Hogwarts: Voldemort, don't stop me from studying!

The second row of tables on the left began to clap, the applause quite restrained. Wade sighed inwardly, took off his hat, and walked towards the table decorated in cyan and blue.

—The rigid Sorting Hat! So what if someone isn't honest, hardworking, or upright? I like making friends with honest, hardworking, and upright people, is that wrong?

Several Ravenclaw students stood up and shook hands with him. The boy in the lead said, "Welcome to Ravenclaw. I am West Moore, the Prefect."

Another boy leaned over and said, "Your name is Wade Gray? You'd be a perfect fit for our college!"

“What do you mean?” Wade asked.

“Oh, Benson, don’t tell that joke,” West said helplessly, as if remembering something.

Benson winked and said, "Because our school ghost is also called Grey—Ms. Grey."

Wade looked at him, and after a few seconds slowly said, "...Oh, so what?"

Benson: "..."

West shoved the boy's head back: "I told you long ago, don't try to be like the Weasley twins, you don't have any comedic blood."

Benson slumped onto the table, looking utterly dejected. Wade found his expression rather comical.

He sat in his seat and looked around.

No introductions are needed; in his eyes, everyone around him has a name (or two) above their heads. However, Vader barely recognizes anyone from Ravenclaw, probably because they weren't mentioned in the story. The only exception is a very cute black-haired girl not far across from him—Cho Chang—who is watching the Sorting Center freshmen and doesn't notice Vader's gaze.

The people in the faculty seat were compared to those in their memories—the silver-haired, long-bearded Albus Dumbledore, the sallow-faced, greasy-haired Severus Snape, the short, three-year-old-like Flitwick, the neurotic Sybil Trelawney, the chubby Professor Sprout, and Quirinus Quirrell and Tom Riddle, whose faces were two different things.

Of course, Wade, sitting at the Ravenclaw table, was like a ghost, and the professors didn't pay any attention to him.

The branching ceremony is still ongoing.

"Michael Corner!"

"Ravenclaw!"

Before Wade, a blond boy named Anthony, sorted into Ravenclaw, was excitedly greeting everyone. Shortly after, a boy with long, curly black hair named Michael Corner arrived and sat next to Wade. Then came Padma Petil, the younger of two Indian twin sisters; her older sister, Parvati Petil, had been sorted into Gryffindor.

There weren't many new students in Ravenclaw, only about ten at a time. The new students cautiously yet excitedly observed their surroundings until a name suddenly rang out—

"Harry Potter!"

The entire auditorium fell silent for a moment, followed by a buzzing of discussion.

"Potter? Harry Potter?"

"Is that Harry Potter?"

At the Ravenclaw table, some students who were usually aloof and didn't pay much attention to the new students couldn't help but turn around and crane their necks to look at the dark-haired boy who walked up to the Sorting Hat.

When he put on the hat, many people held their breath, from Gryffindor to Slytherin, from Headmaster Dumbledore to the castle caretaker Filch standing at the door, everyone was looking at the dirty hat and the little boy whose face was mostly covered by it.

The voices gradually faded.

finally--

"Gryffindor!"

The Sorting Hat shouted, and the Great Hall erupted in cheers and applause. The Gryffindors were the loudest, but almost all the Ravenclaws were also clapping—a treatment that no one else received during their sorting.

“I knew he’d go to Gryffindor!” Benson said to West seriously. “Of course Harry Potter would go to Gryffindor, where else could he go?”

“Shut up, Benson. You were saying two months ago that Harry Potter was a character in a book and didn’t actually exist!” West rolled his eyes.

As the last freshman was sorted into Slytherin, Professor McGonagall left with the Sorting Hat on, and Dumbledore stood up and opened his arms.

"Welcome!" he said. "Welcome everyone to Hogwarts for the start of a new school year! Before the feast begins, I'd like to say a few words. These are: Idiots! Crybabies! Trash! Twisters! Thank you all!"

Upon hearing this classic opening, Wade clapped enthusiastically.

“What does he mean?” asked Michael, who was sitting next to him.

“I don’t know,” Wade said.

"Then you clap?" Michael asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Such a short speech, isn't it worthy of applause?" Wade retorted.

Michael thought for a moment and then agreed: "You're right!"

Amidst enthusiastic applause and cheers, the once empty long table was soon filled with food, including roast beef, lamb chops, potato chips, mashed potatoes, and more. Although there were fewer vegetables, the aroma was rich and the food looked delicious.

The students, who had been starving for a long time, immediately began to eat heartily. After almost everyone was full, the main course disappeared, and many desserts appeared on the long table. The students, whose stomachs were full, had to slow down their eating and also made time to chat with those around them.

The conversations about the new students naturally centered on their family background and lineage.

A boy named Stephen said, "I was born into a pure-blood family. My mother is a Ravenclaw and my father is a Gryffindor. I've already read all the textbooks in school at home."

"And you, Wade?" someone asked.

Wade frankly stated, "Neither of my parents knew magic."

"Magic must be a completely foreign field to you, right?" Stephen said in a sympathetic tone. "You'll have to work a little harder at school."

"Yes, I will try my best," Wade said with a smile.

“Although I am of mixed race, I don’t think it matters whether I’m pure-blooded or Mongoloid.” Michael said to Wade, “For example, in my family, my father is a wizard, but he’s not as smart as my mother. My mother makes all the decisions in the family.”

Wade Gray's surname starts with "G", Hermione Granger's with "Granger", and Harry Potter's surname starts with "P" instead of "B". Therefore, Wade was in the Sorting House after Hermione and before Harry.

Chapter 8 A Letter

Dear Mom and Dad:

Although I've only just left home, I already miss you all. I hope you are all in good health and happiness.

Yesterday we arrived at Hogwarts on a deep red steam train. The school is a magnificent castle, surrounded by meadows, forests, and lakes. I must say, the scenery here in the early morning is absolutely enchanting.

We arrived at the school in the evening, and the first thing we did was sort our houses. As you probably know, Hogwarts is divided into four houses—the brave and generous Gryffindor, the honest and loyal Hufflepuff, the wise and learned Ravenclaw, and the ambitious Slytherin…

At this point, Wade paused slightly with his pen.

He suddenly realized that of the four houses, the other three valued students' character during admissions, while Ravenclaw only required ability.

So... the clever and brave might go to Gryffindor, like Dumbledore and Hermione; the clever and loyal might be accepted by Hufflepuff, like Scamander (the protagonist of the Fantastic Beasts series) and Cedric; and the clever and ambitious might be in Slytherin, like Voldemort and Snape.

So what about the "smart people" who stay in Ravenclaw? They may be intelligent and quick-witted, but smart people are often better at maximizing their own interests and minimizing their own risks. They are also more likely to back down in the face of difficulties and dangers and choose the easier and more advantageous path.

To achieve something, besides intelligence, spiritual qualities are the core of driving force—either be courageous, persevering, or ambitious. Intelligent people who are immersed in their own world and do things their own way often only become oddballs in the eyes of others.

Therefore, in the storyline, Ravenclaw is the least prominent of the four houses at Hogwarts. The Ravenclaw members who appear—whether currently enrolled or already graduated—are all somewhat neurotic, except for Cho Chang.

Wade frowned slightly, displeased, at the Sorting Hat's assessment that Ravenclaw was the best fit. Then he thought—who he was wasn't something a hat could determine. Besides, the Sorting Hat had made mistakes more than once; for example, it had sorted the cowardly Peter Pedyru into Gryffindor.

Wade paused for a moment, then continued writing—

A talking hat landed me in Ravenclaw, which I suppose is the best recognition of my intellect. I do intend to learn as much as possible during my seven years there, because I've heard that no place in all of England has a richer collection of books than Hogwarts. It must be said, the wizarding world is far less farsighted in this respect than the Muggle government; there are no public libraries here, and precious books are either kept in the school or in the private studies of certain noble families.

Headmaster Albus Dumbledore was a rather peculiar man. He had long, silver-white hair and a silver-white beard, and his demeanor was exactly like the enigmatic wizard people imagined—he was practically a living Merlin. Can you imagine? His opening speech at the commencement ceremony consisted of: "Idiot! Crybaby! Trash! Twist!" Probably no one knew what he meant. But even though it was incomprehensible, it was much better than that long, boring speech. Because after he finished speaking, a lot of delicious food appeared on our tables (yes, it appeared suddenly; magic is truly amazing), and by then we were all very hungry.

While somewhat eccentric, this professor was also incredibly humorous, kind, and gentle; he was also the greatest wizard of our time. A classmate from a wizarding family told me that because of Dumbledore, Hogwarts was widely considered the safest place in the world. So you don't need to worry about me encountering any danger at school, and the students here won't randomly cast curses at others; they're no different from kids in ordinary schools.

In addition, my Ravenclaw house has a separate tower located on the west side of the castle. After dinner, the prefects led us to the tower, where we had to answer the door knocker's questions correctly to enter the common room. The common room was a very spacious circular room with a deep blue dome painted with many stars, and thick carpets also covered with stars, giving it a tranquil and elegant feel. There were many arched windows around the room, with bronze silk hanging down, through which we could see the distant mountains and fields, as well as the school's Quidditch pitch.

The dormitories are in the corner tower next to the tower—and I must say, getting back to the dorms involves climbing a lot of stairs. However, the upperclassmen say that the school's stairs are generally friendly to Ravenclaw students, they don't move around and play tricks on us, and sometimes they even create a shortcut, saving us at least half the distance—perhaps because the ever-changing staircases in the castle were all designed by the school's founder, Madam Ravenclaw.

Ravenclaw has the fewest students of the four houses, and the dorms are double rooms. There was just one extra male student, so... as you might have guessed, I seized the opportunity and quickly applied, and luckily got a single room.

The dormitory had warm beds, wardrobes, desks, and bookshelves, as well as a separate bathroom; all necessities were provided. We didn't need to do laundry or clean the rooms; a group of invisible little helpers were there, and when we woke up, everything was perfectly organized. My suitcase was probably delivered to the dormitory by them; thank goodness, I didn't have to carry it up the spiral staircase myself.

The students in the college are all very easy to get along with, and Prefect West is very considerate of the freshmen. Because he was worried that some students might get lost, he waited for us in the common room early this morning and took us to the Great Hall for breakfast. He also gave us our class schedules for the semester—I must say, the coursework is very easy, which is the least of our worries.

After breakfast, Prefect West took us on a walk around the school, telling us where to go for each class, which places were off-limits, and shortcuts to places like the library, the infirmary, and the Quidditch pitch.

Soon we'll have flying lessons, and I'll be riding a flying broomstick for the first time—exciting, isn't it? I never imagined before that we humans could soar through the sky like birds—of course, I'll follow the professor's instructions, be careful, and avoid getting hurt.

Finally, I want to say that Hogwarts is a truly wonderful school! I love it here.

Love you all—

Wade Gray

Having lived two lives, Wade wasn't as carefree as ordinary children. He knew very well how much parents who love their children worry when they leave home. So, during a little free time before class, Wade meticulously wrote down everything that happened at school, big and small, and even hand-drew a simple map of the school's layout, which he tucked into the letter. After finishing the letter, Wade reviewed it again, changing "ambitious" to "shrewd and proud."

It wasn't that I wanted to praise Slytherin House, but I didn't want my parents to discover the potential conflict between the houses from my choice of words and sentences, and then start to worry about my situation—because the Greys' impression of the wizarding world was still stuck in the era of the Dark Lord's rampage. After Wade received his Hogwarts acceptance letter, they had been secretly feeling guilty and worried about his Squib status.

Wade wanted to tell them—it's okay, the war is over, bloodline theory is no longer mainstream, everything is fine at Hogwarts now, his birth is not an obstacle for him, and his parents are not a burden for him.

He was always filled with gratitude to be their child.

Chapter 9 Potions Class

The Hogwarts first-year curriculum is very relaxed. For example, on Monday, Wade only has two consecutive Potions classes in the morning.

After breakfast, a group of Ravenclaw freshmen walked together toward the underground classrooms. As the environment gradually became cold and gloomy, the students' faces also gradually turned pale.

"I heard that Professor Snape, who teaches Potions, is the Head of Slytherin House." Michael, walking next to Wade, struck up a conversation to ease the tension. "You guys noticed him during the Sorting Ceremony last night, didn't you? He's that black-haired, hook-nosed teacher."

“Of course,” Padma said. “I must say, we’d better not mess with him.”

The group entered the Potions classroom in silence. Rows of glass jars filled with various animal specimens lined the cabinets against the wall. Some of the more timid children looked on, seemingly on the verge of tears, and sat tremblingly in the seats furthest from the specimens. Wade, however, chose a corner seat—he wasn't afraid of the dead specimens, but he was worried that some classmates might make a mistake and implicate him.

Soon, the Hufflepuff students arrived in droves, their reactions similar to those of the Ravenclaw newcomers. However, the Ravenclaws who arrived first had already secured advantageous positions, forcing the Hufflepuff students to disperse to the perimeter.

Two Hufflepuff students have appeared near the previously empty corner of the building.