The Wizarding World Of Percy Jackson

2. Magic Hats and First Days

Percy would be lying if he said he heard most of what the woman on the stage said. To be quite frank, he didn't even remember her name. He was only really listening for his name as he watched the line progress forward. He hadn't thought it would take so long to get to the J's.

Once he was called, he carefully made his way up the steps. This was fine. He could stand there in front of all those people. It couldn't be as bad as when his dad claimed him, right? At least here there wasn't some special house that only he would have the misfortune of being chosen for. Not to his knowledge anyway.

He sat on the stool as the teacher set the talking hat on his head. Percy immediately tensed as he felt it intrude his mind. He wanted to knock it off. The feeling made him feel unsafe. The urge to run from this situation was strong.

"Calm down, I only have to look through your mind a bit, to find where you belong," it was meant to help him. It didn't.

"Putting people in boxes is dumb." That didn't seem to bother the hat. It continued to shuffling through his mind as though he was looking for a file that had been misplaced. Percy just scowled as he waited.

"Courageous enough for Gryffindor, but it doesn't fit. Slytherin could make use of your stubbornness, and Ravenclaw wouldn't mind someone like you... demigods are not usually this hard to sort," the hat was talking into his mind. He shouldn't be surprised that it had heard of demigods, but Percy was still dismayed by the fact that it knew about him. "I've sorted many demigods, Mr. Jackson. I will tell no one."

"Thanks," Percy didn't feel particularly grateful at the moment. "Look, if it helps, I'm fine with whatever. Especially if the people there are chill. So just choose at random."

He wasn't sure if this was a mistake to say. The hat had gone silent, clearly thinking his words over. A few moments later, it yelled a loud "Hufflepuff!" And a group of students in yellow and black stood cheering for their new housemate. Percy noted that the hat hadn't even mentioned that one in its prior assessments. Maybe he was being pranked right now. Either way, he was determined to make the best of it.

As he walked away from the stage and towards the table of fellow Hufflepuffs, his clothes changed to match their colors. He stopped to look down at it, not  sure if the colors really suited him. But when he looked up at the smiling faces waiting for him, he couldn't bring himself to care.

---

The dorm rooms were as nice as a building so old could provide. He could feel the lake outside the castle as he sat on his bed. They weren't directly under it like the Slytherins, but still close enough for it to ground him a bit.

Percy laid down, hand hanging off the side of his bed, twirling Riptide absent-mindedly. Others moved around him, preparing for bed. He was dreading the possibility of a dream. The temptation to sneak into the bathroom and call his mom or Grover was strong. He wanted to talk to someone, anyone.

He just stayed in bed, promising himself to make time for it tomorrow. He closed his eyes and prayed to any of the gods listening for a dreamless sleep.

---

Harry was just trying to enjoy his meal, happy to be given proper food, when there was a loud scream from across the hall. Looking up, he saw it had come from the Slytherin table. Within the sea of green was one person in yellow, hanging off Draco Malfoy's shoulders.

The laugh that followed the scream was loud. Harry squinted, trying to see if he recognized the boy. He thought it might be the American they had met briefly on the train. He was unsure how anyone could get along with Malfoy, even though he had only met him for a short moment.