"This is very important. It will determine how you spend your years at school. You'll join different Houses and make different friends there."
"Our four Houses are Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin. Once the Sorting Hat places you in a House, you must remember one thing…"
Professor McGonagall's sharp gaze swept over each young witch and wizard present.
"You will represent the honor of your House. Every word and deed of yours will affect whether your House can win the House Cup at the end of the year."
At that moment, her eyes happened to meet Dylan's.
Dylan instantly put on a bright, innocent, harmless smile.
A faint warmth flickered in McGonagall's eyes, but she quickly hid it away again.
"The Sorting Ceremony will begin shortly, in front of the entire school. So you may take a moment to tidy yourselves up."
With that, Professor McGonagall turned and left.
Not long after she was gone, as the first-years began chattering among themselves,
a startled scream rang out from the crowd. "Eek! A ghost!"
Everyone fell silent.
Dylan looked up and saw more than a dozen ghosts drifting out of the walls.
They peered curiously at the new students.
A few floated down and started talking nonstop to those standing near the edges of the group.
The students they spoke to all trembled from head to toe.
"I wonder if Morsmordre would spook these ghosts at all…"
He was in the middle of that thought when
a ghost suddenly drifted down from midair and stopped right next to him.
"Oh, I sense something strange!"
The ghost leaned close to Dylan's face. The instant their eyes met, however, its eyes bulged in shock. It let out a shriek and bolted away at once.
The other ghosts all froze, glanced at Dylan,
then scrambled after it in a rush.
Neville, standing beside Dylan, jumped at the ghost's scream,
clutching his toad in a death grip.
Dylan glanced over and saw Trevor already rolling his eyes, his legs flailing wildly.
"…Neville, the ghosts are gone."
"Gone? I—I don't dare look."
Neville still squeezed his eyes shut, refusing to open them.
Dylan shook his head.
Just then, Professor McGonagall returned.
"All right, first-years, the ceremony is about to begin. Form a single line and follow me."
It was only when her dignified voice sounded that Neville cracked his eyes open the tiniest bit.
By then, Dylan had already moved ahead.
Neville hurried to slip back into line.
Under Professor McGonagall's guidance, the first-years entered the Great Hall.
Every student and teacher already seated turned to look them over in all sorts of ways.
Dylan ignored their stares and tipped his head back instead.
He could not wait to look up at the ceiling.
"It really is a sky full of stars… Magic is amazing."
The stars above slowly shifted, nothing like the fake effect of a modern projection. It truly felt like a real sky.
Then Dumbledore rose and spoke to the first-years about Hogwarts' rules and prohibitions—
such as the ban on entering the Forbidden Forest, and the restricted areas within the castle.
After Dumbledore finished speaking,
Professor McGonagall unrolled the parchment in her hand.
"When I call your name, step forward. I will place the Sorting Hat on your head, and it will decide which House you'll join."
The first name called was Hermione.
Dylan immediately looked over, his eyes brightening slightly.
No denying Hermione was beautiful.
Not that it stirred anything in him.
He only had three goals for coming to school.
First, understand magic.
Second, study magic.
Third, use magic to make an absolute fortune.
Everything else came after that.
Even if Voldemort showed up, Dylan would send him flying with a single Imperius.
If he let Voldemort wreak havoc on the market, how was he supposed to make money?
The Death Eaters would also be too busy with his pointless schemes to be of any use.
"I'm planning to recruit some of those Death Eaters to work for me someday, anyway."
Lost in thought,
Dylan suddenly heard Professor McGonagall call his name.
"Dylan Hawkwood!"
Snapping back to himself, he walked forward.
He sat down on the stool, and Professor McGonagall set the Sorting Hat on his head.
"Oh! My, my, such a clever little wizard! You seem to know quite a lot of spells already!"
"Let me think. Shall I put you in Ravenclaw?"
The Sorting Hat's voice echoed in Dylan's mind.
Dylan raised a brow and answered silently, "If I go to Gryffindor, will you lend me the Sword of Gryffindor stuck inside you? I've been researching how to control weapons with magic."
"What?" the Sorting Hat yelped in exaggerated shock. "Oh! Why are you already studying such advanced magic?"
"No, what I mean is—how do you even know about that sword? That is not something a little first-year should know!"
"Maybe because I've been trying to learn Legilimency."
"Good heavens… Forgive me for shouting again, but I've never seen such an outrageous young wizard. Are you from an old pure-blood family?"
"No, no, no. You seem to be just an ordinary Muggle-born boy."
"Sorry, little wizard, but no matter how you learned of the Sword of Gryffindor, I cannot give it to you. Unless a true Gryffindor pulls it from me."
"But I despise that feeling. It makes me feel like I'm being violated—do you know what it's like to have a stick shoved up and down your throat?"
"I don't," Dylan said dryly. "But I do know you're getting a bit long-winded."
"Merlin's beard, do you realize how very Slytherin that mouth of yours is? Do you want to go to Slytherin?"
The Sorting Hat practically shouted.
"You know a great deal of magical theory. Their elite education might suit you."
"I hate elite education."
"Oh? Then Ravenclaw?" the Hat offered. "I can also sense a tremendous courage in your heart. You clearly have a lofty ambition. Perhaps you could be a Gryffindor as well?"
"Each of the four Houses has its own legacy, don't they?"
"You know that too!"
"In that case, I want to go to Ravenclaw."
Ravenclaw's legacy should give him access to more magical knowledge.
"Very well, then I shall…"
The Sorting Hat suddenly raised its voice and shouted—
"Gryffindor!"
What?
"How can you just decide my House like that?"
"Great Merlin, a first-year already daring to covet all four House legacies—your nerve is far too big. You can only go to Gryffindor!"