A/N: Sorry for the long wait. I put more than usual in this chapter to sort of compensate for it. It's three times as long.

Chapter 6 - The Meeting and the Beast

The parchment lay on the bed, unsuspecting. After the twins had explained everything and Harry figured out quite a bit along the way, he used it to get back to the Slytherin common room so he could go unseen. Now blank paper on his covers, Harry thought of how helpful this would be to get to class, or to get food from the kitchens if he wanted to go for a walk.

Just as his mind filled with the possibilities, he heard a peck on the charmed window that used wizard-space to connect with the owlery and charms to make it seem as another plank of wood to everyone. Looking over he saw a tawny owl resting on the perch. Harry walked over to the window and opened it, letting the owl jump to his arm, and removed the piece of rolled up parchment from its leg.

Harry,

I hope you are adjusting to the wizarding world alright. I was wondering if you would come to my office Saturday morning at 12 o'clock for a chat.

A.D.

Headmaster of Hogwarts

Although it was phrased as a request, the tone of the letter suggested that the Headmaster was ordering him to the meeting. Harry contemplated what this meant, and the only thing he could come up with was the fact that he was the Boy-Who-Lived. If that's the case, Harry thought. Then that means the Headmaster wants to get on my good side for one of several reasons. One, he wants to use my fame for himself. Two, he thinks there is a threat out there, and since I already 'defeated' one Dark Lord, I might be trained for a figure head against another. Or three, he thinks that since I am in the serpent's house, I am that threat he needs to stop.

But, he continued as he got ready for bed. All of these things will make him look better. If I train under him in the first two scenarios, then he gets to be looked at like a god. If he stops me before I turn 'dark', then he's defeated another Dark wizard. With that final thought, Harry fell into slumber, thinking of what he wanted to say to Dumbledore when he saw him the next day.

Albus Dumbledore was extremely vexed. When he told Severus to make the boy talk to him, what happens? Severus uses it as an excuse to torment the boy. That was the wrong way to go about it!

But if Albus could use this as a way for Harry to get to trust him, then so be it. A little harsh words never hurt anyone, Albus thought.

In the back of his mind, a voice was saying that harsh words could lead someone to do something drastic, but he paid it no attention. It wasn't as if Albus was a bad person. No, he was actually a great man. Not a good one, but a great one. He knew people had to be sacrificed, and no good man could deal with that on their conscience. But too often, Albus forgot that these were actual people, and got caught up in his mind games with other people. He knew Voldemort wasn't gone, and he thought he knew why. There were several things that pointed towards a Horcrux. The murders, the lack of body that night in Godric's Hollow, the lack of humanity that Tom had started to show his early years after Hogwarts. The only thing Albus couldn't figure out was what the object was and where it was hidden.

His musing were interrupted by several professors walking in the staff room. While staff meeting didn't happen every week, the first week was important to Albus. It was how he figured out which students were worth the effort.

"Ah, now that we're all here, let's get started," the Headmaster said cheerfully. "You all know the drill: we go around teacher by teacher and to talk about which students need help, and which don't. As usual, let's start with Hufflepuff, them move in the direction of the house tables. Minerva, if you will."

As expected, the Hufflepuffs were average. The upper years were doing well enough, and the younger ones were being helped. Even so, only about three or four students from the whole house showed any promise as great witches and wizards.

The Gryffindors were another story.

"Hermione Granger is one of the top students so far," Minerva McGonagall said with pride in her voice. "I know it's only been a week, but I think that she is going to do just fine during her time at Hogwarts."

Severus scoffed at the praise, thinking of the bushy-haired girl.

"If you want to say something Severus, do so." Everyone could hear the warning in Minerva's voice, but Severus wasn't perturbed in the slightest.

"She is a nuisance to the classroom," he stated. Several teachers nodded behind McGonagall's back. "She has no idea how to act appropriately in a learning environment, and she constantly has to be told to not answer questions meant for other students. Her constant need for approval is stopping other students from performing well in class."

Minerva's lips thinned as she listened to Severus' rant.

"I'll admit that she's a little enthusiastic-"

"Oh, come now, Minerva! She literally bounces in her seat if you don't call on her! And if you don't pay her any attention, she shouts the answer out of turn," Severus sneered. A couple of the other teachers started shaking their heads in confirmation. Minerva looked around the room, seeing that she was out-numbered.

"He's right, Minny," Filius said in his squeaky voice. "It's rather hard to put up with her, and she tries to teach the other students. I normally wouldn't mind, but she is just a first-year, and the way she goes about it is all wrong. She berates them instead of encouraging them."

"Now, now," Albus intervened. "There's nothing wrong with a little help from your peers."

The teachers around him looked at him in disbelief. Of course he would defend a Gryffindor.

"Percival Weasley is also quite up there," Septima Vector said in her trilling voice.

They continued in this vein for quite a while. Moving from Gryffindor to Ravenclaw, mentioning quite a lot of names, more so than Gryffindor. Padma Patil was one, as was Penelope Clearwater. All of the Ravenclaw Prefects were mentioned, along with most of the upper years.

After Ravenclaw was finished, there was a tense silence. Nobody wanted to start the conversation, not even Severus, though for vastly different reasons.

Finally, Aurora Sinistra, a former Slytherin, had had enough.

"I think some of the seventh-year Slytherins have stepped up their game," she said firmly, as if daring anyone to protest her. "I don't know about how Flint is going to finish out the year, but the other Prefects have really take care of their work. The amount of complaints from them is down by far this year." She paused, contemplating if she wanted to continue. Nodding to herself, she added, "I think it has to do with the addition of Harry Potter into their house."

Utter silence. Inside, Aurora was cringing, but she kept her face free of her thoughts. She knew Severus had a problem with the boy, but he was taking it too far. She made sure to watch him in class during Astronomy, and although the others scorned him, he took it in stride and kept to his work.

"Yes," Pomona Sprout said confidently. "He works hard, and in doing so, makes others want to succeed either with him or before him. Either way, he is a driving force in his house."

"You should see how he does in Charms!" Filius said excitedly. "He usually gets it right on the first try! It's wonderful to see him cast spells, and even though he waits a minute or too to read the theory, he still gets it faster than the rest of the class."

Severus was gritting his teeth. That brat, always the centre of attention.

"He is abysmal at Potions," Severus sneered. Although Severus says this, he admits to himself that the problem is because Potter always pairs himself with Neville Longbottom, and that boy ruins everything he touches. "He lacks the necessary tools to perform adequately."

"He does well in Transfiguration," Minerva said grudgingly. "He grasps the knowledge quickly enough, and studies the theory more than the other students."

Quirinus Quirrell stayed silent during all of this. He kept his mind blank from thoughts, not letting his mind wander. He knew he needed to think carefully on this subject.

"He d-d-does well in D-d-defence," Quirinus said. H-he helps o-o-others when they c-c-can-not. H-he is m-m-much b-better suited for h-h-helping others th-than M-miss Granger."

Inside, Quirrell categorized the information he got from the other professors. His thoughts kept turning to the boy and how he looked in his classes. His face was completely blank, and when Quirrell tried to pry into his mind, he was met with a wall. Stunned, he had pulled out, his speech never faltering. But it sparked fear in his mind. What if this boy was stronger than he shows in class. If he was already able to close his mind with Occlumency, then what else could he perform?

The conversation on Harry Potter was troubling Albus as well. Before this conversation took place, he was considering to help Harry in order to bring him closer as to see what the boy was like, but if he was as advance as his professors said, then Harry wouldn't accept any help. Albus was thinking of another boy who did well in class. He couldn't separate Tom Riddle from Harry Potter. Although they were different in some key aspects, the similarities were starting to make Albus frightened. He knew he would have to help Harry towards a better future than Tom, but he couldn't be the one to personally do that.

"That seems like a suitable end-point!" Albus said, hiding his fears from the group. "Silvanus, if you wanted to bring in that unicorn you were talking about earlier, I'm sure Rubius would be willing to help you. And Rolanda, the budget isn't really enough to supply new brooms for the students. I'm sure what we have is more than enough to teach the students what they need to know. If there aren't any more issues, I will be on my way. I have a meeting I have to get ready for."

Leaving before anyone could protest, Albus walked toward his office, deep in thought.

He had to find a way to get Harry see different view of Muggles, other than what e grew up with. Albus knew that Petunia and her husband weren't the best but he thought, wrongly, that Harry is Lily's son and Petunia would remember that, even if Vernon was a bit of a bigot. A light in Dumbledore's head lit up. He could bring in some of the other students that grew up with Muggles. Hermione Granger was a great candidate. Even if she wasn't the best when it came to dealing with people, she was young and that could be excused for now. Dean Thomas, another Muggle-born, and in Gryffindor to boot.

Now that he had a plan, he walked with a bit of a bounce in his steps. And he had about thirty minutes before Harry would show up to his office. Maybe I should have Severus show him the way, he thought. No, that won't do. I'll have a house-elf deliver a message to a Prefect.

"I'm here to show you the way to the Headmaster's office," Gemma Farley said in a neutral tone. She didn't dislike him, but she didn't want to be targeted by the house if she went against them.

Harry followed her from the dungeons to a rather ugly gargoyle. Harry suspected that it required a password like the Slytherin common room.

"Candy Floss," she said. Harry watched as the gargoyle leapt aside to reveal a spiral staircase. "Just go up that staircase and knock on the Headmaster's door. I'll leave you here."

And with that, Farley walked away without a backwards glance. Harry slowly made his way up the stairs.

Knocking, and entering the room upon hearing the Headmaster's voice say 'Enter,' Harry faced what had to be the oddest room he had ever seen. There were dozens of portraits that hung on the walls, and where there were no portraits, there were bookshelves. Large windows were dispersed throughout the room, as were delicate looking trinkets that whirred or emitted puffs of smoke at seemingly random intervals. Harry figured they were monitors for different things, as well as detectors for others.

"Ah, Harry, right on time. Good," Professor Dumbledore said with a smile as he looked up from whatever he was writing. "We have much to talk about."

Harry didn't think they did, but he nodded his head anyway, and stood next to a comfortable looking purple chair.

"You may sit, Harry. Would you like some tea, perhaps?"

Sitting down, Harry said, "No, thank you, Headmaster. Is there something wrong, Headmaster? I mean, it's pretty unusual for a first-year to be called here unless something has happened."

Although Harry said this with a confused and concerned facial expression, he was trying to subtly point out that he was different from the other students. Not that he wanted to be, but if Professor Dumbledore was going to 'suggest' them talking for a bit, Harry wasn't going to let him dictate the conversation.

"Not at all, my boy. Now," Professor Dumbledore said, getting right to business. "You know that you are in a different situation than most of the students here. Being as well known as you are, and in the position you are in, I was thinking it would be beneficial for you to broaden which students you friends with."

"What do you mean by this, Headmaster? Are you saying you are forcing me to hang out with students who aren't in Slytherin?" Harry was shocked that the Headmaster would say things so bluntly to his face. Perhaps it was because he knew that most Slytherins would see his manipulations.

"Not exactly, Harry. I know that things can't be easy for you in Slytherin being who you are, and although I like to believe the best in people, I can see the impact they have with the other children in regards to you. As such, you will be meeting with several students during the weekend so you may have a listening ear or a shoulder to lean on during tough times." At this statement, Harry tensed a fraction. A listening ear? So Professor Dumbledore wanted to know what he would talk about with others while professors aren't about? A Slytherin would never agree to this, so he had to have gotten either unsuspecting students like those in Hufflepuff or Gryffindor.

"And if I refuse, Headmaster? I can't say I want to take time out of the essays I've acquired from classes. I want to be able to focus on my work so I can understand the material better." Harry wasn't lying per se. He wanted to very much, he just didn't really need to.

"I'm afraid I must insist, Harry," the Headmaster said, his eyes twinkling. Harry didn't like how the Headmaster called him so familiarly.

"If you are forcing you hand, sir, then I will," Harry said, knowing it would irk the Headmaster. "I can't say that I will like it. It may give me a chance to meet some interesting people, but I highly doubt it." There was a pause. "Is that everything, Headmaster?"

"No, Harry. I am glad you have agreed." Harry almost scoffed at that, but kept his face a polite expression. "I have one more thing I wanted to ask you. I was wondering what the hat said to you, when you put it on."

"I'm sorry, Headmaster, but that is a rather person question. I'm afraid I can't answer that," Harry said. Feeling annoyed that the Headmaster had the gal to ask that, he inquired, "Do you question all students on this matter or is there a reason you did so with me?"

"I'm sorry, Harry, I have overstepped my boundaries," he said, completely ignoring Harry's inquiry as to his motives. He was more than a little peeved that he didn't get as far as he wanted with Harry, but he really didn't expect much more that this to begin with. "The first meeting with your peers will be tomorrow at 2. That gives you plenty of time to eat before hand. That is all, Harry, I hope you have a wonder rest of the day."

Taking that as a dismissal, Harry stood and left the Headmaster's office. He didn't want to go back to his dorm, and so headed to the grounds outside. It was a nice day, and he hadn't had time for much lounging around lately, and the last time he actually went outside was when he was working on Petunia's garden.

He sat in the grass, soaking up the warm rays of the sun. He could see Hagrid talking with the Care of Magical Creatures professor, Kettleburn. It looked as if they were trying to bring an animal from the Forbidden Forest. Harry could see a glow coming from whatever was with them. When Hagrid stepped aside, Harry thought his eyes would pop out.

Standing with them was one of the most beautiful animals he had ever seem. It was bright-white in colour, so bright it made everything near it look dull, and Harry could see that it's hooves were the colour of gold. The beast reared it's head, nearly gouging Hagrid in the chest. When it calmed down a bit, it looked over the land that separated it and Harry, staring him strait in the eye.

A/N: Alright just so you know, I don't know if before Harry got sorted into Slytherin will remain as it did. I know that some of the characters are going to feel differently towards Harry because he's in Slytherin, but I don't know how I want them to act just yet. If you guys could give me suggestions for them, that would be appreciated. I hoped you like it!