About a Girl

During this whole time, Remus lay sleeping quietly, his head against the cool glass of the window, causing it to loll and bob with the motion of the train. The now dimming sunlight casting a shadow over his face, which made his scars stand out even more.

I started to wonder what had happened to him that could have caused such deep scars.

Suddenly a voice boomed through the train: "We will be reaching Hogwarts in five minutes' time. Please leave your luggage on the train, it will be taken to the school separately." We all got up from our seats and prepared for the adventure that lie ahead.

The train came to a bumpy halt, signaling our arrival. By now, the sky was dark and littered with stars and we all began to pile out of the train out into the brisk evening.

"Firs' years! Firs' years over here!" This gargantuan bearded man roared, causing some of the younger students to cowl in fear. "C'mon, follow me! Mind yer step, now! Firs' years follow me!"

The giant led us through the woods by a little pathway that opened up at the edge of a large black lake.
From there we could very clearly see the magnificent castle, perched high upon the mountain top.

He directed us to a multitude of little boats and directed that there was to be no more than four students per boat.

Eleanor, Remus, this girl named Lily and I decided to share a boat.
It didn't take long for us to reach the castle grounds, we docked in an underground harbor and we were led up a flight of steps all the way up to a large oak door.

The doors immediately swung open and we were greeted by a dark-haired, stern-faced woman.

"Welcome to Hogwarts, first years! We hope you enjoy your stay! I am Professor McGonagall. I teach Transfigurations, I am Deputy Headmistress, and I am also head of Gryffindor house. In just a moment, we will be going into the Great Hall to have you all sorted. Now, form a line and follow me..."

I could feel my heart pounding in my chest, and I knew by the expressions on Remus' and Eleanor's face that they too were also nervous about the sorting ceremony. We followed her nonetheless.

She led through a pair of very large, oak doors and into the Great Hall. The vast room was lit up by hundreds of thousands of candles that hung in midair. Lining the hall were four long tables, one for each house.

She led us past the all of the seated students, their faces peering at us curiously, some of them even daring to smirk or to point fingers. Finally we came to a halt in a line formation in front of the staff table, facing the the crowd.

McGonagall produced a three-legged stool, and a battered and patched up wizard's hat. Placing the hat on the stool, a flap near the bottom opened up, and the old hat began to sing.

Once the stool had finished his song, and after incessant applause from the crowd, McGonagall spoke.

"When I call your name, please come forward, put the hat on your head and sit down. Once it calls out your house, head over to your future house mates at the corresponding tables. Aaron Anchorage!"

One by one the students got called up to the stool, one by one they got sorted into their respected houses. With each and every passing name I could feel my heart sink deeper into my shoes.

Finally the time had come, "Mildred Belthazar!" When I heard my name I felt my body tense up and my legs seemed stiff as planks. I somehow managed to make it onto the stool. My heart was knocking in my chest as she brought the hat down over my head. Without really making contact with it shouted "Slytherin!"

I was somehow disappointed even though I had known all along that I was to be sorted in Slytherin like the rest of my family. I walked over to the Slytherin table and grabbed a seat next to a first year that I didn't recognize and waited for the ceremony to come to a close.

When all was said and done, Remus had been sorted into Gryffindor as well as many others and Eleanor had surprisingly been sorted into Slytherin!