Chapter 17: Cunning Commencements

Deception is one of the most misunderstood concepts. One often believes deception is a synonym for lying, being underhanded, duplicity, double-dealing, fraud, so on and so forth. The errant viewpoint has a connotation more akin to a thief than an artist. Is not an actor a deceiver? Is not the artist's goal to deceive the viewer? It is oft that to be deceitful is to be a liar. This perception, this understanding is, however, wrong.

The art of deception is one of the most practical skills a burgeoning wizard will need. The importance of the ability to lie is not found in the actual act; rather, it is the ability to beguile and allow others to misunderstand events is where the true value of deception is found. Having the skill to deliver bald-faced lies as the truth, in a believable manner, is not in and of itself a bad thing. To be known as a liar, though, is a terrible thing. Deception is far greater than simply lying.

A young wizard must learn to hide their true emotions, purposefully mislead others, and be skilful in acting. The skill is valuable across almost all walks of life. For the politician, it is beyond crucial, in duelling, deceiving your opponent can allow you to strike on their mistake, in society, you can comport a specific image, and in your personal relationships, it can save you emotional pain.

Part of my success was my ability to cultivate a particular image. All one has to do is to simply look in the history books to learn of my legend. I am known for being cunning and for always paying back slights tenfold. I am known to be a genius practitioner of magic and a person to always be wary of. I have the image of being all-knowing and am said to be unflappable. Where the truth is to be found in those statements, few will ever know. Deception is slyness, it is cunning, it is chicanery, craftiness, dissembling, it is to artifice, it is to be Slytherin.

This was a strange evening. It isn't the fact that Harry is sitting in the Great Hall awaiting the opening-of-term feast that was strange, no, that was par for the course. A large part of it was where he was seated. Being located at the Hufflepuff table was strange . He felt like his equilibrium was miscalibrated. He'd spent countless hours eating and chatting in this hall over the years. And yet, here he was, preparing to do the same but everything felt so different. He wasn't in Gryffindor robes, he wasn't at the Gryffindor table, and then this evening's feast wasn't the norm, there was an air of expectancy, an air of excitement lingering that could not be dissipated.

This wasn't the sorting feast at the start of the year, with first years being brought in, paraded through the entire hall, with all the other pupils seated, and awaiting the traditional sorting. An experience that was harrowing for the wide-eyed first years.

No, this was a sorting feast but not the sorting feast. The night before classes resumed after Yule hols and it was weird. The old weathered sorting hat sat upon the simple wooden stool at the front of the hall, below the head table. This was a re-sorting feast, without the firsties all bunched up and nervous. There were nervous students but they were current students, students already wearing house colours.

Harry was sitting at the Hufflepuff table, beside Cedric Diggory and the two Triwizard Tournament Champions sat across from Susan Bones and her best friend Hannah Abbott. Harry hadn't expected to be seated across from two girls his age, given Cedric being older, he had expected to be sitting with friends of Cedric's that were his age.

The affable young man had originally invited him to do this back on the Yule Ball. Then, when he'd met with Madame Bones again, he had run into Susan and Hannah there. Amelia had met with just him at her actual home and then were joined by Susan and Hannah after their business was concluded. Harry wished that meeting had been more productive than being told they were still investigating and she would keep him updated when she could. Whether that was true or whether the Director of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement was unable to tell him anything, he wasn't fully sure. He was inclined to think she would let something slip to him but it was a just his gut feeling, no more.

The hall was the same, the food was probably the same but his status was different too. He wasn't a student at this time. He didn't have to be here at all. He could be sitting with the twins, Katie, Alicia and Angelina, or even his former close friends, but he wasn't. This was a different Harry Potter getting ready for what should promise to be an amusing resorting.

Albus Dumbledore stood and commanded the attention of the room. His presence dominating and his hand grasped on the lectern.

"Welcome back staff and students." He casts his eyes slowly, deliberately over the hall canvasing everyone with bright blue eyes. "As you are all well aware, tonight is a momentous occasion in the illustrious history of Hogwarts. Never has the student populace had the opportunity to freely request resorting." He paused allowing tension to build within the room.

"The Board of Governors set criteria to define who is, and who is not, eligible." Though his face was partially hidden behind his long beard, and thick white moustache, he looked like he was sucking on a lemon, not content in the least at this course of action. He bore his eyes at the Board of Governors, who were standing on the far wall, making it clear who pushed this upon him.

His gaze now turned and sought Harry out directly. His sour look turning to glint amusement. Not good.

Any major media event Harry normally was informed about. His friend in the press kept him updated. She was not here. She had not informed him. Those few reporters that were here were not the ones he enjoyed taking questions from. This was a setup.

"Before we begin the alphabetical roll call of all those eligible for re-sorting to take their turn under the hat, I would like to highlight a returned student to our school." Dumbledore's line of sight made it abundantly clear who he was talking about, his gaze being followed so the entire hall was looking at Harry Potter.

"Harry Potter will be around our school and working with our faculty once more, attending classes as he wishes. And on behalf of the Board, we'd invite you, Harry, to begin our re-sorting this evening." When his amplified voice ended, he began clapping and soon the crowd joined in.

Harry stared back at Dumbledore, barely resisting his want to scowl. He had two options now. Make a scene or go along with it. He hesitated as he rolled the decision over and over in his head. Coming to a decision, he got to his feet and made his way to the stool. The hat had listened to him before and hopefully, it would now.

Harry kept his head held high and focus singularly on the hat and stool before him. The pressure of being the centre of attention no longer weighed on him as it once did. If he could dance with Natalia and steal the show with every eye upon him, he could sit quietly under an old hat.

He took the hat off the stool and turned around. Harry sat down on it and then placed the Sorting Hat on his head.

" My, my, isn't this a wondrous event. Two sortings… Are you willing to take my original advice this time or shall I tediously go through your memories again to sort once as I do for all eleven-year-olds?" The hat had no spoken aloud, it was talking directly to him within his mind.

" I'd like to request something from you first if you don't mind." Harry started, hoping his plan would come to fruition.

" And what foolishness would you request of me? I already put you where you wanted, against my better judgement." The hat snarked back at his request.

Harry ignored the waspish response and kept with his plan. " I was wondering, seeing as I'm not a student currently if you could withhold announcing my sorting until I am back next year if I'll even be back next year."

" And what are you doing that has you no longer as a student here? If you aren't a student, I shouldn't have a connection with you and I can feel that I have one with you…"

" Take a look, you said you could see my memories."

" Hmm… hmmm. My, my, you have been busy."

It was an off sensation, his occlumency tutelage could sense there was some sort of intrusion but it didn't feel like what he'd read about. If he could allocate the feeling to some sort of specific action, it felt more like clothes shopping in a department store. Where someone was walking through the store and running their fingers over all the racked clothing. They weren't removing or altering anything, just merely coming into contact with everything.

He waited as the hat continued to hum and haw within his mind.

" You are one of the few to ever gain access to Salazar's greatest work." The hat said after a time.

" Was the last Tom Riddle?" Harry had no idea how the hat might know the answer but the fact it was aware others had gained access to the hidden chambers made him ask.

" Riddle, yes he was one of them but he has been revoked. You are the last of them being both alive and allowed within." The hat informed him.

" How could one's access be revoked? Isn't is just necessary to open things up in parseltongue?"

The hat scoffed at him. " The chamber is Slytherin's greatest work, on the same level as Rowena's famed runic room. It is not simple parseltongue but a master's work of enchanting, charms, runes, wards, and most impressively soul magic."

" Soul magic?" Harry hadn't heard of that before and immediately wondered what it was.

" Yes, soul magic, magic pertaining to the soul." He insultingly responded. " You can be revoked if you are no longer deemed to be worthy of his chamber and the knowledge contained within."

" What types of things could deem me unworthy?" Harry wondered within his mind.

" What made you worthy to begin with?" The hat countered immediately.

Harry sat back slightly, the questioned hadn't occurred to him. He was glad he had only slightly slipped back or he'd landed his arse on the hard stone floor. He readjusted to be more stable on the small stool.

" Honestly, I am not sure why I was deemed worthy to learn," Harry responded, silently imploring the ancient artefact to continue revealing information he had no way to know.

" It won't matter if I tell you. If you are deemed unworthy, you lose more than just access to the fabled chamber. Salazar still controls his domain from beyond the grave. I can still feel and sense an echo of him just as I can sense you have a connection to the school. You're Salazar's apprentice, a potential heir to his legacy, one of many over the years to be afforded the opportunity. But, and this is an explicit warning, none have ever become his heir. All have fallen short and many with brutal consequences."

The ominous warning did not ring hollow within his mind. Harry was already wary of the chamber. It was too convenient, the dragon ritual with the three fire-breathing reptiles arriving for the First Task was far too much of a coincidence. He already felt watched, judged, within the Chamber and now he had good reason to have always felt that. There was a mechanism of control, a way to determine if he was worthy or not.

" The boy who wanted anything but Slytherin is now walking the path to try and become his heir, how ironic." It snidely remarked.

" Hey, you try and be an eleven year old having just found out about magic then being told a Slytherin alumnus killed your parents and is evil incarnate and, as if that wasn't enough, meet Draco Malfoy and see him sorted there. Anything but there was the only logical response to that sequence of events."

The hat hummed and hawed within his mind again, digesting the words before responding to Harry. " The founders set criteria I am to follow. Young Mr. Malfoy does not belong in Slytherin on his personality alone… The house has all the wrong kind of students to what Slytherin himself would have preferred…" The thought was left incomplete as the hat trailed off in his words.

" What kind of rules? Could you consider me for houses other than Gryffindor or Slytherin?"

The sorting hat was on Harry's head and he could not see it but he, just now, had the distinct impression it was smiling benignly at him. " I look to sort the individual first and foremost. Then restrictions are placed upon me. You were to be sorted into Slytherin or Gryffindor as the first options. Had either of those not been satisfactory and you had made a major push for one of the other two houses you could have been sorted into either of them."

That confused Harry. He had to ask, " Why just those two options?" It didn't make sense to him.

" Lineage is incredibly important to wizarding society. Much of the importance has been lost over time but I am a relic from the past. Families requested for lineage sortings to be a part of my enchantments. They wanted their descendants to take after a specific founder, whether that is being academically inclined or abrasively martial for example. Thus, you are the descendants of the Potters who have traditionally been sorted into Gryffindor and with your grandmother being a Black and therefore historically a Slytherin."

" So everyone is presorted by their lineage?" That kind of defeats the purpose of sorting if your family name automatically distributed you to a specific Hogwarts House.

The hat chuckled. " It is far more complex but it is one of the stronger variables used to determine houses. Sirius Black was sorted into the antithesis of Slytherin, Gryffindor."

" Why was he sorted differently?" Harry was rather curious about what the hat might give as a reason and surprised the hat was bringing up another person's sorting specifically.

" You are the Black Regent and as such, entitled to certain information of members of the Black and Potter families. Sirius was like yourself, he denied his chance at being sorted there adamantly." The hat paused for a second before continuing. " Every student who puts me on can be sorted to any house. It is far more likely they will follow their lineage than where they may be sorted. Children are impressionable and who they are at eleven is not who they will be at seventeen. Your friends and experiences at the school nurture who you become." The hat's voice was more solemn within his mind, more business-like.

" Was that a warning for myself?"

" Perceptive, I see. Be wary of your path. All that have walked it have fallen, some further than others. I told you you could be great, it's all here in your head. I told you Slytherin would help you on the way to greatness and yet you chose Gryffindor. Do not forget that decision, do not lose yourself… Heh, after all these years it could be the heart of a Gryffindor that makes the cut…" The hat mused within his mind, refusing to stop even to listen to Harry's questioning what he meant, laughing instead.

Harry waited for the cackling to stop to ask his question, again, " What do you mean 'don't forget my decision and the heart of a Gryffindor'? Stop being so cryptic and tell me!"

The hat cackled a few seconds more. " Impudent brat, that is for me to know and you to find out. It will make sense in the end, if you get that far."

Harry sighed in disappointment. Straight answers were too much to ask for. Everything had to be a damn mystery, though this conversation had been enlightening.

" What shall we do with you, Harry Potter? Are you going to request somewhere specific or listen to my decision this time?" The tone was not impolite this time, far more amused than anything.

" Will you accept my request, to not announce it?" The hat had not answered Harry on that yet.

" Tempting… and you are Salazar's apprentice… not a student. Yes, yes, I will accept if you allow me to select your Hogwarts House." The hat's voice turned feral here, "There are no rules for re-sorting. It's never been done and I can do as I please." Whether Harry imaged evil cackling or it was just assumed that hat had done it he didn't know. The surprise must show on his face as he felt himself blink four times in rapid succession.

" Will you tell me which house you will place me in before you decide?" Harry asked the too-pleased hat.

" No," Harry cringed at the unfavourable answer.

Would he want to leave Gryffindor? Sure, things with him and Ron seemed unfixable, in the short term at least. Seamus and Dean were alright blokes but they weren't really friends. Neville… he seemed like a good guy. In short spurts, he seemed to break out of his shell and come alive but it was so infrequent. He could be a good friend or too shy to be a good candidate for a close friend.

Slytherin, nope, not happening. He wouldn't be a good fit with Draco, the quiet and just as sick in the head Theodore Nott. Draco's bookends were obviously not persons of interest to him and that left Blaise who was a blood purist himself and son of a known murderess.

Hufflepuff had Ernie Macmillan, Justin Finch-Fletchley, Wayne Hopkins, Roger Malone, Kevin Entwhistle, Hannah Abbott, Susan Bones, and Megan Jones. Honestly, he really didn't know any of them. They were always sociable and polite in classes but he had never gotten to know them. He could pick them out by name and sight but the most interaction he really had with any of them, outside of class, was the past week with Hannah and Susan after meeting with Madame Bones.

Ravenclaw was almost as hopeless for him to make an educated opinion on. Terry Boot, Michael Corner, Anthony Goldstein, Stephen Cornfoot, Oliver Rivers, Padma Patil, Lisa Turpin, Su Li. None of them was he really anything more than an acquaintance with. Ravenclaw was a house he had assumed he would never fit into. He wasn't the studious type. Well, he wasn't until he started learning from Salazar Slytherin. Now he could almost see himself as a natural fit there. Working away quietly on his work and wanting to discuss it with people. It was rather… odd.

That didn't help his predicament. For legacy reasons, he could understand wanting to be a Slytherin if he was able to walk the path the hat was warning him about. Harry had some thoughts on to what may have happened to some of the predecessors but they were nothing more than conjecture at this point in time. For social and political factors, Slytherin just seemed plain awful. That was before even considering his Head of House, the position of having direct authority over him, would be held by Snape, a man who loathed him for simply breathing.

No, Slytherin was still not an option. Not unless his tutelage became official. Even then, only if it became public knowledge would there be no downside. Gryffindor would still be good from a quidditch perspective. Fifth year with the team just needing to replace Wood, though they were hardly overpoweringly dominant.

Hufflepuff would have an opening with Cedric leaving and their quidditch team was surprisingly decent. Susan and Hannah were rather nice and he had no qualms formulating reasons to spend time around them. The guys had always seemed decent enough and worst case, he could spend time with just the girls. That just left Ravenclaw and honestly, he'd be fine there. Chang was their seeker but she was a good chaser… Realistically, he could make any of them work, some were just more advantageous than others.

The other aspect he was mulling over was he may simply choose not to return to Hogwarts. He could attend another school or finish it somewhere else. There was little reason he had to come back to Hogwarts. Even Durmstrang could be a possibility. A day student like Natalia seemed somewhat appealing.

" As amusing as your thoughts are there are other students for me to re-sort." The hat broke into his inner thoughts.

" All right, I'll take your deal. You sort me but don't announce it and I'll go wherever you want as long as you keep silent. Oh! One more thing, will you have to announce it next or will I, like, have to do this again?" Not that talking to the hat had been anything but a boon tonight. Knowledge on the Chamber of Secrets was pretty close to priceless for him. Who knew if the cryptic would be useful too.

" No, when you wear your own Hogwarts uniform it will automatically be your Houses' colours. You don't ever buy a Gryffindor uniform, do you?"

Harry mentally smacked himself for not having realized that. Everyone got fitted for Hogwarts robes but nobody ever bought one specific to their house. He'd never realized that…

" Thanks for the chat, Hat. Anything else you can tell me about Salazar, my apprenticeship or the Chamber of Secrets?" He doubted it but why not ask.

" No, and good luck, Harry Potter. You will need it."

Better be…. The sorting hat bellowed out the two words and then trailed off. Shutting its mouth and going silent to the confusion of the assembled persons.

Harry took off the hat and placed it back on the stool. He gave the headmaster a genuine smile and was about to turn and walk back to his seat at the Hufflepuff table when he saw the moving lips on the Deputy Headmistress beside Harry.

"Mister Potter where were you sorted? Why didn't the hat announce it?" She was clearly distraught at such an odd occurrence. The hat had successfully trolled the collective audience with its build-up and following silence.

"Ah, well, you see, the Sorting Hat didn't announce it because I'm not a student right now and it feared announcing whether I was re-sorted or not may sway the opinions of those to come. So, everyone can find out if or when I come back as a Hogwarts student," he added the last part in a too cheery manner. He couldn't help himself, it felt great to have sprung whomever's plan it was to put him on the spot like this in front of those assembled in the hall.

"Do you know?" She asked him, concern shining in her eyes. Whether that was for the possibility of losing her seeker or a valued and cherished student Harry wasn't sure. It could have possibly been concern for having her beloved school made a mockery of again. The tightened lips formed a thin line displeased with this situation.

"Of course I do, we did talk in my head." He responded somewhat flippantly, the genuine smile trying to turn into a smirk against Harry's will. He didn't want to show his open pleasure, more nonchalance like this was always what he expected would happen.

He turned and stepped forward, once, to return to his previous seat when McGonagall asked another question. "Did you get re-sorted?"

A large grin sprouted on his face, he couldn't hide his glee when he answered, "Now that would be telling and where's the fun in that?" He practically floated back to his seat he felt so high on happiness from the results. Getting one over on Dumbledore was the icing on the cake but the real substance was the lead he had gotten on the Chamber. Soul magic. He'd never heard of it and there was an entirely new branch of magic to research.

The buildup to what many had assumed would be a great reshuffling was rather minimal. Very few students were allowed to be submitted for re-sorting and a handful of those had been sorted back to where they had expected to leave. Padma Patil had been resorted into Gryffindor along with Luna Lovegood, both leaving Ravenclaw. A number of students had left Slytherin leaving the house far more desolate than the other three. Lily Moon and Blaise Zabini had joined Ravenclaw and Tracy Davis was now a Gryffindor, surprising most when it was announced.

There were a few changes in every year with most of those approved were leaving Ravenclaw and Slytherin. If the whispers at the Hufflepuff table were to be believed there were multiple perpetrators of bullying punished in Ravenclaw and even more in Slytherin. The requirements for re-sorting were essentially for those with safety issues, like bullying and harassment. While seemingly countless students had applied to be re-sorted very few were allowed. Given the greater focus of comradery within the Lions and Badgers, it explained why Gryffindor and Hufflepuff had few, if any, resorting requests approved.

The sorting which had captured his attention the most was the direct result of his dinner at the Burrow. Fred and George were ecstatic with how it went down, no doubt the result of their betting pool. Though Harry wasn't quite sure of all the various types of bets they had taken in, the twin looks of glee evidenced how well they must have done. The two had talked up the reason that some males wanted to be sorted into Slytherin, namely, Daphne Greengrass.

While Harry didn't know the brown-haired girl at all, he was surprised when her name came up for donning the Sorting Hat. In any of the classes Gryffindor and Slytherin had shared she had sat on the Slytherin side, and always on the fringes. From what he remembered she'd kept to herself, and outside of classes and the Great Hall, he only ever saw her when he accompanied Hermione to the library. At least, that was what he could recall from what his spotty recollections recalled.

Looking almost as happy as the Twins, was the girl in question. Daphne had practically bounced as she skipped from the sorting stool to the Hufflepuff table while the collective students sat there with lowered jaws. She swiftly sat between Susan and Hannah, the two had made space and once she was seated they hugged the beaming Miss Greengrass.

"Told you I'd be here this time," Daphne chirped at her two friends. Susan and Hannah sandwiched her in a two-sided hug and squealed in excitement.

With wide eyes, Harry looked at Cedric, who was as bewildered at Harry was. "Did you knew they were friends?" Cedric whispered at him.

Harry shook his head, not expecting to see this sight before him.

"Have you met Daphne before Harry, Cedric?" A beaming Susan asked him.

He shook his head again, still not sure what to make of this.

He'd just had started getting to know Susan over the break and had no idea she was friends with the enigmatic former Slytherin.

"I, uh, haven't." He found his voice and turned to locked eyes with Daphne after he had responded to Susan's inquiry. "It's nice to meet you." He told her and gave her a pleasant smile.

"Nice to meet you as well, Harry." She shot him a warm look. "It's not like I could have before without having to hear Pansy's shrill shrieking about consorting with Gryffindors" She brought both of her hands to her cheeks and with a lowered jaw gasped in mock indignation. "Then her shrieking," Daphne shuddered theatrically, "would have brought along darling Draco and we'd hear another rendition of ' My Father will hear about this…' ."

Seeing the puzzled look on Cedric's face she added a couple of examples. "You know, like when Moody turned him into a ferret for trying to curse Harry in the back," she paused and grinned at Harry, "' my father will hear about this!" Daphne, Susan and Hannah all gleefully chanted at the same time. The three dissolved into a fit of giggles after their synchronized words.

Cedric looked at Harry, the look imploring him to explain but before Harry could say anything Hannah broke back in. "Potter made the quidditch team and is allowed to have his own broom!" She said in a pretty passable Draco impression, with whiny anger and outrage at the appropriate levels. " My Father will hear about this! " The three girls said the line in unison again.

"Ooo ooo, me next, me next!" Susan said bouncing in her seat. "That oaf, Hagrid, is teaching Care of Magical Creatures! My Father will hear about this! " Again all three said the familiar line. Harry couldn't help but laugh at their antics. He'd actually heard that line from Malfoy before.

"My turn again!" Daphne said exuberantly, revelling in her resorting. "Dumbledore gave his golden boy," she sneered the nickname in a very well done Draco impression, "the House cup, again, this year! My Father will hear about this!" More than one Hufflepuff joined the trio of girls this time, Harry even heard Cedric mumble it out loud.

"The plant tried to bite my finger off! My Father will hear about this!" Hannah gave the premise for the repeated rendition that more of the table seemed to enjoy joining in.

"The moving staircase tripped me! My Father will hear about this!"

"Snape couldn't get me out of detention! My Father will hear about this!"

"Potter got the snitch again! My Father will hear about this!"

Susan, Hannah and Daphne spoke in turn, the three girls were rather practised at reciting the various quotidian reasons for Draco exclaiming why he needed his daddy's help. With those lines, the three girls were lost they were lost in a fit of giggles again.

Cedric had glanced around and saw the amount of attention it was drawing. "Ah, I get it now. I don't have much to do with Draco Malfoy but it seems you all do." He looked around at all the fourth years amused by their antics.

With a mischievous smirk, Cedric made sure to introduce himself to the newest Hufflepuff. "Welcome to Hufflepuff, it's nice to meet you, Daphne Greengrass. I'm Cedric Diggory."

"Shut it, Cedric, we all know you know me," Daphne said a little exasperated at the older boy.

"Not everyone, it seems Harry here didn't know you're best friends with Susan and Hannah outside of Hogwarts," he slung his arm around Harry's shoulder. "Thought I'd try and mess with him a little but you ruin all my fun!" He fake pouted at her.

The group must have missed whatever came after the sorting as food suddenly appeared in front of them. Apparently, none of them had noticed the headmaster had spoken.

The arrival of the food brought a lull in the conversation. It left time for Harry to be introspective. He'd found it was different around the Hufflepuff table but it was a nice different. He had enjoyed his time with Susan and Hannah, after meeting with Director Bones, and now spending more time them was great too. Harry wondered why he had never branched out before. There were lots of great people within the school beyond Gryffindor.

Had he really been so insulated in Gryffindor? Why had he always spent time with only Ron and Hermione, and really just them? Why hadn't he bothered even sitting with people from other classes? He'd never even tried studying with anyone else, but to be fair, he rarely had studied at all without Hermione nagging him. It's odd how stepping back can make things so clear. In all his time in Gryffindor, he'd been an idiot. There was so much more than coasting through classes, pissing away time playing gobstones, losing at chess to Ron, and playing quidditch.

Harry's ruminations were abruptly ended. He felt something. It was magic? A spell? A ward? A fleeting moment of reclusivity, of privacy? It was hard to describe, it had just given him a feeling for a fraction of a second. He'd been trying to feel more but it was indistinguishable from Hogwarts' ambient magic.

After his night with Fleur, he had returned to the Hogwarts wards and been able to more competently pick out just what the wards had felt like. The sense of being home, which he always had on the carriage ride back to the castle, was the nostalgic feeling he had always connected with being at Hogwarts. It was that which he could feel now. Whatever he had felt had been drowned out by the castle, a feeling he truly loved.

He looked around, scrutinizing those around him, looking to see if someone had cast magic on him. His eyes met Susan's and he saw her elbow was protracted from her body. She moved her arm back to a casual position and addressed his unasked question.

"I cast a privacy spell, on the three of us, you and Cedric." She headed off the second question before he could do more than part his lips, "It will just keep our conversation private from everyone else while making it seem like it's all normal to those outside the spell." She beamed the last part, "Auntie taught me, we all know it too, maybe if you're good, I'll teach it to you too."

Harry nodded his head and Susan queued up the point of casting the spell.

"So Harry, are you going to tell us where the hat sorted you?" She asked batting her eyelashes at him, her bottom lip protruded, chin tucked down towards her chest, and her eyes as big and sad as she could make them.

Rolling his eyes at her antics Harry replied quickly, "Sure". He then continued on eating, working on emptying his plate as if that was the final word of his response. An elbow from Cedric forced him to look back up. Everyone around was staring at him. Thoroughly enjoying this, he feigned naivety. "What?" He did his best to keep up the facade and thought it was must have been convincing given the incredulous looks he was receiving.

"What do you mean what?! Tell us where you got sorted, you just said you would!" Susan demanded frustrated at the green-eyed boy's obliviousness.

"Sure," he replied again. He looked back down at his plate and forked some of his potatoes into his mouth. He was still acting as if he was clueless and so he slowly chewed his food, with his mouth closed, he wasn't Ron, and looked back up at the trio of girls across from him.

"Stop messing with Susan, Potter. You don't want to see a Bones angry." Daphne advised him, clearly not convinced by his act if her unimpressed posture with crossed arms was anything to go by.

Harry sighed in defeat and put down his cutlery. "You're right, I did say I'd tell you." He addressed a visibly calming Susan, Hannah was patting her back in a conciliatory manner trying to help defuse the situation. "But I didn't say when I'd tell you." A megawatt smirk electrified across his lips. He couldn't help it. Teasing pretty girls was a fantastic habit of his now!

The collective groans were music to Harry's ears, even if the quartet was wholly unimpressed with him. He made a mistake glancing down at his food because he dropped his eyes down and failed to notice Daphne throwing her dinner bun at him. The bun sailed out of her hand and was aimed true. It hit him on his forehead.

"Hey!" He cried indignantly, "What was that for?!" A smirking Daphne the obvious culprit with her bookends both having a hand covering their mouth, poorly stifling their laughter.

"You're being a prat to my friend. You'd better expect retribution for it." Daphne glowered at him through her humorous enjoyment of what she'd just done. Her false frustration gave way to levity. "Merlin it feels good to not be such a stick in the mud." She said aloud. "Hufflepuff is great!"

Harry smiled, forgetting he should be upset for being hit in the head by a buttered dinner roll. He could well imagine it wouldn't have been all that much fun with the snakes. But, didn't she have any friends there? He voiced his thoughts, asking her, "Didn't you have some friends that you might miss in Slytherin?" He questioned carefully, he didn't want another dinner bun thrown at him! Starting a food fight at the Hufflepuff table on his first time there wasn't really in his plans.

Daphne looked at him forlornly. "Not really, Tracey and I got on but we both kept to ourselves, we were friends because who else were we to spend time with? Really, the only other option was Pansy, and ewwwww . Moon and Bulstrode are close, their families spend a lot of time together so my options were to be friends with Tracey or be a part of the Malfoy fawners, not much of a choice there."

Like him and Neville then. When all the other guys were busy they'd get on together just fine as friends but they really didn't have anything in common. He could well imagine if he was stuck around prats and Neville he'd seem chummy with Neville too.

"Are you telling me you don't dream of slicked-back blonde-haired tykes every day like Pansy wants? I mean can you imagine ' My Grandfather will hear about this' ." Susan barely contained her snickering before getting her teasing comment out of her mouth.

Daphne immediately rounded on her friend, her shoulders squaring up to her, and brought her free arm to heavily slap her friend on her arm. "Don't you ever mention anything like that! That's- that's so, so gross! Eww! Eww! Eww! A thousand times EWWWWWW!"

Hannah had dissolved into fits of laughter with Susan no better off. Daphne slapped Susan one, two, and then a third time in quick succession on her shoulder, though her hits sounded loud they were not actually vicious in the least. "I'll get you for that! Just you wait, pigtails," she said with a significant look at Susan, "and you, brownie," she shifted her glare to Hannah as she spoke of the chocolate confection.

Susan had immediately paled when she'd heard that nickname and Hannah had quickly followed suit herself, when that name was mentioned.

"We- we d- don't need to get into this now goldilocks ." Hannah retorted, finding strength in her vocal cords as the sentence went on.

All three gave each other quick look over and, somehow, they simultaneously came to a decision on a peaceful end to the conversation. None wishing to escalate further.

The names confused Harry. Daphne had darker brown hair, not gold, nor blonde. Why would she have a nickname of goldilocks? Susan, he didn't think he'd ever seen in pigtails. She had auburn-red hair that flowed down past her shoulders but he didn't think it had ever been in pigtails at Hogwarts, though he could have simply been oblivious to it. Hannah, who had the blonde hair was called brownie? Did it have to do with the food?

Cedric wasn't asking and there was no way Harry was going to get involved in that. He decided it was best to get on with dinner and as he picked up his cutlery again. After a few bites where he was able to just eat his dinner in peace, Cedric pulled him back into the conversation.

"So, are you really not going to tell anyone if you were re-sorted or not?" he asked an eyebrow raised sceptically.

Harry shrugged. "I don't plan on it. Where's the fun in telling?" He smirked at the older boy as he responded.

"Don't be like that Harry, we want you here, in Hufflepuff! Wouldn't you want to spend time with all of us?" Susan asked gesturing to her two friends.

"Ya, what more could you want? A blonde, a brunette and a redhead." Susan jokingly added in with a wink and a sultry voice.

Harry blinked and shook his head. He might enjoy teasing pretty girls but he was learning there were times keeping your mouth shut was a very valuable skill. He shook his head and made it clear he's not getting anywhere near that conversation.

"You really won't tell us?" Hannah asked putting on her best cute pouty face.

Harry smiled softly. He leaned forward and kept his head level. The three girls and Cedric mirrored his action, they leaned in, as if a secret was about to be shared. When he had their full attention he gave them all a serious glance. Staring directly at Susan Harry enunciates the first letter, for three whole seconds, "Nope", he stated being sure to pop the p in an overly obnoxious manner.

Cedric didn't miss a beat bumping him with his elbow. "Arse." He stated without any real heat. Harry just grinned back at him, no longer leaning forward but slightly back on the bench seat.

"Is that how you want to play it, Potter?" Daphne asked dangerously.

"Yep," he replied, once more exaggerating the letter.

"Ooh, you're screwed, anytime Daphne gets that look, you're in for it, she's downright dangerous," Hannah said and covered her mouth with her hand as Daphne momentarily shifted her glare to her.

"So you don't want to tell us about your sorting, you wish to tease us about it." She arched her eyebrows with a vicious look on her face. "How about we talk about something less comfortable, how are things with you and Natalia, Regent Black?"

The surprise was obvious to all that were looking at Harry. "W- wh- what? How do you know about that?" Harry demanded to know after failing to hide his astonishment, he thought nobody would really know of that.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" Daphne smugly retorted.

Harry ignored the gasps and whispered questions from the two other females and the other male within their privacy protected spell. He focused on Daphne trying to figure out how she could know. Of the Black family members left Bellatrix was in Azkaban, Andromeda was disowned, presumably unaware, Sirius wouldn't have spoken to her, which left Narcissa Malfoy and Madame Lacroix.

"You found out from the Malfoys?" He questioned as the answer dawned on him.

"No, they suspected but you have just confirmed," she told him excessively satisfied with herself.

Harry groaned, he'd been played. There was a reason she was initially sorted in Slytherin, he mused. He focused back on the four people around him and waited for the inevitable question.

Susan tepidly asked the question the others were wanting to, "You're a Black, Harry?"

"Daphne seems to know, why don't you tell them how you know and what you know." Harry didn't want to get caught up in revealing extra information, again, if he could help it. Better to get to hear from Daphne what she knows, or deduced, than provide his own info.

She gave him an apathetic shrug, "Sure."

"Harry's grandmother was Dorea Black. Sister to Arcturus Black, the last actual Head of the Black family, his son was thought to have been but he was never more than acting on behalf of the Black family."

Harry watched Susan, Hannah and Cedric, their reactions were a little guarded, like they were unsure of what to take of it. Even now the Black name meant something.

Daphne continued unaware of Harry's internal thoughts, "Those who are aware of the history of the Lacroix Ballet Academy would know they have always been supported by three families: Black, Delacour and Pavlov. Given Harry personally learned from Madame Lacroix, and came to the Yule Ball with Natalia Pavlova, it is an easy assumption he is connected to the Black family."

She stopped and let her words sink in. She daintily ate a little more of her dinner, during the pause, before continuing, "But that isn't quite enough to connect him to being the Black Regent." She said allowing a little suspense again, "But when you add Drivelling Draco into the mix you get to hear about how ' father wasn't able to make the french frog Lacroix teach him how to dance because he's not a full Black but she'd teach a half-blood like Potter'. This meant that Draco wasn't recognized as a Black and she wouldn't teach Narcissa Black's children so she wouldn't teach Dorea Black's grandchild unless he was recognized by the Black family as a Black. Naturally, following the inheritance norms that would make Harry ineligible to be the Head of the Black Family but he could be a Regent. Am I right, Regent Black?" She asked matter of factly.

Harry sighed, "Yes," he ran his hand through his hair, "Arcturus recognized me as a Black and ensured none of the other males that could try and claim the role of headship were allowed to. Leaving me as a Black in name, eligible to be the regent."

"Oh don't think you're getting off that easy," Daphne smirked at him.

"Huh?" Harry wasn't sure what else she could be going on about here.

"You didn't forget about the other part of my question did you?" She asked innocently. "Have the Pavlov's made their play for their youngest to birth the Black Heir? As the Regent and a Black, you could designate a child as a Black at birth and they could be the next head of the family."

Harry narrowed his eyes at her as she added in one final shot.

"I'm sure she's not the only one that would scheme for that right? The Black name still has power. I'd imagine there could be multiple girls that would vie for a spot in the Potter and Black families, and between the two, you're a burgeoning political power. Aren't I right, ' arry ?" She added a french accent to his name and glanced at the Ravenclaw table right after saying it, towards the Beauxbatons Champion.

Harry was less than impressed by the insinuation. One salient thought ripped through to the forefront. Hannah was right., Daphne is dangerous.