The Sorting Lupin
A/N A wild update appeared! Sorry guys... I know it's been a while since I've updated. I have good reason, though! I've had tests in EVERY STINKIN SUBJECT, to see my knowledge of each before the finals at the end of the year. I have been up until 4 AM studying names and dates and times and states and countries and wars and math and science and social studies and all that horribly boring stuff. The only one I really like is LA, but that's just because I like to read... Anyway, this chapter has been in my notebook for about a week now... I wrote it throughout the week, actually, and it's about... Drumroll please... Remus Lupin! He will worry about the two hyper, happy, laughing boys who ambushed his cabin, named Sirius and James! He will panic when they realize his name sounds like that wolf constellation. He will ride a boat with Severus Snape, and get sorted in front of hundreds! Well... Not hundreds... But still! Pretty exciting, right? I hope so, my hand hurts from writing it! Anyway... Here goes!
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Remus Lupin was not normal, by any stretch of the imagination. His imagination, at least. 11 years old, he had been turning into a werewolf monthly for four years, ever since that horrible bite when he had been 7.
He had thought, initially, that he would not be aloud to go to Hogwarts, due to his condition, yet here he was, staring out of the cabin window at the fleeting countryside, on his way to the School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
He was alone in the cabin. People had asked, of course, to sit with him in the cabin. He had refused every time, lying about waiting on a friend. Most had been rude, likely Slytherins, but some, like that girl with the vibrant orange hair, had been really nice about it. She had even apologized for bothering him, and wished him luck on his Sorting. Her name had been Lily Evans.
Not everyone had been that nice, though. That Slytherin prefect, Lucius Malfoy, had threatened points and ranted about choosing the right crowd of friends. Remus had been horrified, and decided right on the spot that, if he was Slytherin, he would leave. He wanted Ravenclaw. He loved learning.
Those encounters, though, had been hours ago. The sky had gradually turned crimson, then royal blue, and finally dark black, dotted with glowing stars. Watching the sky had been fun for a bit, but now Remus was bored. All he had brough for entertainment was a novel, only 600 something pages long, and he had finished half in the car drive to Kings Cross. He finished the rest in an hour. He wished that he had brought more books... Staring out the window wasn't that much fun.
Just as he was wishing for some human company, perhaps Lily Evans, he got it. The sliding door slammed open and then closed, as two boys rushed in, panting loudly and laughing.
They were both first years, by the look of it. The first one, who was wearing a Gryffindor bandanna, had really unruly black hair, sticking up in the back and hanging in his brown eyes, which were covered up by a pair of round wire-frame glasses. He was grinning evilly.
The other had long black hair, straiter that the others, grinning devilishly. He took up the post of look out, flicking some hair out of his eyes.
"Sorry 'bout that... Names James! James Potter." The first one said, holding out a hand. The other one perked up.
"I'm Sirius Black" He yelled, still grinning. He gave Remus a high five.
Remus froze, unsure of what to do. Here were two boys, his age, being nice to him. Here he was, freezing up and acting like a jerk. Should he shake his hand?
"Come on, don't leave Jamesie hangin'" Sirius laughed. His laugh oddly sounded like a dog barking. Remus leaned forward, and grasped his hand nervously. James grinned at him and plopped down on the couch. Sirius remained at the door, looking for someone, or something.
"So, what house are you looking to be in?" He thrust his chest out proudly. "I'm gonna be in Gryffindor, where dwell the brave at heart!" He proudly proclaimed. "My whole family's been in there." He grinned happily.
"Families don't determine houses though." Sirius said, suddenly looking downcast. "Otherwise I'd be in Slytherin." At James and Remus' shocked expressions, he quickly continued. "But I don't want to be! I wanna be a Gryffindor, do some good in the world! I'd be a prat if I wanted to be in Slytherin!" Sirius cried. James grinned again.
"I knew I liked you..." He then turned his attention on Remus, who'd been hiding in the corner. "What 'bout you?"
"R-ravenclaw..." He nervously mumbled. Sirius scoffed.
"Ravenclaw? Bunch of know it alls, Ravenclaws are. Gryffindor's where all the fun's at." Sirius laughed.
"B-but I like to learn..." Remus muttered, but trailed off at the looks James and Sirius were giving him.
"Shame... I thought I liked you too." James said. He let out a laugh at the way Remus began spluttering on about how he could like Gryffindor too and how he was brave and all that. James grinned.
"I'm just yanking your wand, mate. Don't worry 'bout it!" James laughed. Remus sighed.
"What's your name, anyways?" Sirius asked. Remus gasped. He had forgotten to tell them his name? Oh no...
"Remus... Remus Lupin." James perked up.
"Like the wolf constellation?" He asked. Remus jumped... He had never noticed that!
"No!" He yelled. James' eyes widened, and he backed up slightly. "Sorry... I mean, yeah, it is, but I'm not named after it, I don't think..." He had to remember to ask Mum about that later...
The door slid open, stopping James from releasing his laughter at Remus' nervousness, and in stepped, to him, a vision of loveliness greater than any constellation... Lily Evans.
"We're almost there... Weren't you waiting for a friend in that seat?" She asked Remus, indicating the seat James and Sirius were sitting in, the former blushing, with literal hearts in his eyes. He perked up at her words.
"He was waiting for us, babe." James interjected before Remus could say anything, putting on a smooth guy demeanor. Lily's eyes narrowed, and she said, with as much venom in her words as humanely possible,
"DON'T call me babe, you... You toerag!" She said, disgusted. James backed up, fell into the seat, and gasped. Sirius broke out in laughter, and even Remus laughed at the sight. The once proud boy now sat there, looking up at this girl he'd never met, scared as heck. He reddened to the color of a beet.
"I-i'm not scared! I... Saw a bug..." He muttered, realizing how ridiculous he must sound. Lily scoffed.
"Wouldn't expect anything else from a troglodyte like yourself." She said. "We're going to be at Hogwarts soon, I've just been to see the conductor. You'd better get changed." And with that, she left, glaring at James the whole time.
Remus stood up and dug his robes out of his battered old trunk, just as the engine began to slow. Steam poured from under the train, fogging up the windows and making it impossible to see Hogsmeade station outside.
Kids, young nervous ones and tall gangly acne covered ones began to mill around in the corridor.
"Sirius jumped up as though burned. "That's our cue! See ya in Gryffindor, wolf-boy!" At Remus' spluttering, he added, "Or Ravenclaw... It's not THAT bad..." Sirius sighed and followed James out of the compartment.
Remus stood up, trying to catch up to them, as they were the only kids he knew at this moment, but they were already lost in the crowd. Where did he go now?
"Firs' years over here! Firs' years by me!" A gruff voice called out. Remus turned around to find a giant standing, no, towering over the terrified first years, holding a lantern and bellowing.
Once he was sure everyone was there, the giant man led the group of first years around a corner.
Just as he was wondering why they couldn't just use the warm carriages, he turned another corner and saw it. A collective ooooo went through the crowd.
It was huge, giant, incredible. A stone castle lay silhouetted against the night sky, windows glinting invitingly. A smell of food was wafting through, into the night sky, and it made Remus' stomach growl with hunger.
The giant led the kids to a bunch of boats, loudly proclaiming that they could only hold four people. Remus scrambled into one, just wanting to get to the food. He heard a gasp behind him, and James and Sirius climbed in. One last kid, a sallow, sunken looking kid with a curtain of black hair looked around desperately for an empty boat, but, upon finding none, climbed in reluctantly with them.
"Hello! I'm James, James Potter." James said, extending a hand. The boy took it, shaking it lightly.
"I'm Severus Snape." He said. His mind seemed to be elsewhere, and he kept glancing at the boat behind him, in which Lily Evans and a few other girls were chattering happily. Oh no, did he...?
"I'm Sirius!" Sirius laughed, wringing the poor kids hand. James perked up once he realized what Snape was looking at.
"Oh, yeah, that Lily's really something, isn't she? She's hot!" James laughed. Snape began glaring. Oh man, he did...
"She's my friend." Snape said coldly. James smiled, not noticing or not caring about the frosty tone.
"Lucky! Mate, could you introduce me to her? She... Didn't really seem to like me." James asked, still staring at Lily. Snape's look got even colder.
"Good for her. You'll be in Gryffindor, I expect?" He drawled, glaring. Remus was surprised his frosty tone didn't freeze the lake solid.
"Yeah! What's wrong with that?" Sirius demanded. Snape sighed.
"Gryffindor's are all the same. Arrogant, annoying, and," He looked at Sirius, "Demanding." Snape then looked out at the castle, shutting out any angry splutters from Sirius or James.
Remus was about to try and make a comeback, trying to defend his new friends, but it was cut off by the boat banging against the dock. They climbed out, James purposely pushing Snape back into the boat.
The giant opened a door, and immediately the distant sounds of chatter was heard. Remus rushed inside, happy about the immediate warmth of the castle.
A stern, strict looking witch with black hair in a tight bun smiled at them. She marked something on a clipboard, and then led them inside.
"Thank you, Hagrid. I can take them from here." She said. Hagrid saluted and left out the back door.
"Welcome to Hogwarts. I am Minerva McGonnagal, the head of Gryffindor House. In a few moments you will be Sorted into one of the four Hogwarts houses. They are Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin. Not one house is greater than the others, and while you are in your house, you must set a standard. During the school year, you will earn points by doing good. Any rule breaking will result in lost points. The house with the most points at the end of the school year wins the house cup." She pointed to the double wooden doors behind her, from which the loud chatter was issuing. "Please follow me." And with that, she led them into the room.
For the second time that night, a collective gasp issued from the crowd of first years. The room was amazing. Four hourglasses stood in the corner, the house crests above them. Four tables stood in the middle of the room, each house's members wearing their houses colors. Lit candles floated magically in the air. A big table stood at the front of the room, the teachers lined up, and Dumbledore sitting at the head of the table, smiling pleasantly down at the students.
McGonnagal returned, carrying a stool and a scroll. She set the stool down on the raised platform where the teacher's table was, and sat a hat down on it. The hat twitched, and everyone went silent.
It ripped open completely, and began to sing. Remus was entranced by it, as it sang about the four houses and their founders, and what defined each one.
At the end, McGonnagal opened the scroll. "When I call your name, you will put on the hat and get sorted. Abbot, Jessica!" A small mousy blond girl stumbled up to the hat. She was declared Hufflepuff moments later.
The sorting passed quickly, each name coming faster and faster, until it was his turn. His stomach turned and flopped unpleasantly as he pushed past a girl with black hair to get to the hat. McGonnagal put it on his head, and it slipped over his eyes, blocking his view of the Great Hall and giving him a view of the stitching...
"Ah... A werewolf. Been a while since I've sorted one of those." A voice in his ear said. He jumped, tried to look around, but he seemed to have been magically entranced or something, because moving was getting harder and harder...
"Hmmm... You are smart, that is for sure. You would do well in Ravenclaw... But you are also very brave. Courage runs in your blood. Hmm... Better be... GRYFFINDOR!"
Cheers rang through the crowd as Remus took off the hat, the trance like enchantment gone. He ran to the table he would eat at every day, and was welcomed by an orange haired prefect. Sirius and James clapped him on the back, welcoming him to the house they had been sorted into as well. Snape glowered at him from Slytherin, but, quite honestly, he didn't care. He was sorted, he was welcomed as an equal, and he was about to eat more than he had in a lifetime. Nothing could ruin his happy mood right now!
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A/N And done! I finally finished it, after a whole lotta procrastination. Hope you enjoyed it! I sorta toyed around with James and Sirius meeting Snape, changed it. I also love the idea that James liked Lily from the get-go, but Lily loathed the very sight of him, but gradually began to like him back. It seems so romantic, sort of like Harry and Ginny. Now I'm gonna go update The Switch...
Read and Review!