It's not difficult at all to avoid the stone bridge the professor mentioned.
Everyone saw the appearance of Shiqiao, and just a second before he arrived, the professor yelled, making everyone lower their heads.
The boat passed through the middle of Black Lake, and they were getting closer and closer to the castle of Hogwarts.
When they got off the boat, they had completely entered the scope of the ancient castle.
At this time, a witch with a gentle smile walked over. The nearest Tom could even smell the smell of earth on her body, which was very similar to the smell of the backyard of the orphanage. It made him feel an inexplicable sense of familiarity, and his tense body relaxed a lot.
"Children, are you tired? Come with me. The dinner has been prepared in the hall. After the sorting is over, everyone can enjoy it..."
She waved her hand and motioned for the little wizards to follow.
It's okay not to say it, but after saying it, the little wizards' stomachs began to growl.
When they heard that it was time to eat, they couldn't wait.
But there are still people who have noticed the branching incident...
Children all know that after entering Hogwarts, they will be divided into four colleges, Slytherin, Gryffindor, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff...
These four colleges are named after the surname Founders.
The little wizards once curiously asked their parents and brothers who graduated from Hogwarts how to sort the schools, but those people just looked mysterious and had no intention of explaining at all.
Even the explanations are in various modes - fighting a dragon, reciting a first-grade textbook...
Even Tom, Kyle told him at the beginning that he needed to wear a wizard robe and dance in front of everyone...
However, even if he has no common sense, he will not pay attention to Kyle's bad taste.
Owen next to him was really nervous at this time. Although he was confident that he could enter Ravenclaw, but what if, he didn't know how to reflect his knowledgeable characteristics in Sorting Ceremony.
He kept pulling Tom and started muttering. Compared to the initial quietness, he seemed extra noisy at this time.
Fortunately, Tom is not really that calm, and I can understand his nervousness.
The door of the castle slowly opened, and he followed the professor through the corridor and came to the Great Hall.
The professor asked all the little wizards to stand at the door. The inside of the Great Hall was now divided into four long tables. Each long table had the logo of its respective college, Slytherin's snake, Gryffindor's lion, Ravenclaw's eagle, Hufflepuff's badger...
At the front of the Great Hall, there is an empty seat and an old hat next to it. It looks like it has not been washed for a long time.
The principal Dippet was on the stage, calming the children with a smile on his face.
"Welcome to join Hogwarts, then let's start Sorting Ceremony now..."
There was warm applause from all around.
"First, Oscar Valentine... please come forward and take your seat..."
The child was so frightened that he almost tripped when he walked across the long tables of the four colleges.
This made him blush instantly. He also heard some discussions, "... If you are so timid, you must be Hufflepuff..." "I think so... it can't be Gryffindor..."
These small discussions made him even more flustered.
Fortunately, he finally came to the chair, closed his eyes, and sat on it.
Dumbledore happened to appear behind him at this time, then picked up the somewhat dirty Sorting Hat and carefully placed it on the child's head.
It didn't take long before Sorting Hat gave the answer directly, "Hufflepuff!"
The child was still a little unresponsive, but Dumbledore behind him had patted his shoulder gently, "Child, get up, you can go to Hufflepuff's place..."
After that, he even helped point the direction.
Only when he finally sat down at the long table did he realize that he had finished sorting.
Fortunately, some senior students nearby were very friendly and began to calm his emotions, allowing him to recover quickly, and then he started to watch the performance of others with interest.
With the first child as an example, the following children behaved very well. They walked up the steps naturally and were sorted naturally.
Owen was assigned to Ravenclaw very smoothly. When he stood up, he breathed a sigh of relief and his eyes brightened a lot.
He also winked at Tom, then came to Ravenclaw's long table and started chatting.
When it was Tom's turn, Dumbledore's attitude was obviously a little more serious.
This subtle change also made Dippet squint his eyes slightly and pay some attention to this child.
Tom has been standing upright since he entered the door. Now that his name was called, he nodded naturally and then walked forward slowly.
Although it looks unpleasant, in fact, the distance he walks is exactly the same every step.
This kind of detail was directly noticed by some people from Slytherin, and their expressions became a little serious.
Tom's movements are very traditional and aristocratic. Even a strict etiquette teacher can't say anything bad about it.
When he stepped onto that simple seat, everyone present had the illusion that a king had ascended the throne that belonged to him.
Dumbledore's eyes were obscured by his glasses, but his movements were not delayed at all.
He was just about to put Sorting Hat on his hair when he yelled, "Slytherin!!!"
Maybe it was an illusion, but the sound at this time seemed to be a bit louder than other people's.
In Tom's mind, Sorting Hat even said with some respect, "Welcome back, Heir of Slytherin, I hope you can get what you want here..."
Just this sentence made Tom keenly aware of the difficulty of this hat.
Dumbledore's hand was still in the air. When he heard the end of the sorting, he could only put it back again.
Tom stood up and slowly walked towards the college, which has not changed much since the branch.
Also, almost all the little wizards who can enter Slytherin have known them since childhood, and the appearance of Tom is a completely unique accident.
The previous interest now turned into scrutiny.
I am curious about the sorting result of such a charming boy, and the meaning of a strange wizard entering Slytherin is completely different.
Many of them racked their brains and could not imagine that Riddle was a branch of that wizard family. Moreover, could this kind of attitude and magnanimity really be cultivated by an ordinary wizard family?
The subsequent branching was no surprise to everyone at Slytherin.
After the branching, the principal led everyone to sing the school song.
However, some wizards stood up at this time, and then, led by the original witch, they walked to the center. They were members of Hogwarts Choir, and singing the school song was their home field.
I saw that the witch waved her hands, and a large number of notes appeared in the air, and the choir also began to sing.
All the little wizards also participated under the leadership of the choir and sang the magnificent movement together.