READ NOVEL ONLINE Chapter 4: Letters
Harry had been a lot more anti-social than he usually was the week after he'd witnessed all of Dudley's friends getting cut in half, while that was the kind of image that was hard to get out of your mind, he honestly wasn't very sad about it as they had often been dicks to him. What he'd been thinking about was the two people who showed up and fought the creature, or 'Cursed Spirit' as they called it, he was now starting to suspect that perhaps there was some sort of magical secret society, but that thought process enough more questions than it did answers. He also had questions regarding himself, like what the fuck was that goat power he suddenly had and why was it ignoring him now, he felt like he could do it again but he didn't find an appropriate time or place.
Eventually, Harry gave up, kicked open the door to his cupboard and rolled out, just as he did this the mail was posted through the door and from the living room he heard the shriek of his aunt "GET THE MAIL!!!" She shouted and Harry sighed, he walked over to the front door and picked it up and started going through it. He knew he didn't have any but it was honestly just because he was nosey, however, he raised his eyebrows in surprise when he got to the last letter.
Mr H. Potter
The Cupboard under the Stairs
4 Privet Drive
Little Whinging
Surrey
'Creepy' he thought to himself as he walked into the front room and through the rest of the mail on the table, he saw Dudley attempting to sneak up behind him and at the last second turned and moved out of the way leading to him falling on the ground "HARRY HAS MAIL!!!" he said snitching to his parents as he didn't manage to snatch Harry's letter off of him.
Vernon looked up from his newspaper "What've you got there boy!" He said loudly and Harry shrugged "I'll let you know as soon as I read it" he simply said as he opened the letter.
HOGWARTS SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY
Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore (Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock, Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)
Dear Mr Potter, We are pleased to inform you that you have a place at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment. Term begins on 1 September. We await your owl by no later than 31 July.
Yours sincerely,
Minerva McGonagall Deputy Headmistress.
"Interesting..." Harry thought as he looked at the enclosed list raising his eyebrows at the rather ridiculous list, he assumed that there might be some sort of secret magic society but this seemed ridiculous. Though if he was honest anything would be better than spending the year here "Seems I'm going to magic school to become a wizard" he said, much to the shock and anger of his Aunt and Uncle "LISTEN HERE BOY THERE ARE NO SUCH THINGS AS WIZARDS DO YOU UNDERSTAND!!!" Vernon shouted as he stood up pointing his massive sausage finger at Harry.
Aunt Petunia walked around the table "Come on baby cake, go up to your room now" she said sweetly but when she saw that he was going to argue you back "Up to your room now!" She snapped, Dudley looked at her in shock before quickly running upstairs in a sulk. Harry smirked as this must've been the first time Dudley had been shouted at by his mother, he turned back to Vernon "Explain" he simply said.
Vernon's face turned red "I DON'T NEED TO EXPLAIN ANYTHING TO YOU, BOY!!!" Petunia screamed as Vernon charged towards Harry "Vernon wa-" Petunia screamed but it was too late, Harry poured his energy into his fist and slammed it against Vernon's chin knocking him out cold as he fell and immediately broke the table. Petunia screamed and ran towards her husband and knelt next to him. Harry just looked at them with a sigh, Uncle Vernon never could control his temper so this happening again was inevitable "Come on Aunt Petunia, explain what this is" he asked calmly as he sat down on the sofa.
Petunia who was starting to get a little teary looked at Harry venomously "Hogwarts... it's a school full of freaks like you that your mother went to" she spat out as she cradled her husband's head. Harry sat there and frowned "I'm going to go back to my cupboard and try to ignore the fact that you've lied to me my entire life, about myself and my parents, write a list of everything you know... if you don't"
"I'll make sure he doesn't wake up next time" he said as he glared at his aunt making her shiver but nod her head. Harry got up for the sofa before walking to the stairs and opening the door to his cupboard, he lay down on his raggedy mattress and closed his eyes trying to contain the rage he felt at his aunt and uncle.
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It had been a few days since the confrontation and it was actually Harry's 13th birthday, he'd followed his aunt's instructions and wrote the confirmation letter before giving it to the owl that had perched on the tree outside.
*Ding Dong*
The doorbell rang and Harry automatically stood up as he was used to being the only one who wasn't lazy enough to move more than a couple feet unless it was to the kitchen. He walked to the door with a sigh, he already knew who was at the door, some old man dressed like a weirdo probably wanting to preach about a new cult or something. Harry approached the door and opened it, an old man with a long beard was there with a twinkle in his eye and a smile on his face, he wore a backwards baseball cap with a Live Aid t-shirt and cargo shorts "Can I help you?" Harry asked impatiently as he stood at the threshold.
"Ah yes hello my boy, I'm here to pick you up and take you to London," the man said as he stood there patiently.
Harry frowned "Pick me up? I don't recall ever needing anyone to pick me up" he replied
"Well my boy I assume you'll need help finding your school equipment, I thought I'd offer my services to help" He explained.
Harry finally puzzled the pieces together "You're from Hogwarts?" He said in a low voice and the man nodded "Come, I have our ride parked on the other street" he whispered back.
Harry nodded stepped outside of the house and walked next to the man "If you're a wizard why can't I see your magic?" He asked, in return the man looked at him and smiled and for a fraction of a second he was filled with a heavy boundless amount of magic, however, it quickly went away. The man chuckled at Harry's expression "Even eyes as special as yours can be blind at times" he said mysteriously.
Harry raised an eyebrow "You're not how I expected a wizard to dress if I'm honest" he stated bluntly
"Indeed you are right, however, a wizard is not simply a one trick pony he has to have many skills and abilities, and I just happen to be a master of disguise" The man replied, Harry just looked at him in disbelief 'He'd draw less attention if he wore robes and a wizard hat' he thought to himself as he shook his head.
"So what's your name if I might ask" Harry asked as they walked down the street leaving Privet Drive, the man smiled "In this outfit, I am merely Alberto, so please refer to me as such" Alberto stated
Harry nodded politely 'This man is completely crazy' he thought to himself as they turned onto the next road, he was snapped out of his thoughts when he heard Alberto let out a large groan "Ah fiddlesticks, it seems a youngster has stolen my bicycle, a great shame" he said as he shook his head in apparent sadness. "You were going to take us to London on a bicycle?" Harry asked dumbfounded once again.
"I'm afraid not my boy... yes I'm disappointed too," Alberto said as he patted Harry on the back "I suppose it's Plan B" he said as he grabbed Harry by the shoulder and he saw a crack open and both of them get sucked through, it felt like he was being pushed through a tube, a few seconds they both emerged back into the world and onto a street in London. Harry immediately fell to the ground and threw up on the ground, when he looked up 'Alberto' was no longer dressed in his weird outfit and instead was dressed in another weird outfit, a purple robe with stars and moons on them with a wizards hat "Come now my boy we have much to do and very little time to do it" Alberto said as he walked straight ahead into the building which Harry saw was a pub, he quickly got up and followed but before he did pulled a burlap sack out of his robes "Here wear this, trust me you'll need it" Alberto said with a wink.
Harry raised an eyebrow "I'm not putting a sack over my head" he said as he looked at Alberto with an unamused stare. Alberto shrugged his shoulders "If you say so..." he said before holding the door open for him, he went inside and saw the layout of a British pub though maybe a bit old fashioned, there were lots of people inside and as he walked in they all turned around and looked at him before their eyes widened, some even dropped their drinks.
"HARRY!!!"
"HARRY!!!"
"MR POTTER!!"
"HERO!!!"
"I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU'RE HERE!!!"
"I LOVE YOU!!!"
Harry was accosted from all sides by the patrons of the pub as he was grabbed and pulled in multiple different directions he could see Alberto who was standing by the entrance laughing which kind of pissed Harry off. But then he whispered a few words and snapped his fingers, suddenly everyone was in their seat again and Harry was by Alberto's side with the bag over his head.
"Come now, just this way through to Diagon Alley," he said as he led Harry through the pub and out the back, he smiled and waved at people as he walked through and even shook a few hands, everyone called him Professor which Harry could've guessed he was considering he was sent by Hogwarts. When they went out back he removed his wand from his robes "Remember what I do here Harry in case you find yourself needing to come back" Alberto said before tapping a combination of bricks on the wall. As he did the bricks shifted and the wall opened up, Harry was then pushed through and they both ended up on a bustling street with many people walking around each wearing similar if not a bit less flashy robes to Alberto.
"Welcome to Diagon Alley my boy, the wizarding worlds shopping district, for the UK of course" Alberto said as he gestured grandly, he led Harry through the streets and he was totally enamoured with everything he saw it was all so bright and everything and everyone was filled with magic... it was all getting a bit too much actually, Harry paused and grasped his head which made Alberto stop and make the 'Ah' sound. He then dug into his sleeve and pulled out a pair of tinted glasses. He then removed the sack from Harry's head "Here put these on, they should help" Alberto said, Harry quickly did and when he did he was amazed "I can't see everything... it's like I'm-"
"Like everyone else? Yes well, I had those glasses made especially for you, can't have you straining yourself in classes, consider them a birthday present" Alberto said with a wide smile.
Harry looked at him for a moment "Do you know me?" He asked equal parts curiosity and suspicion. Alberto simply nodded "Why Harry I haven't seen you since you were a baby, and I'm glad to see you've grown so well, now come and let's go to Gringots and visit your parent's vault," he said as he placed his hand on his back and lead him through the street. Harry frowned as he saw many other kids his age walking around with what he assumed were professors, except they all looked sad and some were even crying outright "People who awaken their magic in the muggle world often have tragic origins" Alberto said as they walked.
Harry looked at him "What do you mean" he asked, Alberto looked down at him with a frown on his face "I assume you've seen Cursed Spirits before yes? Well, they are attracted to those who have magic, when muggle-borns awaken their magic it more often than not leads to a Cursed Spirit wiping out their entire family and if a wizard cannot get there in time... them as well" he said with a severe tone.
"Why do you have to wait until they awaken their magic, im sure there is a way to tell earlier on," Harry asked, as he had awakened his 'magic' at a young age. Alberto scoffed "Politics..." he simply said and Harry understood immediately.
They approached the centre of the bustling street and saw a large building "Welcome to Gringotts, the Banking clan of the wizarding world" Alberto said grandly. Harry looked and saw the inscription by the entrance and he immediately ignored it and entered with Alberto following closely behind. Harry was slightly surprised when he walked in and saw the creatures dressed in armour, however, he quickly schooled his expression as they looked relatively normal compared to some of the curses he had seen.
They walked to one of the desks where Alberto pulled a key out of his sleeve "Accessing the Potter main vault" he told the Goblin who was writing on a piece of parchment. The goblin looked up and scowled "Harry Potter must be of Legal age to access the Main Potter vault, unless-"
"Unless he has permission or is accompanied by his magical guardian which he is" Alberto finished "Which he has and is," he said with a smile as he stroked his beard "I'd also like to pick up a package from vault seven hundred and thirteen," he said as he placed another key on the table.
"Very well I shall have someone lead you to your vaults, Griphook!" The goblin shouted and scurried in from around the corner.
They were both led to a sort of rollercoaster cart and after a 'fun' ride where Alberto made Harry's heart stop by shaking the cart and making it flip when it was midair, they finally arrived at what was the Potter vault "Place your hand on the rune, if you are who you say you are then you will be allowed access, if not then you will explode" Griphook said casually.
Harry laughed nervously as he looked between Alberto and Griphook, one looked at him encouragingly and the other looked at him like he hoped he would explode. Harry placed his hand on the rune and it glowed white before the door opened, Harry breathed out a sigh of relief before he walked in. His eyes were wide when he saw the mountains of gold and silver occupying the space, further inside were swords and shields and suits of armour, staffs and wands and even a whole library section.
"Welcome to your family vault my boy" Alberto said as he walked inside with him "All of this is mine..." Harry said in slight awe "Of course, it is my boy, your father was from a white ancient and well-off family, everything that belonged to him is now yours" Alberto said.
"However there is something specific we have come for, apart from the gold to buy your school equipment, we've come for a very special book" he continued as he led Harry further inside the vault till they reached a pedestal on top of it was a large thick book "This is the Potter family grimoire, one of the most important books in any family library" he explained.
Harry picked up the book and opened it, it glowed slightly as the rune had but then dimmed down, it was blank... wait it wasn't blank, ink was starting to appear on the page in the form of writing, it appeared to be an index.
*Potter Family History*
*Bloodline Speciality*
*Original Spells*
*Six Eyes*
*...*
*Potter Family Innate Technique: Limitless*
Harry was awed by how much information the book contained "I can keep this?" He said as he looked up to Alberto who nodded "Of course lad, this is your birthright" he replied and Harry took the book and placed it under his arm.
"Now it's time to do some shopping" Alberto said with a grin.
(AN: ugh I hate boring chapters like these, but they're pretty crucial in the Harry Potter storyline, so have to get through it I'm afraid. Did any of you expect Dumbledore to be the one to take him to Diagon Alley? And can anyone guess what his Cursed technique is?)
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