Chapter 4

Henry waved at the Potters.

Remus had escorted Henry to Platform Nine and Three Quarters, as Sirius had to stay home as Gwenog had mysteriously come up with a severe headache. Somehow, Carina had managed to convince her mother to let her go with Remus. The three of them had been early and Henry had claimed an empty compartment by keeping his stuff all over the place.

After that, he had returned to the platform and that was when he saw the Potters.

"Good morning, Henry," Lily greeted him before giving him a quick hug. "Excited?"

"Very," Henry didn't have to lie. Although he had the memories and maturity of his previous life, and his magical core, the emotions were all new. He was looking forward to Hogwarts. "Hello, Mr. Potter, Jamie, Harry." He grinned at the others. "Hey, I got a new snowy owl too. But I haven't named it yet."

"I picked it!" Carina piped in from over Lily's shoulder while she was being hugged.

"You boys should get on the train," said Lily. "Better not risk missing it." She looked sadly at her sons. "Behave yourselves and study hard. Good luck."

"Get into Gryffindor or don't bother returning," added James. He got a dark glare from his wife. "Just kidding." In a lower voice, he added, "Just don't get sorted into Slytherin."

"Jamie!"

Henry saw the Weasley family arrive and the two youngest Weasleys rushed towards the boy-who-lived. He saw Jamie completely ignore his twin and join his admirers. But before he could move, he felt a pressure against his back. Carina's arms were around him, and she wasn't letting go.

"Umm," muttered Henry uncomfortably. He brought the girl in front and patted her head. She was in tears. "I'll be back for Christmas, squirt." He leaned closer and kissed her forehead. "Be a good girl."

"I'll miss you," she said while letting go.

"I'll miss you too," said Henry. "Now, say goodbye to Harry."

"Bye, Harry!" Carina added, and Harry waved at her with a smile.

Henry followed after Harry. "I got us a compartment," he said. As they were walking, Henry heard a voice call out to him from inside a compartment.

"Henry, come in! I found an empty one!"

Henry peeped into the compartment and saw Jamie, Ron and Ernie settled happily, about to start a game of magical soldiers. He sensed the disappointment in Harry.

"I've already got my stuff further down," said Henry. "I'll see you guys later."

"You can join them if you want," said Harry in a low whisper as they continued walking. "I'll be fine."

"Don't be ridiculous," said Henry, turning back to look at Harry seriously. "I can't stand Weasley or MacMillan, and Jamie is becoming too full of himself."

"Amen to that." They had nearly run into Neville Longbottom. "Can I join you guys?"

"Sure," said Henry, and Harry nodded as well.

Soon, they were settled and talking about houses.

"Dad wants me to not worry about the sorting and study hard regardless of which house I am in," said Neville. "But I think he would like me to get into Ravenclaw, like him, but he can't say that because mum was in Hufflepuff and she doesn't abide with these house rivalries."

"That's very adult of him," said Henry. "Much different from Mr. Potter and Uncle Sirius. Die-hard Gryffindors, those two."

Neville chuckled. "What'll happen if you don't get into Gryffindor?" he asked Harry.

Harry appeared slightly troubled. "I don't know," he admitted. "I think things will remain the same." But there wasn't any joy in that hope, but rather a long forgone resignation.

This time Henry noticed that Neville did react slightly to Harry's glum voice. But before anyone could say anything else, the door opened.

"Hello," said a bushy-haired girl.

'Hermione Jane Granger,' thought Henry with an internal grim. He stood up before she could start talking and intimidate the other two. "Hi, I'm Henry Black," he shook hands with her, to her surprise and relief.

"Hermione Granger," she said. "I'm trying to meet other first years. I'm a muggleborn, you see, and didn't know about magic or anyone in the magical world until very recently."

"Harry Potter," Harry also stood up to shake hands with the girl.

The girl gasped. "Potter - as in, Jamie Potter? Are you family?"

"They're twins," Henry cut in. "That's Neville Longbottom," who waved at the girl from his seat.

Hermione turned with surprise from Harry to Neville. "As in Earl Longbottom? Are you family?"

Henry pretended to sulk. "Hey, I'm feeling like you're not particularly interested in me here."

Hermione whipped her head to look at him sheepishly. "Sorry," she said.

"Have you got a seat somewhere?" asked Henry curiously, recalling from memory that in his previous life, Hermione had been wandering up and down the train throughout the journey.

"Well," she began uneasily. "I put my stuff in a compartment with some first years. But they lost interest in me when they found out I was muggleborn. So I decided to meet others."

"Oh," said Harry sympathetically. "Join us," he invited. "There's plenty of space here."

"Yeah," Henry agreed, when he saw Hermione's eager and happy expression. "Much better than wandering up and down the train for the next six hours."

Hermione flashed a grateful smile and sat down next to Neville. "If you don't mind me asking, are you all purebloods?"

"I am," said Neville. "Harry is a -"

"First generation pureblood, as his mother is a muggleborn witch," finished Hermione, before blushing at Henry's pointed look of incredulity. "I read a few books before coming. 'The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts' had a chapter on the Potters."

"What other books did you read?" asked Henry.

"Well, all the prescribed texts, of course," said Hermione, and Neville and Harry shared a look of panic, "and a few for background reading. 'Hogwarts: a History', volumes I to IV -"

"I've read all ten volumes!" Harry said excitedly.

Hermione turned to him with surprise. "I couldn't afford to buy all of them," she said. "But I'm hoping to get a few more next year."

"You don't have to buy them. The Hogwarts library should have them all," said Henry.

Hermione nodded at his advice but didn't commit herself to it. "I really wanted to read Volume VI on the Forbidden Forest but decided to go with the chronological flow -"

Harry grinned at her. Without saying a word, he stood up and walked to his trunk and opened it. The next second, he turned to Hermione. "Here you go," he said, passing her Volume V and Volume VI of the massive publication. "Volume V is the most useful one," he told her. "It's got information on the interior of the castle and its history. If you read between the lines, it mentions some secret and magical passages and a trick to get the moving stairway to move according to where you want to go."

"Oh!" Hermione looked at the book adoringly. "Can I borrow it?" Harry nodded and she instinctively gave him a hug. "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!"

This time, it was Neville and Henry who shared a look of disbelief. "Crazy, I tell you," said Henry conspiratorially to Neville. "She seems as much of a hug-junkie as Carina."

Hermione blushed.

"Hey, you guys," said Henry, getting up. "I'll have a quick look to see how Susan is getting along."

"Sure," said Harry, and Henry noted appreciatively at how his confidence already seemed higher after the episode with Hermione. In fact, both of them had come with a lot of insecurities and were doing each other a world of good. It made him wonder, as he walked, how things would have turned out in his previous world if he had entered into a compartment with Hermione Granger instead of Ron Weasley.

Almost immediately, he chuckled and shook his head. If that had happened, he would have jumped out of the train window in horror and ran as far as possible from the magical world. The girl, for all her good points, was intimidating.

He knocked on the door.

"Come in."

Henry stepped in and smiled at Susan. "I dropped by to say hello," he said.

Susan smiled at him. "It's good to see you again. Henry Black," she introduced him to the others in the compartment. "This is Hannah Abbott, she was complaining about making it mandatory for her to come all the way down to London from Yorkshire only to travel back North again."

Henry looked at her sympathetically. "The Hogwarts Express takes a hidden magical route and cannot stop in most muggle stations," he said. "But somewhere in Yorkshire should have been a fairly logical place to have a stop."

"See!" said Hannah, glad that someone else agreed with her.

Susan laughed. "I'm sure you're correct," she said. She continued with the introductions. "This is Lisa Turpin." A pretty brown-haired girl waved at him.

"And Daphne Greengrass."

Henry felt his breath hitch. He recalled her from memory but he didn't realize how his own emotions and feelings would have changed with respect to the people he once knew. The girl was, in one word, stunning. Her dark hair fell around her pale face in straight waves, flawless and sharp features. He took a deep breath and steadied himself, noting that Daphne was looking at him with amusement. For a brief moment, he wondered why he had never noticed this divine beauty before, and he put it down to his blind prejudice against everything Slytherin.

"H-Hi," Henry managed to breathe out finally, grimacing at the high pitch of his voice.

"Oh, dear," said Susan. "He's got it bad." She turned to Daphne as if Henry weren't even there. "At least, he is slightly more interesting than Draco Malfoy and his friends."

"Oh, please," Daphne said loftily. "Even a goldfish out of tank would outmatch Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle in wits. Collectively."

Henry chuckled. "Malfoy's not that bad when he's not talking about himself," he said. They had met recently, as per Gwenog's schemes, and Henry had endured an afternoon of listening to Malfoy talk about himself and the glorious Malfoy family.

"And that's like - uh, never," said Daphne, and Henry shrugged acquiescingly.

Susan smiled at Henry. "Do you want to join us?"

Henry looked longingly at Daphne, who pushed her dark hair back and raised an eyebrow awaiting his response, and he reluctantly shook his head. "Thanks, but I'm perched with Neville and Harry and a muggleborn girl."

"If it's Granger, then apologise to her from us," said Daphne.

Susan explained. "She was with us when Malfoy's group came in. We shot her down, not letting her speak and reveal her blood-status, to avoid any unnecessary incident with Malfoy. She left us mid-way and was clearly upset."

"Yeah, she was," said Henry. "But she's having a fun chat with Harry about Hogwarts: A History now." He shuddered slightly.

"More Ravenclaws," Lisa muttered hopefully.

"Perhaps," said Henry. He looked at the girls, and Daphne, in particular. "I sincerely hope we can remain friends despite our houses." Once again, he grimaced mentally at how extremely formal he sounded.

"You're right, Susan," said Lisa. "He's got it bad."

Henry blushed. But he relaxed when Daphne smiled at him in a friendly way. He turned around and left the compartment and returned to his own.

"I'm glad you're back," said Neville. "They've been chatting nonstop about Volume II and how Hogwarts is secured from muggles and muggle detection equipment."

"What I'm saying -" Hermione turned to them, "is that if a muggle satellite sends ionic emissions at Hogwarts, it is bound to pick up some complex signals that will make them suspicious."

"And I'm saying that anti-muggle wards may be weak, but the Hogwarts wards itself are Level 8 SPP and that may fuel the anti-muggle wards as well, and hence make detection impossible."

Henry blinked. He knew a lot more than either of them, he had read a lot more, he was more powerful than them, he was capable of a lot greater deeds, but he had never considered something so purely academic before.

"That's a valid concern, Hermione," said Henry. "And a valid response." He decided to play the mysterious but wise card, as he had no idea who was correct. After all, he had learnt from Dumbledore himself in his previous life. "Hermione, do you understand the terminology SPP and how wards work in general?"

"Not really," she admitted. "I haven't read anything about it anywhere before."

"And Harry," he turned to his friend. "Do you know what ionic emissions are and how they detect things and what satellites are capable of?"

Harry shook his head.

"I think you both should research on those things before continuing this debate," said Henry sagely, feeling very much like Albus Dumbledore at that moment.

"And in the meanwhile," Neville said loudly. "Let us have a game of magical soldiers."

So they played for the next couple of house, and Hermione felt that the game was very brutal, but when she saw how they fixed themselves magically at the end, she consented to play a game as well. In all, the remainder of the journey was pleasant, and they reached Hogwarts fairly confident in the knowledge that there was a budding friendship between the four of them as a group.

Henry had his memories, but seeing Hogwarts for the first time again, was every bit as wondrous and magical as it was before. He sighed. It felt right. He was back home.

"It's beautiful," agreed Harry. They entered a boat with Neville and Hermione, although Harry and Henry sat behind. Henry waved at the four girls he had met earlier as they moved past them on the lake. "Henry," Harry whispered urgently. "What if we're not in the same house? I want us to be together."

Henry smiled reassuringly. "Don't worry about it. We'll still be friends no matter what," he promised. But when Harry's anxiety didn't reduce, he added, "I've heard a rumour that if you really want to go to a house, let the hat know and don't waver when it tries to convince you otherwise. Don't listen to it and adamantly demand where you want to go."

Harry smiled gratefully at him.

The sorting began. Hannah Abbott was the first, and she went to Hufflepuff as Henry had expected. He himself was the next name to be called out.

"Black, Henry."

There were a few murmurs from the Slytherin table about the Black heir. But other than that, everybody waited politely as Henry was sorted.

'Interesting. Curious. Very interesting. There's a great chunk of your mind blocked from me. Almost like Occlumency.'

'I lost all my memories of my early childhood when I was nine,' Henry lied.

'And that's a lie. But I cannot read much more than that. Interesting. Slytherin will be a good fit for you. Interesting.'

Henry became worried, he had expected the hat to buy his story.

'Curious. You have an agenda here and that is the reason for this deception. Interesting. Your agenda is to aid your young friend in his life and destiny. Very interesting. Tremendous loyalty like this can only belong in - HUFFLEPUFF.'

Henry sighed in relief. Any house but Slytherin would have been fine, he would fit in, and all things considered, Hufflepuff was the best place to be. If only Harry also got it, then they would be assured of friends who would be loyal to them and not abandon Harry like they had in the images he had seen in the Realm Between the Worlds.

He sat down next to Hannah Abbott, who shook hands with him in congratulations. He looked around to see any other familiar faces - Cedric Diggory was sitting halfway down the table, and he nodded at Henry when their eyes met. Herbert Fleet, keeper of their Quidditch team was also there and sitting next to Cedric. To Henry's surprise, he saw Nymphadora Tonks sitting at the far end with the oldest students. He realized she was a sixth year and he grinned when she changed her facial features to match his when she saw him looking at her.

Susan Bones was sorted to Hufflepuff, and she took the seat on Hannah's other side. There were a series of Ravenclaws and the occasional Gryffindor or Slytherin until Justin Finch-Fletchley joined them. Hermione Granger went to Ravenclaw. To Henry's surprise, and the first significant difference other than those effected by himself, was Daphne Greengrass also going to Ravenclaw. Then Neville Longbottom came to Hufflepuff and sat down next to Henry.

"Good job!" said Henry.

A girl called Megan Jones who appeared quite similar to his Aunt Gwenog in appearance also came to Hufflepuff. Ernie MacMillan, to Henry's relief, went to Gryffindor. A girl named Leanne Moon that Henry recalled had dropped out of Hogwarts during the Chamber of Secrets fiasco also came to Hufflepuff.

"I hope Harry makes it here," Neville whispered, when the Patil twins were separated into Gryffindor and Ravenclaw.

Henry nodded, and they announced 'Potter, Harry.' The Potter name, of course, led to the usual whispers and murmurs, but the gazes weren't directed at Harry but rather at the remaining first years, to get a glimpse of Jamie Potter.

Henry couldn't observe Harry's facial features under the Hat, but he could see his body stiffen, and then relax, and then stiffen again in resolve, before finally the Hat said unenthusiastically.

"Hufflepuff."

Harry removed the hat gleefully and ran towards the Hufflepuff table, ignoring the disappointed looks and noises from Gryffindor.

"I made it!" said Harry excitedly. "The hat wanted me to go to Ravenclaw, but I didn't want to be separated from you guys."

"How sweet," said Hannah.

Harry blushed and sat down next to her, being the only place left.

Jamie Potter definitely received the loudest cheers on being sorted to Gryffindor - but that was perhaps as much to do with his house than his status.

Later, they were led to the Hufflepuff common room by Nymphadora Tonks, their prefect.

"You seem a fairly decent bunch," she assessed them. "Four guys and four girls. You'll fit into a dormitory each. Slytherin and Ravenclaw have more first years, but that's a common trend. At least, we outnumber Gryffindor this year. I fully expect you to try your best to get us the House Cup, but remember, your own personal progress is a much more important and fulfilling achievement. Any questions?"

Henry raised his hand.

"Black," Nymphadora nodded. They were right outside the painting that led to the common room.

"I have heard that there's a secret passage to the kitchens somewhere here," Henry said, looking around curiously. "Can you point it out to us?"

"Why do you want to know that?" asked Nymphadora with narrowed eyes.

Henry grinned cheekily. "You know," he shrugged, "in case someone's pet kneazle or owl feels peckish in the middle of the night."

Nymphadora glared at him for a moment before letting out a chuckle. She put an arm on his back and led him away from the group. "I'm gonna like you," she said. "You see this portrait of fruits? Tickle the pear and it will let you in."

"Thanks, cousin," Henry said cheekily, and Nymphadora started slightly. "I'd like to get to know you better," he said sincerely, as they returned to the rest of the first years. "We're family."

Nymphadora smiled at him. "Certainly," she said. "Right. We don't do passwords or fancy riddles to get inside." She turned to the portrait. "Sister Agnes," she woke up a nun. "These are the new first years."

"Oh. Welcome to Hufflepuff, dears," she said kindly. "Now, let me memorize your faces so I remember to let you in. There wouldn't be a metamorph amongst you this year, would there?"

The first years shook their heads.

"Good, good," she said. "That makes it easy for me." She looked sharply at Nymphadora, who pouted indignantly, changing her face instantly. Sister Agnes laughed. "Don't be upset, Dora, I was only teasing. Go on then, take your new charges inside and let them sit warmly before the fire and share tales of faith and love."

Soon they were sitting on the rug in front of the fire. Henry, Harry, Neville and Justin. The girls were sitting on couches and armchairs - Susan, Hannah, Megan and Leanne. They had introduced themselves for the sake of those who didn't know them.

Justin was a muggleborn who had chosen Hogwarts over Eaton. Leanne Moon was the first witch in a long line of squibs, and her family was overjoyed to rejoin the magical world through her. Megan Jones was Gwenog's niece and seemed to share Gwenog's haughty nature.

"So, Henry," Susan started when Pomona Sprout had spoken to them kindly to ease their nerves and left them. Harry and Neville were talking with Justin and he decided to move closer to the girls. "Disappointed not to be in Ravenclaw?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," lied Henry, shifting in a dignified manner. "I always wanted to come to Hufflepuff. Kitchens, you know."

Susan smirked at him, and next to her, Hannah coughed in a manner that sounded a lot like 'Daphne'.

Henry narrowed his eyes but shot back, "I would have been disappointed if it weren't for the fact that Hufflepuff seems quite comparable, if not better, than Ravenclaw in taking the top spot for pretty girls this year." He wasn't joking. Ravenclaw had Daphne, Lisa and Padma, and he knew how well Hermione would blossom in a few years. But Hufflepuff girls were equally attractive in general.

Hannah and Leanne blushed, Megan rolled her eyes, Susan snorted.

"Are you sure there's not a Gryffindor hidden somewhere down there?" asked Susan with a raised eyebrow.

"Ah, the pain. You wound me, Susan," said Henry mournfully, clutching his heart in mock pain. The girls - even Megan - laughed at his antics. He gave Susan a mock nasty glare and returned to the boys.

"Henry, we were talking about the other houses," said Neville, "and how lucky we are to be here."

"Yeah." Justin nodded. "I don't like the sound of Slytherin. That Malfoy fellow was very rude to me."

"Mate, you would have been crucified in Slytherin," said Henry.

Neville chuckled. "And Gryffindor is only slightly better. Weasley and MacMillan are such -" he struggled to find a word.

"Retards?" Henry supplied helpfully, and Harry nodded.

"I hope Jamie gets his head sorted soon, though," said Neville. He sounded sad. "He was my best friend.

"Was?" enquired Harry.

"Today in the train, I wanted to join their compartment, and Weasley demanded to see my magical soldiers. When I said I had none, MacMillan said they were going to play through the journey and they only wanted people to join them if they had their own soldiers." Neville said sadly. "Jamie heard them and said nothing."

Henry looked at Neville with a commiserating expression. "It's just a phase most likely," he said. "The Ravenclaws don't seem too bad."

"They're all right," said Justin. "I sat with Andrew Goldstein, Terry Boot, Su Li and Michael Corner. Michael was a bit of a twat to Su but otherwise they seemed decent."

Soon they retreated down the tunnel through a burrow to their dormitory. Henry was impressed by the Hufflepuff living area, it was very homely and comfortable, and the colours were less oppressive than Gryffindor.

They dormitory had four queen-sized beds, with a partial wall separating each two. Henry and Harry claimed beds next to each other, and Neville and Justin took the other side.

"I have a feeling this is the start of a fantastic seven-year period," said Henry loud enough for all four of them to hear, as he was lying on his bed and staring at the ceiling, and the candle-light slowly faded away.

"Don't jinx it," came Neville's disgruntled response.

The first day was very eventful for Henry. He woke up early and went for a walk around the great lake before breakfast. But on his way, he met with several familiar faces. First, was the encounter with Jamie, Ron and Ernie in the great hall for breakfast.

"Hey, Jamie," Henry called out. "How was the night?" He wasn't surprised when he saw Ron sneer at him in a superior manner. It was one of Ron's faults even in the previous world - to treat everyone who wasn't a Gryffindor, male and at least as old as him like dirt.

"Get out of our way, Hufflepuff," said Ron not very kindly, pushing Henry as he walked past him to the Gryffindor table. Ernie chuckled and Jamie smiled.

"Jamie?" Henry asked in a cold voice. This was completely unwarranted.

Jamie shrugged. Without saying a single word, he then left for the Gryffindor table and joined Ron, Ernie, Parvati and a blonde girl.

"Idiots."

Henry turned around and grinned. "Hermione," he said cheerfully. "How's Ravenclaw?"

"It's fantastic!" said Hermione. "You were right. Daphne and Lisa don't hate me, they were just trying to save me from Malfoy, and Padma's really nice too. The four of us share a dormitory. Su Li, Mandy Brocklehurst and Morag MacDougal seem nice as well but I haven't really spoken to them much."

"That's nice."

"You must be very comfortable!" said Hermione. "You've got two of your closest childhood friends with you!" Before Henry could respond, she continued, "Is Harry up yet? I wanted to return his book, as the great library here has all the volumes of Hogwarts: A History."

Henry blinked. "You've been to the great library already? Hermione, it's only the first morning!"

"Well, that didn't stop you from getting your shoes and robes all muddy and damp!" Hermione retorted.

"Touché," said Henry. "I'll tell Harry you were looking for him." Something jogged in his memory. "Oh, Hermione. I'm making a list of birthdays of all my new friends. When's yours?"

Hermione flushed and stammered.

"What's that? September 19?" said Henry. "Cool! It's just around the corner! We'll definitely have to plan something!"

Hermione flushed deeper but smiled at Henry's comments. "When's yours?"

Henry shook his head. "No idea," he said. "I was found with complete amnesia a few years ago with no recollection of my past life. They did some scans to discover my identity and sent me to my uncle's place. But I don't know when my birthday is."

"Oh," said Hermione. She seemed at a loss. "But what about the years when you stayed with your uncle? You must have done something."

"Nothing openly," admitted Henry. "My aunt isn't entirely too comfortable with my presence. But my cousin and uncle give me a card and a box of sweets on Halloween, the day I was found."

"Halloween," Hermione memorized before leaving Henry and joining the rest of her housemates.

But barely had she left that Henry had his third interesting encounter of the day.

"Black!" hissed a voice, and Henry turned around to come face to face with Draco Malfoy and his sidekicks Crabbe and Goyle. "Just when I thought you couldn't sink any lower by getting sorted to Hufflepuff, you start consorting with mudbloods and blood traitors! You are a disgrace to the noble house of Black!"

Henry sighed dramatically. "Oh, Draco. You have so much to learn, my friend."

"I'm not your friend!"

"Not yet, you aren't," agreed Henry. "But you will be. You will also regret being in Slytherin instead of say, Ravenclaw or Hufflepuff. Look," Henry pointed towards the tables, which were beginning to fill up. "Slytherin and Hufflepuff. Look at the first years. What do you see?"

Draco drew himself up proudly. "Slytherin house is full of proper purebloods with dignity. Hufflepuff -"

" - has a larger quantity and better quality of pretty girls," finished Henry. "Ravenclaw is even better. Admittedly, Gryffindor is rather lacking in that respect as well."

"Girls!" Draco spat disgustedly. "Who wants anything to do with girls and their cooties?"

Henry raised an eyebrow and chuckled. "Yeah, well. Anyway, you have fun with Crabbe and Goyle; I see Susan and Hannah looking at me. See you around." He waved.

"You too," said Draco, raising his hand in a wave, before shaking himself and realizing they were supposed to be antagonists. "Wait, you can't just leave -" but Henry had already left.

"Hello, ladies," greeted Henry, as he sat down next to Susan.

"We were coming to help you against Malfoy," said Hannah in the typical Hufflepuff loyalty mode.

"Why would you think Malfoy and I have something against each other?" Henry pretended to be shocked. "We're cousins."

Hannah was confused. Susan frowned before realizing he was speaking the truth. "He had a nasty look on his face when talking to you," said Susan.

"Oh," said Henry, as if comprehending her confusion. "That's normal when you're near Crabbe and Goyle."

Susan spluttered a mouthful of pumpkin juice while Hannah started giggling.

Henry reached behind her and patted Susan's back to settle her coughing fit. He realized they were getting a lot of attention from Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw house. Henry looked up and nodded when he saw Harry wave at him while talking to Hermione near the Ravenclaw table. He soon joined them, and then Neville and Justin arrived together with Leanne and Megan.

Professor Sprout walked over to give them their timetables. "I'm glad to see such kinship between you lot so early in the year," she said, sounding pleased. "You will share most of your classes with Ravenclaw, except for Defence, where you will be with Gryffindor, and Charms, where you will be with Slytherin."

Susan groaned.

Professor Sprout looked at her indulgingly and continued. "Today, you have double Transfiguration, followed by lunch, followed by double Charms."

Henry walked with the full group of Hufflepuffs to their Transfiguration class. Harry claimed to know the route from Hogwarts: A History, and they all followed him; and although Henry knew a shorter route, Harry managed to reach their destination right in time. The Ravenclaws arrived simultaneously.

"Hey, Daphne!" Henry called out. He ignored Susan and Hannah's giggles and walked towards the beautiful brunette.

"Henry Black," Daphne acknowledged him, scrutinizing him properly. "I suppose you would like to sit next to me?"

"I would really like to sit next to you," admitted Henry.

Daphne sighed. "Then next time don't come to class in muddy robes." She sat down next to Hermione, who glanced apologetically at Henry.

Henry looked mournfully at her while Harry pulled him towards a seat. That was when Henry saw the cat stalking around the room that jumped up on the table. Next to him, Susan and Hannah were talking to Lisa and Padma about how strict Professor McGonagall was in a voice that carried over.

"Uh, guys," Henry tried interrupting. "You really shouldn't say such things about a teacher." They paused and turned to him. Henry Black was not the first person they would have guessed to be a stickler for rules and authority. "At least, not when she's staring right at you." He pointed to the cat.

The girls burst out laughing, and most of the class except Harry and Hermione joined in. But then the cat jumped from the table whilst simultaneously transforming into a rather stern looking woman.

"Five points to Hufflepuff for keen observation and a semblance of respect for professors," said McGonagall. "Self-transfiguration and Animagus-transfiguration is the culmination of several years of in-depth study into the theory and practice of transforming the shape, colour, texture, properties and nature of one material to another. Which, of course, can only be achieved under the STRICT guidance of an experienced instructor."

She began teaching them, setting them the task of transforming a matchstick into a needle; and those who managed to do it perfectly would be exempted from writing a twelve-inch essay on the topic. Henry had his developed magical core and his experience to know exactly what to do and how to do it. He tried fumbling around for a bit. Next to him, Harry was trying repeatedly with a desperate desire to succeed.

"Slowly, Harry," said Henry. "Try to understand the change you want to perform. See the matchstick? It's wooden, with two blunt ends, cylindrical in shape. Now, think of a needle. A needle is made of metal, it's longer and thinner, with one sharp end." Harry nodded. "Okay. Try it then. Keep in mind the change you want to perform. One change at a time. Visualise it in your mind. And do it calmly."

Harry nodded. He pointed his wand at the matchstick and tried again. On his third attempt, something happened, and he gasped in shock. One end of the matchstick became metallic and pointed.

"Well done, Mr. Potter," said McGonagall. She turned to Henry. "Perhaps you would like to show us if you can do the same, Mr. Black. After all, you gave the whole class a rather interesting lesson in transfiguration."

Henry blushed. He didn't realize he had spoken out that loud. He also noted that McGonagall had given points to Hermione and Daphne for less prominent changes and had completely neglected to award any points to Harry.

He waved his wand and the matchstick started transforming. But instead of one sharp end, it had two. Henry deliberately kept it less than perfect. "Oops," he said, and attempted to fix it.

"Leave it be, Mr. Black," said McGonagall. "That is very well done. One of the best first attempts I have seen in recent memory. Five points."

When she left, Harry turned to Henry dolefully and both shared a look to convey they had noted that even McGonagall was acting weirdly against Harry by not awarding him any points.

"Forget it, Harry," Henry whispered. "It's not important. Focus on the magic." Harry nodded and returned to his task. By the end of the class, only Henry had a perfect needle. Hermione, Daphne and Harry had come close, but each had one or other aspect missing. Hermione's needle ignited when struck against a flint. Daphne had two blunt ends, Harry had a small bit of wood left.

The next class was Charms.

Henry was not looking forward to it, at least not until after Halloween. Professor Flitwick was one of the best teachers in the school, and so he knew the hazards of allowing students to play with wands without adequate theoretical knowledge. They had avoided any mishaps in Transfiguration, but that was because the Ravenclaws were a bright lot, and the Hufflepuffs made up for it by being meticulously thorough.

"I was hoping to do more magic," Harry sounded disappointed when they finished class and were packing up.

Henry nodded. It was a good suggestion. "We could head to the library and find a book on basic spells and try them out on our own."

"That's a wonderful idea!" Hermione joined them from behind. She flushed when the two boys jumped at her sudden arrival. "Do you mind if I join you guys?"

Harry shook his head and smiled at her warmly. "It'll be nice to have you, wouldn't it, Henry?"

Henry smirked at Harry and opened his mouth to make a quip about Hermione and Harry, but Hermione caught his expression and spoke first in a slightly threatening voice.

"Do you want me to invite Daphne or not, Henry Black?" she asked with narrowed eyes.

Henry wisely shut up and nodded his head vigorously. Soon, the four first years were in the library pouring their heads over different books. Hermione had brought Daphne and Susan with her.

"I have one," said Henry first of all. "The most basic spell. Lumos." Unwittingly, he had cast the spell as he spoke, and the others gasped when a bright silver light emerged from his wand. "Uh. Finite."

"Wow," said Hermione. "You're really good at magic. Lumos." She tried a few times, before a faint mist came from her wand. Harry obtained a bright light on his second attempt but couldn't maintain it for more than a moment. Daphne managed after a few attempts, but like Harry, couldn't hold it for longer than a couple of seconds.

Before giving it a shot, Susan looked curiously at Henry. "Any tips?" she asked.

Henry looked at her thoughtfully. "It helps if you envision in your mind the beam that you want to emerge from your wand."

Susan nodded and tried. The light from her wand wasn't as bright as Harry's but she could hold it for much longer.

"Any other spells?" asked Hermione eagerly.

Henry nodded. "But most of them shouldn't be attempted in a library."

"We need someplace else to practice," agreed Harry.

"Common room?" asked Hermione, but Daphne shook her head.

"We can't go to theirs and they can't come to ours," Daphne explained.

Harry frowned. "There was a very brief mention in Hogwarts: A History of a room of arcane magic in Hogwarts to meet the requirements of any who comes and goes through it."

"A room of requirements!" Henry nodded. "That's what we need! We should make it our top priority to locate that room, and until then we should practice what we already know."

"A light spell," Daphne muttered sarcastically. "That's going to be real useful if somebody's trying to hurt you."

"You'll be surprised that Lumos is actually classed as a protective spell. A strong Lumos acts as a shield against vampires, keeping them from coming too close to you. Also, a Lumos Solem can actually hurt a vampire."

Daphne rolled her eyes at Hermione's knowledge. "Know-it-all," she muttered, not unkindly.

Author's Note: Thought I'd clarify something right now. Those of you under the impression this story is free, think again. It costs 1 review per chapter per reader.