Year 1

"Pay attention where you walk! You are even more useless than a Hufflepuff. Cannot even walk straight, can you, Weasley?", Elizabeth Zabini sneered at her, although it had been her, who had bumped into Rose on purpose.

Quickly Rose bowed down to the floor to lift the huge pile of books back up, that had fallen down due to the collision with the other first year Slytherin.
Never had she been happier, that her red curls covered her ears. Those ears that were blazing red in this very moment. "Come on, Liz' you know all to well that it is hard enough for her. I mean the family's disgrace, is she not? The first of her kind that has not been sent to Gryffindor.", Nancy flint cackled and tears went to Rose's eyes.

She had only been in Hogwarts for a few days and wanted back home already. She remembered being so very anxious, and being so sure of getting into Gryffindor. Everyone in her family had been a Gryffindor, except for aunt Fleur, who had not visited Hogwarts.

Rose had been the one to look at her cousin Albus with pity, when the hat had yelled "Ravenclaw, after being put on the Potter's head. She had been the one to giggle at the surprised face of Scorpius Malfoy, when the hat sorted him into the same house, as well. (The blonde boy had really looked positively surprised, and oddly relieved.)

She had thought she would hear the sentence, that her father and her aunt Ginny had told her abour "Another Weasley, huh?"

But the hat did not utter those words. He whispered something about the drive of a Slytherin, the braveness of a Gryffindor, the loyalty of a Hufflepuff and the ambitions and intelligence of a Ravenclaw. As if he did have all the time of the world, the hat explained to her that Hufflepuff could become boring to her quickly. He also mumbled that he knew of her secret wish to succeed, which was a bit hard seeing the great number of cousins. The hat knew those problems from Rose's father. "Well, small Weasley. What do you say? Slytherin or Ravenclaw?" Rose held on to one thought, as if her life depended on it 'Gryffindor', she had thought. But the hat only sighed "Listen, small Weasley, you think your family will not accept you, if you will not get sorted into Gryffindor. Be glad that I let you choose. You want to achieve your own success. This will not be easy as the daughter of your parents. By the way, your mother chose Gryffindor. You will thank me once, for letting you decide. Oh I will give you a small hint: Ravenclaw could be in need of a decent Keeper in the future.", and as if she had give in (which she had not! She wanted to her family in Gryffindor), the hat announced "Ravenclaw!"

At first there had been utter silence. Fred and James looked at each other wordlessly, at the Gryffindor table. Neither Albus Potter, nor Rose Weasley had gotten into Gryffindor.

The first reactions came from the Slytherin table: The students laughed. Rose was sure. They laughed at her, laughed at Albus. And laughed at Scorpius Malfoy.

Of course, there was nothing that spoke against Ravenclaw. A good family friend, Luna Scamander, had been in Ravenclaw and she had been braver in the fight against Voldemort, than many Gryffindors had. Rose was glad that the hat had decided against sending her to Slytherin.

But she wanted to Gryffindor. All of her family had been in Gryffindor, and she was sure her brother and her younger cousins would all be sent to Gryffindor.

Shocked, she sat on the stool, still wearing the hat on her head. Neville, professor for Herbology and a good family friend, stood behind her, also in shock. Until Fred, George, and Victoire jumped up to cheer, Teddy Lupin followed them at the Hufflepuff table. Neville, whom Rose would call Professor Longbottom from then on, began to grin like a Cheshire cat. Soon two names that drowned the booing of the Slytherins. "ROSE! ALBUS!", was soon chanted by all Ravenclaws, Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs together (just because they wanted to score the Slytherins off). Neville then took the hat off Rose's head, winking, and Rose skipped over to the Ravenclaw table to sit vis-a-vis with Albus. In all the commotion it went totally unheard, that Elizabeth Zabini was sorted into Slytherin.

Thus she, Albus, Scorpius Malfoy and a petite, slightly weird blonde, who introduced herself as Stella Lovegood (Xenophilius seemed to have adopted her, after Luna moved out) were the only four Ravenclaws of this rather small age group.

Somehow she was relieved that all of her cousins still treated her the same way, but she was too ashamed to owl her parents. Albus felt the same, as did Scorpio. The Slytherins' name calling they had to face was too much. Unfortunately they had almost all of their lessons together with the Slytherins, thus there was no day without Rose running to her room, crying.

Like on that very day, when Elizabeth Zabini and Nancy Flint humiliated Rose in front of everyone. Rose cowered on the floor to pick up the books, that had fallen down. She had to hurry, if she wanted to be on time for professor Longbottom's lesson. She was just lifting up her Defence Against Dark Arts book, when she heard Patrick Nott running up to them. "Hey Liz', here's the pumpkin juice you asked for.", happily smiling, the young Slytherin gave her the mug with the beverage.

Elizabeth only grinned in a mean way, and raised the mug. Rose shut her eyes and held her hands in front of her face, to shield it. Only a few drops fell on her. With a grim look on his face, Professor Longbottom stood in front of Rose with his wand raised in alert. The pumpkin juice hovered in the air.

"Miss Zabini, Miss Flint, enough. Not only that you took advantage of the young Mister Nott's benevolence. No your harassing goes to far. For you behaviour I will take 25 points each from Slytherin. The two of you will be helping Filch to clean the dungeons, for the next two months. If word reaches me you two still do not stop this nonsense, I will inform your parents."

"Thanks, professor Longbottom.", Rose tried smiling, but the professor only shook his head "I was only limiting the damage. Thank your friends, Miss Weasley. Without Mr. Potter and Mister Malfoy here, here, I would have not been able to do anything for you, Miss Weasley. You look like you need to recover from the shock. I am sure one of those muggle drinks, that your mother prepares all those time, could help. Why do you not go to the kitchen, I am sure the house elves would be glad for your visit. I will release you from the lessons today. Mr. Potter, Mr. Malfoy, how about one of you calls Miss Lovegood and you four go to the kitchen together?", it was Albus who nodded eagerly and turned around to call the fourth Ravenclaw. The professor sent the Slytherins, that still were around, ahead and turned to Rose once more.

"Rose, I've got a surprise for you and Al. Come to my office after dinner.", the professor grinned, as they were, except for Scorpius, alone and there was no need for formality.

Rose smiled and she and Scorpius waited for Stella and Albus, so they could go to the kitchen, where each of them received a mug of hot chocolate from the house elves. With those mugs the four went to the sea and enjoyed their short day of school in the warmth of the September sun.

After dinner Rose and Albus went to professor Longbottom's office. Never would they have thought of what awaited them there. When the door opened the two found themselves in the embrace in their mothers. Harry and Ginny Potter and Hermione and Ron Weasley had taken the way to Hogwarts upon them, because they had heard nothing from their children. They had been worried.

"Oh Rosie, how could we not love you?", her father had asked her, after she and Albus had confessed being sorted to Ravenclaw. "So what if you are in Ravenclaw, that does not change anything about us loving you.", Harry had soothed the two year one pupils. "But Dad did say, that I will be disowned, if I am not getting into Gryffindor.", Rose sobbed and Hermione turned to her husband, who swallowed. "You did WHAT? Ronald Weasley... what in Merlin's name did move you to telling our daughter such nonsense? Poor Al, must have heard you and must have thought that referred to him, as well. " "But 'Mione I only wanted to cheer her up. She wanted to get into Gryffindor so much that I thought..." "Ron, sometimes you really should not think.", Ginny shook her head. Ron only answered only with an indignant "Hey!", but he changed the topic, once he saw the look his wife threw his way.

"So it is all right, what we were sorted into Rawenclaw?", Albus asked with big eyes and his uncle answered "Of course it is! I am sure that you will be bloody brilliant in Ravenclaw! But Rosie do you still remember what I said about beating the Malfoy? That is still actual. Where is that boy, any ways? I would bet on anything that he is in Slytherin." "Actually Scorp is in Ravenclaw.", Rose interjected and her father looked at her surprised "What did you just call him?" "Scorp really is nice, uncle Ron. Don't get a knot in your wand.", Albus only rolled his eyes and looked his uncle in a way that Ron knew all to well from his sister.

"Well I am glad, that you are all right, but I think you should head off to bed. Firstly because the rules say so, and secondly because I am a bit worried about Hugo and Lily. I only hope the house is still standing, when we get home.", Hermione sighed and Neville laughed, "Hermione, you really did not change one bit. No other mother would send her daughter away, just because the rules say so.", pouting the accused woman folded her arms in front of her chest. The two year one pupils bid their goodbyes to their parents, and went on their way to their dorms.

Stumbling upon Scorpius in the common room, they encouraged him to owl his father. Thus the four (Stella had come to sit with them, as well), they took half the night to write the letter.

Rose and Scorpius sat across from each other on the floor at a low table, while Albus and Stella had sat down on a cosy love-seat. The two had fallen asleep, and Stella's head had fallen onto Albus' shoulder. His head rested on top of hers.

"Do you really think my father will accept me being in Ravenclaw?", Scorpius asked Rose, after he had read over the letter once more. "Of course. Why should he not?", Rose replied. "Everyone in my family has been in Slytherin. Well most of them. I've got the feeling of misbehaving against an unspoken law. My grandfather will-" "Scorpius stop painting such a sombre picture!", Scorpius' eyebrow was raised at the Muggle saying. "Even if they don't, which I really don't think, I am sure they will learn to accept it with time. Until then I'll only tell you one thing: The Weasleys never denied someone a place in their family.", Rose smiled at the blonde.

A few days later Scorpius received an owl that told him that his parents would not cast him out. His father even added, that it may be good that way. This way Scorpius could change the Malfoy's reputation. That the name would not be as negatively connoted as it was before. A new beginning.

And like that the first Hogwarts year began for Rose Weasley, Scorpius Malfoy, Albus Potter, and Stella Lovegood.