A/N; Well, I decided to update this a little earlier than planned. In all honestly, I was mostly stuck on the names. I probably wont update this again untill my other fan fic is finished. Enjoy :)
Pelahnar; Thanks for the advice, I'll try to catch some of those more often.
Chapter 2
The Headless Hunt
I felt the train coming to an abrupt stop as we reached Hogsmead station. I stood, and Rose followed suit.
"Come on!" I said, unable to keep the excitement out of my voice as I raced to the door and stood there, holding it open for her like the little gentleman I was. She rolled her eyes at me as she walked through it.
As soon as we got out of the train, we heard the booming voice of a chuckling half-giant. "Firs' years, this way, firs' years!" Hagrid called.
"Don't fall in the lake, I hear the Giant Squid tries to eat at least one kid a year..." James whispered in my ear, causing me to jump in fright.
"James, leave him alone or so help me..." Rose lifted her wand, a mad gleam in her eyes.
He mock shuddered in response, before turning and going with some friends of his.
"Come on." Rose said, turning without a second look at James. Together, we reached Hagrid, who beamed at us.
"'ello Albus, 'ello Rose." he smiled at us.
"Hey Hagrid." I smiled back at our family friend.
"Come on now, hurry up." he waved us of and began herding the rest of the first years. I chuckled in response.
Rose nudged my shoulder. "Look." she pointed, a smirk dancing on her lips.
A few feet away stood the boy from the train, Scorpius, looking terrified as he eyed Hagrid's giant form wearily. I couldn't hold back the chuckled at the sight. His face was priceless, even more so considering how harmless Hagrid was.
We ended up in one of the little canoes with another boy who's name I didn't know with brown curly hair.
The entire ride, James' words echoed in my skull. And, through some sick ironic twist, my worst fears where confirmed as a giant tentacle rose from the water sharply right in front of our boat. We all jumped at the frozen water hit.
"Down, Jerry, you stop tha right now mister!" Hagrid attempted to reprimand the monster and I silently thought that only Hagrid could name a Giant Squid such an ordinary name as 'Jerry'. The arm sunk back into the lake at Hagrid's command, becoming crystal clear and glass like once more.
Hagrid laughed and we all stared at him incredulously. I noticed, out of the corner of my eye, Scorpius' expression. I held in my own hysteria. It was a hundred time worse than the one he had when he got of the train. "Ah, good ol' Jerry, he likes scarin' the firs' years on occasion. Wouldn hurt a fly." Hagrid chuckled.
I suddenly recalled Uncle Ron's dark words of once having witnessed Hagrid present a dragon with a teddy bear. Then I remembered dad pointing out that Ron wasn't even there. I had doubted it before, but now, I wasn't so sure...
There was a large 'Oooooooh!" and I turned, and my jaw dropped. Before us was a magnificent castle, ripping into the sky, its windows ablaze with light and magic. I silently wondered how we didn't notice it before and wondered if it had anything to do with all the extra enchantments dad said was placed on it after some war that he never wanted to go into detail about.
"Heads down!" Hagrid called as we reached a cliff. We ducked as we passed under it, the massive castle now directly above us. We went through a dark underground tunnel, until at last we reached the end and our boats collided against the underground harbor.
We got out eagerly, Hagrid leading the way, and reached the massive front doors. "Alright, this is it." Hagrid smiled, before knocking quiet briskly on the massive oak doors.
The doors swung open at once. On the other side stood a middle aged man, his deep blue robes flowing down his sides. My first impression was immediately that he looked rather like a turkey, and I wondered silently to myself why he let his goatee grown in such an odd fashion. The yellowish skin clung to his bony face as he stared us down.
"Thank you, Hagrid." he spoke in a clear, respectable tone. I was surprised. I had half expected him to crow like a rooster.
"Yer welcome, Professor Verus." Hagrid replied. Huh. The guys name was apparently as strange as his appearance. He motioned us forwards, and, like tiny solders, we marched of trough the castle.
The place was ominous, the massive stone walls on either side, flaming torches high above. We passed corridor through corridor in silence. It felt like I was in a medieval castle, but I wasn't sure how old Hogwarts was. I'd ask Rose, but that would just give her more motivation to call me her favorite word- idiot.
We walked in awe, across moving staircases and talking paintings. A few of the Muggle-borns gasped at that, pointing.
Finally, Professor Verus turned to face us again as we reached two giant doors. "Well, this is it! Beyond these doors lies a test, a very special and crucial test which will decide which house you shall stay in here at Hogwarts. Each house has its own unique history, and rival-ships.." he paused here, as if the idea of the houses turning on each other would be the best thing to ever come to pass, "They shall be like your family... And the other houses shall be like your enemies, who you must crush in the race for the house cu-"
Suddenly, the doors opened, and one of my favorite people in the world poked his head right through. "Professor Verus? You're taking an awful long time, and the students are getting hungry." Uncle Neville spoke.
A few of the girls sighed dreamily at the sight of him. Fan girls. Evil little fan girls. We all had them. James seemed to be the only one to like the attention, though. I shuddered at what they would do when my secret identity was finally discovered. Damn James and his love of attention, they would probably all expect me to react like him.
"Oh. My mistake, of course, this way students!" Professor Verus declared. Uncle Neville smiled at me and Rose before disappearing back into the hall.
"You know Neville Longbottom?" a girl asked anxiously.
"Ummmm..." was my brilliant response.
"He's our Uncle." Rose rolled her eyes. I groaned. Leave it to Rose to reveal something like that. Then again, anyone with half a brain would no better not to tick her of. It was really simple; mixing the Weasley and Granger genes had managed to produce the most dangerous creature since dragons.
We were saved from questioning as Professor Verus led us into the hall. There, the object of our destruction awaited; the Sorting Hat, out of which any true Gryffindor could pull out Gryffindor's sword. I wondered, silently, if one could pull other founder objects from it. Uncle Bill smiled at us from up at the table, and I waved back.
I heard a few people scream and wondered if this was the end at last. Turning around, ducking for cover, I saw pale figures swooping down, a few laughing, and tossing what looked like... Heads. They where tossing human heads around at each other and us. And each head was cackling like a mad man.
"ENOUGH!" a stern voice roared, and suddenly, there was a bolt of red energy sweeping through the air. The Ghosts squealed before turning full and galloping away on their dead steeds.
Next to me, Rose was clutching her chest in fear with wide eyes. A few feet away, that boy from the train had his hair in a mess. Somehow, this sandy haired kid had lost his pants, and don't ask me how or why, put they were now on his head.
"I got the runt, Headmistress, I got him now!" a greasy old man declared with a beatific expression. As the hall turned to look, I couldn't help but roll my eyes. Of course. Only James would go and convince a bunch of ghosts to raid the Great Hall, interrupt the Sorting Ceremony, and terrify us all half to death. I had a feeling he'd done this all especially for me as a welcome home gift.
"JAMES POTTER!" professor McGonagall, our Headmistress, roared. Her face was angrier then I'd ever seen it. She looked ready to expel James right there on the spot.
"Professor, allow me to handle him, please." Uncle Neville to the rescue. Professor McGonagall shifted her glare from one to the other in rapid motion.
"I will deal with you later, young man." McGonagall gave James a cold glare and he shivered. "Neville?" she motioned him forward.
"Of course." Uncle Neville said before quickly departing the staff table and taking James from the old greasy guy. He gave James a stern look before dragging him away.
McGonagall closed her eyes, apparently composing herself before she sat back down and motioned Professor Verus to continue. He pulled out a list, informed us that when he called our name, we where to go and try on the ancient and smelly looking hat over on the stool, and it would decide what house we would be in.
The brim of the hat opened, but if any sound came out, I have no idea for at that moment a loud, ghostly wail was heard in the background. That, and a voice that made me picture a humble looking friar shouting "There's no need to fight!" Professor Verus looked ecstatic at the mention of the world 'fight'. The hat finished the song that I had failed to pay attention to and there was a large applause from the students. I joined, pretending to like it as much as they did.
"Savanna Nest." Professor Verus called. This girl with curly dirty blond hair moved towards the stool nervously. She had a couple of freckles on both her cheeks, her ice blue eyes wide and displaying that she did not like the fact that we all were staring at her. That, of course, made us stare harder.
Professor Verus placed the hat on her head, and we watched as the mouth moved silently. Though I couldn't see her face, I had the impression that blondie was talking back.
"Hmmm... Iffy... Gryffindor!" the hat called. The Gryffindor table cheered. I found myself looking for my brother, expecting him to be the loudest when I realized he wasn't there.
Savanna practically ran of the stool in an attempt to get of the spot light. It failed when she sat down at the Hufflepuff table instead and hundreds laughed. Blushing deep red, she made her way to the Gryffindor table instead.
"Maria Anna Lestrange." Professor Verus called. A few people gasped a dark haired girl with eyes like frozen steel made her way to the stool, glaring at everyone who looked at her with fearsome looking eyes.
She sat down and the hat was placed on her head. It took about three seconds for the brim to open and the hat to shout "Slytherin!"
The girl got of, glared one last time at us, then made her way to sit at the Slytherin table. I got the impression she was used to people judging her on sight, and I wondered why.
The sorting continued from there. Uriel Vallen was the first to join the Ravenclaw table as Fay West was the first to join Hufflepuff. Rose was called and she looked at me nervously before rushing forth. The hat took longer on her than the others before it finally decided on Gryffindor.
"Molly Weasley." Professor Verus called. I watched as our cousin made her way up, and suddenly realized how distant we where. We rarely talked, like the rest of the family. Molly was always so closed, to serious, with a pompous air about her. The hat considered before deciding on Hufflepuff. I raised an eyebrow. A Weasley in Hufflepuff? Then again, Uncle Bill's kids where both in Ravenclaw last time I checked. It seemed the old Gryffindor tradition had broken.
Nico de Altar joined Maria at the Slytherin table and Helen Ruiz joined the Ravenclaws. Stephen Mason joined the Gryffindors after that. I was starting to wonder if I would ever be called when at last, Professor Verus said my name with a slight smirk.
"Potter?" "Potter, did he say Potter?" "Famous new kid!" "Celebrity!" "Wasn't that his brother, the ghost kid?" I cursed James under my breath as I walked in a way that would have my mum scrubbing my mouth clean with soap if she ever discovered.
The hat fell over my eyes and I knew darkness.
Hmmmm... Difficult, I'll say, unlike your brother... You remind me of your father,
I couldn't help but feel smug at the last part as the hat continued to mumble.
Hmmm.. Strong mind, I'd say. Intelligent, great potential.. Ambitious.. A heart of gold... Where to place you, where to place you.. Difficult, very difficult..
Please, I mentally pleaded, let me be in Gryffindor...
If a hat could snort, I swear this one did.
Well, father like son, aye?
I smiled weakly at that. The hat chuckled as the brim opened wide. "GRYFFINDOR!" it roared.
I got up, smiling slightly as I made my way to the Gryffindor table, where Rose gave me a quick hug and Justin grinned at me. My cousin Fred clapped we on the back before he turned and wolf-whistled. A few people glared at me, and I was under the impression that I was being blamed for James' stupidity.
"Scorpius Malfoy!" Professor Verus called. The pale blonde boy made his way to the stool.
"Slytherin the second it touches his head, you mark my words..." Rose muttered darkly. It was starting to get really annoying, and Rose was already annoying as they come normally so this was worse.
Just like me, it took a while to decide. Rose blinked weird as she stared in shock. I tried not to chuckle at her flabbergasted impression, which really was hard.
Finally. The brim of the hat opened wide, and it shouted, "SLYTHERIN!" the pale boy looked very smug as he got of the stool, and I noticed his cheeks where flushed, as if he'd been blushing all the while under that hat. I wonder what it told him, though I'd never find out.
Damian Valdez soon joined next to me on the Gryffindor table as Jacob Night joined the Ravenclaws. Morgan Frost followed Jacob, and Vanessa Quill joined the Hufflepuffs. Eric Evans joined us soon after, followed by Kyle Turner. The hat grumbled a little before deciding to toss him in Hufflepuff.
Victoria Dare was the last to rise up. She had long flowing red hair and dangerous looking eye. The hat grumbled in annoyance as she sat, taking a while to decide. Finally. It declared her a Slytherin and Professor Verus walked off with the stool and hat.
McGonagall stood, facing us all. "Well.. It seems the start of another great year. Forgive me if I must ask you not to rile up the ghosts." a few people laughed at that. "We would like to welcome our new Professor of Transfiguration, Professor Vantius Verus!" Professor McGonagall motioned to the turkey dude. A few clapped politely at him.
"On a side note, as usual, access to the Forbidden Forest is, for obvious reasons, forbidden. The caretaker, Mr. Gale, has asked I tell you all that any objects from Weasley Wizard Wheezes are strictly forbidden. Also, the Seventh hall corridor is out of bounds to all students this year."
There was mumbling on the last part. I wondered what was so important about this seventh hall corridor.
"And now.. Let the feast begin!" McGonagall called. She waved her wand and thousands of foods appeared before us. Judging by Rose's expression, this was Weasley heaven.
McGonagall didn't stay to eat with us. Instead, she rounded the staff table, looking livid, and made her way out the hall, no doubt after Uncle Neville and to yell at James. I wondered when mum's howler would come in to chew James out. That would be hilarious.
On that happy note, we ate and chattered before making our way to the dormitories. The second my skull hit the pillow I fell fast asleep, knowing no more.
I had a very strange dream that night. I imagined Professor Verus telling me that I must fight, Scorpius telling me to trust him, and Rose on my other side pleading me to take her hand instead, all the while Professor Verus shouting, "Fight, fight!"
I trashed around a little and knew no more. By morning, I'd forgotten the entire thing.
