The Great Hall was, as its name suggests, great. There were four extremely long tables that represented each of the four houses and another long table at the end of the hall that housed the staff members. Above their heads were a thousand floating candles that lit up the hall. The ceiling looked like it wasn't there at all because it was charmed to look like the sky outside, according to the girl with bushy hair who was walking in front of Harry and Aliza. Harry later told Aliza that her name was Hermione Granger and that she was a rather obnoxious little girl.
They stopped in a crowd in front of the staff table, before which was a stool with a pointed hat atop it. When the first years had settled in front of the hat, it began to sing through a rip above the brim. It sang about the four houses and was met with a resounding applause at the end. It wasn't long before the sorting began.
Hannah Abbot was the first student to get sorted, followed by Susan Bones. They both ended up in Hufflepuff. Down the line were Vincent and Gregory, who were both sorted into Slytherin. After Gregory was Hermione Granger, who was sorted into Gryffindor. It was soon Draco's turn to be sorted. The hat had barely touched his head when it shouted Slytherin across the hall. He had a smug smile on his face as he walked off to join Vincent and Gregory at the Slytherin table.
Theodore Nott and Pansy were sorted into Slytherin not long after and all too soon, Aliza heard her name being called. At the sound of the name 'Potter', the whole hall had fallen into hushed whispers of "It's Potter!" and "Harry Potter's twin sister!". Aliza gave Harry's hand one last squeeze before walking up to the stool with her shoulders back. She flashed a smile at McGonagall as she placed the hat atop her head and almost immediately, voice that seemed to be her conscience filled her head.
"Well, well, well," it said. "What do we have here? A complex mind that thinks far ahead, it seems. Ravenclaw would be a fine fit."
Her eyes roamed to the Slytherin table where she briefly made eye contact with Pansy before locking eyes with Draco, who was smiling at her.
"Oh, but there is a craftiness about you... A desire to be the best. A loyalty to friends that you hold dear to you, yes... Slytherin would be excellent, if that's what you wish for..."
Aliza returned the smile as the hat shouted 'Slytherin!' to the crowd of students. She rose from the stool and walked confidently to the Slytherin table. Many students at the table held expressions of surprise at the fact that a Potter, and the sister of the Boy Who Lived, no less, had been sorted into their house. The delayed applause only came when she arrived at the head of the table and made her way down to the end where Draco and Pansy were seated.
"Fancy seeing you here," Pansy said by way of greeting before turning her attention back to the sorting. Theodore was seated on her left, reading a book under the table. He didn't bother to acknowledge anyone or anything at all, really. Aliza sat down next to Draco but barely had time to say anything before Harry's name was called. At his name, the whispers in the hall rose to buzzing murmurs. The hat was placed on his head as he sat down on the stool. He nervously glanced at the Slytherin table, eyes roaming before pausing at Aliza.
Aliza gave what she hoped was a reassuring smile and tried her best to tell him without words that it didn't matter. It didn't matter that he didn't wish to be in the same house as her. Despite being twins, they were two different people and perhaps this was where their paths diverge from each other.
The sorting hat's rip opened ever so slightly and the whole hall fell silent in anticipation of the hat's next word. "Gryffindor!"
At this, the Gryffindor table roared into a resounding applause. Harry couldn't contain his broad grin as he walked to the end of the table. When he took a seat, he looked at Aliza again and gave her one of the happiest smile she had ever seen on him. She gave a cheeky smirk and a look that had 'I told you so' written all over it.
Ron Weasley was sorted into Gryffindor and at last, Blaise, who was the last person to be sorted, was declared a Slytherin. He joined Aliza, Pansy and Draco at the table before Dumbledore, the wizened headmaster of Hogwarts, stepped up to the podium and began the welcoming feast with four odd words.
The food was amazing and could very well be on par with Mrs. Gardner's cooking. Aliza wondered what the orphanage children were doing right now and whether they were even still there. She was lost in thought when Draco nudged her.
"What?"
"I said," Pansy repeated, slightly annoyed. "Where did you and your brother disappear off to all these years?"
"Well," Aliza paused, thinking of whether she should go into any kind of detail or not. "We grew up in an orphanage."
"An orphanage? So you grew up with muggles," she said rather than asked. Aliza nodded and Blaise asked another question. "What are they like?"
"They're pretty much like me and you, just without any magic," she replied. "They don't keep promises too well, though."
"Must be pretty nasty living with such filth every day," Draco said with a disgusted frown.
"It's not that bad. You just don't get too close to them."
"What's Potter's views on muggles?" Pansy asked, eyeing the Gryffindor table, who were making a ruckus about their house ghost.
"I can't say for sure, but he probably thinks them as equals. We did grow up thinking we were muggles after all."
"How do you think he survived the killing curse and defeated the Dark Lord?" Blaise asked.
"I don't think Harry actually defeated the Dark Lord," Theodore suddenly said from his seat beside Pansy.
"Harry? What is he," Draco snarled. "Your friend?"
Blaise rolled his eyes at the blond boy before turning to Theo. "Care to elaborate?"
"Do you honestly think a child could defeat the most powerful dark wizard the world has ever seen?" Theo asked mildly.
The conversation ended there because Dumbledore had stood once more and begun establishing some rules with the school. What Theo had said hung in the air as they followed the Slytherin prefect back to their dorms in the dungeons.
"What do you reckon Dumbledore's hiding in the third-floor corridor?" A fellow Slytherin nudged Aliza.
"I don't know," she shrugged. "A huge beast?"
"I think there's a poisonous plant growing there. Something like a trap of sorts," she said. "I'm Daphne, by the way. Daphne Greengrass." She extended her hand and Aliza reached out to shake it.
"Aliza Potter, though I think you already know that," Aliza smiled.
"Alright, here's the password for this week," the prefect was saying when they came to a stop in front of a stone wall. "Ambitre."
The stone wall slid back to reveal an entrance that was elegantly decorated. One by one, the Slytherins all stepped into the common room. Aliza loved it at once despite the chill. A lush green carpet was lain on the floor with silver and emerald couches and armchairs strewn neatly across the room. The fireplace, which was burning weakly, was decorated with intricately carved patterns. On the wall opposite the fireplace was a large bookcase that spanned the entire wall. Beside the bookcase were a set of stone stairs that led further down into the dungeons. What amazed the first years most, though, was the huge glass wall that enabled them to see into the great lake. The moonlight cast a beautiful shadow through the lake and into the common room.
"Your dorms are down those set of stairs. Boys on the left and girls on the right," the prefect said. "Before you leave for bed, Professor Snape would like to address you."
At that moment, Snape entered the common room and silently scrutinised the new Slytherins. His eyes fell on Aliza and she thought she saw them soften just a tiny bit.
"I will cut to the chase with you. Slytherins do not have the best reputation in this school. We stick together and look out for one another. Any disagreements stay in the common room or I will personally sort it out. Understood?" he asked, gaze sweeping over each and every student before turning towards the open door. "And please be prepared for your lessons. We don't want to be losing our winning streak for the house cup."
Aliza lay in bed that night reading books she found in the common room about the first wizarding war and the killing curse. They weren't much and didn't answer many questions she had. Something happened that night that made the killing curse ineffective on Harry, resulting in the mysterious disappearance of Lord Voldemort. And Aliza was going to get to the bottom of it.
000
"Mr Potter," Snape said loudly. "What would I get if I added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?"
Harry looked up sharply and turned to Weasley silently for help but Weasley seemed just as lost. Granger, who was seated beside Longbottom, raised her hand high in the air.
"I don't know, sir," Harry replied. Snape kept his gaze on Harry and asked him where he could find a bezoar. Granger's hand, if it was even possible, stretched higher in the air. Aliza raised an eyebrow at the bushy haired Gryffindor and turned to Pansy, who was seated beside her. Pansy looked at Granger and gave her a dirty look. At least this was something they could agree on.
Behind them, Draco was snickering quite loudly beside Blaise. Harry once again admitted he didn't know the answer and Aliza felt slightly disappointed in her brother. If he had just read the first chapter of the potions textbook like she did, he would know all the answers.
"Thought you wouldn't open a book before coming, eh Potter?" Snape taunted. Uncle Sev definitely had something against Harry now, which made Aliza feel even more disappointed. She had hoped that Uncle Sev would think positively of Harry and perhaps even treat him like he would treat her. But that didn't seem like it was going to happen.
"What is the difference, Potter, between monkshood and wolfsbane?" Snape pressed.
"I don't know. I think Hermione does, though, why don't you try her?" Harry said.
Aliza couldn't believe how stupid her brother could get. Gryffindor lost a house point for that, and Aliza was secretly relieved she wasn't in the same house as Harry. Losing points on the first day of classes wasn't the best first impression.
Potions went smoothly for the Slytherins. Aliza thought brewing potions was very much like baking with Uncle Sev. Modifying the potion sometimes brought about better results. It was just a pity Aliza couldn't remember much about what the different ingredients did. Perhaps with practice, she could do exceedingly well in this subject.
During dinner later that day, Aliza went over to the Gryffindor table to speak to Harry. "Don't mind me," she said, sitting beside Harry. A few Gryffindors gave her dirty looks and she shot them deadly glares in return. "How's my brother doing?"
"What's a Slytherin like you doing here?" Weasley spat.
"I wasn't talking to you, Weasel," she shot back.
"Stop it, both of you," Harry said loudly. "She's my sister, Ron. She just wants to speak to me."
Aliza's hateful look turned into a triumphant smirk as she turned back to Harry. "I hope potions didn't dampen your day," she said lightly.
"Oh, it sure didn't," Harry said sarcastically, rolling his eyes.
"He's not usually like that, you know," Aliza said. "I don't know why he hates you so much."
"Are you sure it isn't the red robes?"
"Perhaps it's for the best," Aliza looked Harry up and down. "You'd look horrible in green."
"You do know we look alike, don't you?"
"Ah, but you see, I don't have that terribly dreadful hair of yours."
"Hey!" He smacked her playfully on the arm as she laughed.
"Harry?" Aliza asked after a few seconds of silence.
"Hmm?"
"Suppose I don't go back to the orphanage next year. Suppose I... leave... Would you hate me for not bringing you along?"
Harry didn't reply for what seemed like hours to Aliza. She knew she wanted to leave and stay with Uncle Sev. But she also knew neither Uncle Sev nor Harry would ever agree to live with each other.
Harry turned to look Aliza in the eye. "We're two very different people, Aliza. I think you, of all people, would know that better than even me," he said. "You may be a Slytherin and me a Gryffindor. But we're still Potters and that's really all that mat-"
"Oh cut the long speech, Harry." Aliza rolled her eyes playfully with a smile.
"What I meant to say, is that I could never hate you."
I could never hate you.
I could never hate you.
000
Draco, Blaise, Pansy, Daphne and Aliza were seated by the fire a few days after the first potions lesson. Theo was seated in an armchair nearby but was absorbed in a book.
"You're not actually going to turn up for the duel, are you?" Aliza asked Draco. Draco had challenged Harry to a wizard duel during dinner earlier that day. He'd been furious to learn of Harry's achievement of being the youngest seeker in about a century.
"Of course not," Draco scoffed. "The plan is to get him caught out of the common room after curfew."
"You really think he'll fall for that?" Blaise asked.
"He will," Pansy answered. They all looked at her quizzically.
"Gryffindor pride," she shrugged before going back to filing her nails.
"She's brought up a valid and brilliant point," Aliza said, earning a raised brow from Pansy. She was still slightly hostile towards Aliza, but things were getting better between them. "Besides, he likes to prove himself in the most reckless of manners."
"I don't understand how you're okay with this, Aliza," Daphne said, looking up from her fashion magazine. "He is your brother and you're letting him run headfirst into a trap."
"He may be my brother but that doesn't make me accountable for everything he does," Aliza felt slightly annoyed at how everyone kept bringing up her connection to Harry. They were two different people. Very different people. "In any case, it's all harmless fun."
"Somebody understands!" Draco exclaimed dramatically.
They spent the rest of the night chatting about all sorts of things. Theo even joined in on the conversation when they started talking about the gringotts vault that was broken into a few weeks earlier. Aliza felt happy and a little less lonely for the first time in a long while. She missed the joy of having friends.
The next morning didn't go very well for Draco. It appeared that Gryffindor hadn't lost any house points at all last night, and Harry and Ron were in surprisingly high spirits.
"I don't think they got caught, Draco," Vincent said with a mouth full of eggs.
"I think your plan didn't work," Gregory added beside him.
"Speak to me when you stop stating the obvious, dimwits!" Draco seethed beside Aliza. He stood very abruptly a few seconds later with a deathly glint in his eye. "Vince, Greg, it's time to pay the happy fools a visit."
Blaise rolled his eyes as the three Slytherins marched up to the Gryffindor table. It was becoming very common for Draco to drag Vincent and Gregory along for his exploits in causing Harry and his friend trouble. It was like he had an obsession about Harry ever since he rejected his offer of friendship. Draco really did have a lot of pride.
He eventually came back to the table defeated. It appeared that Harry was sent a broom. "A bloody Nimbus Two Thousand!" Draco proclaimed to the whole table. While the table burst into protests at the special and unfair treatment Harry got, Hedwig landed in front of Aliza with a note attached to her leg. She took the note and fed some of her bacon to the owl before opening it. The note was from Harry, asking her to meet him at the quidditch pitch after his practice. He had something rather important and exciting to share, it seemed.
000
Aliza's mind was swirling with countless possibilities. She hadn't believed Harry when she first heard his words. It was absolutely ridiculous yet it still made sense. With this piece of information, a dismissive warning became the corner pieces of a puzzle Aliza was bent on putting together. She was so lost in thought that she almost walked into someone in the corridor. She looked up to apologise but stopped short when she realised who it was.
"Draco!" she started but realised she didn't know how to put her current thoughts into words. "Are you in a hurry somewhere?" she finally asked.
"Not in particular. I was just on the way to the library to return a book," he replied, lifting a book in his hands in indication.
"Great! Let's walk and talk then," Aliza looped her arms through Draco's and began to walk up the stairs leading to the library. "What book is that?"
"The Most Famous and Influential Wizards and Witches of All Time."
"Is that for History of Magic? That essay on Almeric Sawbridge is really a pain in the arse, don't you think?" She scrunched up her face in disgust. Professor Binns didn't make the already boring class any more bearable, which led Aliza to start hating that class.
"It's pretty interesting if you put your mind to it. Trust me, reading the books are much more interesting than listening to that foul ghost drone on and on," Draco drawled with a frown. "So tell me, what were you thinking about so deeply a few moments ago?"
"You know how Harry never got caught for sneaking off after curfew last night?"
Draco narrowed his eyes. He didn't like being reminded of his foiled plan. "If you're not going to tell me that he didn't break his arm after quidditch practice this morning, then save it."
"Even if I tell you that I know what Dumbledore's got hidden in the third-floor corridor?" Aliza smirked when Draco's head whipped around to face her. She knew he couldn't stand knowing anything less than she did. His silence was a clear sign for Aliza to continue speaking.
"Well, to be fair, I don't know exactly what it is except for the fact that a three-headed dog is guarding a trap door and whatever is beyond it."
"A three-headed dog!?" Draco yelled with wide eyes. "I knew that Dumbledore was bonkers but this - this is on a whole new level!"
"It is, isn't it? What's more, don't you think it's a bit suspicious that someone tried to raid a vault without taking anything a month before school started and Dumbledore announced the forbidden corridor?" Aliza rambled on. "I know it seems a bit farfetched, but Harry did mention that Hagrid had told him about a special mission Dumbledore had sent him on at Gringotts during the school break. Perhaps may-"
"What you're trying to say," Draco began. "Is that Dumbledore's using the corridor as a sort of vault in replacement of the one at Gringotts which was broken into. Am I right?"
Aliza nodded, thankful that Draco managed to string her long train of thoughts into a single, coherent sentence.
"The question now is what is so important that someone out there would break into Gringotts to find it?" Draco mumbled to himself.
000
Time flew by very quickly and before Aliza knew it, it was Halloween. Everyone was gathered in the Great Hall that night for the grand feast. The hall was fascinatingly decorated with live bats and lit up pumpkins. Magic never ceased to amaze Aliza. At the table, Pansy was sniggering to Blaise and Greg about the crying mudblood in the bathroom and Draco was helping himself to a candy filled pumpkin when Professor Quirrell came bursting through the doors, yelling about a troll in the dungeons before fainting.
At that moment, the whole hall burst into chaos. Dumbledore ordered the students back to their common rooms immediately, but Aliza just looked at the headmaster like he was insane. She was not going to step a foot into the dungeons when there was a troll in there. She looked at Draco, Pansy and Blaise, who were seated closest to her, and it seemed they shared the same sentiment. As the Slytherin prefect led them out of the hall, Aliza pulled them aside and away from the rest of the students.
"Come on, this way!" She hissed before heading off down a deserted corridor.
"Where are we going?" Blaise asked, looking over his shoulder to make sure they weren't seen.
"I don't know," Aliza admitted. "Somewhere we can hide and far from the dungeons, I guess."
"You don't know? Oh, honestly, follow me instead," Pansy said haughtily and pushed past Aliza. They had turned a corner when she suddenly froze and pushed them all back behind the wall. She raised a finger to her lips and they fell deathly silent. Aliza could hear footsteps retreating into the distance and away from them.
"Who was that?" Draco whispered when the footsteps could no longer be heard.
"Professor Quirrell. Except," Pansy paused, brows furrowed. "It didn't seem like him. Isn't he supposed to be passed out in the Great Hall?"
"What do you mean it didn't seem like him?" Blaise asked.
"He didn't just not look sick. He was looking over his shoulder like as if he was wary of getting caught."
"Wary? It's not like he doesn't have the authority to be roaming the halls," Draco scoffed. "Unless..." His eyes widened just a fraction as he turned to Aliza, who was already looking at him with a hint of a smile on her face.
"The third-floor corridor!" They said together.
"Would you two care to explain?" Pansy asked, crossing her arms and Aliza told them all she knew about the third-floor corridor and the conclusion that she and Draco had come to.
"So you're telling me," Blaise said. "That Professor Quirrell is the one after whatever Dumbledore is hiding?"
Draco and Aliza nodded.
"And we're standing here when he's about to get it?"
There was a brief moment of silence before Aliza spoke. "Right," they had been too caught up in the excitement of their discovery that they completely forgot the urgency of the situation. "Well, we certainly aren't going to go after him. Our best course of action right now is to find one of the Professors."
"And who's going to believe us?" Pansy asked.
"Professor Snape," Aliza said. "He'll believe us."
After roaming the halls for about fifteen minutes, they finally found Professor Snape near the Hospital Wing. His leg was clearly injured, however much he tried to hide it.
"Aren't you four supposed to be in the common room?" He droned when he saw them rushing towards him.
"Uncle Sev! What happened to your leg?" Aliza asked, examining his wound.
"I'll be fine, Aliza. I just need to see Madam Pomfrey," he said.
"That's a bite wound, Uncle Severus," Draco said quietly. Aliza stiffened and schooled her face into a blank stare. She looked at Snape, who was looking intently at Draco.
"Excellent observation, Draco," he said sarcastically.
"You didn't happen to be bitten by a three-headed dog, would you?" Aliza asked.
Snape sighed. "You were always thinking and observing too much for your own good," he said with a tired frown. "I'm not the one after the stone, if that's your suspicion. I was merely ensuring its safety."
"We saw Professor Quirrell, sir," Pansy said. "He was acting all suspicious."
"Just what I thought. I ought to speak with him soon. But without solid evidence, we cannot accuse him of anything," Snape said, trailing off and pushing the Infirmary door open. "You'd do well to retire to your common room." And with that, Snape disappeared behind the door.
"A stone?" Blaise asked incredulously as they made their way down to the dungeons. "All this drama for a bloody stone?"
"Don't be stupid, Blaise," Pansy said. "There's obviously something special or powerful about this stone. We just have to find out what it is exactly."
"I have to say," Aliza smiled. "I think we did pretty well in fooling Uncle Sev."
"He thinks way too highly of our intelligence," Blaise said.
"Oh no, he doesn't," Draco smirked, a cocky glint in his eye. "After all, we did manage to fool him."