With Love, Harry

Chapter One: The Sorting

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter (obviously).

Vernon Dursley had always been a kind man, helping those in need and supporting his family through hard work and perseverance. He had been raised to always be optimistic and cherish the blessings he had been given. And Vernon knew that two of those blessings were Petunia, his wife, and their darling son, Dudley. Family was very important to Vernon and Petunia and they were determined to raise their son right. They put him in the best daycare in the county to make sure he had a lot of practice on how to interact with other children his age. They gave him the most educational toys available so that he would grow up to be a smart boy. They made sure Dudley had a good house in a good neighborhood where he could experience a structured and joyful childhood.

All these things were only made possible through the time Vernon put in at his job in his executive position at work. He had landed his current job at a Grunnings Drill Company through the help of his sister-in-law, Lily Evans. Her husband, James, held stock in the company that he inherited from his late parents. Vernon and Petunia were very grateful for the help they received from Lily and James that enabled them to provide the best for their son. To show this gratitude, the Dursleys invited the Potters to their home for dinner every Sunday evening to makes sure the two families remained close-knit and supportive of each other. At these dinners, Dudley Dursley and the Potter's infant son Harry were able to play together and become very close. It became a normal practice for Lily and Petunia to meet up during the day and take the two young boys to the park to play while their mothers sat and gossiped.

Through the first year of Harry's and Dudley's lives, their two families formed an unbreakable bond and supported each other through the hard times that faced them. When Petunia lost a pregnancy just before Dudley's first birthday, Lily was there for her sister to help her mourn. When the Potters were told of the Prophecy that foretold their son's dangerous future, the Dursleys provided a helping hand in dealing with the stress of this revelation. This close bond was the reason the Dursleys were adamant that they should take Harry into their home when Lily and James were murdered by the Dark Lord Voldemort and Harry miraculously survived the attack.

Even though the family was grieving the loss of their closest family, the Dursley household adjusted itself to caring for two boys with little difficulty. Dudley welcomed the chance to have his favorite playmate available at all times and Vernon and Petunia were excited to have another son to dote on after the loss of their second child. The Dursleys were careful to make Harry as comfortable as possible in their home; they bought him glasses when he complained about his poor eyesight and even incorporated blueberries into at least one meal each day when they discovered they were Harry's favorite food. Harry grew up surrounded by a loving family, given the best of everything, while being told amazing stories of the parents he had lost.

It was through these stories that Harry felt the most connected to his parents. When Harry heard about their exploits at school and what good people Lily and James had been, Harry felt better about not knowing them in real life. Harry was sure that he wanted to go to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry himself and have as many amazing memories that his parents seemed to have at the school.

The Dursleys never tried to hide the fact that Harry had magical powers from him. The Dursleys did not want Harry to be cut off from something that was such an ingrained part of who he was. While Harry's magical abilities were a source of tension between Harry and Dudley at times, the boys were able to remain extremely close once Dudley moved on from his jealousy over Harry's magical gifts. The two were soon able to bond over all the cool stuff Harry could make happen.

The Dursleys wanted Harry to be as prepared as possible when he officially entered the wizarding world, therefore, they hired Harry a private tutor to teach him the basic forms of magic he was to learn in his first year at Hogwarts. Harry would arrive at Hogwarts already leagues ahead of his underdeveloped classmates thanks to this instruction and the use of an undetectable wand Harry was given for his ninth birthday from his Aunt and Uncle. He learned of charms and transfiguration, of the basics of potion making and the various customs of the wizarding world. Harry also learned of the immense wealth and power he wielded in society due to his name and legacy as the only known survivor of the Killing Curse Avada Kedavra. Harry understood his history because his Aunt and Uncle never wanted to dishonor the memory of Lily and James by lying to Harry about their death.

They did not tell Harry the full story until they thought he was old enough to handle the truth. This time came when he was about ten years old. Having to sit down and officially share the story of how their close family died was a hard experience for Vernon and Petunia. This discussion, however, solidified the familial bond the couple had formed with Harry over the years he had lived in their house and made the family closer than ever before. Harry was not resentful that the information was kept fro him, in fact, Harry was glad his Aunt and Uncle had waited until he was older to tell him the truth though because he was able to enjoy being a kid for ten years before being burdened with the truth.

Throughout Harry's happy childhood, he had many bursts of magical energy that always had different results. Once, when Petunia took him to the barber and the inexperienced hairdresser butchered Harry's raven locks, Harry grew his hair back to its original length overnight. Another time, on a trip to the zoo, Harry released a boa constrictor from its display while trying to impress Dudley and their friend Piers Polkiss. Every one of these instances were met with praise and affection from his adoring Aunt and Uncle, who couldn't be more proud of everything their nephew had accomplished.

As Harry approached his eleventh birthday, he began eagerly anticipating the arrival of his Hogwarts acceptance letter. With it came the opportunity to enter an entirely different world and experience multitudes of new things. One morning in July, during a breakfast of blueberry pancakes with his family, Harry heard the mail slot open with the arrival of the morning post. Harry abandoned his breakfast and raced to the door, but not before first being scolded by his Aunt Petunia for running in the house. When he got to the front door, there was a pile of letters sitting on the doormat. In this pile was a letter of thick parchment that was addressed to him in green ink.

Reading through the letter, Harry was ecstatic to finally have a confirmation of his acceptance to Hogwarts. The Durlseys planned a day for Harry to go and get his school supplies from London with Petunia and Dudley. The three spent the day wandering through the shops in Diagon Alley, spending an extra amount of time in Flourish and Blotts, the bookstore and stopping for a sundae in Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Shop. While in Diagon Alley, Petunia bought Harry a beautiful snowy owl for him to send his family letters updating them about his exploits at school. After Harry had purchased all of his school supplies in the various shops and stores in the Alley, he enjoyed a delicious meal at the Leaky Cauldron with his aunt and cousin and then headed home to tell Vernon all about their exciting day.

The month leading up to Harry's departure was one filled with funny moments and family outings to the beach and the cinema. The members of the Dursley family were trying to make sure that Harry had as many good memories of them as possible to remind him of family all throughout the school year. Vernon and Petunia did not want to see their nephew go, but were eager for him to reach his full potential at Hogwarts. Dudley and Harry spent all of their time together as both seemed to realize it would be a while before they could hang out again. They played video games and rode their bikes through the neighborhood, making sure that every day they spent together was special in some way.

When the day came for Harry to finally leave for Hogwarts, the ride to Kings Cross was somber as everyone was thinking of the goodbye that was about to come. Harry's farewell to the Dursleys was bittersweet in every way possible. Harry was excited to start his new journey in the wizarding world and to learn more about how to control his fantastic magical powers. But Harry was also very dismayed by the fact that he would only be able to see the only family he knew during the holidays and would have to be without them for the entire school term. After a tearful goodbye and promises to write at every opportunity, Harry went through the barrier between platforms nine and ten and boarded the Hogwarts Express with a heavy heart and a thrill that could only be explained by magic.

Aboard the train, it felt like Harry had entered another world. Suitcases were floating through the air and depositing themselves onto the luggage racks in the compartments. Students were shooting spells at each other, exuberant that the summer holiday was over and they could once again perform magic. Harry had to duck quickly to avoid getting hit with a bright pink spell that turned the clothes of the boy behind Harry pink. As he searched for a compartment that had an open seat, Harry had the strange feeling that all the students he passed were staring at him oddly.

Harry finally found a compartment with one seat available and opened the door. Sitting inside were five other children who looked to be about Harry's age. These kids were also starring at him with funny looks on their faces just like the other students in the hall. Harry stepped through the doorway and tried to introduce himself, however, he was interrupted by a bushy haired brunette with overly large front teeth.

"I know who you are!" she said excitedly, "You're Harry Potter! I can't believe I get to go to school with someone who has been mentioned in so many books! You are in Modern Magical History and The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts and Great Wizarding Events of the Twentieth Century. I'm muggleborn, so I decided to read about everything before I came to Hogwarts. That's how I know all about you! My name is Hermione Granger."

The girl, Hermione, had said all of this in one large breath with an intense look on her face. Harry could tell that this girl was going to take Hogwarts and magic very seriously. After she had finished her speech, she extended her hand for Harry to shake. She then proceeded to introduce all the other members of the compartment.

"This is Hannah Abbott" she said, indicating a girl with blonde hair and a kind smile. Hannah smiled shyly and waved to Harry before blushing and looking away.

"And this is Terry Boot" Hermione continued as she pointed to a young boy with light hair holding a book that he had been engrossed in before Harry had opened the door. After greeting him, Terry returned to reading his book in silence while stealing the occasional look at Harry.

"Over by the window is Blaise Zabini" Hermione said gesturing to a boy with dark hair and a guarded look on his face. He appeared nonchalant about the introduction and continued to look out at the passing landscape through the window.

"And finally, across from Blaise is Lavender Brown" Hermione finished pointing to a girl with blonde curls and a large smile on her face.

Now that Harry had been introduced to the people in the compartment, he took a seat next to Hermione in the only open space left and decided to join the debate that had been taking place before he walked in.

"We're all going to be first years this year. We were just discussing the houses we all think we are going to be in. I think I will be in Gryffindor. You do know what the houses are don't you?" Lavender asked, trying to make conversation.

When Harry replied in the affirmative, the subject was opened for debate. It seemed that Terry and Hermione both had their hearts set on Ravenclaw, while Blaise and Hannah had no idea where they would like to be placed. Finally, Hannah asked Harry what house he thought he would be in.

Hermione, however, answered for him after making a disbelieving noise in the back of her throat, "He will be in Gryffindor of course" she said, speaking with absolute certainty, "Where else would the Boy-Who-Lived go?"

Harry was affronted by the forwardness of this girl and her preconceived notions of him. He couldn't help but think that she had no right to make assumptions about him based on what she had read in a book. Harry didn't think he and Hermione were going to get along very well this year if this was her attitude towards people she had just met. He didn't say anything on the subject though, not wanting to make enemies this early in his school career. He kept silent and instead started looking out the compartment door window.

Harry watched as various students walked past the window outside his compartment. He started trying to guess their names and their stories, a game he had played with his Aunt at the mall a lot when he was younger. Harry was so caught up in a story about a girl he had named Rebecca and her wrestling with a mountain troll over the summer that he didn't notice the awkward silence that had descended upon his compartment when he didn't respond to Hermione's proclamation.

Harry spent the next couple of minutes contemplating Rebecca's story, which had grown to include a trip to France and meeting the Queen of England, while the rest of his companions sat in the quietness caused by the uncomfortable situation Hermione had created for them. Finally, the silence was broken by the arrival of the trolley full of sweets for sale.

"Anything off the trolley dears?" inquired the plump woman who was pushing the cart.

Harry proceeded to state that he had brought quite enough Mars Bars for the train ride, not to mention the turkey sandwich that his Aunt had made for him that morning. The other kids in the compartment, however, each bought something, ranging from Chocolate Frogs to Licorice Wands. By the time all the occupants were done eating, the train was nearing the station in Hogsmeade.

"We should all put on our robes before we get to the station" Hannah announced while standing up to dig into her trunk. All the children slipped on their robes and sat back down in an anxious silence.

Finally on the last leg of the journey, the tension in the compartment gave way to the nervous mutterings of the first years eager for their sorting. After arriving at the station, the first years were called over by a large man in a thick overcoat with a massive beard. He introduced himself as Hagrid and led all the new students over to a row of small boat on the lake shore.

The students were instructed to sit four to a boat and Harry climbed in one. He was joined by Terry and Hannah from his compartment on the train, as well as a boy with vivid red hair who seemed to be a little green in the face. The ride across the lake was choppy and only seemed to make the red haired boy in Harry's boat sicker. Harry was thankful when they reached the other side and he was able to step away from him. Hagrid led the students up a path from the lake that ended at a large wooden door which swung open when they arrived. Standing on the other side of the door was a stern looking witch with her hair in a tight bun and a thin smile on her face.

"I am Professor McGonagall and I will be your Transfiguration teacher for your time at Hogwarts. If you would follow me, I will lead you to the Great Hall where you will be sorted into your houses", the stern woman explained. Professor McGonagall then proceeded to tell all the students that they would be sorted by trying on a magical hat which would judge their character qualities from inside their heads. She also told them that while they were at Hogwarts their house would be like their family. This statement greatly upset Harry, for he already had a loving family back at home that he did not want to replace.

As Professor McGonagall lead the way into the Great Hall, Harry was struck by the wish that Dudley was here to experience Hogwarts with him and see the amazing view of the night sky that the Great Hall ceiling offered. Harry was so wrapped up in his musing that he missed the first part of the sorting and was shaken out of his reverie by loud applause coming from all the students already sitting at the four long tables in the room.

Harry tried to pay attention as his fellow first years were sorted, but was unable to keep up with all of the names being thrown at him. He did notice that the girl named Hannah he had sat with on the train was sorted into Hufflepuff. The boy named Terry became a Ravenclaw. Lavender Brown became a Gryffindor and Hermione joined Terry at the Ravenclaw table. Finally, Harry's name was called and he stepped toward the hat.

The moment Harry's name was announced to the Great Hall, the entire room went silent for a couple of seconds before all the students burst into whispers. It seemed that each person in the room wanted a better look at the Boy-Who-Lived because many were standing up on the benches to see him in the back corners of the room.

Harry finally arrived at the stool holding the Hat and was relieved to have the black material of it slip over his eyes, blocking all the staring students from his view. Harry was apprehensive that the entire year he would have to deal with the looks and whispers from his classmates and once again wished that he could return home to his family.

"So you are incredibly loyal to your family, eh?" a raspy voice murmured in Harry's ear. The voice of the Sorting Hat startled Harry with its sudden words. The Hat, however, continued: "You miss your Aunt, Uncle, and cousin a great deal. You are brave though, just like your parents. And you have the knowledge from your tutor that sets you apart. You have a lot of ambition in your heart as well. You would do great in all the houses, but I think I know just where to put you –"

"HUFFLEPUFF!" the Hat shouted to the stunned Hall.