Summary:
Harry always knew there was something extraordinary about him, even though his uncles tried to make him believe otherwise. Confirmation came when Hagrid entered his life and confessed something that would change his life forever: he was a wizard and he was famous. However, Harry never thought he would end up in the same house as his sworn enemy, Voldemort, and now he must fight to prove that yes, he is a Slytherin, but he is not like the others, he is better.
A/N: Hello my fuzzy little frends, I'm back with a new one. This book is not of my creation I just translated it from a language and moved it to a more convenient app... enjoy,and don't forget to review
Harry shifted nervously in his seat despite the amused glances from his new friend Ronald Weasley. He was nervous, there was no point in denying it, but it wasn't as if he was in a different mood since he had found out, from Hagrid's mouth, that he was a wizard.
Everything in that world seemed wonderful and new to him, everything he had known since birth - which wasn't much, really - had changed drastically. Wherever he went there were no telephones, no electric light, no one seemed to wear jeans and no one seemed to know what a video game console, a television or a record player was, but it didn't matter, because magic was much more sensational than electricity, no one could deny that, not even his hateful uncle Vernon, to whom he would be in charge of proving, as soon as he returned from school, that he was a phenomenon, but one who had learned to defend himself.
Ever since he had found out that he was the possessor of wonderful magical powers, the first thing that had come to his mind was the amount of things he could do once he was taught how to use them; first of all, he was going to turn Dudley, his cousin, into a little pig in revenge for the beatings at school, then, he would make his uncle's hair grow as long as those "punks" he hated so much for having locked him up for a week under the cupboard, feeding him only once a day for having forgotten to prepare breakfast, and finally, he would change the color of all his Aunt Petunia's dresses to that bubblegum pink that he always spent his time criticizing on his kind neighbor's curtains.
Yes, Harry had many plans now that his life had changed so radically. Not that he considered himself a spiteful or vengeful person, but what the Dursleys had put him through during those long ten years of his life was not forgotten by anyone, and although deep down he had a certain appreciation for them - for being his family more than anything else - the truth is that he was tired of them and having been accepted into Hogwarts was a great relief for him, since the school of witches and wizards offered a panorama free of people who did not understand him, far from the mockery of his cousin, far from the scolding of his uncles, far from that horrible, dark cupboard where he had been sleeping until the night before. A few small jokes would be enough to make them understand that he was no longer a defenseless child - although physically it seemed the opposite - he would make them understand that he no longer feared them and that now it would be much more difficult to make him feel miserable.
The first step in his new life had been, of course, to find out everything he could about the new world he was entering, from books and anecdotes that the gamekeeper had been kind enough to tell him; about his parents, those his aunt always insisted had been a scourge on society when in reality they had been war heroes, brave, intelligent and powerful, who had fallen until their third confrontation with Voldemort, his parents, those he had once been disappointed in and whom he now respected more than anything. He had told him about Diagon Alley and had accompanied him there, he had told him about Dumbledore, the most powerful wizard in England, he had told him about school, about Hogsmeade and, although Hagrid did not seem to be very clever, he was a great connoisseur of magical creatures and that had fascinated him.
The second step in his new life, after researching and getting to know the environment he would be entering, was, of course, making alliances. He had learned the hard way that alliances were important, his cousin, on the other hand, despite his tiny brain, seemed to understand it very well, making friends with boys just as big as him with the only mission of bothering weak little boys like him. And Harry, of course, did not want that to happen again now that he had the opportunity to start over. He knew that at Hogwarts he would find students who would want to mess with him just for being the "savior" and he knew that they could be both boys his age and older boys, so he needed to make friends, friends of all kinds, friends with whom he could share a lunch, friends who would defend him from those who were clearly stronger than him and finally friends with an intellect worthy of admiration and who would support him in his academic development. This did not necessarily mean that a single person had to have all these qualities, as long as he had just one it would be enough. For example; There was Ronald Weasley, eleven years old, pureblood, he had said, red hair, freckles and blue eyes, he wasn't strong and he didn't seem very intelligent either but he was funny and noble, at first glance it seemed that, if Harry managed to win his friendship, he would gain in him a faithful friend who would never betray him and that was a good quality.
Ron, of course, had been fascinated with the fact that he was Harry Potter, which the brunette knew was both an advantage and a disadvantage, he thought he had to be careful if he didn't want to end up surrounded by hypocrites who only looked for his name expecting some benefit from it, he needed real friends, allies who he could trust with his life in case Voldemort decided to rise once again, because Hagrid said it was likely and Harry didn't want them to betray him like they had done to his parents, it had cost them their lives and Harry definitely didn't want to die, for a reason he was the boy who lived, right?
He opened his fifth chocolate frog while Ron, a little less embarrassed, decided to take a cake, Harry had told him he could do it, with complete confidence.
The dark-haired boy had taken the whole cart for just the two of them, it was nice to do something for someone like Ron who, according to what he had told him, was the sixth of his seven siblings and that consequently at home they had some financial problems. Harry, of course, being observant as he was, had noticed it by his old clothes and by the stain that rested on his nose, although he had not dared to tell him anything about it.
He was reading the card that had been given to him in the box - one of Dumbledore - when the compartment door opened, revealing a chubby boy with a distressed expression who asked, rather sadly:
—Excuse me, haven't you seen a toad?
Harry recognized him from the platform, he had seen him with his grandmother, apparently he had found the animal and lost it again. The boy seemed to be his age, perhaps, Harry thought, it would be good for him to observe him and find in him some interesting quality for his alliances, although at first glance the only thing he had learned about him was that he was extremely absent-minded, although good-natured.
When he and Ron denied having seen the toad, the boy simply walked away, asking them to let him know if they saw it, and they agreed, but not before Harry was kind enough to give him a box of all-flavoured jellybeans so he wouldn't forget him and would keep him in mind in the future.
So when the two boys were alone again and had begun a new talk about pets, the fat boy's toad, Ron's rat and finally a charm to turn it yellow, the door opened once more, revealing a girl about their age with messy brown hair and hazel eyes, but without a doubt the most noticeable thing about her face were her teeth and Harry had to gather all his willpower not to look at them too much, because that would have been rude and would have surely offended the girl.
She asked:
"Has anyone seen a toad? Neville lost one," she said. Her voice was bossy, and Harry was interested.
"We've already told her no," said Ron, but the girl wasn't listening. She was staring at the wand in her hand.
"Oh, you're doing magic? Then let's go and see it." He sat down. Ron looked puzzled.
—Uh... okay. —He cleared his throat. —Sunshine, daisies, turn this silly little mouse yellow.
He waved his wand, but nothing happened. Scabbers (the rat) slept on, as grey as ever.
"Are you sure it's the right spell?" the girl asked. "Well, it's not very effective, is it? I tried a few simple ones, just for practice, and they worked. No one in my family is a wizard, so it was quite a surprise when I got my letter, but I was also very happy, of course, since this is the best school of magic, as far as I know. I've already memorized all the books, of course, so I hope that's enough… I'm Hermione Granger. And who are you?"
She said all this very quickly. Harry looked at Ron, he seemed overwhelmed by the fact that the girl had memorized all the books, but Harry, who had done the same, simply smiled, she would definitely be a good friend, she seemed intelligent, a bit irritable, but nothing he couldn't handle. Yes, Hermione Granger should definitely be part of his circle, someone to exchange ideas with and talk about interesting things.
"I'm Ron Weasley," Ron murmured.
"Harry Potter," Harry said, handing her a chocolate frog, which she immediately took, thanking him with a smile.
"Is that really you?" said Hermione. "I know all about you, of course. I got a few extra books to prepare myself further, and you feature in Modern History of Magic, Defence Against the Dark Arts, and Great Magical Events of the 20th Century." Harry smiled ruefully.
—Yes, I read a little about it, although I don't think they should make such a big deal about it. I was just a baby and I can't even remember what I did to defeat Voldemort—said Harry, feeling flattered, important and not completely invisible like he had before Hogwarts.
"You're right, but that doesn't make you any less important," said Hermione. "Do you know which house you're going to?" She changed the subject. "I've been asking around and I'm hoping to get into Gryffindor, it seems like the best one out there. I heard Dumbledore was there, but I guess Ravenclaw won't be so bad… Anyway, I better keep looking for Neville's toad. And you guys should get changed now, we'll be there soon." And she left.
"Whichever house I get, I hope she's not in it," said Ron. He threw his wand into the trunk. "What a stupid spell, George told me. It must have been fake."
"Which house are your brothers in?" Harry asked.
"Gryffindor," said Ron, looking glum again. "Mum and Dad were there too. I don't know what they'll say if I'm not there. I don't think Ravenclaw is that bad, but imagine if they put me in Slytherin."
"Merlin was in that house," he said simply.
—And you-know-who too.
Harry thought about that for a bit, of course he knew Voldemort had been in Slytherin and plenty of Dark wizards had. He thought Gryffindor might be fine for him, though Ravenclaw seemed to suit him as well, unlike Hufflepuff, the only house he didn't share any traits with. He thought about his parents, from what he could find out, they had both been in Gryffindor, as had his traitor friend, Sirius Black, so he couldn't say all Gryffindors were loyal and brave but... Being in Slytherin? He wasn't sure he wanted to reside in the same house as the man who had killed his parents in cold blood.
He sighed, maybe Gryffindor was his best choice after all.
Ron had begun a lecture on Quidditch that Harry could barely follow, having only become familiar with the wizarding sport a couple of days ago. Then the door opened once more and Harry wondered what was so wonderful about his compartment that everyone seemed to want to be in it. It was as if a sign had been placed at the entrance that said "We've bought all the sweets in the trolley, please come in and help yourself, it's free."
Harry looked towards the door expecting to see Hermione or Neville, the toad boy, but what he found surprised him quite a bit; a familiar face.
A few weeks ago, during his excursion to Diagon Alley, Harry had met a white-skinned boy with grey eyes and platinum hair in the robe shop. He had been the first wizard boy he had met and he had made conversation very kindly, although Harry had to admit that he was quite conceited and pedantic. However, he recognized in him someone intelligent, quite prejudiced and Potter suspected that he was quite spoiled too, but something about him had caught his attention and, although in the end they had not even said their names, Harry would never forget his face. Despite his ragged appearance and without knowing that he was the boy who lived, that young boy had tried to start a conversation. Strange for someone who seemed to judge everything that stood in front of him, as he had done with Hagrid.
"So it's you," the blond said with a smile. Then he noticed that the grey-eyed man was accompanied by a couple of boys who looked more like gorillas than boys. The boy seemed to understand the alliances quite well. "These are Crabbe and Goyle," he pointed to his friends. "And I'm Malfoy, Draco Malfoy, we didn't introduce ourselves properly when we met." He extended his hand and Harry accepted it despite Ron's irritated look.
—Yes, that's true, I seem to remember that it was because you were too busy criticizing my friend Hagrid —Malfoy laughed.
—I apologize for that, I'm not usually so rude— he looked at Ron with some displeasure—. Or maybe I am— he smiled—. Anyway, it's been a pleasure Potter— he looked at the redhead again— Weasel— and left there.
"His family and mine don't get along very well," Ron said as soon as they were alone.
"I've noticed that," he said, smiling pleasantly.
—The Malfoys are arrogant, greedy and prejudiced, they were with Voldemort and then pretended to be insane when questioned. Of course they went free, they are rich and influential, it was obvious that they would not set foot in Azkaban even if they deserved it —he snorted angrily—. You should not associate with Malfoy, Harry, he is not a good boy.
"I'll take that into account," he replied.
They continued chatting about trivial things and changed into their uniforms when they were about to arrive at Hogsmeade station, Ron's bad mood had passed after a few more sweets and the subject of Malfoy was quickly forgotten.
Upon arrival, Hagrid led them to the lake, where he transported the first years in a small boat to the castle that stood majestically on top of a mountain. It was already nighttime and the stars and the moon only made it look that much more magical. Hermione chattered something about the Hogwarts history book, Ron muttered that it was boring, Neville listened in wonder to his friend and Harry smiled, his new life awaited him.
The castle was impressive, with its moving staircases and talking pictures. Harry had never felt so special, so much a part of something, and that made him happy, because he had never been special, at least in the words of his uncles. They had arrived and a teacher, who introduced herself by the name of Minerva McGonagall, made them wait outside the great hall. Harry, of course, like Hermione, had read about the school and had seen some pictures, but nothing compared to actually being there. It was like the birthday present he had never received from anyone and that he would never receive because his uncles were stingy when it came to him.
Then the huge wooden doors opened and all the first years entered in an orderly line. Hermione began to tell him about the charm they used on the ceiling to simulate the sky outside and he listened attentively, because he needed something to entertain himself, too nervous about the sorting for his taste.
Dumbledore appeared and after singing the school anthem and what Harry assumed was the usual welcome, they proceeded to the sorting.
One by one the boys were called to sit on the stool where Professor McGonagall placed the Sorting Hat on them, an old and patched brown cloth hat that evaluated their aptitudes and based on that placed them in one house or another. At the beginning of all that the hat had been in charge of singing a song -quite ugly according to Harry- and clarifying the features of each house; to Gryffindor went the brave, the daring, the gentlemen and the temperate, to Hufflepuff went the just and the loyal. The intelligent, the erudite and the wise went to Ravenclaw and Slytherin the cunning, the determined, the ingenious and the ambitious and Harry thought that he was a strange mix of all the houses, it turned out that maybe he also had a little bit of Hufflepuff.
Ron, of course, went to Gryffindor with all his siblings, Hermione went to Ravenclaw just as Harry had imagined, even Malfoy went to Slytherin as he had supposed but, although he could guess where all his classmates would end up, the truth was that looking at himself he was lost. He wanted to go to Gryffindor, because that was where his parents had gone, but Ravenclaw called to him too. However, although the idea of Slytherin also crossed his mind, he soon found himself wishing not to go to that house; that was where Voldemort had gone, yes, but that was not the reason why he did not want to go and it was because snakes had a reputation for being hypocrites and he knew he could not trust them, at least not as he could do with lions or badgers.
Finally it was his turn, everyone was waiting expectantly, everyone wanted to know where the savior of the wizarding world would be sent. He heard everyone whispering his name, talking about him, making their bets and that made him even more nervous than he already was. He bravely took a breath and walked as straight as he could to the stool and waited for the hat to be placed on his head, but when it did, unlike many boys the hat took its time to speak and when it did it said:
—Mm. Difficult. Very difficult. Full of courage, I see. A brilliant mind. There is talent, oh my, yes, and a willingness to prove oneself, this is very interesting... So, where shall I put you?
"Gryffindor, please, I think it's the best option for me" He thought.
—It's possible, yes, but I see something else... You could be very great, you know, you have it all in your head and Slytherin would help you on the road to greatness.
"It's not that I have anything against them, but they're not trustworthy."
—Your instinct for self-preservation is strong— he whispered— one of the qualities of the Slytherins.
" The man who killed my parents studied there"
—And you are scared by it?
" Of course not." But the truth was that he did, a little. "I just think it would be more convenient..." But the hat didn't let him finish and shouted:
SLYTHERIN!
Everyone was deathly silent. Harry Potter, the victor over the dark lords, had ended up in the house that formed them and no one could believe it, no one except perhaps Draco Malfoy, who, breaking the silence, began to clap loudly to welcome him to his table.