Switching Places
Chapter Ten~ Change Of Plans
Anna's POV
I made my way into the common room the next morning. When I left from the Slytherin common room the night before, I took the things that Harry had left, and snuck into the boys' dormitories. Harry was asleep, so I just layed his things on his trunk and went off to bed.
The funny thing was, he was looking at his photo album. I mean, that wasn't the funny part, but the page that it was opened to, there was a picture of his parents. His dad was holding him, but his mother was holding a little baby girl. She looked younger than Harry did, almost as if she were a newborn. Harry didn't have a sister, though. And it made me think back to what Draco had said, when he and Harry were fighting. He'd said: 'you two are rather alike. Did you ever take into consideration that you two could be related?' I don't remember why he said it though, and it was bothering me, but Harry was right; I don't have an accent like they do.
And another thing, my parents that I lived with my whole life, moved to England with, aren't my biological birth parents, or so they say. They said that my birth parent had gotten shot to death in a local diner, and that I was at home with a baby-sitter at the time.
Those thoughts rushed out of my mind as I stopped in the common room. Everyone, meaning Ron, Hermione, and Harry, with the exception on Dean, Seamus, and Neville, was waiting for me on the furniture, and down on the floor.
"You ready?" Ron asked, standing up. The others looked over at me, and did the same.
"Yep." I replied.
Hermione smoothed out her skirt, and I looked over at Harry. He smiled. I smiled back, and decided I was going to ask him about the pictures, and the little girl, later.
We left the common room, in our big pack. I stood to the side, next to Hermione. I'd told her and Ron about last night, already, and I was pretty sure that they had told everyone else. So I didn't say anything about it.
As we were on our way to the Great Hall for breakfast, we started heading passed the entrance to the Slytherin Common Room. I looked, hoping to see Draco there, and to my luck, he was. He was just heading out to leave for the Great Hall, with all of his Slytherin friends.
I really didn't want to yell his name to get his attention, but he saw me, so he said something to his crowed, and jogged over.
"Hey." I told him with a smile. He stopped he and brought me into a hug. Hermione noticed, so she started to slow down her walking pace.
"Sleep good?" he asked me.
"Mhm." I told him, taking his hand. "You?"
"Great." I smiled and we caught up to Hermione, and then with the others.
When we got into the Great Hall, Everyone except Draco went to the right, to go sit at the Gryffindor table. I really wanted to sit with him, but there was that one problem; I wasn't a Slytherin.
Draco looked down at me, and Hermione stopped, "Anna, you coming?"
"I don't know." I looked up at the head table. "I think I want to go ask Dumbledore about the rule about sitting at your table with your houses." I told her. She looked at Draco.
"Go for it." She told me. I nodded, looked at Draco, and made my way across the long isle to go ask.
When I finally got there, I looked up at Professor Dumbledore and said, "Um.Professor?"
He looked down into his half-mooned glasses and said, "Yes.Miss Morrison."
"Um." I stuttered, "I was wondering. When I got here, for the first time at Hogwarts, you never really said anything about having to sit at the same table at every event, with your same house; you never said that it was a rule." I paused and looked at him again. He nodded for me to continue, "But.in my opinion, I find it to be rather.well rather racist, only, it's not against race, but against Houses. So.I think I should say, I find it rather.House-ist. Did.that make sense?" I looked from him, to Professor McGonagall, then back up at him.
"Yes Miss Morrison, it did. And I don't recall telling you that it was a rule, either. The only reason why I find that it would be suitable for each of you to sit at the tables like they are now." He looked around at the room full of students, "is on the first day, so that the first years can tell who all is in what house, and where to go when they are sorted, just in case they aren't used to looking at the house badges on the robes."
"Yes, Sir, I understand that.
"But you are very outspoken, Miss Morrison, just as your parents were." He smiled down at me.
I spoke up again, tilting my head off to the side, "Professor, do you think.that maybe, after breakfast, I could have a word with you about that?"
"Yes, of course."
I nodded and smiled, "Thank you, Professor."
He nodded, and I turned to go back to everyone to tell them what he said, but I stopped and turned back around. "Did you say it was OK to the.sitting at the other tables thing?"
He smiled, "No I didn't, but yes it is OK, and I'll mention that to everyone."
"OK." With one last smile, I turned and headed back to the others.
"He said he'd say something to all of them about it." I told Draco as I had gotten to him. Hermione went to go sit with the other Gryffindors.
"K." He smiled.
With McGonagall's help, Professor Dumbledore got the room's attention. "It has come to my attention, and to the mind of one of our students," I smiled, with a nudge from Draco, "that I never mention a rule to any of you, about always having to sit at the same table, with your house, even when there is not a special event going on. She pointed out, and I find it remarkable that I didn't see this before, that it is almost a stage of racism, as it is not of race, but of house."
I looked around at the people. Some looked at me, because they had seen me walk up there to talk to him. And some were looking at Draco and I both. One: because we were never seen standing near each other because we were in different houses, and Two: the exact fact that we were in different houses, set as an example of what Dumbledore was pointing out.
"I will end this by saying: There was no official rule about sitting at the same table throughout the year. It was never written as one, but over all these years, it became the usual. So you may all sit wherever you please. Only except the first day or two of the year, so that children in their first year, can get the hang of who is in their houses, and get used to accepting the deal about House badges being on the robes." He had finished.
I looked up at Draco, and then looked around to see if anyone would change tables. It was completely silent, and I was guessing that I had to be the first. People were looking around, mostly at me.
I looked at the others at the Gryffindor table, mostly at Hermione. She sat in thought for a few seconds, the stood up with her tray. I smiled as she headed over towards me. When she reached us, Draco led the way, with me behind him, and Hermione behind me.
Everyone's heads followed our moves as we got to the Slytherin table. Then, one by one, three or four people from each house, got up and exchanged tables with a few others, then more people started getting up. Finally, almost half of the people in the room were walking from one end of the Great Hall, to the other. Hufflepuffs were moving over to the Ravenclaw and the Gryffindor table; Ravenclaws going over to the Slytherin and Gryffindor table; Slytherins going to the Ravenclaw table, and very few Slytherin girls moved over to go sit with very few girls at the Gryffindor table.
I looked up at Dumbledore with a smile on my face. We'd done it. Harry and Ron and come over from the other table and sat across from Hermione and me. I was sitting in between Hermione and Draco.
I watched as the guys filled their plates with a bunch of food. "You know."
Hermione looked over at me and laughed, finishing my sentence, "the food is still going to be there by the time you finish what's on your plate."
Chapter Ten~ Change Of Plans
Anna's POV
I made my way into the common room the next morning. When I left from the Slytherin common room the night before, I took the things that Harry had left, and snuck into the boys' dormitories. Harry was asleep, so I just layed his things on his trunk and went off to bed.
The funny thing was, he was looking at his photo album. I mean, that wasn't the funny part, but the page that it was opened to, there was a picture of his parents. His dad was holding him, but his mother was holding a little baby girl. She looked younger than Harry did, almost as if she were a newborn. Harry didn't have a sister, though. And it made me think back to what Draco had said, when he and Harry were fighting. He'd said: 'you two are rather alike. Did you ever take into consideration that you two could be related?' I don't remember why he said it though, and it was bothering me, but Harry was right; I don't have an accent like they do.
And another thing, my parents that I lived with my whole life, moved to England with, aren't my biological birth parents, or so they say. They said that my birth parent had gotten shot to death in a local diner, and that I was at home with a baby-sitter at the time.
Those thoughts rushed out of my mind as I stopped in the common room. Everyone, meaning Ron, Hermione, and Harry, with the exception on Dean, Seamus, and Neville, was waiting for me on the furniture, and down on the floor.
"You ready?" Ron asked, standing up. The others looked over at me, and did the same.
"Yep." I replied.
Hermione smoothed out her skirt, and I looked over at Harry. He smiled. I smiled back, and decided I was going to ask him about the pictures, and the little girl, later.
We left the common room, in our big pack. I stood to the side, next to Hermione. I'd told her and Ron about last night, already, and I was pretty sure that they had told everyone else. So I didn't say anything about it.
As we were on our way to the Great Hall for breakfast, we started heading passed the entrance to the Slytherin Common Room. I looked, hoping to see Draco there, and to my luck, he was. He was just heading out to leave for the Great Hall, with all of his Slytherin friends.
I really didn't want to yell his name to get his attention, but he saw me, so he said something to his crowed, and jogged over.
"Hey." I told him with a smile. He stopped he and brought me into a hug. Hermione noticed, so she started to slow down her walking pace.
"Sleep good?" he asked me.
"Mhm." I told him, taking his hand. "You?"
"Great." I smiled and we caught up to Hermione, and then with the others.
When we got into the Great Hall, Everyone except Draco went to the right, to go sit at the Gryffindor table. I really wanted to sit with him, but there was that one problem; I wasn't a Slytherin.
Draco looked down at me, and Hermione stopped, "Anna, you coming?"
"I don't know." I looked up at the head table. "I think I want to go ask Dumbledore about the rule about sitting at your table with your houses." I told her. She looked at Draco.
"Go for it." She told me. I nodded, looked at Draco, and made my way across the long isle to go ask.
When I finally got there, I looked up at Professor Dumbledore and said, "Um.Professor?"
He looked down into his half-mooned glasses and said, "Yes.Miss Morrison."
"Um." I stuttered, "I was wondering. When I got here, for the first time at Hogwarts, you never really said anything about having to sit at the same table at every event, with your same house; you never said that it was a rule." I paused and looked at him again. He nodded for me to continue, "But.in my opinion, I find it to be rather.well rather racist, only, it's not against race, but against Houses. So.I think I should say, I find it rather.House-ist. Did.that make sense?" I looked from him, to Professor McGonagall, then back up at him.
"Yes Miss Morrison, it did. And I don't recall telling you that it was a rule, either. The only reason why I find that it would be suitable for each of you to sit at the tables like they are now." He looked around at the room full of students, "is on the first day, so that the first years can tell who all is in what house, and where to go when they are sorted, just in case they aren't used to looking at the house badges on the robes."
"Yes, Sir, I understand that.
"But you are very outspoken, Miss Morrison, just as your parents were." He smiled down at me.
I spoke up again, tilting my head off to the side, "Professor, do you think.that maybe, after breakfast, I could have a word with you about that?"
"Yes, of course."
I nodded and smiled, "Thank you, Professor."
He nodded, and I turned to go back to everyone to tell them what he said, but I stopped and turned back around. "Did you say it was OK to the.sitting at the other tables thing?"
He smiled, "No I didn't, but yes it is OK, and I'll mention that to everyone."
"OK." With one last smile, I turned and headed back to the others.
"He said he'd say something to all of them about it." I told Draco as I had gotten to him. Hermione went to go sit with the other Gryffindors.
"K." He smiled.
With McGonagall's help, Professor Dumbledore got the room's attention. "It has come to my attention, and to the mind of one of our students," I smiled, with a nudge from Draco, "that I never mention a rule to any of you, about always having to sit at the same table, with your house, even when there is not a special event going on. She pointed out, and I find it remarkable that I didn't see this before, that it is almost a stage of racism, as it is not of race, but of house."
I looked around at the people. Some looked at me, because they had seen me walk up there to talk to him. And some were looking at Draco and I both. One: because we were never seen standing near each other because we were in different houses, and Two: the exact fact that we were in different houses, set as an example of what Dumbledore was pointing out.
"I will end this by saying: There was no official rule about sitting at the same table throughout the year. It was never written as one, but over all these years, it became the usual. So you may all sit wherever you please. Only except the first day or two of the year, so that children in their first year, can get the hang of who is in their houses, and get used to accepting the deal about House badges being on the robes." He had finished.
I looked up at Draco, and then looked around to see if anyone would change tables. It was completely silent, and I was guessing that I had to be the first. People were looking around, mostly at me.
I looked at the others at the Gryffindor table, mostly at Hermione. She sat in thought for a few seconds, the stood up with her tray. I smiled as she headed over towards me. When she reached us, Draco led the way, with me behind him, and Hermione behind me.
Everyone's heads followed our moves as we got to the Slytherin table. Then, one by one, three or four people from each house, got up and exchanged tables with a few others, then more people started getting up. Finally, almost half of the people in the room were walking from one end of the Great Hall, to the other. Hufflepuffs were moving over to the Ravenclaw and the Gryffindor table; Ravenclaws going over to the Slytherin and Gryffindor table; Slytherins going to the Ravenclaw table, and very few Slytherin girls moved over to go sit with very few girls at the Gryffindor table.
I looked up at Dumbledore with a smile on my face. We'd done it. Harry and Ron and come over from the other table and sat across from Hermione and me. I was sitting in between Hermione and Draco.
I watched as the guys filled their plates with a bunch of food. "You know."
Hermione looked over at me and laughed, finishing my sentence, "the food is still going to be there by the time you finish what's on your plate."