Well, here is my newest chapter. I want to apologize in advance. It's actually been a long time since I've updated any stories to my account. I'm trying remember everything I can about proper sentence structures and editing. I hope I can work up to my reader's expectations.
Enjoy!
So Harry told them. For nearly two hours, Harry told the two men everything he could about his world. Everything he could remember from his days of history, social studies and geography classes. He even drew a rough map of what his world looked like. Harry told them about the mankind's evolution, accomplishments, their rising civilizations, and the downfall of their kingdoms. Furthermore, Harry told them about his life.
Both men gazed attentively at him as he talked the night away. Taiyang seemed to be really enjoying his story while Qrow didn't really do anything. However, he seemed to sit up a little straighter when Harry mentioned the word magic
Harry explained how he found out about magic from Hagrid and soon enrolled into Hogwarts for his education. He told them about the subjects he studied, flying in Quidditch matches, and the adventures he had with his two best friends, Ron and Hermione.
Then he got to Voldemort.
The two men's faces darkened as they learned about a man who started a war over blood purity and how he hoped to rule the wizard world. Harry told them through clenched teeth how Voldemort murdered his parents when he was a baby. How he tried to kill Harry but the curse rebounded on Voldemort instead. And how every year he ran into Voldemort or his servants and how he barely escaped each time.
Harry coughed and Taiyang got up to refill his water glass. Meanwhile, Qrow just stared at the boy through calculating eyes. The two stared at each other until Taiyang returned.
"Thanks," croaked Harry. He eagerly gulped down the water as Taiyang sat back down.
"Continue, please," said Taiyang.
Harry nodded and began talking about his fifth year. The struggles he endured from the Ministry of Magic, the slander and lies from the Daily Prophet, and the cruel tutelage of Dolores Umbridge. When he showed them the scars on his right hand, both men scowled in rage.
"That bitch," muttered Qrow.
"Harry, why didn't you go to another teacher about this?" asked Taiyang.
Harry shrugged. "I didn't want to tell anyone at the time. My headmaster and his staff had enough to deal with at the time. I didn't want to give her the satisfaction of reporting her. Besides, she eventually passed a decree that said teachers couldn't help students with anything unless it was about the subject they taught."
"That's no excuse!" yelled Taiyang. "I would never treat a student like that. If I caught anyone doing that to my daughters, they wouldn't find the body!"
Taiyang punched his right fist into his left palm. There was a loud crack like a gunshot and Harry instinctively ducked.
"Whoops. Sorry," Taiyang said sheepishly.
Harry stared in shock at the man. Maybe Harry had been correct about the strength thing earlier. To be able to impact that much force with his punches alone….
"Tai, knock it off. You're scaring the kid," Qrow muttered as he took another swig from his flask.
Taiyang turned to Qrow. "Don't tell me you approve of this kind of punishment."
Qrow frowned. "There's no way in hell I would carve words into one of my student's hands. Train them into the dirt, yes, I would. But the kid doesn't seem to care right now. If he's telling the truth, that is.
Telling the….Harry scowled at the man. "You still don't believe me?"
"Well, You haven't told us how got from your world of magic to here, have you?"
Harry kept his gaze at Qrow for a few seconds before he started his story again. He told them about vision he had of his godfather being tortured at the Ministry and how he and his friends went to go save him. But it was a trap set up by Voldemort to get a prophecy that only he or Harry could remove. They tried to escape but were injured in the pursuit. When the Order arrived just in time to save them, Harry was caught in the backlash of a spell and fell through the Veil. The next thing Harry knew, he woke up in their living room.
After he finished, a calm silence fell over the three of them. Then the clock on the far wall chimed for midnight. Each man was looking at Harry with a calculated eye. Taiyang seemed to be fighting with himself on whether or not to believe Harry. Qrow, however, didn't seem to be having that battle. The man stood up and drained the last of whatever was in his flask.
"Yep. I've been drinking since eight and I still don't believe you," Qrow muttered. "Nice story, kid. You should market that into a book series."
"Qrow," Taiyang tried to reason.
"I'm not lying!" Harry growled as he got to his feet. His fingernails cut into his palm as he gripped his fists. "Everything I've said is true."
"Look, kid, magic is nothing but a fairy tale," Qrow explained. "A thousand years ago, we believed certain individuals possessed what you call magic, but it ended up being nothing but the first recorded semblances. "
Harry didn't know what semblances were, but he was too angry to care at the moment. "So all of my pain, all of my suffering is what, a figment of my imagination?" He ripped the bandage off his head and pointed to what he knew was the scar on his forehead. "This is the mark of dark magic. My mother sacrificed herself to save me. It was the magic of her love that protected me when Voldemort tried to kill me. This scar is where Voldemort's killing curse rebounded onto him, ripping his soul from his body. And proof that my mother sacrificed herself for me. "
Qrow didn't even blink when Harry showed him the scar but his features did somber a bit. "Kid, I'm sorry about your mother. But I'm sure even Taiyang will admit it's a hard story to follow. "
Harry saw that Taiyang glare at Qrow, but didn't make any notion to contradict him. "Qrow, he's been through a lot right now. Don't exasperate things further."
Harry's blood was really beginning to boil within him. "Fine, you want more proof." He reached into his sleeve to pull out his wand, but felt nothing. A fresh wave of fear washed over him as he felt both his shirt sleeves and the pockets of his jeans.
"My wand!"
"Your what?" Taiyang asked.
"My wand! It's gone!" Harry looked at Taiyang. "The very thing I need to use my magic. I was holding in my hand when I fell through the veil. Did you find it when you found me?"
"Wait, wait. An actually wand?" Qrow asked.
"Yes! Eleven inches long, made of holly with a phoenix core," Harry explained. The panic of not having a wand in a strange world threatened to overwhelm him with panic. What good could he be if he couldn't protect himself?
"Sorry, Harry. But we didn't find anything like that." Taiyang walked to the mantle and pulled down a small box. He gave to Harry. "This is all we found on you."
In the box were two spare quills he still had from his History of Magic O.W.L., the folded piece of parchment that was the Maruader's Map, his furry wallet from Hagrid, Sirius's broken knife and the fake galleon for the D.A. No wand.
"Maybe it's still where you found me," Harry said weakly. He was beginning to feel sick. "You saw it but thought it was just a stick."
"That's possible, but like I said earlier, it was my daughters who found you. They're the ones who carried you back," explained Taiyang. Harry raised an eyebrow and Taiyang laughed. "My daughter Yang is a lot stronger than people believe. Even stronger than me."
"Can they take me back to where they found me?" asked Harry.
"Not right now. It's late and you'll have a hard time finding your wand in the dark. They'll take you tomorrow morning when it's less dangerous."
Harry frowned. "What kind of dangers?"
Taiyang sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "If you are from another world, then you will need to learn how to survive in ours. It's not safe for a civilian to travel in the woods alone without training."
Qrow chuckled. "That's right, kid. There are things in the woods that would make any dangerous creature in your world seem like a cute puppy."
Harry highly doubted that. He bet a Hungarian Horntail or a Dementor would give anything they had a run for their galleons.
Taiyang got a blanket and pillow from the closet underneath the stairs. "Here, you can camp out on the couch tonight. Tomorrow, the girls will take you to where they found you so you can find some clues. Maybe you'll get lucky."
"Thank you, sir" Harry said he accepted the blanket and pillow. "And I'm sorry for causing so much trouble."
Taiyang laughed. "If you stick around, you'll realize that this is nothing compared to what my daughters and Qrow can do."
"Still…"
"Get some sleep. Tomorrow is supposed to be a beautiful day. It should be a nice time for a walk around the island."
With that, Taiyang and Qrow went upstairs to their rooms. Taiyang ran a finger over a piece of glowing metal on the wall and the lights dimmed, and then went dark.
Harry laid down on the couch, all the energy and anger he had earlier just seemed to vanish. Even the sadness of losing his friends wasn't enough to keep him awake. He shouldn't have lost his temper. His story would be hard to believe. Magic was hard enough to believe in, that he had to travel from another world through a magical archway.
Harry reached to his face to take off his glasses, only to remember he wasn't wearing them. He smiled as he turned on his side.
At least some good came from falling through the veil.
Qrow watched the boy from the top of the stairs. He kept an eye on him until the boy's breathing slowed as he fell asleep. He felt a little guilty about pushing the boy's anger. But Harry revealed the truth in his words when he retaliated against him. Qrow knew what sign to look for when someone was lying, and Harry didn't show a single one.
When Taiyang called him earlier and told him the girls found a boy in a scorched circle, his immediate thought was that his brother-in-law found his secret stash of liquor and went nuts. But when he examined the area they found him further, he realized it was true. Harry had literally fallen into the world. He thought back to what happened earlier in the day.
Tai kept watch over the boy, Qrow examined Harry's belongings. He hoped he could find some identification and find out where he came from. However, when he tried opening the wallet, he was shocked as pair of fangs seemed to materialize and take a bite out of his fingers. The wallet seemed to actually be alive and protected whatever was inside the wallet. It even growled warningly anytime Qrow reached for it again.
The other items weren't as interesting. The gold coin was obviously a fake with a series of numbers along the edge. The knife looked like the blade melted off; the feathered quills were useless and damaged.
But when Qrow examined the parchment, he immediately felt something. He didn't know what it was, but it definitely felt familiar. He carefully unfolded it, taking care not to damage the boy's possessions. It was blank. Qrow felt disappointment at another dead end at identifying the boy. He was about to fold it back up when the parchment seemed to glow with a blue light. However, it was gone just as soon as it appeared. Maybe it was a trick of the light.
Qrow shook his head and walked to his room. Of course he believed in magic. His niece was descendant of the silver-eyed warriors that could freeze Grimm with a single glance. He was part of a brotherhood that protected the Maidens of the Seasons. He remembered the powers Amber possessed. They went beyond the capabilities of semblances or dust. The only way to describe it was magic. Magic granted by an old wizard from a time long forgotten. But how could this boy have magic? Was he a descendent from the old wizard?
Or could his story about another world be actually true?
Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out his scroll and found the two pictures he took earlier. One was of the boy's eye for a retinal scan. The other was a picture of the boy's right hand. He hoped he could find him in the system using a fingerprint scanner. Finally, he patted the pocket in his shirt which contained a gauze of blood from Harry's injury.
Tomorrow, he would send the images and blood to Vale's genealogy department and missing person's cases. Any results will deny or confirm Harry's story.
But as he was walking to his room, his scroll vibrated. Qrow checked the screen to see that the motion sensors he set up nearby had been tripped. The pixelated image sent back to him was of a Beowolf.
Qrow sighed and went to grab his scythe. Harry's anger and sadness must have drawn them here. That meant the boy had to emit some powerful emotions for them to try and find him. Which led to Qrow believing his story even more.
Looks like it was going to be a late night for him.
When Harry woke up, the clock on the wall was chiming seven. He blinked against the sunlight that was streaming in from the windows. Birds were chirping outside, echoing in the silence in the house.
Harry stood up and stretched, feeling several joints pop back into place and walked to the window. The sunlight revealed the beauty of the forest Harry didn't see last night. The house was surrounded by tall trees that towered over the house. Birds flittered around the branches.
The feeling of peace was interrupted by a swollen bladder. Harry spotted a door in the corner on the opposite wall from the stairs. He opened it and found a small half-bathroom with a toilet and sink.
"Thank Merlin," he muttered and shut the door behind him. He relieved himself and washed his hands. When he dried his hands on a towel on a rack, he looked in the mirror and gasped.
The scar on his forehead had reopened. A dark, red mark angrily traced the lighting pattern everyone in his world was so familiar with. The wound had swollen, but didn't not look infected. A musk of what Harry believed was some antibiotic ointment came from the wound.
Harry lightly touched the wound, wincing at the sting. He knew he shouldn't mess with it. Maybe Taiyang could help him rewrap the bandages he took off last night. He brushed his bangs back over the scar to hide it. But as he stared back at himself, he was greeted with a bigger shock.
His eye color had changed.
The emerald color was gone. Replacing it was now a red-gold color that reminded him of Fawkes, Dumbledore's phoenix. The colors seemed to swirl together. Red seemed to be the dominant color, then gold seemed replace it. Harry didn't know if the color had a name, but it was mesmerizing. However, despite its beauty, Harry felt a pang of sadness. He no longer had the trait that was given to him by his mother.
"Rwarf. Rwarf."
The sudden barking made Harry jump. He opened the door and saw Zwei sitting down in front of the doorway. The dog looked at Harry, then hopped up and ran to the door that lead outside.
"You need out, boy?" Harry asked. Zwei answered with a bark. "Okay. Let's go."
Harry unlocked the door and the two walked outside. Zwei immediately rushed to the trees to do his business. Harry took a few steps away to see the house looked like on the outside. He gaped the at the very large, two-story cabin. A porch was to one side to what harry believed was kitchen. The chimney stacked raised only slightly above the red, metal roof. There were two flower bins that contained sunflowers. Finally, Harry could see what looked like a small shed on the other side of the house.
"Wow," Harry whispered. "This place is amazing."
Zweir, after finishing, walked back to the door. Harry let them both in and Zwei ran to the kitchen, Harry following. The dog scratched at cabinet near the stove and Harry found a bag of dog food. He filled up the dog's bowl with kibble, then refilled his water bowl too. Zwei barked his thanks and tucked in.
"Your welcome," said Harry. He looked around the kitchen. A large, yellow rug covered most of the kitchen floor and a table set for four was on top. There was a stove and sink complete with floor and overhead cabinets. A large, stainless-steel refrigerator was beside a doorway that led to a pantry. One side of the wall was lined with bookshelves. There was also a glass door that led outside to the porch. Beside the door was a shovel and other gardening tools.
Harry knew he shouldn't pry, but maybe he could make breakfast as way of thanks for helping him. Nobody else was up. Harry opened the cupboard above the counter and grabbed the flour, baking powder, and what looked like a cooking spray. He then opened the fridge and pulled eggs, milk, butter, jam and syrup from the shelves. He also grabbed a slab of ham.
In minutes, he had pancakes, eggs, and fried ham cooking on the stove. While the stove was like the ones back in his world, there was a subtle difference. It wasn't an electric stove, but it didn't produce gas either. When he turned the dials, red sparks seemed to shoot out before a nice cooking fire was emitted. Harry didn't know what it was and decided to ask about it later.
He turned off the stove and was reaching into the fridge for the orange juice when he heard someone behind him.
"Ummm….hello?"
He turned and saw a girl about his age standing in the doorway of the kitchen. She had black hair that had red highlights. She was only an inch or two shorter than him and was looking at him the most curious expression. She was wearing a complete set of pajamas that were dark gray with pink spots.
But what startled Harry was she had silver eyes.
"Um…good morning," Harry croaked. This girl was really cute. He set the orange juice on the counter and tried to smile. "You must be one of Taiyang's daughters. I'm Harry Potter, the poor bloke you rescued yesterday."
The girl smiled brightly. "I'm Ruby. Nice to meet you. Did you really cook breakfast?"
Harry rubbed his hair. "Well, I really wanted to thank everyone for taking care of me yesterday. I thought this was a great way of saying thanks."
"I'll say. This is awesome," Ruby giggled. "Do you need any help?"
"If you could get the plates and silverware that would be great. I'll get the glasses."
Ruby pulled five plates and forks from the cabinets and place next to the stove. Harry place the glasses, milk and juice on the kitchen table. Then they both served themselves a plate. Ruby grabbed three pancakes and piled the syrup on top of them while Harry watched. She blushed when she caught him staring.
"Sorry. I really like sweet stuff."
Harry chuckled. "That's okay. Just save some for everybody else."
Ruby smiled and began to eagerly eat. Harry followed suit, pouring salt and pepper on his eggs.
"So, where are you from?" asked Ruby around a mouthful of pancakes.
Harry froze, and then slowly put his fork down. He had a hard time already explaining everything to Taiyang and Qrow, he didn't know he should start telling everyone he met that he was from another world. While Ruby might believe him more than the adults, it still might be a longshot. He remembered Taiyang saying last night that he could have 'a walk around the island', so he started with that.
"I'm from off the island," Harry answered.
"From where? Are you from Vale or Mistral? I've never heard an accent like yours around Patch."
But before Harry could come up with an answer to this sweating interrogation, Taiyang walked into the kitchen, still wearing the same clothes from yesterday and scratching his belly from underneath his shirt. He didn't seem to notice them.
"Look, Dad. Harry made breakfast," said Ruby. "It's really good."
Taiyang froze, then looked at the two teens sitting at the table. He looked as though he completely forgot about last night and Harry's story. But then he put on a smile.
"Harry, you didn't have to do that," said Taiyang.
"It's my way of saying thanks for yesterday. It was no trouble," Harry answered.
"Well, thank you. It saves me from feeding these hungry animals this morning."
"Dad!" Ruby cried indignantly.
Taiyang chuckled as he fixed himself a plate and joined them at the table. He barely started when a voice came from the doorway.
"Okay, that food smells way too good to be dad's cooking," said a female voice. Harry looked up and felt his cheeks heat up.
An older girl was standing in the entrance wearing a pair of short shorts and an orange tank top with a heart symbol. She had long blonde hair that framed a pair of lilac eyes. She also more, ahem, developed that most girls he knew. He felt himself staring and turned back to his breakfast, hoping no one noticed him blushing.
"Harry made it," Ruby chirped happily. "And it's way better than dad's cooking."
The girl chuckled while Taiyang frowned. She made his way over to the counter and fixed herself a plate.
"So your name is Harry," the blonde girl asked as she sat down. Harry nodded, trying keep his eyes locked on hers. "I'm Yang. I had the great honor of carrying your skinny butt back home. You really should eat more and put some meat on those bones."
"Yang. Don't tease him," Ruby said as Harry blushed even redder.
"Oh, he knows it's in good fun," Yang said with a wink. "And I say we keep him if he can cook this well."
"I second," said Ruby.
Taiyang was laughing at how read Harry was turning. He laughed even harder when Harry tried scowling at him.
"Okay, girls. Finish your meals," Taiyang said, trying to spare the boy any more embarrassment. "Harry is going to need your help today. When you found him yesterday, he may have left something important behind in the meadow. You need to take him back and help him look for it."
"What did you lose," Ruby asked.
"Ummm…something special," Harry answered. Telling Ruby and Yang he left behind a magic wand seemed even more ridiculous than falling from a different world.
"Just what were you doing out in the forest anyway?" Yang asked. "Were you performing some kind of satanic ritual? Summoning demons or something like that?"
"Yang, that's enough," answered Taiyang before Harry could answer. He finished his eggs and took his plate to the sink. "I'll tell you later what happened. You and Ruby can do the dishes while Harry gets cleaned up."
Yang groaned while Harry looked down and his shirt and saw that it was actually covered in what looked like soot. Black patches of dust ran up his pant legs and onto his shirt. Dirt was also present.
How did I not notice that?
"Come on, Harry. You can take a shower upstairs and I'll get some clean clothes," Taiyang said.
Harry nodded and put his empty plate into the sink, then followed Taiyang upstairs. Harry found himself in a long hallway with four different doors leading to different bedrooms. They passed one that had two beds.
"The girls share a room. Whenever Qrow visits, he sleeps in the guest room. My room is at the end of the hall."
"Qrow doesn't live here?" asked Harry.
"No. He's got a place at Signal Academy. He stays there when he's not visiting us or going away on missions."
"You said last night you both were teachers?"
Taiyang smiled as he stopped at a door in the middle of the hallway. "We are in a matter of speaking. I'll tell you more about our world when you get back. Right now, get cleaned up. Everything you need is in the cupboards and shower caddy. I'll bring you some clothes that should fit you."
Harry frowned. "But how am I going to explain myself to Yang and Ruby?"
"I'll tell the girls you were raised in a village outside of Vacuo. It's a remote region so it will buy into the story that you raised in isolation from any major villages. This way, you can ask a question when the girls tell you something you won't understand. I'll also tell them you can't remember anything over the past couple of days because of the injury to your head. If you want, you can tell them everything you want to when you get back. Hopefully after you find your wand."
"That sounds okay. And….thanks again. For everything," said Harry.
Taiyang smiled. "Sure thing, kid." He turned and walked back down the hallway. "Oh. Don't use Yang's shampoo. She'll punch you across the continent if you do."
Harry swallowed at that and went into the bathroom. It was styled like any other full bathroom with a toilet, bath with shower head, and two cabinet sinks with toothbrushes, toothpaste and hairspray. He grabbed a towel and washcloth from the cabinet, stripped down, and stepped into a warm, cascade of water.
Harry could tell which stuff was the girls, but he found it odd to see Taiyang's shampoo labeled as 'Samurai Shampoo'. When he used it, he winced a little as some of the suds ran into is scar.
He froze when he heard the door open.
"Harry, I'm leaving some of my old things on the sink. I think they'll fit."
"Thanks, Taiyang," said Harry.
After about 15 minutes, he stepped out and wrapped the towel around his waist. He unfurled the folded clothes on the sink. They looked like they once belonged to Taiyang. There was a brown pair of pants, a buttoned beige shirt, and a dark gray vest. There was also a belt, clean socks, and hopefully an unused pair of boxers.
Harry put them on, realizing they were a little bit big on him. But they were nothing compared to Dudley's cast offs he used to wear. The pants just barely fit him and he had to tuck the shirt in or else it would fall to his thighs.
Big or not, they were still better than anything Dudley every owned.
He went downstairs after trying (and failing) to tame his hair. When he reached the halfway down, he realized everyone was waiting at the door for him. However, the girls had changed clothes. Ruby was now wearing a black blouse underneath what looked like a black, strapless dress complete with a frilly skirt. The dress had red trimmings that matched her hair. She was also wearing tights and black combat boots. Finally, there seemed to be a large, red box attached to her back, just underneath what looked like a red cape and hood. Yang was wearing a brown jacket that showed much of her midriff along with what looked like her yellow tank top. A matching brown skirt was around her waist along with a pair of brown boots that went to her calves. She also had an interesting choice in large, gold bracelets that were on both hands. Finally, she had an orange scarf along with matching orange socks.
There seems to be an interesting concept of fashion in this world, Harry thought.
Ruby spotted Harry and smiled. "Nice outfit, Harry!"
"Dad, why are you trying to embarrass Harry with your old hunting outfit?" asked Yang with a raised eyebrow at her father.
Taiyang frowned. "I'll have you know I looked good in the old days."
"Key word there is old, Dad."
Ruby and Harry laughed while Taiyang pouted. He then held up a pair of old boots.
"Here, they may be 'old'," Taiyang said with a mock glare at Yang, "but they should still fit you. They used to be Qrow's."
Harry thanked Taiyang and put on the boots. They were worn, but still surprising comfortable. Ruby suddenly grabbed his hand when he was done.
"Ready to go?" she asked. She had a bright smile on her face. "I can't wait for you to see Patch."
Harry remember the word earlier but couldn't place it. "Patch? Who's Patch?" asked Harry.
The girls' eyebrows rose in confusion before Taiyang intervened.
"Girls, remember? Raised in Vacuo? No memory of the last few days?"
"Oh! I'm so sorry. I forgot," Ruby said. She had a miserable expression on her that tore at Harry's heart.
Harry gave the girl a small smile. "It's okay, Ruby. You're just going to have to teach me everything you know."
The girl brightened and pulled Harry towards the door. "Then let's get started."
Harry marveled at the strength the small girl had as she dragged him out the door and down the pathway towards the road. He turned back to see Yang following and Taiyang standing in the doorway.
"Be careful! Remember, happy thoughts!" Taiyang called from the doorway.
Harry didn't know what he meant by that, but it was hard not to be happy as he, Ruby and Yang walked down a dirt pathway into the woods. Trees as tall as the pines in the Forbidden forest surrounded them.
"So you really don't know where you are?" asked Ruby as she continued to pull him towards their destination.
"No. I'm completely lost," Harry admitted.
"Well, don't worry. Ruby Rose will be your personal tour guide through the island of Patch!"
Harry smiled at the girl's enthusiasm. He turned to Yang. "Is she always like this?"
Yang smiled. "Yep. Sometimes it's refreshing. Other times you just want to smother her with a pillow while she sleeps."
Ruby stuck her tongue out at her sister, causing Harry to laugh. Then she looked at Harry. "So you really have no idea how you got here?"
Harry shook his head. He hoped he didn't give himself away too soon. "No. I really have no idea how I got here. I'm just glad you two found me."
"You're really lucky, you know that," said Yang. "You could have been eaten by a Beowolf."
Harry nodded even though he had no clue what a Beowolf was.
"Is there any way we can contact you family?" asked Ruby innocently.
Harry froze, surprising the girls. Until he found his wand, he still would have to go with Taiyang's story. Anything more and it would probably just lead to trouble and confustion. But he supposed he could tell some truth.
"My parents died when I was just a baby," Harry said thickly. "Since then, I've been staying with a family who, to be honest, could really care less if I was around or not. Probably wouldn't even care if I was dead."
Yang looked sick and Ruby brought her hands to her mouth, looking horror-stricken.
"I'm sorry," Ruby whispered. "That's just awful. How can…?"
Harry walked on, feeling his throat tighten. "It's okay. I'm over it."
Ruby and Yang were still for a moment before hurrying to catch up with him. Ruby slipped her hand into Harry's, trying to provide some comfort. Harry gave her a small smile, which she returned.
The trio walked in silence for about 15 minutes. Harry was beginning to feel really at peace, despite the situation. But sometimes, he caught the girls looking in the forest with calculating eyes. Harry didn't know what they were looking for. Maybe those wolves they told him about.
"We're here," announced Ruby some time later.
Harry looked around the area. They had arrived at would was a small opening away from the trees to the edge of a cliff. A small meadow stretched before them before dropping sharply off the cliff. Harry could see more forest stretch below him. He could even see what looked like the ocean in the distance.
Ruby led them to the center of the meadow before stopping.
"This is where we found you."
Harry looked at the mirror image of what he saw last night on Taiyang's Scroll. A perfect circle of charred grass, maybe 5 meters wide. Some of the grass had been burned completely away.
But no wand.
"So, find what you're looking for?" asked Yang, her hand on her hips.
Harry shook his head and walked around the circle. "No. I don't see it anywhere."
"Just what are we looking for?"
Harry wracked his brain, trying to find any excuse to be looking for a magic wand.
"A rod," he said at the top of his head.
Yang looked at him with a shocked expression. "A rod? We came out here looking for a rod?"
"Is it some kind of weapon?" asked Ruby.
Harry nodded. "It's what I use to defend myself."
"Does it extend into a staff? Does it use Dust? How does it work?" Ruby asked with a sort of mad gleam in her eye.
"Just a rod about 11 inches long," Harry explained. He didn't know what the heck she was talking about.
The girls looked at him for several moments before Yang sighed. "Alright. We better start looking. Consider it payment for breakfast."
Harry grinned as the three spread out over the clearing, taking small steps and scanning the ground. For nearly 10 minutes, they searched the meadow. With each minute, Harry felt the sick feeling in his stomach grow. He hoped his wand didn't burn to ashes from whatever scorched the ground.
Soon, he found himself carefully walking along the edge of the cliff. Flying over the years had conquered any fear he had of heights, but he didn't know how stable the ridge was. Harry was praying that if his wand was here in this meadow, that it didn't fall into the forest below when he suddenly came to a headstone.
Summer Rose. Thus Kindly, I Scatter.
Harry felt a pang in his heart as he realized he was at grave of Ruby and Yang's mother. There was no date of birth or death, but there was a very lifelike rose carved into the headstone. The ground in front of the headstone was worn away to the dirt. The girls must have spent a lot of time here to wear away the grass.
Then he spotted his wand lying on the bottom of the headstone.
Harry gasped quietly. How his wand ended up here of all places was a mystery but right now, Harry didn't care. He found one of his most precious items.
"I found it!" Harry called over his shoulder. The girls stopped looking and began to hurry towards him.
Harry slowly reached down and picked up his wand. He turned towards the girls as they stopped in front of him.
"That's it?" asked Yang skeptically. "Doesn't really look like much."
"The best weapons usually don't," Ruby eagerly answered. She was gazing at his wand with a measuring eye. She wondered what secrets it had.
Harry didn't answer them. Something felt wrong. The usual warmth he felt when he held his wand was gone. No tingling sensation ran up his arm or fire felt in his fingertips. Also, it seemed to feel lighter that it used to. Harry began to turn his wand over in his hands.
"Is something wrong?" asked Ruby.
"I don't know," Harry answered with worry in his voice. He then noticed a slight, blackened smudge at the very tip of the wand. It would have been hardly noticeable, but Harry knew his wand. That wasn't there before and his finger couldn't scrap it off. It almost looked like a burn. When he turned his wand, to look at the center, he gasped.
His wand was hollow.
It was like someone took a small, long drill and hollowed out his wand from the tip. It was so deep that he couldn't see how far it went. This was why it felt lighter.
Harry couldn't believe it. He grasped his wand and pointed it away from Ruby and Yang.
"Lumos."
Nothing. Not even a spark.
"Lumos!"
Nothing again. He gripped his wand tighter, ignoring the pain he was beginning to feel.
"LUMOS!"
Finally, a spark of light emerged from the tip. But it was gone as quickly as it appeared. Harry screamed when a shooting pain erupted in his hands and he dropped his wand. Glowing, blue smoke seemed to rise out of his fingertips and disappear into the air.
"Harry what's wrong?" Ruby asked. She gripped his arm and watched as the smoke vanished. "What was that stuff?"
Harry didn't answer her. He stared as his hand, feeling more lost and desperate than ever.
"It's gone. It's gone," he whispered.
"What's gone?" asked Ruby. Her voice was filled with concern.
"My wand. My magic. It's all gone."
"Your magic?"
"Ruby, maybe we should go get dad," Yang said. She was looking at Harry with caution. He sounded like was going a bit crazy and she didn't want her sister around that.
But before anybody could say anything else, several loud growls echoed across the meadow. The teens looked towards the trees and could see several dark shapes with glowing red eyes staring at them from the shadow of the trees. Harry's heart froze in his throat. They eyes. They were staring at them with pure rage. Desperation. Hunger.
"Beowolves," Ruby whispered.
"What?" Harry asked.
"Creatures of Grimm. They must have been drawn here," answered Ruby.
"Are you telling that even isolated from the villages, you don't know what Grimm are?" asked Yang. A look of confusion on her face. "How sheltered of a life have you lived?"
The creatures began to slowly stalk through the trees and into the sunlight. The seemed to be about 2 and a half meters tall; a couple of them even 3. They resembled wolves, but stood erect on their hind legs. Their front paws ended with long, sharp claws that looked like white daggers. Black fur cover their bodies while what seemed to be black smoke wafted from their fur. They also had white bones extending out of their knees, elbows and ribcages. But what startled Harry the most was the white skull with red markings on the creatures' faces.
Harry instinctively backed up, but stopped when his foot almost went over the edge of the cliff. He realized too late the creatures had them trapped.
"What are we going to do?" asked Harry.
But instead of having the fear he felt, the two sisters looked at him and smiled.
"It's time to kick some butt," giggled Yang.
Yang pushed her hands down and the yellow bracelets seemed to enlarge and cover both her forearms and wrists. Two small, hollow rods popped open near her knuckles. She moved into a position that Harry recognized as a fighter's stance. Ruby pulled the red, thin box from her back and spun it. To Harry's disbelief, the box seemed to unfold piece by piece. A long pole stretched out that had a trigger guard and a scope attached to it. The rest folded and stretched into a curve. There was a loud clink and several blades popped from the curve. Harry realized Ruby was holding a giant, red scythe.
"Bloody hell," Harry whispered.
One Beowolf howled and the rest charged. There were two separate bangs and the two girls were propelled forwards. Two bullet casings fell in front of Harry. One rifle and the other a shotgun. He realized they used gunfire to charge against the creatures.
Yang punched the first one on the skull, shattering it completely. She then stepped on headless body and backflipped into the air. She gave three quick punches and each punch produced a red projectile that landed in front of the creatures. The following explosion disrupted their charge and knocked them off balance. Yang fired above her head and used the momentum to dropkick onto a Beowolf's spine. Another Beowulf jumped at her back, but she punch-fired an elbow into its snout then uppercutted it under the chin. The Beowolf flew into the air and landed beside Harry. The creature then began to dissolve into a black mist.
Ruby used the force of her previous gunshot to swing the scythe and completely slice a Beowulf in half. She swung again and pierced another in the back, pinning it to the ground. She then began to swing her body like a gymnast around her pinned weapon and kick several Bewolves away. Ruby fired again, propelling herself into the air. Her scythe transformed again. The bladed folded into itself, but the pole and trigger guard remained. Ruby then fired several shots at the creatures, scoring a few headshots. Her scythe transformed back, and then fired another shot. She used the recoil to turn herself into a deadly pinwheel and slice several other Beowolf heads off.
Harry watched the two girls fight with awe. Never in his life had he seen such amazing abilities and weapons. Not even on television. And these girls, even so young, were so talented at fighting. They looked as though they have been doing it for years.
"Harry!"
Harry snapped out of his fascination too late to see a Beowolf break away from the girls and pounce on him. He instinctively blocked himself with his arms. The creature's claws tore through his left arm and knocked him to his left, away from the cliff. Harry rolled through the grass, his arm on fire and numb. He pushed himself up with his right arm and back onto his feet. Looking down at his arm, he saw three large gashes in arm and they were bleeding profusely.
"Harry!" yelled Ruby. She tried to run towards him but was blocked off by three Beowolves. "Are you okay?"
He didn't answer as his blood dripped heavily down his arm. He stared at the creature, which was crouching down for another pounce. He automatically reached into his pocket for his wand, but then realized it would do no good. It was still on the ground where he left it and with no magic, he couldn't do anything.
A feeling began to bubble within Harry. It wasn't fear of the Beowolf. It wasn't helplessness of being undefended or losing magic. It wasn't even sadness of being trapped in a world where he had no idea what to do.
Right now, all he felt was calm. He felt courage. He felt strength. The pain in his arm ebbed away until his body felt invincible. Harry didn't know where this serene tranquility was coming from, but he suddenly felt as though he could take the creature bare handed.
The Beowolf pounced. Harry, calm and collected, swung his arm forward and punched the Beowolf in the side of the head. For a brief moment, Harry's fist was emblazed with a golden red fire. And the strength he used last night to accidently knock Taiyang into the couch was now sending the creature back flying to its pack.
Everything stopped. Ruby, Yang and the Beowolves ceased their fights and watched a Beowolf slammed into the middle of the meadow. It howled with pain as the fire from Harry's fist was now engulfing the Beowolf's head, then rapidly spread along its body. Soon after, it dissolved into a gold shower of dust.
For several moments, nothing moved. Then, there was a howl from one of the Beowolves and they all ran back into the forest. Ruby and Yang watched them go before slowly turning to Harry. Their weapons folded back up into their compact conditions.
Harry was slightly panting as the girls walked back to him. The look in the eyes was a mixture of disbelief and awe. Ruby seemed to be at a loss for words.
"That was totally awesome!" Yang yelled. The smile on her face was huge. "Was that your semblance?"
Before Harry could answer, the peaceful tranquility he was experiencing left him and his arm burned like never before. He grasped it, feeling the blood leak between his fingers as he sat down.
"Whoa, you're bleeding," said Yang as she and Ruby knelt beside him. "Why isn't your aura healing you?"
"Yang, he probably doesn't know what aura is. He probably wouldn't have it unlocked," said Ruby.
Yang frowned. "But he used his semblance against that Beowulf." She turned to him. "Right? That cool gold fire. That's your semblance."
"I don't know what semblance is, okay?!" Harry growled through clenched teeth. His outburst made the girls jump. "I don't know semblances are, I don't know what aura is and I've never seen weapons like yours. How the hell can you two jump in the air like that? How can you wield a giant scythe that probably weight three times as you do? And how the bloody hell how are you trained to fight monsters?"
Yang and Ruby stared in shock at Harry. He pulled off his vest and used it to hopefully stop the bleeding.
"Harry, aura is the manifestation of your soul," Ruby explained. "It's in everything alive. Humans, Faunus, animals. Everyone has aura."
"Well, I don't, alright." Harry threw the blood-soaked vest away and cradled his arm against his chest. All of a sudden, all off the emotions he felt the past few days hit him all at once. In about 24 hours, he had experienced so much. The vision of his godfather being tortured, his friends hunted down by Death Eaters because of his stupidity, falling into another world and worst of all, finding his destroyed wand.
For the first time in a long time, he began to cry.
"I'm not from this world," he said through his tears. He placed his head against his knees, still cradling his arm. "I fell through a doorway in a place I should not have been in and wound up here. I've never heard of Vale, Vacuo, Patch or any of the other places you told me. I don't know what aura is or semblances. I've never seen Grimm or any kind of creatures like them. And people can't do what you two just did. I don't even have a clue what I just did to that Beowolf!"
The two sisters did not say anything. They didn't know what to do as Harry continued.
"Like I told you dad and Qrow, I come from a world of magic. That rod we were looking for was my wand. I've had it since I was 11 years old. But now it's broken. The core that powered my wand is gone. Now, I can't use my magic anymore. What's more, my friends might be dead because of my boneheaded actions. I lead them into a trap and for all I know, they might have been killed because I had to play a bloody hero!"
After his rant, Harry felt drained. All of the pent up emotions he kept just burst through like an explosion. Now, all he felt was emptiness. Even the pain in his arm had lessened. After a few moments, Harry felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked up to see Ruby.
"I believe you."
Harry stared at her. "Just like that?"
Ruby gave a sad smile. "Why not? You said you told dad and Uncle Qrow last night. Since you're still with us and not in the loony bin, they believed your story too."
"Yeah," Yang chuckled. "Dad wouldn't have let you hang out with us if you were crazy. Hell, he doesn't let any boys our age into the house."
Harry couldn't help but chuckle too. It seems that Taiyang was one of those overprotective fathers that Fred and George always hoped not to meet.
Ruby stood up and held a hand to Harry. "If you don't have your aura unlocked, then we need to get you back to the house and take care of your injuries."
Harry smiled and grasped her hand with his uninjured one. Yang got to his other side and lifted him up under his armpit. Strangely, Harry's arm didn't even strain when Yang lifted him up. Then Yang gasped and let go of his arm.
"What the hell?" she muttered. She was staring at his arm. Harry looked down and gasped as well.
His arm was completely healed. The three, large claw marks that were only there minutes ago had vanished. His blood had still remained, fresh and wet.
"I thought you said you didn't have your aura unlocked," Yang told him.
"I don't," reasoned Harry. He looked at his arm and wiped the leftover blood away. Nothing. Not even a scar. The blood was still wet that it ran between his fingers.
But when he looked closer, he realized that there was something else. There was a clear liquid running up to his elbow. It was warm. He wiped his watery eyes in hopes of seeing clearer, then froze.
Those were his tears. The clear liquid was his tears. He cried on his arm when he cradled against his chest earlier.
No. That can't be. It's not possible. But how….
"Harry, did you figure something out?" asked Ruby when she saw him freeze.
"I might have, but it doesn't seem possible," he admitted.
"What?" asked Yang.
"Well…let's get back to the house. I'll explain everything to you on the way back."
I hope everyone enjoyed my newest chapter. Please let me know how I'm doing.
