Chapter One

It Begins

Draven stood outside the Great Hall disillusioned as he waited for everyone to get settled and for McGonagall to bring the first years.

Even though he leaned nonchalantly against the wall inside he was nervous about the road ahead. The General had told him that the first step in a new start for him was the wizarding world but had said nothing else. When he had asked for details she just smiled at him mysteriously.

The castle itself was quite impressive but it still could not compare to the Great Wall. Dumbledore had said he could stay in the one of the castles guest rooms since he was not yet sorted. Draven was hoping that the houses that were at Hogwarts at least held semblance of the troops at the Wall so he would be less homesick. But that hope was dashed as soon as he had finished reading Hogwarts: A History. Apparently Slytherin was considered the house where Dark Wizards always came from and all the other houses- Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff and Gryffindor- were against it and were considered 'Light' houses. So narrow minded.

He was shaken from his thoughts as he heard McGonagall speaking to the first years as they followed her up the stairs and into the Hall. The noise dimmed to a low chattering as the older students looked at the fresh meats. One by one the first years were sorted into their houses. New Slytherins were welcomed with polite clapping while the other houses were welcomed with booming cheers and claps although the Ravenclaws were more subdued but were loud nonetheless. During the sorting there was a random clap of lightning accompanied by panicked shrieks that he heard, too bad the doors were closed. Oh well.

As the names on the list reached its end Draven prepared himself to enter the halls and waited for Dumbledore to call his name to come forward.

"Now that all the first year students have been sorted it is my pleasure to call forward a fourth year student to come forward and be sorted. I hope you will all join me in welcoming Draven," and that was the signal, the door opened of its own accord. Draven stepped into the hall with an amused look on his face and maintaining a predatory grace as he walked between the Gryffindor and Hufflepuff tables. He caught the eyes of a bushy-haired girl and gave her a flirtatious wink that made her blush. He felt a little smirk grow on his face, still got it! He thought victoriously.

As he sat on the small stool he waited for the hat to be placed on his head. It went dark as the hat slipped on his head. The hat let out a booming laughter after a minute on his head; he let out a chuckle as the hats laugh stopped.

"Well hello there Draven Willow, I have to say I have met a fair amount of different people but none like you, I can already foresee the destruction you will wreak upon the students hehehe," the hat spoke.

"I am glad I did not disappoint, so where will it be," Draven asked the hat as an eerie laughter filled his head.

"A lot of courage and daring but also a tremendous amount of cunning and a smart lad like you only deserves to be in SLYTHERIN!" the hat shouted out loud the last part.

Draven slipped the hat off and made his way to the house of snakes table, he could not help but chuckle lowly at the disappointed looks on some of the girls' faces and sat down next to a blonde haired boy. Draven watched as Dumbledore stood and spoke in a booming voice.

"Now that is done, let us be fed," and with a dramatic wave of his hand food appeared on the tables. The first years gasped in surprise.

Draven shrugged and started piling food onto his plate, the first year Slytherins watched him and he caught their gazes and winked at them as he began to eat. That must have taken care of their apprehension as they began to eat and talk amongst themselves excitedly.

Draven turned back to his food and ate at a more sedate pace as he glanced around the hall at everyone. He felt a tap at his shoulder and looked towards the blonde.

"Draco Malfoy," the boy said as he offered a hand to him. Draven looked at the hand for a moment before grasping Draco's hand and shaking it lightly.

"Draven," he replied in kind.

"This is Crabbe, Goyle and Pansy," he pointed out two burly teen eating like it was a competition and a beautiful fair skinned girl with midnight black hair and blue eyes. She acknowledged him with a nod and he returned the favour.

"Well met Draco and Pansy," the two ogres weren't deemed worthy of a response but it seemed as they hadn't noticed as they were dealing with more important matters namely who gets the last turkey leg.

"Why only attend Hogwarts now?" inquired a curious Pansy, he looked at her with a flat look and she started blushing a bit in embarrassment before he smirked and watched she let out a sigh of relief.

"I was out of touch with the wizarding world for awhile and a friend of mine recommended I come here to finish my schooling," he explained as took a discreet sniff of the pumpkin juice and his nose cringed as he had second thoughts about drinking it. Draco noticed his cringe and chuckled and looked at him with an amused gleam in his eyes.

"Not the most appetizing drink but it's all they have," said Draco and shakes his head sadly. Draven shook his head and took out a big white stained bottle of a clear liquid and poured it in an empty cup.

Steam floated out of the cup, he looked at Draco and offered some of the drink to him. Draco cautiously placed his cup in front of him as he poured some of the drink in the cup as well.

Draven smirked at Draco as he put away the bottle.

"What is this," Draco asked he lifted up his cup to his lips.

"Just drink it dude," and as he said that Draven knocked back the drink into his throat and instantly relaxed as steam floated out of his mouth. Draco glanced at Draven then the cup before knocking back the drink and swallowing. He sagged into his seat contently as steam floated out of his mouth.

"Damn," they chorused and smirked as they caught each others' eyes.

Neither of them noticed that almost the whole of Slytherin and Gryffindor house were looking at them with awed looks on their faces. The Professors were looking at the duo with raised eyebrows wondering what they were drinking. Prof. Snape stood up made his way to them with a curious look on his face.

"Mr Draven and Mr Malfoy what may I ask are you drinking?" Snape asked with a raised eyebrow. Nether boy said anything until Draven took out the bottle and poured Snape a cup and handed it to him. Snape cautiously looked at the cup before knocking back the liquid. Almost instantly Snape seem to calm instantly and let out a sigh as steam floated out of his mouth.

"How much for the bottle," Snape looked at Draven.

"20," was the simple reply. Snape handed Draven the money and took the bottle as he made his way back to the teachers table. The students looked on with dropped jaws not believing what they saw.

As dinner drew to a close there were mutterings about an important announcement being said tonight. Some of the purebloods looked smug as they probably knew what was about to said as their parents probably work at the Ministry of Magic.

The food all disappeared and Draven snorted in amusement as he saw Crabbe and Goyle groan in disappointment, and he smirked when he saw a redhead at the Gryffindor table doing the same.

He turned to Draco, "Care to explain what all the excitement is about?"

Draco smirked and shared a glance with Pansy before turning back to him, "Patience, just wait and see, Dumbledore is about to announce it and I don't want to spoil the surprise,"

He scowled and looked towards Dumbledore as he approached the Dias and cleared his throat as he began to speak.

"Now that we have been fed and watered, I have some terrible news and some good news. I shall start with the terrible, as of now for the duration of this year there shall be no Quidditch this season-"Dumbledore was cut off when the students started booing and shouting obscenities, "SILENCE," everyone quieted instantly and looked towards the great wizard, "Now as I was saying Quidditch will be cancelled due to, and here is the good news, the hosting of the Tri-Wizard Tournament,".

Everyone gasped and talked in hushed whispers excitedly, though Draven looked towards Draco in askance. Draco looked back at him with confusion then it quickly twisted into a shocked look.

"You don't know what the Tri-Wizard Tournament is?! It's the most prestigious and dangerous tournament in the wizarding world, how can you not know about it, have you been sleeping under a rock all these years," asked Draco. He blinked as a memory of a clawed fist punching out of the ground; he shook the cobwebs from his head and turned to Pansy with a raised brow. She sighed.

"Like Draco said, it is a prestigious tournament but he downplayed the danger part," Pansy explained as she looked at Draco with fond amusement.

"By how much?" he asked.

"In every tournament a competitor has died, in the last one all of them died, bad putting a starving Gryphon in an arena with three witches and wizards," explained Pansy as she looked away from him and paid attention to Dumbledore as he spoke again.

"I would like you all to help me in welcoming Mr Barty Crouch, who is to be one of the judges and is co-ordinating the whole tournament," Dumbledore backed away as a man who reminded Draven heavily of Adolf Hitler in physical appearance.

"Due to the high death rates of the tournament there will be an age restriction on the impartial selector who will choose the most capable witch or wizard for the tournament, only seventh years will be able to compete," by the time Mr Crouch finished his announcement the halls noise once again reached high volume as people cried in outrage and it even looked like the redhead boy in Gryffindor was ready to throw something. Draven wished the boy had something to throw; it would be so much more interesting. He suddenly straightened up in his seat as he felt a sense that someone was behind, but a glance behind him showed that no one was there but then he looked closer and saw unevenness on the wall like there was a reflective surface.

"Seems that we have company," whispered a voice in his head.

"Invisibility cloak?" he asked.

"We would not have spotted that right away, it must be an amateur Disillusion charm, and there are more of them," the voice said bemused.

Draven looked around the hall and sure enough there were more reflective spots around the hall and he counted out three in the middle of the Gryffindor and Hufflepuff tables.

"It seems so, what do we do about it the ones behind us," he asked the voice.

"You thinking what I'm thinking," whispered the voice as it began to break down in giggles.

Draven grinned as the plan was formed. He stretched his arm quickly and non-conspicuously. His outstretched hand hit a cup filled with pumpkin juice so it splashed into the space where he last saw the reflective surface. His grin grew as he heard a small shriek behind him that was quickly cut off. It seemed like he was not the only one who heard it as a third year girl looked behind him in shock as pumpkin juice droplets seemed like they were suspended in the air. He turned back to Dumbledore and continued listening to the announcements.

"Now even though not all of you can join the Tri-Wizard Tournament there are to be two side tournaments that take place in the waiting periods between each Task of the main tournament. A Quidditch Tournament and a Duelling Tournament for everyone over third year to join," cheers went up this and people started whispering excitedly, "Talk to your heads of house if you wish to join any of these tournaments. To those who wish to join the Tri-Wizard Tournament I must warn to consider if risking your life for eternal glory and money is worth it. The other school contingent will arrive in two days time and as an extra measure of security the Ministry has provided Aurors to help make sure everything runs smoothly. I wish you all Good Night."

"Damn the police are here, that makes everything harder to do," the voice said but then after a moment cackled loudly.

"What are you laughing at?" he asked.

"We spilled pumpkin juice on the police," it said between laughs.

Draco looked at him weirdly as he struggled to contain his laughs.

As Draven walked through the Slytherin common room he looked around at the dark room with vaulted ceilings. All the furniture was tinted a dark green and there was a big window looking into the Black Lake and if he squinted he was sure he saw a mermaid.

He was shaken from his thought process as he felt a presence stand next to him. He looked next to him and saw a girl, maybe a third year, looking at the window as well. She had blonde hair, high cheekbones and bright violet eyes with long lashes. Plump lips and well developing womanly curves ascertained that this girl would be beautiful once she finished growing up. He looked at her in askance as to what she was doing here. She cleared her throat and closed her eyes as she mentally prepared herself.

"I am Astoria Greengrass," she said, her voice almost at a whisper. He took her hand to his lips and almost smirked as he spotted the blush on her cheeks before it disappeared.

"Occlumency," the voice noted idly.

"Draven," he said as he looked at her with a small smile on his lips. Astoria relaxed and smiled as well.

"I just came here to ask if you are selling that liquid you sold to Snape to everyone," she said in one breath as her nerves spilled over the Occlumency shields. His smile grew.

"Who is asking?" he inquired with one eyebrow raised.

"I am. I wanted to offer my services, to help you sell it and get word out that you are selling, for a small fee of course," Astoria said as she scanned his face as if searching for any signs of rejection. He let nothing show on his face but was about to reply in the negative.

"Accept her offer dumbass," the voice said.

"Why?"

"This makes us legit and we can get a little money out of this if we play it right," the voice explained.

"You have a point but we will have to be subtle," he acquiesced.

Astoria must have seen his decision on his face because she her eyes shone brightly in victory. He smirked.

"Who else supplies," he asked.

"Just my sister Daphne, but she does not supply liquor,"

"Neither do I, the liquid is not alcohol,"

"What is it?"

"You need not worry at this point, but is your sister a threat?"

"Most of the school depends on her but the only weakness she has is that she depends on outside sources that take long to deliver," Astoria explained. He thought hard on this information.

"Let word out that I can get whatever they get from her, but make sure they know that I am quicker and that they have to place their orders with you, you can handle that right?" he asked as he looked at her for any sign of complaint.

"It is not a problem,"

"How much do you want?"

"Forty Percent," she said defiantly. He shook his head and raised a hand as she prepared to complain.

"Fifty Percent," she gaped in surprise as he smirked.

"It is as much you deserve so I don't want to hear complaints okay," she nodded quickly as she smiled and her eyes practically shined, "I might bring two more people in, one for security and another for information, you good with that partner," she nodded again and walked away once he had dismissed her.

He walked away to his own dorms unaware of a different pair of violet eyes narrowed on him.