‧ [Chapter 1] ‧
Harry Potter was not having a good day. He was sitting in one of the compartments in the Hogwarts Express in the direction of Kings Cross, in London. Next to him, was his first and best friend, Ron Weasley. In front of him, was his other friend, Hermione Granger, who had already started on her summer homework. ''Mental that one,'' said an almost scandalized redhead.
The raven-haired wizard knew not to speak of homework or studying while Ron was around. He discovered pretty early at the beginning of the year that his friend was a lazy boy and very prompt to ignore the help Hermione was almost desperately trying to give them. Harry had first proudly accomplished everything the teachers were giving the students to do, even in Potion with Professor Bat Snape. He was fairly successful, earning himself a lot of Exceeds Expectations, and a couple of Outstanding while having nothing under an Acceptable in said Potion.
But he fell to Ron's pressure to stop studying and start playing chess, or, when Harry miraculously got on the Quidditch team, he talked about the sport for a long time. At least, he knew his relatives wouldn't give a damn about his bad grades. They probably wouldn't even ask anything about the school, thank Merlin. He hoped they wouldn't be too mad about Dudley's pig's tail. He found it funny at the time, but now, he was dreading the reunion. What would his uncle do this time? Beat him? Starve him? Lock him up in his small cupboard? Probably all of those, maybe at the same time even. It happened once when Ripper, Aunt Marge's big scary dog, got thrown by magic across the yard when the animal ran after him.
He heard the fifteen-minute call until arriving at the station and he felt his heart beating faster. What he would give to stay in Hogwarts! He remembered talking to the Headmaster about this in the Hospital Wing but sadly, Dumbledore already decided that Harry would need to back to his family. The boy knew that they hated him, and he hated them in return. However, he did not have anywhere else to go.
:-[T.A.B]-:
Harry climbed down the train, while Hermione gave him Hedwig'cage. The owl didn't like to be caged, but the young boy didn't want to take any chance with his uncle after the fiasco when he got his multiple letters. All around him, he saw his classmate reuniting with their parents and loved ones. Ignoring the pain in his heart, Harry helped Hermione with her cart before receiving her bear hug.
''Thank you for everything, Harry. Can I write to you this summer?'' she asked with a small blush.
''Of course, you can Hermione,'' said Harry. ''But how will you write to me without an owl?''
''Well, my parents have bought a family owl, Atlas on Christmas, so I can send you a letter and you can send Hedwig back with him on his way back for company! Anyway, I got to go, my parents are waiting for me! Write to me soon Harry!''
With a last bear hug, the bushy-haired witch almost ran to her parents, who were delighted to see their daughter for the first time since Christmas. Turning to say goodbye to Ron, Harry saw that the redhead was already leaving with his family.
Trying to push down the sadness in his heart, the young wizard looked around for his relatives, however, he did not see them. ''Maybe they forgot?'' thought Harry.
While looking for his relatives, the young wizard saw that everyone around him started to freeze on the spot. Man, woman, children, and even the pet, except Hedwig and himself, were completely frozen. Not understanding but not succumbing to panic, Harry started to make his way to Hermione and her parents when a hand stopped him from taking another step.
''She's frozen too, you know,'' said a deep voice from behind. ''You and I, are the only ones who can move.''
Spinning as fast as he could, Harry saw an old man dressed in all black. His wrinkled skin was a very pale white but not like an albino. His eyes were as vibrant as Harry's but purple. His hood, however, was hiding the rest. Shaking his shoulder to free himself, Harry only took Hedwig's cage from his trolley to free her.
As soon as she was free, the snowy owl let out a powerful bark and flew directly to the man's face. The man only held up a finger to make the animal freeze mid-air, making Harry scream her name. The hooded man let out a sigh before saying, ''I should have asked you to not let her out before I explained some things to you, young wizard, I do offer my apologies for this.''
''Who are you?'' said Harry defensively. ''Free my owl, now!''
''Of course, but she must not attack me again. If not, you will lose a very important ally in the wars to come.''
Harry simply nodded, wanting Hedwig to be free first, even if he didn't understand the last part. The wars to come? What does that mean? He wasn't a soldier. Sure, he played with his knights until last summer and imagined himself as a brave warrior helping the innocent while saving the princess from a terrible monster. Often stories put the knight versus the dragon but to Harry, it was more of a gigantic monster with multiple forms. Those forms were often his relatives, especially the Ogre.
The mysterious man, with a single wave of his hand, freed Hedwig from whatever spell she was put under. As soon as she could move, the snowy owl flew directly to Harry's shoulder, shooting a glare at the mysterious man. The man only smirked at this, then returned his attention to the young man in front of him.
''Now that you freed my owl, what is this about bloody wars to come? What do I have to do with wars plural? I don't Voldemort is alive but...'' Harry began rambling.
With a second wave of his hand, the young wizard was silenced by the old man. ''Your incessant talking, young man, is exactly like your owl's own behavior, annoying. When I talk, you best listen. You are a weak child. What do you think the hat was talking about when he sat on your idiotic head, hum?''
Harry could only stand there, not moving. Not because the man immobilized him or something. No. He never saw the verbal beat coming down. Especially by someone that he didn't know and just met. He slowly nodded at the man, hoping he would understand to let him speak.
''No, you will not speak. I will not even let you have the ability while I explain to you the shit fuck you have caused by being a Ronald Weasley 2.0. Yes, Quidditch is an amazing sport, I'll give you that, but you were supposed to have the ambition of a thousand men. You were supposed to put even Hermione Granger to shame. Your potential is so locked up inside your mind, that it is stopping you from reaching it. Do you think you saw this Dark Lord's full power that night? No. You saw but a fragment of his power. At this rate, he will annihilate you within seconds,'' ranted the man. ''Now, I have to move my arse around space and time, because you decide to be a lazy little shit! Tell me, what do you have to say to yourself, hum!?'' finished the very angry man with another wave of his hand.
Even with his ability to speak back, Harry was still speechless. What the man said was true; he had been a lazy student. His desire to be accepted by the first person who wanted to be his friend had been his undoing. Right then and there, the young wizard made himself a promise. To be the best self that he could. He would study his hardest from day one in his second year. To be the first in his year and more. He would make his parents proud in spirit.
With a firm nod, Harry looked right in the vibrant purple eyes of the man, "You're right,'' he said. "I've been lazy. I see it now. I will study harder, every night. I'm sure Hermione will help me get started with some kind of study schedule or something."
The man let him speak until the end, curious about what the boy would say. He was happy with his answer, it was honest and from the heart. The man crossed his arms in satisfaction. Harry, however, was not finished with his small speech. ''I'll become what the hat said to me; ambitious and cunning. But now, can you please tell me who in the bloody hell are you? What do you mean by space and time? What about those wars?''
The man's expression shifted, his scowled face giving his way to amusement. ''You cannot say my name in your form. You may call me Kalvyn for the time being. Now, for what I meant about space and time. I am what you could say in your language, an archangel of time. Our job is to make sure people like you, the Chosen Ones, accomplish their destinies. And you, my young friend, were on the way to screw up one of the most important worlds,'' the newly named Kalvyn ranted. ''Now. For your foolishness, I have developed a new way of training. I will send you to multiple worlds so that you can become the best wizard you can possibly be.''
Harry tilted his head, the words of Kalvyn slowly sinking in. This old man, an archangel of time? Really? Looking around, he had to consider every single person still frozen in place. He guesses that it could be possible, he did not know anyone who could do a feat like this, except maybe Dumbledore. However, Kalvyn did not have any wand or did not even seem to focus on any spell whatsoever. Before he could say anything else, the old man snapped his fingers with his right hand. In the blink of an eye, the both of them found themselves in front of the Leaky Cauldron.
''Come on, follow me,'' said the man entering the pub without waiting for an answer. Turning to take his luggage, Harry saw that they were missing, probably left at the train station. Scratching Hedwig's white feathers, the young wizard sighed softly and followed Kalvyn inside.
The hooded man was already at the front counter, speaking to the owner of the pub, Tom. With a single nod, the man went upstairs to one of the rooms, ''Come young man. It's time I show you everything.''
Not having a choice in the matter, the young wizard walked up the steps. As soon as he was in, Harry froze. Inside the room, said a couple of weird-looking machines. They appeared to be made of black metal with many tubes in the front made of the same material and color. Both were set up in the back corner of the room with some kind of blue holographic screen whom Kalvyn was already tapping on.
''About time! Now, outside you asked about the wars. Sit there,'' pointing a couch, ''and listen, I won't repeat myself. Something is coming to Earth, something even bigger than Voldemort. By the state that you are now, I doubt that you'll even injure him once. The big guys send me to personally train you to fulfill your potential. To accomplish this task, I'll use these puppies,'' said Kalvyn, showing the machines with his thumb, ''The Volsinii were kind enough to loan me two of them before I came here to get you out of the train station. Now, the first thing I want to help you with, Harry, is your indecisiveness and your lack of magical strength. You cannot say yes to everyone just to please them. I will send you to the first of your many challenges, the world of Ice and Fire. However! "The old man said with passion before continuing more calmly, "Even this world will be toned down since your lack of results at Hogwarts. You will still have many challenges there but, the main one will not even exist."
"The world of Ice and Fire? What does that mean, sir?"
"It is a medieval world, their magic is dying. Soon the last remnant of magical creatures will disappear. Your goal will be to successfully defend the Old Gods from their enemies, whoever they might be. I will help you of course. Your owl for starters will now have a full familiar bond with you. She will also be able to come with you in each adventure with a little...twist. I will let you both discover that by yourselves. Next, you don't have to worry about the years you will live in this world. It will be like an hour maximum passed here compared to you. Any question?"
''Many yes,'' started the raven haired boy, ''I-I-I don't understand so much of what you said. I will live another life? What do you mean by that exactly?''
Kalvyn let out a deep sigh like it was a pain to explain. ''Very well, I shall explain. These chairs will send both of your minds to another dimension. This dimension, in this particular case, is a medieval world as I said. What will happen to you and your owl is that you will take the identity of other people as if you were them. These people will be a version of you if you were born there. They will know who Harry Potter and Hedwig the Owl are, they will keep every skill you maintain. The stronger you are here, the stronger you will be there, and vice versa. You need to use these opportunities to become the most powerful wizard you can. If these worlds, you won't have any limits, no governments to spy on you if you use a single levitation spell.''
''What about this familiar bond with Hedwig? That seems useful. What is it exactly?'' asked the boy.
''Better if I just show you.'' Said the man as he snapped his fingers on his left hand.
Suddenly, Harry felt some kind of zap in his mind and started hearing a feminine voice ''...if that two-legged shit doesn't start explaining to my master, shit is going to fly.''
''Who is that!?''
"It's me master!" said Hedwig, flapping her wings happily. "You can finally hear me!"
"Yes, yes you both can talk to each other's mind," said Kalvyn sharply. "She will be able to follow you in every world that you will discover. Come on now, sit in that chair so that we can start, Harry."
Feeling better with his new familiar bond with Hedwig, the raven-haired wizard decided, with his Gryffindor courage, to risk it all. He slowly sat in the chair, the tubes attaching themselves to his skin without any physical pain. Without any other word, the old purple-eyed man put the last two tubes on each side of his head, sending Harry to a world of light.
:-[T.A.B]-:
The flashes of light disappeared as fast as they came. Harry was standing in what appeared to be a vast green paradise. A majestic valley with a river in the middle was in front of his eyes. "Beautiful, isn't it?" suddenly said a gruff voice behind the young wizard, making him turn. Behind were, weirdly enough, a big table and a black wooden truck with his initials on it. On the table, were mini models of different castles. Besides these, were their names like Winterfell, Riverrun, Casterly Rock, and many, many more. Just under each was the family name of the castle belonged to. Stark, Tully, Lannister...
"Intriguing isn't it? This will be where we begin," said the man, pointing at one the furthest castle in the north, Winterfell.