AN
We skip forward one year in time.
For deviations from canon events outside Harry's Hogwarts House – we'll start small and drift away further and further. I've written down a list of major plot points and whether they are outside of Harry's control or not and I think we'll get the first major deviation at the end of year 3 and go from there.
For now, let's establish Harry's introduction to Hogwarts and slowly build his inner circle of friends.
1991, 1st year
"Your letter arrived this morning," Severus greeted Harry for breakfast the day before his birthday.
Harry accepted the thick and heavy envelope, made of yellow parchment with letters written in emerald-green ink and sealed with purple wax bearing Hogwarts' coat of arms. Inside was a letter from Deputy Headmistress Minerva McGonagall and a list of all necessary books and equipment.
"We already own most of these," Harry said as he skimmed the list, happy to discover cats were allowed and he didn't need to smuggle Hedwig to Hogwarts. (Ignoring the fact that he had already been doing that for the last two years.)
"The Headmaster has finally deigned to send the key to your vault at Gringotts along, so I imagine we shall not want for money in case you wish to buy a new set of everything," Severus said in his usual drawl, though Harry could read in the frown between the man's brows what he thought of that idea. "I have taken the liberty of sending a reply in your name with the owl that delivered the letter."
"Thank you. I guess I won't be able to get out of visiting Diagon Alley this time?"
"Not if you want robes that actually fit you."
"We could send my measurements via owl?"
Severus' scowl made Harry duck his head. "Yes, yes. I know. And It's not like I can simply order a wand when 'the wand has to choose the wizard'. Can we at least pick whichever day will be the least busy?"
"That can be arranged."
"Much appreciated."
Not appreciated were the crowds, even if they weren't as bad as the first time Harry had entered Diagon Alley. (Harry still had to fight the urge to hide behind Severus' robes.)
Also not appreciated was the way Madam Malkin called him a 'pretty young lady' and kept pricking him with her needles, but Harry decided to say nothing and endure it rather than risk exposing who he was. Harry rarely went out, but he was more than aware of his own (dubiously earned) fame among the magical community of Britain. (The Europeans were refreshingly unconcerned about all of that if the Risbergs were anything to go by. Understandable, considering that Lord Voldemort had only ever terrorised the British Isles and never set his sights on Europe before his downfall.)
Equally not appreciated was the way Mr Ollivander looked right through him, almost into him, immediately knew who Harry was and which wand had given him that scar he shouldn't have been able to see hidden behind Harr's unruly hair and telling Harry in that creepy, cryptic way of his that the wand that eventually chose him shared a core with the Dark Lord's and how that one had performed great things, indeed – 'terrible, yes, but great'.
Neither Severus nor Harry were happy with that and so they overindulged themselves in Flourish and Blotts to compensate.
o
"And you are absolutely sure you have packed everything?"
"Yes, Severus. It's not the first time we're leaving for Hogwarts."
"I won't go home to bring you whatever you've forgotten this time."
"I know. It's alright, I'm sure I got everything. Right, Hedwig?"
Hedwig meowed from her perch atop Harry's trunk.
"This year's first-years will already be tiresome enough," Severus grumbled, "I don't need you to give me a headache, too."
Harry blinked. "What? Why?"
"Lucius' son is already a handful, not to mention yet another Weasley – we can only hope he's not as bad as his brothers – and the Smith brat, but I received word that there will be a Lémure as well."
"Er ..."
"Necromancers. You don't want to know, trust me. If you're lucky, you'll be sorted into different houses. I was lucky the Lémure of my generation was not only older, but also a Ravenclaw, so I never had the misfortune of having to interact with her. Knowing my luck, her children will land themselves in Slytherin and thus under my care."
Harry did actually want to know, but he thought it best not to ask Severus. "I was hoping for Ravenclaw or Hufflepuff. They seem nice."
"That would probably be for the best."
"It's going to be strange," Harry mused. "I've been basically living at Hogwarts for two years already, but this time I will sleep in a dorm," Harry was not looking forward to that, truth be told, "and be allowed to walk around the castle and attend classes with the others." He paused. "And take the train."
"Indeed," Severus said, looking at his watch. "We better leave. I'm sure you would prefer to save a compartment for yourself rather than share a crowded one."
Harry smiled. (Smiles came so much easier to him, these days.) "Yes, I would."
They took the Floo to London and hailed a cab from the Leaky Cauldron to King's Cross Station, which was as crowded as expected. Harry hated crowds. Platform nine and three-quarters was accessed through the ticket barrier between platforms nine and ten – quite literally through the barrier – and thankfully not as fully packed yet. Severus did not accompany Harry onto the platform, but he had spelled Harry's trunk feather-light for him already and so Harry didn't have any problems dragging his trunk onto the train, Hedwig's basket under his other arm, and finding them a nice, empty compartment all for themselves from where Harry had an excellent view of the platform as it slowly filled with all sorts of people of all sorts of ages.
For a long time, no one actually bothered him and Harry watched people come and go, families saying their farewells. At one point, he spotted Neville Longbottom and his grandmother in the crowd and then a large group of redheads that must have been the Weasleys. There were several father-son combinations with bright blonde hair, but only two that were about the right age and looked snobbish enough to possibly be the Malfoys Severus talked about occasionally.
Harry turned around only when the compartment door slid open for the first time.
"Excuse me," said a girl with dark hair and dark eyes. "May I sit with you?" She was holding a birdcage with a screech owl in one hand that caught Hedwig's attention.
Not having a proper excuse to refuse, Harry nodded. "Of course."
"Thank you." The girl extended her hand. "I'm Sue Li."
Harry blinked. Right. That was a thing people did. He reluctantly shook her hand and introduced himself. To his relief, Sue Li merely raised her eyebrows at his name but did not comment. Harry wondered whether that was because of his annoying fame or because of his taste in fashion. (Sue him, he liked Mrs Figg's jumpers and skirts were comfortable.) Perhaps it was a mix of both. Perhaps it was neither.
(Harry only realised after that he had inadvertently made a pun with the girl's given name.)
The door slid open again. "Oh, perfect. Hi, Sue. I've brought a friend, I hope you don't mind."
Another girl stood in the hallway, this one had an impressively long braid of dirty-blonde hair thrown over one shoulder and wore frame-less spectacles that seemed to be even thicker than Harry's own pair. Right behind her stood a boy with brown hair that reached his chin in length and brown eyes to match.
"Hello, Annie. You will have to ask Harry, he was here first."
If it hadn't been impolite, Harry would have sent them away. But Harry was a nice person and Harry knew he would have to interact with people sooner or later and so Harry – did not plaster on a smile. But he did nod his assent and politely introduced himself to Sally-Anne Perks and Oliver Rivers.
He was lucky, all things considered. They weren't overly loud or excitable, Sue Li even opted to fish a book out of her messenger bag and only occasionally joined the conversation the other two were holding. Since Sally-Anne Perks and Oliver Rivers seemed to not be bothered by this at all, Harry re-positioned Hedwig in his lap and then took out a book of his own.
The rest of the train ride was spent in relative peace.
At one point, an elderly lady with a trolley full of sweets came by – of which Harry bought none, because he was still under strict dietary rules and breaking those didn't even occur to him. Sue Li was too busy with her book to notice, but the other two bought some Chocolate Frogs and a bag of Bertie Bott's Every-Flavour Beans to have fun with.
Shortly after that, there was a knock on their door and then a girl with the bushiest hair Harry had ever seen poked her head inside.
"Has anyone seen a toad? Neville's lost one," she said.
Harry blinked and leaned to the side. Indeed, hidden behind her was Neville Longbottom, a sheepish look on his face.
When their eyes met, Neville Longbottom gave him a weak smile. Harry gave him a smile of his own and a nod in return.
"Sorry," Sally-Anne Perks replied. "No toads around here. Minnow would have told us," she continued, gesturing to Sue Li's owl.
"Have you tried asking a prefect?" Harry said.
"A prefect? That's a splendid idea!" The girl beamed at him. "Thank you very much! I'm Hermione, by the way, Hermione Granger. Who are you?"
A round of introductions followed. Interestingly, Neville Longbottom only hid further behind Hermione Granger and elected not to say anything at all. When it was Harry's turn, Hermione Granger's eyes widened and Harry braced himself for what was to come. He wasn't disappointed. The girl was clearly Muggle-raised, yet very enthusiastic about learning all she could (destined for Ravenclaw, Harry's mind supplied) and 'knew all about him, of course'.
Harry did not fake a smile, but politely refrained from outright scowling at her. As far as first impressions went, this one was decidedly not a good one.
When the girl finally left, neither Harry nor the others said a word about it. Their peace was interrupted once more not long after by what Harry immediately knew must have been Draco Malfoy, flanked by two boys that painfully reminded him of Dudley.
The boy looked at them all critically, then frowned.
"Yes?" Oliver Rivers said. "Can we help you?"
"Must be the wrong compartment. You wouldn't happen to know where I can find Harry Potter?"
Harry blinked. Ah.
Oliver tilted his head. "The famous Boy Who Lived?" He demonstratively looked around the compartment. "That would be quite something, wouldn't it?"
Most-certainly-Draco-Malfoy sniffed. "Yes." Then he turned on his heel and left, his two Dudleys following him like well-trained dogs.
"Well," Oliver Rivers said, sitting back down after having closed the door to their compartment. "That can only go over well in the future." He gave Harry an apologetic smile. "Sorry."
Harry shook his head. "It's fine. It's not like you actually lied to him."
The other boy tilted his head, contemplating. "That's true."
"Thank you, by the way."
"No worries, no worries. That's what friends are for."
Harry blinked. They had barely exchanged more than a few words and he already considered them friends?
It didn't take much longer to reach Hogwarts after that. The boys had to temporarily leave the compartment, so the girls could change into their school robes, then they switched and then the train was already slowing down, the glowing lights of what Harry assumed must be Hogsmeade coming into view on the other side of the windows.
"Do we take our pets with us?" Sue Li asked.
Harry, already holding Hedwig's basket, shrugged. "We can always release them when we reach the castle, right?"
Sue Li looked at her owl's cage in consideration, then opened the door and told 'Minnow' to go and find the Owlery. Harry watched her for a moment, then let Hedwig out of her basket again and picked her up to carry her without it. Their little group followed the other students outside onto the platform, where a voice called out, "Firs'-years! Firs'-years over here!"
Harry caught a glimpse of the bearded face of a gigantic man that led them down a steep, narrow path and then Harry got his first, proper look at the castle with its many turrets and towers rising up into the sky, windows sparkling like stars.
The first-years climbed into little boats that moved across the lake all on their own, through a curtain of ivy and to an underground harbour from where a passageway led up to the oaken front door of Hogwarts.
A witch in green robes with her black hair in a tight bun opened the doors for them. Harry knew that face. She had occasionally visited Severus in his quarters. She was the only one who ever visited Severus at Hogwarts. (Which was a good thing, for Harry's presence there was supposed to be kept quiet.)
"The firs'-year, Professor McGonagall," the giant man said.
"Thank you, Hagrid. I will take them from here."
Harry set Hedwig down, who immediately set off to explore the castle, and then took his time to admire the large Entrance Hall with its high stone walls and flaming torches and the magnificent marble staircase.
Professor McGonagall led them past the doors to what must have been the Great Hall, where the older students could be heard chatting, to a small side chamber that made them stand closer than was comfortable for Harry. Harry missed most of Professor McGonagall's Welcome Speech, because he was too busy trying not to panic.
"The Sorting Ceremony will take place in a few minutes in front of the rest of the school."
Great, Harry thought, not helping!
"I shall return when we are ready for you," Professor McGonagall concluded. "Please wait quietly."
Harry took a deep breath, trying to regain his calm. It didn't help that the other children began whispering excitedly the moment Professor McGonagall left the room, agitating the already limited space.
It definitely did not help that several people suddenly screamed behind him.
Clutching his chest, Harry turned around and – oh, it was just the ghosts. Harry had seen one or two of them glide through the corridors on the rare occasions he was allowed to leave Severus' quarters. The Bloody Baron more so than the others.
Of course, no one else was reassured that it was only the ghosts, the others were all terrified – or well, Harry found one face that looked positively elated instead of petrified, but the rest seemed spooked.
"Move along, now," came Professor McGonagall's sharp voice. "The Sorting Ceremony's about to start."
She instructed them to form a line and they followed her back out of the chamber, across the Entrance Hall and through the double doors into – the Great Hall.
For a moment, even Harry forgot his rising panic when he saw the thousands and thousands of candles floating above the four long tables that Harry assumed divided the students into the four Hogwarts Houses. Each table was laid with golden plates and goblets and cutlery and – Harry decidedly did not think about the hundreds of faces staring at them. The teachers had their own table at the top of the hall and above it all – the famed, enchanted ceiling, showing the night sky as if it were right above their heads.
Somewhere in front of him, Harry heard Hermione Granger whisper about how she had read about the enchanted ceiling in Hogwarts: A History. This time, Harry couldn't even feel annoyed, because that was exactly where he had first read about it, too.
While Harry and all the other first-years had been busy staring at the enchanted ceiling, Professor McGonagall had put a four-legged stool between them and the Head Table and atop that stool, a pointed witch's hat.
Harry was not prepared for a rip along the brim to open and the hat to start singing about the four houses, followed by cheerful applause from the entire hall.
"When I call your name," Professor McGonagall said, "you will put on the Hat and sit on the stool to be sorted. Abbott, Hannah!"
A girl with blonde pigtails eagerly came up to sit on the stool and Harry watched as Professor McGonagall placed the Sorting Hat on her head, which seemed to consider for a moment and then – "Hufflepuff!"
For some, the Hat only needed a moment to decide, for others, it took considerably longer. Harry watched Vincent Crabbe (one of the Dudleys) go to Slytherin, Gregory Goyle (the other Dudley) to Slytherin, Hermione Granger to Gryffindor.
As Harry continued to watch the Sorting and saw more and more of how the Hat worked ...
(The girl who had found the ghosts delightful to Slytherin. Sue Li to Ravenclaw. Neville Longbottom, after some deliberation, to Gryffindor.)
It looked as if the hat was reading their minds, looking into their heads.
(Draco Malfoy to Slytherin.)
It was looking into their heads right in front of hundreds and hundreds of people that filled the hall with their chattering, that watched with curiosity, that wanted to see and see and see and –
Sally-Anne Perks to Hufflepuff.
"Potter, Harry!"
A fresh round of whispers broke out, more furious and curious than ever before ("Potter, did she say?") and Harry couldn't breathe, couldn't stand the thought of sitting down on that stool, all those eyes upon eyes upon eyes boring into him ("The Harry Potter?") as that hat – that thing – rummaged through his head and he –