Harry Potter, Slytherin

By RocketTortoise

Chapter One

Slytherin, At Last

On the stroke of midnight ending the night of Halloween, after the trick-or-treaters had returned to their homes and their parents had tucked them to bed, a shadow fell upon Godric's Hollow and Lily and James Potter were killed. In the early morning, well before the sun began to creep over the hills, the half-giant Rubeus Hagrid delivered the Boy Who Lived upon the doorstep of his aunt and uncle, Vernon and Petunia Dursley.

It would be there that the child would spend the next ten years of his childhood, unaware of his lineage and his place in the world of magic. But rather than taking the child in and raising him as their own, they spurned him and treated him like swine, abandoning the child inside the cupboard under the stairs, a tiny space unfit for a child to grow.

It took the Dursleys eight years to fix the light inside that cupboard. Every night, after being fed the leftovers of whatever the Dursleys had had for dinner, the boy would be locked inside, alone and in the dark until morning came, and light would slip in through the slits on the cupboard door.

The boy eventually learned to fall asleep as soon as the lock was fastened outside. The night held nothing for the small boy except for the skin-crawling sensation of spiders creeping upon him and the occasional mouse racing past his feet. In his dreams, he could escape the confines of the cupboard. He could float on a cloud, laughing as the memory of 4 Privet Drive would fall away into the distance. The return of the morning was inevitable but the few moments of respite that the embrace of sleep brought helped the boy make it through those trying years. Somewhere, deep in the depths of the boy's soul, he knew that something would come to his rescue. And on the day of his eleventh birthday, it did. Four words, spoken from the mouth of the half-giant, Hagrid. Four words that heralded the chance of a life outside of the cupboard.

"You're a wizard, Harry."

There was a foul smell in the air throughout King's Cross Station. It smelled of soot and the sweaty stench of people. Harry had been into the city a few times with the Dursleys but he could never get used to the smell. The Dursley's home in Surrey didn't smell particularly fresh either. Harry's cousin Dudley's horrific body odour would easily overwhelm Aunt Petunia's cheap pine-flavoured air fresheners whenever he entered a room and Harry's cupboard wasn't exactly a model of pristine hygiene, but the smell of the city was different in some way. It seemed to linger and seep into everything; into the walls, into the clouds, even into the people. The Muggles, as Hagrid called the non-magical people, seemed so monotonous, just shuffling up and down the platforms and filing into trains to be whisked away over the horizon.

Hagrid, on the other hand, seemed, in many ways, larger than life. His large frame towered over the crowds of people, parsing them around Harry like a living snow plough. His booming voice seemed to reverberate inside of Harry's ears and his magnificently tangled beard seemed to house all number of oddities. For the first time in a long time, Harry felt awake, properly awake. Rather than just trying to get through the day, Harry was completely entranced with this magical world Hagrid had brought him into. The giant had taken him to Diagon Alley, a long road of shops where Harry had acquired all the items he would require for his new school, Hogwarts, a school that apparently taught its students magic. Harry could hardly believe it at first but as Hagrid showed him more and more of this new world, Harry could feel the excitement build to a feverish point.

All the witches and wizards seemed to pop out of reality like Hagrid. They seemed to glow like a rainbow on a rainy day, even the sketchy-looking ones who would creep up to Harry before being shooed away by Hagrid. Harry just couldn't get enough, like a child in a candy store. He just wanted to see this Hogwarts and leave Privet Drive far behind him.

And so Harry and Hagrid arrived at King's Cross Station. Harry had all his school supplies loaded onto a trolley, of which, incredibly, included a cage housing a snow-white owl named Hedwig. As Harry pushed the trolley, the owl just sat dead-still on its perch, peering deep into Harry's eyes as if it were staring into his soul. Harry spun the cage around so that the owl would be staring away from Harry.

They were crossing a bridge between platforms when Hagrid stopped all of a sudden and pulled out a pocket watch from his jacket. "Blimey, is that the time?" He turned to Harry. "Sorry Harry, I going to have to leave you. Dumbledore will be wanting his…" he tapped the breast pocket of his jacket a few times as he trailed off, "well, he'll be wanting to see me."

He rustled around in his pocket and pulled out a train ticket, "Yer train will be leaving in ten minutes, here's yer ticket. Now stick to yer ticket, it is very important to stick to yer ticket."

Harry took the ticket from Hagrid's hand and looked down at it. It said, in large gold font, Platform 9 ¾. "Platform Nine and Three-Quarters? But Hagrid, there must be a mistake. This says platform nine and three quarters, but there's no such thing, is there?" He looked back up, but Hagrid was gone, vanished in a way that you would think would be impossible for a ten-foot behemoth. But he was indeed gone, leaving Harry with a train to catch on a platform that shouldn't exist. Harry started breathing quick, sharp breaths. He was alone again. The sign at the end of the bridge said Platform 9, so Harry rushed towards it.

As he stepped onto the platform, Harry was surrounded with people, all heading off in different directions, completely ignoring the young boy alone on the platform. In the corner of his eye, he saw a station security guard. He was talking to a woman holding a baby, pointing her in some direction. Harry hesitated, glancing up at the platform signs, on one side, Platform 9, and on the other side, Platform 10. Harry gritted his teeth and pushed his trolley up to the guard.

"Excuse me, can you tell me where I might find Platform Nine and Three-Quarters?" Harry asked.

The guard stared at him with a confused look, "Platform Nine and Three Quarters?" His look turned to one of annoyance, "Think you're being funny, do yah? Get lost, brat."

The guard turned and walked away muttering grumpily to himself. Harry was taken aback. He turned to the clock, "Five minutes," he muttered. He looked around frantically but didn't see any sign of Platform Nine and Three-Quarters.

But then amid the bustle of the station, he heard a voice carry through the crowds, "Every year, packed with Muggles. Platform Nine and Three Quarters, this way!"

Harry spun around and saw a red-headed woman striding purposefully with her daughter, a gaggle of red-headed sons following behind her. Glancing up once more at the clock, Harry pushed his trolley forward to follow them. It wasn't hard to keep track of them, their red hair seemed to stand out in the crowd like a swarm of flashlights. The group stopped before a brick column and the woman turned to her kids. "Alright Percy, you first."

A tall, scrawny boy with a sunken looking face left the group of red-headed boys and spun his trolley to face the column. He pushed forward and to Harry's disbelief, the boy ran straight through the bricks, disappearing inside. Harry's eyes widened and he could almost feel his jaw drop.

The woman looked back to one of the boys and called out, "Fred, you next."

Another of the red-headed boys who looked exactly like 'Fred', cried out, "He's not Fred, I am!"

Not-Fred clicked his tongue and said, "Honestly woman, and you call yourself our mother."

"Oh sorry, George," the woman sighed and beckoned towards the column.

Not-Fred, or rather, George, pulled up alongside his mother before saying, "I'm only joking, I am Fred," before racing forward into the column, his twin following after him.

The woman looked to her final son to beckon him towards the column, but her daughter glanced in Harry's direction. Without thinking, Harry ducked behind his trolley. The last boy raced through the column, and the woman and her daughter moved to follow. The young girl glanced at Harry once more before stepping into the column with her mother.

Harry glanced up at the clock. Two minutes. "Uh oh…" he gasped. He pulled in front of the pillar, gulped, then plunged into the column, squeezing his eyes shut in the process. It felt like there was a strong wind pushing him from behind, driving him through the darkness until he hit the light on the other side. He opened his eyes and before him, on Platform Nine and Three-Quarters was a great red train, The Hogwarts Express written in gold along the side. Steam was flowing from the chimney as the driver blew the whistle, signalling that the train was soon to depart. Harry rushed forward towards the train staff who were loading the last of the luggage on board the train. He was barely on the train when it started to move forward and out of the station.

The train itself was crowded with students but fortunately, most of them were pressed up against the carriage windows, waving final goodbyes to family members on the platform, allowing Harry to pass through.

He glanced out the windows at the faces of the parents seeing their children off. Some had proud smiles on their faces, others were struggling to hold back tears. A pang of jealousy knifed through Harry. Hagrid could have at least stayed to see him off. They weren't family, but... it would have been nice to see one of those faces out there smiling at him.

As the station disappeared into the distance, the students slipped back into their seats. Harry quickly realised that there were absolutely no seats that were left unoccupied. He pushed forward into the next carriage but rather than being filled with rows of seats and booths, this carriage contained a number of rather large compartments.

He peeked through the glass sliding door into the first compartment. Inside was a boy Harry's age sitting by himself. In his hands was a silver pocket watch which the boy had opened. The boy himself was staring out the window, watching the city flash by. He was dressed in a small but pristine suit that was probably worth more than everything that Harry owned, and his hair was a sharp, platinum blond that was sleeked back in a way that seemed to defy gravity.

Harry lightly tapped on the glass and the boy's head snapped towards Harry, instinctively closing the watch and shoving it into his jacket pocket. "Yeah?" he asked.

Harry slowly pushed the door open and leaned inside, "Sorry, but I was wondering if I could join you in here. The train is pretty crowded."

The boy frowned before turning back to the window outside. "Yeah whatever."

Harry hesitated a moment before stepping inside, sliding the door shut behind him. He sat down in the seat opposite the other boy but he didn't even acknowledge Harry's presence. The two boys sat in an awkward silence for quite some time, Harry watching people pass through the hallway while the other boy stared out the window.

Eventually, it became too much for Harry and in a low murmur, he said, "My name's Harry. What's yours?"

The boy turned back to Harry but didn't say anything. After looking Harry up and down, he sighed and replied, "Malfoy, Draco Malfoy."

Harry shot him a half-smile and said, "Nice to meet you, Draco."

Draco turned back to the window, "Yeah, whatever you say."

Desperately trying to keep the conversation alive, Harry spat out the first thing he thought of, "That was a really interesting pocket watch, the one you were holding before. Where did you get it?"

Draco head shot back to Harry and he glared at him, "That's none of your busin—" His eyes narrowed slightly as a thought ran through his mind. "You said your name was Harry, right?"

Harry nodded. Draco leaned forward in his seat, "What's your last name?"

Harry hesitated. "Potter."

Draco's face suddenly grew a smile that seemed like it was somewhere between a grin and a smirk. "Well why didn't you lead with that? I had no idea I was in the company of a celebrity."

Harry shrunk back a little into his seat. "Celebrity," he muttered.

Back when he was shopping in Diagon Alley with Hagrid, he couldn't help but notice the intense stares and rushed whispers from various witches and wizards whenever Hagrid would introduce Harry to someone. Hagrid had explained to Harry why he was so famous, about the night his parents were killed by He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, and how when his parents' murderer tried to kill Harry, something went wrong and the monster was banished, leaving a lightning bolt-shaped scar on Harry's forehead.

But there was something about Draco's reaction that was different from all the reactions he had seen over the past couple of days. Draco's look didn't seem starstruck, but seemed to almost look down on Harry, as if it were Draco who was the celebrity and Harry the fan.

"I had heard some whispers around Diagon Alley when I was there yesterday," Draco stated. "Who would of guessed that the rumours were actually true?" Suddenly the boy who would barely even look at Harry couldn't stop talking. "Hey, is it true that you have the scar?"

"Oh... uh... yeah." Harry reached up and pushed his fringe to the side, revealing the scar in all its glory.

Draco leaned back in his seat, stretching his arms out on the top of the upright cushion. "Ha! Wicked."

He glanced at the glass door into the hallway, "I would introduce you to my friends Crabbe and Goyle, but they left a while ago to find the lolly cart." He turned back to Harry and his face lit up in a smirk, "I can't wait until we get to Hogwarts and you get called out in front of the school. The reactions are going to be priceless."

By the time the train rolled into the Hogwarts station, Harry and Draco had changed into their school robes so when the train finally slowed to a stop, they were one of the first to get off the train. Night had fallen so the train platform was illuminated by lines of lanterns that encircled the station.

Impossible to miss at the end of the platform, even in the dark of night, was Hagrid, who was waving his arm well above the crowd of students. "First years, over here! Boats are this way!" he called, his voice echoing down the platform.

As he approached the half-giant, Harry called out, "Hagrid!"

Hagrid looked down and spotted Harry, "Oh hello, Harry! Making friends already?"

Harry glanced back at Draco, who was eyeing Hagrid up and down with an odd look on his face. "Oh yeah, this is Draco. Draco, this is Hagrid, he… uh… is a friend of mine."

Draco glanced at Hagrid once more before turning to Harry, "You're friends with this… man? He would be useful when moving through a crowd, I suppose." Draco moved past Hagrid and disappeared into the crowd.

"Charming fellow, ain't he?" Hagrid muttered. He turned back to Harry and nodded towards the wharf where the boats were waiting, "We better get a move on, Harry. Wouldn't want to miss the feast, now would we?"

As Harry stepped onto the wharf, he looked out across the black lake. In the water was a fleet of dinghies that each contained a single lit lantern. As Harry sat down in his boat, he realised that none of the boats had any oars, but he could clearly see the first of the student's boats, led by Hagrid, drifting off into the water.

"The boats are enchanted." Harry spun around as a girl hopped into the boat. With the light from the boat's lantern, he could see her brown, bushy hair that seemed to almost cover her entire face. "As soon as we cast off, the boats will simply take us to where we need to go."

"Oh… uh, thanks. How did you know that?" Harry asked.

The girl shrugged, "I read about it in Hogwarts: A History, one of the textbooks that we were assigned." She reached out with her hand for Harry to shake, "I'm Hermione."

Harry reached out and shook her hand, "Harry."

A couple of more students joined the two in the boat and they cast off, the boat pushing itself along as Hermione said. Harry squinted out towards the front of the group of boats to try and find Hagrid's boat but the fog hanging over the water was too thick. He couldn't even see where they were going. All Harry could do was hope the boat knew where it was going.

Just as Harry was wondering how much water they would have to cross, their boat broke through the edge of the fog and shining before them was Hogwarts. Sitting atop a rugged cliff edge, the castle towered over them, the orange lights from inside sparkling like stars in the night sky, the moon peeking out from behind the castle and bathing it in moonlight. From behind Harry, he could hear Hermione whisper, "It's even more beautiful than the pictures in the book."

When all the boats had reached the other side, Hagrid had them all form together in a big group. "Alright, all of yers are going to head up those steps into the castle," he pointed up at a long set of stairs that climbed up the hill and into the castle. "Once yer inside, you will find Professor McGonagall who will take you to the feast."

As the huge group climbed the stairs, Harry could hear Draco moan, "First thing we do at Hogwarts is exercise, really?"

The inside of the castle, however, was almost worth the climb. The great stone archways and the old-looking windows gave the interior a feeling of grandeur that almost gave Harry shivers as he climbed the steps. And waiting at the top, with a large witch hat on top of her head was, Harry presumed, Professor McGonagall. Her mature features and her dignified pose gave her the aura of a queen, standing atop her castle as they, the lowly peasants, made the climb to absorb her wisdom.

"Welcome to Hogwarts," she said. "In a few moments, you will pass through these doors and join your classmates. But before you can take your seats, you must be sorted into your houses." The first year students started to buzz at the mention of houses. Harry, of course, didn't know the first thing about houses. "They are Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. While you are here, your houses will be like your family." Harry perked up at the word, family. Professor McGonagall turned towards the large doors behind her and pulled out her wand from within her robe. A quick flick and the doors swung open, allowing Professor McGonagall to lead the students into the Great Hall.

The Great Hall was divided up into five tables, four presumably for the four houses and one table at the front of the room that served the teachers. All eyes in the room were trained on the first years as they were led between the two middle tables to the front of the room, just before the faculty table. As Harry looked up, he saw dozens of candles floating above their heads and somehow, he was able to see through the ceiling and see the night sky. "It's not real, the ceiling," Hermione said, "it's bewitched to look like the night sky."

Before them, a dusty, old hat sat on a wooden stool, the pointed top wilted like a dead flower. Harry spotted Hagrid sitting at the faculty table, his bulky frame seeming even more out of place next to the diminutive teacher to his left. Hagrid quickly noticed Harry and smiled back at him.

"Now, before we begin," Professor McGonagall said, "Professor Dumbledore would like to say a few words."

From the centre of the faculty table, an elderly man with a long white beard rose to his feet. "I have a few notices which I would like to announce," he turned his gaze to the first-years up front, "first years, please note that the Dark Forest is strictly forbidden to all students. Also, our caretaker, Mr Filch has asked me to remind you that the third-floor corridor is out of bounds to everyone who does not wish to die a most painful death. Thank you."

Draco, who was standing right beside Harry, whispered in his ear, "That was cheerful."

Professor McGonagall pulled out a long scroll from somewhere up her large sleeve and unrolled it, "When I call your name, you will come forth. I will put the Sorting Hat on your head," she nodded to the old hat on the stool, "and you will be sorted into your houses."

Harry stared at the hat in astonishment. That old hat?

Professor McGonagall cleared her throat and called, "Hermione Granger."

To Harry's left, he saw Hermione step forward. As she stepped up to the stool, Harry could hear her muttering to herself, "Okay, relax. Relax." Harry glanced at Draco who glanced back at him with a bemused look on his face.

Hermione sat down on the stool and Professor McGonagall placed the Sorting Hat on Hermione's head. Before their eyes, the folds in the hat became eyes and a mouth and it started speaking, "Ah right then… Hm…" Under the hat, Hermione seemed tense and nervous, her shoulders stiff and her fists clutching the stool with an iron grip. After a few moments of deliberation, the Sorting Hat came to a decision. "Okay… Gryffindor!"

One of the tables behind Harry exploded in cheers as Hermione hopped off the stool and practically skipped to join her new housemates, a huge grin on her face. The raucous celebration took Harry by surprise and he couldn't help smiling a little inside. Draco chuckled, "Of course she goes to that house. They deserve a nutter like that. Trust me, Harry. You do not want to go there."

Before Harry could respond, Professor McGonagall moved on to the next name, "Draco Malfoy."

Draco stepped up to the podium and sat down on the stool. McGonagall sat the hat on top of Draco's head and the Sorting Hat immediately cried, "Slytherin!" The table to the far right of the room started cheering as Draco hopped off the stool and headed over, shooting a smirk over at Harry as he went past.

"Ronald Weasley."

The youngest red-headed boy from the King's Cross Station platform emerged from the crowd. He had a weird look on his face like he was being called up to the principal's office. The look on his face didn't change even as the Hat was being placed on his head. "Hmm… another Weasley, huh? Perhaps I should place you in Hufflepuff? It would be a nice change in pace. No? I know just where to put you, then… Gryffindor!" As the cheers rang through the hall, the boy's face finally softened, like a weight had been lifted off his chest. As he sat down at the Gryffindor table, one of his brothers slaps him on the back and says something in his ear, causing the others to laugh.

"Harry Potter."

Just like that. Silence.

As Harry stepped up onto the podium, he could hear the whispers behind him. He glanced back towards the other students. All eyes were on him. He could see some eyes darting from him to his forehead, trying to get a glimpse of the scar under his thick fringe. One first year in the front row was just standing there with his jaw agape as if he were in one of the Saturday morning cartoons that Dudley would watch. Harry looked at Draco who was desperately trying not to laugh and barely succeeding. A small smile gripped the edge of Harry's lips. It was kind of funny.

"Mr Potter," Professor McGonagall called, snapping Harry back to reality. Take a seat, please.

Harry sat down onto the wooden stool as Professor McGonagall placed the Hat onto Harry's head, "Hmm… difficult… very difficult…" the Hat murmured. "Plenty of courage, I see. Not a bad mind either. You would be a good fit in any of the houses." The Hat paused for a long moment and the other students stared to get restless, wondering what was causing the long deliberation. "You could do well in any of the houses but there is one house where I could see you becoming great. I sense something driving you, boy. Something deep, something dark, but if properly nurtured, the things you could do…"

Harry looked out at the Gryffindor table. One of the red-headed twins muttered something and the others laughed. Harry remembered the red-headed daughter at the train platform and the warmth in her eyes when she looked at Harry, the same warmth he felt when he first met Hagrid.

"Hmm… yes," the Sorting Hat mused. "I believe that this is the right choice. Hm… I look forward to seeing the things that you accomplish…" The Hat raised its voice so that it would echo throughout the hall.

"Slytherin!"

A/N: Forgive me if this chapter is pretty rough, I've been out of the game for a while and still need to shake the rust off. Any feedback you guys can provide would be deeply appreciated, I feed off compliments and learn from constructive criticism. I have plenty of ideas for this series so hopefully it can become a long term thing.