"Not Slytherin. Please, please not Slytherin," I thought.
"Not Slytherin, eh? Well, you really aren't the type. You're too cheery to belong to that group. Hufflepuff however."
"Err! That's just as bad!"
Now I was at the Sorting Ceremony, and I was being sorted. What happens is they put a ragged old hat, the sorting hat, on your head and it shouts out the name of the house you are in. There are four houses, Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin. Sometimes, the hat took a minute or two to decide your house, and other times it shouts out before it barley touches your head. Hermione, Harry, and Ron had already been sorted, all into Gryffindor. Now it was my turn to be sorted into one of the Hogwarts houses. It would be the house that I have my classes with, who I sleep with, who I eat with, who I play Quidditch with. The two houses I wanted to get into were Gryffindor or Ravenclaw. On the train, I had heard that there wasn't one witch or wizard who came out of Slytherin who didn't go bad, and as for Hufflepuff, I heard they were all a bunch of duffers.
"Can't I be with my friends?" I thought.
"Mmm, Gryffindor then, are you sure? Hufflepuff could use someone like you. Wait a moment, I'm supposed to do the sorting here. Let's see then." the hat said so only I could hear it,"Eenie, Meenie, Minie, GRYFFINDOR!" It shouted Gryffindor so that the whole Great Hall could hear it. I smiled on my way down to the Gryffindor table. All of the Gryffindor table was applauding quietly. Harry, of course, got the loudest applaud of any of the tables.
I sat down next to Hermione and she started chattering away very quickly so I couldn't understand her.
"Slow down. I can't understand you, plus we've got all day!" I said, inturrupting her.
"What do you mean you can't understand me? I wasn't talking that fast."
"Since you have an accent and I have an accent we're not used to hearing each other talk to just slow down until I get used to how you talk now will somebody please pass the salt?" I said rather quickly.
She smiled just like she did that first time on the train.
"Of-course-Aletta," she said, pronunciating every word, "I-can-talk-like this."
"O.K! Just talk slower already, sheesh," interrupted Ron.
"Were we talking to you?" Hermione and I asked at the same time.
"No. but, um," he stuttered.
"Right then," said Harry. "Let's just eat, shall we?"
Hermione and I glared at him and started chattering away about all sorts of things. Our old muggle schools, Hogwarts, muggle music, and family's were only a few of the topics.
As I was talking and eating, I felt as though someone was watching me, but every time I looked up, everyone else was looking down.
"I can't wait for classes to start!" Hermione rambled on. "It's going to be so interesting learning to be a witch! Don't you think?"
"Oh of course! I always thought witches were evil, but I can't say that anymore, I'm about to become one!" I said.
After I finished my sentence, I looked across the table to find Ron staring at me. He looked down at his food and turned a bright shade of red. I looked at Hermione who also saw this. I raised an eyebrow and she laughed silently. Hermione started eating again, but I kept looking at Ron. After a minute, he looked up at me. We both looked down, then back up a little. He smiled at me and I smiled back. The rest of dinner, Ron talked to Harry and I talked to Hermione.
On the way up to the Gryffindor tower, Harry and Ron obviously wanted to be out of earshot because they lagged behind a few feet. I on the other hand, was trying to memorize the passages and pictures and staircases all at once, not an easy thing.
Hermione started chattering excitedly about class the next day. Sure I was eager to learn magic but she was insane! She already knew half the material needed and did quite a lot of "light reading" at home. She and I steadily trailed behind the group talking about the morning schedule, when we fell into line with Ron and Harry.
"What are you doing all the way back here?" I asked
Ron's face when very red, "Just, um, you know, talking."
"Oh," said Hermione, "I see. And what or who were you talking about?"
She smiled at me in a mischievous way. If I knew a curse, any curse, even one that only makes you sneeze, I would have used it on Hermione right then and there.
" 'Were we talking to you?' No!" mocked Harry playfully.
"Well, taking that it might concern one of us," she looked at me again, "we do have the right to know."
"Oh look, we're here," I said, thankful for a way to stop the conversation.
We had arrived at a portrait of a huge woman.
"Password?" she said.
The Prefect who had been leading us, Percy Weasley, Ron's older brother, told us the password, "Caput Draconis." As soon as he said it the picture of the fat lady swung aside and led to what looked like my living room at home, only circular and a lot bigger. There were big, overstuffed chairs and couches everywhere and a fire crackling merrily as though it was greeting us. There were two doors that led to the dorms, a girl's staircase and a boy's staircase.
Hermione and I skipped up the spiral staircase and found their dorm room. In it was five four-poster beds with deep red, velvet curtains. Our trunks had already been brought up.
All of the other girls in our room were very tired and stuffed from the fantastic feast and went strait to bed. Hermione and I chatted quietly while we got ready for bed.
"Do you think you'll be trying out for Quidditch?" I asked. On the train, the Weasley twins lent me a Quidditch Throughout the Ages book and said to look under where it said seeker.
"No. I'll be too busy with my schoolwork. I hear sometimes matches last for weeks!"
"Oh, well I'm at least trying out. I hope I can be seeker. I think I'm built for it."
I looked at myself in the full-length mirror on the back of the door. I wasn't very tall for my age, just over 4'5 and although I always ate until my insides burst, I was as skinny as a twig. Light too, weighing just about 70 pounds, the books description of a good seeker.
"You can if you want, but they usually never take first years. Actually, the last time a first year played for a house team was one hundred years ago. I'm sure they won't pick you. Besides you'd have to use the school brooms and they're not that, um, suitable for Quidditch," she said.
"Hmm?" I shrugged, "But now they'll get a look at next years talent." I said flexing my "muscles" in the mirror.
"O.K. super girl. We had better get to bed if we want to stay awake tomorrow in class. It's already 11 o'clock!"
"That late huh?" I said jumping into my bed and drawing the curtains.
"Yeah, G'night Aletta," Hermione yawned.
I poked my head out from the middle of my curtains, "Good night, muggle child, for tomorrow, you will learn magic!"
Hermione laughed and drew her curtains laughing. I lay in my bed, staring into the darkness thinking about my life.
"Wow," I thought, "I can't believe how lucky I am! I'm here, in Scotland, at the best school of witchcraft and wizardry in the world. I'm in a great house, I have tons of new friends, and I already like someone." I couldn't believe my last words.
"I like someone." I whispered to myself. "I like Ron Weasley."
I smiled and closed my eyes. Being a witch was pretty darn cool.
"Not Slytherin, eh? Well, you really aren't the type. You're too cheery to belong to that group. Hufflepuff however."
"Err! That's just as bad!"
Now I was at the Sorting Ceremony, and I was being sorted. What happens is they put a ragged old hat, the sorting hat, on your head and it shouts out the name of the house you are in. There are four houses, Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin. Sometimes, the hat took a minute or two to decide your house, and other times it shouts out before it barley touches your head. Hermione, Harry, and Ron had already been sorted, all into Gryffindor. Now it was my turn to be sorted into one of the Hogwarts houses. It would be the house that I have my classes with, who I sleep with, who I eat with, who I play Quidditch with. The two houses I wanted to get into were Gryffindor or Ravenclaw. On the train, I had heard that there wasn't one witch or wizard who came out of Slytherin who didn't go bad, and as for Hufflepuff, I heard they were all a bunch of duffers.
"Can't I be with my friends?" I thought.
"Mmm, Gryffindor then, are you sure? Hufflepuff could use someone like you. Wait a moment, I'm supposed to do the sorting here. Let's see then." the hat said so only I could hear it,"Eenie, Meenie, Minie, GRYFFINDOR!" It shouted Gryffindor so that the whole Great Hall could hear it. I smiled on my way down to the Gryffindor table. All of the Gryffindor table was applauding quietly. Harry, of course, got the loudest applaud of any of the tables.
I sat down next to Hermione and she started chattering away very quickly so I couldn't understand her.
"Slow down. I can't understand you, plus we've got all day!" I said, inturrupting her.
"What do you mean you can't understand me? I wasn't talking that fast."
"Since you have an accent and I have an accent we're not used to hearing each other talk to just slow down until I get used to how you talk now will somebody please pass the salt?" I said rather quickly.
She smiled just like she did that first time on the train.
"Of-course-Aletta," she said, pronunciating every word, "I-can-talk-like this."
"O.K! Just talk slower already, sheesh," interrupted Ron.
"Were we talking to you?" Hermione and I asked at the same time.
"No. but, um," he stuttered.
"Right then," said Harry. "Let's just eat, shall we?"
Hermione and I glared at him and started chattering away about all sorts of things. Our old muggle schools, Hogwarts, muggle music, and family's were only a few of the topics.
As I was talking and eating, I felt as though someone was watching me, but every time I looked up, everyone else was looking down.
"I can't wait for classes to start!" Hermione rambled on. "It's going to be so interesting learning to be a witch! Don't you think?"
"Oh of course! I always thought witches were evil, but I can't say that anymore, I'm about to become one!" I said.
After I finished my sentence, I looked across the table to find Ron staring at me. He looked down at his food and turned a bright shade of red. I looked at Hermione who also saw this. I raised an eyebrow and she laughed silently. Hermione started eating again, but I kept looking at Ron. After a minute, he looked up at me. We both looked down, then back up a little. He smiled at me and I smiled back. The rest of dinner, Ron talked to Harry and I talked to Hermione.
On the way up to the Gryffindor tower, Harry and Ron obviously wanted to be out of earshot because they lagged behind a few feet. I on the other hand, was trying to memorize the passages and pictures and staircases all at once, not an easy thing.
Hermione started chattering excitedly about class the next day. Sure I was eager to learn magic but she was insane! She already knew half the material needed and did quite a lot of "light reading" at home. She and I steadily trailed behind the group talking about the morning schedule, when we fell into line with Ron and Harry.
"What are you doing all the way back here?" I asked
Ron's face when very red, "Just, um, you know, talking."
"Oh," said Hermione, "I see. And what or who were you talking about?"
She smiled at me in a mischievous way. If I knew a curse, any curse, even one that only makes you sneeze, I would have used it on Hermione right then and there.
" 'Were we talking to you?' No!" mocked Harry playfully.
"Well, taking that it might concern one of us," she looked at me again, "we do have the right to know."
"Oh look, we're here," I said, thankful for a way to stop the conversation.
We had arrived at a portrait of a huge woman.
"Password?" she said.
The Prefect who had been leading us, Percy Weasley, Ron's older brother, told us the password, "Caput Draconis." As soon as he said it the picture of the fat lady swung aside and led to what looked like my living room at home, only circular and a lot bigger. There were big, overstuffed chairs and couches everywhere and a fire crackling merrily as though it was greeting us. There were two doors that led to the dorms, a girl's staircase and a boy's staircase.
Hermione and I skipped up the spiral staircase and found their dorm room. In it was five four-poster beds with deep red, velvet curtains. Our trunks had already been brought up.
All of the other girls in our room were very tired and stuffed from the fantastic feast and went strait to bed. Hermione and I chatted quietly while we got ready for bed.
"Do you think you'll be trying out for Quidditch?" I asked. On the train, the Weasley twins lent me a Quidditch Throughout the Ages book and said to look under where it said seeker.
"No. I'll be too busy with my schoolwork. I hear sometimes matches last for weeks!"
"Oh, well I'm at least trying out. I hope I can be seeker. I think I'm built for it."
I looked at myself in the full-length mirror on the back of the door. I wasn't very tall for my age, just over 4'5 and although I always ate until my insides burst, I was as skinny as a twig. Light too, weighing just about 70 pounds, the books description of a good seeker.
"You can if you want, but they usually never take first years. Actually, the last time a first year played for a house team was one hundred years ago. I'm sure they won't pick you. Besides you'd have to use the school brooms and they're not that, um, suitable for Quidditch," she said.
"Hmm?" I shrugged, "But now they'll get a look at next years talent." I said flexing my "muscles" in the mirror.
"O.K. super girl. We had better get to bed if we want to stay awake tomorrow in class. It's already 11 o'clock!"
"That late huh?" I said jumping into my bed and drawing the curtains.
"Yeah, G'night Aletta," Hermione yawned.
I poked my head out from the middle of my curtains, "Good night, muggle child, for tomorrow, you will learn magic!"
Hermione laughed and drew her curtains laughing. I lay in my bed, staring into the darkness thinking about my life.
"Wow," I thought, "I can't believe how lucky I am! I'm here, in Scotland, at the best school of witchcraft and wizardry in the world. I'm in a great house, I have tons of new friends, and I already like someone." I couldn't believe my last words.
"I like someone." I whispered to myself. "I like Ron Weasley."
I smiled and closed my eyes. Being a witch was pretty darn cool.
