Luck of Nines

56

      "Were you expecting mail?" Theo carefully sipped at his drink as he ignored his open book and instead watched Ron's head swivel away from his food- something everyone quickly learned it was hard to distract him from- in search of where the owls had long since come from.

      "Just waiting for a letter from my mum and dad." Ron answered, picking at his food a little before checking again, "They should have wrote by now, Percy told me that he sent a letter with a friend's owl as soon as I was sorted. That mum and dad had waited long enough to congratulate me."

      "I see," Theo paused, "Maybe it just hasn't come yet."

      "Maybe they're just disappointed." Davis snapped, "Face it you don't belong here, everything has been going wrong since you got here." She whirled on Harry now, "First the hat, then Pansy, just look at what you did to Malfoy! He wouldn't have stood for a blood traitor being here for a moment! Your father has pull, the sorting is far from normal and you're just going to allow this- this- this besmirchment of Slytherin's name? He's a Weasely little Weasley. I'm basically the only girl here anyway, so what's the point of being a Slytherin Lady?" Davis scoffed, her eyes scornfully landing on Carrow who sat staring at Rookwood still before glancing over the rest of them, "That's it." She scoffed again, threw her napkin upon the table and stormed out.

      "I..." Ron sat frozen with his mouth open.

      "Don't mind her, Weasley," Theo took another sip from his drink not looking up from his book at the monologue, "She's just bitter since she expected to mingle and gain influence with the older Slytherins while Malfoy found her some unfortunate pure blood heir she could control."

       Ron blinked, his face slowly falling.

      "It's okay," Malfoy quietly said, his shaking hands still threading through Chipped Fang's fur, "You're one of us, and she's never really cared for anything except the thought of getting others to make her further ahead anyway..."

       "Exactly," Theo agreed, "She doesn't know anything anyway, why would your parents care what house you got into, you have a home and connections here, that should be enough."

       "There's family pressure..." Malfoy trailed off uncertainly, his eyes quickly falling back on the cat.

        "I doubt The Arthur Weasley is anything like your father, Malfoy." Theo rolled his eyes.

         "Right... I've been sorted and have friends, what does anything else matter anyway?" Ron agreed shakily glancing to Harry for confirmation.

        He nodded quietly in response.

"Doing alright Ron?" Fred asked sliding into the empty seat next to him.

"Wh- this is the Slytherin table?!" Ron looked horrified glancing over at the staring Gryffindors.

"You're Gryffindors." Theo said purposefully

"Not today we're not!" George replied, pointing at his obscenely green, bright tie and matching robes with one hand as he popped a piece of fruit in his mouth.

"Don't worry," Fred whispered conspiratorially, "It's a prank; glad to see you're doing alright, brother."

George winked as shouts rose up at the Slytherin table as someone's hair turned a matching shade of green to their outfits. George's hair quickly followed suit- as did others.

"Oh no!" Fred cried dramatically, clutching his still red hair, "What should I do!"

"It was my hair that changed!" George loudly exclaimed.