The Hogwarts Express whistled as the group boarded it.
"If you need to get the dress adjusted before the ball, just owl it over and I'll have Madam LeLon do it," Mrs Malfoy waved her hand and gestured to the train. "Go on, I have brunch with Pansy's and Daphne's mothers. Say hello to everyone for me."
The group sat back in their two tables in the carriage. Tracey Davis had incorporated herself into the group and sat with Theodore, Pansy, and Daphne on the other table, while Blaise and Draco sat across from Rebekah with Emperor and Fidele.
Draco drawled on about how he didn't like how DADA was being taught,
"…Father actually considered sending me to Durmstrang rather than Hogwarts. He knows the headmaster, you see. You know his opinion of Dumbledore, and Durmstrang doesn't admit Muggleborns or the like. But Mum didn't like the idea of me going to school so far away. Father says Durmstrang takes a far more sensible line than Hogwarts about the Dark Arts. Durmstrang students actually learn them, not just the defence rubbish we do…"
"Lucky them," Rebekah muttered, looking outside the rain stricken glass window. "I still can't believe that we'll be hosting Durmstrang and Beauxbatons this year."
"Well, I'm very happy, Rebekah," Pansy leaned towards her, a sly smile on her lips.
"Yes, because we'll be having foreign boys staying with us," Rebekah also smiled warmly. "Please don't scare them away, Pansy."
"I won't,"
"Or invite them to your dorm,"
"That was once!"
The group laughed as Pansy turned pink.
"He was cute, I'll give you that, but I did not need an image of you naked," Rebekah faked a shudder before smiling amusedly. "I've seen two of you now."
"Who else did you see?"
Rebekah's eyes travelled to Draco who had a light blush on his cheeks. The group burst with a laugh again.
Rebekah had missed this over the summer, a decent laugh with good friends. It had been a while since all of them were together. Uncle Vernon had been very grumpy all summer and refused to allow her to visit any of them. And after the Dark Mark, Rebekah was cautious to visit any of their homes. She had already asked if their parents were okay.
The rain was harder than Rebekah thought possible. Even with the Umbrella Charms, it didn't completely stop the rain from hitting the group. They only needed it long enough to get into the carriages before they were under the safety of the roofs.
The stone flooring of the Entrance Hall was soaked with rainwater that dripped off the students' robes. Many people slipped as they tried to get into the Great Hall for the Opening Feast. Even with the rain, there wasn't an inch of mud anywhere.
"ARGH!" Ron Weasley screamed from one side of the Entrance Hall. Rebekah stopped and so the whole group did, matching her as she turned to watch Peeves the Poltergeist throw another water-filled balloon at him, Hermione, Lavender Brown, and Seamus Finnigan.
The bells on Peeves' hat were silent as he floated upside and threw another balloon at a group of third years. It exploded over them and drenched them in murky rainwater Peeves somehow collected.
"Peeves, come down here at ONCE!" Minerva McGonagall was pink with anger as she yelled at him. "Peeves, get down here now!"
"Not doing nothing!" Peeves cackled before throwing another at a group of Fifth-year girls who screamed and darted into the Great Hall "Already wet, aren't they?"
He aimed another bomb at Rebekah and the group before seeing the warning look.
"If you so much as think of throwing that balloon at us, Peeves," Rebekah informed him, pointing a finger. "I will tell the Bloody Baron what you did last year. Okay?"
"Stupid Potter, always ruining my fun," He said, flinging his hands out. "Fine!"
"Go hit some Ravenclaws with them instead," Rebekah winked before she dried herself completely with her wand and did the same to the group.
"No Magic outside the classrooms, Miss Potter!" McGonagall yelled.
"Just drying myself off, Professor!" Rebekah yelled back before muttering to the group. "I just want this stupid feast to start. I'm hungry."
"You're always hungry."
Once again, the group had shifted up their seats on the Slytherin table. They were now Fourth years, meaning their seats were almost perfectly in the middle of the table with the younger years to Rebekah's left and the older to her right.
The Sorting Hat began its song as soon as it was placed onto the three-legged stool:
A thousand years or more ago,
When I was newly sewn,
There lived four wizards of renown,
Whose names are still well known:
Bold Gryffindor, from wild moor,
Fair Ravenclaw, from glen,
Sweet Hufflepuff, from valley broad
Shrewd Slytherin, from fen.
They shared a wish, a hope, a dream,
They hatched a daring plan
To educate young sorcerers
Thus Hogwarts School began.
Now each of these four founders
Formed their own house, for each
Did value different virtues
In the ones they had to teach.
By Gryffindor, the bravest were
Prized far beyond the rest;
For Ravenclaw, the cleverest
Would always be the best;
For Hufflepuff, hard workers were
Most worthy of admission;
And power-hungry Slytherin
Loved those of great ambition.
While still alive they did divide
Their favourites from the throng,
Yet how to pick the worthy ones
When they were dead and gone?
'Twas Gryffindor who found the way,
He whipped me off his head
The founders put some brains in me
So I could choose instead!
Now slip me snug about your ears,
I've never yet been wrong,
I'll have a look inside your mind
And tell where you belong!
The whole hall began to clap politely after the singing was finished, it was usually good entertainment to listen to it. Have it changed every year, it made sure that the students always paid attention to how much each song changed.
The further the year from the First Wizarding War, the more students were brought into the year. Rebekah's year only had forty people in total, ten in each house evenly. This new First year had a good sixty students that were split mainly into Ravenclaw and Gryffindor with a few in Hufflepuff and a few more in Slytherin. Rebekah only counted seven in total, a very small number compared to the other year's fifteen, and twenty-two students in Slytherin. Her own year only had ten students and that was because of the peak of the war.
The feast began soon after and Rebekah was grateful. Her plate was filled several times over. When dessert came, she relented on having more than one plate. Too much cheesecake was bad for the teeth. The plates cleared almost an hour later, leaving them sparkling clean and without any evidence of food.
Rebekah zoned out as Dumbledore started his yearly lecture about Hogwarts rules and what was happening.
"…painful duty to inform you that the Inter-House Quidditch Cup will not take place this year."
"WHAT?!" Rebekah snarled without looking up. Luckily she wasn't the only one. She understood that the TriWizard Tournament was happening, but why should Quidditch be cancelled? Only seventeen and up could compete anyway, so what were the younger years supposed to do without Quidditch?
"This is due to an event that will be starting in October, and continuing throughout the school year, taking up much of the teachers' time and energy, but I am sure you will all enjoy it immensely. I have great pleasure in announcing that this year at Hogwarts—"
The doors to the Great Hall banged out with a crack of thunder from the enchanted sky. A man almost limped in, complete with a black cloak that covered him well and a long staff in hand. Each step caused a metallic clank as his left leg hit the floor. He had begun to lip towards Dumbledore, all eyes on him.
A flash of lightning allowed the students to see his face. It was mangled, missing a chunk of his nose and several large scars lines across his face. His most extraordinary feature was the electric blue eye next that worked independently to the other. As he came closer to Dumbledore, that eye rolled back into his head before reappearing as the Wizard shook Dumbledore's hand and leaned in.
"Isn't that Mad-Eye Moody?" Rebekah asked, unsure if he was the man but it was probably true. She had never seen a face so battle-worn as his.
"Yeah," Draco mumbled almost with disgust. "Father always said that he was a bit deranged. Too cautious, not everyone is a Dark Wizard, for Merlin's sake."
Cation would explain why Moody overlooked the pumpkin juice, which Rebekah never liked anyway, and took large draws from the hip flask from within his cloak. With his arms lifted, a clawed foot appeared from beneath it, explaining the clunks when he walked.
Dumbledore continued even with all teh students staring at Moody. "As I was saying, we are to have the honour of hosting a very exciting event over the coming months, an event that has not been held for over a century. It is my very great pleasure to inform you that the TriWizard Tournament will be taking place at Hogwarts this year."
"YOU'RE JOKING!" Fred Weasley almost yelled. The tension within the hall lightened as he flushed and everyone laughed.
"I am not joking, Mr Weasley," Dumbledore said, after finishing his chuckle. "The TriWizard Tournament… Some of you will not know what this tournament involves, so I hope those who do know will forgive me for giving a short explanation, and allow their attention to wander freely.
"The Triwizard Tournament was first established some seven hundred years ago as a friendly competition between the three largest European schools of wizardry: Hogwarts, Beauxbatons, and Durmstrang. A champion was selected to represent each school, and the three champions competed in three magical tasks. The schools took it in turns to host the tournament once every five years, and it was generally agreed to be a most excellent way of establishing ties between young witches and wizards of different nationalities — until, that is, the death toll mounted so high that the tournament was discontinued."
"Another chance to die in a school with moving staircases and creatures in the forest," Blaise shrugged. "Great."
"There have been several attempts over the centuries to reinstate the tournament," Dumbledore continued, "none of which has been very successful. However, our own departments of International Magical Cooperation and Magical Games and Sports have decided the time is ripe for another attempt. We have worked hard over the summer to ensure that this time, no champion will find himself or herself in mortal danger.
"The heads of Beauxbatons and Durmstrang will be arriving with their short-listed contenders in October, and the selection of the three champions will take place at Halloween. An impartial judge will decide which students are most worthy to compete for the TriWizard Cup, the glory of their school, and a thousand Galleons personal prize money."
"Eager though I know all of you will be to bring the TriWizard Cup to Hogwarts," He said, "the heads of the participating schools, along with the Ministry of Magic, have agreed to impose an age restriction on contenders this year. Only students who are of age, that is to say, seventeen years or older, will be allowed to put forward their names for consideration. This"is a measure we feel is necessary, given that the tournament tasks will still be difficult and dangerous, whatever precautions we take, and it is highly unlikely that students below Sixth and Seventh year will be able to cope with them. I will personally be ensuring that no underage student hoodwinks our impartial judge into making them Hogwarts champion. I, therefore, beg you not to waste your time submitting yourself if you are under seventeen."
"Cheers to that," Rebekah muttered as her group watched her almost zone out again. "One year without me almost dying."
"For once,"
"Yeah, Quirrel, Basilisk, Werewolf? What next?"
"Not this!"
Dumbledore continued. "The delegations from Beauxbatons and Durmstrang will be arriving in October and remaining with us for the greater part of this year. I know that you will all extend every courtesy to our foreign guests while they are with us, and will give your whole-hearted support to the Hogwarts champion when he or she is selected. And now, it is late, and I know how important it is to you all to be alert and rested as you enter your lessons tomorrow morning. Bedtime! Chop chop!"
The whole hall echoed into screeches of benches and footsteps as everyone leapt to their feet in a hurry to discuss the newfound information in their common rooms. The Slytherin group got up as one but Rebekah was slower, making everyone halt as they waited for her to stand.
"I've got to see Snape before I go to the dorms," Rebekah explained. "See yourselves back and I'll be there within ten minutes."
"Why do you need to see him?" Draco asked, almost apprehensive of her actions.
"Never you mind," Rebekah almost snapped.
"Come on," Daphne nudged Draco who had narrowed his eyes at Rebekah as she stood up. Daphne leaned into Draco's ear. "Remember last time you pissed her off?"
Draco's eyes flashed, a twitch of annoyance in the corner before he stiffly nodded and led the group away. Rebekah rolled her eyes before walking to the High Table to wait for Snape, the man was quickly finished because he didn't want to be there any longer than normal.
Rebekah waited for Snape to get the Time-Turner out of his desk, the little black bag in his hands. He gave her a strong and tense look before he said, "I trust you won't abuse this?"
"No more than needed, sir," Rebekah smiled.
"And the TriWizard Tournament?"
"I want a year where I don't have to worry about dying,"
"Good," He handed her the black bag and watched her smile widen as she plucked the golden hourglass necklace out of it. "You should check on the Basilisks, Hagrid had said there was an unsettlement in the Forbidden Forest."
"Thank you, sir," Rebekah sighed. "It's probably the Acromantulas."
"Them." Snape's lips curled up in memory. "Yes, I remember."
Rebekah flushed a pink tone before also smiling. "Yeah, that."
By nine o clock, the whole Slytherin group were sitting in Rebekah's room. Now, instead of simply one long window that showed the lake, the whole wall was glass that quite nicely reflected the greeny-blue hue of the waters.
The couch was extended and they summoned some beanbags as Talpey brought some Muggle pizzas Rebekah had requested. There was a cheese pizza that she loved, along with one that had several types of vegetables on it too. A meat feast, and a simple pepperoni one for the meat-eaters of the group.
After half an hour, there was a knock on the door. Rebekah flicked her wand dismissively and the door opened, showing Annie Shaw with two of her friends. They all looked quite uncomfortable and slightly concerned like they were going to Snape's office for doing something wrong.
"What is it, Annie?" Rebekah called over from the couch where she laid along with Blaise and Pansy. She sat up as the three third years came closer, her chin resting lazily on her arms that she laid against the back of the couch.
"The First Years…"
That got her attention. Rebekah lifted her head, trying to not jump from the couch. "What happened to them?"
"Same as what I had. Two have started hyperventilating as soon as they came into the common room and I can't find Professor Snape to get Calming Draughts." Annie said. "I was wondering if you had any since you're known to have potions on hand."
Rebekah thought for a single moment before easily scaling the back of the couch, strutting to the bookcase. She ran a finger down the shelves before pausing. "How many are there? I saw seven students in our House."
"Yeah, only four of them were panicking,"
"Which families?"
"A Shardlow, Quentin, Richmond, and Penkridge,"
Rebekah pulled out six tiny little bottles and passed them to Annie. "Give the hyperventilating ones two of these, the other two can have one each. If they don't calm down after five minutes, send for Pomfrey. Also tell them that I, or one of my friends, will check on them in the morning."
"Thanks, Rebekah!" Annie smiled and walked out with her two friends who had gone white when they saw who's room they had just barged into. Rebekah simply sent them a half-smile that made them pause in their steps before they fully left the room.
Rebekah turned back around, mock-glaring at the group. "You've better not ate all of the cheese pizza, Pansy!"