Chapter 5-Different Perspectives

Tom POV

Watching Andrew walk out I felt a sense of pride in my chest. The kid was an orphan who ended up here a few years back. He somehow already knew about magic and wanted to get a head start. I had my doubts at first, but after having run some errands for me I introduced him to some others that might be willing to help him. All good people mind you. He ended up doing work for them as well.

After he saved some money, he asked if he could store some books at my bar. I didn't think twice about it and showed him somewhere he could use. Like clockwork, he would run errands, study at the bar, and store his books away before going on about his business. One day, out of curiosity I went to his stash to see what types of books he was reading. Arithmancy, runes, occlumency, magic theory, healing, law, and etiquette. There were even notes that he kept alongside all of them. I respected the kid already seeing how hard he worked. For someone his age to work without complaint is rare, but to see him use the money to actually get ahead in life is even more. Seeing that, I gained an honest admiration for him and decided to help him if he ever needed it. Watching him leave with Professor McGonagall was a bit like watching your kid go off to Hogwarts for the first time. Ok, maybe not that much, but you get the idea. I just hope he does well.

POV Minerva McGonagall

I had just finished another trip to Diagon with a new student like I've done many times before, but this student was a bit different. The trip to the orphanage was relatively normal, but the student was different. He already had already been to Diagon Alley and apparently did enough work to have a small savings. I initially assumed he had found the alley after receiving his letter. His question regarding being a healer was different, but not too out of the ordinary. At this point, he'd just been a polite boy with a good work ethic and a good head on his shoulders.

As we entered the bar, Tom and a few other regular patrons greeted him by name and made some small talk. They weren't talking like people that only knew each other for a few weeks, but rather for a few years. After the greetings and small talk were done, we entered the alley and went straight to Gringotts. Near the entrance, we were a voice I had recognized called out to me. I turned to recognize my old acquaintance Arcturus Black along with some members of his family.

Some might be surprised, but I've always had a decent relationship with him and Charlus Potter. I greeted them and noticed that Andrew seemed to tense up as I did. I've met all of them prior with exception of Narcissa, who gave me a very formal greeting. Afterwards, I was surprised to see Bellatrix of all people walk directly over to Andrew with a mischievous grin on her face. She gave Andrew a formal greeting and he surprisingly returned it perfectly with a stoic look on his face. Knowing Bellatrix she wanted to mess with the boy for some reason, but he didn't give her the opportunity. Everyone was fairly surprised that the boy dressed in 'hand-me-downs' actually knew some etiquette. I wonder how they would react if they knew he was an orphan.

Sensing Andrew's discomfort, I kept the conversation brief and entered Gringotts. Once there, Andrew talked with the goblin in fluent Gobledegook and the goblin got him his money. The shopping wasn't too eventful and I eventually brought him home. I'll certainly be keeping my eye on him.

POV Bellatrix Black

After going shopping for our school supplies we came home and had a family dinner. It was something that grandpa Arcturus had already planned and had done years prior when we went shopping for school supplies. During these dinners, everyone in the family would show up and we usually discuss everything from politics and marriage to the upcoming school year. This dinner was a bit more special because Narcissa would begin her first year with Andromeda and myself being in our 3rd and 4th years respectively.

Political discussions involved the recent banning of rituals that left all of the dark families furious, while marriage talks were the same as usual. Show us the line-up of 'eligible' candidates and get us to consider our options, even if we don't really get a say. Then there is the talk of what is expected of us for the coming school year. How we need to finish near the top of our class and how we have to uphold proper pure-blood values. The same things we hear every year. We get it, we don't need a reminder every year. Finally the talks came to today's shopping trip.

Our shopping trip usually starts early in the morning and ends around noon. It usually consists of walking around, buying our supplies, then heading home. However, today grandpa had to stop by Gringotts for some business and we met up with him at the entrance. There we encountered Professor McGonagall guiding a new student.

"By the way Bellatrix, why did you bother to interact with that mudblood?" Asked my mother.

Thinking back I remember the boy. He had bright amethyst eyes and jet black hair. In a few years he'll probably be quite popular. What drew my interest wasn't his looks, but rather something else.

"There were a couple of reasons mother. The first was that he felt different."

"Different how?"

"From a distance he gave off a weird feeling that I had never encountered before. The other reason was that I thought it would be fun to tease him. He was obviously muggleborn, but the moment he heard our names he stiffened up like he knew who we were. He also looked terrified when he saw me though he hid his reaction well. He's probably already learning occlumency."

"And what was the purpose of approaching him?"

"I wanted to see if what he was doing was some kind of spell that I had never heard of before. He had a certain… vibrancy that just wasn't normal. Once I got close to him I was able to get a better understanding of what it was. What I was feeling wasn't magic at all, but something else entirely."

"Oh, and do you know what it might have been?"

"Not exactly, but if I had to say based off the feeling, then it would be his vitality. It was like the very essence of his life force was so dense and abundant that I could actually feel it. It wasn't something that he was actively controlling, but rather a part of him. It was honestly refreshing just being near him."

"Vitality? Are you sure you weren't just imagining things? Bellatrix dear, when people speak of vitality and life force they're refering to the overall health of a person's body, not some other type of energy."

"Mother, that's the only way that I'm able to describe it. As I've said, it was only a guess."

This time grandpa spoke, "I recall hearing stories of druids of the past giving off similar feelings, but different from what Bellatrix has desribed."

My uncle asked, "What do you mean father?"

"The feeling of vitality didn't come from the druids themselves, but rather the environment that they lived. Druids were known to perform strange rituals that would cleanse the land and enhance its vitality. It would also have the effect of enhancing the area's magic. Sadly, no one knows of any true druids alive today to verify and their magic has been lost to time. The Greengrass family is the only one I know of that has some druidic roots. The boy may be a descendant of one or have some rare magic ability related to nature. Either way, you should keep pay attention to him in school."

This time my aunt Walburga spoke, "You would have my niece worry about some filthy mudblood?"

"Walburga, even mudbloods have their uses. Besides, when Bellatrix approached and greeted him he gave a proper response, etiquette and all. Even Minerva was surprised. That means he's at least taken the time to learn of our ways if only a little."

"I suppose as long as the mudblood knows his proper place, then I can't say too much."

Grandpa was right after all. Unlike my aunt who is deep into pureblood ideology and had a strong hae for muggleborns, grandpa is much more pragmatic. Sure, he still believes in upholding traditions, but he doesn't outright hate muggleborns. If one proves valuable, then he would try to make use of them and get them under his thumb. He just dislikes them entering our society and inserting their own views without genuinely trying to understand ours. Unfortunately, Hogwarts doesn't teach them any of that and Dumbledore has worked hard to prevent students from learning about our culture. Ever since the war he's used his newfound authority to ban many different magics and to remove traditional teachings.

The fact that the boy gives off that strange energy and that he has taken the time to learn some basic etiquette demonstrates that he's worth paying a bit of attention to. This year, I'll certainly be watching him to see how he turns out. I'll have to keep the other idiots from my house off of him though. If they find out about grandpa's interest in him the idiots may bother him. It should be an interesting year.