Lily Potter And The Metamorphagus

Part Three - Balderdash

"GRYFFINDOR!" The sorting hat yells, as expected, and Lily's new house table goes wild with her friends and family cheering so much louder than anyone else in the school: Lily swears it is enough to make her go deaf. Lily skips down to her new house table and sits next to Kye. She looks across the hall at her older brother, Albus, sat at the Slytherin house table, also cheering her on but looking mildly upset while doing so. Perhaps he was hoping to not be the only Slytherin in the family? 

"Well done, Lil!" Kye praises, patting her on the back. She beams in thanks at her potentially newfound friend, then turns her attention back to the front of the hall to watch Hugo's sorting.

"Weasely, Hugo." Her redhead cousin walks calmly to the stool and sits down. McGonagall places the Sorting Hat on his head and it begins to talk right away.

"Another Weasely? Will you ever stop? This is too easy for me! GRYFFINDOR!" Hugo jumps up from the seat and races down the steps, cheering in utter joy. Lily pats the seat next to her and he joins his friends.

"Congrats, Hugo! I knew you'd be in Gryffindor!" Lily says, smugly. Hugo rolls his eyes.

"Doesn't mean it would happen for sure, you can't be that much of a know-it-all." He chirps, sticking out his tongue childishly. "Besides, I wouldn't have minded Hufflepuff, they're a good house too!"

The headmistress arises from her seat and repositions herself in front of the lectern. The hall of talking students quickly falls to silence at the wave of her hands.

"Congratulations to all of our first year students on their new houses, I wish you the best of luck in making them proud throughout the year." She beams down at her pupils before clasping her hands together vigoruously. "Ladies and gentlemen, let the feast begin!" Professor McGonagall shouts, making a luxurious feast appear on the gold plates in front of the students. 

Lily can see mountains of mashed potato, stacks upon stacks of every kind of meat that you could imagine; beef, chicken, lamb, pork, all cooked in every imaginable way too. There are glistening gravy boats in front of each pair or students, next to bowls of delicious-looking vegetables. Lily doesn't know where to start.

Hugo, obviously, does, hungrily grabbing one of everything to eat with his mouth watering. Lily looks away in disgust, only to find Kye doing the same.

Boys.

She picks up a chicken leg and serves herself a small portion of vegetables, parsnips and roast potatoes before tucking into her dinner, talking animatedly about her relief of being put into Gryffindor to her friends.

"Yeah, but you're the only first-year Gryffindor girl Lily so you'll be in a dorm by yourself." Kye sympathises. Lily shrugs.

"That's a bit unusual, but it will be better for studying I can imagine." She replies, discarding the chicken bone.

"Seriously? You're so educationally driven, Lil. I swear to Merlin I never see you without a schoolbook." Hugo teases, and Lily scowls at him. If there is one thing she cannot stand, it is people poking fun at her scholarly ambition.

"That's because I want to pass my O.W.L.S, Hugo Weasely." She grumbles. Hugo shrugs nonchalantly, not noticing his cousin's face growing more and more red by the second.

"O.W.L.S are yonks away, Lil."

"It doesn't hurt to be prepared." She snaps back in reply. The conversation grinds to a halt so Lily grabs more meat from the buffet. She admires the beauty of the room around her: Ceilings so high they may as well be the sky themselves, floating candles that never drip or burn out, the ancient solid oak table that the teachers are sat at, the glimmering golden sconces attached to the walls... All of it just seems so surreal. She's finally at Hogwarts - her school of dreams. IF she looks close enough, she can just see the damage caused by the Battle of Hogwarts. She points this out to Kye.