A/N: So here's the next chapter. This is where I expect there to be some protest about the way this story is progressing cuz here's where it really starts to diverge from canon, and in a way that I haven't seen before so I hope you all can also appreciate it.

Anyway, enjoy.

Chapter 3

Harry tried to ignore the stares from the rest of the hall by actively engaging in the conversations around him. He tried to weave back and forth from conversation to conversation. To his left, Draco was talking to the girl across from him, Pansy Parkinson. Their conversation seemed to be about some childhood memory of something or other. Honestly, Harry really didn't find it interesting whatsoever. It was in fact the very reason he chose to change conversations.

The boy to his right, Blaise Zabini was engaged in a conversation with Theodore – "Do not call me Teddy." – Nott down the table a little ways. They were arguing about the superiority of their quidditch team, Puddlemere United and Montrose Magpies respectively. Obviously Harry had no idea what the two teams were or what they were about. Draco had told him the ins and outs of quidditch on the train, so Harry listened intently so that he could pick up more information.

Directly across from him, a girl with light blonde hair – Daphne Greengrass – was talking to a girl with cropped brown hair and rectangular glasses perched on her nose – Tracy Davis – about make-up charms. He felt more than heard the bench creak next to him. He turned to his side – Blaise had apparently been convinced to sit elsewhere – and saw one of the older students he had met on the train, Marcus Flint, lounging against the table.

Marcus Flint was a rather large boy, although not in the same manner as Dudley. Where Dudley was just fat, Marcus kept himself in good shape; there was still a fair amount of fat on his frame – He had told Harry about his extreme love of good food – but Harry had no doubt that there was plenty of muscle hiding underneath.

Harry sighed in relief. "Thank god you came over. These guys are so boring." Draco and Greengrass both heard him and glared at him before resuming their conversations.

Marcus laughed. "Just wanted to see how you're doing, how you like the food, that sort of thing."

Harry raised an eyebrow. "But why did you come over now? Kind of a waste of time." Marcus was about to placate him, but Harry continued before he could open his mouth. "Unless you just want to be seen with me to leech off my social status." The older boy stared at him. "This is one of those power plays, isn't it?"

Draco poked his head over Harry's shoulder – Harry made a note to find a way to stop people from eavesdropping. "Nicely done Harry. You're learning quickly. Now that you know his game, you hold all the cards. What's your next step?"

Harry looked over at him and scrunched his face up. "This is leverage right?" Draco nodded. Harry vaguely heard Flint sigh in resignation. "now I extort him for my own gain?" Draco nodded, his face a picture of smugness. Flint choked on the roll he had been eating.

Harry turned back around to Flint, his face set in stone. "You can hang around I guess." Draco looked as though he had just eaten a particularly sour lemon. "I don't think it'll be easy though. These people are gonna be on me like a pack of wolves." He gestured to the Great Hall where it was obvious that people were staring at Harry and gossiping.

Flint nodded in understanding. "I suppose I can keep 'em off of you. Least I can do." He cracked his knuckles and Harry tried to ignore the malicious gleam that had entered his eyes.

He quickly turned around to Draco, who clapped him on the shoulder and smiled at him. Harry smiled back and they turned back to the table to tuck into their plates again. They paused however when they looked across the table. The three girls across from them each had their arms crossed over their chest and their right eyebrow raised. The symmetry of the three made the situation quite horrifying to the two boys, who had both grown up being chased around by girls they had upset in one way or another.

Marcus snorted in laughter. "A blonde, a brunette, and a redhead-"

A boy down the table laughed and called out, "None of 'em have red hair, stupid!"

Marcus stood up and scowled at the boy. "Shut up, Pucey!" Pucey stuck his tongue out. "You're about to become my bitch when quidditch starts, you little shit!" Pucey sat down quietly, and Marcus smirked in triumph before strutting off to wherever he had been sitting before talking to Harry.

The girls across from them all giggled at the antics and Harry and Draco sighed in relief. Greengrass caught them and glared at them. The two gulped and tore into their slightly cold dinner.

With Marcus' presence, Harry remained free from hassle by his fellow students. That was one of the only positives of his first week of classes. He and Draco had gotten lost numerous times – seeing whether Vince or Greg had an idea of where they were was pointless; even they agreed – which resulted in a loss of points on a couple of occasions. Most particularly from his Potions professor. Harry had never met the man before, but it seemed as though the man bore a viscous grudge for him. Harry didn't really pay it any mind. He had been ignored and scorned many times when he was younger. Being around when weird things happened caused most children to avoid him. Those that weren't convinced to avoid him due to weirdness were scared away by Dudley and his gang.

He was doing fine in Astronomy and relatively well in History of Magic, mainly due to being familiar with how both classes operate – he had learned some about the stars in Primary and History was just remembering dates and names for the most part. That hadn't really changed with History of Magic. The names and dates and happenings thereof were just fantastical.

When it came to his classes that required practical application, he was far behind his peers. He was beginning to get the theory down, which wasn't so bad considering that the rest of the muggle-raised were in the same situation. Unfortunately for Harry, he was one of the few students in his house not raised in a pureblood home, let alone with no prior connection to the magical world, so he was far behind his housemates.

After he had acclimated to life in the castle, he immediately set to learning as much as he could to catch up. Occasionally he would hang out with Draco and a few others for a little bit, but more often then not, he was in the library or a spare classroom. While at first his housemates had looked down on him for not being able to keep up, but when they noticed how much effort he was putting in to remedying that, they let it go.

As September faded into October, less and less people ventured outside, and the snow started plummeting. Harry's studying had been paying off so far. He was now around the middle of the pack as far as practical work, but his knowledge of theory was progressing at a fairly quick pace and he was in the upper quarter of his housemates when the Halloween feast came around.

Harry and Draco were trotting down the staircase from the last class of the day, and, as he usually did, Harry turned to head off to the library. He had taken to skipping dinner most days in favor of the quiet dusty shelves – This was the best time to get some solitude since most of the school never missed dinner in the Great Hall.

Draco, halfway through telling Harry about the time he had accidentally burned off his dad's hair when he was a kid. "I tell you Harry, the look on his face was so priceless! Thank Merlin for accidental magic; I'd have been in so much trouble otherwise." He turned to Harry just as Harry was about to head off to the library, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Harry! You can't miss the Halloween feast! Especially not to go to the library again. You're almost there as much as Granger." He scowled at the thought of the rather annoying muggleborn.

Harry's eyes widened in surprise. "Wait a tic. It's Halloween already?"

Draco sighed and shook his head. "Yeah, mate. Come on. I know you love your books but you can't miss this, especially when it's your first time." Harry nodded and the two continued on to the Great Hall. When Draco and Harry sat down, much of the table turned to look at them in surprise. Like Draco, they had obviously noticed, and become accustomed to, Harry not being at the table for dinner.

Harry quickly found himself enjoying the feast and resolved to himself that he would try not to spend quite as much time in the library. His year-mates' – and especially Draco's – budding friendship was something that he had never experienced before. It was a unique experience to have people around him who actually noticed he was absent, let alone cared.

He was currently enjoying Hogwarts' most excellent treacle tart when Theodore frowned and leaned in, causing the rest of them to do so as well. "I wonder why Quirrel's chairs empty. It's weird that anyone would want to miss the feast." He and a few of the others looked pointedly over at Harry.

Harry looked down sheepishly until Draco nudged him in the ribs and mumbled just low enough for the others not to hear, "Lowering your head makes you look weak." Harry snapped his head up and flicked his eyes over to the Head Table, frowning when he also noticed their Defense professor's vacant seat.

The answer to Theodore's implied question came when the doors to the Great Hall banged open followed by the screaming of Professor Quirrel. "Troll! In the Dungeons!" He stopped suddenly and stumbled slightly. "Thought you ought to know." The hall was totally silent as Professor Quirrel fainted. All at once the Hall erupted into noise, a cacophony of screams, yells and frightened conversations.

Professor Dumbledore – Harry still wasn't sure why no one called him Headmaster. It was his title after all. – silenced the noise in a moment with a loud bang let out from his wand. "Prefects, please lead your students back to your dorms in an orderly manner." He rushed out of the hall after saying this, the other professors hot on his heels. Harry had never seen the headmaster with such a serious visage. It was easy for him to understand now why he was a leader of the wizarding world.

Professor Snape paused to speak to the prefects briefly and after striding out of the hall, the prefects announced, "Professor Snape has informed me that we will be heading to the library." The entire house seemed to let out a sigh of relief. Harry and Draco shared a brief glance as they headed to the library with the rest of the house. From the look on Draco's face, Harry was quite sure that Draco was just as terrified as he was: A lot.

Harry slept fitfully that night, and awoke, like much of the school, having bags under his eyes. Every first year at the breakfast table looked ready to fall asleep into whatever food they had piled on their plate. The one exception to this was Pansy, who was happily buttering a roll. Draco sneered at the roll and addressed Pansy, "How are you not tired?"

Pansy turned to him and took a bite of her roll with a smile. "I went to Madam Pomfrey this morning. She gave me a pepper-up." She took another bite of her roll and Draco scowled at her. Harry was very close to doing the same. "Far more interesting, I know what happened last night." They were too tired to make any outward sign of interest but they all turned towards her. "Granger got trapped in the girls loo. Apparently Weasley insulted her and she ran off crying." Blaise motioned for her to continue. "Anyway, so she's crying in the loo when the troll comes bursting in and starts wrecking up the place. Somehow, the mudblood," Harry frowned slightly when he heard this but kept listening. "was able to keep quiet enough to not be found by the troll. After a little bit, the professors burst in and saved her." She looked over at the Gryffindor table. "I wish they hadn't."

Harry couldn't deny that he felt that too on a smaller level. She really was quite annoying. He wasn't sure that there was anyone that wasn't a teacher who liked her. He frowned over at her. She was eating alone at the end of the table, a cloud of melancholy hanging over her. Harry knew the signs of a socially inept childhood. He had had one himself after all. But where he had adjusted his outlook and habits to acclimate to this new world, she refused to do so. She even went so far as to try to enforce her own values on the wizarding world. Upon reflection, Harry found himself disliking her more than when he woke up.

By the middle of November, most of the school had forgotten about the troll. Except Granger, of course. Her already obvious love of the professors had reached to a level near fanaticism. Even the people who tolerated her had trouble doing so. The castle had grown even colder of late, almost remarkably so even for November in Scotland, if that's even possible. While most of the students had taken to wearing their winter cloaks inside, Harry refrained from doing so. He liked the cold. When he was younger, the cold of his cupboard reminded him that he was alive. He relished the goosebumps on his arm and the fog that left his mouth. Draco, being the vain ponce he was – a fact which Harry teased him about as often as possible – couldn't stand the cold.

It was towards the start of December that people began to discuss their Christmas plans. As the list of people who would be staying over the holiday was passed around the Common Room, his year-mates were excitedly discussing their holiday plans. Draco was bragging about the trip to France that his family planned to make. "Father has some sort of relative who lives in our estate in Marseille. We've told him – he's not important enough to remember his name – that we plan to visit."

They continued to discuss. Blaise would be visiting his cousins in Italy with his mother – that explained his olive complexion that remained even in the winter. Tracy's father had a business trip – Harry still wasn't sure what business the man did – so she and her mother were going to be with Daphne's family who were remaining in their manor in Devonshire. Theodore was also staying home for the holiday and Harry didn't bother to listen to Pansy gushing. She usually talked for more than was necessary. As the list made it around to the first years, Harry tried to write down his name as surreptitiously as he could, but Tracy noticed. "Harry, you're staying for the holiday?" Most of the group frowned at her. "Oh right, awful mudblood relatives."

"Indeed." Harry's abrupt answer, combined with him immediately returning his attention to the book in front of him, an interesting tome about the nature and origin of wand movements, made it clear that the discussion was finished.

As Christmas break came closer and closer, Harry had to ignore the conversations of the people around him more and more. At first he didn't mind hearing about all of his friends' plans, but the more they talked, the more depressed he got about staying at Hogwarts. In the few months since Harry had arrived, he had come to consider the castle his home. He felt guilty about wanting to leave, so he tried to console himself with the fact that he would pretty much have the library to himself for the entirety of the break.

The last week before break was even harder for him. He threw himself into studying without abandon. Earlier in the semester, he had missed dinner most days. Now he didn't go to dinner at all. And he rarely went to breakfast or lunch. He was trying not to totally ignore his friends so he forced himself to spend time with Draco when he could. Draco seemed just as busy and distracted as he was, so Harry was beginning to abandon everything to his studying.

The day before break, Draco pulled Harry aside after their last class, "Harry, how you feelin'?" Harry raised an eyebrow and glared at him slightly. "Alright, that was bad."

Harry sighed. "What is it, Draco? Some last thing you wanted to say to me before you got on the train?"

"Yes, actually." Draco took a deep breath. "I wanted you to know that you're not gonna be alone over break." He paused and Harry leaned forward, waiting. "I'm not getting on the train tonight, Harry."

Harry furrowed his eyebrows. "What are you – " Draco looked pointedly at him. "Oh! Draco, you didn't need to do this. What about your parents? Won't they be disappointed?"

Draco smiled at him. "Harry, you're the first real friend I've ever had. You think I couldn't see how much everyone's leaving affected you?" Harry looked down sheepishly. "I asked my parents if you could stay with us for the holiday, but Father said no. So I told him I was staying here instead."

Harry smiled gratefully. "And he was okay with that?"

Draco scoffed. "Of course not. According to my mother's letters, he was furious. But she got him to settle down." He snorted in amusement. "It's taken weeks of course, but Mother can be very persuasive."

Harry's smile got even larger. "You've been planning this for weeks?" Draco nodded. He lowered his head, whispering, "Thank you, Draco." To Harry this was a big proclamation, for Harry was rarely willing to show people his graciousness. Draco, having a similar outlook, just turned around and they walked together to the common room to wee the others off. Neither of them mentioned the slight wetness of their eyes. Boys didn't cry after all.

Draco and Harry waved to their friends as the Hogwarts Express left Hogsmeade Station on its way to London. When the smoke spewing from the engine could no longer be seen, Harry and Draco turned to trudge back up to the castle, wrapping their cloaks around themselves in a feeble attempt to ward off the cold.

Harry sighed in relief as the warmth of the Entrance Hall seeped into his bones. They were about to turn to go down into the dungeons when they bumped into Stephen Cornfoot walking down from the stairs leading up to the upper floors. His nose was deep into a book and it didn't seem like he noticed them, so Harry called out to him as he passed, "Hey, Steve!" The boy jumped and turned around, smiling when he noticed who they were.

Steve walked back to where Harry and Draco were standing. "Hey guys. I didn't know you guys would be staying here for Christmas." He turned to Draco. "I thought for sure that you would be going home."

Draco smirked at him – Harry was starting to think that was his usual demeanor. "I couldn't let Harry here take over the dorm. Merlin knows there would be nothing left when we all got back."

Steve and Harry both burst out laughing, but Harry was the first to comment, "You know the house-elves would fix up everything." He and Draco chuckled before they turned to each other and smiled wickedly. By the time they turned back to Steve, they had reverted to their usual expressions, Harry slightly smiling and Draco slightly smirking. "So how've you been Steve? It's been too long!"

Steve smiled and put his book in his bag, "Yeah it has, I've just been trying to keep my grades up and whatnot."

Draco raised an eyebrow. "I bet you haven't been studying nearly as much as Harry here. He's been to a handful of dinners since term started."

Steve shrugged. "Well listen, it was nice running into each other but I better head off. Some of the other guys are getting together for a quick snowball fight." He smiled widely. "Actually, you guys wanna join us? The more the merrier."

harry and Draco's eyes widened and they smiled, before saying at the same time, "Absolutely!" All three briskly walked outside – running was unseemly after all. When they made it outside, the rest of the group seem shocked to see the two Slytherins before most of them shook their hands and greeted them – the Gryffindors sneered at them from off to the side. Most of the lions were Weasleys – it seemed that all five of them were staying for the holiday. Harry and Draco were the only Slytherins. Steve and Zach were the only others that they recognized and there were a smattering of other Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws.

They all came together to agree on the rules. It was decided that since so many people were there the fight would be a battle royale. There were few rules beyond that – the usual no face or groin shots and no magic since that would be unfair to the younger years. After agreeing to the rules, they had ten minutes to prepare. With a whistle, the fight was on.

When it was finally too dark to see anymore, everyone trudged inside, tired and shivering everyone of them. As a group, they all sighed when they entered the school – The inside of the school was delightfully warm. When they entered the Great Hall, they all stopped in their tracks. Instead of four tables, there was one large table where some of the students and all of the teachers were already sitting down to eat. The Headmaster noticed them come in. "Ahhhh, and the valiant warriors return!" His bright smiled faded and he rose an eyebrow. "Although I'm quite disappointed that no one wanted to ask me to join. I love a good snowball fight!"

Harry smiled at him as they sat down a few seats from the Headmaster. "Sure thing Professor! No magic allowed though."

Dumbledore smiled at them and returned, "I wouldn't dream of it, boys!" Someone further down the table harrumphed. "And girls of course." After that, they all dug in to dinner.

Christmas morning started early for Harry and Draco as is often the case with young boys. Harry awoke to the sound of wrapping paper being torn. Rubbing his eyes tiredly, Harry grunted and looked over at Draco's bed to see him already tearing into his rather large pile of presents. It was at this moment that Draco looked up at him. "Happy Christmas, Harry!" He looked at the pile over ripped up wrapping paper that he had thrown off to the side and turned back to Harry with a bit of guilt. "I tried to wake you up but you were out like a light."

Harry laughed and finally got out of bed. He sat down at the foot of his bed facing his own pile of presents – a pile that was significantly smaller than Draco's and reached for the present on top of the pile. Before he opened it, Draco spoke up again, "I didn't open any of my presents from our friends and my parents." He gestured at the pile of wrapping paper. "These are all from distant family that I don't really care about. Most of whom I've never even met. Anyway, that means we can take turns!" Harry smiled at him again and with a slightly viscous smile, he tore into the pile in front of him.

What the boys would call the Wrapping Paper Massacre for days to come was drawing towards an end. Harry was carefully munching on some of the Bertie Bott's Every-flavor Beans that Draco's father had given him as he watched Draco unwrap his last gift – from Harry of course. As the paper was thrown aside, Draco unrolled the poster that Harry had given him. Plastered across the front was the star chaser for the Falmouth Falcons – Draco's quidditch team – smirking as he hovered on his broom and tossed a quaffle up and down. Draco immediately jumped up and stuck it on the wall above his bed.

Harry waited until Draco got back and tore off the wrapping paper of his second to last gift, Draco's of course. Fittingly, when the paper was out of the way Harry saw that Draco's gift was a book detailing the history of the Falcons. He smiled over at him and said his thanks before turning to his last present. It was a brown lumpy package; the tag of the package didn't say who the present was from. Harry frowned as he read the note that came with the tag. Draco, seeing him frown, reached over and took the card out of his hand. "'So this was once your Dad's?"

Harry shrugged. "If the guy who sent it is telling the truth, yeah." He hesitated before he opened the present. This one he carefully unwrapped; he didn't want to risk damaging something that once belonged to his father.

As the paper was taken off, some sort of clothing slid out like liquid silver. Draco gasped, "That's an invisibility cloak. Those are extremely rare." Harry looked over at him, so Draco elaborated. "My father has one – family heirloom actually – and he rarely even takes it out of the family vault." Harry let the cloth slide back and forth across his fingers – it really did feel like it was made from some sort of liquid and went to stand in front of the mirror. Once he was in front of the mirror, he threw the cloak over his body and gasped as his reflection disappeared. It was obviously too big for him, but as he took it off, He smiled over at Draco, mischief clearly written in his eyes. Draco returned the grin after a moment. Prefects across the country paused as they felt a shiver run up their spine.

After dumping all of their presents on their beds, the two headed off to the Great Hall for lunch. Harry had gotten candy for the most part. He found himself particularly enjoying the sugar quills that he had received from Blaise. Pansy, Daphne, and Tracy pooled their money together and got him a beautiful new quill, self inking and with an assortment of enchantments to prevent making a mess made from the tail feather of a Peahen. Draco's mother had given his a small leather bound book with no title and filled from front to back with hand-written script. Draco confirmed that it was his mother's handwriting and after skimming a few pages declared it to be a "guide to smiling at someone while stabbing them in the back".

When they entered the Hall, the students and teachers were arrayed around the one table that they had grown used to seeing. They waved to and greeted those who they knew and sat down to eat. Towards the end of the meal, the Headmaster cleared his throat to gain their attention. "With our bellies full, I don't suppose any of you are up to a snowball fight?" The twinkle of mischief in his eyes made most of the students smile in glee. Draco and Harry nodded eagerly; they'd be damned before they refused a challenge to a snowball fight.

So there it is. Hermione is not going to play a big role in this story. You may have also noticed that there has been no interest whatsoever in the Philosopher's stone, mainly because in this story, there's really no realistic reason for Harry and company to actually be suspicious of anything. Likewise, Hagrid will also not play a role. Because there's no Philosopher's stone mumbo jumbo, there's really nothing of importance to go over in the second term. So don't be surprised if the next chapter just jumps right into 2nd year. I haven't decided yet, but it's definitely possible.