Disclaimer: Harry Potter and all characters, places et al. are owned by J.K. Rowling

A/N: Finally, I managed to get this written. Had a bit of Real Life happening...
If you spot mistakes, please flame me :) And thanks for the reviews, they really give a warm fuzzy feeling :D
hmm: Unless I'm terribly mistaken, the only other parent to have taken part in the department of mystery raid besides Malfoy was Crabbe. And he doesn't seem to be the brightest of the lot. Besides, the higher you are, the deeper you fall :)

Chapter 5

Harry spent the rest of the trip to Hogwarts in solitude.
Whenever someone walked by and wanted to enter, one glance of him sent them away. Or they were afraid of his pet snake curled up in his lap, he wasn't sure. In the end, he didn't really care why. He was just happy to be left alone. Normally, Ron, Hermione and the other usual suspects would sit around him, laughing, talking and generally enjoying themselves. Somehow, he didn't feel like it. It distracted him too much.
And after the latest encounter with Ron and Hermione he wasn't looking forward to the next. If they won't accept me the way I am now, why bother with them at all? A small part in him whispered 'because they're you're friends'. But he did away with the thought.
After this summer, the thought of being alone wasn't so new to him. He had done quite well without them.
He laid his head back into his seat and looked out of the window and at the countryside speeding past. Soon his thoughts wandered off and he slumbered into deep sleep.

###

Twack.
The sound of Ginny's slap on the back of his head filled the compartment. "You dolt," she snapped.
"What?!" Ron gasped. "I didn't do anything wrong!" He looked at her with wide eyes
"You had to jump him right into the face, hadn't you?" Ginny's eyes were glowing hot with anger. "I didn't!"
"Oh, you did. He's been away for the whole summer, because we weren't there for him. We left him, what was he to think? And when he comes back, you go apeshit."
"We left him? He ran away. Dumbledore said-"
"Yeah, he did. That doesn't change that we left Harry out to dry in this terrible muggle house." Ron looked at Hermione for support, but she just ignored his attempt. She seemed to be thinking about something, as she usually did.
"And look at him now. All preppy clothes, throwing around his money like there is no tomorrow."
"So? What's wrong with that? It's not his fault he has it in the first place. And everyone's allowed to change."
"He's not the Harry I was friend with. Not after the way he treated us at the platform."
"You sure you were on the same platform as I was?" Ginny sighed. "All I ask is to give him a chance. He's been through a lot, you know that."
Ron pouted. "Sure. Whatever."
"You're absolutely hopeless. Sometimes I ask myself if we're really related..."

###

"Who did you say did this to you?" Zabini eyes were thin slits as he looked at the still groggy forms of Crabbe and Goyle.
"That new boy, just blasted us. We were just talking to him..."
"Talking, as if you could," Zabini sneered. "But who's the guy, anyway? Somehow I feel like I know him."
"Potter," Malfoy simply stated. All eyes swivelled to him. Some showed honest shock, while others, like Parkinson or Zabini looked as if Malfoy just ripped the veil off of the obvious.
"How do you know?" Zabini asked with a derisive smile on his otherwise good- looking face. "Did you run to the new boy to suck up to him, looking for new friends, huh?"
"Just shut it," Draco snapped. "One day you'll regret it, I swear..."
"When big Daddy comes out of prison? I doubt it. Face it, Malfoy, without Daddy you're just as normal as we are, and you have to play by our rules. A new thing for you, I know, but we sure will help you." Several of the Slytherins snickered.
He will pay for it. I won't be ridiculed.
But for now, he had to play along. He had to face the hard truth: they were everything he had. He couldn't go anywhere else.
Sure, they weren't as pure as freshly fallen snow, either, but they also haven't been in such a high profile as he had been. And Draco had to admit, he had liked it. The power, the control, how he was the 'Prince of Slytherin'. But as he knew now, and if he was true to himself knew it all along, it wasn't his power. It was his father's. Now that he has fallen from grace...
It was always easier to point to others,to distract from one's own guilt, and so they pointed to him, the most prominent; and they were glad people weren't looking as closely at them as they were at Draco.
Until a time when all that changed...
"I saw him with Weasley and Granger," Draco finally said. "Though they weren't all friendly." "Well, you may be right after all now that I think of it... Black hair, and his face... He has truly changed a lot." "
And blasted us into the next wall!" Crabbe cried.
Zabini dismissed them with a wave of his hand. "Potter wouldn't do that. I mean they way you told it, he wasn't in his usual furious-teenage state. If you two told the truth," he looked at Crabbe and Goyle.
"We did! He was very calm, and then he blasted us like, like a Slytherin would..."
"We got to tell Snape," Parkinson said, snuggling up to Zabini. "He'll give Potter detention for the next weeks. No Gryffindork attacks us and gets away with it."
"That is a good idea, my dear, but we should also consider something more creative to...repay him."
And off they went into a conspiratory little chat on how to attack Potter without getting caught.

Sure, it would be very, very nice if Potter did meet an untoward end. But they way the universe seem to side with him, he doubted it would happen.
It was Potter, who brought his father into Azkaban. So it was just too easy to blame him. Not that he really missed his father a lot. He never has been the loving kind, and only acknowledged Draco when he did something extraordinary.
But blaming Potter was the easy way. It all came down to the Dark Lord. He started it all with the death of Potter's parents. And it wasn't Potter who sent the Death Eaters into the Ministry. It was Voldemort. Killing Potter wouldn't help himself, or anyone, except the Dark Lord.
And he wasn't to be used again, he had enough of that. It may even have been a good thing his father was gone. He would have to learn to rely only on himself.
Now that's a refreshing thought...

###

The train slowed down and soon came to a stop at Hogsmeade station.
The hordes of students fought their way out of the train and drowned the station in a hurricane of voices and laughter.
The first years looked around awestruck, especially the muggle-borns.
From the corner of his eye he saw a group of Slytherins coming out of the train. They were whispering avidly among themselves, and it seemed some, Zabini at least, were looking in his direction. He took a closer look, and he made out Crabbe and Goyle among them. They seemed to have recuperated from his spell and were glaring at him. They meant trouble, but they were nothing he couldn't handle. Ah well, next time they'll have more to worry than being stunned. He smiled a very cold smile.
What did surprise him was Malfoy. He wasn't in the thick of it, but standing slightly outside the main group. It almost seemed as if he didn't pay any attention to their chatter. Their eyes locked for a split second, and it sent a bolt of surprise down his spine.
No Malfoy sneer, no arrogant smile. Just eyes cold, calculating. He already missed the sneer. This Malfoy smelled like trouble.
He can't be so stupid to try and get me for his father's prison time?
His thoughts were drawn away from Malfoy when he heard the booming voice of Hagrid. "First Years, this way!" he shouted. towering in the ocean of midgets. Several of them looked very afraid at the half-giant who smiled down on them.
Harry walked over to Hagrid. He wasn't sure why, but he thought he might give it a try. He still considered him to be a close friend. Maybe he will be able to accept him the way he was now.
"Hello Hagrid," he said cordially.
The half-giant looked down, and one could see cogwheels turn inside his thick skull, and then it seemed to click.
"Harry!" he beamed. "Good ter see yeh again! Yeh changed a lo', boy!"
"Yes, so I did."
"I'm so sorry I couldn' meet yeh this summer. Have been busy. Yeh know, my half-brother and all. Tried some family time with him in the forrest. He seems ter be slowly recognizing me. Dumbledore helped a lo' there, too." He seemed to see Harry's mood darken slightly. "Oh, sorry there, too. I said ter Dumbledore, I did, that he shouldn't keep yeh out as he did. But he really thought yeh'd be better off."
"Yes, I heard that line quite often lately." Hagrid, at least, didn't seem to care about his new appearance. And it wasn't so surprising. He was a man who liked to have the most wicked, dangerous creatures around and still loved them...
"Hagrid!" his attention was dragged back to the here and now as Hermione came running towards Hagrid. "I missed you!" she smiled. Ron came up behind her. When he saw Harry his face tightened into a forced smile.
"Hello Hagrid," then he turned slightly to Harry, and simply nodded.
Hagrid seemed to be oblivious to the tension between them and was too excited about the new year. Harry felt a shiver run down his spine as Hagrid kept talking about 'interesting animals'. His idea of interesting usually didn't meet most people's definition of interesting. He just hoped he would survive contact.
"Oy, sorry," Hagrid suddenly realised he wasn't here for chatting alone. He stooped slightly, "Almost forgot about the first years," he whispered. "I'll see yeh at the Feast."
He turned around and boomed at the band of first years clustered around him. Soon they were out of sight as Hagrid led them to the boats.

He got to the next free carriage and climbed aboard. The Thestrals were patiently waiting n front of it. Riding them was fun. He remembered the last, and so far only, time he did it. If he hadn't been as worried as he had back then he was sure he would have enjoyed it. It wasn't like riding a broom, but flying was fun in and off itself. Suddenly, the door opened and Ginny Weasley climbed in.
"Hi Harry," she smiled. "Do you mind?" she pointed at the seat next to him.
"No," he flatly said. "I can't stop you, can I now?"
"Oh, come on Harry," she sighed. "Lighten up. I'm not Ron. I already whacked the oaf. I still like you, you know that?"
"Sorry," he weakly smiled. "It's just not my year."
"I know, and I'll be at your side when you need me. Ron will calm down soon. I'm sure. He's just his usual self right now."
"We'll see," Harry answered ambiguously.

###

The large tables were already packed with students as Harry walked into the Great Hall with Ginny.
He looked up at the enchanted roof. It was the same roof as always, but somehow it wasn't as mystic, as magical as before. He finally had found the time, and more importantly the nerve, to read Hogwarts – A history. And while it held many useful and interesting tidbits, it also took away some of the magic in his eyes. But you can't undo the past...
Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw tables were ignoring him for the most part, and were busy talking about their holidays, their friends, or whatever else has happened over the past weeks.
He spotted Cho Chang among the Ravenclaws, and she was busy talking with Roger Davies, obviously about Quidditch the way Davies was making moves with his hand.
The Slytherin group he remembered from the train station was looking at him with what could be called predatory grins. He waived at them, smiling thinly which seemed to surprise them quite a bit.
And then there was his table. He could hear them whisper as he walked past, looking at him with very mixed feelings. He refused to acknowledge that and just strode to a free seat. It now seemed like a good idea to let Chien-Liu explore the castle a bit. He wasn't sure what the reactions to the snake would have been.
He could see Ron and Hermione sitting down several seats and talking with Neville and Seamus. It was as if they were consciously trying to ignore him and he was only happy to reciprocate.
Chatting a little with Ginny and some nervous second-year sitting across the table, he waited for the feast. The minutes went past, then the great doors swung open, and McGonagall lead the stream of first years to the dais and the sorting hat waiting for them.
Looking past the sorting hat and the endless queue of first-years, he looked at the teachers. Snape, Hagrid, Binns, and all the other teachers from last year were there, except of course the foul creature Umbridge. From what he could see, Firenze and Professor Trelawney were arguing about something. He still wasn't sure how they could, or would, be able to teach Divinations together.
But there was also one new addition, a dark-haired man sitting next to Hagrid. He seemed to be very tall, quite athletic and young compared to the other teachers. He guessed him at late twenties, early thirties. The eyes were hidden in the shadows of his long hair. He was good- looking, in a rugged kind of way, with an aristocratic nose and strong jaw bones. I wonder who that is...
It took like ages to sort all the tiny first-years. As the cheers ebbed down, Professor Dumbledore stepped up to the lectern. He had aged considerably since the last time he saw him. There still was this twinkling in his eyes, but they were set deeper into his face. A gaunt face, like he had lost serious weight. The war demands its tribute... From all of us.
"Welcome to another year at Hogwarts," he started his speech as usual. His voice, though, was trembling slightly, sounding weak and frail. "I would like to address several points before the feast, my dear students. First of all, Mr. Filch has expanded the list of forbidden objects by quite a bit and it can be studied in his office. The teachers and I hope, that after our most creative students left us early last year," a wave of chuckles spread through the tables as they only to clearly remembered the now famous exit of the Weasley twins, "that not too many will try to take their place." He looked sternly at some of the students, their heads now shaded in a very slight pink. "Of course, the Forbidden Forest stays forbidden. And I hope this year it truly does. Secondly, I want to welcome a new teacher in our midst, Professor Ragdanovich."
The gloomy looking man stood up, gave a curt nod and sat back down. Snape shot daggers from his eyes. "He was a teacher at Durmstrang, and after a sabbatical, I could win him over for our school. He will be your new Defence against the Dark Arts teacher and we have the highest hopes he will stay longer than his previous colleagues. And thirdly, I must remind you of the grave danger we are in this time. A war is waged outside this castle, in this world. We must stand strong against it, united. We must be careful, too much has been lost already." A deep sorrow seemed to lie down on him. "But enough of this. Enjoy the feast!"
And with a wave of his hand, the tables were filled to the breaking point with food.

###

After a long feast, he walked into the common room of Gryffindor house. It was still packed with some of the older years, but he certainly didn't feel like chatting.
He quickly walked upstairs, arranging his belongings and preparing for bed. Tomorrow would be a tough day. Potions, and Defence against the Dark Arts. Wonder what the new teacher will be like... He crawled I his bed. It wasn't as comfortable as he was used to over the summer, but it would have to make do. Funny, how quick you can adapt to luxury.
Chien-Liu snaked from the shadows up to him and roled himself up next to Harry's head.
Soon, he was slowly gliding away into his dreams.