"My dad says that before You-Know-Who's time, Slytherin wasn't so hostile toward half-blood students," Cedric said, his tone tinged with helplessness.
Lucas added, "It's only after You-Know-Who that the discrimination became this extreme. These days, pure-blood students basically bully the half-bloods."
"The professors don't step in?" Ariana raised an eyebrow.
Cedric explained, "According to my dad, Slytherin's Head of House, Professor Snape, is actually a half-blood. In order to maintain the support of the pure-blood families, he's almost entirely biased toward pure-blood students. So when half-bloods get bullied, no one stands up for them they pretty much just have to endure it."
Not all pure-bloods lived exclusively within the wizarding world, so Cedric cautiously asked, "I hope you don't mind me asking, but are you pure-blood or half-blood?"
Ariana had a ready answer for this by now."My parents died when I was very young, so I can't be sure if they were wizards or not. Looks like Slytherin isn't really an option for me."
She was a little disappointed. Given her ambitious personality, Slytherin's reputation as the house of ambition had been quite appealing.
"You're welcome in Hufflepuff! Our house is the largest, and we're known for being warm and friendly. There's almost no bullying," Lucas offered enthusiastically.
"Alright. If Hogwarts gives me the option, I'll go to Hufflepuff. I mean, I really don't want to get bullied." After all, she was here to study what house she ended up in didn't seem all that important.
Ariana considered herself lucky to have met these two upperclassmen in the compartment. They shared a lot of Hogwarts' inside secrets with her like how the staircases moved, the locations of the classrooms, how to access the kitchens, and how to interact with the house-elves.
Cedric and Lucas had deliberately steered the conversation toward Hogwarts because, frankly, they were both stunned.
They had taught Ariana several first-year spells, and she had practically mastered each one on the first try it was monstrous.
And they hadn't forgotten Ariana had successfully used the Summoning Charm on a living creature, which the new textbooks explicitly warned against.
Strictly speaking, the Summoning Charm could be used on living things, but it was far too dangerous for beginners.
When the train finally stopped, Cedric and Lucas bid her farewell.
"First-years have to cross the lake by boat to reach Hogwarts. We'll see you in the Great Hall," Cedric said, genuinely looking forward to Ariana joining Hufflepuff.
After they left, Ariana changed into her robes and stepped off the train.
She'd originally planned to find kids around her age to follow the crowd, but as soon as she got off the train, she heard a booming voice calling the first-years to gather.
"First-years over here!" The voice was loud and powerful, echoing across the station.
"Hey, Harry, how've you been this past month?" Hagrid greeted a small, skinny boy with great enthusiasm.
When Ariana heard Hagrid call him Harry, she immediately made the connection. There were only about fifty new students here surely there weren't two people named Harry Potter in the same year.
Sure enough, her guess was confirmed when a handsome blond boy standing just ahead of her cursed under his breath, "Pathetic Potter."
Ariana quickly identified him. This was Harry Potter. He didn't look much like his movie counterpart not nearly as cute, and much skinnier.
Curious, Ariana moved a little closer to the platinum-haired boy, hoping to gather more information.
But the boy suddenly blocked her path, clearly misunderstanding her intention.
"You're a fan of Harry Potter, aren't you?" Draco Malfoy demanded.
Ariana found his question baffling but didn't get angry. She calmly replied,"I just wanted to get closer to that giant over there."
Draco's expression softened immediately, and he dropped his arm."Ah, I see. I guess I was being a little too defensive."
Since Ariana wasn't wearing second-hand robes and all her accessories were high-end, there was no visible sign that she was Muggle-born.
Draco assumed she was a pure-blood from another country after all, he knew all the pure-blood families in Britain.
"What's your name? I'm Malfoy, Draco Malfoy."
"Ariana Corrine," she replied with a polite smile.
"Corrine? Are you a pure-blood from another country?" Draco asked, intrigued.
Ariana gave her usual cover story and shook her head."So, you must be a British pure-blood. I'm not sure about my own bloodline. My parents died when I was very young, but they did leave behind a rather sizable inheritance."
Draco sized her up and said confidently,"Given your age, your parents probably died during the Wizarding War. From the looks of you, you don't seem like a half-blood or Muggle-born."
Ariana stared at him in surprise."You can tell someone's bloodline just by looking at them?"
Draco panicked for a second, but quickly recovered to save face."Of course. I'm very good at judging people. Take Potter, for example scrawny and malnourished. Plus, he's friends with the Weasleys a bunch of paupers. There's no way someone like that could be the hero who defeated You-Know-Who."
Ariana hadn't seen the Harry Potter movies, but she had read about recent magical history. She knew enough about Harry's background.
Hearing Draco badmouth the Weasley family, Ariana quietly reminded him,"I read in recent history that the Order of the Phoenix played a key role in winning the Second Wizarding War. The Weasley family was at the heart of the Order. Speaking badly of them might not be wise."
Draco was momentarily speechless. His father had never told him any of that. He only ever mocked the Weasleys for having too many children and being so poor they had to cram into a crooked little house.
"Just because they won the war doesn't mean they're beyond criticism," Draco grumbled.
"I'm not sure about that," Ariana said thoughtfully. "In the Muggle world, the winning side is always politically correct. If ordinary people insult them, there's usually an investigation."
"I'll write to my father and ask," Draco mumbled, clearly uncertain now.
Ariana nodded."That's a good idea. When he replies, would you let me know? I really don't understand how the wizarding world handles post-war politics."
Draco seemed to really enjoy being needed."Sure, I'll tell you. But you'd better end up in Slytherin. Other Houses are okay, but if you get sorted into Gryffindor, I absolutely won't talk to you."
"Slytherins aren't allowed to talk to Gryffindors?" Ariana asked, genuinely puzzled.
"Of course not. Don't you know the two founders were sworn enemies?" Draco replied as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
Ariana frowned."That's strange. The books I've read say Hogwarts' headmaster, Dumbledore, was from Gryffindor. Professor McGonagall, who took me to Diagon Alley, is also from Gryffindor. She teaches Transfiguration. Are you saying you won't talk to either of them?"
"I'm talking about students!" Draco snapped, teeth clenched.
"Alright," Ariana said, going along with him. "But I don't know if I'll get sorted into Slytherin. My parents died when I was too young, I don't know if they were wizards or not. I've heard Slytherin doesn't welcome anyone who isn't pure-blood."
Draco had his doubts at first, but after chatting for so long, he was now completely convinced Ariana was a pure-blood. He even listed several reasons.
"Look at your accessories they're all top quality. Do you really think an ordinary wizard could leave you that kind of inheritance? And you're obviously very smart. Muggles couldn't possibly have a child this clever."
Ariana almost laughed. Intelligence had everything to do with genetics and nothing to do with magical bloodlines.
Besides, the things she owned weren't left to her by her parents she'd bought them herself with money she'd earned.
Sure, she'd bought second-hand books in Diagon Alley, but Ariana wasn't interested in being frugal. In her view, if you've made money, you should enjoy it. Otherwise, what's the point?
"Do you know how the Sorting works?" Ariana suddenly asked.
Draco hesitated."My father said there's an entrance exam covering all first-year subjects. That's why I've been diligently studying since I bought my textbooks. Have you been studying?"
Ariana believed him it didn't sound dangerous, and it seemed like a fair way to test first-years.
"I've studied, but I've only practiced a couple of spells two of them I learned from upperclassmen on the train. If it's just a written exam, I should be fine," Ariana answered.
Draco quickly dropped the subject he was afraid she might ask how many spells he knew, because he was actually worse off than she was.
In the two months before school started, he had barely finished reading the textbooks. On the train, he'd been too busy looking for Harry Potter to learn any spells unlike Ariana, who'd had two older students personally guide her.