CHAPTER NINE: EPILOGUE: TWENTY-ONE YEARS LATER

Venus was so excited. She could barely contain her joy as she hopped out of a boat, along with her two cousins - though they weren't her first cousins - Adrian and Hayden, and he friend Hugo Weasley, they had just used to cross the lake with Hagrid and the other Hogwarts first years. Venus had been impatiently waiting to be accepted into Hogwarts since her mother became the Defence Against the Dark Arts professor, but at long last that day had come. While everyone else, besides Venus, Adrian and Hayden, stood around gaping at how magnificent Hogwarts was (the cousins had already been to Hogwarts numerous times), Venus stood there impatiently, as Hagrid checked the boats.

'All right, everyone follow me!' called Hagrid, leading the up a rocky passageway which soon became smooth, damp grass right in the shadow of the castle.

He led them up a flight of stone steps, on which the first years soon crowded around a huge, oak door. Hagrid quickly made sure that they were all there, before knocking three times on the door, which opened immediately, by a tall, grey-haired witch in emerald-robes, which came across as someone you did not want to cross.

'Firs' years, Professor McGonagall.' said Hagrid.

'Thank you, Hagrid.' smiled Minerva, before leading the first years into a small empty chamber near the Great Hall, where she addressed them.

'Welcome to Hogwarts,' said Minerva. 'The start-of-term banquet will begin shortly, but before you take your seats in the Great Hall, you will be sorted into your houses. The Sorting is a very important ceremony because, while you are here, your house will be something like your family within Hogwarts. You will have classes with the rest of your house, sleep in your house dormitory, and spend free time in your house common room. The four houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. Each house has its own noble history and each has produced outstanding witches and wizards. While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn your house points, while any rule breaking -' Minerva looked knowingly down at Venus, Hayden and Adrian. Venus smiled innocently at her, while Hayden and Adrian, grinned at each other from behind Venus. ' - will lose house points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded the house cup, a great honour. I hope each of you will be a credit to whichever house becomes yours. The Sorting Ceremony will take place in a few minutes in front of the rest of the school. I suggest you all smarten yourselves up as much as you can while you are waiting. I shall return when we are ready for you,' said Minerva. 'Please wait quietly.'

The moment Minerva left the chamber, the other first years started talking nervously amongst themselves.

'I wonder how they sort us.'

'According to my brother, you have to do some sort of test.'

'Test? But I know nothing of the Wizarding World!'

Next minute, Minerva had re-entered the chamber and the first years quickly fell quiet under her stern gaze. Adrian, Hayden and Venus stood their trying not to laugh.

'Please form two straight lines,' Minerva told the first years once she had their undivided attention, 'and follow me.'

Venus and Adrian led the lines, followed by Hayden and Hugo, then the rest of the first years. Together they followed Minerva out of the chamber, back across the hall, and through a pair of double doors into the Great Hall. Most of the first years had never even imagined such a strange and splendid place. It was lit by thousands and thousands of candles that were floating in midair over four long tables, where the rest of the students were sitting. These tables were laid with glittering golden plates and goblets. At the top of the hall was another long table where the teachers were sitting. As Minerva led them passed all the waiting students, Venus looked for her older brother, but she couldn't see him. Maybe he was being mean and hiding from her.

Once they had gotten passed all the students, Minerva told them to wait in a group at the bottom of the stairs. At the top of the stairs, in front of the teachers, was a four-legged stool patched, frayed and dirty pointed wizarding hat. Venus recognised it immediately as the Sorting Hat.

For a few seconds, there was complete silence, in which the hall stood staring at the hat, though the first years did so nervously. Then the hat twitched. A rip near the brim opened wide like a mouth and the hat began to sing, telling them that he was the Sorting Hat and how they might belong in Gryffindor, where dwell the brave at heart, their daring, nerve, and chivalry set Gryffindors apart; or that they might belong in Hufflepuff, where they are just and loyal, those patient Hufflepuffs are true; or yet in wise old Ravenclaw, if they've a ready mind, where those of wit and learning, will always find their kind; or perhaps in Slytherin where they'd make their real friends. The whole hall burst into applause when the hat had finished its song. It bowed to each of the four tables and then became quite still again.

Minerva now stepped forward holding a long roll of parchment.

'When I call your name, you will put on the hat and sit on the stool to be sorted,' she announced. 'Anderson, Lisa!'

Venus paid no attention to those being sorted, until, 'Dumbledore, Adrian.'

Venus smiled at Adrian as he walked confidently up to get Sorted ignoring the muttering that had begun.

'Dumbledore? As in Professor Dumbledore's son?'

'Must be, Dumbledore isn't a very popular last name.'

Venus watched as Adrian sat on the stool and the moment the hat touched his head, it yelled 'SLYTHERIN!'

The Slytherin table erupted with cheers. Venus was not surprised. Both of Adrian's parents had been in Slytherin. Speaking of parents...Venus looked over at the middle of the staff table and saw the headmaster beaming with pride as his son took his seat with his fellow Slytherins. Tom Dumbledore had now been headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry now for twenty years. It was hard to believe that he was once the evil Dark Lord Voldemort. Students always said that he was one of the best headmasters Hogwarts had ever seen and the staff agreed saying that he was just like his father, Albus Dumbledore.

Venus' attention then went to the man sitting next to Tom, as Hayden's name was called out, which brought even more muttering.

'Hayden Dumbledore, did she say?'

'The Prince Hayden?'

'Must be. That would explain why the king and queen are here!'

They were right. The man sitting next to Tom was indeed King Severus. After the Battle at Hogwarts, the Ministry had to give all power back to the royal family, and Severus grudgingly took the throne, after a long argument with his family, trying to get his brother to take the throne, which Tom refused immediately. But everyone had to agree that Severus was the best person for the job, along with his queen...Aurora. Both watched as their greatest treasure was sorted also into Slytherin and Venus swore that she could see tears of proudness forming in Aurora's eyes. She hoped her mother wouldn't do that as she was sorted, but she knew that her mother never would. She never got emotional over small things like that.

Once more, Venus zoned out until her own name was called.

'Malfoy, Venus.'

Smiling, Venus walked forward. Her great-grandmother smiled down at her as she accepted the hat off her and plonked it on her head, wondering which house she would be put in.

'Hmm,' said a small voice in her ear. 'You are just like your mother. She too was particularly difficult to place. Both of you obviously have the Slytherin background history, but you also have the intelligence of a Ravenclaw, the just and loyal of a Hufflepuff and the chivalry and bravery of a Gryffindor. Do you have a particular house you wish to be in? Would you like to be in Slytherin with your brother and cousins, like your father and great-uncles? Or perhaps you would like to be a Gryffindor like your mother? Would you like to choose like your mother did all those years ago?'

I'm actually not bothered as to which house I'm in. I'm sure that I will be able to make friends with the people in whatever house I'm in. Mum had no trouble making friends with the other houses. Thought Venus.

'In that case. Better be...GRYFFINDOR!' yelled the hat to the rest of the hall.

Smiling brightly, Venus joined the Gryffindor table where she sat down next to Rose, Hugo's older sister.

'Congrats, Venus.' said Rose, giving her a brief hug.

'Yeah, congratulations squirt.' said a quiet voice from the table behind her. Slytherin table.

Turning around, Venus saw her brother Scorpius grinning over at her along with Adrian and Hayden.

'Thanks. And stop calling me squirt!' whispered Venus, before turning her attention back to the teachers table.

She saw Hagrid sitting up their happily, along with Professor Flitwick, Babbling, Trelawney (surprisingly), Vector, Madam Hooch, Pomfrey, Pince, and Professor Neville Longbottom, an old friend of Venus and Scorpius' parents, who taught Herbology. But those teachers and staff members weren't who Venus was looking for and then she found them.

Sitting on the other side of Tom. There was her father, the current Potion Master at Hogwarts, Draco Malfoy. Apparently, her grandfather, Lucius, wasn't too thrilled about his son becoming a teacher, but after a while her grandmother, Narcissa, managed to talk him around eventually. Draco Malfoy had been a Potions Professor since the year following the Battle at Hogwarts. With Severus going off to rule Europe and Slughorn going into retirement, Draco ended up being the number one choice. It was hard though, growing up seeing as her father was away at Hogwarts most of the time, but now Venus was just happy that she would be able to see him every single day now.

Slowly, Venus' eyes left her father and moved across to the woman sitting next to him...her mother. Harrietta Malfoy, previously known as "Harry Potter" and Harrietta Dumbledore, and also known as the Chosen One, The-Girl-Who-Lived and Saviour of the Wizarding World. Venus' mother hadn't always been the Defence Against the Dark Arts professor. No, she had once been a mighty Auror and is the main reason most of the Death Eaters, were currently in Azkaban. However, when she fell pregnant with Scorpius, Harri had quit her job and began a stay at home mum until Venus was five, when Tom asked her if she would take the Defence Against the Dark Arts post. And after many encouragements from her friends and old DA members, Harri accepted it.

As though feeling her daughter's eyes on her, Harri turned and looked at Venus, before smiling one of her beautiful and loving smiles. Venus smiled back before looking over at her cousins. Yep, this was going to be the beginning of their adventure now.

The End

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Written: 5 January 2012

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