At the entrance feast in the Great Hall, Professor McGonagall led the first-year students inside in two neat lines.
They walked down the central aisle between the four long house tables, facing hundreds of curious upperclassmen and the professors seated at the staff table beyond them. Before the first years could properly observe anything, they had already reached the open space at the front of the hall.
There stood a simple four-legged stool.
On top of it sat a pointed wizard's hat so battered and filthy that even a rubbish heap might have rejected it. It was patched upon patches, frayed at the brim, and looked as though it had survived several wars and lost every single one.
The entire hall had fallen silent.
The new students had no idea what was about to happen. The professors and upperclassmen, however, were all staring at this year's first years with unusual interest.
After all, the group looked far too polished.
The boys' hair was neat and stylish. The girls' hair had been cleaned, curled, braided, and arranged elegantly. Their robes were fresh and wrinkle-free, and the whole group looked less like nervous children arriving from a train and more like young nobles entering a formal ball.
The professors quietly wondered what had happened before the ceremony.
The students simply wondered why they hadn't thought of doing the same thing when they first arrived.
"Oh!"
"My little brother!"
"How can you be so handsome?"
Two heartbroken cries rang out from the Gryffindor table.
Ron immediately recognized the voices of his twin brothers and proudly straightened his back. The other first years did the same, acting as if they were completely calm while secretly glowing with delight.
Before Professor McGonagall could quiet the Weasley twins, the tattered hat on the stool twitched.
It made a small sound, almost like a yawn.
"I bet that hat was asleep just now," Ron whispered to Harry.
"Oh, young wizard," the hat said suddenly. "You really shouldn't insult the Sorting Hat. Otherwise, the Sorting Hat may sort you straight into Azkaban."
Ron froze.
Leo also froze for half a second.
This really was the real world.
Not a film. Not a cartoon. Not a children's novel.
Was that seriously something a hat should say at a school ceremony?
Before Ron could react, the Sorting Hat opened the tear near its brim and began singing.
Unfortunately, its voice was terrible.
Cracked, off-key, and old enough to make people wonder whether fabric could get throat problems.
Maybe you don't think I'm pretty,But don't judge what you see.If you can find a smarter hat,I'll eat myself with glee.
Your bowler may be cleaner,Your top hat may shine bright,But I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat,And I shall choose tonight.
No thought can hide away from me,No heart escapes my eyes.Put me on, and I shall seeWhere your true future lies.
Perhaps brave Gryffindor waits,Where courage burns like flame.Or loyal Hufflepuff may call,With patience, heart, and name.
Wise Ravenclaw may suit your mind,Where wit and learning soar.Or Slytherin may find you friendsWho hunger after more.
So come, young ones, and put me on.Let fate and magic start.For I will sort you one by one,And place you where you're part.
As the hat sang, the teachers remained composed, while many of the older students joined in loudly. Leo even saw two red-haired boys standing at the Gryffindor table and singing horribly out of tune on purpose.
"This must be the real test before Sorting," Leo muttered.
"I agree," Draco said from nearby.
Ron looked from the hat to Leo with a wounded expression.
"So we don't need to fight trolls or go underwater to battle mermaids after all. We only have to wear the hat."
Harry, Hermione, and Draco all turned to look at Leo.
The very same Leo who had confidently lied about mermaid combat earlier.
Leo immediately lifted his gaze toward the enchanted ceiling, as if the stars above the Great Hall were suddenly the most fascinating thing in the world.
Hermione followed his gaze and whispered, "I read in Hogwarts: A History that the ceiling is enchanted to reflect the sky outside."
Leo gave a tiny nod to show he understood.
At that moment, Professor McGonagall stepped forward with a long roll of parchment.
"When I call your name, you will sit on the stool and put on the Sorting Hat," she announced.
She lifted the hat in one hand and looked down at the list.
"Hannah Abbott!"
The shy, round-faced blonde girl who had earlier asked Leo to fix her hair stepped forward and sat on the stool.
Leo crossed his arms and rested his chin on one hand while watching with interest.
So this was the classic tradition.
The hat dropped over Hannah's head. A moment later, it shouted, "Hufflepuff!"
The Hufflepuff table burst into enthusiastic applause, welcoming their newest member.
After that, several more students were called and sorted one by one. Each house clapped loudly whenever someone joined them.
Unsurprisingly, Hermione, Harry, and Ron were all sorted into Gryffindor.
Leo had considered whether he should interfere and change things, but after thinking it over, he decided against it. Without Hermione helping them, Harry and Ron were two walking pits who might fall into disaster even faster than canon.
Dumbledore would not let the saviour die, but that did not mean Ron and the others were perfectly safe.
Three heads were still better than one.
"Draco Malfoy!"
Professor McGonagall called the proud little dragon's name.
Draco brushed imaginary dust from his shoulder, walked forward with arrogant dignity, bowed slightly to Professor McGonagall, and sat on the stool.
Professor McGonagall returned the gesture with a faint smile and placed the Sorting Hat on his head.
"Oh," the hat murmured in a voice only Draco could hear. "Another young master from the Malfoy family. Noble honour, ambition, pride… yes, I know exactly where you belong."
"Slytherin!"
Draco had clearly been praying for that result.
The instant the hat shouted, he grabbed it off his head and nearly jumped up in excitement. The Slytherin table welcomed him with loud applause, and Draco quickly remembered himself.
He coughed lightly, bowed with exaggerated maturity, and strode happily to his seat.
"Leo Nicholas!"
Then Professor McGonagall called Leo's name.
After speaking, she gave him a subtle wink while no one else was watching.
Leo took a deep breath and walked forward slowly, his eyes falling on the Sorting Hat.
Which house would he enter?
He was smart and learned quickly, so Ravenclaw made sense.
But he was also lazy and wanted a comfortable life, so Hufflepuff sounded excellent too.
As for Gryffindor and Slytherin, absolutely not.
One was a disaster magnet.
The other was Voldemort's old base camp.
Thinking this, Leo sat down on the stool.
Professor McGonagall placed the Sorting Hat on his head.
"Oh… Nicholas," the hat murmured. "Such an old surname. It reminds me of an old friend."
Leo's thoughts immediately became restless again.
One moment he was considering which house would give him the quietest life. The next, he was thinking about alchemy knowledge, Dongtian, Hei Si, his glasses, and the problem of his unstable mental state.
The hat hummed softly.
"Interesting. There is wisdom here. Knowledge too. Ravenclaw? No, not only that."
It paused.
"A noble and mysterious air. Slytherin? Hm, yes, but there is more."
Another pause followed.
"Gryffindor? Not exactly. There is courage, but it hides behind caution."
The hat seemed even more puzzled.
"These habits, this appetite for comfort, this strange passion for small joys… Hufflepuff? Perhaps."
Leo finally snapped back to full awareness.
"You are a complicated young wizard," the Sorting Hat whispered. "Difficult. Very difficult."
Hearing that word, Leo's heart tightened.
Difficult again.
Something was clearly still wrong with him. He needed to solve the problem of his scattered thoughts as soon as possible.
"Oh… this… this is…"
The Sorting Hat suddenly seemed to notice something deeper.
It sounded as though it wanted to speak clearly, but then stopped. For one strange instant, Leo felt as though an unbearable gaze had fallen over them both.
The hat went rigid.
Then it shouted, "Slytherin!"
Leo blinked.
A second later, he snapped fully out of his daze.
Slytherin?
Hadn't he just said he didn't want Gryffindor or Slytherin?
Why had he ended up there anyway?
Strange.
Very strange.
The first strange thing was that the Sorting Hat itself seemed unsure what had just happened. The second strange thing was that Leo felt as though he had forgotten something important during the Sorting.
At the Gryffindor table, Harry, Ron, and Hermione looked disappointed for a moment.
Then they quickly began clapping for their friend.
They were not the only ones. Most of the first years applauded enthusiastically too. After all, Leo had helped them look brilliant before entering the hall and had given them their first proud moment at Hogwarts.
The happiest person, however, was undoubtedly Draco Malfoy.
"Leo! Here! Over here!"
Draco clapped eagerly and waved for him to come over.
Leo glanced toward the three young Gryffindors and nodded slightly in response to their applause. Then, under Draco's enthusiastic gaze, he walked toward the Slytherin table.
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