Disclaimer – This story is based on "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" by J.K.Rowling. Anything you recognise is hers. Anything you don't is mine. Simple!
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In the name of Helga: Year One
shewhodares
The Sorting Ceremony
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"Now, form a line, and follow me".
These past five minutes were unlike anything Ernie McMillan or Susan Bones had ever experienced. Professor McGonagall, who had earlier explained to them how the school houses worked, had left and returned to them again to escort the new first years into the Great Hall. During her absence, however, there had been the unexpected arrival of a gang of ghosts – which naturally had unnerved them a little, as is was a new experience for even those with several generations of Hogwarts alumni in their families.
What didn't help, it occurred to Ernie as he slotted into the line behind Susan and in front of his old friend Rachel (they had found each other again in the antechamber), was that one of the most important events of his life was to take place in front of at least two hundred other people.
Susan herself couldn't even think about her own nerves. Her legs were shaking so hard that she struggled to keep walking straight – and, finding herself at the front of the queue, she had to force herself to hold her head up as she walked through the solid double doors and into the Hall.
The sight that awaited them was one of the most magnificent that they'd ever seen.
They were led down the middle of four long tables, which were all full of people bar a small section at the end. The uniforms differed slightly from bench to bench, which made it evident that each house sat together for meals. As she paced towards the front, Susan glanced over at each. The table on the far left wore red and gold ties under their robes, at centre left they wore blue and bronze, centre right wore green and silver and at the far right they wore yellow and black. Sitting at that table was one of the ghosts they had met earlier – he regarded Susan with a wry smile and gave her a wink.
The Professor came up to another table on a raised platform where the teachers were sitting. Once the stragglers at the back of the line came to a stop, she silently exited through a side door and left the students to wait again. Susan took a better look at the rest of the vast room. Each place setting consisted of a shining plate and matching goblet, which shone in the light of candles that bobbed like corks in mid air. Nevertheless, there was no food or drink yet. She guessed that it would be served after the Sorting.
"It's bewitched to look like the sky outside, I read about it in 'Hogwarts: A History'".
The speaker, in a low, whispering voice, made Susan wonder what she was referring to, until Ernie jabbed her in the back sharply. "Look" he hissed from the side of his mouth. "Up there".
Where in most rooms like this there would have been a high, vaulted ceiling with detailed carvings, there was simply a black sky – glittering periodically with diamond-like stars. She was not the only one to gaze up at it in wonder, until Professor McGonagall's return was signalled by a heavy thump on the wooden floor at the front of the room. On looking down again, a four-legged stool sat there, upon it a frayed Wizard's hat that in Ernie's opinion was in dire need of repair and a good wash. The strangest thing was, the older students all stared at it with what can only be described as anticipation. He understood why when it began to sing!
"Oh, you may not think I'm pretty"
("Damn right", Ernie muttered. Susan had to stifle a giggle.)
"But don't judge on what you see,
I'll eat myself if you can find
A smarter hat than me"
("That's actually quite witty if you think about it" she shot back, biting down on her bottom lip.)
"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."
("But that pun was bloody awful!")
"There's nothing hidden in your head
The Sorting Hat can't see"
("That could be a bit dodgy")
"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"
("Who said nerve was always a good thing?")
"You might belong in Hufflepuff,
Where they are just and loyal,
Those patient Hufflepuffs are true
And unafraid of toil"
("That doesn't sound so bad" whispered Susan. "Safer, too!" snickered Ernie in reply.)
"Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,
If you've a ready mind"
("Er, no!" "Sssh!")
"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"
("Who wants friends like that lot?" "For once, I agree with you!" "What do you mean, for once?")
"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!"
Despite their own doubts about the hat's lyrical ability, Ernie and Susan joined in the loud applause that acknowledged its performance. All of a sudden, its 'mouth' closed and became quite still – and Professor McGonagall was prompted to pick up the lengthy roll of parchment that had been sitting next to the hat.
"When I call your name, you will put on the hat and sit on the stool to be sorted."
A murmur of excitement rippled through the first years.
"Abbott, Hannah!"
The tiny blonde, who had spent most of the song re-arranging her pigtails, squeezed out of her place in the line and walked up the steps to the platform. She sat for only a few seconds, before the hat shouted –
"HUFFLEPUFF!"
"So * that's * Hufflepuff" Susan thought, as the yellow and black trimmed students on the far right began to applaud loudly. Out of politeness, she joined in too.
"Ackerley, Brian!"
"RAVENCLAW!"
"So they're the blue and bronze" Susan said to herself, attempting to put to memory names, faces and house colours as Brian ran to join the table left of centre. The Ravenclaws showed their approval by shaking Brian's hand enthusiastically as soon as he reached them.
"Bagshot, Rachel!"
Ernie clapped her on the back as she went past him, held his breath, and waited. The hat was even quicker to decide this time.
"HUFFLEPUFF!"
The roar from the hat was so loud, Ernie could have sworn it was congratulating itself on its choice. He cheered boisterously as his friend went to join the same table as Hannah.
"Bones, Susan!"
The redhead breathed in sharply and left the front of the line, and caught a last glimpse of the starry ceiling as the hat covered her eyes. As the last of the light was blocked out, Susan heard a quiet voice speaking to her. Perhaps 'voice' was a little inappropriate, however, as it seemed to coming from inside her own head –
"Ah, a Bones, eh? Welcome to Hogwarts, my dear – I'm sure you'll do very well. I sorted both your parents, and most of your family. You've got an awful lot to live up to, you know."
Susan gulped.
"But in you I see the same things I saw in them. You have bravery and sagacity to rival a Gryffindor and Ravenclaw – but what I sense most in you is something both of those houses lack. I sense a vast belief in loyalty and fairness, and I get the feeling that you're quite prepared to wait for your moment of recognition to come. Not that it'll be too long before you get it, Miss Bones. Ah yes, I know exactly where to put you."
For a third time, the hat appeared to be particularly pleased with its choice. It bellowed –
"HUFFLEPUFF!"
With relief, and to the sound of cheering from her new housemates (who after all, knew the Bones family name well), Susan practically skipped with delight and joined the others over on the right. Once she had taken her seat, she gave Ernie an excited wave and accepted a huge hug from Hannah and Rachel.
"Great. Knowing my luck I'll get separated from the lot of them" he groaned.
The hat was now on another boy's head, and "Boot, Terry!" became the second student that evening to join the Eagles. The girl who followed him, "Brocklehurst, Mandy!" was also sorted into Ravenclaw, but following them was the first new Gryffindor.
"Brown, Lavender!", a brunette with a sharp-cut bob and bags of attitude, jumped up from the stool and practically skipped over to her new house's table, where she was greeted loudly by a pair of redheaded twins. The Gryffindors in general seemed to be very enthusiastic about their new members – they drowned out Hufflepuff AND Ravenclaw with the extra-hard stamping of their collective feet.
"Bulstrode, Millicent" was the next to be sorted. She became the first Slytherin, and once Ernie had taken a good look at her and the green and silver clad students sitting centre right, he wasn't surprised. The bulldogged-faced girl seemed to be right at home with the Serpents, who had been rather rude and hardly clapped any of the preceding first years.
After Millicent came another Slytherin – "Crabbe, Vincent!", a rather large boy with a threatening expression on his face, and "Creevey, Caroline!" who was the complete opposite – another tiny blonde who took her place with Lavender at the Gryffindor table.
There were no students whose surnames began with D or E, so Professor McGonagall followed Caroline by calling out for "Fawcett, Rebecca!"
Rebecca barely had time to pull her pointed hat from her bronze curls and sit down before the hat decided to place her in Hufflepuff. From behind him, Ernie heard an Irish accent ask – "Isn't it being really quick with those Hufflepuffs tonight?" Silently, Ernie agreed.
The next person to be sorted – another person with curly hair, but this time a rather tall blonde boy – "Finch-Fletchley, Justin!" strode over to the stool and looked prepared for a long wait, yet it was only about five seconds before the hat declared that he too was a –
"HUFFLEPUFF!"
"Bloody hell!" exclaimed the Irish boy, "there's thousands of 'em!" even an especially tense Ernie McMillan had to laugh at that one.
"Finnigan, Seamus!"
"Oh right, my turn." It turned out that the boy making the observations on the Hufflepuffs was to be sorted next. His sandy hair bounced up and down at the back of his head, before that hat covered his eyes. Once ten seconds had passed, Ernie remarked – "Obviously not a Hufflepuff then!" and received an appreciative laugh from the students around him – with the exception of a girl with brown, bushy hair who had earlier mentioned 'Hogwarts: A History.' Finally, after a whole minute, Seamus was put into Gryffindor and received cheers and applause of his own.
Seamus was followed by another Hufflepuff – "Fortescue, Julian!" ("I dread to think what Seamus would make of that" shuddered Ernie), and next came a Slytherin bearing more than a passing resemblance to the last one – "Goyle, Gregory!". Then there were two more Gryffindors – "Granger, Hermione!" turned out to be the one who knew about the ceiling, and "Longbottom, Neville!" was recognisable as the boy who'd lost his toad on the train. Ernie felt rather sorry for him as he seemed really nice, but was already showing himself to be a little clumsy. Matters weren't exactly made easy when he ran off still wearing the hat.
One more Ravenclaw "MacDougal, Morag!" followed Neville, and then there came a sudden quieting from many of the students – Muggle born or not. The next to be sorted was "Malfoy, Draco!", and being a pure blooded wizard himself, Ernie knew all about Draco Malfoy and his father's alleged activities (most of them highly illegal, but unproven). For Draco, the hat shrieked
"SLYTHERIN!"
A surprise to no one, Malfoy swaggered over to join Crabbe and Goyle and looked like the cat who'd got the cream. He smirked at the remaining students in a very smug way, ensuring that Ernie took a dislike to him from that moment on. Ernie was still glaring in the direction of the Slytherin table when the Professor called out –
"McMillan, Ernie!"
"Oh no" Ernie thought to himself, swallowing quickly. He hadn't though his Sorting would arrive so soon, but considering the speed with which the hat had gone through the six Hufflepuffs, it should actually have been expected.
"Ah, Mr McMillan, another famous name I see. I truly am honoured." Ernie jumped with surprise, he hadn't expected a talking accessory! "I've seen the like of you before – many McMillans have been to Hogwarts, I do hope you intend to honour your family name, boy. You are not the only one of your classmates with a reputation to keep up."
Ernie presumed it was referring to other Wizarding families like the Bones' and the Malfoys.
"But where to put you? Hmm, let me see. You're not quite bright enough for Ravenclaw, I'm afraid, although you do have the potential to do well if you try – and cunning isn't your style either, so Slytherin isn't for you."
He was glad at this. He didn't feel like hanging around with the likes of Malfoy and his brutish cronies, Crabbe and Goyle.
"As for Gryffindor? Well, you certainly have courage, but I think it's more out of a desire to protect the ones you care for than for anything else. Yes, you're another easy decision. I like those. It has to be –"
Ernie held his breath.
"HUFFLEPUFF!"
Rachel and Susan led the roar of applause at the table on the far right, and the three new Hufflepuffs he didn't know also clapped happily. He was extremely glad to finally get to sit down and rest, and upon reaching the expanse of solid oak he was greeted with warm hugs from his housemates. No wonder that Hufflepuff was known as the friendly house.
He chose a seat facing away from the wall, so he could get a good look at those still to be sorted. Hannah and Susan sat on either side of him, Rachel and Rebecca opposite, and Justin and Julian flanking them. Ernie had to look between the two girls' heads to see "Moon, Alec" be sorted into Slytherin, the table that was the next one along from their own.
"They don't look a welcoming bunch, do they?" Hannah whispered in his left ear, and Ernie replied in the affirmative.
"Nott, David!" was the next name to be called, causing Hannah to look sideways at Rebecca with a raised eyebrow. David, the boy who had shared their compartment on the train, had told them how he'd hate to be in Ravenclaw like his parents ("I don't want to be labelled clever, I want to have a laugh!"), and was extremely worried about ending up in Slytherin, for reasons he hadn't mentioned. They'd simply assumed because he didn't want to be labelled evil, either.
The hat this time took a much longer time to decide, taking more seconds than even Seamus and Neville put together. From their restricted view at the side of the hall, the new Hufflepuffs could see what looked like David whispering something to the hat.
"Do you think he's trying to influence it?" pondered Susan. The others shook their heads – they had no idea, as the hat had immediately suggested Hufflepuff for each of them. Ernie, however, noticed something rather strange.
"Psst! Take a look at the middle tables!"
Eager to see what he was referring to, they followed his instruction. Centre-left, Ravenclaw looked mildly interested at the announcement of David's last name ("His parents were Ravenclaws, you'd think they'd show a bit more respect!" Rebecca whispered indignantly, to a chorus of nodding heads from the rest of the group), but were mostly slumped at the table, looking a bit bored.
At centre-right, however, the Slytherins were very alert. Draco Malfoy, and his friends Crabbe and Goyle, were staring at David intently, keeping one eye on him as they embroiled themselves in a deep conversation with the other Slytherin male, Alec Moon.
"Now that's funny" said Julian, speaking for the first time. "Why would they be interested in someone from a Ravenclaw family?"
"Merlin knows" Rachel tutted in reply – clearly unimpressed at the way they were behaving.
After a second minute of deliberation, the hat's 'mouth' opened widely – and formed what looked to many like a grimace. The hat was nowhere near as happy this time.
"HUFFLEPUFF!"
The new friends applauded wildly at the hat's decision – which was just as well, as the Ravenclaw and Slytherin students sat open-mouthed with shock. Could it be they knew something the Badgers didn't?
David skulked over to the table looking slightly sheepish. "Took a bit too long, didn't it?" he said, his trademark grin much more weak and feeble than usual. "Must have been balancing out the time it took for you lot."
They tried to respond with a smile, but somehow it was very difficult. It took until Professor McGonagall called the next name for the growing tension to be dispersed.
"Parkinson, Pansy!"
The pug-faced girl was sorted into Slytherin, where she introduced herself by way of a simpering grin at Malfoy.
"Ugh" Justin shuddered. "Is it me, or do those Slytherin girls all look like types of nasty dog?"
The other seven turned in unison – and saw what he meant. It took a lot for them to avoid bursting into laughter in the middle of the Ceremony.
A pair of twin Indian girls followed Pansy. "Patil, Padma!" was sorted into Ravenclaw, followed by her twin, "Patil, Parvati!" who was for some reason placed in Gryffindor.
A voice coming from past Hannah's left said – "What did we tell you?" Hannah turned to see who it was, finding none other than Verity Vector and Kat Kiely, the sixth and seventh years who'd befriended them at King's Cross. Verity winked. "You'll see stranger sortings than that in the next few years, you can bet on it!"
Hannah smiled broadly in recognition, before turning back to the others and mouthing – "I'll tell you later!" to the Hufflepuffs who hadn't shared their compartment on the train.
If they'd thought that their group was complete by now, they were very wrong. "Perks, Sally-Anne!" was next to be called to the stool, and before they knew it, was also proclaimed a Hufflepuff.
The eight-strong group began to stamp their feet and whistle, the celebrations becoming earsplittingly loud as Sally-Anne joined the table to make them nine.
"Nine, eh?" Kat smiled. "I feel like a proud mum!" Verity just snorted.
"Potter, Harry!"
Verity knocked over her goblet. "What?"
The Hufflepuff Nine were equally bemused, and shared a look between them as whispers from the other Houses increased.
"Potter, did she say?"
"The Harry Potter?"
Sally-Anne, who was sitting next to David, turned round and had a good look at Harry, who was by now approaching the hat. "Who?"
None of them laughed – even the Muggle borns were too intrigued in his sorting, which like David's was taking an awfully long time. .
"Five sickles says it's Gryffindor." Julian said quietly. "Typical hero-stuff, beating He-who-must-not-be-named, just the type of thing Gryffindors do."
"Ten says it's Slytherin." Ernie added. "You'd have to have some pretty powerful stuff behind you to get rid of him."
"What ARE they talking about?" Sally-Anne whispered across to Justin, who was just as confused as she was.
"Haven't the foggiest" was his reply.
Julian and Ernie settled their bet.
"Done."
"You have been!"
The hat, which had been in earnest conversation with Harry, suddenly raised itself high upon his head, and bellowed –
"GRYFFINDOR!"
"Told you!"
"Damn!"
The cheers from the Gryffindor table were so overwhelming that the Professor had to wait a minute or so for the tumult to die down before she could continue.
"Quirke, Sarah!" joined Ravenclaw, sandwiched by two more Slytherins – "Pritchard, Michael!" and "Skeeter, Poppy!"
"God, not another Skeeter in the world! That's all we need!" sighed Kat.
"Is she Rita's daughter, then?" said Julian, plucking up the courage to speak to the elder girl.
Kat nodded, the pieces of hair she'd tucked behind her ears slipping out of place. "At least, I think so. If she is, the Slytherins had better watch their backs!"
Surprised that anyone could show concern for a Slytherin, attention turned back to the Sorting Hat, who after sorting "Stebbins, Craig!" into Ravenclaw, put "Thomas, Dean!" into Gryffindor. A smattering of polite applause followed from the others.
"Poor lad" sympathised Rebecca. "Imagine having to come after Harry Potter."
This, in the minds of her companions, summed up everything.
Following "Turpin, Lisa" joining the Ravenclaw table, the redheaded boys who had applauded Lavender Brown on her place at Gryffindor suddenly perked up again. It was the turn of "Weasley, Ron!" to take his seat. Looking at the tousled thatch of hair he had, they must have been his brothers.
"GRYFFINDOR!"
Seeing them cheer, it was pretty obvious.
"There's still a place left" announced Rachel in shock. "Do you think they're expecting another Hufflepuff?"
Ernie stood up a little from the bench, and counted the students still to be sorted. "Four more to go" he said. "Gryffindor's pretty full now, so at least one's going to be ours."
"Whitley, Antony!"
Rebecca recognised the boy she'd met in Eeylops', and as Professor McGonagall placed the Sorting Hat on his head she gave him a last cheery wave, encouraging Hannah and David – with whom they'd shared a train compartment – to do the same. Considering how placid and laid-back he'd been, it was no surprise when the hat, after a short paused, yelled –
"HUFFLEPUFF!"
Their table erupted with approving cheers as Antony, sporting a grin almost as wide as his head, sauntered over to their table and took the remaining place next to Sally-Anne. "The Hufflepuff Ten" he joked. "I like it!"
Their excited chatter went on for so long that they missed the sorting of "Wimple, Holly!" into Slytherin and "Woodroffe, Murray!" into Ravenclaw, but when it was the turn of "Zabini, Blaise!" (She filled the last spot at the table next to them), the confirmed Hufflepuff first years, as befitted their 'just' label, made the effort to watch. As Antony said – "I was getting bored waiting that long, so imagine what she was feeling!"
Job done, the Sorting Hat fell silent again, and Professor McGonagall picked it up and carried it from whence it came. The Headmaster, a bearded man sporting bright, multicoloured robes, waited for her to retake her seat and then stood before them all.
He had the most genuine looking smile that any of the students had ever seen on someone so important, and addressed them with more delight and respect than several of them probably deserved. He looked slowly and carefully at each of the Houses, favouring none with an extra glance – yet he still made every person there feel like he was acknowledging them and them alone. Albus Dumbledore began to speak.
"Welcome! Welcome to a new year at Hogwarts! Before we begin our banquet, I would like to say a few words. And here they are: Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak! Thankyou!
Over on the Hufflepuff table, The Ten exchanged another bemused glance. It was David who spoke.
"What a nutter!"
~~ * THE END * ~~
A/N: Yay, another chappy done! Just as long as the first one – never thought I'd see that happen! But still, I enjoyed this one because it gave me the chance to put it into my own perspective – for instance, did anyone else reading the UK versions notice that Crabbe, Goyle and Dean Thomas were never mentioned during the Sorting? It also meant I could sneak in my OC's, heh heh.
Anyway, I had an idea for a contest! The prize: You get to decide which class the 'Puffs attend first (tho it won't happen for another chap or so). You choose between Potions, Transfiguration, Charms (all with the Ravenclaws),Herbology with Gryffindor, Astronomy and DADA. Throughout the story they will attend three of those classes in detail. If you have any ideas for the class, you also get to put those forward.
The challenge: read the chapter again – and if you spot the significance of David's Sorting (ie why the Slytherins were so interested in him), e-mail me at heather_stanton@hotmail.com . I'll give you one clue and one clue only – it's mentioned very briefly in a certain part of Goblet of Fire. Anyone who guesses the plot line involved with this (which in fact won't happen until I get to the G.o.F section of the fic, but hey you never know - it's not amazingly difficult if you've paid attention so far) gets extra credit and gets to help me on the chapter where I would next put a contest – might be the next lesson, may be something else entirely which is a secret!
Before I go, a quick mention to the two reviewers I've had since "Crossing the Lake" –
Wannabe Hobbit – glad you came back to read this : ). I was halfway through this chapter when I read your review and it gave me an idea not only for this, but what might happen in the next chapter, so go you!!
Kat Hallowell – aaaw, you're the best ego-boost in the entire world! I liked Verity, too – but you know who she's based on! Lol. Thanks for saying what parts of my writing you liked – now I know what I've gotta live up to - -
Kisses, hugs, and * blanks * - what was the next bit?
*~ shewhodares ~*