Sorting Ceremony 2025 - 2026

Date: May 2nd 2026 The Great Hall, Sorting Ceremony
Time: Evening

Maeve found herself standing amongst the freshmen. Her shoulders were squared, but her hands fidgeted anxiously at the hem of her sleeve. The Great Hall was much grander than she ever thought it would be. The size of the walls built of solid stone and the many candles floating in mid-air gave her a sense of insignificance. Maeve raised her head towards the ceiling as she observed the Great Hall with her intelligent and inquisitive eyes. She was fascinated with the interior of the Great Hall.

She walked forward in queue while maintaining a respectful distance from the student ahead of her. As each name was announced, she experienced a new surge of excitement, making her heart skip a beat. She wanted to avoid any kind of unnecessary attention, but there was just so much to wonder about. For instance, she ask herself

"how do those candles not die? Is the Sorting Hat sentient, or is it a lingering enchantment?"


There was an old man who welcomed all students that gathered in the Great Hall. Maeve ask herself again "Why does he look like that one old warrior from that one book I read before". A strong, looking knight warrior, fierce and wise way of talking. Maeve think to herself "Must be the Headmaster, he looks very cool"


After the Headmaster speaks, he pulled a scroll from his waist and open the tightly bound parchment. A long..long scroll that makes Maeve amazed yet surprised at the same time,wonder when she was gonna get called if that scroll is very long. The Headmaster called names one by one, Maeve hold her breath as she waiter for her name to be called.After she waiter, she was finally called. Maeve exhaled before she slowly stepped forward. She got reaaaally nervous as the Hat was put on her hat.After a moment,The Hat shouted: "RAVENCLAW!"


After The Hat said it out loud, Maeve was surprised and the students at Ravenclaw table applaused. She got up from the chair and walked to the Ravenclaw table with curiosity and nervousness. As the Sorting continued,she waited and watched the students that got called one by one. Maeve couldn't wait to see how big must be the dorm is. Though some people whispered about her scar but she ignored them.

The Great Hall, felt like a dream, utterly mesmerising. The room had a bazillion portraits adorning the walls. The portraits seemed to be enjoying their time, some were chatting with the students, some talking amongst themselves. I even noticed ghosts near their respective house tables. "Gosh! It's so lively in here. The only thing missing is some music." Right across the hall, at the far end was a stage, where a no. of adults were seated, whom I assumed to be professors.

The tables, that seemed to go on for miles, were covered with tablecloths the colour of their respective houses. A lavish feast was set up in the room, it smelled so delicious that it tantalized my taste buds. I couldn't wait to eat, I was already starving, but we still had to get through the sorting ceremony.

As we entered Great Hall we were welcomed by a tall, old man with blue eyes. He smiled at all of us and greeted us warmly. Then he walked across the hall to the stage, and we all followed. As he walked, a sudden silence hit the room, that was the effect of the presence of the headmaster, I thought. It wasn't that noticeable, but he seemed to walk with a little limp.

As he got up on the stage, his voice boomed, "Welcome first year students. I am Solomon Lear, Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. As it is our tradition here we are going to engage in our first ceremony known as the sorting ceremony." He told us abt the sorting hat and added, "This hat is very much sentient." Suddenly a voice said, "Sentient, I am intelligent", it wasn't the headmaster or teachers, it was the hat that said this. Wow! I seem to like this sorting hat, this is going to be fun. The headmaster let out a bit of a cough and said, "Ah yes, intelligent." At this everyone in the room, including me started laughing. The headmaster further told us how the sorting ceremony would be conducted.

So, this hat will look into our mind and heart and put us in the house we'd best fit in. That's interesting, looks like the hat really is intelligent, haha. The hat suddenly broke out into a song. It described how the 4 houses came into being, it talked about the founders, and the various qualities that a person was required to have in each house. Wow! The hat is such a good singer, I've never seen a singing hat before, impressive! Once it was done with the song we all applauded. I was no longer that nervous as I was while entering Great hall. Looks like the hat's song seemed to cheer me up.

The headmaster then took out a roll of parchment and opened it. The parchment was so long it hit the floor. I think that's a name list, I didn't realise there were so many of us. He called out the first name on the list, it was a girl with red hair. The hat was placed on her head, it took a few seconds and announced, "Hufflepuff", and all the students on the hufflepuff table cheered loudly.

As the next students were called up, I started wondering abt what house I'd be sorted into. I knew I was smart and witty, so maybe ravenclaw. I was also kind, friendly and loyal, so I could be hufflepuff too. I wasn't sure if I was brave, but I would always try to be, and I was protective of my loved ones, so I guess I could fit in Gryffindor too. I was ambitious, but not cunning, I could be proud sometimes, but I probably wouldn't be in Slytherin, but there's still a little chance for it. If I had to choose, I'd probably say ravenclaw, the same house as my deceased aunt. I've only seen her in pictures. It'd make my mum happy if I was sorted into the same house as her sister. Nevertheless, I'd be delighted to be in whatever house the hat puts me in. Besides, I don't think a magical hat would make a mistake.

I was suddenly pulled out of my chain of thoughts as the Headmaster's voice boomed across the hall, "Avery Abernathy", he called. I took a deep breath a walked towards the stage. The Headmaster greeted me as I got on stage, "Hello Avery, Good luck with the sorting". "Thank you Professor", I replied.

I sat on the chair, and the hat was placed upon my head. I could hear the hat speaking to me, "Hmm, interesting. I see many, many good qualities. Smart indeed you are, very insightful. I see kindness and honesty too. More of a Ravenclaw, I'd say. Hmm... brave at heart, though you seem not to consider yourself as brave. I'd say you'd do wonders in Gryffindor. You have great resilience and determination, and are not afraid to stand up for what you think is right. All very wonderful qualities of Gryffindor. Now the final testament, is between the witty and wise Ravenclaw and the valiant Gryffindor. Hmm... tough one you are. Let's see, hmm... Yess, yess... GRYFFINDOR!!!"

The hat's voice boomed across the room, I was sorted into Gryffindor. The students at my house stable all started cheering and clapping as I made my way towards them. I seated myself and started eating the delicacies placed before me, I'd worked up an appetite. It wasn't the house I'd expected but I was content. I was excited and ready for my new journey as a Valiant young Gryffindor.

Lions Are Cool, I Guess

Date: September 1st, 2025
Time: Evening

“GRYFFINDOR!” exclaimed the hat, no sooner than it was placed on G.’s head.

Gryffindor. G. had heard that one before. Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. He’d been trying to get the names straight ever since he overheard the kids talking on the train earlier. So much excitement, nervousness, and even fear about which house they’d get placed in. Was it really that big of a deal?

“Best to keep yourself and your housemates out of trouble, but I know you won’t,” the hat grinned and winked its eye folds.

G.’s mind was split across many sensations as he sat in that chair in the Great Hall in front of Headmaster Solomon and hundreds of students cheering. He glanced around the room and saw the hundreds of floating candles bobbing gently in the air and the animated paintings on the wall. Were people in paintings actually sentient, or just running a program due to the magic that created them? Most of all, he noticed the overwhelming smell of delicious cooked meats, breads, and desserts. G. had never been to a meal so fancy in his life.

Among the countless applauding students in the room, those at one table were cheering much louder than the others—his new house. G. thought about the fact that Gryffindor was supposed to represent bravery and chivalry, and wondered if those in its house would be pompous. G. hoped he himself wouldn’t get a big head about it. But apparently, the house symbol was a lion, and hey, lions are cool.

“Thank you,” G. said, acknowledging the hat and then the headmaster, then sat down with the rest of the bright-eyed students at the Gryffindor table.

«✴ Sorting hat✴»

When I entered the Great Hall, I looked around and felt all the magic. I looked at each table in each house and started thinking, "What if I'm not good for any house, or maybe I'm in a house that doesn't fit?" For example, I don't think I'm as brave as all the Gryffindors who have been there before, like Harry, Hermione, and Ron.

They called one by one. I heard the name Alex Adams and clapped a lot, but when I heard Gryffindor, I got scared. What if we weren't together? What would I do? They called me next, full of nerves. I went up to the Sorting Hat to choose my house. It thought and thought a lot until it shouted very loudly, "Ravenclaw!" At first, I was happy because I thought it was the one I belonged in, but then I thought, "I'm without my best friend!" Luckily, when they called Harry Adams (Alex's brother), the hat said Ravenclaw. I felt more relieved because I was going to have a friend with me in Ravenclaw.

In the end, you don't need to be so worried because I love my home, Ravenclaw, where I've settled in very well and easily, and Alex and I talk a lot and are the best friends forever.

Entering the great hall together with all the other first years, my eyes sparkle with excitement. Already there was soo much to see!

My gaze wanders over the four house tables, feeling the older students muster us. I take in the house banners that were hung up as decoration. My gaze gradually wanders up, looking up at the flying candles, wondering how the wax hasn't hurt anyone yet, wandering further up the enchanted ceiling.

Of course I've already read all about it, but seeing it in person was a totally different experience. The dark night sky basically stretched over us, hundreds and hundreds of stars sparkling in it. I get so absorbed in the enchanted ceiling I don't notice us reaching the front where a teacher was waiting for us with the sorting hat. I stumble into the boy in front of me. Bashfully I mumble Sorry... Didn't pay attention.

Luckily he seemed to be way to absorbed in what is about to happen. So I concentrated on my own sorting. According to my mother our family was presented in all houses but Slytherin over the decades. Therefore I didn't have the pressure to end up in a specific house like I knew some of my classmates would have.

So when I was finally sorted into Ravenclaw I was just happy to head for my table. I found a place and kept watching the sorting with interest, clapping along the others when a new student was sorted. My gaze occasionally kept returning to the enchanted ceiling where the stars kept sparkling.

⠀ II. You’re home free as soon as no one knows where to find you.

⠀ ⠀ ⠀ But they all knew. They all knew where to find him. The horrors that haunted his nightmares had come here. He felt them – their distant shadows watching from the corner of his eye, but when he turned, nothing was there. Some mimicked his resting family members, but something about them was off, not quite familiar. They brought sorrow, agony, and anxiety as he walked up the steps to the podium. They whispered curses in his ear, and he answered with prayers. At least they wouldn’t attack now – not in the presence of others, anyway. They preferred solitude and loneliness; they fed on it.
⠀ ⠀ ⠀ He had hoped Hogwarts would offer him an escape from his waking nightmares, but they remained. He was doomed. Now he stood on the stage, his hands sweating – disgustingly so. Papa would have told him to wash them, but there was no sink. His mind wandered to the idea of draining his clammy hands in the teachers’ goblets at their table. Disgusting. Who even thinks that? came a self-deprecating thought immediately after.
⠀ ⠀ ⠀ Everyone watched. He felt constant stares and eyes on him as he climbed the steps to the platform where the Sorting Hat sat on an old chair, looking scrappy and worn. But it had never even been worn, so was it age that made it look so pathetic, or madness – visions no one else saw, a concept that made Sebastien shiver for his future. The Great Hall was packed with students, from peeply-looking first years, whose gazes darted around – some nervously, some excitedly – to the older students, taller than most, with the seventh years especially standing out, Sebastien felt himself shrink as he walked past them upon entering the hall. He wanted to go unnoticed under their seemingly judgmental stares. Then there were the teachers: some intimidating, others looking as if they handed out “Outstanding” grades for free. The many faces blurred in his vision as he tried to distract himself, focusing only on where he was heading. Nothing special – just the thing that would decide how the next seven years of his life would unfold, who his “family” here in Hogwarts would be, who he would be bound to forever. He’d thought about it before. What made someone a Slytherin, a Hufflepuff, a Ravenclaw, or a Gryffindor? Was it something inside them – whether their heart burned with glory and pride, or wisdom and determination? Or was it the way they spoke and presented themselves – kind and humble, or brave and daring? To be honest, none of the houses called his name. The gut feeling that usually guided him had vanished, shamelessly abandoning him in the face of danger. What was he supposed to do now, other than go into the sorting blindly? No guesses, no tingling at his fingertips or earlobes. He was weaponless, and that was what made it all so frightening. His unsteady feet carried him to a chair, upon which lay the Sorting Hat.
⠀ ⠀ ⠀ He almost unconsciously did everything the other students had done before him. His mind was too preoccupied with anxiety and paranoia for him to fully comprehend whether he was even doing everything right. He felt a force sit him down in the screechy old wooden chair, and he put the hat on his head. It plopped down on his golden curls, still far too big for his eleven-year-old head, and half his view of the Great Hall was hidden by the brim, his ears pressed close to his head by the sides of the hat. It made him relax slightly, though his hands still fidgeted nervously with the hem of his uniform. Though his face remained cold and stoic, inside he was burning up and cooling down; nothing lasted longer than a few seconds – not heat, not cool, not doubt, not truth. Everything felt like a massive storm brewing above his head, about to pour rain by the bucketful, as his stress mounted while the hat seemed unwilling to make its presence known at all. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity to the boy – but was probably only a second after he sat down – the hat spoke. A screechy, old, annoying voice brought no comfort to the nervous first-year now sitting in the chair, doing his best to appear collected. Its voice echoed in his head as it declared, “Such a peculiar, disturbed child you are. Distant, gloomy, and sullen, like a ghost,” it said, in what felt like a laughing tone. Laughing at him.
⠀ ⠀ ⠀ “Can such a hopeless child like you ever truly find your place here… of course you can!” The hat murmured incoherent sentences into his ear, almost like his own scattered thoughts that made people fall silent. “You’re intelligent… but far too reckless for Ravenclaw,” it spat, as if – who could have ever thought this child belonged in Ravenclaw? “You’re loyal, but oh, much too selfish for Hufflepuff,” the hat said again. Sebastien wanted it to stop. Everything it said stung his chest, yet deep down he knew it was all true. Not just because of the hat’s recognized fact that it sorted every student into their house – it knew every student better than anyone else, even their own family. And he had never believed that. But here it was. This hat was listing all his deepest insecurities, parts of himself he had tried to erase forever, not just for others, but for himself too. The things the hat said made him feel guilty – a sinner. “You’re courageous, brave – not when you’re shaking in your boots, like you are now, but when you know what’s to come… yet most of all, I see your ambition, your cunning, your determination!” He thanked the hat. It had basically told him the house he would be sorted into before announcing it to everyone. He had a moment to collect himself, to prepare for the overwhelming cheers and clapping from the green-decorated table. Then it came – the ear-splitting, glass-shattering yelp: “Slytherin!” it screamed. The boy quickly took the hat off and set it carefully back on the chair. As he expected, the Slytherin table to his far right erupted in cheers. Forcing a smile onto his lips, he hurried to the table, not wanting to hold up the line of first years waiting to be sorted. He slid into an empty seat in a quieter corner of the table, after shaking hands with each prefect and some older students who greeted him kindly. He rested his chin on his knuckles and watched the ceremony in silence. Though his gaze was unfocused, it often drifted dreamily to the ghosts wandering around the hall and to the tingling sensations the old stone walls stirred in him.
⠀ ⠀ ⠀ They sat around him at the table – in the spaces between students’ shoulders, in the gaps that seemed empty but were dense with energy: dread. He saw the shadows slowly curling at the corners of his eyes. Not like ghosts – darker, otherworldly. Who knew if they were mortal; the question wasn’t which god they belonged to, but what they wanted. Him… His sight?

Headmaster Solomon Lear lifted the scroll in his hands, letting his voice ring out across the Great Hall.

“Stargaze Lyra!”

Lyra stood up straight, her fingers brushing her robes to smooth them out. She stepped out of the line, her shoes making soft clicking sounds against the stone floor. A few students whispered as she walked past them.

“Good luck,” a boy with messy brown hair nearby said quietly.

Lyra gave a small smile. “Thank you.”

As she walked toward the stool, she looked around at the floating candles and the enchanted ceiling that looked just like the night sky. Instead of feeling scared, she felt surprisingly calm. Big moments usually made her feel steady instead of nervous.

She sat down and folded her hands in her lap as the Sorting Hat was placed on her head. The old leather felt heavy, and the brim slipped down over her eyes, blocking out the room and leaving her in a world of whispers.

“A loyal heart… very loyal. And such a neat, thoughtful mind…” the Hat whispered.

Lyra listened quietly, her thoughts simple and honest. I just want to do my best and help out when I can...

“No doubt about that,” the Hat replied. “Better be… HUFFLEPUFF!”

The entire Great Hall cheered and was really excited. Lyra as she took a steadying breath as the Hat was lifted from her head, rising from the stool with a small, graceful nod of thanks. As she made her way toward the Hufflepuff table, the atmosphere seemed to shift as the air became warmer and carried the cozy, delicious scent of sweet apple cider. When she arrived at the table, she was greeted by the yellow-trimmed robes and a chorus of bright, welcoming smiles and lively cheers from her new housemates. Now, Lyra truly belonged with Hufflepuffs, she's loyal as well as hard working, just like her housemates.

Sorting Ceremony.

242

dialogue #84774d #006400

@solo

As soon as the first year entered the Great Hall, chatters and stares greeted them almost immediately. Some were smiling with hopeful look, some were curious as they watch them walk to the front of the hall, waiting to be sort to their own house. Alex look around the hall amusedly. The candles floats around above him as he walk, the ceilings were cloudlike from where he stood; magic sure is fascinating.

Names after names were called to the front to be sort by a sorting hat that speaks.'That's amazing', he thought to himself. When his name were called, "Kavanagh, Alex!" He walk up the podium with a weird nervous feelings in his chest as he knew that there'll be many eyes focus on him as soon as he sit on the worn stool. He doesn't like to be in the spotlight though he knew this ceremony is important for him. The hat were immediately place on his head as he settles on the stool with fidgety hands, out of habit.

"Ah, quite difficult one, aren't you?" The hat mutter and Alex could hear his heart thumping loudly against his chest. "Hm.. ambitious, intelligent and cunning.. must be.. Slytherin!!" cheers erupted from the serpent long table. Alex walk down from the podium to the table with relief. Some of the senior students greet him as he sit at an empty spot on the table, he smile softly at the warm welcome.

After waiting for so long, she finally heard name being announced to by the Headmaster. Millie slowly stand up, noticing all pair of eyes now gawking at her as she constantly fasten up her pace to the front. Looking at the Headmaster who gave a soft, reassuring smile at her, Millie take a deep breath and took a seat while a worn out pointed hat take a place at the top of her head.

"Careful, Child. I might be worn out but my intelligence and perceptiveness has not changed since the day I was created."

Hearing that, Millie almost jumped out of her stool. But remembering the previous session that the hat always talk like that to another students, she composed herself and shifted to the comfortable position at her seat.

"Alright, let us begin," the hat spoke again, humming like it thinking something so seriously. "There is a unique trait in you ... hm. Oh, yes, yes, undoubtly so."

Millie confusedly wait. Not sure if she must pondered which one she wanted most since she thought if all the four houses is equally good. However, for sure, if she can choose, she want the one she can most feel accepted. Where she can be herself without worrying about another judging, wicked eyes.

Sensed her anxiousness, the hat spoke again, this time with more softened voices, "Worry not, Child. In here, whatever house you got, it will become your second family. That is why, it is my job to directed you to your right place."

Millie sighed, nod her head, and thanked the hat inwardly.

A moment silent, the hat hummed by itself again, busy with its judgment, then it finally rise its voice as it said, "RAVENCLAW!"

As the hat announced it, the rows of tables were filled with blue cheering enthusiastically, like Millie just winning something so grandeur and they are her supporters. After the hat being took off from her head, Millie slowly stood from the stool and instinctively walked to the rows of tables that still cheering on her, welcoming her with that warm cheer and wave hands. Millie still looked confuse by all of that happened, but without doubt, she can feel the relieved soother her mind and her thumping heart.

_{Dusk time, Friday, 15 May 2026
Millie Ann}