Disclamer: I own nothing from the Seiken Densetsu Series nor Harry Potter
Summary: As Harry goes through his career in Hogwarts, he meets several different friends. They do want something in return though. A perfect plan in the mind of a Slytherin.

Mana: Prologue

It was a particular normal evening for Harry James Potter. Being no date of any particular importance, Harry just went around the house, doing his daily chores. It was a repetitive task, clean this, fix that, tend the gardens, and then do it all over again the next day. Well, maybe not tomorrow, as that was his birthday, and the Durselys might let him have the day off! Eight seems like an important enough age to let him have off for the day.

Right, in his dream's dreams.

Harry sighed as he tried to let himself fall asleep. Too agitated at what tomorrow held, he fidgeted with his flimsy blanket, trying to wear himself down for the hard day he had coming. He almost thought the air agreed with him. Particularly filled with energy, the air seemed to know exactly what might be coming.

"You should get some sleep."

The air tried to console him and get him to go to sleep.

Harry blinked for a second, before jamming his mouth full of old blanket and fist to keep him from yelping out in surprise. Before him was the darkest animal he had ever seen. Looking like a bat, the thing just hovered. A tail waved before his face, and where there should be a head was a large blue eye.

"What…what are you?" Harry said in a frantic whisper. Keeping his cool was difficult with trying to keep the Durselys from waking.

"A spirit, young one. A weak one at that. I am the spirit of darkness." The thing spoke back. Harry's eyes went even wider at the fact that the voice came from nothingness, centered around the eye.

"What do y-you want?" On the brink of screaming, he quickly tried to figure out how to both keep the Durselys from kicking him out and keep this thing out of the house.

"To rest, young one. Do you mind if I rest with you? I will guarantee no harm will come to you during the night." The spirit asked Harry with a voice barely above that of a whisper. It almost sounded like pleading.

"O-okay. But if anything funny happens, I hope you can take responsibility." Harry let the spirit lay down near him. The eye drooped a bit, and Harry could tell that the spirit was resting.

Over the next few nights, the spirit and Harry conversed a bit, each learning more and more about each other.

"Hey, Shade?" Harry wanted to ask the spirit, who happened to be known to his peers as Shade, "why are you here? I mean, hanging out with me?"

"Why Harry? Because I can feel potential from you. So much of it. You may not know it yet, but I feel as though I can place my complete power behind you and be pleased with my decision, no matter the case. Now rest Harry."

"Shade! I'm going to a place to learn magic!" Harry was eleven now, and Shade had stayed in the house while Harry and the Durselys hid in a house on an island in the middle of nowhere.

"Magic? Well, that's going to be wonderful for you, isn't it?" Shade replied, figuring that Harry deserved the chance.

"Yeah, there's this whole world alongside ours, all of them can do spells and make potions and fix my glasses! Look at 'em Shade!" Harry's glasses were indeed fixed, almost to the point where they looked like they had just been bought yesterday. "Oh, and I also got this owl. I don't know what to name her yet though. Wanna help?"

"Heh, sure thing Harry."

"Well, today is the big day, isn't it? We're actually going to learn magic." Harry looked at Shade, worried that he might not be able to actually do magic. "Indeed it is." Shade's blue eye darkened a bit, worried that Harry may not want him to come along.

"What is it Shade?"

"I wasn't sure if you'd want me to actually come along…"

"Don't be silly. Of course I want you with me. Nevermind what anyone says. After all, you are my friend."

Shade's eye brightened considerably after this, glad that Harry truly considered him a friend. "Well, if that's the case, let me truly be with you."

"Shade, what are you doing exactly?"

Shade began to dissipate into the air right before Harry's eyes, giving him a small fright. But the blackish cloud of dust moved over to Harry and settled down on his skin, which seemed to absorb the dark particles.

Ah, actually being with a true friend is much different than talking face to face, Harry. Shade's voice carried inside Harry's head.

"Oh, this is strange."

The sorting had begun.

Harry glanced around nervously.

I can feel that Harry. Please try to calm down.

Sorry Shade.

He was doing his best to stay calm when a lady named Minerva McGonagall called Harry to put on the raggedy, old hat.

Hello there, Harry.

Hi.

Oh, and hello to you as well, Shade.

I didn't know you could see me.

Well, you're in his mind, and I see all that is within the mind. Speaking of which, I do have to sort this one.

Hmm…

Courage…

Ambition…

No fear of the unknown…

Quite cunning as well…

Will try and save anything…

Yeah, well that snake should still have known better than to try and wrap around Petunia's leg.

"Whats taking so long!" A student shouted from the seats. Thirty minutes and no answer from the hat. Still oblivious from the outside world, the hat and Harry remained seated, in their own little world.

Oh, hat, you should see what the snake did after. Harry was trying to relieve the memory of where the snake he had saved from an untimely death from Petunia went back to his hole, grabbed a bunch of his other snakes, and proceeded to terrorize Petunia for the next hour or so.

The hat began chuckling at the reaction Petunia had to the snakes, but as no one knew exactly what was happening inside Harry's mind, they were slightly scared by the deep bellow from the Hat's mouth.

"Oh god that face is priceless. Alright, Slytherin for you…hehe…scared from that…"

I do want to talk to you later, Harry. And you too Shade. There is some important information I have for you two.

Most of the people were now horrified over the fact that a Potter had joined the ranks of Slytherin, rather than the fact the hat had a laugh that could crack glass. McGonagall, her jaw slightly open and jutting to the right in shock had been broken out of her stupor by the same voice that put them there in the first place. Snape's sneer took on a whole new level of evil. Dumbledore looked downtrodden, but resolute none-the-less.

"I doubt that many other children have memories this amusing to a hat like me, and they do need to be sorted." The hat was still trying to hide a grin from the scenes he had witnessed in Harry's mind. "Well, chop-chop Minerva."

A/N: I feel like my writing is too childish and not detailed enough. Any critiqueing would be greatly appreciated.