It happens to the best of us
Harry put on the sorting hat, and heard a voice in his head "Hmm… a good brain, …."
Harry tried very hard to ignore the voice in his head, the one that whispered in the night, and this one he would ignore too.
"Better Be… Slytherin!" called the Sorting Hat.
The Great Hall fell into complete silence.
Harry got up and walked to the Slytherin table.
"You're not welcome here, Potter" said that stupid rich blond boy, the rest of the Slytherin table glowered at Harry.
Harry turned around and walked back to the Sorting stool and hat
"Please Miss… I need to go somewhere else." said Harry assertively.
Minerva McGonagall jammed the Sorting Hat on Harry's head and the Hat yelled out "I DON'T DO RE-SORTING!"
She took the hat off Harry's head "I'm Sorry Mister Potter, but the hat has decided you're going in Slytherin."
"No" said Harry "I know when I'm not wanted" he said firmly.
Harry took out his wand, Holly and Phoenix feather held it up and then took both hands and snapped it.
"I'm going Home" said Harry "This is rubbish."
And eleven-year-old Harry Potter tried to leave the great hall. Professor McGonagall took Harry's arm very firmly and held him still.
"While I appreciate your honest opinion, Mister Potter, you have just started the school year. Go sit at Gryffindor table, it was your parents house, and I'm the head. Go on… We'll go get you another wand tomorrow." she said.
Harry sat awkwardly at the Gryffindor table, where an entire group of redheads moved along and made a gap.
Harry sat in the gap, wide enough for three people.
Over at the Slytherin table, muted whispering began.
"He'd rather snap his wand. His actual wand than be in our house." said one little blonde girl.
Headmaster Dumbledore stared at Harry Potter from the high table. Not at all what he'd hoped for. A small boy, looking like a miniature James Potter, with no love of magic, no... he treated Hogwarts like it was just a school, not his destiny.
After the Headmaster somehow made food magically appear, Harry started to eat quietly.
"You... you can't just snap your wand" said an older Red-haired boy "It's… it's just not done. If you get Expelled, then the ministry would snap your wand… and bind your magic and wipe your memory. But you can't do that."
"I could go to Stonewall" said Harry, ignoring the speech "It's just near my relatives house."
"But... you'd never learn magic" said the boy, sounding confused.
"Didn't know it was a thing till a few months ago." said Harry.
The Gryffindor table fell silent. They stared at Harry… then all seemed to take a few deep breaths, and went back to eating, but very subdued.
-==0==-
The prefects led the Gryffindor first years and Harry to Gryffindor tower, where they were shown to the first year boys dorm.
As Harry stood around, a fifth four-poster bed appeared silently, and Harry's trunk popped into existence at the foot of the bed.
Harry thought that was fairly convenient, as he needed his pyjamas and toothbrush.
The Gryffindor boys were a bit… quiet around Harry.
-==0==-
Professor McGonagall had to fish Harry's timetable out of a robe pocket at breakfast the next day, instead of the pile she had.
"You'll have classes with the Slytherin's, Mister Potter… I can't change that" she apologised.
History first thing with a teacher who was a glowing ghost. It was very boring. Harry tuned out.
A small group of girls confronted Harry afterwards.
"You snapped your wand rather than be in Slytherin" said the leader, a dark haired little girl.
"I snapped my wand rather than be with the rich prat and be disliked by the whole house" said Harry.
"Draco is not a Prat!" protested the little dark-haired girl. The other girls looked somewhat supportive.
"Soon as I can, term holidays, I'll transfer back to Stonewall." said Harry. "My relatives might not like me, but they don't look at me like you lot do."
The dark-haired girl must have decided that was very rude as she walked off, her gaggle of girls following.
One of the oddest-looking Slytherin boys in Harry's year, a dark skinned boy with no hair said simply "Potter, snapping your wand took balls. Nobody ever snaps their own wand, or someone else's. It's just... it's like cutting your own hand off." He had an Italian accent.
Harry looked at the boy and shrugged "I didn't know magic was a thing till a few months ago, I don't even know any magic yet. I'm getting out of here as soon as I can."
The boy looked amazed "If you had any ambition, you'd be utterly terrifying" he said "I'm Blaise Zabini." he smiled, showing off even white teeth.
"I do have an ambition, Blaise Zabini. I'm going to find the supporters of the man that killed my parents, and I'm going to kill them" said Harry bitterly, letting the voice in his head do all the talking for once.
"Well, you can't do that without magic. Magic stops bullets and repels muggles" said Blaise.
"Oh" said Harry deflating "I didn't know that", and felt like an utter idiot.
Blaise shook his head "You'll stay now… and It's all my fault?" he asked.
"Fault, credit, depends on who wins doesn't it?" asked Harry, mimicking one of the smarmy buggers from telly.
Blaise Zabini smiled nervously and walked quickly but carefully away.
-==0==-
Transfiguration with Professor McGonagall was all a big talk about safety, and theory.
At the end, was an exercise turning matchsticks into needles. Harry watched, having no wand.
Professor McGonagall called out at the end of class "Potter, stay after class."
Harry waited with his book bag.
"We will be going before lunch to Diagon Alley and getting you another wand." said the Professor "Drop your bag off, get your money bag and meet my in the common room immediately."
-==0==-
Harry handed over the snapped wand to creepy old Mr Olivander.
"Holly and Phoenix feather, eleven and a half inches" said Olivander sadly.
"Mister Potter made a statement about the Sorting Hat's choice of house for him" said Professor McGonagall, in what Harry felt was a conceited tone.
Old Mr Olivander took the wand and left for the back of the shop.
He returned with empty hands "That wand chose you, but you have rejected it" murmured Olivander. "I accept the core return. I will not be giving you a special wand again" he said sternly.
Harry waited. Olivander went and gathered an armload of boxes.
Harry tried the first one, and with a wave, the wand shelves in front of Harry were destroyed by a silent explosion.
Olivander snatched it from Harry's hand. "Not that." he said firmly.
After an hour, Harry was hungry and Olivanders' shop was more wrecked than the last time Harry had tried to get a wand.
Finally, Olivander tried some pale wooden wands; which almost worked, after the fifth Olivander said simply "Well, has to be Alder that's for certain."
Professor McGonagall, who'd been repairing the damage stopped and looked at Olivander "Alder?" asked Professor McGonagall
"It's just a superstition" snapped Olivander firmly to Professor McGonagall.
Finally, Harry was given a wand of pale wood, which as soon as he held, it felt cold all up his arm, like determination. He waved it and silver sparks floated out, twisting and turning like falling snowflakes.
"Alder and … ahem Thestral hair. An unorthodox wand." said Olivander. "I would advise you to not break it. I only have ever made one wand with Thestral tail hair in Alder, and you're holding it. If you come again, I will not have a wand for you."
"It's all right, someone explained about breaking wands to me" said Harry "I'll need a holder for it."
Mister Olivander, for another five galleons supplied a forearm holster.
"Alder and Thestral hair. Eleven and a half inches. Not a wand I'd like to categorise" said Olivander, sounding like he just wanted Harry to leave. Harry was used to that.
Harry and Professor McGonagall left.
"We can just catch lunch before you have Potions, young man" said the Professor, and they flooed back to Hogwarts. Harry decided that hated the floo; the soot, the spinning around. And the green light. Harry had always disliked green lights, for no reason he knew.
-==0==-
Harry wondered what potions was going to be like over a rushed lunch.
The Professor swept in dramatically and gave a spiel. Harry tuned him out.
"Mister Potter, My House not good enough for you?" asked Professor Snape.
"Um... nobody wanted me there" said Harry "I know what not being wanted is like."
"Ten points for your cheek, Potter" said the Professor. "Now what would you get if you mixed and infusion of wormwood with…." Harry tuned him out.
"I don't know because my Aunt and Uncle locked away my textbooks" said Harry "Happy now?"
"Fifty points Potter, and detention with Filch, the caretaker" snapped Professor Snape.
That evening, the Red-haired Gryffindor… Ron said to Harry "All those points you got off from Snape… they' all came off Slytherin. Brill!"
Harry looked over. The glass pipe hourglass thing for Slytherin had no green gems in ti. Gryffindor had some, Hufflepuff more and Ravenclaw the most. Harry felt… slight happiness. Punish Harry and the Slytherins get it.
Evidently someone at the high table had told Professor Snape, because he got up angrily, pointed at the points tubes, and yelled, somehow silently. He looked really cross.
Professor McGonagall had a satisfied look on her face that reminded Harry somehow, of a cat.
Professor Snape stormed out of the Great Hall in a flurry of snapping black robes.
"Crikey" said a bulky teen-aged Gryffindor with red hair "You've driven Snape out of the Great Hall. Harry Potter is the greatest."
"The Greatest" said a second, identical looking red-head.
A round-faced boy with blond hair by Harry said tentatively "Hello my name's Neville."
Harry turned to look at this terribly shy boy "Neville. I'm Harry, Everybody knows about me. Well, everyone except me. I found out on the train."
Neville blinked "Found out on the train?" he stammered.
"Some bossy girl told me I was in some history textbook, so I had a look. My relatives locked away my trunk till I was on the train."
"Oh… Hermione. She was trying to find my toad" said Neville.
"Neville… you're Neville Longbottom" said Harry. Neville nodded.
"I read about you in the History textbook" said Harry. Neville went pale.
"Awful isn't it" said Harry, and raised his eyebrows.
Neville thought about this for a while and burst into tears.
"Potter, don't bully Longbottom" said an older red-haired student. Lots of them seemed to be redheads. This one had a prefects badge.
"I'm not bullying him, just treating him the same way everyone treats me" said Harry.
"Potter… two points" said the prefect, and two of the only gems in the Slytherin counter disappeared.
"Percy, you just took points from Slytherin" said one of the bulky teenage red-haired boys "Brilliant!"
"And we always thought you were completely useless" said the other twin redhead.
"Shut it Fred, or I'll write to mum" said Percy the prefect sternly.
Harry wondered if all the redheads at Gryffindor table were related… there were… at least four.
The next night the caretaker, Filch took Harry off to clean silverware in the trophy room.
"Without magic" said Filch. As Harry didn't know how to clean anything with magic, that didn't seem to be a big deal to him.
Harry sat down with the cloths and paste and polished tarnished silverware for several hours, rather slowly.
James Potter had been a Quidditch captain, whatever that was. That was probably his dad, Harry thought. He'd won a lot of Quidditch cups, and his name was on a one of a hundred shields for Head boy; one small shield shaped nameplate on one of so many head boy shields.
Eventually Filch reappeared with his smelly old cat and took him back to Gryffindor tower.
Harry hadn't cleaned all the silver. There was lots of it in the trophy room.
The next day, Harry had Charms first thing.
The tiny, enthusiastic Charms Professor, Flitwick was clearly interested to see what Harry would do.
They learnt the light spell, Lumos. Harry noticed the rich kids all knew it already.
Harry led his wand up and incanted "lumos" but his wand wouldn't light up. Even the fat, stupid looking boy that followed the rich blond kid around got it.
Harry shook his wand in frustration and the desk in front of him split in two with a 'crack'.
Fortunately, there was nobody else with Harry by the desk.
All the children turned and stared at the desk. One of the girls went very pale.
"Oh, you've had a little accident" said Professor Flitwick casually, strolling over, and looking up at the desk. He waved his wand and the desk sprang back together, with no sign it had ever been cut in two.
"Be careful Mister Potter, you appear to be quite powerful. Try holding your wand like a fine paintbrush and gently willing it to light." suggested Professor Flitwick kindly.
Harry tried, and the room stilled as his wand glowed faintly… green.
Harry had never liked green lights. He shuddered and stopped.
"Ah yes, concentrate on the colour of light you want, Mister Potter" said Professor Flitwick sadly, who for some reason seemed to know why Harry didn't like green lights, even if Harry didn't.
Harry, by the end of the class could make white light. And green, but he hated green lights, and blue. The blue looked very magical, Harry thought. Blue was good. He waved his blue light around.
Harry stopped staring at his wand, and noticed the other students, some of them looking a bit constipated as they made white lights over and over again.
Flying class was next.
Harry had a long walk up to Gryffindor tower and back to drop off his book-bag.
The brooms were laid out in neat rows, and Harry and the other Slytherins lined up.
A stern looking short grey haired teacher who called herself Madam Hooch told them to line up next to a broom hold out a hand and say "Up" firmly.
Not every broom went up. Harry's hit into his hand and pressed, like a dog on a lead.
"Now step over your broom, sit back"….
Harry liked flying, he decided.
The rich kid, Malfoy was told he'd been holding a broom wrong.
Then a bunch of the richer looking girls were told to stop trying to fly side-saddle and ride a broom properly. "You can make a fashion statement on your own time" said Madam Hooch.
By the end of the lesson, Harry was flying around faster than a car. It was brilliant.
"So who taught you to fly?" asked the rich boy.
"I've never flown before" said Harry, wishing the blonde ponce would shove off.
After lunch, Harry went to the library and read his potions textbook till dinnertime.
The bushy-haired girl was there with piles of books.
Harry found a spot as far from everyone as he could.
Since the fateful Charms lesson with the desk that split in half, the Slytherin first years had been very polite.
Harry went to an abandoned classroom on the way to dinner, and waved his wand harshly at a desk, as if he was cutting wood. Nothing happened. 'Must have been an accident' thought Harry, slightly disappointed.