I know this is a week or so late, and I'm sorry about that. I was a little busy.

Disclaimer: I do not own HoA, or the slight reference to Harry Potter.

Everyone watched in shock as their head, Victor, shouted at them as he stormed from the house, his stony face looking cross.

"My gosh," muttered Jerome just as Mara said, "That was sudden."

"What," Victor repeated, coming closer, "is going on here?"

Everyone's attention was not on Victor, though, but on what was behind him.

"What-what are you looking at?" Turning around, Victor had enough time to see the door swinging before it closed with a bang.

After a long silence, Mick spoke first. "Well, that's just great," he said sarcastically. "Why does there always have to be an interruption right before something good happens?"

"Mick," said Fabian, "I think we have more pressing matters to deal with."

"Are you talking about the fact that the only way into the house just closed," asked Mara, "or the fact that Victor's standing here glaring at us?"

Everyone quickly gathered their wits, turning to look at their angry head of house.

"Um," said Nina weakly, "hi?"

"What is going on out here?" Victor repeated himself once again, leering at his students.

"Uh," Alfie coughed, "what are you doing here? We thought you were out of the house?"

"I was," said Victor, and his students looked at him, confused. What was that weird tone in his voice? It sounded suspicious… "I entered the house through the back."

"My gosh," Patricia groaned just as Nina slapped her palm to her forehead.

"You mean the back door was open?" Nina whispered breathlessly. "All this time?"

Amber didn't give Victor time to answer, instead inquiring curiously, "What were you doing out of the house, Victor?"

Victor glared at her. "None of your business."

"Perhaps Vicky's got himself a girlfriend?" Jerome muttered under his breath, causing the nearest people, Alfie, Amber, and Mara, to laugh.

"That's ridiculous," Alfie whispered back. "Seeing as he's so old."

Jerome grinned at his friend, chuckling along with him.

Victor, unaware of the exchange but seeing Jerome and Alfie laugh (which wasn't a good thing, he knew), glared at them. His voice gruff, he answered Nina's question. "Yes, Miss Martin," he drawled. "All this time."

"Why don't we go back inside?" suggested Eddie. "I'd like to put away all my stuff and change out of these clothes, if you don't mind."

As everyone murmured agreement, Victor narrowed his eyes at the American boy. "I don't believe we've met yet, Mr…?"

"Miller," Eddie replied, "and no, we haven't. I'm the new student in Anubis."

"Why do you even need to know who he is right now, anyway?" said Jerome, a little too loudly. "A bit odd, don't you think?"

Victor turned his hawk like eyes on Jerome. "I need to know, Mr. Clarke, as he is now my…responsibility." He turned back to Eddie. "Mr. Miller, you were saying about going back in the house?"

"Yes, sir."

Mara nudged Eddie slightly. "You don't need to call him sir unless you're in trouble," she said quietly. "Everyone, even me, calls him Victor."

Eddie raised his eyebrows, but said nothing. Victor continued to speak.

"Unfortunately, the back door is locked," he sneered. "Only a fool would leave it unlocked, especially with the break-in that happened last year." Jerome winced. "The only way to unlock it is from the inside, and I left my keys in the house. Judging by your reactions, I will be unable to get them. May I ask why?"

"No, you may not," muttered Jerome, who had a strong dislike for the old man ever since he'd been dumped here.

Nina answered anyway.

"Well, Victor-I mean-we can't-"

"The door handle was pulled off," said Fabian lamely, cutting Nina off.

Victor raised an eyebrow. "Really? By whom?"

"Me, sir," said Mick in a barely audible voice. He looked at Victor cautiously. "The door wouldn't open, so I pulled on the handle hard, and I guess I was too strong…it broke."

Observing his new housemates quietly, Eddie privately thought that his new friends were not very good when met with confrontation. If only he knew.

"Lovely," said Victor coldly. "That'll be a detention for you once we get out of this mess. Unfortunately," he continued, "we don't have school today-" a small hiss of 'Unfortunately? Really?' came from Jerome, but Victor paid him no mind, instead continuing, "-so it is unlikely we will be able to get into it. Thanks to all of your foolishness, we will-for now-be staying out here."

"Wow," Eddie commented as Victor marched away, grumbling, "he reminds me of Snape a lot."

"Great," Patricia rolled her eyes. "Another American whose only connection to the UK is Harry Potter."

"I know, right?" Nina replied, ignoring Patricia's outburst. "It's kind of strange to think of him hating me that much, though."

"You?" teased Eddie as Patricia frowned, "What makes you Harry Potter?"

"Well," said Nina quietly, "first of all, my parents died in a car crash, just like Harry's family told him his parents did. Though, I doubt they were actually killed by a dark lord." Nina chuckled darkly, earning herself a concerned look from Fabian. "Second…I…um…" Nina blushed. "I don't know."

"It's because you're our savior, Neens," said Amber knowingly, but turned pink as she was rewarded with glares from her fellow Sibunas and curious looks from Mara, Mick, and Eddie. She waved her hand in front of her face. "Nothing going on here. Just me being me!"

"You should see the principal," said Nina so to deflect attention from Amber, "he kind of reminds me of Fudge, just a little."

Eddie looked at Nina, an odd expression on his face. "Fudge was a tool," said Eddie. "Is the principal like this?"

"I'm not to sure about being a tool, exactly, but he's not always right."

"If he's like Fudge," agreed Eddie. Nina observed him carefully. The odd look seemed to have passed from his face, but his eyes held an emotion she couldn't identify.

"Nina!" Hesitantly, the American girl turned away. She glanced at Amber. "What?"

"I'm bored," she complained, "just because Victor's here doesn't mean we can't play anything, right?"

Nina sighed. "I guess not. What do you suggest?"

Amber pursed her lips. "Um…I don't know. Any suggestions?"

"I have one," said Eddie. "Let's play truth or dare." He turned to his left, ignoring the incredulous looks. "Patricia, truth or dare?"

Patricia looked at Eddie with a furrowed brow. "Um, dare, I guess-"

"Great," Eddie interrupted. "I dare you to come talk with me. Privately."

Everyone watched in confusion and shock as Eddie quickly led Patricia away, Patricia throwing a bewildered look over her shoulder.

"Oh!" Amber suddenly squealed, causing everyone to wince. They turned to her.

"What, Amber?" asked Fabian tiredly. He ran a had through his hair, looking at his blonde friend with a raised eyebrow.

She didn't answer, instead looking at Nina. "Hey, Neens! Can you remind me to take you shopping when all of this is over?"

Nina was alarmed. "What? Why?"

"Because I need scrapbook paper," Amber said in a 'duh' voice, giving Nina look. "What color do you think Eddie and Patricia would like more? Green or purple?"

"Um-"

"And the couple name? Do you think Peddie would do? Or what about Edtricia? No that sounds weird…"

Amber continued to ramble off to Nina, much to everyone else's amusement.

"I wonder what Eddie's talking to Patricia about," said Alfie, looking over at the two. They stood off in the distance, talking quietly.

"Yeah," said Mick, "so do I."

"Really?" Mara raised her eyebrow at them. "You honestly don't know?"

"Well…" Mick looked embarrassed at being spoken to like this by his girlfriend. He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "Not really."

Mara scoffed when the other three boys didn't give an answer. "Right, okay." Turning around, Mara left to join Nina and Amber, leaving the boys to their thoughts.

Expect the next chapter very soon!

~D