Digital Magic

Ron glared at the tall male who took a seat next to Harry, their strange creatures sitting beside them. It had been all everyone had spoken about. 

The strange boy that had fallen out of the sky, the dinosaur/dragon that had appeared and the way the sky had broken apart only to appear as if nothing had happened. 

“Ron,” Hermione said, keeping her voice low, “he’s entitled to his secrets, besides I’m sure he’ll tell us in the common room.” 

“Maybe,” he answered, taking a bite of the sausage he’d speared. 

Hermione watched him for a moment, before continuing to eat and read. She knew that Ron’s ugly jealousy had reared its head the minute Harry had taken off during Potions. She only hoped that she could reign it in, before he exploded. 

Further down the table, Neville watched the two curiously. He knew Harry was brave, but what he’d done was something more akin to stupid rather than brave. He’d almost fainted when Harry had thrown himself off his broom, catching the other male in midair. Neville was sure that Harry would’ve died and been nothing more than a stain on the grass but something had happened. 

They were bathed in a gold light and they landed safely on the ground. 

Some had called it magic, but Neville thought it was a miracle. 

He had figured early on- almost a year ago- that Harry had been hiding something. He knew that Harry snuck food, eating in the middle of the night to try to open his appetite up. Neville wasn’t dumb, he saw how badly Harry’s uniform hung off of his frame every September when he came back. It was awful, but he began to suspect it when he heard another voice in Harry’s bed. Especially when he knew that Harry was dead asleep. The voice had been trying to comfort him from a dream and about seven minutes later, Harry had woken up, thanked it and Neville heard no more. 

Now he knew that the voice he’d heard belonged to Elecmon. 

Watching Harry with Tai and their partners gave Neville peace. He seemed happier and more alive than he’d ever been. He hoped he stayed this way. 

—————————————————————

Albus watched as Harry and this Tai person-a muggle-interact. Harry seemed genuinely happy. Except this muggle wasn’t normal-he showed the promise of power. Especially with that creature beside him. 

Did all muggles have these creatures? 

Albus needed to know and if possible, neutralize the threat. He needed Harry for the current war-whatever passing fancy this was would remain just that. He could not allow his only weapon to be distracted. 

“Minerva, please let Mister Potter and his guests know that they are expected in my office after dinner,” 

Minerva arched an eyebrow but nodded. 

—————————————————————

Tom had forgotten how long the road up to Hogwarts was, but he’d do it over again for Harry. Hedwig had told him what she’d seen, especially when she had felt the pulse of Harry’s magic after summoning his broom. 

Hedwig kept pace with the man, knowing that he was moving as quickly as he could. 

It was rarely known, but Tom had the gift of natural speak; he could communicate with any creature. It certainly came in handy when knowing things he had no business knowing and it made it a well of information, if they were willing to pay the price. He didn’t know how Hedwig knew, but the owl was smarter than most. 

After a few more minutes of walking uphill, Tom finally made it to the gates, pushing them aside with a bit of non verbal magic and walked inside. 

Hogwarts would not throw him out; she knew he meant no harm and as such loaned him energy for the rest of the walk. Hedwig thrilled above him as they made their way up to the castle. 

—————————————————————

“So this is Hogwarts? Harry this is way more than you described in your letters!” 

Harry blushed, “Yea, it’s amazing! I’ll show you the common r-“

“Hey Potter! Tell me, are all the people you surround yourself with freaks just like you?!” Malfoy called out, his voice ringing clear in the near silence of the Great Hall. 

Before Harry could say anything, Elecmon stood on top of the table, electricity sparking across his body. 

“Watch your mouth, blondie! I’ll give you a real bad hair day if you say anything like that again!” 

“Elecmon, no! Remember what I said!” 

“Harry! Just once!” 

“No!”

Neither of them noticed when Tai and Agumon got up and made their way over towards the Slytherin table, standing in front of Draco and his small gang. 

“You wanna say that again?” Tai spoke slowly, arms crossed in front of his chest. 

Draco stood, meeting Tai’s gaze, “Go back to your seat, muggle, this is between me and that fr-“ 

It happened in the near blink of an eye, Tai reached and grabbed Malfoy by the collar hauling up and over the table, holding him in mid air. 

“Don’t you ever talk about Harry like that in my presence again! I’ve faced real monsters and I can assure you, I’ve won each and every time! Don’t think I’ll take it easy on you!” 

Tai dropped Malfoy, turning to head back to Harry and Elecmon.

“Filthy MUGGLE!” 

Draco whipped his wand out-how dare that muggle insult him?! It didn’t matter, he’d teach this idiot a lesson! 

—————————————————————

Harry felt as though time had slowed down, when Draco raised his wand, and Tai had his back turned. There was no time. Pushing himself off the table, Harry ran, his own wand coming to his hand. 

“BOMBA-“

“PROTEGO!” 

“THUNDER STRIKE!” 

“HARRY!” 

Agumon quickly threw himself at Tai, pushing him to the ground, using his body as cover. He felt the heat of the spells explode over them and then nothing. Tai quickly scrambled to his feet, heart pounding, as he saw a translucent barrier encasing them, Harry’s arm outstretched, holding the spell. Turning back, he saw Draco’s prone form slouched over the table, his wand still smoking from the force of the spell and his clothing and hair were fried from Elecmon’s attack. 

Tai locked eyes with Harry, who immediately dropped his wand and rushed to his friend, dropping to his knees, “Are you alright?!”

“Y-y-yea, no worries,” 

Agumon growled, flames licking the sides of his maw. Tai had almost been hurt. “Agumon, it’s okay, we’re alright-“

“You boys had better be! What in the name of Merlin’s beard is going on?!” 

Both males turned to see Tom standing there, Hedwig sitting proudly on his shoulder. Harry stood quickly, running towards Tom and throwing his arms around him. Elecmon climbed on top of Tom’s other shoulder, hugging the man. 

“Tai?” 

“I…think that’s Harry’s friend? The one we send the letters to,”

“Let’s go say hi!”

Getting to his feet, Tai and Agumon made their way to formally meet Tom. The man quickly pulled both Agumon and Tai into the hug, jostling Hedwig who clicked her beak a few times and took off through the open rafters above them. 

“It’s good to see you, Tom!”

“Glad to finally meet you!” 

Hurried footsteps came towards the group, Tom quickly put both boys behind him, his wand snapping to his hand, meeting Dumbledore face to face. 

“Albus,”

“Tom,”

Minerva sighed, cast a Sonorus charm and sent the students off to their common rooms for the evening. 

“Mister Kamiya, Mister Potter, please follow us to the headmaster’s office. There is much to discuss. Tom, you may as well come to, I sense you know more than usual on the matter,” 

“After you Minerva,” 

Tom gave her a short bow and a wink, as the Deputy Headmistress walked past him and his group, followed by Albus and the rest of the faculty. 

—————————————————————

Tai had disappeared from the digital world, from their group. Hikari stared at the spot where he’d vanished-he’d been there one moment and the next, Tai and Agumon had fractured like data and then they were gone. 

There had been no time to do anything at all. 

Sora and Matt had immediately called their partners to begin a search, the rest of the groups splitting off to conduct searches of their own. 

It had been for nothing. 

Izzy had tried Tai’s digivice and then his computer and his cell phone. 

Wherever he was, it was all blocked. 

“Kari?” Gatomon gripped her partner’s hand, as the young woman looked at her. 

“Let’s call Harry, I’ve got a feeling about it, okay?” 

Hikari nodded and allowed Gatomon to lead her back to the group. 

“Don’t worry Kari, we’ll find Tai!” Davis declared, fist pumped into the air. 

“Hey you guys! Izzy’s got a portal home! Sora and Matt are gonna keep searching and then head home!” Yolei called out, standing by the small old-fashioned television set. 

In mere moments, the groups of children and partner digimon disappeared back to the real world. 

Hikari wondered how she would tell her family that Tai was…gone?

—————————————————————

“He’s known for two years?!”

“What about the Statue of Secrecy?!”

“He must be-” 

Tom watched as the groups of adults bickered back and forth like the children they were supposedly trying to reprimand. Harry had curled himself up against Tai, the elder male shielding him. Agumon and Elecmon stood guard, ready to strike if needed. 

Before Tom could intervene, Tai stood suddenly, jostling Harry slightly. Without a word, Agumon took Tai’s place and the smaller group watched as Tai walked towards the adults. 

“ENOUGH!” Tai yelled, slamming his hands on the table, small baubles falling to the ground, “Harry came to the digital world because he’s a digidestined! He’s part of a team! We’ve all kept his secret and will continue to do so! Maybe…maybe it was my fault he went there, but I swore that as long as he was there, I’d protect him!” 

Minerva nodded, “Mister Kamiya, I trust you know about Mister Potter’s destiny within our world as well?” 

Tai nodded; Harry had told them all. The madman that wanted him dead. The reason he didn’t have parents. 

“You must understand that having you here makes us vulnerable. There has never been a muggle within Hogwarts, but as it stands, you can not leave until the semester is over. Albus?” 

Albus sighed heavily, he’d been hoping that Minerva wouldn’t force his hand. Tai Kamiya was a muggle, but the strangeness that surrounded him and by extension, Harry, made him an exception. 

“Mister Kamiya, due to the nature of your circumstances, Hogwarts has made an exception for you. You will be able to attend Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry as a squib student.”

“What’s a squib?” 

“It’s a term that’s given to someone who has magic parents but no magic of their own.” 

Tai looked at everyone in the room; he wished the rest of his team was here. Matt wouldn’t even bother with their bullshit. Sora would give everyone her famous mom glare. Izzy would argue logic and Ken would try to hold Davis back. 

“I need to contact my parents, sister and my team. Can the same offer be extended to them if they need to come?” 

Tom raised an eyebrow, “I can help you communicate with your team and family, down in Hogsmeade. That’s the village down the road from here.”

Severus sneered, “Do you intend to have a poor owl fly all the way to Japan?” 

“I was thinking that emailing might be a bit faster, Snape.” 

Tom rose from his seat, “Oh and Dumbledore? Harry isn’t going back to that muggle family anymore.” 

Harry’s eyes widened in shock as Tom pulled out a thick envelope from his breast pocket, “This here is temporary guardianship transferred over to me by his living godfather from now until the end of his Hogwarts education. Harry isn’t going back to the Dursleys.” 

Albus quickly tore into the envelope, blue eyes scanning the papers for any sign of forgery or otherwise but he found none. Albus leaned back into his chair, mouth dry as he scrambled for words. 

How did his carefully laid out plans get derailed so quickly? 

“I’ll file these in Mister Potter’s files. Thank you Tom,” Minerva snatched the papers away and took them into the other room. Following her, the faculty quickly exited the office. 

—————————————————————

Tai would be officially sorted in the morning, but there was no doubt of where he would end up. As such, Minerva had simply allowed the male use of the Gryffindor common room, a bed already appearing in Harry’s dormitory. 

Elecmon raced ahead of Tai and Harry who were walking rather slowly. The two friends were happy to be in each other’s presence, leaving their partners to run down the tunnel towards the common room. 

“Watch the step!” 

“What ate-uh!” 

Agumon landed sprawled out on all fours, Elecmon landing on top of him. Harry and Tai appeared a moment later, laughing. “Agumon, you gotta be careful alright buddy?”

“Okay Tai!” 

“Nice of you to grace our lowly common room,” a voice sneered from the chair closest to the fireplace. 

Neville groaned, smacking himself in the face. All Ron had done was complain since dinner! He’d been unable to keep his mouth shut that even Hermione had gotten up to find refuge in the library. He suspected she would be there until she was sure he would go to bed. Neville wished he’d gone with her. 

Instead they were all stuck, facing Ron’s misplaced wrath and spiteful tongue. Ron who hated entertaining the thought of Harry making other friends. It was why Neville, Seamus, and Dean all had the most communication with Harry during the holidays. It was easier when Ron was away from him. 

“Maybe you should just-“

“SHUT UP LONGBOTTOM!” Ron whirled around, roaring in Neville’s face. 

All Tai was reminded of was a Tyrannomon on a rampage-all roar but no real bite behind it. 

“Look, maybe we got off on the wrong foot? I’m Kamiya Tai, er sorry, Tai Kamiya. This is my partner Agumon,”

“Hey! It’s a pleasure to meet you all!” 

The cheerful dinosaur digimon waved brightly, which made many of the girls swoon. 

“Is he friendly?”

“Can we pet him?”

“Of course you can! Oh excuse me! Sorry tail coming through!” 

Agumon sat down on the rug and was quickly surrounded by first and second years along with some sixth and seventh years, all eagerly asking questions and taking turns petting him. Tai laughed, knowing that his partner was enjoying the attention. 

If Gatomon and Kari were here, he’d have no chance-

Tai’s heart seized at the thought of his sister. He knew she’d be worried and wondered how Matt was handling things. 

No doubt he’d start a search party. What about mom and dad? They’d be upset at his disappearing act again…

A small hand gripped his hand and Tai looked down to see Harry staring at him, Elecmon atop his head, both of them giving him soft smiles. 

“Don’t worry, we’ll head over to Tom’s tomorrow after breakfast,” 

“Yea, sounds good,” 

“Oh, Harry, how are you?” Hermione spoke, closing the portrait behind her, brushing the dust off her uniform. 

“I’m good, we, Hermione this is Tai and well, Agumon’s over there,” 

Hermione smiled brightly at Tai, sticking her hand out towards him, “Pleasure to meet you, I’m Hermione Granger,” 

Turning towards Elecmon, Hermione gave him a smile, “Pleased to meet you as well,” 

Elecmon beamed, a spark of electricity racing across his body, making both Harry and Hermiones’ hair stand on end. Hermione gave him a knowing look-she’d been wondering why Harry’s hair looked worse than before. Apparently, Elecmon discharged static electricity in his sleep and Harry’s hair had been the victim. 

“Was being a wizard not enough for you?”

The entire common room fell into silence as Ron stalked towards Harry, his normally friendly brown eyes, shrouded in hot anger. Hermione’s wand jumped to her hand, ready to defend Harry if need be. Elecmon jumped down, crouching on all fours in front of Harry, stopping Ron with a small burst of electricity. 

“Elecmon-“

“He won’t hurt you! Not while I’m here!”

“You’re already the chosen one! You’ve got magic! You’re a seeker and still, you HAD to have this too?!” 

“I..was chosen, Ron,” Harry sounds small, avoiding his eyes. 

Elecmon and Tai saw red. Harry had done the same thing at Summer Camp, avoiding harsh words even when they weren’t directed at him. It always took Harry a few days to reassimilate himself into Hogwarts and understand that not all harsh words were meant for him. 

“CHOSEN?! You? What do they think that a skinny little orphan could do-“ 

“Enough Ronald!” 

“Be quiet Granger!” 

Hermione took a step backwards, feeling as if she’d gotten slapped by Ron’s words. 

Tai wanted to intervene-even Agumon was growling, waiting to be allowed-but he couldn’t. These were Harry’s friends; he didn’t want him to push him away. Curling his hands into fists, Tai growled, wishing this boy was a nobody with a big mouth. It wouldn’t hurt Harry if he were to punch him then. 

“I’d switch with you to not be the chosen one if I meant I’d still have my parents, Weasley! You think any of this is easy?! Go on, next time YOU face Voldemort yourself! It’s every damn time! Something-anything happens-and you become jealous! I’d give every last Knut I had to have a family! Instead, I think I have my best friend but I don’t! I’m sorry, but I didn’t choose any of this! Don’t you dare blame me for your shortcomings or unfair life, Weasley!” 

Without another word, Harry threw the protrait open and ducked out into the tunnel. “Harry!” Tai called, ducking into it just before it closed. 

Hermione spun to face Ron, Elecmon and Agumon beside her, “I hope you’re happy, Ronald.” 

Ron glared at her, saying nothing, simply stalking back to his chair. 

“Hey, umm Agumon and Elecmon right?” Dean asked. 

The two creatures looked at him and nodded, “Harry’s in our dorm room and I’m pretty sure that Tai is in there too. You wanna come up and wait for them there?”

“Will they be safe?” Agumon asked, green eyes filled with worry. 

“Course! There’s no safer place than Hogwarts!” 

Seamus raised an eyebrow at Dean, “What about the Three headed Guard dog?”

“Okay, but-“

“The basilisk?” 

“Fine! But-“

“Sirius Black?!” 

“For god sakes! Hogwarts is safe as long as it’s not the end of the year! Are you happy now?!”

“Much, now come on let’s go!” 

Dean groaned, making strangulation motions at Seamus as they walked. Agumon and Elecmon shrugged their shoulders and followed. 

Humans could be so weird.