"First years this way, come along now".
"Woah". A man larger than one she had ever seen was now standing in front of them. He must have been well over 8 feet. He had big bushy hair accompanied by a long bushy beard.
"Hello Hagrid," Harry said.
Val, Harry and Ron had all departed from the train together after it arrived in the small village that they were currently in, and once all of the first year had come to stand next to Hagrid, they departed from the station and were brought to a lake's shore. The three of them shared a boat as they made their way across the lake and towards the castle that towered in front of them. After they docked the boats, they were led by Hagrid up to a large entrance hall in front of an equally large pair of double doors.
They were then greeted by a thin witch in emerald green robes who had a stern look upon her features.
"Here are the firs' years Professor McGonagall" Hagrid said as he greeted the witch.
"Thank you Hagrid, now if you will all follow me". She led them into a small side room that connected to the entrance hall, and they all crowded in.
"Welcome to Hogwarts," McGonagall began, "The start-of-term feast will begin momentarily, but first you must be Sorted into your houses. Now here at Hogwarts your house will be like your home. You will have classes with the rest of your house, you will spend free time in your house common room, and you will sleep in your house dormitory. The four houses here at Hogwarts are Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. While here, your triumphs will earn you house points, and any failures and rule breaking will lose you house points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points will be awarded the house cup."
The first years all looked at each other with excitement. Valencia had never experienced something quite like this in her previous schools. While Luca and Leah had both attended a boarding school, she had opted to stay in a public school.
"The Sorting Ceremony will start in a few minutes. I will return in a few minutes to bring you into the Great Hall when we are ready." With that Professor Mcgonagall left the small room leaving the group of first years alone with each other.
None of them talked as they were all too full of nerves. All except Hermione Granger who seemed more than eager to begin the ceremony.
"How exactly are we going to be sorted?" Harry asked.
"Oh well I'm not sure, but Fred said it hurts a lot. I hope he was joking" Ron said as he shrugged his shoulders. Val assumed that Fred was one of Ron's many brothers.
"What house Is-" Valencia started, but before she could finish a boy with platinum blonde hair and sharp features stepped in front of the three of them. He was accompanied by two larger boys who stood by his side as if they were his own personal bodyguards.
"Is it true then, what everyone said on the train? That Harry Potter is here at Hogwarts." the boy asked.
"Yes" was all Harry replied with.
"This is Crabbe, and that's Goyle" the boy began as he pointed to each boy individually, "and my name's Malfoy, Draco Malfoy."
At this Ron snorted. He tried to cover it up with a cough but Draco had already noticed.
"Think my name's funny, do you? No need to ask yours. My father told me all about the Weasley's. Red hair, freckles, and hand-me-down robes." He then turned to Harry. "You'll soon find out some wizarding families are better than others, Potter. You don't want to go making friends with the wrong sort now do you? I can help you there" he stuck out his hand for Harry to shake but he refused it.
"I think I can tell who the wrong sort are for myself, thanks" Harry replied.
A look of anger and disappointment came across Draco Malfoy's face, but before their little fight could go any further, the room was suddenly filled with about twenty pearly-white ghosts, causing everyone gasped with shock. As they glided across the room, Valencia could make out a small conversation amongst a few of them that almost seemed like fighting.
"Forgive and forget, I say, we ought to give him a second chance-" a small fat ghost was saying.
"My dear Friar, we have given Peeves a number of chances, many more than he should have gotten if I say so myself. He gives us ghosts a bad reputation, there's no denying that-. Oh look, first years."
The ghost who was talking turned to them. He was wearing a ruff accompanied by a pair of tights.
"Ah! New students!" the Fat Friar said. "Oh I do hope to see some of you in Hufflepuff! My old house you know."
"Move along now Friar." Professor McGonagall said as she returned to the room. "Come now, the Sorting Ceremony is about to begin."
The first years all followed Professor McGonagall as they made their way to the large pair of double doors that Valencia had noticed when they first arrived.
McGonagall opened the doors that lead into the Great Hall. It was lit by thousands of floating candles with torches that lined the walls. Four long tables all lined with golden plates and goblets, and students who were already seated took up the center of the giant room. At the front of the hall there was one more table which was filled by what Valencia assumed were the school's other professors. Then, when Valencia looked up, it was as if there were no ceiling.
"It's bewitched to look like the night sky you know" Hermione said as she appeared next to Val. "I read about it in Hogwarts, A History."
They were led up the center aisle up towards a small stool that had one of the oldest looking hats that Valencia had ever seen on it. It was tattered and torn with various patches that mismatched it's original brown color. Before Valencia could ask Hermione about it, a small slit appeared in the hat and it 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-"
At this, Valencia stopped listening for a short amount of time to continue to look around the hall. She had never been in a room more grand. The small house that she lived in with her family was nothing in comparison to the Great Hall, and this was only one room that made up the entirety of Hogwarts.
"-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 safe in hands (though I have none)
For I'm a thinking cap!"
As the Sorting Hat concluded it's song, the Great Hall burst into cheers.
"Now, when I call your name, you will come up, sit on the stool, and I will place the hat on your heads" Professor McGonagall said.
"Abbott, Hannah" she called.
A girl who had her blonde hair tightly pulled into pigtails went up to the stool and the hat was placed on her head.
"HUFFLEPUFF" it called after a few seconds. The table on the far right side of the hall cheered as Hannah Abbott went to join them.
As the ceremony continued, Valencia drowned out all noise. She began to panic. What house would she be put in? What if it wasn't the house she wanted? What if she made no friends? None of her other family members were witches or wizards, so she would be the first to be sorted. What if the Sorting Hat decided she wasn't worthy to be sorted at all and instead sent her back home? All of these thoughts clouded her mind as names continued to get called. Harry, Ron, and Hermione all became Gryffindors, and Valencia was one of the last to get Sorted. June Adams went before her, and like she had said she would be, was Sorted into Slytherin.
"I'm sure it will be fine," Harry had said. "Maybe we'll all get sorted into the same house."
"Yea," Ron had added, "I'm hoping the three of us will all be sorted into Gryffindor, that's the house all of my brothers are in." He had then pointed to the Gryffindor table where Valencia could clearly make out three other people with red hair.
"Martin, Valencia" Professor McGonagall called out, interrupting Valencia's thoughts. With nervous stepps, she approached the stool and took a seat. The professor gave her a small smile before placing the old and worn hat on her head. Harry and Ron both looked up at her with anticipation and reassuring eyes from where they were seated next to each other at the Gryffindor table.
A voice suddenly started talking in her ear making her jump slightly. "Ah Miss... Martin. Oh there are many options for you. Yes, yes. You will most certainly do great things in your time here at Hogwarts, yes, many great things, but there is only one house I can see that will clearly suit you best and help you on your way to achieving these great things." the voice said.
Please be Gryffindor, please be Gryffindor she thought.
"SLYTHERIN!" the hat shouted the next moment.
The table to the right of the Gryffindor table cheered as she went to join them. This was not what she wanted. She wanted to be with Harry and Ron, the only two people that she was friends with at the time. Instead, she was heading over to a table full of strangers. The only two people who she recognized were Draco Malfoy and June Adams. She of course had nothing against the people in Slytherin or the house as a whole. She knew little to nothing about the house so there was no way she could judge on the little that she did know. She would just have to wait and see.
She took a seat next to June who greeted her with a small smile.
"Didn't expect to see you here, mudblood," she said.
"Ew. She's a mudblood?" Draco Malfoy asked. He was seated a few places down from where the two girls sat.
"Mudbloods can't be Slytherins" a girl with short black hair and pug-like features said.
"Oh shut it. All of you" June said, giving them all a fierce glance before turning back to Valencia. "Just ignore them, they're all idiots."
"Thanks. They do look like the type of people to be idiots don't they?" Valencia replied with a grin.
June snorted at her comment but before she could say anything else, the golden plates and dishes before them were filled to the brim with various types of foods. Val hadn't even noticed that Professor McGonagall had continued to call the names of the last few students, but apparently everyone had been sorted and the feast was beginning. She had never seen so many different types of food in her life. Various foods including roast beef, chicken, pork, steak, sausages and biscuits crowded the table and everyone began to help themselves.
Valencia had never been one to eat unless she were hungry, and at the time she wasn't. She was still filled with nervousness and anxious thoughts about the time to come in her new school with all of these new people. Nevertheless, the food was too good to resist. She grabbed a small piece of steak, a biscuit, and some potatoes before pouring some gravy on the side. It was all incredible. Her mum had always been a good cook, but none of her meals could compare to this.
"Hey mudblood, how did someone like you get into Slytherin anyways?" Malfoy asked.
"Oh, well, I assumed you knew. You see there's this thing called the Sorting Hat and-" she began.
"Don't get smart with me." Malfoy said with a glare on his face "There's no way a muggle-born could be sorted into Slytherin. So how did you do it? Huh? Did you rig it or something?".
"Don't be so naïve Draco, it really isn't that deep. The hat obviously thought this house suited me best, so here I am" was her response. She had finished her food a few minutes ago so all of her attention was now on her conversation with the blonde boy. She wasn't usually one to talk back like this but for some reason she felt comfortable with doing so. She was the type of person who was extremely shy and introverted at first, but as soon as she started to get comfortable around someone, her whole personality changed. She was still unsure about her words but there was no turning back now.
He rolled his eyes and scoffed at her words before he continued their small back and forth banter. "Seriously though, us Slytherins don't want someone of your kind in our house. You may as well leave right now" he said with an evil grin.
"Oh please, I'm sure I'm twice the witch you are Draco. And I mean let's be honest, you're all talk and no game. Even if I don't know you yet, I sure hope I never do, and I feel sorry for anyone who does become friends with you." With these words she turned back to face her empty plate and goblet. When she realized what she had said her eyes went wide with shock, and she looked up to see June had a massive grin spreading across her lips.
"Feisty," she began, "I like you mudblood. Now, what's your name again?".
"Er- Valencia Martin-"
"Right right. Well if I don't forget that again I'll just call you Val" June said. She pat Valencia on the back before turning back to her almost empty plate of food.
Within the next few moments, everyone's plates were wiped completely clean and the dishes that once had their dinner on them were cleared. A few seconds later, an abundance of deserts took their place on the dishes. Various flavours of ice cream, donuts, trifles, sweetened strawberries, tarts, and a few different flavours of Jell-O appeared before them. Val was completely full but she couldn't help but take a small lemon tart from one of the golden platters. Like the food she had eaten before, it was incredibly delicious.
While chewing up the last of her tart, Valencia looked up to the table where all of the professors were seated and began to look over each one. They were all talking amongst themselves with smiles on their faces. When her eyes reached the left end of the table where a man with a purple-blue coloured turban wrapped around his head was seated, a spot behind her left ear began to burn with pain.
"Ow, what the fu-"
The professor turned to look at her as she began to consciously rub the spot behind her ear that was still burning with a blinding pain. He gave her an odd look before turning to talk with the teacher to his left. She couldn't tell if it was a look of loathing or disgust, or just both, but as soon as he looked away the pain subsided to almost nothing. She continued to rub the spot as she eyed the professor with curiosity. She had never felt a pain quite like it before. It had come to be such a blinding force of pain, but as soon as it had come, it had also disappeared.
"What the hell was that all about Val" June asked as she looked at her with confused eyes.
"Oh, erm- it was n-nothing" she stammered.
June eyed her suspiciously before shrugging her shoulders and turning back to her desert. The truth was she had absolutely no idea what that was. Maybe it had just been a really bad headache. A really short, bad headache. That's what she reassured herself it was for the remainder of the feast.
After everyone had finished, the remnants of desert disappeared from the table as the Headmaster, Albus Dumbledore, stood from his seat. He wore silver robes that matched his long silver beard and hair, and had half-moon spectacles that rested on his crooked nose.
"Welcome everyone, to another year at Hogwarts," he began. "I have a few words to say before I send you off to bed. Firstly, for first years, and all other years," he eyed the Weasley twins as he said the latter, "I will remind you that the Forbidden Forest is strictly out of bounds to all students. Secondly, our care-taker Mr. Filch would like me to remind you that magic should not be used in between classes in the corridors. Thirdly, I must tell you all that the third floor corridor is strictly forbidden to all who do not wish to die a most painful death. And finally I have a few words I would like to say, and they are: Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak! Thank you! Now off to bed, all of you." He motioned his hands towards the double doors in which they had first come in. The Great Hall burst into applause after he had finished, but Valencia couldn't help but snicker at his odd words at the end.
"First year Slytherins follow me" an older boy with dark hair said. Everyone began to leave their seats and follow the older boy. When they had made it back into the entrance hall, instead of going up the large marble staircase that the Gryffindors were going up, he led them to the left of it, and they began to make their way down another equally as elegant set of stairs towards the dungeons of the school.
"Ohh why does our common room have to be in the dungeons" the girl with short black hair and a pug-like face complained as they descended the stairs. "It's going to be so cold! Oh! But then I can cuddle with you Drakey so I guess it will be alright!".
Valencia looked to June who was walking beside her and they both rolled their eyes as the girl latched her arm onto Malfoy's.
"Get off me Pansy," Draco said as he attempted to shove the clingy girl away. She huffed before reluctantly letting go of his arm.
The group came to a halt as they stepped in front of a large stone wall. "Pure-Blood" the older boy with dark hair said. A large pair of black double doors formed on the wall and the boy swung them open to reveal the common room.
The room was much bigger than she had first expected it to be. Large, elegant windows cast a green hue upon the room as they looked out into the murky water of the Black Lake. Grey stone steps in front of them led down into the main area where a large fireplace with a pair of two black, leather couches on either side was down and to the left of the entrance, and farther back into the common room and to the right there was a slightly secluded area that had a round table and a few bookshelves and desks in it. Behind the couches was another round table with a few candles spread across it. This table was far bigger than the one in the small secluded area, as were the bookshelves that sat between two of the large windows that looked out into the lake. A large chandelier-like structure was hung above the prestigious looking couches that appeared to be made out of a black steel. There were various intricate designs that were engraved in the walls that surrounded the entire area, and there were a few desks scattered around the room that gave it a somewhat completed look. Valencia found it to be a bit too much at first, but as her eyes scanned the room and pieced it all together, it became more and more enticing. The only part about the entire area that she hated was the temperature. Even though there was a fire burning in front of the couches, it was cold. Far colder than the rest of the school, leaving her to shiver slightly as they made their way down the steps.
"Alright, first years. Over here," the boy, who Val had learned was named Reid Grant, pointed towards the small secluded area, "is where the stairs to the dorms are. The girls dormitory is up the stairs and to the left, boys, to the right. Boys, don't try to sneak into the girls dorms, believe me when I say it won't work, I've tried".
Valencia rolled her eyes at this while the first year boys only snickered.
"There is a new password every month that will be posted on the board over there" he said as he pointed to a board that was placed above a small desk near the front of the room. "This month's password is also up there. I suggest you learn it. Curfew is at 8 p.m, don't be caught out past then or I, or someone else, will give you a detention. Breakfast begins at 7 a.m, don't be late for it or you'll just have to starve until lunch, and don't come whining to me saying that you are hungry. Trust me, I don't give a shit." A girl with honey blonde hair around the same age that was standing next to him elbowed him as he said the last words.
"Language Reid" the girl said.
"Oh shove it Gemma" he said while rolling his eyes. "Lastly," he continued, "no bringing people from other houses in here, especially Gryffindors. Oh and try not to kill one another in here. I don't care if you kill one another somewhere else, just don't do it in here. I would like to keep the privilege of being able to give out detentions. It's the only fun part about going to school here." Reid stalked up the stairs after he finished his speech.
"Of course he forgot to mention one of the most important things" Gemma mumbled to herself as she shook her head. The first years were starting to disperse but before they could get any further, Gemma continued to speak. "Hey don't go anywhere just yet. Reid forgot to tell you all that classes start at 9 a.m every day. You should all try to get some rest, it's been a long day. And like Reid said, don't come whining to me about your own problems. If you are tired, suck it up. If you are hungry, suck it up. If you are dying, suck it up and go die somewhere else. Not my problem so I don't want to hear about it." Like Reid had done before, Gemma stalked up the staircase that led to the dorms after she had finished talking.
Valencia followed Gemma up the staircase. She had no intention of sleeping just yet, but she wanted more than anything to get out of her robes and into something more comfortable. When she reached the top of the stairs, she started down a rather wide hallway that led to the girls' dorms. Each year had their own separate door, the first years being right at the front.
The room was nothing special. Six, four poster beds with green comforters were lined up against the wall to the right. A window that looked out into the lake separated each bed. On the back wall there were three separate vanities, each one with its own circular mirror. Somewhat like the right side of the room, there was something that separated each vanity, but rather than three windows, there were three black doors that Val discovered led to closets. And finally to the left there were three separate doors that she assumed led to bathrooms. She figured that since there were six beds, three vanities, three closets, and three bathrooms, that there were six Slytherin girls. The three vanities, closets, and bathrooms meant that two girls would share each. Although the area was simple, it was rather large. She assumed that there must have been some sort of extension charm put into the room so that everything was able to fit.
"What do you think, Val?" June's voice sounded from behind startling her.
"I love it. I just wish it were less dark" Valencia replied.
"It is a bit dim isn't it?" June said. "Hey come over here, let's claim the good beds before the rest of the girls arrive" she said with a sly smirk. The two made their way to the two beds at the front of the room where June claimed the bed closest to the door, and Valencia claimed the one to the left of hers.
"This way," June said as she plopped down onto her bed, "we are closest to the door and we can sneak out without waking up the other girls."
"How smart" Val said as she smiled at June. As she too sat down on the bed that was now hers, both of their trunks appeared next to them.
"Oh my god, now I can finally get out of these hideous robes" June said as she stood up. The two girls rummaged through their trunks to find the clothes that they would change into. While June opted to stay in the main area of the dorm, Valencia went into the medium sized bathroom that the two of them would share for the rest of the year to change. A shower, bathtub, sink, and a few shelves took up the space in the simple washroom.
She had chosen one of the many sweatshirts that she had stolen from Luca and a pair of small shorts that tightly hugged her thighs. Luca's sweatshirts were always too big on her, but that was the best part. After changing, she put her black hair into a sloppy bun before splashing her face with some water. Her mum had always told her, since she was 7, to wash her face with water at night and so it had become a habit of hers.
When she stepped out of the bathroom she found that the rest of the girls had joined them in the dorm.
"Oh great, I have to share a room with the mudblood?" Pansy said as she crossed her arms.
Val rolled her eyes before making her way back to her bed.
"Oh absolutely not. Daphne you take that bed, I'll take the one that you have right now. There's no way I'm sleeping next to the mudblood" Pansy said as she realized that she had chosen the bed next to Valencia's.
The girl named Daphne huffed before switching beds with Pansy. She had golden hair, bright blue eyes and a slim figure. She would have been pretty if she didn't always have a scowl on her face. Val then looked around the room in search of the two other girls that she hadn't met before. A girl with dark brown hair and black glasses, who she had learned was named Tracey Davis, had taken the bed to the left of Pansy's. Millicent Blustrode, the girl who had claimed the bed at the very back of the room was a bit larger than the rest of them, but weight had never mattered to Valencia. She had dark brown hair that ran slightly past her shoulders and brown eyes set upon her round face. Like Daphne, she would have been pretty if she didn't always look so menacing.
After putting all of her clothes in the closet that she would share with June, Val grabbed her book and slipped out of the dorm before pug-face Pansy could throw any more meaningless insults at her. She had almost finished her book on the train, but right as she got to the climax, they had arrived at the school. Valencia was determined to finish it before she went to bed so she stepped back into the common room and made her way over to the black leather couches. She regretted her choice in wearing shorts as she walked, but when she sat down on one of the couches, the warmth from the fire brought heat to her body. She placed one of the green pillows from the couch onto her legs and then placed her book on top of that and began to read.
After reading for only about twenty minutes of reading, she was interrupted.
"What the hell are you doing out here mudblood?" Draco Malfoy asked as he sat on the couch opposite her.
"Reading" she said without looking up from her book. "And what might you be doing out here Draco?".
"That's Malfoy to you mudblood" he scoffed.
"Fine. And what might you be doing out here, Malfoy?". She refused to look up from her book but she could feel his eyes boring into her.
"Reading," he said. With that she looked up from her book to see that he was smirking at her. She thought he had been lying but when she looked down, she saw that he actually had a book in his left hand.
"How nice," Valencia replied. He rolled his eyes at her as she looked back down at her book. Not even ten seconds later she was interrupted again.
"What book are you reading? Hmm? I assume it's some muggle trash. Let me see it then. There's no way that a book can be that good that you chose to read it instead of talking to the Draco Malfoy." He scoffed to himself as he got up from his place on the couch and began to make his way over to her.
She didn't want to give into his arrogant words, so, again, she kept her eyes focused on the open page in front of her. He stood in front of her impatiently with his arms crossed for almost twenty second before ripping the book out of her hands.
"To Kill a Mockingbird? Hmm. I knew it would be some stupid muggle book" he said in an indignant tone.
"Hey, give that back! That's not yours to take" Valencia said as she stood up from the couch. This blonde prat was beginning to get on her nerves.
"Oh no, I won't do that. I think I'll keep it for myself. Maybe I'll burn it, maybe I'll toss it into the lake, or maybe I'll give the pages a little makeover with my ink. The possibilities really are endless when it comes to destroying a piece of shit like this." He had a sly smirk on his lips as he said this.
Enraged, Valencia moved to snatch the book from his hands, but she was too slow.
"Tsk. Tsk. Come on now mudblood, there's no fun in me giving this back. Now, if you don't mind, I'll be leaving now, and I'm taking this with me" he held up her book in a taunting manner before giving her an evil smirk and heading back to the boys dormitory.
"Fuck you Draco Malfoy!" she called to him before he could make his way up the stairs.
He turned around at her words, smirk still on his face and said, "Watch your language mudblood. Words like that don't look good on a girl like you". He waved the book at her again tauntingly before climbing the steps.
She huffed before making her way back up to the girl's dorm. What upset her wasn't the fact that the blonde prat had stolen her book, but rather the fact that she had been at the climax of it and couldn't finish. Getting to the best part of the book and not being able to finish it was one the worst feeling ever, even if it was a book that she had read multiple times before.
When she arrived at the dorm, all of the other girls had already fallen asleep. She made her way over to her own bed before sliding off slippers and crawling under the sheets. The thought of her having to spend her remaining years at Hogwarts in the same house and same classes as a git like Malfoy made her stomach churn. She had dealt with bullies before, but she never had to practically live with them. All of her anxious thoughts about the next day and all of the years to come crowded her mind as she drifted off to sleep.