Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter and I'll deny anything you accuse me of.
Gryffindor Lion
The wind carried the first chill of the autumn months. High on a Tower's turret Harry gazed down upon the long line of carriages that would bring the returning Hogwarts students. Far off to the side, the lake glowed under the half-moon. A small swarm of lights bobbing up and down upon the surface. The little first years where coming to Hogwarts.
It all seemed so far away at that moment.
A light breeze danced through messy locks and emerald eyes glowed like a fated killing curse. His Gryffindor robes was stiff, the new material still starch with the common cloth preservation charms. He never wore the student robes during the holiday; it was only so long before one started to grimace at the thought of black robes. Idly, Harry wondered if he managed to live as long as Dumbledore if he would end up wearing yellow polka-dot robes as well.
His mind returned to the present.
For now, his isolation would end and he would once again be their Boy-Who-Lived. He would be who he had to be for the moment. He would just have to be careful not to harbor his anxieties within himself as was his habit, nothing good ever came of that.
Amos Rule of Thumb: if they annoyed you, hex them.
Amos did always say it was a great way to work off tension, of course he recommended sex and blood letting as well.
Vampires, Harry snorted in amusement.
It would be fate's joke that the first student Harry saw was none other than the Slytherin Prince himself, Draco Malfoy.
And it never occurred to Malfoy to keep his mouth shut when faced with Harry Potter, the Gryffindor Lion.
Gryffindor Lion, yet another name to add to his collection. Named for the fierce temper that was his trademark in fifth year. His house had taken it upon themselves to learn how volatile Harry was on any particular day. They might be Gryffindors but even they had preservation instincts. He wondered how red Snape's face turned when he heard that particular pet name. It was fortune indeed the two rarely met. Mayhap Dumbledore had some common sense in that batty head of his.
"Potter, still alive? I could have sworn someone would have rectified this little problem by now."
"Now, now, Malfoy. Just because your father can't seem to catch me and just because your Master doesn't seem able to kill me is no reason to bring up their failings. I'm sure it's not for lack of desire. Tell me Malfoy, did Daddy come home all crucioed lately?" Harry spat back with a decidedly irritating grin on his face.
Malfoys were trained to react to body language above all else, as a result their political success was often viewed as a product of their quick wits. Unfortunately, it was also their most obvious failing if one knew how to use it.
For a second Malfoy stood there stunned and confused. Harry's body language was cheerfully sickening but his words held uncommon spite.
"Come now Malfoy, where's your silver tongue? Or have you gotten your uniform and adopted a forked tongue?" The grin never left his face.
"Mark my words Potter, you'll be dead before the year is over. The Dark Lord will deal with you soon enough and then you'll wish you'd never lived past your first birthday." Malfoy hissed.
Harry made a show of looking around, they where off to the side of the Great Hall entrance. A few curious students looked their way but no one was willing to get in between Malfoy and Potter.
"What a public place to declare your allegiance Draco. How unwise of you. What use are all the lessons your father stuffed into your head now? How disappointing." Harry purposely adopted a mild reprimanding tone. A tone much like Dobby had said the younger Malfoy was chastised in by his father. If there was one thing Harry had learned last year after the incarceration of Malfoy Senior was the utter devotion Malfoy had for his sire. A word of approval would levitate the blond boy to the havens while a reprimand would crush his heart.
Such background information resulted in one thing apparently. A heavy flush that seemed to grow from the blonde's neck upward.
"Don't you dare say a word about my father. Especially since you've so little experience dealing with fathers."
:Watch yourself little serpent: Harry hissed at him for his own curiosity in Parseltongue. If they'd met their Master by now, they would have learned nothing good ever came out of a parseltongue's mouth.
To his amusement Draco paled dramatically as did his two silent goons.
"Been kneeling at your Master feet Malfoy? You shouldn't be so startled, Voldemort's not one to ignore Slytherin's gift."
:Be a good boy: Harry hissed at Malfoy's retreating back. If anything Malfoy walked even faster.
Even Malfoy's parting glare did not seem to penetrate Harry's bemusement. Perhaps he would spent the year hissing at those that annoyed him. So long as no one turned up petrified he should be able to stay out of Azkaban.
Harry smirked cruelly in his direction. The watching students stared at him nervously; although most were more concerned about Malfoy's predicted retaliation. The pureblooded inbreed did not take it well when he lost, whether a verbal spar or Quittich game. Someone would pay tonight.
"Oi! Harry! Mate! Over here!" Harry was startled at the loud exclamations, the influx of students didn't allow him to search for the speaker. Which is why it came as a surprise when a warm body barreled into Harry, propelling him to the ground. Instinctively Harry twisted his body so he landed on top of his attacker. And he promptly met the startled eyes of Seamus Finnegan.
"Seamus….." Harry sighed. A wicked smile bloomed on his face after a moment. From his position on Seamus stomach Harry leaned in closer to the Irishman.
"Are you going to make it a habit of yours to jump unsuspecting students?"
Seamus blushed but did nothing to stop the answering grin on his face.
"That is Plan B. In effect only if they say no." teased the Irishman.
"Lovely spectacle you've made of yourself Mr. Finnegan, Mr. Potter." Startled the boys looked up and met the laughing face of Dean Thomas.
Harry did nothing to rectify the situation. Conversationally he asked Seamus.
"You reckon we should get up?"
Seamus adopted a look of deep thought.
"I figure we could have dinner out here, nice and private. Be first in line to the dorms later."
The students around smiled. Then they laughed as Harry let out a yelp when a pair of hands wove under his arms and hauled him up like some wayward child. Dean shared an amused glance with Harry before he rolled his eyes and let him go. Neville bent down and hauled Seamus up.
"Honestly, overgrown prats. I've a warm dinner waiting for me." With that Dean spun around and stalked into the Great Hall. The trio of boys trailed him obediently.
"Hey Dean, you do remember there's a considerable amount of runts in need of sorting."
"Don't remind me" was Ron's passing comment as he walked with his Quittich friends. There was only one thing Ron treasured above Quittich and that was food. Harry just rolled his eyes.
There where definitely a lot more first years than Harry had seen before. Sadly Harry realized his year was made of the survivors, the children of parents who dared conceive during the height of Voldemort's power. They where born under a bright Mars as the centaurs would say.
"So many little runts." Moaned Seamus with a morose look at his empty plate.
"Pass the time wisely." Harry reprimanded lightly, his eyes traveling over the first years. "Bet you a sickle that blond girl with the pigtails is a Ravenclaw."
Seamus grinned. "Bet you that little runt with his nose in the air is a Slytherin."
Dean glanced at the kid in question. "That kid practically has 'Made in Malfoy' stamped on him. Not much of a gamble for an Irishman."
The three boys snickered while Seamus pretended to look affronted.
Glancing at them Harry couldn't help but marvel at their easy friendship. He had always been so isolated with Hermione and Ron, he had failed to really get to know his housemates. It didn't help that Hermione's know-it-all forcefulness made her little friends among the students.
It wasn't that he didn't treasure their friendship, he knew without them his life would have been a bigger mess than it already was but Harry had long since realized the trio had begun to stifle each other.
They where really too young to be as involved as they were in Harry's yearly trysts with death. He knew they really tried to be there for him. They tried so hard after Sirius' death that they eventually began to push him away unknowingly. It was too stressful for him to confide in either and their frustration at Harry's continual distance let to the deterioration of their close friendship. Harry wasn't in any state to deal with Ron's jealousy over the fears that had infected his mind over Sirius' hushed up will. He also didn't think he would be able to take any Hermione-like interrogations only to be assigned some self-help book to deal with his grief.
It had been then that Harry began spending time with Neville. He allowed Harry to retreat into silence and disappear when need be but was always ready to listen when Harry had finally begun to sort the mess in his head.
Neville was such an unassuming character it was easy to forget he had at one time or another had gone though much of what he himself dealt with. And as the only two would-be-Lords in Gryffindor, they would both face much the same tasks. Their lives could have so easily been switched Harry sometimes reminded himself with awe and envy.
Neville's calm presence was soon offseted when the new duo began hanging out with Seamus and Dean. Harry quickly learned to appreciate the newly formed group last year when Death Eaters' attacks grew in number and people began looking once more at the so-called 'Hope of the Light'. The trio never asked about Voldemort in detail, knowing that Harry needed some reprieve from all the people that hounded him. They protected him when prats crouched upon his space and covered for him when he needed to disappear.
Funny that three underage wizards should figure out what the Order of the Phoenix even now failed to grasp. Something that Hermione and Ron failed to grasp at times during their long friendship. These where the demons Harry needed protection from.
Fourteen new Gryffindors and three deserts later the small group of boys hauled themselves up for the endless trek up stairs to Gryffindor Tower. They took the time to loudly bemoan the appointment of Draco Malfoy as Head Boy. Stifled laughs erupted around them as they gathered the attention of the crowd. Ignoring Hermione's frowning face, the group began to sing a little ditty in honor of the Slytherin Prince.
"There was a Slytherin boy!" Bellowed Seamus.
"Who had Daddy buy all the toys!" Hollered Harry, a smile never leaving his face.
"And shoved money around to become Head Boy!" Added Dean, more than a little silly after trying to beat Seamus in a pie-eating contest.
"B-but we'll t-teach him he hasn't a choice!" yelled Neville in a rare moment of boisterous.
"But to bow down when the Gryffindors make noise!" finished off Seamus to the applause of their audience.
The boys took up the chant all the way to Gryffindor Tower, each time yelling the last line a little bit louder. By the time they arrived most of the accompanying Gryffindors where bellowing it out in their own sweet dulcet tones. The first years no exception and Hermione now wore a permanent frown.
Harry smiled, pleased with himself.
The first years had been thoughtfully corrupted against Draco Malfoy.
Strictly educational.
"Nev? Did you buy the robes?" Harry asked as he pulled his robe off and struck his head into his pajama top.
"Yes, my Gran took me to buy my hereditary robes two weeks ago. It wasn't easy convincing the seamstress to give me a clean set but Gran can be quite forceful when she wants to be. Gran said it was a shame none of the professors had the decency to escort you personally…I'm not sure if I was supposed to keep the whole thing a secret but I couldn't have gotten them without her help. I hope that's alright Harry?"
"No worries Nev. With my luck I'd probably have been sent with Snape. Thanks for getting them for me and don't forget to thank your Gran as well. The first Wizengamot session begins in a couple of weeks and I'd never have lived it down if I showed up in my school uniform."
"I have the robes in my trunk you if you want them now."
Harry glanced at the empty beds, glad that the rest of the boys where still in the common room enjoying their last day of freedom.
"It probably would be best. Who knows when we'll be alone again."
Neville stumbled slightly as he opened the trunk at the foot of his bed. Under books and standard school robes was a light package wrapped carefully in paper.
Harry unwrapped the package and was met with two silvery lengths of cloth. On further inspection one was the inner robe, a tight fitting robe with a high collar and no sleeves, and the other was the loose formal outer robe that would eventually display his family's crest. Currently all that Harry saw was a finely made silvery robe with no identification mark.
"The seamstress said in order to bring out the family crest you had to put the robes on and place your Family or Heir ring on at the same time. The hereditary robes' magic activates when it connects to the ring and the crest is then projected. You do have your ring, don't you Harry?" Neville said nervously. He barely remembered that Harry might not have known how the robes' magic would work and would not have taken possession of the Potter ring.
"Interesting. I have wondered how they made the individual crests appear." Harry mused aloud. "No worries Nev, I already have my Family ring." And a couple others Harry added silently.
He folded the silvery material once more, not bothering to fish out his rings for fear that Neville might accidentally see two rings Harry didn't want to reveal anytime soon.
He didn't feel like dealing with that mess even when it came out according to his plans.
Meddlesome founder bloodlines. A thousand years later and their names where about to make the forefront of wizarding news once more.
TBC…..
qpqpqpqpqpqpqpqpqpqpqpqpqpqpqpqpqpqpqpqpqpqpqpqpqpqpqpqpqpqpqpqpqpqpqp
AN: Story is finally moving along! cries I never thought the day would come!
Thanks for Reviewing so far. For all those just tuning in this is the deal: you review I write. Gives me incentive. And yes, I have no shame.
I've been reading over my story and my most common mistake is 'where' in place of 'were'. I'll be watching for it but I still do it a lot. Sorry in advance,
Do all those that have threatened to hunt me down if I stopped writing: waves hands around "this is all a dreammmm"
REVIEW!
REVIEW!