After scrambling into out robes and stuffing our wands in a really cool side pocket, me and Griff wait for the train to stop before jumping out of our carriage and running out to the platform.

"Firs' years over 'ear, all firs' years this way!"

I spin around to find the source of the deep voice and have to blink hard when I spot him. A giant beetle-eyed man is standing on the platform to the right of me and Griff, waving a lantern and yelling at the top of his voice.

"Look Griff, it's Hagrid! I've read about him in one of Harry Potter's bibliographies!"

"No way!" whispers Griff. "I've always been a bit of a big Harry fan."

"Me too," I say.

"Come on you lot, firs' years to the boats!" says Hagrid.

Griff and I scramble through the crowd, bashing into a fair few people, before finally catching up to Hagrid and the rest of the first years. Hagrid walks as slowly as he can while still moving, but still the rest of us have to jog to keep up. Soon we arrive at a pit of black with boats floating on it.

"Woa!" someone says, "flying boats!"

"Where, where?" asks Hagrid spinning quickly, almost knocking me and Griff in the head with his wildly spinning lantern. "Oh, you mean those boats," he says, spotting the boats everyone else spotted ages ago, "they're not flying, they're floating. On the water."

"Oh," sighs pretty much everyone, except this really tall guy with curly brown hair who says, "Duh guys, who ever heard of flying boats. Ha!" Though I'm pretty sure he thought they were flying too.

Anyway, when we all pile into the boats, I put my hand down the side and feel rather than see, that there is actually water there, it's just so black, everyone thought there was nothing there.

For the whole boat ride everyone is goggling at the Hogwarts Castle, something most of us have only dreamed about. And trust me it's way better in real life. After what seems like no time at all, the enchanted boats bump lightly against the castle pier, and everyone jumps out of their boat. We all get in a rough single line, and follow Hagrid up to the castle steps and through the doors, into the Great Hall.

As we walk closer and closer to the front of the room, butterflies start to creep into my stomach and flying around. I give a little shiver.

"What?" asks Griff.

"Just nervous. I don't want to be put in Hufflepuff."

"Oh," replies Griff, "don't worry about it, you'll go where you're meant to. Let's hope we're in the same House yeah?"

"Yeah," I say. I really want Griff in the same House as me. He's my only friend at the moment.

"Okay first years, gather around here," says an old but firm voice.

I stand up on my tiptoes to see who it belongs to, I'm short you see. After having to actually jump to see over everyone's heads, I find that the voice belongs to none other than Professor Minerva McGonagall! She must still like Sorting first years even though she's Headmistress now.

"Now when I call your name, you will come up here, sit on the stool where I will place the Hat on your head, and you will be sorted. OK? Argins, Jamie."

A tall red head boy with lots of freckles walks up slowly to the stool and sits down.

"Hufflepuff!" yells the Hat.

I clap along with everyone else, though silently I'm thinking, 'please not Hufflepuff, anything but Hufflepuff.'

Arker, Peter is sorted into Gryffindor and by that time everyone knows the drill and soon, Griff is up there. 'Go Griff,' I think, 'put him in Ravenclaw please Hat.'

There's a couple seconds of silence as the Hat ponders where to put my best friend. "Gryffindor!"

I clap along again though slightly unenthusiastic, until I see Griff's smiling face and I know he's still happy about being a Gryffindor not a Ravenclaw.

Time passes and soon my hands are red from clapping, then, suddenly, "ShadowBlade, Marcus!"

My heart gives a little jump at the sound of my name. I walk up the three steps to the stool where the Sorting Hat awaits. Professor McGonagall lifts the hat, then lowers it onto my head. The last thing I see before the Hat slips over my eyes is Griff sitting at the Gryffindor table, giving me a thumbs up. I smile, then wait. Silence. My heart races as I wait for the Hat to say something. He does.

"So, where shall I sort you? Your mother was a Gryffindor you know, all those years ago. Though I know not of your father."

"That's because he's a muggle," I think.

"I see," he says. I jump, he read my thoughts! "Let's have a look then," he continues as he shuffles through my brain.

"Ah ha!" he yells, and I jump halfway off the stool.

"What is it?" I ask, worried.

"Well, you seem to be another hard one to sort...your bright I can see...rather brave too...but there's something else...something pointing to Slytherin..." He went quiet for a while as if waiting for a response.

"Oh, well, yeah, sure. Uh, whatever you say..." I think.

"Hmmm. You're the first person to say that you know. When give the choice, most people jump for Gryffindor."

"Yes, well, Gryffindor would be nice but if you think I should go to Slytherin, then I will. I mean, not all Slytherins are bad."

"True, true...well then, I've decided."

I hold my breath. Where will I go? The sorting Hat raises its voice and yells, "Slytherin!"

I smile a little, a bit disappointed I guess. But if Slytherin is where I'm meant to be, then I'll be there and I won't complain. The Slytherin Crest magically appears on my robes over my heart as I go to sit with my fellow snakes. I'll write to my mum in the morning, I hope she won't mind I'm not in her house.