CHAPTER 16

A black robed head floated up into view. Harry pulled out his wand as the Dementor's sickly hand appeared through the window as it shattered the pane. Glass fragments sliced Harry's outstretched arm as he began to conjure his patronus. The Dementor did something Harry did not expect. While everyone else was still recovering from the initial shock of the glass shattering, the Dementor glided into the train, knocking Harry's wand from his hand. He fell backwards and instinctively drew the sword, realizing, once it was drawn, that it could not help. However as the Dementor moved towards him, the sword's blade became semi-transparent and white. Harry thrust it into the Dementor, which convulsed and flew out the window.

"What was that?" Melinda asked.

"Dementor," Harry said, standing up, "There's more around here."

Ron, Draco, and Neville drew their swords, as Harry retrieved his wand from the floor.

The color seeped back into the gems a few minutes later.

"They've gone," Ron said, as Hermione repaired the window.

"We're almost there," Hermione pointed out.

Fifteen minutes later, the train began to slow down. Once it had fully stopped the eight teens got off the train. It had just started to rain, so everyone hurried over to the Thestral manned carriages. Harry, Hermione, Ron, and Luna rode in one, and Draco, Ginny, Neville, and Melinda rode in a second.

"What are those things?" Melinda asked.

"You can see them then," Ginny said.

"Yeah… why wouldn't I?"

"You can only see them if you have seen someone die," Neville said.

"Oh… I don't think I have…"

The rain began to pour down even harder.

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Harry looked over at Hermione, who was studying the spell that kept the rain out of the carriage while allowing them to pass through the doors at any time.

"I wish I knew what else this sword could do," he said. "I mean, it can sense Death Eaters and Dementors, and works like a patronus against the Dementors. It's got to do more…"

"Don't stress over it, we have a hard year ahead of us."

"Yeah, well," He sheathed the blade, "I'll keep it with me at all times… It's pretty useful."

"Yeah…"

"So… nice weather we're having…"

"Yeah…"

Ron looked over at them.

"Nice weather?" Ron looked confused. "It's raining!"

"You do that Ron…"

Ron and Luna were both now looking perplexed.

"Are you okay?" Luna asked.

"Happy… happy… yes…" Harry responded, looking through black eyes.

Ron grabbed his shoulders and began to shake him violently. "Harry! Snap out of it!"

Luna looked around outside of the carriage. They were almost half of the way there.

"What is wrong?" Ron sounded really worried, and Harry began to sing, "We all live a yellow submarine, a yellow submarine."

Luna stuck her head out the side of the carriage and saw Draco, Ginny, Neville, and Melinda. She motioned to them by waving her hand frantically.

"What's wrong?" Ginny looked at Draco.

"I'll check," Draco grabbed his broom, and darted out into the rain.

As he landed, Ron yelled out, "Something is wrong… They're acting like they're high or something."

Harry leaned forward, hit his head on the side of the carriage, and said "Doh!"

"Okay," Draco said, walking over to him. "Harry! Can, you, hear, me?"

"Don't talk so… so… un-quiet!" Harry yelled.

The thestral roared at Harry's yell. Draco looked forward. They were approaching the front doors of the castle. Kids were already getting out of the carriages in the front. Ron grabbed the broom and speed off towards Professor McGonagall, who was standing at the open doors, directing the castle before taking the first years in to be sorted.

"Professor McGonagall something is…" he started.

McGonagall interrupted by saying, "Weasley, flying is off limits except when practicing quiditch or under the supervision of a teacher, do you want to start the year off with a detention?"

"No, but something has happened to Harry!"

"What?"

"He's like all zoned out… Hermione too… They're not responding to anything… He's been acting weird since the dementor attack on the train…"

At this McGonagall's eyes widened, and she grabbed the broom from Ron's hand, mounted, and shot straight off to the carriage, where she leapt off and caught the broom in one hand gracefully.

"Woah…" Ron exclaimed.

"Potter!" she commanded. "Potter!... Envigorate!"

"Just tried that," Draco said.

The carriage stopped, and McGonagall levitated Harry and Hermione out of the carriage. She ran through the doors levitating them behind her, followed by the six others who were running after them. McGonagall turned a corner into a corridor where Dumbledore and Snape were walking.

"Ah, McGonagall," Dumbledore said, "What's the rush?"

Harry and Hermione floated around the corner and into view. Dumbledore ran over to them, closely followed by Snape. He flicked his wand and they disappeared. I will investigate this after the sorting. McGonagall ran off, Snape headed to the Hospital Wing, where Dumbledore had sent Harry and Hermione. Dumbledore lead the rest of the teens to the rest of the school body.

"Melinda, you will be sorted, please line up with the first years," Dumbledore said.

"Professor Dumbledore?" Draco asked, "can I be re-sorted?"

"Yes, I dare say it is time, I will call you up later."

He walked in and everyone sat down, except Melinda, who headed to the front of the room.

"I dare say it is time?" Draco asked no one.

"Everyone is already sitting down, and the only seats open are at the front," Ginny said, "Let's just wait here instead of annoying everyone by going up there."

Professor McGonagall placed the Sorting Hat on the stool. Its flap opened up, and Draco expected a song but all it said was, "I've been doing this for a while… well… my services will no longer be necessary, it seems, if my eyes do not deceive me…"

Dumbledore looked as if he was in deep thought, but he looked back to the room as soon as Professor McGonagall began calling out names. Only three out of twenty nine went to Slytherin, but the rest were about evenly divided between the other three houses.

"This year, we have an addition to our school," Dumbledore said as the last first year walked over to the Hufflepuff table. "Melinda Vilnuve will be joining us here at Hogwarts. She recently resided in the United States, but now moved here, where she was born. Melinda, please come up to be sorted."

Melinda walked up to the stool and sat down. She felt the hat touch her head.

"Ah," it said, "lots here… a lot to consider… very, very, intelligent… haven't seen such potential since the young Weasley girl…"

"Not Slytherin…" Melinda felt herself think.

"Ha!" the hat laughed, "You remind me of Potter too… he though the same thing."

"Well, I can see you want to be in Gryffindor, and that tips the scale… very well… GRYFFINDOR!"

Melinda sighed in relief and walked towards the Gryffindor table.

"And now," Dumbledore started, and everyone else reached for their utensils instinctively, "we have a necessary re-sorting… Malfoy, Draco?"

The greater part of the room dropped their forks and knives onto the tables, as Draco walked up towards the hat. He felt it touch his head for the first time, instead of blurting Slytherin before McGonagall could set it down.

"Malfoy, again… you obviously do not want to be in Slytherin, and I know where you should be… so… GRYFFINDOR!"

The stunned silence of the room somehow seemed to reverberate off the walls, and it was a while before even some of the teachers seemed to fully get what the hat had said. Draco stepped down to join Ron, Luna, Ginny, and Neville, who had reached the end of the table.

"And, with out further adieu," the hat said, managing to spin into facing Dumbledore, "I believe my position here is no longer needed."

It bowed it's tip towards Dumbledore, and the flap froze into a grin, which held for a second before finally the hat collapsed and fell to the floor.