Author's Note: Sorry this one took so long. Been kind of busy/preoccupied with family crap, school crap, crap crap. The works.
----------
To Reviewers:
sew2100-- I'm glad you liked the chapter and I'm sorry it took so long to get the next one up. Hope you like this one too.
Lucifer's Garden-- You know I still love you, Katie. :D
-----------
Chapter Four
When Dominick arrived at Hogwarts, he concluded that it was definitely not what he would have expected in his wildest dreams. The anti-social teen was skeptical about the school's grandness, assuming that it was exaggerated and overrated like so many other things in this world. However, regardless of his prior expectations, the only emotion he could muster was pure awe.
The young man wondered if there was a change that perhaps he would make a friend at this new school; someone who would accept him as he was, rather than hate him for things they did not know anything about. The problem was that no one wanted to get to know him well enough for him to open up to them, and he refused to spill his entire existence to someone who didn't really care. It was like being stuck between a rock and a hard place with no way out. But coming here... could it offer an escape?
Dominick had no choice than to blame his parents for the way he turned out, dropping him off at the door of a muggle orphanage in the middle of a cold and snowy night. From his understanding of what the headmaster of the orphanage told him, his mother was a prostitute and his father was a gangly, pale, scarred man saying it was not safe for him to keep the baby Dom, but his mother did not want him. Based on his knowledge now, he assumed his father was an outcast wizard and werewolf, though he could not be sure. From his description and reasoning for resorting to a muggle whore, there was no other decent explanation. However, if he was a werewolf, why had the werewolf gene not been passed on to Dom?
Either way, he knew that the first step to a social life was speaking up. "Professor Dumbledore, is someone going to show me around the school? I think I'm going to get entirely lost if not."
"In due time, Dominick, in due time," the Headmaster smiled kindly at him.
The two walked across the grass of the courtyard and Dom glanced around the school. Large stone towers rose in the distance, five in all. The evening sun was lowering itself toward the crest of the earth to the west, behind the tallest of the towers.
"First," The Headmaster began," we eat." Dominick followed the tall, thin wizard into a breezeway that surrounded the courtyard, then though a side door beside two great double doors. The twin doors rose to the ceiling, perhaps forty feet up and were carved with an intricate design. The side door opened to a thin corridor, several door lining the left side. Finally, the hallway turned to the right and the pair passed that threshold.
The door emptied to a large platform where all of the teachers sat at a long table. Below the small raise of the platform was a great dining hall, stretching to the other side of the great carved doors he'd seen. Four long tables were evenly spaced through the hall, running long ways so that each had an end near the staff table.
"The students will join us shortly," Dumbledore said.
"Welcome to Hogwarts," A stone-faced witch with black hair tied into a bun greeted Dom.
The shy but sure young man greeted and shook hands with every teacher and faculty member. The entire lot seemed nice in such a way that made him feel even more comfortable and confident in speaking to his classmates when they arrived.
"Take a sear here for the time being, lad," The teacher he met as Professor McGonagall commanded kindly to him. Dominick sat there and waited a few minutes longer. Finally, the door creaked open and students began entering the hall in small groups that filed about to sit at different tables.
Minutes passed and finally all of the tabled filled up. The students chatted noisily, waiting for their dinner to be served. Oh no. They're going to get pissed at me because I made them wait longer to have dinner. I can see them at that one table, glaring. Damnit, I haven't even gotten to speak to anyone and I'm already hated, Dom bashing himself mentally. Finally, Dumbledore spoke up, breaking the new student's negative thoughts.
"As all of you know, our exchange student program has begun. This morning, young Mister Harry Potter departed for the Salem Institute, and this evening, young Mister Dominick Chase arrived," The old man gestured to Dominick before continuing.
"As all of us know but young Dom may not, Hogwarts divides its students into houses based on their strengths, weaknesses, and talents. The four are Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. Now, we will place the sorting hat on your head and see to which house you belong.
The tall, bearded wizard set the sorting hat atop Dom's head, which muttered to himself for a moment before saying, "Gryffindor it is!" The middle-right table stood and applauded him, and Dumbledore motioned for him to join his house-mates. Wow, its almost like they... want me here... As he stepped off the platform, a boy his age with bright red hair scooted down on the wooden bench and motioned for Dom to sit next to him.
Dom sat and Dumbledore waved his hand. Plates of food appeared all down the table and the chatter of students and silverware began a drone echoing off the walls.
"So how're you--Dom, is it?" The redheaded boy asked, a roll in one hand.
"A little rushed, but that was expected," the American boy chuckled half-heartedly.
"I bet. I'm Ron. That there's Hermione and next to her, my sister Ginny," Ron motioned across the table at the two girls. It was definitely all too easy to figure out which was Ginny, since her hair color matched her brother's.
"Nice to meet you both," The black-haired teen nodded and the two females replied as politely.
"I'm a school prefect," Hermione said. "Dumbledore asked me to show you around the school. Since you got into Gryffindor, you'll take Harry's bed in the boys' dorm."
"When will you be able to show me?" Dominick questioned her.
"We could take him right after dinner," Ron suggested to Hermione who nodded in agreement.
After dinner, Hermione, Ron, and Ginny showed Dominick around the castle. The dungeon, library, towers, courtyard, Hagrid's hut, all of the classrooms, everything. The final stop, however, was Gryffindor tower. With wands aglow, they spent through the hole hit by the portrait of the Fat Lady who grunted in disgust that they were so late.
As late as it was, the Gryffindor common room was crowded with students doing their homework and talking to other students. Ron showed Dominick the dorm room and sat up there talking to him while he unpacked. Soon, the other Gryffindor boys headed to bed and greeted Dom along the way. The first night, Dom thought, held improvement from his former social status. It was then, falling asleep in the large, four-poster bed, that he realized something: He'd never had a girlfriend, and it was an empty part of his life.
The next morning at breakfast, Professor McGonagall stopped at the table to give Dominick his class schedule, saying that he would take Harry's place in all classes. This meant that he, Ron, and Hermione had Triple Potions first thing. His two new friends were sure to tell him the type of attitude that Snape had, but Snape was rather nice Dom, saying he preferred him over the fame-seeking Harry, but would like him better were he in Slytherin. Dom decided it best just not to pay this one any mind, since this one looked to be lacking one.
The day went by rather quickly to Dominick's surprise. He enjoyed spending all of his classes with Ron and Hermione, and was even more pleased to find that he got to group with Hermione on a class project--pairs doing reports for animagi for Transfiguration.
That evening after class was over and before dinner, Dom and Hermione went to the library to get some deep information on rarely known properties of animagi. In the middle of their research, however, they got sidetracked and ended up talking about their families; or in Dom's case, lack thereof.
Dominick never thought that he could tell anyone about his past, much less someone he'd know for 24 hours. But he found it incredibly easy to talk to Hermione, not to mention the fact that it all happened so fast, she already knew his entire life before he could shut his mouth. But Hermione didn't laugh at him. She didn't get up and leave, not wanting to associate with a parentless freak. She was... supportive. Something no one had ever been to the young man.
"I know its not easy," Hermione said. "Harry grew up without his parents also, though, no matter how questionable their intentions, he did have his aunt and uncle. You had... no one."
Dom only nodded.
"I can only imagine how terrible that must've been for you," She said, leaning over in the chair to give him a comforting hug. He hugged her back and caught the smell of her hair, catching his breath as he held it in.
That night, Dominick went to bed in the giant four-poster thinking about something new: He had a crush on Hermione.