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Stella decided to strike up a conversation with some of the students who had arrived at the table. "Hello, Cassius," she said, addressing the fifth year. "How was your summer? And how does it feel to be a Prefect?" Stella's eyes drew to the badge on his robes, one she desperately hoped to have when she achieved the appropriate year. Her eventual goal was to be Head Girl, but one could not get there without becoming a Prefect first.

As first-year Matilda Duffy was selected for their house, Stella clapped and cheered with the other Slytherins.

Addressing the table in general, Stella asked, "So is anyone planning to try out for Quidditch this year? We're looking for two Chasers and a Seeker." She really hoped they would get a good team this year. Stella was getting better and better at flying every time she took out her Cleansweep, and wanted a chance to show off against Gryffindor.

With a sigh, Matilda realized that she hadn't been breathing. Removing that old ratty hat, she discerned the Slytherin house table by following the sounds of cheering, and made her way to an empty seat. She felt decidedly exposed, but controlled her nerves by taking slow, measured steps. There were so many more students than she had expected, but she tried her best to put it out of her mind as she took her place.

Caught up in her own thoughts, Matilda was startled by Stella's greeting. It had been a long time since she had really spoken to anyone, and felt her cheeks darken.
Wanting to make a good impression, she smiled and said, "Hi, call me Milly." She remembered the conversation that she had just over heard her having. "You were asking about Quidditch... Does that mean you play?" Matilda hadn't seen a Quidditch game in years, and she was excited for flying class to begin. She had only flown once, and the experience was exhilarating... until her Grandmother had spotted her at six years old, flying above the towers of the manor on a rickety old Comet model.

Matilda smiled as Cassius mentioned the house teams. The thought of being on a Quidditch team was exhilerating to her, but having not been allowed to fly her whole life, she doubted her skill. She hoped to get some much needed experience in this year.
"Oh, I don't think I'd be any good on the team, anyhow. My Grandmother always told me that flying was not for ladies..." She blushed. "I can't wait to see a game, though. I haven't seen a real sport in years."

"Yes, I'm the Keeper," Stella said to Matilda. "They got pretty desperate last year and let first-years join. I don't know if they'll do it again, but you should keep your eyes peeled if they do! You'll have to take Flying anyway." She blushed when Cass complimented her flying skills, and then felt embarrassed that she had forgotten he liked to go by his nickname. "Thanks, Cass," she replied. "I don't think I'm that fantastic, but then I have my sister to complete against - and she's so good she'll probably go professional as soon as she finishes school. She goes to La Scuola Magica de Venizia and she's already the star of her house team." Just thinking of her sister made Stella miss her, and she made a mental note to write her a letter that night. She'd send it up to Ligi to deliver the next day.

Stella giggled a little when hearing Matilda say her grandmother thought flying wasn't lady-like. "Oh, don't worry about that," she said. "Gender roles are silly and outdated. There are plenty of girls who play Quidditch, here and outside of Hogwarts. There's even a whole professional team just of women, the Holyhead Harpies." Stella took a sip of pumpkin juice. "Though I prefer to root for Puddlemere United myself."

Matilda was excited to receive such a warm welcome from the elder Slytherins, her nerves quickly dwindling in her excitement at meeting so many new people. Having been home schooled her whole life, there were more people here than she had ever seen, and being welcomed so quickly was fabulous.
Charon's mention of her grandmother disconcerted her slightly. She was concerned about being a disappointment to her grandmother's memory, and his words made her think about what Grandma would say, were she still alive, if she knew her Darling Milly was thinking about the glories of Quidditch. Not wanting to talk about her family, she said simply, "No, I don't think she would argue. And I'm sure she wouldn't want to get in the way of my schooling."
Matilda's eyes sparkled as Stella recounted the previous year, when they allowed her to become a Keeper as a first year. The idea got under her skin, the notoriety of being a first year Quidditch player was insatiable. "It would be amazing to get on the team so young... Grandma was pretty old fashioned, I suppose. I found an old broom in the Groundskeepers shed once, when I was six. I got to play with it for a while, but when the Housekeeper spied me through the fifth floor window making faces at her, Grandma burned the broom and forbid me from going to the skies." Matilda shrugged, an ironic smirk on her lips. "I haven't flown since..."
She nodded enthusiastically as Stella mentioned the Holyhead Harpies. "I loved them! I used to beg Grandma to buy me tickets, I got her to once, and it was amazing! the Harpies won, 780 to 510. I think it was the Cannons they were up against..." Matilda's face was aglow with excitement as she spoke, eyes wide as she tripped over her words in her rush to get them out.
As Adele spoke about all the other female players at Hogwarts, Matilda was surprised to discover how sheltered she really was in her Grandmother's Manor. When living there she had never really left the grounds, so her exposure to others was very limited.
Adele's mention of Gryffindor perked her interest. She glanced over towards the table swathed in red and gold, with a large lion depicted on a banner, along with a the name Gryffindor.
"What's wrong with Gryffindor?" She had been given precious little information about what was in store for her at Hogwarts, and wanted to know everything.

Adelaide giggled a little when she heard Matilda's question about Gryffindor. What was this girl, Muggle-born, that she didn't know? Then, Adele thought of her own foreign-born wizard father and realized she probably shouldn't jump to conclusions. "Gryffindors are arrogant, self-righteous little prats, that's what they are." she hastily quipped. "Totally annoying. You'll learn this really soon, once you have classes with them." She snorted.

She then listened to Stella's long explanation with awe. Adelaide was amazed that the second-year had the patience to give the whole story. She had none left herself. After Stella was done, she added, "Oh, and another thing. They act like they're so noble, but they're all brawn and no brains. See, Ravenclaws are smart, Hufflepuffs are hard-working, we're ambitious, so we all have reasons to do well in school. But Gryffindors don't have bloody well anything to recommend them to anyone. Just lots of rule-breaking and where does that get you?"