The cat regarded Albus coolly, and then put down his left paw. Slowly, he meandered along the symbols and stopped at one near the end. The shape was obvious enough that even James could make it out. It was a werewolf.
Albus nodded, grinning. "Excellent. Wolves it is."
"What about Ralph, then?" Zane asked, pushing the bigger boy forward.
Patches studied Ralph for a long time, his green eyes narrowed. Finally, he sat down, licked his flank a few times, got up again, and walked in a large circle. When he was done, his right foot rested on the beaker again.
"Somebody's putting catnip in your Tender Vittles, puss," Zane said, shaking his head. "Ralph's even less of an Igor than James here. He didn't even take Technomancy when he had the chance."
"It's true," Ralph said to the cat. "I can't even spell 'technomancy'."
Patches lifted his nose and yawned again, as if bored.
Lucy walked over to Patches and hunkered down on one knee. "Hi Patches," she said, tilting her head. "I'm Lucy Weasley. Where do you think I belong?"
Patches strolled forward and rubbed against Lucy's leg, purring loudly. He walked around her and then angled toward the opposite end of the line of symbols. His shadow fell over the bat as he walked around it consideringly. Finally, he stopped and touched the center of the bat with his right paw.
Zane bobbed his head back and forth. "Could be right on that one," he said. "You do seem to have a little of that 'creature of the night' mystique going for you, Lucy."
"But I really dislike that Remora woman," Lucy said, reaching forward to pet Patches again. "She's so vain and ridiculous."
Zane raised his eyebrows and poked a finger into the air. "'All types come in all houses. That's a direct quote from my House President, the dapper Jersey Devil himself."
"What's it supposed to mean?" Ralph asked, confused.
"It means that no house is all good or all bad," Zane answered, hefting his backpack. "There's obnoxious twits in every society, not just the Vampires. There's even a few duds among us Zombies. On the other hand, there's decent types in every house too, although they're a little fewer and far between in some. Don't worry about it, Lucy. If you do pledge Vampire House, you'll find a few like-minded people there despite Remora's best efforts."
"So where do we stay until we get into a society?" Ralph asked.
"There's a common dorm behind the guest house," Zane said, nodding back the way they had come. "Your stuff 's probably been sent there already. You'll want to get out of there as soon as you can. They haven't updated the common dorm in, like, three hundred years. If I was you, I'd get inside right now and sign up for one of the societies. The initiation process will start pretty much immediately. While you're in there, you can get your class assignments sorted out and sign up for any clubs or sports you want to get involved with." He stepped aside and gestured toward the Administration Hall's main doors. "Unless, that is, you want to come along with me to Precognitive Engineering."
"No thanks," James sighed. "I think we better get all of this out of the way as soon as we can."
"And I don't know about the rest of you," Albus added, "but I'll put off starting classes as long as I can."
"I'd like to come along with you, actually," Lucy said, moving to stand next to Zane. "Unlike these two, I am anxious to see what classes look like here. I'll settle the official arrangements after lunch."
"This way, then," Zane said, offering Lucy his elbow. "Precog isn't as hard as it used to be, apparently, now that Madame Delacroix is in a padded room in the medical complex, but it's still a challenge. Stick close and I'll show you the ropes."
James shook his head as the two headed away into the throng of students.
"So," Ralph said, moving hesitantly toward the Administration Hall doors, "are you going to sign up for Igor House?"
James scoffed. "No way. I'm going for Zombie House. With apologies to Patches over there."
"That's what I was thinking too," Ralph nodded. "Although I can't help wondering what that cat knows that we don't."
"You're both daft," Albus said seriously. "That cat's got some kind of mental link with the cosmos or something. It can see right into your soul, just like the Sorting Hat back home. Did you see how quick it was to figure out I belonged in Werewolf House? That's the house of sporting greats, strength and order. If the cat says you two are a couple of Igor spods, then you shouldn't argue with it. Patches knows his stuff."
James pushed his brother out of the way as he turned toward the Administration Hall doors. "A minute ago, you thought the cat was just a freshman prank."
"Ugh," Ralph said, following. "I thought I was through with all of this. I was just starting to get comfortable with Slytherin. Now we have to start all over again."
Albus frowned. "I love Slytherin, but I have a feeling that me and the Wolves are going to get along just fine."
"At least Quidditch isn't as big a deal over here as it is back home," Ralph commented, stepping into the echoing shadows of the Hall's lobby.
James frowned. "Why is that a good thing?"
"Well," Ralph grinned, clapping his friend on the shoulder, "it improves your chances of making the team, doesn't it?"
Albus hooted laughter, and the sound of it echoed throughout the grand, dark lobby.
Twenty minutes later, the three boys emerged into the sunlight again, studying their class assignments.
"Do either of you have Clockwork Mechanics?" Albus asked. "I can't even imagine what that is."
"Hardly any of these make any sense," Ralph agreed. "Look here: Muggle Occupation Studies. What's that about?"
"Hey!" a voice called nearby, startling the three. James looked around and saw a pair of older students standing next to the doors of the Administration Hall. One, a girl, wore a dark slate skirt, matching button-down sweater and a burgundy tie. Black hair framed her dark, severe face. The other, a boy older than James, had bright green hair cut into a stripe that ran from his brow to the base of his neck. He wore a screamingly yellow tie and black pants. The crest on his blazer identified him as a member of Zombie House.
"Are you talking to us?" Ralph asked querulously.
"Do you see any other new students who've gotten it into their heads to pledge the Hermes House Zombies?"
"And the Ares Werewolves," the girl added, smiling crookedly. "Which one of you is Albus Potter?"
Albus jumped to attention and did his best salute. James knew it was an attempt to be funny, and knew as well that it would fail miserably.
"On the ground, pledge," the girl barked, pointing to the portico floor. "Salutes are for those who serve. You'll make up for that mockery by giving me thirty."
Albus was halfway onto his face on the hot stone. He stopped and glanced up at the taller girl. "Er, thirty what? Galleons? Kisses? Sorry, I'm not from around here. Is this some sort of bribe?"