Wotcher, darling readers, and hello! What a wonderful week. Thank you for reading and I hope you continue to enjoy Dudley's travels into the magical realm.

Dudley and Harry fought their way through the crowd, making their way to Hagrid, standing over on the side of the platform, waving his lantern.

"Alright there, boys?" Hagrid boomed as he spotted them in the lantern's glow. Dudley and Harry beamed at him as they nodded. "Firs' years!" Hagrid called out over the crowd again, waving more first years over to him. "Firs' years, over 'ere!" He looked down at all the faces looking up at him and grinned. "Anymore of yeh? No? Alright, com'n then." He waved them to follow him and the first years followed the immense form of Hagrid off the platform and down a steep, narrow path along the edge of the woods. Dudley could've sworn that he had seen something moving just beyond the lantern's glow. The first years all stayed relatively quiet, there were a few whispers and a few complaints about the trail.

"Yeh'll get yer first look o' Hogwarts in a sec," Hagrid called over his shoulder to them. "jus' around this bend 'ere."

And there it was. Dudley felt his heart stop and then start again. There was a collective "Ooooooh!" from his fellow students. Dudley blinked, still trying to comprehend the sight in front of him. Even the stories from his Grandma and Grandpa hadn't prepared him for the sheer...beauty of the sight. In front of them was a massive dark lake, glimmering in the moonlight. On a cliff side on the opposite side, it's windows sparkling against the starry backdrop of night, was the vast castle of Hogwarts, with many turrets and towers and the buzzing deep within Dudley seemed to surge. His heart seemed to swell.

'Home...' he thought, then grinned. And indeed, it would become home in time. He glanced to his side and saw Harry's eyes were enormous behind his glasses.

"Cool..." he said to him. Dudley nodded. It was VERY cool.

"No more'n four to a boat!" Hagrid called out. Dudley noticed that he was pointing at a fleet of boats on the lake's shore. He and Harry moved forward and were followed into their boat by Ron and the boy who had been looking for his toad.

"Neville, right?" Dudley asked him quietly. The boy sniffled and nodded. "Ever find your toad?"

"No." said the boy miserably. "Gran'll kill me."

Dudley made a noise of sympathy just as Hagrid yelled, "Everyone in? Right then - FORWARD!"

Dudley grasped the edge of the boat as it suddenly started forward, gliding along the glassy surface of the lake with its fellows, towards the castle. No-one could speak, such was the grandness of the sight before them. As they drew closer, it seemed more and more majestic as the sheer size dwarfed everyone, even Hagrid. They sailed closer and closer to the edge of the cliff.

"Heads down!" Hagrid called out and very quickly, they all ducked as one. They passed through a curtain of ivy that hid a large opening in the cliff and down a short tunnel that lead them to a kind of underground harbor; Dudley supposed it could be called a boat-cave instead of a boathouse. The little boats moved forward until they came to rest on the gravelly shore and all the first years clambered out of the boats. They moved forward and waited while Hagrid checked the boats behind them, just in case.

"Oy, who's toad is this?" Hagrid asked, holding out a particularly warty specimen.

"Trevor!" Neville cried, running forward and taking the toad gently from Hagrid's massive hands. He hurried back to the group of first years, grinning. Dudley gave him a grin and Neville grinned back. Then they followed Hagrid up a staircase in the rock, across a smooth grassy lawn up into the shadows of the castle. Dudley tried to keep his stomach down. He couldn't keep it from fluttering, but he had to keep it down. This was just so…cool. They all walked up a flight of stone steps and crowded about a huge oak double door. Hagrid banged upon it and the doors opened by themselves.

"Right, you lot." Hagrid said, looking down at all the first years with a grin. "Right up those stairs, there and Professor McGonagall will meet yeh at the top. Got it? Off yeh go!"

Dudley swallowed nervously, but he followed the crowd up the stairs and as he looked behind him, he saw Hagrid wink up at him just before the enormous doors closed again. As the crowd slowed to a stop, Dudley realized that Professor McGonagall was waiting at the top for them. She was a tall witch, with a severe face and a no-nonsense look in her eyes. He grinned. He liked her.

"Welcome to Hogwarts." She said to them them, her lips pressed in a thin but warm smile. The crowd of first years stopped, looking up at her. "Now, in a few moments, you will go through these doors and join your classmates. But before you can take your seats, you must be sorted into your Houses." Dudley and Harry looked at each other and grinned. "They are Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin." They all seemed to grin and nod at her. Her face took a more serious look. "Now, while you're here, your House will be like your family. Your triumphs will win you points. Any rule breaking and you will lose points. At the end of the year, the House with the most points is awarded the House Cup-"

"Trevor!" Neville cried as his toad slipped from his hands and made a bid for freedom. He jumped after it, knocking over a few students as he grasped wildly at the toad. He grabbed it up and stood up, his face riddled with shame and he mumbled apologies as he shuffled back to his spot next to Ron. Several students shook their heads and Professor McGonagall gave him a stern look. But she went on. Dudley nodded. There was nothing to gain from pointing the kid out. He agreed with Professor McGonagall and his respect for her rose. "The Sorting Ceremony will be begin momentarily." She informed them, before turning about to go to the large double doors in front of them, which Dudley assumed were the doors to a dining hall of some kind, where the rest of the school was. While she was gone, he took the chance to look around him. The castle was enormous, he could tell that right off the bat. They were in some sort of entrance hall, as near as he could figure. There was a magnificent marble staircase that led up into the rest of the castle and doors on the walls that led to rooms and passages and other places. The stone walls held torches in scones, throwing warm light upon the stones, making them glisten. And as always, in places like this, the smell of old and magic and secret things. Dudley drew a shaky breath and grinned. They were here.

"So it's true, then. What they were saying on the train."

Dudley rolled his eyes silently. He recognized that voice.

"Harry Potter has come to Hogwarts."

He and Harry looked up at the speaker. Sure enough, it was that pale-haired boy from Madame Malkin's. He was smirking at the whispers that started after he had spoken and he seemed to look more slimy than he had at first. It was the hair. It was slicked back with what Dudley guessed was slug slime. It was way too shiny. The boy stepped up to Harry, flanked on both sides by boys that rivaled Dudley for girth and height. He eyed them with distaste; they did the same to him.

"This is Crabbe." He said, jerking his head at one of them. "And Goyle." He stepped forward, swaggering to a stop in front of Harry. "And I'm Malfoy. Draco Malfoy."

Ron snorted with derision. Malfoy's slimy head whipped to glare at him. "Think my name's funny, do you?" he sneered. "No need to ask you yours. Red hair, and a hand-me-down robe? You must be a Weasley."

Ron suddenly looked so shamed that Dudley was hard put not to slug Malfoy in the face.

"You'll soon learn that some wizarding families are better than others, Potter." Malfoy was looking back at Harry, Dudley glared at his friends. They glared back. "You don't want to go making friends with the wrong sort." he jerked his head in Ron's direction; Ron went pale under his freckles. "I can help you there."

And Malfoy held out his hand to Harry. Dudley watched as Harry looked at the hand, looked back up at Malfoy and said, cool as a cucumber, "I think I can tell the wrong sort for myself, thanks."

Dudley didn't know where that came from. Harry wasn't usually that upfront with bullies. He grinned, silently proud of his cousin. He then stepped up, showing that he was a good two inches taller than Malfoy.

"Might want to back off." he said in an undertone. Malfoy's friends made to move forward and Malfoy looked as though he might say something, but at that precise moment, Professor McGonagall was back. She tapped Malfoy on the back and when he saw who it was, he moved back to his friends on the side of the staircase. He shot both Harry and Dudley a glare as he left. Professor McGonagall watched him go and then she smiled at the rest of them.

"We are ready for you now. Follow me." Then she turned and walked towards the huge wooden doors. They followed her eagerly, through the carved doors into the enormous Great Hall. Dudley didn't think that he could have even imagined such a place. Cavernous, it was large enough to hold four House tables (each one stretched from the back of the Hall to the front, each one lined with faces that watched them enter), a large staff table and along the back wall, were four enormous hourglasses, filled with colored stones. Dudley wondered what they could possibly be used for. The ceiling was massive and…open? He was looking out at the starry night sky that they had left outside, but somehow, was there. Then he remembered, he had read about this in Hogwarts, A History. The ceiling had been bewitched to look reflect the sky outside. It was a lot different, reading about it. The actual effect was breathtaking. The walls were lined with fire filled braziers and in-between sky and floor were hundreds of candles, floating in midair. He wondered briefly if they dripped wax.

He and the rest of the first years kept following Professor McGonagall up the aisle created between two of the large house tables, towards the staff table. As they got closer, Dudley could see that the staff table was actually higher than the rest of the floor, for it was resting on a sort of stage or platform. He supposed it was so that the teachers could all keep an eye on all the students. As they got even closer, he could see through the gaps in the students, a carved wooden stool. And on that stool, a hat. An old, patched hat. As they approached the staff table, Professor McGonagall motioned for them to fill in the space between the House tables and the teacher's platform. They all silently filled out.

"Now, before we begin, Professor Dumbledore would like to say a few words."

Dudley and the rest of the first years strained to get their first look at this famous wizard. Dudley's first thought was that he looked just like the storybook wizards that he had seen illustrated. He had the longest white beard that Dudley had ever seen and was wearing the most comfortable looking robe of dark red velvet. His hat matched. Professor Dumbledore stood up and held up his hands. The students all fell silent.

"I have a few start of term notices I wish to announce." Dudley was struck by his voice. It didn't sound old at all. "First years, please note, that the Dark Forest is strictly forbidden for all students. Also, our caretaker, Mr. Filch, has asked me to remind you that the third floor corridor on the right hand side of out of bounds for anyone who does not wish to die a most painful death. Thank you." He spread his arms wide and smiled. "Let the Sorting Ceremony begin."

There was applause as the Headmaster sat back down and Dudley had to wonder what he had been signed up for. Out of bounds? Painful death? What kind of school was this? Then he noticed that all of the teachers were looking towards the hat. As if they expected it to do something.

And just then, the hat on the stool twitched. It shook. A rip appeared along the brim, like a mouth and, to his great surprise, the hat began to sing.

"Oh, you may not think I'm pretty,
But don't judge 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."

The Sorting Hat went on in it's song, telling them about brave Gryffindors, loyal Hufflepuffs, wise Ravenclaws and cunning Slytherins. And when it finished, the entire Hall burst into applause. Dudley was too stunned to clap along. It bowed to all four tables, then became silent once more.

"So all we've got to do is try on the Hat!" Ron whispered to Harry and Dudley. "I'll murder Fred, he was going on about having to wrestle a troll."

Professor McGonagall stepped forward and unrolled a long sheet of paper. "Now, when I call your name, you will put the Hat upon your head and sit on the stool to be sorted." She smiled rather kindly at them. "Abbott, Hannah!"

Dudley felt his heart speed up quite a bit as a girl with blonde pigtails went up, put on the Hat and sat on the stool. She sat there for just a moment when suddenly -

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

The table on the right cheered and Hannah pulled the Hat off and ran to join the table, which cheered her on. And so it went on like that, the Hat yelling out the names of the Houses, the First years getting cheers as they were Sorted and the line seemed to be moving quickly. Suddenly -

"Dursley, Dudley!"

Dudley felt the bottom drop out of his stomach. He swallowed nervously and as he stepped forward, he felt Harry pat his back reassuringly. He walked up, took the Hat from Professor McGonagall and sat on the stool. He jammed the Hat down on his head and somehow it managed to slip over his eyes. Before he could yank it back up, a voice echoed in his ear.

"Well, well…" it whispered. "Aren't you something? Ambitious, thirsty, oh my, your talents…and a desperation to prove that you are not your Father. Very interesting…well, there's only one place for you, isn't there?" And it shouted the last word, his House, to the Hall.

"SLYTHERIN!"

As the Hat was pulled from his head, the table on the far right burst into cheers. He waved at Harry, grinning and…was shocked to see his cousin staring at him in disbelief and a little bit of…anger? He was almost rooted to the spot, but Professor McGonagall gave him a small tap on his shoulder and he walked off the platform and joined his House. He sat in a seat next to a rather large girl and across from Crabbe from earlier. An older male student with a glittering Prefect badge pinned to his robes leaned across the table and shook his hand, smiling.

"Welcome to Slytherin." he beamed. "I'm Michael Hughes."

"Hullo." Dudley managed as "Finch-Fletchly, Justin!" became a Hufflepuff. He turned to watch the rest of the Sorting. There were plenty of Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws and Gryffindors. Goyle became a Slytherin and as he predicted, Malfoy did as well. When Malfoy sat down, he smiled at Dudley and held out his hand across the table.

"I think we got off on the wrong foot." he said smoothly. "I'm Draco Malfoy."

"Dudley Dursley." Dudley mumbled, deciding to shake the proffered hand. After all…his House was to be like his family, right? Crabbe and Goyle also shook his hand and then they all turned to watch the rest of the Sorting. When it was Harry's turn, the entire Hall grew dead silent. Dudley watched as the Hat went over his cousin's eyes and waited with bated breath to hear his House. When the Hat yelled "GRYFFINDOR!", the entire school burst into applause, none louder than the Gryffindor table. Dudley could hear Fred and George Weasley chanting "We got Potter, we got Potter, we got Potter!" Dudley was nearly the only one at the Slytherin table to clap along with the rest of the school. The Sorting Ceremony was quickly coming to a close. One of the last ones was Ron, who also became a Gryffindor. The very last one was "Zabini, Blaise!" who became a Slytherin. As the clapping died down and Blaise joined their table, Dumbledore stood up.

"Let the feast…begin."

Dudley stared in amazement as the golden dishes all along the table filled with the most amazing smelling food. Chicken, mashed potatoes, gravy, roast beef, pork and lamb chops in butter and herbs, boiled potatoes, peas, carrots, fries, ketchup and so many others. Dudley's mouth instantly began to water. He immediately tucked in. He helped himself to the roasted chicken and boiled potatoes, covered the entire thing in gravy and stuck some peas on there. Miranda would've scolded him if he didn't eat a single vegetable all day. Malfoy was eating chicken and ham, and passed Dudley the gravy when he asked for it on his second plate of food. He wasn't quite sure what to say, so he kept his mouth filled almost all night. Just when he thought he couldn't eat another bite, the savory main course disappeared and in it's place were pies and cakes, donuts and ice-creams, eclairs and treacle tarts! Dudley just about burst.

Malfoy started talking about his meals back at the Manor and how they had so many servants and how his parents had been in Slytherin too.

"So your whole family's magical?" Dudley asked after swallowing a bite of chocolate eclair. Malfoy nodded proudly.

"We Malfoys are one of the purest of the pureblood families out there. We can trace our history back hundreds of years." He nodded to Dudley. "What about yours?"

Dudley shrugged. He decided to keep it as simple as possible. "My aunt and uncle were magical." he said. "That's all I really know."

"Oh." Malfoy seemed to sneer. Dudley decided to ignore it. The food was just too good to start a quarrel here. Then Malfoy leaned in, his grey eyes sparking. "So, how do you know Harry Potter? You were with him that day in the robe shop."

Dudley swallowed his bite of chocolate and cream rather hard. "He's my cousin." he muttered, taking a swig of milk to help wash it down.

Everyone sitting around him got wide-eyed. "You're Harry Potter's cousin?" Hughes asked, a small look of disbelief on his face. Dudley felt his face start to burn. Was this what Harry felt like in the tavern and at the table right now?

"Yeah." Dudley said gruffly. "So what?"

"So you've got to know-"

"Don't know anything about that." Dudley said sharply. He knew instantly what was about to be asked. And he wasn't going to have any part of it. "Besides, it's not really my business."

Hughes and a few others pulled back, faces suspicious and a little accusing when Malfoy said something that surprised him. "I don't blame you, you know." he grabbed a second piece of apple pie, nodding. "Family business is family business, after all."

Dudley nodded, taking another eclair. He couldn't help it, these eclairs had the thickest cream and the creamiest chocolate. He wondered if he could replicate the recipe. "So what class are you looking forward to?"

"Potions." Malfoy said decisively. "The Potions Professor is an old friend of the family, Professor Snape." He gestured towards the staff table. Dudley tried to look and saw a stern man with long black hair and a sharp nose. "Professor Snape is also the head of Slytherin. We've had him over for dinner several times."

"Cool." Dudley said, biting into his eclair. Was it his imagination, or did Malfoy's cheeks get a touch of color in them? For the rest of dessert, they talked about potions and charms and Malfoy filled him in a bit about some history that he didn't know. The eating slowed down and eventually stopped. The plates were emptied and the students sat there, groaning good naturally about how full they were. Professor Dumbledore rose from his seat and everyone looked towards him.

"And now, bedtime! First years, look towards your Prefects to guide you to the dormitories. Good night!"

The school all stood and Dudley followed his House out the large double doors and through a door in the Entrance Hall that lead down into the depths of the school. They followed the staircase down to a corridor lined with doors. The prefect lead them down the corridors until they reached a wall suspiciously devoid of anything. Hughes grinned back at them all and turning to the wall, he said, "Caprificus!" The wall seemed to slide aside and they all piled through the doorway into the large common room. The common room was huge, filled with dark and green furniture, lined with bookcases that held books and instruments and a skull or two. There were tapestries all along the walls depicting famous wizards and witches in medieval battles and all dressed in green and silver. The windows were black, Dudley thought it was odd that he couldn't even see the grounds.

"I can't wait to see the Black Lake through those windows." Blaise said from behind him. They were under the Lake?!

"First years, before you go off, I want to share a few words with you." Hughes said, motioning them to pay attention to him. Older students were filing in all about them, heading to the two corridors that branched off into the dormitories. The first years all gathered about. "First of all, welcome to the Slytherin house. I'm very happy to meet you all. Secondly, the password changes every fortnight. The new password will be displayed on the message board next to the door." Hughes gestured to it and everyone looked. "Most importantly, I know some, if not all, of you have heard the rumors about Slytherin House. Well, I'm here to say that they are not all true."

Dudley felt his eyebrows shoot into his hairline as some of the other first years started muttering and whispering. Hughes continued.

"Yes, our House has turned out Dark wizards. But so have the other houses. They just don't like to admit it. After all, Merlin himself was a Slytherin!" And Dudley felt reassurance for the first time since the Sorting Hat had called out "SLYTHERIN!". His owl's name was Merlin. Merlin had been a Slytherin. He smiled as Hughes continued to speak. "For those who are a little frightened, that's alright. We do tend to...expound on our wild reputation. But you will notice that we are one of the most respected houses. My best advice...keep your mind open, keep your heart loyal and be like our emblem. Slippery, cunning and ambitious. If you have any questions or need anything, please come to me or another of your Prefects. We'll help you with whatever you need. Once you are a Snake, you are a Snake for life."

Dudley felt himself starting to grin. He was liking this House more and more. So there was a few sods like Malfoy. So what? Snakes were loyal, slippery, cunning and ambitious. He could make himself great here.

"Girls, your dormitories are to the left; boys, the same on your right. You'll find your belongings at the foot of your bed. No worries, your owls have been safely taken to the Owlery. I can help anyone find it if they need to. Good night, everyone!"

Dudley and the rest of the first year boys trooped down the corridor to the right until they came upon a door with "First Years" engraved upon a silver plaque. They entered to find five antique four-poster beds with green silk hangings. He made his way to his trunk. His bed was on one of the ends, Malfoy ended up being in the middle, flanked as always by Crabbe and Goyle. Blaise was at the other end, opposite Dudley. Dudley was next to a window, looking out into the depths of the lake. He could hear the currents of the lake brushing across the glass and it sounded somewhat soothing. Kinda like the relaxation CDs that Miranda would play if she got too stressed out. He pulled his blue pajamas out of his trunk, resolving to ask Miranda to send him green ones once she got the chance.

"My father knew I'd be in Slytherin. Yours, Zabini?"

"It was Slytherin or nothing." Blaise said with a measure of pride. Dudley scratched at his head, twisting his neck so that it cracked slightly. "You?" Blaise said to Dudley, looking directly at him.

"Didn't matter." Dudley shrugged. "Was just happy I got in, you know?"

"What, did you have a late manifestation?" Blaise inquired, pulling on his own silver and green pajamas. Malfoy's seemed to be a smaller version of something that Dudley was sure that his Father wore, complete with miniature smoking jacket and robe. Crabbe and Goyle wore long nightshirts with slippers.

"Sort of." Dudley said, stretching slightly. He was feeling just a little too full. "Grandma and Grandpa were really proud when I got my letter."

"Oh, who are your grandparents?" Malfoy asked, seeming to be honestly curious.

"Their last name's Plumridge."

"Oh, Mr. Plumridge from Experimental Charms at the Ministry!" Draco nodded. "Father is always talking about him."

Dudley seriously doubted whether Draco's Father talked about Grandpa all the time. "He's good at what he does." Dudley said, climbing into bed. "We get our schedules in the morning, right?"

"Father said to expect them at breakfast." Draco nodded, climbing into his own four-poster bed. The rest of the boys followed suit and it wasn't long until they were all underneath their green and silver bedspreads, the torches were dimmed and Dudley fell asleep to the sounds of gently rolling currents.

Author's Notes: And this might be the last update for the next two weeks. I'm still not sure if I'll update next week or not; it depends on the stress in the days leading up to the wedding. If I don't update next week, the next update will be in the first week of June. Thank you so much!