A Web Of Magic

The Hogwarts Express soon reached Hogsmeade and all the students got down the train one by one. The new students got down first followed by the older ones. Magnus saw Percy at a distance reprimand some of the less orderly students.

"He's bloody enjoying it"

"What a show off"

Fred and George said from his side. Percy has become a prefect this year just as his older brothers once did. Apparently, he wouldn't shut up about it and wore the prefect badge even at home much to the annoyance of the twins.

"Mum wouldn't stop lecturing us whenever she saw the badge. She's worried we wouldn't get the badge if we didn't pick up our studies," Fred said annoyed.

"Yeah, isn't it just a badge. We can easily get one if we want to," George followed.

'Right. Who in their right mind would make you prefects? More like you'll make your own fake badge,' Magnus chuckled in his head. He saw the first years moving towards Hagrid. He saw Harry along with Ron moving together. They look like they are getting along. Missy- eh, Hermione was walking together with some other students towards the lake. She seemed to have felt his gaze as she turned back and gave him a wave. He returned his own with an encouraging smile. 'I'm so used to calling her Missy. It'll take some time to get used to calling her by her real name.'

Magnus and his group were later joined by Jordan and they took the carriage to the castle. His Ravenclaw friends Roger and Noah will be coming from Ireland so they didn't take the train. He heard they usually take a portkey to come here. They soon reached the castle and walked together to the Great Hall. As they reached the Hall, Magnus bid goodbye to his Gryffindor friends and moved towards the Ravenclaw table. Roger and Noah were already there waiting for him.

"Hello guys, how was your summer?" Magnus greeted them as he sat down beside Roger. Noah was sitting on the other side of Roger with Eva sitting next to him.

"It was brilliant. You should have come Magnus, you missed out a lot. The quidditch clubs this time went toe to toe. I'm telling you Ireland will win the cup next time. It'll not be like last year where Canada of all teams won. The Scotland team was such a disgrace I tell you," Roger said excitedly. Soon, Roger and Noah got into some argument about who's the best quidditch seeker and Magnus tuned them out. 'Just like usual,' he shook his head. These guys go crazy about quidditch. He thought their zeal would decrease once they became part of the Ravenclaw team but if anything, it only increased.

The Great Hall quieted down as the doors opened and Prof. McGonagall led the curious looking first years to the sorting hat. Headmaster Dumbledore got up to say a few words, "I'd like to remind you that the Dark Forest is prohibited from entry for all students. Also, this year, the third-floor corridor on the right side is forbidden to enter if you don't want to die a painful death. Thank You." The Headmaster sat down like nothing happened, as if he just spoke about the weather and not painful death of the students. The senior students immediately started talking among themselves. While some parts of the castle are dangerous, it was more in the line of getting lost or slipping and falling. It was never to the point of certain death. Magnus wondered what changed this year. 'Is this the reason they let out school early for the last year? Something happened to the third-floor corridor? And why tell everyone? Why not just use magic to block that path? Hmm, very curious,' Magnus thought.

The murmurs among the students didn't last as Prof. McGonagall took over. After a brief explanation from her, the sorting ceremony officially started.

"Hannah Abbot"

"Hufflepuff"

"Hermione Granger" Magnus looked with interest. Logically speaking, she should be a Ravenclaw as she was even more of a bookworm than him. But the way she was going on about the legendary deeds of Headmaster Dumbledore made him doubt it. In the end, the hat does give importance to their personal choice after all. And he was soon proven right.

"Gryffindor" Hermione moved towards the Gryffindor table smiling as she went. She was welcomed warmly by Percy and the twins who were sitting on the corner of the table. 'It's a shame. I would have told her about the Trials of Ravenclaw had she been sorted here. I can only imagine her face when she realizes what she had missed,' Magnus mused.

"Draco Malfoy" Magnus's gaze moved towards the Malfoy heir. The guy looked way too arrogant for a first year. 'So, Lucius Malfoy did send his son here. Hmm, let's see how this goes.' The hat barely sat on his head before it announced, "Slytherin."

"Ronald Weasley"

"Gryffindor" Magnus thought it was a family thing. The Weasleys were all in Gryffindor for generations. He'll not be surprised if Ginny ends up in Gryffindor next year.

"Harry Potter" Magnus immediately noticed the shift in the air. The students were all surprised that the boy-who-lived is finally attending Hogwarts with them. They have only ever known about him from stories. Magnus also noticed the interest in the professors as they moved forward in their seats in anticipation. Headmaster Dumbledore and Prof. Snape seemed to be particularly interested based on the glint in their eyes. He wouldn't have noticed it at all last year but Mind Arts at Lv5 increased his perception.

The hat seemed to be at an impasse. Both Harry's and the hat's expressions went through many changes. When everyone thought it was going to be a hatstall, the hat finally announced.

"Gryffindor"

The Gryffindor table cheered out loud. It was as if they have achieved something incredible. Fred and George in particular were making a ruckus hopping and singing, "We got Potter." They only settled down when the Headmaster cleared his throat. The Ravenclaw table didn't care as according to them if you weren't in Ravenclaw then you weren't smart enough. The Hufflepuffs were the same as ever as they cheered despite having a little disappointment. The Slytherins on the other hand just snorted and didn't share much of the enthusiasm. It wasn't like Harry was going to win the Gryffindors the house cup or anything. First years barely contributed through academic points.

Once the sorting ceremony was done, Headmaster Dumbledore got up once again and said, "Before we begin our feast, I'd like to say a few words. They are Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak! Thank you."

Magnus felt like the Headmaster just said a couple of house-elf names. Just as the Headmaster sat down leaving the students wondering about his words, the tables were filled with all manner of food. It was just another year for the senior students but it was a moment of delicious wonder for the first years. Everyone got eating their dish of choice and once they all had their fill, the dishes and cutlery disappeared.

"Now that we are all satiated, I would like to say a few more words. I hope this year would be one of learning and friendship where you find the courage deep within you to face any challenge in the future. Pick a tune now and get started," Dumbledore said with a smile as music started playing in the background. 'Not this again,' Magnus lamented in his head. It was the Hogwarts song. He saw in how many horrendous ways that song can be sung from the students. After a few painful minutes, it was finally done.

"Off to bed now," Dumbledore said before he turned to Prof. McGonagall next to him to talk something. All the students got up to leave to their respective dormitories. The prefects took to leading the first years slowly while the seniors went ahead. This year there were more students compared to the last few years. Ravenclaw alone had ten new students. Magnus waved his friends goodbye as he went towards his dorm to sleep. Once he lay down to sleep, he had a feeling that this year would be special somehow.