Chapter Four: Sorting

The Hogwarts Express pulled into it stop with a blare of its horn. Almost immediately, students poured from the train and headed toward carriages. Raven exited the train and spied Hagrid gathering the first years around him. Hagrid in turn spotted Raven, a spot of purple among a sea of black uniforms. Hagrid waved her over.

"Glad ya made it, Raven! Dumbledore says he'll speak with ya after Sorting. For now just follow me." He said, rounding up the last of the first years. Raven did as she was told and followed Hagrid and the first years to a shoreline lined with boats, pulling her hood up to protect her head from a light sprinkling of rain, and curious looks that were being cast her way.

Getting in after being directed to, Raven sat quietly as eleven-year-olds chatted excitedly around her. Raven closed her eyes and went into a light meditation to keep her irritation from showing on the outside. Raven opened her eyes when she heard the chattering children quiet.

She saw the castle that was Hogwarts. Countless towers and turrets rose high into the air, scraping the clouds above. The castle was perched on a slight incline from the shore of the placid lake that the row-less boats were seamlessly gliding over. Even Raven couldn't contain her wonder at seeing Hogwarts.

When she heard a squeal from the fleet of boats, she noticed that her dark energy was urging them to go faster. Immediately she reined in her demonic energy. When they finally arrived on the shore, Hagrid guided them inside, where their group was met by another guide. The woman was old, and wore a stereotypical witch's hat upon her head along with a forest green robe.

"I am Professor McGonagall, Transfiguration Professor and Deputy Headmistress here at Hogwarts. Please follow me as we enter the Great Hall for your Sorting."

A flutter of chatter sprung around the group of first years, emanating the excitement over being Sorted. McGonagall led the first years up to a set of giant wood doors. Behind the doors, Raven could hear the roar of hundreds of students talking to their friends. There was a resounding bang and the noise in the hall quieted down. When it was mostly quiet, aside from some last minute whispering to friends, someone started to speak.

"Students! Welcome back for another year at Hogwarts." A loud cheer shook the enormous doors in front of them. The children around Raven started to talking, accentuating their anticipation. McGonagall moved up to the door, prepared to swing it open once she got her cue, the first years crowded behind her.

The man quieted the cheering and continued, "I would also like to welcome our new students!" Another wall-shaking cheer rose from the Great Hall as McGonagall opened the doors and entered.

Four long tables were situated in the Hall. Raven could see that the banner above the far right said Gryffindor in golden embroidery underneath a lion crest on a vibrant red background. The table next to Gryffindor had a yellow banner above them, sporting a crest with a badger, written underneath was Hufflepuff. To Raven's immediate right was a table with a blue banner, displaying a raven's crest and the name Ravenclaw. The last table had a green banner with a silver snake's crest; underneath in embroidered silver was the name Slytherin.

At the table, Draco sat and watched the first years file in, not really excited but clapping politely.

Beside him, Pansy snorted. "Oh, look Draco; it's that purple girl from the train."

Draco looked up and sure enough, there was a spot of purple among the black. Draco noticed that the hood of her purple cape was brought up and clouded her face in dark shadow, concealing her equally violet hair that he had noticed on the train. The violet girl was completely ignoring the fact that everyone was staring at her and was instead looking around the hall, the shadow over her face still. Violet eyes swept across the Slytherin table and connected momentarily with the grey eyes of Draco, then moved on to inspect the Professor's table.

Finally McGonagall had arrived to the front of the Great Hall, she left the procession at the bottom of the steps and received and old, ratty hat. Almost reverently, McGonagall set it on a stool. Meanwhile a man with a long beard stood at a podium and addressed the Hall.

"Begin the Sorting!" The man, which Raven figured was Dumbledore, the headmaster, stepped down from the podium while the hall once again erupted in a deafening round of applause. McGonagall stepped up to the podium instead and read off of a list of names. One by one the first years in front of her took their turn sitting on the stool and having the Sorting Hat shout out their House. Whenever a House gained a new student, the table would erupt with banging on the tables and cheers.

Finally, when the last first year was called up, Raven was the only one remaining. Whispers and giggles rose up around the hall about the strange violet-clad girl left. Finally, McGonagall called her to the stool.

"Raven, Member of the Teen Titans." More whispers flew around the room as Raven approached the hat. When she took her hood down, some gasps filled the air as they finally saw her violet hair and eyes, along with her non-human ashen skin, and not to mention the cat calls that she recived when her cape parted and revealed her swimsuit-like attire. Never before had Raven felt so exposed as she did when hundreds of curious eyes watched as the hat was places upon her head. But, as usual, she kept her mask of indifference firmly in place.

"What a curious mind!" A voice inside of her head said. Raven now understood why so many of the first years jumped when the hat was placed upon their head. However, this wasn't the first time someone had spoken in her mind.

"Curious indeed. Not the first time? I see you've been through much. And what is this with your teammates? Missing, are they? And you're here to find them! You're quite ambitious, ne? Interesting…" Raven quickly surmised that the Sorting Hat was not one to always keep a straight train of thought.

Inside her mind the hat chuckled, "That may be true, Raven. Aren't you quite witty? I bet you're cunning, too! Yes, I see, you are. What a curious past, dark too, full of hardships… I know exactly where to put you!"

"Slytherin!" the hat shouted to the hall. The table of Slytherin immediately erupted into cheers as the Sorting Hat was lifted off of her head. She stepped down and headed over to the Slytherin table, pulling her hood back up as she felt the piercing gazes of the Great Hall all over her.

She sat at the end of the bench, purposefully keeping her gaze staring straight ahead. Raven couldn't wait until she was out of sight and somewhere where no one could see her. Eventually the chatter and talk quieted as Dumbledore took the podium once again.

"Congratulations, new students! I sincerely hope that you will find a home here at Hogwarts. Now, on to the feast!" He announced, and with a wave of his hand, food appeared on the tables, and eager students dug in.

Raven kept her eyes on Dumbledore, ignoring the food in front of her despite the complaints of her stomach. Just as Raven hoped, Dumbledore did not return to his chair of the professors table, but instead headed in her direction. Raven rose and met him halfway, much too eager to escape the Great Hall and all of its eyes.

"Miss Raven, we shall discuss the urgent matters in my office, away from curious ears." Dumbledore said. Raven nodded and followed him out of the Great Hall and up to his office, where they were to discuss her missing friends.