Chapter 3
Walking through the moving train, Adam kept an eye out for familiar faces. Because, even though he didn't want to admit it, seeing all those older years and being in a new environment was quite intimidating.
It didn't take long for him to find two familiar faces in a compartment and after knocking on the door he greeted them with a smile. "Hey Cole, what's good Rosalie?"
Both occupants greeted him with a smile of their own while Adam took a seat next to Cole, across from Rosalie.
"Long time no see, Adam." Cole greeted him. "We and the others even started a bet on whether you would remember that Hogwarts starts today. I can proudly say, that I'm one of the losers." Rosalie snickered while Adam rolled his eyes as an answer to that.
Cole was one of Adams few friends that he knew since a young age and Rosalie was Coles' cousin, so they already knew each other from gatherings and play dates.
Cole Greendale was the son of one of his fathers' school friends and now business partners, so they often saw each other and became fast friends. Rosalie Brand joined them soon after her family moved back to England to support the Greendale family and start a bigger business with them. They all were, of course, purebloods.
"If I wouldn't know better, I would ask who started the bet." Adam commented drily and pulled out some sweets he had bought on his way through the train from the Trolley.
"Guilty as charged!" Cole grinned brightly and soon after they fell into a relaxed conversation, although they all couldn't completely get rid of their nervousness.
The train ride after that was a relaxed affair. They saw some familiar faces, greeted them and joked around a bit until a Prefect scolded them. All in all, it was a pleasant ride and soon it came time for them to disembark.
Adam knew they were at Hogsmeade Station, since he visited the village with his father once and his father had taken him on a short tour around the notable places. But while all the older students took carriages that seemed to have been charmed, the first years were ushered towards a giant of a man calling out to them.
"Firs' years! Firs' years to me!", the man shouted over the crowd of students and his voice seemed to reach beyond even the station. Swinging a lantern back and forth, the man made the first years stand in a little group next to him while calling out to the last few students to join them.
Adam, Cole and Rosalie quickly found familiar faces in the group like Pucey and Kraftwork, the Charlton and Weasley twins, Diggory and Belford and some other children they had seen at some Pureblood or Ministry gatherings their parents had taken them to.
Adam didn't really know any of them that well, since he avoided most of these gatherings, if possible, but he knew their family names and, with Cole and Rosalie knowing nearly everyone and greeting them, he managed to put a face to the names that were unknown before.
Finally, after the last stragglers joined them, the man, who identified himself as Hagrid the Groundskeeper, led them through a forested path towards a little dock, where many little boats were waiting for them.
"Not more than 4 on one boat! And keep your hands inside!", were the only words they got and everyone quickly shuffled into boats with people they knew or managed to befriend on the train ride. The trio of Adam, Rosalie and Cole joined a lonely girl that seemed quite shy.
Rosalie, ever the extrovert, quickly managed to make the girl open up and introduce herself as Holly Smith, a Muggleborn. They introduced themselves afterward, but Holly seemed to shrink back into herself again after learning that they were all purebloods.
It didn't take long for the boats to start moving, snuffing out any other conversations that were happening since their voices seemed to travel across the lake.
And it didn't take long before the Castle came into view and put everyone in a trance of awe.
Even Adam, who had travelled to some impressive castles with his parents, couldn't help but be fascinated at that impressive sight. But it wasn't only the sight that impressed him so much. He could literally feel the unimaginable amount of magic the Castle seemed to radiate, which was even more than Dryads Rest, a place that was visited daily by thousands of magical creatures.
Adam, still in shock and awe about this revelation, didn't even hear the warning to get down. But it seemed it wasn't even necessary, since Hagrid was the only one who needed to get down. And shortly after that they docked.
This shook Adam free of his trance and he shared a laugh with his friends and Holly while they were disembarking, both boys helping the girls out.
The group of first years didn't take long to leave their boats and Hagrid soon led them up some stairs and only came to a stop in front of two big oak doors. Seemingly the Main entrance to the castle.
After Hagrid knocked on the door and a stern looking tall witch opened them. And, after thanking Hagrid, she let them come inside. Which made everyone let out some noise of awe again, since the inside of the Castle was equally as impressive as its outsides. Or at least to some it was. Adam thought that Dyads Rest was more impressive concerning interior design.
The Witch, giving them a short moment to take their surroundings in, cleared her throat and brought attention back to her.
"Welcome to Hogwarts.", she began. "I'm Professor McGonagall, the Deputy Headmistress, Head of House Gryffindor and Transfiguration Mistress." Adams eyebrows shot up at that last title. Being a Master or Mistress of a subject was no small matter.
"The Banquet will start shortly, but before that your sorting ceremony will happen. This ceremony is one of the most important, if not THE most important, ceremony you will experience during your school carrier, so I will accept nothing but your best behavior. The sorting will also decide in which house you will stay for the next seven years of your life and here in Hogwarts, our House is seen like our Family while we're here.
The 4 Houses are Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff and Slytherin. All have their own long history, traditions and benefits. Every House has produced outstanding Wizards and Witches throughout history, so don't think that one House is better than the others.
Throughout your school carrier, you will earn points for your House through your great engagement in classes, but you can equally lose your House points for breaking rules or bad behavior. And, at the end of the year, the House with the most Points will win the House cup, which many see as even more important than the Quidditch cup.
Now smarten yourselves up a bit and I will pick you up in a few minutes."
Professor McGonagall left after that, leaving behind a stunned group of first years, who tried to comprehend what they had just heard.
"Soooo… What House are we joining?" Cole broke the quietness with his question towards Rosalie and Adam, causing the breakout of quite a few other conversations.
"It's a sorting ceremony, Cole. We probably won't be able to decide which House we want to join." Adam answered while gifting his friend an eyeroll.
"Maybe it will be a personality test?" Rosalie threw in and Adam nodded with a thoughtful expression.
"Yeah, that could be possibly. Even though I can't imagine living 7 years with people that have a similar personality to mine." Cole shuddered dramatically. "You're already too much for me, Rose. Just imagine more of us!"
While Adam laughed, Rosalie started kicking Cole in the shins who tried to flee from her, quickly becoming the cause for easing up some of the more nervous new students.
So, it came to be that Professor McGonagall arrived to the view of Rosalie chasing Cole while two redheaded twins were cheering them both on.
With a heavy sigh and some muttered words no one could hear, she quickly put a stop to the chase and gave all of them a stern gaze before leading them through another set of impressive double doors and into the Great Hall.
Adam, already having read about the Great Hall, was more subdued in his appreciation for the sights that bore open to them. But even he felt nervous under the stares of hundreds of pairs of eyes.
They were made to line up in front of the Teachers table while Professor McGonagall put an old chair in front of them and an even older looking hat on the chair.
And, to every new students' shock, the Hat started to sing. It wasn't really a good song, but it was quite informative and gave everyone an idea of what to expect from the Hogwarts Houses.
"When I call out your name, take a seat and put the hat on. Ailsworth, Isabella!"
A short, brown-haired girl step out of the row and took a seat on the chair. Professor McGonagall put the hat on her head, but it didn't even take a few seconds before the Hat called out "Slytherin!" loudly and cheers erupted at the Slytherin table.
Isabella, who Adam knew through Rosalie, rushed to the Slytherin table in rush but measured steps, her excitement clear to see.
And so, it went on, with the next person being Josh Ashworth, who joined Isabella at the Slytherin table. The third person, Ashley Barton, put a stop to that and went to Hufflepuff.
Adam kept the names in his head so he could remember them, which wasn't hard with his great memory. There were 8 students who got sorted before him, one of them being Rosalie who had joined Gryffindor and the last two being the Charlton twins who both went to Slytherin, and then it was his turn.
"Cromwell, Adam!"
Adam could feel the change in some gazes when he stepped forward. It didn't surprise him, since the Dryads Haven was famous throughout the world, but it still unnerved him.
Trying not to let the nerves get to him, he took a seat on the chair and, with a last look at the students, closed his eyes when he felt the Hat being placed on his head.
"Interesting mind, young one." Adams eyes flew open again, but he could only see darkness. The hat had evidently covered his eyes, like with every other student before him, because it was so big.
"I'm not THAT big… right?" The voice came again and this time Adam managed to figure out who was talking to him. And since the voice was coming from right beside his ears, it was clear who was talking to him.
"Quick deduction and able to keep a cool head even when scared. Fitting for three houses at once. And with what I have seen until now, I could see you blooming in all four houses."
'How are you reading my mind?', Adam thought to himself, not wanting to talk out loud to the head. No one else had said anything while wearing the hat after all.
"With powerful magic of course!" The Hat answered and laughed when it sensed Adams displeasure. "I'm Godric Gryffindors Hat, Mister Cromwell. The four founders enchanted me with such powerful magic, that no wizard or witch since then managed to discover my secrets. But looking into the minds of children can be quite personal, which is why I won't recall any of your memories after the sorting and I wouldn't be able to share anything about you, even if I wanted to."
Adam, smart as he was, gave up on learning more about the head and just waited patiently to be sorted. Even though his mind couldn't stop coming up with possible theories on how it was able to read his mind and where to start with his research.
"Mind magic is not common knowledge and you won't find much here in Hogwarts, but the subject you will be searching for is called Legilimency. But I would recommend reading about Occlumency first, since that subject correlates with it and its easier to research.
And now, young Mister Cromwell, where would you like to go?"
'I can choose?'
"Of course you can! Every student from magical families almost always already has a preference and I take it into consideration, if they fit the criteria. And, like I said, you could fit quite well int every house, though I think you would do best in either Slytherin or Ravenclaw."
Adam took a moment to consider his options. He, of course, already had prior knowledge about the Houses and even studied some of the more prominent figures from each House and read some Biographies. And, while the Hat didn't lie and he could see himself in every house, he didn't really have the recklessness of Gryffindors or the unwavering loyalty of Hufflepuffs. His loyalty had to be earned, just like how he wouldn't expect everyone to be loyal to him just because they were in the same House. That brought him to the same conclusion as the Hat and he had to think really hard about this one.
He knew, as the sole Heir of the Cromwell family, that the smartest choice would be joining Slytherin. Many friendships or contacts for the future could be made there, according to his father and the books he'd read. But Adam couldn't really see himself networking most of his time here.
His main goal coming to Hogwarts was to learn as much as he could. But networking was still important and Adam was nothing if not ambitious. Otherwise, he would have considered his mothers' offer to join Beauxbatons, since they had an equally impressive Library with many exceptional Professors and guest Tutors like the Flamels.
'Would it hinder my goals if I join Ravenclaw?' Adam finally asked.
"No.", came the simple answer and it finalized Adams choice. "Then let's put you into RAVENCLAW!"
The last words were spoken out loud for the Hall to hear and, after Professor McGonagall pulled off the Hat, Adam was greeted with the sight of a table full of jubilant students, welcoming him into their midst.
With a quick thank you to the Professor, Adam joined his new Housemates at their table and, after a quick greeting to his seat neighbors, he searched for Rosalies' gaze and gave her a grin which she returned.
Since Adam was the first new Ravenclaw, he was curious to know who would join him.