'Oh great!' Ron exclaimed. 'She's gone off with Malfoy. He'll be having a
field day. I knew this would happen. Harry and I were just saying.'
Harry felt a little shocked. He had been worried that Claire would end up friends with Draco, but on the other hand he hadn't though she was that type of person, and he hadn't expected it to happen so soon.
'.why I've a good mind to go over there and get her back. Why I bet he forced her.'
'Don't Ron,' Hermione said. 'If she wants to come back, she'll come back.' They sat in silence for a while, Ron angrily picking sweets out of a box of Bertie Botts Every Flavor Beans. He evidently picked out a horrible one, because he spat it out and angrily threw the box on the floor. The jellybeans spilled everywhere, and Harry watched one roll up and down the floor with the movement of the train. It was strange, it had been the four of them for a week, and now there was only three again. Suddenly, the carriage door opened, and in walked Claire.
'Hi guys,' she smiled.
'Claire!' Harry said happily.
'You're back!' Ron said, matching Harry's tone. 'Of coarse I knew you'd come back, I was just saying, there's no way she'll stay with a rat like Malfoy.' Claire grinned. 'Well I just wanted to see what he had to say for himself,' she said, sitting down. 'And I must say, he wasn't terribly nice about you three.'
'Why, what happened?' Ron asked.
'Well he took me into his carriage. There was a few other people in there, Crabbe and Goyle, I think and some girl called Pansy.anyway he was saying he didn't know why I'd lowered myself you hanging around with you guys when I was obviously a far superior witch. He said I deserved better friends than a poor-as-dirt Weasley, a mudblood and Dumbledore's pet Potter.'
'Why that little.' Ron said angrily, turning red.
'I said that you all seemed like perfectly nice people to me,' Claire continued, 'and Draco said "well see if you still think that after a week of school." I was like "I'll do that then." Then he started going on about what a great teacher my uncle is. Well I didn't need to be hearing all that, I know my Uncle Severus far better than he ever will. So I told him it had been nice talking to him but I needed to use the bathroom and I'd see him at school. And I left.'
'Wow,' Ron said.
'He really doesn't like you guys though,' Claire said. 'I can't believe he called you a mudblood Hermione, that's so derogatory.'
'I know,' Hermione sighed. 'He's called me that before. I just have to learn to ignore it.'
'Why do you all hate each other so much?' Claire asked.
'Well me and Hermione are 'less superior wizards' because Hermione's parents are muggles, and my dad works with muggles. And he hates Harry because he hangs around with us, because he defeated you-know-who all those times and it's thanks to Harry that Malyfoy's dad is currently in Azkaban. Oh, and Harry's a better Seeker than Draco,' Ron told her.
'You know, I can see why you guys hate him so much,' Claire said sympathetically. 'He was really nice to me though.'
'Yeah, he would be, wouldn't he?' Ron muttered. It was starting to get later in the day, and they knew they would soon be there. It wasn't long before the train was pulling up in Hogsmead station. Everybody piled off the train.
'Firs' years this way!' they heard a loud, booming voice. It was Hagrid.
'Hagrid!' Harry exclaimed. The extremely tall man made his way through the crowd to them.
'Hello Harry, Ron, Hermione.' He looked down at Claire. 'And who might this be?'
'I'm Claire,' she smiled.
'Nice to meet you Claire. I'm Hagrid, I teach Care of Magical Creatures. An' I'm a bit of a friend of these three. So how did you all do in your O.W.L's?' They all told him their results.
'Oh my, well done! O' course, I never took any O.W.L's, but I'm sure I wouldn'ta got results that good! Well done all of you!'
'Thanks,' Hermione said.
'Well, I gotta go take the firs' years over to the school, so I'll se you three.well it's four now, ain't it? Well I'll see you later!' And with that he lumbered off.
'Well that's Hagrid,' Harry said to Claire.
'He seems nice,' she said.
'Yeah, he is,' Harry agreed. They went over to the carriages, which would take them to the school. Every year before the last, Harry believed that these carriages moved by themselves. However, the previous year after witnessing Cedric Diggory's Death he had seen that the carriages were actually drawn by winged horses which could only be seen if you've witnessed death.
'What are they?' Claire asked, pointing at them. Harry, Ron and Hermione all looked at Claire.
'You can see them?' Hermione asked.
'Why, can't you?' Claire frowned. Hermione shook her head. 'No.'
'How come?' Claire asked, confused.
'Only people who have witnessed death can see them,' Hermione explained to her.
'Oh,' Claire said with surprise. 'Oh right.' She did not elaborate on why she was able to see them, and the others chose not to ask her about it. They all climbed into a carriage, and a moment later, Neville Longbottom came up to it.
'Is it alright if I sit in here with you guys?' he asked.
'Sure Neville,' Hermione consented. Neville climbed into the carriage.
'Neville, this is Claire,' Hermione introduced them. 'Claire, Neville.'
'Hello, Claire,' Neville smiled.
'Hi,' Claire smiled back. Neville looked at Harry. 'Hi Harry,' he said. He and Harry had experienced a lot together the previous year.
'Hi Neville,' Harry said, smiling weakly.
'How are you?' Neville asked. How am I? Harry thought. Well I've never felt more alone now I've lost the closest thing I had to family. I've got a constant feeling resembling terrible hunger pains, except it's in my heart. And to top it all off, I think I'm falling for Snape's niece, of all people! But instead, he chose to say,
'I'm fine.' If Harry had lost his parents and now Sirius, at least they weren't still alive but in the Psychiatric ward of St. Mungos, and unable to recognize Harry when he visited. The carriages started up, and they were soon nearing Hogwarts. When the carriages drew to a halt, they all climbed out, and Claire looked up at the school.
'Wow,' she gasped. 'This is amazing!' Ron started pointing out different locations to her. 'There's Hagrid's hut, and over there behind it is the Forbidden Forest. Oh, and you see that big tree just on the edge of the forest? That's the Whomping Willow.' Claire looked around in fascination. 'The Forbidden Forest? Why is it forbidden? And why is it called the Whomping Willow?'
'It's forbidden because loads of scary creatures live in there,' Ron said, making a face.
'And it's called the Whomping Willow because it beats you up if you get too close,' Harry added with a grin. Claire looked at it uneasily, as if it was about to come over to her and start hitting her. All the students made their way through the Entrance Hall into the Great Hall. It really did look magnificent. The now dark ceiling, which was enchanted to look like the sky outside, was dotted with bright, shining stars, and the moon was full. There were candles floating everywhere and chandeliers hanging from apparently nowhere. The ghosts were floating around and greeting people in a friendly manner. Most of the teachers were sitting at the teachers table at the top of the room, but when Snape saw Claire come in, he swept over to her.
'Professor McGonagall says you're to be sorted after the first years, so you're to go and stand with them,' he told her. Claire nodded and smiled, but Harry could tell she was nervous. At least when the first years were sorted they were all together; she would be the only sixth year there.
'Good luck,' Snape said, before going back to the teacher's table.
'Er.where are the first years?' Claire asked, looking around. The Gryffindor, Slytherin, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw tables where filled with students, but none of them where new.
'Oh, Hagrid'll be bringing them in a minute,' Harry told her. 'We'll wait with you if you like.' Claire smiled him them thankfully. It wasn't long before Hagrid walked in with Professor McGonagall beside him, holding a three-legged stool with a large, rather tatty hat on it, followed by a group of rather frightened looking first years. A hush fell over the Hall.
'You three can go and sit down now,' Claire whispered to them, and, taking a deep breath, tagged along after the line of first years who followed Hagrid and McGonagall to the top of the Hall. Harry, Ron and Hermione quickly sat down among their fellow Gryffindors at their table. McGonagall put down the stool with the Sorting Hat on it, and it began to sing:
'Every time a new student
Comes to our school
Here at Hogwarts
We have a rule
They must be put
In one of the houses four
Whether old or young
Rich or poor
I'm the Sorting Hat
That's where I come in
I put you into a house
Not because of kin
I do not place you
With your brother
Nor with your sister
Or any reason other
Than what I see
Inside your head
So this is a process
You mustn't dread
One of these houses
I will place you in
Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw,
Gryffindor or Slytherin
I will do this by
Looking into your mind
The house you should
Be in I will find
If you're kind and friendly
Loyal and true
Then Hufflepuff is
The house for you
If you're brave of heart
Courageous and strong
Then Gryffindor
Is where you belong
Or maybe you should be
In Ravenclaw
These clever people
Know much more
If you're cunning and sly
You're for Slytherin
This is the last house
You could be in
So now take haste
Please don't be shy
Put me on
And I will try
To find the house
Where you'll best fit
And at that table
You shall sit
With these people
You'll soon see
Your house is like
Your family.'
As the Hall applauded, Harry looked over at Snape, who had a pleased look on his face. He obvious thought 'your house is like your family' meant Claire was bound to be in Slytherin. Harry sighed.
'When I call your name,' McGonagall addressed the first years, 'please sit down and put on the sorting hat. It will say a house, and you are to go and sit at that table.'
She unraveled a long parchment with a list of names on it.
'James Ashby,' she said loudly. A small dark haired boy stepped forward, took the sorting hat off the stool and sat down on it. A placed the sorting hat on his head, and sat stiff as a board, as the sorting hat tried to place him in a house. Harry couldn't believe that when he had placed that hat on his head, he had been that small. Things had been so different then; Harry still had so much to come. After a moment, the hat shouted,
'Ravenclaw!' and the Ravenclaw table burst into cheers. The boy eagerly took the hat off his head, put it back on the stool, and went over to the Ravenclaw table. Harry looked over at Claire as McGonagall read out the next name. She stood at the back of the group of first years, looking slightly unsure of herself as the amount of first years she stood behind decreased. Finally the last name was called out,
'Jessica Vaughan!' and Claire was left standing alone. As Jessica Vaughan went over to the Gryffindor table, all eyes went onto Claire. McGonagall cleared her throat. 'Finally we have one more student who is a little older this year. We rarely get new students come to our school for the sixth and seventh years but this year we have special circumstances. So we will be welcoming Claire Snape to our school. She too will need to be put into a house, so Claire, if you'd like to put on the Sorting Hat.' There had been a break out of whispering as McGonagall said Claire's name; was she related to Snape? But silence ensued as Claire did what all the others had done and sat down on the stood and put the hat on her head. The wait was agonizing for Harry. Claire listened carefully as the Sorting Hat spoke it's opinion into her ear, but Harry and the rest of the Hall would only hear the Hat's final opinion.
Slytherin, Slytherin, Slytherin, Harry thought over and over in his head. Which is why it was such a surprise when the Hat gave a different verdict.
'Gryffindor!' the hat announced. Harry, Ron and Hermione looked at each other in surprise and happy disbelief. Claire had about the same look on her face, and went over to the Gryffindor table, and sat down with Harry, Ron and Hermione. Harry looked over at Snape. He looked like someone had just slapped him in the face. Looking over at the Slytherin, Harry saw that Malfoy was wearing a very similar expression. In fact, most of the Slytherin's looked put out, as they were all probably expecting to her to be in their house, with that surname.
'This is amazing!' Claire said happily. 'I mean, I really thought I was going to be in Slytherin.'
'So did we,' Ron agreed.
'Well I guess I wouldn't have minded being in Slytherin because of Uncle Severus but I'm glad I'm in Gryffindor so I can be with you guys,' Claire said happily.
'So you are related to Professor Snape then,' Seamus said, popping his head forward.
'Yes I am,' Claire confirmed. They all stopped talking when Dumbledore got to his feet. There was a brief moment's silence.
'As Professor McGonagall told us, we have a new student to our sixth year, Claire Snape, so I would like to welcome her to our school as well as all our new first years,' Dumbledore announced. There was a brief applause and Claire grinned. 'But as well as greeting new students,' Dumbledore continued, 'we also have to welcome a new Professor, Professor Weasley. She is to be our new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, and I think we all think she is very brave for taking the job.' There was more applause, and Harry, Ron, Hermione and Claire all looked over at Annabelle, who was smiling happily. She received very warm applause as the last Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher had been so bad, and everyone was pleased to see her replaced.
'Finally, a few notices,' Dumbledore went on. 'I would like to inform the new students, and remind the old ones, that the Forbidden Forest is out of bounds to all students. Mr. Filch would like me to tell you that if any of you need to review the school rules, particularly those involving using magic in the corridors, he has a full list. And finally, I would like you all to enjoy the feast!' He clapped his hands, and suddenly, all the empty gold plates that filled the tables were covered with food. Harry heard Claire give a little gasp beside him. He looked at her and they smiled at one another.
'Claire,' Harry said. 'I'm very glad you're in Gryffindor, you know.'
'Me too,' Claire smiled. 'Although I'm not so sure Uncle Severus will be.' They both looked up at the teacher's table, where Snape was looking rather put out. 'I do feel a bit sorry for him,' Claire sighed. 'I bet he was really hoping I'd be in Slytherin. But hey, I am what I am, right?'
'It looks like he's looking at Annabelle,' Harry said, looking over at the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, who was talking animatedly to Hagrid. Claire shrugged. 'We're going to have to start calling her Professor Weasley now.'
'I take it she's a relation of yours,' Dean said to Ron.
'Yes. Although I've never really met her, she's been living in America,' Ron said coolly. Dean noticed Ron's rather icy tone. 'Hey Ron, you are okay with me and Ginny, aren't you? I really like her, I'm not going to do anything to upset her.'
'Just as long as you don't,' Ron said, shoveling more potatoes onto his plate. They all ate well, and Claire got to know some of the other Gryffindors. Just before they were all about ready to go to bed, Professor McGonagall got to her feet.
'I would like to see all sixth years in the library first thing tomorrow morning please.'
'It's probably but what subjects we're doing this year,' Hermione said. 'I hope I get to do all the subjects I wanted.'
'Oh well, we can worry about it tomorrow,' Claire said wisely. 'Right now, I fancy getting some sleep.'
Harry slept better than he had in a long time. He had far from forgotten Sirius but now at least he felt he was closer to a place he could call home than anywhere else. And Claire being put into Gryffindor was one of the best things that could have happened. It was strange that they got on so well considering who her Uncle was. But Harry knew it would probably cause problems to their friendship. Harry knew very well that Snape hated him and he would probably be very against his niece being friends with Harry. But how far would he go to stop them from being friends? And how easily would Claire comply with Snape's wishes? Harry guessed he would just have to wait and see.
The next morning was Claire's first breakfast at Hogwarts.
'The food is so good here,' she was saying. 'It's so filling, it tastes so.real. The food in America was very synthetic and there was a lot of junk food.'
'I guess.' Ron said, looking at the food that he had always taken for granted.
'What did you sleep on then?' Harry asked Claire.
'The house elves were as efficient as ever and as soon as the Sorting Hat said she was in Gryffindor, they set her up a bed in the dormitories,' Hermione explained. 'It's a bit more squashed in there, but we'll manage.' As the bell went, they all looked at one another. 'We have to go up to the library now, right?' Seamus asked Hermione. She nodded. All the Gryffindor sixth years got up and went up to the library together. The Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw sixth years were already there, and just as the Gryffindors had sat down, the Slytherin's came in.
'Bad luck Claire,' Draco said, going over to her. 'I was hoping you'd be in Slytherin.'
'Well if I'm a Gryffindor then I'm a Gryffindor. The Sorting Hat knew what it was doing,' Claire said, in a friendly tone.
'Apparently,' Draco said dryly. 'Well, I hope you get the subjects you want to do. Are you doing Potions?'
'Yes, hopefully,' she said. 'Harry and Hermione are too.' Draco gave a look of disgust. 'Well we'll see what Professor Snape has to say about that.'
'Uncle Severus is a fair man, and if Harry had good enough grades to get into Potions, then he'll have no reason not to let them,' Claire said, a little sharply.
'I'm sure he will,' Draco sneered. Just then, Professor McGonagall came in, and Draco sat down with his fellow Slytherin's.
'You have all chosen subjects to study during your sixth and seventh years here at Hogwarts, and eventually take N.E.W.T's in' she said, looking around at them. 'Most of you will be able to do these subjects. However, if one of your choices clashes with another, or you haven't mat the grade requirements for the subject, you will have to study your second choice. I have made you all timetables and I have tried my hardest to enable you all to be able to do all the subjects you wish. However, you cannot be in two places at once I am afraid.' She gave Hermione a little smile when she said this. In the third year Hermione had used a time-turner so that she could be in two places at once, allowing her to attend extra classes. After this little talk, Professor McGonagall handed every student a personalized timetable. The first thing Harry noticed was that he had several free periods. The second thing that he noticed was that he'd gotten into every subject he had applied for. As soon as Professor McGonagall had finished giving out the timetables, Hermione raised her hand.
'Professor, what is General Studies?' she asked.
'General Studies is just basic training in all the subjects you don't study. For example, if you don't do Transfiguration, you will still learn some basic Transfiguration skills. And when you have a General Studies lesson in a subject you do take, then it's just a revision lesson,' Professor McGonagall explained. Draco then raised his hand. 'Do we take a N.E.W.T in it?' he asked.
'No Mr. Malfoy. You can opt out of doing General Studies and have that time as a free period instead, but we strongly recommend against that. It's very useful to have a basic knowledge of all magical skills. The location and subject of every General Studies lesson will be on the sixth year notice board. Are there any other questions?' There were none. 'Very well. You can have five minutes to discuss your timetables, and then you can go to your first classes.' Everyone began to talk.
'Did you get into all your classes?' Harry asked his friends. They all affirmed.
'Can I see your timetable Harry?' Ron asked him. 'I want to see if we've got the subjects we've both chosen at the same time.' Harry handed it to him, and he quickly looked over the parchment. He smiled. 'Great! Mine's exactly the same as yours except I have Care of Magical Creatures when you have Potions.' A dreamy look spread across Ron's face. 'I can't believe I never have to do Potions again.'
'I expect you and I have exactly the same timetable,' Claire said to Harry. She looked at his. 'Yeah, we do,' she smiled. 'Looks like we'll be spending a lot of time together, eh?' She suddenly looked a little worried. 'That is, if you want to, of course.'
'Of course I do,' Harry said warmly. 'You're one of the gang now, right?' he looked to Ron and Hermione.
'Yeah!' Ron said heartily.
'Of course she is,' Hermione agreed. 'As long as you don't go off with Draco Malfoy.' Claire grinned. 'I don't think there's much danger of that.' They soon had to go off to their first lesson. For Harry, Ron, Hermione and Claire it was Defense Against the Dark Arts.
'A teacher I know for my very first lesson,' Claire said happily. They all went into the classroom. Already in there was Dean, Seamus, Neville, Lavender, Pavarti, Hannah Abbot and Justin Finch-Fletchly. Harry and the others sat down near the front. A moment later, in walked Annabelle.
'Good morning,' she greeted them all. 'I'm Professor Weasley and you are my very first class here at Hogwarts! Now over the last few years you've had a great deal of Defense Against the Dark Arts teachers, am I right? Some of them very good teachers and some of them not so good, I'm sure. Now I'm not trying to be a better teacher than those who have not been so good. Nor am I trying to live up to the teachers who you have learnt the most from. I've been told that you've already been shown the Unforgivable Curses. I am here to equip you to fight the Dark Arts in the best way I can. And now more than ever, this will be crucial. So for the first couple of lessons we'll be going over some basic skills, and then we'll be moving on to learning some new things. For homework I'd like just one of you to write down the things that you've learnt so far. Not in great detail, I just want to know what you've learnt so far, as I'm a little unclear on that. Do I have any volunteers?' Hermione, of course, raised her hand straight away.
'Thank you,' Annabelle smiled. 'Hermione isn't it?'
'Yes,' Hermione smiled.
'Well you can have 10 house points for doing that for me,' she smiled. For the rest of the lesson Annabelle went over some spells with them, most of which Harry had done in the DA last year. It was a good first lesson because it wasn't too taxing and it was obvious she was trying to let them in gently. After Defense Against the Dark Arts, they all had Transfiguration. Harry was glad to be finally back in lessons, after having nothing to do but think for weeks, now he had something occupy himself. He thought the sixth and seventh years would be different, but sitting there in Transfiguration, it felt like every other year he had spent at that school. However, he could see why Annabelle was giving them a couple of revision lessons to start with, he could tell by the rest of the lessons he had that day, that work was going to be a lot harder at N.E.W.T level. Probably why they had free periods to do their homework in. After lunch they had Transfiguration again. After that, Hermione went off to Arithmacy and Ron, Claire and Harry went to Charms. It wasn't long before Harry's first day back at school, and after everything that had happened, it seemed like things were finally returning to normal. That evening, Harry, Ron, Claire and Hermione were sitting in the common room, talking. Hermione was already doing her Arithmacy homework.
'We're expected to at least have started it by tomorrow's lesson,' she told them. 'Honestly, I can see why they say it's a step up from O.W.L standard. It does seem like we're going to be having to work a lot harder.'
'I thought Defense Against the Dark Arts was good though,' Ron said. 'Didn't have to start anything new and no homework! It's how every lesson on the first day of term should be!' Claire smiled. 'Annabelle does believe that if we have to work too hard then our brains won't take anything in. And she is a good teacher, wait until we get around to learning new stuff.'
'It's good for you, isn't it, that you have someone here you know. Apart from Snape, that is,' Harry said to Claire.
'Yeah, it is,' she smiled. 'But it's also good that I've already made friends. Speaking of Uncle Severus, I might go and see if I can find him, as I haven't really spoken to him today. See if he's not too disappointed that I'm not in Slytherin.'
'I can take you down to the Dungeons, where his office is, if you like,' Hermione suggested.
'Thanks Hermione,' Claire smiled, and the two girls left the common room together. 'Shall we make a start on our Transfiguration homework?' Ron suggested to Harry. 'Seeing as it has to be done in two days time.'
'Good idea,' Harry agreed, and pulled out their things. Later on, Ron gave up and said he was going to bed, but Harry decided to stay up and wait for Claire and Hermione to come back from visiting her Uncle. He didn't have to wait too long, a short while later, they returned.
'Where's Ron?' Hermione asked.
'Oh, he's gone to bed,' Harry said.
'Well I think I might do the same,' Hermione yawned. 'I'll see you guys in the morning. Unless you're coming to bed now Claire?'
'No, I think I might stay down here for a while longer,' Claire said. So Hermione went up to her dormitory, and Claire sat down beside Harry.
'So how was Snape?' he asked.
'He said he was "pleased" that I got into Gryffindor. Didn't really seem it though. He seemed much more pleased that I'm doing Potions. Says he can't wait for our first lesson,' Claire told Harry. 'It's funny though, I know my Uncle Severus, and I'm sure he had something on his mind.'
'Maybe it has something to do with all the stuff that's going on at the moment with Vol- I mean you-know-who.' He knew most people didn't like to hear Voldemort's name.
'Maybe,' Claire shrugged. 'Listen Harry, can I tell you something?'
'Sure,' Harry said.
'You can't tell anyone though, okay?' Harry nodded.
'Good. Well, the Sorting Hat nearly put me in Slytherin.'
Harry felt a little shocked. He had been worried that Claire would end up friends with Draco, but on the other hand he hadn't though she was that type of person, and he hadn't expected it to happen so soon.
'.why I've a good mind to go over there and get her back. Why I bet he forced her.'
'Don't Ron,' Hermione said. 'If she wants to come back, she'll come back.' They sat in silence for a while, Ron angrily picking sweets out of a box of Bertie Botts Every Flavor Beans. He evidently picked out a horrible one, because he spat it out and angrily threw the box on the floor. The jellybeans spilled everywhere, and Harry watched one roll up and down the floor with the movement of the train. It was strange, it had been the four of them for a week, and now there was only three again. Suddenly, the carriage door opened, and in walked Claire.
'Hi guys,' she smiled.
'Claire!' Harry said happily.
'You're back!' Ron said, matching Harry's tone. 'Of coarse I knew you'd come back, I was just saying, there's no way she'll stay with a rat like Malfoy.' Claire grinned. 'Well I just wanted to see what he had to say for himself,' she said, sitting down. 'And I must say, he wasn't terribly nice about you three.'
'Why, what happened?' Ron asked.
'Well he took me into his carriage. There was a few other people in there, Crabbe and Goyle, I think and some girl called Pansy.anyway he was saying he didn't know why I'd lowered myself you hanging around with you guys when I was obviously a far superior witch. He said I deserved better friends than a poor-as-dirt Weasley, a mudblood and Dumbledore's pet Potter.'
'Why that little.' Ron said angrily, turning red.
'I said that you all seemed like perfectly nice people to me,' Claire continued, 'and Draco said "well see if you still think that after a week of school." I was like "I'll do that then." Then he started going on about what a great teacher my uncle is. Well I didn't need to be hearing all that, I know my Uncle Severus far better than he ever will. So I told him it had been nice talking to him but I needed to use the bathroom and I'd see him at school. And I left.'
'Wow,' Ron said.
'He really doesn't like you guys though,' Claire said. 'I can't believe he called you a mudblood Hermione, that's so derogatory.'
'I know,' Hermione sighed. 'He's called me that before. I just have to learn to ignore it.'
'Why do you all hate each other so much?' Claire asked.
'Well me and Hermione are 'less superior wizards' because Hermione's parents are muggles, and my dad works with muggles. And he hates Harry because he hangs around with us, because he defeated you-know-who all those times and it's thanks to Harry that Malyfoy's dad is currently in Azkaban. Oh, and Harry's a better Seeker than Draco,' Ron told her.
'You know, I can see why you guys hate him so much,' Claire said sympathetically. 'He was really nice to me though.'
'Yeah, he would be, wouldn't he?' Ron muttered. It was starting to get later in the day, and they knew they would soon be there. It wasn't long before the train was pulling up in Hogsmead station. Everybody piled off the train.
'Firs' years this way!' they heard a loud, booming voice. It was Hagrid.
'Hagrid!' Harry exclaimed. The extremely tall man made his way through the crowd to them.
'Hello Harry, Ron, Hermione.' He looked down at Claire. 'And who might this be?'
'I'm Claire,' she smiled.
'Nice to meet you Claire. I'm Hagrid, I teach Care of Magical Creatures. An' I'm a bit of a friend of these three. So how did you all do in your O.W.L's?' They all told him their results.
'Oh my, well done! O' course, I never took any O.W.L's, but I'm sure I wouldn'ta got results that good! Well done all of you!'
'Thanks,' Hermione said.
'Well, I gotta go take the firs' years over to the school, so I'll se you three.well it's four now, ain't it? Well I'll see you later!' And with that he lumbered off.
'Well that's Hagrid,' Harry said to Claire.
'He seems nice,' she said.
'Yeah, he is,' Harry agreed. They went over to the carriages, which would take them to the school. Every year before the last, Harry believed that these carriages moved by themselves. However, the previous year after witnessing Cedric Diggory's Death he had seen that the carriages were actually drawn by winged horses which could only be seen if you've witnessed death.
'What are they?' Claire asked, pointing at them. Harry, Ron and Hermione all looked at Claire.
'You can see them?' Hermione asked.
'Why, can't you?' Claire frowned. Hermione shook her head. 'No.'
'How come?' Claire asked, confused.
'Only people who have witnessed death can see them,' Hermione explained to her.
'Oh,' Claire said with surprise. 'Oh right.' She did not elaborate on why she was able to see them, and the others chose not to ask her about it. They all climbed into a carriage, and a moment later, Neville Longbottom came up to it.
'Is it alright if I sit in here with you guys?' he asked.
'Sure Neville,' Hermione consented. Neville climbed into the carriage.
'Neville, this is Claire,' Hermione introduced them. 'Claire, Neville.'
'Hello, Claire,' Neville smiled.
'Hi,' Claire smiled back. Neville looked at Harry. 'Hi Harry,' he said. He and Harry had experienced a lot together the previous year.
'Hi Neville,' Harry said, smiling weakly.
'How are you?' Neville asked. How am I? Harry thought. Well I've never felt more alone now I've lost the closest thing I had to family. I've got a constant feeling resembling terrible hunger pains, except it's in my heart. And to top it all off, I think I'm falling for Snape's niece, of all people! But instead, he chose to say,
'I'm fine.' If Harry had lost his parents and now Sirius, at least they weren't still alive but in the Psychiatric ward of St. Mungos, and unable to recognize Harry when he visited. The carriages started up, and they were soon nearing Hogwarts. When the carriages drew to a halt, they all climbed out, and Claire looked up at the school.
'Wow,' she gasped. 'This is amazing!' Ron started pointing out different locations to her. 'There's Hagrid's hut, and over there behind it is the Forbidden Forest. Oh, and you see that big tree just on the edge of the forest? That's the Whomping Willow.' Claire looked around in fascination. 'The Forbidden Forest? Why is it forbidden? And why is it called the Whomping Willow?'
'It's forbidden because loads of scary creatures live in there,' Ron said, making a face.
'And it's called the Whomping Willow because it beats you up if you get too close,' Harry added with a grin. Claire looked at it uneasily, as if it was about to come over to her and start hitting her. All the students made their way through the Entrance Hall into the Great Hall. It really did look magnificent. The now dark ceiling, which was enchanted to look like the sky outside, was dotted with bright, shining stars, and the moon was full. There were candles floating everywhere and chandeliers hanging from apparently nowhere. The ghosts were floating around and greeting people in a friendly manner. Most of the teachers were sitting at the teachers table at the top of the room, but when Snape saw Claire come in, he swept over to her.
'Professor McGonagall says you're to be sorted after the first years, so you're to go and stand with them,' he told her. Claire nodded and smiled, but Harry could tell she was nervous. At least when the first years were sorted they were all together; she would be the only sixth year there.
'Good luck,' Snape said, before going back to the teacher's table.
'Er.where are the first years?' Claire asked, looking around. The Gryffindor, Slytherin, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw tables where filled with students, but none of them where new.
'Oh, Hagrid'll be bringing them in a minute,' Harry told her. 'We'll wait with you if you like.' Claire smiled him them thankfully. It wasn't long before Hagrid walked in with Professor McGonagall beside him, holding a three-legged stool with a large, rather tatty hat on it, followed by a group of rather frightened looking first years. A hush fell over the Hall.
'You three can go and sit down now,' Claire whispered to them, and, taking a deep breath, tagged along after the line of first years who followed Hagrid and McGonagall to the top of the Hall. Harry, Ron and Hermione quickly sat down among their fellow Gryffindors at their table. McGonagall put down the stool with the Sorting Hat on it, and it began to sing:
'Every time a new student
Comes to our school
Here at Hogwarts
We have a rule
They must be put
In one of the houses four
Whether old or young
Rich or poor
I'm the Sorting Hat
That's where I come in
I put you into a house
Not because of kin
I do not place you
With your brother
Nor with your sister
Or any reason other
Than what I see
Inside your head
So this is a process
You mustn't dread
One of these houses
I will place you in
Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw,
Gryffindor or Slytherin
I will do this by
Looking into your mind
The house you should
Be in I will find
If you're kind and friendly
Loyal and true
Then Hufflepuff is
The house for you
If you're brave of heart
Courageous and strong
Then Gryffindor
Is where you belong
Or maybe you should be
In Ravenclaw
These clever people
Know much more
If you're cunning and sly
You're for Slytherin
This is the last house
You could be in
So now take haste
Please don't be shy
Put me on
And I will try
To find the house
Where you'll best fit
And at that table
You shall sit
With these people
You'll soon see
Your house is like
Your family.'
As the Hall applauded, Harry looked over at Snape, who had a pleased look on his face. He obvious thought 'your house is like your family' meant Claire was bound to be in Slytherin. Harry sighed.
'When I call your name,' McGonagall addressed the first years, 'please sit down and put on the sorting hat. It will say a house, and you are to go and sit at that table.'
She unraveled a long parchment with a list of names on it.
'James Ashby,' she said loudly. A small dark haired boy stepped forward, took the sorting hat off the stool and sat down on it. A placed the sorting hat on his head, and sat stiff as a board, as the sorting hat tried to place him in a house. Harry couldn't believe that when he had placed that hat on his head, he had been that small. Things had been so different then; Harry still had so much to come. After a moment, the hat shouted,
'Ravenclaw!' and the Ravenclaw table burst into cheers. The boy eagerly took the hat off his head, put it back on the stool, and went over to the Ravenclaw table. Harry looked over at Claire as McGonagall read out the next name. She stood at the back of the group of first years, looking slightly unsure of herself as the amount of first years she stood behind decreased. Finally the last name was called out,
'Jessica Vaughan!' and Claire was left standing alone. As Jessica Vaughan went over to the Gryffindor table, all eyes went onto Claire. McGonagall cleared her throat. 'Finally we have one more student who is a little older this year. We rarely get new students come to our school for the sixth and seventh years but this year we have special circumstances. So we will be welcoming Claire Snape to our school. She too will need to be put into a house, so Claire, if you'd like to put on the Sorting Hat.' There had been a break out of whispering as McGonagall said Claire's name; was she related to Snape? But silence ensued as Claire did what all the others had done and sat down on the stood and put the hat on her head. The wait was agonizing for Harry. Claire listened carefully as the Sorting Hat spoke it's opinion into her ear, but Harry and the rest of the Hall would only hear the Hat's final opinion.
Slytherin, Slytherin, Slytherin, Harry thought over and over in his head. Which is why it was such a surprise when the Hat gave a different verdict.
'Gryffindor!' the hat announced. Harry, Ron and Hermione looked at each other in surprise and happy disbelief. Claire had about the same look on her face, and went over to the Gryffindor table, and sat down with Harry, Ron and Hermione. Harry looked over at Snape. He looked like someone had just slapped him in the face. Looking over at the Slytherin, Harry saw that Malfoy was wearing a very similar expression. In fact, most of the Slytherin's looked put out, as they were all probably expecting to her to be in their house, with that surname.
'This is amazing!' Claire said happily. 'I mean, I really thought I was going to be in Slytherin.'
'So did we,' Ron agreed.
'Well I guess I wouldn't have minded being in Slytherin because of Uncle Severus but I'm glad I'm in Gryffindor so I can be with you guys,' Claire said happily.
'So you are related to Professor Snape then,' Seamus said, popping his head forward.
'Yes I am,' Claire confirmed. They all stopped talking when Dumbledore got to his feet. There was a brief moment's silence.
'As Professor McGonagall told us, we have a new student to our sixth year, Claire Snape, so I would like to welcome her to our school as well as all our new first years,' Dumbledore announced. There was a brief applause and Claire grinned. 'But as well as greeting new students,' Dumbledore continued, 'we also have to welcome a new Professor, Professor Weasley. She is to be our new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, and I think we all think she is very brave for taking the job.' There was more applause, and Harry, Ron, Hermione and Claire all looked over at Annabelle, who was smiling happily. She received very warm applause as the last Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher had been so bad, and everyone was pleased to see her replaced.
'Finally, a few notices,' Dumbledore went on. 'I would like to inform the new students, and remind the old ones, that the Forbidden Forest is out of bounds to all students. Mr. Filch would like me to tell you that if any of you need to review the school rules, particularly those involving using magic in the corridors, he has a full list. And finally, I would like you all to enjoy the feast!' He clapped his hands, and suddenly, all the empty gold plates that filled the tables were covered with food. Harry heard Claire give a little gasp beside him. He looked at her and they smiled at one another.
'Claire,' Harry said. 'I'm very glad you're in Gryffindor, you know.'
'Me too,' Claire smiled. 'Although I'm not so sure Uncle Severus will be.' They both looked up at the teacher's table, where Snape was looking rather put out. 'I do feel a bit sorry for him,' Claire sighed. 'I bet he was really hoping I'd be in Slytherin. But hey, I am what I am, right?'
'It looks like he's looking at Annabelle,' Harry said, looking over at the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, who was talking animatedly to Hagrid. Claire shrugged. 'We're going to have to start calling her Professor Weasley now.'
'I take it she's a relation of yours,' Dean said to Ron.
'Yes. Although I've never really met her, she's been living in America,' Ron said coolly. Dean noticed Ron's rather icy tone. 'Hey Ron, you are okay with me and Ginny, aren't you? I really like her, I'm not going to do anything to upset her.'
'Just as long as you don't,' Ron said, shoveling more potatoes onto his plate. They all ate well, and Claire got to know some of the other Gryffindors. Just before they were all about ready to go to bed, Professor McGonagall got to her feet.
'I would like to see all sixth years in the library first thing tomorrow morning please.'
'It's probably but what subjects we're doing this year,' Hermione said. 'I hope I get to do all the subjects I wanted.'
'Oh well, we can worry about it tomorrow,' Claire said wisely. 'Right now, I fancy getting some sleep.'
Harry slept better than he had in a long time. He had far from forgotten Sirius but now at least he felt he was closer to a place he could call home than anywhere else. And Claire being put into Gryffindor was one of the best things that could have happened. It was strange that they got on so well considering who her Uncle was. But Harry knew it would probably cause problems to their friendship. Harry knew very well that Snape hated him and he would probably be very against his niece being friends with Harry. But how far would he go to stop them from being friends? And how easily would Claire comply with Snape's wishes? Harry guessed he would just have to wait and see.
The next morning was Claire's first breakfast at Hogwarts.
'The food is so good here,' she was saying. 'It's so filling, it tastes so.real. The food in America was very synthetic and there was a lot of junk food.'
'I guess.' Ron said, looking at the food that he had always taken for granted.
'What did you sleep on then?' Harry asked Claire.
'The house elves were as efficient as ever and as soon as the Sorting Hat said she was in Gryffindor, they set her up a bed in the dormitories,' Hermione explained. 'It's a bit more squashed in there, but we'll manage.' As the bell went, they all looked at one another. 'We have to go up to the library now, right?' Seamus asked Hermione. She nodded. All the Gryffindor sixth years got up and went up to the library together. The Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw sixth years were already there, and just as the Gryffindors had sat down, the Slytherin's came in.
'Bad luck Claire,' Draco said, going over to her. 'I was hoping you'd be in Slytherin.'
'Well if I'm a Gryffindor then I'm a Gryffindor. The Sorting Hat knew what it was doing,' Claire said, in a friendly tone.
'Apparently,' Draco said dryly. 'Well, I hope you get the subjects you want to do. Are you doing Potions?'
'Yes, hopefully,' she said. 'Harry and Hermione are too.' Draco gave a look of disgust. 'Well we'll see what Professor Snape has to say about that.'
'Uncle Severus is a fair man, and if Harry had good enough grades to get into Potions, then he'll have no reason not to let them,' Claire said, a little sharply.
'I'm sure he will,' Draco sneered. Just then, Professor McGonagall came in, and Draco sat down with his fellow Slytherin's.
'You have all chosen subjects to study during your sixth and seventh years here at Hogwarts, and eventually take N.E.W.T's in' she said, looking around at them. 'Most of you will be able to do these subjects. However, if one of your choices clashes with another, or you haven't mat the grade requirements for the subject, you will have to study your second choice. I have made you all timetables and I have tried my hardest to enable you all to be able to do all the subjects you wish. However, you cannot be in two places at once I am afraid.' She gave Hermione a little smile when she said this. In the third year Hermione had used a time-turner so that she could be in two places at once, allowing her to attend extra classes. After this little talk, Professor McGonagall handed every student a personalized timetable. The first thing Harry noticed was that he had several free periods. The second thing that he noticed was that he'd gotten into every subject he had applied for. As soon as Professor McGonagall had finished giving out the timetables, Hermione raised her hand.
'Professor, what is General Studies?' she asked.
'General Studies is just basic training in all the subjects you don't study. For example, if you don't do Transfiguration, you will still learn some basic Transfiguration skills. And when you have a General Studies lesson in a subject you do take, then it's just a revision lesson,' Professor McGonagall explained. Draco then raised his hand. 'Do we take a N.E.W.T in it?' he asked.
'No Mr. Malfoy. You can opt out of doing General Studies and have that time as a free period instead, but we strongly recommend against that. It's very useful to have a basic knowledge of all magical skills. The location and subject of every General Studies lesson will be on the sixth year notice board. Are there any other questions?' There were none. 'Very well. You can have five minutes to discuss your timetables, and then you can go to your first classes.' Everyone began to talk.
'Did you get into all your classes?' Harry asked his friends. They all affirmed.
'Can I see your timetable Harry?' Ron asked him. 'I want to see if we've got the subjects we've both chosen at the same time.' Harry handed it to him, and he quickly looked over the parchment. He smiled. 'Great! Mine's exactly the same as yours except I have Care of Magical Creatures when you have Potions.' A dreamy look spread across Ron's face. 'I can't believe I never have to do Potions again.'
'I expect you and I have exactly the same timetable,' Claire said to Harry. She looked at his. 'Yeah, we do,' she smiled. 'Looks like we'll be spending a lot of time together, eh?' She suddenly looked a little worried. 'That is, if you want to, of course.'
'Of course I do,' Harry said warmly. 'You're one of the gang now, right?' he looked to Ron and Hermione.
'Yeah!' Ron said heartily.
'Of course she is,' Hermione agreed. 'As long as you don't go off with Draco Malfoy.' Claire grinned. 'I don't think there's much danger of that.' They soon had to go off to their first lesson. For Harry, Ron, Hermione and Claire it was Defense Against the Dark Arts.
'A teacher I know for my very first lesson,' Claire said happily. They all went into the classroom. Already in there was Dean, Seamus, Neville, Lavender, Pavarti, Hannah Abbot and Justin Finch-Fletchly. Harry and the others sat down near the front. A moment later, in walked Annabelle.
'Good morning,' she greeted them all. 'I'm Professor Weasley and you are my very first class here at Hogwarts! Now over the last few years you've had a great deal of Defense Against the Dark Arts teachers, am I right? Some of them very good teachers and some of them not so good, I'm sure. Now I'm not trying to be a better teacher than those who have not been so good. Nor am I trying to live up to the teachers who you have learnt the most from. I've been told that you've already been shown the Unforgivable Curses. I am here to equip you to fight the Dark Arts in the best way I can. And now more than ever, this will be crucial. So for the first couple of lessons we'll be going over some basic skills, and then we'll be moving on to learning some new things. For homework I'd like just one of you to write down the things that you've learnt so far. Not in great detail, I just want to know what you've learnt so far, as I'm a little unclear on that. Do I have any volunteers?' Hermione, of course, raised her hand straight away.
'Thank you,' Annabelle smiled. 'Hermione isn't it?'
'Yes,' Hermione smiled.
'Well you can have 10 house points for doing that for me,' she smiled. For the rest of the lesson Annabelle went over some spells with them, most of which Harry had done in the DA last year. It was a good first lesson because it wasn't too taxing and it was obvious she was trying to let them in gently. After Defense Against the Dark Arts, they all had Transfiguration. Harry was glad to be finally back in lessons, after having nothing to do but think for weeks, now he had something occupy himself. He thought the sixth and seventh years would be different, but sitting there in Transfiguration, it felt like every other year he had spent at that school. However, he could see why Annabelle was giving them a couple of revision lessons to start with, he could tell by the rest of the lessons he had that day, that work was going to be a lot harder at N.E.W.T level. Probably why they had free periods to do their homework in. After lunch they had Transfiguration again. After that, Hermione went off to Arithmacy and Ron, Claire and Harry went to Charms. It wasn't long before Harry's first day back at school, and after everything that had happened, it seemed like things were finally returning to normal. That evening, Harry, Ron, Claire and Hermione were sitting in the common room, talking. Hermione was already doing her Arithmacy homework.
'We're expected to at least have started it by tomorrow's lesson,' she told them. 'Honestly, I can see why they say it's a step up from O.W.L standard. It does seem like we're going to be having to work a lot harder.'
'I thought Defense Against the Dark Arts was good though,' Ron said. 'Didn't have to start anything new and no homework! It's how every lesson on the first day of term should be!' Claire smiled. 'Annabelle does believe that if we have to work too hard then our brains won't take anything in. And she is a good teacher, wait until we get around to learning new stuff.'
'It's good for you, isn't it, that you have someone here you know. Apart from Snape, that is,' Harry said to Claire.
'Yeah, it is,' she smiled. 'But it's also good that I've already made friends. Speaking of Uncle Severus, I might go and see if I can find him, as I haven't really spoken to him today. See if he's not too disappointed that I'm not in Slytherin.'
'I can take you down to the Dungeons, where his office is, if you like,' Hermione suggested.
'Thanks Hermione,' Claire smiled, and the two girls left the common room together. 'Shall we make a start on our Transfiguration homework?' Ron suggested to Harry. 'Seeing as it has to be done in two days time.'
'Good idea,' Harry agreed, and pulled out their things. Later on, Ron gave up and said he was going to bed, but Harry decided to stay up and wait for Claire and Hermione to come back from visiting her Uncle. He didn't have to wait too long, a short while later, they returned.
'Where's Ron?' Hermione asked.
'Oh, he's gone to bed,' Harry said.
'Well I think I might do the same,' Hermione yawned. 'I'll see you guys in the morning. Unless you're coming to bed now Claire?'
'No, I think I might stay down here for a while longer,' Claire said. So Hermione went up to her dormitory, and Claire sat down beside Harry.
'So how was Snape?' he asked.
'He said he was "pleased" that I got into Gryffindor. Didn't really seem it though. He seemed much more pleased that I'm doing Potions. Says he can't wait for our first lesson,' Claire told Harry. 'It's funny though, I know my Uncle Severus, and I'm sure he had something on his mind.'
'Maybe it has something to do with all the stuff that's going on at the moment with Vol- I mean you-know-who.' He knew most people didn't like to hear Voldemort's name.
'Maybe,' Claire shrugged. 'Listen Harry, can I tell you something?'
'Sure,' Harry said.
'You can't tell anyone though, okay?' Harry nodded.
'Good. Well, the Sorting Hat nearly put me in Slytherin.'