Closed The Sorting ceremony 2018-2019

Dani nervously waited with the other newcomers, knowing it was her turn soon. She had heard all too much about this hat and was terrified of the prospect of her whole future at Hogwarts changing due to this one hat. She hid her nervousness with a confident smirk and watched as other students took their turn.

"Hufflepuff!...Ravenclaw!...Gryffindor!...Slytherin!"

Her turn was soon, she could feel it. As the tightness in her throat seemed to only increase, she bit her lip as yet another student was sent to their table. She squeezed her eyes shut and whispered a few words of good luck to herself.

"Dani Damon!"

She opened her eyes quickly and gasped as she hurried to meet the hat. She sat down, immediately unsettled by so many strange faces peering at her. Which house would she be put in? The hat was placed on her head and she took a deep breath. This was it.
The Sorting Hat began to speak.

"Hmm...what do we have here? Very interesting....Very interesting indeed. You seem to have a loyal heart with a cunning mind. What will it be then? Hufflepuff or Slytherin?

Dani was terrified. She breathed in deeply to calm herself. Hufflepuff or Slitherin? That wasn't a bad choice, was it?

"Yes! Yes! I know now.!

SLYTHERIN!

She sighed with relief and whispered "Thank you" to the hat. She was still unsure about it's choice but at least it was over now. She slowly walked over to her table and sat down. After a while she was joyfully chatting with the others, even making new friends perhaps. It was over. She was in Slytherin.

Evangeline expected to be wearing a green tie in no time, but that didn't mean she wasn't nervous. For her whole life, Evangeline's father was focused on making sure that she was placed in Slytherin. "It's where you belong, Evangeline. You wouldn't want to break tradition, would you?" She remembered the words without any fondness, even if they did hold some truth, she didn't want to be the one to end the chain of Slytherins her family had produced.

She stood beside the fellow students, expertly hiding any signs of her nerves. They needed to be impossible to notice, or better, nonexistent. Her parents expected an owl with news of her house the second she was sorted, Evie could only imagine how disappointed her father would be if he found out she was placed in a house he thought was unfit. Especially since Celeste disappointed him time after time, first with her decision not to attend Hogwarts then with her disappearance and then with her death.

Evangeline scoffed at the idiocy of the thought. Could he really blame her disappearance and her unfortunate end on Celeste? Evie's sister was definitely not at fault when it came to that.

"Evangeline Pierce!" A voice called out.

Evie's head snapped up, a look of uncertainty flashing across her face before she composed herself, returning to a calm and collected expression as she approached the stool. Evangeline sat down, placing her hands in her laps and doing what she could to look relaxed and not bothered by the ceremony.

A Pierce? Your family shouldn't expect me to follow their rules. Where will you go? With the cunning, the brave, the loyal or the witty?

The hat remained silent and Evangeline did her best not to think of the pressure her family had put her under, she was aware that the hat could read minds. Evie was sure that the hat already knew what house she was expected to be in, she just didn't want to confirm its suspicions.

A house of justice is not the one for you, I don't expect great chivalry from somebody like you and I'm certain you don't treasure wit beyond measure. However, you do not lack ambition or determination and you certainly are cunning. I guess you really do belong in...

"SLYTHERIN!"

Evangeline sighed in relief and almost jumped out of the seat when the hat was taken off of her head. She was grateful that the letter she needed to send could be short and simple, telling her parents that she was in Slytherin would not be difficult.

Her eyes scanned the hall, landing on the table designated for Slytherin and she hurried over to join it.

Sabrina looked around the brilliant lit great hall, it was even more impressing than what she had read in her books. Then she looked at the rusty hat in front of her, she remembered from her reading that the hat would decide which house she would belong. As the professor in front of her picked the hat up and started calling names, Sabrina suddenly felt a rush of nervousness, did the process hurt, she decided to investigate the people before her and study their facial expressions. The first person was a boy, tall, skinny, with brown hair, he walked up to the stool and sat down, the hat was placed on his head.
"Gryffindor!" it shouted after a moment of hesitation. Sabrina relaxed a little, it didn't seem like putting on the hat was too hard, the line inched up after people got sorted, and finally it was her turn.
Her whole body trembled as she walked up and sat down, she wasn't comfortable being seen by thousands of eyes.
"Hmm," said the hat in her head, what was this voice, then Sabrina realized it was just the hat that was talking, "hard, you are such an ambitious one and such an intelligent one as well, Slytherin or Ravenclaw?"
Sabrina didn't know which one to choose, so decided to keep her mouth shut and respect the hat's choice.
"I want to put you in Slytherin, but you are muggleborn, so.... very hard," the hat whispered, "I still think that Slytherin would do, so I guess..... SLYTHERIN!"
Sabrina didn't know what to feel, but a sigh of relief came out of her, it was decided. She knew that Muggleborns don't normally get in Slytherin, and the feeling of relief was replaced by worry, would the other Slytherins accept her as who she was?

Hogwarts, a school for young witches and wizards to attend in order to learn how to properly use their abilities and move on to more successful lives and careers. Stunned, that's one word that could easily describe what Caitlin felt as her wide, blue eyes scanned the great hall. It seemed bigger than how her parents described it to be. The walk to the front of the hall felt like it went on forever to Caitlin, as she looked at the portrait filled walls and starry skied ceiling. Looking to her left and right, each side had two tables filled with students older than herself. From the Ruby red of Gryffindor to the Emerald Green of Slytherin, Caitlin was surrounded by students and she wondered which house she would be in.
Ahead of her was also a table, this one however,had the professors seated at it instead of more students. Caitlin gave a small gulp as her nervousness set in; this was all new to her, she wasn't sure what to think! What if she gets put in the wrong house? What if she ends up alone and friendless? Caitlin was snapped out of her thoughts when they reached the area in front of the professors table. Once the first years stopped and stood there, a professor brought out a stool and with it an old patched up hat.

Caitlin watched Curiously at the hat as the professor explained it's purpose, so that hat would tell them what house they belong in, just as her mother had said. Caitlin watched as one by one, each of her fellow first years sat on the stool and let the hat sort them, to be honest, there was something funny about a talking hat to Caitlin. She didn't know why though, it was an quite interesting thing to see. "Brightcrest, Caitlin",It didn't take too long for Caitlin to hear her name be called, although she wished it did, swiftly, Caitlin walked up to the stool and took her seat in front of everyone. She let out a small groan as she got ready for what she was about to hear.

"Ah, another Brightcrest I see." Caitlin jumped a bit as she heard the voice of the hat start so suddenly. "I haven't see a Brightcrest since your cousin arrived 3 years ago. Hmm, I wonder. Are you as troublesome as he is?" the hat asked. Caitlin scowled at the hat, her elder cousin may have been a trouble maker, but he was also like a big brother to her. "Oh, don't get your brain in a knot now, I am merely Jesting. Hehe, no you don't seem to be like him now do you? However, I do see quite a bit of intelligence there oh yes, very much so." Caitlin squirmed a little in her seat as she waited to be sorted. "Now now, don't rush me, have patience child!" The hat replied to her thoughts "Oh, you're quite the independent one aren't you, audacious too, and who doesn't like a bit of glory in their future huh?" The hat mumbled that last bit to her as Caitlin looked around. "Yes, a interesting one you are indeed, however I see bigger and brighter things in your future. I believe you would be more at home in....RAVENCLAW!" The sorting hat yelled out. Caitlin smiled, relieved that the sorting was finally over for her and she went to join the table clad in blue and bronze as the students already there clapped for their newest member.

Luigi's eyes widened in awe as he saw the the Great Hall. Hundreds of candles floated from the open aired hall, wait, not open air. It was breezy earlier. Currently however, the wind was still.

"The ceiling is made to look like the night sky outside." He heard the girl beside him whisper to another muggle born. Marvelous.

They were stopped in front of an old, ugly hat. He nearly jumped as it began to speak. He forced himself to remain calm. If he was jumpy at every little thing, he was going to have anxiety by the end of the night. He eyes the ghosts from the corner of his eyes. Of course he wasn't scared. A Largo never got scared.

He watched the others get sorted. To be honest, he had no idea which house he wanted to be sorted in. His path in life had always been what his father determined for him. What a nasty shock for him how everything turned out. Still, Griffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, Slytherin, were just nonsense words to his father. It wouldn't make a lick of difference which house he got. Which made the choice his...so what did he want?

"Largo, Luigi."

He stepped up to the head, giving the air of the most confident person in the room. He sat on the chair and the hat was placed on his head.

"Well, what do we have here?"

He stopped himself from reacting this time.

"So tell me, what do you want?"

What did he want? Make his father proud he suppose... "Being the best wizard there ever was."

The hat scoffed in his head. "Yes the ambition is there. Loyal as well. Graduated top of your muggle classes did you?"

"Of course. Like I said, I'm going to be the best at everything."

"Picked a fight with boy 2 times your size as well."

"And I won."

"Yes, any of the houses would do you well I suppose. But that spirit, that ambition. You will fit in nicely with the old families in Slytherin. But they will not take kindly to a muggleborn in their ranks.

"Then I'll just prove to them I'm a better wizard than them. Either in class or by punching their face in."

"You could. Or you could be more comfortable in another house which would not care about blood purity."

"No. You said I belonged in Slytherin, then I belong in Slytherin. If the others have a problem with me, they can leave."

He swore he could feel the Hat smirking in his head. "Slytherin!"

One after another names were called out and a dusty old hat was placed upon their heads. The sorting hat was a huge event for the beginning of the school year that lets all the students see their new housemates and just generally have a grand celebration for the start of the new school year. It would have all been fantastic for Nina if she wasn't literally shaking in place because of how nervous she was. It didn't matter to her which house she was placed in, the hat obviously knew more than her on the subject even if she had tried to cram as much knowledge as she could about the school into her head as possible before arriving. No, the scariest part for this girl was having to sit center stage with all those eyes looking at her, judging her and she was afraid she might actually pass out from the anxiety.

"Nina-Rae Beauford."

The girl's body tensed up immediately as the professor called out her name, she looked at the stool with wide eyes and the color drained quickly from her face. She took a few moments and breathed in deeply and eventually took her steps toward the stool, very stiffly as she went, carefully sitting herself down on the seat and looking immediately at the floor, if she can't see all those eyes looking at her, she might just survive. She felt the hat being placed upon her head and tensed once again, praying it would be over quickly and she could go sit at one of the tables where fewer people would be staring.

"What do we have here, a nervous one are you?"

The girls swallowed hard, straining herself to reply, though it came out as a whisper.

"S-sorry..."

She managed before the hat laughed out loudly.

"There's no need to be so nervous, we're all friends here! Now let me see."

The hat would proceed to hmmm and talk to itself as Nina tried to raise her eyes a little to look at the watching crowd. She managed to get as far as the next few in line, waiting for their turn and she was back to staring at the ground once more.

"Yes, a smart one but little in the way of ego, a thirst for knowledge with plenty of dedication and courage, would you believe?"

The girl didn't answer verbally but nodded her head slightly much to the sorting hats amusement.

"I'm sure you'll find your voice eventually, your house will help with that. Better be... GRYFFINDOR!"

With those words, the table designated for the Gryffindors erupted into applause and cheering and Nina could hardly believe it. She had no reason to believe she wouldn't be able to find a house that would want her but in her mind she was all but ready to be told there was no place for her here, after all, she'd never really been accepted anywhere but with her own family. She stood up from the stool and did the best she could, looking up from the ground and toward the table that was applauding for her, it felt nice is a scary kind of way and as stiffly as before she made her way toward the table in order to catch her breath after what felt like years of her life had passed by.

Damien had never really been the nervous sort but those few steps away from the crowd of fellow first years and up to where the Sorting Hat waited felt like trudging, fully-clothed, through a swamp. He's not sure where the sudden burst of uncertainty had come from; maybe walking past all the older years had unsettled him...especially so when he knew that his brother's reputation might precede him. Isiah Waters was not exactly a ringing endorsement around here, though Damien had no idea why. He hadn't spoken to his brother in years, not since he was old enough to toddle about, clinging to his mother's skirts.

A quick glance to the Slytherin table betrayed him; Isiah had been a Slytherin, had sat right there at that table and took lessons with his green and silver clad brethren. Some probably even remembered his name...maybe his face. Damien felt an itch grow under his skin, uncomfortable and restless, as he headed up towards the stool and took a breath. It would be fine...he'd be fine.

Turning to face the curious student body, he smiled with more confidence than he felt when he sat on the stool and the waiting professor lowered the hat onto his head. He had the worst twisting feeling in his stomach as the hat remained silent for a long time. When it did speak, directly into his ear, Damien nearly startled off the stool, his knuckles turning white from where he gripped the rounded edges of the wood.

"Ahh the next Waters boy. What sort of legacy will you be leaving, hmmm?"

The young boy felt a shiver go down his spine and he struggled to keep his face neutral.

"Bright child, smart boy...even smarter than your lawless brother I see. Cunning too and very willing to do what it takes to get what you want. But not anything I see. Compassion and curiosity. A love of learning. Perhaps you will lighten the dark stain your brother left in his wake."

Damien frowned, wondering how much the hat knew about his brother. Before he could ask however:

"RAVENCLAW!"

The hat was pulled from his head, startling Damien and making him freeze as a table of blue and bronze stood to cheer for him, some raising their goblets in his direction. Biting his lip, he hopped off the stool, glanced longingly at the hat, and headed in the direction of his new housemates. He sat, feeling pleased with the hat's selection, but unsatisfied about everything else. This year, he thought to himself, he would find out what happened with his brother.

No matter what it took.

Alex shuddered as he walked through the huge doors to the already full Great Hall. Tons of students were sitting at the tables who were adorning the colors of the school. Red, Green, Yellow, and Blue. He was terrified. He knew he'd be fine, but still, literally, you had to sit on a stool and have a hat placed on your head while the whole school stares at you! He heard the first name be called out. Shoot. They were going by alphabetical order, which meant that he would be going soon, his last name starting with a C. He looked over to the Griffyndor table, where he met the eyes of his brother, who waved at him with a smile. Alex gave a timid smile and waved back. Adrian Cheong. Alex loved his older brother. He always took care of him, even since they were small. He heard the B's being called. Shoot shoot shoooooott. He knew that he had to get into any house, except for Slytherin. His brother would never forgive him if he did. He sighed. Deep breaths, Alex. You know you'll be okay. "Cheong, Alex!" he heard being called. He saw his brother straighten up to see his little brother. Alex blocked out everything and walked over to the stool and sat down. He felt a weight be put on his head.

"Interesting, another Cheong, I see. Creative, no doubt about that, there's talent.....very smart. Incredibly kind......cunning and brave.....Your brother is in Griffyndor......but you shall not be.

"RAVENCLAW!"

Alex hopped off the chair and walked over to the blue and bronze table. Thank god that was over.

Corvus had sat in silence on the way to Hogwarts, reading in a compartment by himself until another came to join him. He'd introduced himself but, Corvus hadn't been paying attention, and once it became clear that his traveling companion wouldn't be conversing, the student had opted to take a nap.

That nap was fine by Corvus, as the silence allowed him to continue to read. The history of Hogwart's was rather fascinating, though it got decidedly darker and more violent near the turn of the millenium. By the time they'd taken the boat across the lake and began stepping into the Great Hall, his apprehension had kicked in. Not only was he surrounded by other First Year students that he didn't know or want to be near, but he was stepping into a hall full of teenagers with eyes that seemed magnetically drawn to him.

There was no missing the gangling, long-haired boy towering over his fellows, and whether or not they were actually concerned with him, he felt like they were. All the whispers clouded his mind, setting his nerves on edge, and without realizing it his breath had deepened, tightening his chest as anxiety settled in. Names were called, names that were soundless. One by one, the group thinned, the hat ruminating aloud before applause would erupt from one of the long tables that dominated the hall.

He busied himself looking up for a time, scanning the 'night' sky, charting the constellations and their courses. He almost missed his name.

"Corvus Dravere!"

Moving to the front of the room, he turned and took a seat on the stool. His anxiety in overdrive, his face remained placid, showing little of the turmoil beneath. Dark eyes locked on the door they'd come through, giving little away to anyone watching. He refused to show preference to any table over another.

"Ah, a Dravere... it's been some time." The unkempt, raggedy hat began to speak, it's voice far more abrasive now that it was atop his head. "I sense... my, there's a storm brewing here. A real, dangerous storm. But you've corralled it, haven't you? Impressive... impressive - such control for your age..."

He felt the hat shift atop his head, nodding to itself. "This is difficult, yes. Yess... Gryffindor? No, no, too easy. There's a fire in your, a bravery you show. Weakness won't do, will it? You crave to display control - people mistake it for power but you, you seem to know the difference."

Was he supposed to talk to the Sorting Hat? Should he offer guidance? He'd caught a few people talking to it, and it seemed to have taken their words into account but did he wish to disrupt the process that had worked so unfailingly all these long years?

"Curiosity? I hadn't figured you for that. But you're no Ravenclaw boy, not like your mother was. And Hufflepuff? Well, they'd be delighted with you. Your bonds are lifelong, aren't they? Hard won, forged in fire. Hardly surprising you have so few."

Corvus frowned, his first real display of anything other than annoyance yet. The Hat continued onward, fussing, ruminating, calculating. He wasn't sure how long he sat on the stool, but a distinctive hush had settled over the Hall. It was distinctly rare for the Sorting Hat to take this long - Corvus was quickly approach the status of Hatstall.

"This is most difficult, young Corvus. Gryffindor or Slytherin? Bravery, or cunning? The Lion or the Snake? You fancy yourself a lion and yet you've done little to prove it, and yet you lack the natural subtlety so common for Slytherin blood."

Corvus fidgeted, almost speaking, but biting his tongue. "No, no, not quite brave enough for Gryffindor, I'd say. Most others would have long ago attempted to convince me of a path they wanted." The Sorting Hat inhaled deeply, and Corvus was more than a bit annoyed to hear he wasn't brave.

"Easy boy, no one is saying you aren't brave. That control you prize? That's self-preservation. Courage is not your defining trait." A raspy chuckle was heard from the cracked leather atop his head, and then his new home was yelled, to an eruption of applause from the table in green.

"SLYTHERIN!"

Katie was nervous, but when wasn’t she? In the relative safety of a pack of kids her age, she felt fine. She was a W name, and they seemed to be going by order of last. Which meant she was last for whatever was going to happen.
She watched a lot of kids go, one by one, to the sorting hat. That was what they’d called it. Why, though, had it been called that? She understood it sorted people (seemingly arbitrarily, which made her confused even more) into one of four 100% made up names. She watched as they were handed ties, one of four colors, and ushered to one of four tables, decorated with the color of the tie.
Red, yellow, blue, green.
What on earth could that possibly mean?
She understood they represented… houses. Of some kind. Another kid had explained that on the train. They’d looked at her like she was crazy when she didn’t know what a raven-puff was. Katie wasn’t able to stop blushing when he’d looked at her oddly, so she’d found somewhere else to sit, although she was irresistibly curious.
Some kids had their hands crossed and eyes squeezed shut as they went up, and a few looked as confused as Kathryn Williams felt. All she knew was the number was shrinking, until she was one of the last ones.
Suddenly, her name was called, and all eyes were on her.
She was blushing and shy, and she wanted to be literally anywhere else in the world but in front of thousands of kids and teens in black hats at four tables. Even if this was school. Katie liked school, but she didn’t like this.
Suddenly, she was sitting on a stool and there was a hat on her head. It was very old, and it had been worn by every kid today. Assuming that this wasn’t the first year they’d done it (because that would be weird to throw some random newly acquired thrift store hat on every eleven year old student) it had probably been worn by every kid in this room, probably more.
This thing isnt going to give me lice… right? She wondered, and it chuckled. Chuckled. And then it talked to her. TALKED TO HER. This whole magic thing was weird.
No, I wont. She looked up at the hat’s brim, visible to her. Promise? And it chuckled again. Yes, I promise.
Now, for your sorting. Logical. Curious. Tell me, do you like to read?
She nodded, slightly. She loved fantasy adventures.
That seals it, then. There’s only one place you could belong.
RAVENCLAW
As she sat down, katie struggled with tying the tie around her neck. An older student, sitting next to her (she must have been 15 or 16) mercifully took it and tied it for katie, with a warm smile and a welcome. And katie understood one thing, even if the rest of this made no sense to her yet.
Your house was your home. The people in it, your family.