And here is chapter 2! I love words of encouragement. Hint hint! I'm going to try and regularly update. I'm so busy being unemployed and all! I love this pairing. I really do. I have no really plan it's just a general outpouring. Hmm. I'm not beta'd, I try and do that myself but I'm sure to miss things :(

Chapter 2

As we sat down at our house tables for the beginning of the new school year I started to feel slightly more optimistic. Really now I was starting to sound a little over dramatic. Surely it wouldn't be that bad. And if it was McGonagall might decide to cancel the whole operation altogether. Hmmm. Actually probably not. She was fairly stubborn when it came to her great ideas.
I wondered what the other 6th years would make of the changes to come. Everyone would probably be all right about it until they thought about the Slytherins. And the Slytherins wouldn't take it well at all.

I didn't think Slytherins were pure evil, I couldn't one of my first cousins was a Slytherin, but I didn't know any of them well and quite liked it like that. The Sytherins were intelligent and thought about things before jumping in. They put themselves first most of the time and some were a bit snobbish. Cunning was the word the hat used. Sneaky was how my father described them. My word of choice would probably be foxy. But most of my classmates and family thought of them as evil.

My mother put it well for me once. She said that teenagers have trouble with the grey areas of life. That most things are black and white for them. That's why they argue so much, as they can't see the reasoning in another persons point of view. She said also that I was useless in an argument because I saw so much of the grey areas, and had too much empathy with other people to fight with them. But I wasn't a typical teenager.

James and his friends were talking over the worth in betting how many first years had fallen in the lake this year, when the door opened and in strode Hagrid, followed by a trail of first years, none of whom seemed wetter than usual, but who were looking around the Great Hall fearfully. A couple pointed at the ceiling, enchanted to look like the sky. I too looked up at it. Summer was late to end this year and today had been very clear. The sky outside was still bright, a brilliant blaze of orange and pink lit up the west side, dusk gently approaching from the east.

I watched the sorting with trepidation. No one from the family was starting this year, but my best friend Gillian Bowen's little sister Liz was among the new students standing in front of the hat. Professor Longleaf, the deputy headmaster, head of Ravenclaw and Transfiguration professor started calling the names

"Achmet, Zoe" a tiny dark haired girl sat under the hat for a minute

"Hufflepuff" the hat shouted. A cheer rose from the Hufflepuff table and little Zoe ran across to her new housemates.

"Allderton, Richard" I looked at one of the boys in my year in surprised.

"Edward" I called down the table "Is that your brother?" "Yes, that's Dickon. Definite Slytherin. Sneaky as the day is long"

I nodded slowly. Typical Gryfindor attitude towards Slytherin. This was going to be an interesting hat duly sent little Dickon off to Slytherin.

"Bowen, Elizabeth" The hat had barely touched her head before she was sent to the Gyffindor table amid roars of approval from the house. Gillian looked very relieved. I gathered from her face that there would have been hell to pay if little Liz had ended up else where. The rest of the sorting continued in much the same fashion as it had in the past, and wasn't over half as quickly as it should have been if you judged by the chorus of rumbling stomachs that surrounded me. As the last first year (Woodward, Anna) scrambled off to Ravenclaw, I looked up to McGonagall to see if she'd make her announcements now, or after dinner. Evendentially she opted to give us the bad news on full stomachs, because food appeared on our plates straight away. Perhaps she thought we'd be less likely to riot. I was unconvinced.

As I ate, I listened to the conversations around me, occasionally taking part. Gillian nudged me after a few minutes to make sure I was all right I was so quiet. Once I made sure no one was listening I told her quickly that I'd had a letter from McGonagall that had given me a lot to think about. She was starting to quiz me when Albus interrupted.

"Rose any idea who the new professor is?" He asked a fork full of mash halfway to his mouth. "I don't see anyone missing do you? I looked up at the high dais, looking over the teachers. Seated between Professor Longbottom and Hagrid was a young witch in a beautiful set of green robes. She was having an animated discussion with both of them, and laughed as I watched at something Hagrid had said. She was goodlooking, with long red hair, and a pair of dark sparkling eyes set in a even featured pale face. Her small mouth was smiling as they argued, and her dark eyebrows lifted in amusement. I did a quick count of staff.

"No one is gone. All present and correct plus one. I wonder who she is?" A murmer went down the table at my reply.

"Ministry?" James asked

"Doubt it. She's too young"

"Quidditch?" Albus asked

"Hardly!"

"Wife?"

"Whose?"
"Hagrids, perhaps."

"No, Longbottoms" James said straight faced

"Don't be silly, he married Hannah last summer. James you were there!"

"I was? I don't remember that."

"We caught you snogging Jenny Grimesby!"

"Oh. Ok. I have a vague memory of that. I think."

"Oh I know. She's married Filch!"

"Merlin! I think Gillian's right!"

"God, don't say things like that. They might be true!"

"New subject?"

"What? There was nothing new on the book list."

"I dunno. Sex Ed?" Albus replied somewhat hopefully.

The guessing game continued, the questions and answers getting wilder as it went on. I had a suspicion that the new witch was something to do with the new setup. McGonagall finally put an end to our discussion as she stood up and the room went quiet.

"Welcome all to another year at Hogwarts. I trust you all enjoyed your summer, and are now ready to buckle down. Just a few notes. First would all students please note that the Forbidden Forest is strictly out of bounds, Mr Filch would also like me to remind you that all Weasley Wizarding Weezes products are banned. Also please remember not to use magic in the corridors." Her eye lingered on all the Weasley relations at the various tables.

"I have one introduction to make. I would like you all to welcome Professor Howard." The young witch stood and bowed with a flourish to the applause

"Professor Howard will be taking Guidance Councelling for the upper years, as well as helping Hagrid with Care of Magical Creatures, and teaching a new subject I have introduced, which we're calling Understanding and Intergrating. It will be compulsory for all years, and you will hear more about it during your first lesson. She will also be working closely with me and the 6th years on a new project." There was an expectant silence. The calm before the storm. I braced myself for the riot.

"This year we are bringing in a new system for 6th years. In the hope to encourage Inter House Unity all 6ths years will now live together in The South Tower." There was a stunned silence followed by uproar at the headmistresses pronouncement. I sat back and waited for general mahem. There was nothing I could do to stop it. I could see, over James shoulder, Louis and his fellow 6th years arguing furiously. I watched with interest, wanting to see the Slytherins responce to the news. Theirs would be the most extreme. Louis was speaking quickly, but quietly, gesturing rapidly in a very gallic way, which must be from Aunt Fleur. A blonde girl tried to interrupt, but he waved a hand at her, and she shut up. Louis was one of the prefects for Slytherin, on the quidditch team, was consistantly high in the class, pulled amazing pranks and was a general good laugh. As such he was at the foremost of the Slytherin 6th years and was respected by his peers. Malfoy was nodding along to whatever Louis was saying thoughfully. The blonde girl looked annoyed but nodded too. The others surprisingly, seemed to calm down and shut up. At our table was Albus was trying to calm our lot down. Good luck to him with that. Bulls in china shops would have more hope. McGonagall finally called for silence.

"Your house alligences will still stand. You will still eat with your house, lose and gain points for your house, still play for your house etc. I would like all 6th years to remain here. The rest of you, off to bed. The prefects will show you to your houses first years. I hope you all have an excellent year."

The room emptied in a few quick minutes. Albus was having a conversation one of his friends, David, but they were talking so quickly and over each other that all I managed to catch was something about the Hufflepuffs. I looked around at the remaining 44 students. They were all looking angry or confused. McGonagall and the new Professor Howard were coming down from the dais. McGonagall managed to shut the entire room up by clearing her throat.

"I know this is new, and something that may take a while to used to, but I expect every single one of you to behave. If you have any problems talk to your prefects or Professor Howard. She will be acting as head of 6th year. She will take you along to The South Tower now and explain further. Good luck." She gave a curt nod, turned on her heel and strode from The Great Hall, back ramrod straight. Professor Howard came forward, smiling with genuine amusement.
"Hello all. I'm not going to try and talk to you here. I'll lose my voice trying to make myself heard" She laughed, and then frowned when no one smiled back. "Oh cheer up it's not the end of the world! Come on then, I'll talk to you in the common rooms."

She smiled again and led the way out of the hall. We followed, moving in our house groups. Gillian fell into step beside me.

"Is this what McGonagall wrote to you about? Pretty drastic isn't it?"

"Just a little bit. I guess everything else has been tried though. And I do see her point."

"Mmmmn so do I. Plus there's a couple of dishy Ravenclaws I wouldn't mind unifying with if you get my drift, not to mention your cousin Louis. Swit swoo!" She laughed, tossing she dark brown hair from her eyes and dodging a half hearted punch from me. We stopped at a painting of a woman in full armour, sitting on a rearing horse. Only her head was uncovered, with long blonde hair curling down her back and a naked long sword in her right hand.

"Password?"

"Fraternity" answer Professor Howard.

She led us though the passage behind the picture and into a large hexagon shaped room with high ceilings. It was painted a neutral stony cream with the house banners hanging on four walls, and the Hogwarts crest on the 5th above the fire place. There were chairs, and sofas scattered around the place, all covered in a mix of different house colours, library shelves on the fireplace wall, and doors and stairways on the others. Professor Howard gestured towards the chairs and sat herself on a navy arm chair trimmed in red. She looked over us as we sat, all near her. Gillian sat into a yellow chair trimmed with blue and Albus took one arm, and I the other. The rest of the year had taken much of the same formation, sitting as many on a piece of furniture as would fit.

Professor Howard smiled as we settled. She looked very young to me. The eyes that I thought were brown from far away, turned out to be navy and a smattering of freckles covered her nose.

"Right I know you must all be bursting with questions, and I know I need to introduce myself properly, but all that can wait until tomorrow. I have you for the first two classes tomorrow, during which we will go over everything. For now I will give you the layout of the tower, and your dorm arrangments. The door through which we came is the one on the Ravenclaw wall, boys dorms are up the stairs on the Gryffindor wall, girls on the Hufflepuff. The double doors on the Slytherin wall lead to the private courtyard, the stairs above to my quarters. Four to each dormitary, one from each house in most cases. Your room assinments are on the doors of the rooms. Unless you have a serious reason, requests to move dorms are falling on deaf ears. The stair cases in here are not sensitive to gender, so boys don't have to worry about flying down a staircase, and I don't mind people being in the wrong dorms during the day, but I don't want to see anyone taking advantage of this. I'm going to treat you like responsible young adults, and I expect you to behave as such. If you have an immediate problem, you can knock on my door. I'd seriously think hard about how much of an emergancy it is after 10 in the evening though. I need my beauty sleep. Unless you're having a party. I like parties. There are more rules and things that I need to go through, but that's enough for right now. Off to bed with you. And please don't start fighting until tomorrow if you must at all."

She stood, and gathering her green robes around her, smiled and left.

R+R please my lovelies :P