"(Y/n)!" Katie greeted. "Word has it you're sitting with the Harry Potter." (Y/n) smiled kindly. She had worn her black silk button-up, her blue plaid skirt, and her blue Ravenclaw blazer. She braided her tie into her hair as she had yet to learn how to tie it. Katie wore, of course, the same uniform but in red.
"And what of it?" (Y/n) mused, folding her cloak in her hands. Katie grinned.
"Just telling you the news," Katie mused, walking alongside her. "Wow. First day and I already know somebody who knows Harry Potter."
"You better leave him alone," said (Y/n). "Poor boy can't catch a break." Katie hummed. "Tell the others I said hi."
"I'm sitting with Alicia, Angelina, Lee... you know, that lot," Katie said.
"Well, tell them I said hi," (Y/n) mused. "And the others if you see them."
"Aye-aye, captain."
(Y/n) returned to their compartment right as a voice echoed through the train: "We will be reaching Hogwarts in five minutes' time. Please leave your luggage on the train, it will be taken to the school separately."
Harry's stomach lurched with nerves and Ron, he saw, looked pale under his freckles. On the other hand, (Y/n) was quite bubbly. The boys crammed their pockets with the last of the sweets and joined the crowd thronging the corridor.
The train slowed right down and finally stopped. People pushed their way toward the door and out onto a tiny, dark platform. Harry shivered in the cold night air. Then a lamp came bobbing over the heads of the students and Harry heard a familiar voice:
"Firs' years! Firs' years, over here! All right there, Harry?" Hagrid's big hairy face beamed over the sea of heads.
"Bye," (Y/n) told the two. She then jogged off in search of her friends.
"C'mon, follow me— any more firs' years? Mind yer step, now! Firs' years follow me!"
"—and that catches us up to today," Cho finished her eventful summer.
"Oh to have an eventful summer," Marietta sighed, a playful smile on her face. "The only eventful thing I did was attend a family reunion at my own house." Before their conversation could continue, in walked Professor McGonagall again with a line of first years behind her. The professor was clad in emerald-green robes and she had a stern expression on her face as she stopped. The first years looked around in bewilderment as Professor McGonagall went off and placed the Sorting Hat on a four-legged stool.
(Y/n) grimaced as Cho and Marietta grinned at her and from the Gryffindor table, Katie gave her the same grin. Memories from their first year were clearly playing. (Y/n) shook her head.
A rip near the brim opened wide like a mouth— 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 will tell you
Where you ought to be.
You might belong in Gryffindor,
Where dwell the brave at heart,
Their daring, nerve, and chivalry
Set Gryffindor apart;
You might belong in Hufflepuff,
Where they are just and loyal,
Those patient Hufflepuffs are true
And unafraid of toil;
Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,
If you've a ready mind,
Where those of wit and learning,
Will always find their kind;
Or perhaps in Slytherin
You'll make your real friends,
Those cunning folk use any means
To achieve their ends.
So put me on! Don't be afraid!
And don't get in a flap!
You're in safe hands (though I have none)
For I'm a Thinking Cap!"
The whole hall burst into applause as the hat finished its song. It bowed to each of the four tables and then became quite still again. There were a few moments of utter silence until Professor McGonagall stepped forward holding a long roll of parchment.
"When I call your name, you will put on the hat and sit on the stool to be sorted," she said. "Abbott, Hannah!"
A pink-faced girl with blonde pigtails stumbled out of line, put on the hat, which fell right down over her eyes, and sat down. A moment's pause—
"HUFFLEPUFF!" shouted the hat.
The table on the right cheered and clapped as Hannah went to sit down at the Hufflepuff table.
"Berkshire, Lorenzo!"
He became the first Slytherin of the evening.
"Bones, Susan!"
"HUFFLEPUFF!" shouted the hat again, and Susan hurried off to sit next to Hannah.
"Boot, Terry!"
"RAVENCLAW!"
The table second from the left clapped this time; several Ravenclaws stood up to shake hands with Terry as he joined them.
"This is so exciting," (Y/n) whispered. Cho grinned.
"Brocklehurst, Mandy" went to Ravenclaw too, but "Brown, Lavender" became the first new Gryffindor, and the table far to the left exploded with cheers. Fred and George were cat-calling.
"Bulstrode, Millicent" then became a Slytherin.
"Finch-Fletchley, Justin" became a Hufflepuff.
"Finnigan, Seamus," became a Gryffindor.
"Granger, Hermione!" was what brought (Y/n) back to reality. Hermione almost ran to the stool and jammed the hat eagerly over her head. There was a good four minutes of anxious silence.
"Was this what things were like last year?" (Y/n) whispered.
"Mhm," Cho answered. "Longer time, obviously. Extremely tense though. I'm pretty sure people were making bets on whether or not you'd be a Hat Stall." (Y/n) frowned.
"GRYFFINDOR!" the hat finally shouted. Ron groaned.
After Hermione, a "Greengrass, Daphne," was sorted into Slytherin. (Y/n) tuned out a few more names until Neville Longbottom was called. He fell over on his way to the stool. The hat took a long time to decide where to put Neville. Finally, "GRYFFINDOR," was shouted. Neville ran off still wearing the hat and had to jog back amid gales of laughter to give it to "MacDougal, Morag."
Draco swaggered forward when his name was called and got his wish at once: the hat had barely touched his head when it screamed, "SLYTHERIN!"
Draco went to join his friends Crabbe and Goyle, looking pleased with himself. A "Theodore, Nott," was sorted into Slytherin along with a "Parkinson, Pansy." A set of twins glanced at one another when the first's name was called (Patil, Padma). She, too, had quite a long period of time where the Hat was deciding (but not as long as Neville or Hermione. Finally, she was sorted into "RAVENCLAW!" The girl anxiously looked around before taking an empty seat at the end of the table and where Cho, Marietta, and (Y/n) sat. (Y/n) smiled at the girl as her twin was called (Patil, Parvati). She was almost instantly sorted into "GRYFFINDOR," resulting in quiet whispers. There was one other name before Harry was finally called up. The hall broke out into hissing whispers.
"Potter, did she say?"
"The Harry Potter?"
Loads of people were craning their necks to survey the boy. There was a moment's pause before he was sorted into "GRYFFINDOR," causing an immediate uproar. Harry shakily walked towards the Gryffindor table. His name alone was enough to get the most attention. Percy had shaken his hand vigorously while Fred and George loudly bragged about getting Harry Potter.
There were only four people left by the time Harry was sorted. A "Riddle, Mattheo" had been sorted into "SLYTHERIN." His name seemed to cause some alarm at the Head Table. A "THOMAS, DEAN," joined the Gryffindor table and a "Turpin, Lisa," to the Ravenclaw table. Ron followed and he was a pale green as he took a seat. A second later, the hat had shouted, "GRYFFINDOR!" Ron practically flew over to his respective table at this news and collapsed into the chair next to Harry. Percy applauded Ron. Finally, a "Zabini, Blaise," was made a Slytherin. Professor McGonagall rolled up her scroll and took the Sorting Hat away.
Albus Dumbledore took that as his cue to rise to his feet. He was beaming at all the students, his arms opened wide, as if nothing could have pleased him more than seeing them all there.
"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!"
"Again?" Marietta mumbled. (Y/n) snickered, clapping along with the rest of the hall. After Dumbledore sat down, the dishes in front of the students filled themselves with food. (Y/n) tried not to grimace at the plain English food. Noticing Marietta and Cho were talking already, (Y/n) turned to the first year that sat beside her. She appeared to be frightened. Extremely frightened and was constantly looking between the older girls and her twin at the Gryffindor table, who was already talking to someone.
"Hello," (Y/n) greeted. "I'm (Y/n)."
"P— Padma," the girl answered quietly, seemingly grateful (Y/n) was the one to start a conversation.
"I think you'll like it here," said (Y/n). "Nice and quiet. Always someone willing to help with your struggles," she informed. She then leaned forward and pointed to the opposite end of their table. "You see the blonde over there?" Padma nodded. "She's our Prefect." Again, Padma nodded. "She'll be the best person to go to if you have any problems. Girl problems, I mean." (Y/n) looked back at Padma. "So, if I'm allowed to ask, what put you and your sister in different Houses?" Padma seemed hesitant to answer.
"Well, I just told it I wanted to be placed somewhere where I'd belong," Padma answered. "Gets exhausting with being asked if Vati and I can read one another's mind or... if I can speak Hindi and anytime I lash out or give any answer other than 'yes' or 'no,' I get in trouble for it and I just... don't want that?" she finished. (Y/n) nodded.
"Between you and I, this House couldn't care less about what we're known for," (Y/n) admitted. "We got the worst grades out of the school, last year," she laughed. "But that's partially off-topic and what I'm trying to say is that the Hat chose best and you'll be asked more about yourself than your background. At least, that's how things turned out for me. Maybe I just met the right people... Eh, stick with me and you'll get your wish," she promised. Padma beamed.
"Are you saying we can be friends?"
"Well, that's a given," (Y/n) stated. "But I'm also telling you that you've got a break." Padma's smile did not falter through dinner.
After dessert, Professor Dumbledore got to his feet again, resulting in the hall falling silent.
"Ahem— just a few more words now that we are all fed and watered. I have a few start-of-term notices to give you.
"First years should note that the forest on the grounds is forbidden to all pupils—"
"Unless it's for detention," (Y/n) muttered to Padma, whose mouth fell open out of horror.
"—And a few of our older students would do well to remember that as well." Dumbledore's twinkling eyes flashed in the direction of the Weasley twins. "I have also been asked by Mr. Filch, the caretaker, to remind you that no magic should be used between classes in the corridors. Quidditch trials will be held in the second week of term. Anyone interested in playing for their House teams should contact Madam Hooch." Cho grinned at (Y/n).
"And finally, I must tell you that this year, the third-floor corridor on the right-hand side is out of bounds to everyone who does not wish to die a very painful death." Harry laughed, but he was one of the few who did. "And now, before we go to bed, let us sing the school song!" Dumbledore cried. Marietta groaned. Dumbledore gave his wand a little flick as if trying to get a fly off the end. A long golden ribbon flew out of it, which rose high above the tables and twisted itself, snakelike, into words. "Everyone pick their favourite tune," said Dumbledore, "and off we go!"
And the school bellowed:
"Hogwarts, Hogwarts, Hoggy Warty Hogwarts,
Teach us something please,
Whether we be old and bald
Or young with scabby 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've forgot,
Just do your best, we'll do the rest,
And learn until our brains rot."
Everybody finished the song at different times. At last, only the Weasley twins were left singing along to a very slow funeral march. Dumbledore conducted their last few lines with his wand and when they had finished, he was one of those who clapped loudest.
"Ah, music," he said, wiping his eyes. "A magic beyond all we do here! And now, bedtime! Off you trot!"
"What was that!" Padma whispered to (Y/n) as they stepped around their seats. "That song just insulted us!" (Y/n) laughed.
"Yeah, our school song is pretty bad, isn't it?" (Y/n) agreed. She linked her arm with Padma's, who was going to stay glued to her side either way, and led her after their House. Cho pouted at (Y/n)'s back as the two girls followed their Prefects. They walked through the familiar halls, corridors, stairwells, and grounds of the Hogwarts castle before finally reaching their destination. Penelope was the one to explain how their entryway worked, telling the students that in order to enter, they'd have to be able to defend their answer even if it wasn't correct.
"Take away the whole and some still remains. What is it?"
"Wholesome," Penelope answered. "Make sense?" she asked the crowd, letting them enter first. There were very few answers but all of them were in confirmation. They patiently waited in the Common Room for the rest of their House to arrive, then Penelope and their other prefects divided them up and led them up at separate times. This year, Penelope parted with the first years, then the sixth years, fifth years, and so on until the second years reached their section of the dorms.
"What a day," said Marietta. "Just like last year, too."
"I dunno. I feel like the Sorting Ceremony was longer this year," Cho said. "There were at least three almost-Hat-Stalls." Other than that, the girls didn't talk as they unpacked their luggage, needing to do much less than they had to do last year. They collectively decided to decorate the following day and changed into their pyjamas before falling into bed.