Slytherin?

Anduin stepped forward, took a seat, and let Professor McGonagall place the hat on his head. But all Anduin could think about now was how curious he was about the Sorting Hat.

"Hmm, serious and meticulous, with a strong sense of honor and an almost boundless thirst for knowledge. You're determined and resolute, but you also value discipline and disdain certain unreasonable rules. Why are your thoughts so mature? You hardly seem like a young child. This is difficult. You could make the most of your strengths in any house. Ravenclaw or Gryffindor, or perhaps..." The Sorting Hat muttered on Anduin's head.

It can actually read people's thoughts? I wonder what this hat is made of, and how it works. I've never seen an Alchemical Tool this lifelike. I'd love to take it apart and have a look. Anduin stared up at the hat, utterly fascinated, his mind full of academic questions about it.

"Hey, kid, keep those filthy thoughts to yourself." As Anduin continued to let his imagination run wild, the Sorting Hat on his head began warning him.

But when you tell someone not to think of an elephant, an elephant is the first thing that comes to mind. So the Sorting Hat's warning only made Anduin's imagination run wilder.

"Oh, you can react to my thoughts, too? Are you a soul stuffed into a hat? Or can someone really make an object with such a strong personality?" Anduin realized the Sorting Hat was talking to him, and grew even more excited. Without thinking, he reached up to touch it, curious about what it was made of.

"Good heavens, get your disgusting hand off me—and keep those filthy thoughts out of your head!" The Sorting Hat found Anduin's thoughts alarmingly dangerous, but still conscientiously considered where he belonged.

Which house should it put him in? That terrifyingly strong will reminded the Sorting Hat of a wizard from a thousand years ago, one who had left a deep impression on it. That was...

Merlin!

"Slytherin!!" The Sorting Hat clearly didn't want to waste any more time talking to Anduin. It shouted the name, afraid that if it waited any longer, it might change its mind. With potential like his, and sorted into that house... It could only hope he wouldn't get his hands on it someday.

Professor McGonagall on the platform visibly froze. Charles and Vivian were also taken aback when they heard Anduin's house.

They hadn't known Anduin for long, but based on what they did know, it had never occurred to them that he might be sorted into Slytherin.

But the decision had been made. As soon as the Sorting Hat called out his house, Anduin's robes transformed. Green and silver trim appeared along the edges, and the Slytherin crest materialized on his chest.

Anduin was briefly stunned by the Sorting Hat's decision, but his expression soon settled back into calm. "Tch. Does this stupid hat hold a grudge? Interesting." He pursed his lips and glanced back at the Sorting Hat as he descended the steps. The hat glared right back at him, its expression just as human—and just as fierce.

Anduin didn't really care which house he was sorted into. Still, deep down, Slytherin was the one he least wanted. Before the school year began, he'd heard from Sirius that many Death Eaters came from Slytherin, and that the idea of pure-blood supremacy was widespread there.

Did the Sorting Hat pick up on my subconscious thoughts, then sort me into Slytherin out of spite? That seems unlikely. Anduin headed for the Slytherin table, where the students stood to welcome the new arrival. He wondered how they would react once they learned he came from a Muggle family.

"Welcome, Anduin Wilson. I'm Vanessa Greengrass, Slytherin's Prefect." Vanessa Greengrass was a girl with long, dark brown hair and brown eyes. She was in her sixth year and carried herself with polite refinement.

"Hello, Prefect Greengrass. You can just call me Anduin." Anduin smiled and shook the girl Prefect's hand, then sat down beside Vivian.

"I can't believe you were sorted into Slytherin. I thought you'd end up in Ravenclaw," Vivian exclaimed as soon as Anduin sat down.

"I don't mind which house I'm in, but I didn't expect to be hated by a stupid hat on my very first day of school," Anduin replied indifferently.

"What stupid hat? What do you mean? Are you talking about the Sorting Hat?" Vivian asked, confused.

"Nothing. Forget it. Let's wait until the Sorting Ceremony is over." Anduin didn't elaborate, cutting the conversation short.

While Anduin and Vivian chatted, Travers, seated not far away at the same table, glanced over at Anduin with a cold smile, then turned and began talking with several people beside him.

What Travers didn't notice was that Anduin had spotted him, too. Anduin narrowed his eyes as he watched Travers, then began observing the other students in his house. He'd just entered a new environment, so the first thing to do was get a basic understanding of it—not just learn everyone's names, but, more importantly, find out where they stood. The Magical World was in the middle of a war, after all.

Anduin turned to Vanessa across from him and asked, "Prefect Greengrass, do you know if there's anyone named Avery or Snape in our house?"

"Not among the current students. I recognize both those names, though. I believe they graduated several years ago. Why are you asking about them?" Vanessa looked at Anduin in puzzlement.

"Oh, nothing. I just heard their names before and thought I'd ask." It seemed the two Death Eaters he'd fought before didn't have any relatives attending the school. Anduin couldn't help feeling relieved.

By then, the Sorting Ceremony had finally come to an end. After the Sorting Hat and stool were taken away, an old man with a long white beard rose from the teachers' seats at the front of the Great Hall.

"Look, that's Dumbledore, reputed to be the greatest wizard in the Magical World today," Vivian said excitedly, introducing him to Anduin.

At last, Anduin had a chance to take a good look at the old man who had led the British Magical World's resistance against Voldemort all these years.

But after watching him for a while, Anduin couldn't see anything particularly special about him. He seemed more like an ordinary old neighbor. Dumbledore's speech was very brief; he said only a few words, offered a couple of simple greetings, and then returned to his seat.

"Now, let the feast begin." Back at his seat, Dumbledore lightly tapped his goblet with a spoon. Food appeared out of nowhere on the plates, piled high.

All the young wizards cheered and, throwing manners aside, grabbed the food before them and began eating heartily.

The Slytherin first-years marveled at the wondrous magic and eagerly reached for the food. But Anduin noticed that the older students around them were much more restrained, using their cutlery to serve themselves before slowly savoring their meal.