Learn From the History

Chapter 4: Half blood? Pureblood?

For instance, Slytherin, took only pure-blood wizards. Of great cunning, just like him.

- The Sorting Hat's New Song, The Order of the Phoenix.

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"Anywhere is alright," said Alex.

"Anywhere is alright, eh? You can be great, you know, it's all here in your head. You'd better be..." And the hat shouted," SLYTHERIN!"

Only the Slytherins applauded as Alex approached the Slytherin table, the other three houses were silent. Alex stopped in front of the table, wondering why students in the other three houses were all looking at him grimly. Then as he looked back to his new housemates, he spotted him. The boy, Tom Riddle, the one he shared the link with.

The black-haired boy was sitting at the back of the long table. He narrowed his eyes as Alex walked towards him.

The headmaster stood and began his regular school opening speech, but Alex paid no attention to him. He took a seat next to the boy, who was watching him doubtfully.

"Um...I'm Alex, Alex Salutor," Alex said, holding out his hand.

The boy hesitated, staring at Alex's out stretched hand. At last, he took the hand but withdrew quickly after he replied in a low voice, "Tom Riddle."

"What year are you in?"

"Second year." The boy answered in the same voice.

At that time another boy went beside Alex. Alex lifted his head and saw a brown haired boy looking down at him. He held out his hand. "Coilean Lestrange, I'm a prefect."

"Alex Salutor," said Alex, shaking Coilean's hand.

"You don't want to make friends with the wrong sort, Alex." He nodded in Tom's direction. He bent down and whispered scornfully, "He's a half blood."

Alex looked at him questionably. "So?" he asked.

The boy frowned. "He is a half blood," not bothering the lower his voice in front of Tom anymore, the boy said again as if it could explain everything.

Alex looked at Tom. The boy's expression was unreadable. He faced Coilean again and said, "Is anything wrong about him being a half blood?"

"What?" Coilean narrowed his eyes. "You're pureblood, aren't you?"

Half blood? Pureblood? Nicolas had explained it to him during the summer. "Half blood" meant those one of their parents was wizard and the one was muggle. "Pureblood" referred to those both parents were wizard or witch. And "Muggle born" was those whose parents were both muggle.

Alex didn't think it matter much when Nicolas explained it. But it seemed the "blood" did matter for wizards. Well, at least for the pure blood.

"Um...I don't know." answered Alex. "I don't really remember who my parents are."

"Oh, you lost your memory, right?" said the brown haired boy. "But a true Slytherin," he glanced scornfully at Tom, "will not befriend a half blood."

"Thank you for your advice, Coilean," said Alex coolly, "but I think I can tell who the wrong sort is by myself."

"I'd be careful if I were you, Salutor." Coilean cast a cold glaze at Alex, then at Tom. Then he turned and walked away.

Alex sighed. 'Well, it's not going to be an easy year.' He thought.

His thought was disturbed by the applause after the speech of the headmaster. The food appeared at that time and the whole hall was filled with cheers and laughter.

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Alex sighed and turned to the boy beside him. After the brief introduction and the "incident" afterwards, the two hadn't talked to each other. They had been eating in silence throughout the whole feast. Finally, Alex couldn't stand it anymore and broke the silence.

"So, what's it with the half blood and pureblood thing?" asked Alex tentatively.

Tom didn't answer, he just stared at his plate and lost in his thought. Finally he sighed and without lifting his head, he said, "They are right, you know."

"Uh?" Alex certainly didn't expect this answer from the boy.

"Only pureblood can enter Slytherin, as Salazar Slytherin said himself. And purebloods usually think only those who come from the old wizarding families can learn magic." Tom lifted his head and met Alex's eyes. "You shouldn't do that to them, or you will end up with no friends here."

Alex looked at him disbelievingly. "So you are being isolated just because of this insa...um...because one of your parents is a muggle?"

Tom studied Alex for a while and nodded. "I don't know why the sorting hat put me here. I guess I just don't fit in the other houses." He shrugged. "But I don't care having no friends." He turned to look at his plate again and muttered under his breath, "I am used to it anyway."

Ales looked t the boy sitting next to him. He remembered seeing Tom in his "dreams". The boy was usually left alone in the orphanage. The other children there always called him "freak" and made a fool of him or simply just ignored him. He certainly didn't have any friends there. Tom didn't have a good time in the muggle world and the situation didn't seem to be improved in the wizarding world either. Though Alex was not sure he understood the importance of "pureness" to the Slytherins, he was sure he didn't want to desert Tom like the others and made the boy's situation even worse.

"But unlike you, I do care having no friends here. And I suspect they will ever talk to me again." Alex added as he received a glare from Coilean who sat in the other end of the long table. "Since you are the only one who will talk to me and from what they said about you just now, I guess you are in similar situation like me." Tom slowly raised his head and looked at him in face. Alex smiled. "I think we may take advantage of each other."