved the tales I heard about Superman and Batman and Wonder Woman…" Hermione shook her head. "Never mind. If Kara doesn't mind me being a gooseberry, then I'd love to meet the other Titans."
"Great," Harry said, his smile reassuring his friend that she wouldn't be in the way.
Harry didn't tell Hermione, or indeed any of his friends, but lately, he'd been feeling…odd. Well, beyond having these dreams of Voldemort that weren't quite dreams, he was sure.
It had started after the Dementor swarm at the end of last year. It was as if their attempts to eat his soul had loosened…something. Like there was something within him, struggling to break free. He wasn't sure what, but he found himself yearning for more sunlight. Sometimes, he felt like he could fly, fly fast, fly forever. He actually envied Kara. She could fly by herself, and not need a broomstick. Hell, so many of the Titans and the Justice League could fly by themselves. In fact, he wanted to find a spell that would allow him to fly alongside Kara, without a broomstick.
After spending some time with the Titans, Harry had made the resolution that he wanted to join them later. And after the attitude of the school towards him lately, he was tempted to see if he could drop out, train with the Titans, and come back long enough to deal with Voldemort before heading back.
Harry sighed quietly to himself as they headed back to the castle under the Invisibility Cloak. And here he was, hoping for a quiet year…
Not long afterwards, Kara landed on the roof of the Titans Tower. She was still getting used to the full extent of her powers, fuelled by the light of the Earth's yellow sun. Her cousin had his childhood and adolescence to get used to it, but Kara hadn't been on Earth that long, a little over a year at the most. She had expected to become his babysitter, but thanks to her ship encountering an anomaly in space, she ended up on Earth by the time her cousin was in his early thirties. So he was babysitting her.
Entering the Tower, keying in the security codes needed and submitting to the biometric scans, she made her way to the rec room, to find Kori and Rachel discussing something. Koriand'r, aka Starfire, orange-skinned, red-haired, her irises a dark emerald on lighter green sclera. She was dressed in what could be described as purple short shorts and a similarly-coloured top(2). And Rachel Roth, aka the Raven, dark-haired, grey-skinned, purple of hair and eye, usually having an impassive expression on her face, though she had a certain amount of interest in her face for once (which was unusual, considering it was Kori speaking). She was dressed in a dark leotard, with a hooded cape over that.
"…Do not know whether it is the same thing," Kori said, "but we have a similar sort of thing on Tamaran. Indeed, I have heard there is a dormant marriage contract between my family and an apparently-extinct one. I say apparently because there was no confirmed death of the last of the family's line. Indeed, if they survived, they would be in this sector of space. I only learned this when I went to the local magical enclave, and got approached by the Goblins. Apparently they had an old copy of the contract. It only activates if two Tamaraneans are present on Earth."
"An arranged marriage?" Rachel asked. "That's a bit old-fashioned."
"True, but sometimes, it happens on Tamaran, as a matter of political manoeuvring, I believe," Kori said. "If there is a survivor of compatible age and gender, then I would be obligated to wed them. Or my sister." The usually cheerful Tamaranean's face fell at the thought of her treacherous sister, the one who had sold her into slavery.
"Hey, Rachel, don't the idiots in some magical communities still practise that marriage contract crap?" Kara asked.
Rachel nodded. "MACUSA's pretty conservative. And so's Magical Britain. Speaking of which, how's Harry?"
"Yes, tell us, Kara!" Kori said, looking for all the world like an eager puppy in the form of a teenaged girl (though Tamaraneans were actually descended from felines, not that you'd notice).
"He's holding up as well as he can expect. Told him what Constantine and Zatanna managed to dig up. Met that Hermione girl of his," Kara said. "She'll probably come over with him when he comes to train. Anything from the League about those two wizards?"
"We haven't heard. I'm guessing that the League will have to contact MACUSA about giving Sirius Black asylum," Rachel said. "I doubt we can get him exonerated in Britain, not with that corrupt moron Fudge in charge. At least MACUSA tolerates us, if only barely." She punctuated this last sentence with a habitual roll of the eyes.
And that, sadly, was the case. More than once, the Justice League and the Titans had butted heads with MACUSA, along with other super-powered individuals and vigilantes. It was actually refreshing for Harry to be as…if not humble, then at least as not full-of-himself as many other wizards and witches of that form of magic were. And Hermione was similar to Harry in that regard.
Still, Kara was concerned for her boyfriend. He may not have been a Titan, but he already had his own arch-nemesis, and that wasn't exactly a good thing by any metric…especially now that he was trapped in this Tournament. Hopefully, with their training, he would be able to survive.
She hoped.
CHAPTER 1 ANNOTATIONS:
So, Harry's introduced Hermione to a super girlfriend, and we have some foreshadowing.
1. While the character is based more on the iteration from the Jeph Loeb stories, her costume is based on that in her New 52 appearance.
2. Starfire's costume here is based on her latest one in the New 52. Not the barely-covering one, obviously: she's still about 15 here. But the most recent version, which is probably one of her more modest ones, outside the TV cartoon.
