Chapter 2: Second Life

Honestly it took me some time to absorb everything that had just happened. Being in that darkness with the 'rule' and now I'm suddenly here in what should be the Wizarding World. Honestly I felt myself doubting it had even happened however my mind and memory screamed to me telling me it was the truth.

As I was absorbing everything my eyes wondered around the room I was in. Laid on the bed I looked at the ceiling light and fan, then my gaze wondered to the window which had its curtains drawn across. Honestly the room was incredibly dark however I was able to make out everything in the room if I looked hard enough. On the other side of the room away from my bed was a desk that had some papers on it. Looking to the right of that desk I saw a mirror and instantly became interested in what I looked like now.

Hopping out of bed I walked over to the entrance of my room which I imagined was within an orphanage and flicked the light on that was there. Immediately the dark dull room was illuminated. I walked over to the desk firstly and looked at the papers strewn about. It looked like homework of some kind and on the top right of the pages was two pieces of information I desperately needed.

[Name: Leo Osbourne]

[Date: February 8th 1984]

I honestly should have asked the 'rule' more questions about how this was all going to happen. As far as I know I could have been put in the body of a boy from ancient times in the wizarding world however luckily for me it seemed I was alive during the time of the 'plot'. I was unsure of my age right now so I had no clue whether or not I would be starting Hogwarts at the same time as the cast of character. As a matter of fact I didn't even know if I'd be starting at Hogwarts as I had no clue where I was.

"I really should have asked more questions about the arrangements instead of trying to understand whatever that afterlife was…".

I spoke to myself and let out a sigh afterwards. This was a habit of mine that seemed to follow me across to this world. During the times I was alone I used to speak to myself in order to still have the ability to converse. Honestly it's a bit depressing when put into words.

"I didn't expect my name to follow me across to this world...".

'Leo Osbourne'. Was this what the 'rule' meant by saying that I and the boy's fate were similar? Maybe the boy whose life I have taken over was literally a version of me or something. Was I always fated to be an orphan even in fictional worlds? I doubted I would know if this was actually ever the case pushing the questions back into my mind. Looking deeply at the name that was mine but also not 'mine' on the paper I felt the desire to change it.

"I want to still respect my family… after all the only family I ever had was my mum and dad until they passed. However with this being a new start it might be better to give myself a new name, one linked to my family still yet one that was different".

I decided this as a way to cast off the life I lived as 'Leo Osbourne'. I wanted a brand new start after all. As I was thinking of names I recalled a nickname that I always heard my dad get called when he was around. As the name flowed into my mind a smile arose on my face.

"Yeah… Let's go with Oz".

It seemed fitting honestly. The wizard of Oz, The wizard called Oz. It just worked. Also it was the nickname my dad was always given due to our second name of 'Osbourne'. I would still be carrying my past life via this name.

"That's one thing sorted... well I will still have to legally get my name changed. Would I be called 'Oz Osbourne' then?".

That sounded really dumb. Just as I was about to shelf the idea of a name change to Oz and change it to another name I remembered something. The 'rule' told me that I would be connected to a bloodline in this wizarding world. When I adopt the inheritance of whatever that bloodline is I can also adopt their second name. I just got to hope it's not 'Osbourne'. I'm sure it'll be okay…

As my mind moved off from this topic my eyes that were resting on the homework sheets moved to the mirror to the right of the desk. Staring into the mirror I saw… me.

"What the heck I look just like me when I was five. Just after my parents passed away".

Was this that thing called 'fate' again? I honestly thought fate was simpler when explained by books and TV in my past life but after speaking to the 'rule' I feel as though I never truly will understand it and never understood it previously either.

It was weird looking at me being my young self again. I suddenly realized how small I was now in comparison to when I was 21. I still had the same jet black hair however that five o'clock shadow had vanished. My eyelashes were long as always, something I remember my mum lamenting about wishing she had my eyelashes. Looking at my face that was still the same I had one thought come to mind…

"I wish the 'rule' could have made me a bit more better looking…".

I'm not an ugly person by any means it's just that I have an extremely 'average' face. The main reason why I had a five o'clock shadow at 21 was to offset this plainness. However now I was 5ish again it seemed that I was doomed to be plain-faced until I could grow a beard or something. As far as my actually full body goes I'd say I'm pretty average by standards of 5 year olds. Not fat, not skinny.

"Next course of action is to find out where I am and confirm my age".

It was important in my eyes to confirm my age before I did anything else. Although I was pretty sure I was 5 years old, if it turned out I was actually 4 it would mean I would be in Harry's year at Hogwarts. Actually now that I think about it I probably should confirm that I'm even in Britain before I get ahead of myself.

"Well the homework sheet has problems in English so that's a good start, I could be in the US though so best to confirm".

Walking over to the window I opened the curtains and peered out into this world for the first time. My view was actually pretty good from this room. I could even see the ocean not too far from me. It was a nice view to look at and considering I'm probably going to be staying here until I'm 11 I was satisfied with this little room of mine.

"Honestly it looks like Britain at first glance… wait a minute, ocean?".

I just realized a major issue as I looked out at the ocean in my view. If this was Britain then that meant I was probably not anywhere near London. How was I supposed to get to Diagon alley? I guess someone from the orphanage would have to take me there or maybe I'll be escorted like Harry was with Hagrid.

"One thing at a time le- no, Oz".

I couldn't learn anything more about my situation from this room of mine however since it was still night time I would have to wait till morning to find out more. I thought about going back to bed but I was honestly not tired at all. As a matter of fact I was kind of scared sleeping just in case this is all a dream or a figment of my imagination. Alongside that I stared into darkness for so long wherever the hell I ended up after I died, closing my eyes and seeing darkness like that again I'm honestly a bit scared to do.

Instead of sleeping I decided to sit down at the desk in my room and look over the homework I had. From my prior experience at orphanages in my previous life I could tell that this was homework the orphanage would give to the children here to keep them studying, that was unless I actually had a school I went to. I really hope I don't have to attend a normal school again…

Ignoring that depressing thought I looked at the different pieces of homework and noted that my eidetic memory had in fact followed me to this life. Just glancing at the homework pages and reading through a couple times was enough to commit them to memory word for word. This 'gift' of mine would be incredibly useful when learning magic.

"Magic…".

It just fully sunk in the fact I would be learning magic in this world. The second I realized this as fact I felt a giddiness arise in my stomach. My desire for knowledge roared out as I thought about the piles of books Hogwarts held. I wanted to read as many as possible and learn as much magic as possible also.

"That reminds me… I wonder if I actually got the ability I wanted".

Since I couldn't get an OP ability I ended up having to think smart about the ability I got from the 'rule'. Thinking hard I realized that the main danger in this world beside magic and death eaters was my existence and how it would bring change. Just I being here and doing things different to the original 'Lee Osbourne' would cause butterfly effects. Some would be minor and negligible however the major ones could change the worlds plot completely. Hence I based my ability off of aiding me whenever this would happen.

[Canon Shift] was the name of the ability, or at least what I referred to it as in my being when the 'rule' accepted it as an ability I could have. The way it worked was hopefully as simple as I imagined it. When a major change to the plot happened, I would be notified by this ability. For instance if say Snape decided to go into the forbidden forest for a potion ingredient in response to something I caused, I imagine I'd get a notification through the ability that would look like this;

[Canon Shift – Due to X, Severus Snape ventured out into the forbidden forest in search of Y]

At least I hoped it would be this simple. If it was then I would be more at ease doing what I wanted in this world. Whatever changes I make and whatever I decide to do which changes the plot outside of my vision I will be notified of and know of. However, this is only as broad as this worlds plot which means outside of the plot the [Canon Shift] ability wouldn't function. At that point though when I venture into the world itself I would hopefully be strong enough to handle anything coming my way. With my supposedly best bloodline and talent, I just need to put in the effort.

"Is there any way for me to practice magic sooner though? Waiting 6 or 7 years to get enrolled at Hogwarts knowing it's out there waiting to be learned is agonizing…".

At this point I vowed to myself that if I had the opportunity to learn magic sooner I would or at least get my hands on some books about magic. With everything decided, I started to note down on a blank sheet of paper things I needed to do before getting to Hogwarts.

Firstly, I needed to keep my body in good condition. Wizards and witches rely on their magic heavily and for good reason however it wouldn't hurt to keep my body trained and exercised as well. In a situation where I can't use magic, I'd be able to defend myself still. I probably shouldn't do weight training as I'm still young and don't want to damage my body however if I do aerobic exercise and jog I should be able to gain some strength.

Secondly, I needed to somehow gain some funds. Considering I'm an orphan in this life as well there may be something in place to help me out when it comes to money and getting school supplies anyway. However, having extra money on hand to buy magical items I want is a must. Later on down the line I'd like to try and create magical artifacts of which I can market and sell widely. For now though I should just try and work odd jobs around the orphanage…

Finally, if it was possible, I wanted to somehow reach magical maturity faster. At the moment I'm completely unclear on how magic works. If I'm able to gain some knowledge in the years leading up to when I go to school I may be able to reach maturity sooner and practice spells sooner also, building up my magic reserves.

I continued jotted notes all night about what to consider, what to do and what to work on in this new life of mine. I found the words easily flowed out of my pen as I wrote. After all the regrets I felt in that darkness I already knew what I wanted to work on in this new life already so there wasn't really any need to write them down on paper. However, it still felt like something I needed to do.

Before I knew it the desk which I was sat at started to be illuminated by not only the light in my room but the sun that had now risen and shined over the ocean. Taking one deep breath I looked at the view from my window with a smile.

I felt ready to begin my second life in this world.