*Almost Six Years Later*
Harry Potter-Gardna wasn't what the world expected. His untamable black hair was mostly hidden by a safari-like hat. Helped to also cover up his lightning bolt shaped scar. His entire outfit showed more uniquely wild style for a kid about to turn eleven. He wore a jungle designed t-shirt under a khaki vest with his jeans and tan boots. On his wrists were brown leather cuff bracelets. Around his neck was the same wolf charm that belonged to Jax Gardna.
Speaking of Harry's adoptive family...
''How ya doin', oh adoptive brother of mine,'' Krinos asked.
''Looking for Sofia,'' Harry answered, looking around a tree. ''She and Lyon have been out here for a while and you know how she can get wild.''
"She's a shapeshifter, it's literally in her nature," Krinos says. "And if there's anyone that knows about nature, it's me."
Krinos had grown up, finding his own natural style. He wore a hunter type outfit. He had short black hair with a jean vest, brown pants, and archer boot. He also wore a green jungle designed shirt under his vest. A green archer poncho-cloak hybrid was over his shoulders. A gold belt around his waist. He also had gold fingerless gloves. Around his neck was his mother's emerald amulet.
"But there's still the fact that she can go a little too wild," Harry reminded. "There is a reason why most animals are considered dangerous."
"We've faced more dangerous stuff here on a daily basis," Krinos chuckled. "And I'm not talking about the demons, I'm talking about my twin sister."
"I heard that," a girl's voice yelled.
"Curse her siren hearing," Krinos swore, Harry bursting into laughter. "Can't get away with anything with her around."
"Better believe it," the same girl says, walking up.
She was similar to Krinos but still is a girl. Her style was a red, pink, and purple dawn colored dress with gold flats. She had pink streaked black hair with butterflies in it. On her wrists were diamond rose cuff bracelets. The most surprising part was that she had elegant bluebird wings coming out of a belt she wore around her waist. Around her neck was an amethyst lyre pendant.
"I know you like to listen in on conversations, but it gets really annoying sometimes," Harry told her.
"Not my fault I can't control my hearing," Melody fake pouted. "I'm just happy I'm no longer hearing flies breaking wind in Australia. Give me a couple more years and I'll have it under full control."
"It better be," Krinos says. "You keep butting in on my mirror calls."
"Like it's my fault you have a big mouth," Melody countered.
"Sometimes, you two act more like an old married couple than you do twins," Harry snickered.
"Well, I never," both twins fake being offended.
"You two are strange," Harry shook his head.
"Been a Gardna for nearly six years and you're just figuring that out," Krinos smirked.
Harry laughed at the antics. After the Dursleys, Krinos and Melody had to work hard to "decommission" him from everything those mundanes had done to him. Harry had quickly learned how truly loving a family can be. Krinos and Melody were the closest people to him. The three practiced their magic together often.
They lived in the magic school for mystic souls. Crystal Rose Academy was its name. Unlike most schools, Crystal Rose had students from all over the world. Most mystic souls from England, Greece, Italy, and Australia go to the school. The school is often called one of the most beautiful parts of magical Greece.
There was a large castle with a forest on one side and a lake on the other. The forest was made of oak, pine, cherry blossom, and willow trees. There were all types of animals running free in the trees and on the grounds. The lake looked so clean you could probably see your reflection. There were sea and water animals playing in the water. The castle was the most amazing part.
The castle was about three times the size of either Hogwarts in England or Ilvermorny in America. The whole castle was made of silver cement blocks that were glistening with protective enchantments. The windows were lined with gold bricks. In front was a large set of doors made from maple wood. There a few towers and also a few turrets coming from the roof of the castle. There statues of different magical creatures dotted around the whole building. There were large stables on one side of the castle and the top of a glass dome near the back of the castle.
"It's nearly your eleventh birthday, Harry," Melody reminded. "That's a special age from where you came from, you know."
"Still don't understand why," Harry said.
"Neither do we," Melody admitted. "Apparently, it's a thing over there."
"What do you guys usually do when a mage comes of their special age," Harry asked.
"Well, being 'of age' means that the heir of a family becomes the Theós or Theá of the line," Krinos explained. "As for a special age, we don't have one. But for the sake of your English heritage, we'll be honoring this day."
"We'll still be doing it the mystic soul way, right," Harry asked.
"You know what we say," Melody giggled. "When in Greece, do as the Greeks do. Time to get you a familiar."
Harry's face lit up. Most of the older mystic souls they know, at the academy, don't have familiars. Animals are very particular on who they choose to bond with. And magical creatures are even pickier.
"Off to the stables, we go," Krinos called, marching away.
"Did he forget that I was out here to search for Sofia and Lyon," Harry asked his sister, who just shrugged.
"Krinos is a lot of things, forgetful is not one," Melody giggled. "He just easily jumps from one topic to another. Past topics usually come to mind a little later."
As if on cue, Krinos appeared in front of them.
"It almost slipped my mind that you were looking for Sofia and Lyon before we interrupted you," he said.
"Told you so," Melody smirked, looking at Harry.
"Give me a break," Harry protested. "He's your twin, not mine."
"Lucky me," Melody groaned.
Harry turned one way, he had heard something.
"I think, in about five seconds, we need to duck," he informed.
The three immediately ducked down as a bird flew over their heads. It was a Hudson-valley hawk. The bird crashed into the branches of a nearby tree. Another second later, a girl fell out of it.
"Ow," she said.
She was wild, like Krinos. She is tan-skinned, and at a medium height, with hazel eyes. She has reddish-brown wavy hair that goes slightly past her shoulders. She wore a black bodysuit with the shirt having a golden vest-like piece of clothing. She also wore gold high heel boots with the boots reaching her knees.
"Found Sofia," Krinos smiled.
"Cheetah speed, I have control of," Sofia shook herself off. "Flying, that is a load of trouble all on its own."
"Where's Lyon," Harry asked the shapeshifter.
"Out there... somewhere," Sofia shrugged.
"You lost him, didn't you," Melody asked.
"Hey, it's not like I can put him on a leash," Sofia protested, then got a thinking face. "Now, there's an idea."
"You're not putting Lyon on a leash," Melody deadpanned.
"You're no fun," Sofia fake pouted.
"We were about to see if any of the animals in the stable's nursery would choose Harry to bond with," Krinos says. "A special birthday present. Wanna come?"
"I would, but leave Lyon to his own devices for too long and it all goes downhill from there," Sofia giggled.
"You are a very weird animal witch," Harry chuckled.
"Tell me something I don't know," Sofia smirked.
"Hawk is about thirty paces due east," Melody said.
They all looked in that direction, then shrugged.
"Siren hearing, always fun," Sofia giggled.
The three siblings walked away, waving goodbye to their shapeshifter friend. They made their way to the stables.
The stables are one of the three points of pride and joy of the academy. The stables, garden, and artifacts chambers are the three most important parts of Crystal Rose.
The stables house about a little over a dozen different magical creatures. There were even upper rafters for the flying creatures. Like phoenix's, Thunderbirds, griffins, and even dragons. The ground stables are for the land creatures. Like hellhounds, Nemean Lions, unicorns, pegasi, Cretan Bulls, a single rainbow serpent, and a slightly temperamental manticore. There are deeper parts of the stables for the even rarer creatures.
They sometimes get very annoying visits from a few imps, gremlins, or ogres. But none of them are familiar material, as they are just pests. There were also quite a few regular animals. Mostly wolves, rabbits, deer, foxes, bears, dogs, jungle cats, and the occasional hawk, eagle, or falcon.
One of the best parts of the stables is the nursery. Where all the newborn mystical creatures are kept. They are taken care of by the most gentle and kind of the academy students. Unicorns just learning to walk. Griffins first trying their wings. And even a few times of trying to stop the lion cubs and hellhound puppies from eating each other. On the bright side, it's good practice for parenthood.
"I can't wait to see which animal chooses you to bond with," Krinos says, excited. "The bond between a mage and their familiar is a very special one."
"You'd think he'd be the one getting a familiar," Harry laughed at his brother's antics.
"Krinos, as a nature mage, is naturally... natural is the only word I can use," Melody says. "He does what he does, and that's who he is."
"Besides, can't we get familiars while here as well," Krinos asks innocently.
"Gotta love that guy," Harry shook his head.
The three went around to the pens, looking at all the baby animals and mystical creatures. Melody cooed over the puppies.
"Hey guys," a girl greeted.
The girl looked like the kindest among them. She had long dark brown hair that, with tan skin to match. She was in a pink dress with gold bands wrapped up her legs and attached to her heels. Tied to her neck was a red cloak that went down to her shins. She also had a pink scarf around her neck. A tiara of daisies was in her hair.
"Hey, Hestia," Krinos smiled. "I thought it was Vallia's shift."
"She had to handle an instrument issue in the music room," Hestia says. "There was something about a stubborn trombone and a temperamental trumpet."
"Hailey has her hands full, doesn't she," Melody asked.
"You know her, always wanting to finish what she starts before moving on," Harry reminded. "How did the instruments go wild, anyway?"
"Who wants to bet that it was caused by Wyatt blowing up another cauldron and shaking the whole school again," Krinos joked.
"He really needs to learn that some experiments aren't worth risking his life for," Melody shook her head.
"We should just be glad he hasn't mixed eye of newt and burdock root," Harry says. "We'd be looking to replace that entire lab if he did that."
"So, what can I do ya for," Hestia asked. "Wanna cuddle some puppies? Watch the Griffins try to fly? See the unicorns shoot rainbows at random times?"
"Just getting Harry a familiar for his birthday," Krinos tells her. "It's a part of his wizarding English heritage."
"I have heard eleven is a special age over there," Hestia says. "And getting your familiar is one of the most special things that can happen to a magical being. The bond between mage and familiar is a truly incredible and envied thing. It is rare for mundane zoom keepers, snake wranglers, or breeders to even come close to such a thing."
"Sure, add to the pressure, why don't you," Harry snickered.
"There is no pressure, dear brother," Krinos said to him. "If one of them choose to bond with you, then you bond. If you are not chosen by any of them, then it is only by the will of the gods. Not that even Artemis or Hades could ever hate you."
Harry went around to the pens. The animals reacted to him excitedly. He knew how his powers, as a mystic soul, made him very popular among those of the wild. Animals are one of the nine sacred power strongholds of their kind. The other eight were air, fire, water, earth/nature, sound, ice, light, and darkness/death.
Since coming to the academy, animals flocked to Harry like metal to a magnet. It was as if he was known across the entire animal kingdom, even at the age of five. His gift with them grew into his mystic soul power, called Jungle Soul. Animals are his life, his extended family, one of his greatest joys in life. He cared for any animal in need, even if the animal could kill him without a second thought. There was just something to him that calmed down even the wildest of beasts. Melody may be the musician among them, but music is not what soothes the savage beasts for his case. He loves animals like an extension of himself.
"Let your heart guide you, Harry," Hestia advised. "Magic is a matter of the heart. Like we say, your power comes from your emotions."
Harry felt a pull. He went toward where he felt it coming from. He ended up at one of the young unicorns. This one was one of the more tragic stories.
The mystical creature was a rare moonlace unicorn. The moonlace are a very coveted race of unicorn. Their horns can harness the power of moonlight to heal almost any type of injury. Their mane and tail hair have never been used for wand cores. But they are also known as the peacekeepers of magic. Their aura is known for its calming effect. But they were hunted to near extinction by dark mages so that their auras couldn't affect them.
The one the roses have in the nursery is one of the few left in the world. In total, there's only a dozen left across the globe. This young unicorn was rescued by a few Crystal Rose students, that had been in the Amazon at the time, from some mystic poachers. The pony's mother was killed, so they took in the few days old creature. It now only three years old.
"Hey, buddy," Harry smiled to the baby creature. "I can feel how you went through something like I did. I lost my parents before I could remember them, like you. No one should ever have to go through that. Be it human or magical creature."
The unicorn cocked its head to the side. Its eyes locked with Harry's. The amulet around Harry's neck glowed blue, it caused his eyes to also turn blue. There was a sudden connection.
"Looks like someone found his familiar," Melody says.
Harry looked at his two siblings, noticing they also had familiars. Krinos had a white wolf pup in his arms. Melody had a northern goshawk, which they all call the winter hawk, on her head.
"A unicorn familiar on its own is almost completely unheard of," Krinos said. "Especially a moonlace unicorn. You just keep surprising us."
"Never one to do things halfway, are you," Melody giggled.
"Not my fault," Harry stated.
"So, what are you gonna name her," Krinos asked his brother.
"After the first ever goddess of the moon, Selene," Harry answered.
"It's a beautiful name," Melody smiled.
"What about you two," Harry asked. "Winter Falcon, a bird of prey in the season of Winter. A bird of hope and elegance. And a white wolf, a wild dog known as a pack leader. The wolf is a fierce warrior, and loyal to a fault."
"You and your animal knowledge," Melody snickered. "Like a walking encyclopedia of the wild."
"With my powers, what do you expect," Harry smirked.
"I think I'll name him Wolf,'' Krinos says. ''Keep it simple, you know.''
''Sure, I get that,'' Harry accepted. ''Besides, you're a nature type. Animals are my thing. You come up with the more unique names when it comes to flowers and trees. What about you, Melody?''
''I was gonna name him Frost,'' Melody shrugged. ''Does anyone else find it weird that we all have familiars that are white?''
''It's magic, sis,'' Krinos says. ''No one knows how it works. And I'm pretty sure that no one wants to.''
''He's got you there,'' Harry chuckled.
*****Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry*****
As usual, Professor Minerva McGonagall was in charge of the letters for incoming students. Most getting their letters when they turn eleven. She, and the other Heads of Houses, were in charge of all orientation of the muggleborn and muggle-raised. They were the ones that needed the most help.
But one letter had caught her eye. Well, three letters to be precise. The names intrigued her. Krinos Gardna, Melody Gardna, and to her immense surprise was Harry Potter-Gardna.
She remembered James and Lily. If James hadn't been an Aurar, he could have taken over her Transfiguration professor job. And Lily could have done the same, but with Charms. They were her two top students. James would have done better, but he was too busy pulling pranks with his friends Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, and Peter Pettigrew.
Then, she noticed the address. She immediately went to the office of Headmaster Albus Dumbledore.
"Bonbons," she said, the gargoyle stepping aside.
She still doesn't get his obsession with muggle sweets.
"Hello, Minerva," the old man greeted happily. "Lemon drop?"
"No, thank you, Albus," Minerva refused. "I was going over the acceptance letters and found something quite interesting. It involves Harry Potter."
"And how is Mr.Potter," Albus asked. "Former Minister Bagnold never did listen when we warned her about the Dursleys."
"That's the thing, Albus," Minerva says. "I don't think he's with them anymore. Look at these acceptance letters. More specifically, the names and address."
Dumbledore looked at the letters. The signature sparkle in his eyes seemed to shine with curiosity.
"It seems that our young Mr.Potter has made his way to Greece," Albus said. "And also away from the Dursleys. There is a reason why registered magic haters don't ever get custody of magical children."
"It's more than that," Minerva pointed out. "The address is Crystal Rose Academy in Athens, Greece. That's the school for..."
"Mystic souls," Albus finished. "Looks like Mr.Potter has more power than any of us gave him credit for."
"And what of these other two," Minerva asks.
"From what little I know of magical Greece, the Gardna family is one of the most ancient and noble there," Albus says. "From the twelve Olympian Mages' time is how far back their lineage can be tracked.''
''Four-thousand years,'' Minera gasped. ''That's more than every pureblood bloodline in England.''
''That's how many mystic soul families are like,'' Albus tells his friend. ''Especially Greece, where the Mages had originally been from.''
''Have mystic souls ever attended Hogwarts, before,'' Minerva asked.
''I'm not sure, as their kind has always been very secretive,'' Albus admitted. ''If they've been accepted and they agree to attend, they can. And let's not forget that the Potters are an English family.''
''Who shall we send to take them to Diagon Alley, then,'' Minerva asked.
''As they already know about magic, maybe we appeal to their kindness,'' Albus suggests. ''How about Hagrid?''
''You really think that's a smart idea,'' Minerva asked, concerned. ''Hagrid isn't a teacher and is pretty bias toward Gryffindors and against Slytherins.''
''But he is a kind man and he can appeal to the nature of also being a wizard with abnormal blood,'' Albus reasoned.
''I see your reasons, and I agree,'' Minerva says. ''Let's just hope that they have fast ways of getting from Greece to England.''