Fanfic
The Marauders – Book One
Disclaimer: All main characters and settings belong to J K Rowling
N/A: At last, the sorting approaches. What house will all the main characters be in, I wonder?
Chapter Six – SortingThey were lined up in front of the school, facing the teacher's table. Professor McGonagall place a stool just before the table and put a very scruffy hat on top of it. Lily looked at Nicky, but her friend seemed mystified as well. Lily turned her attention back to the black wizards hat just in time to see a rip near the brim open as it burst into song.
'A thousand years or more ago,
When I was newly sewn,
There lived four wizards of renown,
Whose names are still well known:
Bold Gryffindor, from wild moor,
Fair Ravenclaw, from glen,
Sweet Hufflepuff, from valley broad,
Shrewd Slytherin from fen.
They shared a wish, a hope, a dream,
They hatched a daring plan
To educate young sorcerers
Thus Hogwarts School began.
Now each of these four founders
Formed their own house, for each
Did value different virtues
In the ones they had to teach.
By Gryffindor, the bravest were
Prized far beyond the rest;
For Ravenclaw, the cleverest
Would always be the best;
For Hufflepuff, hard workers were
Most worthy of admission;
And power-hungry Slytherin
Loved those of great ambition.
While still alive they did divide
Their favourites from the throng,
Yet how to pick the worthy ones
When they were dead and gone?
'Twas Gryffindor who found the way,
He whipped me off his head
The founders put some brains in me
So I could chose instead!
Now slip me snug about your ears,
I've never yet been wrong,
I'll have a look inside your mind
And tell where you belong!'
The whole school burst into applause, and the first years soon joined in with relief evident on their faces. Professor McGonagall stepped forwards, holding a long scroll.
'When I call you name, put on the hat and sit on the stool to be sorted. Adams, Samantha.'
A fairly tall girl with short brown hair walked hesitantly forwards. She picked up the hat, sat on the stool and then dropped it on her head. It slipped down over her eyes. Lily found she was holding her breath, and felt very glad that she did not have to go first. The girl seemed to sit on the stool for ages, until at last the brim of the hat opened wide.
'GRYFFINDOR!' It shouted loudly. The table on the far left exploded into cheers as Samantha pulled off the hat and headed over there.
'Appleby, Harry.' Professor McGonagall called.
A plump boy with curly blond hair headed to the stool. This time the hat had only been on his head for a couple of seconds before calling out.
'RAVENCLAW!' This time the table second from the left clapped and cheered, and the boy went to join their ranks.
'Annayon, Dan' became the first Slytherin. He had an unpleasant look on his face, and come to think of it the whole lot of them looked a bit unpleasant. 'Awford Becky became the second Ravenclaw.
'Black, Sirius.'
Sirius stepped forwards, glancing at James who smiled at him encouragingly. He walked to the stool and picked up the hat. Sitting down he glanced at the school then the black hat slipped over his eyes and all was dark.
'Let me see, Black is it?' Said a small voice in his ear. Defiance flared in Sirius at those words. 'No? Don't you agree with your family? No, I see that Slytherin would not suit you as it did them. You have a good mind, but I feel that Ravenclaw would not be right for you either. It takes guts to stand up to your family, and I can see you are not short on bravery. It had better be GRYFFINDOR!'
He heard the hat shout the last word. Pulling it off his head and dumping it back on the stool, Sirius winked at James before striding to the cheering table. Lily watched nervously as they worked slowly through the alphabet. She couldn't help noticing after about ten people that no one had gone to Hufflepuff next. Her thoughts were answered, as 'Davies Tom' became the first Hufflepuff to loud cheers. After him 'Dyer, Joe' became Ravenclaw.
'Evans, Lily.'
Lily walked towards the hat, feeling as if she was walking to the gallows. She didn't feel that she fitted into any of the houses, and wondered what would happen if the hat decided not to place her in any.
The hat fell over her eyes and she jumped when she heard a voice in her ear.
'Muggle-born, yes?' Lily nodded, even though it wasn't really a question. 'You're a good hard worker for sure, and clever too. But you're loyal to your friends, and brave. Hmm, yes. I think you most defiantly fit in GRYFFINDOR!'
Feeling weak-legged with relief that she had been sorted so quickly, Lily stood up and headed over to the Gryffindor table. 'Edwards', 'Gates', and 'Gibbs' were all sent to Hufflepuff. 'Grimley, Phil' was eventually sorted into Slytherin, and then it was Nicky's turn to be sorted.
Lily crossed her fingers under the table, praying that her only friend would be in the same house as her. Nicky sat on the stool for a long time. Lily kept on glancing at a watch; a minute passed, then two. It looked like Nicky was muttering something. At last the hat opened it's rim.
'GRYFFINDOR!'
Lily sighed with relief, and then started clapping madly with the others. Nicky came over smiling broadly. She sat down on the bench next to Lily.
'What took so long?' Lily demanded, as 'Hall, Casper' was declared a Hufflepuff.
Nicky just smiled mysteriously, and refused to answer Lily's demanding questions. They both clapped as 'Jones, Lydia' was sorted into Gryffindor. The slightly dumpy girl came and sat opposite them and they introduced themselves. She had blond hair, blue eyes and a shy smile.
Sirius was still waiting for James to be sorted, preferably into Gryffindor. He watched as 'Malfoy, Lucius' was sorted. The hat had barely even touched his long blond hair before it yelled out
'SLYTHERIN!'
Sirius scowled as he recognised the boy as supporting Severus. No wonder he was in Slytherin.
Only a few minutes later James's name was called, right after a mousy little boy called Peter was sorted into Gryffindor. James picked up the hat nervously, although he tried not to show it, and placed it on his head. He sat there for a second, not knowing what to expect.
'Potter. You father was in Hufflepuff, was he not? And your mother in Ravenclaw. Hmm, yes. You do have a good mind, although I sense you will not work as hard as your father did. Somehow I feel Ravenclaw would not suit you either, this is one of the cases where I think differing from your parents is the cause. Hmm, let me see. You are loyal to your friends, and will do anything to defend them, once you have decided they are your friends. Yet likewise, you are likely to hate your enemies always. So where to put you…'
There was silence for a moment in James's head, and he wondered if that had been a question. He gripped onto the edge of the stood and thought hard. Gryffindor, with Sirius. Please. Then repeated it several times.
'I suppose, you're not lacking on courage, I suppose there is one who could do with your firm friends ship soon…yes…' The hat mused for a second. Then it opened its brim.
Sirius crossed his fingers and held his breath; James had been wearing the hat for quite a while. He watched the brim open and shout out, 'GRYFFINDOR!'
Sirius let out his breath in a rush and grinned at James as he pulled the hat off his head and sauntered over. James saw Sirius and headed over to sit next to him. The crowd at the first years had thinned out considerably by now, and he could see Severus skulking at the back.
'Snape, Severus.'
The hooked-nosed boy walked to the stool and pulled the hat on his head. It didn't sit there long before calling out,
'SLYTHERIN!'
'I wouldn't want to be the one to wear the hat after old greasy there. We should have given him a wash in the lake while we had the chance.' Sirius muttered. James sniggered.
At last, to the boy's rumbling stomachs relief, the sorting finished with 'Wilton, Melissa' going to Hufflepuff. Professor McGonagall removed the stool and the hat and Professor Dumbledore stood up for the first time. He looked around at the hall full of students, beaming broadly at them.
'Welcome to all the new students, and welcome back to the older one's. I will allow you to get on with eating out delicious feast without further delay. Enjoy.'
At his last word the dished filled with all sorts of foods. There was roast beef, roast chicken, pork chops, lamb chops, sausages, bacon, steak, roast potatoes, boiled potatoes, mashed potatoes, carrots, peas, chips, Yorkshire pudding, stewed apple, ketchup, gravy and, strangely enough, mint humbugs.
James loaded his plate with lamb and roast potatoes and dug in. Sirius was piling everything he could reach, except the mints, onto his plate. When he couldn't possible fit anything else on the plate he started wolfing it down at an alarming rate.
'Woah mate!' Said James when he saw the way his friend was eating. 'Haven't they been feeding you at home.'
Sirius took a huge gulp of pumpkin juice. 'I haven't eaten since lunch, I'm starving!'
Lily realised that sweets didn't fill you up at all, and felt that she hadn't eaten anything since a slice of toast at breakfast. She served herself from the steaming dishes; once she got over her surprise at the way they had suddenly filled. Nicky had a plate full of sausages, with some mashed potato on the side. Lily couldn't believe how many sausages such a small girl could eat, but Nicky only laughed when she mentioned it.
'I don't normally eat much.' She said as she stabbed another sausages from the serving bowl. 'But I could eat sausages all day.'
Eventually Lily dropped her knife and fork on her plate and leaned back in her chair.
'I'm stuffed.' She admitted.
Nicky looked at her, a piece of sausage halfway to her own mouth. She smiled mischievously. 'There's pudding yet to come.'
Lily groaned.
The plates and dished cleared completely a few minutes later. Sirius, who hadn't slowed down throughout, looked putout. 'I was eating that.' He complained.
James laughed, 'I don't think you've got a stomach,' James commented, 'Just a bottomless pit.'
Sirius was soon cheered up as the plates filled up with puddings; treacle sponge, gooseberry crumble, chocolate cake, apple tart, trifle, ice cream of every flavour, jelly, doughnuts, chocolate éclairs, strawberries and cream, rice pudding…
Lily found that she wasn't quite so full at the sight and smell of all the delicious puddings, and managed to fit in some chocolate cake and some ice cream. Nicky was trying a bit of everything she could reach, explaining between mouthfuls that her parents didn't believe in any pudding other then fruit. Sirius was trying some of everything too, only his portions were considerably bigger then Nicky's. James watched in awe as Sirius packed away enough food to feed his whole family.
Finally everyone, except perhaps Sirius, was bursting with good food. The plates cleared, left sparkling clean. Everyone turned to look at the head table and see Dumbledore stand up again.
'Now you have all enjoyed the excellent food, I have a few notices to give
'First-years should note that the Forest is forbidden, and I would like to remind several older students of that fact too.
'Our caretaker, Prestig, has requested me to remind you that magic should not be used in the corridors between classes. I have also been asked to remind you that there are several magical objects which you are not allowed in school, including Fanged Frisbees, Screaming Yo-yos and Fanged Frisbees. The full list of the three hundred and twenty two object can be viewed in Mr Prestig's office.
'Finally, I wish you all a good sleep so that you are ready for your lessons tomorrow. First years, your prefects will lead you to your dormitories. Goodnight.'
With a very noisy scraping of benches the people in the hall started to stand up and file out. A boy and girl were calling all Gryffindor first years to them. As soon as James and Sirius recognised the girl they had played the trick on they hid at the back of the group.
'I'm Josh Bryans and this is Clair Symes. We're Gryffindor Prefects. Follow us.' The boy commanded, then turned and led off. James scowled as he saw the words on Clair's robes had gone.
Lily tried to keep track of where they were being led, but now they had stood up she realised how tired she was. She trailed upstairs next to a yawning Nicky. They passed through archways, walked behind a tapestry and opened a hidden door by tickling part of the wall. At several points the prefects warned them to step over certain stairs, which would apparently trap their legs.
Eventually they approached a large portrait of a fat lady. It had been painted with the woman sleeping in the frame, which surprised Lily. However, she was surprised even more when the woman sat up and looked at them blearily. She had seen several portraits moving, but had thought it was just a trick of the light of tiredness.
The fat lady focussed on Josh. 'Password.' She mumbled, making Lily jump again at her voice.
'Mandrake.' Josh replied. The fat lady nodded and the portrait swung forwards.
Everyone climbed through the hole, some with more difficulty then others. James leapt in lightly, Sirius climbing in quickly behind him. They were in a common room with an empty fireplace and several cushy armchairs. A couple of older students were sitting around a low table chatting.
Clair led the girls up the right-hand staircase, talking as she went. 'That's the common room. That's where you will spend your free time, and you can do homework there or in the library. The girls' dorms are up here, and the boys are up the left-hand staircase. Here's your dormitory. Your luggage will already be in there.'
She opened a door with 'First Years' written on a plaque. In the room were six four-poster beds. Lily and Nicky went to the pair opposite each other at the far end of the room, nearest the window. They dragged their trunks to their chosen beds and pulled out nightwear. As they did so they introduced themselves.
Lily and Nicky already knew Lydia from earlier. As she brushed her blond hair she told them that her mum was a muggle but her father was a wizard. She had know about the wizarding world for a few years, as soon as she was old enough to be trusted to keep the secrete, but had been raised as a muggle.
Samantha Adams had been the first sorted. She was taller then the other girls, and skinny, with short brown hair. She moved with a definite confidence of movements, which showed that she was at ease here. It came as no surprise to Lily that she was pureblood.
'I'm Kate Moss. And this is my friend Frankie Mercury.' Said a girl with shoulder glossy brown hair tied in a ponytail.
'My parents are great fans of Queen. Our surname is Mercury, and they wished for a boy to call Freddie after the lead singer. They had me, and decided to call me Frankie in the end.' The girl laughed, not at all embarrassed by her name. She was wearing blue pyjamas with dogs on, and was just un-plating her black hair.
'Frankie and I have known each other since we were tiny.' Added Kate, who seemed more reserved then Frankie, as if she was trying to act more maturely. 'Our parents are old friends from when they were at Hogwarts. I'm three quarters wizard; my granddad was muggle-born. Frankie is pureblood, but it doesn't make any difference in our minds.'
Lily was relieved at this, as she appeared to be the only muggle-born. She smiled as Nicky spoke, her energy evident even though she was tired. Then they all looked at Lily. 'Well, I'm muggle born. I didn't believe my letter when I first got it.'
'What's your name, for a start?' Interrupted Frankie with a smile.
Lily smiled too, relieved that they didn't seem bothered. 'I'm Lily Evans.'
There were two dorms for the six boys. Under the plaques declaring the rooms for the first years were two lists of names. James and Sirius were in the dorm with four beds, where their trunks were sitting on the floor. A boy called Peter Pettigrew followed the two in. Sam Bryans, Thomas Moor and Matt Willis were in the other room.
'I wonder who's mean to be in here with us. There aren't any Gryffindor boys, and no one else's trunk is in here.' James said, moving his now empty birdcage into the bottom of his wardrobe, as Tornac wouldn't need it again until he went home.
'The list said Remus Lupin. Dunno who he is though.' Sirius shrugged, looking unconcerned.
'It's really strange for someone to miss the Sorting though.' Peter added nervously. Peter was a mousy little boy, with brown hair and somewhat pointed features. He looked exhausted, and nervous that the other two would ignore him.
James shrugged, and then asked Peter about himself. The boy just said that he was pureblood and lived with his parents near Newcastle before flopping into bed and falling straight to sleep. Sirius got into bed and muttered goodnight to James, switching off his lamp. He was soon breathing deeply and regularly.
James, however, just couldn't get to sleep. He lay on his back, staring at the canopy of his four-poster. Even though he was exhausted he just couldn't drift off. Eventually he gave up and crept out of bed to sit on the window ledge. Out of his window he saw that they must be in one of the high towers. The forest was some distance away, and the lake stretched blackly below him. A full moon reflected on the waters as James wondered where the missing boy was.
Suddenly he saw a dully-glowing white shape appear at the water's edge. He wasn't sure where it had come from, but now it had started moving out over the water. James gasped, wondering what creature it was that could move on land and over the top of the water. It reached the middle of the lake, and then sank completely out of view.
James headed back to his bed, wondering what it could be.
A/N: It's a good thing I split the chapters, other wise chapter five would have been eleven pages long. I wonder where Remus has got to; missing the Sorting is a sin! Anyway, what do you think the mysterious shape in the water is? I don't think I've told anybody this idea yet…
Oh yeah, and will someone please review this time please? No one did on the last chapter…I feel so unloved sniff