Author's Notes: None of my planned stories ever intend to visit either Cyrus or Cassella this early in their lives, so I thought it might be fun to see their Sorting. They are in the same year at Hogwarts, but since they didn't end up in the same house, they have no familiarity or contact with each other throughout most of their time at Hogwarts.

The Sorting Hat

"Alexandratos, Cyrus!"

He thought his breath may have stopped in his chest. I'm first, I'm first. Of course, I'm first, he thought, his eyes wide as he stared down the Sorting Hat. Though his parents had treated their own sortings with lighthearted amusement, he felt like he was approaching an oracle. Whichever House it chose for him, he would embrace those traits as they would be the foundation for his future.

More than once, his mother and father had said he was taking the Hat's choice far too seriously. "No matter where it puts you, you can walk whatever path you choose," his mother had said, giving him a final squeeze before he boarded the Hogwarts Express. Had it only been this morning she'd said that?

His feet were leaden as he mounted each step. When he sat down, he saw a sea of eyes staring curiously at him, with only Julian giving him an eager smile. Then the brim fell over his eyes and there was only darkness.

"Hmm … interesting. Very interesting. Already, an eager mind brimming with knowledge. Ravenclaw would be pleased to have you, but you've already cultivated your curiosity. Ravenclaw is not the place where you would thrive. Bold, too. Gryffindor would be most pleased. But I sense … you desire a challenge. What say you then?"

Cyrus blinked in surprise. "Err … you're asking me?"

"I am interested to know your answer."

"Oh, well … wherever you think is best, Mr. hat!"

The Sorting Hat gave a rasping chuckle. "That's the spirit. Bold indeed. But I think it will be … SLYTHERIN!"

Cyrus gasped and felt his heart fall. The hat was pulled from his eyes and he thought he sat there shell shocked when his feet seemed to move of their own accord and carried him to the table of silver and green. Though the snakes were all clapping, their faces were composed. Some looked curious and others disdainful. This was the house of nobility. Of cunning and ambition. And of darkness.

What would his parents think? They'd rarely ever had kind things to say about the Slytherins in their time. Perhaps things had changed? But as he took his seat next to a large boy with dim features and a furrowed brow, he had his doubts.

"I'm Cyrus," he said, holding his hand out, and smiling.

The boy only scowled at it.

"Watch yourself, mudblood," came a fierce whisper from a blond boy just a seat over, glaring daggers at him.

He wilted, turning to stare at his plate. If family tradition held, he'd at least have his new friend Julian Grey sitting next to him soon.

"Caradine, Cassella!"

She nearly squeaked and rushed over in her eagerness to sit on the stool, clutching the lip of the seat until she thought her fingers might imprint.

Cassella had been dreaming of this moment for years. For so long, Hogwarts was so far away, but now it was here! Her mother had told her all about Ravenclaw House and its stunning view of the lake. Her father had insisted to her that she not discount Hufflepuff and its proximity to the Hogwarts kitchens where the house elves would treat her to a veritable feast if she so desired and insisted that the Hufflepuff common room was the warmest. She could see both of their merits, especially since her friend Charlotte Rowe was almost certainly destined for Hufflepuff.

She was nearly bouncing in her seat as the hat fell over her eyes.

"It's so rare that someone comes to me so eager! Loyalty, yes I see that. It takes a certain amount of bravery to face your sorting so eagerly. You would make a fine Gryffindor I would imagine, yes. But I think it better be … RAVENCLAW!"

Cassella beamed at hearing her house shouted to the enchanted ceiling. The clapping of her housemates sounded uproarious to her ears as she practically skipped over to them, the first Ravenclaw to be crowned.

Before she even took her seat, the girl next to her held out a hand: "I'm Mandy Brockelhurst! Nice to meet you."

"I'm Terry Boot. Way to pick the best house!"

"I didn't really pick, did I?" Cassella asked breathlessly.

"You did though. The hat wouldn't have put you where you didn't belong," Terry pointed out, waggling his eyebrows in a way that made her giggle.

As she turned to enjoy the rest of the sorting, she felt a stab of pain when she locked eyes with Charlotte. Both of their eager smiles had saddened. I'll never forget you, Cassella wanted to say. There was nothing keeping them from being friends, but the way her parents told it, it was harder to make and keep friends outside of their respective houses. Her parents had met, after all, when her father had made her mother laugh while tending bar at The Dancing Fae. They'd only seen each other in classes at school, merely passing by.

It doesn't need to be forever. I'll find a way, Cassella thought.

Suddenly, a boy thumped down next to her with a crooked grin, his hair wavy and mussed from the hat. "Hi, I'm Eddie Hastings!"