A/N: Hello again! Welcome back to the Last Pureblood. I'm well aware it's been a while since I've last updated, but I've made it my personal goal to not keep you wonderful people waiting this long in future.
I'd like to thank my two new, and outstanding Beta Readers - Ana and Julie. The pair of you have done an excellent job with this chapter. I look forward to working with you both going forward.
And of course, I'd like to thank you the reader, for taking the time out of your day to read my work. I truly appreciate it.
Silence. No one in the Great Hall knew how to react. It only lasted for a moment, for the elder Slytherins were on their feet with a heart-stopping roar of pride, clapping, cheering and stamping their feet – creating enough noise for the entire school. Even the younger ones were clapping, and those that didn't know any better cheered with their upperclassmen.
The elder students, who'd kindly shuffled over to make a space for me, beckoned me over. Sparing a brief glance at a politely clapping Scorpius on my way over, I sat down at the place my elders created for me on the right-hand-side of the table. They then proceeded to pat me on the back and give me firm handshakes in a haze of smiles and congratulations.
The racket slowly died around me, and my eyes turned back to the teacher's table, where Headmistress McGonagall was once again on her feet. A couple of my Professors saw fit to send me daggers, making me wonder how they could wish me ill when I hadn't even met them yet. The old man in the brown robes, however, was positively beaming as if the sun would never set.
"Now that the sorting is complete, let the feast... begin!"
As Professor McGonagall clapped her hands together, all across Slytherin table, and indeed the tables of the other houses, plate upon plate of all sorts of exquisite, exotic and elaborate looking foods appeared. If this was the norm, I found myself surprised the students of Hogwarts weren't obese. Now that would have been an amusing sight.
The students around me were filling their plates with all sorts of delights, ranging from lamb chops and Roast Beef to sausage and mash. Such vast amounts of food... Were we expected to eat it all? Did we get punished if we didn't?
"Looks good huh?"
My eyes darted to the one who had spoken, a blue-eyed boy with messy black hair. His wide grin showed off a set of yellow, malformed, crooked teeth.
"There's all sorts to eat, help yourself to as much as you like. No worries if you can't finish it, it all vanishes anyway. Is it any better than Durmstrang?"
"There's certainly a lot more of it." I answered, sparing a glance to the food once more.
"They didn't give you much to eat there did they?"
"Not really," I shrugged, "there was really only enough so we didn't starve."
"Did they at least let you play Quidditch?" The boy asked, his eyes flashing in curiosity.
"Oh yes. I played Chaser for the Dark Arts Team" I reply nonchalantly. I watched as a frown appeared on his face and I couldn't help but mirror the action, what was so wrong with what I had said?
"Dark Arts Team? You didn't play for a House?" He inquired, looking both amazed and confused.
"Didn't have houses," I grunted, "only classes. One of the Headmasters thought Houses were too divisive."
"He got that right." The boy snorted, "Marius Flint, Fifth Year."
I shook Flint's hand, "Pleasure Mister Flint. Michael Serino, Pureblood."
A couple of others around us looked at me strangely, as if I'd grown a second head. Some of the older students eyed me with what might have been curiosity.
"Blood doesn't count for much round here mate" Flint whispered out of the corner of his mouth, "But for us in Fifth year, it means everything." He scanned the table for a moment then asked, "You believe in the old ways then?"
"I'm damn proud of the blood that flows through my veins, and I refuse to pretend that I'm not." I declared.
My voice carried further than I expected, many Slytherins and even some of the Ravenclaws stopped their eating to gawk. Now that... That wasn't what I'd intended to do. Fully recovered from their shock, some of the Ravenclaws threw down their knives and forks and stared at me, disgust and shock written all over their features.
"What are you looking at Smith? See something you like?" Flint teased one of the onlookers.
A brown-haired girl with blazing brown orbs rounded on my new friend. "I'm looking at your new pet bigot, Flint." She snapped, "Did you train him? Or did he come to you like that?"
"I'm no one's pet." I snarled, "Keep sticking your ugly-looking nose into other people's business, and you'll lose it." I threatened. I felt the looks of disgust and hate attacking me but I ignored them and instead looked straight ahead, not paying any attention to the glares. I raised my head higher as a couple of Slytherins snickered and Smith turned red with anger.
"You're all the same. Bullying, elitist snobs with nothing better to do than to pick on those weaker than you. Merlin knows what you'll do when someone better than you comes along." She sneered weakly with her brown eyes still narrowed at us.
Flint looked around the Great Hall with eyes wide before breathing a sigh of relief.
"Oh praise be. I thought you were actually implying that there's someone in this Hall better than us. Thank Merlin it's just you we've got to worry about." He said, sounding positively relieved. I smirked coldly at the girl as her features twisted into somewhat of an embarrassed glare.
The Slytherins that were previously snickering were positively howling with laughter, less so at what Flint had said but at the spluttering, strawberry-faced brunette, who'd sat back down in her seat with a huff.
"Is it customary at Hogwarts to interrupt conversations like that?" I asked Flint, finally reaching out for a bit of food.
"If the one talking is a Slytherin then yes." He answered dryly, shaking his head slightly, "You'll get used to it" he added.
The rest of the feast passed uneventfully, with the odd foul glance from someone across the Hall, which for the most part I ignored. My eyes however, did meet the Granger girl from the Platform. Granger-Weasley her name was, like her Mother. She seemed nice enough...for a Mudblood.
Her father was a foul piece of work though. Fat, useless, no sense of fashion and a grudge for my Father. The only thing I particularly liked about him was the way his face went purple when I had insulted him earlier.
Of course, I knew at least some of what Father had gotten up to during the war. I'd heard the stories from Professor Dolohov, an old comrade of his; the two had fought side by side in the last battle. What Father did tell me however, was that the Dark Lord was a complete madman. Certainly, both Father and I sympathised with his ideals, a society without Mudbloods would be nice – but murder, torture and genocide was certainly not the way to go about it. There was no justice in that. Nor was there pride.
And that was how Father, and indeed, Mother raised me – to be just in everything I did.
It was only then that I realised that I'd been staring. Granger – Weasley had her eyes narrowed in a glare that, it seemed, she reserved just for me. I felt honoured. Not really, but it was amusing none the less. She was quite pretty, I could give her that much. However, she definitely could have used an attitude adjustment.
Indeed, it seemed she'd told her friends all about me, because what looked like half the Gryffindor table glared at me with open hatred. Including Albus from the train. He must have been related to her in some way. Actually now that I thought about it, most of Gryffindor House would have been related to her. With a jerk of my head in mock acknowledgment, I went back to my meal. The chips here were especially good, and the Steak? To die for.
"Before we end the Feast, we will sing the school song. School stand."
While we got to our feet, Professor McGonagall too had risen and flicked her wand, a large magical parchment dropped from the ceiling to display itself in front of the school. On it were words. Lyrics to the school song, I presumed. It didn't look like a particularly rousing school song, in fact judging by the lyrics it looked incredibly silly.
"Pick your favourite tune, and off we go."
What started then could only be described as complete and utter chaos.
The entire school, teachers included, erupted into song. There was nothing particularly musical about it. One student was howling the song out like a wolf, others had somehow magnified the sound of their voices so they drowned out their neighbours. To my surprise, Flint and his friends had joined in, arms over each other's shoulders and singing to the tune of an old Wizarding folk song I knew from Father's old record player. The four of them had introduced themselves during dessert as Urquhart, Pucey, Goyle and Nott.
I chose to sing to the same tune and Pucey clapped me on the back and stuck his arm over my shoulder. It was good to know that I had comrades of similar minds and hearts, I knew they'd watch out for me, and I'd do the same to the best of my abilities.
The song ended with a Hufflepuff student singing slow opera, which ended with a roar of approval from the Hufflepuff table.
Professor McGonagall chuckled politely with the school before clapping her hands together.
"And that's that. Classes begin in the morning, no excuses for being late, so off to bed everyone. Pip Pip!"
"Is she quite alright in the head?" I asked Pucey, frowning.
The brunette only laughed.
"She's as sane as anyone else in this school. I thought she was mad too, till Warrington said she'd made a habit of quoting an old Headmaster. Dumbledore I think. Can't remember what he's famous for, but I've got a chocolate frog card of him somewhere."
"He beat Grindelwald in a duel." I said bitterly, "Sheer luck if you ask me."
"Ah that's it. Well I wouldn't know, he's just another old man in history to me. I might be more interested if Binns wasn't so dull." He said with a pointed look of annoyance.
"What's wrong with Binns?"
"He's a ghost." A girl to my left said, "Can't teach to save his life. His voice just puts everyone to sleep." After seeing my slightly raised eyebrows she added, "Oh, excuse me. Rebecca Higgs, fifth year."
"Becca here wants to be Seeker for the team." Pucey laughed, "Sorry Becca, still only boys allowed."
We were making our way out of the Great Hall, past the tables and out the large doors, when I felt a set of eyes on me.
Looking around, then down, a redheaded first year girl was staring intently at me. A little bit disturbed, I frowned at her, which caused her to realise that she'd been spotted. The girl squealed and ran behind her older brown-haired brother, clutching his red-coloured robes. The brother in question looked down at her, then at me questioningly. Then upon recognising me, his curious expression formed into one of intense dislike.
"You leave my sister alone Serino, or else," he threatened, stepping in front of the younger girl more so she was completely behind him.
"Sod off Potter, he didn't do anything wrong. Come on Michael, I'll show you the Common Room." Pucey snarled, grabbing my arm and tugging me away.
We made a safe exit from the Entrance Hall, making our way down what Pucey called the 'Grand Staircase.' It was an incredible work of engineering, pleasant to look at, hundreds of paintings lining the walls. And the best thing about it, in my opinion, was the staircases moved. It took some getting used to being on moving staircases, but it was the surest way to get down to the Dungeons, where our Common Room lay.
You could tell you were in the dungeons when the temperature dropped. From the warmth of the Great Hall, it was shocking. A chill went up my spine as we navigated the dark corridors. My guess was that we were in firm Slytherin territory.
"Michael." Pucey began, "I hope you don't mind if I call you that? That guy back there is not to be messed with. Nor anyone he's related to. If you do, he'll make your life a living hell," he warned, sounding completely serious.
"I don't mind at all Jonathan. Who is he? He seems like a real bastard."
"James Potter. Eldest son of Harry Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived."
My stomach twisted into something mildly uncomfortable. It seemed that I'd stuffed up more than I realised.
"Ah... It's a little late for that. I've already aggravated his younger brother. And the Minister's daughter. I get the feeling they hate me." I explained with a slight shrug.
"What on earth did you do to them to make them hate you on your first day?" Pucey chortled.
"Well, I insulted the Minister's husband on the Platform, then nearly called her daughter a Mudblood. On the train, I called Gryffindor a bastion of Mudbloods in front of the younger Potter. He wasn't too happy."
"You're in for it mate, but we'll watch out for you." Pucey chuckled, clapping me on the back with grin.
Higgs, who'd been quiet up until then, spoke up. "Slytherins look after each other Michael. As Jona said, we've got your back."
"Thank you Miss Higgs, I appreciate it." I said politely.
"Just Becca will do. Or Rebecca if you must." She laughed, "Here we are, do you have the password Jona?"
Directly ahead of us was a stone wall. That was odd, there wasn't a Common Room or even a door in sight.
"Pietas" Jonathan said firmly, "And don't call me Jona."
The stones that made up the wall rolled back dramatically, revealing a single, simple wooden door. Now that was an impressive bit of magic. We certainly didn't have anything that elaborate at Durmstrang.
Higgs was first through. She was quite attractive. Good legs, nice blonde hair. Decent form. Nice enough too. Far too old for me though, she must have been at least fifteen.
But the sight of the Common Room tore me away from all my hormonal observations. I'd never seen such beauty before in my life. We stood underground, no, not even underground, under water. You could see the lake through the large windows, like a... What was that Muggle Museum for fish? An aquariam? And like an aquariam, one could see all manners of sea creatures swimming by. Truly a sight to behold.
The lake gave the Common Room a green tinge, another aspect I found incredible. The entire room was lined with plush leather couches and comfy-looking chairs of the same material. Tables and desks littered the room as well. The clean-cut, orderly, green and black nature of the room filled me with a sense of calm. This is a place I'd be safe in, this is a place that I could call home.
Even the fireplace was enchanted so that the fire looked green. And green it was. I excused myself from Jonathan and Rebecca so I could soak up some warmth, nodding curtly to a group of wide-eyed first years who were attempting to do the same.
After finally getting warm, I realised that I should write to Mother and Father. They must have been wondering how I'd been sorted.
Making my way up a flight of stairs to a platform which had two doors on each end of it with 'Third Year Boys' and 'Third Year Girls' marked on it, I walked through the one marked 'Third Year Boys' and stopped to take it in. Three large green four poster beds stood tall, green curtains and green sheets decorated the beds, intricate designs making the whole four poster elaborate and beautiful.
The room itself was circular, the beds pushed up against the wall at differing angles. I recognised my trunk at the foot of the bed to the right. The bed in the middle that faced the door, judging by the S.M. etched into the trunk, belonged to my cousin. No idea who the third bed, the one opposite mine, belonged to, the only hint being V.G. on the trunk. Each bed had a bedside table, and a desk. With no wardrobe, I'd have to keep my clothes in my trunk. Kicking it open, I searched through it, digging out my quill, inkwell and parchment, taking a seat at what was now my personal desk, and began writing.
'Dearest Mother and Father,
I have arrived safe and sound at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I'm sure you'll both be delighted and proud to know that I have been sorted into Slytherin House. I've been here only a couple of hours and I feel like I'm home. The Common Room is lovely, so relaxing, and as you both know, you can see into the school's lake! Not to mention, I've made friends with several fifth year Purebloods, such as Marius Flint (who was named after Grandfather); Jonathan Pucey, Jacob Urquhart, Gregory Goyle, Matthew Nott and Rebecca Higgs. These six were the first to welcome me into my House, and best of all, they respect blood.
The Dorm room isn't crowded at all, I'm pleased to note that I'm only sharing this space with two other boys, one of them being cousin Scorpius. Speaking of Scorpius, he's turned blood traitor! He's made friends with Potters and Weasleys, and dares to say that the war was our fault! Please talk to Uncle Draco about this Father, he needs to know that his son's been brainwashed. We had a falling out over it I'm afraid. I was looking forward to seeing him again, and this is how he greets me?
I'm afraid to say I'm not very popular outside of Slytherin. Due to the events on the platform I've made enemies with the Granger-Weasley girl, the Minister for Magic's daughter. She's taken to glaring at me. It seems she's quite popular, as she's already turned all of Gryffindor House against me. I've also managed to alienate the Potter children. I met the second eldest of the Potter children on the train, Albus, where we argued over the merits of Gryffindor house and he grew angry. I suspect the elder Potter boy, who's two years older than me, will be trouble. But I've got Pucey and the rest of the group I've talked about behind me, so I'm not overly worried.
I'll be doing some inquiries into auditioning for the Quidditch team tomorrow, I'll be going for the position of Chaser, the same position I played under Professor Dolohov at Durmstrang. I look forward to playing once more. According to Scorpius, one of the Chasers isn't great, which gives me a shot at snatching the position from under his nose.
The way things have gone so far, I get the impression I'm not going to be very popular here. I might make some friends here in Slytherin, but I suspect the rest of the school will hate me. They call me a Death Eater and all sorts of other nasty names, and class hasn't even started. Things will not be good for me socially, but they never have for us, have they? As we always have, I'll persevere and continue forward, no matter what.
Your loving son,
Michael Serino.'
A/N: That's all folks! I hope you enjoyed it. Thanks for reading and keep your eyes peeled, as Chapter Four isn't far away! - BrownEyedSnake
