Draco... I Love You

The Common Room

    After supper, the Gryffindor prefect led the rest of the first years out of the great hall. We rounded several corners before finally reaching a set of stairs. The prefect stopped and seemed to be waiting for something to happen. He nodded his head and started walking up the stairs, with the first years following suit.

    Just as he reached the top of the steps, the ground beneath them began to rumble. Hermione looked at the other people around her. None of them looked frightened, except a few, who must have been muggle-born, just like her.

    "Don't worry!' The prefect called out, "Sometimes the staircases move on their own. Its perfectly safe!"

    Hermione scoffed. How could moving staircases be safe?

    The stairs shifted from one balcony to the next one over to the right. Once it settled, the first years practically ran off the steps.

    "Slowly, please!" called the boy. No one seemed to listen to him though.

Hermione followed the group and paused again at the end of a hallway. They had stopped in front of a portrait of a lady in very old clothes. She moved gracefully, and the prefect nodded at the woman.

    "This is the entrance to the common room," the boy explained, "Only Gryffindor's are allowed to enter, and if we find that other houses are in the common room, there will be strict punishments. Is that clear?"

    All the first years nodded and the redhead turned back to the portrait.

    "Password?" The portrait asked politely.

    "Leo aquilae," the prefect said with an accent.

    The portrait opened to reveal the entrance to a large room. It was beautiful. It had high white walls covered with images of wizards of the past, as well as moving paintings, and tapestries made of crimson and gold threads. A fireplace roared in the opposite wall and there were tables scattered all over the room. Other students sat at these tables. Above the fireplace hung a portrait of a man with a red beard. He looked to be around fifty years old and he was holding a wand. He looked happy, but he also looked like he wouldn't hesitate to kill you.

The prefect noticed Hermione looking at the painting and came to stand next to her.

    "That right there is Godric Gryffindor," the prefect said matter-of-factly. "He helped found this school. He founded this house. The other three founders are-"

    "Rowena Ravenclaw, Helga Hufflepuff, and Salazar Slytherin," Hermione finished absentmindedly. She didn't like being distracted from her thoughts.

    "I'm impressed," he smiled, sticking his hand out to her, "My names Percy. Percy Weasley. My brother Ron is a first year too."

    "Oh goodness!" she chuckled, "You're that oafs older brother? But he's so improper... How can you be related to him?"

    "Yes, well..." he began. Before he could finish, a girl with braids ran up and asked him to show her where the sleeping quarters were.

    "Alright, one moment," Percy motioned for Hermione to follow him. He gathered everyone around him.

    "Alright first years, go ahead and go to the sleeping quarters. They are divided by gender. Boys to the left, girls to the right!"

    All the first years ran up the steps, and then split in the middle. All the girls went to the right and all the boys to the left.

    When Hermione reached her sleeping arrangements, she couldn't have been more thrilled. She had a four poster canopy bed with red and gold curtains tied to each post. It was just a little bigger than her bed back home, and it had all new sheets and blankets on the bed.  Her trunk sat at the foot of the bed and her books all sat on top of the desk next to her bed.