Disclaimer: I am merely playing with other people's creations, I don't own the game/book/anime/TV-show I am borrowing from, nor am I making any money with this. I am writing for fun and practice, as fan-fiction to be shared with others if I feel like it.
Chapter 4: Hogwarts and Hogtied.
The journey to Hogwarts took several hours, and given that the only real meal they had on the way was the candy they could purchase from the trolley that a lone witch pushed through the train once along the journey, they were all feeling a bit hungry. Harry and the girls had sampled some candy but kept it to a small amount. There had been a brief disturbance later on when a young man with blonde hair showed up at their cabin's door but had walked away on noticing Susan had already drawn her wand and eyeing him warily.
Harry chose not to ask but just listening in he had learned that the boy was Draco Malfoy who was a son of a known death eater who had escaped justice by the Imperius defense that would not held water under veritaserum but had unfortunately been accepted by the former minister Bagnold in exchange for some gold fattening her retirement fund. Harry thought grimly that it was a good enough warning to avoid the lad as well, but thanks to Susan's presence in the same compartment they were still strangers in a sense, and their stance towards one another would be established later on.
When they finally arrived Harry joined the Patil twins and Susan in a boat, with Hannah having chosen to sit down with a few others seeing that the boat Harry was in had already gotten full. The journey across the lake had drawn up several pairs of eyes to stare at the sight of the castle standing in the distance, majestic and powerful. They would all be learning magic there soon, and that thought thrilled them, having them eager to get started, but given how late it had already become it was likely they would be heading to bed soon after their sorting and some evening meal.
They were made to wait a little while in the antechamber before the main-hall, while Harry watched the Ghosts appearing from the wall above them. It was like in her mother's journal, and he had a feeling the whole thing was a set-up to impress the first years. At least it interrupted some of the muttering around him, giving him a moment of peace.
Then the sorting began. He saw Susan and Hannah join the Hufflepuff table to start with, and then noticed the familiar, bushy-haired brunette joining the Gryffindor table. She certainly seemed excitable enough for one, a shame as he had a feeling she could have done well in Ravenclaw if she just calmed down a bit, she did have the look of an intelligent young woman. Ah well.
Draco Malfoy was sorted to the Slytherin almost immediately after the hat had touched his head, no surprises there. The boy must have been demanding to be placed there and the hat gave in, because the boy obviously did not have a cunning bone in his body. Patil Twins came soon after, and he watched the two of them split as they had mentioned. Padma went to Ravenclaw, while Parvati went to Hufflepuff. Finally, his name was read and the hall fell into silence.
Walking forth, Harry made his way to the seat and the vice headmistress set the hat down on his head. Immediately, he felt something brush his occlumency barriers but focused on not snapping them shut around the hat since his mother's journal did mention it had a purpose for doing this and was sworn on its own magic and thus its own existence to never reveal the secrets of the students it had sorted.
"Hmmh, difficult, very difficult. You have the cunning that Slytherin himself would have been proud of but you despise the way his House has become a breeding pit of bigotry. You got the courage of a Gryffindor and a temper for one too, but you dislike the heroics and believe in smarter approach. Yes, you definitely got Ravenclaw's thirst for knowledge and are a creative soul, but you would not devote your life to just learning. Hufflepuff then, hmm yes you certainly have loyalty to those you believe worth it, and you have no fear of hard work, and like making good friends. Very difficult, indeed." The hat thought to itself, those words whispered right into his mind.
'Not Slytherin or Gryffindor. I don't want any part of their little house-war.'Harry focused on the thought, and he could swear he heard the hat chuckling in his mind. "Not either of them huh? Then I will just evaluate between the other two. In truth you could fit in any of the houses, but don't let that go to your head, many are the same but value one thing more than the others, you see good and bad in all of them. I think such an analytical mind would do well in RAVENCLAW!"
The Ravenclaws cheered while the Gryffindors looked shocked, as did many of the Slytherin. The hero of Wizarding World didn't go to Gryffindor, that was already a huge bit of news. Harry moved to sit down among the Ravenclaws, taking a spot next to Padma smiling to her happily and nodding while the rest of the sorting carried on. He saw the Weasley boy at the end sorted to Gryffindor and nodded quietly to himself. He had averted the worst two people by averting the worst two houses.
From the sounds of it though the things he had shared in the train had began to spread in the different tables. Parvati had struck a conversation with Lavender Brown before their sorting and she appeared to spread a word in the Gryffindor, while Parvati and Hannah were getting the word out among the Hufflepuff. He had a feeling that the Ravenclaws and Slytherin would come to know things soon too, but those two tables were already talking about it in quick whispers.
As the Headmaster declared everyone welcome and opened the feast with a few odd words, the food appeared on their tables. Everyone began to eat though Harry's narrowed eyes picked up the magic in use in the food. There was no real potions spread out in their meals or juice, not even his own goblet, but it was just the first night. At least Dumbledore was not stupid enough to try and dose them all with loyalty potions, that would have buried the man the moment one of them went to Saint Mungos and got tested for previously present potions in their system.
His thoughts were interrupted however when he heard the front doors opened forcefully, and saw an older, powerful looking woman walking in who resembled an older, more mature Susan in some ways, followed by several Aurors in blood-red uniforms, pausing to a halt before the now quiet hall. "Madame Bones, what a pleasant but unexpected surprise. Are you and your fine Aurors joining us for our meal?"
Albus might act a bit barmy but he was watching the group at the doors warily, and Harry could read suspicion on the man's expression, as well as some anger and fear on the greasy-haired man's face nearby. That had to be their potions teacher, Severus Snape, because that ugly face was hard to duplicate and his mother had written a good description of the man that still fit him.
"I am afraid not, Mr. Dumbledore, I am here on official business. Mr. Potter, would you and my niece Susan join me for a moment please?" Her formal tone was dead serious. Harry nod and stood quickly, moving over towards her, as did Susan. It was obvious that Amelia planned to act on this here and now, and make this a public move. Albus had a tendency to sweep things under the carpet, and Harry was glad to see she wasn't going to let that happen.
"Now, whatever business you may have here, we should move it to my office-" The old man tried, but Amelia was having none of that. "Absolutely not, I will have this confirmed here and now." She then turned to Harry and presented him with a letter that he read quickly. His words were there, quoted exactly as he had said them, along with Susan's own statement that Harry had sworn this to be true.
"Tell me Mr. Potter, is this true?" She asked him intently, and Harry moved his wand under his chin in a slow and clear gesture, invoking his oath. "I swear on my life and magic that what is written here is true, and I am willing to repeat this under veritaserum if necessary. So mote it be." He raised the wand, casting a brief lumos once again, showing he had practiced it.
He might be scolded for having practiced magic outside of school to be already proficient with the little charm, but given how many others tried to do the same it would hardly be even a slap on the wrist, though it might raise some questions about a trace. That'd be a small price to pay, and quickly removed anyway, if it came down to it. Besides, it seemed the trace hardly worked at Hogwarts anyhow.
Nodding her head seriously, Amelia Bones then turned to look towards the head table looking frighteningly angry for a moment, she was furious, she might not be snarling and clenching her hands but the intensity in her eyes made Harry suddenly feel a little chill go down his spine at the thought of what would happen if he ended up fancying Susan and approach her in later years. Madame Bones had a bone-chilling glare certainly.
"Albus Dumbledore, you are here-by served notice that Mr. Potter is not to be alone in your presence on the penalty of a month in Azkaban, until the investigation to your illegally attempted marriage contract as well as illegal attempt at claiming entry to Potter vaults has been resolved! Do not leave Britain, you are considered suspect of a serious crime and I swear to you now if you are proven guilty you will get a cot in a room at Azkaban!"
On one hand, Harry was grateful for her quick reaction and warning Dumbledore, but at another he thought that she acted a bit too quickly. It tipped off her hand and would let the old man try and put up a fight. What was done was done though, and if asked Harry could honestly say that things came up in conversation that lead to an investigation that uncovered things that certainly looked suspicious.
On the other hand, this would certainly make both Dumbledore and his pet death-eater see him as a possible problem certainly. He wouldn't be surprised if Snape decided to try and do something stupid, given as the warning was issued to Albus Dumbledore alone. Still, by the sounds of it Amelia had already checked at Gringotts since she had added the second charge to the one he had revealed, and keeping his upbringing unsaid she might be planning to drop her knowledge of that upon his feet at a later time. He simply did not know Madame Bones well enough to speculate how she planned to corner the crafty old man.
"Madame Bones, I assure you-" Dumbledore still attempted but was met with a cold glare by Madame Bones. "Don't. You have been caught committing some highly questionable acts, I would suggest you get yourself a good solicitor. This is too big for even you to suppress." Her tone was cold and firm, a type of frost that left Harry wondering whether or not Susan would have a good chance to date any boy in school with her aunt's intimidating presence being firmly ingrained in everyone's mind here.
It was not everyday occurrence to see Dumbledore backing down, but it was satisfying. Turning towards Harry, Madame Bones quickly handed him a simple silver ring, lowering her voice slightly. "Mr. Potter, I would like for you to wear this ring until the trial, and be on your guard. It will record any magic used upon you directly or through potions and such, and it will preserve the magical signature of them. This way if he tries anything we shall know. Once put in place, only you may remove it again. I have already given one to Susan before, but seeing the situation we are in I thought you'd appreciate the precaution as well."
Harry nodded his head slightly, though silently wondered if it would do much good for others to know how badly he had been cursed if he had been cursed to the point of being unable to talk for a while anyway? He had to admit the thought of the headmaster trying to lay down some obliviations or loyalty charms on him certainly should be prevented. "Madame Bones, if I can ask you a favor, would you charm it so that I cannot remove it without your presence and approval as well? I don't trust Dumbledore not to try and make me take it off by some trick."
He saw the bit of smirk on Amelia's lips corner as she nodded, and Harry slipped the ring on to then find a small spell cast on the ring with a tap of Amelia's wand, a sticking charm holding it in place and locked in place by her will. It got recorded by the ring but it also secured it tightly onto Harry's finger, easing up some of his concerns.
"Thank you, Madame Bones, for your help in clearing up this matter. I hope that the questions will be answered in due time." He spoke this part out loud, to show his support and appreciation. It wouldn't hurt Madame Bones to have the boy-who-lived publically supporting her on pushing for an investigation, even the Minister who listened to Dumbledore all too often would be hard pressed to go against this if Harry made it public that he wanted the trial. The public supported the boy more than the Minister.
"Just doing my job Mr. Potter, you have brought up some serious charges, and since Dumbledore may end up charged with attempted line theft as well as fraud the matter needs to be fully investigated. I shall let you know the results, but you will likely need to appear before court as a witness as well." Harry nodded his head in acceptance, being met with a smile from Amelia, who then turned to regard Susan. "You did well to bring this to my attention, but be careful of any retaliation attempts that might happen. I'm glad to see you among the Hufflepuffs, they will protect you but I'd suggest refusing any meetings with Headmaster until the trial, go to your head of house if you need to."
"I'd suggest being careful around Snape too, my mother's journals make it clear the man is all too happy to use passive legilimency for surface scans of your thoughts. It's not as bad as active legilimency but do you really want him to know your thoughts and tell the headmaster?" Harry muttered these words but it was obvious Amelia paid interest to them. "Would you be willing to bring that up at the trial as well?" Seeing her expression, Harry nodded seeing her smirk faintly. These words had all been spoken quietly enough to hide them from the crowd, but the crowd's own level of noise worked against them in that.
"I shall hope to see you in a month's time then, Mr. Potter. Until then." Madame Bones then turned to Susan for a few more words, while Harry bowed his head and returned to his table. It was a dismissal and he knew it, and Susan returned to her own table soon enough as well, while Madame Bones seemed to be gritting her teeth together to not outright shout when she turned her attention back at the headmaster.
"Albus Dumbledore, I thought my opinion of you would not sink any lower but now I am hearing you are threatening your students at their first night at Hogwarts with mortal peril just by entering a third floor corridor? We are going to have some words about this. Aurors, you will see to it that whatever threat has been placed within this school is removed at once." The aura of command that their boss was projecting had every Auror she brought with her rushing forth to carry out her order, while the witch watched Albus choking at her words and grasping his throat, having had the misfortune of taking a drink while he thought the excitement was at least winding down somewhat.
"Amelia, please, we can-" He began to start but she shook her head briefly. "I am half tempted to drag you back to the ministry to stand before Wizengamot and call an emergency session as quickly as I can. The time spent in a cell might drive home the point that endangering the children at this school will not be tolerated." She left it unspoken that with her niece here, she would take any threat to the populace personally. She had come because of Harry's accusations, and her niece swearing they were true and serious, but hearing from her directly about this latest foul from the rotten bastard was enough to send her seething with anger.
"I-" The old man attempted again but Madame Bones cast him a harsh glare. "Shut it. You have been informed to keep your distance to Mr. Potter, as well as the charges you will be facing, you best hope that whatever peril you have informed the students of on the third floor doesn't add to your already shaky position and impressive resume of mistakes. The things I really want to tell you aren't suited for first-year students to hear however." Her glare had the old man sighing and sitting down in a disappointed fashion.
"Madame Bones!" An Auror hurrying back shouted and rushed to her side, speaking in a lowered voice before Amelia's eyes narrowed on Dumbledore. "I was thinking of leaving soon, but it seems you'll get your wish, we'll be having a discussion in your office after the feast. In fact, we best leave right now. Minerva, can you take care of the business here in the meanwhile?" Amelia's expression brooked no arguments, and the vice headmistress seemed to take the hint.
After the headmaster reluctantly left the great hall with an Auror watching him closely, followed shortly after by Madame Bones, Harry let out a long breath to finally relax a bit. He had not expected the welcoming feast to become a spectacle quite like this, but from the somewhat smug look on Padma's face he had a feeling she was amused to see Dumbledore go through the wringer with Amelia, and after hearing about the threat in his speech before the food appeared it seemed the old man was willing to risk not only Harry but all of them to some weird ideas of his. Speculation was running rampant, but at least his class-mates seemed content to not question him out loud there at the table.
Glancing over at the staff table, he found that the greasy-haired man was practically seething with anger, and perhaps only keeping his tongue still because he was being watched by a short man sitting next to him with a wand out in the open in one hand, another holding a fork lifting some food for his mouth, one eye kept on the greasy-haired git. The vice headmistress in turn seemed content to have people eating up and getting to bed soon after.
The journey into the corridors was full of excited chatter, but soon enough they came before the door to their dorms, as well as being introduced to the riddles necessary to gain entry to the dorm. Harry felt a brief shadow of a doubt at this, should he have just gone with Hufflepuff to avoid the ridiculous need to try and showcase his intellect by riddles all the while? Perhaps, but he had no intent on switching, for all he knew the Headmaster would use that as an excuse to try and force a resorting into the Gryffindor based on his family history.
Once they were inside the dorms, the short man that had lead the way hopped onto a table before the fireplace in their common room, turning to regard the gathered group seriously. "Welcome to Ravenclaw, everyone. My name is Filius Flitwick, and I am your Head of House here at Hogwarts. That means that in addition to my duties as a teacher, it is my task to make sure you will be behaving well and treated properly. If any of you are having any problems, talk to the prefects, or come to me. The prefects should be your first choice but if it is really important I shall keep my door open. Now, girls rooms are up on the left, and the boys rooms are on the right. Both staircases are enchanted so none of you can go up the wrong stairs."
He smiled in a relaxed fashion, chuckling a moment before shaking his head. "We have been given quite a rare show tonight and I doubt anyone will be sleeping right away, but I would recommend you rest well and gather your strength for tomorrow's lessons. Your classes will begin by 9, so I expect you all to be up and showered by 8.30 and eating at the great hall. There's a stack of simplified maps here on the table for first-years. I shall deliver everyone's schedules tomorrow at the great hall during breakfast, so be there on time." He smiled in a relaxed fashion, before nodding his head and hopping off the table.
Harry was watching more than a couple of people look around curiously, while others seemed too tired to do much more, seeming intent on heading off to sleep. Seeing the teacher walking right at him though had Harry turn to look at the man, waiting patiently to hear what he had to say. As far as he knew, Filius Flitwick had nothing to do with Dumbledore's plans beyond being one of the teachers here at Hogwarts.
"Mr. Potter, I must admit I had not expected you to join my House, but I would like to assure you that your mother would have been thrilled. There was plenty of courage in her, yes, but she was also renown for her intellect and cunning. She was quite a creative young lady, and proving a prodigy with charms. It will be my delight to see how well you will do in class, indeed. I must warn you however, that you will find quite a different sentiment from our potions master, and head of Slytherin."
Seeming to consider something briefly, Filius then carried on in a calm manner, though lowering his voice so only he would hear it. "Mr. Snape is known to be stubborn, foul-mannered and vengeful. You will find this out personally during your first potions lesson. Don't take any of it personally, or worry about any points you will likely lose. It is to be expected, he's been frothing at the mouth about the fact he's going to have to teach you this year. I swear you will not find a man less suited to teach anywhere else in Britain."
Harry had expected that, based on all that he had read about the man, but having a teacher telling him made him feel a bit more willing to trust his Head of House. Sharing that information must have been a little risky, bad-mouthing a fellow teacher was hardly a polite thing to do, but the information did sound both true and serious. Harry Potter was no doubt going to face Severus Snape's anger all too soon.
"Don't worry Professor, I shall not try and provoke him but I imagine that will not stop him." His voice serious and solemn, he watched the professor nod in return. "I imagine so, Mr. Potter. If he issues you detention, let me know, if he takes points, do not worry about it. I will inform everyone else in the first house-meeting about the state of affairs if he proves as predictable as I expect. The Ravenclaws have not sought to win the House Cup in decades, because we are well aware it carries no real benefits to it and the contest is hardly fair with the bias some teachers exhibit."
Hearing that made Harry draw a long breath and sigh out loudly in relaxation, it eased his worries a bit to know he would not be facing a lot of trouble for that. Knowing that Snape would be teaching here had made him wonder if the classmates would look at him poorly for losing points, but given Filius' explanation he had a feeling that would not become a problem, at least not for long. As for the matter of the headmaster, he was going to just wait and see how things turned out.
Finally heading over to the room assigned for first-year boys, Harry saw the two boys there already asleep, and silently changed into his pajamas before slipping under the sheets as well, his trunk resting at the foot of his bed in its original size and secured in place by the charms at its bottom, tied to Harry's own magical signature.
Laying down to rest, Harry found his mind wandering about the coming school year, and what challenges would lay ahead. Having the headmaster over the hot coals from the start of the year would not endear him to the man, and having a potions teacher that hated him made him wonder about his plans to chase that mastery, but he wasn't going to let a biased bastard stop him. The bloody wanker could either try and teach fairly or he could explain to the board why Harry Potter had informed them he would be hiring a private tutor for Potions.
He would have the right to do so, but it would cost him money from his trust vault to do so since it was not a standard Hogwarts expense. Still, if it came down to that Harry Potter would not hesitate, he planned to get a good education and perhaps having the most famous young wizard in the country requesting tutors in place of the teacher that the board was paying for would lead into some rather pointed questions.
Harry might not like his fame but he would certainly wield it like a rapier, a few words out here and there and it would bring both Auror attention and the public opinion through the wizarding newspapers to the matter. If Snape was providing a sub-standard education then the board would have to take action before the greasy git would embarrass Hogwarts and them.
Drifting off to sleep, Harry Potter found his night hardly restful. The wards around Hogwarts were impressive, the sheer amount of magic in them impressive, but at the same time they were restrained, bound away. He wondered about it, finding soon that many of them were secured both at the headmaster's office, where they should be controlled from, and in the ward-stones deep beneath the castle, as well as the sealed chamber at the heart of the castle holding the main ward stone. It seemed obvious none of them were meant to be interfered with directly, only the one to control the wards in the headmaster's office was left in the open, or as open as a stone hidden so that only the current headmaster could access it could be.
He quickly discovered that some of the more impressive wards were kept in check and only raised in case of emergency to not leech upon the ley-lines the castle had been built upon too heavily. He could see the reason for that, the stronger war wards were definitely the kind of things that should only be put to use when the castle was under serious danger.
It was the smaller wards that troubled him in his half-awake state, feeling that many of the suppression wards meant to keep students from hitting one another with hexes or curses in the hallways were tied away. The wards meant to alarm anyone if a student was injured on school grounds were like-wise bound away, and those should have always been active for the healer's convenience. It was the wards meant to protect the young ladies coming to attend the school from any forceful attentions by the less than gentlemanly fellows that definitely raised his ire due to being bound.
He could not undo all of them, but he definitely began to hack away at the last two in his dream-like state. His magical core began to burn away some power, finding the process draining as those bindings were set by someone far more experienced with this particular wards, with direct access to their control stone. Yet Harry wasn't going to let things stand the way they were. He pushed his magic at it, until he felt the bindings snap, at least partly. They might not work at full strength, but the last two wards would now be in place at least partially powered, to help find anyone hurt on the castle ground as well as to hopefully prevent any acts against the ladies.
Finally falling into his dreams, Harry Potter awoke only to find that the old grand-father clock at the dorm was showing it to be 8.10 am already. He chose to hurry to shower and then dress up for the first day, feeling a bit sore from the attempt last night, but hardly drained. Making his way to the great hall for breakfast, he found the little map invaluable, the place really was almost maze-like in some ways.
Settling down to eat he saw a few older students looking his way curiously, and then a raven-haired older girl moved a little closer to address him. "So, Mr. Potter, would you be kind enough to answer a few questions later today about the show we all had last night? I am sure everyone in our house is dying to ask, but a few of us have agreed that bursting out with questions in public would be bad mannered and disorganized, and last night everyone was already feeling a bit tired and overwhelmed. We would appreciate being aware of what all is going on though so if you would not mind joining us in an impromptu meeting back at the dorms after the afternoon classes today?" She smiled in a relaxed manner, but it seemed that she was expecting him to answer a certain way.
"Certainly, I will ask that you don't mind if I can't answer everything though. It is not pleasant thing to think about. Still, after that show I would think I owe a few explanations at least. The last part about the third floor corridor was a surprise for me as well but I think Dumbledore sprung that out on all of us. We were just lucky that Madame Bones came when she did to make sure that threat would not remain."
He saw the amusement on the girl's face as she shook her head at this. "Luck nothing, I imagine that the news reached her about the accusations when she could not catch you outside of Hogwarts anymore and thus had to come here to get the truth, and she would know that Dumbledore would try and weasel in on the meeting and suppress everything if he could. He may be a respected wizard, but he is also known to hold onto several offices while doing a sub-standard job about it, and for all his achievements he has also left a lot of unanswered questions behind. Which is why I am glad to hear you're willing to answer some that your actions have brought to everyone's mind." She smiled, and then got up to return to her friends, leaving Harry to finish his breakfast.
As Professor Flitwick came around distributing their schedules, he cast a look at his and silently groaned. The day would begin with Charms, and he was curious to see about them, but the afternoon would begin with potions class and after Professor Flitwick's warning he had no doubt he would be facing the man's wrath before the end of the day.
End Chapter
A/N: Alright, the year is starting and before it is even time for the first lessons Albus Dumbledore is seeing a lot of things going different from what he might have imagined them to be. Harry does have a tendency to plan ahead, but not everything will work out so he'll have to learn to have back-up plans atop back-up plans in time. It is simply that most people would not expect that level of intellect from someone his age, but then again he is hardly an average guy.
I actually wonder why nobody reacted to the opening feast warning about the painful death lurking in the third-floor corridor first year. The students may have thought the old man was simply barmy, but that kind of a warning should spark at least some worry on a few minds. If not more than a letter home about a bizarre inclusion to the opening speech, then at least that much, enough to make people think if the old man is going senile or trying to prank his students. Complete with the 'nitwit, blubber, oddment, tweak' statement, I think the senile angle would be worth a thought.
I am not decided on the Weasley Twins, out of the the Weasleys, I tend to view darkly on Molly's bossing people around habit and Ron's jealousy. I don't think Ginny is really 'bad' but the fangirl angle mixed with potential possession-poisoned mind later on raises some questions, as does the canon ending with Albus Severus Potter which just reeks of emotional manipulation and weak-willed Harry. As for the other Weasleys, I might not like Percy much but I have not seen a clear reason to dislike Bill or Charlie.
Weasley Twins are both pranking people for laughter but also causing trouble, to the point of bullying, but I wonder if they are bullying people who are already bullies to others, or are they just rampantly pranking anyone that they come across. I tend to view them in the lighter, more acceptive side usually but from this Harry's point of view, they'll be under suspicion until he gets to know a bit more about them.
I laid down the self-challenge bit earlier, I am not going to say what I plan on Luna just yet, but that'll be until the second year at least, so it'll not be a huge factor for the first year.
On the topic of Harry using Dark Curses? If someone tries hexing him in the back, he'll throw what he can back at them. If its first year, he'll probably go jelly-legs jinx or such, but later on he's going to be more likely to use reducto than stupefy, unless he's targeting someone with a human shield and planning to take down whichever he hits, dropping a hostage to make the one holding them stumble or hitting the one holding them prisoner to negate the threat.
This Harry will not be pulling his punches, he would not be shoving a wand up a troll's nose, he'd be driving it in through a troll's eye and pushing all the magic he could to over-powering a sparkler charm or something, just to send the little usually-harmless hot sparks right in the back of a troll's eyes socket in order to try and take it out.
I originally planned on having Severus try and use legilimency on Harry right there at the sorting feast after Madame Bones' arrival, but decided against it, since Harry's attention would be elsewhere and because he wouldn't do it where he would risk being caught. I am looking forward to that bit actually, later.
magitech, I like your adaption of the line, with your permission, I might actually use it like that later on in the story.
Until next time, but I might be writing a long overdue chapter to the Reign of Steel: Bloodline before I update this story again.