CHAPTER SEVEN

Summary: Hermione has recently found out that she is a witch and is off to attend her first year at the prestigious Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry in the Wizarding World. There she meets a strange family of red heads, the famous chosen one - Harry Potter, a tight nit group of pranksters and Quidditch players that don't feel quite complete, along with meddling professors and ghosts. What will happen when long kept secrets are finally revealed? Will the new bonds of friendship and love that develop at Hogwarts create the saviours that are needed?

Disclaimer: All canon/original characters, plot line and rights belong to the author J.K. Rowling. Non-canon events and characters belong to me. I am not making a profit from posting this story. Some of the characters may be OOC and the plot is a mixture of both canon and non-canon with some of the main events from Rowling happening differently to canon.

Updated: 19/09/18

Page count: 8

Hogwarts - Sunday 1st September 1991

The doors were opened and the students were ushered forward and the gasps turned into 'ooh's and ah's.' Hermione couldn't stop smiling, she felt as though she could cry from the sheer beauty of the great hall.

There were four large tables that were for the four houses as they had huge banners hanging over the tables from the ceiling. The Slytherin table was on the far left with Ravenclaw opposite it. Then on the other side of the walkway was the Gryffindor table with the Hufflepuff table opposite on the far right.

The Gryffindor table had red and gold banners hanging with a large golden lion on, the Hufflepuff table had yellow and black banners with a large black badger on it, the Ravenclaw banners were blue and bronze and they had a large bronze eagle on and finally the Slytherin table had green and silver banners with a large silver serpent on.

There was also a large table at the front of the hall that was facing the student tables, which the headmaster and professors occupied. And this had the Hogwarts crest above the table.

She looked up and was met by the sight of hundreds of floating candles that complemented the vision of a starry night sky that replaced the ceiling. Hermione knew that the reason this was the case was because the great hall was spelled to take on the image of the sky outside; she learned this whilst reading Hogwarts: A History. She told some of the students near her this when they asked how it was possible. Once again she could hear Ron making comments about her and ignored him as she continued to walk with the crowd towards the front of the hall, where a three legged stool stood with a black aged pointed hat resting on top of it.

The crowd of students came to an abrupt stop. Hermione was feeling very nervous and it obviously showed on her face because when Hermione looked up she could see her boys smiling at her, pulling faces and waving, trying to get her attention. She quietly laughed at them and then she turned back to listen to what Professor McGonagall was saying.

The twins and Lee could tell that Hermione was nervous as she looked a little pale and they immediately worried that she might faint. After they had seen that scar on her back they felt far more protective of her than they had when they had first met her. Don't get them wrong, they had felt protective of her then too, but now it was different. They couldn't understand who would want to hurt her; she was just so lovable it baffled them. When they were in the carriage they had talked about Hermione and everything they had learned about her life and they all made a vow that they would never let Hermione feel hurt again. They would have made an Unbreakable Vow but their Mum would kill them before the vow had chance to.

So when they saw their Hermione looking worse for wear they got her attention by waving madly at her like loons and pulling faces to make her laugh. They succeeded when she saw them and began to laugh, and then she smiled and turned back to Professor McGonagall. Before they too looked back at the professor they noticed Percy from the corner of their eyes looking at them scowling and then a look of confusion and possible pride filled the features of his face.

Hermione watched in wonder as the sorting hat burst into song.

"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 folks 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 great hall burst into cheer and applause as the sorting hat finished its song. The students calmed down and everyone took their seats and Professor McGonagall stood near the sorting hat and opened the scroll and began to read the names from the list.

"Hannah Abbot," called Professor McGonagall.

The young girl walked towards the hat, the professor lifted the hat and when the girl sat down the hat was placed on her head. She sat there for a few seconds before the hat yelled "Hufflepuff." The hall cheered and she jumped down off of the stool and made her way towards the Hufflepuff table. As she was walking Hermione saw her robes and tie begin to change. The robes now had yellow outlines with the Hogwarts crest on the right hand side and her tie was yellow and black striped.

The sorting continued along with the cheers and applause as the rest of the first years where given their houses for the next seven years.

Susan bones – Hufflepuff, Terry Boot – Ravenclaw, Mandy Brocklehurst – Ravenclaw, Lavender Brown – Gryffindor, Millicent Bulstrode – Slytherin, Michael Corner – Hufflepuff, Stephen Cornjual – Ravenclaw, Vincent Crabbe – Slytherin, Tracy Davis – Slytherin, Kevin Eheulhule – Ravenclaw, Justin Finch-Fletchley – Hufflepuff, Seamus Finnegan – Gryffindor, Anthony Goldstein – Ravenclaw, Gregory Goyle – Slytherin.

"Hermione Granger," Professor McGonagall called. She gave a quick encouraging smile to her cub. She was about to win a bet; she looked over at Professor Dumbledore at the head's table and her mouth twitched.

When her name was called Hermione began to briskly walk towards the sorting hat, she felt horrendous. She looked at her boys who were once again smiling and pulling faces. Hermione took a breath and the hat was placed on her head, obstructing her view from her boys.

"Well, Miss. Granger, I have been waiting for you to come to Hogwarts for a long time, I can tell you are destined for great things and that you will be, if you're already not, an immeasurably powerful witch. I see that The Weasley Twins and Mr. Jordan have struck up a friendship with you, that in itself is incredibly impressive. They'll be an important part of your future, plus a few others Miss. Granger, I will tell you that."

"Back to the sorting, back to the sorting. Where to put you? Where to put you? Now this is going to be a challenge, I haven't had this much difficulty placing a student since McGonagall and Dumbledore. Hmmm, let's see, you are loyal, kind, hardworking, patient and selfless; you would do well in Hufflepuff. What about yellow and black? Then again, yellow's not really your colour, is it?"

"You're highly intelligent and you have a thirst for knowledge and an appreciation for learning, you're quick minded and witty. What do you think about Ravenclaw? The blue and bronze eagle? But then again I don't think so. You'd make a great Slytherin, you're cunning, ambitious and very resourceful, from what I can see. The green and silver serpent, do you think you'd do well in there? Then again you're too kind-hearted to be a serpent."

"Gryffindor, the mighty red and gold lion? You are brave, daring and chivalrous and you have a fire in your belly that would benefit Gryffindor if you were in their house. Then again you would make an excellent addition to either of these houses. You're a tricky witch, aren't you, Miss. Granger? And you don't even have a preference for which house you would prefer to be a part of. Never mind, I like a good challenge and I haven't had one for the last few decades."

Hermione could feel panic setting in. What if she couldn't be placed into a house? What would happen? Why was it taking so long?

'I thought that I would've fitted in at Hogwarts with everyone else having the same abilities as me. But it looks as though I'm still different to everybody else. I will always be an outcast,' Hermione's thoughts were running through her mind.

The sorting hat quickly made a decision to help calm her down.

Fred, George and Lee were all looking at Hermione in amazement and the hall was deadly silent and all the students had their eyes trained on her. She had been up there for five minutes and the sorting hat still hadn't made a decision. They looked at each other with proud looks on their faces, the last time it took this long to sort a student was McGonagall and Dumbledore.

Ten minutes later…

The boys were beyond worried, everyone at the Gryffindor table could feel the waves of anxiety rolling of them, just like Hermione they were beginning to panic. They had only met her seven hours ago and after spending only an hour with her they could all see that the qualities of all four houses were within her and that was extremely rare.

Fifteen minutes later…

Everyone in the hall was beginning to get nervous, fifteen minutes had passed and she hadn't yet been placed, she was just sat in her own little bubble.

Lee began whispering to Fred and George.

"What's taking so long?"

"I don't know, but I'm worried," said George.

"She's too suitable for the houses, she intelligent, loyal, brave and cunning," and as an afterthought Fred added, "especially with her pranks." This made George and Lee smile a little, but it was gone from their faces instantly as they turned their attention back to Hermione.

Twenty minutes later…

The professors at the head's table were all staring at the young witch. It hadn't taken this long for Dumbledore to be sorted decades ago and he was one of the most powerful wizards in existence. They all secretly hoped that she would be placed in their houses.

The twins and Lee were livid, they looked murderous; they were so close to standing up and dragging Hermione to sit at the Gryffindor table regardless of house affiliation. The students were slightly fearful, she had been sat there for twenty minutes and with the sorting hat having difficulty making its decision showed how powerful this young witch was or could be. They all waited with anxious looks wondering which house would get her. It was obvious that she would be a great addition to the house she was placed in, so they all silently hoped it was theirs.

Percy was watching the young witch in wonder; he couldn't believe what he was witnessing. He looked over to the twins and Lee and what he saw surprised him. He had never seen the twins anything but light and cheerful and always joking. He had watched their facial expressions change for the last twenty minutes. They went from happy to encouraging to patient to anxious. But what he was witnessing now was rather frightening, they all looked murderous. He could see that the twins and Lee about to stand up when the sorting hat finally made its attention known.

"GRYFFINDOR!" roared the sorting hat to the occupants of the hall. "I can't wait until you fulfill your destiny, Miss. Granger, and remember that help will always be found with me if you need it," the sorting hat finished his speech to Hermione and she thanked it.

The sorting hat was removed by Professor McGonagall who gave Hermione the brightest smile that had ever graced her face and at the look of pride Hermione beamed at her new head of house. Professor McGonagall turned towards Dumbledore and her lip twitched once again.

'And he doubted me, I know a Gryffindor when I see one,' thought Professor McGonagall smugly.

The entire Gryffindor table burst into cheers and the other houses looked extremely jealous at that moment.

Fred, George and Lee jumped up and walked over the Gryffindor table making some of the students laugh and they flung themselves at Hermione and almost squeezed the life out of her.

Hermione stood from the chair and had only taken a couple of steps before she was tackled by her boys; she was laughing and the boys were making some rather funny noises that they would probably be embarrassed about later.

Percy couldn't help but laugh -yes you heard right; Perfect Prefect Percy was laughing- at his brothers and the way they behaved towards the young witch.

They made their way back towards the Gryffindor table and to their seats and they all frowned at the exact same time when they realized that there weren't any spare seats near them. Hermione smiled at them and made her way towards an empty seat at the other end of the table, but she was abruptly stopped in her tracks when she felt one of the boys pull her back and she squeaked in surprise. She was placed onto Fred's lap, her legs where on George's lap and her feet rested on Lee's lap. Hermione just laughed at them when they smiled cheekily at her.

The sorting continued after the hall fell silent again.

Daphne Greengrass – Slytherin, Wayne Hopkins – Hufflepuff, Megan Jones – Hufflepuff, Su Lee – Ravenclaw, Neville Longbottom – Gryffindor, Isabel Unglal – Ravenclaw, Morag MacDougal – Hufflepuff, Draco Malfoy – Slytherin, Eloise Midwidgeon – Hufflepuff, Lyla Moon – Slytherin, Theodore Nott – Slytherin, Ernie MacMillan – Hufflepuff, Pansy Parkinson – Slytherin, Padma Patil – Ravenclaw, Parvati Patil – Gryffindor, Sally-Anne Perks – Ravenclaw.

"Harry Potter."

When his name was called the entire hall went silent. Harry made his way up to the chair and the hat was placed on his head. It took longer than the other students except for Hermione to be placed into a house. Five minutes later the sorting hat bellowed.

"GRYFFINDOR!"

The screaming and banging on the table started and Hermione was pulled up by Fred. He, George and Lee stood up and began chanting rather loudly. "We got potter! We got Potter!"

"Harry," she called and waved him over, he looked grateful for her kindness.

When he made it opposite them the entire table shifted to allow him access to a seat. At this the twins and Lee glared at the table's occupants -they didn't do it for Hermione- who swiftly looked in the opposite direction and continued to watch the rest of the sorting ceremony.

Dean Thomas – Gryffindor, Lisa Turpin – Ravenclaw, Zacharius Smith – Hufflepuff, Ronald Weasley – Gryffindor.

Their little brother had also been sorted into Gryffindor and the twins, Lee and Hermione cheered for him as he made his way to Harry. Harry made room for him and he sat down opposite Hermione and the boys. Hermione smiled at him and Ron gave her a less than pleasant look. The look made her sink back into Fred and he hugged her closer to him, missing the look on his little brother's face.

Blaise Zabini – Slytherin was the final first year sorted and Dumbledore stood to say the welcoming speech and make his announcements.

"First years please note that the Forbidden Forest is completely forbidden to all students and that it should not be entered. Also this year the third floor corridor is strictly out of bounds unless you want to die a very painful death. Before we begin our banquet, I would like to say a few final words. And here they are: Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak! Thank you."

Dumbledore sat back down and food appeared on the table. Hermione couldn't understand how much food could fit on one table. At the look of the food her stomach growled loudly causing those in her vicinity to chuckle and her boys to laugh loudly and Ron just glared at her.

Everyone began to eat and Hermione and the boys chatted throughout dinner. She told them the joke about Professor McGonagall and she was right; they found it hilarious, so funny in fact, that Lee's pumpkin juice squirted out of his nose and straight into George's face causing another round of guffaws and bellowed laughter.

When dessert replaced the dinner food on the table Hermione grumbled about wishing she had been told that there was going to be dessert too, otherwise she wouldn't have eaten so much at dinner. Everyone that heard laughed and nodded their heads in agreement, after all, everyone but the first years had been in the same position as her.

Hermione had long since fallen asleep with her head buried under Fred's neck. Lee removed his cloak and placed it around her as she didn't have hers with her, it was only the beginning of September so the weather wasn't too bad, but it was still cold. The twins and Lee glared at anyone who looked at Hermione with disgust, which was most of the girls at the Gryffindor table. They had noticed the looks she was getting but thankfully Hermione hadn't.

The trio especially didn't take it well, when their fellow Quidditch team member and Gryffindor, Angelina, tried to grab a hold of Hermione when she was asleep and drag her off of Fred's lap and onto the floor. The looks Angelina received from the boys would make Snape's greasy hair curl, and they promised a world full of pranks and pain if she even tried to touch Hermione again.

Luckily for Angelina the food and plates were banished to the kitchens and the students were released to their common rooms, the first years were asked by Percy to follow him. Since Hermione was asleep and the boys didn't want to wake her, Fred carried her, George made sure that Lee's cloak stayed wrapped around her to protect her from the castle's chill and Lee glared at anyone who was too loud and made her rouse in her sleep. Besides, they knew where they were going anyway.

When they finally reached the Gryffindor common room in the east wing of the seventh floor, the boys had a conversation about Hermione deciding what to do with her. Percy who had become intrigued with the little witch and her relationship with his brothers watched on from the shadows.

"What should we do?" asked Lee.

"I don't want to wake her up but the charms on the stairs..." Fred trailed off and the others understood him.

"Yeah and did you see the looks she was getting from the girls at the table?" George spoke and they all nodded.

"Thank, Merlin, she didn't notice," said Fred.

"Well she can't sleep in the common room; it's way too cold for her, even with the fire, -" said Fred.

"- And I don't think she would be too happy waking up in our room, even if we could get her past the wards," finished George.

They all looked at each other and nodded in agreement, they hated to do it but they had to.

"Spitfire, Spitfire, wake up."

Hermione opened her eyes and Fred put her feet on the ground and held her up.

"Okay, I'm awake, Fred."

"It's time for bed and I don't think your roommates will appreciate us barging in, but will you do something for us?" Lee spoke in a soft voice as she was still drowsy.

"Yeah, sure, Lee."

"When you get into bed, draw your curtains closed, take your wand and touch it to a knot in the middle of the top right bed post," Fred said.

"What for?"

The boys looked at each other and decided to tell her the truth, not all of it, only a very miniscule amount.

"It will help you sleep better," said the boys together.

"Okay," Hermione shrugged. She kissed each of her boys on the cheek and tiredly made her way up the stairs. Behind her she called, "Night Fred! Night George! Night Lee!"

"Night, Spitfire."

"Night, Princess."

"Night, Love."

When Hermione couldn't be seen they breathed a sigh of relief and made their way to the stairs to go to their dormitory.

"You can come out now, Percy," they all said together.

Percy huffed at having been caught spying and the boys just laughed as they made their way to bed.