Chapter 10: Off to Work
Summer was coming to an end it was time to return to school.
Melvin walked along the cobblestone sidewalk, suitcase in his right hand, brushing a bit of ash from his sleeve with his left.
Sunlight pierced through the clouds over the Scottish Highlands. The morning mist had lifted, leaving the streets damp and glistening. The candy shop on the left side of the street hadn't opened yet. In the display window, a tower of nougat candies leaned precariously, topped by a slowly spinning sugar star, while cockroaches scurried in and out of the holes near the base.
A bright, colorful sign nearby read: Honeydukes.
There was also Devis-Bans, Zonko's Joke Shop, and the Owl Post Office...
This was Hogsmeade about six hundred kilometers from London. The easiest way to get there was through the Floo Network. It took barely half a minute to travel from the Leaky Cauldron to the Three Broomsticks.
Hogwarts' gates were still five or six kilometers away about an hour's walk.
Melvin decided to pick up the pace.
Bang!
He stepped out of the village. The air hummed softly and the space around him rippled. When he reappeared, he was already at a crossroads, several hundred meters ahead.
It was a modified version of Apparition.
Both Apparition and Disapparition were essentially Vanishing Spells. The caster served as both subject and target; the spell locked onto a location based on memory or sight and teleported the user across space. With mastery, one could Apparate just by focusing on a visible destination.
The path ahead was simple, with signs marking the way and a few side trails. After several short hops, the gates of Hogwarts came into view.
Bang!
Melvin stopped at the intersection and looked up at the main entrance.
The gates retained the style of a thousand-year-old school: twin wrought-iron doors standing between towering stone walls, six to nine meters tall. On top of each post perched a bronze boar statue, wings spread wide.
The boar was male…
He wasn't sure why that detail came to mind but it looked magnificent.
Melvin gripped his suitcase and stepped through the gate. Almost immediately, a voice greeted him from the corner. A badge pinned to the man's chest read: Caretaker: Argus Filch.
"Professor Melvin Lewynter?"
The caretaker's voice was raspy. His skin was sallow, his eyes slightly bulging, and he wore a threadbare gray robe.
"Yes," Melvin nodded and smiled.
"Professor Lewyn, please follow me. Headmaster Dumbledore instructed me to wait here for you."
"Thank you."
Melvin followed the caretaker inside, glancing around as he walked.
The scenery was impressive lush with flowers and greenery, but not overgrown.
Hogwarts must once have been a noble estate; the surrounding lands had likely been converted farmland, carefully planned. The main road leading into the school was smooth and even. To the left stretched the forest; to the right stood the Quidditch pitch, the green Slytherin banner fluttering in the wind.
Almost every wizard in the world knew that Hogwarts' houses were named after its four founders:
Gryffindor, symbolizing courage;
Ravenclaw, symbolizing wisdom;
Hufflepuff, symbolizing kindness;
and Slytherin, symbolizing honor.
In the school's early days, Godric Gryffindor and Salazar Slytherin had been the closest of friends. In a more romantic tale, their friendship might have been immortalized on a Chocolate Frog card…
But, predictably, it wasn't.
Decades after the school's founding, Slytherin grew paranoid, insisting that only pure-bloods be admitted. The other founders opposed him, and their disagreements escalated until Slytherin stormed out in anger an irreparable rift.
All of this was recorded in the school's history.
But there were a few details the official record left out:
Slytherin built the Chamber of Secrets before leaving, hiding a basilisk within it.
And in his later years, Gryffindor went searching for Slytherin, but never found him.
Unlike Helga Hufflepuff, who lived a peaceful life, or Rowena Ravenclaw, who died in sorrow, no one knew what became of the two most legendary founders or even where they were buried.
Passing a particularly lush Whomping Willow, Melvin caught sight of the Herbology Greenhouses, where a short, plump witch in gardening robes was hard at work.
A little farther on, after climbing a flight of stone steps, they reached the Entrance Hall.
"That's it," said Filch. "The Headmaster will meet you in his office."
"Where is the Headmaster…?"
Melvin looked up and saw a silver-haired figure standing in the corridor near the courtyard, bent over and playing with a dark-gray cat. Hearing their approach, the man looked up with a warm smile.
The gray cat trotted over and brushed gently against Melvin's pant leg.
"Excuse me, Mr. Filch," said Melvin politely.
"…"
Filch gave him a strange look, then quickly turned away. "Welcome to Hogwarts, Professor Lewyn."
"Good day," came the calm, resonant voice of Albus Dumbledore, approaching slowly.
He wore a brilliant red-and-gold robe broad and formal in cut paired with simple trousers. His beard and hair were immaculately groomed, flowing freely.
Half-moon spectacles framed his bright blue eyes; his posture was perfectly straight.
The late-summer sunlight lent him an air of energy and warmth.
"It's been a long time, Headmaster Dumbledore."
"I've been looking forward to this day, Melvin."
Dumbledore smiled, his eyes crinkling. "I had planned to introduce you to my excellent staff Minerva is processing paperwork, Severus is inventorying potion supplies, Filius is recalibrating the bronze raven knocker of his faculty door (so it won't embarrass students with impossible riddles all summer), and Pomona is cleaning the greenhouses... Forgive me, it seems this is the busiest time of the day."
Melvin: "…"
So you're the only one slacking off.
"Come, let's see your office and let me show you my alma mater."
Dumbledore led him upstairs, explaining as they went. "The hall you just saw is our Great Hall, where we dine. Next to it are the caretaker's office and the staff room.
"The second floor used to host Transfiguration classes and the Deputy Headmistress's office...
"Your office is on the third floor. The stone gargoyle beside it marks the entrance to my office feel free to visit anytime."
Melvin listened attentively as they climbed the marble stairs.
"You must know our school is divided into four Houses. Outwardly, the Sorting Hat makes the choices, but in truth, it respects each student's own decision... Speaking of which, I've always been curious how does Ilvermorny sort its students?"
"The four Houses of Ilvermorny are chosen by four wooden carvings in the Great Hall," Melvin replied. "The Horned Serpent favors scholars similar to Ravenclaw. The Thunderbird chooses adventurers. The Wampus Cat admires those of strong character. And Pukwudgie prefers kind healers."
"I've heard that only a very small number of students are chosen by all four at once…"
[Author's note: Had stomach pains after eating too much spicy food today.
Owe 2,000 words will make up for it tomorrow~]
(End of Chapter)