Harry Potter and the Second Prophecy

Chapter 4 - The Sorting Hat

The next morning the Great Hall was buzzing with excitement. The entire school was now aware of the presence of a new girl who could hold off a werewolf without the use of a wand, and they were all eager to catch sight of her. Harry realized that he was eager to catch sight of her again.

Breakfast had appeared, and Ron was busily gnawing on a sausage he'd stabbed with his fork, while Hermione was flipping through the Daily Prophet looking for any acknowledgment of Camilia's sudden appearance at the school. Harry had just begun to tuck into a plate of scrambled eggs when the entire Great Hall was seized by a tangible silence. He, Ron and Hermione all turned to the entrance doors to see Camilia walk into the room and look desperately around for an inconspicuous seat. She did not realize when her eyes alighted upon Harry that she could not have chosen a more conspicuous seat for breakfast.

She strode over to Harry, exuding a false confidence, wearing the same jeans and shirts as the day before, although they had been thoroughly cleaned by Madam Pomfrey before she discharged Camilia. She had a noticeably American in sense of style, as even on weekends a female student at Hogwarts would not have been found wearing a long-sleeved thermal top underneath a tiny, multi-colored printed t-shirt reading "Jamaica Welcomes You." She was also wearing a rather garish silver and white pair of trainers, and sported a sprayed-on tan.

All eyes in the Great Hall watched Camilia cross the room to Harry Potter, already famous himself. She asked Neville Longbottom, seated next to Harry, if he would mind "scootching over a little" so she could sit down, and after blinking hard at her two or three times, he willingly and wordlessly obliged. Harry wondered if Neville's behavior was due to his innate fear of girls, his surprise that one had spoken to him of her own accord, or her very out-of-place manner of dress, but when he noticed that Ron had stopped nibbling at his sausage to gape openly at her, he realized that Neville must have recognized her for the oddly beautiful young woman she was. Her features were relatively unremarkable, but her deep brown eyes, streaked, swishy hair, and gentle curves combined with her knack for knowing what style suited her made her stunning.

She asked Harry how he slept, explained that she'd had a rather sleepless night without Harry's returning the inquiry, and proceeded to introduce herself first to Hermione, then Neville, then Ron in turn. Hermione seemed pleased at her attentions, and Harry had the sneaking suspicion that Camilia had dealt with other "territorial" females previously, and knew how to get on their good sides without appearing too suck up.

A plate and goblet appeared before Camilia, and she helped herself to a healthy portion of eggs and sausage while she asked the group where all the food had come from. Hermione felt this an ideal opportunity to introduce Camilia to the plight of house elves and proceeded to explain all about S.P.E.W., the organization she had formed to protect elvish rights. Camilia, still amazed by the magical world to which she'd been introduced not one day earlier, listened intently to Hermione's ramblings, fascinated by the idea that there were small magical creatures roaming the castle, unseen and content to care for all the castle's inhabitants. Hermione might have continued indefinitely, her enraptured single-person audience entirely missing the point, had Professor Dumbledore not suddenly stood to address the students.

"You have all no doubt noticed that we have been joined by a young lady that we have last night chosen to accept as a new student here at Hogwarts. As is the custom at Hogwarts, she will now be sorted into a House and will remain in that house for the balance of her stay here. Professor McGonagall!" he called, and she appeared from the staff entrance at the front of the Hall, carrying with her a stool and an old, worn hat with a large tear just above the brim. She placed the stool in the center of the floor a few feet in front of the podium from which Dumbledore had spoken, and set the hat upon it. Meanwhile, Dumbledore took up his seat and waited patiently for her to call upon his new student to be sorted.

"Pritchard, Camilia," pronounced McGonagall.

A collective gasp went up from the assembled students, followed by frenzied whispers, and even a muffled scream. Camilia appeared to have somehow expected this reaction, and rose from the table anyway. She paused briefly to ask Harry in a whisper, "What House are you in?" He told her, and she made her way to the front of the room pretending, though visibly less effectively, to be just as confident as when she'd entered the Great Hall earlier.

She reached the stool, from which McGonagall had removed the hat, and sat down upon it as the students were silenced by an especially stern look from McGonagall. She placed the hat on Camilia's head, and immediately the Sorting Hat began to speak into her ear. "Let's see, what do we have here? Oh my, power, yes...ambition, lots of it...and cunning, mmm."

Camilia started. Was the Hat talking to her in her head, or could everyone hear what it was saying? Looking around and seeing that no one seemed to have heard a word, she took a second to compose herself and then silently asked a question, not expecting an answer.

"Uh...what about..." Suddenly she could not remember the name of the House Harry had told her. "What house is Harry in?"

"Gryffindor? Oh, no, no, no, that's not for you. Brave you are, but you are not one to call the Lion's Den home. Slytherin would be a very nice fit."

"Slither. Not a big snake fan, gotta tell ya." Knowing that know one else could hear the Hat speak to her, Camilia relaxed considerably. "What are my other options?"

The Hat debated a moment, and then continued. "A Hufflepuff you could be, but you'd have to work hard for the right reasons. You are loyal, indeed, but not terribly dedicated. However, you are prone to making your wants and desires known, a strong Slytherin quality."

"But there's a fourth House, right? Which one is that?" she asked hopefully.

"Ravenclaw might suit you, but you would find no satisfaction. Your wit would be better utilized in Salazar's House. No, my dear, Slytherin deserves you."

Camilia was not to be put off. "I want Harry's House."

"But you'd be far more comfortable in Slytherin..." began the Hat.

"Okay, but can't you put me in the Griffin one anyway?" she huffed.

"I fear it would be an unwise sorting," the Hat replied.

"So you're going to just stick me in with the snakes then?" she asked, teeth clenched, eyebrows raised.

"I will allow you to choose," grumbled the Hat, "but I still feel that Slytherin would be the better House for you."

"Then I want the Griffin one."

The Sorting Hat heaved a great sigh, and admonished her once more to select Slytherin as her House. She declined, and as the air between Camilia's head and the brim of the Hat was growing ever more warm and uncomfortable, the Hat relented. With some trepidation, the Sorting Hat announced her sorting: "Gryffindor!"

Its announcement was met not by the thunderous applause that generally took place, but by a polite sprinkling of claps throughout the assembled students. Camilia tentatively rose from her seat on the stool and made her way back to where she'd been sitting a few minutes before, between Harry and Neville. As soon as she'd taken up her seat, the students resumed their whispering and ruminating over the odd event that had just taken place.

From across the Great Hall, Malfoy gazed at Camilia as she returned to her seat, mildly disappointed that he would be forced to wait to introduce himself. His thoughts turned from her name, her striking appearance, and the odd taste she had in clothes, to wondering what might be the most effective way to complete the task his master had set forth. He watched with further displeasure as she sat down next to Pitiful Potter and decided then and there it was time to commence with his planning. Malfoy stood, excused himself from his companions with nary a word, and made his way quietly back to the Slytherin common room.

Meanwhile, Professor McGonagall had approached the Gryffindor table to, albeit it rather stiffly, welcome Camilia into her House. She handed Camilia her class schedule, which would include a mixture of first and sixth year classes, and a session of private tutelage with Professor Dumbledore each week. She then explained that she had asked the house elves to assemble a set of robes for Camilia, and to collect the necessary toiletries for her until she could go to Hogsmeade to select her own robes and personal items. McGonagall also handed her a leather book bag containing parchment, quills, ink, and various other school supplies she'd be needing to complete the term. She explained that Camilia would be given a set of used textbooks, each coming from instructors.

Camilia listened to McGonagall as she shuffled around her school supplies and then asked cautiously, "Is there a wand in here?"

McGonagall looked severe, and said, between lips so tight they seemed to have disappeared, "It seems Professor Dumbledore believes you can perform all the magic you'll need to know sans wand, so you'll not be needing one."

Camilia nodded, but all the students around her who had overheard McGonagall's statement looked scandalized. "How can she learn magic without a wand?" Ron heard himself blurt out.

"Mr. Weasley, I'll thank you not to question the Headmaster's demands, and to keep your opinions quite to yourself!" snapped McGonagall, and she turned on her heel and left in a huff.

Ron looked abashed. "I didn't offer an opinion, I was just asking -"

"It's okay, Ron, she's just pissed off that Albus is letting me stay. This whole Pritchard thing has her freaked out...and everyone else too, I assume," she finished as she saw an indecipherable expression cross their faces.

"It's not the Pritchard thing, Camilia," said Hermione. "I think it's just that we've never even heard the staff call Professor Dumbledore by his first name."

"Albus?" Camilia asked. "Oh - well - he just told me to - well - okay, then, at least it's not me freaking everybody out," she mused.

They all sat in an awkward silence for a moment until finally Hermione saved the day. "Look at the time! I need to go return a book to the library before Herbology! Ron, did you ever take back that Divination book?"

"What Divination book?" he asked blankly.

"The one you have to return," she said between clenched teeth.

Ron looked at her for a moment, then looked at Harry and Camilia. "OH!" he said. "That Divination book. Right. Well, see you blokes in Herbology," he mumbled as Hermione dragged him off to the library.

"In a hurry to leave, were they?" Camilia observed to Harry.

"Yeah. Uh, Madam Pince can be quite the bear when books are returned late..." his voice trailed off. He paused for a moment, and then said, "So." He paused, thinking of something to say. "Shall I show you where the Gryffindor common room is, then? Of course, you'll need Hermione to take you to your room in the girls' dormitory, but at least I can give you the password and get you -"

"Sounds fabulous," she said, cutting him off. She motioned around the Hall to all the students still sneaking peeks at her and noted, "I'd kill to get away from all this...everyone staring at me is driving me nuts."

I know the feeling, thought Harry as they rose to leave. More than you can possibly imagine.