Eccentric Wizard

Chapter 4: Sorting part 1

Beta read by Shigiya and DOOMRAIDER.

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-Train stop-

The train's rail wheel screeched itself to a slow halt as we reached our final destination.

People pushed their way toward the door and out onto a tiny, dark platform like a herd of sheep. I decided to wait a bit and not get accidentally squashed by the crazy horde of rambunctious kids.

My body shivered in the cold night air. Then a lamp came bobbing over the heads of the students, and I heard a familiar voice of the lovable giant from the movies.

"Firs' years! Firs' years over here! All right there, Harry?"

When he called out the name, I immediately zoned in on the so-called 'Boy who lived'. He looked a bit different from what I remembered, more scrawny than I expected and pale-skinned. Must be due to spending most of the time under the stair's cupboard. As expected, he was accompanied by the redhead Ronald Wesley and surprisingly, Neville Longbottom.

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"Pft, Longbottom…" I couldn't help but snicker at that sort of name.

From the looks of it, the boy was still searching for his toad. 'Hang in there buddy, you'll definitely find your pet soon enough.'

Now, onto Hagrid, I had to crank my head all the way up just to see his face. The man made people like Shaquille O'Neal and Yao Ming look like midgets. 'He should be near 3 meters tall or less.'

Anyways, the giant certainly looked happy and tried to be friendly with us. He tried to be as less frightening as possible to the new ones. I knew this guy's heart was as big as his size, in the movies, I always cheered whenever he would be on screen. He was and still is, my favorite character.

Hagrid's big hairy face beamed as he motioned us to follow him. "C'mon, follow me—any more firs' years? Mind yer step, now! Firs' years follow me!" He even had that thick accent of his.

Draco was nowhere to be seen.

Hermione was probably making sure no one forgot anything inside the train, knowing her character.

The kids pushed each other making some slip and fall, we followed Hagrid down what seemed to be a steep, narrow path. It was so dark on either side of them that a few even muttered that there must be thick trees there. Nobody spoke much. Neville, the boy who kept losing his toad, sniffed once or twice. Whether he was crying or had a cold was unknown to me.

"Yeh'll get yer firs' sight o' Hogwarts in a sec," Hagrid called over his shoulder, "jus' round this bend here."

There was a loud "Oooooh!"

I was one of these people, the view in front of me was just… breathtaking.

The movies couldn't do it justice.

The narrow stone path had opened suddenly onto the edge of a great black lake—reflecting the full moon on the surface—Perched atop a high mountain on the other side, its windows sparkling in the starry sky, was a vast castle with many turrets and towers. An ancient and magical palace filled with wonders beyond anyone's imagination.

I was truly living in a fairy tale.

"No more'n four to a boat!" Hagrid called, pointing to a fleet of little boats sitting in the water by the shore. I carefully boarded the small boat which looked as ancient as the castle and made me feel like I would sink or fall at any moment. I had a deep fear of the ocean, and sitting there made my heart beat like an engine.