It was drizzling out when Tom stepped off the train onto the ridiculously crowded platform in Hogsmeade. Amongst the hustle and bustle of the older students meeting up with other friends and housemates vying for the closest carriage so that they are out of the impending storm, Tom scans the crowd looking for where the other First Years are congregating. It didn't take him long. There was an older somewhat tall and lanky figure holding a lantern repeatedly calling out, "First Years! First Years, this way!" His hands were making a beckoning symbol to the mass of somewhat intrigued or scared looking 11-year-olds. Figuring that this was the way to go, Tom shuffled his way through the now thinning crowd towards the man with the light. It did cross his mind, though, that with this impending storm, to question why in the world the school would have the First Years all piled into boats to bring them up to the castle. To him, it lacked in common sense.
Finally getting through the crowd and making it to the assortments of small boats Tom spied one that had 3 other boys in it. Thinking that this would be his best bet, Tom climbed aboard and settled himself down across from two other boys, and remarkably, the same dark-haired; blue-eyed boy that he'd seen in Diagon Alley all those weeks ago. Not wanting to take part of the conversation the other three boys were already engaged in, Tom simply sat back and enjoyed the view as the boats magically pushed off from the dock and floated their way across the lake towards the castle.
Coming around a bend in the lake Tom looked up and had the physically hold back a gasp. Hogwarts was gigantic! Professor Dumbledore wasn't kidding when he implied that the school was grand. Within another five minutes, or so, the boats began to reach the dock and the tall, lengthy figure - whom Tom learned was the gamekeeper - beckoned the children out of the boats and up a pathway that lead to a large ornate oak door. He knocked on the door once. Twice. Then it opened up, revealing Dumbledore basked by the light of the hallway in which the door opened up to. Presumably into a part of the dungeons below the main floor of the castle. " - I've got the students from here." Tom heard Dumbledore respond to the gamekeeper. Tom shook himself out of his stupor. He couldn't keep letting himself get distracted by the new things around him or he'd never be on top of things.
"Welcome to Hogwarts, ladies and gentlemen. I am Professor Dumbledore, your Transfiguration Professor as well as Head of Gryffindor and Deputy Headmaster of Hogwarts," Dumbledore said congenially as he looked out over the mass of intrigued or scared First Years. "If you would follow me, we can make our way to the Great Hall where the other students are assembled for your sorting and then the beginning of term feast." At that, Dumbledore spun around with a flourish of ghastly decorated robes - Honestly, Purple with bright yellow fairies whizzing around and around?! Is he mad?, thought Tom.
The dungeon corridor that the students were lead down was slightly eery and damp. To be honest, to Tom, it was comforting. Something that was similar to how he grew up in a place that shouldn't have any similarities to the horrendous orphanage he has spent the last eleven and a half years at. Shaking thoughts of the orphanage out of his mind, Tom squared his shoulders and continued in line with the other students towards the Great Hall behind Dumbledore. Before long, they were lead into a large square room and told to wait a few more minutes before Dumbledore excused himself through a side door that the students initially dismissed. That is when the chattering of the enmassed group of students began in fervor.
"What do you think we have to do to get sorted?" One excited, yet slightly nervous looking brunette haired girl said to those closest to her.
"I was told that we have to levitate a platter from one table to the next!" Another over-anxious, but blonde haired, girl responded.
"Don't be stupid, Cornfoot! How in the bloody hell are we to be able to do that before our first class?" Sneered one of the boys that accompanied Tom and Orion Black in the boat to the castle.
Before an argument can break out, Dumbledore appeared from the side door once more. "We are ready for you now, this way please," beckoned Dumbledore.
Once inside the Hall Tom took a second to take everything in. The room held five large tables, Four long ones that ran the length of the hall with a final one on a raised dais perpendicular to the others. Glancing upwards, Tom noticed that the ceiling was more than just a stone ceiling as he was initially expecting. Tom didn't know why he expected something so plain in a magical school. It was one of the most interesting feats of magic he had yet to see. The ceiling was the exact replica of the night sky outside of the school - Storm clouds and bright moon included.
Tearing his eyes from the ceiling, Tom and the other students noticed that in the center of the dais, directly in front of the head table, rested a three-legged wooden stool, where a mangy old hat resided. Suddenly, the stitch in the center of the hat opened wide, and it began to sing a song. Tom didn't pay much attention to the words coming out of the previously inanimate hat, and soon enough it had ended and the seated students clapped politely and turned their attention to the stool.
"When I call your name, you will step forward and take a seat on this here stool, and I will place the sorting hat upon your head," stated Dumbledore once the clapping had subsided.
Tom was glancing around the room, unobtrusively, but was broken out of his stupor when Dumbledore called "Black, Orion." This caused Tom to swivel his attention back to the dais to get a good look at the boy. There's something familiar about this boy….thought Tom….Oh! That's right, i saw him during one of my trips to Diagon Alley with his Father.
At that, the dark-haired, blue-eyed boy swaggered out of the group of students and took his place upon the stool. As soon as the hat sat upon his head it cried "Better be, Slytherin!" and the table on Tom's far right broke up in polite applause. This continued for quite some time, although Tom learned growing up to never completely ignore what was going on around him he had also learned to be able to still follow what was going on around him even if he wasn't putting all of his attention towards that. Names, like Cornfoot, Flint, Goyle, Lestrange, Lovegood, Mulciber, Nott filtered in one ear and out the other while Tom stood there waiting his turn.
Although he appeared to be dazing about the great hall, one could tell that he was taking it all in with a careful eye. Most first years were astounded by the fact that there was a talking hat that which sorted the students and that the ceiling of the great hall mimicked the actual night sky directly outside Hogwarts. Tom, however, was watching the other students and staff members. He was taking anything and everything in, storing it away for future use.
Bringing his attention back to the dais Tom noticed that Professor Dumbledore had just called "Nott, Caractacus" and a tall, thin boy with dark brown hair strutted up to the dais and sat upon the little three-legged wooden stool before Dumbledore placed the hat upon his head. He, of course, was sorted into Slytherin. Then again, Tom recalled on the train ride earlier in the day Nott had mentioned that most of his family had been sorted into either Slytherin or Ravenclaw for as long as they can remember.
"Riddle, Tom" Dumbledore finally called. Tom squared his shoulders and walked with an heir of sophistication only some of his fellow first years were able to exude. Tom sat down on the stool and allowed Dumbledore the place the hat upon his head. It was a lot larger than Tom actually realized. Although he was paying attention to everything in the Great Hall during the other sortings, he didn't pay a lot of attention to what each of his new classmates looked like once the hat was placed upon their heads. It was quite large, the brim of it rested upon the bridge of his nose, completely blocking his eyes from the rest of the Hall.
"Hmmmm Interesting. Very Interesting." Thought the Sorting Hat
"Interesting? What's interesting?" Thought Tom. "Wait a second, are you actually speaking to me inside my head? Can the others hear this?"
".It's interesting to see a true Slytherin in here…." Replied the Sorting Hat. "You and I can converse directly through the link that opens once I am placed upon somebody's head. It's a sort of mind speech. Nobody else can hear what we are saying. The only time I ever voice my thoughts aloud when upon one's head is when I sort them. Besides that, it's just myself and the sortee."
"What do you mean by a true Slytherin?" Inquired Tom.
"You caught that, did you?" Chuckled the Sorting Hat.
"Of course I caught that, you bloody hat." Thought Tom "What did you mean, a true Slytherin?"
"I can read everything that is in your head, regardless of if you're aware of it or not," stated the Sorting Hat. "In fact, I can tell a great deal of interesting things about you. Do you understand, Mr. Riddle?
"Yes, Sorting Hat. I understand." Replied Tom. "Well, I feel like I've been on this stool for quite some time. I don't wish to draw attention to myself just quite yet. Perhaps we can get on with it?"
"Too right you are, Mr. Riddle." The Sorting Hat replied. "Although, it has only been 2 minutes since you sat upon that stool. Nevertheless…."
"Better be SLYTHERIN!" Sorting Hat shouted out loud for the entire hall to hear. Before Dumbledore could remove the hat from Tom's head and shuffle him towards the Slytherin table the sorting hat said one last thing in Tom's mind "Be careful with whom you trust."
Realizing that the connection had been cut off, Tom stepped down from the stool and thereby the dais. Remembering that he was sorted into Slytherin House he moved to the right and headed to the long table where Black and Nott were waiting for him.
"Bloody Hell, Riddle." Stated an exacerbated Orion Black "What took so long for you to be sorted?"
Tom smirked across the table at Orion and winked "Wouldn't you like to know, Black?" He then raised his goblet to the other boy.
"Touche, Riddle. Touche." Orion replied mimicking the other boy.
Before long the sorting was complete, and Headmaster Dippet stood behind the head table. "Welcome first years, and welcome back everybody else! I hope your holiday was enjoyable, without further ado, Let the feast commence!" As the Headmaster waved his arms towards the hall and away from himself the tables started to fill with different plates and bowls of food. It was the most magical thing Tom had ever seen. He had to hold himself back from openly gaping at not only such a magical display but, at also the amount of food that was spread out before him. Tom had never seen so much food before at one time.
His stomach grumbled as the smells wafted into his face from all of the plates being served from. Realizing he would look absurd if he didn't start serving himself, Tom grabbed a steaming, buttery roll from the plate before him and moved on to a large platter filled with Shepard's Pie. Serving himself a generous helping, Tom dug in. It was the most delicious Shepard's Pie he'd ever had in his life. Not really knowing any of the other students and most of them eating and catching up with their friends Tom just continued eating and taking in the atmosphere at the Slytherin table and compared it to the others.
Whereas Slytherin and Ravenclaw were more subdued - having polite conversation while eating at a more sedate pace - the Hufflepuff and obviously Gryffindor tables didn't necessarily seem to be following the same example. Obviously there was a bigger difference to the houses then Tom had initially thought. Then again, he should've figured that much when one compared the reactions to the newly sorted first years. Whereas Slytherin and Ravenclaw had polite head nods and clapping, Hufflepuff and Gryffindor were much more boisterous in their excitement of new Housemates.
Taking all of this in, Tom is glad that he is the heir of his house. He isn't too sure how he could survive in such a highly boisterous crowd for seven long years. Done pursuing the other house tables Tom's attention is brought to the Head Table. He can see Professor Dippet and Professor Dumbledore deep in conversation. That shouldn't be surprising, thought Tom, I mean, it's the first meal of term, of course the Headmaster and Deputy Headmaster have things to talk about. However, for some odd reason, Tom felt as if he should keep an eye out for Professor Dumbledore. He's got an uneasy feeling about the man.
"So, Riddle. I don't recognize that name, nor you. Are you a Half-blood?" Orion Black randomly asks once Tom brings his complete attention back to the Slytherin table. "I know all of the Purebloods'. My family is pretty old as is Avery's, Mulciber's and Lestrange's." At this, all the students within earshot slowed down their conversations and eating slightly turning awaiting Tom's response.
Wiping his mouth on his napkin, Tom looked up to answer Orion. "I'm honestly unsure if I'm a Pureblood or Half-blood. However, owing that I'm a parseltongue, I can guarantee that I'm at least a Half-Blood. I never knew my parents, so as of right now, I'm unsure." Seeing the dawning understanding in his tablemates eyes, Tom continues "Would it matter if I were a Half-blood?"
"No, it wouldn't matter. However, you understand why we must be separated from the Muggles," Orion parroted back to Tom, he practically spat the word 'muggle' as if it were a disgusting thing he had stepped on.
Now, although Tom didn't truly understand the term muggle, he did understand the inflection that it was pertaining to those without magic- like, Mrs. Cole and the kids at the orphanage. Although, most of them he couldn't give a damn about, considering the wonderful hospitality they'd shown him for a majority of his life…..Tom remembered learning about the witch hunts of yesteryear. If simply having these gifts made the muggles so paranoid that there were mass killings at one point, who can blame the Wizarding World being so insulated and wanting nothing to do with them.
"Yes. I can definitely understand that." Tom responded. Noticing that the rest of the surrounding students decided to go back to their previous conversations and meals, Tom did the same, contemplating everything that was both said and unsaid during the evening meal. But, one this was for certain, Tom was definitely in the right place.
"Once again, I'd just like to Welcome our First Years to Hogwarts and tell the rest of you Welcome Back!" Professor Dippet Stated jovially from the dais. "Now, I know that today was a long day, so I won't keep you from your rooms. Have a good night, tomorrow we will be passing out the years schedules. Since it's a Friday we will hold off on classes until Monday morning; I always found it's easier to start the year off at the beginning of the week. That is all." At that, Professor Dippet waved his arms outwards again, and the double doors to the Great Hall opened wide showing the entrance hall and 10 feet tall glass tubes, set up to record house points, in all it's glory.
"First Year's, Line up!" A Fifth year Prefect commanded from the end of the table. Noticing that as the rest of the school simply bunched together and forced their way through the double doors exiting the Great Hall, Slytherin house demanded a bit more poise. The Prefects made sure that each of the first years were standing in rows of two in front of the rest of the house. Tom looked back at what the rest of the house was doing, noticing that they themselves were lining up starting with the other first years and ending with the seventh years bringing up the back.
Following the Prefect and the rest of his year mates, Tom took stock of all that they were passing on their way to the Slytherin Dormitories. Unbeknownst to Tom, Albus Dumbledore stood at the head table watching the Slytherins file out keeping a particularly wary eye on a young Mr. Riddle….
Although a lot of people would feel odd sleeping in a dormitory that resided in the depths of the school dungeons, Tom felt that it was somewhat relaxing. The cool, yellowish-green glow that permeated the common room, especially near the large windows underneath the stairwells that lead to the boys and girls dormitories. When one enters the common room, it opens up to a large circular room. After entering the passageway, ten stone steps lead down into the common room proper. On the right hand side, there is a door - "This here door leads to Professor Slughorn's, our Head of House, office and thereby his quarters." The male Seventh year Prefect began. "If anybody needs to speak with him and none of the upper years are available, all one needs to do is knock on this door here. It's charmed to let him know that somebody within Slytherin needs to speak with him, and he will come through it. It's a quicker passage than going down the corridor and knocking on his office door down by the Potions classroom. Do not abuse this to satiate your childish whims, I assure you, the consequences will not be pleasant." Nodding right alongside her counterpart, the Seventh year female Prefect continued on this stream.
"This is Slytherin house. We value cunning, ambition, resourcefulness, cleverness and self-preservation." She continued. "But, don't forget fraternity. We are each other's second families whilst studying here. Any disagreements or discord between house members will be sorted out here, in house. We want to show a united front to the rest of the school, and this is the best way to achieve that."
As the Prefects were concluding their speech to the first years, because, let's face it, the other years already know what's what in Slytherin, a large squat rotund man came in through the side door into the common room and stood standing behind the prefects waiting for them to commence their speech. The first years had their attention solely on the Prefects, whereas the upper years were quietly conversing amongst themselves before anybody even noticed Slughorn was there. "Ahem!" Coughed Professor Slughorn. Making a majority of the house flinch or jump slightly depending on their distance to the rotund Professor.
"Good Evening and welcome to Slytherin House. I am Professor Slughorn, your head of house. I can see that my prefects have got you well in hand." Began Professor Slughorn "I simply wished to introduce myself and get a feel for this years first years. If there's anything the Prefects didn't make clear, please, know that you are welcome to search me out. If there are no questions, it's been a long day; I'm sure, so let's disperse and head off to bed!" Slughorn concluded with a jovial clap of his hands and a quick turn on his heels to address the Prefects in quiet.
Tom knew a dismissal when he saw one, so at Slughorn's'; Tom turned and calmly strutted up the stairwell to the first door on the right marked "First Years". Opening the door, he saw that the room had six four-poster-canopy beds, each with their own accompanying nightstand and wardrobe on either side of the bed. Walking further into the room Tom found his bed, noticeable from the others due to his trunk resting at the foot of it. Standing closer to the beds Tom noticed that each bed had durable but moveable Dark Green drapery with silver trim. The posts holding the canopy up had intricately carved snakes winding 'round and 'round from top to bottom. This intrigued Tom greatly. Realizing that he hadn't spoken to Saroya for the majority of the day, Tom decides to get ready for bed and get comfortable to speak to her about his first day in Hogwarts and what he's learned so far from the Sorting Hat and his Housemates.
"Say, you guys?" Queried Tom. "It's been a long day, I'm going to turn in early."
"That's a good idea, Riddle," Orion replied. "Goodnight, guys. We'll talk more in the morning." At that, Orion opened his trunk, grabbed his toiletries and headed for the door Tom had just noticed at the other end of the dorm. Realizing it was the bathroom, Tom went through his trunk and did the same.
After returning back to the dorm, Tom placed his toiletries back in his trunk, climbed upon his bed, shut his drapes closed and finally relaxed.
*Sssaroya, how'd you fair with the trip today?* Hissed Tom once he was safely ensconced within his curtains on his bed.
*Quiet fine, young sssspeaker.* Saroya hissed back *However, it did get quite cold while we crossssssed that large body of water.*
*Are you alright now? You're not too cold, are you Sssaroya?* Tom asked in an almost panicked tone. He couldn't believe he'd gone most of the day without speaking, let alone even thinking about Saroya. What sort of horrible friend am I? Thought Tom.
*Calm yoursssself, young sssspeaker* Soother Saroya. *I can taste your anxiety and ssssadnesssss. I am fine. You were excited, it'ssss nothing to work yourself up over.*
After a few moments of silence, Saroya decided to placate Tom. *I am fine, young sssspeaker. I can sssmell food all around us. They're both inssside and outssside these very wallssss. Perhaps I should go insssearch for food and exxxxplore our new home while you get ssssome ressst*
*You are, of courssse, right, Ssssaroya.* Tom hissed in an almost petulant fashion. *Be careful and be back before the ssssstudents rissse in the morning.*
*Have I ever not been, young sssspeaker?* Hissed Saroya. *Resssst. I'll return before you know it.*
At that, Tom started to drift off to sleep. Saroya flicked her tongue out towards her young speaker tasting his emotions tempering down and calming into a restful sleep before she slithered out from behind his curtains in search for food.