The castle was magnificent. Towers upon towers reached towards the sky and she lost count of the glowing windows she could see. They had approached the castle by small boats that moved on their own. Hermione had been in her boat, and they had both gaped in awe at the scene before their eyes.
Once the boat ride was over, they were led into the main entrance and to the great hall. Just outside the doors stood Professor McGonagall. She was dressed in emerald robes and a pointy hat to match. Her look was stern as she gazed down at all the first years, but a twinkle in her eyes suggested this was her favorite part of the year. Diana stood closer to the front of the students, eager to see what lay behind the doors.
"Welcome to Hogwarts! Now, in a few moments, you will pass through these doors and join your classmates, but before you can take your seats, you will be sorted into your houses. They are Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. Now, your house will be like your family while you're here. Your triumphs will earn you points and any rule-breaking and you will lose points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded the house cup." McGonagall announced, but she was interrupted by a croaking toad and the kid Neville jumping forward to grab it.
"Trevor!" Neville exclaimed as she reached down and picked up the toad. Neville bashfully apologized before returning to his place, and she couldn't help but smile at him.
"The sorting ceremony will begin momentarily." McGonagall's eyes met hers, and she smiled ever so slightly. Why? Diana had no idea. The older witch left them to stand there and wait, leading to small chatter among the students.
"So, it's true then! Harry Potter has come to Hogwarts." Draco announced to the entire group, eyes fixed on Harry. "This is Crabbe and Goyal, and I'm Malfoy. Draco Malfoy." The silvery blond stepped forward to introduce himself properly, and she narrowed her eyes at him. He had seemed much nicer on the train when she had run into him, but now she was second-guessing her judgment. Next to Harry, she heard Ron snort at the sound of Draco's name. "Think my name is funny, do you? No need to ask yours, red hair and a hand-me-down robe. You must be a Weasley. Potter, you'll soon discover that some wizarding families are better than others. You don't want to go making friends with the wrong sort. I can help you there."
"I think I can tell the wrong sort for myself thanks." Harry ignored the hand Draco held out for him to shake and fixed Draco with an equally nasty look. Harry's response seemed to aggravate Draco whose jaw clenched. At that moment, the professor came back to collect them, and it took the attention away from Harry's rejection. Diana reached over and tugged Draco away from Harry, pulling him to her side as McGonagall addressed the students again.
"We're ready for you now." The professor told them and then turned to walk away. The students followed her, all eager to be sorted into their houses. She hung back with Draco for a moment though.
"You didn't have to be such a prick you know." She told him gently. Her comment earned her a death glare. He pulled his arm away from her and scowled.
"What would you know about it? I haven't even heard of your family, Prince." He spat. She rolled her eyes at the boy. Now he was keeping up an act. She could see it. On the train, he had hardly said a word to her, but his entire demeanor changed when his friends were by his side.
"You pure blood think you're all high and mighty don't you." She kept her voice calm and even. He may have been an ass but returning the attitude would get her nowhere. "Get off your high horse and join the real world." She walked past him and quickly joined the others at the front of the group.
As she entered the hall, her jaw dropped ever so slightly. The high arched ceiling was given the illusion of night clouds, and candles hovered above their heads to light the room. Four long tables ran down the room, with about a hundred students seated at each one. And then at the end of the hall was one more large table where all the professors were sitting. All eyes in the room were on their small group of students. One set of eyes caught her attention though. At the front of the room, one of the professors on the far-left side was staring at her. He wore all black robes to match his hair, and his hand was near his chin. He was deep in thought before they entered the room. But his eyes had widened ever so slightly at seeing her. The reaction was minuscule and lasted no more than a millisecond. But it had been a reaction, and she wondered who he was.
"Will you wait along here, please? Now before we begin, Professor Dumbledore will say a few words." McGonagall told them.
"I have a few start-of-term notices I wish to announce. The first year, please note that the Dark Forest is strictly forbidden for all students. Also, our caretaker, Mr. Filch has asked me to remind you that the third-floor corridor on the right-hand side is out of bounds to everyone who does not wish to die a most painful death. Thank you." Dumbledore sat back down in his seat, and she smiled. This was the first time that she had ever seen him in person. She had heard many stories from her uncle about what a wonderful wizard he was, but she had never met him. He was how she images him: pointy hat, long grey beard, and red embroidered robes.
"Now when I call your name, you will come forth, I shall place the sorting hat on your head, and you will be sorted into your houses," McGonagall announced as she unrolled a piece of parchment. "Hermione Granger."
Hermione stiffened at the sound of her name but slowly made her way up to the front and took her seat. She was only sitting there momentarily before the hat called "Gryffindor!"
The hall erupted into cheers from the Gryffindor table as Hermione jumped from the stool and ran over to find a seat.
"Draco Malfoy!" The young boy walked over to the seat, and the hat hadn't touched his head before it screamed "Slytherin." She nodded as he smirked and made his way over to his table.
"Susan Bones!" As the girl walked up to the seat and the hat took a moment to think, her eyes wandered back to the professor in the corner, who was again staring at her. A slight buzzing noise hummed through her head as she looked in his direction, making her slightly dizzy. Next to her, Harry gasped. She looked over at him to see that he was clutching his forehead.
"You alright Harry?" She asked, curious how they had both felt something while looking at the professors in the corner.
"Yeah, I'm fine," Harry whispered.
"Hufflepuff!"
"Ronald Weasley!"
"Another Weasley! I know just what to do with you! Gryffindor!" The hat screamed, and she laughed when Ron sighed in relief.
"Harry Potter." Harry looked at her, and she gave him a small nudge to get him to move. The hall erupted in whispers at the sound of his name, which didn't surprise her. The entire room sat, anticipating what house he would be sorted into. Even Dumbledore himself seemed to be sitting on the edge of his seat.
"Hmm...difficult, very difficult. Plenty of courage I see, not a bad mind, either. There's talent, oh yes, and a thirst to prove yourself. But where to put you?" The hat murmured to itself. She could see that Harry was mumbling something to himself as well. "Not Slytherin, eh? Are you sure? You could be great, you know. It's all here in your head. And Slytherin will help you on the way to greatness! There's no doubt about that. No? Well, if you're sure... better be... GRYFFINDOR!"
The entire Gryffindor table erupts in applause and cheering as the answer is given. She gives Harry a smile in return and watches him join the others. The students eventually calmed down allowing McGonagall to continue down the list of names. Her eyes kept roaming over to the corner where she could feel the dark eyes of the professor in the corner, and it was beginning to unnerve her.
"Diana Prince." McGonagall finally called. She took a deep breath and made her way over to the stool. She sat down and closed her eyes, not wanting to see the rest of the school.
"Ah...yes...curious. A mother from Gryffindor and a father from Slytherin. You seem to have the heart of the lion and the mind of the snake.... such loyalty I see in your mind, yet bitterness lies in your heart of things left unknown. I see much ambition and confidence in you. Ah yes... I know where to put you! SLYTHERIN!!!" Shock overtook her thoughts. In all honesty, she had believed that she would end up in Gryffindor with the others she had met on the train and while she was excited to have her house, she couldn't help but feel a little disappointed. Now she had to make new friends again and felt that might be a bit difficult.
Jumping up from the stool she made her way over to the table. There weren't many seats open, so she did the only logical thing in her mind. She sat next to Draco. The only familiar face at the table to her. They looked at each other briefly before he gave her a quick genuine half-smile. It was gone in a second, but it had been there. 'Maybe he's not a total prick.'
The night continued with the feast, and then they were led to the dungeons where the common room for Slytherin was. She hung close to the back, feeling slightly out of place. She didn't know anyone, and she had never been very social, preferring to read her books and helping her uncle brew his potion. The common room was fascinating to her. The huge glass windows didn't see out into the night but into the black lake. As the prefect gave instructions about which dorms were where she found herself wandering off into a corner to stare out into the water.
"This is so cool." A voice said beside her. She jumped slightly, not having heard the personal approach. Looking to her right, she saw another first-year girl standing beside her. Her hair was a light blonde, her eyes were a murky blue, and she stood only a few inches taller than her. The girl looked over at her and smiled. "I'm Daphne Greengrass, by the way."
"Diana Prince." She introduced herself and held out her hand. The girl took her hand and gave it a firm shake. She looked around to see that the common room had emptied. "I'm afraid I wasn't listening when they told us where to go."
"That's alright. I'll show you. Come on." Daphne took a step back, turned around, and headed to the left side of the dorms where there was another door. On the other side was a hallway with a few rooms. Each door led to a separate dorm where four to five girls would share the space. "Now I'll warn you, two of the girls here aren't the nicest."
"Lovely." She muttered.
Upon entering the dorm room for the girls, Diana wasn't surprised to see that the décor was rather dark yet extravagant. Tapestries littered the walls and between a few of the beds was a window, where water from the lake kissed the glass. Each window had enough of a ledge that she could sit and read on, making her smile. The other girls had already claimed their four-poster bed and from what she could tell Selene had been right. On one side of the room, three beds were already taken up. Clothes were strewn everywhere, and the three girls were sat on one bed already gossiping. Daphne and Diana paid them no mind.
Diana went over to her worn chest and knelt before it. She ran her hands over the worn leather with a fond smile. The trunk had belonged to her mother. Moony had decided to give it to her when she had received her letter so she would have another piece of her mother aside from the locket around her neck. Opening the lid, she smiled at the pictures that littered the inside of the lid. Her mother had been an avid photo collector, and pictures of all her friends were plastered to the inside.
"That's a lot of pictures," Daphne said, standing over her shoulder.
"Yea, it is. This was my mother's. My uncle told me these were pictures of all her friends from when she came here." Diana replied, glancing over her shoulder. "This was her."
"She was a Gryffindor?" Daphne knelt beside her, looking at the red and gold scarf around her mother's neck.
"She was, but she had a lot of friends from other houses as well." Diana reached into the trunk to pull out her pj's. Daphne continued to look at the pictures as she dug through the endless trunk for her clothes. Her mother had placed an undetectable extension charm on the trunk, and when she stuck her arm up to her shoulder, the other girls in the room gasped. With a triumphant 'aha', she retracted her arm with her pj's in hand. The room had gone silent, and she looked around. The others were staring at her with envy in their eyes.
"Is that allowed?" One of the girls across the room asked with an attitude.
"I think so. This was my mother's, and she was a student once." Diana shrugged her shoulders and walked over to her bed, pulling the curtains loose so she could change privately. She could tell that the others wanted to ask more questions, but she ignored them instead of closing the curtains around her bed. The conversation continued around her and while she tried to ignore it, she couldn't.
"Changing behind her curtains? She knows we are all girls here, right?" A new voice said, judgment laced in her words.
"What a weirdo." A third voice piped in as she slid into her PJs.
"She's probably secretly a dude or has some hideous scars to hide." The dorm room door opened and shut, giving way to a sixth set of footsteps. Diana finished buttoning her pj shirt and peeked behind the curtains to see the newcomer. She was taller than her by a few inches. Her skin was pale, almost white and her dark brunette hair contrasted against her skin beautifully, and a pair of dark eyes to match.
"Or maybe she doesn't like changing in front of people." The new voice piped up, walking over to her bed and sitting on the edge. "Who do I have the misfortune of sharing a room with?" Her eyes were on the girls across the room, with a blank expression. She reminded her of the boy from earlier, Draco.
"Pansy Parkinson." The first girl that had questioned her mother's chest said. Giving her a good look Diana could see that her mud water hair was frizzy and unkempt. She was scowling at the new girl. She sat between the other two, giving the impression that she was the 'leader' while the others would certainly follow her around for their time at Hogwarts.
"Millicent Bulstrode."
"Tracey Davis."
"Hm...I don't think I will like the three of you." The new girl stated, and Diana had to keep herself from laughing. She pulled back the curtains and sat criss-cross on her bed. The new girl looked at her and Diana gave her an appreciated nod.
"I'm Diana Prince, and this is Daphne Greengrass." Diana introduced the two of them.
"Selene Morningstar! Nice to meet you!"