Disclaimer: Harry Potter and all related characters belong to J.K. Rowling. They are used without permission, and no money is being made from this story. All original characters are my creation.
Lessons Taught, Lessons Learned
Chapter Two: The Sorting Hat's Decision
Once they reached Hogwarts, Professor Flitwick led Trista up several floors and down a long corridor until they reach a large stone gargoyle. Trista remembered her parents telling her that doors at Hogwarts could be concealed behind, or even within, anything. She wondered if this gargoyle was hiding a door.
"Wodinaz," Flitwick said to the gargoyle, which sprang to life and stepped aside revealing a small alcove. Trista looked at Flitwick for instructions. "Well, go on," he said.
Trista looked in the small alcove again and saw that a spiral staircase was rising out of the ground. She figured it must lead to the headmaster's office, so she stepped onto one of the steps and watched the stone walls go by as she rode up.
When the stairs stopped, Trista could see a large, oak door with a large, golden knocker on it. She had to climb a few steps to reach it, and then she reached for the knocker.
"Enter," said a man's voice from behind the door.
Trista slowly opened the door and peeked inside before actually stepping into the room. It was a large, circular room with rich wood walls and an elegant woven rug on the floor. The walls were lined with shelves that were filled with books, and upon a few tables were photographs and various knick knacks.
In the middle of the room was a large wooden desk, and behind that desk sat Odin Grinkleby. He was far younger than Trista had expected, perhaps only in his fifties. He was tall and stocky with olive skin, a kind face, and thick, dark hair. When he saw Trista enter the room, he smiled at her.
"Ah, you must be Trista," he said, and waved his wand. A chair appeared in front of the desk, and Grinkleby gestured to it, "Please, have a seat."
Trista sat in the chair, looking at the wall behind the desk. There was a large bulletin board put up there, and on it was what appeared to be a child's art work. Grinkleby must have noticed her looking at it, because he turned around to look himself.
"My daughter, Holly, did those," he said, "She's only three years old."
"Oh," Trista replied, "That's…umm, that's nice."
"So, starting sixth year, are we?" Grinkleby asked.
"Yes, sir," Trista replied.
"All right then. Well, there's really only the matter of getting you sorted into your house," Grinkleby said, picking up an old frayed hat that Trista hadn't noticed before. "Once the Sorting Hat places you in a house, there is no chance of changing houses. Do you understand that?"
"Yes, sir," Trista replied. She recalled her mother telling her that the hat would place where she wanted to go, so she began to think 'Slytherin, Slytherin. Slytherin.' over and over.
"So, tell me, Trista," Grinkleby said, "Where do you think you'll do best?"
"Slytherin, of course," Trista replied without hesitation. "Both my parents were in Slytherin. It's where I belong."
"Mm-hmm," Grinkleby hummed, nodding. He handed the Sorting Hat to Trista and said, "Put it on."
Trista took the hat and pulled it down onto her head. At first, nothing happened, but then Trista heard a voice speaking to her inside her head.
"Ah, a sixth year transfer, I see. I've never sorted the likes of you before," the Hat said, "I heard you say you think you'll do well in Slytherin."
"Yes," Trista replied, "It's where I'd like to be placed. I'll do best there."
"Yes, yes, I agree," the Hat replied, "You would do exemplary in Slytherin."
Trista felt herself getting excited; she just knew that the Sorting Hat was going to announce that she would be in Slytherin.
"You would do very well in Slytherin," the hat continued. "However, I'm not going to place you where you'll do best. I'm going to place you where you'll benefit the most."
"Benefit the most?" Trista asked.
"Yes, and I think you'll benefit the most in…" the Hat suddenly spoke aloud, "HUFFLEPUFF!"
The word echoed off the walls several times before the room quieted again. It continued to echo inside Trista's head. She couldn't believe it at all; there was no way that she was in Hufflepuff. She was a Slytherin; her parents raised her to be a Slytherin.
"Well, that's that, then," Grinkleby said cheerfully, "Too bad about Slytherin. What d'you say you and I go down to the Great Hall to wait for the other students?"
"No," Trista replied frowning, "I want the hat to sort me again. I'm not going into Hufflepuff."
"I'm sorry, Trista, but you said yourself that you understood that once the hat places you in a house, there is no changing it. You're going to be a Hufflepuff for the next two years," Grinkleby said sounding honestly sorry.
"I'm not going into Hufflepuff," Trista replied, ignoring Grinkleby's sympathy. "I belong in Slytherin."
"There's nothing I can do," Grinkleby replied.
"Fine," Trista replied bitterly, "But I won't make friends with any of them."
"Suit yourself," Grinkleby sighed as he rose from his desk. "I'm going down to the Great Hall to wait for the other students. You're welcome to walk with me, but if you choose to stay behind, I'll have to ask that you leave my office."
Trista stood up and, after glaring daggers at the stupid old Sorting Hat, left the room followed by Grinkleby.
She remembered her way to the Entrance Hall, but Trista still kept Grinkleby within her view in case she took a wrong turn. She didn't blame him for unfortunate house placement, but she wasn't feeling too kindly toward him either. He was the headmaster, so he should be able to override the decision of a stupid hat.
They reached the Great Hall and Trista sat down at the very end of the Hufflepuff table with a 'humph'. She glared at the large, Hufflepuff banner hanging over the table, and continued to sulk as students began to fill the hall.
A few older Hufflepuff students gave Trista a curious look, but she scowled at them and they turned away. She absolutely would not make friends with them; she would make friends with the Slytherins.
When Scorpius Malfoy finally came in, Trista jumped up. Excited to see a familiar face, she hurried over to where he was sitting with his friends.
"Scorpius!" she exclaimed.
"Trista?" Scorpius asked, "What are you doing here?"
"I go here now!" Trista replied.
"I didn't notice you when I came in," Scorpius said. "Did you get sorted already, or do you have to do it with the first years?"
"I've already been sorted," Trista replied, and then sighed dramatically, "The stupid hat put me in Hufflepuff."
"Hufflepuff?" Scorpius snorted giving Trista a look of disgust, "Then what are you doing over here?"
"I don't want to be in Hufflepuff," Trista replied, "I had no choice."
"Go back to your own table before my friends see you and think I associate with losers and mudbloods," Scorpius replied coldly.
"Scorpius…" Trista began, "I'm not in Hufflepuff by choice."
"Well I'm not going to associate with you 'by choice'," Scorpius replied, "Slytherins don't associate with Hufflepuffs, and a true Slytherin would have been placed in Slytherin."
Tears stinging at her eyes, Trista turned and stormed away. She should have known better than to think Malfoy and the other Slytherins would accept her when she was in Hufflepuff. Her own father had joked that he would disown her if she was put in Hufflepuff. Now, she wondered if perhaps he wasn't joking.
Trista sat back down at the end of the Hufflepuff table and ignored some girls who tried to talk to her. She ignored the sorting of the first years, and she only half listened to Grinkleby's pre-dinner speech. When dinner appeared on the tables, Trista fixed herself a plate, but could barely eat through her anger.
Dinner vanished and dessert appeared, and after everyone had their fill, that too vanished. Trista was still angry, and she took turns glaring at her fellow Hufflepuffs and the Slytherin table. She didn't even notice when Grinkleby announced that it was time for bed, but she did notice when someone poked her in the arm. She turned to tell off the person and saw that it was one of the girls who tried to talk to her before. She had light brown hair and dark green eyes.
"What?" Trista snapped.
"Well, you're new, right?" the girl asked.
"So?" Trista replied coldly.
"So, you can follow me to the dormitory if you want," the girl replied. Correctly interpreting the look on Trista's face, the girl added, "You don't have to walk with me or even talk to me, but I imagine you don't want to sleep in the corridors."
"Fine," Trista replied, standing up to follow the girl.
"The password's 'Diligence' in case you lose me," the girl continued, "Just follow the ones wearing yellow and black."
Trista nodded curtly and let the girl go ahead of her. She followed the girl across the entrance hall and down a set of stairs into the basement. Trista could smell food and guessed that the Hufflepuff dormitory was near the kitchens.
Finally, they reached a large painting of several bumblebees flying in a meadow. The bees flew up to the middle of the painting and spelled out 'Password?'
"Diligence," the girl said. The bees reformed and now they said 'Enter'.
The painting swing out revealing a door way into a large common room. Trista followed the girl into the room and looked around. Lush, black carpeting cover the floors, and the walls were painted bright yellow. Scattered about the room were black sofas, yellow armchairs, and wooden tables and chairs. Some students were sitting around the common, but some had gone up to bed.
"What year are you?" the girl asked.
"Sixth," Trista replied.
"Oh, me too!" the girl replied, "Our dorm is through that arch way and down the hall. It says 'Sixth Years' on it, so you can't miss it."
"Okay," Trista replied.
"Okay…then I'll just go to the dorm," the girl said.
"Bye," Trista replied.
Trista looked at the people still in the common room, but none of them seemed to pay her any attention. She expected them to treat her like an outsider not only because she was a new student, but also because she felt like she gave off a Slytherin aura. Once Trista realized that they weren't going to chastise her for ending up in the wrong house, Trista hurried through the archway and down the hall to the sixth years' dorm.
When she came into the room, Trista could easily tell which bed was hers. It was the only one that didn't have someone sitting on it. The girl who had helped her was in the bed directly to the right of Trista's. As Trista approached her bed, the girl stood up again.
"You must think I'm terribly rude for not introducing myself," the girl said. "I'm Isabella Matthews, but everyone calls me Isa. That's Amy Starsman, Gertrude Hollows, and Allie Smith." Isabella introduced the other girls, pointing at each one as she said their names.
"Trista Nott," Trista replied stiffly, "But don't bother talking to me after this unless I talk to you first."
The other girls looked taken aback by Trista's behavior, but they nodded slightly and exchanged confused glances with one another. Trista wanted to laugh at their confusion, but instead she decided to see how much she could control these girls.
"I'd like to go to bed if you don't mind," she said coldly.
"Oh," Amy said, "we're sorry. We'll just go down to the common room and talk. Sleep well."
Trista snorted and glared at the girls as they left, whispering to each other and throwing glances back at Trista. After the girls were gone, Trista checked her bindings and got ready for bed. The beds in Hufflepuff were much smaller than the ones Trista was used to. She'd bet a thousand galleons that the Slytherin beds were just like the ones at home. Grumbling to herself about the stupid Sorting Hat's stupid decision, Trista rolled onto her side and closed her eyes.
(Author's notes: Chapter Two! Did you like it? Trista will be taking the core classes: Astronomy, Charms, DADA, Herbology, History of Magic, Potions, and Transfigurations. She can't take any electives, because she would be too far behind in those classes. Thanks for reading, and I hope you come back for the next chapter!)