Harry Potter and the Founders Vault
Disclaimer: not JK Rowling
Facebook: Fanfiction Millma Verse
Note: Interesting fact, originally, this chapter wasn't part of this story, but I could see some of you were curious about other American schools I have made up, so decided to do this as an added chapter. It won't go over every single school, but some of the more interesting ones to give you all an idea how it works in the USA.
Year 4: American School Tours
Harry and Harper were sitting at the kitchen table with their parents; Cassidy and Tim had just told them that this weekend they were doing magic school tours for Boyd, since Boyd is going into his last year of Junior Magic School it was time for him to start considering what school he would be going to. Their parents had told Harry and Harper they had to come.
"I don't understand why we need to go," Harry was saying.
"We have our magic school," Harper pointed out. "We didn't even do school tours when we were 10 and starting to look," it was true – Harry and Harper had chosen their ten schools they applied to based solely on brochures.
"Look, when you elect to do school tours, the tour in itself becomes a bit of an interview," Tim said. "And Boyd is…"
"Still being a pain about even being forced to apply to any other school except Ilvermorny," Cassidy finished for her husband after Tim paused, clearly not knowing the words.
"I'm still not seeing how this is our problem," Harry said with a shrug. "We are taking several classes at Grand Canyon this summer. We need our weekends to study and keep on track of all our work."
"You'll be fine missing one weekend," Tim sighed. "Besides, you two are pretty impressive – especially you Harry."
"Oh, you want to use Harry's fame to try and push yeses for Boyd," Harper realized. "What we did for Buckbeak, basically," Harry gave a laugh at this, with Harper comparing their little brother to a Hippogriff.
"It's three schools tomorrow, ending at Walt Disney," Cassidy added. "We bought you tickets for after the school tour is over. Then two on Sunday."
"Well how can we say no to that?" Harry said with a shrug. "Is Sirius coming?" Harry thought showing his godfather the wonders of an amusement park might be a fun bonding experience.
"You know he's still getting treated for his long-term exposure to Dementors. You can take him to Disney some other time," Tim said, and Harry pouted but nodded. "Now go to bed. We have an early start tomorrow." The two teens got up, both heading to their bedrooms. "Let's see how well this goes..." Tim turned to his wife who gave a nod.
"I got to give some last-minute instructions to my staff before I leave for a weekend and oh, I gave Barnaby a key. He's going to stay here and look after our animals for the weekend," Cassidy said, getting up and heading to the phone as Tim decided to take the advice he gave to Harry and Harper and go to bed himself.
-Harry Potter-
The next morning, Tim and Cassidy had to drag Boyd out of bed – the boy complaining that all the school tours were pointless. Harry and Harper had already been eating and then gone to change out of their pajamas while the boy complained.
When the two returned, Tim had to sigh. Harry was wearing a Gryffindor shirt and Harper a Slytherin shirt.
"Really?" Cassidy had to asked.
"Well, we have to represent," Harper said, holding out her hand to Harry who high fived it – the siblings had long since outgrew the original shirts Cassidy and Tim had gotten them in their first year, but had since made sure to buy new ones.
"Let it go," Tim said to his wife holding out a shoe. "This portkey will take us to our first stop. Come on now everyone, hold on."
The family of five all took hold of the shoe and then the familiar feel of a portkey took them away.
…
The area they had landed was outside in a mountainous area, off the normal beaten path for muggles to come and see the sights; but they could see the monument caved into the rock face above them of the four Muggle Presidents.
"Mount Rushmore!" Harper said, recognizing where they were.
"Mount Rushmore Academy of Hidden Arts," Harry corrected his sister. "This school was a serious contender for us. Why didn't it get to our final two before we got accepted to Hogwarts?"
"Because your top choice was Grand Canyon and mine was Keala, so we decided to eliminate all the others and choose between those two," Harper said with a laugh as the family started to walk.
"Evans family?" A boy who must have been only a couple of years older than Harry and Harper seemed to appear out of nowhere. "I'm Matthew Steward! I've been assigned to show you around. I'm an upperclassman. This coming year will be my last year here."
"Nice to meet you. I'm Tim, my wife Cassidy, our younger son Boyd who this tour is for, and our older kids Harper and Harry Potter," Tim said and Harry noticed how he made sure to say his last name.
"The Harry Potter?" Matthew asked.
"The one and the same," Harry sighed. Britain made a bigger deal out of his fame but he still got looks in America when his name was first said.
"Wow, well come along," Matthew said, moving them towards a path. "So, Boyd, you excited to see the school?"
"No," Boyd answered and that seemed to throw Matthew off. "This is all pointless. I know where I want to go and it's not here."
"Boyd…" Cassidy said in a warning voice.
"Ignore my little brother; we tend to," Harper said, speeding up so she was on one side of Matthew and Harry went to the other. "Why don't you tell us a little about the school? You know we almost came here ourselves."
"Well, we might make you sorry you didn't," Matthew said. "Mount Rushmore Academy was secretly made at the same time the muggles were carving the president's faces in the rock. The construction being done gave us the perfect opportunity to build inside the mountain itself. This is the only magical school in both South and North Dakota, actually. North Dakota's previous small magic school combined with us back in the 1950s and that school closed down. We're a pure magic school so offer no muggle classes and have no muggle side of the school. So only witches and wizards come here."
Harry and Harper knew some magical schools had a muggle side where muggle students attended, not knowing about the magical, hidden side. "Now to get into the mountain you will just have to follow me. It might look strange, but it's perfectly safe."
The group had walked to the side of the mountain and was right next to the cliff. Matthew then walked right through the solid rock, the mountain seeming to engulf him. "Awesome!" Harry and Harper said together – and followed fast. It reminded them of Platform 9 and three quarters.
Tim was next and then Cassidy, who had her arm around Boyd. Boyd gave a frown as he looked around once they entered.
Harry and Harper found the school impressive though; there were obviously no windows, since they were in a mountain, but the ceilings were high and roomy with light spotted about, illuminating the entrance area. Staircases seemed to appear out of nowhere when the students still in the school approached them – there were obviously summer schools going on, like Grand Canyon. There were also books flying around, adding to the majesty of the place. "Watch your head. Enchanted books. The teachers' way of bringing what they need to them," Matthew said as a book flew close to them.
"What classes do you offer?" Cassidy asked as Matthew started to show them around.
"Well, obviously the core classes every school offers, but our school tends to offer classes no other magic school in this country does as well – it's why we're called Mount Rushmore Academy of the Hidden Arts. We have classes for necromancy and exploring what some might consider the darker side to magic. Nothing illegal though," Matthew said. "Just some of the grayer side."
"Blood Magic?" Harper asked, wondering if they might have found someone to help them continue with the subject.
"We did for a while, but our teacher since died and we can't find a replacement," Mathew said making the pair frown. "But my favorite extra class we offer is Elemental..." Matthew held out his hand and some dirt seemed to rise from the floor, encircling his hand. "We figure out what element we align to if we do and how to control it. I'm an Earth."
"That's impressive," Tim said with a nod as Matthew put the dirt down.
"We also have some impressive sports team. Our Magical Volleyball team won the inter-school tournament this year," Matthew said.
"So what?" Boyd said and Matthew gave him another frown.
Matthew then gave Harry and Harper a look who shrugged and let Matthew continue the tour, showing them classrooms and other areas. The school was large, it took up the entire inside of the mountain – and then some, thanks to enlargement charms.
"This is one of my favorite spots. We're behind Teddy Roosevelt eyes and…" Matthew stopped speaking and just waved his hand – the mountain wall disappeared, and they could see out as if it was a window.
"What did you think Boyd?" Cassidy said and Boyd answered with a yawn and eye roll. "Boyd!" Cassidy and Tim brought Boyd further down and Harper heard the beginning of a lecture about being nice on the tours beginning.
"Oh, Mary," Matthew said as a girl carrying books walked up. "This is Harper and Harry. Their little brother is looking at the school… I think." Matthew turned to the three. "This is my girlfriend, Mary. We're both taking summer courses."
"Hi," Mary said pleasantly. "Where do you two go?"
"Hogwarts," they said together pointing out their shirts.
"That does explain the shirts," Matthew said. "Didn't we have a Hogwarts professor come for a tour of the campus last summer?"
"Yes, a professor… McCullen," Mary said.
"No, it was McGillian or McGriffin," Matthew said.
"McGonagall," Harper supplied.
"That's the one," Matthew said. "She didn't like some of the darker classes offered but was impressed by the elemental magic and the entire mountain. Nice lady."
"One of the best," Harry said with a nod and smile, glad Professor McGonagall was still exploring American schools. "So, how do you find if you are connected to an element?" Harry was a bit curious about elemental magic. It could come in handy with all the trouble they got into.
"Hard work," Matthew said, but before he could say more Tim interrupted.
"Thank you for the tour. We need to head to New York City now where we're eating lunch and then getting a tour of Empire School for Wizards," Tim said.
"Good school. That was my third choice," Matthew stated. "The city is almost as amazing as the landscape here…" he indicated the view they still had from on top of the mountain.
"Not even a choice of mine," Boyd muttered.
"Oh, Boyd-y…" Harper sighed, rolling her eyes at her brother's mood.
"Well, it was nice meeting you," Matthew said with a nod. "If you go straight down that staircase, you'll find a floo point."
"Thanks," Tim shook Matthew's hand at this.
"Harry, Harper come," Cassidy said, and Harry and Harper waved to the two before following their family.
-Harry Potter-
The family used the school floo to head to the main floo terminal in New York City – once there, Tim bought them all some hotdogs for lunch from a street cart. Harry and Harper hadn't realized how hungry they were until they had their hotdog; the tour of Mount Rushmore had taken several hours.
As they ate, they walked the streets of the city until they were in sight of the Twin Towers; Harper looking up at the two giant buildings.
"Muggles built this without magic," Tim stated to the family. "Really impressive…"
"Our tour guide is meant to meet us outside the North Tower," Cassidy said to the rest as they approached the World Trade Center Plaza.
"Evans Family?" A voice spoke, as an older man was approaching them. He was short and kind of a little cubby with bolding hair and a moustache. "Hello! I am Headmaster Lynch. I will personally be taking you on a tour of our fine school." Harry and Harper gave each other a look; usually seniors did the tour for extra credit. "And you must be Harry Potter. How good to meet you!"
The headmaster had moved off the parents fast and was shaking Harry's hand in a moment and kept on shaking it. "I have read everything there is about you and the night your parents died and the miracle of your survival."
"Fanboy," Harper muttered, and Boyd crossed his arms at this.
"I must say I was a bit disappointed when I didn't get an application from you. When I heard you were taken in by an American family, I thought I might," the headmaster said.
"You're an all-boys school and I wasn't going anywhere without my sister," Harry explained, nodding toward Harper. "Can I… have my hand back?" Throughout all the talk the headmaster had kept shaking Harry's hand.
"I could have made an exception," Lynch said dropping Harry's hand.
"My daughter being the only girl in a school of boys…?" Cassidy said tilting her head.
"And there is always our sister school: Sleepy Hollow School for Witches. Our boys and the girls do a lot together; dances, plays… our boys even go out there a lot to help the girls keep the legend of the headless horseman alive," the headmaster said.
"Really?" Harper asked.
"Well, someone has to do it when his ghost isn't there. Besides, it helps keep the school hidden since the girls' school is at the back of the graveyard – a lot bigger than muggles know," the headmaster gave a wink at this as he put an arm around Harry. "But anyway, we would be pleased to have your little brother here. Come on. Let's go in."
"How long before I can rescue Harry…?" Harper whispered to her parents as the headmaster led Harry ahead of them, his arm still around Harry's shoulder.
"Give it a bit longer. We'll signal you," Tim chuckled with a nod.
"So, where did you end up going?" The headmaster asked as they walked into the main floor of the building.
"Hogwarts," Harry said pointing at the shirt.
"Ah, of course," Headmaster Lynch said. "One of your professors came for a tour here a year or two ago. A Professor Mullins. No Professor Mallory? Or was it Professor McKnight?"
"McGonagall," both Harry and Harper said and Harry turning his head to give his sister a look.
"Right, right… pleasant woman," the headmaster said as he stopped before the elevator. "We'll take the next one," he said to the muggle who held it for them. The man giving a nod and letting the elevator go. Lynch took a wand out and tapped the elevator button with it. The doors opened again to another elevator. "In, in…"
"Magical elevator, that's interesting," Cassidy said, looking at Boyd, but it seemed Boyd refused to talk now.
The elevator stopped a moment later, with just the headmaster continuing to talk to Harry. "Ah here we are," the headmaster said as they exited the building. "Now, our school was originally located inside the Empire State Building, but we miscalculated how much space we would need. Luckily, we managed to build a bigger space here and in the sister building. This building holds all of our classes while the other is our dormitories."
"I heard you were thinking of moving again," Tim said.
"Yes, in fact we're in the works. There has been a major increase in the muggle born population in New York causing higher enrollment here. We decided once again we need a bigger area, but the new school won't be done until late 2000 or early 2001. In fact, our upper classmen project then will be to help with the charms to hide from muggles. Sounds interesting Boyd?" The headmaster said, and Boyd just shrugged.
"Now?" Harper asked as the headmaster dragged Harry down the hall.
"A little longer," Cassidy said as they followed. The headmaster talked about the different classes as they went towards the classrooms. The school was set up more similar to a muggle school, with corridors and classroom, but there was more than one floor, with plenty of staircases leading to the level above, and even from the corridor where they were, they could see the long, thin, windows looking out over the bay toward the Statue of Liberty.
"Now Harry, what is your favorite class?" The headmaster asked.
"Care of Magical Creatures," Harry answered. "And Defense Against the Dark Arts."
"Ah, a man of taste," the headmaster said, shaking Harry and patting his head, messing up his hair.
"Now, Harper," Tim said, and Harper jumped to in grabbing Harry's arm and getting him away from the headmaster.
"Harry, we said we'd go to the top and look out," Harper said.
"Oh, yes, it was great meeting you headmaster. Boyd, enjoy the tour," Harry said and the two ran before the headmaster could protest. "What took you so long?" Harry asked once they were safely in the elevator and heading towards the top of the building.
"Mom and dad kept me back for a bit. Used your fame for Boyd thing," Harper said.
"Well, I'll never complain about Colin again," Harry said with a laugh, thinking of Colin Creevy back at Hogwarts as they exited the elevator at the top observation deck, back with the muggles. The siblings spent time up there, looking out over the city and pointing out sights.
"I'd love to bring Hermione up here," Harry said after a while.
"I heard the Empire State Building has a better view," Harper said.
"Then we could go see a Broadway play. Mione, would like that," Harry said.
"Plotting a date?" Harper asked.
"Friends," Harry said quickly, and Harper shook her head and laughed at her brother. The two chatted some more until their parents and younger brother joined them.
"Well, Headmaster Lynch was a bit upset you left, but overall, that went well," Tim said, giving his son a hug. "Thanks for doing that, Harry." Harry gave a nod.
"It's a great school. Don't you think so Boyd?" Cassidy asked.
"Not as good as Ilvermorny," Boyd said which made all four family members groan at once.
"Well, we're heading to Disney now," Tim said. "The school floo is downstairs and I think the headmaster is waiting to say goodbye," Harry groaned at this as they headed back to the elevator.
The headmaster was, in fact, waiting to say goodbye to Harry, shaking his hand again for an extremely long amount of time before Harry managed to back out and get into the flames to Disney.
-Harry Potter-
Arriving at Disney World in Florida, a Disney bus was waiting to take them to the magic school. The group had been to Disney before but had never visited the magic school before. The area was completely empty until the bus crossed a certain area, and then they could see the school as clear as day. It was magical, resembling the Disney castle in the muggle part of the park, but on an actual scale, able to accommodate the student body.
"This could rival Hogwarts…" Harper muttered to Harry, who had to agree on the castle.
The bus dropped them off in the front where there was a large statue of Walt and Mickey on each side of the door.
"Welcome to Walt Disney School of Magic Arts!" It was the Mickey Statue that said it in the common, high-pitched, Mickey voice.
"Inside your mind will be open to magical possibilities and new magic," the Walt statue added.
"Welcome, Evans family," a teenage girl now spoke, walking out of the large doors. "I'm Angelina Gates, but you can call be Angie. I will be leading you around."
"I'm Tim, my wife Cassidy, our son Boyd who's looking at the school, and our older children Harper and Harry Potter," Tim said.
"Potter?" Angie asked.
"Yes, that Harry," Harry said, already getting tired of this introduction.
"Well, come on in," Angie moved back, and the Evans family followed her inside.
The walls inside the school had a lot of portraits on them reminding Harry and Harper a bit of Hogwarts, too, only instead of portraits of people these were portraits of Disney characters enchanted to act like their character and interact with the student body.
The only portrait of people was right in front of them, and it was a portrait of Walt and Roy Disney. "Hello Walt, Roy," Angie said.
"Well, hello there," Walt said.
"New perspective students?" Roy asked.
"Boyd here," Angie said but could see the boy's frown he wasn't into it. "Harry and Harper go to Hogwarts in England." The siblings gave a smirk as Angie seemed to realize what their shirts meant. "When Walt originally bought the land here an alternative motive was building a school for magic that would focus on the creative side to magic. Unfortunately, Walt died before he could see the school come into being, just as Roy made sure Magic Kingdom was made, he made sure the school got made as well."
"It was an honor," Roy said. "Enjoy the tour."
"And do come back to talk; we love to hear from all who enter," Walt added as Angie led them down a hall.
"Now our school has a special relationship to the Disney Corporate to this day. We keep the secret Magical Disney alive and most of our students work at the parks when they are older and go onto jobs inside Disney or Magical Hollywood," Angie said. "The greatest magical painters, filmmakers, and writers have come out of this school."
"Don't forget actors," it was a portrait of Winnie the Pooh who said it. Pooh Bear being in a portrait just outside his house.
"Thank you, Pooh," Angie said, smiling at the bear. "Yes, actors and singers as well. Our school is also the leaders of enchanting muggle objects to work in the magical world. Every time some clever new non-magical invention comes out, we bring it here and figure out how to get it working. So, crystal magic is very big here as well."
"Any idea how to get them working inside Hogwarts?" Harper asked. "Took me forever to get a boombox working there and it would only work outside the castle."
"Inside would be hard in a place as old and as magical as Hogwarts, but we might have some new stronger crystals that will help," Angie said, giving Harper a smile as she continued to walk them around the school, which seemed both old and new at the same time, roomie, and cozy, too.
Harry and Harper loved it when a portrait of a Disney Character would butt into their conversation – the pair having fun talking to them as much as seeing the unique classes. Harry pausing and asking questions when Angie pointed out a spell creation class.
"…and here is where we practice many sports," Angie said bringing them out onto a field at the back of the castle, not to dissimilar, again, to Hogwarts and its grounds. "So, what did you think, Boyd?"
"This was pointless," Boyd said. "Why would I want to go here? I don't want to get into Hollywood."
"Well, you never did say what you wanted to do, and you have always been good at drawing and love videogames. We thought this might be an option. It's close to grandma and grandpa too," Cassidy said.
"A stupid option, but this whole thing is stupid," Boyd said.
"Boyd!" Tim snapped; his voice was one Harry and Harper knew meant he was upset as the two parents took Boyd away, once again, to talk to him; leaving Harry and Harper with Angie.
"Your brother…" Angie began.
"A little pain in the ass, we know," Harper said, and Angie gave a laugh.
"He's determined to go to Ilvermony," Harry supplied, to a look from Angie. "Not a fan?"
"Not that. Ilvermony is a fine school. I just heard… bad things about their headmaster. Maybe it's just me. I know he used to go to Hogwarts though," Angie stated.
"He probably knows the Malfoys then," Harper joked, to a frown from the Disney student. "Sorry… inside joke."
"You know, we had a professor from Hogwarts come here and take a tour. She seemed to be impressed with our classes. Who was it? Professor MacGyver," Angie said.
"Okay, now that one is just a TV show," Harper groaned, not finding everyone messing up McGonagall's name funny anymore.
"Yeah, Professor MacGyver who teaches us to get out of tricky situations with bubblegum and shoestrings," Harry said, and Angie laughed as she realized the mistake she made. "It's McGonagall."
"That was it," Angie said. "She was nice. We even brought her into magical and muggle Disney and got her on some rides."
"Please tell me you have pictures," Harper said very fast.
"We do," Angie said. "We keep photos taken of tour guests for a while after they leave."
"I will pay you for copies," Harry said.
"You can have them for free. My friend Pat works in developing photos. She is around here somewhere... I can get her to print off some for you and maybe even give you copy of the film. So, you can get more made," Angie said and the two smiled at that. Maybe Colin Creevy would be useful after all, as developing photo films seemed to be his thing. "So, what are your plans after this?"
"Dad said they got us tickets to the park, so I think we're checking into a hotel here and get the afternoon free," Harper said.
"Tomorrow we're touring some more schools though," Harry supplied. "Not that there's much point with Boyd being so stupid in his school choices."
"Well, me and my group of friends are spending the afternoon in the parks. Why don't you join us?" Angie asked.
"We'd love to," Harry said as Harper gave him a nod.
"Meet me on Main Street USA in Muggle Disney in an hour," Angie said as Tim called for the two.
"See you then," Harper said, waving as the two went to follow their parents.
….
On the bus back to the muggle side of the park, Tim produced a key for each sibling.
"Room key," Tim explained, giving Harry and Harper one each. "You two are sharing with Boyd. Our room is right next door and is adjoining," the two nodded at that. "Now, where do you want to eat?"
"Actually, dad we are meeting with Angie," Harper said.
"Made plans," Harry said.
"Oh, well, have fun, then," Tim said, startled the two had made plans so quickly, but saw no reason not to let them go off on their own now. He had given them a key because he expected them to run off on their own after dinner. The bus stopped outside the Magic Kingdom at this point.
"Don't stay out too late. We have more tours tomorrow," Cassidy said, as the two moved off the bus on their own, waving and yelling they wouldn't. "Guess it's just the three of us."
"Like always," Body said, rolling his eyes as he followed his parents.
…
Later that evening, Tim and Cassidy were in their hotel room, having had dinner with Body, gone to the park for an hour and then settled back to their room.
"I'm going to check to make sure Harry and Harper made it back," Cassidy said, getting out of bed now.
"I heard them come in like an hour ago," Tim said, not moving from his position as Cassidy got up and went to the adjoining room. "Back safely?" Tim asked as he heard his wife approach the bed again.
"Asleep," Cassidy said. "Harry and Harper are sharing a bed. Boyd took the other one all to himself." Tim shrugged as Cassidy sat down, a thought coming across her. "Tim… I know Harry and Harper bonded the moment we took Harry in – and I also know the two were never as close to Boyd, but have you realized since Harry and Harper went to school the rift between them has grown a lot?"
"Well Harry and Harper are grown up, basically," Tim said turning around. "They spend most of the year on their own in a different country. And when they are home, they are mostly at Grand Canyon Academy, or running around doing their own thing. We talked about this before. They are basically our little adults now."
"I know, I just hate seeing how far away they drifted sometimes. At the same time, I know the minute we sent them away to school they would. It's what happened to us. Maybe not as fast as those two," Cassidy said.
"And it will happen to Boyd when he goes to his school. They are finding themselves," Tim said bringing his wife closer to him. "It's what every good parent wants." Cassidy nodded at this, but was still doubtful, wondering if part of Boyd's attitude was the two siblings who had long since drifted away from him.
-Harry Potter-
The next morning the group had breakfast in their hotel before finding a floo network to go to Salem Massachusetts; when they went to where they were supposed to meet the tour guide, a blonde teenager was waiting for them.
"Morning, Evans family?" She asked.
"Yes," Tim said as he introduced everyone. This time the blonde barely looked at Harry when his name was mentioned.
"I'm Karen. We have one extra joining us. A professor from Hogwarts. Professor McMillian," Karen said.
"McGonagall," Harry and Harper yelled together – on this day they were both wearing the same black t-shirt that had the Hogwarts crest on it and said 'Hogwarts' on the bottom.
"Yes," the familiar voice said, and Harry and Harper smiled as they turned to see their Transfiguration teacher behind them. "What are my two favorite students doing going on school tours?"
"For our little brother," Harry said putting an arm around Boyd, which was pushed back. Harry didn't react as his brother refused contact with him.
"Good, you all know each other. Now that everyone is here," Karen said and moved her wand which seemed to have started a fire. "Please, walk through the flames…" She did and the group of six didn't hesitate to follow; the flames not causing any harm and the group didn't feel any heat. "Illusion, in case a muggle gets to close. Welcome to Salem School of Sorcery."
The building was large – not anywhere near Hogwarts or the Disney castle from yesterday but looked more like a huge manor than a castle. The outside, leading to the entrance, there were statues of people.
"Are these statues of the people killed during the witch trials?" Cassidy asked.
"Yes," Karen said. "To honor them. Witches and Wizards have been in Salem long before this school was made and long before the trials. They had a part to play in starting the trials. They didn't think it would go as far as it did and couldn't stop it when it went out of control. The school was built and made by a muggle-born descendant of Sarah Goode."
"Sarah Goode?" Professor McGonagall asked.
"One of the victims of the witch trials," Harry filled his teacher in as they walked.
"Karen," it was a boy about the same age. "We need two more for a makeshift dueling tournament. You in?"
"Doing a tour, Garret," Karen said.
"Dueling tournament?" Harry said, turning to his sister who gave a nod. "We'll join. If that's okay?"
"Perfect," the boy Garret said.
"Have fun," Tim said knowing the sibling's minds were made up.
"Harry, Harper," Professor McGonagall called, making the two stop. "You two will be representing Hogwarts. So, make sure to do well."
"We'll kick some ass," Harper said and the two ran off with Garret.
Karen brought the group through the school, showing them different classrooms and telling different facts about the school. Professor McGonagall collected paperwork and books from certain professors they bumped into and afterward Karen brought them to the dueling grounds.
"Our school is very competitive when it comes to dueling," Karen explained, and the family and professor could see Harper sitting off to the side with several students laughing and talking. What drew their eye was that she had Harry's sword.
"Harper, what are you doing with the sword?" Cassidy asked as the group came up.
"Harry used it in the first round but since then everyone got smart enough to make the rules wands only," Harper explained. "So I'm keeping it safe for him."
"How far did you get?" Professor McGonagall asked.
"Third," Harper stated.
"Yeah, Parselmouth," one of the boys in the group said.
"Ignore him. He tried to use the same trick as Draco on me by summoning a snake to distract me. I turned the snake on him though," Harper said, and the boy frowned but the group laughed.
"That was great. Snakes are his go to move and it's frustrating how often it works," one of the girls in the group said.
"Where is Harry?" Tim asked.
"Final round is starting. Harry is in top two," Harper said, pointing with the sword, and they saw Harry approaching one of the dueling rings. Harry had his wand out and a smirk on his face. He was facing Garret – the boy who had come to them before.
A student acting as referee stated the rules, commenting wands only and then the duel began. This was the first time Tim and Cassidy had seen Harry using his magic in such a way and the two were left speechless; Harry was using spells fast and quick as he dodged, switching between shields and offensives magic. The level was that of someone who had been dueling for years and the two knew Harper must have been almost as good herself.
The battle went on for a few minutes before Harry got a Bombara spell with a direct hit and used that to steal Garret's wand.
"Winner Harry!" The referee said. There were claps and cheering from the groups. Professor McGonagall had a smirk on her face.
"If you two want to switch to our school and join the dueling team you'd be welcome," Garrett said as the two came over to the group. "I mean, it was just luck I managed to take Harper out."
"No, I made a stupid mistake. If we ever duel again, I'll get you," Harper said.
"I'll look forward to that," Garret said holding out a hand and both Harper and Harry shook it.
"We need to get going," Cassidy told the kids. "We have lunch reservations and then a tour of Ilvermorny..." Boyd had a smirk on his face at this; he had been in a better mood today than previous days, probably knowing they were heading for a tour of Ilvermorny. The only magic school he wanted to attend. "Would you care to join us?"
"I would like that," Professor McGonagall said. "I haven't yet toured Ilvermorny and could use some lunch myself."
"Well, we're meeting our tour guide at the restaurant," Tim said with a smirk, making Harry and Harper wonder who was giving them the tour.
"But first let's get the sword back home," Cassidy said and it was a quick floo call back home for Harry to get the sword back to his room and return.
As they got to the restaurant, though, they were happy when they saw Newt and Rolf Scamander sitting at a table. The two ran up to hug them.
"An unexpected pleasure," Newt said, seeing Professor McGonagall and holding out a chair for her.
"I didn't think you were taking summer courses," Harper said to Rolf, knowing that most of their tour guides were students who took summer courses for whatever reason.
"I'm not," Rolf said. "But when Cassidy and Tim mentioned getting a tour of the school I volunteered to lead and set it up. You two showed me around Hogwarts. Now I get to show you around my school."
There was mindless chat for a while as they all ate, and Professor McGonagall explained how she was working on a plan to revise the British education and taking tours here was to get an idea on how to implement her plans and what new classes to suggest. She also mentioned it let her go to visit Tahatan at Grand Canyon Academy more.
"You know," Professor McGonagall stated after their food arrived, "if Boyd would like, we can see if the Book of Acceptance would allow him to attend Hogwarts. You can then have all your kids under one school."
Harry and Harper's face must have given away their thoughts on that as Harper also dropped one of her fries. Boyd himself stuck his nose up.
"I wouldn't be caught dead at Hogwarts," Boyd said, making Professor McGonagall raise an eyebrow, but she didn't react any further.
Harper and Harry let out a breath as they ate their food. "Boyd would probably be a Hufflepuff if he went to Hogwarts," Harper decided to joke around with their professor's suggestion. "He's definitely not a Slytherin."
"Not a Gryffindor either," Harry said teasing his brother.
"And I can't see him in Ravenclaw," Harper stated.
"Okay, you two. There's taking a joke too far," Cassidy said, knowing the two were just saying it because Boyd indicated he definitely didn't want to go.
"And there's nothing wrong with Hufflepuff," Newt added.
"Oh, obviously not. My boyfriend is a Hufflepuff," Harper said, not wanting to make fun of the House when she was just trying to tease her brother.
The two stopped their teasing as they talked to Rolf some as they ate. After lunch, they were the first up, following Rolf out. Boyd having more pep in his step walked out with Newt.
"Hope I didn't cause trouble with my suggestion," Minerva directed the comment at Tim and Cassidy, who were calculating the tip and leaving cash.
"You didn't," Tim said handing the bill to the waitress. "It was a sweet suggestion, but I highly doubt Boyd would want to go to school with Harry and Harper even if the two were in an American school. Those two and Boyd are kind of like oil and water lately."
"And there's just nothing we can really do to make them bond. Harry and Harper are barely with us," Cassidy sighed. "They have their own lives now away from the family." Professor McGonagall nodded, understanding as the three went to follow the group.
Newt and Rolf took the group to Ilvermorny. Ilvermorny was a castle like Hogwarts and Disney. It looked a bit more like a mini Hogwarts than the Disney castle of the day before. Harry and Harper frowned. Something about the place didn't sit right with them. They were uncomfortable setting foot in the grounds.
"Newt and Rolf Scamander," it was a man who approached them. He had a British accent.
"Headmaster Reynolds," Rolf said.
"I heard you were bringing a very interesting guest. I had to come and see," Headmaster Reynolds turned his eyes onto Harry. "Mr. Potter, I owe you my gratitude." Harry raised an eyebrow. "After your triumph over the Dark Lord, I was free to apply and get the position here."
"You're… welcome?" Harry said something about the way he said it making Harry uneasy. He remembered their Disney tour guide yesterday commenting about her own unease with this headmaster.
"Professor McGonagall, how lovely to see you again," the headmaster said, giving Professor McGonagall a nod. "I have things to do but enjoy the tour. Rolf, Harry might be interested in the tree and our own connection to Hogwarts here. He and his sister clearly love the school." At that the headmaster walked away.
"Well, there's something odd about him," Harper said.
"Richard Reynolds. Half-blood, I think, although he claims to be pure. He was apparently under the Imperious Curse during the war. Served You-Know-Who under it – or at least that is what he claimed and there was no proof against it. He got the job here before there was much investigation and with him gone, no one cared to look," Newt said.
"Very suspicious," Harry remarked, sharing a look with Harper.
"What tree was he on about, though?" Cassidy asked.
"Ah yes, you two will love this," Rolf said as he started walking the grounds.
"You think that's why he called Tom Riddle the Dark Lord instead of You-Know-Who?" Harper asked, hanging back with her brother. Harry realized his sister was right. Instead of being referred to as You-Know-Who, the headmaster had used the term Dark Lord.
The two followed from behind though as Rolf brought them onto the grounds and to a tree that was cordoned off. It looked odd.
"It is said this tree grew from Salazar Slytherin's wand," Rolf said. "Planted here by our school's founder when she escaped England."
Harper though had to take a step back – the tree was literally repelling her. The magic didn't feel comforting; not like Hogwarts; not like the chamber. Harry, too, seemed unsettled by the tree and stepped back with Harper. Tim, as well, rubbed his neck seeming uncomfortable.
"Harry, Harper… Slytherin tree?" Rolf said, noticing the reaction.
"It's not," Harper said, surprising Rolf. "That's not Salazar Slytherin's magic."
"How can you tell that?" Rolf asked.
"We've been in the Chamber of Secrets," Harry said, covering for his sister who he knew had to just blurt that out without thinking – unusual for her, but if what he was feeling Harper felt more of, he couldn't blame her. "His magic is still strong here. And Uncle Mato taught us how to sense magic. This is not Slytherin. At least not Salazar Slytherin."
"Rolf, I think we should move on," Newt said, seeming to realize the two wanted nothing to do with this tree. Rolf nodded to his grandfather and continued toward the school. As Rolf was explaining the classes and different things about the school, Harry and Harper felt like it was all familiar. There were four houses, like Hogwarts, many of the similar subjects, and a structure all to similar to their school.
There were even portraits like Hogwarts and a few ghosts, but the school lacked the charm of Hogwarts.
"Well, what did you think?" Rolf asked as they exited.
"It is fantastic!" Boyd said with a smirk.
"Harper, Harry?" Cassidy asked, curious.
"Don't know why you're so down on Hogwarts, Boyd, when you want to go here." Harper sighed. "This school is a cheap copy of Hogwarts."
"And it will never be as great as the original," Harry added, and could see how upset Boyd was with the comment. "I'm sorry Boyd, but it's true. It's Hogwarts without the Founders' magic… the wonder… the mystery around it."
"It's actually a fair assessment. The founder of our school always wanted to go to Hogwarts but didn't get accepted," Rolf said. "She made Ilvermorny in the image of Hogwarts."
"This is the most prestigious magic school in America. Hardest to get into," Boyd defended the school.
"Doesn't mean what we say isn't true," Harper stated. "You're being played by a reputation, Boyd," Harper said, and Boyd stomped his foot and then moved away.
"Boyd…" Cassidy sighed and went after her youngest. Tim gave a nod to the group and went with him.
"Are you going to follow?" Newt asked the two who shook their heads.
"Personally, I have to agree with you two," Minerva McGonagall said. "This school is a lesser version of ours and if I have my way, we'll be revising Hogwarts in the future to become even better than it already is."
"Can I say I find Mount Rushmore elemental magic classes fascinating," Harry said.
"That is on my list of things we could possibly add," Professor McGonagall said. "So, out of curiously, out of the magic schools you toured, which could you two see yourselves in if you weren't at Hogwarts?"
"Definitely Mount Rushmore," Harry said with a nod.
"And Salem," Harper added. "The others weren't for us. Empire School obviously being all boys, and Disney is fun but doesn't concentrate on fields of magic we want to go into." Professor McGonagall gave a nod.
"I found all those schools fascinating. I am also looking into getting a tour of Sky High Academy of Enchantments," Professor McGonagall said.
"Might want to bring a broom to that one," Harry said with a smirk as the group continued to talk about other magic schools and Harry and Harper made a comment or two to Rolf that he might want to transfer somewhere else.
-Harry Potter-
That evening, the Evans family were back home in Arizona. Tim and Cassidy were tired from the weekend and Harry and Harper were already doing their modeling of their special Hogwarts model.
"Boyd is in his room mumbling about how Ilvermorny is not like Hogwarts," Tim said as he walked into the living room.
"Harry and Harper are in Harry's room continuing with their model of Hogwarts. Not sure how much more of that they need to do," Cassidy said, sighing. She was still looking at magic school brochures wondering if it was worth it to schedule any more tours. "What did we learn from this weekend magic school tours?"
"Well Harry and Harper would have thrived anywhere," Tim said, thinking about how the two seemed to make friends everywhere they went. "And Boyd is very stubborn."
"That summed up this weekend very well," Cassidy said putting down the brochures as Tim sat next to her. "It was fun being with Minerva earlier though."
"She's gone to Grand Canyon Academy to see Tahatan now," Tim smirked at that.
"Tim… what if Boyd doesn't get into Ilvermony? He has his heart set on that school…" Cassidy asked, worried for her son. She was hoping going to school – any school – would sort out his bad attitude, and if that was Ilvermony, he might thrive like his siblings.
"Rolf and Newt will put in good words, his brother is Harry, and his grades are surprisingly good – don't tell him I'm shocked at that," Tim joked to his wife. "I think he will. Although Harry and Harper were right about their headmaster – he was odd."
"He really was," Cassidy sighed, still not sure what to think of the man.
Post Chapter Note: Well then, a small look at some of the schools I have made up for America. This was a fun chapter. I hope you all enjoyed it.
Until next time…
Karry Master OUT!