Chapter 5
A New Beginning
"First years, first years over here!" Came a cry that could be heard above all the chattering
from the direction of a lantern bobbing above the crowds. Andy followed the lantern, finally
catching sight of the biggest man in the world. He looked ferocious and scary, with a huge beard
and little beady eyes. He was three times the hieght and girth of a normal man, dwarfing all the
first years. He directed him into boats that could fit four people each, Andy and Rachel were
joined by Daphne and Angela, as Angela got into their boat, Andy Rachel and Daphne all
exchanged exasperated looks. She was so annoying.
They rowed across the lake in the dark. Andy had yet to catch her first glimpse of
Hogwarts, but she got it as she rowed under the hanging branches of a weeping willow. There,
at the top of a hill, was a large stone castle, complete with turetts and gargoyles. It was beautiful,
Andy knew from the first sight that she was going to love it at Hogwarts. The bearded giant led
them to the front door, and knocked with his giant fist on the hard oak pannels. A stern looking
woman whose hair was pulled into a tight bun answered.
"Oh, you've brought the first years, I see, alright, good work Hagrid, you lot, follow me."
She looked cross and strict, Andy thought, as she hung back in the crowd. She did not want to
be near this woman. they were led onto the stahe facing the entire school in front of the faculty.
There was a three legged stool sitting on the center of the stage, on top was a ripped, torn, dirty
hat. Just as Andy was thinking that this was some sort of ridiculous joke, the hat began to talk.
"Every year on the first day
It is my task to choose
The houses in which you shall stay
Each special house with different views
Brave Gryfindor in boldness does place the largest stock
While Hufflepuff for kindess twas
The most important lot
If Slytherin you were to ask
Which quality was best
His answer would come fast
Shrewdness comes before the rest
To Ravenclaw the cleverest
And those with sharpest wit
Were valued above all others
And in her house would fit
So my task it is
To divide you up
And although I must admit
That I feel this is not right
It is my long held duty still
To not put up a fight
So sit your arse down on this stool
And place me on your head
Don't think that I am a fool
Or else you will regret"
The great hall burst into applause and the stern looking woman stepped forward.
"Applebee, Angela." She called. Angela stepped forward and put the hat on her head. She
sat for a second before the hat called out,
"Hufflepuff!" On of the two middle tables bust into applause and Angela stood up and
walked to the table. The sorting continued. Andy recognized some people from the train, but
most faces were new to her. She watched with interest as
"Andrews, Brittni," was sorted into Gryfindor where Andy spotted the puffy haired
Hermione Granger. Imediatly proceding Daniel Anders, who had been sorted into Slytherin, the
woman called, "Black, Andromeda." It did not register with Andy that this meant her, she was
used to her teachers calling her Andy Glenn, not Andromeda Black. Whispers went around the
room as people looked around. The woman cleared her throat, "Black, Andromeda." She
repeated. Rachel shoved her forward and Andy stumbled over to the stool.
"My name is Andy." She muttered to the woman with the list, who either didn't hear, or
ignored the comment.
"Isn't this interesting, I've never seen a head quite as jumbled as this." came a voice in
her haed.
"Whose there?" Hissed Andy.
"I'm the hat, I am inside your mind. I see courage here, yes, courage to stand up for
what you bellieve in, but there is also fear. Fear of what people think about you. What
about Hufflepuff eh? No, not Hufflepuff. Ravenclaw? No, that would not fit either.
Gryfindor? You would manage quite well there, although something tells me that you
should be in Slytherin!"
The last wod was announced to the entire hall and the table on the far left burst into
applause as she made her way to the table. She saw Draco Malfoy talking to some of his
friends, and purposly sayt at the other end of the bench from him. Relieved that she had been
sorted, she watched the rest of the ceremony.
"Johnnson, Rachel," had barely touched the hat to her head when it declared her a Slytherin.
"De Winter, Daphne," was also announced to be a Slytherin. Both girls sat down next to Andy,
expressing their joy at all being together. Three other girls and seven boys were sorted into
Slytherin as well. The sorting ceremony seemed to drag on for hours as what must have been
200 children were sorted into various houses. Gryfindor, Andy noticed, did not seem to be very
fond of Slytherin. Every time a new sortee made its way to the Slytherin table they were
followed by hisses, but the same went for Gryfindor sotees, who were denounced with low
throated growls. Andy did not participate in this, as it all seemed rather ridiculous to her. It still
had not sunk in that she was a witch and at an academy for witches.
"Good evening students, and welcome back to Hogwarts. I hope you have all had a nice,
relaxing summer with just enough time to forget everything you have learned over the year. To all
the first years, welcome, to the rest of you, welcome back. I'm sure that all of you who have just
been sorted will do your very best to win house points and bring the house cup to your
respective houses. I will say only that the Forbidden Forest is forbidden to students of all ages,
as are some 567 items on Mr. Filtchs list of restricted items. He would like me to remind you not
to use dung bombs in the corridors. Now, without further adu," he waved his wand, causing
food to appear on the gold plates.
"Who was that?" Andy whispered to Daphne, who was a pure blood and would obviously
know if anyone did.
"Everyone knows who he is silly, that's professor Dumbledore!"
"Oh." Andy pretended to know who that was for a moment, and then decided to not even
bother. "Who?"
"Don't tell me you've never heard of professor Dumbledore?"
"No, I haven't" Said Andy, her short patience running out. If she was just going to go on
about how she didn't know, rather than just tell her...Andy didn't want to waste her time. She
was sick and tired of people expecting her to know who all of these wizards were!
"He's head of the Wizengamot, Chief Mugwomp, Supreme Warlock, and headmaster here.
Everyone thought he was going to become the Minister of Magic, but he didn't want to leave the
school. He's the only person You-Know-Who ever feared." Andy was glad that she did know
who this time, it would have looked extremely stupid for her to not know who the two most
famous people in the wizarding world were.
Andy tucked into the delicious feast, eating for the first time since breakfast. A few hours
later, the plates cleared and Professor Dumbledore rose again. Silence fell over the hall, only
Draco continued talking, and even he stopped after he realized no one was listening to him.
"Now that we have all taken part in this delicious feast, it is time for bed. First years, follow
your prefects to your common rooms. Lights out in one hour, you want to be fresh for you
classes tomarrow." The three girls, Daphne, Rachel, and Andy all folowed Droco Malfoy down
dark dank staircases until they reached the very bottom of the castle with the other first years,
feeling very self important. He led them to a dead end, and stopped. Whispers traveled amoung
the first years, was this some kind of joke? Was he lost? What was he doing?
"Whiffleshneck." He declared. "All of you firsties, remember that, cause I won't repeat
myself. That's the password to the dormitory, so engrave it into your brains." With that the wall
slid open, revealing a large room. The Slytherin first years marched into the room. There was a
large fireplace, large enough for someone to stand in, filled with green tinted flames. There were
black leather couches, and strait backed chairs surrounding tables that were intended to be used
for study. "Girls rooms are down this staircase to the right, boys to the left. At the bottom of the
stairs you will find several doors with plaques indicating what year they are for. Your trunks have
been moved here for you, lights out in one hour." He grinned, turning around, obviously
dismissing them from his pressence.
Andy and Rachel and Daphne all went down the staircase until it ended and they started
along the corridor Draco had described. They tuned down the corridor and found a door labeld
'First Years'. They opened the door and entered what was to be their dormitory for the next
seven years. Andy quickly found her trunk, it was easy to spot as it was rather ratty and decrepit
compared to the other trunks. She unloaded her books, quills, and parchement into her school
bag, leaving some of her extra quills and inks in her bedside table. Her bed was in the corner of
the room, next to the window and across from the bathroom, the prime location in Andys
opinion. She pulled back the green velvet hangings on her four poster bed revealing a soft silver
flannel comforter and silky silver sheets, the bedding she had bought wuld be a waste of time,
not to mention much less comfortable than these supplied by the school. She left her robes and
other clothing in her trunk, as there was not enough room for all six girls to unpack all of their
clothing. She hung her dress robes in one corner of the massive wardrobe located at the head of
the room. She took her own books and journals out, placing them on her bedside table and sat
down on her bed, tired from the long day of travel.
"Alright, I think that we should all follow Andy's example, this space is too small for us all to
take up a massive amount of room, so let's just hang up out dress robes in the closet and put the
rest of the stuff we want out in our bedside tables. There are drawers in the bathrom too, so we
can divide those up when the other girls come, okay? If we are going to live together happily, we
all need to respect eachothers space, and if you two don't care about respecting eachothers
place, you had better stay out of mine or I might have to freak out." Said Rachel, flopping down
on the bed next to Andy. Daphne's bed was on the other side of the room and two beds over.
"So, what are we going to do about these walls?"
"I have some posters!" Declared a slightly pug faced girl with mouse brown hair upon
entering the room. "I'm Patty Parkinson, Pansy Parkinsons little sister. I like your plan, what's
your name?"
"I'm Rachel Johnson. This is Andromeda Black, call her Andy, this is Daphne de Winter."
"Nice to meet you all. I like your plan, as I said, so that's the plan we're using. As I also
said, I have posters. Anyone else who was clever enough to bring posters, feel free to hang them
up. I knew to bring them because my sister told me to, she said the only thing saving her has
been posters of hott guys on the walls." Jeez, this girl is obsesed with her sister, she's
mentioned her twice in the first two sentences she's spoken since she got here! Andy went
into the bathroom to stake out a drawer. She hung up her monogramed towel on a hook, there
were six, so she assumed every girl ot one, and filled her drawer with her shampoos,
conditioners, soaps, exfoliants, gels, lotions, and all her other toiletries. She did not know what
to do with her towel, as there was no other hook, so she put it back in her trunk. She saw
Rachel enter the bathroom behind her and close the door.
"Please tell me you hate her as much as I do."
"Depends, how much do you hate her?" Replied Andy, laughing, and glad that she had been
so quick to find a kindred spirit. "Um, I'm really glad she's on the other side of the room and
down at the opposite end from you and I. I just wish the room were longer or that there were
sound proof walls separating us from her." Rachel said in a whisper so that Patty Pug face would
not here them.
"Or both." Said Andy, giggling, and almost feeling bad that she was already talking bad
about people behind their backs no the first day.
"She's like a mean and ugly version of Angela." "Am I glad she isn't in our house! I would
have had to kill myself. I hope the other two girls will be halfway decent."
"Yeah me to, let's go meet them, I bet they're here. Hey guys, there are hooks in there, one
for each, and drawers too. Everyone gets one, so make the most of it." Announced Andy as she
exited the bathroom with Rachel.
"Hi, my name is Alex, what's yours?"
"I'm Andy, this is Rachel." Said Andy to the girl with the frizzy brown curls who adressed
her and pointing to Rachel. This girl, although she looked nice, also looked like a major geek.
She had braces, glasses, and the puffiest, frizzies curls Andy had ever seen. They were nothing
like Angelas little angel ringlets, these were frizzes. Andy smiled, trying not to look at Rachel for
fear of lauging, revealing her perfectly strait white teeth, she had never needed braces.
"This is Emily." Said Alex, pointing to the blonde girl next to her. This girl was no geek, she
had the kind of supermodel looks that Andy used to see on women in television adds, except
shrunken down to model kids clothing. She was tall and thin with perfect blonde hair and big
blue eyes. She had rosy cheeks and pink lips and perfect teeth. She had stepped right out of the
pages of one of Andys old books describing the all American teen, except British. As it turned
out, Amily was American, not British. Surprise surprise. She had flown over just to be able to
attend Hogwarts, which was apparently one of the most prestigious schools around. Emily
seemed like a coll kind of kid, once you got past the initial shyness. She had the bed directly
across from Andys and slightly to the side, and Alex had the bed next to her.
The girls spent the next hour bonding and describing their families and how they had
discovered their magical powers. Patty bragged about how she was a pure blood, and that her
older sister had always known that niether of them would be squibs, so she had grown up
knowing that she would attend Hogwarts. Andy kept quiet about her family history, somehow
she did not feel comfortable discussing her father with these girls. Andy, tired of Patty's
company, went unpstairs to write her letter to Shelli. She told her all about the girls on the train,
excet slightly changed the story so that she did not mention any magic. She told about the boy
who she had thought was cute insulting her, she wrote about the annoying Ravenclaw girls, and
she wrote about how she had met Angela, Brittni, Rachel, and Daphne. She wrote about hoe
Alex was a nerd, and Patty was ugly and obnauctious.
"Well well well, what have we here?" Said the now unmistakable voice of Draco Malfoy as
he sat down on the couch next to her. Andy curled her knees up, closed her books, and
wrapped her arms tightly around it. "What are you doing up after lights out?"
"I could ask the same of you."
"I'm a prefect, the firstie rules do not apply to me. So what is so important that you had to
break the rules to be up here?"
"I promised my friend that I would write her as soon as I got here." Andy shrugged,
showing him the book, but making sure she still had a firm grip. She did not trust this Malfoy
character.
"Oh, isn't that sweet? and do you always keep your promises? Can I see the letter?" He
asked.
"No, you may not,m and yes I always keep a promise." Andy replied simply, turning back
to her book. Who is this girl? She doesn't know who I am, obviously. How can she reffuse
me? And more importantly, why do I care? He looked at her as she wrote, her sparkling
saphire eyes reflecting the light of the fireplace. Her dark brown hair had large curls in it, and fell
past her shoulders and partly down her back. It was in front of her shoulders, and he watched as
she absent mindedly picked up a curl and began twisting it round and round her fingure.
"Can I help you with something?" She asked suddenly, looking up from her book.
"No, it's okay." He said, and remained sitting on the couch looking at her. He took in her
delicate features, her fragile bone structure. She had a tiny nose and little pink mouth that moved
slightly as she wrote, mouthing the words she was writing. She was nothing like the other girls he
had met here, they fell over themselves to impress him and the other Slytherin boys. She was
different, she wasn't as curvacious as the girls he normally dated, and she wasn't as outgoing as
the girls he normally dated. She wasn't a pureblood, she was younger than him, and it would be
totally unacceptable for him to be interested in her.
While writing her letter, she kept throwing sidelong looks at Draco. He was very good
looking. Deep, hard, cold, eyes, platinum blonde hair, a strong jaw line and, a strait nose.
Although he would be better looking if it weren't for his mouth. It wasn't that he had a bad
mouth, it just didn't look very happy, it looked like he never smiled and didn't know how to have
fun. He was wearing a tee shirt, revealing his tanned, muscular, forearms and large hands. He
was gazing off into the fire, not paying any attention at her, so she continued looking at him.
"Can I help you with something?" He asked, turning to her and seeing her staring at him.
"No, sorry." She said, turning to her notebook and blushing slightly. He chuckled to himself
and changed his posision on the couch so he was sitting facing her.
"So Andromeda 'call-me-Andy' Black, tell me about your family." Andy thought her was
asking to be nice, although he was really only asking to find out whether she would qualify as a
pure blood.
"There isn't really much to tell," Andy said, closing her book and sitting on it. "My father
was murdered by death eaters when I was seven, my mother and I live alone together because
my twin died and she had a miscarriage. I found out two months ago that I was a witch and
came here to study magic, only I really miss my mom and friends."
"Everyone feels that way at first, just give it time, you'll make new friends, and pretty soon
Hogwarts will feel like your family." He said. Andy was starting to feel better, and he was being
really nice to her. Why had he been such a jerk earlier? Maybe I caught him at a bad
time... A girl who Andy knew upon sight as Pansy Parkinson, based on her sisters description
and the fact that she was even more pug faced and mouse haired than her sister.
"Malfoy! Did you have a good summer? What have you been up to? I didn't see you on the
train, I was looking for you." Simpered Pansy.
"Uh, yeah I had a good summer."
"Oh, mine was incredible! We went to Europe..." Pansy went on for about ten minutes
about the trip to Europe that Patty had already told her about. "I'm sorry, am I boring you?" She
said turning to Andy who was staring off into the fire.
"No, it's just I already heard all about your vacation from your sister, she's in my dorm."
"Oh, well then maybe you want to leave." She said, rudely, Andy, not wanting to spend any
more time with her than was necessary, got up with her book and left. "Stupid firsties." Muttered
Pansy as she took Andy's seat, scootching towards Malfoy, who did not say anything to defend
Andy. Jeez, what a jerk. He's nice one minute, and then a totally different person in front
of his friends. Why does he even hang out with that bitch anyway? He can do better than
her. Secretly, Andy was thinking of herself. Only one night here and I've already
developed a crush on the most unattainable guy here who is least likely to be interested in
me. Actually, truth be told, I don't even like him that much. He's just so hott. And really
sweet when he wants to be.
Andy rolled her eyes at herself, walking down the stairs to her dorm. Except it was not her
dorm. She went to the door labeled 'First Years' and turned the knob. When she oppened the
door she found a room that was the mirror image of her own, except messier, covered in posters
of half naked women and quiddich teams, and filled with boys. Shit! I must have come down
the wrong staircase! As she walked in one of the guys whistled, causing the rest to look at
her. Andy herself was staring at one of the guys in the corner, he was changing for sleep and
standing facing her with his shirt off, revealing a six pack. Andy whistled mentall, taking in the
brown hair falling elegantly into his eyes and his dark blue eyes, so dark they could almost
qualify as black. Andy backed out of the room quickly, shutting the door, but not muffling the
sound of laughter coming from behind. Andy ran quickly up the stairs to get to the girls dorms,
she ran strait into Draco.
"What are you doing down here? These are the boys dormitories." Asked Draco, looking
at her with amusmant and laughter in his eyes, but not on his lips. Maybe he didn't even know
how to smile.
"No shit sherlock, I think I figured that out." She replied snippily.
"Well you should pay more attention next time." He said, grabbing her shoulders and pulling
her off him.
"Yeah, thanks for the tip. What are you doing down here anyway? Gotten bored of your
girlfriend?" She said sarcastically, continuing the run up the stairs. This girl is spunky, I like
her. Andy returned to her dormitory, the correct one this time, and told Rachel about her run in
with Pansy and the hott guy she had seen in the other room. They giggled at Andy's description
of the boy while changing into their own night clothes. Andy said good night and twitched the
hangings of her bed closed, falling to sleep almost instantly.
Authors Note: And now you all know why I write stories, not poetry! (I was reffering to the song). Sorry that these first couple of chapies are kind of boring, I need to introduce all the characters before anything good starts to happen, just bear with me here!! As always, read and review!