Chapter #3

3rd Person P.O.V,

Three siblings were seated at the table and were discussing some official matters regarding Hogwarts.

"Albus, doesn't the number of magical children seem bigger than usual this year?" [Ariana]

Albus Dumbledore, who was clearly not focusing on the conversation, absently answers, "Hmm…? Yes… it probably is." Aberforth just looks amused at them both.

The sound of a wooden object hitting a chair is heard clearly, 'Thuck!'

Albus is suspiciously rolling away from his chair.

"What is the deal Ariana?!" He scowls petulantly at Ariana who glares back at him with a matching scowl on her face.

"Will you pay attention to what I am saying?!" She thunders right back at him. Eventually Aberforth breaks into laughter at their behavior.

They both calm down and sit back at the table where the children had dinner a few hours ago.

"I just asked you a question Albus." [Ariana]

"Yes my dear, haven't I already explained? The population of magical children being born spikes every time a magical war is about to begin in earnest." [Albus]

"Did you convince that old hag to let you capture Grindelwald yet? Or is she still saying that the event is essential for humanity's survival?" [Ariana]

"It is essential for humanity's survival Ariana. I have told you before that the worlds' first official defender is born during this time period. He directly marks Humanity's rapid increase in genetic modifications."

Aberforth interrupts, "What about that guy you spend years looking for? You called him Sinister?"

Albus smiles at them, something between vicious and triumphant looking, and proceeds to explain why.

"Have you ever wondered why the wizards have weakened so much?" It was a rhetorical question. "I finally found out why… from his memories. They were locked behind impressive magical barriers but with time I was able to shatter them. The old wizards and many sorcerers gave up their magic and life-force to power a spell so strong that it wiped out the memories of anyone who was not a natural-born wizard regarding the wizarding world."

His face expressed his joy at sharing such momentous news. He further went on to say, "I even saw Merlin and the founders powering the spells. They were every bit as impressive as their legends… perhaps even more so as I cannot even begin to fathom how they devised the spell and its effect is too strong for them as well, no matter how strong they were magically… maybe they added that any magical above a certain level would be used as battery? That would explain why I always feel my magic draining… is this why no one strong exists other than Nicolas and Perenelle…" His words became lower in volume until no one could hear him.

Aberforth signed before shaking Albus's shoulder and asking him to explain what happened to Sinister.

"Oh, Sinister, I captured him and marked his soul. He turned out to be mostly useless other than the little history he had locked inside his head. But the spell is unbelievable in strength as when I asked the old hag whether she knew about the spell, she gave me an affirmative but clarified that she only remembers due to being the wielder of the **** Stone."

"So what is the problem? Isn't this a good thing? The fact that none of the sorcerers will remember us, we can easily leave the earth." [Aberforth]

"It is not a bad thing, just confusing. None of the ancient wizards had ascended to become a Realm Lord. How did they power such a spell… and no… what entity did they make a contract with… dammit! Did they sacrifice their souls?! That…"

His face took a mournful look as he reined his magic in.

"Once I was aware such a spell existed, it was easy enough to recognize its magical signature. Their souls are powering that spell… and that stupid, arrogant fool wants to start a war against muggles?! Does he intend to kill us all?! If magic comes to an actual risk of getting exposed to the muggles, the spell will suck all of us dry to power itself! No wonder it is so strong, even if I do not hold many expectations of the sorcerers, at least the 'Black Priestess' should have remembered our race…"

His magic was getting agitated and the air was becoming hot, until suddenly he reined his temper in. He took a few deep breaths to calm himself before smiling placidly and becoming pale. If his magic could be seen now, it would be seen depleting rapidly to a certain point. He staggered and was about to fall until he was supported by his brother to a chair.

"The spell is powering up isn't it? It is probably one of those spells that absorb more magic from you the more familiar you are with them. You can sense it as well and it probably latched to the first active magical signature that examined it."

Albus weakly nodded his head to signal his agreement. He winced as he sat down and smiled gratefully at Ariana when she poured him a glass of water.

The room was silent for a few moments until he spoke up.

"I will be good by morning. I have enough Energy to power the spell but my body is just not used to outputting so much rapidly."

Both Ariana and Aberforth signed in relief. Then they both slugged him lightly which he took with a faint smile. Aberforth just shook his head steadily to express his disapproval.

"Don't do something so reckless without preparation! How can you be such a hypocrite Al?! You tell us to perfect and examine everything patiently before doing anything and then choose to not follow it?!" Ariana's disapproval was more verbal.

Albus apologized non-verbally by smiling self-depreciatingly and holding her hands gently.

She signed before moving to the next agenda to look over tonight before they locked the door and went to sleep.

"We have 5 more Muggleborns that we have to invite tomorrow. Aberforth will go to them at the usual timings. I have already sent a letter in advance that will inform them of your visit. You know where to go right?" [Ariana]

"Yes my dear. You have only informed me… every day for the past 2 weeks." [Aberforth]

"Don't give me that sass!" She blushed brightly before mock glaring at him. Both Albus and Aberforth smiled warmly at her, thoroughly amused.

"A-Anyway, Albus is there anything we should know about the orphans you brought today?" She swiftly changed the topic.

"Yes. I have to take them to Gringotts to get registered for their vaults and test for any bloodlines that give them an inheritance. I will also have to contact the families whose descendants are registered on the tapestry after the bloodline test. I also have to take them shopping…" [Albus]

"Are the old families still trying to adopt the ones discovered from their lineage?" [Aberforth]

"Yes. Just 2 days ago, they attempted to take up their guardianship again but their reasoning is poor. They can easily reach out to their descendants during the entire school year under our watch but their guardianship is not up for debate." [Ariana]

"They are aware my dear but this is, at least for them, a way to prove their loyalty to their blood. Most families instantly adopt them magically, both squib descendant and Muggleborn child. They then perform the ritual on the parent/s to form a magical core within them, allowing them to become wizards."

Albus smiled while he paused speaking, he continued, "Honestly, I don't think I will ever truly tire of seeing their reactions when a squib gains a magical core and becomes a wizard… I remember when Lord Black came to me and threatened to kill me when I first revealed the ritual to generate a magical core. I calmly asked him to bring a squib to me if he was so suspicious. It was, as you know, well known that his son was a squib and was to be disinherited in 10 years. He brought his son to me, his friends and fellow lords came alongside him to witness me 'failing most miserably and dying painfully soon after' as they so eloquently put it. I performed the ritual and the child came out tired and breathless, but they could sense the black magic rolling away from him in waves. His father took out the core identifying device, which shined the dark color that is attributed to the Blacks. His father fell to his knees and hugged his son so tight that we all heard some popping sounds. He instantly healed of course; a phoenix tear is used in the ritual so the body's healing is supercharged in that short duration of finishing the ritual. A period of roughly 10 days, I believe."

"And that is when the Lords who were parents of your friends supported you and accepted your theory on how magic was gained by Muggleborns. You used these connections to get the wands changed from wooden sticks to rings. We know brother… this is part of the history books." [Aberforth]

Ariana giggled at how done Aberforth sounded before wandlessly conjuring a sofa and pushing him to the left. Albus calmly moved to the center while Ariana made herself comfortable on the right. They leaned against one another in contentment.

"The little lass who came last… she is quite the character ain't she? She glared at me when I came to inform you of dinner." Aberforth guffawed.

"Really?! That is adorable! She is so adorable, like a doll. I want to dress her up and keep hugging her. She had such an adorable and cute reaction to being carried; initially she was shocked that I could hold her at all and then she became accepting, leaning on me lightly while relaxing. Finally, when I carried her upstairs, she was blushing so brightly that I thought she would combust." Ariana started gushing about how cute she was.

She huffed when she saw their blank faces look at her before continuing.

"She was able to install her magical signature into the AC rune without touching it. She is quite talented as well. We haven't had a talent like her since Grace!" [Ariana]

"Speaking of the lass, where is Grace nowadays? Haven't heard from her since her wedding, you have any news of your protégé Al? [Aberforth]

"Grace got married 2 weeks ago. She is still on her honeymoon period with that brat." Albus answered his voice carrying anguish.

"Stop acting he stole her from you! What are you going to do when I decide to marry?" Ariana deadpanned at him.

"He did steal her from me. My cute daughter discipline was taken from our family… wait…" [Albus]

Albus and Aberforth simultaneously choked on air before shouting.

""What did you say?! You aren't marrying until I am dead young lady!""

They looked at one another and gave each other a solemn nod and a manly hug, solidifying their oath. Ariana wasn't quite as amused but she did giggle at their antics.

"You both are so dumb." She said but then mock huffed before continuing, "Don't forget who walked her down the aisle. I am pretty sure you cried the entire wedding Al. You probably adopted her by magic the same day didn't you?"

"I raised Grace from when she was a 6 years old little runt. She was perfect and the best child anyone could ask for. Why… why did she have to like that annoying brat?!" [Albus]

"Perfect… he says. She never cleaned her room, misbehaved several times every month and was even making the younger children cry sometimes!" [Ariana]

"Leave him; he is absolutely blind to her faults, just like he is to ours." [Aberforth]

Albus opened his mouth to say something but thought better of it. He changed the topic and began speaking of something else, "Young Eleanor is more talented than Grace. I was teaching her the basics behind magical theory and she understood it entirely in a span of a few hours. She was even able to apply the teachings by the time we were done."

"That is incredible…" remarked Aberforth before grinning like a loon and saying, "It seems you have some competition for the most talented student to graduate Hogwarts."

"We will see… it is too early to make such predictions." He scoffed amusedly before asking, "Ariana, have you contacted Gringotts about their test?" [Albus]

Ariana stared at him for a few moments before declaring, "You are excited… no… you are happy that she is so talented?" By the end of her statement it was more of a question.

"Perhaps I am. I haven't had an equal in terms of power since I was a boy. I have had no way of comparing my progress either… maybe her becoming my equal will be what I need to breakthrough…" Albus said in a blank tone, more considering than actually hopeful.

"The unfortunate thing for now is that I am actually being held back from acting directly against Gellert. First it was The Ancient One and now this Spell. Around 50% of my magic is actively being used by the spell keeping us hidden now." He scoffed, amused, before saying, "Ignorance is truly bliss."

Aberforth and Ariana shook their heads mockingly at him for a moment. They sat close to one another, cuddling on the sofa for some time.

Eventually Aberforth remarked, "We should get to bed. I have a long day ahead of me tomorrow. I will probably have to take two families for the ritual…"

"Yes. Only 3 of the kids are orphans and they are the last children for this year. Bring them here first before visiting the families." [Ariana]

"I know my dear. I have only done this every year for the past decade." [Aberforth]

"More." Remarked Albus with a sly smile before slowly getting up from the sofa, he turned around to give them both a nod and then smirked, "Good Night kids… don't stay up too late."

Both of them gave him a finger and he mockingly acted like he was getting a heart attack before giving them a two fingered salute and heading to his room.

10 minutes later,

The room was empty with no sign of anyone there.

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Next Morning, after sunrise,

Eleanor P.O.V,

The sun's bright rays illuminated my room leading to my awakening from my slumber. I blearily blinked at the ceiling in confusion before remembering yesterday and where exactly I was. The events of yesterday came crashing down on me as I remembered how emotionally draining the day was. Hopefully, I was done with all the nasty surprises.

I slowly controlled the temperature of my room to become less cool while getting up from my bed and walking over to my study table chair set and moving the chair to the area illuminated by the sun. I sat on it and got my daily dose of sunlight and Vitamin D. I looked outside the window towards the park and to my surprise noticed both Aberforth and Albus running in the park with a few grown children. They were easily keeping up with them and I would even say they… were playing with them.

I kept observing them for a few moments until Albus suddenly looked my way. I froze, akin to a child caught stealing candy. He grinned up at me full of (warmth), I realized and I basked in that feeling for a moment before giving him a smile and a wave. He waved back before he was called by the older kids for some reason.

Who were they anyway? I did not remember seeing them here at the orphanage yesterday. They looked quite young, probably around 15-19 at max. Were they staying here as well? I wonder where they were yesterday...

I observed Aberforth and Albus kicking their asses at every game they played before eventually going to the washroom to get ready for the day. I took my bath and looked straight at the mirror after brushing my hair and teeth. Black hair that went to my shoulder blades and bright blue eyes that seemed to faintly glow. I was ready for the day and was about to leave before suddenly remembering I had breakfast and I was also promised magical classes by Professor Al.

I suddenly could not wait; I had increased my understanding of how my magic worked by leaps and bounds since yesterday. I focused on my hand and slowly focused on conjuring a pencil; I closed my eyes and willed my magic to obey. I noticed a weight on my hands.

I opened my eyes to seeing an empty pencil; it did not have lead in it. I had quite some way to go before mastering conjuring but I was learning now.

I smiled exhilarated because I was finally doing something new, learning magic. My journey was beginning now. I almost skipped to the door before realizing what I was about to do and simply choose to walk instead.

I opened my door and noticed my name carved on the top of the door. I had made up my bed already and headed downstairs to ask when we have breakfast. I walked down the stairs only to notice how the kitchen was practically empty other than Aria-, how is she looking at me?- Aunt Ariana who was just floating on a chair with the dishes making themselves.

She smiled at me warmly before floating over to me and picked me up again! I naturally was about to struggle before realizing that if I disrupted her focus we would fall down. I did not want to hurt her so I stayed put and scowled mightily at her. She began pinching my cheeks and cuddling me while saying adorable the whole time, eventually she let me down and my cheeks were bright red. This woman was definitely one of those stupidly strong women who I used to observe existing in anime.

I schooled my features and asked her what was for breakfast. Judging from how her shoulders were trembling in amusement, I wasn't quite as successful as I had hoped to be.

"Have a look at everything and select what you want to eat. The only mandatory thing you have to eat is a bowl of salad and 3 glasses of water." Is what she said to me.

It was fair is what I thought before asking for bread and eggs with tea. How could anyone claim to be a British without liking tea was beyond me. From Aunt Ariana's double? nods of approval, she agreed with me twice?

Whatever, I did not have the time to think about the number of her nods; I wanted to get started with magical lessons as soon as possible.

I calmly ate my breakfast while thanking God for this blessing of eating my fill.

{Author's note: It is an expression that most people use; this is absolutely unrelated to any religion.}

My eyes twitched when I looked at the time, they had actual clocks here, and finally I did not feel like a caveman. It had been an hour since I went to get refreshed. I went back to my rooms and stretched my body for proper blood circulation and then I walked towards the park that still had the boys but there were a few older girls as well. I introduced myself to them and learned that they were at their friends' homes for a few days. They could do that from their 4th year onwards as long as they came for breakfast.

I walked around the park for a few rounds and noticed that I was not even slightly out of breath. Finally after a few more minutes of making acquaintances, I headed back inside, now ready for my classes. It was 7:30AM, and I knocked on Professor Al's door. No one answered for a few moments so I knocked again. Finally, I heard the sound of someone falling, (1 bet on who), and the door was opened. I saw Professor Al with his eyes tired and magic giving off (Lethargy-Sleepy-Fond-Warmth-Amusement) in that order.

I told him I was there for my magical lessons. He grinned wryly and then warmly at me. He invited me inside and WHAT?! What happened to this room?! Did someone break in?! Every surface was covered with weird contraptions that I did not even see yesterday. The chair I sat on yesterday was the one that was clear and it was probably because he was sitting on it. He noticed me staring at the room and actually apologized for the condition of his room yesterday.?! What!

Not today… he went on to explain how Aunt Ariana would always move his stuff away and then started ranting about how is an inventor supposed to invent anything without inspiration. I was speechless and a mixture of relieved and disappointed, he proved he wasn't perfect but on the other hand, I would have to stay here for the next few hours. I refused to study in this- this disorganized mess!

His room was also cold and I would probably need to wear a cloak to actually power through the temperature. Magic can only substitute for so much unless you actively direct it. I am not skilled enough to do that. He waved his hand and cleared his table of his death traps. I smiled in satisfaction and that and gave him a nod of approval. His smile twitched and I could sense his (Amusement) rolling off of him in waves until he suddenly went towards his wardrobe.

I was curious but not really invested in his sense of fashion to care. I had seen the robes that movie Dumbledore wore and I hadn't seen them anywhere yet. Hopefully I never do.

He came back with a cloak that he shrunk and wrapped around me. I was shocked for a few moments before I comprehended what he had done. I examined the cloak he gave me; it was dark black and seemed to suck in light around it. It seemed more like a mix of a jacket and cloak than simply a cloak. It had red highlighting that contrasted with the black and gave off an aesthetic appeal. It would automatically resize according to my proportions. I ignored the absolutely flat area on my chest (only 11 in years physically, I reminded myself) and examined it with my magic.

I could immediately feel his magic in the cloak. It had his unique signature on it that gave off (Warmth) and I quite liked it. It was pretty well worn and comfortable as well. I viciously tried to ignore how this was technically the 1st gift I had gotten in this life and the suspicious wetness of my eyes. His magic curled around me giving off (Warmth-Safe-Protective-Comfort) and I hugged him tightly for a moments. We stayed that way for a few minutes that seemed more like seconds.

I gave him a small smile after separating and he returned it with (Safe-Promise) which I knew because I could sense his magic and intentions. His smile was also small like it was yesterday. I liked this smile more than his wide one... it seemed a little… not fake… just not as sincere…

He tapped his finger on the table and a jug and 2 glasses of water appeared. He poured me some that I immediately sipped some from my glass. He got up and began setting up the board.

A proper teaching experience at last.

He started from Magical theory and asked me to demonstrate what I had learned from yesterday, I set to proving myself and showing him by performing partial transfigurations wandlessly on the wooden figure he conjured. He smiled in approval and I liked it very much. I had never quite understood what a master-apprentice relationship would be like but if it was anything like this, I could finally comprehend why they (the apprentices) were so driven.

He continued the lesson by guiding me through some exercises for controlling my output of magic and imagination. He gave me a few exercises to do in my room which I had to show him by tomorrow to ensure I had grasped what I had been taught. We moved to advanced magical theory which was basic conjuring and transfiguration of said item. At expert level, one could conjure items for months at a time.

Transfiguration, Alchemy and conjuring go hand in hand with magical theory.

(Author's Note: Think something like transfiguring the ground or something into something else to do what you want. Change an attack to something else entirely. Conjuring an item and transmuting it into what you want. Alchemy would usually be making pills and stuff but I only use it for creating magical items that can store magic or souls.)

I was learning things I already had been partially successful at doing for a long time and was finally being guided on how to do them properly. It was basically him telling me about how important intent is and how to direct it to accomplish proper magic.

He lectured me verbally for some time before switching to writing on the board he brought out of somewhere while I was drinking water. He would perform some demonstrations from time to time to allow me to test how much I was able to follow. I was a bit rough around the edges but did pretty well from his emotions (Fond-Proud-Joy).

I spent around 5 hours learning more about different magical disciples. He was about to start with history but then the door was knocked while I simultaneously yawned, a bit tired from learning for some time.

I could sense his (Amusement) at my tiredness; he still looked as fresh as he did when I came in. Which is not at all, he looked sleepy and seemed ready to doze off while standing. I started to feel a little guilty which must have shown on my face because his (Amusement) only seemed to increase which was making me annoyed.

He asked the person knocking the door to come in. It was Aberforth who had come to invite him for snacks before he left to pick up some other children. He looked surprised at my presence in Al's room (Professor Al insisted I call him Al when not talking to him as a teacher.) but he must have remembered what Al said yesterday before dinner so he just decided to invite me as well.

I decided to accept as I had nothing better to do other than practice magic and complete the given assignments in my room. I followed them to the dining room where the table was small enough for 5 people. I saw Aunt Ariana and already prepared myself for the inevitable. She picked me up like I weighted nothing which was probably true as magic enforced our bodies physically resulting in this. I was sitting at the table with them; I was right next to Aunt Ariana whereas they were seated opposite to us. They were talking about the world and the upcoming war which I remembered from the wiki, against Grindelwald.

They eventually began talking about when to take the orphans to Gringotts which is when I interjected and asked about what it was and why I had to go there.

I naturally knew the answer of the first question I asked but I was curious of the second. I knew it was a bank and stored money but not much else. It was here that they proceeded to blow my mind. A Lineage Test? A Ritual to make squibs into wizards? A confirmed theory that squibs are descended from wizards?

I felt as if my mind was about to burst with this information. It changed everything about the wizarding world; I asked them if it was common. It turns out that it is a relatively new invention that could be attributed to the one and only Albus Dumbledore… what a huge surprise. I wanted to scream for a few moments!

Where is my promised Hax future knowledge?! I feel more and more like I am dealing with someone else who is deliberately changing the future. They are probably using Al so I would have to stick close to him to find out who it was exactly.

I have already been caught by surprise multiple times now. I need to start focusing on the wizarding world's history. I reluctantly focused back to the present and decided to ignore these revelations for now and simply choose to bask in the warmth around me. Their (The Dumbledores) magic was really comforting.

We finished soon before Aberforth headed out to meet the children with families. He tasked me with talking to the 3 orphans who he had shown to their rooms to rest before our snack together. I accompanied by Al knocked on their doors and showed them around the house. It was mostly Al as I hadn't actually set out to map the orphanage yet.

He smiled at them warmly before telling them the basic history that he gave me yesterday. I used his distraction to measure the amount of magic in their bodies and they barely had a quarter of my amount. It was so… light. I could feel my magic and compared to theirs, mine was much denser and compact. I could feel it flowing through my body in a cycle that would refresh me physically. I excused myself until lunch so I could practice what I had learned and complete my given assignments from Professor Al.

I wanted to ask him more about history of the magical world in the afternoon, after lunch. We were to visit Gringotts tomorrow for the Lineage test whose results would only be made public to the families who had a descendant discovered. No one could even learn their last names unless the families choose to make it public. This was an advantage for me as I could choose to keep my last name, Riddle but I did not want to.

I had asked him what would happen if the heir of a well-known ancient destroyed family was discovered.

He replied, "It would only be made public if they wanted it known. The choice rests on their shoulders. They will stay with us until their years at Hogwarts are over and until they have found a job." [Albus]

It was up to me to choose my own second name. I hadn't decided yet but I would think on it tonight before bed/dinner.

I asked what time would we have lunch and Aunt Ariana told me that I should be downstairs by 4:20PM.

I headed back to my room, the familiar warmth of the cloak that was gifted to me hung around me like an armor. It had Professor Al's magical signature all over it and that is what probably made it so comfortable. I could feel his magic surrounding me with (Warmth-Comfort-Protective-Safe) which reassured me that I would be safe here.

It wasn't like the orphanage I lived in previously. I had to deal with the mental consequences of living in that place for so long. I only fell asleep last night due to being very mentally exhausted, otherwise I have to usually deal with sleepless nights and bad dreams. I felt safe with the cloak so maybe I could sleep with it on…? I would have to test this…

Chapter End.

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