(Author's Note: Main character developments)
(Notice: The Sorting description majorly based on canon)
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter
Chapter 3 – The Sorting
That's definitely nobody to mess with! Jade thought as the serious-looking witch slipped out the door. Her emerald robes were tidy and wrinkle free all the way down to the floor, her rectangular spectacles catching light occasionally as she moved. I like her already, you can see she's definitely going to be a good teacher! A strict one too! The witch turned to talk to Hagrid: "Thank you Hagrid, I'll take it on from here." And he was dismissed.
Then, having pulled the large oak doors open, she turned back towards the students, "Welcome to Hogwarts," she said, leading them into the door and down the passage-ways into the entrance hall, "I'm professor McGonagall. The start-of-term banquet will begin shortly, but before you take your seats in the Great Hall, you must be sorted into one of the four houses. And they are: Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin." Having walked more than three corridors and two staircases later, they arrived in the Entrance Hall. The Entrance Hall was not huge, but Jade figured the ceiling must be at least ten stories high, because it looks so far up from where she stood. The whole place was lit with flaming torches attached to the stone walls. At the end, two sets of marble staircases, one on either side, connecting at the end, leading them to the double doors that opens to the upper floors.
"Each house has their own noble history," Professor McGonagall continued explaining as they walked towards the staircases, "you'll honor your house by earning house points, and any rule-breaking will cause you to lose house points. At the end of the term, the house with the most points will win the house cup, a great honor. I hope you all will strive to do good to whichever house you're in."
They all clambered onto the staircase, and came to a stop when they reached the top.
"Now, the Sorting is a very important ceremony. It will take place a few minutes later in front of the whole school. While you're here, your house should be considered as something like your family. You'll have classes with your house, sleep in the house dormitories, and hang out in the common rooms. I expect all of you to take this seriously. And make sure you look presentable." At her last words, her eyes swept over their faces once again, lingering on the mark on Ron's nose and the toad boy's cloak, which was set a bit twistedly revealing one side of his shoulder.
"Here, wipe your nose Ron, will you?" Jade whispered to Ron and took out her old handkerchief.
"I shall return when we are ready for you. Please be quiet." And she left.
Everybody was extremely nervous now, nobody dared make a sound, only Hermione's muttering every spell she knew. Jade found herself also going through spells in her head along with Hermione: Lumos, Pertrificus Totalus…I don't think they will really ask us to cast spells, I mean, I think only about one out of seven people knows how to send sparks into the air!
Her thoughts were interrupted by a voice, "So, you're Harry Potter!" She turned to see Malfoy with his gang walking towards Harry, who was standing close by.
"Yes." Harry answered. Ron and Jade immediately walked towards Harry.
"I'm Draco Malfoy." Malfoy stretched out his hand, "If you would like a friend to lead you around Hogwarts, I surely can. You don't want to be friends with the wrong sort." He looked at Ron and Jade, both standing behind Harry. His eyes narrowing as it swept past Hermione, standing close by, frowning at Malfoy.
"I'm not sure who's the wrong sort here." Harry began sarcastically, "I trust that certainly wasn't directed towards my friends." He glanced back, "And I don't need a guide by the way, my friends are smart enough." He completely ignored Malfoy's outstretched arm. Quite sassy, Potter! Jade thought, amused.
Malfoy's face slowly went pinkish, "Very well, Potter. We will see." He didn't even curse! Jade was impressed by the amount of self-control shown there: You'd think someone like him won't stand being ignored.
Suddenly, some people gasped and stared up at the ceilings, distracting all of them. What is happening?
She looked up to see what the others are staring at. Pale, silvery, slightly transparent people dressed in peculiar costumes floating in the air, and they are talking! "Ghosts!" She gasped. She's only seen them in books and heard about them in stories, now she's seen one in real life!
The ghosts are talking among themselves: "Forgive and forget, I say…" A ghost dressed in monk clothes said.
"But dear Friar! We've already gave Peeves more chances than he deserves! And he's not even a ghost, calling us names! Oh! What are you all doing here?" Another ghost looked down and saw them.
Nobody made a sound, they were all too stunned watching the ghosts, until Jade suddenly snapped into her senses: "Oh! We're first years, you know, waiting to be sorted."
"New students!" the Fat Friar beamed down at them, "Hope to see you in Hufflepuff, my old house, you know."
"Move along now," Professor McGonagall had come back, "the Sorting is about to begin. Form a line and follow me." She ordered. Meanwhile, the ghosts floated out of the hall. Jade was standing behind Hermione, with Ron right behind her. They followed Professor McGonagall through the halls, Jade's legs felt as if they're made with led.
Soon they reached another pair of double doors, this time larger than the ones before and through the doors, into the Great Hall.
The first thing Jade noticed was that the hall's lit by thousands of burning candles, floating high above their heads. Then above the candles, the ceiling showing a splendid view of the night sky, just like the one outside. And she heard Hermione mutter, "Oh yes! It's bewitched to look like the sky outside!"
They all slowly filed in, Professor McGonagall leading them, Jade turned her head and saw, on each side of her, two long rows of tables, making four rows in total, each lined with golden plates and what looked like real silver-silverwares. That must be the different houses! She began to feel more nervous now that everybody had all turned around to see the first years, and she felt the familiar stares, no doubt because of her silver hair. They walked across the hall, and just when Jade thought that this is a really long hall, they stopped, and now faced the four tables. She turned her head and saw, behind them, a staff's table, which is raised slightly higher than the other four tables. In the center, a high armchair was placed, and in it sat a man with a silvery long beard, glinting half-moon-shaped spectacles, and a somewhat crooked nose. Jade recognized him at once, it's none other than the one called the greatest wizard of all time – Albus Dumbledore!
Just as she was staring, Dumbledore, smiling, happened to turn his head toward Jade, and his playful blue eyes gave her a wink. Everybody else was obviously too busy looking at something else, Professor McGonagall had set up a four-legged stool, and was now placing what looked like a really old and dirty pointed wizard's hat on top of it. Jade assumed the hat must be magical, but she cannot imagine how they are going to be sorted with a filthy old hat. Everybody in the hall was now staring at the hat, so she looked at it too, and there was complete silence.
Suddenly, the hat, by itself, twitched. And a rip that stretched from the middle to either side opened, 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'll 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 just and loyal lie,
They're always patient and true, but unafraid of toil.
Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw, if you've a witty mind,
Where those of wisdom and learning, will always find their kind.
Or perhaps in Slytherin, you find your true friends,
Those cunning folks go far and deep, to reach their best of ends.
So put me on! Do not cower!
And don't get in a flap!
You're in safe hands! Though I have none.
But I'm a thinking cap!"
When the hat finished its song, everybody burst into waves of applause. Jade thought it was quite entertaining, that a hat can come up with such a good piece of art. But nothing is really that surprising, after all, they are in the wizarding world! Well good thing is now she knows how they're going to be sorted, and there's no testing of spells! You just got to try on an old hat! Easy enough, she thought.
Professor McGonagall stepped forward with a roll of parchment in her hand, "When I call your name, go sit on the stool and put the hat on." She instructed.
"Abbot, Hannah!" A girl with blonde hair stepped forward, looking very nervous.
Jade suddenly realized something: Uh, oh. This is in alphabetical order! And that means I'll be on the stool in no time! She can feel the sweat in her palms, and the stomach started feeling uneasy, just the way she always feels when she's really nervous. This is not even anything to be nervous about! The Sorting Hat disrupted her thoughts, "Hufflepuff!" It shouted, and the table to the left cheered and clapped.
Right after the girl named Hannah had climbed off the stool, Professor McGonagall called her name, "Argento, Jade!"
No time to panic! She walked to the stool, and surprisingly her knees did not give way as she reached the stool and pulled herself up to face the whole school. A second later, Professor McGonagall had placed the hat on her head, and all she can see now was the dark rim of the hat.
Then, out of nowhere, she heard a small voice. It's almost like the voice is inside her head: "Hmm, a tough one! Really tough! Got the brains of a Ravenclaw, cunning like a Slytherin, and loyal, to the people you value, yet also very courageous. Hmm, I wonder…you do have preferences, but I see better options…hmm, I don't really know! Haven't ever met one like this! This is the first time I don't know where to place a student! You could be great anywhere, you know…" The voice slowly went quiet.
She's been sitting on the stool for more than a minute now, and was beginning to feel embarrassed with everybody murmuring when the voice started again after a long silence, "Hmm, yes. I think. This is the best…I shall take a piece of advice from the headmaster."
What? What does that mean? Jade thought, and she began to panic: I hope I'm not going to be sent back home! Although that would certainly be better for Grandma.
The Sorting Hat spoke aloud, "I would to speak to Professor Dumbledore, please."
She felt the hat being taken away, and saw that everybody in the hall's staring at her, muttering and exchanging puzzled looks. Jade glanced back to see the sorting hat being passed to Dumbledore, and Dumbledore took off his usual wizard's hat, putting on the Sorting Hat.
Professor McGonagall motioned to her to get off the stool, and shortly after that, Dumbledore seemed to have gotten the solution to the problem, and he took off the Sorting Hat. He called to Professor McGonagall, "Er, Minerva, may I have a word?"
They whispered for quite a while, and then Professor McGonagall came back down from the teacher's table after she handed the scroll to Professor Dumbledore, who opened his mouth to speak:
"Because of this…small incident, Professor McGonagall will be absent for the rest of the Ceremony, and I will be in charge of the Sorting."
"Come on," Professor McGonagall whispered for Jade to follow her.
As they walked pass the rest of the first years, Jade felt everybody staring at her. Hermione gave her a questioning look when she passed her, but she just shrugged. Harry already looked too overwhelmed with his own fate, and Ron gave her a nervous glance that simply wishes her good luck.
They walked across another hall, climbed a set of staircases, and another. Then they arrived before a heavy wooden door, Professor McGonagall pushed it open.
"Well, come on in," she said with a concerned look on her face.
Jade stepped foot in what she assumes to be Professor McGonagall's office. The walls were covered with maroon red wallpapers, and portraits of famous witches and wizards hung on the walls. A desk sits near the wall, and behind it, a large red and yellow Gryffindor banner was hanging over a window.
Professor McGonagall sat herself down in a chair behind the desk, then motioned for Jade to sit too.
"I trust that you know this is an important issue, Miss Argento. The Sorting Hat cannot see to put you in one particular house, and this had never happened since the founding of Hogwarts itself." She paused for a moment, "Although the sorting hat cannot determine where to put you, Professor Dumbledore has decided to put you in Gryffindor, as he sees is the best house for you. No changes of house will be made unless the Headmaster himself decides to move you somewhere else. I will notify the other head of houses to let them know how it is. All clear?"
Okay, sorted by the headmaster himself, peculiar. She thought, but she nodded.
"Alright," Professor McGonagall rose to leave, "I'll lead you down to the banquet." And they walked back to the Great Hall.
The banquet had already started, students sat in rows eating out of their golden plates, chatting to their classmates, and having fun.
She walked up to the Gryffindor table, and several people turned to look at her.
"Are you in Gryffindor?" A boy with red hair just like Ron's asked. Another boy, looking almost identical to the first one, looked at her too.
"Uhh, yeah!" she was too intrigued watching her robes take on the Gryffindor colors, and before she can say another word, the twins cheered and sat her down next to them.
"So how come you sat on the stool for so long?" The first twin asked.
"And how did you got sorted into Gryffindor? Did McGonagall do it?" The second asked.
"Well," she started, but an excited voice cut her off: "Jade! There you are!" And she turned around to see Hermione beaming at her, "Are you in Gryffindor? Oh I don't know what took you so long! You sat on the stool for nearly three minutes!"
"Hey Hermione!" she answered, relieved to see someone she knows, "You're in Gryffindor! Good. I'm in Gryffindor too, guess I'm just particularly hard to interpret! But I'm here, for now at least."
"What do you mean 'for now'?" Hermione asked, sitting down beside her.
She explained to Hermione everything that happened in McGonagall's office, while piling food on her plate.
"Okay…" Hermione said when Jade had finished, rather astonished, "In case you're wondering, Ron and Harry are sorted into Gryffindor too," she pointed, "they're sitting near the other end of the table." Then she suddenly blurted out, "I'm really glad that you're in Gryffindor!" They smiled at each other.
After the dinner came the desserts: blocks of ice-cream in every flavor you can think of, apple pies, treacle tarts, chocolate eclairs and jam donuts, trifle, rice pudding, strawberries, Jell-O, and the list goes on.
She helped herself to a bit of everything with chocolate, her favorite sweet. Hermione was now talking to the twins, "So you're actually Ron's brothers?"
"Yeah, Ron's a bit grumpy sometimes, but he's a good kid."
"Do you do a lot of magic at home?" Hermione asked curiously.
"Well, we experiment and stuffs, you know, with firecrackers and stuffs. Fred and I found that the flying charm can be put into sweets, so now we have candies that can make you float."
"That's so cool!" Jade exclaimed, "And did you know that most charms can be put into objects? It works if you know it super well!"
"Really?" One of the twins said excitedly, looking surprised. "Maybe you should work with us sometime! I'm George by the way."
"And I'm Fred." Said the other twin.
They talked for a bit more, then the desserts disappeared, and Dumbledore rose to speak:
"Ahem, just a few words now that we are all well fed and watered, I just have a few start-of-term notices for you: The first years should be noted that the forest on the grounds is forbidden to all students. And a few of our older pupils should do well to remember that too." His eyes flashed toward Fred and George, and they grinned mischievously. "Also," he continued, "Mr. Filch, the caretaker, wants to remind you that no magic should be used in between classes and corridors. Quidditch trials will be held in the second week of school, those who are interested in trying out should contact Madam Hooch. And finally, for this year, everyone who does not wish to die should note that the third-floor corridor on the right side is out of bounds for all." After those words, everybody exchanged confused looks and muttered under their breath, and a few people laughed, but Jade thought Dumbledore must be serious.
"Funny he didn't say why." Muttered one of the twins.
"And now! Before we go to bed, let us sing the school song!" Dumbledore exclaimed, and the other teacher's expressions became rather stiff.
Dumbledore flicked his wand, and something swooshed out of the tip of it. A golden ribbon stretched, expanded, and rose high into the air, then it twisted into loopy words.
"Everyone pick their favorite tune, and off we go!" Dumbledore said, and everybody began to sing:
"Hogwarts, Hogwarts, Hoggy Warty Hogwarts,
Teach us something please.
Whether we be old and bald, or young with scrubby knees,
Our heads could do with filling, with some interesting stuff.
For now they're bare and full of air, dead flies and bits of fluff,
So teach us things worth knowing, bring back what we forgot.
Just do your best, we'll do the rest,
And learn until our brains all rot."
It was a mess, Jade didn't have time to think of a tune she's singing to, so she joined the dozen of people around the hall singing to the tune of Happy Birthday. In her opinion that was a very disastrous attempt. Everybody sung in different tunes, and all finished at different times. The Weasley twins were the last to finish, singing to a very slow funeral tune, and Dumbledore was among the ones that clapped the loudest.
"Ah! Music!" He said, wiping his eyes, "A magic beyond all we do here!" Jade couldn't agree more. Dumbledore's last word send them all to bed, "And now, bed time! Off you go!"
"First years, follow us! Us prefects will lead you to your dorms." A red-headed boy with a face-full of freckles and a pale girl in two long brown pigtails shouted over the bustling crowd. Jade assumed the boy to be another Weasley, judging by his flaming red hair and freckles.
They followed the two prefects through the chattering crowds, out of the Great Hall, and up the marble staircases. By this time, Jade was already extremely tired, and was walking slower than ever. However, she still can't help but notice that several times, they walked through doors hidden behind tapestries and sliding panels. More staircases, and they suddenly came to a halt.
Just as Jade thought they had reached the dorms, she looked up and saw several sticks, floating in midair. What kind of magic is this? Are we supposed to arrange the sticks in a certain pattern for the dorm door to appear? She thought, trying to keep her mind alert.
"Peeves," the red-head whispered to the first years, "a poltergeist who roams the school." Then he raised his voice, "Peeves! Show yourself!"
A shrieking laughter rang in the air, followed by a rude sound like air being let out of a balloon answered at the finishing of his words.
"Would you like me to fetch the Bloody Baron?" the girl threatened.
There was a pop, and the form of a small man dressed like a joker suddenly appeared in the air, with thick long eyebrows crooked into a upward arch, his wicked dark eyes underneath, his mouth curling into a wide, evil grin. "Peeves" was carrying the sticks and floating cross legged, "Oooooo!" he said, "Ickle Firsties! How fun!" Then without warning, he swooped down at them, but they ducked.
"Out of the way Peeves! Or the Bloody Baron will hear about this! I mean it!" the boy shouted threateningly, and Peeves disappeared again, dropping the sticks along the way.
"You want to watch out for Peeves." The red-head warned as they started walking again.
"The Slytherin ghost," the girl said, "Bloody Baron, is the only who can control him, sometimes he won't even listen to us prefects!"
Soon they arrived at a huge portrait of a plump lady wearing a pink silk dress, and she asked, "Password?"
"Caput Draconis." The red-head answered, the portrait swung open to reveal a round hole in the wall large enough for two people to climb through. They scrambled through it, finding themselves inside the brightly lit Gryffindor Common Room full of comfy armchairs. The windows around the room are now closed by heavy, long maroon-colored curtains lined with thin golden stripes.
"Girls, follow me," The girl prefect said, and all the girls turned, climbing up spiral staircases while the boys climbed up the ones on the other side of the room.
They were led up the staircases, then the girl read their assigned dorms, "Lavender Brown and Parvati Patil over here," she pointed to a door at the very left-hand end of the corridor, "And Jade Argento and Hermione Granger over here," she opened the door at her right-hand side. Jade and Hermione slumped toward the door as the prefect read on.
"Well!" Hermione sighed, opening the door, "We're finally here! I'm so tired, but the food was so good!" She collapsed onto her four-poster, and almost pulled red velvet curtains hanging around the posts straight off. Jade was really tired too, but she walked the dormitory, seeing where things are and trying to keep her eyes open. Laying on the other side of the room were their trunks, they had already been brought into the room. Dragging her trunk next to her bed, she answered Hermione, "You're quite right, that's the best meal I had in my whole life!" She thumped onto her bed, lifted open the trunk with one hand dangling off her bed. "You better get changed before bed," she told Hermione, "The trunks are beside your bed."
"Okay." Hermione answered, and they took turns using the bathroom, changing into their nightgowns.
"Good night." Jade muttered, climbing into bed. And soon, they were both sound asleep.