Chapter 2

Jude didn't know how good something was until he never had it. Hot showers were something he never had and cold showers never really bothered him much. It just felt so good to stand under the heat of the water as it ran through his hair.

After Hannah explained what Hogwarts was, she let him have a room in the inn above the Leaky Cauldron for free. He would be forever grateful to Hannah and her husband who he had yet to meet.

When he exited the steamy bathroom, he was met with a tall, blond haired man. The man blinked at him confusedly, furrowing his brow as he scratched his head, "Do I know you?"

Jude shook his head, putting the towel he had in his hands around his neck. He smiled nervously, holding out his hand, "I'm Jude Porter. I just got here a few hours ago. Hannah Longbottom gave me a room here."

The man smiled as it finally clicked. He shook the boy's hand, "Ah yes. Hannah told me about you before I came up. I'm Neville Longbottom, Hannah's husband."

Jude grinned, "It's nice to meet you, Mr. Longbottom. Hannah told me you teach at Hogwarts as the Herbology Professor."

"That I do," Neville nodded. "You're going to Hogwarts, right?"

"Yes, sir," Jude nodded as well. "Though, I don't know the first thing about magic. My guardian was a muggle and my parents died in a fire when I was two. I don't even know if they were magical folk either."

Neville patted his shoulder reassuringly, "That's all fine, Jude. I'll go with you to Diagon Alley tomorrow so we can get your stuff for the school year."

"Really?" Jude asked in disbelief. He had never had anyone in his life that put him before themselves. It made his heart swell and his eyes sting, "Thank you, Professor Longbottom."

Neville chuckled, walking to his room, "Call me Neville, Jude. Good night."

"Good night."

…

"Okay," Neville began as he and Jude walked past the moving bricks to Diagon Alley. Jude stared at the bricks in awe before finally moving to Neville. "We need to get you your robes, books, pet, wand, etc."

"Wand?" Jude asked a bit excitedly. "I get a wand?"

"Yeah, I'll take you to Ollivander's," Neville replied with a smile. "Though, Ollivander hasn't been in the best health since the war, but his son Gary Ollivander is just as good as he is. You can go get your wand now while I get your other belongings."

"Really?" Jude questioned happily. This was really all new to him; someone being nice to him and not wanting anything in return except for his happiness.

Neville ruffled his hair, "Sure. It'll only be a while. Ollivander's is just a few shops down." He smiled at him once more before walking away.

Jude stared at his retreating form for a moment before walking away, trying to look for said shop. When he finally found the sign that read Ollivander's Wand Shop, he sighed in relief and walked in. He gazed around in awe at the shelves filled with many boxes of which he assumed were wands.

"'Ello, 'ello," A young man with grey eyes and dirty blond hair greeted him with a grin, "Looking for a wand, eh?"

"Yeah," Jude nodded, still gazing around.

"Righty-o," He grinned, "I'm Gary Ollivander, Garrick Ollivander's son. I'm helping him run the shop since he's ill. I'm hoping to take the shop fully one day." He took a box from the shelf behind him. He opened it, revealing a long, black wand. He handed it to the boy gently, "Here you are. Cherry with a core of Veela hair. One of my favorites," He winked at the confused boy. "Now give it a wave."

Jude furrowed his brow, concentrating. He flicked the wand, and watched in bewilderment as it sent boxes flying from their shelves.

Gary flinched, snatching the wand away. He laughed nervously, "Well, I guess we know Veela's aren't your type." He swallowed, handing him another box quickly. "Look at that; Elm with a dragon heartstring core."

Jude gaped at the wand in awe before waving it lightly. The glass on the front desk burst into pieces, startling them both.

Gary shuddered a bit fearfully. He reached over, taking the wand and pushing the boy down one of the rows, "How 'bout this, eh? We let the wands talk, and whichever pops out, that's your wand. The wand chooses the wizard."

Jude nodded numbly, walking down the row. Nothing seemed to pop out at him, trying to choose him. He had almost given up when he went into the last row and one box seemed to push itself out towards him, knocking down all of the boxes in front of it.

He frowned slightly; taking the box and prying open the lid. He held a light brown wand with a dark handle. He felt the warmth on his finger tips and the power that flowed through his veins as he held it.

"Well, well, well. Looky here," Gary said airily. "Found a wand, eh?" He took the wand, peering at it intently, "Rowan wood with thestral tail hair," He whispered in awe, "These wands are very hard to master, but when they are, they are the strongest ones in the wizarding world next to Elder wands."

He locked his grey eyes with Jude's blue ones, "What are you, boy? You the next Potter, eh? The next Chosen One?"

Before Jude could open his mouth, Gary smiled, looking away, "Alrighty then, let's ring this up for you. I'm sure you have to get other things for school. It's starts today, so be prepared."

After Jude paid for his wand, he met up with Neville who was just exiting the store. The older male smiled at him, holding out a cage which held a white, blue eyed owl, "I hope you like her. I didn't really know which one to choose since I took a toad when I went to school."

"A toad?" Jude laughed, letting his hand run over the owl's feather. The owl nipped at his fingers affectionately, causing him to smile, "I like her. She's nice."

"Her name's Hestia," Neville smiled at the boy's interaction with the owl.

"Hestia," Jude murmured with a smile, "I like it."

Neville nodded, handing the boy his other belongings, "Alright, you're ready. We just need to get you to the train and then we'll be going."

"Right," Jude nodded as well, walking with the man. They got a cart for Jude's things; he was delighted when he got a trunk with his initials on it. It was the first of many, but he was still happy to own something without having someone take possession of it.

"Okay," Neville handed him his ticket, "As you can see, Platform 9 ¾ is not here. What you're going to do is run through this wall, and you'll find the platform on the other side." He gestured to the brick wall in the middle of Platform nine and ten.

If he had told Jude this before he found out he was a wizard, he would've taken him to a crazy house. Now, he just had to trust the man. He ran at the wall, closing his eyes tightly in case of the impact.

His eyes snapped open in surprise when he kept going. He stopped abruptly, trying not to bump into the other kids there. He snapped his head around when he saw Neville behind him. The man patted his shoulder, smiling reassuringly, "I'll be on the train as well, but with the other teachers. Don't be afraid, you'll make friends. I'll see you at Hogwarts."

Jude watched as he walked away. He swallowed dryly and felt his hands become clammy. He breathed shakily, and got onto the train. When he got his belongings on, he tried to find an open seat for him, but did not want to disrupt anyone.

He mentally sighed in relief when he found one that was empty. He opened the glass door, putting his trunk on the top and sitting down. He turned his gaze to the window, watching everything move as the train started. He wondered how long it would take before they got to Hogwarts.

Moments later, he was brought out of his daydreaming when heard a knock at the glass door. A dark haired boy opened the door slightly, grinning at him, "You wouldn't mind if I sat in here, would you?"

Jude shook his head quickly, gesturing for him to take the seat. The boy's grin widened as he went in and put his stuff away. He sat down across from him, "Hello."

"Hello," Jude mumbled a bit shyly.

"No need for that," The boy shook his head, holding out his hand, "I'm James, but you probably already know that."

Jude furrowed his brow confusedly, but he shook the other boy's hand, "No, I don't. I'm Jude, by the way. Jude Porter."

James tilted his head to the side, raising a disbelieving eyebrow, "What do you mean you don't know? Ever since my father defeated the dark wizard in the Second Wizarding War, everyone has known everything about his life."

"Wh-who's your father?" Jude winced, pushing his glasses up. He didn't know many things about the wizarding world. Hannah told him about the war, but she never told him names or anything.

"Harry Potter," James answered slowly, as if the boy were stupid. He blinked when he noticed the boy still looked confused. "Wait, are you a muggle-born wizard?"

"I-I don't know," Jude shrugged, swallowing. "I don't know my parents. They died in a fire when I was two. Bu-but I know who your father is now. Some people have mentioned his name before."

"I'm not surprised," James said, shaking his head. He smiled a small smile at the other boy, "Let me start over. I'm James Potter, son of Harry and Ginny Potter."

"Jude Porter," Jude grinned in relief, laughing a bit. "I don't know who I'm the son of. No one I know has heard of my parents."

"If you don't have any parents, who are you living with?"

"Well, I was living with a man named Piers Polkiss," Jude answered, frowning at the remembrance of the man. "He got mad when I got my letter to Hogwarts and kicked me out. Now I live with Neville and Hannah Longbottom above the Leaky Cauldron."

"Really?" James asked excitedly. "I know the Longbottoms. They went to school with my parents. They're really good friends with them too. Neville is the Herbology professor at Hogwarts."

"Oh wow," Jude laughed delightfully, happy he was getting a friend. It was in that moment that he knew that Hogwarts was the best thing that happened to him.