The next morning, sunlight poured through the wide windows of the Ravenclaw dormitory. Harris woke early, not because of nerves, he'd been waiting for this moment his whole new life, but because of habit.
Years of secret training and preparation had made him disciplined.
He dressed quickly, took one last look at the sky outside, and followed the other first-years down to breakfast in the Great Hall.
The hall looked different in the morning light, golden and alive with clinking plates and sleepy chatter. Harris spotted Alex grinning with toast stuffed in his mouth. Summer sat perfectly composed as usual, reading a book while eating porridge.
They shared glances.
No words were needed.
Their first class was Charms with Professor Flitwick.
The classroom was cozy, filled with sunlight and floating candles. Harris had read and memorized every standard charm theory before arriving, but this was his first time seeing real wandwork in action.
Professor Flitwick stood on a stack of books, cheerful and bright-eyed.
"Welcome to Charms! Today we'll begin with the Levitation Charm, Wingardium Leviosa."
The room buzzed with excitement and nervous whispers.
"Remember, it's levi-O-sa, not levio-SAR," Flitwick reminded them, chuckling.
Harris sat beside a shy girl named Claire and pointed his wand at a feather.
He didn't want to stand out. So he intentionally let his first few tries fail.
Then, on the third try, he whispered, "Wingardium Leviosa," with the exact wand motion he had practiced for months in secret.
The feather floated gently into the air.
"Excellent, Mr. Wells!" Flitwick said, clapping his hands. "Five points to Ravenclaw!"
A few students turned to look. Harris smiled softly and let the feather drift down, keeping the moment quiet.
Later, in Transfiguration, McGonagall had them practice turning matches into needles. Harris succeeded on his fourth try, making it halfway through the transformation.
He frowned slightly.
His standards were higher.
But again better to grow steadily than to stand out too early.
During lunch, Alex nearly tripped over a floating tray, spilling pumpkin juice on himself. Harris used a simple drying charm, one he'd practiced years before to clean it up before a teacher could even react.
Alex blinked. "Where'd you learn that already?"
"I read ahead."
"Mate," Alex grinned, "you're not a first-year, you're a time-traveler."
Harris laughed. Not far off.
In the afternoon, they had Herbology with Hufflepuff, taught by Professor Sprout. She was cheerful and earthy, guiding them through how to repot puffing plants that released warm steam.
Harris worked calmly, avoiding attention but taking detailed mental notes of the magical soil, the root structures, the subtle magical pulses he could now feel through his fingers.
His magical senses, the instincts he had developed, were working better than ever in real magic-rich environments.
Back in the Ravenclaw common room that night, as others chatted and played Wizard Chess, Harris sat by the window, his wand resting on a small rock he had enchanted to glow faintly.
Not for practice. For peace.
He stared out across the Black Lake, thinking.
He was one step closer.
He had made it into the magical world. He had a home here now. And more than anything he had a future to rewrite.
Carefully. Quietly. And when the time came… decisively.