dislike ↠ draco malfoy

thirty-two

When we arrived at the castle, I separated from Ginny, Luna, and Neville and set off toward the Slytherin table. The atmosphere of Hogwarts was the same as it was on the train, cold and dark. When I approached the table decked with green, I didn't see Draco anywhere. I sighed and sat down on the end nearest to the staff table. Carmen, Blaise, and Pansy were already there.

My eyes flicked up to the staff table. McGonagall, Trelawney, Flitwick, Snape... I saw two new faces seated at the table. There was a woman and a man, both in robes of all black. The woman had a fierce look on her face and her hair was pulled so tightly back into a bun that you could see where it was pulling the skin on her forehead. The man looked equally cunning, with short hair and a long nose.

Was one of them the new headmaster? I had assumed that McGonagall would be the new headmistress, as she was deputy headmistress.

"Who are they?" I whispered, leaning toward Pansy, who was beside me.

Pansy frowned. She didn't look very good. Her eyes were sunken in from lack of sleep and her usually thick black hair looked thinner. She was paler, too, almost sickly. "I don't know."

The doors of the Great Hall slammed shut as soon as everyone was inside. The first years were in a line in the center of the hall, as usual.

Suddenly, Snape rose out of his seat and approached the front of the hall. He was wearing his usual black robes, though something about him seemed more... powerful.

"Hello, children," he drawled, his voice immediately silencing the room. "Welcome back to Hogwarts." He glared down at the first years, who looked eager to be sorted. "And welcome, I suppose."

He cleared his throat. "As you know, last year, Professor Dumbledore met a rather unfortunate end..."

I scoffed. You killed him.

"...I will now be the new Headmaster of Hogwarts," Snape stated.

Gasps and murmurs rung out through the Great Hall. How could Snape be Headmaster?

"Silence!" Snape bellowed. The room immediately went so quiet, you probably could have heard a pin drop. "I am also pleased to welcome our new teachers, Professor Carrow and Professor Carrow." He gestured toward the staff table, and the man and woman that I hadn't recognized stood up.

He pointed to the woman. "Professor Alecto Carrow will be your new Muggle Studies teacher," he pointed to the man, "and Professor Amycus Carrow will be your new Dark Arts teacher."

I stiffened. The Carrows... weren't they Death Eaters? How could they be teaching at Hogwarts?

"Now, lets begin the sorting," Snape said.