1st of September of 1991
(Y/n)'s POV
We looked for Neville's toad for a lot time, and before we realized it, the train already got to its destination
"I'm sorry Neville, I'm sure we'll find him on our way to Hogwarts, he may exit the train" I tried to cheer Neville up, but it clearly didn't work
We exited the train and met up with Harry and Ron, it was dark time now, and we saw a light approaching us, well, more than a light, a giant person carrying a light.
"Firs' years! Firs's years over here! All right there, Harry?"
It was a giant person who apparently knew Harry, I stood there shocked, and apparently, the giant realized this too and said
"Oh, nice to meet ya', name's Hagrid"
"O-oh, um, nice to meet you sir, my name is (Y/n) (L/n)" I said, trying to look into his eyes, but I wasn't able to because he was too tall.
"Oh! Yer Salazar's and Phoebe's child, eh? Good lads, yer should've seen em' when they were kids, your father was shy too but never stuttered, Oh well! you have their essence" Said Hagrid
"Do you think... Do you think you could tell me more about them? They don't tell me a lot of stories from when they were young." I asked
"O' course kid, I could go on for hours" When he said this he laughed loudly "But for now we're kinda in a hurry, so, C'mon, follow me – any more firs'-years? Mind yer step, now! Firs'-years follow me!" He kept on moving and all of us followed him.
We followed Hagrid as he got us to a dark and narrow path which was close to a lake, no one was talking, so we could hear Neville's sobbing, I tried to comfort him as best as I could, but it wasn't working, when we turned on the road, I saw a giant castle, I admired it in silence, but there were a lot of gasps.
We arrived at some boats, which from the looks of them could only hold about 4 people each, I got into one with Harry, Ron, and Hermione, we got to some kind of underground dock, we got off the boats and climbed through some rocks, after we did all of this, Hagrid said.
"Oi, you there! Is this your toad?"
"Trevor!" Said Neville, happier than I've ever seen him so far, and I felt relieved that he finally found his pet.
We walked up some stone stairs and stood in front of a giant door made out of wood, Hagrid knocked on the door three times and we waited.
While doing so, three boys got close to us, with the one in the middle being blond, almost as if his hair had bleach on it.
The blond boy then started to talk, as his two friends followed him around.
"It's true then, what they saying on the train, Harry Potter himself has come to Hogwarts" He gestured to his two friends "This is Crabbe, and this is Goyle, and I'm Malfoy, Draco Malfoy" When he said his name, Ron laughed, I don't know why, but he did so anyways, Draco then looked at him, but not like he looked at Harry, he looked at him like he was less than him, and said.
"Think my name is funny, do you? No need to ask yours, red hair, and a hand-me-down robes? You must be a Weasly. You'll soon realize some wizarding families are better than others Potter, you don't want to go making friends with the wrong sort, I can help you there" When he finished saying that, he extended his hand for a handshake with Harry.
What he said about Ron upsetted me, I was about to say something, but Harry talked before me.
"I think I can tell the sort for myself, thanks" The boy looked at Harry, and I added my own bits.
"Y-yeah, and I don't know about you, but I'd rather be friends with someone who knows how to treat people than someone who bleaches their hair, I mean, come on, you could at least try to hide the fact that you're not a natural born blonde." I... I don't know where that came from, I got really annoyed at how he treated Ron, but it was a long time since I could make a full sentence with strangers and not get my tongue twisted.
The boy looked embarrassed, and walked away from us as his two friends followed him.
"Honestly, what's up with him? There's nothing wrong with you Ron, that idiot made me mad, and I never get mad!" I said, Ron looked thankful that I defended him, which made me happy too. I defended one of my friends and while I was scared doing it, I did it.
"Thanks (Y/n), I thought you didn't have the guts for that" Said Ron.
Before I could talk again the giant doors opened, and from them a tall black haired witch came out. She had this stern vibe about her that made me nervous and made her a bit scary.
The door opened immediately, and from the inside of it a tall black haired woman came out, with a stern look on her face. When I saw her, I got nervous, something about her aura seemed... scary.
"The firs'-years, Professor McGonagall" Said Hagrid
"Thank you Hagrid, I will take them from here" Said the tall witch, which now I know was named Professor McGonagall.
She asked us to follow her and we went through the doors, to say the Great Hall was big was an understatement, there were torches on the wall as if we were in medieval times, and the ceiling wasn't close, it was really far up, with stars in it.
We were taken to a small chamber off the hall, and Professor McGonagall, and she started to talk.
"Welcome to Hogwarts, the start-of-term banquet will begin shortly, but before you take your seats in the Great Hall, you will be sorted into your houses. The Sorting is a very important ceremony because, while you are here, your house will be something like your family within Hogwarts. You will have classes with the rest of your house, sleep in your house dormitory and spend free time in your house common room."
"The four houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin. Each house has its own noble history and each has produced outstanding witches and wizards. While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn your house points, while any rule-breaking will lose house points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded the House Cup, a great honour. I hope each of you will be a great asset to your houses."
I felt her looking at me when she finished that sentence, though I could be wrong, I was next to Harry after all.
She then said the sorting ceremony would be in a few minutes, and that we should prepare ourselves and then left, saying she will be back for us when they are ready for us, and Ron said
"How do we get sorted into houses?" Said Harry, he looked nervous too
"I wish I knew Harry, my parents wanted it to be a surprise so they didn't tell me no matter how much I begged them, to be honest, I'm kind of nervous about it." I said to Harry, and Ron apparently heard it too, as he said.
"Some sort of test, I think. Fred said it hurts a lot but I think he was joking." Ron said, he looked a bit scared saying it, and it didn't gave me a good feeling, and Harry felt the same as he looked paler than before.
"I-I mean, it can't be that bad right? I don't think they'll hurt us before we even start the school year, right?" I said, trying to calm me and Harry down, I wish I could talk to Hermione now. I bet she would know the answers, but she kind of disappeared with Neville and there were a lot of kids right now.
Before anyone could say anything, I heard screams, I looked behind me and saw a bunch of translucent people, I screamed as well and they seemed to... not care at all, they just went through walls and things, while discussing something, I just assumed they were ghosts and tried to go back to normal, but everything in this place surprised me more and more.
"New students!" Said the Fat Friar, because of all the arguing between them I could see how they treated each other and how they named between them "About to be sorted, I suppose? Well, hope to see you in Hufflepuff! My old house, you know?"
I guess everyone was stunned, because no one answered, and then we heard Professor McGonagall's voice.
"Move along now, the sorting ceremony's about to start, so, form a line and follow me"
I was put in a line and was behind Harry, and behind me was Hermione, so I waited for an opportunity to ask her about the sorting ceremony.
We started to walk, and saw the thousands of candles floating around, the whole place was fantastic, it looked magical, even if it didn't had a lot of magic put into it, there was a vibe to this place, there were four tables, five if you count the one where all the adults were in, They must be Professors too, I looked up and the ceiling was like watching a starry night, it looked beautiful, Hermione tucked my robes and said.
"It's bewitched to look like the sky outside, I read about it in Hogwarts: A history" I took that moment and asked her about what the sorting ceremony was
"You truly know everything Hermione, by any chance, do you know what the sorting ceremony is about? Is it a test of some sorts? My parents didn't want to tell me and Ron said it hurted"
"Oh, don't worry, from what I read they use the sorting hat for it, and it shouldn't hurt anything, though, I've never wore it so who knows"
I thanked her and we kept on walking to the table where the Professors were, and we were placed in a way that our backs would be to them, I was next to Hermione, and to my other side were Ron and Harry.
Professor McGonagall then placed a four legged stool in front of us with a hat on it, which I assumed was the sorting hat Hermione mentioned, the hat itself had a pair of eyes and a smile carved out, and suddenly it started to sing, which startled me again.
'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 Gryffindors 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!'
There was a round of applause for the talking hat, and to my surprise, the hat started to bow to each table and I heard Ron complaining about his brother lying to him, and we saw Professor McGonagall holding a long roll of parchment.
"When I call your name, you will put the hat on and sit on the stool to be sorted."
"Abbott, Hannah!"
I didn't really took much attention to any of the names, I just looked at Hermione who seemed nervous, I didn't know why but I knew why I was nervous, so I tried to comfort her, I tugger her robe and whispered to her
"Don't worry Hermione, I'm sure we'll be in the same House, we have similar things in common after all, I do hope that's what it takes into consideration."
She looked at me and seemed a bit more calmed, and said.
"Thanks (Y/n), and yes, of course everything will be alright, I'm just nervous, I just don't want to thin-" Before she could finish her sentence, we heard
"Granger, Hermione!" She jumped on the spot and almost ran to the stool, there were a few moments of silence, and then the hat said.
"GRYFFINDOR!" When the hat said that, I heard Ron groan, which earned him a weird look from me.
Neville was sorted into Gryffindor too, and that bleached kid into Slytherin, after a while, we finally heard.
"Potter, Harry!"
When Harry started to walk to the stool, whispers started to be heard, People should really just meddle their own businesses, I could see that Harry felt awkward, it was something in the way he walked towards the stool, everyone was silent, and even the hat seemed to be lost in thought, it seemed like they were both... talking? When the hat finally decided to scream
"GRYFFINDOR!" The cheers and applause were louder than before, and I saw Harry walking slowly to the Gryffindor table.
"Weasley, Ron!" Ron walked to the stool, and after only one second of having the hat on, it screamed
"GRYFFINDOR!" And then he walked to the Gryffindor table, where he sat next to Harry who apparently saved him a seat.
It took some while, but after what felt like an eternity, I heard.
"(L/n), (Y/n)!" I was nervous, not because I didn't know what the test would be, but because of all the people who were going to look at me, I swallowed my nervousness and walked to the stool, almost tripping in the process, when that happened I started to shake my head, watching as everyone looked at me, and when I looked where the Professors were, I exchanged glances with Professor Dumbledore, our eyes met, he nodded and suddenly I felt calmer, and continued to walk to the stool. When I put on the hat, I heard his voice in my head.
"My... my... aren't you a complex one." Said the hat.
"Uh, is that bad? I-I don't want to mess up on my first day..." I got nervous, have I already done something wrong?
"No, not necessarily bad, it's just, it's been a long time since I've seen someone like you, smart like a ravenclaw, but you don't seek absolute knowledge like most of them, loyal at a fault like a Hufflepuff, brave enough to not let your fears stop you from protecting your friends like a Gryffindor, and... ambitious enough to reach your goals, even if they seem far away... Is there something you want in particular, kid?"
"Um, well, honestly, I don't think I'm any of those things you just said, I... I just want to be with my friends, Harry, Ron, and especially Hermione, they're the first friends i've ever had, so if you could..." Before I could finish talking, the hat said.
"Two boys asking for Gryffindor on the same day, well, what can you do, better be... GRYFFINDOR!"
The Gryffindor table cheered and screamed, as I walked quickly to the table, I was going to sit wherever was available, but I heard something.
"(Y/n)! Over here! I saved you a seat!" I looked to the familiar voice and I found Hermione waving her hand, and it made me happy, I finally had friends.
"Thanks Hermione, see? I told you, we had nothing to worry about" I said, trying not to sound nervous.
"I saw you shaking and almost falling (Y/n), I know you were nervous, but thanks for trying to calm me down" She really saw through everything, it was kind of scary.
We talked for a while, until Professor Dumbledore asked us to be quiet because he wanted to give a speech, I didn't see Professor Dumbledore since he went to my house so I was kind of excited to see what he had to say.
"Welcome! 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!"
And he sat again, to say I was confused, he was in my house talking pretty eloquently and now he was saying stuff like that?
"Um, last time I saw him he was sane, is this what my parents call dementia?" I said to Hermione, who pinched my arm but I saw her laugh a bit.
"Don't be rude (Y/n), he's the headmaster, and possibly the world's strongest wizard, you know?"
"Yeah, for now, just wait until we're older." She looked at me like I was joking, and we just remained talking and eating for the rest of the time.
When everyone finished eating, the food that was left just disappeared, at least I wasn't getting scared anymore, and desserts started to appear, I was visibly happier now, I started to stuff everything in my plate and mouth.
"What are you doing?" Asked Hermione "You do know that if you eat too much sweets you'll get cavities, right?"
"Oh yeah, I forgot your parents are dentists, but don't worry, I've never got any cavities and won't start now, I just... really love candies." I answered back to her. "But thanks for worrying"
Before we could continue talking, I heard people talking about their families.
"I'm half and half, me dad's a Muggle. Mam didn't tell him she was a witch 'til after they were married. Bit of a nasty shock for him." Said a kid named Seamus, we all laughed at how he said it, and I found his accent really interesting.
"What about you, Neville?" said Ron.
"Well, my gran brought me up and she's a witch, but the family thought I was Muggle for ages. My great-uncle Algie kept trying to catch me off my guard and force some magic out of me, he pushed me off the end of Blackpool pier once, I nearly drowned, but nothing happened until I was eight. Greatuncle Algie came round for tea and he was hanging me out of an upstairs window by the ankles when my great-auntie Enid offered him a meringue and he accidentally let go. But I bounced, all the way down the garden and into the road. They were all really pleased. Gran was crying, she was so happy. And you should have seen their faces when I got in here, they thought I might not be magic enough to come, you see. Great-uncle Algie was so pleased he bought me my toad." Said Neville
"That's, uh, I guess a loving family? And what about your parents?" I asked Neville, he looked a bit shocked, and sad all of the sudden, no one said a thing and we just let it pass, I didn't ask again because, well, I felt it was wrong from me to ask that.
Hermione started to talk with Percy, one of Ron's brothers, about lessons, I was still grabbing every bit of candy I could, things like these only happen once in your life so I had to take the chance, I was broken out of my sugar trance because of Harry.
"Ouch!" Exclaimed Harry
"What is it?" Asked Percy
"Yeah, Harry, you alright mate?" I asked
"No, yeah, everything's alright" His face got bad for a second, but then went back to usual, maybe he ate too much ice cream, who knows, it's happened to me before.
Harry then started to ask about the teachers, the one wearing all black and whose hair looked like it had oil in it was Snape, he was the potions teacher, and apparently he wanted the position of Professor Quirrell, who was the defense against the dark arts Professor.
The desserts disappeared, as I wailed about it and Hermione gave me a look, but I could see the corners of her mouth molding into a smile, and again, Professor Dumbledore spoke.
He said that the forest is forbidden to all students, that no magic should be used in corridors. Kind of weird considering this is a magical school... Quidditch trials, I snickered again when I heard it, will be held in the second week of the term, and something else.
"Finally, the third 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"
He said it so nonchalantly as if it was something normal, that I couldn't help but to laugh about it, and it seemed that Harry thought the same, as he laughed a bit louder than me, and thanks to that no one noticed I laughed.
They started to sing some odd song about Hogwarts, can't say I remember a lot about it, because I just didn't really care about it, and Dumbledore talked again
"Ah, music, a magic beyond all we do here! And now, bedtime. Off you trot!"
And as he said that, all the prefects started to guide us to our respective places. I felt full of food and candy, so I kinda dozed off the entire time. Percy talked about some ghost called Peeves, who apparently was some kind of a prankster.
We got to a painting of a fat lady, when she started to talk and move around it woke me up immediately. Hermione laughed a bit at my reaction but honestly, how could I have known a lady in a painting would start to talk? At that point I got to the conclusion to always expect the unexpected in the wizarding world.
"Password?" Asked the painting.
"Capus Draconis" Said Percy, and the portrait opened like a vault, Percy then signaled us to get in and we did, it was a room full of armchairs, a fireplace, and bunch of different stuff, mostly colored red, it looked really comfy, Percy guided the girls to their dorms and the boys to another, through a spiral staircase, there were bunch of beds for us.
I placed my stuff and got ready for bed, not before feeding Blaze, I lit a match from the match case dad gave me, because I can't make fire like him, and Blaze ate the fire from the match like it was normal food, I then petted her and before I got into bed I said, or well, whispered, to Harry and Ron
"Good night guys, I'm really tired so I'm going to bed now" They both replied but, I think they were starting to drift off to sleep so I did the same.
I'm not sure if I'll be able to sleep, but I have a feeling this year will be BEYOND amazing... And with that thought, I too fell asleep.