To Gild a Lily: Chapter 5
The boat trip across the lake was calm and peaceful. No one really spoke in spite of the serenity, except for maybe Eva who was too busy "ooo!"-ing and "ahh!"-ing to notice Sirius's constant shushes and consistently growing eye rolls. Even Lily was too mesmerized to notice James staring dreamily at her. The soft evening glow of the half crescent moon was casting a gentle incandescence onto the lake, illuminating the enchanting castle with a mysterious glimmer that made Lily shiver in anticipation.
The fifteen minutes that followed, however, were not quite as restful. Lily grew more and more nervous of what was to come up at the castle. Thoughts of doubt filled her mind; it was all too surreal. How could anything this exciting happen to such an ordinary girl? Was she really that special? She glanced around at her other companions in the small boat. James and Sirius were playing a game that looked like bloody knuckles with each other, laughing and joking as though not worried at all; Lily doubted they were anyway. Eva was watching them with great interest, seeming as though itching to join in. Lily chuckled to herself, but immediately bit her lip in anxiety.
I'm probably not even supposed to be here. They've made an awful mistake, I'm not magical in the least.
"You alright, Lily?" Eva asked with concern. James and Sirius were staring at her too, "I've been trying to get your attention for like, thirty seconds." Lily blinked.
"Yeah, I'm fine," She lied, "Just nervous about being sorted I guess." She began to stare nervously up at the fast approaching castle again. Eva's nose wrinkled in thought.
"Wow, I guess I hadn't thought about that yet," Eva said, voice drifting off a bit at the end.
"Well, my Mum and Dad were both in Gryffindor," James said, not really speaking to anyone in particular, "So I 'reckon I'll be there too."
"My entire family, down to the very last cousin, has been in Slytherin," Sirius said darkly, "If I'm not in Slytherin too I 'reckon Mum will pull me out and home school me, or write to Dumbledore for me to be re-sorted."
"Yeah, but you're different mate," James said, voice full of reason, "You're not anything like those losers you live with. No offense."
Sirius shrugged it off, "I know. I just wonder if the sorting hat has gotten so used to sorting Blacks that it just throws them all in Slytherin, y'know?"
There was a moment of silence. It wasn't necessarily awkward, just dense with thought.
"So, uh," Eva broke the silence, "How many other cousins of yours go here?"
Sirius put a hand to his chin in thought, "Well there's darling Narcissa, who's in that boat over there," He pointed somewhere to his left. From what Lily could see, 'Darling Narcissa' didn't look darling in the least. On the contrary, she looked quite unpleasant. She had long, silvery blonde hair that was pulled into a neat ponytail in the center of the back of her head, held together by a prim black bow. She had a pointed nose that was turned slightly upward. She had penetrating eyes that Lily couldn't see the exact color of, but they looked to be a shade of platinum blue. She was seated at the front of the boat, head held high in clear confidence. Turning back to Sirius, Lily could see that he had a look of pure disdain etched upon his handsome face. He shuddered slightly before continuing.
"Then there's Bellatrix, who I believe is two years ahead of us," He gave a mocking smile, "She's a real sweetheart too. She'll be the end of me, she will.
"Then of course there's just the pureblood Slytherins who of course are just completely against muggleborns in general." Sirius continued, still looking rather disgusted, "Malfoy, Crabbe, Goyle, Avery, and the Lestranges, just to name a few." He sunk back into the rear of the boat, looking as though he might be sick, "My new roommates."
Lily gave him a sympathetic look; at least she wouldn't have to worry about being sorted into Slytherin, where it seemed they only took purebloods.
The silence captivated the four until they reached the shores of the grounds. The first years followed the sweeping lawns of their new school up to the main entrance, where they entered the Entrance Hall. Lily heard intakes of breath all around her; the hall was magnificent. The grand arches that outlined the elegant doorways were hung with impressive tapestries that were colored in reds, golds, greens and all of the other colors. Lily could even picture her entire house fitting snugly onto the entrance nook. The first years made their way up to the doors of the Great Hall, where a stern looking witch carrying a thick, parchment scroll met them. The witch looked over all of them before introducing herself.
"My name is Professor McGonagall," Professor McGonagall's voice rang clearly over the heads of the apprehensive first years, "Through these doors you will be sorted into your respective houses. The four houses are Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. While you are in this castle or anywhere on the grounds, your house will be like your family. Good deeds or performance will earn you house points, while of course any rule breaking will lose you points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded the House Cup.
"After we are all in the Great Hall, I'm going to call your names in alphabetical order. When I call your name, please sit on the bench in the front of the hall where you are to be sorted. Is that at all unclear?"
Lily looked around; everyone around her seemed just as distressed as she was, even Sirius and James, who were both quite pale.
"Right," Professor McGonagall said, "Please follow me."
A/N Thanks for all of the reviews! Just letting everyone know that these are mostly Anaela's ideas and you should definetely go to her page. Now. Because I command you to. Wait, no! Review me first! hehe. Thanks!