Ben made some small talk while enjoying the feast. There was so much food on the table that Ben did not think it was possible to finish it, but he was again reminded of the crazy wizard's appetite.
Ben especially enjoyed the desserts that seemingly appeared out of nowhere after the food remaining vanished.
'Magic is the best thing ever,' he thought as he enjoyed his rice pudding.
Soon after the Headmaster stood up again.
"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."
'Yeah sure. Filled with obstacles that even first years can overcome.'
"Is he being serious about that?" Terry Boot asked Ben.
"Who knows, he seems like a nutjob to me."
Ben already knows what the old man is trying to do, he's trying to kill two birds with one stone, the sorcerer's stone.
'He wants to lure in both Voldermort and Harry Potter with the stone. He gets to test Harry and also get him to face Quirrelmort and see how effective Lily's protection really is.'
Dumbledore is shooting in the dark at this point. He has no idea how to defeat Voldermort so he might as well get Harry to face Voldermort again and see what happens, at the same time he'll be able to test Harry's character and see how he can be groomed.
One thing Fumbledore did not expect was for Harry to actually get the stone, he even tested Harry with the mirror during the Christmas holidays.
'Now he is going to spend the entire year making sure Harry and Quirellmort face each other at the end of the year, Lame.'
"And now, before we go to bed, let us sing the school song!" Said Dumbledore and then everyone sang the stupid song, only Weasly twins seemed to enjoy it at the end.
'Finally, it's over, always hated school assembly.'
Finally, the first years followed their house prefects to their common rooms. Ben seemed to hate Hogwart's school song with passion. He quietly followed Penelope Clearwater to the Ravenclaw common room on the fifth floor. Looking at all the twisted stairways that led to who knows where he realised that it was not going to be easy getting anywhere in this castle. Luckily they did not encounter Peeves way, unlike the poor Gryffindors and reached the Ravenclaw tower soon after.
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At the top of a spiral staircase located somewhere on the fifth floor, was a door without a doorknob or keyhole, but a bronze knocker in the shape of an eagle.
"This is the entrance to our Commonroom, only true Ravenclaws can enter from here."
*Knock-Knock* She knocked on the door and a voice came from the bronze knocker.
"I am neither a guest or a trespasser be, to this place I belong, it belongs also to me."
"Home," she answered and the door swung open. "See, you just have to solve the riddle to enter."
There were a lot of shocked faces and a few of them looked worried.
"Don't worry if you can't solve one, you just have to wait for someone else to come along. It happens quite frequently actually."
Ben didn't think the riddle was that hard, but then again, wizards are notorious for lacking common sense. Logic is not their strong point.
The Ravenclaw entrance allows entry to anyone that can solve the riddle and also help students learn at the same time. It seems quite fair if you think about it, anyone can enter as long as he's qualified.
Ben actually went to a school with a house system in his previous life. Since the school was at the foothills of a mountain, the houses were named after four different peaks of that mountain.
Once a week they wore their house colours and competed in different events. It evoked a bit of friendly rivalry between houses and made the events a bit more interesting.
But Ben also knew of a boarding school with houses that his friend went to and the rivalry between the houses in that school was not so friendly.
The same is the case with the Hogwarts houses, Gryffindors and Slytherins are always at each other's throats, Ravenclaws are- just there with their books and Hufflepuffs are all useless sheep. Although the truth is a lot more complex than that, it doesn't matter.
Most of the Gryffindors are hotheaded fools, Slytherin is filled with blood supremacists, Ravenclaws do love their books and Hufflepuffs do have a herd mentality. As for the deeper debate about what each house is supposed to represent and how people are more than just their house traits, Ben couldn't care less at the moment. Stereotypes exist for a reason and till that reason exists, it's better to pay heed to the stereotype.
Since Ben wanted to avoid the spotlight, the best place would be Hufflepuff, but since he also wanted to be left alone to his devices and not be dragged around by the herd, Ravenclaw was the obvious choice.
The Ravenclaw common room was one of the airiest rooms at Hogwarts. It was a wide, circular room with arched windows hung with blue and bronze silks and a midnight blue carpet covered in stars.
The room was furnished with tables, chairs, and bookcases; and by the door leading up to the dormitories stood a tall statue of Rowena Ravenclaw made of white marble.
Some of the new Ravenclaws were quickly attracted to the bookshelves, Ben, on the other hand, was too tired and was turning Grumpy.
He quickly followed the male prefect whose name he did not bother remembering, and made to his way up to the boys' dormitory.
"Our dormitories are in turrets off the main tower; our four-poster beds are covered in sky-blue silk eiderdowns and the sound of the wind whistling around the windows is very relaxing. And once again: well done on becoming a member of the cleverest, quirkiest and most interesting house at Hogwarts." Said the guy as he led them up to their dormitory.
The circular room had six four-poster beds, it was a magical castle and it can change according to the needs of its occupants. One of the walls was decorated with the Ravenclaw crest and the windows had blue curtains.
Ben found his own four-poster bed, there was a wooden nightstand next to it and his school trunk at the foot of the bed with his name on it. There were two shelves at the back of the bed, an owl perch on one side, a small carpet next to the bed and a wooden nightstand at the end of the bed on one side.
The owl perch was already occupied by Aquila, who let out a happy screech when Ben entered the room to welcome him. He gave her some treats and quickly slumped on the bed. It had been a long and tiring day, the sound of wind whistling around the windows of the tower was very relaxing and he quickly fell asleep.