Disclaimer – JKR owns the world and all the characters from the books. I'm just building a few castles in her sandbox.

Chapter 9

The light from the window paled and diminished as the clouds above grew darker. Malcolm squinted at his cards until the lamps in their compartment ignited, casting a warm glow. He glanced out at the rain sheeting across the window and shivered. He was glad to be inside the warm compartment, and not out in that mess.

They played a couple of hands before he felt the train start to slow down. "Are we there yet?" he asked in a mocking sing-song, but no one got the joke.

Perren pushed up the sleeve of his robe and consulted an elaborate watch. "Seems a bit early to me," he said with a frown.

Annalise had her nose to the window, peering out through the heavy rain. "I don't see the train station," she said quietly. "Something is out there though," she whispered as her voice trailed off. Malcolm's eyes widened as he saw ice start to form on the window.

The train continued to slow down, and finally jerked to a halt, pitching Malcolm and Tobey forward out of their seats. The lamps suddenly all went out, plunging the compartment into darkness.

"Bloody hell," Malcolm snarled, struggling to his feet. The unfamiliar robes tripped him up the first time he tried to stand. He felt Tobey's firm grip on his upper arm steadying him. "Thanks Rookwood," he muttered.

"Did the train break down?" Perren asked.

"Dunno," Tobey replied. "I never heard of the Hogwarts Express breaking down before."

They stood there in the darkness, listening to muffled voices echo from the corridor. Malcolm glanced back at the window. Only a faint grey radiance was filtering through the storm, silhouetting Annalise, who had a fist clenched around her wand. The light was enough to see that a thick layer of ice had crusted over the glass.

Then he heard a door ratcheting open in the corridor, shockingly loud in the sudden stillness. Malcolm spun back toward the door. He could swear he heard the sound of a booming explosion in the distance, the shriek of metal tearing like paper. "Wands out," he snapped, jaw clenched. "Can someone make some light?" he asked, trying not to let his voice shake.

"L-l-lumos!" Patricia stammered and a faint light emerged from the end of her wand. Malcolm could see everyone was on their feet in the center of the compartment, except for Annalise who was standing on her seat next to the window. She glanced from the frosted window to the door and back, the sudden motion making her long hair whip about. Her face had gone as pale as milk.

They stood there, barely breathing, as the air chilled around them. Malcolm's heart leapt into his throat when the door handle began to slowly turn. Each click of the latch sounded like a gunshot in the silent compartment. He almost reached forward to stop it when he saw the hoarfrost growing on the tarnished metal.

The door slid open and Malcolm was face to hood with one of the Dementors of Azkaban.

He'd encountered them before at Hogwarts, but that was from a distance, with Headmaster Dumbledore standing beside him. The ragged cloak was barely a yard away now, and he felt the terror wash over him like a tidal wave. He heard the car bomb detonate like it was happening again, the bone-jarring thud accompanied by the shriek of metal, trailing off into the shrieks of the maimed and dying. His father. Nigel and 'his lads'. All gone. Malcolm felt his gorge rise, but a sudden wash of fury dispelled his nausea. They'd caught the bastards. Moslem countries do not bother imprisoning convicted murderers. He'd been a guest of honor when the terrorists were decapitated in the middle of a bloody market square. I am not going through this again! He howled inside his own mind.

"Get back!" he screamed, brandishing his wand. Sparks and black motes shot out again, filling the air around the students. Malcolm's skin tingled and the sounds he was hearing were suddenly cut off. The dementor halted its advance, but the hood was turning to look directly at him now. Malcolm desperately did not want to know what was under that hood. A hand emerged from the cloak, looking like it belonged to a cadaver that had rotted underwater, all grey and glistening, and now his gorge was rising again at the sweet stench of putrefaction.

A beam of blue light struck the dementor's sleeve, and then another hit it in the chest. The curses didn't appear to have any effect, but Malcolm was shaken out of his fascinated daze. He could hear Annalise cursing behind him in a mixture of English and what sounded like Russian, as a barrage of hexes flew over his head at the cloaked horror.

Malcolm shook himself and growled. He was shaking with rage now. "Get out of here, you foul bastard. If Dumbledore catches you molesting students, he'll have your arse for toerags!" He jabbed his wand at it again, and black motes literally spewed from the end of it like a hose. Malcolm's skin was itching like it was on fire.

He almost dropped his wand when the Dementor glided back into the corridor.

Malcolm stood there, willing his knees not to buckle as his breath frosted in the chilly air. He swore he could feel the other students behind him, breathing raggedly. He could hear Annalise mumbling to herself as she gasped for air.

Silver light washed over the side of the dementor, and Malcolm was relieved to hear an adult's voice call out. "Sirius Black is not on this train. Get out of here." The dementor shot away down the corridor like it had been blown by a hard wind.

He was still shaking with reaction when an older man in threadbare robes stuck his head into the compartment. He frowned at them for a moment, his pale eyes wandering over them before fixing on Malcolm. "Is everyone all right?" he asked in a hoarse voice.

"Yes sir," Malcolm replied. He didn't recognize the man as a professor, but he appeared to have driven off the dementor, and that was good enough for him.

"Good," he said, then nodded toward Perren's stack of sweets, scattered forgotten across the bench. "Share out some of that chocolate. It should counter the worst of the dementor's effect. I'm going to see to the conductor. Keep this door shut and locked." With that, he slid the door shut and Malcolm snapped the locking bar shut half a second later.

When he turned back to the other students, they were all staring at him. "What?" he asked irritably.

Tobey's voice shook. "H-how did you do that?"

"Do what?" Malcolm asked. What is he going on about?

"I, we, we could hardly talk when that, that thing came in. And y-you stood there and cursed it out… and it left!" Tobey looked at him with something like awe.

"That was bloody brilliant!" Perren agreed. "How did you do it?"

"I, well, I don't know. I think it just felt that Wizard coming. That's why it left."

"Yeah, but you backed it off first, Mal," Perren insisted. "My mum says they use those things to guard the wizard prison because they drain the magic from wizards and drive them mad."

"Maybe they are out looking for Sirius Black," Patricia said thoughtfully.

"I think you're spot on, Trish," Perren agreed. "I know what Dad meant now," he said with a shudder.

"What do you mean?" Tobey asked curiously. His shaking had subsided, though he still rubbed his arms.

"When I asked him how dementors could stop a wizard from using his magic, he told me they suck all the good feelings and memories right out of you, and then the bloody things make you re-live your worst memories over and over again. With all that going on, no wonder the prisoners can't do a lick of magic." He frowned. "I kept hearing my mum crying after they told her about Grandfather."

Malcolm nodded, "That makes sense then."

"How's that?" Tobey asked.

"I got angry because I kept hearing that damn explosion."

"What explosion?" Perren asked, ignoring Patricia swatting him on the shoulder.

"The one the muggles set that killed my father," Malcolm said hollowly. The redhaired girl let out a gasp and swallowed. Even Tobey looked a little sick. Malcolm shook his head and ran his fingers through his hair. "Look, he said we'd all feel a little better if we ate some chocolate. Perren, can I take you up on your previous offer?"

The small boy nodded eagerly and gathered up the chocolate frogs.

Malcolm took a deep breath and blew it out. He looked up at Annalise, who was still standing on her seat in the corner of the compartment. "Thanks, Anna," he said, making her look up and scowl. "Seriously," he said spreading his hands in a placating gesture, "that was an awesome barrage of curses you were throwing. I don't think I recognized a third of those."

"They did not seem to work very well," she said crossly, though she did accept another chocolate frog from Perren.

Malcolm shrugged. "They can't have made him feel too welcome," he smiled at her. Honestly, he was amazed that she'd kept her head with that thing in the room. She's tougher than she looks, he thought to himself as he chewed on the wriggling chocolate. Slow warmth began to spread out from his stomach.

A few minutes later the train jerked into motion again and the ice started to melt off the window. The lamps re-lighted and Patricia muttered "Nox," extinguishing her wand.

After two chocolate frogs, Malcolm was feeling pretty much normal again. Or at least what passed for normal with him. Every so often he would catch Perren or Tobey staring at him.

Finally, Patricia sighed theatrically. "I swear, you two. If you don't stop staring at Malcolm, I'm going to hex you."

Tobey flushed and looked guilty, but Perren just shrugged. "I never heard of anyone standing up to a dementor like that before. Wish I had your guts, mate!" he smiled.

Malcolm grunted. "More like I didn't know enough to be afraid. Now that I do, I'll probably lose it like a proper firstie."

Everyone but Annalise chuckled at that, and much of the tension was dispelled. The haughty blond girl still peered at him curiously from time to time, but he shrugged it off. She's an odd bird, no doubt about that.

A bloody scene break – hopefully FF won't zap this as well

Freezing rain was pouring down when they got off the train. A familiar bellow called out above the din "Firs' years this way!" Malcolm looked around until he saw Hagrid towering above the black-robed students. He called out to some of the older students as well, who were picking their way toward the horseless carriages assembled in front of the train station.

They followed the gigantic man down a steep narrow path through the woods. Malcolm's boots had heavy treads, but he still slipped and slid in the icy mud. After both Tobey and Perren had gone down on one knee, Malcolm insisted they link hands. Just in time too, as Perren and Tobey were barely able to keep Patricia from falling backwards when her feet shot out from under her. Holding Tobey's hand in his left hand, Malcolm hung back and deliberately grabbed Annalise's hand in his.

She immediately tried to jerk her hand free, scowling at him. "Calm down Dolohov, I just don't want you cracking your skull and making us all late for dinner."

Annalise was just opening her mouth to retort when both her feet went sideways. Only her grip on Malcolm's arm kept her from going down. After righting herself, she nodded and said nothing… though two spots of color did burn on her cheeks.

Malcolm wisely chose to refrain from commenting about her footwear.

The path eventually led down to the shore of the lake. Hogwarts itself was barely visible as a brightly lit blur through the steady downpour. Beached in front of them was a small fleet of rowboats.

"Nae more than four tae a boat," Hagrid called out.

Annalise made an impatient noise and shook free of Malcolm's hand. She deliberately got into a boat by herself as the rest of them loaded into one next to it. Eventually, a pair of dark-haired boys who might have been twins got in with her.

Tobey elbowed Malcolm, raising his eyebrows. Malcom just shrugged. He was too cold, wet, hungry, and tired to care at this point.

"Everyone settled?" Hagrid called out, standing there in water that was barely shin-deep on him. Nodding, he climbed into a boat by himself and called out "Alrigh' then – Forward!"

With no pulling of oars, the boats moved away from the shore, following Hagrid's dingy across the churning lake.

Malcolm could make out a few more details as they got closer to the castle. He heard muted gasps coming from the boats around them. Patricia was blinking rapidly and even Tobey and Perren had awed expressions as the brightly lit castle emerged from the misty night air.

The castle itself was perched on a rocky outcropping that loomed over the edge of the lake they were approaching. Malcolm couldn't see any signs of a dock, and peered forward in some consternation. Finally, he realized the shadow under the ivy at the base was actually a low-ceilinged tunnel cut into the rock.

"Get yer heads down!" Hagrid called out as the first boat began to push through the loose stems.

Malcolm leaned back and peered up at the rough-hewn roof passing a few feet over his head. He glanced at the boat in front of him as voices carried back to his ear.

"This is brilliant!" one of the boys in Annalise' boat said to the one next to him. Malcolm noticed that both boys were crowded into the front of their boat, craning their necks to try and peer around Professor Hagrid's massive shadow. Annalise was in the rear of the boat, leaning away from them with an expression of distaste. He saw her hands, white-knuckled on the gunwales, and wondered if she had a problem with darkness or closed-in spaces.

One of the boys in the front of her boat was leaning far to the left, trying to peer ahead. Malcolm opened his mouth to say something when he overbalanced and pitched forward. His companion caught his arm just in time and hauled mightily backwards. His quick action kept his friend out of the water, but it also made the boat pitch violently.

Annalise was caught off guard, and jumped when a gout of cold water burst over her side of the boat. Cringing back from the freezing water, she lost her balance and tumbled over the back of the boat.

Malcolm let out a gasp as the dark water closed over her head. She immediately burst to the surface, but it was obvious she was in trouble. She desperately splashed, trying to keep her head above water. He knew that even if she could swim, her heavy velvet robes would weigh her down in moments. Fortunately, their boat was next in line.

"Perren, Trish," he called out. "Lean hard to the left so we don't capsize. Tobey, grab my hand and hold on!" With that, he leaned out over the right side of the boat as they passed the sputtering girl. He managed to grab one of her flailing arms, and in a moment she had a death-grip on his arm. He could feel Tobey's hands gripping his left hand and forearm as he hauled on the girl.

For a moment, he didn't think it was going to work. Those water-logged robes were heavy. The gunwale digging into his right shoulder was also dipping down toward the icy water. "Grab my hand, Trish!" he heard Perren bark, and the small boat slowly started to right itself. Malcolm felt like his arms were being pulled out of the sockets, but Annalise was next to the boat now. He leaned farther down and wrapped his arm around her middle. He was losing feeling in his forearm where her fingers were dug in. With a final jerk that promised future aches, he managed to wrestle her into the boat.

The boat suddenly rocked back to the left and he heard Patricia grunt. He looked up to see her haul Perren back from where he was leaning over the opposite side of the boat. He ended up sprawled on top of her in the bottom of the boat. Tobey looked away as they both blushed crimson. Perren coughed as he fairly leaped off the auburn haired girl and back onto the bench seat.

Malcolm had his own troubles though, mainly involving a lap full of freezing wet girl. Annalise was shivering and coughing violently. He wrapped his arm around her as the chilly water ran off her robes and soaked through his. She coughed up an amazing amount of water, spattering the bottom of the boat as Patrician got back onto her seat with a worried expression. By the time she was done, her fine blond hair was straggling across her face. She looked up, trying to catch her breath again, and her face was a mess, nose running, the whole bit.

Malcolm grimace and wiped at her face with the sleeve of his robe. She shuddered for a moment, and he was reminded of Hagrid's puppy for some reason. Finally, she started clawing her hair back out of her face and trying to sit up. Her lips were pressed together and her face began to flush. He awkwardly scooted over next to Tobey on the bench seat so she could sit down next to him.

He looked away from her as she began trying to tuck her hair behind her ears. The small flotilla of boats had emerged into larger open cavern. The ceiling was high enough to be unlit by the torches lit at the far end. Each boat in turn, moved toward the pebbly shore and firmly beached itself.

Hagrid loomed over them on the shore, counting the students as they disembarked. Finally, he turned and glared down at Malcolm. "You there, boy. What's yer name?"

Malcolm wondering what Hagrid was up to. "Malcolm Smith, sir."

"Well, Mister Smith, I told ye, four students per boat. Ye'll be reporting tae me for detention after ye get settled in at yer dormitory tonight." The large man glowered down at him for a moment, then quickly blinked his left eye. "Follow me!" he called out and led the students up a flight of stone steps toward a huge oak door.

"What the bloody hell?" Tobey hissed under his breath, startling Malcolm. "Were you just supposed to let her drown?" the boy continued. Perren just nodded, but he looked equally mutinous. Patricia gave both boys a quelling look, but didn't say anything. Malcolm noticed Annalise stiffen in front of them, but she continued walking.

"Don't worry about it," Malcolm whispered, though he was a little gratified by their outrage on his behalf. "I did, technically, violate a safety rule. If he didn't come down on me, someone else would do something worse next time." Tobey just looked at him like he'd gone stark raving mad.

When Professor Hagrid reached the door, he knocked on it three times. No sooner had the echoes of the third booming knock died down than the door swung open.

Standing in the doorway was a tall, scowling woman in emerald green robes that Malcolm recognized as Professor McGonagall. He remembered her as being rather reserved and stern during the meals before term, and he now realized that was her in "vacation mode". He quickly resolved not to mess about in any class he took with her.

"I brought th' firs' years, Professor," Hagrid said solemnly.

"Thank you Hagrid," she said with a thin smile. "Follow me, students." She led them through the enormous vaulted Great Hall into a small side chamber. Malcolm made an effort to appear as nervous as the other first year student. Don't want to arouse any suspicions if I can help it, he mused.

The stern professor turned and addressed the students crowded together in the small chamber. "Welcome to Hogwarts," she began. "The start-of-term banquet will begin shortly, but before you take your seats in the Great Hall, you will be sorted into your houses. The Sorting is a very important ceremony because, while you are here, your house will be something like your family within Hogwarts. You will have classes with the rest of your house, sleep in your house dormitory, and spend free time in your house common room." She looked around once, maybe to see if there were any questions.

"The four houses," she continued, "are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. Each house has it's noble history, and each has produced outstanding wizards and witches. While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn your house points, while any rule-breaking will lose house points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded the house cup, a great honor. I hope each of you will be a credit to whichever house becomes yours. The Sorting Ceremony will take place in a few minutes in front of the rest of the school. I suggest you smarten yourselves up as much as you can while you are waiting." Her eyes roamed with disapproval over the muddy shoes and robes worn by many students, and lingered on Malcolm and Annalise, who were audibly dripping on the stone floor.

"I will return when we are ready for you," she concluded. "Please wait quietly."

As she swept out of the room, Malcolm grinned as he heard several people release the breath they were holding. His smile turned to a grimace though, as he plucked at his sodden robes that were sticking to his legs and stomach. He sighed as Tobey and Perren whispered about how mean that professor looked and Patricia was speaking too quietly to hear with Annalise. Malcolm watched as the tall girl pulled out her wand and closed her eyes. After a moment of concentration, she leaned forward and tapped Annalise on the shoulder as she said "scourgify" in a low voice.

"Hey!" hissed a voice from behind them. Malcolm turned to see one of the boys that had ridden on the boat with Annalise. "You shouldn't be doing magic in here!"

Malcolm glared down at the shorter boy. "The professor didn't specifically say we couldn't. She probably wouldn't appreciate all the dripping on the floor."

"It says in Hogwarts: A History that students aren't allowed to do magic in the halls between classrooms," his twin added crossly.

"She wouldn't even need a cleansing charm," Tobey growled, stepping forward. "If the two of you hadn't been playing silly buggers in the boat and dumped her out. Malcolm's already got detention because of you, so shut your gobs or you'll go through the Sorting Ceremony with bloody noses." He wasn't really any taller than the twins, but the thick-set boy practically radiated malice. When he cracked his knuckles, the two quickly turned away, muttering to each other.

When he turned back around, Patricia had loaned Annalise a comb to try and salvage her tangled hair. The smaller girl looked down as she worked through the knots, but her cheeks were a little hot. Patricia looked over at him and smiled. "Would you like?" she said quietly, gesturing with her wand.

"I'd appreciate it," he replied. The auburn-haired girl tapped him on the shoulder as she repeated the incantation. He felt his skin tingle as the upper half of his robe dried. She frowned and waved the wand in a more decisive manner, and said the word a bit louder. Malcolm flinched back as the tingle was more like a momentary burning sensation, but now his clothes were completely dry. As he felt himself start to get warm for what felt like the first time in hours, he smiled at her and nodded. "Thanks!"

She frowned back at him. "Your hair is sticking straight up though," she worried.

He shrugged and raked his fingers back across his scalp. "It does that once it gets wet. As long as half of it isn't going sideways, I'm happy."

She shook her head with amusement and started fussing at Perren and Tobey about their robes.

They were interrupted by Professor McGonagall's voice coming from the doorway. "Come along now," she said, "the Sorting Ceremony is about to start. Form a line and follow me."

A/N:

Yes, Minerva's speech to the first years is the same as the one Harry heard in SS. Did you really think after all the years she's done this she doesn't have one memorized?

I'd like to thank my lovely Beta Runsamok for catching the worst of my typos. I'm still hoping to find a good Brit-Picker or two… so if you see some glaring cultural errors, please let me know.

Please read and review… I have a rough outline for where this is going, but if you have any specific aspects of "life in the reptile house" that you'd like to see explored, give me a holler. (My reviews to hits ratio is around 1 percent, so those that do bother to respond will have an inordinate amount of influence on the author. )

Frog1 – I figured it was pretty obvious JKR owns it all, but given some experiences some people I know have had, yer right – better to be safe than sorry!