Chapter 5
A month had passed since that day at the zoo, and soon enough, it was almost Crystal's birthday. She had just finished making breakfast and was planning what to do with the rest of the day. For some reason, the Dursleys always gave her the week off for her birthday. She wasn’t complaining, but it was a bit confusing—she wasn’t going to lie.
Dudley hadn’t had to do anything to get her the week off; the Dursleys had always given her the week off, even before she and Dudley started getting along.
After finishing cooking, she sat down to eat her small breakfast with her aunt, uncle, and cousin. She was halfway done with her plate when the mail slot opened and closed—a clear sign that they had just received some mail.
“Go get the mail, girl,” her aunt said with narrowed eyes. She always looked at Crystal like she was something disgusting she had to walk by. There was always a weird look in her eyes that Crystal couldn’t quite place.
It looked like jealousy mixed with guilt and hatred, but Crystal knew for a fact that her aunt didn’t know about her ghost powers, so why in the ghost zone would her aunt be jealous? She doubted her aunt felt guilt for the way she had been treating her only niece either, but Crystal understood the hatred. Her aunt despised her, probably more than even Uncle Vernon.
Getting up, she went to the hallway and picked up the letters that were scattered on the ground. She started sorting them quickly. She always did this when there was mail: putting letters on top and bills on the bottom.
Bill, Bill, Letter from Aunt Marge, Bill, Bill, Letter to Crystal.
She paused and looked again. A letter addressed to her? Who would be writing to her? She had never received a letter before. She quickly glanced around, and as she passed her cupboard, she phased the letter through the door. She knew if she took the letter with her into the kitchen, her aunt and uncle would snatch it away, and she would never get to read it or find out who was writing to her.
Crystal waited until nightfall, when her aunt and uncle had gone to sleep, before pulling the letter out and reading it.
HOGWARTS SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY
Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore
(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorcerer, Chief Warlock, Supreme Mugwump, International Confederation of Wizards)
Dear Ms. Potter,
We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Enclosed is a list of all the necessary books and equipment.
The term begins on 1 September. We await your owl by no later than 31 July.
Yours sincerely,
Minerva McGonagall
Deputy Headmistress
What the heck? What did they mean by witchcraft and wizardry? Did Crystal have magic? She didn’t find that as surprising as she would have years ago; she had seen and done a lot weirder things than discovering she was magical. After all, she was half-human and half-ghost. Learning that magic was real and that she was a witch wasn’t that surprising.
She quickly skimmed the supply list, wondering where she would buy these things. It wasn’t like she could walk into a bookstore and pick up magical supplies.
HOGWARTS SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY
UNIFORM
First-year students will require:
Three sets of plain work robes (black)
One plain pointed hat (black) for daywear
One pair of protective gloves (dragon hide or similar)
One winter cloak (black, with silver fastenings)
Please note that all students' clothes should carry name tags.
COURSE BOOKS
All students should have a copy of each of the following:
The Standard Book of Spells by Miranda Goshawk
A History of Magic by Bathilda Bagshot
Magical Theory by Adalbert Waffling
A Beginner’s Guide to Transfiguration by Emeric Switch
One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi by Phyllida Spore
Magical Drafts and Potions by Arsenius Jigger
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by Newt Scamander
The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection by Quentin Trimble
OTHER EQUIPMENT
1 wand
1 cauldron (pewter, standard size 2)
1 set of glass or crystal vials
1 telescope
1 set of brass scales
Students may also bring, if they desire, an owl OR a cat OR a toad.
PARENTS ARE REMINDED THAT FIRST YEARS ARE NOT ALLOWED THEIR OWN BROOMSTICK
Yours sincerely,
Lucinda Thomsonicle-Pocus
Chief Attendant of Witchcraft Provisions
Where on earth was she going to find robes in this day and age? Sure, she could ask someone in the ghost zone if they could make her some, maybe that dragon lady Danny knew; her kingdom was still medieval, right?
Crystal had a feeling that the school wouldn’t appreciate robes made by ghosts and that it wasn’t the place you were supposed to get them.
Guess she had to look for someplace that seemed magical. She transformed into Sapphire, her ghostly half, and flew out of the house, starting her search all over London. Luckily, she had the entire week to find this place.
~The Next Day~
Crystal had spent all night looking for the place she was supposed to buy the things on her list, and to her luck, she managed to find it just before she was going to head home for the night. The entrance seemed to be a rustic and dirty-looking pub called the Leaky Cauldron. She went back to the Dursleys and caught a few hours of sleep before returning to the pub. She felt a little bad that she hadn’t explained what was going on to Dudley yet, but she would do that when she got back.
She silently landed in the little entrance and turned into her human self. She waited in the corner until someone opened the entrance and followed them through. She heard someone mention needing to go to Gringotts bank and realized she had no money. How was she going to buy this stuff if she didn’t have any funds?
She decided that the bank must have a trust fund for students without funds, so she quickly followed the person who mentioned the bank to a giant white building. She was in awe as she looked up at the tall building.
It was tall and imposing, snow white, kind of like her hair in ghost form, and it looked like it was made of marble with huge pillars holding it up. It towered over every other building in the alley from what Crystal could tell.
Small, short creatures stood on either side of the entrance to the bank. She took a closer look and was surprised to see they looked like goblins from her fiction books. She hoped they were goblins and nothing else—she didn’t want to offend anyone by getting their race wrong, after all.
She slowly walked up the steps, stopping to read the words written on the doors before going in.
'Enter, stranger, but take heed
Of what awaits the sin of greed
For those who take, but do not earn,
Must pay most dearly in their turn.
So if you seek beneath our floors
A treasure that was never yours,
Thief, you have been warned, beware
Of finding more than treasure there.'
Looks like the people here took robberies more seriously than the non-magical world did. Luckily, she wasn’t planning on stealing anything from the bank anytime soon, so she raised her head and walked in.
Once inside the bank, she found herself in a vast marble hall with long counters stretching along its length, and doors leading off to what Crystal assumed were offices. She approached one of the tellers and waited to be addressed. It took a while, and after ten minutes, she wondered if she should try a different teller before the goblin finally looked up at her.
He seemed a bit surprised to see her, so Crystal didn’t think he was ignoring her on purpose. What she didn’t know—and wouldn’t until she got to know the goblin race—was that he had been deliberately ignoring her. He had expected the child to either say something about his rudeness, find a new teller, or leave. He wasn’t expecting her to stay silent and remain standing there when he looked up after ten minutes.
"May I help you?" he asked, his tone less hostile than usual. This child had been polite enough to wait, so he would return the favor until she became rude.
"Hello, my name is Crystal Potter. I was—" The goblin cut her off.
"You claim to be Ms. Potter?"
She nodded, looking confused. "Follow me; we shall do a blood test." He hopped down from his stool and gestured for her to follow. They walked down the hall to the Potter account manager, Grinlast. Noticing Crystal’s confusion, he explained, "A lot of magicals have come in claiming to be Ms. Potter or from the Potter line. We must do a test to confirm that you are indeed Crystal Rose Potter before we can grant you access to the Potter vaults."
Crystal turned to him, baffled. "What Potter vaults? I don’t have any money. I was just wondering if Hogwarts had a fund for people who couldn’t afford their books and robes and all that."
The goblin stopped, blinked, and then turned to her, just as baffled. "You do not know of the Potter vaults?"
"No, I’ve lived with my aunt and uncle all my life and only found out about this world yesterday when I received my Hogwarts letter," Crystal responded honestly. She was confused when the goblin frowned and started walking faster toward some doors, gesturing for her to follow.
They entered a room where the goblin escort started speaking to the goblin behind the desk in a language Crystal couldn’t understand.
Looking around, Crystal saw the inside of an office held by a goblin for the first time. The walls were a deep burgundy, and the floors were white marble. A large desk made of dark oak sat in front of bookshelves filled with books and binders. There was a light brown carpet under the desk and a few wooden chairs in front of it.
The walls transitioned from a normal office to a goblin’s office, lined with weapons—axes, swords, knives, and even ninja stars had their place.
She turned her attention back to the two goblins when she realized one of them was addressing her.
"You are the one who claims to be Ms. Potter, correct?" he inquired. She nodded, unable to find her voice.
"In order to prove your identity, we need to conduct a blood test." He laid his hands on the desk, eyes narrowing. "Are you aware of the consequences for those who falsely claim to be someone in order to steal from this bank?"
Crystal gulped and shook her head. She wasn’t sure why she was getting worked up. Her name was Crystal Rose Potter; she was a halfa, and she fought crime regularly—she could handle a blood test.
"We behead those who are found guilty of such fraud and display their heads on stakes outside the bank for all to see," he continued. Her eyes widened at this, and she saw the smirk on the goblin’s face. Her gaze fell on the nameplate on the desk.
Grinlast, Manager of the Potter Accounts.
"Do you still wish to proceed with the test?" His question snapped her out of her shock. She nodded with determination. There was no reason to be scared of beheading. She was who she claimed to be, and she hadn’t even known about these vaults until the first goblin mentioned them.
"Very well."
Crystal had to prick her finger and let the blood fall on a piece of parchment that the goblins said was soaked in a special potion that would reveal her true self.
Give her a break; she had only learned about magic less than twenty-four hours ago.
Soon enough, the parchment completed itself, and Crystal looked at it before handing it over to Grinlast in shock.
Birth Name: Crystal Rose Potter
Other Name: Sapphire Phantom
Parents
- Mother: Lily Marie Potter [née Evans] (Human Witch) (Deceased)
- Father: James Charlus Potter (Human Wizard, Animagi Form: Stag) (Alive)
- Blood-Adopted Father: Sirius Orion Black (Human Wizard, Animagi Form: Dog/Grim) (Alive)
Relatives
- Aunt: Petunia Holly Dursley [née Evans] (Human) (Alive)
- Cousin: Dudley Vernon Dursley (Human Squib) (Alive)
Godparents
- Sirius Orion Black (Human Wizard, Animagi Form: Dog/Grim) (Alive) [Godfather]
- Alice Longbottom [née Fortescue] (Human Witch) (Alive) [Godmother]
Magical Guardian(s)
- Sirius Orion Black (Declared by Parents and recognized by Magic)
- Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore (Declared by law, unrecognized by Magic)
- James Charlus Potter (Gave up rights)
Genetics/Species
- 45% Magical
- 5% Human
- 50% Ghost (Note: New type of Ghost, not found in magical locations)
Titles
- Heir/Heiress of Black (Named by Godfather)
- Heir/Heiress of Slytherin (By Right of Conquest, Declared by Magic)
- Heir/Heiress of Hufflepuff (Mother’s side)
- Heir/Heiress of Peverell (Father’s side, Chosen by Magic)
- Heir/Heiress of Potter (Father’s side)
Abilities
- Natural Occlumens (Illegally Blocked 90%) 10%
- Eidetic Memory (Illegally Blocked 80%, Broken 20%) 40%
- Parseltongue
- Parselmagic (Illegally Blocked 100%)
- Transfiguration Proficiency (Illegally Blocked 90%)
- Ghost Abilities
- Unknown Powers
Active Potions
- Power Suppression (First given at 15 months old, lasting 6 more years, does not affect ghost abilities)
- Hatred Potion (Keyed to Petunia Holly Dursley [née Evans], Vernon Dursley, Dudley Vernon Dursley, Marge Dursley, Severus Tobias Snape, and anything associated with the name Slytherin; first given at 15 months old)
- Targeted Hatred Potion (Keyed to the one who received the potion; first given at 15 months old)
Past Potions
- Power Suppression (15 months old, 7 years old)
- Hatred Potion (15 months old, 3 years old [Added Marge Dursley], 6 years old, 9 years old)
- Targeted Hatred Potion (15 months old, 4 years old, 8 years old)
Other Ailments
- Horcrux located in scar (Created by Tom Marvolo Riddle Junior, self-proclaimed 'Lord Voldemort'; Destroyed when host half died)
- Is half dead(?)
Contracts
- Marriage Contract with Ronald Bilius Weasley and Crystal Rose Potter (Created by Molly Weasley [née Prewitt] and Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore; Declared Illegal by Magic)
Crystal was shocked. She was the heir to several titles. What were these blocks and potions doing in her? And what was this about a marriage contract? She refused to marry someone she didn’t choose or love.
She looked up at Grinlast with a frown. "We need to talk about this."
And talk they did. Grinlast explained as much as he could about the magical world in a few hours, along with the blocks and potions.
He said he would consult with the higher-ups and prepare a ritual to free her from them for a small fee. They reviewed all her holdings, and Crystal realized she had several houses she could live in. She would need to discuss this with Dudley, but she wouldn’t be living with the Dursleys ever again.