A rather large man called for the first years to follow him. Diana just went with the crowd of first years around her. If she wasn't so furious with Fred, she would be really anxious to get to Hogwarts. The crowd of first years stopped in front of a small fleet of boats along the shore of a lake, then started getting into them. Diana got into one by herself, and looked up to see a castle with many turrets and towers. Her mind was a bit too preoccupied for her to be impressed.
Just before the boats set off, Diana was joined by Draco, Crabbe, and Goyle. Draco looked at Diana, all too able to sense that she was upset. He sat down very close to her and whispered,
"What's wrong?"
"Fred's being a jerk," Diana told him.
"That can't be too uncommon," Draco replied bitterly.
"He's usually pretty nice, actually," Diana said.
"It's only because he likes you," Draco said matter-of-factly. Everyone else was silent as they looked at Hogwarts in amazement. They went into a dark tunnel, and Diana felt someone kiss her. When they got out, she looked over to Draco, who was looking the other way with a well-hidden smile. Diana grinned slightly, and the boats came to a stop on a ground of stones and pebbles.
Some idiot took his toad, Trevor, from the large man. Diana remembered the boy to be Neville, because he had been looking for his toad on the train. A girl named Hermione asked around after he did.
They walked up the stone passageway to the castle. The large man raised a gigantic fist and knocked three times on the castle door, which swung open. A tall, black-haired witch in emerald green robes was on the other side. She had a very stern look that caused a few students to shudder.
"The firs' years, Professor McGonagall."
"Thank you, Hagrid. I will take them from here."
Professor McGonagall led all the first years across the entrance hall into a small chamber. She gave a long speech that caused Crabbe and Goyle to doze off. Diana listened, but not too intently. She only caught:
"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. Please wait quietly."
If her house wasn't predetermined, Diana would probably be as nervous as everyone else. Ron looked fearful that it might be a painful test, even if he told Harry otherwise. Diana's thoughts shifted to Fred, and she began to dread the Sorting.
Suddenly, about twenty ghosts came in from the back wall. All of them were pearly white and slightly transparent. They greeted the first years, though most of the first years were terrified of them.
Professor McGonagall came back and led the first years into the Great Hall. It was lit by thousands of candles that floated in midair above the tables. There were four long tables, one for each house. Most of the students were already sitting at them. Diana couldn't help but look at Fred, who had apparently calmed down a bit. She looked to the front the second he looked over, because she was still a bit angry with him. Everyone in the hall was staring at a hat that sat on a stool. It twitched and began to sing a song describing qualities of all the different houses.
When it was done, the hall burst into applause. It bowed to each of the tables, then became still. Professor McGonagall stepped forward, holding a long roll of parchment.
"When I call your name, you will put on the hat and sit on the stool to be sorted. Abbot, Hannah!"
A pink faced girl with blond pigtails put on the hat, which fell over her eyes, and sat down. After a moment, it shouted "Hufflepuff!" and the table on the right cheered. "Bones, Susan!" also became a Hufflepuff. Diana watched, though not fully interested. She couldn't help but smile when "Malfoy, Draco!" was sorted into Slytherin. When "Potter, Harry!" was sorted into Gryffindor, Fred and George started chanting "We've got Potter! We've got Potter!" As Harry sat, the hall quieted down a bit. That was when Diana came to the painful realization that...
"Riddle, Diana!" It was her turn. She walked slowly to the front of the hall and took the hat. Before even touching her head, it shouted, "Slytherin!"
Diana looked to the Gryffindor table, where Fred half smiled and clapped silently under the table. Diana smiled and walked over to the Slytherin table, where there was plenty of cheering for her to feel included.
Draco had saved her a seat, so she sat next to him. "Weasley, Ron!" was sorted into Gryffindor, and "Zabini, Blaise!" was the last Slytherin. Professor McGonagall rolled up her scroll and took the Sorting Hat away.
Albus Dumbledore, the headmaster, stood up and beamed at all of the students as if all he wanted in life was to see them all there.
"Welcome!" he said, "Welcome to a new year at Hogwarts! Before we begin our banquet, I would like to say a few words. And they are: Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak! Thank you."
He sat down, and everybody clapped and cheered. The dishes on the table were now piled with food. Diana took a couple mint humbugs and called them dinner. She had already eaten some Bertie Bott's earlier, so she wasn't very hungry. Draco took large portions of everything. Diana figured he got loads of food, since his family could easily afford it. He was rather thin, considering how much he ate. Diana was only a bit thinner than him.
Next to Draco was the Bloody Baron, the Slytherin ghost. Diana was on his other side, so he tried looking at her as much as possible to avoid looking at the Bloody Baron. At least, that was his excuse. The Bloody Baron was telling the story of how he got all covered in blood. Diana couldn't help but giggle at some of his sound effects.
The main course disappeared, and various desserts appeared in its place. Diana took a strawberry and put it on her plate. She listened to Draco, who was plotting against Harry Potter.
"I think I'll challenge famous Potter to a duel one of these days."
"I doubt he knows what a duel is. He lives with Muggles!" Pansy squeaked.
"Well," said Draco, "This should be interesting..Where should it be?"
"The trophy room," said an elder Slytherin. "It is always unlocked."
"Just in case, you could always use Alohamora. It's an unlocking spell," Diana stated.
"Maybe you could teach me some more spells. I already know a lot, mind you," said Draco.
"Where, though?" Diana asked.
"The common room should work. How does eleven o'clock tonight sound?" Draco recommended.
"Great," said Diana with half a smile.
The desserts appeared, and Professor Dumbledore got to his feet again. The hall fell silent. He gave his start-of-term notices involving a corridor on the third floor and a forest that were forbidden to students. Then, a long, golden ribbon flew out of his wand and twisted into words.
"Everyone pick your favorite tune," he said, "and off we go."
The words to the school song appeared, and about a thousand different tunes were sung to the school song. Everyone finished at different times. Fred and George finished last with a very slow funeral tune. As they finished, everyone clapped.
"Ah, music," Professor Dumbledore said, wiping his eyes. " A magic beyond all we do here. And now, bedtime. Off you trot!"