Harry knocked on the door to the large house before pushing it open without waiting for a response. He called out, "Aunt Sissy, Sirius bullied and beat me up this morning, and I need healing before we leave!" He then ducked under said bully's attempt to grab him, laughing as he did so.
"I'll be there in a minute!" a voice called back from somewhere further into the house.
As they waited, Draco came down the stairs, already dressed in the first-year uniform provided by the school. Joining them in the foyer, he greeted the two adults before giving Harry a look up and down and stifling a laugh, much to Harry's consternation.
"Laugh it up, Draco. You're going to be my sparring partner for the next week," Harry said, making Draco choke on his laugh and begin apologizing, to no effect.
Narcissa, known to them as Aunt Sissy, then walked into the room. She gave her sister a hug and Sirius a withering glare before greeting Harry. As she did, she performed a quick scan of his body and started healing him. "Hello, Harry. You should know better than to spar with that mutt on an important day like this," she gently admonished him, causing his head to duck slightly in embarrassment.
"I know, but he woke me up several hours early for a prank, and I figured keeping him up too was about the only reasonable thing I could do. Plus, every extra bit of practice helps."
Nodding her head in understanding and shooting Sirius a look that promised misery, she finished healing the last of his bruises, and they made their way to the Floo before heading straight through to the shuttle site.
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Seeing everyone already in their various school uniforms, Harry decided he might as well do the same. He made a sign with his left hand, and his clothes were replaced with the uniform that was in his trunk. This earned envious gazes from several kids on the platform waiting to board the shuttle, including Draco.
"I still think that Jutsu is unfair. It took me thirty minutes to get into my uniform this morning."
"Sucks to suck, I guess. You're the one who chose Greenland over Japan for your trip this year."
"Yeah, yeah, so you keep reminding me."
"You're the one who keeps complaining."
After that, they were quiet until the shuttle arrived and they said their goodbyes. Boarding the massive ship, they made their way to the compartment reserved for their school.
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Upon entering their compartment, they were surprised to see not one but three other students. One was expected because they already knew him, but the other two were unexpected because they would be attending a very prestigious academy, the best in this part of the galaxy and consistently ranked in the top fifty in the Milky Way. Five students in the same year from one continent was a large number. Usually, for two students from a continent to pass the entrance exams in one year was considered good.
Snapping from their thoughts, they walked in and were about to introduce themselves but were beaten to the punch by the only girl in the room. "You must be Hadrian and Draco. I'm Hermione. It's a pleasure to meet you both."
Draco wore a look of confusion and asked, "How do you know our names?" Before the excitable girl could reply, Harry cuffed Draco on the back of the head and answered for her. "Use the common sense I beat into you, you pillock. She obviously learned them from Neville." He gestured to their friend who was sitting to the side, enjoying the byplay.
Draco rubbed the back of his head while grumbling. "How come at home you can act like an idiot, but any time I do it, I get punished?"
"Because for me it's an act. Unfortunately, you just really are an idiot most of the time," came the quick retort, drawing a snort from the as-of-yet-unintroduced fifth student.
"And you are?"
"Blaise Zabini, it's a pleasure to meet you," he replied while extending his hand to shake.
"Ah, of Zabini fashion?"
"Yes. I'm the heir. Though I must say, I'm surprised you're familiar with it. We aren't exactly a household name outside of Italy."
"My family purchases most of our formal wear from your grandmother."
"Huh, small world."
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After the introductions were done, the shuttle finally started moving, so they all stared out the window as they rose into the air, gaining speed quickly. After about thirty seconds, they began passing through the world membrane—a barrier that most worlds had that hid the wider galaxy from natives without access to space—and rapidly accelerated, making their way toward a gargantuan portal sitting at the edge of Jupiter's orbit. This portal would then take them to a nexus world, where they would move over to a ship specifically heading to their school.
While in transit, they naturally started discussing different topics. "So, does anyone know their class designation yet?" Blaise asked.
"No, class assignments aren't given until after orientation. Though if you know your entrance scores, you should have a general idea of your placement based on previous year's entrance scores."
"Well, where do you think you placed?"
"Hadrian definitely placed in 'elite class one', whereas I probably landed at the top of 'elite class two', and Neville should be in the same class as I am. What about you two?" Draco returned.
Blaise, it turned out, would likely be grouped with both Draco and Neville. Turning to the last member of their small group, they waited for her answer.
"Actually, I'm a bit confused about what you're talking about. I never took an entrance exam," she replied, slightly embarrassed, to the surprise of the four boys.
"You must have really impressed the Headmistress then. I didn't even know they did special admissions," Neville said with admiration.
Hermione blushed harder before saying, "Not that I know of. I just got a bunch of acceptance letters and a list of things to bring with me. I chose the school that looked the best."
Realizing something was wrong, Harry spoke up. "What school are you supposed to be attending?" Hearing his question, everyone quickly realized what was happening.
"Neo Hogwarts. Why?"
"You're in the wrong compartment. We are going to ACE Academy. How did you even get into the room?"
"I asked some older students for directions, and they brought me here."
"Do you remember what they looked like?"
"It was two older redheaded twins." Harry and Neville chuckled while Draco scowled and said with clear venom, "Freaking Weasleys, they always cause trouble."
Deciding that she could find her proper group at the Nexus world, Hermione used this opportunity to learn what she could from them. It might be good to get their perspective on things, as they were obviously very familiar with the wizarding world, at least much more than her.