Surviving Malfoy _ Part I : Shock and Denial

Chapter 1

"Let's get out of here."

Debbie grabbed my arm and pulled me towards the door. My feet wouldn't move. My brain was still trying to process the events of the last five minutes. The stories my mother had been telling me since that old wizard had appeared on our doorstep had suddenly gotten frighteningly real.

There were exactly eleven people in this store, including me. Six of which were my age, one I had known for five years, four I should have known for five years and one I should've known for all my life. Considering the 4 adults present, there was one I couldn't trust anymore, one was a bitch, one was eyeing me suspiciously and one was the store clerk. Nearly all of them except two were too concentrated on the fight going on between three of them to notice my current state of distress. Or maybe they simply thought it was my way of reacting to wands being drawn over minor disagreements. Only one of them seemed intelligent enough to try and calm down the situation though, not that it made much of a difference. The rest of them were either too transfixed to even bother saying a word, or, as for the store clerk, acting as if nothing was happening.

"Ouch!"

I jerked and finally looked at Debbie. She pulled on my arm again and ushered me to the door, sneaking out behind my mothers back and motioning to Blaise to shut up about it. He simply nodded and went back to raising an eyebrow at his friend who was currently pulling a pair of dress robes over his head, furiously telling his mother he didn't want them anymore. Debbie pulled me up the narrow street and out of sight from the store, just as Blaise' friend and his mother left it.

"Everything alright?" Debbie asked.

"I'm fine."

I was not.

"Don't lie to me."

"I'm not lying to you, Debbie. I'm fine."

"Oh yes, because having a panic attack when you see your-"

"Keep your voice down!" I looked around to make sure nobody had heard. "Are you mad? I told you nobody is supposed to know until I'm in this bloody school!"

"Calm down, Jay! You're getting paranoid, there's nobody in this street anyway."

She was right. This was supposed to be one of the busiest streets in wizarding London, at least that was what Blaise had told us. Right now it was almost completely deserted except for a few shoppers hurrying down the street as if the devil himself was after them.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Debbie asked.

"It's not a matter of wanting... There's just no going back anymore." I said. "Mom enrolled me at Hogwarts and I'm definitely out of Salem."

"I'm pretty sure Fox would take you back." Debbie said.

"Don't try talking me into going back. I'm already tempted... Plus you heard your mother: 'Hogwarts is the best wizarding school there is, darling.'" I tried imitating Theresa's posh british accent and high pitched voice.

"Shut up." Debbie punched my arm. "She's awful. She just wants to keep me away from Dad."

"She's nice enough to let us stay with her!"

"Come on Jay you know exactly she wouldn't let your mom anywhere near her house if she couldn't get me away from Dad at the same time."

My face hardened. It was true. Theresa wasn't my mother's biggest fan and everybody knew, no matter how hard she tried hiding it. To Theresa my mother was inferior, she was useless scam worth less than the dirt underneath her fingernails. You could see it in the way she talked to her and in the way she wrinkled her nose every time my mother entered the room. Even the house elves were treated better by Theresa than my mother. She was an abomination, worse than a muggle-born and worse even than a muggle.

It was a way of thinking I had never understood and yet it seemed pretty common on this side of the big lake.

"Your mother's a moron." I said.

"I know." Debbie said. "Come on, there's a joke shop I want to check out."

Debbie took my arm and walked towards a rather colourful shop at the end of the street. It stood out so much against the rest of the dull, grey shops around it, it nearly hurt the eye. Weasleys Wizard Wheezes. I looked up at the bright orange façade.

"Too much Wee in my opinion."

Debbie suppressed a laugh.

"It lightens the mood." She said smiling.

The joke shop seemed to be the only happy place in this street, and Debbie was right, it lightened the mood. It was the first time that I saw witches and wizards laughing since I had came to Britain. The store was packed with children begging for the candies and laughing at the toys, little girls snuggling Pigmy Puffs, boys sneaking Puking Pastils into their mothers pouch and parents trying to keep track of their kids. Debbie pulled me towards a shelf with love potions with a big grin on her face. I suspiciously raised an eyebrow.

"Oh come on." She said. " You'll finally be in a school with a little male presence, try and make the most of it."

I sighed, but a small smile crossed my face nonetheless just as a store clerk in bright magenta robes approached us.

"Ladies." He said with a smug smile. He was tall. At least a head taller than me and a good ten centimetres taller than Debbie, who seemed to enjoy the sight of the young, red headed man in front of her. "I see you're interested in our love potions, not that any of you would be in need of one, I dare say."

Debbie grinned back sheepishly.

"We're not exactly used to male company." She said. "It's always good to have a backup plan."

"Well I'd be delighted to be your male company!" The man said, his eyes fixed on Debbie. "No need for the love potion. Although I wouldn't mind you buying it, as the store clerk I could make good use of the money. I'm Fred, by the way "

"How about I leave the love potions here and you show me around a little so I can see what else I can give you my money for, Fred?"

I pressed my lips together, avoiding a deep sigh.

"I'll just leave you two alone, if you don't mind." I said.

"Is there anything in particular you're looking for, darling?" Fred turned to me, still with a grin on his face.

"How about something that can make me vanish from awkward situations?"

"Instant Darkness Powder. You won't vanish unnoticed, but at least you'll vanish." He said an pointed towards a back room. "Just over there."

I gave an awkward wave and hurried away, leaving Debbie behind with her new crush. I knew it was best to leave her alone on these occasions, and just be there for the heart break. Not that that happened very often in an all-girls school...

The back room Fred had pointed me to was a lot less crowded than the main store and it seemed a lot gloomier. The products in there seemed to be made for defence rather than for jokes and there wasn't a single child in here, just two older men looking at a pair of gloves. I went further into the room, just to breathe. Only now did I realise how crowded the main store actually was and how good it felt to have some space. I moved towards a shelf filled with bright glass spheres. Luck Orbs it said on the sign above it, Help you keep your calm in the presence of a dementor.

I had heard about the war going on in Britain, about the return of who was considered to be the darkest wizard of all times, about muggles and muggle borns being murdered or simply vanishing. It didn't affect the american wizarding world that much, at least not yet, so I only slowly came to know about it over the last few weeks. It seemed foolish to me that an entire wizarding population would put all it's faith into one sixteen year old boy, but that was exactly what seemed to be happening right now. 'The Chosen One' they called him, and just because Harry Potter had defeated Voldemort multiple times, didn't mean he could defeat him for good in the end, in my opinion.

And yet I was still here, for exactly this reason.

"Come through the back, Harry, that's where we're making the real money."

I froze.

¨Pocket anything, you, and you'll pay in more than Galleons."

Fred had entered the back room in the company of no other than The Chosen One. I kept my back to them, pretending to be interested in the Luck Orbs. Fred explained to him how they had developed a Defence Against the Dark Arts line and how much money they were making from it. I didn't want to eavesdrop, really, but if the opportunity to find out something more presented itself, I would take it. But the only thing I got to find out was that The Chosen One had apparently given this store some startup money, nothing more. Shortly after that, Fred was called out by one of his employees and Harry Potter remained alone.

I couldn't resist to get a good look at him, although I had already seen him once earlier. I was practically alone with him in here and he wasn't fighting with any of Blaise's friends, so I turned around discretely and took a good look at The Boy Who Lived.

He was black haired and tall. That was all I could make out from my point of view, considering he had his back to me. He looked more like my mother than me. I wasn't tall and I wasn't blacked haired, and for some reason it made me feel disappointed. I had hoped to find some connection to me in his looks, some sort of proof...

He turned his head towards me and I quickly turned back to the Luck Orbs. I just heard an annoyed sigh before the rustle of the curtain that separated the back room from the main store. I put the Luck Orb I had in hand back on it's shelf, waited a second and then followed him back to the front where I quickly found Debbie.

"Shouldn't have left you..." I said quietly.

"Something happened?" She asked. Fred had vanished fortunately.

"I went to that back room and ended up on my own with Harry Potter."

"Did you speak?!" Debbie grabbed my arm, an urgent tone in her voice.

"No, I-"

But I was interrupted by my mothers distressed yell.

"There you are!" She hurried through the crowd of customers, a worried look on her face. "I was searching the entire street for you two!"

"We were just looking around, mom..." I said faintly.

"Where's my mother?" Debbie asked, looking around.

"Getting your brothers school books, darling." My mum said to her.

Debbie looked sour.

"So she didn't bother looking for me." She said annoyed.

"Yes well, I did." My mum said, a stern look on her face. "And I don't want you two running of like this. I told you, who knows who or what might be waiting for two young girls behind the next corner."

"We're sorry, Matron." Debbie said. "Jay just needed to get out of there."

I cast a look at her, astonished that she would blame me for leaving. Just as I was about to retort, my mother put a hand on my upper arm.

"Are you alright, honey?" She asked caring.

I closed my mouth again and looked at her, slightly surprised. I wasn't used to this much attention from her, I was used to sharing it with twenty other girls.

"Yes." I said. "Yes, I am."

"It's normal for you to be anxious." She said. "I just would've preferred if you would've told me where you were going before actually leaving." She turned to Debbie for that last part.

"Yes, Matron." Debbie said. "Jay just looked so panicked..."

I was tempted to kick her.

My mother looked at me, but I avoided her worried eyes. Quite frankly I didn't want this much attention.

"We're still there for you, Jay, you do know that." My mother had always been on the sentimental side.

"I know, mom."

"Ma'am Fox hasn't expelled you, honey. If anything goes wrong, or you're not happy there, don't hesitate to call and we'll take you back in in no time."

"I know, mum."

"But I still think you should try and get along at Hogwarts, get to know your roots-"

"I wouldn't have to if you'd just told me about them earlier, mother." I interrupted harshly.

I was met by my mothers stern look. As always. We'd had this conversation already, more than once. And we always ended up fighting. She was the one I couldn't trust anymore. She wasn't my mother. I looked back into her eyes, just as sternly. We had the same hazel eyes and I had always accepted this as proof of her being my mother, although otherwise we didn't share a single physical trait. She was tall and black haired, just like Harry Potter. Although her hair was flat and straight, unlike Harry Potter's. Mine was long, curly and unkempt... Maybe this was his connection to me, the unkempt state of his hair.

"I did this to protect you, Joeleen." My mother repeated for the one hundredth time.

I was sick of it. It was her only excuse and in my opinion it wouldn't have done me any harm if she'd told me who I was. What could I have done anyway? Run off to Britain towards my certain death? And yet this was exactly what she was encouraging me to do right now. With me being who I was, I was just as certain to get killed during this war as Harry Potter himself. There was no way I could survive this. And yet I was still doing it. Because I wanted to know who I was, I wanted to know where my roots lay and I wanted to know how I ended up in New Orleans.

But I didn't tell my mother any of this.

"I know, mom." I said instead. "We should get my books as well."

I turned towards the door without waiting for Debbie or my mother, I knew they were going to follow me.

I spent the next week on my own with Blaise and Theresa Zabini, as my mother and Debbie went back to New Orleans the next morning. It wasn't the most pleasant week of my life. Not with an elitist pure blood and her three house elves in the house. At least Blaise was remotely friendly. I tried getting along with him. He was the only person at Hogwarts I knew for now, apart from the headmaster, although I wouldn't exactly describe it as 'knowing' him... I ended up being glad about the first of september, although I had been dreading this day for weeks before. The simple prospect of getting rid of Theresa made me look forward to going to Hogwarts. And when the day was finally there, I bid goodbye to her by simply nodding and thanking her for the food and shelter, which she accepted with a nod herself.

We would never be friends.

"This way."

Blaise led me through the corridors of the Hogwarts express to a compartment at the far end. One boy was already there. He had his nose buried in a comic and barely looked up when we entered.

"I hope you don't mind sitting with some of my friends." Blaise said and put our trunks on the luggage rack. "Jay, this is Vincent."

I waved and Vincent simply grunted. He looked like a grunter. He was broad shouldered, with a plain round face, rather large ears and very short brown hair.

"The train's leaving in ten minutes, the others should be here soon." Blaise said and sat down next to me.

"And who exactly are the others?" I asked, more to engage him in a conversation than out of interest. I didn't know them anyway, their names wouldn't help much.

"Gregory, Pansy and Draco." Blaise said. "You've met Draco."

I frowned.

"The blond guy from Madam Malkins'?" I was starting to doubt Blaise's taste in friends.

"Speaking of the devil." Blaise said

I turned to the door just as it opened and said blond boy entered the compartment, followed by a pug-faced girl with short black hair.

"Vincent, Blaise." Draco nodded to both of them. "Redhead?" He nodded to me as well, not without a surprised tone in his voice though.

"Draco." I said plainly.

"You two know each other?" Asked Pug-Face with a frown.

"We've met." Draco said." I don't know her name though."

"Joeleen." Blaise said, before I could answer.

"Jay." I said hastily. "Please."

Draco and her sat down next to Vincent, who didn't seem to care much about what was going on around him.

"And who exactly is she, Blaise? I've never seen her here, what house is she from?" Pug-face asked Blaise haughtily.

I raised an eyebrow. It wasn't as if she couldn't have asked me directly, not that I was in the same room as her...

"You've never seen her here, because she's not from here, Pansy." Blaise said in a tone that suggested he was talking to a three year old.

"Then where are you from?" Pansy asked me this time.

"New Orleans." I said. "I'm a Witch of Salem."

"Former Witch of Salem." Blaise corrected me and I cast him an evil look. Technically he was right, but still.

"Oh, so you don't know which house you're in yet." Pansy said with an arrogant look on her face.

I was getting annoyed with her.

"That question doesn't need to be answered." Blaise said with a deep sigh, he seemed to be fed up with Pansy as well. Then again, I would be too if I'd had to put up with her for years. "You'll see what that means when you're there." He said to me. "For now you'll sit with us. You'll probably be sorted after the feast, I don't think they'll put you in front of everyone with the first years."

Before I could answer though the compartment door opened again and another boy entered, he looked as broad shouldered and apish as Vincent.

"Gregory." Blaise and Draco nodded at the same time.

Gregory just waved to his friends and put his trunk on the luggage rack before sitting down on Blaise's other side without acknowledging my presence.

"So Salem Witches, huh?" Asked Draco. "What about Salem Wizards?"

"There are no Salem Wizards." I said. "There's an all boys wizarding school in Canada for all of North America."

Draco was raising an eyebrow. However, just as he was going to ask another question the door opened again and a young boy with mousy hair entered the compartment with two scrolls in his hand. Both Blaise and Pansy raised an eyebrow and Draco looked as if he was going to slap the kid for daring to enter without his permission.

"I'm looking for Blaise Zabini and Joeleen Carter?" The boy asked.

I hated my first name.

"Yes?" Blaise asked.

I looked at him quizzically and he simply handed us the scrolls before almost fleeing the compartment.

"What is it?" Draco asked, making a move to grab Blaise's scroll. Blaise, however, was quicker and snatched it away from him.

"How about letting me find out first? Ever heard about privacy of letters, Malfoy?"

Blaise proceeded to open his scroll and I followed his lead, wondering silently why they called each other by their last names.

Joeleen,

I would be delighted if you would join me for a bite of lunch in compartment C.

Sincerely,

Professor H. E. F. Slughorn

"Who's Professor Slughorn?" I asked.

"I don't know." Said Blaise handing his scroll to Draco.

"You don't know your own teachers?" I asked incredulously.

"We had five different Defence Against The Dark Arts teachers in five years. The position is cursed, apparently. Slughorn must be the new one." Blaise said.

Now that was reassuring. Hogwarts was supposed to be the safest place in Britain. And yet they had cursed teaching positions?

"Why is he inviting you?" Draco asked with a sneer. "And how come I didn't get an invitation?"

"Because you're a dick, Malfoy." Blaise said this in such a serious tone that I wasn't sure if I was allowed to laugh or not. "We should go see what he wants." He said to me.

"Is this normal?" I asked as soon as we were out of earshot from the compartment.

"What? Getting invited to lunch by teachers?" I nodded. "Nope..."

We walked towards the front of the train, looking for compartment C as the train was moving through the british countryside. I followed Blaise quietly, getting a first look at my future classmates. I estimated the number of students at about 800, way more than I was used to and I wasn't yet sure if that was something I was pleased about or not. However, there seemed to be not a single adult on this train, apart from Slughorn who seemed to be hiding away in his compartment C.

"Is there anyone supervising this?" I asked, not that a a few hundred underage wizards alone on a train was worrying me.

"There's a bunch of prefects patrolling the corridors every hour or so." A bunch of underage wizards supervising a bigger bunch of underage wizards? "They don't all take the job very seriously. Draco and Pansy are supposed to be prefects, all they do is bullying people, though. "

"Then why are you friends with them?" I asked.

"I'm not friends with Pansy." Blaise said dryly. "She's just running after Draco wherever he goes. And I've known Draco since forever. It's not his fault he's like that and he can be kinda nice some times. Really." He added upon seeing my raised eyebrow.

"They're both Slytherins right?" I asked.

"You know about the houses?"

"I read Hogwarts a History." I wasn't just going to go somewhere without knowing what I was throwing myself into.

"We all are?"

"The two apes too?" I asked before thinking.

Blaise turned around to look at me. The amused smile on his face however, indicated he didn't mind if I called his friends apes or not.

"Yes, the two apes too." He said. "So which house are you hoping for?"

"You can't choose?" I asked.

"No, you don't choose." Blaise said with a laugh. "You get sorted."

"Then what are you doing in Slytherin?" Stupid mouth.

Blaise turned around again, this time without a smile.

"What do you mean?"

"No offence, but you don't seem like a Slytherin." I said.

Blaise just continued walking. I waited a few seconds for him to speak again, but the discussion seemed to be over. I didn't say another word. Who was I to judge people anyway, I didn't even know Blaise, maybe he was murdering cats in his attic and that's what landed him in Slytherin. And just because what I had read about it made it seem like the worst house, didn't mean that all Slytherins were bad people. I had only met five of them so far, even if Draco and Pansy seemed to full fill the cliché pretty well...

"I'm sorry." I said, just as Blaise was about to knock on the door of compartment C.

He gave me a weird look and shrugged. Was I over-thinking?

Blaise knocked. We seemed to be the first ones to arrive, apart from one red-headed girl and a man who I assumed to be Professor Slughorn, and old, bold man with a big silver-grey walrus mustache and rather large waistline... In fact he was currently occupying two of the compartments seats, making it look way smaller than the one we came from, even though it was considerably larger.

"Ah!" made Slughorn. "You must be Mr Zabini." He said, shaking Blaise hand without standing up.

"Professor." Was all Blaise said.

"And Miss Carter, I assume?" I nodded and shook his hand before sitting down next to Blaise. "Yes, this is going to be interesting. You see, Miss Carter is coming to us from The Salem Witches Institute this year." Slughorn said with a beaming smile to the young girl next to him. She seemed rather relieved to see us. "I don't believe you know each other, do you?" Slughorn asked turning to Blaise. Blaise shook his head no. "Blaise – may I call you Blaise?" He didn't wait for an answer. "This is Ginny Weasley, who seems to be a very talented young which!" He smiled his walrus-smile at her. "Now, are you two having a nice journey so far?" Blaise and I both nodded. "Where have you been staying until now, Joeleen? You don't have family in Britain do you?"

"No, I don't." I said. "I stayed with Blaise and his mother for the last two weeks of the summer holidays."

"Oh, so you know Theresa?" Slughorn said enthusiastically. "How come?"

I exchanged a look with Blaise and told the story we'd agreed upon with Debbie.

"Blaise's cousin was my roommate at Salem." I said. "I've met Blaise and Theresa a few times before and Theresa suggested I'd stay with her before I'd come here."

"Now Blaise, I always thought Theresa was an only-child." Slughorn asked.

Shoot.

"Maggie is the daughter of my late fathers brother, Gwydion Zabini."

There was a knock on the door.

"Yes?" Slughorn said. "Ah! Mr McLaggen!"

In walked a broad shouldered youth with dirty-blond hair and a huge, confident smile on his face. I exchanged another look with Blaise, thanking him silently. He simply nodded. Maggie wasn't called Maggie, and Maggie wasn't Blaise's sister. But that better not be revealed. Least of all here.

McLaggen sat down just as a thin and nervous looking young man knocked on the door. Marcus Belby sat down next to McLaggen and, for the next half hour at least, Blaise and I weren't the centre of attention anymore. Slughorn blabbered on about all the now famous people he used to teach, from Quidditch players to politicians, he'd had them all and it slowly became clear to me what we were all doing here. It was just a matter of time until one specific person would be walking through the compartment door.

"Harry, m'boy!"

No surprise.

I felt my stomach drop and quickly grabbed a cup of tea to hide behind it. Blaise shot me a quizzical look. He must've noticed mu sudden nervousness, not that he had the slightest idea why.

"Good to see you, good to see you!" Boomed Slughorn. "And you must be Mr Longbottom!"

There was another boy behind Harry Potter, he looked just as nervous as I felt. They sat down opposite each other on the seats nearest the door which made it impossible for me to look get a good look at The Chosen One. Slughorn proceeded to introduce every one of us, except Ginny Weasley who apparently new the both of them.

Belby was the first one to be interrogated by Slughorn and my assumptions started to be proven right. Belby's uncle had invented the Wolfsbane Potion. McLaggen's uncle was just as famous and on top of that he also knew the new Minister of Magic. Theresa Zabini was notorious for loosing husbands and inheriting mounds of gold. Longbottom's parents had been tortured to insanity while fighting for the good cause. And Harry Potter of course, was Harry Potter.

"Now, Miss Carter!" I'd hoped he'd forgotten I was still there. "What brings you here?"

"My mother wanted me to try out something new." I said. "And to go back to my roots. Her parents – my grandparents – were educated at Hogwarts."

"Was your mother a Hogwarts student as well?" Slughorn asked. "I might have taught her."

"I highly doubt that sir, she never went to Hogwarts."

"So she was a Witch of Salem?"

"No, Sir." I said. "She never went to a wizarding school." Slughorn looked at me quizzically. "She's a Squib, sir."

My mother had warned me about the awkward silence that followed. It was the reason she'd left Britain and went to live in the American wizarding world, she was accepted there. Slughorn quickly changed the subject.

"Which Salem house are you from?"

"New Orleans." I said plainly.

"It's one of the smallest, isn't it? How many students?"

"26 this year. Only Juneau has less students, they have 11..." I said.

"11 students for all 12 grades?" I nodded. "You see" Slughorn turned to the others. "Witches in North America attend Salem at age six already! But you're only allowed to hold a wand once your 11 as well, aren't you?"

I nodded again.

"We learn muggle subjects until we're old enough." I said.

"That's good!" Slughorn said to me. "You see, except for the muggle borns, Hogwarts students are usually being home educated before attending Hogwarts and I had a first year once who didn't even know how to write properly!"

Slughorn was the only one laughing at this.

"And now." Slughorn turned around in his seat, beaming. "Harry potter!"

I sunk back into my seat, exhaling slowly and listened to what Slughorn had to say. Harry Potter himself only nodded on a few occasions as Slughorn seemed to retell his life story. I listened closely, even though I already knew the key factors. How his parents had died, and he survived. How he had defeated He Who Must Not Be Named multiple times. I had read about all that after the Hogwarts Headmaster had come to visit my mother this summer. I had read all the articles and books I could find, but I still wanted to know more. That was what I was here for.

It was already getting dark outside when Slughorn let us go again. I was relieved and I wasn't the only one. Blaise and the red-headed girl both sighed deeply when we got out of the compartment again. Only McLaggen seemed to have enjoyed himself. Zabini ushered me passed the others and back towards our compartment where I knew, Draco, pug-face and the two apes were waiting. We returned there without speaking a word.

The rest of the journey proceeded with no further incidents, except Blaise falling onto Ape n°1's lap while closing the door. Draco resumed complaining about not being invited although his father had apparently been one of Slughorn's favourites back in the days, upon which Blaise reminded him that his father was currently in prison for being a Death Eater. Now I was seriously questioning Blaise's taste in friends. I took one of my school books out of my trunk and decided to not take part in their conversation anymore after that.

"I can see Hogwarts." said Draco, pulling me out of my thoughts. "We'd better get our robes on."

I turned around in my seat to look out of the window. I had seen pictures and read descriptions of the castle, but it looked nothing like I was imagining and even less like what I was used too. Even from far away it looked huge, with multiple towers, courtyards and bridges attached to it. I didn't even bother to compare it's size to the Salem House in New Orleans, which was really just a big mansion. How was anyone supposed to find their way in this?

I put my book back into my trunk and pulled out my black robes. The others' had a green hem and the Slytherin crest on their chest.

"Take your trunk." Blaise told me. "Just leave it outside on the platform, the house elves will pick them up and bring them to the castle."

I did as I was told and followed Blaise, Pansy and the apes to a row of carriages that would carry us to Hogwarts. Draco stood in the compartment, for whatever reason. He hadn't made it back to us before the carriage left and we had to endure Pansy whining away about where Draco could be all the way up to the class. At least Blaise wasn't friends with her.

We were ushered into a dining hall, the Great Hall according to Hogwarts a History, with four long tables, one for each house I knew, and one slightly shorter one at the front of the hall, for the teachers. I followed Blaise to the student table on the far right, the Slytherin table. I hadn't gotten a note nor had any teacher come to talk to me so far, so I simply sat down and waited for further instructions. Blaise sat down to my left and Draco joined as a few minutes later, one of the last students to enter the hall and was immediately greeted by a whining Pansy, which he didn't seem to appreciate very much.

I didn't care much about my surroundings, though. I was looking for one particular person that I just couldn't find in the crowd of students. Even as Dumbledore stood up to introduce Professor McGonagall, an elderly witch in bright green robes and a matching witches hat, the Deputy Headmistress, who was about to lead the sorting of the first years. I watched eagerly as one first year after the other went up and simply sat on a chair and got an old wizards hat put on his head. For some it took only a few seconds, others needed up to five minutes until a large crack opened on the hem of the hat and shouted the name of the house the student was to be put in. This was to be my fate at the end of the feast, in one of the back rooms, Professor McGonagall had come up to me after the sorting to tell me this.

It took Harry Potter another half hour to show up to the feast. He entered the hall through the main door and nearly run to sit with his friends, at the Gryffindor table.

Gryffindor. I had to get into Gryffindor.