Welcome to the forth chapter! All Harry Potter characters are still owned by J K Rowling. Grace belongs to Grace, one of the authors of this fic, and Katie belongs to Katie, the other author. Tam belongs to herself, of course. The plot still belongs to Grace and Katie, and we're still dedicating this fic to Tam.
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Chapter Four – The Sorting
"We are now on the second floor." Percy said in a monotone. Tamara, Katie and Grace had been 'entertained' by Percy for the past hour, and were having trouble keeping up with his brisk walk, owing to the fact that they had been dragging their feet along, bored with Percy's commentary.
"This is the second floor corridor. Students use it to get to classrooms on the second floor." Percy continued.
"Fascinating…" Katie muttered, playing with the rips in her gothic skirt.
"I knew you'd think so." Percy replied. They passed an empty classroom. "This is the History of Magic Classroom. Students study the History of Magic in there."
"No kidding…" Grace said, and then they were scaling yet anther staircase.
"Where will this take us – oops…" Said Tam making the others turn around. "Uhhh…I think I'm stuck." She said, and sure enough, Tamara's right leg was knee deep in a trick step.
"Cool!" Katie and Grace cried, and stuck a leg in each too.
Percy let out an irritated sigh. "Oh, now really! Couldn't you three make this tour a little easy for me?"
"Any easier and we would've died of boredom…" Grace muttered.
"This is a good experience for us!" Katie protested, trying to pull her leg free. "But…umm...how 'bout a little help, ay Percy?"
Percy rolled his eyes and extended an arm down to them, pulling Tam out, and then the other two.
"Oh, I suddenly remembered something!" Percy exclaimed. "I'll be right back you three, so DON'T go ANYWHERE. And for goodness sakes, don't go jumping into that step again." And he hurried down a hallway and out of sight.
Just then, there seemed to be a massive eruption as students came pilling into the corridors from their common rooms, all of them hungry and ready for dinner.
Katie, Tam and Grace stood stock still as they were surrounded by the commotion, as if they were standing in the middle of a busy highway. The halls cleared as the students went to put their books and bags away and get ready for dinner, and, in that time, Percy re-appeared with a stack of three spare plain black school robes.
"You'll be needing to wear these now." He said and showed them the way to one of the girl's bathrooms where they changed into their robes, pulling them over the clothes they were already wearing.
"I don't see why I can't wear what I've got on already…" Katie muttered, always proud of her gothic wear. "It's black! Blacker then the robes if that's possible!"
"They're sort of like the school uniform…" Grace replied as they re-emerged from the bathroom.
They joined Percy and the rest of the students as they went down to the Great Hall for dinner.
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Tamara, Grace and Katie were seated at the teacher's table, between Professor McGonagall and Professor Sprout. Everyone in the Great Hall was staring at the three, whispering about them and pointing, with their new faces, unsuited robes and blushing expressions…
When everyone was seated, Professor McGonagall tapped her glass for silence and the headmaster rose from his seat. "Due to recent events, we have three late admissions to the beginning of this term."
"But they're not the same age as first years!" Fred Weasley said over the hushed whispers that were floating around each of the four long house tables.
"Yes Mr Weasley, myself and the other staff members are aware of that." Dumbledore said with an amused smile.
Katie, Grace and Tamara meanwhile had suddenly found their shoes extremely interesting, and the tips of Tam's ears had gone bright pink.
McGonagall had risen from her seat and had fetched the three-legged stool used for the Sorting Ceremony, and, placed on the seat was the famous battered and worn Sorting Hat.
She organised the trio to stand in a line, side to side by the hat, which opened its mouth like brim and began to recite it's poem.
So as it's been said
Many times and more
Once already this year
So I'm bored to the core
I have one job
And that is all
To sort you out
To make the call
To state which house
Your soul will belong
Where you shall live
While you're prolonged
I tell the tale
Of houses four
This is the last
Then I'll say no more
In Gryffindor, the daring one
The bravest of them all.
In Ravenclaw their wit and skill
Will never let them fall.
For Hufflepuff their loyalty and sweetness
Is well known.
In Slytherin the power lies
They can't be over-thrown.
So try me on now
See where your fate lies
I speak only the truth
I am nothing but wise
I've been in this for years
I know my job well
Lay aside your fears
Then the answer I'll tell...
When it had finished, the rest of the school broke into applause and someone said, "So it can make up a new poem in less then a year!"
"Yeah, it doesn't seem to happy about doing it though, does it?" Katie whispered to the other two.
"Maybe it's angry with us and it'll put us all into Slytherin!" Grace whispered back.
"Yay!" Tam cried gleefully.
McGonagall stepped up and pulled out a small piece of parchment. "When I call your name, kindly sit on the stool and put the sorting hat on." She said clearly. "…Almasy, Tamara."
Tam gulped, walked two paces to the stool, sat down and placed the Sorting hat on her head.
Everyone fell silent and waited with unsure anticipation…
'Helllloooo?' Tam thought.
'Good evening' came the reply. 'Which house shall we put you in tonight then?'
'I have a fair idea' Tam thought with a hopeful smile, but the hat ignored her with silence, and Tam knew it was thinking.
'A bit nervous, aren't we?' The Sorting Hat asked.
Tam nodded. 'A bit…'
'Some polite conversation until you've calmed down then, Tamara?'
'Sure.' Tam answered gratefully.
'So…whose side is it on in your family? Mother or Father?' the Sorting Hat asked.
'Pardon?' she asked, confused.
'Where does your wizard blood come from? Your mother…or your father?' The hat asked in more detail.
'I'm a half blood?' Tamara asked in awe.
'Well obviously. How else would you have been able to get here?' The Sorting Hat asked. Tamara was sure if the Sorting Hat had eyes, it would have rolled them.
'Whoa…I'm a half blood…' Tam grinned.
'Don't tell me you had no idea about this…' The Sorting Hat said.
Tam sat in silence, as she was lost in her dreams of being able to do magic.
'Well…back to the job…Are you brave and courageous?' It asked.
'I walk into poles…' Tam stated thoughtfully.
'Yes, a daring act…but no, Gryffindor is not the house for you…'
"What's taking so long?" Katie hissed to Grace, as Grace teetered back and forth on her heels, waiting anxiously for Tam to be sorted. Suddenly, they heard Tamara let out a small giggle and a moment later the Sorting Hat yelled out…
"SLYTHERIN!!!"
Tam whipped the hat off her head and went to join the Slytherin table. She approached it slowly though, as she noticed that the majority of them were mumbling in low voices, clearly undecided about having her added to their mists.
Then someone sitting at the middle of the table cried out, in Gyrffindors direction, "We got one of the newbies!!!" this sent a tidal wave of pride along the table and suddenly, tam fund herself being pulled in all directions with the words "Sit over here!" "No! She wants to sit over HERE!" buzzing around her ears.
When Tamara had finally managed to sit down and tear her eyes away from Draco Malfoy, who was sitting three seats down from her, she looked back up to the teachers table, where McGonagall had taken out her piece of parchment again.
"…Fowler, Grace!" Prof. McGonagall announced.
Grace stepped forward out of the line and made her way to the stool, sitting down before she pulled the hat on, which fell slightly over her eyes.
Now by herself, Katie, finally not blushing as much, scanned the audience at the Gryffindor table for the only guy she was interested in. When she finally caught sight of him, she started blushing again as she noticed he was already watching her. Oliver smiled and winked at her, waving slightly, making her smile softly at his attention and wave back a little.
While Katie was blushing happily, Grace was having a nice conversation with the Sorting Hat.
'Hi there…' Grace thought.
'Hello Miss Fowler. And how are you tonight?'
'Quite spiffing…' Grace said sarcastically, imitating a posh British accept.
'No need for sarcasm.'
.Silence.
'Well, do you have any idea which house your ancestors were in?'
'…Sorry?'
'Your ancestors. From Switzerland.' The Sorting Hat replied, nearly bored.
Grace tried to think privately, but she knew the Sorting Hat would hear.
'Doesn't ring a bell?'
'Hang on…let me think…' Grace replied. 'Switzerland…Switzerland…oh yeah! That's where the first people in my family originated from…Pffffft, they weren't magic!'
'Well they must've been. I suggest the magic has been passed on from generation to generation. In fact, it should have nearly bred out.'
'Shhhh…' Grace hushed. 'I want to remember this moment forever…'
'Well I hate to end the Science lesson, but I have a job to do.' The Hat said.
'Okay…' Grace sighed. 'But I don't think I belong in Gryffindor or Slytherin…'
'Quick!' The Sorting Hat said suddenly. 'What's eight times seven?!'
'Fifty-Six!' Grace replied in a confused panic. And before she knew what was happening-...
"RAVENCLAW!!!"
'Yesssss!' Grace thought triumphantly and jumped up off the stool to join her temporary fellow Ravenclaws.
Meanwhile, Katie had barely noticed as she had continued to gaze at Oliver shyly as Grace had been sorted, and it took Professor McGonagall to nudge her to get her attention again, causing everyone in the Great hall to laugh softly and Grace and Tam slap their foreheads at their friends' fixation on Oliver.
"…Silvanus, Katharine." McGonagall announced once again.
Katie, blushing a lot now, stepped up to the stool and pulled on the hat after sitting down on the famous three-legged stool.
She sat silent for a minute, before thinking 'Mister Sorting Hat? Sir?'
'Hello there Katharine'
'Sorry about making you have to write another poem just for us three…'
'Quite okay. It's been ages since I've had to write two new poems in one year, gives me something to do…Anything more you want to ask me?'
'I don't want to ask you to do anything extra…I just want to know which house I belong in…'
'Well, you're a pure blood…that'll help you along…'
'Whoa…what!?!' Katie asked in shock.
'You're a pure blood. Very late in started this year as well. You should be in Veneficus Academia at this very moment, what's your reason?'
Katie sat silently. 'I have no idea what you're on about…'
The Sorting Hat chuckled slightly. 'You had no idea you're a pure blooded witch, do you?'
'Well…it would explain a lot…why I like Wiccan so much…and why my teacher caught alight when he said I wasn't good enough to be in the school musical…'
'Well, now you know. It seems like all three of you are witches already, otherwise you wouldn't have been able to make a portal and travel through it now would you?'
'…I guess so…I never thought of it like that…'
'Well that's all sorted out. Which house do you think you belong in?'
'Not Hufflepuff…not Ravenclaw, maybe Slytherin…'
'What about Gryffindor?'
Katie giggled softly.
'Hmmm…do we have a love interest here?' The Sorting Hat asked sarcastically.
'Maybe…Oliver Wood's a nice piece of Man Candy…' Katie grinned.
'Well, Hufflepuff, you're not really sweet are you?'
'Heck no…'
'Ravenclaw…you're not really interested in skill to get something are you?'
'Nope, not really.'
'So Slytherin…using any means to get what you want…or Gryffindor…brave and daring to get what you want…which should it be?'
'…Slytherin…my favourite house…or Gryffindor…Oliver…I don't know!!!'
'Fine…I shall decide for you then…' The Sorting Hat fell into silence as he thought it out, and Katie bit her bottom lip as she waited for the answer.
'It had better be…'
"GRYFFINDOR!!!"
Katie sighed a sigh of half relief and half of regret as she glanced at the Slytherin table before joining them at the Gryffindor table, taking Oliver's offer of sitting next to him. Professor McGonagall had removed the three-legged stool and the Sorting Hat and was returning to her chair as Dumbledore stood up. "Well, with that festivity out of the way…I should say we should tuck in before some people faint from hunger…" Dumbledore smiled as Ron Weasley blushed slightly and muttered about his hunger. "I shall leave the rest of the announcements until after dinner…but for now, welcome to our three new students, and, dig in!" Dumbledore clapped his hands and the tables were swiftly covered in trays of food. Tamara, Katie and Grace glanced at each other over the heads of the busily eating students, then gave carefree shrugs and turned to tuck in too.
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At the Slytherin table, a few students sitting next to Tam got up and shifted places along the table to be closer to the Yorkshire pudding. "Close the gap, please!" a Slytherin prefect called and they picked up their plates and bunched up.
"Sorry." Tam said as she knocked elbows with the person next to her.
"Just watch it next time." Came the curt reply.
Tam spun around. "Listen, you little git! Just because you're a Slytherin, it doesn't give you any right to-"
Glaring back at her was a pale boy with blonde hair. "Yes?" Draco challenged, as Tam gaped at his, mentally kicking herself.
"S…sorry, Draco, I didn't mean to-"
"How do you know who I am?" he demanded.
"Err…I don't know if you realise, but you have a very strong reputation around here."
Draco blinked. "Do I really?"
"Oh sure, everybody knows about you and how your family is so respected in wizarding society." Tam went on, waving her chicken drumstick in the air absent-mindedly.
Draco listened to Tam praise him with rapt attention and only interrupted to say, "What was your name again?"
"Tamara, but you can call me Tam."
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"And you're from where?" One of the Ravenclaws who was sitting opposite Grace asked.
"Well, Oim roigh' 'ere from England." Grace fibbed, putting on a cockney accent.
"Nice try, Pinocchio, but Hogwart's is in Scotland." A Seventh Year scoffed, taking a sip of pumpkin juice.
"Well, err, strictly speaking, I'm not sure if I'm allowed to-" Grace stopped to look up at Dumbledore at the teachers table, who gave her the all-knowing-approving nod.
"Actually, I'm from Australia. I came with my friends Tamara and Katie," she pointed them out. "On a sort of supernatural, accidental road trip."
A much younger boy, who had been listening in on the conversation, dropped his fork. "You can drive??? A car??!?!" he asked, dumbfounded.
"No, Stewart, stop being so stupid." His friend corrected him.
Something occurred to Grace." Stewart Ackerly, right?"
He nodded.
"I remember when you were sorted..." she said to herself.
"What?" Stewart, highly confused.
"Nothing…" Grace said knowingly, looking at the enchanted ceiling.
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"…And then there's football…" Katie said. "But that's different in each country. Americans and Australians call it soccer because we have our own different football each."
Oliver Wood was looking a little lost, so Katie patted him on the arm and said "Don't worry, all they do is kick a ball around."
Oliver looked shocked. "One…ONE ball?" He asked in disbelief, horrified.
"Yeah. But tell me more about Quidditch, it's much more interesting…" Katie said coyly.
"Oh no…you've got him going now." A girl said bossily as she leant over to talk to Katie.
"No one asked you, Granger, now Shhh! Oliver's about to speak!" Katie hushed.
"Well "Well really!" Hermione said in a huff and went back to her dinner.
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After everyone had been fed and watered, the students all looked up at Dumbledore expectantly.
He stood up, and adjusted his spectacles.
"Well, as you'll all know by now, a special event is to take place at Hogwarts. I have the pleasure in announcing that Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is to host the first Inter-School Quidditch Cup," Dumbledore smiled proudly.
A large number of students whooped and clapped the house Quidditch team members cheering the loudest. Oliver Wood looked as if all his birthdays had come at once.
"Yes, yes, it's very exciting and I'm sure you will all represent Hogwarts with pride to the delegations who will be arriving in a fortnight. Quite a large number of students and teachers will be coming from Beauxbatons Academy, Durmstrang Institute of Magic, and Salem's School of Sorcery. This is the first time an event of this nature has been organised, so I trust you will give your full cooperation to ensure things run smoothly. Try-outs begin in one week, and matches will start a month after the arrivals. If you have any questions, ask the team captains, they will be given further details. Now, there's another full day ahead of each of your tomorrow, so may I suggest we go back to our dormitories for a good night's sleep."
Plates were left sparkling clean by magic as teachers stepped down from the high table, and prefects led students out into the entrance hall, everyone extremely elated and very much content.
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So what so you think? Review/Flame away!
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Chapter Four – The Sorting
"We are now on the second floor." Percy said in a monotone. Tamara, Katie and Grace had been 'entertained' by Percy for the past hour, and were having trouble keeping up with his brisk walk, owing to the fact that they had been dragging their feet along, bored with Percy's commentary.
"This is the second floor corridor. Students use it to get to classrooms on the second floor." Percy continued.
"Fascinating…" Katie muttered, playing with the rips in her gothic skirt.
"I knew you'd think so." Percy replied. They passed an empty classroom. "This is the History of Magic Classroom. Students study the History of Magic in there."
"No kidding…" Grace said, and then they were scaling yet anther staircase.
"Where will this take us – oops…" Said Tam making the others turn around. "Uhhh…I think I'm stuck." She said, and sure enough, Tamara's right leg was knee deep in a trick step.
"Cool!" Katie and Grace cried, and stuck a leg in each too.
Percy let out an irritated sigh. "Oh, now really! Couldn't you three make this tour a little easy for me?"
"Any easier and we would've died of boredom…" Grace muttered.
"This is a good experience for us!" Katie protested, trying to pull her leg free. "But…umm...how 'bout a little help, ay Percy?"
Percy rolled his eyes and extended an arm down to them, pulling Tam out, and then the other two.
"Oh, I suddenly remembered something!" Percy exclaimed. "I'll be right back you three, so DON'T go ANYWHERE. And for goodness sakes, don't go jumping into that step again." And he hurried down a hallway and out of sight.
Just then, there seemed to be a massive eruption as students came pilling into the corridors from their common rooms, all of them hungry and ready for dinner.
Katie, Tam and Grace stood stock still as they were surrounded by the commotion, as if they were standing in the middle of a busy highway. The halls cleared as the students went to put their books and bags away and get ready for dinner, and, in that time, Percy re-appeared with a stack of three spare plain black school robes.
"You'll be needing to wear these now." He said and showed them the way to one of the girl's bathrooms where they changed into their robes, pulling them over the clothes they were already wearing.
"I don't see why I can't wear what I've got on already…" Katie muttered, always proud of her gothic wear. "It's black! Blacker then the robes if that's possible!"
"They're sort of like the school uniform…" Grace replied as they re-emerged from the bathroom.
They joined Percy and the rest of the students as they went down to the Great Hall for dinner.
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Tamara, Grace and Katie were seated at the teacher's table, between Professor McGonagall and Professor Sprout. Everyone in the Great Hall was staring at the three, whispering about them and pointing, with their new faces, unsuited robes and blushing expressions…
When everyone was seated, Professor McGonagall tapped her glass for silence and the headmaster rose from his seat. "Due to recent events, we have three late admissions to the beginning of this term."
"But they're not the same age as first years!" Fred Weasley said over the hushed whispers that were floating around each of the four long house tables.
"Yes Mr Weasley, myself and the other staff members are aware of that." Dumbledore said with an amused smile.
Katie, Grace and Tamara meanwhile had suddenly found their shoes extremely interesting, and the tips of Tam's ears had gone bright pink.
McGonagall had risen from her seat and had fetched the three-legged stool used for the Sorting Ceremony, and, placed on the seat was the famous battered and worn Sorting Hat.
She organised the trio to stand in a line, side to side by the hat, which opened its mouth like brim and began to recite it's poem.
Many times and more
Once already this year
So I'm bored to the core
I have one job
And that is all
To sort you out
To make the call
To state which house
Your soul will belong
Where you shall live
While you're prolonged
I tell the tale
Of houses four
This is the last
Then I'll say no more
In Gryffindor, the daring one
The bravest of them all.
In Ravenclaw their wit and skill
Will never let them fall.
For Hufflepuff their loyalty and sweetness
Is well known.
In Slytherin the power lies
They can't be over-thrown.
So try me on now
See where your fate lies
I speak only the truth
I am nothing but wise
I've been in this for years
I know my job well
Lay aside your fears
Then the answer I'll tell...
When it had finished, the rest of the school broke into applause and someone said, "So it can make up a new poem in less then a year!"
"Yeah, it doesn't seem to happy about doing it though, does it?" Katie whispered to the other two.
"Maybe it's angry with us and it'll put us all into Slytherin!" Grace whispered back.
"Yay!" Tam cried gleefully.
McGonagall stepped up and pulled out a small piece of parchment. "When I call your name, kindly sit on the stool and put the sorting hat on." She said clearly. "…Almasy, Tamara."
Tam gulped, walked two paces to the stool, sat down and placed the Sorting hat on her head.
Everyone fell silent and waited with unsure anticipation…
'Helllloooo?' Tam thought.
'Good evening' came the reply. 'Which house shall we put you in tonight then?'
'I have a fair idea' Tam thought with a hopeful smile, but the hat ignored her with silence, and Tam knew it was thinking.
'A bit nervous, aren't we?' The Sorting Hat asked.
Tam nodded. 'A bit…'
'Some polite conversation until you've calmed down then, Tamara?'
'Sure.' Tam answered gratefully.
'So…whose side is it on in your family? Mother or Father?' the Sorting Hat asked.
'Pardon?' she asked, confused.
'Where does your wizard blood come from? Your mother…or your father?' The hat asked in more detail.
'I'm a half blood?' Tamara asked in awe.
'Well obviously. How else would you have been able to get here?' The Sorting Hat asked. Tamara was sure if the Sorting Hat had eyes, it would have rolled them.
'Whoa…I'm a half blood…' Tam grinned.
'Don't tell me you had no idea about this…' The Sorting Hat said.
Tam sat in silence, as she was lost in her dreams of being able to do magic.
'Well…back to the job…Are you brave and courageous?' It asked.
'I walk into poles…' Tam stated thoughtfully.
'Yes, a daring act…but no, Gryffindor is not the house for you…'
"What's taking so long?" Katie hissed to Grace, as Grace teetered back and forth on her heels, waiting anxiously for Tam to be sorted. Suddenly, they heard Tamara let out a small giggle and a moment later the Sorting Hat yelled out…
"SLYTHERIN!!!"
Tam whipped the hat off her head and went to join the Slytherin table. She approached it slowly though, as she noticed that the majority of them were mumbling in low voices, clearly undecided about having her added to their mists.
Then someone sitting at the middle of the table cried out, in Gyrffindors direction, "We got one of the newbies!!!" this sent a tidal wave of pride along the table and suddenly, tam fund herself being pulled in all directions with the words "Sit over here!" "No! She wants to sit over HERE!" buzzing around her ears.
When Tamara had finally managed to sit down and tear her eyes away from Draco Malfoy, who was sitting three seats down from her, she looked back up to the teachers table, where McGonagall had taken out her piece of parchment again.
"…Fowler, Grace!" Prof. McGonagall announced.
Grace stepped forward out of the line and made her way to the stool, sitting down before she pulled the hat on, which fell slightly over her eyes.
Now by herself, Katie, finally not blushing as much, scanned the audience at the Gryffindor table for the only guy she was interested in. When she finally caught sight of him, she started blushing again as she noticed he was already watching her. Oliver smiled and winked at her, waving slightly, making her smile softly at his attention and wave back a little.
While Katie was blushing happily, Grace was having a nice conversation with the Sorting Hat.
'Hi there…' Grace thought.
'Hello Miss Fowler. And how are you tonight?'
'Quite spiffing…' Grace said sarcastically, imitating a posh British accept.
'No need for sarcasm.'
.Silence.
'Well, do you have any idea which house your ancestors were in?'
'…Sorry?'
'Your ancestors. From Switzerland.' The Sorting Hat replied, nearly bored.
Grace tried to think privately, but she knew the Sorting Hat would hear.
'Doesn't ring a bell?'
'Hang on…let me think…' Grace replied. 'Switzerland…Switzerland…oh yeah! That's where the first people in my family originated from…Pffffft, they weren't magic!'
'Well they must've been. I suggest the magic has been passed on from generation to generation. In fact, it should have nearly bred out.'
'Shhhh…' Grace hushed. 'I want to remember this moment forever…'
'Well I hate to end the Science lesson, but I have a job to do.' The Hat said.
'Okay…' Grace sighed. 'But I don't think I belong in Gryffindor or Slytherin…'
'Quick!' The Sorting Hat said suddenly. 'What's eight times seven?!'
'Fifty-Six!' Grace replied in a confused panic. And before she knew what was happening-...
"RAVENCLAW!!!"
'Yesssss!' Grace thought triumphantly and jumped up off the stool to join her temporary fellow Ravenclaws.
Meanwhile, Katie had barely noticed as she had continued to gaze at Oliver shyly as Grace had been sorted, and it took Professor McGonagall to nudge her to get her attention again, causing everyone in the Great hall to laugh softly and Grace and Tam slap their foreheads at their friends' fixation on Oliver.
"…Silvanus, Katharine." McGonagall announced once again.
Katie, blushing a lot now, stepped up to the stool and pulled on the hat after sitting down on the famous three-legged stool.
She sat silent for a minute, before thinking 'Mister Sorting Hat? Sir?'
'Hello there Katharine'
'Sorry about making you have to write another poem just for us three…'
'Quite okay. It's been ages since I've had to write two new poems in one year, gives me something to do…Anything more you want to ask me?'
'I don't want to ask you to do anything extra…I just want to know which house I belong in…'
'Well, you're a pure blood…that'll help you along…'
'Whoa…what!?!' Katie asked in shock.
'You're a pure blood. Very late in started this year as well. You should be in Veneficus Academia at this very moment, what's your reason?'
Katie sat silently. 'I have no idea what you're on about…'
The Sorting Hat chuckled slightly. 'You had no idea you're a pure blooded witch, do you?'
'Well…it would explain a lot…why I like Wiccan so much…and why my teacher caught alight when he said I wasn't good enough to be in the school musical…'
'Well, now you know. It seems like all three of you are witches already, otherwise you wouldn't have been able to make a portal and travel through it now would you?'
'…I guess so…I never thought of it like that…'
'Well that's all sorted out. Which house do you think you belong in?'
'Not Hufflepuff…not Ravenclaw, maybe Slytherin…'
'What about Gryffindor?'
Katie giggled softly.
'Hmmm…do we have a love interest here?' The Sorting Hat asked sarcastically.
'Maybe…Oliver Wood's a nice piece of Man Candy…' Katie grinned.
'Well, Hufflepuff, you're not really sweet are you?'
'Heck no…'
'Ravenclaw…you're not really interested in skill to get something are you?'
'Nope, not really.'
'So Slytherin…using any means to get what you want…or Gryffindor…brave and daring to get what you want…which should it be?'
'…Slytherin…my favourite house…or Gryffindor…Oliver…I don't know!!!'
'Fine…I shall decide for you then…' The Sorting Hat fell into silence as he thought it out, and Katie bit her bottom lip as she waited for the answer.
'It had better be…'
"GRYFFINDOR!!!"
Katie sighed a sigh of half relief and half of regret as she glanced at the Slytherin table before joining them at the Gryffindor table, taking Oliver's offer of sitting next to him. Professor McGonagall had removed the three-legged stool and the Sorting Hat and was returning to her chair as Dumbledore stood up. "Well, with that festivity out of the way…I should say we should tuck in before some people faint from hunger…" Dumbledore smiled as Ron Weasley blushed slightly and muttered about his hunger. "I shall leave the rest of the announcements until after dinner…but for now, welcome to our three new students, and, dig in!" Dumbledore clapped his hands and the tables were swiftly covered in trays of food. Tamara, Katie and Grace glanced at each other over the heads of the busily eating students, then gave carefree shrugs and turned to tuck in too.
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At the Slytherin table, a few students sitting next to Tam got up and shifted places along the table to be closer to the Yorkshire pudding. "Close the gap, please!" a Slytherin prefect called and they picked up their plates and bunched up.
"Sorry." Tam said as she knocked elbows with the person next to her.
"Just watch it next time." Came the curt reply.
Tam spun around. "Listen, you little git! Just because you're a Slytherin, it doesn't give you any right to-"
Glaring back at her was a pale boy with blonde hair. "Yes?" Draco challenged, as Tam gaped at his, mentally kicking herself.
"S…sorry, Draco, I didn't mean to-"
"How do you know who I am?" he demanded.
"Err…I don't know if you realise, but you have a very strong reputation around here."
Draco blinked. "Do I really?"
"Oh sure, everybody knows about you and how your family is so respected in wizarding society." Tam went on, waving her chicken drumstick in the air absent-mindedly.
Draco listened to Tam praise him with rapt attention and only interrupted to say, "What was your name again?"
"Tamara, but you can call me Tam."
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"And you're from where?" One of the Ravenclaws who was sitting opposite Grace asked.
"Well, Oim roigh' 'ere from England." Grace fibbed, putting on a cockney accent.
"Nice try, Pinocchio, but Hogwart's is in Scotland." A Seventh Year scoffed, taking a sip of pumpkin juice.
"Well, err, strictly speaking, I'm not sure if I'm allowed to-" Grace stopped to look up at Dumbledore at the teachers table, who gave her the all-knowing-approving nod.
"Actually, I'm from Australia. I came with my friends Tamara and Katie," she pointed them out. "On a sort of supernatural, accidental road trip."
A much younger boy, who had been listening in on the conversation, dropped his fork. "You can drive??? A car??!?!" he asked, dumbfounded.
"No, Stewart, stop being so stupid." His friend corrected him.
Something occurred to Grace." Stewart Ackerly, right?"
He nodded.
"I remember when you were sorted..." she said to herself.
"What?" Stewart, highly confused.
"Nothing…" Grace said knowingly, looking at the enchanted ceiling.
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"…And then there's football…" Katie said. "But that's different in each country. Americans and Australians call it soccer because we have our own different football each."
Oliver Wood was looking a little lost, so Katie patted him on the arm and said "Don't worry, all they do is kick a ball around."
Oliver looked shocked. "One…ONE ball?" He asked in disbelief, horrified.
"Yeah. But tell me more about Quidditch, it's much more interesting…" Katie said coyly.
"Oh no…you've got him going now." A girl said bossily as she leant over to talk to Katie.
"No one asked you, Granger, now Shhh! Oliver's about to speak!" Katie hushed.
"Well "Well really!" Hermione said in a huff and went back to her dinner.
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After everyone had been fed and watered, the students all looked up at Dumbledore expectantly.
He stood up, and adjusted his spectacles.
"Well, as you'll all know by now, a special event is to take place at Hogwarts. I have the pleasure in announcing that Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is to host the first Inter-School Quidditch Cup," Dumbledore smiled proudly.
A large number of students whooped and clapped the house Quidditch team members cheering the loudest. Oliver Wood looked as if all his birthdays had come at once.
"Yes, yes, it's very exciting and I'm sure you will all represent Hogwarts with pride to the delegations who will be arriving in a fortnight. Quite a large number of students and teachers will be coming from Beauxbatons Academy, Durmstrang Institute of Magic, and Salem's School of Sorcery. This is the first time an event of this nature has been organised, so I trust you will give your full cooperation to ensure things run smoothly. Try-outs begin in one week, and matches will start a month after the arrivals. If you have any questions, ask the team captains, they will be given further details. Now, there's another full day ahead of each of your tomorrow, so may I suggest we go back to our dormitories for a good night's sleep."
Plates were left sparkling clean by magic as teachers stepped down from the high table, and prefects led students out into the entrance hall, everyone extremely elated and very much content.
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