Well here it is; my first Harry Potter fanfiction! I'm super excited. This is a flash-forward. Sort of like if this story was a oneshot (which it's not going to be), this chapter would be the entire story. Anyway thank you for reading and reviewing! :D

Disclaimer: I am American. Therefore I am not J.K. Rowling, and do not own Harry Potter or anything affiliated with it.


PROLOGUE/FLASH-FORWARD THING WHATEVER

"Hufflepuff, Alice!"

"Good luck!" Ellen whispered to her twin sister, and right after she did, a low murmur started growing throughout the hall.

"Did she say Hufflepuff?" one of the other first-year students behind Ellen whispered.

"Four guesses where she's going; and the first three don't count," giggled a girl at the near end of the Ravenclaw table.

"Silence, please," Professor McGonagall said as Alice, hands shaking, stepped forward and sat on the stool. As the Sorting Hat covered Alice's eyes, Ellen couldn't help but wonder: was the sorting of direct descendants of Helga Hufflepuff herself really necessary? Surely, even if she were meant for another house, it wouldn't matter, because of her famous heritage?

Ellen didn't have much time to consider the matter, because the Sorting Hat had not been on Alice's head five seconds before it shouted "HUFFLEPUFF!" for the entire hall to hear.

There was far less applause for Alice than there had been for the students before her. Most of the hall was murmuring and smirking, as they had known where she would be placed the moment her name was called. Professor McGonagall had to call for silence again before she called the next name.

"Hufflepuff, Ellen!"

If Ellen had thought the reaction for Alice was bad, the one for herself was much worse. Many girls and a few boys burst out into laughter, and groups of others made what sounded like snide remarks to each other.

"Do I need to put a silencing charm on the lot of you?" Professor McGonagall sighed. "Ellen, if you please," she said, much softer, to the now shaking from head to foot Ellen.

The last thing Ellen saw before the hat fell over her eyes was Alice at the Hufflepuff table, beaming. She gave Ellen a quick thumbs-up, and then Ellen saw just the blackness of the inside of the hat.

Even though she couldn't see them, Ellen could feel every eye in the hall staring at her. But she quickly forgot about everyone else in the hall as the Sorting Hat began to speak in a little voice in her ear.

"How very interesting," the Hat spoke, "you have a very famous ancestor, as I can tell. One that I knew personally. She helped found the school and gave me her knowledge. I'm glad to see her line hasn't died out yet. But perhaps…I see that maybe one tradition will die out today."

Ellen gulped. She had no idea what the hat was referring to, but it made it clear a moment later.

"Your blood does not match your mind, my dear. It seems that, despite your ancestor and your name, you would best be placed in the House of a different founder," the Hat explained. It was strange, he sounded amused. Almost…pleased.

Ellen started breathing very fast, and she could feel the sweat on her hands as she clutched the stool. How can that be? She thought, my whole family's been in Hufflepuff for…forever!

"Then you would be the first to break the chain," the Hat replied. "So, I now present you with this choice, Ellen. You can choose Hufflepuff House, be with your sister, and please your family. Or, you can stray to another path, one that I think will best serve you as an individual. The choice is yours."

Ellen felt as if her brain were running in slow motion while everything around her was going normal speed. And some things, like her heart and her lungs, were working faster than normal.

Well, she finally thought, I never really thought I had a choice in the matter.

"Choices are what make us who we are," the Hat whispered, "the only things holding us back are ourselves."

I always thought that I was going to be in Hufflepuff, because of my heritage, Ellen continued quickly, afraid that if she stopped she might not be able to say it, but if you think that I would be better placed elsewhere, she paused, and shocked herself at what she was about to say, then so be it.

"If you trust me," the Hat said. Before she could change her mind, Ellen nodded, and the Hat shouted to the hall, "SLYTHERIN!"