/𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐑𝐒\ [𝒔. 𝒃𝒍𝒂𝒄𝒌]

𝟏.𝟛.𝟣

"to be nobody but yourself in a world which is doing its best day and night to make you like everybody else means to fight the hardest battle which any human being can fight and never stop fighting." ~ E.E. Cummings

When Artemis stepped into the entrance hall of the school, she felt smaller than she had in her entire life. The ceiling seemed to rise above them for miles and each of the decorations probably cost more than her whole house. She stayed close to Remus because all of the other faces were too unfamiliar. The first years were gathered into an entrance hall in front of an enormous set of oak doors. The hall was filled with low voices, but nobody dared to speak above a whisper. Remus and Artemis stood shoulder to shoulder, both silently staring around in wonder. Lily stood a few feet to Artemis's other side, whispering hurriedly to Severus.

Everybody fell silent as a tall, thin woman with a sharp face and dark brown hair twisted into a tight knot stepped to the front of the group and cleared her throat once. "Attention!" she said in a strong, carrying voice. "I'd like to personally welcome you to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. My name is Professor McGonagall, and I am the deputy headmistress to Albus Dumbledore. If you should need anything during your time here, you can come to me or your head of house." McGonagall's eyes swept over the group of eleven year olds, and then froze on Artemis's face. Her mouth twitched slightly and she seemed to lose her train of thought, but she recovered so soon Artemis started to think she imagined it. "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 rulebreaking will lose house points. 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. 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."

It was a lot to take in, and Artemis stopped listening after McGonagall mentioned houses. Percy had told her all about the sorting ceremony, assuring her over and over she'd be in Slytherin, but she was still nervous about getting up in front of the entire school. She didn't have much time to think about it, though, because at that moment, the doors swung open and Professor McGonagall appeared again, beckoning the children inside. The Great Hall was larger than Artemis ever imagined, and when the students entered, every head turned to face them. Artemis tossed her hair behind her shoulder and held her head higher, careful not to look directly at any of the older kids.

When McGonagall started reading off names, Artemis tapped her fingers on her leg to relieve some of the tension growing in her chest. "McKinnon, Marlene!" a tall blonde girl with rosy cheeks and pouty lips was the first to be sorted.

"Gryffindor!"

"Catchlove, Greta!"

"Ravenclaw!"

Then, "Black, Sirius!" Artemis saw a boy with shaggy black hair, cut unevenly like he'd tried to do it himself, and piercing dark eyes. There was something familiar in the way he walked, the way he tilted his chin up and avoided everyone's gaze. He looked totally calm, except for a slight tremor in his left hand. He took the sorting hat and set it on his head, then sat down on the little stool.