A FOURTH WAND

(Disclaimer: I own nothing except for my OCs here)

CHAPTER 1: DAMIAN BECKWITH

The Beckwith family was, as far as anyone in the magical community was concerned, a very much normal and common family… and they were right, because they most certainly were. They lived in a reasonably sized house in Nettlebed, Oxfordshire. Nettlebed was an ideal place to raise a Muggle family. It was a small village where everybody seemed to know each other; the kind of place where keeping a secret was not an easy task. That was the main reason why the house of the Beckwith family was set a little far away from the village. After all, they rest of the villagers were Muggles and the Beckwiths had no intention of letting them know about their magical status.

Philip Beckwith was a 33 year-old Muggle-born wizard who used to work in the Ministry of Magic as an Auror before moving to the Committee on Experimental Charms Department. He had dark-brown, short hair and was of average height and weight, just a few inches taller than his wife Diana. Because of his job at the Ministry, Philip usually wore simple, yet formal robes. Philip was placed in Hufflepuff during his youth and probed to be quite a competent student, ultimately becoming Prefect of his House during his fifth year. Time passed, and before he knew it, he found himself being the father of two boys and husband of a lovely wife.

Diana Beckwith was a 32 year-old witch with Muggle parents just like Philip. She was named after the Muggle Princess of Wales, Lady Diana. The woman in question had long, black hair which she wore in a tight ponytail. She usually wore a black dress under a grey fur coat, a little more elegant than her husband because of her place in the Wizengamot, where wizards and witches alike had an image to maintain despite how snotty it felt. Diana, who also used to be a student at Hogwarts and was also an ex-Hufflepuff, met Philip during her sixth year. They became acquaintances, friends, good friends, very good friends, a couple an ultimately a family.

Then there was Edmund Beckwith, the oldest son. Edmund was a skinny boy who inherited his mother's pale skin and black hair, often described as a pompous and somewhat condescending know-it-all who spent all of his time in the library in hopes of achieving perfect grades, which he usually did. He was starting his fourth year in Hogwarts and, unlike his parents, he was sorted into Ravenclaw for his innate intelligence and thirst for knowledge.

Last but not least, Damian Beckwith. He was the little boy of the Beckwith marriage, and he was about to start his very first year at Hogwarts. Damian was as normal as any other eleven year-old wizard: He loved playing Quidditch with his Comet Two Sixty, he loved the sweets and candies from the Sugarplum's Sweets Shop in Diagon Alley, and was more than excited to start learning how to properly perform magic. He had dark brown, messy hair and blue eyes, both of which he inherited from Philip.

Damian was a simple and balanced boy. He wasn't smart like his brother, but he wasn't dumb by any means ("He's just a little distracted" his mother would often said). It wasn't easy for him to learn things like History and Astronomy because he couldn't quite interact with them. Those subjects were more on the theoretical side, and Damian was far more interested in things that he could actually apply in real life, like charms and spells. When something caught his attention, he would practice and practice and practice until he could get it right. That was one of the reasons why he liked Quidditch so much, because the only theoretical knowledge he needed to know were a few simple rules and the rest of the game was all about timing, coordination and flying skills.

Speaking of whom…

'Today's the day.' Damian Beckwith thought with a mix of excitement and anxiousness as he putted on his blue sweat jacket and carefully packed the books that were listed in the Hogwarts letter inside his wooden trunk.

"A History of Magic byBathilda Bagshot, check. Magical Theory byAdalbert Waffling, check. One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi byPhyllida Spore, check. Magical Drafts and Potions byArsenius Jigger, check…"

One by one, he made sure to pack all of his books, as well as his cauldron, robes, globes, winter cloak, telescope set, crystal phials, brass scales and his new owl Venus, a beautiful Barn owl with white and brown feathers. Well, in all honesty, in wasn't a new owl 'per say'. It used to belong to Edmund, who received a new owl this year as a reward for his outstanding grades in all subjects. Damian had always wanted an owl of his own, and once he knew Philip was getting one, he almost immediately claimed Venus for himself.

When all of his belongings were inside his trunk, Damian carefully extracted his wand out of its holster and examined it thoroughly, verifying that it was in excellent shape. The wand was twelve inches long, made out of English oak and with a phoenix feather as the wand core. When he went to Ollivander's to choose his wand (or to have a wand choose him, as Ollivander told him), the wandmaker said something very special to him: "A wand for good times and bad, this is a friend as loyal as the wizard who deserves it. Wands of English oak demand partners of strength, courage and fidelity. Follow these traits, and this wand will do wonders for you."

Strength, courage and fidelity… that sounded like a mix of Gryffindor and Hufflepuff traits. Was he going to become a Gryffindor or a Hufflepuff? Wizards were often placed in the House of their predecessors, but Edmund was sorted into Ravenclaw despite having Hufflepuff parents, so it could be either way for Damian. Jonathan Beckwith, Damian's uncle and Philip's only brother, was sorted into Gryffindor when he attended Hogwarts. Sadly, he never got the chance to meet him. Jonathan died in a tragically accident when Damian was only a baby.

He wasn't going to be sorted into Ravenclaw, that was for sure. Ravenclaw was for intelligent and creative individuals, and he would be the first to say he wasn't the sharpest wand of the holster. Slytherin was another no-no for him. Not only he wasn't from an ancestral house, but he came from Muggle-born parents, so there was no way he would fit in there.

"Is Damian Beckwith already done packing, sir?"

Damian gasped and spun around. "Gorky, how many times have I told you not to get behind my back like that?"

Gorky was the house-elf of the Beckwith family. Like almost every other house-elf, he wore something that was similar to a pillowcase but with rips for arm- and leg-holes. However, unlike most house-elfs, Gorky's robe (it was anything BUT a robe, but Gorky insisted it was) was fresh and clean to the point of being spotless.

Gorky started working for the Beckwiths when Damian was seven years old. Diana found him crying miserably outside The Fountain of Fair Fortune, a popular pub located in Horizont Alley. Apparently, Gorky was victim of a misunderstanding with his previous masters, the Parkinsons. They gave him a scarf and kicked him out of their house, and because he was the first among his family members to be freed by the Parkinson family, he was devastated. Diana heard his story and felt pity for him. In the end, she decided to give him a place to stay in her house and gave him the chance to become their house-elf. Because the Beckwith's Cottage was small only a reasonable sized home and because there were only four members living in it, the Beckwith family really had no need for a house-elf, but Diana simply couldn't leave him alone. That night, Gorky became the Beckwith's house-elf and swore to serve them dutifully.

The funny thing was that, because there were only a few chores to do, Gorky spent almost all of his time doing the same chores all over again in an attempt to keep his masters pleased. Both Philip and Diana reassured him that there was no need to re-do the same chores again and again, that one time was enough and that he needed to take a break every now and then. Gorky cried for about half an hour that day, praising the Beckwith family for their kindness and bowing to serve them with even more passion than before.

Damian quickly befriended Gorky, something that was hard at first because the elf considered Damian to be his 'master', believing he had to be addressed and treated as one. Fortunately, the bond between them became stronger and less formal over time, with Damian eventually becoming Gorky's favorite. Of course, he still did everything that Philip, Diana and Edmund told him to do without a second thought, but when Damian asked him if he could do something, the house-elf was more than willing to do it.

"Gorky apologizes, sir. Gorky did not mean to scare Damian Beckwith." The house-elf said apologetically while bowing. "Can Damian Beckwith forgive Gorky?"

"Don't worry, Gorky. You just scared me a little, that's all."

"Does Damian Beckwith wants Gorky to punish himself, sir?"

"What? Of course not. You've done nothing wrong."

The house-elf wiped a tear with his long and bony finger. "Damian Beckwith truly is kind. The Beckwith family has always been nice to Gorky. Gorky will always serve the Beckwith family until the day he perishes."

Not wanting to deal with Gorky's overdramatic antics, Damian raised his voice. "Is everyone else ready, Gorky?"

Gorky stopped sniffling and looked at Damian. "Gorky thinks so, sir. Mister Philip is waiting for you in the kitchen. Mistress Diana is already at King's Cross Station with Mister Edmund, sir. They woke up early in the morning to go to Diagon Alley."

"That sounds like Edmund alright." Damian said while rolling his eyes. "I bet a hundred Galeons he dragged Mum over to Diagon Alley first thing in the morning just so he could buy more books that weren't on his list. He's seriously obsessed with his grades. I wonder if… if everyone at Hogwarts is like him." he muttered at the end.

"Is Damian Beckwith feeling alright, sir?" Gorky asked with a worried tone. "Is he feeling sick?"

Damian shook his head. "It's not that, Gorky. I'm just… nervous, I guess. I don't know much about Hogwarts. Do you think I'll like it there? What if everyone's like Edmund? What if I don't make friends?"

Ever since he was a boy, Damian had trouble making friends, mainly because he and his family lived in a place where the majority of the habitants were Muggles. If he accidentally performed or talked about magic, he could get in real trouble with his parents and the Ministry of Magic. The only other wizards he had ever talked to before were either friends/colleagues of his parents or their children, who were around Edmund's age or older. The difference in age and interests between him and them was simply too big. His only true friend so far was Gorky, and even though he cared deeply for the elf, he knew it wasn't the same as having… well, human friends, for lack of a better term.

The voice of Gorky shook him out of his train of thought. "Damian Beckwith has nothing to fear, sir. Gorky is sure Damian Beckwith will find friends in no time. Damian Beckwith is the most kind and friendliest wizard Gorky knows of."

The young wizard felt his cheeks heating up, feeling both flattered and slightly embarrassed by Gorky's words. "Thanks, Gorky."

The house-elf beamed. "Damian Beckwith has nothing to thank Gorky for. Gorky would never lie to him."

Feeling more confident, Damian walked down the stairs with his trunk floating behind him (Gorky used a Levitating Charm) and went to the kitchen, grabbing a piece of toast and buttering it up. Philip, who was enjoying a cup of tea while reading an article about a Boggart experiment from the Daily Prophet, greeted his son with a warm smile. He was wearing a two-piece black suit with a grey tie, his usual attire for when he had to visit Muggle places like King Cross Station in London, for example. Thankfully, because he was raised with Muggle parents and siblings, Philip knew very well what to wear and how to act around Muggles. "Good morning, Damian. Ready for your first year at Hogwarts?"

"I suppose so." Damian said while shrugging his shoulders. "But how are we going to get there? We need to be at… What was the name of that place again?"

"King Cross Station."

"Yeah, King Cross Station in fifteen minutes. Are we going to use Floo powder?"

"Not this time." Philip smirked as he stood up and reached for a rectangular, one meter-long wooden box that was lying on the table. Gesturing his son to come closer, Philip opened the wooden box and showed what was inside.

Damian raised an eyebrow, clearly unimpressed. "A piece of rope?"

"This isn't just a piece of rope, Damian. This is a Portkey, an enchanted object used to instantly bring anyone touching it to a specific location. Think of it as a substitute for Apparition."

Now Damian was curious. "Really? And where is it going to take us?"

"To an abandoned house near our destination. The house is protected by lots of charms that keep Muggles from entering it and its location is only known to Aurors and ex-Aurors such as myself, so don't go around telling people about this place or Mr. Fudge will have my head. Now…" Philip pulled out his wand and pointed at Damian's trunk. "Reducio."

Damian's trunk shrunk to the size of a small box of chocolates. Damian grinned at the sight before picking up his toy-sized trunk and putting it inside his pocket. "What about Venus?" Damian asked. "Are you going to shrink her as well?"

"There's no need for that." Philip replied while grabbing the Portkey. "She already knows where Hogwarts is. Muggles aren't used to seeing owls being dragged around inside birdcages, so it's just better if you sent her to Hogwarts right now. The less attention you attract, the better off you'll be."

Nodding, Damian opened the kitchen's window and allowed Venus to be free from her birdcage. "Go to Hogwarts." Damian said. Venus hooted in understanding and joyfully started flying. Once she was out of sight, Damian approached his father, who instructed him to grab the end of the rope with all of his strength.

"Are you ready, Damian?"

"… Yes?"

"Excellent. To the count of three. One… Two… Three!"

SSSSSSWWWWOOOOOOPPPPP

Damian felt like he was being flushed down a toilet as everything became a blurry whirlwind of mixed colors. It felt like being constantly pushed around by a gigantic wave from the ocean, and the only thing Damian could do was to hold on to the rope as if his life depended on it.

Luckily, everything came to an end faster than what he expected. The whole travel took about thirty seconds, although it was hard to tell for someone who had never traveled via Portkey before. Philip casually landed with both feet on the ground while Damian ungraciously landed on his lower back with a loud THUD noise.

"Not bad for the first time, eh?" Philip chuckled as helped his disoriented son to stand up. "Don't worry, you'll get used to it."

Once Damian felt better, he looked at the place where they landed on. It was an old and filthy room with little furniture to display: A dusty wardrobe without doors and a round, broken mirror that only had a few pieces of glass left. "Where are we?"

"London, of course. This building is only five minutes away from King's Cross Station. Now, if you'd only place your trunk on the floor…" Damian did as told. "There we go. Engorgio!" The miniature trunk suddenly grew back to its normal size, much to Damian's amazement.

Father and son walked out of the building and got on their way to King's Cross Station, with Philip carrying Damian's trunk. Meanwhile, Damian took the opportunity to watch anything that he could lay his eyes on. It wasn't his first time in London, but it always amazed him how Muggles could get through life without the use of magic. One of his favorite Muggle inventions was the motorcycle because of how oddly wicked they looked. Before he knew it, he was entering King's Cross Station alongside his father. Upon entering the train station, Damian caught sight of his mother and Edmund who, as expected, was reading a heavy looking book while trying to ignore everyone else except his mother.

Diana greeted her youngest son with a hug. "Good morning, Damy. How's my beloved pumpkin pastry?" she asked while pinching both of Damian's cheeks.

"Stop calling me that, Mum." Damian replied as his cheeks went red, and not exactly because his mother was pinching them. He loathed being called 'pumpkin pastry' by his mother because of how stupid and childish it sounded. If anyone at Hogwarts, ANYONE, found out his mother called him that, he would surely lose the opportunity to make friends and most likely become the target of several pranks.

"Edmund, don't you have anything to say to your brother?" Diana asked with a lecturing tone.

Edmund rolled his eyes and huffed. "Good morning, Damian." He said hastily, not even bothering to look up from his book (Extreme Incantations by Violeta Stitch).

"There, that much better. Now Damian, before I show you how to reach the Platform 9 ¾, there's something I'd like to give to you first." Diana unzipped her handbag and pulled out a small leather bag that jingled when Damian grabbed it. "Here's a couple of Sickles so you can buy something on your way to Hogwarts and for Christmas as well. Don't spend it all at once."

"Mother, you are spoiling him." Edmund said in his usual overly-formal dialect.

"I'm not spoiling him, Edmund. I recall doing the same thing for you in your first year."

Edmund had the decency to look embarrassed. "He will most likely spend it on sweets. I used that money to buy books, which I reckon are far more valuable and useful." he argued.

"Reading books and getting high grades is all very well and good." Philip admitted. "But I think students prefer to share candies rather than books, wouldn't you agree?" Edmund decided not to answer; instead he closed his book and kept it under his arm, looking away indifferently. Philip sighed and decided not to waste any more time. "Whatever the case, we should get moving. Won't be much fun if both Damian and Edmund lose the train."

"Too right." Diana agreed. "You heard your father, boys. Damian, keep your eyes open and don't get too far away from us. Actually, if you could just follow us like a shadow, that'd be terrific."

With that said, the Beckwith family walked through the crowded train station, with Damian following his parents and brother like a lost puppy It was strange, he thought, how everyone looked and dressed like ordinary Muggles. Where were the witches and wizards that went to Hogwarts? He didn't saw a single boy or girl his age wearing the school uniform, and all the adults around seemed to be Muggles judging by their lack of wands and pointy hats, a very common garment among wizards and witches alike. Maybe it was because they wanted to keep a low profile and avoid being recognized? It made sense, and he was with his family anyways. As long as he kept his eyes open he would be alright.

They suddenly stopped between platforms 9 and 10, much to Damian's confusion. Where was the platform 9 ¾? The only thing he saw was a dividing barrier between the two platforms, and nothing else. He didn't expect to see a man holding a sign that read 'Express to Hogwarts' or anything like that, but there was absolutely nothing that could help him understand what he was supposed to do.

"Now Edmund, would you please show your little brother the entrance?" Philip asked with a barely contained grin, wanting to see the priceless reaction of his son. Edmund nodded and marched toward the dividing barrier with his trolley. Damian opened his mouth in shock. What was he doing? He was going to crash right into the barrier! But before he could warn him, a large group of tourists came out of nowhere and, by the time they were gone, so was Edmund.

Damian blinked once… twice… thrice. "Dad, where's Edmund?"

"Why, he's in platform 9 ¾ of course!" Philip said with a chuckle.

"What? But how… Magic." Damian said in realization, feeling a little bit stupid for not figuring out earlier. Although he couldn't really blame himself. After all, he was still eleven years-old and had yet to figure out how magic truly worked.

"Alright lad, you already know what to do. Run into the barrier as fast as you can, and don't worry, nobody will see you. Your mother and I will go after you."

Damian gulped, took a deep breath and started pushing his trolley towards the solid-looking barrier. Even after witnessing his brother disappearing upon contact, the idea of crashing into the barrier was not amusing. Silently praying to all existing and non-existing deities out there, Damian picked up the pace and closed his eyes.

Instead of crashing into the barrier and making an idiot out of himself, Damian felt a slight shiver go down his spine. He opened his eyes and was shocked by what he saw. He found himself in a completely different platform packed with people. There was a sign overhead that said 'Hogwarts Express, eleven O'clock'. Boys and girls were boarding the train, some of them already wearing the Hogwarts school uniform. He saw Edmund reading a book with a bored expression on his face not too far away.

Damian let out a wide grin. This. Was. Awesome.

He was feeling so excited he didn't even noticed the presence of his parents until Philip placed a hand on his shoulder. "Amazing, isn't it? After all this time, magic is still like a mystery to me. There's a ton of things you can learn, and the more you study, the more magic you'll be able to do, so make sure to pay attention in class and to get good grades like Edmund."

"Mhm-mhm." Damian replied absentmindedly, still staring at the train.

"However, keep in mind that Hogwarts is also a place to make friends and meet new people. Some of the people I met at Hogwarts became my best friends, and they still are to this very day."

The thought of making friends was so appealing to Damian that his ears perked up. He turned around and gave his father a smile. "Don't worry about it. By the end of the year, Venus won't be able to rest because of all the letters I'll be getting from my friends."

Philip chuckled. "That's all very well and good, but remember this: True friends are those you can count with one hand. That's an old Muggle saying, and I think it's deadly accurate. My father told me the same thing when I first attended Hogwarts. He knew about life, he did. That's why I want you to make the best out of the next nine months you'll be spending away from us."

"Take care, my ickle little pumpkin pastry." Diana cooed as she hugged her son one last time. Damian had half a mind to pull away from the hug but decided not to do so. Instead, he simply hugged his mother back. He wasn't going to see her or his father for the next nine months (he had yet to decide whether he would spend Christmas in Hogwarts or with his family), and he would be lying to himself if he said he wasn't going to miss them. "Now, promise you'll send us letters on a daily basis. We want to know what you're up to."

"And one last thing." Philip said as he placed both his hands on Damian's shoulders and stared at him with fondness. "Keep your eyes open for the woman of your life. Who knows? Maybe you'll meet her this very year and you won't realize it until much later."

Had he been drinking something, Damian was sure he would've spilled it right into his father's face. "What?"

"Just saying." his father answered with a shrug. "It happened to me, you know."

Damian decided to ignore his father's last advice, clearly not interested in keeping his eyes opened for the woman of his life. He had a lot more interesting things to do, like learning how to hex people, how to make things move around and entering the Quidditch Team (which would only happen once he entered his second year, and if he passed the tryouts). Hugging his father goodbye, the youngest son of the Beckwith family got inside the train and started looking for an empty compartment.

"Excuse me, do you mind if I sit here?"

Damian closed his book (Curses and Countercurses by Professor Vindictus Viridian) and looked at the individual that just entered through the compartment's door. It was a boy his age. He had black, untidy hair and green eyes. He wore a pair of round, poorly-mended glasses and clothes that didn't fit him at all; four or five sizes too big. The fact that he was naturally skinny didn't help things, either.

"Not at all, help yourself." Damian replied eagerly. Before finding an empty compartment, Damian searched everywhere for Edmund. He supposed they could've shared a compartment, but he never found his brother, who probably preferred the company of a book anyways.

The boy nodded and took a seat in front of him, followed by a slightly awkward silence were none of the wizards uttered a word. Damian supposed the boy in front of him was just as nervous as he was. "My name's Damian, by the way. Damian Beckwith." he said as he extended his hand.

The green-eyed wizard shook it. "I'm Harry. Harry… Potter." he muttered at the end.

Damian blinked. "I'm sorry, I didn't quite catch you. Harry what?"

"Harry Potter." Harry repeated, this time loud enough so that his name could be heard properly.

"Harry Potter? Wait, you mean…" Damian trailed off, a bewildered look on his face. When he saw the lightning-shaped scar on Harry's forehead, all doubts were erased. He was, indeed, talking and sharing compartment with none other than the Boy-Who-Lived. "Wow, that's just… I mean, I had no idea…" He truly didn't know what he was supposed to say, considering he didn't entered the train hoping to encounter the boy who, as a baby, took down the darkest, most evil wizard to ever live. His stammering came to an end when he noticed Harry's awkward expression. "I-I'm sorry, I really didn't mean to make you uncomfortable. I just… well, I wasn't expecting to meet you, that's all."

"It's okay, really." Harry shrugged. "I'm just not used to it, the fame."

Damian nodded and forced himself to remain calm. Even though he wasn't, by any means, famous, he could imagine how annoying it had to be for him to have complete strangers pointing at him and wishing him well even when they had never met before. Harry didn't look like the talkative, open kind of boy. If anything, he seemed to be the opposite of that. "So… Erh, would you mind if I ask you a question?"

Harry nodded. "Sure, go ahead."

"Well, I was just wondering, where have you been all of this time? Ever since You-Know-Who disappeared, all of the adults have been telling us stories about you, but I've never heard anything else. Did you grow up with Muggles?"

"Yeah, I did. I live with the Dursleys. They're my uncle, aunt and cousin." Harry said with a grim look. "They knew I was a wizard, but they hate anything that has to do with magic, so they just kept me away from the wizarding world for the past ten years. I didn't even know about Hogwarts until I got my letter."

To say that Damian was shocked was an understatement. Harry Potter, probably the most famous child in the entire wizarding world, didn't know about magic until he was eleven years-old? That was one of the most, if not the most, ironic things he had ever heard in his life. "So, you don't know about anything magic? Anything at all?"

Harry proceeded to tell Damian everything he knew about the wizarding world… which wasn't a lot. Damian was impressed by Harry's lack of knowledge, but didn't blame him in the slightest. Just when he was about to fill Harry in, the compartment's door slid open, revealing a red haired boy with lots of freckles. "Anyone sitting there? Everywhere else is full." he asked them.

Both Damian and Harry shook their heads and the boy sat down next to Harry. Before the newcomer could introduce himself, a pair of redheaded twins opened the door. "Oy, Ron, we're going down the middle of the train. Lee Jordan's got a giant tarantula down there." one of them said. They looked very similar to Ron, so Damian supposed they were brothers.

"Harry," the other twin said. "Did we introduce ourselves? Fred and George Weasley. And this is Ron, our brother. See you later, then."

"You know them?" Damian asked Harry once the twins were gone.

"Sort of. They helped me with my trunk."

"Are you really Harry Potter?" Ron blurted out while looking a tad bit anxious. He visibly relaxed when he saw Harry nodding. "Oh, that's good. I just thought Fred and George were setting me up like they usually do. So, erh, do you have the… the scar?"

Harry answered by lifting his hair up, allowing his forehead scar to be seen clearly.

"Blimey."

Damian decided it was time to introduce himself. "Your name's Ron, right? I'm Damian Beckwith."

"Ron Weasley." Both teens shook hands with a smile on their faces. Damian felt particularly happy too. It felt so good to be around people his age and not having to worry about accidentally saying the word 'magic'. If anything, magic was pretty much the only thing that students talked about, and Damian was more than eager to join the conversation.

"Are both of your families all wizards?" Harry asked as he looked at Ron and Damian.

"Erh… Yeah, I think so," Ron said. "I think Mom's got a second cousin who's an accountant, but we never talk about him."

"An accountant?" What's that?" Damian asked.

"A Muggle job that's all about numbers and money, or at least that's what Mom told me when I asked." Ron said while shrugging his shoulders. "What about you? Are you a Muggle-born?"

Damian shook his head. "Mom and Dad are wizards, but they're both Muggle-born so I know a bit about the Muggle world. I reckon my Mom was named after a famous Muggle. Her name's Diana and I think my grandparents named her after someone of the royalty or something like that."

Harry's eyes widened slightly. "Diana? As in Lady Diana, the princess of Wales?"

"Yeah, that's the one!" Damian snapped his fingers.

"I bet you two must know loads of magic already."

"Me?" Damian asked while pointing at himself. "Not really. Dad says I shouldn't try to do magic at my age, he reckons is unsafe and that I'll end up hurting myself. Besides, I just got my wand, so it's not like I've done a lot of spells or anything… Although, sometimes I steal Edmund's wand and practice jinxes on my own." he added at the last minute, a mischievous smile on his face.

"Who's Edmund?" Ron asked.

"He's my older brother. He's in Ravenclaw, actually. Do you have any brothers or sisters besides Fred and George?"

Ron nodded, and for some reason, he looked gloomy. "I have three other brothers and one sister. I'm the sixth in our family to go to Hogwarts. You could say I've got a lot to live up to. Bill and Charlie have already left; Bill was Head Boy and Charlie was captain of Quidditch. Now Percy's a prefect. Fred and George mess around a lot, but they still get really good marks and everyone thinks they're really funny. Everyone expects me to do as well as the others, but if I do, it's no big deal, because they did it first. You never get anything new, either, with five brothers. I've got Bill's old robes, Charlie's old wand, and Percy's old rat."

Harry perked up. "You have a rat with you?"

Ron reached inside his jacket and pulled out a fat gray rat, which was asleep. "His name's Scabbers and he's useless, he hardly ever wakes up. Percy got an owl from my dad for being made a prefect, but they couldn't af-." his ears went pink at that. "-I mean, I got Scabbers instead."

The next twenty minutes were spent teaching Harry about the wizarding world and discussing things like potions, Quidditch, charms, and what they expected to learn in Hogwarts. Damian noticed how much attention Harry paid to what they talked about, and how interested he was about learning more from the wizarding culture. He also started to open himself more with every joke they shared, and Damian even managed to make Harry laugh a couple of times.

A knock on the door interrupted Ron's 'hilarious Goblin joke' that he once heard from his brother Bill. They all turned their heads around and saw a smiling, slightly overweight woman in her forties. "Anything from the trolley, dears?" she asked in a sugary tone, almost as sugary as the sweets she brought with herself. She had everything, from Chocolate Frogs to Licorice Wands.

Harry stood up almost immediately (he didn't have any breakfast this morning) and started looking for something inside his pockets. Ron's ears went pink and muttered something about already having food for the trip. Damian was about to pull out his pouch full of Sickles to buy some Chocolate Frogs but, much to his surprise, Harry pulled out his own pouch and bought a little bit of everything the woman had to offer. "Are you… Are you gonna eat all of that on your own?" he asked tentatively.

"Of course not. Come, have some." Harry replied after dropping the candies onto an empty seat.

"Are you sure? I have some money; you don't have to spend yours on me."

But Harry insisted, so Damian obliged and helped himself a Chocolate Frog. After all, it was rude to say no when people offered you food, right?

"What are these?" Harry asked Ron after finishing a Cauldron Cake, holding up a pack of Chocolate Frogs. "They're not really frogs, are they?"

"No." Ron said. "But see what the card is. I'm missing Agrippa."

"What?"

"Oh, of course, you wouldn't know. Chocolate Frogs have cards, inside them, you know, to collect (he paused a little to swallow the Pumpkin Pasty inside his mouth) famous witches and wizards. I've got about five hundred, but I haven't got Agrippa or Ptolemy."

"I don't know if they even have Agrippa or Ptolemy." Damian quipped. "I must've eaten like, a hundred Chocolate Frogs and I still can't find either of them."

Harry ate the Chocolate Frog (at first with disgust, but with delight at the end) and stared at the card that came inside the box. It showed a man's face. He wore half- moon glasses, had a long, crooked nose, and flowing silver hair, beard, and mustache. Underneath the picture was the name Albus Dumbledore. There was a small description on the other side of the card:

Albus Dumbledore

Currently Headmaster of Hogwarts

Considered by many the greatest wizard of modern times, Dumbledore is particularly famous for his defeat of the dark wizard Grindelwald in 1945, for the discovery of the twelve uses of dragon's blood, and his work on alchemy with his partner, Nicolas Flamel. Professor Dumbledore enjoys chamber music and tenpin bowling.

"So this is Dumbledore." Harry mused.

"Yup, greatest wizard of all time. Some people call him 'Merlin Reborn'." Damian said.

"Wait, so Merlin is real? He's not from a fairy tale?" Harry asked in astonishment.

"I don't know what you mean by fairy tale, but Merlin's real alright."

After the Chocolate Frogs, Damian and Ron introduced Harry to Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans. They repeatedly warned him he truly could get any flavor, including apple, vanilla, honey, chocolate, and others not-as tasty like rubber, dirt, grass, and leather. Ron tried out one and made a disgusting sound, claiming it tasted like sprouts. Damian also had one and immediately regretted it because it tasted like 'dog drool'. Harry was considerably luckier than his two friends, choosing one that was caramel-flavored.

When most of the beans were eaten, a round-faced boy called Neville came by and asked them if they had seen a toad. They shook their heads and Neville left the compartment with his eyes full of tears. "Don't know why he's so bothered." the redheaded boy commented. "If I'd brought a toad I'd lose it as quick as I could. Mind you, I brought Scabbers, so I can't talk."

The rat was still snoozing on Ron's lap. Although he didn't voice his thoughts, Damian was inclined to agree with Ron. His rat was… uninteresting, to say the least.

"He might have died and you wouldn't know the difference. I tried to turn him yellow yesterday to make him more interesting, but the spell didn't work. I'll show you, look..."

Ron retrieved his wand from his trunk and was about to cast the spell on Scabbers when the compartment's door slid open again. This time, a girl wearing the school uniform appeared. She had lots of bushy brown hair and rather large front teeth. "Has anyone seen a toad around here? A boy called Neville lost it." Oh, and she also had a bossy tone of voice.

"We already told Neville we haven't seen his toad." Damian said, but the girl wasn't listening to him. She seemed a lot more interested in the wand Ron was holding.

"Oh, you're doing magic? Let me see, then."

Ron cleared his throat and stared awkwardly at Scabbers. "Erh, right. Sunshine, daisies, butter mellow, turn this stupid, fat rat yellow."

He waved his wand, but nothing happened. Scabbers stayed gray and fast asleep.

"Are you sure that's a real spell?" the girl said. "Well, it's not very good, is it? I've tried a few simple spells just for practice and it's all worked for me. Nobody in my family's magic at all, it was ever such a surprise when I got my letter, but I was ever so pleased, of course, I mean, it's the very best school of witchcraft there is, I've heard. I've learned all our course books by heart, of course, I just hope it will be enough. I'm Hermione Granger, by the way, who are you?"

It took the boys a while to comprehend what she just said. She spoke really fast.

"I'm Ron Weasley."

"Damian Beckwith."

"Harry Potter."

Hermione's eyes widened. "Are you really? I know all about you, of course. I got a few extra books for background reading, and you're in Modern Magical History and The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts and Great Wizarding Events of the Twentieth Century."

"I-I am?" Harry asked faintly.

Sensing Harry's uneasiness, Damian decided to interrupt Hermione. "Hey, wanna see a really cool spell?" he asked as he pulled out his wand. Three pair of eyes looked at him with great interest. Smiling mischievously, Damian pointed his wand at Ron. "Eructum." Ron winced a little but nothing seemed out of place. "Ron, what was the name of your rat again?"

Ron raised an eyebrow but replied nonetheless. "Scabb-eeeerph." he said with a rather audible burp. Harry and Damian burst out laughing while Ron's face went red. Hermione didn't look amused, but rather annoyed by the childish display of magic.

"Now, if you don't mind behaving your age…" Hermione interrupted. "… Do either of you know what House you'll be in? I've been asking around, and I hope I'm in Gryffindor, it sounds by far the best; I hear Dumbledore himself was in it, but I suppose Ravenclaw wouldn't be too bad... Anyway, we'd better go and look for Neville's toad. You two had better change, you know, I expect we'll be there soon." With that said, Hermione closed the door and walked away.

"Whatever house I'm in, I hope she's not in it." Ron said with an annoyed huff. He threw his wand back into his trunk. "Stupid spell. George gave it to me, bet he knew it was a dud."

"What House are your brothers in?" Harry asked Ron as he tried his best to stop snickering.

"Gryffindor. Mom and Dad were in it, too. I don't know what they'll say if I'm not. I don't suppose Ravenclaw would be too bad, but imagine if they put me in Slytherin."

"I wouldn't mind Hufflepuff, but I don't want to end in Slytherin or Ravenclaw." Damian said. "My brother's in Ravenclaw and he's a real stuck-up. I had an uncle who was in Gryffindor, though."

"Had?" Ron asked confused.

"He died a long time ago. Muggle accident."

"Oh… Sorry."

Damian shrugged. "Don't worry. It happened when I was a baby, so I never really got to know him."

In a successful attempt to change the topic, Ron asked Harry if he knew what happened in Gringotts. Someone tried to steal something from a high-security vault. The funny thing was that nothing seemed to be stolen, according to the Goblins. The perpetrators were still yet to get caught, which was nothing short of amazing. Harry remembered how Hagrid told him only someone insane would try to steal from Gringotts. He also remembered how Hagrid retrieved something from a vault the day they went shopping at Diagon Alley, and how mysterious the whole affair felt.

After discussing the Gringotts news, Damian and Ron felt the need to explain Harry the rules of Quidditch. The sport itself was pretty easy to understand. Harry felt amused by how passionate both Ron and Damian were when they compared the Chudley Cannons to Puddlemere United, their favorite teams respectively.

Apparently, the compartment they were sharing was very popular, because they were interrupted for a fourth time. Not by the twins, not by Neville, not by Hermione, but by a blond boy with pale skin and grey eyes. He was accompanied by two fat boys who looked more like trolls. "Is it true?" the pale boy said. "They're saying all down the train that Harry Potter's in this compartment. So it's you, is it?"

"Yes." Harry replied curtly. He had already interacted with the boy back at Diagon Alley when they both visited Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions, and his first impression of the boy was not a good one.

"This is Crabbe and this is Goyle. My name's Malfoy, by the way. Draco Malfoy."

He spoke with such arrogance that it was hard for Damian to keep a straight face. The same thing happened to Ron, who let out a laugh hidden in a cough.

Draco glared at Ron. "What, you reckon my name is funny? I don't even need to ask yours. My father told me all the Weasleys have red hair, freckles, and more children than they can afford."

Damian stopped shaking with mirth and glared at the blond boy. He had no idea who he was, but he wasn't about to let Draco make fun of Ron and get away with it. "Shut up. At least Ron looks like a boy. You look like an ugly girl, but with pants instead of a skirt."

Draco's face went red in anger as he approached Damian with a murderous look. "Who do you think you are? Don't you know who you're talking to?"

"… A boy who looks like an ugly girl?"

Ron roared in laughter and Harry had a wide grin on his face. Damian was honestly surprised with himself. He never knew he could be that witty when it came to comebacks. Nevertheless, he enjoyed seeing Draco's face contorting with rage. Draco then faced Harry. "I'm telling you Potter, you don't want to go making friends with rubbish like these two." he said while giving Ron and Damian a dirty look. "I can help you with that."

He offered his hand, but Harry didn't accept it. "I think I can tell who's rubbish and who's not by myself, thanks."

Looking highly insulted, Draco retrieved his hand and faced Harry with a sneer. "I'd be careful if I were you, Potter. Unless you're a bit politer you'll go the same way as your parents. They didn't know what was good for them, either."

Harry was instantly on his feet. "Say that again."

"Oh, you're going to take us on?"

But the fight never came to be. Apparently sensing the danger, Scabbers suddenly awoke from his slumber and started biting Goyle's thumb with his sharp and yellow teeth. Goyle let out a hysterical yell and swung Scabbers round and round until the rat finally pulled out his teeth and landed on an empty seat. The three boys quickly backed away and left the compartment with Goyle whimpering all the way out. Half a minute later, Hermione was again sliding their door open.

"What has been going on?" she demanded. "I heard someone shouting. You haven't been messing around, have you?"

"No, we haven't." Ron replied with an annoyed look, obviously not pleased that Hermione was here with them again. "You've met Malfoy before?" he asked Harry, who nodded and explained about their meeting in Diagon Alley. "I've heard of his family. They were some of the first to come back to our side after You-Know-Who disappeared. Said they'd been bewitched. My dad doesn't believe it. He says Malfoy's father didn't need an excuse to go over to the Dark Side." He turned to Hermione. "Can we help you with something?"

"I just came here to tell you three to hurry up and put your robes on, I've just been up to the front to ask the conductor, and he says we're nearly there… Were you fighting?"

"Scabbers was, not us." Damian replied with a grin.

"Would you mind leaving while we change?" Ron scowled at her.

"All right, I only came in here because people outside are behaving very childishly, racing up and down the corridors." Hermione said in a sniffy voice. "And you've got dirt on your nose, by the way, did you know?"

Ron glared at her while she left. They all changed quickly into their school uniforms, feeling more anxious than ever. Once they were done, Damian noticed how worn out Ron's robes were. Definitely second-hand. He felt a tinge of pity for the Weasleys, who obviously didn't have enough resources to live comfortably. "You know what we should do?" Damian asked out of the blue. "We should stay friends even if we end up in different Houses. How does that sounds?"

Ron grinned. "As long as you don't end up in Slytherin, you've got a deal mate."

"I'd like that." Harry said with a smile. He may have earned himself a rival with Draco, but he also found Ron and Damian, his two new friends.

First chapter of 'A Fourth Wand' completed.

I've always wanted to write a HP fic with my OC in it. I grew bored of reading about Sirius Black's daughter/ son, so I came up with Damian Beckwith. What do you think of him? Like him so far? Let me know your thoughts.

Review, Follow and Favorite at will.