Astra

IV - The Sorting Ceremony

THE STUDENTS ALL WAITED in a chamber behind the Great Hall. In a few moments, Minnie would come out and tell them about the Hogwarts houses. Even though she was told about it months ago, Astra hadn't really thought much about the house she wanted to be in. She didn't really mind whichever house she would be in, as long is it fitted her best. Astra most likely wouldn't be a good Hufflepuff, she didn't work well with others; Ravenclaw might work, she did like reading, but that wasn't what it would take to be a Ravenclaw. Did she value skill or could she be described as wise? Maybe. It wouldn't be out of the picture. Astra knew that Slytherin had a bad reputation, but not all were bad, like her Uncle Regulus, so it wouldn't be the end of the world if she was placed there. Overall, she guessed that she would like to be in Gryffindor, like her dad and godparents, but she didn't know if she was brave enough to go there. It would all be up to the sorting hat, she guessed.

Hagrid had just given Neville back his toad, which he seemed very glad to have back. McGonagall just opened the doors and Hagrid went inside.

"Welcome to Hogwarts. The start-of-term banquet will begin shortly, but before 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 free time 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.

"I shall return when we are ready for you," said Professor McGonagall. "Please wait quietly."

She looked around once more, giving a small fraction of a smile to Astra. Truth be told, Minerva was taking quite a liking to the young girl and was hoping that she would be in Gryffindor. Though at first, she could hardly tell if this was the daughter of the flamboyant and rambunctious Sirius Black, eventually, her walls started coming down and she reminded her so much of the Mauraders' days. She was quiet, but fierce and definitely had a mischievous side. She could only hope that the young Black wouldn't meet up with the Weasley twins. And when Astra called her Minnie, with a small smirk, it reminded her too much of the old days and got her thinking once again what could have possessed Sirius to do such a thing. Being pulled out of her thoughts, she walked back into the Great Hall.

However, the silence was interrupted when the ghosts came out of the hall. Astra heard gasps all around her, but she just smiled. In addition to the dead spirits of her godparents and uncle, she had also gotten around to talking to a few of the ghosts. She had actually gotten along quite well with a few of them. Helena Ravenclaw was very nice and the Fat Friar always had a good talk. Peeves was good for mischief (even if he wasn't a ghost, but a poltergeist), but the paintings were the best ones to go for gossip. Specifically, the Fat Lady and her friend Violet were always talking late into the night.

The Fat Friar saw her and winked, before yelling out to everyone that she hoped to see them in Hufflepuff. Before the conversation could continue, however, Professor McGonagall came back through the doors. "Move along now," said a sharp voice. "The Sorting Ceremony's about to start." One by one, the ghosts floated away through the opposite wall.