It's been awhile, hasn't it? Well, this is the second time I've written this chapter in the last week. I had it nearly done, when a coworker at my internship accidentally unplugged my computer. Since I still hadn't gotten my replacement battery, it shut down and I lost everything. For some reason, when I got my computer fixed, they disabled the autosave. My battery arrived on Friday, and I decided to write it again. I was a lot happier with the first draft, but I want to get something up. It's mostly an info dump, explaining a lot of things and setting up some stuff. I think I managed a bit of character development, which I realize this has been a bit weak on.

This chapter is mostly dialogue, which, quite frankly, is not my area of expertise, so I hope it came out alright. There are around a thousand words on the re-sorting section, which I'm a bit worried about. If it's as bad as I think it might be, I can rewrite it (and probably will at some point), but I really wanted to get started on the good stuff (next chapter is when the fun parts begin). I hope to get the next chapter out pretty soon. Please, tell me if you liked it or hated it.

By the way, I'm really sorry about the alert that was sent out earlier in the week. It was a mistake on my part. I accidentally uploaded the latest chapter of EOTS to this story.

A ton of reviews this time, which pleases me greatly:

Thanks to: Tolkare, shugokage, naruto2829, KafeiDetour, Shin'en of the Chaotic Destiny, WL Chastain, scottss, Naginator, EP, autumngold, anon, ILikeComps, Sakura Lisel, johnjohn, GinaStar, loiosh311, Seraphinus, BeautifulMidnighter, jbfritz, Potterfan1992, xman2999, Spring Raine, Catti666, Tha Golden Boy, TwilightEclps, ShadowStorm666, GenoBeast, CrescentMelody, iPlayBassoon, thmanwithnoname, SlytherinLover143, loretta537, southern-reader, mwinter1, miner249, RebelliousOne, Lupinesence, chandra4u, Kine X, lientjuhh, Guest, iitrnr and josh148513 for reviewing.

Call0013: Frankly, he can make anything. As to the sand question, well, all I'll say is that he's not capable of it at the moment. In the future? Who knows? (I do!)

athenakitty: Angelina Johnson was probably the ringleader. That's just who I can see having the popularity to pull it off, plus she was mentioned as having entered her name.

So you want to be an Author: I imagine every year as having somewhere around six to ten students. There are probably a bit more than a dozen. I was being dramatic. No, the fat lady isn't dead. She has been kicked out of her position. I might mention what happened to her later. As to where everyone will go? I've got about a thousand words describing it here.

Guest: Sorry! You're right, it was not a flame, I've seen much worse. I tried to explain a bit about the personality here (I didn't want to reveal everything, but I did give a short explanation as to how his personality has begun to change). I tried to show a bit of what he feels about his relationships here, but that will show a lot more later. Thank you for your constructive criticism. BTW, the reason that your reviews feel like a flame is because you only mention the negative. Tell me what you like about it!

brighteyes343: Harry, Neville, Colin, Ginny, and a handful of nameless first and second years.

Winged Seer Wolf: Good question! I didn't really think about the prefects. I suppose they lose their positions. Something to think about, I guess.

the DragonBard: Sorry you feel that way. I just didn't want to see a ton of reviews suggesting I pair her with him. Plus, I rant sometimes... It happens.

Teufel1987: I'm probably going to do some revisions and edits once I get a bit more here, and that's definitely a change I'll make. It is a bit confusing. As to Filch, I choose to ignore some parts of canon, and that is one that makes very little sense to me. Too easy to abuse. If you need an explanation, then someone stored cleaning supplies in there at one point. You can remove things that were put inside, just nothing that the Room made. His ratings aren't as high as in canon, unfortunately. I think I've seen a couple, but I can't name any names. I've never heard of that story before.

mithrilandtj: I know. I thought I mentioned that I was ignoring that fact. In this story, it's just a spell that's borderline dark arts. I didn't feel like using a translator to come up with a name for a dark cutting curse. Snape didn't make anything of value in this world.

Worldmaker: I'm sorry you feel that way. I plan to use most of the mechanics, including whatever cliches I put here, in a way I haven't seen used before. I dislike the combined personality, traits, and history given to a character.

Katzztar: What if they signed the petition out of loyalty to their friends?

ep: I'm sorry, I don't understand. Aside from a bit of Spanish, the only language I really speak is English.

CocoP: In canon, you'd be right. Here, I decided to make it just a normal borderline dark spell.

segir: The Flame of Gryffindor is explained in this chapter. It's sort of going to be a big deal, so some of the details will be kept until later, but I hope everyone understands from my explanation.

Lightningblade49: Who says he doesn't remember?

Anyway, let me know what you think. If it's too much, let me know. If you hate it so much you won't finish it, please tell me, so I can rewrite it.

Fallout

"Well, this is most certainly a surprise, Mr. Potter. Or should I say, Mr. Potter-Slytherin?" McGonagall asked a sheepish Harry. They were in her private office, which Harry had noticed for the first time after the attempted censure. The door had just materialized in the common room. According to McGonagall, only those with Prefect badges were able to see the door. It was connected to the Head of Gryffindor quarters.

"I'm not sure what just happened." Harry confessed. "It was sort of like something took control of me. I mean, I knew what I was doing, but I didn't." He scratched the back of his head. "I'm not doing a very good job of explaining this, am I?"

"No, Mr. Potter. You're being quite confusing." She replied calmly. Harry was surprised at how calm she was.

"Look, all I know, is that it has something to do with this ring." Harry indicated the Gryffindor ring, which he made visible for her. He could still feel a dull pulsing from it. "I could feel this weird heat coming from it, and the next second I'm a passenger in my own body. It got a lot more intense when I started using that 'Flame of Gryffindor' stuff."

"The Flame of Gyffindor?" She asked, raising an eyebrow. "I heard you mention it, but are you saying that you are actually capable of using Gryffindor's Flame?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"Godric Gryffindor was a legendary battle-mage. His skills with his sword were second to none, and he was a remarkably powerful wizard, even for his time. He was said to possess a unique ability that has become known as the 'Flame of Gryffindor'. He was most mysterious on the subject, and there aren't many records on it. We do know that he was able to somehow infuse it into his sword. With it, he was able to do a number of things thought impossible, including cut through magical wards thought indestructible. It is said that the Flame could burn magic itself. According to the legend, by the time of his death, he did not bother casting other spells, as he was able to channel his magic through his Flame to create any effect he desired. The spell he used is still known now, though it is considered to be among the darkest of magics. Back then, of course, very little magic was truly considered forbidden."

"What spell did he use?"

"It is now called Fiendfyre. You won't find much about it outside of the Restricted Section. It is incredibly dangerous, and nigh-impossible to control. Back then, it seems that they had a much easier time manipulating it. Mages as powerful as the Founders could wield it as easily as a simple Incendio." She was exaggerating a bit, but now that much.

"Huh…" Harry trailed off, his mind racing. So, Godric Gryffindor had possessed unique abilities with this Fiendfyre. Were they similar to his powers over the Patronus? He'd have to ask Professor Dumbledore if he had any notes on the subject. Maybe check the Room of Requirement for more information… He broke off his train of thought as he heard McGonagall speak. A strange heat that had risen within him died away.

"-tter? Mr. Potter? Is something wrong?" She asked again.

"Sorry Professor." Harry replied. "I got lost in thought. What did you say?"

"I asked if I could take a look at that ring of yours."

"Sure." Harry said casually, reaching down to his hand and tugging at the ring. To his surprise, it wouldn't budge.

"So it is bonded to you…" McGonagall mused. At her gesture, he extended his hand over her desk. She raised her wand and waved it above the ring, murmuring spells. They sounded vaguely similar to some of the basic detection spells that Harry knew, though obviously the professor was using much more complicated spells. He saw something flash within the ruby and looked closer.

"Interesting. I recognize maybe half of these enchantments. Perhaps Filius might know more. Clearly, the ring was designed to impart certain standards of behavior into the bearer. I suppose it was to ensure that an heir would not be taken advantage of. I suspect that it might possess other properties to protect itself. From what I can tell, it is completely benign. I am detecting something else there, however." She paused. "I assume you are wearing the Potter ring?"

"And the Slytherin one." Harry said absently, still focusing on the ruby. Now that he was concentrating on it, he saw flashes of fire within the red depths of the stone.

"What?" She demanded. "Are you saying that you hold the ring of the Head of House Slytherin?"

"Yeah." He nodded, finally pulling his attention from the ring. A moment later, the Gryffindor ring was replaced with the Slytherin one. He shivered as he saw it undulate slightly on his finger. Was it alive?

"How?" She breathed, absolutely stunned.

"Well, according to the goblin I spoke to, I was able to claim the House from its current heir by right of Conquest."

She slumped over. "You are impossible." She sighed, before rising to her feet. "I am going to leave now, before my Soothing Solution wears off." Well, that explained why she was so calm, at least. The Soothing Solution was a variant of the Calming Potion, and though it was less effective, it lacked the addictive properties of the more potent potion.

"But this is your room!" Harry exclaimed.

"Did you think that the term Head of the House of Gryffindor was just a title? This room belongs to the current Head of House, or Lord, in your case. It's yours now."

With that said, McGonagall made to exit the room, using the exit to the greater castle, rather than the one that led into the common room. She stopped briefly. "Oh, and the Headmaster would like to see you." With that parting shot delivered, she slipped out of the room, headed for her new private room.

Harry sighed as he made his way up to the gargoyle on the seventh floor for the second time that night. It was rather late now, and all he wanted was to go to sleep.

He came to a stop in front of the gargoyle, only to stop, as a red glow caught his eye. He glanced down and saw the Gryffindor ring had appeared on his finger again, the ruby glowing like the sun. A beam of red light lanced out, striking the stone. Harry could only stare as the stone transformed.

Harry watched in tired disbelief as the gargoyle, now made entirely of ruby, stepped aside. He glanced down at the ring on his finger. How many other surprises would the thing have for him? He'd barely even heard of a magical item having so many different properties.

He trudged his way up the stairs to the Headmaster's office. He yawned as he knocked on the door. A moment later, the door swung open. Harry walked into the room, before slumping into the chair he had vacated just hours earlier.

"Hello, Professor Dumbledore." He said. "I heard you wanted to-" He yawned again. "To see me."

Dumbledore smiled slightly. "Tired, are we, Harry?"

"You could say that." He nodded, barely resisting the urge to yawn again.

"Would you like me to cast an Invigoration Charm on you?"

"Yes please."

The old man's wand shot off a jet of light at Harry, who felt warmth flood him, clearing his head. The ring pulsed on Harry's finger, and the Boy Who Lived knew that, had he said no to Dumbledore's request, it would have somehow protected him.

"Now, would you happen to know why more than forty students and their luggage suddenly appeared in the Great Hall, completely bereft of the protection of the school's wards?"

"Um… Yeah. Long story short, they tried to censure me for 'cheating'. I was made head of Gryffindor house over the summer. According to Professor McGonagall, the ring was made with the ability to protect its wearer from betrayal, so…"

"Godric Gryffindor was the first Headmaster." Dumbledore mused. "As a Founder, I suppose that he would understand them better than any Headmaster since, although there is evidence that he had no significant skills with wards."

Harry scratched the back of his head. "I suppose having access to Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin would help him get a better understanding, even if he didn't know much about them himself."

"Speaking of Slytherin…"

"Do I need to have my new rooms checked for listening charms?" Harry muttered. "Yes, I was able to claim Lordship over House Slytherin as well. Right of Conquest and all that."

Dumbledore nodded. "I understand that the Gryffindor ring has a number of abilities. I assume that the Slytherin ring has some rather unique properties as well?"

"I'm not actually sure." He shrugged. "I know it can speak, but it hasn't said anything since I claimed it. It didn't really respond to any more Parseltongue I used. But then again, I wasn't really aware of the Gryffindor ring having any really special abilities until tonight."

"Hmm…" Dumbledore hummed, obviously having an idea.

"What?" Harry demanded. Dumbledore glanced at him. "I know that look. What are you thinking?"

"How much did Professor McGonagall tell you about the Head of House position?"

"Not much. She said that, for some reason, I was the Head of House now, but she didn't go into much detail. She said something about a Soothing Solution…" He trailed off.

Dumbledore chuckled. "There is a rather large difference between the Professor's former position, and your own. A Lord of a Founder's house hasn't been seen since House Ravenclaw died out a couple hundred years ago. Part of the nature of the wards is Family magic. When a student is Sorted into a House, they are adopted into a House as a sort of vassal. The official term is student, created by the Founders themselves. That position is how the wards attach to them. A Lord has far more authority than the Heads of Houses. It takes two and a Head of House to overturn any decision from the Headmaster."

Dumbledore explained how the wards interacted with students. A number of wards available to the Headmaster are designed to avoid members of a Founders House, preventing them from affecting the students. For example, one set of wards were designed to be activated if the castle were to be invaded, the attackers could be repelled without harming a single student.

The Hogwarts wards are utterly unique, due to the way that they interact with people.

"Right now, the forty-odd students in the Great Hall cannot even get into the castle proper. They are uninvited guests, and are effectively trapped until someone with the appropriate authority gives them permission to leave. Without the protection granted by the wards, I can't allow them to leave. Did you ever wonder why there are almost never any permanent injuries? Even with the various explosions during potions class, and the dangerous spells from Defense against the Dark Arts class? The wards protect students from the various hazards in the school. Even the moving stairs can be lethal. Merely being allowed to enter from the front door provides protection from the various basic hazards."

Harry yawned again. "So, your saying they all need to get Sorted again?"

Dumbledore raised an eyebrow. "Have you been sleeping properly, Harry?" When he nodded, Dumbledore frowned. "Harry, the Invigoration Charm is designed to allow a person to go thirty six hours without even feeling the loss of sleep. I cast one on you less than thirty minutes ago, and you're already yawning."

Harry nodded. "I don't know. I just feel really tired." He shrugged. "Is there anything else you need?"

"We can talk another day. Go to bed, Harry."

Harry nodded his thanks to his mentor, before making his way out of the office, barely keeping himself from stumbling down the stairs.

The next morning, Harry woke up feeling insanely energized. He was barely able to sit still long enough for Neville to come down to the common room. As the shy boy was the only one to stand by him, Harry felt like he needed to get to know the other boy better.

"You never came up last night." Neville commented.

"Yeah, turns out that becoming Lord Gryffindor means that I get McGonagall's room." He said.

"What?" Neville demanded, completely confused.

Harry gave the other boy a quick recap of everything that had happened the previous night, plus a bit of what happened last summer. Once he finished, the two of them exited the common room. Neville glanced back at the wall that had once held the Fat Lady. Instead of the flat wall with a hole to be covered by a portrait, there was a large statue of a swordsman, with the wall forming a semi-circle behind him.

"So… What are you going to do?" Neville asked.

"What do you mean?" Harry asked.

"You said that Dumbledore is going to be pulling out the Sorting Hat again, so he can re-Sort everyone that signed the censure, right? Well, from what I know of wards like this, you have to choose to accept anyone the Hat picks. What if the Hat sends everyone back to Gryffindor?"

"Um…" Harry considered the question. "I really don't know. I suppose I probably will, unless Ron or Hermione gets sent over here. Johnson's a given, of course. Maybe a few others." He shrugged. "Dumbledore said that he'd talk with the Hat so I could avoid having to make a decision as much as possible, but…"

Neville nodded. "It's up to you, Harry. I wouldn't want to have to make a decision like this."

The two boys entered the Great Hall, quickly taking a seat at the nearly empty Gryffindor table. The first thing Harry noticed was what amounted to a solid wall of glares. Almost everyone who had been expelled from the house was looking at him from where they stood by one of the walls. Most of them looked outraged, though a few of the younger students were a bit tearful. Every single one of them looked absolutely exhausted. Harry suspected that one function of the wards was to prevent them from getting any sleep at all.

Harry was a bit pissed at the hateful glares. They were the ones who had tried to kick him out for doing absolutely nothing wrong. Even the sad looks from his old friends failed to move him. They had voted against him. He wouldn't be making any exceptions for them.

Dumbledore arrived about fifteen minutes after Harry and Neville, and the Great Hall was completely packed, far more so than Harry had ever seen during a breakfast meal. Even the Durmstrang and Beauxbatons students were there, rather interested in what was going on.

"Dumbledore had each Head of House ensure that all of their students were here. He called me this morning, but he'll probably call you in in the future." McGonagall informed him on her way to the Staff Table, having walked in just a minute or two before Dumbledore. She was carrying a three-legged stool that Harry recognized from the Sortings.

The Headmaster placed the Sorting Hat onto the stool, before beginning to speak. "I'm afraid that, last night, quite a sad event occurred. I cannot go into details, but I'm afraid that the majority of students from one of our Houses must be Sorted again. For those of you who have enjoyed your time here, you will understand exactly how tragic it is. Your House has been your family for years, and having to leave it can be quite hard. For our guests, who have never experienced the joy of being a member of a Hogwarts House, I hope you can try to understand how important this is to our students here. Please, try not to press the students about what happened over the last night."

Of course, just the arrival of the Sorting Hat had started whispering all over the hall. After Dumbledore's announcement, the whole hall was loud with comments and questions. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the students from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang were looking rather excited. Even the two Headteachers of the schools seemed pretty interested. The Sorting was a rather famous event, after all. Knowing what he did now about how intimately the Hat was linked to Hogwarts' unique wards, he could understand the interest.

Professor McGonagall pulled out a scroll, the same one she read from during the Sorting Feast every year. Magically updated, the document contained the names of every unsorted school age person in the castle. The scroll was designed to ignore students from other schools, so the Beauxbatons and Durmstrang students were not included in the list.

One by one, McGonagall read off the names of the former Gryffindor students in alphabetical order. Surprisingly, after a couple of minutes on the stool, Katie Bell, the first name on the list, was also the first student Sorted back to Gryffindor. Harry knew that Dumbledore had impressed upon the Hat the need to avoid Gryffindor as much as possible, since they'd just left it. Only those the Hat considered to be truly worthy would be allowed in.

Harry wasn't that surprised. Katie had always been pretty brave. He suspected that the Hat had been debating between Gryffindor and Ravenclaw for her. She looked to him, obviously hoping that he would let her back in. He thought about it for a brief moment, before giving a nod. He was actually more annoyed with her for turning on him, since she knew him from their years on the Quidditch team together, but in honor of their years of friendship, he'd be the bigger person and let her back in.

Of the seventh year students, most actually ended up in Slytherin, with a few heading to Ravenclaw. One went to Hufflepuff. With seventeen year old students about to take their NEWTS and graduate, they were full of ambition. Most of the fifth and sixth year students were split between Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff.

None of Harry's yearmates came back to Gryffindor. Lavender Brown was the first ex-Gryffindor to join Hufflepuff, followed by Dean and Seamus. Parvati Patil, interestingly enough joined her sister in Ravenclaw after briefly being a hatstall.

When Hermione sat on the stool, the Hat had barely touched her head before crying out "Ravenclaw!". She gave him one last tearful look, before running to her new House's table. She squeezed her way in between two Beauxbatons students, so the other Ravenclaws wouldn't be able to talk to her. Harry felt a twinge of guilt, before ruthlessly crushing it.

Most of the younger students got to come back. Their personalities hadn't changed much in the past year or two, though a couple went to Hufflepuff. Finally, it got down to the Weasleys.

Fred was the first to be Sorted. The Hat took nearly fifteen minutes, before placing him in Slytherin. He nodded to Harry as he removed the Hat, managing to convey his apologies to the Boy-Who-Lived before heading to his new table. It wasn't particularly surprising, Harry told Neville. The twins had always been pretty ambitious, after all.

George barely had a chance to touch the Hat before it sent him off to join his twin. Then, it was Ron's turn. Ron spent nearly twenty minutes under the Hat, before it finally muttered Slytherin, utterly half-heartedly.

"It probably couldn't decide where to put him." Harry muttered darkly to Neville. "He doesn't really have traits from any of the Houses." Harry knew he was being a bit uncharitable to his former friend, but the betrayal of the first friend he'd ever had was cutting a bit deep.

He looked away from the green and silver table to glance up and down the one he was sitting at. There were just over two dozen people sitting at it. Meanwhile, the other tables were incredibly packed.

Dumbledore clearly noticed this as well, and gestured, causing the tables to elongate, giving more room for the students at the three overly packed tables. At his request, the Beauxbatons and Durmstrang students relocated to the nearly empty Gryffindor table.

Harry didn't even get halfway through Charms class that morning, before a summons arrived from the Headmaster. After receiving permission from Professor Flitwick, he packed up his things and left.

He saw a couple of the former sixth year Gryffindors headed towards him, so he ducked into a side passage, making his way up to the Headmaster's office through secret passages. He wanted nothing to do with any of them. To his surprise, the gargoyle hopped aside the moment it saw him, allowing him entrance into the office.

"You are allowing one boy to control this school! The board of governors, and the Ministry, will not allow this!" A voice Harry knew and loathed practically snarled. Sure enough, he saw Lucius Malfoy standing opposite Dumbledore

"I'm afraid that I have no say in this." Dumbledore replied blandly. "Ah, Harry!"

"Potter." Malfoy snapped. "I have no desire to see you at all, so let's make this quick. By order of the Minister of Magic and the Board of Governors, you are to hand over the Gryffindor ring immediately. Your decision to remove the students from the" His face twisted slightly. "noble House of Gryffindor is repealed. You will most certainly not be allowed to take up Lordship of the House of Gryffindor."

Harry glared at the older man. "First of all, weren't you kicked off the Board of Governors?"

"Mr. Malfoy has been named as the Minister's Liason to the Board, giving him an honorary position on it." Dumbledore filled in for him, trying to mediate. In Harry's mind, he could hear a lion's roaring, and saw flame.

"Whatever. Secondly, you have no authority to do that. I looked over succession laws this summer. The laws are ironclad. I was accepted by the Lord's ring, and I have accepted the position. The Ministry has no right to interfere with the right of succession. I am Lord Potter, also Lord Gryffindor." Harry spat. "And there's not a chance in hell you're touching the ring. As a Lord's ring, you'd have more right telling me to cut out my own eyes. What's more, even with the backing of the Board, you can't repeal a single decision I've made. As Lord, the choice to expel someone from my family's protection is completely my own."

Malfoy glared back at Harry. "You won't get away with this, brat! The Ministry won't stand for Hogwarts being controlled by a little shit like you!"

"Go to hell, Malfoy." Harry spat. "Do you have any other business with me, or will you get the hell out? I'd like to speak with the Headmaster."

"You'll pay for this." The blond man hissed. As he turned to stalk away, Harry saw something out of the corner of his eye. He palmed his wand, muttering "Finite Incantatem" The spell flew true and washed over Malfoy, who whirled around.

Harry barely choked back a gasp of realization. With his glamour dispelled, Malfoy's face had an ugly scar, beginning just below his left eye, coming across his nose and cheek to end just below his right ear. The Malfoy lord glared furiously at him. He nearly pulled the snake headed wand from his cane before glancing at Dumbledore. He turned and, with a swirl of his cloak, exited the room.

Well, I hope everyone liked it. I know it's a lot of explanations, but they will be necessary in the future. I wonder how many people managed to connect the dots. I'm going to try and get another chapter out as soon as possible.

I hope that this fixes some people's doubts about cliches. I've never seen anything like this happen before in a story.

Harry's exhaustion will be important in the future. Really, I should have called this chapter 'Explanations'.

Next time, Confrontations and Consequences: People find out about Harry's new position and have a lot to say about it. Meanwhile, the shadow of the first task looms closer and closer.

Please, let me know what you think. I'm not really happy with this chapter, but if people like it, I won't waste my time rewriting it.