Once nine o'clock rolled around, the book opened itself and hovered in the air.

"So who's going to read?" said Ron, looking around the school.

"I would like to." said Luna a dreamy voice. The book flew over to her and landed softly in her hands.

The Sorting Hat said Luna in her trademarked dreamlike tone.

"Oh jeez." said Harry smacking his forehead. He could live his life happier without Sirius and Lupin knowing just how close he was placed in Slytherin.

The door swung open at once. A tall, black-haired witch in emerald-green robes stood there. She had a very stern face and Harry's first thought was that this was not someone to cross.

"Yet, Mr. Potter..." said McGonagall calling over to Harry.

"I keep crossing you left and right." said Harry with a small smile.

"The firs' years, Professor McGonagall," said Hagrid.

"Thank you, Hagrid. I will take them from here."

She pulled the door wide. The entrance hall was so big you could have fit the whole of the Dursleys' house in it.

"I never noticed, but, you're right, the Great Hall is about that size." said one of the third year Slytherins, remembering the Dursley's house.

The stone walls were lit with flaming torches like the ones at Gringotts, the ceiling was too high to make out, and a magnificent marble staircase facing them led to the upper floors.

"Good, Potter, take in your surroundings. Very good." said Moody, nodding his head.

They followed Professor McGonagall across the flagged stone floor. Harry could hear the drone of hundreds of voices from a doorway to the right-the rest of the school must already be here-

The teachers and some of the Ministry workers were impressed by this. The doors were quite thick and it was almost impossible to hear anything through those doors. But Potter heard several hundred people. He must have some very sensitive ears.

but Professor McGonagall showed the first years into a small, empty chamber off the hall. They crowded in, standing rather closer together, than they would usually have done, peering about nervously.

"Aww, scared little first years are so adorable!" said Fred sweetly and clasping his hands and bringing them under his chin.

"Welcome to Hogwarts," said Professor McGonagall. "The start-of-term banquet will begin shortly,

Ron's stomach rumbled. Ginny and Hermione slowly looked over at him.

"Ron, breakfast was fifteen minutes ago." said the both of them slowly. Harry laughed.

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.

Several people bumped fists with their housemates and others high-fived each other.

You will have classes with the rest of your House, sleep in your House dormitory, and spend free time in your House common room.

"I heard about this so-called free time, never got to experience myself." said Harry with a smirk. People across the hall laughed. Neither had they.

"The four Houses are called Gryffindor,

Gryffindors stood up and cheered

Hufflepuff,

Hufflepuffs also stood and shouted

Ravenclaw,

Ravenclaws jumped to their feet and raised their voices

and Slytherin.

Slytherins bounded out of their chairs bellowed out their support

Each House has its own noble history and each has produced outstanding witches and wizards.

"See, Ron, Slytherins aren't all that bad." said Harry and Hermione. Hermione looked at Harry quickly. Harry shrugged,

"I've been trying to tell him this for years."

"Name one good wizard from Slytherin, after You-Know-Who." said Ron stubbornly.

"Alastor Moody." said Harry quickly.

"Ah. Right. Well then never mind." said Ron looking over to Mad-Eye, looking sheepish.

While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn your House points, while any rule breaking will lose House points.

"Whatever points we lose, cause of our male stupidity, Hermione makes up for it." said Ron giving Hermione a one armed hug. Hermione blushed.

"You guys aren't stupid, at least I know that now." she said stifling a giggle.

We're guys, Hermione, and we were YOUNG boys, granting us the opportunity to be the biggest prats on the planet. Ron and I would like to offer a blanket for everything we say to you in these books." said Harry, slightly switching back to his restricted self.

Hermione laughed and nodded vigorously. "Only if you accept mine."

"In a heartbeat." said both Ron and Harry.

At the end of the year, the House with the most points is awarded the House cup, a great honor. I hope each of you will be a credit to whichever House becomes yours.

"I don't know if we are, Ron, but everyone else did become a credit to their houses."

"Even Malfoy, Harry?" said Ron with his eyebrows raised in mock surprise.

Harry looked over to Malfoy, and Malfoy stared at him.

"Even Malfoy."

Malfoy's stare widened.

"The Sorting Ceremony will take place in a few minutes in front of the rest of the school. I suggest you all smarten yourselves up as much as you can while you are waiting."

Her eyes lingered for a moment on Neville's cloak, which was fastened under his left ear,

"Wow, Harry, you do notice everything!" said Neville laughing with everyone else. Harry mouthed an apology.

and on Ron's smudged nose.

"Again with the nose?" said Ron throwing his hands up in surrender.

Harry nervously tried to flatten his hair.

"When I said smarten up, Harry, I didn't mean you. I knew your hair was a lost cause." said McGonagall kindly down to him.

"I shall return when we are ready for you," said Professor McGonagall. "Please wait quietly."

"Never happens." said Flitwick, looking at all the students.

She left the chamber. Harry swallowed.

"Wow, Harry, you were nervous?" squeaked a small first year Hufflepuff.

"Weren't you?" said Harry with an eyebrow raised. The little Hufflepuff blushed.

"How exactly do they sort us into Houses?" he asked Ron.

"Some sort of test, I think. Fred said it hurts a lot, but I think he was joking."

Bill stood up and took Fred by the ear and dragged him out of the Hall. Luna stood and waited for them to come back. And they did, Bill was pulling Fred along by the arm, while Fred's free hand was massaging his rear.

Harry heart gave a horrible jolt. A test! In front of the whole school?

"Most kids would focus on the 'hurt' part." said Sirius sadly.

But he didn't know any magic yet-

"Really?" said Hermione with widened eyes.

Harry shrugged, "Hagird told me I couldn't use magic, outside of school. I knew the incantations, but didn't practice it.

what on earth would he have to do? He hadn't expected something like this the moment they arrived. He looked around anxiously and saw that everyone else looked terrified, too. No one was talking much except Hermione Granger,

Neville smiled over to Hermione. "You tend to talk a lot when you're nervous." he said kindly

who was whispering very fast about all the spells she'd learned and wondering which one she'd need. Harry tried not to listen to her.

"Sorry Hermione, but you weren't helping anyone at all. Made the rest of us feel a little bad."

He'd never been more nervous, never, not even when he'd had to take a school report home to the Dursleys saying that he'd somehow turned his teacher's wig blue.

"What? Harry, how could she blame you for turning her wig blue?" said Dumbledore looking intently.

"Well, she was a substitute teacher, and she had a very high opinion of herself. She wanted to be a college teacher, not primary school. She handed out a test, a college level math test, just to make us feel inferior. She collected all of our papers after we were done. She saw mine, and told me that I must have cheated. Which told me that I got at least some of the questions right. She called me a cheater, and some other names, no profanities, but she got close a few times. I was ticked, all of a sudden, her hair turned blue. It was real funny. She danced around when she saw her reflection, she wanted to take the wig off, but it wouldn't come off. She glared at me and at the end of the day, she sent the letter home with me." said Harry with a small smile, but it was wiped off at the end.

Some of the students were gaping at Harry, they knew what college was, and how hard it was. And in primary school he managed to pass a college math test! After Harry described his teacher dancing around with blue hair, more people started to laugh loudly.

Sirius then groaned, "What happened when you got home?" People stopped laughing and clapping.

Harry sighed. "That was the first time I was sent to the hospital. They waited, a day or two, then brought me to the hospital. They said that a stray dog attacked me. When the hospital asked what the dog looked like, they made it seem like they couldn't remember the dog. Though the dog was faked."

"Wasn't the hospital afraid of you getting rabies?" said Hermione placing her hands on her head, wanting to block out his words.

"I had to undergo rabies treatments for a dog attack that never happened." said Harry bitterly.

"Didn't they have to pay for it?" said Ron and Charlie.

"No, the RSPCA, came and asked me a few questions though. Uncle Vernon kept answering them for me, saying I was too traumatized. I think he made damn sure there wasn't enough evidence to say that the dog didn't have rabies. Getting all those shots really sucked." said Harry bitterly.

"What are shots?" asked Malfoy.

"It's a small thick needle that Muggles use to send in, how to put this, a muggle potion. They puncture your skin and push the potion into your blood. Drinking it doesn't make it work."

People paled. They did that multiple times?

He kept his eyes fixed on the door. Any second now, Professor McGonagall would come back and lead him to his doom.

"Yeah, I know I'm a drama king." said Harry with a laugh, causing everyone to start laughing.

Then something happened that made him jump about a foot in the air-

"It didn't look like you jumped a foot in the air, Harry. Then again, you might have, cause if I remember correctly, I jumped three feet in the air." said Dean.

several people behind him screamed.

"What the-?" said Lupin quickly

"What the-?"

He gasped. So did the people around him. About twenty ghosts had just streamed through the back wall.

"I forgot, 'The Annual Ghostly Introduction.' They do it every year." said Lupin chuckling to himself.

"I know and every time I'm in here before sorting, I hear the screams." said Harry with a smile.

"Wait, you aren't in here every year?" said Sirius questioningly.

Pearly-white and slightly transparent, they glided across the room talking to one another and hardly glancing at the first years. They seemed to be arguing . What looked like a fat little monk

"That's the Friar!" said the Hufflepuff students.

was saying: "Forgive and forget, I say, we ought to give him a second chance-"

"My dear Friar, haven't we given Peeves all the chances he deserves? He gives us all a bad name and you know, he's not really even a ghost-I say, what are you all doing here?"

"They say the same thing every year, never changing. They actually really like Peeves, adds some spice to their after-life." said Dumbledore smiling.

A ghost wearing a ruff and tights had suddenly noticed the first years.

"That's Nick!" said almost all the Gryffindors.

Nobody answered.

"Not even you, Granger?" said Pansy snidely.

"I remember you almost fainted." said Draco absently to Pansy.

Pansy glared at him and whispered furiously. "Why are you defending her?"

"I'm tired of being the bad guy. I want what Potter wants, to be my own person, not a carbon copy of my father." he said loudly, getting up and moving his chair away from her and Crabbe and Goyle and went to sit beside Professor Snape. She glared at him and snarled.

Harry, surprising everyone including Malfoy and Umbridge, applauded. Slowly everyone else, beside Crabbe, Goyle and Pansy and Umbridge, clapped. To the cheers of a majority of the school Malfoy ripped the Inquisitorial Squad badge off his chest and threw it on the floor, and stamped on it.

"New students!" said the Fat Friar, smiling around at them.

"About to be Sorted, I suppose?"

A few people nodded mutely.

"Hope to see you in Hufflepuff!" said the Friar. "My old House, you know."

"Move along now," said a sharp voice. "The Sorting Ceremony's about to start."

Professor McGonagall had returned. One by one, the ghosts floated away through the opposite wall.

"Also part of the standard "Ghostly Introduction." said McGonagall with a smile on her lips.

"Now, form a line," Professor McGonagall told the first years, "and follow me."

Feeling oddly as though his legs had turned to lead, Harry got into line behind a boy with sandy hair,

"That would be me!" said Seamus with a raised hand.

with Ron behind him,

"Is it just me, or does Ron always have Harry's back?" said Ernie with a broad smile.

"Not always." said Ron sadly.

"What do you mean?" said Mrs. Weasely, a little concerned. Ron looked down in shame and refused to answer her.

and they walked out of the chamber, back across the hall, and through a pair of double doors into the Great Hall.

Harry had never even imagined such a strange and splendid place. It was lit by thousands and thousands of candles that were floating in midair over four long tables, where the rest of the students were sitting. These tables were laid with glittering golden plates and goblets. At the top of the hall was another long table where the teachers were sitting.

"Good observation skills." mumbled Moody

Professor McGonagall led the first years up here, so that they came to a halt in a line facing the other students, with the teachers behind them. The hundreds of faces staring at them looked like pale lanterns in the flickering candlelight. Dotted here and there among the students, the ghosts shone misty silver.

"It was really scary, but I wouldn't have traded it for the world." said a third year.

Mainly to avoid all the staring eyes, Harry looked upward and saw a velvety black ceiling dotted with stars. He heard Hermione whisper, "It's bewitched to look like the sky outside. I read about it inHogwarts, A History."

"Were you watching me?" said Harry playfully.

Hermione blushed deeply, "Sort of, I wanted to keep telling you all the things I learned. Sorry about that."

"It's alright. You don't need to say sorry, we already put in place a blanket apology remember?" he smiled broadly over to her.

It was hard to believe there was a ceiling there at all, and that the Great Hall simply didn't open to the heavens

"Your descriptions are quite picturesque, Harry. You should write music." said Dumbledore happily.

"I did write something once. During the summer." said Harry quietly.

"I would..." started Dumbledore.

"Trust me, you don't." said Harry quickly.

Harry quickly looked down again as Professor McGonagall silently placed a four legged stool in front of the first years. On top of the stool she put a pointed wizard's hat. This hat was patched and frayed and extremely dirty. Aunt Petunia wouldn't have let it in the house.

"Albus, could you make a copy of that hat? Just the appearance, I want to toss it in the holding cell of the Dursleys." said McGonagall viciously.

Maybe they had to try and get a rabbit out of it, Harry thought wildly,

"I take it, it's a muggle magic trick." said Malfoy.

"That's right." said Harry and Hermione

that seemed the sort of thing-noticing that everyone in the hall was now staring at the hat, he stared at it too. For a few seconds, there was complete silence. Then the hat twitched. A rip near the brim opened wide like a mouth-and the hat began to sing.

Luna stopped reading. She turned towards Harry and said:

"Harry can you sing the Sorting Hat Song? I would like to hear you sing again." she said looking over to Harry.

Then everyone, excluding Umbridge, began to clap and urge him on to sing, they hadn't heard him sing in such a long time, despite it only be a few days.

"I don't..."

"Come on Harry, we would love to hear you sing again." said Sirius.

Harry sighed and took the book Luna handed to him, cleared his throat and sang, his voice transcending from a soft tenor to (Flitwick was correct) a strong and vibrant baritone. People leaned forward, no one made any funny comments on the song, they just drank in music.

"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!"

The school all began to clap and shout, Harry blushed, handed the book and tried to cover his face. Sirius whispered in his ear:

"You need to go into the music business. You've already got a huge fan base here." he grinned with a large evil smile. Harry took a cushion and bopped him on the head.

The whole hall burst into applause as the hat finished its song.

"As did we just now, only it was Harry and not the hat!" shouted Dennis.

It bowed to each of the four tables and then became quite still again.

"So we've just got to try on the hat!" Ron whispered to Harry. 'I'll kill Fred, he was going on about wrestling a troll."

"Bill, you already smacked me for it!" shouted Fred after Bill smacked him on the back of the head.

Harry smiled weakly. Yes, trying on the hat was a lot better than having to do a spell, but he did wish they could have tried it on without everyone watching.

"It was nerve racking." said Harry quietly.

The hat seemed to be asking rather a lot; Harry didn't feel brave or quick-witted or any of it at the moment. If only the hat had mentioned a House for people who felt a bit queasy, that would have been the one for him.

"I felt the same way, Harry, when I came." said Dumbledore kindly.

Professor McGonagall now stepped forward holding a long roll of parchment.

"When I call you name, you will put on the hat and sit on the stool to be sorted ," she said. "Abbot, Hannah!"

Hannah turned pink when her house and some of the others clapped for her.

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 Hufflepuff house clapped wildly.

The table on the right cheered and clapped as Hannah went to sit down at the Hufflepuff table. Harry saw the ghost of the Fat Friar waving merrily at her.

"Bones, Susan!"

People then began to clap for her.

"HUFFLEPUFF!" shouted the hat again, and Susan scuttled off to sit next to Hannah.

The Hufflepuffs didn't cease clapping.

"Boot, Terry!"

Terry stood up and took a bow.

"RAVENCLAW!"

The Ravenclaws started clapping.

The table second from the left clapped this time; several Ravenclaws stood up to shake hands with Terry as he joined them.

"Brocklehurst, Mandy" went to Ravenclaw too, but "Brown, Lavender" became the first new Gryffindor, and the table on the far left exploded with cheers; Harry could see Ron's twin brothers catcalling.

Amidst the cheering for the respective students, Fred and George did a repeat performance of the catcalling.

"Bulstrode, Millicent" then became a Slytherin. Perhaps it was Harry's imagination, after all he'd heard about Slytherin, but he thought they looked like an unpleasant lot.

"You look it and you sometimes act it, but there are decencies about you." said Harry smiling over to the Slytherins. Sirius and Snape looked at Harry in the utmost shock.

He was starting to feel definitely sick now.

Before Mrs. Weasely could come over and ask him if he really was alright, he said he was fine and to reassure her, he took a big bite of gingerbread.

He remembered being picked for teams during gym at his old school. He had always been last to be chosen, not because he was no good,

"Damn straight! We saw you play football, you were the best on the field!" said Dean excitedly.

"When did you see me play?" said Harry brows furrowed.

"In the first scroll, you were awesome, we all cheered for you!" said a frail first year girl. She squeaked and blushed deeply.

Harry smiled down at her. He conjured a tiger lily and handed it to her. "Thank you."

"Why did you conjure up a lily?" asked Lupin.

"It's my favorite flower." said Harry simply. The little girl blushed even deeper.

but because no one wanted Dudley to think they liked him.

Growls etched their ways acrossed the Hall again.

"Finch-Fletchley, Justin!"

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

Again, cheers ran rampant across the hall, erasing the growls.

Sometimes, Harry noticed, the hat shouted out the House at once, but at others it took a little while to decide. "Finnigan, Seamus," the sandy-haired boy next to Harry in the line, sat on the stool for almost a whole minute before the hat declared him a Gryffindor.

"It couldn't decide whether to send me to Hufflepuff or Gryffindor." said Seamus answering the unasked question.

"Granger, Hermione!"

Hermione almost ran to the stool and jammed the hat eagerly on her head.

"GRYFFINDOR!" shouted the hat. Ron groaned.

"RONALD WEASELY!" screeched Mrs. Weasely. Hermione, stood up and said:

"He's already apologized, they both have. It's fine.

A horrible thought struck Harry, as horrible thoughts always do when you're very nervous.

"Very wise thinking, Harry." said Luna.

What if he wasn't chosen at all? What if he just sat there with the hat over his eyes for ages, until Professor McGonagall jerked it off his head and said there had obviously been a mistake and he'd better get back on the train?

"Oh Harry, I wished you had spoken up, I've had several students, both boys and girls tug at my robes and ask for reassurance. We've even had to administer Calming Draughts to some students." said McGonagall, feeling a bit ashamed.

When Neville Longbottom, the boy who kept losing his toad, was called, he fell over on his way to the stool. The hat took a long time to decide with Neville. When it finally shouted, "GRYFFINDOR," Neville ran off still wearing it, and had to jog back amid gales of laughter to give it to "MacDougal, Morag."

"Sorry again." said Neville to Morag MacDougal.

Malfoy swaggered forward when his name was called and got his wish at once: the hat had barely touched his head when it screamed, "SLYTHERIN!"

"I wouldn't have it any other way." said Malfoy quietly. He always wanted to be a Slytherin ever since he was a child. He had heard wonderful stories that his mother had told him about her days at school.

Malfoy went to join his friends Crabbe and Goyle, looking pleased with himself.

There weren't many people left now.

"Moon"..."Nott"..."Parkinson"...then a pair of twin girls, "Patil" and "Patil"..., then "Perks, Sally-Anne"...and then, at last-

"Potter, Harry!"

As Harry stepped forward, whispers suddenly broke out like little hissing fires all over the hall.

"Potter, did she say?"

"The Harry Potter?"

People awaited for the reason why it took him so long to get sorted.

The last thing Harry saw before the hat dropped over his eyes was the hall full of people craning to get a good look at him. Next second he was looking at the black inside of the hat. He waited.

"Hmm," said a small voice in his ear. "Difficult. Very difficult. Plenty of courage, I see. Not a bad mind either. There's talent, oh my goodness, yes-and a nice thirst to prove yourself, now that's interesting...So where shall I put you?"

"Wow, that means you could have went in any house, Harry!" said Bill thinking out loud.

"He's right Harry, you have the courage and nerve that Godric Gryffindor took pride in. You have the loyalty and diligence that Helga Hufflepuff treasured. You have the intellect and wisdom that Rowena Ravenclaw held dear and you have the cunning and as I said many years ago, a certain disregard for the rules. You are quite a unique individual." said Dumbledore with his eyes twinkling.

Harry gripped the edges of the stool and thought, Not Slytherin, not Slytherin.

"We wouldn't have accepted you anyway, Mr. Potter." said Umbridge. Her nose high in the air, and looking down at Harry with disgust.

Both Snape and Malfoy sent her a dark look.

"Good, we'll take him!" shouted the twins.

"Not Slytherin, eh?" said a small voice. "Are you sure? You could be great, you know, it's all here in your head, and Slytherine will help you on the way to greatness, no doubt about that-no? Well, if you're sure-better be GRYFFINDOR!"

"The hat said what?" said Lupin looking over to Harry.

"Said I could be in Slytherin." said Harry, not in a worried tone but in a calm one.

Lupin and Sirius looked at each other nodded and smiled at Harry.

"Whatever house you would have been placed in, we wouldn't care or love about you any less" they said together.

"Thanks Sirius...Remus." said Harry.

Lupin looked at Harry in shock and then he smiled. A broad and bright smile, one like he hadn't given to anyone in over fourteen years.

Harry heard the hat shout the last word to the whole hall. He took off the hat and walked shakily toward the Gryffindor table.

"You didn't look like you were walking shakily." said Hermione

He was so relieved to have been chosen and not put in Slytherin, he hardly noticed that he was getting the loudest cheer yet. Percy the Prefect got up and shook his hand vigorously, while the Weasely twins yelled. "We got Potter! We got Potter!"

They repeated their performance.

Harry sat down opposite the ghost in the ruff he'd seen earlier. The ghost patted his arm, giving Harry the sudden, horrible feeling he'd just plunged it into a bucket of ice cold water.

"It is a shock when they do that, but they mean well." said Justin with a slight shiver.

He could see the High Table properly now. At the end nearest him sat Hagrid, who caught his eye and gave him the thumbs up.

Hagrid smiled warmly down at Harry.

Harry grinned back.

He did so again.

And there, in the center of the High Table, in a large gold chair, sat Albus Dumbledore. Harry recognized him at once from the card he'd gotten out of the Chocolate Frog on the train. Dumbledore's silver hair was the only thing in the whole hall that shone as brightly as the ghosts.

Dumbledore smiled brightly.

Harry spotted Professor Quirrell, too, the nervous young man from the Leaky Cauldron. He was looking very peculiar in a large purple turban.

Harry, Ron and Hermione all snarled.

And now there were only four people left to be sorted. "Thomas, Dean," a Black boy even taller than Ron,

"Now we're the same height."

joined Harry at the Gryffindor table. "Turpin, Lisa," became a Ravenclaw and then it was Ron's turn. He was pale green by now. Harry crossed his fingers under the table

"Thank goodness luck was on your side that day."

and a second later the hat had shouted, "GRYFFINDOR!"

Harry clapped loudly with the rest as Ron collapsed into the chair next to him.

"Well done, Ron, excellent," said Percy Weasely pompously

Percy turned pink.

across Harry as "Zabini, Blaise," was made a Slytherin. Professor McGonagall rolled up her scroll and took the Sorting Hat away.

Harry looked down at his empty gold plate. He had only just realized how hungry he was. The pumpkin pasties seemed ages ago.

Lupin reached down into his pocket and handed him two chocolate bars.

"I'm not hungry." said Harry looking at the chocolate in Lupin's hands.

"Deal with it, every time I hear you're hungry in these books, I'm giving you something to eat. Makes Sirius and I feel better."

Harry sighed and took the chocolate.

Albus Dumbledore had gotten to his feet. He was beaming at the students, his arms opened wide, as if nothing could have pleased him more than to see them all there.

"I seem to be easy to read, to you, Harry." said Dumbledore looking over to him.

"You really like us being here sir?" said a first year Hufflepuff.

"Of course I do. Every teacher here, shares the same feeling I do." said Dumbledore brightly. McGonagall coughed loudly and nodded towards Umbridge.

"Well...most of us" he said still brightly.

"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!"

"My best speech." said Dumbledore his eyes twinkling. Students fifth year and up nodded.

"This just proves how, senile, you've gotten." said Umbridge sneering over to the venerable old man.

Students and guests turned to her with fury shooting from their eyes.

"The day he's gone senile is the day you're voted 'Best Teacher' by the students." retorted Harry. Several shouted in agreement, and only a three students shouted her to be 'Second' or 'Third' best teacher.

He sat back down. Everybody clapped and cheered. Harry didn't know whether to laugh or not.

"Is he-a bit mad?" he asked Percy uncertainly.

"That was the only time that I remember calling you mad, sir." said Harry weakly. Dumbledore chuckled warmly.

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

"I feel that way again, now." said Percy to himself, his father gave him a one arm hug.

Harry's mouth fell open. The dishes in front of him were now piled with food. He had never seen so many things he liked to eat on one table: roast beef, roast chicken, pork chops and lamb chops, sausages, bacon and steak, boiled potatoes, roast potatoes, roast potatoes, fries, Yorkshire pudding, peas, carrots, gravy, ketchup, and , for some strange reasons, peppermint humbugs.

Ron's stomach grumbled again.

"Can't you wait, Ron?" said Neville with his eyes raised. He knew about Ron's appetite and love of food, but he never thought it was THIS big.

The Dursleys had never exactly starved Harry,

"You were only kidding yourself, Harry." said Sirius and Mrs. Weasely together.

but he'd never been allowed to eat as much as he liked. Dudley had always taken anything that Harry really wanted, even if it made him sick.

"Stupid, fat, selfish, greedy, git!" snarled students across the Hall

Harry piled his plate with a bit of everything except the peppermints and began to eat. It was all delicious.

"Best food I've ever had, till I went to the Weasely's." said Harry looking over to Mrs. Weasely, who blushed.

"That does look good," said the ghost in the ruff sadly, watching Harry cut up his steak.

"I love steak." said Lupin fondly, licking his lips.

"That's the wolf in him, he's a big meat and chocolate kinda guy. Screw the potatoes." said Sirius sniggering.

"Can't you-?"

"I haven't eaten for nearly five hundred years," said the ghost. "I don't need to, of course, but one does miss it. I don't think I've introduced myself? Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington at your service. Resident ghost of Gryffindor Tower."

"I know who you are!" said Ron suddenly. "My brothers told me about you-you're Nearly Headless Nick!"

"I would prefer you to call me Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-" the ghost began stiffly,

"He came up with that nickname, though." said Lupin looking thoughtful.

but sandy-haired Seamus Finnigan interrupted,

"Nearly Headless? How can you be nearly headless?"

Sir Nicholas looked extremely miffed, as if their little chat wasn't going at all the way he wanted.

"No, it IS going the way he wants. He loves scaring all the first year Gryffindors like that. Peter's reaction is his favorite, fainted dead away." said Sirius smiling wickedly. "Too bad it didn't kill him outright." he added with a growl.

"Like this." he said irritably. He seized his left ear and pulled. His whole head swung off his neck and fell onto his shoulder as if it was on a hinge. Someone had obviously tried to behead him, but not done it properly. Looking pleased at the stunned looks on their faces,

"See?" said Sirius gesturing towards the book.

Nearly Headless Nick flipped his head back onto his neck, coughed, and said, "So-new Gryffindor! 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."

"I would let him act any way he wanted." said Malfoy quietly.

Harry looked over at the Slytherin table and saw a horrible ghost sitting there, with blank staring eyes, a gaunt face, and robes stained with silver blood. He was right next to Malfoy who, Harry was pleased to see, didn't look too pleased with the seating arrangements.

"I wasn't either." he said even quieter.

"How did he get covered in blood?" asked Seamus with great interest.

"I've never asked," said Nearly Headless Nick delicately.

"How much do you want to bet Ron, Hermione and Harry find out how it happened, before they graduate?" said Fred and George.

"I'll take that bet, I say they don't." said Malfoy.

"Five Galleons?" said the twins, Malfoy nodded.

"Where did you get that much money?" questioned Mr. and Mrs. Weasely.

"Ummm...savings..."they said meekly. Neither of their parents bought that excuse, but they didn't pursue it.

When everyone had eaten as much as they could, the remains of the food faded from the plates, leaving them sparkling clean as before. A moment later the desserts appeared. Blocks of ice cream in every flavor you could think of, apple pies, treacle tarts,

"I love treacle tarts. Love treacle anything really." said Harry fondly closing his eyes and smiling.

chocolate ĂŠclairs

"Tell me you know how to make those!" said Lupin eagerly, he smiled broadly when he saw Harry nodded.

"I take it, that you're the designated cook at our place then." said Sirius with a smile.

"I wouldn't have it any other way." said Harry happily.

and jam doughnuts, trifle, strawberries, Jell-O, rice pudding...

As Harry helped himself to a treacle tart, the talk turned to their families.

"I'm half-and-half," said Seamus. "Me dad's a Muggle. Mom didn't tell him she was a witch 'til after they were married. Bit of a nasty shock for him."

The others laughed.

"That wasn't a funny statement." snarled Professor Snape.

"Professor Snape is right, Mr. Finnigan. Was your father abusive in any way?" said Professor Dumbledore seriously, the twinkling gone from his eyes.

"No, not in any sense of the word. It was a shock, but he got over it, we're best friends, we've always been." said Seamus quickly.

"What about you, Neville?" said Ron.

"Ron, we've talked to you about different families, including Augusta and her family." admonished Mrs. Weasely.

"I forgot, I was getting sleepy and I forgot." Ron said defending himself.

"Well, my gran brought me up and she's a witch," said Neville, "but the family thought I was all-Muggle for ages. My Great Uncle Algie kept trying to catch me off my guard and force some magic out of me-

"Accidental magic doesn't work that way, Neville." said Harry, pulling out his little black notebook and flipping the pages, people waited to hear his take on it, but he said nothing.

he pushed me off the end of Blackpool pier once, I nearly drowned-

The same growling that went on during the parts that mentioned the Dursleys, were now growling towards Neville's Great Uncle Algie.

"Hey now, my great uncle was always an odd duck. He never tried to hurt me intentionally. He would always use his wand to stop me from getting hurt. And when my gran found out about all this she kicked him out for over a year.

but nothing happened until I was eight. Great Uncle Algie came round for dinner, and he was hanging me out of an upstairs window by my ankles when my Great Auntie Enid offered him a meringue and he accidentally let go.

"She didn't know I was there!" Neville said loudly to the growling crowd.

But I bounced-all the way down the garden and into the road.

"That would be the spiritual core releasing a short burst of magic. Because of the times your Great Uncle tried to get magic out of you, your core shut it self away to protect itself. Your core is still trying to start up from the forced shut down." said Harry calmly.

"How long will it take to get going?" said Neville quickly.

"Well, keep up with the D.A practices and you should be fine. I'd say a few more months and your core will open fully like it should be. Also a new wand wouldn't hurt. Wielding your father's wand wasn't and isn't helping you."

"How long did you know I had my father's wand?" said Neville, his eyes big and round.

"Quite a while." said Harry calmly.

They were all really pleased, Gran was crying, she was so happy.

"Wasn't after she learned what Uncle Algie did to cause me to bounce from the second floor and into the road." said Neville.

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."

"Mixed messages that is." muttered Ron. "Pleased and punishing you." he added silently laughing. Neville was listening and he laughed too.

On Harry's other side, Percy Weasely and Hermione were talking about lessons ("I do hope they start right away, there's so much to learn, I'm particularly interest in Transfiguration, you know, turning something into something else, of course, it's supposed to be very difficult-"; "You'll be starting small, just matches into needles and that sort of thing-").

"Never saw anyone so excited for classes." said Percy with a smile towards Hermione.

Harry, who was starting to feel warm and sleepy, looked up at the High Table again. Hagrid was drinking deeply from his goblet. Professor McGonagall was talking to Professor Dumbledore. Professor Quirrell, in his absurd turban, was talking to a teacher with greasy black hair, a hooked nose, and sallow skin.

Snape glared at Harry, and was shocked to see Harry look down in shame.

"Sorry, Professor..." he said quietly.

It happened very suddenly. The hook-nosed teacher looked past Quirrell turban straight into Harry's eyes -and a sharp, hot pain shot across the scar on Harry's forehead.

"Say what?"

"Pain? In his scar?"

"Does that mean.."

"If it's in the books..."

"Then it's true..."

"He does get pain in his scar!"

"What does that mean?"

Snape sat in amazement, as did Dumbledore. Harry sensed Voldemort behind Quirrell's turban!

Umbridge wasn't in the least bit happy, but she shrugged it off. Brat must already be losing whatever mind he had. Good, any more of these spasms of pain, and he will be chucked into before the next book was finished!"

"Ouch!" Harry clapped a hand to his head.

"What is it?" asked Percy.

"N-nothing."

"SEE! HE DOES LIE" screamed Fudge and Umbridge.

"Only when he doesn't want anyone to know he's hurting." shouted Ron bitterly.

The Weaselys, the rest of the staff, the guests, and the two men sitting in the bowl with him all turned to look at him in concern.

The pain had gone as quickly as it had come. Harder to shake off was the feeling Harry had gotten from the teacher's look-a feeling that he didn't like Harry at all.

Now it was Snape's turn to look down in shame.

"Who's the teacher talking to Professor Quirrell?" he asked Percy.

"Oh, you know Quirrell already, do you? No wonder he's looking so nervous, that's Professor Snape. He teaches Potions, but he doesn't want to-everyone knows he's after Quirrell's job. Knows an awful lot about the Dark Arts, Snape."

Snape shrugged, he did know a lot, about the Dark Arts.

Harry watched Snape for a while, but Snape didn't look at him again.

At last, the desserts too disappeared, and Professor Dumbledore got to his feet again. The hall fell 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. 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 Weasely twins.

The twins, Harry, Ron and Hermione all smiled mischievously. The adults around them all groaned.

"I have also been asked by Mr. Filch, the caretaker, to remind you all that no magic should be used between classes in the corridors.

"Tries to enforce it, never works." said Dumbledore still smiling.

"Quidditch trials will be held in the second week of the term. Anyone interested in playing for their House teams should contact Madam Hooch.

"Or scaring your Head of House nearly senseless." said Professor McGonagall smiling at Harry.

"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."

"Huh? What? What did you say?" said Sirius looking past Lupin and Harry to look at Dumbledore.

But he wasn't listening, Dumbledore was looking down, I should have done more than just warn them, barriers or something. thought Dumbledore. But then the thought bitterly, I wanted Harry to fight Him, wanted him to meet the man, the monster, that took his family. I should have been there, sooner not later. What a monstrous old man I have carved myself to be. Dumbledore looked darkly at the floor. He looked up and saw a levitating crystal phial of Calming Draught. Dumbledore looked over at Harry and saw him waving his wand above his head and without looking at Dumbledore or the phial, lifted the Draught.

Harry laughed, but he was one of the few who did.

"He's not serious?" he muttered to Percy.

"Dead serious." said Ron.

"Must be," said Percy, frowning at Dumbledore. "It's odd, because he usually gives us a reason why we're not allowed to go somewhere-the forest's full of dangerous beasts, everyone knows that. I do think he might have told us prefects, at least."

"I didn't even let the Head Boy or Head Girl what was down that corridor."

"And now, before we got to bed, let us sing the school song!" cried Dumbledore. Harry noticed that the other teacher's smiles had become rather fixed.

"Oh Potter, must you be so observant?" said Professor Flitwick covering his eyes. Dumbledore laughed.

Dumbledore gave his wand a little flick, as if he was trying to get a fly off the end, and a long golden ribbon flew out of it, which rose high above the tables and twisted itself, snakelike, into words.

"Everyone pick their favorite tune," said Dumbledore, "and off we go!"

And the school bellowed:

"I want to hear Mr. Potter sing again!" cried Professor Flitwick. The rest of the school cheered once more.

"Do I have to?" whimpered Harry softly to Sirius.

"Most definitely." said Sirius.

"But, I already sang today!" whined Harry. Lupin smiled down at him.

"Too bad, Professor Flitwick wants to hear you sing, and so do we. Come on Harry, there's not many times we get to hear you sing."

"Come on Harry! Just this last song! We promise! No more singing today!" chanted the school.

Harry sighed in defeat. He scratched his head and thought of a tune. Nothing he could think of would fit the school song, till he thought of a song that he had heard once. He was in Mrs. Figgs and thought it was the most wonderful song he had heard. He flipped through the notebook on his lap and found the lyrics and the notes he had written down quickly when he heard it the second time. Reading the notes and keeping tempo with his thumb and forefinger, He sang the school song

"Hogwarts, Hogwarts, Hoggy Warty Hogwarts,

Teach us something please,

Whether we be old and bald

Or young with scabby knees.

Our beads 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 all rot."

When he was done singing, he blushed as the school and the guests gave him a standing ovation. He laid back down in the bowl and attempted to bury his head in the covers.

"What melody was that from, Mr. Potter?"

"Umm...Whistle Down the Wind..." said Harry quietly.

"Can you sing it for us Harry?" said Hermione excitedly.

"Hermione, you and the rest of the school promised me I wouldn't have to sing anymore today!" said Harry rolling his eyes and frowning at Hermione.

Hermione looked disappointed and pouted.

"That was very pretty Harry, you should sing professionally. I'm sure Stubby will give you some tips." said Luna, pointing to Sirius.

Sirius turned around, expecting to see another person behind the bowl. But no one was there. He turned back to Luna and pointed to himself.

"Are you talking about me?"

"Luna, he isn't Stubby Boardman. He's Sirius Black, he's always been Sirius Black." said Lupin kindly.

"We went to go see him and 'The Hobgoblins' in concert though once, if you can call it a concert anyway. Didn't you throw a turnip at him once?" said Sirius.

"Yeah, I saved up money to take my girlfriend to the best restaurant in England, and she ditches me for the bloody Hobgoblins. So I took Sirius with me and I tossed the turnip. She always was a big fan of his."

"He had nothing to do with your girlfriend acting like that!" said Hermione, slightly scolding her ex-Professor.

"She was onstage with him, snogging him. Just declared that he going to take her on a date. She accepted. I tossed the turnip and broke up with her the next time I saw her. She wasn't happy."

Everybody finished the song at different times. At last, only the Weasely twins were left singing along to a very funeral march.

"Why did you pick a funeral march?" asked Ron laughing.

"Cause we did Opera the year before." said Fred.

"And Yodeling the year before that." said George.

Dumbledore conducted their last few lines with his wand and when they had finished, he was one of those who clapped loudest.

"We were amazed you had the patience to wait for us, sir." said the twins grinning at Dumbledore.

"I enjoy all forms of music, if it has a melody, I love it." said Dumbledore beaming at them.

"Ah, music," he said, wiping his eyes. "A magic beyond all we do here! And now, bedtime. Off you trot!"

The Gryffindor first years followed Percy through the chattering crowds, out of the Great Hall, and up the marble staircase. Harry's legs were like lead again, but only because he was so tired and full of food. He was too sleepy even to be surprised that the people in the portraits along the corridors whispered and pointed as they passed, or that twice Percy led them through doorways hidden behind sliding panels and hanging tapestries. They climbed more staircases, yawning and dragging their feet, and Harry was just wondering how much farther they had to go when they came to a sudden halt.

"Hmm..you weren't too tired not to take in your surroundings. Very impressive, Potter." said Kingsley nodding approvingly.

A bundle of walking sticks was floating in midair ahead of them, and as Percy took a step toward them they started throwing themselves at him.

"Three guesses who that is!" cried the Weasely twins excitedly.

"Peeves," Percy whispered to the first years. "A poltergeist." He raised his voice, "Peeves-show yourself."

A loud, rude sound, like the air being let out of a balloon, answered.

"He always had quick wit." said Professor Flitwick, whispering to Professor Snape who snorted slightly.

"Do you want me to go to the Bloody Baron?"

"Now, now Mr. Weasely. Do try and give him a sporting chance." said Dumbledore shaking a finger at the third oldest Weasely kindly. Percy blushed.

There was a pop, and a little man with wicked, dark eyes and a wide mouth appeared, floating cross-legged in the air, clutching the walking sticks.

"Oooooooh!" he said, with an evil cackle. "Ickle Firsties! What fun!"

"He never introduces himself to the first years with the rest of the ghosts. He always waits and meets them when there is no teacher present." said Professor McGonagall.

He swooped suddenly at them. They all ducked.

"Go away, Peeves, or the Baron'll hear about this, I mean it!" barked Percy.

"Baron won't listen to you, Weasely, you know that. He only listens to his Slytherins. Anyone else, he ignores." said Snape giving a sneer to the graduate.

"I want in on the bet, I say Harry doesn't find out what happened to Baron! Ten Galleons." said Blaise walking over and dropping ten galleons in a tin the twins conjured up.

A few more Slytherins walked over and dropped some money in the tin. Hermione was the official wager writer.

Peeves stuck out his tongue and vanished, dropping the walking sticks on Neville's head.

"Oh, Neville, he didn't hurt you? Did he?" said Luna, running a hand over Neville's head. Neville blushed and muttered that he was alright.

They heard him zooming away, rattling coats of armor as he passed.

"You want to watch out for Peeves," said Percy, as they set off again. "The Bloody Baron's the only one who can control him, he won't even listen to us prefects.

"He has no need to listen to Prefects, only teachers and Head Boy and Girl. And barely the Head Students.

Here we are."

At the very end of the corridor hung a portrait of a very fat woman in a pink silk dress.

"How did you know it was silk, Harry?' asked Hermione.

"Aunt Petunia's Cocktail dresses were made of silk."

"Password?" she said.

All the other houses leaned in close. What sort of passwords did Gryffindors have?

"Caput Draconis," said Percy, and the portrait swung forward to reveal a round hole in the wall. They all scrambled through it- Neville needed a leg up-

"Thanks again Ron, Harry." said Neville

and found themselves in the Gryffindor common room, a cozy, round room full of squashy armchairs.

"Hey, their house doesn't sound anything different than ours!" pouted a disappointed Hufflepuff.

"The only differences are: the color theme of the rooms, the location, and the odd assortment of activities." said Dumbledore.

"What do you mean, sir?" said one of the first years from the Slytherin table.

"Well, for the Slytherin house, you have quite a bit of what? Mr. Douglas?"

"W-well," he stammered, amazed he was addressed to personally by the headmaster. "there are a lot of bookshelves and puzzles."

"Very good, do you enjoy them, the puzzles?" he said nodding.

"Oh, yes sir! I love puzzles! Especially the wooden ones!"

"Wonderful! And, Mr. Baker, what happens to be the activities in the Ravenclaw house?" he said addressing another first year.

"Umm-there are books like what Baker said, and there are chessboards all over. I love chess, next week I'm gonna challenge Ron to a game!" he said excitedly. Dumbledore chuckled as Ron blushed.

"Mr. O'Reily, what happens to lie about the Hufflepuff common room?" he said addressing a Hufflepuff first year this time.

"We'll, there are a lot of games about the house, and according to my dad, Gryffindor is the same way."

"Very good. There are some similarities and some differences, but nothing you would rather trade for anything. Except for those horrid Gryffindor curtains on the beds. I set fire to them once. Accidental of course." he said beaming as the students fell on the floor laughing.

Harry smiled, Dumbledore told him that story at the end of last year to try and cheer him up, it worked.

Percy directed the girls through one door to their dormitory and the boys through another. At the top of a spiral staircase-they were obviously in one of the towers-

"We're in the dungeons." piped Douglas.

"We're near the Greenhouses" shouted O'Reily

"We're in a western tower." yelled Baker.

they found their beds at last: five four-posters hung with deep red, velvet curtains. Their trunks had already been brought up. Too tired to talk much, they pulled on their pajamas and fell into bed.

"Great food, isn't it?" Ron muttered to Harry through the hangings. "Get off, Scabbers! He's chewing my sheets."

"I don't know why he would do that." said Lupin thoughtfully. People who didn't know who Scabbers really was, which was a majority of the school, looked at the man in confusion.

Harry was going to ask Ron if he'd had any of the treacle tart, but he fell asleep almost at once.

"Explained why you didn't answer me." smirked Ron.

Perhaps Harry had eaten a bit too much, because he had a very strange dream.

"Happens to me all the time." said Ron.

He was wearing Professor Quirrell's turban, which kept talking to him, telling him he must transfer to Slytherin at once, because it was his destiny.

"Creepy turban." shivered Colin.

"You have no idea." moaned Ron, Harry and Hermione.

Harry told the turban he didn't want to be in Slytherin; it got heavier and heavier; he tried to pull it off but it tightened painfully-and there was Malfoy, laughing at him as he struggled with it-

Malfoy paled.

then Malfoy turned into the hooked-nosed teacher, Snape,

Then Snape paled.

whose laugh became high and cold-there was a burst of green light and Harry woke, sweating and shaking.

Lupin and Sirius turned white and quickly turned towards Harry,

"I don't remember that dream." he said quietly.

He rolled over and fell asleep again, and when he woke the next day, he didn't remember the dream at all.

"That explains it." said Harry with a blank expression.

"That is the end of the chapter. Who would like to read next?" asked Luna, looking around to the rest of the school dreamily.

"I'll take it!" said Bill. He stood up and accepted the book from Luna.

The Potion Master

"This won't be good." said Snape shaking his head.

Professor McGonagall looked over to him in confusion.