"Is it true?" he said. "They're saying all down the train that Mimosa Potter's in this compartment."
"Can I help you?" she said eyeing his guards. Both of them were thickset and looked extremely mean.
"Oh, this is Crabbe and this is Goyle," said the pale boy carelessly, noticing where Mim was looking. "And my name's Malfoy, Draco Malfoy."
Ron gave a slight cough, which might have been hiding a snigger. Draco Malfoy looked at him.
"Think my name's funny, do you? No need to ask who you are. My father told me all the Weasleys have red hair, freckles, and more children than they can afford."
Mim scowled.
"I think you should apologise." She said darkly. Draco Malfoy snorted.
"You're joking. Apologise to a Weasley! You'll soon find out some wizarding families are much better than others, Potter. You don't want to go making friends with the wrong sort. I can help you there." He held out his hand to shake Mim's, but Mim didn't take it.
"Like I said," she said coolly. "You should apologise. Not everyone is rich, and has Mummy and Daddy be able to buy the newest things."
Draco Malfoy didn't go red, but a pink tinge appeared in his pale cheeks.
"I'd be careful if I were you, Potter," he said slowly. "Unless you're a bit politer you'll go the same way as your parents. They didn't know what was good for them, either. You hang around with riffraff like the Weasleys, it'll rub off on you."
Both Mim and Ron stood up.
"Say that again," Ron said, his face as red as his hair.
"Oh, you're going to fight us, are you?" Malfoy sneered.
"Still not hearing that apology." She said, she eyed the two of them, knowing they wouldn't know what hit them if they tried anything.
"But we don't feel like leaving, do we, boys? We've eaten all our food and you still seem to have some."
Goyle reached toward the snacks next to Ron –Ron leapt forward, but Mim was faster, she jumped in front of her new friend. She put her wrist against the outer wrist on Goyle's moving hand using it's own force to move it right across his body, forcing him to turn his whole body slightly more to the left. Goyle tried to use his other hand to move hers, however Mim took that wrist that he had put underneath this dominant arm and lifted it up so the elbow was at 90 degrees. With his arms locked, she hooked her foot behind his knee and pulled. Goyle lost his balance and as he began to fall Mim realised both of her hands using them to push Goyle out of the carriage. He stumbled back into Crabbe and Malfoy resulting in the three of them entangled on the door. Mim, smiling at them moved their tangled legs from Ron and hers carriage.
"Now, I believe we asked you to leave." She said pleasantly, as she shut it. All three faces were flushed as they attempted to pick up their dignity and walk away as if nothing had happened. As they left the view of the window a familiar figure came into view.
Hermione Granger looked down at the embarrassed boys, then frowning opened up the compartment door.
"I heard someone yelling. What has been going on?" she said furiously.
"Blimey Mim, where did you learn that?" Ron said as he caught up with what had just happened.
"Dad's famous in the Muggle world. He said he thought I should be able to defend myself." She shrugged but couldn't help the smirk that had settled on her face.
"I don't do bullies." She said matter-of-factly. "I am guessing they are one of the preadjust pureblood lot?" she asked Ron.
"I've heard of his family," said Ron darkly. "They were some of the first to come back to our side after You-Know-Who disappeared. Said they'd been bewitched. My dad doesn't believe it. He says Malfoy's father didn't need an excuse to go over to the Dark Side." He turned to Hermione. "Can we help you with something?"
"You'd better hurry up and put your robes on," Hermione said. "I've just been up to the front to ask the conductor, and he says we're nearly there. You really shouldn't be fighting. You'll be in trouble before we even get there!"
"Hey self-defence isn't fighting. I didn't hurt him." Mim said. "I just used his own body against him."
"All right — I only came in here because people outside are behaving very childishly, racing up and down the corridors," said Hermione in a sniffy voice. "And you've got dirt on your nose, by the way, did you know?"
Ron glared at her as she left. Mim peered out of the window. It was getting dark. She could see mountains and forests under a deep purple sky. The train did seem to be slowing down. She and Ron took off their jackets and pulled on their long black robes. Ron's were a bit short for him, you could see his sneakers underneath them.
A voice echoed through the train: "We will be reaching Hogwarts in five minutes' time. Please leave your luggage on the train, it will be taken to the school separately."
She turned to see that Ron looked pale under his freckles. She smiled at him reassuringly. They cleared up the rest of their things and joined the large crowds that had begun to leave their compartments and sandwich into the corridor. Mim made sure her hat was on, and to try and disguise herself as best as possible, she didn't want people to recognise her in this very crowded space.
The train slowed right down and finally stopped. People pushed their way toward the door and out on to a tiny, dark platform. Mim shivered in the cold night air, pulling her scarf closer to her face for the warmth. Then a lamp came bobbing over the heads of the students, and Mim heard a familiar voice: "Firs' years! Firs' years over here! All right there, Mim?"
Hagrid's big hairy face beamed over the sea of heads. She smiled up at him, she had met Hagrid a few times before when Remus had invited the huge man to their English home.
"C'mon, follow me — any more firs' years? Mind yer step, now! Firs' years follow me!"
Slipping and stumbling, they followed Hagrid down what seemed to be a steep, narrow path. It was so dark on either side of them that Mim thought there must be thick trees there. Nobody spoke much. Neville, the boy who kept losing his toad, sniffed once or twice. The narrow path had opened suddenly onto the edge of a great black lake. Perched atop a high mountain on the other side, its windows sparkling in the starry sky, was a vast castle with many turrets and towers.
"No more'n four to a boat!" Hagrid called, pointing to a fleet of little boats sitting in the water by the shore. Mim and Ron were followed into their boat by Neville and Hermione.
"Everyone in?" shouted Hagrid, who had a boat to himself. "Right then — FORWARD!"
And the fleet of little boats moved off all at once, gliding across the lake, which was as smooth as glass. Everyone was silent, staring up at the great castle overhead. It towered over them as they sailed nearer and nearer to the cliff on which it stood.
"Heads down!" yelled Hagrid as the first boats reached the cliff; they all bent their heads and the little boats carried them through a curtain of ivy that hid a wide opening in the cliff face.
"Wow," Mim gasped.
They were carried along a dark tunnel, which seemed to be taking them right underneath the castle, until they reached a kind of underground harbour, where they clambered out onto rocks and pebbles.
Making sure that they all had everything that they had entered the boats with Hagrid got out of his boat, resulting in the first years clambering out and up a passageway in the rock after Hagrid's lamp, coming out at last onto smooth, damp grass right in the shadow of the castle. They walked up a flight of stone steps and crowded around the huge, oak front door.
Hagrid raised a gigantic fist and knocked three times on the castle door. It swung open, and Mim smiled as McGonagall in her deep emerald-green robes stood before them.
"The firs' years, Professor McGonagall," said Hagrid.
"Thank you, Hagrid. I will take them from here."
She pulled the door wide. The entrance hall was so big you could have fit the Stark's whole sitting room in it. The stone walls were lit with flaming torches, the ceiling was too high to really make out, and a magnificent marble staircase facing them led to the upper floors. As they all walked behind McGonagall, Mim could hear the buzz of hundreds of voices from a doorway to the right. The rest of the students were waiting for them.
Mim took a deep breath and tried to keep her face calm. She knew she would get a big reaction when they saw her, and especially when her name was called. She began to prepare for the inevitable gawking and gasping. They were led into a small, empty chamber off the hall. They crowded in, standing rather closer together than they would usually have done, peering about nervously.
"Welcome to Hogwarts," said Professor McGonagall. "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 honour. I hope each of you will be a credit to whichever house becomes yours. 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. Mim took another breath, smoothing her robes.
"I shall return when we are ready for you," said Professor McGonagall. "Please wait quietly."
She left the chamber.
The anxious whispers started as they all began to wonder what it was that they had to do to be sorted. Hermione's voice rang over the rest as she went through every spell she had learnt so far.
Then something happened that made her jump about a foot in the air — several people behind her screamed.
"What the —?"
She gasped. So did the people around her. About twenty ghosts had just streamed through the back wall. Pearly-white and slightly transparent, they glided across the room talking to one another and hardly glancing at the first years. They seemed to be arguing.
What looked like a fat little monk was saying: "Forgive and forget, I say, we ought to give him a second chance —"
"My dear Friar, haven't we given Peeves all the chances he deserves? He gives us all a bad name and you know, he's not really even a ghost — I say, what are you all doing here?"
A ghost wearing a ruff and tights had suddenly noticed the first years. The ghost spoke to them until Professor McGonagall returned. One by one, the ghosts floated away through the opposite wall. They formed a line behind the stern woman, Mim got into line behind a girl with dark long hair hair, with Ron behind her, and they walked out of the chamber, back across the hall, and through a pair of double doors into the Great Hall.
Remus's stories didn't do it justice. The thousands of candles that were floating in midair over four long tables, as a light source. These tables were laid with glittering golden plates and goblets. 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. Dotted here and there among the students, the ghosts shone misty silver. Mainly to avoid all the staring eyes, Mim looked upward and saw a velvety black ceiling dotted with stars. She heard Hermione whisper, "Its bewitched to look like the sky outside. I read about it in Hogwarts, A History."
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. Mim quickly looked down again as Professor McGonagall silently placed a four-legged stool in front of the first years. On top of the stool she put a pointed wizard's hat. This hat was patched and frayed and extremely dirty. Mim looked at her Uncle Severus and frowned, he just give her a look. Then she saw…
There we have it! We have arrived at Hogwarts! Hope you all enjoyed this chapter and future chapters to come! Xx
