Sherlock Holmes at Hogwarts.

Chapter 170: Classic Reproduction of the Branch

The one speaking to Sherlock and Harry was none other than the resident ghost of Gryffindor House.

It was translucent and pearly white, and was still wearing the same tight-fitting top that Sherlock had worn when he first started school last year.

In addition, he also wore a particularly large ruff.

Sherlock deduced at a glance that the ruff had a dual purpose:

One reason is to make it appear more festive in such formal occasions.

The second was to ensure that his head would not shake too violently on his half-severed neck.

This is why it is nicknamed "Almost Headless Nick".

Although he strongly objected, his name, Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington, was too long, so everyone ignored his protests and continued to call him "Nearly Headless Nick".

"To be honest, not very good."

Harry said as he took off his shoes and poured out the accumulated water after hearing the greeting from Nearly Headless Nick.

"The weather this year is worse than last year. At least last year there was no rain and the delay wasn't so long."

Ron also agreed, "Let's start eating quickly. I feel like I can eat a whole plate of chicken legs now."

"Little Weasley, the sorting ceremony is much more important than eating."

Nearly Headless Nick glanced at Ron, seeming a little dissatisfied with his behavior of only caring about eating.

"No, no, no, compared to that, I still think eating is more important..."

As soon as he finished speaking, the door of the auditorium opened.

Like last year, the first person to take the lead was Professor Minerva McGonagall, Deputy Headmistress of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and Head of Gryffindor House.

She glanced around and then led a long line of first-year students to the top of the auditorium.

The second-grade students who saw this scene couldn't help but smile knowingly.

They thought about themselves last year.

Then and now, just as now and now.

However, due to the bad weather, the first-year students at this time are in a much worse state than they were last year.

They were so wet that it seemed like they had swam from the lake instead of taking the ferry.

A group of people stood in a row along the staff table, trembling. They stopped and faced the whole school, looking a little at a loss.

Then Professor McGonagall placed a three-legged stool on the ground in front of the freshmen, and then placed a tattered, dirty, and patched wizard's hat on the stool.

The first-year students stared at it in amazement.

Many people showed expressions of sudden enlightenment.

It turns out this is the sorting ceremony!

Harry couldn't help but ask after seeing this: "Ron, didn't you tell Ginny what to do when we were sorted?"

"Uh... this is already an established rule, just like what we did last year..."

Although I don't know why everyone has to keep the specific process of branching secret, it has been done so since the school was founded.

Some parents and senior students even deliberately make up some exaggerated stories to amuse the freshmen.

It's a Hogwarts tradition.

The same thing happened to Sherlock and others last year.

Under Fred's deception, Ron even thought that he was going to fight a giant monster.

After learning the truth, he was so angry that he even wanted to kill Fred.

As a result, this year, he cheated on his sister just like Fred did last year.

Harry sighed, feeling a pity that Ginny didn't come to ask him.

Otherwise, he would be happy to tell the other party the truth.

"Don't sigh, old Harry," Ron patted Harry's shoulder, "Don't mind it, it's always been like this."

"Does the long-standing existence of a custom necessarily make it above reproach?
Sherlock said quietly, "When people say 'it's always been this way', what they really mean is often 'I've never thought about why it's this way'."

"..."

Harry and Ron were speechless, while Hermione gave Sherlock a wry smile.

Although the rule of concealing the specific details of the sorting is indeed a bit boring, Sherlock is a bit too straightforward.

He certainly hadn't read that book Professor Lockhart wrote!

At the same moment, a crack near the brim of the Sorting Hat opened like a mouth, and as the entire school watched, it suddenly began to sing:

"That was over a thousand years ago, when I was just being woven into shape. There were four famous wizards whose names are still passed down to this day..."

The hat's singing immediately attracted everyone's attention.

Sherlock was also listening to the song carefully.

Although the lyrics have changed slightly from last year, the general meaning is still the same, still introducing the four Hogwarts colleges and their characteristics.

When the Sorting Hat finished singing, warm applause broke out in the auditorium.

Harry clapped his hands and said in surprise, "Hey, this song isn't the one it sang when it sorted us last time."

"Of course not, the Hat sings a different song every year!" said Fred Weasley.

"I guess it took a whole year to come up with the next song," said George Weasley.

Instead of clapping, Sherlock decided to reward himself by playing a violin piece after returning to the dormitory.

Because the song is still as bad as ever.

At this moment, Professor McGonagall unrolled a large roll of parchment.

"When I call someone's name, he puts his hat on his head and sits on the stool."

Under the gaze of all the teachers and students in the school, Professor McGonagall said to the first-year students:

"When the hat announces the house, go sit at the corresponding table."

After saying this, she lowered her eyes to the long piece of parchment in her hand and read out the first name aloud:
"Hannah Abbott!"

When this name was uttered, the entire auditorium fell silent.

Some students who were still whispering stopped talking and looked at Professor McGonagall in surprise.

In Hufflepuff House, almost all the students couldn't help but look in a certain direction towards the second year.

It was only then that Professor McGonagall realized that something was wrong. She lowered her head and took another look:
"Sorry, I got the wrong list. This one is from last year."

Professor McGonagall explained calmly, then took out another piece of parchment and read out a new name:
"Barry Allen!"

A little wizard rushed out of the team at lightning speed, came to the front of the stool, and put the Sorting Hat on his head.

If it were any other professor, such a blunder would definitely cause laughter.

But this person is Professor McGonagall, so...

As if nothing had happened, the Sorting Ceremony continued in an orderly manner under the auspices of Professor McGonagall. This is Professor McGonagall's strength.

One by one, freshmen were called out by McGonagall, and they were asked to put on their hats, be sorted into houses, and then take off their hats.

Mechanical repetitive movements, nothing new.

Seeing this, Ron kept rubbing his stomach and said, "Please, hurry up, I'm almost fainting from hunger."

Unfortunately, the Sorting Hat would not obey his will.

Like last year, the time for freshmen to be sorted into their colleges showed a normal distribution trend.

For most people, the Sorting Hat decides which house they will go to within one to two minutes.

Only a few people would let the Sorting Hat make a decision immediately.

There are also a few who make the Sorting Hat take a long time to make a decision.

However, the longest one was less than four minutes.

As Percy had explained to Sherlock last year, a true hat trick only comes around once every fifty years.

Since a Sherlock Holmes appeared last year, it is unlikely that there will be another hat embarrassment in the next fifty years.

Sherlock didn't know any of the other first-year students except Ron's sister Ginny.

But since he had nothing to do at the moment, Sherlock simply started his daily observation and analysis training, inferring the family situations of these young wizards from their behavioral habits.

[A boy from a Muggle family, his father works as a milkman, he has a younger brother, and he likes taking pictures]

[A girl from a wizard family, her mother died young, and she was raised by her father. She is an only child and loves reading.]

[From a mixed-race family, good eyesight, loves Quidditch]

……

Until Ginny Weasley.

They were already acquaintances, and since Hermione had mentioned it before, Sherlock took a second look at her.

The result was that, like Ron last year, she had just put on the hat when she heard the Sorting Hat loudly shout "Gryffindor".

This is also to be expected.

After all, her parents and six brothers were all in Gryffindor.

Ginny blushed and immediately trotted over to the Gryffindor table.

Percy, being the prefect, stood up and gave his youngest sister a hug.

After feeling her trembling body, he kissed her forehead, then turned around and warned the Weasley twins and Ron with a fierce look.

It was precisely because they had exaggerated things during the summer vacation that Ginny had been so nervous when she was searched at the station earlier.

The Weasley twins and Ron avoided Percy's gaze, a rare occurrence.

They were all a little embarrassed.

After all, no one expected that something like this would happen at the beginning of school this year.

"Ginny, come here!"

Ron beckoned Ginny to sit next to him.

Harry, who was next to Ron, greeted her with a smile, "Congratulations, Ginny."

Hearing her idol's encouragement, Ginny immediately lowered her head shyly.

Ginny was originally ranked at the back of the freshmen, and with the last student being sorted into Hufflepuff, the sorting ceremony finally ended.

"Sherlock, I wanted to ask you last year, why did you know that Hufflepuff had the largest number of people?"

When Ron found that most of the freshmen this year were still sorted into Hufflepuff, he couldn't help but turn his head to look at Sherlock.

"It's simple. The hat sorts out all the ones with personality problems, and the remaining honest and well-behaved ones naturally go to Hufflepuff."

"..."

Ron's mouth twitched, pretending he hadn't heard anything.

The same was true for other young wizards nearby.

Professor McGonagall picked up the Sorting Hat and the stool and took them away.

Noticing this, Ron's attention was immediately distracted. He grabbed his knife and fork and stared eagerly at the golden plate in front of him.
"it's time!"

The Weasley twins perked up immediately when they heard his words.

Fred Weasley: "This momentous occasion."

George Weasley: "The moment we've all been waiting for."

"Get lost, I'm not Wood!"

Ron said unhappily at the Weasley twins' teasing.

At this time, Professor Dumbledore also stood up as he did last year.

He looked at all his classmates with a smile, opened his arms and made a welcoming gesture.

"At this moment, I only have two words to say to you - eat!"

"Brilliant, long live Mr. Dumbledore!"

Ron clapped loudly.

This is because Professor Dumbledore's speech was even shorter than last year's.

As he finished speaking, the empty plate in front of him was filled with large pieces of steak, lamb chops, roast chicken, boiled potatoes, roast potatoes, potato chips, Yorkshire puddings, pea sprouts, carrots, gravy, ketchup...

The first-year students were stunned by the delicious food that fell from the sky.

Although the students from grades two to seven had already seen it, they also cheered at this time.

Ron was always the quickest in this regard, and while he was stuffing a piece of steak into his mouth, he didn't forget to grab a piece from Harry's plate next to him.

Compared to Ron, Sherlock and Hermione eat much more elegantly.

Since repairing his relationship with the Dursleys, Harry has been treated much better this summer, so it is no longer like last year.

Nick, who was almost headless, saw this scene and showed a look of envy and sadness: "That's great..."

For a ghost, no matter how sumptuous the food in front of him is, he can only watch.

Ron didn't care about that, he just ate.

After taking a few bites, Sherlock fell into his usual state of meditation, oblivious to everything else.

Harry and Hermione were used to this.

Every once in a while, bread or fruit would be handed to him, and Sherlock would subconsciously take it and eat it.

When everyone finished their meal, Dumbledore stood up again, looked at everyone with a smile, and said:
"Now that everyone is well fed and watered, I would like to emphasize a few points."

(End of this chapter)