Perhaps unsurprisingly, given the rapidity with which the Hogwarts rumour mill worked, the story of what had happened in the first-year Hufflepuff/Ravenclaw History of Magic lesson appeared to have been heard by almost the entire student body by dinnertime. The main point of discussion seemed to change depending on who was speaking but broadly it was either the fact that a first year, in her first lesson, had managed to sum up multiple generations of dissatisfaction with the subject in such a respectful manner that the teacher had allowed her to finish her discourse without interruption or punishment, or the disbelief that Professor Binns had awarded someone house points for the first time in living memory. Whatever the point of view, it seemed to be generally accepted by the students of Hogwarts that it was perfectly acceptable to stare and point at the young Hufflepuff in question whenever it was being talked about.

"They're doing it again." Hermione hissed under her breath as they sat near the end of the Hufflepuff table and began serving themselves from the platters of food that had been laid out for dinner.

Harry took a moment, trying not to laugh and replied in a low voice, so as not to be overheard by their classmates. "Honestly, I thought calling Binns out for how dull his lessons are was quite low on our list of 'things to do that will make people point and stare at us'. Think of how bad it's going to get when we get near the top! I mean, let's face it, you'll probably not get to 'The-Chosen-One' or 'The-Boy-Who-Lived' levels but perhaps we can find you a hyphenated name somewhere. That's how you know you've made it! 'The-Girl-Who-Changed-History' perhaps?"

Hermione turned and glared sharply at Harry, who could contain himself no longer and snorted with laughter, resulting in a thump on the arm from his best friend and a muttered "prat".

"Ow!" Harry rubbed the sore spot Hermione had just created in an overly dramatic way. Anyone watching would have thought she'd mortally wounded him, which caused Hermione to roll her eyes as he kept a pained expression on his face. "Anyway, I think it's time I took some of the heat off you. If you'll excuse me for a moment?"

Harry swung his legs over the bench they were sitting on and strolled casually toward the Slytherin table, nodding in greeting to Dora, who had just walked into the Great Hall, as he passed. Upon seeing Harry wandering towards the green and silver clad first years (all of whom who had stopped talking to watch as he approached), Dora dropped into Harry's now empty seat and nudged Hermione with her elbow.

"What's he up to?" she asked, stealing a piece of carrot from Harry's plate.

"'Taking the heat off me' apparently." Hermione said, without taking her eyes from Harry.

"Oh yeah! What's this I hear about a conversation with Binns?" Dora grinned, turning her attention fully to her fellow badger and taking a bite of the carrot. Hermione groaned and dropped her head to the table.

Unaware of the conversation occurring behind him, Harry's movement towards the Slytherins hadn't gone unnoticed elsewhere either and there was a general lessening in the cacophony that filled the Great Hall. The boy who defeated He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named was striding closer to a table crowded with the children of the Dark Lord's alleged supporters and all those observing were eager to hear what was going to happen.

"Hey Daph, how are you doing?"

"Good thanks Harry, you?" Daphne Greengrass replied with a smile. Her eyes flitted to Draco quickly, then back to Harry before she rolled them. Harry grinned. Clearly Draco had been making a play for some sort of power amongst the Slytherin first-years but without his father having the ear of the Minister this time around, all he had to fall back on was his family's money, something that most purebloods had, even if not in the same quantities as enjoyed by the Malfoys.

"Pretty good – listen, we're planning on setting up a study group if you're interested?" Daphne nodded in agreement and Harry then addressed the rest of the first years who had been listening intently. "If anyone else is interested you're more than welcome to join too." Harry glanced over now at his intended target - Draco Malfoy.

"Draco – you in? It's all the 'Puffs, a couple of Gryffs and I'd think a few of the 'Claws will be interested as well once we ask them."

Malfoy was caught offguard as the focus of Slytherin house turned to him. Harry's supposition was right, Malfoy had been trying to make a play for dominance in the house based on his father's money and reputation, and he was now desperately trying to work out if accepting this offer from the boy who had triumphed over the Dark Lord would help or hinder him in the long run. Before he could come up with an answer though, Harry had seized an opportunity he wasn't sure would be presented to him and had begun to introduce himself to the rest of the Slytherin first years individually.

"Hi – sorry, that was really rude of me. You're… Crabbe, right? I saw you on the train, but we didn't have a chance to speak – and you're Goyle? What are your first names?"

"Vinnie."

"Greg."

Harry leant over and held out his hand to Crabbe, giving him little option other than to shake, before repeating the motion with Goyle. "I'm Harry Potter, please to meet you." He then replicated this action with Theodore Nott and Blaise Zabini before giving a deep, extravagant bow towards the ladies of Slytherin house – Milicent Bulstrode, Pansy Parkinson, Tracey Davies and of course, Daphne Greengrass. At the bottom of the bow, he looked up and winked at Daphne, causing her to snort in a most unladylike way. Rising, he turned back to Draco. "Anyway, the offer's open if any of you want to join us. Just let me know." With a grin and a nod, Harry turned and made his way back to his seat.

Daphne looked down the table at the rest of her housemates and laughed. The boys all looked slightly confused - with the exception of Blaise, the others had all been raised by their Death Eater families with the belief that Potter was the enemy, yet here he was shaking their hands and inviting them to join and work with him in a cross-house study group. The girls, on the other hand, all looked a little shell-shocked by the charismatic boy who had just bowed to them.

"What on earth was that?" Tracey whispered to Daphne who had just managed to control her laughter.

"That was Harry Potter," she replied with a grin.

Harry, meanwhile, walked nonchalantly back across the Great Hall and retook his seat next to Hermione. He frowned at his plate as he realised all his carrots were now missing and glanced up at Dora who had reseated herself opposite the pair as she tried her best, and failed, to appear innocent. He shook his head at her crime then picked up his fork and began eating his Shepherd's Pie – Merlin, he loved Hogwarts-made Shepherd's Pie. There was something the elves did to it that made it taste better than any he'd had anywhere else. He'd spent hours in the kitchen after he'd left school trying to replicate that flavour but had never managed it. He closed his eyes, savouring the taste and trying to discern the ingredients – thyme, oregano… a hint of Worcestershire Sauce perhaps? He gave a small smile as he realised that after all these years he could simply head down to the kitchens and ask. He opened his eyes and noticed that no one around him was talking. He looked around to find that the stares that had been directed at Hermione only minutes before were now firmly fixed on him.

"What?" he asked.

As the Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw first-year students made their way into the Potions classroom on Wednesday afternoon, Harry motioned for Hermione to continue then stopped, dropped to one knee and pretended to tie his shoelace. He allowed the remainder of the students to filter past Professor Snape who was standing in the doorway and, as Harry entered, he whispered just loud enough for Severus alone to hear, "Give me and Hermione detention".

With his expected sneer firmly fixed in place, Professor Snape lectured the students about 'bottling fame, brewing glory and putting a stopper in death' before rounding on Harry and throwing increasingly difficult questions at him, questions that no legitimate first year had any right knowing the answers to. Harry answered some, wanting to establish to the rest of the class that he had some knowledge of the subject before falling back on an old favourite; "I'm not sure Sir but I think Hermione does, why don't you ask her?"

"Detention Potter and 5 points from Hufflepuff for your cheek."

"But Sir!" Hermione piped up, picking up on what Harry was doing. "That's not fair!"

"Very well Miss Granger. You may join Mr Potter in detention. Seven o'clock tonight. You'll be disembowelling horned toads." Snape gave the pair a nasty grin, though Harry could see he was enjoying his part in the charade.

Despite how the class had started, however, Harry and Hermione were then treated to a masterclass of a Potions lesson. It wasn't until the second hour of the double period that Severus even allowed the students to touch an ingredient, let alone a cauldron, as he carefully walked them through safety and preparation techniques in a manner totally different to that which they had experienced the first time around.

As they left the dungeon at the end of the lesson, with the students chatting excitedly about their shared experience, the other Hufflepuffs, and more than a few Ravenclaws, commiserated with the pair over the unfairness of their detentions, not seeing Harry glance back at the Potions Master, dropping him a wink as he did so. Harry and Hermione had turned in a perfect potion to cure boils at the end of the lesson and the pair had made sure to help as many of their classmates as they could, further enhancing their growing reputations as intelligent, friendly and willing to help others. Without Ron's sometimes abrasive behaviour actively driving people away, Harry found the other students to be very understanding and accepting of his wish to be someone other than 'The-Boy-Who-Lived'.

Later that evening, Harry and Hermione made their way back down to the dungeons where Severus was waiting for them. "Potter, Granger, inside." They entered quickly and Severus shut the door behind them, casting locking and silencing charms as he did so. "I assume, based on your display at the welcoming feast, and Potter's insistence that you be included in this detention, that you have something to tell me?"

"Hermione is from the future too - my future that is. She's my best friend and was with me throughout the war."

"Ah, the so-called 'smartest witch of her age'. I'm glad you're here – some of the plans he's been making could use a little… refinement perhaps?"

Hermione turned to Harry, allowing surprise to show on her face but with a mischievous twinkle in her eyes. "You've been making plans?"

Frowning, and missing the joke Hermione was making, Harry turned to his friend. "Of course! You don't think I'd just rush into things half-cocked, do you?"

Hermione raised an eyebrow, knowing that Harry had repeatedly taken what could only be described as a 'proactive' approach to problem-solving – dive in first and worry about the consequences later. Clearly, he realised the same thing and so cleared his throat in embarrassment.

"I've had help – Sirius…"

"Oh, Merlin." Hermione groaned. "A Marauder plan?"

Snape smirked at the pair. "I like this one, Harry. You can keep her."

Harry immediately flushed bright red and hastily continued. "…Amelia, Severus, Andi and Ted – and the Goblins! They've all helped! Even Severus here! I've not exactly been on my own."

Hermione reached over, her own cheeks reddened from Severus' comment and placed her hand on Harry's arm. "I know Harry, I was joking. I'm sorry. From what you've told me you've all done good work so far. Let's just get things sorted and get rid of Voldemort as soon as we can, OK?"

Harry nodded and Severus took the opportunity to bring things back on topic. "Right, now that's dealt with, tell me what's been happening. Perhaps start with why everyone is talking about Professor Binns?" As Harry began to speak, however, Severus interrupted. "The barrel of toads is over there; you can get to work while you're explaining."

Harry and Hermione looked at him incredulously, making Severus smile nastily. "This is a detention after all, and those toads are not going to disembowel themselves."

The rest of the week passed in a flash and Harry and Hermione soon found themselves back in the swing of things. Their years of experience and knowledge made their first-year homework exceptionally easy, although Harry had to remind Hermione on a number of occasions to dial back the length and depth of her essays as she had a tendency to exhibit comprehension far beyond anything that would be expected of a N.E.W.T. student, let alone a first year in her first week at school. One thing Harry had insisted on, however, was that they take time to relax and get to know their classmates. Hermione had been so focused on learning and demonstrating her intelligence before, that she'd missed out on the simple interactions between friends and Harry was determined that they would experience a relatively normal school year, despite the presence of Voldemort in their Defence classroom.

On Friday evening, as the new Hufflepuffs were sitting in the common room playing Exploding Snap, the Professors were meeting in the staff room.

"Minerva – care to start us off?" Dumbledore said, his blue eyes twinkling.

"My first years are settling in well despite the issues getting to breakfast on the first morning. The boys all seem to be quite tired though – I'm having one of my prefects keep an eye on them to make sure they're going to bed on time and aren't just spending all night talking."

"Excellent. Have any of them stood out to you?"

"Neville Longbottom seems to be doing quite well. He's very interested in Herbology from what I hear so one for you to keep an eye on Pomona." Minerva nodded to her colleague who made a note on the parchment in front of her. "From what I've seen so far, I'd bet he's my most likely candidate for male Prefect in four years."

"Filius?"

"Again, for the most part, they're settling in nicely." The diminutive Professor squeaked. "There have been a few grumbles as they're sharing a lot of their classes with the Hufflepuffs this year and it seems they're being outperformed by two of your Badgers Pomona."

"Really?" said Dumbledore with interest. "Which two?"

"Hermione Granger and Harry Potter. They've taken it upon themselves to organise a study group but have already demonstrated an incredible grasp of the topics we are covering. As soon as they complete the task for the day, they're helping those around them. I don't recall any first-year class picking things up as quickly as these are." Dumbledore looked around the room as all the Professors who had interacted with the pair voiced their agreement with this statement.

"What about you Severus? How have you found Harry and Miss Granger? I understand you had to give the pair detention in their first lesson?"

"Potter gave me cheek and Granger answered back," Snape said with a sneer. "However, their performance in class was not as woeful as I feared it might be. Their Potions ability appears… adequate."

"Merlin." McGonagall stage whispered, ensuring everyone in the room could hear her. "I hope someone has a dicta-quill going. That almost sounded like praise. We need to record this for posterity!" Snape merely turned his sneer on the Deputy Headmistress who smirked back at him.

Dumbledore, however, was not paying attention to the interaction of his staff and was instead pondering what to do about Harry Potter. He'd arrived at the school healthy, happy and surrounded by friends and not, as the Headmaster had expected, shy, nervous and ready to be gratefully guided. Perhaps he'd have to accelerate his plans – get the invisibility cloak to Harry before Christmas and 'help' the boy to find the Mirror of Erised sooner rather than later? He didn't expect Quirrell to make a move for the stone any time soon, but he couldn't allow Harry to stray too much further from the plans he'd concocted over the last eleven years.

"Well then," Dumbledore said, rejoining the conversation as Professor Sprout was just finishing waxing lyrical about how well her new students were settling in. "Has anyone else got anything they wish to raise?"

"I do."

Dumbledore looked in surprise at the ghostly figure of the History of Magic Professor. "Cuthbert, what a pleasant surprise. You don't normally join us for these meetings."

"Well, there's something I wanted to discuss. I was asked a question in my class the other day and I've been considering the answer ever since. I believe the time has come to review the course curriculum with regards to History, making sure to include more recent events." Professor Binns paused and looked around at his colleagues. "I don't think it would come as a surprise to anyone here to hear that most students use my class as a chance to catch up on sleep. To my shame, I have allowed this to occur year after year. I lost my passion and enthusiasm for teaching but as one student pointed out to me, we are in a position of great responsibility – moulding the hearts and minds of the next generation."

Binns paused again and focused now on the Headmaster. "As such I believe we should be reaching out to Griselda Marchbanks in her role as Governor of the Wizarding Examinations Authority, to ask for her cooperation in completing a comprehensive overhaul of the History of Magic curriculum."

"Now Cuthbert," Dumbledore began, a note of concern in his voice – the last thing he needed was the Ministry interfering with Hogwarts, "are you sure that's necessary? After all, the History of Magic course has long reflected the traditions of Wizarding culture in Britain…"

"Do you know how many students have taken my class at N.E.W.T. level in the last 10 years Albus?" Binns interrupted.

"Well, I'm sure…"

Binns now turned to the Deputy Headmistress. "Minerva?"

"Four, Cuthbert and two withdrew after the first term."

Binns looked once more at the Headmaster. "A change is clearly needed, Albus. I'm just ashamed it took me this long to realise."

A short while after the meeting had concluded, Dumbledore entered his office, slumped down into his high-backed chair and pondered the happenings of the first week of school. Most of his thoughts focused on Harry Potter. The boy's arrival was supposed to be the beginning of his plans to finally rid the magical world of Voldemort but Harry was nothing like he'd expected. Instead, he'd turned up adopted by Sirius Black (how that had happened outright baffled him as he'd turned Sirius away on several occasions since his release from Azkaban with the insistence that Harry's location needed to be kept a secret to protect him. He'd also prevented any attempts to communicate with the boy by having his mail redirected in the name of security - something that would need to be relaxed to a degree now he'd started school). He was surrounded by friends whose families had no interest in giving him the level of respect Albus felt he deserved as the leader of the light, and resisted any and all attempts from the headmaster to gain influence with him. His plan to have Hagrid introduce Harry to the wizarding world had been foiled when Harry's acceptance letter had been returned after its first try – he'd been sure the Dursleys would kick up a fuss and try to prevent Harry from attending but, as he now knew, Harry hadn't been living with his relatives at the time and the magically addressed envelopes had been sent out without him considering he might even need to check them. He'd even managed to bypass Molly Weasley at the train station after Albus had hinted that Harry might not know how to get onto the platform.

To then hear that Harry was an exceptional student who seemed intent on breaking down the barriers between houses before, with the help of Miss Granger, dragging the first years to academic excellence felt like a real kick in the teeth for the Headmaster. He needed Harry to be pliable if his plans were to come to fruition.

On top of all this, with the boy claiming his role as Head of House Potter, Albus was still waiting for the expected notice that he would be losing the Potter proxy in the Wizengamot – he had used the Potter vote to squeeze a number of laws through in the past or stymie those that didn't further the greater good of wizarding Britain and, after the man's deception, he couldn't trust anymore that Sirius Black would follow his lead once he took control of the Potter seat.

And then there was the issue of Professor Binns. For years he'd been perfectly happy droning on and presenting the Goblins as an enemy that still needed to be carefully watched – why had his stance suddenly changed? Admittedly, Albus tried to avoid conversing with the History of Magic Professor if at all possible – after all the man was a dreadful bore – so he hadn't seen any indication that something like this was coming, but to go as far as wanting to reach out to the W.E.A.? That simply wouldn't do.

Having decided he'd have to stop any communication Binns was going to send to Madam Marchbanks, Albus gave the evening up as lost and headed to bed.

The Governor of the Wizarding Examinations Authority was sitting in her home, enjoying a relaxing cup of tea when an owl tapped on her living room window. She eased her old bones out of her chair and retrieved the letter, watching the owl flap its wings and soar off into the night sky. Turning the envelope over, she spotted the wax seal emblazoned with the crest of Hogwarts.

"We're only a week into the school year. What on earth can Albus want already?" Griselda Marchbanks grumbled to herself, making herself comfortable once more in her chair and raising her cup to her lips as she read. The tea, however, remained firmly in the cup and upon completing her second reading of the letter, she placed it back on the saucer and moved to the liquor cabinet for a touch of something stronger. She, along with her colleagues at the W.E.A., had been petitioning Dumbledore for years to do something about the History of Magic curriculum and now the very Professor they'd been encouraging the headmaster to 'move along' was contacting them of his own volition, asking for assistance in preparing a more rounded and relevant scheme of work for the students.

This was the foot in the door they had been waiting for. For too long, they'd been forced to provide watered-down examinations, dropping required pass marks in order to cater to the lowest possible denominators. In her heart, she knew British examinations didn't compare fairly with those across Europe, let alone with the rest of the World, but had remained in her position believing she would be better placed to help with the educational revolution that was so sorely required if an opportunity arose. It appeared that the time had finally come.

Saturday morning dawned and Harry and Hermione headed downstairs to breakfast together. They'd decided that there was no point hanging around and would take care of the diadem today. Harry poured them both Pumpkin juice, while Hermione placed food on their plates – without realising, they'd easily fallen back into the habits developed through years of daily contact, knowing each other's routines inside out and almost flowing around each other's movements. This of course had not gone unnoticed by the staff who were already sending each other knowing looks when they saw the pair interacting.

They chatted with their friends as they ate but were interrupted by the arrival of the morning post. Hermione unrolled her newspaper and scanned the articles on the front page.

"Harry?" she murmured as her classmates conversed around them. "Have you seen this?" She pointed at an article that discussed a law Minister Fudge was proposing that would allow all children of Hogwarts age to use magic in the safety and isolation of their own homes. Magic could only be performed in front of those who had full knowledge of the wizarding world and had to be from an approved list taught by Hogwarts but there had been nothing like this in their original time. "This is incredible! It'll mean students can practise over the holidays but also let parents of muggleborns see exactly what their children are learning at school! Not being able to show Mum and Dad what they were paying for me to learn…"

She trailed off as she looked at her best friend who had a slight grin on his face. "Harry?" she prompted.

"It's something I forgot to mention." Harry inclined his head in the direction of the Slytherin table. "Have you noticed that Malfoy isn't quite as arrogant as before and hasn't trotted out the old 'just wait until my father hears of this' line yet?"

Hermione nodded and Harry continued. "When Sirius got his trial, Fudge was pushing to replace Bagnold as Minister. He came out in the papers and said something about how, if he were in charge, things like Sirius' situation wouldn't have happened. When Fudge eventually got the job, Sirius threw his support behind him and told the papers how glad he was that we now had a Minister who would stand for justice – really laid it on thick. Daphne says it's not stopped him from making a power play in Slytherin but Draco isn't so cocky this time because Lucius Malfoy hasn't been able to get anywhere near Cornelius Fudge. The Minister is taking his advice from people who aren't neck-deep in a pureblood agenda instead."

"That's fantastic! So, this law came from one of his advisors then?"

Harry blushed and ducked his head, avoiding Hermione's gaze.

"I talked to Sirius about how unfair it was that not everyone could practise magic outside of school, just the purebloods who used loopholes in the law." He glanced up at Hermione. "I may have mentioned how much you hated not being able to show your parents what you'd learnt."

Hermione looked at him, a strange expression on her face. "You did this for me?"

"Well, technically Sirius did – "

Harry abruptly stopped talking as Hermione threw her arms around him once more and squeezed.

"Her – mi –one – can't – breathe!"

"Sorry," she whispered, looking flustered. "I just... thank you."

Harry gave her hand a quick squeeze and smiled at her, his own cheeks flushed with colour. "Don't mention it."

After breakfast was over and having made sure the coast was clear and they weren't being followed, Harry and Hermione made their way to the seventh floor and the tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy. Harry paced in front of the blank wall whilst thinking of the room of hidden things and on his third pass, they saw the familiar oak door appear.

"I've asked the room to make it so no one else can enter while we're in here." He told Hermione. "I didn't want anyone to stumble in whilst Kreacher is here."

The pair worked their way through the towering stacks of objects that had been discarded in the room until Harry stopped suddenly when he recognised the location where the broken vanishing cabinet would end up.

"I hadn't even thought about the cabinet." He said, glancing at Hermione. "What should we do with it? Hopefully, we'll never reach the point where Death Eaters use it to enter the school but…"

Hermione bit her bottom lip as she considered things. "Let's speak to Sirius about it later. We're not going at this alone this time, why not ask the others for options?"

Putting the issue of the cabinet to one side for now, they move deeper into the stacks, eventually arriving at a discoloured old tiara next to a chipped bust of an ugly, old warlock. Even at a distance, both Harry and Hermione could feel the darkness emanating from the diadem. They'd become intimately familiar with the sensation after wearing Slytherin's locket for months during their search, and it wasn't something either of them was likely to forget any time soon.

They retreated half a dozen paces and the feeling of darkness faded into the background. "Kreacher!" Harry called softly. A faint popping noise heralded the arrival of the Black family House-Elf.

"Yes, Master Harry? How can Kreacher be of service?"

"We've found another one of the items like Regulus stole from Voldemort. Can you get me one of the secure boxes for us to store it in please?"

"Of course, Master Harry." Kreacher bowed before popping away, only to return a few moments later with a large black box, lined with dragonhide. Harry moved forward again and swiftly levitated the diadem into the box before sharply closing the lid and asking Kreacher to seal it using his magic.

"Please take this to Sirius, Kreacher, and ask him to deliver it to the Goblins."

"Yes, Master Harry. Can Kreacher be of any other service?"

"No, thank you. Regulus would be very happy with your service today, as am I."

Kreacher gave another low bow to Harry and popped away with the Horcrux safely secured inside the box, leaving the pair of Hufflepuffs to traverse their way back through the room to the entrance.

"That went easier than I expected," said Harry as he held the door open for Hermione to leave the room.

"Well, well, well…" came a voice from the corridor. "What have we got here?"

A/N: Based on the feedback I've received, I've decided I will be splitting the full story into smaller "books". Book One (which you're currently reading) will take you from Harry's death on Platform Nine and Three-Quarters through to the end of first year. Book Two will likely cover all of second year through to the end of fourth year and Book Three will cover fifth year and beyond. I'm currently working on the contents of book two at the moment and I have plans made for events right through fifth and some of sixth year.

My recommendation this time is a work that, sadly, appears to have been abandoned, though I hope the author manages to return to it one day. I tried to come up with a way to explain what it's about but the summary works nicely for that;

"What if the horcrux in Harry's scar hadn't quite been as contained by the Blood Wards as Dumbledore planned. Rather than twisting Harry's personality, it darkened his aura. And the dark creatures of the magical world really liked that aura. Gee. Sucks to be a Dark Lord trying to make your comeback. VERY AU. Just for fun."

The story is "No Competition" by Evilgoddss and I'd suggest giving it a read, even in its unfinished state. I enjoyed it thoroughly.