Welcome back all! Neolyph is here again to bring you more of the story! Sorry about the roughness of last chapter. What happened was that I wrote a massive eighteen thousand word chapter, realized it was too long, and cut it in half. This is the second half of it. Anyway, we are now officially in Hogwarts fully, so I hope you enjoy!

Also, at the suggestion of a PM, I started a forum for this story. The link is here.

forum/A-Broken-Wizard-and-a-Broken-Magus-Discussion-Forum/188670/

Now, for reviews!

RedViking96: Yeah, Dumbles if gonna have a bad time

Have a Little Feith: Dumbledore isn't exactly... senile. He's an old man far too caught up in his own "infallibility" and reputation, to the point where he had become the mask. Theoretically, one could force a familiar bond through the use of compulsion curses and the like on any magical being/creature.

Akuma-Heika: Lorelei views Harry as one to be respected and revered above all others. She is still in the running for the cult. The Einzbern title is passed down like a lordship, and appointed in a will if no blood successors exist. Harry's abandonment became quite common knowledge in the circles around the Potters, primarily Snape, the Weasleys, the Marauders, Moody, the Order of the Phoenix, etc. Harry and Sakura were in a relationship prior to the adoption. They're less siblings and more simply wards of the same individual. Bit of a spoiler here, but Assassin may not have shut down the homunculi production, and may have slightly altered the indoctrination process. Lucius didn't become a Death Eater because he is an inherently smart man and a survivalist. He realizes that Muggleborns are necessary to the survival and expansion of Wizardkind. That was why when Voldemort started pressuring him to sign up, he took his family and took an extended trip to America.

BBWulf: He and Assassin should have an ultimate showdown of the Gods: The Greater Good vs. Harry Potter, our Lord and Savior.

Delta8: Yes, it was a bit lackluster. As I said, it and this were originally one chapter, but I cut it in half due to the ridiculous length.

Thundramon: I've always felt that if Snape put his hatred aside for five seconds, he and Harry would actually find quite a lot of common ground. Lily being alive despite his failure has led to him being less bitter, and therefore more open-minded. When I say the Dumbledore isn't evil, I mean that in the cackling Skeletor or Dr. Doom sense. He's still the antagonist, but not evil. He does everything he does because he believes that it is the most efficient route to everyone being happy. Parallels between Orion and Dudley are intentional. Orion is how I imagine Harry would be were he raised with the love and fame afforded by his status as heir to a Most Ancient and Most Noble House, and BWL. Snape doesn't diffrentiate between the homunculi as 1) Only Harry and Sakura can really tell them apart by appearance, and 2) When "On-Duty", they all act coolly and professionally, resulting in them all seeming identical, despite their varying personalities. Harry refers to Sakura as his sister purely for convenience. They're just children warded under the same guardian.

Gandrin: Perhaps the reason is that this story is more character focused than most Super Harry fics, and Harry solves his problems primarily with cleverness rather than raw power? Otherwise I don't really know, but I'm glad that you enjoy it.

silentstrixe: Indeed. I've always thought that Snape had incredible potential, but failed to utilize it properly.

AbaddontheDevourer: Yeah, I rushed the FSN arc a bit, primarily because I'm not too familiar with the canon. I've watched UBW, but that is about my extent of knowledge regarding the series. Yeah, Fate's Gamble is pretty kickass and one of my favorites, but I'm glad to know I tie with Herwald von Einzbern. Love that series.

Rufus Wilde: Ideally, this will end either fourth or seventh year, it really depends on what direction I take this.

Chapter 13: Sorting

Waking up first, Harry slipped out of bed so as not to disturb the girls. He was in the middle of putting his socks on when he heard the rustle of fabric and saw Assassin donning her dress. He was hardly surprised, as she had shown to have a total lack of shame when it came to him, and he walked out to check on breakfast, the stealthy Servant padding at his heels. When he had first taken over the castle, he had attempted to cook for himself in the kitchens, but that seemed to make the homunculi there visibly uncomfortable, as they apparently took it as him feeling they weren't doing a good enough job. They had asked if he was afraid they would poison him, which had shocked him, although in retrospect, he really should have expected that.

He had quickly assured them that he simply enjoyed cooking, and while they seemed to accept that, he couldn't help but feel that he'd hurt their feelings. He had eventually sighed, and said that they could cook for him, telling them that it was fine so long as it made them happy, but that from time to time he would still cook, if only to not lose his touch. At that, they perked right back up and made a lavish, multi-course feast for him and the girls. They were marvelous cooks, but they lacked that 'homemade' feel his own meals possessed.

The maids shared many similarities with Assassin in their ability to follow his orders to the letter while still doing whatever they wanted. If he ever phrased anything as a direct order, they complied instantly and perfectly. Anything in the realm of an option on the other hand that ran counter to their indoctrination was almost universally ignored. It was frustrating, but understandable.

He made sure to keep an eye on Assassin at all times when they stayed in the castle. He still didn't trust the black haired Servant around the impressionable homunculi. He'd already noticed that some of the newer ones gave him more reverent looks than usual when he passed by and resolved to tighten his hold on Assassin. The last thing he needed was a couple of the younger homunculi forming a cult in his name.

Oh if only he knew.

Archer still incessantly made fun of him whenever possible. Upon asking, the Servant revealed that Harry reminded him of himself in life, and he wasn't really sure whether that was a compliment from the sarcastic Servant or not. After the war, he'd offered Archer a chance to go back to the Throne, but the offer was declined. The Servant of the Bow claimed that he just found his new Master's life too amusing to pass on. Harry had obliged him, not really having any reason to refuse. He had regretted it ever since. Fortunately, Kiritsugu wasn't quite as sarcastic about the whole thing, though he did share some of Archer's amusement.

Kiritsugu remained the father Harry never had. Every time he heard that they were at the Einzbern castle, he popped on down to talk with them. He asked them how their studies with Zelretch were going, what they'd been up, and told stories from Fuyuki. Whenever Harry had a problem he didn't know how to deal with, the Magus Killer would do his best to help. It was... nice, having an adult in his life that he implicitly trusted.

Harry made his way to the dining room, knowing that everyone else would be there shortly once the smell of food had made its way through the castle. He sat at the table, a group of maids quietly attending him as the food arrived. He'd tried to explain that he could eat himself, but ran into a similar problem as he'd had with the kitchen staff. A lifetime of use as tools had made the homunculi view any denial of their services as either a lack of trust or indication of their uselessness. He'd just gritted his teeth and gone along with it, as there were worse things to have to suffer through. He did draw the line at bath attendants though, much to their surprising chagrin.

As he ate, Assassin standing at his shoulder as was her wont, the others began filing in. Rider was first, stopping to give him a quick peck before sitting down at her place. Caster followed after repeating the gesture and sitting down. Eventually, the rest came in, Sakura and Illya sleepily bringing up the rear, all making sure to give a morning kiss. He turned to Assassin, beckoning her down and planting a kiss on her, knowing that she wouldn't take the initiative on something like that unless he gave her explicit permission. As always though, she was extraordinarily eager once he'd started, maintaining it longer than anyone else, once again.

Once everyone was seated and eating, Harry received a letter via his dropbox. It was another Hogwarts letter. It informed him that his family would be picking him up later that day at the Leaky Cauldron in order to escort him to the Hogwarts Express. He nearly laughed at what was obviously the Headmaster's heavy-handed attempt at getting him to have some sort of family reunion. He considered sending a reply that he was attending to family business today, and that if his parents wanted to see him, they would have to wait until he arrived at Hogwarts. He figured though, that he should meet with them, if only to put a face on his hatred.

He sent a letter to Gringotts for them to mail back to Hogwarts, confirming his attendance, and that he would be escorted by a chaperon and his sisters. He had an idea as to the chaperon, but it would require a couple of steps.

He'd been saving them for a special occasion, but he figured that now was better than never.

"Rider, come over here. I have something I want to give you," he commanded.

Curious, Rider stood from the table and walked over, standing in front of him.

"Now close your eyes, and remove your Breaker Gorgon."

Rider was shocked, and slightly nervous. She didn't want to accidentally turn her beloved Master to stone simply because she couldn't control her eyes.

"A-Are you sure Master? That is rather dangerous."

"I know what I'm doing, Rider. Take it off."

Shakily, she reached up and with a click, the only barrier between her and the painful death of her loved ones was removed. She kept her eyes scrunched shut, determined to keep a tight rein on their mystic properties.

She felt her Master gently brush her hair aside, and something settle over her face.

"Alright, now open your eyes."

"Master, I can't," she pleaded, "I don't want to hurt anyone."

She felt him take her hands in his own, and basked in the intimacy of the feeling.

"Rider, trust me."

For the first time in many, many years, Rider opened her eyes without her blindfold on. The light in the room was nearly blinding, but she persevered. Hesitantly, she looked down at the boy in front of her, expecting to see a stone statue of the boy she loved.

Instead, she saw him sitting in a chair with an amazed expression on his face as he gazed into her eyes. She once again had to fight down the urge to shut her eyes to the world. The two things her sisters had constantly derided her for were her height and her eyes, making her incredibly self-conscious about both. Fortunately, her Master didn't seem to be all that bothered by her height, but her eyes were another story. He had more than enough reason to be wary of them, as every living being that met her stare, however briefly, would be turned to stone, only those with a high magic resistance able to resist their effect.

The irises of her eyes were a light pink, and the pupils were both rectangular and the same purple as her hair. Both of these together gave her beautiful, alluring eyes, belying her nature as a creature surpassing the entire natural order as a gorgon.

She was losing the battle to not blush in embarrassment at the way her Master looked at her, and she found herself gazing into his own eyes. They were a deep green, the color of dark emeralds. Many would not know this, but for her to look at someone without her Breaker Gorgon on, was more or less the equivalent of a deep, French kiss, as it was something that until a couple of seconds ago, she had thought impossible. She could have kissed someone, but she had thought that she would be forever forced to watch the world through the barrier of her blindfold. Being able to stare at the eyes of her Master without it on made her feel quite vulnerable, as if she was naked.

Wondering how exactly she hadn't reduced her Master to a statue in his image, she felt up around her face and discovered that she was wearing eyeglasses.

"I made them for you," Harry explained, "I thought that you might enjoy being able to truly see the world without fear of hurting those around you. I saw your eyes once in the dream cycle and thought that they were too beautiful to hide behind a blindfold."

She just stared at her Master for a moment, unable to think of words to express herself. Unable to properly find any, she took action instead.

Moving like a snake, she lifted him up from his chair and pulled him into a deep, long kiss. Normally, she restrained herself in matters of affection, but not this time. She poured out her very being into this kiss, wrapping her arms around him, unable to find any other way to express her gratitude over his acceptance of her monstrous nature and one of her biggest insecurities. After several long minutes, she let up, dropping him back into his seat as he gasped for air.

"Thank you Master," she said, running her fingers through his hair and beaming at him.

Wordlessly, she walked back to her chair and resumed eating her breakfast, marveling in the various sights around her, and ignoring the heated glares from the other Servants, Sakura and Illya sent her way.

As his Servant resumed eating, Harry mused on the subject of his birth parents.

Whenever he thought of them, he couldn't feel anything but scorn. What kind of parents handed off their child to an old man with naught but a couple minute's debate? The only reason they were lower on his revenge priority list was that they had been unaware that he would be placed with the Dursleys, and had expected him to be cared for. That lay solely on Dumbledore's shoulders, and for that the old man would burn, slowly. He would dismantle the man's world around him and slowly feed it into the void.

He could feel Berserker's agreement with the sentiment over his mental link as the mad giant added another group of faces to his kill list. He'd have to keep a very tight hold on the Servant around both his "family" and wizards in general, as he would likely take even an unspoken order as an agreement to kill them all. Without Harry telling him to stand down, the Servant would likely just start killing wizards until he found the five that were the target of his Master's ire: Lily and James Potter, Albus Dumbledore, Peter Pettigrew, and Tom Riddle. Vernon and Petunia Dursley were on a separate list, with much more direct approaches prepared.

Never let it be said that Harry let his enemies off easy. One of the only reasons he was attending Hogwarts was for revenge. He could easily kill the Potters and Dumbledore if he wished, but that wouldn't be satisfying. Not when so many tantalizing possibilities existed. He would slowly and methodically destroy anyone that was responsible for his hellish upbringing. And best of all, they would never know why. He would do it completely anonymously. He would become what wizards whispered about from the safety of their homes and in the back rooms of taverns.

He knew he possessed the ruthlessness for it. He'd read up on what some of these so-called "Death Eaters" had done and nearly laughed. Rape? Torture? Mass Murder? Those were things the average magus did solely for the sake of research. A magus could detonate a chemical weapon in the center of Tokyo and walk away clean so long as he didn't get caught and he gained adequate data from it.

Even better was that his family was with him the whole way. Illya and Sakura had heard his story and been filled with rage. Sakura figured that since Harry had killed Zouken for her and helped her get revenge on Rin, she'd help him with his list. Illya simply hated them for their transgressions against her Big Brother. The Servants were behind him one hundred percent. Rider, Caster, and Assassin in particular seemed to be planning their own little revenge schemes. The only one that had an objection was Saber, who wanted to ensure that the children were left out of it. Harry had given her his assurance, and she had joined in as well. She had been appalled at how someone could so callously send their own child away to relatives that hated him. Since none of what they did was technically a provable crime, she had assented to the covert revenge scheme.

Harry plotted to play the dark child seeking redemption. He'd act like an estranged abused orphan, who dreamed of nothing more than a loving family, but it came too late to avoid Slytherin house. The Potters would view him as the Prodigal Son, never suspecting his involvement in the hellfire that would rain down on their house.

It would be perfect.

-Break-

The Potter family was incredibly excited. Today, they were reunited with their lost son. They were supposed to be together the previous day, but Dumbledore had interfered and sent Professor Snape instead, simply asking that they trust his judgement. James had raised all hell about Snivellus being sent to introduce his son to the wizarding world, but eventually relented. Even Lily had been angered that her once friend had been sent in their place, especially since she could not see a good reason why they couldn't have gone instead, as they too were Hogwarts' teachers.

The family made their way into the tavern, only accosted once or twice by well-wishers who wanted to meet The-Boy-Who-Lived. Entering, they saw a back table, the occupants of which surprised them. In the center was a boy who could be their son. He was a bit tall for his age; had medium length, well-maintained black hair, bearing an errant steak of purple; round glasses, behind which laid dark green eyes; and was dressed in casual pants and a white button-up shirt. Next to him on his right was a girl roughly the same age, rather pretty and had oddly enough, purple hair the same shade as the streak in the boy's. On his left was a girl who might be a veela, she certainly had the hair for it, white as snow. Across the table were three beautiful, identical women in maid uniforms. Lastly, an ethereal beauty with light-purple hair, dark trousers, and a black turtleneck was sitting at the same table, looking around half in wonderment, and half in disgust. Her eyes were unsettling though: pink, with purple, rectangular pupils, something that belied a creature heritage, and was earning her more than a few sneers, although she didn't seem to care. The Potters tensed at seeing her though, as something about this woman though just screamed danger, like she was something ancient that was not to be provoked. She regarded them as they came in, before reaching over and prodding the boy absorbed with nursing a butterbeer.

He looked up at them, and his eyes lit up. He jumped from his seat and approached them, stopping just a few steps short, seemingly unsure of himself. Ivy took the initiative by leaping at him with a cry of "HARRY!" and tackling him into a hug.

This broke the ice quite nicely, as the Potters then had their big tearful reunion (fake on Harry's part, of course) and everyone got introduced.

The Potters had been informed as to his upbringing with the Dursleys and kidnapping by Zouken. The story Harry had instructed Severus to spin claimed that Zouken's machinations had led to Harry's magical core being severely crippled, leaving him unable to control a lot of his own magic, which might cause his magic to behave rather strangely, or cause odd magical outbursts.

For this reason, after Kiritsugu rescued him and Sakura, three magical constructs that Zouken had created in a twisted experiment had bound themselves to the boy they had been imprisoned with in order to protect him due to his inability to properly protect himself. This had earned the gratitude, if suspicion, of the Potter adults. Lily in particular were very uncomfortable with the idea of her son possessing three grown and very attractive women as familiars. James feared what kind of magical constructs they were, but was otherwise proud of the apparent smoothness of his older son. He of course kept this to himself.

Rider had been introduced as a friend of Kiritsugu that was escorting the three children on this trip as a chaperon. She claimed that Kiritsugu was hesitant to leave the boy he saw as a son unsupervised with the family that had pitched him off to the Dursleys. His mother and father had already apologized profusely for the abuse he had suffered, but never once claimed that he shouldn't have been sent away or that they had done anything wrong. They only claimed that it was unfortunate that the Dursleys had abused him so. A subtle difference, but an important one.

The only Potter other than Harry that wasn't happy about the sickeningly cheerful reunion was Orion. He still didn't see why everyone was making such a big fuss over his brother, who apparently was more squib than wizard. The two girls with him were cute enough though. He might just turn up the Boy-Who-Lived charm for them. He did always love the fangirls. Not to mention stealing them away from his squib brother might just remind the little upstart of who was the Boy-Who-Lived, and who was the unimportant twin. He decided to make his move on the train, away from the prying eyes of his parents.

Eventually, after several hours of painful smiling and disgusting cheerfulness on Harry's part, the elder Potters announced that they needed to get to the train soon, or they'd be left behind. The homunculi rushed upstairs and retrieved the three's luggage, bringing it down and loading it into the trunk of the limousine the Potters owned for use in the muggle world. The large group all piled in, before the driver drove away into muggle London and to King's Cross Station.

They arrived, all exiting the vehicle and making their way to Platform 9 3/4. As they approached, they were cut off by a large group of redheaded children, all running about like chickens with their heads cut off. A plump, pleasant-faced woman that just exuded kind motherliness was bustling around, organizing the small army of redheads into something resembling organization. Finally, the last of her children got through the wall, leaving only herself, her husband, and a young girl that was staring at Orion with unashamed adoration in her eyes.

The redheaded woman turned to follow her daughter's gaze, and her jovial manner instantly faded at the sight of James.

"Arthur dear," she said, "I do believe we have business elsewhere, with people who value things like family."

James and Lily visibly winced as she practically spat the last word. Her eyes then landed on Harry, and she swooped over to him, surprising him with her concern.

"Oh Harry dear, I'm so sorry. I heard from Dumbledore what happened to you. 'You can't just send your son away like that' I told your parents, 'It's a complete betrayal of family values' I said to them, I did, but they just wouldn't listen. And now there's all this talk of abuse and experimentation and I just feel so awful about it. You never should have been shipped off like that, regardless of reasoning. Oh listen to me, I'm rambling. I just blame myself, you know dear? I can't help but believe that maybe if I'd been just a bit more persuasive with you parents then maybe I could have talked them out of it but-"

Oddly... cheered by this motherly woman, he took one of her wildly waving hands in his own.

"Pardon madam, but can I at least get your name? I thank you greatly for your concern, but I'm recovering from my unfortunate upbringing and have reconciled with my parents," he said calmly.

"Oh, don't call me "madam" dear," she said embarrassed, "And I'm glad that you have it in you to be the bigger man and forgive your parents, even if they don't deserve it," she stated the last part with another bite in her voice.

"Also, I'm Molly Weasley, and that's my husband Arthur. My son Ronald is attending Hogwarts this year, and his older brothers Fred and George are in the year above you, maybe you can be friends. Just know dear, that no matter what happens, you'll always have a place in our home should you ever need it. It's the least I can do since I couldn't talk your parents out of shipping you off like that."

Harry found himself strangely touched by this offer of Asylum from a woman that barely knew him, but was kind enough to extend the invitation simply because circumstances out of her hands and beyond her responsibility had caused him pain.

"You have my sincerest thanks, Mrs. Weasley. It's not everyday that one meets someone as kind and giving as you. Should I ever need it, I will remember your offer."

The woman surprised him once again by swooping and pulling him into a quick, bone-crushing hug before grabbing her husband and bustling off, never even glancing at either of the Potter adults during the entire exchange.

Shaking their heads, the Potters continued through the wall, and into what Harry initially mistook for a press conference.

It appeared that the Daily Prophet and several other wizarding newspapers had learned of Orion attending his first year at Hogwarts, because the second they came through the portal to the magical station, he was nearly blinded as dozens of cameras went off and nearly deafened by the screamed questions of the reporters.

Orion, with the ease of long practice, began posing for photos, blowing kisses, signing autographs, and delivering statements. Harry instantly ducked out, not wanting any press exposure yet. Most of the reporters didn't seem to even notice him, and those that did quickly dismissed him due to his dissimilarity to the pudgy Orion. The maids took his luggage and boarded the train, not wanting any questions asked. After he was finished basking in his glory, Orion gave one last goodbye and boarded the train.

The main event gone, several reporters took statements from the Potter adults, then all of them left. Glad that the media circus was over, Rider gave the three children a happy goodbye, and walked through the portal. On the other end of the portal, she astralized and walked right back to his side, joining the rest of the astralized Servants.

The Potters came over and gave him a quick goodbye, since they were professors after all, and would see him at the Welcoming Feast, and told him that they loved him. That last bit nearly broke Harry's composure. They did not love him. People do not send the ones they love into the care of a stranger at the vague behest of an old man. Instead of lashing out, he reigned in his anger and hugged them goodbye.

The whistle blew, indicating the need to board immediately, so he gave one last goodbye and boarded the train with Sakura and Illya in tow.

The inside of the train was rather luxurious, with plush carpets and comfortably padded benches. He searched along the train until he found the compartment his homunculi had taken, which was drawing some curious looks from the passing students, and stepped inside. The maids had already stored his luggage, so he sat across from the three, Sakura and Illya sitting next to him. After ensuring that the compartment was completely locked, he sighed and sagged into his seat. Between forcing himself not to lash out at the Potters and keeping Berserker from reducing them to a smear on the ground, he was mentally exhausted.

His relaxation was interrupted by a tentative knocking on the compartment door. He slid it open to reveal small, skinny boy, his face still showing signs of baby-fat, who looked like he was about to pass out from fright.

"U-U-U-Uh, h-h-have you seen my t-t-toad?" he stuttered out.

He was initially going to simply say no, but something about this boy reminded him of himself when he was younger.

"No, I haven't. I do know a spell for that though. If you promise to keep it secret, I'll do it."

"S-S-Sure, I promise."

"Alright then. What's your toad's name?"

The kid managed to gather himself enough to stop stuttering.

"Uhh, Trevor."

Harry flicked his wrist, causing his wand to pop out of the holster Ollivander had thrown in with his wand. The boy's eyes widened at the sight of the powerful looking wand. The truth was, Harry didn't need a wand to preform wizarding spells, but if he was to blend in, he would have to act like he needed it. Using wandless magic before he even set foot in Hogwarts would draw far too much attention for his plans.

"Accio Trevor the Toad!" he said with force. With a croak, the errant toad appeared in his hands, which he handed to Neville.

"T-Thanks so much. Gran would have killed me if I'd lost him again. Um, if you don't mind me asking, what's your name? I'm Neville by the way, Neville Longbottom."

Harry extended his hand to shake in greeting.

"Harry Potter."

Neville surprised him by not immediately asking whether he was the brother of The-Boy-Who-Lived. Instead, he simply reached out and shook his hand, though his hand was a bit shaky and his grip was weak.

"Say," Harry began, "have you got a seat yet? Because if not, you can sit in here."

Neville nervously looked at the occupants of the carriage, particularly the adult and most definitely female occupants, and swallowed.

"S-Sure," he stammered before seemingly forcing his anxiety down and stepping into the car, placing his luggage in a rack, and sitting down next to Illya.

"So, if you don't mind my asking, you said your last name is Potter. Are you one of those Potters?"

"By that, do you mean to ask if Orion is my brother?" Harry replied, not letting any emotion in his voice.

"I'm sorry! I'd imagine that would be a sort of sensitive topic for you. Please, just pretend I didn't say anything." Hastily said Neville, who apparently understood he had set foot on a minefield.

"No, it's alright. I'd probably ask the same question. To answer your question, yes Orion is my brother. I don't really know him though. I was raised by mundanes."

"Mundanes?" Neville repeated, confused.

"Sorry, muggles. We call them mundanes where I come from," Harry excused.

"Ahh, I see. Mundanes, huh? I kind of like that. I always thought muggle sounded too much like an insult."

Along the very long trip to Hogwarts, the four in the train car became fast friends. Together, Harry and Sakura drew the shy Neville out of his shell. Illya would have helped, but Neville was slightly scared of her, a fact which nearly had her throwing a tantrum.

The only interruptions had come when a blonde child that resembled a ferret threw open the door, loudly declared that Orion wasn't in here either, and left without another word, and later when Caster had informed him that Orion was looking for him in the train cars, so he'd wandlessly cast a Notice-Me-Not on the door, causing him to pass right by it.

Ponces.

When the train neared the station, Illya and Sakura went off to change into their robes, although neither of them would have minded if Harry saw them in their undergarments, but Neville was another story. Harry sent the maids to keep an eye on them and ensure they didn't run into problems, as Zelretch had been quite clear on how backwards the wizards' society was. If a Pureblood was to claim a Half-Blood or even better, a Muggleborn had "enticed" them, even if they raped her, at worst they would get a heavy fine, and even that was when the victim had a powerful Pureblood relative.

With the compartment now empty of the fairer sex, Harry and Neville changed into their robes. He had to admit, when he'd first heard that he'd be required to wear robes of all things at this school, he'd been a bit irritated, as he was used to more comfortable clothes, that allowed for more freedom of movement.

Fortunately, Professor Snape had recommended a small tailor shop to him. After about fifteen minutes of measuring and forty-five or sewing, he had a perfectly fitted and tailored set of robes. He'd paid extra for a sleeker silk than the black wool usually used for the Hogwarts robes. Overall, he looked like he was wearing a long coat over a suit than someone wearing preposterous robes. Neville wasn't so fortunate, as he had bought his robe off the rack and was practically swimming in it due to his small frame. As he watched the boy clumsily struggle around in his robes he resolved to give him the tailor's business card.

Now that their Master was dressed, the maids joined him in the compartment, followed shortly by Sakura and Illya. A brief shudder of stopping followed by an announcement to disembark informed them that they'd arrived at Hogsmeade Station.

A group of prefects began ushering the first years off the train and towards a large man with a lantern. The man was huge, but next to Berserker he still looked like a child.

"First years! First years to me!" he hollered at the passing students.

He sent a quick message to the maids to go ahead to the castle on foot and to meet him there. They gave a quick agreement and headed up towards the castle.

The castle itself would have been much more impressive if he didn't already own a castle nearly twice its size. Honestly, whoever originally built the Einzbern Castle in Germany was clearly a magus, because the ornate fortification entirely lacked any sense of proportion. It was something of a stereotype that magi didn't know how to do anything small, a stereotype entirely proven by the ludicrously large castle that the Einzberns formerly called their home. While it certainly looked impressive, it would have been impossible to properly defend in the case of an attack, although that had never been proven due to their family's standing in the Clock Tower.

As he walked towards the large man with Illya and Sakura, he saw Orion step off the train looking miffed about something with a redheaded boy tagging at his heels like a puppy and a brunette girl with frizzy hair that looked irritated with both of them.

A quick flash of Legilimency on his younger twin nearly had him laughing. Orion thought that he could turn up his "Boy-Who Lived charms" to steal Sakura and Illya from him? Sakura would probably slap him for the attempt and Illya might just straight up kill him on principle. She was already jealous enough with Ivy's attempts at getting to know her Big Brother, never mind someone trying to charm her simply to piss him off.

Chuckling to himself, he walked past the man with the lantern and onto one of the waiting boats, sitting down with Neville, Sakura, and Illya. Tired of being wet, he reached into his pocket, projected a collapsible umbrella, and pulled it out. Neville looked at it in confusion.

"Where did you get that from?" he said, eyeing it.

"It's collapsible," he said, not quite answering the question, but satisfying Neville. Harry thought that the boy had potential, but it remained to be seen.

The boat continued across the lake, making Harry wonder why exactly first year students couldn't simply take those carriages like everyone else. Wizards really were irrational. It was as if Zelretch founded a society, minus his sense of humor, and with added bigotry.

At the small dock, Harry put his umbrella back into his pocket, letting it dissipate. He made his way into the school with the rest of the first years, who were all chattering excitedly. He decided that it would help his 'lonely dark child seeking love and redemption' persona if he didn't get involved with any conversations, although he did draw some attention, his unusual hair, and the fact that both Illya and Sakura were staying close to him making quite a few students curious. Soon, a stern looking woman led them up to a large doorway, where they were ambushed by ghosts.

Irritating, he thought, but not insurmountable. With Sakura's shadows, she would be able to restrain or kill any ghosts if they got too nosy. If he could figure out a way to shut down or avoid the talking portraits, he'd have free reign of the castle. He'd have to research what he could do in the castle with his Lord Slytherin and Ravenclaw titles. He'd read that the two were the chief architects for the grounds, so he imagined that they had left some secrets around for their descendants.

The Great Hall was rather interesting. He had memories of it from Tom, but seeing it in person was certainly better, although he thought it was a bit much. The starry ceiling was illuminated by candles, giving it a mystical quality. Glancing, he saw Leanna, Monica, and Joy standing in a nondescript corner, being spoken to by a rather short professor. A mental inquiry revealed that the Headmaster was rooming them with either Sakura or Illya, or both if they were in the same house. Good. The Headmaster was simultaneously and unintentionally giving him familiars appropriate accommodations and placing them in a position to protect the girls, not that they really needed protection. He would be more worried for the other students, honestly.

He followed the rest of his year to the center of the hall, where Dumbledore himself walked out on the pulpit, set up a stool with an old and torn hat on it, and announced the beginning of the Sorting Ceremony. At his words, the hat came to life and sang an atrocious song:

"Oh you may not think I'm pretty,
But don't judge on what you see,
I'll eat myself if you can find
A smarter hat than me.

You can keep your bowlers black,
Your top hats sleek and tall,
For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat
And I can cap them all.

There's nothing hidden in your head
The Sorting Hat can't see,
So try me on and I will tell you
Where you ought to be.

You might belong in Gryffindor,
Where dwell the brave at heart,
Their daring, nerve, and chivalry
Set Gryffindors apart;

You might belong in Hufflepuff,
Where they are just and loyal,
Those patient Hufflepuffs are true
And unafraid of toil;

Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,
if you've a ready mind,
Where those of wit and learning,
Will always find their kind;

Or perhaps in Slytherin
You'll make your real friends,
Those cunning folks use any means
To achieve their ends.

So put me on! Don't be afraid!
And don't get in a flap!
You're in safe hands (though I have none)
For I'm a Thinking Cap!"

He honestly found the song a bit amusing. For a hat, it was rather inventive if it came up with a new song every year. One by one, Professor McGonagall called the names of students to be sorted. He only paid attention to a few. His brother was called, swaggering up to the school, and was unsurprisingly sorted into Gryffindor, along with the redheaded boy he had shared a train car with. The girl from their car, one Miss Granger, was happily sorted into Ravenclaw, much to her visible relief at not being sorted with the two abhorrent boys she had naively sat with on the train in a desperate attempt at making friends. Neville was sorted into Gryffindor. It seemed the kid had more backbone than it seemed.

The ferret boy, named Malfoy apparently, was sorted into Gryffindor. He'd jumped up, shouting that he was a Slytherin through and through and that his father would hear of this. The hat had made a quip about Slytherin requiring cunning and self-assurance, not stupidity and family connections. The boy continued making a scene until McGonagall gave him detention, and he sulked over to the Gryffindor table to sporadic applause, two redheaded twins looking like Christmas had arrived early. If their stares were anything to go by, the newly minted Gryffindor was in for a painful introduction to his new House.

Finally, his name was called. Many in the crowd reacted in confusion, not having heard that The-Boy-Who-Lived had a twin brother. He could see his parents at the staff table, giving him hopeful looks; Professor Snape on the other end of the table, giving a different sort of hopeful look; and Dumbledore up by the hat, giving an expressionless look.

He marched up and put that hat on, which instantly fell over his face and immersed him in darkness.

"Well, let's see what we have here," came a cultured, aristocratic voice.

"Occlumency, huh? I can't even imagine how you learned it at your age, but I imagine I'll find out. No Occlumency can keep me out."

Harry felt something slither in through his mental barriers and into his reality marble. Preparing for the inevitable, he cast a silencing charm over the hat. This was proven justified when the hat began mentally screaming in agony. Closing his eyes, he entered his reality marble.

He found himself in the forest, and began walking toward the sound of screaming. Entering a small section of bushes, he found that the pack of direwolves that had assisted him in defeating Mainyu had located another intruder. He looked like a man of about average height, entirely made of worn burlap. His screaming was on account of the four direwolves that had a hold on each of his limbs with their teeth, and were occupied with viciously tearing him apart in the four cardinal directions.

He let out a sharp whistle, which immediately made the wolves back off, though they were still growling at the intruder. The dropped the man to the ground, still snarling at him, and padded over to their Master, who gave each a passing tussle in reward, much to their delight.

"What the bloody hell is this? Never in all my years have I experienced something like this!" screamed the hat, still in immense pain.

"Well perhaps you shouldn't carelessly bypass someone's mental barriers," Harry snarked at the burlap man rolling around on the floor.

"Aye, perhaps I should take that under advisement. Now if you don't mind me asking, where are we? Last I remember I was going into your head. Next thing I knew, I got ambushed by a pack of giant-arse wolves," the hat said, giving reproachful looks at the pack of black direwolves behind Harry, who growled menacingly in response, cowing the figure.

"Well, I can't really tell you that, because then you'd go squealing to the Headmaster. I'm already going to have to force a geass on you for seeing this much. I'm afraid you've simply seen too much," he explained regretfully.

"Lemme make you a deal kid: You have the single most interesting mind I've ever come across, and I'm dying to examine it, even if it does have a bunch of mangy mutts guarding it. Let me take a poke around, and I'll both swear a vow of secrecy on the magic that binds me and tell the Headmaster whatever you want about you, your memories, and your personality."

Harry considered it for a moment. Having an artifact the Headmaster implicitly trusted providing misinformation on demand would be a useful tool.

"One other condition: The same deal applies to Sakura and Illyasviel von Emiya. You swear secrecy about their minds and tell the Headmaster whatever I tell you."

"Deal," the burlap man nodded.

"I swear on the magic that makes up and binds me that I shall reveal nothing I view, learn, or deduce of Harry Potter, Sakura Emiya, or Illyasviel von Emiya to Albus Dumbledore or any other person or thing. Furthermore, I shall only tell the Headmaster information, truth or fiction, that Harry Potter permits me to. So mote it be."

Harry could feel the magic in the air shift, enforcing the vow.

"Alright," Harry said, reaching down and giving the hat a hand, "let's go look at my memories."

As they walked to the central clearing, escorted by a large pack of black direwolves, Harry explained the concept of a reality marble to the hat, who was amazed by his surroundings and the concept.

"So it's literally so alien a way of thinking that you can deny the natural laws of the world?" the hat summarized.

"Pretty much. Few humans will ever develop one. As far as I know, I'm only the sixth human on earth to possess one."

"Ah," Harry interrupted himself, "here we are."

They were in the central clearing, at the lake on the eastern part of the central clearing. He'd discovered that it operated something like a wizard's pensive. It contained his amassed memories and knowledge. By touching it, he could access a perfect recreation of any memory he possessed.

After explaining its function to the hat, it walked down to the water's edge and put a hand into it tentatively. Knowing that this process would take a while, he went over to one of the nearby wolves and leaned against it like a warm, furry chair. Another came by and laid its head in his lap, which he obliged with a comforting scratch, causing the animal to nearly fall asleep on his lap. Harry himself nearly fell asleep as several hours passed while the hat sorted through his memories, under the watchful eyes of the wolves.

He could hear the Sorting Hat react to his various memories. He heard crying at what he assumed were his memories of the Dursleys, horrified sobbing at his memories of Zouken, laughter at his interactions with Sakura and the Servants, more crying at his apparent death, cheers at his resurrection, and more laughter and approval at his plan for revenge. He heard the movement of water, indicating the completion of the sorting.

"I must admit, Mr. Potter, you are the single most interesting individual I have ever sorted. Should you ever wish for information on a person as part of your revenge plot, I'm with you. So long as they've passed through Hogwarts, I know everything about them. Some of those bastards need payback."

The hat reached out for a handshake, which Harry accepted.

"Now, for your house. While you do have the qualities of all four houses in extreme quantities, you and I both know which house suits you best."

With this, he cupped his hands like he was about to shout something.

"SLYTHERIN!" yelled the Sorting Hat, resulting in dead silence resounding through the Great Hall. The Sorting Hat had never taken this long to sort a student. The hat worked at an accelerated rate of thought, sifting through a child's memories in an instant. It had taken him fifteen full minutes to sort Harry Potter. Then there was the actual result; everyone was in a sort of stunned silence. Potters didn't get sorted anywhere beside Gryffindor, never. And certainly not into Slytherin. The hat was removed by a Dumbledore, who didn't look disappointed at all, even somewhat pleased. His parents were another story.

James Potter looked about five seconds from marching up, and beating the hat until it resorted his son and the heir to House Potter. Yes, Harry had read up on Wizengamot inheritance laws. In the event of twins, whichever one was born first became heir to the family. Harry had been born a full fifteen minutes before Orion. Worse, it was practically impossible to disinherit a wizarding child unless they were a squib, failed their OWLS, or committed a felony with a sentence exceeding ten years. He knew all of these things because the goblins had informed him that James had tried six times over the years to disinherit him in favor of Orion, but couldn't find legal grounds.

Lily Potter looked a bit disappointed, but gave him a reassuring smile when he glanced in her direction.

Orion was giving him a smug look; a quick blast of Legilimency revealed that brother was pleased, due to the belief that now his father would redouble his efforts to disinherit his squib brother and make him the proper Lord Potter. He was the Boy-Who-Lived, after all. The nation owed him the inheritance as the vanquisher of Voldemort!

Knowing that this moment was crucial, he stood up and put on a mask of shame and regret. He made it just weak enough though that anyone trained in reading people, primarily the Slytherin house, could see that it was fake, deliberate, and hiding pleasure. He could see his plan work by the slight widening of the eyes of the majority of the Slytherins from the fifth year up, and one blonde female Slytherin first year, Greengrass he believed her name was.

The silence still filled the hall, before Snape stood up at his part of the staff table, and in an unprecedented display, began a slow applause. Catching on, in a surprising show of house loyalty, the entire Slytherin house slowly stood and began clapping along. Most of them were simply taking pleasure in the dejection of the Potter adults. Many of them had once been members of powerful families, before Dumbledore had decided that the Wizengamot was too dark, and with the help of James, used his position to economically and politically assassinate anyone on the Wizengamot that voted against him. Due to this, only a few families remained on the Wizengamot that could still vote freely, which meant that Dumbledore had nearly unilateral control over Wizarding England.

-Break-

Daphne Greengrass' family had been a part of this purge, and completely ruined. Her parents, who had been well-off, although not rich, were now poorer than the Weasleys. She still had memories of when she was three and her mother taking her out to a muggle park with an odd expression on her face. It had been explained that their family was ruined, and that their only recourse was to become a vassal of a powerful Slytherin lord. This was not a conclusion that a magical family reached lightly, but the Greengrasses were truly desperate. They would be given protection, finance, and the occasional boon in exchange for obedience and loyalty.

Such arrangements were magically binding, and quite common. For example, the Crabbe and Goyle families were vassals of House Malfoy. In order to become a proper vassal to a Slytherin lord, they had to show their usefulness. To that end, her mother had trained her thoroughly in seduction and manipulation in preparation for service to her future lord.

Her mother would point out two or three boys in the park, and order her to start a fight between them and the like. Her training was harsh, as if she failed she was beaten, starved, and locked in the basement until the next attempt. This became a tri-weekly ritual, and by the end she could manipulate and scheme with the best of them. She didn't really blame her mother, after all, desperate times call for desperate measures and her brother was already the heir to the family, making her little better than breeding stock in their eyes. It also helped that often times food was scarce, so even if she had succeeded, there wouldn't have been any food to give her. It was only due to the fact that her tuition and supplies had been pre-paid via a scholarship fund that she could even attend Hogwarts.

All the while though this process, a burning hatred for Albus Dumbledore festered in her. It was him that she thought of when her mother taught her the use of the Cruciatus curse with a stolen wand. She knew that deep down inside, she was what most would call sociopathic at best, but she cared little. All that mattered was analyzing the potential of her peers and finding a new lord so that her sister would not starve, that her family would not sleep on the streets, and that they could pull themselves out of the poverty they lived in, regardless of the personal cost to herself. If the man she sold herself to beat or abused her, she would have to take it in stride, for the sake of her sister and family.

Her eventual goal was to become the mistress of a powerful Slytherin lord, something quite common for vassals. In preparation for this, she had studied politics, etiquette, and other feminine arts. Her original target had been Draco Malfoy, a bratty, but powerful heir of one of the few families to survive the purge. This was ruined by his sorting into Gryffindor, marking him as unsuitable for a traditionalist family like her own to swear themselves to.

Then Harry Potter had been sorted. It had been quite a shock to everyone, as Potter and Gryffindor were practically synonymous. When the hat had been removed though, and he faced the crowd, she had seen it.

The cunning, the ruthlessness, the ambition, all hidden behind a mask of shame and regret, but purposely displayed to any smart enough to see it.

He had wanted to be sorted into Slytherin, planned on it.

The Potters were one of the most powerful families in Europe, with both the backing of Dumbledore and The-Boy-Who-Lived in their ranks. The only problem with them though was that they had an incredibly naive sense of right and wrong these days, resulting in them losing some minor standing. They used to be more pragmatic under past lords, until James had come along like a bloody white knight and tried to fix everything, even when it didn't need fixing.

But a Slytherin Potter, now that had potential, especially one as cunning as this one was turning out to be. What shocked her was when Professor Snape, head of Slytherin, and widely known for his hatred of the Potters, began a standing ovation for the boy. With the backing of her Head of House, who by all rights should hate the boy, he had the potential to go very far in Slytherin. She'd give him further research, but for now he was her prime candidate for vassalage. If he could read her and react accordingly, he would prove himself. She'd try him during the next week.

-Break-

After the ovation, Harry made his way down to his new house table, still projecting his mask. His lordships already made him a political powerhouse, but the more allies he could make in his own house, the more anonymous he could be. To that end, he had sat across from the only first year that had seen through his mask. He recalled from Tom's memories that in Slytherin, if you were newer or in a position of inquiry, you didn't introduce yourself, you waited for one.

The blonde in front of him scrutinized him, as if waiting for something, while he pretended he wasn't pretending. With silent approval, she introduced herself, extending her hand in another test. An uncultured person would shake it out of ignorance, but one versed in politics and etiquette would respond as Harry did, by brushing his lips across her knuckles.

"Daphne Greengrass," she stated neutrally, "Heir to House Greengrass."

"Hadrian Potter," Harry replied, maintaining the same neutrality, "Heir to House Potter."

He was curious as to why this girl was so skilled in apparent manipulation, and he turned up his Legilimency. He was a bit surprised to find that she possessed rudimentary Occlumency. She would be able to detect all but the most skilled legilimens, and with some training would be able to block them out. Unfortunately for her, Legilimency was one art the Tom Riddle exceeded at above all others.

He was a bit appalled by her mother's treatment and 'training' of her, reminded too much of his own 'training' under Zouken. He couldn't deny the usefulness of this girl though. If he managed to impress his power on her enough during the upcoming week, he'd earn the loyalty of both her and her family, which did hold several seats on the Wizengamot, but couldn't afford the annual dues to maintain them, so they weren't permitted to vote. Someone so skilled could make his plans both inside and outside Hogwarts much simpler.

He decided that he would make this girl his first agent in this world. He mentally chuckled to himself, one day at Hogwarts with Tom Riddle in his head and he was already forming his own personal Death Eaters, although he quite certainly wouldn't use the same name for his own followers. Magi liked to use names only vaguely related to whatever they were naming, purposefully, it made it all the harder for the non-initiated to guess what they were talking about.

He was forced to pay attention to the ceremony again when Illya was called, who skipped up to the stage, making many of the older girls coo at her adorableness. The hat was barely on her for ten seconds before it screamed,

"SLYTHERIN!"

Many in the hall were understandably shocked as to how this little girl was sorted into the house of the ruthless and cunning, and so quickly, but were distracted by the next sorting, which was Sakura's. The Slytherins did note to keep an eye on her though.

-Break-

Sakura nervously stepped up towards the hat. Harry and Illya had been sorted into Slytherin, and she needed to be in the same house as him. She wouldn't be able to bear being in any other. She had vowed that she would follow him wherever he went, as he was the sole light in her life. As she walked towards the podium, she could hear some people whispering about her hair, how she was a metamorphmagus, how she was a brat with dyed hair, how it was the product of a magical accident, and the like. She ignored them, as the only important opinion was Harry's.

She sat down on the stool, and the hat slid over her eyes, comically encasing her entire head.

"Well, what have we here? Sakura Emiya? I had a little talk with Harry, so don't worry about me telling the Headmaster anything. Now, for where to put you? Hmmm, tricky. I would like to put you with Harry, as I can see how much you care for him and how much it would hurt you to be anywhere else, however, by my integrity as the Sorting Hat, I'm afraid I'm going to have to put you in-

"HUFFLEP-"

The hat was interrupted when a foul darkness pervaded it from the mind he was sorting.

Pure, natural, unmitigated malice.

"You're going to put me with Harry, or I will steal you from the Headmaster's office and re-purpose you into bog-roll," came a sweet, but at the same time evil voice.

The hat gulped.

"Did I say Hufflepuff? I meant SLYTHERIN! Of course I did, you believe me, right? Right?" it squeaked out, nervously.

That one really shocked the assembled students and staff. Never in history had that hat changed its mind after pronouncing the sorting, especially not in such an obviously terrified fashion. The Slytherins marked Sakura as another to keep an eye on as she practically skipped down to her House's table, and sat on Harry's other side, where Illya had taken his left.

-Break-

Albus Dumbledore, in his most garish robes, stepped up the large podium and began his speech.

"Welcome to you all! Before we begin, I just have a few words. Here they are: Nitwit, Oddment, Blubber, Tweak.

That is all, now, enjoy the feast!"

He clapped his hands, and a lush banquet appeared on every table in the hall. Orion and Ron instantly dove into it, without any table manners, much to the disgust of those sitting in the splash zone. The Slytherin table on the other hands was far more elegant, as Harry, Sakura, and Illya had all been drilled on formal etiquette from a young age, as it was part of being in a magus family. Harry noted the approval from Daphne Greengrass, with an internal smirk.

This would be a very productive year.