AN: Here is chapter two of Fire and Ice. I hope you all enjoy it, and don't forget to review!
--- Disclaimer: Neither Sugarhorse nor Sugarpony own Harry Potter. :P
--- Fire and Ice---
---Chapter Two---
---A Strange New Home---
--- Dyna followed the tall, somewhat scary looking man ahead of her. He was carrying a lantern and beckoning first years from different parts of the train to his side. He led the group over to the edge of a dark lake where the new students found a fleet of small rowboats waiting. Dyna looked around for her new friend, but she couldn't see over the heads of her fellow students.
"Four to a boat," she heard the man say. Reluctantly, Dyna stepped into a boat with a pale blond boy and his two friends. She sat down silently, not really looking at the other members of her boat but more at the older students leaving the train and walking down out of sight.
The boats started to move. The one boy in her group, a tall, boulder-like child with a crew cut who was still standing even after they were instructioned to sit down, almost fell head first into the oil black water. He toppled back into a seat and his friends started laughing at him. Dyna suppressed a giggle and turned back to watch where the little boat was taking her.
--- Celina closed her eyes, feeling at peace. She was in a boat with two small girls and a boy, all of which were silent with nervousness and anticipation. Celina herself felt glad to be on the water; she was a swimmer, and it always relaxed her. Opening her eyes, the girl looked ahead to see a large, fairy-tale like castle on the edge of the lake. She suddenly felt less calm, cool, and collected as her thoughts drifted to the sorting of the houses. She hoped that she would be in Gryffindor, like her father. She also hoped that she would be in the same house as her new friend Dyna so that she would know at least one person in the gigantic school.
The little boats (which were somehow moving on their own) drew closer to the shore, and Celina steeled herself for what was to come.
--- As the boats bumped the shoreline, Dyna felt her stomach drop out from under her. The looming thought of being sorted in front of the entire school was both exciting and totally stressful. Being the center of attention was great, but if she messed up now, everyone would get to see. She stepped out of her boat and abandoned the other members to hunt for a familiar face. She caught sight of Celina up ahead and pushed a boy with black hair out of her way to get over to her.
"Hey, I lost you in the crowd before," she said smiling, very happy to find someone she knew. Celina turned around, a smile on her face, also.
"Yeah," she greeted. "So how do you think we'll be sorted? Dad never told me about the ceremony."
"I heard some kid going on about wrestling a troll, but I really hope we don't have to do that," Dyna said.
Before long, the large front doors of the castle opened wide and a witch wearing emerald green robes came out and beckoned the students to follow her. The girls were too far back to hear exactly what she and the man were saying, but everyone there heard the big, "Welcome to Hogwarts!" at the beginning.
The little group followed the woman to a back chamber where she lined them all up in a single file line. Once lined up, the witch began to speak again.
"When I call you name," she said, "you will sit on the stool and place the hat on your head in order to be sorted." She then had all the first years follow her into the front of the Great Hall, where all the older students and the teachers were awaiting them. At the very head of the hall, in front of the teacher's table, stood a three-legged tool, on top of which was an old, frayed, patched hat.
Before the stern woman who had led them in began calling names, however, the hat itself opened up a tear, like a mouth, and began to sing! The girls were surprised t first, but they put it under the category which falls under "Things I shall not question" and waited patiently for the song to end. Soon enough, the hat stopped singing, and the woman in the green robes called the first name.
Dyna's eyes drifted off the now silent hat to down the line of new students. These would be the people she would call her family for the next seven years. She would live with them, eat with them, take lessons with them, and hopefully become friends with most of them. Her eyes lingered on the boy she had pushed outside. He looked remarkably like Harry Potter. He had to be! The rumors must be true! She quickly nudged Celina.
"Look," she whispered. "It's Harry Potter!" Celina turned around to face Dyna and looked to where she was staring. Her eyebrows shot up into her hair as she noticed the fabled lightning bolt-shaped scar on the boy's forehead, but before she could say anything, she heard a call of, "Brooks, Celina!"
The girl slowly stepped forward, nervously tugging at her hair. She sat on the stool, placed the hat on her head, and jumped as she heard a voice.
"Now, then, where shall we put you? Somewhat shy, true, but very loyal. Good Hufflepuff traits. But even more than that shines through your bountiful wisdom. Yes, you would do well in RAVENCLAW!"
Quickly, Celina tore the Sorting Hat off of her head and hurried over to the table which was applauding for her. She gave a weak smile at Dyna and waited for her friend to be sorted.
Dyna shifted as she stood in line. Oh darn it! she thought viciously. That's the smart house! I'll never get put there! She stood and waited, somewhat unhappily as the stern woman continued through the list of names. It didn't take very long before she heard " Casion, Dyna!" and walked forward.
She sat on the three legged stool and dropped the oversized hat over her hazel eyes. "Now then, where do you belong?" she heard in her ear. Startled, she jumped slightly and realized the singing hat was now talking to her. "Hmm... brave, loyal, a definite leader. Strong with a sense to do as you please, this one belongs in GRYFFINDOR!"
Dyna pulled the old hat off and smiled slightly at the applause that was met with the hat's decision. She took her seat at the table and looked over at her friend, giving a pitiful shrug. There was still the hope of classes together, after all.
Celina shrugged back and turned to watch the rest of the sorting. After a short while, they both heard a call of "Granger, Hermione!" and saw the pushy girl from the train step up. There was a short pause before the hat gave a cry of "GRYFFINDOR!" and she took a seat at the table, close to where the teachers sat.
Dyna looked over at Celina from where she sat and made a quick face. There was no way she wanted to spend the next seven years waiting for Miss Walk About to come barging in on her privacy. She slyly held up her pointer finger to her temple like a gun and reenacted a whole brain bursting shoot out, complete with an epic death.
The new Ravenclaw gave an amused look to her friend, and they once again turned back to the sorting. There was a long list of "Lizik" and two "Patil" sisters before the name which silenced the hall was spoken. The woman at the head of the hall called out "Potter, Harry," and the students all paused in their conversations to see a short boy with messy black hair and glasses step up to be sorted.
Dyna watched with eagerness as the famous wizard placed the large black hat over his head. The hat was silent for a few moments before exclaiming "GRYFFINDOR!" The loudest applause yet exploded from the table where Dyna was sitting, complete with a chant of "We got Potter!" from two twins with red hair. Dyna herself couldn't help feeling excited at the fact. After all, how often do you get to live in the same common room as the one who defeated You-Know-Who? She looked over to Celina and smiled, not wanting to wait any longer to start this new Hogwarts adventure. Harry walked down and sat a few chairs down from Dyna. She glanced around at the other students, all eager to get a look at him.
"That's really Harry Potter!" she said, mostly to herself.
"Good job!" said one of the red headed twins. "You get a gold star for that!"
Celina gave an envious look to her friend; who wouldn't? After all, she had read about the Boy-Who-Lived in many of her books, and she wanted to know how he survived the killing curse.
Another period of time passed before the final name, "Zabini, Blaise," was called, and a blond boy was sorted into Slytherin. Then, a man in flowing robes with a long, white beard and half-moon glasses stood and cleared his throat, as if readying himself for a speech.
"Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak!" Celina gave a strange look at the old man, who had sat down to a table now full of food after these choice words. She merely placed it in the same category as the singing, talking hat and looked down at her own table to be greeted with golden plates full of her favorite dishes.
Dyna stared down at the table, laden with food. Never had she had such a variety to choose from. She quickly filled her plate with as much different food as she could cram.
"You don't eat much?" the same boy who told her she deserved a gold star asked.
"Oh, um, not this much variety!" she exclaimed happily. She quickly dug in and saw several other students doing the same, all who had been first years. The older students talked amongst themselves and ate more slowly than the enchanted first years. She sighed happily, for the first time since she had boarded the train, happy to be here.
After the dinner came dessert, and once those dishes magically vanished, the old man with the long beard stood once more.
"Welcome, students, to another year at Hogwarts!" The girls, now full with food and eager to slip into a comfortable bed, didn't hear everything the professor said, but they did hear the rules about the Forbidden Forest (aptly named) and the corridor on the third floor (which should be avoided at the penalty of "a very painful death," they were sure to note). Finally, after a 'rousing' performance of the school song, the students were all sent to bed, following their house's respected prefects. Before parting the Great Hall, Dyna and Celina bid each other good night, and they headed off to bed to dream of what was to follow the next day- the first day of magic classes.
--- AN: Do we have you sucked in to the story yet? Wanna hear more? lol. Don't forget about the cyber cookies! Now you've read, so go review!