Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, D&D, or Pathfinder, thats all to JK Rowling, WOC, and Paizo
I've always found stories where a character develops or gets powers from other series or sources rather fun, and since ive started playing DnD and pathfinder I've had the itch for stories that involve them. Ive read a few of the harry potter ones like 'Harry potter and the natural 20' which seems to be the go to suggestion for a dnd crossover, and while i enjoyed it I would have preferred less dnd lingo like talking about will saves and gaining XP, not bashing, still like it just not my cup of tea.
That said I wanted the way i explained the systems of DND 5e and Pathfinder 2e to feel natural, to make sense in world, especially since Im fusing the systems. For example in PF2 the first lvl wizard feat counter spell, in stead of a character just gaining the ability ill provide a reason they would learn it and how. also expect no limits on class restrictions, particularly wizards who can learn from all the schools and gain subclass features, same goes for other classes.
I want to try and take this story as far as I can, at least to fourth year so i hope you enjoy it.
chapter 1 an introduction to the arcane
It was a hot summer day in little whinging, a time for young children to celebrate and play outside, and for most kids this was the case. Except for eight year old Harry potter, who was currently racing down the street as fast as he could, huffing for breath. Running past house after house of the same cookie cutter neighborhood and passing a few neighbors out tending to their perfect yards, Harry stumbled over his feet.
It was hard to run as fast as he was while wearing shoes two sizes too big and oversized baggy clothes held to his small thin frame by a belt pulled as tightly as it could. It was also hard to out pace the gang of bullies led by his cousin Dudley, hot on his heels, with their new bikes, partaking in their favorite game of 'harry hunting'. It certainly wasn't Harry's though because he knew if they caught him, they would beat him up, like Dudley always did.
Ducking quickly into an alley, Harry made it down to the other end, opening up onto another street close to the market and out of the neighborhood. Normally no adult would let a child wander so far alone, but Harry's relatives could care less if he was lost. His uncle Vernon, a large walrus of a man had all but thrown him into the garden to get started on his chores while violently shaking him, gripping his wrist hard enough that bruises were already forming, after he had accidentally let his and Dudley's bacon burn that morning. His aunt Petunia took over while telling him to pull all the weeds.
"Get to it boy, when you're done make yourself scarce, Vernon and I will decide your punishment later!"
Harry was sure that he would be locked in the cupboard under the stairs for a week again, it was his room after all. He just hoped he'd be allowed out for meals but after growing up with the Dursleys for seven years he knew better.
Huffing deep breaths, Harry began searching for a place to hide from Dudley's gang and notice an old bookshop on the corner. It was small and unassuming, and had likely seen little use in many years going off the 'for sale' sign. The paint was chipping on the outside so Harry could only imagine how it looked on the inside. Going for the boarded door, Harry tried the handle to no effect.
"THIS WAY, DON'T LET THE FREAK GET AWAY!"
Harry flinched at the loud yell of his cousin, jumping against the door to try and make himself smaller. While pressing himself against the door, Harry fell back as the door miraculously swung open rolling into the dusty shop. As Harry quickly got up from the dusty shop floor, the door swung closed once again. Surprised at what just happened, Harry quickly hid behind an old bookshelf and peeked from behind to see shadows on the paper-covered windows.
"Where's the freak gone now?"
"Don't know, he was just here, I saw him when we came around the corner?!"
"What are we gonna do now Dudley?"
The voices of Dudley's friends were muffled from the outside, but Harry could tell it was Piers Polkiss asking the last question.
"Let's just go back, the freak will have to come back anyway. Dad will deal with him and his freakishness" Dudley said as the shadows moved away from the windows. While they moved away Harry stayed where he was for a few minutes longer before slumping to the ground and holding his knees to his chest. The beginning of tears formed in his eyes before he quickly wiped them away. Crying never did him any favors before during his time with the Dursleys, he learned that rather quickly when he was younger.
Feeling his heart rate settle, Harry decided to explore the abandoned book shop for the rest of the day. Dudley was right when he said he had to eventually go back but until then he would stay where they couldn't get him.
Wandering between the dusty shelves Harry noticed the surprising lack of books on them. Though that probably shouldn't surprise him since the shop was abandoned. Wandering farther into the shop he reached a cobweb covered desk with an old register equally covered. Right behind there was an open hallway lined with doors. There were a few plaques that listed what the door was, a restroom, store room, and the last door said manager's office. This door however was cracked open slightly.
Curiosity overtaking him Harry pushed past and entered a moderate study room. Taking in the space, Harry noticed a bookshelf against the wall and unlike the one in the storefront it was full of books of all sizes. Looking at the spines of a few, he made out a few titles 'Bigby Presents Glory of Giants' 'Fizban's Treasury of Dragons' and 'Volo's guide to monsters'
Shifting his eyes from the books to other selves, Harry noticed an assortment of dusty items and strange nicknacks. On the wall was a large faded map that showed the planet earth in the center of a circle with the title 'material plane' just above it. There were multiple rings surrounding but Harry couldn't make out any other words on the map, having faded with time.
Finally, Harry turned to a large dust covered desk that sat against the far wall. On it sat only one thing, a large glass ball about the size of a grapefruit. Unlike everything else in the room it was not covered in dust, instead its brownish gray color looked polished, and seemed to shine. As Harry made his way towards the, a voice spoke up.
"Well isn't this a surprise? I wondered how many years it would be before the magical people of this world found me."
"Who's there?" Harry asked, startled as he looked around for the source of the voice, it sounded like a woman.
"Over here child, on the desk"
Looking back to the desk Harry watched as a glowing blue hand formed in mid air before grasping the glass ball and lifting it into the air. Harry was amazed as the hand carried the ball over to him and remained hovering in mid air.
"Hello child, I am Zion, who are you?" the voice said as Harry realized that it was coming from the ball. Looking at it closely Harry could see a pulsating light within the ball every time the voice spoke.
"Um, hello, I'm Harry, Harry Potter, um, what, what are you?" Harry asked if he had never seen anything like this, well sort of.
Growing up Harry noticed many strange things seemed to happen around him, one time his teacher's hair turned blue after she scolded Harry for something Dudley did, or when Aunt Petunia gave Harry a horrible haircut then shaved it all off, only for his hair to grow back to normal the next day. Finally there was the time Harry was running from Dudley's gang and appeared on the school roof with no idea how he got there. Each time something happened he was punished by Uncle Vernon for his freakishness.
"Well Harry, I am what is called a Professor Orb, a sentient magic item. I'm a special variant though, as I possess a vast amount of knowledge on many topics compared to regular professor orbs. I was specifically created to act as a guide and teacher for any young magic user" Zion said animatedly before seeming to shrink back and lower itself.
"Though I was supposed to be an assistant to Ezren when he finally took on an apprentice."
Harry could hear the sadness in Zion's voice, he didn't know who Ezren was but Zion seemed to care about them greatly. Deciding it wasn't his place to ask Harry instead focused on the first thing.
"Magic? Are you saying that magic is real?" he asked
"Well of course magic is real Harry, you yourself are magical are you not? From my knowledge your part of that secret magic society of sorcerers, it's the only way you could have disabled the lock spell on the front door, it was second level so it should remain indefinitely"
"I guess I did," harry said unsure of himself "strange things always seem to happen around me"
"It must be your magic, despite being naturally gifted sorcerers often have trouble controlling their magic at a young age, what were you doing before you came in here?" Zion asked as they floated closer.
At the question Harry withdrew in on himself, crossing his arms and hunching his shoulders as he turned away slightly. Now despite being a floating magical orb without eyes to physically see, Zion was still able to perceive the world as any human could. They watched carefully as Harry's demeanor changed from a boy filled with wonder to timid and meek.
"Harry, Is everything alright?" They asked, voice clear with worry.
"Oh um yeah, I'm fine, I was just trying to get away from Dudley and his gang. I was leaning against the door, when it swung open. Are you saying that I did magic to open it?" Harry responded
Zion listened carefully as Harry spoke, filed away the way his voice wavered as he talked about Dudley and his gang. Knowing it wasnt best to pry, yet, they decided to move along with their discussion.
"Yes, the only way you could have deactivated the Lock spell was with its counterspell, Knock. I believe in your agency to escape and the proximity of a safe location, your innate raw magic responded, activating in the form of wild magic to produce the Knock spell."
"Wild Magic?" Harry asked his curiosity, peaking again as the tension in his body slowly relaxed, much to Zion's relief.
"Yes, Wild Magic is raw magical energy, it can be unpredictable but wild magic sorcerers and barbarians have learned to direct it rather than control it, though it seems the magical people of this realm all have a little bit of wild magic in them when they're young."
"So there are others like me?" Harry asked
"That's right Harry, though for some reason they've chosen to keep themselves a secret and hidden from non-magical people, which I find rather idiotic.
"Why's that?"
"Well when Ezren and I first came to this realm, he chose for us to remain hidden from them to observe and learn about their ways before introducing ourselves to them. During our research, we learned that they implemented a world wide law called the statute of secrecy, which means it's illegal for any non-magical person to know about them. When Ezren learned of this he found it absolutely ridiculous because they seemed to want to keep all knowledge of magic to themselves. You see, Ezren was a Wizard, he possessed no natural magic talent like sorcerers and instead chose to learn magic through years of study and research."
Harry listened intently as Zion explained the differences between wizards and sorcerers. From his understanding, sorcerers gained magic from their bloodlines while wizards went to magical schools that taught them how to manipulate and use magic.
"During our research we learned some other important info, hehe, this one particularly set Ezren into a mood when we talked about it. The magical people refer to themselves as witches and wizards, which in their context is simply the difference between male and female. What an insult to the practitioners of actual witchcraft and wizardry, especially that school of theirs." Zion ranted as they floated back and forth as if pacing.
Harry could help but laugh at them as they continued to rant. Finally Zion seemed to calm down.
"Now Harry, are there any other questions you'd like to ask, I'm happy to provide what I can."
Grinning, Harry asked all kinds of questions about magic and Zion provided answers for all of them. He asked about what kinds of magic there was and Zion told him about the four main traditions Arcane, Devine, Primal, and Occult. When he asked what they did, they explained that Arcane spell-casters use logic and rationality to categorize the magic inherent in the world around them and was primarily used by wizards.
Divine magic made Harry's head spin as Zion confirmed that gods and deities were real. The power of the divine was steeped in faith and belief and that clerics would worship them and in return receive magic. Next was Primal magic which came from nature itself and that druids were incredibly powerful because of it as they were considered one with nature. Harry was sure Uncle Vernon would hate them even more than he did hippies. Finally there was the occult magic which handled every other way to use magic that the other three traditions did not cover.
Zion explained that bards used magic by most commonly playing instruments and channeling magic through them. Harry was in awe of how incredible magic was and finally worked up the courage to ask Zion something since they confirmed that Harry had magic as well.
"This is all so amazing Zion, but, um, earlier you said that I had magic too. Do you, uh, do you think you can teach me how to use it as well?" He asked timidly
Zion's inner light shone brightly as they lifted themselves up higher through the air "Of course I would Harry, this is my primary purpose as a professor orb after all. Now first we're going to keep things nice and simple, as a sorcerer you will have at least one cantrip given to you by your bloodline. Based on the research Ezren and I conduct we've determined that almost all of the sorcerers of this world are likely similar to an imperial bloodline"
"What's an imperial bloodline?"
"An excellent question, it means one of your ancestors was a mortal who mastered magic. Such magical blood can remain latent or active for generations, usually started by a powerful wizard. Harry, what can you tell me about your parents?"
At the question Harry rubbed the back of his head and looked away "I don't know, they died when I was a year old, my aunt says it was a car crash" he said in a quiet voice.
"Oh, Harry I'm so sorry, I didn't know" Zion said as they floated closer to show their concern
"Its fine, can we move on"
"Yes, lets. Now be it your…parents…, grandparents, or other ancestor they were most likely a great magic user and this ability to use magic innately has passed down to you in the form of a cantrip. A cantrip is the lowest level of magic a person can use and can cast the cantrip as often as they would like. For an imperial bloodline it is most normally the detect magic cantrip."
"Ok how do I use it" Harry asked eagerly as Zion let out a chuckle before directing the spectral hand holding them to set them back on the desk.
"Firstly Harry, I want you to hold my hand" they said as the spectral hand was held out for a hand shake. Listening to Zion, Harry took hold of the hand.
"Now Harry tell me what you feel" Zion asked
"Its feels like I'm holding a actual hand, except it's all tingly and warm"
"Good now close your eyes and focus on that feeling" Harry did so, while Zion continued
"Now I'm going to let go, you keep focusing on that feeling."
Harry felt the hand let go but kept his focus on the feeling. As he did he felt the tingling sensation all around his hand.
"Alright you're doing well, no move your hand from left to right, as if you are waving at some. Do it slowly and keep focus on the feeling."
Harry did so, and as he did he felt and saw, he didn't know how with his eyes closed, a blue and gold shimmering energy around his hand left a trail as he waved his hand.
"Good, very good your a natural Harry, now when you wave your hand imaging pushing that energy out ward to fill the area around you, and as you do so say the incantation with me, deprehendere magicae"
"deprehendere magicae" Harry practiced trying to pronounce it how Zion did.
"deprehendere magicae" he said as he tried to the push the magic out ward
"deprehendere magicae" "Good harry, now once more with feeling.
"Deprehendere Magicae" Harry said as put all his effort into the words and motion. This time felt different, the wave of magic he had sent out seemed to remain in small pockets. Tentatively opening his eyes Harry saw multiple objects in the room faintly surrounded in the blue and gold aura. Looking towards Zion, Harry saw that they were also surrounded in the same aura.
"Tell me Harry, what do you see?" Zion asked
"I see something surrounding you"
"What you are seeing is the presence of magic"
"Amazing" was all Harry was able to say in the moment. In that instance everything just felt right, so with a determined mind Harry turned towards Zion.
"I want to learn more, Zion, will you teach me magic? Will you help me become a great wizard?" He asked.
Zion looked carefully at Harry and could see the ambition in his eyes, could see the potential in this young boy. They knew their answer.
"When Ezren and I came to this world, he wanted to find an apprentice to share his teachings with and learn just as much from them. I think he would have liked you, Harry Potter, so I will teach you all that I can, mark my words you will be the greatest wizard this world has ever seen!"