After their visit to Diagon Alley, Harry's parents behaved strangely. Even though they usually went out of their way for Brian and there was an abysmal difference in how they treated one son versus the other, at that time, they tried harder to engage with their eldest. For both of them, that trip to Diagon Alley had been a real blow, showing them two things: first, that they didn't know their eldest son at all – he was like a complete stranger to them; and secondly, that their behaviour had caused Brian to harbour a slight resentment towards his brother. Neither of these realisations pleased them in the slightest, and they were now attempting to fix the situation.
James tried to include Harry in his regular Quidditch matches with Brian. Harry agreed to participate, mostly not to appear discourteous, but he very soon discovered that neither his elder son nor his younger son genuinely wanted him to take part. In fact, Brian, on more than one occasion, tried to knock his brother off his broom by throwing Bludgers very violently at him. Lily, on the other hand, being more academically inclined, tried to engage him in scholarly pursuits. To her astonishment, she very soon discovered that the boy not only knew as much as she did, but in many respects, exceeded her knowledge. In short, they discovered, horrified, that they didn't know their son.
Harry, despite noticing his parents' change in behaviour, decided he wouldn't make a fuss. Instead, he did as he was asked, so his parents wouldn't get angry with him and he wouldn't suffer the consequences. The only comforting thought was that whatever his parents wanted from him, the idea hadn't come from his brother, who was truly furious at the sudden interest their parents had taken in Harry.
So, Harry was forced to endure the countless times his brother tried to demonstrate his superiority. From the very moment he got his magic wand, Brian had done nothing but brandish it from side to side, pointing it at whatever came to mind. He kept saying he was going to transfigure the item in question into something else, sometimes into things so incredible that Harry knew even Professor McGonagall would struggle to do so. Of course, these attempts usually ended in disaster – that is, the item in question shattered, and his parents had to fix it afterwards. Harry didn't mind what his brother tried, but he was uncomfortable that Brian's favourite target was his cat. Luckily, the feline seemed to know his brother well enough to not only get out of the wand's trajectory but also to give him a swipe with a claw for merely trying.
Instead of staying within the known danger zone of Brian Potter, Harry decided to emulate the other part of his summer and remain in his room as much as possible, though this time looking at both his textbooks and his birthday gifts. There had been a small dispute between Brian and him when they returned from Diagon Alley. Brian had demanded that Harry give him all the gifts, claiming no one in their right mind would want to give Harry anything, and Harry, naturally, had refused. The discussion could have escalated into something very serious if James, horrified by what his younger son was saying, hadn't stopped the dispute.
So, the young boy had a more or less secluded summer, just as he'd expected from the beginning, with only his pet and the letters he received from his friends for company. It was a shame that his parents had taken to including him in their daily situations, because now, for fear of being discovered, he couldn't even practise his various skills. The arrival of the first of September was a relief for him, as he could return to his sanctuary… a place where he could also get away from his brother. With a little luck, he'd only see him from afar during meals.
That morning, Harry woke up as early as was his custom, though instead of the usual silence he found in a house when all its occupants are asleep, he encountered the characteristic sounds of rushing and nervous voices. It wasn't hard for him to guess what had happened: Brian hadn't prepared his trunk. Unperturbed by the chaos surrounding him, the boy prepared for the trip to school and made sure nothing important was forgotten. After cajoling Night not to hide and to get into her carrier, he went down for breakfast. It turned out to be a surprise that Uncle Remus, Sirius, and his family were already at the table. Though he knew Sirius had come to say goodbye, it was a joy to see the werewolf.
"Good morning," Harry said when he entered and sat down.
"Good morning, Harry," the smiling werewolf greeted, while the rest only nodded their heads, and in Mark's case, didn't even pay attention to him.
"No," the boy laughed. "I'm impatient. There's so much to learn and do."
"And not everyone can say they've done their first three years of Hogwarts in one go," Remus affirmed. "I wonder if the teachers will do the same this year."
"I don't know, but I'd like to," the boy chuckled.
"If that were the case, this term you'd have your OWLs…"
"I know."
"Good morning!" Brian's abrupt entrance cut them off and effectively stopped their conversation.
The rest of breakfast was more in keeping with Potter standards – that is, Brian spoke, and his parents and Sirius listened and participated in the conversation, while Harry and Remus remained silent, waiting to continue their conversation another time. Then, as soon as they excused themselves, the two went up to the boy's room to start putting his things away, continuing the chat they had been so rudely interrupted by Brian.
The journey to King's Cross was very similar to the one Harry had the year before; first, they travelled by Floo powder to the Leaky Cauldron, and then called a taxi, or rather several taxis, and they went through the crowded streets of London to the train station, where some annoyed taxi drivers dropped them off after collecting the fare. The station was, as might be expected, overflowing with Muggles, and those who weren't were so well disguised that it was very difficult to identify them.
"Right then… We'd better go slowly, or the Muggles will discover us," Lily Potter said, helping Brian with the trolley.
"Harry and I will go first," Remus said, before gesturing for the young boy to follow him.
The platform was as full of wizards and witches as the rest of the station was with Muggles. Hundreds of students were already there, reuniting with each other, saying their goodbyes or placing their things inside the train. No one could enter the platform without feeling nostalgic, excited, or amazed, and Harry was no less so, when he saw all those people striving to ensure all the students were ready when the clock struck eleven.
While Harry and Remus were looking at the hustle and bustle of the platform, the others had already entered, as they could tell from Mark's surprised gasp. The Potters and the Blacks looked at the platform with the same nostalgic expression as the werewolf, no doubt remembering when they were the ones going to school, expecting to have as many adventures as possible. Although Brian did not show the same amazement or enthusiasm as all the others; rather, he had a bored expression, typical of those who thought they were better than others. His brother doubted that would last long, just long enough to meet a few select students: the Weasley twins.
They all headed together as a group towards the end of the train in order to place their trunks inside. Both brothers were very clear, however, that they weren't going to sit together, even if forced to. As they advanced, many students ran to greet Harry, whether they were second-years or seventh-years, and without the slightest concern for which house he belonged to. It was obvious that despite his age, the boy was truly very popular, either for his abilities or his character. The thing was, everyone liked him, something that quite surprised his entire family, with the sole exception of Remus, who knew it in advance.
Once at a point on the train where there seemed to be quite a few empty compartments, they all stopped to say goodbye. So, while his parents and Sirius's family bade Brian the typical good wishes, Remus said goodbye to Harry and thanked him for committing to continue making the new Wolfsbane Potion for him. Perhaps, at another time, Harry would have been hurt when his parents said goodbye to Brian but not him, but it was no longer the case. He was growing up and had learned not to expect much affection from his parents. Something very significant would have to happen for that to change. Only Brian existed for them.
After a last hug, Harry boarded the train and looked for an empty compartment. He knew none of his friends had arrived yet, so he would be the one to find a place to sit. Through the window of his compartment, he could see his parents who continued to say their goodbyes without noticing he was no longer present. Additionally, he would swear he saw his mother crying as she hugged Brian. His father looked at Brian with pride and Sirius made jokes about respect and how he should uphold the Marauders' pride very highly.
"What a lot… Anyone would say they only have one child," a voice said, entering the compartment. "Hello."
Harry smiled when he turned around and discovered his Slytherin friend, who was leaning on the doorframe as if he didn't care, with an expression of superiority far better achieved than that of his younger brother – after all, his family had many centuries perfecting it. Draco was watching the scene with a clear expression of displeasure, almost as if such a scene were insulting.
"Hello, Draco," Harry chuckled. "How's your summer been?"
"Better than yours, for sure… I haven't had to put up with them," he said, casting a contemptuous look at the Potter and Black families. "My family and I have gone to the south of France… at least for the last month. During July, my father was quite busy."
It wasn't necessary for him to specify what he had been busy with; they both knew, but they pretended not to. Lucius Malfoy was a Death Eater, and everybody knew it, but since he wanted his son to remain neutral in the war, he had no issue with him making friends with families loyal to the light or to the dark, indiscriminately.
"It must have been interesting."
"Very… there were even a few days we went to Spain. It was rather good, although it was too hot."
The compartment door opened again, and Neville and Hermione entered, both engaged in a conversation about plants and how to care for them. Surprisingly, it wasn't Hermione who carried the weight of the conversation; of course, everyone knew that Neville was a Herbology genius. They barely gave a short greeting before continuing to be immersed in the subject, much to the amusement of the other two. There were barely fifteen minutes left before the train's departure, and the various students were entering their compartments. Athenea and Jonathan walked in together, and the two ran to hug their friend, before sitting down in the already quite full seats. Terry entered just two seconds later, his nose already buried in a textbook, reading it to gain a better understanding of the theory.
"Where are the twins?" Hermione muttered worriedly. "There are only five minutes left!"
"They must have had traffic problems, Hermione," Athenea commented. "Calm down, they're not going to miss the train."
"At this rate…"
As if they had heard them, at that moment, they saw a large group of redheads running onto the platform, hurrying to get into the different compartments, while their parents gave obvious sighs of relief. They had managed to get there by the skin of their teeth.
"See? They're already here," Terry commented while they watched all the Weasleys get onto the train. "We'll have them here again in a moment."
And he was right because just a few minutes later, the head of one of the twins appeared at the door, and when he saw them, he smiled before entering, followed by his twin. The two of them explained a very funny story about how that morning had turned out to be chaos and then how they had encountered several traffic jams, managing to get out of them and reach the station with just enough time.
"Normally, we come by Floo to the Cauldron and then take a Muggle taxi to get here… This year, with Ginny, that would have been impossible, so Dad drove us," Fred explained. "Poor chap, he was dying to blow up the car, but Mum wouldn't let him."
"Blow up the car?" Hermione asked dumbfounded.
"Yes, when Dad bought the car, he loved it so much that, among other things, he enchanted it to fly and also to become invisible."
"But that's illegal!" Draco exclaimed. "Muggles can't be bewitched! Besides… It was your own father who passed that law!"
"Oh, no!" said George. "There's a legal loophole that says if the wizard or witch doesn't intend to use the charm on the object, then it's absolutely legal. Our father made sure that loophole existed so he could continue tinkering with Muggle things."
"Forgive me for saying so, but your father is either mad or he's a genius," Athenea said with exaggerated seriousness before she and everyone present began to laugh.
They were all so distracted that they didn't notice when the compartment door opened and Brian appeared, looking at them with displeasure, and in the case of his brother, with real animosity. It wasn't just that Harry seemed to be having a good time, but he seemed to have many friends. For now, except for the first-years – and not all of them – when Brian introduced himself, they always said the same thing: "Oh, are you related to Harry Potter? His brother, perhaps?" He had never, ever been known as Harry's brother; on the contrary, Harry had been known as his brother. As if that wasn't enough, after talking to him for a few minutes, the vast majority had threatened to curse him. Brian was in a very bad mood, and usually, when he was in a bad mood, it was his brother who paid for it.
"Well… well, look who we have here," he said, breaking the good atmosphere that had reigned in the compartment. "Tell me, Harry, what have you done to make them want to be with you? Because of their own free will, I doubt anyone would want to waste time with a useless person like you."
"How dare you!?" Hermione shouted, jumping up.
"What do you want now, Brian?" Harry asked.
"Me? Not much; only for everyone to know what a failure you are. The truth is, I don't understand why Mum and Dad didn't get rid of you years ago… After all, you're nothing more than a useless… It would be best if the Unspeakable killed you, it would be a relief for everyone…"
He couldn't finish what he wanted to say. The moment those words came out of his mouth, several curses shot out of the wands of his brother's companions, leaving him unconscious. One of the twins took him by the neck and pulled him abruptly out of the compartment, while squeezing his wand as if he genuinely wanted to cast an unpleasant curse.
"Harry, I truly pity you," Neville muttered. "Growing up with someone like him must not have been easy."
"What I don't understand…" Terry muttered. "Is how that thing – because he cannot be called anything else – can be your brother."
The good humour that had reigned a while before had completely disappeared as they looked at the door with disgust. Luckily, with Hufflepuff back in the compartment, it couldn't last long, and very soon, everyone laughed again in amusement until the end of the journey. By the time they arrived in Hogsmeade, Brian had gained a reputation for despicability, and he had also made many enemies.