The Great Hall echoed with the voices of students talking about their summers as they tried to find seats for the start of term feast. Paula and Josie threaded their way through the crowds of people gathered around each of the four tables and tried to find their own places to sit.
The two girls had changed over the last six years since they had first met on the Hogwarts Express. Josie was still taller than Paula, by quite a long way, and appeared to have grown an inch or three over the holidays. Her hair had slowly lightened from a light brown to a dark blonde and it was plaited into a single long plait, the end of which was slightly singed from the game of Exploding Snap that the girls had played, as had become a tradition, on the journey.
Paula, on the other hand, was almost no taller than she had been when they had first met. Her hair was cut into a short bob which framed her face and she looked young for her age. The cuff of one of her sleeves was also singed, but she didn't seem to care as she fussed with the edge.
The two girls were in different houses (Josie had been sorted into Hufflepuff) but the tables were placed next to each other in the Great Hall so even if they couldn't sit next to each other they could still sit close enough to have a sort of conversation.
Finding two seats close enough, they sat down and were about to carry on their conversation when the hall fell silent. Almost everybody was sitting down but those who weren't sat down on the closest seat possible, regardless of whether they were close to their friends or not, as the doors were flung open and the new Minister for Magic, Pius Thicknesse, strode down the gap between the centre two tables, Professor Snape by his side.
Now that everyone was seated, Paula could see the number of empty seats, both amongst the students and on the teachers table and it reminded her of how different this year would be. Now, more than ever, was she grateful that she had taken Theodore's advice and portrayed herself as a pure-blood for the last six years. The absence of all the muggle-born students showed clearly what had happened to those not deemed 'acceptable' any longer.
The Minister for Magic and Professor Snape had now reached the end of the hall and stood facing the students, all of whom were deadly quiet, waiting for the hat on the rickety stool to start singing, but it didn't. Instead Professor Snape called out the names of the students who put on the Sorting Hat and waited for a moment to find out where they would be going. When the Hat finally reached a decision it called out a house name in the most subdued voice Paula had ever heard. Clearly someone had told it - something. Probably that promoting inter-house friendships was no longer acceptable.
After the sorting Thicknesse took a step forward and Paula stopped picking it her singed cuff to concentrate on what he was about to say.
"So, another year at Hogwarts," He looked around at the students. "This year, however, there are several changes in the teaching staff and there will also be changes in the way things are run at Hogwarts. The first change is, of course, the change in the Head teacher. I am pleased to tell you that from now on your new Headmaster is Severus Snape." Cheers rang out from the Slytherin table whilst the other tables dutifully, if not enthusiastically, clapped. After waiting a moment of the noise to die away (which it quickly did) he continued. "I am also pleased to tell you that Professor Alecto Carrow will be taking the vacant post of Muggle-Studies whilst Professor Amycus Carrow will teach Dark Arts." Nobody in the Great Hall missed the exclusion of 'Defence Against' that normally preceded 'Dark Arts'.
And that, felt Paula as she returned to picking at her cuff, summed up the new Hogwarts. A quick glance at Josie showed that she felt exactly the same. Phrases such as "attendance at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is now compulsory for all students under the age of seventeen" and "from now on no so called 'muggle-borns' will attend Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry" showed just how different the next school year would be.
Tuning out the Minister for Magic Paula concentrated on her cuff, which was now looked unusually ragged for a new set of school robes, and wished that Theo was there. He had finished his seventh year the previous term and Paula hadn't quite realised how much she would miss having him around. Since they had first met they had become good friends and he had sort of adopted her as a younger sister as she struggled to find her way around the castle and know what to say when she was asked a question about some obscure wizarding family she was expected to know.
He was now working at Gringotts and he already written to Paula several times over the holidays, telling her all about his work there. She almost wished that she could leave school and join him - it appeared as though this year of Hogwarts was going to be the most difficult yet to keep up her pureblood pretence.
Another round of applause told her that Thicknesse had finished and she looked up, hoping that the feast was about to begin, but it was Professor Snape's turn to speak. Again tuning out she caught more phrases but didn't bother to listen carefully until she heard:
"This year's new Head-Boy and -Girl are Draco Malfoy and Pansy Parkinson." No surprises there, she though as she clapped along with everybody else in the Great Hall.
"And now let the feast begin!"
Finally, thought Paula as she dug a spoon into a pot of stew that had appeared in front of her. She was starving and the pre-feast speeches had last forever.
The buzz of talk that had echoed around the hall before Professor Snape and the Minister had started talking slowly came back but it was more subdued than before – nobody wanted to draw attention to themselves too early on in the year. They preferred to wait and find out what was going to happen first. The noisiest table by far was the Slytherin table – nobody there had any worries about what was going to be happening to them.
Typically, Paula sat with her cousin during meal times but since he had left the previous year she was on her own now. This meant that she didn't have to concentrate on making polite conversation whilst she ate, for which she was eternally grateful. Whilst no longer being quite as shy as she had been when she started Hogwarts, Paula still wasn't completely comfortable talking to whoever just happened to be sitting near.
Luckily, the people sitting next to her didn't seem to mind as they dug into their plates of food and chattered about their summer holidays.
"Italy really was beautiful this year," one boy was saying around a mouthful of something. "We stayed at the Manor as usual and Mother held a party almost every evening! She seems to have set her sights on yet another husband and he was hanging around the place all the time, not that I saw him much - I try to avoid Mother's 'friends' whenever possible!"
"Will this one have an unfortunate accident after the wedding as well? Any ideas? You never know what can happen around that part of the Italian coastline - there are so many steep cliffs!" One of his friends joked.
The boy didn't seem to be at all offended - he just shrugged his shoulders and laughed whilst the rest of the group took turns comparing their own exotic holidays.
And I went to Cornwall, Paula thought, where I spent a week camping with my Mum and Dad before going to visit some friends in Kent. Somehow Cornwall and Kent couldn't quite compare to Italy and the other exotic destinations being talked about. But, she reminded herself, at least I didn't have to spend my time trying to avoid anybody . Maybe their lives aren't quite as blessed as they all like to think.
Slowly the dishes in front of the Slytherins started to empty and were then replaced with mountains of desert. Paula helped herself, wishing she hadn't eaten quite so much of the first course. Putting a slice of apple pie on her plate she poured some custard and dug her spoon in. Slowly, she savoured all of the flavours before loading her spoon again - she adored this pudding. It wasn't quite as nice as her mother's, but then beggars couldn't be choosers and it was very good.
"Could you pass the cream please?" It was the boy who had been talking about his Italian holiday earlier. Opening eyes she had shut, she found the jug and passed it to him before taking another spoonful of her pie.
"Thanks," he told her. "So, did you have a nice holiday?"
Paula nodded whilst chewing.
"Where did you go?" She realised that she was going to have to answer him and swallowed regretfully.
"Cornwall with my parents, then Kent to visit friends."
"Oh. And, er, what did you do in Cornwall?"
"Camped, walked, cycled."
"Camped?"
Had he never heard of camping before?
"Uh huh."
"Who're you talking to, Blaise?" One of his friends leaned forwards to get a better look. Paula wished they would just leave her alone. "Oh - it's Theodore's cousin, um, Phoebe? No, Pat? Umm..."
"Paula," supplied Zabini.
"That's it - knew it began with a 'P'."
One of his other friends called out: "say, Blaise, do you remember-" and Paula was able to return to her pudding in peace.
Sometime later when all of the dishes had been scraped clean and everybody had stopped eating the feast ended and the students started to sleepily make their way towards their common rooms. Paula had agreed to meet Josie in the Entrance Hall before saying goodnight so she waited until her friend emerged, talking to her sister Amy.
"I'll catch you up later," she called when she saw her friend waiting and Amy nodded before catching up with her other fourth-year friends.
"Gosh, I thought the feast would never start!" She said by way of greeting. "How long did those notices go on for?"
"For ever and ever and ever until we all died of starvation," Paula told her, rolling her eyes. Josie always claimed that the only reason she bothered to come to Hogwarts at all was for the food and Paula understood exactly where she was coming from. Mrs Wilson was the kindest person she had ever met aside from her own parents but she could burn a salad and that made for some interesting meals.
"Did you try the apple pie?" She demanded. Josie loved the dessert almost as much as she did.
"Heaven," they both agreed together.
This reminded her of the group she had been sitting near and she told Josie all about the conversation. Josie fully agreed that perhaps camping in Cornwall wasn't quite the same as staying in a big house in Italy, but, she claimed, "Camping is soooo much more fun - especially when it rains!" This made them dissolve into giggles at the reminder of the time Josie had come with them on the Nott's annual holiday and it had rained non-stop.
Their giggles were interrupted by the boy who had been sitting next to Paula at the Slytherin table - Zabini - when he coughed slightly behind them. Cut off mid-giggle the pair turned to look at him in stunned amusement. He was clearly uncomfortable with interrupting two giggling girls and Paula didn't dare look at Josie in case she started laughing again.
"Um, could I speak to Paula a moment, please?" Now even more stunned she just nodded and waited with Josie t see what he would say. "Uh, in private?"
Josie took the hint and moved off to stand watching them by some stairs.
Paula waited for a full minute for him to speak. He seemed to be growing even more uncomfortable with each passing second, as if he was trying to work out how to phrase something. Eventually he gave up and started.
"Did you listen to what Professor Snape was saying before the feast?" Whatever she had been expecting him to say it wasn't that and Paula almost stepped back in surprise.
"Not overly," she confessed, wondering where he was heading with this conversation starter.
"So you didn't hear him telling everybody that inter-house friendships are no longer considered a good idea?"
"No. When did he say that?"
Zabini shuffled his feet. "Well, he didn't say it in as many words but the meaning was there. If you were a Gryffindor a Hufflepuff or even a Ravenclaw you might get away with it but not if you're a Slytherin."
Paula felt cold inside. "So, what you're saying is that I shouldn't be friends with anybody who isn't a member of our house?" She clarified. How dare he just walk up to here and tell her who to be friends with!
"Petty much. Look, I know you think I'm just interfering but I'm not. Things at Hogwarts are going to be different this year - very different and you're going to have to be careful. Some Slytherins have being saying for years how you being friends with a Hufflepuff shouldn't be allowed - Theodore made them leave you alone then but he isn't here now and they feel that now you're older you should know better."
"Who?"
"What? Thinks you should know better? Pansy for one, and Draco - most of them in fact. Listen, I'm not trying to interfere - just warn you that perhaps now isn't the best time to be seen as anything other than the perfect Slytherin pureblood. Maybe you, could, er, I don't know, maybe not spend quite so much time with your friend, that's all. Okay?"
"So you're suggesting that maybe I should abandon my friend to her fate and concentrate on looking after number one?" Blaise looked relieved that she wasn't going to shout at him, at least until she turned and started walking over to her friend.
"Hey - where are you going?"
"I," replied Paula, "am going back to my friend. And I am going to carry on being her friend despite what you and Pansy and Draco and all of the 'others' say. You can leave now," she added but he didn't. He followed behind her and waited whilst she carried on talking and laughing with Josie who was as incredulous as she was.
"Does he honestly think that real friends would do that to each other?" She wanted to know and Paula had no idea at all.
Eventually it became clear that Zabini wasn't going to leave unless she left to. Having made him wait until the hall had long ago cleared of students just to show him that she wasn't going to be pushed around, she eventually had to give into the reality that he wasn't going anywhere unless she was and, after agreeing to meet Josie at breakfast, she set off towards the dungeons.
He soon caught up with her and they walked down the dark passage towards their common room.
"I'm only trying to help," he told her. "You haven't seen what Pansy and the others can do to those they feel don't fit the Slytherin pureblood image. Theodore asked me to keep an eye on you, make sure you're alright, and I've only done what-"
"Theo can mind his own business," she muttered, irritated by the arrogant toe-rag next to her.
Zabini either didn't hear or ignored her and carried on. "- he would have done if he'd been here."
Refusing to be goaded she stomped up to the section of bare wall that hid the common room before realising she didn't know the password. Wordlessly she stepped back to allow Zabini to stand in front of the wall. He seemed confused, then worked out where they were.
"Oh, uh. Blood-status."
A section of the wall swung back to allow them through. Zabini stood back to allow her to go first and she stepped through.
Still ignoring him she stalked over to the doorway that led to the girl's dormitories and climbed up a few steps until she reached her door. Entering she saw, as usual, her trunk on the floor next to her bed and Morgana's cage standing on top of it.
Flopping down onto her bed she groaned. Clearly Hogwarts was not going to be the lovely sanctuary of peace - at least relative peace - and learning that it used to be. Getting up, she fished out on old pair of pyjamas. She put them on, them went into the bathroom to brush her teeth.
Coming back she slipped into her bed and pulled the covers up over her head. Whatever else happened tonight could wait until the morning.