CHAPTER II
When I had to leave, I had to follow a second year to find the train called Percy Weasley. Percy was rather stuck up and would've made a perfect pupil at a muggle private school. It was now when I realised that I had started referring to my family and friends as muggles. It was weird I had always thought of everyone as people and now they were muggles? People below others and myself in society, but only if they knew about us? Now THAT is weird.
The entry to Platform 9¾ was hidden and I felt rather odd about walking through a brick wall. Fred and George, Percy's younger brothers, wanted to come but they weren't allowed to go to the platform. They looked like a great laugh and I would've liked to get to know them but I would have to wait until next year. I had to promise them that I would write to them about their brother. Besides my arms were getting sore from holding up Ginny.
I handed my bags to the guy at the back of the train who was in charge of loading all the main baggage on to the train. Then I started to look for a place to sit, but, there were either no seats, or places were quickly filled with coats and small bags. So I was left standing in the corridor, all alone.
I had taunts coming from every side, it was only when the prefects came along that I got some relief. They even stood and talked a while and told me that I would make friends soon enough. Fat Chance!
The view…WOW! Mountains on one side and valleys on the other, I could tell by the lavender heather (not to mention the ever-cloudy sky) that we were in Scotland. I was born and bred in Scotland after all and I couldn't help but notice it! But the best view by far was a second year that was Drop… Dead… Gorgeous! He was really nice as well, and chatted with me about what it was like at Hogwart's. He had to go though but before he did he chased away the newest Slytherins and first years who had taken it into their head to slag me.
Once the long journey to Hogwart's was complete we were taken across the lake by a giant of a man… the gamekeeper, Hagrid. He seemed sympathetic with people like me, who are different and kept outside any group. I was placed in a boat alone; as was hagrid, everyone else was in a boat to themselves, and we started across the lake, and I got my first view of my home for the next seven years, well most of the next seven years. And for all my ideas of what a magical castle would look like, I still hadn't guessed any of it! The castle itself was magnificent and the grounds as well were beautiful.
When we docked, we all made our way to the entrance hall where we were greeted by a woman called Professor McGonagall. She told us that before we could sit with our classmates we had to be sorted into our houses. Once in our houses the other members of that house would be like our family (yeah whatever!) The houses are Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin. I wouldn't mind being in Ravenclaw or Gryffindor but Hufflepuffs are ridiculous and I already hated Slytherins.
As we walked through the candle-lit (floating candles!) Hall I was the only one not staring at the magical roof. In fact I barely gave it a glance. Mostly cause I was too busy looking at the Gryffindor Table because that guy was giving me an encouraging wink and made a rather nasty gesture at the girls behind me and laughing at me.
The sorting Hat sang a song and I had the feeling this was a tradition, and it obviously changed the song every year cause no one knew the words:
Place me on your head
And then you will see
The answer to the question
Where should they put me?
Hogwarts has four houses,
You'll be put in one,
Once sorted by the Sorting Hat,
Your years here will have begun.
If bravery, daring, and chivalry,
Within you I see,
I know just where you will end up;
In Gryffindor you'll be.
If you are smart and clever,
There is a lot you know,
Have no doubt about it,
To Ravenclaw you'll go.
If you work hard and you believe
There always is a way,
Then you'll go into Hufflepuff,
And that is where you'll stay.
If you have lots of cunning,
And lots of ambition,
To put you into Slytherin
Will be my admission.
So sit down on the stool
And place me on your head
I'll put you in the right house,
There is no need for dread.
I can see inside your brain
But don't worry about me,
The only thing I care about
Is in which house you'll be!
When it was my turn to be sorted the sorting hat was placed on my head and told me I have some… unusual talents, and would be a loyal and caring friend and be brave and strong when I needed to…"GRYFFINDOR!" Under all the cheers I heard it say something about "ancient" but that was all.
Guess who saved me a seat? The one… the only… Oliver Wood! THAT guy! He's going to be the Gryffindor Keeper this year…if he makes the Quidditch team but I'm sure he will. Percy has just spotted me staring at Oliver and is sniggering into his cup, but I just pointed over my shoulder cause I had noticed him staring at one of the Ravenclaw girls. He turned a nice shade of pink and made a sign like "my lips are sealed". I decided to write to Fred and George later about Percy leaving out the bit about Oliver and I (not that anything was going on of course!)
After the feast we were escorted to our dorms and followed the prefect to Gryffindor tower. The Stairs moved! So did the paintings! Nearly Headless Nick, Gryffindor's ghost-host, was waiting for us and said "hullo" and disappeared through a painting of a fat lady in pink. The prefect walked up to her and announced "Lionsun" and we climbed through the hole behind the painting.
When we had all followed through we found ourselves in a wide, warm, scarlet room. There were loads of sofa's and chairs plus a large crackling fire. We were told that no boys could enter the girl's dorm however girls could enter the guy's dorm. To which a lot of girls blushed and all the guys looked depressed because they had obviously been planning several practical jokes.
My dorm had five girls in it but there were other dorms for first years. Lauri, my owl, was so glad to be out of his cage that he practically pecked me to death to get me to write a letter to Fred and George, and the beds…are HUGE! They are four-poster beds with long scarlet drapes and really comfy mattresses. I started to undo all my neat packing and took out my spare robes and stuff.
I just found my timetable and man does it suck! I mean… three classes with the Slytherins! And two with the Hufflepuffs! At least I have potions first tomorrow.
I've been on the receiving end of too many pranks to not to take precautions. I'm not that Blonde! I waited until (hopefully) everyone was asleep. I then conjured up all the protections and ward spells I knew. The main one being "Celloimmobulus" It stops and seals spells.
Now I'm sure that someone was awake last night because the other four girls in my dorm had dismantled the spells I had laid and had begun to spell me before I was even awake. The four of them were spelling me even though two of them were holding me down. It was only when someone put a fear charm on me that I found the strength to fight free and run away. All down the stairs I could hear their laughter. I knew I could not go to Professor McGonagall, she would never believe that a whole dorm would or could do this, so I went to find the only other teacher I knew where to find. Professor Snape.