McGonagall's Worry

Luan had thought Dumbledore's speech would be the final part of the feast, but to his surprise, they still had to sing the school song.

When Dumbledore announced they would be singing the school song, Luan noticed that the professors on the platform all looked awkward, especially the Potions Professor Harry had asked about.

Luan had been worried that he did not know the lyrics, but soon realized there was no need to be. Golden ribbons had already drifted from Dumbledore's wand.

The ribbons danced gracefully through the air before slowly turning into lines of lyrics.

"Everyone may choose their favorite tune."

That was far too casual, Luan thought.

What followed was perhaps the most out-of-sync rendition of a school song in history.

Studying magic at Hogwarts definitely would not be boring. That was Luan's first thought after finishing the school song.

A very short school song had been sung in hundreds of different tunes by the teachers and students.

Luan joined the chorus too, using the tune of a children's song from Xilin.

Though the school song had been utterly chaotic, Luan particularly liked its opening lines.

Hogwarts, Hogwarts, Hogwarts, Hogwarts Please teach us knowledge Whether we are bald old men Or children with skinned knees

The magical feast finally came to an end.

After Dumbledore announced that they could return to their dormitories, the prefects stood up first to maintain order and lead the new students out of the Great Hall.

Only then did Luan learn that Gryffindor's prefect was Percy Weasley, Ron's older brother.

However, this prefect seemed especially concerned with his status. Every five sentences or so, he would somehow mention that he was a prefect.

Luan did not know whether Percy was doing it deliberately, but Ron, walking behind them, wore a look of utter disdain.

Luan did not care about such trivial matters. All he wanted now was to get back to the dormitory and have a good sleep.

He had read until late last night, and his noon nap had been interrupted as well, leaving his eyelids fighting each other nonstop.

Along the way, they encountered a ghost named Peeves. Percy had to invoke the name of the Bloody Baron to scare him away.

Neville was struck again by a crutch Peeves dropped. Luan was increasingly convinced that this Young Wizard with a toad was probably under the special care of the god of bad luck.

After entering the Common Room with the password "Dragon Fodder," they were led to their respective dormitories before they even had time to look around.

It was a room for five, furnished with Four-poster Beds draped in deep crimson curtains.

Luan happened to be assigned a bed against the wall, right beside Harry's.

Luan opened his suitcase and first took out the Treehouse Cabin. Bouncing had grown used to the little hollow-carved bed inside it, and found it difficult to sleep once it left.

"What is that?" Ron had been discussing the feast with everyone when he spotted the cabin and curiously came over.

"Bouncing's house." Luan held it up for the others crowding around to see.

There were five people in the room now: Harry, Ron, Neville, Seamus, and Luan. Each of them bent down and peered intently at the scene inside the cabin.

There was a bed, a cabinet, a blanket, a pillow, and even a picture of a Galleon hanging on the wall.

"This is really exquisite. Did you buy it in London?" Seamus asked enviously as he moved the little window on the cabin.

"It must be worth a lot!" Ron nodded in agreement.

"I carved it myself." After everyone had finished looking, Luan placed the cabin beside his bed.

"You carved it yourself? How is that possible? It's more exquisite than any toy model I've ever seen." Seamus looked at Luan skeptically.

"Luan is very skilled. I saw him at the entrance to the zoo, and he even gave me a wooden sword."

As Harry spoke, he pulled a little knight's wooden sword from his suitcase, and the boys gathered around it again.

The little wooden sword was only palm-sized. Luan had carved it based on a stone statue in the park, and its most intricate decoration was a few roses carved into the hilt.

He had only carved them after hearing someone say that the national flower of the United Kingdom was the rose.

The few wooden flowers did not attract much attention, but Ron gazed enviously at the Treehouse Cabin several times.

He had just seen that even Neville's toad had a metal box. As for his Scabbers, well, it was not bad either. It could sleep with him in a big bed.

The Young Wizards introduced themselves, then all climbed into bed. Luan quietly climbed to the Treehouse Cabin's window and said goodnight.

"Chirp~"

After receiving a response, Luan was about to sleep when Ron suddenly cried out.

"Get away, Scabbers! Don't chew on my bedsheets."

Luan turned over and continued sleeping facing the window.

After the feast ended, McGonagall went to find Dumbledore again.

The two most mysterious children had both been sorted into Gryffindor tonight, and she was still uneasy.

"Dumbledore, is this really all right?"

"What is?" The white-bearded Headmaster looked at his most capable assistant in confusion.

"These two children, Harry and Mr. Scarlett. Especially Mr. Scarlett—he wore the Sorting Hat even longer than Harry did."

McGonagall's expression was unusually grave, as though the child she spoke of had placed immense pressure on her.

"But he didn't break your record, did he?" Dumbledore spoke very steadily, and his words had an extraordinarily calming effect.

"But—"

"All right, Minerva. Since the Sorting Hat has placed him in Gryffindor, then I believe Hogwarts must accept him."

Seeing that McGonagall still had not relaxed, Dumbledore changed the subject to another interesting matter.

"The Young Wizard mentioned in The Daily Prophet should be Mr. Scarlett, correct?"

"That's right. Tom from The Leaky Cauldron sent me a letter yesterday. Only then did I realize that I had been so busy I completely forgot about Mr. Scarlett. I don't even know where he earned so much money, or how he got Gringotts to change its rules for exchanging Galleons."

"I suspect it is not so simple." Dumbledore nodded as he listened to McGonagall's account.

"That's right. That child's hands were covered in injuries. I don't even know how he spent the past month."

Mentioning this made McGonagall feel guilty toward Luan.

"This was my negligence, Headmaster."

"No, Minerva. I was too focused on that matter, which made Mr. Scarlett's journey to Hogwarts full of challenges. But that also proves that this child is brave and clever, does it not?"

An eleven-year-old Young Wizard had earned one hundred Galleons in three months, dared to travel alone to Diagon Alley, and had somehow even made Gringotts change its exchange rules.

McGonagall would never have dared imagine such a thing before.

Could he really be suited for Gryffindor? McGonagall fell into thought.

"All right, Minerva, you are tired enough already. Get some proper rest tonight. You still have classes to teach the Young Wizards tomorrow."

Seeing that McGonagall had worked it out, Dumbledore smiled as he watched her leave.

When the entire Headmaster's Office fell silent, Dumbledore suddenly had the impulse to stroll to the window. Looking toward the Gryffindor dormitories, he said,

"Welcome to Hogwarts."

This was the best night of sleep Luan had ever had. The soft mattress, comfortable blanket, and fluffy pillow made his whole body feel as though it had melted.

There was no longer the roar of Four-wheeled vehicles while he slept, only the faint, crisp calls of birds in the morning.

Perhaps because it was the first day of school, Luan woke very early despite being extremely tired last night.

Listening to Bouncing's steady breathing from inside the Treehouse Cabin, Luan quickly dressed and left the dormitory with the others.

Percy was already waiting for them in the Common Room. After handing each of them a timetable for the school year, they headed to the Great Hall together.

Breakfast was abundant. Luan felt that Hogwarts must have many chefs, and they had to be very skilled.

"When are you going to see Professor McGonagall? If someone else discovers Bouncing, Gryffindor could very well lose points."

Hermione sat opposite him, eating a Pumpkin Pasty as she looked at Luan with great seriousness.

"Thanks for the reminder. There is only one History of Magic class this morning, so I plan to see Professor McGonagall after class."

Seeing that Luan had not forgotten about getting permission for Bouncing, Hermione was visibly relieved.

Luan hurriedly took a few bites, then headed back with a small portion of bread. He had to prepare some breakfast for Bouncing too.

However, just after he left, a large flock of owls appeared in the Great Hall. They brought the students' parcels, letters, and copies of The Daily Prophet.

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