Sorting
For the rest of the afternoon, Liam and Alma patrolled the train car corridors. They saw nothing amiss. There were no fights between rival factions and no overly loud antics of students happily reunited. Nor did they encounter what Mary described as “overly amorous couples.” Their main task was pointing young students to the corridor bathrooms.
“Were we ever that little?” asked Liam, after he directed a pair of eleven-year-old boys to the nearest loo.
Alma laughed. “Some of us are still that little. You seem to be getting the hang of being prefect. Like Jill, I’ve always been the little sister. Being the big sister is going to take some getting used to.”
“I never thought about being prefect until this summer. Berto and Nessa started asking me about my prefect badge before I’d even gotten it. But I guess I’ve always been the big brother, so it should come naturally to me.”
“I never thought about being prefect, either. Neither of my brothers had been prefect,” said Alma. “Then, over Christmas break when we were Third Years, Morwena Felwich invited me to go caroling with her. There was a bunch of girls, but she wanted someone from every House, so she invited me. Not the typical crowd I hang out with normally.
“Anyway, that night, Morwena says to me, ‘You and I may be prefects together someday.’ After that, I had the bug, I guess. I wanted to be prefect. When we got back to school, I asked Greenleaf about how we get elected. I even didn’t know what the process was. She said if I was expressing interest, that was a good sign.”
A ghostly voice announced the approach to Hogsmeade station. “That announcement is only just more audible than the one I heard on the Great Northern this morning, coming into King’s Cross.”
“You take the train to King’s Cross?” asked Alma. “That’s cool.”
“Kind of silly, actually. We ride right past Biggleswade on the way to Hogwarts, but I’ve got to take the train south to London and then back north again on the Express.”
“I heard you lived in Biggleswade, but I don’t really know where that is.”
“It’s in Bedfordshire.”
“That doesn’t really help me. I guess I should do better with English geography,” admitted Alma.
“Well, I’ve no idea where Godric’s Hollow is, either. Though, I’ve been told, you can get there on the Knight Bus.”
Alma laughed. “If you survive the trip! My brothers took a ride on the Knight Bus once, and they were both throwing up the whole time.”
They parted with a wave, and Liam returned to the compartment where his friends were sitting. Vanessa was still holding court, laughing at the stories Michael and Fortney were telling her. In the background, Liam could hear Vanessa’s hair singing like a choir.
Philip had gone. “Where’s Hark?” asked Liam.
“Oh, he wanted to check on Mac and them,” said Michael. He meant the other Slytherin girls of their year, Rhiannon MacDougal, Pauline Langlet, Tess Covenshire and Morwena Felwich.
“How was Felwich at this thing?” asked Vanessa. “I bet she was insufferable. She’s been wanting to be prefect forever. I bet that was the first word she spoke as a toddler. ‘Prefect!’”
Michael laughed loudly at this joke, but to their surprise, Liam quickly came to Morwena’s defence. “Actually, Felwich was quite civil. She made up with Sadie first thing. Apologized for bullying her when we were First Years. She even shook my hand.”
This drew a cross look from Vanessa. Like a stereo being abruptly shut off, her hair stopped singing.
The train reached Hogsmeade station, and the students began to disembark. Liam and the other prefects made sure the First Years headed down the path towards the lake, while everyone else queued up for the carriage ride up to the castle. A steady rain was falling.
Liam stood at the edge of the platform as Mr. Hagrid counted heads. “Two dozen,” said Hagrid in his gruff voice. “That’s the lot. No more ‘n four to a boat. That’s it. Sit down and the boat ‘ll do the rest.” To Liam, he said, “There all accounted for, Wren. Go ahead and catch your carriage.”
Liam caught up with Vanessa, Michael and Fortney in the queue. When it was their turn, they boarded the carriage. Vanessa slumped against him, and he put his arm around her. To cheer her up, he set his hand on her stomach and cast his heat spell upon her. She let out a soft sigh, but still her hair would not sing.
The rain fell steadily, beating the wooden roof of the carriage like a drum. When it stopped in front of the castle, Liam and his friends dashed up the wide stone steps as quick as they dared. Once inside, Liam drew his wand and swept the water from their cloaks and cleared the floor of puddles.
“Aren’t you the proper prefect now,” said Michael, teasingly. “Glad they didn’t pick me.”
Liam ignored him. He gave a kiss to Vanessa. “I’ll see you tomorrow,” he said. She nodded. They entered the Great Hall and took their seats, Liam and his friends among the Hufflepuffs, Vanessa with Umberto and Gordon among the Slytherins.
As Liam came to the Huffepuff table, he received a warm ovation. Stacy, Stephanie and Monique each gave him a firm hug. Benedict Took shook his hand, and his sister Bell beamed at him. “Congratulations!” the twins said in unison.
Remington, a Seventh-Year boy who was a Chaser for the Badgers, said, “Attaboy, Wren! Knew they’d pick you!”
“Thanks!”
At Remington’s side was Deena Price, who had been on the Second Team with Stacy and Stephanie. “We better watch out for this one,” said Deena. “It’s going to his head already.”
Liam took a seat between Michael and Philip. The room quieted down as the First Years filed into the room. Liam whispered to Philip, “Bit more than last year, I see.”
“Still not many war babies,” said Philip, “but we did a better job this year recruiting outside of our community. One of those kids is from the United States!”
The first name called was “Appledore, Daisy.” She had strawberry blond hair and freckles. The hat placed her in Hufflepuff. When she reached the table, she was greeted with hugs from Lara and from Bell.
“I think we’re neighbors,” said Bell. “Do you live in Tookborough?”
“I live in Archet,” said Daisy. “It’s near Tookborough.”
Mary gave the new girl a hug, too. “Appledore. That’s an old Hufflepuff name,” said Mary. Daisy beamed.
Professor Gregor called out, “Boissard, Marie Claire.” This girl went to Ravenclaw. “That’s the sister of my friend Elanor,” said Bell. “Elanor’s a Ravenclaw, also.”
The first Hufflepuff boy was Evan Davies. He looked unsure where to go. Liam stood and beckoned him. “This way, kid,” said Liam. “You’re with us.”
Evan sat next to Liam and gazed sheepishly up at him. “I don’t know anybody,” he said.
“Well, you know us now, right? We’re your family from here on out. I’m Liam. I’m your prefect. That beautiful girl there is your other prefect, Lara.” The compliment brought a bright blush to Lara’s face. Liam quietly rattled off a few more names. “Where you from, Ev?”
“Manchester.”
“City or United?” asked Liam, inquiring about the Manchester Football Clubs.
“City,” said Evan, firmly.
“Attaboy,” said Liam.
A few more names went by. The name “Lupin, Theodore,” sent whispers buzzing through the hall.
“That’s Harry Potter’s godson,” said Liam to Philip.
Philip nodded. “His parents were in the Order of the Phoenix. They were both killed during the Battle of Hogwarts.”
Lupin was sorted to Gryffindor. At the announcement, the Gryffindor table broke into cheers. Paul Hewson called out “Wolfie!” and led a chant which sounded like dogs barking.
“I’m glad you didn’t do that for me,” said Daisy.
“That’s why you’re over here with us, sweetie,” said Lara.
Shortly after Lupin was “Mooncrest, Christopher.” He was sorted to Hufflepuff. He came to the table and sat next to his older sister, Sophie. She prodded him to go and sit by Liam and Evan.
Richie Parker was sorted to Hufflepuff. Liam motioned for him, and he sat right next to Liam. “This is Chris, and this is Evan,” said Liam.
Richie shook the boys’ hands. To Evan, he said, “We met on the platform. Mrs. Granger introduced us.” Evan nodded.
Richie turned to Liam and tapped his red tie. “Goonahs,” he said. “We’re gonna win the treble.”
“You keep thinking good thoughts, kid.”
Meanwhile, Lara picked up two more girls, Paige and Dalwinder. They were both sweet, friendly girls, both Muggleborns.
Ava Swansea’s sister Lorelei went to Slytherin. She joined three other very pretty, very proper looking girls. Among the prefects, Mowena and David had four young charges each. Liam, Lara and Umberto each had three. Sadie and Ronald just two each.
Sadie sat with one girl on either side of her. While they ate a dinner of roast beef, stewed carrots and red potatoes, Marie Claire’s eyes darted from thing to thing. “How did they do the candles like that?”
“It’s magic,” said Sadie.
“I know,” said Marie Claire. “What spell?”
“I don’t know.”
This perplexed Marie Claire for a moment, but then she was off on another topic. “My sister went to a party this summer, and she saw the Muggle movie.”
“Which Muggle movie?” asked Sadie. “There are several.”
“Oh! I didn’t know. I wasn’t sure. It was the one about the girl in the pink dress. She dances with her boyfriend at the end. Have you seen it?”
“I might have,” said Sadie.
On her other side, Fiona Fallon was quiet. She had red hair, and her cheeks were full of freckles. She looked very much as Gillian Roycester had as an eleven-year-old, except that Jill was more outgoing. Sadie asked her, “Did you meet some girls on the train?”
“A few,” answered Fiona. “The lady from Ministry introduced us. Jenny Oldcastle said she was from Texas. I guess that’s somewhere in America.”
“Yes, it is,” said Sadie. “I’ve been to America once, but I didn’t go to Texas.”
At the Slytherin table, Jenny Oldcastle was talking to the other First Year girls. She had long, straight brown hair and brown eyes. She might have been a third Felwich sister, save for her soft Southern drawl.
“There just aren’t many choices of magical schools in the United States,” said Jennifer. “We toured the Academy at Colorado Springs, but I couldn’t take the altitude. It gave me headaches. And, my parents weren’t about to send me to some crazy liberal California school. Hogwarts has the pedigree, at least from what I’ve heard. It was the logical choice.”
“You did well to land in Slytherin,” said Morwena. “There’s no better place to make connections within the Magical Community.”
“I’m glad I didn’t land over there,” said Jenny, with a dismissive wave towards the Gryffindor table. “They’re so loud! And, they were falling over themselves for that one boy.”
Umberto, sitting across the table from Jennifer, laughed and extended his hand to her. “You’re going to do well here.”
Liam and Lara brought their charges downstairs to the Hufflepuff common room. The Hufflepuffs gathered by the fire, and Professor Meadows addressed them, giving much the same speech that she had given when Liam was a First Year.
Afterwards, Lara suggested the young ones write letters home. They sat at a study table just off the Hearth room. Liam gathered up the letters when they were done. “I’ll take you lads up to the Owlry tomorrow. You can see the whole school grounds from there.”
Liam had each boy brush his teeth and wash his face before bed. He sent them into the dormitory to change, then left to check out his own room. He was pleased to see that, as a Fifth Year, their room was a little more spacious than previous, and they had two bathroom stalls instead of one.
He returned to the Hearth Room, as he wanted to ask Professor Meadows about the First Year schedules. She was speaking to a couple of the Seventh Year girls, so Liam waited. Richie Parker charged into the Hearth Room, dressed in red pajama bottoms and a white top with a large red Arsenal cannon across the chest.
“See, Liam!” he cried. “Goonah!”
“Brilliant, kid,” he said.
The other students smiled and laughed at the exuberant new boy. None of them understood the reference, that Richie was saying "Gooner," the nickname for Arsenal fans. But from that point, everyone called Richie "Goonah." The nickname stuck with him all the way through his seventh year at Hogwarts.
Morwena kept close tabs on her four little girls. After dinner, she took them to the bathroom. Afterwards, the line at the Slytherin’s narrow stairwell was still long. Instead of waiting, she took them upstairs for a quick tour of the library. She showed them the study rooms and the card catalogue, and she introduced them to Madam Pince.
Finally, she led them down the narrow stairway and along the stone corridor to the entrance to the Halls of the Serpent. There was no one else around, and the passage was eerily quiet. “The password changes every two weeks,” she told them. “Starting tonight, the password is ‘pinnacle,’ which is ironic, as we are in the basement rather than in one of the towers.”
“Why are we down here in the dark?” asked Jennifer.
“We have more space down here,” said Morwena. “We have the largest common area by far. It’s a great honour to be allowed into the Halls of the Serpent.”
She showed them to their dormitory, then took them straight away to one of the study halls to write their letters home. Umberto and his charges were set up nearby.
Before tucking them into bed, she brushed each girl’s hair. She remembered how Tess had bonded with the Little Coven by doing just this. I’m not above stealing a trick from Tess, she decided.
Finally, she was downstairs in her own bed, a full bed rather than a narrow twin like she had slept in previously. She drew the curtains to change into her flannel nightgown. When she emerged, she saw that Pauline was sitting on Tess’ bed. The two were chatting away while Rhiannon lay on her own bed, listening.
Vanessa had pulled her curtains around her bed. This irritated Morwena. Obviously, she’s not feeling modest while she changes clothes. Morwena went to the curtain and said, “Are you feeling alright, Ables? You hardly said a word to anyone at dinner.”
She heard Vanessa give an irritated sigh. “Everything is fine, Felwich.”
Morwena drew the curtain open slightly and poked her head in. “Do you have a headache? I know a mild pain-relief spell.”
“I’m fine.”
“You and Wren didn’t have a fight or anything?” To Morwena’s immense satisfaction, this query drew an evil glare from Vanessa. “Let me know if you need anything.”
“Yes, Miss Prefect,” said Vanessa.
This drew an offended huff from Pauline, who was eavesdropping. Morwena turned her back on Vanessa and joined Pauline and Tess on Tess’ bed.
“Speaking of prefects,” said Morwena, loud enough that she was sure Vanessa could hear her, “we had an interesting ritual this afternoon at the Prefect meeting.” Morwena described the Reconciliation of the Prefects. “Of course, I had to make up with Thompson. I was as surprised as anyone that she was picked over Cal or my cousin Sally. After all these years, she was still quite afraid of me. Cowered, in fact. Fortunately, Wren was there to buck her up.”
Her smile became sly. Tess and Pauline drew closer to hear what she had next to say. “It was so sweet. He put his hand on her back, just like old times. After their break-up, they were hardly speaking. I guess they’ve mended fences.”
She leaned back on her hands, a coy look on her face. “I never spent that much time around Liam Wren before. He really is quite dashing, now. Must admit, I felt a little flutter when he shook my hand, gazed into my eyes. I can see why girls fall for him.”
She turned around and looked at Vanessa’s bed. The curtain was drawn once again.