Harry Potter 8

Three days later, Michael was apparated in an empty alley near King's Cross Station. This method of transportation was even more uncomfortable than the floo network. Filius assured him it gets better with time and isn't as bad when one does it himself. After straightening up his robes, which he still wasn't used to wearing, Michael grabbed his trunk and started walking towards King's Cross Station.

The train station was filled with people, all ready to start their day in the chilly morning of September. With all the talk about the Statue of Secrecy, Michael wondered why they would choose this place, considering how crowded it was. He got his answer shortly after reaching Platform 9¾.

A few families and their kids straight up walked through the wall there while the regular people just ignored them, as if that wasn't happening to begin with. Michael had to admit that was a skillfully done piece of magic. It wasn't anything like what he had seen from the magic users in Liorderat. The wizards here might not have the same power, but they certainly had their strong points. Hiding themselves from Muggles seemed to be one of them.

'I wonder how well this would work once technology gets developed in the next decade or so? When there are cameras on every corner, and people start filming everything with their smartphones, will wizards be able to keep up their Statue of Secrecy?' Thought Michael. 'Not that it matters that much to me. Plus, the demon invasion would definitely not go unnoticed.'

Walking through the wall, Michael found himself in a new location, with a long, steaming train in front of him. It wasn't as impressive as Dumbledore praised it to be, but then again, he had seen both gnomish and dwarven engineering. What they created by mixing technology and magic was simply one of a kind.

Quickly, Michael picked his pace and entered the Hogwarts Express, making his way towards the back of it and finding an empty compartment. Before even storing his trunk on the rafters, he turned around and cast the Locking Charm on the door. He'd planned on continuing with his Occlumency practice during the trip and preferred not to be bothered.

Michael then sat down and took a deep breath before closing his eyes. He continued from where he left off after his night session, the fight in which he unlocked his Aura. It had been in a fight against a low-ranked demon, but even they were much stronger than regular men.

Skin as dark as the night, blood-red eyes, and with large claws, the demon looked as if it came from someone's nightmare, which was probably the truth. Michael wore mismatched armor at that time, scavenged from the death, not like they were going to miss it, and held a simple sword in his hand. A spear would've been his preferred weapon of choice, had they not been so rare in Liorderat. Most aspiring adventures chose a sword as their weapon, due to the many stories of heroes who wielded one. It was also used by most nobles and that was the end goal of most adventures.

Michael nearly died fighting the demon and almost got his eye plucked out by it. He'd barely managed to avoid that and jumped back, but he was at his wits end. Exhausted and with sub-par equipment, Michael was almost ready to give up. However, he refused to die, at least not before sticking a sword in Four's gut. A power erupted inside him, and he rushed at the demon faster than he had ever before. His sword, which barely cut the demon before, sliced it in two with the help of his newfound power.

Continuing down his memories, Michael experienced himself scavenging for anything edible in the wilds and surviving on his own, trying his best to avoid any encounters with others and wild beasts. It had been harsh, but he had managed somehow. Though he almost killed himself on a few occasions by eating poisonous foods. He learned quickly what was safe to eat in the wilds.

Going even further, Michael reached a memory of his mother. Tall, with waist-long, snow white hair and ice-blue eyes. She had an ethereal beauty despite the dagger sticking in her neck, as expected from a 'noble' Moon Elf High Priestess. He couldn't blame her too much for killing herself. Michael wasn't a child born from love after all.

His father had been a banished prince from a human kingdom, who sought power above all else. The man had kidnapped his mother and used her for his own pleasure until she got pregnant with Michael. He had promptly dumped her afterward and left his mother to her own devices in a random forest. She couldn't even return back her people, not after she carried the child of what was the most hated man in all of Liorderat at that point. After all, his father had been the one to help the demons invade their realm.

Michael's mother raised him up until the point he was able to walk and move on his own. Despite looking at him with disgust, she at least gave him the chance to live. Afterward, she explained his situation to him, who she was, and who his father was, before suiciding in front of him.

The door to the compartment opening up, snapped Michael out of his meditation. At the entrance stood an older girl, dressed in black robes with a yellow outline to them.

"There you go." She said to someone behind her and turned to Michael. "Students aren't supposed to magically lock their compartments." She scolded him before a look of confusion adorned her face. The girl assumed that had been done by an older student, but looking at Michael, she realized she didn't recognize him.

"No one informed me of that." Said Michael, keeping his face neutral and resisting the urge to frown.

"Oh! Um." The girl looked away briefly in embarrassment, but what for, he didn't know. "Using magic in general isn't allow on the train. And locking your compartment would prevent you from interacting with your fellow students."

"Anyways." The girl stepped back. "In you go, I have work to do." She said and walked away.

Four kids then entered the compartment, three of them, two girls and one boy, were black-skinned with black hair, and the last one, a boy, had pale-skinned with brown, curly hair. They placed their baggage on the rafters and sat down, looking at Michael in interest.

"I'm Cedric Diggory." The pale-skinned boy introduced himself and the others followed suite.

"Angelina Johnson."

"Alicia Spinnet."

"Lee Jordan."

"Michael." He replied simply while thinking to himself. 'Kill me.'

"You're a boy!" Exclaimed Lee. Michael had delicate, noble-looking elvish features and with his white hair having grown a bit in the past month…

"Obviously." Michael replied with his eye twitching in annoyance. This is why he wished to avoid others and had locked his compartment. He just didn't want to deal with kids, even though he had the body of one, he still had the mind of an adult.

"Wow!" Said Angelina. "How do you get your skin to look like that?"

"Is your hair natural? It looks so soft. Can I touch it?" Asked Alicia.

At that moment, the door to the compartment opened up again. A black-haired boy stood awkwardly at the entrance as he scanned the insides. "You won't mind if I… sit here?" He asked.

"Not at all. Plenty of room for all of us." Cedric said, happy that yet another was going to join them.

"Thanks." The boy said and stored his baggage before sitting down. "I'm Roger Davies, by the way."

They all introduced themselves once more, except for Michael. Cedric seeing that, did it for him. "And that's Michael."

Roger turned towards him with wide eyes. "You are a boy!"

'Kill me! Kill me now!' Thought Michael and took a deep breath. He closed his eyes, deciding to simply ignored them and focus on his Occlumency.

"What are you doing?" Asked Angelina as she poked his shoulder.

"Meditating." Replied Michael. 'And trying to ignore you!'

"Working on your Occlumency?" Asked Roger and continued. "My parents made me do it a few years ago. Ugh, it was awful, but my brother told me it would be very helpful during my school years. He was in Ravenclaw, and I hope to be sorted there as well. What about you guys?"

"I don't care as long as it's not Slytherin." Said Alicia, which the others seemed to agree with. "But I'd prefer to be sorted in Gryffindor."

"Me too!" Exclaimed Angelina and Lee said the same a second later.

"I don't have a preference. I just want to get along with my housemates." Said Cedric.

"Then you will most likely end up in Hufflepuff, mate." Roger told him. "That's their motto!"

"What about you?" Angelina asked Michael, and again, poked his shoulder.

"I don't care." He replied, keeping his eyes closed and hoping they would stop including him in their conversation. Or preferably, just stop talking. However, it seemed that was not to be.

"Any of you follow a Quidditch team?" Cedric's question got them all heated up. Apparently, 'Quidditch' was a magical word that made everyone that heard it start constantly talking.

Michael was in for a very long ride, but at least the train had already departed. Doing his best to ignore them, he continued walking down memory lane. Soon enough, he finished with ones from Liorderat and found himself staring at a pompous man. He had a rainbow-colored hair and wore a suit of the same color. Four's appearance practically screamed 'Look at me!'

Michael remembered how excited he was when the overseer gave him the opportunity to be a 'destined hero.' He'd been happy to accept Four's offer as his life had ended early due to a lung cancer. Michael probably shouldn't have picked up smoking, but his young self thought it was cool. He could've had an easy and comfortable life, not even needing to get a job due to his parents being rich. However, one bad choice ended up leading him to Four. The overseer, who deceived Michael, suddenly grinned at him.

"Move along." Said Four. "Your disturbing my entertainment."

Michael jerked in his seat as he was forcibly kicked out that memory. Breathing deeply, he thought. 'I already knew overseers were unbelievably powerful, but damn. He kicked me out of my own memory.' Suddenly, his desire for revenge looked… impossible. How was he supposed to deal with an opponent who could sense him even in his own memories? Despair started filling Michael before he steeled himself and a determined fire burned in his ice blue eyes. 'I will find a way!'

"Are you okay?" Angelina asked him, and Michael realized everyone was staring at him in silence.

"I'm fine." Replied Michael and took a few calming breaths. Closing his eyes, he continued going through his memories. Smartly, he avoided his meeting with Four, less the overseer decides to inconvenience him in some way. Or worse, gets interested in him again. Knowing his luck, that might've happened already, but hopefully, Four won't be able to do anything to him. After all, he was in a whole different Multiverse.

Michael got to witness a few unhelpful memories from his first life, ones which he almost forgotten, before Angelina shook his shoulder. He opened his eyes and looked at her.

"We'll be arriving shortly." She said.

"Okay." Replied Michael and closed his eyes.

"We need to change into our robes." Continued Angelina, and Michael realized what she meant. Standing up without a word, he left the compartment along the other boys, and left the girls to change into their robes.

Michael propped himself to the side as the three continued talking about Quidditch and how awesome it was. When the girls left the compartment, now dressed in their robes, the boys entered back inside to change their clothes as well. Shortly after, the train finally arrived at its destination. Exiting the Hogwarts Express, they were greeted to a booming voice calling across the platform.

"Firs' years this way!" A giant of a man waved his hand in the air as he repeated that a few times. When most of them gathered in front of Hagrid, he instructed them. "In the boa's you go."

Michael jumped in the first empty one he saw, and the three boys he shared a compartment with followed after him. The boat shortly started gliding on the water without anyone rowing it. The castle Michael lived in for the past month slowly came into view, getting exclamations of "Oohhs!" and "Aahhs!" from the students.

"Tha's Hogwarts!" Announced Hagrid with a smile that was hidden by his large beard. "Beautiful, ain't she?"

Not long after, the boats arrived at their destination on the other side of the lake. Climbing out of them, the kids followed after Hagrid as he led them towards Hogwarts. Minerva awaited them at the front entrance, looking at them all sternly.

"I've got the firs' years, Professor!" Announced Hagrid.

"Thank you, Hagrid." Said Minerva with a nod and turned to the students with her fierce expression.

"I'm Professor McGonagall." Minerva introduced herself. "Deputy Headmistress of Hogwarts, its Transfiguration Professor, and also Head of the Gryffindor House."

Minerva gave them a moment to process her words and continued. "We will be entering the Great Hall now, where you will be sorted into one of the four Houses of Hogwarts. They are the following, Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and last but not least, Slytherin. Once sorted, you will reside with the rest of your House during your stay at Hogwarts. Good work and behavior will win you points for your House, while poor behavior and performance will lose them."

After giving them another moment, Minerva turned around and opened the large doors behind her with a wave of her wand. The Great Hall was already filled up with students sitting at their respective tables, one for each of the four houses.

"When I call your name, you will step forward and place the Sorting Hat on your head. When it announces your House, you will join the rest of your housemates at their table." Said Minerva before she started calling them one by one.

"Wynneiros, Michael." It was finally his turn and Minerva surprisingly didn't butcher his last name. Though she did practice pronouncing it the week before this.

Michael walked up to the chair. The students murmured and gawked at him, most asking each other if they had ever heard his surname since it was quite unique. He ignored them as he reached the stool and sat on it before placing the hat on his head. For a moment, nothing happened, but shortly he heard a voice in his head.

'How long does this darkness last? Why is it even part of your memories?'

"You will get out of my head or I will rip you apart." Threatened Michael with a growl.

'Jokes on you, I already saw what I needed!' The hat spoke in his mind. 'And no ripping me apart! It's not like I can even share what I found with someone else. I've been enchanted against that.'

Michael froze for a moment. The hat had been on him for no more than a few moments. It couldn't possibly had seen all of his memories, right?

'Slytherin is a no go. How many heads will fall when they try to the pecking order? Tsk, tsk.'

'Hufflepuff might be good for you. You might learn a thing or two from them. Maybe even learn how to depend on others.'

'Ravenclaw… you're not the most studious type, but then again, that's what you've been doing for the past month. Study, study, day and night.'

'Gryffindor, now that's a place that suits you! Charging bravely ahead, taking down challenges with your might! I'd say that's the perfect House for you!'

Before the hat could sort him there, Michael stopped it. "Sort me in Ravenclaw." He ordered. Michael had his reasoning for that. Out of all the houses, Ravenclaw had the lowest number of students, which is why they all go their own personal rooms. Living with other kids was something he wished to avoid. Plus, he would have an excuses in regularly meeting with Filius, the Professor he respected most out of the three that taught him.

'But you will do so much better in Gryffindor!' The hat protested.

"So you want to be ripped apart then?" Asked Michael dangerously. Those were not empty words, and he would do it if the hat made his life harder.

'Now that I think about it, Ravenclaw seems like a much better choice, doesn't it?' The hat gulped audibly in his mind. 'Yeah, Ravenclaw is definitely the better choice, and I know best where to sort the students!' It said before proclaiming for all to hear. "RAVENCLAW!"

Michael got up from the stool, noticing that his robes now had a blue outline. He walked up to the Ravenclaw table and sat down, receiving nods from the rest of his housemates. Most of them seemed interested in Michael and had a lot of questions on their mind, but his cold expression stopped them from bringing them up.

Dumbledore stood up from his table and gave an opening speech, warning them about the Forbidden Forrest and to check up on the list of banned items. He announced the beginning of the feast, and the food magically appeared on the tables. After everyone had their fill, a prefect by the name of Anthony Brand led the first-year Ravenclaw students to the entrance of their Common Room, which was a door without a handle, but a bronze knocker in the shape of an eagle.

"This is the entrance to our Common Room!" Said Anthony. "To enter, you are required to answer its riddle."

Shortly, the eagle on the door spoke. "I can run but never walk. I have a mouth but never talk. I have a head but never weep. I have a bed but never sleep. What am I?"

"Anyone care to try?" Asked Anthony. A few did, but no one managed to answer it. The prefect then turned and did it for them. "A river." The door opened up with a click, confirming he was correct.

Anthony then showed them around the Common Room, which was filled with books everyone one looked. When he was done, Michael quickly left and entered his room. It was similar to the one he stayed in before, just slightly smaller. He grabbed the chair in it and moved it next to the window before sitting down. Delving into his memories, he continued with his Occlumency training.

Michael was going through the older ones. One of his closer friends by the name of George was animatedly talking about some new expansion for World of Warcraft. He was telling Michael about all kinds of new ways he could farm gold to sell for real life money while also somehow explaining the entire history of Azeroth at the same time.

"Fuck. Fuck. Fuck!" Michael repeated a few times as he opened his eyes. He just realized what exactly the Burning Legion was.