When the trolley came by, Dare and Harry pulled together some galleons and bought enough snacks to last them the entire trip, plus some.
Harry picked up a box that read "Chocolate Frog" and he opened it. Inside, there was a chocolate frog, and underneath, a card. Harry looked at it.
"It's Dumbledore!" he exclaimed happily.
"Aw, yeah," Ron said through a mouthful of some unknown pastry, "I have a bunch of him."
"What?" Harry looked scared for a moment. "He's gone!" He was looking at the card as though it were cursed.
"Well, what do you expect? He can't stand there all day, can he?" Ron reasoned.
Dare laughed. "So have you known about this all your life, then?"
"What? You mean magic? Oh yeah!" Ron said, picking up a Bernie Bott's Every Flavor Beans bag. "Both my mum and my dad can do magic and they both went to Hogwarts. How about you?"
"I lived in a muggle orphanage my entire life. The first time I found out was when Dumbledore himself showed up there," Dare explained.
Ron looked at Harry for his explanation and Harry obliged, saying, "I live with my aunt and uncle, now. They're both muggles, and they never told me my mum was a witch or my dad was a wizard, so I never knew until Hagrid came and got me."
"Hagrid?" Ron wondered aloud. "Oh yeah. The Gamekeeper, right?"
Harry nodded.
Just then a girl opened the compartment door. She had bushy, brown hair and large front teeth. "Have you seen Neville's toad?" she asked. "He's lost it." Dare saw behind her there was a tall boy with dark, shaggy hair.
Everyone in Dare's compartment shook his or her head. The girl huffed and left, closing the door behind her.
"Toads kind of went out of style years ago," Ron explained in a hushed voice. "People were always losing them."
"Look!" Dare said suddenly, pointing out the window to her right. There, on a high cliff with its lit-up windows, spiraling turrets, and great towers was Hogwarts castle. It was the most amazing thing Dare had ever seen. Harry and Ron looked on, also, all three unable to peel their eyes away, until a prefect – obviously Percy – came in and told them they needed to get changed into their robes.
As they hopped down the steps onto the platform from the train, Dare caught sight of Hagrid. He was carrying a lantern that shone his face above the crowd and Dare grabbed Harry by the arm of his robe and pulled him towards Hagrid.
"Firs' years!" Hagrid called. "Firs' years, follow me!"
"Hello, Hagrid!" Dare said happily.
"Ah! It's little Dare and Harry! How was the ride?"
Dare opened her mouth to answer, but was too quickly ushered off behind Hagrid. They were led to a small fleet of rowboats and were instructed to clamber inside, four to one boat. Dare sat with Ron, Harry, and the girl who had been looking for Neville's toad.
And then they were inside – nervous, confused, exhilarated – stuffed into the entrance hall.
The girl who hit Dare's arm was the same girl who had been looking for the girl and had been in the rowboat with her.
"Oh!" The girl seemed pleased that the person she hit was someone she was already acquainted (somewhat) with. "My name's Hermione Granger, by the way." She grinned and Dare smiled back.
"I'm Dare. Dare Belacqua," Dare said. She felt Harry tug on Dare's arm. "What is it?" she asked.
In a low voice he asked, "Do you know what Slytherin is?"
Dare didn't, of course, have the slightest idea, but Hermione was quick to jump on the subject. "There are four houses," she explained, "Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin. The first thing first years do is get sorted into one house where they preside for their whole seven years."
"How do we get sorted?" Dare wondered aloud.
Hermione shrugged, but answered, "I hope it's some test of knowledge. I've read all of our textbooks. I think I got most everything."
Dare looked worriedly at Harry and found she wasn't the only one who hadn't read her textbook.
"Fred told me it hurts," Ron said in a small voice. "But knowing Fred and George, they were probably lying." He didn't look too certain of himself.
"I, personally, want to be in Gryffindor," said Hermione. "Although, Ravenclaw wouldn't be bad, either."
"My whole family's been in Slytherin for years, now," said a whiney voice from somewhere behind Dare. "I think I'd probably die before I got into Hufflepuff." There was a mass of sniggering and Dare turned around slightly to see who it was.
A boy with a pale, pointed face and almost-bleach-white hair stood just a little taller than Dare. He smiled mockingly at her. "What about you?" he asked.
"I think I'd rather be in Hufflepuff than any house with you," Dare spat. There were a couple "ooo's" that resounded from around her. She was satisfied with herself; she could tell some people around him had been hurt by his words, but when she looked over for Ron's and Harry's reaction, Ron's face looked distraught.
He squeezed next to her and whispered, "I think you just insulted Draco Malfoy!" Dare didn't know who Draco Malfoy was or why insulting him was such a crime, but she wasn't able to find out; a strict-looking, skinny witch had walked into the entrance hall through a set of large doors.
"First years," she said, "I am Professor McGonagall. We will be taking you inside the Great Hall now where you will be sorted. We will call you alphabetically. Follow me."
A hushed whispering sounded from around Dare, but she, Harry, Ron, and even Hermione grew silent. As they entered the Great Hall, Dare couldn't help but gaping with the rest of the first years at the immensely beautiful decorations. The ceiling above her appeared not to exist at all, as if it was the night sky. Four banners hung from the sky on nothing, each in front of a different, long table where students sat and talked happily with one another.
"Can I have everyone's attention please?" Instantly, the Great Hall grew silent. "The sorting will begin."
Then Dare saw it; it was an old, busted up wizard's hat. This hat was patched and frayed and extremely dirty.
The hat twitched. A rip near the brim opened wide like a mouth – and the hat began to sing:
"Oh, you may not think I'm pretty,
But don't judge me 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
That 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 entire hall burst into applause and Dare had to admit – for a hat, that was quite good!
