Disclaimer: I own nothing but my own Character. This world belongs to J.K. Rowling and I am just playing in it.
Humming a familiar song as I stare at the families gathered around the station saying their goodbyes, I can't help but think of how I woke up here a year ago so unexpectedly.
I have read some stories about being transmigrated or reborn, but to actually experience it? Mind-boggling.
I have been living in this world for a year now, and it has been an experience. I was shocked when my memories of my previous life awakened when I turned ten years old.
For some weird reason I can't remember my name or family from that life, but I remember my experiences and likes.
The personalities blended well together, but my old life's memories are just that, memories. I am now just an 11-year-old that has become a little more mature and much more aware, with a love of songs that will never exist here.
A woman hugging her embarrassed son on the platform made me smile. I pictured my mother, Seryna, with her raven hair and intense green eyes, gently but firmly pushing potion instruction on me all summer.
She couldn't stay long at the station due to duties at her apothecary, but she hugged me tightly before leaving, whispering, "Mind the name. And your manners."
I sigh as these new expectations are due to my older brother. What a bastard, I think ruefully. From my memories, he's always been warm and caring and taught me many things on how to act while in Hogwarts. He knows the struggles I will face just as he did.
My thoughts are disrupted as a knock is heard, then the opening of the door. "Hey, Tim! Excited to finally be going to Hogwarts?!" exclaims a young brunette, Tracey Davis, with a peppy stride as she comes in.
"Hey Tracey, honestly, I just want to see the sights my brother told me so much about." I say with real enthusiasm in my eyes.
"Hmm. It seems you're still as carefree as always, Timothy." I roll my eyes internally as I stare at Daphne Greengrass, the little blonde girl with a mask of indifference pretending to be an adult. "Yes, yes. Good luck conquering first-year politics, Ms. Greengrass." I say sarcastically as Daphne sits next to her best friend while giving me a sharp look.
A chuckle is heard as a youthful Italian boy claps my shoulder and sits beside me. "Let's not get our knickers in a twist so early in the morning," drawls Blaise Zabini as he continues, "besides, you know you will have to play eventually, Tim, since your brother has decided to step down as heir."
I groan quietly. Yes, my older brother, Felix, who is eleven years older, decided to become a Dragonologist and flew away to Romania to live and work there as soon as he graduated Hogwarts a few years ago.
Mother allowed him to pursue his ambitions as long as he came back, but recently he came back declaring me the heir, ruining my plans.
It's a good thing my brother is a good person and cares for me, or I would not have accepted so easily.
As the train begins to move, we all look outside with various thoughts running through our minds. I grew up with a lot of pureblood children, and the ones I got the most along with are these three.
I wondered why Daphne joined our group instead of Draco's flock since she knew how to go about pureblood's inner workings, but Tracey never got along with Pansy, and Draco is an insufferable brat.
"Have any of you practiced any spells?" I ask as I twirl my wand. Rowan wood with a dragon heartstring core, 13 inches and slightly yielding flexibility.
Tracey perks up and jumps on her seat excitedly, pulling out her own wand. "I have! "Rictusempra," she says as she sideways flicks her wand with a small loop.
Seeing her point at me, I rapidly lean away while grabbing Blaise by his arm and pulling him in the way of the spell.
His eyes widen as the spell hits, then he starts laughing uncontrollably as Tracey grins with pride while Daphne smirks. Blaise starts slapping my arm as he continues to laugh.
"Okay! Ouch, that hurts, you imbecile." I cry out as I cast Finite. Blaise slumps down on the bench while his chest heaves heavily. "I hate you all," he groans, making us laugh.
We spend a few hours catching up and playing card games. I taught them how to play poker, and surprisingly, Daphne is a natural at it. Unfortunately, she cleaned me out of my sweets.
Once again, the door slides open, and a bushy-haired girl with larger than normal front teeth appears. "Has anyone seen a toad? Neville lost his," she asks abruptly while we all pause with cards in our hands.
I lift an eyebrow and reply, "Sorry, but we haven't. How about you go to the front and ask a prefect for help? They should have a spell for a situation like this."
It seems she wants to say something about our poker cards, but a look sent by Daphne makes her reconsider. "Oh! Thank you. I will do that. My name is Hermione Granger, bye." She says rapidly, not even waiting for us to reply as she shuts the door closed.
Blaise sits up with a smirk. "Ah, poor Muggle-borns and their ignorance." Yep, my friends aren't full-blood purists, but they do believe magicals are superior to Muggle-borns.
Even Tracey, who is a half-blood but raised in a magical home. Which makes me want to chuckle at Blaise's hypocrisy, if only he wasn't so ignorant of the mundane.
Tracey throws down all her cards and exclaims, "I'm bored! Hey, Tim, sing us something." I cringe as her words leave her mouth.
I loved music in my previous life. I wasn't a professional, but I learned how to play the guitar and, in my opinion, was a certified professional karaoke singer.
Last summer, they'd caught me riffing in the garden, singing a Muggle song at full volume while air-strumming a broom like a guitar.
Blaise's head snaps towards me, and he grins widely. "Yes, Tim, please sing us a song." I pale slightly as I just remembered he knew nothing of my singing prowess.
Before I could reject it, Daphne crosses her legs and lays her hands on her thighs with a look of anticipation.
Smiling at them, I clarify, "No way in hell." Their expressions shift to a pout, a glare, and disappointment.
I wouldn't mind, especially since I found a clever little number from a dropout Slytherin who wanted to be the wizarding world's first rock star.
Hogwarts uses a toned-down version in music class now.
Last year I recreated songs from my old life that don't and won't exist here. That information was such a hassle to find since my lovely mother would never let me go about Muggle London.
What's great about the spell is that it can loop musical patterns or beats by tapping my wand like a looper pedal, and I have saved many songs through it.
"Please, Tim!" begs Tracey. "You realize that song you heard was inspired by Muggle music?" I reply seriously. They knew what I was hinting at without asking.
Daphne shifts in her seat while looking at me. "Hmm…I'm aware. Even if our parents…prohibit such things, you have shown me not to narrow my views on such matters." She says matter-of-factly.
"Plus you had a very nice singing voice, even if the music was a little barbaric." A hint of a blush appears on her cheeks while Tracey squeals beside her.
A song came to mind, and my hand quivers at the thought of being the equivalent of a college cringelord. If my destiny is meant to bring this song out to the world and bless these foolish wizards, then who am I to stop this holy mission?
A sweeping arc of my wand followed by quick flicks in time with a rhythm. "Sonorus Harmonia!"
"Anyway, here's Wonderwall."
[Oasis-Wonderwall]
I tapped the wand like a looper pedal.
One note. Then another. Then the chords assembled themselves in soft layers of spell-bound sound, the kind that hung in the air like warm mist—unfamiliar in this world, but comforting all the same.
And I sang.
"Today is gonna be the day that they're gonna throw it back to you.
By now you should have, somehow, realized what you have to do.
I don't believe that anybody feels the way I do about you now."
The words, foreign to this time and place, spilled out as easily as breath. Not loud. Not showy. Just clear and honest, like telling a secret to the stars.
"Backbeat, the word is on the street that the fire in your heart is out.
I'm sure you've heard it all before, but you never really had a doubt.
I don't believe that anybody feels the way I do about you now."
Tracey was still as glass. Her mouth parted slightly, eyes shimmering, like she'd forgotten to blink. Her knee, always bouncing, had stilled. She clutched a Chocolate Frog wrapper in one hand, crumpled and forgotten.
"And all the roads we have to walk are winding
And all the lights that lead us there are blinding.
There are many things that I would like to say to you.
But I don't know how.
Because maaaaaybe
You're gonna be the one that saaaaaves meeeee.
And after aaaaall
You're my wonderwaaaaaaall."
Blaise leaned forward, elbows on his knees, the usual smirk wiped clean from his face. His eyes—sharp, calculating—were wide, open. He looked as if he were seeing me for the first time, not as a pureblood or a strategist, but just as a boy with music in his chest and too much honesty in his voice.
"Today was gonna be the day, but they'll never throw it back to you.
By now you should have somehow realized what you're not to do.
I don't believe that anybody feels the way I do about you now.
And all the roads that lead you there were winding.
And all the lights that light the way are blinding.
There are many things that I would like to say to you.
But I don't know how."
Daphne sat perfectly poised, as always. But her hands gripped the edge of the seat like she was anchoring herself. Her eyes didn't leave mine for a second. She didn't look enchanted. She looked like someone who'd walked into a memory she didn't know she had.
"I said maaaaaybe
You're gonna be the one that saaaaves meeee
And after aaaaall
You're my wonderwaaaaall
I said maaaaaybe
You're gonna be the one that saaaaves meeee
And after aaaaall
You're my wonderwaaaaall
I said maaaaybe
You're gonna be the one that saaaaves meeee
You're gonna be the one that saaaaves meeee
You're gonna be the one that saaaaves meeee"
I swish my wand horizontally, ending the song.
I used to read stories about people who stole songs from another life and became legends—like that film Yesterday, where the Beatles never existed. Judging by the looks on my friends' faces, I finally get the appeal. This could get... dangerously addicting.
I look at my friends, and the air is still as if any noise will destroy the magical moment, then Tracey breaks the spell as she jumps at me.
"That was wicked! How can you sing so well?! Sing another one!" She babbles out excitedly as she straddles me and shakes me by my shoulders.
I tried to fend her off with my wand hand and dignity, both failing equally. "Tracey, I swear if you tackle me again, I'm going to charm your hair green."
"You wouldn't."
"I would. With glitter."
She gasped in mock betrayal, but the grin never left her face. Honestly, she looked like she was one Sugar Quill away from composing a fan club anthem.
Next came Blaise. He wasn't the kind to gush—he'd rather catch fire than admit he was impressed—but he sat up straighter, eyes still wide with quiet surprise. He gave me a look that said 'you've been holding out on us.'
"Mate," he finally muttered, rubbing his face. "That was... something else. You've got more range than I expected. Emotionally and musically."
Coming from Blaise, that was practically a standing ovation. He leaned back again with a soft shake of his head, muttering, "I knew you were weird. Just didn't know you were artsy-weird."
I offered him a mock bow. "Happy to disappoint."
"That song... was beautiful," Daphne says, her voice unusually soft, her hands folded neatly in her lap. "And... you have a very nice voice."
The way she said it made me pause. Not teasing. Not calculated. Just real.
And in that moment, I saw it:
Something had shifted.
Not just between us.
But in them.
A seed of something new. Wonder. Maybe even belief.
I sat back, smiling faintly, already pretending I wasn't affected.
But truthfully?
I'd never felt more seen.
We decide to take turns changing and make small talk as we finally arrive.
And then, like the world couldn't let me enjoy one moment of peace.
System online. Mission identified: Destroy all Horcruxes. Defeat or assist in the fall of Tom Riddle (Voldemort).
… Well. That's new.