"No!" Astoria stomps her foot and scowls at Professor Flitwick. "You're wrong! I'm not in Ravenclaw!"
Nearby, Daphne passes with her Slytherin friends, and she frowns upon her little sister with a disappointed look. Some of the bigger boys that are with Daphne laugh and point, and Astoria is shocked when her sister doesn't shut them up. Biting her lip hard to prevent herself from crying, Astoria glares at Flitwick once again, eyes expressing her plead.
"I apologize, Miss Greengrass," the professor squeaks. "The Sorting Hat has put you in my House, and the Hat is never incorrect. Now, if you don't mind, let me take you to your dormitory..."
She allows the teacher to lead her away, but Astoria hangs her head in shame. How could she be put in Ravenclaw? None of her family had been Sorted into anything other than Slytherin. She fears her parents' reactions, and strongly believes that this time, the Hat was incorrect in Sorting someone…
Then she sees the Slytherins in action, snarling at less confident students and taking their blood status as an advantage. Astoria could never discriminate others because of their background – how could she when coming from a pureblood family and still being in Ravenclaw?
She's scared when Cedric Diggory is killed and Harry Potter claims Voldemort has returned. Astoria is only thirteen when this happens, and returns home that summer to find her parents cold and overpowering.
Daphne supports their mother and father's attitudes ("Voldemort is going to protect us when we follow him, Tori. How could you disapprove?") and Astoria then tries to keep her chin up, and in fourth year, she strongly ignores the recruiting of what she later knows as Dumbledore's Army. She may be in a different House than her family, but Astoria knows she should be in Slytherin…
Then Dumbledore is killed, and Professor Burbage (Astoria always regretted not taking her class, but was too fearful of what her father would say about her in Muggle Studies) is soon finished off as well. Astoria cries over their deaths, when she's away from Daphne and her parents. How could the Death Eaters be so cruel?
Astoria does not fight in the Final Battle. Mother had taken her out of school that year – Astoria's sixth – and taught her from home. She remembers Mother and Father rushing to Hogwarts in the middle of the night, having been called by their Dark Lord. They were going to join Daphne there, and the perfect Greengrass trio would fight for their beloved Slytherin House.
The next afternoon, word of the battle causalities arrive. Astoria's former Potions partner, Colin Creevey, was killed, as was one of the Weasleys and Professor Lupin and his wife. Astoria cannot bear it – they didn't deserve death.
Her doubts are gone, and the Sorting Hat is, after all, correct. She is a Ravenclaw - intelligent and gentle and good. Astoria is different, and it's all for the better.
A/N: Thanks for all the support! Please review!