To everyone who's ever favourited, followed or reviewed TTWL

Thank you for supporting my first (and only) attempt at fanfiction.

I'm sorry, but I will not be continuing with this story for a number of reasons.

Anyone who wishes to is welcome to continue/remix this story. I would love to read anything people wrote on this and would be happy to add a link to their work if they let me know of it.

Thanks again, AviaLee

Partially as an apology, partially because disapprove of chapters consisting only of author's notes, here is the (very rough) last chapter I wrote ages ago and dug out yesterday.

Chapter Nine: Welcome to Hogwarts

Last Chapter: The countryside now flying past the window was becoming wilder. Earlier, they had been passing by neat fields. Now there were woods, twisting rivers, and dark green hills.

The compartment became peaceful as the younger children dozed after their meal, lulled to sleep by the movement of the train. Fred and George busied themselves in scribbling on loose leaves of paper and whispering to each other.

It was nearing dark when they were finally disturbed by a knock on the compartment door.

"Come in!" called Fred. Isabel straightened and rubbed her eyes as a girl and a boy, both wearing Hogwarts robes without house colours, entered.

"Hi. We're looking for Neville's toad, have you seen one?" the girl asked, eyes sweeping the compartment, over the still sleeping Harry and Ron, the Weasley twins, the mess of sweet papers on the floor and landing on Isabel. Neville remained silent.

"No. Sorry." George and Fred went back to their whispering.

"Neither have I, sorry," Isabel said quietly, "but I could help you look?"

"Sure," said the girl, a little surprised. Isabel cast a glance at Harry and nodded goodbye to Fred and George as they left the compartment.

"I'm Isabel," she introduced herself once in the corridor.

"Hermione Granger," the girl said, but the previously silent Neville spoke over top of her.

"Potter?" he asked, voice shy.

"Yeah," Isabel confirmed wryly. Neville fell silent. Hermione Granger glanced at him, and began talking very quickly.

"Really? Isabel Potter? But I read about you – and your twin, of course. I didn't realise you were in our year!"

"So you're from wizarding families?" asked Isabel, knowing that no Muggle author had seen fit to write about the Potter twins, and wanting to move the conversation on.

Hermione Granger looked at Isabel squarely, and seemed to understand that Isabel didn't want to talk about it. She plunged into an explanation of her family (Muggleborn), and then asked Neville about his, and by the time the three ran out things to talk about, they had found Neville's toad and it was time for Isabel to go get changed into her Hogwarts robes.

"I'll see you later though," she promised, grinning at them both.

Iz? It seemed Harry had finally woken up.

Yes?

Where are you?

I went to help some students look for a toad. I'm on my way back now, though. Have you changed into your robes yet?

No. Fred and George have just woke us up and told us to get changed.

Well. Hurry up then.

It was freezing when they got off the train. Isabel shivered and pulled her robes closer.

"First years over that way," George told Isabel, giving her a friendly nudge. "See you guys at the feast!" Isabel, Ron and Harry shoved their way through the milling students in the direction George had pointed, and finally found Hagrid, holding a lantern and bellowing.

"Firs' years, to me! Firs' years, this way! Over here! Hello, you two! Righ', tha''s the forty of yeh. Come on, then." The first years clumped into little groups as they followed Hagrid down a steep path, finally stopping at a giant lake. Across the lake, and reflected in it, was a castle, lights sparkling from the towers.

"Welcome to Hogwarts," Hagrid said importantly. "Righ', four to a boat, hop in, hop in."

In the mass of students pressing forward, Harry and Ron ended up in a boat with two girls who were clearly yet another pair of twins, introducing themselves as Padma and Parvati, before, aside from a double take when Harry introduced himself, ignoring the boys the rest of the way.

Isabel ended up in a boat with three boys, two quite large and one rather smaller in comparison. He was pale and blonde and squinty looking.

"Hi!" said Isabel, and smiled at them brightly. "I'm Isabel. What are your names?"

"It's Isabel Potter, I presume? Draco Malfoy. Pleased to make your acquaintance," the blonde boy announced, looking thrilled and smug simultaneously. "This is Crabbe, and this is Goyle." Isabel feared she'd never tell apart Crabbe and Goyle, but she nodded all the same.

"What house do you want to be in?" Draco asked her. "I'm going to be in Slytherin. All Malfoys go to Slytherin." Isabel eyed him warily, remembering how Hagrid had described the houses.

"Do they let you pick which house you want to be in?" Isabel asked doubtfully, as their boats entered a cave on the cliff below the castle.

"No, that's what the feast tonight is for" Draco said scornfully. "How did you not know that?"

"I was raised by Muggles," Isabel told him. "I don't know much about Hogwarts."

"I can teach you," offered Draco.

Isabel was spared from replying as their boats reached the shore of the cave and stopped. An imposing witch in green robes stepped forward, behind her a long corridor.

"Welcome to Hogwarts. My name is Professor McGonagall. Please follow me."

Iz. You okay?

Yep, why?

That's the guy who was rude to Hagrid in Madam Malkin's.

He doesn't seem very nice. But no point in making enemies yet.

True.

The first years followed Professor McGonagall down the corridor, up three flights of stairs, and into large hall, where she stopped to face them.

"Through those doors is the Great Hall, where you will be sorted into houses before the Welcoming Feast. The start-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 something 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 witches and wizards. While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn your house points, while any rulebreaking 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. Most of you will probably have some idea which house you want to be in, however, your house does not determine your future. Thus, if you are in a house that you did not want to be in, do not fret. I also encourage you not to judge people by their houses, but to let the character, not the house, form your opinions of others."

"The Sorting Ceremony will take place in a few minutes in front of the rest of the school. I suggest you all smarten yourselves up as much as you can while you are waiting."

Her eyes lingered for a moment on Neville's cloak, which was fastened under his left ear, and on Ron's smudged nose. Harry nervously tried to flatten his hair.

Iz-my hair okay?

It's not going to get any better, Harry.

"I shall return when we are ready for you," said Professor McGonagall. "Please wait quietly."

She left the chamber, and nervous chattering broke out among the first years. Draco Malfoy looked petrified, and he was frantically whispering to Crabbe and Goyle. Even the unflappable Hermione Granger looked anxious.

Harry swallowed.

"How exactly do they sort us into houses?" he asked Ron.

"Some sort of test, I think. Fred said it hurts a lot, but I think he was joking."

Isabel slipped over towards Ron and Harry.

"Surely they won't hurt us," she said uncertainly.

The susurrus fell away as McGonagall returned and led them into the Great Hall.

The twins moved closer together as they walked. The Great Hall was a strange and splendid place. It was lit by thousands and thousands of candles that were floating in midair over four long tables, where the rest of the students were sitting. At the top of the hall was another long table where the teachers were sitting. Professor McGonagall led the first years up here, so that they came to a halt in a line facing the other students, with the teachers behind them. The hundreds of faces staring at them looked like pale lanterns in the flickering candlelight.

Harry, look up!

Harry looked upward and saw a velvety black ceiling dotted with stars. Hermione saw him and whispered, "It's bewitched to look like the sky outside." Harry smiled at her, speechless. It was hard to believe there was a ceiling there at all, and that the Great Hall didn't simply open on to the heavens.

Isabel had seen something else - a four-legged stool in front of the first years. On top of the stool was put a pointed wizard's hat, patched and frayed and extremely dirty. Aunt Petunia wouldn't have let it in the house.

Maybe we have to try and get a rabbit out of it, Isabel said, nodding to the hat.

Oh god, I hope not, I can't remember anything about rabbits at all.

The hat twitched. A rip near the brim opened wide like a mouth - and the hat began to sing:

"Oh, you may not think I'm pretty,

But don't judge on what you see,

I'll eat myself if you can find

A smarter hat than me.

You can keep your bowlers black,

Your top hats sleek and tall,

For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat

And I can cap them all.

There's nothing hidden in your head

The Sorting Hat can't see,

So try me on and I will tell you

Where you ought to be.

You might belong in Gryffindor,

Where dwell the brave at heart,

Their daring, nerve, and chivalry Set Gryffindors apart;

You might belong in Hufflepuff,

Where they are just and loyal,

Those patient Hufflepuffis are true And unafraid of toil;

Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,

if you've a ready mind,

Where those of wit and learning,

Will always find their kind;

Or perhaps in Slytherin

You'll make your real friends,

Those cunning folk use any means

To achieve their ends.

So put me on! Don't be afraid!

And don't get in a flap!

You're in safe hands (though I have none)

For I'm a Thinking Cap!"

The whole hall burst into applause as the hat finished its song. It bowed to each of the four tables and then became quite still again.

"So we've just got to try on the hat!" Ron whispered to Harry. "I'll kill Fred, he was going on about wrestling a troll."

Professor McGonagall now stepped forward holding a long roll of parchment.

"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 blonde pigtails stumbled forward, put on the hat, which fell right down over her eyes, and sat.

"HUFFLEPUFF!" shouted the hat.

The table on the right cheered and clapped as Hannah went to sit down at the Hufflepuff table.

"Bones, Susan!"

"HUFFLEPUFF!" shouted the hat again, and Susan scuttled off to sit next to Hannah.

"Boot, Terry!"

"RAVENCLAW!"

The table second from the left clapped this time; several Ravenclaws stood up to shake hands with Terry as he joined them.

" Brocklehurst, Mandy" went to Ravenclaw too, but "Brown, Lavender" became the first new Gryffindor, and the table on the far left exploded with cheers; Fred and George standing and catcalling.

"Bulstrode, Millicent" then became a Slytherin. "Finch-Fletchley, Justin!"

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

Sometimes, Harry noticed, the hat shouted out the house at once, but at others it took a little while to decide. "Finnigan, Seamus," the sandy-haired boy next to Harry in the line, sat on the stool for almost a whole minute before the hat declared him a Gryffindor.

"Granger, Hermione!" Hermione stepped forward, face composed once more, and sat demurely on the stool.

"GRYFFINDOR!" shouted the hat. Isabel gave Hermione a thumbs up as she made for the Gryffindor table.

When Neville was called, he fell over on his way to the stool. Isabel winced. The hat took a long time to decide with Neville. When it finally shouted, "GRYFFINDOR," Neville ran off still wearing it, and had to jog back amid gales of laughter to give it to "MacDougal, Morag."

Malfoy swaggered forward when his name was called and got his wish at once: the hat had barely touched his head when it screamed, "SLYTHERIN!"

Malfoy went to join his friends Crabbe and Goyle, looking pleased with himself.

There weren't many people left now. "Moon" "Nott" "Parkinson" then a pair of twin girls, "Patil" and "Patil" then "Perks, Sally-Anne" and then, at last - "Potter, Harry!"

Go Harry!

Uh, thanks?

As Harry stepped forward, whispers suddenly broke out like little hissing fires all over the hall.

"Potter, did she say?"

The Harry Potter?"

The last thing Harry saw before the hat dropped over his eyes was the hall full of people craning to get a good look at him. Next second he was looking at the black inside of the hat. He waited.

"Hmm," said a small voice in his ear. "Difficult. Very difficult. Plenty of courage, I see. Not a bad mind either. There's talent, A my goodness, yes - and a nice thirst to prove yourself, now that's interesting... So where shall I put you?"

"Gryffindor?" thought Harry hopefully.

"Are you sure? You're fiercely loyal, but I could put you in Slytherin as well. You could be great, you know, it's all here in your head, and Slytherin will help you on the way to greatness, no doubt about that - no? Well, if you're sure - better be GRYFFINDOR!"

Are you pleased?

Yeah. Will you go to Gryffindor as well?

Hopefully.

"Potter, Isabel!"

Isabel walked forward, and sat down.

"Twins! I get a lot of twins, of course. You want to be in the same house, I see. That doesn't happen very often, you'd be surprised. But, hmm, you'd be good in Slytherin, too, but there's strong kindness in you, no doubt about that – though perhaps not the proper intellectual curiosity for a Ravenclaw. No, you'll do nicely in GRYFFINDOR!"

"Thanks!"

Isabel removed the hat and ran to sit by Hermione, opposite Harry. The twins grinned at each other.

Finally it was Ron's turn. He was pale green by now. Harry crossed his fingers under the table and a second later the hat had shouted, "GRYFFINDOR!" Ron collapsed on the seat next to Harry, letting out his breathe in an exhale. Fred and George beamed at him from down the table, and Percy gave him an approving nod as "Zabini, Blaise," was made a Slytherin. Professor McGonagall rolled up her scroll and took the Sorting Hat away.

The Hall was silent. Harry glanced up at the staff table. At the end nearest him sat Hagrid, who caught his eye and gave him the thumbs up. Harry grinned back. And there, in the center of the High Table, in a large gold chair, sat Albus Dumbledore. Harry recognized him at once from the card he'd gotten out of the Chocolate Frog on the train. Harry spotted Professor Quirell, too, the nervous young man from the Leaky Cauldron. He was looking very peculiar in a large purple turban.

Albus Dumbledore had gotten to his feet. He was beaming at the students, his arms opened wide, as if nothing could have pleased him more than to see them all there.

"Welcome," he said. "Welcome to a new year at Hogwarts! Before we begin our banquet, I would like to say a few words. And here they are: Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak!

"Thank you!" He sat back down. Everybody clapped and cheered. Harry caught Isabel's eye and they grimaced at each other.

"Is he - a bit mad?" Ron asked Percy uncertainly.

"Mad?" said Percy airily. "He's a genius! Best wizard in the world! But he is a bit mad, yes. Potatoes?"

The dishes in front of the twins were now piled with food. They had never seen so many things to eat on one table: roast beef, roast chicken, pork chops and lamb chops, sausages, bacon and steak, boiled potatoes, roast potatoes, fries, Yorkshire pudding, peas, carrots, gravy, ketchup, and, for some strange reason, peppermint humbugs.

The Dursleys had never exactly starved the twins, but they'd never been allowed to eat as much as they wanted, and Aunt Petunia always kept the best of everything for Dudley.

Harry piled his plate with a bit of everything except the peppermints and began to eat. It was all delicious. Isabel winced at the excess, but she too was eating, in between chatting to Hermione and Neville again.

When everyone had eaten as much as they could, the remains of the food faded from the plates, leaving them sparkling clean as before. A moment later the desserts appeared. Blocks of ice cream in every flavor you could think of, apple pies, treacle tarts, chocolate eclairs and jam doughnuts, trifle, strawberries, Jell-O, rice pudding - "

Percy Weasley began to talk to Neville, Hermione and Isabel about lessons ("I'm particularly interested in Transfiguration, it's supposed to be very difficult, but"; "You'll be starting small, just matches into needles and that sort of thing - ").

Harry, who was starting to feel warm and sleepy, looked up at the High Table again. Hagrid was drinking deeply from his goblet. Professor McGonagall was talking to Professor Dumbledore. Professor Quirrell, in his absurd turban, was talking to a teacher with greasy black hair, a hooked nose, and sallow skin.

"Who's that teacher talking to Professor Quirrell?" he asked Percy.

"Oh, you know Quirrell already, do you? No wonder he's looking so nervous, that's Professor Snape. He teaches Potions, but he doesn't want to - everyone knows he's after Quirrell's job. Knows an awful lot about the Dark Arts, Snape." Harry shivered.

At last, the desserts too disappeared, and Professor Dumbledore got to his feet again. The hall fell silent.

"Ahern - just a few more words now that we are all fed and watered. I have a few start-of-term notices to give you.

"First years should note that the forest on the grounds is forbidden to all pupils. And a few of our older students would do well to remember that as well."

Dumbledore's twinkling eyes flashed in the direction of the Weasley twins.

"I have also been asked by Mr. Filch, the caretaker, to remind you all that no magic should be used between classes in the corridors. And finally, I must tell you that this year, the third-floor corridor on the right-hand side is out of bounds to everyone who does not wish to die a very painful death."

"He's not serious?" Isabel muttered to Percy.

"Must be," said Percy, frowning at Dumbledore. "It's odd, because he usually gives us a reason why we're not allowed to go somewhere - the forest's full of dangerous beasts, everyone knows that. I do think he might have told us prefects, at least."

"And now, bedtime. First years, your prefects will guide you to your dorms. Off you trot!" Dumbledore beamed at the students and sat down.

The Gryffindor first years followed Percy and the female Gryffindor prefect – neither of the twins caught her name through the chattering crowds, out of the Great Hall, and up the marble staircase. After walking through countless halls, dragging himself up flights of stairs, and becoming completely and thoroughly lost, Harry was just wondering how much farther they had to go when they came to a sudden halt at the very end of a corridor, in front of a portrait of a very fat woman in a pink silk dress.

"Password?" she said. "Caput Draconis," said Percy, and the portrait swung forward to reveal a round hole in the wall. They all scrambled through it - Neville needed a leg up from Hermione and Isabel - and found themselves in the Gryffindor common room, a cozy, round room full of squashy armchairs.

Percy directed the girls through one door to their dormitory and the boys through another. At the top of a spiral staircase - they were obviously in one of the towers - they found their beds at last: five four-posters hung with deep red, velvet curtains. Their trunks had already been brought up. Too tired to talk much, they pulled on their pajamas and fell into bed.

" Great food, isn't it?" Ron muttered to Harry through the hangings. "Get off, Scabbers! He's chewing my sheets."

Goodnight, Iz, Harry said sleepily.

Goodnight, Harry, Isabel answered. She was in the bed next to Hermione's, who was busy setting an alarm for the next morning.

"Do you know when we have to get up tomorrow, Hermione?" she asked groggily.

"No," admitted Hermione, "but I want to shower tomorrow morning, and I like getting up early."

"Alright, then. Night, Hermione."

"Goodnight, Isabel."

Isabel rolled over, and went to sleep.