A/N: Again I'm going to appologize for having to mirror the book so closely. After this, it's whatever I want!
She seemed as if she was sitting there forever. She heard the hat mumbling and groaning as it tried to decide where to place her.
Then it said, "Of course…RAVENCLAW!"
She smiled as she headed over to her table. The people there shook her hand and she couldn't stop smiling. She finally got herself to sit down and look back up at the group. 'I hope Lisa makes it here,' she thought to herself.
"Brown, Lavender!"
"GRYFFINDOR!" the hat shouted. The table beside Mandy's burst into cheers.
"Bulstrode, Millicent!"
"SLYTHERIN!"
Mandy looked over at the cheering table. They didn't look like a good group. After what Lisa had told her about them she didn't think very highly of them. Vincent Crabbe was also called into their house.
"Finch-Fletchley, Justin!"
"HUFFLEPUFF!"
"Finnigan, Seamus!"
"GRYFFINDOR!"
"Goyle, Gregory!"
"SLYTHERIN!" the hat called.
"Granger, Hermione!"
Mandy looked over. Wouldn't it be cool if Hermione was in her house. Hermione seemed very nice and she knew they would get along.
"GRYFFINDOR!"
Mandy sighed as she watched Hermione walk over to the other table. As long as Lisa came to this house she would be ok.
"Longbottom, Neville!" she called again. Mandy recognized him too. He was the boy who had lost his frog.
"GRYFFINDOR!" the hat called again. He began walking off the stage with the hat still on his head when Professor McGonagall called him back. Everyone in the room began laughing.
"MacDougal, Morag!"
"RAVENCLAW!" the hat called. Mandy was happy to have someone finally join her house. She shook his hand and then looked back up to the front.
"Malfoy, Draco!"
The boy with blonde hair walked up to the stool. He sat down and the hat had bearly touched his head when it shouted, "SLYTHERIN!" He went and sat down with the rest of the Slytherins.
A group of kids were then called. Someone with the last name "Moon" and another with the last name "Nott."
A girl named "Pansy Parkinson" became a Slytherin. Two twin girls came up, one of them, "Parvati Patil" went to Gryffindor. The other "Padma Patil" came to Ravenclaw. A girl named Sally-Anne Perks was called soon after.
"Potter, Harry!"
All of a sudden a lot of people in the room began to whisper loudly. Mandy looked around curious. By the whispers Mandy could tell that he was popular. It wouldn't be so bad if he became a part of Ravenclaw she thought to herself.
But finally the hat called, "GRYFFINDOR!" He smiled and went to join Hermione.
"Dean, Thomas!"
"GRYFFINDOR!"
"Turpin, Lisa!" Mandy began to cross her fingers. She saw Lisa look over at her and wink. 'I hope she's in my house or I'm going to be so lonely' she thought. Professor McGonagall put the hat on her head.
"RAVENCLAW!"
Mandy began jumping up and down. Lisa ran over and they hugged. "I can't believe it!" Mandy screamed.
"We're going to have so much fun!" Lisa answered. They sat down and waited for the last few people to be called.
"Weasly, Ron!"
"GRYFFINDOR!" Mandy recognized him as the boy that was walking with Harry in front of Lisa and her.
"Zabini, Blaise!"
"SLYTHERIN!"
Professor McGonagall rolled up her scroll and took the sorting hat away. She looked back over at Lisa who was smiling.
"When do we eat?" Mandy muttered looking at her plate.
"Hold on, it's Professor Dumbledore" Lisa exclaimed pointing up at a man with long silver hair. He also had a long silver beard. He was standing with his arms spread out, smiling at all of them.
"Welcome," he said. "Welcome to a new year at Hogwarts! Before we begin our banquet, I would like to say a few words. And here they are: Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak! Thank you!"
The whole room clapped loudly. Mandy looked over at Lisa with a confused glance.
"What?" Lisa asked looking at her.
"What in the world did he just say?" Mandy exclaimed.
"Oh!" Lisa started with a knowing expression on her face. "He just made the food appear." For the first time Mandy noticed all the food that was spread on the table.
She looked over at Lisa, and smiled. "Oh!"
She had tons of food to choose from. The plates in front of her held: roast beef, roast chicken, pork chops and lamb chops, sausages, bacon and steak, boiled potatoes, roast potatoes, fries, Yorkshire pudding, peas, carrots, gravy, ketchup, and, for some strange reason, peppermint humbugs.
She began eating the food like crazy. All the while telling Lisa about her mom, dad, and brother. Lisa didn't have any siblings so she didn't understand what a pain Bryan could be. Mandy couldn't have been more happy. After a while of talking and eating the remains of the food faded off of the plates.
A moment later the desserts appeared. Blocks of ice cream in every flavor you could think of, apple pies, treacle tarts, chocolate eclairs and jam doughnuts, trifle, strawberries, Jell-O, rice pudding…
As Mandy ate some of the desserts she turned the attention to the teacher's table. "So that's Professor McGonagall," Mandy stated pointing at the woman who had done the sorting. "And he's Hagrid," she pointed to the large man that had led the boats to the castle. "His name is Dumbledore," she said pointing to the very old wizard. "That's Quirrell--"
Lisa interrupted, "How do you know Quirrell?"
"Oh, he met me in Diagon alley and he helped me get my supplies," she explained.
Lisa nodded her head, "Continue."
Mandy looked back up at the table. "Who's that?" she asked pointing to a man with greasy black hair, a hooked nose, and sallow skin.
"Oh, that's Professor Snape," a girl sitting beside Lisa said. Mandy looked over to her.
"Oh sorry, I'm Penelope Clearwater, I'm the Ravenclaw prefect."
"Nice to meet you, I'm Mandy. So, what does he teach?"
"He teaches Potions class, but you have to be careful. He's the Slytherin leader and he doesn't really like anyone but them. So don't do anything that might get you in trouble when you're in his class."
Mandy shook her head as she looked back at the man. He was now talking to Professor Quirrell.
Professor Dumbledore got to his feet again as the desserts vanished too. The hall fell silent.
"Ahern -- just a few more words now that we are all fed and watered. I have a few start-of-term notices to give you.
"First years should note that the forest on the grounds is forbidden to all pupils. And a few of our older students would do well to remember that as well."
"I have also been asked by Mr. Filch, the caretaker, to remind you all that no magic should be used between classes in the corridors.
"Quidditch trials will be held in the second week of the term. Anyone interested in playing for their house teams should contact Madam Hooch.
"And finally, I must tell you that this year, the third-floor corridor on the right-hand side is out of bounds to everyone who does not wish to die a very painful death."
Mandy gulped and looked over at Lisa. They shared a scared glance, and then looked back up at Professor Dumbledore.
"And now, before we go to bed, let us sing the school song!" cried Dumbledore. He flicked his wand and a long golden ribbon flew out of it, which rose high above the tables and twisted itself, snakelike, into words.
"Everyone pick their favorite tune," said Dumbledore, "and off we go!" And the school bellowed:
"Hogwarts, Hogwarts, Hoggy Warty Hogwarts,
Teach us something please,
Whether we be old and bald
Or young with scabby knees,
Our heads could do with filling
With some interesting stuff,
For now they're bare and full of air,
Dead flies and bits of fluff,
So teach us things worth knowing,
Bring back what we've forgot,
just do your best, we'll do the rest,
And learn until our brains all rot.
Everyone finished the song at different times. Mandy just kinda moved her mouth along because she was too embarrassed to be singing aloud.
When they were done everyone began clapping. "Ah, music," he said, wiping his eyes. "A magic beyond all we do here! And now, bedtime. Off you trot!"
Penelope lead the first years through the Great Hall, and up the marble staircase. Mandy gasped as a man with an eyeglass welcomed her to Hogwarts. The thing that had made her gasp was that he was in a picture. She muttered thank you as they continued on. They made a lot of twists and turns and went through secret doors. There was no way she would know the way back. Finally, they reached a picture of a woman with an eagle perched on her arm.
"Password Please?" she asked them. The eagle cried as she finished the question and flapped its wings a little.
"Aquila Effugium," Penelope said. The picture swung open and they walked through the door-sized opening. There was a small room with a warm fireplace. There were a few oak tables with chairs with blue cushions where they could study. And a few couches with the blue cushions, were gathered around the fire. Penelope directed the girls to one dormitory and the boys to another. There were five poster-beds in each small room with dark blue velvety curtains. Her suitcases and Cleo's travel compartment lay at the foot of one of the beds.
As she pulled Cleo out of her carrier and set her on the bed a girl with short black hair and dark brown eyes came over to Mandy.
"Hi, my name is Su Li," she said holding out her hand.
"Oh, my name is Mandy," Mandy replied shaking the girl's hand. Mandy also met Padma. Padma had dirty blonde hair and green eyes. She was the one who had the twin that ended up going to Gryffindor. She was crying because she had hoped that they would be in the same house.
"Don't worry Padma, I'll be your good friend!" Mandy exclaimed. Padma looked up through her tears and gave a slight smile.
"Thanks Mandy."
"We're all here for you Padma," Lisa exclaimed. They shared a short hug and then Mandy turned to the last person in the room. The girl had curly blonde hair and light blue eyes. Her name was Stacey.
Mandy's bed ended up being between Lisa's and Padma's. They all changed into their nightclothes. They gathered in a circle on the floor and began to talk to each other. Mandy found out that Stacey also came from a "muggle" family. Padma had stopped crying now and was telling them all about how she hoped she would do good this year. Su complained about her hair. She told them her mom had just made her cut it when she left home. She couldn't wait for it to grow back. It was past midnight when they got up and got in bed.
As Mandy got on the bed she picked Cleo up and gave her a hug. Cleo purred and licked Mandy's chin. She laid Cleo down at the foot of the bed as she looked at the other girls pulling their covers back.
"Good night everyone!" she said with a smile as she pulled the curtains on her bed closed.
She heard them answer good night too just as she was drifting to sleep.
She seemed as if she was sitting there forever. She heard the hat mumbling and groaning as it tried to decide where to place her.
Then it said, "Of course…RAVENCLAW!"
She smiled as she headed over to her table. The people there shook her hand and she couldn't stop smiling. She finally got herself to sit down and look back up at the group. 'I hope Lisa makes it here,' she thought to herself.
"Brown, Lavender!"
"GRYFFINDOR!" the hat shouted. The table beside Mandy's burst into cheers.
"Bulstrode, Millicent!"
"SLYTHERIN!"
Mandy looked over at the cheering table. They didn't look like a good group. After what Lisa had told her about them she didn't think very highly of them. Vincent Crabbe was also called into their house.
"Finch-Fletchley, Justin!"
"HUFFLEPUFF!"
"Finnigan, Seamus!"
"GRYFFINDOR!"
"Goyle, Gregory!"
"SLYTHERIN!" the hat called.
"Granger, Hermione!"
Mandy looked over. Wouldn't it be cool if Hermione was in her house. Hermione seemed very nice and she knew they would get along.
"GRYFFINDOR!"
Mandy sighed as she watched Hermione walk over to the other table. As long as Lisa came to this house she would be ok.
"Longbottom, Neville!" she called again. Mandy recognized him too. He was the boy who had lost his frog.
"GRYFFINDOR!" the hat called again. He began walking off the stage with the hat still on his head when Professor McGonagall called him back. Everyone in the room began laughing.
"MacDougal, Morag!"
"RAVENCLAW!" the hat called. Mandy was happy to have someone finally join her house. She shook his hand and then looked back up to the front.
"Malfoy, Draco!"
The boy with blonde hair walked up to the stool. He sat down and the hat had bearly touched his head when it shouted, "SLYTHERIN!" He went and sat down with the rest of the Slytherins.
A group of kids were then called. Someone with the last name "Moon" and another with the last name "Nott."
A girl named "Pansy Parkinson" became a Slytherin. Two twin girls came up, one of them, "Parvati Patil" went to Gryffindor. The other "Padma Patil" came to Ravenclaw. A girl named Sally-Anne Perks was called soon after.
"Potter, Harry!"
All of a sudden a lot of people in the room began to whisper loudly. Mandy looked around curious. By the whispers Mandy could tell that he was popular. It wouldn't be so bad if he became a part of Ravenclaw she thought to herself.
But finally the hat called, "GRYFFINDOR!" He smiled and went to join Hermione.
"Dean, Thomas!"
"GRYFFINDOR!"
"Turpin, Lisa!" Mandy began to cross her fingers. She saw Lisa look over at her and wink. 'I hope she's in my house or I'm going to be so lonely' she thought. Professor McGonagall put the hat on her head.
"RAVENCLAW!"
Mandy began jumping up and down. Lisa ran over and they hugged. "I can't believe it!" Mandy screamed.
"We're going to have so much fun!" Lisa answered. They sat down and waited for the last few people to be called.
"Weasly, Ron!"
"GRYFFINDOR!" Mandy recognized him as the boy that was walking with Harry in front of Lisa and her.
"Zabini, Blaise!"
"SLYTHERIN!"
Professor McGonagall rolled up her scroll and took the sorting hat away. She looked back over at Lisa who was smiling.
"When do we eat?" Mandy muttered looking at her plate.
"Hold on, it's Professor Dumbledore" Lisa exclaimed pointing up at a man with long silver hair. He also had a long silver beard. He was standing with his arms spread out, smiling at all of them.
"Welcome," he said. "Welcome to a new year at Hogwarts! Before we begin our banquet, I would like to say a few words. And here they are: Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak! Thank you!"
The whole room clapped loudly. Mandy looked over at Lisa with a confused glance.
"What?" Lisa asked looking at her.
"What in the world did he just say?" Mandy exclaimed.
"Oh!" Lisa started with a knowing expression on her face. "He just made the food appear." For the first time Mandy noticed all the food that was spread on the table.
She looked over at Lisa, and smiled. "Oh!"
She had tons of food to choose from. The plates in front of her held: roast beef, roast chicken, pork chops and lamb chops, sausages, bacon and steak, boiled potatoes, roast potatoes, fries, Yorkshire pudding, peas, carrots, gravy, ketchup, and, for some strange reason, peppermint humbugs.
She began eating the food like crazy. All the while telling Lisa about her mom, dad, and brother. Lisa didn't have any siblings so she didn't understand what a pain Bryan could be. Mandy couldn't have been more happy. After a while of talking and eating the remains of the food faded off of the plates.
A moment later the desserts appeared. Blocks of ice cream in every flavor you could think of, apple pies, treacle tarts, chocolate eclairs and jam doughnuts, trifle, strawberries, Jell-O, rice pudding…
As Mandy ate some of the desserts she turned the attention to the teacher's table. "So that's Professor McGonagall," Mandy stated pointing at the woman who had done the sorting. "And he's Hagrid," she pointed to the large man that had led the boats to the castle. "His name is Dumbledore," she said pointing to the very old wizard. "That's Quirrell--"
Lisa interrupted, "How do you know Quirrell?"
"Oh, he met me in Diagon alley and he helped me get my supplies," she explained.
Lisa nodded her head, "Continue."
Mandy looked back up at the table. "Who's that?" she asked pointing to a man with greasy black hair, a hooked nose, and sallow skin.
"Oh, that's Professor Snape," a girl sitting beside Lisa said. Mandy looked over to her.
"Oh sorry, I'm Penelope Clearwater, I'm the Ravenclaw prefect."
"Nice to meet you, I'm Mandy. So, what does he teach?"
"He teaches Potions class, but you have to be careful. He's the Slytherin leader and he doesn't really like anyone but them. So don't do anything that might get you in trouble when you're in his class."
Mandy shook her head as she looked back at the man. He was now talking to Professor Quirrell.
Professor Dumbledore got to his feet again as the desserts vanished too. The hall fell silent.
"Ahern -- just a few more words now that we are all fed and watered. I have a few start-of-term notices to give you.
"First years should note that the forest on the grounds is forbidden to all pupils. And a few of our older students would do well to remember that as well."
"I have also been asked by Mr. Filch, the caretaker, to remind you all that no magic should be used between classes in the corridors.
"Quidditch trials will be held in the second week of the term. Anyone interested in playing for their house teams should contact Madam Hooch.
"And finally, I must tell you that this year, the third-floor corridor on the right-hand side is out of bounds to everyone who does not wish to die a very painful death."
Mandy gulped and looked over at Lisa. They shared a scared glance, and then looked back up at Professor Dumbledore.
"And now, before we go to bed, let us sing the school song!" cried Dumbledore. He flicked his wand and a long golden ribbon flew out of it, which rose high above the tables and twisted itself, snakelike, into words.
"Everyone pick their favorite tune," said Dumbledore, "and off we go!" And the school bellowed:
"Hogwarts, Hogwarts, Hoggy Warty Hogwarts,
Teach us something please,
Whether we be old and bald
Or young with scabby knees,
Our heads could do with filling
With some interesting stuff,
For now they're bare and full of air,
Dead flies and bits of fluff,
So teach us things worth knowing,
Bring back what we've forgot,
just do your best, we'll do the rest,
And learn until our brains all rot.
Everyone finished the song at different times. Mandy just kinda moved her mouth along because she was too embarrassed to be singing aloud.
When they were done everyone began clapping. "Ah, music," he said, wiping his eyes. "A magic beyond all we do here! And now, bedtime. Off you trot!"
Penelope lead the first years through the Great Hall, and up the marble staircase. Mandy gasped as a man with an eyeglass welcomed her to Hogwarts. The thing that had made her gasp was that he was in a picture. She muttered thank you as they continued on. They made a lot of twists and turns and went through secret doors. There was no way she would know the way back. Finally, they reached a picture of a woman with an eagle perched on her arm.
"Password Please?" she asked them. The eagle cried as she finished the question and flapped its wings a little.
"Aquila Effugium," Penelope said. The picture swung open and they walked through the door-sized opening. There was a small room with a warm fireplace. There were a few oak tables with chairs with blue cushions where they could study. And a few couches with the blue cushions, were gathered around the fire. Penelope directed the girls to one dormitory and the boys to another. There were five poster-beds in each small room with dark blue velvety curtains. Her suitcases and Cleo's travel compartment lay at the foot of one of the beds.
As she pulled Cleo out of her carrier and set her on the bed a girl with short black hair and dark brown eyes came over to Mandy.
"Hi, my name is Su Li," she said holding out her hand.
"Oh, my name is Mandy," Mandy replied shaking the girl's hand. Mandy also met Padma. Padma had dirty blonde hair and green eyes. She was the one who had the twin that ended up going to Gryffindor. She was crying because she had hoped that they would be in the same house.
"Don't worry Padma, I'll be your good friend!" Mandy exclaimed. Padma looked up through her tears and gave a slight smile.
"Thanks Mandy."
"We're all here for you Padma," Lisa exclaimed. They shared a short hug and then Mandy turned to the last person in the room. The girl had curly blonde hair and light blue eyes. Her name was Stacey.
Mandy's bed ended up being between Lisa's and Padma's. They all changed into their nightclothes. They gathered in a circle on the floor and began to talk to each other. Mandy found out that Stacey also came from a "muggle" family. Padma had stopped crying now and was telling them all about how she hoped she would do good this year. Su complained about her hair. She told them her mom had just made her cut it when she left home. She couldn't wait for it to grow back. It was past midnight when they got up and got in bed.
As Mandy got on the bed she picked Cleo up and gave her a hug. Cleo purred and licked Mandy's chin. She laid Cleo down at the foot of the bed as she looked at the other girls pulling their covers back.
"Good night everyone!" she said with a smile as she pulled the curtains on her bed closed.
She heard them answer good night too just as she was drifting to sleep.