Lily's eyebrow twitched at her son's comment as she tried to keep her smile and calm demeanor. "I'm sure this year will be a very productive and memorable year." She noted Harry trying to leave the Great Hall only to be held down by Daphne and Cedric Diggory. Diggory because he wanted Harry to stay seated, Daphne because she wanted to see him squirm. "As many of you know," she continued, barely restraining her annoyance because of her son's behavior. "I was once a student here. I had seven unforgettable years here and wish to give you all the same treatment." She finished, her teeth clenched.
"This has to be a dream," repeated Harry as he slapped himself.
"That's it!" said Lily as she went to him. She went to him as Tracey and Daphne grinned and held him in his spot. "What's so bad about being taught by your mother?! You ungrateful brat!" She shouted as she grabbed his ear.
"Nothing, I was just looking for a break. Battle axe," her said in a low voice.
"Battle axe! You little…!" Lily started messing with Harry, though there was no malice in her actions. The girls laughed at this familiar sight and Elijah sighed, pinching the bridge of his eyes.
"It's been 2 minutes, and you're both already acting like children. Dammit."
"Language, 'Professor Crowe'," said Hermione, smiling.
"Hermione, don't make me take points away already. Lily! If you're done tormenting your brat, can we please sit down so we can eat?"
"All done," she said as she stood up, grinning from ear to ear. Daphne looked at Harry and laughed. Lily had put make up on her son. The other members of House Anima Mea joined in, sans Harry, who just sat there, arms crossed and grumbling. She went and sat in a chair next to a stunned McGonagall and Flitwick. "Hello again, Professor's."
"Lily," said Professor Flitwick. "Is that really you?"
"In my sixth year, I was the first to figure out how to create a corporeal Patronus, right behind me was Remus Lupin who was the only other successful person to create a full Patronus."
"My word, it is you!" She smiled at her former professors as they now knew she was their favorite student. "You've been alive all this time?"
"Yes, I've been hiding away since the attack. Mr. Crowe saved me that night. Me and James had met him a few days prior to the incident and he was able to save only one of us with Harry. James insisted I be the one to raise Harry." Lily grew solemn as she mentioned her departed husband. Minerva placed a hand on her shoulder to console her. She smiled in appreciation at her old mentor. "Thank you, Minnie. After Elijah saved me, we decided to hide. This was after he had helped Sirius apprehend Peter. Sirius at the time was hellbent on getting revenge for James and so never mentioned my being alive to Dumbledore, opting instead to focus on his work to becoming an Auror, and his love life with Amelia Bones.
"I believe it was a good thing we went into hiding as, on my last visit to Gringotts, I learned someone was trying to gain access to the Potter vaults and Augusta mentioned in passing someone trying to claim the Potter votes in the Wizengamot without explicit permission, and without proof of death of both me and James." Lily observed out of the corner of her eye that Dumbledore has stiffened slightly at mention of this, it wasn't enough for most to notice offhand, only if they knew what to look for." 'Got you, you bearded bastard.'
"And when did you return to Harry," asked McGonagall." I regret to say myself and Albus left Harry at that horrid sister of yours."
"The day after Elijah saved me. I could tell you did your best to try and help him, Minnie. The warming charms you put were enough to keep him from freezing in the middle of the night. It was cold there. But it seemed like they wore off at some point."
"Wore off?"
"It was either that, or someone erased the charm altogether. But who would do such a thing to a baby?" She watched Dumbledore sweat just a bit and smirked internally. 'I'm onto you, Dumbledore. Just you wait.'
"I assure you, Lily. I did everything I could think of to try and get Harry away from those people. I tried contacting your friends, but they were all either dealing with major problems, or had been attacked, like poor Frank and Alice."
"Frank and Alice are fine now, in case you didn't know."
"Really," asked Flitwick. "How? I thought they'd been Crucioed into insanity."
"Not quite," said Elijah as he sat next to Flitwick. "What had happened was their souls had been badly damaged, to the point where neither could fully sustain their bodies, just enough to eat, drink and sleep. Luckily for me, they were Soul Mates, this means their souls were compatible with each other. I was able to work with this and combine their souls together into a soul binding."
"A forced soul binding?" asked Minerva. "But that's impossible."
"It normally is. But normal witches and wizards don't have access to Soul Magic."
"S-Soul M-Magic?" asked Filius. "But I thought it was…"
"Just a myth. I know, I've heard it before, countless times. But it's not a myth. It's very real and very powerful. My family was once one of nine who actively practiced Soul Magic. Then other mages grew jealous of our power and moved to attack us. Now, all but two of the families are gone. Of those two families, three of us are left. I am the last of the Crowe Family."
"And Harry and I are the last of an unknown family."
"You mean…" asked Minerva.
"Yes. Just look at our eyes." Minerva and Filius looked at Lily's eyes and gasped, seeing the small flecks of silver in them. They turned their attention to Harry and saw his fully silver eyes.
"Incredible…" breathed Minerva, that's when she noticed the eyes of the girls. "Do they all…?"
"Yes. Elijah taught us all Soul Magic. He's a master of it."
"Master by default. I can't truly be a master until I learn everything in my Uncle's grimoire. And even then, without the grimoires of the other families, I still wouldn't be called a Master."
"Learn to take a compliment Elijah."
"I can take a compliment, thank you very much."
"You're welcome."
"You… I… Dammit." Lily giggled as the food finally appeared and she dug in. Minerva and Filius shared a look and turned to their own foods.
Severus Snape was beside himself. At first, he'd been unamused with Harry Potter, drawing everyone's attention to himself, just like his father. And then he'd been one of the few children selected into the new House, Anima Mea. Snape could guess the purpose of this new house. Having attributes of all houses, not just one or two. For Snape, this meant Potter's behavior took on a new meaning. Harry's behavior was more than just an attempt to grab the spotlight, it was to gauge other's reactions. Thinking back, he spotted Potter glancing often at the Head table, his eyes lingering on the Headmaster. 'Why would he be trying to get the Headmaster's attention?' Snape spent the rest of the sorting thinking on that. Then he received the shock of his life. After the new professor, Elijah Crowe made his appearance, he'd called out his assistant, whose face had been concealed by a large hat. Then she removed it, and Snape's heart had stopped for a moment.
There in front of him stood the woman who had captured his heart years ago. His former best friend, and the woman who's death he had mourned on October 31st, 1981 in the Potter Cottage directly after Voldemort's attack. Lily Evans Potter. Snape watched as she gave her speech, getting increasingly annoyed by her son. He watched as she tormented her son in a loving manor and saw he was equally amused and annoyed. He saw her smile, a sight he'd missed since he stupidly ruined their friendship. When his food appeared before him, he didn't eat, his mind focused on what he had put her through 10 years ago.
'I hurt her. All for my stupid allegiance to the Dark Lord. I almost got her killed, and her son. I'd gotten Potter… James, killed. How could I do that to her?' A rational part of his mind told him that he didn't know she would be targeted until he realized she had a child with James Potter. 'That's a lie. I'd already suspected since she hadn't been seen in nine months. A part of me wanted the Dark Lord to kill Potter and the child to drive her towards me in the end. I was willing to hurt her just to be with her.' He looked at her with heavy regret and made a decision. He stood up and made his way to her.
"Lily…" She froze from eating her food and turned around. She stared at him for a second before recognition set in.
"Sev?"
"Hello, Lily. How long has it been since I… called you that?"
"15 years, I think. How have you been?"
"I've… been better. I have something I need to tell you. Something that… will make you see me in a different light. Can we meet somewhere private later?"
"Um… sure, Sev."
"Thank you, Lily." He turned to go back to his seat before he looked back at her. "Your hair looks wonderful, by the way."
"Thank you, Sev." She smiled at her old friend. Snape resumed his seat and noticed Lily's son watching him. He found himself feeling unnerved by the boy's gaze, almost like he was staring into his very soul. Snape shook the feeling and started eating his food.
"What's wrong, Harry?" asked Tracey as she saw Harry staring at the Head table.
"Was just watching the bloke who was speaking to my Mum." Cedric looked up to see who Harry was talking about.
"Oh, that's Professor Severus Snape. The Potions professor here at Hogwarts and least favorite teacher, unless you're a Slytherin of course. He's their Head of House."
"Least favorite?"
"Mostly by the Gryffindor's," said Penelope. "For whatever reason, Professor Snape seems to hate anything even related to Gryffindor."
"I think I know what. Mum told me she was friends with a Severus Snape when she was a student here. But they had a falling out. He and my Dad hated each other to no end. Dad was in Gryffindor with my godfather and Mum. Dad and Sirius would prank and bully him, a lot. Must've carried that grudge with him all these years."
"Damn, how could someone harbor so much hate for one person?"
"I'll let you know when I figure it out." When everyone had had their fill, except for Ronald who was still busy stuffing his face, Dumbledore stood and addressed the students.
"Now that we've had our fill, I believe it's time for us to head to our dorms. House Anima Mea, please stay behind so that we can settle matters regarding your house. But first, everyone please join us in singing the Hogwarts school song."
"There's a school song," asked Hermione. "That wasn't in 'Hogwarts, a History'."
"Not everything is going to be covered in a book, Hermione." Said Tracey. "We've been over this."
Elijah saw Lily putting earplugs in her ears. "Why are you doing that?"
"Oh, you'll see. And no, I only brought the one pair. You're on your own, Silver Boy."
"Oh, I've got a bad feeling about this." Elijah's feeling turned out to be right as the entire school broke out into the school song, and both Elijah and Harry had to cover their ears in a futile effort to try and block out the cacophonous noise. Everyone was singing the song in their own pitch, tone, beat, and tempo. All at varying decibels. Elijah glared at Lily who merely swung her finger in time with her own beat. "Everyone, STOP!" shouted Elijah, channeling magic into his voice.
"Thank you." He turned to Dumbledore. "What the fuck was that?!"
"Mr. Crowe!" shouted McGonagall.
"Language!" Shouted Susan and Hermione with a smile.
Elijah glared at Dumbledore. "Why would you allow something like that?!"
"To let the students express their creative energies."
"There's creative energy, then there's pure chaos. And that right there, was PURE FUCKING CHAOS!"
"Language!" shouted the girls, smiling at their teacher. He shot them a look before addressing the entire school.
"Alright, I can see we need to change a lot of things here. Starting with that… Hermione! What's another word for disaster?!"
"Calamity."
"Thank you, Hermione." He turned back to Dumbledore. "I believe you were sending the students to their dorms?"
"Right. Prefects, if you would. Professors, please stay behind as well." The four original Houses filed out of the Great Hall as the teachers stayed behind with House Anima Mea. "Now, with our new House, we find ourselves in need of a new Head of House for Anima Mea."
Quirrell started to speak. "I-I-I…"
"I'll do it," said Elijah.
"No offense, Mr. Crowe, but you've only just started teaching here in Hogwarts." Said McGonagall.
"Yes, but I've taught students before. I was a teacher at Ilvermorny, and I've been teaching majority of the house for years. I know most of them better than any of you, and it won't take be too much trouble to get to know the other members of the House. They are the smallest House in history, after all."
"I think we should trust Mr. Crowe, Albus," said Filius. He turned to his companion.
"A new House should have someone they trust to act as the House Head, after all."
"Very well then. Professor Crowe, you shall be the new Head of House Anima Mea. The House colors will be yours to decide, and the crest as well. Mr. Diggory, Ms. Clearwater. Since you two are the eldest members of Anima Mea, you two shall be Prefects for your House. A year earlier than you anticipated, I'm sure, but considering the unorthodox founding of this House, I think exceptions can be made. Now, as for a dorm room for Anima Mea…"
"I've got that covered, Professor Dumbledore." Said Lily. She turned to Harry. "Remember our trip to Japan?"
"Ah! Gotcha! Daphne, can you call Mimsy?"
"Uh… sure. Mimsy!" The house elf appeared a second later.
"Yes, young miss?" Daphne gestured to Harry. "Harry needs you to do something." Mimsy turned to him.
"Mimsy, can you go to Potter Manor and retrieve the bag in the third floor corridor broom closet for us?"
"Mimsy bes right back young sirs." She snapped and disappeared.
"I forgot about that thing," said Elijah.
"What is it?" asked Flitwick.
Lily beamed as she turned to the half goblin. "Something you're going to love." Mimsy soon returned and handed Harry the small bag. Daphne thanked her and told her she could return to Greengrass Manor. Harry handed his mother the bag and she started heading out towards the lake, the Soul Mages following her. Elijah gestured for the rest to follow and was right behind them, the other Anima Mea members following along with the heads of houses and Dumbledore.
Lily stopped along the waterline and reached into bag. She pulled out a small case. She looked at the others and grinned. "When me and Harry took a trip to Japan 2 years ago, we brought back a few things. Harry got a love for the animated shows there, I found new magical herbs to make potions with. And I also got an idea watching one of those, what are they called, Harry?"
"Anime Mum. One of the shows I was watching had a fun device in it. Mum decided to replicate it, and this is the result." Lily pulled out a small case from the bag and pulled a small capsule from the case. She ran her thumb along the length of the capsule until it gave a faint hum. She tossed the capsule and right before it hit the ground smoke emitted from it and an instant later a moderate sized cabin appeared from where the capsule used to be, part of it submerged in the lake.
"Uh… Lily," said Flitwick. "I think you missed."
"I didn't it's supposed to be partly submerged. That's so it has a regular source of water for faucets and other necessities. I just need to make a few modifications to it so that the bedrooms are expanded to fit more people."
"What else is in there?" asked Blaise.
"Workout equipment, entertainment lounge, dining room, television, meditation room…"
"Wait," said Snape. "What did you just say?"
"Meditation room?" she asked.
"No, before that."
" Entertainment lounge?" asked Harry with a smirk.
"After that." Said Snape, slightly annoyed.
" Dining room," said Daphne.
"You children are going to be insufferable aren't you?"
"I have no idea what you're talking about," they both said innocently. Snape sighed and rubbed his temples, surprising the other temples with his very different behavior.
"Lily," He turned and pointed a finger to both Harry and Daphne. "And I mean only Lily." He turned back to her. "Did you just say television?"
"Yes I did, Severus. Why?"
"How? Muggle electrical equipment don't properly work in areas with heavy magical energy."
"Normally," said Elijah. "But I've got a friend back in the states who specializes in trying bridging the gap between the magical and mundane worlds, so we can peacefully coexist and don't have to hide anymore. She created several shielded electrical appliances with unique power supplies based off of one of my families practices."
"What's that?"
"Quartz crystals." Said Harry. He pulled out a small quartz crystal from his pocket, they saw it was slightly glowing. "No-Mag discovery about these things. They absorb and retain energy. Elijah's family learned they could absorb magical energy as well and have been using these things sort of like a portable back up magical energy supply."
"Isabel," said Elijah. "knew quartz crystals had been used to power old designs of muggle technologies like clocks, so she converted modern muggle technologies to work with quartz batteries and charged the quartz crystals with magic. And now, everything in that cabin and in Potter Manor has modern technologies.
"Sorry," said Penelope. "but some of us are a bit lost. What's a television."
"It's a muggle entertainment device," said Snape. "It receives images and sounds sent out from a central location to show Muggles shows and news without having to leave the home or read the paper."
"How do you know about muggle technologies, Professor?"
"He's a half-blood," said Lily. "Grew up with me in the Mundane World." Cedric and Penelope looked at him in surprise. He ignored them.
"What's to stop other students from entering your cabin?"
"That's a secret, Sev."
"Well," said Dumbledore. "As enlightening as this has been, I believe we'd better get the children to bed." He turned to the first year students in Anima Mea. "Welcome to Hogwarts." He made his way back to the castle and the Heads of Houses soon followed.
Lily turned to the other students in House Anima Mea. "Alright you four, go up to the door and press your dominant hands to the wall next to it, one at a time when I say so." Lily stood by the door with a piece of parchment and wrote their names down before having them place a hand on the door. "Alright. You've all been admitted entrance. Once inside, Elijah will discuss something with you four." They nodded and stepped inside.
Harry stopped Elijah while everyone else entered the cabin. "What's up?"
"Earlier, when I had just been assigned to Anima Mea, I felt something hit the anti-magic barriers protecting my mind. Two people tried to read my mind. I'm sure one was Dumbledore, but I have no clue who the other one was, it didn't feel… natural."
"I'll keep an eye out, you get inside." Harry nodded and went inside. "In the meantime…" he pulled out a black quartz crystal and saw it glow slightly as he pointed it at the castle. "Right under his nose. Bold move, Monster." He slipped it back into his pocket and went inside the cabin.
Inside, he saw the four new members sitting on a couch as Harry was setting up something behind them. Elijah stood in front of them and smiled. "Well, how about we start with introductions? I am Elijah Crowe. I'm a former teacher at Ilvermorny Academy for Magic. I'm also a Sergeant in the United States Marine Corps, discharged medically a few years before I started teaching 11 years ago.
"I met the Potters 10 years ago and that meeting set me on the path I find myself right now. The path of an instructor in Soul Magic, and a professor at Hogwarts."
"What's Soul Magic," asked Penelope.
"A lost art, one my family tried to protect for generations. I am the last of my line, and have decided to pass on all of my families teachings to someone else, to preserve our legacy, and this powerful art. It allows one to bring together their mind, body, and soul, and make a stronger connection to magic out of it. It's an art I've taught Harry and the girls, and it's an art I'll teach to the four of you."
"You want to teach us Soul Magic," said Blaise in disbelief. "Why?"
"Why not? This is the House of the Soul, after all. I'd rather teach as little people as possible."
"Why," asked Padma. "Why keep it to a small amount of students?"
"Easier to keep track of everyone's progress. Next year two more people, at least, will join Anima Mea and they both have at least a small understanding of Soul Magic. I want you four to be on the same level of knowledge. This isn't a forced item. If you don't wish to learn Soul Magic, you don't have to. It's completely optional."
The four students thought it over. Cedric stood up. "I'll do it. As Prefect I need to make sure it's safe for my house mates."
"Count me in" said Penelope. "It'll be fun to learn something like this."
"This could prove to be beneficial for me," said Blaise with a smile. "Too good of an opportunity to pass up." Everyone turned to Padma who was still thinking. She looked at everyone in turn and sighed.
"Fine, just know you all pressured me into this," she smirked.
"Great," said Elijah. "Cedric, since you volunteered first, you can go first." He pulled out a Silver Wand and handed it to him. "Just give it a swish and a flick, no words necessary." Cedric did as instructed, and everyone was treated to a silver light show. When the light died down, Cedric's eyes had Silver flecks, similar to Lily's and he could feel like his magic was stronger than it had ever been. "Good. Now, don't move." He sent a minor bolt of magic at him. Cedric raised his hands in defense and saw the bolt fizzle out before it hit him.
"What…?" He looked at his new Head of House.
"Soul Magic has a latent anti-magic property to it. It can naturally protect you from weak and minor direct attacks from all sides and protects your minds from mental manipulation of all kinds. Amortentia, Cunfundus, even the Imperius won't work on us. But stronger, more direct magic can. For example, if we're hit with a Killing Curse when caught unawares, that'll, of course, kill us. But, we can channel the anti-magic properties into a direct shield and protect us fully from that cursed spell." Harry fired off a few stunning spells and Elijah erected a shield to block and absorb them all. Lily even shot off a Killing Curse and Elijah absorbed that as well.
"That's amazing," said Padma with a smile. "Why don't more people know this art?"
"Because generations ago, jealous and paranoid mages wiped out the nine families who primarily knew and practiced Soul Magic, other than my own and another that Harry and Lily are descended from. We're the last of the nine families." He sighed as he fiddled with his necklace. "Enough about the past. Let's focus on the present. Who's next?" Penelope took the wand from Cedric and copied his motion. When the light disappeared, Her hair had turned white and her eyes had turned gold, like Tracey.
"Hey," she said smiling. "We're matching!" Penelope looked at her eyes and turned to Elijah questioningly.
"It's just a minor genetic rarity. I'm surprised two people in this generation were born with it." Penelope smiled and passed the wand to Blaise. He went through the motion and the fading light revealed his eyes ringed on the out and inside by silver.
Finally, Padma took her turn. When she was revealed, the silver was shaped like a star in her irises. She looked in the same mirror as Penelope and smiled. Elijah grinned and went to the workout room gesturing for them to follow. He had them line up in front of the back wall and paced in front of his new students. "We will begin teaching you how to wield Soul Magic after the first week ends. For now, we will begin conditioning your bodies to last longer when using magic. Hermione, Tracey, start teaching them the basic stretches. Harry, when their done, give them a light workout. Lily and I will be coming up with lesson plans for the first month."
Harry grinned evilly as Elijah left the room, leaving the four new Soul Mages to believe they'd made a very bad decision.
The next morning, the four new Soul Mages were woken up early by Elijah and handed No-Mag workout clothes. He had them eat a quick breakfast in the dining room and meet the others outside by the lake. "Why are we up this early," asked Blaise.
"Please," said Penelope. "No more exercising. I'm still sore."
"I wasn't built for this," said Padma.
"It's not that bad," said Cedric as he stretched. "This will be a cinch."
"You're used to this, though, Cedric. You play quidditch." Said Penelope.
"Played. Not so sure I can play for another House, now can I?" Cedric sighed as he finished stretching.
"Afraid not," said Lily. "But don't worry. Everything will be fine. She spotted her son getting out of the tent, half dragging a very tired Hermione.
"Harry," she moaned. "I'm too tired for this."
"That's what you get for staying up late, reading instead of sleeping."
"I hate you," she muttered.
"No, you don't." He smiled and propped her against the cabin as he joined the others. Elijah walked out and heard Hermione snoring next to the door. He grinned and dug into his pocket, pulling out a whistle. He was about to blow it when Hermione's hand snatched it away, Hermione herself still snoring.
"Sleep instinct. That's a new one." Hermione ducked as Daphne shot off a stinging hex at her, and a shield went up around her blocking any further attacks.
"Nice shot," said Lily. "But wrong approach. Harry?" Harry went up to her and pushed passed the shield before leaning close to her.
"Hermione, wake up and we'll buy you a new set of books."
"What? What?" her head snapped up instantly, but her expression was still a bit drowsy.
"Books, Hermione." Said Lily. "Beat everyone else in today's jog, we'll buy you a new set of books, like the ones you saw at Flourish and Blotts." Hermione suddenly seemed more rejuvenated and determined after that.
"Deal!" The Soul Mages lined up next to the lake.
"Alright," said Elijah. "This morning we have a basic jog for you guys. I want you to do 6 laps around the lake."
"6?!" shouted Padma and Penelope.
"Piece of cake," said Blaise.
"Oh, just wait for it," said Harry.
"There's a catch, you have to wear these," Elijah held up arm and leg weights. "These weights are all 10 pounds. One for each limb. Harry, you get weights with 12 pounds, Cedric and Daphne, 11 pounds."
"Dammit," said Harry and Daphne.
"What's wrong you two," asked Susan. "Afraid you'll lose this time."
"In your dreams, Bones." Said Daphne with a smirk.
"How about a wager then?"
"What?" Susan whispered in her ear and smirked at the look in her eyes. "You're on!" Hermione heard Susan's bet and became more determined to win.
"6 laps, starting now!" Elijah blew his whistle and the Soul Mages took off, most of them struggling with the added weights. But Hermione had taken off without any hesitation and without being hindered at all by the weights.
"How is she doing that?" asked Padma, struggling just to keep pace with Tracey.
"I don't know," said Tracey. "This is new for her."
"I am not going to be beaten by a first year!" Shouted Cedric. Suddenly, he started gaining speed and was surpassing Harry, Susan, and Daphne.
"How are they doing that," asked Lily.
"Pure determination, the same way Hermione figured out how to make things levitate at only 1 year of age." He activated his Soul Sight and looked at Hermione. "She's instinctively channeling Soul Magic into her legs and lower back. By doing this, she's increasing her muscle power and durability, making her legs carry her farther and faster than they normally do. Cedric is doing the same, though at a lower amount, due to him still being green."
"Wonder what got her so amped up?"
"You didn't hear the bet Susan and Daphne made, did you?" Lily turned to him in confusion.
"What was it?"
"First one to finish gives Harry his first kiss. I'd say that'd be motivation enough for any of the girls, wouldn't you say?"
"Then let's pass it on to Tracey, shall we." She channeled magic into her voice to call out to the children. "First girl to finish their laps gets to give Harry a kiss!"
"What?!" shouted Harry. Tracey was suddenly passing the front runners and catching up to Hermione.
"No fair!" shouted Daphne and Susan.
"Don't like it?! Then move faster!" Soon all four girls were running right beside each other. Harry passed Cedric, trying to at least beat the fourth year boy. Padma kept pushing on as much as she could, seeing her, Harry hung back to keep her company.
"How are you feeling?"
"I… was not… built for this." She said between breaths.
"Focus on your breathing and channel your Soul Magic into your lungs. Pretend that when you breathe, you're inhaling your magic into your lungs." Padma looked at him skeptically but followed his instructions. Soon, she felt her lungs stop aching and her breathing begin to regulate.
"That's very handy."
"It's the whole point of this exercise. Your magic will either help you instinctively or will take some getting used to. The first lesson is to control your breathing if you're not used to exercise, the next is to control your reflexes so that you can better handle obstacles, we'll get to that tomorrow. For now, I need to pass this on to Penelope and Blaise. Think you'll be alright by yourself?"
"Yes, I think I can manage."
"Alright." He caught up to Penelope and saw her wheezing. "Penelope, focus on your breathing…" after relaying the same instructions, Penelope started to feel better.
"Thank you, your friends are insane! I didn't think they'd be that motivated to just kiss you!"
"They're trying to claim my first kiss. It's a big deal to them."
"Ooh! You little lover boy you!" She chuckled as he rolled his eyes and made his way to Blaise. The Italian boy wasn't breathing heavily, but his breath was slightly uneven.
"How often do you work out?"
"I took fencing growing up. 6 laps is nothing."
"Want to know how to help your breathing?"
"No thanks, would rather I figure it out on my own, try and surpass you 5 with my own ability."
"Good ambition. Good luck, mate." Blaise merely nodded and kept jogging. On the final lap, the four girls in front started pushing each other to get in first. They weren't paying attention and tripped, stopping just short of the starting positions. Penelope decided to hang back and let Padma pass her as the girls were trying to get up off the ground, apologizing to each other. Cedric finished first, followed by Harry and Blaise respectively. The next to finish was Padma, who didn't even register she had beaten the other girls and was just glad to be done. She placed her hands on her knees, breathing hard now that she wasn't channeling magic into her lungs anymore.
"Congratulations, Padma. You beat the other girls." Said Lily. Padma looked at her questioningly and looked behind her, seeing the others finish.
"Oh, cool." She panted and fell onto her back. "Is this… going… to be… a daily thing?"
"Sadly, yes." Said Hermione. "Elijah is brutal when it comes to physical conditioning."
"This is the easy stuff, Hermione." Said Elijah. "The harder stuff would be the training I went through in the Marines, or your father went through in the RAF."
"Oh, swell." She sat on the grass as Harry carried out several bottles of water from the cabin and handed them out. Padma sat up to drink her water.
"Well," said Lily. "It seems Padma was the first girl to finish." The girls stopped drinking their water and looked at Lily with eyes wide open. "So, she gets the prize!" Padma looked at her confused, she hadn't been paying attention to what had been shouted at them.
"There was a prize?" Harry tried sneaking passed Lily who grabbed his shoulder.
"Yep. First girl to finish got to give Harry a kiss." Padma blushed as the other girls slightly glared at Padma.
"I-I don't think that would be appropriate. We've only just met."
"Mum," said Harry.
"Yes?"
"I think we should clean up and get to the Great Hall. The other Houses will be waking up by now."
"Elijah?" The white haired professor looked at his watch and nodded.
"Harry's right. Alright everyone, hit the showers, then report to the Great Hall. The updated class schedules will be handed to you then. Good hustle everyone, especially you Hermione. I think you just surpassed Daphne in enhancement training."
"Really?"
"Yep." Hermione smiled as Daphne groaned. As everyone went to their respective showers, Elijah turned to Lily. "We have a situation."
"What is it?"
"I didn't want to worry you last night when we arrived, but…" He pulled out the black quartz and showed it to her. The red eyes Lily saw that night 10 years ago glared back at her. She noticed the crystal glowing slightly and frowned.
"There's one here?"
"Looks like it. Either that or Voldemort himself, either outcome is dangerous. Last night, when the teachers were meeting, I felt the crystal vibrant as I was standing next to Snape and Quirrell. Odds are, the Horcrux is in one of their possessions."
"Sev?"
"Is it that hard to believe? You're the one who told me he had joined the Death Eater ranks out of Hogwarts. Is it that much of a stretch that he was given one of Voldemort's Horcrux's?"
"Sev may have been lost and joined them, but even he wouldn't go near anything as vile as that. He hasn't changed that much since I last saw him."
"We can't let past connections blind us, Lily. We need to suspect everyone not in the immediate group."
"You're acting paranoid."
"I'm being smart. We don't know how many Horcrux's have been made, we don't know who is still loyal to whatever is left of the monster. We can't make mistakes that would put the children, and more immediately your son, at risk."
"How are you sure they'll come after Harry? It was my ritual that stopped Voldemort."
"And what's better for the pure blood Death Eaters to believe? That a Mundane born was able to defeat one of the most powerful Dark Lords in recent memory? Or that a half-blood child somehow pulled off a miracle, survived the Killing curse, and somehow redirected back at Voldemort?" Lily gave it a moment to think about it and frowned.
'He's right. They'd never admit I was the one who beat Voldemort. No matter the claim, Pure Bloods will put their believed superiority first. The only way they'd come after me outright would be if Voldemort returned, bolstering their resolve, or if their trying to get to Harry.'
"No matter what, I'm going to make sure the next generation of Soul Mages survives, I'm going to hunt down that monster as one of the last acts of my family, and I'm going to ensure the new families will survive." He fiddled with his necklace as he spoke. "This is the path fate set me on. It's the path I need to see through to it's end. Whatever that may be."
"You act like this will end with you dead."
"My destiny has always been a mystery. Fate sent me into the Marines. Fate led me to you, James and Harry. Fate made Dumbledore be aware of my teaching history and hire me. Everything happens for a reason."
"You don't need to carry this weight on your shoulders."
"Find me survivors of the other families then who have the same knowledge I have. Then I'll stop bearing this responsibility." He turned and went into the castle.
A few minutes later Anima Mea was sitting in the Great Hall while the rest of the Houses piled in. Harry was eating a piece of toast when he felt someone behind him. He bent back and saw Draco Malfoy standing behind him.
"Yes," he said, sounding bored. "Can I help you?"
"So, you're Harry Potter." He extended his hand to the white haired boy. "I'm Draco Malfoy." When Harry didn't take his hand, he slowly pulled it away and gestured to the two boys behind him. "This is Crabbe, and Goyle."
"Let me guess," Harry turned to them, still looking bored. "You're here to finally apologize to my friend. Cause if you're not, buzz off." Malfoy tried keeping his composure at being addressed in such a way.
"I'm here to offer a hand in friendship. You see, there are…"
"Not interested. Now, shoo fly. Don't bother us." Harry turned back to his food. Before Malfoy could do anything else, Harry sent a blast of magic unseen to anyone at Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle, sending them backwards like they tripped. The students in the Great Hall laughed as the three boys ran out of the hall in embarrassment.
"Was that necessary?" asked Hermione.
"He was bothering me and potentially going to insult you, so yes."
"If Harry hadn't done it, I would've," said Daphne. Susan and Tracey nodded in agreement.
"I can handle myself," said Hermione.
"We know. We're just trying to leave the mess and broken bones at a minimum." Hermione grunted in frustration.
"You lot are no fun sometimes."
"Hermione breaks bones?" asked Padma.
"She has a sadistic streak when it comes to people messing with her. Something she learned from Mum," said Harry.
"She has a good policy when it comes to bullies. It apparently worked well for your dad, Harry."
"For the first 4 years at least."
"I started getting creative that year." Said Lily behind him. He jumped, and the rest of Anima Mea laughed. Lily ruffled his hair and looked at the other students. "Considering the size of this House, Minerva has agreed to let the first years join in their lessons. Cedric and Penelope, you'll stick with your original Houses, makes it easier." She handed them their schedules and went to her seat at the head table.
"Looks like Magical Theory has everyone from all years at once today as a sort of introduction to the course," said Harry.
"Sounds like Elijah is giving his ultimatum again," said Tracey, lazily flicking a lock of Daphne's hair.
"Ultimatum," asked Cedric.
"You're all going to be given the option not to take the course," said Susan. "It's something he did for all of us. Trust us, do not overthink it. The Ultimatum is simple. Stay or go."
"Both have lasting consequences. He'll give a demonstration of what to expect," said Daphne. "And will then ask you a simple question."
"What's the question," asked Penelope. She suddenly felt a hand on her shoulder and saw one on Cedric's. They turned around and saw Elijah with an evil smirk.
"Are you willing to walk through Hell for what I have to teach you?"