Just after the Welcoming Feast and the sorting ceremony Dumbledore quickly retired to his office in order to avoid his stern deputy. Unfortunately, he wasn't able to avoid her as she quickly changed into her animagus form and chased after him; they were now in his office where Minerva was giving him a stern expression while Dumbledore sat in his seat. 

"Albus please you must do something, for years I have been telling you that things have been getting worse and yet you have not listened, but today you see for yourself, the ghosts are not what they used to be, they remember less and less, something must be done," Minerva McGonagall said as she stood in Albus Dumbledores office. 

Albus looked quite professional as he sat behind his desk in his robes looking as serious as a Headmaster should. However, that illusion was quickly shattered as he reached into his drawer and pulled out a bowl of hard sweets "Would you like one?" He asked. 

"Albus!" She shouted. 

"Minerva you must relax, when's the last time you took a break from working," he asked with a grandfatherly smile. 

"The same time you last started doing your work!" She replied sharply making his smile disappear. 

Minerva then sighed and sat down "Albus the ghosts are becoming a problem... we lost control of Ser Gregory on the seventh floor," she informed him, luckily it had taken place when most of the students were back home for summer. 

Dumbledore sighed "Was anyone hurt, what grade did he become?" He asked. 

"A first grade, me and Fillius were able to deal with it, but I have a feeling it will not be an isolated incident," she replied. 

Dumbledore stood up after popping a hard candy into his mouth "I'm afraid there is nothing we can do Minerva, the balance of this world shifted years ago." 

"When Harry Potter was born?" Minerva asked.

"Indeed, his birth shifted the fight in our favour, but the world needs balance and so curses will grow stronger and more special grades and first grade will start to appear, there is simply nothing we can do," Dumbledore said with slight regret. 

"The runes that were made to passive the cursed spirits and turn them into ghosts were made a thousand years ago, the best we can do is try and decipher how they were used and how we can create an improved version," Dumbledore suggested. 

Minerva seemed to be satisfied with this as she nodded her head "And what of the Stone, you've taken quite the risk bringing it here," she said. 

Dumbledore turned and smiled at her "I won't be around forever Minerva, I'm getting old and I fear that young Harry will need to replace me sooner than I'd like, and for that, he must be ready."

———————————————————

Harry felt great as he walked with his house back towards their common room where they would be shown to their dorm rooms. He had been able to eat as much food as he liked which didn't happen too often at the Dursleys as they ate at a speed that even his eyes had trouble keeping up with. 

"So are any of you interested?" Harry asked with a mischievous smile on his face. Before the feast ended they were told that the Forbidden Forest was out of bounds for students; as soon as Dumbledore had uttered those words Harry knew he'd be going there, it sounded too interesting not to. 

"Interested in what?" Hannah asked with a little confusion. 

"Going to the Forbidden Forest obviously," He replied.

"Did you not hear the headmaster? We aren't allowed," Hannah said emphasising the last part.

'I want to go with him,' Susan thought to herself as she walked next to the two of them. She found it rather difficult to make conversation with people —even with Hannah who had been her friend for years. She thought the Forbidden Forest sounded cool and that there might be all manner of creatures in there that she'd read about in her Harry Potter storybooks. 

"Are you an idiot? You're going to get expelled on your first week!" Hannah whispered loudly as she pulled Harry close by his tie. Harry just blew a raspberry "Just admit you're scared it's fine," he said with an infuriatingly smug smile. 

Hannah shoved him "I'm not scared! I just don't want to get into trouble," she reasoned. 

"Because you're scared." He repeated. 

"I'm not scared!" She shouted

"Who's scared?" Tonks who had been herding first years from the back popped up and joined their conversation. 

"Hannah, she doesn't wanna come to the forbidden forest," Harry explained. 

"Boo, the forbidden forest is loads of fun, no need to be scared Hannah," Tonks told the girl who was about to explode in anger. 

"Have you been?" Susan asked, speaking for the first time since they had left the Great Hall. 

Tonks looked at her and rapidly nodded "The first night I was here I snuck out of my dorm and straight into the forest, it was pretty creepy and I'm pretty sure I wandered into an Acromantula nest," she said with an excited smile. 

"That sounds terrifying!" Hannah said, looking at Tonks like she was mad. 

Tonks however waved her off "When you enter fifth year, one of your O.W.L requirements for DADA is to periodically cull the build-up of cursed spirits, so it isn't too bad, at most you'll find a few first grades," Tonks said trying to reassure her. 

"We should go!" Harry said with just as much excitement as Tonks. 

Hannah looked at Harry with a shocked expression "What about what she just said makes it okay to go," she asked with Susan nodding frantically next to her. 

"They're right Harry, as a prefect, it's my job to make sure students are all in past curfew and to make sure you're all safe," Tonks said with a serious expression on her face. Harry raised his eyebrow and looked at her with an increasingly widening smile. 

"But once I go to bed I am off duty and have no responsibilities!" She added with a manic laugh. 

"Tonks!" Harry shouted as he reached his hand up. 

"Harry!" She shouted back, as she slapped his hand, and a crisp high-five could be heard throughout the corridor. 

"This is so embarrassing..." Hannah said as she tried to hide her face. With how loud Harry and Tonks were being students started looking back and whispering, though it was mostly about Harry as they had come to expect this kind of behaviour from Tonks —Second year and above did anyway. Susan couldn't help but smile at their antics, she wished she could be as extroverted as they were but she couldn't bring herself to even talk much to her closest friends let alone someone she had been reading about since she was a little girl.

"Come on Hannah it'll be fine, I've seen Tonks kill a first grade easily we will be fine," Harry said as he tried to reassure her. 

"Yeah if it's between me and a first grade... I'd win," Tonks said as she flexed her bicep using her ability to make it more muscly than it usually is. 

"Fine, we'll go with you! Just stop calling me scared!" Hannah said with mild annoyance. 

"Wooooooo!" Harry and Tonks both cheered as they grabbed both of Hannah's arms and rushed forward to the common room. 

"I don't think I'd like to go anymore..." Susan said in a low voice that was quiet enough that even she had trouble hearing herself. She eventually sighed and resigned herself to the fate of getting torn apart and eaten by a curse rather than having to confront her friends on how she felt —she didn't want to deal with that awkward conversation. 

———————————————————-

Neville had been led down to the dungeons with the other Slytherin first years by their head of house Severus Snape. He hadn't said a word since sitting down at the Slytherin table in the Great Hall, though that didn't mean he wasn't aware of the looks of pure disgust he was receiving from the others —none so more than Draco Malory. Neville as a Pureblood from a family with a long and rich history was famous; the reason he was famous was due to his aptitude in magic —or his lack of aptitude in magic. 

Neville was born with barely any magic at all. He didn't inherit the Longbottom family's innate magical technique, he didn't have any innate technique to speak of; which could be forgiven as more often than not a person will either have a weak technique or one at all. But Neville barely had enough magic to use a wand and he suspected that he wouldn't be able to do much more than a few spells before he exhausted his reserves. 

But in return, he was gifted with a body far stronger than that of regular wizards. Even those who could enhance their body with magic would struggle to keep up with Neville. When he was younger his uncle Algie had come over and in an attempt to cause some accidental magic he pushed Neville out of a window from the third floor of their mansion, but instead of falling to his death, Neville landed on his feet with no damage at all. 

It was then that the Longbottoms finally realised that Neville was subjected to a Heavenly Restriction. This made him a pariah in the wizardly community and it caused his Grandmother to go near insane as she tried to find ways of turning him into a wizard. Needless to say, those ways were not always loving or humane and it gave Neville a real hatred for Wizards. 

Neville found his hands twitching as he looked at all the first years around him who looked about ready to murder him. He had to stifle the smile that wanted to form on his face, he truly couldn't wait until they tried. 

"This is the entrance to the Slytherin Common Room, the password is Pure-Blood," Snape informed them as the stone wall opened and he guided the first years inside. 

"One thing I expect from you and all of those in Slytherin house is unity, the entire school hates and fears us, so I expect you to present a united front outside of these walls, am I clear?" Snape said sternly. 

"Yes, professor." The first years all replied. 

"Good, if you have grievances with each other deal with them in here, do not bring them to me I am not here to babysit children like the other heads of house, your schedules will be delivered to you tomorrow at breakfast, goodnight," Snape abruptly said before turning on his heels and leaving the common room. 

As the door shut behind him a lot of the Slytherin students started chuckling before palming their wands and looking at Neville with malicious intent. 

"Save it for your dorms!" A seventh-year prefect shouted interrupting the first years who had started to surround Neville. 

"You got lucky Longbottom," One of them said as they brushed past him. 

"You better sleep with one eye open."

"You're not gonna last a week."

Neville stood there listening to them barely able to quell the excitement he felt 'I wonder which one will be first,' he thought to himself as he struggled to pick a wizard. 

———————————————————-

(Nurmengard Castle)

(Earlier that day)

"Allow me to introduce you to our newest ally, Lord Voldemort," Grindelwald said as he gestured to the man next to him. 

The pale-skinned man with yellow reptilian iris' and king fingernails smiled —his smile sent shivers down everyone at the table's spine. "I am glad I have such competent and pure wizards as allies," he said in a raspy voice. 

"This is impossible..." Rosier found herself saying, she had remembered and even seen some of the acts that Voldemort was responsible for —they were truly heinous and evil. While Grindelwald and the Hallows worked for the greater good of wizards, Voldemort worked only for himself and his power 'Why are we allying with such a man,' she couldn't help but ask herself. 

"My dear you'll find that when it comes to myself the impossible and possible are merely words," Voldemort stated. 

"Quirrell is hosting Voldemort's soul meaning he can take it over at any time he wishes," Grindelwald explained. 

"Then why even allow Quirrell to be in control?" Aurelius asked. 

"Because his body simply cannot handle my power, eventually everybody I could inhabit will start to break, even Albus Dumbledores himself, what I need is a catalyst to adjust my soul to the new body, where I can begin my reincarnation," Voldemort explained, though very abruptly he started coughing blood out of his mouth violently —falling onto the table. Grindelwald summoned a blue flame with his left hand and let it wash over Voldemort. He stopped coughing and the blood burnt away, restoring him to how he was a moment ago. 

"Which brings us to our alliance, Voldemort will gain us entrance to the castle and in return, we shall assist him in recovering the Philosopher Stone which is currently being held by Dumbledore at Hogwarts," Grindelwald explained. 

Aurelius let out a chuckle "Fighting Dumbledore is nearly as bad as trying to break into Hogwarts, the man is invincible, only time may beat him at this point."

Grindelwald smiled "Between me and Lord Voldemort we shall prevail...besides he will most likely be busy that day, to my Hallows I trust you with the task of securing Harry Potter, you cannot fail me," he said as he looked across the table with a serious expression. 

"Good then we shall continue our preparations while Quirrel returns to Hogwarts," Grindelwald stated. 

———————————————————

*Thud*

*Thud*

*Thud*

"Please no! Please stop!" A young Theodore Nott begged as he crawled back on his hands and knees. He and his mate Arthur were gonna curse Neville and teach the squib filth where he belongs but Neville had dodged their first spell by rolling out of bed, with one hand he then pushed the bed towards the duo who fell onto it and lost grip of their wands. Neville then grabbed Arthur by the throat and smashed his face against the wooden post of the bed. 

Nott could only look on in horror as blood sprayed from his friend's nose onto his face. He felt his legs give way as he saw the smile of pure joy that was on Neville's face, he slapped Arthur sending his teeth flying out of his mouth he then threw him up to the ceiling where he hit the floor roughly. Arthur wasn't moving at this point the first slap having knocked him out "Hey... weren't you going to teach this squib a lesson..." Neville said as he grabbed Arthur and started punching him. 

Neville quickly stopped however as the boy wasn't responding so it wasn't fun at all. He then looked up to see Nott who was crawling backwards on his hands "Please no! Please stop!" He pleaded as he tried to stand up and run for the door. Neville kicked his knee and popped it out of place "AHHHHHHHH-"Before he could fall Neville caught him by the mouth. 

"I hope I don't need to tell you what will happen if you don't keep your mouth shut..." he said in a cold emotionless voice as he started applying pressure to Nott's jaw. He nodded rapidly as he tried to loosen Neville's grip. 

"Good, now don't wake me up again I'm tired," he said as he threw Nott towards the wall with a resounding thud. 

He stretched his muscles before pulling his bed back to its original position and hopping onto it. He went to sleep with a smile on his face 'Not a bad first day...' he thought to himself as he drifted off. 

(AN: as I'm sure you can guess Neville will be taking the role of Toji in this. I think it makes the most sense tbh. Anyway I do hope you enjoyed the chapter.)