Lily's Journal 2
8/25/14 - 10/16/14: Chapter 2
Harry was up early the morning of September First having had a problem sleeping due to his excitement and nervousness of going off to Hogwarts. After eating some dry cereal and a few leftover pieces of pizza from the day before, he washed up and got dressed in one of his newest outfits happy to at least have clothing that fit him for once. As it was still early, he double checked that everything was safely and securely packed into his trunk, and that he had a book to read if he became bored on the train to Hogwarts.
Having had a pretty good idea about what was to come from reading about his mum's several trips to the train station for her first days of school, Harry felt a lot better about the whole day. As it was finally approaching nine in the morning, Harry decided to just head out as he would rather be waiting on the train than at Privet Drive and also wanted to give himself plenty of time to get settled in.
He left Privet Drive with just a quick call of goodbye to his Aunt, and took his trunk out to the street in front of the house before summoning the Night Bus and asking to go to Kings Cross which took close to thirty minutes. Getting through the large train station took no time at all, and soon Harry was standing before the barrier between Platforms Nine and Ten excited to be finally going to Hogwarts and also somewhat apprehensive about running into what truly appeared to be a solid brick wall.
Knowing his mother had yet to steer him wrong, he summoned his courage and quickly went at the barrier and through it a moment later feeling like he was walking through a curtain. He was then even more excited to see the large old red steam train and the sign proclaiming Platform Nine and Three-Quarters above him. Since it was still only quarter till ten, there were only a few families gathered, ushering their kids to get good spots while the few cats and owls made quite the racket flying and running around the Platform.
Harry looked around the Platform, and saw the fireplaces along the far wall for those using Floo travel to get there, but was more focused on the families present and the train itself that would be taking all the students to Hogwarts. Finally deciding to just find a compartment to settle down in, he went towards the back thinking it would take longer to fill up and less chance of being chased out by older students who wanted the best seats and compartments up front.
Once settled in a small six seat compartment only one car from the end of the train, Harry stored away his trunk and sat down, pulling out the Standard Book of Spells Grade One and going through it again to make sure he remembered and wrote notes down on all the spells he wanted to try out. He therefore was completely surprised as about fifteen minutes before the train was scheduled to leave, a pair of boys around his age asked if they could join him as they too wanted to mostly read and a lot of the other compartments were already getting pretty filled up and loud.
Harry immediately said yes, and helped the two stow away their trunks before reaching out his hand and introducing himself, and getting the immediate widening of the eyes and staring at the scar reaction he was coming to associate with every introduction he had in the wizarding world. After that look though, the two boys gratefully didn't say anything else about who he was, and introduced themselves as fellow first years, Terry Boot and Anthony Goldstein.
Terry was a relatively tall kid with perfectly average brown hair and intelligent dark brown eyes who came across as pretty mild mannered. Anthony was definitely a little more boisterous and willing to have a laugh, but had a similar color brown hair even if his was a bit longer and shaggy, although not nearly as messy as Harry's own. He too had brown eyes, but his were much lighter in color and still had the same look of someone who was very intelligent.
Just as the three quiet wizards settled back down, each with a different book in their hands, the compartment door opened again. This time it was a threesome of two attractive girls and a darker skinned boy that obviously knew Terry and Anthony as they greeted the two easily and asked if they could fill in the rest of the seats knowing this would be a relative peaceful and quiet compartment with the two known readers in it. Terry and Anthony both looked to Harry for permission as this was originally his compartment, and Harry instantly stood and asked them to come on in before once again introducing himself and going through the widening of the eyes and glances to his scar, although they were much less pronounced than even Terry's and Anthony's which pleased Harry.
They then introduced themselves as Blaise Zabini, Daphne Greengrass, and Tracy Davis who were friends for some time and knew Anthony and Terry from several social functions their parents usually dragged them to. Blaise was obviously of Italian descent, and had a beautiful copper skin tone and dark brown almost black hair and eyes that made him rather handsome if Harry was honest, and he seemed to carry himself very proudly. Daphne and Tracy were practically opposites though, as Daphne had light blonde long wavy hair and light green very observant and seemingly cold eyes and a tall thin build, while Tracy was much shorter and a bit sturdier with short black hair barely to her chin and dark brown eyes that sparkled with amusement and mischief.
Harry was relatively nervous to be surrounded by so many other kids his age, having never had many friends or spent much time around other kids in his classes that weren't his cousin and his gang trying to pick on him or beat him up. That they all seemed to know each other also added to his nervousness as the odd man out, but at least none of them made a big deal about who he was so they all had a point in their favor. Sitting back down at the seat nearest the window on the left side, he was joined by Tracy directly at his side and Daphne on her other side closest to the door. The other three boys sat across from them, with Terry closest to the window, Anthony in the middle, and Blaise nearest the door.
Before any of the first three boys could return to their books, Tracy asked everyone if they were excited to finally be going to Hogwarts and what classes everyone was most looking forward to. Terry, Daphne, and Harry all agreed on Charms, while Tracy and Anthony both favored Transfiguration, and Blaise was most interested in Potions. A few of the classes were then discussed as the train left the station, and Harry got the feeling that they were all trying to get his opinion on things and trying to get his input by asking him directly about many of the things they were discussing. He kept his answers somewhat vague, not wanting to seem too opinionated and alienate any of the people in his compartment, but also because he was uncomfortable being put on the spot so much and his attention kept going back to first the passing city and then into the countryside out the window.
When the topic moved to hobbies, Harry just said he liked to read since he couldn't really think of anything else he enjoyed and had done over the last several years that didn't include chores or school. Then the discussion moved into Quidditch, which Harry had only just begun reading about the very basic layout of the game, and said he didn't follow the sport at all when asked about his favorite team causing everyone in the compartment to stare at him in shock. Tracy couldn't believe that he didn't have a favorite team, as even Terry who was afraid of heights and not athletic at all liked the Winborne Wasps enough to know a bit about the team and league.
Harry reluctantly admitted that he had only found out about the wizarding world about a month ago, and was trying to catch up on what he thought were more important things like magic and school, and not some game that he knew practically nothing about. To say those in the compartment were shocked at that revelation, would be a remarkable understatement. Even Daphne who seemed pretty cold and distant with little effect showing on her stoic face throughout the discussion was looking at Harry with opened mouth astonishment, which caused Harry to laugh slightly at all of their looks and breaking them out of their stupor.
"But …but …but …you're Harry Potter?" asked a stuttering Tracy seemingly scandalized at the mere thought that Harry didn't know about the wizarding world until a month ago, when they all grew up knowing so much about him and reading books about his adventures and everything he was supposedly doing. "You're like the most famous wizard in the country! There are books written entirely about you and your adventures!"
Now it was Harry's turn to stare and gape, as he hadn't seen any books about him and didn't think it would be that big of a deal that he didn't know about magic until just before coming to Hogwarts. From the looks on everyone else's faces, they too were having a difficult time understanding this new revelation of Harry's lack of knowledge especially as he had seemed somewhat knowledgeable about a lot of the classes and topics they had discussed leading up to this.
"What kind of books are there about me?" he eventually asked not liking where his thoughts were going, and beginning to realize that part of the reason people reacted so much to him was because of whatever was perpetuated in those books making him out to be more than your average wizard.
This led to a long discussion about the Harry Potter Adventure Series of books, as well as mentions of him in almost every modern history book that covered the last war, relatively regular sightings and stories about him in the Daily Prophet and Teen Witch Weekly. It had his head spinning by the end of it, and he came to the obvious conclusions that these stories and articles about him were perpetuating his larger than life image, and were also being used to sell more papers and books and line the pockets of a lot of people that were essentially exploiting him and his image. When he brought this up with the group, they were all somewhat shocked again at Harry's insight and the truth behind his words as they all grew up thinking he was this super powerful wizard who would come to Hogwarts with years of experience and amazing skills.
When he asked what could be done about it though, only Anthony had any helpful advice as his dad was an attorney that he could write to and ask for Harry. Harry quickly agreed, and then told Tracy that he wouldn't become some arrogant pin up boy to further perpetuate that false image of himself just for other people's benefit no matter how nicely she asked causing them all to start giggling a bit, well all of them except Daphne who only snorted once and then hid her face behind her hands in embarrassment.
With the ice broken somewhat among them all, the talked turned back to school and families and was a bit more open than previously with everyone contributing a little more and also trying to help Harry catch up with what he should probably know. Daphne suggested he order a book called Wizarding Nobility, about genealogy and families in the British wizarding world as it would help him to learn how they were all interconnected and who was who among the power players in the government and society in general. That was followed by a small lesson on interacting with your peers in school, as the Heir to the Ancient and Noble House of Potter there were certain codes of conduct he was expected to follow when meeting and interacting with other Heirs and Heiresses, of which the compartment was seemingly full of.
Terry was the Heir of the Ancient and Learned House of Boot, Anthony was not the heir to his house as his father had an older brother who was next in line after his Grandfather, but he was still Anthony of the Noble House of Goldstein, Blaise was the Heir to the House of Zabini, Daphne was the Heir of the Ancient and Noble House of Greengrass, and Tracy while being a halfblood was still the Heir to House Davis as she had no siblings. They all despite beings heirs to their houses, had Fathers and/or Grandfathers who were still acting Heads of their families and didn't anticipate actually running their families for quite some time unless through unnatural means or marriage. Harry was the only one among them who would be the Head of his family before they even left school, and with that distinction came a lot of political weight and influence that many people would want to get a piece of so to speak.
It seemed only moments later that there began a series of interruptions at the door to their compartment, as first an older lady with a push tray offered to sell them sweets and snacks to which they all purchased a little something and Harry buying the most to try out the different variety of magical snacks he had never seen or heard of before. That visit was soon followed by a somewhat bossy young girl already in her Hogwarts plain black uniform robes showing she too was a first year, asking if anyone had seen a lost toad one of their fellow classmates named Neville misplaced. Terry sighed and should his head mumbling "oh Neville" somewhat exasperatedly making Harry think the boys knew each other pretty well. When everybody confirmed they hadn't spotted a toad, but would try to capture it for Neville if they did, the bossy girl with the bushy brown hair left.
The compartment door had barely even closed however as it was opened again, this time by an arrogant looking white blonde haired boy with his nose in the air and a sneer on his pointed face and being followed by two much larger and thicker set boys that reminded Harry of body guards. He quickly looked around the compartment before zeroing in on Harry, and seemingly puffing up to make himself look smarter or more important but was easily recognized for what it was, before opening his mouth and asking in a somewhat whiny voice.
"They are saying all up and down the train, that Harry Potter is in this compartment. So it's you then?" he questioned with a calculating look in his silvery grey eyes as he gave Harry a quick look up and down before glancing again around the compartment and seemingly accessing the worth of every person in it. "At least you are with the right sort, even if some of you," here he looked even more haughtily at Tracy, "aren't quite pure enough. I came to offer my advice and assistance as you join our world, my name is Malfoy, Draco Malfoy."
"Greetings Heir Malfoy," started Harry politely, and immensely grateful for the quick lesson in pureblood etiquette and greetings that he got seemingly minutes prior to this meeting. "Yes, I am Harry Potter, Heir to the Ancient and Noble House of Potter," he finished and offered his hand to shake with Draco's in the traditional way of greeting a peer that Daphne had insisted he learn immediately probably for this exact moment. Once the handshake was completed, Harry glanced at Malfoy's two companions prompting the arrogant blonde boy to puff up once again.
"Allow me to introduce you to Gregory Goyle, Heir to House Goyle," he stated gesturing to the shorter boy with straw straight brown hair and a somewhat vacant expression on his face, before gesturing to the other taller boy with darker brown short hair and less vacant stare as if simply bored, "and Vincent Crabbe, Heir to House Crabbe."
"It is a pleasure to meet you both," Harry replied with a nod to the two boys as the compartment was much too crowded for him to get close enough to shake either of the boys' hands. "As you can see we don't have much room at the moment, but I would like to thank you for your generosity and will make plans to get together to discuss our world soon."
Draco nodded his head, and tried to keep the slight grimace of distaste off his pale pointed face that he was being dismissed, but knew that as Potter had been quite polite in everything he said and did it would only look bad on him if he didn't reciprocate and simply turned and left the compartment with his two bookends right behind him. The moment he left, Harry let out a loud sigh of relief as Tracy began giggling at him; Terry, Anthony, and Blaise all wore amused smirks, and Daphne gave him a very pointed I told you so look. Harry thanked Daphne profusely for her impromptu lesson and hoped that he wouldn't have to put up with that arrogant prat too much at Hogwarts, and was relieved that he hadn't made any glaring mistakes or social faux pas in front of the others.
Luckily, after that visit, their compartment door remained closed for some time as they all chatted a bit or in Terry's case read while the others talked. It was pretty enjoyable for Harry to talk and interact with others his age, and although he wouldn't consider them all friends right away they were at least friendly acquaintances and that was enough for now. When the subject of Houses came up, Harry was still unsure where he wanted to go as both his parents were in Gryffindor, but his mum had often complained about the lack of serious focus in that house and often lamented about not letting the Sorting Hat put her in Ravenclaw as it wanted to. Daphne, Tracy, and Blaise all expected to go into Slytherin with Tracy thinking maybe Ravenclaw as an outside chance, while Terry and Anthony both expected to be in Ravenclaw and no where else.
Harry debated with the group about the merits and drawbacks of all the houses, and after listening to his reasoning, they all encouraged him to go for Ravenclaw as he was obviously too smart and thoughtful to be a Lion and not nearly rash enough, and would encounter the same issues his mum did with the lack of seriousness with studying and learning. Plus, if he was a Ravenclaw, he could operate outside of the whole Gryffindor versus Slytherin rivalry and they could easily continue to be acquaintances. It would also be a split from the expectations everyone had built up for him, as they told him it was a forgone conclusion that he would end up in Gryffindor, even if unfair after now meeting him and hearing the truth about his lack of magical upbringing.
The rest of the train ride was spent talking and reading, and a small break when they took turns with the boys and girls putting on their school robes before the train came to a stop and they were told to leave their belongings on board to be taken to the school separately. The group of six first years made their way out into the dark evening night, and Harry was happy to hear the familiar call of Hagrid for all the first years to gather around him and his lantern to make their own way to the school separately from the older students. They ended up walking through a dark path, and taking small wooden boats of four across a large lake all the while looking up at a brilliantly lit up Hogwarts Castle that had the attention of practically everyone.
They then reached large oak doors, where they were greeted by Deputy Headmaster and Transfiguration Master Minerva McGonagall who Harry knew quite a bit about from Lily's descriptions and being in her classes and house for so many years. They were then led to a small side room to await the sorting where they were scared by ghosts and then told to form a line and follow Professor McGonagall into the Great Hall to be sorted in front of the whole school and staff. The place was definitely magical, and seemed to simply open up to the heavens, and was filled with happy students and bright gold candlelight and tableware. Harry listened intently to the Sorting Hat's' song and tried to pay attention as each name was called and a student came forward to wear the Hat and be sorted, trying to remember names and faces.
The first he recognized was Terry Boot, who got his wish and quickly became a Ravenclaw, while shortly after him Tracy Davis became a Slytherin, then Anthony Goldstein joined Terry as a Ravenclaw and soon afterward Daphne too joined her friend Tracy as a Slytherin. Malfoy too joined the Slytherin table almost before the Hat even touched his slicked back blonde hair, and soon they were approaching Harry's name and his nervousness was increasing as this single decision would affect and shape so much of his life over the next seven years and beyond. When his name was called, the Hall instantly erupted in whispers and people craning their heads to see him as he sat on the stool and let the Hat fall on top of his head.
"Well Mr. Potter," said the voice of the Sorting Hat inside his head, "aren't you a difficult one. Plenty of courage, an intense work ethic, knowledgeable, ambitious, and powerful …my you could simply go to any of the Houses and thrive. Yet you are struggling with the desire to be like your parents and find a commonality with them which pushes you towards Gryffindor, and also a desire to not be defined by other expectations and desire to learn everything you can that leads you towards Ravenclaw. I will leave the decision up to you Mr. Potter, as you had already thought, this decision WILL shape and affect your next seven years and beyond greatly. I have rarely met an eleven year old who has suffered and overcome as much as you have in your already short life, or who is as in tune with what they want in life, and trust you to make the best choice for yourself." After a short pause, the Hat returned with, "I couldn't agree more, better be RAVENCLAW."
You could have heard a pin drop after the Hat's announcement of Harry's new House, as seemingly everybody was staring in shock except for the other five students who shared a train compartment with him who all had small smiles or gave him encouraging nods in the case of Daphne and Blaise as he returned the Sorting Hat to a stunned Professor McGonagall and made his way to the blue and bronze table of Ravenclaws, where a seat was open right across from Anthony that he quietly slipped into. The moment he was seated, the Hall seemed to erupt in noise as the Ravenclaws began clapping enthusiastically, while the Slytherins clapped politely while trying to school their features from showing their shock and calculating what this means, the Hufflepuffs merely joined in the clapping, and the Gryffindors seemed almost mutinous in shock and grumbling disbelief that the Boy-Who-Lived wasn't in their house.
The Sorting eventually continued, and finally ended with Blaise going to Slytherin to join Daphne and Tracy. Then the Headmaster told everyone to stay away from the third floor corridor on the right hand side for fear of death, and began the feast making Harry believe along with several others that the old wizard had finally gone around the bend. Most of the meal was filled with getting introduced to the other first years and the prefects of the House, as well as being pointed out all the teachers and their subjects.
For the boys in Ravenclaw, there was Terry Boot, Anthony Goldstein, Michael Corner, Kevin Entwistle, and Harry Potter. Michael Corner was a shorter boy with sandy blonde hair and light blue eyes that seemed nice enough if not a little stiff and aloof. Kevin Entwistle was a black haired brown eyed muggleborn who was pretty friendly and the tallest of the first year boys.
For the girls there was Lisa Turpin, Su Li, Padma Patil, Mandy Brocklehurst, and Morag MacDougal. Lisa Turpin and Mandy Brocklehurst were both friendly with Terry and Anthony, and of the five seemed the most alike as they both had light brown hair and soft brown eyes and both took their studying very seriously. Su Li was off chinese descent and very short and petite and easily the quietest of them all. Padma Patil was an attractive girl of Indian descent with striking dark brown eyes, long sleek black hair, and bronzed skin that Harry thought was probably one of the prettiest girls he had ever met. Morag MacDougal looked a bit like a tomboy, with a very short haircut and sturdier frame with a heavy Scottish accent.*
They met Penelope Clearwater, the fifth year female prefect who was very friendly, with light brown hair in loose curls, and warm grey eyes that sparkled with intelligence. Arthur Fairworth was the male prefect for the fifth years, who was a relative non-entity with totally unremarkable brown hair and eyes who rarely said anything and let Penelope seemingly do all the work. When they feast ended, it was Penelope who called for all the first years to follow her back to their common room.
They went up the main stairs behind the group of first year Gryffindors, who then split towards the left to go higher, and they went right down another corridor that seemed very well traveled. As they went past a series of doors, Penelope pointed out that they were passing the entrance to the Ancient Runes classroom, then the Charms classroom, and finally Professor Flitwick's office before ending up in front of a large oak door with a bronze eagle door knocker directly in the middle of the door with no handle or knob to use.
Penelope explained how they had to answer a riddle or random question to gain entrance into the common room, and that the knocker would only recognize and ask a Ravenclaw so they shouldn't worry about just anyone barging into their common room. The riddle was pretty simple, and Penelope explained they would be easy at the beginning of the year to get all the first years acclimated to the system before getting progressively harder. Terry was quick to answer the riddle and the group of ten first years followed the female prefect into the large round common room with a comfortable blue rug and furniture spaced throughout, and scattered tables and desks for study, as well as walls filled to the brim with bookshelves practically overflowing with books.
Harry liked the layout and feel of the common room immediately, and was quite pleased with the private library on hand so to speak as he along with the other first years looked all around the room. He then noticed a large fireplace to one side of the room and a large statue of a very pretty witch who Penelope pointed out was their founder Rowena Ravenclaw right in front of a pair of doors that she then explained led to the boys dorms on the left and girls dorms on the right. She mentioned that their names should be on the doors to their rooms and for them to go get settled in and to sleep, as their Head of House Professor Flitwick would be by at seven tomorrow morning for a short introduction to the House.
Harry along with the other first year boys, all said goodnight and went into the left door to their dorms to find their rooms. The first they came to was Kevin and Michael on the left and right respectively. Next was Terry on the left and Anthony on the right, and finally Harry on the left with a second year named David Trowbridge across the hall from him. The rooms were pretty basic with a four poster bed, a sturdy study desk with two large shelves above it, and a nice wardrobe with a hamper next to it.
Harry was pretty happy with the setup, as it was a private room that was all his, unlike what his mum said of Gryffindor that had shared dorms for each year group. Finding his trunk at the end of his bed, he slowly began pulling everything out and finding places for it in his new room before storing the trunk in the corner next to his desk and using it to pile his books on until he figured out how he wanted to sort them. He ended up putting all his school books on the first shelf, with his extra reading on the top shelf figuring he wouldn't need them as much before getting ready and heading to bed, excited about his first day at Hogwarts and what it would bring.
Harry was up early that next morning, excited to start school and learning more about magic and was therefore one of the first down in the common room waiting for his Head of House and to get started. It wasn't long before the rest of the Ravenclaws seemed to be waiting in the common room for their Head of House, all of the first years gathering around where Harry had settled on one of the sofas near the fire. Most, like Harry also had a book in hand to pass the time, and while many friends seemed to be catching up, the noise never got too loud that those reading or studying couldn't focus on their work.
"Hello my Ravenclaws," greeted the tiny Charms Professor Flitwick as he entered the common room and found most of his House gathered throughout the large room waiting on him. "I hope you all had wonderful summers and are excited to get back to work, I will be meeting you all within the next week or so for our usual conferences. Are all the first years here?"
"Yes sir," replied Penelope, waving the tiny professor over to the sofas with the ten first year students nearby.
"Greetings all my new Ravenclaws, I am Professor Flitwick your Head of House and Charms Master," he greeted all the eleven year olds happily, "why don't we go around and introduce ourselves before I give you all some basic rules and expectations?"
What followed was a quick introduction to all ten first years, with Professor Flitwick telling them all he would schedule individual meetings with them all next week to make sure they were adjusting well and not having any problems with the new classes. He then gave each student a small map with the main routes and locations of classrooms, library, common room and Great Hall. He also said he expected every student to try their best and to ask for help if they were falling behind, and to keep all the books in the common room library in the common room.
His last bit of advice was to read a chapter or two ahead of every lesson, especially potions if they wanted to be prepared and avoid getting into trouble or upsetting the professor for each class. He then set the fifth year prefects, Penny and Arthur in charge of helping them get to the Great Hall for breakfast, and their first classes for the next few days until they felt comfortable getting around. With that, the first years were lead to breakfast by a happily chatting Penny, with a silent Arthur following behind them all.
By the time they reached the Great Hall, Harry could already feel a headache coming on as it seemed that everyone he passed was busy whispering and pointing at him, and it only got worse when he reached the Great Hall. He felt like he was on display at a zoo or something with everyone gaping at him, and he wasn't sure how he was going to handle all that attention and expectations. It seemed that the Gryffindors were still the most outraged at his sorting, now looking at him with both betrayal and anger in their faces as he passed by.
He ignored them the best he could and stuck close to his fellow first year Ravens as they sat at the end of the House table and began breakfast, eating better than he could ever remember. Having already received their timetables from Professor Flitwick, the first years were eagerly talking about their upcoming first class of the day, History of Magic which was followed by Charms and then lunch, before an afternoon double potions class that they had already been warned about to be prepared.
Harry had already read all of his text books, but decided to refresh his potions reading before that class, and started reading during breakfast, a move duplicated by many of the Ravenclaws and probably went a good way to showing the other houses that Harry was a true Ravenclaw and the Sorting Hat probably knew what it was doing. By the time Penny gathered the first years to head to History of Magic, Harry had reread the first chapter of his Potion Text, and was well into the first chapter of the correlating Herbology Text too.
It almost immediately became clear in the first ten minutes of class, that History of Magic was going to be a very difficult class to follow during the lectures, as the teacher was a ghost that bored even the studious Ravenclaws into daydreaming or downright sleep. The Hufflepuffs they shared the class with were even worse off as they were sleeping and in some cases snoring before the teacher even really began his lecture for the day.
Harry instead of trying to fight through the monotone droning of the ghost Professor Binns, who he noticed was reciting the textbook word for word, continued his reading ahead of the Herbology texts in preparation for Potions class. After the warnings from his older housemates and Head of House, as well as the many mentions of him in his mum's journal, Harry had a strong desire to do very well in Professor Snape's class hoping to make a good connection with the man that could probably tell him so much more about his mother.
He was somewhat worried though, as towards the end of Lily's fifth year, she mentioned several times the falling out she had with her first friend Severus, and also knew from her writings that Severus and his father James more than disliked each other and hoped that didn't carry over to him. He was hoping to prove to the very severe looking man, that he was his mother's son more so than his father's if he had any hope of having a good relationship with him which he hoped he already partially accomplished with his sorting. According to his mum, throughout the early years especially James was the quintessential Gryffindor, loud brash and bull headed with a severe dislike of everything Slytherin or dark.
When History ended, he made sure Terry and Anthony who were the closest to him were both awake and gathered their things before heading towards their next class which was Charms right near their common room. They made it to the familiar classroom just as the group of first year Slytherin's arrived from the other direction, and getting small nods from Daphne and Blaise, while Tracy waved and smiled causing Harry to do the same. He also got a long look over from Draco, before getting a respectful nod from the rather arrogant blonde who then proceeded to continue his monologue while a small group of Slytherin's watched and nodded along worshipfully.
Harry was somewhat worried about dealing with the likes of Draco Malfoy, the boy was incredibly arrogant and snobbish and a bully, but Harry also knew that many of the Slytherins looked to him for direction and leadership which would make him a powerful enemy or adversary even if he couldn't stand the boy. Luckily the short lessons he got from Daphne on the train had helped him immensely by not antagonizing the boy or making an enemy of him, but he knew he would have to continue to be courteous if he wanted to remain on the arrogant boy's good side.
He again thanked Daphne in his head, and promised to do something nice for her after taking her advice and ordering that book she recommended as soon as he got out of classes this afternoon. When they all filed into the Charms classroom, he was happy to see raised horseshoe shaped seating so everyone could easily see the Professor's desk and found a seat next to Anthony and Terry on one side and Tracy and Daphne on the other. He gave the two girls small smiles, but before he could say anything Professor Flitwick walked in and happily began taking role and beginning class.
The class was everything Harry thought a class on magic would be, Professor Flitwick was very enthusiastic and excited, and ran his class with a bit of controlled chaos that kept every student happily engaged. They learned the light charm "lumos" and it's counter "nox" to extinguish the light by the time the bell rang for lunch time and the end of the class. Harry excitedly talked with his fellow first years who all left the classroom happily discussing the class and the first bit of actual controlled magic many of them had ever done. Even Draco, who usually wore an arrogant sneer was smiling and excited after the productive and fun class.
Making their way to the Great Hall for lunch, many of the Slytherin's seemed to collect themselves quickly and show less excitement as they neared the populated parts of the school, and Harry asked Tracy who he was closest to what happened. She explained that one of their rules was to not show emotion in the school, and after getting practically hissed at by Daphne seemingly for telling a non-Slytherin, she simply shrugged and gave him a half hearted smile before catching up to her friend and entering the Great Hall with a confused Harry behind them.
Asking Terry and Anthony what it could mean, began a discussion that lasted through most of the lunch period about perceptions of Slytherins and how many people viewed and treated them as a whole both in school and afterwards. Neither of the two boys he knew the best where overtly prejudiced against Slytherins, and especially Blaise, Daphne, and Tracy who they knew and liked for a long time, but several of his other fellow first years had more negative experiences or prejudices ingrained in them from their parents and knew that Gryffindors in general thought that all Slytherins were dark wizards and witches.
Harry was confused how an entire house could be labelled dark or untrustworthy, simply because they were supposed to be cunning and ambitious but realized he had no real reference points either way other than his mum's somewhat occasional rants about the houses in her journal. He remembered Hagrid's disdain for the Slytherins and had heard already a few disparaging things said about their Head of House, but didn't think that was any reason to judge an entire house as he too liked Daphne, Tracy, and Blaise from the brief time they spent together on the train. Putting the discussion aside to deal with later, Harry and his fellow first years hurried through the end of lunch before returning to their dorms to pick up their potion supplies and get down to the dungeons with the help of Penny.
They arrived to find the Hufflepuffs gathered by the door looking decidedly nervous, and Harry realized that they too had been warned about the Potion Master, as there was a decided lack of general cheer that followed the badgers from this morning. Penny wished them all luck before leaving for her own class, and they all seemed to collectively hold their breaths as they waited for the Professor to open the door and start the class.
It wasn't long before the bang of the door slamming open caused almost the entire class to collectively jump in shock as the dark haired professor glared at the gathered first years and barked at them to come in and take their seats. The dungeon classroom was just that, a dark and creepy dungeon with very little light, dark stone walls, strong foul lingering smells, and an overall dreary atmosphere. There were tables set up with two people to a table, and Harry soon found himself partnered up with Su Li as all the other Ravenclaws quickly found seats and partners near the front of the room.
Harry and Su were near the middle of the classroom, and both gave each other nervous looks as they pulled out their supplies and notebooks in preparation, and beyond nervous of what the class and teacher would be like after all the stories they had already heard. Professor Snape soon began class by taking attendance, and Harry knew right from that moment that he would not have an easy time with the dark haired Potion Master.
"Ah yes," he said softly, "Harry Potter. Our new - celebrity." he finished with a malicious sneer that let Harry know he would need to be very careful with this man.
"You are here to learn the subtle science and exact art of potion making," he began. He spoke in barely more than a whisper, but they caught every word as the class was deathly silent. "As there is little foolish wand waving here, many of you will hardly believe this is magic. I don't expect you will really understand the beauty of the softly simmering cauldron with its shimmering fumes, the delicate power of liquids that creep through the human veins, bewitching the mind, ensnaring the senses ...I can teach you how to bottle fame, brew glory, even stopper death - if you aren't as big a bunch of dunderheads as I usually have to teach."
Absolute silence followed the Professor's little introductory speech, with most of the Ravenclaws straightening up hopeful to show they were not dunderheads.
"Potter!" said Snape suddenly. "What would I get if I added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?"
Harry was immediately shocked to be put on the spot so quickly, and once again thankful that he had read ahead and was prepared as he answered, "the Draught of Living Death, sir."
Snape was obviously shocked that Harry knew the answer as his eyes widened comically for a brief moment before his perpetual scowl was back on his face, and another question barked out. "Where would you look to find me a bezoar?"
"The stomach of a goat or my potions kit, sir." answered back Harry easily. That one had been in the introduction to the Potion Text as an essential ingredient for any brewer as it neutralized most poisons.
"What is the difference, Potter, between Monkshood and Wolfsbane?" barked out a glaring Snape as he black eyes bored into the younger wizard's.
"Nothing, sir. They are different names of the same plant, also called Aconite," he responded calmly, glad to have also read the Herbology text and reviewed it again this morning.
Professor Snape gave Harry a long penetrating look that had Harry shiver involuntarily and feel like he was being examined from the inside out, as he worried that he had already ruined his chances to get along with his mum's former best friend. The pressure that he felt on his mind was brief, but also completely unpleasant and caused him to wince and grab at his temple to soothe the ache, and subsequently breaking eye contact with the dour Potion Master causing the pressure on his mind to instantly stop.
Professor Snape gave Harry another brief scowl and clenched his jaw as if in physical pain, before responding grudgingly, "three points to Ravenclaw." "And the rest of you should be copying this down."
The class then continued on with Snape giving a small lecture on preparing ingredients and asking very pointed questions to the other students at random times, but not again to Harry seemingly ignoring him for the rest of the lesson. They were then given instructions on the board and told to work in pairs producing the boil cure potion. Harry with Su's help got all their ingredients ready and prepared a very good potion, although it wasn't the perfect shade of green described by the book it was still one of the closest in the class.
After being dismissed by the scowling professor, the Ravenclaws as a group all headed to their common rooms to put away their things, all discussing the lesson and realizing that the stories of the mean Potion Master were true, but not nearly as bad as they all thought they would be. Harry, however was worried that the man who was his mum's best friend for most of her Hogwarts years was not going to be a good source for him to go to on his mum, as he obviously still held a grudge towards his father and maybe even his mum for the way their friendship ended.
He was also really worried about the short spike of pressure in his mind when his eyes were locked on the dark haired professor's, and wondered what that could be and how to prevent it from ever happening again. Thinking it was somehow magic related he decided to ask Terry and Anthony when he had a moment away from the other first years. The rest of his fellow first years seemed to agree to put away their things and settle into a table at the common room to begin doing their homework and or preparing for their other classes in the hour plus they had free until dinner.
Harry worked quickly and ended up finishing his Potions and Charms homework before it was time for dinner, and followed the other first years to the Great Hall for the evening meal. After an amazingly filling dinner, Harry was back in the common room finishing his History homework, and then rereading his Transfiguration and Defence Against the Dark Arts texts in preparation for tomorrow's classes excited to be finally learning real magic.
Transfiguration the next day with the Slytherins was a morning double class from 9 am to noon, and after some extensive note taking on Transfiguration rules and the importance of visualization, they were all set to turning matchsticks to needles. Tracy and Anthony who had both told Harry when they first met on the train that Transfiguration was the class they were most looking forward to, were the first in the class to complete the assignment earning them each five points for their respective houses. By the end of the lesson, almost every member of Ravenclaw except Kevin and Stephanie and all the Slytherins except Crabbe and Goyle had managed the full change, with the others only partially accomplishing the task.
After lunch, they had their first class with the Gryffindors, whom they met outside the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom. Anthony and Tony greeted a somewhat chubby and shy boy named Neville who Harry remembered had lost his toad on the train. Harry also recognized the bushy haired bossy girl who had helped the shy boy, who he remembered was named Hermione. It was also neat to see Padma greet her identical twin, who he could only tell apart due to the red and gold trim on her robes and Gryffindor patch.
The two groups weren't outside the room for long, as the classroom door was opened by their purple turban wearing professor shortly after their arrival and they all went in to find seats. Harry again was in the middle of the classroom, not as eager as most of the studious Ravenclaws or the Granger girl to be right up front, or as lazy as several of the Gryffindors who immediately went to the back of the class. He ended up with Su Li next to him again, who he gave a small smile to, and a pair of Gryffindor girls on his other side who he learned during roll were named Fay Dunbar and Eloise Midgen.
It only took about two minutes into the class for Harry to realize that he was going to have a real hard time trying to learn anything from Professor Quirrell. The man's stutter was atrocious, he kept repeating things in different word order, and he also felt a similar pressure in his mind that he felt in potions that really confused him because he wasn't looking at anyone in the eyes but rather the back of the professor. By the end of the class, he couldn't wait to pack up his things and rush out of the classroom wishing he never had to return as the man hadn't even mentioned a single spell or helpful bit of information, and his head was pounding due to the constant pressure on his mind.
On the walk back to the common room, as that was their last class of the day on Friday Harry stopped Anthony and Terry to ask them about the weird pressure he felt in his head. The two boys gave him somewhat startled looks before sharing a quick glance with each other. Terry then said it sounded like someone was trying to use Legilimancy on him, which simply put was the magical ability to read minds through eye contact. Harry's wide eyed and fearful look had them both quickly reassure him that there was a defence for it called Occlumency that they both had to learn the basics of being purebloods, and that they could recommend a book or two that he might want to get to get him started.
Harry remembered the mentioning of Occlumency in his mum's journal as a skill her and Severus were learning back in school, and realized that Professor Snape was most likely using it's counter now known to him as Legilimancy on him in class earlier although he didn't understand how it was happening in Professor Quirrell's class. Getting the names of two books that he should order, reminded him that he ordered a book about it before leaving Privet Drive that he hadn't seen yet, and that he forgot to order the genealogy book Daphne had recommended on the train and quickly went to his room to look through the Flourish & Blotts owl order catalogue.
He was in his room for only a minute, when he heard a tapping noise on his window that caused him to laugh as he was just wondering about his owl order. Hedwig had returned with a book shaped package wrapped in brown paper tied to her leg. She settled on his desk so he could remove the package, and decided that since he lived alone in this room he should set up a perch so she could stay in here with him instead of at the owlery all the time.
The Occlumency book he received from Flourish & Blotts was the one recommended by Anthony, and he quickly found the other that Terry suggested as well as the book Daphne had mentioned and filled out an owl order form. He gave Hedwig some owl treats and pet her for some time before tying the new owl order form to her leg and asking her to take it back to Flourish & Blotts when ever she was ready. She just gave him a little bark, nipped his finger, and took off back out the window into the late afternoon sky.
He then grabbed his new book and his bag to go down to the common room to start his Transfiguration and DADA homework before dinner so he could start reading and studying his new Occlumency book, now knowing that it was one of the most important things he had to do. The thought of anybody being able to read his mind was an incredible invasion of privacy that he couldn't stand for, and also as someone who valued his mind so much it was equally scary that someone could mess with if they were in it and really screw him up.
Finishing all of his homework just after dinner, Harry begged off from the other first years hanging out in the common room playing games of chess and gobstones and instead returned to his room to start reading the Occlumency book he had. Getting through a good bit of the book before it got too late, Harry was somewhat pleased to learn of the many benefits of Occlumency that included needing less sleep, having better memory retention and recall, as well as protecting your own thoughts and controlling your emotions. That the initial steps of the new discipline would involve a lot of meditation and trying to clear and organize your mind seemed a little daunting and difficult, but the benefits greatly outweighed any amount of time he put into learning the useful skill.
Outside of meals, Harry spent his entire Saturday in his room finishing his reading and practicing the meditation techniques recommended by the Occlumency book and went to bed that night feeling he made great progress even if he had yet to actually clear his mind. At breakfast on Sunday, Hedwig returned with his other two books and a small pamphlet that detailed some of the old and out of print books in Flourish & Blotts current collection that were for sale, something they only gave out to preferred customers in good standing (or a famous boy-who-lived).
Spending all of Sunday holed up in his room continuing to practice his meditation and reading the second Occlumency book that arrived, Harry gave little thought to classes the next day thinking his current project much more essential at the moment. He did take a break to look through the Rare Books Pamphlet and circled three titles that seemed interesting enough to add to his collection not knowing however when he would get around to reading them. One called Bloodline Gifts of the Noble Families, the other an early edition of Hogwarts: A History, and the final one was a book from 1785 called Wards Broken which he only selected because the author was listed as Christopher Potter.
With the weekend coming to a close, Harry was once again looking forward to classes resuming and finding out how the rest of the classes he would be having would turn out. He still had yet to attend his first Herbology and Astronomy classes, and was eager to continue with the others even if DADA and History were rather lacking. He knew that he had a lot of time in front of him, and was really looking forward to learning more magic.
*AN: For the sake of having an even ten first years for Ravenclaw, Stephen Cornfoot will be a Gryffindor that met and befriended Ron on the train and heard the tales of great bravery that had him take Harry's spot in the Lion's Den.
