Chapter 4:
After the trip to London, Hagrid handed the twins their tickets to get to Hogwarts and put them on a train back to the Dursley's, to their disappointment. When they got home they found that the house was completely back to normal, no wooden borders blocking the letter slot, no letters scattered all over the place, it was just the completely ordinary house you'd expect from the Dursley's.
The last month with the Dursley's was a quiet one. The Dursley's were so scared that one of the twins might turn on them that they stayed clear out of their way. Heidi was sure this was an improvement from before. But after a while it became a bit depressing. Though it was funny seeing Dudley clap onto his bottom everything she walked into the room.
Both the twins tried to stay in their new room as much as possible, with their new owls to keep them company. Heidi named her owl Edmund, after a character from her favorite book. She's also been reading some of the books she bought. Some school books, some fictional books. She loved reading all of them. Her favorite books were the Hogwarts fiction books. All the stories were about different things, but they always had the same four characters, the Gryffindor; usually the main character, always the brave hero that saves the day. The Hufflepuff; the loyal best friend (usually of the Gryffindor) who follows them to the end of the earth. The Ravenclaw; the smart one of the group who solves the puzzles and knows the spells to help the hero save the day. And finally, the Slytherin; usually the darker and more mysterious character of the group, who at the last minute, betrays his friends for the enemy.
Heidi hoped to be in Gryffindor. She really wanted to be as brave and heroic as the characters in the book. She couldn't wait till she could go to Hogwarts, every night, before she went to bed she'd count down the days to the 1th of September. Harry pinned down their Uncle and asked him if he could take them to Kings Cross which he reluctantly agreed to.
So when the day had finally come, Harry and Heidi were up early ready to go. They headed downstairs with their heavy trunks and owls safely in their cages, soon after which were all loaded in the back of the Dursley's car and they set off.
They reached King's Cross at haft past ten. Uncle Vernon was acting strangely kind, he took their trunks on the trolley and wheeled it through the station until they reached platform nine and ten. He gave a nasty grin.
"Well, there you are, Platform nine- platform ten. Your platform should be somewhere in the middle, but they don't seem to have built it yet, do they?"
And he was right. There was the nine, and there was the ten, but nothing in the middle.
"Have a good term." Uncle Vernon sneered and then left without another word. He left in his car, the whole family laughing. They left them! Heidi tried to stay calm, but soon it started getting harder for her to breath. She looked over at Harry, who was also looking panicked. She scrambled for her note pad and scribbled some down.
We have to ask someone. She wrote.
Harry nodded and stopped a passing guard. He asked him about Hogwarts, but the guard never heard of it. Nether Harry or Heidi knew which part of the country they were supposed to go to. They could see the guard was getting annoyed so desperately, Harry asked which train left at eleven o'clock but the guard said there wasn't one.
Now the panic really started to kick in. They were alone in London with no way of knowing where to go or what to do. At that moment a family of red-headed people walked passed them saying;
"-packed with Muggles, of course-"
Heidi nudged Harry and motioned towards the family. Harry didn't seem to understand, so Heidi pointed at the family's owl. Harry seemed to understand. The family stopped and so the twins did too, close enough to hear what they were saying.
"Now, what's the platform number?" the plump woman asked to her children.
"Nine and three-quarters!" Said the small girl, who was holding her mother's hand. "Mum, can't I go…."
"You're not old enough, Ginny, now be quiet. All right, Percy, you go first."
The oldest boy marched towards platform nine and ten. Heidi watch carefully, worried that if she blinks she might miss everything. The boy strode strait up to the ticket barrier but before Heidi could see what she was meant to do a flock of tourist passed right in front of them. By the time they all walked passed, the boy was gone. Heidi and Harry gave each other odd glances, they saw that the oldest looking boy of the group had disappeared, but they weren't able to see how he did it.
"Fred, you next,' the plump woman said,
"I'm not Fred, I'm George,' Said Fred, trying to sound offended. "Honestly, woman, call yourself our mother? Can't you tell I'm George?"
"Sorry, George, dear."
"Only joking, I am Fred!" said the boy. His twin laughed and noticed he wasn't the only one who found it funny, as he saw Heidi let out a silent giggle. He gave her a grin and a wink before he and his brother set off towards the ticket barrier. Then, quite suddenly, they vanished.
Heidi nudged Harry, telling him to go ask. He seemed to understand, because he went up to the woman.
"Excuse me," Harry said to her.
"Hullo, dear," She said. "First time at Hogwarts? Ron's new too."
The youngest boy, who was apparently Ron, gave the two a small wave. He was a gangling boy with ginger hair (like the rest of his family), covered in freckles, with big hands and feet, with a long nose.
"Yes." Said Harry. "The thing is- the thing is, we don't know how to-"
"How to get on the platform?" She said kindly, Harry and Heidi nodded.
"Not to worry," She said. "All you have to do is walk straight at the barrier between platform nine and ten. Don't stop and don't be scared you'll crash into it, that's very important. Best do it at a bit of a run if you're nervous. Who'd like to go first?"
Harry looked and Heidi and gave her a pleading look. Heidi rolled her eye and pushed her trolley forward. She lined it up with the barrier and started moving forward. She started walking quicker to the very solid looking wall. She leaned forward and broke into a run. The barrier was coming closer- her trolley was out of control- she couldn't stop- she was inches away- she was about to crash-
But it never came.
Instead he went right through it. For a few seconds she was engulfed in darks, then very suddenly was greeted by a large scarlet train waiting next to a platform packed with people. The sign above the iron archway had the words nine and three-quarters. She'd done it.
Soon her brother appeared by her side and they set of to find a carriage. The first few carriage were full with families saying good bye and fighting over seats. They pushed on trying to find some empty seats. They passed many interesting people, like the round faced boy who lost his toad, or the boy with the dreadlocks and tracheal. They finally found a place at the near end of the train.
They put Hedwig and Edmund inside first, then they tried to shove their trunks in. When that didn't work they tried to lift one together, but Heidi ended up dropping it on Harry's foot. She gave him an apologetic look.
"It's ok." Harry winced.
One of the red headed twins from the ticket barrier must have seen them struggling, because he came over and offered a hand.
"Yes, please," Harry said gratefully.
Heidi smiled at the boy, which he returned, before calling over his twin to help. With twin's help, the four of them successfully managed to tuck away Harry and Heidi's trunks in the corner of the compartment.
"Thanks," Harry said gratefully, pushing his hair out of his face.
"What's that?" said one of the twins said suddenly, pointing at Harry's lightning scar.
"Blimey," said the other. "Are you —?"
"He is," the first one said. "Aren't you?" he added to Harry.
"What?" Harry asked.
"Harry Potter." chorused the twins.
"Oh, him," said Harry. "I mean, yes, I am."
Heidi bit he her lip and glanced over at her brother, who was looking down at his shoes, and twitched a frown before turning back to the twins. At that moment Heidi felt invisible. The twins just starred at her brother in amazement. To her relief, a voice came through the train's open door.
"Coming, Mum."
One last look at Harry and they hopped off the train.
Harry sat down next to the window, half hidden, so he could listen to what the red-haired family was saying. He looked up at his sister and saw she was still standing. He gestured her to sit down, but she refused. She didn't feel like being around Harry at the moment. It was like whenever he was around, no one saw her.
So Heidi wondered the halls of the train alone. Alone is something Heidi's never been before. She always had Harry by her side, or rather she was by his side. She felt strangely independent on her own, but also a little lost. She hoped to find a compartment that was empty, but they were all full. Her only option was to talk to people, which for her, wasn't an easy thing to do.
She passed lots of compartments filled with young witches and wizards, playing games she's never seen before and preforming magic. Heidi couldn't help but stare in amazement.
She was somewhere in the middle of the train when she came across some familiar faces. It was the red- headed twins. They were with the dreadlocks boy, and three other girls. They were all laughing their heads off. Heidi was almost tempted to join them, but decided against it. But as she was walking away the door slipped open and one of the twins poked their head out.
"Look who it is!" He said, "Don't wonder round by yourself, come in."
Heidi shook her head. To her surprise the boy didn't just nod his head and go back inside, just the opposite actually. He stepped outside the compartment and closed the door behind him, then sat on the floor and patted for her to sit next to him. She gave him a confused look.
"You think I'm going to let you stay out here all by yourself?" He smiled, then patted to floor again. Heidi's lips almost twitched into a smile. She sat down next to him and they sat in silence for few moments.
"I'm George, by the way." He turned to her and held out a hand to shake, which she did. He gripped tightly and gave a firm handshake. "Heidi, right?"
Heidi nodded, pushing a strand of hair behind her ear. George gave her a smile and let go of her hand.
"So…" George started, fighting off a smile, "Rumor has it you don't talk much."
Heidi struggled to keep a smile off her face. She planned to ignore George until he got bored and walked away, but she felt compelled to answer him. She took out her note book and wrote down;
Out of all the mute jokes in the world, that's all you could think of?
She handed it to George. He smiled down at her answer and began to laugh. At this point, Heidi couldn't help but brake out in a wide smile. George patted her on the back as his laughter started to die out.
"I like you, Heidi," George said, "I'm going to introduce you to my friends,"
Heidi couldn't say no, but she did try. She shook her head vigorously, but George wouldn't have it. He threw his arm around her shoulders and guided her into the compartment packed with older students, who stopped talking and turned to her as soon as she stepped in.
"Guys, this is Heidi." George announced. "She doesn't talk much."
They all smiled up at her and warmly greeted her. They scooted over in the already cramped compartment to make space for her and they introduced themselves. Even though Heidi was shy at first, soon she found herself rather enjoying their company, she even participated in some of their conversations. Soon the sky turned inky black and she could see lights of a town in the distance, which told her they'd be arriving soon. And soon enough, the train announced that they would be stopping soon.
The train slowed down and finally came to a stop. Heidi said her final goodbyes to the group and Heidi came onto the dark platform alone. She heard a gruff, familiar voice calling out to the first year students to follow him. Hagrid led the way through a steep, narrow path as, slipping and sliding, all the other first year students followed.
"Yeh'll get yer firs' sight o' Hogwarts in a sec," Hagrid called, making all the students jump, "jus' round this bend here."
And there it was, standing majestically at the other side of the lake was a beautiful, sturdy looking castle. Its walls looked like it could keep out anything. Heidi, along with a lot of other students, looked up astonished at the magnificent building.
"No more'n four to a boat!"Hagrid said, pointing to the fleet of small boats sitting on the shore. Heidi followed some girls into a boat.
"Everyone in?" Hagrid shouted, Heidi noticed he took up a whole boat by himself. "Right then- FORWARD!"
The boat magically rowed by themselves across the lake. Nobody seemed to talk much during the ride, they all sat in silence looking up at the castle getting closer and closer.
After a rather short ride, Heidi stepped onto the shore, looking a Hogwarts in all its glory. She and the other students clambered up a passageway in the rock, watching out for Hagrid's lamp. They then followed him up s flight of stone steps and crowed around a huge oak door. Hagrid raised a gigantic fist and knocked on the door three times.
The door swung open, revealing a long hallway with more doors at the end. A tall witch came though the doors. She had black hair, which was tied back in a neat bun, and emerald greed robes. She had a stern expression on her face.
"The firs'-years, Professor McGonagall," said Hagrid.
"Thank you, Hagrid. I will take them from here." She pulled the doors wide open to let the students scramble in. They followed Professor McGonagall into a smaller room. Heidi could hear the buzz of about a hundred students behind the door.
"Welcome to Hogwarts," Professor McGonagall said, "The start-of -term banquet will begin shortly, ut before you will take your seats in the Great Hall, you will be sorted into your houses. The Sorting is very important ceremony because, while you are here, your house will be something like your family within Hogwarts. You will have classes with the rest of your house, sleep in your house dormitory and spend free time in your house common room.
"The four houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin. Each house has its own noble history and each has produced outstanding witches and wizards. While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn you house points, while any rule-breaking will lose house points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded the House Cup, a great honor. I hope each of you will be a credit to whichever house becomes yours.
"The Sorting Ceremony will take place in a few minutes in front of the rest of the school. I suggest you all smarten yourselves up as much as you can while you wait."
Heidi patted her unruly hair down self-consciously. As soon as Professor McGonagall left the room murmuring started amongst the students. Heidi took this chance to observe her new classmates. There was one girl with big bushy hair and big front teeth, mumbling spells under her breath. There was the boy from Diagon Alley with two rather large and scary looking boys by his side.
Before she got a chance to look at some other people, a scream came from behind her. She turned around quickly to see about twenty pearly-white ghost gliding into the hall. They were talking about something and didn't notice the students at first. But before they had a chance to talk to them Professor McGonagall came back and shooed them away.
"Now, form a line," Professor McGonagall told them. "and follow me."
Heidi's legs felt like jelly at that moment. She got in line behind a round faced boy. She peeked around to find Harry, but he must have been behind her because she couldn't see him. They walked back across to the hall and went through the double door into the Great Hall.
The Great Hall was a marvelous sight. Lit up with a thousand candles floating in mid-air. The first thing Heidi noticed was the ceiling, or rather the lack of one. She looked up at the night time sky. Bright white stars freckled the black sky, the moon moving in and out of the dark purple clouds.
There were four long tables spread across the hall, each laid with glittering gold plates and goblets. Each table was separated by four different colours; Red, Yellow, Blue and Green. Hundreds of students sat on the tables, chatting merrily with each other and taking a look at the new students. At the top of the Hall was another long table where the teachers were sitting.
Professor McGonagall led the first-years up to the front of the Hall and then came to a halt. Professor McGonagall silently placed a four-legged stool in front of the first years with the sorting hat sitting on top. Most of the first years turned to each other in confusion, but didn't dare to speak or ask any questions. Everyone turned to the hat and sat in silence, waiting. Then the hat twitched. A rip near the brim opened wide like a mouth — and then began to sing:
"Oh, you may not think I'm pretty,
But don't judge on what you see,
I'll eat myself if you can find
A smarter hat than me.
You can keep your bowlers black,
Your top hats sleek and tall,
For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat
And I can cap them all.
There's nothing hidden in your head
The Sorting Hat can't see,
So try me on and I will tell you
Where you ought to be.
You might belong in Gryffindor,
Where dwell the brave at heart,
Their daring, nerve, and chivalry
Set Gryffindors apart;
You might belong in Hufflepuff,
Where they are just and loyal,
Those patient Hufflepuffs are true
And unafraid of toil;
Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,
if you've a ready mind,
Where those of wit and learning,
Will always find their kind;
Or perhaps in Slytherin
You'll make your real friends,
Those cunning folk use any means
To achieve their ends.
So put me on! Don't be afraid!
And don't get in a flap!
You're in safe hands (though I have none)
For I'm a Thinking Cap!"
The whole hall burst into applause as the hat finished its song. The hat bowed at each four tables then became still again. Professor McGonagall stepped forward holding a long roll of parchment.
"When I call your name, you will put on the hat and sit on the stool to be sorted," she said and unrolled her long piece of parchment. The souring ceremony began and first years were called up to be placed in their house.
Heidi stood nervously amongst her soon to be classmates. She was dreading when she'd be called up in front of everyone. She felt dizzying and sick, which only made her more anxious. She silently watched the ceremony as she chewed on her fingernails.
"Potter, Harry!"
Heidi caught Harry's eye, and gave him a queasy, but encouraging smile. The whole Hall broke out into whispers and Harry made his way to the stool. Heidi felt her heart beat rapidly as her eyes darted round the hall.
"Potter, did she say?"
"The Harry Potter?"
Harry sat down and the hat covered his face. The hat took its time to sort him. Heidi felt her stomach squirm and twist with each passing second. She wasn't sure if she wanted to get her sorting over and done with, or having the hat take a little longer on Harry just to avoid the sorting for just a little longer. Finally, the mouth ripped open and the hat cried-
"GRYFFINDOR!"
The Gryffindor table burst into applause. Harry gave a sigh of relief and took a seat at the scarlet table, besides the prefect Weasley, who shook his hand. Heidi almost forgot her nerves as she applauded her brother, only to soon to remember when-
"Potter, Heidi!"
Hi everyone! Hope you've enjoyed another chapter. I'll update asap.
Thank you soooooooo much for your comments and favorites. I especially liked the one sent by Haz, it really made me laugh. So lets start a discussion in the comments, I want you all to tell me which house you think Heidi's going to be in and why. I also want you to tell me which house you belong to. I'll go first, I'm Ravenclaw.
I love you lodes, until next time byyyyyyyeeeeeeeeeee xxxx!