Chapter 21: A New Year

(September 1, 1992)

 (General POV)

 Inside their train compartment on the Hogwarts Express, Godric, Salazar, Rowena, and Helga were sitting quietly as they stared at Harry. The room was rather awkward, and Harry wasn't sure he could take anymore of it.

"You don't have to watch me for the entire train ride." Harry said, breaking the silence that had lasted for almost ten whole minutes. "Afraid not, Harry. The big boss gave us strict orders." Godric said, somewhat confusing Harry.

He of course knew that Arcturus had made a deal with the Headmaster that he would keep him safe while he was at Hogwarts, even going so far as to make sure he would be protected on the train ride to the school, but he didn't think it would be Godric and the others watching him, nor did he think they would take it so seriously. There was also the big problem with how these four treated the Headmaster. The way they spoke about him it was almost as if he was their employer, not guardian.

 "You've been watching those cop shows on the telly again, haven't you?!" Helga said to Godric, who only smiled as he remembered all of the movies he had been watching over the last month. "What can I say? They're entertaining." Godric said with a chuckle.

"Has that little house-elf appeared since your birthday?" Rowena asked, getting back on the topic of watching over Harry. "No. And I've been looking out for it too." Harry answered disappointedly. "Don't worry about it, Harry. Once you get to Hogwarts, you won't have to worry about a thing." Rowena consoled the boy, who didn't look so sure of her words.

"What makes you say that? Albus Dumbledore was supposed to be the strongest wizard ever, and even he couldn't stop me from getting poisoned last year. What's to say someone won't try and kill me this year too?" Harry questioned. "Oh, Harry. Savrin is much stronger than Albus Dumbledore ever was. With him in charge, I doubt you'll have to worry about anything. And don't forget, we're here too." Godric said, reminding Harry that he wasn't alone in this.

 The four seemed to relax a bit after Harry told them he was getting creeped out with them constantly staring at him, so they all tried to do something to occupy their time while they waited for the train to depart.

 With only a few minutes before the train departed from King's Cross station, Susan, Hannah, and Sally appeared in the doorway to the compartment. "There you all are. We were looking for you on the platform for the last ten minutes." Susan said happily as she moved to sit next to Helga and Rowena. "What made you all get here so early?" Hannah asked before she too moved to sit next to Helga.

"Unlike some people, we believe in being ready ahead of time." Salazar said with his face buried in a book. "As charming as ever, Salazar." Susan said dryly, earning a few chuckles from everyone else in the compartment. Hermione appeared in the doorway just as everyone finished laughing. "Oh. It's a little full here." She said quickly as she looked for a place to sit.

Seeing as how there was no room left, Hermione was about to move to find a different compartment when Rowena stood up from where she was sitting before waving her wand around the room. Runes appeared in the air before settling themselves on the walls, door, floor, and ceiling of the compartment. Everyone jumped to their feet when they felt the compartment begin to shift, but they settled themselves rather quickly when the room stopped moving.

 Before, the compartment was barely big enough to fit eight people, and rather snuggly too, but now it was easily three times the size, and there was even a table in the middle of the compartment that hadn't been there before. "There's lots of room now, Hermione, so please join us." Rowena said coolly, then moved to sit back in the corner where she had been before.

"I don't think we're allowed to modify the train." Hermione said worriedly as she looked down the halls to make sure no one was coming to punish them. "I assure you, no one is going to care." Salazar once more commented from his position as he continued reading his book.

 Once they all found a seat, Susan noticed something seemed different about Godric and couldn't help but voice her thoughts. "Godric, where is your hat?" She asked, and it was only then that everyone aside from the four founders realized that Godric was in fact, no longer wearing his tattered brown hat. The question seemed to kill Godric's good mood, seeing as how he slumped his shoulders and looked out of the compartment window with a sad look on his face.

"The Headmaster took it from me. Said he needed it for the sorting." Godric answered after a minute of sulking. "But… doesn't it belong to the school?" Hermione asked curiously, not seeing the problem with that. Come to think of it, she didn't understand how Godric was allowed to take the hat in the first place. None of them did. "Why did you have the hat?" Hermione asked, feeling as though that was the more important question at the moment.

 "Godric had the hat for sentimental reasons. Back when the school was founded, his ancestor, Godric Gryffindor, gave his own hat to the school, and each of the four founders enchanted it to be what was used to sort the students into their respective houses. Godric is his direct descendant, and wanted to feel closer to him. Last year, Headmaster Dumbledore let him take the hat because it did belong to someone from a past relation. However, I think it would be best if Godric left it to the school." Rowena explained, ending her lesson by staring pointedly into Godric's eyes.

She had told him repeatedly over the last year to take the hat back to Savrin, but he refused every time. Even Helga had argued that it wasn't fair for him to hold on to the hat when he had given it up to the school way back when. As for Salazar, he had unexpectedly sided with Godric, stating that he should be able to hold on to it for the time being, though he should make sure the hat didn't suffer any damage, and just wearing it was a risk.

When asked why Salazar sided with Godric, he simply replied, "Family heirlooms hold memories that others cannot even begin to fathom." When asked what he meant, he got not but silence from both Salazar and Godric, with neither of them willing to explain further.

 "You're actually a descendant of THE Godric Gryffindor?!" Susan asked in surprise. Perking up a little from his depressed state, Godric answered, "Of course! Why do you think I'm so handsome?" "Vanity or Stupidity. Take your pick." Salazar commented, once more silencing the room.

"You know, you don't always have to be so mean, Salazar." Hermione said, actually causing Salazar to look up from his book. Before he could say anything to her, Godric spoke up, "Don't worry about it Hermione. That's just how Salazar is. Not many people can appreciate his crass sense of humor, but I know he's just jesting." Salazar simply rolled his eyes at Godric before going back to his book.

"What are you reading anyway? The cover makes no sense." Helga said as she looked at the book Salazar was so focused on. "I borrowed it from Sav- er- the headmaster. It belonged to a friend of his who could speak to creatures." Salazar said, but didn't go into further detail before he went back to reading the book.

Harry, who was sitting next to Salazar wanted to ask more about the book in question, but Salazar and the others had told him in the past that letting people know he could speak Parseltongue wasn't a good idea, and even Sirius and Arcturus were in agreement after they found out, so he reluctantly kept his mouth shut for now, though he hoped Salazar would tell him about the book later.

 "There you all are." Neville said from the open doorway as he came in holding his toad, Trevor. If he noticed or cared about how big the compartment was, Neville didn't show it in the least as he said 'hi' to everyone, even Salazar who only gave him a curt nod while still reading. "Hey Neville! Come sit over here!" Godric said to the last member of their ever-growing group.

"You know, if you people really wanted to find out where we were, you could have just called." Salazar said once more as he held up his A.C.D. for everyone to see, then put it away. Each of them had been given one, so its not like they had any valid excuse for not being able to find them earlier.

"What's with you today? If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were being even more of a cunt than usual." Godric chastised his friend who only smiled as he continued with his book.

"Oh. I guess we could have called you, huh?" Susan said bashfully as she realized they had been looking for them for so long for nothing. "To tell you the truth" Hermione started, "I've only ever called my mum on mine so far, so it never really occurred to me."

"Susan and I call each other everyday. We just… you know, forgot that we could call other people." Hannah admitted with a blush. "Well, I just got here a few minutes ago, so there was no point in calling." Neville said, which was a fair point. He knew they were on the train, it just took a minute to find them.

 It didn't take long before the train began to lurch forward, at which point Godric leaned over to Harry and whispered, "Hey, not that I'm complaining mind you, but where's Ron? Aren't you and him friends?" Godric didn't miss the slimeball that was Ron Weasley, but he knew Harry was pretty close with him, so to not see hide nor hair of the guy had him curious.

"Well" Harry whispered back sheepishly as he looked to make sure no one else was listening to him. "I told him you all were going to be with me and he said he'd see me at school." Harry admitted, though he decided to leave out the part where Ron tried to convince him to ditch these people because they weren't really his friends.

Harry also felt a bit bad for not defending them, especially when Ron told him to stay away from Salazar, simply for the fact that he was in Slytherin House. "I don't want to talk ill of someone behind their back, but you know I'd say this to his face if he were here. He's a right cunt." Godric whispered unapologetically.

 The train ride was rather pleasant, all things considered. They played some games, ate some candies off the trolly, and discussed some things they wanted to do this year. One of the topics they discussed were the new school uniforms, most notably how cool they were.

"You know, my mum couldn't believe it when I got two of these uniforms for free." Hermione said happily as she marveled at her new uniform. "That was Gra- er- Lord Black's doing." Harry said, catching himself when he realized it was more appropriate to address Arcturus by title instead of Grandfather.

"He and the Headmaster were discussing most of the new changes that'll be put in place this year. With the new books, new uniforms, and all of the other items they want students to have, it didn't seem like most people would be able to afford it, at least that's what Lord Black told the Headmaster. He agreed to fund each Hogwarts student two uniforms and the course books for this year. I think I heard him say that after this year then he would only do that for First-years, but I'm not too sure." Everyone nodded in understanding, finding that to be more than a little generous on Lord Black's part. 

 When Harry showed off his red and black hoodie with the Gryffindor lion roaring over the left pectoral, everyone else said they too would like ones in their own house colors. When told they wouldn't be available until next year, most people grumbled, though some took it in stride.

For his part, Harry was already planning to call Sirius this evening to see if he could arrange a few more hoodies. He would write it off as early Christmas presents for everyone, mostly because he wanted to do something nice for his friends. Despite Ron's attempts and warnings, Harry realized that these people sitting with him in the train compartment were his friends, and he enjoyed spending time with them. If Ron didn't like that, well, that was on him, not Harry. 

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 Once they arrived at school they boarded some carriages that took them from Hogsmeade to Hogwarts Castle. As per his tradition, Godric separated from the group as soon as the carriages stopped and ran towards the Black Lake.

Looking off in the distance he saw the little boats carrying the First-Years approaching swiftly, and knowing he didn't have a whole hell of a lot of time, Godric pointed his wand at the water before casting a number of spells that would let the giant squid know he was here, and hopefully let it know what he wanted to convey to it.

The last thing he did before leaving was pulling a number of fist-sized pieces of deliciously cooked shrimp out of his bag. With his wand in one hand, Godric threw the shrimp with his other hand into the water as far as he could, and as it flew through the air, he cast some precision spells that enlarged the pieces of shrimp to be the size of dogs. After having thrown more than twenty of the large pieces of shrimp, Godric hoped that would be enough of a welcome back for Squidward before he departed quickly inside the castle. 

 Once they arrived into the already filling Great Hall, everyone separated to their own tables to await the Sorting Ceremony. Looking around the room, Godric was pleased to see all of the returning students. Looking at the head table where the teachers and Savrin were sitting, he was even more pleased to not see Snape present, though after what he and Salazar had done to the man, it was unlikely that anyone would ever be seeing him again.

Surveying the teachers, Godric noticed the new hires, Elise Winslow and Thomas Callahan sitting to the right of Savrin. Both teachers seemed to be surveying the students they would be teaching in the future, though only Elise looked somewhat excited about the whole thing. If Godric had to guess, he would say Thomas would much rather be at home with his wife and children, so he wouldn't fault the man for not being all that excited about the new year.

 It was as he surveyed the teachers that he noticed something that really caught his eyes. The Care of Magical Creatures professor, Silvanus Kettleburn looked completely different, and Godric had to pinch himself a few times just to be sure he wasn't seeing things. Even though he hadn't had any classes with the man, and wouldn't until third-year, Godric had seen Silvanus Kettleburn enough at dinners to know he looked different.

Where he once remembered seeing, or not seeing as it were, missing appendages, that no longer seemed to be the case. All of the man's missing limbs were back once more, and on top of that he seemed years younger, if the salt and pepper black hair was anything to go off of. Godric was fairly sure Silvanus had been completely grey at the end of the year ceremony last year.

 After he was finished admiring the changes to the teachers, Godric waited patiently for the sorting to begin. Thankfully he didn't have to wait long before the First-Years were led to the front of the room where McGonagall placed a stool and an all too familiar hat. Though it was a little quirky, Godric loved the hat, especially the song it sang the previous year, and he was on the edge of his seat as he waited for the song that was to come this year.

 A thousand years or more ago

When I was newly sewn,

There lived four wizards of renown,

Whose names are still well known:

Bold Gryffindor, from wild moor,

Fair Ravenclaw, from glen,

Sweet Hufflepuff, from valley broad,

Shrewd Slytherin, from fen.

They shared a wish, a hope, a dream,

They hatched a daring plan

To educate young sorcerers

Thus Hogwarts school began.

Now each of these four founders

Formed their own House, for each

Did value different virtues

In the ones they had to teach.

By Gryffindor, the bravest were

Prized far beyond the rest;

For Ravenclaw, the cleverest

Would always be the best;

For Hufflepuff, hard workers were

Most worthy of admission;

And power-hungry Slytherin

Loved those of great ambition.

While still alive they did divide

Their favourites from the throng,

Yet how to pick the worthy ones

When they were dead and gone?

Twas Gryffindor who found the way,

He whipped me off his head

The founders put some brains in me

So I could choose instead!

Now slip me snug about your ears,

I've never yet been wrong,

I'll have a look inside your mind

And tell where you belong!

 When the song ended, Godric was the first among the students to applaud and cheer the hat as it bowed its upper-half to Great Hall. It was simply beautiful how the hat could rhyme like it did, especially in such a way that it described him and his friends.

Looking over to Salazar and the others, Godric saw Rowena and Helga clapping their hands at the hat, but when he looked over to Salazar, Godric found Salazar staring pointedly back at him, and he didn't look pleased. 'Nothing Lector said was a lie.' Godric thought, not seeing what the big deal was. They all had their own preferences, there was no problem with that.

 As the Sorting Ceremony got underway, Godric occasionally looked over at the Slytherin table, and sure enough, Salazar was still staring at him, and Godric had to wonder if Salazar had blinked a single time since the song ended. It was only when the sorting was over and the food appeared on the tables in front of them that Salazar finally diverted his attention, at which point Godric could finally relax. 'It felt like he was trying to stare a hole through my head.' Godric thought as he began piling food on his plate.

 After everyone had finished eating desserts, Savrin stepped to the front of the room, at which point everyone went silent as they waited to hear what he had to say. "Before I send you off for the night, I want to make a few announcements. For starters, as it has always been, the Forbidden forest is off limits to everyone, so when I say to stay away from it, I'm not just speaking to the First-Years." Savrin said, pausing long enough to stare at more than a few students who had broken that rule the previous year.

"Quidditch trials will be held in the second week of term. Anyone interested in playing for their house teams should contact Madam Hooch. While I'm on the subject of quidditch, all of the old school brooms have been replaced with the newest models, the Nimbus 2001 series. Students are free to use these brooms, though they will have to go through Madam Hooch before they will be allowed to use them." The hall seemed to erupt in excited whispers at the mention of the newest broom. Even Madam Hooch looked excited at finally getting new brooms for the school.

 "The school trials will be opened after the first week of term, though there have been some upgrades to them, so don't expect them to be as easy as they were last year. That said, the rewards for doing well have also increased, so look forward to that." Savrin said, once more causing the students to begin murmuring amongst themselves.

Once they all settled down, Savrin continued, "As most of you well know, we have some changes to the staff this year. First of all, I am pleased to welcome back Professor Berrycloth, who has agreed to hold on to his position as the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher."

Scarcely had Savrin finished his sentence before the room erupted into cheers, most likely from the fact that this was the first time the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher had lasted more than a year for who knew how long. Everyone had apparently believed the position to be cursed, and no one expected the man to return, so seeing him back at the school was something to celebrate.

 "Aside from being the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Professor Berrycloth has agreed to be the Slytherin Head of House. Should anyone in Slytherin have any questions, please feel free to bring them to him." Savrin said, half expecting more murmurs or cheers, but instead he was met with only silence.

It was apparent by their expressions and how most of the students were gawking that no one knew Professor Berrycloth to have been in Slytherin at one point in his life, mostly because he did not at all seem the type. Savrin for one was glad the man had been in Slytherin, and he hoped this would open the eyes to most of the children who had already been taught by him to not see all Slytherin students in a bad light, after all most everyone liked Berrycloth.

 "As you all can see, Professor Kettleburn is in tip top shape, however I have decided it is in the best interest for the school that he takes on some help. It is for this reason, I appoint Rubeus Hagrid as the Care of Magical Creatures assistant. He will have the full authority of a teacher, and should be shown all due respect."

This announcement seemed to leave most of the room in silence, especially Hagrid himself who was looking wide-eyed at Savrin. It was apparent by his reaction that this was the first time he was hearing of this. The room was quiet, at least up to the point where someone began clapping, at which point more and more people joined in until the entire hall was applauding the loveable half-giant who looked to be on the verge of tears.

 As soon as the hall quieted down, Savrin continued, "As many of you might have already noticed, the school is missing its resident caretaker. Mr. Filch has decided to move on from the school and enjoy his retirement elsewhere." The students seemed to burst into cheer, at least from second-year on up. It was obvious that none of them liked the old caretaker, and everyone was glad to have him gone.

"But worry not, I have arranged for an adequate replacement for the man." Savrin added, bringing the room up short as he smiled broadly to all of the students, letting them know that they weren't going to get a full run of the castle just because Filch and his annoying cat were no longer present.

"Our resident teaching ghost, Professor Binns has also been replaced by Thomas Callahan, who will now be teaching History of Magic. I hope each of you will take the course more seriously under his guidance and use the class for its intended purpose instead of catching up on your sleep." Savrin said while gesturing to the man sitting nearest to him. Thomas rose to his feet and gave the hall a slight bow before he returned to his seat so the ceremony could be finished sooner. 

 "Last, but certainly not least, we have Elise Winslow, the new Potions Professor. She is a highly gifted witch, and I have no doubt she will prove to you all just how gifted she can be." Savrin said as he gestured to Miss Winslow, who stood up at the mention of her name so everyone could get a good look at her.

This year was full of surprises, though Savrin didn't think he could mention them all right now or they would be here all night. No, he would let them all figure out the other things for themselves, and he had to admit that he was looking forward to seeing their reactions.

 "Finally, before we head off to bed, I think now is about time we address an important matter that has been left unspoken since the end of last year. To the First-years who have just arrived, I hope you will talk to your housemates after this and learn more about our point system and the house cup."

It was at this point a shining giant gold cup appeared in the air above the Headmaster, and everyone marveled at the design. On top of the cup, there was a lion, snake, eagle, and a badger standing back to back, and below them were the sigil of Hogwarts itself. The cup was two feet tall, and probably weighed more than any student could lift, but that didn't make it any less beautiful.

 "For the remainder of the school year, this cup will reside in the Hufflepuff Common room to remind each and every Hufflepuff of their victory the previous year, and I hope you will strive to keep it there for another year. As for the other three houses, I hope each of you will fight hard to earn this cup, and the merits that go along with it." Savrin said, earning looks of confusion and intrigue at the mention of 'merits'. 

"Beginning this year, the house who won the house cup at the end of the previous year will be allowed special privileges. Hufflepuff students from fifth-year on up will have their curfew extended by one hour. Third-year on up will be rewarded with an extra trip to Hogsmeade per month, and finally the first and second-years will be given ten hours a month every month for the rest of the school year of tutoring by their seventh-year housemates. They will be able to choose whichever subject they wish, and pick times that best work for them."

 All of the Hufflepuff students seemed to be excited at the benefits that came with winning the house Cup, and all of them were hoping to hold on to it for another year if they could. As for the other three houses, the envy was obvious, but so too was their motivation to earn the cup for themselves.

As for the seventh year students who would have to tutor their younger housemates, they didn't seem too thrilled with the idea, but Savrin had a way to motivate them into getting on board with the idea, and would even get them to look forward to tutoring. With this speech finally over and done with, Savrin dismissed the students to go back to their House dormitories.

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 (Salazar POV)

 'Stupid Godric and his fucking hat!' Salazar growled internally as he slowly rose to his feet to go back to the Slytherin Common rooms in the Dungeons. He was annoyed at what the sorting hat had said about him being power-hungry. He would swear up and down that the hat's goal was to make it seem as though he was a terrible person to the school. It was almost as if it was putting a rift between his house and the other three with its stupid ass song.

'I'm going to burn that thing!' He promised as he slowly trudged along through the crowd of students. He was still lost in thought when something caught his eye that snapped him back to reality. Looking at the figure that caught his attention, Salazar looked over the dirty-blonde hair and silver eyes that seemed to make his heart ache in recognition. His breath caught in his lungs when he noticed her look at him and smile.

 He was still trying to come to terms with what he was seeing when someone bumped into him and knocked him forward. Scowling at the boy who recoiled in fear from his glare, Salazar looked back up to where he saw the girl, but to his annoyance she had disappeared. He looked frantically around the room, but he couldn't find her anywhere, and for a while as he walked along with the rest of the Slytherins he couldn't help but wonder if he had imagined her.

 As he lay in bed, ready to go to sleep, he couldn't help but voice his thoughts, "Was that really you… Delia?"