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Quinn walked into the Great Hall, once again taking in the grandness of the hall, and made his way to Ravenclaw bench. He looked at the long bench of Hogwarts robes customized to contain Ravenclaw colors. Robes had blue linings, a Ravenclaw symbol on the left chest, and a blue tie with white and silver stripes. Quinn, too, was wearing the same robes; last year, the house-elves had customized Quinn's robes on his first night at Hogwarts. Quinn had taken a liking to the Ravenclaw blue after wearing it every day.
Quinn searched for his roommates and found them. Eddie Carmichael and Marcus Belby, Ravenclaws from the same year as Quinn. He made a beeline towards them and smiled when he saw their seating arrangement. As usual, Eddie was sitting opposite Marcus, prepared to stay away from his terrible eating habits. Quinn also made the same decision and walked to Eddie's side. He patted Eddie on his back as he sat beside him. "Good to see you again, guys. How are you two?" said Quinn in greeting.
"Hey, Quinn, where were you? I didn't see you on the train," asked Eddie from his side. "Oh, I got early and sat down before the Potters got to the platform," answered Quinn.
"You could have come to see me," complained Eddie. Quinn shrugged and responded, "I forgot, I had some interesting company. And, you could have done the same; I didn't see you coming to me." Both the boys looked at each other before smiling and dapping in greeting.
"Oh, I got a little late at the platform. Believe me when I say that for a second, I wasn't sure if I would be able to make it aboard the train. The crowd to see the Potters was crazy," Marcus shared his experience of the morning at the platform.
Eddie leaned towards Marcus and asked, "So, did you see the Potters? I wasn't able to see them. I did go to their compartment, but they had drawn the curtains."
Marcus shook his head, and Quinn spoke, "Hey, I saw Ivy Potter, Boy-Who-Lived's twin sister. She came to my compartment looking for a toad."
Eddie, Marcus, and other Ravenclaw near them leaned towards Quinn for more details. "A toad?" asked Marcus.
Quinn told nodded and told them about her, that she had red hair and green eyes and that the train announcement was his idea, but nothing of the interaction that she and Daphne had; that stuff was personal.
As time passed, Quinn also greeted other Ravenclaw as they arrived in the Great Hall.
"Chang and Edgecombe, how are you two girls doing? Did anything fun in the break?" Quinn made small talk with Cho Chang and Marietta Edgecombe, who stopped by for saying hi.
"I went to Italy with my family. How about you?" chatted Cho.
"Oh! Italy, beautiful country, isn't it? Did you go to the Vatican?" asked Quinn and shrugged in response, "Na, I didn't go anywhere this year. My family was busy this summer. But I did have a lot of fun. Did a lot of reading. "
He also congratulated Penelope Clearwater when he saw her. "Clearwater is that a prefect badge I see. Congratulation, you deserve it."
Penelope smiled and replied, "Thank you, Quinn. I hope I won't be seeing you out after curfew." Quinn put on an innocent expression and said, "What? I am always in the common room after curfew. You know I love to follow the rules."
She swatted his shoulder and shoulder, "Stop with that look. You are always the last one to enter the common room. Most of the time, you come back in is after curfew. So, please don't let me catch you, or I would have to give you a detention."
Quinn shrugged and proudly said, "Oh, come on. I start my day early and end it late. You should look at with positivity, recognize my hard work that would make a Hufflepuff proud."
She shook his head and commented, "Or, a silver tongue that would make a Slytherin proud." Quinn winked and smiled, "Prefect Clearwater, you are giving me a poor reputation; I call it smooth-talking and not a silver tongue. It is one of my good points."
She sighed and relented, "Only you, West. Only you." She left but not before saying, "But, I will still give you a detention if I see you."
After a little while, Quinn was looking around when he saw someone enter the hall, and Quinn wasn't sure what to make of it. He truly wasn't expecting this person to be here. Quinn watched as Lily Potter entered the Great Hall and walked to the staff's High Table. The student body murmured, seeing Lily Potter, and whispered among themselves.
After wrapping his head around seeing Lily Potter at Hogwarts, most definitely as a new teacher, Quinn laughed... hard.
Eddie looked at Quinn and asked, "Why are you laughing?" Quinn shook his head and chuckled to himself, "It's nothing. This is all so amusing to me. Right, amusing. We were already getting two Potter. One more isn't nothing to worry about." Quinn looked at Dumbledore chatting with Lily and thought, 'Oh, Dumbledore, you clever old goat.'
In Quinn's mind, Lily Potter being here was an obvious attempt from Dumbledore to keep the Potters close. He wanted to have maximum influence over the Potters, and what better way than to allow Lily Potter to stay close to her children. Potters already held Dumbledore in high regards, and with this, he had done them another substantial favor.
Quinn also glanced at Quirinus Quirrell. He was wearing a turban and fidgeted in his chair. Quinn looked at the turban and could imagine Voldemort's face on the back of Quirrell's head. The canon was afoot, and Quinn was here at ground zero.
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When all the students, second-year and above, settled down in their house long-tables, McGonagall came to the Great Hall and announced, "The new first-years are ready and waiting in the Antechamber, so please behave and support them as they get sorted."
And then McGonagall led the new students into the Great Hall. With McGonagall in the lead, the new first-years walked in a line, taking in the grand sight of the Great Hall, forgetting their nervousness for just a moment.
When the students reached the front of the hall, they gathered just below the steps that led to the High Table. Seeing them look all nervous made Quinn's heart swell.
"Look at their expressions; they all look so nervous," said Quinn as he smiled. Marcus looked at him with doubt and asked, "And that makes you happy?" Quinn nodded and smiled widely, "Yeah!"
The sorting hat sang its introductory song, but Quinn didn't join the rest of the school in applause as he associated the hat with bad memories, and last year on that stool made him feel exposed.
The sorting finally started, and Eddie looked at Marcus and Quinn, "Remember your bets. The first student of this year will go to which house. I choose Ravenclaw, Marcus choose Gryffindor, and Quinn chose Hufflepuff. The winner gets five sickles from the other two. Put the money on the table." Quinn had proposed a bet among his roommates, and they had enthusiastically agreed to it. The surrounding people also heard them and began betting with each other. Soon the entire student body was betting.
McGonagall unrolled a roll of parchment and spoke the first name, "Abbot, Hannah." A pink-faced girl with blonde pigtails stumbled out of line. McGonagall put the hat on her, which fell right down over her eyes, and sat down. After a pause, the hat shouted, "HUFFLEPUFF!"
Quinn smiled and collected the money on the table, "Payday~." Then he looked at his two friends and purposed another wager, "How about this, If I guess thirty students' houses correctly, you two will give me half-galleon, but if I get even one less than thirty, I will give you both a galleon each. How about it, deal?" He placed two galleons on the table.
The two looked at each other and nodded. Both pulled eight sickles and fifteen knuts out of their pockets and placed them on the table. Eddie looked at Quinn and repeated, "Thirty and no less."
Quinn smiled and said, "Get ready boys, you are about to see something truly magical. Also, the first girl that went Hufflepuff is included."
Quinn rubbed his hands. He saw Susan Bones go up the steps and said, "Hufflepuff." The next moment the hat yelled, "HUFFLEPUFF." Then Quinn advantage of his knowledge and nailed the houses of every character he recognized.
"Ravenclaw." "Boot, Terry." "RAVENCLAW!"
"Ravenclaw." "Brocklehurst, Mandy." "RAVENCLAW!"
"Gryffindor." "Brown, Lavender." "GRYFFINDOR!"
"Slytherin. "Bulstrode, Millicent." "SLYTHERIN!"
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"Oh, I am not sure about this one but, Slytherin." "Davis, Tracey." "SLYTHERIN!"
"Another Badger, Hufflepuff." "Finch-Fletchley, Justin." "HUFFLEPUFF!"
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"Gryffindor." "Finnigan, Seamus." "GRYFFINDOR!"
"Definitely, absolutely, one hundred percent sure, Gryffindor." "Granger, Hermione." "GRYFFINDOR!"
"Ah, she is the classic Slytherin material and the better kind!" "Greengrass, Daphne." "SLYTHERIN!"
"Sigh, the big guy is going to Slytherin." "Goyle, Gregory." "SLYTHERIN!"
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"Our housemate, a prestigious Ravenclaw." "Li, Sue." "RAVENCLAW!"
"He looks like he is about to wet his pant. You know what, Gryffindor!" "Longbottom, Neville." "GRYFFINDOR!"
"Hmm... Hufflepuff." "MacDougal, Morag." "HUFFLEPUFF!"
"Slytherin, no other choice. A pity for the Slytherin house. Well, at least they would have money." "Malfoy, Draco." "SLYTHERIN!"
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"Looks like a typical Slytherin." "Nott, Theodore." "SLYTHERIN!"
"Slytherin all the way." "Parkinson, Pancy." "SLYTHERIN!"
"She feels like a Ravenclaw." "Patil, Padma." "RAVENCLAW!"
"Twins, huh? Gryffindor!" "Patil, Parvati." "GRYFFINDOR!"
By the time Quinn had gotten ten students correct, the entirety of Ravenclaw table was hanging onto his every word. Quinn's predictions were passed onto the entire table via word of mouth. Because of Quinn, the Ravenclaw table had the most fun during the sorting ceremony.
On the staff's High Table, Lily Potter was sitting beside her favorite teacher, Filius Flitwick. She noticed how the Ravenclaw table was ooh-ing, aww-ing, and clapping for every student. Even for those who were being sorted into Slytherin. She knew how intense the house rivalry could be. In fact, the cheers were increasing with every student.
Lily turned to the Flitwick and said, "Professor, your students are showing great inter-house unity; they are cheering so enthusiastically for every student. It is quite nice to see it; In my time, only the house cheered for their sorties. I am impressed that you were able to teach them to rise above house rivalry."
Flitwick also noticed his house table, and after listening to his new former student now colleague's praise, he felt pride as Ravenclaw's head of the house. He didn't know what was the difference this year, but he was happy about it. It would be quite a shock for him when he would later learn that the Ravenclaw students weren't cheering for the new students, but for Quinn, who was on a roll of guessing the sorting of the new students.
Finally, it was Potters' turn on the sorting chair. McGonagall looked at the scroll and then looked at the new students before announcing, "Potter, Harry."
While everybody on Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin tables were standing and craning their necks to get a look at the Boy-Who-Lived, the Ravenclaw table was watching Quinn, who had his elbows on the table, fingers interlocked. He looked left and then right before speaking, "Gryffindor."
A series of nods and murmurs went through the Ravenclaw table as the Ravenclaw students turned their eyes to Harry Potter, who was climbing the steps to the stool.
Quinn observed this version of Harry Potter and, for the first time, took note of the difference between him and the canon Harry. This one looked confident unlike, the nervous canon Harry. He was smiling as he sat on the barstool, and his eyes were looking at the Gryffindor table.
The moment the hat dropped on Harry's head, it shouted its decision, "GRYFFINDOR!" The Gryffindor table went wild, and Harry also stood up from the barstool with a bright smile. But, he stopped in confusion when the Ravenclaw table's cheers drowned the Gryffindor table's cheers.
Harry was confused; were they happy that he didn't come to Ravenclaw? The staff and faculty, along with the other three houses, also felt puzzled. What was wrong with Ravenclaw this year?
Quinn didn't feel surprised at the swift decision; this version of Harry differed from the canon version and wasn't a hatstop. He turned his eyes to Lily Potter. She was looking at Harry and fondly smiling while clapping.
'She must be quite happy to have her child in the same house as herself,' thought Quinn.
His friends prompted him to make the prediction, and Quinn looked at McGonagall, who said the next name.
"Potter, Ivy."
Quinn wasn't sure about this one. He had seen her at the bookstore lost in the book, but she was also raised in the Potter household with two Gryffindor parents and Sirius Black as a frequent visitor. Quinn looked at the galleon on the table. He picked one and tossed it into the air. He caught the coin when it came down and looked at it. He looked at the people around him and said, "It was a close decision between Gryffindor and Ravenclaw, but the galleon has spoken, Ivy Potter will go to Gryffindor."
The hall went quiet as everybody waited for the hat's decision. The hat stayed on Ivy's head for almost a minute. Everybody saw the hat move and knew the time had come.
"GRYFFINDOR!"
It was followed by a chant from the Weasley twins, "We got Potters, We got Potters."
Quinn pumped his fist and spoke, "Yeah!" Quinn knew that not all studious people went to Ravenclaw. It was a person's beliefs and choices that decided their house in Hogwarts. He didn't know Ivy Potter well enough to know where she would end up, and Quinn solely based his prediction on what he had seen and heard of her. Ivy going to Gryffindor was pure luck and speculation.
For example, Quinn knew Hermione Granger is smart and studious, but her beliefs weren't the same as a Ravenclaw; she didn't hold a Ravenclaws' values of being clever, scholarly over Gryffindor's bravery and courage. In the books, Hermione herself had said to Harry, "Books, cleverness, but there are far more important things like bravery."
The hat also added his own thought to the decision, like where the child would grow the most. If Hermione had gone to Ravenclaw, she might not have been able to make friends.
'When it comes to academics, Ravenclaw is a cutthroat house. There are plenty of backstabbings and betrayals in Ravenclaw,' thought Quinn as he looked around the joyous house that became ultra-competitive during examination time. He looked at Gryffindor and Hermione and thought, 'Maybe that is why Hermione was sorted into Gryffindor.'
The sorting continued, and only one person was remaining. McGonagall called him to the barstool, "Zabani, Blaise."
Quinn stared at Blaise and announced, "He will go to Slytherin." The Ravenclaw house waited with bated breath for the hat to announce its decision.
"SLYTHERIN!"
The second the hat announced the sorting, some of the older Ravenclaw students lifted Quinn and threw him in the air to celebrate. "Whoa! This is somewhat whacky. Hey, do it more!" But they had to stop when McGonagall yelled at them.
Albus Dumbledore was chuckling when he got to his feet. He beamed at the Ravenclaw student before looking at all the students, his arms opened wide.
"Welcome all!" he said. "Welcome to a brand new year at Hogwarts! Before we start the banquet, and I get to know about all the fun the house Ravenclaw is having, I would like to say a few words. Here we go, Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak!"
Previous year Quinn had taken a trip to the kitchens and confirmed his theory. Nitwit, Blubber, Oddment, Tweak were indeed the name of the house-elves, and they were the oldest house-elves in Hogwarts and took care of the first meal of the year.
After the meals were done, Dumbledore made his annual announcements. "I have a few start-of-term notices to give you." He looked at all the student body and continued, "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..." He repeated the same words as last year before saying, "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."
Quinn, who had just finished his pudding, put his spoon down and sighed as he heard those words, "Lovely. Absolutely lovely."
Marcus looked at Quinn before asking, "What is?" Quinn sighed before smiling towards his roommate, "The pudding, of course."
Dumbledore continued as he had said nothing out of order, "Lastly, I would like to introduce you to a new addition to Hogwarts." He gestured towards Lily Potter, who stood up and smiled at the student body. "From this year onwards, Madame Lily Potter will be joining Hogwarts' staff. She would take the position of Professor of Muggle Studies. Please, give her a warm round of applause."
Quinn looked at Lily Potter and then the Potter Twins before finally looking at Quirinus Quirrell, Voldemort's host.
'Potters and Voldemort, both are here, and so is the Philosopher's Stone. All the players have gathered for the first time... the game has begun,' thought Quinn giving Dumbledore, Quirinus Quirrell, Lily Potter one last glance before walking and fading away in the crowd of students.
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Quinn West - MC - Made a galleon in a wager - Star entertainer.
Lily Potter - Muggle Studies Professor - Excited to teach at her Alma Mater
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