Thanks to all who sent me reviews, its great to hear you're enjoying it so far. Keep posting!
AN: I don not own the original characters, places etc in Harry Potter.
Chapter 2"Harry, will you get down here, you're mother is going to go nuts if we're late!" called Joseph from the bottom of the stairs.
Dressed and ready, Harry ran out of his room and hurried downstairs to the fireplace, where his father was holding a glass bottle of floo powder. His mother had left about an hour ahead of the boys, rushing to get gold from Gringotts before the crowds came in.
Harry grimaced at the floo powder, Oh great, my favourite way of travel, thought Harry, taking a pinch, stepping into the fireplace and shouting, "Diagon Alley!"
After an immense swirl of colour and smoke, he arrived, shortly joined by his mother and father. Brushing dust off his sweatshirt, he and his dad stepped into the already busy streets of Diagon Alley. Harry was amazed. There were so many shops selling everything from quills to newts eyes to brushes that grew teeth and bit you if you weren't its proper user ("No more headlice!" read the sign)
Nothing in Europe he had seen compared to this. Russia had been smoky, Paris had been grey and in Bulgaria the shop owners looked at you with daggers in their eyes if you so much as thought about leaving their stores empty handed.
He was so bedazzled by the shop windows that he ran straight into someone!
"Oh Merlin! I'm so sorry!" he apologised
The girl he had walked into pushed her bushy brown hair away from her face, "That's quite alright," she said in a-matter-of-fact voice. She looked up at him for the first time, "Hey, I don't think I've seen you before. Do you go to Hogwarts?"
"I am this year" said Harry, watching as his dad carried on into a shop nearby, "My parents have been moving me around Europe my whole life and now we're finally settling down. So I've never been to Hogwarts before"
"That would be why I haven't seen you," the girl said, all knowingly, "What year are you in?"
"I'll be in 5th year" he replied
"So will I" said the girl, "My name's Hermione Granger by the way"
"Harry Bartlett" smiled Harry
Suddenly a voice called out, "Hermione!" and both turned to see a tall lanky boy with flaming red hair walking towards them.
"Honestly, you said you'd be in Flourish and Blotts! When I got there you weren't there!" he cried exasperatedly
"Honestly Ronald, you took so long in Quality Quidditch that I went into the shop next door. They had some rather fascinating books on Ancient Runes" said Hermione, very motherly like
Harry had to grin at the two of them.
The boy named Ronald looked at Harry, "Who's this then?" he asked Hermione, jerking his head at him
"This is Harry, he's coming to our year at Hogwarts this term" replied Hermione
The boy broke out in a smile, "Hey, Ron Weasley"
"Hey" smiled Harry
"So if you're coming in this year, will you be sorted with all the first years?" asked Ron, as if it was extremely wrong to do so
"Sorted?" asked Harry
"Yeah, into your House" said Ron, pointing at a crest of the front of his cloak, bearing a red and gold lion, "We're both in Gryffindor, best house there is"
"Gryffindor? The best house?" scoffed a drawling voice. Harry looked to see a boy with fair blonde hair and grey eyes leaning on the window of a shop next to them. Unlike Ron and Hermione's cloaks, this boy's bore a silver and green snake.
"I suppose you're right Weasley, Gryffindor is the best at losing!" he smirked, walking over, "If you're going to give any publicity, you can at least give Slytherin its due credit"
The boy turned to Harry, "The name's Draco Malfoy and if your smart enough to take my advice, you'll go for Slytherin. We always win the House Cup and Quidditch Cup," he boasted
"Do you play Quidditch?" asked Harry, suddenly very interested
"I'm the Slytherin seeker," said Malfoy proudly, "We've never lost a match. Do you play at all?"
"Yeah, I play a lot. Seeker's my best position," said Harry, feeling better now that he had something to boast about in front of Malfoy
Malfoy studied his face carefully, "Well, I doubt you could better me, but who knows, you might make a good Chaser. One of ours left last year"
"Harry's much better than to join you Malfoy. Unlike you he probably actually has talent instead of cheap words and rich fathers" snarled Hermione
"Shut up about my father Mudblood" Malfoy snarled back. He turned to Harry, sighing, "It's a pity what cold hard defeat can do to people" he said mockingly. Harry was starting to dislike the boy's tone.
"See you all at school" sneered Malfoy, walking off.
"Stay out of Malfoy's way, he's a bad bloke" warned Ron
Hermione scoffed, "He's a little cowards with a rich father, nothing more. Come on Ron, we'd better find your family"
"Yeah. Nice meeting you Harry" smiled Ron
"We'll see you at school" said Hermione, the two of them leaving Harry to stand amidst the crowd with two minds about houses….and friends