The Magic of Hogwarts

The young man, called Harry Potter, lingered around at Kings Cross Station wondering about what Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry would be like when he got there. Harry Potter's parents had died when he was only one year old; they were killed by a dark wizard called Voldemort, who had then tried to kill Harry with the Killing Curse, but it had failed and reflected back onto the Dark Lord, stripping him of most of his humanity and leaving him little more than a wraith with no magic. Harry was rescued by a half-giant man called Hagrid and taken to his relatives, the Dursleys, who were horrible that treated him like a slave and had no great love for him; his entire childhood was spent scrubbing dishes, weeding the garden and other chores. Now, finally, he could get away from the Dursleys and never have to be their slave again. Hogwarts was to be his paradise – the place where he would be able to finally express his individuality and thrive in an environment that he had never believed to exist before.

'You okay there, love? You're pretty early for the train' a woman's voice came from behind him. Harry turned and saw that a beautiful blonde woman was standing there, two blonde children behind her and a darker haired man with his arms folded. Harry Potter, Boy-Who-Lived, was suddenly really shy, as he realised that he had seen limited social contact for the last 11 years and that these people were undoubtedly a magical family.

'Uh, hi. Are you talking about the train to go to Hogwarts?' Harry asked, then realising that this might sound strange if they weren't actually magical people.

'Of course. The Hogwarts Express. Are you excited to go to Hogwarts?' the lady inquired, while her family stood there looking at him. The younger girl was hiding behind her father's leg, but finally came out, also looking quite shy. Harry smiled shyly at her and she squealed, then ducked back behind her father.

'I'm glad to get away from my family. That's all. I hate them!' Harry said bitterly, not caring what these people thought.

'I had better introduce us. I am Melodia Greengrass. This is my husband, Felix and my daughters, Astoria and Daphne. Astoria and Daphne are both starting at Hogwarts this year. They are twins, but Astoria looks younger than Daphne.' Astoria slowly came back from behind her father, who nodded at Harry. Daphne looked slightly disinterested, but smiled anyway. Astoria suddenly popped up in front of him.

'Hi' she said brightly, her shyness suddenly forgotten. 'Uh, hey there, Astoria, my name is Harry. Nice to meet you.'

Melodia laughed throatily at her daughter's strange introduction. Felix Greengrass suddenly seemed really interested in his forehead, when Harry realised that he could probably see some of the scar, which he'd only had limited time to try and hide before the Dursleys had dragged him from his room. He patted his hair down quickly, but it was too late because Felix had obviously noticed this.

'By the beard of Merlin, you're Harry Potter!' Felix exclaimed loudly.

Harry suddenly felt his chest close up and he wanted to shrink into the pavement. Melodia seemed to notice this and scolded Felix for it. Harry noticed that Daphne suddenly seemed more interested now, looking him over like he was an animal on display. Astoria squealed again and then the hyperactive girl suddenly wrapped him up in a hug. Looking up at him, she smiled, then realised what she had done and turned very red and jumped back. Harry wasn't sure what to do.

'I'm sorry, Harry. We knew your parents. While we weren't friends, we know they were good people who lost their lives prematurely. If there is anything we can do, just let me know.'

Harry felt tears sting his eyes, but he held them back. He suddenly thought about something that had been bothering him, since he had arrived at Kings Cross. 'Uh, how do you get to the platform where the train comes from?'

Daphne spoke up for the first time since he had come across the Greengrasses. 'You mean, you weren't even told how to access the platform? Do you even know any magic, or much about the wizarding world?' She seemed slightly annoyed, though Harry couldn't work out why.

'Uh, I didn't know magic existed until about two weeks ago. I've been living with my non-magical relatives' Harry said dejectedly. Would other people ask him stuff like that at Hogwarts? Would they bully him like they did at school? Would no-one like him? These questions seemed to revolve around in his head, along with multiple others, further magnifying his depressed attitude.

Melodia must have noticed this, because she frowned at Daphne, before directing her next comment at her daughter. 'That's enough, Daphne! Mind your manners.'

Daphne shrugged nonchalantly. 'I was just asking. It seems like they've kind of left him in the dark, don't you think?' Melodia frowned again.

'My daughter doesn't mean anything by it, Harry. Just ignore her. We'll show you how to access Platform Nine and Three Quarters, if you would like. Why don't you go first, dear?' she said to Felix suggestively. Felix nodded, then grabbed the trolley and walked towards the barrier. It appeared as though he was going to walk into the barrier, but then, when he should have hit it, he disappeared in front of Harry's eyes. It was then he understood why couldn't find Platform Nine and Three Quarters, because it was magic that was used to hide it; of course it was, Harry mentally kicked himself, then looked at Melodia.

'I'll have a go at it, then' Harry said with determination in his voice.

'Well, make sure you focus, and probably run at it. Well, see you on the other side, Harry.'

Harry decided to take her advice, thinking it was probably a smart idea. Meeting the Greengrass family had been an opportunity that Harry was glad he hadn't passed up; it had been illuminating for two points. Harry was sick of being pushed around, like at the Dursley's, and had taken Daphne's answer in fully, noting that people at Hogwarts might not like him, or he would be harassed by people, since he was clearly famous. It was annoying. He would show the people at Hogwarts that he was no trifling matter. The other thing was learning about what magic could do, as Mrs Greengrass had shown him. He would learn about it kinds of magic. He just hoped that he was good enough to master many spells, even dark ones, if necessary. Harry ran at the barrier with his trolley, thinking about how ignorant of magic he had been before he came to King's Cross station. Harry Potter disappeared into a barrier.

Harry was stunned when he came out the other side, into a sunny station, with numerous people bustling about and saying goodbye to their little dears; Harry noticed several red-haired people, including a moody looking kid, with a black mark on his nose. It seemed that a couple of the red-hairs, probably his brothers, referred to him as 'Ickle Ronniekins'. It seemed to be a fitting nickname, because he looked like he was somewhat slow in the mental department. Harry looked at Astoria, who had just popped up next to him, then looked at the train. 'You wanna sit with me, Astoria?' he asked her begrudgingly.

'Yeah, sure, Harry.'

She was then wrapped up in a hug by Mrs Greengrass, who looked like she always smothered her daughter. Daphne looked at him uninterestedly, then was grabbed by her mother and hugged a tad less fiercely. She glanced at Harry once more, then said goodbye to her father and took her suitcase onto the train. Astoria beckoned to Harry, who waved to Mr and Mrs Greengrass, then pulled his suitcase along.

When they got onto the train, they came to an open corridor with compartments on either side. Astoria grabbed his hand, smiling at him, then dragged him in to one of the empty ones. They sat down across from each other, after Astoria had realised that she was holding his hand and blushed deeply, stammered a sorry, then looked down at the floor for a minute, until he asked her about magic, to which she then started to tell him about magic. After another five minutes, the door opened and a pale-skinned kid with blonde hair looked in.

'Well, you must be Harry Potter. The one who defeated the Dark Lord. I am Draco Malfoy. Don't worry, I won't annoy you with questions about it. I extend my friendship towards you, since you are the Chosen One. What do you say, Potter?' the boy said, somewhat imperiously.

'Hi. Pleased to meet you, Draco Malfoy' Harry replied back. This kid seemed kind of like an egomaniac, but he said he wouldn't annoy Harry, so he couldn't be too bad, right? He noticed that Astoria looked at Malfoy suspiciously.

'Malfoy' she said with disgust in her voice. Malfoy eyed her much the same, only slight curiosity in his eyes to replace the dislike she displayed towards him. Harry figured she didn't like this kid much, so he would use this wisdom to be wary of Malfoy.

'Greengrass. You're a disgrace. I'm surprised Potter there can even stand to be in your presence.' He looked at Harry. 'I would be wary of the Greengrass family, if I were you, Potter. They are a pathetic family, who chose to spurn the Dark Lord's offers. The other sister is even worse, such a cold hearted piece of filth.'

'How dare you refer to my sister that way! You'd better get out of here before I hex you Malfoy, you nasty scum!' Astoria cried furiously. Malfoy wisely ducked out of the compartment, then stormed off down the corridor, his two goons in tow.

Astoria looked at Harry. 'Don't worry about him. You don't want to be friends with that scum, Harry. His father was a Death Eater, one of the Dark Lord's most important henchman. He's a guaranteed Slytherin. What about you, Harry?'

'I don't know what you mean. What is a Slytherin?' Harry asked.

'Oh, sorry. I guess you don't know. Well, there are four houses that you can get put in at Hogwarts. Slytherin is one of them. I'll probably end up there, too. My father was in Slytherin. Although, I wish Malfoy wasn't going to be in Slytherin!'

'What about the other houses?' Harry ignored her comment about Malfoy. He didn't really care, anyway. Draco Malfoy and his father could potentially be allies, if Harry ever needed them.

'Well, there's Gryffindor, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff. Gryffindor is for the brave and reckless. Hufflepuff rewards loyalty and friendship and Ravenclaws value knowledge and learning. Slytherin is for those who are sneaky and cunning. The snake is our symbol. Those are how my father told me about the houses of Hogwarts. I think I agree with most of it, though Malfoy is probably a poor example.'

Harry, once again, ignored the barb directed at Malfoy. He was about to say something, but the whistle of the train interrupted him. As the whistle sounded, the door flew open again and the red-haired boy, with the black mark on his nose, burst in. He realised who he was looking at, since Harry had no such luck convincing his too-short hair to cover the damned scar.

'Wow! You're Harry Potter. You defeated the Dark Lord! How did you do it? Did he really die that night? You must miss your parents, huh.'

This kid talked way too much and it was beginning to annoy Harry. 'Who are you?' he replied back, rudely.

'Ron Weasley. Pleased to meet you, Harry. This train sure is cool, huh. This is the first time I have been on it, though' Ron blathered on about the train.

'Obviously.'

Harry's cold tone suddenly seemed to stop Ron in his tracks and he blinked, confused at Harry's reaction. Astoria looked at Ron, smirked, then looked away. Ron gulped, realising that Harry didn't seem to like him. In fact, Harry had despised this boy since he saw him at the Platform. He just looked like a moron and Harry had decided.

'Well, I'll go find another compartment' Ron Weasley announced, then stepped back, turned around and walked back out of the door, closing it behind him.

'Those Weasleys can be quite annoying. Especially that particular one. I think the twins are okay, though. They seem to like playing pranks on people, or so I've heard.'

'Hey, Astoria. Tell me more about Slytherin. I think I'm interested in that.'

Meanwhile, another boy was sitting in a compartment with a disgruntled looking redhead. William ignored him, as he looked like a dunce. The other occupant was a nerdy looking girl, who had very bushy hair and seemed to be shy, as had yet to try and speak to him like the other boy. The compartment door opened and a pudgy boy walked in, looking very nervous and upset about something.

'Have any of you seen a toad?' the boy asked nervously.

William shook his head, deciding that the newcomer seemed to be very unconfident in himself. He thought that maybe he would even befriend the boy.

'I haven't seen a toad, sorry' William expanded on his head-shake. The boy looked dejected and made to go walk out of the compartment.

'Good luck' the girl said softly, biting her lip. The pudgy boy nodded, then walked out.

The girl looked at him expectantly, probably wondering who he was, or why he'd been nice to the boy who lost his toad. William stared back, deciding what to do. He finally spoke. 'What's your name? I'm William. William Robb.'

The girl seemed to fish for an answer, then smiled to herself. 'I'm Hermione Granger. Pleased to meet you, William.'

William nodded and seemed to space out again, obviously thinking to himself. This girl seemed interesting enough; not necessarily his first choice in a friend, but she seemed relatively intelligent and sure enough of herself. Although she hadn't said much to him, nor seemed to notice the strange feeling she should have felt when looking at him. Although no-one at Hogwarts knew anything yet, William was a werewolf. He was not a full werewolf, though; when he had been bitten, something had gone wrong and William had fought off some of the 'turning'. By rights, he was probably one of the most powerful wizards at Hogwarts, capable of firing off spells and tapping into his own lycanthropy, which seemed to make him somewhat stronger, faster, accentuated his native senses and made him more resistant to spells. He also didn't 'transform' during the full moon, but his powers were magnified by the presence of the moon, making him more powerful.

William occasionally talked to Hermione during the rest of the trip, about Hogwarts houses, spells, history and so on. He realised that Hermione was incredibly smart and would grow up to be a talented witch. He also found out that she was muggle-born, a fact he didn't really care about, looking at his position as a werewolf – something that had kept him on the run for years, since he had been bitten. They also bought some snacks from the trolley, which had been nice, though he religiously steered away from cockroach clusters and Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans, remembering the acid flavoured one he had tried and it had burned through his tongue, eliciting a short hospital visit.

Harry discovered that he got along quite well with Astoria, who was a nice girl and had a great personality, though she was quite hyper-active, but shy at the same time. She explained about Slytherin and the other houses, pointing out that Slytherins were not so bad and he shouldn't listen to what Hagrid said about them. She also pointed out that Gryffindor also had its not-so-great qualities, a fact Harry found interesting, considering his parents had supposedly been good, little Gryffindors. The fact of the matter was, no matter what house you were from, if you were of the same species as the rest of that house, then things would be quite favourable towards your particular talents; any Slytherin could be cunning and smart, but some could misrepresent the whole house, if left unattended. Communication and inner-house activities could potentially overcome the whole barrier, assuming that the houses would get along. Harry was quite introspective about the whole thing; Astoria made it sound like it was quite biased in many ways and that the wizarding world had many things that could be improved upon. Harry liked the sound of that and had made a mental note to remember that and apply it to his own destiny; if Harry could destroy the Dark Lord, the one that taken his parents from him, then he would certainly be more content and happy with the wizarding world, a place where he could thrive and not strive to inhabit cupboards underneath certain sets of stairs. Harry would be essentially free. Unbeknownst by most, Harry was already aware of some things known to the magical world, but not that of the muggle world. He had already tried to show the image of someone who was ignorant to many of the goings on of the magical world; Harry was certain that Weasley, Malfoy, Fluff-Hair and some of the others were under the impression that Harry had no idea about what went on within the Wizengamot and Ministry of Magic.

'Okay, Harry. I'm going to go change into my robes. You should do the same thing.'

'Yeah, sure' Harry replied, wondering how his robes would fit him. He remembered Madam Malkin's store, where he had first met Malfoy; the poncy git had introduced himself to Harry, more arrogantly and egotistically than anyone he could remember, which was a stark comparison considering his life with the Dursleys and their associates. Another reason why he didn't really think he would take Malfoy's friendship offering, but perhaps he would stay polite and keep him as a potential ally.

Harry changed into his robes while Astoria was gone, then blushed as he realised that Daphne had slipped into the department as he was finishing dressing. She smirked at him and sat there with her arms folded. Harry suddenly realised how pretty she was and that she was almost the same in looks as Astoria.

'Hi...' Harry started to say, but was interrupted by Astoria bursting in to the compartment. She looked at Harry first, then Daphne, as if deciding what to say and how to interpret what was going on.

'What's going on guys?' she asked curiously.

Daphne snorted, then burst into laughter, which seemed odd given her original behaviour, though Harry decided that he kind of liked it. 'I almost walked in on Potter changing.'

Astoria giggled and then both girls laughed even harder when Harry blushed again.

'Alright, alright... it's not that funny' Harry snapped.

They ignored him, to his annoyance, and Astoria looked out the window. 'It looks like we're almost here, I think. I can't wait to see what Hogwarts is like.'

The train stopped finally, after a long ride and the three of them opened the compartment door and walked down to the doors, where many other students had already begun to congregate. Harry noticed the bushy-haired girl he had seen earlier, as well as the boy with the toad and 'Ickle Ronniekins'. In addition, he noticed that the bushy-haired girl was standing with a tall boy, but there was something about him that Harry couldn't quite place; yes, indeed, the boy gave off quite a strange aura and had quite unusual eyes.

'What are you staring at, Harry? You're not perving at girls are you?' Daphne smirked at him.

Still semi-lost in his daydream, Harry ignored her and tried to ponder what the feeling was, but then the boy moved and the feeling went away. 'None of your business. Leave me alone.'

Daphne huffed at him and walked ahead, while Astoria glanced between the two with obvious worry on her face. It looked like the relationship between Harry and Daphne would be an interesting one; Astoria could already foresee plenty of bickering. Astoria nudged Harry, who grunted, and they got off the train. They walked along trying to keep up with Daphne, then saw that there were multiple carriages waiting for them, so they boarded one and waited for Daphne.

Daphne obviously had boarded another carriage and they finally arrived at the castle. From where the train stopped, they had already seen how massive the castle really was, but the gates of Hogwarts were simply magnificent – then the door to the castle was opened by the half-giant Hagrid and they walked inside. After walking down a corridor, they both gasped in shock as they entered a massive hall, with stars and clouds in the roof, which was higher than anything they had ever seen before. It was truly amazing. They were seated by an old witch, who had a no nonsense look to her.

'I am the deputy headmistress, Professor McGonagall and the head of Gryffindor house. We will now sort you all into houses.' The professor grabbed a dirty bowler hat and put it on the table. It suddenly burst into life and began singing:

"Oh you may not think I'm pretty,
But don't judge on what you see,
I'll eat myself if you can find
A smarter hat than me.

You can keep your bowlers black
Your top hats sleek and tall,
For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat
And I can cap them all.

There's nothing hidden in your head
The Sorting Hat can't see,
So try me on and I will tell you
Where you ought to be.

You might belong in Gryffindor,
Where dwell the brave at heart,
Their daring, nerve, and chivalry
Set Gryffindors apart;

You might belong in Hufflepuff,
Where they are just and loyal,
Those patient Hufflepuffs are true
And unafraid of toil;

Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,
if you've a ready mind,
Where those of wit and learning,
Will always find their kind;

Or perhaps in Slytherin
You'll make your real friends,
Those cunning folks use any means
To achieve their ends.

So put me on! Don't be afraid!
And don't get in a flap!
You're in safe hands (though I have none)
For I'm a Thinking Cap!"

Harry stared in bewildered amazement at the moving, singing hat, deciding that the wizarding world was an entirely strange place. Daphne and Astoria didn't looked particularly amazed, though, and Harry figured that it was because he had grown up in the muggle world, 'muggle' being a word that he still kind of struggled with... such a queer word.

'Uh, guys, what the heck is that thing?' Harry questioned them, though it probably seemed more like an interrogation.

'It's the sorting hat. We'll tell you about it, okay?' Astoria whispered back, then turned back to the sorting.

'We will now sort you all into houses, if you please. Be quiet, you two!' McGonagall directed to two students that were talking to each other.

'Abbot, Hannah.' A blond girl, that was quite pretty, slowly made her way up to where the sorting hat was placed. 'Put it on please, dear' McGonagall said and Hannah looked at the hat, as if trying to decide if it was dangerous or not, then finally put it on.

After a few seconds, the hat shouted 'Hufflepuff!' and Hannah placed the hat back, then looked at McGonagall, as though she were silently asking what to do next.

'Very good, dear, now please join the Hufflepuff table.'

Hannah walked over the to the Hufflepuff table and found a free seat, then sat down. The Hufflepuff students were clapping, as well as the Ravenclaw and Gryffindor students, though Harry noticed that the Slytherins were not clapping at all, but looking at the girl with calculating looks.

'Ackerly, Stewart.' A brown-haired boy was next and after placing the hat on his head, he was then added to the Ravenclaw house. Again, the Slytherin students didn't clap along with the rest, but narrowed their eyes. He could feel some of them staring at him, too, though he wasn't sure if it was out of malice, or just because they were curious about the Boy Who Lived.

A few more students were added to various houses and Harry simply stared curiously at each and every sorting, still deciding if he had a choice on where he would end up and what he would choose if he was given that option.

'Goyle, Gregory.' A big kid was added to the Slytherin community and they all seemed to be happy to have him there, though they didn't clap, just the same as when a Crabbe, Vincent was added to Slytherin.

'Granger, Hermione.' The bushy-haired girl, from the train, was next and walked up to the hat. She didn't seem either confident, nor nervous. She put the hat on and after about half a minute the hat screamed 'Ravenclaw!'

'Greengrass, Astoria.' Harry smiled softly at Astoria, who suddenly looked extremely nervous. Daphne pushed her slightly and Astoria walked up to the hat, put it on and after only a couple of seconds, she was added to Slytherin.

'Greengrass, Daphne.' The process was repeated this time, though Daphne was quite confident walking up to the hat and, if anything, it seemed to decide on her fate, even quicker than Astoria.

Finally, a few of Slytherins clapped and seemed to actually to be happier than the previous three students that joined their house. Harry smiled over at them, as they sat down, and clapped as hard as he could. He was probably being noticeable, but he didn't really care.

'Malfoy, Draco.' Harry watched as the blond-haired boy from earlier walked up to put the hat on. Harry figured he would be added to the Slytherin house, so he paid fairly little attention, as he continued to ponder his choice, or lack of. Indeed, Malfoy joined the Slytherins, as quite a few of them clapped for him.

Another couple of students were added to houses and then, finally, McGonagall called his name.

'Potter, Harry.' The whole hall seemed to turn to stare at him, as he slowly walked nervously up to the hat. McGonagall gave him a small smile and he picked the hat up and put it on his head. To his shock, a voice suddenly burst into his head.

'You could be great, you know. Cunning, intelligence, loyalty and a bravery that seem to qualify for each of the four houses, but, where to put you? Slytherin would be good for you, Gryffindor, too, which is where I placed your parents, you know.'

Harry silently hoped that he could join his friends in Slytherin, besides, he was feeling like a house like that would potentially be good for him.

'I see. You have the right qualities that would suit Slytherin. In that case, better be Slytherin!' the hat yelled loudly. Harry threw the hat off and looked around, stunned. He could barely hear any claps, from anywhere in the hall, except for a couple in Gryffindor and Slytherin. In fact, it seemed as though most people stunned to see the Harry Potter sorted into Slytherin. He clambered over to the Slytherin table and was pleased to see that Daphne and Astoria had chosen seats with one available next to Astoria, as though they had excepted him to be sorted into Slytherin.

'Robb, William.' Harry looked up at the boy, recognising him as the one he got a strange feeling from before. The boy was different to the rest, walking up to the hat, as though it was the easiest thing in the world, as though there was absolutely nothing to be nervous. It was beyond simply confident, it was more like his life hard been hard on him and this was genuinely easier to go through. Harry wondered about him, as the boy was sorted into Ravenclaw, along with the bushy-haired girl, or Bushy Hair, as Harry might refer to her as.

'Weasley, Ronald.' The lanky red-head gulped loudly and walked nervously up to the hat, adjusted it onto his head and after a short time was introduced into the house of Gryffindor. Harry almost smirked at the annoying kid, but decided he wasn't worth the time. Suddenly Harry felt like eyes were watching him, which he looked in the direction the feeling was hinting at and realised a teacher with long, lank black hair was visibly glaring at him, then he felt a sharp pain from his scar. He quickly clutched his forehead at the abrupt pain, while Astoria glanced at him, worried.

'What's wrong, Harry?' she asked, concern noticeable in her kind eyes.

'My scar... why did it hurt?' by then the pain had all but gone and the teacher had already quit staring and was now talking to a man in a turban. Daphne shot a look at him, but didn't say anything.

'Your scar hurt? I don't really know, Harry. I'm sure you could probably ask a teacher, but I'm not sure whether any of them would really something like that.'

Daphne smirked at him. 'You could always ask the Dark Lord, Potter. Assuming if even he knew anything about it.'

'Daphne! Don't be rude. You know that's a silly thing to say!'

'I was only joking, Asty. Obviously that's impossible, anyway. You know he supposedly defeated the Dark Lord as a baby' Daphne said, somewhat apologetically, as she shot a glance at Harry to see what his reaction was. Minuscule, as it turned out.

'Can you tell me more about that? I grew up with muggles, so I don't really know anything about my heritage, besides what Hagrid told me.'

A sudden interruption from the head table cut off whatever reply that was coming his way, as the old man with long, silver hair, and a beard to match, tapped something and began speaking.

'Welcome to Hogwarts, my dear students. I'll just say a few words before wet our throats and fill our ever-growling stomachs. Nitwit, oddment, blubber, tweak.'

Harry stared at him, confused at the words, as well as at the speaker of them; to say the man was quite mad was probably an understatement.

'Uh, what?' Harry directed at his two new friends.

Daphne snorted loudly. 'Everybody always says how great Dumbledore is, but nobody ever seems to point out that he's quite mad underneath it all. Still, he defeated the dark wizard Grindelwald and put up a fight against He Who Must Not Be Named. He also happens to be the Supreme Mugwump of the Wizengamot.'

Astoria shot her a pained look of exasperation. 'Daphs, Harry probably has absolutely no idea of half of what you just said. Don't worry, Harry, we'll explain as much to you as we can.'

'Thanks, Astoria. I appreciate it.'

Food began to appear on the tables, including such things like roast chicken, pork and other meats. Tons and tons of roasted vegetables, as well as boiled or steamed ones, massive gravy boats and some kind of strange looking pitchers of an orange liquid that Harry didn't recognise. It was a supreme looking feast and Harry didn't even think twice before over-loading his plate with pretty much everything. He hadn't realised until after the sorting, but he was suddenly extremely hungry after being nervous for so long.

'Hey, Potter. So, you got sorted into Slytherin, huh? Did you think about what I said earlier?' the speaker was Malfoy, who had left his seat and had walked over quite stealthily.

'Malfoy. I did think about it, actually. You know, I'm sure we could work something out, but I haven't really thought much more than that, maybe just acquaintances of a sort, perhaps allies in a house, where perhaps not all would have been very happy to see me come into this house.'

'Well, you're certainly not stupid, Potter. If you can keep up that kind of attitude, then perhaps you'll be able to deal with Professor Snape. Oh well, I'll talk to you later, I suppose.' Then Malfoy walked back to his seat, seemingly satisfied with Harry's answer.

'You're not really thinking of becoming friends with that, are you, Potter?' Daphne asked, almost in an annoyed tone.

'As I said, maybe allies. I don't know, but I get the feeling that he'd be a huge pain in my ass if I got on the wrong side of him. So, instead, we'll probably just use each other, or maybe we'll even become friends. Who knows?'

Daphne snorted again. 'At least you're actually using your brain, I suppose. But, he's pretty much the human equivalent of a slug. Well, you've been warned, Malfoy isn't a particularly pleasant person, but you can figure that out for yourself.'

'I agree, Harry. Malfoy is not a nice person to be around, so don't expect either of us to be seen anywhere near him. If you hang out with him, it'll be by yourself, especially if he has those two cronies of his hanging around with him.'

'Okay, okay. I get how you feel about him, so it's not like I'd even expect you to, I'm just not going to spurn any offers of friendship, or being allies with someone. Life is probably going to become relatively difficult for me now, considering half these morons probably think I defeated their dark lord, assuming they were allied with him. Don't worry, you guys are really my only friends in the world, I won't give that up for anything.'

Even Daphne seemed surprised, but didn't say anything. Astoria squealed in delight and started tugging his arm affectionately. Harry sighed. 'Let's eat, guys. I'm starving and I haven't had anything this good in, like, ever.'

For the rest of the feast, the trio simply made small talk and Harry asked about who Snape was, since Malfoy had mentioned him to Harry as a person he might have to 'deal with', which made it sound as though he'd be unpleasant or be a problem in general. It was explained that 'Professor' Snape, something Daphne had hinted on to make sure he always remembered to address Snape that way, was actually the potions master and known to be an irritable and impatient person. When the feast ended, the first years were directed to each houses' prefects and shown the way up to the common rooms and dormitories.

Up numerous flights of stairs, around countless bends, hundreds of moving pictures and the occasional armored statue and Harry was completely and utterly lost. It didn't look as though any of the other first years were any better off than Harry, either. Harry sensed that the coming weeks would be a trial just getting to and from classes, not to mention actually trying to find the way outside, or to the library that they undoubtedly had (something Harry had decided he would do is read as much as he could and try and learn as much as he could, especially magic).

'Hey, Astoria, they have a library, don't they?' he whispered to her.

Astoria giggled embarrassingly, obviously amused by this question. Apparently it was obvious that it did have a library. 'Of course it does, Harry. It's a school.' Daphne snorted at Harry's question, but didn't feel the need to add anything to what Astoria had said.

'This is the portrait of the Fat Lady. The password to the common room is blood traitor. Obviously, you will refrain from telling that password to anyone from another house. Only Slytherins shall know the password to the Slytherin common room.'