Hermione, who had been listening quietly by the side, couldn't contain her curiosity anymore.
"What about the Houses? What are the actual differences between them?"
She was the only one there who didn't come from a traditional wizarding family. Even though she had read Hogwarts: A History, she still only had the generic information about the Houses—courage, ambition, loyalty…
"Mum says there aren't really any differences. Just that certain traits stand out more depending on the person," Violet said, recalling her mother Lily's words.
"Yeah, like being evil and messing with dark magic. Nothing screams Slytherin more than that," Ron said, shooting Noah a quick look to see if he would be offended.
But Noah just laughed. "Don't look at me like that, I'm not even sorted yet. And what's with all this nonsense about being evil? Merlin was a Slytherin. Do you think he was evil?"
He crossed his legs and went on, "If we're going by stereotypes, then Gryffindors would be lazy and dumb, right? Is that how it works?"
"Hey!"
"Hey!"
Harry and Ron protested at the same time.
Shrugging, Noah continued. "If you look at the whole system with clearer eyes, you'll realize it only exists so no one ends up left out."
"Left out?" Violet tilted her head in confusion.
"Yeah. By saying that people with similar tastes go to the same House, it makes them less scared of trying to make friends." Noah nodded toward Ron. "Take Ron here, for example. Let's say he didn't have any friends."
"Oi!" Ron grumbled, but Noah ignored him.
"So he gets to Hogwarts and gets sorted into Gryffindor," Noah explained. "He keeps hearing that Gryffindors are the brave ones, the 'good' ones. Meanwhile, Slytherins are the bad guys, Ravenclaws are nerds, and Hufflepuffs are… well…"
He smirked. "Then, in his tiny little mind, he thinks, 'This person next to me has the same qualities as me. Maybe I can try talking to them.'"
Violet burst out laughing. "That sounds way too complicated for Ron to think through."
"Hey, I'm right here!" the redhead complained.
"She's not wrong, Ron," Harry chuckled, patting his friend's shoulder. "The best you'd manage is, 'He's wearing red, I'm wearing red. Guess we're friends now.'"
Noah couldn't hold back a laugh. "I think you all get the idea."
Violet nodded but couldn't help asking, "But that's not bad, is it? It would be awful to be sorted somewhere that made us uncomfortable."
"Like Slytherin," Ron muttered, clinging to his prejudice.
Noah thought for a moment before replying. "I think there are two ways of looking at it." He turned to Hermione. "You're a Muggle-born. So you went to a normal Muggle school, right?"
Just like me, in my past life, he thought silently.
"Yes." Hermione nodded. "But we didn't have Houses there."
"Of course not. But students were still divided into groups, weren't they? Like 'Year Seven A, Year Seven B,' things like that?" he asked.
Hermione looked a little surprised that Noah knew that.
"And correct me if I'm wrong, but usually each class forms its own bonds—and sometimes even rivalries with other classes, right?"
She nodded again.
"And even within a single class, there are divisions. The ones sitting up front are the nerds and well-behaved ones, the middle is neutral, and the back row are the troublemakers—or just those who want to avoid attention." He grinned. "Of course, they're stereotypes, but they fit my example."
Hermione tilted her head. "That does actually happen…"
Harry, who had been listening, frowned. "But what does that have to do with Hogwarts Houses?"
"Tell me, Harry—on the first day of class in a Muggle school, where would you sit? Front, middle, or back?" Noah asked.
"The back," Harry answered without hesitation, thinking of keeping a low profile.
"And you, Ron?"
"The back. Easier to cheat without the teacher noticing," the redhead admitted shamelessly.
Noah chuckled. "See? And what are the odds of the two of you meeting and becoming friends?"
The four of them exchanged a look of sudden understanding.
"That's what I'm saying. Even without Houses, people would still end up finding their groups." Noah smiled.
Hermione looked thoughtful, then asked, "But… there could still be outliers, right? People who don't match the stereotype?"
"Stereo—" Ron tried to repeat the word but failed.
"And what about it?" Noah shook his head. "That'd be even better. Being around people too similar to yourself all the time can be harmful. It limits your thinking, reinforces questionable ideas."
Harry leaned closer to Ron. "Is it just me, or does he sound like an old man?"
"Worse than an old man," Ron agreed immediately.
Violet overheard but didn't bother to argue. She actually felt the same. Sometimes Noah spoke as if he were an adult, and it was… unsettling.
Shaking her head, she asked, "Then shouldn't you try to get into another House? Maybe Gryffindor, with us?"
She regretted it instantly, cheeks burning. She glanced around nervously, but no one gave her strange looks. In fact, Harry and Ron seemed pleased with the idea of Noah joining them.
Noah laughed and shook his head. "We can be friends—maybe we already are, since we had such a fun afternoon together. But I doubt I'll end up in Gryffindor."
He grew more serious. "And honestly, I'll probably like Slytherin. Being around others with ambition could be good. Who knows? Before our seven years at Hogwarts are over, maybe we'll have formed a wizarding organization with real influence over the world. We could tattoo our forearms and worship blood purity."
They all stared at him—until he winked and smiled.
"You should be an actor," Ron muttered.
"Or just stop," Harry joked.
Noah opened his mouth to reply when suddenly something shifted. Before he could grasp it, his right eye activated.
The world changed. For a moment, he couldn't see people or objects—only raw intensities of magic, and glowing lines connecting the blue blurs that were the students on the train.
Dozens of threads in different colors—blue, green, red, black—surrounded him. The sheer amount of information was overwhelming, almost impossible to process.
Then something pulled at him. His head turned involuntarily, toward the horizon.
There, he saw a sea of colors, brighter than anything else.
He didn't need anyone to tell him what that place was.
Hogwarts.
And right in the center of that sea, there was a single point. A golden light, shining like the sun.
"Noah."
"Noah!"
A worried voice snapped him back. His magic retreated, his vision returning to normal.
He blinked at the worried faces around him.
"Sorry. Got distracted," he said lightly, though his thoughts still raced.
Harry pointed at him. "Your eye."
"What?" Noah froze. Had they seen his ocular ability?
Apparently not.
"It's bleeding," Harry said.
Noah's eyes widened. With a snap of his fingers, a mirror materialized in front of him.
His reflection stared back—his right eye had a thin trail of blood running down like a tear.
He wiped it away with his hand. Once he confirmed there was no further damage, he sighed and dismissed the mirror.
The others still stared, puzzled—ignoring, for the moment, the fact he had conjured a mirror from thin air.
"Are you alright?" Violet was the first to ask.
Noah nodded. "It's nothing. My eye's just… sensitive." He smiled.
"You sure, mate?" Harry pressed. "There's gotta be a doctor at Hogwarts. You could have them check it out."
Noah sighed, his magic stirring almost instinctively. He could make them forget about it, or at least brush it off as unimportant.
But then he stopped.
What am I doing?
Why would he erase this?
The concern on their faces—people he'd only just met hours ago—he didn't want to lose that.
"It's fine. If it happens again, I promise I'll see the school healer." His reassurance eased their worry a little.
A short while later, a voice echoed through the train, announcing they would arrive at Hogwarts soon. The boys stepped out so the girls could change into their robes. Then the girls stepped out, and the boys changed in turn. All that was left was to wait.
Soon, the station at Hogsmeade came into view, and the train filled with excitement.
When it screeched to a halt, students poured out. Older students with prefect badges helped the new ones down.
The returning students headed off on their own path, while the first-years stayed clustered together, eyes wide with curiosity.
But all of that attention quickly focused on a single figure.
"First-years, this way!"
It was Hagrid.
Noah eyed the half-giant, and for a moment, the mad scientist part of him wondered about the properties of half-giant blood or skin.
Forget it… he shook the thought away.
The man was massive, with a wild beard, looking every bit the giant.
Following him, the first-years reached the boats by the lake.
They chatted nervously until the boats rounded a bend, and silence fell.
Noah's breath caught.
The castle loomed above the hill, the moon glowing behind it. It was beautiful, magical—like a painting crafted by the heavens themselves, meant only to be admired.
Every child stared in awe. That image would be burned into their memories forever.
Hogwarts.
The place where they would make friends, create memories, face adventures and hardships—it all began with that sight.
Truly magnificent, Noah thought. He was about to say something when he felt himself pass through something unseen.
What was that? His eye activated again.
A barrier.
An enormous, invisible ward that blanketed the entire Hogwarts grounds.
Noah gazed upward, tracing its height and reach. It was like a massive dome, stretching from the sky down to cover everything.
A truly fascinating spell. From what he saw, even all his current magic combined might barely scratch it. To witness such power gathered in one place—it only reinforced why Hogwarts was the perfect place for young wizards to grow.
The boat ride ended as they reached the shore by the castle.
Hagrid led them to the gates and knocked.
Moments later, a stern-looking witch in emerald robes and a pointed hat appeared.
"You can leave them with me now, Hagrid."
"I am the Deputy Headmistress and Transfiguration professor—Minerva McGonagall," she introduced herself.
She guided them into a small chamber where she explained a few rules, the four Houses, and the point system.