Start of Year Feast!

[Katherine Alicastell]

The Sorting Ceremony drew to a close in an eruption of claps and cheers resounding throughout the Great Hall as the last remaining first year made their way to their new house table. Katherine joined in on the final applause. The Sorting Hat had done its job well, as always. While not every student may have agreed with their house placement - and indeed some looked shocked or disappointed - they'd soon learn that they were put into their house for the qualities they possessed, whether they were aware of them yet or not. Their traits weren't always so obvious as first, Katherine herself was at times surprised by where the hat placed some of the students. but as time went on and the children developed, their house attributes became more recognizable.

Removing the patchy enchanted hat and the stool it now sat on, Katherine set both to the side of the stage and returned to her place behind the podium, raising her hands to command silence. A hush fell over the hall and Katherine began to move on, her voice magically amplified with a Sonorus Charm. "Thank you. Now, before we begin, I'd like to introduce myself, and some of the other staff here. I am your Headmistress, Professor Katherine Alicastell, and to my right -" She gestured toward the staff table behind her, where the other professors were seated. "Is your Deputy Headmaster and the Ravenclaw Head of House, Professor Justin Cliffeton. Your Head of House for Hufflepuff is Professor Kennedy Pratt, for Gryffindor, Professor Cyndi Kingsley, and for Slytherin, Professor Kalif Styx." She introduced each of them present as she spoke, ensuring the newly sorted first years knew who to look for if they needed any assistance. After speaking briefly of key points of interest throughout the school, the hospital wing among them, she moved on to conclude the ceremony. "With that said, I would like to welcome you all again to another fantastic year at Hogwarts. Stay out of trouble, study hard, and enjoy your time here. Now let the feast begin!" At once, the empty tables were filled with various foods - roast meats, potatoes, salads and pies tirelessly prepared by the house elves working in the kitchens below, and Katherine returned to her seat at the center of the staff table.​

 

[Jacob Kingsley]

Jacob had given Noah a sad little wave after he'd been sorted into Gryffindor. He'd really, really been hoping to be in the same house as his brother. He loved him and wanted to be just like him, and now that was kind of ruined. It was hard not to be excited though when strangers were banging his back and cheering him welcome as he took his seat with his new house. Finally, the ceremony was over, and his cousin had ended up in the same house along with many others. Jacob was furiously whispering, though he quieted when the Headmistress began to talk. He smiled up at his mom though she didn't notice, glad that she'd finally stopped crying.

Soon the food was covering the tables and Jacob was delighted. Some of his favorite foods were there and he quickly dug in. "What do you think happens after the feast?" Jacob asked his cousin though he was happy to have anyone answer. It had been such an exciting night that he hoped it would continue.

 

[Aurora Night]

As the feast began for the start of her fourth year, Rory kept one eye on the food that had appeared in front of her, and one eye on the Hufflepuff table across the room. At the beginning of the night, Rory had sat as tall on her seat as she could, trying to see over the entire hall of heads in front of her to catch a glimpse of her sister as she milled about nervously in the middle of the other tiny first years waiting to be called forwards for sorting. Okay, so Rory hadn't actually been able to see Sophia yet, but she didn't need to see her to be able to picture the awkward way she would be holding herself, trying not to accidentally brush against anyone standing beside her. It had been kind of strange to finally be in this position herself - Harley's sister had just been sorted last year, and Rose of course had sisters coming out of her ears. The three of them had all sat at this table and cheered for one sister or another now for three years straight - and this time, it had been Sophia's turn.

Most of their family had bet on either Slytherin or Hufflepuff as an outcome, and Rory had waited impatiently for her sister's name to be called, swinging her right leg back and forth as she perched on the edge of the seat. Once the 'N's were fast approaching, however, she had to sit still and listen carefully - and as soon as she heard their last name being called, Rory had let out a loud cheer that bounced like crazy through the mostly quiet hall. Without a care for the people that turned to look at her, Rory had stood up on her seat and waved her arms over her head in a sort of maniac fashion that couldn't fail to catch her sister's attention, yelling, "Yeah, go Sophia!" She had let out another cheer for good measure, given the thumbs up to her sister - whose face was about as red as Rory's hair - and then settled back down in her seat to await the next most important event of the night - the arrival of the food. Now that it had arrived, Rory wanted to speed eat as much as she could without making herself sick, and then head over to the Hufflepuff table in order to congratulate her sister properly. She couldn't wait until the rest of the family found out, because she'd put a Galleon on Uncle Robert being wrong again - and now, she thought with a smirk, he would have to pay up.

 

[Patrick Vernier]

After a good year of settling in last year, Patrick was excited for the new school year ahead. His sister may have graduated already but he felt confident enough that he would be fine without her. However, his step-sister were to join this year and Patrick was quite nervous as he watched the first years enter the great hall before the feast. He knew that she wouldn't be a Hufflepuff, and something inside of Patrick was glad for that, but the boy wasn't sure which other house suited her and he sat quietly as he watched each and every first year try on the hat, just like he had to do that time last year. It took a while for it to get up to the V's, but when it finally did, Patrick sat up straighter in his seat, watching with anticipation as Anastasie confidently made her way up onto the stage. When the hall echoed 'Slytherin', Patrick took a sigh of relief, feeling as though the hat really did know what it was doing. The green and silver would really suit his step-sister and it meant he could avoid her as much as possible if she was over in another house. He just hoped that Ana was fine with the place, despite the house being known for its evil stereotype.

Patrick beamed when the students were told that they could start eating and politely waited for his housemates to grab everything they wanted before digging in himself. With almost his whole family sorted, Patrick felt some weight off his shoulders. His half-brother and sister were to be attending the school soon however, and he trusted that when they did finally do so that the hat knew what it was doing. After all, it really seemed to know where to place each and every student and he was glad for that.

 

[Eleanor Pratt]

Eleanor was excited for this start of year feast because she was no longer a first year which made her feel so much older than all the new students. It was only a year difference, but still, she felt so much wiser having experienced what living in the castle was like. Her case was proven when one of the new first years asked what would happen after the feast. Eleanor was aware he wasn't exactly talking to her but he hadn't exactly made it a private conversation, so the second year sitting across from him decided to chime in and put her one-year-superiority to good use. "After the feast, the prefects show you the way to the Gryffindor common room and tell you the password to get in," she explained to him with a bright smile, eager to be of use. "Gryffindor common room is pretty far up in the castle so it's easy to get lost, plus you cannot forget the password otherwise the portrait won't let you in," she added, making the tour with the prefects sound more exclusive and important than it actually was.

"But you won't have a problem getting locked out won't you, you're Kingsley's son," Ella added with a small smirk. She had picked up on the last name as the boy had been sorted and knew that was her Head of House's son, judging by her crying, and wondered what he was feeling being in his mother's house. "My sister is Hufflepuff Head of House," Ella added quickly, to let him know they were in similar situations, and she wasn't just bringing this up to make fun of him. "But I think I would've died if I had been placed in her house," Eleanor added bluntly, scrunching her nose in disgust at the idea of it, not considering how perhaps the boy might be relieved to be in his mom's house.
​

 

[Rose Holland]

Rose was very excited for her fourth year, though it also sounded alarmingly old to her. She remembered how big the fourth years had looked when she was a firstie, and she couldn't imagine looking that way to anyone now. She was sitting with Rory, as they both waited for their younger sisters to be sorted. Rose wasn't sure what she expected for Diana. Perhaps she would be a Ravenclaw like Phoebe? She kind of hoped not, as they would surely argue enough to make the Ravenclaw tower explode. The two were more similar than they wanted to know, and Rose figured Diana wouldn't get Gryffindor with her. Diana's turn was fairly early on, and she cheered for her as she was placed in Slytherin. Hayley was in Slytherin too, so she might ask her to keep an eye out for her sister. Rory's sister was sorted soon after, and she got Hufflepuff. "Guess none of us have luck with Gryffindor sisters, huh?" She asked her friends. She didn't really mind too much, though she couldn't help but wonder about Alice. Perhaps she was a little lion, but Rose would have to wait a year to find out.

 

[Gabriella Tillington]

It was interesting to see the sorting ceremony from the tables instead of experiencing it herself, though Gabriella could distinctly remember how nervous she had been when it was her turn. That nervousness had immediately been overshadowed by the alarming news that her sister was also at Hogwarts. That thought prompted her to glance over at the Gryffindor table for a glimpse of Frankie, and it was interesting to see that table seemed livelier than this one even now. The differences in their personalities really showed. But she didn't see Frankie yet. Gabriella focused on her own table again, giving Patrick a small smile. He seemed pretty focused on the sorting ceremony, and when she heard his last name called she looked up too. "Was that your sister?" She asked him quietly as she watched a girl head to the Slytherin table.

 

[Diana Hollis]

Diana was glad with her house, and happily took her place as the Slytherin table. She looked critically at the students around her, wondering who would be good to befriend. Rose and Phoebe both had made their own friends in their first year, so Diana couldn't do worse than them. As she looked back to the students being sorted, she saw that annoying boy she had met at the park take his seat on the stool. It surprised her to hear people whisper about him, and she soon figured out why. He was the minister's son? And also the son of a professor at the school? Diana scowled at him from afar. It seemed like she had made a more powerful enemy in him than she had thought. But who would look at him and think he had such important connections? She had met his mother, and now that she looked at the professor's table she recognized her. It seemed like showing open dislike to this boy wasn't the smartest thing to do, so she would have to be sneaky about it. For now, she would try to enjoy the feast and get to know some of her classmates.