The Real Harry Potter

The next day the teachers noticed something strange, Harry Potter did not attend a single class, nor did he appear at breakfast, lunch or dinner nor was he seen in the common room.

Something that ended up causing a lot of rumors appearing throughout the school, including some that said he had left the school and ran away. However most of the rumors were gone when he appeared the next day for breakfast.

Harry sat at the Gryffindor table on his own when suddenly three people sat opposite him. It was the Gryffindor chasers Katie Bell, Alicia Spinnet and Angelina Johnson.

"Harry," Katie said in a concerned voice. "are you alright?"

"Well...still alive." Harry shrugged. "Why do you ask?"

"Well you've apparently been gone the last day and the night before and you weren't seen in the common room either." Alicia answered. "Plus apparently all of your stuff is gone."

"I've got to be honest," Harry sighed. "I've had enough."

"What are you on about?" Angelina frowned.

"I've...had enough." Harry repeated. "Do you know what I've been doing since I came to Hogwarts?"

"Magic? Quidditch? Saving the school?" Katie guessed.

"All of the above," Harry nodded. "but I was also pretending to be someone I'm not. Everyone wanted the polite boy-who-lived and I spent four years trying to be that person. I mean I helped people even if I didn't care, I resisted the urge to snap at people who looked at me like a zoo animal nearly every day, I've done my best to give everyone what they wanted. And what do I get for it? The whole school turning on me twice."

"Well...what about your friends?" Angelina asked, hoping to make him see the positives.

"You mean other than you lot?" Harry snorted. "Ginny was the only other one who told me they believed me. Hermione and Ron were actually against me and having both of my 'best friends' not supporting me did not help my situation in more way than one."

"If they didn't support you more people would think that you actually did it." Alicia realised.

"Exactly, I spent years putting up with the two and now they chose to abandon me."

"Putting with them?" Alicia asked.

"They are incredibly annoying," Harry replied as if it was obvious and he couldn't believe how she didn't know. "between the bossy overachiever and the idiotic underachiever I was ready to rip my hair out by the first year. But I put up with them because that was what I was supposed to do, I was Harry Potter and I was supposed to put other people's wants above my own. And this goblet of fire is the last straw for me, I am tired of doing what other people want. Now I'm being me for me."

"And who exactly are 'you'?" Katie asked, raising an eyebrow. "Who is the new Harry Potter?"

"I guess you'll see eventually." Harry shrugged. "What about you guys? How are you all doing?"

"Fine...for the most part." Angelina replied. "We're not happy with most of the other Gryffindor's, we can't believe how they treated you."

"Yeah, imagine them trying this with Oliver here." Alicia said, thinking about the Gryffindor quidditch captain who left last year.

"He wouldn't do anything," Harry said. "he didn't in the chamber of secrets incident and quite frankly he didn't really care about much beyond my ability to play seeker."

"Don't you think that's a little harsh?" Angelina frowned.

"Alright how many conversations did I have with him outside of quidditch or had nothing to do with quidditch?" Harry asked, waiting for her answer. Her frown increased before she slumped her shoulders and sighed.

"Okay, fair point." Angelina replied. "But still, they should have believed you when you said no. Plus the twins are not in our good books at the moment."

"Yeah," Katie nodded. "a joke and all is good but this is really not the time for them to be joking around. I mean you're in a tournament for seventh years, hated by most of the school, in potential danger and all they're doing is laughing at it."

"Never send a baby to do a grown man's job and never expect people to be anything less than they are." Harry responded. "The twins are jokers, they joke and that's pretty much all they do besides playing beaters. I've spent years trying to see the best in people, like I said before, I am tired of it."

"Mr Potter," A voice said, the four turned to see Professor McGonagall walking up to them, her thin lips in a frown as she gave Harry a disapproving look. "here you are." She said as she stopped in front of him.

"Here I am," Harry smiled. "how are you professor?" He said innocently, knowing exactly why she was upset with him.

"You were not seen in school all day yesterday. Where were you?"

"Earth, somewhere around Scotland." Harry answered with a thoughtful face, causing the chasers to smirk.

"Mr Potter, I am not in the mood for jokes." McGonagall said, glaring at him.

"I can see that, your face make it rather clear Professor, tell me do you practise that look or does it just come natural?" Harry grinned.

"Mr Potter that is ten points from Gryffindor and..."

"Only ten?" Harry interrupted with a disbelieving expression. "You total lightweight? Come on we can do better than ten, bring it, I can take it." Harry said enthusiastically.

"Mr Potter, that will be detention!"

"Hmm, no it won't." Harry shook his head.

"What did you say?!" She demanded, furious that he dared talk to her like that. "Mr Potter I am not accustomed to such disrespect!"

"You'd better get used to it then bitch," Harry said as he stood up, he was tempted to laugh at the gasps that came from everyone, he turned to her and looked at her with a straight face. "you see I've checked the rules. Tri-wizard champions do not have to attend detentions and they don't have to attend lessons either, so for this year at least I am free to do whatever the fuck I want. You want to take points, go ahead, it's your house that loses. I'm finding it hard to care if Gryffindor wins the house cup or not, so take as many points as your heart desires, it doesn't matter to me."

"Mr Potter! How dare you speak to me like this?! Even your father, for all of the trouble he caused, would never dare speak to me with such disrespect. I do not care what you think but you shall..."

"Excuse me," Harry said as he cut her off, he took her hat off her head. "just need to borrow this for a sec."

"Mr Potter! Enough of this! You will stop this horrible behaviour now!" She ordered.

"Just a sec," Harry said before he turned the hat upside down, he grabbed his goblet and poured all the juice in it, ignoring the gasp of surprise and disbelieving faces around him. "here ya go." Harry said before he placed the hat back on McGonagall's head, the juice poured out of her hat and down her hair, face and neck. "no I don't think I will stop my behaviour professor, it's rather enjoyable. In fact, it's only getting better from here on out." He grinned before turning to the open jawed chasers. "For your information, this is the 'new Harry Potter'." Harry said before he walked out the hall, his grin never leaving his face.