"RAVENCLAW!!!"
The Eagle House table erupted in thunderous applause and cheers. An unprecedented first-year who had made the ancient Sorting Hat deliberate for a full ten minutes actually belonged to their house! The sound of clapping hands and excited voices echoed off the enchanted ceiling like a symphony of celebration.
Even students from other houses joined the applause, recognising they had witnessed magical history in the making. The professors at the staff table turned their gazes toward Leo, clearly developing keen interest in this extraordinary young wizard.
Dumbledore himself no longer offered the polite, perfunctory clapping he typically reserved for new students. Instead, he formally pressed his palms together, genuine surprise and relief flickering behind his half-moon spectacles.
To be perfectly honest, after learning of Leo's remarkable magical talents, Dumbledore had harboured quiet concerns about a potential Slytherin sorting. The Snake House prized ambition and raw talent above all else. Not that all Slytherins became dark wizards, of course, but the uncomfortable truth remained that most Death Eaters and practitioners of the Dark Arts had graduated from those silver and green ranks.
But Ravenclaw... ah, that was different entirely. This placement revealed Leo's true inclination toward learning and his focus on mastering knowledge rather than pursuing power for its own sake.
Leo carefully returned the still-smoking Sorting Hat to Professor McGonagall and made his way toward Ravenclaw's long table. The little eagles' cheers grew even more enthusiastic as he approached, their voices creating a warm wall of sound.
Ravenclaw traditionally housed more girls than boys, boasting the highest proportion of female students among all four houses. Many upperclasswomen lined the table's edges, their faces bright with welcoming smiles.
"I told you this first-year was handsome from a distance, but up close he's absolutely stunning!"
"Don't smile so strangely; you'll scare him away!"
"Move over, make room!"
Facing the warm reception from his new housemates, Leo offered a polite smile and nodded gracefully. His dark golden hair caught the floating candles' glow like molten precious metal, while his deep green eyes seemed to hold mysterious depths that sparkled with each gentle expression.
That clean yet dazzling smile illuminated his handsome features without reservation. Several girls froze mid-conversation, apparently forgetting how to form coherent expressions, while others quickly adjusted their collars, smoothed their hair, and then looked up to return bright, hopeful smiles.
A seventh-year with golden hair and silver wire-rimmed glasses elbowed her best friend urgently. "Hey, Sally, could you scoot over and make some room?"
Her friend shot her a knowing look. "You're graduating this year. What exactly are you planning?"
Leo pretended not to overhear their whispered conversation and quickened his pace slightly, scanning for an available seat. He settled beside a boy with short yellow hair on his left and a beautiful girl with East Asian features on his right.
The girl offered him a gentle, somewhat shy smile but didn't initiate conversation. The blonde boy, however, proved refreshingly outgoing.
"Hi there! I'm Terry Boot, first-year as well. That performance was absolutely incredible!"
"Hello, Terry. Nice to meet you."
Terry's grin stretched from ear to ear as he continued enthusiastically, "I just heard the upperclassmen saying there's never been a student in Hogwarts history who made the Sorting Hat deliberate that long! You're practically a legend already!"
Leo kept one ear on Terry's chatter while monitoring the ongoing ceremony, knowing Harry and Ron's turns approached rapidly.
"Maybe I just have too many conflicting characteristics. Choice paralysis, you might say."
"Choice paralysis?" Terry scratched his head, unfamiliar with the term but finding it oddly fitting. "Well, regardless of your other traits, your most prominent one has to be intelligence!" He puffed out his chest proudly. "Welcome to the smartest house in the castle!"
Meanwhile, the Sorting Hat had settled onto Harry's messy black hair. The entire Great Hall fell silent again, every eye focused on the Boy Who Lived. Everyone except Leo wondered which house would claim this legendary figure.
After a brief pause, the hat declared: "GRYFFINDOR!"
The Gryffindor table exploded with deafening cheers, the little lions practically vibrating with excitement. The Weasley twins nearly vaulted onto the table itself, waving their arms wildly.
"We've got Harry!"
"Harry Potter!"
Harry received a hero's welcome, immediately surrounded and pulled toward his seat by several eager boys.
Ron's sorting proved far more predictable. The hat had barely brushed his flame-red hair before announcing with obvious familiarity: "Oh, another Weasley! I know exactly where you belong. GRYFFINDOR!"
Ron's ceremony felt almost anticlimactic. As he walked toward the Lion House table, his older brothers, the famous Weasley twins, offered only perfunctory waves... a stark contrast to their explosive enthusiasm for Harry. Ron's expression fell slightly as he shuffled over to sit beside the celebrated boy wizard.
After the final first-year received their house assignment, Professor McGonagall tapped her glass with her wand. The crystal-clear chime carried throughout the vast hall, commanding immediate attention.
Once perfect silence settled over the assembled students, Dumbledore rose to his feet with characteristic grace.
"Welcome, everyone, to Hogwarts! Before we begin our feast, allow me to share a few words..."
Several newcomers' faces fell dramatically. They had arrived quite late, crossed the frigid Black Lake in small boats, and their stomachs were now growling audibly in protest.
Dumbledore's voice carried clearly through the hall as he began his traditional address: "Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak!"
Then he sat down immediately.
Simultaneously, as if summoned by ancient magic, mountains of delicious food materialised across every long table. Roasted meats, steaming vegetables, fresh bread, rich stews, and countless desserts appeared in aromatic clouds of savoury steam.
Many first-years sat stunned, both baffled by the headmaster's bizarre "speech" and overwhelmed by the incredible feast now spread before them. The older students, completely accustomed to Dumbledore's eccentric traditions, immediately began selecting their favourite dishes.
Among all the first-years, the Hufflepuff badgers reacted fastest. Almost before the food finished materialising, their cheeks were already bulging with dinner rolls and roasted chicken. Their innocent eyes seemed to communicate a simple message: What are you waiting for? Start eating!
Terry had already crammed chicken pieces, mashed potatoes, and fried fish into his mouth, speaking with obvious difficulty around the food: "Leo, what do you think the headmaster meant by those words?"
Leo methodically cut his perfectly cooked steak, his tone relaxed and amused: "Who knows? But that was definitely the shortest and most agreeable leadership speech I've ever endured."
Before his transmigration, he had suffered through countless tedious administrative speeches that dragged on like old women's foot bindings. Once, students had been forced to stand in a rain-soaked playground while the principal droned on endlessly from beneath a covered pavilion...
Terry nearly choked on his food, nodding vigorously in agreement with Leo's assessment.
At the Gryffindor table, Hermione listlessly pushed food around her plate with her fork, her appetite seemingly absent. She glanced at Ron attacking two massive chicken legs simultaneously and Harry eating with genuine enthusiasm, then released an unconscious sigh.
"What's wrong? Why are you sighing like that?"
Ron looked genuinely puzzled, pausing mid-bite to study her expression.
Seeing Ron's gravy-smeared face and confused expression, Hermione buried her face in her hands and sighed even more deeply. "Nothing. Just envious of your enormous appetites."
"Oh." Ron immediately returned his attention to demolishing his chicken.
Hermione's gaze occasionally drifted toward Ravenclaw's table, searching for Leo's distinctive golden hair among the sea of blue and bronze. She couldn't help but notice that many Ravenclaw girls were stealing admiring glances in his direction.
Actually, some weren't even bothering with subtlety anymore, openly and brazenly appreciating Leo's striking appearance.
Maybe Ravenclaw really would have been better, she thought wistfully. The learning atmosphere is superior, and you can see the stars directly from the dormitory windows...