Different, but I hope you like it.
"Sentient"
but my words like silent raindrops fell
and echoed in the wells of silence
( the sound of silence ; simon & garfunkel )
-:-
Hogwarts is sentient; a thousand years of magical static has been absorbed into its very bricks and mortar, creating what can only be called the imitation of life.
Students wander through the castle everyday without a flicker of a thought on how the staircases move, or why some classrooms only appear on rainy, overcast Thursdays. Most have no idea of the building's consciousness, but, occasionally, there are those who glimpse the minute clues and they repel the loneliness – at least for a little while.
The little Ravenclaw, Luna Lovegood, she is the castle's eternal favourite. From the very first touch of her bare foot to the flagstones she felt the life in those ancient stones, and each day she makes sure to talk to it, breaking the dismal isolation with her joyful bursts of monologue.
She has never been lost in Hogwarts, simply because the castle won't allow it. Corridors will move and staircases will rearrange, and wherever it was that Luna was heading, her mind tangled in dreams and make-believe, she will eventually arrive there –always with a thank you on her lips at the end.
She is definitely the castle's favourite.
Still, it does not blame the other students. How are they to know of its sentience being more than just mere magic? It takes somebody special to see that without help, and if the building had hands it would take only two to be able to count all those who have discovered its secret.
Instead of anger, the castle plays games to keep itself alert. That is why the staircases change; why the classrooms are not always reliable. Sometimes it plays tricks; sometimes it likes to play matchmaker – it can redirect the route of a student until it seems as if they must be stuck in an Escher lithograph, all paths leading to that special somebody. It always plays with the cards it has been given, the castle does; it only encourages those who should be together, whether they know it yet or not (the advantage of being made by a Legilimens is not lost on the ancient structure).
When the war comes, the castle can almost feel the pain of losing a limb as Ravenclaw Tower falls; it feels the destruction of its walls and like an injured dog lashes out, uncaring of which side bears the brunt of its attack. Rocks fall and everything will die, unless the pain and torture stops. In the end, the light magic wins, but the castle sulks regardless because it is hurting enormously and the only one who seems to care cannot help him, being a squib, so the castle settles and shakes with minute tremors that frighten the people within.
Then Luna – lovely, kind, Luna – she approaches, her bare feet silent against the flagstones, and gently caresses the wall with her fingertips. She hushes it softly and says that she will see it healed, by magic or by mortar, and disappears amongst the rubble and sea of lonely, lost people to find Minerva McGonagall, the acting Headmistress.
The rebuilding takes six months, and the castle is exceedingly grateful when it finishes, especially since it understands that healing for the humans will take much longer. Instead of playing tricks, it helps students find their way. A little of the Hogwarts magic is lost, but until all the troubled lives have been repaired the adventure of becoming lost in the cavernous halls of the castle can wait for another generation.
The castle is a thousand years old; it knows all about patience.
End.
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