"There, look."

"Where?"

"Walking with that dark haired girl."

"Wearing the glasses?"

"Did you see his face?"

"Did you see his scar

Whispers followed Harry from the moment he left the dungeons the next day. People queueing outside classrooms stood on tiptoe trying to get a good look at him, or double back in corridors to try to pass him in corridors again, staring.

Luckilly Harry didn't need to worry too much as the other Slytherins didn't let them get near him. Harry suspected that Gemma must have spoken to some of the older students as there always seemed to be a handful nearby ready to help the first years find their next class. At first he thought this was normal until he saw Marcus Flint intercept a Ravenclaw girl who was walking directly towards Harry with a quill and scrap of parchment.

"I just want to ask for a quick autograph!"

Harry was torn between guilt seeing Marcus roughly push the protesting girl away from him and gratitude. The last thing he wanted was people coming up to him and asking questions about what happened when he was a baby that he didnt know how to begin to anwer.

Unfortunately there wasn't much the other Slytherin's could do about the ghosts. It was always a nast shock when one of them glided suddenly through a door you were trying to open. The worst was Peeves who Harry had luckily only ran into once. The poltergeist had snuck up on Harry and his escorts invisible, grabbed Harry's nose and screamed "GOT YOUR CONK!"

Luckily he was easily dissuaded by threats of the Bloody Baron. Harry rather thought Peeves was very sensible to be terrified of the Slytherin house ghost. It did have the benefit that Peeves tended to leave the Slytherins alone when there were students from other houses around.

Once you managed to get to them, there were the lessons themselves. There was a lot more to magic, as Harry quickly found out, than waving your wand and saying a few funny words.

They had to study the nights skies through their telescopes every Wednesday at midnight and learn the named of different stars and the movement of planets. Three a week they went out to the greenhouses the castle with the Ravenclaw first years to study Herbology. Taught by a dumpy little witch called Professor Sprout, they learned how to take care of strange plants and fungi and found out what they were used for.

Easilly the most boring lesson was History of Magic, which was the only class taught by a ghost. Harry had ended up last to arrive to his first History of Magic lesson, and Professor Binns didn't even pause his monologue whilst he took the only remaining seat next to the dark haired Tracey Davis.

The young witch was completely ignoring Professor Binns and was reading a large textbook making notes. Curious Harry leaned closer and whispered "Hey, what are you reading?"

The girl glared up at him as he spoke, but it quickly turned into a smile that was much less hostile. "oh sorry, didn't notice you sit down. Erm my dad warned me about Binns so gave me a list of books in the library i can use to self study and make this class a bit more bareable. Want to share?" Harry spent the rest of the class allowing the drone to become background noise as him and Tracey found the book's rendition of the history much more enthralling than Binns' recollection.

Professor Flitwick in stark contrast was a tiny littke wizard who was so energetic and exciteable that when he read Harry's name out on the register he gave an excited little squeek and toppled off the pile of books he stood on.

Professor McGonagall was again different. Harry had been quite right to think she wasn't a teacher to cross. Strict and clever, she started started her first lesson lecturing them on the complexity and danger of transfigurations. She seemed to look at each and every Slytherin as she made it very clear that anyone messing around woukd leave and never come back.

Defense against the dark arts was a dissapointment, as Quirrell was clearly a joke.

Harry was shocked to find that all the other Slytherins were ahead of him, easilly transfiguring the matches into needles. This made harry even more determined to prove himself, so on the third day of lessons. Instead of going back to the common room after dinner he headed to the library.

The tables were almost completely empty. The only two students there were the bushy haired Gryffindor Hermione Granger, and Tracey Davis. Harry quickly found a book wwww information on levitation charms, which they had been learning about in charms, and went over to Tracey's table. "Mind if I join you?"

Tracey looked up and then glanced at the pair of fifth year Slytherin's that as soon as Harry had mentioned going to the library, had decided they wanted to get ahead of their OWLs revision. "Sure."

Friday morning Harry walked with Tracey to breakfast. Luckily wasn't hard to find the great hall as the steps to the dungeons led directly into the great hall.

"Double potions today with the Gryffindors" Harry said excitedly, it would be the first time he had a lesson with Ron since they spoke on the train.

Just as they sat down, the post arrived. Harry was used to the pwls streaming into the hall but this morning was surprised to see Hedwig flutter down to land on the table and drop a note on Harry's plate before helping herself to the bacon rinds harry had saved for her. Harry tore open the note at once.

Dear Harry, (It said, in a very untidy scrawl)

I know you get Friday afternoons off, so would you like to come and have a cup of tea with me around three? I want to hear all about your first week. Send us an answer back with Hedwig.

Hagrid.

Harry borrowed Traceys quill, to scribble a quick note of acceptance. Tracey didn't seem to know what to think about Harry's friendship with the gamekeeper as he explained how Hagrid had deliverer his letter and took him to Diagon Alley on the way back down into the dungeons.

As they entered the potions classroom Harry ended up sharing a station with Ron and Granger. Harry did a quick round of introductions but it was clear that the Ron and Tracey were not keen on the other. Hermione was reading her 'A Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi" so didnt try to join the breif pleasantries.

All conversation stopped as Snape stood up and began to do a register, followed by a lecture on what they could be learning 'if they weren't a big bunch of dunderheads"

"Potter!" said Snape suddenly. "What would I get if I added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?"

Harry was stumped. He had read about wormwood yesterday, but couldn't recall anything to do with mixing it with asphodel. Ron looked as stumped as he was; Hermione's hand shot into the air.

"I dont know, sir," said Harry.

Snape's lips curled into a sneer.

"tut, tut - fame clearly isn't everything."

He ignored Hermione's hand.

"Lets try again. Potter, where would you look if i told you to find me a bezoar"

As Hermione stretched her hand as high into the air as it would go, Harry was remembering a grubby box in a dimly lit shop with Hagrid.

"In the apothicary, sir?"

There were some snickers around the room, but they were quickly silenced by a quick glare from Snape.

"True enough." Snape said begrudgingly. "But where are they harvested from."

"Oh sorry sir, I misunderstood. They come from a goats stomach."

Snapes eyebrows shot up in surprise.

"Well well well." He mused. "Perhaps there is more of your mother than would first appear"

Harry was about to ask what he meant when Snape spun to another table.

"Longbottom! What is the difference between monkshood and wolfsbane?"

Neville looked like he was trying to sink into the ground. But he quietly muttered that they were different names for the same plant also called Aconite.Snape paced back to the front of the classroom to the huge relief of Neville who seemed to relax slightly after getting the question correct.

"Perhaps there is hope for you yet. Point each for Slytherin and Gryffindor. For your information Potter, asphodel and wormood make a sleeping potion so powerful it is known the Draught of Living Death."

Snape put them all into pairs and set them to mixing up a simple potion to cure boils. He swept around in his long black cloak, watching them weigh dried nettles and crush snake fangs, criticising almost everyone except Malfoy, whom he seemed to like. Overall though the lesson went smoothly and Harry even managed to brew a passable potion.

An hour later the students left the dungeons discussing the class.

"An Apothicary?" Ron exclaimed. "I thought for sure that you were going to get detention. Fred and George lose loads of points because of Snape. It's probably because you're in Slytherin he let you off! What are you doing this afternoon?"

Harry shrugged "I was going to go see hagrid. He lives near the forest. Want to come Tracey?" Marcus Flint was hovering in the entrance hall talking to the prefect Gemma as the walked past it heading to lunch. Tracey frowned at Ron and said "No thanks. I'll have some lunch then head to the library."

Harry agreed to meet her there, he wanted to look up the Draught of Living Death Snape had mentioned.

"Why do you talk to her? she has an attitude problem. Can I come and meet Hagrid with you?"

They decided to heat straight filor Hagrids so Harry would have time to go to the library after. Ron was not happy about this "Its the weekend! We have ages until we have to worry about school work!"

Harry just stubbornly insisted that he needed to catch up as he knocked on the door to Hagrid's hut causing a frantic scrabbling and several booming barks. Then Hagrid's voice rang out, saying "Back, Fang - back"

Eventually they were sat inside "This is Ron," Harry told Hagrid, who was pouring boiling water into a large teapot and putting rock cakes on to a plate. "Another Weasley, eh?" said Hagrid, glancing at Ron's freckles. "I spent half me life chasin' yer twin brothers away from the Forest." The rock cakes almost broke their teeth, but Harry and Ron pretended to be enjoying them as they told Hagrid all about their first lessons. Fang rested his head on Harry's knee and drooled all over his robes.

"So, Harry. A Slytherin, eh? I don't think anyone saw that coming. Professor Dumbledore was..." Hagrid stopped speaking suddenly as if thinking twice before continuing. "Are they treatin, you all right down there Harry?" Hagrid seemed suddenly concerned.

"Yeah almost everyone has been really friendly. Helping me learn my way around the castle and everything." Ron seemed confused by this, but Hagrid still looked worried. Harry looked down to the huge coffee table.

"Snape mentioned that I might be like my mother" Harry ventured keen to change the subject. "Did he know her?"

Hagrid frowned "Did he now? Well they were in the same year at school. Snape was the only one in her year better at potions than her.

"How's yer brother Charlie?" Hagrid asked Ron. "I liked him a lot – great with animals." Harry wondered if Hagrid had changed the subject on purpose. While Ron told Hagrid all about Charlie's work with dragons, Harry picked up a piece of paper that was lying on the table under the tea cosy. It was a cutting from the Daily Prophet:

GRINGOTTS BREAK-IN LATEST

Investigations continue into the break-in at Gringotts on 31 July, widely believed to be the work of Dark wizards or witches unknown.

Gringotts' goblins today insisted that nothing had been taken. The vault that was searched had in fact been emptied the same day.

"But we're not telling you what was in there, so keep your noses out if you know what's good for you," said a Gringotts spokesgoblin this afternoon.

Harry remembered Ron telling him on the train that someone had tried to rob Gringotts, but Ron hadn't mentioned the date. 'Hagrid!' said Harry. "That Gringotts break-in happened on my birthday! It might've been happening while we were there!"

There was no doubt about it, Hagrid definitely didn't meet Harry's eyes this time. He grunted and offered him another rock cake. Harry read the story again. The vault that was searched had in fact been emptied earlier that same day. Hagrid had emptied vault seven hundred and thirteen, if you could call it emptying, taking out that grubby little package. Had that been what the thieves were looking for?

As Harry and Ron walked back to the castle for dinner, their pockets weighed down with rock cakes they'd been too polite to refuse, Harry thought that none of the lessons he'd had so far had given him as much to think about as tea with Hagrid. Had Hagrid collected that package just in time? Where was it now? And did Hagrid know something about Snape that he didn't want to tell Harry?