June 18th, 1992
Harry sat quietly as he Neville and Hermione all stood quietly at the side of their shared club room. Neat the middle of the room, Ron was working on drawing chalk on the floor extremely carefully.
"This looks very similar to what you did Harry for your Ritual."
"That's not very surprising. Alchemy is similar though also very different but, in some ways, it could be considered a type of Ritual. It's basically turning one thing into another with the use of magic. In the middle of the Ritual, you basically draw out an arithmetic formula used to specify the conversion. If the formula doesn't work, the alchemic reaction simply degrades and breaks apart, usually harmlessly. If it works then… Good things happen. Rituals basically do the same thing but in a different way. They are much more chaotic and even with my Rune method, there is a certain level of experimentation that is NECESSARY to figure out what type of results you will get. Alchemy is much more predictable but relies on complicated math which makes it… difficult."
"I'm trying to concentrate on this." Ron yelled over from his spot crouched on the floor as he continued to draw.
"Sorry Ron." Harry called out. It was strange to not be the one practicing an actual experiment in the club room. Up until now, he had been the only one who had done so as both Neville and Hermione had resolved not to until next year. Hermione had already decided to have her focus be on Charms though she would likely be similar to him in having a certain adequacy in multiple topics.
Neville actually surprised them by saying he would focus on Defense Against the Dark Arts. Harry had been sure he would pick Herbology but his friend had said he would use that more as a relaxing hobby then as a focus in which he would like to experiment. He was quite excited to see what Neville would do in said field. He believed the boy actually had quite a bit of potential and his recent grades proved that.
The boy had skyrocketed in almost all his subjects this semester including; Charms, Defense Against the Dark Arts, and even Potions surprisingly. He wasn't the best but he was certainly much better than he had been in the first half of the year and their teachers had started to take notice.
Harry, himself had been doing some continued work on his Runic Rituals. He was currently still working on a Purifying Ritual, a high level one too if he judged it correctly. He had sent a letter to Penelope Flamel a month or so ago showing her the first Ritual he had done and speaking on his ideas for the next one. He had also explained how he had made it family magic and would appreciate it if you didn't spread it around. That being said, it was her work that allowed him his breakthrough in Rituals so he thought she deserved to see what he had done with it.
She had been quite pleased with his progress and even gave him some helpful hints for his next progress. Certain magical animals that were known to have purifying properties associated with them. He had bought a few though mainly so he could observe the magic of the ingredient rather than actually use them. He had built a good foundation from his research so far but he doubted he would have any results for several more months, especially with how he was splitting his time finishing up his Arithmetic education as well as his Ancient Runes one. The only way he would learn more was under a Master and there happed to be one in each discipline here at Hogwarts.
"All right, and done! How does it look?" Ron said as he jumped and looked over at them with a smile. Harry looked down at the five-sided star on the floor with small writing all over the inside of it. In the middle of it was a small stone from the lake just outside the castle. Ron was still insistent on using them.
"Considering I can't read the writing and have no true education in Alchemy, it looks great." Harry told him. Neville snorted from next to him but nodded in agreement.
"Are you going to tell us what this is going to do yet Ron?" He asked. Hermione had been uncharacteristically silent this whole time as she watched with a rapt interest in what Ron had been doing.
"Yes, indeed. Alright, so basically, if I did this right, this pebble is going to turn into a crystal." Ron said proudly. Harry blinked at bit back his first response to that. He was going to ask why that in particular but this was likely more of a proof-of-concept test for Ron than anything else.
"Interesting. What made you settle on a crystal for the end result?" Hermione asked.
"Simply the obvious differences it has from a normal stone making it more apparent if the Alchemy reaction worked properly. Got to be honest, I am kind of nervous. I have triple checked all my work and I'm still not sure this is going to work." Ron admitted nervously.
"Don't be, even if it doesn't work, it isn't like you failed. You simply found a sure way to make sure it doesn't work. Either way, we will never know until you get this started so hit it up." Neville called out looking somewhat impatient. Ron nodded anxiously before pulling out his wand and casting a white, slightly transparent spell at the star before stepping a few feet away.
As soon as the spell made contact, the lines of the star started to glow a teal blue color and small flecks of light came off them and started floating lazily into the air giving it a truly mystical look. Soon after the writing within the star also started glowing and a low hum appeared in the air seemingly originating from the star.
"Okay, so far so good. I'm pretty sure that's supposed to happen." Ron said over his shoulder as he slowly walked backwards and closer to them. Harry didn't say anything in response as he continued to look at the reaction. In truth, with the colors and effects coming off it, there was a certain hypnotizing feature to the whole thing. He briefly wondered if his Runic Ritual had the same beauty when he had first used it in February.
Soon, the pebble in the middle of the star started glowing brighter and brighter until it was fully engulfed in a light and could no longer be seen. Harry had to shield his eyes and noticed the hum in the air had gotten slightly louder to the point where you could almost feel the vibration of the noise physically travel through the air.
He waited for several moments before the light started to recede and the noise started to go down as well. Soon, he was able to un-shield his eyes and looked at the alchemy reaction plainly. Soon the light was faded enough that he could see the middle of the star once more, and what he saw caused him to smile. He reached over and patted his redheaded friend on the back as he stared back looking gobsmacked.
"Congratulations Ron… You just accomplished your first feat in Alchemy." Harry told him happily. Neville joined in a moment later in congratulating him and Hermione grabbed him and hugged him tightly as she cheered at his success. By then, the reaction had completed and the magic had faded leaving nothing but a small white crystal lying on the floor.
"I… I did it… I actually did it." Ron repeated over and over as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing in front of him. Harry just felt his smiled widen at his friend's disbelief.
"Never doubted you for a second pal." Neville laughed.
With that, they walked closer and closer towards the center of the room with Ron leading. When they got close though, they stopped and Ron slowly turned to him.
"Harry you feel anything?" He asked him. Sometime after Harry had revealed Ciri to his friends he had spoken a little more on his abilities to his friends including the ability to sense magic around him. They hadn't even been surprised at that point but occasionally asked him to use it for things like this.
He concentrated back to the task at hand and concentrated his senses on the sign on the floor. He waited a few moments before frowning.
"There still seems to be a little magic on the floor but its not moving and completely stable so it's probably just some remnants from the transmutation that lingered after. Speaking of, that was a lot of magic in that process, is that normal?" Harry asked. It hadn't been as much as the Ritual but considering how much magic it took to transfigure something he hadn't expected to use that much. Ron shrugged.
"I kind of overcharged the formula and added some enhancers to help with the process. I kind of based it off the ones you showed me that helped with your Ritual."
"And that doesn't alter the process?"
"Well, for something this small and simple, it shouldn't. I didn't use enough to make it explode or anything." Ron said back. Harry nodded slowly as his friend moved forward and slowly picked up the crystal on the floor gently and brought it up in front of his face to see it better.
"It's beautiful." Ron commented almost in a trance. Harry nodded in agreement. The crystal almost looked like an uncut diamond that had been polished rather than what one would normally expect from a crystal. Ron twisted it to get a better look at it before handing it over to Hermione who looked very eager to check it out. Hermione gave him a grateful look before gently taking it and moving it over her palm.
"It certainly is beautiful. It's amazing to think that this was once just a common stone found in a lake bed. And to think it will stay like this… It's amazing Ron." Hermione said with a smile as she looked at it. She handed it to Neville who took it and rolled it over his hands as he observed it.
"I bet if you got this cut, you could sell it for a pretty penny." Neville commented. Ron immediately looked excited.
"Really, how much do you think?"
"Well, it's still a crystal but if you could get it cut for cheap, you could probably get a few galleons for it. Especially if you mention it was made through Alchemy." Neville mentioned before handing the crystal over to Harry. He took it and immediately froze up.
When he regained his composure and brought it up to his face and looked at it closely. There was something strange about this crystal. It almost felt unnaturally warm to him. He opened his senses further, almost on instinct and felt his eyes widen for a moment.
"Guys, there's something wrong with this crystal." He said. Immediately his friends all froze and looked with concern over at him. Ron especially looked concerned.
"What do you mean? Is it going to explode?" He asked hurriedly. Harry slowly shook his head.
"I think… No, I'm sure, there's magic in this crystal, and it's not fading at all..." Harry answered. At that, all the looked of concern immediately turned into ones of confusion.
"Magic? What do you mean?"
"I mean, I think you not only turned this into a crystal but you've also imbued it with magic somehow." Harry commented. His friends just looked amongst themselves before looking back at him.
"So… What does that mean?"
"I'm not sure but… I think we should show this to Dumbledore.
Fifteen Minutes Later
"I am confused, what is it you wish to ask me about this crystal?"
"We noticed it was holding magic and were wondering why that would be." Harry answered. Him and his three friends were all sitting across from the Headmaster with the crystal lying on the man's desk. He had been elected to speak since he had the best relationship with the Headmaster. Albus looked down and picked up the crystal.
"Well, besides the fact that it's a wardstone, I don't see anything strange about it. I wasn't aware you had been working with Wardstones in your experiments." Dumbledore said eyeing him curiously. Harry froze at the word. He knew what a Wardstone was. They were stones, usually in the form of beautiful rocks or gems that were used as the basis to power protections. They were highly sought after.
"I am not. Today, Ron finally tested his first Alchemy experiment and that was the result. A Wardstone though? Are you sure?"
"This is the result of Alchemy? How impressive! May I ask what you used as a base Mr. Weasley?" Dumbledore asked with some excitement.
"Umm, just a stone I found by the lake." Ron answered nervously.
"Most impressive. And what inspired you to use that?"
"Well, it's free and easy to get my hands on when I need more."
"I see. Truly remarkable."
"Can we back up for a moment. Aren't Wardstones supposed to be very rare."
"Some are yes. There are three tiers of Wardstones; Low, Mid, and High. The one you have seen at Potter Manor is a High level one which is why it has lasted centuries and will last centuries more. Mid-level Wardstones can cover a decent sized house and can last anywhere from fifty to two hundred years depending on its power. Low tier is usually used for small areas like a single room or object. They are the most common and will usually only last a couple years at most." Dumbledore explained. Harry nodded slowly as he processed that.
"So, it's common then… I don't suppose its worth anything?" Ron asked. He didn't fault the boy; he grew up in a low-income family after all and money had always been a concern. Dumbledore nodded.
"It is the most common and the weakest type but one can usually be sold from anywhere of fifteen to thirty galleons depending on how strong it is." Dumbledore revealed. Harry immediately felt his eyes widen and as he looked to his left, he noticed his friends had similar looks.
Harry was extremely rich but even he knew to an average person, fifteen to thirty galleons wasn't chump change. This was doubly so since Ron could make them for pretty much nothing. Unlike a Ritual, Ron didn't have to write out the whole transmutation process over and over. He could just keep placing rocks over and over and turning it on to make more. It still took a couple of minutes for each but even if he low balled the price to ten galleons each and only sold ten… and a hundred? He could make a huge profit.
"Harry, how long did the process take?" Ron asked with excitement. Harry thought about it seriously.
"A little less than two minutes. Which means you can make 30-35 per hour if you do it back-to-back." Harry told him.
"And if I sell them at store for fifteen a piece…"
"It'll likely be closer to ten at most since the reseller has to make a profit unless you're planning to sell them yourself." Harry advised.
"Not necessarily. For a Low level Wardstone, this seems to be of a higher quality. I wouldn't be surprised if this sold for closer to 25-30 galleons. Young Mr. Weasley could likely sell them for fifteen to twenty a piece. That being said, I have only limited business experience so I can only guess." Dumbledore told them as he placed the crystal down on the desk.
"Oh man… Guys… I'm going to be rich!" Ron yelled as he jumped up and cheered. Neville smiled and shook his head. Hermione laughed behind her hand at his antics. Harry just chuckled at Ron as the boy did a little dance.
"I suppose I can reach out to see if there is anyone interested in buying your stock. I think the best place to look would be Europe, America and China. They're the three biggest markets. Settling for just Magical Britain would limit how many could be sold and therefore, your profit. Make a bunch first though while I make inquiries." Harry told him. He didn't have much business experience but he had several stock in several businesses, both domestic and international. He could probably check and see if any would be interested in selling the product.
"You'd do that? Oh, thank you Harry! Man, this could change everything. I can't believe my first experiment succeeded so much." Ron cheered.
"Well… Not exactly." Harry said back. Ron stopped and looked at him in confusion.
"What do you mean?" He asked, confused.
"Well, as great as it is that you made this great discovery on how to make Wardstones through Alchemy, and congratulations on that, it isn't what you set out to do. You should save the formula you used before looking back and figuring out where it went wrong." Harry reminded. Ron immediately frowned as he thought about that.
"Ah."
"Yes, ah." Harry agreed. Ron stopped and frowned as he continued to think about what Harry had said.
"I agree with young Harry. That being said. You still did an excellent job. You have no idea how many results in Alchemy have been made by accident. The most famed creation, the Philosopher Stone was made by accident." Dumbledore informed. Harry rose an eyebrow as he mentioned the problematic stone from their first semester. He knew the man had already put the books mentioning back in the library, but he hadn't expected him to bring it up so casually.
"Are you serious?" Hermione asked skeptically. Dumbledore simply nodded.
"Originally, the formula was only supposed to turn any material into Gold. Instead, it could only turn other metals into Gold but also could create the Elixir of Life. A failure and a success at the same time." Dumbledore explained. Harry hadn't known that either actually.
"One of the most power artifacts in the magical world was made on accident… I guess that's why it hasn't been replicated." Hermione commented sounding almost sad about that.
"Our mistakes contribute just as much if not more than our successes on our road of life." Dumbledore replied to that with his usual mysterious smile and typical eye twinkle. Harry rolled his eyes but his friends looked to be eating the man's words up.
Harry would never understand how revered Dumbledore was by the populace. Half the things he did was because he simply liked to tease people and they didn't realize it. There were occasions on real subjects where he purposefully tried to navigate away from topics he didn't wish to speak on. That was pretty rare though.
"Well Mr. Weasley I wish to congratulate you on your success. In fact, if you wish it, I would be more than happy to take you under my metaphorical wing and help you with smoothing out some of your issues and maybe expanding your knowledges." Dumbledore offered.
You could almost hear a pin drop in the room with how quiet it just got. Harry blinked for a moment not really sure what was happening. Did Ron not hear Dumbledore or something. He looked over at Ron who simply stared at Harry's guardian with an 'O' look on his face. Oh, this was another one of those moments he would now start referring too as a Dumbledore Moment, a moment involving Dumbledore that everyone but him was dazzled by.
"Do you…. Do you mean that?" Ron whispered. Dumbledore simply smiled back.
"Do you think I would have offered just to tease you? I would only be willing to help out. I, myself, am not a master in the art so it isn't as if I could take you on as a full-time apprentice." Dumbledore pointed out. It would likely mean he would do the same thing he did with Harry and simply give the pointers on what he needed to do.
"I… Of course! Yes, I accept!" Ron yelled clearly having lost control of the volume of his voice. Dumbledore's smile widened at that.
"Excellent. I am excited to see and be apart of your journey into the art of Alchemy. If you started here then believe me when I say the sky is the limit." Dumbledore encouraged. Ron legitimately looked like he won the lottery at that point.
"Thank you so much. I promise I'll do my best Headmaster." Ron exclaimed looking wowed. Both Neville and Hermione looked extremely pleased for their friend while Harry simply kept his expression neutral. With that, the conversation winded down and the excitement from the day came to a lull.
June 21st, 1991
Harry sat at Ravenclaw table for the first time in the past three months next to Hermione as they watched Dumbledore give his final speech of the year. He was currently congratulating all of them on getting through the year as well as going over the points for the house cup.
"Now before we end this, I have a last-minute announcement to make. After much deliberation between myself and the rest of the teachers of this great institution, we have made a decision. Harry Potter, would you please come up here?" Dumbledore asked with a smile on his face.
Harry blinked in confusion as suddenly the entire hall burst into whispers of speculation on him. Harry hadn't been singled out much throughout the year by his teachers on rare occasion when he performed above and beyond in class which he didn't do often except on accident. Even further, he was rarely seen around the school with how much he was either in his room or in the club room. In truth, he had no idea why Dumbledore was calling him.
Despite his confusion, he slowly stood up from his seat. As he did, he saw Hermione looking over at him front the seat next to his with confusion. He gave her a small shrug to show he didn't know what happened either. He then moved up to the front of the Great Hall where Dumbledore was standing at his podium. He stopped as he stood next to the man. Dumbledore's eyes were twinkling like crazy at him which showed Harry the man was feeling mischevious at the moment. He wasn't sure if that was good or bad for him. Dumbledore seemed to understand Harry's expression because a small smirk appeared on his face before schooling back to his normal grandfather smile as he turned to look at the assembled students.
"Many of you do not know this but Mr. Potter here did a great service to this school during this year which safeguarded the lives of many of you and those beyond these walls. He asked for nothing in return at the time and has not brought up his involvement since. I will not go into the specifics of what was done for privacy reasons but I would be remiss if I let the year end without any sort of recognition for his acts. Harry Potter, I along with the rest of the staff of Hogwarts, would like to reward you two hundred house points and an award for special services rendered in the defense of this school and all it's inhabitants." Dumbledore said as he picked up something from his podium and handed it to Harry.
He looked at it and saw that it was a beautifully carved wooden plaque with a golden plate on it and his name and award engraved into the metal. He slowly reached out and took it. Immediately, there were loud cheers from the Ravenclaw table as he did, as well as polite but confused clapping coming from the rest of the tables. Dumbledore shook his hand before gesturing for him to return to his seat. Harry was welcomed back into his table with cheers and strong pats on the back from all his housemates as he simply took a seat next to Hermione who looked even more confused.
"What was that about?" She leaned in whispered. He just shrugged helplessly.
"I'll explain on the train." He told her. She frowned but nodded reluctantly back at him. With that, there was a couple more minutes before the hall finally settled down once more. Dumbledore was still smiling serenely.
"Yes, congratulations and special thanks to Mr. Potter once more. Finally, as you know, we teachers also like to point out impressive scholarly achievements made by our students to show what can be done with a little hard work and ingenuity. With that in mind, we would like to award one Ronald Weasley one hundred and fifty points for his amazing Alchemy achievement both shown and confirmed by myself and several others. While I cannot yet speak on what the achievement is, for legal reasons, the mere fact that one in their first year has already accomplished their first transmutation of any kind is simply remarkable and deserves recognition. In fact, I do not believe it has been done in nearly a decade and a half. If you will, please congratulate the young man on said achievement." Dumbledore called out.
Immediately, the Gryffindor table exploded with yells and screams as the entire house suddenly went wild at the news. The screams and cheering were so loud, it felt like they were literally vibrating Harry's skull. He lifted his hands and began clapping with the rest of the hall. The only ones who didn't seem to be too excited about all of this might be the Slytherins though whether that was due to the fact that they were rivals or because they were no longer in the lead in points was anyone's guess.
Harry watched two redheads that looked the same go over to Ron and grab him before shaking him violently in excitement. It looked like they were saying something to him but the loudness of the room prevented any chance of him hearing it.
"Good for Ron, he worked hard for that achievement, though I'm surprised Dumbledore didn't mention your achievements either." Hermione questioned out loud.
"Likely because I specifically asked him not to bring attention to them. I don't really want people to start scrutinizing my work. I should have known he'd find some way to get around my words. Slippery old man." Harry muttered in slight annoyance. Hermione nodded in understanding though she did seem to be amused by his final words even if she did lightly scold him for insulting the Headmaster.
"Yes, excellent… Now, I believe it is time to tally up the points. Looking up, it would seem that the winner of the House Cup for this year is…. Ravenclaw!" Dumbledore called out.
The cheers at the table went up again. Ravenclaw was usually always the runner up in recent years behind Slytherin who had apparently been taking the victory for the past several years. They made good points because of their knowledge but sometimes had a problem standing out in classes. Slytherins always had a huge amount though that was likely due to their Head of House who was biased towards them. Even if he had been more subdued this year, Slytherin's were still intelligent generally.
"Yes, congratulations to the Ravenclaws. And with that, please enjoy the rest of the feast!"
A Couple of Hours Later
"I'm surprised more people haven't come to our compartment to question you two." Hermione mentioned looking at their train compartment door with a speculative expression.
"I put an illusion to hide our compartment since I figured there would be some who would try and do so and I didn't feel like being bothered." Harry answered back with a shrug.
"That has to be against the rules." Hermione pointed out.
"Maybe, but until they press the issue, I'm still going to do it. Unless you're saying I should take down the illusion and let anyone come into our compartment?" Harry challenged giving his friend a raised eyebrow. Hermione frowned but didn't push after that.
"I can't believe Dumbledore did that! Everyone was questioning me during the feast about what I did and how I learned Alchemy." Ron told them with excitement.
"What did you tell them?" Harry asked with some concern. He didn't want people to start trying to join their club.
"I didn't really tell them anything. I kind of just said we do private study and research a lot. I did tell my brothers that I would show them when we get home. The twins were actually probably going to try and confront me again on the train so I'm glad you put up an illusion. You still haven't shown us how to do any of them." He said looking over at Harry.
"I too am eager to start learning." Neville chimed in. Harry nodded.
"I remember. I planned to start this summer on our training. We will be doing it wandlessly to start so there should be no issue learning it outside of school. It'll give us something to do since we apparently can't use wand magic." Harry told them.
"Does that mean we're going to meet up this Summer?" Hermione asked with enthusiasm.
"I was hoping to yes. Ron and Neville can simply floo over but I was thinking to pick you up if necessary, Hermione. Unless your family would be willing to get connected to the Floo network?" He suggested.
"I thought that was only allowed for magical households?"
"Exceptions can be made. Dumbledore could handle that if you're interested. He'll make sure to put some protections on your property to prevent unauthorized use." Harry told her. She looks interested but seemed to be holding back.
"I would be but… I will need to speak with my parents first. It is their house after all." She pointed out. Harry nodded in understanding.
"I should be allowed. I'm sure my Gran will jump at the opportunity for me to spend more time with you Harry." Neville commented.
"Not with the rest of us?" Hermione questioned suspiciously. Neville shrugged.
"She's not opposed to any of my relationships and she doesn't look down on either of you if that's what you're thinking. It's just that Harry is from House Potter who are strong allies of House Longbottom. My friendship with Harry makes her feel like I am taking on more Lordly responsibilities and such. I don't care as long as she allows it." Neville told them. That seemed to put Hermione at ease. Ron hadn't seemed bothered by the words in the first place.
"That's… fair, I guess." Hermione muttered.
"So, we're all going to keep in touch over the Summer? Good. I have a feeling mom's going to expect me to just study all Summer."
"I'm sure she'll just be extremely proud of your accomplishments." Hermione told him with a smile. Ron just shook his head with clear dread on his face.
"Wouldn't be surprised if she somehow already knew. Her and Dad are apparently friends of Dumbledore's." Ron mentioned. Harry's curiosity pricked at that.
"They are? He's never mentioned that."
"I guess. I've not really ever seen him around but they do occasionally mention speaking and meeting with him though not too often." Ron told him. Harry frowned in thought at that. It truly was a small world he supposed.
"So, what else are you all planning to do this summer?" Hermione asked.
"I think I'm going to see about maybe learning some Defense magic and maybe use some of our family's greenhouses. Get ready for next year, you know?"
"I think I'll be the same. They allow second years on the quidditch team you know. I think I might try out so I need to practice. I also need to work more on Alchemy. Wouldn't want to disappoint Dumbledore you know. Speaking of which, Harry and Hermione, do you think you two could still help me with some of my equations?"
"I should be able to."
"Of course."
"Great. Thanks, you guys. Anyway, that's me. What about you Hermione?" Ron asked.
"Hmm, I suppose I want to start getting ready on some ideas for charms I have. I might start making notes and writing down some equations to put into use for next year. I also wish to start learning more on Ancient Runes since we don't get to start that until third year."
"What level are you in Arithmancy?"
"I believe I am almost at Seventh at this point though I wish to have Harry check for me."
"You are."
"I haven't shown you anything yet!"
"You don't need to. I saw, the practice sheets you were working on a couple of days ago. One of the equations you were using is in the Seventh-Year course book I learned from." Harry explained. Hermione's face scrunched into something as if she wasn't sure what emotion she should settle on.
"Worksheets?" Neville asked.
"Yes. I looked through some of the Arithmancy text in the library and made several study guides and worksheets for me to get through.
"Smart of you. I was wondering how you were pushing so far ahead so fast."
"It's not as easy as it sounds. A lot of the texts aren't exactly current so I needed to go to several different books on the same subject spanning a number of years just to have what I felt was a comprehensive enough knowledge of the subject." Hermione told them. Harry nodded in agreement. That was something he had also noticed about the Hogwarts library. It was truly massive and had knowledge spanning to almost every magical subject out there. That being said, not all of it was recent. Some of the texts were even incorrect. It was quite vexing. His library at Potter Manor was slightly better but did have similar problems.
"Well, what about you Harry? I have a feeling we know what you're going to do but in the interest of fairness…" Neville trailed off.
"I am going to be working more on my Purifying Ritual. I also think I will try to refine my knowledge in Runes and Arithmancy. I have the knowledge but I believe I should weed out my mistakes and misconceptions to better use my knowledge. That might take a while but I think I'll do it over time instead of at once. I also wish to do some research in a few things in my spare time. I'm still trying to figure out a way for all of you to meet Ciri, and I think I may have found something in that regard."
"Really? You never told us that!" Hermione exclaimed. Harry shrugged.
"You know I don't like bringing things that may not happen up until I am surer. I am now though which is why I did. Next time we speak, I'll give you more details." Harry told them.
"Nice. Nice. Speaking of, how is Ciri?" Neville asked. Harry nodded.
"She is doing well. Her training has been going well and I believe Geralt, her guardian, has summoned a sorceress to come and check her out to maybe find out what was trying to possess her. I think they will arrive in a couple of months since they have to by foot."
"No Apparition huh?"
"No, unfortunately. They do have portals but you need to have a destination in mind. The sorceress has apparently never been to where Ciri is currently located. Even worse, it's deep and hidden in the mountains. If you don't know where you're going, it's easy to get lost. At least, that's what Ciri told me."
"Well, that's something, I suppose. I hope it's nothing serious… Make sure you give her our best." Neville said with a nod. Harry nodded back in acknowledgement.
With that, for the rest of the train ride, they drifted in and out of conversation as the peacefully rode back to the train station.
Several Hours Later
"Oh, Hello boys! It's so good to see you!" A portly redheaded woman said as she wrapped up Ron and three of his siblings up in a giant hug. Harry watched silently at the display and couldn't help a sudden pang he felt in his chest at seeing it.
He couldn't remember hugging his mother. In fact, the only person who had hugged him in recent memory was Professor McGonagall and Ciri. Ciri's was comforting to him while McGonagall's seem to be almost reassuring in a way. He wondered what a hug from his mother would feel like to him.
"Mom, you're choking me." Ron wheezed out from somewhere in his mothers' bosom. His words seemed to cause the woman to sigh as she suddenly released the four boys.
"Excuse me for being happy to see my children again." His mother huffed at them.
"It's good to see you mother." The eldest of the four said back. He was the most serious looking. If Harry remembered correctly, that was Percy, the oldest of Ron's brothers still going to Hogwarts. Harry was pretty sure he had never directly met the boy.
"Indeed, dearest mother. Your favorite child has arrived!"
"Now hold a moment there twin of mine. I am quite sure it is I who is our mother's favorite."
"Come now Fred…"
"Fred? I'm George remember? You're Fred."
"I thought we had decided it was the other way around yesterday."
"Did we? Hmmm, perhaps you might be right dear brother. Maybe you are the favorite?"
"Oh wait, but if you're Fred then it must actually be you."
"No no no, I'm quite sure that is was…"
"Boys! You stop that silliness right now!" Ron's mother called out stopping the twins in their argument. Ron's twin brothers were an interesting sort, and unlike Percy, he had actually met them. They were a canny sort and also apparently knew where their club room was, though they had never found a way into it. Ron had said they had tried breaking in with no success. Honestly, their back and forth speak sort of confused him and he assumed that must've been the point of it.
"Ron, it's so good to see you." Ron's mother said as she looked over her youngest son dragging Harry back out of his thoughts.
"Hey mum. It's good to see you too. Where's Dad and Ginny?"
"Oh, your father is over by the platform entrance and Ginny is with him. I told them I would bring them over so we wouldn't get lost in the crowds. Speaking of crowds, aren't you going to introduce your friends?" She questioned as she looked over at the rest of their group. Ron turned and smiled as he looked over at them.
"Right, of course. Mom, this is Neville Longbottom, Hermione Granger, and Harry Potter. They're my best mates." Ron said proudly as he listed them off. Neville stepped forward first.
"Good to meet you Mrs. Weasley. Ron has said nothing but good things." Neville said with a friendly smile though he did look a little nervous. Ron's mother immediately pulled the boy into a giant hug.
"Oh, so good to meet you dear. Arthur and I used to be good friends with your parents. It's so good to see you all grown up. I assume your grandmother is here somewhere for you?" Mrs. Weasley asked with a big grin as she pulled away. Neville looked sad for a moment before schooling his features and nodding.
"Yes, I believe she should be over by the Floo waiting for me somewhere." He told her.
"Do give her my best when you see her."
"Of course."
With that, Hermione then stepped forward and held out her hand to be shook trying to look as mature as possible.
"Nice to meet you ma'am. I am Hermione Granger."
"Oh, none of that dear! Any friend of Ron's is family to us, bring it here." Mrs. Weasley said with a wide smile as she opened her arms for another hug. Hermione looked awkward at the opened arms before slowly moving forward. As soon as she was in range, Mrs. Weasley scooped Hermione into her own arms.
"Oh my…" Hermione muttered as she was dragged in.
"So good to meet you dear. I don't mean to be rude, but are you Muggleborn?" Mrs. Weasley asked as she pulled away. As soon as she heard the question, Hermione held her head a little higher.
"Yes, I am."
"Marvelous! Just a warning, if you meet my husband, be prepared for lots of questions. He's utterly fascinated with all the things they come up with without magic. Right now, he's interested in… Oh, what were they called, battermies?"
"Batteries?"
"Yes, batteries! Very interested in them."
"I'd be happy to speak with him though my knowledge might be somewhat limited." Hermione admitted though she did look a little relieved that it hadn't been something worse.
"If you wish, though don't let him push and make sure to tell him when you get tired of the conversation, otherwise he will just keep going on and on…"
She trailed off as she finally moved to look over at Harry. He steeled himself in preparation of dealing with the woman. He took a step forward though he kept his hands down as he had a feeling; she wouldn't bother taking a handshake in the first place.
"Greeting's Mrs. Weasley. I'm Harry Potter, a friend of your son. It is nice to meet you." He told her with a small nod of acknowledgement. The woman smiled.
"Oh dear, aren't you precious. Come in Harry dear, your turn." She said as she opened her arms again. Harry hesitantly stepped forward before he felt the ground suddenly no longer seem to be under his feet and he found himself buried in something soft. He was also having some trouble breathing. He eventually was allowed to move back when her arms unwrapped from around him. He immediately took in large gulps of air to restore what he had lost when almost suffocating.
"Sorry dear. Sometimes I get a little too excited. It's so good to meet you, Harry. I'm sure, you've heard this a lot, but I was a friend of your parents as well. I remember meeting you once when you were a small baby before your family was forced to go into hiding."
"I see. Well… It is nice to meet you again." Harry answered, not really sure what else to say to that. He didn't actually meet many who claimed to know his parents, though, that was likely due to how much he rarely talked to new people.
"You all are welcome to come to The Burrow this summer anytime you would like." Mrs. Weasley said as she turned to address the whole group again. Ron scoffed good naturedly.
"As if they'll have the time. I wouldn't be surprised if Harry was deep into one of his projects that he forgot all of us in less than a week." Ron teased. Neville laughed and Hermione nodded in agreement at the words. Harry frowned.
"I'm not that bad… Besides, I said we would meet up to do some practice and I meant it. Besides, Dumbledore will make sure I don't go to far." Harry reminded.
"Do my ears deceive me dear brother or did are suspicious little brother just criticize someone else on getting lost in secret projects?"
"I do believe you're quite right on that! Ironic I would say."
"Deliciously ironic considering his own little secret project which he told no one about including his own family. Had to find out at the school announcement with everyone else."
"Too true. How sad was that when our own youngest brother who we have looked out for didn't even bother telling us." The twins went off causing Ron to suddenly go red while his mother simply looked at him confused.
"Ron, what are they talking about? What secret project? You didn't get into any sort of trouble, correct?" Mrs. Weasley had a smile on her face when she asked but the look almost seemed… sinister at that moment. Ron seemed to go pale at the question before stuttering out and answer.
"No mom. Nothing bad, I promise. I just… uhhh… Well, do you remember how I told you I was interested in Alchemy over Christmas break?"
"Yes."
"Right, well, I just completed my first transmutation a few days ago and Dumbledore congratulated me on it today at the ending feast." Ron explained. Mrs. Weasley blinked and simply stared at her youngest son as if it was the first time, she had ever seen him.
Harry didn't even see her move before she had scooped up her youngest son in her arms again and began to once more squeeze the life out of him.
"Oh Ron! I'm so proud of you. You know, when you said you were interested in Alchemy, you never said you were so interested you were planning to pursue something in it. It's supposed to be such a difficult discipline too! And even Dumbledore recognized you? Oh, I'm so proud!" Mrs. Weasley exclaimed. Harry smiled slightly at the scene. Ron had once admitted that he sometimes believed it would be hard to break out of all the shadows his brothers had and be known even in his own household as a unique individual. It did look like that wouldn't be an issue on his current path.
"Well, it has been lovely meeting you, but I have to go find my parents." Hermione finally said. Neville nodded.
"Right, and I have to find my Gran."
"And I am going to go meet them both. It was good to meet you Mrs. Weasley. If all goes right, I will hopefully see you sometime this Summer," Harry told her. Mrs. Weasley let Ron go as she looked at them.
"Of course, dears. It was lovely to meet all of you. I'm sure we will see each other again. Come along boys, your father is still waiting on us." Mrs. Weasley said as they walked away. Ron waved goodbye as they walked away and called out to them that they would see each other soon. They watched him go before Harry turned to the remaining of his friends.
"Well, who's next?" Harry asked.
"My parents, our waiting for me on the other side of the barrier."
"Gran's just at the Floo which should be next to the exit, so why don't we go there first." Neville answered. Hermione nodded in agreement before they started following Neville over to the area he mentioned.
"There she is." Neville murmured to them as he nodded over to a woman standing on her own by the Floo entrances. Harry saw who he was talking about and immediately blinked in confusion. Did that woman have a stuffed bird on the top of her hat?
"Hello Gran." Neville called out to her as they approached. The woman looked over to him and looked down on her grandson and the rest of them. She gave a small but tight smile.
"Neville. It is good to see you. And who are these people you have brought with you."
"It is good to see you too. This is Hermione Granger and that is Heir Harry Potter of the House Potter." Neville said in a more polite tone. Hermione stepped forward and held out her hand again.
"Hello ma'am. I am Hermione Granger, a friend of your sons. A pleasure to meet you." Hermione said introducing herself. Harry noticed the older woman's eyes flicker down to the hand before she politely accepted it. Harry knew why. In wizard culture, it would have been more appropriate to bow to the woman considering her high social status. That being said, Hermione was Muggleborn and didn't likely know that. The woman didn't seem to hold it against her though and had taken the hand anyway.
In truth, Harry didn't think to highly of Neville's grandmother just from what he knew of her so far. But the fact that she didn't seem to hold Hermione's actions or her apparent blood status against her was a point to her, even if only one. She still had several to go.
"Pleasure to meet you dear. Neville has spoken of you to me before." Madame Longbottom said with a nod in the young girl's direction. With that, Harry stepped up next. He held out his hand and took Madame Longbottom's into his own before kissing the back of it politely.
"Lady Longbottom, it is a pleasure to meet you. Neville has spoken of you many times." Harry said politely and with respect even though he hadn't mentioned WHAT it was that Neville had said.
"Heir Potter, it's a pleasure. I am glad to see you have already become aware of some our customs. I had thought with you being raised by muggles you wouldn't be." She commented.
"Yes, I thought it wise to educate myself. I also made myself aware of former dealings and alliances my family had in the past. It is my intention to continue that with Neville. He's a wonderful young man and a wonderful friend. I have great hopes that together along with our friends, we will go far."
"I thank you for your words, and I am sure you all will. It was a pleasure to meet you both. Come along, Neville, we must get home,.." She finished before turning to the Floo.
"Yes grandmother. Goodbye guys. I will see you soon, I hope."
"Definitely."
"Of course."
With that, Neville left with his grandmother through the green flames of the Floo and headed back to their home. Hermione turned to him after with a questioning look on her face.
"Did I do something wrong when I met her?"
"Sort of. There were certain customs and such you could have done but she clearly knew you were a Muggleborn and weren't intentionally snubbing her so she let it go. Some pureblood families won't though." Harry told her. She nodded slowly at that but frowned not seeming pleased by her words. With that, they said nothing else and left towards the platforms exit.
They crossed over the barrier and were suddenly in a muggle train station where several parents were waiting or had already been reunited with their children. This was where many of the muggle children met their parents.
"There they are." Hermione gestured pointing to two people who stood a little apart from the crowds and were simply standing patiently together. They immediately made their way over to the people with Hermione getting faster and faster as they got closer.
"Mom, dad!" She yelled as she dropped her luggage and crashed into her parents who barely had time to catch their daughter who crashed into them and wrapped around them tightly. Immediately the two parents blank expressions switched to one of happiness and joy.
"Hermione! It's so good to see you. How was your trip?" The man he presumed to be her father asked.
"Uneventful. I don't want to hold him to long so let me introduce you to my friend, Harry Potter." Hermione said as she turned as she gestured to Harry. He immediately stepped forward and held up his hand.
"It's good to meet you Mr. and Mrs. Granger. Hermione has told me a lot about you." He told them as he looked up and observed them. Hermione's father was a somewhat slim man though he could tell the man seemed to have some muscle on him. He still had a full head of hair that it was starting to go grey at the side burns. He looked like a somewhat serious man but when he looked at Harry, he had a smile on his face.
Her mother on the other hand looked extremely similar to what he expected an older Hermione to look like. Her hair, unlike her daughters, had soft curls and was nowhere near as bushy as Hermione's. He wondered if she did something to it or if it naturally was like that. If so, would Hermione's eventually calm down? Her face had a soft quality to it and she had smile lines. He knew she must've been in her late thirties or early forties but she looked like she was ten years younger than that. Her face didn't seem to have any real wrinkles on it yet and it only seemed to accentuate her youthful and beautiful look.
"Nice to meet you, Harry. We're so happy to finally get to meet you. We've heard so much about you, Neville, and Ron."
"All good things I hope?"
"Something like that. If her words are to be believed, you're the only one in the school smarter than my dear Hermione."
"Dad!"
"That is incorrect. In amount of knowledge, I might be ahead but I have simply had a head start. Hermione picks up knowledge even faster than I do and I have no doubt that she will most certainly catch up and even surpass me in many areas one day." Harry said back easily, which was true. Harry wasn't a genius; he was just driven. Hermione was both.
"My, what a charmer. I can see why you like him so much." Her mother said as she took her chance to shake his hand as well. He returned it as Hermione squawked in embarrassment at the comment. Harry ignored it though.
"I like Hermione a lot too. She is one of my closet friends." Harry said back unperturbed.
"I'm glad to hear that. We were worried how well she would be able to get along with people in this new world. I am glad she has found so many friends. Speaking of, where are the other two boys you mentioned?"
"Neville and Ron? We ran into their family members before coming out so they already left with them. They'll meet you at some point though. We all plan to meet up at Harry's for practicing magic this summer."
"I thought you couldn't do that outside of school."
"There are somethings you can. Harry is actually quite impressive despite what he says. He is the leading expert in Illusionary magic, certainly in the country and possibly the world."
"Really?"
"By technicality alone. The illusionary branch of magic is considered lost so it is not really used. Most modern day illusions are simply part of other spells and don't have the flexibility I have. That alone makes me a cut above others when it comes to illusions and that's it." Harry said after taking a moment to look around and make sure no one was listening.
"You're not mentioning the ease at which you can make them and the fact that even Dumbledore says if there were others who could perform it you would still be considered a prodigy."
"We'll never know, I suppose."
"We will this summer."
"We'll see."
"Hmph. Anyway, would that be, okay? Going to Harry's perhaps once a week to catch up and do some practice?" Hermione asked looking at her parents imploringly. Her parents shared a quick look as they had a conversation that no one else could hear.
"Where do you live Harry?"
"In Wales I believe, though Dumbledore has said he'd be willing to hook your house up to the Floo network if you were willing." Harry suggested. Her parents went back to their silent conversation.
"We'll have to think it over a little more but we'll get back to you. Do you have a way to contact each other?"
"I could send a letter in a few days by owl. Dumbledore will send it for me." Harry mentioned. Her parents nodded at that.
"I think that should be find. We can let you know by then… Well, I believe it is time for us to go. Why don't you say goodbye Hermione?"
"Alright. Goodbye Harry. Thank you for coming to meet my parents." Hermione said with a smile. Harry nodded and returned it with a polite one of his own.
"Of course, it was my pleasure. I will hopefully see you soon, and if not, I will make sure to write." Harry said back. With that, the Granger family began to walk away and head to the exit of the train station. Harry watched them go before breathing a sigh of relief. He had met all of his friend's guardians with no issue. It was time for him to go to his own home now and relax. It had been such a long day.
Lord, I am exhausted. For those wondering why I haven't been posting. My work is very short staffed and many of us have had to take on lots of extra hours to make up for it. I will always post as often as I can but promising weekly updates in my current situation seems to pretty much impossible. I still have most of my stuff already written, I just basically polish it a bit before posting but I find even that seems to be hard to find the time to do. I apologize to those who have been patiently waiting for my updates.