Not That Simple

The first few days of classes in Hogwarts passed quite peacefully for Ymir. Or, atleast, it was much quieter than he expected it to be, with Ravenclaw sharing some classes Griffindor, and, incidentally, Harry Potter.

He'd have thought, with all the fanfare that the title of savior carried, there would be more excitement than this but, it actually turned out bearable.

Though, there were still a few notable incidents that happened, but it didn't really affect him directly so it was fine.

Actually, one of them happened during Charms class with Griffindor, which the Dean of Ravenclaw, Professor Flitwick, taught personally.

In this incident, the Professor just had to have gone out of the class for a short moment, allowing the students to freely converse amongst themselves as they waited.

And this, his roommate, Anthony Goldstein, who Ymir was quick to learn was an avid gossiper, capitalized in full.

"Hey, Brown!" Anthony leaned over his desk to call out to a Griffindor girl. "That rumour you told me about Professor Quirrell ended up being false!"

"Huh? What rumour?" Confused, the Griffindor girl leaned back on her chair to look at Anthony.

"The one where you said Professor Quirrell encountered a vampire in the Black Forest!" Anthony clarified. "Well, my roommate actually lives by the Black Forest and he said there weren't any vampires there."

"Black Forest?" Suddenly, a ginger-haired boy butted in. If Ymir remembered correctly, it seems that this boy had been somewhat of Harry Potter's follower? "Didn't he encounter vampires in Romania? Where did the Black Forest come from?"

"Romania? Vampires?" Another Griffindor asked in confusion. This one, Ymir recognized because he'd been the one to nearly make his desk explode during the lesson which was about cleaning charms. "Wasn't it mummies in Egypt?!"

"What?" Brown, Goldstein, and Potter's follower looked at the boy in confusion.

Another notable incident happened during Transfiguration class with Slytherin.

Here, they were asked by Professor McGonagall to turn matches into needles.

Which somehow turned into a competition between Draco and Blaise on who could create the needle with the most elaborate design. And, somehow, Professor McGonagall encouraged this?

Actually, this all started because Ymir himself managed to turn his match into a needle which resembled a miniature quill.

After Blaise saw this, he immediately pointed it out to Draco, and soon they were trying to copy his feat, which then turned into a competition.

By the end of the class, Ravenclaw had received ten points, because of Ymir's initial achievement, and Slytherin twenty points, because their designs managed to impress Professor McGonagall.

Though, personally, Ymir found them strange, with Blaise having created an inferius with its mouth wide open and the sharp tip of the needle being the tongue, and Draco's petrified dragon needle.

Now, the next one wasn't actually an incident, but more of an observation.

Specifically, about their Potions Professor.

During the first few potions classes, Ymir quickly realized that Professor Snape followed a strange, self-imposed code of conduct which was basically summarized to: Insult Hufflepuff, Bully Griffindor, Ignore Ravenclaw, and Praise Slytherin to the High Heavens.

When he first experienced Professor Snape's neglect towards Ravenclaw and seeing firsthand how he sneered at and insulted the Hufflepuffs for every little thing they did wrong in his class, he thought it was awful.

But, after hearing about the many stories of the nightmare that was the Griffindor and Slytherin Potions class, Ymir thought that being ignored was actually a blessing.

Thinking about it, perhaps Professor Snape treated Ravenclaw the kindest.

Because, even if he gave Slytherin preferential treatment, it actually made Slytherin more hated by the other houses due to it.

Does he not realize that his actions might be a bit counter-productive?

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September 4, 1991

02-Gaia

Observation Entry #33

Initially, I had thought that having only Terra be the moon to Gaia was enough to protect Gaia from the danger of stray meteors.

But, it seems that I was wrong.

After several meteors crashed into Gaia without my meddling, it became clear to me that I had miscalculated.

I underestimated Gaia's size and gravitational pull.

Terra simply wasn't enough.

So, with that said, I went back to visit Glacies Belt once again and kidnapped a particularly large asteroid somewhat bigger than Terra which would then serve as Gaia's second moon.

And here marks the first big difference Gaia has from Earth.

Now, with the second moon renamed Aqua, with it's ice having melted into water, causing the moon to be entirely covered in an ocean, Gaia was much more secure.

It was strange how easily Aqua managed to find a stable orbit around Gaia without threatening to crash into Terra.

But, when good things happen, it was best not to question it.

On another note, after studying the contents of the Secrets of the Cosmos book, I finally managed to figure out a way to create signal transmitters powerful enough to connect to a portkey on Earth. And, I even had the perfect material for it already!

It was none other than the Star Heart Crystal that's been laying dormant in my bookshelf for many days.

After all, what other material is there in existence that has more energy stored in it than a star?

But, there was something strange.

Although, I clearly remember leaving the Star Heart Crystal at home when I left for Hogwarts, somehow, it had found its way into my luggage, along with all my... strange books.

How did they get there?

Ah, probably another one of Noir's antics.

So, with that part of the portkey set, I began cutting small pieces of the Star Heart Crystal to scatter to the different islands in Gaia, which would serve as the entry points in the future.

Now, all that's left was to make the actual portkey.

Entry End

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"Mister Schreiber, you are hereby arrested under the accusation of avoiding necessary friendly interactions!"

It was very early in the morning, and Ymir was planning to eat breakfast in private while everyone else in the school was just waking or still asleep. But, it seems, the world had a different plan for him today.

"You must now come with us to be served your punishment: Breakfast at the Slytherin table!"

Ymir sighed and looked up from his book, taking in the sight of Draco, Blaise, and Pansy standing in front of him with matching devious expressions.

He blinked. If he were an unrelated student seeing this scene where a single Ravenclaw was cornered by three snickering Slytherins, he'd probably think the Ravenclaw was being bullied.

Huh. Was this how Slytherin's bad reputation was made?

Shaking those thoughts from his head, Ymir ran a hand through his hair in resignation. "Must you be so dramatic everytime?"

"It's called having fun, mister little old man." Blaise immediately huffed. "Live a little!"

To which, Ymir gave him an unimpressed stare.

"Come on, Ymir! Draco specifically woke up very early today just so we could all have breakfast together." Pansy pouted as she pulled on his sleeve. "Atleast show some appreciation for his willingness to succumb himself to such torture for you."

"Huh?!" Draco hissed and turned to give Pansy a betrayed expression. "Didn't you have trouble waking up too?!"

"Yes, but I wasn't the one who'd been clinging to my sheets for dear life when Blaise came to wake me up, was I?" Pansy stuck out her tongue, surprisingly quite un-noble-like.

"I understand." Ymir nodded seriously. "Draco, it is very admirable of you to be able to accomplish this feat."

For a moment, there was silence as three Slytherins stared at a single Ravenclaw strangely.

"It's way worse when you realize that he's able to say that dead serious." Blaise muttered to himself.

Moving on.

As the three pulled their sighing and unwilling bird friend to their snake nest for breakfast, Ymir found it fortunate that aside from the very small number of early risers scattered around, the Great Hall was basically empty and there was very few to witness this scene.

Though, right when he was forced to sit down on the green-covered table, a single barn owl quickly flew into the Great Hall and landed before him, dropping a roll of newspaper for him to pick up.

Idly, he reached for his robe pocket to fish out some Knuts and Sickles and paid the owl the appropriate amount, giving it a biscuit as a tip.

"Ymir, you actually have a subscription to the Daily Prophet?" Draco peeked over his shoulder as the owl flew off.

"Yes? Is there something wrong?" Ymir asked, tapping the table, and instantly, his breakfast appeared in front of him. Apple-cinnamon Pfannkuchen, Potato omelette, and hot chocolate.

"You really are an old man." Draco commented, taking a bite out of his toast.

"So, what's the news for today, gramps?" Blaise leaned over to get a look of the newspaper.

Slightly shaking the maple syrup bottle, he began to read the paper. "The British Minister of Magic bans the use of 16 new spells under the suspicion that they're connected to dark magic."

Hearing this, the three British wizards and witch just nodded. "Ah, the usual then."

Ymir then commenced to drown his Pfannkuchen in syrup, which Blaise took notice of.

"How come your food is different from ours?" Looking at the German boy who took a bite of what might give him death by sugar, Blaise inwardly cringed.

"My house elf, Glas, it seems,-" Ymir, wiped the corner of his lips with a napkin. "couldn't accept not being able to serve me for most of the year, so he secretly followed me here."

Pansy tilted her head. "Is that... legal?"

Ymir shrugged. "I don't know. But, Hogwarts hasn't kicked him out yet, so that should say something."

The three little pureblood children immediately had their own ideas.

"Your house-elf is really dedicated to you, huh?" Draco commented idly after a momentary pause, playing with his beans in distaste.

"I suppose?" After finishing his Pfannkuchen cleanly, Ymir moved on to his Potato omelette. "I'm not even sure where he came from. Mein vater said he just appeared one day shortly after I was born."

"That's certainly strange." Pansy murmured thoughtfully, making a little stack of tomato slices. "Oh! What if he was your house elf in your previous life?"

Ymir pursed his lips, considering that idea.

"That's a bit illogical." He shook his head. "And, house elves, while they are longer lived than humans, their lifespan isn't infinite."

"But, you're not denying the possibility of you having a previous life?" Blaise raised an eyebrow, pushing away his pumpkin juice in favor of water.

"No." Ymir answered, halfway through his omelette. "I don't have much knowledge on the soul to deny anything related to it."

"Logical as always, aren't you?" Blaise sighed. "I wish my mind was a fraction as sober."

'Chii.'

Suddenly, from under the table, something touched their legs. Immediately, Ymir swallowed the last bite of his omelette and drank his left over chocolate.

Peeking under the table, Draco immediately shuddered. "Oh, Ymir. Your... cat is here."

"Yes, I see that." Ymir replied, wiping the corners of his mouth.

Now in full view of the four children, Noir gradually began to bloat.

"What-" Blaise was nearly scared to ask. "What is it doing?"

"Regurgitating." Ymir quickly turned away.

Plop.

A wet sound hit the floor and Ymir didn't even have to look to know what just happened. Of all the cat traits, he wished it didn't emulate this one.

"I apologize. I have no control over what it does."

For a while, there was silence, but he still refused to take a peak despite the lack of reaction.

Until, finally, someone spoke.

"Longbottom never did find his toad, did he?" Draco asked quietly.

"No." Pansy answered, eyes trained to the ceiling, as though waiting for it to fall on her.

"Ugh... I don't think I'll be able to continue eating breakfast." Blaise said in a daze, pale faced.

"Glas!"

Instantly, the partially digested toad corpse vanished.

"We're lucky most of the school isn't here yet." Blaise stared sadly at the rest of his breakfast, then shifted his gaze to Ymir's very clean plate. "Wait, how did you manage to finish eating so quickly?!"

Ymir blinked slowly. "Practice."

❄️❄️❄️

It seems to be alive.

Or, atleast, the diagnosis spell says it's alive.

On a certain night, when everyone was fast asleep, Ymir took out a strange egg from his luggage and studied it in the privacy of his bed, hidden within blue drapes.

Ever since he found it within the corpses in Terra, it hadn't made much movement to indicate it's state.

Until the Ravenclaw ghost, Miss Helena, made a surprise visit in the dormitory one evening, to which, the egg suddenly trembled from inside the box where Ymir hid it in his luggage.

That incident gave Ymir several ideas.

He thought back to the incident that happened before the egg appeared.

The Great Extinction.

Thinking about it now, perhaps the egg's sudden appearance and the extinction weren't that unrelated after all.

Perhaps, in order to hatch, it needed the assistance of certain nutrients.

Like souls.

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Who are you?

Eons ago, there was an empire called Fiddarrthrum where the high elves lived in peace under the rule of their Emperor, Sith'Alva. Born for greatness and hailed as hero, he brought light to his empire and was the pride of his race.

But, one day, his world was discovered by an ancient entity, and, being the strongest being in existence in his world in that era, Sith'Alva was the first to be targeted. And, thus, without his knowledge, he became the door which lead the otherworld creatures into his world.

While everyone in his world were slowly consumed by madness, he was the only one who remained sane, but unable to do anything to prevent what was happening around him.

He was once the hero.

But, in the end, he couldn't even save a single person.

In the end, after realizing that the source of the destruction was actually himself, he raised his holy sword and took his own life upon his throne, in hopes to atone for his sins.

That world is long gone now, but once upon a time, you were Sith'Alva.

But, is he you?

Who are you?

Long ago, when the Earth was still young, a woman who was more lioness than a human roamed the hot deserts.

She craved for war, bloodshed, and destruction, yet she didn't know why. Wherever she walked, there would be death following.

Aggression, Plague, Disasters. She embodied chaos and chaos she became.

From the day she was created from fire, she'd already had the craving battle. But, to battle who, exactly?

The humans called her the Goddess of War.

But, up until she dissipated into the sand, she still didn't get her answer.

Do you know her? Yes, you were her too.

But, is she you?

Now, here you are, born mortal once again. They call you by a different name, and you live a different life. But, is this who you are?

No.

I know your name.

Azathoth.

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In his bed, Ymir snapped his eyes open. Underneath his pillow was a strange book.

Though the cover provided no identification, instinctively, he knew it's name.

"Book of Lost Souls."

On his bedside table was a drop of ink, still wet.

❄️❄️❄️

"Psst... Schreiber."

If the runes used to purify water... No, that would be inefficient. He only needed the souls, not their memories. How about translating the Obliviate spell into runes? That might be a bit easier but he'd have to consult an experienced runes master since advanced runes books need a teacher's permit to be able to be borrowed from the Hogwarts library.

Since it hasn't been that long since he first started his schooling, it would probably attract too much unnecessary attention if he did that.

"Schreiber!" Someone hissed into his ear in panic.

There's no other option. He'd just have to do it by trial and error for now.

Hogwarts has a lot of ghosts anyways. No one would probably realize when a few went missing.

"A-a-and, w-what exa-actly are you d-doing that is m-more im-p-portant than the le-esson, Mr. Sch-schreiber?" Suddenly, there was a shadow on his table, hovering over his journal.

Ymir blinked, belatedly realizing that the Professor was standing over his desk. Just how did he not manage to notice the overpowering smell of garlic? Beside him, his roommate, who had previously been trying to warn him, had a loveless expression, dead to the world.

"I-interesting r-runes..." Picking up his journal, the Professor's eyes seemed to flash red for a second. "Ve-ery interesting."

Ymir's fingers twitched.

"I sssee..." Not knowing whether it was his hallucinations or not, but somehow, Ymir thought Quirrell sounded like a snake there for a moment, before he reverted back to stuttering. "I'll b-be keeping i-it f-for now, Mr. Schrei-ber."

Ymir sighed and nodded. Nothing he could do about it since he was caught not paying attention to class. Though, if classes were going to be spent trying to decipher what the Professor was trying to say through his stuttering, it should have been expected for students to be distracted by something else.

"Playing around with souls, are you?" Quirrell leaned down to whisper, his voice taking on a noticably different tone than what he used regularly, almost sounding as though it were an entirely different person speaking. This time, Ymir was sure that he wasn't hallucinating. "You can get it in my office after class."

So he could actually speak without stuttering?

Ymir nodded slightly, showing the Professor that he understood.

He just hoped that it didn't take too long since Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff would be having their flight class right after this.