Chương 6: Dumbledore

"Hmm . . ." Chris heard the hat's voice in her head. "Braveheart . . . intelligent brain . . . loyal to the core . . . and determined to prove yourself. I think you will do good in every house. Hufflepuff, maybe . . . but then . . . hmm. . ."

Chris waited for a while but as the silence stretched she spoke in her mind, "Er . . . sorting hat? Have you made your choice yet?"

"No, no," said the sorting hat. "It's far more difficult than all of my sorting through centuries. You could be a great Hufflepuff but it shouldn't be. . . I need to dive deeper into your mind but there's something -- Tell me, what house do you want yourself to join?"

"I will happy to go to whatever house you put me in. But my choice is Ravenclaw, probably," Chris replied. "That's the house of smart and creative people. I can totally see myself there. But of course, you should know better than me."

"Yes, you have the qualities of a Ravenclaw and in fact, it will be perfect for you. Yes, yes, Ravenclaw," the sorting hat then paused for a few more seconds before calling out, "GRYFFINDOR!"

"Wait, what? I thought you said Ravenclaw?" Chris said out loud but again her voice was drowned by the cheering Gryffindors. So Chris spoke in mind, "What was that? Why did you change your mind?"

"I wish you all the luck and I assure you, you will be a great Gryffindor," the sorting hat replied in a monotonous way. "Also, I have some duty to this school and I am bound with it."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Chris asked but there was no reply.

"Miss Norton?" Professor McGonagall called and Chris took off the hat feeling confused.

"Everything okay, Miss Norton?" Professor McGonagall asked and Chris realised everyone in the hall was staring at her.

"The hat . . . it . . . nothing, I am fine," Chris dropped the hat on the stool and squaring her shoulders walked towards the Gryffindor table. On the way, she caught Luna's eyes and gave a sad look but Luna smiled encouragingly at her.

Chris sat down beside a dark tall boy as Professor McGonagall called the next students.

"What took you so long?" the boy asked.

"Huh?" Chris looked up at him surprised.

"I meant why were you sitting so long after the hat declared your house?" The boy explained.

"Oh, I was just . . . talking to the hat."

"Really? Anyway, welcome to Gryffindor. The most fun house in Hogwarts," he smiled. "I am Dean Thomas."

"Christina Norton," Chris shook hands with the boy.

Suddenly the boy beside Dean Thomas pulled him to the other side and whispered something. Dean's eyes widen as he broke into a huge smile. Soon, the entire Gryffindor table was buzzing with some exciting news. Chris saw Hermione a little far on the table and saw her looking very nervous and shocked. Chris was about to ask what had happened when Professor McGonagall called Ginny's name. Chris looked up and saw Ginny making her way to the stool. The hat took a minute before he announced, "Gryffindor!"

Ginny quickly walked towards the Gryffindor table looking relieved. She smiled at Chris as she sat down beside her.

"Congrats sis," a boy with same red hair as Ginny, said to her before Chris could say anything.

Ginny grinned in reply.

"So guess who just sneaked into the castle a few moments ago?" The boy said gleefully and Ginny's smile dropped.

"Who?" Ginny took a sharp breath and looked as if she knew the answer.

"Our little brother Ron and Harry," the boy said smirking.

"Well that fast," Chris whispered.

"Welcome!" Chris heard a voice and saw the old teacher in the middle of the teachers' table was beaming at the students, his arms opened wide, "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!"

He was about to sit back when Professor McGonagall came close to him and whispered something and they both left the great hall.

"What? What did he mean by those words?" Chris looked surprised.

"He is a little bit mad but great man our headmaster Dumbledore," the same red-haired boy said.

"Do you think Ron will be expelled?" Another same looking boy said, who was sitting opposite to them.

Ginny went pale.

"Why will the school expel them?" Chris said looking at the boys, assuming they're Ginny's twin brothers.

"Someone saw a car crashing into that killing tree, Whomping Willow," One of the twins answered.

Ginny gasped, "Do you think it's our ca--"

"Ginny!" The twins shouted at once and gave Chris a weird look.

"I trust Chris," Ginny said.

Chris was surprised by Ginny's so easy instinct to trust her and she didn't know if it was smart or stupid.

"Well, if not then there's always the memory charm. We can just make her forget," one of the twins grinned.

"Don't mind them, Chris, they are my brothers, Fred and George," Ginny said half-heartedly. She was clearly shaken by her brother Ron's stunt.

"I know now why you were worried about your brother on the train," Chris whispered. "But maybe they won't expel them, who knows?"

"What do think Chris? Isn't it a wicked entry? By a flying car?" Fred asked Chris.

"I think it's only good if they get away with it," Chris replied and noticed Ginny's expression. "I mean I hope they don't get expelled."

Chris looked back at the table which was now full of food. There was everything on the table: roast beef, roast chicken, pork chops and lamb chops, sausages, bacon and steak, boiled potatoes, roast potatoes, chips, Yorkshire pudding, peas, carrots, gravy, ketchup and, for some strange reason, mint humbugs. Ginny was nervously moving her food and didn't eat much. George and Fred were almost celebrating their brother's heroics with a few other Gryffindors. Chris honestly didn't know how to react, she got the sense that Gryffindors had taken the definition of "Heroics" into next level and breaking the rules were part of their fun. So she tried to concentrate on the roasted chicken which was delicious.

"Good evening first years. Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington at your service, the resident ghost of Gryffindor Tower," A pearly-white and slightly transparent ghost glided towards their table.

This time Chris was terrified, she never saw a ghost before. In the muggle world, ghost meant horror, fear, bad things and here they have house ghost? She stared at him and the ghost noticed her look.

"Never seen a ghost before?" Sir Nicholas, the ghost asked her.

She shook her head as no.

"Muggle-born?" He asked and Chris nodded.

"Get a grip on yourself, you'll have a teacher, who is a ghost," He said and glided to other side laughing.

Chris took some deep breaths and felt very excited thinking about how strange it would be to take lessons from a ghost teacher. Next second Chris's face lit up as she saw the plates. 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 puddings appeared. Blocks of ice-cream in every flavour she could think of, apple pies, treacle tarts, chocolate eclairs and jam doughnuts, trifle, strawberries, jelly, rice pudding. Chris happily started to eat the deserts. When the puddings too disappeared Chris noticed Professor Dumbledore had returned along with Professor McGonagall.

"Ahem - just a few more words now we are all fed and watered. I have a few start-of-term notices to give you. First-years should note that the forest in 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 twins. "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. Quidditch trials will be held in the second week of term. Anyone interested in playing for their house teams should contact Madam Hooch. And now, before we go to bed, let us sing the school song!" Dumbledore cried the last line. 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 snake-like into words. "Everyone picks their favourite tune," said Dumbledore, "and off we go!" And the school bellowed: "Hogwarts, Hogwarts, Hoggy Warty Hogwarts, Teach us something please, Whether we be old and bald Or young with scabby knees, Our heads 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 forgotten, Just do your best, we'll do the rest, And learn until our brains all rot."

Everybody finished the song at different times. At last, only the Weasley twins were left singing along to a very slow funeral march. Dumbledore conducted their last few lines with his wand, and when they had finished, he was one of those who clapped loudest.

'Like seriously? Wasn't that Hat's song long enough?' Chris rolled her eyes.

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

The Gryffindor first-years followed Percy, the prefect through the chattering crowds, out of the Great Hall and up the marble staircase. Percy was clearly disturbed by Ron and Harry's entry. But he tried not to take that out on the first years. He tried to be polite as much as possible. They crossed many talking portraits and moving staircase. Chris loved the moving pictures thing. It felt like they were alive and it was fun to watch. But these moving staircases were clearly going to be very hard to remember, she thought. After climbing very up they stepped into a corridor, which had a portrait of a very fat woman in a pink silk dress hanging at the end.

"Password?" she said.

"Wattlebird," said Percy, and the portrait swung forward to reveal a round hole in the wall.

All entered and found themselves in the Gryffindor common room. A cosy, round room full of squashy armchairs. Percy directed the girls through one door to their dormitory and the boys through another. After climbing the spiral staircase in the tower, they found their beds at last: four-posters hung with deep-red velvet curtains. Their trunks had already been brought up. Chris and Ginny were in the same room with the other two girls. But before they could introduce each other there was a sudden applause sound coming from the common room.

Ginny looked at Chris and they both ran downstairs. As expected they saw, two boys surrounded by all Gryffindors.

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