Okay, I have bent cannon a lot in this book. So please don't tell me 'it's like this in the book', anybody. I think JKR held back a little so the books could be classified as 'children's books'. This is not going to happen in my story. The rating may go up, but that's only because I want to keep it safe, okay? Don't want to scare anybody or anything.

Shadow gazed out of the window into the foggy, grey morning. The Dementors were breeding: they had been since last summer, but after the assassination of so many important people last year, the people of Magical Brittan's despair was more than a three course meal to them. Her black tail flicked in irritation. Flitwick was dead, as was McGonagall: the two best teachers at Hogwarts apart from her father and Snape. Her mother was still upset about their break-up.

"Shadow, darling, come off the window," said Lily, her red-haired, green eyed mother. "It's time to go back to Hogwarts." Shadow had some doubts about going back to Hogwarts: Death Eater Howard Greengrass or, before he'd married Keisha Greengrass, Howard Moon, and a half-blood. Shadow looked at her mother. "You don't honestly believe that it's going to be safe for me, or Hermione or Colin, or even Ginny and Luna."

"I don't, but Severus is there. He'll help you, I'm sure of it."

Shadow gave her mother a Look that Ginny and Colin had long dubbed 'the Be-Sensible' look. "If he is loyal to the Light Side, then he can't help us. Less than a quarter of the school knows Ollocumency, and three quarters of those are on the Death Eater's side." Lily sighed softly, but didn't protest.

The train that year was not very full. Many muggle-borns and light Purebloods were missing. Shadow was sat with Ginny, Luna, Hermione and Colin. The prefect system had been demolished: there were simply young Death Eaters and their supporters as a type of group to punish. It didn't take Shadow long to realise that the usual point loss-detention scheme was gone too. Ginny, Colin and Luna had no idea upon what would be the punishments, but Shadow imagined some terrible, pain inflicting curse, and from Hermione's face, she agreed. She didn't share that thought, but it was pretty likely. Ginny had some other news, too.

"Ron's disappeared," she said. "Left after my brother Bill's wedding to Fleur Delacour, along with Longbottom. Mum's going spare: she's cooking and crying all the time. She thinks he's dead...he'd better not be, or else I'll kill him." Her brown eyes showed real worry for her older brother. He wasn't very nice, but to be found with the boy-who-lived...well, he'd be getting some pretty intense torture. Shadow's ears lay flat on her head at the mere thought of Death Eaters.

"Did anyone see Parvati Patil?" asked Luna.

"Since Padma died in the big Hogwarts attack, she wasn't here last year either, in counselling..."

"I know," Luna interrupted Hermione. "I wanted to know if she'd be here this year."

"No, she's gone to Baxubeatons, catching up with last year's work," Hermione said softly. "Lavender's gone, too. I'll be alone in my dorm."

"I'll come and stay up there with you," Ginny said loyally. "My roommates don't like me that much since I accidentally kicked someone's cat." Shadow snickered.

Hogwarts was not like last year whatsoever when they arrived. The drapes were Slytherin green, and Cain, the only boy in Shadow's year in Hufflepuff (the only other, actually), sat upon a throne-like chair at the head of the Hufflepuff table. Shadow sighed. Cain had been kicked out a couple of years ago for leading Death Eaters into the castle, but apparently he'd come back this year. Taking a seat on the Hufflepuff table next to three second-years she leaned over. "Are you okay?"

"No," whispered Amy, "That man, Professor Moon, scares me."

"And who's that?" asked Steven, the only boy in the trio, pointing to one of the teachers, and when Shadow saw who it was, she paled.

"Fenrir Greyback," she whispered. Greyback was the werewolf who had bitten her father and many others. He enjoyed biting children, eating children. Shadow cursed foully under her breath.

"I know who Fenrir Greyback is," Terri, the oldest, whispered. "He's a werewolf that enjoys biting and eating children."

"Why is he here?" Shadow murmured. "He doesn't have many OWLs, so NEWTs are a no, so he can't be a teacher...Oh, god." He was here to punish them. He had to be.

"What's wrong, Shadow?" Amy asked. Terri and Steven looked worried.

"It's nothing," she said, forcing a smile onto her face. "Don't worry about me, I'll be fine." Worry about yourselves, it'll be a witch-eat-witch world out there. Howard Moon stood up and began to speak.

"Children," he said, "Great changes are coming to Hogwarts. Mud-bloods will be separated from true Purebloods in everything. Mud-bloods will stay to the bottom of the castle. Each floor upwards is for Half-bloods, Blood-traitors and then, of course, the true Purebloods. Those with Magical creature blood will sleep outdoors. True Purebloods, please come up here." All the Death Eaters and the 'true' Purebloods walked up to the teacher's table. "You will have your own table." They sat at a golden table. He clapped his hands and the 'feast' began.

For the Purebloods, there was every type of food imaginable: no muggle foods, of course. For everyone else, there was a meal of mouldy bread and some water. The portions were small: only just enough to live on.

The next day, classes began. Shadow's first class should have been Runes, but that was cancelled, as was Arithmacy. Instead, Muggle Studies taught by Professor Carrow was compulsory, and it took up those spots. Muggle Studies was not about Studying Muggles and their culture or way of life; it was about how filthy they were, how they scrabbled around in the mud, building mud huts, how they burnt witches and wizards because they didn't respect their betters: Shadow was enraged for her maternal grandparents. So she, foolishly, spoke out. "How much Muggle blood do you have, Professor Carrow?" Carrow tensed, her ugly face (like her brother, the Defence Teacher's) twisted in fury. "How dare you!" She screamed. "My brother and I are fully pureblood! You're Lupins child. And you're part cat! Detention for a month!"

The detentions were far, far worse than the classes themselves. Fenrir Greyback was in charge of the detentions, and he let Carrow perform the Cruicatus Curse upon Shadow. One day, Greyback was gone (the full moon) and Carrow and her brother, the Male Carrow-though you honestly couldn't tell the difference apart from when they spoke- performed all sorts of Dark Curses on her.

That was when Shadow knew they had to hide, but the castle was being patrolled regularly. Where on earth could they hide?

Ah, chapter one done! So, Shadow's been in detention with the Carrows, but will she be able to find somewhere to hide?

Okay, this is a little silly, but I don't have much to work with on this. So, next chapter's gonna get a little gruesome and quite sad, so again, if you don't want to read it, PM me or something. All the best, funky xxx