September 1st, 1991

"But Grandpa, why can't I just stay here and wait for everybody else to get here?" An upset and tussled Harry Potter asked Professor Dumbledore. He had been looking forward to sleeping in before the sorting and accompanying feast. However, his adoptive grandfather had different plans.

"No, Harry, at least for this year, you need to ride the train here." The headmaster said 'Better that you ride on the train and avoid all the questions about why you live here.' He added silently. He put his hand on Harry's shoulder and said "Harry, do you remember what I told you about being a student here?"

"Yes Grandpa. I can only call you Grandpa and Minnie Minnie and Uncle Sev Uncle Sev when we're alone."

"And?"

"Not to tell people that I sat in older student's classes."

"And?"

"I am going to be sorted into a house and can't eat with the staff."

"Good. Harry, remember, you can always come and see one of the staff for anything. Just remember, you have a curfew to follow now. No breaking into Severus's office at 2 in the morning for potion supplies." Dumbledore said with a smile.

Harry grinned. "I needed boomslang skin to finish the pol-uh-project I was doing."

Dumbledore shook his head. "I shall pretend not to have heard that. Anyway, get up. You have to be at platform 9¾ in 3 hours my boy." And he walked out of the room.

"Jeez, you woke me up at 8? Come on Grandpa!" Harry shouted, exasperated. Nonetheless, he got up, showered, got dressed, and headed down to the great hall for breakfast. When he arrived hi took his seat between professors McGonagall and Snape. He sighed as he dished some eggs and bacon onto his plate.

"What's wrong Harry? Are you feeling alright?" Snape asked worriedly. Minerva smiled, still amused that Severus Snape, of all people, would care for the son of James Potter. Regardless, she too was worried. Usually, Harry would be bouncing up and down with excitement. This Harry was downright depressed.

"No, I'm fine Uncle Sev, I'm just kinda sad. Today's the last day I'll get to sit here." Harry said with a frown on his face.

Minerva spoke up "Harry, you can always sit with us over the summer."

"I guess… I just didn't realize that I would be eating with you guys during the school year. Or at least I didn't fully accept it."

"Harry," Dumbledore said, "I'm sure you'll make many friends in your house and will have plenty of people to eat with."

Harry seamed to cheer up at the thought of this. "Ok. When are we leaving Grandpa?"

Severus chuckled. "Albus won't be taking you. I will. It seems Grandpa has some troubles blending in with muggles, and stands out in a crowd. But finish your breakfast first. We don't need to leave until 10 or so. We'll get there early enough to get you a compartment to yourself."

"Ok Uncle Sev. I'll go get ready." With that, Harry tore out of the Great hall and towards his room.

Flitwick shook his head. "Good lord is that boy going to be a handful in class."

"Oh I don't know Filius," Minerva said, "I think it will be enjoyable to finally be able to include him in discussions." Severus nodded in agreement.

"Well, I need to go have a word with Harry before he leaves, make sure you are all back before the feast." Dumbledore said while getting up. He slowly strode off in the direction that Harry had minutes ago.

-[]-

Meanwhile, Harry was getting ready. He had already put on robes, and was attempting to calm his unruly hair, to no avail.

"You know," Spoke a voice from the doorway, "You could always take up Severus on his offer to grease your hair down."

Harry turned to see Dumbledore standing at his door. "And forever be known as the Greasy-Boy-who-Lived? No thank you." He said with a smile on his face. "Is everything alright Grandpa?"

"Yes Harry, it is." Albus said. "There is just one thing we need to talk about. I know we already talked about what you can and can't do while here, but there is something you must do on the train."

He sat on Harry's bed, and patted the spot next to him, and waited for Harry to join him. When he had, he put his hand on Harry's shoulder, and said "Harry, I want you to know that no matter what, we will always love you. But some people might be upset if they found out that you were raised here. To that end, if people asked where you have been all these years, you must say that you were raised in the muggle world. If they ask why Severus escorted you to the train, say that he was showing you how to get onto the platform." He looked Harry in the eyes. "This is very Important Harry, do you understand?"

Harry nodded, and said "Yeah, I get it Grandpa."

Dumbledore smiled, and said "Well in that case, if you're ready, all we have to do is wait for Severus to be ready."

Just then they heard a voice speak up. "Wait for ME? This coming from the man who takes 15 minutes to decide which socks to wear for the day. Don't make me laugh." Turning to Harry, he asked, "Are you ready Harry?"

Harry smiled, and said "Yep. All ready Uncle Sev."

"Then let's get going." He said, holding out his hand, which Harry grabbed. Together, they walked out of the castle, and towards the ward boundaries. As they walked, Severus looked to Harry, and said "Harry, I want you to know that while I hope that you end up in my house, no matter where you go, I will always love you."

Harry looked up at Severus, and said "But what if I don't get sorted. What if I'm not good enough?"

Severus actually chuckled. "Harry, you are smart enough to challenge Rowena, more loyal that Helga, braver than Gryffindor ever was, and have enough cunning to make Salazar's head spin. I have no doubt that you will get sorted, I just don't know where."

Harry smiled, and said "Thanks Uncle Sev."

"We're almost here Harry," Spoke up Severus. "Hold on tight." And with a spin, they disappeared with a loud "Crack!"

-[]-

They appeared in an alley outside Kings Cross Station. Severus quickly looked around, making sure no one had seen them, and started walking. Harry followed closely behind. As they walked towards platforms 9 and 10, many heads turned towards the man in the dark robes escorting the young boy also in robes. Severus looked at himself and Harry, and thought 'Dammit! I should've worn muggle clothing. Oh well, there is nothing I can do now. I'm sure there will be something in the local paper about fashion changes.' He chuckled to himself, and kept walking.

When they reached the portal between the two platforms, he put his hand on Harry's shoulder, and nudging him into a run, made their way onto platform 9¾. Once on the platform, they quickly made their way towards the train. Severus led Harry to the car at the back of The Express.

"You appear to be one of the first here. Find a compartment, and try to catch up on the slepe you'll be missing because of Albus." He said, giving Harry a small push towards the train. "I'll see you in a few short hours, Harry."

Harry looked back at his surrogate uncle, and said "See you soon, Professor." And with that, he dashed off into the train. Severus wiped away a rouge tear that had escaped, and smiled. "I can't wait till I can actually punish him for his cheek.' Still smiling, the potions master disapparated back to the gates of Hogwarts.

Harry walked through the empty halls of the train, looking for a good compartment. He went all the way to the back, and went in the compartment to the left. Looking at his watch, and seeing that he still had 2 hours before the train would even leave, he decided to take his Uncle's advice, and get some sleep. As he lay down, he shot a low power locking charm at the door. He didn't want to be woken up again, not at least until the train started moving.

A/N: Sorry it took so long to get this up. i was going to class. it has been sitting on my computer being worked on for about 3 days now. i changed my mind about this chapter. i know i said this would be some of first year. well no. its not. next chapter will be the train ride, and hopefully the sorting.

thanks