Disclaimer: You know the drill by now. It’s not mine it’s J K Rowling’s I mean no offence, I make no money doing this. Please don’t sue.
A/N: I hope that you enjoy reading this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it. Again all comment are welcome constructive or otherwise.
After the initial protests of one Aime Hunter the gang eventually got onto the boats. Since the boats only held 4 students Sirius went and got one on his own. An apparently uneventful trip across the lake ensued and the dishevelled first years arrived at Hogwarts cold, and hungry. They were greeted by a tall witch dressed in a green dress with shoulder length light brown hair and a very stern look about her.
“Hi” Sirius whispered once he had rejoined his friend
“’Lo” Said Remus.
“Welcome to Hogwarts.” The witch began “My Name is Professor McGonagall. First of all there will be no troll fighting as some of you have been led to believe. So you can all stop panicking.” There was sudden rush of air from the relived first years. “Now if you will all follow me you will be sorted into your houses.” Professor McGonagall turned on her heel and headed towards the great hall. Peter who had been clinging on to James and Remus for support let out a sigh of relief. “I told you that they wouldn’t try and kill us on our first day.” Aime whispered.
The Great hall was a sight to behold. The tables stretched the full length of the hall above them suspended in mid air were green flags at the far left with a picture of a silver snake on them. Next to that were blue flags emblazoned with a picture of a bronze Eagle. Next to that were yellow flags with a picture or a black badger on them and at the extreme right were red flags with a picture of a golden lion. At the end of the hall in front of a huge fire place there was the head table where all the teachers sat. At the far left there was an elderly looking wizard with short grey wavy hair and a goatee beard. He was smiling at the first years. The witch next to him was just how Aime had pictured Dracula to look, pale waxy skin, dark eyes that darted from one student to the other long straight black hair and blood red lips. Seated next to her was a tiny looking man with mousey brown hair, a monocle and a bright purple jacket. The seat next to him was vacant and presumably for Professor McGonagall. The Seat next to hers was occupied by a Blue robed wizard with auburn hair and a beard to his chest. Aime presumed that he was the head teacher as his chair was simply bigger than the others. Professor Mcgonagall had returned to the great hall carrying a stool with a battered hat on top of it. She placed the stool in front of the teachers table. Aime nearly fainted dead away when the hat burst into song, she saw Sirius look a little startled but he disguised it well by looking bored for the rest of the song.
Once the hat had finished its little ditty Professor Mcgonagall proceeded to call out the students names in alphabetical order. Alison Armistice was first and sorted into Hufflepuff.
“You decided where you want to go yet?” whispered Remus to Aime
“Where ever you lot end up is fine with me.” She replied.
“Black, Sirius.” Sirius walked up the steps turned and gave his friends a small smile and sat on the stool hands on knees. Just before the hat covered his eyes he gave Aime a cheeky wink
“What in your head boy?” a voice said in Sirius’ ear. “Hmm ah yes. Bit of trouble maker aren’t you, but brave yes brave. Plenty of knowledge but where is it going to be of the most use? I know. GRYFFINDOR!” The hat shouted the hall erupted with cheers and cat calls from the occupants of the right hand table. Sirius went and took his place at his house table.
Remus looked on fascinated by the proceedings ‘Carter, Jeremy’ came and went (Slytherin) followed by ‘Darwin, David’ (Gryffindor) and a few more D’s. Then ‘Evans, Lily’ was called a girl with short bobbed red hair ascended the steps and was sorted into Gryffindor.
“Aime.” James whispered.
“Yes?”
“I really want to be a Gryffindor now.” James whispered immediately after the sorting of Lily Evans.
“Hunter, Aime”. Aime took a deep breath smiled at Remus, Peter and James as she sat on the stool. Sirius waved at her and indicated the seat next to him. Aime grinned at him. Then the hat was put on her head “Ah you’re willing to learn I see, very knowledgeable. Too much seen too soon in your life. But you are loyal and courageous. Where do you want to go Miss Hunter?” Gryiffindor please Gryffindor. “You think you’re a Gryffindor do you? The recklessness of a Gryffindor is not you Miss Hunter, you think too much. RAVENCLAW!” shouted the hat. The hat was removed and Aime looked toward her thunderstruck friends. Sirius’ jaw was hanging open. If it was any closer to the table it would be touching. Remus looked incredibly disappointed. Peter was shaking his head and James looked just as idiotic as Sirius. Aime walked to her table to begin making friends all over again. ‘Johnson, Beth’ was sorted into Ravenclaw shortly after Aime.
“Hi I am Beth.”
“Aime.”
“I know this sounds desperate, but will you be my friend I had to share a compartment with that greasy haired boy over there all the way here and he barely spoke a word. I was so bored.”
Aime smiled at this human chatterbox that had found her.
“Yeah we can be friends.”
As his parents had predicted Remus was sorted into Gryffindor. Remus went and took a seat next to Sirius. Peter and James joined them both shortly after.
“How do we get Aime to come and sit with us?” asked Remus after a short silence as every one dug into the food.
“Well short of clubbing her over the head. I have no ideas…yet” said Sirius with a mischievous glint in his eye shovelling mashed potatoes onto his plate.
As the evening meal wound down and Professor Dumbledore addressed his speech to the students Aime decided to do some enquiring of who was her head of house was. Aime had already found out that the vampire lady (Professor Damant) was the Arithmancy teacher and also head of Slytherin house. Aime had also been told that Professor McGonagall was the transfigurations teacher and head of Gryffindor. “Brian whose our head of house?” Aime had asked the fifth year boy who she was sat next to.
“Professor Connolly. He’s great. Dead funny. He’s the bloke on the end with the grey hair and goatee.” Brian said with a smile
“What does he teach?”
“Muggle Studies.” He said getting up from the table and moving towards the door. “Come on I have to show you to our dorms.”
Aime got up and walked back through the huge doors feeling full and tired and wishing that she had been sorted into Gryffindor with all her friends. As she trudged up the steps to the tower she felt cold which was unsurprising since there were no carpets in the draughty old castle. But the cold that Aime felt was in the pit of her stomach and had nothing to do with the temperature.
Aime thought back to the sorting “too much seen too soon” she knew exactly what the sorting hat was referring to. You don’t live through abuse both mental and physical and not come out with a few scars. Aime’s parents had split up and gotten back together more times than Aime could count and during that time Aime had seen her mother beaten several times. Aime always remembered the times when her mum would come upstairs in the middle of the night get her and her brothers out of bed and take them to Granny Ivy’s house. Aime remembered the way her mothers shoes hit the ground in the night and how everything seemed to echo or sound so much louder in the dark. Even silence sounds loud at night.
“Aime. Earth to Aime. Hullo” said Beth waving a hand in front of her face.
“Oh sorry. What’s up?” Said Aime with a smile.
“You are in a dorm with me, Mel and Joan. Are you ok?” Beth said with concern in her voice.
“Yeah I’m fine.” Replied Aime nonchalantly.
“Fine, yeah right of course you are. Do you miss your boyfriend?” Beth said with a sly glance at Aime
“Bethany! I do not have a boyfriend.” Shouted Aime looking aghast.
“Who was that good looking one that winked at you during sorting then?” Beth said taken aback by the sudden outburst
“Sirius!? Are you insane? He’s good looking but he’s such a cocky git.” Said Aime shaking her head at the implied relationship
“But he’s cute. Set me up.” Moped Beth.
Aime’s jaw dropped at the request. Aime laughed and said “No. No way. Never. You want him you get him yourself.”
Brain the prefect led the first years to the suit of armour that was the door to the Ravenclaw common room. “Wronski Feint” said Brian to the suit of armour. Aime smirked. The door opened and the first years walked into a blue and bronze common room. Three windows faced the door at the opposite end of the room in them was a window seat with a shelf full of books underneath the window seat. In front of the fireplace was 2 blue overstuffed wingchairs, in-between the two chairs was a circular mahogany coffee table. Facing the fire was a big blue sofa with a couple of brown throws on it. Above the fire place a portrait of Rowena Ravenclaw. Big pointy blue hat and all. Aime looked around at her peers reading playing chess or talking about Quidditch and thought I might actually like it here. “Boys dorms to your left and down the stairs. Girls dorms to the right and up the stairs. The house elves will have already brought your things up. Professor Connolly wants to see all first years in the common room tomorrow morning before breakfast.”
Remus watched Aime walk off to Ravenclaw tower. “Sirius, she looks miserable” he said.
“I know I’m working on it.” Replied Sirius, he looked deep in thought black hair falling into his eyes and biting on his thumb. ”I’ve got it!” James, Peter and Remus all gathered in close to listen to the master plan of master of mayhem extraordinaire Sirius Black.
The next morning Aime woke early to Beth jumping on her bed. “Get up! Your late!” she shouted. Aime looked around bleary eyed and focused on the marauding invader and gave her the finger, pulled the blanket up over head and tried to go back to sleep. “Fine.” Said the human alarm clock. Aime heard her thud to the floor walk to the end of her bed and then all she felt was cold as her blanket was snatched off her.
“I can see that I am fighting a losing battle here. So I’ll tell you what, I’ll give you a ten second head start. Run!” Aime launched herself off her bed and toward the laughing frame of her new friend. Joan and Mel had to restrain the frenzied brunette until Beth had exited the room at high speed. Aime dressed quickly and went down to the common room. “Sorry I’m late.” she said to the room as a whole.
“It’s quite alright Miss…Hunter” said the elderly Professor Connolly looking down at his register. Aime smiled sheepishly and sat next to Beth and Mel. “As I was saying” continued the teacher “I fully intend to get all of you off to the best start I possibly can so here are your timetable’s. Take one and pass them around. If you have any problems don’t hesitate to talk to me and we can fix them. Now off to get your breakfast.”
Aime, Beth, Mel and Joan all walked down to the Great Hall together. Partially because neither wanted to get lost in the huge castle.
“So we’ve got Charms, Transfiguration and Herbology with your boyfriends. I mean the Gryffindors.” Said Beth holding her hands up in surrender at the glare she received from Aime.
“Looks like it doesn’t it.” Said Aime.
The girls arrived in the great hall and took their seats at the Ravenclaw table. As Aime tucked into her toast and marmalade she heard the anguished voice of Sirius Black resonating through the entrance hall. He was hobbling into the great hall leaning heavily on a concerned looking James and tailed by Remus and Peter who were both making sympathetic faces. Aime leapt up from the table and ran three quarters of the hall with many a student staring at her like she had gone insane. She sat on the bench next to a wincing Sirius. “What the bloody hell happened?” said Aime.
“Oh Aime. It’s fine nothing to worry about really.” Said Sirius wincing. Aime had her back to Remus and James who were choking back laughter and so was oblivious to the prank. “Do you want me to sit with you help you out with your stuff today” said Aime. Sirius couldn’t help it the look of concern on her face was too much he cracked up laughing. “I’m sorry Aime I couldn’t resist. But this was the only way we could think of getting you to come and sit with us.” Aime laughed and rolled her eyes. “I was thinking that maybe we could go and have a look round the grounds today.” Said James through a mouthful of bacon and toast.
“Yeah. Sounds good I saw this rather weird looking tree I want to have look at.” Said Aime looking from James to Sirius. “I nearly forgot Beth, that girl over there at the Ravenclaw table, the one with the blonde hair she fancies you Sirius.” Sirius nearly choked on his Pumpkin juice. “Oh no thank you. I prefer that other one.” He said pointing at Joan.