A/N: Sorry for the loooooong wait for this chapter. I've been having internet troubles, and my art exam is in a week D: ohdearohdearohdear. But I'll still try extra hard to keep updates quick :) Reviews might help motivation? ;)
Also, thank you harryginnyfan101 for the 'favourite story' :)
Chapter Six
It was almost pitch black when the train stopped. Rae, Albus, James and Rose had already changed into their robes when a voice echoed throughout the train informing them that they would arrive in five minutes and to leave their luggage on the train as it would be taken separately. Despite Albus' words, Rae kept her iPod tucked in a pocket. It had unceremoniously turned off in the middle of a song about half-way through the train ride, but Rae wanted to keep it close just so she could get it enchanted as soon as possible.
The corridor on the train was packed solid; it took the four students ten minutes to get out into the freezing cold air. James pointed them in the direction of a tall, broad-shouldered old man holding up a lantern and calling for first years. After that, James bid them farewell and ran off in search of his other friends. The old man had a dark, grizzled face and his long grey hair and beard was unkempt. He would have looked rather mean if he hadn't have been having a cheerful chat with a first year about the giant squid that resided in the lake.
When the last of the first years arrived, the old man told them to follow him closely so they didn't get lost and began to make his way through the darkness to a steep, muddy path that sent a lot of the students sliding onto their backsides. "In a few minutes, you'll have your first good look at Hogwarts. Just round this corner… here we go!" there was a chorus of 'oohs' and 'aahs' as they all came out at the edge of a huge black lake. Settled on top of a large mountain, its tall turrets and towers seemingly reaching the heavens was Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
*
Rae never liked boats. She thought they were very easily breakable and dangerous and she couldn't trust them at all. However, the only way she was going to get across the expanse of water laid before her was by clambering in one of the boats with Albus, Rose and another first year they didn't know. On the old man's command, the boats started forwards, cutting through the cold water and heading straight for the castle, made visible by the hundreds of glittering windows and the moon giving the castle's outline a silvery glow. Soon, they came to the cliff face underneath where the castle was perched. A huge archway with dangling ivy allowed them through to a sort of underground harbour. The old man got out first, beckoning the others to follow. After trudging down a damp passageway for a few minutes, they finally felt the rush of cold air on their faces again as they came out on to smooth wet grass in the shade of the castle. They followed the old man up a flight of steps and watched as he knocked three times on the huge oak double front doors. It opened immediately.
"Thank you, Hidges, I will take them from here," a woman said from the doorway. The first years looked at her, shivering from the cold. She was quite tall for a woman and very thin, wearing a tight black set of robes buttoned up to her neck. Her deep brown hair was pulled tightly into a bun and her gold-rimmed glasses were perched on the end of her bony nose. She looked quite strict, but, after a moment of observing them, she gave them a small smile and told them to follow her inside.
Rae had never seen anything as beautiful as what she saw now. Sure enough the castle in the moonlight was awe-inspiring, but this was beautiful. They had come through into the entrance hall, which was as big as her entire house and had an incredibly high ceiling (so high, in fact, that it was almost impossible to make out). The bright stone walls were lit with flaming torches held in brackets, and directly in front of them was a magnificent marble staircase leading to the upper floors. From a pair of double doors on their right came the buzzing of hundreds of excited voices, but the woman didn't lead them in there, instead, they were shown into a room off the hall where they crowded together.
"My name is Professor Stirrawit, and I am the deputy headmistress at the school. I am also an Astronomy teacher so you may probably encounter me more than a few times during the course of this year," she began in a voice as stern as her features. "Now, allow me to explain. After I have finished talking to you, you will be led through those double doors in the entrance hall to take part in the Sorting Ceremony. This is important because, whilst you continue your education at Hogwarts, you will be a part of a house. There are four houses: Gryffindor, Slytherin, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff. Each house has its own dormitory where you will sleep and common room where you will spend your free time. I daresay whilst you are here your house will be like your family, you will have lessons with them, eat with them and I presume a lot of your friends will come from the same house.
"Whilst you are at Hogwarts, your good deeds and triumphs will earn you house points whilst misdemeanours and rule-breaking will cost them. At the end of the year, the House Cup is presented to the house with the most points which is a great honour to whichever house earns it," she finished briskly, "now, I will go and prepare the great hall for the ceremony. Meanwhile I suggest you all smarten yourselves up and try not to look so afraid." And with that, she was gone. Rae gulped and began to brush her robes with her hands, wondering if she should tuck her earphones in or not. Turning around, she saw Rose and Albus having what sounded like a little argument.
"She said smarten yourself up, your hair looks a mess like this! Why won't this bit go down?!" Rae heard Rose hiss, trying to flatten down a bit of hair at the back of Albus' head that was determined to stay stuck up. Rose sighed and gave up, hitting a protesting Albus around the back of the head for being so troublesome. Rae couldn't help but laugh at this as she walked over to join her friends, she didn't want to lose them during this ceremony thing – who knew what it entailed? Rose seemed to notice the uncertainty on the girl's face because she explained the ceremony a second later. "It's nothing bad, you just have to sit on a stool and put some old hat on your head and it tells you where you're going. James fed Albus some stupid story about fighting a mountain troll, and the moron believed him," the girls laughed, though Albus wasn't too amused.
Suddenly, the door they had come through opened and Professor Stirrawit told them to follow her. Silently, they entered the great hall.
If the entrance hall was amazing, it was nothing compared to this! It was massive, with four long tables full of glittering golden plates and goblets and older students watching the new ones with interest. At the top of the hall was another long table facing them where the teachers were seated. Illuminating the room were thousands of flickering candles suspended in mid-air, and, more shockingly the ceiling was… well, Rae didn't even know if there was a ceiling, but then she heard Rose whisper behind her "I read it's bewitched to look like the night's sky!" to tell the truth, Rae had thought the hall had simply opened up to the heavens.
They came to a halt half-way up the hall where a beaten three-legged stool was stood. On top of the stool was a very old, very dirty, very patched and frayed wizard's hat. It looked plain and worn but the rest of the students were staring at the hat so the eleven-year-olds stared at it too, their faces grim and frightened. Professor Stirrawit approached it, checked it over to make sure everything was okay, and then stepped to the side of the stool, pulling out a long sheet of parchment. "When I call out your name, you will come forward, sit on the stool and put on the hat. When you are put into a house, put the hat back onto the stool and join your house table. Hufflepuff, Slytherin, Ravenclaw and Gryffindor," she said, motioning to the table on the far left first through to the far right. Bringing the parchment up to her nose, she read out the first name.
"Addams, Susan," a little, timid-looking girl stumbled forward and hurried to the stool. The hat almost swallowed her entire, tiny head but within a second, the hat screamed "HUFFLEPUFF!" and it was pulled off her head as she walked to the table on the far left. Next was Allery, Liam and Allan, Henry and soon the line of students began to dwindle. "Malfoy, Scorpius," Rae tried to catch Scorpius' eye as he walked up to the stool but he didn't see her. He didn't look the least bit afraid as the hat was lowered onto his head, but, before it had even been properly placed on him it screamed "SLYTHERIN!" Rae bit her lip. This was going to be very uncomfortable for her.
Moments later, Rae and Rose smiled a little nervously at Albus as he was called out. They were a couple of the last students to go as their surnames began with 'W'. Rose left first, giving her a fleeting smile; she had the hat on her head in a matter of seconds. And, in a matter of seconds later, she was hurrying toward the Gryffindor table. Rae tried to look confident as she headed toward the ancient hat but she had a feeling she looked more terrified than anyone else.
Rae closed her eyes as the hat dropped over her head, falling past her ears. When she opened her eyes, she stared out at the black insides of the hat. All was silent for a moment before a small voice whispered in her ear. "Ah… we have a difficult one here, don't we?" it said. Rae's eyes widened and she gulped, gripping the edges of the stool. "You're a very smart, witty girl, I can see that. Ravenclaw would be very proud to have you, looks and brains – just like her. Though you're brave and not afraid to speak your mind, you stand up for what you believe in and will fight to the end as Gryffindor would. Though I see Slytherin more clearly in you than many people. So… where shall I put you?" Suddenly, her uncle popped into her mind and the conversation she had had with Albus about he being in Slytherin. But then she thought of Albus and Rose, they were in Gryffindor – but Scorpius! She bit her lip. The hat seemed to sense her confusion and quickly screamed: "GRYFFINDOR!"
Tearing off the hat, Rae dropped it on the stool and stared at it with wide eyes for a moment before walking shakily to the Gryffindor table, being patted on the back by Albus as she sat down beside him. Across the hall, she noticed a familiar blonde boy who wasn't clapping with the others. Scorpius looked positively distraught with the hat's choice. But then, she realised, it would be enough that he was friends with a Muggle-born like her, let alone a Gryffindor. And suddenly, she felt distraught too.
Finally, a young boy and girl, both with the surnames 'Zabini' joined the Slytherins. Rae noticed that they happily sat with Scorpius – they must know each other, she thought. Then the hall turned quiet as the headmaster stood, his arms outstretched and a wide smile on his face. "Welcome to another year at Hogwarts," professor Odswald said, "I hope that this will be just as interesting as the last and maybe, just maybe, a dream long dreamed will come true." Rae couldn't help but think his eyes flashed at Scorpius and then to her and her friends before he spoke again. "Alas, let me not keep you from the grand banquet that your rumbling stomachs are awaiting so eagerly. So then, dig in."
A chorus of gasps broke from the first years when they looked around to see the long house tables piled with mounds and mounds of every type of food and drink they could imagine. Steak, beef, lamb chops, pork chops, roast chicken, roast turkey, sausages, bacon, roast potatoes and chips, Yorkshire pudding, an assortment of vegetables, gravy, ketchup and so much more that she was spoilt for choice. Feeling her stomach rumble, she quickly grabbed a little bit of everything and began to eat. It was delicious! Reaching for a jug of Pumpkin Juice, Rae looked up and saw Scorpius talking animatedly with the male Zabini. She sighed. This was going to be a harder year than she thought.
Chapter Seven Preview:
Not long afterwards, the head of house, (professor Niddan) began to hand out timetables. She was a very kindly looking lady who was hardly seen without a smile. Her chocolate-coloured hair was tied into a loose ponytail, the curls falling over her little shoulders. Rae and Rose looked at their timetables together, they had Charms first, then Transfiguration, History of Magic, Defence against the Dark Arts and Herbology. Rae felt a smile come to her lips; professor Moreau taught Defence against the Dark Arts. Suddenly, a groan from Rose woke Rae from her thoughts.
"We have D.A.D.A with the Slytherins, you have to be kidding," Rose moaned. Rae looked back at her timetable and, sure enough, underneath 'Defence against the Dark Arts' read 'Slytherins' in brackets. Rae bit her lip, finally she'd be able to see how Scorpius was going to act around her now she was in Gryffindor…