Gone Awry

Blaise looked up as he felt Ash near him. "Did you have a nice conversation with the Gryffindors?" he asked in a bored tone of voice.

"Well, it could have been a nicer conversation, but I guess you could call it successful," she smiled.

Blaise yawned and got up from his position of leaning against the wall. "Let’s go then - or are there any other Gryffindors you've gotta talk to before going?"

"Haha, very funny. No, no one else I need to talk to. Thankfully they've got perfect duties to perform - no time for little old Slytherin me." Blaise snorted and nodded for Ash to follow him down the corridor.

The majority of the students had already gone into their common rooms and so everything was quiet around them, with the exception of an occasional echoing of running footsteps coming from somewhere down the corridors. While they walked Ash took in the scenery, trying to remember the way to the great hall. It was harder then she expected because the walls she walked past all seemed to look the same. Gray, gray, gray with a bit of moss on them, gray, gray, a broken stone, gray gray gray gray gray gray gray gray (you get the idea).

"Well, if this isn't an exciting scenery?" Ash asked after a long period of walking in silence.

"No, not really."

"Didn't you hear the sarcasm?"

"I did, I just chose not to comment on it."

Ash gave Blaise a confused sideways glance. "So, tell me how is Hogwarts?"

"It’s quite alright, would be better if we wouldn't have to go to classes though," Blaise said looking over at Ash. "Also, there isn't that much that you can do here. Hence, it gets boring quickly. However, every weekend we go to Hogsmeade - a little town that's quite near. Hogsmeade's a lot of fun," Blaise grinned.

Ash nodded and then asked, "What else is there to do?"

"Well, every now and then there are some interesting activities you can join, then there's the Quidditch tournament and well you always have someone around with whom you can just hang around. Also Slytherins love to have a good time, so we have tons of parties," he grinned and started gaining speed, "and if we don't hurry up a bit we're gonna miss the first party of the year!" And with that they started running.

After 5 minutes of running Blaise slowed down and stopped in front of a wall, that looked just like the other walls they had run past. Gray. Ash looked at him with raised eyebrows. He just smiled at her and whispered "Halloween".

All of a sudden the wall started to quiver and a stone slid out of the wall, then another one and another one, they folded into another up to make a archway through which Ash was presented with a passage way that led them towards the Slytherin-Dungeon, which she would call 'home' for the next year.

After a minute of walking down the hall that was lit with green lights every meter or so they finally came to the end. Ron and Harry had once told her that it had a very low ceiling and was very dungeon-like with greenish lamps and chairs, very unexciting, but when she entered it she saw a room that made her gasp in pleasure.

Yes, they had told the truth about it being having a low-ceiling, and that it somehow looked like a dungeon - hence the name - with greenish lamps and chairs, but it was also so much more. The floor was made out of green flat marble with darker green dots splattered on them. The big green couches where set around a big chimney in the middle of the room that reached from the floor to the ceiling with a Slytherin banner hanging on each side of it. Another pair of couches was purged in one of the corners of the room next to a doorway that she guessed led to either the boys or girls dorms. On the couches silver cushions were perched. Like the rest of the castle the walls were made out of the stone, and yet this one seemed a bit different, they were a bit darker then the ones she had seem before making it fit to the rest of the room.

On the walls hung the portrait of Salazar Slytherin the founder of the Slytherin house. One must say, he wasn't a beauty but you could see the determination in his eyes as well as his pride as his picture looked at all the new Slytherins. And through the warm glow of the green lights all of what she saw in the room seemed to comfort her. Ash instantly had the feeling of being where she belonged.

When they had entered the room Blaise instantly made his way over to a group of couches where the others were sitting and slid in between Tracy and Daphne, leaning back and putting his hands around them. As Ash started to follow him, she noticed that the couch group was placed in front of a wall that seemed to be an window into the Hogwarts lake, revealing a mermaid or fish swimming by every now and then, but mainly showed the calming swaying of sea weed. Memorized by the sight into the lake, Ash slowly made her way over to the group of friends sitting on the couch.

"Nice view isn't it?" a voice asked behind her, making her jump and spin around. It was Malfoy.

"Yes, yes it definitely is," she answered breathless looking back out of the window.

"Come, sit down with us," he said in a soft voice and let his hand slip around her waist, leading her towards a couch that still had two places free, with only Pansy sitting at one end of it.

"Blaise, didn't you say that there'd be a party here?" Ash asked towards the neighbouring couch where he was sitting.

"Today's not really a party, more like a chill out get together. We were actually going to have a nice BBQ tomorrow, if the weather holds." Malfoy laughed next to her.

"Oh OK, sound fun enough!"

"So tell us something about you, your Weaselbe's cousin, right? Are you also poor like him?"

Ash looked at Bullstrode a bit shocked. "Um, you’re still talking about my family, idiot. So don't call him Weaselbe."

"I can call him like I want too," Bullstrode retorted.

Ash glared at her. Chill, she thought, chill down. No use in getting into a fight now....

Unexpectedly, a smug smile entertained her face as she answered. "Ok bull face, whatever you say, bull face. Go on calling him that if you wish, bull face." The girls around her giggled and the boys chuckled to themselves, while Bull face glared at her.

"Anyway, it was nice meeting you all, but I think I'd better search for my dorm and get settled in a bit." Ash smiled and stood up. Before she left, she glanced around at the people sitting on the couches one more time and then turned to walk away.

After three steps she stopped again and turned around again blushing. "Alright. This is embarrassing." she mumbled to herself, when she heard Tracy speak up.

"Through the door next to the couches back there and then take the left door - the one with the portrait of a good looking women in green gowns - one of those doors in that hallway should have your name of it." Tracy said with a warm smile while some of the others snickered.

"Thank you," she inquired and left towards the door she had seen beforehand. She opened the door and just like Tracy said she was welcomed into a small room that held two doors. One with a portrait of a cute guy that somehow reminded her of the portrait of Slytherin in the main room and another one with a young girl in the same age of the boy. Both of them looked up at her when she entered.

"A new face," said the boy with a smirk. "Nice to meet you." He bowed. "I'm Shade Slytherin and that on the other door is my sister Slaza Slytherin," She did a small court bow. "And may we know your name?"

Ash chuckled, "I'm Ash Weasley, nice to make your acquaintance."

"It definitely is Ash Weasley," Shade smiled.

"If I may, I'm a little tired. But we'll see each other every day from now on it seems." Ash smiled and opened the door with Slaza's portrait.

As soon as she opened the door, she was greeted with another hall that was plastered with portraits and doors, on its floor lay a carpet. Ash went to the first door. 'Lance Woodland, Ken Doomsdale, Zane Hollaway' Ash raised her eyebrows and jumped when somebody started yelling at her. "WRONG DOOR! YOU IDIOT GIRL, GET OUT OF HERE RIGHT NOW!!"

Ash quickly turned and ran out the door again - met by a laughing Shade and Slaza.

"Haha, very funny, ate a clown for breakfast, did you know?" Ash spat and vanished through the other door, now she knew why the others had laughed. This hall looked exactly like the others only that the portraits in this room showed females. Quickly she went from door to door, looking at the name plates until she found hers. Quickly she opened the door and saw her bag at one of the four beds and lay down on it. Damn she was tired, before she even hit the pillow darkness had fallen over her.