He'd even lost his spot on the Quiditch team because as Professor McGonagal said, "There's no way for us to protect you while you are flying and the team claims they don't feel safe flying with you." She hadn't been happy about that as in her opinion that meant Gryffindor was at a disadvantage to win the cup and it was very clear to Harry she blamed him entirely for no longer being able to play as the team Seeker for her. And her guilt trip worked. Harry had felt so guilty over what he had done in throwing that firecracker, he had eagerly and willingly done whatever she asked of him in penitence. In fact, he'd done everything he could to please the teachers and get moved back into his dormitory. Including apologizing to Draco both in private and in front of witnesses though he'd refused to accept it claiming Harry was only saying that because he wanted to get out of trouble and not because he meant it. And of course, Draco didn't get pulled aside by the Headmaster and lectured on the benefit of forgiveness as Harry would've if it'd been the other way around. Nor did anyone else speak up for Harry or admonish Draco for not accepting the apology.
But not once had he seen how being under that heavy guard had only made him look guilty of being exactly the monster the students thought he was. Or substantiated the claims of his detractors that he required special treatment. To the students, he was being watched carefully because he was guilty of whatever they accused him of being in their rumors or he was such a spoilt ponce he demanded to be treated special compared to how everyone else was treated. So even at the end of the year when it was proven he wasn't guilty of turning the monster loose on the school, it didn't matter. His reputation was litter in the drainage ditch. No one wanted to know him. Let alone befriend him.
A student had died that year. Eleven year old Colin Creevey had been an avid fan of Harry's. No one could convince him Harry was anything but the Hero he'd been told he was and the child had followed Harry everywhere he went when he wasn't in class. Even after Harry had been removed from the Tower, Colin had still managed to find and follow Harry around. He had a stalker personality and Harry was half convinced the boy would grow up to become a member of the paparazzi. His favorite possession was his camera and he took copious amounts of pictures of Harry further fueling Harry's belief. But he would never grow up now. Because he had died in the second floor corridor outside an out-of-service girls' loo. The same loo where Hermione had insisted they brew that Polyjuice Potion so they could interrogate the Slytherins in their nest.
About halfway through the year Colin had noticed one of his classmates was acting oddly and had switched to following her, trying to figure out what she was up to and why she was acting so oddly. Neither Harry nor any of the other students had given any thought as to what could cause Colin to give up on following Harry around. Harry had just figured peer pressure had finally gotten to the first year. Everyone else, for their own reasons, had simply been glad he had. Harry had never suspecting the danger the child was in. Unfortunately, Colin had followed the girl straight into danger and he had died for his curiosity. But he had left them their first solid bits of evidence that Harry wasn't the student posing the threat against the muggleborn and halfblood students.
In his things, they'd found his journal where, in his own unique shorthand, he'd recorded what he saw happening around the school and who he was following as well as why and where the subject had led him to date. He hadn't used the person's name though he'd made it clear why he found her behavior suspicious and why he'd decided to follow her . He hadn't given a real description but he'd referred to her as a female more than a few times and a few of his entries described her as being a red head in his own house and year. Nor was it possible he was being fooled by a potion since sometimes he'd followed her for hours. They had all their classes together. Which meant all their meals and free time were together also. He would've noticed if she was drinking something each hour and, given this was Colin they were talking about, there would've been a notation in the notebook about it. Because eleven year old children don't drink something once an hour, every hour, all day long. And while Colin wouldn't have known what such an action might mean, others would when they read it in his notations. Yet he hadn't written any such thing. Which meant it really was a redheaded girl in his tower and year he was following.
But the information recorded by him in his notebook was enough to tell any thinking person who he was following since there was only one first year Gryffindor girl with red hair. Ginerva Weasely. Yet no one had bothered to act on the information Colin had left behind. Because Dumbledore's game wasn't yet played out to it's natural conclusion. And Dumbledore didn't want Harry reinstated into Gryffindor Tower. Harry hadn't exposed the fraud he'd hired for what he was and he had in no way risked his life doing some random hero thing to save something or someone from something nasty. Yes, he'd given the Headmaster something by which he could coerce Harry into doing as he chose, but considering Harry was only twelve and Draco's injury was neither serious nor permanent, that wasn't really enough to control all his actions and behavior forever. Which is what the Headmaster was after. Total control of Harry. Forever.
The night Colin had died, he had taken her picture as she had opened the way into the Chamber of Secrets to reveal the Basilisk that was the cause of the misery that year. In shock, Colin had dropped his still clicking camera but failed to close his eyes. His horrified stare met that of the crazed basilisk and nature took it's course. Colin died. After the attack, the Headmaster claimed something about the basilisk ruined the film in Colin's camera so that when it was developed all they had to prove Harry wasn't the murderer was a fuzzy out of focus photo that showed a long free flowing fall of red hair standing in front of what looked to be a huge snake. Hindsight said that was most probably a lie since Colin had actually dropped the camera before meeting the eyes of the basilisk. Therefore, the snake had nothing to do with the ruined film. But for the students, the fact the picture showed it was a snake attacking and now killing the students was all the proof they needed. Harry could talk to snakes and no one else they knew could.