Chapter 2: Sailing and Slytherns
Albus jumped off the train and began to walk through the steam that had appeared. As he walked, he suddenly felt his head hurt and then he was back in the graveyard. Suddenly, the tomb of the wizard holding the sword zoomed in front of him. He could make out the last name on the grave. "Peverell". And just as suddenly as he had seen the name on the grave he was back at Hogsmeade station.
A voice boomed out of the fog. "Firs' years this way: Firs' years over 'ere!" Albus ran over to the speaker who was none other then Hagrid, the Hogwarts gamekeeper. "Hi Hagrid." said Albus smiling broadly.
"'Ello Albus." Said Hagrid beaming behind his bushy black beard. Once a crowd of nervous first years had gathered around him, Hagrid beckoned wit his hand.
"Follow me to the boats." he bellowed over the crowd. Albus had to run to keep up with Hagrid's stride. Suddenly, Albus felt his mind drift back to the name on the grave stone.
"Hagrid, who are the Peverells?" asked Albus still struggling to keep up with Hagrid.
"Three brothers 'o created the Deathly Hallows." replied Hagrid.
"What are those?" inquired Albus
"Three powerful magical objects" replied Hagrid "The Elder wand, the Resurrection stone, the Invisibility cloak." he looked at Albus inquiringly. "Why?"
"Just wondering." said Albus
As they rounded a corner, Albus saw a small fleet of tiny boats in the black lake in front of them.
"No more then four to a boat." said Hagrid as he walked off t help some of the younger ones. Albus looked around for Rosie but saw that she was already surrounded by girls in another boat. He found an empty boat at the back except for a pale blond boy sitting in it.
"Scorpious Malfoy." said the pale boy in a haughty tone. He held out his hand and Albus shook it.
"Albus-"
"Potter." interrupted Scorpious "I know. My father was rivals with him at school. At this he seemed to grow even paler.
"I want you to know that I am not like my father or grandfather. He's encouraging me to be friendlier. I have no love for their "pure blood" mania."
Albus lightened up a bit and settled into the boat. They were soon joined by a black haired boy named Gavin Longbottom who was Neville longbottom's and Luna Lovegood's child and a pretty red haired girl named Leia. When she smiled at Albus, his heart did a back flip.
Hagrid's booming voice echoed from the front of the fleet of tiny boats.
"Everyone ready?" he asked "Alrigh' forward!" At his word, the fleet moved slowly along the lake.
"You'll get yer first sign o' Ogwarts just 'round this bend" said Hagrid as the fleet moved around a corner. There was a loud 'ooooooo' as the castle came into view. It was a huge castle honed out of gray rock with several towers on the corners. There was a large hotel-sized building that had rows of windows with lights in them. In the moonlight, the castle seemed to shine and shimmer. Suddenly, the fleet had come to a complete stop. Students were clambering out of the boats and lining up behind Hagrid. Albus, Gavin, Scorpious and Leia climbed out of the boat and joined the students behind Hagrid.
"Follow me." said Hagrid and walked up to the steps to a brightly lite hallway. An extremely stern looking woman with a sharp face was at the end of the hall. Her black hair was tied into a strict bun. She wore emerald green robes that trailed behind her slightly.
"Thank you Hagrid." said the woman." I'll take them from here."
"As you wish Headmistress." replied Hagrid. He walked back down the stairs. The group of students turned to face the woman.
"I am Professor McGonagall, Headmistress of Hogwarts." said the woman. "I am also the Transfiguration teacher. Now before you take your seats in the Great Hall, you must be sorted in to your Houses. They are Gryffindor, Huffelpuff, Ravenclaw, and Slythern."
"Each House has its own characteristics that set it apart from the others. Gryffindor has courage, Ravenclaw has cleverness, Huffelpuff has ambition, and Slythern has cunning. We at Hogwarts hope that you will not judge other people because you think your house is better."
She smiled at the students." Now I will come and get you when we're ready for you." She walked to the huge doors at the end of the hall. She opened one and walked in, shutting it behind her. At once, murmurs and whispers broke out among the students.
"What house do you think you'll be in?" asked Gavin to Albus
"Probably Gryffindor." replied Albus shrugging. He turned to Leia. "How 'bout you?" he asked. She opened her mouth to answer but at that moment Professor McGonagall walked back into the hall.
"We're ready for you now." she said "Follow me.