Author's note: One reviewer, who although was very critical of this story, brought up a good point in saying that both the Naruto series and the Jedi Apprentice novels were not around during the 1980's when Harry was a child. I am asking that you treat this as an AU and believe that those books/manga/movies came out when Harry was a child. Thank you.
On the note of reviews, I DO NOT accept flames. If you can't objectively review my story and point out both good and bad points, then don't review.
Also on pairing, I am firmly decided on Harry/Susan. While this chapter may make it seem like Harry/Hermione, it most assuredly is not. They are only friends.
Also, the award for first review goes to PoisinRose. Thanks very much for making this author's day.
Disclaimer: I do not own anything in this story except the plot. I did copy some of this chapter directly from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.
Chapter 2
To say that people were surprised at my sorting, would be an understatement. - Harry James Potter.
Harry wanted to ask the black haired man what he was thinking, but before he could give it much thought, he heard his named called. He walked up to the chair and sat down.
"Ah, what do we have here?" the hat said as Harry put it on.
"Don't do that!" Harry nearly said out loud.
"Sorry, Mr. Potter. I forget sometimes that a talking hat is quite abnormal in the muggle world. Now where to put you...my, my, you have some courage, but it is not your primary trait...and you have intelligence, but intelligence is just a means to an end for you...oh goodness, you have Loyalty yes; you do not trust easily, but once you do you are as loyal as Helga Hufflepuff herself...And my! Ambition and cunning in spades...Where should I put you, young Mr. Potter...Hufflepuff or Slytherin?
"Well, I do have a large amount of ambition, but what do you mean I have loyalty? I have never been loyal to anyone in my life!"
"Ha! Mr. Potter, you may not have been loyal to anyone in your life, but I don't just look at the past. I see how your traits will affect your future. Do you not remember what you told Ollivander about love? I believe your exact words were: 'I believe everyone has a soul mate out there and once you find that person you should stick with them. I believe love is a choice. Once you choose to love there is no going back. Even if you don't "feel" it, you should still choose to love.' Mr. Potter, that is loyalty if I ever saw it. Once you have found someone to love, you will be loyal to the death. Now, where do you want to go?
"I get to choose?"
"Yes, I do not so much as sort the students as I do help them sort themselves. Now where do you want to go? Slytherin, where you could become one of the most powerful wizards to ever walk this earth, yet you would be miserable and lonely for many years before you would find true friends? Or Hufflepuff, where you will become a moderately powerful wizard with more friends than I can count?"
"Which house will I find love in?" Harry asked thoughtfully. For while Harry had no current desire for a relationship, he knew he would one day desire one. And Harry was pragmatic if nothing else.
"Hmm, all I can tell you is this, whatever house you are in, you will find the love of your life. Nothing can separate soul mates."
"Then I want to be in Slytherin. I am willing to risk misery and loneliness for power."
"Very well then, Mr. Potter. Now I have one piece of advice for you, Potter men are cursed to be with red heads; so keep your eyes open for the red heads in this school! Now..."
"Better be..."
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The Great Hall was growing restless. Many of the students found them whispering among themselves. What was taking so long? Even the Professors had started to gossip. Only Albus Dumbledore and Severus Snape remained quiet, both of them staring intently at the hat. This would be the defining moment.
"Better be...SLYTHERIN!" the Hat cried out.
The Great Hall was silent for a minute, but then it registered what the Hat had said.
"Traitor!" A Gryffindor jumped up and yelled.
Harry looked at the Gryffindor with venom. How could he be a traitor? He never wanted to be a Gryffindor in the first place.
The Great Hall was in an uproar. Practically every student was yelling. Finally, it became too much. Dumbledore stood up from his seat and in a powerful voice said,
"ENOUGH! The Sorting Hat has made its decision. Mr. Potter, if you will take your seat at the Slytherin table?"
Harry nodded at the ancient wizard and walked over to where the House of the Snakes sat. He noticed that when he sat down, every other Slytherin did their best to scoot away from him. Oh well, Harry thought, Its no different than the rest of my life.
Harry patiently waited for the rest of the First Years to be sorted. As he waited, he looked up at Filius Flitwick, the man who had taken him to Diagon Alley. The half-goblin gave Harry a brief smile and a nod, which Harry returned. Harry also noticed a Professor who was wearing a turban sitting next to Flitwick. Harry felt a twinge of pain in his scar when he locked eyes with the professor. Once the boy averted his eyes, however, the pain disappeared. Harry observed the different Professors and took note of each of their appearances.
Professor McGonagall, the woman who had brought the First Years into the Hall, was an elderly woman with an almost feline grace about her. Then there was Professor Dumbledore who wore robes like what muggles expected Merlin to have worn, with stars surrounded by blue. Next there was Flitwick and the turban Professor who Harry had quickly overheard from one of the students was named Professor Quirrel. Professor Quirrel seemed very nervous about something from what Harry could tell. Sitting next to Quirrel, was a giant of a man. Harry did not know his name, but he looked like a kind man.
Then there was the dark haired man. The man wore all black robes and had pale, sallow skin with greasy hair. Harry decided that he would do his best to learn about the man. The man seemed to be the one he had the best chance of approaching about learning the Dark Arts.
Seeing that Harry was staring at him, Severus gave a brief nod in Harry's direction and decided to find out what sort of boy Harry was; Severus nearly felt himself smile as he did a brief scan of Harry's thoughts. While Severus could not fully enter the mind of anyone without using the incantation for Leglimency, he could briefly scan thoughts just by looking at his target's eyes. Harry, you are so much like Lily it almost pains me, thought the Potion's Master.
"Is everything alright, Severus," Dumbledore asked as he had noticed that Severus was surprisingly calm about Harry being in his house.
"Everything is fine, Headmaster."
"Oh, and what is your opinion on Mr. Potter being sorted into your house?"
"It should be interesting to see if he is worthy of being in Salazar Slytherin's house," Severus replied evasively.
Dumbledore's eyes twinkled as he sensed that the animosity he had been expecting from Severus would not be appearing. Perhaps Harry being sorted into Slytherin would be a good thing? He would have to keep his eye on young Harry though, to prevent him from falling too deeply into the Dark Arts.
For Dumbledore knew the fascination young Harry held for the Dark Arts. A subtle scan of young Harry's mind had revealed a desire for power and control, which worried Dumbledore slightly; yet Dumbledore had also seen in young Harry's mind a vast capability for love. And that was why Dumbledore was not going to interfere, young Harry was much like Severus. They were both dark, yes, but they were also loyal to a fault. Ah, the sorting was over. It was time for his speech!
"Welcome," he said, "Welcome to a new year at Hogwarts! Before we begin our banquet, I would like to say a few words. And here they are: Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak! Thank you!"
Harry looked at Dumbledore in amusement. The Headmaster was interesting to say the least. Harry was not quite sure if that was meant to be a joke or if the Headmaster really was crazy. Harry's thoughts were interrupted, however, when food appeared on the plates before him. Food! Glorious Food! And Harry's quickly began to eat. He did not care much for the vegetables, the texture of the vegetables made him gag, but he did enjoy the meats, fruits, and breads.
Harry noticed that all the Slytherins were talking amongst themselves and staring at him. Draco Malfoy had a particularity vicious smile on his face as he told the other Slytherins nasty things about Harry.
Young Harry sighed, perhaps it had not been the smartest idea to hex the young Malfoy on the train ride. Oh well, whats done is done, Harry decided.
Harry ate for a little while, before laying back in his chair and sighed. Just as he was about to relax, Harry felt a cold chill run along his spine. He turned around to see a ghost staring at him. Harry nearly yelped, but remained as dignified as he could.
"Greetings, young Slytherin," the ghost said, "I am the Bloody Baron, the ghost of Slytherin house. I wish you luck and skill in your ambitions."
"Thank you," Harry replied.
"Good, you know respect, you will go far in life if you respect those in authority over you; just don't forget to keep a knife behind your back for when you can take their position. If you want it of course," the Baron said with a vicious smile.
Harry felt himself gulp, but did his best to remain calm. It was a ghost, it could not hurt him. Perhaps...
"Any other advice you might have for me sir?"
"Stay on Professor Snape's good side. He is the black haired man sitting next to Professor Dumbledore. You do not want to anger him. I wish you luck, young Slytherin."
And the Baron flew off to torment some other First Years.
Harry relaxed as he saw that he would not be bothered by the ghost anymore. Then the desserts appeared. Harry quickly helped himself to a chocolate pie that had appeared to his right. Finally, the feast was over.
Dumbledore stood up and the Hall quieted. The Headmaster said,
"Ahem, just a few more words now that we are all fed and watered. I have a few start of term notices to give you. First Years should notice that the forest on the grounds is forbidden to all pupils. And a few of our older students would do well to remember that themselves."
Harry noticed that Dumbledore's eyes briefly fleeted in the direction of a pair of red-headed twins. Must be troublemakers, young Harry thought.
"I have also been asked by Mr. Filch, the caretaker, that no magic should be used between classes in the corridors."
Harry felt anger at this. How was he supposed to grow more powerful if he could not practice his magic? Perhaps the rule did not apply in the dorm rooms so he could practice there? Harry would have to ask one of the older students about this. He cringed, he did not like asking for help from anyone. Ah, Dumbledore was speaking again.
"Quidditch trials will be held in the second week of term. Anyone interested in playing for their house team should contact Madame Hooch."
Harry briefly remembered that Quidditch was some sort of sport played on brooms. It did not interest him in the slightest.
"And finally, I must tell you that this year, the third floor corridor on the right hand side is out of bounds to everyone who does not wish to die a very painful death."
Harry cocked his head at this. They had something deadly in a school of students? That did not sound very responsible.
"And now, before we go to bed, let us sing the school song! Everyone choose a tune!" cried Dumbledore. Harry groaned. He hated singing like this. Not that he hated music, it was just that the cacophony of students would stress him out beyond belief. Hopefully his magic would help with the stress load...
And the students began to sing,
Hogwarts, Hogwarts, hoggy warty Hogwarts,
Teach us something please,
Whether we be old and bald,
Or young with scabby knees,
Our heads could do with filling,
With some interesting stuff,
For now they're bare and full of air,
Dead flies and bits of fluff,
So teach us things worth knowing,
Bring back what we've forgot,
Just do your best, we'll do the rest,
And learn until our brains all rot.
Harry felt a headache building as the majority of the students finished the song. The red-headed twins, however, had chosen a slow funeral march for their tune and kept singing. Harry noticed that Professor Snape had a thin-lipped expression on his face while Dumbledore appeared to be ecstatic. So ecstatic it seemed, that he had taken to conducting the Twins with his wand and when they finished he clapped the loudest.
"Ah music," Dumbledore said wiping his eyes, "A magic beyond all that we do here. And now, bedtime! Off you trot!"
Harry quickly fell in with the other Slytherins who were following a prefect who had identified himself as,
"Connery, Sean Connery," the Prefect said in a deep British accent.
Harry just smiled at the dramatization the Prefect used in giving his name. He seemed to have a flair for theatrics, perhaps he would be an actor later in life?
Harry followed the prefect to the dungeons, until finally they stopped in front of a painting of a very old looking man dressed in blood red robes. Sean Connery quickly introduced them to the painting,
"This is a portrait of Salazar Slytherin's adopted son, Raistlin Majere. Raistlin was actually from another dimension, but was-"
"I can speak for myself, thank you very much, Mr. Connery! Now which of you young brats believe you are worthy to be in Slytherin's house?"
Draco Malfoy quickly walked forward and said,
"I am of the Ancient and Noble House of Malfoy. There is no doubt I am worthy!"
"Then you are a fool young Malfoy. You obviously lean only on your family name than your own prowess. Listen all of you, none of you are worthy to be called Slytherins yet. Slytherins have become Kings! Slytherins have literally become gods! I myself was once the God of Time. Prove yourself worthy of the Slytherin name, not by your petty blood status, but by your magical power alone. Listen closely to my advise, there is no good and evil, there is only power...and those too weak to seek it!"
Harry was entranced by Raistlin's words. He felt the power behind the portrait, and knew that Raistlin was serious when he had said that he was a god. Sean Connery listened politely to the portrait; Raistlin gave the same speech every year in hopes of finding a Slytherin worthy of the name. Oh well, thought Sean, Time to enter the common room.
"Wonderful words as always, Master Raistlin. Now, may I give you the password so that we may enter?"
"Certainly, young fool!" Raistlin cackled as Sean's eye twitched.
"Very well then, the password is Golden Lion."
Draco Malfoy crinkled his nose at the password and asked,
"Should not the password be something more refined? Like silver snakes?"
"If anyone wanted to enter our common room, they would have to guess the password. And that is probably one of the first ones they would try you dolt!" Sean explained.
Draco scowled at Sean, but did not say anything more. The painting moved aside and the Slytherins entered the common room.
Harry was amazed at the warmth of the common room, nothing like the dank dungeons they had just traveled through. There were green couches in the center of the room, and a fireplace to the very back of the room. To Harry's right, he saw stairs leading up to what he assumed were the dorm rooms.
Harry's observations were cut short as Severus Snape entered the room, his robes billowing about him as he walked. Every first year was silent as the Potion's Master began to speak,
"Welcome to Slytherin House. You are here because the Sorting Hat saw the potential in you for greatness. That said, none of you are anywhere close to realizing that potential. It is my job to help you."
At this Severus's eyes briefly flashed to Harry.
"Now, for the house rules; first and fore mostly, I do not tolerate bullies. Bullies will soon find themselves in detention. A true Slytherin does not alienate potential allies. Secondly, all grievances you have with another student should be brought to myself. I do not want to see any of you fighting amongst yourselves. In this school," Severus said with disdain apparent in his voice as though he did not consider Hogwarts a school,
"Slytherins are the outcasts. The other Houses will hate you for being "Dark." Your only allies are other Slytherins. Slytherins stand together. I know this might sound more like a Hufflepuff trait, but consider it necessary for your own survival. And the last and final rule, any of you caught practicing the Dark Arts without the explicit permission and supervision of a Professor will find themselves wishing they had never come to Hogwarts. Since I am the only Professor on staff besides Headmaster Dumbledore who even knows a smidgen of the Dark Arts, I am also the only Professor who would give you such permission. And I do not give permission lightly. The only students I have ever allowed to practice the Dark Arts under my supervision are the ones who have scored an Outstanding on their Defense Against the Dark Art's O.W.L.'s taken in fifth year. So do not expect to begin learning the Dark Arts for many years. Now, I shall have meetings with each of you in the weeks to come to determine whether or not you are flourishing here at Hogwarts. I trust that each of you will obey these rules, or there will be dire consequences; now, off to bed!"
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As Harry lay in bed that night, his mind mused over the words of Severus Snape. He felt anger at the thought of not being able to practice the Dark Arts until his Fifth year, but decided that he could always learn the theory from books. And in the end, he thought, perhaps it would be better to just focus on the basics for now. Professor Snape obviously had a good reason for not wanting them to practice the Dark Arts yet; perhaps it was meant to encourage them to throw themselves wholeheartedly into their current studies?
"Well then that is what I am going to do!" thought Harry. He would become number one in all his classes!
That night as Harry slept, he dreamed of powerful spells and magical discoveries.
Harry woke the next morning to the unpleasant noise of a bell chiming throughout the Slytherin dorms. It seemed that it was time to wake up. Harry groaned. Did these people not realize the value of sleep! Precious, precious sleep!
Harry groggily drug himself out of bed and to the showers. He hated the fact that there was no privacy in the showers, but he quickly averted his eyes from the other naked bodies of other First Years. He did smirk however, as he realized that he was large where it counts compared to the other First Years. Today was going to be a good day, he thought.
That notion was foolishly destroyed, however, as on his way to the Great Hall he was ambushed by two Fourth Year Gryffindors.
"What do we have here, Peter," asked one of the Gryffindors maliciously.
"It seems to me, Cameron, that this little Slytherin is lost," Peter replied.
"I'm not los-"
"Langlock!" Peter said with a flick of his wand.
Harry tried to speak, but found his tongue stuck to the roof of his mouth. He felt fury enter his veins as he realized that he was completely at the mercy of these Gryffindors.
"Lets teach this slimy Slytherin traitor what happens when he tries to talk back."
The two Gryffindors grabbed Harry and pulled him into a secluded hallway. The two Gryffindor bullies then preceded to pummel Harry mercilessly with blows.
Harry's anger and shame built with each punch. The blow to his pride was far more painful than any other kind of pain he felt on his body. Why can't I stop them! Thought Harry, I swore I would never let anyone control me again, yet here these Gryffindors managed to beat me before I even had my wand out.
Harry began to cry tears of shame as the two Gryffindors pummeled him. Finally, after what seemed like hours, they left. As Harry lay there, he promised pain on those Gryffindors once he had learned more powerful magic. He would make them feel the same pain he felt!
Harry pulled himself up from the ground and limped toward the Great Hall, aware that breakfast was probably over, but hoping that he would still be able to get his schedule.
Severus observed the table of his Slytherins with concern. Harry was not there. Lily was never late for breakfast, Severus thought worriedly, She had an appetite that would put that brat Ron Weasley to shame. And from what I saw last night at the Feast, her son has the same voracious appetite. Perhaps he just is a late sleeper?
These rationalizations were soon thrown out the window, however, when Severus saw Harry limp into the Great Hall with a black eye. Severus felt an intense anger enter his heart. No one hurt his Slytherins! He would have to speak with Harry soon about who had done this; but knowing what he did about the boy from his Leglimency scan, Severus seriously doubted young Harry would tell him. The boy was too prideful.
"Looks like young Mr. Potter had an accident," Dumbledore said offhandedly.
Severus just shook his head. Despite being very wise and powerful, Dumbledore was also painfully oblivious to some of the darker aspects of human nature. Besides that, Dumbledore could not bear to hear anything spoken out against his lions. Therefore any chance Severus had of getting the culprits punished was severely diminished. That did not mean, however, that he could not help young Harry learn how to defend and take care of himself. Severus quickly picked up the schedules for his Slytherins and walked down to their table. He began passing them out, noticing the relieved look Harry had when the young boy saw he had not been too late to receive his schedule.
Severus walked over to Mr. Potter and handed him his schedule, saying,
"Your mother, who was in my year, was one of my best friends, Mr. Potter. I will not have her son being tormented by foolish children. Come by my office tonight, Mr. Potter, and I will take care of your bruise and teach you a simple spell to defend yourself."
"You knew my mother, Sir?" Harry asked hungrily. He knew nothing about his parents, and here was someone who had known his mother quite well.
"Yes, Mr. Potter, I did. Now off to class," Severus said sharply. Anger flickering in his eyes at what his brief Leglimency scan of Mr. Potter had revealed about two Gryffindors.
"Yes, Sir! Thank you, Sir!" Harry said promptly as he grabbed his schedule and walked off toward the first of his classes.
Severus turned his eyes towards the Gryffindor table and glared at Peter and Cameron. Those two would have a minor accident in potions today, Severus decided.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Harry sighed as he walked down the hallways towards his first class of Hogwarts, History of Magic. He entered the class and sat near the back, his pen (for he had found quills to be too hard to write with) and parchment on his desk ready to take notes. The rest of the students filed in shortly after, Gryffindors on one side of the room, Slytherins on the other side. Harry noticed that only one of the Gryffindors had the fore sight to pull out a quill and parchment. It was the bushy haired girl who had asked for help finding that toad on the train.
Harry sighed as he realized he might have some competition for first place in the form of that girl. Harry's thoughts drifted from thought to thought until he began to think about what Professor Snape had said about learning a new spell. Harry already knew some basic hexes like Rictusempra, the tickling charm, and Acer, the stinging hex, from his books. He also knew Langlock, the charm to stop someone from speaking, because of what the two Gryffindors bullies had done earlier that morning. Harry hoped that Professor Snape would either teach him a more powerful offensive spell, or a spell that could block other spells.
Harry's thoughts were cut short as Professor Binns floated through the wall. Harry's face showed complete surprise as he realized that the Professor for this class would be a ghost. Makes sense, Harry thought.
Harry's interest quickly faded as it soon became apparent that Professor Binns was as dead of a teacher as, well, a dead person. Harry pulled out the History book that they were supposed to be learning from and began to read. Just because the teacher was dull did not mean the subject was.
The young boy quickly found himself engrossed in stories of battles between powerful wizards and witches. He was pleasantly surprised to find that the Greek Gods of Mythology had in fact been extremely powerful wizards and witches.
The class ended much too soon for Harry's liking, as he had only read a fourth of the History book so far. Just as he was about to walk out he saw the bushy haired girl walk up to him and say bossily,
"Why did you not take notes? The Professor obviously had something important to say!"
"The Professor," Harry said curtly, "is a dead man who does not know how to make his subject interesting. I find it much more interesting to just read it from a book."
"You really shouldn't talk about Professors like that," the bushy haired girl replied, "Oh, by the way, my name is Hermione Granger. We did not get the chance to introduce ourselves on the train."
"I'm Harry Potter," Harry said in exasperation. He really just wanted to head to his next class.
Just as Hermione was about to say something else, Draco Malfoy chose this time to interrupt.
"Oh look what we have here, a mudblood and a blood-traitor. You should be ashamed of yourself, Potter."
Harry raised his eyebrow at what Draco said. He did not know what mudblood meant, but it obviously was not good from the way Draco was looking at Hermione. Well, if it ticked Draco off, then surely he was doing something right by befriending this girl.
"Sod off, Malfoy," Harry responded, "I can be friends with whoever I want to be."
Hermione's eyes lit up at the word friends. She had never had a friend before and craved affection.
"Pfft," Draco scoffed, "Fine, be friends with that mudblood. I care not!"
"C'mon, Hermione, lets head to our next class."
Hermione nodded and followed Harry. The two quickly found themselves discussing the history of the magical world. Harry had quickly said that his favorite wizard of all time had been Raistlin Majere-Slytherin, to which Hermione replied,
"Oh! The Dark Wizard of Dimensional Travel! He practiced some pretty dark stuff, but he was never overtly evil like some Dark Wizards have been. My favorite wizard of all time would have to be Rowena Ravenclaw. She was one of the most intelligent witches ever!"
Harry sighed as he recognized who Hermione reminded him of, Sakura Haruno from Naruto. Despite not having pink hair, they both relied on their knowledge rather than their skill. And that is when Harry realized he was doing that himself. Sure, he could have all the knowledge of spells he wanted, but if he did not train his body to move quickly then he was a sitting duck for the Unforgivables. Harry quickly decided that he would be training his body in the evenings after he had gotten his homework done. Maybe a run around the school would help?
"What are you thinking about, Harry?" Hermione asked.
"Just thinking you reminded me of a character from this manga series I used to read."
"Oh! I love manga! Who do I remind you of?" Hermione's eyes lighted up.
"Sakura Haruno from Naruto."
"Haha, well if I remind you of Sakura, then you remind me of Shikamaru; a genius, but lazy."
"Hey! I'm willing to work hard to achieve my goals!" Harry said indignantly as they entered the Transfiguration classroom.
The two took their seats and got out their supplies for taking notes. They then began chatting eagerly about the Naruto series, completely oblivious to the looks both of them were receiving from the rest of the students and a cat sitting on the Professor's desk.
The cat, who was really Minerva McGonagall in her animagus form, nearly smiled as she observed Harry and Hermione talking together. Those two would be good friends she decide, despite the difference in houses. To say that she had been surprised when Harry had been sorted into Slytherin would be an understatement. However, she could see the Slytherin in him. He seemed cautious, almost paranoid. It made her wonder how he had gotten that black eye? Ah, Ron Weasley and Dean Thomas were late!
Ron and Dean ran into the room and were pleasantly surprised to see that the teacher was not there. They were not late! Ron walked over to the cat and petted it on the head, cooing,
"You are just a cute little kitty aren't you? Do you know where the old hag who is supposed to teach us is?"
At this the cat hissed at Ron and quickly transformed into Professor McGonagall. She said,
"I would prefer not to be refereed to as an "old hag," Mr. Weasley. Now that will be ten points from Gryffindor for your tardiness and rudeness. Take your seat."
Ron took his seat, and Harry nearly laughed as he saw how red Ron's face was. McGonagall began to teach,
"Transfiguration is some of the most complex and dangerous magic you will learn here at Hogwarts. Anyone messing around in my class will leave and not come back. You have been warned. Now who can tell me Gamp's Law of Transfiguration and the five exceptions."
Both Harry and Hermione were the only ones to raise their hands. McGonagall looked at both of them and made a quick decision to avoid House conflict.
"Mr. Potter, first you will tell me Gamp's Law of Transfiguration; and then you, Miss Granger, will tell me the three exceptions."
"Gamp's Law of Transfiguration states that what powers magic has to create or destroy matter," Harry said.
"Very good, Mr. Potter. Do you think you could simplify that in terms not from the book?"
"Yes, Ma'am. Basically what it means is that Transfiguration has to either create or destroy. For example, if I was going to turn your desk into say...a dog...the process would go like this after I said the spell and used the correct wand movement: my magic would instantaneously destroy the desk and then immediately replace the desk with a dog. It is not so much transfiguration, as it is replacement. Another example would be transfiguring something to move like a statue or something. You would be destroying the statue itself, and replacing it with a statue that moves according to your will. Conjuration, a branch of transfiguration is a bit different. In it, you are replacing the air with something else. Very difficult."
McGonagall was dumbfounded, never had she heard a First Year explain Transfiguration so accurately. His theory was completely sound. Now all he needed was the will, the incantation, the proper wand movement, and the magical power to perform his transfigurations.
"Thirty points to Slytherin for your excellent explanation," McGonagall said without the slightest distaste in her voice. She knew the boy had earned it.
"Now, Miss Granger, would you please continue with the exceptions to Gamp's Law."
"Yes, Professor. The first exception is food. Food cannot be created from nothing. It can be summoned, it can be created from more food, but it cannot be created from nothing. The second exception is love. You cannot create or destroy love. The third and final exception is life. You cannot create or destroy life. You can create things that simulate life, but never can you create actual life."
"Excellent work, Mrs. Granger. Thirty points to Gryffindor for your explanation as well. Both of you have obviously been studying ahead. Now, would everyone please copy everything on the board about Gamp's Law."
For the next twenty minutes that is what they did. Harry quickly found himself bored, however, he already knew this stuff. Why could he not move onto the actual transfiguration?
McGonagall noticed the vacant look in his eyes, however and promptly walked over to him and said quietly,
"Since it is obvious you already know this, perhaps you would like to go ahead and start on actual transfiguration?"
Harry quickly nodded his head yes. McGonagall gave him a tooth pick and told him to turn it into a needle while giving him the incantation and wand movement.
Harry took a deep breathe and said quietly while envisioning the tooth pick being destroyed and replaced with a needle,
"Verto Postulo."
The tooth pick took on a shiny sheen and appeared to be sharper, but Harry could tell it was not a true needle. He tried again,
"Verto Postulo."
This time the tooth pick became a complete needle. McGonagall, who had been watching, let out a gasp. Not even James, Harry's father, had had this much skill with transfiguration. She said,
"Excellent work, Mr. Potter. Another ten points to Slytherin. Now lets see if you can turn it back. The incantation for this is Reverto Postulo!"
Harry quickly tried, and was satisfied with seeing the needle turn back into a tooth pick. Harry smiled.
The rest of the day went much like this. Charms class was a breeze for Harry; the charm they learned was Wingardium Leviosa, a spell which levitated an object. Harry had already performed the Accio charm, which was much more advanced and received points for performing Wingardium Leviosa on the first try.
The worst class, Harry found, was herbology. He simply did not enjoy the class. He did not care to get himself dirty with plants. Nevertheless, Harry found that he did adequate in that class. He did not earn any house points, but he still performed well enough.
Finally, all the classes of the day were over and Harry found himself longing for dinner. Despite this longing, however, Harry took a long jog around the castle. At the end, he was huffing and puffing, but he considered it well worth it to be able to increase his stamina.
That night at dinner, Harry found himself sitting by himself again. He was about to dig into the food, when Hermione sat down beside him.
"What are you doing?" Harry hissed at her.
"Sitting next to my friend of course!" Hermione replied in a huff.
Harry groaned.
"If you sit here, the Gryffindors will label you as dark."
"I don't care. I want to sit here and that is that."
And so Harry and Hermione began to chat about Naruto.
Severus observed Harry sitting with Hermione and remembered a time when he was the outcast Slytherin with a muggle born friend. Such happy times...
"Severus!" McGonagall interrupted his thoughts.
"Yes, Minerva," Severus said icily.
"Were you listening? I said that Harry is a natural at Transfiguration. The boy has more skill than his father at the subject."
"He is also quite skilled in charms!" Filius put in.
Severus smirked.
"So I take it he earned Slytherin some points today?"
McGonagall grimaced.
"Yes, Severus, all in all, he earned Slytherin around fifty points today. But enough on that, the boy is a magical prodigy that should be nurtured. He would only suffer under some of our teachings, he needs someone who would be able to teach him more advanced magic or you can rest assured he will get himself up in trouble."
"Which is why I have already set up a tutoring session with him tonight, Minerva," Severus responded.
Dumbledore's eyes twinkled as he said,
"Oh, and what are you planning on teaching him, Severus."
"Some simple charms and transfiguration. I will find out this Friday whether or not he has any skill with potions. If he does, I will add that to our tutoring sessions."
"Very good, Severus. I look forward to seeing Harry blossom under your care," Dumbledore replied.
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Harry knocked on Professor Snape's office door. It would be interesting to see what Professor Snape would teach him tonight.
"Come in."
Harry opened the door to see the room filled with shelves of potions ingredients. But in the center of the room were some ritualistic drawings that sent a shiver down Harry's spine. In the middle of the drawings, stood Severus Snape.
"Welcome, Mr. Potter. I have heard some excellent things from your teachers. You have the basic theory and spells down; and that is all swell and fine if you want to be an adequate wizard. However, you don't want to be an adequate wizard do you, Mr. Potter?"
Harry felt himself smirk at this, an altogether foreign expression on his face; but Harry found he liked the expression. It expressed himself quite well.
"No, Sir," Harry replied, "I want to be a powerful wizard!"
"Excellent," Severus said, "And then the first thing I am going to teach you is to master your mind. To be a powerful wizard, you must have control. And control comes from the mind. For every night from here on out, I want you to spend one hour in meditation. What I want you to do in your meditation is this, sort your memories. Go through every memory you can remember and infuse it with the power of your magic. Once you have done this, come back to me and I will tell you what to do next."
"Um, Sir," Harry said, "Is this a step in learning Occulumency?"
Severus's eyes widened a fraction of an inch. Of course he should of known that Harry would know about Occulumency.
"Yes, Mr. Potter, it is. It takes many years to master Occulumency; and I doubt you will be more than adequate at it by the time your fifth year comes around, but it is a necessary skill for a powerful wizard to learn. Now onto the spells I am going to teach you tonight! You got that bruise from bullies, yes? Don't lie Potter!"
"Yes, sir," Harry said with shame.
"Do not be ashamed, Mr. Potter. You are a First Year with no magical training. Of course you would be defeated, but I aim to change that. I am going to teach you two spells and then I shall teach you the basics of dueling!"
Harry's eyes lighted up at the thought of learning magic.
"The first spell I am going to teach you is Protego, the shielding charm. It is not normally taught until Fourth Year, but I believe it should be taught sooner. Now the incantation is, like I said, Protego. The wand movement is like this."
So saying, Professor Snape made a movement with his wand like he was parrying a sword.
"Now you try. Imagine a crescent shaped shield protecting you."
Harry began.
"Protego!"
Nothing happened.
"Again Potter! I will have you learn this spell if it takes all night!" Severus yelled in encouragement.
Harry tried again, this time imagining a solid wall protecting himself.
"PROTEGO!"
This time, half a shield appeared.
"Again!"
Several more tries and Harry had it.
"Now," Severus said, "Lets see how strong that spell is!"
"Expelliarmus!" Severus cast the disarming hex at half speed.
Harry quickly performed the Protego spell; but was shocked when his shield broke and the spell hit him, effectively disarming him.
Severus picked up Harry's wand and observed it, surprise showing on his face at the dark wand.
"Ash wood, and if I'm not mistaken, there is the smell of vampire blood in it. A very dark wand indeed Mr. Potter. Now, let me tell you why you were not able to block my spell. First and for mostly, I am an adult wizard. Most adult wizards have five times the magical power of a first year. A moderately powerful wizard like myself has twenty times, while a wizard like Professor Dumbledore would have fifty to sixty times the power of a first year. You simply cannot hope to match up to my magical power yet. Given time and practice, your Protego spell would be able to block me."
"Well then," Harry thought for a second, "How would I defend against an adult wizard?"
"Firstly, run. At your age you cannot hope to stand against an adult wizard. Secondly, practice. Magic is like a muscle. The more you use it, the stronger it becomes. Also, there are stronger shielding spells you could use like Protego Duo or Protego Maximus; however, I highly doubt any first year could successfully cast either of those spells. They simply require too much from your meager magical core. Now, onto the next spell, the one I just used. Expelliarmus is the disarming spell. With it, you can disarm anyone of their weapon or wand."
"Um, what about their fists?" Harry cringed at the question he had just asked.
Severus looked thoughtful for a moment before replying,
"You are correct that you would not be able to disarm someone of their fists. It seems like I shall have to teach you two more spells. Lets work on Expelliarmus first and then we can work on the next one."
Harry and Professor Snape worked for about thirty minutes before Harry finally mastered the Expelliarmus spell. Then Professor Snape moved onto the next spell,
"Stupefy, the stunning spell, is one of the most used spells by Aurors; and also the most useless. In a life or death fight, I never want to see you using stupefy unless you think it will allow you to follow up with a more powerful spell. Stupefy is best used when you don't want to do meaningful harm to your opponent. Now..."
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That night, Harry fell into bed, completely exhausted. It had been a busy night. He had only learned three spells, but they were incredibly useful. He fell asleep almost instantly.
The rest of the week past by uneventfully. Peter and Cameron had attempted to bully Harry again, but were quickly sent running once Harry disarmed them and sent a few stinging hexes their way.
Harry continued spending time with Hermione, and felt himself growing attached to the young girl. She was his first friend and he knew he was hers too. The two received lots of jeering from both Gryffindors and Slytherins, but they ignored all of it.
The young boy also continued his morning runs and he noticed a marginal increase in his stamina. He knew that it would gradually grow strong and it would improve his speed when it came to dueling.
In terms of dueling, Professor Snape had not taught Harry any new spells; but he had been teaching him how to duel. Professor Snape would have Harry send spell after spell (never being allowed to use the same spell in succession) at himself to increase Harry's spellcasting speed. So far Harry could only cast around thirty spells per minute, but he knew his spellcasting speed was gradually getting faster. Professor Snape had made it very clear that until Harry was older, he would not fight Harry in an all out duel.
That Thursday, Harry found himself in his first Defense Against the Dark Arts Class. He came in excited, and left disappointed. During the whole class, he had a terrible headache that he blamed to Professor Quirrel's stutter. He did not even learn any knew spells, just some stuff about pixies.
Harry got through the day and found himself looking forward to Friday when he would have Potions class.
Harry entered the class and took a seat next to Hermione, who smiled at him. The two quickly discussed what they wanted to learn from the class before Professor Snape billowed into the room. Professor Snape quickly called off the roll and began with a speech,
"You are here to learn the subtle science and exact art of potionmaking. As there is little foolish wand-waving here, many of you will hardly believe this is magic. I do not expect you to really understand the beauty of the softly simmering cauldron with its shimmering fumes, the delicate power of liquids that creep through human veins, bewitching the mind, ensnaring the senses...I can teach you how to bottle fame, brew glory, even stopper death – if you aren't as big a bunch of dunderheads as I usually have to teach."
Harry and Hermione were sitting at the edge of their seats as they listened to Professor Snape's words. This was magic in one of its purest forms!
"Potter!" Severus said suddenly in a desire to gain points for his house, "What would I get if I added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?"
"Draught of Living Death, Sir," Harry shot back.
"Where would I find a Bezoar?'
"Stomach of a goat, Sir."
"Difference between monkshood and and wolfsbane?"
"I think they are the same plant, Sir, but I am not certain."
"You are correct, Mr. Potter. Twenty points to Slytherin for your knowledge. Now why are the rest of you not writing this down?"
Harry smirked at Professor Snape's attitude. The Professor had told him to look through his potions book very carefully before coming into class today. Thank goodness he had.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Classes were easy. Professor Snape continued to tutor Harry and had even taught Harry the slicing charm Diffindo, and Hermione was gradually becoming irritated with Harry being first in every single class other than Herbology. It was the only class she was better at than him. One day, she broke down while they were walking to dinner,
"Harry! I can't take it anymore! Why do you have to be so smart? I've always been the smart one! It is what makes me special!"
"Hermione," Harry said sternly after a brief awkward couple of minutes, "Your smarts are not the only thing that make you special. You have other traits like a dry sense of humor and you look up to authority. You are a good person."
Hermione brightened up after this and gave Harry a hug.
The rest of the months passed by uneventfully. Flying lessons, which Harry found he detested, came and went. School passed by and everything was alright. Harry did hear a rumor flitting about from the Gryffindors Ron Weasley and Dean Thomas that on the third floor corridor was a giant three headed dog, but Harry paid it no mind. There was also a notice in the paper about a Gringotts break in, which Harry also ignored. Any bank could be broken into.
Finally it was Halloween time. There was going to be a large feast for all the students. Harry decided not to go to the feast, despite Hermione begging him to come. He wanted to relax in the common room and privately mourn his parents death, since they had died on this exact day.
Harry lay on one of the green couches in the common room contemplating his life and how his life would have been so different if his parent were still alive. Harry was just about to fall asleep on the couch when he heard a bunch of students burst into the dungeons.
"What now?" Harry groaned.
"Ha, your mudblood friend is lost in the school, Potter. And guess what, a troll is on the loose," Malfoy spat.
Harry looked at Malfoy in confusion and then realized from the looks on the faces of the other Slytherins that it was true. Harry ran past them and out the common room door.
Where would Hermione go? Harry thought. Just as he was pondering what to do, he heard a scream come from his right near the girl's lavatory.
Harry ran into the bathroom to find the troll stand over a very frightened Hermione; Harry stood there stunned as the troll swung its club down. Harry quickly pulled out his wand and gave the incantation for Wingardium Leviosa, thinking that he would be able to levitate the club up.
He was too late, however. The club came crashing down onto Hermione's head, splattering her blood and brain matter against the wall. And then the troll saw Harry.
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I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Yes, Hermione is dead. I felt it was necessary for Harry's character development. Please Read and Review!