Harry Potter and the Lightning Blade

by ReaperOfBalance

Dumbledore had no idea what happened when Harry Potter disappeared years ago, but now that he's reappeared, he's got no idea what to do. Harry has shown up strong, confidant, capable, and not very forgiving or big on second chances. What's more, he's shown to be far smarter and knowledgeable than he should be. Dumbledore has no idea what he's in for, nor does the Wizarding World.

2. Chapter 2: Class Begins

Hello and welcome back, this is taking place right after chapter 1.

Glad to see this is getting some love, I'd likely keep writing it even if it wasn't since I'm enjoying it, but it's still nice all the same.

Gonna warn that this chapter is a bit of an info dump chapter as Harry analyzes the students of his year and weighs who will be an ally worth having, who could be an ally if they stepped up, and who is going to be a pain in his ass.

Also, you may see spells and magic from other items added into this, but as of this moment I have no intention of crossing anything fully into this until WAAAAAAAAAAAY Later. So you may see spells from Bleach, Warcraft, Chaotic, etc etc. as this fic goes on but not necessarily seeing those items crossed into this.

Gonna give fair warning that Harry is gonna be pretty OP, but I have a reason for it and (to my knowledge) it's never been done before. So give me the benefit of the doubt until you see what's going on in full if you're one of those that isn't into OP characters.

Secondly, Harry will be more mature, smart, and wise than his age would suggest and there IS a reason for it. And NO, it doesn't involve time travel or he died and then woke up in his younger body or he's been reincarnated.

Also, this is a harem fic, though not every girl Harry meets is joining the harem, and no I don't have an exact count or know all of who I'm going to add. Also, this harem will consist of servants, slaves, wives, girlfriends, mistresses, and other such titles.

With that said and done, let's get this show on the road.

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or anything else that may appear in this fic.

"Speech"

(Thoughts)

"Language that's not English"

Spell Name

[Conversation Thoughts]

CHAPTER 2: CLASS BEGINS

HOGWARTS GREAT HALL: JUST AFTER THE SORTING

Harry ate calmly as he sat with Jacob, Evie, and Delphini, shortened to Delphi, while the other first years were scattered on either side of them. He acknowledged the various greetings he got, but didn't show much interest beyond that and merely stuck to eating and getting a feel for everyone in the room.

Dumbledore was the most powerful person there, which wasn't surprising at all, next was a tie between Flitwick, McGonagall, and Severus Snape, following them was Sprout and Vector, and it tapered off from there. One teacher with a turban, named Quirinus Quirrell, was suppressing his magical power but even with his "friend" helping him, he wasn't even half as strong as Dumbledore from what Harry could sense.

Some of the seventh years were disappointing as their magical power and potential was lower than some of the third years around him. Two older Hufflepuffs had potential, though one was due to her lineage helping things as well as her natural talent.

However, no one struck him as immediately interesting for allying with or possibly getting to his side fighting-wise on power alone. Politically, there were numerous options, even with a few being minor houses it still helped to have extra support in things.

Although, if some proved capable, he'd consider training and maybe recruiting them to his side for combat and the like.

If he didn't take into account what people could be worth with some work, more than half his employees and holdings wouldn't be under his command at the moment.

No, better to take the diamonds that needed a bit of polishing and refining to truly shine over those that had a moderate gleam to them no matter what you did with them.

That wasn't to say he wouldn't take the mediocre if the opportunity presented itself, not every comrade and employee could be a shining example to the others. Some were just examples and some worked in the background to make the overall process flow flawlessly.

Besides, it was never too early to recruit whether for information, supplies, support, help, protection, or alliances. Dumbledore did it before, during, and after Grindelwald's escapades and old moldy-shorts started during school using the Slytherins to spread his name and influence, though the fool never actively tried recruiting from the other houses, hence the stigma hung over Slytherin and made them easy targets for his opponents. Dumbledore did the same thing for the Gryffindors making them targets for retaliation against him.

Less Slytherin students meant less Voldemort supporters.

Less Gryffindor students meant less Dumbledore supporters.

Meanwhile, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw were caught in the crossfire or largely left alone or deemed unimportant to the war going on.

If any true Slytherins decided to think for a minute, they'd have instructed their children to either sort to a different house to break stigma and the target on them or at least told them to make connections and allies in school. Hogwarts was essentially a giant networking opportunity; become friends with a child and you could gain the favor of that child's family and allies as well as getting additional resources at your disposal if the time came.

However, most were idiots and simply stuck to their own house thereby making the same connections that their parents already had unless A) new blood moved to the isles and thus joined Hogwarts. B) they connected to any muggleborn or half-bloods that were then sorted to those houses. Or C) they managed to get into a marriage contract with another family an thus gain n connection that way.

Harry broke from his musings/monologue as an older girl, maybe 13, decided to speak to him. "Hi, I'm Cho Chang. Welcome to Ravenclaw, home of the Eagles." Cho introduced as Harry wiped his hands on his napkin before shaking her hand and giving it a light kiss, causing her to blush a bit.

"Pleasure, miss Chang, you already know who I am." Harry stated as he released her hand and went to his food.

"Why are we called Eagles if the house is Ravenclaw?" Jacob asked looking at Harry.

Cho was about to answer that no one knew when Harry answered. "Rowena Ravenclaw had an eagle for a familiar and her animagus transformation was an eagle. Her familiar was her closest friend and confidant until she met the other founders and then her husband, so she made the sigil an eagle in her honor." Harry answered casually as he ate as nearly everyone on hearing distance looked at him.

"Ah, that would make sense." Jacob stated as he went back to his food.

"Is that true?" Hermione asked and Harry nodded. "How do you know?" She added as Harry ate.

"My family kept extensive and detailed journals through the ages. We saw too much of Muggles and other magic folk altering history to suit their own needs and desires. So, we kept all the history we witnessed archived and I had quite a few ancestors around during the time of the founders and beyond. It's a bit sad, one of my ancestors was almost married to Helena Ravenclaw before she ran away and then was killed by the Bloody Baron." Harry revealed making many widen their eyes in shock.

"Yeah right, you're just making this up to seem impressive." A boy that looked to be in Cho's year stated.

"Harry doesn't lie." Jacob, Evie, and Delphi all stated at the same time in an automatic tone.

"I'm sure." The boy scoffed.

"Corner! Don't be rude!" Chi stated with a glare.

"You can ask her, if you want confirmation. Though she may not know about my ancestor as he wasn't Potter at the time." Harry stated casually as he kept eating.

"Ask who?" Another girl that looked to be in Cho's year asked.

"Helena Ravenclaw, you can ask her to confirm what I said." Harry stated simply.

"And how are we supposed to do that? Hold a séance or try our hand at necromancy?" Corner asked getting laughs.

"You're not spiritually attuned enough for a séance and not smart enough for necromancy." Harry stated making Corner growl as others giggled or laughed. "Fortunately, neither are required since Helena is our house ghost. I believe you call her the Grey Lady." Harry added making everyone stare at him in shock.

"Wait what?!" Chi asked in shock, only just having enough control not to scream.

"The Grey Lady is Helena Ravenclaw, daughter of Rowena Ravenclaw. You know, the founder of our house." Harry stated casually as he kept eating.

"So why did the Bloody Baron kill her?" Daphne decided to ask, intrigued by the story.

"Ah, he was one of the first students here and looked up the founders as his parents and closest friends. He used his wealth and influence to help protect Hogwarts and was a great tracker. Helena ran away with her mother's diadem after getting fed up with everyone comparing her to her mother and hearing of her mother's genius. She took the diadem thinking it was the key to her intelligence, only to find out it was nothing but a tool. Anyway, Rowena was dying and wished to see her daughter one last time and asked the Baron and my ancestor to bring her back. The Baron found her, but fell in love at first sight and became determined to win her heart." Harry started pulling others into the tale.

"His advances were futile and still he kept trying until he resorted to magic to force her to love him. However, Helena wouldn't fall so easily and upon realizing what he'd done, she vowed to return home and to tell the founders what he had done. Horrified, angry, and fearful at what they would think, he lashed out and killed Helena, who lamented and regretted not seeing her mother again. Upon realizing what he had done, he broke down and decided the best way to atone for his crimes was to take his own life, sending a message to my ancestor asking that he ensure Helena was returned to be properly buried. My ancestor returned them both to Hogwarts, being spared the task of telling Rowena as she had passed a week before. The two were then drawn to Hogwarts as it was the place both longed to return to and finish their unattended matters. Rowena returned in a near shade like state showing her mourning and sadness at the end while the Baron was forever coated in his and Helena's blood, a punishment for his crimes. They've been here ever since." Harry finished his tale as everyone was either looking on in shock, awe, or sadness over how things happened.

Before anyone could comment, Dumbledore stood, "Now that we've all eaten our fill. I shall move on to the announcements." He started as all but a few paid attention to him. "First, I shall inform the first years, and remind certain older students, that the Dark Forest near the edge of the school property is forbidden to all students that do not have expressed permission to be there. Secondly, our caretaker Mr. Filch has asked to remind and inform all of you that magic in the hallways is prohibited and he will be searching for contraband after every Hogsmeade trip." Dumbledore continued with some basic announcements like curfew, what times food was served, how the points system worked, and some other things that Harry didn't pay attention to. "Finally, I will inform you all that this year, the third floor corridor on the right hand side is restricted to all students, even prefects and head students. Anyone caught there will face severe consequences, perhaps even suspension and expulsion and that is, sadly, only if you are found there in time as you could face a rather tragic death." He continued shocking many as Harry didn't react. "Hogwarts has been home to some very dangerous artifacts in the past and while the staff have ensured no serious harm has come to students in the past, there have been moments in time where we were too late to save them from being harmed in some manner." Dumbledore stated in a deadly serious voice, making many whisper and wonder what the fuck was put in the castle that was so dangerous.

Harry glanced at his three friends in silent communication and they nodded and continued eating, they'd talk when they had some more privacy.

"However, keeping your distance will mean you're perfectly fine." Dumbledore then added in a cheery voice making Harry roll his eyes.

Apparently Dumbledore was still using the old fool routine to make people underestimate and possibly trust him.

A fair tactic to use at times, but not constantly when previous generations had grown wise to what you were doing and warned their children about it.

Another showcase of the Wizarding world strictly following the "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" mantra.

Didn't matter anyway, it just made it easier for Harry as he moved through the scenes. Getting too fixated on a plan makes one blind to what could be improved upon, but it also made it harder to recover and adapt if cracks formed and pieces began fall away.

It's why chess grand masters were the ones who constantly adapted and thought up moves, planning things out three or more moves in advance against of their opponent so no matter what happened they still had a plan ready. Of course, a few were also the unpredictable, you couldn't anticipate them because they didn't know what they were going to do until they did it.

They were usually opponents real masters wanted to play against because the unpredictability made them have to keep adapting and changing plans based on the moves they made. It taught them to be quick on their feet and adapt quickly.

Harry had the benefit of being both types of chess player, he could make plans and adapt on the fly as he needed.

So far, it was serving him well.

He had plans in motion already and he was adapting to the changes that were occurring since he honestly wasn't counting on Greengrass, Davis, and the female Malfoy to come to Ravenclaw. He suspected Granger would since Gryffindor was appealing to her solely for the fact Dumbledore was connected to it, without that then Ravenclaw was where she'd want to be.

Harry broke from his musings as it came time to leave.

He and the other first years followed the Ravenclaw prefects to their dorm, which was basically the tallest tower of the castle. As they walked, Harry looked around the castle noting any changes to it or the layout while only idly hearing the prefects talk about Hogwarts and their house.

Eventually, they reached the dormitory door. "This, is the Ravenclaw dormitory door. To enter, you have to answer a riddle that the eagle door knocker will ask. Don't worry if you get stuck, it will ask a different one if you want and you can always ask an older student so that way you learn." The female prefect stated as they looked to the knocker, which was a golden eagle holdings gold ring in its beak.

"What building is always the tallest, no matter what city or town it is located in?" It asked making the prefects raise an eyebrow since they'd hadn't heard that one.

Almost all the first years frowned in confusion since the obvious answers wouldn't make that much of a riddle.

"A library." Harry spoke up as the eagle nodded.

"Correct, you've potential young one." It stated before the door opened causing Harry and his three friends to step through.

This in turn caused the prefects to snap out of their surprise and usher the others in.

Walking up a few more stairs had them on a landing that opened into a split room. One half looked to be a meeting room or a solar while the other half looked like a study or small library.

The prefects went over a few more things, boys go up the left staircase, the girls up the right, curfew, rules on taking any of the books from the common room, and a few others before leaving them to their own devices.

"A library?" Tracy asked as they all sat.

"They have so many stories." Harry said simply getting a few snorts.

"Nice to know the knocker has a sense of humor." Daphne stated shaking her head. She then turned to look at Delphi, "Hello, I'm Daphne Greengrass." She introduced cordially as Delphi smiled.

"Delphini Riddle, Delphi for short. Pleased to make your acquaintance." Delphi stated before the others Harry met on the train introduced themselves.

"By the way, why didn't your friend Blaise come too?" Jacob asked and Daphne shrugged.

"First, it would make Malfoy back off a bit since being in separate houses means we're not as close so he won't be harassed as much. Second, his grandfather, his head of house, would not tolerate it if he didn't go to Slytherin. So he didn't have much choice." Daphne explained making Jacob nod in understanding.

"Yet another clear sign that Draco's an idiot. The Zabini family aren't that powerful in Britain, but they've got immense pull back in Italy and that pull can be felt all the way back here. I'm surprised Lord Malfoy hasn't beaten some sense into his son over antagonizing and making potential enemies instead of allies and friends. It's going to make his business deals in the future that much harder if old Angelo finds out his grandson is being targeted, though his ire will also go to Blaise at not handling things better." Harry commented as he sat back in a chair with his hands folded in front of him.

"How do you know his grandfather's name?" Tracy asked and Harry just looked at her. "Oh right, you said you did your research." She stated sheepishly, recalling how he had explained on the train that he made it a point to look into anyone he could come into contact with.

"I wanted to ask, and it doesn't matter to us on the answer, but are you three Pure-Bloods, half-bloods, or muggleborn?" Isabella asked looking at the Frye twins and Delphi.

The trio looked at each other a moment before Jacob answered, "Muggle-Born technically for us. Our father was Muggle-Born, but our mother was a muggle, so we have no magical grandparents to give us status as a Half-Bloods let alone Pure-Bloods." He stated making them nod.

"Half-Blood for me. Mum's a Pure-Blood and dad's a Half-Blood." Delphi stated making them nod again.

"Don't feel bad, my mother was Muggle-Born and she was classified as a prodigy that put many Pure-Bloods and Half-Bloods to shame. Old moldy-shorts even wanted to recruit her at one time." Harry stated calmly as he relaxed back in the chair.

"Really?!" Hermione asked in shock and Harry nodded.

"Yup, she was actually who Professor Slughorn, the former Potion's Teacher and head of Slytherin House, wanted to take over as Potion's teacher when he retired. However, she didn't want to as she was more interested in experimentation than teaching the same things over and over again, year after year, while having to deal with Pure-Bloods looking down on her and not respecting her despite her qualifications." Harry informed, making them nod in understanding.

"Anyway, we should turn in for the night, gonna be a busy day tomorrow." Harry finally stated as he stood and nodded to them before walking off with Jacob right behind him.

Evie and Delphi then stood and nodded to the five girls before walking off for the female dorms.

Hermione and Ginny eventually followed and nodded good night to the other girls leaving the three friends.

"He's not at all what I was expecting." Tracey stated once they were alone and she adjusted her glasses slightly.

"I know, he's more controlled, calm, collected, and educated than what we'd been led to believe." Daphne replied knowing that they were led to believe that Potter was raised in the Muggle world.

"Yes, it's clear he's well informed and well educated. He can act the perfect Pure-Blood and even knows how to work a person with words alone." Isabella stated recalling the way he handled her brother just before the sorting.

"Indeed. I can see why the hat suggested coming here to get under his protection. It also doesn't hurt our families wanted us to try and ally with him." Daphne added knowing that the Potter Family was feared and respected by many, and Harry's surviving the Killing Curse and causing Voldemort to be defeated only furthered those two things.

If he was to be the Lord of House Black as well, that would only further his control and political power.

"We'll have to write to our families; explain why we aren't where they'd expect us to be. You especially, Isabella." Tracey advised knowing Isabella's father and mother would want to know why she wasn't in Slytherin.

"I know, I plan to write it tonight and send it off in the morning before Draco can try something or place a ton of blame on me without giving the full story." Isabella replied making her two friends nod in understanding.

"Then we may as well get to work before turning in for the night." Daphne stated making the other two nod as they went to the dorm and then their own rooms to begin writing the letters.

Meanwhile, Harry had just finished altering his room making it larger and making sure he had complete privacy. Once that was done, he called Deek, who quickly brought in his personal items such as workout equipment and his desk and reading chair.

After thanking Deek, Harry quickly wrote a couple letters before calling for his raven to take them to their destination.

Once that was finished, he sat down and began meditating and thought on the people he'd now gotten closer to.

Daphne Greengrass was heiress of the Greengrass Family, a neutral family with a lot of money and political influence built up over the years. They had been a mixed family as members had been politicians, aurors, teachers, enchantresses, businessmen/women, and more. They weren't as feared as other families, but they were still feared and respected, which is partly why Malfoy Senior wanted to get Junior in with them to acquire their wealth and political power for himself and his family. Harry knew she'd be ambitious, cunning, smart, and quick on her feet, it was just a matter of if she'd have the princess mentality or if she'd be willing to put in work for things or not. He was leaning towards the latter since her family wasn't the type to just be handed shit and not work for it at some point.

So she was a possible ally in the future.

Tracey Davis was of the Davis Family, a family that had political and monetary standing but swore fealty to the Greengrass Family for past actions in saving their livelihood and lives at times. They and the Greengrass swapped at times on who was the political forefront for their group, as they had some very minor families to back them up as well, and had tried at times to unify the two houses through marriage, but the matchups never really worked out and the parents weren't going to force the children to marry if they weren't compatible with each other. Anyway, having Tracey on his side could gain him Lord Davis's favor if he needed it and that could be useful in the future.

Isabella Malfoy was the primary heiress for the Malfoy family, which was likely not informed to her since no Malfoy female had been head of house in over a hundred years. Regardless, the Malfoy family had nothing but money and political power (gained through money) going for them, hence why they weren't as high a ranked house as the heads had been trying to make it. Not even money could buy you higher grade status for your house, no matter how much you spent and who was given it. Anyway, Isabella was distant family thanks to her mother being a Black and Harry's own great-great-grandmother being a Black as well, so he'd consider looking out for her since she was leagues better than her brother at the moment.

Hermione Granger was a Muggle-Born, so he didn't have a great deal of information on her, but she was clearly one of those authority worshipping types as well as strict rule follower. Maybe he could break her of that, but it was unknown at the moment and she could either be useful, annoying, or a pain in the ass depending on how things go.

And Ginny Weasley. The only female child of Arthur and Molly Weasley and technically youngest child. Her family wasn't wealthy by any definition, but Arthur worked hard to provide, though it reflected poorly on Molly that she never even considered getting some kind of job to add income to the family. It was two adults and five children at the moment and at one point it was 7 children living there all at once. It was even worse when you considered Molly came from a known dueling and combat magic family and was now just content being a housewife and wasn't even trying to train her children to be fighters or how to handle themselves should they be threatened. He hoped Ginny wasn't raised to be a fangirl of his since he could see one of both of her parents raising her with the intention of getting with him to add money, status, and attention to their family, even if it may be unintentional on Arthur's part.

All in all, they had potential, though he snorted in amusement that the first people he connects with are all females linked to potentially ally families. He just knew his friend was going to give him crap for that even if it wasn't intentional.

He shook his head to clear those thoughts and focused on his meditation for a while before eventually turning in for the night.

The next morning had Harry, Jacob, Evie, and Delphi getting up early, the first three to do morning exercises and the fourth to relax and wake up while they did them.

Delphi was friends with them, and she gladly learned from Harry every chance she could, but she was not a physical type person. Physical labor and exercise was just not her thing to do or experience, or willingly participate in.

She didn't judge those that did, but it was just not her thing.

She did enough to keep in decent shape, but not to the degree her three friends did.

Granted she wasn't as involved in their… activities as they were, but she was willing to support and help anyway she could.

She was also hoping Harry's plans for some of her family would be set in motion soon, but she knew how to be patient after getting lectured by Harry enough on it.

Once he trio's morning workout was done, they returned to the dorm and showered before dressing for the day. They also took the time to discuss the third floor corridor and what was there. Neither of three were surprised Harry knew what was there, though they were surprised the owner would relinquish it so easily. They weren't going to question it, the man could do what he wanted with it, they were just surprised is all.

Arriving at the Great Hall, they moved and sat with their other year mates. The ones they knew personally as well as the ones they knew only by the fact their names were called at the sorting last night.

Anthony Goldstein was a Half-Blood distant relative of Queenie and Porpentina Goldstein, meaning he was also a distant relative of Newt Scamander and his family. His magic level was average; not impressive but not sad either. The Goldstein family had been rather neutral in the political field, likely due to their American (United States specifically) roots affecting their perspective. They didn't drink up the "Dumbledore is the next Merlin" bullshit like others, but they didn't like or support the Pure-Blood movement either. They did have a line of natural Legilimencers, ones who could use Legilimency (the art of attacking the mind and mind reading) naturally without even trying or even doing more than looking at a person, but given that Anthony didn't seem too uncomfortable, he either didn't have that talent or had been taught how to suppress it rather well.

Terry Boot of the Boot family, an active family in the political field but another that had stayed neutral. Terry was descended of Albert Boot, a Minister of Magic in the 18th century who really fucked up the handling of a Goblin Rebellion and three of Harry's ancestors helped clean it and the next one up, and Webster Boot, the adopted son of Livermorny founders James Steward and Isolt Sayre, the latter of whom was a descendant of Salazar Slytherin, which in theory meant that Terry or someone related to him could be eligible for the Slytherin Lordship if they tried their hand at it. He also had a cousin that attended Hogwarts before either of he or Harry were born and was seeker for the Ravenclaw team along with one other. Anyway, the Boots had a talent for charms and magic crafting with clothes, hence their family name as their ancestors were boot makers.

Padma Patil was a Pure-Blood of Indian (as in India not American) descent and her family had gone back and forth on living in Britain and living in India, keeping ties to both for their business and magical interests. Although, he knew that there were a few problems cropping up for the Patils and wondered if the twins were aware of the situation. Unlikely was Harry's thought, but he'd wait and see how things went and perhaps would step in if the need arose to help them, well help most of them since one member wasn't on Harry's nice list at the moment. Still, the Patil family had shown themselves to be competent and skilled in a variety of areas, though he wondered if either of the twins inherited Parseltongue as a trait since it was far more common in India than anywhere else in the world and he knew at least two Patil members possessed the trait at one point in time.

Kevin Entwhisle was a Muggle-Born so Harry didn't have any information on him. Thus, he'd be in the observe column until Kevin gave Harry a better read on what kind of person he was or Harry could dig into his family a bit more.

Mandy Brocklehurst was a Half-Blood from a newer blood family. They were descended from a Muggle-Born that was, shall we say, VERY interested in cutting all ties with their Muggle family. The descendants got along all right with other Muggles, but never tried to find or contact the original Muggle family members. They seemed to excel at handling magical creatures, so Harry would see in two years if Mandy was following her family legacy or starting something of her own.

Sue Li was a Half-Blood from a lesser family, they weren't quite to Noble status but they weren't new blood either. Well… they were new to Britain, but they could trace their roots back a couple hundred years elsewhere. Apparently her great grandfather had come to Britain with her great grandmother after his family cast him out for marrying a non-Pure-Blood. The reasons she was a Half-Blood was because her grandfather married a muggle and her father had married a Muggle-Born, thus Sue didn't have two sets of magical grandparents to elevate her. Not that she or her direct family cared, though what her extended magical family thought was unknown at the moment. Anyway, the Li family was a business venture family and working to get their hands into various industries and businesses to prop them up higher while working to get their own innovations out when possible.

Scott Ancrum was a Muggleborn and seemed like a quiet type of boy. Harry wouldn't be able to judge him much, though like all the other Muggleborns around, Harry would likely look into his family for any red flags or persons of interest in one form or another.

Lisa Turpin was a Half-Blood from a respected light aligned family. The Turpins had been producing healers and cure-masters for generations, though not every member took up those fields. They still learned healing and other arts associated as part of their family legacy, but that wasn't always the focus. The Turpins of old were also feared to be faced since those that knew how to heal and repair damage also knew how to inflict it in the most painful of ways and keep you alive to suffer more.

Stephen Cornfoot was a Pure-Blood and seemed to be with the running theme of coming from a neutral family. Not too surprising since the Cornfoots started out as corn farmers after the crop was introduced to the U.K. They then built up their wealth and talent little by little until they essentially had the entire corn industry for the isles, both muggle and magical, under their control. Harry was willing to bet that Stephen would be, at the very least, competent when Herbology started since he likely was around plants and the like since he could walk.

Last was Morag MacDougal of the MacDougal family (obviously) and a Pure-Blood. The MacDougal family was grey with a bit of dark in the standing of things as they weren't favoring either side in the war, but they weren't afraid to make things bloody and violent for anyone who crossed them either, which included using the Dark Arts. From what Harry knew, her grandfather had members of the family join the Aurors and the Death Eaters to give him eyes and ears in both sides to use as he needed while working to add to the family's knowledge from the alliances made. It worked, though he lost the family members that were Death Eaters in the war and all but two of the Aurors. He didn't get any into Dumbledore's little club, but that was fine since the other two provided more info and opportunities.

Anyway, all in all, they weren't bad connections to make, but other than Anthony and Padma, none had any real spark that made Harry take a more active interest in them. He'd still be friendly and make connections with them, so long as they weren't assholes or little shits, but he'd not go out of his way to make connections.

Although, he suspected that may come anyway when schoolwork started since he'd likely get drawn into helping people at times.

"Where were you guys?" Hermione asked breaking Harry from his thoughts.

"We get up early to do exercises and some light training while Del draws or reads before we go back and clean up for they day." Jacob informed as he began eating.

"Why?" Terry asked looking to them only for Harry and Jacob to lift their shirts showing they both had a six pack of abs, making a few of the girls blush.

"It's also good to be physically fit to match your magic. There's quite a few spells that can't be blocked or stopped, so you have to dodge physically. Doing so is much easier if you're fit. Plus, personally, I do it to help my figure in the future since my body will burn fat but let me keep any curves I get in the future." Evie informed and sent a wink at Harry, who snorted and kept eating.

A few girls looked contemplative at that looking at their own bodies in consideration. "Can't you use magic for that?" One boy asked making Evie snort.

"Why use magic to look good when you can naturally? Plus, someone could undo the spells and ruin it. There's also the fact that if I look good and desirable without magic, imagine what I could look like if I used magic." Evie stated making the boy nod his head while several people, male and female began considering that point.

Any further comments were cut off by the sound of wings making people look as a raven flew in and landed on Harry's shoulder before affectionately nipping at his ear. "Hello girl, good flight?" Harry greeted stroking the bird causing it to trill happily.

"Hello Arella." Delphi greeted as Jacob and Evie waved and the now named Arella nodded at them.

"You have a raven?" Daphne asked as she blinked at him.

"Yes, she's a familiar." Harry stated casually as he kept eating.

"What's a familiar?" Hermione asked curiously.

"A familiar is an animal that has bonded to a witch or wizard through their magic. They are beyond mere pets as they form a bond with the person in question and that bond can be as simple as having a permanent ally or going further to allow communication or even adopted traits from the animal. It is also possible to have more than one familiar, though that can vary on a number of things as to how many a person will have or get though multiples is usually a sign of a powerful individual." Harry explained making Hermione blink.

"Can anyone have a familiar?" She asked and Harry nodded.

"Yes, though many don't find their familiar, but that is mostly due to the fact that magic folk don't spend a lot of time around animals to possibly make the connection to them." Harry informed making her nod as they kept eating.

"Hello everyone." A voice called making all but Harry look to see Flitwick coming by and passing out timetables to everyone.

"Hello Professor." Harry stated calmly as he looked to the man, who nodded cordially.

"Lord Potter. I'm glad to see you decided to attend Hogwarts after all." Flitwick greeted as Harry nodded towards him, both ignoring the shocked looks from the other Ravenclaws at Harry being a lord.

"I figured if nothing else, I could network while I was here." Harry explained making Flitwick smirk and nod.

"Very Slytherin of you, Lord Potter. I look forward to seeing you in class." Flitwick commented before he continued handing out timetables.

"You're a lord?!" Cho blurted out in shock as Harry nodded and kept eating while holding his hand up showing his ring.

"Why didn't you say anything?!" A girl sitting next to Cho exclaimed.

"You weren't observant enough to notice me wearing a lord's ring on my finger, not my fault if you can't take time to observe someone you don't know to see if they're worth paying attention to." Harry stated as he kept eating while giving Arella some food as well.

"He's right, as Ravenclaws I'd think you'd be more observant of people and things so you could gather evidence before then forming theories and conclusions." Jacob stated, making a few of the older years grumble in annoyance.

"But… how are you a lord? Aren't you too young?" Cho asked and Harry finished chewing.

"Don't worry, how I am a lord will come out within the next couple of weeks since I'm sure Dumbledore will try and do something at the Wizengamot to make me have to attend and prove my claims." Harry stated, knowing that Dumbass would try something.

Fortunately, he had contacts in the Ministry that would ensure he was appraised of things should something come up.

"Do you not like the Headmaster?" Hermione asked and Harry shook his head.

"Nope, and for the record, no, I don't want to talk about why right now. Let's just say that he is forever going to be on my shitlist." Harry stated, using a tone that made it clear that he wanted the subject to be changed.

"So do you have a subject you're looking forward to?" Isabella offered since it was clear Harry didn't want to talk about it.

"Potions or Charms for me." Daphne stated going along with her friend in changing the subject.

"Charms or Transfiguration." Tracey added.

"DADA for me, though the current professor leaves much to be desired." Jacob voiced as Harry had informed him he'd be a stuttering mess that would be doing more theory than anything.

"Charms or Potions." Evie stated simply.

"I'm not sure yet, they all sound interesting to me." Hermione answered since, as a Muggle-Born, this was all new to her.

"Potions or DADA." Delphi stated knowing those were the two subjects that held her interest the most.

"None of them." Harry answered making those that weren't close to him look at him in surprise.

"What? Why?" Daphne voiced everyone's thoughts.

"Because it is highly unlikely I'll gain anything from them beyond killing time and making connections with other students and possibly the professors." Harry answered calmly as he kept eating.

"Isn't that a bit arrogant on your part?" Daphne asked causing Jacob, Evie, and Delphi to all snort.

"Hardly, if anything it's a fact." Jacob commented as he grabbed some more food.

"It's true, Harry's a prodigy and genius if there ever was one. Just wait till we're in lessons and you'll see." Evie agreed as Delphi nodded making them all look at Harry in curiosity.

Eventually they finished their breakfast and headed for their first class, which was Transfiguration.

The group entered the room and took seats, not at the front but not at the very back either. As they sat, Harry looked at the cat on the desk and smirked before nodding to her in greeting causing the cat's eyes to widen momentarily before it gave a subtle nod in return. The cat was further surprised when Jacob, Delphi, and Evie nodded towards it as well after gazing at it for a long moment.

It wasn't long before the rest of their year mates came in, which wasn't surprising since this was the first batch of Hogwarts Students to be under 50 in number in over two hundred years. It was further proof of just how big a toll both wizarding wars had taken on the magical population. The point was, with so few number of students, they could all fit into one class room and thus didn't need to be divided, which was a bit easier on the teachers since they could devote more time to the higher year students, especially the OWL and NEWT students since they'd need the extra help for their exams.

Harry then took a moment to look at the other yearmates starting with Slytherin, mainly because they were likely to be his biggest headaches.

Theodore Nott was a part of a dark family, one of Voldemort's biggest supporters after Malfoy and the Lestranges. Nott senior was always looking for a way to advance his family in Voldemort's eyes, even trying to sell his wife, daughters, and son for anything the dark wanker could want or need. It didn't work really, Nott was too blunt and brash, he was useful for raids and combat, but not for subtlety, manipulation, and alliance building, which Lucius Malfoy excelled at and wasn't half bad in a fight either. The fact he had married Narcissa Black also helped elevate him as it helped further bring the Black family to Voldemort's side. Anyway, Theo seemed an all right sort, he mainly cared about protecting his mother and sisters from his father and ensuring he couldn't sell them off to anyone willing to offer Nott something he wanted.

An easy ally to pick up with the right moves and handling of the situation.

Millicent Bulstrode was a Half-Blood of the Bulstrode family. They were a minor family who built up their connection through marriage to other families. Millicent was a distant relative of Harry's due to Millicent's ancestor Violetta marrying into the Black Family and then giving birth to Harry's great-great-grandmother Dorea Potter nee Black. It also meant she was related to quite a few of the Slytherin families, which was likely why she wouldn't be targeted by the elitist members, which shouldn't count Draco since the Malfoys actually accepted Half-Bloods due to the fact that they're children would give more Pure-Bloods. Plus, the intelligent families realized that if Dumbledore, a Half-Blood, was as powerful, strong, and capable as he was, what reason was there that other Half-Bloods couldn't be?

Severus Snape was another example for Half-Bloods as he was the youngest potions master in Europe's History, coming in second in the world's history as there was a literal prodigy some 150 years ago that attained master rank of potions when they were 14. Said person was also the inventor/creator of quite a few potions still being used today and had reworked methods and created new ones to harvest and use ingredients as well as standardizing potion making leading to current standards. It was still fair to Snape as that was a once in twenty lifetimes individual and even he had to admit it was astounding and extraordinary beyond what he was capable of.

A third example, though not many would know, would be Voldemort aka Tom Riddle. A thirst for power and magic made him a force to be reckoned with, his little death cheats notwithstanding, and with a few hundred followers he brought the magical community of the isles to its knees and had the rest of Europe ready to basically full on assault Britain if things escalated even further. Harry hated the bastard, but he could still respect the power and capabilities he showed.

Back to the point though, Millicent was in the maybe column since she was family, he just hoped she wasn't going to be a problem that had to be removed violently.

Blaise Zabini was of Italian descent and his family could be traced back to Rome at its height within Italy. His grandfather, Angelo, was a right cunt and calling him strict would be a MASSIVE understatement to the man. No one wanted to go against the man, not even he Minster of Italy was willing to do so. It didn't help that the man was smart enough to see the value of the Muggle world and had quite a few "Families" under his control/employ, especially those from Sicily and Calabria. The man utilized Muggle weaponry, criminals, and ingenuity as well as operations to a height that many Wizards would never think to. Russia was an exception as their Mafia was closely tied to their magical community just as it was to the Muggle government. The Bratva being started by a Half-Blood and then gaining so much momentum within a decade was no coincidence either.

Anyway, Blaise would make a good ally to have, though Harry would have to keep an eye on Angelo since the man was shrewd and cunning as he was brutal and sadistic. There was the upside that Harry could gain quite a bit of favor with multiple people if he decided to take the old asshole out at some point, but that was food for later since he didn't need to be plotting murder/assassination on his first day at Hogwarts… He could wait for the weekend and do that.

Next up was Gregory Goyle, he wasn't the most intelligent person, but his family was skilled and handy in a fight, usually relying on their brute strength that was impressive, even if it wasn't as good as a Bruiser's. His father was definitely cruel enough to be a Death Eater and was only spared prison because Lucius Malfoy wanted to keep his him and Lord Crabbe around to continue serving as his lackeys and yes-men. Gregory only did what he was told since his father would use the Cruciatus curse on him if he disobeyed or failed him in some manner. Still, the boy could be useful and helpful if he was properly motivated and educated.

Vincent Crabbe was pretty much a twin, in upbringing and status anyway, of Goyle, just with no relation except some hundred and fifty years back. However, that meant he was of the same possibilities as Goyle, it was just their fathers that stood in the way of things primarily.

Pansy Parkinson was from another dark family, though fully cementing them as dark was a bit harder to do since they really just allied with darker families rather than did shit themselves to be labeled dark, meaning guilty by association. She was a bit of a fangirl for Draco, but whether that was because it was expected of her or because she actually fancied him was unknown at the moment. No doubt his money and influence was affecting her desire for him. Still, it didn't mean she couldn't be swayed to new allegiance if the right incentive was offered.

Draco Malfoy, heir of the Malfoy family and Isabella's older brother. Also, a spoilt brat who may or may not have had his money stolen from him by Harry when they were at the train station. Anyway, it was well known that he was an idiot and bigoted without any shame, constantly using his father's name and political power to intimidate people rather than build up his own powerbase. It didn't help his ego that Severus Snape, the Potions Teacher and Head of Slytherin House, was his godfather making him even more cocky and arrogant. He'd be the boss of Slytherin because of his father's influence, but once that eventually dried up, he'd be nothing and no one would help or stand with him when shit hit the fan eventually.

Draco was the only confirmed annoyance at the moment, but the others could be unless Harry found a way to get them to his side of things.

Next were the Hufflepuffs with one headache among them at the moment.

Zacharias Smith was that headache. The Smith family were already strutting around like peacocks at times thanks to one Hepzibah Smith ranting and raving about her family being descendants of Helga Hufflepuff and supposedly being able to prove it thanks to possessing her cup/goblet, which was lost at the time of Hepzibah's death. The idiocy was not lost on any educated wizard since having an artifact of a house did NOT mean you were heirs to the house or there'd be a lot more chaos in proving who rightful heirs were.

Anyway, Zacharias and his immediate family had been the most annoying and vocal about the lineage and were causing a lot of headaches and problems for people because of their constant bitching and shouting and spouting. If they were biased towards Muggles or Muggle-Borns, they'd be considered relatives of the Malfoys and other Pure-Blood families.

Regardless, Zacharias was going to be a headache for Harry, especially if some plans came to fruition, but he'd deal with him later when it became unbearable or the idiot crossed a line.

Sally Smith was Zacharias' cousin and, while not as pleasant as she could be, was still MUCH better than Zacharias. While her direct family weren't spouting and fighting that they were descendants as much or as loudly as Zacharias', they weren't turning down the notion or trying to get the others to quiet down either. Harry could also give her due credit that she had more magical power than Zacharias, which wasn't saying all that much, and it seemed she was sending apologetic looks throughout dinner and breakfast whenever the idiot was spouting off about shit. She was a maybe, but not a terribly likely one given her family, still until he was certain, Harry wouldn't write her off as a lost cause yet.

Megan Jones was another potential ally with good connections. Her family was known politically and had some wealth to it, but her older sister was a ministry worker who also helped at Saint Mungo's and her cousin recently became Captain of the Welsh all-female Quidditch team, the Holyhead Harpies. The Jones' were a light attuned family, though they weren't as big of Dumbledore supporters as others were, but they didn't antagonize or ostracize him either, likely to not be branded dark for daring to disagree or go against "Leader of the Light" and "Greatest Light Wizard of All Time" Albus multi-middle-name Dumbledore. Still, they weren't afraid to fight when necessary and knew how to hurt those who tried to hurt them.

Good people to have as friends and allies when it came time to fight, regardless of the arena the fight took place in.

Ernest "Ernie" Macmillan was one of the higher chance possibles for getting an ally. Firstly, because the Macmillans and Potters had been friendly and unofficial allies for years. Secondly, they were related through marriages as Ernie's great aunt, Melania, was Sirius and Regulus Black's grandmother. Thirdly, the Macmillans were known for being a light family, but not afraid to put enemies in the ground when it came time for it. Fourthly, they were one of the few families constantly making inquiries about where Harry was and if he was safe and well cared for. So, unless Ernie was a royal asshole and bitch, there was no reason Harry and he couldn't be friends as time went on and possibly allies in the future. If that included his older sister, Pippa, who was working as a potions assistant in Diagon Alley, then all the better.

Justin Finch-Fletchley was a Muggle-Born, though unlike the others, he knew of the Fletchley family. Harry didn't know which member was Justin's father, but he'd keep an eye on him in the future until he found out, then he may need to take action depending on how things played out from there. The Fletchleys had been a prominent "Peaky Blinder" family at one point, and while not as in your face about their activities nowadays, they weren't exactly honest folk either. Justin being a wizard would catch a lot of attention from them, making them want to try and use him and magic to their advantage in every way possible. Such a thing was dangerous on multiple levels and as such, Harry would keep an eye on him and have some of his contacts watch the Fletchleys a bit more.

Next on the list was Wayne Hopkins, who had a cousin join Gryffindor, and who was a Half-Blood. Harry knew that his mother was a witch from a very minor house, so no real pull there, but still Harry wouldn't disregard him unless he was an asshole or an idiot, anything else and he could work with.

Hannah Abbott of the Abbott family and a Half-Blood. She seemed all right on the train, though a bit skittish and nervous, and came from a long line of magical beings. This was evidenced by the fact one of her ancestors was buried in Godric's Hollow, a place that only magicals had lived since the Statute of Secrecy was put into effect. Part of her insecurities may stem from the fact she was sorted into a house that had several portraits of her ancestor, Giffard Abbott, who was not only a highly gifted wizard, but also became Headmaster of Hogwarts for a time. Still, if she could get some confidence and learn to relax, Harry had little doubt she'd be a strong and capable witch.

Lastly was Susan Bones of the Bones family. The Bones had a long line of talented and powerful witches and wizards that had some position of authority in the Ministry and were considered light despite the fact that they'd gladly kill enemies and criminals if the need arose. They at one point were strong supporters of Dumbledore, but that changed when Voldemort just happened to find and personally kill Susan's mother, father, uncle, one aunt, and all three of her cousins. Amelia Bones, Susan's remaining aunt and current head of the DMLE, broke ties with Dumbledore after that and pushed for the Aurors to all ignore his petitioning to not use lethal methods against the Death Eaters. The reason for this was because it happened shortly after Susan's uncle Edgar, Susan's father Maurice, and Edgar's eldest son Nico began having massive disagreements with Dumbledore over what their little "Order of the Phoenix" was doing to combat Voldemort and the Death Eaters. In fact, Edgar and his family were killed shortly after he sent word to Amelia that he was going to provide evidence of Dumbledore's illegal activities in order to possibly get the Order to work with the DMLE instead of without them.

It didn't take a genius to connect the dots, but there was nothing that could be proven and Amelia wasn't stupid enough to go to a court of Dumbledore supporters and try to push her own weight against his. So, she settled for undermining him anyway she could, both obvious and covertly while taking time to raise Susan herself after all the shit that happened. The woman's greatest fear was that she'd die and leave Susan alone, both without family and to be the one solely responsible for continuing their family legacy, such a burden on a girl who'd rather heal and care for others than fight viciously was not something she wanted to see happen.

Regardless, Susan had a lot of potential to be great, regardless of the field she focused in, she just needed more confidence and maybe some people to help support her so she knew she wasn't alone. It had worked for Harry, though his wasn't in the conventional sense due to some things that happened, but still if Harry of all people could move past the shit in his life and strive to be better, then anyone could (except perhaps those like Voldemort and Dumbledore that were far too ingrained in their ways to ever stop).

Right now, he only had a moderate connection to Susan and Hannah, but hopefully that could be worked on with time.

Finally, were the Gryffindors, either his biggest fans or his biggest annoyances or possibly both, or maybe there'd be some surprises among them.

Dean Thomas was a Half-Blood son of a wizard, Leo Thomas, and a Muggle woman. Though, from what Harry learned, Dean didn't know his father was a wizard nor that he had died standing up to Death Eaters that came to recruit him shortly after Dean was born after he left him and his mother to hide them from the Death Eaters. Harry wasn't sure on Dean yet, his Muggle relatives would still be checked out by his contacts, but the boy seemed an okay sort and was listed in the maybe category for allies.

Lavender Brown came from a family known for their healers and curse breakers, though they occasionally got a squib in the family who would go to the Muggle world for work. Harry believed one of Lavender's cousins was in Muggle School and seemed to take a shine to Rugby, his name was Kelly Brown. Anyway, Lavender's family was another neutral family, which was natural for healers and curse breakers since they didn't really focus on one person over another when they did their job, and didn't have a strong political or financial presence in the world. Still, the Browns were known to people, they just weren't as famous as some of the Houses with political standing.

Seamus Finnigan was another Half-Blood with a Muggle Father. His mother was from a minor family that had a series of pubs around Ireland that basically functioned the same as the Leaky Cauldron; providing room and board for magic folk while also giving access to magical communities. There wasn't much talk about their magical talents other than a few who had a penchant for causing explosions in a variety of ways.

Parvati Patil was essentially the same as her sister, and no that's not being offensive, it was just accurate until Harry interacted with both enough to see and understand the differences. Their magical power was equal, their upbringing should have been equal, their knowledge was debatable as one could be more studious than the other, and one could have inherited a trait that the other didn't, but those wouldn't become known to Harry unless he either read their minds or learned more about them through interacting with them.

Carl Hopkins was in the same category as his cousin, as it was going to take some investigating on his part to see if he was helpful or capable in ways.

Eloise Midgen was a Pure-Blood from a non-ranked family (new blood to the scene basically) and from what Harry found, her family hadn't shown anything impressive yet. They had a couple clothing businesses and some investments, but nothing really standing out/noticeable all things considered. Again, didn't mean he'd discount her, but he hoped she'd get a bit more interesting as time went on.

Fay Dunbar was a Half-Blood from another new blooded family, though they were older than the Midgens, and it seemed her family had a penchant for joining the Aurors, though none as of yet had reached Head Auror or higher. Her magical level was slightly above average, which wasn't much but still better than several others. She was also in the maybe category.

Neville Longbottom was easily the most likely Gryffindor for Harry to befriend and ally with since their families had been allied for years and he and Harry were godbrothers. He'd have to get in touch with both Neville and Augusta Longbottom, Neville's Gran, and discuss things with them since he had a very easy, but also very important, way to sweeten the deal of reaffirming the alliance between them. Neville, like Susan, needed some confidence built up, no doubt from Augusta being very strict and hard on Neville, both to live up to his parents' legacy and to ensure he could survive if something happened to her since she was getting on in years and quite a few assholes would see her as an easy target, which sadly was becoming more and more the case as the years rolled on. Harry did frown at the sight of Neville's wand and wondered if Augusta had lost her mind for a time when she gave Neville his father's wand instead of getting him one that matched him.

Harry could understand giving him that wand to train and practice with at home since it wouldn't have the trace on it and she could give him practical lessons, but to send him to Hogwarts with it? A place he needed an attuned wand to help him with work and practice? Harry supposed she was just adamant that if the wand was good for Frank then it must be good for Neville without even thinking of the fact that the wand chooses the wizard, not the other way around.

Harry would bring it up quietly with him and McGonagall, no reason to possibly embarrass the guy by making it known he came to Hogwarts with an improper wand. Plus, it was early enough that no one would likely notice a difference and if they did, Neville could play it off as it was a wand he had reacted to when he was younger, but now it wasn't as suited for him.

Finally came Ron Weasley. The youngest male of the Weasley family and already Harry knew he was an attention seeking prat. It could be due to getting nothing himself, just his brothers' hand-me-downs and them all getting recognized in some manner while he wasn't, but the boy didn't understand that they WORKED for their recognition, they didn't just waltz into Hogwarts and get their reputations without doing anything.

His table manners were also terrible and his obvious biasedness was annoying as much as Draco's prejudice. Draco over your blood status and Ron over what house you were put into at Hogwarts.

The idiot clearly forgot or didn't know that Merlin himself was a Slytherin while Morgan le Fay was a Ravenclaw and Arthur Pendragon was a Hufflepuff.

Houses didn't mean shit for whether you'd be a "villain", "Hero", or whatever.

The main reason Harry was so focused on Ron at the moment was because he wasn't there. Everyone else from their year was in class except for him, meaning he likely wasn't paying attention and was eating or he decided to not follow the group and went off on his own or some other shit.

Oh well, it wasn't Harry's problem.

He took his seat and set his bag on the table as Delphi sat on his right, Jacob sat just behind him, and Evie sat just in front of him. Isabella ended up sitting on his left with Daphne, Tracey, and Hermione sitting on the other side of her. Ginny sat on the other side of Delphi and the others of Ravenclaw sat around/with them. Jacob had gotten Neville to sit next to him and patted on the back to give him some encouragement before pulling his own stuff out.

The others followed suit and began copying down the syllabus that was on the board while wondering where the teacher was. Harry merely sat back with his hands folded, waiting as he mentally counted down when the bell would ring signifying class was to start.

Two seconds before the bell tolled, the door burst open as Ron Weasley entered panting and gasping for breath. "Made it." He sighed on relief.

"Barely, though you should be glad that the professor isn't here yet." Ginny scolded with a glare as Ron glared back.

A snort from Harry, Delphi, Evie, and Jacob draw attention to them. "Something you want to add?" Zacharias asked with a frown.

"Just that you're all clueless if you think the teacher hasn't been here the whole time." Evie stated with an amused smile.

"What?! What are you talking about?" Draco demanded as Evie smirked more, but it was Delphi who answered.

"Transfiguration is the art of using magic to change the form of something into something else. However, one the highest forms of Transfiguration is the Animagus transformation." Delphi stated making a few of the smarter ones quickly catch on and look at the cat in shock.

"What? Did I miss something?" Hermione asked in confusion.

"The Animagus transformation is the process that allows a witch or wizard to change into an animal at will, usually with some benefits added in depending on what the animal is." Jacob explained as Hermione frowned before widening her eyes as she looked at the cat along with everyone else before it jumped off the desk and changed into McGonagall.

"That will be 30 points to Ravenclaw, Mr. Potter, for being the first student in over 50 years to figure out I was the cat the entire time." McGonagall stated as Harry nodded at her. "Now, Mr. Weasley, perhaps you'd like to take your seat so we can actually begin since it seems you decided to wait till the last moment to join us." McGonagall added making Ron turn red in embarrassment before he took his seat.

"Now, I will begin with the basics of Transfiguration as well as the dangers. I expect you all to pay attention as my sympathy well will be very dry should you choose to ignore or disregard my warnings." She began with a serious glare that would make most cower in fear of her.

To Harry and his three friends, it was an okay glare, but not something to be overly worried about.

McGonagall began her lecture on the hazards and dangers of Transfiguration such as turning a rock into food and then eating it only for the food to turn back into a rock later on and possibly kill them. A few Half-Bloods and Pure-Bloods noted that perhaps the "desserts" and "sweets" they ate at times may not have been those things and instead vegetables and other foods transfigured into junk food so they'd eat them, though it still tasted good so it wasn't a big deal.

Eventually, the lecture ended and some practical work began starting with turning a matchstick into a needle.

Harry sat back and relaxed as he jotted down some notes, ideas, and items he wanted to try and improve and work on when he got the chance. He didn't pause when he felt McGonagall come near him and kept writing until she eventually cleared her throat. "Yes ma'am?" Harry asked as he looked up at the professor.

"Mr. Potter, may I ask why you're not attempting the spell?" McGonagall asked as she stared at him and a few students snickered at seeing him get in trouble.

McGonagall looked at the son of her two favorite students in both interest and worry, fearing that he was either arrogant or just didn't want to participate. She was also mentally reminding herself that she'd have to properly address him as a lord if he asked or if matters escalated at any point.

Harry merely waved his hand turning the matchstick into a perfect silver needle. He then waved his hand again and the needle suddenly split and duplicated into four with them each being the four houses' colors. He then waved again and the needles floated in front of McGonagall, who could only gape in shock along with the class except for Jacob, Evie, and Delphi.

"Is that sufficient, professor?" Harry asked calmly as he looked at the woman.

"M… Mr. Potter! That… that is most impressive. To do wandless and silent casting at your age, but also to use the Gemino Charm as well. It may not seem sufficient, but take 150 points for your work." McGonagall stated trying to process her shock.

"Thank you, professor." Harry stated simply.

"May I keep the needles?" McGonagall asked and Harry nodded before he made them levitate to her where she grabbed them and placed them in her robes.

Harry smirked as she turned away before Jacob, Evie, and Delphi quickly did the same, though they used their wands and were verbal, but still got it first try, which earned them 25 points each.

"How?" Hermione asked as she stared at them in shock.

"Harry's been teaching us for years; this basic stuff isn't gonna give us any problems." Jacob sated indicating himself, Evie, and Delphi.

"Can you help us?" Hermione asked and they nodded.

"Of course, though don't waste it or Harry's time or he may not help you anymore. Harry isn't fond of his time and effort being wasted because the person isn't taking things as seriously as him or isn't interested in doing things correctly or smartly." Evie stated knowing her boss was serious about his teaching and wasn't going to help someone who wouldn't take it seriously too.

Hermione and a few others nodded as Harry sat back. "Focus and envision the match turning into a needle. Focus your intent and magic on making that reality, each bit of change filling you with confidence, happiness, and a feeling of accomplishment. Even if it takes a few casts, just focus on working it into the needle and making it take the form." Harry instructed as those near him listened intently. "Power, will, and intent, those are the three key building blocks with magic. Too little of one and the spell may work, but not as well as you'd like it to. For instance, if I was to use the knock back jinx on a rock and put the bare minimum into it, it would move a bit. However, if my desire was to send the rock hurdling as far away as possible, then I'd need to fill myself with that desire and intent, but also use far more power. Thankfully, magic responds to emotions and desire, hence accidental magic happening, and as such your desires can fuel your magic to new heights. However, you have to be careful that your control doesn't suffer for power, otherwise instead of sending the rock flying you could obliterate it instead." He continued making them all pay rapt attention to him.

"Now, give it a go, be confident, you CAN do this." Harry added while giving a look to Neville, who hesitantly nodded before they began trying it.

They didn't get it the first try, but the worst for those who listened to Harry was four attempts and the needles were near perfect, a slight imperfection in the eye or a dull tip, but still.

McGonagall was actually smiling at the sight and awarded them all points, counting Harry for giving excellent instructions and helping those outside of his house.

Eventually class ended, while the others funneled out, Harry pulled Neville back and both approached McGonagall. "Mr. Potter? Is something wrong?" She asked and Harry shook his head.

"Nothing really, ma'am, just thought it would be prudent to inform you that Mr. Longbottom here has a mismatched wand." Harry stated as he gestured to Neville, who ducked his head when McGonagall looked to him.

"Are you certain?" McGonagall asked and Harry nodded.

"Yes, his wand movement and incantation were perfect. He has to have sufficient magic or he'd not be accepted to Hogwarts and his wand looked a bit aged and worn, meaning it has been used for a time." Harry explained making McGonagall frown as she held her hand out and Neville hesitantly handed his wand over.

McGonagall inspected it a long moment before frowning, "I believe this is your father's wand, Mr. Longbottom. Did you not go to Olivander's to get one for yourself?" She asked and Neville looked down.

"It's all right mate, you're not in trouble, just answer her." Harry stated as he put a hand on his shoulder.

Neville gulped and took a breath, "M-my gran thought the wand would be fine, i-it was good enough for my dad after all." Neville stated as McGonagall sighed.

"Mate, you're not your father. The wand chooses the wizard, and you're not the wizard it chose. You're not a copy of you father, you're his son. You're you, he is himself, the wand knows that and knows you're not it's chosen master. It's dangerous at times to use another's wand as at any point the wand can just stop working or even cause a backlash from trying to use it. Here." Harry stated as he pulled out fifteen Galleons and put them into his hand. "Buy a wand, holster, and kit at Hogsmeade or Diagon Alley if you need to, I'm sure the professor will be happy to either escort you or arrange someone to escort you to get a proper wand, which will improve your work and your spells a great deal." Harry stated as Neville stammered and McGonagall looked at him in surprise.

"Just take it, Neville, if it's an issue then you can have your gran pay me back at a later date. Not that it matters to me much, I don't need the money. Plus, we're family, so we're supposed to help each other." Harry stated with a small smile, "Oh, did your gran not tell you we're god-brothers? My mother was your godmother and yours was mine." He revealed once he saw Neville's confused expression.

"R-really?" Neville asked in surprise and Harry nodded.

"Yup, so if you ever need anything, don't hesitate to ask, same if you ever want to sit with me and my friends during one of the meals, I can formally introduce you to them." Harry stated with a smile, "Now I'm going to leave you so that you and the professor can figure out things. See you in class, Neville." Harry added as he nodded to McGonagall and left the two.

He wasn't surprised that Jacob, Evie, and Delphi waited by the door, nor that they fell into step behind him as he walked. "Already making a move to ally with Longbottom, I see." Evie stated as Harry hummed.

"Their families have been allies for a long time, no real surprise that he'd move to keep it going." Delphi stated as they walked.

"Especially when you consider the Longbottoms have influence and money to back them up, so not bad allies to have and if Neville is either a fighter or healer, all the better in the long run." Evie stated knowing that the benefits were being weighed against wanting to continue tradition.

"There's also the cons to consider such as the assholes targeting Neville and his family, Neville potentially not supporting my plans and decisions, his gran possibly being a bitch and annoyance, Neville spilling some secrets to others, Neville being targeted to spill secrets, and a few others. However, I need a stronger foundation in the wizarding world to get things moving and right now the Longbottoms are the best starting point since I have a starting point for them and my incentives to add in will only add to that point." Harry added making them nod as they continued to class, knowing that McGonagall would give Neville a note for his tardiness if he couldn't make it in time.

Upon reaching the next classroom, which was Charms, the quartet stopped and frowned at the sight before them. Said sight was Crabbe, Goyle, and Parkinson keeping Daphne, Tracey, and Hermione away while Draco had his sister pinned to a wall and was currently shouting at her. They weren't really listening to what the idiot was saying, but they caught the gist of it.

Basically, he was pissed she dared to not go to Slytherin and was hanging out with a Mudblood.

Harry merely sighed and walked forward, trying hard not to glare or scowl at the other students for just standing there doing nothing while this was happening (counting the other Ravenclaws), before he pushed past the girls and looked at Crabbe and Goyle. "Move." He ordered while gazing at them intently and the two glanced at each other before shaking their heads. "All right then." Harry stated before he grabbed their heads and slammed them together dropping them to the floor and getting gasps from the other students as Draco turned to see what was happening.

Only, when he did, he found a hand around his throat before he was slammed into the wall next to his sister and looked into the practically glowing emerald eyes of Harry.

Parkinson moved to help Draco, only to find a grip on her hair from Evie before her legs were kicked out and she dropped to her knees while Evie held her there.

"Let's make something perfectly clear here, Draco. Isabella may be your sister, but she's also a member of my house, which means you mess with her, you mess with me and I play for keeps." Harry stated and then surprised everyone when he actually lifted Draco off the floor while keeping him pinned to the wall, "Now, you may think you can waltz around school because your daddy has money and influence and because Professor Snape is your godfather, but let me tell you something: It doesn't mean shit. I could cause you to fall down a flight of stairs and break your neck or put you in a coma and your father and Snape could do nothing to stop it and I'd mask my tracks so well not even Dumbledore invading my mind for a week straight would uncover anything. I know you're not the smartest person, so let me be plain: Stay away from her and never use that word in front of me in that context again or I will, I promise, ensure you're in the hospital wing for a long time." Harry stated before he tossed him onto the floor and Evie pushed Parkinson over.

"How dare you?! My father will hear about this, Potter!" Draco shouted as Harry looked at him unimpressed while a few were shaking their heads, counting a couple older years passing by.

Harry had just made it clear that his father couldn't do shit if Harry pulled something later on and now he's spouting off like a child and idiot.

"Oh? Well, Malfoy, how about a duel between us? Flitwick will be here soon and he's a former dueling champion so he can monitor it and be judge, and I'm sure he'll happily make a vow to rule fairly in it." Harry offered with a smirk as his three friends held back grins.

"Fine, Goyle shall be my second." Malfoy stated while Jacob, Evie, and Delphi snickered.

"He needs a second, how adorable." Jacob stated while trying not to laugh and Malfoy turned red.

"Now, now, Jacob, just because he's inept, untalented, or not confident that he can handle a duel doesn't mean we should mock him… That can come after he loses." Harry stated as he looked at Malfoy.

"Morning everyone." Flitwick stated as he arrived and ushered everyone inside before any further comments could be made.

"Ah, Professor, Mr. Malfoy has just accepted a dueling challenge from me, would you be willing to be the judge for it?" Harry asked as Flitwick raised an eyebrow before considering it.

"Hmm, very well, but no spells that intentionally are lethal." Flitwick stated making Harry shrug while Draco nodded.

The two moved to the area between the seating areas and faced each other. Malfoy then drew his wand and aimed it at Harry, ready to launch a spell, only for Harry to quickly slap his wand away from him. "Whenever you're ready." Harry stated with a yawn as his friends smirked and everyone stared in surprise, mostly because it never occurred to them that the wand could be physical removed without magic.

Malfoy turned red and grabbed his wand, prepared to fire again, only to get his wand slapped away again. "Take your time, I'm sure Professor Flitwick wants to start the class next week." Harry stated, sounding bored and then slapped the wand away a third time and this time slapped Malfoy across the face as well. "This is getting a bit redundant, Malfoy." He added before he grabbed Draco's wrist and twisted it making him drop his wand before Harry shoved him over. "Are we done with the warmup? I'd like to start the duel this millennium." He yawned as his friends laughed.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Draco demanded as he glared at Harry, not noticing that a few of the Pure-Bloods and Half-Bloods were looking at him like he was an idiot.

"I'm waiting for the duel to begin, what are you doing?" Harry responded calmly.

"What are you on about?!" Draco questioned not seeing that even Flitwick now saw the point that Harry was making.

"You don't know?" Harry asked with a head tilt before looking to his friends, "Hear that? The Pure-Blooded son of House Malfoy and member of House Black doesn't know, isn't that sad?" He added as they nodded.

"Too true, but perhaps they hoped he'd learn through self-study and improvement rather than them making him learn." Evie offered as Harry nodded.

"Possibly. Ah well, I guess I'll educate the uneducated." Harry responded before turning to Draco. "Now, Draco, since you're clearly unfamiliar with etiquette and dueling procedure, I'll tell you. A formal duel doesn't begin until the combatants have established rules, guidelines, any wagers, stipulations, and the like. Plus, we've not done a proper salute and bow as one is expected to in order to begin the duel. Otherwise, we're merely brawling like a couple of Muggles instead of proper Wizards and Witches determined to bring respect and honor to our families and houses." Harry revealed making many start to murmur and nod while the Slytherins were looking at Draco, now understanding that he was resorting to just attacking rather than following proper etiquette and procedure for a proper duel.

Something that no proper and respectable Pure-Blood would do, meaning Draco just brought a great deal of scrutiny and shame on himself, his family house, and on Slytherin for acting in such a way, especially when word got out to the other years.

Especially since a Half-Blood was the one to point it out.

Draco, very red from anger and embarrassment, seethed, "Fine! Standard dueling rules." He snarled and Harry shrugged.

"If you're sure that won't be too complicated for you." Harry replied with a shrug as the two faced each other and gave a salute with their wands.

"Scared Potter?" Draco spat as Harry rolled his eyes.

"Of your skill with a wand? No. Of your breath? Yes." Harry replied making a few stifle laughter as Draco scowled before the two turned and walked ten paces from each other before they faced each other and gave a light bow.

Draco turned and had his body positioned like he was holding a sword rather than a wand while Harry merely stood there, his wand in his right hand while his left was in his pocket and he had his head tilted to the right with his eyes closed.

Draco waited, getting more and more annoyed as it seemed Potter wasn't taking this seriously, before he launched a Flipendo at Harry. Harry didn't move as the jinx approached him before he merely tilted his head to the other side letting the jinx sail past him.

Draco just looked at him in shock before he quickly fired five more only for the same result as Harry leaned out of the way without moving his feet. "That's slow." Harry stated simply causing Draco to growl while Flitwick absently nodded, knowing it was indeed slow but Malfoy was a first year so it was understandable.

Draco snarled and began firing all of the spells he could think of. Harry merely pointed his wand forward and the spells hit a shield and were stopped, shocking everyone watching (except Harry's friends, naturally), as Harry tilted his head again.

"Force." Harry intoned as Draco prepared to dodge or block the spell, only to suddenly slam into the floor as he felt an unrelenting pressure crash down upon him. He grit his teeth as he tried to move, but the pressure was too strong that he couldn't even twitch.

Harry then waved his hand and the wood of the floor rose and encapsulated Draco's hands before Draco's wand flew to Harry's hand.

No one said anything as they just stated in shock, awe, and fear as Jacob, Evie, and Delphi were all smirking.

"I believe that I've won, Professor." Harry stated breaking many from their daze as Flitwick coughed and nodded.

"Indeed, Mr. Potter, I believe this is a clear victory for you." Flitwick called as Harry's trio began clapping triggering others to do the same, counting Neville who came in just before the duel started.

Harry nodded and removed his spells allowing Draco to groan as he got up and Harry tossed his wand at his feet before moving to take his seat with his friends.

"Do you need to go to the hospital wing, Mr. Malfoy?" Flitwick asked not sure what that spell Harry used was and thus, didn't know how badly Malfoy was hurt, if at all.

"I'm fine." Draco growled as he moved to sit down, though it was clear he was hurt in some fashion from how slow he was moving.

"Well class, I hope that duel was entertaining for you. Now, we shall begin the lesson." Flitwick stated as he took his spot atop some books at a podium before he took roll to ensure everyone was present.

The class began with an introduction to charms and how even the simplest spells could be effective in a variety of ways, counting dueling. Eventually the lesson went to teaching the Lumos spell; a simple spell that made a light emit from your wand.

Harry sat back and let the others try, a few getting it easily and some having a little difficulty since they were trying to force it rather than just letting the magic flow. Even if it was one of the simplest spells in the world to do, if you weren't using magic properly then you'd have difficulties.

Harry then caught Flitwick looking at him before motioning his hand to try. Harry shrugged before he pointed his wand up and several balls of light left the tip and began floating around the room in different colors.

"Well done, Mr. Potter. Take 30 points for Ravenclaw." Flitwick stated with a smile. "Now class, you'll notice that Mr. Potter not only released the Lumos spell from his wand, but he also changed the color of it and even made multiples. Such a thing is possible, though in a duel you'll want to stick with brighter colors to potentially distract and blind your opponents rather than darker colors that will merely draw a bit of attention." Flitwick informed as Harry had the balls burst into a shower of sparkles as he lowered his wand.

The class just looked at Harry in amazement before he began helping those near him with their work.

Once class had finished, Flitwick asked Harry to stay back for a moment. "Mr. Potter, it is obvious that you're ahead of your classmates just based on your performance today. I will have you keep going at your current learning pace and if you keep showing your talent then I shall provide you with harder work, is that acceptable?" Flitwick asked and Harry nodded his head, though internally he wasn't 100 percent confident that Flitwick had anything to teach him that he needed to know.

"Very well, now I know it may seem invasive, but may I ask where you studied before here? If you do not wish to tell me, then I understand." Flitwick stated and Harry shrugged.

"I've had hundreds of teachers, sir. Each building off of the last and adding what they could each time. They pulled no punches and wanted to ensure that the training stuck to where I can do some spells on instinct without even realizing I'm doing it." Harry stated as Flitwick widened his eyes before nodding.

"Your teachers sound strict." He stated and Harry nodded.

"They were, but they were fair as well. That's all I intend to ask of you, sir. Be firm but fair." Harry replied and Flitwick nodded.

"Very well, I shall do that. Go on and catch up with your friends, I have to prepare for the next class." Flitwick said and Harry nodded to him before walking off.

Harry merely hummed as he walked, not even blinking at Jacob, Evie, and Delphi falling in step behind him or that the others of his house were waiting to talk to him along the way as well.

As he walked, and talked to his housemates, he idly thought about the day so far and found it met his expectations exactly as he thought it would. No surprises, shocks, or anything that he didn't account for, even the duel with Malfoy went as he expected it to when the idiot couldn't help but blow up at his sister.

Dumbledore hiding something in the castle was a bit of a surprise, but not too much of one that Harry couldn't adapt or think for it. If nothing else, he'd contact someone to look more into matters for him while he continued with his "education" though it was more him going through the motions.

Still, it was necessary and Harry would continue to do it until one of a few specific things occurred.

He idly wondered which one would happen first, but based on the probability of things, he assumed a Wizengamot meeting would soon be called and he'd go from there.

He could hardly wait to see Dumbledore's reaction when the time came.

DONE!

That's it for this chapter, next chapter we continue with classes and some other things happen as well.

Shout out to my Patrons: Terminator1738, Andrew Stephens,KidChaos, Shadow9Fox, Janus Christoffer Sønderskov, Patrick Ferro, Smilix, Dylan Page, William Skondras, Tom Khoury, Joseph, Hert Fanfiction, Matthew Jackson, Joeri Lissens, Cory Toler, Aysha, Knight, dragonkw213, William Kwok, VisibleColt136, Blazestorm2, Basketballer23, Jacob Hall (jshall8888), Trent Roe, Cole Hughes, fireking1999, Joshua Pounders, Aaron Walker, Rich Didcott, Alek Sander, Sin Hunter, Saint Maximus, Kholek Suneater, Bobbo Elliben, Forgotten Krazy, Alucard 01, and GodPhoenix1.Thank you all for your continued support.

See you all next time.