"Why Not" Chapter 2
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Soon enough, the train arrived at Hogwarts, Ant & Lynn getting off with the Slytherins. During their train ride, Lynn was proud to say that she got a few pictures of her new found friends, & couldn't wait to show her mom them. Ant had become fast friends with Draco, & found out that Crabbe & Goyle weren't so bad after all, just appearing to be stupid gorillas. The girls were also very pretty, & thought Lynn & them would get along just fine. Lynn had also become fast friends with Pansy, & liked being around Millicent & Blaise also. They all promised to stay friends, even if Ant & Lynn were sorted into Gryffindor. Now, they saw a huge, hairy man bellowing, " Firs' years! Firs' years over here! C'mon, follow me- any more firs' years? Mind yer step, now! Firs' years follow me!" The group of friends walked over to the giant man, & discovered that his name was Hagrid. Learning that there were only four to a boat, Draco, Ant, Pansy, & Lynn got into one boat, Millicent, Blaise, Cameron, & Goyle in another one, & Crabbe got into another boat behind them, & behind the boat Lynn & Ant were in, were Harry, Ron, that girl Hermione, & another boy who was frankly looking for something. The four friends were talking & laughing, & then were suddenly hushed when they saw the grand Hogwarts castle coming into view. It was so magnificent, standing up on that hill, with its many towers & mist flowing around it. "That's so beautiful," Lynn breathed, looking at the castle in awe. Draco, who was next to her, agreed, "It really is." Lynn turned to him & smiled & he smiled back. Soon enough, they were at the castle, so they walked out of the boats & followed another professor, by the name of Professor McGonagall, inside the castle corridors. Hushing all of the students, the professor spoke.
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Ant listened intently as the professor spoke to them. "Welcome to Hogwarts," she started, a smile forming on her face, "The start-of-term banquet will begin shortly, but before you take your seats in the Great Hall, you will be sorted into your houses. The Sorting is a very important ceremony because, while you are here, you house will be something like you family within Hogwarts. You will have classes with the rest of your house, sleep in your house dormitory, & spend free time in your house common room." She took a quick breath, then continued. "The four houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, & Slytherin. Each house has its own noble history & each has produced outstanding witches & wizards. While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn your house points, while any rule- breaking will lose house points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded the house cup, a great honor. I hope each of you will be a credit to whichever house becomes yours." Finally, she finished with, "The Sorting Ceremony will take place in a few minutes in front of the rest of the school. I suggest you all smarten yourselves up as much as you can while you are waiting. I shall return when we are ready for you." With that, she left, not after throwing a few glances at some messed-up students, including their little group.
Once she was out of hearing range, Draco exclaimed, "I don't care what she says. I'll go in as I am right now. At least I'm not a stubborn prune like her." Their group laughed at his joke, & smiled at each other, but were interrupted by someone's exclamation of surprise. "Ant, Lynn! What are you doing with Slytherins?!" Ron said, anger mixing in with shock. Draco said, "We're their friends. Got a problem with that, Weasly?" "Yeah, they were our friends first! I can't believe you guys are friends with this.....bloody wanker!" Stepping forward, Lynn glared at Ron & sneered, "Why do you care if we're friends with them? At least they invited me & Ant to come, not just me ask them. Plus, it sure doesn't look like you like me anyway, & we can be friends with whoever we want, so bug off Weasly." Harry, Ant, Ron, & the others were shocked by Lynn's out-burst, the others & Ant happy for her, & Ron & Harry upset by it. Harry then came up & said, "I don't know what I even saw in you, you bloody outsider." Lynn immediately turned her head away, not wanting him to see her cry & be satisfied that he had hurt her. She didn't want to be an outsider, but she was American, & them British. Ant & Draco, including the others, saw her tears threatening to fall, so Draco said, "I can't believe you said that to her. She was just telling Weasly to mind his own business, & you tell her off for him. She never did anything to you Potter; I never thought Gryffindors were cruel." Ant added, "We were just making some new friends, but you have to open your big, fat, famous mouth & tell her that she can only be friends with you two. How typical, Potter." Draco & Ant went over to help comfort Lynn while they had death glares shooting at their turned backs. Everyone else was doing that too, except for one girl named Hermione.
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Lynn couldn't believe Harry had said that. She never did anything to him, & there he was, glaring at her just because she stood up in front of Ron for her friends. Pansy & the others were trying to cheer her up, but she couldn't get his words out of her head. "Don't listen to him," Pansy said, trying to cheer her up, "I don't know what he's talking about. You're not an outsider, you're our friend." The others nodded their heads, agreeing with Pansy. Soon enough, Draco & Ant came back over. "We told that dimwit off," Draco said, then put a comforting arm around her. Ant, slinging his arm around her other shoulder, added, "I don't know what I saw in those two. You guys were right; don't listen to them Lynn, they're wrong. You're better than them." This made her smile, & look at them. "I know I haven't known you guys for long, but I know we'll be great friends. Thanks." They smiled back, & had a group hug right before McGonagall came back. Soon, Lynn heard her say, "Alright first years; form a line, & follow me." They all joined in a line with the other first years & walked into the Great Hall.
'Wow, this is grand!' Lynn thought as she finally entered the Great Hall. There were floating candles all over the place, & she looked up & gasped; the ceiling looked like the sky outside! From behind her, she heard a girl whisper, "It's bewitched to look like the sky outside. I read about it in Hogwarts, A History." Soon enough, they reached the front of the room, where there was a four-legged stool sitting, & on top of it, was a ratty old wizard's hat. "Must be centuries old," Draco whispered into her ear, which made her giggle. Soon enough, a rip near the brim opened wide like a mouth, & it began to sing:
"Oh, you may not think I'm pretty,
But don't judge on what you see,
I'll ear myself if you can find
A smarter hat than me.
You can keep you bowlers black,
Your top hats sleek & tall,
For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat
And I can cap them all.
There's nothing hidden in you head
The Sorting Hat can't see,
So try me on & I will tell you
Where you ought to be.
You might belong in Gryffindor,
Where dwell the brave at heart,
Their daring, nerve, & chivalry
Set Gryffindors apart;
You might belong in Hufflepuff,
Where they are just & loyal,
Those patient Hufflepuffs are true
& unafraid of toil;
Of yet in wise old Ravenclaw,
If you've a ready mind,
Where those of wit & 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!
& don't get in a flap!
You're in safe hands (though I have none)
For I'm a Thinking Cap!"
Everyone clapped after the hat finished its song, while the hat bowed to each of the tables then became quite still. Lynn thought this would be easy enough, to try on a hat. She just hoped she didn't get in a house with Potter or Weasly, after what they had done to her. Soon enough, Professor McGonagall stepped forward, holding a long roll of parchment. "When I call your name, you will put on the hat & sit on the stool to be sorted," she said, "Abbott, Hannah!" Lynn saw a pink-faced girl with blonde pigtails stumble out of line, put on the hat, which fell right down over her eyes, & sit down. A moment's pause-
"HUFFLEPUFF!" it shouted, & she quickly made her way to the Hufflepuff table. Susan Bones, a girl with shoulder length brown hair & hazel eyes also made her way to the Hufflepuff table, but Terry Boot went to Ravenclaw. Two more people went, then it was Millicent's turn; she made Slytherin. They clapped for her, then paid attention to the Sorting once again. Soon enough, after Crabbe was also sorted into Slytherin, it was Lynn's turn to go up as she heard Professor McGonagall say, "Gaetano, Lynnea!" She didn't notice some of the gasps she heard as she made her way towards the Sorting Hat. Sitting onto the stool, she saw her friends encouraging faces before the hat blocked her view, & she only saw darkness. (Hm...let's see what house you belong in), a voice said from inside of her head; she figured it was the hat. (An excellent mind, I see, hm.....fair amount of loyalty, & a lot of courage. You have a looming past of which you don't know of, & many secrets you will find out. Still, you can be quite the sly one, & want to prove that you can fit into a new country. The house for you is-) "SLYTHERIN!" the hat yelled to everyone in the Great Hall. She could see that she had a magical path of the symbol for Slytherin forming on her robes as she got up & gave the hat back to the professor. She then made her way to the Slytherin table & took a seat next to Millicent & diagonally across from Crabbe, where Goyle took a seat at, after being sorted into Slytherin, also. "Great to see you, Lynn," Millicent greeted, smiling at her friend. "Glad to be here," Lynn replied as Hermione Granger got sorted into Gryffindor. Now, it was Ant's turn.
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Ant was happy for Lynn when she got sorted into Slytherin; at least she would be with friends. Soon enough, after Goyle was sorted, Professor McGonagall yelled, "Hardsgrove, Anthony!" Ant made his way to the Sorting Hat, sat on the stool, & felt the hat being placed onto his head. Soon enough, he heard a voice in his head. (My, aren't we a bright one? You have a very intelligent mind, but loyalty is also strong. You are also very sly, & much the antisocial one. It doesn't seem like it to me now. Still, you have a lot of courage in you, & even though there is darkness in you, bravery & light are the strong points. You must be in-) "GRYFFINDOR!" the hat screamed, & Ant took the hat off his head. He felt lonely, since he knew that all of his friends would probably be in Slytherin, but they would still be friends no matter what...right? Looking over at his friends who weren't sorted yet, Draco gave him a sympathetic look, as did Pansy, Blaise, & Cameron, & he could see Crabbe, Goyle, Millicent, & Lynn cheering for him, even though they really wanted him in Slytherin with them. He soon made his way over to the Gryffindor table & sat next to Hermione, that girl he met on the train. "Fancy seeing you again," he said, taking a seat next to her. She looked up & smiled. "Same here." Soon enough, Draco got sorted into Slytherin & took a seat across from Lynn & next to Crabbe, then Cameron got sorted there also, & then Pansy. Finally, Potter was called up, & Ant snorted when everyone gasped & whispered, "Potter, did she say?" or "The Harry Potter?" He felt like saying, 'Oh please! Get over yourselves!', but he didn't. The worst part was, he got sorted into Gryffindor. He made his way over to their table as two red-headed twins, probably Weaslys, shouted, "We got Potter! We got Potter!" He took a seat only a bit away from where Hermione & Ant were sitting, & gave him a look. Ant snorted again & looked towards the Sorting. Dean Thomas was also sorted into Gryffindor, then Lisa Turpin got sorted into Ravenclaw. Unfortunately, Weasly got sorted into Gryffindor & took a seat next to Potter, both giving Ant death glares. He turned his attention back as Blaise was sorted into Slytherin. He clapped for her as she joined their friends. Soon enough, the golden plates filled with food & they began to eat.
Turning to Hermione, Ant asked, "So, where do you come from?" "I live with my parents outside of London; their muggle dentists. We were all shocked when I got my owl for Hogwarts, & not wanting to be left behind, studied & studied all of the books we needed, getting sucked into the wizarding world some more. How about you?" "Well-." Before he could finish his sentence, he was bombarded by his two older sisters & older brother. "Ah! Geroff me!" he yelped, trying to throw them off of him, but failed. "Aw, we just wanted to see how our little brother was doing," a girl with shoulder-length brown hair & brown eyes beamed, mischief showing through her eyes; it was Mel. Another girl with dark, mid-back brown hair & dark brown eyes, being Air, added, "& to congratulate you on making Gryffindor!" Lastly, his older brother Bri, having brown hair that was mostly shaved with brown eyes said, "Hope we didn't embarrass you, little brother." They snickered as Ant rolled his eyes, then they left. "Who were they?" Hermione asked curiously. Ant replied, "Oh, those are my older sisters & brother, Mel, Air, & Bri; they're triplets." He looked over & saw them talking to those twin red- heads, hearing their names being Fred & George. "I have a younger sister, Evelyn, but she's nine; maybe she'll be a witch like me." "Yeah, maybe she will." They continued talking about their families, & even the classes they were going to have, which included Percy Weasly, a prefect for Gryffindor. Then, his mind wandered to what his friends in Slytherin were talking about.
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Lynn was almost rolling on the ground in laughter; she had found out that Cameron & Blaise were quite comical together. How did she know? Well....it had something to do with pranks they planned on playing on the Gryffindors & their Head of House, Professor McGonagall. "We should also turn her hair green & silver; she would look better in Slytherin colors," Blaise said, beaming at her idea. Adding on, Cameron said, "Actually, she looks horrible in any color, but that'll have to do." They were all laughing so hard that tears were almost coming out of their eyes. Stealing a glance at the Gryffindor table, she saw Ant talking to a girl with bushy light brown hair & chocolate brown eyes. She looked nice enough, so she figured the girl must be alright. Then, three students, two girls & one boy, bombarded Ant, & she could see an annoyed look on his face. 'I guess those are his older brother & sisters,' she thought to herself as she giggled slightly. Draco looked over at her then followed her sight to see she was looking at Ant. "Think he misses us?" Draco stated, looking at Ant, then at her. She caught him stealing a glance at their table & smile when she caught his eye. Smiling, she replied, "Yeah, I think he does." Soon enough, the banquet was finished, & everyone had to follow their prefects to their common rooms. Waving over at Ant, Lynn & the others followed the Slytherin prefects out of the Great Hall, then he disappeared out of her sight as he followed the Gryffindor prefects with that girl with the bushy hair. It started getting a little colder as they went farther down in the school; she could see dungeons everywhere now. Finally, they came to a huge crack in the wall behind a huge green tapestry. One of the prefects said, "Salazar Slytherin," & the crack widened, revealing a huge opening, which they walked into. She set eyes on a green & silver common room with black leather couches everywhere, with a small fireplace on the furthest back wall. "First year girls, please follow me to your dormitories." Since Pansy, Blaise, Lynn, & Millicent were the only first year Slytherin girls, they followed the girl prefect to their dormitories as Draco, Crabbe, Goyle, & Cameron followed a guy prefect up another staircase. Their dormitory was actually across from the boys' dormitory, so it wasn't that bad. Once they were left in their dormitory, they quickly found their stuff & started settling in. Lynn's stuff was by the window, which she was happy about, so she quickly unpacked her stuff & got ready for bed. Unpacking & a shower later, Lynn was in a white tank top & dark blue pajama pants, & hopped into bed. As she fell asleep, she wondered what Ant was doing in Gryffindor tower at that moment.
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Soon enough, the banquet finished, so Ant & Hermione got up to leave. He caught Lynn waving at him, so he waved back, smiling at her. Soon enough, they were out of sight, & Ant & Hermione followed the Gryffindor prefects to their common room. On the way, Hermione asked, "Are you friends with Slytherins?" "Yeah; I met them on the train," he replied, hoping she wasn't like all of the other kids in their year. Surprisingly, she said, "I think that's great. I mean, this stupid rivalry thing with Slytherin & Gryffindor is so stupid. Maybe you can introduce them to me later?" Smiling, he said, "Sure. I think they would like you." Suddenly, a bunch of walking sticks were being thrown at them, & Percy, the prefect guiding them, yelled, "Peeves- show yourself." A loud, rude sound, like the air being let out of a balloon, answered. "Do you want me to go to the Bloody Baron?" There was a pop, & a little man with wicked, dark eyes & a wide mouth appeared, floating cross-legged in the air, clutching the walking sticks. "Ooooooooh!" he said, with an evil cackle. "Ickle Firsties! What fun!" He swooped down at them, while they all ducked. "Go away, Peeves, or the Baron'll hear about this, I mean it!" barked Percy. Peeves soon left, not after dropping the walking sticks on Neville Longbottom. Soon enough, they continued on until they got to a portrait of a very fat woman in a pink silk dress. "Password?" she said. "Caput Draconis," said Percy, & the portrait swung forward to reveal a round hole in the wall. They all scrambled through it- Ant & Hermione helped Neville get through- & found themselves in the Gryffindor common room, a cozy, round room full of squashy armchairs.
The girls, including Hermione, soon went up to the girls' dormitories, & Ant & Hermione agreed to meet up to go to breakfast together the next morning, & the boys followed Percy to the boys' dormitory. Unfortunately, Ant had to share it with Potter, Weasly, & then Neville, Dean Thomas, & Seamus Finnigan. Soon left in their dormitory, across from the girls', there were six four-posters hung with deep red, velvet curtains. Their trunks had already been brought up, so they got their pajamas on & went to sleep, except for Ant. He had a bed next to the window, which he really enjoyed, & unpacked everything. After getting a shower, he put on black pajama pants & climbed into bed. Before he fell asleep, he hoped Lynn, Draco, Pansy, Blaise, Crabbe, Goyle, Millicent, & Cameron made it alright, & hoped that they would also except Hermione, because she was one of the first people in Gryffindor to really become his friend. With that, he fell asleep.
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Soon enough, the train arrived at Hogwarts, Ant & Lynn getting off with the Slytherins. During their train ride, Lynn was proud to say that she got a few pictures of her new found friends, & couldn't wait to show her mom them. Ant had become fast friends with Draco, & found out that Crabbe & Goyle weren't so bad after all, just appearing to be stupid gorillas. The girls were also very pretty, & thought Lynn & them would get along just fine. Lynn had also become fast friends with Pansy, & liked being around Millicent & Blaise also. They all promised to stay friends, even if Ant & Lynn were sorted into Gryffindor. Now, they saw a huge, hairy man bellowing, " Firs' years! Firs' years over here! C'mon, follow me- any more firs' years? Mind yer step, now! Firs' years follow me!" The group of friends walked over to the giant man, & discovered that his name was Hagrid. Learning that there were only four to a boat, Draco, Ant, Pansy, & Lynn got into one boat, Millicent, Blaise, Cameron, & Goyle in another one, & Crabbe got into another boat behind them, & behind the boat Lynn & Ant were in, were Harry, Ron, that girl Hermione, & another boy who was frankly looking for something. The four friends were talking & laughing, & then were suddenly hushed when they saw the grand Hogwarts castle coming into view. It was so magnificent, standing up on that hill, with its many towers & mist flowing around it. "That's so beautiful," Lynn breathed, looking at the castle in awe. Draco, who was next to her, agreed, "It really is." Lynn turned to him & smiled & he smiled back. Soon enough, they were at the castle, so they walked out of the boats & followed another professor, by the name of Professor McGonagall, inside the castle corridors. Hushing all of the students, the professor spoke.
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Ant listened intently as the professor spoke to them. "Welcome to Hogwarts," she started, a smile forming on her face, "The start-of-term banquet will begin shortly, but before you take your seats in the Great Hall, you will be sorted into your houses. The Sorting is a very important ceremony because, while you are here, you house will be something like you family within Hogwarts. You will have classes with the rest of your house, sleep in your house dormitory, & spend free time in your house common room." She took a quick breath, then continued. "The four houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, & Slytherin. Each house has its own noble history & each has produced outstanding witches & wizards. While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn your house points, while any rule- breaking will lose house points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded the house cup, a great honor. I hope each of you will be a credit to whichever house becomes yours." Finally, she finished with, "The Sorting Ceremony will take place in a few minutes in front of the rest of the school. I suggest you all smarten yourselves up as much as you can while you are waiting. I shall return when we are ready for you." With that, she left, not after throwing a few glances at some messed-up students, including their little group.
Once she was out of hearing range, Draco exclaimed, "I don't care what she says. I'll go in as I am right now. At least I'm not a stubborn prune like her." Their group laughed at his joke, & smiled at each other, but were interrupted by someone's exclamation of surprise. "Ant, Lynn! What are you doing with Slytherins?!" Ron said, anger mixing in with shock. Draco said, "We're their friends. Got a problem with that, Weasly?" "Yeah, they were our friends first! I can't believe you guys are friends with this.....bloody wanker!" Stepping forward, Lynn glared at Ron & sneered, "Why do you care if we're friends with them? At least they invited me & Ant to come, not just me ask them. Plus, it sure doesn't look like you like me anyway, & we can be friends with whoever we want, so bug off Weasly." Harry, Ant, Ron, & the others were shocked by Lynn's out-burst, the others & Ant happy for her, & Ron & Harry upset by it. Harry then came up & said, "I don't know what I even saw in you, you bloody outsider." Lynn immediately turned her head away, not wanting him to see her cry & be satisfied that he had hurt her. She didn't want to be an outsider, but she was American, & them British. Ant & Draco, including the others, saw her tears threatening to fall, so Draco said, "I can't believe you said that to her. She was just telling Weasly to mind his own business, & you tell her off for him. She never did anything to you Potter; I never thought Gryffindors were cruel." Ant added, "We were just making some new friends, but you have to open your big, fat, famous mouth & tell her that she can only be friends with you two. How typical, Potter." Draco & Ant went over to help comfort Lynn while they had death glares shooting at their turned backs. Everyone else was doing that too, except for one girl named Hermione.
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Lynn couldn't believe Harry had said that. She never did anything to him, & there he was, glaring at her just because she stood up in front of Ron for her friends. Pansy & the others were trying to cheer her up, but she couldn't get his words out of her head. "Don't listen to him," Pansy said, trying to cheer her up, "I don't know what he's talking about. You're not an outsider, you're our friend." The others nodded their heads, agreeing with Pansy. Soon enough, Draco & Ant came back over. "We told that dimwit off," Draco said, then put a comforting arm around her. Ant, slinging his arm around her other shoulder, added, "I don't know what I saw in those two. You guys were right; don't listen to them Lynn, they're wrong. You're better than them." This made her smile, & look at them. "I know I haven't known you guys for long, but I know we'll be great friends. Thanks." They smiled back, & had a group hug right before McGonagall came back. Soon, Lynn heard her say, "Alright first years; form a line, & follow me." They all joined in a line with the other first years & walked into the Great Hall.
'Wow, this is grand!' Lynn thought as she finally entered the Great Hall. There were floating candles all over the place, & she looked up & gasped; the ceiling looked like the sky outside! From behind her, she heard a girl whisper, "It's bewitched to look like the sky outside. I read about it in Hogwarts, A History." Soon enough, they reached the front of the room, where there was a four-legged stool sitting, & on top of it, was a ratty old wizard's hat. "Must be centuries old," Draco whispered into her ear, which made her giggle. Soon enough, a rip near the brim opened wide like a mouth, & it began to sing:
"Oh, you may not think I'm pretty,
But don't judge on what you see,
I'll ear myself if you can find
A smarter hat than me.
You can keep you bowlers black,
Your top hats sleek & tall,
For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat
And I can cap them all.
There's nothing hidden in you head
The Sorting Hat can't see,
So try me on & I will tell you
Where you ought to be.
You might belong in Gryffindor,
Where dwell the brave at heart,
Their daring, nerve, & chivalry
Set Gryffindors apart;
You might belong in Hufflepuff,
Where they are just & loyal,
Those patient Hufflepuffs are true
& unafraid of toil;
Of yet in wise old Ravenclaw,
If you've a ready mind,
Where those of wit & 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!
& don't get in a flap!
You're in safe hands (though I have none)
For I'm a Thinking Cap!"
Everyone clapped after the hat finished its song, while the hat bowed to each of the tables then became quite still. Lynn thought this would be easy enough, to try on a hat. She just hoped she didn't get in a house with Potter or Weasly, after what they had done to her. Soon enough, Professor McGonagall stepped forward, holding a long roll of parchment. "When I call your name, you will put on the hat & sit on the stool to be sorted," she said, "Abbott, Hannah!" Lynn saw a pink-faced girl with blonde pigtails stumble out of line, put on the hat, which fell right down over her eyes, & sit down. A moment's pause-
"HUFFLEPUFF!" it shouted, & she quickly made her way to the Hufflepuff table. Susan Bones, a girl with shoulder length brown hair & hazel eyes also made her way to the Hufflepuff table, but Terry Boot went to Ravenclaw. Two more people went, then it was Millicent's turn; she made Slytherin. They clapped for her, then paid attention to the Sorting once again. Soon enough, after Crabbe was also sorted into Slytherin, it was Lynn's turn to go up as she heard Professor McGonagall say, "Gaetano, Lynnea!" She didn't notice some of the gasps she heard as she made her way towards the Sorting Hat. Sitting onto the stool, she saw her friends encouraging faces before the hat blocked her view, & she only saw darkness. (Hm...let's see what house you belong in), a voice said from inside of her head; she figured it was the hat. (An excellent mind, I see, hm.....fair amount of loyalty, & a lot of courage. You have a looming past of which you don't know of, & many secrets you will find out. Still, you can be quite the sly one, & want to prove that you can fit into a new country. The house for you is-) "SLYTHERIN!" the hat yelled to everyone in the Great Hall. She could see that she had a magical path of the symbol for Slytherin forming on her robes as she got up & gave the hat back to the professor. She then made her way to the Slytherin table & took a seat next to Millicent & diagonally across from Crabbe, where Goyle took a seat at, after being sorted into Slytherin, also. "Great to see you, Lynn," Millicent greeted, smiling at her friend. "Glad to be here," Lynn replied as Hermione Granger got sorted into Gryffindor. Now, it was Ant's turn.
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Ant was happy for Lynn when she got sorted into Slytherin; at least she would be with friends. Soon enough, after Goyle was sorted, Professor McGonagall yelled, "Hardsgrove, Anthony!" Ant made his way to the Sorting Hat, sat on the stool, & felt the hat being placed onto his head. Soon enough, he heard a voice in his head. (My, aren't we a bright one? You have a very intelligent mind, but loyalty is also strong. You are also very sly, & much the antisocial one. It doesn't seem like it to me now. Still, you have a lot of courage in you, & even though there is darkness in you, bravery & light are the strong points. You must be in-) "GRYFFINDOR!" the hat screamed, & Ant took the hat off his head. He felt lonely, since he knew that all of his friends would probably be in Slytherin, but they would still be friends no matter what...right? Looking over at his friends who weren't sorted yet, Draco gave him a sympathetic look, as did Pansy, Blaise, & Cameron, & he could see Crabbe, Goyle, Millicent, & Lynn cheering for him, even though they really wanted him in Slytherin with them. He soon made his way over to the Gryffindor table & sat next to Hermione, that girl he met on the train. "Fancy seeing you again," he said, taking a seat next to her. She looked up & smiled. "Same here." Soon enough, Draco got sorted into Slytherin & took a seat across from Lynn & next to Crabbe, then Cameron got sorted there also, & then Pansy. Finally, Potter was called up, & Ant snorted when everyone gasped & whispered, "Potter, did she say?" or "The Harry Potter?" He felt like saying, 'Oh please! Get over yourselves!', but he didn't. The worst part was, he got sorted into Gryffindor. He made his way over to their table as two red-headed twins, probably Weaslys, shouted, "We got Potter! We got Potter!" He took a seat only a bit away from where Hermione & Ant were sitting, & gave him a look. Ant snorted again & looked towards the Sorting. Dean Thomas was also sorted into Gryffindor, then Lisa Turpin got sorted into Ravenclaw. Unfortunately, Weasly got sorted into Gryffindor & took a seat next to Potter, both giving Ant death glares. He turned his attention back as Blaise was sorted into Slytherin. He clapped for her as she joined their friends. Soon enough, the golden plates filled with food & they began to eat.
Turning to Hermione, Ant asked, "So, where do you come from?" "I live with my parents outside of London; their muggle dentists. We were all shocked when I got my owl for Hogwarts, & not wanting to be left behind, studied & studied all of the books we needed, getting sucked into the wizarding world some more. How about you?" "Well-." Before he could finish his sentence, he was bombarded by his two older sisters & older brother. "Ah! Geroff me!" he yelped, trying to throw them off of him, but failed. "Aw, we just wanted to see how our little brother was doing," a girl with shoulder-length brown hair & brown eyes beamed, mischief showing through her eyes; it was Mel. Another girl with dark, mid-back brown hair & dark brown eyes, being Air, added, "& to congratulate you on making Gryffindor!" Lastly, his older brother Bri, having brown hair that was mostly shaved with brown eyes said, "Hope we didn't embarrass you, little brother." They snickered as Ant rolled his eyes, then they left. "Who were they?" Hermione asked curiously. Ant replied, "Oh, those are my older sisters & brother, Mel, Air, & Bri; they're triplets." He looked over & saw them talking to those twin red- heads, hearing their names being Fred & George. "I have a younger sister, Evelyn, but she's nine; maybe she'll be a witch like me." "Yeah, maybe she will." They continued talking about their families, & even the classes they were going to have, which included Percy Weasly, a prefect for Gryffindor. Then, his mind wandered to what his friends in Slytherin were talking about.
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Lynn was almost rolling on the ground in laughter; she had found out that Cameron & Blaise were quite comical together. How did she know? Well....it had something to do with pranks they planned on playing on the Gryffindors & their Head of House, Professor McGonagall. "We should also turn her hair green & silver; she would look better in Slytherin colors," Blaise said, beaming at her idea. Adding on, Cameron said, "Actually, she looks horrible in any color, but that'll have to do." They were all laughing so hard that tears were almost coming out of their eyes. Stealing a glance at the Gryffindor table, she saw Ant talking to a girl with bushy light brown hair & chocolate brown eyes. She looked nice enough, so she figured the girl must be alright. Then, three students, two girls & one boy, bombarded Ant, & she could see an annoyed look on his face. 'I guess those are his older brother & sisters,' she thought to herself as she giggled slightly. Draco looked over at her then followed her sight to see she was looking at Ant. "Think he misses us?" Draco stated, looking at Ant, then at her. She caught him stealing a glance at their table & smile when she caught his eye. Smiling, she replied, "Yeah, I think he does." Soon enough, the banquet was finished, & everyone had to follow their prefects to their common rooms. Waving over at Ant, Lynn & the others followed the Slytherin prefects out of the Great Hall, then he disappeared out of her sight as he followed the Gryffindor prefects with that girl with the bushy hair. It started getting a little colder as they went farther down in the school; she could see dungeons everywhere now. Finally, they came to a huge crack in the wall behind a huge green tapestry. One of the prefects said, "Salazar Slytherin," & the crack widened, revealing a huge opening, which they walked into. She set eyes on a green & silver common room with black leather couches everywhere, with a small fireplace on the furthest back wall. "First year girls, please follow me to your dormitories." Since Pansy, Blaise, Lynn, & Millicent were the only first year Slytherin girls, they followed the girl prefect to their dormitories as Draco, Crabbe, Goyle, & Cameron followed a guy prefect up another staircase. Their dormitory was actually across from the boys' dormitory, so it wasn't that bad. Once they were left in their dormitory, they quickly found their stuff & started settling in. Lynn's stuff was by the window, which she was happy about, so she quickly unpacked her stuff & got ready for bed. Unpacking & a shower later, Lynn was in a white tank top & dark blue pajama pants, & hopped into bed. As she fell asleep, she wondered what Ant was doing in Gryffindor tower at that moment.
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Soon enough, the banquet finished, so Ant & Hermione got up to leave. He caught Lynn waving at him, so he waved back, smiling at her. Soon enough, they were out of sight, & Ant & Hermione followed the Gryffindor prefects to their common room. On the way, Hermione asked, "Are you friends with Slytherins?" "Yeah; I met them on the train," he replied, hoping she wasn't like all of the other kids in their year. Surprisingly, she said, "I think that's great. I mean, this stupid rivalry thing with Slytherin & Gryffindor is so stupid. Maybe you can introduce them to me later?" Smiling, he said, "Sure. I think they would like you." Suddenly, a bunch of walking sticks were being thrown at them, & Percy, the prefect guiding them, yelled, "Peeves- show yourself." A loud, rude sound, like the air being let out of a balloon, answered. "Do you want me to go to the Bloody Baron?" There was a pop, & a little man with wicked, dark eyes & a wide mouth appeared, floating cross-legged in the air, clutching the walking sticks. "Ooooooooh!" he said, with an evil cackle. "Ickle Firsties! What fun!" He swooped down at them, while they all ducked. "Go away, Peeves, or the Baron'll hear about this, I mean it!" barked Percy. Peeves soon left, not after dropping the walking sticks on Neville Longbottom. Soon enough, they continued on until they got to a portrait of a very fat woman in a pink silk dress. "Password?" she said. "Caput Draconis," said Percy, & the portrait swung forward to reveal a round hole in the wall. They all scrambled through it- Ant & Hermione helped Neville get through- & found themselves in the Gryffindor common room, a cozy, round room full of squashy armchairs.
The girls, including Hermione, soon went up to the girls' dormitories, & Ant & Hermione agreed to meet up to go to breakfast together the next morning, & the boys followed Percy to the boys' dormitory. Unfortunately, Ant had to share it with Potter, Weasly, & then Neville, Dean Thomas, & Seamus Finnigan. Soon left in their dormitory, across from the girls', there were six four-posters hung with deep red, velvet curtains. Their trunks had already been brought up, so they got their pajamas on & went to sleep, except for Ant. He had a bed next to the window, which he really enjoyed, & unpacked everything. After getting a shower, he put on black pajama pants & climbed into bed. Before he fell asleep, he hoped Lynn, Draco, Pansy, Blaise, Crabbe, Goyle, Millicent, & Cameron made it alright, & hoped that they would also except Hermione, because she was one of the first people in Gryffindor to really become his friend. With that, he fell asleep.