Chapter 17 Branch (Part 2)

The train continued walking for another hour, and it was completely dark. Harry and Ron talked some more about topics such as the difference between football and Quidditch. Britain is a big football country, and even a little girl like Hermione can speak clearly when talking about football. Quidditch is the most famous and popular sport in the wizarding world. Hermione, Ron and Neville were arguing over whether football or Quidditch was better. Of course, Hermione easily won the final victory with her high-pitched voice and domineering momentum. Harry didn't like football because Dally and Uncle Vernon loved football and often stayed up late watching football games. Uncle Vernon liked to get drunk and go crazy, while Dally liked to trouble Harry after his favorite team lost. Therefore, Harry also lost interest in football. Sherry simply doesn't like sports and rarely joins any clubs in college. Occasionally, on a whim, I think of gilding the basketball team and attracting a wave of girls to see what happens.

"We have arrived at Hogwarts. Please change into your wizard robes and get off the train. We will send your luggage to your dormitory." After the voice rang three times in a row, the train began to slow down.

After Harry and the others changed their clothes, they got off the train together, and soon senior students came over and led them onto a path. This path is uneven and it is easy to fall if you are not careful. After walking along this road for a while, Harry and the others came to the edge of a large lake.

"First-year students, please come over here." A rough voice sounded, and Harry looked around and saw a giant standing on the shore holding a lantern. Behind the giant, there are rows of small boats, without sails or oars. There is only a stick standing on the bow, with a small lamp hanging on it, which is flashing blue light.

"That's Hagrid, the warden of the hunting ground. He lives on the edge of the Forbidden Forest. I heard my father mention it." Ron whispered to them, "Those behind him are small boats specially built for new students. Each student may only have this once to take a trip on the Black Lake on these boats." In fact, Ron's parents still kept a very crucial part unsaid, hoping to give their son a surprise and an unforgettable experience. memories.

"Four people in a boat, hurry up, we have to catch up with the welcome dinner." Hagrid urged.

With quick eyesight and quick hands, the four Harrys grabbed the boat closest to them and quickly sat down. In a short time, all the new students were already sitting on the boat. Harry noticed that there seemed to be a few unoccupied boats, and these boats sank silently into the lake.

Hagrid took a boat by himself. To be honest, with his physique, it was surprising that the boat could still float on the water.

"Okay," Hagrid said, "Has everyone got on the boat? Okay, then we are ready to set off. Be careful not to stretch out your hands." He said seriously, "If you don't want to lose your your hands, or something more precious, your lives!"

Everyone was frightened by him, not knowing what they would encounter soon. Harry was also in a state of confusion, but Sherry was extremely shocked. Because in the Harry Potter in his memory, this plot did not exist at all. And, quite obviously, this was not caused by his arrival. Everything that happened around Harry before, as well as the encounter with Ron and the others on the train, made Sherey think that the world would proceed according to the plot he knew well. However, now that there is an extra paragraph, things are completely out of control.

"Sit tight, let's go!" As he said that, Hagrid hung the blue lamp in his hand on the bow of the small boat he was sitting on. Then all the boats started to move on their own. The boat rowed quietly across the water without making a sound, like a ghost in the middle of the night, floating on the empty, flat, endless lake.

There was a huge moon hanging in the sky, which was at least two or three times the size that Harry and the others usually saw. The silver moonlight poured down, dyeing the lake surface into a silver scale. In the light of the moon, Harry could clearly see that the boat they were on was getting further and further away from the shore. In the distant mountains, there were faint howls of wolves, drifting across the lake in the night wind. The trees on the mountain all turned into a row of dark shadows, with no branches or leaves visible at all. The surrounding environment was extremely quiet, and Harry felt that he liked this feeling very much, just like in meditation, it was so quiet and beautiful.

"Attention!" Hagrid's loud voice drew Harry's attention back to reality. "Now, we are going to start diving. This may be the only time in your life that you have the opportunity to appreciate the beauty of the Black Lake. I say again, don't stick your hands out of the boat, if you still want it ." Hagrid said.

"Dive?" Harry looked surprised. Could such an unprotected boat dive into the water? Sherry was also a little confused. The current plot was completely out of his expectation, and he didn't know how it would develop next.

As the boat beneath them shook, Ron and Neville exclaimed, and the lamp on the bow of the boat began to emit a dazzling light. This light did not spread out, but was like water waves, falling upside down and wrapping the boat tightly. Then, the boats began to sink one by one. Harry and the others watched the lake water rise not far away, and finally merged together above their heads, turning the moon in the sky into a swaying light and shadow.

"Wow!" "It's amazing!" "I knew my dad was hiding something!" Ron and the others exclaimed in surprise, looking at the incredible scene around them, and the little wizards on the surrounding boats also started to express their excitement. exclaimed.

"Welcome to the bottom of the Black Lake! Now, let's go see what's underneath!" Hagrid's voice was still clear, not affected by the surrounding water at all.

The boat dived deeper and deeper, and in the end, except for the blue light on the bow of the boat, no other light could be seen, and the top of the head had already turned into pitch black. Looking at the darkness outside the boat, Harry and the others couldn't help but feel scared. If they couldn't still see the lights on the surrounding boats, they would even think that they were abandoned at the bottom of the black lake!

The boat stopped diving and started to move in one direction, and there were already some other lives around the boat. Harry saw fish with pointed mouths and small lanterns hanging from them, swimming past Harry and the others in groups. I also saw from a distance, at the bottom of the water in the distance, pieces of shells opened, revealing dazzling pearls, emitting dazzling light of various colors. A group of turtles paddled slowly and leisurely through the water. A small turtle seemed to be very curious about Harry's small boat. It swam over and stared at the blue light emitting from the bow of the boat. Harry could almost see the curious color in this little thing's eyes, and Hermione almost pounced on him. Soon, a big turtle came over, carried the little turtle on its back, and swam towards the group of turtles.

The appearance of a huge giant squid, larger than three or five Hagrids put together, caused a panic. But this squid showed no interest in the human beings beneath it. It just sprayed water, dragged its long tentacles, and disappeared into the darkness. Harry and the others were still walking through a patch of dense aquatic plants. Creatures of various colors and shapes were constantly moving, feeding, and fighting, full of vitality.

A burst of ethereal and beautiful singing came, and people couldn't help but listen carefully, and so did Harry. The voice is so melodious that one can't help but imagine how beautiful and charming a creature that can sing such beautiful songs would be. Sherry certainly knew that this was the mermaid's song, but he was also sure that Hogwarts would never put students in danger, so he did not wake Harry up, but let him indulge in the song.

The boat began to float, and the singing became farther and farther away, until it could no longer be heard, and everyone felt lost. With a huge splash, all the boats floated onto the water together. Harry looked up and couldn't help but exclaim, and then the exclamations continued, all of which were in admiration and yearning for the brilliantly lit castle above his head.

Just above Harry and the others, a mountain cliff stood quietly, and a splendid castle stood in the sky on the edge of the cliff. The castle has a huge building complex, with many turrets and spiers standing among them, with pointed tops reaching into the sky. There are many windows on the walls of the castle, and the glass reflects beautiful and dazzling light under the moonlight.

"Welcome! To the greatest magic school in the world - Hogwarts!" Hagrid's voice softened, filled with pride and pride, "I hope that each of you can gain precious friends and knowledge here. ! Now, the journey ends here, and there will be senior students to guide you to participate in the branch."

The boat docked at the shore, and the senior students waiting there took them to the castle above. Everyone was excitedly discussing what they had just witnessed and couldn't stop at all. It wasn't until they arrived in a hall, facing nearly a thousand unfamiliar faces, that everyone started to get nervous.

Ron kept whispering about the gossip he had heard from his brothers Fred and George. Each new student has to fight a troll and is assigned to a house based on performance. The best ones go to Gryffindor, the weakest ones go to Slytherin, the good ones are divided equally between Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff. To be honest, his vow made Harry and the others even more nervous. So, after the vice-principal Professor McGonagall took out the sorting hat and explained the rules of the sorting, the three of them looked at Ron with cannibalistic eyes until his face was almost as red as his hair. (To be continued)