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Chapter 12

September 1st 1988

Hogwarts

The door swung open and a imposing woman came out

Harry recognized her as the formidable Minerva McGonagall.

'The first years, Professor McGonagall,' said Hagrid

'Thank you, Hagrid. I will take them from here.'

She pulled the door wide and they followed Professor McGonagall across the flagged stone floor. Harry could hear the drone of hundreds of voices from a doorway to the right – the rest of the school must already be here – but Professor McGonagall took the first-years into a small empty chamber off the hall. They crowded in, standing rather closer together than they would usually have done, peering about nervously.

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.

'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 rule-breaking will lose house points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded the House Cup, a great honor. I hope each of you will be a credit to whichever house becomes yours.

The Sorting Ceremony will take place in front of the rest of the school

'Now, form a line,' Professor McGonagall told the first-years, 'and follow me.'

Harry and Daphne got into line and with the rest of the first years walked out of the chamber, back across the hall, and through a pair of double doors into the Great Hall.

Wow

What an impressive hall it was.

While both Daphne and Harry looked around at the sights Harry looked at the other students and teachers who they would be around for seven years and working out who looked good and who did not.

Looking at the front of the hall Harry saw Professor McGonogal place a stool in front of the first years where a hat was put.

Soon everyone was looking at the hat which after a few seconds the hat twitched and began to sing.

Welcome, welcome, one and all

the show is about to start

I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat

and it's time to play my part

You may call me worn and ragged

if that's all you truly see

But listen close and I will tell

where you're supposed to be!

Go ahead and try me on

there's nothing left to fear

I'll find right where you belong

by looking between your ears!

I've done this job for centuries

On every student's head I've sat

Of thoughts I take inventories

For I'm the famous Sorting Hat.

I've sorted high, I've sorted low,

I've done the job through thick and thin

So put me on and you will know

Which house you should be in...

Are you afraid of what you'll hear?

Afraid I'll speak the name you fear?

Not Slytherin! Not Gryffindor!

Not Hufflepuff! Not Ravenclaw!

Don't worry, child, I know my job,

You'll learn to laugh, if first you sob.

The whole hall burst into applause as the hat finished its song. The hat bowed to each of the four tables and then became quite still again.

Professor McGonogal now 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.

Professor McGonogal then called out the first name.

Daphne was before him on the list and he gave her an encouraging smile as she went up and the sorting hat put her in Slytherin.

Not much surprise there.

But soon it was his turn.

He heard voices muttering at the mention of Potter.

When the hat was put on Harry heard a voice in his ear.

"Hello Mr Potter"The hat said "How are you doing today".

"Good i suppose"Harry replied "Arent you supposed to be selecting my House now".

"What house do you want to be in"The hat replied.

"I get to choose"Harry asked.

"Yes Mr Potter i always want to get the students' input unless there is an obvious choice which I am not getting from you".

"Really"Harry questioned astonishedly.

"No"The Hat replied "You have the fire and passion in your heart of a Gryfindor,The fierce loyalty to those you care about of a Hufflepuff,the ambitions and studious attitude of a Ravenclaw and the cunning of a Slytherin".

"Put me in Slytherin then,"Harry asked.

"Ah Mrs Greengrass"The Hat wondered.

Harry blushed.

"No"He protested "Slytherin is obviously the house of the future power brokers and influencers in this world".

"Ah"The hat chuckled "Influence,well remember young Potter that there is influence to be found in many places this year".

"What do you mean?"Harry asked.

"You will find out in due time"The hat replied "This group of kids is different and its nice to think that the tree might be rid of its tumor".

"But for now it had better be SLYTHERIN".Shouting the final part out loud.

Looking out at the group of students Harry saw many curious faces and saw a brightly grinning Daphne.

Walking over to the Slytherin table Harry took a seat next to her.

It turns out he was also the last kid to be sorted.

There was a group of kids standing up in the front of the hall.

It was a choir of sorts that started to sing.
Double, double, toil and trouble;

Fire burn and cauldron bubble.

Double, double, toil and trouble;

Something wicked this way comes!

Eye of newt and toe of frog,

Wool of bat and tongue of dog,

Adder's fork and blind-worm's sting,

Lizard's leg and howlet's wing.

Double, double, toil and trouble;

Fire burn and cauldron bubble.

Double, double, toil and trouble;

Something wicked this way comes!

In the cauldron boil and bake,

Fillet of a fenny snake,

Scale of dragon, tooth of wolf,

Witches' mummy, maw and gulf.

Double, double, toil and trouble;

Fire burn and cauldron bubble.

Double, double, toil and trouble;

Fire burn and cauldron bubble.

Double, double, toil and trouble;

Fire burn and cauldron bubble.

Something wicked this way comes!

Harry and Daphne politely clapped at the Wizards rendition of a class Shakesphere play.

Looking at the front of the room Harry could see the unmistakable Albus Dumbledore rising to his feet.

"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.

Weird but Harry soon focused more on his food.

The dishes in front of them were filled with so much food.

He saw roast beef, roast chicken, pork chops and lamb chops, sausages, bacon and steak, boiled potatoes, roast potatoes, fries, Yorkshire pudding, peas, carrots, gravy, ketchup, and, for some strange reason, peppermint humbugs.

Harry piled his plate with a bit of everything except the peppermints and began to eat. It was all delicious.

He saw Daphne grab a lot two.

As the meal went on Harry struck up conversation with the other students that were interested in him being a Potter.

He told the story of how he had been left by the Potters at his Muggle Relatives place and how he did not like them any more than they did.

By the end of that he thought that he was able to convince a good portion of the Slytherins of that fact.

He then got into a conversation with the boy from the boat, Edmund Spiers.

Spiers seemed like a fine bloke who was good to talk to.

But soon when everyone had eaten as much as they could, the remains of the food faded from the plates, leaving them sparkling clean. A moment later the desserts appeared. Blocks of ice cream in every flavor you could think of, apple pies, treacle tarts, chocolate eclairs, and jam doughnuts, trifle, strawberries, Jell-O, rice pudding -

Man how was everyone in the Wizarding World not all fat.

As in sensing his thoughts Daphne leaned in and whispered to Harry "Its good that Wizarding Metabolism is so good or we would all be fat since you and i are one of the few that do any hard exercise".

Harry nodded.

That made sense.

He heard two students 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 - ").

Harry was looking forward to the classes too.

He had been learning about the elements for years from Master Dao and he was now interested in seeing how much he could connect those to the Hogwarts Subjects.

Soon the desserts too disappeared, and Headmaster Dumbledore got to his feet again. The hall fell silent.

"Ahern - just a few more words now that we are all fed and watered. I have a few start-of-term notices to give you.

"First years should note that the forest on the grounds is forbidden to all pupils. And a few of our older students would do well to remember that as well."

"I have also been asked by Mr. Filch, the caretaker, to remind you all that no magic should be used between classes in the corridors.

"Quidditch trials will be held in the second week of the term. Anyone interested in playing for their house teams should contact Madam Hooch.

"And now, before we go to bed, let us sing the school song!" cried Dumbledore. Harry noticed that the other teachers' smiles had become rather fixed.

Dumbledore gave his wand a little flick as if he was trying to get a fly off the end, and a long golden ribbon flew out of it, which rose high above the tables and twisted itself, snakelike, into words.

"Everyone pick your favorite tune," said Dumbledore, "and off we go!" And the school bellowed

Hogwarts, Hogwarts, Hoggy Warty Hogwarts,

Teach us something please,

Whether we be old and bald,

Or young with scabby knees,

Our heads could do with filling,

With some interesting stuff,

For now they're bare and full of air,

Dead flies and bits of fluff,

So teach us things worth knowing,

Bring back what we've forgot,

Just do your best, we'll do the rest,

And learn until our brains all rot

Everybody finished the song at different times

. At last, Dumbledore conducted their last few lines with his wand and when they had finished, he was one of those who clapped loudest.

"Ah, music," he said, wiping his eyes. "A magic beyond all we do here! And now, bedtime. Off you trot!

"Ready"Daphne asked.

Exiting the Great Hall Harry and Daphne followed the Slytherin Students to their Common Room with two perfects leading the group.

Walking down the staircase they went down the stairs that led to the dungeons before going through a real maze of passages before stopping at a stone column.

"Ok your all here runts," The first perfect said "The password to get in is "Pureblood Supremacy".

Wow, that was obvious what people wanted Slytherins perspectives to be.

And Harry felt insulted to be called a runt.

Harry was actually quite tall for his age group.

The statue receded and slid to the side allowing the first years to enter the Common Room.

The Common Room was something to behold.

The Slytherin common room was a long, low underground room with rough stone walls and a stone ceiling, from which round, greenish lamps were hanging on chains. A fire was crackling under an elaborately carved mantelpiece ahead of them.

The common room also had lots of low backed black and dark green button-tufted, leather sofas; skulls; and dark wood cupboards. One of the wooden tables Harry saw had a Wizard's Chess set on it. The whole place was also decorated with tapestries featuring the adventures of famous Medieval Slytherins.

Harry found the whole place to be quite cozy.

The two perfects turned to address the group

"Hello," The first one said, "My name is Felix Rosier and this is my fellow perfect Gemma Farley".

"Your dormitories are at the end of this corridor," Rosier said, "Unlike in the other houses in here you get your own room".

"They are each individually marked and will have your stuff in them when you get in," Gemma said.

"We just have a few things to go over and then we will let you go," Rosier said.

Following the rest of the first years, Harry and Daphne found themselves nice cushy chairs to sit in.

He saw their head of house Severus Snape had slipped in and was standing near the entrance watching as the Perfects began their speech.

"There are certain things you'll need to know if you're going to succeed here in Slytherin House," Rosier said.

Gemma continued. "The most important thing I can say to you is that Slytherins stick together. We can show the outside world no crack in our armor, no gap in our defenses. We must have complete solidarity. This means that you support your fellow Slytherins, no matter what. Take up your personal problems in private, preferably here in the Lair, where no unfriendly ears can overhear."

Rosier continued that line of thought. "Solidarity is our best defense. The other houses, most notably Gryffindor, hate us. We have a somewhat ally in Hufflepuff House, but we can truly depend only on ourselves."

"Now then, here are the ground rules of Slytherin House," said Gemma. "One: Never take the blame for anything.

"Two: To avoid taking blame, never get caught.

"Three: If you do get caught, deny everything, and blame someone else.

"Four: No member of Slytherin House is to mistreat another in any way at all if there's anybody from another house watching.

"Five: Blood does matter. Ability matters more.

"Six: Loyalty is not just for Hufflepuffs,"

"Your all going to do fine here," Rosier said.

"If you have problems with classwork, you can come to see the prefects, though if we're not around, any of the others will gladly help you out."

Gemma smiled at them. "If you have problems with other students, as is bound to happen, we'll be glad to help you out. We don't fight your battles for you, so you're going to have to take care of the problem yourself, but we'll give you all the advice you could want."

Rosier then looked at Professor Snape "Do you want to add anything Professor".

Snape shook his head "No, No you two have pretty much hit upon most of the major points I wanted to get across".

"My name is Professor Severus Snape," He said, "I am the Head of Slytherin House and resident Potion Master at Hogwarts, I look forward to having most of you in class".

Harry felt that he was looking at him.

And then adding.

"Schedules will be given out tomorrow during breakfast and until then have a nice time getting accumulated to your new quarters for the next seven years".

"Have a good night".

If your liking this story please review

I read every one of your reviews and if you want to make any suggestions or ideas I will respond to you in the next chapter I post