:-[Chapter 46]-:
Theodore 'Ted' Tonks was working like a maniac for what seemed to be yet another consecutive night of work. His wife was starting to ask questions about the fact that he wasn't home for the umpteenth time. Ted could not, however, tell her the truth as he was bound by his oath as a lawyer to the House of Potter.
The lawyer looked at the numerous documents scattered on his desk and sighed in slight desperation. He was working day and night to find a way for his most important client to visit his godfather, Sirius Black in Azkaban. Said godfather being in the most secure block of the wizarding prison, it was almost impossible to get approval from the Ministry.
Almost being the appropriate word for any other lawyer than himself.
Ted had worked hard to manage this without having the entire Wizengamot on his arse. It took him a couple of months to accomplish it but he had done it. All he needed, was the signature of Azkaban's director, Martin Hardway and it was done. The muggleborn wizard hoped that his client would be satisfied once again by his work.
:-[T.A.B]-:
Harry Potter woke up feeling better than normal, a rare mood indeed. No more of Ron's atrocious snoring and no more sharing his bedroom with other people. He was now alone, exactly how he wanted. The young wizard had decided to continue his meditation training for his Occlumency. Emptying his thoughts every morning and every night was no easy task but it was becoming easier by the day, especially with the new room. After all he need to protect his thoughts.
Quickly getting dressed and getting ready for the day, Harry walked out of his room and went down to the Ravenclaw's Common Room. The majority of his housemates were already up.
"I see they are a bunch of early birds in our new house, Hedwig." Harry said to his familiar who had arrived during the night.
"You are going to have to step up your game, Master, if you want to be the best student of your year. I see many of your classmates already up and running around." the familiar said, perched on his shoulder.
"You're right, girl." the young wizard confirmed. "I can't be slacking off right now, even less so in this House. Anyway, let us go talk to Professor Flitwick about our bond. This will give us the right to stay together at all times."
"Let's do it, Master Harry." Hedwig said, biting his ear softly before receiving some petting in return.
Harry was about to cross the threshold in front of the eagle statue but was almost tackled to the ground by a blonde blur, making the crowd of blue and bronze snicker in their direction.
"Good morning, Harry!" Luna said. "Did you sleep well? Your owl is so pretty! What's her name? Can I pet her? Please say yes!" she said in a rapid pace.
"Hi, Luna. Yes, I did sleep well, thank you." Harry answered after returning her hug. "This is Hedwig, my familiar and of course you can pet her, make sure you ask her though, Hedwig is kind of a diva, if you ask me." he said before receiving a small swat on his head from Hedwig's wing.
"You have a familiar, Potter?" a voice said coming from behind Harry.
The raven-haired boy turned around and saw Terry Boot, flanked by Michael Corner and Anthony Goldstein, the three of them looking at him.
"Why, yes, I do." Harry answered, clasping his hands behind his back.
"And you chose an owl?" Terry snickered.
Harry squinted his eyes dangerously at his classmate but refrained from saying anything. He didn't want to alienate potential followers right off the bat, after all.
"Yes, I chose Hedwig." the young wizard said, flatly. "Trust me, she's the best."
Harry didn't wait for an answer and left the common room with Hedwig and Luna who hadn't left his arm. The young girl was still smiling, as if she didn't have a care in the world.
"I just need to see Professor Flitwick first, before we go to the Great Hall, do you mind?" Harry asked his new friend.
"No problem, Harry!" Luna chirped happily.
They descended the many stairs of the Ravenclaw's tower and went in the direction of Flitwick's office. Harry had been told by a prefect that his office was always open for his students from his House. When they arrived at his office, the two students saw that the door was already open, and voices were coming out of the room.
"Well, Miss Granger, I can say with certainty that you are in the right House for you. I am convinced that you'll have a great future with us." a small squeaky voice said.
"Thank you Professor Flitwick. I just wanted to be sure about my new schedule. After all, the stakes are even higher in Ravenclaw." Hermione's voice said, relief clear in her tone.
"Trust in yourself, Miss Granger. I am sure you'll do well."
Harry heard footsteps coming out of the office and saw Hermione stepping out. She was dressed in her Ravenclaw uniform making Harry stop momentarily. It was one thing to know about their Resorting but to actually see it took him aback a little.
"Hi Harry! Hello Luna. Sorry for not waiting for you in the common room. I was too excited to speak with Professor Flitwick."
"Not a problem, Hermione. See you downstairs in the Great Hall for breakfast?" the young wizard asked.
His classmate nodded and bid them goodbye for now before taking her leave. Harry knocked on the already open door and saw Flitwick raise his head.
"Ah, Mister Potter and Miss Lovegood. Lovely to see you up this early in the morning. What can I do for you?" the diminutive professor squeaked.
"Nothing for me, Professor Flitwick. I have a friend!" Luna said, happiness radiating from her, making the two males smile at her.
"I am sure glad you have found a friend so quickly, Miss Lovegood. Hogwarts is truly a place of wonder, isn't it?" Flitwick said, smiling at her, making her nod rapidly. "Well, if that's the case, what can I do for you, Mister Potter?"
"I need to register my owl, Hedwig, as an official familiar to the House of Potter." Harry said officially.
"An owl? Really now." Filius said, surprised.
"Yes, Hedwig is extremely loyal to me and very, very smart. I couldn't imagine my life here at Hogwarts without her, to be honest." the young wizard said, while scratching his owl's white feathers.
"Do you mind if I cast a spell to verify your claim?" the small professor asked his student who shrugged his shoulders, trusting the man. Flitwick cast a spell on both Harry and Hedwig, making multiple sparkles of white lights appeared between them.
"You are indeed linked together by a familiar bond, most impressive. May I ask when it happened, Mister Potter?" the small professor asked.
"During the summer. We've had somewhat of an... incredible adventure that deepened our bound." Harry answered, smiling at his owl.
"I see. Well Mister Potter, as I am sure you already know, familiars are authorized to accompany you everywhere you go, with the exception of the annual exams, of course." the professor said, making Harry and Hedwig nod in unison. "A familiar bond is very important for a wizard after all. Use it well."
"I will, Professor Flitwick. I have something else I wanted to ask you." the raven-haired wizard said. "I've recently taken a liking to dueling and I bought all of your series of books for beginners."
"I see." Flitwick smiled, seemingly already knowing where it was going.
"I was wondering if by any chance you would consider taking an apprentice?" Harry said, his voice rather hopeful.
"I'll be honest with you, Mister Potter. Considering your exams results of last year, I would not take you on as an apprentice." the Head of Ravenclaw House said, being brutally honest. "Very few students have managed to catch my attention. You may enter the dueling club if you are interested to try it out, however, I would have thought you would continue in Quidditch?"
"Thank you for you honesty, professor Flitwick." the young wizard said, not showing his disappointment but understanding the reasons of the duelist master. "I will not continue Quidditch as I want to focus on one club at the time."
"I see. Well, I think you shall be glad about this next bit of information. Go to the Great Hall, after your little show yesterday, Headmaster Dumbledore had forgotten about his usual announcements."
"Thank you again for your time, professor. We shall go to the Great Hall now."
Harry, Luna and Hedwig left the office and went in the Great Hall's direction. Once they entered, the small group sat down where Hermione was sitting and waiting for them. The young witch of course already had a book in her hands and was turning the pages while eating with the other.
"Hi, Hermione. Ready for classes?" Luna asked, before taking a seat beside Harry who was in front of the brown-haired girl.
"Oh yes!" she answered excitedly. "I can't wait to start classes. Are you excited too, Luna?"
"Of course. Magic is wonderful and I cannot wait to discover it all!" the blonde answered, making her friends smile at her.
"I wonder how Neville is." Harry said suddenly. "I never would have thought that he'd follow me in asking for a Resorting as well."
"Yes, it was very Gryffondorish of all of you to ask to leave Gryffindor. Which is kind of ironic, isn't it?" Luna said, filling up her plate with bacon and eggs.
"Or it was a clever move." the young wizard said, following her lead with the food.
They talked for a bit before they saw Neville Longbottom enter the Great Hall, flanked by Susan Bones and Hannah Abbot, his new Housemates. He seemed quite happy and was talking animatedly to both girls. The Hufflepuff trio went to their table and started making themselves plates.
Harry was happy for his friend, seemingly having already been accepted by his new Housemates in less than a night. It helped of course that the raven-haired boy was the one whom introduced them both during the summer, allowing them to become friends by spending more time together.
After around half an hour, the Headmaster came to the podium and started speaking in his grandfatherly voice. "Good morning to all new students and old. I hope that you all had a good night of sleep, since your respective classes are beginning very soon. I have multiple announcements to make so please, be attentive. First of all, please welcome Professor Remus Lupin, who shall be teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts this year."
Harry looked at the new professor. The man was looking as if he had taken a few drinks already and was looking pale, almost ill. The big bags under his eyes didn't give Harry much hope for this class. He was also wearing old tattered clothes, not that Harry was judging him for that but he clearly did not look the part.
"Yes, yes, good luck professor." the old man continued, as the polite applause faded. "It is my great honour to tell you all, that this year, Hogwarts shall host a brand new tournament between our school and Beauxbatons Academy of Magic of France. The tournament will be Dueling and will work as such. A small inner-house tournament will first be completed to determine an overall winner for each year with the best student in his or her year who would then go on to be a part of the Hogwarts' team. Master Filius Flitwick, our own resident Dueling Champion, will be coaching and assisting said final team. Once it is done, Beauxbatons will arrive with their own team of seven duelists. For more information, see your head of House once classes are done for the day." Albus finished, before taking his leave with more dignity than the previous night.
Excitement was buzzing in the Great Hall. Whispers were heard everywhere, and Harry was immediately interested.
"You are going to enter the tournament, aren't you Harry?" Luna asked but it sounded more like a statement than a question.
"Indeed I am, Luna." Harry answered, patting her head, making her smile toothily. "I will give my name to Professor Flitwick as soon as the day finished. We have transfiguration with the Hufflepuffs at the end of the day, so after that class."
"Are you sure it is a good idea, Potter? You suck at spellcasting." Terry Boot said, making his male friends snicker at Harry. "Any one of us could beat you in a duel."
"We shall see, Mister Boot. We shall see." the raven-haired boy said unbothered, finishing his plate before leaving the Great Hall with Hermione, Luna and Hedwig perched on his shoulder.
:-[T.A.B]-:
After his first day of classes, Harry quickly went to Professor Flitwick's office to give him his name for the tournament. The young wizard saw an already huge line leading to the professor's office. After a moment waiting, his turn came, and he entered the office with Luna and Hedwig perched on his shoulder as usual. Hermione had decided to not participate in the tournament, instead wanting to focus on her studies.
The head of Ravenclaw House smiled when he saw the trio enter.
"Well Mister Potter, following our conversation from yesterday, I imagine you wish to enter the Dueling Tournament?" the small being squeaked.
"Indeed professor, but before I put my name down, how will the tournament work?" Harry asked.
"On October 1st, Ravenclaw House will hold a small inner-house competition to see the best duelist in each year and on October 31th, all of the houses will compete against the best of what Hogwarts as to offer. The winners will be told what to expect there." Filius Flitwick explained.
"I see." Harry answered. "Thank you for the information. Could you put my name on the second-year list, Professor Flitwick?"
"Me too Professor!" Luna exclaimed suddenly. "I wanna try it in the first-year category!"
"Very well, Miss Lovegood, Mister Potter. I cannot wait to see what the both of you can do." Flitwick said, smiling at his two students.
:-[T.A.B]-:
Harry Potter was presently sitting in the Hogwarts' Library, in the company of Hermione, Luna, Neville, Susan and Hannah. Hedwig had decided to go flying for a while and was also hoping to catch herself some prey for diner. The group of students were taking the night to do their first day's homework and study some more. The young raven-haired boy could not wait to start training.
"So, Neville, how do you like Hufflepuff?" Hermione asked, looking at him after completing her Transfiguration homework.
"I love it!" the shy boy said, looking happy. "My new housemates have been so welcoming. Susan and Hannah also have helped a lot." he finished, blushing a slight shade of tomato red.
"Of course Neville! We're friends!" Susan said quickly.
Harry watched Neville smile at the girl, happy that he was slowly but surely coming out of his shell.
"Harry, I have found some books for you for the Dueling Tournament." Hermione said, taking books out of her bag. "I have found some defensive and offensive spells for you to try."
"Thank you, Hermione. Those will help." Harry answered, taking the books while also receiving a smile from his friend.
The Art of Defense and How to Defeat your Opponent. 'Look likes good choices.' thought Harry before opening the second one. The first spell he saw was the Expelliarmus spell.
"I think we should start with this one Harry." Luna chirped beside him.
"I think you're right, Luna. In Flitwick's book series, he also strongly recommends this spell for all beginners. I have already practiced this spell during the summer and I think I pretty much have it down. More practice is never a bad thing." the young wizard said.
"I can't believe you can do magic at your house, Harry. You know I am happy for you, but this is so unfair!" Hermione pouted. "I want to be able to do magic at home too. My parents want to see me do magic."
"I get it, Hermione." Harry said. "I think you are right, but it is too dangerous without the proper wards to keep the muggles at bay and trust me, those don't come cheap. Not all pureblood families have them. My family is very old, I can't say how old the wards on my house are, but I doubt they are new."
"My house doesn't have wards." Luna said, reading the The Art of Defense. "The House of Lovegood is not even close to the House of Potter in terms of ancestry. So, I can't do magic at my home during summer either."
"Oh." Hermione said, thinking about what Luna said.
"Do you really think I wouldn't invite you over, you and your parents one day, Hermione? I am sure they are wondering about your friend who own a house all by himself." Harry smirked.
"Prat! Thank you for the invite, however." the brown-haired witch said.
:-[T.A.B]-:
After the training session with Luna and the Hufflepuff trio, Harry went back to his room, in Ravenclaw's Tower. Thanks to Hermione's books, the young wizard discovered the Shield Charm Spell, a go-to spell for duelists. The theory about the casting was pretty basic and Harry made sure to read the relevant couple of chapters twice before trying to cast it. Of course, having no one to train with inside of his magical trunk was difficult, but at least he could train almost every night, thanks to his meditation technique that was getting better and better.
When Harry entered his trunk and arrived in the main lobby, he saw a new door that wasn't there before. Wasting no time in opening it, he saw a large room twenty feet by twenty feet with mannequins next to the walls. The young wizard saw two long carpets on the stone ground.
"Looks a lot like a proper dueling room." Harry said aloud to Hedwig.
"Indeed Master. It looks like the trunk is giving you an update."
"Pretty useful. I can easily practice here and meditate right after." he said.
"Don't forget your wandless magic, Master Harry. You never know if the spell can be useful or not. The more spells you can do all by yourself, the more powerful you can become." the familiar wisely said.
"When did you became so wise, girl?"
"I've always been wise. I'm an owl." Hedwig stated, puffing up her small chest.
:-[T.A.B]-:
:-[September 2nd, Wednesday, 1992]-:
Harry was in the Great Hall eating breakfast with his two female friends from his House. He was presently watching Luna give all of her attention to the snowy owl, who was relishing in her attention.
Suddenly, coming from the windows in the ceiling, many owls were descending being sent from the many parents and relatives of the students. Harry spotted a black owl coming down his way and landed in front of him, holding a small letter tied to its leg. The young wizard took it and wanted to give the owl a piece of his food but the animal left before he could have a chance.
Shrugging his shoulders, Harry opened the letter, seeing his lawyer's seal on it. The young boy started reading it with interest.
To Harry James Potter, Heir to the House of Potter,
I have great news, Mister Potter. I have managed to receive the signature of Azkaban's Warden. You may visit the inmate Sirius Black at your earliest convenience. I believe you'll be glad to know that Auror Amelia Bons has already accepted to be your escort.
I know you have asked me to try and be discreet about it, but the Warden refused to budge on this matter. He wanted more Aurors at the beginning but when I spoke of Auror Bones, he immediately agreed after hearing her good news. I'll let her tell you herself, like she asked of me.
Send me Hedwig whenever you want to visit Sirius Black. I assume Hogwarts will authorize your leave considering that this is a private House matter.
Respectfully,
Theodore Edward Tonks,
Tonks and Perkins, esquire at law.
Harry smiled wildly at this. It took a good part of the summer for Ted to manage this and the young wizard could not be happier about it. With the Hogwarts Charter on his side about this yet again, the young wizard wasn't too concern about obtaining a leave of absence. He put the letter in his pocket, planning to go see Professor Flitwick about it.
:-[T.A.B]-:
Thank you everyone for reading Chapter 46 of The adventure begins! Please let a review in the comment, letting me know what you think about my story or what you would like to see.
Criticism is always welcome as long as it is constructive.
Thank you to abarai72 for his amazing help in developing this story!
To Ptool, joharasbel, and Biohazard82: Thank you so much for reading!
To MrKlortho: May I ask how it was disappointing? Harry being a lord for many years in Westeros and then wanting to become fully independent made sense. What do you think? Thank you for reading!
To Mark1: Harry to see that you noticed my friend!