4.0 - The Room of Requirements
Disclaimer: I'm JK Rowling, I own Harry Potter and no one else does.
I sighed and rubbed my temples, the beginnings of a headache pulsing behind my eyes, as I stood up and gently placed the heavy, leather-bound book back on the shelf.
Magical History was complicated. To put it mildly, there was not much Wizarding History that was not blatantly biased, dripping with a "Wizards good, everyone else bad" mentality.
If I had to summarize the book I had just finished, it would be exactly that.
Of course, bias was not exclusive to the magical world; the non-magical one had its fair share, although not nearly to this extent. What made it worse were the conflicting accounts of the same events in different books, each author with their own spin.
Cutting through the inconsistencies felt like excavating a historical site, and even then, what remained was likely still a biased, albeit somewhat true, account. Finding History that was relevant to me, to Harry, was like searching for a specific grain of sand on a beach. Thankfully, I managed to unearth a few books detailing what little was known about that night.
Most of the book I'd just read chronicled the History of the Potter Family, their achievements leaping off the page alongside heartfelt anecdotes and statements from those who knew the deceased couple. But towards the end, briefly stated, were the events of Halloween '81.
"Very little is known about that fateful day when the Potter family met their tragic end. The Potters had sought refuge in their cottage at Godric's Hollow, shielded by a powerful concealment charm known as the Fidelius Charm. This ancient magic entrusted their location as a closely guarded secret to a 'Secret Keeper,' rendering it virtually impossible for the information to be revealed unless willingly divulged by the Keeper themselves."
"Sirius and James were inseparable, brothers in all but blood," reminisced an anonymous source, a long-time friend of James Potter. On that fateful Halloween night, the Dark Lord himself, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, materialized at the Potter residence, the location of which had been betrayed by Sirius Black, his intentions chillingly clear - to eradicate the entire family. James and Lily Potter fell victim to his merciless wand, yet amidst the carnage, a miracle unfolded - their infant son, Harry James Potter, lay unharmed in his crib, the sole survivor of the massacre.
The only evidence of the Dark Lord's presence was a discarded black robe and a lightning bolt-shaped scar, etched onto the child's forehead by a curse, a haunting reminder of the potent Dark magic that had permeated the very air - the Killing Curse, responsible for countless deaths during the war. The boy's inexplicable survival remained an enigma, a mystery lost in the ashes of that terrible night.
In the aftermath of the tragedy, the Dark Lord vanished without a trace, leading many to believe he had perished, struck down by the very curse that had claimed the lives of thousands of accomplished witches and wizards throughout his reign of terror.
Dear Reader,
We must pause and observe a moment of silence, not only to honor the memory of James and Lily Potter, but also for their son, Harry James Potter, who, on that fateful night, became the savior of Wizarding Britain, the Boy-Who-Lived.
I closed the book, a heavy weight settling in my stomach. The gravity of the war, the countless lives lost, and the immense gratitude of the wizarding community, it was all so much heavier than I'd ever truly considered. The gratitude for The Boy-Who-Lived might have wavered in the original story, but here, in this world where muggle-borns and half-bloods lived in constant fear, unsure if they'd see the next sunrise, where their families could be tortured and killed for their very existence? That goodwill would not fade so easily.
And that was an advantage I intended to use. The public's respect was a powerful tool, one I would not let rust. Could I get the Trace removed? It was worth exploring. A few well-placed words to Cornelius Fudge, or whoever held that authority, could be invaluable come election time.
And if the worst came to pass, if the Ministry and the Order crumbled, I could always resort to more… drastic measures. Throw enough bodies at Voldemort, create enough chaos, and maybe, just maybe, I could slip away.
Let's be clear, I was not a hero. My only reason for even considering facing The Dark Lord - a title he certainly had not earned with kindness - was self-preservation. I desired the same thing I had in my previous life: a life of luxury and relaxation. Deep down, who would not want that? People could pretend to be altruistic, but when push came to shove, self-preservation always won.
As long as Voldemort, and potentially Dumbledore, were out there, the peace and luxury I craved were just out of reach.
I'd worked hard before, and I'd do it again, if it meant achieving the life I'd been denied.
It was time to get serious. To take down these giants of the magical world, I'd have to play dirty, break the rules, and cheat. Every advantage, every opportunity, I'd exploit them all.
It was time to learn Magic, master it, and make it my bitch.
Speaking of advantages, it was time to go watch a troll try to dance. Finding a single portrait in a castle with thousands on each floor was proving more difficult than I'd anticipated.
Thankfully, I knew the Room of Requirement was on the 7th Floor. Trying to find it without that knowledge would have been a fool's errand.
Asking for directions was out of the question; I did not need whispers and suspicion around this area.
It took an hour, but I finally found the portrait, exhaustion gnawing at my bones.
This castle, with its endless staircases, was certainly keeping me fit. Perhaps that explained why the only overweight individuals I'd seen were either Muggles or Ministry employees.
The portrait depicted a wizard, his wand waving like a conductor leading an orchestra. With each flourish, a troll lumbered forward, club raised, and smacked the wizard, only to return to its starting position and repeat the comical scene.
Behind me was a bare stretch of wall. I paced in front of it three times, my mind focused on what I needed.
A grin split my face as a door, identical to all the others at Hogwarts, materialized before me. Stepping inside, my grin stretched further at the sight of the vast room.
It was enormous, filled with thousands of books, rivaling the Hogwarts Library. Rows upon rows of curious objects lined the walls: dummies holding wands for practicing the Expelliarmus Spell, dummies firing harmless bursts of light at varying speeds to improve reaction time, and even dummies that dodged spells to hone accuracy.
How did I know all this? An instruction manual lay conveniently on a nearby table. Apparently, a Defense Against the Dark Arts professor had designed this room a century ago as a training ground for his students during the Goblin Wars. There were even handwritten notebooks filled with the professor's advice and insights.
This room was truly a marvel.
From what I've been able to infer, the Room of Requirement acts as a snapshot of everything that has ever been in Hogwarts, a theory I confirmed as there was a shelf dedicated to different assignments of various students dating back hundreds of years.
It's disappointing that I cannot be here often, not as long as the Weasley twins can track me. If I came here every day and vanished off of Hogwarts, they would likely try and poke their noses in here, and sharing the room is something I cannot afford to happen.
I tried several other tricks that I remembered from other stories, such as asking the room to dilate the time within, which resulted in the door not even showing up, likely meaning that it was something it simply could not do. I asked for it to sort the Come and Go Room, though that simply resulted in the room showing up but with nothing in it sorted.
I have a goal; now I have to divide it into smaller steps that I can tackle quickly. First, I will need to learn the basic Defensive and Offensive Spells to at least have some semblance of safety from the other students, though I have no illusions of facing the Professors anytime soon.
Finding the necessary book was tedious. Unfortunately, it would take me even longer than if I were to try and find a book that has the Summoning Charm.
If Penny's skills are good enough, I can simply order her to teach it to me. The more I think about it, the more advantageous it will be for me to have an older student in my corner, indebted to me.
"Petrificus Totalus, or the Full Body Bind, was a simple first-year spell that 'locks' all of the limbs of the body together. However, any experienced dueler could merely flare their aura to dispel the spell, which was the reason it was taught to first-years. Even with relatively poor magical control, it would not do much harm.
This was stupid because you could simply lock someone as they are falling, as dispelling it still takes a couple of seconds, or use that time to fire off other spells.
I stood in front of the enchanted dummy, aiming my wand at it as I recollected all the steps that were written about the spell. First, do the wand movement: a simple straight downward flick and imagine the effect. Finally, incant it, "Petrificus Totalus!" I said, sending a beam of distorting light at the dummy, seeing its legs snap together but not its arms. A couple of seconds later, the dummy reset.
Interesting, even if it was not my intention for only the legs to lock, it still is interesting to note that spells can be malleable.
Apparently, I cannot send more than twenty spells without tiring myself. Thankfully, I seemed to recover from that exhaustion easily enough, which was roughly 15 or so minutes.
It took me around the thirtieth cast to be able to perform it successfully. Now, it was time to cast it silently, to cast silently one simply had to keep practicing the spell and try to drop syllables one at a time.
"Petri!" I exclaimed, sending the same distortion of light at the dummy instantly snapping all of its limbs together.
I wiped some sweat off my sleeve casting a spell more than a hundred times even with rest was rather exhausting.
Still, it was not as if I had any choice. All I needed to remember was that there was a chance that Voldemort was currently walking around the castle.
I could not do this, I needed a way to get stronger faster. If it was taking me upwards of an hour to master a spell, how could I ever dream of competing with Voldemort or Dumbledore? Both were masters of a discipline of magic.
I will have to attempt to ask the Room. Perhaps it could lead me somewhere?
I went outside and paced once more, "I need a way to safely get stronger faster, I need a way to safely get stronger faster, I need a way to safely get stronger faster," I thought to myself pacing.
The door appeared once more as I nervously stood inside. It had taken on the form of a cozy study, with a fireplace and a chair and a desk with a small shelf filled with ancient tomes, though a couple were stacked on the desk.
I went and checked the first title as my throat went dry. The title of the book was 'Secrets of The Darkest Arts' . I immediately put that away. I would certainly read through it but I do not think I am still not ready to kill people for power… yet.
Death row inmates perhaps? People from Azkaban? That would surely be a kinder fate?
The next was "Charm The Mind, a Guide to the Mental Arts," and after that was, "Sorcerer's Path, A Guide to Might' and finally 'Whispers of the Beyond, a Guide to The Outsiders'
Author's Note: It is time for all of you to choose a path. Vote for the book that you think will be the best.
Secrets of The Darkest Arts - Starts of tame, animal sacrifices, muggle sacrifices, creature sacrifices and then Wizard Sacrifices. Pure Evil Route, slow corruption of mortality via the rituals. (Don't worry my dear, there will be plenty of surprises, you have not been spoiled.)
Charm The Mind - Route of less self strength, more on controlling those who are stronger than him and making them fight on his behalf. (EDIT: Charm The Mind won't be full of smut. Smut will be equal in all aspects.)
Sorcerer's Path - Mastery of Magical Control, more self-power, less chances of Evil, will not be good, more of a Chaotic Neutral Route.
Whispers of the Beyond - Summoning and dealing with Greater Powers.
Do you perhaps want something else? Then reply!
Replies and praising me gets me all tingly and that gets you more chapters.
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