Even though he did not realize it, the boy who slipped onto platform 9 and ¾ looked rather different from the one who had arrived from Hogwarts back in June. Over the summer, he had grown six inches; his usually messy hair had grown to chin length, which seemed to tame it. As it grew longer, he had started to brush it back out of his face, so that his lightning-shaped scar was visible, rather than hiding under a fringe. After his 16th birthday in July, he noticed that his glasses prescription seemed even worse than usual. He had realized that he could actually see better without them. He decided that he should talk to Madame Pomfrey when he arrived back at Hogwarts to see if she could help him find a correct pair.
He was also oblivious to the fact that some of the girls were noticing him too. Who was this tall, muscular boy with the shiny black hair? It was only as he turned around and everyone could see his green eyes (and of course his scar), that people began to whisper that it was Harry Potter.
"Harry!" He was almost bowled over by a hug from his curly-haired best friend. "When did you get so tall? I hardly recognized you! You didn't tell me you got contacts! Did the Dursley's feed you better this summer?"
"Hi, Hermoine!" he laughed and smiled, hugging her back. "I am so happy to see you! No, they didn't treat me any better. I guess even the Dursley's can't stop puberty." Hermoine examined her best friend more closely. There were more changes than the superficial ones. The Dursley's must have kept him inside most of the time, as he was quite pale, and for some reason, his face seemed more angular than usual. She decided that as he grew older, he must be looking more and more like his mom. He certainly did not look like a clone of James Potter any longer.
That night at the Sorting, Harry started to realize that he must look different. He was taller than nearly all the girls now. More than once, he ran across someone who gave him a blank stare before recognition flashed in their eyes. Several people bumped into him and apologized before realizing who he was, and one Ravenclaw 6th year asked to be introduced to the "new boy." Surely, he didn't look that different over one summer?
He looked up at the High Table and saw even McGonagall giving him a double-take. Snape was glaring at him even more intensely than usual (had he missed yelling at Harry over the summer?), while Dumbledore was looking at him very thoughtfully. Maybe this was still all fallout from the Battle of the Ministry. Maybe the other five students who had joined him were getting weird looks too. He'd have to ask them.
When he had received his OWL scores this summer and realized that he had obtained an "O" in potions, he had resolved that he was not going to let Snape intimidate him anymore. He obviously was good at potions (his mother had been excellent in potions) and he wasn't going to forget it. He had even bought a few potions books from Flourish and Blots and found reading them, dare he say it, even sort of fun. Let the greasy git say what he will, it was not going to bother or disrupt him.
"Mr. Potter, are you sure that you received high enough on your OWL to be in this class?" Snape sneered. "Surely, I have seen no evidence of an outstanding proficiency in potions in your previous performance in my class. I guess we will see how far getting to slide by as the 'Boy Who Lived' will get you in NEWT-level potions."
Harry smiled pleasantly, and bottled up his potion. As everyone worked alone at this level, he did not have to depend on anyone else and his results were obviously his own. He also made sure to place his cauldron as far from Draco Malfoy as possible, to discourage sabotage.
"Stay after, Potter," Snape said.
"Did you have a nice summer, sir?" Harry asked.
"No chit-chat, Potter. I surely have no desire to engage in small talk with you. I may have had to let you in my class, but I will be keeping a close eye on you. Speaking of, what is going on with your new look? Tired of being a clone of your arrogant father?"
"I'm not sure what you are referring to, Professor Snape, but surely a student's appearance is not part of our potions grade."
"Get out, Potter." But as Snape saw the boy go, he realized that he could see more of Lily in him than he had ever been able to see before. It was disconcerting and Potter seemed to be enjoying the confusion. It was very annoying.
As Harry entered his Defense against the Dark Arts class, he was happy to see the actual, real Alastor Moody. Rumor had it that Moody was determined to break the DADA curse and stay for more than one year. "Push back the chairs and get your wands out! Potter, you've dueled before. Come take your chances."
Although his duel with Voldemort in the graveyard was really not the type of experience that he liked to draw on, he was able to make a good showing against the "new" teacher. At least Moody didn't turn him into a ferret. He was proud to see that most of the DA members also did well on their first day.
"Stay after class, Potter," Moody said. Was he destined to be singled out after every class this first week?
Moody stared at him, as he approached the teacher's desk. "You're looking more like yourself, Potter," Moody said with his magic eye whirling. "Glad to see it. Are you starting up the DA again this year?"
What did he mean by looking more like himself? More like his mom? "I doubt we'll need the DA with you teaching us, Professor Moody."
"Well, I appreciate your keeping the standards up with that witch Umbridge here" (Harry had never heard "witch" used as an insult in the Wizarding World before). "There was a clear improvement of OWL scores for those who were in the DA last year, Potter, which you should be proud of. I'm tempted to consider taking you on as an apprentice. What do you think?"
Harry had heard of Potions Masters taking on apprentices (no thank you), but never such a thing with defense of the dark arts. He knew Professor Moody had been a mentor to Tonks for the Aurors and was a member of the Order, even though Harry had to keep reminding himself that this was not the version of Moody who tried to kill him as a gift for Lord Voldemort.
"What would that involve, Professor Moody?"
"Well, I know you have inspirations of being an Auror and the faculty were unanimous that you are probably the top student at DADA in the school at this time. You would mainly act more like an assistant to me in this sixth-year class. Then, we would also meet separately for a one-on-one class where we would cover more advanced techniques."
"Certainly if Professor McGonagall was o.k. with that, I would be very interested."
"I will talk to your Head of House then. I'll let you know."
"Well, I haven't heard of the use of an apprentice model for DADA in recent times, but if anyone would qualify as someone who would benefit from it, it would be Potter. I am fine with it. Just let me know more specifics as you determine them," Professor McGonagall said.
"I could be potentially training my successor, here," Moody said, "and certainly if Potter is to face Lord Voldemort he should have been getting advanced training in defense since he arrive here. I don't know what Dumbledore has been thinking."
"Oh, I also see that glamour charm is wearing off. Makes sense, as most don't last more than 15 years. I wonder why Lily Potter was so keen for Harry to look like a carbon copy of James. Did James adopt him?" Moody asked.
"What are you talking about, Alastor? James and Lily Potter are Harry's biological parents. I have never heard a rumor of anything different."
"Are you sure? As that glamour charm continues to fade, there may be some surprises." With that enigmatic statement, Moody left Professor McGonagall to her thoughts.