Chapter 3: The Sorting Hat

At long last the train came to a stop. The group had already changed into their school robes and gathered their stuff so they were some of the first to step out onto the platform. They stood for a moment becoming aware, and a little frightened at the darkness that was slowly creeping up on them. It was a few moments before they heard the booming voice, calling for all the first years, of a man a few feet away.

Smiling Olina turned to see Hagrid, the schools groundskeeper and one of her father's closest friends holding a lantern and waving a huge hand over the frightened first years. Eager to say hello Olina immediately queued up with the rest of the students who were waiting to board the small wooden boats tied to the platform.

"Oli. Demelza," he cried as he pulled each girl into a rib splitting hug. Spotting Rawson he asked, "Hey ther Rawson how's yer mum and dad."

"Fine," he answered looking out at the black waters of the lake. His eyebrows were raised in a cloud of suspicion. Silently, and rather reluctantly they ascended onto the boats. Olina, Demelza, Rawson, and Reva were soon seated in the nearest boat with Hagrid and the boats made a shaky start towards the castle.

"Ar' ye excited abo' the sortin'?" Hagrid asked the group in the hopes of distracting their sudden fear, as they all looked over the boats edge. He was trying to lighten the mood as several of his passengers held their stomachs suspiciously.

"Oh, yes," Olina said suddenly. She had been peering into the dark waters of the lake and thought she saw a white tentacle glide slowly near the surface.

"It's really dark, isn't it?" Reva asked motioning to the water.

"Well ye don' want ter go fallin' in" he told them all. An involuntary shiver went through the whole group.

A few minutes later they were getting off on dry land slightly chilled by the ride. Once inside the castle they were met by a tall woman in black robes. She was standing patiently at the top of the stairs with a thick roll of parchment in her hands.

"I am Madame Nocturna," she said in a soft voice. "Before we begin the feast you will each be sorted into one of four houses. The houses are Ravenclaw, Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin. Now you must know that you will all be able to earn your house points or lose them depending on your behavior. A strong word of caution: don't miss behave. At the end of the school year the house with the most points wins the school cup. That's it, now follow me."

With swift, steady steps Madame Nocturna led them through the dining hall. There were for long tables filled with students who were all eyeing them curiously. The ceiling's sky was dark and clear just as it had been outside. When the last of the first years were standing in front of the teacher's tables, in front of the whole school, Nocturna began calling out names.

Olina and Demelza stood together and watched as one by one the students sat in a stool, put on an old hat, and waited for it to call out their names. Rawson was the first of them to get called and the hat immediately echoed out "Gryffindor!" Olina watched as he made his way to the table that was cheering the loudest and sat down next to Varian who was watching him with pride. Reva was called soon after, and without a look of surprise she walked over to her table when the hat called out Ravenclaw.

Olina heart started beating faster as she realized it would soon be her turn. She was so nervous that when her name was finally called it took a nudge from Demelza before she had realized it. She made her way slowly to the stool as the whispers went on around her. She made out a few words here and there most of them involving her father's name, it was to be expected.

Sitting down she put on the hat and waited. A few seconds past and then she heard a whisper in her ear, "A Potter twin? Ha must be that Weasley blood. Let's see you have talent beyond your years, a kind heart, and drive. This won't come as a surprise, Gryffindor!"

With a sigh of relief Olina walked over to the Gryffindor table where she was met with Rawson's soft smile. Her heart finally stopped pounding as she heard Demelza's name being called.

Unlike Olina, Demelza did not look nervous. She walked over to the stool and put on the hat confidently. Olina held her breath for the hat to call out Gryffindor and it seemed as though a full minute had passed.

Finally a loud, "Slytherin!" echoed throughout the hall.

A/N: That's enough history I think I am going to flash foward to the present day. Now that I think about it, it might be interesting to do a flashback fic, so that as we read about the present we get flashbacks about how it all started. I don't know? Tell me what you think.