DISCLAIMER: The following is a work of fiction and I am not gaining any form of income from this; the majority of the characters belong to J.K. Rowling, the various publishing agencies that produce her books, Warner Bro. and their movies. Idea for Older Harry goes to Fettuccini, that brilliant author. The only things that I claim are the OC's and some of the (hopefully) original plot ideas.
AN: I am in no way trying to continue what Fettucini wrote, it is impossible. I am simply using the basis of what he used as a backdrop for my own story; the only thing I should be taking from Fettucini are the older Harry, Hospitalized Lily, and well I think that is it…. And Harry is not BWL…. Yes I think that suffices…. If there is anything else I need to give credence too please inform me and I will check with the correct persons to ensure that they receive due credit.
Prologue
Coel continued to walk further and deeper into the dark reaches that appeared to surround him, his only respite from the coming darkness being the bars of moonlight that managed to breakthrough the overly thick foliage. He had been walking aimlessly for hours ever since he had left a taxi at the beginning of this path, which had to be kilometers away at this time. Coel did not know where he was going, nor did he know how far he had gone or how deep into this endless expanse of trees, only being certain that he must continue.
The only thing that was truly guiding him was the pain, the unbearable pain that had been gnawing away at his sanity for the past several days. He had at first dismissed this discomfort when signs first appeared as nothing more than heartburn, as was common for him, but that had failed as the burning sensation intensified exponentially and also appearing to move from his chest to his left arm over the following days.
He had then proceeded to ignore his pain, but that had proven as futile as not breathing air when the discomfort had increased and proven far too unbearable to simply be pushed into the back of his mind. Coel had the time arrived at a point where he no longer could deny the growing intensity, that another feeling then arose, having tried everything he could possibly think of to relieve himself of this pain; Coel felt for the first time that he needed to be somewhere, somewhere important; somewhere that without a doubt he needed to be.
Coel struggled to remember the name of the place. Alexandria? Lithuania? Hungarian? No that's a people. Coel thought to himself, as he walked the sparsely lit path. But wherever it was that he had needed to be, Coel had to be there now, the ever-growing pain reminded him of it. So he had left. Left his wife, left his children, left his job and made his way towards this unknown dark forest.
Now he was here in this seemingly desolate expanse of nature, Coel continued on his journey deeper into the foreboding dark, not knowing exactly what he should be seeking, but somehow having the confidence that what he is looking for would be somewhere in this forest. But it was not the reassuring confidence and Coel had at times wondered what he would find that was drawing him deeper into the endless dark.
The gradual intensity of the pain on his left arm had not abated upon entering the forest and if anything had exponentially grown in strength, which told him exactly the direction he needed to be going. And on he walked. His face continued to contort in pain.
Even through the pain when he had first entered the forest he had noticed how unsettling this place was for him, how quite everything appeared. Coel had been expecting the wildlife to be vibrant while he walked through their home. He had expected deer to be grazing nearby or bats to be flying overhead, he even imagined wolves to be stalking him, waiting for the moment to strike, or possibly some other large creature would attack from endless darkness. But there was nothing there. Only emptiness and the feeling of isolation were there.
Coel has barely taken five more steps when the pain seared once more through his body stronger than any thing he had yet to experience. Crumpled on the ground, it was not the first time that Coel thought about why he was experiencing this. Why he was even out here in the middle of nowhere.
It had only been a gut feeling that he should be out here, in a place that he had never heard of before in a forest he had never seen. It took him a few tries but Coel was finally able to fight the pain and push himself up to continue his crazy trek deeper into the arboreal, wondering when exactly he would finally reach his destination.
He continued to walk for what seemed to be another hour. Now he was becoming more curious than frightened by this forest, as he was very sure that he had spend the greater portion of the evening walking through this apparent desolate expanse of wilderness.
Another thing that he had become aware of was the lessening of the pain in his side now. It was not gone, but that feeling had lessened. Of course he assumed this also might be what some trained soldiers did if they were ever shot, the pain becoming something apart of the person, the way most military men stubbornly refused to acknowledge they had any sort of pain.
Suddenly the pain intensified to unbearable levels. Stopping him from moving another meter, as an owl overhead screeched and hooted. Coel was now on the ground grunting in pain, as he tried to look at the first animal he had seen in this God forsaken forest, but the pain was too much, and forced his head back down.
He then began to crawl and make his way to one of the trees that had endlessly surrounded him. Coel was then able to move into a sitting position with his back against the tree as he fought with this most intense of attacks. And how right Coel was that this was indeed an attack.
With his back to the tree Coel was finally able to see the owl above him. As he looked through the boughs, his entire face drained of color as it appeared, a demon from one of his nightmares had come to life, for indeed the sight before him had haunted his dreams for countless week leading up to when he had started his journey. There before Coel, sitting silently and staring back right at him with eyes the color of blood, sat the Black Owl.
For Coel despite the pain that seemed to be eating at him from the inside out, he couldn't bring himself to look away from the creature that had haunted his dreams for the past fortnight as unbidden his memories of those dreams came to him, his dreams of the black bird taking flight and flying in agonizing slowness, right towards him with claws outstretched glinting in some unseen light.
This single bird had left him sweating and pale night after night, and now that he was staring at this demon made flesh, what little courage he had left to face the adversity fled him.
So transfixed was he on the bird, that he failed to realize that the shadows surrounding him were drawing itself closer to him. Blotting all of the surrounding light. By the time that Coel realized what was happening, he was engulfed completely in the darkness with a strangled shout.
The snap and crackle of pine wood being burned by a slowly dying fire continued to fill the small room with the fresh scent of pine, as the small blaze that sat within the worn beer stone fireplace tried to provide warmth for the two occupants of the small chamber, keeping these two men from the frigid cold air of the outside.
In one of these high backed gilded chairs with gold lining and leather cushions, Albus Dumbledore sat with his hands steepled in front of his careworn face, deep blue eyes intensely studying the table before him, so engrossed with what sat on the oak wood table with ivory carvings etched on it, that Albus barely paid any attention to the man seated in front of him. But only just, for only a fool would lower his guard with Gellert Grindelwald.
Albus Dumbledore was dressed warmly in grays and blacks as he continued his unrelenting scrutiny of what was on the table before him. Likewise the man who was seated across from Albus barely paid the infamous man any form of attention as he too meticulously watched the table that sat between them.
Grindelwald reached out with his left hand for red glass of wine that sat on the table, and took a few sips, his eyes never leaving the center. Albus knew exactly when Grindelwald drank from the wine glass, just as he knew exactly where Gellert was when the man moved from the chair to the fireplace for the first time in as many minutes to place another log onto the slowly dying fire. Albus was also aware when Grindelwald returned to his seat but yet he continued to focus on the chess game spread out before him.
Raising a slim hand and stretching out his long fingers, Albus picked up one of the white chess pieces and made his sixth move for the evening, the first check of the game. Albus moved back from the table in his seat, picked up the glass of wine that sat on his left and sipped from it lightly, as he watched Gellert for any sign of reaction to his last move.
Disappointingly there was none, which caused Albus to give a small smile as he started to once again formulate countermeasures to Gellert's inevitable escape from the trap that he had placed his once rival into.
"Tell me Albus," Gellert said, once he had made his own play, his voice gentle and smooth, the voice of one used to speaking and ensuring that things always went his way. "How is your wife? You always brought her along until of late."
"Amelia is doing fine Gellert," Albus replied after a moment of contemplation of the chessboard. "She'll be pleased that you asked after her, I'll be sure to tell her. Amelia did decide to stay behind this time though; due to some things that she felt that she needed to be handled by her specifically. But I'll be sure to ask if she would like to come along next time."
Taking more of his wine, Albus indolently took another of Grindelwald's chess pieces. Seemingly weakening the other man's position, as he jovially sat back once again. "I can see that they are still treating you well Gellert, despite the longevity of your sentence." Albus remarked, taking in the entire surrounding from the fully furnished room, to the fireplace sitting in the corner.
"I am treated as well as can be." Gellert said. "I receive good food, I am able to bathe regularly, and I can write to my hearts content." Indicating with an outstretched hand to the table in a corner that was littered with parchment and quills. "The only thing I truly dislike about this is the limitation of my visitors."
"Surely Gellert, that more of the old crowd visit you than just I?" Albus asked seemingly with an air of interest, but the legendary wizard already knew the answer before Grindelwald could reply.
"Ha! Albus, you should know better than that," Gellert had placed his now empty wine glass on the table, as he laughed roughly. "You and I are a dying breed, legends that once walked with mortals. There are not many of us left, my old friend and those that do remain, well shall we say that even amongst them I will find few allies." Gellert finished with a wry smile set upon his own heavily aged features that Albus noticed, had more lines around the eyes than the last time he had visited.
Albus then brought out his pocket watch, the only thing that the prison guards; that even now stood at the door, had allowed him to keep. Glancing at the time Albus asked Gellert if he was hungry, the other man saying he was, called over one of the two guards who stood at attention. Once both men had requested for meals to be brought up, they both continued to play the game.
"I've heard rumors Albus, of that former pupil of yours, you know the one I'm talking about." Gellert said irritably, when Albus face bore a slightly confused look, but it was more as to why Gellert would bring up Tom. "I've heard he's died, but I was hoping you would be able to fill in the details."
"There really isn't much to tell Gellert," Albus said, turning back to the board, eyes becoming full of emotion. "I arrived after it was all said and done. There wasn't much else too do."
"And that it was a young boy which caused his fall?"
"Yes Gellert, barely two years. Now staying with his remaining relatives since his father and mother are dead." Albus said in a tone that sounded more like a man who had had reached his limit.
"Remarkable," Grindelwald remarked as the food was now brought in and placed before them. "Absolutely remarkable. One of the greatest minds this generation had seen since our group was formed all those years ago. And a small child brings him down so easily. What I would give to be able to see such a boy, it is a shame though that such brilliance was wasted." Albus looked up from his meal at that last part, and stared at Grindelwald for a few seconds, before returning to his plate, the chess match stopped for a time as hunger had taken over the men's need, as is nature's design
Once they had finished their meal, and had exhausted almost every other topic other than the recent death of Tom, the two men continued the game in silence. Finally Albus could see that there were only a few more moves left in this game, easily seeing that he had lost this round. "Alas, Gellert, it appears that this visit has almost come to a close."
"Unfortunately it appears that I must win this round. Shame that this could not have happened during the actual dual, isn't it Albus?" Grindelwald asked with a sad smile as he finally captured Albus' king. Albus Dumbledore looked up from the chess game straight into Grindelwald's eyes, and just merely smiled back before saying.
"If that were the case Gellert, than these visits would never have had happened. And then just think of what our lives would have been like." Grindelwald looked back at Albus before a smile of his own slowly graced his features. He then started laughing at the logic as Albus stood and made his way for the door. "Before you go Albus." Gellert said once he had managed to retain some composure. "What is the name of the child?"
As Albus was about to pass through the door, he turned and granted one of his few remained oldest friend last request. "Longbottum, the boy's name is Neville Longbottum." Albus then stepped outside the small room followed by the two guards who closed and sealed the door behind them, before starting the long trek back home to his wife and friends.
Gellert, now alone, staring at the smoldering flames began to think of just how a young boy that was barely two could have beaten Voldemort. His mind was a blur of thought and emotion going through possibility to possibility, each less likely than the last before wishing not for the first time that he could cast magic, instead of having it blocked by the vast arrays of runic circles that littered the walls and ceilings.
Rising slowly from the chess game, Gellert made his way over to the table in the corner and sat down in the less than comfortable chair before picking up a quill and began to write
Chapter one
The sun rises in the east as it always has within human memory; rising in the east and setting in the west in an endless cycle that seems to have no beginning or end. In the past man thought it miraculous, but that awe faded with the passage of time. Even in those times past called the Age of Heroes where men became legends like the rising sun, they too faded from memory as the sun set on the day.
Another consistent was the wind, it too had no beginning or end; and in this current Modern Age a wind arose off the shores of modern day France, and sped across the body of water known as the English Channel.
North by Northwest this warm wind blew heavily across the water, the winds continued to gain strength and power as they reached white cliffs, and once there, felling against them with massive and thunderous force.
But these winds did little to harm the wonders of old. Rising up along the rock wall and pushing mountainous grey clouds that had been hovering over the Cliffs of Dover, westward, they blew against small towns and quaint villages, bringing with it an impressive storm. Sending what little activity there was on such an early morning back in doors.
Continuous sounds of thunder rumbled from every direction, while black clouds collided with another making the air shake and tremble, and yet the winds would not abate, and if anything gained strength. The thunder acting as heralds for the approaching storm, which swept past more towns as the people who lived within these small hamlets and villages awoke to find their Thursday morning covered in darkness and rain. Birds sought shelter amongst the boughs of any nearby tree; a family of foxes returned to the safety of their burrows.
All manner of wildlife retreated back to those places called home and the many children who started school this day ran for shelter and relative safety of the school buildings as the storm grew and began to dispel the contents inside it. The winds continued to carry the storm further unwilling to drop its ferocious power out amongst smaller towns and refusing to dissipate in anyway as it made its way for the city rising up in the distance.
As the morning sun disappeared behind the darkened clouds, lightning flashed across the sky while thunder sounded once again but closer this time to the overtly busy city. The winds pushed the storm further west as it continued to build even as it continued to release its heavy burdens.
Those who lived within the city could hear now the sounds of nature unleashed; many knew that it would only be a matter of time until rain fell over them on this September morning. But the cities' inhabitants were used to such a phenomenon that they hardly had any notice to the darkening clouds, the most any them did were to bring out umbrellas that had been hanging on their persons.
Some though just walked on in total defiance of the impending deluge. A torrent of rain, a virtually solid wall of falling water began to fall heavily upon the city of London was soon followed by more heavy booming sounds. Crowds of morning travelers sought temporary shelter from the initial onslaught of the rain, which lead to business entrances becoming full and blocked with non-patrons.
Lorries sounded their horns for pedestrians to move as they crossed busy streets, but morning travelers were slow going, as they tried to find some form of relief from the surprising storm overhead, but very few places could be used as shelter for very long. No place proved to be an exception, least of all King's Cross Station, as less than eager men and women looked up at the sky with mild disdain as they stood within the entrance of the station.
As these people considered the tumultuous sky, other men and women who had more pressing matters than to stand and stare at heavy thunderheads were busy trying to get the attention of any passing hackneys while others still were waiting with umbrellas out in the pouring rain for the myriad of buses to arrive. Though many were trying to find egress from the station, that same amount, if not more, was trying to find a way into it.
Amongst this number, mothers and fathers were busy bustling up their children to get into the station as fast as possible, pushing carts full of luggage past the crowded entryways. More than once a passerby looked at a few of these families strangely, though it had nothing to do with how they dressed, for the fashion conscious it was horrible.
Neither was it the large luggage for such was commonplace when it was a single day before the semester started; no it was more to do with the contents within some of the cages that quite a few families had nestled in on top of the luggage. Some people had never seen such large lizards or owls normally seen at night kept in small cages before. But many just kept out of the way, more content to just ignore the absurdity of it than acknowledge any weirdness.
One such group entering the station evaded those looks completely, but more than one woman did turn to stare at this small group, more precisely at the two men who seemed to be escorting a young boy of eleven to deeper places within the station.
The first of these two men were tall and lean, not heavily muscled but not thin and gangly either; with his dark hair, eyes the color of the current sky, he carried himself with an air of uncommon aristocracy, and his manner of dress more that told others that he certainly thought so of himself. With a dark waistcoat worn over a high collared, single colored shirt, and pants of a similar color as the coat, Sirius Black made quite a statement as he walked through the crowds.
The man on his right on the other hand though was also well built, but was broad backed and stood straighter as he walked. He had dark eyes the color of the night and hair that was a much lighter shade than his companion's; his face was lined with scars that most told him made him looked distinguished. His manner of dress was simpler than that of the man next to him, with a turtle neck shirt, a black coat, and a pair of dark blue jeans.
Both Sirius Black and Remus Lupin cut impressive figures that left one to wonder very little as to why some of the women, married or not, would stop and give furtive glances or stare unabashedly at these two. Though on any other given day Sirius would have been staring back at them, his attention though was focused primarily on the boy in front of him, but that was not to say he didn't completely not notice.
Remus was the same as Sirius, attention riveted forward, but in his case he would never have noticed the looks of admiring women in the first place, or if he did Remus would have been too embarrassed to do anything about them.
As they walked through the crowds, Remus' hand reached out and he placed it on the shoulder of the boy who had been steadily pushing his cart full of luggage in front of them and gave the boy's shoulder a gentle squeeze of reassurance.
The small boy with dark unruly hair, a slight build, with skin that had a slightly pale complexion as if he spent far too much time indoors; but the light coat worn over a plain t-shirt with a pair of pants that he wore hid a toned body for an eleven year old.
Harry Potter turned his head slightly and gave Remus a quick glance before shaking Remus' hand off his shoulder and continued on undeterred. Remus let his hand fall, before unbeknownst to Harry, he shared a look with Sirius who just shrugged his shoulders, smiled and continued on following the boy deeper into King's Cross.
Harry noticed from standing in front of the two of them, that his godfather Sirius had begun to survey their surroundings as they walked, now out of the wind and pouring rain, and Harry knew what Sirius was thinking. He himself couldn't help but notice how badly the wizards in general stood out with their clothes and cages of animals.
Sirius was dressed in more modern clothing and Harry had made it a point of following suite, if not for the better quality of clothing and overall desire to better blend in. Remus too was dressed befitting a normal human, not one who was stuck within the past. "I never understood why more wizards and witches don't adopt a more blending style of clothes." Sirius said out loud amusement in his voice.
"Ignorance, Sirius, and the pure refusal to adapt to new things." Remus replied. Sirius again looked at those around him and agreed with Remus' statement. "Foolish, once your dressed like this, the women can't help but keep their eyes and hands off you." Sirius said with a wink directed at Harry.
Harry though ignored them both as he walked along, choosing instead to both continue reading the book he had propped on his luggage cart, and made sure to avoid slamming said cart into anyone.
Looking up every so often Harry also saw that there were those few witches and wizards that blended in well, almost seamlessly with the normal crowds around them, and barely any of them had with them some of the large obstructive cages that marked so many of the witches and wizards in the teeming crowds.
The only thing that Harry noticed singling them out was the parents that had within their hands a piece of odd looking paper, more akin to dated parchment, that looked old and not likely to be in use anymore; it was easy to see just how out of date that it was and how out of place and easily noticeable they were if one looked hard enough. Looking back at the wizarding families, it was not the first time that he was glad to not have a familiar.
As Harry looked back at his guardians, he caught Sirius eyes and as if knowing what his godfather was thinking for he had seen them for himself, in an instance of insight, Harry just happen to know what Sirius was going to say before the older man said it. For this particular topic had been discussed many a time within the Black Household.
"I still don't know why you didn't want a familiar, Harry." Sirius said with practiced ease. "I mean, just look at everyone else! Each and every one of them has a familiar of some sort, I even thought I saw a toad, though those are rare enough, are still acceptable creatures to use." Sirius said.
For the most part his argument had fallen on deaf ears, as Harry calmly ignored all of the very poorly argued points. "And everyone else is absolutely why I do not desire to procure one at this time." Came Harry's quick reply, still unchanged from the last time he and his guardian had talked about it.
"Always being quizzed to change the animal into one appearance or another, not to mention as to seeing the attentive obligations of such animals is more ever a factor that I hence would despise." Harry continued in his usual calm tone, a tone that usually brokered no argument.
"Sirius, quite, Muggles are close by." Remus said in a hushed tone, as more than one of the normal humans called Muggles that they had passed looked at them weirdly as to the topic of their talk. Making sure they were far enough from prying ears, Remus then continued Harry's argument with his own explanation,
"Besides Sirius, choosing a familiar isn't to be taken lightly. It's why Lily didn't have one until fifth year, James never had either if you remember, nor you as well if I recall, and I recall quite a bit of what you did to my own." Harry heard Remus say to Sirius. "And so if Harry doesn't wish to have a familiar, then we won't force the issue."
"All I am saying, Remus, is that Harry will stick out. While every other child his year has an animal they can torture, Harry won't." Sirius said, with a look of partial glee, partial false sorrow on his features while clapping his hands together.
In an attempt at drawing a smile from Harry, ignoring completely the implication that Remus had accused him of. Harry for his part, just further ignored Sirius' attempts at humor, opting instead to try and find the Nine and Three-quarters platform.
Harry had been filled in earlier on the drive down by his Godfather and Uncle as to what the transportation to Hogwarts would be after he had had received his letter. But he was still curious as to how they would enter such a secretive platform.
Harry had been to King's Cross Station only once before, when Remus and Sirius had to meet an old school friend of theirs Peter Pettigrew, if Harry remember correctly and he usually did, who Harry had learned at the time when he had met the man, that Peter had also known his parents back in the good old days, as Remus was fond of calling them. But that had been at Platform Two, which they had long passed.
As he looked and thought that it had to be a hidden or maybe invisible entrance, Harry felt two arms wrap around his shoulders from behind and knew them to belong to none other than Sirius who pushed him right into the red-bricked pillar that he had been staring at.
The suddenness of being grabbed from behind and being rushed forward, caused Harry to grab onto the cart, as both man and boy came into contact with the support structure. Or in this case lack of contact, as Harry saw first the cart disappear and then he himself went right through the brick wall.
Once they were through, and the rushing sound of going through the portal was past, the first sight that greeted the young Potter's eyes was the scarlet and black of the steam powered train that was commonly known as the Hogwarts' Express.
"How you feeling pup? Handling it well?" Sirius asked Harry with a grin on his face as Remus joined them. Harry only nodded his head once and began to recompose himself once again, trying to give the appearance that he had seen such things before. But Harry was only half succeeding at his endeavor.
"Brings back memories doesn't it Remus?" Harry heard Sirius say forlornly to Remus, staring at the train and the hundreds of people surrounding it, and back at Harry; enjoying the look of awe and wonder that managed to escape Harry's seemingly stone set face.
"Aye, it does, Sirius; days when things were simpler." Remus replied, as he too looked around in nostalgia. Harry now in relative control of his emotions once more, sighed at the mildly disturbing looks on his Uncle's faces and continued on to the luggage reception area.
While the dark haired boy walked along the platform, he could hear his Uncles continue talking about those nostalgic days, and just further drowned them out, which was not hard to do with the overtly active environment; as he made his way towards the back of the train. Leaving the two men to reminisce.
Once Harry had jostled other students out of the way so he could then hand over his trunk and other luggage to the station assistant, who then stowed them away securely, Harry shifted his shoulder bag once before making his way back to where Remus and Sirius were. Harry had to more than once push through a rather large crowd as more bodies than he was used to experiencing blocked his path. As soon as he was free of the mass of bodies and seeing Sirius and Remus off a short ways, noticing that they were talking to a woman with many children of the same hair surrounding her, Harry started towards the rather large group.
Harry saw that Remus had looked over and then turn and whisper into Sirius ear, both of them then appeared to excuse themselves from the small colony, as Harry had decided to call the population of red heads, and met him halfway. "All I am saying is it gets worse talking to Molly every time I see her." Sirius said to Remus as they drew close to Harry.
"Sirius, you hardly ever see her." Remus said dryly, as they closed the distance between Harry and them.
"But that is just the fact, the least I see of her the better off I will be." Said Sirius decisively with a look the brokered no more arguments on the matter.
Harry looked on in mild curiosity, before piecing together the facts and what little he knew from the conversation, realizing that this Molly was a woman that Sirius did not enjoy talking too. "Jilted lover Sirius?" Harry asked after a moment, "My assessment of you was that you were additionally vigilant when it came to any form of encountering your ex's, primarily if you induced her to become pregnant." Remus stifled a laugh,
"Multiple times." Harry added, his voice neutral. Remus saw Sirius' astonished face at the last statement, and the scarred man could no longer hold in his mirth as he began to openly laugh at Sirius, who had had the look of a man that was forced to imagine the most heinous of crimes being committed, and for Sirius it probably was. Sirius composed himself and then fixed Harry with a glare that slid off of the boy as oil does water.
"Never refer to me and Molly in such a context ever again, Harry. Even thinking about the visuals just puts me off." The man who attempted on a daily basis to be the epitome of roguish action and though said while shivering slightly in mild revulsion and plenty of fear. Harry just ignored the attempt at being cowed by the much older man, as easily as walking.
"Well now that I have gotten rid of the last of my nerves, all that is left is to see you off my boy." Remus said, still chuckling at Sirius who had not entirely gotten over that last horrible thought.
Harry looked up at the known Werewolf, before doing something that he normally wouldn't do, if the signs his body gave off were any indication. Harry stepped forward and stiffly wrapped his arms around Sirius, giving Remus the same before stepping back and rocked on his heels in obvious discomfort. "Now remember Harry, Gunhilda of Gorsemoor, and Dissendium." Sirius told Harry as the young boy rolled his eyes before staring up at the two men almost expectantly.
The eleven year old then looked at his Uncles for a second longer, waited patiently for either of them to offer any last words, and seeing that there was none forthcoming, adjusted his book bag once more before he bid them farewell for the semester and made his way onto the train.
"He has twenty minutes, Remus. The boy didn't want to stay and say good bye to us in a proper manner? That hug barely counted!" Sirius asked Remus, in mild amusement, as both men watched Harry disappear into the train.
"Oh Sirius? And what is a proper farewell then? Weeping into our arms and saying he doesn't want to leave us? It's how Harry is; the boy is vastly different from what his father was like, from what his mother was like too."
"Shame that, that is the truth though, nothing like James, other than his looks. But he has his mother's eyes, which I'm sure he's more than tired of hearing. The lad also loves knowledge, just like his mother did."
"I wouldn't say Harry is totally unlike James, Sirius, the boy is skilled with minor transfiguration, and is also very skilled in using his wand despite only having it for less then a month."
"HA! That is true Remus, so very true. Wouldn't be surprised if Harry formed his own version of the Marauders and became an Animagus by his Fourth Year, maybe Third!" Sirius said with much excitement within his voice.
" By his Third year? That is much too high of an expectation Sirius, remember, you had to needle information from McGonagall, at intervals to do it, starting in your own Third year." Remus reminded with a tone that was both stern and had a touch of teasing to it. Sirius just smiled cheekily back at him, before the both of them fell into a comfortable silence, as memories from their own school years came flooding back.
"Sirius! Remus!" a voice cried out from behind, causing both men to push thoughts about their own school years from their minds. Sirius turned and Remus followed suite, and Sirius saw just whom it was that had called out to them.
Walking towards them at a brisk pace was Sirius' favorite of his three cousins, and the only one who he was still on very good terms with, Andromeda Tonks née Black, who was dressed to impress as she blended in very well in her Muggle clothing. Along side her was her husband Theodore "Ted" Tonks who was equally attired in Muggle ware.
"Dromeda! Ted!" Sirius called back, stepping towards them and wrapped first Andromeda in a hug and then her husband. "How are the two of you?"
"We're fine Sirius, but how are the both of you doing? And where's Harry? Dropping off his things? I was hoping to see him before he went onto the train." Andromeda asked excitedly looking around to see if Harry would appear suddenly. Sirius sighed resignedly, thankful that it wasn't the aforementioned Molly who was fretting over the boy, but still Andromeda could be as bad at times. "You just missed him Dromeda. Probably passed him as you were walking this way. He was quite eager to get on board."
"Probably excited about the school year." Andromeda said with a disappointment evident in her tone. "Did you hear Nymphadora, little Harry's already on board the train." Andromeda said to her aforementioned daughter before turning to Remus and began to ask the man about his family.
Sirius winced slightly before chuckling at the mental image of Harry's reaction at being called little, true the boy was, but it would only be for a little longer at the rate Harry grew.
Behind Andromeda and Ted, a young woman stepped forward and all Sirius gave in seeing her was raise a single brow. The girl before him had shoulder length blonde hair that framed a heart shape face, her brilliant emerald eyes shone with unbridled intelligence. "Going blonde today Tonks?" Sirius asked her playfully, knowing the two reactions that were sure to come due to his comment.
"Blonde? Tonks?" Andromeda asked, abruptly turning from Remus. Both Remus and Andromeda turned and saw a very blonde Nymphadora Tonks, but her hair wasn't the only thing that was different from her usual appearance. Her eyes were blue, her jaw and face were soft, and if Sirius hadn't known that it was his young cousin, he would have said she was a Malfoy.
"Nymphadora Elmindreda Tonks! Why in the world are you blonde? And why did Cousin Sirius call you by our last name?"
"Because mum, I wanted to try something more normal this year. And as for the last name thing, well its because I hate my first name." Nymphadora replied, muttering the last part under her breath. Sirius could only sigh at the inevitable argument that was about to unfold.
"Normal?" asked the elder Tonks woman. "And what is normal about being a blonde when you have a perfectly natural hair color! And for that matter how is this normal when you've been pink to blue and everything in-between! And, don't get me started on your first name again!"
"I hate my first name, mum, makes me sound like some wooded sprite or some such. As for my hair, well blondes have more fun mum everyone knows that! Besides those were small phases, nothing serious at all." Nymphadora replied airily, winking at Sirius who stood behind her mother's back, at her little attempt at humor. Sirius himself grinned sheepishly before he shared a look with Ted, and they both shrugged helplessly at the two women. "So how is your attorney business Ted?" Sirius asked ignoring the argument that was happening to his right. .
"Oh much better since I have your recommendation." Ted replied. "Which reminds me, Remus, I've been meaning to have a word with you." Ted said turning to look at the brow haired man.
"Oh? What about Ted?" Remus asked.
"Its about those Werewolf legislatures. Now, if we try and rally support with Brumild, whom you know is against Umbridge and her proposals. Then we can…." Sirius stifled a yawn before he drowned out what the two men were talking about as he checked the time, he always became bored when politics was concerned, Sirius received enough of that from the House of Lords.
He then stepped over to the two women that were still arguing about Nymphadora's looks, deciding to save his second cousin from further wrath as the train was soon too depart.
"Dromeda, as much as it amuses me to see little Nymph receive a talking to about her choice of appearance today, it is nearly time for the train to leave." Andromeda looked alarmed at the news before checking her own watch, calling Ted over and all four adults said farewell to the young Hufflepuff.
"And remember Nymphadora, keep an eye on Harry!" Andromeda yelled at the retreating form of Tonks. Sirius shared looks with Ted and Remus at this last statement.
"Your daughter, watch over Harry?" Sirius asked Ted with a grin. Ted couldn't help himself and grinned back at the man. "Too right, it would be more like Harry watching over Nymphadora!" All three men laughed as Andromeda watched the scarlet train slowly moved its way out of the station with teary eyes.
Once he was on the train, Harry slowly made his way through the sea of students in search of a compartment to settle into for the rest of the day. The problem was not trying to find an empty one, but one that guaranteed him solitude within the swarming corridors of the train. Some carriages seemed like good choices, but they soon fell prey to other students that gave off the air of overt friendliness and nervousness.
Harry had indeed felt a small amount of nervousness when he had first arrived at the station, but that had quickly died down after the prospective thought of the gaining the storehouses of knowledge that could be potentially tucked within the great school was only less than a day way.
And, if anything Harry felt more excited than nervous, but he was sure that his had full control of over his features. Another thought was that by sharing compartments with these nervous boy and girls, they would inevitably try and talk to him, something that made Harry frown in disdain.
Deciding that the compartments here, the ones closer to the where families bidding their children farewell, would be the most sought after, Harry made his way towards the back, closer to the luggage cars. The number of students there were less and Harry found and entered a carriage that was empty, much to his satisfaction. Once Harry had sat down and spread out his books around him, he then began the arduous task of continuing to translate and transcribe his father's notes.
It was fifteen minutes after he had settled down, that the Hogwarts' Express began to lurch forward from the station. So engrossed was Harry in the notebook that sat on his lap, he had not noticed his fountain pen had fallen due to the trains motion until he began reaching out for the utensil. When his hand grasped naught but air, he looked up and saw the pen as it was rolling out the compartment door, lying just outside of the minuscule room. Flicking his wand out, Harry casted a quick summoning charm to bring the wayward item back into his grasp. With pen back in hand Harry quickly turned his attention back to the perplexing problems of the notebook
Arithmancy. So difficult, and it's significantly too advanced with my current echelon of knowledge. Remus was insufficient to dispense any form of helpful direction when he tried explicating the theorems. Harry thought to himself as he read, his brow furrowing in thought. Regardless of the fact that he was one of the best of his year when he attended Hogwarts, his arithmantic adroitness was sorely lacking. Harry massaged his brow as he tried to further understand the complexity of the formulae that were held within the book.
Taking another meticulous look at it, Harry surmised that it was possible that this particular formula was a spell for some form of fire, but without further knowledge his conjectures would have to remain just that for now. Making a grunt in mild vexation, Harry placed the books away and turned to stare out the window for the first time since the train had left the station thirty minutes previous.
Looking outside, Harry could see that the countryside still bore the burden of the storm that raged all around the train as lightning flashed and the sounds of water hitting the windows was loud and insistent. Harry's mind drifted, first to his father's notebook and the sheer complexity that was within those pages, as was an often occurrence after having just examined it; then, to his "Uncles" as he called his legal guardians and finally, contemplated the life he has lived since his father James' death and the permanent hospitalization of his mother Lilly.
Before Harry could think any further of his father and the legacy he had had left to him, his thoughts were interrupted by a girl who most definitely was one of the upper classmen. Or in this particular case, upper class-women. "Oh, never thought to find someone all the way over here, you're lucky the Head Boy sent me all the way down back to check near the luggage cars." The girl with blonde hair said, the tie that she wore around her neck clearly identifying her as Hufflepuff, and a Prefect if the badge on her chest was any indication.
Harry took this time to quickly study her, and decided that if Sirius were here and was given the chance, and if his Godfather was a good decade younger, Harry thought in mild disgust, Sirius would have been flirting and trying to impress this young woman that stood before him. Harry wouldn't deny that the woman before him was indeed extraordinary. With her blonde hair that was cut right at the shoulders and her face was perfectly proportioned. And the green eyes that stared back at him gave Harry start for the briefest of moments, for the colors were an exact match for his own eyes.
"Well then I'd best be off now that I've checked, but before I go, you'd better change into your uniform. We get to Hogwarts faster than most people think." The Prefect turned and began the long walk back towards the main cars.
Initially off put by the way she abruptly left, leaving him just staring at the open space. Harry pushed the undoubtedly amazing Prefect out of his mind and did indeed do as she had suggested and changed into his uniform once the door had been closed and securely locked. Once he was dressed, Harry fingered the black cloak that hung about his shoulders almost as it were a cape, and began to not for the first time wonder what his future House colors would look like on his robes.
He knew without a doubt that it would not be Gryffindor with all of the vapid bravery that was more well known amongst English wizards than that of the Princes' current affair to the general public, Muggle public in any case; Harry thought, nor would it be Slytherin with all of the intrigue and plots he's heard about the House that could make the most knotted of ropes look like a child's toy. It would be either Ravenclaw or Hufflepuff.
Harry stopped what he was doing and thought about that last rumination. Now that is odd, Harry thought to himself, thinking about Hufflepuff when he had never considered it before. Harry tried to think of why he would imagine about such a thing when his thoughts were interrupted by the appearance of another girl who stood at the door to his carriage. "Wotcher, Harry!" this girl also wore a uniform that bore the colors from Hufflepuff, but had a much brighter personality. At least with him it was.
"Nymphadora, what a pleasant surprise to see you. Doing well I hope?" Harry asked her, with as less emotion as humanly possible. Shifting his attention back to the world outside the carriage.
"It's Tonks, Harold, you should know that by now." Tonks said to Harry.
Harry for his part appeared bored and ignored To
nk's use of name that was not his. Harry was more than content with ignoring his second cousin, but Tonks seemed to have other ideas.
"Is little Harry all ready for his first year at Hogwarts?" Tonks asked him, bright green eyes full of mischief. Harry though ignored her, and tried to lose himself within his thoughts, but it was a task that seemed harder at this moment than it should have been.
"Aww, is Hawwy mad at Tonks, for calling him wittle?" Tonks asked with a grin that stretched from ear to ear as she teased the eleven year old.
Harry then turned and regarded Tonks with a look that made the young woman feel abashed for her last comment. "Right, sorry about that." Tonks said, shame evident on her face. "You should Nymphadora, a young woman, teasing a poor defenseless boy on his first trip on the Express, shame on you Nymphadora." Harry said in a tone that was meant to be condescending, and succeeding.
Tonks nodded her head in agreement before Harry saw the startled look in her eyes, and the frown that soon marred her features. Harry reached down into his book bag, and pulled out several books that he had been reading over the summer, and opened them up. Confident that if he started reading, Nymphadora would soon leave his compartment before her friends found the both of them and ruined his peace and quite. It was only a few minutes of silence before Harry heard the Hufflepuff speak again.
"Matters of the Mind: Cultivating the Grounds of Mental Defense? And what's this one? Fire, Wind, Earth, and Water: Magic's Four Elements? Trying to master Elemental Magics Harry?" Tonks asked Harry.
"If you really want to know Nymphadora, then I suggest you open one and find out." Harry said, his tone conveying his irritated attitude. Harry then started to read his books as he intently tried to ignore Nymphadora as much as possible. Surprisingly though, Harry saw a hand reach out from the corner of his eye and take one his books.
Looking up, Harry was mildly surprised to see Tonks sitting across from him intently reading from his book. "Hmm, looks as if there is hope for you yet Nymphadora." Harry said before he too started to read. Harry missed completely the small smile that now appeared on Tonks face, instead opting to just enjoy the now companionable silence
A loud bell chimed in his ear, that awoke him from a rather heart racing dream; taking a moment, Harry tried to recall what it was exactly that had sent his heart pounding, but whatever it was that he had been dreaming about had already faded from memory just as the morning mist does against the rising sun. Now annoyed that he couldn't remember something, Harry looked around, noticing that Nymphadora had left at some point during the trip, for the sound that had awoken him. Upon not being able to find anything, he stood up from the bench that he had been sleeping on, the book that had been resting on his chest slid onto the floor with a thud, and walked out into the hallway.
The few students that were all the way back here were also moving from their compartments towards the front of the train. This made Harry look out one of the nearby windows. The sight that greeted him were pine trees all around, and that it was getting darker as the sun splayed reds, gold, and purple across the clouds that spread out amongst the evening sky. Harry silently scoffed to himself, arrive there faster than we imagine indeed. Walking back into the small room, Harry gathered up his books and followed the rest of his fellow students out of the train and into the cool night air. Sometime had passed since the relentless storms had stopped, but more than enough time for the air to start warming up again, as if saying that the skies were not done with the rain, despite how calm and serene the sky looked.
Upon making it out onto the station platform, Harry heard a voice that was strong, commanding, and seemed to be directing the ocean of students. "First Years! First Years, this way! First Years are to make their way to see Rubeus Hagrid! Continue along the platform and none of you will be able to miss him. All other Years are to make their way to the end of the station to where the carriages are waiting."
And the very tall student appeared to repeat himself after answering a few of the younger years questions, mostly it looked like First Years from the lack of house colors on the cloaks. Harry brushed past some of these First Years and followed the older students to make his way towards the end of the platform. As he reached the end, Harry did indeed see the man named Rubeus Hagrid, but he wasn't at all what Harry was expecting.
Before Harry stood a giant of a man who was waiting for the all of the First Years. Rubeus appeared to be two and a half meters tall, his head was covered with a forest of black hair and his beard, if possible, was even blacker and looked as if anything could be living within from its sheer size as the entire thing fanned out and down to his chest. This near giant of a man carried a large lantern and wore a gigantic brown trench coat that Harry suspected had to be specifically tailored to his massive frame.
As Rubeus stood there he swung this lantern back and forth and called out in a booming voice for the First Years to draw closer to him. "Now you lot, I'm Rubeus Hagrid, but please call me Hagrid everyone does." Harry took this time to look around and saw more of his fellow First Years than he originally thought there was going to be. The number had to be over a hundred if the mass of black cloaks were any indication, he thought to himself. There was also the fact that anyone around him was barely taller than himself, except for a scant dozen or so. And if there was one thing that Harry was proud about when it came to his physical appearance, it was that he was slightly taller than the average for a boy his age.
Harry looked back to Hagrid who had continued to speak, "Now then, I'm the Keeper of Keys, and lead groundskeeper here at Hogwarts, and I'll be bringing ya lot, as is tradition, up ta da' school." Once he had finished with his introduction, Rubeus then turned and starting walking off down the path behind him, shouting for them to follow him as he went.
Upon leaving the small station and taking a short walk through the mass of trees that seemed to surround them, many of the First Years began to survey their surroundings as they made their way through the village of Hogsmead. Harry, always trying to be alert, and never let any detail slip past him, noticed that the town had the feel of a small and, if he dared to use such a word, quaint, quite village essence to it; if he had been asked to describe the village those words would have been at the foremost on the list.
As he walked with his fellow students, Harry made the point of remembering as much as possible of Hogsmead as he could with the fading light, such as the shape of some of the cottages, or smoke stacks that appeared every so often and even the signs of a few of them being lived in, as small towers of smoke could be seen rising from as few of them as possible.
Harry also noticed two places that bore striking signs, one was a severed pig's head, and the other that was quite a ways from the first sign were three broomsticks crossed against one another. In the fading light Harry could hardly make out the words carved into them. But as the hundred or so new students trekked through the village, Harry's focus shifted from his surrounding to, what one of the more obvious facts had been, that is what the one upper classmen had meant when he said that all other years would be taking carriages while the First Years went with this Hagrid. Surely they all wouldn't be walking to the school?
His Uncles had never mentioned the method of travel the students used to get to the school from the station, and Harry had never thought to ask. But now he was regretting not asking as another facet of potential knowledge had not been sought out and explored. He pushed his irritation aside and focused as to where the giant of a man was leading them all through Hogsmeade.
One thing he did remember was Remus telling him that dinner was at six every night except for the feast at the beginning of the semester, which was held at seven every year. Taking this time to look at his pocket watch, Harry saw that is was a quarter past six; and the daylight was nearly gone. He glanced back at Rubeus Hagrid who hefted his lantern in front of himself as if trying to keep the lengthening shadows at bay, as the man himself looked back every couple of minutes at children who followed.
At some point, they left the village of Hogsmeade and continued on to what look like a lake in the dying light. Once they reached the shore and stepped onto a dock and Rubeus Hagrid stopped walking, all the children assembled behind him.
"A'right then, here afore ya' we've got boats for the lot of ye'. No more tha' four ta a boat, and no pushin; plenty of room fer all. Once we're all in then we can ge' movin." Rubeus said in that loud voice of his as he himself made his way over to one of the boats and sat down into one. Many of the children were amazed at the fact that Hagrid fitted quite well into the boat. It was also clear though that Rubeus was not going to riding with anyone else.
Harry stepped forward and climbed into one of the boats that sat almost patiently at the dock, he was still curious as to where they were going when three more people joined him, interrupting his thoughts by making the craft shake slightly. Turning he saw two girls and a lone boy had stepped into his boat. All three looked as if they already knew one another, and were now looking at Harry expectantly, at least the dark haired girl with blue eyes was.
The other two were seemingly following her lead; at least the boy with a rounded face was following her example. The other girl was dark haired as well but nowhere near the dark hair color of the first girl. However as opposed to the timidness that Harry could see within the boy and the way he accepted Blue Eye's leadership; this girl seemed to be more at ease and used to Blue Eye's temperament, and gave off on air of humoring the first girl.
"Hi, names Cere, and these two are Abigail and Richard." The girl in the lead said, her voice strong and sure, just as Harry thought, and her accent was peculiar. Harry took a moment and looked at all of them, focusing the most on the girl, before giving a slight nod that he had heard.
"Please call me Dick, Richard is far to formal." Richard said with a smile, though it was offset by the nervousness Harry could hear in the other boy's voice, and sat forward holding out his hand. Harry looked at the hand before giving his own name to them and completely ignored the proffered hand, turning around and facing the front.
The three newcomers all looked at one another for a couple seconds before turning their own backs to Harry and looked to each other and seemingly continued some form of conversation that they had been having, deciding to ignore the rude Harry that sat within their small boat.
As the three talked, Rubeus Hagrid could be heard giving a shout, and all of the boats started off at once, with his in the lead, causing many children to shout out as well but in surprise. Harry too, ignored those behind him for the time being, instead focused on where they could be going. He had deduced that the final location would be Hogwarts itself, as they had to be there before the sorting ceremony, and Rubeus Hagrid had told them so; but the fact that they were getting there by such strange means was what really caught his attention.
After passing underneath an outcropping, the sight that greeted them made all of the children within the boats; Harry included, stare up in awe, and Harry began to understand the significance of this journey by water.
Before the small fleet of boats stood Hogwarts Castle. All of the children were in amazement at the sight, as the castle towers stretched up and seemed to disappear into the dark clouds overhead. Lights could be seen shining through the windows, flickering in and out as Harry suspected that those lights were either candles or torches. The entire ageless structure stood upon a cliff that made it all seem to loom over everything that surrounded the castle. The wonder and astonishment that the vision before them all, made Harry realize that the purpose of the tradition of the boat crossing, was to give the students a sense of innocence. Harry grimly smiled at that, he had lost his a long time ago.
Turning his attention back to the castle he noticed that the height of the rock face made the lights that were within the fearsome structure be casted out into the dark waters of the lake, and gave off the appearance that the water's surface was dancing underneath the boats as they passed.
As they drew closer to the sheer rock face, many of the children could see a long dock and small building of comparable size to some of the larger cottages of Hogsmead sitting at the base. It was not much longer until they reached the docks and the entire fleet of boats were now safely at the foot of Hogwarts Castle. Once all of the children had had disembarked and were on dry ground, they all continued to follow Rubeus Hagrid up a nearby set of stairs that to Harry's eyes looked as if they were meticulously cut right out of the stone.
Now that the children were climbing up the stairs, Harry could see that the dark sky had completely enveloped the entire area, and as he pulled out his pocket watch to check the time by the glow of the torches that hung close by, Harry saw it said that it was quarter until seven. Placing his timepiece back into his inside pocket, Harry looked ahead and saw that they had finally reached the castle. Rubeus Hagrid pushed open a set of heavy doors, which Harry noticed was done effortlessly by the giant man.
Once they had all entered on through the doorway, all of the First Years now stood within a large room that only had two ways out. The one they had passed through and another that stood before them imposingly.
The sound of the heavy doors closing behind the children startled the vast majority of them, except for those that had seen Hagrid pull the doors shut. The children were now left alone for the first time since they had all gotten off the train, and Harry nearly felt the silence around him except for the faintest of whispers that could be heard rising from all around him. Those whispers turned into full fledged conversations as more and more children regained their self confidence, and Harry had to distract himself by thinking of many things that he had read in his school books the week previous just so that the noise that was being made all around him was drowned out.
Behind him, the three that had invaded his boat earlier were busy talking, and the Blue Eye's accent caught his attention once more. Pushing the thoughts of his schoolbooks to the side for the moment, Harry began to remember where he had exactly heard such an accent before. Harry prided him on his near perfect skill of recalling nearly anything at all, but the memory of this particular accent was eluding him, had been for the past half hour since he had first heard it. His thoughts shifted from one memory to the next, before he finally recalled a time when his uncles had taken him across the continent, and had spent two weeks on the Mediterranean Sea.
Confident in his assumption Harry strained to listen for a couple minutes about what the three behind him were talking about.
"And I tell you Abby, the test is one of fighting! Why else do you think Hagrid has left? It's so he can go and prepare for the sorting so that when we fight him, and how is what decides which House we end up in." Richard said to Abigail, his voice having a smug quality too it, despite how nervous Richard seemed.
"Richard, that is the stupidest thing I have ever heard of!" Abigail said in the loudest whisper she could manage. "Hagrid is most likely one of the more powerful wizards in this school, there is no way we could be expected to match the man. I mean the title Keeper of Keys sounds very important. Doesn't it?
"And how ridiculous it sounds for first years to be expected to fight for what House they belong too. I personally think the Headmaster looks at you and then decides what House you belong in." Harry barely contained a snort of amusement as he could only imagine the look of frustration and slight confusion that was most likely adorned on the smaller boys' face, and also at the absurdity of the last suggestion. Before any more could be said the large doors before the hundred or so children, swung forward, drawing Harry's attention forward to see that there stood two men and two women.
To Harry's eyes all four of them stood and carried themselves with impressive bearing, but it was the elderly woman in the middle, wearing a black pointed hat and very modest, high necked black and dark red dress with a black cloak hanging from her shoulders, that drew most of his attention. Behind him, Harry could feel the silence as every single child waiting with bated breath for the woman before them to speak.
"Good evening students. My name is Professor Minerva McGonagall. But you all shall address me as Professor McGonagall." McGonagall said in a loud voice that commanded attention and respect. And Harry remembered the woman distinctly, as she had been at his father's funeral. He remembered her stepping up to him and offering words of condolences, though at the time he barely understood what they had meant.
And just as back then, Harry could tell just by looking into her eyes, that though her initial appearance of elderly mother figure that was warm, and welcoming that which was easily viewed; it was those eyes of a stern teacher who would not settle for any imprudent actions taken by any student that looked back at Harry and his fellow First Years.
"To my left and right are your future professors. Professors Filius Flitwick, Pomona Sprout, and Severus Snape." As the professors were named they each inclined their head and two of their number waved and smiled at the students, while the second male just stood there with a stoic and unimpressed look upon his face. Harry glanced at each as they were named, but when it came to the last named professor, Harry looked straight into his eyes and he knew that Professor Snape was staring right back at him with a narrowing of his own eyes.
This unexpected contest barely lasted for a minute, but it was enough for Harry to at least gauge a small measure of the tall black haired man before him. And for Harry's memory to begin the process of trying to recollect exactly where he had seen Snape before.
But before Harry could dwell too much into this, he realized that he had missed something of what McGonagall had said. "-Now once your sorting has ended, you will then proceed to the designated table were you will meet your fellow housemates. Then once supper is finished and the Prefects lead you to your Houses. You will then once again see each of us, though not at the same time, for we each are the Heads of the Four Houses, My self-being Head of Gryffindor. Professor Flitwick, of Ravenclaw, Professor Sprout of Hufflepuff, and Professor Snape of Slytherin. There we each shall go over House rules and the proper etiquette of a student of Hogwarts."
Turning from the new students before her, McGonagall then thanked the three other professors and as they heading back through the open doorway, all glanced one last time at the many First years.
"In just a moment, I will be bringing you all into the Great Hall for the beginning of Term Feast. I only have one more thing to say to you all." McGonagall said, here eyes and face having barely changed at this point, before a very warm smile graced its self onto her features. "Welcome to Hogwarts."
