Chapter 3: Chapter 3: A Great Start to the Year
The first thought in Harry's mind when he saw the room was that it was smaller than last year. Significantly so, from what he could remember.
Someone had tampered with his room assignment. Harry had made sure to reserve the largest room available for their year. In fact, he had done so since his first year. It was one of the few privileges that Harry took advantage of once he reinforced that he wasn't a half-blood that would turn into a bootlicker.
After living in a cupboard for the majority of his life, Harry hated the idea of living in a small room. Even more than that, the fact that someone had the gall to downgrade his living space enraged him. It was like all the work Harry had done to better his life could be taken away by the whim of some little pureblood shite.
Harry stood at the doorway as he tried to quash his rapidly growing anger. Even if he felt it was justified, nothing good would come from him flying off the handle.
The only ones that had the power to change the room assignments were the Prefects. Technically, Snape also had the power, but no matter how petty the man was, this was not something he would do. That left Draco Malfoy and Pansy Parkinson.
The former was the boy that called Harry a filthy half-blood. The one that woke him up to the reality of what House Slytherin really was.
Malfoy also happened to be the one that continually tried to fuck with Harry, no matter how unsuccessful his previous attempts were. However, it looked like it finally succeeded. The fact that Malfoy had the guts to do this meant there was something new that gave him confidence.
Harry exhaled slowly and stepped into the room after closing the door behind him. The trunk levitating behind him slammed onto the floor loudly as Harry walked over to the bed.
The looks Harry had gotten when he entered the common room from Malfoy and his cronies suddenly made much more sense. That lot generally tried to pretend like Harry didn't exist since they could do nothing to him.
Harry was thankful that he had a habit of skipping the sorting in the past. It gave him the opportunity to bring himself under control so Malfoy wouldn't be blasted into smithereens on instinct. Plus, Harry needed to come up with a plan of action. This slight couldn't be left unanswered.
Harry's ears perked up when he heard a door being closed. He quickly strode out of the room to see Nott walking to the common room. After hastily sealing the door behind him, Harry followed his new neighbor.
"Nott!" Harry said with a raised voice, "I have something to ask you."
Harry ignored that Nott looked like he'd rather be anywhere but here.
"I have to head to the great hall. I don't have much time to waste."
For Harry, that was more telling than any answer Nott might give him. The boy was a loner, not being part of Malfoy's group and not quite fitting in with the other purebloods. When Harry had spoken to Nott in the past, he was eager to make the conversation last as long as possible, most likely keen to socialize with someone he didn't view below his station.
"You don't?" Harry asked casually, "Shame. You'll have to make time, I'm afraid. Tell me. What has Malfoy been up to?"
"I don't know," Theodore walked back to make some space between them, "Just stay out of his way this year. I can't be seen talking to you. Sorry."
Harry didn't bother to stop Nott from speed-walking away from him. He was busy being frustrated about being surprised by what was happening. Even Nott of all people refused to talk to him. For Harry, that meant far more significant issues were at hand.
His sources among the purebloods stayed silent about this, which meant they saw no more need for his services. Harry didn't blame them but was more concerned about what caused it.
Since Greengrass seemed to have no hesitation with staying in contact, this could be quickly patched up with her help, but that would give the girl far too much power over him. It would be terrifying for Harry to fall into her clutches.
"Just when I thought it was going great, everything went to shite. A perfect way to start the year," Harry muttered as he made his way to the common room. There wasn't much point staying behind to make any sort of plans. How could Harry do that when he wasn't even sure what had happened. This was more than Malfoy being a prick like usual.
The common room was much less packed than before, with most students leaving for the sorting. Luckily, Zabini was his antisocial self and was brooding in front of the fireplace.
Harry sat in the armchair next to him and greeted, "Zabini."
"Potter."
"Why does Nott look terrified to speak to me?"
Harry was confused when Zabini looked at him like he was an idiot. He quickly looked through his memories to see if there was something that he had missed, but nothing stood out.
"Are you asking this for free?"
"What do you want in return?" Harry was prepared to make a deal for his own peace of mind.
"Tell me what I want to know about Daphne."
Harry could feel from Zabini's reaction that this wouldn't be a fair trade, but he was more than willing to take a loss just so he wouldn't be at a disadvantage when he went to the great hall. The problem was that a contract couldn't be made right now. Harry had no desire to occupy the hospital bed,
"That I can't do," Harry made to stand up, "I'm sure there are others that could help me."
"Wait," Blaise stopped him from leaving, "Give me a larger discount. Ten percent, and we have a deal."
"Done," Harry was curious about how worthless this information was for Zabini to ask so little.
"It's his return. With who your parents are, is this a surprise?"
Harry blinked, wondering if his intelligence had fallen recently. Harry had been so immersed in his life at Hogwarts that he didn't consider that a seismic change in the world outside would affect it. The return of the Dark Lord would definitely qualify.
"That's the reason?" Harry did his best to sound unaffected, "How disappointing. What about you? Why are you not like Nott?"
"Mother says she has already prepared to return to Italy if things are out of control."
Harry gave a mental nod to the infamous Mrs. Zabini. Killing multiple husbands without getting caught must require some amount of brainpower. Having a contingency when everything went to shite was smart.
"Good to hear, Zabini," Harry said as he got up, "Have the galleons ready tomorrow, and I'll tell you what you want to hear about Daphne."
As he left the common room, Harry wondered how the seating was arranged at the Slytherin table. He usually had a seat reserved between year-mates with equal 'standing.' That simply meant that Harry was grouped together with a bunch of arrogant purebloods.
There was no doubt that had been changed without notice. If it hadn't been mandatory to sit with the house they belonged to for the sorting, Harry could have easily avoided embarrassment by sitting with his 'friends' in Ravenclaw. It looked like he would have no choice but to be demoted to sit at the end with the other rejects of Slytherin.
Harry quickly accepted the new reality, but that didn't mean there weren't thoughts of revenge brewing in his mind. His only solace was that his business in the other houses wasn't affected at all. Slytherin was lost for now, but that wouldn't last forever.
His housemates had forgotten that Voldemort wasn't in Hogwarts to protect them.
Harry's green eyes flashed with rage before it was quickly extinguished as he stepped into the noisy great hall, leaving no trace that it had ever existed.
As Harry anticipated, he immediately observed that all the seats in his usual seating area were occupied.
He disregarded the onlookers eagerly watching him in anticipation of a performance, and instead, he fixed his gaze unemotionally on Malfoy. The expression on the blonde's face made a tiny part of Harry contemplate throwing caution to the wind and drawing his wand.
Of course, Harry didn't do that. He moved to walk over to the end where the fifth-year rejects were seated, or rather, that was his intention.
"Potter!"
Harry smoothly changed his destination back to his usual seating area. The safe choice was to ignore the call, but he was curious about what Greengrass had to say. They generally didn't have much contact in public.
He noticed that Starkey, the boy next to Greengrass, conveniently left his seat as Harry walked up to them.
"I forgot about Blaise. I'll be back in a bit."
Harry raised an eyebrow at what Starkey said before Daphne motioned to the newly emptied seat. He sat down without hesitation and started to fill his plate with food.
"Thank you," Daphne commented as she watched Harry unashamedly dig in, "That's what you should say."
"Really? You did this out of the goodness of your heart?"
"Whether I did or not shouldn't matter, Potter. It's what the properly civilized folks would do."
Harry hummed as he snuck glances at Malfoy. He seemed enraged that Greengrass saved him from embarrassment if the expressive motions of the blonde's hands were anything to go by. The cronies around Malfoy were nodding their heads like the good little bootlickers they were.
"So," Harry turned his attention back to Greengrass, "What are you up to? You've made yourself quite the target."
"Me? A target?" Daphne's sneer made it clear that she dared them to try, "Please, Malfoy won't do anything to slight me. His father has been trying to get my family's support."
Harry raised an eyebrow, wondering if this was Greengrass admitting that her father was open to joining the Dark Lord.
"Don't worry, Potter. You still have to deal with Thompson for me. You're safe for now."
"Fantastic," Harry drawled, "Let me know if you feel the urge to stab me in the back."
"I will."
That was a little too sincere for Harry's tastes. The thought of Greengrass of all people against him scared Harry far more than Malfoy ever could. There was a reason he refused to let her have power over him.
Greengrass could smile at you one day and absolutely ruin your life the next. Harry was aware that this had never involved physical harm… so far, but he had no doubt that she was capable of it. After all, the fate of Viola Stone was still whispered about in Slytherin.
Harry wasn't able to fully grasp what had happened. Still, he knew enough to understand that Greengrass thought of herself and her family above all others. Viola Stone had been her friend since childhood, and Greengrass still hadn't given the girl any quarter for an offhanded comment about her sister.
One day Viola Stone's life was normal, and the next, it was an isolated hell. Harry wasn't surprised when she hadn't returned to Hogwarts after that year.
Sometimes Harry wondered if that was the result of Greengrass showing Viola Stone her version of mercy. It was never something he knew for sure, and it only added to the wariness he felt toward her.
However, even if Greengrass was the classical wicked witch told in muggle stories, she was his ally at the moment.
"This will be an interesting year."
Greengrass nodded in agreement before they fell silent to watch the sorting. Although Harry was joining in the applause with his fellow housemates to greet the new students sorted into Slytherin, his thoughts were elsewhere.
Even with the secrecy clause in all his contracts, Harry was starting to think he had been far too casual with how he had done business. Admittedly, he had started this to protect himself. After that was accomplished, it was to enrich himself to buy materials that weren't available at Hogwarts. It was unfortunately needed since House Potter was left destitute after the war with the Dark Lord.
Harry knew he needed to change his mindset. The terms of his contract required an overhaul. His first priority was to eliminate the loophole in his contract that he had allowed for clients who were also acting as affiliates. Harry knew that they were the key to his continued success, but he could no longer rely on their discretion when it came to granting access to his services.
The question was how he should go about it. No witch or wizard worth anything would agree to a contract that restricted them further without something to make it worth the tradeoff. It was hard enough when Harry added the secrecy clause. Adding even stricter limitations would not be a simple matter.
"AHEM!"
Harry was forced out of his thoughts to see a round, pink figure standing in front of Dumbledore.
"Thank you, headmaster, for your kind words."
Harry must have shown visible disgust at the overly sweet voice because he could faintly hear Greengrass trying to hold back her laughter. He listened to the following few sentences from the woman's mouth and quickly decided he didn't need to hear the unending fluff about the Ministry.
Harry glanced at Malfoy and saw that he had a broad smile on his face while staring at Umbridge. Apparently, he had underestimated the boy. Harry didn't think the little shite would have had support inside the school. No wonder he was so bold this year.
The question was, how far was the Ministry willing to go inside Hogwarts. Installing Umbridge as the Defense Professor might give them some influence, but it was nowhere near enough to change much of anything.
This was, and will always be, the personal fiefdom of Dumbledore as long as the wizard willed it so. Harry might be in Slytherin, but he didn't share the ill feelings towards the man that most of his housemates did.
That wasn't to say Harry worshiped him. Still, it wasn't hard to admit that the headmaster was leagues above anyone the Minister of Magic could send to Hogwarts. Especially if the best option was the pink-loving Umbridge.
"… prune practices that ought to be prohibited."
Harry blinked, wondering if he had heard Umbridge right. As he joined in on the weak applause that followed the ending of the speech, Harry turned to Greengrass.
"What did she say in the end?"
"Something about pruning," Daphne replied dismissively as she kept her eyes on the headmaster.
That wasn't much help to Harry, but he just wanted confirmation from Greengrass that he wasn't in a wonderful dream. The word 'prune' was enough for that.
As the hall filled with the noise of students digging into their dinners, Harry's mind was filled with the sound of galleons clinking together.
"You'll have to leave the seat, Potter. Starkey will be back soon. This was a one-time favor that I expect to be repaid."
"That goes without saying."
Harry gave her a nod before standing up. He glanced at Malfoy, who seemed to be over the moon with happiness, and walked out of the great hall.
Harry could understand what Malfoy was feeling. After all, he currently felt the same way.
This year had already been an exhilarating broomstick ride, and the first day hadn't even ended. The previous dread that Harry was experiencing at the thought of tightening up his contracts had been overcome by the sheer joy of Umbridge's gift.
The word 'prohibited' was music to Harry's ears. It would mean that business would be booming for the foreseeable future. It almost made him want to forgive Malfoy for his foolishness so far.
Almost.
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