Welcome back, dear readers, to "Infinity Keeps Me Alive"
Don't judge the House, judge the heart.
Of Houses And Men
"No more than four to a boat." instructed Hagrid, motioning to small vessels waiting for the students.
Harry and Daphne had just stepped into one when they realized that, for some obscure reason, Tracey had given them the slip and vanished among the other students.
The girl returned a few seconds later, grinning widely. She was also dragging a very confused Hermione and a red-faced Neville with her.
"Daph, Harry, I found you two passengers." smiled Tracey, pointedly ignoring her childhood friend's glare.
A boat trip with two of his oldest friend and the future Ice Queen of Slytherin, the time traveller wasn't sure if he wanted to thank or curse the hyperactive girl.
"But… what about –" began Hermione.
"Don't worry about me." interrupted the brunette. "I'll just go sit with Millicent."
And without further ado, she pushed her abducted victims into the boat and skipped out of view.
Awkward silence ensued.
…
Harry coughed.
"That was… weird."
"Tracey can be… overly enthusiastic sometimes." admitted Daphne, clearly frustrated.
"No kidding?" he grinned. "Anyway, care to introduce your friend, Hermione?"
"Oh, right." blushed the witch. "Harry, Ms. Greengrass, may I introduce you to Neville Longbottom. Neville, they're Harry Potter and Daphne Greengrass."
"Hello Neville. Nice to meet you." said the time traveller.
Daphne nodded.
"S... Same here." timidly replied the boy.
"Did you find your toad?" asked his fellow wizard.
"We did."
"A prefect used a summoning charm." explained Hermione. "Thanks again for that, Harry."
"You're welcome."
Hagrid's voice suddenly boomed.
"Everyone in?"
He took a quick look around the shore and nodded.
"Right then, FORWARD!"
The Keeper's loud voice sent small ripples across the lake's surface and the boats started to drift toward the castle.
Taking a spur-of-the-moment decision, Harry put a contemplative look on his face and turned to Neville.
"Did she say your name is Longbottom?"
"Huh, yes."
"Any relation to Alice Longbottom?"
Neville flinched.
"She's... she's my mom." he muttered.
Harry smiled weakly to him.
"I learned a few days ago that she was supposed to be my godmother."
"W… was she?"
"Yes, like my mother was supposed to be yours."
"I... I didn't know that."
"You think we can talk about it some day?"
"Well... sure... some day."
"Thanks."
A lulling silence stretched for a few seconds, ultimately broken by Hermione with what had to be the most controversial question she could have come up with.
"Which house do you think you'll go to?"
"Slytherin" replied two of the boat's occupants without missing a beat.
Harry smiled at Daphne, who responding with rolling eyes and an almost imperceptible snort of amusement. Neville just sported a deer in the headlights kind of look.
"Why would you go there?" asked an unnerved Hermione. "That house's filled with dark wizard wannabes."
The two aspiring Slytherins sighed in unison.
"Prejudices." added Harry for good measure.
Neville was still frozen on the spot.
"Okay, you know there are four houses right?" started the ex-Gryffindor, receiving a nod in response. "Let's start with Hufflepuff, shall we? Puffs are mostly considered as below anything by the rest of Hogwarts. It's common knowledge among the students that you'll ended up a Puff if you don't belong anywhere."
"That's just... mean."
"True, but those same students tend to forget that the Puffs are all about loyalty. The Sett as a whole would stand up to a dragon with their bare hands if it meant protecting a friend. Hell, at this stage they're not a house anymore, they're family. But since those rumours cause them to be shunned by the other houses, they mostly stand among themselves, which only aggravate the situation. It's not pretty."
Hermione gulped. Neville had stopped to stare during Harry's explanation and was listening attentively.
"Let's move on to Ravenclaw." offered the wizard with a honeyed smile.
He made a show of clearing his voice and began as such "Ravenclaws are idiots."
"Way to go, Potter." breathed Daphne.
Hermione snapped.
"WHAT? But they say in Hogwarts: A History that..."
"Would you please let me finish before you start shouting at me?"
She looked murderous, but nodded.
"As I was saying, Ravenclaws are idiots."
Grumble.
"Sure, they're smart and ideal students for the most part, as you'd expect for the House of Wisdom. But they're so engrossed in their books, classes and studies that they forget to live, to feel. In essence, they lack creativity and social skills. Also, if wizards in general have zero common sense, the Claws manage to get in the negative. The Nest can be a perfect place to learn and grow, just as long as you don't follow blindly what's being said and learn to think for yourself. Don't be afraid to admit that you need help, ask questions and only then will you be a fine Raven."
Harry's short speech had appealed to the girl's logic. His words did sound right enough and she had calmed down, even if only slightly.
"Now, Gryffindor. Greengrass, would you do me the honour?"
The witch stared at him for a moment… and reluctantly accepted.
"Fine."
She breathed deeply and the air lost a few degrees as her mouth curled into a wicked smile that would have made even S-class creatures run to their mothers.
Ice Queen indeed.
"Gryffindor's favoured quality is bravery. The truth is, they mistake bravery for recklessness. They tend to charge head-on into danger and many graduates died because of badly prepared tactics and stupid Light principles. If you end up in The Den, you'll probably perish before twenty, in a completely idiotic fashion, fighting a useless fight. Avoid the flying lions, end of story."
Her smile warmed up and Neville stopped to shake in his boots.
"Thanks, Greengrass." cheerfully beamed Harry.
"Whatever." she brushed him off, though it was apparent that she'd enjoyed giving that diatribe.
"By the way, despite what Greengrass just said, the house isn't only known for its recklessness, but also embodies chivalry and courage. Gryffindors are known to do not what is easy, but what it right, and make for great protectors, especially when they fight for someone or something. I believe the two of you would do great in Gryffindor even if, judging by what I saw, Hermione would be better as a Raven, and Neville, you'd probably be a better Puff than the Founder herself."
And he really meant that.
"Now, for the last house..."
"Slytherin." mouthed Hermione.
"Yes, Slytherin. The house of all evil, as everybody knows."
His voice turned syrupy, as if he was talking to a four years old.
"Now, do you truly believe that the founders were crazy enough to make a purposely evil house where they would gather every single future psychopaths they would manage to find?"
Hermione and Neville quickly shook their heads, manifestly nervous.
"Slytherin being evil is a rumour and nothing else."
"But... You-Know-Who..."
"Neville, the house praises cunning and ambitions. Voldemort –"
Gasp.
"Grow up, Longbottom." huffed Daphne.
"Sorry, Moldyshorts was sly and ambitious, like most dark wizards are, and he ended up there. Let's say, Neville, that you aim to be the next head of the DMLE to stop those same dark sorcerers. You would be ambitious enough to be sorted into Slytherin. Would that make him a dark lord by default, Hermione?"
"I suppose not." she mumbled.
"Greengrass here wants to expand her family's trading business and make her name renowned across the whole magical world." he added, earning himself a glare from said girl for casually spewing private subjects. "This ambition will surely lead her to Slytherin. Tell me, is she evil?"
"No… no, she's not." whispered Hermione, a hint of hesitation in her voice.
Seeing as she'd witnessed Daphne's Ice Queen performance, it was perfectly understandable.
"What about you, Harry?" asked the Longbottom heir. "Why Slytherin?"
"Well… I do have an ambition myself, even if mine's not so challenging."
He just had to prevent a war after all.
"But as things are, I will end up there anyway." he added in a laugh.
"What do you mean?"
Harry smirked.
"That's for me to know and for you to find out."
Daphne muttered something.
"What was that?" he asked, cupping his ear with a hand.
"I hate you when you answer like that." reluctantly repeated the girl.
"No, you don't"
"Don't make me hex you, Potter." she threatened, as their boat finally reached the underground harbour they had sailed to.
Harry prevented Trevor from escaping again – much to Neville's relief – and left the boat with his friends just as Tracey rejoined the group.
"Hey there, how was the cruise?"
Daphne was on her in a split second.
"What in the name of Merlin was that?" she hissed in a whisper, her steely eyes piercing through the brunette.
"A duplicitous attempt to unfreeze you and expend the number of persons you tolerate." teased her friend. "Did it work?"
The blonde witch harrumphed and abstained from commenting.
Harry suppressed a snort and pressed his amused friends – and Daphne – into follow the other students.
Hagrid eyed the first-years for a moment, before knocking three times on the old oak door leading to the castle, the heavy wood panel opening with a muffled creaking noise.
From that point onward, events played in an all to familiar sequence.
The Transfiguration teacher introduced the students to the four houses and the point system they would use during their schooling, left them alone for a couple of minutes – during which several ghosts made a remarked entrance – and returned to lead the students to their sorting. Hermione commented on the enchanted ceiling upon entering the Great Hall, just like she'd done in the previous timeline, before freezing on the spot when the Sorting Hat started to sing.
"Showtime." happily whispered Harry.