Chapter 2: First Impressions

I don't own Hellsing or Harry Potter, and I'm not making any money from this.

Of all the stories her cousin told her, nothing was really adequate preparation for seeing everything herself.

Hogwarts castle was located in the Scottish Highlands so they'd have to take a train to get there. The tickets they received via owl post indicated that the Hogwarts Express departed from King's Cross station in London. Constance had never been there, but her parents knew where it was. The oddest thing about it was that they would be leaving from platform nine and three quarters.

"How on earth can there be a platform nine and three quarters?" she asked when she saw it written on her ticket. "That's not possible, is it?"

"The magical world hides everything about itself from people who can't use magic." her father explained. "You have to walk through the wall that separates platforms nine and ten."

Connie made a face. "Then why is it called platform nine and three quarters instead of platform nine and one half?"

Her aunt sniffed. "There's no telling. They probably thought it sounded more interesting that way."

The redhead obviously didn't like most of the things done in the magical world. She thought the majority of their magic was frivolous. A waste of time and energy that was pure laziness on their part. Mihnea wasn't allowed to use his wand or perform magic aside from his sorcery lessons while he was home. Of course, he couldn't have done it anyway. The magical government had some sort of trace to regulate the use of witchcraft by people who were underage. Apparently, it couldn't detect their brand of magic.

When they arrived at the station they all said their goodbyes and Mihnea showed her how to get onto the platform. You simply pushed your trolly of luggage through the wall when no one was looking, then followed along behind it. Constance made it through without any problems. Once she passed through the magical barrier, she took in the sight of the train. It was an old fashioned steam locomotive with the engine painted bright red. She followed her cousin to the luggage car where all their things had to be dropped off. When everything was loaded up, he gathered Pixie up into his arms and turned to her.

"I have to stay up front in the Slytherin car." he told her. "First years have to sit in the cars at the back of the train."

Connie lifted a brow. That was strange. "The different houses aren't allowed to sit with each other?"

"Not really." Mihnea replied. "Some of the houses don't get along very well, so they try to stay separated so no one gets into a fight." he paused half a moment. "Most of the Slytherins come from pure-blood families and they think they're better than everyone else. They're usually the ones who start trouble."

The girl found that even weirder. Mihnea was a Slytherin, and he didn't act that way at all. But he obviously knew more about all this stuff than she did, so she decided to take him at his word. The two of them separated and Connie carried Archimedes' cage with her to the back of the train.

She had no idea how many first years there were, but it looked like a lot. The first few cars in their section were filled to the brim with students. As she went further back, she found that the divided sitting areas were more sparsely populated. Constance had no interest in being smushed into a small space like a sardine, so she chose one that had only two people inside. She pulled open the door and cleared her throat.

"Is it alright if I sit in here?" she asked politely.

A girl with bushy brown hair looked up from the book she was reading. "Of course. Sit wherever you like."

Connie entered the sitting area and carefully set her owl's cage in one of the seats next to her. The girl who invited her in closed her book and looked at Archimedes.

"Is that a messenger owl?" she asked. "I thought about getting one of those, but my mother is allergic to birds." she stuck out her hand. "I'm Hermione Granger."

Her first instinct was to introduce herself the way she normally did. Then she remembered that she had to use her father's last name while she was around these people. She took the girl's hand.

"Constance Stryker."

"It's a pleasure to meet you." Hermione said, then pointed at the boy sitting across from them. "That's Neville Longbottom." she leaned over to whisper. "I can't tell if the train is making him sick, or if he's just shy."

Indeed, the boy named Neville looked like he might have been suffering from a mild bout of motion sickness. But he also seemed nervous and spoke with a slight stutter. Since it was a lengthy ride, the three of them talked to pass the time. Neville was a pure-blooded wizard who lived with his grandmother. Apparently, he wasn't very good at magic because he said his family had been shocked when he received his acceptance letter. Hermione, on the other hand, was muggle-born. She was a nice enough person, if not a bit bossy. The girl had an attitude that reminded Constance somewhat of her aunt. She was highly intelligent, used a complicated vocabulary for her age, and absorbed the knowledge in books like a sponge. However, unlike Syn, she came across as a bit of a know-it-all. If she knew something, she had to make sure everyone around her knew she knew it. Connie was sure she didn't truly intend to rub people's noses in the fact she knew more than them, but the girl couldn't help it. When it was her turn to talk about where she came from, she had to think carefully about what to say. She finally decided her safest option was to stick with telling them that her mother was a muggle, and her father used magic. She was careful not to use the word 'wizard' in reference to him. Edmund definitely wasn't one, and she didn't feel right about out and out lying.

When they drew closer to the end of their journey, they decided it was probably best to change into their school robes. After taking his turn in the bathroom provided for their section, Neville came back looking panic-stricken.

"I can't find Trevor! Have either of you seen him?"

Hermione and Constance looked at each other, wondering what he was talking about.

"Who's Trevor?"

"My toad." he replied anxiously. "He's hopped off again... I have to find him before he gets stepped on!"

Oh goodness, she thought. Mihnea said only the stupid students brought toads to school with them. Neville was nice enough, but he did come off as being a wee bit thick in the head. The boy rushed out of the compartment and she glanced at Hermione.

"Maybe we should help him?"

The bushy haired girl looked thoughtful. "I suppose we should."

So the two girls left the compartment and split up to ask if anyone else had seen in the escaped amphibian.

The Hogwarts Express pulled to a stop at a small station not far from the school just after nightfall. Connie still hadn't found the bloody toad, and Hermione and Neville were nowhere to be seen. Losing the animal on the first day was an awful thing to have happen, but she had her own business to take care of. Thankfully, when she finally caught sight of them again, she saw that the boy had recovered his pet. They were with two other first year boys who introduced themselves as Harry Potter and Ron Weasley. Harry was a short boy with dark, messy hair and green eyes. The barest hint of a scar could be seen just under his bangs. Ron was a bit taller, with ginger hair and a face full of freckles. Neville looked a bit dumbstruck when he heard Potter's name, and Constance couldn't for the life of her figure out why. Perhaps his family was well known or something. There wasn't really much time for talking because the lot of them were herded up by the enormous groundskeeper, Hagrid, and led off to the boats.

Mihnea told Constance all about how the first year students always traveled to Hogwarts castle by enchanted boat. Their first sight of their new school was the most astonishingly beautiful thing she could imagine. The stone walls and high turrets looked like something out of a painting, thrusting up into the starry night sky. The inside was just as breathtaking as the exterior. The students stared at everything around them with wide eyes. The paintings on the walls had figures in them that actually moved and looked around at them. Occasionally, they would pass a suit of armor that would give them a graceful bow of greeting. When Hagrid led them up to a particular staircase, they were met by an older looking witch with dark hair, wearing flowing green robes. She introduced herself as Professor McGonagall, the deputy headmistress. She took over leading the group, and directed them into the Great Hall for the sorting ceremony.

The moment they entered the massive room, Constance glanced upwards to catch a glimpse of the enchanted ceiling she'd heard so much about. The cloudy night sky hung over their heads as if there were no roof built onto the room at all. Candles floating in the air provided all the light, and four of the longest tables she'd ever seen were set out, filled with all the older students. Banners bearing the house crests hung over each one. She caught sight of Mihnea sitting at the Slytherin table, watching their march down the middle of the tables intently. He told her once that she didn't have the qualities of his house, so she'd most likely be put in one of the others. They came to a halt at the front of the room – just in front of the teacher's table - and McGonagall set out a three-legged stool. Connie wasn't sure exactly how this whole 'sorting' process worked, but it looked like you sat on the stool, had a raggedy looking hat put on your head, then the thing would call out what house you belonged to. It was very strange. She didn't much like the idea of getting up in front of everyone and being gaped at like a fish in a tank, but it had to be done. When her name was called, she stepped forward to take her place on the stool, and the hat was dropped down on her head.

Her eyes went wide when it started talking.

"Hmm... now this is very interesting." the hat said, seeming to think to itself. "I don't think I've ever had your sort before. Already so powerful. Strong and courageous..." It made it's decision. "Gryffindor!"

A cheer went up as she climbed down to join the others at her house's table. It was nice that everyone she had met so far had been placed there. Even Ron, when his turn came, was sorted into Gryffindor. Once all the students were placed into their houses, a grand feast magically appeared on the tables and they were free to start eating. Everyone spoke to each other -the new students learning the names and faces of the others, and the older ones answering questions and giving them tips about how to handle their classes. It immediately became apparent from the way people spoke that the Gryffindors and Slytherins abhorred each other. She didn't hear one kind thing said about her cousin's house. Then, when Mihnea's name was specifically mentioned, her ears pricked up.

"That one over there? That's Mihnea Bassarab. He's one you'll want to stay away from."

Constance shot a glance in the direction the comment had come from. It was either Fred or George – the twins who were Ron's brothers. They were identical, so it was impossible for her to figure out which one had said it. She found the warning incredibly odd. She'd lived with Mihnea all her life, and he wasn't the sort to bully people around. Now, he did have a lot of his father in him so he could be intimidating if someone wasn't used to him, but that didn't really warrant telling others to stay clear of him...

"Why?" she asked. "Is he bad about bothering people?"

The twins looked at each other. "Nah, he doesn't really bother people." one of them said. "He's just... weird. Keeps to himself and doesn't talk much."

"He makes the other Slytherins nervous." the other twin said. "Even the ones older than him. When Slytherins are afraid of one of their own, you know he has to be a pretty scary bloke."

Huh. She thought. Interesting. She'd have to ask him about that later.

The two of them had made plans to meet up later that night so he could show her around. When the first years were escorted up to the Gryffindor common rooms by their prefect – who was another of Ron's brothers – she had to wait a few hours for everyone to settle down and go to sleep. Once she was sure everyone was tucked away in their beds, she snuck out the portrait hole entrance to go out into the corridor outside. The moment the Fat Lady's picture closed behind her, Mihnea jumped down from a sculpture he had been perched on. It scared the devil out of her.

"Jesus Christ!" she exclaimed as quietly as she could. "Are you trying to kill me?"

Her cousin just grinned at her. "You're a member of the enemy house now." he teased. "Scaring you is part of my job."

Constance rolled her eyes. "I didn't choose that." she said, then looked at him curiously. "I heard the people around here are scared of you. Even your own house."

Mihnea shrugged. "The Slytherins are scared of me because they know I don't like most of them. I kicked a third year's ass for being a bastard my first year here. They know I could take them down if I wanted to, so they leave me alone." he told her. "The rest of the school doesn't like Slytherins in general, so they don't know what to think of me."

Connie's eyes widened. She hadn't heard about him getting into a fight before.

"Do your parents know about that?"

"Yes." he replied. "Dad thought it was funny as hell."

Well, Alucard would think that, wouldn't he? She thought. As they began walking down the hallway, she gave him a sideways glance.

"Why don't you like most of the people in your house?" she questioned.

"I told you. Slytherins are mostly pure-bloods who think they're better than everyone else." he told her. "They're obnoxious, snotty, and mean."

"How did you get lumped in with them then?"

"Because Slytherin is known as the house of people who are intimidating, sneaky, and willing to do anything they have to do to get what they want." he replied with another shrug. "It just turns out that most people who are like that happen to be pompous assholes too."

She had to suppress the urge to giggle. Now, that sounded like him. They reached the staircase that led down to the main part of the castle, and Mihnea turned and gestured for her to climb onto his back.

"You're too loud." he told her quietly. "If Peeves catches us, he'll wake up the whole castle."

He always had her ride on his back when they snuck around the manor. Her cousin was as quiet as a mouse, and could break into a full run without making a bit of noise. One of the many vampiric traits he got from his dad. So Constance jumped onto his back and off they went to explore the castle.

A.N: I'm sure there is a more historically correct surname out there for Mihnea to be using, but I like 'Bassarab' the best. It's prettyful and it flows well. :)

And I know the whole Slytherin/Gryffindor thing has probably been overdone, but I cant imagine anyone from the Hellsing family not being sorted into Gryffindor, and anyone from Alucard's bloodline not being put in Slytherin.

Then again, if Seras ever went to Hogwarts, she'd probably be put in Hufflepuff.