{Hogsmeade station}
I felt the train slowing down as I adjusted my tie. The four of us have taken turns changing into our school uniforms. Looking at the blank tie on all of us, I knew we'd soon be divided into different houses.
Normally, Harry Potter would have gone to Gryffindor, and I wouldn't have had to think about this too much. But our conversation throughout the train journey led me to think about it more deeply.
'I'm not a character in a book or a movie. Who knows how much the butterfly effect of us just being older would have? There is no way childish scenes like the midnight duel would ever take place. So if the timeline itself couldn't be guaranteed, then how can I be sure that Voldemort would suffer the same fate as canon?' I thought as I watched the train slowly pull up to the station.
It's a thought that had occurred to me, but only after hearing the world described as a living, breathing thing by Susan did I slowly realize that any change I had already made meant nothing was guaranteed, so from this point on, I had to be responsible for my own actions.
'Which means taking advantage of the fact that I have a fucking horcrux in my head that gives me an ability that is revered in a certain house.' I thought. They didn't know it was a borrowed ability, but if I want to face Voldemort when he eventually returns, then I need power, and the best way to do that is to leverage the vaults of magic that were old families to arm myself with as much magic as possible.
'And turn families against Voldemort all the same, but do I have to go to Slytherin to do that? Will just being a Parselmouth be enough to gain a chance at alliances?' I thought.
It was a risk, but maybe going to Slytherin would be risky as well. A non-believer could take me out simply because of their misguided beliefs, so where is it better to be a snake: hiding among the lions or in a snake pit itself?
'I can't believe I'm contemplating going to Slytherin,' I thought. While it could be beneficial, it also means alienating myself from the other three houses, which means fewer interactions with witches, which in turn means less LP and a chance to grow strong.
The debate had been raging in my head for the past hour, and as the train slid to a halt, I stood up.
"Let's go then," I said, smiling, trying to push my worries away for now. From what I could see, students were already rushing outside without their trunks, so I likely didn't need to worry about mine.
"You reckon we need to take them with us?" I still asked Susan, who shook her head no and responded, "The house elf will take them in for us."
"The house elf?" Hermione asked in confusion, and I had the urge to resist smacking my hand against my head.
"Firs' years! Firs' years over here! Firs' years follow me!" A loud voice boomed from outside, which gave me the excuse to hurry everyone along. I felt the chill of the evening wind, it was already starting to get colder in September. I need to learn the warming charm soon.
When we stepped out, I extended my arm to help the three girls and got a nod of gratitude from all of them. My affection with them was already maxed out, but there was no reason not to be considerate.
"C'mon, follow me... any more firs' years? Mind yer step, now!" Hagrid's voice boomed, and I turned toward the half-giant. We hadn't been introduced in this life yet, and I could see the big oaf trying to keep himself from closing the distance, but he managed to suppress his excitement as he gathered everyone and led us down a steep path.
"You feel like a rat yet?" I whispered to Hermione, who giggled at the reference as she almost slipped, and I had to grab her waist to help her.
"Why a rat?" Susan asked, confused, and I had to brush it off as a Muggle thing for now.
"Ye' all get yer firs' sight o' Hogwarts in a sec," Hagrid called over his shoulder, "jus' round this bend here."
I watched, anticipating the scene. As someone who liked taking in the sights, I found the one in front of me almost magical. The narrow path opened up to a bank. A great lake spread out in front of us, dark as the night, and the twinkling stars it reflected.
But it was the big castle that illuminated the light. It was reflected in the lake, the world's biggest mirror, as it stood majestically in the night. It was a proper medieval castle with multiple towers that could hold a princess hostage and give the evil dragon enough space to lounge around.
"Now that's straight out of a fairy tale," I commented, and all three girls agreed. A loud shout broke the serene scene.
"No more'n four to a boat!" Hagrid called, pointing to a fleet of boats sitting in the water by the shore.
"That works for us," I said, turning to Susan and Hannah. "You ladies mind accompanying us on this journey?" I did a mock bow, referencing our earlier discussion on pureblood customs on the train.
"We would love to, Harry," Susan replied, and I could feel many eyes turn to us. Harry, it seems, wasn't a common name, and as everyone in our generation knew, I would be joining Hogwarts. Whispers already started, along with a fleet of notifications spamming my vision.
...
[Lavender Brown's Affection increased by 10 for being a dreamboat]
[Parvati Patil's Affection increased by 5 for being handsome]
[Padma Patil's Affection increased by 5 for the polite words]
...
...
[Pansy Parkinson's affection decreased by 10 for stealing Draco's limelight]
[Daphne Greengrass's Affection increased by 5 for looking better than last time]
[Daphne Greengrass's Affection decreased by 1 for standing next to a Mudblood]
...
They kept piling on, not all of them were good, as Pansy and some other Slytherin girls had the opposite effect on me for the first time, as the effect of the Boy-Who-Lived title took effect.
'Turn down the affection notifications,' I thought, and all of a sudden the screens vanished.
I sighed in relief as I stepped onto the boat and extended my hand to Hermione, who grabbed it as she stepped onto the boat next to me. Susan and Hannah quickly climbed overboard as we settled into the wooden bleachers.
'It's a good thing I turned them off because I think I would be getting a bunch of notifications right about now of increased affection for being chivalrous or something like that.' I thought. I'd better keep this turned off until after the sorting. I don't want to deal with the mass spam.
"Everyone in?" Hagrid shouted after a little while, as my batchmates quickly found their own groups after shuffling around. I saw that Ron had settled in with Neville and the other three Gryffindor boys. I turned to look at Susan, who was sitting in front of me as the boat moved.
"Right then... FORWARD!"
---
AN: I debated a bit, then decided that Gryffindor is the way to go. But that doesn't mean I won't take advantage of Harry being a Parselmouth to gain friends in the dark green house.
P.S: My PC broke down today, uploading this from my phone. There might be some break in uploads if I can't get this fixed soon, I'll try to keep any disturbance to a minimum though.
29+ Advanced chapters on P.atreon: p,atreon.com/AndreaHodges