The day finally came. I stood in the platform, hugging Narcissa and Lucius, along with Draco. My chest was full of my belongings, and I had worn the most comfortable outfit I had for the trip. Inside, I dreaded leaving my new family, but I knew it wasn't for long, and I had Draco with me. I just wished I was in his same house.

"Don't forget to owl us when you get to Hogwarts, alright?" Narcissa reminded us, giving us one last hug. "Of course, mother," Draco responded with a smile. "And Alya, whenever you need anything, don't forget to ask." I nodded, and went inside the train with Draco.

He lead me to an empty compartment and we sat down aside each other while his friends arrived. I had my hands in fists over my lap, curling the ends of my black skirt. I was nervous to meet the rest of his friends. I had passed time with Crabbe and Goyle once or twice whenever they came over in Christmas, but I had never met Blaise Zabini or Pansy Parkinson before. What if they hated me?

After a while, Crabbe and Goyle joined us, then the train started moving. We started chatting about anything and everything, and it was all very comfortable. "Gaunt, I heard from someone... That you won't get sorted," Goyle said with a whisper, leaning in close to me. "Shut your nonsense, Goyle. Of course she'll get sorted!" Draco retorted, crossing his arms.

"I heard it, too," Crabbe joined in, "I heard my parents speaking about it. Apparently the parent council had a reunion about it." I was confused now. Why wasn't I being sorted? "Yes, apparently it is unfair for you and the other boy," "Filius," I rapidly corrected Goyle. "Yeah, Filius-- And that you'll most likely get sorted next year. With the new first years."

"This is unacceptable! Father will hear about this, so don't worry, Alya." "It's rather more unnecessary than unacceptable. I'm fine with being sorted today, and I imagine so does Filius. Why all the extra patience?" I furrowed my brow. Something fishy was sure going on.

"I don't know, but I'll owl dad just in case." We sat chatting for a little while afterwards, until a girl peeked her head inside in a hurry. She had black hair and dark eyes with pale skin. "Malfoy! Crabbe! Goyle! The prefects are having a meeting about the House Cup in the big cart. Hurry!" I understood she must've been Pansy Parkinson.

Crabbe and Goyle stood immediately, with Pansy moving aside to let them pass. "Oi! Wait for me, you dummies!" Draco exclaimed, getting up quickly. I didn't know if I had to go with them. I don't really belong to a house. "Come on, Alya," Draco said, and I went behind him until Pansy stopped us.

"Malfoy, she's houseless. She can't come." He looked at me with pity, but I smiled at him and nodded. "It's okay. I'll wait for you guys here." I then sat back down, but left the sliding door open. I took out my notebook and started writing and scribbling on it. I liked to write poetry or songs sometimes. It was entertaining.

I was interrupted by a trio walking in and standing at the sliding door. I looked at them, asking, "Can I help you with something?" The only boy in the trio crossed his arms and leaned against the frame in silence. One of the girls, who was in the middle, walked towards me and flicked my forehead.

I pulled back, rubbing a hand over the area. "What's wrong with you?" I asked, threatened. "What's wrong?! You dare ask what's wrong?!" The girl asked as the second girl in the back adjusted her blue tie. They were already changed into their robes, and according to their colors, were Ravenclaws.

"You're Alya Gaunt," the second girl walked closer, "The girl who got in by second semester." "Yeah, so?" I hated that I was alone. I usually didn't stand up by myself alone. Filius would be here, or in this case, Draco. However, I had to manage. "So? We had to study hard our last semester." "You were supposed to enter our second year into first year," the first girl added. "It's not fair that you and the other guy are here," the boy spoke.

"It's not my fault. I studied at home while you studied at Hogwarts. It seems fair to me," I answered. "It isn't, really. It never is," the first girl said. "You better watch your back, Gaunt. Our house is coming for you," the second girl threatened. "To make sure you fail. I'm pretty sure you're not even that smart. You're just lucky." The boy said, spitting at my feet as they all walked out.

I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding. My first day hasn't started yet and I already have bullies. Just as they left, Draco came back and looked at them with a glare. "What were they doing here?" He asked as he sat down in front of me. "Oh, uh," I took my notebook from my side, putting it in my handbag, "They asked if the seats were available."

After a while, I changed into my robes, then the train arrived. I got down, following Draco to the carriages, when Filius called me from aside a very large man. I ran to him and hugged him. "Fil!" "Aly!" "Come on, you two. Dumbledore is waiting for you," the large man said, leading the way for us. Filius took my gloved hand as we walked, smiling along the way.

We made it to the top of a staircase, where the tall man, known as Hagrid, told us to wait. Soon after, Severus Snape showed up in his black robes and explained what was going to happen tonight. We were going to be introduced by Dumbledore and would remain houseless until second year. I was going to sleep in the last floor of the girl's dormitory in the Slytherin house, while Filius was going to be in the Gryffindor tower. Once we understood, we were called by Dumbledore, who introduced us and told us we could sit anywhere we wanted.

I caught sight of Draco smiling in a table, and I tugged at Filius' arm, slightly nodding towards the Slytherin table. He shrugged his shoulders and walked with me towards them, the house applauding with honor as everyone else watched us.

Filius sat in the empty space in front of a slightly tan boy with dark eyes. I was going to sit aside Pansy, whom was at Draco's side, until the later asked her to move. "Why should I? She can sit aside me," Pansy retorted. "Because I say so. Now move." The girl huffed and moved aside, letting me sit aside her. "Thank you, Pansy," I said with a smile. Her frown turned up a little. "Ugh, it's no problem. You're so nice it hurts." "Um... Thanks?" We ate and chatted for a while, then went to our dorms.

The slytherin common room and it's dormitories were underwater, except for the room I was in, oddly enough. I was in the top of the girl's dormitory tower, which only had one bed. So, the room was all mine. I had a window which looked over the lake as well. My trunk had been brought up to the room, so I tidied up all my things and went fast asleep.

The next morning, I awoke and got my things to shower with the rest of the girls. It was early and cold, and being one of the first people to get in the showers, I enjoyed the hot water as the drops danced over my skin. I dressed, then, in my Hogwarts uniform, with a black tie instead of any house colors. I went up to my dorm and styled my hair down, clipping an emerald green hair clip on my left side; a gift I had gotten from Narcissa.

Soon, there was a knock on my door. "Hey Gaunt, it's me, Pansy," she said through the door, "We're waiting up in the common room." "I'll be right there!" I exclaimed, taking one last look on myself before putting on my robe and taking my bag with my things.

The Slytherin common room was a beautiful spacious rooms with a few desks and chairs and sofas all around the room. Everything had a calm gold-and-green aesthetic that merged with the reflection of the lake's water in the transparent ceiling when the light shone through it. It was breathtaking.

Like Pansy had said, she, along with Draco, Crabbe, Goyle and Zabini were sitting on a set of sofas, waiting. "Good morning," I greeted with a small smile. Everyone replied back with a smile, and aokn we headed towards the dining hall. "You've got your timetable, right?" Asked Goyle, and I gave him a nod. "Yes! Right in my bag!" I smiled.

Right when we were to enter the hall, we stumbled upon Filius. "Good morning!" He panted a little, looking behind his shoulder. "Hiding from the fans, Filius?" Pansy asked with a laugh. He chuckled. "I wish. That girl –Granger– has been asking me things and following me all morning." "She's that weird?" I asked as we continued walking inside.

"Super weird," Pansy commented, crossing her arms and taking a seat aside Zabini. "Not to mention she's a mud blood," Draco said, taking a bite of an apple he took before sitting down. I was already familiar with the slang word, but hearing it from Draco was different. It felt wrong when he said it, with such despise.

I had taken some cereal and toasts with marmalade, but because I ate slowly, everyone had finished way before me. "Draco! We've got to get to Dark Arts first!" Pansy exclaimed. "Yeah! We need to get our seats together, unlike last year," Zabini added, crossing his arms. "What happened last year?" Filius asked, drinking the last if his coffee. Goyle cleared his throat, "Two other slytherins started fighting over seats, so Professor Snape moved everyone's seats."

"If we don't go now, we won't get the best ones!" Pansy exclaimed, looking at Draco with a squint, both hands on the table as she stood. "Fine, we'll go once Alya finishes eating." His words felt a bit heavy. I didn't want to slow him down, or anyone by that matter. "It's alright, you guys go on ahead. I'll find my way around," I smiled. "I'll wait for Aly," Filius grinned. "Um, no, go with them. Save me a seat," I smiled at him.

"You sure? Promise not to get lost?" He asked while standing and finding his way out of the bench. "I'm sure, Fil. Just go. I'll see you in a bit." They all soon left together, leaving me at the table. Once I finished eating, I headed to find my class. It was situated in the second floor, but trying to find my way with the moving stairs, I got tremendously lost.

I held my bag to my chest as I walked around, but seemingly no one was in the hall. "Um... Hello?" I called, a little scared of who I might encounter. I sighed. Guess I wasn't making it to DADA today. "Oi!" Someone called from behind me. I turned around slowly, being met face to face with a boy.

His lips were the colour of tangerines, and freckles adorned his pale cheeks, but what caught my attention was his messy red hair. "Are you lost, girlie?" I nodded slowly. "Yes..." Looking him.up and down, his uniform's accents were gold and red, meaning he belonged to the Gryffindor House. He smiled goofily, and said, "I can show you the way. What's your class?"

"D-defense against the dark arts..." He walked a bit closer and took my hand. "You're on the wrong side of the school, love. But no worries! I'll take ya there," his smile was highly contagious, and soon I was walking by his side down the hall, and back to the moving staircases. As we walked along side each other, I could see everyone eyeing us. Mostly Ravenclaws.

"U-um... I didn't ask earlier, but what's your name?" He scratched his red hair and chuckled. "I guess it wasn't noticeable. I'm George Weasley. You must be... Gaunt, aye?" I nodded and repeated his name in my head. "Alya Gaunt. You can call me Alya..." I could swear I had heard his last name somewhere, but I couldn't remember where. "Then call me George, alright? It's easier, then we won't get confused as to which of us you're talking about."

I didn't understand what he was saying, and I guess he noticed my confused expression and began elaborating. He explained of how he was here with his other brothers, and mentioned them briefly to me. As we walked, I began to feel rather comfortable around him. He had a laid back aura, and spoke very peacefully. I liked him. Soon our conversation took turns, and we were talking about our favorite pastries.

"Here we are," he stopped, pointing at a door at the end of the hall. "There's Professor Quirrell's class. And look at that! You're right on time!" He smiled brightly, his hair jumped all over when he moved his head. It was kinda silly. "Thank you, George. I owe you," I returned the smile and waved at him. "See you around, Alya," he said right before turning around and walking down a hallway. From outside, you could hear a lot of talking and ruckus, but once I entered, the Gryffindors all quited down and looked at me.

"Aly~! I saved you a seat~!" Filius waved at me from the second row of seats it the "slytherin side". A girl with frizzy brown hair was standing in front of him, with both hands on his desk. From everyone's description, she must be Harmione Granger. I walked towards him, smiling and my friends as I walked by. "Hello, Filius. Sorry to make you wait-" "And you! You're definitely not a slytherin either!" Harmione blurted out, startling me and making me drop my books.

"Hey, mud blood!" I heard Draco exclaim from his seat as I bent down to pick up my books. "Harmione, you're going too far," I heard another voice join in, the Gryffindor chatter resuming mildly. A hand reached down and picked up my potion's notebook, handing it to me. One look at his face and I immediately knew who he was. Harry Potter, the boy who lived. "T-thanks..." I said, both of us getting up. Harmione was now having a staring contest with Draco.

I put my books in my desk and went up to Draco, putting my hand on his shoulder, pushing him back. "Leave it, Draco. It's fine." "It's not fine! No mud blood will be pushing around a pure blood on my watch!" He exclaimed. Filius sighed, "Look Granger, just leave us be. We're houseless, so we don't belong anywhere, alright? We choose who we get to hang out with. Deal with it." I took hold of Draco's arm as she backed off to her seat with Potter.

Draco laid his silver eyes on me and frowned. "Don't get pushed around by people, Alya. If you do, I'll beat them up," he smiled and went back to his seat. I took mine aside Filius, just in time for the lesson to start.

Professor Quirrell entered the class in a hurry, slightly adjusting his turban. He still had his back to us once he started the class with a greeting. "...Ah! W-we have n-new students, y-y-yes?" He didn't bother to look up at the class yet, looking through his papers instead, until he found the attendance sheet. He examined it closely. "F-F-Filius F-Flint," he stuttered, looking around for him.

Filius raised a lazy hand. "Here," he said, and the professor marked him in his list. He took a bit longer to find my name, which was odd, since it was right below Filius'. "A-A-A-Alya G-G-G... G-Gaunt," he finally called. He seemed to have more trouble with my name than with the rest. "Present," I said with a raise of my hand. He looked at me for a rather long time, making me rather uncomfortable.

He later moved on with his class. He kept on calling at me to answer, which I did, and saw Harmione very pissed off about it. You know, with her hand raised and everything. Once the class was over, I headed out to Potions with the rest, out to the hall. "Guess we know now who's Quirrell's favorite student," Pansy laughed, putting a hand on my shoulder. "It's rather uncomfortable..." I managed to say, with a shy smile.

"Alya doesn't like attention. However, we know who does," Draco glared at Harmione and her friends, whom one of them was oddly familiar. "Hey, Draco," he stopped in his tracks. "Yeah?" "Who's that ginger aside Potter?" I asked, slightly pointing at him. He looked like George. "Ugh, that's Ron Weasley. I told you about them already, Alya. Pureblood family with a soft spot for mud bloods." Oh. Now I remember.

"Are they that bad?" I asked as we continued walking down the hall. They all stared at me for a while. "I-I mean, all the siblings?" "Well, Percy is a know it all no one likes," began Goyle. "Ron," Crabbe motioned at the boy with Potter, "he's a coward. Won't stand up for himself, much less for anyone else." Draco chuckled. "I think the only okay ones are the twins," he said. "Agreed. Fred and George are prankster geniuses! Too bad they're in Gryffindor," Pansy wailed.

"Fred and George are really chill," Filius smiled. "You should talk to them. They'll help you get out of that shell," he laughed. I sheepishly smiled. "No one is stopping you, Alya. You're houseless!" Draco commented, although I got the idea he didn't want me near other houses. "Maybe I will..." I murmured so Filius would stop smiling at me like an idiot.