Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.
Portions of this chapter are copied directly put of Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone.
'Thoughts"
1 September, 1991
Harry woke at five o'clock the next morning full of joy it worked, it actually worked. He was eleven years old once again. Today was the day he would get to see his Ginny once again after five years without her. He got up and changed into his nicest muggle clothes because he didn't want to walk into the station in his wizard's robes - he'd change on the train. He checked his stuff making sure he was packed so he wouldn't be late, and then he saw his majestic snowy owl Hedwig, still asleep in her cage and gently stroked her feathers. Before rising and pacing the room once again, eagerly waiting for the Dursleys to get up. Two hours later, Harry's huge, heavy trunk had been loaded into the Dursleys' car, Aunt Petunia had talked Dudley into sitting next to Harry, and they had set off.
They reached King's Cross at half past ten. Uncle Vernon dumped Harry's trunk onto a cart and wheeled it into the station for him. Harry enjoyed this unusual act of kindness and when Uncle Vernon stopped dead, facing the platforms with a nasty grin on his face. "Well, there you are, boy. Platform nine - platform ten. Your platform should be somewhere in the middle, but they don't seem to have built it yet, do they?" Harry couldn't resist the urge to laugh at that statement, "Oh no much beloved Uncle it's in between; Well I'm off," Harry gloated in turn, and with that he grabbed his cart and ran through the barrier, laughing at Vernon's aghast look.
He then waited wandering aimlessly around the platform, waiting to catch a glimpse of his wife. At five till, she came through and his breath caught in his throat, his heart hammering in his chest. Their just feet away from him was his Ginny, her fiery red hair cascading her round face, he pouty lips out as she begged to go this year. All he wanted to do was hold her, he knew that if he went to her he would lose control. So he did the hardest thing he ever would, he turned around and entered the train, finding an empty compartment and sat down and waited for Ron to show up.
Harry sat down next to the window where, half hidden, he could watch the red-haired Weasley family on the platform and hear what they were saying. Their mother had just taken out her handkerchief. "Ron, you've got something on your nose."
The youngest boy tried to jerk out of the way, but she grabbed him and began rubbing the end of his nose.
"Mom - geroff" He wriggled free.
"Aaah, has ickle Ronnie got somefink on his nosie?" said one of the twins.
"Shut up," said Ron.
"Where's Percy?" said their mother.
"He's coming now." The oldest boy came striding into sight. He had already changed into his billowing black Hogwarts robes, and Harry noticed a shiny silver Prefect badge on his chest.
"Can't stay long, Mother," he said. "I'm up front, the prefects have got two compartments to themselves -"
"Oh, are you a prefect, Percy?" said one of the twins, with an air of great surprise.
"You should have said something, we had no idea." "Hang on, I think I remember him saying something about it," said the other twin. "Once -"
"Or twice -"
"A minute -"
"All summer -"
"Oh, shut up," said Percy.
"How come Percy gets new robes, anyway?" said one of the twins.
"Because he's a prefect," said their mother fondly. "All right, dear, well, have a good term - send me an owl when you get there."
She kissed Percy on the cheek and he left.
Then she turned to the twins. "Now, you two - this year, you behave yourselves. If I get one more owl telling me you've - you've blown up a toilet or -"
"Blown up a toilet? We've never blown up a toilet."
"Great idea though, thanks, Mom."
"It's not funny. And look after Ron."
"Don't worry, ickle Ronniekins is safe with us."
"Shut up," said Ron again. He was almost as tall as the twins already and his nose was still pink where his mother had rubbed it.
A whistle sounded.
"Hurry up!" their mother said, and the three boys clambered onto the train. They leaned out of the window for her to kiss them good-bye, and their Ginny began to cry. Harry had to clench his fists from rising to comfort her.
"Don't, Ginny, we'll send you loads of owls."
"We'll send you a Hogwarts toilet seat."
"George!"
"Only joking, Mom."
The train began to move. Harry saw Mrs. Weasley waving and his wonderful Ginny, half laughing, half crying, running to keep up with the train until it gathered too much speed, then she fell back and waved. Harry pressed his palm to his lips and blew her a kiss, tears in his eyes.
The door of the compartment slid open and the his best mate Ron came in.
"Anyone sitting there?" he asked, pointing at the seat opposite Harry.
"Everywhere else is full."
Harry shook his head and the boy sat down. He glanced at Harry and then looked quickly out of the window, pretending he hadn't looked.
"Are you crying?" Ron asked, ears reddening rapidly, before mumbling an incoherent "nevermind."
Harry laughed at that before saying "tears of joy mate." Ron gave him a strange look, before the compartment door opened yet again.
"Hey, Ron." The twins were back. "Listen, we're going down the middle of the train - Lee Jordan's got a giant tarantula down there."
"Right," mumbled Ron
"Oh-who are you?" said the other twin.
"Harry Potter."
"Fred and George Weasley at your service, And this is Ron, our brother. See you later, then."
"Bye," said Harry and Ron. The twins slid the compartment door shut behind them.
"Are you really Harry Potter?" Ron blurted out.
Harry nodded.
"Oh-wow, and have you really got - you know?" he asked pointing at Harry's forehead.
Harry pulled back his bangs to show the lightning scar. Ron stared.
"So that's where You-Know-Who.."
"I don't know who" Harry interrupted
Ron gaped, "The guy who you know- tried to kill you?"
"Oh- Moldewart, that You-Know-Who," Harry said sarcastically. Ron's jaw dropped as he stared at him. An awkward silence filled the compartment.
"So.. Do you remember what happened?" Ron asked tentatively.
"Harry nodded once more."He showed up, my Dad yelled to take me and run, then Voldemort killed.." Harry paused as Ron let out an involuntary shudder. "Fear of a name only increases fear of the thing itself." Ron once again gaped at him. Anyways Voldie killed Dad, then he came into my room and told my Mum to stand aside and he would let her live, she refuses, he kills her and then No-nose, shoots green light and goes bye-bye."
"No Nose?" Ron questioned.
"Yeah seriously he has no nose, just two slits in his face.. So-tell me how many siblings do you have?"
"Seven of us," said Ron. For some reason, he was looking gloomy. "I'm the sixth in our family to go to Hogwarts. You could say I've got a lot to live up to. Bill and Charlie have already left - Bill was head boy and Charlie was captain of Quidditch. Now Percy's a prefect. Fred and George mess around a lot, but they still get really good marks and everyone thinks they're really funny. Then Ginny's the youngest and the only girl, so she's already special. Everyone expects me to do as well as the others, but if I do, it's no big deal, because they did it first. You never get anything new, either, with five brothers. I've got Bill's old robes, Charlie's old wand, and Percy's old rat."
Ron reached inside his jacket and pulled out a fat gray rat, which was asleep.
"His name's Scabbers and he's useless, he hardly ever wakes up.
Percy got an owl from my dad for being made a prefect, but they couldn't aff - I mean, I got Scabbers instead." Ron's ears went pink. Harry couldn't help but glare at Peter. When Ron noticed his glare, his face went red; "Not all of us are rich-"
"Sorry my uncle Phil, got bit by a rat, got a disease and died," Harry lied smoothly cutting off Ron's tirade. "So tell me what are your siblings like?"
"Oh- Bill's a cursebreaker, and lives in egypt, Charlie's a dragon Tamer, who lives in is a pompous know-it-all, and Fred and George are Pranksters.
"And Ginny?" Harry asks eagerly.
"Oh, a she's a girl- she cries a lot, plays with dolls, you know girly things. She cried when we had to leave."
"Was she the pretty redhead, running after the train?" Harry asks.
""Oh yeah, she can't go till next year, really whiny." Ron says dismissively.
:"So what's she like?" Harry prods.
"A girl" Ron Awkward silence filled the compartment. "So-what's your favorite quidditch team?" Ron asks excitedly.
"Holyhead Harpies," Harry deadpans honestly. As Ginny made him a fan in his past life. Ron stares at him incredulously.
"Seriously- Why?"
"Girls are physically inferior to boys and yet they always come on top despite all odds saying otherwise, logically they should be the worst team in the league yet they are the best." "And you?"
"Chudley Cannons, they might not be the best, but they're my team." Ron said. "Wanna play chess, he asks pulling out his chess board.
"Sure"
"Knight to C6, checkmate," Harry gloats, savoring his first victory over Ron. And with that Ron grabs his stuff, and storms out of the compartment, slamming the door behind him.
Harry rubs his face tiredly, wondering where he went wrong. 'Ron left me, he stormed out, did he need to feel superior that much. If Ron hates me will Ginny still like me. Harry sat in his seat, waiting for Hermione to show up looking for Trevor, but she never came.
The compartment door slid open, and Malfoy walked in. "Is it true?" he said. "They're saying all down the train that Harry Potter's in this compartment. So it's you, is it?"
"Yes," said Harry. He was looking at the other boys. Both of them were thickset and looked extremely dumb. Standing on either side of the pale boy, they looked like bodyguards.
"Oh, this is Crabbe and this is Goyle," said the pale boy carelessly, noticing where Harry was looking. "And my name's Malfoy, Draco Malfoy."
He turned back to Harry. "You'll soon find out there are some, people in the Wizarding world who are much better than others, Potter. You don't want to go making friends with the wrong sort. I can help you there."
He held out his hand to shake Harry's, but Harry didn't take it. "I think I can tell who the wrong sort are for myself, Ferret," he said coolly.
Draco Malfoy went red. "I'd be careful if I were you, Potter," he said slowly. "Unless you're a bit politer you'll go the same way as your parents. They didn't know what was good for them, either. You'll regret this Potter, just you wait." And with that he turned on his heel, and stormed out of the compartment, dumb and dumber trailing behind him.
The train slowed right down and finally stopped. People pushed their way toward the door and out onto a tiny, dark platform. Harry shivered in the cold night air. Then a lamp came bobbing over the heads of the students, and Harry heard a familiar voice: "Firs' years! Firs' years over here! All right there, Harry?"
Hagrid's big hairy face beamed over the sea of heads.
"C'mon, follow me - any more firs' years? Mind yer step, now! Firs' years follow me!" Slipping and stumbling, they followed Hagrid down what seemed to be a steep, narrow path. It was so dark on either side of them that Harry thought there must be thick trees there. Nobody spoke much.
"Ye' all get yer firs' sight o' Hogwarts in a sec," Hagrid called over his shoulder, "jus' round this bend here."
As Harry saw the castle once more his eyes lit up, here it was Hogwarts whole once more. No longer battle torn with half of it collapsed, but whole unblemished.
"No more'n four to a boat!" Hagrid called, pointing to a fleet of little boats sitting in the water by the shore. Harry climbed into the nearest boat and soon enough was at the castle.
As they entered Hogwarts's sacred Halls, Mcgonagall came into view.
"Welcome to Hogwarts," said Professor McGonagall. "The start-of-term banquet will begin shortly, but before you take your seats in the Great Hall, you will be sorted into your houses. The Sorting is a very important ceremony because, while you are here, your house will be something like your family within Hogwarts. You will have classes with the rest of your house, sleep in your house dormitory, and spend free time in your house common room.
"The four houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. Each house has its own noble history and each has produced outstanding witches and wizards. While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn your house points, while any rulebreaking will lose house points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded the house cup, a great honor. I hope each of you will be a credit to whichever house becomes yours.
"The Sorting Ceremony will take place in a few minutes in front of the rest of the school. I suggest you all smarten yourselves up as much as you can while you are waiting."
Her eyes lingered for a moment on Neville's cloak, which was fastened under his left ear, and on Ron's smudged nose. "I shall return when we are ready for you," said Professor McGonagall. "Please wait quietly."
"How do they sort us," he heard Neville ask Ron.
"Fred said we have to fight a troll." Ron says with a shudder.
Professor McGonagall had returned. "Now, form a line," Professor McGonagall told the first years, "and follow me."
Harry willingly complied, and they walked out of the chamber, back across the hall, and through a pair of double doors into the Great Hall.
There in the center of the Great Hall was an old hat, as everyone turned and stared at it. Harry had to resist the urge to laugh,at the terrified expression on Neville's the brim opened up and began to sing:
"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 Hufflepuffis 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 folk 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!"
The whole hall burst into applause as the hat finished its song. It bowed to each of the four tables and then became quite still again.
Harry watched as all his yearmates, got sorted into the same house as before, until:
"Granger, Hermione!"
Hermione almost ran to the stool and jammed the hat eagerly on her head.
"RAVENCLAW!" shouted the hat.
Harry was shocked, why did her house change?
"Potter, Harry!"
As Harry stepped forward, whispers suddenly broke out like little hissing fires all over the hall.
"Potter, did she say?"
The Harry Potter?"
The last thing Harry saw before the hat dropped over his eyes was the hall full of people craning to get a good look at him. Next second he was looking at the black inside of the hat. He waited.
"Hmm.. Mr. Potter, back again."
'Why yes I am, back to Gryffindor please.'
"I'm sorry Mr. Potter, but Gryffindor is no longer the best fit."
'What, I have to be in Gryffindor'
"You went to any means to achieve your end." "I'd be a hypocrite if I didn't you in-"
SLYTHERIN!
A/N: Hufflepuff also would have been a good fit, seeing as he went back to be with Ginny showing loyalty, but that wouldn't change enough.