Professor Dumbledore walked into his office, dropping the mask of happiness that he'd shown at the Welcoming Feast. How could Harry Potter of all people be sorted into Slytherin? It wasn't supposed to happen! Oh, he knew that Harry's life with his relatives hadn't been the best, but he never thought that they'd go so far as outright abusing him. Dumbledore had just thought that Harry might be a bit neglected, which was why he hadn't taken Mrs. Figg's concerns seriously. Besides, the family wards on the Dursley home and being kept away from the fame outweighed a little unhappiness.
When he found out that Harry had actually been abused (though thankfully not to the point that he was in danger of dying at the hands of his relatives), he'd been shocked. He'd been worried that Harry would be so adversely affected that he couldn't properly function in public, but then he heard that Lia Killian (or Black now that she was married) and Sirius Black had taken matters in hand. Since Lia had been in Gryffindor and had ties with the Weasley family, who were also staunch Gryffindors, and Sirius (in addition to being a Gryffindor) refused to have anything to do with his family's Dark past, Professor Dumbledore figured that they'd teach Harry to be a strong Gryffindor.
Harry being in Slytherin had never figured in Dumbledore's plans. Yes, Dumbledore knew that not all Slytherins were evil, but thanks to Voldemort and his followers, it was tainted with a dark reputation. He figured that Harry would want to have nothing to do with the house that produced the wizard that had killed his parents, and would want to be in Gryffindor like his parents. That hadn't happened, and now Dumbledore's carefully wrought plans for Harry (at least in regards to his eventual face-off with Voldemort to determine who would win once and for all) was now in ruins.
"Why is this happening to me?" he muttered. "Harry was supposed to be in Gryffindor, and then one day would face Voldemort and defeat him once and for all. That's what I was working for. Now, for all I know, Harry could just decide to have nothing to do with it and run off. Or he could defeat Voldemort, but then be labelled as a budding Dark Lord intent on taking out the competition instead of as a hero."
Dumbledore paced around his office for a minute, and then turned to the Sorting Hat. "What were you thinking, sorting Harry Potter into Slytherin?" he demanded. "Or is he really turning Dark?"
"He's not turning Dark," the Sorting Hat said. "But I can't tell you anything else about his sorting. Do remember that I have Sorting Hat-student confidentiality. You'll have to take it up with him."
Dumbledore stifled a growl of annoyance, since he couldn't take it up with Harry Potter, thanks to the injunction that Madam Bones had put against him. What happened during one's Sorting was not something that the Headmaster or mistress had purview over. Even if it was, he couldn't ask Harry about it without having Professors Snape or McGonagall present (the former as his Head of House and the latter as the Deputy Headmistress), and they would object to the questioning.
"What is so wrong with having Harry Potter in Slytherin?" the portrait of former Headmaster Phineas Nigellus Black asked. "Slytherin is an illustrious house, and having him there would improve it."
"Or it could make him be seen as Dark!" Dumbledore retorted. "People could speculate that Harry is a budding Dark wizard and that Voldemort went after him to take out the competition!"
"It can't be that bad," said the portrait of former Headmistress Dilys Derwent. "Remember who his guardians are now. They wouldn't have raised him improperly after taking him from his relatives."
That gave Dumbledore pause, until he remembered that Lia's group of friends had included a Slytherin. Not that Eric Vicks had been at all bad, in fact he'd been a model student except for the occasional hijinks that he and his friends had gotten into, and he was now doing pro bono work as a lawyer when he wasn't busy with any matters for Sirius. Since Dumbledore was aware that Lia's group was very close with each other, they no doubt had met with Harry and might have influenced him a bit. That didn't necessarily mean anything, as the other two in the group had been in the other two houses, and Harry obviously hadn't tried to get put in either Ravenclaw or Hufflepuff.
"Why did this happen?" Dumbledore asked of nobody in particular. "Nobody would doubt that Harry is a hero if he were in Gryffindor. Even Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff wouldn't be too bad, since they've got good reputations, even if Hufflepuff is looked down upon at times. But Slytherin of all things!"
"Humph, there is nothing wrong with being in Slytherin," said Headmaster Black.
The other portraits chimed in with their agreement. "Fine then!" Dumbledore snapped, throwing up his hands. "My plans are in ruins, and I might as well just let a Slytherin Harry take his course!" He glared at the portraits, and then stalked out of the office to his private quarters.
Professor Snape walked into his private quarters and poured himself a small glass of firewhiskey. Normally he didn't drink anything more alcoholic than butterbeer (which had so little alcohol content that unless you were tiny like a house-elf or goblin, you'd have to drink ten bottles to even get tipsy), but after tonight's Sorting, he needed a drink to steady himself. The last person he would have expected to be in Slytherin was Harry Potter, and yet he had been sorted there. Maybe his childhood with his abusive relatives had made him more cunning or otherwise affected him (just as Snape's own unpleasant childhood had influenced how he turned out), but still.
Harry had first been taken in by the Grangers, and if Hermione Granger's sorting into Ravenclaw was any indication, they were nice people that valued education and intelligence. On top of that, Lia Killian, or rather Black now that she was married, would have surely influenced him, as she'd been the one to rescue him, and was now his guardian along with Sirius Black. Snape knew that Black definitely have influenced Harry, and based on that, Snape would have thought Harry would hate Slytherin. On the other hand, Lia did have a Slytherin friend, so she could have taught him that there were good Slytherins, and Snape had heard that Black had hired Eric Vicks as the family lawyer.
A knock on his door startled Snape, and he set down his drink to answer the door. To his surprise, Gemma Farley was standing there. "Is something the matter, Miss Farley?"
"Not exactly, Professor Snape," she replied. "I just thought that you might want to be apprised of the situation with Harry Potter, since his sorting was something of a surprise."
"Come in," Snape said, moving to one side to let Gemma in. He gestured for her to take a seat on the couch, and sat down on the armchair. "So what is going on with Mr. Potter then?"
"Potter explained why he was sorted into Slytherin during dinner," Gemma answered. "He actually wanted to be in Slytherin. He does have some our qualities of ambition and cunning, but he said that if he couldn't be in the same house as his friends, then he might as well shatter the wizarding world's preconceptions of him, and ruin any plans that Professor Dumbledore has for him in the process. He also wants to change the bad reputation that Slytherin has. He knows that we've had decent members, but obviously they're not enough to change things. Potter figures that if he has to be famous, even though he doesn't want to be, then he might as well use it towards changing our reputation."
Snape blinked in surprise. "That's unexpected," he said, feeling that it was an understatement. "So what was the reaction of the rest of the house, Miss Farley?"
"Some people, like the Malfoy boy, don't like it, sir. Others are at least willing to consider Potter's views, and the Nott boy and the Davis and Greengrass girls said that they were willing to help with his goal. I think Warrington will help too, since he agreed that our reputation needs changing. Amaryllis Montague did question having to accept Muggleborns, but Potter told her that he was only asking that we just leave them alone and that doing that much would help with changing our reputation. I agree with him, and I think the other prefects are at least seriously considering his words."
"So Potter has already converted a few people to his way of thinking, and convinced three of his year-mates to ally with him, if not eventually join his circle of friends," Snape said thoughtfully. "I see that he definitely bears watching out for, in a good way, and will be an asset to our House. Thank you for telling me this, Miss Farley. You can go now. Good-night."
"Good-night, Professor," Gemma said, and she got up and left the room.
Snape picked up his glass of firewhiskey and downed it in a gulp. What Gemma Farley had just told him had further unsettled him, even if it was good information. He wondered what James and Lily would make of this if they were still alive. Well, wanting to change Slytherin's reputation for the better was something that Lily would have done, but James Potter, based on his dislike of pretty much all Slytherins (except Professor Slughorn), would never consider such a thing. Unless he'd matured the way that Black had done, he would likely still think that Slytherins were scum and not worth the time and effort to change their House into something better.
With a sigh, Snape got up and headed for his bedroom, hoping that the Potter boy would prove to be an asset.
Harry woke up early the next morning. He gathered a set of robes, which now had the Slytherin crest on them, clean underwear, and his toiletries, and went to the bathroom to shower and brush his teeth. When he returned to his dormitory, he saw that Theodore Nott had just woken up.
"Good morning, Theo," Harry said, as he put his dirty clothes in the laundry hamper.
"Good morning, Harry," Theo replied, getting out of bed. He soon disappeared into the bathroom to wash up, and Harry went to the common room to write a letter to his godparents and Remus.
"Dear Uncle Sirius, Aunt Lia, and Uncle Remus,
Well, I got sorted into Slytherin. In fact, my friends copied your group, Aunt Lia, and we all got sorted into different houses. Hermione's in Ravenclaw, Neville's in Hufflepuff, and Ron's in Gryffindor, though from the disappointed look on Ron's face, I think he tried to get into Slytherin with me. It took him four minutes to be sorted too, so he was almost a Hatstall. Neville was also almost a Hatstall, as it took him almost five minutes to be declared a Hufflepuff, and Hermione took about three minutes.
Anyway, Professor Dumbledore looked really shocked with my sorting, so I think it's safe to say that his plans for me are ruined. I explained to the other Slytherins why I was sorted there and how I wanted to help change its reputation for the better. Draco Malfoy didn't like it, and said so. He thinks I'm 'ruining Slytherin's illustrious history'. He also said it was nonsense that Muggleborns are actually descended from Squibs, even though I presented Colin and Dennis as proof. Malfoy convinced Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle, who were with him on the train ride, to side with him, if the glares they were giving me and Theodore Nott are any indication.
Oh, Theo has sided with me. He said that his mother, before she died last year, had taught him to accept everyone, regardless of their parentage. I apparently reminded him of that, as his father has been teaching him to believe in pureblood superiority since her death. Daphne Greengrass and Tracey Davis, fellow first-years, have also said they want to help me in improving Slytherin's reputation. So has Gemma Farley, one of the prefects, because at the end of her welcoming speech, she said I had a point and that she would like us to make an effort to change other people's perception of us. Some of the other Slytherins have also admitted that I have a point, or are at least considering what I said, but there are several who think like Malfoy.
Out of the rest of the Slytherin first years, Blaise Zabini was considering what I said, but so far, he has decided to not side with either me or Malfoy. Pansy Parkinson agrees with Malfoy's way of thinking, and Millicent Bulstrode appears to be undecided, like Zabini.
I've decided to introduce Theo, Daphne, and Tracey to my friends. If they're serious about helping me change Slytherin's reputation, being on good terms with Ron and Hermione will be a start. Maybe my circle of friends will expand and there'll be more inter-house unity, especially if Ron, Hermione, and Neville get some of their housemates interested in befriending those in different houses. Then we can do what the Founders (especially Helga Hufflepuff) were striving for, before Salazar Slytherin had the falling out with the others over admitting Muggleborns.
I can't wait to start classes and actually learn magic, not just the theory that Uncle Remus has been teaching us. And it'll be great to finally brew potions on my own, and not just help Aunt Lia or Healer Ellie with preparations when they were giving us basic potions lessons. I'll write more later, or contact you guys via the mirror if it's something important, so I'll end this letter now. Love, Harry."
Harry folded up the two sheets of parchment and stuck it inside an envelope. He was about to see if he could find an older student to direct him to the Owlery, when Daphne and Tracey walked into the common room, followed by Gemma and her friend Amaryllis.
"Oh good," he said. "Gemma, could you give me directions to the Owlery? I just wrote a letter to my godparents, and I want to send it." Belatedly remembering his manners, he added, "Oh, and a good morning to you, Daphne, Tracey, Gemma, and Amaryllis."
"Good morning to you too, Potter," Gemma said, looking a bit amused. "Come with me. I'll take you to the Owlery. Daphne and Tracey, you should come along, so you'll know the way."
At this juncture, Theodore walked in, and Gemma invited him to join them on the trip to the Owlery. He accepted, and the five set out. Hedwig flew down from her perch when Harry called for her, and after he'd tied the letter to her leg, she gave him a fond nibble and then flew out the window.
"You have a beautiful owl, Harry," Daphne commented.
"Thanks," Harry replied, and then Gemma led the way to the Great Hall so they could have breakfast.
Partway through the meal, schedules were handed out. Harry scanned his and saw that his first class of the day was Charms, followed by Herbology with the Ravenclaws. To his slight disappointment, he saw that Potions, which was with the Gryffindors, wouldn't be until Friday.
Some of the older Slytherins (including Marcus Flint and a sixth-year prefect named Christiana Selwyn) informed him that they had thought things over last night, and wanted to help him with improving the reputation of their house. Flint and two others added that they weren't keen on accepting Muggleborns, but were willing to at least tolerate them and leave them alone, per Harry's request. They were also willing to improve their relationship with the other houses, though that didn't mean they would give up the fierce competition in things like Quidditch and the House Cup.
Daphne, Tracey, and Theo spent the meal talking with Harry. Since he didn't feel like going into detail about his life with the Dursleys, he just said that his Muggle relatives hadn't cared for magic, and by extension him, and that he'd been taken away from them when it was discovered that Dumbledore had illegally left him with them. He then moved on to what it was like living with Sirius and Lia, and explained his friendships with Ron, Neville, and Hermione (leaving out that the latter was Muggleborn).
"So all your friends got sorted into different houses?" Tracey asked, looking surprised.
Harry nodded. "Not that it'll get in the way of your friendships. It didn't get in the way of Aunt Lia and her friends, after all. I would like you to meet them. Probably during lunch, since there's no school rule that says we have to sit at our house tables outside of the feasts, or after classes today."
"Sure, we can do that," said Daphne. "It'll be interesting to meet them."
The three then started telling Harry something about their lives. Tracey was a halfblood, having a Muggleborn mother like Harry, and she had been friends with Daphne since they were five. Daphne had a younger sister named Astoria, who would start Hogwarts two years from now. Theo admitted that his father, like Mr. Malfoy, had been questioned for being a Death Eater, but had given evidence that he'd been under the Imperius Curse. However, the face that Theo made when explaining this showed that he believed his father had lied in order to get out of a prison sentence.
"Whatever your father did doesn't matter to me, Theodore," Harry said firmly. "I'm judging you by your own merits, and so long as you're nothing like him, I'm willing to be your friend. Besides, the Ministry did enough of that with my godfather, believing that he was guilty just because of his family."
"It doesn't matter to us either," Tracey said. "Besides, we Slytherins need to stick together."
After breakfast, the four of them headed for Charms. As they walked, they had to deal with the whispers from the other students, who were wondering why Harry had been sorted into Slytherin, or were curious to get a good look at him. Along the way, the four made a wrong turn and in an attempt to get back on the right track, tried to open a locked door.
Unfortunately, it turned out to be the out-of-bounds corridor, and even unluckier, the caretaker, Argus Filch, was the one to find them. He didn't believe them when they explained that they were lost, and if Professor Quirrell hadn't turned up then, they'd have likely gotten detention. Quirrell pointed them the correct way to the Charms classroom, and they thanked him before going on their way.
Professor Flitwick, a tiny old wizard that had to stand on a stack of books to properly to see everyone, started class. He took roll call, and when he got to Harry's name, he gave an excited squeak and toppled of the books. Once he recovered, he finished roll and then proceeded to explain what charms were, and the difference compared to other types of spells. He then demonstrated the Color-Changing Charm (a very easy spell), and had the class work on changing the color of ribbons.
At Herbology, Harry found Hermione, who had started to befriend her dormmate Padma Patil, and was on good terms with Anthony Goldstein and Terry Boot. Harry introduced his new Slytherin friends, and invited the Ravenclaws to sit together at lunch. The Ravenclaws tentatively accepted, mostly due to Hermione vouching for Harry being a good judge of character, and then class started. Professor Sprout, a brisk, business-like witch, explained the subject, and then went over a couple of easy plants that they could deal with. Hermione and Harry (thanks to the time spent with Neville) had some prior knowledge, and won their houses ten points each for answering Professor Sprout's questions correctly.
When class ended and everyone headed back inside the castle for lunch, Harry and Hermione ran into Ron. He'd gotten to known Dean Thomas, who wanted to meet Harry since Ron had mentioned that Harry's godmother was the one that had explained the wizarding world to Dean. Lavender Brown and Parvati Patil also wanted to meet Harry, since they wished to get to know him, not the whole 'Boy-Who-Lived' persona that the press and history books portrayed him as.
Right outside the Great Hall, they ran into Neville, who was with Justin Finch-Fletchley, Hannah Abbott, and Susan Bones. Harry greeted his friend, and then turned to Susan. "Are you related to Madam Amelia Bones, by any chance, Susan?" he asked.
"She's my auntie," Susan answered with a smile. "She mentioned what went on with you. She didn't go into any great detail, but she did say that you'd been left your relatives against your parents' wishes in their will, and that Sirius Black took you away from them when he found out."
"I see," said Harry. He then looked over at Justin. "Justin, right? My godmother mentioned you. Aunt Lia's the one that visited you and your parents and explained about the wizarding world."
"Really?" asked Justin, looking interested. "Neville said that he was friends with you, but he never mentioned that your godmother was the one that visited me."
"Well, you didn't exactly mention it when we were talking at dinner," Neville pointed out. "If you had, I would have told you, Justin. So what's going on, Harry?"
"I would like to invite you and your housemates that are with you to eat with all of us at lunch," Harry answered. "The school rules only require us to sit at our own house tables at feasts, after all."
The Hufflepuffs accepted. After a quick discussion, they all decided that the Ravenclaw table was the most neutral place in the Great Hall to meet, since Ravenclaws were the ones that got along best with the rest of the school. A few Ravenclaws did question having those in other houses at their table, but after Hermione pointed out that the rules only stated that students had to eat at their own house tables during feasts and one of the prefects backed her up, nothing more was said against it.
Introductions were made, and the Slytherins with Harry immediately made it clear that they had nothing against blood-traitors, Muggleborns, or Muggles. Theo explained how his mother had raised him to accept everyone regardless of parentage, and Tracey added that she was a halfblood and that Daphne had been her best friend ever since they were five years old.
Harry, without going into much detail about his time with the Dursleys, told the others exactly what he'd told the Slytherins that morning. "It's horrible that your relatives didn't like magic or you," Justin said. "My parents were very surprised to find out that I was magical, and were a bit hesitant at first about me being part of the wizarding world, but they still accepted me. At least Miss Lia and your godfather took you away from them and you're living with them now, Harry."
"So why exactly were you sorted into Slytherin, Harry?" Parvati asked. "I asked Ron, once he revealed that he was your friend, but he said it wasn't something he could tell us without your permission."
Harry rolled his eyes. "Ron, you didn't need my permission. What I wanted to do isn't exactly some big secret. Anyway, Parvati, I wanted to be in Slytherin, partly to break the preconceptions the wizarding world has of me and partly to work towards improving Slytherin's reputation. Besides, after Hermione and Neville were sorted into different houses, it was clear that our quartet wouldn't all be in the same house. Aunt Lia's quartet of friends was in all four houses and their friendship is as strong as ever, so I thought emulating them wouldn't hurt. I just decided to expand my circle of friends."
"So you want us all to be a big group of friends then?" Terry asked. "Like a quartet squared?"
"Well, there are sixteen of us," Harry pointed out. "Aunt Lia's group was fine, but it didn't exactly do very much for inter-house unity, since there were only four of them."
"Not only do you want to improve Slytherin's reputation, but you want to try for inter-house unity too?" Susan asked, one eyebrow raised skeptically. "That's very ambitious, Harry."
"Well, I am in Slytherin," Harry responded. "Ambition is one of our traits."
"It can't hurt to have some more unity," Hermione pointed out. "That's what the Founders were going for, before Salazar Slytherin had that falling out with the others over the Muggleborn issue. And it's not like there haven't been lots of friendships across houses, not to mention relationships, before. There just hasn't been that many between all four houses."
"Hermione's right," said Anthony. "Logically speaking, it would make Hogwarts stronger. Having some competition, like in the House Cup and Quidditch matches, is fine, but outside of stuff like that, being united is much better. Of course, there will always be people you can't get along with, but you can at least tolerate them, or just leave them alone so long as they don't do anything to you."
After a bit of discussion, they all decided to go along with becoming a large group of friends. They made plans to meet in an empty classroom after classes ended that day, and work things out.
The conversation then turned to about themselves. Terry, Hannah, and Lavender were halfbloods, though Terry was the only one with a Muggle parent (his mother was a pharmacist). Parvati and Padma were of Indian descent, thought their family had been living in Britain ever since their grandparents had immigrated from India about fifty years ago. Dean revealed that his family consisted of his mother, stepfather, and two half-sisters. His father had disappeared a couple of months after he was born, and ever since Lia had visited and explained about the wizarding world, his mother wondered if his father had been a wizard. Lia had offered to do some investigating in the matter, so perhaps he would eventually find out if he was a Muggleborn or really a halfblood.
When lunch ended, they scattered for their various classes. The Gryffindors had Transfiguration, the Slytherins had History of Magic, the Hufflepuffs had Defense, and the Ravenclaws had Charms.
Professor Binns proved to be as boring as Lia and Sirius had said him to be. After a few minutes, Harry gave up trying to listen, and instead started reading A History of Magic, taking notes as he read. It was something of a relief when class ended, and Harry put his things away in his schoolbag and joined his new Slytherin friends in filing out the room.
On the way to the second floor, Fred and George appeared in front of Harry. "Hi, Harry," said Fred.
"So how are things going for you?" George added.
"They're fine," Harry said. He introduced Theo, Tracey, and Daphne, and added that they were now part of his group of friends and willing to help him improve Slytherin's reputation.
"That's good," said Fred. "Anyway, we wanted to give you this." He pulled out a rather old piece of parchment, which was blank, with a flourish, and handed it to Harry.
"Er, thanks?" Harry said blankly. "Why do I need a piece of parchment?"
"Oh, Harry, Harry, Harry," George said, shaking his head. "Don't you remember the stories that Sirius and Remus told about their time in Hogwarts? We thought you'd recognize this."
"And why would I recognize some random blank piece of parchment?" Harry asked, puzzled.
"Oh honestly, it's the Marauder's Map," Fred said, throwing up his hands in mock despair. "You really need to remember the stories about the Marauders better, Harry."
"Oh," said Harry, looking at the parchment with much more interest now.
"Anyway, Fred and I nicked it out of Filch's file cabinet back in first year," George said. "After Sirius and Remus told us about the Marauders, we explained that we got the Map. They said we could keep using it, but since you're the son of one of the Marauders, we decided to pass it on to you."
"Thanks, guys," said Harry. "It'll come in handy for me, if only to keep me from getting lost."
"Good," said Fred. "Oh, and if any of the Slytherins, the ones like that Malfoy, not the ones like your new friends, try to bother you, let us know. George and I will prank them."
"You don't need to do that," Harry protested. "I can handle idiots like Malfoy."
"And we'll back Harry up," Theo added. "Also, at least half of our prefects are on his side."
"That's fine, it's just that Harry's like a brother to us," said George. "That's why we offered. Well, Fred and I have some things we plan to do, so we'll see you guys later."
After the twins had left, Harry explained, "My father's quartet of friends, which included my godfather, Uncle Remus Lupin, and the traitor Peter Pettigrew, called themselves the Marauders. They created a map of Hogwarts, which details everything, including the secret passageways. It also shows everyone in the castle, though they're on the map as tiny dots with a name next to them." He led them into an empty classroom, and demonstrated how the Map worked. "I solemnly swear I am up to no good."
The four gasped in awe as the blank parchment suddenly had writing and pictures form on it. They found four tiny dots labelled as themselves clustered in a classroom on the Map, and in various corridors, they saw other dots and names. However, those names were all jumbled together, due to the number of students. On other parts of the map, they saw the dots of teachers in their offices.
"Wow, there're even secret passageways leading out of the castle," Tracey exclaimed.
"Well, the Marauders explored the entire school," Harry said. "They found everything, except for the legendary Chamber of Secrets, and put it on the Map. Oh, the Room of Requirement's not on there either, but that's because the magic of the room makes it Unplottable."
"The Room of Requirement?" Daphne asked blankly. "What's that?"
"It's a room on the seventh floor that changes to anything you want it to be. Students normally come across it by accident, but when they try to look for it later, they usually can't find it again. My dad and his friends asked the house-elves about it on one of their trips to the kitchens for food, so they were able to find it again, and sometimes used it. That's where they finished making the Marauder's Map."
"Well, if the other students don't know about it, and the room hides itself until it's needed, why don't we meet there?" Theo suggested. "It'll be more private than an empty classroom."
"That's a good idea," said Harry. He looked on the map to see where the others were, and then wiped it blank by tapping the parchment with his wand and saying, "Mischief managed."
The four left the classroom, and upon reaching the others, Harry explained about the Room of Requirement and Theo's idea to meet there instead. The others agreed, and so the sixteen of them made their way up to the seventh floor, opposite a tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy trying to teach trolls ballet. Harry concentrated on wanting a comfortable room that was large enough for them all to meet in, and after walking back and forth by the blank stretch of wall three times, a door appeared. He opened it and gestured for them all to file in.
Inside were four comfortable couches and four armchairs, clustered in an oval around a table. Along one wall were four bookcases filled with books, and the other walls had hangings of all four houses. A side wall had a long table with cups and plates stacked on one end and pitchers of water and juice and bowls and plates of snacks (transported from the kitchens) at the other end.
"That's convenient," Ron said. "You were right, Theodore, it was a good idea to meet here." He went over to the snacks table and poured a cup of pumpkin juice for himself.
The others joined him, since they could all use a snack and something to drink. Once they all had a filled cup and a plate of snacks, they moved to the seating area.
"So, if we're going to be friends, should we have a name for ourselves the way your father's group of friends did, Harry?" Daphne asked. "It would be simpler to have a name to refer to ourselves."
"Good idea, Daphne," said Harry. "Anyone have any suggestions for a name?"
"The Hogwarts Society?" Hannah asked after a minute of thought.
A chalkboard appeared and Harry got up and wrote down Hannah's suggestion. "Any others?"
"Hmm, what about the Hogwarts Sixteen?" Dean suggested. "Since there are sixteen of us."
Harry wrote that down, and then Anthony suggested, "The Amity Association, or AA for short?"
"Ooh, that sounds good, Anthony," said Tracey. "It's alliterative and suggestive of the purpose of our group, since 'amity' means friendship and goodwill."
"It's loads better than my suggestion," said Hannah. "I'm not really good at coming up with names."
A vote was conducted, and they all agreed that Anthony's suggestion of the Amity Association, or AA for short, would be the name of their group. The chalkboard then disappeared, and the newly dubbed AA spent the next hour talking about the classes they had so far (they'd all had Herbology that day, but the same wasn't true of the other classes).
Both the Ravenclaws and Gryffindors had Transfiguration that day, and only Hermione had managed to turn her match into a needle (though both Anthony and Padma had turned their match silvery, and Ron had gotten his match to look like a wooden needle). That raised a few eyebrows, since normally no-one (besides magical or Transfiguration prodigies like James Potter had been) ever completely Transfigured their matches into needles during the first class. The best most students could manage was making the kind of changes that Anthony, Padma, and Ron had done.
"No wonder you're in Ravenclaw, with talent like that," Theo said admiringly.
"Hermione's always been brilliant," Harry said. "She got the top grades back in primary school, and just absorbed all the magical information that Uncle Remus taught us."
"Really, there's no subject that any of us can best her in, other than Herbology," Ron added. "Neville's better than her in that, though it applies more to the practical work." Hermione blushed at the praise.
"Well, if we ever need tutoring with a subject we're struggling in, then we know who to turn to for help," Lavender said. "Don't worry, we're not going to take advantage of you, and use up all your free time, Hermione. Some of us are bound to be almost as good as you in various subjects, and can help with tutoring those of us that are struggling in a subject."
Daphne added, "And if anyone tries to spout off about pureblood superiority, we'll just point to you as an example of how wrong they are, Hermione."
Hermione blushed even more. "Really, I'm not that great. I'm sure there are or were loads of witches and wizards better than me. Like Merlin for example. Or Professor McGonagall."
"Yes, but even they started out as students," Terry pointed out. "You're already showing signs of great intelligence and magical aptitude, just as they did when they were in school, so you'll likely go on to do great things, or change the wizarding world in some way. If the Potions teacher that my dad had was still teaching, he'd have invited you to be part of his club of promising students."
"I guess," said Hermione. She quickly changed the subject to Charms class.
When it grew close to six, the AA left the Room of Requirement for dinner. They returned after the meal to hang out some more, and when it was half an hour before curfew, headed for their respective common rooms.
Author's Note: While Dumbledore is the Chessmaster in the book to the extent that he will do almost anything to get rid of Voldemort (to the point on manipulating Harry if need be), he is not some evil person (or has the same kind of mindset that he did when he was friends with Grindelwald) that some fics with a manipulative Dumbledore portray him as. I originally didn't intend to have a group of sixteen, as it was just going to be the quartet, but I realized that if three of Harry's housemates were going to help him improve Slytherin's reputation and therefore befriend him, it was only fair to have the other three befriend some students in their houses. Also, inter-house unity is something that Harry would want to strive for. I apologize if the Amity Association isn't the best name for the group. I'm not very good at coming up with group names (this is why Hannah suggested the Hogwarts Society and Dean suggested the Hogwarts Sixteen), and it took me a bit to come up with a decent name that I hadn't already used in any of my other fics.