Closed The Sorting ceremony 2018-2019

Odessa nervously walked into the enormous dining hall with the loads of other eleven year old students looking around in awe. There was eagerness and anxiety in the air as all of the future young students witnessed for the first time, their future peers and teachers. Odessa felt small compared to the rest of the school in its grandeur. As she continued to walk with the group, she took the time to take in her surroundings. To her left and right, there were two tables that were seemingly never ending. All the tables were completely full with students on either side of them. There were ghosts flying in and out of the walls and tables greeting students and one of them had no head. She could hear the murmurs and the whispers from the tables about the new students and she heard a few that sounded something like "Oh that kid is a Slytherin for sure" and "That girl must be a Hufflepuff, look at those glasses." Near the front of the tables were open spaces for the new students arriving, like me, and waiting for their sorting. Odessa then looked up and saw so many candles that she could not even count. She saw pictures on the walls that were moving around and she looked up and saw what seemed to be a sky with beautiful stars. Odessa couldn't believe what she was seeing. She could barely contain her excitement. As she continued to walk, she eventually ended up in the front of the hall with all of the other students and she got her first glance at the teachers. 'I need to make sure I make a good first impression" she thought to herself as she stood up extra tall. "If I am going to become a great witch, I must make sure that I do well in all my classes". Ever since Odessa found out that she was a witch, she had decided not only did she want to make as many friends as possible, but she wanted to be a great witch. She wanted to leave her mark! Odessa began to daydream about her first day of classes when she would walk in and how she would sit right at the front desk. She knew that sitting up front would show that she is proactive. She would immediately become friends with her surrounding classmates as she knows that she is going to need help getting used to the magical world, and having good friends makes that easier. As she continued to daydream, she thought she heard something.

Amalfitano, Odessa

She snapped out of her daydream as she heard her name called again. This time, loud and clear.

AMALFITANO, ODESSA

"Here we go" she thought to herself as she almost ran to the chair where the sorting hat was placed onto her head.

"Where will you place me" Odessa thought to herself, but she knew the hat could hear. Odessa had done her research on the sorting hat and all four of the houses. She had read Hogwarts, A history before she came to the school because she was so excited.

Hmmm... You are very outgoing and kind..... You wish to make friends with everyone and promote peace......You also seek wisdom and have determination.....I know exactly where you belong.

A long pause....

RAVENCLAW


Odessa smiled widely and she hopped off the chair and skipped over to the Ravenclaw table. She was so excited that she didn't hear any of the loud applause she got and she sat next to a blond haired boy that had been sorted before her. "Hi! my name is Odessa, nice to meet you!" she said to the blond haired boy as she held out her hand. The boy seemed shy and his face went red. "Hi, i'm Jacob" he replied quietly. "Are you excited to be a Ravenclaw?" Odessa asked him and he nodded quietly. Odessa turned and began to watch the rest of the ceremony, and as each person was sorted, she wondered how she could make them her friend. "I am going to become a great witch, and this is just the beginning" Odessa thought to herself as she smiled. Odessa was a Ravenclaw. and she couldn't have been happier.

Riley entered the hall, slightly in wonder at the sights and slightly terrified that she hadn't made any friends yet. Sure, she'd never been the talkative type, but she'd sort of assumed that she would have made at least one friend by now. However, all of the compartments on the train she had seen were full, and when she finally sat down in an empty compartment, no one ended up taking one of the seats in the compartment.

Still, Riley took a deep breath to calm herself. Surely she would be able to make new friends along the way. Once she was sorted into her house, there would be plenty of first years without friends who she could strike up conversations with.

Suddenly, her name was called, pulling her out of her thoughts, "Jin, Riley!"

Riley held her head up high and walked through the crowd of students to take her place upon the stool where the sorting hat was placed on her head. She searched through the students in the Ravenclaw to see if she could find her brother. She must have looked nervous, because when she spotted him, he gave her an encouraging grin with a thumbs-up. She released the tension in her shoulders and smiled back.

"Ah, another Jin. Yes, I remember your family; tough ones to sort you are," it's voice echoed throughout her mind.

"Surely by now you've noticed a trend though, right? We were made for Slytherin and Ravenclaw. Even Luke got into Ravenclaw!" she thought back.

The hat chuckled and responded, "Yes, I suppose you're right. But I'm sure you know that patterns can be misleading. Complacency is the companion of error."

"True, but patterns are efficient," Rilely said, beginning to feel nervous and slightly defensive. "Humans seek patterns because they help us learn and excel. They allow us to maximize our choices and our time."

"I presume your mother taught you that?" the hat said. "There's no need to try and impress me with your knowledge and/or ambition. I see it all. I simply wonder if those houses are what's best for you."

"What's best for me?" Riley repeated, never having thought about it.

"Yes ... I see ambition, it's true. A need to prove yourself and to excel. And I certainly see your curiosity, your hunger for knowledge," the hat murmured. "But I also see an intense desire for acceptance, for companionship. Most importantly, I can see how much you question yourself, and I see how much you can grow in Hufflepuff."

"But, I want to be clever like my father! I want to be witty and smart like my mother!" Riley cried out. "I want to be just as powerful as my brothers!"

"Whichever house I sort you into will not change who you are, Riley," the hat consoled. "You are already yourself, and you will always be who you choose to become. All that I'm choosing is which path you will take, not where you go. I help you with the how, not the what."

Riley bit her lip, looking over at her brother with furrowed eyes and then looking over at the Hufflepuff table.

"... Alright. I guess Hufflepuff it is then?" Riley said back.

"Alright then!" the hat said, finally opening up its mouth to shout, "Hufflepuff!"

She pushed herself off the stool with a timid smile, before she heard the whooping of her brother Luke all the way in the back of the Ravenclaw table. He was giving two thumbs-up now, and Riley felt her smile turn into a wide grin. She stood up straight and walked over to her table in pride, eager to start her adventure in Hufflepuff.

Jane nervously looked at the hat and how it shouted either griffindor, Slytherin, Hufflepuff, or Ravenclaw. As their name was called Jane jumped in slight surprise, as one of the students pushed them foward Jane quickly scurried over to the hat and sat on the bench. Their grip on the sides of the stool became tight, Janes nails dub into the sides of the stool as the hat was put on their head.

Ah hello Jane Victoria, I see that you are confused... You have nerve and bravery in your heart.... Am I going to be in Slytherin? The twelve year old interrupted, Well do you want to be in Slytherin? Yes! Or else my guardian will be disappointed! Hmm.. You are a tough choice. Just like many others, well then... You are also very intelligent and creative, perhaps you should be in... No, please not-

“GRIFFINDOR!!”

And there it was. The House of disappointment, they stood up and took the hat off slowly and awkwardly. They couldn’t believe it! Jane timidly looked at the Slytherin table but then made her eyes face the Griffindor table with students laughing and cheering for them to go, taking a deep deep breath Jane made their way over.
Without a word Jane had sat down and ignored the other students, why were they nervious and stressed? They didn’t even know much about each house other than the labels her guardian has put on them, perhaps it was just knowing the disappointment from sir Victoria. Maybe, just maybe Griffindor wasn’t as bad as it sounded... But little did Jane know, it was going to be the worst years of their life.

Surrounded on all sides by rows of older students, Dahlia had never felt more alone than she did in that moment. She'd always been the star of the show, the important one, the girl who everyone knew and everyone wanted to befriend. Now she stood somewhere entirely unfamiliar, where no one cared about her or the Breslin family. Her muggle money was useless, her doting parents were nowhere to be seen, and not even Ash was here to make her push forward out of sheer spite. The letter she'd received from him that morning felt warm in the pocket of her robes, reassuring the young girl that somewhere everything was as she remembered it.

Somewhere out there her brother was going to a normal school, striving to achieve perfect grades while knowing in the back of his mind that magic was real. That Dahlia was the special one who could wield that power, not him. That she was finally better than him at something.

So why did she feel like such a fish out of water?

A shaky breath left her lips as the girl tried to compose herself, remembering her years of practice at boring high society events. Keep your head up, your breathing even, and your face carefully neutral. Don't you remember those theater lessons that you loved so much? Deep breath, and let go of who you are in that moment. Be someone else. Be Dahlia Breslin, graceful and confident in everything she does. Keep the perfect image of the Breslin name in tact, even if no one here has ever actually heard of it before. Be a character, not a person. You can be a person when you're alone, crying like a lost little brat who's never been away from home. These people could never see that girl under the delicately crafted facade.

"BRESLIN, DAHLIA."

Her name came booming across the great hall, sooner than she'd expected to hear it. Were there really that few students who's sir names started with A? Dahlia took a single second to flip her long hair over one shoulder, the familiar feeling of the dramatic action giving at least a little bit of comfort. Then with long strides she hoped seemed graceful, she climbed up the steps and perched silently on the edge of the seat. Old worn fabric settled down onto her head, and it was all she could do to suppress a cringe. A gross tattered wizard hat? Honestly?

How cliche, and certainly tacky.

'Well then, what is it we have here?' came the voice in her head, as worn and cracked as the patched up fabric it was sewn from. 'I see, I see. Muggle-born, aren't you? Feeling a bit out of your depth, I'd imagine.'

Shut up, she growled inside her mind, a bit surprised at her own forwardness. I'm not out of my depth at all! In fact, I've never felt more at home. I may be new, but I'm sure magic will come to me as easily as everything else I do.

The hat chuckled. 'Oh, are you now? How delightful. I just love the confidence, no matter how full of hot air it may be. Now now, calm down. I can feel that anger, I'm just saying what I see in here. No lying when it's all in your head, right?'

Just hurry it up.

'Alright, have it your way. Let's take a closer look now.

Hmm, the arrogance and rush to prove yourself certainly speaks of a Griffindor attitude.
The fierce loyalty towards family hints at Hufflepuff, and learning their kindness would certainly be a help to you.
However, this overwhelming urge to create. You want to suck up every bit of knowledge around you, to excel and succeed at anything you touch. That's speaks to Ravenclaw side undoubtedly.

In the end, it's best to look at the root of all of this. Why do you try so hard to prove your worth, impress your family, learn everything perfectly? It all lies at this intense urge to be perfect, to be better than everyone else you've surrounded yourself with. You want to gain that approval by whatever means available to you, and cut down anyone in your way. I'll be left to dust on a hat rack if this doesn't sound like a textbook case of-'

"Slytherin!"

Dahlia's eyes opened again to look out at a now roaring crowd, blinking at the candlelight as she grew adjusted to them again. When had she closed her eyes to begin with? Dusting off her robes as she stood, she wandered over to the cheering table of green-clad witches and wizards who were to be her housemates. She hadn't even known of these houses before a few hours ago, but something in her gut was telling her that the hat made the right call.

Ambition. Cunning. Resourcefulness. A small smirk cracked across Dahlia's face as she slid into an empty seat, staring at her clasped hands rather than the still continuing sorting ceremony. Those sounded like the qualities of a winner, and she liked the sound of that.

When his mother had first explained the concept of wizards and witches to him, Kyan knew it was not a joke. His mother did not joke, afterall - she was the most deadly serious person he had ever known in his entire life. But then again, he had never had her pinned as a lier either and it had took her eleven years to tell him the truth about all of this. That still infuriated him.

Apparently all magical children attend a magic school known as Hogwarts when they turn eleven. His mother and Uncle had gone there when they were younger and now it was his turn. It was such a shame though, that he would never get to rub that in Tilly's face, as he had promised to keep it a secret.

The first years, Kye included gathered in the Great Hall and were welcomed by an older boy with scraggly blonde hair. He introduced the houses - his mother had told him about them, but really they were just words to him.

Waiting on his name to be called for the sorting - which Kyan was nervous about, mostly because he had never seen a talking hat before, let alone one that could sing - he t. When his name was called however, he hesitantly moved forward and placed it on his head.

"Ambitious, Charasmtic and Charming... just like your father... how interesting."

Kyan's eyes widened at the mention of his dad, as the tiny hairs on the back of his neck tingled. How did they know about him? He was a muggle... wasn't he?

"But you do have your mothers brains..."

There was an awkward and long drawn silence that was interruppted by a cough at the back of the hall somewhere.

"Slytherin!"

Lifting himself off the stool his eyes found the table emblazoned with green and silver and joined them.

Laila was lead to a huge room with floating candles that made her jaw drop. The place was filled with tables and older people. She walked to the front of the hall and listened to the announcement. Then a Talking Hat! Sang a song about the four houses. Laila was expecting to be a Slytherin! Her parents say otherwise, but Laila does not agree. Yes, Laila is a nice person, but she is going to be a Slytherin. Then she saw other people get sorted into houses. "Slytherin!" "Gryffindor!" "Ravenclaw!" "Hufflepuff" The houses were being shouted out as the hat was on the other students heads.
Laila was very nervous. She was not sure she was going to be a Slytherin! But what if I'm not? Laila thought . Laila looked around, hands behind her back. She waited for her name to be called. Then a bellow made her jump
"Ruby Lailaflora!"
Laila was even more nervous. She was shaking as she walked up. Then the hat was put on her head.
"Oh wow you don't have to be so nervous!" The hat said Laila felt her eyes widen. Sorry? Laila said in her mind.
"You are a very polite girl. You even apologize when you don't have to"
Ok? Laila thought. It was silent then. Laila just sat there waiting for it to be over. er..sorry but how long does it normally take for someone to get sorted? Laila asked. "Hmmm...… it differs." The hat said. Is there a way you could make it faster? Laila asked. "Hmm.. can be impatient if you want to." The hat said. Laila started to get confused. So, it can differ, but what is the estimated....you know... maximum time it takes? Laila asked in her head. "Like I said it differs" The sorting hat said. Laila waited. She started to get hungry. She wanted to be sorted already so she could eat and meet new people. "Hmm.. so you have a habit of eating and you seem to want to know some more people" The hat said suddenly which made Laila sit up straight. " Best be..." 
"Hufflepuff!"  The hat bellowed. Hufflepuff. Hufflepuff?  She sure she was going to be a Slytherin ! Laila emerged the cheering Hufflepuff table and sat down. Imagine what my parents will say! Laila thought. She thought they would probably say something like "I told you so".This was something she had to get used to.

As soon as her name was called, she stepped forward, with her usual calm demeanor. It was no big deal quite frankly, it's not like she would make friends or anything of that sort. But it would still be nice to be assured that her thoughts about herself were correct. That she knew herself well enough to know that the hat was going to place her in Ravenclaw-- maybe Slytherin.

She sat down on the chair, and placed the hat on her head.

"Hmmmm, let's see, Revel Reison is it? I remember your father. Quite an intelligent man," the hat spoke in her head. "You certainly take after him. I sense a cunning side to you, but not so much to put you in Slytherin."

Revel remain silent, waiting for the hat to speak the words she expected.

"Hufflepuff?" The hat asked, and Revel just snorted. "Oh, no that wouldn't go well." 

Tell me about it. Revel thought, Revel Reison, the caring bubbly Hufflepuff.
Just the thought made her laugh.

"Oh, Ravenclaw sounds very suitable for you, yes definitely." The hat continued. It was an obvious choice, and she was just waiting for the words to be spoken. "But, Gryffindor... Hmmm."

Gryffindor? Well that's a new one.

 "You can achieve much more greatness there." Revel frowned at the words. She stayed silent, but she had a bad feeling. "Yes, that feels right!" 

"Gryffindor!"

The Gryffindor table started cheering, but all Revel could do was remain frozen in her chair.

Seriously? Gryffindor?

She wanted to protest, but was soon pushed out of the way for the next student to come up. Her house greeted her with claps and cheers, but her reply was a glare at everyone, and she went to sit in the furthest corner away from all the noise.

What in the world had just happened?

As the other students were sorted into their houses, Beck started to get nervous in his seat. I wonder if I’ll be in Gryffindor or Ravenclaw, he thought to himself, assuming that he would be in the houses his siblings and his father had been in - it never even crossed his mind that he might be sorted into Hufflepuff or Slytherin. He started to shift, unable to stay still. In an attempt to calm his nerves, he turned on his seat and scanned the Ravenclaw table, only to find his brother, Nikolas, looking at him with a huge, beaming grin. Beck couldn’t see him that clearly, but he was sure Nikolas mouthed, “Good luck” from the opposite side of the room. Beck’s cheeks flushed even more red as his brain finally started to simmer down and he managed to smile. Suddenly things didn’t seem so bad anymore. That was, until, Beck heard a familiar sound.

“Beck McCarthy!” called the voice in a sharp, but somehow soothing and understanding tone. Beck rose from his seat instantly but calmly, and started to make his way towards the Sorting Hat. He sat down and put the Hat on his head, before looking out at the sea of students, all organised into colours like colouring pencils.

For a moment, everything was silent, Beck could hear his heartbeat in his ears and he could’ve sworn the Hat heard it too.

He clenched his fists in his lap as the Hat began to speak, “Another McCarthy, eh? Well, I think I know just the righ- Hold on, no.. Something is different about you..” When Beck heard those words, his nerves came back and he quickly searched the room to meet eyes with his older brother, who had lost the grin on his face and was beginning to look equally as nervous.
“You are a natural born leader. You have a definite hard time with authority and you have so much determination.. Curious, very curious. I thought you would be joining your brother in Ravenclaw today, McCarthy, but it seems the house you need to be sorted in is very clear to me.” At this moment, Beck had no idea where the Sorting Hat was going to end up, he had his fists squeezed so tightly that they started to turn crimson red. His cheeks were flushed. He started to breathe deeply through his mouth, as if he was gasping for air.

It was silent again. Beck felt every breath fill his lungs, and he began to count each time his chest collapsed as he exhaled. It was only a couple of seconds but it felt like hours went by before there was another noise.

“Yes, I have made up my mind.. Slytherin!”

Beck’s eyes widened and he caught his brother’s expression, his jaw had dropped, “I have no doubts about it,” the Sorting Hat continued. Slytherin.. Beck thought, I can’t be in Slytherin! My dad, he.. He hates the Slytherin house, what will he think? I can never face him again, I told him I would make him proud! Beck was visibly shaken up.

Silence. For a moment it was almost as if the whole room was shocked. But that soon ended when the Slytherin table erupted into cheering and clapping. As Beck walked down to the table, he caught eyes with a lot of the other Slytherin members, and all of a sudden, Beck felt like he was home.

    anastasia quinn, daughter to the quinn family, sat at one of the tables, hidden among the student's buzzing with excitement to be sorted, but sadly, the young girl's face held a sadness to it. yes, she had been so very ecstatic to join in the school year, but the sorting ceremony seemed dreadful to her. her mother was very supportive of her, but she still felt a hint of fear, what happen's if she end's up in slytherin, she was sure her mother would be skeptical of her, it might even break her bond. she knew her grandparent's cared none of where she ended up after her mother, father and her were the only one's of there family to support the muggle-born's. her head ducked lower in thought of what was too come. she prayed for gryffindor or hufflepuff, assuming both suited her personality, the female was bold and cunning as well as loyal, and she saw her boldness as bravery. 

    after a few more student's and very long and depressing minutes, anastasia's turn had come. the girl shivered as she made her way past table's and hid herself within her golden lock's of hair. she made her way up eventually and sat in front the entirety of the school.

" anastasia quinn, ah yes, daughter to alya and carver quinn, a full-blooded wizard at that... hmm. i see that you are cunning and brave. no, bold, and very deceptive.. but loyal. i can see you have aim and strife, as well as love and bluntness. a hard choice you are.. your father was too.. SLYTHERIN 
seem's to fit you"

    anastasia's whole body shook's as she rapidly removed herself from the front and crept towards the slytherin table. how could the poor girl have been chosen by this devilish sort? her own mother would surely disown her, and with the backlash of her family, this would turn out horrid. but she promised herself to not let this minor set back stop her from achieving her goals and making friends, right? only few from the table clapped at her joiing, many of them remembering what her family did and who they supported.

“Huh, another Darlington?”

Shawn gulped as he nervously shifted around in the wooden seat.

“It has been a few years since your sister and your parents had sat on that exact same stool... Still, it feels as if it happened yesterday.”

I don’t care about what you have to say about my family, just sort me already. Let me get over this as fast as possible.

As soon as these thoughts had appeared inside his head, Shawn immediately regretted them. What if the hat had heard them? What if it now thought that he was mean and that he belonged into Slytherin? 

However, the hat seemed to either have not heard it or it had ignored Shawn, because it carried on with its monologue without a comment on his thoughts.

“You seem to come from a very unusual family, mhm, judging from the houses of your family members. You know, most wizard families belong to one certain house, but your family... Based on my memory, your mother was a Ravenclaw, am I right? Your father, however, was sorted into Slytherin... just like his mother would have been if she had attended Hogwarts. Amari, your sister, seems to be a mixture of both your parents... Yes, indeed, I almost put her into Slytherin and it appears that she would have favoured that house, but still, I am convinced that I have made the right decision by sorting her into Ravenclaw...”

Shawn peered from underneath the broad brim of the hat which almost covered his eyes and searched for his sister in the crowd. When their eyes met, she gave him a little, although encouraging smile.

“You, my dear boy, seem to have some personality traits similar to your Canadian grandmother, who would have been in Hufflepuff if I am not mistaken.”

Shawn’s moss green eyes widened in terror. 

Not Hufflepuff, please don’t let it be Hufflepuff! Hufflepuffs are losers, I would be a disappointment for my family! 

“You are wrong. Many Hufflepuffs have turned out to be great and important wizards, take Cedric Diggory as an example. He was a hero.”

But... I am more like a Gryffindor, am I not? I mean, I have plenty of courage, and lots of friends, and... and...

“You are right, Gryffindor would be a better choice for you than Ravenclaw or Slytherin. However, I am not convinced.”

Shawn suddenly got very angry and upset.

I. Don’t. Want. To. Be. A. Hufflepuff.

“Shawn, let me tell you something. Something very important. I have never been wrong yet and my instincts tell me that you would fit perfectly into Hufflepuff. I know you might not accept your real self just yet, but trust me, you will one day.”

The young boy crossed his arms defiantly. No no no.

“My decision is final. HUFFLEPUFF!”

Shawn’s eyes wandered over to Amari, who giggled and whispered something to her neighbor, who then burst into laughter, as well. They seemed to be laughing at him.

This couldn’t be happening. Please tell me this is just a nightmare.