Chapter 21: Roommates
Chapter 21: Roommates
"Now, before we retire for the night, let's all sing the school song together!" Dumbledore raised his wand and gave it a light tap. Golden ribbons twisted in the air, forming floating words before the gathered students and staff.
The Hogwarts choir took their places, including the prefect standing next to Albert. Several choir members in the front row held large toads in their arms.
As Dumbledore waved his wand, the entire hall joined in, singing the school song to their own individual beats.
Albert pretended to sing along, moving his lips without making a sound.
It was an embarrassing song, and no wonder the professors on the teacher's platform wore stiff expressions, clearly reluctant participants.
It was one thing for the children to sing, but for a group of adults to join in, it felt utterly mortifying! "Hogwarts, Hogwarts..." Beside Albert, the mischievous Weasley twins sang to the tune of a funeral march, their rhythm completely off from the rest. The freshmen around them shot them curious glances.
"...We'll work hard until we turn to dust." Even after the song ended, the twins continued to sing, prompting Albert to feel an urge to cover his face and pretend he didn't know them.
Once the last notes of the song faded, Dumbledore dismissed everyone to get some rest.
The feast finally came to an end, and everyone rushed out, causing a momentary traffic jam.
Now Albert understood why the freshmen had been made to go first.
If they had followed the older students, who knew where they might have ended up? He imagined a Gryffindor student accidentally falling in with the Hufflepuffs and making their way to the Hufflepuff common room, only to realize their mistake at the very end. What a hilarious scene that would be! "Freshmen, follow me." Their guide was the prefect who had just performed on stage.
He led them through the noisy crowd, out of the Great Hall, and up the marble staircase, where they parted ways with the new students from the other houses.
The group of freshmen made their way down the corridors, circling the castle instead of taking the legendary moving staircases.
The corridors were lined with many paintings, and the figures within whispered to each other as the students passed by, some even greeting them.
The prefect led the freshmen through the castle, and one could never guess where the entrances were.
A closed wooden door loomed ahead, but they passed through a stone door on the opposite side. Some doors required one to touch a specific spot for them to open, while others were hidden behind curtains or paintings. But the worst were the trick stairs, where one had to step over a particular step, or their foot would sink into it, just like what had happened to an unlucky student a moment ago.
It was a disaster for newcomers.
"Are you alright?" Albert reached out and pulled Lee Jordan out of the stair he had stumbled into.
"Not really," Lee Jordan grumbled. "I got startled just now. Why does the school have so many weird things?"
"I think it's interesting, don't you, George?"
"Definitely," the twin replied.
"These are remnants from the past, now a unique feature of Hogwarts," Albert explained. "Come on, let's keep up. I don't want to get lost."
After what felt like an eternity of walking, Albert's legs were starting to feel sore when they finally reached the eighth floor. They made their way down a long corridor to its end, where a portrait of an extremely plump woman hung. Undoubtedly, this was the legendary Fat Lady, the guardian of the Gryffindor tower.
"Password?" she asked.
"Gibberish," the prefect replied. The portrait swung open like a door, revealing a round hole behind it.
Without rushing in, the prefect turned to the freshmen and said, "You must remember the password. Only by giving the correct password to the Fat Lady can you enter the common room. The current password is Gibberish."
After his explanation, the prefect led the group through the wall, into the Gryffindor common room.
It was a large, old-fashioned circular room filled with sofas. In one corner, a fireplace blazed brightly, with stacks of firewood beside it. Several students were chatting on the sofas, and they waved at the newcomers.
"You're lucky. Tomorrow is Saturday, so there are no classes. Take this opportunity to get to know the castle. It's more complex than you might think, and it's best to figure out the classroom locations quickly if you don't want to get lost," the prefect advised, pointing to two doors. "Ladies, that way. Boys, follow me."
After greeting the other female prefect, he led Albert and the others through the door and down a narrow spiral staircase. Along the way, they passed many doors, and the prefect introduced the freshmen rooms, washrooms, and bathrooms.
Of course, the washrooms and bathrooms were communal, thankfully with stalls for privacy.
As for their individual rooms, they would have to find them themselves, as the doors were marked with specific names.
Albert, the Weasley twins, and Lee Jordan shared a room with only four of them.
The room wasn't large, with four curtained beds, each with their luggage at the bedside.
Albert easily found his trunk and, stifling a yawn, changed into his pajamas.
"Nice to meet you all," Albert said with a smile.
"Nice to meet you too," the other three replied, looking at each other and bursting into laughter.
"Tomorrow, I plan to explore the castle. Are you guys in?" Albert took out his camera, stepping back to snap a photo of their dormitory.
"Count us in. Remember to wake us up in the morning," the twins said in unison, glancing at each other.
"What about you?" The three of them looked at Lee Jordan.
"Of course, I'm in too. Don't want to be left out," the black boy replied.
"Good night."
Lying in bed, Albert felt sleepy but couldn't quite fall asleep. He often had trouble sleeping when he was in a new place.
The others didn't seem to have this problem. Full and content, they quickly dozed off after lying down.
Albert turned on his side and opened his task panel. His exploration progress had already reached 3%.
He wondered how much it would increase if he explored the castle tomorrow. He flipped through his skill list, which spanned several pages.
Most of his magic skills were only at Level 1, and a few remained unlearned.
Looking at the skills that were still at Level 0, Albert felt an urge to spend his experience points and raise them to Level 1.
It was a bad habit left over from his gaming days, always wanting to max out his skills.
Albert took a deep breath and closed the panel, not wanting to accidentally spend all his hard-earned experience points. Those points were crucial to his future.
In a daze, Albert fell asleep and dreamed of his past life, of himself reading a Harry Potter book for the first time.
"Is all of this a dream?"
No, it wasn't a dream. Ever since he had opened his eyes after death, he had confirmed it time and again.
This was not a dream.
He felt like an author of fanfiction, creating yet another Harry Potter fan story. But this time, he couldn't depict his wildest fantasies like fanfiction authors did.
Ah, being a literary youth is a disease.
The Head Boy led the way, and they all filed through the wall, entering the Gryffindor common room.
It was a spacious, circular room with numerous sofas. In one corner, a fireplace roared with a cozy fire, next to which was a stack of logs, while a few students lounged on the sofas, chatting. They waved at the newcomers, who had just entered.
"You're in luck," the Head Boy said. "Tomorrow's Saturday, so no classes. Take this opportunity to get to know the castle. It's more complex than you think, and you don't want to get lost. Familiarize yourselves with the classrooms." With that, he pointed to two doors. "Ladies, that way. Gentlemen, follow me."
After a quick greeting to the other Head Girl, he led Albert and the others through another door and down a narrow, spiral staircase. They passed numerous doors along the way, and the Head Boy took the time to point out the new students' rooms, as well as the washrooms and bathrooms.
Of course, these facilities were shared, but thankfully, the bathrooms had stalls.
As for their individual rooms, they would have to find them themselves, as the doors were marked with names.
Albert, the Weasley twins, and Lee Jordan shared a room with only four occupants.
The room was modestly sized, with four curtained beds, each accompanied by their luggage.
Albert easily spotted his trunk and, stifling a yawn, changed into his pajamas.
"Well, let's get to know each other then," Albert said with a smile, greeting his roommates.
"Likewise," the other three said, exchanging glances and bursting into laughter.
"I plan to explore the castle tomorrow. Anyone interested in joining me?" Albert asked, retrieving his camera from his trunk and taking a photo of their dormitory.
"Count us in," the Weasley twins said in unison, looking at each other.
"What about you?" They all turned to Lee Jordan.
"Of course, I don't want to be left out," the black-haired boy replied.
"Good night, then."
Lying in bed, Albert felt sleepy, but for some reason, he couldn't fall asleep. He often had trouble sleeping when he was in a new place.
His roommates, however, seemed unaffected by this issue. Full and content, they quickly dozed off soon after lying down.
Albert rolled onto his side and opened his task panel. His exploration progress had already reached 3%.
He wondered how much it would increase if he explored the castle tomorrow. Flipping through his skill list, which spanned several pages, he noticed that most of his magic skills were only at Level 1, and some hadn't even been learned yet.
Seeing all the unlearned skills at Level 0, Albert felt an urge to spend his experience points and raise them to Level 1. It was a bad habit he had picked up from playing games, always wanting to max out his skills.
Albert took a deep breath and closed the panel, not wanting to accidentally squander all his hard-earned experience points, which could significantly impact his future.
In his half-asleep state, Albert dozed off and dreamed of his past life, of the moment he first read a Harry Potter book.
"Is all of this a dream?"
No, it wasn't a dream. He had confirmed it time and time again since the moment he reopened his eyes after his death.
This wasn't a dream.
He felt like an author of a fanfiction, creating his own Harry Potter story. But this time, he couldn't depict whatever he wanted like the original author.
Ah, being a literary youth is a disease.
(End of Chapter)
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