They had won.

Voldemort was defeated, the Death Eaters cowed, justice served.

Everything was fine now. Harry should be overjoyed.

And yet...

A list of names kept cycling through his head.

Dobby.

Tonks.

Remus.

Sirius.

Cedric.

Fred.

He could never get away.

He sees movement in the corner of his eye, a flash of house elf magic.

George would always falter in the middle of his sentences- waiting for the interjection that would never come.

Little Teddy would sometimes ask for his parents. No one knew how to explain why they could never come.

Harry knew that all time turners had been destroyed. That even if he had one, he could never truly change anything. But that didn't stop his from trying his best. And after months of hard work, and some questionable dealings, he had finally done it.

He had come back to the first year of Hogwarts.

It was time for the greatest test of all: the sorting hat.

"It's been a while since I had a time traveler like you." The hat murmured. Whatever Harry had been expecting, it certinly wasn't that.

"But where to put you..."

Griffindoor, please. Harry thought loudly.

"Ah, but would you learn there? I think not. Your plan was very ambitious, don't you think?"

No. NO.

"Yes, and cunning too. Better be SLYTHERIN" The hat yelled into the hall. Harry paled. This was not going to be good.

Murmurs spread throughout the hall. Harry Potter, in Slytherin?

Sitting at his table, Draco Malfoy smirked.

The rest of the sorting ceremony was a daze. Harry could barely recognize his classmates’ stares through the relentless throbbing of his head , struggling to comprehend the magnitude of what just happened. How could things have already gone so wrong?

When he next looked up, he was inside the dungeons, surrounded by students in green, pushing and pulling as they made their way to their dorms. Most of them filed out, leaving the first years alone in the common room. The room seemed bare and empty, compared to his vague memories of his second year. Odd, considering how many students should already be living here. Maybe they were cleaned out on a yearly basis?

He was snapped out of his revere by the sharp nasally voice of Professor Snape. Oh. Right. He would be Harry’s head of house. While Harry had long forgiven Snape, and even respected him, that didn’t mean he had to enjoy his presence.

“Welcome, new Slytherins. For the next seven years, this will be your home, your family.” Snape paced, eying the students. “Within these walls, we are all Sytherin first and foremost. There will be no infighting, no matter your personal beliefs. Understood?” Snape sneered, but Harry could tell he didn’t mean it. He had seen enough malice directed at him to tell when it was faked. “Yes Sir!” the students responded in unison, standing ramrod straight.

“Your room assignments have been posted on the wall. No, I will not accept bribes to switch roommates. Ask an older student to help you if you have trouble finding your room. ”

He paused, uttering one last sentence before leaving the room with a flourish. “Those who require my help need only ask.”

Harry only stood there for several seconds, unable to comprehend this strange land that he had somehow walked into.

Was he sure he didn’t find himself in an alternate dimension? He didn’t even think Snape was capable of using such a soft voice.

Sure, he and Ron had always known he favored Slytherins, but to this extent? Harry was suddenly jerked from his thoughts by a hand on his shoulder.

“Excuse me, are you alright?” a familiar voice called from behind.

“You’ve been staring at the wall for quite a long time.”

Harry turned, to be faced by none other than Draco Malfoy, smiling as he held out his hand in greeting.

Harry blinked.

And blinked again.

Nope, still there.

Just when Harry had thought things couldn’t get any weirder.

Malfoy frowned, before starting again. “We seem to be roommates. It would be a bad idea to get on the bad side of someone you live with, don’t you agree? My Mother told me all about it. ” Harry could have cried out in relief. At least something was still the same. He never though he would be so happy to hear Malfoy being a prick.

“Probably, yeah.” He responded.

“He speaks!” Malfoy said joyfully. “We should head to our room, don’t you think?”

Harry nodded quickly. The room was much like his old one in Gryffindor, albeit in different colors. If Harry closed his eyes, he could almost imagine he was back there now. The last thing he heard before falling asleep was Malfoy saying, “I think we will be great friends.”