A/N- Here's the next chapter. I hope you enjoy it :D. there will be a few more surprises on the way so stay tuned!
The castle is surrounded by a huge, moat-like lake so they get to Hogwarts by small little row boats that do not need rowing, in groups of five or six, all led by a man who introduces himself as Hagrid, groundskeeper. He seems like a friendly man, though not the brightest, but probably as trustworthy as one can come by.
"And that'll be yer wand, Miss Luna." He smiles kindly just as they're about to board their boats, wading through the throngs of first years and handing her that distinctive narrow box with the tiny engraved logo of "Wolfe Wands" at the bottom. "Professor McGonagall told me to give it ta ye. Take good care of it now, 'kay."
"Thank you, Mr Hagrid." She replies, pleased. The wand inside is still just a beautiful as she remembers; simple, sleek yet so caringly crafted. Luna smiles and slips it safely into her robe pocket.
The lake's black waters beneath the boat lap up against the sides and seem to sparkle, deflecting the light of the moon and their lamps in all direction (it also seems like the perfect breeding ground for aquavirious maggots). She shares her boat with Ginny, two other girls and a boy who looks excited enough to faint. None of them say anything, though, except from incoherent gasps and sighs of awe.
Hogwarts is somehow even more magnificent than what is depicted in Luna's books. It stands there regal and firm against the darkening skies, it's magic almost glowing, singing out to her. Luna's not sure if it's the epic scenery or the incredible presence of the castle's own magic that takes her breath away.
Luna has to say, in general, she's quite well travelled. However, she's never seen anything like this before.
She's almost disappointed when they arrive, except she isn't because they're walking inside.
Inside, the castle is toasty and warm, but not too warm. Just right. Almost as though it's been magically charmed to fit to the needs of the individual student, which Luna wouldn't be surprised if it was. The brick wall of the castle is exposed, giving it an aged and historic look, very fitting, and on it hangs many a portraits, each one moving, almost living, in its own two-dimensional world, but somehow able to cross through from frame to frame. They're all, in Luna's opinion, very charming and greet them as they pass. They're different from the moving photo's that way, here they seem to have minds of their own. Also, it looks as though there's a minor nargle infestation so she'll have to be wary.
They come to a halt just outside two massive wooden doors, muffled murmurings and chatter coming from within, a familiar face greets them. As per usual (or at least the times Luna has seen her), Professor McGonagall stands their poised, wearing her signature emerald green robes and pointed hat, though these ones seem a little more formal.
"Good evening, children. You are about to enter the Great Hall." She says with a some-what seriously, "I'm Professor McGonagall, head of Gryffindor house and deputy headmistress. Now, start-of-term banquet will begin shortly, but before you take your seats in the Great Hall, you will be sorted into your houses, Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff or Slytherin, whom you will have classes with; share your dorm with; and your free time will be spent in your house common room. At Hogwarts, we have a point system. Your triumphs will earn your house points, while any rule-breaking will lose house points. And the house with the most points at the end of the year is awarded the house cup, I wish you all the best, children. Furthermore, I would like to say… Welcome to Hogwarts, your home for the next seven years." She gives them all a gentle smile and turns around to face the doors, resting her hand on the knob.
Luna shifts her feet a little, not nervous but excited. She can tell Ginny's feeling both though so she reaches for her hand and gives it a small squeeze.
"You'll be fine." she whispers to her helpfully and Ginny chuckles back, nervously. "And even if you're not a Gryffindor, any other house is just as good. I think you'll be just fine."
"Right." Says Ginny, managing a smile - just. She squeezes Luna's hand back. "Even if I'm not Gryffindor... It can't be that bad." She's still trembling a little so Luna takes her other hand with hers and clasps them together. "Just as long as we're not Slytherin."
"Hmm."
Right. Maybe. Who knows? Luna smiles back and fights back a frown, choosing not to comment on this.
A minute later, Professor McGonagall half-turns back to face them, twisting the doorknob slowly. "Right then. It's about time for us to go in. Line up everyone."
The Great Hall is perhaps the greatest part of Hogwarts (though she still has much to see) and Luna supposes this might be the reason for its namesake. Certainly the moving photographs of the Great Hall she's seen in books do not show truly how magical the place is. She shivers at the might of it all.
It's lit up by hundreds of floating candles dotted about the room with heliopaths that dance in and out of the flickering flames, hovering over four long tables with gleaming gold dishes, cutlery and its students, and a large table for teachers. Silvery translucent ghosts float idly ahead, chatting with each other or students or teachers and when Luna looks up sees the famous ceiling which doesn't look like a ceiling at all. It's hard to tell where the walls end and where they night sky and its infinite number of stars begin, but it almost feels like the rest of the hall is the illusion against the blackness instead of the other way around.
Luna loves beautiful things, and this is one of them. Perhaps she could learn how to do it back home at the Facility… though she can't forget about the many laws surrounding under-aged magic.
As Professor McGonagall brings them to an orderly stop, the thousand voices in the hall die down. Then, silently, she places a rather worn and old looking hat on a wooden stool just a little in front of the teachers' table, and stands back. Waiting.
Everyone in the room seems to be waiting too, so Luna watches curiously for what happens next. They never disclose it in her books so she'll just have to see.
Then the hat twitches, seeming to magically awaken itself. At the bottom of the hat, near the rim, a rip opens wide like a mouth and a croaky, slightly off key voice comes from within the hat - it begins to sing! (Luna almost laughs out loud. It's the strangest thing Luna's perhaps ever seen, which is saying a lot.)
"If you don't enjoy this song,
You are not obliged to listen
But as the Hogwarts Sorting Hat
You'll trust in my decision.
Ne'er a student has passed through
These gates without trying me on
For I'll never make a mistake with you
Nor will I sort you wrong
For Gryffindor, I'll search you
For chivalry and nerve.
Or for Hufflepuff, a kindness
and a justice that will serve
Maybe I'll see Slytherin
And find you ambitious and resourceful
Or discover Ravenclaw
With wit and wisdom in hatfuls, ha!
I've done this job for centuries
So try me on! Do not fear,
For I'll seek your true selves and sort you
Without judgement or leer
But take heed in what I have to say
Before I end my tune,
Your Hogwarts house should not define
Your future, friendships or truths."
As soon as the Hat finishes the last note, the whole Hall bursts into a roaring applause which sounds both genuine (from the Professors) and slightly ironic (from the pupils). It's quite a fair way to sort them, Luna decides. If it's like this, she shouldn't have to worry about being sorted into the wrong house, not that there is one, though.
Professor McGonagall steps forward once more, clearing her throat. "When I call your name from the register, you will sit on the stool and put on the Hat. Then, it will sort you and you will join your respective houses." she says before pulling out a long piece of parchment, the register probably. "Abbot, Chris."
Slowly, a blond haired boy walks up from the back, smiling nervously. The Sorting hat barely touches his head before it calls out, "HUFFLEPUFF!" and the boy in question eagerly makes his way to the table decorated in yellow and black accompanied by hoots and cheers.
"Creevey, Colin." Gets called up next and Luna recognises him as the excited boy she shared her boat with. He practically bounces up the steps and onto the stool, hands fidgeting not with nerves but with pent up energy. It seems like Gryffindor's a popular house because as soon as the hat's on his head his starts mouthing something which looks like "Please, Gryffindor", and luckily enough, Gryffindor is what the Hat shouts half a minute later. Colin Creevey almost skips to the red and gold table (he does manage to stop himself though).
Then it's a confident boy named "Crowe, Harper" who quickly composes himself and almost struts his way to the Hat. It only takes a second or two before he's sorted into Slytherin and Luna gets to see where the house's bad reputation comes from. Unlike the rest of the houses, they seem to eye him up for a second before cheering and accepting him in. The welcome is not cold, in fact it's just as warm, but it looks as though each person conducts some sort of mental assessment of him in their head. Almost as though he might not be worthy.
Or perhaps as though figuring out his niche or place in the house.
About two thirds of Slytherin have way too many Wrackspurts though. Of course, there are a some members in the other houses too with the same problem and almost everyone in the school have the odd few including the Weasleys but that's not uncommon. It's just particularly in Slytherin, there seems to be an infestation.
The name Lovegood won't be far down on the list so she shouldn't have to wait too long. Only about twenty to twenty-five more names get called out; about seven Ravenclaws, four Slytherins, five Gryffindors and four Hufflepuffs.
Then, finally (though Luna wasn't feeling particularly impatient, it was starting to get a bit repetitive) Professor McGonagall says her name.
"Lovegood, Luna." She says, not looking up from the list.
For some reason, next to her, Luna feels Ginny still. She's not even trembling anymore. Luna turns her head to look at her, about to let go. And Ginny stares straight at her. Ginny stares straight at her and doesn't let her go, locking their eyes together, fixed.
For once, Luna struggles to look away.
"Lovegood." Ginny says after a moment, her voice is thick and quivering. "Your name's Luna Lovegood?"
Luna's not often confused and she doesn't like being confused - at least not in things involving real people (because some confusion is what makes things so interesting - in Luna's opinion). She nods once. "Yes, that's correct. What is it?"
"Miss Lovegood?" From the front, Professor McGonagall calls her name again and Luna lets go, throwing Ginny a quick, small smile as she leaves.
Then, carefully, she puts on the Hat. Her mind scrunches itself up instinctively, as soon as she feels the intrusion.
Even still, she hears the voice in her head on the outskirts of her mind.
"Oh, this is surprising!" It almost sounds pleased. "It's not every day I get to sort someone with such gifted Occlumency. I'm honoured!"
"What's Occlumency?"
"And you're even able to think clearly enough to answer me whilst withholding your mind. Well done!"
Luna frowns. "It's not Occlumency, it's just something Mr Loki- my friend- taught me." She replies stubbornly.
"Tricky little thing, aren't you?" the Hat teases, and though it's on her head, Luna can tell it's smiling.
"Of course." she replies mentally, "It wouldn't be very fun if it wasn't, right?"
"True, true." It allows, clearly amused. "But you know… you're going to have to let me into your mind if I'm going to sort you correctly."
"Are you sure?"
"Quite sure, dear."
Luna thinks about it for a second, she's wasting everyone's time and she'll have to get it over with anyways. "Oh all right, then." she says but not quite surrendering her mind to it yet. "But I ought to warn you; you're not going to like what you see, Mr or Mrs Sorting Hat. And you can't tell anyone what you see either."
The Sorting Hat gives a pealing laugh, "I'm sure I've seen worse, though I can't make any promises."
She shakes her head, "You have to."
It hesitates, seemingly trying to reason with itself. "Fine. Promise." And though it's a hat, albeit a magical hat, Luna can feel it's reluctance. She won't compromise anything though.
"Good." she says at last. And then, layer by layer, she strips away her mental barriers and reveals her mind, bare.
The Hat takes at least a full minute to sift through everything, what she suspects is her whole life. During this time he says nothing, completely silent, the solemnness growing darker and heavier with each passing second. Luna can see it all too. It's a strange sensation, reminding her briefly of her sessions with Wanda or Mr Loki, though this is more chaotic and magical. Sure, she can consciously see the hundreds of faces in the Hall, watching with either curiosity or boredom or excitement, but at the forefront of her mind she sees these 'defining moments', even ones she hadn't remembered existed:
Her earliest memories with mummy and daddy… Mr Loki leaving and her first time truly seeing the world… her trip to Sweden… training at the Academy… discovering her magic… meeting Wanda… her first mission… killing that pitiful pet kitten… her first human kill (this particular memory seems to elongate deliberately, the sorting hat lingers on it with a mixture of shock and deep weighing sadness and Luna feels herself physically flinch and her mind almost recoils completely)… learning the truth… her other missions but this time laid deep in conscience and guilt… the panic of escaping her prison…
She's in so deep that when she finally emerges back to the present she finds her eyes wet with tears, she quickly wipes them
"So…" she thinks awkwardly after a moment, "what will you choose?"
It doesn't respond for a moment so Luna waits patiently.
"You're a brave girl, Miss Lovegood. And a kind girl. And a clever girl. And a cunning, resourceful girl." It begins seriously. "And you're quite right in your previous prediction that I wouldn't like what I'd see. Quite right."
Luna gives a small, almost light-hearted smile. "I usually am."
"I know. I know. No student that ever tries me on is the same, of course, but I've never encountered one quite like you. You've had quite the childhood yet I can see you're still… good. You're still a child Miss Lovegood, don't forget that."
She shrugs, unsure of what to say to that. "I suppose so." she amends carefully, she's not going to argue when it already knows she disagrees anyways.
"You are." It insists. "No matter what you've done."
"I've killed people, you mean. You're allowed to say this, you know. It isn't like it's a particularly sensitive topic to me, after all, it was my job for most of my life." She says this straightforwardly, unflinching. Madame Yelena always said she'd a good grasp on her emotions and it wouldn't do to be dishonest in this sort of situation.
It sighs. "Yes that… but anyways, a decision must be made. You'd do well in Ravenclaw, you know. Your mind is very curious, very intelligent… But then again it could be Slytherin. I'm sure you'd succeed brightly there. You could be great."
"Yes well, greatness isn't something I particularly aspire for, you see. And I value wisdom a lot but I don't value it above everything."
"I know. But, greatness is not the only form of ambition, you know, and where you rank your values of wisdom does not make you value it any less."
Luna nods, "That's very wise of you to say."
"Thank you!" the hat replies with returned enthusiasm before making some rather unnecessary humming sounds, probably to emphasise its deep thinking.
"Do you have a preference, Miss Lovegood?"
"If I did, you'd already know." she replies earnestly.
"Hmm…"
Patiently, Luna waits. Everyone seems to be giving her their full attention now from the waterworks and the astounding amount of time this is taking. Even Professor McGonagall looks a little irritated.
"Even if you do not understand my decision now, you will. Though, sometimes I still think they sort too soon."
Luna nods, for once unsure.
Then, with a booming voice, aloud this time, the Sorting Hat announces the word: "SLYTHERIN!"
A/N- I hope you liked the chapter. I know not everyone was thinking of a Slytherin! Luna but with some careful deliberation, I decided on this. With it, will come a few more surprises. ;)
As always, be sure to leave a review to tell me your thoughts (Also pls appreciate my sorting hat song lol).
-Mercia