Title: Harry Potter: The Changing of Ways
Category: Books » Harry Potter
Author: Shadow_walker090909
Language: English, Rating: Rated: ?
Genre: General
Published: 04-24-11
Chapters: 01

Harry Potter: The Changing of Ways

Disclaimer: All recognizable characters are the property of their respective owners: JK Rowling, Warner Brothers, etc. Only the plot is mine. Other plot devices or theories are owned by their respective authors and are only being borrowed to further my own. May cause drowsiness. Do not operate heavy machine immediately after reading. Discontinue use if rash appears.

Author's notes: let me clear something's up. I am going to try and write this in a style or a certain way as to explore the character's interact with each other and the way other character's decisions effect the way things turn out in the story. As such if the story comes out the way that I hope it does, you the reader will see more than just what happens to harry and the choice's that he makes within my story. You'll see the choice's and actions of other characters, such as minister Fudge, Amelia Bones, Daphne Greengrass and many more throughout the story. That is why you will see that the scene changes the way it does. As in life not all of our decisions turn out for the best or get derailed by the choice of other people and that is what I hope to portray in this story. As well as to try and fix some glaring holes within the cannon story. Well as least fix them to the way I feel it should be anyways.

Now it has been several years since I have tried to write and post a story to this site and as such many things have changed since then. so please bare with me as I relearn the posting process all over again.

now normally I won't do this but to address some of the things that have been brought up so far in the few reviews that have been done I will try and clear a few other things up as well.

from reviewer sirius009 : please see the above for mentioned note as to why the formatting seems weird to you as the format that I had written this in was changed by the posting process when I uploaded this chapter,, I will endeavor to fix this error and try and prevent it from ever happening again but no promises are ever perfect. so I can only say that I will do my best.

from reviewer Lord Lelouch: Yes the flash back in this chapter was lifted from another writer and as of this posting I have yet to hear back from said writer concerning the use of her work,, so I am posting this without her consent as of right now but in the future if she wishes that I not do than by all means I will follow her wishes and refrain from using any of her work in mine. more so , I have also plans to use other parts of her story in later chapters of this story and will of course follow her wishes when and if she ever contacts concerning the matter. Furthermore I have obtained permission from several other authors on this site to either use or adapt parts or idea's used by them into my story as well. However that being said, I feel as if there are any idea's out there in the fanficition world that have not been used before in one way or another to be considered a truly unique idea any more.

CH01: Hogwarts Express 9 & ¾ Station, London

Harry Potter was standing on the Hogwarts express platform watching her. For one reason or another he was unable to get the conversation that they had shared shortly after the Hogwarts Express had departed the Hogsmeade station for the trip home at the end of the school year. He had been waiting for his two best friends to come back to the compartment they were sharing, when he'd met a young woman on the Hogwarts Express, by the name Greengrass.

She'd stopped into his compartment to hide, in a moment of weakness, from Gregory Goyle. She'd pulled down the blind quickly and locked the door, even managing to loop a pink ribbon through the door handle, the universal sign of an occupied compartment, as she'd entered. He'd been unable to do anything but check out her curvaceous bottom as it waited by the doorway for one of its many admirers to pass.

"There are several other seats available if you wish to sit for a few minutes," Harry had said eventually, his charms book open in his lap.

"My apologies," she began before turning around and discovering who the other person in the compartment was. "I didn't realize there was anyone occupying these seats."

"While I'm the only occupant of these seats I'm willing to share."

"So kind of you," she replied sliding into the opposite seat.

"It's Greengrass, isn't it?" Harry checked, looking up from his book for a moment.

"Yes."

Silence filled the room awkwardly.

"You seem to have grown."

Harry snorted. "An inch or two if I'm lucky."

"You're fourteen and male. You'll grow more. I on the other hand am destined to be no more than five feet tall forever."

"I just want to be taller than Hermione."

"An admirable goal."

Silence joined them again.

"Did you have a pleasant year?"

"Yes, thank you. How was your year?" Although she know of how most of this past year had gone for him.

"Neither here nor there. It was, as they have been, my entire life."

"I see."

"Such is life," Harry said, frantically trying to think of another topic of conversation that wasn't as clichéd as the weather.

"What are you reading?"

"My field healing charms book."

"That shouldn't be too difficult for you considering that you can perform a Patronus."

"Where did you hear that?"

"About," she replied with a coy smile. "That's a difficult charm to master."

"That is my point. Give me a charm to learn in defense class, because that's what they all are, charms moonlighting under different names, and I find it quite simple. Put me in charms with Flitwick and it suddenly seems ten times harder."

"Defense isn't really defense against dark arts anyway is it?" the young woman said with a slight smile. "It's more of a 'these are some spells that may or may not get you out of some sticky situations sometimes' and 'these are some other spells you should really try and avoid'."

Harry chuckled. "That's rather accurate. I don't often come away from that class feeling as though I've learnt something valuable."

"Third year was better than most."

"Yes, it was."

"And you do seem to be quite talented at extracting yourself from sticky situations either way."

"My other talent."

"Hence the reason you are learning healing spells?"

"Something like that."

"I wish there were other classes available to us – languages for example."

Harry nodded agreeably.

"May I ask you a question of a more personal nature?"

"I can't very well stop you, can I?"

"I don't mean to come across as prying but did you ever receive a full medical after arriving at Hogwarts. You've always been, dare I say it, smaller than everyone else."

Harry unintentionally narrowed his eyes.

"I see," Daphne replied. "And you say that the Dark Lord has returned."

"Yes," the dark haired teen replied with an exasperated sigh.

He studied the young woman before him as she bit her plump bottom lip.

"May I borrow you owl? And a quill and parchment?"

Quickly delving into Hermione's book bag that she had left on the seat, Harry handed over the supplies and a book to rest upon as she wrote. He watched as she wrote quickly, neatly and then signed the note with a flourish. Before writing a second note on the bottom of the page.

When she nodded he opened Hedwig's cage and his snowy owl landed gently on the girl's knee.

"You're beautiful," she whispered to the bird who rubbed her head against Greengrass' open palm. "Take these to Flourish and Blots in Diagon Alley. We'll make a wizard out of your master yet."

Harry frowned as his owl turned to look at him and hooted her agreement. In joking frustration, Harry threw his hands up in the air as Greengrass opened the window and let the bird out. He couldn't help himself as she leant out the window, he looked at her bottom, and blushed crimson when she turned and caught him staring.

"Most Slytherin boys think it's their right to look at my rear," Greengrass said, gesturing for Harry to stand which he did. "It's nice to know that some of you still have a conscience."

Harry raised his chin and resisted the urge to look at his shoes.

"You are quite the enigma, Potter," Daphne said.

Harry automatically grabbed her hips to steady her as she reached up and brushed his hair off his forehead. Her fingers dragged through his hair and linked together and the base of his skull. The moment their lips met he couldn't help but smile. This girl was the fantasy of most teenaged males at Hogwarts.

She was kissing him. Biting his lip. Messing his already messy hair. He was dragging his hands up her sides and down her back and resting his hands on her memorable bottom.

Then she pulled away, more than a little breathless, her pale complexion pink.

Their eyes met and she smiled, leaning in to kiss his mouth one last time.

"I can support myself," Greengrass said softly, looking him directly in the eyes, before disengaging and sliding the door open the tiniest bit to check the hall.

Harry smiled as she looked back before slipping away into the throng. After waiting a moment, he let up the blind and pulled the pink ribbon off the handle. He looked up to see Hermione watching at him as she walked up the corridor as Ron followed behind.

Ducking back into the compartment he shoved the ribbon in his pocket and quickly tried to tame his hair. His best friends entered and flopped down, Ron prattling on about quidditch and Malfoy being a git. The rest of the trip home he sat there not even bothering to listen to his two best friends ranting and raving at each other or the silence that followed their argument. Instead he started thinking about the past year and everything that had happened to him. By the time that the Hogwarts Express reached the station, he had decide that he needed to know more about what was going on within the wizarding world and the only place that he could think to start was the goblin run bank "Gringotts".

Hogwarts Express

Daphne Greengrass quickly made her where her friend Tracy was sitting waiting for her. While still a half-blood Tracy would use whatever information and weakness she came across to further her status, within Pansy Parkinson little group of Slytherin girls. Daphne knew that she would have to keep the conversation with Potter to herself, even her little sister Astoria would somehow give the information away to either Pansy or Malfoy. What her little sister saw in that boy, she would never know. Opening the door to the compartment see saw that the aforementioned Malfoy brat was sitting there quietly talking to Pansy.

Glancing up to see who had opened the door to the compartment Malfoy stopped what he was saying to Pansy and looked towards Daphne. "Well, well if it isn't the ice queen herself!" Draco drawled out with a sneer upon his pale face.

" I see that the Malfoy Heir has designed to grace this compartment with his presence, this fine afternoon." Daphne said sarcastically

"You had better watch your tone when you speak to your betters there Daphne, Now that the Dark Lord has returned to lead us. You know that one way or another you'll belong to me one way or another." Draco told her.

Pansy had always hated how Draco had always desired after since the end of their third year. Pansy knew that she would never be as pretty as Greengrass, that's why she had always made sure that Greengrass knew her place in the pecking order.

Daphne knew she would have to have her wits about her from this point onward.

Platform 9 & ¾

Harry looked up at the sound of a horn, noticing his Uncle across the way. Frowning, he noticed his Aunt and Cousin were not there as usual. Not that it really mattered to him seeing as how he was going to try and talk his uncle into dropping him off near the Leaky Cauldron.

"Must be something going on," he thought as he struggled to drag the heavy trunk across the road.

Vernon never got up to help at all, it was starting to rain at last, and he did not wish to get wet.

"Bugger," Harry exclaimed as he painfully scraped his hand between the trunk and car.

"Mind the paint boy." Vernon bellowed.

"Sorry, it's just that the trunk's heavy sir."

"Get in the back boy, we need to hurry, I've got a schedule to keep."

"Yes sir," Harry did as asked.

"Uncle Vernon, I was thinking that maybe you could drop me off somewhere that way I could run a few errands that I need to." Harry said once he had climbed into the back seat of the car.

"I would be gone for a few days and there might even be a chance that I would never have to come back to your house again." he quickly add hoping that it would sweeten the deal enough so that his uncle would agree to drop him off.

"Ok boy you have a deal." said Vernon as he thought that he would finial be rid of the boy that had plagued him for the past fourteen years, never once registering the thought that the boy had said that there was only a chance that he might not have to come back and live with them.

"Where do you need to be dropped off at Boy," Vernon asked making the word Boy sound like a slur against man-kind.

" Charing Cross Road," replied Harry, smiling at the fact that he had gotten his uncle to agree with his idea.

"Fine," Vernon pulled out into traffic heading in a different direction than the last year.

Leaky Cauldron

Tom the toothless old man, who owned and ran the grubby-looking pub currently stood behind the bar cleaning out a glass with a piece of cloth. Hearing the opening of the front door he watched as the most famous boy in their world walked through the pub and over to the bar where he stood.

"Blimey, Harry Potter and on the first day of the summer." Tom said.

"Right oh there Tom, would I be able to leave my things here while I do a bit of shopping in the alley?" Harry asked.

"Of course lad, your more than welcome to. Would you care for a spot of food before you go?" inquired Tom while he was helping place Harry's things in an out of the way corner behind the bar.

"Maybe after I take care of things at Gringotts ." said Harry as he started walking towards the small walled courtyard behind the pub.

Ministry of Magic

Minister Cornelius Fudges Office

Cornelius Fudge was sitting in his office sifting through parchment after parchment, while it would look like he was doing the things that he had been elected to do. He was actually trying to save his career and reputation after the frightening revelations at the end of that blasted Tri-Wizard tournament. He knew at the very least he would have to discredit Dumbledore and the Potter boy, however if there was a way for him to get the boy's ancestral family vote's for his use or the Potter boy himself on his side then he would be on better footing for when the news concerning the Dark Lords return becoming known to the public at large.

" What if I was able to get the boy an exemption from the Restriction of Underage Sorcery laws. As well as getting him into the DMLE for some training or some other such thing. If I can get him to be seen around the Ministry and several other key departments than" Cornelius thought. " I 'll also need to see about getting some one loyal to me into Hogwarts for the coming school year, some one that won't have a problem reporting certain things to me that would help me. " Cornelius continued to sit there mulling things over in his head when his Senior Undersecretary Dolores Umbridge knocked on his office door and then came waddling in carrying several rolls of parchment. " Minister, I think I've found a solotation for you. I was able to find a loophole concerning the placement of professor at Hogwarts. " she placed a roll of parchment on his desk in front of him. "Well what's it say?" he asked with impatience. Dolores knew that Cornelius had no concern for the details contained within the parchment, but only for what it allowed him to do. "It allows the Ministry to place a professor of its choosing, when it has been deemed that the headmaster of Hogwarts is unable to." " I was thinking that I would be able to take the place of the Defense against the Dark Arts professorship, it would allow me to keep an eye on certain professors and students and allow you a set of eye's and ear's within the school itself." " Thinking that it would solve one of his many problems and he knew without a doubt that she was loyal to him and his idea's." " That's a good idea, Dolores see that it happens." he told her. " he knew that she would do whatever was necessary to get this done." After dismissing her from his office he thought it would be prudent for him to visit Amelia Bones and see what he could do about getting the exemption for the Potter boy. Walking into the his outer office where his secretary was, he told her that he was going down to the DMLE office's and would be there for some time.