Hello once again! I have been very deep in thought lately about where this story was going and to be honest for a while I really wasn't sure. But the thought of giving up on my first Fan fiction when I got reviews and favourites... I knew I had to continue! SO after many tedious hours I have decided on a storyline! :D And this chapter is only the beginning! Enjoy!

I DO NOT own Harry Potter or Fairy Tail.

Chapter 3 - The Sorting Hat

The inside of Hogwarts was nothing like the grey stone outer walls. Harry had to squint before his eyes adjusted to the golden glow of the entrance hall. A beautifully carved staircase wound its way around the room and up to various wooden doors, some within reach, some barely visible. The torches burned merrily and the ceiling was so high Harry reckoned that the whole of their guild could fit into this one room comfortably. A cough snapped him out of his thoughts. The woman with the stern face was standing a few feet away, arms crossed. "Follow me." She said impatiently and the crowd of first years followed, reluctant to leave the magnificent hallway. They entered into a small chamber.

"In a few moments you will pass through these doors and join your classmates." The woman said and gestured to another door behind her. Harry was not looking forward to finding his way around this place. "But first we have to hold a sorting ceremony, I'm professor McGonagall and when I call out your name the ceremony will decide which house you belong in, The houses are Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin. When your here, your house will be like your family. You can gain points, or loose points. The house with the most points at the end of the year will win the house cup. Please use this time to smarten yourselves up for your peers and professors." Her eyes lingered on Natsu's frayed cloak and another boys face that had dirt smudged across it. Without a word she swept through the door and talking broke out amongst the first years.

"What do you suppose the sorting ceremony is?" Questioned Lucy. Gray shrugged, "Beats me, But it cant be something too difficult, its not like they would spring a dragon on a bunch of kids." Natsu looked dejected at this. As Harry swept his gaze across the students, a ginger boy that was conversing with Neville proclaimed "Fred told me its something like beating a troll!" Harry snorted with laughter. The boy who had spoken flushed red and glared at him. Harry returned it with enthusiasm. He wasn't the only one that had laughed however, a pale blonde boy had also sniggered. He pushed his way through the crowd to come to a halt in front of the redhead. "Don't be such an ignorant fool, Why would they make us fight a troll?" Harry immediately decided he liked this blonde boy.

"SHUT YOUR MOUTH!" The ginger haired boy retaliated, by now quite a lot of the first years had turned to listen in on the argument. "Let me guess." Sneered the blonde boy "Red hair, and a hand me down robe? You must be a Weasley." "THAT'S RON WEASLEY TO YOU!" The boy bellowed and pointed at him with a trembling finger. "And don't even think about insulting me! My brother is a prefect!" At this point Neville snagged his sleeve, "Leave it Ron." He said quietly. Ron pushed him away forcefully, with a gasp he fell to the floor. At this point Harry could not stay still any longer, the sight of his friends getting hurt made him angry, and Harry would not stand for that.

"Oi." Said Harry as he went to stand in between the two. "No one hurts my friends and gets away with it." "That's right!" Said five other voices, he hadn't noticed Erza, Lucy, Gray, Natsu and Happy walk with him. Ron didn't look so sure of himself now. "If you play with fire." Said Natsu as he lit a flame in his palm. "Your going to get burned!" And he launched himself at the boy, His aim was true. However before he could reach him a bolt of crackling lightning struck him. Harry was angry, but he wasn't stupid. The silence in the chamber was broken when the door opened and professor McGonagall walked in. "We're ready for you now." She said.

Harry couldn't stop a gasp escaping his mouth as he walked into the giant hall. The ceiling must have been enchanted. Because all Harry could see was a large span of midnight sky riddled with stars. He assumed the stars were moving, until he noticed they were actually thousands of glowing candles floating above their heads. He swept a lock of hair out of his face. Barely five seconds had passed and they were standing at the front of the hall. All that interested Harry now was a rugged old hat on a stool. He wondered what this had to do with the sorting ceremony. He noticed the whole school was staring at the hat, so he stared too. SO intensely that he almost jumped a foot in the air when it twitched. A rip in the front opened and the hat, to Harry's amazement, began to sing.

Many years ago,

When I was newly sown,

There were four founders living,

Their names are still well known.

Brave Gryfindor with nerves of steel,

Smart Ravenclaw, A sharp mind,

Loyal Hufflepuff, her friendships real,

Cunning Slytherin, What a find!

And so Hogwarts began,

With founders teaching all,

And students learnt and laughed and grew,

Inside this very hall.

And once again more minds have come,

so many more people see,

So try me on, and I will show you,

Where you ought to be!

So they just had to try on the hat. Once he had got over his initial surprise at seeing a talking hat he felt disappointed it wasn't something more interesting. And did he really have to try it on with the whole school watching? There was a round of applause at the hats song. Then professor McGonagall unravelled a scroll and looked down at it through her spectacles. It was completely silent in the great hall as she read out the first name.

"Dragneel, Natsu."