Asmodeus

1️⃣0️⃣

"What it's true, he was placed here by Godric Gryffindor, not only to save the squid but also to help protect the castle and it's students during the witch hunts" harry said "that and humans are too chewy for his liking " Harry added with a mischievous grin. Neville paled while Hermione hit his arm "stop it" she hissed,  Lilian snorted "I like you Harry, got a last name?" She asked with amusement shining in her eyes "I prefer to be mysterious for as long as I can, besides you'll find out at the sorting anyway " he replied. "There dry land" Hermione said as she helped Neville out of the boat, harry hoped out of the boat next to Neville slinging an arm around his shoulder "after that, the sorting should be a breeze" he responded, "I'm not talking to you right now, next your going to tell me, we have to fight a troll for the sorting" Neville muttered "that would be way to bloody for your first day, no they'll wait till Halloween to spring the troll on you" harry assured, "just ignore him" Hermione hissed while lilian laughed behind them.

Hagrid handed them to the ever stern and intimidating Professor McGonagall, after her speech she left and the students started whispering,  Hermione and Neville had drifted away from harry at some point as he leaned against the back wall, 'It's probably for the best, being friends with them will only make it hurt worse when they find out about the murders I have already and are going to commit and leave, hating my existence' he thought. Lilian however leaned against the wall next to him, "I can't tell if you actually like the scared puff or just like screwing with him" she mused "Neville's a good kid and my godbrother, he'll make an excellent Gryffindor, assuming he gets past his self esteem issues, I hope him and Hermione become friends, they'll be good for each other" harry murmured, Lilian eyed him weirdly "you are strange" she decided after a moment "what house do you want to be in, and please don't say Gryffindor " she asked.

Harry smiled "I'm fond of knowledge so Ravenclaw, though Slytherin wouldn't be a bad choice either, it's a toss up " harry shrugged, Lilian nodded with a small smile "then we'd be snakes together " she said. McGonagall reentered the room, shooing away the ghost, harry let out a subtle sigh of relief 'you will have to call all of them to you within the week to explain it to them and swear them to secrecy, even with your magic under control they'll sense death on you, love' anubis said through the mate bond as they entered the hall. He snapped back to reality as the sorting finished it's song, he clapped and cheered when Hermione and Neville went to Gryffindor and when Lilian went to Slytherin, her head held high, everyone went to the same house as last time, only harry would be breaking the pattern. "Harry Potter!" McGonagall called, he walked up to the stool as the whispered started, he grimaced at some of the whispers and was extremely glad when the hat covered his eyes.

"Well, well what do we have here? Oh. Oh my" "You know Ollivander said much the same thing, you don't happen to be friends are you?" Harry commented dryly "you have had such a difficult life Mr.Potter" the hat sad, voice so full of sorrow and sadness.  Harry wished he could look away, knowing all to well the horrors the hat could see inside his head, it was only his occlumenacy shields that kept the nightmares at bay, "it was hard, sure, but this is my second chance, I will save everyone this time " he said determined. "You cannot save everyone " the hat said gently "Some will have to die. That is the nature of war. That's the nature of the war you wish to wage. People will die, the only thing you're changing is who will die the fastest" the hat pointed out "it means the same in the end" "no, it really doesn't " the hat sighed "you've long since chosen your path to take, don't lose yourself along the way harry Potter, the wizarding world would never survive" the hat returned it's attention to the hall "RAVENCLAW!".

Harry returned the hat to McGonagall and made his way to the blue and bronze table, sitting in between two of his year mates, his mind repeating what the hat said over and over again. He managed to bring himself back to the present long enough to see Neville, Hermione and Lilian smiling at him, dinner was as loud as he remembered even among the quieter ravens, after the first question about his scar or about that night was rewarded with his fiercest glare and a bit of his power no one else brought it up. Instead the students talked about their classes and the professors, they were all excited to be learning new things and harry found himself being pulled into the conversations against his will, little would be new to him this year but he could understand their excitement and he got caught up in the excitement without any choice in the matter.

After Dumbledore's speech, the ravenclaws headed up to their tower , the prefects explaining they needed to answer a riddle to be let in, harry resolved to read up on his riddles with in the next day or travel with at least one other raven. Harry knew immediately one of his dorm mates was a werewolf, he could sense it but he was far to tired to figure out which one, deciding to see in the morning he bid his mates good night and closed the curtains around his bed. Laying down he sunk into his mind, the hat's warning still at the front of his mind, it wasn't hard to see why with all of the knowledge he had accumulated and the murders , he organized his mind into a new classification system, ensuring that bright, wide-eyed boy so full of wonder and adventure whose best friends had been the youngest red-head of a huge family and the brightest witch in the school, would never get buried under death and knowledge Because that boy, 'Just Harry', hadn't cared for knowledge and hadn't known death. He'd only wanted acceptance and love.
That was the boy, harry swore to never forget .
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Until next time my pups

• mischief managed •