Prologue

(A/N: Warning, contains one section of intense cursing.)

"Oh. Well, this is fun." Waking up on top of a moving steam train was not exactly on Gale Ashikaga's agenda, but it was a welcome change. Having an ominous floating timer in front of his face was certainly not helping either. It was some sort of virtual holograph. Gale sighed, waving his hand through the glowing white image.

Staying on top of a train was actually easier than one would think. While you had to retain some level of balance if you just lay there between a few of the trains roof elevated segments. Just don't stick yourself near the exhaust thing, or you'll be in for hell.

Gale lay there unmoving, having nothing more to do than wait and stare out into the surroundings. Looking around, the train was passing through the countryside. He watched the rolling green hills, filled with grass and small shrubs. Above, a small owl flew, hooting. Strange. Gale didn't really remember owls flying around in the day that often.

The sky was a clear blue and putting aside the heavy exhaust smell, it was a very refreshing experience, being among the wind. He watched the sky and the wavy hills, enjoying the scenery. From his time looking around, all Gale had concluded was that the train was a mix of red and black.

He didn't really want to risk climbing over the edge. It seemed too dangerous in his opinion. The speed of the train was a little too much for his liking. Gale was going to get off at the next major stop and find out where the hell he was.

But then again, there was also a chance the floating magical timer was a time bomb, and he would be blown up before they reached the next stop.

"25:36" Gale muttered, staring up at the timer in curiosity and dread.

So… What would happen in 25 minutes? Gale didn't know. So he went back to looking at the view. He couldn't do much about it, so why bother? If he was going to die, then….. That would suck. Hopefully, though, he wouldn't. Really. Gale valued his life. And that was why he was motionless here, on this red and black train, not doing anything at all.

Thinking about it now, this was the first time Gale had been on a steam train before. Literally. Chuckling a bit, Gale soon felt himself becoming a little drowsy. But, it was in his best interest to stay awake. If he fell asleep, many mishaps could happen. Most prominently, falling off the train, and crushing his skull and pretty much every other bone in his body, all while ragdolling about. Not a very ideal way to go in Gale's opinion. Thank physics for so many "wonderful" ways to die.

As Gale lay there, he felt himself sniff a little. Due to his completely still stature, his legs were getting a little fuzzy. It was an irritating feeling, really.

The minutes ticked down until there were around ten minutes. What had Gale achieved in these fifteen minutes? Absolutely nothing. He was in the same state as before. Wasn't like he was complaining. The view really was nice. He'd even see an occasional cow. The true highlights of his train roof travel. Epic.

Now, as the train chugged along, and the grassy hills became a little more woodsy, Gale heard something out of place. Was that a….. Car engine?

Looking about, Gale slowly turned his head, feeling the breeze in his face. Above, the sun shined, its brilliant rays giving him a tan.

The first step to skin cancer. Sitting on top of a train with the sun beating down upon you. Fun.

Anyway, the car engine sound grew closer, and Gale widened his eyes, mouth gaping. This couldn't be real. Seriously? Seriously? Above him, a car drove through the air. Literally. A flying car. Near a train. Now didn't this feel familiar?

Squinting, Gale watched as the car swerve about, a few feet above the train, towards the front. It was a Ford Angila, an old car, the thing was painted a light blue, with a white roof and two slightly crooked headlights. Inside the car, he could visibly make out the forms of two people. One was easier to spot due to him having bright orangish-red hair. All Gale could make out about the other, was that he had glasses and some maybe brown hair?

This all seemed pretty familiar if you asked Gale. Flying car? Train? Red-head? Boy with glasses?

If he was right, then Gale was indeed not in Kansas anymore. Instead, he'd be around Scotland maybe? In the 1900s. Well, that was a nice change. Kansas, was in Gale's opinion, very boring. No offense.

Meh. The Wizarding World Of Harry Potter. Lovely world, Gale was sure. But he had no idea why he was here. Many questions. One of the most prevalent ones, was this, too whoever had "sent" him here:

"WHY THE F*CK DID YOU F*CKING PLACE ME ON THE TOP OF A MOVING TRAIN YOU F*CKING B*TCH F*CK U I HOPE YOU DIE IN A HOLE YOU WORTHLESS PIECE OF SH-"

Usually, he was a very polite guy.

Putting that aside, Gale stared at the timer, watching as the seconds ticked down. No use getting pissed off. He could do that later.

SItting up, Gale groaned, deciding to adjust his posture slightly. He couldn't really sit up that well, both in fear of falling off, and the lack of support in the area.

Though, besides being on a moving train, presumably the Hogwarts Express, due to Gale's keen intellect, he immediately knew that this was most likely Harry's second year at Hogwarts and that an overgrown killer snake and an evil bigoted diary would be hanging out all year long. Seemed extremely fishy.

Thank god it wasn't the third year. Then he would be screwed staying up here. Gale felt that it would not be very pleasant to be stuck up here with those soul-suckers. Very depressing it would be.

From what he remembered, they would be dropped off at Hogsmeade Stop? What was it called? And then it would head back to Kings Crossing. Should he just wait it out? Staying in London would be safer….

But this was much more interesting… Going to Hogwarts, as a fugitive. Despite all the risks, there was a thrill of excitement to it. Exploring those mysterious dark halls in the shadows of the night, evading the teachers and other staff. Experience magic.

Did he have magic? Probably not. Though there were a lot of other things that Gale worried about. Possible wards, mind-reading, not starving, the normal.

He lazily watched as the flying Ford cut through the air, wobbling and swerving a lot. It was pretty entertaining, watching two twelve-year-olds trying to properly "drive" a car. It was a highlight of the series though, for sure.

Then, they neared a tunnel. Gale laid back down, not wanting to get his head torn off. Soon the now exposed Hogwarts Express entered, and his vision grew dark. All he could see was pitch black, which was understandable, him being in a tunnel and all. It seemed that he indeed didn't have to lay down, as there was still some distance between his head and the tunnel ceiling. Well, whatever.

Later….

The rolling light green hills of before had been vastly replaced, exchanged with a dark unsettling forest. It was a sea of green and brown all around, the trees obscuring a good part of the sunlight. Gale looked about in excitement and paranoia, the noise of countless birds chirping and streams burbling filled the air. It was atmospheric.

Gale had lost sight of the car, so it must have gone ahead, or fallen behind. He couldn't tell where they went after the tunnel.

The train winded through the dark dense forest, weaving through trees, past boulders, and over rivers.

"0:56" Gale fidgeted with his fingers, watching the timer slowly tick down, and down, and down. Above, the sun was slowly beginning to set, and the night was approaching. Well, Gale thought that night was approaching. He couldn't really tell though.

"0:32"

The seconds ticked down, and Gale sat up, concentrating on the timer.

"0:21"

Sweat dripped down the side of his face. Strangely, he felt more anticipation for what was to come instead of fear. Maybe this thing wouldn't kill him when it counted all the way down?

Then, it happened:

"0:00"

With a loud pop, suddenly, a stream of virtual words appeared before him, also floating in the air.

[The cards have fallen.]

After a few seconds, this trail of words disappeared. Gale was thoroughly confused, having no idea what any of that meant. The cards have fallen? Was this some puzzle or riddle of sorts? It didn't seem like that to him, as the timer and everything else had completely disappeared as if nothing had happened.

Gale sat on the train, looking around as if there were some clues to his current situation. And there he found it. A clue. A few feet away from him, on top of the neighboring train cart, was a card. It floated in the air, levitating in place. Similar to many videogames, the card rotated around and around.

The card was glowing a light green hue and did not seem to be affected by the train's movement.

Staring, Gale rubbed his eyes, before looking again. Yup. This card was definitely real.

It was partially transparent, with a sort of insignia on each side, displaying ten circles of some sort. Seeing as it was on the other cart, he was definitely not risking his life to try to get to the card. It seemed sorta pointless.

Few Hours Later…..

Above, the sky was inky black, and the trees had relatively thinned out, letting Gale have a clearer view of his surroundings. Somewhat. The train lights illuminated the area, giving him a tunnel vision of sorts. The floating green card was still there, not disappearing.

They should reach the Hogsmeade station sometime soon. In the books, they arrived at nighttime, and Gale had been sitting here in the darkness for a good two hours. What an amazing experience this was...

It was also by sheer luck that he hadn't gotten a cold yet. Nightfall was here, and the wind was starting to pick up slightly, but it seemed that the train had some sort of warming charm, allowing him to not freeze to death. This was something Gale was very thankful for. The engineers were very thoughtful. Looking out for the ones on top too. Equality.

After some time passed, he finally noticed something. Slowly turning his head partially, Gale saw a few lights in the distance. This was definitely something. Scrambling about, he turned his position forwards. Why didn't he do that before? It was a little uncomfortable facing the wind.

In front, the chimney spat out clouds of smoke, slightly irritating Gale, who coughed a little. As they grew closer, he could partially make out a few details. Some smaller buildings, a cobbled road, benches, and a large overarching bridge painted…. Red?

This was definitely the Hogsmeade Stop that he remembered. From the movie at least. In the books, the Stop had not been elaborated on much.

Gale trembled in excitement, a wide grin upon his face. He was almost there. The only problem would be not being caught as a stowaway. Also, the risk of being memory-wiped or something was too great and not to his liking. There were many other problems though. But this was, as said before, an almost once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. It would be harder, later on, to sneak back on the Hogwarts Express.

He'd just slink around Hogsmeade first, trying to get by, and then after that, attempt some more dangerous stuff. The train pulled into the station, and Gale lay back down, trying to stay low and avoid attention. It was easier said than done actually, with the width of the train mostly being too wide, therefore preventing one from seeing the very top.

It was the same for Gale though. As long as he lay down, he couldn't see the students piling out. But he could hear them. The excitement and exuberance in the air were very interesting in Gale's opinion. Usually, kids hated school. Maybe the lure of a magical and mystical castle? Or it was mostly the "muggleborns". He didn't really know.

Children shouted and yammered with great enthusiasm, and countless small footsteps could be heard. Gale waited, hands on the roof, listening.

"First Yeh'll get yer firs' sight o' Hogwarts in a bit." A gruff kind voice caught Gale's attention. "In ah bit we'll get er."

No doubt that belonged to Hagrid, the gamekeeper, and a very notable figure in the Harry Potter universe.

Roughly ten minutes passed before it quieted down around, and the train grew silent. Stumbling a little, Gale got to his feet, feeling extremely sore. His back was covered in dirt and other stuff. He wore a plain black sweater and a pair of loose grey pants. Gale's face was mostly shrouded in the darkness.

Slowly creeping his way across the top, he found his first sight of Hogsmeade. A row of neat wooden houses lined each side. A rustic and homey design, each one had a simple frame with an odd triangular roof. A few small rose bushes and plant boxes lined the side. Leaves were scattered against the rough cobblestone ground. Moving, Gale could see most of Hogsmeade in the distance. A neat row of cottages and shops glowing with orange light.

Stomach grumbling, Gale turned to the levitating green card. He walked towards the card carefully, not wanting to make a disturbance. He reached the edge of his car within a few seconds, before bending, and grabbing on to the other one, which wasn't that far apart, actually. On this side, in contrast to the homey welcoming village, was a dark abyssal forest. Even with the lights, Gale couldn't see much. But that wasn't what he was worried about right now.

Grabbing the other side, Gale jumped, hoisting himself up in a weird way. Now, the green card was right before him. The card's hue illuminated the surroundings eerily, casting its green light in a small area.

It really reminded him of a collectible you would see in video games. Stretching his arms and legs, which were still partially stiff, Gale waved his hands through the green card. As soon as his hand made contact with the card, it disintegrated, evaporating in a flurry of green sparks.

Then, it reappeared before him, floating right next to his face. Gale reached for it, and touched the card. A stream of words suddenly appeared before him.

[Mandarin's Ten Rings (MCU) ]

[Crush to activate.]

[Can disperse at will.]

[No cooldown.]

Gale stared at the card again and now noticed that they were indeed ten rings and not just a bunch of overlapping circles. Was this his…. Cheat?

In the many light novels that Gale would read for no apparent reason, most of the time someone would receive a unique ability also for no apparent reason, that set them apart from everyone else. It was a bland, but mostly fun trope.

Looking over the edge, Gale hurriedly grabbed the side of the train, slowly but surely dropping to the floor with a loud thud. He huffed, sighing a bit. Quickly scouting the area, Gale quickly departed the station. Even though he was out here, it still seemed to be surprisingly warm. Well, warm for a place like this. It was hard to explain. Made the weather somewhat bearable.

He needed…. Fooooood. And water. Fast. Gale crept through Hogsmeade, walking down the old cobblestone road and marveling at the many houses and shops. It was, as he said before, very rustic. It was a conundrum that would be hard to solve.

He couldn't exactly beg on the streets or steal. Wasn't the type of person to steal. The villagers hadn't done anything to warrant him stealing from them. Gale would feel kinda guilty. Well, if one of them slapped him, and called him a mudblood, then he would definitely rob them. Probably fail though.

Then, walking through the town, a warm orange light illuminating the town, he found something. Something amazing. He really had been looking down on wizards and witches all this time. To think….. That it would exist in a wizarding community.

Gale trembled in excitement, as before him…. Was a public water fountain. Rushing over, he inspected the machine. It was short and made of stone, with a small metal spout. The normal. But to Gale, this was legendary.

His water problem was solved. All he had to figure out was food. And then he could go on and do other things. Pressing a small button, he lapped up the cool refreshing water like a dog, not caring what others thought of him. Of course, he didn't put his mouth directly to the spout, as that would be unsanitary.

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Zero Effort Fanfics.

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