She hated James and Fred. That fat Evan, no Ethan boy too. Honestly, the nerve of them! How dare they stand up, right in the middle of the Sorting Ceremony too, and sing that odious song! Victoire felt her pale cheeks flush crimson as McGonagall interrupted her cousins' impromptu dance. She was going to kill them. Or better yet, she was going to have Teddy kill them.

Teddy. Victiore's cheeks, which had gone down to their normal peachy complexion, flamed red again. Teddy Lupin, the tawny haired boy, no man, had swept her off her feet and stolen her heart. Who would have thought that the beautiful, serene Victoire Weasley would have fallen for the shy, orphaned Lupin boy? But fallen she had and fallen hard. Her spirit soared as she recalled with stunning clarity, the bittersweet kiss that they had shared right before James had interrupted them.

James. Right. Her stupid cousin. She was going to kill him! Fred too! Maybe even that Evan, no Ethan boy as well. Just for the fun of it. Victoire shot a glare at her cousins who had now sat down and were trying in vain to become invisible. She seethed silently as they smiled their 'sorry' and was ready to deliver a scathing comment across the table when suddenly, Professor Longbottom's voice wavered slightly. Almost immediately, it spoke up again, louder and more clearly:

"Malfoy, Scorpious!"

Don't think about what Arianna said. There's no guarantee that you'll be a Gryffindor. Don't think about it. Stop thinking about it! Albus was abruptly wrenched from repeating his new mantra in his head when the Hall that had previously been full of chatter and applause, suddenly fell silent. He looked around to see Scorpious detach himself from the line and confidently walk up to the Hat.

At the back of his head, he absently noted that Professor Longbottom was wearing a strange expression on his round face but for now, Albus' full attention was on Scorpious, who was now trying the Hat on. The brim had barely been placed on the top of his white-blonde hair when the Hat screeched:

"SLYTHERIN!"

A smatter of applause broke out near the Slytherin table while the rest of the Hall stayed quiet. Albus started clapping and Rose and Arianna, quickly catching on, followed suit. Everyone else took to their example and clapped as well, albeit reluctantly. The tense air dissolved somewhat as another student was called up and sorted into Hufflepuff.

Albus craned his neck to get a glimpse of Scorpious and was rewarded with a friendly salute from the newly sorted Slytherin. He heaved a sigh of relief. They were still friends, no matter what house Albus was about to be sorted into. He was glad.

"Potter, Albus!"

Uh oh. His turn now. As the Hall fell deathly silent once again, Albus walked up the aisle to the Hat. It was unnerving that such a ratty, old thing had the power to determine the direction a certain part of his life would take for seven years. Right before the brim of the hat fell over his eyes, his father's words came floating back to him, "You were named after two Headmasters of Hogwarts. One of them was a Slytherin and probably the bravest man I ever knew." It was alright to be a Slytherin. Somehow he didn't feel scared anymore.

"Hello," a new voice sounded in his head.

Okay, maybe he was a little scared.

She was biting her bottom lip. It was a nervous habit that she hadn't been able to shed. Her Dad always said that her mother used to do it, right before an exam or when Uncle Harry went looking for trouble. But Rose couldn't help but bite her lip nervously as Albus's name was called out and her cousin tried on the Hat. Rose had noted that the hat took a longer time to sort some students than others. The brainy girl had deduced that the ones who took the longest were the ones who were suited for more than one house.

The Hat was taking a long time to sort Albus. Rose inwardly hoped that her cousin would get into Gryffindor. He had looked terrified when her Dad had jokingly made a comment. Something along the lines of disowning her if she didn't get into Gryffindor. As she recalled her fathers's words, a small tendril of fear sprouted in her chest and her face tightened.

Rose was brought out of her musings by Arianna, who looked lightly annoyed, "What is it with you two and brooding? Any house would be lucky to have you, you walking talking encyclopedia. Now stop looking like a scared Hufflepuff."

"I am not…" Rose began to hotly protest when the Sorting Hat interrupted her. It had finally come to a decision.

"GRYFFINDOR!"

The Great Hall erupted in cheers. Rose heard Arianna mutter, "I knew it," behind her.

She saw her cousin Victoire clap happily and giggled seeing her cousins James and Fred doing an improvised jig on the Gryffindor table. The other occupants of the table were chanting, "Another Potter!" Unfortunately the applause came to an end as James accidentally knocked a goblet of pumpkin juice over, right into Victoire's lap. Rose was surprised to see her normally cool-headed cousin promptly hex the two miscreants. The two cousins quickly sat down, now sporting bright green hair which contrasted fiercely with their embarrassed red faces. Giving Victoire a thumbs-up, Rose looked for Albus. He was embarrassedly making his way to the Gryffindor table, smiling politely at the cheers and hoots that were being directed at him. However, Neville stopped him before he got there and pushed him towards the Great Hall doors. With a flash, she remembered that he and Arianna were to go straight to the Hospital wing as soon as they were sorted. She sighed dejectedly. She wanted Albus to see her being sorted.

Rose was then very pleased when Albus planted himself firmly at the Great hall doors. It was clear to see, that despite Neville's insistence, he was not going anywhere until Rose was sorted. She smiled when James ran down and gave his brother a congratulatory hug, only to draw back immediately, "Ew! Albus, that's disgusting!"

The Sorting continued.