"Spoken dialogue or signs"
'Thought'
flashback/''dialogue"/'thought'
The First Step
Harry woke up feeling great, stronger than before and he couldn't explain it. Even with his dark sight, things seemed sharper, clearer, with all of his senses enhanced as well. "Wow…" Harry whispered in wonder. Somehow even this dungeon seemed more alive now. He knew he couldn't stay marveling at himself forever and so Harry put his 'mask' back on, got dressed, and went to the Great Hall after a quick shower. He'd been waking up early for a few years and so few students were up and about with the exception of the higher year students who were already studying in the common rooms, paying no mind to him.
Harry made his way out of the dungeon and up to the massive doors of the Great Hall. As he traversed the stone hall towards the Great Hall, he felt the eyes of other students from other houses all on him as they gossiped, no doubt that the topic of all of the current conversations were about him.
Due to his enhanced state, he was able to hear the closer students with complete clarity as though they were beside him.
"Look at him, walking around as though he owns the place, filthy Slytherin traitor…" He didn't hear any more as he went into the hall. He kept to himself as he sat down at the end of the Slytherin table, the few students at the table all made sure to keep away from him, though he figured it was probably as he expected.
As students began trickling in, Harry immediately picked up that all the students cared to talk about was him. Whispers and general dislike for him or him being in Slytherin. As more students continued to pour into the Great Hall, he heard more and more about the theory of himself though in no positive light. The Slytherins all made sure to stay as far away from Harry as they could which, for them, made it quite cramped. Harry sighed and just picked away at his food, waiting for schedules to be handed out.
Ron finally walked in and he was flanked by two others, he assumed from his dorm room, who, like Draco, were like bodyguards, all three with hatred clear in their eyes, unwavering in their direction, before sitting down with their backs forcibly towards his direction. Harry sighed and thought, 'Based on the last 24 hours, the magical world isn't so different from the Muggle world, and it only seems to be getting worse.'
Hermione hadn't said much but she shot the occasional glance towards him so Harry wasn't sure what she was thinking quite yet.
Allison then entered and tried making her way to him but her dorm mates noticed her focus and pulled her away, keeping her seated at Ravenclaw table in spite of her distress.
Harry then noticed the professors seated at the head table and it was as though they apparated there, he had not noticed them and even they were all looking towards him with varying degrees of curiosity or disdain as they quietly talked among themselves.
'Does no one have anything else to talk about? How could there possibly be so much to talk about that they have no time for themselves? What is wrong with these people?' Harry thought with curiosity and a hint of annoyance.
Eventually, Draco sat down beside him without saying a word, his bodyguards sitting on the side away from Harry.
"Morning there, Malfoy, bump into anything else last night?" Harry said with a smirk. Though the action didn't reach his eyes as usual, blank as they were.
"Maybe I have underestimated you Potter, you've become a traitor to your own parents and their friends and allies, how very Slytherin of you."
"Maybe, maybe not, but you'll have to figure that out on your own. Don't forget about what happened on the train because how this proceeds will depend on where you stand."
"Stand? I'm sitting, Potter," Draco said, but he nodded and made to finish his breakfast after getting up and sitting farther down the table to talk with other students that Harry supposed were from families as influential and wealthy as Malfoy.
Just moments later something mentally akin to a rock struck Harry's awareness but it wasn't from any familiar source. He began to extend his senses but it hit him again. It hit one more time and then there was silence. He continued to eat as though nothing was happening but he was spaced out, facing the direction of Daphne who just arrived at the table with a girl who was talking animatedly, though Daphne remained in her stony silence.
People at the Slytherin table noticed him staring at Daphne but after seeing his particularly blank expression, just assumed he was spacing out. The talking, brown haired girl, noticed the table's attention and also looked towards Harry. She gave him a scrutinizing look and her eyes widened slightly in surprise but turned away quickly and resumed talking to Daphne as though she saw nothing. As Harry continued to 'space out' at Daphne, he noticed that she noticed her friend's action and gave him a quick glance that became surprised as well in the only way that he knew people with a look like him could give.
He wasn't just spacing out, he felt like he could see the various negative emotions in her face and could almost guess why she was feeling what she did and that would explain her expression. That was their surprise, Harry was guessing, but even then he wasn't sure. Maybe he could talk to her friend about it later, but first he'd need to know her name, he didn't really pay attention during the sorting so he had no idea.
He was curious, this new found energy that he discovered that morning, it gave him the ability to look more closely at her face when just the previous day, he was unable to discern any information when scrutinizing her.
He decided to turn his attention back to his breakfast but before he did, there was one more jolt towards his mental state before there was silence again and he continued eating. Eventually, the professors at the head table made their way around to hand out time tables and Harry waited patiently as Snape came around. He didn't expect the professor to pause when handing out his schedule but it was only a moment. Harry tried looking at his face but found he could only see blankness. Not something he could find on himself or Daphne and so this peaked his interest. 'Who are you?' Harry thought.
oOoOo
Classes flew by for Harry because he'd already known the material and so when finishing any assigned tasks by the professors, he was always excused after being given the homework for the day and set about to explore the castle. Many thought this was unfair and was using some hidden knowledge to blackmail the teachers into letting him free. He never told any who asked and even though Harry always left early, he always went straight to the library to study whatever he could about the body and any magical ways to restore broken parts and spent the rest of the time exploring whatever he could of the castle.
He'd quickly read through those books and was very disappointed when he could only find mentions to the more complex parts of the body such as the eyes. Even the books with more detailed information gave no indication that there was any real cure for blindness or damaged eyesight. 'Am I destined to be blind for the rest of my life?' Harry cursed inwardly at his demise. It was fine if he did but he didn't like relying on his magic to see, sometimes he forgot to use it when waking up tired and bumped into random things, wondering whether he'd truly lost his sight now before remembering.
Harry was also unable to meet up with Allison, Ron, or Hermione that entire first week. Ron because of his stubborn and unknown hatred for all things Slytherin. Allison because she was always pulled away by her Ravenclaw friends whenever she tried to sneak away or get his attention and Hermione was just too into her books and studying to really notice. Neville was terrified that Harry would attack him but he wasn't sure why.
Harry felt so very alone, he was fine with it but after he thought he started to make friends and especially since he'd opened up to Allison, he thought maybe things would start to get better for him in terms of his social life. 'Maybe I should've asked to go to Gryffindor, then I wouldn't be constantly on my toes whenever I go anywhere in this blasted castle.' Harry had been hoping that Hogwarts would be a home where he could feel alive for the next seven years yet it was beginning to feel like a prison and it hadn't even been a month yet. He hoped something would change soon, he could not go for the next seven years living in constant resentment like he did back at the Dursley's house.
That weekend, he was confronted by the girl who he found out was called Tracy Davis.
"Hey, Potter!" a voice called out. He was alone in a corridor so he was surprised when she came running around the corner, calling his name.
"Yes, Ms. Davis?" he replied, one eye raised in curiosity.
"I feel like you should know, Daphne isn't looking to date anyone, you shouldn't even bother, it isn't worth your time," she explained. Harry gaped at her in shock before he began laughing, dropping his mask entirely which caused Tracy Davis to pause. "What?!"
"Is that what you thought I was thinking? I have to thank you, I've been having a bad week... HAHAHAHA!" Harry said, seeing Tracy frown, he calmed himself and explained, "I am more curious as to why she looks like I do, no child looks like we do without some serious issues pressing on us or some sort of trauma, I can see abandonment, betrayal, and resigned hatr-." Harry was startled when Tracy Davis looked at him in horror and dashed off. "What? Did I say something wrong?" Harry asked to nobody.
After his surprise wore off, he resumed his mask and thought, 'She came to me to tell me not to look for Daphne's affections because she misinterpreted my curiosity but when I explained she ran off in horror? Now I'm more curious...' Harry then continued on exploring the lower levels of the castle with his senses targeting anything that was significantly more magical than the rest of the things at Hogwarts. 'Maybe I'll figure it out some day, it's not like it's an urgent matter.'
On Monday there was a notice for first year students posted up on the Slytherin wall. Flying lessons on Thursday for both Gryffindors and Slytherins. Harry looked at the notice with mild interest.
12th of September, 1991 (Thursday)
Harry stood alone by himself, separated from the rest of the group and he just shook his head. Ron was constantly glaring at him or ignoring him, mostly ignoring him, Hermione was just spouting off all she knew about flying from a book to anyone who was listening which was Neville and a few others who'd never gone flying before. The old looking brooms were in a neat line and he supposed every student there was supposed to stand by any one of the brooms and chose to stand by the one closest to the doors. Their professor for the lesson, Madam Hooch, arrived. She had short, gray hair, and yellow eyes like a hawk. She barked out, "What are you waiting for? Stand by a broomstick! Hurry up now!"
"Stick out your wand hand right over your broom," she explained, "and say 'UP!'"
They all did so and Harry's broom jumped right into his hand. The rest of the group had varying degrees of success. Draco and several other Slytherins had broomsticks in their hands. Draco's posse just kept saying up but had no results, same for Hermione and Neville and most of the Gryffindors but Ron and his bodyguards had their broomsticks in their hands. Afterwards, she explained how to mount it without sliding off the end and told Draco that he'd been mounting it wrong for years. She then said they'd all go a few feet off the ground after her whistle, stay in the air for a few seconds, then float back down to the ground.
"One... two..." she began to say but Neville, nervous as always and afraid of being left behind, kicked off and flew up and continued to fly up. "Come back down, boy!" Madam Hooch had shouted but the nervous flying boy, white as a sheet, slipped sideways and fell, landing with a loud thud and a nasty sounding crack. She examined the prone boy with a face as white as his and said aloud, "Broken wrist." She led Neville to the hospital wing after telling them that no one was allowed to fly and if anyone was seen on their brooms, she'd get them out of Hogwarts as fast as possible.
Harry sighed and waited, he sat down and focused on clearing his mind, of the external noise by the others and his own internal confusion and eventually there was nothing. In his eternal silence, his senses extended and noticed the rememberall that Neville had been talking about at breakfast but Malfoy had also noticed and went over to inspect it.
"Hey, it's that stupid thing that Longbottom's gran sent him!"
Ron spoke up in defense for Neville, "Give it here, Malfoy."
"I think I'll leave it somewhere for Longbottom to find, how about up in a tree?" Malfoy exclaimed.
"Give it here!" Ron yelled, but Malfoy had already mounted the broom he had and flew off. Ron was about to get onto his broom even though he wasn't so sure of his flying ability but then everyone else shouted in surprise when Harry had mounted his broom and zipped passed them all. Malfoy was shocked when Harry had flown passed him and snatched the rememberall out of his hand and landed safely on the ground.
Harry was shocked by his own actions. 'Why did I do that...?' The rest of them were standing in stunned silence until Madam Hooch had returned. Harry passed by Hermione, knowing she was one of the few students in their year in Gryffindor that were nice to Neville, and gave her the rememberall that he now held. She nodded in shock but still said nothing.
"Why do you all look like that?" She asked, "Did someone else get hurt?" They all shook their heads. "Well then what happened?" They all just pointed at Harry and Harry turned to look at her and explained.
"Draco Malfoy had taken Neville Longbottom's rememberall and flew to leave it up in a tree so I flew up to him and took it."
She turned to the silent group and asked, "What's so shocking about that?" and turning around to Harry, she said, "and you, Mr. Malfoy and Mr. Potter, are in big trouble."
"Professor?" Hermione said loud enough to catch her attention.
"Yes? Ms. Granger," Madam Hooch said in frustration that two of her students already betrayed her instructions.
"We could barely see H-Harry when he flew to take the rememberall, he had also just easily snatched it out of Malfoy's hands. This all happened in the blink of an eye really..." she explained.
"Right, well, we'll still have to see Professor Snape about your actions, Mr. Malfoy, you'll stay here, Mr. Potter, let's go," Madam Hooch decided after a minute of silence as she processed that information.
A few minutes later, Madam Hooch had stopped by the dungeon where Snape held his potion's class and knocked.
"Yes? I'm busy you know." he said in mild irritation. He closed the door behind him and his eyes zeroed in on Harry and then his attention returned to Madam Hooch.
"One of your students, Mr. Malfoy, had taken an object from another student and flew up to put it elsewhere in the Forbidden Forest but before he could do so, as another student explained, Mr. Potter here had flown up after him and taken said object back in the blink of an eye. Would you object to putting Mr. Potter on the Quidditch team?" Madam Hooch explained.
Snape inspected Harry for a minute, causing some discomfort to all parties present. Sighing, the man said, "No, I would not object, but my team still has the student who was seeker for the team last year, what am I supposed to do about that?"
"Hold trials, isn't that how all teams work, Severus?" Madam Hooch suggested, narrowing her eyes.
"Very well, there's trials being held on the weekend, I'll get Mr. Potter a broom as I assume he does not have one of his own? We still have to talk to Dumbledore about this as well," Severus said.
"Of course, now off you run, Mr. Potter," Madam Hooch said and she turned to discuss things with the professor.
'And now I may be on the Quidditch team,' Harry thought as he headed to the Slytherin common room.
'Interesting indeed.'
