The Hero They Needed: Chapter 5 (Patreon)

Chapter 5

“Harry! Nymphadora! Time to go!” Andi shouted.

“Coming!” Dora yelled back.

Across the hall from her room, the door opened, and Harry walked out, pulling his trunk behind him. Stopping next to the couch, he sat down with a sigh.

“I still don’t get why we have to take the train,” he said. “Why can’t we just Apparate or Floo?”

“It’s part of the experience,” Remus replied, smiling softly. “Your father, Sirius, and I became friends before we even set foot in Hogwarts.”

“I’d rather get a few more hours of sleep,” Harry grumbled before yawning widely.

“Nymphadora!” Andi shouted.

“Alright, alright,” Dora said, pulling her door open. “I’m ready.”

“Finally,” Andi sighed irritatedly. “Let’s get going. You know how fast the train fills up.”

Levering himself off of the couch, Harry followed Dora to the Floo.

“Union Station,” she called.

Throwing down the powder, Dora vanished in a swirling blaze of emerald flames. Andi went after her, and then it was Harry’s turn.

“I hate the Floo,” he grumbled.

Chuckling, Remus patted his shoulder and gave him a nudge forward. Taking a handful of Floo Powder, Harry stepped into the fireplace and called out his destination. Even though he tucked in his arms and legs, he still managed to bang his elbow on something. As the pain reverberated down his funny bone, he cursed loudly.

Harry had no way of knowing it, but Ben Coughlin of Arizona, who was preparing to leave for work, looked at his Floo oddly when he heard a loud cry of, “Mother fucker!”

After an uncomfortably long journey, Harry stumbled out of the Floo at Union Station in Washington, D.C., and fell face first onto the floor. His trunk skidded a few feet further, only coming to a stop when it hit a pair of black, polished dress shoes. Harry slowly raised his head, staring blearily at the tall, black man with a bald head, sunglasses, and dressed in a black suit and tie. Suddenly, he sneezed, soot falling from his hair.

“Morning, Frank,” Harry said as Remus stepped out of the Floo and helped him to his feet.

“Morning, Harry, Remus,” the tall black man replied, his stern expression unmoved as he nodded.

Looking around for Dora and Andi, Harry spotted them a couple of feet away. Andi tried to hide her smile behind her hand, but Dora had no issue grinning widely at him. Waving her wand, she conjured a white, square card that read,

9.0

“I took off a point for missing Frank,” Dora said, shrugging as she continued to grin.

Harry rolled his eyes and gathered his trunk.

“Is Sirius around?” Remus asked, looking around.

Frank jerked his chin over Remus’ shoulder. Turning around, they found Sirius shamelessly flirting with a young witch selling refreshments.

“Oh, for Merlin’s sake,” Andi huffed.

Marching over to Sirius, she apologized to the young woman before grabbing him by the ear and dragging him over.

“Ow! Andi!” Sirius yelped. “Bloody hell.”

Harry snorted as people stopped to stare at the M.F.B.I. agent being dragged around by his ear on the magical side of the train station. Shaking his head, he glanced at Frank, who ignored the commotion and gazed around the platform. It still amazed him that Sirius and Frank had stayed partners for over a decade. They were complete opposites in every way. Where Sirius was, well, Sirius, Frank was a consummate professional.

He also had an eidetic memory, which came in handy not only for cases but also when it came time to tell them of Sirius’ latest antics. Frank wasn’t much of a people person. He tended to find social gatherings awkward and didn’t seem to understand humor at all. Despite that, everyone in the family liked him. He was a good guy and a fantastic agent.

“Your Godson’s about to leave for his first year of Ilvermorny, and you’re over there hitting on a girl young enough to be your daughter?” Andi hissed, finally letting go of Sirius’ ear.

“She’s not that young,” he grumbled, rubbing his reddened ear. “Besides, I knew you were here. It’s hard to miss when Harry comes flying out of the Floo.”

“Aw, thanks, Sirius,” Harry grinned.

Before his Godfather could react, Harry hugged him, covering his crisp, black suit in grey soot.

“Oh, come on!” Sirius complained while Dora and Remus laughed. “You little brat.”

Hugging Harry back briefly, he pushed him away and whipped out his wand to clean himself off before doing the same for Harry. Just as he was finishing, a stream of students and parents started coming out of the Floo.

“You’ll want to get on the train before it gets crowded,” Sirius said. “Have fun at school, and don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”

“You just want to go back to hitting on that witch,” Harry smirked.

“You want me to ask if she has a younger sister?” Sirius asked with a grin.

“I don’t mind if she’s older like you do there, DiCaprio,” Harry teased.

“Oi!” Sirius yelled as Dora and Remus burst out laughing.

“Alright, off you go, you two,” Andi said, shaking her head. “We’ll see you at Christmas, and don’t forget to write.”

Hugging their family, they waved to Frank and boarded the train. Sirius had described the Hogwarts Express in detail over the years, and Harry was glad the Ilvermorny Express was different. Most of the cars were open, feeling more like a lounge than a train car. Only the back couple of cars had private compartments, which were usually taken by upper-year students.

As the car began to fill up, Harry noticed there weren’t any other first years joining them, and a few of the other students were looking at him oddly.

“Hey, kid!” called a seventh year with long, dark hair, a handsome face, and a golden badge pinned on his robes that read, ‘Head Boy.’ “First years are supposed to sit in the last open car.”

“He’s with me, Corbin,” Dora told him.

“Sorry, Tonks,” Corbin shrugged. “It’s school policy.”

Before Harry could tell him where he could put that particular policy, Dora stopped him by placing her hand on his arm.

“Fine, I’ll go sit with them, then,” she said, standing up and looking at her friends. “You coming?”

Dora’s two closest friends, Amanda Weeks, a pretty redhead with the most amount of freckles Harry had ever seen on one person, and Jennifer Vasquez, a thin, athletic girl with bronze-colored skin, looked at each other.

“We can stay for a bit,” Jennifer offered.

Amanda sighed, “Fine.”

Dora grinned as her friends got to their feet. Nodding, the Head Boy turned away and walked off.

“This is stupid,” Harry said, following Dora down the train. “I’m going to spend the next seven years in classes with these kids. Why do I have to spend an eight-hour train ride with them?”

“It’s so you can get to know them before you get sorted,” Amanda told him.

“Harry’s not much of a people person,” Dora smirked over her shoulder.

“I’m fine with people,” Harry corrected. “It’s idiots and assholes I have a problem with.”

The girls laughed as they made their way through the cars and made it to the back of the train. Taking seats amongst the other first years, Harry listened quietly as Dora talked to her friends about their Summers and complained about Jacob and Irene, the blonde he’d left her for at his part.

“Yeah, well, everyone knows why she wants to be Head Girl,” Amanda said scornfully.

“Excuse me?” asked a shy-looking first year with long dark hair, glasses, and a book held to her chest asked.

“Er, yes,” Amanda said, blushing lightly.

“Are you older students?” the girl asked.

“Yeah, do you need something?” Dora asked.

“I was just wondering if you could tell me about Ilvermorny,” the girl asked softly. “I’m a Muggleborn, and I have no idea what to expect.”

“Don’t worry,” Jennifer told her with a kind smile. “I’m a Muggleborn, too. What’s your name?”

“Michelle Breckenridge,” the girl said.

“Well, if you have any questions, I’m sure we could answer them,” Dora said, reaching across Harry and patting the space next to him. “Grab a seat.”

“I’m not even sure what questions to ask,” Michelle said.

As she went to take a seat, Harry shifted over, letting her sit between him and Dora. While they started talking about Ilvermorny, the car filled up, and other first years leaned over to listen in. By the time the train started moving, Dora and her friends found themselves answering questions from almost everyone. A few had older siblings who had told them about the school, but most were going in blind.

Only a few minutes into the eight-hour journey, Dora suddenly stiffened and glared. Looking up, Harry frowned as he watched Jacob and Irene enter their compartment. Looking at Dora, Irene smirked and gave her a patronizing little wave with her manicured fingers. Jacob stared dead ahead, pretending Dora didn’t exist as he allowed Irene to lead him further down the train into the car with private compartments. With a scowl, Dora folded her arms over her chest and flopped back in her seat angrily. The first years looked at her oddly, not knowing why she was angry.

After a moment, Harry stood up suddenly.

“I need to use the bathroom,” he announced.

Dora waved to let him know she’d heard, and Jennifer and Amanda tried to cheer her up. Walking to the back of the car, Harry stepped outside and then into the next, just in time to see Jacob and Irene open the next compartment. Rushing past the private compartments, he ducked into a small space between the last compartment and the bathroom.

“The driver wants everyone out of this car!” Irene yelled, going from one compartment to the next.

“Why?” someone asked.

“I don’t know, that’s just what I was told,” Irene said irritatedly.

For the first time, Harry noticed the silver Prefects badge on her robes. Grumbling, the other students filed out of the car, a few fixing their clothes and hair as they did. Harry stayed out of the way while they passed him and sighed impatiently like he was waiting for someone to come out of the bathroom. When the last person filed out, he glanced around the corner to see Irene pulling Jacob into the car with a smirk and closing the door. A moment later, she pulled the shade down over the window in the door.

Harry waited for everyone to find a compartment to join or move to another car before he stepped out into the hall. Opening the door between cars, he slipped outside and closed it behind him. He walked up to the door and pressed his ear to it, but the sound of rushing wind around him drowned out any sounds the couple might have made. Trying the handle, he found the door locked and cursed.

Looking around as he thought, Harry noticed a lever connected to the coupler and smirked. Checking behind him to make sure no one was watching, he laid down on his stomach and gripped the lever. After a few tugs that did nothing, he wrenched with all his might, and it came free. The coupler opened up, and the car carrying Jacob and Irene started to fall away. Grinning to himself, Harry watched at the hose between the two cars pulled taught and then separated in the middle with a hiss.

Wiping his hands off on his jeans, he slipped back into the car and closed the shade. Without a backward glance, he made his way back to the first-year car.

Hours later, they pulled into the magical side of Salem Station. Essentially, there were two sides to Salem. One side was where the no-maj’s lived, and the magicals visited on occasion, but there was a whole other town that was magically concealed from anyone without magic. There was a single cobblestone road that led from the magical side of the station, through the small, magical town of Salem, and up to the winding road up to the top of Mount Greylock. In the distance, they could see a ring of clouds obscuring the top of the mountain, where they knew Ilvermorny to be.

Harry and Dora stepped off the train and made for the carriages as the conductor stepped out of the engine car. The driver was a Pukwudgie. They were related to Goblins but with grey skin, longer, floppy ears, and were slightly taller. Despite their grumpy demeanor and professed dislike of humans, many Pukwudgies had worked at Ilvermorny for centuries.

As they were waiting for a carriage, they heard the conductor start shouting loudly in a language that neither of them had ever heard before. It was loud, rattling and guttural.

“I wonder what that’s about,” Dora said.

“No idea,” Harry replied.

“Why are you smiling?” Dora asked.

Harry ignored her and climbed into the carriage.

“Harry!” Dora yelled, climbing in after him. “I know you did something. I swear, if you get kicked out before we even get there, I’ll help Mum murder you.”

“When you said he was even worse than you, I thought you were joking,” Amanda chuckled.

“You have no idea,” Dora sighed, shaking her head. “Just tell me what you did so I know what to deny later.”

“Well, on my way to use the bathroom, I say Irene kicking everyone out of the last car for a bit of privacy,” Harry smirked. “I just decided to help them out a bit.”

The girls looked at him curiously before Amanda glanced at the train and gasped.

“You didn’t!” she said incredulously.

“Do what?” Dora asked.

“Look at the train,” Amanda said. “Doesn’t it look different to you?”

“I guess,” Dora shrugged. “I mean, it does look a bit shor-ter.”

Her speech stuttered as she realized what he’d done and turned to gap at him.

“Harry?” she asked slowly. “Where are Jacob and Irene?”

Harry shrugged, “Depends on how fast the train moves. I’d guess somewhere between Philly and New York.”

Jennifer and Amanda burst out laughing while Dora shook her head.

“You’re such an idiot,” she said right before hugging him. “I’m over him. You don’t need to do that for me.”

“It wasn’t about him,” Harry said. “Irene shouldn’t have tried to rub it in your face.”

“Aw, that’s so sweet,” Jennifer smiled.

Shaking her head, Dora hooked her arm through his and rested her head on his shoulder as they rode through the village and up Mount Greylock. The entire ride, the girls and Harry speculated on how Jacob and Irene were going to get to Ilvermorny.

After more than twenty minutes, they passed through the ring of clouds to reveal a large, sprawling complex. Ilvermorny wasn’t as tall as Hogwarts or Beauxbatons, with the highest point being the four-story tall clock tower located in the center. Instead, two and three-story buildings covered the entire top of the mountain, hidden amongst a ring of clouds and evergreen trees. Stepping out of the carriage, Harry looked over everything with a grin.

He was finally going to learn magic.

“First years to me!” A tall, middle-aged witch with brown, greying hair called as she rang a bell. “First years!”

“That’s Professor Harper. Go on, we’ll see you inside,” Tonks said, giving him a hug.

Hugging her back, Harry split from the girls and walked over to the woman. She looked at him and gave him a brief smile and a nod as he joined the other first years waiting next to her.

“What house do you think you’ll be in?” one boy asked.

As the others began to speculate, Harry ignored them and looked up when he heard a distant rumble of thunder. A smile stretched across his face when he saw Levina appear from the clouds and fly around the mountain.

“I take it she’s yours, Mr. Potter?”

Harry turned to find an elderly witch standing behind him with a kind smile. She leaned on her staff, white hair tied back in a bun, her kind green eyes sparkling brightly.

“Yes, ma’am,” Harry replied.

“Wonderful!” the woman smiled. “It’s been many decades since we’ve had a Thunderbird on the grounds. I’ll ask Professor Grove to build her a perch. Is there anything in particular she would like?”

“Something tall,” Harry told her. “Levina likes to be able to see what’s happening around her.”

“Then tall it shall be,” The woman smiled before turning to the crowd of first years. “Now, if everyone is here, we can start! For those of you who don’t know, my name is Esmerelda Turner. I’m the Headmistress of Ilvermorny. First of all, I’d like to welcome all of you to our school. We look forward to getting to know each and every one of you. If you’ll follow me, we’ll get you sorted.”

The other first years cheered as they followed the old woman to the front entrance of the school. Stepping inside, Harry found himself in a large circular room. The floor was made of stone, and in the center sat an intricate, colored carving of the Gorgdian Knot. Along the far wall were four wooden carvings. From left to right, they were a Horned Serpent, a panther-like cat called a Wumpus, a Pukwudgie, and finally, a Thunderbird. They were separated in the middle by a large set of double doors that Harry knew led to the Great Hall.

Above Harry, there was a wooden balcony that circled the room. Older students leaned on the railing, watching the sorting. Catching his eyes, Dora waved and smiled, mouthing the words ‘Good luck.’ Above that was a glass ceiling showing the star beginning to twinkle as the sun fell below the horizon.

With the sound of flapping wings, Levina appeared and perched lightly on the glass ceiling. The students all gasped at the sight of the great bird as she watched Harry curiously. Smiling, Harry waited as the students were called alphabetically.

“Harry Potter,” Professor Harper called.

Stepping forward, Harry felt none of the nervousness that his classmates had shown. He knew exactly where he wanted to go, and that’s exactly where he was going to go.

Stopping on the Gordian Knot, he waited for the carved statues to react. Unsurprisingly, the Thunderbird flapped its wings and cried happily, a call that Levina echoed above him. Smiling, Harry was just about to step away when the Horned Serpent hissed, then the Wumpus roared, and finally, the Pukwudgie lifted its bow and let out a war cry. The students around and above him started whispering furiously while Harry turned and looked at Professor Harper with a raised brow.

“Quiet,” she called, raising a hand for silence. “While it is unusual for more than one statue to choose a single student, it does happen. About once a generation, we find a student that resonates with all four. In cases like this, we allow the student to choose which house they want to join.”

Everyone turned to look expectantly at Harry. Glancing up at Dora, he winked before turning to look at Levina.

“Thunderbird,” he announced.

Dora cheered and pumped her fist while Levina spread her wings and cried out in victory, lightning flashing in the clouds above her, followed by the rumble of thunder.

“Thunderbird it is,” Professor Harper smiled. “You may go through to the Great Hall.”

Nodding, Harry stepped off the Gordian Knot and walked through the double doors ahead of him. The Great Hall was dominated by four long tables where some students were already sitting. Above the tables sat house banners in the same order as the statues in the sorting room.

“Young man,” someone called from his right.

Looking over, Harry noticed an old man standing between two tables loaded with wand boxes. Excitedly, he strode over, causing the man to chuckle.

“Eager, are we?” he asked. “I’m Miguel Quintana, wandmaker. You’re Harry Potter, correct? Now, let’s see which wand-”

“That one,” Harry interrupted, pointing to a black box, newer than most, sitting in the fourth stack on the left table.

“You can feel it?” Miguel asked eagerly.

Harry nodded, his fingers practically tingling with static electricity as he looked at it.

“Marvelous! I made that wand myself a few years ago,” Miguel said, moving boxes around carefully. “A beautiful Thunderbird landed right in front of my shop with two young ones with her. Scared the life out of me at first. I’ve never had anything like that happen before. Normally, procuring wand materials is either dangerous or costly. Instead, this one comes to me.”

Chuckling, the man shook his head and held the box as if it contained a great treasure. Carefully, he removed the lid to reveal a dark wand, the wood resembling a strand of cable with smaller branches fused and twisted together.

“First, she drops a branch of Snakewood, then plucks one of her own feathers and drops them in front of me before taking off,” Miguel said, shaking his head in wonder. “I discovered later that this wood came from the Snakewood tree here at Ilvermorny. Legend has it that the tree itself grew from the place they buried Slytherin’s wand.”

“Slytherin?” Harry asked, finally taking his eyes off the wand.

“So the legend goes,” Miguel said, waving his hand dismissively. “I never put much stock in those tales myself. Still, it could be true. Salazar Slytherin was a complex man, capable of great good, and great evil. Legend says that when Isolt Gaunt – Ilvermorny’s founder, along with her husband –  took the wand from England, she left behind the worst of Slytherin and brought only the good in him. The Snakewood tree that grows from his wand has great medicinal properties. More than a tree of that type should.”

“But enough of that,” Miguel said, waving his hand as if to shoo away the thought. “This wand has never worked for me, personally, but I can feel the power it contains. Go on, give it a try.”

Licking his lips, Harry reached out and took the wand. The moment he held it in his hand, a bolt of lightning hit the Clock Tower outside the window. He could feel with wand in his hand pulsing with power as students screamed and thunder rumbled. Giving it a wave, bright gold sparks leapt from the tip, warm and tingling as they landed on his skin.

“A perfect match,” Miguel smiled.

Smiling, his eyes still on the wand in his hand, Harry reached into his pocket and pulled out all the Galleons he had before slapping them on the table.

“Mr. Potter, that’s really not necessary,” Miguel protested.

Harry ignored him and walked away, grinning as he joined Dora at the Thunderbird table.

“Leave it to you to unintentionally destroy the Clock Tower just by getting your wand,” Dora smirked.

Harry looked up and out the window. Thankfully, the Clock Tower was still standing, though a little blackened on one side. Shrugging, he turned back and held out his wand so Dora could get a good look.

“Levina’s mom’s feather is in the core,” he told her. “The wood, apparently, is from the Snakewood tree on the grounds.”

“That’s a bit odd,” Amanda said, leaning forward for a closer look. “Snakes and birds don’t usually get along.”

“I can’t wait to finally learn magic,” Michelle said, sighing happily as she looked at her own wand. “I’ve been fascinated by Charms since I heard about it. What about you, Harry? What do you want to learn?”

“Everything.”