The Thestrals pulled the carriage through two grand wrought-iron gates, flanked on either side by stone pillars topped with winged boars. Passing through the gates, the carriage picked up speed as it traveled up the long, sloping driveway leading to the castle. The turrets and towers of the castle drew closer and closer to Eda and her companions.
Near the stone steps leading up to the castle, the carriage came to a wobbly stop. Eda was the first to jump out after pushing open the door. The scent of straw inside the carriage was still acceptable, but the musty smell was truly unpleasant.
Following the crowd, Eda and the others climbed the stone steps, passed through the grand oak front doors, and ascended the magnificent marble staircase before finally turning into the Great Hall.
Beneath the enchanted ceiling where countless candles floated in midair, students from the four houses were chatting animatedly, mostly about two topics. One was that Gryffindor had clashed with Slytherin again, with Eda as the main force—only this time, it was Eda who could "crush a grown man with her bare hands."
The second topic was today's new student: Harry Potter. Everyone was very curious about which house the Boy Who Lived would be sorted into—preferably their own, of course.
Eda and the others had discussed this on the carriage. They all agreed that Slytherin didn't stand a chance, mainly because of its terrible reputation.
In their eyes, Slytherin had never produced a decent person—this was a prejudice built up over generations. How could the one who defeated Voldemort possibly be sorted into the house known for Dark wizards?
Of the remaining three houses, Ravenclaw seemed a bit less likely. It wasn't due to any bias against the house—it was just that Ravenclaw's standards were quite high. Without meeting those intellectual requirements, you couldn't become a member of the house known for wisdom.
Of course, Eda personally questioned the house's selection criteria. Professor McGonagall was very smart, yet she was a Gryffindor—and the Head of House, no less. Quirinus Quirrell, on the other hand, had graduated from Ravenclaw, but Eda hadn't seen a hint of wisdom from him.
Gryffindor and Hufflepuff had about the same chance, but the group was more optimistic about Gryffindor. The reason was simple—Hogwarts' current headmaster, Dumbledore, had graduated from Gryffindor.
While Eda and the others were chatting about this year's new students, Professor McGonagall walked over. She stood behind Eda and said, "Eda, really now, you've become quite something—bullying a first-year on the train?"
Had word spread that fast?
It had already reached Professor McGonagall?
Did that mean Snape knew too?
Eda felt she was being wronged.
After all, Flint and a few upper-year students had also been involved. She was just a lonely little third-year—if anything, it should be them bullying her.
"Professor, I can explain…" Eda figured that since Professor McGonagall used her nickname, there was still hope. She might have a chance to argue her case.
"I have to go receive the first-years now. I don't have time to listen to your excuses," Professor McGonagall said. "Since it happened on the train, I won't deduct any house points. But just because it's not a capital offense doesn't mean you're getting off scot-free. Wednesday evening at seven, my office. Don't be late."
With that, Professor McGonagall walked away. But from the look on her face, she didn't seem angry—more like she was just doling out a routine punishment.
Eda suddenly thought of something and turned her head toward the staff table.
Sure enough, she saw Snape looking at her too—only, his expression was impossible to describe.
Eda figured she was probably doomed this year. Potions class? Forget about it. If Snape wasn't plotting something based on that look, she'd change her last name to Twister.
"Do you think you're the fastest student in Hogwarts history to get detention?" Fred asked, the mischievous grin on his face couldn't have been more obvious.
"No one's likely to beat that record. Even we'd have a hard time breaking it," George said, clapping Eda on the shoulder in a tone that made it sound like she'd shattered some long-standing world record.
"Does this mean I'll go down in history?" Eda joked, self-deprecatingly.
"When Hogwarts: A History gets revised again, there will definitely be a section about you," Fred said with mock seriousness.
"'Before the 1991 Welcome Feast even began, Esmeralda Twist was already given detention by the Deputy Headmistress, Professor McGonagall!'" George said in a booming announcer voice.
After a while, Eda and the twins put on their pointed black hats, and the Great Hall transformed into a sea of pointed hats. At that moment, the large doors of the hall swung open, and the room quieted down. Professor McGonagall led a long line of first-year students to the front of the hall.
The first-years stood in a line at the front. Not only were students from all four houses watching them, but the professors at the staff table were also sizing them up.
Eda kept her eyes on Snape and noticed that his expression had grown even more complicated.
Professor McGonagall placed a four-legged stool in front of the students, then set the ragged and rather suspicious-looking Sorting Hat on top of it. The hat began to squirm and then split open to sing lyrics it had clearly spent the past year composing.
Eda didn't bother listening to what the Sorting Hat was singing—she kept her eyes fixed on Snape. Usually, Snape was very good at hiding his emotions, keeping everything tightly under control. This was the first time Eda had seen such a range of expression on his face.
Like a nesting doll, Eda was staring at Snape, Snape was staring at Harry, and Harry's gaze was fixed on the Gryffindor table.
Eda wanted to know who Snape was watching. Harry wanted to go to Gryffindor. As for what Snape was thinking—no one knew.
When the song ended, thunderous applause filled the hall.
Professor McGonagall stepped forward a few paces, unrolled the parchment in her hand, and announced, "When I call your name, come forward, put on the hat, and sit on the stool to be sorted."
"Hannah Abbott!" A rosy-cheeked girl with two golden braids stepped forward. After a brief pause, the Sorting Hat shouted, "Hufflepuff!"
"Susan Bones!" Another girl walked up. She too had rosy cheeks, and her long golden braid trailed down her back. Eda thought, the Susan that Amelia Bones had mentioned last time at St. Mungo's must be this one.
The Sorting Hat placed Susan in Hufflepuff, then sorted Terry Boot into Ravenclaw. In past years, people might not have paid this much attention to the Sorting Ceremony, but this year was different—the main event hadn't even begun yet.
Students continued to be sorted into the other three houses, and no matter which house cheered, Fred and George beside Eda would boo. But when Lavender Brown was sorted into Gryffindor, the twins cheered more enthusiastically than anyone.
"Hermione Granger!"
The brown-haired girl from the train ran up to the stool and hurriedly jammed the hat onto her head. Up until this point in the ceremony, the Sorting Hat hadn't had much trouble making decisions, but now it hesitated. The girl named Hermione sat there for quite a while before the hat finally called out, "Gryffindor!"
The Sorting Hat soon ran into its next challenge: Neville Longbottom. It took even longer than it had with Hermione before the hat finally decided to place the round-faced, teary-eyed boy into Gryffindor.
The Sorting Ceremony continued, with each house receiving its share of new students. Gryffindor took in a girl named Parvati Patil, who was of Indian descent. She was beautiful—easily one of the most striking among this year's first-years.
As time passed, everyone grew increasingly restless. Why were they paying such close attention to the Sorting results?
Naturally, it was all for Harry Potter.
But the main character was taking forever to show up. It was only because this was Hogwarts that no one had started chanting for a refund.
"Harry Potter!"
The moment Professor McGonagall's voice rang out, a buzz of conversation spread through the Great Hall.
The boy the entire wizarding world had waited ten years to see was finally about to be sorted—an exhilarating moment.
"Potter—did she say Harry Potter?"
"If only Potter gets sorted into our house!"
"I wish I could have Harry Potter!"
Voices like these echoed throughout the hall, but the instant Harry Potter put on the Sorting Hat, the hall fell dead silent—you could hear a pin drop.
It wasn't just the students watching the result closely; the professors were just as focused. Tiny Professor Flitwick was muttering something under his breath, and the kind-hearted Professor Sprout had clasped her hands together in prayer to Merlin.
The Head of Slytherin House, Snape, still wore that same complex expression as he looked at Harry.
Eda simply didn't have the vocabulary to describe it—she had never known that human facial expressions could be this complicated! Expectation, disgust, nostalgia, heartache… basically, you could find every possible emotion on Snape's face. Eda was honestly worried the man's face might cramp up by morning.
"Gryffindor!"
After a long moment of deliberation, the Sorting Hat finally shouted out the house Harry would go to.
The long-quiet Great Hall erupted in the loudest cheers and applause yet. The cheering belonged to Gryffindor—clapping, banging on tables, stomping on the floor—the young lions used every method they could think of to make noise. They had won. They had Harry Potter!
The twins were yelling loudly, shouting, "We got Potter! We got Potter!"
As she clapped along, Eda observed the expressions of the four Heads of House. Professor McGonagall merely smiled, as she did after every new student was sorted, but Eda was sure she was practically dancing with joy inside.
Professors Flitwick and Sprout both looked a little disappointed, but they still clapped sincerely, sending their well wishes to Harry.
Only Snape was different. His eyes never left Harry Potter, and his clapping was perfunctory at best.
There were only three students left. Lisa Turpin was sorted into Ravenclaw. Ron, his face pale with nerves, ended up in Gryffindor just like his brothers. The last student was Blaise Zabini, who was sorted into Slytherin.
The Sorting Ceremony officially came to an end.
Gryffindor was the biggest winner of the night—not only did they get the Boy Who Lived, Harry Potter, but they had also successfully collected six Weasleys. Now they just needed Ginny to complete the set.
Read 12 Chapters ahead:
Patreon: Dragonel