Chapter 4: Sorted Affairs
Eleven-year old Harry James Potter lay back in bed, his new copy of Hogwarts: A History lying open across his chest, staring up at the enchanted stars of his bedroom ceiling. He watched them twinkle faintly, the moon high and bright above his head, bathing his room in pale white light. Tomorrow his life was going to change forever. Tomorrow he would begin the path to becoming a real wizard in earnest, and, he thought apprehensively, he would have to do it without Daphne there to guide him. What wonders would Hogwarts hold for him? He'd been awestruck by the castle, the vastness of it all, the sheer architectural impossibility, absurd but wonderful at the same time. He would be leaving the friends that he had grown close to over the past couple of years. He would miss Patricia and Connor, he knew. He would miss the waves rolling over the rocks of Newfoundland's shore at the sheltered port of Torbay, where he had often gone for a walk after Muggle school, before Daphne would take him home.
Home. He would miss Claw's Clan, and all it represented – a safe haven from the world, from the tragedy and darkness of his and his aunt's pasts. But James Dressler had ceased to be. In his place was Harry Potter, and perhaps that was the most terrifying aspect of it all.
The Sorting was an event that marked the approach of adolescence to the threshold of childhood. Other schools had something similar, though none had the sort of lore and history of Hogwarts. Four houses, founded by four remarkable witches and wizards, designed to bring out and nurture those qualities that they found most laudable in young witches and wizards. He had read descriptions in books, of course. But there was only one person that could give him a taste of the answers he craved. And so he had asked her.
"Daph," Harry said, "What can you tell me about the Houses of Hogwarts?"
Daphne, who had been reading a novel by one of her favorite wizard writers, Thomas Goldstein, looked over at her nephew.
"Well, there are four of them. Hufflepuff, Gryffindor, Slytherin, and Ravenclaw. I'm sure you know that already," she added. "Let's see…well, on the most basic level, Hufflepuffs are known for loyalty and diligence, Slytherins for cunning and ambition, Ravenclaws for intelligence and prudence, and Gryffindors for courage and daring. Now, I want you to keep in mind that these are generalizations. People are placed in Houses because of family history, bloodlines, even sometime because they desire a certain House over another.
"You are going to meet people that say certain houses are better or worse. You are going to meet Gryffindors who think all of the Slytherins are pureblood supremacists who support the Dark Arts. While it is true that many of Voldemort's Death Eaters were Slytherins, remember that the Head of the Auror Office, Rufus Scrimgeour, who opposes the Dark Arts fiercely, was a Slytherin. My husband, Edmond, who came from a long line of Light wizards, was a Slytherin. Don't believe what uneducated school children tell you. Not all Gryffindors are light wizards, or even brave. Hufflepuffs are not all weak-minded and cowardly, as you'll hear far too many people say. Ravenclaws are not all brains. I know that from experience. Not that I am not proud to be of that House, but they are still made up of young men and women, Harry, regardless of what the Founders had in mind.
"What I'm telling you, Harry, is that you need to keep an open mind. Just because your parents were both Gryffindors doesn't mean you will be. I couldn't care less which House you are sorted into. As long as you learn and grow, and become the wizard that I know you can be, I couldn't be happier. Don't feel pressured to go into one house or another, and don't feel pressure to do things that a person your age shouldn't be expected to do. Just because people expect certain things doesn't mean they are always right about those things. Do you understand?"
