Chapter Two:
Ginny, Colin, Luna and Jasper made their way up the Front steps of Hogwarts. They were continually seeing other friends and shouting out greetings, passing stories of the holidays and swapping gossip with others.
"Hey Guys!" called out a nearby sixth year Huffleuff. A friendly guy called James who didn't seem perturbed by Luna's oddness one bit. James was a chatter box who was the mill of school gossip which was odd as most Hufflepuffs were constantly worried they'd hurt someone's feelings. He knew anything and everything that was going on in the school, be it with students, teachers or anything else. "I didn't see any of you all summer! How were your holidays? Good? I went to Australia with my cousins. Hey did you guys here there's a transfer student! I saw her myself at the platform and boy is she one hot thing!"
"We know James. We saw her too." Colin managed to squeeze in whilst James took a breath. It was a wonder to all who knew him how he could talk so much with such a short and limited breath supply.
"Boy do I ever want her to get into Hufflepuff! Those slim, legs were perfect! And she definitely has a good fashion sense. Those boots were from Jimmy Choo's latest collection. And the dress? Gucci. The jacket I admit I don't know, but I'll find out! But did you know; no one knows who she is though! This girl is our mystery student, not even her name is known. I bet it's something unique and beautiful like..."
"Seraphina?" Ginny impishly supplied.
"Yes! Something that belongs on the lips of angels! I bet it's something like that!"
"It is. She told us herself after inviting us to share her cabin." This comment from Colin not only had James lose his footing in shock but had a few other nearby students turn to listen, nudging their friends and already starting the first game of school Chinese Whispers of the year.
"Tell me everything! You must be the only ones who know anything about her!"
"She has a younger brother here and previously went to Beauxbatons because of her father." Jasper provided.
"Yeah. But she said she didn't really like it there and wanted to come to the same school as her younger brother." Ginny added.
"It was because of the Mumplefringed Ghops and Phineukus swarms. No one can live or study productively in an environment like that."
James didn't have to bother with an answer to that as, at that moment, they reached the great hall and parted for their respective tables. Ginny and Colin made their way down the table to where Ron, Harry and Hermione were keeping seats for them amongst the other seventh and sixth years. After having James shout out that they'd continue their talk later.
"Hey Hermione! Gin said you got Head! Congrats!" Colin said as he sat down opposite the bushy haired girl.
"Shush Colin! McGonagall wants it to be a surprise. She wants it to be that at every beginning of year speech is when everyone finds out who the Heads, Prefects and Quidditch Captains are. Of course everyone knows that it's Harry for our Captain and that Malfoy will probably still be it for Slytherin. But everything is so quite that even I don't know who the Head Boy is. And thank you for the congratulations! I've worked so hard all these years for something like this!"
"Hey. Speaking of Malfoy; is he actually smiling over there?" Harry asked the table
Everyone spun around to stare. And it was true. It wasn't that Harry needed a new prescription for his glasses, the Evil Prince of Slytherin was smiling. And – holy cow! Laughing!
"Wow. That's not something you see every day." Colin said
Ron scowled and muttered something about ferrets being too happy. Harry got a suspicious look "Must be planning something." And Hermione just rolled her eyes at the boys comments along with the rest of the table. "Guys? It's proven that he didn't do anything wrong. It was all his father. He even voluntarily took veritaserum at the beginning of the holidays to prove his innocence."
As most pulled their attention back to swapping stories of holiday antics, Ginny couldn't help but look a bit longer over at Malfoy. Smiling, his face lost its entire rigid, painful, superior look that said: you-will-never-be-allowed-access-to-this-mind, and became softer and looked as if you might actually be able to reach the thoughts within.
"You know. Malfoy looks even hotter when he smiles." Ginny said, still looking over at the Slytherin. When she noticed the silence, she turned to look at the others. Ron looked like he was choking, Harry looked disgusted, Colin looked sick, and Hermione looked as if she wanted to ask something.
"What do you mean 'even hotter'? Don't say that you actually think that Malfoy is good looking Gin." Colin said. "I don't think I could handle it if one of my best friends has a crush on Malfoy."
"Ok! Change of topic NOW!" Ron said desperately.
"Fine by me mate." Colin said. "Trust me. You don't want to be there when they get started talking about all the hot guys that they would consider dating."
"We shared a compartment with the new transfer girl." Ginny said. "You know I was thinking Colin, Sera reminded me of someone. I can't think who but I'm sure that there was someone, somewhere that looked just like her. I just can't think who."
Colin just shrugged to show he had no idea whilst the hall fell quite as the new first years began to be sorted into their houses.
"What is she like?" Harry asked with curiosity. "I saw her on the platform, she's cute. And I heard that she'd been using some magic that made the train corridors expand to give her and others room. Was it true?"
"Don't be silly Harry. She can't have done that! That's not possible unless you have a..." Hermione trailed off as Ginny and Colin shook their heads at her.
"Nah. She did." Ginny said.
"Well, not sure about at the beginning, but she certainly did that at the end, getting off the train. It was great to get those pint sized squeelers off my stuff. Nearly had my camera squashed did you know?" Colin said.
"Yeah she was really nice. We accidentally barged into her compartment and she just invited us to share with her."
"And you should have seen the way she spoke with Luna!" Collin said. And began to explain to the others how she had listened and responded with seriousness to their odd friend but had also, through her words, showed that she didn't actually believe in the things that Luna had said herself.
"Sounds like a Hufflepuff to me." Ron said.
"I don't know. A Ravenclaw surely if she had actually been able to expand the corridors." Hermione said with a disgruntled look on her face. She didn't like the sound of being tested for first place. She had enough trouble with Malfoy and look where that got her. Equal top of the grade. How humiliating. She obviously needed to put in more effort.
Ginny wasn't convinced. "I think Gryffindor. She just didn't seem like either a Hufflepuff or a Ravenclaw to me."
"Definitely not a Slytherin." Colin added. "She didn't have any of the characteristic snobbery, selfishness, or meanness that they have. I wonder what house her younger brother is in. Should have asked really. Well, that's the last of the first years. Suppose we'll find out where she'll be soon enough."
And true to his word, McGonagall was beginning a new speech. "Students, today we are happy to announce that Hogwarts has a transfer student. This young witch is joining us from Beauxbatons where she was top of her year and has gained numerous awards for her work in progressing muggle artefacts into objects which are compatible with the wizarding world."
"You know I don't think she even mentioned her brother's name. Odd" Ginny said distractedly as McGonagall continued to talk of Sera; Malfoy, Zabini and Parkinson were now sitting up and straining to see the doors from which Sera would come. The odd thing Ginny noticed was their expressions. It was almost as if they seemed happy and proud. But why? They couldn't be hoping to meet Sera, could they?
_ 786_
So now it's just me and the last of the first years, as another is called through to the Great Hall. This one is shaking so hard that I'm actually scared he'll fall over. That's one of the negatives about Hogwarts in comparison to Beauxbatons. There, you didn't have this house sorting nonsense. On the arts and sports days there, you were randomly separated into four groups and the participants from whichever group that won got special privileges for a fortnight.
It saved all of this nervousness and ingrained rivalry and bitterness between students. But still, even though I know it exists doesn't mean I'm not affected by it. I would kill myself before sitting at the Hufflepuff table. Sure they are meant to be very nice people, all lovey-dovey, and loyal, but everyone says they're stupid. That alone should stop me from being put in there but still...Draco said the hat can be a bit temperamental sometimes. If I don't get Slytherin, Ravenclaw would be next best and Gryffindor at the worst. Not that I have anything against Gryffindors as people, I just don't think that I'd suit the house. And anyway, the red and gold wouldn't look all that good on me. From time-to-time? Sure. But every day? No. But still, I suppose I'd be able to bare with it. It's Draco who wouldn't be able to.
"Do you think I'm brave enough to get into Gryffindor?" the small boy asked. He looked up at me with shining eyes.
"Well..." ahh. How to put this nicely? I mean, he doesn't exactly seem the brave type. But then again, Draco said something about there being a whimpy Gryffindor in our year. "I'm not the Hat so I don't know. But there's always a chance. After all, we get sorted according to our strongest trait. It's not to say that you don't have any of the others, just that they are slightly lesser."
He jumped as his name was called (Finch-Fletchley, Grover) and almost fell through the doorway. Luckily he kept his balance, but still. It must have been hard for him with the whole school laughing at him. Well, despite the sympathetic Hufflepuffs.
And so I'm by myself. This room reminds me of Fathers study in a way. It had no windows and had dark lighting. I'd once made the mistake of offering to fix up an old muggle lamp so that he could have better light when writing letters and reading his correspondence. I hadn't been able to speak for three days afterwards and had never spoken of anything like that in his presence again.
You know I'm partially tempted to ask the Hat to put me in Gryffindor, if only for the fact that it would cause Father to turn over in his grave. But still, the lure of being with Draco was greater.
I heard the hat call out the house of Grover (Hufflepuff, poor sod) and prepared myself to be put on display for the whole school. There was no doubt in my mind that I'm tonight's greatest entertainment. After all every year, little kids start here but I'm the first seventeen year old to come and be sorted.
And there it was. My name: "Malfoy, Seraphina"
Boy am I about to be stared at. Oh well. Not much I can do about that.