Disclaimer: I do not own the setting, characters, and events from the Harry Potter series; it belongs to JK Rowling.
"blah"—sorting hat
"blah"—mental reply
Chapter 1: Sorting Surprises
This was it. They were finally going to Hogwarts. The boy leaned his head against the window, his emerald eyes gazing listlessly outside at the rolling hills passing by. The sky was beginning to darken indicating that they were close to their destination. Feeling a pair of eyes on him, he looked up to see the deep blue eyes of his friend gazing at him in concern.
"Are you alright Harry?" she asked. "You seem a bit out of it."
"It's nothing really Dela," he assured her. "Just wondering what house we'll be sorted into."
She accepted his answer but it had sparked conversation in the compartment. He saw his older twin brother, Callum, imitate their father's overly dramatic noble Gryffindor act perfectly. The twins didn't really share many features, but anyone could tell they were related. They both had their father's naturally messy inky black hair, crooked grin, and the twinkle of mischief in their eyes. That was where the similarities ended.
Callum had inherited their father's hazel eyes, slightly longer nose, and lips and had been cursed with his eyesight. His features looked more like that of their mother's.
Hadrian, or Harry as he was called, looked like his father's younger twin but with his mother's nose, lips, and bright emerald eyes.
Glancing outside at the dark sky outside, he stood and grabbed his robes. "We should get changed into our robes," Harry began. "We're almost at Hogwarts."
"You guys stay in here, I'll go change in the restroom."
Allowing Adele to go change, he shut the door and brought down the blinds. While changing into their robes, the three lifelong friends broke into small chatter to keep themselves occupied.
A voice echoed through the train: "We will be reaching Hogwarts in five minutes time. Please leave you luggage on the train, it will be taken to the school separately."
The train slowed right down and finally stopped. People pushed their way towards the door and out onto a tiny, dark platform. A lamp came over the heads of the students and Harry heard a familiar voice: "Firs' years! Firs' years over here! All right there you four?"
Nodding their heads, they saw Hagrid's big face beaming over the sea of heads.
"C'mon, follow me – any more firs' years? Mind yer step, now! Firs' years follow me!"
Slipping and stumbling, they followed Hagrid down what seemed to be a steep, narrow path. It was so dark either side of them that Harry thought there must be thick trees there. Nobody spoke much.
"Yeh'll get yer firs' sight o' Hogwarts in a sec," Hagrid called over his shoulder, "jus' round this bend here."
There was a loud, "Oooooh!"
"No more'n four to a boat!" Hagrid called, pointing to a fleet of little boats sitting in the water by the shore. Harry and Callum clambered onto a boat along with Adele and Neville.
"Everyone in?" shouted Hagrid, who had a boat to himself, "Right then, FORWARD!"
And the little fleet of boats moved off all at once, gliding across the lake which was as smooth as glass. Everyone was silent, staring up at the great castle overhead. It towered over them as they sailed nearer and nearer to the cliff on which it stood.
"Heads down!" yelled Hagrid as the first boats reached the cliff; they all bent their heads and the little boats carried them through a curtain of ivy which hid a wide opening in the cliff face.
They were carried along a dark tunnel, which seemed to be taking them right underneath the castle, until they reached a kind of underground harbour, where they clambered out on to rocks and pebbles.
Then they clambered up a passageway in the rock after Hagrid's lamp, coming out at last on to a smooth, damp grass right in the shadow of the castle.
They walked up a flight of stone steps and crowded around the huge, oak front door.
"Everyone here?" Hagrid raised a gigantic fist and knocked three times on the castle door.
The door swung open at once. A tall, black-haired witch in emerald-green robes stood there. She had a stern face and his first thought was that she was not someone to cross.
"The firs'-years, Professor McGonagall," said Hagrid.
"Thank you, Hagrid. I will take them from here."
She pulled the door wide. The Entrance Hall was so big you could have fit the manor's dining room in it twice. The stone walls were lit with flaming torches like the ones at Gringotts, the ceiling was too high to make out, and a magnificent marble staircase facing us led to the upper floors.
We followed Professor McGonagall across the flagged stone floor. He could hear the drone of hundreds of voices from a doorway to the right – the rest of the school must already be here – but Professor McGonagall showed the first-years into a small empty chamber off the hall. They crowded in, standing rather closer together than they would usually have done, peering about nervously.
"Welcome to Hogwarts," said Professor McGonagall. "The start-of-term banquet will begin shortly, but before you take your seats in the Great Hall, you will be sorted into your houses. The Sorting is a very important ceremony because, while you are here, your house will be something like your family within Hogwarts. You will have classes with the rest of your house, sleep in your house dormitory and spend free time in your house common room.
"The four houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin. Each house has its own noble history and each produced outstanding witches and wizards. While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn your house points, while any rule-breaking will lose house points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded the House Cup, a great honour. I hope each of you will be a credit to whichever house becomes yours.
"The Sorting Ceremony will take place in a few minutes in the front of the rest of the school. I suggest you all smarten yourselves up as much as you can while you are waiting."
Her gaze lingered on a redhead's nose, probably a Weasley.
"I shall return when we are ready for you," said Professor McGonagall. "Please wait quietly."
About twenty ghosts had streamed through the back wall. Pearly-white and slightly transparent, they glided across the room talking to each other and hardly glancing at the first-years. They seemed to be arguing. What looked like a fat little monk was saying, "Forgive and forget, I say, we ought to give him a second chance-"
"My dear Friar, haven't we given Peeves all the chances he deserves? He gives us all a bad name and you know, he's not really even a ghost – I say, what are you all doing here?"
A ghost wearing a ruff and tights had suddenly noticed the first-years.
Nobody answered.
"New students!" said the fat Friar, smiling around at them. "About to be sorted, I suppose?"
Harry kept his gaze on the ghosts but a few others nodded mutely.
"Hope to see you in Hufflepuff!" said the fat Friar. "My old house, you know."
"Move along now," said a sharp voice. "The Sorting Ceremony's about to start."
Professor McGonagall had returned. One by one, the ghosts floated away through the opposite wall.
"Now, form a line," Professor McGonagall told the first years, "and follow me."
Feeling oddly as though his legs has turned to lead, Harry got into line behind a boy with sandy hair and Adele, with Callum and Neville behind him, and they walked out of the chamber, back across the hall and through a pair of double doors into the Great Hall.
Harry had never been in such a splendid place. It was lit by thousands and thousands of candles which were floating in mid-air over four long tables, where the rest of the students were sitting. These tables were laid with glittering golden plates and goblets.
At the top of the hall was another long table where the teachers were sitting. Professor McGonagall led the first years up here, so that they came to a halt in a line facing the other students, with the teachers behind them.
The hundreds of faces staring at them looked like pale lanterns in flickering candlelight. Dotted here and there among the students, the ghosts shone misty silver. Mainly to avoid the staring eyes, Harry looked upwards and saw a velvety black ceiling dotted with stars and recalled that it was bewitched to look like the sky and hearing a bossy voice whisper it somewhere behind him.
It was hard to believe there was a ceiling there at all, and that the Great Hall didn't simply open to the heavens. Harry quickly looked down again as Professor McGonagall silently places a four-legged stool in front of the first years.On top of the stool she put a pointed wizard's hat that was patched and frayed and extremely dirty.
For a few seconds, there was complete silence. Then the hat twitched. A rip near the brim opened wide like a mouth – and the hat began to sing:
"Oh, you may not think I'm pretty
But don't judge on what you see,
I'll eat myself if you can find
A smarter hat than me.
You can keep your bowlers black,
Your top hats sleek and tall,
For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat
And I can cap them all.
There's nothing hidden in your head
The Sorting Hat can't see,
So try me on and I will tell you
Where you ought to be.
You might belong in Gryffindor,
Where dwell the brave at heart,
Their daring, nerve, and chivalry
Set Gryffindors apart;
You might belong in Hufflepuff,
Where they are just and loyal,
Those patient Hufflepuffs are true
And unafraid of toil;
Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,
If you've a ready mind,
Where those of wit and learning,
Will always find their kind;
Or perhaps in Slytherin
You'll make your real friends,
Those cunning folk use any means
To achieve their ends.
So put me on! Don't be afraid!
And don't get in the flap!
You're in safe hands (though I have none)
For I'm a Thinking Cap!"
The whole school burst into applause as the hat finished its song. It bowed to each of the four tables and then became quite still again.
"All we've got to do is try on the hat?" Callum asked incredulously. "I'll kill Dad. He was going on about being thoroughly inspected by the professors."
"Can't believe you were dumb enough to fall for that," he muttered.
"Can't you guys stop talking for just a minute?" an annoyed Adele asked.
Grinning at them Neville replied, "You know them Addy, they've been chatter boxes since birth. It's almost impossible for them to keep quiet."
Any further comment was silenced as Professor McGonagall stepped forward with a scroll in her hands.
"When I call your name, you will put on the hat and sit on the stool to be sorted," she said.
"Abbot, Hannah!"
A pink-faced girl with pigtails stumbled out of line, put on the hat, which fell right down over her eyes, and sat down. A moment's pause –
"HUFFLEPUFF!" shouted the hat.
The table on the right cheered and clapped as Hannah went to sit down at the Hufflepuff table. Harry saw the ghost of the Fat Friar waving merrily at her.
"Black, Adele!"
Looking paler than usual, Adele made her way toward the stool gracefully and placed the hat on her head. After a minute, in which he saw her pale even further and a frown mar her features, the hat finally shouted, "GRYFFINDOR!"
The table on the far left burst into applause as Sirius Black's daughter joined them as the first Gryffindor.
"Bones, Susan!"
"HUFFLEPUFF!" shouted the hat again, and Susan scuttled off to sit next to Hannah.
"Boot, Terry!"
"RAVENCLAW!"
The second table from the left clapped this time; several Ravenclaws stood up to shake hands with Terry as he joined them.
"Brocklehurst, Mandy" went to Ravenclaw too, but "Brown, Lavender" became the second new Gryffindor and Harry saw a pair of redheaded twins catcalling.
"Bulstrode, Millicent" then became a Slytherin.
The sorting continued and he vaguely remembered a boy, Finch-Fletchley being sorted into Hufflepuff.
Sometimes, Harry noticed, the hat shouted out the house at once, but at others it took a little while to decide. "Finnegan, Seamus," the sandy-haired boy next to Harry in the line, sat on the stool for almost as long as Adele before the hat declared him a Gryffindor.
"Granger, Hermione!"
The bushy haired girl eagerly ran forward and jammed the hat onto her head.
"GRYFFINDOR!" shouted the hat, and he heard a groan from somewhere in the line.
Neville was called next, and it took the hat a mere ten seconds to declare the Longbottom heir a Gryffindor.
Malfoy swaggered forward when his name was called and got his wish at once: the hat had barely touched his head when it screamed "SLYTHERIN!"
Malfoy went to join his friends Crabbe and Goyle, looking pleased with himself.
There weren't many people left now.
"Moon"…,
"Nott"…,
"Parkinson"…, then a pair of twin girls, "Patil" and "Patil".., then "Perks, Sally-Anne"…,
And then finally-
"Potter, Callum!"
As Callum stepped forward, whispers suddenly broke out like little hissing fires all over the hall.
"Potter, did she say?"
"The Callum Potter?"
The professors were all sitting forward and the students were craning their necks to get a good look at him. All were looking expectantly at the stool wondering where the Boy-Who-Lived would be sorted.
It took merely a second until the hat shouted, "GRYFFINDOR!"
He had received the loudest cheer as the normally rowdy Gryffindors began banging on the table and the redheaded twins shouted, "We got Potter! We got Potter!"
The cheering continued and only died down when Dumbledore let out a tiny bang from his wand.
Clearing her throat, she called,
"Potter, Hadrian!"
He made his way as swiftly as he could to the stool while hearing many mutterings about whether he was related to Callum or if he was a muggle-born.
Placing the hat on his head, the last thing Harry saw were the faces of his brother and best friends.
"Hmm," said a small voice in his ear. "Difficult. Verydifficult. Plenty of courage, I see. Not a bad mind, either.There's talent, oh my goodness, yes – and a nice thirst to prove yourself, now that's interesting…So where shall I put you?"
Wherever you think is best. We're brought to Hogwarts to reach our full potential, so put me wherever you think I would do best.
"Finally," the hat replied. "Someone who recognizes why I'm placed here. You're courageous, but you won't rush into situations without thinking about it. You seek knowledge but not just for the sake of knowing. You are loyal to those who have earned your trust, but it is impossible to regain that trust once it has been broken. Very cunning Mr. Potter, and you want people to see you as a person, and not Callum's brother. Yes, yes, I know. Remember Young Potter, appearances can be deceiving. They will need someone who can look beyond the mask. Better be…
"SLYTHERIN!"
Pulling the hat off his head, Harry noticed that the hall was deathly silent, as if they couldn't believe a Potter had been sorted into Slytherin. Purposefully ignoring the shocked looks his brother and friends were sending him as his robes adjusted, he quickly made his way toward the table on the far right where he saw the Slytherin's gather their bearings and clap for their new addition, although they were looking at him with calculating and suspicious eyes.
Seating himself next to the other first years, he saw McGonagall recover from her shock and continue on with the sorting pulling the rest of the hall out of their shock.
And now there were only three people left to be sorted. "Turpin, Lisa," became a Ravenclaw and then it was redhead's turn. He looked pale green before the shouted, "GRYFFINDOR!"
The Gryffindors began to clap wildly as they got another Weasley.
"Zabini, Blaise," was made a Slytherin before McGonagall rolled up her scroll and removed the hat and stool.
Albus Dumbledore had got to his feet. He was beaming at the students, arms opened wide, as if nothing could have pleased him more than to see them all there. "Welcome!" he said. "Welcome to a new year at Hogwarts! Before we begin our banquet, I would like to say a few words. And here they are: Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak! Thank you!"
He sat back down. Everybody cheered but Harry didn't know whether Dumbledore had finally gone mad. Shaking his head at Albus Dumbledore's peculiar behaviour, Harry turned his attention to his house table.
The dishes in front of him were now filled with food: roast beef, roast chicken, pork chops and lamb chops, sausages, bacon and steak, boiled potatoes, roast potatoes, chips, Yorkshire pudding, peas, carrots, gravy, ketchup and mint humbug.
Harry scooped a bit of everything onto his plate and began to eat. The small murmurs of conversation sounding pleasant compared to the loud chatter of the other houses. As he glanced around at those near him, he could tell that they were wondering how a Potter of all people could have made it into Slytherin.
"Well," a voice drawled. "It is rather surprising that a Potter has made it into Slytherin."
Turning to his right, Harry recognized the pale blond as Draco Malfoy.
"How come you're not joining the long list of Potters that have become Gryffindors?" he continued.
Raising an eyebrow at his question he answered, "Because unlike them, I won't immediately charge into a situation. The Hat decided I was ambitious enough for Slytherin."
The rest of the house seemed to accept his answer and introductions were made. He met Marcus Flint, a burly sixth year who was the Slytherin Quidditch Captain and the fifth year prefects Marius Avery and Cassandra Nott.
Feeling eyes on the back of his head, Harry looked up at the staff table and saw many of the professors stares directed at the Slytherin table but for two that were looking specifically at him.
One professor, a man he immediately recognized as Severus Snape from his father's stories, had lanky black hair that framed his face like a curtain, onyx eyes, sallow cheeks, and a large hooked nose.
The other professor he had no recollection of. His gaze seemed to dart between himself and his brother. He had a large purple turban wrapped around his head. Turning to the prefect near him, he decided to ask his question.
"Who's the professor beside Snape?"
"That's Quirrell, the stuttering fool. He's the Dark Arts instructor but everyone knows Snape wants his job."
Letting his gaze drift over the Gryffindor table, he saw his brother clap a hand to his forehead as if in pain and narrowed his eyes.
Talk at the Slytherin table soon turned to the classes, and which professors to watch out for.
"Old McGonagall might be strict, but she's even worse on us," began the female prefect. "Sprout and Flitwick normally are fair to us as the largest rivalry is between us snakes and the lions."
"Binns is an absolute waste of time," said Avery. "You're better off reading the textbook yourself as he can bore you to sleep. Snape is the only one who favours us but horse around in his class and you'll really get it. You might want to make sure you read your Potions text thoroughly as he likes to quiz students on the first day."
At last, the food and desserts had disappeared and Professor Dumbledore got to his feet again. The hall fell silent.
"Ahem – just a few words now we are all fed and watered. I have a few start of term notices to give you. "First years should note that the forest in the grounds is forbidden to all pupils. And a few of our older students would do well to remember that as well."
Dumbledore's twinkling eyes flashed in the direction of the Weasley twins.
"And finally, I must tell you that this year, the third floor corridor on the right hand side is out of bounds to everyone who does not wish to die a very painful death."
Laughter rang out through the hall but Harry noticed that the older Slytherins and all the prefects remained silent, many with thoughtful frowns on their faces.
"And now, before we go to bed, let us sing the school song!" cried Dumbledore.
Harry noticed that the other teacher's smiles became rather fixed.
Dumbledore gave his wand a little flick as if he was trying to get a fly off the end and a long golden ribbon flew out of it, which rose high above the tables and twisted itself snake-like into words.
"Everyone pick their favourite tune," said Dumbledore, "and off we go!"
As the rest of the school began to bellow the song, the Slytherins, including those just sorted, remained resolutely quiet until the Weasley twins finished with their funeral march.
"Ah, music," he said, wiping his eyes. "A magic beyond all we do here! And now, bedtime. Off you trot!"
The Slytherin first years followed Marius and the female prefect out the hall and down the marble staircase. They entered the dungeon in which they twisted left and right so many times that Harry was sure he'd be lost. Stopping in front of a blank slate of wall with miniature serpent carvings, the prefects turned to the first years.
"This is the entrance to the Slytherin common room," said Cassandra. "The current password is bravery. The password will change every week and the changes will be posted on the notice board."
Malfoy, looking rather repulsed, asked "Why have such a Gryffindor password?"
Smirking at him, Marius said "Who would ever believe that the password to the Slytherin dorms would be such a thing?"
Turning and speaking the password, the wall slid open and the prefects ordered them in.
The Slytherin common room was exceptionally large, with a high ceiling. There were many couches and armchairs with several surrounding the fireplace. Small tables were scattered around the room, some near couches while others had chairs. The entire common room was green and silver, the Slytherin colours, with some traces of black. Instead of seeming stiff, the common room looked elegant and welcoming. He was sure he could feel at home here.
The older years were already seated on the couches with the second years being closest to the front. A large space was left for the first years to sit on the floor. Ushering the first years onto the floor, Marius began to give a general layout of the house.
"Since the Slytherin dorms span the entire dungeon, we have more than enough space for everyone to have their own rooms. Slytherin house does not impose the same rules as the other houses as girls and boys can enter the rooms of opposite genders with their permission and discretion."
"Professor Snape will be coming soon to speak to the entire house and introduce the rules to you first years," said Cassandra. "I daresay some of the older students need reminding as well."
"Indeed they do Ms. Nott," said a silky voice. Whipping their heads towards the entrance, the first years saw Snape striding purposefully to the center of the room.
"Good evening and welcome to Slytherin house. Each and every one of you has been placed in this house because you are cunning and ambitious," His eyes flicked to Harry and he saw a strong dislike present. Great, he thought My Head of House absolutely hates my guts because I look like my father.
"There are a few rules which each and every one of you must follow. First, Slytherin house is united. The rest of the school views us as evil therefore we must present a united front outside these walls. All conflicts are to be kept within the dormitory and any that cannot be resolved will be brought to me."
"Second, all first years must attend a group study period twice at week at a set time. The older years will be helping you adjust to the workload given. Lastly, you are all Slytherins. You will not lose any points if you can avoid it. If you are about to get a detention find a way out of it or else you will have another with me. I should not have to hear about my snakes breaking rules as you should use your cunning to make sure you are not caught."
Finished with his speech, Snape left the common after throwing a glare to make sure everyone understood, his glare being focused on Harry the most.
The prefects ushered the first years to their rooms and Harry began to feel the excitement of the day fade away as exhaustion set in. Giving a polite goodnight to the other first years, who shared a corridor with him, Harry entered his room.
It was a large room, the same size as his room at Potter Manor. The walls were a Slytherin green. There was a queen-sized four poster bed in the center of the room. The curtains of the bed were green with a silver snake embroidered on it. The sheets of the bed were a silky black with a black covering as well. His trunk was at the foot of his bed.
There was a large closet on one side of the bed against a wall, with a door near it that led to a bathroom. A desk and drawers were on the other side of his bed closer to the window which showed the lake from a Cliffside.
Too tired to place his clothing away, Harry changed out of his robes and putting on a silk pajama bottom, he fell into a deep sleep as soon as his head touched the pillow.