The Lost Twin

Chapter 3

Well, I hate the former chapter. I really do, to less randomness. anyway
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The door swung open at once. A tall, black-haired witch in emerald-green robes stood there. She had avery stern face and Arielle's first thought was that she should be careful with her pranks around her. "The firs' years, Professor McGonagall." said Hagrid. "Thank you, Hagrid. I will take them from here." She pulled the door wide. The entrance hall was so big you could have fit the whole of the her house in it. The stone walls were lit with flaming torches like the ones at Gringotts, the ceiling was too high to make out, and a magnificent marble staircase facing them led to the upper floors. They followed Professor McGonagall across the flagged stone floor. Arielle could hear the drone of hundreds of voices from a doorway to the right "The rest of the school must already be here." She muttered softly so that only she herself could hear it. but Professor McGonagall showed the first years into a small, empty chamber off the hall. They crowded in, standing rather closer together than they would usually have done, peering around nervously. "Welcome to Hogwarts, " said Professor McGonagall. "The start-of-term banquet will begin shortly, butbefore 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 freetime 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." Her eyes lingered for a moment on Neville's cloak, which was fastened under his left ear, and on Ron's smudged nose. Harry nervously tried to flatten his hair, while Arielle resisted the urge to make herself look dirtier. "I shall return when we are ready for you." said Professor McGonagall. "Please wait quietly." She left the chamber. Harry swallowed. "How exactly do they sort us into houses?" he asked Ron. "Some sort of test, I think. Fred said it hurts a lot, but I think he was joking." Arielle frowned. A test? In front of the whole school? What on earth would they make them do? She looked around bored and saw that everyone else looked terrified. She looked to her side and saw that Harry was very anxious. She nudged him and gave him a smile. Arielle saw that he calmed down a bit, although he still was very doubtful. No one was talking much except Hermione Granger, who was whispering very fast about all the spells she'd learned and wondering which one she'd need. Arielle looked around, wondering where Kiara was... When al of sudden she heard a bark behind her. She turned and saw to her delight that it was Kiara. She kneeled down and scratched his ears. "I wonder if they mind if she stays with me..." She muttered thoughtfully tapping her chin. She shrugged and grinned, it doesn't matter. If it did then she would jinx them to eat poop... She let out a giggle when she imagined it. Then several people behind her screamed. She looked up weirdly "What the --?" Harry gasped. So did the people around him. About twenty ghosts had just streamed through the back wall. Pearly-white and slightly transparent, they glided across the room talking to one another and hardly glancing at the first years. They seemed to be arguing. What looked like a fat little monk was saying:"Forgive and forget, I say, we ought to give him a second chance --" "My dear Friar, haven't we given Peeves all the chances he deserves? He gives us all a bad name and you know, he's not really even a ghost -- I say, what are you all doing here?"A ghost wearing a ruff and tights had suddenly noticed the first years. Nobody answered, Arielle, that already knew about the ghosts and seen them before spoke up: "We're the new students." "New students!" said the Fat Friar, smiling around at them. "About to be Sorted, I suppose?"A few people nodded mutely, while Arielle didn't bother to speak up again. "Hope to see you in Hufflepuff!" said the Friar. "My old house, you know." "Move along now, " said a sharp voice. "The Sorting Ceremony's about to start." Professor McGonagall had returned. One by one, the ghosts floated away through the opposite wall. "Now, form a line, " Professor McGonagall told the first years, and follow me." Arielle walked behind Harry, who got into line behind a boy with sandy hair, with Ron behind her, and they walked out of the chamber, back across the hall, and through a pair of doubledoors into the Great Hall. Arielle heard a bark behind her and saw Kiara she smiled and told her quietly to keep next to her. Then she looked around the room, it was lit by thousands and thousandsof candles that were floating in midair over four long tables, where the rest of the students were sitting. These tables were laid with glittering golden plates and goblets. At the top of the hall was another long table where the teachers were sitting. Professor McGonagall led the first years up here, so that they came to a halt in a line facing the other students, with the teachers behind them. The hundreds of faces staring at them looked like pale lanterns in the flickering candle light. Dotted here and there among the students, the ghosts shone misty silver. Arielle looked upward and saw a velvety black ceiling dotted with stars. She heard Hermione whisper, "Its bewitched to look like the sky outside. I read about it in Hogwarts, A History." Arielle smiled when she looked at the sky, it reminded her of home. Arielle lazily looked down again as Professor McGonagall silently placed a four-legged stool in front of the first years. On top of the stool she put a pointed wizard's hat. This hat was patched and frayed and extremely dirty. She could almost hear Harry's thoughts "Maybe they had to try and get a rabbit out of it" She put her hand for ehr mouth to stop her from laughing. Yes, that would be something that Harry would of thought. She noticed that everyone in the hall was now staring at the hat, she stared at it, too. For a few seconds, there was complete silence. Then the hat twitched. A rip near the brim opened wide like a mouth -- and the hat began to sing:"Oh, you may not think I'm pretty, But don't judge on what you see, I'll eat myself if you can find a smarter hat than me. You can keep your bowlers black, Your top hats sleek and tall, For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat and I can cap them all. There's nothing hidden in your head the Sorting Hat can't see, So try me on and I will tell you where you ought to be. You might belong in Gryffindor, Where dwell the brave at heart, Their daring, nerve, and chivalry Set Gryffindors apart; You might belong in Hufflepuff, Where they are just and loyal, Those patient Hufflepuffis are true And unafraid of toil; Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw, if you've a ready mind, Where those of wit and learning, will always find their kind; Or perhaps in Slytherin you'll make your real friends, Those cunning folk use any means to achieve their ends. So put me on! Don't be afraid! And don't get in a flap! You're in safe hands (though I have none). For I'm a Thinking Cap!" The whole hall burst into applause as the hat finished its song, Arielle clapping with them. It bowed to each of the four tables and then became quite still again. "So we've just got to try on the hat!" Ron whispered to them. "I'll kill Fred, he was going on about wrestling a troll." She saw Harry smiling weakly, no doubt going on about something pessimistic again in his head. Arielle wanted to stretch, but refraind. That would be to oblivious in a row full of nervous first-years. Professor McGonagall now stepped forward holding a long roll of parchment. "When I call your name, you will put on the hat and sit on the stool to be sorted." she said. "Abbott, Hannah!"A pink-faced girl with blonde pigtails stumbled out of line, put on the hat, which fell right down over her eyes, and sat down. A moment later-- "HUFFLEPUFF!" shouted the hat. The table on the right cheered and clapped as Hannah went to sit down at the Hufflepuff table. Arielle yawned and thought about doing a little prank. She quickly decided against it, not wanting detention before having some food. "Bones, Susan!" "HUFFLEPUFF!" shouted the hat again, and Susan scuttled off to sit next to Hannah. "Boot, Terry!" "RAVENCLAW!"The table second from the left clapped this time; several Ravenclaws stood up to shake hands with Terry as he joined them. "Brocklehurst, Mandy" went to Ravenclaw too, but "Brown, Lavender" became the first new Gryffindor, and the table on the far left exploded with cheers; Arielle heard see Ron's twin brothers catcalling. "Bulstrode, Millicent" then became a Slytherin. Arielle scratched her head, she didn't really want to go in Slytherin. It seemed like that house wouldn't be able to stand a prankster. "Finch-Fletchley, Justin!" "HUFFLEPUFF!" Arielle began jumping slightly, so that it wouldn't be noticable, from her spot. She was bored and wanted to sit. "Finnigan, Seamus. " the sandy-haired boy next to Harry in the line, sat on the stool for almost a whole minute before the hat declared him a Gryffindor. "Granger, Hermione!"Hermione almost ran to the stool and jammed the hat eagerly on her head. "GRYFFINDOR!" shouted the hat. Ron groaned. Ariellie could see the anxious look on his face. She face palmed slightly and nudged him in his side. "Don't worry, it will work out somehow. It always does." She whispered to him. He looked a bit more relieved and stood a bit more relaxed. When Neville Longbottom, the boy who kept losing his toad, was called, he fell over on his way to the stool. The hat took a long time to decide with Neville. When it finally shouted, "GRYFFINDOR, " Neville ran off still wearing it, and had to jog back a mid gales of laughter to give it to "MacDougal, Morag. " Arielle frowned, poor boy. Already has become a bit of a laughing stock. Malfoy swaggered forward when his name was called and got his wish at once: the hat had barely touched his head when it screamed, "SLYTHERIN!"Malfoy went to join his friends Crabbe and Goyle, looking pleased with himself. There weren't many people left now. "Moon" "Nott" "Parkinson" then a pair of twin girls, "Patil" and"Patil" then "Perks, Sally-Anne" and then, at last -- "Potter, Arielle!" As Arielle stepped forward, whispers suddenly broke out like little hissing fires all over the hall. "Potter, did she say? There was only one Potter right?" "Arielle Potter? Since when is there another Potter?" Arielle frowned annoyed, again refraining from jinxing them. The last thing Arielle saw before the hat dropped over her eyes was the hall full of people craning to get agood look at her. Next second he was looking at the black inside of the hat. She waited impatiently. "Hmm." said a small voice in her ear. "Difficult. Very difficult. Plenty of courage, I see. Not a bad mind either. There's talent, A my goodness, yes-- and a nice thirst to prove yourself, now that's interesting.... So where shall I put you?" She gripped the edges of the stool and thought, Hurry up already... Just put me where I can prank a lot. She grinned "Pranking, eh?" said the small voice. "I know a certain pair of twins who can only think about pranking... So... GRYPHINDOR!" She heard the hat shout the last word to the whole hall. She took off the hat and walked confidently towards the Gryffindor table. She was kind of relieved to not been put in Slytherin, they seemed kind of stuck up, she hardly noticed that she was getting quite a loud cheer. Arielle sat down opposite the ghost in the ruff she'd seen earlier, leaving some space for Harry. "Potter, Harry!" "Potter, Harry did she say?" "The Harry Potter?" "Again." Arielle muttered, rolling her eyes. She saw Harry gripping the edges of the stool after some time. "GRYPHINDOR!" Arielle finally heard the hat shout. Harry took off the hat and walked shakily towards the Gryffindor table. She could see the relief on his face and her ears kind of hurted. She heard a bark again behind her. Kiara seemed to be glaring at her. She scratched her head. "Sorry, Kiara!" She muttered sheepishly and patted on her lap. Kiara sprang on her lap and fell asleep immediatly. She looked up and saw that Percy the Prefect got up and was shaking Harry's hand vigorously, while the Weasley twins yelled, "We got Potter! We got Potter!" Harry sat down next to Arielle. The ghost with the ruff patted his arm accidentally touching Arielle, giving her the sudden, horrible feeling like she'd just plunged into a bucket of ice-cold water. She looked at the High Table properly. At the end nearest her sat Hagrid, who caught her eye and gave her the thumbs up. Arielle grinned back. And there, in the center of the High Table, in a large goldchair, sat Albus Dumbledore. Arielle recognized him at once from the card harry got out of the ChocolateFrog on the train. Dumbledore's silver hair was the only thing in the whole hall that shone as brightly as the ghosts. She mouted a quick "Thank yoy." at him and Dumbledore winked at her. Arielle then spotted Professor Quirtell, a nervous young man. Although she was quite suspicious of him. He gave her a dark vibe. He was looking very peculiar in a large purple turban.