Chapter 2: The Sorting
Rose and Scorpius moved quickly, putting on their robes (in separate compartments) and then getting off the bus. In front of them sat a row of carriages. Prefects were ushering kids about their age and older into the carriages. However, this wasn't the strange part. The strange part was that these carriages were not being pulled by anything. Rose inhaled sharply, then remembered something she'd read in the textbook Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. Something about...thestrals! She couldn't see them because she'd never seen anyone die.
Scorpius was shaking. "What...what are those?"
Rose inclined her head to look at Scorpius. There was fear in his eyes... fear in the eyes of the tough Slytherin himself. Shaking her head, she told him, "There's nothing pulling the carriage, Malfoy."
"What are you talking about?" Scorpius looked up at her, a terrified look on his face. "Don't you see them? Those horrid creatures?"
"I see nothing," Rose informed him. Then it hit her. He could see them... "Scorpius, have you ever seen anyone...die?"
"Yes," Scorpius told her. "My grandfather...well, let's say he wasn't a merciful man and had many enemies. One night I was staying over there and... he was murdered in his sleep. I saw him die when I got up to fetch some water."
Rose's eyes widened. "That's horrible."
Scorpius nodded. "I suppose."
"You can see the thestrals, then," Rose realized. "Those are thestrals... only those who have seen Death can see them."
"Oh," Scorpius replied, visibly relieved. "That makes me interesting, then. I can see what others can't."
"Come on, you big git," Rose growled, tugging on the blonde's arm. "I don't want to miss the Sorting."
The two descended to the bottom of a hill. There sat a lake, and upon it were many boats, lit only by the light of candles. Slowly, they climbed into a boat with two other first-years. One, who was smiling widely, had long, shiny dark hair and dark eyes. The other had red hair and blue-green eyes.
"Molly!" Rose exclaimed, pulling her cousin into a hug, which rocked the boat quite a bit. "Where have you been? I didn't see you at the station or on the train."
Molly shrugged. "Dad was being quite slow. Mum reckons he didn't want to let me go. But we arrived late, and I had to squeeze into one of the first compartments I ran across. But it's so good to see you, Rose! Hopefully we'll be in the same house!"
"I hope so," Rose smiled widely.
"Who's the lad?" Molly wiggled her eyebrows suggestively.
"This is Scorpius Malfoy," Rose replied grudgingly. "I was caught when we were about to duel, so we had to go speak to Professor Bell."
"Head of Gryffindor, isn't she?" The girl beside Molly spoke. "She seems alright."
"And you are...?" Rose trailed off.
"Natalie Ballina Patil," The girl recited. "But just call me Natalie. You are...?"
Rose grinned. "I'm Rose Weasley, Molly's cousin."
"Ah," Natalie answered, "Ron Weasley's daughter, and Hermione Granger's too. Reckon you'd make a great Ravenclaw."
"I suppose so," Rose shrugged. However, she held no loyalty to Ravenclaw, so she finished, "But I was hoping to be a Gryffindor."
"What is it with all Weasleys wanting to be Gryffindors?" Natalie grumbled. Diagonally across from her, Scorpius grudgingly took the seat next to Rose and the carriage began to move.
"I can't believe it, either," Scorpius growled. "Slytherins are much better."
"And I suppose that's the house you'll be in?" Molly looked him up and down. Rose could tell that she was surveying this boy, trying to figure out what type of person he was. She grimaced. That was never a good sign. Sighing, Molly told him, "You seem like a Slytherin."
Scorpius lifted his eyes (which were previously trained on his lap) to meet hers. "Is that an insult or a compliment?"
"Take it whichever way you'd fancy, snake," Molly frowned.
Natalie intervened before their dispute could become an all-out fight. "In truth, neither is the better house. Ravenclaw is obviously the better house."
All of them began to laugh. Glancing to the side, Rose observed the forest, which was lit only by lanterns. The Whomping Willow, which had been described to her by generations upon generations of Weasleys, stood ominously in the background, far off from the lake they were resting on.
"Reckon we should start paddling?" Rose inquired.
"Reckon we should," Molly replied, a smile on her face. Rose and Scorpius gripped hold of their paddles, and together the four first-years began to paddle.
At first, the boat glided smoothly on the lake without a problem. Grinning, Molly exchanged a glance with Rose. This is effortless, the glance seemed to say. It's almost... fun.
However, the fun was ruined by a certain Slytherin. The young boy was obviously not fit for outdoor activity. His paddling grew more laborious by the moment, and as it did so, his paddling grew more out of line with the other three. Slowly, the boat began to rock back and forth, as if it was waiting for the perfect time to tip over and dump one unlucky first year into the water.
"Scorpius!" Molly scolded. "Would you quit that?"
"Quit what?" Scorpius complained, deliberately shoving his paddle back into the water. The boat rocked, showing its unstableness.
"Rocking the boat!" Rose and Natalie exclaimed in unison. They then exchanged grins.
"Isn't that something those daft Muggles say?" Scorpius frowned, unfazed. "Anyway, I can't help it."
The boat tipped a little more toward the side where Rose and Scorpius sat. Molly screamed. "STOP IT!"
"I can't help it," Scorpius begged, still thrashing his paddle back and forth. "I don't know what's going- ON!"
"AAHHHHH!" With a scream, Rose Weasley and Scorpius Malfoy were thrown from the boat into the still, calm waters.
Rose didn't know what to do. As a child, they hadn't lived near the beach or any sort of warmth. Her only time when she had swam before had been when they visited Victoire, Dominique and Louis, so she didn't have too much experience. Suddenly, a hand gripped her arm tightly and pulled her to the surface.
"Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy!" Rose panted, gasping for air. Her hand automatically reached up to brush through her red hair, which had become soaked. "I'm going to murder you!"
"Well, at least I saved you," Scorpius replied cheekily, earning a glare from Rose.
"Honestly, if we weren't already in trouble, I would hex you here and nose, you barmy twit!" Rose exclaimed, turning red.
"Let's get back in the boat," Scorpius replied, unaffected by her words. He hoisted himself onto the boat. Then, grinning, he offered Rose a hand. Embarrassed, she took his hand and allowed him to hoist her soaking form onto the boat.
"Blimey, Rose, you're completely wet," Molly announced, as if Rose couldn't see it herself. Shivering, Rose nodded miserably. The air around them was colder than it had been before they had fallen in.
Suddenly, Rose glanced up, and sudden warmth passed through her. Hogwarts, the school she'd dreamed of going to for years upon years, sat right in front of her. Its wide stone towers and huge windows- everything she'd heard from her parents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. The castle was breathtaking in its own right; she could hardly wait to see the inside.
"Wonderful, isn't it?" Natalie breathed, obviously stoked too.
"Yeah," Rose nodded. Across from her, Molly was telling off a shrunken Scorpius.
"How can you be so daft- knocking my cousin out of the boat- the prefects won't be happy, nor will the Professors! How can one person cause so much trouble in one day?" Molly hardly even stopped to breathe.
Rose took in a breath. As much as she despised the young Malfoy, he didn't deserve all of this- it had been an accident. Hesitantly, she tapped Molly's shoulder. "Mol? Give the lad a break, will you? Come look at the castle, it's breathtaking."
Nodding, Molly turned around to join them. Scorpius shot Rose a grateful smile.
Once the boat reached shore, Victoire attacked them. She crushed Molly and Rose in a hug. "Where have you four been? The professors are all out, searching for you- Merlin, Rose, you're wet! What happened?"
"Scorpius knocked-" Molly began, all too eager to turn Scorpius in.
Rose interrupted. "Scorpius and I fell out of the boat."
"That's horrible!" Victoire gasped. Grabbing her wand out of her pocket, she waved it and murmured, "Abaguamenti!" Water rushed off of Rose and onto the ground, rendering her completely dry. Victoire then did the same to Scorpius. "Now, you'd best be off, I'd expect they're starting the Sorting soon."
"What d'you reckon they'll do?" Molly asked, wide-eyed. "My dad told me that there's a terrible challenge you'll have to face, I certainly hope not-"
"Molly, your father likes to poke fun," Rose sniggered at her gullible cousin.
Natalie shook her head. "No, there's no challenge."
Suddenly, someone grabbed Rose's arm and pulled her back a little bit. She turned to see Scorpius Malfoy. "What?"
"Thanks for not, erm, turning me in," Scorpius muttered, blushing. "And I'm sorry for making you fall into the water."
Smiling, Rose told him, "No problem."
The four first-years pushed open the doors to the Great Hall. Heads turned to look at the newcomers. James Potter shot them a wink, and Roxanne just smiled feebly. Albus looked immensely relieved.
"You must be the last first-years!" The headmaster, Professor McGonagall, came rushing down the aisle. She then ushered them up to the front. "Natalie Patil- you're between Nott and Potter, Scorpius Malfoy, you'll be between MacMillan and Montague, and you two Weasleys are back here with your cousin Dominique and Whitby."
Molly and Rose slid in between Dominique and a rather large boy. "Domi!" Molly whispered, grinning. "Can you believe we're about to be Sorted?"
"Should be interesting," Dominique grinned. "I wonder what house I'll be in. I'm not scared of much- probably be Gryffindor."
"Look at that," Rose hissed. "What is it?"
"A hat, obviously," Dominique rolled her Weasley-blue eyes. However, her blonde hair set her apart from the rest of the family.
"It's singing," Molly informed them, appalled.
"Thank you, Captain Obvious," Dominique sniggered. But Rose didn't reply, she was listening to the Hat. It actually was singing!
Once its song stopped, McGonagall stood back up on the platform. "First years, please approach the platform as you hear your name called and sit down on the chair. The Hat will place itself on your head and choose which house you will be in."
Rose's heart pounded inside of her chest. What if I'm a Slytherin? Rose thought. Though her mother had offered comforting words, her father's words still rang inside her head- "we'll disown you." She was fine with being a Gryffindor, or even a Ravenclaw, but she'd have to admit she'd be disappointed to be a Slytherin or Hufflepuff. Not that there was anything wrong with the people in those houses- they were fine people- but she didn't consider herself to be one to belong there.
"Albert Boot!" Professor McGonagall rang out. A small, blonde-haired boy walked up onto the platform and nervously sat down in the chair. The Sorting Hat placed itself on his head… one second, two, three…. "RAVENCLAW!"
The table that was clothed in all blue and bronze erupted in applause. Albert hurriedly walked over to the table and sat down beside a brunette boy.
"Jayma Boot" was the next in line. She was obviously Albert's twin, Rose had heard that there were quite a few twins this year. Jayma beamed as the hat placed itself on her head, and then without any hesitation, the hat yelled, "RAVENCLAW!" Jayma hurried over and sat down beside her twin.
Rose watched intently as people were sorted. Janelle, the girl from the train, was sorted into Ravenclaw.
"Scorpius Malfoy," Professor McGonagall called. Arrogantly, Scorpius strutted up to the platform. The hat placed itself on his head, and quickly screeched, "SLYTHERIN!" Scorpius grinned smugly and settled down comfortably at the Slytherin table.
Lucky git, Rose thought internally, scowling.
Later, Natalie Patil from the train was sorted into Ravenclaw, and then Albus Potter uncertainly walked up onto the platform. Rose hoped silently for her cousin. Please let him be a Gryffindor- please- and then a loud "SLYTHERIN!" rang out.
The room was silent.
"Slytherin?" A Slytherin muttered quietly.
"Blimey!" Rose could hear Lysander Scamander murmuring. "Albus is in Slytherin?"
Albus Potter was frozen on the platform. Finally, McGonagall came over to him and muttered something. Nodding, he blushed and walked slowly over to the Slytherin table, sitting down next to Scorpius. Scorpius smiled weakly at him.
"Um, how about our next person?" McGonagall was quick to say. "Max Roger!"
After Max and a boy named Allan were Sorted, Lorcan Scamander was ushered up onto the platform. The Hat hesitated a bit more with him, but its final verdict was "RAVENCLAW!" Lysander was after Lorcan, but he was Sorted into Gryffindor.
"No!" Lysander pretended to wail. "We've never been separated."
"Get over it," Victoire hissed, ushering the younger boy over to the Gryffindor table.
Quite a few people later, Dominique Weasley walked slowly over to the hat, clearly in no hurry. The hat was placed on her head. It seemed to be fighting an internal battle, but finally it announced, "Gryffindor!" Cheers were heard throughout the Hall.
Molly was next, and she all but flung herself at the chair eagerly. The Hat placed itself on her head and almost as soon yelled "GRYFFINDOR!" Molly ran over and sat beside Dominique, watching intently for Rose.
"Rose Weasley!" Professor McGonagall announced. Applause came from the audience. She walked over to the chair, settling down in it. The Hat placed itself atop her red hair.
"Hm, Weasley," The Hat said. "I've already sorted two of you today… perhaps you'll also be in Gryffindor. Ooh, I can see smarts, just like your old mum… a good sense of humour… and bravery, you've got plenty of that! Your flaws… your temper, your anger, and your bossiness. You're a lot like your mum.
I want to be in Gryffindor, she thought.
What is that? A desire to make a legacy for yourself, The Hat replied. Slytherin…?
NO! Rose all but screamed. Gryffindor!
Fine, the Hat relented. "GRYFFINDOR!"
She could hear the screams coming from that side of the room. Roxanne crushed her in a hug, congratulating her and apologizing for turning her in ("Y'see, I couldn't let you off easy in front of that Malfoy lad- he'd probably tell his parents, and I'm not looking for any trouble!"). Victoire hugged her too, and James grinned at her ("I knew you would be in Gryffindor, unlike my brother. Slytherin!- what will Dad say?"). That seemed to be the issue on Albus' mind too. His face was still deathly pale. However, she shrugged it off and listened to Molly gush about how excited she was. After a hearty meal, Molly was still talking.
"Can you believe it? We're all in the same House! This year is going to be so much fun!" Molly squealed.
"Hey, Mols," Lysander interrupted her, catching her in a hug. "How's it going?"
"Oh, you're in Gryffindor too, I've forgotten," Molly teased.
He frowned. "How could you forget me?"
"Stop the first-year flirting, please," Someone said from behind. Blushing, Molly and Lysander spun around to see Fred Weasley II, who was grinning. "Good job, you children. Looks like you've been placed in the right house. Now follow my prat- excuse me, prefect sister and her boyfriend Benjamin, they'll show you your dorms."
"Fred!" Roxanne admonished. The first-years giggled and lined up behind her. She led them to the Gryffindor dorms. The portrait of the Fat Lady greeted them.
"Oh, first years," The Fat Lady grinned. "What a pleasure…what's the password?"
"Dumbledore," Roxanne stated. The door swung open, and all the first years paraded after Roxanne and Benjamin until they stopped.
"All right, this is where we split," Roxanne informed them. "Girls, follow me. Blokes, you go with Percy. Boys aren't allowed in the girls' dorms."
"But girls are allowed in the boys' dorms?" piped a boy with dark skin and dreadlocks.
"Yes, Zimri," sighed Roxanne. "Let's go."
Rose, Molly, Dominique and two girls she didn't recognize followed Roxanne up the stairs to a room. Roxanne pointed to the room. "This is the Gryffindor First Year Girls' Dorm. You will all share it, and you will all be polite and courteous to each other. Are we clear?"
All five of them nodded. "Yes."
"Good," Roxanne smiled. "Now, all of you head off to bed, it's nearly midnight."
All of them nodded again. Satisfied, Roxanne left.
"What are your names?" Rose asked the two girls whose names she didn't know.
"I'm Lorrie Garrow," said the girl with blonde hair. "No relation to Amycus Carrow, whom I've recently learned is a Death Eater. I'm Muggle-born, anyway, so there's no way I could be related to him."
"Mary Alice Finnigan," the other girl, who had dark hair with side-bangs and dark eyes. "Our dads went to school together- your dad is Ron Weasley, correct?"
"Yeah," Rose grinned. "I'm Rose Weasley, and these are my cousins Molly and Dominique Weasley."
"Nice," Lorrie nodded.
"So, did you see the boys?" Mary Alice gushed. "That one lad, Lysander, he was incredibly handsome!"
Molly and Rose exchanged glances. "What?"
"Lysander... he's as boring as a stick," Dominique replied, flicking a piece of dirt off her pillowcase. "All of the guys in our year are nitwits- no way do you want to even think about them."
"Lysander's not boring!" Molly protested.
"Says the girl who's fancied him for over a year," Dominique retorted.
Rose couldn't help but laugh. She had a feeling that this was going to be the start of a great time at Hogwarts.
A/N: Hey guys! Thanks so much for all the reviews! Here's a shoutout to big big misty fan (to answer your question: Roxanne was being tough because she couldn't not be with little tattletale Scorpius around. Thanks for the advice, but I like my Character Relationships. Besides, cousins aren't nice to each other all of the time XD), Story Stalker (Thanks a lot :D), anonymous (cool, glad you like it!), That Crazy Seddie Girl (Haha, yeah. I found that out after I wrote it… o.o Lysander&Lorcan are really young. But that's okay, cause this is FF! XD Thanks though!), Adi (Haha, thanks a lot.), Romance and Musicals (Thanks a lot! Yeah, I'm a sucker for plot twists), ravenecho (glad you like it :D),Unspeakable53 (yeah, me too! So glad you like it!).
Anyway, I got a lot of reviews, but not so many hits. I really don't want to sound desperate, but if you want to (this is a request, NOT a demand), could you recommend it or something? I would seriously love you forever. haha! Please review, though. Thanks!
And special thanks to my new editor/ publisher, Harriet! She's already thinking about making this into a film adaptation….lol. She also helped me to make pictures and come up with personalities for all the OCs, and there are so many of them! So thanks to her!