Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.

Harrison had almost forgotten how powerful the first view of the Great Hall was for a first year, even one that had seen it all before. The floating candles and the clear view of the night sky lent an ethereal quality to the stonework and the weight of every older student's gaze, along with the professors at the Head Table was heady. Harrison made sure to avoid the Headmaster's gaze as he swept his own down the Head Table, inspecting the familiar faces. It was almost amusing to find the purple turban of Quirrell hunched over in conversation with the stern face of Severus Snape. McGonagall looked as strict as ever though there was a softness in her face that Harrison could hardly remember from the first time through, hopefully it would last longer this time around.

The procession of first years trundled their way down the center aisle, with Harrison vaguely hearing Hermione babble on about the fact that the ceiling was charmed to look like the night sky. It spoke to a lack of common sense that any of the children couldn't have figured that out for themselves just by looking up, but the Wizarding World is full of those who don't even know what common sense is. Ron was looking around frantically and mumbling about where the troll was being kept and many of the others were too nervous to say or do much more than continue to gradually move toward where the Sorting hat was. The stool looked just as rickety as ever and the hat still looked like it could use a little mending.

Harrison knew where just about everyone was headed, though there could already be some changes, it wasn't particularly likely. It was for that reason that he zoned out as he looked out over the older students that were either quietly whispering to their friends or watching the newest students with either amusement or sympathy. He only vaguely paid attention to the students that might later be important if they did not turn out the same.

"Hermione Granger." "Gryffindor." The first time he had thought that Hermione was a shoe in for Ravenclaw, but knowing everything he now did about her personality she was too trusting of authority and the written word to be considered truly intelligent.

"Neville Longbottom." "Gryffindor."

"Draco Malfoy." "Slytherin." Not a surprise by any means.

"Harry Potter."

Harrison found himself more than a little irritated that they were using his informal name, rather than the name that his parents had actually given him. "My name is Harrison Potter, not Harry, but I will assume that it was me you were referring as the only living Potter." Harrison could see the eyebrow ascending on multiple foreheads and the concealed smirk on several faces, but he was not going to let Dumbledore get rid of the things that tied him to his parents. It may not seem like much, but it was the name that they gave him. He made sure to not make direct eye contact with any professor as he twirled around to face the other students and sat as carefully as possible on the spindly stool.

The voice of the Sorting Hat was a familiar one and he managed to avoid the startled jump that many first years completed, no matter their blood status. "Well, it isn't usual to find a mind that remembers being sorted by me, that I do not remember sorting." Harrison tensed a bit before he remembered that the hat could only read general auras and direct, current thoughts. It only knew that he had been sorted because he was actively thinking about it. "I suppose that it doesn't matter why you remember a sorting."

"You are hard working for the things that you wish to accomplish, but your loyalty is extremely hard to earn. In Hufflepuff you would be far to suspicious to fit in. In Gryffindor, the house that you somehow were sorted in before, you would be set apart by your cold view of the world and your distaste for the house despite the amount of bravery that you have within you. Your mind is quick, and you have a strong urge to read anything and everything that you can. The distrust you hold for authority would also set you well in their House as it would allow you to find the truth rather than just hold you back. Your cunning and extreme ambition would do you well in Slytherin. Honestly, you are almost as hard to sort this time as you were in your memory."

Harrison smirked as he thought about his plans. Being in Gryffindor would be pure torture and the advantage of pulling the wool over Dumbledore's eyes would not be worth being in close quarters with Ron and Hermione, even with Neville around. Hufflepuff would be an excellent place to remain off everyone's radar and amass a following of students through House loyalty made stronger by their natural traits, but there was no way that Harrison could remain sane surrounded by the blindly loyal members of that House that followed Dumbledore as if he was the second coming of Merlin. Ravenclaw was a solid option. The House was known to house the most studious of students, so his desire to read everything that might be useful in outmaneuvering the old man would be considered normal. The House was not considered Light or Dark, but rather Gray as it didn't really side with any other House and just watched from the sidelines. It would be difficult to become comfortable with an entire House that would study and analyze his every move. The constant scrutiny would be maddening. Slytherin would be give Dumbledore a mild heart attack and would likely make many of the sheeple call him the next Dark Lord, but it would put him in a place to make friends in high places while changing the way that people viewed the Slytherins. He could manipulate their outward front to make it seem as if they were becoming Light while drawing others away from Dumbledore. The Slytherins would likely take to that kind of manipulation like ducks to water if it was presented to them in the right way.

"I would like to speak with you later, Harrison. Your mind is extremely interesting to see in action." "Slytherin!"

Harrison stood slowly while taking the hat from his head and didn't bother to hide his smile at the Weasley twins crying that they 'didn't get Potter'. He made sure to bow to them as they turned their attention his way. "Your House did not get me; the jury is still out on you." The resulting laughs from not only the now grinning twins, but half of the students was more than worth it as he made his way to a seat next to Draco.

"Quite the entrance." Draco looked like he didn't know whether to be impressed or disturbed about his interaction with the Weasley twins.

"It is better to show that you are approachable and willing to joke rather than have everyone thinking that you're too stuck up." Harrison smirked as it took McGonagall almost five minutes to control the now laughing twins enough to continue the sorting.

"Ronald Weasley." "Gryffindor."

"Blaise Zabini." "Slytherin."

Blaise slid into the seat next to Harrison with a small smile. "Are you trying to manipulate the entire student body?"

Harrison smiled and ignored the speech the Dumbledore was giving, it was the same on he had given the first time around. "Of course, I am. From the books that your mother bought for me about my fame, they expected to see a perfect replica of my father, James Potter, the Gryffindor and Light icon. I have been sorted into Slytherin that has gained a rather Dark reputation over the last half of a century or more. If I had simply remained impassive and quiet, they would have assumed that I was Dark or too stuck up. By interacting with two Gryffindors in such a playful manner they will first assume that I was incorrectly sorted but it will make them look at Slytherins in a more positive manner overall."

One of the older students shook his head with a huff. "Its going to take much more than one student to change the way that the school views our House. Dumbledore makes it his life's mission to put our House down and praises any action that the rest of the school takes against us. We get detention for things that we don't even do while he'll let anyone he catches playing a prank, no matter how harmful, on us slide by with a slap on the wrist."

Harrison hummed and remembered all the times that he had found Gryffindors playing pranks on Slytherins without even trying to cover their tracks. "That is true, but with my unfortunate fame there is a greater opportunity for the entire House to change the way that it is viewed." Harrison noticed that he had picked up the attention of a good deal of the students within earshot. "They will give more attention to our House because I am now a member and we could use that to our advantage to make them think that they have been wrong about Slytherin, even if they aren't."

"It can be simple, small things. I am sure that older students already help out the younger students with finding things and learning the school." There were nods around the table. "Make sure to do so where other students can see you and take a few seconds to help out another House's students, as I am sure that there will be at least one or two Houses that don't help out the younger students." There were quite a few nods and Harrison remembered just how hard it had been to learn the school in Gryffindor. "Are there any Houses that don't mind Slytherin?"

The same older student from before was the one that answered, and he was smirking now. "Ravenclaws don't get into school politics, so we have a decent relationship with them. Hufflepuffs are scared of their own shadows, so they tend to run the other way when they see us. Gryffindors are the ones that you really must watch out for, they have permission to make our lives hell and they are more than willing to take advantage of it."

"Then why don't we start with the Ravenclaws? Make them comfortable with Slytherin and move on from there?" Harrison knew that his idea was catching on from the number of older students that were subtly smirking from further down the table. "The books that I have found that were written about me paint a picture just shy of sainthood." Harrison couldn't quite control the grimace at some of the books that insinuated that he was the second coming of Merlin. "That will offer up the opportunity to change the way that people think about Slytherin, if it is handled correctly."

(F)

Dumbledore was deeply unsettled with the beginning of young Harry's first year. He had spent considerable time and effort making sure that Molly and her brood would be well positioned to become the young savior's first introduction to the Wizarding World, but the young man apparently found his own way to the train. If that had not been bad enough, the young man entered the Great Hall surrounded by members of the pureblood elite, looking as if he belonged among them. Harry's clothes were not cast offs or rags, as he was expecting, but high-class fabrics in the latest fashions for young men. His posture was superb and while he was the smallest of the first years, including the females, he carried himself as if he was confident and assured. The final nail had been the sorting into Slytherin. It was a strong possibility, with the treatment that he was likely to have received from Petunia and her family, but Dumbledore had banked on his parentage sending him into Gryffindor.

There was some hope in the situation, however. The comment made to the Weasley twins was one that he would have expected to hear from the boy's father. If Harry was to become close to the twins it would put him within range of their brothers. The twins were unpredictable at best, but both Percy and Ronald were easy to manipulate. Percy was an ambitious young man that was striving to make a future career in the Ministry and a good word from Dumbledore would see his dreams into reality. Ronald was a jealous and lazy, which made him an excellent pawn. He wished to stand out from his successful brothers, but didn't wish to do the work. Unfortunately, Dumbledore could do little about where the boy was sorted, unless the boy raised a complaint, but he would do everything in his power to bring the boy into his sphere of influence with any and all opportunities that came his way.