Chapter 17

[Chapter Size: 1800 Words.]

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Ignoring the whispers among the young wizards, Professor McGonagall continued speaking.

Her voice wasn't loud, but even with many students murmuring, it carried clearly to their ears.

"The welcoming feast is about to begin. No matter which house you are placed in, I hope you will bring honor to it."

"In a few minutes, the Sorting Ceremony will take place in front of the entire school. I suggest you straighten up and stay alert while you wait."

A sudden rustle of voices rose from the group. Harry and Ron quickly checked each other to make sure their hair wasn't messy and their robes were in order. A few witches even took out small mirrors.

The legendary Sorting Ceremony was about to begin, and even Hermione, who always acted as if she knew everything and was fully prepared, seemed a little nervous now.

In contrast, Draco Malfoy, standing a little farther away and glaring at Harry and the others, showed no sign of nervousness. His anger toward Harry consumed his thoughts.

Still, it was clear he had no intention of picking another fight. His nose was still sore.

As the students waited, about twenty ghosts suddenly drifted into the hall. Many first-years jumped in surprise as the spirits emerged straight through the walls. However, before they could interact with the ghosts, Professor McGonagall returned.

"First-years, form a line and follow me. Move along," she instructed, leading them through the entrance hall, down a short corridor, and through a set of double doors into a grand, magnificent hall.

Harry had never seen a place so breathtakingly magical.

The vast hall contained four long tables, where the older students were already seated. Judging by the emblems on their robes, they were sitting according to their houses.

Instead of resting on the tables, the candles floated above them, casting a warm, bright light throughout the room.

The tables were set with gleaming golden plates and goblets, but no food had been served yet.

At the far end of the hall, a raised platform held the staff's long table. Harry's eyes immediately locked onto an elderly wizard with a long white beard and hair, seated in the center. He recognized him at once, Albus Dumbledore.

Behind him, Hermione murmured, "It's just like the book said, the ceiling looks like the sky."

Harry glanced up and saw the vast, starry night above them. He was so distracted that he didn't notice the person in front of him had stopped.

He bumped straight into Ron.

Ron stumbled sideways, colliding with a girl ahead of him.

"Ah!" She gasped.

"Oh, sorry," Ron apologized quickly.

"It's… it's fine," the girl replied softly, turning her head slightly to look at him.

Ron seemed about to say something when a voice suddenly began to sing.

At the front of the hall, placed on a tall four-legged stool near the staff table, sat an old, tattered, and pointed wizard's hat. Its wide brim had opened like a mouth, and it was singing.

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Harry didn't think the song was particularly good, but the older students clapped cheerfully, prompting the new students to follow suit. He had no choice but to clap along.

The hat gave a proud bow to the crowd before falling silent.

"So… the famous Sorting Ceremony is just wearing this hat?" Ron whispered, his eyes widening in disbelief.

He scanned the older students, searching for his two traitorous brothers.

"I'm going to kill Fred and George. They made it sound like we'd have to fight a troll."

Harry exhaled in relief. He had been a little anxious, after all, Hermione had put a lot of pressure on them. On the train, they discovered she had memorized almost every spell from The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 1.

Harry, on the other hand, could only recall a handful of spells he had successfully performed, which made a significant difference.

If the Sorting Ceremony had involved reciting spells from memory, he would have been in trouble. However, he doubted that was the case. After all, Ron and Neville, both from wizarding families, didn't seem to know many spells either.

Well, Ron knew at least one.

Just before they got off the train, Ron had tried to show them a color-changing rat spell. But the magic hadn't worked. Truthfully, Harry had his doubts about whether the spell was even real.

Lost in thought, he barely noticed Professor McGonagall stepping forward with a scroll in her hands.

"When I call your name, step forward, put on the hat, sit on the stool, and wait for your house to be chosen," she announced.

Then, she read the first name:

"Hannah Abbott!"

A blonde girl walked up, placed the hat on her head, and, after a brief pause, the Sorting Hat called out, "Hufflepuff!"

Cheers erupted from the table on the right, where the Hufflepuff students sat. Just as Harry had guessed, the students were sorted into houses one by one.

Next came another Hufflepuff, followed by a boy sorted into Ravenclaw.

Then.

"Lavender Brown!"

A round-faced girl with wide eyes stepped forward. It was the same girl Ron had bumped into earlier.

The Sorting Hat barely hesitated before announcing, "Gryffindor!"

The first new Gryffindor of the night had been chosen.

Applause erupted from the long table on the far left. Harry turned toward the noise and spotted Fred and George Weasley standing on their seats, one of them even twirling his hips in a ridiculous dance.

Beside them, another red-haired boy, likely the third brother Percy, whom Ron had mentioned earlier, was attempting to pull the dancing clown back down to his seat. But he wasn't having much success. It seemed like he was about to yank down one of the twins' trousers, yet the twin in question was holding onto his waistband with one hand while still twisting his waist.

Rather than being annoyed, the students around them looked thoroughly entertained.

"Well, this is interesting." Harry's eyes sparkled.

Until now, he hadn't been sure which house he wanted to be in. But one thing was clear, he definitely didn't want to be in Slytherin. He already disliked Malfoy, and Ron had told him that the Malfoy family had been in Slytherin for generations. On top of that, Slytherins were known for their obsession with blood purity and their reputation for producing dark wizards.

"Well, now I know where I want to go. Yes, Ravenclaw! Those Gryffindors are way too noisy." thought Harry.

The first of the four to be called was Hermione. The Sorting Hat hesitated slightly longer than it had for the others, but soon enough, it declared her a Gryffindor.

A little later, Neville was sorted into Gryffindor as well. His expression at that moment was pure shock. On the train, he had been convinced that he would either be a Hufflepuff or get kicked out of Hogwarts entirely.

Among the new students, the ones who had caught Harry's attention the most after stepping off the train were a pair of identical twin sisters, probably of Indian descent.

For some reason, seeing them felt like a turning point in Harry's life. Maybe it was Cleona's influence, though only eleven, he was starting to take an interest in girls. Just a little.

The twins were undeniably beautiful, and Harry wasn't the only one who had noticed. Many of the boys were sneaking glances at them.

Surprisingly, they weren't sorted into the same house. The older sister went to Gryffindor, while the younger one was placed in Ravenclaw.

"That's pretty rare," Ron whispered to Harry. He had noticed the twins as well. "It's not common to see twins at Hogwarts, but from what Bill and the others told me, they usually end up in the same house."

Harry nodded. Ron's older brother, Bill, worked at Gringotts in Egypt, or at least, that's what Ron had told him. Harry imagined him as some kind of bank manager.

Ron had also mentioned a second brother, Charlie, who was studying dragons in Romania. Harry pictured him as a Viking.

Adding Percy, the overly serious one, and the mischievous twins, Harry couldn't help but be amazed at the kind of household Ron had grown up in.

Harry's thoughts were interrupted when Professor McGonagall called his name.

The entire hall fell silent for a moment before whispers broke out across the room.

"Is that him?"

"That's Harry Potter? The real one?"

"I heard Potter wasn't a boy."

"The famous Harry Potter looks like a little girl."

The last comment came from a curly-haired boy, and Harry turned to look at him. The boy was also a first-year, but Harry didn't remember his name. He was sitting at the Hufflepuff table, scrutinizing Harry with curious eyes.

I'll remember you. Harry muttered to himself as he stepped forward.

When he reached Professor McGonagall, the stern-looking woman gave him a small smile. It was just enough to ease the slight nervousness caused by the murmuring around him.

Sitting on the stool, he felt the weight of the Sorting Hat being placed on his head.

"Eh?"

A subtle voice spoke, not aloud, but directly into his mind.

"What an interesting child… Smart, courageous, and kind-hearted. But you seem rather restless..."

Harry felt a strange sensation, as if something was probing his mind.

This feels like Legilimency, mind reading!

Harry knew about it from his studies of ancient magic. It was a form of mental magic that allowed wizards to peer into someone's thoughts and memories. He hadn't mastered it yet, but he knew how to counter it.

Almost instinctively, Harry constructed an image in his mind, something he had learned to do during meditation.

The best way to resist mind intrusion was to focus. That was the fundamental technique for defending against most forms of mental magic. Of course, if the opponent's mental strength was significantly greater, no amount of focus would help.

In that case, you had two options:

Surrender and let them read you.

Fight back, though that usually wasn't possible.

Or, well stab them with a knife.

Luckily, the Sorting Hat didn't seem to possess overwhelming mental strength. As soon as Harry concentrated, the piercing sensation vanished.

"Oh?" The Sorting Hat sounded intrigued. "That's an unexpected talent. But now, where should I place you? This is a tricky one. Slytherin would be a good fit, or..."

"Not Slytherin!" Harry interrupted immediately. He had no intention of being in the same house as that arrogant boy.

Ravenclaw was his preference.

Even though Neville and Hermione had been sorted into Gryffindor, after seeing the chaos caused by the Weasley twins, Harry wasn't sure that Gryffindor was the right choice for him.

However, before he could finish saying "I want to be in Ravenclaw," the Sorting Hat made its decision.

"Not Slytherin? Alright then, Gryffindor!"

The Hall Erupts.

"We got Harry!"

Cheers erupted from the Gryffindor table.

Harry, stunned, had only one thought.

"Damn it!"

He had tried to outpace the Sorting Hat, but the hat had won.

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