A small child was hiding inside a wardrobe. It was quite clear that, outside it, a war was raging, filled with cries, screams, shouts, and magical incantations. Light from outside shone into the wardrobe, revealing pools of blood and much more beyond it.
The child was completely alone, having been left there by his sister. He appeared to be about six years old, with deep black hair and eyes. From his clothes, it was easy to tell that he belonged to a very noble family.
This child's name was Noah.
His family had been hunted down.
His sister had hidden him to protect him, at least until the family's friends could come to find him. There were many reasons why they were hunted down, but the main one was that their blood was extremely important.
He belonged to a magical race called the High-Arch Vampires. Their blood could extend the lifespans of mortals; the most superior among them could return the souls of recently deceased individuals to their bodies, and members of this race never truly died unless slain in battle. Possessing incredible magical abilities, they were also very difficult to hunt.
In short, it wasn't difficult to understand why they were targeted.
Their blood was highly valuable, and it was quite normal for the dogs of the Dark Lord, who had fallen a few years ago, to hunt them at the most unexpected moments—such as during a family feast.
Noah had been stuck inside the wardrobe for a very long time, crying as he thought about how desperately he wanted to see his mother, father, and sister. He cried silently; he mustn't make a sound. Even though he was a small child, he was smart and didn't want to disappoint his sister.
When the green-toned spells flying outside suddenly paused, Noah could hear fast, heavy footsteps beyond the wardrobe, close to where he was hiding.
Noah was the child with the greatest magical potential that his family had seen in the last two thousand years, but he knew almost nothing about magic—nothing beyond a few simple spells. Therefore, he knew he couldn't protect himself, so he covered his mouth with his hands and tried not to cry.
The footsteps outside slowed again and again, finally stopping. Noah realised that whoever had been running was now in the same room. One of them began walking again, slowly approaching the wardrobe, and then the wardrobe door opened instantly.
Realising there was nothing he could do, Noah tried to throw himself at the person who opened it.
"Damn you all!!!" Noah shouted, throwing a few punches. However, he was immediately grabbed by the person who had opened the wardrobe and heard several voices shout,
"Calm down, Noah! Calm down!!"
The person holding him was tall, appeared to be in his thirties, and had light brown hair flecked with grey. Several others were standing right behind him.
Although Noah couldn't understand what was happening, he ignored the man's words and tried to kick and hit him. Of course, he failed.
Noah finally calmed down when a tall, thin, elderly figure standing behind them stepped forward. He knew exactly who this person was. The old man had visited his family's home dozens of times, and Noah remembered how warmly his mother—the leader of a family of hundreds—had treated him.
This man's name was Albus Dumbledore, a family friend.
With that, Noah stopped struggling against the man holding him. He believed Dumbledore was not his enemy, and he was right.
"Calm down, little one. Everything will be fine," the old man said, his eyes filled with deep sadness.
Only then did Noah clearly see who was holding him. He had seen this man before when he was younger.
It was Remus John Lupin.
He was one of the members of the large group that followed Dumbledore. Every one of them was a friend of Noah's family. He even remembered that his parents had opened their home to Lupin because of his special circumstances.
Noah still couldn't fully understand what was happening; everything had occurred far too quickly. Yet he could see hundreds of dead bodies outside, in the places where the tall man had carried him.
They were family members he had known since the day he was born.
Noah wanted to be put down, and the tall man carrying him gently let him go.
After walking around for a while, Noah came across a scene he never wanted to see. His sister, father, and mother were standing together in the same place… only dead.
The child immediately ran toward them. He was so shocked that he couldn't scream or call their names; only tears fell from his eyes.
When those who came to his side looked more closely at Noah, almost all of them widened their eyes. His hair colour had changed from black to light blue. Each person turned to Dumbledore. The old man didn't seem surprised; he looked as though he had known this would happen.
Pure-blood High-Arch Vampires were a peculiar race. Contrary to expectations, they did not feed on blood like other vampires and lived much like normal humans. They were simply beings with vastly superior magical power, able to draw energy from the sun or the stars themselves.
It was impossible to kill them outright. Even with curses, they could not truly be slain, because as long as the sun and stars existed, they would remain immortal, only be killed when the magic itself knew they were fighting. This was the defining characteristic of their race and the reason they were called "vampires."
Every pure-blood High-Arch Vampire possessed a special power from birth. Some were born with superhuman strength, others with incredible intelligence. Some could speak the language of dragons from birth, while others were able to control minds.
Others, like Noah, were born as Metamorphmagus. Unlike other Metamorphmagus, Noah could only change the colour of his hair and eyes and could transform only into animals with which he had formed a long-term bond. In other words, he perfectly exemplified the peculiarity of his race.
Although Noah mourned in front of his family's bodies for several minutes, Dumbledore eventually had to stop him. The place was still dangerous; the Dark Lord had more than just a few followers. The old, mad man refused to take any risks and moved Noah away.
"It's time to go, little one. We will burn their bodies so no one can ever use their blood, I swear," the old man said gently.
This was the last time Noah saw his family.
Time passed quickly. Noah was moved from Turkey, where he had lived with his family, to England, where he was taught under the guidance of Albus Dumbledore and Minerva McGonagall. Seven years passed, and he turned thirteen. Contrary to expectations, he refused to attend Hogwarts, the greatest school of wizardry in the world.
Instead, from the age of nine, he had been hunting and killing Death Eaters—not alone, but that was what he was being trained for, what he wanted to become; a lot of Aurors thought him from a young age. Because of the power of his race, no one in the Ministry of Magic dared to oppose him. In truth, Cornelius Fudge and the Ministry's higher-ups should have been praying that Noah never walked down the wrong path.
After all, it would be disastrous to have as an enemy someone destined to lead a nearly unkillable race, one that required precise timing to even attempt to destroy, and who possessed the strongest blood his kind had produced in two thousand years. In short, young Noah had a form of limited immunity.
At Dumbledore's request, Noah was placed with a family—though it could hardly be called adoption. He was simply sent to live with them during the first three years he was in the United Kingdom.
The Weasley family.
Dumbledore wanted the boy to grow up surrounded by love, so he entrusted him to the best person for the task: Molly Weasley.
The Weasleys were poor and not particularly respected by other "noble" wizarding families, but they excelled at loving their own children—and even those who were not theirs. They were, in every sense, a kind family who made no distinction between Muggles and those born with magic.
And now that Arthur Weasley was one of the people who were with Dumbledore in that mansion at that proper moment, he didn't want to refuse this orphan. He just wanted him to get a family again.
That was why Noah, who carried a truly painful past, had been entrusted to them, and Dumbledore had fully expected Molly to do a good job.
And she had.
Noah's old, dark-eyed days had faded. The young man had become someone who smiled a little more, yet remained calm and rarely showed his feelings. He had grown to see Molly almost as his mother.
Although he was not a full Metamorphmagus, he couldn't fully control the colour of his hair and eyes. So saying he didn't show his emotions at all would be somewhat untrue.
Noah rose at dawn, at six o'clock. Today, the 1st of September, was his birthday. He had turned fourteen. It was also the day Hogwarts students returned to school, and new first-years arrived.
He spent the entire day preparing, and when evening came, he went down to the Great Hall and waited near the professors' section beside the long table.
The second-year students and those above knew Noah well; many of them had grown up with him at the school. He often helped them, even buying supplies for those who struggled to afford their belongings. His family's fortune spanned thousands of years, so running out of money was practically impossible.
Noah was kind-hearted. Even though the world had treated him cruelly, he loved helping others. Supporting students—the future of the wizarding world—had become something that genuinely made him happy.
Today was especially important to him. The boy Dumbledore had spoken about for so long—Harry Potter—and his beloved Ronald Bilius Weasley were finally joining Hogwarts as first-years and would soon be sorted into one of the four houses.
Noah was particularly excited for Ron, knowing how terrified he was of being sorted anywhere other than Gryffindor.
Noah himself was not a Gryffindor. Although he had initially refused to attend Hogwarts as a student, at McGonagall's request—and with a bit of coercion—he had worn the Sorting Hat and been placed in Ravenclaw.
As time passed, Noah waved to the Weasleys at the Gryffindor table, then greeted his friends in the other houses. He made sure not to miss his closest friends, Cedric Diggory and Isolde Everhart. Just as he finished, the Great Hall's massive doors swung open.
Dozens of small children entered, gazing around the enormous hall with wide eyes and barely contained excitement.
Ron's eyes immediately found Noah. He smiled and pointed him out to the boy beside him, wearing round glasses. Noah instantly recognised him. This was the child he had been asked to protect—though "protect" might not have been the right word. Dumbledore had only asked him to observe Harry, just in case.
When the first-years came to a stop, Professor McGonagall stepped forward, lifted the Sorting Hat from the chair, and announced, "Welcome to Hogwarts!" She explained the sorting process and told them that their houses would become their families.
Then she called the first name.
Then the next.
Eventually, it was Ron's turn.
"Ronald Weasley!"
Ron walked to the chair on slightly shaky legs and sat down. Moments later, the Sorting Hat's voice rang through the hall:
"Ah! Another Weasley, I know just where to put you!!! Gryffindor!!!"
A roar erupted from the Gryffindor table. Another Weasley joining their side was clearly cause for celebration.
After several more students were sorted, it was finally Harry's turn. Noah focused intently as his name was called. Within half a minute, the Sorting Hat made its decision.
"Gryffindor!!!!!"
Soon after, the remaining students were sorted, and Dumbledore officially began the feast. Noah barely ate, spending the entire time observing the people around him.
Before taking her seat, McGonagall approached Noah, gently stroked his cheek, and said, "Happy birthday, Noah."
He smiled. "Thank you, Professor."
The night went on. Dessert was served, and eventually the feast came to an end. Prefects led the students back to their houses, and Noah prepared to return to his room.
However, things would not be that simple.
The young man was stopped by Dumbledore shortly afterwards. Standing beside the old madman were McGonagall and Severus Snape, the latter easily recognisable by his aquiline nose and pale complexion.
Noah realised at once that he was in trouble, so when Professor Dumbledore asked him to follow, he didn't refuse.
He couldn't believe he had managed to get himself into trouble in the final hours of his birthday.