a/n; Hello all! Thanks yet again for reading! :3 All right, so I edited a few things here, such as getting ties upon going to your new dormitory, and having more than one room for each year. I've slightly expanded the size of Hogwarts' student body. Now, without further ado, enjoy! :)
disclaimer; I don't own Harry Potter.
the fabulously vintage world of holly potter
—sixth: the sorting
Almost immediately the door swung open, and a tall, regal-looking woman in emerald green robes stepped outside. She looked stern and angry already. Holly surmised she must have been tired. "The firs' years, Professor McGonagall," said Hagrid.
Oh! So this was the woman Holly had been pestering the second half of the summer. Holly hoped she thought curiosity in students was good. "Thank you, Hagrid," said Professor McGonagall. Holly hadn't realized she was a professor as well as Deputy Headmistress. "I will take them from here."
Indeed, she pushed open the other door, and then led them into the entrance hall. It was so entirely huge that Holly couldn't even begin to think of how to describe it. Illustrious came to mind. So did illogical, when she saw how elephantine the nearest staircase was.
There were flaming torches at intervals along the walls, and four large glass vials standing to the right. There were also a variety of armored knights placed about. Holly was most curious about the vials; she wanted to know what on Earth you put in things that large. Instead of asking, though, she followed along as the rest of her classmates trailed after Professor McGonagall, past more massive oak doors (behind which the rest of the students had to have been chattering) and into a smaller room.
"Welcome to Hogwarts," said Professor McGonagall, once all of them were situated in the room. "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."
No wonder all the houses are so prejudiced against each other, Holly thought, if none of them are allowed to fraternize with the others.
"The four houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin," Professor McGonagall continued. "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 a few minutes in front of the rest of the school. I suggest you all smarten yourselves up as much as you can while you are waiting." She seemed to look right at Ron, who still—still!—had that smudge of dirt on his nose. "I shall return when we are ready for you," said Professor McGonagall. "Please wait quietly."
With that she exited the room. After a few seconds, the first years turned to begin to talk amongst themselves. "How do they sort us into houses?" Holly asked the people nearest to her.
Ron was the one who answered. He looked so nervous he might pass out. "Some sort of test, I think. Fred said it hurts a lot, but I think he was joking."
"It's only trying on a hat," cut in Hermione Granger. "You shouldn't believe everything you hear."
Ron turned to Holly, looking pained. Holly shrugged at him.
A second later everyone leapt about a foot into the air: twenty or so ghosts had just come right through the back wall. They were all slightly transparent, but still quite visible. Even more shocking was the fact that they were all chatting casually amongst themselves, barely even sparing glances at the terrified first years. Holly watched in complete fascination. She decided to assume from then on that every magical creature or thing she'd ever heard of was real.
One of the ghosts seemed to notice them, because he stopped talking and pointed. He was sporting some sort of medieval clothing. "I say," he said loudly. "What are you all doing here?"
Holly thought Neville whimpered. When nobody said anything, Holly offered, "We are about to be sorted. How do you do?"
Everyone—literally everyone—turned to look at her in amazement. "We are very fine, thank you!" said a fat little ghost. He looked like a monk. "Oh, all these new students! Look at them, Nick—" He seemed to be talking to the medieval ghost from before.
"Ah, yes," said Nick almost fondly.
"Hope to see you in Hufflepuff!" said the monk ghost. "My old house, you know."
Holly could have sworn she heard someone snort, and she could have also sworn that it was Draco Malfoy. Personally she rather liked the monk. He was very friendly and seemed quite sweet. "Move along, now," Professor McGonagall said suddenly, sharply, from the doorway. "The Sorting ceremony's about to start."
The ghosts all took several more looks around at the first years before turning and floating away through another wall. The monk ghost waved as he went.
"Now, form a line," said Professor McGonagall, "and follow me."
The first years obeyed in fearful silence. They left the smaller room, reentered the entrance hall, and then walked through the grand double-doors into the Great Hall.
If Holly had thought anything about this castle before now was absurd, it was nothing compared to the Great Hall. It was so large that Holly imagined it could have fitted several elephants inside. There were thousands of candles floating high above, near the ceiling; and was it even a ceiling? It showed a wonderfully clear starry night sky. All around them were four long tables, at which the rest of the six hundred students were seated. They were all staring at the first years as they walked down the center aisle, and they all had golden plates and silverware and goblets before them.
There was another long table at the end of the Great Hall, where the professors were sitting. In the largest chair—that looked rather like a throne—there sat the man from Holly's Chocolate Frog card, Albus Dumbledore. He looked extremely blissful.
The first years all halted. Neville bumped into someone and whispered a quick apology. Professor McGonagall stood at the front of the line, beside a wooden stool. Upon that stool there sat a very ragged hat.
For a second there was silence. Holly peeked around at the rest of the students—they were all staring at the hat now. She turned to look at the hat too, half-expecting it to be on fire. Then a rip near its brim opened and it sang:
Oh, you may not think I'm pretty,
But don't judge on what you see,
I'll eat myself if you can find
A smarter hat than me.
You can keep your bowlers black,
Your top hats sleek and tall,
For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat
And I can cap them all.
There's nothing hidden in your head
The Sorting Hat can't see,
So try me on and I will tell you
Where you ought to be.
You might belong in Gryffindor,
Where dwell the brave at heart;
Their daring, nerve, and chivalry
Set Gryffindors apart.
You might belong in Hufflepuff,
Where they are just and loyal;
Those patient Hufflepuffs are true
And unafraid of toil.
Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,
If you've a ready mind,
Where those of wit and learning
Will always find their kind.
Or perhaps in Slytherin
You'll make your real friends;
Those cunning folk use any means
To achieve their ends.
So put me on! Don't be afraid!
And don't get in a flap!
You're in safe hands (though I have none)
For I'm a Thinking Cap!
Once finished, the rip fell back down again. The entire Great Hall burst into applause. Holly clapped enthusiastically along with them. How curious! she thought cheerfully. How peculiar! She'd never once dreamed she'd ever see such a thing as a singing hat.
"I'm really going to kill Fred," Ron muttered behind Holly. "He was going on about wrestling a troll."
Holly snickered at the mental image as the applause died down. Professor McGonagall stepped forward, holding up a roll of parchment. "When I call your name," Professor McGonagall said regally, "you will put on the hat and sit on the stool to be sorted." She didn't even pause before calling, "Abbott, Hannah!"
A blonde girl hurried forward. She looked flushed and nervous. She put on the hat and sat down; the hat fell right over her eyes. After a second of tense silence, the hat shouted, "HUFFLEPUFF!"
There, Holly thought, as a table to their right and closest to the wall cheered. She didn't seem so bad. Holly didn't doubt that Draco Malfoy was jeering silently at the poor girl, though. Holly was starting to think that Malfoy might fit in Slytherin after all, if he was willing to use any means to achieve his ends.
She also wondered a little about Ron—she didn't particularly recall any instants of chivalry from him, but then again, Fred had been sorted in Gryffindor, hadn't he?
"Bones, Susan!" was the next girl to go. She went into Hufflepuff as well, and walked over to sit beside Hannah. Then there was "Boot, Terry!" who went to Ravenclaw. Ravenclaw was at the table directly to their left. "Brocklehurst, Mandy!" joined Terry. "Brown, Lavender!" went to Gryffindor, the table directly to their right. It was the loudest table so far, and there were even a few catcalls.
"Bulstrode, Millicent!" was the first Slytherin; that was the table furthest to the left, past the Ravenclaws. They didn't look any different from anyone else, either, Holly noted. She was beginning to grow a little nervous herself: she had no idea which house she wanted to be in.
The roll went on and the names were called. "Goldstein, Anthony!" went to Ravenclaw, followed shortly by "Granger, Hermione," who also went to Ravenclaw. Holly thought it made perfect sense.
"Longbottom, Neville!" was, to everyone's surprise, sent to Gryffindor. Holly supposed that someday the poor boy would probably make something great of himself, and she hoped to see the day he would. She was very interested in peoples' stories. She suspected Neville would have an intriguing one in the future.
"Malfoy, Draco!" went straight to Slytherin; the hat barely touched his head. Holly thought he had to have some ambition or cunning in there somewhere. She wondered if the Sorting Hat could see the future as well as read minds.
When "Potter, Holly!" was called, the rest of the Great Hall began to whisper. Holly kept her head held high and strode forward to the stool with confidence, even though she felt quite nervous inside. She settled onto the stool and she imagined Professor McGonagall shot her a tiny smirk of a smile before dropping the Sorting Hat onto her head.
The hat didn't fit her head at all, and she was shrouded mostly by darkness. The hat was so worn she could kind of see the light of the Great Hall seeping through it. "Hmm," said a small voice in her ear; it sounded a little as though it was even inside her head. "Difficult. Very difficult. Plenty of courage, I see. Always indignant. A good mind, too—and a desire for spreading knowledge. There's talent, my goodness, yes—and a nice thirst to prove yourself, now, that's interesting… Oh, but such loyalty, determination—ambition—a desire for equality… Hmm…very interesting… Now where shall I put you?"
Holly shifted around in her seat. What are the options? she thought, hoping the Hat was open to discussion. What are my best choices, do you think?
"What are your best choices? Well—your thirst for knowledge almost counters your thirst for greatness…"
Holly decided that the Hat must have been deliberating between Ravenclaw and another house. She thought at this point that she would have liked to be in any of them and she just sat there, waiting.
"…But it is your dedication to the work getting there that I see the most. In that case, it'd better be HUFFLEPUFF!"
Thank you, Mr. Hat, Holly thought, as she stood up and removed the hat from her head. She was, she realized, getting the loudest cheer yet—although some of the other houses were full of students exchanging glances and muttering to each other. Holly walked over to join the Hufflepuff table, where the majority of them were in a standing ovation.
Holly sat down by Ernie Macmillan and Wayne Hopkins. She could see Susan Bones across the table. They all smiled at her and she smiled back, feeling right at home; then they all turned to watch the rest of the Sorting. They were joined by Jackson Rhodes, Oliver Rivers, Leanne Rothbury, and Melody Watson. Then "Weasley, Ron!" was sorted into Gryffindor. Holly was glad Ron had gotten where he wanted to go.
The last of them all was "Zabini, Blaise!" He was a tall black boy who went to Slytherin. Professor McGonagall rolled up her scroll and took the Sorting Hat away, off to another chamber off the hall behind the professors' table.
The headmaster stood and beamed around at everyone. They all went quiet, waiting for him to say something. "Welcome," he said. His voice echoed around the Great Hall. It was lively and bright, not at all what Holly had expected from such an old man. "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!"
With that, he sat back down. The Great Hall all clapped and cheered. Holly let out a laugh of disbelief. "How peculiar," she remarked aloud to nobody in particular. Ernie laughed in agreement.
Holly turned back around and saw, to her astonishment, food had appeared on the table. There were dishes and dishes of all sorts of foods, and many pitchers full of a variety of drinks. Holly was momentarily overwhelmed; but soon enough she was piling her plate high with drumsticks and mashed potatoes and discussing the best fruit juices with Ernie.
Partway into dinner, Ernie said, "Now—I know I've got to ask this, somebody will—you're really Holly Potter, eh? Got the scar and everything?"
Holly nodded and gestured at her forehead; her mouth was full.
"Wicked," said Wayne Hopkins from across the table. He was looking at her scar, starry-eyed. "I can't believe you defeated a Dark wizard. And you were only one!"
Holly swallowed. "Personally I can't believe it either," she admitted. "I don't even remember any of it. It's all very strange, really."
"I bet it sure is," remarked Jackson Rhodes.
"Has anyone ever asked for an autograph?" Leanne Rothbury asked shyly.
Holly shook her head. "No, but all sorts of wizards keep wanting to shake my hand."
Quite abruptly Ernie stopped and turned toward Holly. "Excuse me," he said, grabbing her shoulder like he was about to say something life-changing, "but…may I shake your hand?" He laughed, turning back around. Holly couldn't help but laugh with him—his expression had been utterly ridiculous, and startlingly reminiscent of a woman from the Leaky Cauldron. The others around laughed too, and the conversation changed topic again.
When everyone began to complain about how full they were feeling, the dishes all changed again. This time they were filled with desserts. Holly spotted an apple pie and groaned. "What is it?" Ernie asked her, raising his eyebrows.
"Give me that apple pie," Holly joked, shaking her head. "Just give me the whole thing right now."
They all ate more dessert than they felt they could handle; then the complaints about stomachaches were actually real. Holly listened to the discussion turn to families. Ernie had nine generations of witches and wizards in his family. Wayne was a half-blood, as were both Jackson and Leanne. Susan was from another family with a lot of generations of witches and wizards. Holly felt a little lost; were they tracing back by fathers, mothers, or both?
She turned around to look at the rest of the Great Hall. Ron was talking animatedly with a black boy and a dark-haired one at the Gryffindor table. Hermione Granger looked like she was sharing important information with a couple of girls at the Ravenclaw one; everyone was nodding interestedly, obviously listening. Malfoy was looking around the Great Hall, too.
The teachers at the table at the end of the hall were talking amongst themselves. Holly found Professor Quirrell in his purple turban. He was speaking with a pale teacher who had stringy dark hair. The dark-haired teacher seemed to have a permanent scowl or sneer on his face: Holly couldn't tell which.
Abruptly the teacher looked up and straight at Holly. In that instant, for the first time since Holly could remember, a shot of pain flickered through her scar. She winced and clapped her hand to her forehead.
"What is it?" asked Jackson.
"Nothing," said Holly, who thought the entire encounter too bizarre to repeat at the moment. "I think I'm getting a bit of a headache."
"That's too bad," said Jackson. "It's probably all the noise."
Holly chanced another peek back at the odd professor; he'd returned to his evidently harrowing conversation with Professor Quirrell. She couldn't shake the feeling that the professor knew her somehow.
After a short while, the desserts disappeared. Holly was starting to feel rather sleepy; she supposed it was about time, having woken up at five o'clock that morning. Her last bike ride on Privet Drive felt years ago, not only hours past. She couldn't wait to see what else Hogwarts would bring.
Professor Dumbledore stood up to give another speech. Holly hoped it would be more informative than the last. "Ahem," he said, even though the Great Hall had already fallen silent, "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 finally, I must tell you that this year, the third floor corridor on the right-hand side is out of bounds to everyone who does not wish to die a very painful death."
A few students laughed awkwardly, like they didn't know whether he was joking or not. Professor Dumbledore, however, looked deadly serious. Holly exchanged a glance with Ernie.
Then, in an apparent non sequitur, Professor Dumbledore burst, "And now, before we go to bed, let us sing the school song!" He flicked his wand, and a long golden ribbon burst from the end. It floated up overhead and formed into words: lyrics, evidently. "Everyone pick their favorite tune," the headmaster said, "and off we go!"
Holly sang along as best she could to the Moonlight Sonata. The lyrics of the school song read:
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 something 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.
The Weasley twins were soon left the last ones singing, as they were singing along to a very slow funeral march. Professor Dumbledore pretended to conduct their last lines with his wand. When they finished, everyone clapped; Professor Dumbledore wiped his eyes. "Ah, music," he called to the Great Hall. "A magic beyond all we do here! And now, bedtime. Off you trot!"
Holly and the rest of the Hufflepuffs in her year were told to follow a prefect—who introduced herself as Mindy Santos—to their dormitory. Mindy had pristine flowing black hair. Holly wanted to know how on Earth she'd gotten it to look so good.
Mindy led them back out into the entrance hall, and then to a door hidden just on the edge of the marble staircase. There was another door on the other side where it seemed Slytherins were entering. However, when Holly walked into the Hufflepuff door, the Slytherins were nowhere to be found.
They all wandered together along a lovely torch-lit passageway. They passed various portraits of fruit, one of which Mindy pointed out as the entrance to the kitchens. They entered another passage and took a small flight of stairs down. Then, upon the choice between three doors, they took the one furthest to the right.
Inside this door was a storage room. There were barrels stacked up everywhere. "Everyone in?" Mindy asked, when Hannah Abbott had entered last. "Close the door behind you, now."
Hannah obeyed and shut the door. Then she turned to listen.
"Now, this is very important," said Mindy. "You see this barrel right here?" she pointed; everyone craned their necks to look. "Make sure you remember the markings. It's the entrance to the dormitory."
How? Holly wondered.
Mindy went on to explain: "It changes position whenever you come in here. In order to get the barrel to open, you have to tap the correct rhythm on the front—like this—" she proceeded to demonstrate. "It's the syllables in the name 'Helga Hufflepuff.' She was our founder at Hogwarts."
The barrel swung open; quite suddenly its mouth seemed much wider than before. "And now we can all enter," said Mindy brightly. "Come along, then." She led the way into the barrel.
Once they were all inside and heading down a short tunnel, Holly glanced back. The barrel entrance seemed to have closed on its own. How odd, Holly thought. She looked ahead again and nearly tripped into what had to be the dormitory.
It was a large, circular room made of stone. There were long windows high on the walls, showing off the deep blue night sky. There were several tapestries hung about and a large fireplace in the center of the room. There was a door to the right and a door to the left. Mindy pointed out the one on the right as leading to the girls' dormitory and the one on the left as leading to the boys'. "Now, remember," she said, "if a boy tries to get into the girls' dormitory, the door won't open, no matter how hard you try."
"Can the girls get into the boys' dormitory?" asked Alexis O'Connell curiously.
"Yes, but we'd like to be able to trust at least one of the sexes," Mindy replied, giving Alexis a stern look. Alexis giggled nervously.
Mindy told them that it was the end of the tour then, and that they had to be down at the Great Hall the next morning by seven-thirty for breakfast and their timetables. Then she walked over to sit down in a cushy plaid armchair.
The first years all looked round at each other for a moment. "Well, I'll see you lot tomorrow, then," Ernie announced. "Goodnight." He turned and walked over to the entrance to the boys' dormitory, afterwards disappearing inside.
Everyone followed his lead, bidding goodnight to the others and heading in for bed. Holly walked into the girls' dormitory after Hannah and Susan. The entrance led to another short hallway; there were several doors off of it, all marked with different numbers and presumably different years. There were some years with multiple doors.
The first years had two dorm rooms. There were about seven girls in the first and, presumably, about seven in the second. Holly found her things in the second room, set up by the bed closest to a door that led to the bathroom. She was grateful for this small kindness: she'd be able to jump up and steal the bathroom first in the morning.
Hedwig was nowhere to be seen. Holly swung open her trunk to make sure all her things were in their right places. She dug out what she planned on wearing the following morning and settled it all on her nightstand between her bed and the wall. Holly found two gold-and-black ties on the footboard of her bed and put one with her uniform.
Holly changed into her sleeping clothes and then looked round. She was in a dormitory with Leanne Rothbury, Melody Watson, Alexis O'Connell, Kate Stanton, Caroline Redding, and Jenny Travan. Jenny was on the bed to Holly's right, and Melody was directly across from her.
The beds were four-poster, with golden hangings. Holly organized her favorite books on her nightstand under her uniform and pulled out her Bible to read a few verses before crawling into bed. She was exhausted; she only hoped someone would be able to wake her up in time tomorrow.