Here's the next chapter for you to enjoy :D Thank you to those who reviewed.
Guest - I'm not saying anything :) I don't want to give anything away...but do you think it would be obvious who is Arthur, or do you think I'd make it difficult? Who knows ;D
Chapter 4
Colin followed the professor on the boats and waited with the 11 year olds. Another teacher appeared, and spoke to him first.
"Colin Morgan, I presume?" she asked.
"Yes, professor."
"I'm Professor McGonagall, in a moment we'll go and sort through all the first years, and you'll be sorted at the end. Professor Dumbledore will explain you were homeschooled and just moved here this year."
"OK." Colin grinned, rubbing a hand over his cat's head.
"If you could please leave your animal out here, he is free to roam around, all the cats do, but you are responsible for him, and he is expected to be in your room for curfew. He isn't allowed in the classrooms, nor the Great Hall."
"OK." Colin picked Kilgharrah off his shoulders and put him down, the cat stood for a moment, then gracefully bounded off to explore. "He'll be fine, he'll be back in here in an hour looking for me." Colin told her.
"Very well." She turned to address the first years and then led them all inside a great big hall. He walked up, right behind professor McGonagall, ignoring the whispers of the hall and questioning glances he got. McGonagall placed a stool and an old hat on the stool, and Colin watched as the hat began to sing.
"In times of old when I was new,
And Hogwarts barely started,
The founders of our noble school,
Thought never to be parted,
United by a common goal,
They had the same yearning,
To make the world's best magic school,
And pass along their learning.
"Together we will build and teach!"
The four good friends decided,
And never did they dream, T
hat they might some day be divided,
For were there such friends anywhere,
As Slytherin and Gryffindor?
Unless it was the second pair
Of Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw?
So how could it have gone so wrong?
How could such friendships fail?
Why, I was there and so can tell,
The whole sad, sorry tale.
Said Slytherin, "We'll teach just those whose Ancestry is purest."
Said Ravenclaw, "We'll teach those whose Intelligence is surest."
Said Gryffindor, "We'll teach all those With brave deeds to their name."
Said Hufflepuff, "I'll teach the lot, And treat them just the same."
These differences caused little strife,
When first they came to light,
For each of the four founders had
A house in which they might
Take only those they wanted,
So, for instance, Slytherin
Took only pure-blood wizards
Of great cunning, just like him,
And only those of sharpest mind
Were taught by Ravenclaw
While the bravest and the boldest
Went to daring Gryffindor.
Good Hufflepuff, she took the rest,
And taught them all she knew,
Thus the houses and their founders
Retained friendships firm and true.
So Hogwarts worked in harmony
For several happy years,
But then discord crept among us
Feeding on our faults and fears.
The houses that, like pillars four,
Had once held up our school,
Now turned upon each other and,
Divided, sought to rule.
And for a while it seemed the school
Must meet an early end,
What with dueling and with fighting
And the clash of friend on friend
And at last there came a morning
When old Slytherin departed
And though the fighting then died out
He left us quite downhearted.
And never since the founders four
Were whittled down to three
Have the houses been united
As they once were meant to be.
And now the Sorting Hat is here
And you all know the score:
I sort you into houses
Because that is what I'm for,
But this year I'll go further,
Listen closely to my song:
Though condemned I am to split you
Still I worry that it's wrong,
Though I must fulfill my duty
And must quarter every year
Still I wonder whether Sorting
May not bring the end I fear.
Oh, know the perils, read the signs,
The warning history shows,
For our Hogwarts is in danger
From external, deadly foes
And we must unite inside her
Or we'll crumble from within
I have told you,
I have warned you…
Let the Sorting now begin.
Colin watched as McGonagall waited until the whispers had quieten down, then read from her list of parchment. "Abercrombie, Euan." There was a moment of silence, and then the hat shouted, "GRYFFINDOR!"
The line of first years slowly dwindled until the last girl, Rose Zeller was sorted into Hufflepuff. When the cheers died down, McGonagall spoke up. "As you all would have noticed, we have a new student going into his Fifth year here. He has been homeschooled up until now, and will be sorted as well." McGonagall announced. She then gestured for him to sit on the stool.
Colin did so, awkwardly perching on the low stool, legs much too long and bony to be comfortable, and McGonagall placed the hat on his head.
He watched the students in the hall as they all watched him, and hid a smile when he heard the hat talking to him.
'Hmm, interesting. A druid. Not only that, Emrys. Welcome to this humble school.'
'Thanks, it is a marvellous place, from what I've seen so far.' Colin responded.
'So you're here to be sorted. You'd fit into any of the houses, but then, you'd fit into none of them for the same reasons. You don't have to be here, you've learnt all that the teachers here could offer you. So why are you here?'
'To protect Harry Potter. To help bring down Voldemort. The usual. You should know the prophecies going around. You should also know which ones are real.' Colin pointed out, aware of the growing silence from the Hall.
'Indeed. Remember this, young Emrys, your friends are here for a reason. You are here for a reason. You can do great things, but in the end you can only act on the reasons you are here for. Do all you can to aid Harry Potter, but it is the boy who must be the one to kill the Dark Lord.'
'Thank you for your advice.' Colin thanked, just as the hat shouted to the Hall.
"GRYFFINDOR!"
The Gryffindor table burst into applause, and Colin moved to sit on the long table. Ron waved him over to their spot as the red-haired boy shoved people on the other side of Hermione over a seat.
Colin grinned at them as Dumbledore got to his feet for the 'welcome-let's-eat-now-and-talk-later' speech. "To our newcomers," said Dumbledore in a ringing voice, his arms stretched wide and a beaming smile on his lips, "Welcome! To our old hands - welcome back! There is a time for speechmaking, but this is not it. Tuck in!"
"Is he always like that? When I met him with my mum he was like that," Colin asked Ron, as food appeared on the long tables. There were platters of pies, vegetables, bread, sauces and flagons of pumpkin juice.
"Oh yeah, brilliant isn't he?" Ron grinned. "Crazy, but brilliant." Rno then tucked into his food, grabbing several handfuls of things and piling them on his plate.
Colin grinned, as Hermione leaned closer to the ghost near them. "What were you saying before the Sorting? About the Hat giving warnings?"
Colin stared at the ghost for a moment, as if in surprise, but shrugged, clearly accepting it as the norm. The ghost, otherwise known as Nearly headless Nicholas spoke, "Oh, yes," said Nick, who seemed glad of a reason to turn away from Ron, who was now eating roast potatoes with almost indecent enthusiasm. "Yes, I have heard the Hat give several warnings before, always at times when it detects periods of great danger for the school. And always, of course, its advice is the same: stand together, be strong from within."
"Ow kunnit nofe skusin danger ifzat?" said Ron. His mouth was so full Colin thought it was quite an achievement for him to make any noise at all.
"I beg your pardon?" said Nearly Headless Nick politely, while Hermione looked revolted.
Ron gave an enormous swallow and said, "How can it know if the school's in danger if it's a Hat?"
"I have no idea," said Nearly Headless Nick. "Of course, it lives in Dumbledore's office, so I daresay it picks things up there."
"And it wants all the houses to be friends?" said Harry, looking over at the Slytherin table, where Draco Malfoy was holding court. "Fat chance."
"Well, now, you shouldn't take that attitude," said Nick reprovingly. "Peaceful cooperation, that's the key. We ghosts, though we belong to separate houses, maintain links of friendship. In spite of the competitiveness between Gryffindor and Slytherin, I would never dream of seeking an argument with the Bloody Baron."
"Only because you're terrified of him," said Ron.
Colin winced as Nearly Headless Nick looked highly affronted. That was not the right thing to say if they wanted more information out of the ghost.
"Terrified? I hope I, Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington, have never been guilty of cowardice in my life! The noble blood that runs in my veins -"
"What blood?" asked Ron. "Surely you haven't still got -?"
"Its a figure of speech!" said Nearly Headless Nick, now so annoyed his head was trembling ominously on his partially severed neck. "I assume I am still allowed to enjoy the use of whichever words I like, even if the pleasures of eating and drinking are denied me! But I am quite used to students poking fun at my death, I assure you!"
"Nick, he wasn't really laughing at you!" said Hermione, throwing a furious look at Ron.
Unfortunately, Ron's mouth was packed to exploding point again and all he could manage was "Node iddum eentup sechew," which Nick did not seem to think constituted an adequate apology.
Rising into the air, he straightened his feathered hat and swept away from them to the other end of the table, coming to rest between the Creevey brothers, Colin and Dennis.
"Well done, Ron," snapped Hermione.
"What?" said Ron indignantly, having managed, finally, to swallow his food. "I'm not allowed to ask a simple question?"
"Oh, forget it," said Hermione irritably, and the pair of them sat in a huffy silence.
"So, where are you from?" Ron asked, turning to Colin.
"I'm from London, I live with my mum." Colin explained.
"Why the sudden change?" Hermione asked, "If you don't mind me asking."
"My mum thought that she had taught me all she could, but I hadn't learnt all I had to. She's been friends with Dumbledore for a while now, so when she spoke with him, he offered me a spot at the school." Colin shrugged, he then lowered his voice, "That and she felt like I wasn't safe at home. Here I'm protected." He rolled his eyes, "I'm here safe while she's at home unprotected with me gone."
Ron kept eating, shovelling his food, as Hermione made a sympathetic noise, "And your father?"
"He died before I was born. I don't think he even knew my mum was pregnant." said Colin.
"How'd he died?" Ron asked, in a rare moment when he had no food in his mouth.
"Ron." Hermione scolded.
"It's all right, I don't mind." Colin told them, "He was killed by the Dark Lord."
All three stopped and stared at him. "I'm sorry." Hermione said, "We shouldn't have asked."
"It's fine." Colin shrugged, before tucking into his meal.
Hermione glared at Ron who looked confused. Hermione sighed and shook her head, as if to say why-do-I-bother and they ate the rest of their meal in silence.
TBC