Dead Stop
Chapter Four;;
Bellatrix and James happily sat along on the train for the rest of the ride to Hogwarts. They ate chocolate frogs, and talked about themselves.
James was a pureblood as well, but his parents didn't believe in Pureblood supremacy, which Bella thought was a very good thing. James had no siblings, and was terribly spoiled. He didn't actually tell her that, but between the broomsticks and the sweets he talked about, it was fairly easy to figure it out.
James was surprised to hear how cruel Bella's mother was to her, and at how Andromeda had gotten kicked out of the family. Bella was used to things like this, and she was amazed to hear about the laid-back attitude the Potters had towards punishment.
When the train finally arrived at Hogwarts, the pair of them quickly hurried off. A large man was standing on the platform, calling, "First years this way!" He was unnaturally tall, and Bella could remember Sirius saying the large man- Hagrid, she thought- was the groundskeeper.
James had stopped next to her, mouth wide open, but she just rolled her eyes and pulled him along with her. Hagrid led the group of nervous first years towards the lake, and he motioned to the boats. "No more than four to a boat!"
Bella and James quickly climbed into one of the boats, and two more boys, one who was small and chubby, and another who was strained and pale, followed them. Bella's old etiquette lessons began to kick in as she introduced herself to the boys, with James following suit.
"I'm Remus Lupin." The pale boy said, smiling slightly. He looked nervous, but approachable.
The second boy squeaked out, "I'm Peter Pettigrew." If Remus looked nervous, Peter looked downright terrified.
James and Bella exchanged a look, knowing they both thought the same way about the two new boys. But before the four could say anything else, the boats began to move.
The parade of small boats moved through the water, all at once, towards an unknowable destination. Bella sat at the edge of her seat, full of nerves and excitement, all at once.
Suddenly, the boats seemed to turn a corner, and then the new students had their first view of Hogwarts.
The castle was large, and seemed to glow in the night. Light shone from every window. The boats drifted towards a small dock, where the students all climbed off.
Bella caught a glance of the red haired girl from the train, still with the greasy boy. She stuck close to James as Hagrid led the group to a large door.
He knocked twice, and suddenly, the door opened. A very average sized woman stood their. She had her brown hair pulled into a bun, and she wore green robes.
"First years, Professor McGonagall." Hagrid announced.
"Thank you, Hagrid. Follow me, please." She called to the students, who hurried after her.
Bellatrix glanced around. The large group seemed to have over forty students, and she didn't recognize any of them. No children she had ever played with as a child had been exactly her age, except for Sirius's cousin, Evan Rosier. And she still hadn't seen him yet!
The first years rushed up the stairs, and Professor McGonagall halted them at yet another large door.
"Wait here, please." She stated, and then slipped into the room.
"James, I'm nervous." Bella whispered, the moment she was gone.
"I know, me too." The messy haired boy muttered back.
Before Bella could reply, the doors opened again, and Professor McGonagall called them to her.
"They are ready for you."
The students followed her into the hall, cluttered into groups of twos and threes. The hall was wonderfully grand, with four tables spread out in the main portion of it. The student body, separated into the four houses, sat with their housemates, all peering at the incoming first years. At the head of the hall sat the teacher's table, long and completely full, except for one spot, which, no doubt, was Professor McGonagall's. Professor Dumbledore, with his long white beard, sat in the middle. Bellatrix's father never said anything well about the man, but Bella figured he had never done anything to her, so she hadn't formed an opinion of him quite yet.
Professor McGonagall led the students to stand just before the teacher's table, where she motioned for them to stop.
Sitting on a stool in front of Professor Dumbledore was a ratty old hat.
Bellatrix had heard stories of this hat from Sirius, so she received no surprise. However, she was one of the few. When it opened what looked like it's mouth, and began to sing, she joined in the surprise of her peers.
"Hello one
Hello all!
I welcome you
To Hogwarts.
The school
To teach you
Wizardry.
We will teach
You anything you wish to learn
With happiness!
We will offer you
A home
A place to call your own.
So come on in,
Put me on,
Let me find
Where you belong!"
The hall exploded with applause, and the nervous first years joined in.
Professor McGonagall turned to face them.
"When I call your name, you shall go up to the stool behind me, and place the hat on your head. The hat will then place you into your house."
Bella swallowed. She knew she would be one of the first.
"Abbot, Steven!"
But luckily, not the first.
A boy with messy blonde hair stumbled forward, and shoved the hat on.
"HUFFLEPUFF!"
The table of yellow and black cheered loudly.
And next, "Black, Bellatrix!" was called.
Bella gulped, and slowly walked towards the stool. She sat down, gingerly, and then pulled the hat down over her hair.
"Ah! Another Black, I see."
"I'm not just another Black,' she thought angrily. 'I'm my own person, thank you very much!'
'But maybe not… you, girl, are very brave, not to mention strong-willed…if you have no objections, I would love to place you in house of red and gold.'
Bella beamed in happiness, which led to the hat exclaiming, "GRYFFINDOR!"
The hall fell silent for a few moments, until the Gryffindor table began clapping. Bellatrix quickly walked towards the table, over-joyed that she would not join the Slytherins.
She sat down at the table, and a few Gryffindor smiled down at her.
Bella quickly turned her attention back to the sorting.
"Boot, William" became the first Ravenclaw, and then "Carrow, Amycus" became the first Slytherin. As Bellatrix glanced over at that table, she saw Narcissa sitting, glaring at her hard.
Bellatrix tried to ignore her, and turned back to the Head table.
Next, "Cooper, Avery" became a Ravenclaw, "Davies, Melanie" and "Edward Phillips" Hufflepuffs, and "Evans, Lily" the red haired girl from the train, became the second Gryffindor. Bella offered her a high-five, which she promptly ignored.
Bellatrix found it difficult to keep her mind on the sorting- her thoughts began to wander.
She thought, in worry, of her mother's reaction to her sorting, but then she realized she really didn't care. Walburga had never really loved her daughter, and this couldn't make it any worse.
Bellatrix had always been known as the trouble-maker in her family, and this was about as much trouble an eleven year old could make.
She lazily laid her head down on to her arms, and turned her eyes back in the direction of the sorting.
"Fawcett, Stewart"- a tall, stringy boy- was sorted into Ravenclaw, and then "Green. Jackson" became a Gryffindor, and sat along with Lily on the bench.
The next few students held none of Bellatrix's attention- "Higgins, Danielle" became a Ravenclaw, "Hill, Cameron" a Hufflepuff, "Jameson, Clara" joined them as a Gryffindor, and "Jones, Dixon" sat down at the Ravenclaw table as well.
Bellatrix cursed her last name for coming so soon in the alphabet. In fact, she cursed her last name in general. Being a member of the Black family seemed to cause her nothing but grief. If only she could have been a "King" like the girl who had just been sorted into Hufflepuff, or a "Lewis", like the one who was now in Slytherin!
Being a Black put more pressure on a child then anyone would believe. Bellatrix's parents constantly pushed her to be the best at everything she did, and second place was not acceptable- and would be punished.
"Lupin, Remus", one of the boys who had sat with James and her on the boat, was made a Gryffindor as well. He looked slightly shocked, and almost amazed. Bellatrix waved at him, and he silently sat down next to her.
"Hi," she whispered, not really caring what house "Lynch, Evelyn" was sorted into.
"Hello," Remus whispered back- it was obvious he did, as he turned his back to her. Evelyn was promptly sorted into Ravenclaw.
Bellatrix frowned. Remus seemed like he would be a rule-loving boy- but maybe she and James would be able to change that.
"Macdonald, Mary" was sorted into Gryffindor as well, and she sat with Lily. "Martin, Eydie" then became a Ravenclaw.
The next girl that was called up was a beauty- she had dark hair, like Bella herself, but her hair was smooth and slick, while Bellatrix's was crazy and all over the place.
"McKinnon, Marlene" became a Gryffindor as well, and she sat on Remus's other side. Mary Macdonald gave her a dirty look, and Bellatrix could already see the "Girl Drama" Andromeda had warned her about forming.
"Mitchell, Harriet" followed her into Gryffindor as well.
The next four students- "Mulciber, Walter", "Nott, Theodore", "Page, Beatrice", and "Parkinson, Anne"- were all sorted into Slytherin. Bellatrix knew she had been just a hair away from being there herself, but she found herself very grateful she'd being wearing red for the next seven years.
"Pettigrew, Peter"- the other boy who had been into the boat- was made a Gryffindor, to Bellatrix's surprise. The plump boy didn't look very brave, or chivalrous, but looks were not everything.
Narcissa did look like and angel, until you get to know her.
"Podmore, Victoria" was sorted into Hufflepuff, and then it was James's turn.
The small, dark-haired boy strutted to the stool with an easy confidence. James had quite a personality, Bellatrix observed, trying not to laugh at him. James pulled the hat onto his head, where it rounded around his hair. "GRYFFINDOR!" the hat shouted, a mere second later.
James's face broke out into a large grin, and he practically ran towards the table. Bellatrix stood up, and waved him over to where she was.
"Good job James!" She told him, trying not to laugh.
He beamed at her, as he pushed his way between her and the older girl next to her.
"We're going to have so much fun! We'll play pranks on everyone in the school! We'll be the best friends Hogwarts will have ever seen!" James said quickly, looking as if there were stars in his eyes.
"Riley, Angela", who might have been the smallest girl Bellatrix had ever seen, was made a Hufflepuff, and next came Sirius's cousin, Evan.
Evan was a pale, blonde boy who carried himself like he was Merlin's gift to the world. And, to no one's surprise, he was sorted into Slytherin.
The next three students- "Shacklebolt, Kingsley", "Sinstra, Aurora." and "Smith, Katherine"- were all sorted into Ravenclaw. Bellatrix didn't know much of Ravenclaws, but they certainly did not look like a group who only studied. The way they cheered for their new students, they almost seemed like they would rather throw a party than read a thick textbook.
"Snape, Severus" was they next boy called up. He was the boy she and James had met on the train- the one who had been friends with Evans.
The moment the hat touched his head, it bellowed out, "SLYTHERIN!"
His face looked elated, but Bellatrix snuck a look at Evans, who looked devastated. Bellatrix swallowed, thinking how that had almost been her and James, had she not taken a risk.
"Taylor, Bonnie" was sorted into Hufflepuff, and the tall, red-haired girl bounded her way over to the table. "Travers, Edgar" was made a Slytherin, and then "Twiddle, Malchom"- whose name did not suggest a thickset boy, but he was- walked to the Ravenclaw students.
"Vane, Skye" was sorted next, into Slytherin. Bellatrix had met her before, as a child, and she remembered her as an annoying child, who wasn't happy if she wasn't telling an adult about something the children were doing.
A rough looking boy, by the name of "Ward, Richard" was the next up to be sorted. He was made a Gryffindor, and sat down next to Marlene McKinnon.
"Wenlock, Lara" was made a Ravenclaw, and the final three students, "Wright, Toby", "Young, Rose", and "Zeller, Lucas" were all sorted into Hufflepuff.
Bellatrix- and her stomach- were overly grateful that the sorting was finally over with.
The headmaster stood up, and the hall became quiet.
"Thank you all! And Welcome, to another year here at Hogwarts. I trust that all of the first years will read the list of rules, which is on Mr. Filch's door in the third corridor. And, hopefully, the older students shall remember all that is on it."
Bellatrix exchanged a glance with James, and she could tell they would break many a rule on that list.
"And everything else, can wait! Now, everybody, dig in!"
In Bellatrix's amazement, the table suddenly became covered with food of ever type. She felt herself gaping in surprise, and saw the other first years doing the same along with her.
"Wow," James breathed. Bella nodded in agreement, and she began filling her plate with everything she could get her hands on.
Lily Evans and Mary MacDonald both gave her a dirty look.
"You're worse than the boys!" Evans huffed at her. Bellatrix, with her mouth full, chose not to respond.
And even if she had, she was too happy to be negative- she was finally at Hogwarts!
Her greatest dream had finally come true.
Sorry for the delay, everyone.
Hopefully, updates will come more quickly!
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