Author's Notes:
Here is the third chapter, folks. And this is when the sorting takes place!
I'm very thankful that you spend your time reading my FanFiction. I'm also grateful and really happy that TheUnderscore3024 and InTheDark363 chose to add my story to their FF-alert subscription.
Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and I make no profit from this work of art. However, I do own the plot and some OCs.
Chapter 3. Of keeping promises
It was 6 pm and the Hogsmeade Station was getting rather overcrowded. Students of 11 to 17 years old, all in school robes, most of them sporting the colours of their houses, got off the red train on to the platform. The yelling of a certain half-giant could be distinguished over any other voice. "Firs' years, com'ere! Firs' years!"
"That's Hagrid!" exclaimed a pretty red-headed girl, quickly bouncing towards the gamekeeper of Hogwarts and Care of Magical Creatures teacher. "Hello, Hagrid! I've missed you!"
"Hullo, my lil' Rose! I see yeh've grown a bit. Oh, time flies by. Miss'd you too," said Hagrid, his booming voice making Rose smile. "An' Al's 'ere, too. Merlin, yeh look just like yer dad at elev'n," added Hagrid, when he saw Albus approach him.
"Hi, Hagrid! How've you been? Got any new Ashwinders?" asked Albus knowing Hagrid's love for different 'harmless' magical beasts, the Ashwinder being one of his newest interests. Seeing the professor's smile and nod, Al turned halfway towards Scorpius. "Hagrid, this is Scorpius Malfoy. He is our new friend. Scorpius, this is Rubeus Hagrid, he's going to teach us about magical creatures in our third year, if you're going to take it, of course."
To say that the half-giant was surprised at the social status of the blonde in little Al's life was almost like saying nothing at all. But Hagrid, having a soft heart and not being one to hold grudges for prolonged lengths of time, didn't comment on it and smiled at the young Malfoy.
"Hullo, there. Yeh're yer dad's spittin' im'ge as well," said Hagrid. Scorpius, intimidated by the half-giant, shyly smiled and uttered a simple "Hello" and started looking around himself, willing his unease to disappear.
"Alrigh'. Firs' years, follow me," the gamekeeper demanded from the gathered around students.
When they were walking downward a not very wide path, which at one point turned to their right, they saw it for the first time: Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, in all its glory, built on the top of the rocks. All the first years' eyes were full of wonder, completely mesmerized. Most of them had heard, imagined, even dreamed about its beauty, but nothing could compare to the castle's real splendour. While approaching the harbour, the 'Oh's and 'Ah's had yet to leave their lips as the exclamations were still frozen on their innocent faces.
"Well, fo' to a boat," Hagrids voice broke the inexistent spell cast on the first years. "No mo' than fo' to a boat."
The children hurried to occupy a boat, some of the students guiding their friends to join them. Rosie did the same by dragging Albus and Scorpius after her to the nearest one. As she approached it, a young girl, with chocolate hair and piercing amber coloured eyes, came to them, her shy smile silently asking whether they could share the boat with her.
"Hi! Want to joins us?" repeated Al the same question for the second time that day.
"Hi! Yes, I would like to join you," replied the timid girl with a bit of an accent. "I'm Agatha."
As she introduced herself, the four of them got into the boat. Hagrid's voice could be heard instructing the boats to float towards the castle.
"I'm Rose," chirped the red-head, "and they are Albus and Scorpius."
"But call me Al, please," smiled Al towards Agatha, and she did the same in return. "Are you excited? I know I am."
"A bit," said the girl blushing, her voice so low, almost a whisper. "Well, a lot actually."
"I think all of us are excited," mumbled Scorpius, still admiring the castle, Rose, near him, nodded in agreement.
The rest of the journey towards the underground harbour passed in silence, the loch reflecting the omnipresent moon and the light from the multitude of towers and turrets that were part of the castle. After having lowered their heads because of a curtain of ivy, the students and Hagrid had finally reached the school's entrance. From the boathouse, they were lead into the Chamber of Reception, where a tall lean man stood, with a slightly scarred but handsome face. Watching the students advance into the Chamber, the professor kindly smiled, his pale green eyes mirroring his joy at receiving yet another batch of ingenuous students.
"Welcome to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I am Professor Ferdinand Stump, the Deputy Headmaster and Head of the Hufflepuff house. In a few moments, after passing through these doors, you will be sorted into your respective houses, be it Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw or Slytherin," the teacher's voice, although a bit rough on the edges, was still kind and welcoming. Having said that, he went inside.
After what seemed like hours upon hours, the doors opened. In front of them was the Great Hall with its hundreds of floating candles, a multitude of high and wide arches, four long tables placed along the length of the hall and another one – horizontally at the very end of it. There was a large window behind the staff table, some of the higher panes consisting of stained glass. Between the podium and the four tables stood Professor Stump, near him was a stool with a battered hat on it.
The students bashfully entered the Great Hall two by two, Rosie and Al easily spotting their relatives at the Gryffindor and Ravenclaw tables. There could be heard whispers from the older students. They were commenting on those who were moving towards the DADA teacher. However most of the noise was coming from the first years, who were in awe with the enchanted ceiling. When they finally stopped walking, Al felt Rosie's hand slip into his own and he lightly squeezed her palm, reassuring her that everything would be alright.
Then the pointy hat, before their very eyes, came to life and started singing:
"Through Medieval Ages have I passed
From the very start have I been there
Having the Founders' ever trust
I can sort you anywhere
An united front you must be
Don't let it divide you ever
For among gold and treachery
Friendship is the greatest treasure
You might belong in Ravenclaw
Being wise and quick of thought
Or in Gryffindor
Showing braveness and never one to stop
You might find your peace in Hufflepuff
For you have loyalty at heart
Or yet in the old Slytherin
With ambitions and never to part
My friend, do not fear
For fairly, you I will sort,
Into a house to become dear
A glimpse into your head, quick and short
Sorting you, now, I shall help
For I'm the ever Sorting Hat."
The song was followed by a boisterous applause and some cheering from the students and the staff.
Professor Stump cleared his throat and unfolded a quite long parchment. "When you hear your name, come forward and I'll put on the hat so you can be sorted."
The first to be called was "Bletchley, Regina", a blonde girl, whose tiny hands were visibly trembling. As soon as the hat touched her head, it yelled "Ravenclaw". The girl smiled relieved, and went to join her house table under the applause of the other students. Another girl, "Carmington, Rochelle", was called, and she was sorted into Hufflepuff. As she reached her table, a boy of about 14 hugged her. Rose wondered whether the boy was her brother, for he shared the girl's slightly curly brown hair.
The first Slytherin was a blue-eyed girl, "Doyle, Thea". The fourth girl to be summoned was "Fleet, Caroline" and she was sorted into Hufflepuff, two voices, one of a fellow housemate and a Gryffindor, could be heard above all. The older girl and boy had to be Caroline's siblings, since they sported the same dimples in their cheeks when smiling. A third student in the badger family was "Giles, Nolan." A certain "Goldstein, Albert", whose name sounded familiar to Al and Rose, was sorted into the house that appreciated wit.
About ten minutes later, there were five additions to Hufflepuff – "Granaham, Geoffrey", "Herbert, Yvonne", "Jarvis, Orvin", "Macmillan, Bowen"; two to Gryffindor – "Hewt, Blair", "Leigh, Declan"; as well as two to Slytherin – twins "Hogan, Caoimhe & Cian" and a boy to Ravenclaw – "Howder, Barry".
"Malfoy, Scorpius" called the rough voice of the DADA teacher. It was followed by some whispers and even giggling, however the young boy had other things on his mind to notice anything else. A certain Weasley's "you'll be fine" was the only exception.
Oblivious to the world, Scorpius had the hat put on his head and waited for its judgement.
"Good afternoon, young man! I see some great intelligence in this head of yours" said the Sorting Hat. Scorpius knew it would be talking to him, hence he wasn't too startled by the hat's voice, however he couldn't get rid of the anxiety he felt.
"Good afternoon. So what is the verdict? Ravenclaw?" asked Scorpius in his head.
"Verdict? Oh, I see you're quite afraid. Of what? You don't know yourself. What I also see is a certain promise to a boy, Albus Potter?" replied the amused hat.
"Hmm. I promised I would go with him to Slytherin. So have I got enough ambition to go there?"
"Oh, dear boy, I'm certain great things await you two," said the hat in the intimacy of his thoughts, followed by a very loud "Slytherin". Al had started worrying that something was wrong, but as soon as the hat announced his new friend's house, he relaxed and happily clapped.
Next, the Deputy Headmaster called their acquaintance with golden eyes, "Manis, Agatha", who was sorted into Gryffindor. She was followed by a Ravenclaw "Montague, Roman", a seventh Hufflepuff "Norton, Ian", and another pair of twins. Strangely enough, the girl "Nott, Elizabeth" became a Slytherin, while her brother "Nott, Tristan" went to the house of blue and bronze. "Osgood, Paige" seemed to value loyalty as much as "Pembroke, Nell" was characterised by wit.
And finally, "Potter, Albus" was heard throughout the Great Hall. Al's green eyes caught the reaction of the other students and Hogwarts teachers. The sorting of Harry Potter's second son seemed to pick everybody's attention. James and his friends' whistles could be distinguished amidst the chattering of the other students, and it didn't make Al any less nervous as he advanced towards the stool. The hat covered his eyes, hiding him from the entire world.
"Ah, another Potter… So what have we got here?" said the hat intrigued, "I see braveness. That, boy, you have got in spades, but also lots and lots of desire to prove yourself, to show the world that you can do so much more than everybody else thinks. My dear! What fierceness and cunningness your thoughts hide!"
The eleven years old, who until then kept quiet, could not help himself but ask the hat what truly troubled him. "Could I be a Slytherin and still be the same Al my family knows?"
"Of course. I do not think that you could ever put your father to shame by being a part of Slytherin; I know that is what you fear most. You have a kind heart, but an ambitious mind. You actually remind me of the one you're named after, Albus Dumbledore. Put your mind at peace, for you most definitely will do great things, just like you promised on your journey," the hat reassured Al.
"Slytherin," it yelled and the entire Hall fell silent. As predicted by Dominique, James' face was a piece of art, his brown eyes wide open and his jaw hitting the floor. Fred's previously amused face, was now marred with surprised horror. The Headmistress' face, however, was by far the funniest one, for her features now resembled that of a deer caught in the headlights as opposed to her usually composed expression.
Just four people in the hall were smiling - Dom, Rosie and Scorpius, since the three of them had already known the young Potter's decision; the last person being Al himself. He was confident that he would keep his end of the promise. He would show everybody what he was made of and bring honour to the house of Slytherin at the same time. The former three students started applauding and everybody else, awakened by the noise, followed suit. As Albus sat down near Scorpius, the latter grinned and the both of them shook hands, eyes glinting with wicked plans for the future.
The Head of Hufflepuff quickly recovered and went on with the other names on the list he was holding. "Preddington, Mary-Anne" became a Gryffindor, "Prescotch, Jude" – a Ravenclaw and "Quigley, Lara" – a Slytherin. They were followed by first year Gryffindor "Quinby, Dirk", Hufflepuff "Rizley, Bernadette", Slytherin "Smith, Zared" and Ravenclaw "Stratini, Sierra".
The next to be called by Professor Stump, was one of the so-called 'cousins' of the Potter and Weasley children – "Thomas, Cameron" who joined the proud lions of Hogwarts, "Towler, Silvester" and "Wayne, Alden" doing the same.
At last, she heard it. "Weasley, Rose." The eldest child of two thirds of the Golden Trio was going to be sorted, hence receiving the same amount of whispering and attention from the Hogwarts residents was a given. Rosie quietly, but determinedly approached the stool and sat on it as the teacher put the hat on her curly hair.
"My, my, the daughter of Hermione Granger! I apologise, Hermione Weasley," the hat quickly rectified its mistake, as soon as Rose unconsciously thought of it. "You have got your mother's personality and cleverness; that is for sure, however you do not seek to show anybody anything; you feel good in your skin as it is. But, oh, what is that? You want to be different? Different how, darling girl?"
"I just do not want to be like the others, I want to be myself, not follow some Weasley rule, or whatever. I do not care what others may think. I'm so tired of hearing dad talk about our family belonging to Gryffindor. It is not true! Look at Tory and Molly, they are happy where they are!" furiously rambled Rose.
"Well, now, do not be so upset, you will be just fine in your future house, which is..." whispered the hat in her mind, and then yelled, "Ravenclaw!" At least, this announcement wasn't as shocking, so everybody applauded at once. Nevertheless, some of her cousins from the red and gold house seemed quite upset that yet another relative didn't join them. As soon as Rosie reached her table, Victoire hugged her favourite cousin and kissed her red hair, whispering words of encouragement, whilst Molly kindly patted the little girl on her back.
"Winslow, Trina" joined the house of ambitions, while "Wood, Octavia", whose father was quite popular in the Wizarding world of sport, was warmly greeted by her elder brothers, Karsten and Patrick, at the Gryffindor table. She was soon joined by yet another girl "Yestin, Xandra".
There were only two other students to be sorted, a girl and a boy. It appeared that they were either cousins or siblings, for they had the same slightly dark skin, deep blue eyes and shape of their chin. "Zabini, Amorette" with straight shiny black hair joined Rose at the Ravenclaw table, as "Zabini, Ambrose" with curly dark brown hair joined Al at the Slytherin one.
The Sorting Ceremony finished, thus the Headmistress stood up and greeted the students. "Welcome to our new students and welcome back to our old ones. Yet another year awaits you, knowledge to be acquired, patience to be challenged and qualities to be proven. I wish you a very productive term. Now, let the feast begin!"
A man knocked on the door no. 16 on the second floor of a B&B near Marble Arch. A beautiful woman opened the door, a smile making its way on her face as she admired the colourful bouquet her visitor was holding.
"You came!" exclaimed Karin, jumping into her lover's arms, her lips suddenly attached to his. What started as a 'Welcome back!' and 'Thank you!' kiss, quickly transformed into heavy petting as soon as the door closed behind the man in his late 30's. The bouquet laid forgotten on the floor, were it had been previously dropped from the visitor's hand. The said hand was too busy with undressing the woman the man was ravishing. Clothes went down in a matter of seconds, the bed was reached in about a minute and the love-making took long, long hours full of kisses, licks, soft bites, pulls and thrusts.
As they rested after repeated sessions of wild sex, Karin started drawing patterns on her lover's chiselled chest.
"I promised you I would come and you know that I keep my promises," he whispered in the darkness of their room.
"I knew you would, Ron. I love you," replied the woman, her voice soothing him inside out.
"I love you, too, little vixen. Now, let's sleep."
Explanation of some things that might be confusing:
1. I have mentioned every first year's sorting because there are going to be lots of characters (you've no idea how hard it is to come up with not so usual names [first and middle name + surname] for so many characters ^_^ ), and I don't want you wondering who the hell he/she is. But I will make sure that you don't get confused as to the house or age of different heroes/heroines in my story.
About the sorting of only 40 new students. I know that J. K. Rowling had previously mentioned that there are about 100 pupils in each year, however in Harry's year there are only 40 mentioned: 10 to each house. And, well, I kind of did the same thing. Let's just say that in that year there were less children going to Hogwarts.
2. Now about Rose becoming a Ravenclaw. As the hat has mentioned, she resembles her mother a lot, but unlike Hermione (who eventually became a Gryffindor) she has got nothing to prove. In my opinion, Rosie has a fierce temper (like any other Weasley), a gentle heart (she has got that from her mum) and lots of confidence. Compared with her mother she has always had lots of friends and relatives, hence she has never felt shy among her peers.
I don't deny that with as much success she could've been a Gryffindor, but it was her stubbornness that made her choose Ravenclaw and go against her father's word. Because of the same bull-headed personality she chose to become friends with Scorpius, despite the fact that her father was in a feud with all Malfoys, as Dom kindly informed her cousins in the previous chapter.
3. Why the hat could state Al's fear but not Scorpius'. Well, as we know the hat can read any thought in the head of the one wearing it. Albus knew of what he was afraid the most, so the Sorting Hat had no problem seeing it in the boy's mind. However Scorpius was anxious, but he wasn't quite sure of what precisely, hence the hat noticed the presence of something bothering him, but could not tell the exact source.
4. There are some Irish names, and here are their pronunciations:
Aodhan [read as: aid + an] Finnigan – third year, Gryffindor (mentioned in the prologue);
Cain [key + in] and Caoimhe [kee + va] Hogan – first year, Slytherin.
5. B&B = Bed and Breakfast inn; loch = lake.
A quick poll for entertainment purposes:
What is your favourite Hogwarts compulsory subject?
A) Defence Against the Dark Arts
B) Charms
C) Transfiguration
D) Potions
E) Herbology
F) History of Magic
G) Astronomy
H) Flying
Let me know!
My own answer to the previous poll: My favourite house is Slytherin (even on Pottermore I've been sorted into the house of cunningness and ambitions).
By the way, did you like the Sorting Hat's song? I would be very grateful for your reviews! Cheers!
