When it was finally his turn, the Great Hall fell silent. The Sorting Hat was dropped onto his head, sliding down past his eyes.
"The Sorting is a ceremony," she began, but Leo’s eyes were already wandering. He noticed a suit of armor slightly shifting its weight and a ghost—silvery and translucent—drifting through a wall as if it were mist. When it was finally his turn, the Great Hall fell silent
The blue and bronze table erupted in cheers. As Leo sat down, the ceiling above shifted—a perfect, magical map of the midnight sky. He realized then that he wasn't just at school; he was inside the greatest secret ever kept. He picked up a golden goblet, took a sip of pumpkin juice, and watched as his fork began to dance on its own. The search for Hogwarts was over. He was finally home. He noticed a suit of armor slightly shifting
"Ah," a small, gravelly voice whispered in his ear. "Plenty of curiosity, but you don't seek glory. You want to know how the gears of the world turn, don't you?" He realized then that he wasn't just at
As the heavy oak doors swung open, the scent hit him: old parchment, beeswax, and a hint of something like ozone after a thunderstorm. Professor McGonagall stood there, her expression as sharp as her spectacles.
"Then you'll need a house that values the climb as much as the view," the Hat bellowed for the whole room to hear.
The Great Lake was as dark as spilled ink, but Leo didn't mind. While the other first-years were whispering about dragons and Dumbledore, he was staring at the castle’s silhouette. To him, Hogwarts didn't look like a school; it looked like a giant puzzle waiting to be solved.