A big shadow was the one shouting first years. He was way up high above the other students.
"Wow!" I muttered. Then I heard someone say, "Hagrid!" and then three students hurrying towards the huge figure.
"Is his name Hagrid?" Felix asked. He obviously had heard and seen the three students as well. The huge figure, let's call him Hagrid, continued calling, "Firs' years! Firs' years over 'ere!" The four of us followed the other students, and Hagrid let us pass. I looked up at him, and couldn't drop my gaze from his. He had a great furry black beard, and was wearing a coat that was made of moleskin. He had great big brown shoes, and then someone nudged my arm. It was Maggie. "You're holding up all the other students," she said.
"Oh, sorry," I said, and quickly walked past Hagrid. We walked for quite a time, and Hagrid said, "Just behind this bend you'll get the firs' sight o' Hogwarts." He was behind all of us students, and then we suddenly came to a big great lake, and up way above that was the wonderful castle Hogwarts.
STOP!" Hagrid bellowed. "All of you. Let me pass, all of ya'." He walked past us, and then faced us at the front, saying, "Four people in a boat at a time." I looked around, and I then noticed heaps of boats sitting peacefully in the water.
"Well, we all can," said Maggie to all of us. The four of us jumped into boat, and we sat together in it, a little cramped. I glanced over at Hagrid, who had a boat to himself. Also near his boat, I saw the red headed boy again and a girl with bushy brown hair, and also a round faced boy, looking terrified about something and - and, Harry Potter!
"Maggie!" I said to her quietly. "Look - Harry Potter!" I pointed at him.
"Oh yes. I've seen him," she said.
I was quite surprised. She wasn't surprised to see him at all. I shrugged to myself, and looked back up at Hogwarts. The castle looked very welcoming. I stared at it for a whole minute, then turned to chat to Felix and Maggie, Mya still looking slightly grumpy.
We finally reached shore. I was grateful to be. I had got tired of being in the little boat. I jumped ashore happily onto damp green grass, and all the other students did the same.
Hagrid walked forward to some huge great big oak doors, and knocked. Immediately they swung open. There stood a tall woman with a pointy black hat like I was wearing. Was that Professor McGonnagall? I had heard about her, but had not seen her of course.
"Thank you Hagrid," she said, "but I'll take them from now. Come along then!" she said to all of us. We followed her down the Entrance Hall, which was enormous, and then we entered the Great Hall. This was much much bigger than the Entrance Hall, and as I looked around, and up at the roof, I got a surprise. A clear black night dotted with stars. It looked like the Great Hall had no roof at all.
"It's bewitched to look like the sky outside. I read about it in Hogwarts: A History," said the girl with the bushy brown hair, who I had seen in the boat. She was also looking up at the roof. She was walking with the freckled and red haired boy, and Harry Potter!
There were four tables, and the students sitting at the tables were looking at us, and I also saw another red head, chatting to a girl next to him.
"Please form a line," said Professor McGonagall, to us first years. "The Sorting Ceremony is about to start."
We moved clumsily and then stood standing next to each other, facing the teachers. I looked at Dumbledore. He was sitting in his fine golden chair, and smiling happily.
Professor McGonagall walked past us, and up by the teachers, who was carrying a three legged stool, and a old patched and frayed pointy hat. She put the stool down and the hat on top of it. The Great Hall was silent.
Then suddenly the hat burst into a song:

"Oh, you may not think I'm pretty,
But don't judge on what you see,
I'll eat myself if you can find
A smarter hat than me.
You can keep your bowlers black,
Your top hats sleek and tall,
For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat
And I can cap them all.
There's nothing hidden in your head
The Sorting Hat can't see,
So try me on and I will tell you
Where you ought to be.
You might belong in Gryffindor,
Where dwell the brave at heart,
Their daring nerve and chivalry,
Set Gryffindors apart;
You might belong in Hufflepuff,
Where they are just and loyal,
Those patient Hufflepuffs are true
And unafraid of toil;
Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,
If you've a ready mind,
Where those of wit and learning,
Will always find their kind;
Or perhaps in Slytherin
You'll make your real friends,
Those cunning folk use any means
To achieve their ends.
So put me on! Don't be afraid!
And don't get in a flap!
You're in safe hands (though I have none)
For I'm a Thinking Cap!"

The Great Hall burst into applause, and I clapped loudly with them. The applause died down, and when it was completely silent, Professor McGonagall said, "The Sorting Ceremony will begin! When I call your name, you will come up here, and sit on the stool with the hat on your head." She was holding a long piece of parchment. "Abbot, Hannah!"
A girl with pink rosy cheeks, blond hair with tied in pigtails, stumbled out of line, and sat on the stool, clumsily placing it on her head.
A moment's pause - "HUFFLEPUFF!"
The table on the right cheered for her. She ran to the Hufflepuff table, grinning.
"Bone's Susan," said McGonagall.
"HUFFLEPUFF!" shouted the hat again.
"Boot, Terry."
"RAVENCLAW!"
This time second from the left table clapped loudly. Terry Boot marched over to it.
'Bulstrode Millicent' became a Slytherin, and 'Brown Lavender' became a Gryffindor. 'Brocklehurst Mandy' became a Ravenclaw.
"Finch - Fletchley, Justin."
"HUFFLEPUFF!"
"Finnigan, Seamus."
The hat stayed on him for almost a whole minute, before the hat shouted, "GRYFFINDOR!"
"Granger, Hermione."
The girl with the bushy hair I had seen twice, ran to the hat, and jammed it on her head.
"GRYFFINDOR!"
Longbottom Neville' had a long time begin decided like Seamus, but finally decided Gryffindor. He ran off wearing it, and all the students laughed at him, so he ran back and put it back on the stool.
A boy with a white blond hair, and a pale pointed face swaggered to the hat, and it had barely touched him when it shouted, "SLYTHERIN!"
"Parkinson, Pansy."
"SLYTHERIN!"
"Nott,Theodore."
"SLYTHERIN!" The hat shouted again.
'Patil Padma' was sorted into Ravenclaw, and her twin sister, 'Patil Parvati' was sorted into Gryffindor. Finally, after what seemed a long time, my name was called.
"Wood, Anna."
I walked slowly towards the hat. I sat on the stool, and placed the hat on my head. Then suddenly a tiny voice spoke in my ear. "You would do well in Gryffindor. . ."
My heart paced.
"No. It better be. . .HUFFLEPUFF!"
I took of the hat quickly, and put it back on the stool.
The Great Hall was clapping back more. I ran to the Hufflepuff table. The stress was over, I had been sorted into a good house. I turned to speak to Susan Bones, but then stopped. Mya had been called. I watched her carefully walk over to the hat, gently place it on her head, and sat on the stool.
The hat was silent for quite a time, and I guessed it was speaking to her. Then suddenly the hat shouted, "RAVENCLAW!" Mya put back the hat, and walked to the applauding Ravenclaw table.
"Edmund, Maggie."
I watched her closely. She placed the hat on her head, and sat down on the stool. It was quiet for five seconds then. . . "HUFFLEPUFF!"
"Yes!" I laughed.
Maggie joined me at the table, and we started chatting to each other.
"Mya was sorted into Ravenclaw, I wished she could have been sorted into Hufflepuff, like us," sighed Maggie.
"Yes, but at least she wasn't in Slytherin," I said.
"She would never have been!" snapped Maggie suddenly. "Sorry," she said, noticing my face. "It's just I won't be able to talk to her as much."
"You will get to," I assured her. "Listen, Felix's name has been called!" I was right. There was Felix, sitting on the stool, with the hat on his head, looking very nervous.
"GRYFFINDOR!" The hat shouted suddenly.
"Oh no!" I said.
"It's okay," said Maggie. "He doesn't look sad, actually happy. The Gryffindor table was next to our one, and as Felix sat down, he waved to us.
"Yeah, he'll make friends," I said, assuring myself.
"Look, Harry Potter!" Maggie said, pointing.
"Oh yeah!" I said, and saw Harry Potter sitting on the stool, with the hat on his head. Everyone was holding their breath, and all staring at Harry. Then it shouted, "GRYFFINDOR!"
I watched Harry Potter run over to the Gryffindor table, smiling.
"Turpin, Lisa," said Professor McGonagall.
"RAVENCLAW!"
"And lastly, Weasley, Ron," McGonagall said.
The freckled red headed boy I had seen. I giggled at him. His face was a pale green. The hat was silent for a moment, then a second later the hat had shouted, "GRYFFINDOR!"
The Gryffindor table clapped loudly once more, and then it was silent. All the first years had been sorted, I noticed. There was nobody in the line we had just been in a few minutes ago.
Professor McGonagall rolled up the scroll, and took the Sorting Hat away.
Albus Dumbledore had just got to his feet. He was beaming at the students, and then he said, "Welcome! Welcome to a new year at Hogwarts! Before we begin a banquet, I would like to say a few words. And here they are: Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak!
Thank you!" He sat back down again.
"Weird," I said to Maggie, and then gasped. Right in front of me were food stacked on plates, that went all the way to the end of the table. I didn't know what to start eating, but decided on a drumstick. I suddenly realised that I was very hungry, and ate much more stuff, I can tell you that, and also lots of pudding's till I was so full that my stomach hurt. I was just about to talk to Maggie again, when something came white and silvery came over to us. It was a ghost, yes, certainly it was ghost. I gasped. "It's okay," said a Hufflepuff Prefect near me. "It'd only the Fat Friar, the ghost of Hufflepuff house."
"Oh, um, okay," I said. "Er, hello." The Fat Friar had came right up to me, and smiled. "Hello child. You have been sorted into Hufflepuff house, a loyal, and - "
"He's kind of creepy," I heard Justin whisper, who was sitting next to Maggie.
Apparently the Fat Friar had heard, for he stopped talking, and looked at Justin. But he merely pretended he hadn't heard him, and just went to talk to another student.
"Really, you shouldn't have said that," I said to him. But Justin just shrugged, and continued to eat the pie he was holding.
"And, now, before we all go off to our nice warm comfy beds," said Dumbledore, "I would like you all to sing the school song! Everyone pick their favourite tune, and off we go!"
And the school bellowed:

"Hogwarts, Hogwarts, Hoggy Warty Hogwarts,
Teach us something please,
Whether we be old and bold
Or young with scabby knees,
Our heads could do with filling
With some interesting stuff,
For now the're bare and full of air,
Dead flies and bits of fluff,
So teach us things worth knowing,
Bring back what we've forgot,
Just do your best, we'll do the rest,
And learn until our brains all rot."

I grinned, and after singing the song I had felt even more tired.
"Ah, music," said Dumbledore, "but now you should all go off to bed. Off you trot!"
"This way first years!" said the Prefect who had been sitting next to me. All of us Hufflepuffs followed him, and I glanced at the Gryffindors to see if I could see Felix but could not. He was probably somewhere in the crowd.
We walked for a long time, downwards, and then past the kitchens, and then finally came to what seemed to be like some huge barrels.
"Okay," said the Prefect. "How to get into the Hufflepuff common room, you tap this barrel two from the bottom, and do it in the rhythm of Helga Hufflepuff, and there you go. You're in the Hufflepuff common room." He had tapped the barrel, and the lid of the barrel had swung open. I followed him closely through the barrel, and then it came out to be a much bigger place. "Wow," I muttered. There was a little fireplace, and armchairs, with little round windows near the roof. There were hanging pots with whatever kind of plant in them, and I immediately sat down one of the comfy armchairs.
"And up here," said the Prefect, pointing to some stairs to the left, "are the girls dormitory, "and up there," he continued, this time pointing to the right side, "is the boys."
"Maggie," I said. "I'll think I'll go to bed now."
"Yeah, me too," agreed Maggie.
We both trooped up some stairs, and then went into the girls common room. I barely looked around, and just quickly got into my pyjamas, and slipped into my warm comfy bed. I had barely thought about anything, when I fell asleep.