I don't own anything to do with Harry Potter
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Harry sat in his cabin on the train and tried to get the last hour or so out of his mind. It proved to be harder than he thought it would be, as he found himself unable to lose himself even in the book in his hands. It seemed Harry was to be reminded daily at this point of why he hated interacting with most people. Everything had been going fine really. A few days ago he'd finished his shopping around Diagon Alley, had got his wand, had returned for a rather delicious lunch in the Leaky Cauldron and had even gotten the good news that he could stay there until leaving for the train since his uncle had barred him from the house until school ended. He had spent a glorious two days reading and exploring Diagon Alley. He'd even got the barkeeper Tom to tell him what little he knew about his parents and the man that had murdered them, Voldemort. Or He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named as the wizarding world called him. What a stupid name.
He'd learned that his father was an Auror, a wizard detective. While his mother had done some kind of unspecified work in the ministry of magic. Harry had hoped to learn more, but that's all that was common knowledge.
He had even accidentally found himself in Knockturn Alley but had quickly left not liking the feel of the place or the eyes he was sure watched him like a hawk.
Then this morning he had set out for the train station with the directions given to him by Professor Snape. What an awful day it had been too.
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Harry was approaching the station with a smile on his face. A rare thing for him he knew, but he was free, in a brand new world, and had all the freedom to finally live however he pleased. Who wouldn't be happy with that knowledge? People were bustling all around, and he saw a few other children pushing carts much like his own.
He idly wondered how so many students passed themselves off as "muggle" while hanging caged owls from their carts. Perhaps people didn't see the things they didn't want to see after all.
He was steadily making his way towards the platform when he heard a great deal of noise behind him. Looking back he saw a family of redheads. He assumed this was some kind of genetic magic at work? How else would they all have the same shade of hair and identical freckles? And there were so many of them! Three boys, a girl, and the parents, and somehow the sight of them all made him sad. Here was a family all together and seemingly happy, but he was stuck with the Dursley's. Who actively hated him and made sure he was aware of it at every available chance.
Deciding not to stew in thoughts of the Dursley's Harry turned and continued to the platform.
Looking back at the next moments later in his life, Harry would always wonder about two things. How had he felt the hand before it touched him, and had this been a fork in the road for destiny? How had his actions changed his future?
Harry spun on the spot and snapped at the person behind him "Don't touch me."
He found behind him the matriarch of the family he had just been observing. She seemed shocked by his sudden turning and just stared at him for a moment. Then she adopted a much sterner visage and seemed to scold him.
"Nonsense child, I'm just trying to help you." the motherly woman said to him.
"Thank you ma'am but I'm fine. I know the way." Harry tried to gently rebuff the woman.
The woman sputtered over her own words, not able to get enough out at once. All while her family seemed to just watch from behind her. The two twin boys looking embarrassed, the younger boy and girl both looked mad that he would refuse their mother's help, while the man just looked on as if this wasn't the first time this had happened.
"All alone? Child where are your parents? Surely you're not wandering along the platform alone at your age, and you're so small, good heavens child are they not feeding you?" she barked at him sternly, reminding him far too much of his aunt.
Remembering his books about self-control and meditation Harry took a deep breathed and settled for narrowing his eyes at the woman. "My life is none of your business, and I'll thank you to please leave me be." this was the wrong thing to say as the youngest boy suddenly surged forward and stood in front of his mother.
"Oi! You'll not talk to me mum like that, you dodgy pillock!" the child yelled at him.
"Ron!" the mother admonished the boy. Having had about enough of this family Harry tried to turn away to leave only to be grabbed by the scruff of his shirt and pulled back around to look at the boy. To Harry's shame, he really was much too small, and the boy was certainly stronger than him physically.
Glaring at the boy holding him Harry considered reaching for his wand, but not having practiced any magic, he knew it would be futile. He knew he had to do something. He was starting to feel the tendrils of panic seep into his mind. A panic he hadn't felt since the last time Dudley had been chasing him with his friends. A fury unlike anything he had ever felt before began to stir in his chest. No matter how much he wished he could stomp down that fury, it seemed to grow more and more through him. He felt the inferno consume his mind, consume his body, his very being, until all he could think about was the fire of rage at his relatives. A rage that burned his very being to its core. The rage for the bullies bothering him now. The fire burning within him at being weak, too weak to stop them.
Then it all stopped.
He felt a sudden chill pulling the heat from his bones.
Everything was quiet.
Then he heard the scream from the boy holding him.
He looked up from where he had fallen to see the family looking at him in horror. The twins had pulled out their wands and had them trained on him. The girl was trying to hide behind her father's legs with a scared look on her face. Harry didn't know what was going on, and then he saw it. Ron's hand. An angry red swelling covered the hand except for three black lines of scorched flesh marking his skin. Lines Harry didn't need to see better to know were where he had gripped the hand that had held him. He wanted to apologize but knew now wouldn't be the time to do so. They wouldn't listen to anything he would say. So he did what he always did when Dudley was bullying him and something strange happened around him.
He ran.
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Albus was having a very bad day. First, he had overslept and nearly been late for the first staff meeting before the students were to board the train. Then he had been interrupted by a floo call from the board of governors during his breakfast, and his morning porridge had gone cold. Then he had gotten an urgent owl from one of the order members saying that someone in Albania had been poking around Tom's old stomping grounds. Next, he had checked his underground contacts, and there was still no word on where Gellert was, or what he'd been up to since the cock up that had been made of the arrest attempt in France five years ago. Finally, he had gotten an urgent owl from Molly Weasley of all people. Saying her son had been attacked by dark magic on the train platform. Dark magic cast by an unnamed first year.
Wandlessly.
The woman had clearly had something stronger than butterbeer this morning.
She didn't even have a proper description of the boy beside his curly black hair and green eyes, and he was short. That applied to probably twelve first years. Nevertheless, he would do his duty and investigate when the children arrived, but honestly, dark magic used by a first year. If it was true he'd eat his own wizard's hat. It wasn't out of the question that some accidental magic had caused this, but from an eleven-year-old, well that was unheard of. If he was a betting man, he would bet the Weasley twins had done something to prank their brother and had lied to Molly.
He didn't get to ponder the mystery of the attack long, as Severus appeared from his fireplace. He wondered sometimes if it was worth allowing him access to his floo. "Hello Severus, lemon drop?" he offered up the bowl of round yellow candies. He knew Severus would say no, but that wasn't the point. He offered the candies to everyone who entered his office. Without fail, everyone would turn them down, but that was what he expected. He of course knew of the rumors that circled Hogwarts about the candies being laced. They weren't. No, they served an even more important purpose. Such an innocuous thing really, one no one thought too much about, but from the moment they entered his office and he offered them the candies, they were playing his game. He was in control of the conversation from that point on, and all thanks to a bowl of yellow candies. He did also enjoy them, and if people underestimated him because of his fondness for tart muggle candy then oh well.
After Severus shook his head negative to the candy Albus merely raised an eyebrow in question. On most this might not have had the same effect, but this was Severus Snape. Head of Slytherin and full-time spy. Albus knew he would see every detail, and he would hear the unspoken question.
"Nothing except for Lucius's claims of something coming. All vague, nothing certain or actionable." drawled the spy.
"Any news of Gellert or his actions?" Albus was sure it would be the same negative response as always
Severus dared to roll his eyes at the question "Nothing as always. He's being careful. How long will you continue to obsess over him? Leave him to the ICW and be done with it."
"It would seem you have forgotten my posting as Supreme Mugwump, and you should know more than most about the debts we owe the past. Am I wrong Severus?" He knew he wasn't.
Severus scowled at being reminded of his past, and turned on his heel and strode for the door.
"Good day Severus. Don't forget the welcome feast is tonight at eight."
Albus often wondered about what he could do about his resident potions master. The man was a terror to the children and an abysmal teacher, but he needed to keep the man close. If Tom ever did return, then he would need the spy. Although he disliked the idea, Severus was under oath to serve him and would not be able to refuse. He disliked so blatantly using someone but he was sure that he would have need of him. Albus had never had a gift for divination as Gellert had, but even he could see that Tom was not gone for good. He could still see that mark upon Severus's arm, faded perhaps, but still intact.
He shuddered to think of what Tom had done to achieve this feat. Even in his misguided youth, Albus had never tried to cheat Death. Gellert had experimented with necromancy sure, and they had hunted for those ever-elusive Hallows together, but never to live forever.
To remove death would remove the purpose of life, and nothing good could come of that.
Perhaps it was time Albus did something he hadn't done in nearly sixty years. Glancing at the clock Albus decided he had enough time to make a quick visit and return before the children would be boarding the Express. Albus stood and strode over to the fireplace, and grabbed a handful of powder from the dish atop it. He would go back to that place. The place where his life had started its downward spiral. Where his father had been arrested, his mother and then sister died, where he had truly lost Gellert. With a deep shuddering breath, he stepped into the fireplace and called out the name of his ancestral home.
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Harry had just managed to calm himself down when his cabin door was slammed open. Standing in the doorway of the cabin were two girls. One was startlingly familiar, but the other was a stranger.
"Harry!" shouted a far too exuberant redhead. The same redhead that had almost floored him in the book store.
"Err, hello?" Harry responded somehow making it sound almost like a question.
The redhead, whose name he remembered was either Kasey or Tracey, broke out into a huge grin, and turned to the other girl. This new girl seemed to be studying him with a critical eye. She was taller than him, taller than Kasey as well. She had long straight hair that shimmered like gold, dark blue eyes that seemed to pierce through him, and a long lithe build.
"See Daph! I told you Harry Potter was in our year! And were already friends! Right, Harry tell her!" Kasey, or was it Lacey he wondered, was nearly bouncing in place with that exclamation.
Seeing no other way out of this he answered her "Uh, yes I'm Harry Potter." If she noticed he didn't answer the other half of her question she didn't let it show. Now the taller girl spoke up, in a voice that was strangely even and almost cold. "Hello, I am Daphne Greengrass." She was, of bloody course, staring at his scar when she spoke. She then turned her attention to her green-eyed friend. "Can we go now Tracey?" she asked.
Ah so her name was Tracey. Good thing he hadn't called her Lacey then.
Tracey just grabbed her and pulled her into the cabin. "Daph let's just sit here. Maybe that prat won't find us here, and we can hang out with Harry." she seemed to have already decided this herself as she said all this while loading their trunks into the overhead carriers.
Soon they were all seated, and to Harry's surprise, he found himself enjoying Tracey and Daphne's company. Tracey was just too bubbly and happy to not like and was a pleasant change from his usually somber and melancholy moods. Daphne proved herself to be a girl of few words, but was very knowledgeable, and seemed nice enough if not a little cold to him. Still, it was better than he was used to so it didn't bother Harry.
"So what house do you think you'll be in Harry?" Tracey had asked him. "Not sure to be honest. I was reading about them earlier, I think I'd fit in best at Ravenclaw, but only because I like to read and enjoy learning. Not sure about the others. What about you guys?" he asked them back.
Tracey beamed at him "No idea! It'll be a complete surprise to me, although my dad was a Slytherin."
All Daphne said was "Slytherin".
She had such a way with words Harry joked to himself.
Apparently not to himself, if her glaring at him was anything to go by. Or Tracey's wolfish grin and hysterical laughing. Thankfully he was saved from his embarrassment at having spoken aloud and not in his head, bye the cabin door once again being thrown open.
Standing there was the boy with the bone-white hair from the robe store, and behind him were two of the largest boys he'd ever seen at his age. They would have dwarfed even Dudley. He glanced at each of them in turn then spoke "I heard Harry Potter was on this train, that true". He sounded almost excited. Harry was starting to hate his own name at this point, but before he could speak up Tracey beat him to it. "No Harry Potter is a few cabins down; this is his twin brother Parry Hotter.". It took all of Harry's will power not to start laughing at that one. Malfoy just sneered down at her.
"Oh I suppose you think you're so funny don't you filthy Half-blood." then he turned his attention to Daphne "and you, enjoy her company now because once I'm heir and your mine, there won't be any consorting with half-bloods or the like.". It was then he saw the first vestiges of emotion appear from Daphne, and she looked furious. She snapped back at him "I would rather die Malfoy" and then turned her head to look out the window, clearly dismissing him from her attention. Malfoy turned his attention back to Harry again. "Can't go around making friends with the wrong sort now can you Potter. I can help with that you know."
Harry decided he had had enough of this prat. Honestly, was every other person in this world going to try to bully him in some way?
"I'm good thanks, you can leave now," Harry replied calmly. Malfoy began to turn red at being turned down. "You're making a big mistake Potter, do you have any idea who my father is!" Malfoy snapped at him. Harry was beginning to feel the fury creeping up from his chest again. "Get out Malfoy" Harry bit through clenched teeth.
"Oh? Need some alone time with these two bints do you?" Malfoy sneered at him.
Harry just raised a single eyebrow at the blonde standing in the doorway. "Perhaps I could send a letter to the board of governors and ask Mr. Malfoy about why his son bullies eleven-year-old girls on the train? Or perhaps I could owl the headmaster since as you keep reminding me, I AM Harry Potter after all." Harry hoped he sounded as much like professor Snape as he tried to.
"As if my father would care about the words of a half-blood. You're all worthless anyway." Draco sneered as he turned to leave the compartment. Once the door clicked shut Tracey jumped to her feet and slid the lock shut.
"Well that could have gone worse I think," Tracey said. Harry got the impression she was normally on the "glass half full" side of things. Daphne still seemed upset and just continued to stare at the passing scenery beyond the window.
All three of their heads snapped towards the door again when they heard knocking. Outside their cabin was a bushy-haired girl looking at them expectantly. The three of them all glanced at each other and seemed to come to a silent understanding. No more unwanted visitors this train ride.
The bushy-haired girl didn't seem to be getting the message as she knocked again and pointed down at the door lock. As if they didn't know how to work it. Harry just rolled his eyes and opened his book about Hogwarts and hiding behind it. After another round of frenzied banging on the door, Tracey stood up and walked over towards the door. The bushy-haired girl practically glowed with victory when Tracey unlocked the door.
"Have you seen-" was all she got out before Tracey yelled over her
"NO! Now sod off." and slammed the door shut and locked it with what Harry was sure was the most sickeningly sweet fake smile he had ever seen. Then he got another shock when the stoic girl across from him began to giggle while Tracey skipped back to her seat. Soon all three were laughing for a reason Harry couldn't understand. It wasn't that funny, not really. But it was nice to laugh at something, anything, with kids his age. They only saw the bushy-haired girl one more time before arriving at Hogwarts, when she walked by and pointed at their cabin and said something to a boy with a shiny golden badge who merely rolled his eyes and kept walking away. Harry couldn't help himself. He grinned at her in victory and just as he hoped, she looked mad all over again.
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As they stood outside the main gates of Hogwarts waiting to be let in, Harry couldn't get over the breathtaking view the castle made. Just a week ago he had never left Surrey, and now he was standing just outside of a medieval castle powered by magic. And the lake! What an amazing sight it had made coming around the bend of the lake on the boats, even if the Weasley boy had almost ruined it all by falling overboard. Luckily he was saved by what Hagrid had assured them was a "very friendly Kraken". Harry decided he'd try to never meet the thing to determine the authenticity of that statement.
He was pulled out of his musings by that very Weasley child approaching him with a look of scorn on his face. "No need to wonder where you'll be going eh? All the dark wizards end up in Slytherin." the boy accused Harry. Harry raised a single eyebrow at him but said nothing. That seemed to just anger the Weasley boy more.
"What!? Don't want everyone knowing you're a dark wizard? Casting dark curses on others! Look what you did to my hand! Your kind would never be welcome in Gryffindor." Weasley seethed while holding up his hand still an angry red, but mercifully without the black scorch marks.
"Emeric Evil-eye, you should look up the name in your history book," was all Harry said in response. They were interrupted before any more could be said by Professor McGonagall calling for them to be quiet and form a line. As she started explaining the houses he felt a hand on his back and heard Tracey lean in to whisper to him.
"Who the heck is Emeric Evil-eye?" she whispered.
He whispered back "A dark lord who came from Gryffindor house." That seemed to give Tracey pause as she didn't say anything else.
Soon they were ushered into the hall and stood between the tables.
Harry wondered about which house he might belong to best. Reading on the train, he wasn't sure which would be the best fir for him, or if any of it even mattered. Gryffindor celebrated bravery and courage. Hufflepuff extolled the virtues of hard work and loyalty. Ravenclaw lauded knowledge and its pursuit. Slytherin revered cunning and ambition above all. He thought he had all of these traits, but he wasn't sure that any of them defined who he was. He supposed it would be the hats problem to decide what to do with him.
He was pulled from his reverie by Tracey gently nudging him forward. Looking up he found the whole room was staring at him. Every person in every seat, all the teachers, Professor McGonagall looked murderous, and the old man in the blue robes covered in stars in the back looked on with those shiny eyes of his. Magic Harry was sure, because why else would someone's eyes twinkle. Kind of creepy honestly.
"Today please Mr. Potter" reprimanded Professor McGonagall holding out the hat for him to take on his way to the stool presented to him. Taking a seat on the stool and allowing the hat to be placed upon his head Harry wasn't sure what to expect. The voice came as a shock to him.
"Hmm," said a small voice in his head. "Difficult. Very difficult. Plenty of courage, I see. Not a bad mind either. There's talent, a thirst to prove yourself, now that's interesting. You've not had an easy go of it have you, Mr. Potter? So where shall I put you? Your Parents were both in Gryffindor, which could be a fit for you. Perhaps somewhere where your brilliance could be appreciated, cultivated? Perhaps somewhere you could use that courage and anger to lead others? Unfortunately, I think we can throw out Helga's house. You've not had much loyalty or camaraderie, and forcing you into a house with it might not work out as I hope it might. Hmm, perhaps you should go into the house of Salazar then? You could be great you know? So much like another before you. Wasted his potential that one did, but not you. No there's something about you Mr. Potter. You crave knowledge; crave the chance to prove yourself, to make a name of your own beyond the Boy-Who-Lived. To be remembered for whom you are, not what happened to you. Very well, if those are your goals, then this is only one option for you I'm afraid. Looks like your new home will be SLYTHERIN."
The hat had bellowed the last word, and despite the ringing in his ears from its volume, he couldn't help but smile. Harry looked around and noticed something strange. It was silent. Everyone was staring again. A lot of open mouths too. Well, at least Tracey looked happy.
Not long after that, she was seated beside him at the Slytherin table with Daphne seated beside her. It seemed they would be stuck together for a while longer after all.
The rest of the table didn't seem to appreciate his presence nearly as much. He supposed he was used to being glared at by this point, he could live with it.
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A.N.
Hey, all please review. If it's good tell me what you liked if it's bad tell me what went wrong. It all helps. More than anything else I want this story to be a good one. And of course, if it helps me become a better writer then awesome.
Now to answer a few questions I've been Dm'd
Gellert is not magically a good person now. I try to write each chapter from the limited perspective of the character it follows. So while you might have more knowledge than any one character, exposition is always tinted through the lens of the person viewing it. That's not to say Gellert Grindelwald is pure evil, I don't believe he is even in canon, it's all just shades of gray
There is not the main pairing yet, I'm planting seeds for a few different ones but I'm not writing eleven years old's in love. Character tags are for what will become this faces "Golden Trio"
Harry will NOT be an op one-shot machine. He will be more powerful than in cannon, and eventually at the level of the greats around him, but I hope to make that a reasonable ascension.
Thanks again all. Also, if you've made it this far to the end of CH.3 let me know, do you want me to keep updating at the current chapter length of about 5-6K at once a week roughly, or make them longer updates but more sporadic. Obviously if something big is happening I'll make them however long is needed to fit the scenes