Chapter 2

As we clambered off the Hogwarts Express and onto the series of boats that Hagrid directed us towards with his booming voice, I took in my classmates for the first time. I wasn't the only second-generation immigrant in my class. I spotted three others, two were the Patil Twins, Padma and Parvati. I knew that their parents were related, albeit distantly, to the Magical Nizam of Hyderabad because my mother had, prior to everything that had gone down and resulted in her death, ensured I knew of any Pureblood Classmates of mine who were of comparable rank to me. Apparently, she had done so thanks to the Slytherin urge to form alliances rearing its head. That didn't explain why her lessons tended to over-emphasize the girls, though. I got the sense that she had been planning ahead a bit with that.

The other was a Chinese girl. Su Li, or to be more proper for Chinese, Li Su, since family names went before given names there, was a distant cousin of the now-deposed Emperor Wen of Magical China. Though the dynasty she had been part of, the Mystic Third Tang, had been deposed and replaced with the New Mystic Qing, her family still had a lot of wealth and retained lands and titles outside the Heavenly Empire of Magical China, such as being the Noyan of Zhetysu in the Mystic Urkhanate that spanned the territories of several of the Muggle Soviet SSRs that had recently declared independence. Her family lands there were largely safe and her cousin was currently in residence there.

I knew the Muggle Territories of of the Urkhanate would become Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Turkmenistan later this year thanks to my prior life knowledge. The Urkhanate, though, remained like it had since fifteen-oh-seven when it had broken off from the failing Timurid Empire only to swiftly be forced to undergo its own Statute of Secrecy some thirty-nine years later after the Muscovite Conquest of Astrakhan forced the issue. Whether it would remain that way long enough for whatever plan my Mother would have concocted to see me married off to Su Li come to fruition was another matter. I did recall Su Li not being mentioned a lot in the books and there might be a more political reason for that. It hardly mattered at any rate, whatever scheme my mother had concocted died with her, just like my claim on the County she had ruled.

As I clambered onto the same boat as Susan, Daphne, and Tracey, I fought back a sniffle at that thought. Once again the fact that my mother was dead was trying to get me to cry in front of other people. Unfortunately, Terry wouldn't be able to get in the boat with the rest of us. The boats only fit four students at a time. He wound up taking a spot on a boat with three other boys, a blonde with a book that seemed to be on simple spells to use while dueling, a Black Haired boy who was reading over the Blonde's shoulder, and another, different, Blonde with sharper cheekbones who had a Quidditch Today Magazine in one hand. Off to my right, I spotted Draco Malfoy get in a boat with Crabbe and Goyle and Pansy Parkinson following behind like a lapdog. To my left, Harry Potter and Ron Weasley got in a boar with a sandy-haired boy and a boy with skin a few shades darker than mine.

Ron seemed to be glaring daggers at Malfoy's boat. Malfoy himself seemed to be sneering over at his and Harry's boat. Our boat was apparently getting caught in the crossfire, as per usual for these sorts of things. You know, for a family whose patron deities were Fortuna and the Fates, I sure was getting the short end of the stick on that front. Regardless of any collateral social damage, it seemed as if Malfoy had still pulled a Malfoy this time around and managed to interject himself in Harry's Cabin and insult both Harry and Ron in the process. No idea if my intervention on the Neville and Trevor Front had sent Hermione off-track, though. She and Neville were on a different boat, along with the Patil Twins. I sighed as I saw what was going on. It seemed like a sign that I was fated to live in interesting times.

"Something the Matter, Blaise?" Questioned Tracey.

"It's not thoughts about your Ma again, aye? You shouldn't dwell so much." Added Susan.

"Indeed. Mother always told me that brooding does no one any good and adds wrinkles to the face." Mused Daphne.

"No, it's not that. Look to our left and right. It seems that Malfoy is already being as charming as the rumors suggest. Look at how he and Weasley are glaring at each other. Notice anything?" I answered.

"Malfoy can be a bit of a git, aye. He's not exactly a canny conversationalist. Too arrogant." Remarked Susan.

"So Malfoy and Weasley are enemies. That's nothing new. Their fathers are in opposing factions in the Ministry." Frowned Tracey.

"No, Tracey. I think Blaise means the fact our own boat is caught in between theirs." Pointed out Daphne.

"Point to you, Lady Greengrass." I acknowledged.

"I'm not the Lady Greengrass yet." Huffed Daphne.

"Besides, once we get to shore I'm sure we won't still be in the middle of that developing grudge." Shrugged Tracey.

"Unless you've gotten a vision in that third eye of yours? He's a Seer, remember?" Pressed Susan.

"Not a vision as such. More of a gut feeling. A premonition, if you will. Have you ever heard of the Ancient Chinese Curse that goes, 'May you live in interesting times'?" I queried.

"You're saying you feel like you'll be caught up in that squabble?" Asked Daphne.

"Not just me, but yes." I nodded.

"That's just what we need." Groaned Susan.

"I suppose we'll have to wait and see." Offered Tracey.

"Indeed. There are entire collections of books stuffed full of tales of those who tried to defy prophecy or premonitions and only wound up making such things come true in the attempt." Acknowledged Daphne.

Then the Castle came into view and any grumbling about the fickle whims of Fate and Fortune was stilled by the sight. Hogwarts Castle was like something out of a fairy tale, all turreted towers and regal architecture. I'd compare it to Neuschwanstein in Bavaria, but even that didn't do it justice. For one thing, Hogwarts was a lot bigger, for another, it was actually magical in fact instead of just in appearance. The only problem was that it was all wrong. Hagrid was regaling us with stories of the founding as we neared and one thing kept sticking out to me. The date of the founding being nine-ninety. There was no way that could be the case. Not with the Castle looking like that, at any rate. Nine-ninety meant Motte and Bailey, it meant Saxon Longhalls and Viking Ringforts. It didn't mean this sort of Late Medieval architecture.

Don't get me wrong, Castles get destroyed and rebuilt all the time, but I wasn't hearing any stories like that being bandied around. Now that I think about it, of the rooms we know of that date back to the founding, most of them are underground. Was Hogwarts not as safe as everyone claimed and the stories about why just weren't told to avoid panic? I knew that Voldemort would wind up attacking the castle multiple times in multiple ways over the next seven years, but everyone always made it seem like that was a rare exception. What if that was just something people said to avoid panic? What if Hogwarts was like any other castle, albeit a magical one? Did I also have to be worried about that as well?

I blew out a sigh and put it out of my mind. There was such a thing as being too paranoid, after all. I had no actual proof of any of this. Hell, Rowena Ravenclaw was supposed to have been a powerful Seer, wasn't she? For all I know she could have looked four-hundred years into the future and pulled a design out of the aether that she felt went with the theme the Founders were going for. I'd just have to put it out of my mind for now. It helped that as we got closer to the castle, there was a flash of tentacles and a feeling of curiosity in my Mind's Eye. I looked over to the right in time to spy a series of bubbles coming up from down below the surface of the lake. Then an octopoid tendril broke the water and waved at the boats.

"Tha's th' Giant Squid come to say hello! Don' worry 'bout him, he's a friendly sort. Most Freshwater Krakens tend ter be more curious than furious. Ha!" Boomed out Hagrid from the lead boat, laughing at his unintentional rhyme. As soon as attention was drawn to him, the Giant Squid rolled over under the water, revealing a dinner-plate-sized eye. Then, the eye winked at everyone before the Giant Squid jetted off back into the depths of the Black Lake, as Hagrid's laughter cut off and the jovial Half-Giant began to regale us all with the Giant Squid's story.

"Freshwater Krakens aren't born, ya see, they have ter be made. It's not a pretty sight, birthin' a Freshwater Kraken. Th' mam doesn't tend ter survive. Th' story goes tha' this un's mam got caught in the Black Lake after chasing a fishing boat up th' Hogswash River from th' sea and wound up in th' Black Lake come birthing time. She squeezed out a single egg tha' th' Merfolk wut live down under th' Lake took care of. The Tribe down there raised th' Squid like he was one o' their own. Th' curious nature o' Freshwater Krakens an' th' way he was raised made him th' friendly feller you see today!" Grinned Hagrid.

Soon after that encounter, our boats glided into the dock to be greeted with a tall, black-haired, Witch with a stern look on her face and wearing Emerald Robes. I knew this was Professor McGonagall, who was younger-looking in the books than she had been in the movies, largely owing to wizarding lifespans being what they were. Seventy was considered still middle-aged for Wizards, who tended to live to be a hundred-and-twenty on average, after all. She still had that Dame Maggie Smith look to her, though. I liked to think that was because some things seemed to run in parallels between universes. The idea of there being a sort of multiversal serendipity appealed to me, even though it probably wasn't the case. Probably because I was still human, even if I had magical powers now. The idea that everything was random chaos did tend to be scary for the human psyche, after all. It was why Cosmic Horror worked as well as it did.

"Th' firs' years Professor McGonagall!" Boomed out Hagrid, drawing me out of my thoughts.

"Yes, thank you, Hagrid. Line up and follow me, everyone. I'll take you to the sorting." Intoned Professor McGonagall, primly.

As we got off the boats and formed into line, Hagrid made his way off the dock, pausing only to talk to Harry about something, briefly. It was probably an invitation to tea like he'd offered in canon. Then the Groundskeeper wandered off out of sight. Professor McGonagall, meanwhile, had us lined up and took us into the castle. We went up a pair of staircases, non-moving, thankfully, past two suits of armor that stood on plinths that seemed to be lined with runes, and out into a hallway lined with more suits of armor on runic plinths. I was willing to bet that these suits of armor, all suits of plate, were magical constructs, enchanted to move on command. The runes on the plinths seemed to be anchoring enchantments that were a lot beefier than Self-Maintenance Enchantments would be, after all.

I didn't have much time to look at the armor before we were led through a doorway carved with the heraldic animals of all four houses, the Lion, Snake, Eagle, and Badger done in rich, dark, solid, oak. The doorway led into a vestibule with a second, oak, doorway likewise carved with images of the four houses, though this time, scrollwork with the Hogwarts Motto was carved into the image. Professor McGonagall told us to wait here until we were called in to be sorted, then headed out into the Great Hall to make sure everything was ready for us and that the sorting could begin.

"Draco Dormiens Nunquam Titillandus? Are those even words?" Scoffed Ron.

"They are. Latin, though, not English." Informed Hermione.

"So what's it say?" Questioned Ron.

"I'm not sure. I don't know Latin." Shrugged Hermione.

"Figures the Mudblood has no sense of Culture." Sneered Draco.

"Malfoy, back off." Warned Harry.

"Or what, Potter?" Queried Malfoy.

"Never tickle a sleeping dragon." I chimed in, forestalling a potential fight.

"What?" Asked Ron, blinking in surprise. All eyes were immediately drawn to me.

"That's what the Latin means. It means never tickle a sleeping dragon." I repeated.

"How would you know that?" Demanded Ron.

"His mother was the Contessa del Villaggio del Mistero. His family goes back to the days of the Roman Republic. I should think if any of us know Latin, it would be him." Cut in Daphne.

"Aye, giveower with the attitude, Weasley." Added Susan. Terry and Tracey didn't say anything, but they did move to stand with me as well. It was nice to have friends who could back me up on that. Ron saw that and grumbled something about foreign know-it-alls, but he let Harry draw him into another conversation anyway. I turned around, only to spot Draco, Crabbe, and Goyle approaching.

"Your mother was Felicia Zabini? Which would make you Blaise Zabini, then?" He asked.

"It would." I nodded.

"Ah, excellent. I'm Malfoy, Draco Malfoy. A pleasure to meet you." Nodded Draco.

"I know who you are, Malfoy. Your reputation precedes you. It seems accurate, at least." I responded.

"My reputation as the Scion of the greatest lineage in Magical Britain?" Questioned Malfoy.

"Your reputation for being a tosspot. Really, I know my family is foreign and not used to your customs, but starting fights before we've even been sorted? Seems a tad gauche to me." I refuted.

"Watch how you speak to me, Zabini. My father is a powerful man!" Hissed Draco, face reddening.

"And when you tell him that you almost started a fight with Harry Potter on the first day of school and had to be bailed out from having a vendetta sworn against you by the Boy-Who-Lived by a foreigner, what will Lord Malfoy say, I wonder? Do you think he will be happy? Do you think bringing his name into another vendetta will make him proud of you?" I pressed.

Draco's face paled as the ramifications of his actions finally caught up to him, then reddened once he realized what I was implying. That his father would see it as him showing weakness by hiding behind his name. Fortunately, the arrival of two of the Hogwarts ghosts forestalled any other action on Draco's part. Nearly Headless Nick and the Fat Friar phased through the walls before Draco could make an arse out of himself further and forestalled any potential attack. The ghosts of Hufflepuff and Gryffindor stopped to chat with the other first years, which meant eyes on any attack that the faculty would listen to. Instead, Draco just fixed me with a glare.

"This isn't over, Zabini." He hissed before stalking off.

"I am not going anywhere, Malfoy." I said, inclining my head at him in acknowledgment.

"Did you really just make an enemy of Draco Malfoy on the first day of School?" Queried Daphne.

"If Draco truly believed he was making the correct play there? Then I'm not worried. That is hardly the move one would expect of the House of Cunning, after all." I responded.

"Well, I think you handled that dead canny. Malfoy's a pratt as it is." Added Susan.

 "Besides, no wands were drawn." Nodded Terry.

"Yet." Smirked Tracey.

"If I can be bested in a duel by Draco Malfoy with my bloodline abilities giving me the edge, then I deserve to be." I shrugged.

The discussion then turned to the Sorting and what it entailed. Apparently, everyone in this timeline of events also thought it was some sort of test. Ron's brothers had once again told him that the test was going to be wrestling a troll. That got a laugh from everyone as Ron once again found the Twins had played another trick on him. He swore under his breath that he'd get them back for it, though I wasn't sure how he planned to do that. Of course, I'd later find out that he'd been the one to point Ginny to the Bat Bogey Hex when he hir Fred and George with it later in the week, making good on his promise, but for now, it seemed like idle talk. The discussion stopped when Professor McGonagall came back in and grabbed us all for the sorting.

We followed her into the Great Hall, pausing to marvel at the enchanted ceiling for a few seconds. Hermione regaled everyone with the ceiling's powers and origins as she had in canon, but I wasn't listening. Instead, I was too caught up in my view of the ceiling. I couldn't see any runes anchoring the enchantment. That didn't mean there were none, per se, though. Runes could be obscured by any number of spells or effects, after all. I got the feeling that wasn't the case here, though. I got the feeling that the ceiling of the Great Hall of Hogwarts was actually a free-standing enchantment. That wasn't supposed to be possible. Enchantments worked with runes and arithmancy in specific ways. To enchant something without runes to anchor them would result in something that would only last an hour at most. To pull this off and have it last over a thousand years? The Founders of Hogwarts were truly something else.

As we were seated, and the Sorting Hat was brought out to begin its ridiculous song, my focus snapped back to the present. Clearly, the song was meant to dispel any rumors about any sorting tests in a way that put eleven-year-olds at ease. As the sorting began with Hannah Abbot, I looked up at the High Table where the professors sat to gauge their various reactions. Most seemed to present mild interest in the results with the exception of Professor Snape, who was expressing a detached form of polite disinterest, Professor Quirrel, who was acting too spotty in order to better hide his passenger, and Dumbledore, who seemed more interested than just mild interest.

Names flew by and I marked those I'd interacted with and their sorting so far. Almost everything went as canon, even Neville, who I figured if anyone would get an alternate sorting, it would be Neville into Hufflepuff. The only difference was, interestingly, Hermione. Hermione had been sorted into Ravenclaw instead. Apparently, my intervention, slight as it was, had ensured that Hermione hadn't interacted with Harry on the train, which in turn had led to her being sorted into Ravenclaw instead of Gryffindor. Things were apparently already changing thanks to my intervention. A butterfly flapping its wings and causing a storm. I wondered how things would turn out now? Would Hermione still form a friendship with Harry and Ron, even though she was in Ravenclaw now? Luna had during the whole Goblet of Fire thing, at least sort of. But then, Luna was a special case. I suppose we'd just have to see if the Golden Trio became the Golden Duo.

As Harry Potter got called up, however, it seemed like everyone was suddenly holding their breath. He walked up to the stool, sat down, and the hat was placed on his head. Then everyone waited as Harry and the Sorting Hat began to have a five-minute conversation that soon stretched into a ten-minute argument before the Hat acquiesced and placed him into Gryffindor with a booming shout. Cheers erupted from the Gryffindor table as opposed to the polite clapping that had been the norm thus far, with the Weasley Twins chanting about how they'd 'gotten potter' much to the teachers' exasperation. It took Dumbledore standing up and calling for silence to get the Gryffindor celebration to end.

"As delighted as I am to welcome Harry Potter into my own House, we do have others waiting to be sorted, after all." Grinned Dumbledore with a twinkle in his eye.

From there, things moved swiftly onward. Nobody even came close to Harry's almost ten minutes under the Hat. There were only three others aside from me, after all. Zacharias Smith went to Hufflepuff, Lisa Turpin to Ravenclaw, and Ron Weasley to Gryffindor, as in canon. Then my own name was called and I made my way over to the stool and sat down. The Hat was placed on my head and. . .nothing happened. I had been expecting a voice in my head, but for a good twenty seconds, there was nothing. Then after twenty seconds were up, I felt a trio of mental pulses, almost like knocking at a door, and realized that my Occlumency was getting in the way of the Hat. Chagrinned, I lowered my mental shields for the Hat to actually speak to me.

"My, those are some impressive Occlumency Shields you had for your age. But then, I should hardly be surprised with your heritage." Came the voice of the Sorting Hat.

"The Mind Arts were always prevalent in my family." I acknowledged, mentally.

"Indeed. Shall we get to the business at hand, however? I can tell you're hungry and the faster we sort you, the sooner you can eat." Pointed out the Sorting Hat. I would have objected to that, only for my stomach to let out a growl like a traitor. There was a faint sense of amusement from the Hat at that.

"Fine. You have a point." I sent over, resignedly.

"Now let's see. You have all the qualities needed for Ravenclaw, but you are a touch too loyal and friendly for that House of Shut-ins. Self-Study is the watchword of Ravenclaw most of the time, after all. By that same token, your loyalty would make Hufflepuff proud, but you would find the House of Badgers a bit too stifling, perhaps. While you are certainly Heroic enough for Gryffindor, you don't have the right mentality for the House of Lions. They do so tend to abhor guile there, and you are more of an Odysseus than an Achilles, to borrow a phrase from your mind. No, there is only one house whose traits you exemplify where you will also excel. That is something of a rarity nowadays." Mused the Hat, telepathically.

"Slytherin, yes?" I asked in my mind.

"Indeed. Too many sortings for Salazar's House have been children with too much ambition and not enough cunning by far. You have friends in that House already, but also enemies, I sense. I could sort you into Ravenclaw instead if you feel not up to the Challenge? Miss Granger and Mister Boot might ameliorate the difficulties that sorting would present if you feel not up to the challenge of Slytherin?" Offered the Hat telepathically.

"Malfoy? I can deal with Malfoy, thanks." I sent back amused.

"In that case, you'll be placed in Slytherin!" Boomed the Hat. All told, my own sorting took the second longest at just shy of five minutes. It still wasn't even a patch on Harry's time. I made my way over to the Slytherin Table as the food appeared suddenly on everyone's plate.

Turkey, potatoes, carrots, and peas. Various kinds of breads and cheese. Sweets from puddings to cakes and beyond, I piled my plate with foods of which I was fond. It was only as I took a sip from my cup that I gagged, almost spitting the drink up. The flavor of pumpkins was one that I loathed, pumpkin juice was a flavor I despised.

"I hate this stuff!" I emphasized.

As the goblet refilled itself with lemonade, my mind sent me a notion that made me afraid, suddenly I seemed to be thinking in rhyme, I never even did that some of the time! With an angry voice as if giving an ultimatum, I took out my wand and shouted, "Finite Incantatem!"

That seemed to get rid of the effect, and I glanced at the Weasley Twins out of the corner of my eye, both of whom seemed to have grins on their faces. That was a clever bit of spellwork and I had no idea how they managed it, but I knew they had. Unfortunately, casting the single, second-year spell I had been tutored in seemed to drain me enough that my hunger redoubled. Frowning, I got a premonition that it hadn't been the food, the Sight urging me to eat up to regain my strength. Shrugging I did so, effecting an air of casual nonchalance I didn't feel. My attempt at Sprezzatura seemed to work this time because the Twins' grins seemed to fade with my non-reaction.

Once the feast was over and the plates cleared, Dumbledore stood to give his announcements. He made the ones I remembered about flying lessons and the cleverly worded warning about the Third Floor Corridor which implied that snoopers wouldn't be punished without outright saying that. Then, however, he added another announcement that I hadn't expected. Something about being careful around the tertiary greenhouse due to an accident involving strange magic. It was apparently overgrown with Metamorphing Mandragoras. This didn't come with any vague wording, which meant this was very much not something that Dumbledore had planned to happen. The warning truly was sincere.

Metamorphing Mandragoras were a magical plant I'd never heard of before, and trying to figure out what it meant took up the entire period of time when the fake school song was being sung. Just as the song ended, I realized that it was one of the questionnaire choices for adventures and resolved to look up Metamorphing Mandragoras in the Library as soon as possible. The reward for completing that adventure was too good not to do so, after all. Then I found myself being led out of the Great Hall toward the Dungeons and focused up.

I would need to deal with Malfoy soon, after all. . .

XXXX

AN: Here we have the arrival at Hogwarts and the Sorting. Hermione gets sorted into Ravenclaw this time, as her interactions with Blaise meant Harry shared a cabin with Ron, Dean Thomas, and Seamus Finnegan this time around, with Hermione and Neville sharing a cabin with the Patil Twins on the Hogwarts Express instead. That's going to have butterflies down the road as changes spiral out from there. Also, Malfoy being a prick is a problem that Blaise will have to deal with. Mind you, everything Blaise said to him was true. Malfoy isn't exactly about to take that lying down, though. With both of them in the same house, Blaise is going to have to deal with him sooner or later.

As for finite incantatem, all purebloods have some level of tutoring prior to Hogwarts. Finite incantatem can be learned by a first year and is something that someone whose mother knows Alchemical poisons intimately would ensure her son was able to cast the second he got his wand. Yes, it's a second-year spell, but the reasons for that are mostly based on ministry regulation more than any real problems for first-years trying to cast it.

At any rate, the next chapter will involve our first look at life in Slytherin.

Stay tuned. . .