She says a quiet "Good morning" to Sue then goes to take a shower and get dressed for the day. When that's done she'll ask "Does anyone want to walk down to breakfast together?"

They all do.

Wonderful. "So, are any of you looking forward to any class in particular?"

"Charms," says Sue Li, and Lisa nods.

"Is that your standard question?" wonders Padma.

"One of them, especially for Ravenclaw first years."

"What class are you most looking forward to?" asks Mandy.

"I think I'm most looking forward to transfiguration. It seems like it's really flexible and I feel like it builds on itself in a way that the charms curriculum doesn't seem to as much."

"It's really hard though, takes a long time to learn," she says. "I think I'm more into Potions."

"I think it'll be worth it but I haven't tried it yet so maybe I'll change my mind. Potions also sounds neat."

Soon they reach the Great Hall, where there is A Lot Of Food.

She'll eat a bit more than she'd tend to at the Dursleys but she won't stuff herself. "Have any of you heard about what the teachers are like?"

"What do you mean?" asks Padma.

"Like whether they're strict, whether they're interesting to learn from, how they tend to conduct classes. Things like that."

"I heard Snape's evil," whispers Mandy, "and Dumbledore keeps him here to maintain an 'atmosphere.'"

"I really hope you're wrong."

She shrugs.

"I think if he was really evil he'd be fired..." says Padma a bit dubiously.

"Not if Dumbledore liked having an evil teacher," Sue Li points out reasonably.

"Why would he want an evil teacher?"

"Well what sort of magic school is complete without its own evil teacher?"

Now it's Mandy's turn to look confused. "What's one thing got to do with the other?"

"I second that question. This is real life not a storybook. The point of school is to teach us things."

"I suppose you do have a point," says Sue Li.

Sarah takes her victory with good grace and simply nods in acknowledgement. "What about our head of house?"

"Dunno, but we're gonna have our first class with him today," says Lisa. "Charms, with the Slytherins."

"I suppose I won't have to wait long then." She focuses her attention on finishing her breakfast.

And here's Dayo, making her way to the Slytherin table.

Sarah waves to her.