That Fateful Night

Chapter Seven

The Sorting

A/n: Keep in mind that you will not see too many familiar surnames unless the surnames are those of the students who were years ahead of Harry and them. Some however, weren't too careful. Oh and Diego is part of another story of mine. He will probably be partially explained in this one but to fully understand you will have to read Hopeless Love… I think that was the title at least.

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Hermione slowly made her way downstairs and winced when she reached the kitchen. The light in there was always excessively bright in the mornings. Her eyes searched the room for her daughter who obviously had to be down there.

Finally, her eyes landed on the young blonde. "What're you doing up so early?"

Katalia laughed and ate a large spoonful of marshmallows from her Lucky Charms. "Mum! I'm going to Hogwarts today! I can't help but be up early!"

"I know, dear. What color robes are you wearing today? Remember you must change on the train." Hermione still couldn't get over the fact that McGonagall had changed the dress code since she'd been there.

"Um…" Katie's brows furrowed in thought and she unconsciously bit her lip. "I guess I'll wear blue or will that make me seem in favor of Ravenclaw? I could wear lavender. That isn't a house color right?"

Hermione grinned. "Right."

"'Kay! I'll wear lavender then!" Katie gave her a huge smile but suddenly frowned as if remembering something horrid.

"What's wrong sweetie?" Hermione asked gently.

"Dimitrius will be there." She said glumly, stirring her spoon in little circles in her bowl.

"It won't be that bad. After all, he is your brother."

"Half-brother." Katie corrected. "And he's utterly horrible! He always teases me…"

"I'm sure Dra- your father has spoken to him."

"Like that'll do any good." She scoffed.

---

"Come on Katie. All you need to do is walk through the barrier. Some people do it at a run the first time."

The eleven-year-old looked at her mother with wide eyes but nodded and turned to the barrier.

She began walking towards it but then began getting worried and ran. Katie squeezed her eyes tightly shut as she ran through the wall.

After a few moments she stopped running and cautiously opened a pale gray eye, surveying her surroundings. "Hey! I made it!" She could hear her mother chuckling slightly, somewhere behind her.

Hermione put Katie's trunk on the train and kissed her daughter goodbye. "I'll see you sometime this year and during Christmas holiday!"

"I know, mum. You've only told me fifty times in the past few hours!" She hugged her mother and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. "I love you mum."

"I love you too, Katie. Now have fun and don't forget to study!"

A familiar half-laugh attracted Hermione's attention. She turned her head left and saw Draco Malfoy. "Can't forget the studying, can we Hermione? Don't worry too much though. We were two of the most brilliant kids Hogwarts had ever seen I won't be surprised if she ends up smarter than both of us." The pale, former Slytherin looked at his daughter. "It's nice to see you again, Katalia."

"Uh…yeah…."

Hermione could see a half-masked look of sadness in his gray eyes as he faked a cheery smile. "Make sure Dimitri does his work if you're in his house. He tends to slack off when no one's around. And uh… If you ever need anything feel free to owl me." Satisfied with his attempt at conversation, he turned and left.

"Uh oh! Train's gonna leave. Bye mum! Love you!" The girl got on the train and looked up and down the long hall. Now she was on her own. Aria had been nowhere in sight on the platform and she was the only person Katie knew here aside from Dimitrius. And there was no way she'd go looking for Dimitri!

"Need a place to sit?" Someone said from her right and she jumped. After a second she turned her head as a faint laugh was heard.

"Not nice to sneak up on people." She said shortly, looking him over. He had gelled dark blonde hair and bright green eyes. Eyes almost as green as the boy in some of the pictures her mother had showed her from her Hogwarts days.

"Hey…I'm sorry. But really, do you need a place to sit? We've got an empty spot in our compartment." The boy pointed to a door to his left and gave a half-smile.

Instead of answering she nodded and brushed off her sleeve where some dust had fallen on it. Then she looked back up at him and followed him through the door, taking notice of the pretty design on the door's stained glass window.

"We" turned out being four others, a girl, and three boys. One of the boys – presumably the oldest – had already changed and was sitting smugly in a corner, a smirk on his face and his arms crossed over his chest. He reminded her strongly of Dimitri.

The girl though, made her think of the four popular girls she had known at her old school. She was sitting near the smug boy and casting glances at him every once in a while. Her reddish hair was curled to perfection and Katie wasn't surprised to see a bit of make-up on her face.

The other two boys didn't seem quite as bad as the other one, though. Both had brown hair and light eyes. Neither were smirking, just pretending to smile. But under the smiles you could see that they were a bit nervous.

The first boy, after entering took a seat on the smug boy's right and looked at her. "I'm Zack." He pointed to the smug boy and the preppy girl and introduced them as Amber and Marcus. When their names were mentioned they took notice of her. Marcus smirked and her and nodded his head, but Amber passed her off with a short glance. The boys on the other side were introduced as Kobe and Richie.

She took a seat between Kobe and Richie, already unsure if she liked the other three. Zack seemed all right but Marcus scared her and Amber seemed like a complete snob. Probably someone Dimitri'll like, she thought, but kept it to herself.

There was a bit of polite conversation amongst the six but nothing beyond that. She introduced herself, told what school she'd went to and learned that Marcus was a fourth year Slytherin and that Amber and Kobe had attended her school.

After a while they each found someone to talk to. She spoke with Kobe and Richie for a bit but soon found they were a bit obsessed with quidditch, and tried Amber. She had a little crush on Marcus and liked nail polish too much for her own good. That left Zack and Marcus to talk to but before she'd even looked at Zack, Marcus pulled her over next to him.

"Hey babe, I'll be seeing you in Slytherin right?" His smirk was still fixed firmly on his face but now she saw his eyes, a cold light blue. There was a hungry glint in them.

"Uh…maybe."

"Gonna try out for quidditch? I could teach you to fly…."

"Um…" She moved a little to the left and wished she was still talking about nail polish with Amber. "Sure." Uh huh, yeah that'd happen.

"Take you for a spin on my broom one day." He shrugged and looked at Zack as he walked back in from the cart.

She took that as her chance to move back over to the other side with Richie and Kobe, hearing that they were still talking about who's team was going to win the cup she took out a book, only looking up when she heard laughter from Marcus and Zack.

"You really need to stop messing with them like that Marc!" Zack laughed. "You're gonna end up with a house full of guys if you keep this up!"

"It's only been…three so far!"

"Yeah well the first one ran!"

They both laughed and she felt a bit of relief. So Marcus had only been having a bit of fun after all. She had been considering taking Slytherin off her list of possible houses if he'd have been serious.

---

"Boys." Amber said after a while. Everyone looked up.

"Yeah?" Kobe and Marcus chorused.

"Kat" – Amber had taken to calling her that – "and I need to change. Please leave the compartment for a few minutes while we do so."

They rolled their eyes and Katie could have sworn Marcus muttered, "don't have anything I ain't seen before." But still, they left.

"Finally. That Marcus Davies thinks he's so cool…" Amber muttered, pulling on her robe. "Did you hear what he said as he walked out? I mean honestly!"

---

Eventually the train ride ended and they separated. The first years followed a huge man who could only be the "Hagrid" her mother spoke of. The others went into carriages that were facing the opposite way.

"Now ever'one get into a boat. On'y four to a boat though. Any more'n you might tip it." Katie got into a boat with Zack, Amber, and another girl she hadn't seen before who called herself Jeanette Price.

Both Kobe and Richie had disappeared into the crowd when they'd gotten off the train. She'd seen Dimitri though, flanked by two large boys with a pretty blonde clutching his arm. She hoped the boat would tip. She could almost picture Dimitri soaking wet and the blonde screaming at him because her make-up was ruined.

The boat ride was short though and uneventful. No one fell into the water but there was a boy screaming for his kitten "Felix."

---

"I'm sure you've all heard rumors of how you'll be fighting trolls and drinking poisons to be sorted, but it's all completely false. I want to establish this now. I must leave you now but I'll return in a few minutes to take you to the hall." The strict woman looked at them all and then disappeared through a door.

When she returned she told them all to follow her into a large room, full of students sitting at four long tables. Another table seated the Professors and there was a hat resting on a stool. Everyone had their eyes fixed on it as it opened its brim and sung.

After the song, the strict teacher called them up, starting with an "Adams, Alicia."

She put the hat on her head and grinned as it yelled "Ravenclaw!"

"Artis, Timothy" followed her, becoming the first Gryffindor. Then two more Ravenclaws, "Benz, Peter" and "Clearwater-Weasley, Clarabelle."

Then three more Gryffindors "Conner, Clarese", "Cowen, Sean", and "Day, Krystal" before another Ravenclaw "Erickson, Troy." Then, finally, the first Slytherin, "Fleer, Bleu."

Then, Amber was called up and she strutted up to take the hat. She had only had the hat on for a bit before the hat granted her wish and yelled, "Slytherin!" But before she joined her table, she handed the hat to Kobe, who was made a Ravenclaw.

A third Slytherin, "Goles, Robert" went up, and then "Gough, Cindy" was made the first Hufflepuff. Until this point the Hufflepuffs were worrying that they wouldn't have any new house members but now they were relieved.

Katalia watched the girl step off the stool and had forgotten they were getting dangerously close to her name. Then out of nowhere, "Granger, Katalia" was called. Her head jerked towards the front and she walked nervously toward the stool, taking the hat from Cindy. She took a seat upon the stool and set the hat on her head, not sure what to expect.

"Hmm…." A voice said in her ear. "Brains…. Plenty of them… Loyalty… Brave, yes… Ahh. Ambition rules all… And a thirst to prove you're better than 'him'…Best to put you in…" The hat spoke aloud now. "SLYTHERIN!"

She stood, a faint smile on her face as she handed the tattered hat to "Hash, Daniel." She wasn't quite sure her mother would be too pleased with this. She thought this over and moved to the table where Marcus and all the other Slytherins were seated and took a seat between Marcus and a young dark-haired boy without even thinking.

She was brought back to reality as the Hufflepuff table erupted with cheers for "Henry, Michael" "Hewitt, Joshua." She looked up at the crowd in the front of the room. There were more students than her mother had said there'd be. A few faces stood out of the crowd. One being Dimitri Malfoy. He didn't look right next to his dark-haired companion. He was too pale.

Another face stood out but she couldn't put a name to him. She was sure she hadn't met him yet. Maybe she had seen one of his parents in a picture somewhere. More faces. More vaguely familiar kids. She saw Dimitri's blonde friend, Zack, Richie, and Aria.

Katie didn't really pay attention to the next few people. She thought there were a few Gryffindors and a Ravenclaw and a Hufflepuff or two. She was rather relieved about not being placed in Hufflepuff.

"Malfoy, Dimitrius." The professor up front said with distaste and Katie tore her eyes from the crowd to watch her brother. But there wasn't much to see. The hat hadn't even touched his head when it yelled, "SLYTHERIN!"

Dimitri smirked, set the hat on the stool, and with one quick, cat-like movement he was facing the tables, sauntering towards the Slytherins. Katalia watched him seat himself across from Marcus. "Granger." He said softly as a greeting and looked at the crowd

"Pity you're in this house, Malfoy." She said and watched his lips curl into a sneer.

"I'd be careful if I were you, Granger. Father may like you but Grandfather doesn't and I'm sure he could arrange for everyone to just…forget you were ever born." He hissed and resumed watching the sorting as if he'd never stopped.

"Right." She watched a cheerful girl join their table next to Dimitri and heard her say something about her sister.

"Moonescar, Twylight." A girl with black hair stepped forward and put on the hat, waiting almost a full minute before it yelled "Ravenclaw!"

"Ha. Knew she couldn't make it in. Dad's gonna be pissed." The girl said and her and Dimitri laughed.

Katie tried to ignore them, especially as Dimitri's girlfriend, Kourtnie Phillips joined their table. She returned to her thoughts after another boy was made a Hufflepuff. Her mother had told her Draco'd been a popular boy in his time here. Katie didn't expect any less of Dimitri, especially since he already seemed to have gathered his own little fan club.

"Potter, Zack." Katie's head snapped towards the front. Whispers could be heard and Dimitri exclaimed, "Potter! There can't be a Potter!"

All around the room shouts and whispers could be heard. Only some were clearly audible though.

"Harry Potter's son?"

"Could he be…?"

"It can't be!"

Zack stepped up, amongst the whispers, almost as if he couldn't hear them, and slipped the hat onto his head. He stayed perfectly still for almost two minutes and the room grew silent. But the silence seemed to stretch on forever until the hat cried, "Slytherin." The hat, which had shown nothing less than the greatest enthusiasm, sounded solemn and the strict Professor's face fell.

The clapping didn't actually start until Zack had nearly reached the table, and Katie was surprised to see it was Dimitri and his gang who started it. Soon, the others in the room joined in.

She sighed in frustration as Zack too, was sucked into Dimitri's gang and she sat in thought for the rest of the sorting until there were only five people left to be sorted. Aria, Richie, a sandy-haired boy, a tall stern looking boy, and the boy who'd looked so familiar earlier.

"Stein, Dominic" was made a Ravenclaw as well as "Tornell, Steven."

"Weasley, Aria."

Aria stumbled forward and put on the hat, grinning from ear to ear. Her grin grew impossibly larger as the hat called "Gryffindor." Katie knew Aria'd been hoping to get Gryffindor for years now. She didn't want to disappoint her parents, both had been in Gryffindor.

"Wood, Richard," was next in line, leaving only the last boy. Richie joined the Gryffindor table, giving Katie a small wave on his way.

"Zanyini, Diego."

A few whispers arose and Dimitri tapped Katie's shoulder. "She say Zanyini?"

Katie nodded. "Yes she did. Perhaps if you paid more attention you'd know this."

"Shut up." He fixed his eyes on the boy.

Diego casually walked over to the hat, apparently enjoying the suspense. He made no move to sit on the stool, but instead gave everyone a smirk and picked up the hat. His sorting was quicker than Dimitri's. The hat didn't touch his head when it screamed, "SLYTHERIN!"

He strolled down the pathway to the Slytherin table and pushed the boy next to her out of his seat.

"That was my seat!" The boy yelled.

"Really?" Diego pretended to be surprised for a second, before his face grew cold. "Get over it. It's mine now." He sat down and met Katie's eyes.

She didn't remove her eyes from his for nearly a minute. His eyes were alluring, emerald green and confusing. One moment there'd seem to be emotion in them, the next none was present. She could see intelligence in them though, perhaps too much for his own good and he was handsome. Finally, he removed his piercing stare after Dimitri said his name and started talking to him.

---

That night, she wrote to her mother and told her where she had been sorted and that she had met someone with the last name Potter. She told her mother how beautiful Hogwarts was and how classes weren't going to start until that Wednesday because they were to get used to their new surroundings and get some start of term notices.

She signed the letter and was debating whether or not to write to Draco when a large black owl tapped on the window. She opened it and allowed the owl to step in and drop a letter in her lap.

"T-thank you.." She said and picked up the letter, wondering who'd be writing to her already. There was no name on the front, but the envelope was sealed with a large Malfoy crest. She didn't figure Dimitri'd be writing to her so surely it was from Draco.

She tore it open and read it quietly. "Katalia, Congratulations on making Slytherin. I'm very proud of you. Dimitri's told me, don't worry, you can still tell your mother. She doesn't know yet. But I'm concerned. Dimitri's told me there's a boy in your house. I think it was Diego Zanyini? Is this true? And a Potter? Please write back soon and tell me how everything's going. And remember if you ever need anything, owl me. Draco."

She scribbled a reply back, "Thank you and yes, there is a Diego Zanyini in my house and a Zack Potter. But why does this make you concerned? And thank you for the offer. I'll be sure to remember. Katie."

She wrote "Draco Malfoy" on the envelope for Draco and "Mother" on the other and tied both to the owl. "Take these to Draco Malfoy and Hermione Granger." She sent the owl away and shut the window, laying down in bed and giving in to sleep.

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A/n: This is to clarify things:

One thing to keep in mind is Draco's offer. "If you ever need anything, owl me." This will come in later. And did I make Dimitri and Diego cocky enough? Diego Zanyini and Zack Potter shall be explained later. I'll tell you this now though; Diego has no clue who his father is. Aliza refused to tell anyone and Zack's never met his father.

Please tell me if I'm introducing too many new characters at once. That's the bad thing about writing about kids of characters. If I am, then I'll try and keep just the important ones mentioned most.

PLEASE READ! I WANT INPUT!

And for those who are curious, there were 10 students I left out. Two are Slytherins, Cameron Pohler, and Ica Rodgers. You will meet them later. Gryffindors are Doyle Howard, Heather Jackson, and Andrea Nolan. You will probably hear of them later. Ravenclaws is Marcie Kramer. And the Hufflepuffs are Kay Leonard, Debbie Nelson, Wayne Plitzk, and James Smith. These characters may be introduced. I'm considering putting in sections where other characters are the ones we are following. I'd like input on these. Thanks!

Please review!