Harry's POV
Harry ran down the tunnel and stopped at the exit. He prodded the knot and then ran before the tree unfroze. Since it was a weekday, everyone was in class and no one saw him. He skirted Hagrid's hut and went to the castle. In the Entrance Hall, he stopped and looked around for the first time. He did have to say he was captivated over the fact that they have kept this building standing for over a thousand years, or so Hermione told him. It must be magic.
He did wonder about the wards, and how they operated. He could feel them and could probably replicate them, but were they tied to a stone or to the magic of the students and staff? He was going to have to do a bit of research, because if he could figure out how they were anchored, then he wouldn't have to tie them to himself, which would be a mite draining. He didn't know much about magic but when his dome flared he did feel the pull. He made a mental note to have the flare become brief and heard a very tiny voice say, 'Make it so,' which made his eye twitch.
A large bell toned, letting the children know that class was over. Suddenly the empty hall was filled with noise. Harry moved off to the side and waited for someone he knew to come along. He watched the students file into the Great Hall and wondered if he had known any of them. Most of them stayed away from him, some with fearful looks, and others with looks of contempt. There were only a few that had thoughtful or pitied expressions on their faces. Every now and then, a person would call his name and wave.
Harry nodded his head to the friendly ones, tried to give a reassuring smile to the frightened ones, and flipped off the others, who either gasped at him and then scuttled away, or sneered and returned the favor. He had to wonder if this was the type of treatment he always got. He was supposed to be famous, did all celebrity types get this kind of scorn? Sure, he got entered into that stupid tournament, but from what Hermione had told him he had saved the lives of many of these people. He remembered that they thought he was a liar and a cheat, but damn it certainly made him feel less inclined to save anyone again . 'Tabloids. Right, famous people are always being torn down. Well, I'll just have to keep out of the limelight. I have enough to worry about without this shite,' he thought as he looked for the girls.
As he stood there waiting, he was approached by three adults. He groaned, not wanting to face this trio right now. Didn't they have paperwork to do or something? He was going to have to add a proximity alert to his map to warn him when the adults come in to range. As if he ordered it, there was a warning bell clanging in his head, and the three dots on his map turned red and had a red circle around them. He canceled the noise but made note of it for future reference.
"Mr. Potter, why were you not in class?" McGonagall asked primly as she peered over her reading glasses.
"I am ill, remember? Until I get my memory back, your classes are a waste of my time," he stated just a primly and pulled his glasses down to mimic her, causing her to narrow her eyes and open her mouth to reprimand him.
"Excuse me?" she started to rant. Never had she been so disrespected. Students were to listen and do as they were told. How would they learn if they rebelled? It was her job to make sure they were prepared for the world out there. She would put the poor boy in his place, if only to get him ready for what was to come. "You will…"
"Harry, my boy," Dumbledore said, interrupting whatever his Transfiguration Teacher was going to say, "I will ask that you respect the adults in this castle," he chastised with that damn twinkle in his eyes.
"Stay out of my mind, old man," Harry warned as sirens in his head went off and the words 'Yellow Alert, Shields up' resounded throughout. It was weird, and he wondered if he was going a bit insane, hearing voices in there.
"I assure you I do not intend to enter your mind again. I found there was little I could do to help. Back to the matter at hand, you must attend classes," Dumbledore said in his teacher's voice. "You will not be able to obtain work if you do not receive your OWLs and NEWTS."
"No," was the succinct answer.
"However will you find employment when you leave these hallowed halls?"
"I'm sure I can figure it out, or I believe that I can catch up and take the tests on my own time," Harry said with a negligent wave.
"Then what will you be doing with your time, pray tell?" Snape drawled as he looked over the child to see if there was any indication that he was retaining his memory. He was already in a sour mood from having to coddle the dunderheads in his class. Now he had to pretend that he… cared about the savior.
The teen shrugged and said, "I thought I'd study in the library. I mean, it should have the younger year books, right? So, I'll just look up stuff and see how much I can remember or retain."
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