Hadrian Romanoff and the Beginning

Chapter 19

The week following the troll attack was filled with tense looks and apphrension.

The Slytherins were being rather tight lipped about what happened as ordered by Alton and Snape and no one was willing to ask the headmaster or McGonagall. There were suspicions that Neville, Lisa, Terry and Wayne had been told but if they had they kept it to themselves.

Gregorio Ramos, a fourth year Gryffindor, tried to sneak into the infirmary to get a look at Icarus Jackson - the seventh year who had been injured during the attack - but was caught by Madam Pomfrey before he could catch a glimpse.

Other than the attack itself the only thing of interest were the families of the parents who wrote home about it not believing them. Icarus revealed to his housemates that his parents hadn't come to check on him - which was surprising to everyone who knew the Jacksons, the matriarch especially.

Several Ravenclaws, a few Hufflepuffs and one Hermione Granger were spotted in the library reading up everything there was on trolls. They all wanted to know how it was possible for a notoriously dumb creature to get into one of the most magically protected places in the world. They hadn't found anything that would give them answers - if anything what they learned told them that it was all but impossible for a troll to just wander in.

Susan Bones looked up when she heard someone drop into the seat next to her.

"Cedric?" The red haired girl was confused, not understanding why the handsome third year was sitting with her.

"Susan, right?" Cedric grinned.

Susan nodded slowly, still puzzled. "Did you want something?"

Cedric ran a hand through his thick hair sheepishly. "Actually, I was wondering if you could tell me anything about the Romanoff boy."

"Oh, Hadrian?" Susan wasn't particularly surprised by this. Ever since Hadrian's mother, his muggle mother, had stormed the castle after the green eyed boy had been hurt he had been the talk of the school. Between his mystery injury, his mother's visit, and the fact that a muggleborn had, at least for the moment, the Slytherin house on his side, Hadrian Romanoff was a gossip's dream.

It didn't help that by the end of the day everyone knew that both Hadrian's mother and his uncle had torn into the headmaster for apparently trying to interfere with family business. Throw in Wayne Hopkins being added to Hadrian's group of friends and most of the first year Slytherin girls being seen with them out by the lake, and everyone had something to say.

Questions about Hadrian actually being a muggleborn were brought up when Lily Moon, one of the Slytherins seen by the lake, had let it slip that his uncle could perform wandless magic effortlessly and his mother actually walked straight into the Whomping Willow and dodged all of its attacking branches with the ease of a snake. Combined with even being on campus with the wards in place helped cement the doubt in most of their heads about her status as a muggle.

Not even the troll attack on the Slytherins was talked about as much, though Susan supposed that had more to do with disappointment that none of them were actually hurt than anything.

She knew that a few first and second years had tried joining the inter-house study groups that Hadrian was a part of, but his friends had done well in weeding out who actually wanted to be part of the study group and who just wanted to get information on the Slytherin. Dean Thomas and Neville Longbottom had made for a particular odd but terrifying combination in keeping gossip mongers away from their friend.

Outside of his study groups and the usual three friends, as well as the new addition of Wayne, that were always with him, Hadrian was often seen with Helena Hoster and Fern Dalton, sixth year Slytherins who seemed to have decided that Hadrian belonged to them and as such should be kept under their watchful eye. Rumor had it that they had sent Ron Weasley to the infirmary for yelling slurs at Hadrian when the boy refused to tell him how his mother got into the school but no one had been able to confirm it.