Disclaimer: Despite the amount of times that it has been on my Christmas and Birthday list, I don't own the rights to Harry Potter.
By the time the carriages pulled up to Hogwarts it was thundering out and pouring rain. Alice, Mary, Marlene and I jumped out of the carriage and sprinted up the steps to the castle. The entrance hall was soaked from all the students coming inside, and the four of us stopped to dry out our hair and clothes.
The Great Hall was already packed with students, and we quickly took spots at the Gryffindor table as the first-years filed in behind McGonagall, who was holding the Sorting Hat and a stool.
A hush settled over the Great Hall as McGonagall placed the Hat on the stool. A rip in its brim opened wide, like a mouth, and it began to sing its song.
Back in the old ages
When I was but a hat,
There were four great friends,
Upon one's head I sat.
The four friends shared a passion,
One to learn and teach,
And they founded our fair school
And made a House for each.
Gryffindor was known
To take the brave into his house,
There was daring, nerve, and chivalry
In even the smallest mouse.
Ravenclaw had eyes
For the ready minded,
Their wit and knowledge
Often had others blinded.
Slytherin would take
The cunning and ambitious
He knew what he wanted
He was never capricious.
Hufflepuff was kind
She'd take the rest,
Though loyal and hard working
Is what she liked best.
The four friends soon realized
They wouldn't live forever,
They needed a way
To find the cunning from the clever.
Twas Gryffindor that had a plan
And whipped me off his head,
"We'll let the hat decide,"
Is exactly what he said.
So now I do the job
Of putting you where you belong,
So put me on your head,
I've never yet been wrong!
The Great Hall exploded into applause as the Sorting Hat finished is song. Professor McGonagall unrolled a scroll with all the first-year's names on it and as the noise died down she called the first one in.
"Abbot, Joseph!" A small blonde boy shuffled forward to the stool.
"HUFFLEPUFF!" the table next to us applauded as Joseph hopped off the stool and went to join them.
The Sorting seemed to take forever. After five kids, two Ravenclaws, two Gryffindors, and a Slytherin, I started to zone out.
Alice nudged me as and nodded towards the little girl that was next in line. Her hair was rapidly changing from a shade of brown to red as her name was called.
"Tonks, Nymphadora!" the Sorting Hat slid over her now blue hair.
"She's a Metamorphmagus," Alice whispered in my ear. "She can change her appearance at will." I nodded.
"HUFFLEPUFF!" the little girl hopped off the stool and her hair turned from blue to bubblegum pink as she ran over to sit next to Joseph Abbot.
I started to stare into space again and was jolted into reality when Professor Dumbledore rose to begin his start-of-term speech.
"Welcome, new students, and welcome back, to our returning ones, for another year of learning at Hogwarts! Now a few start-of-term notices before we begin our wondrous feast. To our new students, the forest on the edge of grounds is forbidden, and some of our old students could do to remember that too. Mr. Filch has posted a list of banned items on his door, and has also asked that students refrain from kicking Mrs. Norris. And, this year, for fourth-years and over, we are holding a ball. It will be in November, and further notices relating to it shall be mentioned later. Now, tuck in!" He clapped and food appeared on the tables before us.
"No matter how many feast we've had, I will never get tired of this food," Marlene said as she loaded her plate with chicken, potatoes, and a million other things.
I laughed. "I don't know what I'm going to do once I'm living on my own. I'm not sure how I'm gonna be able to eat!"
When the feast was over I watched the Prefects start to lead the first-years to the common rooms, when I felt a hand tentatively tap my shoulder. I turned around and saw James, looking somewhat nervous, standing behind me.
"What do you want Potter?" I glared at him.
"Whoa Evans," he grinned and put his hands up. "No need to be so snippy. I was just wondering if you knew where we're supposed to go."
"No, I don't," I said, just as Professor McGonagall came up to the two of us.
"Evans, Potter," she said. "Follow me."
We followed Professor McGonagall up to the base of a tower that I never knew was there, probably because there was a large portrait of a witch in grey robes on it. She smiled congenially at me and looked at Potter skeptically.
"I am Lady Delia, I'm the guard of the Head's tower," she said. Professor McGonagall left us to get used to our new dorms and common room.
"Gryffindor," I told Delia the password. She smiled and swung forward, revealing a twisting staircase covered with red and gold hangings on the walls.
"Whoa," Potter breathed behind me.
We climbed up the spiral staircase, which finally came to a stop at a giant wooden door. I gently pushed the door open, revealing the common room. It had a large fireplace, with comfy chairs scattered all over the room. There was a bookcase, with books on every subject in the school; it was like having a library in the common room. The fire was already roaring, and Gryffindor hangings had been hung, scarlet with a gold lion.
I turned in a circle, admiring the room. There were two little seven-step staircases that led to doors, most likely our dormitories. I headed to the one on the right, where the girls dorms were in the Gryffindor tower. The door creaked as I pushed it open, and I caught my breath when I saw the dorm.
There was a window that looked out over the black lake, and my enormous four-poster bed was right next to it. The silky sheets were red and gold, with a large lion on the front. There was a wardrobe over on one wall, with a mirror that melted away at my touch. All of my things were already put away. There was another bookcase, with books more for enjoyment than for school.
I returned to the common room, and found Potter already sitting in one of the chairs by the fire. I had brought down a book "The Witch and the Muggle," and I opened it to the first page.
I didn't even realize I fell asleep until I woke up in the middle of the night. The fire was only a glowing pile of embers now, and I was curled up in a chair. I was sure that I didn't put a blanket on myself last night, but I didn't think about it. I shuffled over to my dormitory before collapsing in my four poster and falling asleep, the light of the almost full-moon falling over me.
