Sorting Ceremony

"First-years, over here! Follow me!" a short, stocky man shouted at the end of the station, holding a Wand high in his hand. Its tip was glowing.

A group of young wizards shoved and stumbled off the train in a panic. Nelson, Tom, and Alphard, dressed neatly in wizarding robes, followed leisurely at the back of the crowd. Having taken the older student Walburga's advice, they had changed early and did not have to scramble when the train announcement said, "Five minutes until Hogwarts." Behind them, a little girl timidly climbed down from a carriage.

Once all the first-years had gathered before him, he pointed his Wand at his throat. "Sonorus!"

Sure enough, a booming voice rang out. "I'm Ogg, Hogwarts' Keeper of Keys. All first-years, follow me. Stay close and don't get lost!" With that, he raised his glowing Wand and headed down a steep path.

No one knew how long they walked, how long they went downhill, or how many turns they took. By the time most of them were panting, Ogg's voice sounded again. "We're here!"

Nelson looked up.

A vast black lake stretched across his field of vision. In the stillness of the night, not a single ripple disturbed its surface. It was so calm that it seemed less like water and more like a bottomless pit. Between two perilous peaks beyond the lake stood a magnificent castle built against the mountainside, facing the cliffs on either side. The castle looked ancient but not at all dilapidated. Its sprawling walls connected towers taller than the mountain peaks, with countless turrets rising among them in a pleasing arrangement.

The castle blazed with lights, while the sky beyond it glittered with stars. Its narrow stained-glass windows shimmered beneath the castle lights and the starlight.

"Four to a boat!" Ogg pointed at a row of small wooden boats tied to a dock beside the Black Lake.

Alphard looked a little anxious. "Let's hurry. There won't be any boats left if we're too late!"

"There will be," Tom said, shaking his head lightly. The unfamiliar surroundings and unfamiliar society of Diagon Alley had made him nervous before, but when he arrived at Hogwarts, he understood that he had returned to the place he knew best—among a group of children. No matter where he was, he could become their leader, or someone they feared. It made him feel like a fish in water, and he gradually relaxed. "The school must have prepared boats according to the number of new students. Going first and going last makes no difference. If we go later, it won't be crowded, and we won't get stuck in the middle when the people ahead can't fill a boat and split us apart."

"Oh!" Alphard looked enlightened.

The three of them chatted and laughed as they slowly lined up, and before long, they were at the very end of the queue.

"Just the three of you left?" Ogg asked. "No, there's one more." He pointed behind them and shouted, "Run faster! We're waiting for you!"

Nelson and the other two turned around in surprise. What incredible stealth! The three of them had not noticed anyone behind them at all.

A little girl with long hair slowly ran to the lake. She had thick golden-brown hair and wore glasses that covered half her face. Her skin was fair, her cheeks slightly chubby, and a few small freckles dotted her face. She was the girl Nelson had nearly stepped on at Flourish and Blotts.

Ogg grabbed her arm and pulled her onto the boat. She struggled desperately, but it did not seem to do any good. Before the four of them had even settled into their seats, the boat set off.

"Hey, what's your name?" Tom asked the girl huddled by the side of the boat, both amused and exasperated.

"My name is Myrtle. Myrtle Warren," she answered softly. She could communicate normally with others, her pronunciation was standard, and her words were careful. That went against Tom's guess. He had thought Myrtle was like the most common kind of child at West City Orphanage—abandoned because of some disability and never adopted. After all, her earlier behavior had been too strange. Now it seemed that she was simply afraid of Nelson.

"Nal, what did you do to her?" Tom whispered to Nelson.

"I don't know. I only saw her once at Flourish and Blotts. She nearly tripped me, but I apologized," Nelson swore earnestly.

Seeing Myrtle huddled alone in the corner, Nelson and the others did not bother forcing a conversation. They began chatting idly instead. Before long, the wooden boat approached the castle. Looking up from the water near the castle, they sailed into a channel directly beneath it. From here, the castle looked even more magnificent than it had from afar. It seemed to float above their heads, so enormous that it was hard to look at directly.

At last, they dawdled off the boat. Apparently, someone had been shoved into the water up ahead.

The first-years lined up again and climbed a flight of stone steps. Before long, they gathered before the castle's enormous oak doors.

"Everyone's here, right?" After counting their numbers, Ogg raised a broad-knuckled hand and slowly knocked on the door.

Thud—thud—thud—

The deep knocking echoed repeatedly off the cliffs on both sides of the castle, carrying far into the distance. Washed by those ancient echoes, the noisy crowd fell silent at once.

Creak— The doors opened. A tall, handsome professor stood within, his reddish-brown hair and beard meticulously groomed. It was Albus Dumbledore. "You've worked hard, Ogg. Let me take them in from here."

"Scourgify!" Frowning, he pulled out his Wand and pointed it at a little boy with waterweed on his head. The boy sneezed, then looked at Dumbledore gratefully.

With a wave of his hand, the heavy oak doors opened fully. Nelson saw a resplendent entrance hall so large it could nearly fit an entire house. They climbed the stairs in its center and came before the doors of the banquet hall. These doors were not as enormous as the castle gates, but they were far more lavish. Their gold-trimmed surface concealed the original material entirely. Carved upon them was the history of the four great wizards who founded Hogwarts, with countless gems scattered among the reliefs. They were extravagant without being gaudy. Dumbledore led the first-years into a small room hidden diagonally opposite the banquet hall.

"The Sorting Ceremony will begin before the entire school in a few minutes. Personally, I suggest you tidy up your appearance, or perhaps dress yourselves a little more distinctively. I must say, that young man from the Weasley family who painted his face red last year was quite creative." Dumbledore could not help reminding the young wizards, whose clothes had been thrown into disarray in the rush to leave the train.

"Also, before the Sorting Ceremony begins, I must offer you some advice about entering the school." Dumbledore's expression turned serious. "No matter what rumors you may have heard about the various Houses, once you enter Hogwarts, you must understand that every House has its own strengths and inclinations in nurturing talent. Any wizard or witch from any House may become one of the most outstanding witches or wizards of the future... So please cherish your time studying at Hogwarts. Soon, you will become true members of Hogwarts. You will study, live, and grow here, and all the years from age eleven to seventeen will eventually be condensed into your Four-poster Bed at Hogwarts... So cherish your chance to learn, cherish your friends, and cherish everything you have here..."

"Welcome to Hogwarts!"

The young wizards before Dumbledore cheered, but they soon grew noisy again. They began worrying about what the Sorting Ceremony might involve, but they had no time to frighten themselves any further, because the Sorting Ceremony was about to begin.

Led by Dumbledore, the first-years crossed the entrance hall again and headed for the doors of the banquet hall. Halfway there, Nelson glanced toward the end of the corridor and saw someone stopping the Hogwarts ghosts. They were watching this year's new students with friendly, interested expressions.

Dumbledore pushed open the doors of the banquet hall, and everyone filed inside, entering the Great Hall.

The moment he entered, Nelson's eyes were dazzled. Older students sat at four long tables, and the ceiling above them was actually a starry sky! Thousands of candles floated in midair, making the entire hall as bright as day, while the golden tableware gleamed. Ahead of the four long tables stood another, shorter one laid crosswise. More than a dozen witches and wizards with different expressions sat there, examining them. At the center sat a stern-faced old man with white hair: Hogwarts' current headmaster, Armando Dippet.

Dumbledore led the first-years onto the platform, where they stood in a line facing the older students with their backs to the professors. He then brought out a four-legged stool and a battered pointed wizard's hat that looked like an old rag from a small side room. Just as the first-years waited to see what would happen next, the hat suddenly split open.

It opened a slit and began to sing as though it had a human mouth:

I was once only an ordinary wizard's hat

Torn apart by a Dragon, then mended by Hufflepuff

She was a kind woman, skilled with needle and thread

She believed in teaching all without distinction, welcoming every seeker of knowledge

But Slytherin did not see things that way

He believed noble blood was always more reliable

The process in between did not matter

What mattered was getting the result

Ravenclaw was cold, proud, and aloof

She believed wisdom was greater than all else

The wizards admitted beneath her banner

Were certainly not lacking in intelligence

Gryffindor was a Champion

He believed wizards full of courage had the finest hearts

The people there treated Dragons like lizards

And lions like kittens

Until one day, the conflict grew worse

They parted on bad terms, with little left to say

Beginning with the aged Slytherin,

They poured their thoughts into me

So I could find successors to take up the torch

And inherit Glory

Today's world is battered by wind and rain

Wizards of Hogwarts

Unite! Clench five fingers into a fist!

Tomorrow will surely come!

After singing a nonsensical, forcibly rhyming terrible song, the Sorting Hat sat on the stool and rested with its eyes closed. Nelson had no idea what was supposedly in turmoil. From his perspective, the wizarding world seemed to have only one villain, Voldemort, decades in the future.

The students ahead were sorted one after another. Seeing that all they had to do was put the hat on their heads, most of them breathed a sigh of relief. Thinking of Sorting, Nelson recalled Harry Potter's classic "Not Slytherin," and began to consider, Should I say Gryffindor or Ravenclaw...?

"Alphard Black!" Hearing the familiar name, Nelson raised his head.

"Slytherin!" Nelson lowered his head again. As expected of Black Family genes—so strong.

"Tom Riddle!" Hearing another familiar name, Nelson raised his head again.

"Slytherin!" Nelson lowered his head again. As expected of Slytherin's own descendant.

After a Gryffindor boy named John Urban stepped down from the platform, Nelson stood up. At last, it was the W surnames' turn.

"Myrtle Warren!" Nelson sat back down.

"Ravenclaw!"

"Nelson Williams!"

Nelson walked onto the platform. At last, it was his turn.