Harry Potter and the Ritual of Love's Memory

Chapter 78

Being a sixth year had its perks. From his position fairly close to the front of the Gryffindor table, Harry was able to watch the nervous First Years milling about just beyond a set of open double doors. They looked even tinier than he remembered. His mind flew back to his near terror while waiting to be sorted all those years ago, Malfoy's offer of friendship at the expense of Ron (which he couldn't be happier that he'd turned down), and the desperate argument with the Sorting Hat to ensure he wasn't placed in Slytherin. He tried to give an encouraging smile with a wave of his hand to a small brown-haired girl with glasses, who reminded him a bit of Hermione, but she didn't see his gesture.

Professor McGonagall called for the first of the new students to come be sorted, Adaine Abernant, who was quickly placed into Ravenclaw. Harry watched the gaggle of First Years as they released a tiny bit of their tension. He wondered how many wild ideas of what sorting would entail were melting away as the second student approached the Sorting Hat.

Harry's attention shifted from the group of First Years over to the staff table, making sure not to make eye contact with the headmaster. He hadn't spoken to Professor Dumbledore since the explosive meeting after the Gringotts break-in. This was mostly because the aged man had not come back to Grimmauld Place in the month since that fateful night, though the distance between them felt almost more now that they were in the same room. The sound of Kingsley's quiet fury and the look of misery on Remus' face had been burned into Harry's mind, and he struggled to push the thought of them away, despite the general excitement of the Welcome Feast.

Several new faces peered out across the students from the staff table, including one Harry recognized immediately. Bill sat between Professor Sprout and Hagrid, whispering conspiratorially with the gamekeeper and causing the large man to stifle a laugh behind his hand. Ginny had given her eldest brother a long, exasperated look from her spot next to Harry, but Bill had simply nodded to her politely before returning to his conversation.

Near the end of the staff table sat two people Harry didn't recognize, but both of whom looked more elderly than anyone he'd ever beheld. There was a wizard whose head was completely bald, other than a small strip of short, ghostly white hair that extended from behind his ear around the back of his head to his other ear. He was slight in build and somehow made Dumbledore look like a strapping young man in comparison.

Next to him sat a witch who looked every bit as old as the man sitting next to her. Her wispy, white hair draped down over her shoulders. Harry could see her dark eyes shone with intensity despite her advanced years. Instead of a highbacked chair like the other professors, the woman was seated in a wheelchair. She and the man to her left spoke to each other in hushed whispers as the last of the first years were sorted. Before Harry could spend too much time considering the mysterious new staff members, Dumbledore had risen to address the Great Hall.

"It will not do to stand between such excellent students and such a delectable feast. I invite each of you to tuck in!"

Though Harry knew what to expect from a Welcome Feast at Hogwarts, the gasps of tiny first years combined with the overwhelming scent of the delicious food spread before him were enough to leave him awash in good feelings. A savory aroma wafted up from the massive ham that Ron went for first, but Harry began with a piping hot stew and bread that must have come out of the oven moments before it appeared on the table. Soon, the Great Hall descended into an excited murmur of clinking silverware and muffled conversations being conducted impolitely by a ravenous student body excited to reconnect with each other. The cacophony gave Harry a feeling of home.

Once the meal was wrapping up, the headmaster again stood and attempted to reclaim the attention of the students. Harry noticed that Ron was not the only one attempting to finish the last remnants off his plate before the feast disappeared.