"Come now, put me on and let me seeWhat lies hidden in your heart,Where you will find your truest friends,Where you will spend your seven years."
Applause rang through the Great Hall. Professor McGonagall unrolled a sheet of parchment.
"When I call your name, step forward and put on the Sorting Hat."
Since this wasn't the 1991 intake, the first student called wasn't Hannah Abbott but Euan Abercrombie—both names beginning with A-B.
One by one, the names were called. One by one, the students stepped forward. The Gryffindor table burst into cheers, Slytherin applauded with restraint, and Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff each had their own way of celebrating.
Leon stood at the end of the line, watching the students ahead of him get sorted into their Houses.
At last—
"Leon."
He took a deep breath, walked forward, and sat on the three-legged stool. Professor McGonagall placed the Sorting Hat on his head.
The hat dropped over his eyes.
A small voice sounded by his ear.
"Hmm, interesting. A fifth-year transfer student? Let me see..."
Leon felt something lightly brushing against his thoughts.
"Hmm... courageous enough, but not the reckless sort of courage... intelligent, likes to think, but does not pursue knowledge for its own sake... loyal? Yes, loyal to the people you care about... ambitious too? A little, though you do not like to admit it..."
Leon waited silently.
"Difficult, difficult," the hat muttered. "You could adapt anywhere, but there is nowhere you absolutely must go. Then let me see what it is you truly want..."
Leon suddenly thought of what Luna had said.
Only those who have experienced it can see it.
"..." The hat let out a faint sigh. "So that's it. You've seen the things others cannot, have you? You know what darkness looks like, and you also know how precious the light is. Then..."
The hat fell silent for a few seconds, then shouted loudly:
"HUFFLEPUFF!"
The Hufflepuff table erupted in warm applause and cheers. Leon took off the hat, stood up, and walked toward the yellow-and-black table. People stood to shake his hand, pat his shoulder, hand him a Pumpkin Pasty, and pour him pumpkin juice.
He sat down and looked across the Great Hall, searching for Luna.
She was sitting at the Ravenclaw table, waving at him. Her movement was still a little slow, still a little dreamy, but this time Leon could clearly see the smile on her face.
He waved back.
The candlelight flickered overhead, reflecting on every face. Leon looked around at all the unfamiliar faces, listening to the noisy laughter and chatter around him, and suddenly felt a strange sense of peace.
Hogwarts.
After the last first year had been sorted, Professor McGonagall carried away the stool and the hat with brisk steps. At that moment, Professor Dumbledore rose to his feet.
"Welcome to our new students," Dumbledore said in a booming voice, spreading his arms wide with a radiant smile. "Welcome! And to our old students—welcome back! I have many things to say, but this is not the time. Tuck in!"
A wave of appreciative laughter and hearty applause filled the hall. Dumbledore sat down neatly and tossed his long beard over his shoulder so it wouldn't get in the way of his plate. Then delicious food appeared out of nowhere. The five long tables were instantly covered with great joints of beef, pies, plates of vegetables, bread, jam, and jugs of pumpkin juice.
When even the last roasted sausage had been swept clean from the golden plates, the students leaned back in their chairs in full satisfaction, enjoying the lazy comfort after a large meal. Above them, the night sky on the enchanted ceiling slowly shifted, and the silver band of the Milky Way seemed to spill over every upturned face.
Dumbledore stood again from the staff table.
"Well now, as we digest yet another wonderfully abundant feast, I ask for your attention while I go over the usual start-of-term notices," Dumbledore said. "First years should know that the Forbidden Forest on the grounds is out of bounds to all students. That reminder, I believe, should also be familiar to several of our older students by now."
"Mr. Filch, our caretaker, has asked me to remind you all—for the four hundred and sixty-second time—that no magic is to be performed in the corridors between classes. There are, of course, many other regulations, all of which are listed on the very long notice posted outside Mr. Filch's office."
"This year, there are two changes to our staff. We are pleased to welcome back Professor Grubbly-Plank, who will be teaching Care of Magical Creatures. We are also pleased to introduce Professor Umbridge, our new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher."
Polite but unenthusiastic applause rippled through the hall.
Dumbledore continued, "The House Quidditch team trials will be held—"
Other than his beloved Gellert Grindelwald and his brother Aberforth, there weren't many people in the world bold enough to interrupt the legendary wizard Dumbledore.
Now there was one more soul daring enough to cut him off mid-sentence.
And Umbridge now enjoyed the same privileges as they did.
Dumbledore graciously said no more and sat down, yielding the stage to Umbridge.
She, for her part, showed no restraint at all. She looked like some elderly toad that had accidentally fallen into a jar of sugar. She beamed at the students, revealing a row of neat, unusually pointed teeth.
"How wonderful it is to be back at Hogwarts!"
Her voice was sickly sweet—the sort of sweetness that felt like three extra spoonfuls of sugar dumped into candy. She spread her arms wide as if to embrace the entire hall, the bow on her head bobbing with the movement.
"To see all your happy little faces turned up toward me is simply delightful!"
At the Hufflepuff table, someone let out a soft gagging sound. Leon glanced over and saw an older girl covering her mouth with one hand, her eyes wide. The people beside her were desperately holding back laughter, their shoulders shaking.
Basically no one cared what Umbridge was saying, and Leon didn't care either.
In fact, starting school in fifth year was actually bad news for him. He had drawn the worst possible lot.
Out of all the Defence Against the Dark Arts teachers Harry Potter had encountered during his six years at school, Umbridge was the worst.
First year had Quirrell—possessed by Voldemort, but setting that aside. Second year had Lockhart, whose books were packed with genuinely useful material and could even get you permission into the Restricted Section if you tricked him into signing. Third year had Professor Lupin, a senior member of the Order of the Phoenix, outstanding in both theory and practice. Fourth year had the fake Moody. Barty Crouch Jr. might have been a dark wizard, but he truly did teach the Dark Arts.
He had even demonstrated all three Unforgivable Curses for the class—from the incantations to the wand movements.
<><><><><><><><><><><>
Good Reviews/Ratings are greatly appreciated
Drop some POWERSTONES to push the story forward!