Chapter 11: Numbers
The first thing Hoagie heard was the ear-splitting cheering of the DA members in the stands. Colors from all four houses shined bright, and Hoagie was glad that his goggles made it easier on his eyes. The new recruits shielded their eyes and plugged their ears instinctively, trying to save their ears from exploding.
Once the sound died down, Rachel organized them in a straight line and gave them the thumbs up.
"Welcome everyone to our first recruitment assembly of the year! Today, these seven students have been selected to join our secret association," she announced, motioning behind her as to present us.
Cheers from the crowd erupted, only a tad bit quieter than the first time. Everyone stopped abrubtly only a few seconds later, so Hoagie expected that someone had shut them up with some sort of spell.
"Now, we have spoken in codename for as long as we can remeber, so today, our new members will be able to choose their own codename. And to begin our ceremony, I present to you all, our supreme leader, Jace West, aka, Number 100!"
If what Hoagie had heard before was loud, then the sound now was so tremendous that he swore some of them were making their voices louder with magic.
Before he knew it, a tall boy, probably in his sixth or seventh year, with spiky brown hair and a pot on his head with the number 100 pasted on it, was standing before them, his chest swelling with pride.
"Today, you shall have the honor of choosing your own codenames. It can be pretty much anything, as long as it has a number somewhere in it. All decisions are final, so make sure you are completely satisfied with what you've chosen," he instructed.
Hoagie didn't really have a favorite number, and he didn't understand how you could make a number very interesting, so he decided to wing it based on what the others chose.
"First up is Virginia Sims," Jace declared.
Virginia took a step forward and smiled. "My birthday is on July 23rd, so I'll be Number 23," she said.
The crowd clapped in approval, then Virginia stepped back.
"Excellent choice," beamed Jace. "Next up is Abigail Lincoln."
Abby grinned, her hat shielding her eyes. Hoagie could tell that she already had the perfect number in mind.
"I'll be Number 5," she simply announced, then returned to her spot in the line as the other clapped for her.
"Gabe Chesterfield, you're up," Jace called.
Hoagie watched as some of the others chose their codenames. Gabe chose to be Number 74.239, Patton was Number 60 and Bartie became Number 35.
"Nigel Uno!"
Nigel bravely stepped up, pushing his shades further into the bridge of his nose.
"I'll be Number 1, because I plan to be the best agent this organization has ever seen!"
The crowd applauded furiously, obviously impressed and surprised to know that that number hadn't been chosen yet.
"Hogarth Gilligan!"
Hoagie bit his lip in irritation. He hated it when people called him by his real first name. Yet, he still felt a bit of pride when he heard it. It had been his father's name as well, and because of him, he was now a wizard in an awesome school surrounded by some great friends.
He took a step forward, then realized that he still didn't know what number to choose. He panicked for a while, but then decided that he would choose the first number he saw.
He closed his eyes, and when he opened them, saw the number 2 above a door at the far back of the room.
"Alright, I guess I'll be Number 2, then!"
More clapping proceeded, then died down once more.
"Well... um... we have one more but I wasn't informed of your name..." Jace stumbled nervously. Apparently, he must have rehearsed the names of the contenders beforehand.
Kuki jumped up, her cheeks glowing.
"I'm Kuki Sanban. I was chosen last minute, so sorry if I caused any trouble," she told him, her cheery attitude earning her some applause. "I wanna be Number 3 because my last name means Number 3 in Japanese."
After more cheering from the stands, the recruits took a bow and walked off the stage as Jace gave a few more announcements,
"Remember, all new recruits must meet here tomorrow after class to begin their DA training. All Quidditch players on the comitee are excused from our meeting next week, and keep your ears ready when we come back from Christmas break for our next recruitment ceremony in the middle of the year. Thank you all and make sure you take turns getting to your common rooms so we won't arouse suspicion."