Disclaimer: I am not J.K Rowlings so cut me some slack.
"I hate Portkeys" Harry said as he landed on his bum. He had taken an International portkey alongside Gabriel to arrive at Emrys Private Wizarding Academy. Harry had a little bit of experience with Portkeys having taken one in the past to arrive at the Quidditch World Cup. But the effect of the international Portkey left him doubled up on the floor as he vomited the contents of his stomach on the floor.
"A portkey acros s the Atlantic will do that to you." Gabriel said as he slightly swished his hands to vanish Harry's vomit from the floor. Harry looked up at Gabriel, who didn't look like the portkey had affected him at all.
"It didn't seem to affect you." Harry said as he stood up as he pulled his wand from his pocket and swished it to his mouth "Augumenti". A jet of water rushed out of his wand into his mouth, he gurgled the water and spat it out.
"It won't affect you as badly once you reach your Wizarding majority. Also experience helps." Gabriel replied.
"Where are we?" Harry asked as he looked around. All he could for miles around him was green grass and trees. There was an herd of Zebras and antelopes grazing not too far from where they stood, it looked like they were in some kind of Safari.
"Welcome to Ruaha National Park, the largest national park in Central Africa. It is about 45,000km sq and the perfect entrance to Emrys Wizarding Academy" Gabriel said with a smile on his face.
"Wow." Harry said in amazement, for someone who had never left the borders of Britain in his life being in another continent across the Ocean was unbelievable.
"Let's move on. You look like you are about to cook in the heat." Gabriel said as he cast a cooling charm on Harry. Harry's face was red and he was sweating profusely, he was not used to this sort of heat having spent the majority of the last five years schooling in Scotland.
"Where are we going?" Harry asked, all he could see was grasses and trees for miles around with no end in sight.
"Look closely right ahead." Gabriel said putting a hand on Harry's shoulder to stop him.
"What am I looking for?" Harry asked, he looked closely for a few minutes but still couldn't see anything.
"Walk forward." Gabriel said. Harry took a few steps forward very slowly with his hands in front of him. There was a slight shimmer in the air as his hands hit an invisible wall, it felt solid like concrete.
"Wow" The moment his hands hit the wall it became visible to him. The wall was light blue in color and extended as far to the right and to the left as he could see.
"Non-magical people never get this far in the park because of the repeling charm." Gabriel explained to Harry wgo was still staring at the wall in awe.
"How high and how far does the wall go and why couldn't I see it before." Harry asked. He was very curious about the nature of the wall. He was familiar with invisible and hidden entrances like the one for diagon alley but he had never seen this sort of magic.
"The wall acts as a portal, it might look like it extends forever but it doesn't. The magic makes it seem so to the untrained eye. You have to come to this exact spot to activate the portal to Emrys." Gabriel explained as he stepped forward. "Only experienced wizards and witches who are in tune with magic can sense the magic of the wall. All magic leave traces, from the simples charm to the most complex rituals. They all leave traces which can be detected with a little bit of patience and exerience. Now step through" Gabriel concluded and gestured to Harry to step through the portal. Harry closed his eyes and stepped through the Portal, he half expected himself to hit solid wall again.
It was just like stepping through the Platform for the Hogwarts Express, one moment he was in the savannah and the next moment he was standing inside a large room with high ceilings. The walls of the room were pure white and there were several paintings of magical creatures on the wall. The room looked much like an hotel lobby, it had a fountain in the center with a Chimera spraying water from it's mouth. Gabriel appeared beside him a moment later.
"Here she is. Let's go" Gabriel said as he looked around and spotted a woman sitting beside the fountain. He walked towards her swiftly and Harry jogged on trying to catch up to him. The woman looked up as she heard their footsteps and stood up with a wide smile on her face. She was a tall, beautiful woman with long dark hair that went down to her waist. She opened her arms wide to hug Gabriel as he got to her.
"Harry meet my wife, Cassandra. Also the Professor for Elemental magic at Emrys" Gabriel said as he separated from the hug.
"Hi" Harry said as he extended an hand to shake her.
"Welcome to Emrys, Mr Potter. We have been expecting you." She said as she shook his hands.
"That is enough introductions, let's get our newest student settled down."Gabriel said as he led them towards the exit door. Outside there was a path that led to a very huge building. The path was wide enough to accomodate at least 3 hippogriffs standing side by side, on both sides of the path were huge trees. Harry kept looking aroung taking in the scenery.
"The entire property of Emrys Wizarding Academy spans about 1000km sq, although most of it is forest which contain a variety of endangered magical animals. The building right ahead of us is the Main building which contains the accomodation for students and staffs, kitchens and a great hall." Gabriel explained as the approached the main building. The main building was built like a victorian era castle, the outer walls were pure white and it had 5 towers.
"We call it The Pentagon." Cassandra added. They approached the entrance into The Pentagon, the doors were made of wood with different signs which looked like runes carved on them. Harry didn't know much about runes having never had the class at Hogwarts but he assumed they were some sort of protective wards.
The Pentagon was busy as they entered, students were bustling about with heavy tomes under their arms. Most of the students looked older than him, their ages ranged between 16 – 21 year. At the Center of the Pentagon, 2 students were duelling under a protective dome. A small crowd had gathered around the dome to watch the duelling match, with a Professor outside acting as a referee.
"Right there is the duelling yard. There is no official duelling club but students regurlarly organize duelling matches to hone their skills." Gabriel said as he noticed Harry's enthusiasm to watch the students duelling.
"As long as you have a duelling partner and a Professor available to referee, you can make use of the duelling Yard."
"Nice" Harry said asentmidedly as he moved closer to watch the duel. Harry's attention was captured by the duel going on, both students didn't look to be much older than him. Their movement and technique was captivating, neither student uttered a spell aloud as they danced and weaved their magic about trying to subdue their opponent. Harry might have been top dog at Hogwarts but if this was the quality of students at Emrys, he had a lot to learn before he could hope to match any of the students here.
"There is also a private duelling chamber. The public yard is mostly used for challenges." Cassandra said as she and Gabriel joined Harry to watch the duel. The students didn't pay any attention to them, all their focus was on the match going on.
"Who do you think is going to win?" Harry asked looking at Gabriel. Both fighters seemed to be evenly matched and seemed to be tiring.
"John and James have been challenging each other to duels since they arrived at Emrys a year ago. I believe this is their 11th challenge duel, they are averaging a duel per month." Cassandra said. John and James were identical twins, but instead of being partners like Fred and George, this set of twins were more of Rivals.
"It's going to be a draw." Gabriel said.
"Why do you say that?" Harry asked, hoping to gain some insight into the mind of a Master like Gabriel.
"Because they drew their previous ten duels. They would be better served being partners than rivals. " Cassandra said with a smile.
"A lesson I have tried to teach them for the past year." Gabriel added. Each twin gave as good as they got from their opponent. Harry could only identify a few of the spells being used in the duel, his spell vocabulary was very limited.
"We should be on our way, they are going to be at it for a while." Gabriel said as he led Harry away from the duel.
"I have some projects to check on so I will be leaving you here. Once again welcome to Emrys, Harry. I am sure you will enjoy it here." Cassandra said.
"Thanks"
Gabriel and Harry left Cassandra and walked along the corridor till they got to the 2nd tower.
"This tower houses the accommodation for the male students." Gabriel said as they entered the tower.
The wall were filled with painting depicting different animals, some of which were unfamiliar to Harry. One of the paintings depicted someone who looked like Dumbledore fighting a Chimera.
"Is that Dumbledore?" Harry asked pointing to the painting.
"Haaa, yes. I commissioned the painting after Dumbledore defeated the Chimera."
"it must have been one hell of a fight."
"It was. Perhaps one day I'll share the memory of the battle with you." Gabriel said. They continued the rest of the walk in silence, the rooms had the names of their occupant on the door.
"Here we go." Gabriel said as he stopped in front of a door with no name on it.
"This is your room. Since our population is very little, every student has their own private room although the bathrooms and toilets are shared. Thay are at the end of the corridor." Gabriel said as he opened the door for Harry and stepped inside with Harry behind him.
"You can also set up a password to protect your room. Lastly this booklet contains everything you need to know about Emrys: history, classes, teachers, subjects and all. You should study it before tommorow when you officially resume." Gabriel said handing Harry a small booklet.
"Thank you Sir."
"You should get some rest and I'll see you tommorow."
Harry's room was much bigger than his room at the Dursleys, the walls were bare and it had wooden floors. There was a bed in the corner of the room with a white bedsheet on it, the room also had a small wardrobe for clothes and shoes.
Harry sat on the bed and opened the booklet Gabriel gave him to read. The first section of the booklet contained the History of the school and its founding.
Emrys Private Wizarding Academy was founded 1982 by Gabriel Sonaya. It's prime purpose is to help exceptionally talented wizards and witches fulfill their true potential. Located in Northern Etiopia in what used to be the Ancient Kingdon of Aksum. Prospective students of Emrys are invited only after they have completed their OWLs examination or it's equivalent and graduate after they have attained at least one mastery. Emrys offers mastery in various unconventional disciplines like Rituals and Blood Magic, Healing, Divinations, Conjurations, Enchantments, Battle Magic, most of which are not taught in depth in regular Wizarding schools. For a full list of disciplines taught at Emrys see Page 10.
Harry closed the booklet and put it by his bed. The journey across the ocean had taken its toll on his body and he was feeling tired and sleepy. He looked up at the ceiling of his room in thought, excited for this new journey he was embarking on. Soon it would be time to meet his new Professors and possibly new friends. While he was worried about his friends he left behind, he hoped learning at Emrys would get him prepared for the challenge he had ahead of him facing Voldermort.
The kitchen was more crowded than usual at The Burrow. There was a lot of moving about trying to set up the small kitchen to fit everyone in preparation for the meeting of the Order of The Phoenix. Usually the meeting would be held at the Headquaters of the Order of The Phoenix at 12 Grimmauld Street but the death of the owner and caretaker of the house had put them in a bit of a bind. They were uncertain whether the Fidelius charm on the house would hold now that the owner of the house was dead or if the other members of the black family would be able to access the building now. It would be a disaster if someone like Bellatrix Lestrange managed to gain access to their headquaters, the amount of damage she could cause is catastrophic. Things were uncertain and unclear for now and would likely remain so until the reading of Sirius Black's will which was in a few weeks. In the absence of their usual headquaters the Weasleys had volunteered their house to host the meetings for now. Although the Burrow was bigger on the inside than it was on the outside, they would have to maximize all available space to accomodate the members that would be attending the meeting today.
"Kindly take your seats everyone." Dumbledore said as he sat at the head of the table in the Weasley's kitchen. The Weasley's kitchen table had been expanded to accomodate the new crowd. Everyone gradually took their seats at the table, Arthur sat at Dumbledore's left side with his wife beside him while on his right side sat Professor McGonagall with Alastor Moody beside her. The only new face among the members of the Order of the Phoenix was Bill Weasley who had moved back to England for a more stable role at Gringotts and to be closer to his family. Ever since knowledge of Voldermort's ressurection became public there has tension in the air. Everyone was in a hurry in Diagon's Alley now, no one stood around for idle chit-chats anymore. Although Voldermort had not made one of the famous public attacks he was known for in a first war, no one wanted to be around when he decides to strike.
"Since Voldermort's ressurection became public news, our dear minister Fudge has been more agreeable to taking my suggestions." Dumbledore started, getting straight to business.
"Finally the tosser gets his head out of his arse." Alastor said in a gruff voice. His magical eyes kept moving around, scanning the room for potential threats.
"Hopefully its not too late."
"In any case, I have been using the opportunity to suggest various improvements that will better prepare us for the coming war. I have managed to convince him to increase the funding for the Aurors and boost recruitment and training."
"Some good news, finally." Emmeline Vance added, the other members of the Order nodded in agreement.
"While it may take a while for the effect to be seen, i am hopeful that we can stave off Voldermort for the time being. Irrespective of what Fudge does now, it is likely that the Wizengamot will take a vote of no confidence in him and there will be a new minister."
"We need to get someone in, certainly Voldermort will be trying to put his man in the position." Elphias Doge said. He was one of the more older members of the order and while he was not the fighter he was in his youth, his opinions and advice were invaluable to the order.
"Definitely, Fudge has already done enough damage as it is. Another incompetent minister of magic would be disastrous." Minerva added in agreement.
"Or worse a death eater minister."
"Any ideas on who we should put forward?" Dumbledore asked. He already had several ideas on potential candidates that could take up the role. One of them was Amelia Bones, she was the incorruptible Head of Department of Magical Law Enforcement, she had experience and was definitely not a Voldermort supporter.
"What about Bones. She is definitely competent." Alastor suggested. Several other members of the Order nodded in agreement. While Amelia Bones was not a member of the Order of the Phoenix, her brother was a member of the Order in the first war. Also several members of the Order were Aurors under Amelia's command and could vouch for her integrity.
"Her name would definitely be in the running. The challenge is going to be convincing her to take the job."
"She definitely hates the Beaurecracy of the Ministry." Tonks said, Tonks was one of the aurors under Amelia's command. Her skills as a Metemorphmagus made her very useful to both the Aurors and the Order of the Phoenix.
"Still,we might be able to convince her of the severity of the situation to persuade her to take the job."
"If she refuses, I am not sure of any other candidate we can put forward that could generate the support needed to win against whoever Voldermort wants to impose on the Ministry."
"There are very few people who are qualified for the job and even fewer who would want the job considering the peilious times we find ourselves." Dedalus Diggle said.
"Except you would consider taking the job yourself Headmaster." Elphias suggested. Several other members nodded in agreement. Dumbledore's name had always been one of the favorites to become minister ever since he defeated Grindewald years ago, this was one of the reasons Fudge was always apprehensive of him.
"I know you have always refused the job but I think you should consider taking the job seriously. No one Voldermort puts forward would be able to win against you in a vote."
"Becoming minister would prevent me from continuing my other responsibilities which are very critical to the war efforts. If we are unable to convince Amelia to take up the job then I would consider it as a last resort." Dumbledore said, putting an end to the discussions concerning a new Minister of Magic.
"I have also recieved reports that Voldermort has started recruiting publicly. He also plans on taking a direct part in the training of his followers. Mundungus, I need you to find information concerning his recruitments." Mundungus Fletcher was one of the members of the Order of the Phoenix with a questionable character. He was a theif who frequented the dark parts of Knockturn Alley. While many members were uncomfortable with his presence, he was very vital to getting much needed information on activities in the seedier parts of town. Dumbledore announcement put a damper of the spirits in the room, if Voldermort was taking part in the training of the Death Eaters it spelt trouble for everyone opposing them. While Death Eaters might be more in numbers, most of them were very low skilled and relied heavily on their numbers to subdue opponents. With Voldermort taking a direct part in their training one could expect an improvement in their skill levels
"We would have to step up our recruiting and training to counter this." Alastor said.
"I would talk to a few aurors who I think might be interested." Kingsley Shacklebolt said, he was one of the aurors under Amelia's command.
"Be careful not to reveal too much to them until you are certain they are trustworthy."
"Of course."
"That's all for today. If no one has any further contributons to make or issues to discuss we shall reconvene in 2 weeks except there is an emergency." Dumbledore said putting an end to the first meeting of the Order of the Phoenix since Voldermorts ressurection became public.
"Keep am eye out for any suspicious happenings. We expect Voldermort to strike soon. CONSTANT VIGILANCE." Alastor Moody said, growling the last part loudly.
Slowly evevryone left the Weasleys kitchen and departed to their various houses with Dumbledore remaining behind to have a chat with the Weasleys about Harry. The Weasley's had been hounding about Harry's whereabouts and wanted to know if he was going to be staying with them later in the summer.
"Thank you for hosting us Molly." Dumbledore said as the last member of the Order walked out.
"No need to thank us, any member of the Order is always welcome in The Burrow. Are you staying for Dinner? I have making my famous chicken pie." Molly said.
"Unfortunately I must say no. I have a meeting with Fudge, I am hoping to convince him to implement more changes."
The door to the kitchen opened as Ginny barged in with Ron behind her. There had been remarkable improvements in Ron condition, he was becoming more of himself everyday. Hermione had returned home to spend some time with her parents after leaving the hospital.
"How is Harry?" Ginny asked immediately she entered. She had been listening in on the Order meeting with an Extendable Ear.
"Have some manners Ginny and don't shout at the Headmaster." Molly chastised Ginny although she was very much interested in the answer to Ginnys question.
"Nevermind Molly, I understand Miss Weasleys enthusiasm to know the condition of her friend. That is exactly why I stayed behind. Young Harry is not with his relatives."
"Where is he?" Ginny interrupted the Headmaster again.
"Stop being impatient. Let the Headmaster finish." Arthur said.
"I have sent Harry to stay with an old friend of mine. Considering the events at the Ministry I have decided that Harry needs some time away to recover and hopefully learn some new things." Dumbledore sadi giving a vague response. While Molly was glad that Harry was not with his relatives knowing how they mistreated him she was still concerned about his wellbeing and safety.
"Is he going to be safe there. He should be here with us." Molly said
"I assure you, Harry is safe as he can possibly be. He is getting all the help he needs. Now I must be on my way, can't afford to be late to my meeting." Dumbledore response left no room for further questions or inquiries.
"If Dumbledore says Harry is fine, then he must be. Go set the table for dinner." Molly said to Ron and Ginny as Dumbledore left the Burrow.