Okay, I'll be honest; this was originally not supposed to be a HP/FF-7 story. This was, actually supposed to be a HP/Bleach story at first, then it turned into a HP/Yu-Gi-Oh!, and then it turned into a HP/Naruto, but then into "HP as the logical one" where Harry's normally the one to point out all the mistakes of other characters while coming up with plans to deal with his Hogwarts years.

Instead, you guys got this! I didn't take a lot of the elements I had been working with out, so you'll kind of see them in it. Like a slightly Kakashi-like Ron, dueling references, a Toshiro/Byakuya-like Harry, or even Harry pointing out illogical moments. Hooray for you if you spot them!

Chapter 4: Rebirth, My Friend

The Hogwarts Express had let off its warning whistle, signaling that it was about to leave. While only half-listening to Mrs. Weasley's pleas for them to stay safe, out of trouble, and to write often, Harry grabbed his trunk and Hedwig's cage from the trolley that Moody had brought, and hurried to the train, quickly followed by his friends.

Waving goodbye from a window as the train started to move, Harry chuckled lightly at seeing Padfoot chasing after him, determined to see him until the end. Several seconds later, though, he was out of sight.

"He shouldn't have come." Hermione worried as Ron rolled his eyes, crossing his arms and smirking good-naturedly.

"Give the man a break, Hermione." Ron chided lightly with a chuckle, "He hasn't been outside in ages! I think it's do him a world of good."

"Well, can't stay to chat, yo." Fred said, clapping his hands together, "George and I got business to discuss with Lee. See ya, yo." And with that, he and George disappeared into a compartment.

"Fred's been saying "yo" a whole lot since the summer started." Hermione observed, "And George barely ever speaks anymore unless someone talks directly to him."

"I'm sure it's nothing." Harry said, waving Hermione off as he glanced at her, his glowing green eyes betraying nothing.

"Suppose we should get a compartment, too?" Ron suggested as Hermione gave him a look and then whispered in his ear, making Harry frown, "Oh! Right!"

"What is it?" Harry asked as Hermione looked slightly embarrassed while Ron looked slightly dismayed.

"Meeting in the Prefect carriage first." Ron said casual with a shrug, "You know how these things go. Just need to receive first basic instructions from the Head Boy and Girl, then occasionally patrol."

"Alright then." Harry said, as Ron shrugged again, "I'll try and find us a place. Come find me when you're done."

Hermione let loose a relieved sigh, which rankled Harry a bit as he frowned at her, but turned away so Ange-… he meant so Ron wouldn't see his look. Had the bushy-haired bookworm really expected him to become angry over something as pitiful as a first basic orientation? If Harry was honest with himself, he was a bit disappointed at both their being away and her reaction to his nonchalant attitude, but he wasn't going to try to ruin it for them.

The red-head boy opened his mouth, probably to give more reassurance, but Harry cut him with a sharp look, "Well? What're you two waiting for? I will find us a compartment."

"Gotcha, Commander." Ron laughed as Harry gave a small smirk when his friend clapped him on the shoulder, "Take Ginny with you, though. Don't need her wandering about with other boys."

"Fine." Harry said as Ron and Hermione gave smiles while making their way towards the Prefect compartment. Harry and Ginny, however, progressively went further back, peering into the compartments one by one. Each one seemed full so far, and Harry was starkly reminded of the Daily Prophet's calling him a lying, attention-seeking show-off when he realized that they staring back at him when he peeked in.

"The fools! They'll see." Harry thought furiously with a deep scowl marring his handsome face, his emerald green eyes glowing darkly, "Soon they shall realize their mistakes, and then it shall be I who-"

"Harry…" Ginny said as she touched his shoulder, but Harry shied away from her touch.

"I know, I know." Harry grumbled, taking a couple of deep breaths to calm down. While he had great emotional control, his anger seemed to flare badly when he was reminded that the world was against him… again…

As he was think such bitter thoughts, they encountered Neville at the last carriage, who was standing outside a compartment, looking nervous even as he struggled to maintain a one-handed grip on his always-escaping toad, Trevor, while using his other hand to work his trunk.

"Hey Harry… Hi Ginny…" Neville panted as though he had run a marathon, "Everywhere is full, I can't find a seat…"

Ginny managed to push past the flustered boy in order to look into the compartment behind him, "This one's available." she informed them, "There's only Luna Lovegood in there."

"I don't want to be a bother-" Neville began, but Ginny was having none of that.

"Don't be silly, she's alright." Ginny vouched as Harry shrugged when Neville sent him a shy puppy look.

Quickly enough, Harry was seated across from a blond girl, wearing a necklace of butterbeer corks, who was reading a magazine… upside-down… A moment of focus allowed him to make out the word "Quibbler" as the title of the mag.

Just like all the others Harry had encountered on the train so far, Luna stopped what she was doing and stared at him, "You've been reborn as Harry Potter."

"I'm sorry?" Harry said as he raised a brow.

"Forgive me, Commander-General." Luna said quickly enough as she glanced at her magazine, "I mean, you are Harry Potter."

"That, Miss Lovegood, I already know." Harry replied dryly, his eyes slightly narrowed as he tried to figure out what- or rather who- Luna thought of him so far.

But his attempts were foiled when she turned her head to Neville. "So the Puppy of SOLDIER returns…"

"Umm…" Neville looked nervously at her, but then a swift glance at Harry.

"I don't know who you are." Luna said as Neville blinked.

"N-Neville Longbottom." Neville said as Harry quickly tuned them all out.

Instead, he focused his keen analytical mind to the task of figuring out what was to come this school year for him. He needed to work out how he was going to spend the year with the Ministry's interference. Perhaps a few mock duels in the Common Rooms, or out at Hogsmeade? He'd also need to brush up on his magics, and to figure out just what were these secondary thoughts roving through his mind as though he shared it with another person. He had nearly called Ron a different name twice, and while he recognized it, he couldn't explain why that name had nearly slipped from his mouth so naturally.

Harry frowned pensively as he gazed out the window, not truly taking in the countryside as the train roved by it. He spent several minutes completely immersed in his own thoughts, trying to formulate a plan or understand his strange visions and dreams, but something- or rather someone- was interrupting him.

"Um… hello, Harry."

Harry turned from the window, recognizing the voice. "Hello, Cho Chang." Harry said almost listlessly.

"Umm… I… we…" Cho stammered as Harry stared at her in boredom.

"Is there something you want, Cho?" Harry said helpfully, remembering the girl as a crush which had faded over the summer, but more importantly as Cedric Diggory's girlfriend before he died. At the pang of guilt and sadness he felt, Harry only reminded himself that the dead were far better off than those still amongst the living.

He had no clue where that grim thought had come from, but he stood by it as truth.

"Yes, but if this is a bad time-"

"Perhaps later then?" Harry suggested with a small smile, "When we're all settled in at the school?"

"Yeah, that'd be better." Cho said, looking as though a weight had been lifted from her shoulders, "I'll see you around, Harry."

"Yes, I'm sure." Harry said as Cho left.

"Wow, Harry." Neville said, relaxing somewhat, "You could cut the tense with a knife."

"What in the name of Gaia are you talking about?" Harry asked dryly, his voice smooth and rich.

"She was obviously here to talk about something important." Ginny cut in with an intense look at Harry, "Maybe get some closure about Cedric's sudden death last year."

"If she wants closure, she can seek it with a stronger resolve than that." Harry spat coldly, "People die. People get killed. Voldemort kills people. Voldemort killed Cedric. If she wants closure or whatever she came for, then until she isn't a stuttering collection of tears, she doesn't deserve it. I'm sure that Cedric would not approve of her wasting her life crying after him."

"I never knew you were so harsh, Harry." Ginny said, her eyes hard with a slight glow, though nowhere near as strong as Harry's own.

"It's not being harsh when I've given her time to collect herself." Harry corrected, "I could have dealt with her as emotional as she was, but that would have been harsh and cruel."

"Whatever…" Ginny said, crossing her arms and settling back into her seat as though she and Harry had arguments all the time.

Harry didn't feel that poor attempt at a rebuttal deserved a response and just sighed. Digging through his trunk, Harry dug out his book and turned to the dog-eared page that he had marked.

"Loveless Act Three…" Harry read as he buried his nose in the book, not seeing how the glow in the other three's eyes increased at what he said.

Hermione and Ron didn't return from the prefect's carriage for almost an hour, and by then the snack trolley had already come and gone. Ron opened the compartment's door and leaned against it with his arms crossed while a smug smirk came over his face. Hermione peeked in, a smile on her face as well. Shaking his head, Ron snagged up one of Harry's Chocolate Frogs and sat down heavily next to him.

"There are two Prefects from each House." Ron said before he took a bite from the frog.

"Oh?" Harry raised a brow as Hermione nodded, taking a seat opposite Ginny.

"Yes, one boy and one girl from each." Hermione added as Harry's brow didn't lower.

"Why are you telling me this?" Harry asked as he shut his book and looked at Ron, who smirked.

"No story is not worth hearing." Ron said firmly, "And because you'll never guess who the Slytherin prefect is?" Ron finished dully, though the smirk he hid by biting into his Frog a moment later didn't escape Harry.

"Draco Malfoy, I presume." Harry replied dryly, certain that it had to be the blond.

Ron nodded, finishing the treat and taking another from Harry's pile, "You'll just have to see him in person, I guess."

Now that made Harry's brow rise in curiosity. Why would he have to see Malfoy in person?

"And that complete cow Pansy Parkinson is the girl Perfect for Slytherin!" Hermione spat with uncharacteristic malice, "I don't know how she got to be prefect when she's thicker than… than…"

But she couldn't come up with anything. However, Harry was completely unsurprised by the news; if Malfoy had gotten it, it was almost certain that Pansy had as well. Those two were the worst of the Slytherins by far.

"What about Hufflepuff?"

"Ernie Macmillan and Hannah Abbott." Ron answered, leaning back in his seat with his arms crossed and the foot of his right leg resting on left knee, "With Anthony Goldstein and Padma Patil from Ravenclaw."

"I see…" Harry said as he leaned back, frowning. He'd have to remember those names, "What're they like?"

"You know orientations." Ron replied with a sigh and shrug, "You don't get to tack much. We were in there just getting information on what we're supposed to do."

Harry nodded, though his frown settled on his lips as he got into thought. He and Ron had previous experience with Padma Patil, as it was through him that Ron had acquired that date for the Yule Ball last year. Harry himself had gone with her twin sister in Gryffindor, Parvati.

He just hoped that the girl wasn't still too hung-up on what a disappointment the two had turn her and her twin sister's Yule Ball evenings into with their obsessions. Ron must have thought about it too, because he suddenly grimaced and hurriedly glanced at the watch his mother had given him for making Prefect.

"Umm… Hermione, it's almost time to do our patrol." Ron said, but seeing the curious looks on Neville and Ginny's faces, along with the uncaring ones of Luna and Harry, he quickly elaborated, "Not special. We're just supposed to check up on things every so often, and assign appropriate punishments if people are misbehaving. Harry, hand me my book. This is gonna get dull quickly."

"You and your book of honor, Angeal…" Harry muttered as he dug through Ron's trunk.

"An- what?" Hermione said as she noticed Harry's slip of the tongue and Ron's acceptance of it.

"I meant Ron." Harry said smoothly, his tone not changing, "Just a little mix up, is all."

"Who's this Angeal person?" Hermione asked, but Ron covered as he smirked.

"Man, I can't wait to catch Crabbe and Goyle bullying some First Years. They're gonna get it…" Ron said, rubbing his hands together as Hermione turned on him.

"Ron!" Hermione scolded sharply, "You are not supposed to abuse your authority like that!"

"Noted." Ron said, with a sigh before whispering, "A shame that it would also be against my honor as well…"

Harry quirked a brow, some part of him proven correct in someway with hearing Ron's whisperings.

Hermione, however, merely gave the youngest male Weasley an exasperated look before taking his arm, "C'mon, Ron, it's time for our patrol."

She stood up to open the compartment door, but it opened before she could get to it. Harry's eyes narrowed slightly at the sight of an arrogantly smirking Draco Malfoy flanked by his two cronies.

"What do you want, Draco Malfoy?" Harry asked with the slightest hint of exasperation and annoyance.

"My friend," Draco began while arrogantly tossing his head back, "your desire is that of mine as well. My friend, your desire is the bringer of life, the Gift of the Goddess."

"Genesis…" Harry mutter with wide eyes, leaping to his feet as Draco continued to smirk, a sky blue glow within his stormy grey eyes.

"My friend, it seems the fates are cruel." Draco said, turning on heel, "But atlas, even if the morrow is barren of promises…"

"Nothing shall forestall my return…" Harry finished as Draco and his two flunkies disappeared, "I guess he really was right in the end..."

As soon as the door closed, Harry sat down heavily, looking down with glowing green eyes at his shaking hands. It was like he was now fully awake from a long slumber and half-consciousness. He looked up and met Ron's gaze, and the red-head seemed just as unnerved as Harry felt; they both had no doubt fully awaken with Draco's appearance and the quotes of so long ago.

"Seph… Sephiroth…?" Ron questioned.

"An… A-Angeal…?" Harry croaked, his throat suddenly dry.

"H-Harry, what just happened with Malfoy?" Hermione asked, looking shell-shocked and gripping her head as though something were ringing in her ears, "W-What's going on…?"

"Rebirth, my friends." Luna stated calmly, seemingly not effected as she gazed around at the others who were in deep shock, "This is the Gift. Lifestream and the Goddess Minerva have given us life once more."

"An-Angeal…?" Neville asked with the look of an adorable puppy reunited with it's owner, "Is that really you?"

"Za-Zack?" Ron asked as his eyes widened even further.

Ginny looked like she had been hit over the head and so did Hermione, though he supposed that he didn't look much better anyway. He tried to regain himself, but it was all just too much, he could only gape in shock like the others. To have been reborn… Him…! Sephiroth, the terror of the Planet! Reborn from the Lifestream with the other much more deserving people!

No… He was Sephiroth… Now, now he was reborn. Now he was Harry James Potter! And he wouldn't make the same mistakes as last time. He swore it!

"Well…" Harry started after a long pause, finally finding his voice, "… this is interesting…"