Waking up, Cassiopeia had never been more thankful for the early hours at Wools. There, she'd usually be up at five, having to get ready and then begin breakfast for the rest of the residents. Now, she could take some time to get dressed and process the night before.

A sharp pang echoed in her heart, but Cassiopeia had had a lot to sleep on. Yes, Harry had missed her sorting. BUT there had to be a reason. He can't just abandon me. Not like them.

Harry was not her parents. He wasn't.

Cassiopeia just needed to be reasonable, level headed, and calm.

The calmness lasted all of forty minutes.

"AARRGGH!"

Cassiopeia huffed, throwing herself to the ground, crossing her legs and glaring.

"Is that really necessary?" Astoria raised an eyebrow. She and Lysandra had gotten up soon after Cassiopeia exited the showers.

Cassiopeia scowled, is it necessary for you to speak?

Lysandra smothered a laugh, picking up the green and silver tie lying at the foot of her bed. Eyes sparkling, she turned towards Cassiopeia.

"Let me help you," the older girl beckoned her to stand, something Cassiopeia did reluctantly.

"It's evil." Cassiopeia said petulantly, huffing as Lysandra smoothed the material.

Astoria and Lysandra giggled. They had watched the ravenette attempt to tie her tie for the last ten minutes, each attempt making the girl more and more aggravated. It shouldn't have been amusing, but it was like watching a bunny get angry. Her nose scrunched up, her cheeks puffed out, and for some reason she made an angry huffing noise that she didn't even seem aware of doing.

"Come here," Lysandra made sure her hands were in Cassiopeia's line of vision before reaching out and grabbing a hold of her wrist, tugging Cassiopeia to the space in front of her. Cassiopeia blinked, eyes widening as Lysandra draped the tie around her neck.

I thought she was going to show me how to tie it, a pink hue rose on Cassiopeia's cheeks, not tie it for me.

Uncaring of her growing embarrassment, Lysandra pulled the material tightly, slotting the tie to rest against Cassiopeia's throat comfortably. "There," the eldest in the room nodded, "a proper Slytherin."

Cassiopeia gave a shy smile, thanking her softly before quickly moving to grab her bag from her bed. Behind her, she missed Lysandra rolling her eyes fondly and Astoria stifling her laughs in her hands.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Entering the common room, the girls found all but Corvus and Caleum sitting in the armchairs. There were upper years scattered throughout the room, some lounging around while others entered and exited through the portrait.

"Good Morning," Cayden greeted as they made their way down the stairs, gaining the attention of Nicholas.

"Morning!" Cassiopeia chirped, smiling blindingly to the two, pigtails swishing as she hopped in place.

"Don't ask," Astoria sighed, shaking her head at the boys' questioning looks.

Lysandra groaned, sinking into the plush armchair. "You take her, just take her!"

"I'm not that bad!" Cassiopeia huffed.

"You've been talking about classes for the last half hour!" Lysandra retorted.

"What's wrong with that?" Nicholas asked, staring at the bubbling raven-haired girl befuddled. He didn't see what was so wrong about her being excited on their first day. He'd be surprised if they weren't excited as well.

"I've just said I'm excited about charms" Cassiopeia defended, pouting at the two older girls who gave her deadpanned expressions. How rude!

"We've listened to you speak of every theory, every spell in our textbook," Astoria glowered. "The term hasn't even STARTED yet!"

"You'll be thankful Peia likes charms so much when we start getting homework," Cayden smirked at Cassiopeia's cheer of triumph. "Ms. Waterfall."

Astoria gasped, cheeks coloring a dark rose. "You swore you'd never speak of that!" she cried aghast.

"Ms. Waterf-"

"Don't!" Astoria cut Lysandra off, glaring at the laughing boys. "At least I never made a house elf cry!"

Cayden immediately scowled, laughter seizing. "I was five! I didn't know any better!"

"And I was five too!" Astoria shot back.

Cassiopeia poked Nicholas's arm, earning a surprised look from the boy. "Yes?" He amusedly looked down at the girl.

"What are they talking about?" She asked, eyes wide as the two continued to hurl insults at each other. Lysandra was off to the side, leaning in her chair and chortling.

"The times their accidental magic occurred. Astoria and Cayden grew up together," Nicholas explained, nodding when Cassiopeia thanked him.

"What are you arguing about now?" Corvus groaned, coming down the stairs with Caelum trailing behind him.

"When aren't they arguing?" Caelum smiled cheekily, only to yelp when Astoria glared at him.

"Excellent!" a voice sounded from behind their group. "You're all here. We'll just wait for Adrain and then be on our way." Emelia was already dressed, leaning casually against the railing leading up to the girls dormitory. The amused smile on her face told that she had been there for a while.

Astoria and Cayden blushed brightly.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was nearing seven thirty when the group of first years and two prefects made their way to the Great Hall. On the way, Adrian and Emelia pointed out various sections of the castle and landmarks to help them identify their path.

"The portrait of the three men there, yes that one, they hardly move from it, so you'll always know where the Common Room is," Adrian waved at an intricate gold metal frame holding an oil painting of three gentlemen dressed in cloaks lounging in a study.

"There's a set of armor just down the corridor up ahead," Emelia pointed out. "That means we're near the Great Hall."

Soon enough, not even a minute or so later, the group could hear chatter flowing out of the hall and into the corridor, volume increasing the more they neared the doors.

"Wow," Cassiopeia whispered, gaze fixated on the ceiling. Where, the night before, had been a hundred stars, now, laid the gateway to the heavens. A light blue sky dotted with fluffy white clouds drifting together slowly.

"PEIA!"

Cassiopeia whipped around, heart racing madly as her neck snapped, body following a beat later.

"Peia!"

"Hold on, he's calling a sn-"

"Wha-"

"Is that-"

"Why is he-"

"Oomph!"

Cassiopeia crashed to the floor, body cushioned by a rugged, bony landing, face pressed and burrowed in a familiar curve.

"Rian," Cassiopeia breathed, body shuddering slightly as Harry moved to sit up, arms circling her.

"I'm so sorry, Peia," Harry ignored the way the Great Hall silenced around him. They can fuck themselves. His glasses were askew, one side dangling from his right ear and his head hurt from the impact of hitting the glossed floors, but Harry didn't care. "I'm sorry, Peia, I wanted to be here."

Cassiopeia extracted herself from her hiding spot, leaning back into Harry's hands so she could stare the green-eyed boy in the eyes. She fixed his glasses. "You weren't here."

The whimpered words made tears well in Harry's eyes.

"Is it because I'm a Slytherin?"

It was said brokenly, almost a dead whisper. But in the silence of the Hall everyone present heard. The other first years present in the Houses stared at the duo in confusion. While Cassiopeia's friends were stuck between getting their friend and interrogating her or leaving the two be in their conversation.

Terence and Cassius Warrington, his second, had stood up from the table the second they had heard the Gryffindor Boy-Wonder call their new snake's nickname. The rest of his court, as well as Alexander, had joined the waiting group by the doors; Terence sending his other first years to their seats with a quelling look. Reluctantly, Corvus led his friends to the table, sitting besides his cousin as they watched Cassiopeia and Harry-bloody-Potter.

Settling a hand on Adrian's shoulder when the fifth year made a quick motion to grab the duo, they all winced at the broken tone in Cassiopeia's voice.

Observe. Terence's eyes gave the command. Don't interfere yet. She's not harmed. The Slytherins settled to the side, wands hidden in their hands by their robes and eyes vigilant.

Percy had also stood, standing opposite the Slytherin's with Oliver Wood by his side. Normally, the twins would also be present, but they had stayed back in the common room to speak with Ron about his car-flying antics.

Wincing, Percy bit his lip, hiding the urge to check the two raven-haired siblings of his for injuries. He held a hand out, pausing Oliver's movement, "they need to have this conversation," he whispered in his ear.

The other Lion's present, the few that had gotten up early for the first day of classes, were frozen halfway out of their seats. Who was this new snake?! Attempting to harm the Boy-Who-Lived!!

A few students had their wands out, ready to cast at the Slytherin table should Harry be harmed. Others sat back down, content to watch the playout and tell their friends.

Cedric Diggory had stumbled in his step to his table, knocking into the second year who had stopped to gape at the scene. Eyes wide, he turned to notice the rest of the Puff's present were also shocked, watching the scene with rampant attention.

The Ravenclaws present were shuffling, wanting to watch what was happening but also getting ready to flee should the Slytherins and Gryffindors begin hexing each other. The light-aligned students were watching with narrowed eyes, what does this snake think they're doing?! While the neutral students watched with vast interest, why was Potter calling a Slytherin to him and apologizing?

"Never!" Harry wasn't aware of how loud his protest echoed through the Hall. "Peia, I knew you'd be sorted into Slytherin. I'm so so incredibly proud of you!" Harry's eyes glistened with earnest, hands cradling Cassiopeia's face so she understood his every word.

A rush of emotion ran through Cassiopeia. Gratitude, warmth, compassion, caring, and most of all, love. The most foreign emotion to them both, but one they learnt together.

"It was the platform, we couldn't get in. We took the car and crashed. We're alright! Really! But we were too late to make it to the sorting," Harry gave a rushed, abbreviated version of the story, reassuring Cassiopeia when her eyes widened and her hands fluttered across his chest. Letting go of her face and pulling their foreheads to rest together, "Slytherin has earnt an amazing member. I wanted to be here to celebrate, Peia, I wanted to watch you run down to the table, clapping and cheering you on."

Cassiopeia smiled watery, pressing closer to Harry, shifting on his lap to kiss his cheek. "It's okay," she hugged him tightly, grip only growing tighter as Harry moved to stand them both up.

And then Cassiopeia pulled away, smiling face settling and eyes growing fierce. Harry gulped, taking a half step back and raising his arms outward. "Now, Peia. . ." Harry said cautiously.

Behind them, Terence and Alexander moved closer, wands fisted and clenched tightly when three Gryffindor sixth years and what seemed to be a Hufflepuff and two Ravenclaws tensed and stood as Harry's tone turned from apologetic and loving to cautious and worried. Percy kept a tight grip on Oliver's hand, keeping the Quidditch Captain's wand pointed down.

"You. And Ron I assume. Took a FLYING car aND CRASHED?!" Cassiopeia glared, arms crossed as Harry cowered in front of the tiny girl. Fuck. Harry sweatdropped, smiling sheepishly. A glance at Percy told him he was on his own. Traitor. Harry huffed, the older Weasley was far too smug.

"It's really not that bad," Harry tried.

"NOT THAT BAD?!" Cassiopeia echoed. "Hadrian James Potter, what on earth possessed you to fly that metal trap to school?!"

"The platform Peia, really," Harry soothed. "It was our only way."

Cassiopeia huffed, right foot tapping against the floor. "You couldn't have sent Hedwig?" I knew she'd bring that up, Harry winced. "Or waited for Mr. Weasley to come back? Or tried that floo-powder thing to get someone? Or, I don't know, find any other possible way that would not have ended with an accident?!"

That would have actually been pretty smart, Harry mentally facepalmed.

"To be fair, we only crashed after we got to Hogwarts," Harry smiled impishly, knowing Cassiopeia only cared and by the calm entering her tone, she was just relieved he was alright. Or as alright as she could see from the hurried glances of her eyes roaming over him.

Cassiopeia scowled, stomping up to him and wrapping her arms around him. "Promise you're okay?" She peered up, bottom lip poking out and eyes watering.

"Yea, Peia," Harry beamed, tightening his grip. "I'm okay." Now that I've seen you, now that I know you're alright, I'm fantastic.

"You owe me chocolate," Cassiopeia muttered into his chest, matter of factly. Harry snorted, burying his face in her hair and nodding against her scalp. Finally, peace.

Of course, the moment he thought that the world just had to go sike and prove him wrong.

"HARRY POTTER, WHY ARE YOU BLOCKING THE ENTRANCE?" A loud, high-pitched screeching voice broke the two siblings apart as they winced, Cassiopeia covering her ears with her hands.

Harry scowled, ignoring the girl as he cupped Cassiopeia's hands with his own, helping to rub the ringing he knew would be occurring in her head. Getting a nod, Harry reassured that she was okay, before turning on his heel.

A red faced Hermione stood, arms crossed and scowl in place near the entrance door. Ron was panting, red-faced as well, hands on his knees. Students entering the Hall skirted around the large group, heading to their tables but heads turned to watch the proceedings.

"Obviously we're not blocking the entrance, as everyone is still coming in," Harry rolled his eyes. He was quite over being berated by someone who thought that had authority over him. Especially so when all they did was disrespect him.

"What are you doing with her?" Hermione shot a nasty look at Peia who hadn't noticed, still preoccupied by the echoing ringing and pain in her ears.

Harry's eyes narrowed, "excuse me?" he growled. Ron had moved to stand beside Percy and Oliver, concern swimming in his eyes before he seemed to come to a decision and walk over to Peia.

Alexander gripped his wand tightly, walking to stand just out of eyesight of Cassiopeia as the youngest Weasley male came closer. Ron paused in his step, seeming to weigh his decision before coming to an agreement. Nodding his head, he bowed to the Heir of the House of Selwyn, before continuing on. Alexander's wand slipped from his hand.

"Are you okay, Peia?" Ron whispered, crouching down a bit. He knew Harry would've done the same had this been Ginny, and truth be told, he had grown fond of the mischievous munchkin the last few weeks of the Summer.

"Sensitive ears," Peia whispered, and Ron paused for a moment. He knew Hermione wouldn't let this go, despite how much he had tried to talk her out of trying to control Harry's decisions. He also knew that Harry, like any good sibling, would not take a slight against Cassiopeia easily.

"C'mon," Ron urged her, turning her to the Slytherin table. "Why don't you introduce me to your new friends? I can brag to Harry that I've met them first," he joked, eliciting a small giggle from the ravenette.

Alexander and Terence gaped at the scene, making sure to fix their masks the moment the duo turnt towards them. Terence nodded, standing straight, as Weasley passed and nodded to him, Cassiopeia pulling him bodily by the hand to urge him to walk faster. What the bloody hell?!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Draco Malfoy was many things. He was spoiled. He was pompous. And even he could admit, he was sometimes an ass. He was used to having his way, granted it was the way his father had approved of. It was no wonder, then, that he felt like he'd entered another dimension when Potter, and then the Weasel began speaking to their new snake.

Perhaps Father had hexed him a little too strongly this summer. That was the only possible explanation. Because there was no other reason for the Weasel to be willingly brought over to the Slytherin table, a smile on his face.

Tensing, Draco slid closer to his cousin. Corvus was all Draco had. Yes, he had his parents, but they simply did their duty to him as their son and left it at that. His mother tried, but there was only so much she could do under his father's thumb. Corvus was his to protect, he had been doing so since he had known the word.

Cassiopeia skipped forward, one hand rubbing her ear while the other had a firm grasp on the Weasel's outstretched hand. He looked bemused, and Draco quickly settled his face into a blank mask.

"Ron, this is Heir's Corvus Lestrange, Caelum Crouch, Cayden Rosier, and Nicholas Macnair," Cassiopeia introduced, standing in front of her yearmates and bouncing on the balls of her feet. "And this is Heiress Lysandra Avery and Astoria Greengrass. Everyone, this is Ronald Weasley."

There was a beat of silence.

"Merry met Heir's Lestrange, Crouch, Rosier and Macnair. Merry met Heiress Avery and Miss Greengrass," Ron untangled his hand from Cassiopeia's to place his palm above his heart and bow.

The Slytherin table descended into silence.

No bloody way, Draco knew his mouth way open, jaw slackened. He couldn't help it.

SLAM!

A pitcher of juice fell out of a fifth year's hold, crashing against the table and spilling everywhere.

Clearing his throat, Corvus stood, followed by the other first years. Bowing, "Merry met Mister Weasley. Would you like to join us?"

Cassiopeia beamed.

Who the fuck is this girl?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Harry was thankful Ron had guided Cassiopeia away. He didn't want her anywhere near this explosion. One day. I can't even have one day of things going right. Harry scowled, he hadn't even attended his first class yet!

From the corner of his eye, he could see the upper year Slytherins, mental reminder: thank them for coming to Peia's aid, even though it wasn't necessary, having a silent conversation. A seventh year, Higgs, Harry remembered from Quidditch, seemed to hold another conversation with Percy. Nodding, they turned on their heels, returning to their table.

"She's a snake, Harry!" Hermione screeched, arms waving wildly in the air as if that was enough of an explanation. Last term, perhaps, but not anymore. Harry refused to judge others based on the color of his tie. He was ashamed he had done so previously. It was similar to everyone in Privet Drive believing the Dursley's who told them he was a troublesome deviant.

"I'm aware of the mascot of Slytherin House, Hermione," Harry said coolly. "I'd had thought you'd know that, what with how many times you've told us you've read Hogwarts: A History."

Behind him, Oliver and Percy snorted, not even bothering to cover up their amusement at Harry's sass.