Harry Potter and the Real Dark Lord
Disclaimer: We make no claim on Harry Potter andother characters already owned by other people. We claim this story only and the character of Dari.
A/N: Thanks for the review Jason-You rock! All others the best is yet to come-keep reviewing we like feedback and will take suggestions. Sass is the one who got me started on pudding references. TY Sass! FYI-this chapter is a lot tamer and a bit more sappy. Had to be done to further the plot. Oh well, still not too shabby. Enjoy! Sorry it's another long chapter-got a bit carried away and some probably doesn't even make sense to me. Life's a bitch at times.
Chapter 3-The Alley's and The Platform
Tom and Harry left the orphanage quietly and they headed down the walkway towards the street. Tom hailed a cab and at the look of confusion on Harry's face made Tom chuckle. "Never hailed a cab before eh?" Tom asked him still grinning. Harry just shook and replied "You mean all I had to do was come out and get into one of these things and it would have just have taken me away from that place?" Tom told him that it didn't quite work as easy as that and explained the basics of transportation. Harry shook his head wondering what other things he didn't know about after being trapped for so long.
At this, Harry frowned and looked up at Tom. "What's going to happen to Dari and all the others? Won't that, that, thing retaliate against them?" Tom paused for a moment remembering. "They will be okay from now on. I will be sending someone over frequently to check on them." He slowly replied "I wouldn't worry about The Keeper causing any of them any harm again." Tom frowned slightly as he recollected his loss of control at the woman. At Harry's look of confusion at the frown, Tom simply replied "I had an, err, discussion with her and she has seen the error of her ways." He then added as Harry was still looking at him, "We came to an agreement as to how the orphanage will be run from now on." Harry nodded, and felt a giant wave of relief wash over him. He had been worried for the others. The cab stopped in front of a worn, brick building. Tom looked at Harry and asked him," Are you ready for the beginning of your new life?" He was smiling and Harry replied "Let's get going!" The exited the cab and stepped onto the walk.
Tom led Harry into a building with a sign overhead that read "The Leaky Cauldron". It turned out to be a pub. Tom simply waved to the barkeep and guided Harry towards the back entrance. They were facing a brick wall. He looked at Harry smiling broadly and asked "Ready?" Harry nodded with a look of anticipation on his face. "You are about to enter the world of wizards" He clasped a hand on his shoulder and tapped at some bricks with his wand. The wall opened up and Tom motioned Harry to step through first. As they stepped ahead, Harry stopped dead in his tracks with a look of awe at the sight before him. People were dressed in the strangest clothes, Harry wondered if some of them were even people at all. He saw one person who looked like a picture of a vampire he saw in a book once. There were shops of all kinds with the oddest things in the windows. Advertisements for items such as frog spawn, pig eyes, rat tails, gopher guts, and snake venom were outside of one shop. Harry looked up at Tom with a slight look of revulsion.
"Am I seeing things?" He asked him. Tom gave out the first shout of laughter Harry ever heard from him. "No, Harry. Welcome to Diagon Alley! We need to get you some money first and then return here for your supplies. "Don't worry, you wont need Gopher guts until your second year."
Harry stopped suddenly. "Ah, Tom, what am I supposed to do for," Tom cut him off, "You have an account here at the bank. You will have plenty of money to last you for quite sometime I would guess from what I knew of your parents." Harry stared at him. "You knew my parents?" he asked. Tom smiled at him, a hint of sadness in his eyes and replied, "Yes I did. I will tell you about them sometime but today is not that day. Now let's go to the bank."
As they headed down the street Harry was trying to see everything at the same time, a look of incredulity on his face. Tom could not stop laughing at the look on Harry's face. They passed by shops that sold robes, sporting goods of the sort Harry had never heard of or seen before, books, and a variety of other shops. As they got to the end of the street Harry saw the most splendid building he had ever seen. It looked like a golden palace shining in the sunlight. Above the entrance archway was etched "Gringott's Bank". Outside of it stood a very short, very ugly creature with a nasty look on its face. Harry paused and moved a little closer to Tom. "Don't worry Harry," Tom acknowledged his hesitation, "That's a goblin. They guard and run this bank and anyone who tried to pull one over on them would be a fool." Harry paused, and then said "Are their other creatures other than goblins around here?" Tom nodded at him and replied," you will see many different types of creatures in the magical world. Some good, some bad-just as it is in the world of muggles: non-wizard types." He added at the look of confusion on Harry's face. "Give it time, Harry, you only just found out that you're a wizard. Now shall we go in?" Harry nodded.
Tom beckoned Harry on (Harry still stayed close to him) and they entered the Bank. They moved towards an open window where a very ugly goblin was situated behind a desk and Tom approached him. "Ahh, good afternoon Griphook, I have brought Harry Potter to retrieve some money from his account." The goblin smiled at Harry and said, "Welcome, welcome Mr. Potter. It is a delight to finally meet you." Harry stared at him. "You know who I am?" he asked. "Yes, Yes, of course. You look just like your mother but with your dad's hair. Dreadful about their brooming accident. Came to pick up your supplies for school today are ya? Well, let's get on with it." He signaled to another goblin close by and said to it "Take Mr. Potter and Mr. Riddle to Mr. Potter's vault." The goblin gave a slight bow to them and beckoned them to follow him. They entered a cave-like structure with what looked like roller coaster cars on single tracks.
They stepped in and Tom said quietly to Harry, "Hang on tight." They took off a record breaking speed down passage ways, zooming around corners. Taking sharp dips and going up steep inclines. Harry gave a whoop of laughter and was hollering to Tom "This is awesome!" Tom was laughing right along with him. It was wonderful to hear Harry laugh. They finally stopped out side a door that looked more like a cave entrance and Tom and Harry stepped out with the goblin. "Here you are gentlemen." And with a weird motion with his hand, the door opened. Harry almost fainted at the sight before him. Piled as high as he could see, were gold, silver and bronze coins. There were also sealed cartons and personal items lining the walls. Tom took out a small pouch and began to put some coins into it. Harry couldn't hold back any longer. "All this belongs to me?" He could not believe it. Tom nodded and turned and gave Harry the pouch. "This should be enough for you to get started with. Don't go on a spending spree-you will have to buy supplies for the next seven years."
Just before they exited, Harry noticed a sealed envelope near the door. "What's this?" He asked Tom. Tom took the envelope from Harry and immediately recognized the handwriting to be that of James,' Harry's father. He slowly opened it and began to read. After he fininished reading the contents, he paused and looked at Harry. "This is your parents will." Tom spoke these words quietly. Your father has requested that you receive two items as you enter your first year of school. Tom moved over to a small shelf and took down a box. Inside were two items, a blank piece of parchment, and a cloak of some type of shimmery material. Tom handed both of these items to Harry. "This," Tom said holding up the cloak, "Is an invisibility cloak. When you put it on," Tom put the cloak over himself and suddenly disappeared. He spoke from somewhere and continued speaking, "no one can see you." He quickly removed the cloak giving a short laugh at the astonished look on Harry's face. "This," Tom continued, taking the blank parchment from Harry's hand, "Is a very special map. All you do is tap it with your wand and say 'I solemnly swear that I am up to no good' and you will be able to see where everyone is inside of Hogwarts and their grounds. Oh, yes, you will see secret areas and passageways and find passwords to every room". When you are finished using the map simply tap it again and say 'mischief managed' Harry stared at him. "The only thing your dad asked was that you share these with only those you really trust and tell no-one else that you have them". Tom smiled and gave both items to Harry. "Use them wisely."
They got back into the car and took another hair-raising ride back towards the exit. "Can we do that again?" Harry asked Tom as they moved towards the exit. Tom burst out laughing and merely said, "not today Harry-we still have a lot to do." At the look of disappointment on Harry's face, he said, laughing even harder, "We still have to get your supplies for school." Harry gave a slight shrug of acceptance and followed him back into Diagon Alley.
Tom pulled out a list from his pocket and said "We should start with robes first. Madame Malkin's is right this way." They entered a shop and a woman motioned Harry to a stool next to a boy. "Hogwarts, dear?" She asked.
Harry gave a brief nod. There was already a red haired, freckled boy getting measured for his robes. The boy was tall and gangly and kept asking the shop keeper why she was measuring his arms and how tall he was. Harry thought that was obvious and wondered if the boy was dim. When the boy kept asking stupid questions, Harry turned to him and said contemptuously, "Are you a complete idiot? Why do think she's measuring you? Duh, is she just supposed to guess your size?" The red haired boy flushed, then said quietly back to him. "Sorry, mate, it's just that I have never been fitted for robes before, usually I just get hand-me- downs from my older brothers." He extended a hand, "My name is Ronald Weasley, Ron to my friends," Harry gave him a long look over and replied ignoring the extended hand, "Nice to meet you, Ronald." Harry sneered at him. What was this boy trying to do? Try to make friends with people who grew up with less than him? Or, perhaps he was just desperate to have a friend at all. Harry had no inclination to be bothered by someone like that. He had just left Hell and had no desire to return. He wanted more for himself. Harry didn't really care what the red-haired boy thought. In Harry's opinion, the boy was a total fool. At Harry's last comment, Ron looked away from him, his face brighter than his hair. Ron was soon finished and still, red faced, quickly left the shop. Harry just watched him leave with a look of scorn on his face.
Harry soon finished at Madame Malkin's and met Tom outside. "All set Harry?" he asked. Harry replied back, "Yep! What's next?" He was eager to see more even though he just met a total prat. Giving his shoulders a quick shrug, Tom led him on. Their next stop turned out to be a bookstore. Inside were books that covered everything to "Using Your Wand to Make Pudding" to "Dark and Evil Lurk Everywhere." Harry looked around in confusion and turned to Tom and asked "Where do we start?" He had never seen so many books in one place before in his life. Tom said "Why don't I just go and collect the books you need for school while you look around." Harry wandered around, looking at the variety, and after a bit of exploring came across a girl sitting on the floor. She had the wildest hair Harry had ever seen-even wilder than some of the little ones back at the orphanage. For a brief moment, Harry thought she was an orphan herself but then she looked up, he realized that she was too clean to be an orphan. He wondered why anyone would want to be sitting in the middle of a bookshop when there were so many things to do around here.
"Hello." Said the girl looking up from where she was sitting. "Would you like to join me, I am reading the most wonderful book on muggle carpet. It is so fascinating. Almost as good as the book on cooking pots." Harry stared at the girl wondering if she escaped from somewhere. "Uh, no thanks. I'm just getting my books for school." "Oh!" said the girl. "Are you starting at Hogwarts this year too? I cannot believe how many books they left off from the reading list! For example, we are going to be studying the history of magic this year and they didn't even include 'The Goblin Wars of 1665', or even the 'Giant Rebellion of 1448!', what were they thinking when they made the book list?" She looked at Harry incredulously. Harry stared at the girl knowing she was nuts and asked: "Do you ever do anything but read and talk about books?" She gave him a look and replied, "Books tell us everything. Don't you know that by now?"
Harry gave a rude snort and snapped back at her; "Ohhhh, do books tell you how to survive while being tortured without losing your mind? Or do they even tell you how to protect a child when you can't even protect yourself?"
Harry's voice began to rise. "You have your head shoved so far up your books you can't even tell them from your ass!" Harry's voice rose even higher with contempt. "You're lost in a fantasy world and you would be totally useless in the real world!" Images began to flash in front of Harry's eyes. He quickly shut them and continued to shout; "You go ahead and live inside your book world! Ignorant book rat!" He turned to storm away then stopped and turned to look back at her and said scathingly, "In all of this reading you claim to have done, I would have thought that you would at least have found one that would tell you to do something with that hedge on your head!" Harry stormed away, promptly walking into Tom who had headed towards the sound of Harry's shout.
"Are you all right Harry?" Tom asked him gently seeing the look on his face. Harry was trying to take deep breaths and calm down. His body was beginning to ache with all his shouting as he was still recovering from his injuries. Harry simply nodded. Tom, after a quick once-over look at Harry simply said, "I have all your books for school. Why don't we stop for a break and an ice cream?" Harry nodded once again, grateful that Tom didn't ask any questions. They left the bookshop and Tom led him to an ice cream shop. He made Harry sit down at a sidewalk table and was about to ask him what he wanted. Once he saw the look of bewilderment on his face at the number of varieties, He told him: "I'll go and get something for the both of us. You just sit here and relax for a moment." Harry settled into a seat to wait for Tom.
After a long wait, Harry decided to go and meet Tom. Harry got jostled by the crowd and found himself in a strange alley. He wasn't quite sure where he was. The crowd couldn't have moved him too far away. Harry began to head back towards the way he thought he came from. As he walked he noticed the shops seemed odder than the ones he had seen earlier. A wild eyed witch approached him with a tray of what looked like moss covered chocolate and croaked "Would you like a sample of my new candy?" Harry backed from her, fear starting to well up in him. Where was Tom? Harry could feel the panic start to well up inside of him and he quickly turned away to run from the witch. He promptly ran into a boy his age. His hair was a sleek and a smooth perfect shade of blonde. The tall man standing next to him was an exact older version of the boy. Harry said fast, "I'm very sorry-I wasn't looking as to where I was going." The tall man and the boy took one look at the witch, then at Harry. The tall man slapped the witch across her face and told her to leave and go back to where she came from. Harry looked at both of them in astonishment.
"Th, Thank You." Harry stammered out. I got a bit lost and was looking for my guardian." I'm not really sure where he is." The boy was the first to speak. "My name is Draco Malfoy. This is my father. "Can we be of assistance to you?" Harry gazed uncertainly at the tall man standing beside his son. "I am Lucius Malfoy. As my son has already offered, may we help you get back to your charge?" Lucius said this with a look around. "I don't think you should remain here." Harry looked at the tall man, and then at his son. "I am Harry Potter and I would be most happy to accept your help."
Lucius told them to follow him. On the way Harry learned that this was to be Draco's first year at Hogwarts too. The two boys chatted about what to expect at the school as they headed down the alleyway. Harry mentioned the two weirdoes' he met in the shops and Draco laughed at Harry's descriptions of them. "Hope I don't wind up with them in my house." At Harry's look of confusion, Draco explained how Hogwarts had different "Houses" and upon their arrival, they would be sorted into them. It was still confusing to Harry but he wasn't worried about that now. He just wanted to get back to Tom.
As Harry exited the alleyway, he turned and looked behind him and was surprised. The sign above read 'Knockturn Ally'. Harry was shocked. "I thought this place was only for bad wizards." He spoke to the Malfoy's. Lucius turned and said to him "There are many useful things here if you know where to look. Not everyone who enters it is bad. You yourself have entered it; do you feel like you are bad?" Harry shook his head. "No, I don't think I'm bad." Lucius smiled at him in an odd way, and merely spoke to Harry, "Perhaps we should try and locate your charge. He must be concerned about you by now." Harry suddenly remembered that Tom had told him to wait for him outside. "He's gonna kill me!" Harry began to move fast, and then stopped. He looked at the Malfoy's and asked "Do you where the ice cream place is? Lucius pointed towards that direction. They headed that way, Harry moving at a pace that should have re-opened his injuries but didn't. Harry and the Malfoy's were almost to the shop when they met up with a frantic Tom Riddle, looking wildly around, still holding onto the ice cream, not aware of the fact that it was almost completely melted by now.
"HARRY!" he shouted. "WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN? I TOLD YOU TO WAIT! HELL TO MERLIN, WHAT HAPPENED!" Harry ran towards Tom and threw himself at him. "I'm sorry Tom. You took so long and I just wanted to catch up with you, people were everywhere and I got confused and lost and this wild witch was trying to..." Tom cut him off holding him close-neither one of them realizing the drippy ice cream. Tom spoke hoarsely, "Your safe now, that it what matters. How did you get out of there by yourself?" Tom asked. Harry, still holding on to Tom, turned him towards the Malfoy's, still standing there. "Tom, this is Draco and Mr. Lucius Malfoy. They helped get me out of there and Draco starts school this year too, and Mr. Malfoy got this evil witch away from me, and they got me out and helped me find you, and .." Harry was speaking so fast to explain that he started to stumble over his words.
As soon as Harry mentioned the word the name Malfoy, Tom looked over at the two waiting there watching. He started, recognizing Lucius at once. "Hello, Lucius." "Hello Tom. What a strange place to meet." Lucius eyed Tom with a hint of a sneer on his face. "I think you lost something." Tom gave Lucius a long look and then replied, "I thank you for bringing him back to me safely Lucius." Tom was eying him warily. "How did you find him?" Tom asked. "Draco and I were looking for some unusual potion ingredients and we met up with Harry here." Lucius gave Tom a small smile. "You can't always find what you're looking for in Diagon Alley" Lucius actually smiled, "You never know what you'll find there." Tom just gave him a long, hard, cold, look; his eyes were starting to glimmer again.
Harry, unaware of the tension between the two men, tugged at Tom's sleeve and asked: "Do I need anything else for school?" Tom looked down at the boy, the glimmer immediately fanished. "I believe we still need to get your wand and potion ingredients." Tom voice was soft as he spoke to the boy. He turned back towards the Malfoy's and looked directly at Lucius and spoke, "Lucius, I thank you for everything you did for Harry, as much as it pains me to say so, I am deeply in your debt." Lucius' eyes narrowed slightly and he unexpectedly gave Tom a brief nod. "You are quite welcome Tom. I believe we shall be seeing a lot more of each other in the future as the boys are getting along quite well." Lucius had a hint of a smirk as he spoke these words. Tom put a hand on Harry's shoulder with a gentle squeeze and said: "Shall we continue on Harry? We are almost done here."
The two walked away from the Malfoy's. Harry turned and looked at Tom and asked "How do you know Lucius Malfoy?" Tom paused and merely stated "I knew him at school." As Harry was about to ask another question Tom said: "Let's get your potion ingredients first-no-no gopher guts-I told you that's not until later." Tom was smiling again. "Then we can get your wand." As they headed towards the Apothecary, Harry was asking Tom all sorts of questions about what he was going to learn in school, was potion class like a cooking class and Tom couldn't even answer him as he was laughing so hard. "Harry, Harry, you'll find out soon enough." He could barely speak though his laughter. They arrived at the Apothecary and Tom dealt with the shopkeeper while Harry looked around at all the odd ingredients. "All set now, Harry." Tom said as we walked back to him. They're going to send your items ahead. "Now all that's left is your wand."
Tom led Harry to a shop. The sign on the window read "Olivanders: Makers of Fine Wands since 382 B.C. a wand laid on a faded pillow.
As they stepped into the shop a bell tinkled somewhere in the background. An old man with pale eyes stepped out from the back. "May I help you?" he said. Then seeing who was there exclaimed "Tom, Tom Riddle! What a delightful surprise! Ah, yes, I remember, ten and a quarter inches long, swishy, made of willow and the core of a particularly fine male unicorn hair. One of my finer wands. And who would this be?" He turned to look closely at Harry. Harry just stared at this odd little old man. "So, you're here to get your wand eh boy? Well you should know that every wand ever made has a core that will only suit its owner. The core is made of very magical material. Unicorn hair, like Tom's there, heartstrings of a dragon, even phoenix tail feathers. Now, let's see what you can do."
The old man handed Harry a wand. "Nine inches long, oak, core of dragon string-nice for transfiguration. Let's see what you got. Just give it a wave in your hand." Harry carefully took the wand in his hand and gave it a slight wave, felling somewhat foolish. A sudden BANG erupted from the end causing a shelf and a wall to explode. "NO, NO, NO!" Olivander shouted. "Totally wrong! Let's try another one. Here. Beech wood, ten and a half inches, unicorn hair core" Harry took this wand hesitantly from the old man and gave that one a small wave. KABOOM! The front of the store exploded sending people on the street running for cover. "NO! NO! NO! Absolutely not!" Olivander was brushing dust off his clothes. "Tough one you are-very tough indeed. Hm, I wonder, could it be possible?" At these words Olivander disappeared behind what was left of his counter. "Ah yes, here we are. Well, what's a bit more damage if I'm wrong" He opened up the box and carefully removed a wand and held it out to Harry. "Nine and a quarter inches, holly, pheonix feather tail core-a very strong phoenix that is to say." Harry took the wand from the old mans wrinkled hand and gave it a wave. Suddenly Harry felt a strong sensation running throughout his body at thought he heard a musical sound that made him feel calmer than he had ever felt before.
"YES!" Olivander shouted. "I KNEW IT!" he started muttering to himself" I should have guessed, I should have guessed. Oh, this will be interesting to see." "What will be interesting to see?" asked Harry, looking at the old man and still feeling the song run though him. Mr. Olivander looked over to Tom and gave him an ominous look, then swiftly gazed at Harry and replied "This wand has a brother, the only time I have ever seen this. Never had there been a phoenix that gave two feathers before its burning time. Oh, yes indeed, we can expect much from you Mr. Potter; you have much power inside of you. What to expect from you-time will tell." At these words, Harry shot a look at Tom who was frowning slightly at the old mans words. Tom gave Harry a calculating look and merely replied, "Thank you Mr. Olivander, It has a pleasure to see you again. I apologize for the condition of your shop." Tom looked around at the destruction Harry had inadvertently caused. Mr. Olivander simply waved him off and began to repair the damage. "Always a pleasure Tom, always a pleasure-though next time-just stop in to say hello." Tom looked at Harry and said "Come on Harry, It is almost time for dinner." Harry was still gazing at his wand with a look of fascination, remembering what he had felt when he held it.
As Tom and Harry left Olivanders, Tom turned to Harry and spoke "I have booked us a room at the Leaky Cauldron and I will see you off to school in the morning." At these words, Harry felt his stomach plummet. He had come to rely on Tom in the past days and the thought of saying good-bye to him made his heart feel heavy in his chest. As Tom looked over at him, he realized that the boy didn't know. "Don't worry Harry, I will be seeing you at school-I will be your Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. I dare say that you will be seeing a lot more of me than you wish." At the total look of contentment on Harry's face Tom gave a short laugh. "You may not feel that way after your first homework assignment." The headed back to the pub and after a quick dinner headed upstairs to get some sleep.
Harry awoke in the morning feeling as if he never wanted to get up again. He was so comfortable and warm in a bed that felt as soft as feathers. He slowly stretched and gave a wide yawn. He heard a small chuckle from somewhere and looked around. Tom was standing by the window and was looking over at Harry. He gave him a grin and asked, "Are you ready to start your next adventure? After you have been fed first, of course. You are too thin-we need to feed you better I believe. But first you'll have to get out of bed." Harry gave another wide yawn and slowly sat up. "What's for breakfast?" He asked stupidly. Tom gave out a short laugh and said "Get dressed and we'll go downstairs and find out." Harry quickly got dressed and the two headed downstairs to eat. "We can't linger too long-I need to get you on the train for 11." Harry felt a growing sense of excitement. He was going to a real school-a school for wizards! The two hurried through breakfast. Harry could have kept eating forever; he never had food so good. They went to collect their belongings and Tom once again hailed a cab to take them to King's Cross Station.
When they arrived at the station, Tom told them they were headed for Platform nine and three quarters. Harry looked around and said hesitantly, "I don't see that anywhere, I only see platform nine and ten. No nine and three quarters." He was still looking around everywhere. Tom gave a short laugh and said, "Trust me-it's there. As a matter of fact it's right over here." He led Harry towards a dividing barrier between platforms nine and ten. "All you need to do is just walk straight at the barrier. Don't stop and don't be afraid you'll crash into it." At Harry's look of terror, Tom gave a slight smile of remorse and merely replied. "Do you want to go together this first time?" Harry gave him a brief nod-the relief evident on his face. "Well, then, on we go!" They ran trough the wall that had suddenly disappreaerd. Harry entered on a new platform, his eyes wide with wonder.
A scarlet steam engine was waiting on the tracks. The platform was teeming with people. A sign overhead read "Hogwarts-eleven o'clock. Harry turned and saw another sign that read platform nine and three quarters. He was there at last. People were chatting and giving last words of advice to their children. Harry saw that freak red hair boy from the robe shop being given a tight hug by a plump woman who looked just like him. Along side of them were 3 other boys. One was looking around with an air of arrogance that would even embarrass the minister. The other two looked alright though. It seemed that they were plotting something that was not going to be pleasant to the receiver. Harry grinned at the looks on their faces, wondering if that prat from the robe shop was gonna get it.
Tom pulled Harry into a surprisingly tight embrace and said, "This is where I leave you for now. I will see you at the school later on. You'll be okay from here." Harry held on to him just as tight. "I wish you were coming with me." He said quietly. Tom pulled slowly away. "I will see you at school. Now, Hurry up or you'll miss it." Tom gave Harry another quick hug and pulled away. Harry moved slowly towards the train. On his way towards the door he ran into the two red-haired boys. "Hey! Who are you? Your dressed kinda funny ya know." Harry stared at them as they were dressed exactly the same. "You should talk." He smirked looking over their clothes. "At least I can be original." At this the twins both laughed. "We only do this to confuse people-even our parents" The both laughed again. "Keeps them guessing at school at any rate." Harry couldn't help but laugh at them-they were actually quite funny. "Ah-you're not related to that kid that was by you earlier-he's about my age I'm guessing..." "Oh", replied one of them-that's our little brother, Ron. He's almost as much as a prat as our older brother, Percy." "I'm Fred, by the way, and this oddball is my twin, George." At these last words George punch Fred in the arm. "OWWW! What did you do that for? I'm going to tell mummy!" He mocked running away and Fred tripped him. Harry laughed and started to reply when they were interrupted by the train whistle. "Cripes! We gotta go-and so do you!" the twins took off and headed on board. Harry quickly followed them inside.
Once Harry got on the train, his feeling of apprehension increased. What should he do now? As he made his way slowly down the aisle, he suddenly heard someone shout out his name. "Oi! Potter, over here!" it was Draco Malfoy. Next to him was a pug-nosed girl who was smiling at him. Harry headed over to them, grateful to see a friendly face. "Good to see you again. This is my friend, Pansy Parkinson. She's pretty cool once you get to know her." Draco explained, nodding at his companion. "Come and sit with us-we have our own compartment." Harry nodded and followed them into a small compartment. "Our friends Crabbe and Goyle should be here soon-they always get lost." Harry nodded again, not yet able to speak. He was still chortling at the twins' antics.
As Harry sat with the two inside the compartment, Draco filled him in on the different Houses and told him all about the Sorting Hat which would say where they would be placed. Draco also told him about a wizarding sport called Qudditch, and how it was played on brooms. Harry burst into laughter, sure Draco was kidding. "No, really, I'm not joking. I only hope I can make the team in my first year. That hasn't happened for one hundred years." "Really", Draco laughed at the look on Harry's face. "There are a lot of professional teams. Just like your muggle soccer or football." Just then they were interrupted by a woman selling food off a cart. "Do you have any pudding?" Harry asked eagerly,"It's one of my favorite foods." Harry was disappointed to find she hadn't. He chose some odd types of sweets and they all began to snack. Harry was trying to explain blow pops to them which they both found hilarious. Draco and Pansy both laughed at the stupidity of these subjects. Right on cue, two of the stupidest people he had ever seen, stepped inside. "Duh, we forgot where the car was. " Grunted one of them. "Yea" grunted the other, "We thought we were on the wrong train at first." At these words Harry snorted. Pansy and Draco merely laughed. "They take getting used to a bit." Laughed Draco. "They really are quite harmless.' Harry just scorned, sneering at the two idiots. "Don't we need to put on our robes soon?" He turned away from the fools, looking inquiring at Pansy and Draco. "Yes, we do." Replied Pansy. "We'd better hurry up." They tried to put on their robe, hampered by the idiots Crabbe and Goyle.
As they stepped off the platform Harry looked around in wonder, He never had seen anything like it before in his life. As he looked around, he heard a strange, very deep voice calling out over them all. "First Years, Over Here! All First Years, Over Here please! My name is Hagrid and I'm to get ya to the castle" The largest person Harry had ever seen was standing near a path entrance. While the rest of the students where heading over to the carriages, the first year students followed the very large man along a narrow and winding path. Mary were tripping over rocks and falling into each other. To Harry's dismay, the red haired prat was just behind him. He seemed to almost be tripping as much as Crabbe and Goyle. They wound up by a glimmering lake; its surface looked like glass in the moonlight. "No more than five in a boat, please." Crabbe, Goyle, Pansy, Draco, and Harry quickly scrambled into the nearest one. Much to Harry's dismay, the boy, Ron climbed in too. As they settled in their seats they started moving slowly across. Ron reached into his pocket and took out some chocolate. "Anyone want some?" They all shook their heads. Ron tore open the package and threw the wrapper into the lake.
Suddenly the boat began to rock erratically and you could hear screams coming from the other boats. Large tentacles were slapping at the boats, trying to upend them. Hagrid was shouting for everyone to calm down and quickly moved his boat over to the giant squid that was attacking them. "Settle down Princess, settle down. What do ya want and go and attack the students for? Ya never did that before." In reply, an enormous tentacle slowly rose out of the water and threw a candy wrapper into his boat. Hagrid turned around and shouted at the students, most were trembling and clutching on to each other, "WHO IN BLOODY HELL THREW THAT IN THE WATER!" "DON'T YA HAVE ANY SENSE AT ALL!-Merlin's beard, we don't go and throw our trash in your home! Ron looked terrified.
"You stupid prat!" Harry yelled at Ron, "Ya trying to get us all killed?" Ron sat meekly at the end of the boat-wanting to hide from everyone. After a few minutes there were gasps and students were uttering WOW, and loud oooooooooooh's and awwwwwwww's. There, ahead of the was the most incredible castle they had ever seen, (Harry had nothing to compare it to.) It rose magisterially towards the moonlit sky. There were lights glimmering from inside the castle. They were showing though the many widows and turrets that were scattered along the walls. The grounds sprawled out lavishly towards a forest that was dark and shadowy. The boats bumped gently into the dock and most of the students climbed out on shaky legs.