After emphasizing the important matters for the semester, Dumbledore seemed to revert to his somewhat eccentric and amiable headmaster persona, wearing his wizard's hat slightly askew, and loudly announced.
"Before we go to sleep, let us all sing the school song together!"
As Dumbledore's voice faded, Ivan clearly saw the expressions on the faces of the professors on the stage change, and several older students looked as if they were constipated.
Dumbledore, however, waved his wand on his own accord, and a long golden ribbon floated out from the wand, transforming into words like a snake.
The wand acted like a conductor's baton, and under Dumbledore's guidance, the Hogwarts school song, sung by the entire school, echoed throughout the hall.
"Hogwarts, Hogwarts, Hogwarts, Hogwarts, Please teach us something, Whether we be old and bald Or young with scabby knees, Our heads could do with filling With some interesting stuff."
Various versions and tunes were haphazardly pieced together, mixed with the Weasley twins' deliberate attempts to lead everyone astray. Ivan also joined in the chaos, singing a few lines at random. After finishing, he surprisingly found the mixed tones to be quite pleasant.
Ivan couldn't help but wonder if there was something wrong with his musical taste.
Fortunately, Headmaster Dumbledore shared the same sentiment. The esteemed white wizard was so moved by the music that he was on the verge of tears. It took him a long while to break free from the melody, and while wiping his tears, he reminded the prefects to lead everyone back to their dormitories.
Ivan followed the flow of Gryffindor first-years up the spiral staircase to the highest floor.
At the end of the corridor, Percy stopped in front of a wall with a painting of a fat lady. Before the first-years could ask, the fat lady moved, changed her pose, and solemnly asked.
"Password?"
"Dragon dung," Percy replied.
The fat lady nodded, moved aside, revealing a round hole in the wall. Ivan knew that this was the Gryffindor common room.
Upon entering, Ivan realized that it was much larger than he had imagined.
The scarlet lion banner representing Gryffindor hung in the air. Several long tables were neatly arranged in the spacious common room, with comfortable armchairs placed under them. A dark brown fireplace stood against the left wall, the burning flames illuminating the space and dispelling the night's chill.
The Gryffindor dormitories were five to a room. Five four-poster beds stood in the spacious room, with their luggage neatly stacked beside them.
Due to the lack of corresponding memories, Ivan couldn't even recognize his own luggage and bed.
Just as Ivan was about to let his roommates choose their beds first, a gray-white owl suddenly flew from the top of the west railing onto Ivan's shoulder, affectionately pecking him on the face.
"Maca?" Ivan was taken aback at first, then the name inexplicably came to his mind.
"Coo, coo~" The gray-white owl responded as if in agreement.
"Whether it is or not, I'll call you Maca from now on." Ivan reached out and gently scratched the owl's neck, and Maca narrowed its eyes in comfort.
With Maca's guidance, Ivan quickly confirmed that the bed against the west wall was his. There were very few things around, besides the bedding, pillows, some clothes, and toiletries, as well as a few textbooks that needed to be carried.
It is worth mentioning that Ivan found a small sign next to his bed, with the words "Ivan Hals" thoughtfully engraved on it.
There were similar signs on the other beds, but Ivan hadn't noticed them just now.
Ivan hadn't been alone in the dormitory for long when the sound of a door opening came from outside, followed by a slightly familiar voice.
"I didn't expect the Sorting Ceremony to just involve wearing a hat. I thought I was going to have to wrestle a troll. I knew I shouldn't have believed George's nonsense."
Pushing the door open was a young wizard with fiery red hair and freckles on his nose, muttering something. Behind him was a small boy wearing glasses, looking somewhat thin.
Harry? Ron?
Ivan was somewhat surprised, but then he realized something. Hogwarts doesn't have many new students each year, and since he was in Gryffindor, he would naturally be in the same dormitory as Harry.
"Hello, I am Ivan Hals!" Ivan stepped forward and took the initiative to greet them.
"Hey, I am Ron Weasley." Ron had only just noticed Ivan's presence.
"Hello, I am Harry Potter." Harry also reached out his hand at this time.
Ivan first shook hands with Harry, then looked at Ron and smiled. "At the feast just now, your brothers George and Fred mentioned you to me."
"Oh, damn it, I don't believe they would say anything good about me." Ron thought of the way George and Fred usually teased him, and felt a burst of anger in his heart.
Harry was somewhat pleased by Ivan's attitude, which was different from others. After all, since entering the wizarding world, every time he met other wizards, they were either shocked or wanted to see the lightning-shaped scar on his head.
He had to say, Harry thought this behavior was really stupid.
Friendship between young wizards can sometimes be established in a short period of time, especially since Ivan, having read the original work, knew the two of them well. After some conversation, they naturally became friends very quickly.
Harry talked about the unfair treatment he received before coming to the wizarding world, while Ron mentioned one or two amusing incidents of being teased by the Weasley twins. Before long, Neville and another roommate joined in, and they chatted until very late before going to bed.
The series of changes throughout the whole night made Ivan feel really tired. Almost as soon as he touched the bed, his body went limp, and he couldn't move anymore. He even forgot about his original plan to explore the system.
Vaguely, he could only hear Ron scolding his rat, Scabbers. Ivan raised his eyes to look, and then covered his head with the quilt, his lips silently moving a few times.
Hello, Hogwarts!
Early the next morning, Ivan woke up from a dream, blankly looking around. It took him a long time to realize that he had to go to class.
Suddenly having to transition from a hospital bed to a classroom, Ivan was still somewhat unaccustomed to it.
However, for his first class at Hogwarts, Ivan had no intention of being late. Although it was still early, considering the stairs in Hogwarts that were so mischievous, Ivan thought it was better to leave early.
Of course, before leaving, he didn't forget to wake up Ron and Harry, who were still sleeping in.
Whether it was the influence of Harry's savior halo or Ivan's bad luck, they encountered disappearing steps twice just on the way downstairs. Poor Ron even crashed headfirst into a wall disguised as a door!
Fortunately, it was because of Ron's personal demonstration that Ivan and Harry were spared.