War for Hogwarts: Episode 1 (A Harry Potter Fanfiction by Mark Borne)

“Malfoy, Kiera!” A girl with light brown hair and wide amber eyes made her way to the front of the Great Hall, her expression a mix of exhilaration and anxiety. The Sorting Hat went on her head and after a moment, the Hat cried out, “Slytherin!”

          “The Malfoys have always gotten Slytherin,” Janay Richards muttered under her breath. Mark Sanderson nodded absentmindedly. He was considering his own reaction to the sorting hat.

          Sofi Freeman was absolutely terrified when she was chosen to be Hufflepuff. Would I react the same way if I was chosen to be Hufflepuff? Would Slytherin jeer at me like they jeered at Sofi, and would Gryffindor and Ravenclaw shake their heads at me?

          Suspense was not on Mark’s side, today.

          Eventually, it came down to “Richards, Janay”, and the short girl made her way to the Sorting Hat and waited. Almost instantly, it shouted Gryffindor, and Janay, stunned, ran over to the Gryffindor table.

          When Mark was called, he slowly but surely made his way up, and the Sorting Hat seemed to have a different reaction to him.

          “Ah, I haven’t seen one like you in a few years,” the Sorting Hat mumbled. “Where must we put you…?”

          Time seemed to have slowed down a bit for Mark and the Hat. Maybe it was this way for all of the ones who came up here.

          “The thirst for knowledge that a Ravenclaw possess, the cleverness of a Slytherin, and the loyalty of a Hufflepuff…”

          Mark desperately hoped the Sorting Hat didn’t choose Hufflepuff. Please, no!

          The Sorting Hat seemed to come to a conclusion. “Hufflepuff!” it exclaimed, and Mark went white with dread, just like Sofi. The Slytherins glared at him, and one even gave him a thumbs down.

Mark went over to the Hufflepuff table, and sat down. An older boy sympathetically patted his back. “Hufflepuff’ll grow on you,” he promised Mark.

Mark ignored him and watched Ravenclaw cheer as “Tanner, Donald” rushed to join their table. Somehow, he felt unfortunate. He knew loyalty was a good thing. Why don’t I feel like I belong?

         

The next morning, he woke up and made his way to the common room, and found a tall girl with long, blond hair waiting by the door. Upon seeing him, she smiled and gestured for him to go to her.

          Mark obeyed, hesitantly, as he wasn’t sure of anything, other than she was obviously in the last half of her time at Hogwarts, and she was Hufflepuff as well. “What’s your name?” she asked.

          “Mark Sanderson.”

          “Strangely simple name,” the girl giggled. “I mean, seriously, in comparison to Kiera Malfoy, your is easy to remember. I’m Hailey Everstone, the Hufflepuff prefect.”

          “Nice to meet you,” Mark replied, but he discovered too quickly that she wasn’t done.

          “I’m surprised you’re up this early. Usually, the first-years sleep in a few minutes longer,” she told him. “Anywho, I’ve positioned myself here so I can go over a few things with all the first-years.” Uh-oh. Rules. “First things first, blend in with the potions professor, Snape,” she instructed. “He’s generous to Slytherin, but he looks for reasons for the other three houses to lose points. Blend in, and you can avoid losing house points.”

          Mark remembered Dumbledoor explaining house points the previous night, and his older sister had been in Ravenclaw last year, and managed to score thirty house points, pushing her house into first at the last second. He also knew from his sister’s warnings that Snape was cruel to Gryffindor especially, but also to Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw.

          “Second, stand out with Professor Flitwick,” Hailey added. “He’s the Charms professor. He’s very generous with house points, and oftentimes, when we win the house cup, it’s Flitwick’s doing. Mastering his charms quickly will give us an essential boost.”

          Flitwick was the one who gave Mark’s sister the thirty points, and that was because she had used the charms she had been taught to avert some sort of crisis. Supposedly, talking about it had been banned, in order to spare Flitwick his reputation.

          “Anywhere else, be careful, and only stand out if you are confident in your abilities,” Hailey continued. “Many professors will remove house points for trying to go above and beyond, yet failing anyhow. If everyone follows these guidelines this year, we should be able to win the house cup. Got it?”

          Mark had no idea why the house cup was such a big deal, but he agreed anyhow. He made his way to a sort of history class, where he accidentally dozed off, and instantly lost his house ten points. This year will not end well.