Arrival at Hogwarts

We arrived at Hogsmeade station when the sun had set. I kept feeding Ron's rats with the various candies, I wonder how much I can fatten him up. Did he eat enough as a rat? Are the calories enough for a grown man? Maybe I can feed him until he becomes a class 3 obese. I can imagine him waddling to the Dark Lord like a penguin…

"Right then. First years, this way please!", Hagrid shouted as he herded the young wizards like a flock of sheep, "Come on, first years, don't be shy. Come on now, hurry up!"

"Hello Harry", Hagrid greeted when he saw me.

"Hi Hagrid!"

"Whoa!", Ron exclaimed, when he saw the half giant standing three times taller than he was.

"Right then, this way to the boats. Come on now, follow me", Hagrid urged as he led the way.

Hagrid led us to the Black Lake. It seems like we had to take a boat to the castle, but they were able to travel on water by themselves. No propellor or fuel needed, how sustainable. As we travelled across the black lake, I tried to use my X-ray vision to see through the waters beneath. It did look like an aquarium, so many weird creatures. Wait, does the castle's plumbing system flow into this lake...? No wonder the Merpeople here are ugly, they are probably mutated by wizards' poop over the years.

Arriving on the shore, Hagrid led us to the path to the Great Hall. As we climbed up the flight of stairs, we saw Professor McGonagall waiting for us.

"Welcome to Hogwarts. Now, in a few moments you will pass through these doors and join your classmates. But before you take your seats, you must be sorted into your houses. They are Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin. Now while you are here, your house will be like your family. Your triumphs will earn you points. Any rule-breaking and you will lose points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points wins the house cup…"

"Trevor!", Neville shouted, interrupting Professor McGonagall's introduction speech. "… Sorry …", Neville mumbled as he stumbled back into the crowd while holding his frog after receiving a stare down with the professor.

Did the frog hop up this whole flight of stairs? How did he arrive before us?

"The Sorting Ceremony will begin momentarily", Professor McGonagall continued as she walked into the Great Hall, leaving us on the stairs.

At this moment, Malfoy spoke up when he saw me. "It's true then, what they're saying on the train. Harry Potter has come to Hogwarts. This is Crabbe and Goyle. And I'm Malfoy. Draco Malfoy."

Ron started giggling when he heard his name.

"Think my name's funny, do you? I've no need to ask yours. Red hair and a hand-me-down robe? You must be a Weasley", Malfoy said to Ron who started to become angry. "You'll find out some wizarding families are better than others. You don't want to go making friends with the wrong sort. I can help you there", Malfoy said as he extended his hands towards me.

"Thanks, nice to meet you!" I replied, shaking his hands. Anyways, it's not so bad to make friends with this young Draco, keep your friends close and your enemies closer right? I do need to get close to him to get to Voldermort's diary. It seems that his upbringing has made him a tad bit arrogant. Not that it matters to me…

At this moment, Professor McGonagall came back. "We're ready for you now. Follow me".

We walked into the Great Hall which seems to be packed with students. Hundreds of candles were seen to be levitating in the air. Are they real candles? These candles will be dripping wax everywhere…

"Will you wait along here, please? Now, before we begin, Professor Dumbledore would like to say a few words", Professor McGonagall said.

Professor Dumbledore stood up from his seat. "I have a few start-of-term notices I wish to announce. The first years, please note, that the Dark Forest is strictly forbidden to all students. Also, our caretaker, Mr. Filch, has asked me to remind you, that the third-floor corridor on the right hand side is out of bounds… to everyone who does not wish to die a most painful death. Thank you.".

The first years were shocked at the announcement. After all, this place seems to be less of a school and more like a dungeon with monsters. There's still a huge killer snake downstairs…, a giant vicious three-headed dog…, and a tree that can kill you…, and man-sized spiders that can eat your face…

"When I call your name, you will come forth. I shall place the Sorting Hat on your head, and you will be sorted into your houses… Hermione Granger!", Professor McGonagall said, beginning the Sorting Ceremony.

"Oh no, okay, relax", Hermione muttered to herself.

"Mental, that one, I'm telling you", Ron said to me.

Hermione sat down on the stool as Professor McGonagall placed the hat on her head. "Ah, right, then. Mm, right. Okay. Gryffindor!", the Hat exclaimed.

Well, why wasn't she in Ravenclaw? If my conjecture is right, despite what many people believe, Ravenclaw doesn't necessarily mean good grades. People tend to write it off as the "smart House" and assume that everyone in it is as obsessed with academics as Hermione, if not more so. But just because you're intelligent doesn't mean you get good grades. There's more than one way to be smart. So just because Hermione is a good student doesn't automatically make her a good Ravenclaw.

But if academics doesn't make a good Ravenclaw, what does? According to the Sorting Hat, you belong in Ravenclaw "If you've a ready mind, where those of wit and learning, will always find their kind." Looking at this description, it seems like Ravenclaw is less about getting good grades and more about creativity and openness of thought. A ready mind is one that's eager and prepared to accept new ideas. Wit doesn't just mean intelligent; it also means creativity and inventiveness. And learning doesn't just apply to classes.

This view of the Ravenclaw is further supported by the most prominent Ravenclaw in the entire series: Luna Lovegood. Luna is pretty much the definition of open-minded and no one can doubt her creativity. Admittedly, Luna might be an extreme example of both those traits, and its unlikely most Ravenclaws reach her level of open-mindedness and creativity. However, Luna is still the Ravenclaw the books focus the most on, so it makes sense that she would exemplify Ravenclaw traits.

For all her intelligence and book smarts, Hermione is not very open-minded and can be rigid in her ways of thinking, and while she does get better by the end of the series, she was Sorted at age 11, before all that character growth. One example of her rigid ways is how, in her first year especially, she holds books and authority figures to be absolutely right and not to be questioned. Another example is her reaction to Luna, completely dismissing her viewpoints and beliefs. She's close-minded enough that she doesn't even consider the possibility that what Luna is talking about might be real.

More importantly, the Sorting Hat prioritizes what type of qualities the students value rather than what they have. After all, we have seen characters whose Hogwarts House doesn't seem to fit their personality. Just think of Petter Pettigrew, the most cowardly Gryffindor.

Which means, I can bargain with it.