Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any other fandoms that appear in this story. Also this world's education system may resemble the education system from Wit of a Raven by Japanese-Jew. I have received his permission to use it.
Chapter 1
September 1st, 1991
London, England
The sun streamed into Platform 9 and 3/4, as dozens of families mingled and moved.
"Be good, Harry, and make sure to eat right. Not just lollies, " Harry's mother said as she hugged her son tightly. "And don't cause any trouble or else I'll know about it."
"Yes, mum," the skinny boy replied, wriggling from his mother's tight grip. His father looked down at him and smiled.
"Give 'em hell there, Harry," his father added as he winked.
"Absolutely, Dad," Harry replied, a small smile growing across his face. His father chuckled as his mother pursed her lips.
"See, Lils, causing trouble is in the Potter genes," James laughed louder as Lily smacked his arm. He crouched down, getting to eye level with his son. "We're so incredibly proud of you Harry. All you have to do is your best, and everything else will be fine."
"That, AND don't forget to write. You know how much Katie's going to miss you Harry," his mother chimed in.
"Yes, mum, and tell Katie I love her," Harry replied. His mother's eyes shone as she hugged him again. Harry gave his dad a quick hug and picked up his large trunk, and carried it onto the train.
He moved into an empty compartment, shoving his trunk beneath his seat.
"How'd you do that?" a girl's voice demanded.
He turned and saw a brunette girl, her hair short and frizzy, "Do what?"
"Lift your trunk, did you not bring any books or anything," she asked, dragging what appeared to be a very trunk, her face shining with exertion.
"Oh, that. My trunk's got a Featherlight on it." he replied. "Did you not get your trunk in Diagon?"
She looked down and blushed. "My...my parents are uncomfortable around magic, so this is a Muggle trunk."
Harry tried to break the tension, " My grandmum says that ever since the Great Reveal, anti-Muggle sentiments have gotten a lot softer so I don't think you have anything to worry about. Unless you have plans to go to Germany over Christmas."
The girl laughed nervously.
"I just realized, I haven't introduced myself," Harry said. "I'm Harry Potter."
"Hermione Granger," she replied. "It's nice to meet you. It's just…I'm worried about how I'll do at Hogwarts. I mean, it is the premier school of magic in the world, and I only found out about my magic four weeks ago and I've read the Standard Book of Spells, but I didn't understand a lot and I'm going to be so behind..."
Harry interrupted her as she started to breakdown, "You're going to be fine Hermione. You won't be behind at all."
"But you've been doing magic your entire life, you can probably do everything in the first year syllabus," she cried.
"Hermione, no one does anything but accidental magic till they turn eleven. Its got something to do with not being able to stop your magic once it starts, and risking Depletion, you know running out of magic. So you've got nothing to worry about being behind."
As she grew calmer, the conversation changed to more casual topics. Harry found out about Hermione's parents. They were dentists, and did well for themselves, for Muggles.
With the intervention of Grindelwald at the Massacre at Ardennes came what was known as the Great Reveal. The Wizarding world was thrust into the limelight after the destruction wreaked by the soon-to-be German fuhrer and the Muggle and Wizarding Allied forces were required to overcome any feelings of animosity that would have normally arisen. Because under the Grindelwald the Wehrmacht grew to be even more lethal.
The Pacific theater was thankfully an easier fight as the Great Reveal allowed the Chinese mages, for so long forced to work in secret, to assist the American forces in capturing Japan.
The European theater was as lucky. The Allies lost nearly three-quarters of their forces to the ruthless German machine. Losses would have been greater if the two Great Heroes, Albus Dumbledore and Thomas Riddle Jr. Had not fought so fiercely to keep the Germans out of France.
The combined forces of Allied mages and the American military-industrial complex allowed the Allies to retake the European countries to the south of Bulgaria from Italy to Greece, however Scandinavia, Russia, the rest of the Eastern Bloc, and the countries north of Afghanistan fell to the Third Reich.
Indian and Chinese mages held the line and World War II slowed into a Cold War.
The bigoted pureblood faction was forced to acknowledge the worth of Allied Muggle forces, and many of their prejudices fell from the zeitgeist. While the interaction between them increased, with magic enhancing Muggle medicine and technology, and Muggle science facilitated greater understanding about magic itself, the two cultures still kept to themselves, unable to completely overcome the prejudices of centuries.
The Wizarding world, now allowed to exist in the open, experienced a population boom. And with the population boom the traditions of Britain were forced to change. Hogwarts was no longer the best school of magic in Britain by default.
"The education you get at Hogwarts is superior to any other school in Britain," a blonde boy said to Harry. "All the other schools lead up to the O.W.L.'s at eighteen, and then you have to go to uni to get your N.E.W.T.'s which takes another three years. Hogwarts has you ready to take your O.W.L.'s by fifteen and N.E.W.T.'s by seventeen. Though my father says that after the Reveal the tests got much harder. I dunno if someone so new to magic can handle it."
"Stop worrying her, Draco," Harry said. "Hermione like I said, you'll be fine. Hogwarts is extremely exclusive. They do extensive testing on any magical child born to see if they have what it takes, plus further academic testing to see if you can handle the work. What Draco forgot to mention is that Hogwart's graduates 93% of its students."
Draco smirked. "Yeah, but she may be part of that seven percent, Harry."
"Stop taking the mickey, Malfoy," Hermione exlaimed.
"Geeze, Hermione, calm down." Draco said. "You don't seem like a complete idiot. What house do you both want anyway? I hope I get Slytherin, that's where Colonel Riddle's from."
"Isn't he also head of Slytherin?" she asked.
"Yeah," Harry spoke up. "But Dumbledore's from Gryffindor, and so are my parents, so that's where I want to go."
"I just want to get through sorting," she replied. "Its not like one house is better than another right?"
"Well Slytherin's obviously best...," Draco said chuckling at the look of outrage on Harry's face, "but, Bones was a Hufflepuff, and she made the finals of the World Dueling tournament back in '72 before she became head of Ministry of National Law Enforcement, so obviously Hufflepuff's not full of duffers."
"And Flitwick was two-time champion of the circuit 'fore he became head of Ravenclaw," Harry added. "So it really doesn't matter."
Their conversation was cut off as they heard a man's voice from the overhead P.A. "The train will be arriving in Hogsmeade station in forty-five minutes. Hogwarts' uniforms must be worn at the Sorting ceremony."
An aged witch surveyed the small children before her. Her stern face softened as she noticed the nervousness on some of their faces.
"You will enter the Great Hall and wait until you are called. When you hear your name, walk up to the front, take a seat on the stool, and place the hat on your head. Once the hat calls out your house you may take your seat at your House table. After the opening feast, the prefects of your house will escort you to your dormitories, where your Heads of House will address you. If you are sorted into Gryffindor, I will see you later as I am your Head of House. For the rest of you, I will see you in class later this week. Congratulations on entering Hogwarts."
With that the Professor turned around and walked into the Great Hall, the door swinging open automatically, and a horde of first years followed.
"Granger, Hermione"
She walked nervously to the raised dais. Stepping up on the raised stone she gave the hat a quick look before putting it on. The hat was ancient and worn, and she put it on with more than a little fear.
The hat sank down over her head covering her vision with darkness.
"Well, well. Quite the little bookworm are we." A voice rang out.
"Hey! So what if I like to read." She shouted back.
The voice chuckled, "Quite a bit of bravery too, and a yearning for camaraderie. Ravenclaw would be a great choice for you, young missy, but you'd better be-"
"GRYFFINDOR!" the voice shouted to the rest of the hall. The hall applauded politely, the Gryffindor table louder than the rest.
She walked quickly and found a seat, relief filling her, her new housemates welcoming her as she sat down.
"Malfoy, Draco"
Draco strode confidently up to the dais, and pulled the hat over his head.
"A colonel, boy? Quite ambitious, and got the smarts to back it up. Well get your arse to-"
"SLYTHERIN!" the hat shouted. His heart pounded with excitement as he restrained himself from sprinting over to his new house. He looked up to the faculty table to his godfather, Severus Snape, who ever so slightly nodded his head. He gave a small smile before finding a place next to his childhood friend.
Harry tried to make out anything in the darkness that he was now in.
"Well, well, well," the voice sounded in his mind. "You're a tough nut to crack Mr. Potter. Braver, intelligence, loyalty, ambition, you're the full package Potter. Where to place you, where to place you. Hmmm. Well, Potter what do you think?"
"I...I'd like Gryffindor, if that's okay." the young boy said.
The voice laughed, "Bettter be…"
"GRYFFINDOR!"
