You'll start to get a better picture of who Cat really is in this chapter. After this, classes!
Only now was Cat beginning to feel truly nervous about this whole thing. She had been herded with the rest of the first-years just outside two enormous wooden doors. They could hear loud laughter and voices from within and wanted desperately to be a part of the merriment. A rather severe looking woman—Professor McGonagall?—had led them here and told them everything they would need to know about the sorting process. Cat, however, had not been listening and was unsure what to expect. When they all crowded into the small space, she was separated from Ron and Harry. She had never been without her brother before, but she wasn't about to start her years at Hogwarts by crying for Harry. Taking a deep breath she steadied her nerves and began chatting with those around her.
Cat was enjoying herself, laughing with some of the other first-years, when she got a peculiar feeling and noticed it was much quieter than it had been moments before. She turned, finally spotting Harry and Ron, as well as a boy she didn't know with white-blond hair. Making her way over to them she arrived in time to hear the blond boy say some rude things about Ron. Before she or Harry could say anything in Ron's defense, the boy had stuck out his hand in Harry's direction, obviously in hopes of friendship. Cat almost laughed at the gesture; after all, he had just made fun of Ron who the Potters both made fast friends with. Harry clearly felt the same way.
"No thanks, Malfoy. I think I can choose my friends for myself, actually."
This Malfoy didn't seem pleased by his response and Cat could tell he was about to start with the rude comments again. Only this time they would be geared towards her brother and she would never stand for that.
"Hello! Is there a problem?" Cat asked brightly. The blond boy was clearly taken aback by her sudden entrance.
"No. Who are you to butt into our business anyway?" he sneered.
Cat's smile turned into a small smirk. This ought to be fun, she thought. "Me? Oh, I'm no one, really... But if you must know I'm Catherine. Catherine Potter. Cat, if you please. By the look on your face I can only assume you've realized that the Harry Potter is my brother. We're twins, actually. I know! We look absolutely nothing alike, but there you have it. Also, Ron Weasley just happens to be a wonderful friend of mine so by insulting him, you're insulting me. And we just can't have that, can we?" She paused, taking in the priceless expression on Malfoy's face. "Brilliant, I'm glad we understand one another," she turned away from the boy, ending the conversation just as Professor McGonagall reappeared.
Harry leaned over to Cat and quickly whispered, "What the bloody hell came over you?" There was a tinge of anger in his voice and she knew he was just being overprotective.
She merely smiled and shrugged, unsure what had come over her as well. Cat had always been known to handle confrontation head-on and was full of wit, but she had never been quite this bold. She enjoyed finally being able to speak her mind and the giggling students only encouraged her further.
Ron snuck up behind her and whispered something as well, "Thanks for sticking up for me, Cat. You were brilliant and I-I just hope you meant it."
"Meant what?" Cat wondered what he didn't believe.
Ron's entire face turned red and he couldn't answer for a moment. "A-about us being friends."
Cat had to stifle her giggle. "Don't be ridiculous!" she whispered, "Of course we're friends." Ron beamed at her in response.
"Students!" the professor was calling. "Form a line and you will follow me into the Great Hall."
Cat forced herself into the narrowing line right behind Harry. She wasn't going to be separated from him for this. She was excited and nervous and her hands started to shake. She reached for his hand just as he reached for hers. She smiled to herself and gave his hand a quick squeeze before the large doors opened and they began to enter.
The loud voices they heard before were now hushed. Every eye was on the first-years walking in, single file. Most of the first-years were avoiding eye contact with anyone, too nervous to want to look around. On the contrary, Cat's nerves disappeared once the doors opened. She had immediately been drawn to the ceiling which was enchanted to mimic the night sky outside. She could hear the girl from the train, Hermione, explaining this fact to someone else. Cat was pleased that she had read about Hogwarts before arriving and knew at least some things about the school. After examining the ceiling, Cat looked around at the students and the banners decorating the hall. She could recall vague ideas about the different houses of Hogwarts but nothing was sticking out and they all sounded fine to her.
Next she began to examine the row of professors directly in front. She noticed Hagrid immediately and grinned, hoping he could see her but knowing he probably couldn't. Looking around she saw a man with long white hair and a matching beard wearing half-moon spectacles. She was thinking he looked quite nice and grandfatherly when he turned and looked right at her. Cat gasped softly and saw him chuckle. She smiled, amazed by this school, and the headmaster, already. Feeling another pair of eyes, she looked slightly to the left and examined a man with black, greasy hair and a hooked nose. Cat thought he had been staring at her but really he was staring holes into Harry and they had burned through to her. She looked at the man intently, wondering why he looked so angry, when he turned his attention to Cat. This time she wasn't surprised and didn't break his gaze. She watched as his eyes softened and his expression changed from anger to something she couldn't quite place. Before she could give the man another thought, Professor McGonagall began to speak.
Cat looked to where the woman was and only then noticed a hat placed on a stool beside her. The professor briefly explained that this was the Sorting Hat before being cut off by the hat itself! Cat nearly guffawed at the sight, but caught herself when she noticed everyone else was still silent. The seams at the rim of the hat appeared to rip into a sort of mouth and then it started to sing. Cat was no longer worried about not having paid attention earlier since the hat was describing the different houses once again. Her thoughts didn't wander this time; the hat's song was rather captivating. She learned all about Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin. She still didn't feel any sort of inclination towards any of them but she figured that's what the Sorting Hat was for.
She watched patiently as the first several students were sorted. She made it all the way to Hermione being sorted into Gryffindor until she started feeling impatient. By Sally-Anne Perks she thought she would go insane. Luckily for her, she was next.
"Potter, Catherine!"
There were a few startled whispers when her name was called, wondering if she was related to the Harry Potter. She hardly even noticed the whispers and stares and gratefully bounded onto the stool. The hat was placed on her head and a grin slowly stretched across her face, wondering how silly she must look. The grin was replaced by a giggle when the hat, apparently too large for her small head, dropped down and completely covered her face. She could hear the laughter break across the Great Hall and lifted the hat again to try to keep it from hiding her face. It was to no avail however and Cat simply left the hat where it was.
She found it very strange to have the hat surrounding her face and head. It was dark and she could hear the hat speaking, just to her, almost as if it were in her mind.
"Interesting, very interesting," the hat began. "You seem to have the bravery for Gryffindor, the cleverness for Ravenclaw, loyalty of Hufflepuff, and definitely the ambitiousness for Slytherin. This will be difficult." The Sorting Hat sounded amused that he didn't immediately know where to place her. "You also have impatience, oh yes, very impatient. A daydreamer, wonderful imagination. Sense of humor, that's quite important." The hat started to chuckle, causing an eerie echo effect. "I see you also have a bit of cheek to you. Yes, you are a spunky little thing."
That caused Cat to giggle again; thinking about her confrontation with Malfoy and now having a hat call her spunky. "Well, Mr. Hat, what does all of this mean?"
"Dear me, I don't know that I've ever been called Mr. Hat before," he laughed loudly at that. "It means, Miss Cat, that you will be in GRYFFINDOR!"
Cat blinked as the hat was removed from her face and she was back in a bright room, surrounded by cheers and excited faces. She smiled brightly and walked to the Gryffindor table, sitting across from the twins from the train station. She could tell they wanted to ask her half a dozen questions right off the bat, but were interrupted by Harry being called to be sorted. The few whispers Cat had heard when her name had been called was nothing compared to what happened now. The entire hall was a hushed silence, very briefly, before seemingly everyone wondered aloud if this was "the boy who lived."
Harry looked horrified at the reaction he received, walking slowly and shakily towards the Sorting Hat. Cat was rather amused, seeing her quiet brother suddenly the talk of literally the entire school. But she knew how much this would bother him so she asked her fellow Gryffindors to be respectful and stop staring.
"So, is it really him? The actual Harry Potter?" one of the twins asked her.
"Of course it is. How many Harry Potters do you think are running around, exactly?" She hadn't meant it to come out quite so snarky, but the boys seemed to enjoy the slight attitude.
"Well, well," started the other twin, "and does that make you his cheeky little sister?" Cat wanted to laugh; he obviously didn't know that she actually was related to Harry.
"As a matter of fact, it does." She smiled at the twins, wanting them to question her further. They looked at each other, one eyebrow raised. They did not disappoint her.
"Alright," the first twin said. "Let me guess. You're not just his little sister but his twin and the two of you are absolutely inseparable."
Cat really did laugh this time. She laughed so hard tears started to stream down her cheeks and the boys stared at her, completely shocked by her reaction.
"I know you were really trying to prove a point and make me look foolish, but it's true!" Cat wiped the tears from her cheeks, still giggling slightly. "I am his twin sister and we are pretty inseparable. I'm sorry to give you a hard time but it was simply too easy to pass up."
The twins looked abashed. They weren't usually ones to fall for someone else's trick and they admired the skill of this young girl.
"No hard feelings," the second boy said with a grin. "I'm Fred, and this here's George."
"You got us pretty good and, uh, made us feel just a bit foolish." George laughed, causing Cat to laugh again.
"Glad you forgive me."
Just then the Sorting Hat yelled out "GRYFFINDOR!" and Cat was snapped back to what was happening around her. She had forgotten about Harry being sorted during her exchange with Fred and George, but was ecstatic to be housed with her brother. She jumped up to hug him and sat him down next to her.
"Harry, I would like you to properly meet Fred and George," she introduced them all, gesturing to the correct twin. "Fred and George, meet my brother, Harry."
"Well met, Harry."
"Good to have you!"
"Nice to meet you both as well," Harry smiled nervously; clearly still a bit shaken up after the sorting.
"Sorry, but I didn't quite catch your name," Fred says to Cat.
She shakes her head, feigning disappointment. "I see, all wrapped up in Harry Potter and no time for his baby sister…" She paused for effect, seeing the twins roll their eyes at her and waiting for her to continue. "I'm Catherine," and they nod vigorously, as if they had remembered her name the whole time. "But I would prefer if you called me Cat." She immediately regretted mentioning the idea of a nickname to the boys. They gave each other a significant look and an evil grin spread across their faces in unison.
"Of course…"
"Whatever you say…" They had trailed off together before finishing their thoughts aloud, "Kitten."
Cat smirked at the twins' take on her nickname despite herself. She wanted to frown and tell them it was ridiculous but she kind of liked it. She looked over at Harry and her smirk was replaced with a bright red blush. She could tell Harry was less than amused by these two boys calling her Kitten. Fred and George noticed as well but didn't seem fazed by his annoyance.
"Don't worry, Harry, we don't mean anything by it."
"Yeah, we just like to have a bit of fun," George winked. Harry was still somewhat skeptical. "And we know you aren't just her big brother, but her twin, and we understand the twin connection."
Once again they noticed the Sorting Hat yell out "GRYFFINDOR!" and found Ron joining them at the table. Everything, in Cat's opinion, was working out perfectly. Before she knew it everyone had been sorted and the Headmaster was standing to say a few words. He welcomed the students, new and old, and suddenly there was a huge feast before them!
"Speaking of the twin connection," Fred began with one corner of his mouth twitched up in the beginnings of a smile, "you two do have the mental twin connection…don't you?"
Cat rolled her eyes. "Of course," she answered just as Harry was saying, "I dunno."
They looked at each other quickly, slightly frowning with furrowed brows, before looking back to Fred and George.
"Nearly," they both said.
Ron chuckled softly at his new friends, wondering aloud how Fred and George could be identical in nearly every way while the Potter twins worked in completely different ways.
George gave them a doubtful look before asking "Are you sure you're really twins?"
Harry merely shook his head lightly in amusement, but Cat was willing to play George's game. Her mouth dropped open in exaggerated despair: "Are you honestly asking us that question? I mean, sure, we don't exactly look alike with the black and auburn hair, but not all twins are identical! And there is the glaring difference between us."
Cat pushed her hair behind her ears, completely exposing her forehead, and causing everyone listening to stare at Harry's. He squirmed in his seat a bit before turning to Cat, urging her to get on with it.
"Yes, there's just one major difference between Harry and I that everyone seems to notice. It's kind of the first thing you see, I suppose…"
Everyone around Cat and Harry had grown silent and couldn't help but look at the two.
Cat smiled lightly before continuing, "I obviously don't wear glasses."
Everyone immediately looked away from Harry's forehead and stared at Cat, bewildered. They all broke out into laughter at her silliness which she had been hoping for. Harry elbowed her gently in the ribs, mildly put out that she used him as bait for a joke.
"That was absolutely brilliant!"
"I'm incredibly impressed, Kitten!" Fred chuckled.
"Kitten?" Ron suddenly asked, "Why do they call you that, Cat?" Fred and George were staring at Ron, trying not to laugh, wanting him to figure out their joke.
"They're just trying to prove how clever they are," Cat answered.
"Trying-"
"And succeeding!"
Cat, Harry, and Ron all rolled their eyes at the twin boys. By then mostly everyone had stopped eating and were ready to retire to their dormitories. Professor Dumbledore stood and announced that prefects were to escort first-years to their respective dormitories and that classes would begin in the morning. Ron had pointed out the Gryffindor prefect earlier, his brother Percy, and they all made their way over to him. Once all Gryffindor first-years were together they walked up several flights of moving stairs and only got separated a few times. When they came to a halt at the end of a corridor, Cat turned to Harry.
"Where's the dormitory?" she whispered. Before he could answer they both heard a woman's voice ask for a password and looked up to see a painting of a fat woman speaking.
"Alright, listen everyone! You need to know the password to get into the dormitory. This year's password is Caput Draconis." Cat made a mental note to write that down before she forgot the phrase.
They stepped inside one at a time and when Cat walked in, her eyes widened slightly, taking the Gryffindor common room in completely. It felt so warm and cozy with soft armchairs, comfy couches, and a large fireplace. If Percy hadn't pushed the girls towards their dormitories, Cat might have curled up in an armchair and gone to sleep right there. Instead she turned to Harry and Ron who were looking up the stairs to where their dormitories would be. Cat walked over to her brother, tugged on his sleeve, and hugged him tightly when he turned to her.
"Goodnight, Harry," she said softly, knowing how happy they both were to finally have real rooms and beds.
"G'night, Cat." She looked up to see Ron standing off by himself.
"Oh, come here," she grabbed him and pulled him into a hug as well. "Goodnight, Ron."
Ron's face flushed with surprise. "Night," he said quickly before leading him and Harry up to their room.
She smirked and shook her head before letting out a quiet yawn. Cat walked up the stairs to her room and found her trunks already there with Sam curled up on her bed. She hastily brushed her teeth, changed into her pajamas, and scooped Sam up before collapsing into her soft feather-bed. Sam mewed in protest and Cat laid her down upon her chest. The kitten and Cat each yawned before closing their eyes, sleeping peacefully the whole night through.