“Come on, come on.” The surly, old man who ran the floo just outside to King's Cross station urged them on. “Lots more coming, go on.”

Severus placed a feather-light charm on Harry's trunk and dragged it along behind them. None of them had taken the time to change their clothes to muggle styles. But with all the other purebloods walking through the streets it didn't make much of a difference.

Harry walked between his parents, his nervousness and excitement increasing with every step. This would be the first time that he slept anywhere but his bed. He'd had friends in primary school, but the glamour charms that disguised his appearance wouldn't last long enough to spend the night at a friend's.

“Don't worry.” Bellatrix smiled and squeezed his shoulder lightly. “We'll be watching you at the sorting and during dinner. You'll do fine.”

“And I'll see tonight when I visit the common room.” Severus assured him. “You'll make a wonderful Slytherin. And the dormitories are close to our quarters.”

Harry nodded. He's parents were positive that he was going to end up in Slytherin, it was their old house. But his biological parents had been Gryffindors. It would be a nature versus nurture situation. He didn't even want to imagine what would happen if he wasn't in Slytherin.

“Here we are.” Severus stopped in front of the barrier between platforms 9 and 10. “I trust that you remember how to get in?”

Harry smiled. He'd gotten to school on the train once before, it had been during the summer and his parents had wanted to take him on a trip to Diagon Alley. They went a few times every year to get school supplies and just have fun.

All of the other trips to Diagon Alley had helped alleviate his disappointment at the trip they'd taken early that summer to get is school things. Usually it was a very special occasion for a wizard, a rite of passage and maturity. But he knew that there was always too much to do in the summer and that there'd be other trips to Diagon Alley.

The family walked up to the barrier and walked straight through. Bellatrix refused to try and hide magic from muggles. She had no problems with killing someone who knew too much. They emerged on the other side in front of the puffing steam engine.

Harry felt a shiver of excitement run through him and he had to bit his lip to help him focus and not jump around like a monkey. He took the handle of his trunk from his Da and ran his hand over the initials printed into it. HB, I love being Harry Black. I'm so glad that the Headmaster didn't interferer.

“Here.” Bellatrix pressed a small, cloth pouch into his hand. “Get something to eat on the train.” She'd spelled the bag herself and if anyone who wasn't keyed into the protections tried to touch, they;d get a nasty curse set on them.

“Thanks.” Harry pocketed the bag and pulled his trunk up to a steady position. “See you tonight.” He accepted hugs from both of his parents and after a quick smile made his way over to the train.

“Remember, don't sit with any mudbloods!” Bellatrix yelled after him. When other people stared at her with horrified looks on their faces she simply glared at them and strode out of the station with Severus behind her.

Harry took advantage of the feather-light charm to lift his trunk on to the train and then got to work finding a compartment. Despite the rudeness of his mother's statement he was almost certain that he didn't want to sit with mudbloods. It would be nice if he could find some of his friends from primary school. Although many of the kids that he usually hung out with were headed to Durmstrang.

“Hey firstie, this is our compartment.” A trollish looking, older boy snapped at him. He was already dressed in his robes and the green Slytherin crest on his chest helped Harry to recognize him.

“Lawrence, you're a prefect!” Harry knew the other boy, he'd been one of his mother's favourites when he was a fourth year and he'd often helped mark the muggleborn, first year essays.

“That's Prefect Derrick to you kid.” Lawrence smiled. “Run along and find some other firsties, there's sure to be plenty of you.” He pushed Harry out and closed the door behind him.

Harry continued his walk down the train. He passed thorough an entire car that was filled with Gryffindors and a few more Slytherin areas, but he still hadn't seen any first years. It was almost like they had all disappeared.

“Are you lost?”

Harry jumped and looked behind him. Another prefect was standing behind him. But this boy had simply pinned his badge to a muggle t-shirt. The small insignia on the badge was yellow.

So now I need Hufflepuffs to help me. It took great effort for Harry not to glare at the boy. A muggle-born and a Hufflepuff. “I guess I could use some help. I looking for some other first years.”

“Follow me.” The boy stepped in front of him and began leading the way. “I'm Jeffrey Nelson by the way. Seventh year Hufflepuff. Maybe I'll see you tonight?”

Harry shook his head. “I don't think so. Hufflepuff is defiantly not in my family.” He pulled the trunk faster, the charm was starting to wear off and it was feeling heavier.

“Pureblood?” Jeffrey asked, he didn't wait for an answer but showed Harry into the next car. “Most of the first years are in here. Have a pleasant ride.” He smiled and left Harry alone in the corridor.

Harry looked into the first compartment. It was full of kids in muggle clothes, so was the next one. The third held more promise until he found out that most of them were planning on becoming Hufflepuffs like the rest of their family.

“Come on in!” Kevin Entwhistle waved to him. It was almost all pure or half bloods, and all of them were wearing robes. Harry knew most of them from primary school.

“Hey Kevin.” He slipped in and with Kevin's help they hoisted his trunk up to one of the holding racks. “How are you doing?” He asked politely.

“Fine, you?” Kevin sat back down on the padded bench.

“Great!” Harry smiled and took an empty seat on the other side. “I think I know everyone in here.”

“I was in your class.” Theodore Nott said. “I can't believe you forgot me already.” He cried dramatically.

“I'll never forget you. As much as I want to.” Harry smiled, he loved teasing Theodore. They both had some much fun with it. “How was your summer?”

Theodore smiled. “Wonderful, I can't wait to have access to the Hogwarts library.”

“Hoping for Ravenclaw?” Parvati and her twin sister Padma entered. “Almost everywhere else is full.” She told them.

“Sure.” Kevin moved over. “Plenty of room in here.”

“Hey.” Michael Corner protested. “You just knocked me on the floor!”

“You can sit on the other side.” Kevin brushed him off and smiled at the girls. “Ravenclaw, or something else?”

The twins exchanged looks. “We're not sure.” Padma said. “All the houses in represented in our family. I was thinking about Ravenclaw, but I'm not sure.”

Theodore nodded and took out a book. “I found this in a used book store. It's about sorting and different qualities that each house stressed. There's parts about heads of houses too.” But instead of talking about it he flipped it open and started reading.

“How's music going?” Kevin asked Padma. They'd been in the same class every year and their mothers were good friends so they spent quite a bit of time together. Parvati didn't like Kevin, she usually went to another friend's house whenever her sister visited Kevin.

“Great.” Padma smiled. “I think that I'll be ready for the next string by Yule.” The Patil family were all musicians. Padma played the harp, but each string made ten or twenty different sounds depending on its placement. It was a charmed and muggles had started to use non-magical versions, but the charms made it sound much nicer. Padma could play five strings now and she was almost ready to get the next two.

The six friends talked and read for a few hours. Parvati took out her music orbs and played new newest piece for them. Unfortunately Padma's harp was too large to take out and play in the compartment. But Parvati was as good at playing as her sister was.

They changed out of day robes and into school robes. Harry fingered the crest nervously, he wanted to be in Slytherin. But sometimes he felt like he wouldn't fit in there.

Once the trunks were done, schoolbooks were taken out. Harry read over his astronomy book again, that was his weakest subject. Since he knew more about almost every other subject, they set up a game and had him quiz two teams on the contents of the textbooks.

It was great fun but in the middle of one of the questions a girl barged in. “Excuse me, but ave you seen a toad? Neville's lost one.” She was already wearing her robes but she walked strangely, as if she was used to wearing pants and jeans instead. Her hair had been braided, but it seemed to be rebelling against her.

Harry took the opportunity to look at Neville Longbottom. He heard about him from his mother, but this was the first time he'd ever seen the boy. He looked depressed enough and he held and empty glass box in his hand. There wasn't anything special about him, nothing that might suggest that his parents were locked up in St. Mungo's.

Harry stood up and offered his hand to the boy. He felt sorry for him. “Harry Black. Sorry to hear about your toad. Have you tried a summoning charm?”

Neville's eyes widened at the last name, but he took Harry's hand. “Neville Longbottom. I can't cast a summoning charm.”

The bushy haired girl stared at him. “Summoning charm? Are you going to do magic?” She put her hands on her hips and looked at him challengingly.

Harry sighed mentally. Mudbloods. . .Always wanting to see magic and proof that it's real. “Fine.” He drew his wand. “What's your toad's name?”

“T-t-Trevor.” Neville stared at Harry's wand closely. It did make sense, the last time a member of the Black gmail had pointed a wand at one of his family they'd gone insane.

“Accio Trevor.” Harry incanted, he moved his wand and a moment later a large, ugly toad flew into his hand. He handed him to Neville and wiped his hand on his robes. It felt greasy and grimy after touching the reptile. “I don't want to know where he'd been.” Harry muttered under his breath.

“You can leave now.” Harry told the muggle-born. He had nothing against her personally, but he didn't want reports of his social life getting carried back to his mother. Especially if she wasn't going to be happy with them.

She looked up at him angrily. “You're not very nice.” She stuck out her hand. “I'm Hermione. Hermione Granger.”

Harry looked past her, Draco Malfoy was standing outside his compartment. His silver eyes were taking in the scene with great interest as he fingered his wand. He was flanked between two large boys who seemed to be holding him up.

After a mental sigh, Harry sneered at Hermione. “Why would I touch a mudblood? You'd better leave now. I don't want you fouling up the air in here.” He sniffed. “It already smells rather nasty, sort of like mud.”

Kevin Entwhistle shook his head, but he didn't say anything. Theodore's grip tightened on his book and his hand twitched toward his wand, but he stayed where he was.

Tears came to Granger's eyes and she turned on her heel to storm out of the compartment. Her dramatic exit was ruined by the fact that Draco was standing right behind her. He glared as she brushed past him and Neville followed her, like a little puppy.

“Draco.” Harry offered the blond his seat. “You look. . .”

“Like hell. I know.” Draco directed the two boys with him to sit him down gently and then go stuff there faces. “Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle. Old friends of my father, they're just paying off a debt.” He explained.

Theodore made a sound rather like a laugh into his book.

“Think that's funny Nott? I wonder what your father will have to do to get back. . .” Draco glared at the other boy.

Theodore slammed his book, jumped to his feet and pointed his wand into Draco's face.