Welcome to the Rest of your Life

Sorting Ceremony {year 1}

"Potter, did she say?"

"The Harry Potter?"

"We spoke to him first." I heard one of the twins say to someone behind us. "Just before we left Platform 9 and ¾."

"Yeah, right." Someone laughed.

I just stared up at the boy. He looked so young; it was definitely hard to imagine that he was the cause of the worlds darkest wizards downfall. Harry put the Sorting Hat on his head. Everyone sat in tense silence as we waited for the hate to call which house he'd be in. my ears almost burst when the hat yelled "GRYFFINDOR!" I cheered along with everyone else as the grinning Harry stepped down and walked to the table. Percy Weasley shook his hand as Fred and George chanted. "We got Potter, we got Potter!" behind me.

"Thomas, Dean!"

"GRYFFINDOR!"

"Turpin, Lisa!"

"RAVENCLAW!"

"Weasley, Ron!"

"If he doesn't become Gryffindor, I'm going up there and stabbing him." One of the twins whispered behind me as their younger brother walked over to the stool.

"If he becomes Slytherin, off with his head." The other added.

"What if he doesn't get anything?" I giggled. "Maybe he's supposed to go to another school."

"Out the window." Both of them told me.

As they finished their sentence, "GRYFFINDOR!" was heard throughout the Great Hall. The table cheered as the red-headed boy came over to the table.

"Well done, Ron." Praised Percy. "Excellent."

"Zabini, Blaise!"

"SLYTHERIN!"

And finally, all of the first years were now at their house tables. At the High Table in the front, Headmaster Albus Dumbledore stood.

"Welcome." He said. "Welcome to a new year at Hogwarts! Before we begin our banquet, I would like to say a few words. And here they are – Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak! Thank you!"

He sat back down. I cheered along with the rest of the students in the Great Hall.

"Is he ... a bit mad?" I heard Harry asked Percy.

"Mad?" said Percy. "He's a genius! Best wizard in the world! But he is a bit mad, yes. Potatoes, Harry?"

I looked down at the table, grabbed some steak, and placed it on my golden plate in front of me. I also grabbed carrots and potatoes with that before starting to eat. It was outstanding.

"Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington at your service." said the ghost sitting beside Harry. I hadn't been listening to what he had been saying before since I was too indulged in my food. "Resident ghost of Gryffindor Tower."

"I know who you are!" said Ron on the other side of Percy. "My brothers told me about you – you're Nearly Headless Nick!"

"I would prefer you to call me Sir Nicholas de Mimsy—" Nick began.

"Nearly Headless?" Hermione interrupted with a frown. "How can you be nearly headless?"

"Like this." He said irritably. He grabbed his left ear and pulled. His whole head swung off his neck and fell onto his shoulder, receiving a mixture of excited ooo's and disgusted eww's. Whoever had attempted to behead him hadn't done it completely! Nick flipped his head back onto his neck and coughed with embarrassment. "So – new Gryffindors! I hope you're going to help us win the house championship this year? Gryffindors have never gone so long without winning. Slytherins have got the cup six years in a row! The Bloody Baron's becoming almost unbearable – he's the Slytherin ghost."