A/N: Happy New Year! I'm back with another amazing chapter. But before then, just a quick response to those who reviewed:
Cooldude98 - I elated that you enjoy my work! I hope it becomes more enjoyable as I continue to write!
Sakra95 - Yes, they do, but it's somewhat minor, since he's going at the same time as Harry. No, Ben does not currently follow the path of the gods, but he will in future. I'll even drop a few hints as to whose path he's going to follow!
Chapter 2: We Walk As Lions
As the students approached the castle, Ben fell back into the crowd, standing next to Hermione. Now he was feeling extremely nervous, thinking about all his classes and how they would turn out.
"Um, Hermione, right?" Ben asked. Hermione turned to face Ben and immediately a look of excitement grew on her face.
"Yes?" she asked.
"Do you know which subjects we're going to learn?" he inquired. Hermione looked elated, clearly happy about the opportunity to show just how intelligent she was.
"Well, according to what I read, first years are required to take seven subjects, which are Transfiguration, Charms, Potions, History of Magic, Herbology, Astronomy, and Defense Against the Dark Arts. I also heard that we'd be having some flying lessons."
"Dark Arts? Is that like Isfet?" Ben thought aloud, earning him a confused look from Hermione. He noticed this and mentally face palmed, as she was a wizard and not a magician, therefore she wouldn't know about Ma'at and Isfet.
"Oh, sorry. You don't know about Ma'at and Isfet. The magicians draw their magic power from Ma'at, which is the order the universe, and we use it mainly to combat the forces of Isfet, which is chaos. The way most people classify everything in terms of good and evil, magicians classify things in terms of Ma'at and Isfet."
"Really?"
"Yep. I've heard that the biggest problem in the wizarding world is that dark wizard Voldymold-" Hermione flinched at the butchering of the name, but Ben didn't notice "-or something, but after you complete your learning at the Per Ankh, we have to fight all sorts of things, most commonly demons- Hey, are you okay?" Ben asked, noticing that Hermione had gone slightly pale.
"I-it's nothing. So, how does your school system work?" Hermione asked hastily, looking to change the subject.
"Well, we have the Chief Lector, the most powerful magician, and the equivalent of a headmaster. Then we have the Sem priests, who are sort of like teachers. My mother is one of them. After that comes the Initiates, who are the students of the Per Ankh."
"And what are the subjects that you practice there?" Hermione asked eagerly.
"Hermione, you sure do ask a lot of questions," Ben commented.
Hermione looked annoyed. "I've only asked two questions. The only way to learn is to ask questions."
"Huh. Seemed like more. Anyway, we differ a bit more in that aspect. We have fields of study at the Per Ankh, and you can choose to study any one or more depending on what interests you. We have the Elementalists, who can learn to control the five basic elements of air, water, earth, fire, and cheese." Hermione looked at Ben like he was crazy.
"Did you just say 'cheese'?"
"Uh-huh. I thought it was a stupid joke the first time I heard it, but it turns out that cheese is one of the five basic elements. Really advanced elementalists can control some of the more complex ones, like lightning, metal, lava, etc.
"Then we have Diviners, who can easily see glimpses of the future, although not many people take that course because it takes a rare talent to be able to properly learn it. Plus diviners tend to die young. Animal Charming is a discipline that focuses on controlling snakes, scorpions, and other poisonous animals, though really advanced learners can control more ferocious animals, like hippos, tigers, and wolves. But our staff takes care of that, too."
Without warning, a seedy looking boy walked past, pushing Hermione aside. Ben hand shot out, grabbing the boy by the wrist.
"Excuse me, but you just bump into my friend, here." Ben said politely.
"Really?" The boy sneered. "I don't believe that Mudblood deserves much courtesy, does she? Heard her talking about it on the train."
"What's a Mudblood?" Ben whispered to Hermione, who shook her head with a confused look. It sounded like a kind of insult to Ben.
"So you must be that Yank from a different school," the boy continued. "I'm Theodore Nott. You can ditch the Mudblood now. I'll be happy to show you around Hogwarts and tell you all you need to know. After all, those of us with the purest blood have to stick together."
"Well, I'm flattered, really, but I'll have to decline. Stupidity and body odor are both contagious, and you look like a goldmine for both," Ben responded coolly, watching Theodore flush with embarrassment and hearing Hermione giggle. Theodore wrestled himself out of Ben's grip and stormed off.
Ben heard a loud sound and realized that they'd arrived at the castle, and the sound was the giant man knocking on the castle door. Straightway the door opened and an elderly woman (who Ben assumed was a witch) wearing emerald green robes stood before them. The look on her face said this was a no-nonsense woman. Ben would have to be weary around her.
"The firs' years, Professor McGonagall," the giant man said.
"Thank you, Hagrid. I will take them from here." Professor McGonagall replied. "Follow me, children." The children followed her inside the castle, looking with admiration, none more than Ben, thinking of how different Hogwarts was compared to Per Ankh.
Eventually, Professor McGonagall and the first years entered an empty room at the side of the hall. Due to the amount of space in the room, the first years were forced to stand uncomfortably close to each other.
"Welcome to Hogwarts," Professor McGonagall said. "The start-of-term banquet will begin shortly, but before you take your seats in the Great Hall, you will be sorted into your houses. The Sorting is a very important ceremony because, while you are here, your house will be similar to your family here at Hogwarts. You will have classes with the rest of your house, sleep in your house dormitory, and spend free time in your house common room.
"The four houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. Each house has its own noble history and each has produced outstanding witches and wizards. While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn your house points, while any rulebreaking 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 be a credit to whichever house becomes yours.
"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." Professor McGonagall ended her speech, look at all untidy traits on the students, before making one last statement.
"I shall return when we are ready for you. Please wait quietly," Professor McGonagall said, leaving the room.
"So how do we get sorted into these houses?" Ben asked Hermione.
"Well, according to Hogwarts: A History, Salazar Slytherin enchanted a hat with Legilimency, and it sorts you into the house you belong in."
"Wait. First, what's Legilimency," Ben asked. "Second, what's so special about the houses?"
"Legilimency is the magical skill of extracting feelings and memories from another person's mind and also allows one to convey visions or memories to another person, whether real or imaginary."
"So it's like a magical form of telepathy?" Ben inquired excitedly.
"If you will. As for your second question, according to what I read, Gryffindors are known for their bravery, chivalry, and strong spirits; the Hufflepuffs are known for their loyalty, kindness and caring; the Ravenclaws are identified by their intelligence and eccentricity; and finally the Slytherins were discerned by their shrewd, ambitious and cunning nature. I hope I'm put in Gryffindor, although Ravenclaw doesn't seem so bad. Hufflepuff is nice as well. But I hope I'm not put in Slytherin. Some kids on the train were saying that all the dark wizards came from the Slytherin house. Even You-Know-Who came from there!" Hermione spoke very fast, so Ben had to struggle a bit in order to understand everything she said.
But once he did, he began to ponder what house he would be sorted into. None of the house seemed too bad, not even Slytherin. Just because the house was known for producing the most dark wizards did not make it a bad house. Ben's musings were interrupted by the return of Professor McGonagall.
"We're ready for you now," she said sharply. "Follow me."
The students obeyed, walking out of the chamber, across the hall, and through the giant double doors leading to the Great Hall. Ben's first thought was that even if the wizards weren't as powerful as the magicians, they were pretty creative.
The Great Hall was lit by thousands of candles, floating above the four long tables, which is where the older students were sitting. Above the candles was a ceiling that looked so much like the night sky, that Ben blinked a few times to confirm that he was seeing right. As a magician he'd seen some strange stuff, but nothing like this.
"It's not really the night sky. The ceiling is just bewitched to look that way." Hermione whispered to Ben. "I read about it in Hogwarts: A History." Ben made a mental note to find the library in this school and borrow the book. It was obviously an interesting read.
Professor McGonagall told the children to stop, while she carried a stool with four legs and placed a hat on top of it. In Ben's opinion, it looked like it might have been first made around the time of the dinosaurs, but looking at it now it was nothing but an old, frayed, article of clothing.
Ben didn't know exactly how he expected the sorting to go, but he was nothing less than astonished when the hat twitched, a rip near the brim opened wide like a mouth - and the hat began to sing:
"Oh, you may not think I'm pretty,
But don't judge on what you see,
I'll eat myself if you can find
A smarter hat than me.
You can keep your bowlers black,
Your top hats sleek and tall,
For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat
And I can cap them all.
There's nothing hidden in your head
The Sorting Hat can't see,
So try me on and I will tell you
Where you ought to be.
You might belong in Gryffindor,
Where dwell the brave at heart,
Their daring, nerve, and chivalry Set Gryffindors apart;
You might belong in Hufflepuff,
Where they are just and loyal,
Those patient Hufflepuffis are true And unafraid of toil;
Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,
if you've a ready mind,
Where those of wit and learning,
Will always find their kind;
Or perhaps in Slytherin
You'll make your real friends,
Those cunning folk use any means
To achieve their ends.
So put me on! Don't be afraid!
And don't get in a flap!
You're in safe hands (though I have none)
For I'm a Thinking Cap!"
Everyone burst out in applause when the hat finished its song.
"All we have to do is try on the hat?" Ron whispered to Harry. "Fred told me we'd have to fight a troll! I'll kill him!"
"You believed him?" Ben asked him incredulously. Ron flushed.
"Now, as you all heard, the Sorting Hat will be placed on your head and you will be sorted into your various houses. When I call your name, step forward."
Ben zoned out a bit after realizing that the names were being called alphabetically. But once he heard a Justin Finch-Fletchley, he paid more attention, and two names later he heard "Garner Benjamin".
"All right then, let's do this!" Ben whispered, walking up confidently towards the stool. He noticed the staff sit forward in anticipation, probably because they were the few who knew of his origins. He noticed a few teachers with hopeful looks on their faces, although they did a good job disguising it. He didn't want to sound proud, but he would definitely be an asset to whatever house he was sorted into. He sat on the stool and Professor McGonagall placed the Sorting Hat on his head.
"Hmm, different from the usual wizard. Oooh, a magician," the Sorting Hat started, and more students began to pay attention to him now. "Yes, you will certainly be an asset to whatever house you're sorted into. All right, I see you're very ambitious, seeking to create unity between magicians and wizards; I also see loyalty, willing to do anything for your friends. But your two greatest qualities are your bravery and your eccentricity. You have an amazing mind, and you're very eccentric from what I gather here. However, you brave spirit is your greatest quality, so you better be in GRYFFINDOR!"
A loud cheer went up at the Gryffindor table. Ben smiled as he handed the Sorting Hat back to Professor McGonagall, and for a moment he saw the faintest flicker of a smile cross her face. The sorting went pretty quickly after that, and Ben beamed when his three friends were all sorted into the same house as him.
Eventually, the sorting ended and the headmaster, Professor Albus Dumbledore stood up to speak.
"Welcome," he said. "Welcome to a new year at Hogwarts! Before we begin our banquet, I would like to say a few words. And here they are: Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak! Thank you and let the feast begin!" All of the dishes on the table were filled with every kind of food imaginable.
Ben wasted no time in eating; he piled all sots of different foods that he liked and put them the plate in front of him, and dug in. While eating, he listed to some of his housemates talk about themselves. A boy named Seamus Finnigan told them that he was a half-blood, with a mortal father and a witch for a mother. Neville, the boy who kept losing his toad, explained that he was raised by his grandmother, and that his great uncle was always doing dangerous things to him in order to bring out the magic in him, which Ben disapproved of.
As Ben helped himself to some dessert, the bespectacled red-haired prefect who Ben learned was Ron's brother turned to him.
"Hello Benjamin, why don't you tell us a little bit about yourself?" he asked. Most of the people ended their conversations and also faced him, intent on hearing what he was going to say. Ben felt his cheeks heat up, but swallowed his food and addressed them.
"All right. My name is Benjamin Garner, I'm eleven years old, and I come from the United States of America, Brooklyn, New York. My father was a wizard who attended this same school, and my mother is a magician. I've been practicing drawing on the power of Ma'at since I was three, and I'm pretty decent at it. Earlier this year I applied to the Hogwarts School of Wizards, and two months ago I received an acceptance letter. My favorite color is blue, my favorite hobby is practicing magic, reading, playing pranks on people-" he noticed the twins, Ron's older brothers, exchange an excited look at this "- and generally making life enjoyable and having fun."
"You reckon you could show us some magic?" Neville asked hopefully, mimicking the looks on the faces of many students surrounding him.
"Am I allowed to?" Ben asked Percy, who nodded his head. Ben took a deep breath and stretched his hand out over the table.
"Heqat," he muttered, and a wooden staff materialized out of thin air, and landed in his outstretched hand. Ben noticed that some students from other houses were craning their necks to get a better view. He also noticed that at the high table, majority of the teachers were involved in conversations amongst themselves, but a few, including Professor Dumbledore were intently observing him.
Ben knew that he should probably stop here; after all everybody was already impressed. But the need to show off got the better of him, and in front of his audience, his staff transformed into a bald eagle, which did a few laps around his head and then landed on his shoulder.
As expected, many members of his audience were astonished. Many people began whispering among themselves about how amazing his magic was. Ben felt his head swell.
"I reckon you'll be a natural at Transfiguration," a ghost wearing a ruff and tights noted, flying through the table. Ben was fascinated at the arrival of the ghost.
"Wow! You even have ghosts here too?" Ben said excitedly as more ghosts streamed into the Great Hall.
"Indeed," the ghost said. "Allow me to introduce myself. Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington at your service. Resident ghost of Gryffindor Tower."
"I know you!" Ron exclaimed. "You're Nearly Headless Nick!"
"I would prefer Sir Nicholas, if you don't mind," Sir Nicholas said stiffly.
"Nearly headless?" Hermione asked. "How can you be nearly headless?"
"Like this," Nearly Headless Nick said as he grabbed his right ear and pulled. His whole head swung off his neck and fell onto his shoulder as if it was on a hinge.
"So - new Gryffindors! I hope you're going to help us win the house championship this year? Gryffindors have never gone so long without winning. Slytherins have got the cup six years in a row! The Bloody Baron's becoming almost unbearable - he's the Slytherin ghost."
Nearly Headless Nick gestured to a ghost sitting at the Slytherin table. He had blank staring eyes, a gaunt face, and robes stained with silver blood.
"How did he get covered in blood?" Seamus Finnigan asked.
"I've never inquired about it. Seems a bit personal, but if you wish to know, you may ask him yourself," Nearly Headless Nick said, but Ben knew it was an empty suggestion; he doubted anyone would actually work up the courage to do something like that. "In any case, since we have both Harry Potter and a promising young wizard with us, I believe that the Gryffindor will claim the cup this year, eh?" he continued before leaving to converse with a ghost that looked fat.
Eventually, the desserts too disappeared, and Professor Dumbledore got to his feet again. The hall fell silent.
"Ahem - just a few more words now that we are all fed and watered. I have a few start-of-term notices to give you.
"First years should note that the forest on the grounds is forbidden to all pupils. And a few of our older students would do well to remember that as well."
Dumbledore's twinkling eyes flashed in the direction of the Weasley twins.
"I have also been asked by Mr. Filch, the caretaker, to remind you all that no magic should be used between classes in the corridors.
"Quidditch trials will be held in the second week of the term. Anyone interested in playing for their house teams should contact Madam Hooch.
"And finally, I must tell you that this year, the third-floor corridor on the right-hand side is out of bounds to everyone who does not wish to die a very painful death."
Both Harry and Ben laughed, but for completely different reasons; Harry because he believed his headmaster was joking while Ben just thought the likelihood of anything here killing him in a painful manner was extremely low.
"And now, bedtime. Off you trot!"
The Gryffindors followed Percy out of the Great Hall to the marble staircase. It was there that Ben discovered one of the most fascinating inventions of wizards: moving pictures. Nothing like GIFs, but actually people moving in portraits. He saw a beautiful woman curtsy as they approached, and a man said "Welcome to Hogwarts" before resuming the examination of a piece of paper.
Reaching the end of a corridor, a portrait of a fat woman wearing a pink silk dress hung. She observed the crowd of first years, her eyes resting on Percy.
"Password?" she asked.
"Caput Draconis," said Percy, and the portrait swung forward to reveal a round hole in the wall. He turned to the first years. "Whenever you wish to enter the Gryffindor tower, you must provide a password." They crawled through the hole to enter a something similar to a lounge, a cozy round room full of squishy armchairs."
"This is the Gryffindor common room," Percy explained. "You can come here between classes or afterwards. The boys' dormitory is to the left here, and the girls to the right."
Afterward, some of the first year boys- Harry, Dean, Ron, Ben, Neville, and Seamus- were given a bedroom to share. Six four-posters hung with deep red, velvet curtains. Their trunks had already been brought up. Too tired to talk much, most of them pulled on their pajamas and fell into bed.
Ben sat up in his bed, stroking the bald eagle still residing on his shoulders. Then he tore out a sheet of paper, brought his bottle of ink and a quill, and composed a letter.
Dear Mom,
I know I'll be delivering this to you by owl, which is the standard method of delivering messages in the world of wizards, but please don't dispose of it without reading it first. Although if you do, you won't be reading any of what I write hear, and I'll just be wasting my time.
Right now I'm in bed. We've just finished dinner, but I'll get into that later. On the train ride to Hogwarts I made three new friends, Harry Potter, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. Harry Potter is the one who defeated Voldymold when he was just a baby. I know you're going to say that compared to the agents of Isfet it's not impressive, but this guy is a big deal here. Ron is okay, although his hair is super distracting. Hermione is super nice and really intelligent, although she unintentionally comes of as a bossy pants or a know-it-all. They're really cool, and I'm glad I met them. Hogwarts is pretty amazing as well, they have things like sky ceilings and moving pictures (nothing like GIFs) and plates that fill themselves with food. Hogwarts has four houses, Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Slytherin and Hufflepuff, and I was sorted into Gryffindor, where the brave at heart dwell or something like that. After that we ate dinner and I'm in the dorm, writing you a letter.
Hope you get this. I love you and miss everyone at the Per Ankh.
Your insufferable son
Ben changed his eagle back into a staff, and then transformed it again into an owl, giving it the letter and sending it off. Ben hoped that his mother would read it. He even got a bit misty-eyed thinking about her. Soon after, he drifted off into the world of sleep. But his dreams were anything but peaceful.
A/N: And this is the end! Please review, as any and all feedback is appreciated! Hope you enjoy your holidays!