Death is but the Next Great Adventure

All Aboard the Hogwarts Express

During the month that Harry had until the beginning of his first year at Hogwarts, Harry returned to Diagon Alley once more. All he picked up were a few interesting looking books, a few quality sets of wizarding robes, and a snowy owl named Hedwig.

Also during that time, Harry acclimated the spells he knew to using them with a wand. The trouble with going from all wandless magic to using a wand, was that all of his spells were too overpowered at first. Spells can be amplified by using more magic than necessary, but if they become overpowered, they end up shorting out and not working.

For the first time, Harry and his relatives seemed to co-exist without conflict. Harry didn't have to do chores and could focus on reading and practicing spells while his relatives ignored his existence completely. It worked perfectly well for him, in this case.

By the end of the month Harry had completely finished going through his text books—reading theories, trying out unfamiliar spells, and skimming anything unimportant that he'd already known. Harry had felt the difference in his magic ever since he'd become the 'Master of Death,' he kept it contained most of the time, knowing how uncomfortable it made others.

It was one week before Harry was to leave that the doorbell rang and a loud fist pounded against the door like a battering ram. Being the closest to the door and having not heard anything from his aunt about guests—which would otherwise mean him staying in the cupboard until they left—Harry answered the door to find a mountain of a man with frizzy and frayed brown hair and beard that passed his shoulders. His clothes were well worn and a bit on the 'scrappy' side, though Harry knew all too well what that was like. Hell, he was currently wearing Dudley's tattered hand-me-downs and looking like a child who'd stolen his father's clothing to play dress up in. The man smiled at Harry in a friendly manner.

"Hey there Harry! Mind if I come in?" The man asked in a gruff voice, looking unsure and awkward when Harry didn't immediately welcome the stranger into his home.

'Ah, Rubeus Hagrid. He is on staff at Hogwarts and, if I'm not mistaken, he was the one to transport you from Godric's Hollow all the way to 4 Privet Drive the night your parents died. He is a bit of a simple man, but seems quite loyal. Especially to Albus Dumbledore.' His companion filled in helpfully. Harry had figured that they would eventually send someone to make sure that their Boy Who Lived would actually be able to attend Hogwarts.

Harry silently invited the enormous wizard into the house and brought him straight through to the back yard, ignoring the pointed glares he received from the rest of the inhabitants of the house. Hagrid sat down on one of the patio chairs, looking like an adult sitting in a child's chair.

"Tea?" Harry asked before he sat down, when Hagrid politely turned him down, Harry sat across from him and waited for the man to begin whatever he came here to say. After an awkward moment of fidgeting, Hagrid leaned across the table, making it almost half way, before speaking in a low tone so that only Harry could hear.

"Yer a wizard, Harry. It's marked down that you read the letter, but they sent me to make sure that you understood what it means. Yer parents—" Harry cut him off by raising a hand to stop Hagrid.

"I know. I understand what I am, and there was no need for you to come. It was a pleasure meeting you Hagrid, but I'm afraid I don't need any assistance. I will see you September 1st." Harry smiled politely and stood back up, an obvious but not unkindly dismissal. Hagrid sat back, mouth hanging open and working to try to say something, but apparently Harry not needing his help had been enough to render the man speechless.

Curious. . . If they had expected me to be completely out of the loop, as the supposed Savior of the Wizarding World, why wait until only a week before I would be thrust into that life to reveal that I'm actually a wizard? Waiting until the last week, or even the last month, to change my whole world was only asking for a disaster.