The Feast

An outpouring of applause erupted from around the auditorium, with all students in the hall applauding, Ravenclaw the loudest and Slytherin the quietest.

Under the applause, Jack removed his hat and handed it to Professor Olivia before walking to the Ravenclaw table. He was also in a daze because he hadn't expected such quick sorting, where he didn't even get to speak with the legendary hat.

And, he was actually slightly relieved to be a Ravenclaw, because if he had gone to Slytherin, he would had faced the cliché situation, and he would had to deal with a group of bigots, which his lazy self very much wanted to avoid.

While walking, he noticed senior Augusta from Gryffindor waving her hand at him and cheering loudly.

And the girl who resembled Eva Green was clapping as well, and she was mostly focusing on his eyes. Tom gave a thumbs up from his place among the crowds.

He nodded to Tom and Augusta before finally finding a seat near a senior and prefect of Ravenclaw who introduced herself as Lisa, before focusing on the still-unfinished sorting ceremony.

When Jack noticed Dumbledore, who was sitting next to Headmaster and smiling at him, he also nodded at him as a greeting.

Professor Oliva continued the sorting by calling other students names.

"Sean Miller."

"Ravenclaw!"

"Druella Rosier."

"Slytherin!"

"Orion Black."

"Slytherin!"

"Alex Turner."

"Hufflepuff!"

"Alice Miller."

"Gryffindor!"

"Walburga Black!"

"Slytherin!"

"Myrtle Warren."

"Ravenclaw!"

Soon, John discovered a lot of pure bloods among the students, from Avery to Lestrange, and they all went to Slytherin, expect one.

"Daniel Greengrass."

"Ravenclaw!"

"Tom Riddle!"

He was the final name to be called.

Tom stepped forward and sat on the chair, and the hat was placed on him, and the hat immediately shouted, just like with Jack.

"Slytherin!"

There weren't many cheers around the hall, and only a few Slytherin students clapped, but Tom just looked same with indifferent look and walked to the Slytherin table, after casting a glance at Jack, who was now sitting with a new student.

Dumbledore looked at Tom and the snake in his hand for a brief moment before focusing forward.

"Hello, it appears you're also a Ravenclaw." Sean Miller sat to his right and spoke to Jack after some silence, who was looking at the teachers' table.

"Yes." Jack gave a nod. "We'll be living in the same house for the next seven years." He greeted him with a smile. "Which house has your sister sorted into?" He inquired, as he wasn't paying much attention to anything other than some well-known names in the sorting.

"She sorted to Gryffindor." Sean spoke while pointing to her sister, who was sitting at Gryffindor's table with another strenuous-looking teenage girl.

Jack raised his brows in surprise, the sister of Sean, situation seemed somewhat similar to Neville, after all she was too nervous to talk to them, when they boarded the boat. Yet, she got sorted into Gryffindor, he also knew sorting hat can accurately judge someone character.

"I too was surprised was honestly." Sean looked at his surprise, seemed guessed what he was thinking and replied.

Before Jack could reply, a sound echoed in the auditorium interrupting them.

Cling!

"Welcome!" The old man who sat in the center in the short table in the front, spoke in an booming voice that could be heard around the hall, immediately causing all to fall silent. He was holding a silver cup and spoon, before putting it down, after making sure that all the attention is on him.

"Welcome to Hogwarts for a new school year!"

The old man was the headmaster Armando Dippet, he has long white hair and his shallow skin was covered with wrinkles, his eyes were sharp under his bushy eyebrows, when he glanced at the students.

"You have to admit that you are extremely fortunate to be studying at Hogwarts." Dippet spoke to the children in a blunt tone. "You are in the safest place on the world, and have the best teachers instructing you. You don't have to be like Aurors to fight the most ruthless ans powerful dark wizards, Hogwarts has given you all of this," When he spoke of Hogwarts, his wrinkled face was filled with pride.

"So, make the most of your time at Hogwarts so that you can at least be prepared to face the upcoming wars and not lose your life on the battlefield." His voice echoed in the silent hall, and many students' faces were grave when they heard the headmaster's blunt tone again.

Then he started talking about how important it is to follow the school rules and other important matters.

Jack was becoming increasingly bored as the headmaster imposed a slew of rules for the next 15 minutes. He yawned and nearly closed his eyes.

The headmaster finally spoke of another important matter "Because of the tense situation in the magical world of various European countries, the Ministry of Magic has established a special teleportation point in the school hunting grounds. Students in the sixth and higher grades can be approved to go to a special area for Auror training."

Jack finally gained a better understanding of Hogwarts' current situation in his heart.

It's no surprise that it's so strict; it's most likely that it has something to do with the impending World War II and wizarding war.

"Finally, I hope you strictly follow the school rules. If you break the rules at school, you will be severely punished if caught."

Dippet finally appeared to notice the children's thoughts, so he picked up a silver cup and spoon and clanged them together, attracting the attention of all students again.

"Then let's get started on the dinner." Dippet announced that, despite his age, his voice was deep and powerful.

Then various food appeared in the empty plates in front of all students, and Jack's lazy expression changed when he saw the varieties of food before him.

Jack was overcome with emotion when he saw the food; only he knew how many times he had to eat the unpalatable food in the orphanage, and even that was not always available to him sometimes.

However, for the first time in his new life, he will be able to enjoy a delicious meal and he will savor it.

If such food is served every day at Hogwarts, he might not want to leave at all.