The Change made by Preparation

A Crash Course in Wizardry

It has been three weeks since Harry was taken to Kent Manor. It has been three weeks since he began remedial summer lessons via the Switzerland International School of Magic. Well, it would have been three days if he were in a normal situation. According to Lord Kent, his circumstance required a greater amount of time to reverse in comparison to the time that they had to correct it. Through consultation with the High Chancellor, Harry was set up in a guest house on the grounds of the Kent Estate. The guest house was then placed under a time warp. The High Chancellor attempted to explain it to harry but it passed right over his head.

He was then introduced to Sage Makliar (Mac-lee-are), an old magical scholar who had mastered so many areas of magic that he was no longer recognized as a mere Master. Their main goal was to condense four years of education into the four weeks before Hogwarts. He also had frequent lessons in estate management, history of the Potters, Etiquette, Politics and Ballroom Etiquette with both Lady Longbottom and Lord Kent. Neville was usually included in these lessons even though he was so much more advanced than Harry. During these sessions with Neville, they were given topics to research in totality and then debate on; whether they agree or disagree with the topic they were given. Lord Kent explained that it will allow them to anticipate and demolish the opinions of the political adversaries.

Sage Makliar taught several subjects which included: the theory of different branches of magic, Arithmancy, Ancient Runes, Potions, Herbology, History (Magical and Mundane), Magical Theory, French, Spanish, Latin, Greek, Italian, and wandless magic. He was yet to receive a wand but he wasn’t bummed out by that seeing as Neville did not have one either.

At first it was hard for him to remember that he was expected to do his best, but with several meeting with a mind healer, he discarded the ideals of the Dursleys. That is not to say that it was all work, he spent many afternoons (within the time flux) flying with Neville of playing various wizarding games.

During this time, he had also been countering the damage done to his body due to malnutrition and neglect. It took three months in the time flux to counter the physical deficiencies of his childhood. It took one year to change his outlook on academia with the aid of his mind healer. When he was given a clean bill of health, both Harry and Neville approached Lord Kent for fencing lessons. This idea was introduced to them by Sage Makliar, who indulged them with stories from his day as a duelist. These lessons were approved of and a tutor was hired by the name of Master Steelfist, a Master goblin warrior. With these lessons, Harry was introduced to Cayden Kent, Susan Bones and Luna Lovegood.

At first Harry was reluctant to interact with the other pre-teens, but as the months passed, they developed strong bonds of friendship. When he found out that Cayden and Susan would not be attending Hogwarts, he was very depressed. It wasn’t until they promised to remain friends forever that Harry could begin to function normally again.

Dancing was one of the lessons that Harry dreaded at first but grew to like. He often felt uncoordinated and cumbersome when he was in practice with Lady Longbottom, who used stinging hexes quite liberally for missteps. It however made good motivation for Harry to become an excellent dancer with grace aplenty. He eventually grew to like it in his second year under the flux.

Another pastime that Harry enjoyed was hearing stories of his father’s childhood. Lord Kent and Lady Longbottom had many tales about James Potter that made harry feel as though his father was in fact a real person and not an abstract idea. He also found journals from both his parents and paternal grandparents in his trust vault, and had read them several times. These gave an insight into the kind of persons he was descended from.

After three weeks in the time flux, Harry sat his final exams for year four of the School of Magical Arts. He passed all his subjects with Outstandings, and was place 6th in his year group (Luna was places 2nd, Susan and Cayden tied for 4th and Neville being 7th). Feeling accomplished and with new purpose, Harry left the time flux with one week to go before Hogwarts began on September 1. The only thing left to be done was to acquire his school supplies. To do so they will be going to Switzerland. Harry was excited because this would mark his first trip out of the British Isles.

**************

“Harry I would like to speak with you and Neville in my study please before we leave.”

“Yes Uncle David, I will go and get him from the greenhouse”

When he and Neville arrived at the study they knocked and waited to be admitted to the study.

“Sit boys. As you know, the level of education at Hogwarts has fallen far below International standards. This is why I will not allow Cayden to attend that school. Both of you on the other hand are required to attend Hogwarts based on you family edicts on Lordship ascension. This leaves us with a problem.” He paused to see if they were following his thoughts, “This led me to talk with High Chancellor Griffiths, who informed me of the Independent studies program that the School of Magical Arts offers. They provide their students with a syllabus for their year group and the independent student study at their own pace for that year and in the first week of summer they are assessed by the school. This will make them eligible to pursue masteries under the school’s identity. It will also allow you to get a quality education while still being eligible for your Duchy. What are your thoughts on this, boys?”
Both boys were in deep thought, reasoning with themselves over the pros and cons of this system.

“I will do it,” resolved Harry verbally, while Neville agreed with a nod.

“Well you are also required to turn in papers and thesis for the courses that you study. Are you sure you can handle it.

“We are going to try Uncle. Better to fail trying, than not to try at all right?” Lord David looked on with a proud smile.

“In that case, I have signed both of you up for a curse breaking expedition as helpers for next summer. This will help you to practically apply your studies in a controlled but realistic environment. Cayden will also be accompanying you. If all goes well, it can be an annual event.”

At the words ‘curse breaking expedition’, both Neville and Harry looked like they had gone to heaven. It was with a look of awe that they walked to the receiving parlor to portkey to Switzerland. As a noble Lord, David was authorized to enchant portkeys within his estates. With a tap to the rope and a whispered ‘portus’, he enchanted a rope to take them to and from Switzerland.

“Ahhh, there you are Cayden, we are just about to leave. If you would all hold on to the rope we can depart.”

A surge of magic was felt as the hooking sensation took hold of the passengers and pulled them to their destination.

*******************

They landed in the middle of a large shopping district.

“Welcome to Patronos Delectare. Most people here speak English or Latin, so you boys should not have any problem shopping. Let us begin.” With that David led them through the complex.

What happened next could only be described as chaos. When they got to the clothier, Harry’s entire wardrobe was replaced and charmed to be wearable until he hit 5ft10”, which was a few years away. The colossal number of casual and formal pieces, wizarding and muggle, he was forced into and bought was overwhelming for a boy that was raised with nothing. He had to be reminded that he was now a representative of his ancestor’s impeccable history and a beacon of the Potter Family to come. He swallowed whatever protests and allowed Cayden and David to talk over him to the clothier.

Next they visited the Apothecary, where an intermediate potions set was purchased for each of the boys. This was followed by the stationary store. Here they purchased high end quills and calligraphy pens. They also purchased regular cheap quills and maintenance sets for the quills. They bought reams of parchment and several notebooks to which pages of parchment could be added (for their schooling at the School of Magical Arts). They had their books keyed to their individual magical signatures. When they left that store, they were being weighed down by shrunken purchases. The next store they visited was visit the Luggage Depot. Inside they went immediately to the trunks. After a lot of arguments of the merits of each trunk they decided a 5 compartment was the most suitable for their school needs. The compartments included one for clothing, potions and herbology, class material (telescope, brooms), books and stationary and a secret compartment. The entire trunk required 7 drops of blood to activate the blood wards and to power the enchantments (feather-weight, shrinking, gliding).

The book store included purchases for both schools using their acceptance letters. For Cayden it was one set of books. Neville and Harry on the other hand had to purchase two sets of course books. After that was taken care of, they focused on reference book not on their letters, as recommended by the helpers in the store and Lord Kent. They also chose books based on extra-curricular interest, such as ‘Dueling Strategy and Tells by Filius Flitwick’ and ‘A Beginners Guide to Alchemy by Perenelle Flamel’.

Their final two stops were the most interesting of the trip. The first was a Pet Shop, where Harry purchased a perch for Gladius, his Storm Caller Dragon. Here two things happened. The first was that two eggs hatched as Neville and Cayden walked past the exotic creature’s aisles. The first revealed a beautiful ice blue Dragon and the next a Forrest green and brown dragon. They immediately tried to get to Cayden and Neville respectively but were hindered by an enchantment. The owner came and undid the enchantment allowing the teens to get to the newly hatched dragons.

“Young elementals, not a rare sight but much welcomed none-the-less,” said the proprietor. Two exclamations were heard. When he turned around he realized that the dragons had bitten their partners to formalize their bond. Harry chuckled when he remembered when this had happened to him. He turned to the shop owner to listen to what he was explaining.

“These are Familiar Dragons. They only hatch when they sense their owner’s magic in their area. The blue one is a water/ice dragon and the green and brown one is an earth/forest dragon. The one I sense bonded with you is a wind/storm dragon,” he said to Harry, “they are companions for life and grow with your magical core. I have a book in how to care for them if you would like.”

With an affirmative gesture they bought what was necessary for their familiars along with a vicious looking eagle owl to carry massages between them from Hogwarts to Switzerland. They then left the store and headed to the Wand Crafter’s store.

Lord Kent explained to them that while Olivander’s wands are good tools, they are very limiting. In Switzerland, and other areas of the magical world, the foci were made to fit the preexisting strengths of the individual. In England, the foci forced an individual to adapt a false affinity to certain magics. With that in mind, the boys were excited as they entered the store.

**********

“Well, hello there boys how may I help you”

“We are her for wands, kind sir, one crafted and one for school purposes,” interruoted Lord Kent before the boys could say anything.

“Well let’s get started, crafted wands first and the school wands.”

The boys were escorted to a storage room, blindfolded and one at a time, instructed to allow their magic to lead them. Harry was lead to a sack of what seemed to be stones; he searched through the sack until one of the stones shocked his magic. He took it out and moved to the next area that called to him. Next, he collected two slabs of wood (equally reactive), a cold metallic substance. He was then led to the core area and let loose. He found three cases that resonated with his magic perfectly. He carried the boxes to the table he was instructed to place his finds with the aid of the shop owner. He was escorted to the waiting area to … wait. Cayden and Neville, like harry found a ‘stone’, two slabs of wood, a metallic feeling substance and three cores.

When they were all returned to the waiting area the proprietor told them that he will put his work area under a time flux so that their wands will be completed in five minutes. After that they would look for school/secondary wands.

To the boys it was the longest five minutes ever.

When the wand crafter returned, he wore a wide smile and carried three carved boxes.

“First, Mr. Black hair, green eyes.” Harry stepped forward. “This is a powerful wand indeed. Suited for offensive and defensive magics and area effective spells, like wards. It is made out of a mixture of Acacia and Elderberry from a mountain top in China. It was embellished with air currents using a piece of methryl mined by Dwarves. At the end of the handle is a clear cut diamond my grandfather found in a temple dedicated to Aeolus in Greece, perfect for a wind elemental. The cores were hard to work with but complimented each other just perfectly. The first is the tail feather from a thunder bird (aka a wind phoenix), along with the hair of a Thestral from Rome, both of these were soaked in the venom of Quetzalcoatl, a winged serpent for your parcel abilities. Use it well.” Harry took the box and opened it reverently to reveal a masterpiece 12½ inches long. He took hold of it and felt a gust of air enter and exit his body leaving him refreshed.

“Next Mr. Sun bleached Blond and Hazel eyes.” Neville stepped forward as Harry stepped back. “This wand what made from a blend of Oak and Elderberry from the fertile plains of India. It is also suited for Offensive and Defensive magics but also flashy, impressive spells, as in the patronus charm. It is embellished with vines using imperial gold blessed in the waters of the goddess Demeter. At the end of the handle is a Garnet, one of the earthiest gems, perfect for an earth elemental. The cores again are suitable I believe. First, there is the heartstring of a Griffin that took 17 wizards to incapacitate it. This is followed by the venom extracted from the sting of a Manticore that killed 15 wizards before the others killed it. Finally there is the hair of a Greek Dryad freely given for saving her tree, very powerful magic indeed. Use it well.” Neville, like Harry took the 13 inch wand from the box he was given. The feeling that flooded him reminded him of how he felt after a long day of working in his garden or greenhouse.

“Last but not least, the Brunette with the ice-blue eyes.” Cayden rolled his eyes at his ‘title’ and stepped forward to mirror Neville, who realized that it was time to step back. “12 inches of Ash and Elderberry found in the tundra of Antarctica. Odd place for a tree to thrive, right? But thrive it did, making it perfect for a water/ice elemental. The embellishment was done to mirror water currents and the gem was a sapphire taken from a temple dedicated to Poseidon by mayself. The cores again made a special wand. The first is a scale taken from a hippocampus from Italy, powerful water horse, freely given of course. Next is the tears of a Siren who had lost her lover, make it potent in magic requiring emotions and offensive magics. Finally, and surprisingly, is a Thestral hair from the mate of the same Threstral that gave the hair for the young man’s wand behind you.” This proclamation caused both Harry and Cayden to bloom a bright red colour in their cheeks. “This wand is made for precision in magic and is also powerful.” When Cayden removed the wand he felt the current of the seas flowing through him, filling him with power.

“Is Elderberry a normal wood used in wand crafting. I’ve never met someone with that wand wood?” asked Lord Kent

“As you have not noticed Elderberry is a common wood for elementals because it can handle the vast amount of magic they possess. So while it is not a usual wood used in wand crafting, it was not unusual.”

“Thank you. What about the school wands.”

“I can do that now.” He removed three measuring tapes from a drawer and set them to measure the boy while he asked the questions. It did not take long for them to be fitted with wands. Harry got one made from 12½ inches of Mahogany and a Griffin Flight feather. Neville got one made from 13 inches of Cherry and Bowtruckle innards. And finally, Cayden got one made from 12 inches of Hornbeam and the flight feather of an Abraxan. They also purchased two wand holsters per person and thanked the wand crafter. They left the store 300G lighter.

Before heading home, Lord Kent took them out to dinner at the Open Cuisine, a restaurant that served dishes from all over the world. The boys began to compare both their wands during dinner which Lord Kent found amusing.

By the time they returned to Kent Manor, all three boys were dead on their feet. He took all of them and placed them on Cayden’s bed and head to bed himself. It was, after all, a long day.