The Sorting
Chapter 10 –
Professor McGonagall led them through an Entrance Hall that could hold space about the size of The Abode, it was so huge. She led them past a doorway that had hundreds of voices talking behind it to a small, empty chamber off the Hall, which they crowded into.
"Welcome to Hogwarts," Professor McGonagall said once they were all in the room. "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 serious 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 your free time in your House's Common Room."
"The four houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin." She paused, eyeing the reactions on the faces of the students in front of her.
"Each House has its own noble history and has produced outstanding witches and wizards. While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn your House points, while any rule-breaking will lose House points. At the end of the year, the House with the most points is awarded the house cup, a great honor. I hope each of you will be a credit to whichever House becomes yours." She explained.
"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," she paused looking at Jeremy's shoelaces, which had come undone "as much as you can while you are waiting. I will return when we are ready for you. Please wait quietly." And she quickly left the chamber.
Nathan looked around, noticing Jeremy had crouched down to tie up his shoelaces, he could see that the students were anxious for the sorting ceremony.
"How exactly do they sort us into houses?" Jeremy asked Nathan, inadvertently attracting the attention of the crowd onto themselves. "Is it some sort of test? God, I hope not, I don't yet know much about magic."
Nathan was silently amused at the expectations that Jeremy was building up.
"I am pretty sure it won't be a test; it'd be a waste bringing us all here, only to turn us back around if we don't get sorted into houses," Carlisle answered his query.
"And how would you know that, when people better than you have no clue, over how the sorting is done." A sharp voice interjected, turning around Nathan noticed that the voice belonged to a boy, who was half a head shorter than himself, he had an angular face, light brown skin, and dark eyes, adorned with a mop of dark brown hair.
"And who might you be?" Carlisle retorted.
"Cassius Warrington" he replied, self-pride coloring his voice.
"And what is it that makes you think you've done, Warrington, to become my better?" Carlisle questioned waspishly.
"Isn't that obvious,-" his reply was cut short by the screams of a few of the students, Nathan silently observed that his cheeks reddened a touch, as the focus of the conversation shifted to the source of the scream, the incoming confrontation avoided and forgotten.
About twenty ghosts had just streamed through the back wall. Pearly-white and slightly transparent, they glided across the room talking to one another and hardly glancing at the first years. They seemed to be looking around for something "I can't believe it Peeves has taken my sword! How did he get a hand on my Sword?"
"Sir Nicholas, I assure you, I haven't the foggiest. I say, - what are you all doing here?" The second rotund ghost, asked upon noticing the students gathered around by the door. Then his demeanor brightened "New students!" said the Fat Friar, smiling around at them. "About to be Sorted, I suppose?"
A few people nodded mutely.
"Hope to see you in Hufflepuff!" said the Friar. "My old house, you know."
"Move along now," said a sharp voice. "The Sorting Ceremony's about to start."
Professor McGonagall had returned. One by one, the ghosts floated away through the opposite wall.
"Now, form a line," Professor McGonagall told the first years, "and follow me."
Chuckling to himself, Nathan followed behind Carlisle and Mary-Anne, as Jeremy trotted along his side. The entire eventual confrontation was avoided easily due to the interruptions of a few ghosts.
They walked into the Great Hall, the place was, in one word, splendid. Thousands upon thousands of candles floated in the air, providing light to four long tables that went down the length of the room, where the rest of the student body sat.
Said tables were decked out with gold plate settings.
At the end of the Great Hall stood a fifth long table, this one perpendicular to the student tables, down the breadth of the room. At this table sat the teachers, staring down at the students.
Nathan obediently followed the line following the professor, stepping down the length of the Great Hall until they came to a stop in front of the teacher's table, staring at the four tables holding the entire student body of Hogwarts.
He looked up, and there it was, the bewitched sky, looking exactly as it was on the outside.
He could hear quiet discussions about the enchantments already building up, Carlisle and Mary-Ann, included.
He was sure he heard Hogwarts; A History mentioned in hushed tones.
The professor placed a four-legged stool in front of the first years; on top of said stool was a pointed wizard's hat. It was frayed and dirty, and looked like it was hundreds of years old and could do with a few heavy-duty cycles of a washing machine.
For a few moments, everything was silent as everyone stared at the raggedy hat. Then, a rip opened up as if it were a mouth, and it started to sing.
Nathan had to close his ears, as the narcissistic hat sang praises of itself and then defined the school's houses in the verses of the song.
For the sake of courtesy, Nathan clapped along with the applause that followed.
McGonagall held up a scroll of parchment. "When I call your name, you will put on the hat and sit on the stool to be sorted," she told the students. "Ashley, Ava"
The auburn-haired girl, stepped forward, put the hat on, and sat down. There was a pause of maybe a few seconds.
"Hufflepuff!" the hat sounded.
One of the tables burst into applause and cheers as Ava went to sit down with them. The ghost of the friar waved at her with a giant smile on his face.
"Beckett, Sally," also went to Hufflepuff, amidst more cheers from that table, but "Boone, Elijah," went to Gryffindor, causing that table to explode into applause.
"Bole, Lucian" became the first Slytherin. Looking at the Slytherin table, Nathan could see that they were people who liked to act proper, calm and collected. Their faces betrayed no emotions, they had near-perfect poker faces. Putting the thought out of his mind, Nathan focused on the proceedings.
"Ellis, Mia," also went to Gryffindor, but "Jennings, Isabella" became the first to join the Ravenclaw table.
"Frye, Nathan" he heard, and Nathan slowly made his way to the stool. Upon having the hat placed on his head, he expected his first experience with a mental intrusion. Instead, what he received was a warm sensation covering his body, slightly followed by a voice just outside of his natural mental defenses.
"Ah! A natural mind defense, eh? No matter, no matter, if not the mind, the soul has all the answers I will need for this, yes." As the voice spoke, Nathan could feel the hint of old, yet powerful magic, wash over his own, just over his heart. The magic prodded and tested Nathan's own, and the voice continued. "I see then, you have hopes, and goals that you want to achieve. Your natural tendency to be lazy is overshadowed by your desperate need to improve, I can see you're willing to work hard as well, in that case, you shall make a nice fit in ….. RAVENCLAW!" the last part was shouted aloud for the entire Hall to listen to.
Nathan let out a breath he didn't know he was holding in. He had feared for the sanctity of his mind, and now that his natural mind defenses have been tested by an age-old powerful magical artifact, he could rest easy knowing that his mind is adequately well defended. Though he did resolve to go through whatever mind arts books he could find while studying at Hogwarts, both offensive and defensive in nature.
Making his way to the table that belonged to the Ravenclaw house, Nathan belatedly noticed that his school robes shifted to match the designated color. Shaking the hands of a few students, and making polite introductions, Nathan once again focused his attention on the sorting ceremony.
"Michaels, Jeremy" and Nathan could see the anxiety seeping through his friend's body language. Jeremy gave a Nathan an anxious look, and Nathan gave him a soft smile. Nathan hoped that his friend could join him in Ravenclaw, but alas it was not meant to be, as he made his way to the Hufflepuff table, where he was immediately greeted with warm smiles and polite introductions.
That wouldn't mean the end of their friendship though, as the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff students would hopefully be sharing most of their classes.
"Sharpe, Carlisle" Nathan's attention once again went back to the ceremony as McGonagall called on his other friend. She did not show much fear, except for the jolt that she showed at her calling, she confidently walked to the stool and took her seat. A few moments later, the hat proclaimed "Ravenclaw" and Nathan was happy that he'd have one friend to accompany him in Ravenclaw house.
"Welcome to Ravenclaw, Carlisle!" Nathan greeted her, letting her occupy the seat that was free beside him.
She looked to be grateful for the support and thanked him quietly, and they both turned their attention back to Prof. McGonagall.
Cassius Warrington was called on next, and the brown-haired boy walked imperiously towards the stool. The hat hadn't even made contact with the boy's head, apart from the hair, and it had already given the shout "Slytherin" for the entire hall, something which seemed to make Cassius immensely proud, based on the smirk that he had plastered on his face.
"Webster, Mary-Anne" was the final name called on to be sorted and she too was quickly sent away to Hufflepuff house, where the inviting and friendly faces of the Hufflepuff students were enough to calm her nerves.
Carlisle waved at her friend, and Nathan could see that she was disappointed that her friend was not a part of the Ravenclaw house.
In an attempt to allay her fears, Nathan said, "I think, most of our classes are conducted alongside Hufflepuff, so I believe that she'd be there most of the time to accompany you."
"He's right, you know. Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff share classes, just like Gryffindors and Slytherins, share theirs. You don't need to worry about getting separated from your friend." The Ravenclaw prefect, a blonde-haired girl who had been watching Carlisle, from the seat over said.
"Thank you, I just hope she'll be fine, her family has been helping my family, settle In Britain, and we'd become friends. Knowing that both of us were witches and were going to be heading to the same school, I'd hope we could stay together at Hogwarts. Now I just hope she makes a lot of friends." She explained.
That conversation later devolved into Nathan asking her about where she was from originally, to which her reply was that she was from the states. And just like that, her fears over her friend was forgotten as Carlisle quickly got into a conversation about home and hobbies with Nathan.
The ringing sound of metal striking glass, amplified by magic, had the hall quiet down significantly, as Albus Dumbledore rose from where he was seated to make the welcoming speech.
Albus Dumbledore, looked exactly like you would describe a wizard well versed in the magical arts. His silver hair, shining almost as bright as the ghosts floating around, contrasted with his turquoise robes that were peppered with stars, depicting the starry night. His blue eyes were light, bright, and sparkling behind half-moon spectacles and his nose was very long and crooked, as though it had been broken at least twice.
"Welcome! Welcome to another, sure-to-be, fantastic year at Hogwarts." He clapped his hands thrice and exclaimed "Let the feast,… begin!"
Immediately Dishes of all varieties appeared in front of Nathan. There was a lineup of food of all varieties. He had never seen so many things he liked to eat on one table: roast beef, roast chicken, pork chops and lamb chops, sausages, bacon and steak, boiled potatoes, roast potatoes, fries, Yorkshire pudding, peas, carrots, gravy, ketchup, and, for some strange reason, peppermint humbugs. It was all very salivating.
Nathan knowing that he had to get a lot of protein and fibers, immediately started serving himself the lamb chops, roast beef, and a glass of orange juice. He made a mental note of visiting the Kitchens personally to both thank the elves for the food, and inquire about getting an elf to prepare food from the meal plan that his mum had been giving him for the perfect development of his body.
He then started talking with his peers around him, like Carlisle for example had just come to Britain from the States. Apparently, she had an aunt that had just started working in the non-magical government there.
Nathan too indulged in the conversation, telling tales of playing footy with Liam, Zach, and Clyde, at the park in town.
"You should have seen the transformation she'd made, Billy was especially vexed when he found out that she could dribble circle around him, at football." He told them about the game he'd played against Stella, and the reactions she'd garnered from her bullies back in primary school when Dumbledore got up from his chair and created colorful sparks accompanied by a ringing noise, that managed to gather everyone's attention.
"Now that we're all watered and fed, I would like to say a few words. First years, please note, the forest on the edges of the school boundaries is forbidden to all students, and a few of our older students would do well to remember that." He said, looking pointedly at the neon pink-haired girl, sitting at the Hufflepuff table.
"Also, Quidditch trials will be held in the second week of the term. Anyone interested in playing for their house teams should contact Madam Hooch."
"Finally, we have a new professor for Defense Against the Dark Arts, this year, please welcome Prof. Paul Ambrose!"
The redheaded professor sat beside Prof. McGonagall rose and gave a light bow, in greeting. He was wearing a flowing red-green jacket, his red hair was unkempt and he had a portly demeanor.
"And now, before we all head off to bed, the school song!" Dumbledore announced cheerily.
After the horrible song was done with, the Prefects quickly gathered the students and guided them to their common rooms.
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