Chapter 3: Choices
Professor Snape returned to the hospital in the afternoon the day before Harry would need to board the Hogwarts Express to take Harry to get his wand. By this point, Harry had received his clothes from Madam Malkin and skimmed through all of his textbooks. He hadn't felt the need to truly read them since the information was very familiar to him already.
His worries about not dreaming about Tom Riddle's life had gone away once his eyesight was corrected and he no longer received sleeping draughts. Now that Harry was entering the wizarding world, it also seemed as though recalling his dreams was coming easier to him. It wasn't clear why.
Before the professor took Harry to Ollivanders, Harry was discharged from the hospital, and his belongings were taken to a room at the Leaky Cauldron, which was where Harry would be staying the night before taking the train to Hogwarts the following morning. The whole time that Harry and the professor spent walking through Diagon Alley to Ollivanders, Harry saw familiar sights in real life for the first time. Only some of the shops were different. Ollivanders looked the same as it had when Tom Riddle had bought his yew wand.
When they entered the shop, Harry was greeted by the sight of an old man who looked friendly but had a gaze that seemed strangely intense. It was a little unnerving. Harry supposed this was Mr. Ollivander, the wandmaker.
Mr. Ollivander greeted Harry and Professor Snape cheerfully, talking a bit about the professor's wand as well as the wands of Harry's parents. Harry noticed, while looking at the professor out of the corner of his eye, that the professor's jaw was clenched tight as the wandmaker discussed the wands of Harry's parents.
Harry knew that Severus had only asked Lord Voldemort to spare the life of Lily Potter when he learned that the Dark Lord would go after the Potters. The man hated James Potter and hadn't cared about him as a baby since he was the offspring of James Potter. Of course, he also realized it was about practicality. No matter what, Lord Voldemort had been set on killing him. Asking to spare his life would have been pointless.
Mr. Ollivander began to have Harry try out several different wands, all of which rejected him. Some wands had more violent reactions than others. At one point, when the wandmaker went back for yet another wand, Harry overheard him mutter, "I wonder," and had a feeling that he knew where this was going. He knew that there were two wands out there that had wand cores made of the feathers of a phoenix that had provided only two feathers for wands: One was Tom Riddle's wand, and one was a wand that had yet to be purchased when Tom Riddle had purchased his wand.
When the wand was placed in Harry's hand, Harry felt a comforting warmth spread through him, and gold sparks shot out of the wand as a slight breeze spread through the room. The wandmaker said, "Curious. Very curious." Harry simply looked at him, waiting for the man to elaborate, which he did without needing prompting. "The wand chooses the wizard, Mr. Potter, but it's not always clear why. It's curious that this wand would choose you when its brother gave you that scar."
Harry saw that Professor Snape was startled by the news, but he wasn't. He'd had a feeling this would happen. Harry shrugged and replied, "We can't exactly choose who we're related to."
It was clear that that hadn't been the reaction the wandmaker had expected as he continued. "Indeed. I expect you'll do great things, Mr. Potter. He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named did great things after all, terrible but great."
Harry frowned. "Sir, I think I'm the last person you should be saying that to." Just because Harry found Tom Riddle interesting and appreciated his magical prowess didn't mean he wanted to hear anyone more or less praise the man who had killed his parents.
Once again, the wandmaker clearly hadn't expected Harry's reaction. "My apologies, Mr. Potter."
Harry nodded once to show he accepted the apology. Then Professor Snape paid for Harry's wand before handing Harry a bag containing the money he'd obtained from Harry's vault that hadn't been spent.
As Harry and the professor headed back to the Leaky Cauldron, they encountered a man around the professor's age who wore a purple turban around his head.
"Quirinus," Professor Snape drawled as a greeting.
"Seh-severus, n-nice to-to see you," Quirinus replied before turning his focus onto Harry. "And you muh-must be H-harry Potter. I-I'll be y-your D-defense A-against the Dark Arts pro-ff-fess-ss-sor."
Harry's right eye twitched in annoyance, but he really couldn't fault someone for having a disability. However, the severity of the speech impediment this professor had didn't seem conducive to teaching students. Thankfully, he knew everything this man was likely to teach, so he'd be able to largely ignore him in class. He smiled politely and offered his hand for the man to shake. "I look forward to seeing what you have to teach, professor."
The professor reached out to shake Harry's hand, but the moment their hands made contact, the professor retracted his hand quickly as though Harry's hand had been a hot stove he'd made the mistake of touching and had gotten slightly burned in the process.
"S-sorry. I muh-must be g-going," the professor said before walking away from Harry and Professor Snape.
Harry looked at Professor Snape with a raised eyebrow. "What was that about?"
"I haven't the slightest idea," the professor responded with a thoughtful look on his face.
Once Professor Snape brought Harry back to the Leaky Cauldron, he instructed Harry on how to get to King's Cross train station in the morning and reminded him that the train would leave at 11 a.m. He then left Harry at the inn. Harry had dinner at the Leaky Cauldron and went to bed early in preparation for the next day.
He woke up at 8 a.m., got himself ready for the day, had breakfast at the Leaky Cauldron, and checked out of his room by 9:30 a.m. All of his possessions were in his trunk other than the muggle-styled clothes on his body, his wand, his train ticket, and his money pouch. Harry stood on the curb outside the Leaky Cauldron next to his trunk. He stretched out his right arm with his wand in his hand. It was only a few minutes later that the Knight Bus appeared.
Because Harry managed to hide the scar on his forehead with his hair, he didn't have to deal with anyone fawning over him for being the Boy-Who-Lived. He simply paid the necessary amount of money to get onto the bus and took a seat after announcing his desired destination.
He arrived at King's Cross train station by 9:45 a.m. He didn't bother to grab a trolley to put his trunk on because his trunk had wheels. Otherwise, it would've been necessary to simply drag the trunk until a trolley appeared. Professor Snape's choice of trunk for Harry was very practical.
Harry didn't need any help with finding Platform 9 3/4 and didn't need any help with getting through the barrier and onto the train.
Once Harry gave his train ticket to one of the train's ticket collectors, he entered the train and sought out a compartment to sit in. He had planned to find an empty compartment, but he changed his mind when he saw a familiar face sitting in a compartment all by himself.
Harry opened the door of the compartment, and Neville looked away from the toad he was holding, up at Harry.
"Is it alright if I join you?" Harry asked.
"Sure," Neville replied nervously.
Harry smiled. "Thanks." He then proceeded to drag his trunk inside and lift it onto the rack opposite of where Neville's trunk was placed. Once that was done, Harry closed the door of the compartment and sat down across from Neville. "I don't think we've been properly introduced. I'm Harry Potter." Harry offered his hand for the boy to shake.
Hesitantly, Neville reached out and shook Harry's hand. "I'm Neville Longbottom."
"It's nice to meet you, Neville."
The two boys sat in silence for a while. Harry didn't really mind the silence, but he could tell that Neville felt uncomfortable based on his fidgeting. Harry decided to end the silence for Neville's benefit. "So, I see you have a toad. What made you decide to get a toad rather than a cat or an owl?"
Neville visibily relaxed slightly. "Oh, well, when I got my Hogwarts letter, my great-uncle Algie was so pleased he bought me my toad. You see, my family thought I might not be magic enough to come here. You should've seen their faces when I got my letter."
Harry's eyebrows shot up. "They thought you were a squib?"
"Yeah. It took a while before they saw me do any accidental magic. They tried to get my magic to come out in all sorts of ways before it finally appeared."
Harry frowned. He didn't like the sound of that at all. However, he was not about to inquire further at this time. He knew that pureblood wizarding families often did all sorts of dangerous, downright abusive things to their kids to get them to show signs of magic. He wouldn't have expected a light wizarding family like the Longbottoms to engage in such behavior though, so he was quite surprised.
Harry decided to steer the conversation in a more lighthearted direction. "So what's your toad's name?"
"Trevor."
"Why Trevor?"
Neville shrugged. "It just seemed like a good name for a toad, Trevor the toad."
The door of the compartment opened, and a girl with bushy brown hair already wearing her Hogwarts uniform appeared. "Can I sit with you two?" she asked, sounding out of breath.
"Sure. Do you need any help with getting your trunk on the rack?" Harry replied.
"I'd appreciate that. I got a bit carried away when buying books at Flourish and Blotts, so my trunk's quite heavy."
That explained why the girl was breathing heavily. She'd been dragging a heavy trunk for a while.
Harry helped the girl lift her trunk onto the rack he'd put his trunk on earlier. She hadn't been overstating things when she'd said her trunk was heavy. Even with two people it was difficult to lift the trunk onto the rack. Harry noticed that the girl's trunk had wheels, like his did. He wasn't sure how she would have managed to get her trunk onto the train if it hadn't had wheels.
Harry sat back down where he'd been sitting before, and the girl closed the door of the compartment before sitting down on his side of the compartment. "My name's Hermione Granger," she said. "And you two are...?"
"I'm Neville Longbottom," Neville answered.
"It's nice to meet you, Neville," Hermione said.
"And I'm Harry Potter," Harry answered.
Hermione's eyes widened. "Harry Potter? I've read all about you. You're in books!"
Harry felt slightly amused. "What do these books say about me?"
"You defeated a very powerful evil wizard when you were just a baby!"
"Anything else?"
"Well, there's mention of your scar, but no one knows where you went."
"So you haven't actually read all about me then."
Hermione's cheeks pinkened slightly with obvious embarrassment. "I might have gotten carried away."
Harry smiled. "It's alright."
"So where did you go afterwards?" Hermione asked.
"I was raised by my mum's muggle sister and her family."
"You grew up in the muggle world?" Neville asked.
"Yeah," Harry answered.
Hermione smiled brightly. "That's wonderful! I was raised by muggles too. I'm the first witch in my family!"
"You're a muggleborn?" Neville asked.
Hermione nodded proudly. "My parents were so excited for me when they learned I was a witch though they were skeptical until Professor McGonagall explained things and transformed herself into a cat. It was amazing. I'm really excited to see what we learn at Hogwarts. I've already read through all of my textbooks, and I got some other books too to better understand the wizarding world. There's this book I got that's all about Hogwarts called 'Hogwarts: A History.' It's my favorite book right now."
"I think you're going to end up in Ravenclaw," Harry commented.
"I'm actually hoping to get sorted into Gryffindor. Just because I'm intelligent and like books doesn't mean that that should determine which House I end up in."
"Why do you want to get sorted into Gryffindor?"
"It's the House of the brave, and I think it's important to always stand up for what you believe in, even if it's not popular. You need courage to do what's right rather than simply what's easy. I've always been outspoken. I'm not afraid to speak up for or defend myself or others."
Harry nodded. Hermione's argument swayed him. "I hope you get into Gryffindor then." Harry turned his attention to Neville. "Which House do you think you'll get sorted into, Neville?"
"Well," Neville responded, "my parents were in Gryffindor, and I know Gran wants me to end up in Gryffindor just like them, but I don't really think I'm brave enough for Gryffindor. I'd like to get sorted into Hufflepuff."
Harry recalled that Neville's parents had both been aurors and members of the Order of the Phoenix. It wasn't really surprising that Frank and Alice Longbottom had both been in Gryffindor. Most members of the Order of the Phoenix had been in Gryffindor in fact.
Harry could tell that Neville was a shy, nervous boy. Gryffindor could potentially make him braver, but Hufflepuff would be comforting for someone like him. "I hope you get sorted into Hufflepuff then."
"Thanks. Which House do you think you'll get sorted into?" Neville asked.
"Slytherin. I think I have traits suitable for all four of the Houses, but I think Slytherin is where I'll likely end up."
"I'm not sure if Slytherin would be good for you. A lot of You-Know-Who's supporters were in Slytherin, and their kids are likely to be in Slytherin too."
"I appreciate the concern, but I think I'll be fine."
The train left the train station, and the three children found themselves conversing with each other easily for the next several hours. The children got to know each other and easily found themselves making their first friends among their fellow soon-to-be classmates. Neville and Hermione learned that Harry had been blind and that his relatives had been less than pleasant. Harry and Neville learned that Hermione's parents were dentists. Neville learned about what dentists do. Hermione learned a bit about wizarding society.
At one point, the trolley witch came by with sweets. Harry got some sweets for himself and for his two new friends. Neville didn't have any money for sweets because his grandmother wanted him to lose weight while Hermione thought she shouldn't have any sweets because of her parents' profession. Harry told Neville and Hermione that a few sweets were not going to harm either of them, and it didn't take much convincing for the two children to give in, especially since Harry was the one buying the sweets.
Later on in the day, as Hermione reentered the compartment after having visited the loo, Trevor the toad got away from Neville and began hopping down the train. Harry told Hermione and Neville that he'd go find the toad and would be back shortly. He briefly considered using nonmagical means to find the toad in order to not demonstrate his advanced magical knowledge but tossed aside the idea quickly as he realized it'd take ages for him to find the toad if he went that route. After making sure no one was looking, he summoned the toad. If anyone had been obverving the situation, they would have seen a brown blob zoom through the air before being caught by Harry. When Harry looked at the just-caught toad, he saw that it looked a bit disoriented, but it was otherwise fine. Then, he reentered the compartment and gave Neville his toad.
Shortly before the train pulled into Hogsmeade station, Neville and Harry changed into their robes. During this time, Hermione waited outside the compartment to give the boys privacy.
When the train finally did pull up to the station, the first-year students were called over to the boats by Hagrid. Hermione, Neville, and Harry all got into a boat together. Trevor the toad once again attempted to escape, but Harry summoned it nonverbally and quickly enough that it just appeared as though he had caught the toad by nonmagical means.
All of the first-year students were in awe of Hogwarts, even Harry. He had plenty of Tom Riddle's memories that featured the castle, but it was one thing to see the castle through another person's memories and another to see the castle with one's own eyes. During the boat ride, Hermione told the boys facts she'd learned about the castle.
After the students made it across the lake, they were taken inside and made to wait before the doors of the Great Hall. It wouldn't be long before the students would be brought inside to get sorted.
"Word on the train is that Harry Potter's come to Hogwarts," a haughty-sounding boy said.
Some murmuring began among the students.
Harry didn't respond to the blond-haired boy when he heard the simple statement, but it only took a moment before the boy determined who Harry Potter was.
"This is Crabbe," the blond-haired boy introduced a bulky boy on his right. "And this is Goyle," he introduced a bulky boy on his left. "And I'm Malfoy, Draco Malfoy," the boy introduced himself.
Someone in the crowd snorted, and Draco turned his attention to the source. "Think my name's funny, do you? No need to ask what your name is. Red hair and a hand-me-down robe? You must be a Weasley."
Draco turned his attention back to Harry. "You'll find that some witches and wizards are better than others. You don't want to go making friends with the wrong sort." He looked at Neville and Hermione pointedly. "I can help you there." He stuck out his hand for Harry to shake.
Harry hesitated. Although he had originally planned to befriend Lucius's son in hopes of gaining easier access to the diary horcrux, he found himself really disliking the boy already. Draco, instantly upon meeting him, had dragged the spotlight onto them, insulted multiple people, including himself by essentially insulting his ability to judge others, and made it clear that he was trying to play with social dynamics. If Harry accepted Draco's offer of friendship, because of how Draco approached things, Harry would find himself with lower status, propping up a rude, arrogant child.
Harry decided that he would not befriend Draco Malfoy. If using Draco became necessary, he could simply use the Imperius on him someday. Otherwise, he'd find some other means to get to the diary horcrux. After all, it wasn't as though befriending Draco guaranteed access to the horcrux. "I appreciate the offer, but I think I can tell the right sort for myself." He did not shake Draco's hand.
Draco looked offended, but before he could say anything to Harry, Professor McGonagall opened the doors of the Great Hall and ushered in the first-year students. A short speech was given and the Sorting Hat sung a song about the Hogwarts Houses before students began to get sorted.
To Harry's surprise, both Hermione and Neville had the Sorting Hat on their heads for a long time, not long enough to be hatstalls but still longer than usual. Both clearly argued with the Sorting Hat. Hermione won her argument while Neville lost his argument. Both ended up getting sorted into Gryffindor. Harry had to bite his lip in order to not laugh when Neville ran to the Gryffindor table with the hat still on his head before sheepishly giving the hat to Professor McGonagall.
When Harry's name was finally called, he felt the mood in the Great Hall shift. Everyone was very interested in seeing where he would end up. Most would probably assume he would get sorted into Gryffindor because his parents were in that House or because he had "defeated" Voldemort as a baby. Harry did his best to pretend he didn't notice the hyperfocus directed towards him as he sat on the stool and had the Sorting Hat placed on his head.
The Sorting Hat began to speak to him in his mind. "Well, this is interesting. I've never sorted someone like you before. It is almost as though you have lived an entire life before, and yet you haven't. You might want to consider what those items you are seeking can do and how they are made. It may explain why you know what you know."
Harry certainly didn't expect to get input about things related to Voldemort from the Sorting Hat! Didn't it only have as much knowledge really as the children whose heads it sat upon?
"I am simply telling you something that you would be able to put together with the pieces of information you already have. I just happen to be able to see it all at once. Now, onto which House you should go into. You know you have traits of all four Houses, but you wish to be in Slytherin, even though your friends are both in Gryffindor and Slytherin likely is filled with children of people who wish for your death. Why do you want Slytherin more than Gryffindor beyond the familiarity you would experience by being in the same House that Tom Riddle once was in?"
Harry wanted to be in Slytherin in part because the familiarity would be comforting, true, and the idea of going into Gryffindor where his new friends were was tempting. He had one major reason for wanting to go into Slytherin that had nothing to do with feelings, however: If Voldemort ever returned, which he would probably do sooner rather than later, then the children of his former Death Eaters, most being in Slytherin, would be ideal for recruiting as members of a new generation of Death Eaters. If Harry got into Slytherin, he could catch wind of Voldemort's return or plans early on as well as work to prevent his fellow Slytherins from becoming Death Eaters.
The Sorting Hat was satisfied with Harry's reason and shouted "Slytherin!" Applause came from the student body like it did for all sortings, but Harry could tell the Gryffindors as a House were disappointed and the Slytherins as a House were surprised. Harry glanced over at Hermione and Neville and saw that they were happy for him getting sorted into the House he had told them he wanted.
When Harry sat down at the Slytherin table, he chose to sit on the side that would have no tables behind his back. He could look around the entire room from his location. He didn't like not having his back to the wall when sitting down. Part of it was that he felt more comfortable in confined spaces since he spent so much time in his cupboard, and part of it was because walls allowed him to move about when he couldn't see before even if he didn't have a probing cane on hand. Although he could see now and would never have to live in a cupboard again, it would take time to adjust to the newfound freedom. He also simply liked the idea of being able to observe and react to anything instantly, and whether that was simply a part of his own personality or something he picked up because of Voldemort's memories, it really didn't change how he felt.
Once the last student to be sorted made his way over to the Slytherin table, Headmaster Dumbledore spoke about some rules, like places to be avoided, and then the feast began. Harry's eyes widened when he saw all the food appear. Yes, he had Tom's memories about meals at Hogwarts, but again it was different seeing with his own eyes. He had never encountered so much food before. He kept in mind what the healer had told him when making his food selection. He needed nutritious meals to counteract the malnutrition, even if the nutrient potions had mostly remedied this issue.
He didn't start up any conversations with the other students while he ate dinner, but it didn't stop them from starting any up with him.
"So, Potter, how did you end up in Slytherin?" a first-year girl asked. Other students pretended to not be listening.
"Who are you?" Harry asked back.
"Pansy Parkinson."
"Well, Pansy, how did you end up in Slytherin? I assume we're all here because we have certain traits or values that align with what Slytherin represents."
"But usually people get sorted into a House their parents were in."
"Maybe one of my parents was in Slytherin." Harry shrugged. He knew very well both of his parents had been in Gryffindor, but he only knew that due to Voldemort's memories.
Pansy shook her head. "Potters are all Gryffindors. It's been that way for centuries."
"That doesn't mean my mother couldn't have been in Slytherin."
Draco joined the conversation, sneering. "I heard that she was a mudblood. There's no way she was in Slytherin."
Harry blinked, incredulous. "Excuse me?"
"Mudbloods don't get sorted into Slytherin."
"You're seriously calling my mother a mudblood? Draco, just how stupid are you?"
"What?"
"I met you for the first time maybe a half hour ago, and in both interactions I've had with you, you have managed to insult both me and several other people. How did you figure that that would make me have any desire to befriend you or even respect you? And now you feel the need to go on using a slur to insult my dead mother who sacrificed her life so that I could live as though you are somehow better than her? Pathetic." Harry shook his head.
Draco was speechless for once, and Harry returned to eating his meal, not noticing how other students and even some staff members were looking at him. He hadn't realized he'd been shouting when he called Draco out.
When dinner came to an end, the first-year students were escorted to their dormitories. Unfortunately, Harry would have to share the same room as Draco, but at least the other first-year Slytherin boys would be there and seemed decent enough or at least weren't likely to be as much of a handful to deal with. Harry selected a bed in the corner furthest from the door and made sure his belongings and bed curtains were properly secured before he changed into pajamas and went to sleep.