It wasn't giant spiders that came to take us to the castle. It was an actual giant. Well no, he wasn't an actual giant. But he was a very large man. And he didn't carry us to the castle. We went in enchanted boats. Hogwarts was massive!

When we got inside we were met by Professor McGonagall, the head of Gryffindor House. She looked very strict, and I knew from Fred and George's stories that she was. I had second thoughts about whether or not I wanted to be in Gryffindor after all.

Professor McGonagall left us waiting in an antechamber. She didn't bother to tell us how we were going to be sorted. I wanted to discuss it with Harry, but he was pale as a sheet and looked like he was about to panic, so I turned to my other side instead.

"Do you know how we're sorted?" I asked a curly haired kid who was nearly as tall as me. "I'm Ron by the way."

"Justin. I'm Muggleborn, so I don't know anything." he replied.

I nodded, and was about to say something else when the annoying girl from before shushed me. Excuse me? I was about to say something to her when all of a sudden, a bunch of ghosts burst through the wall. Justin screamed. I had never seen a ghost before. I wasn't sure why these ghosts needed to be living at Hogwarts. Surely, they weren't taking classes.

Professor McGonagall returned shortly.

"Follow me." she ordered.

I got in line behind Harry. I should have asked Charlie what the sorting ceremony involved when he visited last, but that was so long ago I didn't think to mention it. Fred and George were making faces at me as we walked through the Great Hall. I made a face back.

I really wanted this to be over with, half so I wouldn't have to worry about it anymore, and half because I was starving. My brothers had always raved about Hogwarts food, and I had just realized that we hadn't had supper yet.

It turned out that we just had to put on a singing hat, and it would tell us which house we belonged in. I breathed a sigh of relief. Unfortunately, we were sorted alphabetically by last name, which meant I was right at the end.

I watched as everyone else was sorted. The first boy to get into Gryffindor was Seamus Finnegan. Unfortunately, the annoying girl was sorted into Gryffindor too. She was sitting up there for almost five minutes, which to me said the hat didn't know where she really belonged. Harry got sorted into Gryffindor too, which was no surprise. I was happy for him, but now I knew I had to be in Gryffindor. I just had to.

I was called second last. Professor McGonagall put the hat on my head. To my surprise, it started talking.

"Ron Weasley. I knew there was going to be another Weasley at some point. I know that you're going to be something special one day Ron. And I know where you belong. GRYFFINDOR!"

Oh, thank Merlin. And I was sorted much faster than that annoying girl. I made my way to the Gryffindor table and sat beside Harry, grinning from ear to ear. Fred clapped me on the back, before returning to his seat. I didn't talk to Harry, because he was talking to Percy, and Percy's a pompous brat and no fun to talk to. Instead I started shoveling my mouth with food. There was so much food. If Hogwarts was a place where food magically appeared, then I wanted to stay here forever.

Our dorm mates were Seamus, Neville, and Dean. They seemed like decent guys.

"I hope you guys don't snore." said Seamus. I hadn't thought about that. But it didn't really matter, I was used to it. Ginny snores like a freight train.

Neville had a toad. I had Scabbers, and Harry had an owl, but Dean and Seamus didn't have any pets. "How do we send letters if we don't have an owl?" asked Dean. He was a Muggleborn.

I shrugged. "I use our family owl."

"You can borrow a school owl." explained Neville.

"Do you have brooms?" I asked.

Seamus nodded excitedly. "Yeah, but my Mam wouldn't let me bring it."

Neville just laughed. "No way." I could see why. He was the clumsiest person I'd ever met.

Meanwhile, Dean was looking at us like we were crazy. "Brooms? Is there a sweeping club?"

Seamus and I grinned at each other. "Quidditch!" I exclaimed. "Best sport ever."

"Absolutely. But first years can't play." added Seamus.

"Right…" said Dean. He didn't sound convinced.

"Just wait until the first match." replied Seamus.

"I've only seen one quidditch match." I admitted.

"Just one?!" cried Seamus. "Why?"

"It's expensive." I answered sheepishly. "But I saw the Cannons beat the Wanderers when I was five, and I've been a Cannons fan ever since."

"The Cannons are the worst team in the league." Seamus told Dean.

"That was the last time they won a game." I agreed. "Although they have tied a few."

"I like football best." announced Dean.

Seamus had started to question him about football when pudding arrived, and I checked out of the conversation.

It wasn't until much later that we finally got to our dorm room. I looked around. It was really big, with five four poster beds. And I didn't mind that we had to climb so many stairs, because I was used to it. Hogwarts was sort of like the Burrow. Big, and not terribly organized, with everyone all crowded in together. I could get used to it here, I decided. I remembered that I had promised to write Mum, but I figured I would just do it in the morning. This bed was way comfier than my other one…