"RAVENCLAW!"
Scorpius' eyes finally opened and instantly went to the ground as he felt the shocked stares digging into him. He silently stood, placed the hat back on the stool and walked towards the Ravenclaw table which was absolutely silent, just as the rest of the room was. Albus' eyes followed Scorpius, he even attempted to catch the blond's eyes but the blond wouldn't lift his eyes from the ground for even a moment. Scorpius picked a random spot at the table and slipped in next to the Burke girl who looked just as ashamed as Scorpius did. The people around Scorpius immediately scrunched together scooted away as far as they possibly could from the boy.
Albus frowned sympathetically at the blond and moved forward as the group became smaller and smaller. The awkward silence that had settled after Scorpius' sorting had been lifted as soon as the next student called was sorted. A few more name were called before Professor Longbottom called out "Albus Severus Potter!" the silence had returned, Albus could feel it ringing in his ear. Even Scorpius finally lifted his head, watching Albus with the same sort of nervousness that Al had felt when Scorpius had been the one sitting on the stool.
Albus sat on the stool and stared straight ahead at a spot on the far wall while the hat was placed on his head "hmm another Potter I see, I remember your father, you know... he was a difficult decision too" the hat said into the young Potter's ear "He showed greatness, just as I predicted, but even now I believe he would've flourished in Slytherin... perhaps I could remedy that with you..." Even though Albus had decided he would accept whatever hand was dealt to him and that if he were to be placed in Slytherin he would be just as honored if he were to be placed in any other house but he still felt this coldness fill his veins at the thought of being placed in Slytherin which he suspected had more to do with the other Slytherins who seemed to want his head on a plate by default. "You really are much too much like your father" the hat whispered before making its decision.
"GRYFFINDOR!"
A thunderous roar erupted from the Gryffindor table, Albus grinned brightly and even Professor Longbottom smiled although tried to cover it with a cough in order to keep some sense of authority. Even Scorpius couldn't help cracking a smile, at least happy Albus was so enthusiastically welcomed by his new house. Albus slipped down from the stool and placed the Sorting Hat back where he'd gotten it, walked down to the Gryffindor table and slipped in between James and Louis who patted his shoulder enthusiastically. They then turned their attention back to the last of the group, Albus felt a bit ashamed when he realized he probably should've been with his cousin and not a boy he'd only just met but then felt a little less so when he saw Lucy squeeze Rosie's shoulder reassuringly.
Without many Gryffindors being called, the sorting became a bit boring, so Louis, Albus, and James whispered amongst themselves, receiving a few annoyed looks from a teacher or two but nobody told them to stop, so they kept on. One boy however, was able to catch his attention.
A dark skinned boy with dread locks who walked calmly up to the stool, within seconds the Sorting Hat called out "RAVENCLAW!", the table gave a loud cheer while the boy walked over to it and to many of the Ravenclaws' surprise slipped in beside Scorpius. The blond lifted his head and looked at the boy curiously, the brown skinned boy smiled in response and stuck out his hand "Hey, my name is Barnaby Thomas, but you can just call me Barn" he introduced himself, Scorpius glanced down at the hand before taking it in a firm grip "Scorpius, Scorpius Malfoy" he replied. He was thrown off when the hand was moved over his shoulder where Scorpius discovered the Burke girl had also been watching. Scorpius moved back a bit so that they could shake hands properly "Samantha Burke" she added, looking a bit uncomfortable and kept glancing to the Slytherin table as if she expected one of them to come storming up to her and smacking her in the face for even thinking of trying to become friends with other members of her house.
Albus had watched the interaction from where he sat, it was of course difficult to see and he couldn't hear a damn thing but he felt reassured knowing someone in Ravenclaw was being kind to Scorpius. He looked up just in time to see his cousin Lucy have the Sorting Hat placed on her head, there were a few breathless moments before the hat cried out "HUFFLEPUFF!" Lucy grinned and hopped up from off the chair and skipped over to where her older cousin Victoire sat. She slipped in beside the blond and hugged her happily.
Finally it was Rose's turn, the Potter-Weasley children watched her sit on the stool with baited breath, only seconds after being placed on the girl's head did the hat call "GRYFFINDOR!". The Gryffindor gave another mighty roar, now accompanied by Albus' voice and clapping hands. Rose beamed and slipped off the stool and over to her family, she slipped into the seat across from her cousins who grinned brightly and congratulated her. Now that Rose had been sorted, Albus really only listened with one ear while the last of the students were sorted, although he did try to remember the students who were sorted into Gryffindor and cheered just as loudly for them as he did for Rose.
Now that his worries had finally been answered, he felt a weight lifted off his chest and apparently off his stomach considering it was now rumbling angrily. Albus looked up at the podium when there was a slight tapping noise that echoed through the whole room. The entirety of the Great Hall went silent and looked up to see an old Witch with extremely curly white hair that seemed to have a mind of its own that had been forced into a ponytail in an attempt to control it, although the hair still frizzed about her head. She had piercing grey eyes but a kind yet stern face and wore long flowing purple robes with a silver lining "Its another year at Hogwarts and as many of you know I'm the Headmistress and for you first years, Welcome!" she spread her arms and with a spark two fireworks shot into the air and gave a loud burst, forming into the shapes of the lion, the snake, the eagle, and the badger in their respective house colors. The students looked up at the magical fireworks with an "oohhh", the Headmistress gave the students a moment to settle before moving back into her speech "My name is Cressida Zinnaries, but just simply Headmistress Zinnaries, Professor, or Professor Zinnaries shall suit me fine thank you" she said politely. "Now allow me to introduce the fine teachers we have this year." Albus only listened for the teacher's of the subjects he knew he'd be taking that year, but to his credit, he wasn't sure half the students were even listening at all.
Headmistress Zinnaries started from the left side of the table and worked her way to the right, as each teacher's name was called they'd stand and take a small bow. The only teachers whose names actually stuck out were Professor Longbottom who would of course be teaching Herbology, the Charms teacher Professor Flitwick, the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher Professor Hemsworth, and the Transfigurations teacher Professor Crowleaf.
Profressor Crowleaf stuck out the most because in the time that he had been sitting there, his hair had changed colors at least 3 different times and Albus could've sworn that each time the Sorting hat had called out a house, his skin would change to a light shade of the color of whichever house was called. Albus had of course seen this before and it had been less of a shock for him than it had been for other students, he was a Metamorphmagus. Albus was accustomed to the sight being of course because of his God-brother, Teddy Lupin, who had inherited his Metamorphmagus ability from his deceased mother. Professor Crowleaf had a mischievous look in his eye but also a kind smile which gave Al a good feeling that he'd like Transfigurations class.
Headmistress Zinnaries smiled at the crowd of students "Now, on with the feast!" she said and just like that plates piled high with the most amazing food Albus had ever seen appeared on the table as if from thin air. Immediately students around him dug in, especially James who definitely took after his uncle, he looked ready to fight anyone who went for his favorite treats. Albus took his food more politely, grabbing a little of whatever took his fancy or just looked interesting and ended up having a plate just as piled high as the rest of the students.
Rose wrinkled her nose in disgust at the messy way James was eating but couldn't keep the smile of amusement off her face at her cousin's antics. Albus laughed at his relatives when James noticed Rose's look of disgust and proceeded to shove an orange slice into his mouth and two olives up his nose to reveal a bright orange grin, he then levitated two pineapples with cherries skewered through them over his eyes. Rose snorted and covered her nose and mouth to hide her laughter, the students around them also joined in on the laugh when they saw what James had done. Albus nearly choked on his food and had to down some pumpkin juice once he'd gotten his laughter under control. Albus finally spotted their cousin Dominique who was now standing and pointedly shot James a look of disapproval. She was, after all, a prefect this year and decided she'd take her duties seriously. James just turned the funny face to her before popping the food from out of his nose and mouth and let the pineapples fall before catching them mid-air, he bit into one with a satisfied grin before going back to his meal. The Headmistress clearly saw this but rather than reprimand James, she looked only amused.
Scorpius wanted to scarf down the food just as much as all the students around him, but at that moment his stomach was rolling over and over in an unpleasant way and he could only force down a few bites before needing to stop. He glanced over to where Albus sat laughing and joking with his siblings. Scorpius did feel good for Albus and his luck but he also felt a pang of jealousy at having it so easy. The blond sat between the only two students willing to be beside him silently, the dark skinned boy politely allowing Scorpius his space, while the girl on his right mulled over her own inner turmoil. He could feel eyes focus on him once in a while and whispers of "Malfoy" hitting his ear but he decided to simply blame it on paranoia for now. Albus was also the subject of a few whispers and points, but the older students were since use to having a Potter in their midst, while the first year Gryffindors were vibrating in their seats with excitement at the prospect of becoming friends with a Potter.
Scorpius could not pray any harder for the feast to be over so his first day could just be over and done with. After about an hour and a half of silently pushing food around his plate, the food and plates finally disappeared in a puff of varying colors of smoke in one last beautiful display. Headmistress Zinnaries stood up once again and approached the podium "I hope you all enjoyed your meal, now I leave the first years in the capable hands of your prefects" she said with a kind smile and as if on cue all heads turned to face the 6 prefects that stood at the opposite end of the table near the Great Halls large double doors. Some waved politely while others stood in a bored manner, waiting for their cue to move out.
"Well, off you go" the Headmistress added and gestured them to go when no one stood. The sound of small feet simultaneously standing and walking towards their designated prefects filled the room, the prefects first lead the younger students into the entrance hall. The Ravenclaws, Hufflepuffs, and Slytherins continued on their way to their common rooms but the Gryffindor Prefects stopped the students just outside the Great Hall doors.
One boy, who had the same dark skin and deep brown as the boy Albus had seen with Scorpius stepped forward "My name is Seamus Thomas and I'm one of 6 Gryffindor prefects, if you need any help just look for one of us" he said gesturing to the prefects standing beside him "If you can't remember where the common room is, don't remember the password, one of us will probably be about, well lets get going then" He concluded and lead the group up a set of stairs, one of many. Albus' head began to spin from all the overwhelming amount of moving stair cases and portraits littering the wall. Most of the students were panting heavily by the time they had reached the 7th floor and stood before a large portrait of a heavy set women decked in a white dress, hair and make up gussied up as if ready to do a performance of some kind.
"This is Gryffindor tower and this here is the 'Fat Lady', to get in you must tell her the correct password, and each month the password will change but as long as you remember to check the notice board inside, you should be just fine. And trust me, you don't want to be seen stuck out in the hall yelling random words at a portrait in hopes of getting in" he said with a laugh before turning to the portrait "Potter" he said to the painting, rather than opening the fat lady grinned and waved, enjoying her fame for a few minutes more before Seamus "AHEMED" loudly to which the Fat Lady huffed a "Fine" and swung open, revealing the large hole that lead to the Gryffindor common room. Albus and Rose looked at one another in shock at the sound of Albus' last name being used as a password for their common room and whispering broke out among the group. "Well I suppose it'll be easy to remember" Rose muttered to her cousin, causing them both to laugh while they followed after their peers into the common room.
The room was circular and cozy with a lit fireplace giving it just the right amount of warmth to be comfortable, it was surrounded by red chairs and sofas that looked comfortable enough to sink right into. There were also a few tables and chairs spread around the room, Albus took note of the big bulletin board Seamus had mentioned which now only had a few things attached to it. One of which was the list of passwords that contained but one word, the current password "Potter", pinned beside that were advertisements of joining the quidditch team and other clubs. While the first years were looking around, 3 of the older prefects left to collect the rest of their house.
Seasmus stepped in front of the fork between two sets of stairs "On your right-" He lifted his left arm and gestured to the stairs behind him "-are the boys dorm and on the left-" he dropped his left arm and lifted his right to once again gesture "-are the girls dorms. There are 7 floors, each floor belonging to a year, as first years you will be all the way at the top" he said pointing up with a laugh at the groans that followed his statement. "And don't be worried if you forget your head and 'accidentally' go up the wrong set of stairs, you'll find out why" he said with a mischief glint in his eyes as the children looked at one another with puzzled expressions.
"A few set of rules before I send you off; Always wear your uniform when on school grounds, do not leave school grounds without express permission, do not go near the forbidden forest, and don't use magic in any other room other than classrooms and study areas and only for the purpose of study. These are the main rules, I've forgotten a few but I'm sure you'll find out what the rules are when you break them" he commented with a snicker, along with the 2 remaining prefects "Now off you go, early start tomorrow! You'll find your trunks beside your beds and your schedules in your bedside tables" He finished and clapped his hands to get the students moving.
Albus hugged Rose quickly before they were herded in opposite directions and up the stairs to their dorm rooms. Albus walked up the stairs to the 7th floor as they had been instructed, noticing a few of the students were once again panting. The students spread out in search of their rooms which were labeled with their names, he found his name and walked in, followed by 2 boys. Albus found his trunk and the cage which held his quietly twittering barn owl, he kneeled beside the cage and slipped his finger through the cage with a smile "Hi girl" he whispered as the bird nipped at his finger affectionately. Albus opened up his trunk and fished out some owl feed that he then dropped in the cage.
He sighed and sat on his bed just as his last 3 roommates came in, he leaned against one of the supports of his four-poster bed while he thought over the days event, feeling comfortably full. After a few moments he noticed the heavy silence that had filled the room without his notice, he lifted his head and looked around, noticing all eyes on him. He immediately felt his heart begin to thump wildly in his chest at the thought of meeting new people, this had always been an issue for him but he had decided that once he came here he'd buck up and make some friends but before he could open his mouth a boy with sandy blonde hair and a largish nose spoke up "Uh, I suppose we ought to get to know each other since we'll be living together for the next 7 years" and looked around the room at the other boys as if expecting decent at his comment "Uh, well my name is Rupert Sloper" he introduced then looked at the boy who sat on the bed to his right.
The tall boy with a dark chocolate skin tone looked around the room when he realized the others were now looking at him "Well, my name is Andrew Coote" he chipped in and did as his predecessor had done and looked at the boy to the right of his bed. Albus realized everyone's eyes were on him once more "My, uh name is Albus Potter" he introduced, staring at his hands in embarrassment. The next boy to speak had light brown hair and was the shortest of the group "I'm Colin Creevey" he said nervously, fiddling with his fingers. The fifth boy had messy dark orange hair that curled slightly at the tips "Oh, uh Wolpert, Leo Wolpert" he mumbled. The final boy had messy dark brown hair and a nose that seemed to be pointing a bit to the right as if it had been broken and healed that way "I'm John Peakes" he supplied from where he had stretched himself on the bed, holding his head up with his elbow digging into the mattress.
The silence once again stretched "Well this has been nice and awkward but I think its time for bed" John's voice cut through the silence while he sat up and bounced to his feet. He moved to his trunk and dug through it in search of his pajamas, soon the rest of the boys were up and changing into their own pjs. Albus slipped under sheets and into his four poster bed, he stared silently into the darkness, thinking over the day, certain his roommates were doing the same at that moment. He wondered how the rest of his relatives were doing and thought of Scorpius for the first time in quite a while. He wondered how Scorpius was fairing in his new house and how he felt about where he was placed but at some point his mind became to exhausted to conjure up proper thoughts, only images, and as he drifted off to sleep the image most prominent in his mind was that of his sharp nosed, pale friend. He thought nothing peculiar of it at that moment and simply drifted off into a deep sleep.
A/N: Those you that are reading, I'm so grateful!
Please review if you can!