Disclaimer: I do not own the Harry Potter franchise, nor anything affiliated with it.
Hermione's POV
We've just arrived at Hogsmeade Station, so Malfoy and I leave the train to find the Head's carriage. This year I can see the thestrals as they lead us up to Hogwarts. A few students panic at the sight of them, and it serves as a reminder, just how many students had to fight in the war last year.
Malfoy and I sit in silence, taking in the dark view outside the window. It takes us about twenty minutes to reach the grounds, twenty minutes of silence, and another ten to reach the main entrance.
After disembarking from the carriage, we gather the students in the front hall.
Malfoy gets everyone's attention while I relay the instructions. "If everyone could follow us, we'll be heading to the Great Hall. If you can't see Draco or me, follow the directions of the prefects around you."
Upon entering the hall, murmurs spread amongst the students. While the house tables remain where they used to be, the Eighth Years have a table of their own at the back. Draco and I take a seat on either end of the table and wait for everyone to be seated. The rest of the Eighth Years who join us, sit with their housemates. A glance in the direction of the staff table makes me realize just how many changes we have this year.
When everyone is finally seated, Headmistress McGonagall stands up and calls for our attention.
"Welcome, students, to another year at Hogwarts! I'd like to extend a special welcome to our First Years, and our returning class of Eighth Year students. Things will be a little different this year, but we shall begin with the sorting ceremony as always. Professor Flitwick, if you please."
Professor Flitwick walks down to the front of the room to announce the names of the First Year students.
"Carroll, Sharon."
A small girl with blonde hair walks in from the side of the room. Flitwick gestures towards a stool, and she sits down as he places the Sorting Hat upon her head.
It wobbles around for a little bit, before shouting "Gryffindor!" for everyone to hear. My former house erupts into cheers as Sharon joins them at their table. Unlike the ceremonies we've had in the past, all of the children receive a warm welcome. I remember feeling terrible when Fred and George used to boo the new Slytherin students and I'm glad that things have changed since then.
By the end of the ceremony, there are an additional seven Gryffindors, eight Slytherins, six Hufflepuffs, and nine Ravenclaws. That's much fewer kids than we usually have, but it does make sense. Some parents may have been hesitant to let their children attend Hogwarts so soon after the war, and many muggleborns would have missed their letters when Voldemort destroyed the birth records at Hogwarts.
McGonagall calls for our attention once more and the hall goes silent.
"I just have a few rules to go over before we begin supper. Students may not travel into the Forbidden Forest unless supervised by a staff member. Students are not permitted to leave the dormitories after curfew. The Restricted Section is only accessible with a written note from a staff member. The full list of forbidden objects is posted on Filch's office door. However, he would like me to remind you that all Weasley products are strictly forbidden and will be confiscated upon discovery."
"As per the requests of several students, we were able to install WiFi in the school during the repairs that we made to the castle over the summer." Many of the purebloods seemed perplexed while the muggleborns and half-bloods whisper excitedly. "The password is sherbertlemons, no spaces and all in lowercase, to honour our late Headmaster, Albus Dumbledore. That will be all for now. Enjoy the feast!"
Food suddenly appears on the tables, dishes stacked higher than ever. I immediately reach for the mashed potatoes and take a generous spoonful. Afterwards, I take a piece of roast lamb and some gravy, and a scoop of roasted vegetables. For dessert, I allow myself to have one treacle tart. Once most of the students have finished eating, McGonagall dismisses us. The prefects line up each house and lead the students to their dorm rooms. Just before we leave, McGonagall calls Malfoy and me into her office.
We walk in and she gestures for us to have a seat in front of her desk.
"Would either of you like a biscuit?" she offers.
"Oh no, that's alright," I reply, while Draco politely declines as well.
She studies us for a moment before speaking, "I know you two have a lot of history, but I truly believe that if you put aside your differences, you'll realize just how similar you are. You're my most promising students and I'm so proud to have taught you in your Hogwarts career. I just ask that if you feel you simply can't get along, be courteous to each other at least. We must set a good example for the rest of the students."
"Now, do you both know where the Head's dorms are located?" We nod and she continues. "The password is currently Phoenix Wings, but you can change it once you've given the portrait the set password. If you have any problems or questions, feel free to send an owl or a Patronus. That should cover everything, but if I remember anything else I'll let you know as soon as I can. Goodnight, Ms. Granger and Mr. Malfoy."
She sends us on our way and we walk in silence until we reach the rooms. The Head student dorm is set one floor above the library, down a quiet side hallway. According to Hogwarts: A History, the portrait guarding the entrance displays a boy and girl playing with a kite in a field.
"Hello there, you two must be the Head Students," they greet as we get closer. "You may call us Jack and Jill. Do you have the password?"
"Pheonix Wings," I reply, and the portrait swings open. I guess we'll have to change it later on.
Just inside the entrance, there's a space to hang cloaks and shoes. To the right of the entrance lies the common space, accented with light brown wallpaper and dark hardwood floors. The couch is deep green with red accent cushions, while the fireplace matches the floor, but is decorated with gold and silver vines. Between the couch and the fireplace lies a soft, gold carpet.
Underneath the window, there's a small wooden bench inset in the wall, covered with a thin cushion and an extra throw pillow.
To the left, there's a small kitchenette with a white marble counter. The oven is silver and the cabinets are edged in gold. The fridge is just under the counter, closest to a set of wooden stairs leading up.
The stairs spiral out of sight and I guess they must lead to our bedrooms. I'm curious to see what they look like, so I follow them up to the top. On either side of the landing, are two doors; one with a silver handle and small green vines twirled around it, the other with a gold handle and roses dotted around it. I open the door with the golden handle and see that my trunk has already been placed at the foot of my bed.
This room looks the same as my old dorm, but with added shades of brown and shelves of books to give it a warmer feel. The bed is every so slightly bigger, but it still looks and feels the same. In one corner of the room, there's a dresser drawer and a desk, leaving plenty of space to move around. Above the desk, there's plenty of space for me to stick photos and notes on the wall.
I take a seat on the edge of my bed and pull out my phone and laptop so I can charge them. I think it'll be nice to be able to use technology this year. I was planning to use my phone and laptop on Hogsmeade weekends, but this is a nice bonus. Once they're both plugged in, I decide to check out the bathroom.
I open the door and see that it connects to both rooms. It appears that we'll be sharing the space. Even though there's only one toilet, thankfully, there are two sinks and two shower stalls, with plenty of room to store toiletries. Just before I leave, I hear Malfoy curse from his room. My curiosity getting the better of me, and I open the door to see him clutching his arm. Upon taking a closer look, I realize he's sitting next to the wall socket, a pair of tweezers lying on the floor.
Draco's POV
I spend some time exploring the various items in the kitchen, opening the little doors, but most of them are too confusing for me to figure out. After spending a few extra minutes in the common space, I decide to see where Granger disappeared too. At the top of the stairs, I see two doors and realize that the door with the silver and green handle must be mine.
Once inside, I see that my room matches my old Slytherin dorm. The bed is similar to my old one, just a little bigger. I rest my satchel on the chair in front of the desk and remove my journal and wand. Carefully, I place them on the side table next to the bed. I'm about to sit down when I spot a small rectangle on the wall with holes in it. I walk over and sit down in front of it. Something about it seems familiar, and I study it for a while, before pulling out a small pair of tweezers from my luggage. Just as I poke it into the hole, something surges up my arm.
"What the bloody hell?!" I curse, more from shock than anything else.
The bathroom door opens suddenly and Granger looks down at me before bursting into laughter. I just glare at her. "You don't know what a wall socket is, do you?"
I look down and mumble a "no". She still has traces of a smile on her face as she begins to explain it to me.
"Wall sockets conduct electricity, or energy, to power certain objects. For example, you could plug a lamp into the socket and it would light up without the need for a spell. For my laptop to work, I plug a special cord into the wall to refill the battery in it. Metal conducts electricity very well so when you stuck the tweezers into the socket, you got zapped by it."
I hope that this kind of stuff doesn't keep happening. Having to get Granger to teach me all of this does nothing to help my ego.
After she finishes explaining she just kind of stands there. I don't know why, but on impulse, I begin to insult her. "You can go now, Granger. I don't need your mudblood filth contaminating my room." Hurt crosses her face for a moment before being replaced by anger. Great now I've messed up everything again. Why couldn't I just keep my mouth shut?
"You must be joking. I helped you twice today already, but I guess this is the last time. Don't think I don't see how much you enjoyed this. You're just like Mr. Weasley, but you choose to hide it because you're too afraid to let go of your biases." She storms out and slams the door shut. I throw my head back against my bed in frustration. This is going to be a painful year indeed.
I push myself up off the floor and walk over to my trunk. I remove my pyjamas and change before crawling into bed. I don't know what to make of what Granger said. Does muggle technology fascinate me? Why am I so curious about it? Eventually, I give up trying to fall asleep and retrieve my guitar from my suitcase.
I unshrink it and tune before trying to remember the song I heard earlier today. Before I start playing however, I make sure to cast a muffliato to prevent Granger from hearing anything. It takes some trial and error to get the right chords, but by the end of the song, it feels like I've known this song since forever. I return my guitar to my trunk and lie back down. This time I fall asleep almost immediately.
Author's Note: Please read and review. Feedback is always welcome. Thank you for reading, and have a nice week.