Chapter Text
Her first day of her new school, Hogwarts for Witchcraft and Wizardry, was beginning to be eventful to say the least. Shuffling her way through the train, attempting to find an empty enough carriage, she ended up knocking on a glass door with two boys inside. One had dark messy hair with thin framed glasses unlike the other, who had short, organised and ginger hair with a few freckles littered across his nose and gently spreading to his cheeks. The two looked over at her expectantly as she pushed the glass door open.
“Mind if I sit here? No more room on the train.” She had dirty blonde hair that only slightly reached her shoulders, she had deep blue eyes with light freckles spread across her nose and cheeks. A blue and green shirt laid loosely over her black vest and jeans. All of which were bigger than her slender frame.
“Of course, take a seat.” The ginger one offered a smile as he signalled the seat next to him. She quickly shut the door and sat down, unwilling to burden the two of the conversation they had before she arrived.
“I’m Ron, by the way. Ronald Weasley.” A smile was still plastered to the boy’s face, both turned their gaze to the more timid of the two.
“Harry…Harry Potter.” She nodded as a response before realising the two were waiting for her introduction.
“I’m Ash. Ashley Umbridge. Pleasure to meet you both. So, uh, what house are you hoping to be sorted into?” Deciding that she may as well make conversation. Afterall, these people didn’t seem to recognise the last name that haunted her reputation. Ron spoke up first.
“Well my entire family is known to be Gryffindor, so I guess that.” Harry shrugged as he thought for a minute, he didn’t seem to mind what house he would be sorted into.
“Dunno really, probably the same as Ron. What about you, Ashley?” She smiled politely as she answered, it wasn’t as simple as what the two based it on. Ashley had expectations to meet and if she didn’t meet up to them, there would be consequences.
“My mother was Slytherin, I’m expected to be the same. Also, call me Ash. Much less formal than Ashley.” The three conversed for what felt like minutes but were actually hours, at some point during their countless words the glass door opened to a small brunette girl.
“Has anyone seen a toad? Someone has lost one.” The three looked at one another before shaking their heads, Ron still holding his wand at the rat on his lap, attempting to cast a spell on it.
“Oh, are you casting a spell? Let’s see it then.” The girl invited herself in and sat next to Ash. Ron cleared his throat before failing miserably at the said spell he was trying to do.
“That wasn’t a very good one.” Her voice was very matter-of-factly.
“Oh yea? I’d like to see you try.” She smiled as she pointed her wand at Harry’s glasses, repairing them in a single word.
“I’m Hermione Granger and you three are?” In turn they reintroduced themselves, the girl talked with them for a minute before leaving but stopping at the door.
“Oh, and you’d better change into your robes. We’ll be arriving soon. Ronald, you have dirt on your nose.” Without another word she left.
The first years were led through the castle in a group, in front of them all was Professor McGonagall, deputy headmistress. Stopping them outside large doors, the Professor demanded all of their attention. Giving a short speech before heading inside to see if the headmaster had finished his speech.
Feeling a nudge from her side, Ash recognised the beach blonde boy next to her. Draco Malfoy, son of Lucius Malfoy, someone who sometimes worked alongside her mother. The two had spoken maybe six times in the past but acted as if they knew each other for their entire lives.
“We’ll definitely get Slytherin, right Ash?” The girl smiled softly as she looked ahead. She better get Slytherin.
“Absolutely.” Draco smirked along with her, before pushing towards the front to greet Harry. Tuning the words out, Ash waited for the Professor to return so this endless wait on her house would finally end. Eventually the group of first years were taken into the great hall. McGonagall stood at the front by a small stool, in one hand she held a hat that Ash recognised to be the sorting hat, and in the other parchment. One at a time she read names in alphabetical order based on last names. Remembering the names of those she had met, Ash tuned out every other name.
“Hermione Granger!” The girl slowly walked from the crowd and to the front of the huge room. The hat barely skimmed her hair before yelling out a house.
“GRYFFINDOR!” She smiled brightly whilst walking to the red and yellow table. A while later she heard a name she had been waiting for.
“Draco Malfoy!” He smirked as he approached the stool, the hat hadn’t even touched his hair before bellowing out.
“SLYTHERIN!” A toothy grin filled his face as he walked off to the far table. Ash waited even longer as the crowd began to lessen in number.
“Harry Potter!” The name caused loud whispers and muttering as the boy sat on the stool. The hat took much longer than with everyone else but eventually decided.
“GRYFFINDOR!” The boy smiled whilst walking off to join Hermione at the table. A much shorter wait than the rest, her heart skipped a beat as she heard the name.
“Ashley Umbridge!” A few mutters surrounded the room as she calmly walked up to the stool, internally praying she got Slytherin just to save her mother shouting and punishing her. The hat was placed on her head and it took time to think.
“Hmmm…a mix really…brave…intelligent…but very ambitious. I will have to go…SLYTHERIN!” Ash sighed in relief as she walked over to Draco, meeting eyes with Snape. Her new head of house. One more name she waited patiently for.
“Ronald Weasley!” The boy strolled over to the stool, the hat dropped on his head gently.
“Another Weasley, aye? Well it will have to be…GRYFFINDOR!” Ron smiled as he joined the other two at the red table. The rest of the names were listed out as Ash glanced around the room, gaining her head of house’s eyes once again. She confidently stared right back at the man, like hell his stare would intimidate her. She smirked and waved at the man, causing him to squint and look away. Another win for her.
“Already testing our head of house, Ash? Seriously? I get it that you’re confident but Merlin you must have a death wish.” Draco elbowed her gently with a smirk. Ash rolled her eyes before turning to him.
“For your information, Draco. Yes, I am testing him, I am serious, I am confident. No, I do not have a death wish.”
At the end of the feast, each head of house showed the first years where their dorms would be.Unfortunately for Ash, she was at the very front of the group and directly behind the man she had confidently tested earlier.
“Quickly now, Umbridge. Pick up the pace.” His long strides were unmatched to the smaller girl.
“I’m sorry that my legs aren’t as long as yours.” The words slipped out of her mouth before she could stop them. Draco nudged her from her side and shook his head, signalling that she was now on very thin ice.
“What was that, Miss Umbridge?” His tone had changed to a dangerously low one, not turning to face the irl had made that even more intimidating. Deciding that she was already in shit now, may as well prove a point.
“I said, ‘I’m sorry that my legs aren’t as long as yours’.” Draco shook his head in defeat as the girl glared at the much taller man.
“In one way or another, you will learn to respect your professors. Especially your own head of house.” Ashley rolled her eyes at his reply, how pathetic. The man turned one last corner before stopping in front of a painting, he simply said a phrase for it to open. Leading the group of students inside. The common room was painted in many shades of grey, green and black. With sofas and chairs littered around the room and tables here and there too. Snape kept facing inward of the empty common room.
“Sit.” The singular word made most jump, swiftly sitting all across the room facing the man.
“I will be brutally honest with you. I will be harsh on each and every one of you to ensure you morph into respectable, hard working people. Some of you have already shown signs that you will need this more than others. If you have any problems confide to one of the prefects, if it is serious go to my classroom or office. The left side is girls dorms and the right side is boys. Is that understood?” A chorus of ‘yes’ echoed throughout the room. “Another thing, you address me with respect. Call me either ‘sir’ or ‘professor’ if you feel the need to add my surname to the professor, be my guest. I am not your ‘mate’ or anything else you would call one another. When I talk to you, you look at me. Not the floor, not your hands, not out the window. At me. Do I make myself clear?” A ‘yes sir’ was said in unison, all except one. Ashley Umbridge.
“Go get settled in. Umbridge. Stay behind.” The common room cleared out considerably quickly, all except one left. Her small frame was more visible now than in the dim light of the Great Hall. In one word that Snape could describe her appearance as, he would say exhausted.
“Why do you find it so difficult to respect your elders?” Ash sat up, looking at her hands as she began to word her next sentence. “Eyes on me, Umbridge.” Her eyes snapped up to her professor's obsidian eyes. When alone she was more on edge, shaky but mostly scared.
“I don’t give respect until I feel it is deserved. I’m sorry, professor, but I can’t change that.” Ash’s eyes met the floor, not wanting to reveal something so secret to her head of house, especially on her first night.
“I appreciate that, however that isn’t how Hogwarts works. You give respect first and we then respect you in turn. You’re dismissed, Umbridge. Girls dormitories are on the left.” They turned away from one another and went their separate ways. Both were too stubborn to listen to one another.
What a hell of a first day.