A/N- Let's get the reviews out of the way before we go on. Thanks to ObsessedwithHPFanFic and Anarion for the reviews.
Thank you Hypergym for such astute observations. To answer your queries, Neville cannot wrap time but it was purely on instinct that he commanded the wand into his holster and after the spell passed through him he willed it into his hand again. Ginny is not weak but she was not very remarkable till the 4th book except her bat bogey hexes and you certainly can't expect a bat bogey hex to get her out of the situations I put her in yet. Also when she was trying to contact Dumbledore, she failed to keep track of her comrades as to who was still standing and Moody used it to his benefit. Luna Lovegood had not entered into Harry's circle of friends till the train ride on September 1st in the 5th year therefore I am waiting for that time for her entry. Trust me she will be as charming as she ever has been.
Sonia, thank you for taking time to read this and I appreciate the interest you have shown into it. I will try to keep up with your hopes.
This chapter is going to be a little short than my standard chapters but that was because I am saving something for the next chapter which would have made it run into 20,000 words or more. I promise the next chapter will be fulfilling.
Another thing that I want to talk about is that I would not be updating as quick as I had been due to several constraints as I have recently faced therefore, please bear with me. I will try to keep it at a chapter a week with a decent sized chapter as I am doing.
Since we all know I cannot own Harry Potter, I do not see the need to find creative ways to tell every time that I do not own the raven haired wizard.
THANK YOU HYPER GYM FOR THE EDIT
INDIA
Harry Potter woke up in the room where he had been taken when he had reached the mystics. The room was more than adequate for his uses. It was much larger than the small bedroom he was used to at Privet Drive. It was even better than the one at the Black Town House, being twice the size with a spectacular view out the window. There were hills visible in the distance which was more like mountains. He remembered reading in his Geography books in the muggle primary that the Himalayas were the highest and the longest mountain range in the world. He had not imagined the sheer size of it. Each of those mountains was easily over 3000 feet in height and at the foot of those mountains were woods so dense that even the forbidden forest would look tame compared to them but these did not look quite so sinister to him.
"Mr. Potter", a female voice brought him out of his musing and he turned to find a middle aged woman at the door of the room. She was athletically built, was tall with black hair and brown eyes. While she looked fairly unremarkable, the sheer power which seemed to exude from her was terrifying.
"Mr. Potter", she called again, "Guruji has asked me to tell you to get ready and meet him outside in 30 minutes and any delay on your part would be met with severe punishment."
Harry nodded, getting up and running to the bathroom. Half an hour later, he was facing the mystic who was sitting at the breakfast table with 5 other people. As Harry approached, Harsh signalled him to sit at the table, "Harry, let me introduce you to these fine people. They are Vari, Anal, Pawan, Achala and Ambar who will be looking after different aspects of your training. In between them, you will also meet Varahmihir who is our seer though I do not think you fancy divination much. I will be teaching you a lot of things but these 5 will be looking over your training. They also have the support of other mystics and whatever they order, you are bound to fulfil them or suffer our displeasure. We have some new recruits but their training is different from you so, you will be their only charge."
Harry nodded his head. He remembered something that the mystic had promised him when he woke up, "Guruji, I do not have a wand which is compatible with me."
Harsh smiled, "I remember my promise, Harry. As soon as you are done with your breakfast, we are going to collect the ingredients of your wand."
After finishing breakfast, they came out of the building they were in and Harry found that it was a castle but did not look as imposing as the Hogwarts castle but rather welcoming with the mountains in the background. The castle was around 4 stories high and spread in a large area with guards patrolling the tops of the walls and keeping watch. Outside the castle, there were large stables, pens and sheds where there were animals being kept. He noticed his hippogriff tethered to one of the stalls while the mystic Pashupati (that was Harry had heard was his name) was patting its flanks and tending to it so lovingly that he reminded Harry of Hagrid. There were many flying horses tethered to their stalls in the stable and then there were bovines which were being tended to by some mystics. The mystics had a large number of animals in their settlement which made sense to him since there would be no other supply of food in this place which was out in the middle of nowhere.
On the far end of the settlement, he could see there was some type of practice area where there was an earth embankment and it looked like it was used for battle practice. Indeed two mystics were standing at the sides bearing swords and readying themselves for sparring. On another side of the settlement, there was a big pool of water which was sparkling in the morning sun.
There was a practice area where some mystics were duelling with each other firing lethal curses and dodging them or shielding themselves with such ease that it fascinated him. He kept watching them as they used those curses and hexes in creative ways and were even putting in some charms or transfigurations to use in the battle.
One thing he noticed was that not all of them were wearing cloaks or robes like wizards in England did but mostly their torso was bare with just a light fabric covering their upper body which they would cast aside when doing any work but some were dressed in robes or cloaks. Harsh's comments about mystics coming from all over the world came to his mind.
"Harry," Harsh said, "as we are going to craft your wand so we will be leaving to see our wand maker Shilpagya who I am told is waiting for a challenge."
Harry did not say anything but thought back to how happy Ollivander seemed when Harry did not fit with any of the wands which he had tried. Perhaps this was another enthusiastic soul like Ollivander.
Harsh led him westwards in the settlement to a non-descript house where they met a man who was ancient. His beard was big enough to put Dumbledore to shame and his face was so wrinkled that it was hard to make out his features. He looked like a well placed jinx would do him in. The only distinguishing features were his brown eyes which were sparkling with so much energy that Harry could not take his eyes off him.
"Shilpagya," Harsh addressed him, "Harry here needs a wand compatible to him."
"I won't put in any efforts for a meager boy, Harsh", the old wand maker retorted, "if you cannot bring me a challenge, please do not waste my time."
Harsh said nothing but smirked, "I think you will love this challenge. This one here is a descendant of Peverell and Black. He is powerful enough to cast a patronus and drive away 100 Dementors at this age."
The old wand maker's eyes brightened, "A descendant of Peverell, you say? I will love this. I wish old Ignotus was here. I could rub this in his face for eternity."
He beckoned Harry closer and sliced his palm to collect a few drops of blood. As he studied it for a few minutes he turned to them, "the boy will need a seasoned piece of the sandalwood tree, a tail feather of Ganda Berunda and a Yeti hair. If you can manage a tail hair of Thestral, I would not say not to it."
Harsh said nothing for a few moments while his eyes took a maniacal grin. Then he said, "We have quite the task for us, Harry. Let's leave before the day is long and we can hope to collect the items as soon as we can."
Harry nodded but could not help asking, "What is Ganda Berunda? And what is a Thestral?"
Harsh turned to him, "Ganda Berunda is a two headed bird which is known for its strength, its powers of illusion and its capacity to carry heavy weights such as a tiny wizard named Harry Potter." He guffawed at Harry's expression.
"Sounds like a phoenix to me", he muttered.
"You are not far from right, Harry. They are cousins to Phoenixes but cannot quite arise again from its ashes like a phoenix but they are impervious to all magic that can kill them. Their death depends on their will", Harsh answered his unasked question.
"Why are they not listed in the Fantastic beasts?", Harry asked.
Harsh laughed, "Because Newt Scammander did not come to India. He did not even mention Pravirakarna owl in his books and they are rather legendary creatures. There are many animals found in these mountains which are not mentioned by Mr. Scammander."
Harry was surprised but eager to know more, "What is a Thestral?"
"A Thestral", Harsh said reverently, "is a skeletal winged horse which is considered by many as omen of death but we know it as the horse of death because only those who have seen death can actually see this animal. That is the animal symbol of House of Peverell and adorns your ring. Newt Scammander had met a lot of them in his school days."
"Where are they found in England?", Harry asked eagerly while thinking of the Lord Rings he had left in England when he was coming on this voyage on Sirius's advice that the rings would not be useful in India where his houses were barely known.
"Hogwarts", Harsh replied, "it has the biggest flock of them. I believe there are around 100 of the beasts in the forbidden forests and are looked after by Rubeus Hagrid. They are used for pulling the carriages."
"Nothing pulls the…", Harry stopped short as he realised that only those who had seen death could see those horses. He had not seen anyone die before Cedric therefore he could not see them.
Harsh was smirking at his expression, but; soon turned sober, "they are magical beings and are considered powerful. Any wand to have its tail hair and a tail feather of a Ganda Berunda would be quite the combination."
"Hang on", Harry said, "did not the wand maker say something about Yeti hair?"
"Yes, he did. You are going to ask it to give you a hair", Harsh smirked at him.
Harry was gasping in wonder that he was going to see a Yeti of all things.
"They are temperamental creatures, Harry. When you approach one, present yourself as one who has come to ask something and be humble. They cannot refuse anything to one who shows them proper respect", Harsh confided in him making him worry about the proper manners for a Yeti.
As they went out of the settlement, Harry found himself in the clearing where he had come in. Behind him there was only a ring of trees and there was nothing in it.
He turned to Harsh who was smiling at him, "We keep an invisibility shield up at all times. This way no one unsavoury can find us."
He took Harry's hand and disappeared to re-appear beneath a mountain where there was nothing but only snow all around. They were directly below the snow laden mountains making them look dreadful and imposing to him. There were no trees around the place and all he could see was snow.
He turned to Harsh who was just disillusioning him. Harsh pointed in a direction, "Go that way, Harry. After a kilometer or so, you will come upon them. The first Yeti you meet, ask him to voluntarily give you a hair for the purpose of triumph of good. Before he agrees, he would try to intimidate you, threaten you or scare you. Hold your ground against him and he will relent to give a hair to you."
Harry nodded and started in the direction Harsh pointed out to him. As he walked, he found that it kept getting colder. As he began to think about turning back, a figure jumped in front of him.
It was around 12 feet in height with a face resembling a great ape, red bloodshot eyes and snow white hair all over the body. Its large, powerful fingers were tipped with formidable looking claws and his teeth sported six inch fangs pointed like stilettos. Seeing the bizarre creature in front of him, Harry's mind froze and he could not say a word.
"What do you want, humanling?", growled the Yeti making him shiver to the bones.
He wanted to bolt but Harsh's warning kept sounding in his mind. "I… Iwantahair", he said quickly making the Yeti laugh.
"You are such a tiny thing, humanling. Now I ask again WHAT DO YOU WANT?", the Yeti almost roared at him.
Harry's legs were threatening to give way beneath him but he did not dare use his wand because he knew the creature in front of him would swat him away before he could do anything. Gathering his Gryffindor courage, he faced the Yeti, "O Noble being, I am Harold James and I have come to pray for a hair of you to forge me a wand which will help me win in the war against evil."
"Since you told me your name, I will tell you mine. I am Raktaksh, son of Shukraksh and the prince of Yeti's. We do not easily mingle with wizards who are always offending mother magic and her ways. What do you know of evil?", the yeti asked.
Harry was not sure of the answer. While he could give a pedestrian answer to anyone who asked this question, he knew the Yeti wanted to know something more. Something that was true only for the Yeti and no one else. He remembered how the mystic had always harped on about Mother Magic and offending her ways.
"Evil is when someone uses his gifts and tries to pervert the sacred rules of magic", he replied confidently, "When someone as such arises and tries to instigate others in those ways, it is evil."
"'Why would I give you my hair?", the Yeti asked while not commenting on his answer to the first question.
"Because I need it to craft a wand which will be a useful tool in the upcoming war against evil", he replied after a moment's reflection.
"I do not concern myself with the world's ways Harold James", the yeti said, "I can simply kill you and bury your body in the snow. Why should I not kill you?"
While all of Harry's instincts wanted him to run, he stood his ground, "You will not kill me, Noble Raktaksh because it is not your nature. I am the only hope against the upcoming evil and your contribution will ensure triumph of good over evil."
"Well answered, Harold James", the Yeti said, his face contorting into a smile which had the disturbing side-effect of showing off his fangs, "you will have your wish."
He plucked a long snow white hair from his arm and gave it to Harry. Harry conjured an empty phial and having corked the hair inside, stowed it back into his robes.
As Harry turned around, Harsh materialised before him, "Well done, Harry. You handled him well. Now let's see you tackle the Ganda Berunda."
They disappeared to appear a moment later in the clearing where he had encountered the two headed bird a day before.
"Harry", Harsh instructed him, "as the bird approaches, you have to avoid to being taken as a passenger in its talons but you have to hitch a ride on its back. It will try all its might to unseat you from its back and you have to keep hanging. When you have broken its will, it will willingly drop a tail feather for you which you have to collect and then jump off its back or it would plunge into a glacier."
Harry shivered at the task. The bird was enormous and he was not sure how to break its spirit. As he replayed Harsh's words in his mind once again he asked a question of him, "How will I land on the ground safely?"
Harsh produced a shrunken broom for him, "Marut told me you are fantastic flyer. Sure you can use your talents."
Grinning Harry pocketed the broom.
As Harsh disappeared, Harry heard an ear piercing screech and saw the two headed bird dive bombing him. As the bird came near him and went in a steep dive to grab him Harry waited until the last possible moment, then leapt to one side, grabbing the bird's wing and swinging himself on to its back. The strain nearly ripped Harry's arms from their shoulder sockets, but as the bird rose into the air again, it had a passenger. He wasted no time getting a firmer grip with both hands and getting his knees up behind the wing joints. All the wile, it was thrashing and trying to throw him off. As the bird went higher and higher, Harry started feeling the extreme cold and he laid himself closer to the bird's body, trying to use its heat to stave off the cold while cursing himself for not thinking to bring the leaves the Nagas had given him which would have kept him warm in any cold. The bird kept flying at high altitude for a long time until Harry thought he would become frozen to its back. The bird tried to unseat him all during this somersaulting mid flight, giving him jerks or going higher. As he kept clinging, suddenly the bird went into a steep dive making him shout at the top of his lungs enjoying the exhilaration of the flight. The bird kept trying to throw him off by all means but Harry could not be shaken loose.
Finally the bird stopped mid air after a steep upwards climb. He felt some shiver going through its body and it dropped a feather from its tail. Whipping the broom out of his pocket he immediately jumped down and grabbed the feather which was lazily floating down. As he clutched the feather, he threw the broom upwards and flexed his wrist bringing the wand concealed up his sleeve to his right hand. He cast a finite at the broom and it returned to its natural size. What Harry had not considered was that he had been in free-fall for several seconds now. He was only about one hundred feet away from the ground and the broom was not in his hand. Suddenly a spell hit him and he instantly slowed to a halt. Without losing a moment, he summoned the broom to him and mounting it he started flying towards the ground when he saw a blur flying alongside him. When Harry looked more carefully, a face appeared out of the mist. Harsh was grinning at him like mad while he flew like a blur and kept up with the pace of his broom.
As Harry landed, Harsh appeared before him, "Well done Harry. There has not been anyone who has voluntarily obtained a feather from a Ganda Berunda for almost 100 years now."
"You were flying!", Harry said, his face full of so many expressions that it was hard to decipher them all at once, "You have to teach me to do that. It would be cool to fly without a broom in Quidditch and win."
Harsh guffawed, "Harry, Harry. Did you not hear that you are not supposed to teach what I will teach to you? You are not supposed to show your talents so openly either."
"Why?", Harry asked, confused.
"We will continue this discussion when we have obtained sandalwood for you, Harry.", Harsh replied, "we have to finish gathering materials for your wand today. Shilpagya would be cross with you if you are inordinately delayed. I have never seen that old fossil so excited for years now."
"Where will we get sandalwood?", Harry asked, "I have heard it grows in warm climates."
"You are right, Harry. We are going south where there are sandalwood forests. But I must alert you that you will face another tribe of Nagas who are fierce than the ones you have met and they are very suspicious of anyone, parsel tongue or not. You will have to kill some snakes and may be a couple of Nagas before they will acquiesce to give you some sandalwood. This will be a power show."
Harry nodded and Harsh presented a stone to him, "Grab hold, Harry. I know you are still traumatised with the experience of Portkey but we have to take this portkey."
Harry was reluctant to but still touched the stone and he felt a sudden jerk behind his navel and was whisked away.
Green Hues, London
Neville had just returned home from Longbottom castle and was preparing to settle for the day when suddenly his elf Kitty appeared before him, "Master Kroaker bes calling you, Master."
Algernon Kroaker was his great uncle who, to hear Dowager Lady Longbottom, had some quirks in his personality and had never married in favour of his love for magical research. 50 years ago, he had joined the unspeakables and had soon become the chief unspeakable. He was one of the most powerful men in Avalon right now. Apart from his prowess with wand, he knew of such arcane magics that some of them weren't even available to ordinary wizards and witches. He had visited Neville several times over the years and tried to help him realise things. Neville was always interested in hearing what he had to tell him.
Neville sent the elf away and after getting dressed went down where Algernon Croaker was waiting in the Parlor. He had silver white hair and a long beard which reached to his chest and his face was full of wrinkles.
Seeing Neville he rose and embraced him warmly, "Neville, How are you child?"
Neville returned his affection with equal delight, "I am well, Great Uncle Algie. Is there any reason for the chief unspeakable to come at this time?", Neville asked.
"I am angry at you, boy", Kroaker growled, "I thought I would come and let my displeasure be known personally."
"Bu… But why?", Neville stuttered, "How did I offend you?", He was fearful of Kroaker's prowess and the creative ways in which he used to punish those found guilty of being a traitor to the department of Mysteries.
"My nephew and his wife return to the world of the living and nobody saw fit to inform me?", he growled, his wand twirling in his fingers emitting red sparks.
Neville knew he would be in trouble unless he came clean to the unspeakable. So, he began telling everything to him from the moment Harry Potter had returned to the school after the third task, the mystic's offer of the wand, his offer to treat Frank and Alice, treating them, taking Harry to India, his training with others and the story of the wand. As he finished his narration, the unspeakable's mouth was open in surprise and his eyes wide.
He sat contemplating over everything that was said and sat still for a long time. Finally after several minutes, he started to speak, "I can recall only one such person from my knowledge. If he appeared to you then it is clear that there is another war at hand. I believe Harry Potter's claim that you know who has returned from the dead. The war will be fierce and if he is taking an interest in Harry Potter then I believe that the clash will be of epic proportions. I wonder what Dumbledore has to say about this?"
Neville smirked, "Harry told me that Dumbledore has no problem with it. In fact Dumbledore has committed to using lethal force this time to curb our losses. I for one will not stay behind and neither will father once he is back on his feet."
"I know that, Neville", the unspeakable replied, "if you have pledged House Longbottom's support to Harry Potter then perhaps you need to be better prepared."
He produced the Longbottom Grimoire from inside of his robes, "Start reading this. We will begin our training a week from now. It's time that Heir Longbottom stands up and masters his family magic."
The grin that he gave to Neville made him cringe.
Bones Manor
Susan was getting bored. Except for the days that she had training, there was nothing for her to do and she had already finished reading all her books and Auntie was busy in the office for most of the day these days. Time was slow going for her and she had yet to call Hannah. She was going to wait for Harry Potter to return before she invited Hannah over. She was going to keep her word that she would not talk to Hannah if Harry did not forgive her.
She had been training hard and was still embarrassed with her performance. She had told Amelia all her experiences and was sufficiently chastised for being so amiss in combat like situations. Worse still, Amelia had decreed that every time she failed, she would be punished.
"Has the raven haired wizard left you bereft of your sense, Susie?", Amelia's voice cut into her thoughts and she found her aunt had just arrived.
"What occupies your thoughts, Susie?", she asked again.
"I am bored Auntie", she whined, "I haven't yet invited Hannah over this summer and her letters are short. I am eager to meet her but I have decided not to till Harry forgives her. Training happens every alternate day and I have finished reading all my books."
"Why are you talking like a muggle born, Susie?", Amelia asked, "You have a library at your disposal which I am sure you have not been into and you have not been able to open the family grimoire yet. May be you should try to see if you are ready to be the Bones heiress?"
Susan had not taken the heirship yet because she could not open the grimoire. It resisted her because she was scared of taking on the responsibility but she knew she had to take it soon if she was to count for something in the coming war.
"We are going to the library as soon as I can change into something comfortable.", Amelia said sternly, "we will see tonight if you can wield the mantle of the Bones Heiress.".
Black Townhouse
The Weasley's had been having a tough time with pranks going off at any time. Almost everyone had fallen victim to these pranks once or more.
The twins were the most frequent victims sometimes with bleeding noses that could not be stopped, sometimes they were nauseous and puking for hours on end and dry heaving, or sometimes some order member would turn into a canary or at any time an Order member's wand would be replaced with a fake wand which they would not realise until they went to use it and it turned into a rubber chicken or a fish.
The most epic had been one day when Dumbledore was visiting and as he took the chair at the head of table, chains emerged from the arm rest tying him up and then his hair and beard changed colors while his robes changed from their eccentric patterns and colors to plain white. While everyone else at the table was horrified the head master merely chuckled at this easing the tension around the place.
The most horrific prank happened to Arthur Weasley who had just taken a sip from his glass at dinner one day and the next second he was writhing on the ground and seconds later he changed into Alastor Moody and real Moody who was present at that moment looked ready to brawl. They all had tried to find the pranksters but had not been successful so far.
One day Hermione entered the library to spend the entire day holed up there but she ran away moments later bawling at the top of her voice. As she was pacified by Mrs. Weasley, she kept sobbing and between her tears told everyone that all the books in the library had been charmed and when she tried to read them, they began flying around the room. She tried to grab the books but they just danced out of her reach and kept teasing her. This had enraged Mrs. Weasley and she was vowing to put an end to this menace and to punish the perpetrator whenever she found him/her. The twins had been subjected to a thorough investigation by Alastor Moody who used Legilimency on them to make sure they were telling the truth. To his surprise, they were not the culprits… this time.
Remus who had been living in Grimmauld Place and pranked the twins every now and then relayed all the information to Sirius who had taken to living in the Cottage on the Hill. He cringed when he heard the response his pranks had generated. He resolved to avoid Grimmauld Place for the time being for the safety of his limbs.
In the meanwhile Sirius Black had been training hard in his family magics after he had achieved his fitness to be able to hold his own even against the trusted members of Voldemort's inner circle. He had been to visit Ripfang at Gringotts frequently where he had been making decisions on Harry's behalf. So far, he had made several investments which were giving him substantial returns and he had reopened a manor situated somewhere in Ireland which was unplottable and he was furnishing it for Harry Potter whenever he returned. He knew Harry preferred to live without being disturbed and they needed a safe place in case the war turned for the worse. Dumbledore had also instructed him to open several safe houses where the families of muggleborn students and the allies of House Potter could live unaffected by the war if things turned for the worse. He had used several non-descript properties belonging to House Black fortifying them with wards and every protection that he could manage.
One thing that was always on his mind was Harry Potter. He was concerned about his son and how he was doing as he had not received a word since Harry Potter had left for India. Perhaps he was too busy or he had forgotten about the mirror Remus gave him. He had asked Dumbledore but the old man merely shrugged and said that even he did not know how to contact the mystics but some wards that he had tied to Harry Potter kept him informed that Harry Potter was fine.
The Burrow
The Weasleys had been fortifying the burrow ever since the school year had ended. Bill Weasley who had been transferred to Avalon had been raising wards over the property the likes of which were seen only in the ancient tombs of Egypt. There were no wizards capable of getting through those protections in England unless one brought a ward device and those were rare in England. There were only a couple of them available and only in the oldest of families. Most of them kept their information secret from others and Bill hoped that none of the Death Eaters who had one would offer it to You-know-who.
He was living at the Burrow with the twins and Ronald who claimed that they missed flying and Grimmauld Place was too gloomy for them. Mrs. Weasley had not been receptive to the idea until Mr. Weasley convinced her with the condition that they would floo in twice a day for lunch and dinner and would not burn the house down.
Ron had come to the Burrow to escape Grimmauld place and to think upon his life so far. The last year had been hard on his friendship with Harry Potter and some mistakes he made in his jealousy were now coming back to bite him. He had given up on his friend when he needed him most and now he felt that he was losing his friend forever. Harry had forgiven him but the frostiness in their relationship had not escaped him. He decided to do whatever it took to gain his trust back. It will be a hard journey but Ron was resolved to never abandon Harry Potter again. His friendship was what he had treasured most and he would do anything to reclaim it.
He had also been reflecting on the path he had taken so far and was disappointed with what he saw. He had been a slacker and tended to avoid working hard despite knowing that he had to work hard to make his place in the world. Harry Potter had slacked off with him in studies, but he was Harry Potter, a Lord of four houses and had more money than all the Weasleys put together had ever seen. Ron was not jealous of him anymore with the hand that Harry Potter had been dealt by the fates but he had to work to make his own future.
To start on his path to become his own man, he had excused himself and come to the burrow. When he craved flying he used the twin's brooms. He spent most of his time studying the books from his last 4 years at school. It was hard going at the start. When Bill noticed him working hard, he offered his assistance in Ron's studies. Thus Bill was tutoring Ron on the days they were not practicing at the cottage on the hill. Bill was disappointed with Ron's choice of Divination and dug out his old text books to start teaching Ron runes. Runes were difficult as Hermione had once told them yet he was trying his hardest to persevere. So far he had studied the names of the runes in Elder Futhark and was learning to apply them.
He was also trying to improve his performance in potions. The twins had recruited his help in it by giving him some introductory books to read before he had to start brewing potions for their use. They could use even the simplest potions in their products and their uses had boggled his mind.
This was proving to be the hardest summer ever for him and he was not complaining. The sense of accomplishment and finally understanding what the teachers had been trying to give him made all the effort worth-while. Perhaps they were all doing their best to grow up before the war.
South India
Harry and Harsh appeared out of thin air and Harry promptly stumbled and fell on his knees. As Harsh took his hand and helped him to his feet, he muttered, "Ugh. I hate port keys."
Harsh smirked at him, "Of course. You can never end up on your feet. Do you, Harry?"
Harry just shrugged. Then he asked, "Where are we going Guruji?"
"Not me but you Harry. Follow the scent that you can smell and keep following until you run into Nagas. They are temperamental people and will not yield to you until you defeat them so I believe that you will be busy with them quite a bit. A word of advice if you will, Harry. They seldomly use wands and use staffs to conduct magic which makes it easier for them. If I were you, I would choose a one on one duel with the prize of wand wood."
Harry nodded and started following the scent of Nagas (it was actually Sandalwood which is preferred by snakes and so Nagas stock them in their residences) which he knew from his time in the other Naga village. He had noticed the scent when he arrived and now following it lead him deeper into the forest. As he went, the forest became so dense that there was no longer any trail visible. The forest canopy was thick enough that no sunlight penetrated to the forest floor. As Harry looked around in the gloom, even at mid-day, he realized that he was surrounded by trees he did not recognize. He did his best to step around obstacles as he encountered them and stayed on the scent.
The hair on the back of his head stood up and he ducked. This time, instead of a javelin or an arrow, a snake passed through the space where he had just been standing. He tried to stop the snake but it turned and attacked him. Harry had no option but to stun it. As the snake fell, scores of snakes attacked him from all sides and despite doing his best, he could not keep all of them at bay. By the time he was victorious against them, a few had buried their fangs in him and paid for their aggression by dying horribly as their bodies melted like wax.
As Harry stood taking stock of the situation, a man jumped in front of him from a nearby tree, "you are not welcome here", he hissed out.
"I mean you no harm. I am sorry that your slithering friends have paid for their unprovoked attack with their lives. I am not looking for a fight", Harry hissed back in reply.
"Go away or we will kill you", the Naga hissed again baring his teeth at him.
"I challenge you to a duel. If I win you will give me wand wood and if I lose I will forfeit my life", Harry hissed.
Without preamble, the Naga produced a small staff which he pointed at Harry and hissed something. A dark green spell flew at him which he dodged. Harry fired a stunner at the Naga who raised the earth with a stomp of his foot. As the stunner collided with the earthen wall, the Naga banished the wall at Harry who had to jump aside to avoid being swatted like a fly. As he jumped he fired a bombarda at the Naga who had fired a spell of his own. The spells collided in a blast and they were both thrown back.
As Harry jumped to his feet he used the Aguamenti at the Naga who lost his footing. In that moment he fired a curse at Harry as he fell and Harry instantly raised a shield to defend himself. The next instant he was forced to roll away because the Naga had summoned a boulder at him. As he stood he cast a banishing charm at the boulder forcing it to go awry and hit the Naga in the shoulder and the Naga dropped his staff. Immediately Harry followed up with a petrifying hex and incarcerous and the Naga was bound up before him.
As Harry approached the Naga and cancelled the hexes, the Naga said, "I accept defeat. You are the winner. We will give you the wood you came for."
An hour later, Harry left with an armful of wood from the Naga who simply escorted him to the place where they had duelled. As soon as the Naga disappeared, Harsh appeared before Harry. Grabbing Harry's shoulder, the two of them were gone.
Headmaster's Office Hogwarts
Dumbledore was sitting in his office trying to solve the woes of the school. Of course, the same two problems every year, those being the budget and finding a new DADA teacher. This year, however, were added to the pile finding a new history of magic teacher, a temporary care of magical creatures teacher and a Wizarding Etiquette teacher. He would place ads in all the usual publications, of course: The Daily Prophet, Witch Weekly, The Quibbler, but it would be so nice if the answer to his teaching woes would just walk in through his office door. Just then, the gargoyle alerted him to a visitor. As the visitor came up the stairs, Dumbledore trained his wand at the door waiting for the visitor to enter.
The door opened and a man with ordinary features entered the office. He asked the stranger sternly, "What do you want?"
The stranger merely smirked at him, "Hello Mr. Dumbledore. I am Aparichit and Lord Harsh has told me that you were looking for a defense professor. I thought I would toss my hat in the ring with others."
Dumbledore said nothing but looked at the other man scrutinising him. He tried to probe the man's mind but he met solid walls which had no breach whatsoever at first sight. Albus knew that he could win in mental war against the other man but that would require open confrontation and he wanted to avoid that. He sensed a weakness in the man's defences and immediately moved through the breach. He was amazed with what he saw. Beyond the walls was a forest full of trees and mountains with a lot of magical creatures wandering through the mindscape. Some of the creatures he recognized from sightings during his trip to the Himalayas decades ago. As he stepped inside, a giant snake lunged at him forcing him to break the connection and the next second, he was in his office again.
The stranger said nothing but was smiling at him, "is that sufficient or you want me to duel you to prove that I can teach this subject?"
"You are hired", said Dumbledore, his eyes twinkling, as he thought to himself, "That's one problem solved."
Himalayas
Harry fell to the ground as the portkey stopped pulling him. He noticed that this portkey did not give the usual nauseating feeling or revolved too much but was a much smoother ride.
As he was once again tumbled to the ground, Harsh laughed at him, "Still could not get the hang of it, Harry? Portkeys were developed as means of reinforcements arriving in middle of battle and if warriors handled portkey like you do, they would have been cut down before they took out their wand."
Harry retorted, "May be you can teach me to handle portkeys better then, Guruji. Or is it too pedestrian for mystics?"
Harsh mock glared at him, "Careful Harry or you will rue your outbursts. Now we are going to get a tail hair from a Thestral."
Harsh led him to a part of the woods which were dense and there was no living creature near by that Harry could sense. Harsh looked around for sometime before he wandlessly summoned a small animal out of a nearby bush and whipping out his wand, cast a severing charm then turned its carcass inside out.
"What did you do that for?", Harry asked flabbergasted.
Harsh looked at him like he had grown two heads, "Thestrals are attracted by the smell of blood and you can pluck a hair off its tail while it is feasting on the carcass of the dead animal or would you rather that it takes you for a ride while you are trying for a hair."
Harry said nothing but his jaws shut with an audible click and he started looking around. Soon he saw a winged animal approaching them. It descended before them and Harry surveyed it closely. It had a skeletal face and there was no flesh on its body but the skin was clinging to its bones. The same was true for the rest of its body where he could see the bones beneath its translucent skin with little fat in them and it had a long tail with a pointed end.
The beast approached Harry and nuzzled him with its head and cautiously Harry extended his hand to pet its head. The beast gave such a queer expression as if it was enjoying the petting. With Harsh's nudging, he fed the carcass to the Thestral and while it was doing so, Harry plucked a hair off its tail.
As they were returning, Harsh detailed other qualities of Thestrals to him like how they could fly over a large distance in little time, could turn invisible, were protective of members of its herd and very formidable to their enemies.
Bantering back and forth they approached Adrishpuram and reached the wand maker who snatched the things away from Harry, frowning at him, "Took you long enough, boy. If I knew what a slacker you are, I would rather have used the materials from my stores."
Harry's temper was about to erupt but he controlled his emotions and spoke with gritted teeth, "If you already had the materials, why was I sent all over India to collect them? Did you get your kicks by sending me off on a pointless and dangerous task?""
The wand maker gave him a toothy grin for a while before answering, "Of course boy! We had to test you and see if you deserve this wand. There are some more common materials which could be used for your wand but this is the best combination and I was not going to give such a weapon to just a boy I knew nothing about. How would I know if there is anything special about you than other mystics? These all wizards here are powerful and that is why they are mystics."
Harry listened to the chastisement of the wand maker but said nothing. The man had not said or done anything to merit any anger from Harry and in some convoluted way, his words made sense to him. One nagging doubt which was at the back of his mind was that he wondered if the mystics wanted him killed.
Before he could voice his question, the wand maker started again, "Do not think you were in real danger anytime except when you fought the Naga but that bloke is too hostile. The Thestrals are quite harmless to anyone who does not want to harm them in anyway. The bird is my familiar and the Yeti has been our friend for centuries. He was rather curious to see if you would run away crying but you stood your ground."
As the wand maker took the materials from him, he took a piece of wood which he sawed in the middle with a blade which was crafted like a miniature bow. He put the feather in between the two pieces of wood and tied the two pieces together with the Yeti hair and the Thestral hair in a double helical structure. All this while he was chanting something under his breath and the wood kept glowing. As he was finished, the wood glowed fiery red before returning to its normal color. Then he fashioned a sort of cover from another piece of the wood which was hollow inside. He fit the pieces he had sawn and then tied back with the hairs in the hollow piece of wood thus giving it the shape of a wand. He sealed the cover with some lacquer at the base. Then he proceeded to attach a handle to the wand so forged whilst chanting some long incantation which fused the handle with the rest of the wand. When he was done, he dropped the whole assembly into a bowl of water that he kept nearby.
Harry had thought that the wand would be handed over to him as soon as it was complete. he turned to the wand maker with a questioning look on his face.
The wand maker growled at him, "The wand is not ready yet. It will imbibe the properties of the magic in this water for the night before it is ready for use. See me at the first light of dawn tomorrow."
As they were returning, Harry asked Harsh, "Guruji, what is special about the water? I have seen you all drinking nothing but water and it has some energizing properties but that's all I know about it."
Harsh smiled at him, "It is magical water, Harry. The water is from River Ganga which flows through North India before meeting the sea in Bay of Bengal. It has magical properties and that is why no insects can breed into its waters. A bowl of Ganga jal (water) can be kept for years without it getting bad. The Muggles know of the properties of water but since they are unaware of magic now, they cannot point out the reasons."
As they reached the castle, Harsh led him into a study where he was given a seat and Harsh took the other one.
He looked at Harry for a few minutes as if reading his mind before he asked, "what have you understood yet of being a mystic, Harry?"
Harry thought of everything he had learned and gathered his thoughts for a few moments before he finally spoke, "A mystic is not just an ordinary wizard or witch but they are rather proficient at using magic and have access to arcane magic and rituals which have been forgotten by the modern world centuries ago. They are children of mother magic and are committed to serve her to the best of their abilities."
Harsh beamed at him, "That is very astute Harry but what you omitted or failed to observe is that we are warriors Harry. We fight the battles no one else does. We serve when no one else can. We are the weapon against evil and we are the shield when the times are dark."
Harry sat listening with rapt attention for moments before he spoke again, "what will you teach me?"
Harsh smirked, "I was wondering when you will ask me the question. I will teach you be in tandem with your magical core, how to increase your magical reserves, to read someone's mind and to fly."
Harry was elated at the last word but had many other questions running through his mind, "What about duelling? What about my family magic? What about other skills which are needed to win a war?"
Harsh was amused at his rant, "Harry, you will be taught everything that is there to know but you have to have a little patience. There is so much to learn that I have appointed teachers for you. They will teach you things that you will need to learn. I promise you that by the time we are done with you, nobody in Hogwarts would be able to connect you with the boy who walked in those corridors these last 4 years."
He produced a book for him, "I want you to read through this book tonight, Harry. This is a small handbook which is issued to all our recruits to help understand our ways. Tomorrow just before the break of dawn, Vari will be waking you up to begin your training. I have given permission to my five warriors to discipline you if they feel you are lacking in your performance and trust me, you will not like our discipline."
After a long, difficult day, Harry returned to his chamber. He opened his trunk to retrieve his pajamas. As he was rooting through his belongings, he found the package that Remus had given to him at the Port of London. After looking at it puzzled for a minute, he remembered that it was the communication mirror. He eagerly tore through the wrappings and fished out what looked like an ordinary mirror. As he inspected the mirror, it began to buzz and Sirius's voice was heard from it calling him, "Prongslet"
Harry grinned and tapped the mirror while uttering, "I solemnly swear I am up to no good", and Sirius's grinning face appeared in the mirror.