"Pffft—"
A deeply concerning sound escaped from the Sorting Hat.
It resembled a punctured balloon slowly losing air.
"Ah… yes… well…" the Hat muttered weakly in Ethan's mind. "I can see kindness… probably… perhaps…"
Its voice sounded exactly like someone desperately trying to calm a cat sitting beside a dangerously unstable glass of water.
"Hm. Very clever. Ambitious too. Perhaps Slytherin—"
"Grrr…"
Ethan quietly made a hungry noise.
The Sorting Hat froze.
"Oh. Right. Well. Ahem." It twisted nervously on Ethan's head. "Actually, now that I think about it… entering school despite your… unusual circumstances… demonstrates tremendous bravery…"
Ethan smiled faintly.
Good.
Decision Number Two was definitely preferable.
At least Rose wouldn't personally hunt him down.
"GRYFFINDOR!"
The Sorting Hat practically screamed the word in terror.
As Ethan walked toward the Gryffindor table, he deliberately gave Harry an encouraging thumbs-up from across the hall. More importantly, he carefully adjusted the angle so Dumbledore could clearly see the display of wholesome friendship from the staff table.
Perfect.
Ethan felt he was becoming increasingly skilled at pretending to be a healthy, cheerful, emotionally stable half-Dementor.
After sitting down, he focused on Harry's sorting.
Unfortunately, the Sorting Hat whispered too quietly for Ethan to hear the internal argument taking place. Watching Harry sit silently beneath a motionless hat felt about as entertaining as observing a particularly boring mime performance.
"I wonder which Gryffindor house Harry Potter will end up in," Ethan muttered thoughtfully.
"GRYFFINDOR!"
The hall fell silent for one brief second.
Then Gryffindor exploded.
Cheers thundered through the Great Hall loudly enough to shake the enchanted ceiling. Fred and George Weasley immediately began chanting:
"We got Potter! We got Potter!"
Percy Weasley stood up and shook Harry's hand with the solemn dignity of a politician greeting foreign royalty.
Harry stumbled toward the table looking overwhelmed while students celebrated wildly around him.
Eventually, the hall calmed enough for sorting to continue.
Ron entered Gryffindor too, though only his brothers looked particularly excited about it.
"I was terrified," Harry admitted after sitting beside Ethan.
"I nearly got sorted into Slytherin," Ethan replied calmly while picking up his knife and fork in preparation for food. "Stay calm."
Harry immediately leaned closer.
"You too?!"
"Hm? The Hat wanted Slytherin initially," Ethan said casually. "But my mother would probably kill me personally, so I declined."
Harry visibly relaxed.
Children hated feeling isolated. The moment someone shared the same fear or experience, anxiety transformed into companionship.
And in Harry's eyes, Ethan clearly had nothing in common with the "evil" reputation surrounding Slytherin.
"Welcome!"
Dumbledore rose smiling broadly with his arms spread wide.
"There is nothing more wonderful than seeing students gathered together once again at Hogwarts."
His eyes twinkled brightly.
"Before tonight's feast begins, I would like to say a few words."
He paused dramatically.
"Idiot! Crybaby! Scum! Twist!"
Silence followed briefly.
Honestly, nobody fully understood whether Dumbledore's nonsense represented hidden wisdom, commentary on inter-house prejudice, or simply the old man entertaining himself.
Then the food appeared instantly across the tables.
Setting aside Britain's occasionally questionable cuisine, Hogwarts food was genuinely excellent. House-elves with centuries of culinary experience rarely failed at basic meals like roast beef or lamb.
Ethan happily reached toward a lamb shank.
Then—
"OWWWWWW!"
A man suddenly screamed directly beneath the table.
At the exact same moment, Ethan tasted something very wrong.
Why did the spicy lamb taste sweet?
A translucent figure wearing an enormous ruff collar abruptly floated upward through the table.
[ Soul Strength: 10 ]
Nearly Headless Nick clutched his neck miserably while hovering over the Gryffindor table.
At the surrounding house tables, other ghosts also emerged dramatically from walls, ceilings, and furniture, terrifying countless first years into shrieking.
Interestingly, every ghost Ethan observed possessed exactly ten soul points.
Apparently that represented the absolute minimum threshold for an adult wizard's soul.
Nick floated several feet above the table while muttering bitterly.
"I should've listened to the Headmaster…"
Then he glanced nervously toward Ethan.
Ethan recognised him immediately.
Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington.
The wobbling head gave it away.
Apparently Dumbledore specifically warned the Hogwarts ghosts to stay far away from Ethan's mouth.
That probably explained why the ghosts delayed their traditional appearance until dinner instead of greeting students earlier. Unfortunately, introducing ghosts during a meal proved even more dangerous.
After all, Ethan had nearly bitten Nick's soul clean off while eating lamb.
Still, Nick wisely chose silence.
Once someone had already swallowed part of your ghost neck, demanding it back felt somewhat awkward.
Because of Dumbledore's instructions, Nick also couldn't reveal Ethan's true identity publicly. Instead, he drifted carefully toward the far side of the table and introduced himself normally.
"I know who you are!" Ron suddenly exclaimed while slapping his forehead. "Nearly Headless Nick!"
Nick winced visibly.
"I would prefer," he said stiffly, "to be addressed as Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington."
"But why are you only nearly headless?" Seamus Finnigan asked immediately.
Nick looked deeply exhausted.
Then, with obvious reluctance, he pulled his head sideways to reveal the damaged neck.
A fresh bite mark remained near the top.
Ethan, meanwhile, remained entirely focused on his food and didn't even glance upward.
"Like that," Nick answered dryly.
Obviously, he hated discussing the subject. Among ghosts, his incomplete decapitation represented an endless source of ridicule.
After all, fully headless ghosts could at least participate in ghost bowling.
Nick couldn't.
Still, despite his irritation, Nick clearly enjoyed the terrified reactions from the first years. Ghosts loved frightening people. It helped them pretend they were still important.
....
Join my P@treon FOR FREE and get 5 advanced chapters.
Paid members can get upto 60+ chapters ahead of the public release.
Link : [email protected]/thebookaddict