Desired Life as The One He Loves

Chapter 3: Snogging

We, along with other students, walk into the Great Hall to see thousands of floating candles overhead, illuminating the entire room. There are four banners descended over each table, marking each Hogwarts House. The Slytherin banner is dark green with a serpent, the Gryffindor banner is blood red with a lion, the Hufflepuff banner is bright yellow with a badger, and the Ravenclaw banner is royal blue with an eagle. As everyone takes their seats at their designated table, teachers greet us from the High Table. Draco takes a seat next to Blaise, I then take the seat between him and some other Slytherin girl who I don't know.

"Just this way," Professor McGonagall states as she leads a sizable group of dripping wet first years through the Entrance Hall and into the Great Hall. Everyone's heads turn to stare at them, soaked from head to toe.

"Peter, what happened to you, mate?" One seventh year Ravenclaw calls out to a short scared first-year boy who is, just like his fellow first years, drenched. Peter suddenly looks up from his feet embarrassingly.

"We fell in," he says with annoyance and embarrassment before looking shyly back at the floor. This causes an uproar of laughter from the Ravenclaw and his friends. Soon every house table has joined.

"I would like silence," Dumbledore's voice echoes through the spacious room. Everyone's laughs stop instantly and their heads turn to face the Headmaster.

"Thank you. Now that I have your attention, I would like to welcome the first years." Everyone claps hesitantly at this. Dumbledore waits a second before continuing. "Well, I think it is now time for the Sorting Hats yearly song." Dumbledore backs away from the front of the High Table as the Sorting Hat takes a huge breath and sings out:

In times of old when I was new

And Hogwarts barely started

The founders of our noble school

Thought never to be parted:

United by a common goal,

They had the selfsame yearning

To make the world's best magic school

And pass along their learning.

"Together we will build and teach!"

The four good friends decided

And never did they dream that they

Might someday be divided,

For were there such friends anywhere

As for Slytherin and Gryffindor?

Unless it was the second pair

Of Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw?

So how could it have gone so wrong?

How could such friendships fail?

Why I was there and so can tell

The whole sad, sorry tale.

Said Slytherin, "We'll teach just those

Whose ancestry is purest."

Said Ravenclaw, "We'll teach those whose

Intelligence is surest."

Said Gryffindor, "We'll teach all those

With brave deeds to their name,"

Said Hufflepuff, "I'll teach the lot,

And treat them just the same."

These differences caused little strife

When first they came to light,