Firs' years! Firs' years over here!

Firs' years! Firs' years over here!"

Harry carefully eyed the giant - Hagrid, he recalled, the drunk - whom his father had been following in Diagon Alley. He made sure to linger in the back of the crowd so to remain as inconspicuous as possible. Draco and Hermione were on either side of him and Isis shuffled around his legs, meowing loudly.

There was nothing seemingly important about the giant of a man, or special, if looking like an unkempt vagabond didn't count. His speech gave away the fact that he was very uneducated, if not just dumb. Even so, he appeared to be friendly, smiling kindly down at the children, all of whom seemed intimidated by him.

Harry mentally shrugged. His father hadn't actually told him to spy (he had Severus Snape for that), but he might keep an eye out for anything unusual. Voldemort himself hadn't set foot on Hogwarts' grounds since the seventies, or so Harry had heard. Dumbledore had apparently warded specifically against his magical signature, making the place a stronghold for the 'Light'.

"Harry?"

Harry glanced over his shoulder in Pansy Parkinson's direction. She was gingerly holding a black and silver snake an arm's length away from her body, looking at it as if she firmly believed it would kill her at any moment.

"Is this yours?" she asked nervously. "Blaise found it in our compartment a bit after you left and we thought that since you can talk to them that it probably-"

"He's mine," Harry interrupted impatiently, glancing over at Hermione. Thankfully, she seemed to be busy cooing at the cat and not paying attention. Broadcasting the fact one was a Parseltongue was never a good idea, especially to someone who'd probably only ever read about Dark Wizards having the ability. It would inevitably lead to instant stereotyping. Accurate stereotyping, actually, but she didn't need to know that yet.

He held out his arm and the snake quickly coiled loosely around it, leaving Pansy looking relieved.

"C'mon, follow me - any more firs' years? Mind yer step, now! Firs' years, follow me!" Hagrid motioned them all to follow him and began walking up a hill.

Harry scowled as he slipped and stumbled up the steep, narrow path. It was very undignified and it was so dark he couldn't see two feet in front of him. His father hadn't warned him about this, or else he might have worn boots that were appropriate for hiking. The expensive pair that were currently on his feet weren't designed for any type of outdoor activity, and he knew they'd be ruined by the time they arrived at the school. That was six hundred galleons and a good first impression down the drain.

"Yeh'll get yer firs' sight o' Hogwarts in a sec," the giant called over his shoulder. "It's amazing when yeh see it."

As predicted, a few seconds later a sudden chorus of 'Oooohs' twittered throughout the crowd. Even Harry couldn't keep himself from making an awed exclamation. The castle before them, with its windows sparkling in the sky and many turrets and towers, was a magnificent sight to behold.

After a minute, Hagrid decided it was time for them to move on and led them down to the bank of a wide lake, which looked inky black and utterly endless in the darkness.

Harry almost shivered.

"No more'n four to a boat!" the giant called, gesturing to a line of rowboats near the shore.

Harry, Draco, Hermione, and Blaise Zabini crowded into one of the small boats. Isis made herself comfortable on Harry's lap, hissing when Blaise tried to pet her.

"Everyone in? Right then - FORWARD!"

Harry nervously tried not to move at all so as not to shake the boat and gritted his teeth anytime it jostled on its own - he had never learned how to swim and was praying to every deity he knew that the boat would not topple over and drown him.

Instead of dwelling on the lake surrounding him (which had to be very deep, he knew, possibly complete with monsters), he tried to focus on the castle looming in the distance, wondering how the wards could be so strong that his father couldn't get in. It didn't seem all that safe, and he couldn't actually feel the prickling sensation that usually came when crossing the border of strong magical protection.

Harry was jolted out of his reverie by the giant's shout of "Heads down!"

Harry quickly bowed his head so that he wouldn't be decapitated by the cliff where the castle sat, but began to calm slightly when he realized that the little boat adventure that he was enjoying so much was almost over - they were now sailing down a dark tunnel towards a type of harbor.

Harry breathed a hushed sigh of relief when he was back on the rocky ground. He absentmindedly noticed a rather pudgy boy with dark hair fussing over that toad that Isis had caught on the train, moaning something about 'teeth marks'.

Harry, still standing in between Draco, who was now holding Isis, and Hermione, followed the rest of the first years through a passageway and up a flight of damp stone steps.

They finally crowded around the huge oak door, which he assumed to be the castle's main entrance. By this time, he was more than ready to just get on with the Sorting Ceremony, whatever disaster it might turn out to be.

"Everyone here?" asked Hagrid. "You there, still got yer toad?"

The pudgy boy nodded and clutched his toad to his chest, while everyone else nodded to confirm that they were, in fact, there.

Apparently satisfied, the giant raised a huge fist and knocked three times on the door, which opened at once to reveal a tall, stern looking witch with black hair. Harry had a feeling that she was Minerva McGonagall. His had told him about her, mainly to warn him about her cat animagus and that she was very, very strict.

"The firs' years, Professor McGonagall."

"Thank you, Hagrid," she said dismissively. "I will take them from here."

Hagrid moved off to the side and she pulled the door open wide, letting the children pour in. Harry and his friends were still hanging around in the very back of the crowd and Draco still had Isis clasped in a death hold in his arms. Harry didn't notice, as he was relatively surprised by the size of the entrance hall - you could have fit several rooms of Riddle Manor into it, perhaps over half of the first floor.

McGonagall led the first years past what Harry assumed to be the entrance to the Great Hall and into a small, empty chamber. Harry and his companions still stuck close to the back, near the exit. Though, as much as a part of him wanted to, he knew he wasn't going to be bolting anytime soon.

"Welcome to Hogwarts," Professor McGonagall began. Harry wanted to tune her out, as he already knew a bit about the House points and dormitories, but decided it was worth listening to.

"The Start of Term Banquet will begin shortly," she continued, "but before you take your seats in the Great Hall, you will be sorted into your Houses."

He glanced over at Draco, who was, by now, gripping Isis so tightly that the poor cat seemed to be suffocating.

"Draco," Harry hissed, "Put the cat down before you kill it!"

Draco jumped violently (in turn startling some of those around them) and dropped Isis, who managed to land gracefully on the floor and hiss at him before running off.

"Sorry," Draco whispered back, almost sheepishly. "Nerves."

"The Sorting is a very important ceremony because, while you are here, your House will be something like your family within Hogwarts."

Harry once again decided that, considering he was actually a blood descendant of Salazar Slytherin, it would be entirely unacceptable to be sorted anywhere else, but before he could ponder it any further he had the unpleasant experience of his snake slithering its way down his body and out his pants leg. He held his breath and waited for someone to scream, but apparently everyone was too busy listening to McGonagall to notice the reptile gliding along the floor by their feet.

"You will have classes with the rest of your House, sleep in your House dormitory, and spend free time in your House Common Room."

He vaguely wondered if students from other Houses were allowed in different Common Rooms, because if he did, by some horrific, entirely tragic catastrophe, get sorted into Gryffindor, he decided that he would invite every single Slytherin into the Gryffindor Common Room just to make his lovely House Mates angry. Of course, that was if the Slytherins decided he was still worthy of being spoken to . . .

"The four Houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin."

Said in descending order from most favorite to least? he wondered.

"Each House has its own noble history and each has produced outstanding witches and wizards."

"Except Hufflepuff," whispered Draco, and Harry was hard pressed to keep from laughing.

"While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn you House points while any rule breaking will lose House points. At the end of the year, the House with the most points is awarded the House Cup, a great honor. I hope each of you will become a credit to whichever house becomes yours."

If he was sorted into Gryffindor, he decided, he would endeavor to ruin the House's reputation as much as he possibly could.

"The Sorting Ceremony will take place in a few minutes in front of the rest of the school. I suggest you all smarten yourselves up as much as you can while you are waiting." After pausing to glance pointedly at a few of the students who were rather disheveled looking, such as the pudgy boy with the toad and another boy with almost painfully red hair, the tall witch took her leave, saying she would return when everything was ready for them.

As soon as she was out of sight everyone immediately began whispering among themselves.

"How exactly do they sort us into Houses?" Hermione asked, obviously nervous but trying her best to hide it. "I know it's based on personality, but-"

"You put on a Hat," Harry replied calmly, even though inside he wasn't fairing any better than she was. "It looks into your head to determine

Kết quả (Việt) 1:

Sam năm! Firs năm trên đây!"Harry cẩn thận mắt khổng lồ - Hagrid, ông nhớ lại, say rượu - người mà cha ông đã theo dõi trong Diagon Alley. Ông đã đảm bảo để kéo dài ở phía sau đám đông để vẫn như không dễ thấy nhất có thể. Draco và Hermione sống ở hai bên của anh ta và Isis xáo trộn xung quanh chân của mình, meowing lớn tiếng.Đã có không có gì quan trọng dường như về người khổng lồ của một người đàn ông, hoặc đặc biệt, nếu trông như một vagabond không chải không đếm. Bài phát biểu của ông đã cho đi một thực tế rằng ông đã rất uneducated, nếu không phải là chỉ câm. Mặc dù vậy, ông dường như là thân thiện, mỉm cười vui lòng xuống vào trẻ em, tất cả đều có vẻ đe dọa bởi anh ta.Harry tinh thần shrugged. Cha ông đã không thực sự nói với ông để gián điệp (ông đã Severus Snape cho điều đó), nhưng ông có thể giữ một mắt ra cho bất cứ điều gì bất thường. Voldemort mình đã không đặt chân lên Hogwarts' Sân vườn kể từ những năm bảy mươi, hoặc vì vậy Harry đã nghe. Dumbledore đã rõ ràng warded đặc biệt đối với chữ ký huyền diệu của mình, làm cho nơi một căn cứ địa cho 'Ánh sáng'."Harry?"Harry liếc nhìn qua vai của mình ở Pansy Parkinson hướng. Cô đã gingerly giữ một màu đen và bạc rắn một cánh tay dài ra khỏi cơ thể của mình, nhìn vào nó như thể cô vững tin rằng nó sẽ giết cô ta bất cứ lúc nào."Đây có phải là bạn?", cô đã hỏi nervously. "Blaise tìm thấy nó trong khoang của chúng tôi một chút sau khi bạn rời và chúng tôi nghĩ rằng kể từ khi bạn có thể nói chuyện với họ rằng nó có thể-""He's mine," Harry interrupted impatiently, glancing over at Hermione. Thankfully, she seemed to be busy cooing at the cat and not paying attention. Broadcasting the fact one was a Parseltongue was never a good idea, especially to someone who'd probably only ever read about Dark Wizards having the ability. It would inevitably lead to instant stereotyping. Accurate stereotyping, actually, but she didn't need to know that yet.He held out his arm and the snake quickly coiled loosely around it, leaving Pansy looking relieved."C'mon, follow me - any more firs' years? Mind yer step, now! Firs' years, follow me!" Hagrid motioned them all to follow him and began walking up a hill.Harry scowled as he slipped and stumbled up the steep, narrow path. It was very undignified and it was so dark he couldn't see two feet in front of him. His father hadn't warned him about this, or else he might have worn boots that were appropriate for hiking. The expensive pair that were currently on his feet weren't designed for any type of outdoor activity, and he knew they'd be ruined by the time they arrived at the school. That was six hundred galleons and a good first impression down the drain."Yeh'll get yer firs' sight o' Hogwarts in a sec," the giant called over his shoulder. "It's amazing when yeh see it."As predicted, a few seconds later a sudden chorus of 'Oooohs' twittered throughout the crowd. Even Harry couldn't keep himself from making an awed exclamation. The castle before them, with its windows sparkling in the sky and many turrets and towers, was a magnificent sight to behold.After a minute, Hagrid decided it was time for them to move on and led them down to the bank of a wide lake, which looked inky black and utterly endless in the darkness.Harry almost shivered."No more'n four to a boat!" the giant called, gesturing to a line of rowboats near the shore.Harry, Draco, Hermione, and Blaise Zabini crowded into one of the small boats. Isis made herself comfortable on Harry's lap, hissing when Blaise tried to pet her."Everyone in? Right then - FORWARD!"Harry nervously tried not to move at all so as not to shake the boat and gritted his teeth anytime it jostled on its own - he had never learned how to swim and was praying to every deity he knew that the boat would not topple over and drown him.Instead of dwelling on the lake surrounding him (which had to be very deep, he knew, possibly complete with monsters), he tried to focus on the castle looming in the distance, wondering how the wards could be so strong that his father couldn't get in. It didn't seem all that safe, and he couldn't actually feel the prickling sensation that usually came when crossing the border of strong magical protection.Harry was jolted out of his reverie by the giant's shout of "Heads down!"Harry quickly bowed his head so that he wouldn't be decapitated by the cliff where the castle sat, but began to calm slightly when he realized that the little boat adventure that he was enjoying so much was almost over - they were now sailing down a dark tunnel towards a type of harbor.Harry breathed a hushed sigh of relief when he was back on the rocky ground. He absentmindedly noticed a rather pudgy boy with dark hair fussing over that toad that Isis had caught on the train, moaning something about 'teeth marks'.Harry, still standing in between Draco, who was now holding Isis, and Hermione, followed the rest of the first years through a passageway and up a flight of damp stone steps.They finally crowded around the huge oak door, which he assumed to be the castle's main entrance. By this time, he was more than ready to just get on with the Sorting Ceremony, whatever disaster it might turn out to be."Everyone here?" asked Hagrid. "You there, still got yer toad?"The pudgy boy nodded and clutched his toad to his chest, while everyone else nodded to confirm that they were, in fact, there.Apparently satisfied, the giant raised a huge fist and knocked three times on the door, which opened at once to reveal a tall, stern looking witch with black hair. Harry had a feeling that she was Minerva McGonagall. His had told him about her, mainly to warn him about her cat animagus and that she was very, very strict."The firs' years, Professor McGonagall.""Thank you, Hagrid," she said dismissively. "I will take them from here."Hagrid moved off to the side and she pulled the door open wide, letting the children pour in. Harry and his friends were still hanging around in the very back of the crowd and Draco still had Isis clasped in a death hold in his arms. Harry didn't notice, as he was relatively surprised by the size of the entrance hall - you could have fit several rooms of Riddle Manor into it, perhaps over half of the first floor.McGonagall led the first years past what Harry assumed to be the entrance to the Great Hall and into a small, empty chamber. Harry and his companions still stuck close to the back, near the exit. Though, as much as a part of him wanted to, he knew he wasn't going to be bolting anytime soon."Welcome to Hogwarts," Professor McGonagall began. Harry wanted to tune her out, as he already knew a bit about the House points and dormitories, but decided it was worth listening to."The Start of Term Banquet will begin shortly," she continued, "but before you take your seats in the Great Hall, you will be sorted into your Houses."He glanced over at Draco, who was, by now, gripping Isis so tightly that the poor cat seemed to be suffocating."Draco," Harry hissed, "Put the cat down before you kill it!"Draco jumped violently (in turn startling some of those around them) and dropped Isis, who managed to land gracefully on the floor and hiss at him before running off.
"Sorry," Draco whispered back, almost sheepishly. "Nerves."

"The Sorting is a very important ceremony because, while you are here, your House will be something like your family within Hogwarts."

Harry once again decided that, considering he was actually a blood descendant of Salazar Slytherin, it would be entirely unacceptable to be sorted anywhere else, but before he could ponder it any further he had the unpleasant experience of his snake slithering its way down his body and out his pants leg. He held his breath and waited for someone to scream, but apparently everyone was too busy listening to McGonagall to notice the reptile gliding along the floor by their feet.

"You will have classes with the rest of your House, sleep in your House dormitory, and spend free time in your House Common Room."

He vaguely wondered if students from other Houses were allowed in different Common Rooms, because if he did, by some horrific, entirely tragic catastrophe, get sorted into Gryffindor, he decided that he would invite every single Slytherin into the Gryffindor Common Room just to make his lovely House Mates angry. Of course, that was if the Slytherins decided he was still worthy of being spoken to . . .

"The four Houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin."

Said in descending order from most favorite to least? he wondered.

"Each House has its own noble history and each has produced outstanding witches and wizards."

"Except Hufflepuff," whispered Draco, and Harry was hard pressed to keep from laughing.

"While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn you House points while any rule breaking will lose House points. At the end of the year, the House with the most points is awarded the House Cup, a great honor. I hope each of you will become a credit to whichever house becomes yours."

If he was sorted into Gryffindor, he decided, he would endeavor to ruin the House's reputation as much as he possibly could.

"The Sorting Ceremony will take place in a few minutes in front of the rest of the school. I suggest you all smarten yourselves up as much as you can while you are waiting." After pausing to glance pointedly at a few of the students who were rather disheveled looking, such as the pudgy boy with the toad and another boy with almost painfully red hair, the tall witch took her leave, saying she would return when everything was ready for them.

As soon as she was out of sight everyone immediately began whispering among themselves.

"How exactly do they sort us into Houses?" Hermione asked, obviously nervous but trying her best to hide it. "I know it's based on personality, but-"

"You put on a Hat," Harry replied calmly, even though inside he wasn't fairing any better than she was. "It looks into your head to determine