"First-years, is everyone here?"
I ran a quick glance over the group and, since I had memorised the faces of all my classmates the previous day, I could nod with confidence.
"Yes, Penny -- everyone's present."
"Hmm?"
She looked at me with a thoughtful expression.
"You memorised everyone?"
"Not their names..."
I shook my head.
"...I am no Legilimens, though I do use some of the associated practices. But numbers and faces, yes. So I can say with certainty that no one is missing."
"And you are...?"
"Draco Black."
"...very well."
She gave me a nod.
"I shall do a head-count just to be sure, and then we will head to breakfast. Your timetables will be given out afterwards."
"But why?"
Hermione practically bounced with the question.
"Wouldn't it make more sense to hand them out now, so we could go to breakfast already knowing which books to bring?"
"From second year onwards that is exactly how it works, and after the New Year your timetables will be distributed before breakfast too -- but right now, this is an extra walk through the castle so that you learn the most reliable routes. We will only be escorting you for the first two weeks, after which you will be finding your own way around."
And we were duly counted.
"Draco, if it keeps matching up another couple of times, I shall officially make you the first-year representative."
"Thank you, Miss Clearwater."
"Penelope is fine -- or Penny."
"Very well, Penny."
I smiled at her.
Daphne fell into step behind me, with Hermione beside her. For now I decided to pay neither of them any particular attention -- nor to the fact that Potter had positioned himself fairly close to our group.
Penny then led us all to the Great Hall by the same route she had used to take us from the Hall to the tower the previous evening. At the entrance we crossed paths with Slytherin, but there was no conflict -- they went in first, we followed immediately behind them. We settled at our tables and began to eat. I had not yet managed to visit the kitchens, but fortunately there was no pumpkin juice at breakfast.
Breakfast was proceeding quietly until the Gryffindors came in -- though their prefect seemed to have quite forgotten his responsibilities and simply strolled to his own table without ensuring his first-years followed suit.
"I thought you were supposed to be a hero! You're no hero -- you're a coward and a traitor!"
Weasley had materialised beside our table and was practically spitting at Potter. He nodded in my direction with a sneer, but apparently someone had spoken to him, because he stopped short of saying anything rash. His tone, however, said everything words could not -- though tone alone could not be held against him, so all I could do was return the most cutting smile I possessed.
"You're a fraud! You hear me, Potter?! You're a fra-- mmph-mmph-mmph--"
The twins appeared behind him. One clamped a hand over their younger brother's mouth; the other turned to face us with an entirely serious expression.
"We, on behalf of the Weasley family, offer our apologies for the conduct of our younger brother. To you, Heir Black, and to you, Heir Potter."
The twin gave a nod first to me, then to Harry.
"And we ask that you not extend any enmity to the family as a whole on account of his lack of restraint. Though our father and yours did not see eye to eye, Heir Black, now that you have returned to the House of Black there are no grounds for hostility whatsoever. As for the dead -- one speaks well of them, or not at all. To you, Heir Potter, our request is the same: please do not take our brother's words as reflecting the views of our family. Our parents were on good terms with yours..."
The second twin picked up smoothly where the first had left off.
"One could not quite call them close friends, but they were certainly on decent terms. We all grew up on books about you, and our little sister is quite possibly your most dedicated admirer. So what Ron said belongs to Ron alone."
"Noted..."
I gave a nod. The twins were troublemakers, but right now they were clearly trying to protect their family -- and I understood that impulse perfectly well.
"And yes -- for the record, anything up to and including moderate physical injury inflicted on him..."
The twin holding Weasley gave him a firm shake, making it abundantly clear who he meant.
"...in response to any further careless remarks will be considered a proportionate reply."
At these words the little Weasley went very still, his eyes flying wide. He had evidently not expected anything of the kind from his own brothers.
"And we will ensure that the House does not support his attacks -- whether directed at you personally or at your House."
"Noted."
Penny gave a nod -- since the conversation had moved to inter-House matters, it fell to her as prefect to respond.
"Though you do understand..."
"That our words..."
The twins were speaking again, passing the sentence between them.
"...do not in any way mean..."
"...that any of this exempts us from..."
"...pranks..."
"...japes..."
"...schemes..."
"...and general merriment."
That last phrase they delivered in perfect unison.
"Well, we shall survive that somehow. Just remember that the first-years are not yet quite prepared for everything in your repertoire."
"Well..."
"First-years..."
"...will only be on the receiving end..."
"...of the very simplest..."
"...of our schemes."
Again, the last word together.
"Excellent..."
"In that case..."
"...we shall collect..."
"...our foolish..."
"...little brother."
And with that the twins did indeed collect their brother and returned to the Gryffindor table. This exchange had been watched by nearly all of the staff, including McGonagall, who made no move to add anything to her students' words -- which I took to mean she supported their position entirely. She was also casting distinctly displeased looks in Dumbledore's direction. He had presumably been the one to prevent her from taking more substantial action.
The rest of breakfast passed without incident. Afterwards we were taken back to the tower to collect our timetables and whatever we needed, and then on to our first lesson -- Charms.
"Now then..."
Flitwick made his way along the rows, looking each student over carefully.
"...you are here for your Charms lesson. From school to school and country to country the name may vary, but the substance remains the same. In this subject you will study wand movements and incantations designed to produce various effects. For example... Lumos."
A precise wand movement, the incantation spoken at exactly the right moment, and a small light appeared above his wand.
"This is one of the simplest spells you will all learn -- among the first. It may seem trivial, but my subject -- particularly in the first two years -- serves primarily as a foundation for everything else. This is where you will practise all manner of wand movements... work on your enunciation through tongue-twisters..."
Flitwick paused and gave a nod.
"Yes, miss...?"
"Granger."
I closed my eyes briefly. Hermione simply could not have helped herself on the very first day.
"Hermione Granger, sir."
"Very well, Miss Granger -- what is your question?"
"What do tongue-twisters have to do with spells?"
"Hmm... the answer is actually quite straightforward. Some spells are spoken in the caster's native language, some in Latin, some in other, long-forgotten tongues -- and to pronounce all of that quickly and clearly requires excellent diction. Does that answer your question?"
"Yes, sir."
"Very good. Now -- since this is your very first lesson, I think I shall begin by getting to know the class and asking a few questions..."
The class shifted uneasily.
"First-year Ravenclaws -- quietly."
I said this with my wand pressed to my throat, amplifying my voice -- not by very much. The effect was immediate: my future charges settled down very quickly. And not only the Ravens -- the students from the parallel group fell quiet as well, and all eyes turned to me.
"Thank you, Mr...?"
"Black. Draco Black, Professor."
"Quite..."
He gave a nod.
"...I see you are already familiar with certain charms. Most commendable for your age -- though it is generally somewhat... inadvisable."
"I have a minor congenital variation in my magical core, which caused it to mature earlier than usual for conscious spellcasting. My mother is a Healer and would not have permitted any premature strain."
"Very good... and how long have you been practising magic?"
"In terms of active spellcasting -- three years. In terms of studying magic in the broader sense, I have been learning theory since I was about four."
Well, I could hardly tell him I was a reincarnate who had been studying magic from practically the moment of birth. The condition I had described was real, albeit rare -- though even so, it occurred thousands of times more often than reincarnation.
"I take it you already know the first-year curriculum?"
"Yes -- the first and second years, both completely."
"Very good. Then this evening I shall assess your knowledge, and if what you have told me is accurate, I will appoint you as my class assistant for your year group in Charms. Unless you would prefer not to?"
Flitwick tilted his head.
"Well, provided you would relieve me of homework for your subject..."
I shrugged.
"...it is simply that Narcissa and Bellatrix have given me a considerable amount of additional reading, and if I have to prepare for lessons on top of that and complete homework as well, I simply will not have the time to get through it."
"Hmm... that is a matter for discussion. If you do indeed pass an examination covering the first two years... though we can speak about that privately. If you are interested, come to my classroom two hours before dinner today. Penelope will bring you."
"Thank you."
I gave a brief nod.
"Right -- let us continue..."
Flitwick did conduct his short assessment, and there was nothing difficult about it -- I was confident I had answered every question correctly, and did so quickly, after which I levitated my answer sheet to his desk with a simple charm.
Flitwick looked it over swiftly and gave a satisfied nod -- at which point another answer sheet sailed to his desk. From Daphne.
"Hmm... it appears I have two students in this class with a strong grasp of the subject. Miss... Daphne -- is your situation similar to Mr Black's?"
"No..."
She shook her head.
"Until I was ten and a half, I was not permitted to perform magic on the advice of my Healers. So my practical spellcasting is considerably more limited than my lord's."
"A pity..."
Flitwick shook his head.
"Though I am glad that those responsible for your education cared not only for your learning but for your health as well."
"There was no other way. The House of Black required a trained and healthy attendant -- not a magically disabled one."
I winced slightly but said nothing. Rumours would spread around Hogwarts regardless -- it was better to have at least some of the facts established clearly from the outset.
"Right then -- who else is ready to hand in their work?"
Hermione raised her hand with some uncertainty, followed by one of the Indian girls -- Padma, or Parvati -- one of the Patil twins in any case.
"Let me see... Miss Granger and...?"
"Padma Patil, Professor."
"Quite so... Mr Black, would you pass me the girls' work, please?"
I nodded and used my wand again to float their answer sheets to the professor. By the end of the lesson everyone had submitted their work, and the professor dismissed us. Penny was waiting for us outside, ready to lead us to the next lesson.
"Well then, first-years -- ready for Potions?"
"Yes..."
came the somewhat ragged chorus from the first-years.
"Ravenclaws, pairs of two -- line up."
I gave the command and the children grumbled slightly, but the moment I pressed my wand to my throat and repeated the order in a considerably more authoritative voice, they fell into line. I counted them off quickly, then turned to face Penny.
"Penny, Ravenclaw is formed up and ready to move. No one missing."
"Good -- Draco, you take the rear and make sure no one wanders off."
"Understood..."