A few weeks later, term was to be starting back at Hogwarts. Minerva was going to be moving into a larger ward with Hari where they would each have their own bedroom, along with the usual small kitchen and living area. After an overnight stay at the Dursley's, in which Minerva ended up sleeping on top of their garden wall to keep an eye on Hari, Minerva brought Hari back home to bring his things to Hogwarts a couple days before term started so that they could get settled in and Hari could meet all the new teachers.

Filius Flitwick and Pomona Sprout took to Hari immediately when Minerva arrived with Hari that night. Filius was only a few inches taller than Hari, who was fascinated by the way he could make items float with ease. Meanwhile, Pomona showed the eager Hari around some of the safer parts of the greenhouses, careful to avoid the poisonous or lively plants as he asked her endless questions about the plants. Severus Snape, however, was distant and awkward at the boy's arrival, apparently too busy in his potions classroom to even talk to Hari. Hari, who was used to being shut out by adults who wanted nothing to do with him, did not bother to question Snape's coolness towards him.

Hari was awed at the sight of the vast night sky on the ceiling of the Great Hall, jaw dropping as he followed Minerva inside for the first time, craning his neck to see the clouds above. He was even more excited by the way the candles floated in the air and the food suddenly appeared in front of him where he sat on a chair similar to Filius' at the staff table.

On the first evening when all the students arrived, Hari watched excitedly as all the students began to file into the large room, sitting down at one of the four tables. Minerva was nowhere to be seen, having gone to greet the new first year students. Hari could see many people looking in his direction with interest, some even pointing at him as they talked to each other about the small child now seated with the teachers. Pomona was telling Hari about the Sorting Ceremony when Hagrid settled in his usual seat at the table and the doors to the Great Hall revealed Minerva, leading a swarm of 11 year olds behind her.

Hari watched in fascination as one by one, Minerva called up each student by their name so they could wear the Sorting Hat before going to sit at the table for the house they were sorted into. He cheered along with the rest of the students and staff as each person was sorted, until finally Minerva returned to her seat beside Hari and asked him what he thought of the ceremony.

"It was awesome! Do they do that every year?" he asked as Albus stood up to address the students.

"Welcome back, everyone. I will not keep you waiting too long, as I know you are all hungry." He paused as Hari's stomach rumbled loudly. "So without further ado, enjoy the feast."

Tonight's feast was even more delicious than the previous evening's meals, Hari noticed with glee. He watched the students talking to each other as he ate, uninterested in the teachers' discussions about the upcoming year as he fantasized about what it would be like when he was one of the students one day, getting sorted into one of the 4 houses and making friends with kids his own age. He hoped he would find some good friends.

Finally, once everyone was beginning to finish their desserts and Hari was beginning to grow tired from the evening's events, Albus stood up to address the school once more and the room fell silent. "I hope you all enjoyed your feast. As you all know, the forest is forbidden to all students," Albus explained, looking among the crowd at several students in particular, "And I am sure you have all noticed our newcomer." Hari perked up, cheeks burning, as Albus gestured towards him. "This is Mr. Hari Potter, who will now be living here with us." A tension filled the room and whispers picked up along every table. "I hope you all will welcome him to the school as he is just as much a part of Hogwarts as every one of you."

Hari felt suddenly nervous having all eyes on him, whispering about him. He felt like an animal in a zoo, watched and stared at by everyone else. Minerva patted Hari on the arm, seemingly noticing his unease. "And now, I bid you all good night." As Albus finished his speech and everyone else began to make their way out of the Hall and towards their common rooms, Minerva led Hari out through a side door and they made their way towards their sleeping quarters.

"Minnie, why was everyone staring at me like that?" Hari asked as they stepped behind a hidden doorway behind a tapestry depicting Ladon and the Nemian lion which led towards their sleeping quarters. He watched Minerva hover her wand over a rune etched into the stone and a wooden door appeared in front of them and they stepped inside.

Hari followed Minerva through the living room and kitchen into his bedroom. "I will tell you the full story when you're a bit older, but it's because of your mum and dad," she explained as Hari dressed into his pyjamas. "I suppose it is also because children do not normally grow up at Hogwarts, so it must be strange to see one at the staff table like you were."

"Do you think they'll like me, Minnie?" Hari asked after brushing his teeth and getting into bed. Minerva was sitting at the foot of the bed, folding Hari's clothes for him to put in the chest of drawers.

"Of course they will," Minerva replied, getting up from the bed and ruffling his already messy curls. "Why wouldn't they like you?"

Hari shrugged."None of the other kids used to like me. And I don't think Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon like me either," Hari replied, burrowing down under the covers, "And I don't think Snape liked me either. He didn't even say hello." Minerva held her tongue at Hari's comments about both his past and the way Severus had acted around him. She would be having a word with him soon as she did not want Hari growing up with even more adults acting like that towards him.

"Don't worry about any of that, Hari, okay? I'm sure all the students will love you," Minerva insisted, moving towards the door and flicking the lights off with a wave of his wand.

"Good night, Minnie."

"Good night, Hari."

¤¤¤

In the coming weeks, Hari got used to life at Hogwarts. Minerva spent most of her day teaching students in her class while Hari got passed from teacher to teacher to get looked after when one of them had a free period. He followed Hagrid around the grounds, trying to help him with smaller tasks while he told Hari about some of the creatures at Hogwarts or his various duties. Filius entertained Hari by showing him various different charms to make things float or move or Summon them across the room. Even Madam Hooch enjoyed Hari's company, letting him ride a broom a foot above the ground with her support and answering his questions about Quidditch.

The only person that was not keen on babysitting Hari was Professor Snape. Minerva tutted to herself at his facial expressions when she insisted that no one else was able to watch Hari. However, he did agree to watch Hari, telling him to sit still and quiet with whatever toy or book he brought along while he graded papers or made potions. Hari watched him intently, curious about the things he made in his cauldrons, but knowing not to interrupt him like when Uncle Vernon watched the news or read the paper.

It was a particularly cold morning and Hari was following Snape through the castle, mildly entertained by his black cloak sweeping the floor at his heels. They had not long left the dungeons, apparently on their way to meet with the Defence teacher about something when they came across a corridor which was completely covered in puddles lining the floor. Snape stopped suddenly and Hari, so focused on looking at the puddles, bumped into him. He apologised profusely, face burning and stepping away instantly. Snape made no comment and moved towards the door where the flooding was coming from.

A shrill, weepy voice called when they stepped inside what seemed to Hari to be a large toilet. "C-come back to laugh at me, are you?" the voice cried.

"Reveal yourself," Snape ordered, looking unimpressed.

From inside one of the cubicles came a teenage girl, apparently crying. However, she was a ghost, hovering above the ground, grey and transparent with thick glasses and a school uniform on. "Ah, Myrtle. Of course," said Snape, lip curling. "Explain what is wrong."

Myrtle hiccoughed, wiping tears from her face. "P-Peeves was m-making f-f-fun of me and so I c-came in here t-to cry, but someone e-else came in and t-teased me for c-crying!" she stammered through further fits of tears. She was incredibly difficult to understand with all her crying and young Hari had to try very hard to understand anything she was saying.

"Peeves is always like that. I suggest you ignore him so as to avoid further teasing or… flooding of your lavatory." Snape did not bother to wait for a reply from Myrtle and turned to leave, silently making the water covering the tiles disappear with a flick of his wand.

Hari stayed still for a moment, looking between the still crying Myrtle and Snape standing impatiently in the doorway. "I hope you feel better soon, Myrtle. Peeves isn't very nice," Hari told Myrtle before shuffling away after the waiting professor.

"You did not have to say that to her," Snape said in the corridor as they continued to make their way towards the Defence teacher's office.

"But she was crying! I felt bad."

Snape glanced down at him, expression unreadable to Hari. They stopped outside of a door and Snape knocked sharply a few times. "Myrtle is almost always crying about something. Hardly anything seems to calm her down," Snape replied. Hari wanted to reply but was cut off by the door opening to reveal the Defence professor. "Ah, Wilfred. I need to speak to you privately."

Wilfred eyed Hari standing behind him, raising a wispy white eyebrow curiously. "Not very private with a five year old, is it?" he commented, smirking.

"I'm sure if we meet in your classroom he can sit far enough away that he won't hear us," Snape said with a sneer, gesturing down the hallway in the direction of the Defence classroom. With a resigned sigh, Wilfred agreed to join Snape in the classroom, Hari trotting after them in an effort to keep up despite his much shorter legs.

¤¤¤

"Minnie, where are we going?" Hari asked a few weeks later as he followed a very agitated Minerva up many flights of stairs. He was panting for breath in his effort to climb all the very steep staircases and keep up with her strides, almost stumbling over several times in his haste. Minerva finally stopped walking once they reached a painting even taller than Minerva, depicting a currently sleeping, rather large woman in a large, frilly pink dress.

Minerva held up a finger at Hari's question and instead turned towards the painting, clearing her throat loudly. The lady in the painting startled awake, looking around before straightening up at the sight of Minerva McGonagall standing before her. "Oh! Professor! What are you doing here?" the painting asked, smoothing down her dress and shifting uncomfortably in the seat she was on. "Is this the little fella you've taken on?"

"It is," Minerva replied shortly, reaching her hand behind her for Hari to take."Now, may I please enter my common room? I believe the password is currently 'gillyweed?'" Hari knitted his eyebrows together and glanced up at Minerva questioningly before the painting swung forwards to reveal a doorway. "Come along, Hari, dear," Minerva said, pulling Hari after her through the passageway.

On the other side of the passageway was a large circular room full of overstuffed couches, a few tables and a roaring fireplace, all covered in bright red. A window on either side of the room looked down at the grounds. Inside the room was a large number of students dotted around the room, all looking up at their arrival in surprise.

"May I please speak with one of the prefects?" Minerva asked, eyeing the room sternly. Hari hid behind her robes at all the people staring directly at him, whispering to their friends curiously. He really hated their attention. Clearly noticing Hari's unease, Minerva bent down and lifted Hari up, resting him on her hip. "Are there any prefects here at all?" she snapped.

At once, one of the students scuttled out of the room and up a staircase leading somewhere Hari did not know. After a few seconds, the student that left the room returned, followed closely by a tall red haired boy wearing a Gryffindor tie and an untucked shirt. He moved towards Minerva, tucking his shirt in as he went. "Professor, you asked to speak with me?" the boy asked, glancing momentarily at Hari with a friendly smile.

"Yes, I am unfortunately needed elsewhere, as are the rest of the staff, and I did not know who else I could ask to watch Hari while everyone was busy," Minerva explained carefully. "I normally would not ask anyone else of this, but it's urgent, Bill."

The boy—Bill—nodded understandingly, still grinning. "Of course, Professor. Not a problem at all," he replied, "I have 6 younger siblings, so I'm sure I can handle watching Hari for a bit."

Minerva sighed in relief. "Wonderful. It hopefully won't be long," Minerva said, letting Hari back onto the ground. "I will be back later to collect Hari. You shouldn't have to do much besides make sure he stays in the common room and avoids going into the fireplace." She smirked. "I'm sure you can manage that."

She whispered something Hari did not hear in Bill, who frowned but nodded. "I'll see you later, Hari," she said, ruffling his curly hair and making her way back out of the common room.

When Hari turned back to the rest of the common room, he felt all eyes on him and the silence made him incredibly uncomfortable. Hari shuffled on his feet, clutching his stuffed dragon tighter to his chest. Bill kneeled down in front of him. "Hiya, Hari. I'm Bill. Do you want to go and sit over on the couch with me?" he asked, smiling brightly. Behind him, another red haired boy, a couple years younger, started making his way over. Bill moved over so that the other boy could smile at Hari as well. "This is my younger brother Charlie."

"Nice to meet you," Hari said shyly, still holding his dragon defensively.

"That's a cool toy you've got there, Hari. Do you like dragons?" Charlie asked, gesturing towards the stuffed toy in Hari's arms. He had a similar smile to Bill's, friendly and inviting, though he was slightly wider and shorter than Bill was. Hari followed the two boys towards the couch, still looking around the empty room. "Stop staring at the poor kid, he's not a zoo exhibit," Charlie said to the room. Hari could not hide his relief as the rest of the room returned to their former conversations and most people stopped watching Hari interestedly.

Hari sat down in front of the fire, careful not to go too near but enjoying the comfortable warmth radiating from it. Bill and Charlie settled on the couch and Hari turned to look up at them both. "Did you say you have 6 siblings?" Hari asked Bill, tucking his feet under himself and sitting up straighter.

Bill chuckled. "I do, yeah. Besides Charlie, there's Percy, Fred, George, Ron and our little sister Ginny," he explained, ticking off on his fingers.

"Ron's your age, actually," Charlie added.

"Is he nice like you guys?" Hari asked, face lighting up at the prospect of making another friend his age. He still had not met many others his age and would have liked to have someone he could talk to someday.

"Oh, yeah. Definitely. I'm sure he'd like you," Charlie replied. Bill nodded in agreement. "Can I see your dragon? I promise I'll be careful." Hari hesitated for a moment, looking at Charlie's outstretched hand before relenting and handing it over to him. He smiled, turning the toy over in his hands.

"Charlie loves dragons," Bill pointed out, "He has loads of books about them."

Charlie rolled his eyes, still inspecting the stuffed dragon with interest. "I wouldn't say I have loads, but I have a fair few. Not my fault dragons are awesome, William." Bill snorted and rolled his eyes. "It's a cool toy, Hari. Thanks," Charlie added, handing Hari back the stuffed dragon. He muttered his thanks and put the dragon back on the ground.

For the next few hours, Hari was kept entertained by Charlie and Bill as they did their homework and answered his questions. Charlie told Hari random dragon facts and showed him one of his books about dragons, filled with different pictures of dragons that flew around inside their tiny photo frames. By the time Minerva returned to collect him, Hari was curled up in front of the fire with his dragon, eyes heavy as he started to fall asleep.

"Thank you both so much for watching him," he heard Minerva's voice whispering, "I hope he wasn't too much trouble?"

He heard Bill say, "He was no trouble at all, Professor. Believe me, compared to our other brothers, he was a saint."

"Yeah, all he did was ask me about dragons and about our siblings," Charlie added.

Hari sat up at the sound of Minerva's approaching footsteps and let her lift him up carefully. "Can someone please open the portrait hole for me? My hands are a bit full," Minerva whispered, adjusting her hold on Hari so that he didn't drop his stuffed animal. She carried him slowly out through the portrait hole again, whispering her thanks to someone and carrying him all the way back to their quarters. Hari had already fallen asleep before they even got past the tapestry covering the entrance to their quarters.