3 Chapter 3

Harry stepped through to platform 9 ¾. The only thing that showed his true emotions was the blink and instantly hidden disgust at the plethora of messy emotions and weeping that came from all corners.

Grabbing his trunk, Harry casually strolled onto the train, hefting his trunk up onto the rack.

He chose an unoccupied compartment when everyone else was still saying their dramatic farewells, as if they wouldn't ever see each other again.

There was hardly anyone on the train, so he had free reign to pick and choose.

He would need to make… friends, so his compartment couldn't be too out of the way, and he had to look inviting enough that people would actually try and enter if the other compartments were full.

Harry knew that he was, objectively, a beautiful boy, and he had no qualms about using that to his advantage.

Upper years already had their own cliques, so it wasn't likely that they would join with any first years.

This meant that the train ride was the easiest time for Harry to form connections before they reached Hogwarts.

It took another good hour before the commotion outside died down.

There had been a few peeks into his compartment, but no one that came in or knocked.

Harry continued reading, tuning out the world for the time being.

When the scramble came, he would be here all the same.

There was indeed a mad scramble as students from all the different years started piling onto the train, and from what he could feel, the train was filling up fast.

There was a mix of Dark and Light students, and their cores were a lot less developed compared to the many witches and wizards from Diagon Alley.

Harry compared it to his own and found theirs… lacking.

He sighed softly and continued reading his extra material, paying no more attention to his surroundings.

Should people come, he would play host, but if they didn't, well… it wasn't that much of a loss.

There was a train whistle in the distance before the train started to move.

In that time, there were other people that peeked into the compartment window as well, but still no one that dared to enter.

It wasn't until the train started moving that people started moving around again, but only around in their compartments.

It was why Harry's interest was piqued when he noticed someone moving around from compartment to compartment.

When that person reached him, Harry tilted his head seeing the shock of blond hair that reminded him so much of that man in Gringotts previously.

The blond knocked politely and entered after Harry told him to enter.

Harry took the chance to size up the blond in front of him. His hair was a pale, platinum blond, and his hair was slicked back to give him an aristocratic look.

His features were rather similar to the blond man from before.

'Must be a son,' Harry thought to himself.

A closer look at him revealed that even their cores were rather similar.

"Hello," Harry greeted, smiling at the boy.

Draco paused before flushing at his lack of manners. "Hello," he echoed. He cleared his throat and seemed to puff himself up. "Have you seen Harry Potter, perhaps? I heard he's supposed to be on the train."

Harry's lips curled into a smile. He did love it when everything lined up so perfectly like this.

Draco drew back, seemingly offended that Harry was laughing at his question. How dare he laugh at Draco! He supposed that the other thought he carried some kind of… of… hero worship for Harry Potter, but that wasn't the case at all.

Just as Draco opened his mouth to tell him exactly that, Harry talked first.

"Yes, that's me."

Draco's mouth snapped shut, stunned. Did he just hear right?

Draco scanned the boy from top to bottom, but he didn't look anything like how the blond imagined him to look like.

He thought that Harry Potter would have round, circular glasses, just like his father. From the way the books and newspaper described him, Harry Potter should have been a carbon copy of his father.

Instead, the boy in front of him didn't wear any glasses at all, showing off his emerald green eyes. His eyes shone with intelligence, and the smile on his face made him feel amiable and friendly.

Draco originally thought that Harry Potter would have been surrounded by his loving fans, so he hadn't even harboured a faint thought that this boy in front of him would be Harry Potter.

Then, his previous behaviour crept up on him, and the blond felt his face flush.

Embarrassed, Draco cleared his throat, and entered the compartment properly. "Are you really?"

"Yes," Harry answered with as much patience as he could.

Draco stuck out his hand. "Draco Malfoy."

Harry calmly shook his hand. "Harry Potter," he said, smiling charmingly at the pureblood.

Draco didn't know what to think, finding out that his childhood hero was so different from what he had been portrayed as in the books. He didn't feel betrayed, per se, but he didn't know how to act.

"May I?" Draco gestured at the seat.

"Please."

"If you don't mind, why exactly are you… alone, Potter?" Draco questioned curiously.

Harry smiled faintly. "Call me Harry. Why aren't I with my loyal fans, you mean?"

Draco flushed, but he nodded all the same. "Draco, then."

"Well, you see, I grew up with muggles. Up until a while ago, I didn't even know that a world filled with magic existed," Harry explained. He elegantly crossed his legs, and it caught Draco's attention. "I'm not proud to admit it, but we didn't quite get along, if you know what I mean."

Draco's brows furrowed a little, confused. From what he'd seen so far, the boy appeared like a perfect pureblood. How was that possible?

Harry saw Draco's confusion, but he had no intentions of enlightening him. He just played the pity card, slowly letting the blond come to his own conclusions.

Draco's face changed minutely as he caught the subtle hint that Harry dropped, and he wisely steered clear of the subject.

Of course, what he didn't know was that it wasn't how he imagined it at all.

"What house do you suppose you'll get into?" Draco changed the subject. "You do know what houses there are in Hogwarts, don't you?"

Harry licked the inside of his cheek. He didn't appreciate how the other seemed to look down on him the moment he learnt that Harry wasn't magical raised. It stirred up unpleasant things in him, but he wasn't in a terrible mood.

He still felt good from the reaction he had so obviously induced in the blond's father previously, so Harry was lenient.

"I do. I suppose I'll go into Hufflepuff."

"Hufflepuff?" Draco echoed back, aghast. "Why Hufflepuff?!"

Harry's lips curled into a smirk. "Why not Hufflepuff?"

"Hufflepuff is the house no one wants to get into! I rather imagine I'll be in Slytherin, like the rest of my family," Draco said proudly.

Harry smiled indulgently at the blond. "If I get a choice, Hufflepuff is the best house to choose, of course."

"I don't see why," Draco frowned, crossing his arms.

"Why should I go into any other house, with all the house prejudice going around?" Harry said calmly, flipping a page.

Draco sputtered.

"No one's ever going to say that a Hufflepuff is evil. The house is known for hard workers, you have many connections and friends. Tell me, then. What can the other houses offer me that I can't get in Hufflepuff?"

Draco felt stunned, gazing into the distance as he thought about Harry's words.

No one had ever told him such things before, but he suddenly felt like the other boy was right.

All his life, he'd always dreamed about going into Slytherin because that's where he was sure he belonged. He never once set his sights elsewhere, and perhaps that was a mistake.

Draco fell into a trance as he thought it over, and Harry, seeing that Draco was lost in thought, returned to his book.

An undetermined amount of time passed before Draco spoke up again. "Harry, are we friends?"

Harry looked up from his book. "Why, of course. My very first, in fact." Harry smiled, and it was a secretive smile.

Draco hesitated. He was still rather undecided. But… why did it feel very Slytherin to hide himself in another house?

The more he thought about it, the more it made sense.

As he was once again lost in thought, the compartment door rattled as someone desperately tried to get in.