They arrived at night and passengers began to get off the train. Harry and Luna looked down the hall to see the station and as they were about to ask Ron to put on his robes, he already had it on.
Harry: RON!!!
Luna: How do you...?! I give up, you always do this.
Ron: Let's go downstairs quickly, I can't wait to be in bed.
Hagrid was outside and asked the first years to follow him and they left with him after Harry greeted him, Ron was impressed by the size of the half-giant with the big beard.
Further on they were taken in enchanted boats which took them towards the large dark castle which would serve as their school.
Ron: This castle is really huge!
Harry stood in awe of what he saw.
They arrived, walked in and walked up the steps with Harry, Luna and Ron at the front where they eventually found themselves in front of a woman in her sixties with a black dress and a classic witch's hat.
The woman exuded a certain nobility and elegance that impressed Ron, she was the Deputy Headmistress of the School and the Transfiguration teacher, Minerva McGonagall.
Mr. McGonagall: Welcome to Hogwarts. In a few moments you will pass through these doors to meet your classmates but before going to sit down, you will be divided into the different houses of the school. Their names are Gryffindor, Hufflepuff , Ravenclaw and finally Slytherin .
Throughout your stay, your house will be like your second family, each victory will earn you points but if rules are broken then you will lose points. At the end of the school year, the house that obtains the most points will win the four house cup.
She was almost interrupted by one of the new students who picked up her frog from the ground, it was Neville who had lost it on the train.
"That must be him Neville! Lucius didn't eat his toad" Ron whispered to Luna as his cat lay balanced lazily on his shoulders.
Neville apologized while McGonagall just looked at him.
"The sorting ceremony will start soon, get ready everyone" She said before leaving.
As Ron wanted to move forward, a young man spoke.
"So it's true what they said, uh ! What we were saying on the train, Harry Potter is coming to study at Hogwarts" they turned around to see Draco Malfoy. Immediately upon hearing this name, the others began to whisper it in astonishment.
"So it will never end?!" Ron said exhaustedly.
Luna: If I could, I'd offer you some tea.
Ron: Thanks Luna.
Malfoy introduced his two minions before coming in front of Harry before he smiles like a car salesman.
Malfoy: I am Malfoy, Draco Lucius Malfoy
As soon as he said that, Ron started laughing and Malfoy immediately looked at him with venom in his eyes.
"My name makes you laugh?!" »
Ron: No offense, my cat's name is Lucius too, it's really funny that a human can be named after a cat.
The others made fun of Malfoy's middle name who clenched his jaw from the teasing to respond.
Malfoy: And you don't need to ask yourself about yours with your red hair and…(He couldn't find anything else to add, Ron was impeccable from head to toe). You're probably a Weasley.
Ron: So for you all redheads are Weasleys?! I don't know whether to laugh at your stupidity or cry at my cat's namesake's idea of my house.
Malfoy: YOU...!!!!
"Lucius, say hello to this stupid guy, his parents gave him the same name as you, they must be fans" He said to his cat with amusement to the laughter of the others and Malfoy exploded in anger. He tried to scream but...
"HIIIISSSS" Ron's cat showed his claws and Malfoy in fear almost fell backwards but Ron held him by the collar of his robes to save him from a potentially dangerous fall.
Ron: Take it easy my friend, you almost fell and you certainly owe me your life but it's nothing, you bear my cat's name so a little caress on your head should calm you down. By the way it seems that Malfoys have always been Slytherins and the snakes crawl on the dust of the ground, you should be careful because this year, of dust you are going to eat a lot of it. (looks at Harry) Let's go!
"I'm not done with you yet Weasley, you should-(interrupted)" Malfoy wanted to threaten him by following him but he suddenly fell to the ground and face down to the laughter of the others once again. When he looked down at his feet, his shoelaces were tied.
Ron: I asked you to watch out for yourself but apparently you're already in love with the dust on the floor.
Listening to this commotion, Professor McGonagall came back and looked at Malfoy on the ground sternly.
"He pushed me" Malfoy on the ground said pointing at Ron.
Ron: Ma'am, I can swear to you that the only time I touched "Lucius" was to prevent him from falling down the stairs, things could have been catastrophic and the others witnessed the scene.
"It's true professor, he saved him"
"Malfoy could have really hurt himself in that fall because he was scared of a cat but Weasley saved him."
Harry: Ron saved his life professor.
She looked at Ron and calmly nodded slightly.
McGonagall: Mr. Malfoy, you must not cause trouble here or falsely accuse those who save you. Apologize to him.
Malfoy: But professor-(interrupted)
McGonagall: Do it immediately or I will write personally to Lucius your father.
Ron: Lucius!!? His father is also called Lucius?!
When he asked that, the others definitely started laughing and Ron called out to the professor.
« Mrs. McGonagall, we're making the others wait, it doesn't matter if he doesn't apologize, we'll make peace later but for now, we have to go to the ceremony. What do you think ? » he asked politely.
McGonagall: You're right Weasley, please follow me everyone.
They left with Ron who yawned lazily, if it was to tease the others he had a first class education with older brothers like Fred and George.
They walked in and Hermione started a monologue about the magic ceiling and everything she read about it in an annoying little voice that made Ron want to go home, he had trouble with kids his age .
"Please make this stop quickly" he said as he moved forward in a row with the others, he didn't want to be seen so he let some of his comrades go ahead to be in the crowd with Luna.
Minerva left them there to give the floor to Headmaster Albus Dumbledore who gave a speech welcoming the new students, he spoke about the rules and McGonagall asked the students to move forward when their names were called to be assigned to a house by the Sorting Hat.
First was Hermione and the hat sent her to Gryffindor, Malfoy was next and he was sent to Slytherin, another girl passed to be sent to Hufflepuff and McGonagall ended up calling Ron right after.
Surprised to be called so early, Ron casually walked over to Minerva and sat down before she placed the Sorting Hat on his head.
Sorting Hat: Huuuummm, I see. Another Weasley eh! Very surprising that one. Incredible talent, unwavering courage, and a thirst for knowledge eh…
Ron: Send me to Gryffindor, where my brothers are and where my parents were, I don't care about the rest.
Sorting Hat: Gryffindor huh? Are you sure ?! Ravenclaw would have been excellent for you. Huuuuummmm very good, too bad. GRYFFINDOR!
"YEAAAAH" Fred, George, Percy and the others there exploded with joy, they knew how talented their brother was and would definitely bring home points, it was now a family affair.
He went to sit down noticing Hermione a little too enthusiastic but he shrugged and sat with his brothers who ruffled his hair with a good portion of the girls having their eyes on the painting of the four very handsome brothers and especially Ron who stood out because of his eyes.
After a while, Harry's turn came and when he was sent to Gryffindor, Ron was relieved because he found him friendly and was his new friend but he was very stressful for Luna.
Ron knew her and knew that if she was sent to another house, she would be treated like a crazy person and made fun of.
Luna had been his best friend since childhood and he didn't want people to make fun of her for being quirky.
She didn't need many friends as she lived in her own world where her only friend so far has been Ron.
Luna's turn arrived and she was sent to Ravenclaw and as she left for her house table, her gaze met that of Ron whose breathing became a little irregular due to anger.
*skrrrr*
*skrrr*
Some windows started to crack but he was able to regain control of his emotions, no one except Dumbledore and Snape had really noticed the magical pressure there was for a split second.
Once all the students had been assigned to their houses, Dumbledore brought up the buffet but Ron had no appetite. He barely ate and spent his time looking in his friend's direction.
Fred: What's wrong little brother? It's unusual to see you so passive in front of a plate.
Ron: It's Luna, they sent her to Ravenclaw.
George: Oh...I understand. You can always visit him or send Lucius to keep her in good company.
Ron: Um yeah maybe.
Harry: I'm sure she can do just fine, she's a good girl.
Ron: You're right Harry, she's nice but the others I'm not so sure. If they ever mistreat her, Ravenclaw House will know my wrath.
Percy: Ron calm down okay?! We are not at home and they are not the little villagers who made fun of her. You almost killed one and I'm prefect of Gryffindor house this year, I forbid you from attacking other students.
Georges: Calm down, he hasn't done anything yet.(looks at Ron) That's right Ron, you need to be more careful. You didn't control your magic last time, you scared even us.
Harry: Did one of the kids almost die? What happened ?
Fred: I don't know if he told you but Luna has been his best friend since they were really little and this girl has suffered a lot morally since her mother has been-(stops to look at Ron) since she lost her mother before his eyes when she was younger.
In her family they are quite eccentric but Luna's trauma only increased this side of her. She's an intelligent and endearing girl but she's a little... special and because of that, the other children sometimes made fun of her the few times she left her house.
One day, Ron witnessed this and somehow, the children's clothes started to catch fire and luckily they were near the pond where they dove. While the others had minor burns, one of them was burned very seriously. We had some problems but no evidence came against him. Since then, Ron regularly played with Luna to protect her and make sure she could smile.
Percy: Ron, seriously you can't do this again, you need to control your anger.
Hermione: It's kind of scary and sweet at the same time, but you shouldn't worry about it like that. From where I'm looking at her, she's smiling.
« You don't know anything about her, you don't know what that smile means. It's a nervous smile because she feels isolated. » he looked at her without emotion.
Dinner was over and he walked over to her to promise that he was going to come see her when he could and that he was going to send Lucius to her during the day before giving her a hug and she left with her house, he also left with regrets. He would have let the sorting hat send him to Ravenclaw if he knew.