As they entered the great hall they noticed straight away that instead of the usual four house tables, there was five. They all looked at each other and shrugged their shoulders. Professor Flitwick was standing at the door with a smile on his face.

"Years two to seven sit at your regular house tables. Year Eight your table is over there to the right. Please make your way to your respected tables."

"Well that answers that question." Harry stated.

"Thanks captain obvious. Never would have known that wanker." Draco retorted.

"Listen mate; you can fuck right off." Harry punched him in the arm. Hermione rolled her eyes and looked at Blaise.

"If this is what we have to deal with this all year then I may very well cry by the end of tomorrow." Commented Blaise.

"I've dealt with it for the last few weeks. I haven't had a breakdown yet, but it's defiantly coming. I'm just glad they didn't realize how well they got on before this year or we would all be in trouble."

Hermione mentioned as they all walked over to the table. Hermione and Blaise took the seats next to each other so they didn't have to deal with Harry and Draco who glared at their respective best friends as they sat next to each other.

"Wish the food would hurry up, I'm hungry."

"Merlin Potter. Do you do anything but complain?" Spat Draco.

"Well if someone didn't eat all the food of the trolley, I wouldn't be hungry. Instead someone got it all before I had a chance."

"I paid for it! Of course I deserved to eat it!"

"But you brought it all before anyone else had a chance to even have a look in!"

"I was hungry! I brought it all so I wouldn't be complaining like you are now!"

"Mate; you could of at least shared."

"Mate; I don't share anything."

"Mate; you should learn to..."

"BOYS!" Harry and Draco's heads snapped towards Hermione as she snapped at them to stop their bickering. "Jesus, both of you, you're acting like children! You should both be waiting out the front with the other first years with the way you're acting!"

"Sorry 'Mione" Harry at least had the audacity to look sheepish. "But he started it by eating all the food on the train!"

Hermione couldn't hold back the sigh that escaped as she dropped her head to the table. Blaise patted her on the back comforting her. He chuckled as he did so. Watching the two boys across from him was defiantly an eye opening experience.

Before anyone could say anymore Professor Flitwick walked the first years down the middle of the hall. As the four watched on, they noticed how little they looked.

"Did we look that small and scared when we were first years?" Harry whispered to the boy next to him.

"Well you were a scrawny little kid that's for sure." Draco looked Harry up and down. "Not much has really changed since then I guess." Draco dodged the flying elbow to the ribs that came. Harry's stomach was grumbling as the sorting continued. He wasn't even paying attention to who was going where anymore, he just wanted food.

Professor McGonagall stood and addressed everyone.

"Welcome back to the old students, and welcome to the new ones. This year is a year for all four houses to unite and put the horrors of the last year behind us. I understand that will be difficult to do but I do want us all to try.

"I'm not, under any circumstances telling you to get over it, but to move forward and form friendships that you wouldn't normally form." As she said this, she glanced over to Harry and Draco sitting next to each other.

"We do have mind healers constantly available to those who wish to speak to someone about what happened and they are they to help you. If you feel you need the assistance, please take up on their offer to help. The usual announcements that the forbidden forest is out of bounds and anyone caught will be given detention. Anyone caught out of their common rooms after curfew will also be given a detention. Eighth years, please stay behind after the feast to discuss a few issues. For now, let the feast begin."

"Finally!" harry cried as he dug into everything he could reach. Draco looked on with a look of disgust on his face as he grabbed a few things for himself. He laughed outright at the look on Blaise's face.

"Where are your manors gone Harry?" Hermione Chastised. Even she looked slightly mortified at the lack of tack Harry was showing.

Harry just shrugged and continued eating whilst trying to pay attention to the conversations going on around him. Once everyone had their fill of food Professor McGonagall once again stood.

"If the prefect could show the first years where to go, the heads of houses will be in the common room shortly to introduce themselves and explain this year's expectations in more depth."

The chairs scraped along the floor as everyone but the eighth years moved to head to the common room and dorms. Once the hall had emptied McGonagall acknowledged those left in the hall.

"Welcome back. Things are different this year for obvious reasons. I want you all to speak to the mind healers at least once please after the horrors of the last year. I understand that it's not easy and I'm not saying you have to move on, especially since you were all in the thick of the war in one way or another. Now because you are a returning year and the dorms can't cater to another year because there is no room for you. So we created another tower, which you will all be sharing because there's not that many of you. Instead of four to a room, there will only be two. Any questions so far?"

"Do we get to pick who we share a room with?" Dean Thomas perked up.

McGonagall shook her head.

"That has already been decided by it was done so we have kept a lot of you with your friends. Curfew for eighth years is 11pm on school nights, midnight on the weekend. You are allowed to leave the school as you see fit no permission needed. As long as you are back by curfew there will be no issues. You will only get one chance at these privileges, but take advantage and they will be taken away. There will be no drinking on school nights, I can't stop you from doing it on the weekend, but turn up to class and everyone will lose that privilege. You are all of age. I expect you to be responsible. Let's head up to the common room so you can find your beds as it is getting late and you have classes starting tomorrow." With that she turned on her heel and walked away. Everyone jumped up and there was a lot of excited chatter about their privileges and the changes of the year.

As they walked towards the portrait with the knights McGonagall said the password 'interhouse' they all walked in. What they saw was a common room, with tables and chairs for studying. Chairs in front of the fire place, including a sofa. The walls where painted so that one wall was a house colour, intertwining the four houses into one common place. The chairs and sofa where a soft brown material and looked extremely squishy.

There was stairs leading up to what Harry assumed was the dorms. He would admit that he was slightly nervous about who he would be sharing with. As he glanced around he noticed a notice on the notice board which he could only assume was the list of who was sharing with whom.

He meandered his way over to have a look and sure enough it was. He looked down until he found his name next to his ex-nemesis turned friend. He groaned as he realized he would be stuck with the prat all year.

He could live with that right? He knew the next year was going to be awkward due to the attraction he felt for Draco and being in such close quarters with him, he had no-where to escape to if he needed to get away. He was going to have to find somewhere to run to when he needed to think. Merlin knew he was going to need it. He trudged upstairs to find his room and flopped on his bed. He realized it was the first day of classes tomorrow and it wasn't until he was laying down he realized just how tired he was.

He changed into his sleepwear, bid Hermione a goodnight and headed to bed. Hopefully this year was a little easier, but somehow he knew it wasn't going to be. And it was only the beginning.