Harry had not really paid attention to the table at the front, and he didn't feel like bothering too much right now anyway. He was hungry, emotionally a bit drained, and eager when he found that the last student had been sorted.
An incredibly old man... probably Albus Dumbledore? Well, he had stood up and was smiling at everyone. "Welcome!"
Everyone waited.
For a while. Eventually Professor McGonagall gave an embarrassed elbow to his side and he seemed to notice everyone was waiting for something. "What a treat, a new year at Hogwarts. Before we eat, I would like to say a few words... but oh well." He sat down with an absent hand wave and everyone stared at him again.
There were a few hesitant claps before everyone decided "Food? Sure" and the students realized that at some point during that sentence the tables were filled with food. Harry was stunned at the large amounts of potatoes (Boiled, roasted, ried, etc), meats (Steak, pork, chicken, you name it), and side items (Don't even get him started). He grabbed small samples of most of it, passing plates back and forth as people asked.
He wasn't sure how he felt about Hogwarts so far, but it was most certainly interesting.
The overwhelming amounts of food eventually became less interesting to the mass of children as Harry's attention was pulled back to the teacher's table. There seemed to be some sort of argument building between Professor McGonagall and Dumbledore. The other teachers were just watching in a mixture of amusement and horror as the old man was cutting up some pie with the edge of a fairly large sword.
Harry leaned in and grabbed Robert's attention. "So... is Dumbledore... alright?"
"Wha?" Robert lifted his head from his own dessert, seeming to notice for the first time that a stern woman in black was trying to disarm a grandpa with a much too long beard. "Oh that. Well, they say the really rich and the really powerful go a bit odd." He watched as Dumbledore somehow smacked a terrified man with a purple turban with the flat of the sword while trying to get more pie. "Let's just say Professor Dumbledore is VERY powerful and leave it at that." Slightly confused at how everyone was just accepting old people fighting for pie, Harry gave a quick overview of the rest of the teachers... at least, he assumed they were teachers. Hagrid was apparently enjoying half of a chicken in one hand and a huge hunk of bread in the other, the tiny person (His new classmates had mentioned he was Professor Flitwick, their head of house), a really greasy looking fellow who seemed to be glaring at...
"QUACK!"
GOD HIS HEAD. Harry quickly turned away and retreated to his mind.
Hermione and Padma both felt the boy next to them jerk as if slapped and turned to see his eyes fade, like the light had vanished from his eyes. "Ha... Harry?"
Harry entered his world... And there was damage EVERYWHERE. The ground had scorch marks as if struck by lightning, a few duck houses had been destroyed, but the major damage had been done to the sky.
His green eyes surveyed the sky. All the chains holding his duplicate memories had snapped from strain, apparently trying to hold back whatever that greasy man had done when trying to get in. Several clouds were damaged, and the sky was now FILLED as the carefully stacked towers had collapsed into each other.
His gaze turned hard as he turned. All teams were lined up, Jim at the lead.
"Report."
"Quack."
That was bad. Thankfully no ducks had been killed in the attack, but the damage to the village had been... well, all of this was unacceptable. "Looks like hiding the entrance helped, but we can not allow this kind of damage again. Any suggestions?"
Jim turned to his teams and they quietly conversed. Harry tried to stay calm as he watched Snail Quarters being repaired. Finally he felt small teeth pull at a pant leg.
"Quack? Quack."
"More defenses would probably help, but I can't go with that. I like having grass and a clear sky. I refuse to destroy my inner world building defenses."
A duck on the edge of the group hesitantly raised a wing. Jim moved close and the two quacked a bit.
"Quack?"
Green eyes widened a bit before turning contemplative. Decoys had a real possibility. But he felt like he needed someone in here, not just on security. Harry sat back into a chair that just appeared on the grass, with dozens of tiny eyes watching him, waiting for orders. A wave of his hand and Jim was in a similar seat, both looking at the lake.
"Jim, this scared me. I have never felt someone trying to force their way in here. I didn't even think it was a possibility."
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