A/N: Thank you to those who favorited and/or reviewed. I'll try to keep up a once-weekly update, most likely on Sundays. Enjoy!
The rest of August flashed past in a blur of flying, reading, and planning. September first dawned with a rush of last-minute packing. James had woken Harry up with an aborted hug and a good-luck wish for the school year before waking Alex and leaving for work. Harry's trunk, which was this year's birthday gift from James, was nearly full. To her great regret, she had to leave her broom at home - first years at Hogwarts weren't allowed to have brooms of their own.
Since Alex would be leaving at nine thirty, they had to work fast. Alex appeared in her bathroom as she was drying off. She yelled at him for not knocking first, but shut up when he help up a pair of kitchen shears. Ten minutes later, she had a haircut identical to his own, but her hair was much less manageable than his dark auburn locks. Hers stuck up all over the place and, like their father's, adamantly refused to lay flat like Alex's did. She gave up after five minutes, to Alex's great amusement.
"Go get dressed," she scowled at him. "You have to arrive to the carriage in uniform." Alex left, still laughing at her new haircut. She glanced in the mirror - the haircut made her look more like a boy, albeit one with a rather feminine face. She would just have to say it was aristocratic, like the blonde boy she'd seen in the Leaky Cauldron, if anyone asked. After one last look in the mirror, at the reflection that didn't quite seem like her reflection, she turned her back on it, gathering up the long locks of hair that had fallen on the tiled floor and putting them, almost tenderly, into the trash receptacle.
Harry returned to her room and followed her own advice. She left all of her clothes where they were and turned to the pile of clothes Alex had brought up last night. Thankfully, James hadn't noticed the boxers when he'd come in to wake her. With great trepidation, Harry selected a clean pair of boxers and slid them on. They were loose, and very different from what she was used to. She shrugged to herself, moving around a little to get used to the feeling, and then pulled on the Hogwarts uniform - black trousers, white shirt, sleeveless grey jumper, black tie that would change colors once she was Sorted, black socks, black shoes. The robe would go over it all, but she wouldn't put that on until she was on the train.
At nine o'clock, Harry and Alex met Triss in the dining room. Each of them had their monogrammed trunks with them, closed tightly.
"Do's master and mistress have their belongings?" Triss squeaked. Harry and Alex nodded. "Triss have gift from Master James for yous!" she squealed in excitement. She snapped her fingers and two small coin pouches appeared in her hands. Harry accepted hers and tucked it into her trouser pocket next to her wand.
"How are we getting to the carriage point?" Alex asked, nerves and excitement clear in his voice.
"Triss is to be taking Master Alex to Carriage Point," Triss squeaked solemnly, turning her large blue eyes on him. "And Mistress Harry is to be Flooing to Leaky Cauldron and taking Knight Bus."
"The what? Why aren't you taking me?" Harry was both astounded and upset. She'd wanted to see where the carriages took off and what they looked like.
"Master James is saying so. To get to Hogwarts ones must be goings to the Leakey Cauldron, miss. And to get to Asclepius Academy ones must be going with me." She looked inordinately proud of her task, but Alex had a worried expression on his face.
"Don't worry, Alex," Harry said bravely. "If this is going to work at school, it'll work now too." Alex nodded uncertainly, then hugged her, squeezing as if he'd never see her again. She hugged him back.
"I'll see you at break," she said into his shoulder.
"No. Asclepius doesn't have a break. We get the two days on either side of Christmas off."
"What?" She broke away from the hug. "Then I'll be staying at Hogwarts."
"What about Dad?" Alex looked torn.
"Exactly. I can't fool him alone. Now go. You don't have long." Alex nodded and seemed to recover his excitement.
"Blow 'em over, Harry."
Harry grinned. "I'll do my best." With that, Triss grabbed Alex's wrist in one hand and his trunk with the other. A sharp pop later, Harry was alone in the house.
Her heart raced as she took a pinch of Floo powder from the mantle and threw it into the fire that had been set hours before. The flames leapt up, green and dancing. She stepped in, dragging her trunk with her, and shouted, "The Leaky Cauldron!"
The pub was busy. Tom had to shout over the noise of families getting ready to do last minute-shopping to tell her how to summon the Knight Bus. Harry thanked him and ventured into muggle London for the first time ever. In awe and disbelief, she took in the bright lights and the cars and the strange outfits some of the women were wearing. With a shake of her head, which felt lighter than normal from the new hair-cut, she tentatively drew her wand and deliberately raised it to shoulder height, pointing it at the road. With a loud bang that made her jump, a vividly purple bus appeared.
"Hop aboard, now!" A pimpled young man who looked barely out of Hogwarts appeared. "No time ta' waste!" He jumped down and, with a small amount of struggle, lifted her trunk onto the bus. She stared at the interior as he maneuvered around the small doorway. Instead of the seats she had seen in the muggle studies book, many large squashy armchairs were scattered around the floor. One of them had apparently fallen over, and a small wizard was grumpily picking it up.
"'Ere, you can 'ave this one," the young man said as he dumped her trunk roughly next to one of the few empty chairs. "An' where' ya' off to?" He eyed her uniform. "'Ogwarts, then? I jus' left las' year." He nodded proudly. "It'll be four sickles to King's Cross, but fer - "
He shut up as Harry pressed four sickles into his hand and sat down. He pocketed the coins and shouted to the front of the bus. "Take 'er away, Ern!" With another loud bang, the bus jolted, sending chairs skidding around. When Harry looked out the window, they were rumbling down a busy street. Harry stared as other cars, light poles, pedestrians, and even a phone-booth jumped out of the way of the badly steered bus. She deduced that there were all sorts of spells on the bus, as none of the muggles gave the bus so much as a backwards glance.
The Knight Bus traveled through six different counties in a single hour. Harry was starting to get nervous - it was already ten thirty, and the train left at eleven. "All righ'! King's Cross next up!" Stan called out, and Harry braced herself against the wall, preventing herself from being thrown backwards as the bus gave a loud bang and appeared on the busiest road yet. It screeched to a halt in front of a large building with a clock tower. Harry stood up at once and grabbed her trunk, following a dark-skinned boy with dreadlocks, also pulling a trunk and in Hogwarts uniform, off the bus and into the station. As covertly as possible, she let him lead her to the correct spot, the barrier between Platform Nine and Platform Ten, struggling a little in order to keep up with his longer legs.
Harry watched as the boy nonchalantly strode through the brick barrier. After a brief moment of hesitation, Harry sidled up to the very solid-looking wall and leaned into it. A second later, she stumbled out onto a steam-obscured platform. The black boy was gone, already lost to the mist, but Harry could make out an elegant sign that read, in large looping letters, Platform 9 3/4. Grinning slightly at her success, even though she knew it wasn't really all that amazing - after all, the platform had been operation for nearly a hundred and fifty years without mishap - Harry lugged her trunk towards the scarlet steam engine.
She passed by families gathered together to bid farewell, and groups of students smiling and laughing at seeing their friends after a long summer. She heard one boy apologizing to what appeared to be his grandmother for tripping on her long robes and dropping his toad. As she neared the train, she caught a glimpse of the boy with dreadlocks, surrounded by a large group of girls urging him to show them what was in the box in his hands.
When she reached the train, Harry struggled with her trunk. After dropping it on her foot, twice, someone tapped her shoulder, startling her into jumping and spinning around. To her immense surprise, it was the red-haired twins from Diagon Alley.
"Need a hand with that trunk?" one of them asked with a grin. The other eyed her speculatively, frowning slightly.
"Yeah, that'd be great," Harry said, hiding her nerves behind a tentative smile. What if they recognized her?
"C'mon Fred," he instructed, and the other finally looked away, a confused expression on his face. With the help of the two older boys, Harry soon had her trunk stored in an otherwise empty compartment. "Fred Weasley," the one who had been staring introduced himself.
"What - I'm Fred today!" the other exclaimed in mock outrage. "I told you this morning that you're George!" Harry grinned - she couldn't help it. These twins seemed like they got into more trouble than she and Alex did on a good day, which was a surprisingly large amount given that there was almost always a house elf at least on the same floor as them, and the portraits kept a quiet eye on them too, even if most of them didn't speak very often, if at all.
"Well, Fred or George, I'm Harry Potter. First year." Identical mischievous smiles spread over their faces.
"Third years." Fred leaned closer. "If you ever need to prank someone, let us know and we'll help."
"For a price, of course," George interjected, his smile becoming slightly darker. "Nothing comes free."
"Naturally," Harry agreed with an answering smirk. Her brother had often offered to prank the elves for her, to keep them from trying to persuade her not to fly, but only if she would clean his room or some such chore. "I'll keep that in mind when I - "
The rest of her sentence was lost when a woman's voice yelled out from the platform. "Fred Gideon Weasley and George Fabian Weasley, get yourselves out here this instant!"
Fred and George winced. "It's bad when middle names come in," George explained over his shoulder as they turned to leave. "Good luck at the Sorting. I've got ten knuts on the troll winning against Ron." They left with one last grin, leaving Harry feeling very nervous. The one thing Hogwarts, A History, didn't cover was how students were sorted into the four different houses. She sank into the window seat and watched as Fred and George ambled over to their mother, who was trying to scrub something off her youngest son's face. The small girl stared at the train with obvious longing. All thoughts of trolls or other sorting methods left her head as she eavesdropped on the family.
"Just a bit more, dear," the mother said as she used her handkerchief to scrub at the youngest boy's nose.
"Gerroff, mum!" The boy squirmed from his mother's clutches.
"Ah. Has ickle Ronnie got somefink on his ickle nosie?" The twins snickered at their brother's humiliation.
"Shut up," Ron replied, his face flushing to a deep red.
"Where's Percy?" the mother asked as she rummaged in her large handbag, pulling out four small bundles.
"Here, Mother." Percy was the oldest boy Harry had seen in Flourish and Blotts. He already had his billowing black school robes on and his shiny Prefect's badge pinned proudly to the front. "Can't stay long. We Prefects have two carriages up - "
"Oh, I didn't know you made Prefect!" the twin Harry thought was George interrupted.
"No, hang on," the other said with a look of intense concentration on his face. "I think I remember him saying something. Once - "
"Or twice - "
"A minute - "
"All summer - "
"That's enough," the mother snapped. Harry strained to recall what her father had called her that day in Diagon Alley. Martha? Maddy? No, Molly. "Now, here's your sandwiches." She pressed one of the small bundles into each of her son's hands. "And hurry up, the train's leaving any minute now."
Percy took his sandwich and pecked his mother on the cheek. "I'll owl you with Ron's Sorting," he said stiffly before leaving for the train.
Molly turned on the twins. "You two," she started in a slightly menacing tone. "Behave yourselves. If I get one more owl telling me you've - you've blown up a toilet or -"
"Blown up a toilet?"
"We've never blown up a toilet!"
"Really, Mum, how could you think such a thing!" The little girl giggled at her brother's antics.
"Good idea, though. Thanks!"
"I'm not joking! A single toe out of line and I'll - I'll -"
The twins cut off her threat before she could finish it. "Well, thanks for the sandwiches! We've got to go-"
"People to see-"
"Places to go!"
"You know the drill!" The twins took off, leaving their stuttering mother behind with the still giggling girl and Ron.
"Now, I'm sure you'll be fine, Ronnie," Molly cooed to her youngest son. "I want you to - " The train's whistle cut her off.
Ron grabbed the sandwich and ran to the train, his trunk bouncing behind him. "Thanks Mum! See you at Christmas!" he yelled over his shoulder. "Have fun at home, Ginny!" The little girl, Ginny, stuck her tongue out at her brother, who didn't see as he jumped onto the train. Harry lost sight of him as he pulled his trunk in after him, so she turned her attention to the platform. Parents and siblings waved at the train as it started to move. Ginny detached herself from her mother's grip and ran after the train, crying and laughing at the same time. The train rounded a corner, and the platform was lost from view. Harry twisted in her seat so she could look forward. She was officially on her way to Hogwarts.
"Hey, can I sit here?" Harry looked over at the door from where she'd been staring at the large empty fields. The youngest red-haired boy, Ron, stood in the doorway, face flushed. "Only, everywhere else is full and I don't want to sit with my brothers?"
"Fred and George?" Harry asked, uncrossing her legs and letting them dangle towards the floor.
Ron looked wary. "How d'you know them?" His eyes flicked around the compartment as if expecting some sort of trap. Which, from what she'd seen of the twins, was perfectly understandable.
"They helped me with my trunk," she said, motioning to the luggage rack, where the twins had put her trunk.
"Oh, yeah." Ron came the rest of the way in and, after shoving his trunk underneath the long seat, sank into the seat across from her. "Well, I'm their brother. Ron Weasley."
"I'm Harry Potter." She straightened her glasses nervously as the other boy took in her loose uniform - Alex was slightly bigger than her - and then the shiny new trunk.
"Yeah. I remember seeing you in Diagon Alley." Harry tensed up - if he saw her as a girl… "Weren't there two of you, though?" Her muscles relaxed.
"Yeah. Alex - that's my twin - is going to Asclepius Academy to study curse-breaking."
"My brother's a curse-breaker," Ron said immediately. Harry could tell he was glad to have something to talk about.
"Really? I'll have to tell him. He'll be jealous I got to meet you. I bet you know loads about it."
"Not much." Ron shrugged, looking a bit uncomfortable. "Bill - he's the oldest - hasn't been home much since he graduated three years ago, so I don't really know what he does."
"How many brothers do you have? I only have Alex, really, since Dad's at work all the time."
"Five brothers, and Ginny." Ron grimaced. "What about your mum?"
"She's dead." Ron paled and stuttered an apology. Harry waved it off. "It's fine. It's not like I knew her or anything. She died right after I was born."
"Sorry," Ron said again. Harry didn't know what else to say, so she turned back to the window and watched as the landscape slowly changed from fields of crops, with the occasional herd of cows or sheep, to untamed meadows. From the corner of her eye, she could see Ron glancing her way every so often as he stroked a fat grey rat that sat on his lap. A kind-looking witch stopped by, pushing a cart full of sweets. Neither Harry nor Ron bought anything - Ron because he had his sandwiches, Harry because she was too nervous to feel hungry. For nearly an hour after the lady left, they continued with their respective activities. Finally, the prickling feeling of his staring motivated her to start another conversation.
"What's your pet's name?" she asked.
Ron, startled by the sudden change in subject, answered by reflex. "Scabbers. Percy gave him to me after Mum and Dad bought him an owl. They didn't have enough mo- " He broke off, embarrassed. Harry, who had never lacked anything in her life except a parent, politely ignored his slip of the tongue.
"I wish I had a pet," she said instead. "Dad wouldn't let me get one." Ron perked up a little, even if she hadn't been entirely truthful. "Who's your team?" she asked, eager to get onto the subject of Quidditch. As a girl, she would have been frowned at, but as a boy…
"The Cannons!" Ron exclaimed enthusiastically. At her noise of disbelief, he kept going. "Sure, they haven't actually won the Cup for - "
"They haven't won anything, lately," Harry interjected. "The Kestrels, on the other hand - "
"Are downright dirty cheaters! Their Seeker couldn't catch the Snitch if it was hexed pink and danced in front of him!"
Harry opened her mouth to say that at least the Kestrels' Chasers could score more than once an hour, but the door to their compartment slid open, revealing a bushy-haired girl with larger-than-average front teeth. Like Harry, she was already in her school uniform, and had her arms crossed over her chest. Unlike Harry, though, she'd already donned her robes as well.
"It's not very polite to argue, you know," she said in a bossy tone. "But anyways, I'm looking for a toad. Have you seen one?"
Ron snickered. "If I'd brought a toad I would have lost it as soon as possible."
The girl frowned at him. "Rats were the cause of the Bubonic Plague."
Harry stood up and moved to the door. "I'm Harry Potter. We haven't seen a toad, but if we do I'll keep a hold on it until we get to the station."
The girl gave her a suspicious look, apparently trying to decide if Harry was being serious. "Fine. I'm Hermione Granger, by the way." She turned to leave, but paused. "You might want to change into your robes, we're nearly there." A quick glance outside told Harry that she was right - the sun was slowly sinking behind the tall mountains. "And you've got a bit of dirt on your nose," she said to Ron. "Just there." She indicated the spot on her own nose before hurrying off on her search for the toad.
Ron flushed and rubbed half-heartedly at his nose. Harry closed the door and clambered up onto the seat, stretching to her full height, but her fingertips only brushed the bottom of her trunk. She groaned, and Ron looked up. "What?" he asked.
"I can't reach my trunk," Harry explained, cursing her shortness and the height of the luggage rack.
"I'll help." Ron jumped onto the seat, nearly knocking Harry off. He easily reached her trunk and started pulling on it.
"Wait," Harry cautioned, bracing herself to help catch the trunk. "Okay, go." Together, the two of them placed the trunk on the seat with minimal injuries. Ron pulled a wrinkled, graying robe from his trunk and slid into it one-handed, sucking on his sore finger. Harry had folded all of her belongings neatly, and picked the top-most robe from the pile.
"Blimey." Ron had closed his trunk and was goggling at the amount of books in Harry's. She had made sure to pack books that would cover approximately the same material as Alex, as well as a few extras that she thought might come in handy. Hogwarts, A History, was at the top of the pile. "You must be a Ravenclaw," Ron said as she closed the trunk carefully."
Harry sat back down and shrugged. "Maybe. I really don't know."
"Well, I'm a Gryffindor. My entire family has been." Ron puffed his chest out proudly. "My brother Charlie won the Quidditch Cup for Gryffindor when he was a second year. First time in ages. Slytherin gets it, and the House Cup, usually." He scowled heartily as he slumped back on his seat, Scabbers once more on his lap.
Harry didn't know how to respond, so shrugged again. "I don't really care about the House Cup, but as soon as I get on my house's Quidditch team, there's no way we aren't winning." Ron grinned.
"That good?" he asked.
"Yes. And I'm not faking it, either. I'm good at flying and proud of it, too. It's the only reason I'm going to Hogwarts." Ron scoffed. "Really, it is. Asclepius Academy doesn't have Quidditch."
"At all?" Ron's tone of voice indicated that he thought not having Quidditch should be illegal.
"None. A blanket ban on all brooms, I read it in my l - my brother's letter."
Luckily, Ron was too distracted by the thought of no Quidditch that he didn't catch her near slip. "That's mental."
"I know." They shared a smile, and Harry felt that she had just might have just made her first friend. They continued their conversation until the train began to slow down, about half an hour later. Harry could feel her excitement mounting as the train slowed to a crawl, and then stopped with a small lurch. Ron led the way off the train, and Harry followed as closely as possible in order to avoid getting pushed around by the older, bigger students.
"Firs' years, firs' years over here!" Harry and Ron followed the sound of the gruff voice to the largest man Harry had ever seen. He was nearly twice the height of her father, and at least four times as large around. Bushy black hair surrounded his face, which was mostly hidden by a matching beard. The light from the lantern he held in his tea-tray sized hands glinted off his beetle-black eyes and cast shadows across his ruddy complexion.
"Blimey," Ron muttered as he stared at the giant man. "Fred and George weren't joking when they said he was big." A snort behind them alerted them to the presence of a trio of newly arrived first-years. Harry had to prevent herself from narrowing her eyes when she recognized the boy in the middle.
"My father says he's a barbarian and gets drunk every other day," the blonde boy drawled, loud enough for the large man to hear.
"Err." He looked flustered, but quickly regained his confidence. "I'm Rubeus Hagrid, by yer can jus' call me Hagrid. I'm the Keeper of Keys and Grounds 'ere at Hogwarts. Jus' follow me an' I'll take yer t'the boats." He turned and presented them with a view of his large, shabby coat as he lead them down a narrow path. It ended at the shore of a large lake, a small flotilla of boats tied up to a wooden pier.
"All righ' then. Four ter a boat, now. Four ter a boat." The blonde boy and the two larger boys flanking him pushed past Ron and Harry and claimed the first boat.
"Prat," Ron muttered. Harry ignored him and made her way to a boat. The Granger girl was already in it, sitting next to a plump-faced boy who clutched a toad tight against his chest. "Harry, don't - " Ron started, but Harry had already clambered into the boat, nearly falling as it rocked dangerously.
"Coming, Ron?" Harry asked as she settled in. Ron cast a dubious glance at the girl and shook his head.
"Nah. I - er - thought I saw someone on the train." The excuse was a poor one, and Harry felt her heart sink as the red-haired boy turned and joined three boys in a boat four ahead of theirs. She watched as he shook each of their hands in greeting.
"That's all right," Hermione said from behind her. "This way the squid won't be able to tip us as easily."
"Sq - squid?" the boy squeaked. "Gran never said anything about a squid!"
"Don' yer worry 'bout the squid. 'E won' 'urt no one. Dead helpful when it's a-rainin', in fact." Hagrid reached out and untied their boat from the dock, throwing the rope onto the seat next to Harry. "'Ere," he said, passing a small white cube to the boy. "Hold onter' this. It'll make yer float iffin yer fall in."
"Th- thanks," the boy stuttered. Hagrid nodded and moved on to the next boat. Soon, all the boats were untied and he stepped into the slightly larger boat at the very end of the dock. "All righ', hold tigh' everyone." Harry squinted in the darkness and just barely saw Hagrid pull what looked to be a pink flowered umbrella from one of his multiple pockets and tap the side of his boat. "Forward!"
Harry nearly lost her balance as the entire fleet moved forward as one. They glided smoothly over the lake. As they rounded a peninsula, she got her first real look of Hogwarts Castle. Many of the other first years oohed and ahhed at the brightly lit castle with it's tall stone towers and multiple tiny turrets. She tried to count the windows, but gave up at forty-seven. Hermione was talking non-stop about the castle.
"…a hundred and forty-two staircases, and they all move! And then there's also tons of secret passages but no one's ever found them all! The library is supposed to be the best in all England, even better than the Ministry Archives on most subjects!" Harry tuned her out as she recognized all the information from Hogwarts, A History.
Too soon, Hagrid shouted out for all the students to duck their heads as they passed into a cave beneath the school. The boats pulled up next to a low stone ledge, and Hagrid helped the students get out of their boats without falling. The boy in Harry's boat still managed to slip, though, and dropped his toad, which promptly made a bid for freedom.
"Trevor!" the boy cried out in panic. Harry pounced on the toad, grabbing the slimy animal before it could disappear into the shadows.
"Here," she said as she presented the toad to it's owner.
"Thanks." The boys smiled, and Harry was startled at the difference it made. Where before the boy's face could have been described as plain, the smile lit up his brown eyes and caused his round face to appear slimmer. "I'm Neville Longbottom, by the way." Harry controlled her face carefully when she heard his last name - this was the boy she would have grown up knowing had her mother lived. He was her god-brother, informally.
"Harry Potter." She nodded at him and turned back towards Hagrid.
"Everyone here?" Hagrid conducted a quick count of the first years. Satisfied with the number, he called out, "All righ' then, follow me." The first years hurried to keep up with the large man's strides as he led them up multiple flights of stairs until they came out in a small courtyard, complete with a fountain that gurgled merrily in the moonlight.
"Thank you, Hagrid." A stern looking witch stepped out from the shadows as they approached a large wooden door. Harry hardly noticed Hagrid's exit as she riveted her attention to the witch. "I am Professor McGonagall, Deputy Headmistress. In a few moments, you will be Sorted into your new Houses. Before we go into the Great Hall, I have a few words for you. Once you are Sorted, your new House will become your home. Any rule breaking will lose points for your House, and your triumphs will earn points. The four Houses are as follows: Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. Each House has their own strengths and values, and you should strive to uphold these values." Her gaze swept over the group of nervously fidgeting first years, lingering on Ron's crooked robes and the smudged dirt on his nose. Harry met her eyes evenly when they landed on her, and didn't blink until she looked away.
"Any questions?" No one raised their hands. "Very well. Follow me." She turned on her heel, her green robes flaring behind her, and led the way into the castle. The sound of many people talking came from behind a pair of enormous wooden doors, but Professor McGonagall continued past them and ushered the first years into a long but narrow chamber lined with portraits, with an unlit fireplace in one wall, and another door at the very far end. "Wait here. I'll be back momentarily." She left, closing the door behind her.
After a brief moment of silence, whispers broke out. "I wonder what the Sorting is," a timid-looking blond girl whispered. "My brother wouldn't say."
"My brothers said that we had to wrestle a troll." Harry recognized Ron's voice but didn't turn to look - she was too busy staring at the portrait of a lady dressed entirely in purple who was gazing single-mindedly into a crystal ball.
"Yes, well, I imagine your brothers make stories up quite often, Weasel," the blonde boy from Diagon Alley drawled. Harry tore her gaze from the crystal-ball gazing portrait in time to see Ron flush scarlet. "After all, they didn't have any money for toys."
"It's Weasley," Ron snarled. "And no need to ask who you are. My Dad says all Malfoys can be recognized by the fact that their egos are larger than their brains." A few of the other students snickered, but most were too startled by the venom in Ron's voice.
Malfoy's hand flew to his pocket, but McGonagall's return prevented violence from breaking out. As she started to speak, Harry heard Hermione mutter, "Barbaric!" under her breath.
"We are ready for you," Professor McGonagall announced. "Follow me." As one of the last to enter the room, Harry was one of the first to leave. Ron soon pushed up next to her, elbowing Hermione and Neville aside.
"Can you believe that prat!" Ron complained as they approached the doors of the Great Hall. "Acts like he's better than everyone else." Harry made a noncommittal noise, which seemed to mollify Ron. She was just glad he hadn't forgotten about her in favor of the boys he had crossed the lake with.
Professor McGonagall halted in front of the doors. "Form two lines, now," she commanded, and a quick scurry ensued. Harry found herself in the second row with Ron, behind a pair of Indian twins. "Very good."
With a flick of her wrist, Professor McGonagall opened the doors, which swung apart slowly, revealing a long rectangular room with four long tables and one shorter one upon a raised dais. Harry and the rest of the first years bobbed along in the teacher's wake as she led them between the tables decorated in yellow and blue. Thousands of candles floated in midair above the tables, and the ceiling reflected the night sky.
"It's only enchanted to look like the sky outside," Harry heard Hermione whisper from a few rows back. "I read about it in Hogwarts, A History."
Finally, they reached the front of the room. Before the smaller table, which seated the members of the staff, Harry saw a single three-legged stool with a graying patched hat upon it. "Wait here," Professor McGonagall instructed. Harry nearly ran into the girls in front of her from the sudden stop. The stern-looking witch climbed the four steps to the higher level and pulled a roll of parchment from her pocket. "When I call your name, you will come up and try the hat on." She moved over to the stool. Harry waited, a mixture of fear and anticipation building inside, but Professor McGonagall didn't move. She was staring at the hat. Glancing around, Harry noticed that the entire student body was watching the hat as well, so she quickly snapped her gaze to the ragged headwear as well.
A rip near the brim opened, and to Harry's surprise, the hat started 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 top 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 steady 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!"
Silence rang loudly through the hall for a few seconds before students began to applaud. When the clapping died out, Professor McGonagall opened the scroll. "Abbott, Hannah!" she called out. The timid blonde girl pushed her way through the crowd of first years and climbed the stairs, nearly tripping on the top one. A few students snickered and she flushed bright red but kept going. Professor McGonagall smiled kindly and held the hat up for Hannah to sit down before placing it on her head. It slid down until it covered most of her face. After a brief silence, the brim opened and it shouted out, "HUFFLEPUFF!"
Smiling happily, Hannah made her way to the cheering table decorated in yellow and black. Soon after, Susan Bones joined Hannah at the Hufflepuff table. Harry grew more and more nervous as Professor McGonagall worked her way through the alphabet. Harry watched as Hermione was Sorted into Gryffindor, eliciting a groan from Ron. Neville soon joined Hermione, although he had to jog back to Professor McGonagall to return the Hat, which he had forgotten to take off. The blonde boy, Draco Malfoy, was Sorted into Slytherin before the Hat even touched his sleekly groomed hair.
Finally, the P's started. Pansy Parkinson joined Malfoy and his two large goons at the Slytherin table, and the twins were split up into Ravenclaw and Gryffindor. Sally-Anne Perks, a slender girl who walked with the grace of a dancer, eagerly followed the first twin to Ravenclaw. When Professor McGonagall called out, "Potter, Harry!" she took a deep breath and climbed the shallow steps. Before the hat slipped over her eyes, she caught a glimpse of the hundreds of eyes staring at her with various degrees of interest.
Hmm, difficult, very difficult, a small voice sounded in her head. Harry relaxed immediately. She'd read about magical objects that could read your thoughts; they were few and far between, and none were malevolent of their own accord. Ahh, a clever one. You could do well in Ravenclaw, plenty of smarts up here. The Hat sounded fairly surprised. But given who your parents were, perhaps that's to be expected. After a brief silence, the Hat sounded again. But what's this! A deception! Oho, this is precious! The ambition and drive, maybe Slytherin is better. Although the plan itself is very daring. Hmm.
The Hat's thoughts tapered off and Harry started to panic. Not Slytherin, please, not Slytherin, she though desperately.
Oho! And why not? You would rise to greatness in Slytherin. Slytherin could help you on your path. You have talents that old Salazar prized above all else...it's all laid out here for me to see.
No, I can't. Dad would never approve. He would come to ask why and then he'd realize -
That you are not your brother. Very wise, very clever, Miss Harriet. A fleeting worry passed through her head, and the Hat chuckled. No, I will not betray your secret, Miss Harriet. That's not my purpose. I merely Sort. And where to put you, where indeed. So many choices - you could go into any of the four…
Put me where you would put Alex, please! she pleaded. Harry dredged up all the memories of her brother she could find, thrusting them at the Hat.
Gentle, gentle! it cried into her mind. No need for brute force! She could feel a soft tickling sensation as the Hat flipped through her memories. Yes, your brother is a crafty fellow, much like the Weasley twins. Ah, I see you've met them! Charming boys, I haven't seen such a devious pair of brains since your own father was here! But that was years ago, and I daresay he's changed? Yes, yes, very much so…
Harry waited with bated breath as the Hat continued to sift through her thoughts. She was vaguely aware of time passing as students began to mutter and shift in their seats. Even Professor McGonagall started tapping her shoe, although she quickly stilled it.
Very well, then. If you are determined to be where your brother would -
YES! Harry mentally shouted at the Hat. She felt it tighten around her head in unspoken rebuke.
Too bad. You would have done well in Ravenclaw. At her soft growl, the Hat quickly continued. But as it is, better be GRYFFIDOR!
Harry heard the Hat shout the last word out loud, and she swept it off her head with one last Thank you! She forced herself not to jump in the air and shriek with joy as she walked to the cheering table. Fred and George beckoned her over, scooting aside to make a spot between them. Harry nodded to Hermione and Neville as she passed them and sat down.
"Took ages, it did!" George beamed at her.
"Beat last year's record by nearly five minutes!" Fred added.
"How long - " Harry started to ask, but their older brother Percy the Prefect made a shushing motion at her so she shut her mouth and turned her attention to the Sorting in time to see a tow-headed boy make his way to the now-cheering Hufflepuff table.
As "Roper, Sophie" climbed the steps, trembling nervously, George leaned down and whispered into her ear, "Eight minutes. You had twelve and a half." Percy hissed at them but the twins merely smiled at him and winked down at Harry. She grinned at them and clapped enthusiastically as Sophie Roper joined Hermione and the other two first year Gryffindor girls at the end of the table.
The rest of the Sorting passed quickly, something Harry was extremely grateful for as she realized just how hungry she actually was. Ron was Sorted into Gryffindor after only a few seconds, and the last boy, Blaise Zabini, joined Malfoy at the Slytherin table.
As Professor McGonagall carried the stool and the Hat out of the Great Hall, the Headmaster stood up. Harry recognized him from many books, including Hogwarts, A History, even if he looked at least a decade older.
"Welcome, one and all!" He beamed around the room, his blue eyes twinkling madly behind half-moon spectacles. "As I'm sure you're all very hungry, I'll save the announcements for after our marvelous feast. Tuck in!" He clapped twice and immediately the golden platters and bowls filled with every sort of food imaginable.
"Excellent!" the twins cried, and they immediately piled some of everything they could reach onto their plates. Fred also spooned some peas and mashed potatoes onto Harry's plate with a wink.
"In case you can't reach with your small arms," he said with a smirk. She glared at him and grabbed a few chicken drumsticks, just to show that she could. George grabbed one from her plate.
"Here, Fred," he said. "Drumstick?"
"I'd be delighted!" George made to throw the drumstick over Harry's head, but she nabbed it midair. Fred and George exchanged startled looks at her quick reflexes. Harry took a large bite from the drumstick.
"Careful," a black skinned boy sitting across from them joked. "He looks like he bites hard." Harry realized that it was the same boy she had followed off the Knight Bus earlier that day.
"I don't have rabies, so you should be okay if I do," she sniffed before spooning a bite of potatoes into her mouth. The three of them broke into laughter.
"He'll do," the other boy chuckled. "I'm Lee Jordan, by the way. Third year along with these two morons."
"Hey, I'm not the moron! He is!" the twins protested at the same time. Harry choked on her bite of chicken as Fred and George started bickering over her head. She could see their brother Percy glaring at them for making such a racket at the dinner table, but when she glanced down to where the rest of the first years sat, her heart sank. Ron was glaring at her from over his pile of chips and chicken drumsticks and through the ghost of a stately-looking man wearing a large ruff talking to Hermione. Harry was confused - what had she done to make him so angry at her? She had thought they were friends. But I've never had friends before, she reminded herself as she took a sip of chilled pumpkin juice. It's always just been Alex and me.
The rest of the feast passed quickly. She didn't pay much attention to what Fred, George, and Lee discussed - she was too busy worrying about not knowing how to be a friend. When the desserts melted back into the plates, Headmaster Dumbledore stood up and cleared his throat.
"Now that we are properly befuddled by our excellent feast, I have a few announcements. First off, our caretaker Mr. Filch has asked me to remind you that magic is not allowed in the corridors." A few snickers were heard from the Slytherin table across the hall, but the Headmaster ignored them. "For our new students, and some of our returning ones - " here his eyes flicked over to Fred and George, who smirked " - the Forbidden Forest is strictly out of bounds. And this year, the right hand corridor on the third floor is cordoned off, unless you wish to die a most painful death." A few students laughed at this last announcement, but the majority of the hall remained quiet.
"Is he serious?" Harry whispered to George, who nodded absently.
"Never does nothing without a reason," Fred remarked, although he was staring up at the head table in slight confusion. "Don't know about this one, though."
"And now, before we retire to our beds, let's join together in singing the school song!" Harry noticed that the teacher's smiles became decidedly forced. A dark-haired man dressed entirely in black didn't even bother hiding his scowl, and the pale-faced man with a large purple turban looked like he was about to sick up.
"Here we go!" Dumbledore announced cheerfully as a long golden ribbon streamed from the end of his wand. "Just pick your favorite tune and follow along!" The ribbon formed words, and the entire school bellowed out,
"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 till our brains all rot!"
Everyone finished at different times, until only Fred and George, seated on either side of her, were left singing to a slow dirge. As their last notes died out, Dumbledore wiped a tear from his eye.
"Ah, music, a magic greater than any we practice here. Well, then, off to bed. Pip pip!"
With a cacophony of loud scraping, benches were pushed back and students started crowding towards the great doors. Harry made to follow Fred and George, but a hand on her shoulder held her back. Looking up, Harry met the eyes of Percy the Prefect.
"You're coming with me," he instructed before turning and calling out, "First years, Gryffindor first years over here!" Harry shrugged his hand off her shoulder and waited. Soon, all nine of the Gryffindor first years were gathered around Percy. The Great Hall was nearly empty, except for a group of older Ravenclaw students who had clustered around the smallest professor up at the head table. "Follow me, and keep up." Percy turned and led them out of the Great Hall and up a large marble staircase, talking the whole while. Harry recognized all the information from Hogwarts, A History, and tuned him out, focusing instead on the path they were taking.
Time seemed to stretch out as they climbed and climbed. Portraits waved and smiled at the new students, but Harry was too tired to care. Finally, they stopped in front of a portrait of a very rotund lady dressed entirely in pink. She realized that this was the entrance to the Gryffindor common room and turned her attention to Percy in time to hear him say, "…password is Caput Draconis." The portrait swung open as if on hinges, revealing an elegantly arched portal just wide enough to fit two people at once. Percy led the way in, and Ron and his two new friends followed right away. Harry let the girls go first, and then helped Neville up before scrambling in herself. The bottom of the portrait hole was situated nearly two and a half feet from the stone floor, but she made it through just before the painting swung closed behind her.
"Boys up and down to the left, girls the same to the right," Percy said, indicating the correct staircases from the middle of the cozy-looking room. "It's late and you'll need to be up early tomorrow so I suggest you go to bed as soon as possible."
Harry suppressed a yawn and headed to the right. Before she could set foot on the staircase, a loud voice stopped her. "Potter, where do you think you're going? That's the girls side."