As the train stops, Harry and Manny find themselves wiping their tongues on their robes… They find both the robes and the preferred drink of the magical world to be lacking… Pumpkin pie is good, but pumpkin juice is hardly any good. Hermione agreed, but was more polite. The wizarding-raised didn't see any problems, which was a problem in itself. The three would find themselves horrified at the feast, but they gotta get off the damn train first.
The group that physically consisted of 5 people but actually had 6 people did get off the train, which meant that they were thrown around like cricket balls or Quaffles. The kids proceeded to walk over to where Hagrid was calling them over (Hagrid didn't recognize the two-for-one deal of a boy, which relieved said boy) and they piled in on one boat, Harry subtly making it so one boat was super strong and a bit bigger than the norm.
"Every'un all aboard, yeah? Right then, FORWARD!" Hagrid yelled about 5 minutes later on a boat charmed specifically for himself, Harry, Hermione and Manny thinking that these kids are sooo well-behaved (A certain pair of redhead Twins sneezed over their bestie's Tarantula in the carriages with said bestie) compared to school kids in England, but that was forgotten when- "Yeh'll get yer firs' sight o' Hogwarts in a sec," Hagrid called over his shoulder, "jus' round this bend here." Which they did, and it was a sight to behold indeed… The narrow cove had opened suddenly onto the expanse of a great black lake. Perched atop a high mountain on the other side, its windows sparkling in the starry sky, was a vast castle with many turrets and towers.
Every kid there was awed by the fantastical beauty Hogwarts held, and while that was a cause for awe, Harry and Manny had their jaws dropping in shock because the wards they sensed were in worse shape than expected. And there were more than expected. All in all, the beauty that Hogwarts held was in more danger than expected. Entirely too much danger if you will.
Paranoia set in for the cautious duo, they did make a life from being on their guard, after simulated a flicker in their eye colour, to sell the illusion that the eye colour is more a result of a glamour charm than an actual colour change. Neville, ever the observant one when it came to things he cared about, noticed the green of his irises, and once again realized that his first friend was a lot deeper than expected, to have really told the truth about his appearance. He kept his mouth firmly shut though, as he fully expected to see his friend's true identity soon enough.
Manny, of course, had noticed Neville's subtler reaction- flickering eyes filled with admiration, and a slight squaring of shoulders- and felt happy that he was progressing with the backbone- it took a lot more for Harry to gain his spine, but given the circumstances, that was expecting too much too soon.
Soon enough, the boats docked at an underground entrance, though why they had to duck their heads was a question Harry had, seeing as Hagrid was the only one who needed to. Then they clambered up a passageway in the rock after Hagrid's lamp, coming out at last onto smooth, damp grass right in the shadow of the castle. They walked up a flight of stone steps and crowded around the huge, oak front door.
"Alrigh' then, everyone here?" A chorus of "YES" was the answer, and then Hagrid knocked on the gigantic doorThe door swung open at once. A tall, black-haired witch in emerald-green robes stood there. She had a very stern face and Harry's first thought would normally be that this was not someone to cross. Unfortunately, he trusted none but the four who joined him and MAnny in the compartment, so he cared not if this was a Goddess in front of him, he would spit in her face as necessary.
"The firs' years, Professor McGonagall," said Hagrid. "Thank you, Hagrid. I will take them from here." She pulled the door wide. The entrance hall was so big you could have fit the whole of the Dursleys' house in it. The stone walls were lit with flaming torches like the ones at Gringotts, the ceiling was too high to make out, and a magnificent marble staircase facing them led to the upper floors. They followed Professor McGonagall across the flagged stone floor, showing the first years into a small, empty chamber off the hall.
"Welcome to Hogwarts," said Professor McGonagall. "The start-of-term banquet will begin shortly, but before you take your seats in the Great Hall, you will be sorted into your Houses. The Sorting is a very important ceremony because, while you are here, your House will be something like your family within Hogwarts. You will have classes with the rest of your House, sleep in your House dormitory, and spend free time in your House common room." Harry and Manny called bullshit on that- teenagers were called devils for a reason, and they would never be family without a strong bond with the person in question. In fact, Neville was the only one he was willing to call family.
"The four Houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. Each House has its own noble history and each has produced outstanding witches and wizards. While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn your House points, while any rulebreaking will lose House points. At the end of the year, the House with the most points is awarded the House Cup, a great honour. I hope each of you will be a credit to whichever House becomes yours. The Sorting Ceremony will take place in a few minutes in front of the rest of the school. I suggest you all smarten yourselves up as much as you can while you are waiting." Her eyes lingered for a moment on a gangly red-headed male's smudged nose.
Harry idly wondered what it would take to have the House Cup revoked- there was no co-operation involved, and there was a cop-out in the way discipline was dolled out- Peer pressure was never the right way to go about with the enforcement of discipline, unless you were in a military organisation. Manny was suitably stunned with the way they were manipulating kids!
"I shall return when we are ready for you," said Professor McGonagall. "Please wait quietly." She left the chamber. A sandy-haired boy asked how the sorting took place and the redhead kid replied with "Some sort of test, I think. Fred said it hurts a lot, but I think he was joking." Harry wanted to tell them that it was a psychological test but even Susan, the most in touch with the mundane among the magically raised (they'd checked on the journey), didn't know about psychology or Mind Healing as the magical dunces called the magical part of it.
Then something happened that made several people behind him scream. "What the — ?" He deadpanned. The people around him gasped. About twenty ghosts had just streamed through the back wall. Pearly-white and slightly transparent, they glided across the room talking to one another and hardly glancing at the first years. They seemed to be arguing. What looked like a fat little monk was saying: "Forgive and forget, I say, we ought to give him a second chance —" "My dear Friar, haven't we given Peeves all the chances he deserves? He gives us all a bad name and you know, he's not really even a ghost — I say, what are you all doing here?" Harry personally thought this Peeves character had a lot of issues, but realized he was digressing
A ghost wearing a ruff and tights had suddenly noticed the first years. Nobody answered. "New students!" said the Fat Friar, smiling around at them. "About to be Sorted, I suppose?" A few people nodded mutely. "Hope to see you in Hufflepuff!" said the Friar. "My old House, you know." Harry gave his condolences in the privacy of his mind, having seen a frayed wizard's hat in McGonagall's mind, and figuring the rest out from context
"Move along now," said a sharp voice. "The Sorting Ceremony's about to start." Professor McGonagall had returned. One by one, the ghosts floated away through the opposite wall. Harry noticed Hermione was nervous now, and grabbed her hand to calm her five of them lined up and fell into the larger line when told to and traipsed behind the aging teacher as they walked out of the chamber, back across the hall, and through a pair of double doors into the Great Hall. Harry marvelled at the surprise he set himself up for. It was lit by thousands and thousands of candles that were floating in midair over four long tables, where the rest of the students were sitting. These tables were laid with glittering golden plates and goblets. At the top of the hall was another long table where the teachers were sitting. Professor McGonagall led the first years up here, so that they came to a halt in a line facing the other students, with the teachers behind them. The hundreds of faces staring at them looked like pale lanterns in the flickering candlelight. Dotted here and there among the students, the ghosts shone misty silver.
Harry looked upward and saw a velvety black ceiling dotted with stars and heard Hermione whisper, "It's bewitched to look like the sky outside. I read about it in Hogwarts, A History." It was hard to believe there was a ceiling there at all, and that the Great Hall didn't simply open on to the heavens. It was also hard to believe that she was pushed so far that she resorted to spouting knowledge from books as if they were gospel truth… His little trick seemed to be the right move since she didn't see the flicker he made at the boat, or the ones he made at shorter intervals, which should result in a pleasant surprise for the witch who needed it.
Harry quickly returned to the real world as Professor McGonagall silently placed a four-legged stool in front of the first years. On top of the stool she put a pointed wizard's hat. This hat was patched and frayed and extremely dirty. Petunia wouldn't have let it in the hellhole, not that she would even have the pleasure of knowing of its existence yet. Noticing that everyone in the hall was now staring at the hat, he stared at it, too. For a few seconds, there was complete silence. Then the hat twitched. A rip near the brim opened wide like a mouth — and the hat began to sing:
"Oh, you may not think I'm pretty,
But don't judge on what you see, I'll eat myself if you can find
A smarter hat than me.
You can keep your bowlers black,
Your top hats sleek and tall,
For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat
And I can cap them all.
There's nothing hidden in your head
The Sorting Hat can't see,
So try me on and I will tell you
Where you ought to be.
You might belong in Gryffindor,
Where dwell the brave at heart,
Their daring, nerve, and chivalry
Set Gryffindors apart;
You might belong in Hufflepuff,
Where they are just and loyal,
Those patient Hufflepuffs are true
And unafraid of toil;
Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,
If you've a ready mind,
Where those of wit and learning,
Will always find their kind;
Or perhaps in Slytherin
You'll make your real friends,
Those cunning folk use any means
To achieve their ends.
So put me on! Don't be afraid!
And don't get in a flap!
You're in safe hands (though I have none)
For I'm a Thinking Cap!"
The whole hall burst into applause as the hat finished its song. It bowed to each of the four tables and then became quite still again. "So we've just got to try on the hat!" the redhead whispered to the sandy haired boy. "I'll kill Fred, he was going on about wrestling a troll." Bad taste from this Fred, but he respected the attempt at a prank.
Harry thought the song left too much to be desired, and didn't account for the cesspool Slytherin had become, the sheep Hufflepuff had become (Harry discreetly warned Susan and Hannah to think for themselves), the achievement oriented dungeon of competition that Ravenclaw had become, or the house of Recklessness that Gryffindor had become… If he took personal choice out of the situation, something he wouldn't do unless necessary, as it was in Hermione's case, he would place them all in Gryffindor, thus fostering better people under his guidance…
Unfortunately, he knew that freedom was an important aspect of teaching them more, so he decided to warn the two future Hufflepuffs, and use Absolute Aegis to make Hermione and Neville seem like Gryffindors- he can reign her more impulsive tendencies in that way, and Neville needed the environment there, along with his support to break him out of the shell he still was in. Harry also told Neville and Hermione to keep on their toes and get into Gryffindor, to keep up the ruse.
Professor McGonagall stepped forward holding a long roll of parchment. "When I call your name, you will put on the hat and sit on the stool to be sorted," she said. "Abbott, Hannah!" Hannah stepped out in a dignified manner, having been kept in the loop by put on the hat, which fell right down over her eyes, and sat down. A moment's pause.
"HUFFLEPUFF!" shouted the hat. The table on the right cheered and clapped as Hannah went to sit down at the Hufflepuff table. Harry saw the ghost of the Fat Friar waving merrily at her. "Bones, Susan!"
"HUFFLEPUFF!" shouted the hat again, and Susan scuttled off to sit next to Hannah. "Boot, Terry!"
"RAVENCLAW!" The table second from the left clapped this time; several Ravenclaws stood up to shake hands with Terry as he joined them. "Brocklehurst, Mandy" went to Ravenclaw too, but "Brown, Lavender" became the first new Gryffindor, and the table on the far left exploded with cheers. Manny didn't expect much from her,seeing her personality leaned to that of a gossipmonger. She seemed useful to him, if only to keep track of the rumors. The Ravenclaws were magical in descent, too much belief in authority to adjust to change, but one senior sitting among them seemed to have potential.
"Bulstrode, Millicent" then became a Slytherin. She looked to be someone who was a late bloomer in terms of appearance, but didn;t really have any magical or mental potential worth noting, "Finch-Fletchley, Justin!" "HUFFLEPUFF!" Another one he liked, Normal origins too- used to fast changes. Sometimes, Harry and Manny noticed, the hat shouted out the House at once, but at others it took a little while to decide. "Finnigan, Seamus," the sandy-haired boy next to Harry in the line, sat on the stool for almost a whole minute before the hat declared him a Gryffindor.
"Granger, Hermione!" Hermione almost ran to the stool and jammed the hat eagerly on her head. Too eager- another sign that her parents failed in a sense
His shield worked like a charm, and she was a Gryffindor in no time.
Neville walked slowly, not willing to show any nerves when called, which made him seem regal. Improvement. He got into Gryffindor as well. Having heard the Hat's conversations with the friends, he knew they showed their true potential and were put in Gryffindor for that very reason.
Draco Malfoy, the blond ponce from Madam Malkins', swaggered forward when his name was called and got his wish at once: the hat had barely touched his head when it screamed, "SLYTHERIN!" Too much mental yelling- Harry wasn;t keen on his actions with Draco in mind.
Draco went to join his friends Crabbe and Goyle, looking pleased with himself. There weren't many people left now. "Moon" . . . , "Nott" . . . , "Parkinson" . . . , then a pair of twin girls, "Patil" and "Patil" . . . , then "Perks, Sally-Anne" . . . , and then, at last — "Potter, Harry!" Whispers suddenly broke out like little hissing fires all over the hall. "Potter, did she say?" "The Harry Potter?"
Harry turned his eyes back to the green he was happy to have. Susan and Hannah, as well as Neville and Hermione noticed it happen, seeing as they all kept their eyes on him, and their jaws dropped. Harry stepped out, rubbing his right palm over the concealed scar and conjuring some smudged make-up over it. The Hall went silent as he snatched the Hat from McGonagall with a genial smile, and placed it over his head, while standing.
'Hmm,' said the small voice of the Hat in his ear. 'Difficult. Very difficult. Plenty of courage, I see. Not a bad mind either. There's talent, oh my goodness, yes — and a nice thirst to prove yourself, if not to change the world, now that's interesting. . . . So where shall I put you?'
'I'll make this easy- Slytherin's a cesspool for any decent person- Greengrass and Davis come to mind, as does Zabini for the decent category. Hufflepuff have become sheep among sheep, which means I would be forced to go with the flow… so not for me. Ravenclaw is too competitive and places books on a pedestal as repositories of knowledge, but no way am I competing with them for any reason. Gryffindors are reckless at best, foolish at worst, in the face of glory. I'm a Slytherin by your definition, but not Dark by anyone's definition. I'm hiding the Snake's fangs, so I'll take Gryffindor for its freedom in action. Also, you seem to think Slytherin will take me to greatness- explain that at a later date' Harry thought out and made the sorting hat pause.
'Sly of you, Mr. Potter, and I will try to change the perception of the houses in the future, but is there another reason to put you in Gryffindor? Hufflepuff would suit you just as well…' The hat asked.
'The simplest place to hide is in plain sight- I'm expected in Gryffindor, so it wouldn't be strange that way… sides, someone wanted me abused for some reason… I'm not letting the man go for his crimes against me.' Harry thought rather savagely.
"Well then, I see no reason to stop you… I know of your plans, and I can see the benefits of it… I wish you all the success in GRYFFINDOR!" Harry heard the Hat shout the last word to the whole hall. He took off the hat and walked confidently toward the Gryffindor table. He even noticed that he was getting the loudest cheer yet. the Prefect got up and shook his hand vigorously, while a pair of redheaded twin boys yelled, "We got Potter! We got Potter!" Harry sat down opposite the ghost in the ruff he'd seen earlier, which happened to be between Neville and Hermione. The ghost patted his arm, giving Harry the sudden feeling he'd just plunged it into a bucket of ice-cold water. It wasn't the best feeling, but it wasn't that bad either.
"Holy Merlin, Mike, or should I call you Harry? You managed to catch the whole school by surprise with your identity… I can't blame you for hiding it though- we would've been too much in awe to actually listen to you." Neville muttered into his ear, in shock slightly. Manny sensed that Hermione was a bit betrayed by his identity, so he and Harry resolved to talk to her later that night.
He could see the High Table properly now. At the end nearest him sat Hagrid, who caught his eye and gave him the thumbs up but had confusion swimming in his beady black eyes. Harry grinned back. And there, in the centre of the High Table, in a large gold chair, sat Albus Dumbledore. Harry recognized him at once from the card he'd gotten out of a Chocolate Frog on the train (Both had thought 'A face to the bastard's name at last' when they got it). Dumbledore's silver hair was the only thing in the whole hall that shone as brightly as the ghosts. One of the professors was looking very peculiar in a large purple turban.
And now there were only four people left to be sorted. "Thomas, Dean," a Black boy even taller than the redhead boy, joined Harry at the Gryffindor table. "Turpin, Lisa," became a Ravenclaw and then it was the redhead's- now known as Ronald Weasley turn. He was pale green by now. A second later the hat had shouted, "GRYFFINDOR!" Harry clapped loudly with the rest as Ron collapsed into the chair next to him. "Well done, Ron, excellent," said Percy Weasley pompously a few seats away from Harry as "Zabini, Blaise," was made a Slytherin. Professor McGonagall rolled up her scroll and took the Sorting Hat away. Harry looked down at his empty gold plate. He had only just realized how hungry he was. The various snacks seemed ages ago.
Albus Dumbledore had gotten to his feet. He was beaming at the students, his arms opened wide, as if nothing could have pleased him more than to see them all there. They thought differently, he was a politician after all. "Welcome!" he said. "Welcome to a new year at Hogwarts! Before we begin our banquet, I would like to say a few words. And here they are: Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak! Thank you!" He sat back down. Everybody clapped and cheered. Harry didn't know whether to laugh or not. "Is he… a bit mad?" he asked Percy, acting confused. "Mad?" said Percy airily. "He's a genius! Best wizard in the world! But he is a bit mad, yes. Potatoes, Harry?"
Well, the elves worked fast in Harry's opinion. All the food was served now. For some strange reason, peppermint humbugs were on the table even though it wasn't dessert time. Harry chose steak, roast chicken, fries, some of the vegetables, and gravy. He even took the humbugs, to freshen up his palate whenever he changed dishes. It was all delicious.
"That does look good," said the ghost in the ruff sadly, watching Harry cut up his steak. "Can't you… ?" Harry asked, to be polite. "I haven't eaten for nearly five hundred years," replied morosely the ghost. "I don't need to, of course, but one does miss it. I don't think I've introduced myself? Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington at your service. Resident ghost of Gryffindor Tower." "I know who you are!" said Ron suddenly. "My brothers told me about you — you're Nearly Headless Nick!" "I would prefer you to call me Sir Nicholas de Mimsy —" the ghost began stiffly, but sandy-hai- Seamus Finnigan interrupted. "Nearly Headless? How can you be nearly headless?" Sir Nicholas looked extremely miffed, as if their little chat wasn't going at all the way he wanted. "Like this," he said irritably. He seized his left ear and pulled. His whole head swung off his neck and fell onto his shoulder as if it was on a hinge. Someone had obviously tried to behead him, but not done it properly.
Manny felt the gore was lacking, and Harry desperately agreed. Looking pleased at the stunned looks on their faces, Nearly Headless Nick flipped his head back onto his neck, coughed, and said, "So — new Gryffindors! I hope you're going to help us win the House Championship this year? Gryffindors have never gone so long without winning. Slytherins have got the cup six years in a row! The Bloody Baron's becoming almost unbearable — he's the Slytherin ghost."
Harry looked over at the Slytherin table and saw a horrible ghost sitting there, with blank staring eyes, a gaunt face, and robes stained with silver blood. He was right next to Draco, who didn't look too pleased with the seating arrangements. "How did he get covered in blood?" asked Seamus with great interest. "I've never asked," said Nearly Headless Nick delicately. When everyone had eaten as much as they could, the remains of the food faded from the plates, leaving them sparkling clean as before. A moment later the desserts appeared. Blocks of ice cream in every flavour you could think of, apple pies, treacle tarts, chocolate éclairs and jam doughnuts, trifle, strawberries, Jell-O, rice pudding . . . As Harry helped himself to some fruits and vanilla ice cream, the talk turned to their families. He dreaded this one, not just for himself, seeing as he is a private person by nature, but for Neville, who was not experienced in deception.
"I'm half-and-half," said Seamus. "Me dad's a Muggle. Mam didn't tell him she was a witch 'til after they were married. Bit of a nasty shock for him." The others laughed. Harry and Manny didn't see why they should.
"What about you, Neville?" said Ron. "Well, my gran brought me up and she's a witch," said Neville, now bolstered by his returning self-confidence, "but the family thought I was all-Muggle for ages. My Great Uncle Algie kept trying to catch me off my guard and force some magic out of me — he pushed me off the end of the Blackpool pier once, I nearly drowned — but nothing really happened until I was eight. Great Uncle Algie came round for dinner, and he was hanging me out of an upstairs window by the ankles when my Great Auntie Enid offered him a meringue and he accidentally let go. But I bounced — all the way down the garden and into the road. They were all really pleased, Gran was crying, she was so happy. And you should have seen their faces when I got in here — they thought I might not be magic enough to come, you see. Great Uncle Algie was so pleased he bought me my toad."
"And if this Great Uncle Algie of yours ever wants to meet me, he can just come lick my shoes!" Harry interjected vehemently. "I told you, Neville, what they did constitutes child abuse! What I just said also applies to your Gran, and I will NOT entertain any requests for niceties with them until beg at your feet for your forgiveness in front of me!" That declaration, while not loud, was deafening for the people in the conversation, since it made them think about their own instances of accidental magic- another term to scoff at, Manny prefers Instinctual magic to describe it- and found them to be more dangerous than it seemed at the time.
On Harry's other side, Percy Weasley and Hermione were talking about lessons. "I do hope they start right away, there's so much to learn, I'm particularly interested in Transfiguration, you know, turning something into something else, of course, it's supposed to be very difficult —"; "You'll be starting small, just matches into needles and that sort of thing —". "I think some basic theory is needed for most practical subjects" Harry interjected while locking eyes with Hermione, seeking permission. He also slipped a note in her pocket, such that she notices and looks at it later. "I mean, spells have some theory behind it, right?" He actually tried to show them that magic had no rules (Common sense for him at least). Hermione seemed to consider it, but Percy downright said that there were rules to magic as well, so he dropped it.
As you can guess, I used excerpts from the actual Book 1 for this chapter... It matches the descriptions I'm aiming for, while keeping the stoty distinctly original. The next chapter is more of an emotional one, so I ended on a chiffhanger of sorts to prep for that.
R&R
Seiichi
