Chapter 16: First Day - part 1
2nd September 1991, Hogwarts
I woke up a few hours before the start of breakfast and did my usual meditation to increase my already immense reserves of magic. After the years, it became my daily routine, and I love the feeling of getting stronger. And I should capitalize on the rich amount of ambient magic everywhere in Hogwarts.
After my meditation session, I went to the bathroom to take a shower. I can clean myself with the use of magic, but I like the feeling of warm running water on my skin. I then dried myself and cleaned my teeth with magic. After I tied most of my hair, which I have loosened before I went to sleep yesterday, back into the long braid, I got out of the bathroom
Daphne and Tracey were already awake. I noticed that Daphne has an even frostier expression than yesterday. She probably isn't a morning person.
I quickly changed myself into my uniform and let Woody who was sleeping on top of my four-poster bed climb down onto my shoulder. The pair of witches noticed him and Tracey asked. "What's that? Some kind of magical plant?"
"No. He is a Bowtruckle, a kind of rare magical beast. His name is Woody." I replied to her.
Tracey chuckled slightly. "Fitting name. What does he eat? Soil?"
"Insects."
"Good. We don't have to worry about having mosquitoes and other annoying bugs in our room then." She nodded and said, talking as if Woody was some sort of insect repellent.
I took a certain book from my suitcase and went out, but when I was out of the dorm, I had to stop and sigh in annoyance because of a group of fools standing before me and blocking my way. It was Malfoy, his two gorillas, and some older Slytherins.
After Malfoy's cliche young master monologue, the group pointed their wands at me and started firing a lot of Hexes and Jinxes at me.
I cast an overcharged Shield Charm that easily blocked all their spells. Now then, what should I do with them? I can't be too excessive, as I don't want to get summoned to the Headmaster's office right on the second day I am here. And I also don't want to be constantly bothered by them so I can't go too easy on them.
Well, let's do something they will remember. With my Magikinesis, I ripped their wands from their hands and levitated them to the ceiling of the common room, and left them hanging there with the help of Sticking Charms. I then put my wand back in my robes and rolled up my sleeves.
My small hands formed into tight fists while I looked at the dumbfounded group before me that looked at their wands hanging on the ceiling with lost expressions. It's time to beat some unruly snakes.
...
A few seconds later.
I stood over a heap of beaten, bruised, and weeping snakes. A few teeth were lying on the ground around us. I may look like a human, but I am a Demon and my physical strength and agility is really no joke. And that's without Agony enhancing my body. With Agony's help, I turn into a monster that can easily throw cars around as if they were stuffed toys. Furthermore, my new body had memories of Hand-to-hand combat that I have trained while I and Agony have been hunting for some snacks at night during the years. So the group of pampered snakes stood no chance against me.
I didn't have to worry about being reported to the Professors. It was a rule in the Slytherin that no one reports anyone during power struggles and conflicts if things don't go too far. That means, that everything until the level of broken bones is ok.
Some Slytherins came down into the common room because of the commotion, but smartly decided to mind their own business at the sight of me and my work. I scanned all the snakes currently present with my cold emotionless eyes and calmly went out of the common room with my head held high. I am curious if someone will try to attack me again.
Probably yes. But next time they will most likely try to get me from the back.
I traveled through the dungeons lighted by flaming torches with a destination in mind. I didn't head to Great Hall, I wanted to visit the Hogwarts kitchens first. The kitchen wasn't difficult to find as it was straight under the Great Hall so I soon stood before a brightly lit big painting of a bowl of fruit. I tickled the green pear on the painting and with a giggling sound, the pear changed into a large green door handle. I entered the kitchen and was immediately greeted by many pairs of large eyes.
The Hogwarts Kitchen was a large high-ceiling room. There were five large tables, placed in the same way as the ones in the Great Hall above. Along the walls were stoves, shelves with the dishes, and mounds of brass pots and pans. At the end of the kitchen was a great brick fireplace.
There were at least a hundred house-elves clothed in tea towels stamped with a Hogwarts crest that they had tied like a toga on their little bodies. They were preparing today's breakfast and there was already some prepared food on the tables.
I took out the book from my robes and gave it to the little elves. It was a cookbook with recipes of popular European cuisine. I 'borrowed' it from a bookstore close to my orphanage before the start of school. I am starting to get tired of the English cuisine and the Hogwarts house-elves are great cooks, so they shouldn't have a problem with cooking something else.
The elves were very grateful to me, and it was apparently a long time since they got a new recipe book, and were thrilled to try cooking something else.
I left the kitchen with a promise from the house-elves that they will make me a lot of French crepes for breakfast and pockets full of chocolate.
I arrived at the Great Hall and seated myself at, from now on, my seat at the end of the Slytherin table. I looked around the hall. It was early, but there were already a few people sitting at all the tables other than the Gryffindor table, that only had two students, Hermione who was reading some book, and Percey Weasley, a stuck up Prefect.
Soon, a big plate full of French crepes with strawberries, whipped cream, and chocolate toppings appeared on the table before me and I happily dig in.
When I was halfway through my meal, two people sat opposite me. "I saw you eat yesterday at the dinner but you really eat a lot." Said Tracey.
I looked at them with a little skepticism. "Are you two sure that you want to sit with me? I am a Muggle-born." Sure, Tracey said that she wants us to be friends and Daphne didn't voice out that she was against it. But, I thought that they would mostly ignore me outside of our room. Do they not care about their reputation in Slytherin?
Daphne looked at me "It doesn't matter. We are already roommates and the other Slytherins can think what they want. My family is one of the leaders of the Grey Faction in the Wizengamot and most of the Slytherins are from the Dark Faction, so it will be hard to make friends or allies anyway. Sigh, this is also one of the reasons why I wanted to be a Ravenclaw."
"Right, sorry Daphne. I know that it's my fault that you went to Slytherin. You didn't want to leave me alone in this den of snakes. And be honest, you just can't live without me." Exclaimed Tracey dramatically and hugged the blond next to her. Daphne still has the icy mask on her face, but I could see her lips twitching. What good friends.
Well, my and Agony's relationship is still better. We are a definition of inseparable friends. Quite literally. She would agree with me if her consciousness wasn't currently in my mindscape doing whatever she does there.
"And as a Half-blood, I too am basically at the bottom of the Slytherin hierarchy." Said then Tracey, shrugging her shoulders. "You also seem like an interesting person to be around with."
"Oh, I heard that you beat a bunch of bullies in the common room and that most of them had to go to the infirmary. Is that true?" Tracey asked me with curious eyes.
"They asked for it, quite rudely at that. So I replied to them in kind." I answered her before putting the last crepe in my mouth. Should I ask for more?
"Awesome." The brunette had stars in her eyes while the blond next to her murmured something about me being a brute and that she will have to do something about my manners.
"I have another question." Said Tracey. "Is that your natural hair color? I have never seen someone with literally red hair. And why do you have that weird hairstyle?"
I give her a stink eye. "I like my hairstyle. And yes. This is my natural hair color."
Suddenly, both of them looked behind me and I could feel someone approaching us and stopping behind my back. I turned around and behind me stood the local Dungeon Master and Prince of melodrama himself. My Head of House, Professor Snape.
"Here are your timetables." He said dryly and handed us three parchments and I could feel a slight mental probe that disappeared immediately after it touched my first mind shield. Professor Snape didn't show any reaction on his sallow face and walked away to hand down the rest of the timetables.
Peering into students' minds using Legilimency. What a bad hobby.
I looked at the timetable. We had a Double Herbology with the Hufflepuffs, then Charms with the Ravenclaws, and after the lunch break, we had Transfiguration with the Gryffindors, and then was a free period. I didn't bring any books and equipment for the classes with me, and I didn't feel like going back to the dungeons again. So, with a quick Accio Charm, I summoned my simple black backpack and all the things I needed for the day.
After the breakfast, Prefect Gemma Farley escorted all of us first-years to the Hogwarts greenhouses behind the castle where we had Double Herbology with Hufflepuffs. Along the way, Draco and his gang were keeping their distance from me. I didn't see any bruises on them, so they should have been at the infirmary before breakfast.
Professor Sprout was a squat little witch with short grey wavy hair and a big smile on her face. Her clothes were full of patches and covered in dirt. She was nice even to us, snakes, but it could be seen that she favored her little Puffs.
The first lesson was focused on recognizing the various plants and fungi in the greenhouses and the Hogwarts grounds with the help of our books. We had to make pairs. Daphne and Tracey formed one and the Puffs formed theirs among themselves so I was left paired with Pansy Parkinson, a member of Draco's Gang. She was a tall girl with brown eyes, tanned skin, and dark brown hair in mikado. She was sneering at me but didn't dare to meet my eyes.
As an Apothecary, I could easily tame plants, and the plants themselves seemed to like me, so I had no problem working with the magical plants. I don't know why, but the deadlier and more dangerous the plants were, the more they liked me. During the lesson, I was kidnapped two times by the plants so that they could snuggle with me. One time it was the Devil's Snare and the second time it was the Venomous Tentacula.
I didn't defend myself against the plants and let myself be captured by them as I didn't feel any malicious intent from them. And the others' reactions were funny.
Professor Sprout was amazed and hyped up by my talent for Herbology, so I can easily say that I became one of her favorite students. She even gave me a small Devil's Snare sapling in a flower pot. I named the little sapling Hana. Woody quickly tried to make friends with her, but with little success.
I really don't get the common sense of magical people. Who gives an eleven-year-old girl a deadly dangerous magical plant?
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