It Could Have Gone That Way; A Harmione Fanfiction

Chapter 2: Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone

"Welcome to Hogwarts!" Professor McGonagall's voice rang out across the sea of excited first years,"The start-of-term banquet will begin shortly but, before you take your seats, you will be sorted into your houses. This is a very important ceremony because, while you are here, your house becomes somewhat 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 Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin. Each house has its own noble history and each has produced exceptional wizards and witches. While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn you house points whereas any rule-breaking shall lose you them. At the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded the House Cup, a great honour.

"The ceremony shall begin in just a few minutes in front of the rest of the school. I suggest you smarten up your uniforms." Her eyes lingered for a moment on Ron, Crabbe and Goyle's scruffy states,"I shall return when we are ready for you. Please wait quietly."

Harry nervously tried to flatten his hair down whilst hanging on to McGonagall's every word. As she left the chamber, he asked Ron,"Er...so, how exactly do they sort us into houses?"

"Some sort of test, I think. Fred said it hurts a lot, but I think he was joking." Ron, despite his words, looked as though he thought Fred had been being completely serious.

Harry anxiously looked around him and noticed that everyone else looked terrified too. No one was talking much, and those who were kept their voices at a whisper.

He then caught sight of Hermione Granger. She was all the way on the other side of the chamber, without anyone to talk to. Harry thought about pushing through the crowd to go and talk to her, but then decided that he probably wouldn't make it over there without creating some sort of havoc amongst the anxious first years.

Hermione looked over at Harry, who was still staring at her, and gave him a small, nervous smile. He grinned back. Then, Ron tapped him on the shoulder and started asking him whether or not Harry thought that Fred had been joking when he had said that the test would hurt a lot.

Harry had been about to open his mouth to tell Ron that he was sure that the test wouldn't hurt at all, when something happened which made him jump about a foot in the air and made several people behind him scream.

He watched in amazement as nearly twenty ghosts streamed through the back wall. Pearly-white and slightly transparent, they floated across the room, hardly noticing the first years.

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When Professor McGonagall had returned, she led them all into a humongous room which she had called the Great Hall. Four long tables ran the length of the room with empty gold platters sitting on top of them. At these tables sat many students - some old and some young - all wearing the same uniforms. On each table, however, the students were wearing different coloured ties which, Harry assumed, matched the colours of their house.

At the far end of the hall stood another long table at which the teachers sat. But Harry was no longer looking at these tables, for he and many other first years were gazing up at the ceiling. It was velvety black and dotted with stars; it was beautiful.

"It's bewitched to look like the sky outside. I read all about it in Hogwarts; a History." Hermione Granger whispered to him, making him jump.

"Oh, hi!" He said as cheerily as he could,"It's lovely, isn't it?"

"Yes it is. I could stare at it for ages." The stars on the ceiling were reflected beautifully in her eyes as she gazed up at them longingly.

"I'm going to have to borrow that book of yours, this is great!"