Chapter 2: House Legend
Evan opened his mouth to ask the Hat more questions, but enthusiastic applause cut him short. He had no choice but to swallow his questions. After returning the Sorting Hat to its stool, he descended the steps toward the Gryffindor table.
Several older students shifted along the bench to make room. Before Evan could choose a seat, a pair of identical twins with flaming red hair grabbed him by the shoulders and deposited him between them.
"Blimey," said one, his tone dramatically reverent, "you're absolutely the first person to make Professor McGonagall call your name four times at a Sorting. That was truly—"
"Truly what?" Evan asked warily.
"Truly brilliant!" the other twin finished.
"You're destined to be a Gryffindor legend!" they chorused together, grinning identical grins.
Evan barely suppressed a groan. These two had a very unique way of looking at things.
"Er, thanks," he said. "I'm Evan Hals. And you are?"
"George Weasley," the twin on his left said, winking. "And that's Fred. Best remember which is which—Fred gets awfully touchy when people mix us up."
"Right, George," Evan said, then turned deliberately to the other twin. "Nice to meet you, Fred."
Fred's mouth dropped open. George looked equally stunned.
"Hang on," George said slowly, "how did you know which of us was which?"
"Lucky guess?" Evan offered innocently. He could hardly explain he'd read about their name-swapping games in a book. "Besides, everyone knows the Weasley twins love a good prank."
"Everyone?" Fred repeated, eyes widening. "Did you hear that, George? We're famous."
"Our years of noble rule-breaking have finally paid off!" George proclaimed.
From further down the table, Ron Weasley nearly choked on his pumpkin juice. Since when were his brothers famous among first-years?
The twins leaned in conspiratorially. "So what were you and the Hat going on about up there? That was the longest Sorting I've ever seen."
Evan gave a vague answer—something about the Hat being chatty and having trouble deciding between Houses. He certainly wasn't going to mention knowing Dark magic in the middle of the Gryffindor table.
Instead, he steered the conversation toward the twins' various adventures around the castle, casually asking about shortcuts, hidden passages, and the best routes to avoid Filch.
Having read the books in his previous life, Evan knew the Weasley twins possessed the Marauder's Map—a piece of enchanted parchment that showed every corridor, classroom, and secret passage in Hogwarts, complete with the locations of everyone inside the castle. With it, you could move through Hogwarts unseen.
Evan didn't remember every detail from the books anymore—it had been years—but the Map would be invaluable for exploring the castle safely.
The twins, flattered by what seemed like genuine admiration, launched into elaborate tales of their escapades. They even hinted at recruiting him for future pranks. But they never mentioned the Map.
Evan wasn't surprised. They'd only just met. Even a pleasant conversation wasn't enough to share their most guarded secret. He was simply laying groundwork for later.
Then, without warning, words appeared in his mind—not spoken aloud, but somehow there, like text hovering behind his eyes:
[Secret information acquired. Generating task.]
[Task: Explore Hogwarts][Progress: 2/100][Description: Every young witch and wizard should possess curiosity about the unknown. This thousand-year-old castle holds countless secrets. Explore and discover them. Rewards will be granted based on progress and performance.]
Evan froze mid-sentence, his conversation with the twins trailing off.
A system. He had a system.
Joy flooded through him, followed immediately by relief. Since waking in the Great Hall, he'd been suppressing a constant undercurrent of anxiety—the disorientation of finding himself in an unfamiliar world, in an unfamiliar body. But this changed things. This gave him an edge.
"Oi, you alright?" Fred waved a hand in front of his face.
"Fine!" Evan said quickly. "Just—full. Need a minute."
He closed his eyes and concentrated, trying different mental commands he'd read in novels. Status. Menu. Character sheet. Finally, information crystallized before him:
[Evan Hals]Profession: Wizard
Known Magic: Fear Curse(Level 1) – 3/200
Knowledge: Magical Artifact Creation (Level 0) – 435/500
Equipment: Wand (yew, unicorn hair core, 11¾ inches)
Magical Power: Average
Wand Compatibility: 72.5%
Credits: 0
Evan read through the display twice, his mind racing. Fear Cutrse? Magical Artifact Creation? He certainly hadn't learned those himself—which meant they'd belonged to the original Evan Hals, the boy whose body he now occupied.
It wasn't unusual for wizard-raised children to learn magic before Hogwarts. Even Hermione, Muggle-born, had mastered several spells from books before term started. But a Fear Curse?
Evan searched his memory of the books. He couldn't recall any spell by that name. Not that it meant much—the Harry Potter series had only shown a fraction of the magical world's spells. Real Dark wizards wouldn't limit themselves to the handful of curses mentioned in the books. The Restricted Section alone probably contained hundreds of Dark Arts texts.
What worried him more was what kind of family taught their eleven-year-old child Dark magic before school.
A cold thread of unease wound through his excitement. If anyone discovered that Evan Hals had been… replaced… by a soul from another world, what would they do? What Dark magic would they turn on him?