From everything he had grown up learning, Albus was inclined to think that sitting with a Malfoy on the train ride would be a lot more awful than it actually was. Malfoys weren't supposed to be nervous and considerate, they were supposed to be snooty and evil. Scorpius had done nothing but make light conversation and grin bashfully since he had been with them, and he hadn't said a word about blood traitors or Mudbloods either. It was unnerving.
"Chocolate Frog?" Albus offered, and it was taken with a murmured "thanks". He was so polite as well. Rose probably would have said Albus just thought that because he had no manners, but if she had grown up with James and Lily she wouldn't be half as ladylike. "You're quite welcome, Scorp."
For the first time, the other boy looked disapproving. "Under no circumstances—" he began, but Albus was already smirking.
"Will I call you anything other than Scorp? Agreed." Scorpius shook his head as he bit into the frog, but he smiled.
The three of them spoke naturally to each other, unreservedly, and considering who their families were there was a startling lack of tension. Scorpius loved Quidditch (Chasing, like Rose), he was very good at Exploding Snap and he liked Fizzing Whizzbees more than any other sweet. He was excited but terrified about Hogwarts because of his surname and some rumours he didn't elaborate on and he had been diligently reading all of the spellbooks, the same ones Albus had barely looked at. He wasn't arrogant and he listened to then when they talked, and by the time they got onto the subject of houses, Albus had decided he liked him enough not to mind where he wanted to go.
"Where do you want to be Sorted?" asked Rose at last. "I want to be in Gryffindor, or maybe Ravenclaw. Albus wants to be…" She trailed off. Anywhere but Slytherin, she was going to say.
"Gryffindor, yeah." Albus finished quickly, hoping the falter had escaped Scorpius' attention. "Sorry, go on."
"Er, probably Slytherin cause, well, you know." Scorpius said, running a hand through his blonde hair. Rose and Albus nodded knowingly. Tradition was tradition, and no matter who your family was there was pressure on you to follow it. "I wouldn't mind Ravenclaw either."
"Oh!" said Rose, who brightened visibly. "Perhaps we could be in the same house!" They grinned at each other.
"Perhaps we could be in the same house." Albus mocked, and his cousin thumped him on the head. "Bloody hell, it's not my fault you're such a priss. Honestly, Scorp, you may like her now but you will get tired of her."
"Just like how I'll get tired of you calling me Scorp?" retorted Scorpius in amusement. Albus beamed at him.
"How could you ever get tired of me calling you Scorp?" he snickered, and just as he started to say something else the door opened. A tall girl with an aggressively straight fringe and brown eyes magnified by her massive glasses trotted in, already dressed in her Hogwarts robes.
"Hello." she announced to the compartment. "Do any of you know the spell to fix Jackie's robes?" There was a moment's pause, in which she seemed to realised she was alone, and then she darted out and dragged in a small girl with blonde-streaked hair. The bottom of that girl's robes were split in several places, enough to make it look like a misguided fashion choice.
"Merlin, what did you do?" asked Rose incredulously, and Jackie's face coloured.
"We got in a fight." her friend said matter-of-factly, and tapped her left cheek, which was slightly red and swollen.
"No, you got in a fight!" Jackie snapped. "With third-years. I told you not to swear at them and you did, and now my robes are ruined!"
"They're not ruined, not if they can fix them!" The other girl paused. "Can you fix them?" She seemed to be properly appraising the three of them for the first time, and her face grew doubtful. "You know what, never mind, we'll—"
"No, I know it!" Albus interrupted, a little affronted at her bluntness. "It's Reparo, isn't it?" He glanced at Rose for confirmation and she nodded uncertainly.
"If you're asking her, maybe she should do it." No, she wasn't blunt, just rude.
"I can do it." he insisted through gritted teeth. "Come on, I've got to see them." Jackie stepped forward, and Albus whistled at the amount of slices in the robes. Scrunching his face in concentration, he knelt down and prodded it with his wand. "Reparo." Almost immediately, two of the slits were mended. "Reparo." Another three. "Reparo." He continued the spell, over and over, every so often peeking up to look at the girl defiantly until the fabric looked good as new.
"Oh!" Jackie exclaimed happily, and he couldn't help smiling back.
"Hmm." said the girl, peering down at the robes. "You actually did it." She sounded as if she'd expected him to fail. Albus was finding her less and less agreeable every time she spoke.
"It was nice to meet you." he said coldly. "We wouldn't want to keep you here too long." He narrowed his eyes in annoyance, but she wasn't even looking at him anymore.
"Thank you." chirped Jackie. "It was nice to meet you too." She just about skipped out, her spirits raised. Her friend began to follow her, and then abruptly stopped. What now, Albus thought irritably.
"I'm Imogen, by the way." Imogen adjusted her glasses and finally, finally left. Albus barely waited till the door was closed to let out a dramatic sigh.
"If I never speak to that girl again, I'll live a long, happy life." Rose looked at him reproachfully.
"She wasn't that bad, Al, just a little upfront."
"Upfront? Upfront? She literally insulted me to my face."
"You mean she didn't automatically praise you and inflate your gigantic ego?"
"She—"
"Yes, she wasn't incredibly pleasant," Scorpius mediated. "But I don't think she was trying to upset you."
"Fine." Albus conceded, and snatched a Pumpkin Pasty from their pile on the table with a bit more effort than he needed. "All right, let's have another game of Exploding Snap, you won't beat me again."
They played several games, all of which he lost, and then they traded Chocolate Frog cards, giggled over jokes, and ate an outrageous amount of sweets, while the sky darkened. By the time they had reached their destination Albus was almost tired of Cauldron Cakes.
"The train's slowing down." said Scorpius eventually, as he yawned and looked outside.
"Come on," Rose urged them, "I don't want to be last, let's go." Albus and Scorpius stood up with her, and the three of them left their trunks and owls to go join an already large crowd of people in the corridor.
"Firs'-years this way! Firs'-years!" called a familiar voice once they were outside. Rose and Albus looked up (quite a bit up) to see Hagrid, who they had known since they were little. "All right, Rose, Albus?" He smiled down at the two of them and they waved back excitedly. Then he saw Scorpius beside them, and the glower he gave him was less than welcoming.
"Sorry, he's just…" Albus started, trying to apologise, but his voice was lost under all the chatter. Scorpius gave him a strained half-smile in return.
"It's fine." he replied, though he looked a little more small and pale than he had been before. It was all forgotten anyway once they reached the lake.
Hogwarts was even more grand and beautiful than Albus had imagined, and everyone gasped upon seeing it. Every turret and tower window glimmered, and it all appeared enormous and cosy at once. This was where he'd be spending the next seven years of his life.
"Into the boats now! No more'n four to each!" shouted Hagrid, and one by one they filed into the little rowboats at the lake. Albus, Rose and Scorpius all clambered into one together, and they were followed, to Albus' infuriation, by Imogen.
"Oh, hello again." she said, and he immediately focused on the oars rowing themselves even though he felt Rose's glare burning the back of his head.
Once they were inside the castle, the Transfiguration teacher—Professor Howes—droned to them about the Sorting Ceremony and the houses and how important it all was. As if they didn't know. Albus scoffed internally at the thought while Howes nattered on, and as soon as he left to prepare everyone erupted into frightened hisses. All of the Muggle-borns were in hysterics about some test they were going to have to take, and the others were too busy worrying about houses to mollify them. Not a soul was completely calm or collected.
Albus glanced at his friends. Rose had tensed herself enough to look like a mannequin, and Scorpius had gone totally white now. When Albus caught his eye he gave him a reassuring half-smile, full of a confidence he didn't feel. Whatever house he was placed in, that was going to determine practically everything about his time at Hogwarts.
"The Sorting Ceremony is about to begin." said Howes, scrutinizing the first-years disdainfully. Albus had mostly been ignoring him but now he noticed his haughty expression, which didn't make him anymore endearing. "Form a line and follow me." They all scurried behind him while he strode forward, spelling open the doors to the Great Hall. It was full, full, full of people, who ogled the first years like they were animals in a zoo. It wasn't exactly helping anyone's fear. Albus tried to put them out of his mind, instead gazing at the floating candles that illuminated the place. When his eyes travelled up, he saw the celing bewitched to look like the clear, starry night sky they had seen before.
Howes, sighing insufferably, put down a stool and placed the Sorting Hat on top. Everyone stopped talking, and it was so quiet you could have heard a feather fall. The hat opened its mouth.
Oh I'm the Sorting Hat you see
Whatever else that I shall be
I'll place each of you in your house
So step on up don't be a mouse!
Hufflepuff, loyal and fair and true
Without them, oh what could we do
If there's hard work that must be done
They're not afraid, they'll make it fun
Slytherins are mighty sly
And help us all, do you ask why?
They dream of bigger, better, great
They're shrewd enough to bargain fate
Gryffindors do not lack nerve
They're brave and never scared to serve
Chivalrous to all they see
More daring than you'll ever be
Ravenclaws value a mind
They long for knowledge they can find
What open-minded folk they are
With wisdom as a guiding star
Each house has its flaws and a strength
Don't judge by height or size or length
You'll find a way power through
The Sorting begins now, do what you'll do
The first thing Albus though as everyone started to cheer was how long it must have taken for the Hat to come up with that song. He himself was absolutely useless with rhyming, he'd have probably spent an entire century pondering over which line to go where.
"Now, after your name is called, put on the Hat and sit on the stool to be Sorted." Howes said, and he grimaced at an extensive roll of parchment. "Alders, Jacqueline!" Jackie wobbled nervously to the stool, gingerly took up the hat and placed it on her head. There was a silence for about twenty seconds and then…
"RAVENCLAW!" shouted the Hat. The blue and bronze table clapped eagerly as she ran over and sat down.
"Anton, Maxwell!"
"HUFFLEPUFF!" This time it was the yellow and black students who clapped, and a couple of them whistled.
Albus' head pounded as Howes called name after name after name, anticipating his turn.
"Davis, Ashleigh!"
"SLYTHERIN!"
If he ended up in Slytherin. James would laugh for three days, no, three weeks, no, three months. He would never, ever, ever live it down.
"Finch-Fletchley, Missy!"
"GRYFFINDOR!"
He could ask the hat though, couldn't he? That was what his dad said. If that thing decided to put him in Slytherin he could just say "Actually, no thank you!" and then hop off to Gryffindor and everything would be completely fine. Or maybe not.
"Oh my lord." muttered Rose, and she looked petrified as Nicole Garrett went off to Ravenclaw. "Oh my God, I'm going to die."
...
"Granger-Weasley, Rose!" The Hall burst into murmurs, and Rose could feel more eyes on her than there had been on other students. Two of the most famous names in the Wizarding World had been spoken and people were probably thinking that she was too gangly or too thin or too stiff to represent those names. Calm down, Rose. You'll go straight to Gryffindor and it'll all be alright. Trying not to keel over, she walked over to the stool, took up the hat, and settled it on her bushy red hair.
"Oh, another Weasley?" complained a small voice in her ear. Rose furrowed her eyebrows. Granger-Weasley actually, she corrected. "I see, I see." it said, sounding a little amused. "Where to put you? Brave, oh yes, certainly, and an excellent mind, yes indeed." She felt a small spurt of pride. "Ambition too, quite a lot of that, and kindness, and talent, oh, this won't be easy. Hmm." Gryffindor. I'm a Gryffindor. "Gryffindor? Yes, I suppose that would be a good fit for you, and of course you come from a long line of them, yet I'm not sure, not sure." Rose cocked her head in displeasure and then the hat fell straight over her eyes. "There's courage but not much daring, ambition but hardly any cunning, tolerance but too much impatience. But I see a hunger for knowledge, one that will carry you far. Perhaps you would fare well in Gryffindor, but you belong in RAVENCLAW!"
Rose slowly took off the hat, not sure whether she was happy or not. It stung to hear that she apparently wasn't daring enough for Gryffindor, she had to admit that, but Ravenclaw was a great house, a wonderful house. Her mother had almost been Sorted into Ravenclaw—it had been Rose's second option. This is good, she decided, walking over to her table. This is good.
She was so engrossed in her thoughts that she barely clocked how much that same blue and bronze table were cheering, one of the loudest cheers she had heard, and as soon as she arrived, all the prefects eagerly shook her hand and a startling amount of students clapped her on the shoulder. She vaguely heard Howes call another few names.
"Jordan, Cassandra!"
"GRYFFINDOR!" So she deserves Gryffindor and I don't, Rose thought suddenly, as Cassandra tottered off to the red and gold area, and she was instantly ashamed of herself. That wasn't at all fair; Cassandra would have never been as unkind to Rose. She was so sweet and friendly, of course she deserved Gryffindor.
"Kitch, Emilia!"
"SLYTHERIN!" They were halfway through now, give or take a bit. Scorpius was very close. Get Ravenclaw, she hoped, and though she knew it was unlikely, something in her believed it.
"Macmillan, Kaye!"
"RAVENCLAW!" screamed the hat, and Rose clapped along with everyone else. She made room for Kaye to sit next to her and they shook hands, and then she snapped to attention when she heard the next name.
...
"Malfoy, Scorpius!" called Howes. Scorpius tried to shove down his queasiness as Albus patted him on the back, and then stepped out of line to get to the stool. He was sure everyone was looking at him, judging, already calling him a Death Eater and trying to gauge whether or not he looked like Voldemort. I'm going to be sick. He sat down and put the hat on, and his face was thin enough that the hat fell over his nose. The last thing he heard before it spoke was the snickers coming from the students.
"Oh, a Malfoy." said a voice. "That's easy, better be…" The hat opened its mouth then closed it. "No. Not really. You're not a Slytherin, are you? There's bravery in you, I see it, but not Gryffindor either, no. You're certainly not unskilled. A gentle heart, yes, but there's wisdom, and there's a mind. You want to learn, don't you?" Almost imperceptibly, Scorpius nodded. "Yes, you'll be great in RAVENCLAW!"
The silence after was longer than anyone else's had been. Scorpius took off the hat and stared at the crowd of people. They were shocked. He was shocked. But no one was clapping. Maybe Slytherin would have clapped for him but he wasn't Slytherin. For one wild, desperate moment, he thought about running back to the stool and begging the hat for Slytherin, but then people started to clap. Rose started to hoot, Scorpius saw her watching him with a giant beam on her face. The cheering increased as he stumbled off to Ravenclaw until you could call it slightly less than enthusiastic, and he let out a sigh of relief he hadn't realised he was holding.
He finally sat down next to Rose as Howes called the next name, and she didn't say a thing, just slung an arm around his shoulders.
"Thanks." he said, hoping that every thank you in the world could be summed up into that one word. "Really."
"It's no problem." They grinned at each other once more.
"Moore, Imogen!" The girl with the glasses that Albus hated made her way up the line, her fists clenched. Scorpius looked at his friend, and he was scowling unpleasantly. Imogen shoved the hat down on her head with enough harshness to make Howes balk, and it dropped just over her fringe so that her huge eyes were visible.
"GRYFFINDOR!" shouted the hat, hardly a few seconds after she had put it on. She stood up, looking pleased, and marched off to the table of red and gold. Albus was quite close now. There was a Nott… a Perks…
...
"Potter, Albus!" The hall just about went mad with whispers. Everyone was talking so much that Albus couldn't hear his heart throbbing anymore, and he was a little grateful for it. He walked up, trying not to be as shaky as he felt, and took up the hat. He sat down. He moved so that he was comfortable on the stool. He put the hat down on his head, and it fell right over his eyes.
"So—" started the hat, but it was cut off by Albus thinking Anything but Slytherin, anything else, just not Slytherin, not Slytherin. "No? Like your father I see. Well, it could be a fit, but not completely, no. You're very stubborn, aren't you, maybe Hufflepuff, but there isn't quite enough patience there. You could stand to work harder too, I suppose, though you seem to when it counts… Courageous as well, and definitely daring, but your head is cool in times of danger. Hmm. Rather difficult. There's quite a good brain there. Unusually perceptive, actually, and calculating. Very calculating. You could do well in Slytherin or Ravenclaw, so the question is, do you use that mind for greatness or for knowledge?" The hat stopped. What? Albus screwed up his face in confusion, trying to understand. "You can't stand not knowing, can you?" said the hat. It almost sounded like it was chuckling. "Ah, better be RAVENCLAW!"
Boom. Quick as a flash, the Ravenclaws were screaming, hooraying, practically bellowing. Some of them looked smug. Albus couldn't help but laugh as he took off the hat and put it back on the stool, his legs still a little unstable. Rose and Scorpius looked elated. All of his hopes for Gryffindor were forgotten, his relief about not being in Slytherin pushed aside. In fact, for just a moment, he wondered if it would have really been that bad to end up in the house of green and silver. But it didn't matter now. As Albus walked over to Ravenclaw table, he was happy. Just like the Sorting Hat was supposed to, it had sorted everything out.