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Hey guys, sorry for the delay on this chapter! I've been busy with my girlfriend, but to make up for it, I've written a bunch of chapters. If you want to unlock them early, head over to my P@treon !
(PS: A friend suggested I create a P@treon account. If you'd like to see advanced chapters posted on Webnovel, that's where you can find them! I'll also mention all the supporters at the end of each chapter!)
Search : StoryLabo or click in my bio
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The day dragged on like a rainy Sunday without TV.
Aiden tried to put on a good face, to play along with the orphanage's normal activities, but damn, it was hard to concentrate on Mrs. Pemberton's math homework when you had just discovered that you had become a future intergalactic heartthrob and could talk to the elements.
The other children kept staring at him. Eddie spent his time circling around him like a faulty satellite, Mary constantly wanted to touch his new white hair.
- "They really shine! How do you do that?" she said, and even Tommy, usually accustomed to sulking in his corner, stared at him with fish eyes.
- "You look like a fairy tale prince," Peter had declared with all the innocence of his eight years.
A fairy tale prince in appearance only because he was more the type to control minds and manipulate bankers, yeah. The kind of tale you don't tell children.
But what really drove him crazy was the waiting, that fucking wait that gnawed at his guts. He knew the timeline by heart and Harry had received his letter on the night of July 30th to 31st, just after midnight. Now it was August 1st, and still nothing.
Had Hogwarts forgotten him? Had his late magical awakening screwed up their records?
Probably the protagonist's aura, we're not all the child of prophecy... he concluded sadly.
He spent the afternoon pretending to read in the common room, but actually he was watching for every sound coming from outside. Every pigeon landing on the windowsill made his heart jump.
And then, around 5:30 PM, it happened.
All the children looked up, but Aiden felt his stomach do a triple somersault. He didn't know this sound but he had dreamed of it a thousand times.
Outside, perched with all the dignity of a royal ambassador, a magnificent white owl speckled with brown observed them with its large golden eyes. Attached to its right paw was a thick letter, sealed with something that gleamed under the late afternoon light.
- "Wow, look at that owl!" exclaimed Mary.
- "It has something on its paw," added Eddie rushing toward the window.
But Aiden was already standing, his legs wobbly. His hands were trembling, damn, they were really trembling when he opened the window.
The owl extended its paw with professionalism that commanded respect. Aiden delicately detached the parchment, and as soon as it was done, the bird spread its majestic wings and disappeared into the London sky without a backward glance.
Weird, in fanfictions, these owls are rather greedy. He wondered.
Aiden finally looked down at the envelope and almost had a heart attack.
The address was written in emerald green ink, in perfect calligraphy that made his own writing look like illiterate scribbling:
Mr A. Mortensen
Room No. 3, second bed on the right
Saint Augustine's Orphanage
21 Chepstow Road, London W2
And there, in the upper right, pressed in blood-red wax: the Hogwarts coat of arms. A lion, a serpent, a badger and an eagle surrounding a large Gothic H.
His heart was beating so loud he was sure the others could hear it.
Even my bed address is exact hahaha!
- "Aiden?" Tommy's voice seemed to come from another dimension. "Are you okay? You've become all... well, even paler."
- "It's... it's for me," he stammered showing the envelope. "It's my name written on it."
He broke the seal with surgeon's gestures, no way he was going to screw up this historic moment, and unfolded the cream-colored parchment.
And there, holy shit, he read the words he had fantasized about for years:
HOGWARTS SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY
Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore (Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorcerer, Chief Warlock, Supreme Mugwump, International Confederation of Wizards)
Dear Mr Mortensen,
We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment.
Term begins on 1 September. We await your owl by no later than 31 July.
Yours sincerely,
Minerva McGonagall Deputy Headmistress
Then came the list. The fucking magical list that all Potterheads knew by heart:
HOGWARTS SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY
UNIFORM First-year students will require: 1. Three sets of plain work robes (black) 2. One plain pointed hat (black) for day wear 3. One pair of protective gloves (dragon hide or similar) 4. One winter cloak (black, silver fastenings)
Please note that all pupils' clothes should carry name tags.
COURSE BOOKS All students should have a copy of each of the following :
The Standard Book of Spells (Grade 1) by Miranda Goshawk
A History of Magic by Bathilda Bagshot
Magical Theory by Adalbert Waffling
A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration by Emeric Switch
One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi by Phyllida Spore
Magical Drafts and Potions by Arsenius Jigger
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by Newt Scamander
The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection by Quentin Trimble
OTHER EQUIPMENT 1 wand 1 cauldron (standard size 2, pewter) 1 set glass or crystal phials 1 telescope 1 set brass scales
Students may also bring, if they desire, an owl OR a cat OR a toad.
PARENTS ARE REMINDED THAT FIRST YEARS ARE NOT ALLOWED THEIR OWN BROOMSTICKS
And at the bottom, added by hand in different, rounder writing:
"A staff member will visit your orphanage in the coming days to meet you and explain our world. Your particular situation requires personalized accompaniment for your purchases. We know this is a lot to take in."
Aiden reread the letter three times, just to be sure he wasn't dreaming. His hands were still trembling, but now it was pure excitement.
- "Aiden?" Eddie approached, intrigued by his silence. "What is it?"
Aiden looked up. All his roommates were there, curious, innocent, with no idea that their buddy had just received his acceptance letter to the world's most famous magic school.
- "It's..." He cleared his voice, trying to appear normal. "It's an acceptance letter. For a specialized school."
- "A school?" Peter frowned. "Since when do schools send their letters by owl?"
Excellent question, little Peter. Excellent question.
- "I'm going... I'm going to show this to Mrs. Pemberton."
He rushed down the stairs, the letter pressed against his heart like a treasure and found Mrs. Pemberton in the kitchen, peeling potatoes with the blasé air of someone who'd been doing it for fifteen years.
- "Mrs. Pemberton!" He burst into the kitchen like a hurricane. "Look! I received this!"
He waved the letter under her nose with the enthusiasm of a kid who had just won the lottery. Mrs. Pemberton wiped her hands on her apron and took the parchment, frowning at seeing the red wax seal.
- "Hogwarts... school of witchcraft?" She looked up at him with that expression all children know, that of adults who think you're delirious but don't want to hurt you. "Aiden, my little heart, I know you love adventure books and fantasy, but..."
He read her thoughts like an open book: Poor little one. With everything happening to him right now, this bizarre physical transformation... He must be completely disturbed. Someone sent him this to mock him, I'm sure.
- "Mrs. Pemberton," he said in as composed a voice as possible, "look at the bottom of the letter. It says a professor is going to come here, to the orphanage, to explain everything."
She reread more carefully, then looked at him with that patient and tender smile adults have when they don't want to break the illusions of a child they love.
She doesn't believe it at all. But she doesn't want to disappoint me.
- "Well," she finally said returning the letter to him. "If a professor is supposed to come, then... we'll wait for him. Agreed, my big boy?"
- "Agreed!" Aiden concluded with her.
Damn, that's it. Here we go. Direction Hogwarts, guys.
He went back up to his room, letter still in hand, heart beating as if he had just run a marathon. Through the window, he heard the other children playing in the yard, their carefree laughter floating in the evening air.
Soon, he would no longer be part of that world. Soon, he would be elsewhere, in a castle lost somewhere in Scotland, learning real magic with people who would never know he was thirty years ahead of everyone.
He sat on his bed and looked one last time at the acceptance letter, savoring every word.
Tomorrow, maybe, or the day after, a wizard would ring at the orphanage door. And his real life would finally begin.
Aiden Mortensen carefully slipped the letter into his secret notebook, next to his brand new bank card.
He sat cross-legged on his bed and closed his eyes, letting his consciousness drift toward his usual platform.
And there, he literally remained open-mouthed.
His ocean of orange clouds had been replaced by... a dream archipelago.
Floating islands extended as far as the eye could see, each unique, each breathtakingly beautiful. Some were covered with lush forests with multicolored foliage trees, others sheltered crystal lakes from which cascades gushed that were lost in the cloudy void. One island was entirely made of crystals that sparkled with a thousand lights, another seemed to be a hanging garden where impossible flowers grew.
His brick platform now fluttered between these wonders, navigating from island to island with aerial grace.
Holy shit. My mental space... it's become a fucking flying paradise.
Aiden was there, sitting on his platform, contemplating this magnificence. Every detail was perfect, every color more vivid than nature. And he felt... he felt that all this was alive. The trees moved in an imperceptible breeze, water murmured crystalline melodies, even the stones of the islands seemed to pulse with their own energy.
Are... are these elements like those of the real world? Do they have their own consciousnesses?
A cascade falling from a neighboring island attracted his attention. The water sparkled with golden reflections, and he could have sworn he saw tiny luminous silhouettes dancing in the droplets.
I need to go see that up close.
He concentrated on his platform, trying to direct it toward the cascade island. But... nothing. The platform continued its random route, completely ignoring his control attempts.
Come on, move!
He tried again, frowning, intensely visualizing the desired direction. But it was like pushing against an invisible wall. He felt resistance, something blocking his will.
My mind... it's still too weak damn it. Too immature to control all this when I'm already overpowered I think.
It was frustrating, but at the same time logical. His mental space had evolved far beyond what he was currently capable of mastering. It was like giving the keys to a castle to a five-year-old child.
He reopened his eyes, returning to the real world. Through the window, the last rays of sun illuminated London with golden light.
For now, I have an appointment with my destiny. Hogwarts awaits me.