Get a Sorting Hat from the Harry Potter Books and Movies

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Author	Message
teyannanecole Joined: 2 August 2008 Posts: 43	Posted: Tuesday 5 August 2008 09 31 48 pm    Post subject: Re: in topic:A Solution to why Pettigrew was in Gryffindor Athena Appleton"][quote="GodrictheGriffon wrote: It was Neville. I think he was alomost in Hufflepuff. Could the Sorting Hat have sawn deep inside of him to see what he did in the future? Is that what could have happened with Peter.[/quote] I don't think so, I think it just saw in Neville a latent sense of bravery and took a chance and put him in Gryffindor. If Neville had never been part of the six who fight at the Ministry, or even had never joined the D.A., he would have been no less a Gryffindor. I really don't think the Sorting Hat has that kind of power. Basically, I think it's able to be an excellent judge of character, but that's it. Even an excellent judge of character can be wrong sometime. Dumbledore seems to have a clear understanding of how the Sorting Hat works, and he seemed to have a deep-seated mistrust of any future-telling magical items. One of the main themes of the Harry Potter books has been the importance of decisions. It's not our habits or tendancies or what house your'e in or who your family is or what prophesies say about us, what defines us is the decisions we make. "It is our choices, Harry, that show what we truly are, far more that our abilities." - Ablus Dumbledore (JKR, HPCS pg. 333 USA Version)
Scellanis Joined: 11 September 2002 Posts: 6457 Location: Pretending to be a sea slug with 'go faster' stripes...	Posted: Monday 4 August 2008 11 40 32 am    Post subject: Re: Introductions and FAQ's in topic:Introductions and FAQ's Hello! Welcome to BaO!!! *waves wand and makes sparkly pink sorting hat shaped glitter fall from the ceiling* Hi, I'm Kim from Scotland...
teyannanecole Joined: 2 August 2008 Posts: 43	Posted: Saturday 2 August 2008 11 24 18 am    Post subject: Re: SPOILER ! harry had acepted malfoys invite of being friends? in topic:SPOILER ! harry had acepted malfoys invite of being friends? The pivital point is Harry's absolute inital introduction to the wizarding world. He is yearning to feel loved and be accetped. It just happens that Hagrid provides this introduction. Let's say if Lucious Malfoy came in place of Hagrid and was talking about Voldemot in stead of Albus DD, he would not only gotten introduved to the wizarding world from the "dark" perspectve, but he would have seen the softer side of the Malfoys (whose love for eachother is shown at the end of DH) and been attracted to their close famiy ties. He would have been watching the Malfoys' goodbye instead of the Weasley's. He would have never asked the sorting hat not to put him in Slyther nd may in fact have askedhim to put him there. It may be going a bit far to say that Malfoy would be in Ron's place, but we knowthat Draco wants everything that Harry has. With Harry inheriting a fortune and loving to share everthing he has the cold have developed friendship. Harry is also strong enough to stand up to and most importantly influence Draco so if he did't take Ron's place maybe he would befriend another slytherin would and be coordial with Draco if not closer. As in he would not have gone around bullying others, but out to do whatever o make sure that he and his friends are ok. Befriending Draco and being placed in Slytherin would only dastically change the first three quarters of the first book. Harry would never join sides with Voldemort, the murderer of his parents, and would have gone after the Philospher's stone just so Voldemort could not obtain it. With everyone else's influence (Doby, Sirius, Dumbledore...) the rest of the books would be basically the same. Without the loathing hate of [green]Slyterin[/green]of course.
Ms. Elsewhere Joined: 13 January 2008 Posts: 881 Location: In role play game of course!	Posted: Saturday 26 July 2008 08 50 13 am    Post subject: Re: Chapter 7 - The Sorting Hat in topic:Chapter 7 - The Sorting Hat It would be nice to be 'sorted' into a group you knew you were meant to belong in. The sorting hat is never wrong. It knows what's in your head, and in your heart. It can see where u belong and where u will be the strongest. Too bad it's so hard for us to be sorted in real life. I still don't know where I belong........... 15 years later!
Ms. Elsewhere Joined: 13 January 2008 Posts: 881 Location: In role play game of course!	Posted: Tuesday 22 July 2008 03 15 39 am    Post subject: Re: Chapter 7 - The Sorting Hat in topic:Chapter 7 - The Sorting Hat indeed! we learn so much more about each house..... anyone wish there were more songs in PS/SS movie? the sorting hat had such a cool little rhyme!
firewhisky Joined: 20 July 2008 Posts: 19 Location: Over the hill from Hogwarts, somewhere in Scotland	Posted: Sunday 20 July 2008 03 56 05 pm    Post subject: Re: Sudents at Hogwarts? in topic:Sudents at Hogwarts? You also have to take into consideration that it is not like a normal school where the pupils are seperated equally between the houses , rather at Hogwarts the Sorting Hat decides and this means that it would be possible for there to be,for example, only 4 new 1st year boys in Gryffindor and 10 in Slytherin etc etc.
Scellanis Joined: 11 September 2002 Posts: 6457 Location: Pretending to be a sea slug with 'go faster' stripes...	Posted: Sunday 20 July 2008 11 18 04 am    Post subject: Re: Introductions and FAQ's in topic:Introductions and FAQ's Welcome Firewhiskey! Cool username *waves wand and makes Sorting Hat shaped glitter fall from the ceiling*
firewhisky Joined: 20 July 2008 Posts: 19 Location: Over the hill from Hogwarts, somewhere in Scotland	Posted: Sunday 20 July 2008 05 32 25 am    Post subject: Re: Introductions and FAQ's in topic:Introductions and FAQ's Thanks for the welcome! I found the forum via google and it seems likea very nice site so far - still trying to catch up with the past posts, and wondering where the Sorting Hat might put me LOL
Scellanis Joined: 11 September 2002 Posts: 6457 Location: Pretending to be a sea slug with 'go faster' stripes...	Posted: Saturday 19 July 2008 12 59 09 pm    Post subject: Re: Introductions and FAQ's in topic:Introductions and FAQ's *blinks* Can't remember if I've welcomed you people or not, been away on holiday but Welcome to BaO!! *waves wand and makes Sorting hat shaped cookies appear* I thought we used to get House Points for the old House Quiz before it died...House Points would be quite a fun idea though. You should suggest it.
Scellanis Joined: 11 September 2002 Posts: 6457 Location: Pretending to be a sea slug with 'go faster' stripes...	Posted: Monday 7 July 2008 10 42 37 am    Post subject: Re: Introductions and FAQ's in topic:Introductions and FAQ's Hello! Welcome to BaO!! *waves wand and makes Sorting Hat shaped confetti fall from the ceiling*
choki Joined: 1 May 2003 Posts: 3165 Location: Riding a black chocobo	Posted: Saturday 5 July 2008 08 11 04 am    Post subject: Re: The Next Generation in topic:The Next Generation "Butterbeer!" "Treacle tart!" After naming countless food items as the incorrect password, the statue guarding the headmistress office simply ignored Aberforth. Flabbergasted, he pointed his wand at the offending gargoyle and threatened to blow its head off if it did not open the passageway for him, in a menacingly tone. The stone gargoyle gave a displeased grunt, but it relented as it turned to reveal the hidden passageway. "Galena!" Aberforth yelled out the new headmistress name as he stepped into the office. Nikolaus followed suit and was taken aback by the grandiose of the room. The array of magical equipments was amazing for its humble size even though he had seen greater treasures at Gringotts. These were the private collection of the Hogwarts' headmasters and headmistresses. Then, he spotted a peculiar ragged hat, sitting on top of the high chair. He walked towards it. "Galena? Where are you hiding! We got trou-" "OH just be quiet!" Nikolaus almost jumped up when the Sorting Hat spoke, "What? Never seen a talking hat before?" "Aberforth," said an familiar voice. Nikolaus took his eyes off the Sorting Hat and glanced up to the source. "Albus..." Aberforth replied, as he looked upward at the portrait of his elder brother. "Galena has just stepped out of the office, if you are still looking for her, that is..." said Dumbledore in an all-knowing tone. His eyes drifted to the young man standing at the far corner. "Oh hello there... pardon me but I couldn't get a good look at you... Phineas, over there is blocking my view," said Dumbledore. "I'm not leaving... I just gotten myself a good resting position!" Phineas answered back as he crossed his arms. Nikolaus then took the initiative to step further out to a position where he could see the famed Dumbledore eye to eye. The moment Dumbledore saw him, he couldn't believe his eyes. "Hmpf, yeah I know... he looks exactly like him, don't you think so, my brother?"
DucksRMagical Joined: 28 December 2006 Posts: 2535 Location: Going through LeakyCon withdrawal	Posted: Tuesday 17 June 2008 11 27 38 am    Post subject: Re: The Unnamed Albus Sequel in topic:Albus Potter and the Tracks They Left Behind It seems that my most recent chapter got deleted during the hacking episode, so here it is again. Chapter 4: Inter House Teams?! "Hurry up!" Ginny called back to James and Albus, "It's already quarter to eleven!" Albus sped up as he pushed his trolley through the crowded King's Cross station. James was right next to him, pushing his own trolley. Their parents and Lily were in front of them, walking as fast as they could without actually running. The Potters were running late, very late. It was September first and the Hogwart's Express would be leaving in exactly fifteen minutes. The whole morning had been very rushed. Albus woke up late and James woke up even later. Albus had stayed up until midnight the night before working on his Transfiguration essay, and James always woke up late. Then, James couldn't find his practice Snitch and refused to leave before he found it. Lily finally found it in a cauldron that was in the kitchen. No one was really sure how it got there. But because of all this, the Potter family was now practically running through King's Cross, trying to get to Platform 9 3/4 on time. This was earning them many strange looks from the Muggles, especially due to the fact that they had two irritated owls on their trolleys. "James, you first!" Ginny shouted as they reached the barrier between platforms 9 and 10. Albus watched as his brother disappeared into a seemingly solid wall. "I'll stay here and wait for the Dursleys," Harry said as he glanced at his watch. It appeared that the Dursleys were even later than the Potters. "All right," Ginny replied, "Albus, you next." Albus nodded and ran through the barrier. A few moments later, Albus was standing on platform 9 3/4, and Rose was running up to him. "Albus!" she shouted, "There you are!" "Yeah, we're running a bit late." "A bit?! The train's leaving in seven minutes!" "I know," Albus said as Ginny and Lily appeared behind him, "But Kaden's even later." "I'll load your trunks," Ron appeared and took James and Albus's trolleys to the train. "Be good, James," Ginny warned, "You, too, Albus." "We're always good, Mum," James grinned and slapped Albus on the back, "Right, Al?" "'Course we are," Albus grinned back. Ginny gave them a stern look, "I don't want any owls from Professor Kendrick." "Aw, don't worry, Mum," James laughed, "You haven't gotten one yet." "Five minutes until the train leaves!" Hermione told them. "Kaden better hurry up," Albus replied. At that moment, Kaden burst through the barrier with a huge grin on his face. Harry was behind him, pushing another trolley. Ron grabbed it and ran it over to the train. "That was brilliant," Kaden announced as he joined the group. "You've got to get on the train now!" Ginny shouted as she herded everyone over to one of the train doors. She gave James and Albus a quick hug and kiss. "Bye, kids! Be good, all of you!" "I'll see you later at the feast," Harry gave each of his sons a hug. "Bye, Mum, bye Dad, bye Lily!" Albus shouted as he climbed onto the train. Kaden and Rose got on after him. James jumped on just as the train was starting to move. "That was close," Rose sighed as the train left the station. "Yeah," James agreed, "But we made it. I'll see you lot later." He ran down the train corridor to find his friends. "C'mon, Rose," Albus started to walk down the corridor, "Let's go find John, Matt, and Amanda." "How does that work?" Kaden asked while he followed Albus and Rose, "I mean, how on earth can you go through a solid brick wall?" "I dunno," Albus shrugged, "It's magic, you know." "Yeah, but still..." Kaden shrugged. Albus and Rose continued down the corridor, peeking into compartments as they looked for their friends. Kaden followed close behind, still wanting to talk about the barrier. Anything remotely magical seemed to excite him, and Albus had to stifle a laugh as he thought about what Kaden was going to do when he saw the Sorting Hat. "There they are," Rose announced when they were halfway down the train. Rose pulled open the door and they walked inside. John, Matt, Amanda, and a girl with long, black, curly hair Albus had never seen before were sitting inside. "I was wondering when you two would show up," John grinned. "Barely made it," Albus told him as he sat down next to John. "I was on time," Rose announced, smirking at Albus. "Hey! It wasn't my fault. James wouldn't leave until he found his practice Snitch." "Well, you made it, that's all that matters," Amanda said. "Yeah, good thing you didn't miss the train. I suppose you could've just Flooed, but the train is better," John told them. "By the way, this is my cousin, Isabelle," he gestured to the girl Albus hadn't recognized. "She's just starting this year." "Hi," Isabelle said quietly. "Hello," Albus smiled, "I'm Albus Potter." Isabelle's eyes opened wide and she stared at him. "Really?" Albus sighed, he was sick of going through this with everyone he met, "Yes, really." "Wow," Isabelle replied. "I'm Rose Weasley," Rose told her, "Albus's cousin." Isabelle nodded, but didn't say anything. "Oh, Amanda, Isabelle," Albus said, "This is my cousin, Kaden. He's Dudley's son." "Hi, Kaden," Amanda smiled at him. Isabelle again just nodded. "Hi," Kaden replied and sat down next to Amanda. "You're, what's the word? Muggle-born, too, right?" "Yeah." "Weren't you amazed by the barrier, too?" Kaden asked, "I mean, it was just so strange, going through a solid brick wall." "I suppose. It was kind of scary at first, but it doesn't bother me much now." "He's been going on about the barrier for the past ten minutes," Albus whispered to John and Matt. "Just wait until he first gets hexed," John whispered back, "He won't be thinking everything's brilliant then." "How was your holiday in Ireland, Amanda?" Rose asked. Amanda grinned, "It was wonderful! We went all over the place, just wandering around and seeing everything. I kissed the Blarney Stone, too." "I've done that!" Kaden announced. "I hope we go back sometime, I had a really good time," Amanda told them, "How were the rest of your summers?" "Mine was good," John said, "Visited Isabelle's family and we all went to Diagon Alley together. Nothing too exciting." "I love Diagon Alley!" Kaden shouted, "I can't wait to go back there!" "Yeah, it's a pretty neat place," Albus agreed, "Went back there with James after you left, John. Other than that I spent the rest of my holiday doing homework and playing Quidditch." "Me, too," Rose said, "Although I mainly watched James and Albus play Quidditch." "How about you, Matt? Do anything exciting?" Albus asked, looking at his friend. Albus really wanted to know why Matt had been in St. Mungo's, but he knew that Matt would not elaborate on it while Kaden and Isabelle were in the compartment. "Not really," Matt replied quickly, giving Albus a look that meant he would tell him later. "So, I wonder who the new Charms teacher will be?" Matt asked, changing the subject. "Dunno," Albus shrugged, "Anyone will be better than Washburn." "Who's Washburn?" Kaden asked loudly, "And what happened to him?" "He was the Charms teacher," Albus told him, "He got fired for trying to steal, er, certain things that would help him achieve Voldemort's ideals. And he started a duel with me, John, Amanda, Matt, and Rose. One of his friends dueled with my dad, too. It was pretty bad." "Who's Voldemort?" Kaden asked, "And what things?" Albus sighed and looked at Rose, who shrugged. It was going to be a long trip. Albus turned to Kaden and explained all about Voldemort. He left out the part about the Hallows, though, as he wasn't sure if his dad would want him to tell Kaden. "So you see, not all wizards are good," Albus finished. Kaden stared at his cousin, lost for words for the first time. After a few moments he whispered, "Blimey. So that's why your family's famous? Because my dad said you were, he just didn't tell me why." "Er, yeah," Albus replied. The group spent much of the rest of the journey talking about who the next Charms teacher would be, Quidditch, the Dueling Club (which they'd be allowed to join this year, as second years), and a great deal of other stuff. Around lunch time, the witch came around with the trolley and everyone bought large amounts of food. Everyone had a lot of fun watching Kaden try all the wizard sweets. Kaden announced that he liked Bertie Botts Every Flavor Beans best, despite the fact that the first one he tried was a vomit flavor. When he opened his first Chocolate Frog, he was shocked that it could hop and even more shocked when he saw the picture of Rowena Ravenclaw disappear from the card that came with it. After they polished off the rest of the sweets, the conversation turned to which houses Kaden and Isabelle wanted to be in. Apparently John and Isabelle's family consisted of an equal number of Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs. Isabelle's dad had been a Gryffindor and her mum had been a Hufflepuff. Isabelle didn't really care if she was in Gryffindor or Hufflepuff, but she knew she didn't want to be in Slytherin. She decided that Ravenclaw wouldn't be bad, but she wanted to be some place where her family had been. Kaden on the other hand, definitely wanted to be in Gryffindor. Albus wasn't too sure he'd wind up there, still thinking that his cousin was more of a Hufflepuff, but he didn't tell Kaden this. Soon the train made it to Hogsmeade station and it was time for everyone to get off. Albus and his friends joined the large crowd of students exiting onto the platform. "Firs' years! Firs' years!" Hagrid called out. Albus lead his group over to him, "Hi, Hagrid!" "'Ello, Albus!" Hagrid greeted him. "My cousin Kaden's starting this year, and John's cousin, Isabelle," Albus gestured to the two first years standing near him. Kaden gaped at Hagrid, "Are you the one who gave my dad a pig's tail?" "Oh, yer Dudley's son, then," Hagrid turned to Kaden, "Tha' was me." Kaden started laughing, "I can't wait to learn how to do something like that." "Soon enough, soon enough," Hagrid told him, "Le's go, then," he said to Kaden and Isabelle. The two of them waved to Albus and the others, and followed Hagrid to the lake. "Finally," Albus muttered as he lead his friends to the carriages, "I thought he'd never leave us alone." Albus liked Kaden, but found his constant company to be taxing. "I kinda like him," John laughed, "He's got spunk." "Well, you're kind of like him, John," Albus laughed and climbed into the nearest empty carriage. "Although you're a bit less annoying," Albus turned around and grinned at his friend. "Gee, thanks," John laughed and sat down next to Albus. Rose, Amanda, and Matt followed after, and sat down on the seat across from them. "So, Matt, you were awfully quiet on the train," Albus began, "Something happen during the last part of the summer?" Matt sighed and glanced around at his friends, "Yeah.... I just didn't want to tell you with Kaden and Isabelle around." "I figured," Albus replied, "What happened? Are you all right?" "I'm fine, honestly. It's just, remember over the summer when I said I was going to St. Mungo's?" "Yeah," Albus said. "And remember that study I told you about? The one I'm in?" Albus nodded and remembered back to earlier in the year where Matt had briefly explained about a study as to why Wolfsbane Potion had no effect on him and other werewolves. "I know I didn't tell you a whole lot about it, but it's the reason I was at St. Mungo's. Someone has to observe me after every transformation. Usually Madam Pomfrey or my parents do it, but the Healers like to do it at least twice a year." "Oh," Albus replied, relieved that Matt being severely injured wasn't the reason he was in the hospital. "That makes sense," Rose commented. "Yeah, but that's not all. I figure I should probably tell you a bit more about the study. It started when I was 8. For the first 2 years, I didn't get any Wolfsbane potion. The next 2 years, I got regular Wolfsbane. Not that it made much of a difference." "I wonder why," Albus said. He had been curious about this study ever since Matt told him about it the previous term, but Albus had been reluctant to ask about it. "Dunno. No one does, that's why they're doing it," Matt told them, "But anyway, the Healers and Potion brewers that are working on the Wolfsbane have come up with anther variety and I'm going to start trying it out." "When?" John asked. "I think in January, because I'll be home on Christmas break. I've got to take it a couple days beforehand and it'll be better if someone can watch closely," Matt told them. "Has it been tested before?" Rose asked. "No," Matt said quietly. "That's the point of the study, to test the potions." Albus glanced at Matt. He looked a bit scared at the prospect of taking an untested potion. No wonder he had been quiet on the train. Albus wasn't sure if he would want to take an untested potion. Of course, if the potion worked, Matt's life would drastically change for the better. But what if it didn't work, what if it had horrible side effects? "But they've been researching it, right?" Rose asked, "I mean, they're pretty sure it won't do anything bad?" "Oh, yeah, they don't think it'll hurt me. They're just not sure if it will have the effect it's supposed to," Matt assured them, "But it is a bit scary." "Yeah," Rose agreed, "I'd say so." "It's worth it, though, if they ever find one that works for me." ****** "Brings back memories, doesn't it?" John said as the first years filed into the Great Hall. "Yeah," Albus agreed, remembering how fearful he'd been of being in Slytherin the previous year. He still hadn't told his friends that the Sorting Hat had considered it, and he wasn't sure if he ever would. "There's Kaden," Rose pointed to Albus's cousin, who was standing right at the front of the group. "And Isabelle's right behind him," John told them. Professor Patil motioned for the room to be quiet and the Sorting Hat burst out in song. Albus had to stifle a laugh as he saw Kaden's mouth open in shock. Albus knew that hat would amaze his cousin. Kaden turned around and whispered something to Isabelle, who nodded. Once the hat stopped singing, Professor Patil started the Sorting. The first two students were both sorted into Ravenclaw. "Brickston, Isabelle," Patil called, and John's cousin walked over to the stool. Patil dropped the hat on her head and a few moments later, it shouted out, "Hufflepuff!" Isabelle got up and joined her fellow Hufflepuffs. "Dang," John said, "I thought she'd be here." "Well, you said there are a lot of Hufflepuffs in your family," Rose pointed out. "Yeah, I know," John sighed, "Hufflepuff's good, too. But it's not nearly as good as Gryffindor." "Dursley, Kaden," Patil announced. Kaden ran forward immediately and sat down on the stool, with a big grin on his face. Patil put the hat on his head and after a few minutes, it opened its brim wide and announced, "Gryffindor!" Albus turned to look at James, who was sitting a few seats down, wearing an identical look of shock to the one Albus was. "Gryffindor?" he mouthed, shaking his head. He was so sure that Kaden would wind up in Hufflepuff. "Well, the hat did take an awfully long time to decide," Rose pointed out. "Maybe he's got aspects of all the houses." Like me, Albus thought to himself. He looked up and saw Kaden running over to the Gryffindor table. Albus didn't think it possible, but his grin was even wider now. A few of the older Gryffindors congratulated him as he wedged his way in between Albus and Matt on the bench. "Good job, Kaden," Albus said. "Thanks! I still can't believe that hat can talk. Weirdest thing I've ever done, have a conversation with a hat," Kaden laughed. "Won't be the weirdest thing you'll see here," Albus told him, thinking of Nearly Headless Nick, the portraits on the walls (Sir Cadogan in particular), the Whomping Willow, Moaning Myrtle, and numerous other aspects of the castle that Kaden would have never seen before. The sorting continued and the group of first years dwindled until there were only a couple students left. Albus hadn't recognized any of the other first years, besides Kaden and Isabelle. He thought this must have been the first year in a long time that a Weasley hadn't been sorted. "Willinson, Felix," Patil announced. One of the two remaining boys walked sullenly to the stool and waited for the hat to sort him. A few seconds later, the hat shouted, "Slytherin!" "Willinson?" Albus turned to look at his friends, who were all starting at each other, "You don't think-" "Must be some relation," John shrugged. "Maybe a cousin?" Rose suggested, "I remember Slughorn mentioning that Willinson was an only child at one of the Slug Club meetings last year." "Great," Albus sighed, "I thought we'd be done with Willinson after last year, but now we'll have to deal with his cousin." "Felix Willinson might not be like his cousin," Rose pointed out. "But he's in Slytherin," John said adamantly. "May I have your attention, please!" Albus and his friends stopped talking and looked up to see that Kendrick had stood up. "Thank you. I do have a few start of term announcements, but I think they can wait until after the feast. Enjoy." Kendrick waved his arms and food appeared on the golden platters. "Whoa!" Kaden shouted loudly, "That's bloody brilliant!" "That's how the food always appears, Kaden," Albus laughed and served himself a large portion of steak and kidney pie. "I could definitely get used to this," Kaden grinned as he piled his plate high with everything within reach. "Told you he was like you," Albus whispered to John as John filled his own plate with as much food as he possibly could. "Wut, is' goob foob," John replied with his mouth full of potatoes. "That's disgusting, John," Rose screwed up her face in disgust. "Wut were you wis'ring abo befo?" Kaden asked with part of a roll in his mouth. "Ugh, he does it too!" Amanda commented. "What?" Matt asked Kaden. Kaden swallowed, "I said, what were you whispering about before? You know, when Felix Willinson got sorted." Matt glanced at Albus, clearly unsure about what to tell Kaden. Albus glanced at his other friends, who all shrugged. "Er," Albus began, "Remember what I said about the Charms teacher on the train?" Kaden nodded, while stuffing his face with the rest of his roll. "Well, Professor Washburn wasn't the only one in on that duel. Some wizard named Jarett Willinson was fighting alongside Washburn, we think he's the one who was in charge. He has a son, Quinton, who was a seventh year last year. Quinton drove us mad all last year and then fought along with Washburn and his dad. We're all trying to figure out if Felix is related. We think he is, only probably just a cousin because Quinton doesn't have any siblings." "Oh," Kaden replied and served himself another helping of chicken. He clearly wasn't too worried about Felix Willinson. Throughout the rest of the feast, Albus talked to his friends about Felix Willinson and whether or not he was anything like Quinton. Rose wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt and wait and see if he shared the same views as Quinton. John, on the other hand, was ready to hex him as soon as the feast was over. He figured that Felix must agree with Quinton, since he was in Slytherin. Matt and Amanda both agreed that Felix probably did agree with his cousin, but didn't think they should start hexing him before they really met him. Albus wasn't sure what to think, and he just thought they should avoid Felix, not trying to be friendly with him or hex him. Kaden received a nice shock when Nearly-Headless Nick decided it would be his plate he would appear out of during the feast. Kaden dropped his roll in surprise, but another one of his huge grins appeared on his face shortly after. He gazed around in amazement and watched all the ghosts circling the room. Albus laughed and told him that they even had a ghost teacher. Kaden was amazed by this and said he couldn't wait for that class. "It's just History of Magic," Matt told him, "Boringest class in the school. Best one for sleeping, though." "You'd know, wouldn't you?" John joked. "Oh, shut it, John," Matt laughed, "But seriously, Binns is the most boring professor here." Kaden looked a bit disappointed at this, "Really? How can a class be boring if it's taught by a ghost?" "Trust me, the thrill wears off after the first day," Matt said. A few minutes later the food disappeared and deserts appeared just moments later. Kaden and John immediately piled their plates with every pudding there was. Albus and his friends informed Kaden about the rest of their professors and they all speculated about the new Charms teacher. Albus had noticed one new teacher sitting at the staff table and assumed she was the new Charms teacher. She was an old witch, with her gray hair pulled back in a tight bun. She was very skinny and Albus was guessing she was quite tall, but it was hard to tell as she was sitting down. Albus thought she had an almost bird-like appearance. "Your attention, please," Kendrick stood up once again and the students quieted down, "Thank you. I hope everyone had a good summer and are ready to get back to studying. I have a few start-of-term announcements, as well as one rather big announcement." Whispering immediately erupted in the room, as to what this big announcement could be. Kendrick waited a few moments before continuing, "Anyway, first I'd like to introduce you to our new Charms teacher, Professor Cedonia." The old witch stood up and Albus noticed that she was, indeed, very tall. She gave a small wave and sat back down again. "I also need to remind you that the Forbidden Forest is, as always, out of bounds, as is the Whomping Willow." Kaden turned to Albus and mouthed, 'Whomping Willow?', with another look of amazement on his face. Albus chose to ignore this and went back to paying attention to the headmaster's speech. "Mr. Filch has asked me to remind you that dueling in the corridors is forbidden. Also, that the list of forbidden objects now includes the new 'Extra-Strength Dung Bombs' that have just been released at Weasley Wizard Wheezes. All other products available for purchase there are also forbidden and students may inspect the full list on Mr. Filch's door." Albus, who had experienced the effects of one of his uncle's new dung bombs, could understand why they were banned, but knew the ban wouldn't stop people from using them. He laughed to himself as he remembered the look on his grandmother's face when Uncle George brought one of the dung bombs to the end of summer get together at the Burrow. "If you want to try out for your house's Quidditch team, please give your name to your head of house. I think those are all the usual announcements. Now, onto the more exciting announcement," Kendrick paused and none of the students said a word, "It has come to my attention that the tensions between the houses have been increasing over the past few years. I know that certain houses have always had rivalries," Kendrick turned to look at the Gryffindor and Slytherin tables before continuing, "But I think the rivalry has gotten too large. I believe we need more unity. A great Muggle man once said 'A house divided against itself cannot stand-'" "But our house isn't divided," Cedric Weasley shouted out, "Gryffindor is perfectly unified." "Thank you, Mr. Weasley," Kendrick said sternly, "I was talking about Hogwarts as a whole. I, along with the other professors, believe that their is too much House rivalry. Therefore, we will be taking steps this year to alleviate it." "This won't be good," John muttered under his breath, "I can see it coming, we're going to have to be friendly with the Slytherins." "We have decided to change the Dueling Club," Kendrick continued, "This year, unlike past years, we will have inter house teams." "What!?" Most of the Great Hall erupted into shouts of utter astonishment. The Gryffindors were glaring at the Slytherins, and vice versa. "No way am I dueling with Gryffindors!" an older Slytherin shouted, "I'm only dueling against them!" "Well, we don't want any bloody Slytherins on our team either!" Fred Weasley shouted back. "Thank you for proving my point," Kendrick shouted over the noise. The room quieted down immediately, "As I said, there is too much rivalry. I believe this will help alleviate it. You will have to work together with members of other houses in order to win the dueling championship. There will be more details to follow during the first meeting of the Dueling Club. As always, the club is open to second years and above." "What?!" Kaden shouted loudly and turned to Albus, "I can't join?" "No," Albus told him, "Sorry. First years don't know enough spells to join. But you can join next year." Kaden scowled and turned back to the headmaster. "What about Quidditch?" James asked, "That's not inter house, is it?" "Of course not, Mr. Potter, don't worry," Kendrick smiled, "I believe I would be run out of the castle if I tried to start inter house Quidditch." "He probably would," Albus replied quietly, so only his friends could hear him. "I think those are all the announcements I have for now. I suggest you all get a good night's rest for classes tomorrow morning. First years, please follow a Prefect to your common room. Good night, everyone," Kendrick sat back down. "Blimey," John sighed and shook his head as he stood up, "Inter house dueling." "Yeah, this could get messy," Matt agreed, "I'm not sure it's going to have the effect Kendrick wants." "Oh, I don't know," Rose shrugged, "I kind of think it's a good idea." "I don't think it'll make us get along with Slytherins," Albus commented as they exited the Great Hall. "Nothing could do that," John said. "Are you guys still joining?" Matt asked. "Definitely," Albus replied. John, Rose, and Amanda all nodded their heads. "Good, me too," Matt told them, "Just have to hope I'm not with Scorpius Malfoy." "We've all got to hope that," Albus agreed. Albus and his friends continued their trek to Gryffindor Tower, and the conversation turned to the new Charms teacher. None of them could guess what Professor Cedonia was like, but they all assumed she was strict. She had a very stern look about her all during the feast. When they got to the common room, they all decided to take Kendrick up on his advice and turn in early. They were all tired from the journey to Hogwarts. Albus got into his warm four-poster bed, and realized that with Professor Washburn gone, he wouldn't have anymore of those Occlumency dreams he had last year. With that happy thought in his head, Albus drifted off into a restful sleep.