In the Cupboard
In the Cupboard
By HarryDude85
Again, I don't own the characters, just this unique situation.
A lot of the descriptions of characters and dialogue, with major exceptions, will be ripped directly from the book because, I'm not that creative with descriptions, and I have this thought that a lot of what the staff, excluding Dumbledore, say the same things every year more or less.
The door swung open at once. Standing in its place was a tall, black-haired witch in emerald-green robes stood there. She had a very stern face and Harry's first thought was that this was not a woman to cross.
"The firs' years, Professor McGonagall," said Hagrid
So this is Professor McGonagall, thought Harry, who than gulped in nervousness.
"Thank you, Hagrid. I will take them from here."
She led them into the entrance hall, which was so big you could fit the Dursley's house in it and still have room to spare. There were flame torches on the walls, the ceiling was too high to see, and there was a grand marble staircase facing them that Harry couldn't wait to climb.
But first, Professor McGonagall led the first years pass another pair of giant doors, to a small, empty chamber off the hall. Crowded together, they stood watching Professor McGonagall.
"Welcome to Hogwarts," said Professor McGonagall. "The star-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 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."
"The four houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. Each house has its own noble history and each has produced outstanding witched 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 up as much as you can while you are still waiting."
She glanced at the boy with the toad, whose cloak was fastened wrong, and a red-haired boy, who had dirt on his nose.
Next to him, Hermione was trying to make her hair less bushy. Harry didn't think it was wise to tell her that she was fighting a losing battle.
"How do we get sorted?" a black boy in front of them whispered.
"We put on a hat," answered Ernie. The boy turned to him and, with an eyebrow raised, said, "We put on -" "A hat, that's right," said Ernie calmly. When he saw the confused faces around him, he then added, "You'll see when we get in there."
"What house do you guys want to be in?" asked Padma.
"I've heard Gryffindor is a really good one, but Ravenclaw wouldn't be too bad," said Hermione.
"Well, Padma and I want to be in Ravenclaw," said Parvati.
"Well, I want to be in Hufflepuff," said Ernie. "My whole family's been in it since we can remember."
"Well, like Hermione and Parvati, I think Gryffindor and Ravenclaw would be really good, but I don't really care where I go. They all are good," said Harry.
Ernie stared at him before asking, "You want to be in Slytherin?" not believing what he was hearing.
"Well, like I said, I don't really care why I go," said Harry, not sensing the tone in his friend's voice. "Why?"
"Why!" a voice from behind him laughed. "Harry Potter asks why he shouldn't be in Slytherin."
Harry turned around and saw it was the red-haired boy with dirt on his face.
"Don't you know that Slytherin is the evilest of the bunch?" the boy asked incredulously.
"Yeah, but only to those who deserve it, Weasley," a drawling voice the Harry knew said. The crowd of students drew quiet as Draco Malfoy stepped forward, flanked by Crabbe and Goyle.
The boy named Weasley now glaring daggers at Malfoy. "So, Harry's parents deserved what they got did they? That's what you're saying isn't it?"
"Hey, what do my parents have to do with anything?" Harry didn't care that all eyes were on them at that there was now a circle around the three boys.
"Harry," Hermione said quietly, although in the silent chamber, it echoed as loud as a shout. "You-Know-Who went to Hogwarts. He was in Slytherin."
"What?" But before anything else could be said, Professor McGonagall returned and shouted, "What is going on? Break it up children. This is no way to behave on your first day." Harry could tell that he was right about her and that she was dangerous to cross, because right now, she looked like she could breathe fire. Glaring at each other, Malfoy and Weasley went back to their own group of friends.
Calming herself down, but still watching Malfoy, Weasley, and Harry, Professor McGonagall said, "We're ready for you now. Form a line and follow me."
Still thinking about what had just happened, Harry got in line between Parvati and a girl with light brown hair and started walking. He didn't even look around with the other students when they entered the Great Hall.
'Voldemort went to Hogwarts. That makes sense. He was once a child and needed to be taught how to use magic. But what does that mean it mean that he was in Slytherin? Ernie and that Weasley boy – I'm going to have to learn his name – seemed dead set against the house. And then there is Malfoy. He seemed really nice on the boat, but just now… I don't know where I want to go now.'
He was jolted out of his thoughts when he walked into the girl in front of him. The line had stopped moving and was now bunching around the front of the hall.
"Watch it," the girl said, glaring back at him.
"Sorry. I was daydreaming," said Harry. He then got a good look at where he was. The massive hall was full of hundreds of students, all seated at four long tables. The first years were standing in front of another long table full of adults that Harry assumed were teachers. Looking up, instead of seeing the ceiling Harry saw the same dark blue, cloudy sky that was visible out the window. Harry knew that it was enchanted, and not real.
Looking front, Harry saw Professor McGonagall place a four-legged stool with a very old, patched, dirty hat in front of the teachers table.
'This must be the hat Ernie was talking about,' thought Harry.
Just when Harry was wondering how this could possibly sort a couple dozen students, the hat twitched. A rip near the brim opened wide like a mouth – and the hat began to sing.
It sang about the different houses and what you needed to be in each one. It sang about how when put on a persons head, it could see all of their thoughts, and that was how it decided where to put them.
When it was finished, the hall burst into applause. It bowed to each of the four tables and then became quite still again.
Harry sighed in relief. He had been afraid they would have to do some magic, and while he did know some stuff, Harry didn't think unlocking a door would have qualified him for much.
Professor McGonagall stepped forward with a large scroll of parchment in hand.
"When I call your name, you will put on the hat and sit on the stool to be sorted," she said. "Abbott, Hannah!"
A pink-faced girl with blond pigtails stumbled forward out of the bunch, and put on the hat. While it was deciding what to do with her, Harry looked around at the crowd of first years. It put him at ease when he saw that every one of them looked as nervous as Harry did.
"HUFFLEPUFF!" shouted the hat.
The table on the right cheered and clapped as Hannah went to sit at the Hufflepuff table. Harry saw something that looked like floating fat friar wave at her. Harry noticed as "Bones, Susan" went up to the hat, that the friar was transparent. He was a ghost. As "HUFFLEPUFF!" was shouted again, more claps sounded, and "Boot, Terry" went up, Harry looked around the hall again, this time above the tables of students.
When "RAVENCLAW!" was shouted, the table second from the left clapped this time, and Harry saw near where Terry went to sit, the ghost of a beautiful girl, who didn't look that much older than Harry, clapped very composedly, and did so again as "Brocklehurst, Mandy" joined the table right after.
"Brown, Lavender!" the girl next to Harry went up and became the first Gryffindor. The table on the far left exploded with cheers; Harry thought he heard some catcalling as well. Harry saw as "Bulstrode, Millicent" became a Slytherin, that the Gryffindor ghost was a tall man, dressed in tights and wearing a ruff, while the Slytherin's had a most unpleasant looking man, who appeared to be a baron of some kind, draped in chains and with great sloshes of silver blood on him.
"Finch-Fletchly, Justin" became a "HUFFLEPUFF!" and "Finnigan, Seamus" became a "GRYFFINDOR!" before:
"Granger, Hermione!"
He heard Hermione gasp. As she made her way past Harry, he patted her on the back in support.
She then ran to the stool and jammed the hat on her head.
"GRYFFINDOR!" shouted the hat. Harry clapped hard along with the other Gryffindor's.
Next was "Longbottom, Neville!" the boy with the toad. He was practically trembling as he put the hat on. It seemed to take ages before it shouted, "GRYFFINDOR!"
Malfoy was next. He swaggered forward, and the hat barely touched his head when it shouted, "SLYTHERIN!"
Malfoy went to join Crabbe and Goyle, but before he did, he caught eyes with Harry. Harry smiled at him, still not sure what to think about him. Malfoy nodded back in return.
Next came, "MacMillian, Ernie!" Harry gave him a comforting smile, before Ernie went up. And Ernie got his wish, for the hat shouted, "HUFFLEPUFF!"
Beaming, Ernie took it off to sit next to Hannah Abbott.
There were a few more people before Professor McGonagall called "Patil, Padma." Padma squealed. She quickly hugged her sister, who said, "Good luck," gave Harry a thumb's up and went to the stool.
Harry could hear Parvati muttering "Come on, come on, come on" beside him. And when the hat shouted "RAVENCLAW!" Parvati shouted "Yes!" She turned to Harry and said, "We really wanted both of us to go there. Well, here I go," she said when her name was called. "Good luck," she told Harry.
"You too," he called after her.
Knowing that they both wanted this, Harry was waiting with baited breath for the hat to shout "RAVENCLAW!" and for Parvati to smile and go with her sister. But, what the hat ended up shouting was, "GRYFFINDOR!"
The Gryffindor table burst into applause, but Harry could see the disappointed look on his friend's face ad she put on a fake smile and went to go sit next to Hermione. Harry looked over at the Ravenclaw table and saw Padma wasn't even clapping: she looked like she was in shock.
But Harry didn't have time to think about this. There was another person after Parvati before, at last –
"Potter, Harry"
The hall was quiet as Harry went up to the stool. He could hear some whispers of, "The Harry Potter" and such before Harry put the hat on.
It was much too big. The sound of the hall vanished as the hat fell over his eyes. Nothing happed for a while, until:
"Well, this is interesting," said a small voice in his ear. "I can't remember the last time this has happened, if ever."
"The last time what happened" Harry thought?
"The last time I encountered a student who fit with all four houses. Hm. You value friendship, even if you have just discovered it, are hardworking and loyal, all important qualities of a Hufflepuff. You are ambitious and, though you may not know it yourself, very cunning. You don't have the pureblood prejudice that most, Slytherin's have, but that doesn't mean you don't belong. There is also some small part about you that practically screams Slytherin, but I can't tell what. You are very bright boy, very clever, who loves to read and learn. The very definition of Ravenclaws. And you have plenty of courage and chivalry to become a fantastic Gryffindor. This is going to be very difficult."
"Can I choose?"
"Yes, but people usually don't. Do you have a preference?"
"Not really, but I just found out something about Slytherin that I'm not to happy about."
"Ah, yes. Well, it is true that I put the person you know as Lord Voldemort in Slytherin. And that has seemed to have clouded your opinion of Slytherin's."
"Not Slytherin's, just the house itself. I mean, how would I be able to sit in the chairs or sleep in the beds knowing that the man who killed my mum and dad sat or slept where I was? I don't know if I could. But that doesn't mean I hate the house, I just have –"
"Reasons too be doubtful. I understand. So, Slytherin is off the table, but that leaves three other houses. I should say though, that you would have done well in Slytherin. Very well."
"Now, while you would do very well in Hufflepuff as well, I can tell that they are other traits of yours that are too overwhelming for you to be placed there. You are very bright and very brave."
"I'm not brave. I couldn't even stand up to my cousin."
"That was because you knew that if you did, you would have been severely punished for it. And while bravery does consist of sometimes fighting the battles you cannot win, it is also comprised of knowing when not to fight, in order to save yourself for another, much more important fight. Yes. I see it now. I see where you belong, as far as Sorting is concerned. But let me just say, before we are separated, just because you may sleep and eat and play and work with one house, does not mean you have to stay solely with them. I see you have friends already in Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw, and wish to become one with someone in Slytherin. Well that would be a very unusual combination, Harry Potter, especially for a GRYFFINDOR!"
The last word the hat shouted out loud, and when he took it off, he saw heard the loudest cheers and most applause yet coming from the Gryffindor table.
Sorry this one is shorter than the others. If I kept going, it would have been too long, so I just decided to cut the chapter in two. Second part should be arriving soon.
I had a really hard time deciding where to place Harry: Gryffindor or Slytherin. I had plans for either way, I even had some for Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw as well, but in the end, good old Gryffindor won out. I just thought the story of an AU Harry being put in Slytherin had been done to death.
But everything won't be the same just because Harry is in Gryffindor. Already his relationships with Malfoy and Dumbledore are different, and he doesn't really know Ron.
That's all I've got. Keep reading.
Later
