Author's notes: Harry meets Ron and Hermione in this chapter, but things go a lot differently that it did in canon. So, let's begin...

Chapter 3: Hogwarts Bound

Harry soon got onto the Hogwarts Express and found an empty compartment. He then put his trunk and Hedwig's cage down before releasing Shade out of his cage so that he could investigate the compartment before curling up in Harry's lap. A few minutes later, Harry was interrupted from his customary meditating when the youngest Weasley boy opened the compartment door.

"Umm, excuse me? Do you mind if I sit in here? Everywhere else is full..." the boy asked.

"Not at all. Go ahead," Harry answered, wanting to find out more about his suspicions about the Weasley family.

"Thanks. I'm Ron, by the way, Ron Weasley. What's your name?" Ron said politely, a little too politely for Harry's liking as the pleasantries actually sounded false, but to anyone but him, he guessed that they wouldn't hear or see the subtle things in a person's voice.

"I'm Harry. You're Ginny's brother, aren't you? I saw your family and spoke to her about getting onto the Platform," Harry answered. He didn't want to give his full name yet as he wanted to see how Ron would treat him if Ron didn't know his true identity as he had his suspicions that it would be much different if Ron knew who he was.

"Y-yeah, I'm Ginny's brother. Why didn't you just ask one of us before we left? We could've helped you get on and given you better advice than her. She isn't going to Hogwarts until next year, fortunately. She can be really annoying at home sometimes. She's always on about how she's going to be Harry Potter's friend and how she'll make him happy as she worries that something bad had happened to him so she would need to be there for him in the future as she thinks that there's more to him than just being Harry Potter. I think she just has a massive crush on him. But I'm going to be his best friend, not her! She'll just annoy him, I know it! Then she'll shut up about him all the time!" Ron ranted. Ron's rants began to fuel Harry's anger as the red-haired boy reminded him too much of his cousin, Dudley. It was obvious that he probably teased and bullied Ginny at home in regards to Harry. Harry couldn't believe that someone could be so insensitive and insulting towards their own family members, especially behind their backs. This only fuelled Harry's suspicions and dislike for the Weasley family, minus Ginny. He liked her as she was the only genuine one in the family, so seeing her own brother insulting her didn't make him happy.

"I talked to her, and she seemed to genuinely care about the boy's wellbeing when I asked. She also was able to hold a conversation more intelligently than you and your ranting about her. She's your sister. Family shouldn't insult family. My 'relatives' were like that, so I taught them a lesson they won't ever forget once I learned magic. I suggest you either shut up and leave your jealousy and ignorance at home, or you leave this compartment. I don't befriend or trust people who have the audacity to insult people, especially behind their backs. That's a sign of cowardice, and I hate cowards!" Harry said, glaring angrily at Ron.

Ron visibly shook in fear at Harry's intense glare, then snarled and picked up his trunk before heading for the door. Before he left, he turned to Harry with a smug expression.

"You'll come crawling back to be my friend when Harry Potter becomes best friends with me, you'll see!" Ron exclaimed.

"You're funny. I hate to tell you this, but I've met him before, and he doesn't like cowards like you either. In fact, Ginny is more likely to be his friend than you ever will as she seems to actually see that he's a person, not just a celebrity!" Harry retorted, causing the red-haired boy to flush angrily before storming out of the compartment.

Just then, a young, bushy-haired brunette girl appeared, looking between Harry and the storming Ron, before focusing her attention on Harry.

"Umm, have you happened to have seen a toad? A boy named Neville is looking for one as he lost it somehow," the girl asked with a slightly bossy tone of voice as if she was in her rights to demand an answer from anyone.

"I haven't seen any other animals other than my owl and cat, no toads I'm afraid," Harry answered politely.

After Harry's answer, the girl nodded and turned to walk away. This constituted the very definition of rude in his mind and he thought that he should point it out to the pompous girl.

"It's rude to not introduce yourself after just coming in here, demanding answers, then going to walk off like your above others. People might think that you're bossy or pompous," Harry stated, causing the girl to turn around and go red in the face, sporting an expression that was a cross between shame and anger.

"And who are you to tell me what I should do?! You have no authority over me!" the girl said angrily, obviously deciding to go with that emotion instead of the shame that was more fitting.

"What, and you think that you have authority over me instead? Trust me, girl, no-one has authority over me. I live my own life, and no-one can tell me what to do, otherwise they find themselves in a lot of trouble...like my 'relatives' found themselves in when they thought that they were above me..." Harry said, pausing after the last sentence to let the message get through the girl's mind. When it did, he took pleasure in seeing her eyes widen in fear and the look of shame reappear.

"I-I'm s-sorry. I d-didn't m-mean to t-truly offend y-you. M-my name's H-Hermione Granger, what's yours?" Hermione stuttered.

"My name's Harry Potter-" Harry started, but was automatically cut off by Hermione's eyes widening in fascination, then they narrowed critically.

"You're not Harry Potter! You're not like what the books say!" Hermione exclaimed. It was obvious to Harry that she was a bookworm and had too been corrupted by the media, who truly had no idea about his life.

"I am!" Harry exclaimed, showing Hermione his scar and effectively shutting her up, "You should learn not to trust everything that books tell you. I've seen and read some of the book that claim to be my 'biographies' and I'll tell you something; they don't know the half of what my life has been like! All they know is that my parents were killed by a psychopath and I'm an orphan, they didn't bother with figuring out the rest! Remember that the next time you read something and believe every word you see! It's not necessarily going to be 100% accurate! I think you ought to go if that's all you're interested in; my unwanted status as the wizard celebrity!"

Hermione was stunned at Harry's closed off and angry attitude. The scar on his forehead was clear proof of his identity, and he was nothing like the tragic, glorious hero that he was portrayed as. Here was a normal, albeit troubled, boy, and he definitely didn't like what his title of the 'Boy-Who-Lived' truly meant. To him, it meant that he was an orphan, nothing more. With those thoughts in her head, Hermione got up and left, heading back to where her trunk was as she didn't want to face his wrath any longer.

After Hermione left, Harry slumped into his seat and calmed himself before his magic surged again. He hadn't been in the situation to get angry like with Ron and Hermione for years ever since he took control over his life and sorted the Dursleys out. Harry decided that sleep would be the best remedy for calming his temper. So, after Harry changed into his Hogwarts robes, just in case he slept for the remainder of the journey, he leaned his head back against the headrest on the wall and fell to sleep with Shade still curled up asleep on his lap, and Hedwig falling to sleep on her perch in her cage.