CH 08

The Sorting Hat is one of the cleverest enchanted objects most witches and wizards will ever meet. It literally contains the intelligence of the four founders, can speak (through a rip near its brim) and is skilled at Legilimency, which enables it to look into the wearer's head and divine his or her capabilities or mood.

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"How interesting," the hat whispered in his ear. "Your mind is very organised for someone your age ."

My lips twitched as I thought of all those hours I spent training my occlumency as I replied telepathically" this is the result of my hard work"

"Hard work indeed," the hat whispered again" but my young lad as I see your progress in occlumency you can't be the one who's shielding some particular memories especially those dating to a year ago "

My heart leapt into my throat. then I sighed in relief as I dodged a bullet there, I spent a lot of time thinking about how to shield the memory of my transmigration from the hat even if it has sworn as to not divulge any information she saw in any child memories, but I can't have any chance as this is a world of magic and anything can happen .....

" those are things your not supposed to see "I responded with an even tone " and it's not me who is shielding them from you "

The hat hummed in acceptance " well that is your problem. As I must respect all students' privacy, even after their deaths, though there are clues that can be found in your mind as any skilled person in legitimacy can find there this something wrong in your mind so step up your occlumency quickly...

Ah, but where to put you? Plenty of courage, I see, you could do well in Gryffindor"

I nearly shouted " cross that as my father will kill me when I return home"

The hat chuckled " that too bad, oh yes just from your wand unicorn hair core I can see a lot of loyalty what do you think of Hufflepuff"

I rolled my eyes " well cross that too because my father will not wait for me to return home to kill me "

This time the hat laughed out loud as I can feel all the students and professors confused gaze on me.....

So I kind of turned toward Professor's table " don't mind us, the hat was just laughing on one of my jokes "

Well, you can imagine the full-blown up laugher that ensued in the great hall...

As I put back the hat on my head I heard it say "great humour you have.... and let continue umm I see... Yes, not a bad mind either. There's talent and cunning, oh yes—but not quite the temperament for Slytherin. Perhaps if things had gone differently—oh, but you could still be great in Ravenclaw, you know."

I thought for a bit and said " well Slytherin is not for me, as I don't need to face discrimination just for being in the house, I mean even Hufflepuff hate Slytherin... So I am all for Ravenclaw even if there is a possibility of getting a howler from my father"...

And the hat shouted "RAVENCLAW!"

No sooner had Marcus got past some Ravenclaws seniors and sat down on the other side of sue Li, Albus Dumbledore rose to his feet, looking positively joyful.

"Welcome," he said. "Welcome to a new year at Hogwarts! Before we begin our banquet, I would like to say a few words. And here they are Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak! Thank you!"

I heard someone ask the prefect "Um, is he alright? That was strange even for him."

"Oh, he's always been a bit mad," the perfect said nonchalantly. "But he is a genius."

I smiled as I remembered reading in one fanfiction that Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak! Are the names of some house-elves in the kitchen... I don't know if it's true though.

the tables in front of them magically filled with food, delivered up by the house elves from directly below them in the kitchen.....roast beef and steak, pork chops, bacon, and sausage, roast chicken, and lamb chops...

Everyone was tucking in as the food on the table was decreasing quickly..... What the hell I expected this kind of barbaric eating from Gryffindor, not Ravenclaw...

As Marcus was somewhat slow, he was stuck with vegetables, potatoes and what little meat there was left.....

He spent the rest of the feast wondering if magic somehow prevented people from getting fat. It was the only explanation he could think of for the lack of obesity if wizards ate like this all the time.

The rest of dinner went well, except for when "Nearly-Headless Nick" flipped his head off in front of the first years and put them all off their appetites for a few minutes...

The feast eventually ended and Dumbledore stood up to speak.

"Ahem, just a few more words now that we are all fed and watered. I have a few start-of-term notices to give you.

"First years should note that the forest on the grounds is forbidden to all pupils. And a few of our older students"

That sounded reasonable enough to Marcus as he knows what exactly resided in the forbidden forest... Emm giant spiders...unicorns..... What else.....

"I have also been asked by Mr Filch, the caretaker, to remind you all that no magic should be used between classes in the corridors." Marcus, rolled his eyes, yeah give 11 years old kid magic and wand then you say to them that the use of underage magic outside Hogwarts is prohibited and when they finally got to Hogwarts you say that can only use it in classes... What bullshit...

That was a rule that Marcus already knew he would be breaking...

"Quidditch trials will be held in the second week of the term. Anyone interested in playing for their house teams should contact Madam Hooch."

Hmmm, Quidditch should go to hell I don't have time for it...

"And finally, I must tell you that this year, the third-floor corridor on the right-hand side is out of bounds to everyone who does not wish to die a very painful death."

And that sounded like yet another start of a quest for an MMORPG based game.

"But before we go to bed, let us sing the school song!"

I nearly cried at the horrible piece of music that I heard... Never in my life, I heard something so awful...

the perfect led us toward our common room as he talked on the way " Congratulations! I'm Perfect Clearwater Penelope, and I'm delighted to welcome you to RAVENCLAW HOUSE. Our emblem is the eagle, which soars where others cannot climb; our house colours are blue and bronze, and our common room is found at the top of Ravenclaw Tower, behind a door with an enchanted knocker. The arched windows set into the walls of our circular common room look down at the school grounds: the lake, the Forbidden Forest, the Quidditch pitch and the Herbology gardens. No other house in the school has such stunning views"

Well for one I was impressed by his speech, I don't know about the credibility of her words as she said the Ravenclaw have the best views because Slytherin has windows facing directly to the underwater side of the lake so you can imagine the scenes there....

The group of newly sorted Ravenclaw finally came to a stop in the middle of a long hallway.

"Well, here we are," Penelope announced... The hall looked about the same as any of the others they had passed through. It did miss something important – a door!

"Why, hello there Miss Clearwater"

The voice suddenly came from beneath. Glancing down, Marcus noticed that some of the stones on the floor were rearranging themselves.

Little tiles of granite quickly and smoothly slid from different parts of the hall until a face was quickly formed.

"Let's get on with the formal bit. Step forward one at a time, present yourself, and receive your password." The crowd milled for a moment before forming a line.

After the stress of the Sorting Hat, not to mention full stomachs, no one wanted to go through another ceremony. Still, a line quickly formed and again Marcus was slow to react because he was trying to understand the working of the door so he was at the end of the line...

So it went down the line. Everyone presented themselves differently and they had a good time with the riddles. Most people didn't make much effort to solve the riddles. They were very hard, and it didn't seem to matter anyway...

Finally, it came to the end of the line, and Marcus, found himself facing the Guardian of the door... As I walked toward the door I remembered a friend of mine who gave me advice about how should one introduce himself...

He said When it's your turn to introduce yourself crouch down, put your shirt over your knees then waddle across the floor while mumbling alchemical incantations and proceed to pinch at everyone's Achilles tendons..... A funny guy he was.....

Well I just said " hello to you, I am yaxely Marcus "

The face on the door shifted. The blank features changed until they reflected Marcus.

"Marcus yaxely," The Guardian in the door boomed to the boy. "I speak without a mouth and hear without ears. I have nobody, but I come alive with the wind. What am I? "

I thought for a bit and answered "An echo".....

"Very good. I have cities, but no houses. I have mountains, but no trees. I have water, but no fish. What am I? "

Marcus face was still relaxed as he answered with a smile " a map".....

"Well done Mr Yaxley. What is seen in the middle of March and April that can't be seen at the beginning or end of either month?" the door said

" hmm a tricky one " frowned Marcuse as he said in uncertainty" is it the latter R"

" good very good, worthy of Ravenclaw indeed but have this one.....You can carry it everywhere you go, and it does not get heavy. What is it?"

" hmm a hard one indeed" Marcus' brain was going in overdrive as multiple thoughts raced in his head, " I think it's my name right "

" good my boy," the guardian said" you can go but remember as everyone has a fixed riddle for a week, yours changes every day"

Marcus' lips twitched in annoyance..... Is this the prize of my show-off, ...

The face in the door gave a brief smile and nod. Then, the stone peeled away like the skin of fruit until there was a hole in the floor.

"Don't gawk. Follow me." With no other warning, Penelope walked straight into the hole. Instead of descending like she was on stairs, or even falling, she sort of tilted as if down had suddenly gone in another direction. She didn't even break her stride. With a shrug, Marcus followed her. The rest of the first years weren't far behind.

With a sudden lurch, Marcus found himself in another short hallway. What had been the hole in the floor a moment before was now an archway behind him with the ceiling beyond. Quickly, the hole closed up, and only a wall with the Guardian's blank face remained.

"By the way," the Guardian whispered, "good job. It's been a bit since someone solved more than two of my riddles."

How long?"

"Only about a two hundred," the Guardian replied as he disappeared

Marcus face drowned in confusion..... What hundred???... Years... Months... Weeks...

The short hallway exited from a free-standing arch near the centre of the common room. The room was magnificent. It was open several stories high. Marcus had to crane his neck back to see the ceiling.

The vast openness.....Gothic cathedral he had visited once on a vacation, only much taller- though not nearly as wide or long. A giant, friendly fire burned in a pit in the centre of the room. Over it, a glass dome decorated with a map of the stars led to a chimney that took the smoke straight up to the top of the tower. Arranged in concentric circles around the fire were plenty of groups comfortable couches and chairs and plenty of tables at various heights. Most were perfect for studying or reading...

The most impressive thing to Marcus though was the books. Most of the free space between the windows overflowed with books and scrolls of all kinds.

Marcus might spend the rest of his life just combing through these stacks and never reach the end. Large stone staircases snaked around the room, giving access to the various levels of books and windows.

"It's a bit of a tradition," Penelope said as she eyed many of the first years staring open mouthed at the books. "These mostly aren't academic - you'll still have to go to the library for research. But, most Ravenclaws leave something behind before they graduate."

"It might be a journal, a novel, poetry, or even just the notes they passed in class. It's all available at anytime for any member of the house. But, that's for another day. Right now you should figure out who your rooming with."

"You can change rooms and roommates at the start of any year, but you can't have a roommate of the opposite sex until you're of age. That's seventeen in the Wizard World," Penelope clarified. "Go ahead and pick. It's three to a room for first years. Let me know when you've got it figured out."....

Well this time I was slow not because I was lost in my daydreaming but because when I counted the first year I found 10 people so as three person in a room, there will be a person who will have the whole room to himself and that kind of what happened....

When the perfect saw me alone as ther was three group of three... She said sarcastically " oh you were left out...."

I rolled my eyes at her as she understood what I did..... worthy of Ravenclaw perfect

.... So she just showed me to door of my room "Well, knock three times on the bookcase to the right of the window facing the Forbidden Forest. It'll open to your room. Better be quick. Classes start tomorrow you know."