2. To Scotland
The following days were wonderful for Harry!
No chores, because Dudley was compelled to do them. No skipped meals, because Dudley couldn't eat if Harry didn't. Best of all, no punishments of any sort from Aunt Petunia or Uncle Vernon…because they all rebounded on Dudley!
When Dudley was discovered stuffed inside the cupboard under the stairs, and whimpering in fear, Harry was promptly moved up into the guest room.
The result was that his Hogwarts letter was welcomed with relief rather than revulsion on the part of his relatives, since the Dursleys were eager to get rid of him.
September found Harry boarding the train north to Scotland, happier than he'd been for a long time.
He spied a carriage near the end, noticed with a sigh of relief that it was unoccupied, and settled himself comfortably.
Harry was not alone for long- the door opened to reveal a rather pudgy boy with dark blond hair, clutching a toad. He said nothing, but stared hopefully at Harry.
Harry gave him a smile. "Hello. Looking for a place to sit?"
"Yes!" the boy gasped thankfully. "Is anyone sitting here?" He stood in front of the seat next to Harry.
"Looks like you are," Harry grinned. "What's your name? I'm Harry."
"Neville," the boy replied. "Neville Longbottom. My toad's name is Trevor."
"Well, my owl is Hedwig." Hedwig hooted in acknowledgment.
"She's gorgeous." Neville said admiringly. "My Uncle Algie gave me Trevor, but I think it would be nicer to have an owl."
Hedwig gave him a pitying look that Harry knew meant Of course it would, silly.
The two boys soon found they had a lot in common. Neither lived with their parents, and neither had ever had any friends. Neville lived with his grandmother, who was quite protective, and Dudley's gang had kept other children from befriending Harry.
"I mean, I've met the Weasleys," Neville said apologetically. "But they are so…loud. All they want to do is play Quidditch, and I'm afraid to fly! Mostly I spend my time in the gardens and greenhouses."
"Ohhh," Harry stared at him with shining eyes. "Flying…I can't wait!"
"I bet you'll be good at it," Neville said quietly.
"Don't worry, I'll help you," Harry offered. "We should stick together."
"I'd like that," beamed Neville. "But, how? We don't know where we'll be sorted."
"We can still be friends, no matter what House we're in," Harry pointed out.
Neville's round face looked determined. "Right! Let's do that!"
Just then the trolley witch made an appearance, and the boys bought some chocolate frogs. They had a good time comparing cards and reading about the exploits of famous witches and wizards.
Harry scowled when he got a card with Albus Dumbledore's picture. He'd learned from Hagrid that Dumbledore stood as his magical guardian, and had been the one to place him with the Dursleys.
That left Harry with not very warm feelings towards the Headmaster. He resolved to avoid the man as much as possible, and never to trust him implicitly.
Hagrid led the crowd of first year students to the boats, and Harry and Neville climbed in. They were joined by two girls: a blonde with her hair in pigtails, and a redhead with a shy smile.
"I'm Hannah Abbott," said the nervous blonde. "This is Susan Bones."
Hannah squealed when Harry introduced himself and Susan's eyes widened.
"Harry Potter! You're famous! There's books about you!" Hannah enthused. "I…er, haven't read them myself."
A flicker in the back of Harry's mind identified that as a lie.
Harry had been leery of attempting the Ritual of Deception, since he had no way of knowing what it would do. But his first ritual had proved such a boon that, three days ago, he had decided to risk it.
When he heard his aunt assuring Marge Dursley that they'd welcome a visit, he had come to the realization that the new ritual warned him of a lie.
Harry was thrilled; he could think of nothing more useful than knowledge of when someone was lying to him.