Raven smiled as she stepped out of the bathtub later that night. Fortunately, a house-elf had cleaned up when they were gone: there wasn't a trace of dust anywhere, much to her mothers satisfaction. She got a towel and dried herself off, then out on her bathrobe. She wrapped a smaller towel around her wet hair and walked out to the main room of the suite. Her parents were sitting at a small table, each drinking a cup of black tea.

"Did you get your books?" Raven's father asked her as she sat down and got her ebony out of her robe pocket.

"Mmmhmm." she mumbled, using her wand to pour herself a cup of the tea. "And... I met a hot guy." she thought. Raven wasn't usually the type of girl to get all mushy over a guy, but she has to admit, she was a sucker for British accents. That was one perk that she had forgotten about her trip. Raven's mother looked over at her and smiled. Raven returned it and drank her tea quickly. She swished the drags around and read the leaves. Her grandmother was a very talented seer, and Raven had been reading lea leaves as soon as she started drinking in. The leaves clearly made the shape of cherries. "romance.", Raven thought, smiling. She looked down at the cup again and saw another shape. Usually, two shapes didn't appear in the cup, but when they did, they had something to do with the other. It looked like an ancient weapon, a club to be exact. "conflict", she thought, remembering her grandmother's teachings. No, love and conflict just didn't go together. She waved her wand and cleared up the cup and headed to bed, anticipating seeing Draco on the train in the morning.

Raven was in a candle-lit lavish room in what looked to be a dungeon. It was a bit dreary, but nice none the less. The room had a large banner with a moving snake on it. There was a dark plush couch on one side of the room, under a painting of a moonlit sky. A black cauldron was hanging over a fire, but it seemed to be empty. She noted a large four poster bed on the other side of the room, near a dark dresser. There was a wizard dressed in black robes snatching clothes out of the dresser and shoving them into a large trunk. He had black hair, and seemed older than her. "Raven, my dear, I hope you realize what your doing." he said with his back still turned. "I do, I swear. It's the only way." she replied, sitting on the couch. The wizard sighed and put some potions into the trunk. "Once we leave, we can never go back. You're risking it all..." "No! I'm gaining it all! I don't want to come back if I can't have you!" Raven said, getting up and walking towards the wizard. She wrapped her arms around his waste, holding him from behind. "They don't get it. No one does." she said with a sadness in her voice. "Raven..." he said, starting to turn around...

"Raven! Wake up!" Raven's eyes flew open, and she saw her mother standing above her bed. "Get dressed! You've overslept!" her mother tossed some clothes on a chair and left the room. She sat on the edge of the bed and rubbed her eyes. She got up and put on a black pleated skirt her mother had tossed at her, then put on a red button-up shirt. Raven pulled on a pair of black ankle boots and zipped the sides up, then brushed her hair carefully, After all, she was going to see Draco, so she wanted to look nice. She smiled as she added a bit of witch makeup. It was just like the stuff muggles used, except it didn't come off until you used a spell.

"Rave, it's time to go." Raven turned around and saw her father standing at the door. He was wearing a black robe and his short black hair was spiked neatly, making him look younger than he really was. Both of her parents seemed to have a gift of youth. Raven grabbed the handle of her trunk and pulled it behind her as she headed into the main room. She saw Dumbledore chatting with her mother.

"Ahh, there you are. Ok, we'll have to apperate to Hogsmeade, then take a carriage to the school. We'll figure out where you'll be staying, then I imagine the students will have arrived by then..."

"I thought I was taking the train?" Raven interrupted. She had been set on sitting with Draco.

"My dear, don't be silly! We have to make some last minute arrangements before the other students get there. We haven't even figured out what house you'll be staying in." Dumbledore said, smiling at her. "Now, You know how to do it..." he said, looking around. They linked arms and in an instant they were in the middle of a bustling village. Raven took her trunk in her hand and broke away from the group in curiosity. She saw many shops, all of which looked interesting.

"Raven, there will be plenty of time to wander the village. We need to get you to the castle." her father said, as a large carriage pulled up.

Severus Snape pulled on a black robe and ran a brush through his black hair. "Another fucking school year." he thought. Now that Voldormort was on the rise again, Dumbledore thought it best that they ignore the usual class arrangements for the older students and go back to the way they had classes in their first years in the school. "And that means I'll have to put up with that damn Potter and his lot." he sneered, as he sat on a large dark couch and put on a pair of black shoes. He admired the large Slytherin banner in the wall. At least Malfoy would be in the class to help him torture the Gryffindors. He smiled at this and got up to leave when he heard the fire crack rather loudly. He turned and saw. Lucious Malfoy step into his private quarters from the fire.

"Severus, I have to arrange something with you." he said with a devious look in his icy eyes.

"Can it wait? Dumbledore wants the staff in the Hall to greet the American Minister's daughter..."

"It won't take long. Besides, it's her I want to talk about." Severus looked at Lucious, intrigued.

"Please, sit down" he said, motioning towards the couch. "Would you like something to drink?"

"No, it won't take that long." The two men sat on opposite sides of the couch, facing each other. "Like I said, this has to do with Dameon's daughter."

"You have my attention. Go on."

"I want you to make sure she's put in Slytherin." Lucious said.

"Any reasons why? Though I have been thinking of making the arrangements. I hear for a 17 year old she had a very mature body." Severus said, smiling a bit.

"Trust me, she does. She must get it from her mother. If Arcavia wasn't married to the American Minister, I'd be all over her... Well, we're not here to talk about that. It seems Draco has taken note of Miss. Stardust, and I just thought it would be easier..."

"For him to have his way with her if she was in his own house?" Snape interrupted, raising an eyebrow.

"Call it that if you must, but Slytherin would be in the girls best interest anyway. After all, you don't want her mixing with the filth that lingers in the other houses... Gryffindor especially." That was all Lucious had to say. Severus scowled at the mention of the rival house.

"Done. Lucious, I will do everything in my power to see to it that the girl is put in Slytherin." he said in a very determined tone.