Where most of the other Gryffindor first years had already settled into their friendship groups, Harry couldn't help but notice several exceptions. First of course was Hermione Granger. It was easy to see why she hadn't made friends with any of the other girls; she was bossy, interfering - Harry hadn't forgotten how she had followed him and Ron to the failed midnight duel with Malfoy - and a know-it-all to boot. The second was Daenerys Targaryen. Unlike Hermione - who was always first to answer questions in class, first to say when she disapproved of something, and first to vocalise her opinion on a subject she had no business in - the girl seemed to be doing her best to blend into the background as much as anyone with her silver hair, purple eyes and ethereal looks can. She rarely spoke when not spoken to first, sat at the back of class and always cast her eyes down when she was asked anything by a teacher. Harry couldn't say he blamed her. Daenerys seemed to attract as much attention as 'famous Harry Potter' did. Harry found himself unable to complain about the eager whispers and irritating fuss he got when he saw the dark looks people gave Daenerys when she passed in the hall, heard the unfriendly mutterings and rude comments she was heckled with - people often called her inbred, asked if she shagged her brother or did crude impressions of mad people - as well as the rumours of what her father had done when he'd been alive. No wonder she was quiet. Harry felt quite bad for her, as he knew from primary school what it was like to be the one on the receiving end of such dislike, and this was from people several years older.

He hadn't had much to do with her for most of the first month or so at Hogwarts, except seeing her in classes. When he and Ron had visited Hagrid on the first day, to their surprise Daenerys had just been leaving, Hagrid waving her off with a friendly farewell. That was the first and only time Harry had seen her smile. Hagrid had brushed off their questions by simply saying that he used to know her mother, and the matter soon fell from their attention after they saw the newspaper about the Gringotts break-in.

Draco Malfoy was someone Harry had learned to detest even more than Dudley. The boy was snobbish, arrogant and entitled, and loved to get under Harry and Ron's skin by making jokes about his parents, or Ron's family not having much money. The tall, blonde by from the Leaky Cauldron, Joffrey Baratheon was even worse. Harry hadn't had much to do with the boy - he was a second year, and in Slytherin - but from what he gathered Joffrey was pretty much Draco Malfoy, except taller, nastier and with a family that were a shade more rich. Thankfully, Harry and Ron had little interaction with the boy, but rumours went around the school about him. He acted nicely enough when it suited him - by nicely, that meant arrogant, entitled and much like Malfoy on a bad day - however he occasionally into rages at any provocation, responding viciously and cruelly. Many in his year, and even the year above, were afraid of him, but others treated him with disdain, which he despised. Most of the older years treated him like a spoilt child, which essentially he was. Even his own cousins, Lancel and Tyrek Lannister, seemed to have little patience with him. Harry and Ron experienced Joffrey for themselves one morning when they were walking behind him to one of their lessons.

"A shop?" Joffrey was snorting at another Slytherin boy. "Is that all?" The other boy mumbled something. "Oh, a big shop, is it?" Joffrey said disdainfully. "How impressive. My father is practically the head of the auror office, and my uncle Jaime too,"

"How can they both be heads?" Someone asked, and Joffrey glared.

"If you don't know, then you're too stupid to explain it to," He said airily. Ron snorted and Harry shushed him. "My uncle is the most powerful wizard in the world,"

"What about Dumbledore?"

"That old bag?" Joffrey said cockily. "My uncle could beat him with his left hand, and my father too. More than your shopkeeper father could say," He was quick to take a spiteful swipe at the first boy.

Needless to say, not many like Joffrey Baratheon, and the only ones that did did so for his wealth and Lannister/Baratheon heritage.

A month into the term, they found the owl. The teachers tried to hush it up, but the Hogwarts rumour mill was remarkably quick and soon the story was everywhere. Joffrey didn't even seem sorry or upset that his bird - an expensive long eared owl - had been found with its belly opened and head smashed in on the stairs to the Slytherin common room, which was suspicious. It was soon revealed that he had done it himself; not even for dark magic or any particular reason, but simply because he could. Joffrey was taken by a blank-faced Snape up to the headmaster's office, and given detentions until Christmas and a severe warning to never to anything like that again or face expulsion. That was the rumour, anyway. Nothing had been proved to the other students, and though many gave him dark looks or skirted around him in the corridors, in his own house Joffrey remained as he had ever been, surrounded by lackeys and resented by most.

It was a week or so later that Harry and Ron found Daenerys Targaryen stood in the middle of a deserted corridor, her wand trained on Joffrey Baratheon, who was scrambling to his feet and clutching a bloody nose, clearly the result of a nasty jinx.

"Don't touch me," Her voice was clear, strong and angry. Ron turned to Harry incredulously, as Baratheon gave Daenerys a look of loathing.

"You'll pay for this," He spat, but didn't make any moves towards her. "My father is an auror who killed your brother, my uncle is the best dueller alive who killed your grandfather, and my grandfather - "

"Owns half the Ministry," Ron said with dislike, and both of them spun around, finally noticing the pair.

"This is none of your business, Weasley," Baratheon sneered.

"What were you doing?" Harry frowned. "Her robes are torn," He nodded at Daenerys, who looked pale even as her eyes flashed. Paler than normal, anyway. Baratheon glowered, seeming to want to say something but stopping himself. Having been threatened with expulsion, all four of them knew well that any more hint of trouble and the boy would be out of the school before he could blink.

"Nothing," Joffrey ground out, moodily leaving the corridor. Harry caught the ghost of a smile on Daenerys' face.

"Are you alright?" He asked her.

"Yes," She nodded, seeming a little unsure again now it was just them. "He just wanted to scare me a little, I think,"

"Except you scared him," Ron grinned. "Did you see the look on his face?" Daenerys smiled, then bit her lip.

"I'll get in trouble for that," She said.

"At least you didn't end up like that owl," Harry pointed out. She smiled falteringly, but still looked worried.

"Everyone's waiting for me to turn out mad," She said. "He'll go crying to his mother, and she'll make a fuss at the Ministry,"

"Are his family that powerful?" Harry asked.

"The Lannisters?" Ron scoffed. "Worse than the Malfoys. Even though they weren't You-Know-Who supporters, they're twice as rich and twice as evil. Dad says they practically run the Ministry. I think his grandfather and uncle - the Imp - do that. His mother's involved somehow too, don't know how,"

"The most powerful dueller alive is called the Imp?" Harry raised an eyebrow. Daenerys gave a small laugh and they both turned to her. She sobered immediately, but surprisingly - and to Harry's annoyance - Ron was grinning too. "What?"

"Sorry," She said. "It's just strange hearing someone who hasn't heard of Jaime Lannister. He's almost as famous as you,"

"Yeah," Ron said eagerly. "Baratheon wasn't even exaggerating, he's meant to be incredible. He's an auror too, fought in the war and everything. They call him the Kingslayer - " He awkwardly broke off with a glance at Daenerys, who wasn't smiling anymore.

"Kingslayer?" Harry frowned. "Was there a wizard king - oh," He looked uneasily to Ron, remembering what he'd said about the so-called 'Mad King'. Aerys Targaryen. Daenerys' father. There was an extremely awkward silence.

"Jaime Lannister killed my father," The girl finally said, flatly. "Some people hate him for it, saying it was unnecessary to kill an unarmed old man when the battle was already won, just for the glory. I'm not one of those people. He deserved to die," Harry and Ron both gaped at her, but from that moment, Daenerys Targaryen became their friend.