A/N: Ok, another chapter edited and posted. A bit of plot here, but nothing big yet. The actual time travel doesn't start until the 7th chapter!! Maybe I can combine these two chapters and skip the whole part at Hermione's place...well u don't want to hear me ramble...I'll see what I can do about cutting things out later on. Right now I just want to get the chapter up!
Disclaimer: I own nothing. I don't own any of the characters. I don't own the Sorting Hat Song. I just used it because I was lazy and didn't want to write my own. So deal with it. On second thought, I do own Emily. She is mine. And all the first years getting sorted. Mine. All mine.
Finally, the time came for Harry and Hermione to pack up their supplies for the school year. The night before they left, they both packed up their clothes, books, wands, and in Harry's case, a broomstick. The two of them were so excited that night; they stayed until around 4 AM, and woke up to leave about three hours later.
"Come on kids, wake up. It's time to go."
"Ugh, what time is it?"
"It's 7:00 in the morning."
"I feel like I had no sleep at all."
"You didn't get very much. We heard you talking down in our bedroom at around 3:30"
"Sorry mom."
"It's okay honey. Harry, wake up. We're leaving now."
Harry awoke to the sound of Hermione's mother's voice. Ignoring the fact that he was so tired he could barely think, he jumped out of bed, got dressed as fast as he could, grabbed his trunk and followed the Grangers down to their car. It was a long ride to the station, even longer than the ride from the Dursley's. He and Hermione played wizards chess and Gobstones, although Hermione's parents were not too fond of the smelly green liquid that was spurt from the stones and told them to put them away.
Harry and Hermione arrived at the train station at 9:00. They said their good-byes to Dr. and Dr. Granger, and pushed their way through a mob of excited muggle teenagers who seemed to be waiting for their boyfriends, and looked at the pair strangely when they pushed through, laden with their trolleys full of strange items that you did not frequently see on a subway cart. They finally reached Platform 9 ¾, and to their pleasant surprise, found the Weasley family standing at the entrance to the Platform.
"Ron!" yelled Harry and Hermione in unison.
"Harry! Hermione! How are you?" he asked.
"Great!" Harry replied. "Hello Mr. and Mrs. Weasley. Hi Percy, Fred, George, Ginny," said Harry, addressing six of the nine Weasleys.
"Why, hello Harry, Hermione," said Percy, trying to sound as formal and official as he could. Harry did his best to stop himself from laughing.
"Hey guys!" yelled Ginny.
The seven Hogwarts students went one by one through the barrier to platform 9 ¾. When they got on the train, they went to go find the compartment where they had left all of their trunks. They were pleasantly surprised to see Neville, Seamus, and Dean sitting there.
They compared schedules, Harry, Hermione, and Ron all had Arithmancy together, because none of the other boys were taking it. They all had their main subjects together, Transfigurations, Potions, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Herbology, and Charms. Harry was very unhappy to see that they had all of their main subjects with the Slytherins. They had Arithmancy and Care of Magical Creatures with the Ravenclaws, and History of Magic with the Hufflepuffs.
The ride seemed shorter than it did in the past years. As the train pulled into the station, Harry looked outside and saw Hagrid standing outside, as large as ever, waiting to greet the first years and bring them in to deliver to Professor McGonagall, who would bring them into the Great Hall to be sorted into their houses. He saw the familiar castle, all the way across the lake, up the top of the mountain, looking very large and welcoming. His heart started beating faster. He looked around for his bags, but remembered that they had been magically taken out of the compartment and brought up to his dormitory. Everyone filed off of the train, and as they were all in the very last compartment, by the time they had gotten of the train, they didn't have time to say hello to Hagrid, because he was already loading the first years onto the boats, to be taken up to the castle and to their future.
The Great Hall at Hogwarts was a very large room with five long tables; four of them were the house tables, where the students from the different houses sat, and one was the staff table up at the front of the room, where all of the teachers sat. Harry, Ron, Hermione, Neville, Dean, and Seamus were all waiting expectantly at the Gryffindor table for Professor McGonagall, Deputy Headmistress at Hogwarts, to bring all the nervous first year students into the Great Hall to be sorted into their houses. A great BOOM was heard as the doors to the Hall swung open, and Professor McGonagall, followed by the first years, walked into the room.
She walked up in front of the staff table where a three-legged stool was sitting. Upon it was a frayed, patched, and dirty old pointed witch's hat. She stood beside the stool and tapped it with her wand. Immediately, it broke out into song:
Oh, you may not think I'm pretty,
But don't judge on what you see,
I'll eat myself if you can find
A smarter hat than me.
You can keep your bowlers black,
Your top hats sleek and tall,
For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat,
And I can cap them all.
There's nothing hidden in your head
The Sorting Hat can't see,
So try me on and I will tell you
Where you ought to be.
You might belong in Gryffindor,
Where dwell the brave at heart,
Their daring, nerve, and chivalry
Set Gryffindors apart.
You might belong in Hufflepuff,
Where they are just and loyal,
Those patient Hufflepuffs are true
And unafraid of toil.
Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,
If you've a ready mind,
Where those of wit and 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!
And don't get in a flap!
You're in safe hands (though I have none)
For I'm a thinking cap!
"It's the same song it sung in our first year," Dean whispered to him. He was right. That song was the very same one that had been sung during Harry's first year, the year that he had been sorted. He remembered sitting up there, wearing the hat, and feeling so stupid, nervous, and excited, all at the same time. He watched as professor McGonagall started calling the students up to the hat one by one.
"Armour, Julia!"
A pretty girl with brown hair that flowed down to her shoulders walked up, trying to hide her nervousness. Professor McGonagall placed the hat on her head. After about 5 seconds, the hat shouted out-
"RAVENCLAW!"
The table second from the left clapped loudly and reached out to shake hands with Julia as she joined them.
"Bracken, Amanda!" was called up next.
"GRYFFINDOR!" The hat shouted, Harry and his friends moved forward to shake hands with Amanda when she came over.
"Borman, Courtney," also became a Gryffindor. "Coles, Leah," became the first Hufflepuff and "Davis, Alexander" was the first Slytherin. As the Sorting hat announced Alexander's house, Harry looked up and saw Professor Severus Snape looking as smug as ever. But as soon as "Eisner, Steven" became a Gryffindor, Snape's and Harry's eyes met, and they shared a common glare. Although, he noticed, something seemed different about Snape. He seemed a bit...nervous. But Snape? Nervous? About what? Before he could try to work it out, Professor Dumbledore stood up at the center of the head table to make his welcoming speech.
"Welcome," he started, "to another wonderful year at Hogwarts! Before we start eating the delicious feast that you have all most likely been anticipating, there are a few points that I would like to address." Here, he paused, to look around the room at all of the smiling (somewhat smiling) new faces in the room. "I would like to remind everyone that the Forbidden Forest is out-of-bounds to all students. I would also like to introduce two new teachers at Hogwarts this year. First, Professor Clarissa Oleander, who will be the new Divination teacher at Hogwarts, as Professor Trelawney has...left the building. The whole Great hall, or at least everyone who new Professor Trelawney smiled, even some of the teachers. Finally, the old woman had been sacked. Hermione leaned over to whisper in Harry's ear:
"Hey, maybe now that Professor Trelawney's gone, Divinations might be a little bit more bearable."
Harry smiled again. Maybe so. Professor Trelawney had had a lot of fun by predicting Harry's death in every single one of her classes.
Professor Dumbledore continued, "And secondly, the lovely twin sister of our dear Potions Professor, Professor Emily Snape, who is going to be our new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher this year."
Harry could only stare. Another Snape? Oh no, this was going to be unbearable. He looked up to see Severus Snape, sitting and glaring, looking even more dangerous and menacing than Harry had ever seen him before. Harry inwardly smirked. Dumbledore had not only taken the position that Snape coveted so much out of his reach again, but had given it to his own sister!
Snape glared up at his sister, and she shot him a look that plainly said "Haha, I got the job that you wanted so much, so there!" Snape scowled and looked away as Dumbledore signaled for the feast to begin.
The tables were filled with delicious looking food; turkey, chicken, steak, roast beef, and much more. Harry piled a bit of chicken, potatoes, and pudding onto his plate and began to eat.
"Are they really related?" asked Ron in amazement. "They can't be! Look at her! She's gorgeous!" Harry had to admit that Ron was right. In terms of looks, they were nothing alike. Severus Snape was tall and thin, with greasy black hair and a hooked nose, and pale, sallow skin. Emily Snape seemed to be a few inches shorter, and had reddish hair with blonde streaks. It was straight and fell about three inches below her shoulders, and it perfectly framed her face. She had fair skin, not pale and sallow, like her brother, and she had a very nice, small, pretty nose, not large and hooked. Her eyes were big and bright blue, and reminded Harry a lot of Dumbledore's eyes. She truly was gorgeous.
"Bloody hell, she's hott!" exclaimed Seamus, who seemed to be entranced by the new teacher.
"C'mon, Seamus, you're not going to start hitting on the teachers this year, are you?" Ron began. "Keep in mind, that if you were to marry her, Snape would be your brother-in-law."
Seamus flinched. "Fine, I'll leave her alone."