The New Marauder

Sixteen

Together with Cedric, Fred, and George, we follow the flow of traffic to make sure we can get out of the train. I breathe a sigh of relief when the chilled crisp air hits my face. I find it really comforting; the greasy smells coming off the trees remind me of the forests back home.
"Firs' years! Firs' years over here!" A deep voice calls out, catching our attention.
"We should probably—"
"Yeah," I agree with Sam, walking towards the swinging lantern up ahead.
"Firs' years, c'mon over here!" The voice calls out again.
Getting closer, I nudge Sam's ribs. "It's that guy from the Leaky Cauldron," I point out.
"I wonder what he wants with us."
"Alrigh', is this the lot of you?" He asks the small group of us, running the lantern over the tops of our heads probably to get a good look. "Righ' then, follow me," he says, leading us in the opposite direction of everyone else. "C'mon, mind yer step, now."
Walking carefully, he leads us down a narrow, slippery, steep path. It was so dark, and the big man had the only light which I did not like one bit. "How is this supposed to be safe?" I whisper to Sam.
"Dunno, but it's already ten times more exciting than our trip to Ilvermorny," he whispers back.
"Yeh'll get yer firs' sight o' Hogwarts in a sec." The hairy man says over his shoulder. "Jus' around this bend here."
Up ahead, there was a loud gasp, but I didn't look up in fear of possibly breaking my ankle. I didn't have to wait long, for the narrow path opened up a bit wider as the slippery stone turned into hard-impacted sand that edged a great black lake.
"Ori, don't forget to remind me to thank you for wanting to keep you company," Sam whispers, looking upward.
Following his gaze, I suck in a sharp breath. Standing tall on a huge mountain, a shadow of a majestic castle shimmered in the moonlight.
"No more'n four to a boat," the big man called out, pulling my gaze from the awesome sight.
"Come on," Sam said, pulling on the sleeve of my robes, leading me over to a fleet of small boats.
"We'll ride with Cedric, he looks like he's gonna be sick" Fred calls out excitedly from the one next to ours.
Getting more and more nervous as we wait for everyone to find a boat, I start fidgeting with my hand as I begin to count the millions of yellow squares glowing on the castle walls.
"Everyone in?" He shouted loudly, sitting in his boat. "Right then—FORWARD!"
My heart drops to my stomach as the little boat lurches forward and starts gliding across the inky surface. I might know how to swim, but judging by the creep level this lake is scoring, you couldn't pay me enough to dip my toes in it. Taking a calming breath like Anna taught me to do, I look upwards and start to count the sweet-looking turrets. I wonder if I can manage to sneak in those suits of armor so that way Sam and I—
"Heads down!" I hear being shouted across the glassy surface as the first boat up ahead reaches the cliffs heading towards a curtain of green ivy.
Not wasting any time, I bend forward and tuck my head between my knees, all while silently praying we don't get poison ivy or worse, crash.
"You can sit up now, Ori," Sam whispers in my ear.
Trusting him fully, I straighten my back only to see that we're now in a long dark tunnel. "Oh great, this is where they kill us," I mumble.
"You've watched too many scary movies," Sam laughs. "I think we're under the castle," he whispers.
"That's not as comforting as you think it is, Sam."
"Look, I see a light up ahead; we'll be fine," he sighs back.
I keep my eyes on the light until it turns into a cool underground harbor. The crest where the water met land was made up of thousands of small colorful rocks that look almost like marbles. Once the boat hits land, I was the first to scramble to my feet and hop out of it while Sam and our new friends chuckle at my stress.
"Not funny," I blush, pushing Sam towards the water.
"This way," he calls out loudly, making us flinch as his deep voice echoes throughout the cavern.
He leads us up a pathway hidden in the solid rock wall. No one says anything as we keep climbing, following the dull light of the lantern up ahead. "Oh thank god," I sigh when we reach fresh air once more.
"I can't wait to tell Theo—"
"You better not say a thing, Sam," I cover his mouth with a laugh. "If you do, then I'll tell your mom what really happened to your first broomstick."
In a split second, he has my wrists in his hands, pulling them away. "You wouldn't."
"Oh, I very much would, Samuel Uley," I grin.
"Oi, you two there." We both look up, realizing we are way behind our group. "C'mon, gotta keep up." He waves us over.
"Can't believe you got us in trouble, Ori," Sam whines as we rush towards the man standing at the top of a set of stairs.
"I didn't," I breathe out, coming to a stop behind the twins. "You're the-"
Suddenly, the great wooden doors we didn't notice open, flooding us and the lawn behind us in a warm light. For the first time since we left the train, I feel a real smile form on my lips as Professor McGonagall steps out, giving all of us a stern look. "The firs' years, Professor McGonagall," the hairy man says before stepping away.
"Thank you, Hagrid. I will take them from here." She nods, pulling the door wide open and gesturing us forward.
The entrance hall was so big I could probably build a house in it. The entire place was lit with flaming torches that didn't waver when a cool breeze filtered through the open doors. Maybe I should talk to Anna about putting some of these outside Grimmauld Place. We continue to follow Professor McGonagall up the marble staircase that looks like they came from Gringotts themselves until we stop at another set of doors with hundreds of voices buzzing behind it.
"Welcome to Hogwarts," she says to us sternly. "The start-of-term feast 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 dormitories, and spend time in your House common room."
She takes a breath, looking us all over. "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 honor. I hope each of you will be a credit to whichever House becomes yours." She nods directly to me. "The Sorting Ceremony will take in a few minutes in front of the whole school. I suggest you all smarten yourselves up as much as you can while you are waiting." She finishes before walking through the door.
"Holy shit. The whole school?" I breathe out.
"Don't worry; I had to do a ceremony like this in front of everyone at Ilvermorny, only it didn't have a feast afterward," Sam says, patting me on the back. "What house do you think you'll be in?"
"Anything but Slytherin will make me happy," I answer, thinking about my family. "I heard a rumor—"
A loud shriek cuts me off as we look up at the first sign of the twenty pearly white, kinda transparent figures floating in the air. I move behind Sam, pushing him towards the arguing ghosts.
"New students!" A different ghost wearing a fancy-looking bonnet and tights says from behind me. "About to be Sorted, I suppose?" He asks, looking at me and Sam.
"Hope to see you in Hufflepuff!" A big fat monk-looking ghost calls out. "My old house, you know."
"Move along now," Professor McGonagall's sharp voice said. "The Sorting Ceremony's about to start." She shoos them on then turns to us. "Now form a line and follow me.
Swallowing my fear, I move in between Cedric and Sam, with Cedric leading us. My hands start to shake, and my heart picks up speed as we each make our way through yet another set of double doors.
Since that night in the Leaky Cauldron, I thought I knew what to expect when walking into the famous Great Hall after skimming through Hogwarts: A History. Yet, for the first time in my life, it seems like my books have failed me. I stare in awe at the clear night sky glowing off the moon above hundreds of lit candles that float in the air effortlessly. Nervously I count four extremely long tables covered with golden utensils, plates, and cups on the stone floor and then the fifth up on a stone platform at the top of the hall, filled with teachers of all ages in a variety of different colored robes.
Walking closer, I scan the adults until my eyes find the only person here who can settle my nerves fully. I give Uncle Theo a tiny wave, which he returns by sticking both thumbs up in the air, beaming back at me. "You got this!" He mouths, throwing me a wink.
Feeling better, I straighten my back and hold my head up with pride as Professor McGonagall sets down a four-legged stool, placing an old battered hat full of patches and sewed tears on top of it. The deafening silence blankets the entire hall as we crowd around the hat and wait.
Just as I was about to look up, the hat twitched a little, freaking me out. Yeah, I'm probably one of the few kids here that has seen Nightmare Before Christmas, yeah not a big fan of the Boogeyman when I was younger. I cannot express how much this thing looks like it was made from him and Professor McGonagall wants me to put it on my head?! Hasn't she seen any movies at all?
When the hat lifted itself up, opening a long rip along the bottom, I felt myself about to bolt out of the hall, Sam must have knew cause he grabbed my arm to keep me rooted there pretty quick.