Daphne

McGonagall was stunned. Snape's expression darkened further, and Dumbledore's smile faded as he sat there in silence.

Tom himself had completely short-circuited.

From his perch on the stool, he looked down at the students craning their necks, their faces full of curiosity, and his mind went blank.

His head was full of questions. What the hell? Slytherin? He was Muggle-born, neither Pure-blood nor Half-blood, and he had no grand ambitions to speak of. What right did he have to be sorted into Slytherin? Was this Tom Riddle's destiny? Was there no escaping it?

In the Study Space, Andros was laughing himself silly. He hollered in Tom's mind, "Hahaha, Tom! Looks like your day finally came! Didn't you plan out which house everyone would go to? How did you manage to leave out Slytherin? The Hat's got you nailed down!"

Tom was grinding his teeth in anger, but he couldn't let it show in front of everyone. All he could do was curse the old coot for enjoying the show.

Just as Professor McGonagall reached out to remind him to go to the Slytherin table, Tom slammed the Sorting Hat back onto his head in front of the entire Hall.

He bargained with the Hat in his mind. Come on, Hat, let's talk this over. You must've made a mistake just now. You touched Potter, right? He's the Chosen One, the Potter family's only child, and pure-blooded. He's the one who belongs in Slytherin. It's got nothing to do with me.

To avoid going to Slytherin, he threw Harry Potter under the bus without a second thought.

He even found himself wondering if Dumbledore would drag him into a heart-to-heart that lasted all afternoon if he found out how badly Tom had thrown the Chosen One under the bus.

"Bullshit!" The Sorting Hat's voice was full of irritation. "Riddle, don't question the expertise of a hat that's been alive for over a thousand years! When have I ever misjudged anyone? I may be an old hat, but I'm not that slow! Slytherin is where you belong!"

"This makes no sense! How could I possibly go to Slytherin?" Tom genuinely didn't understand. His greatest wish in this life was to quietly be a top student. He didn't want to get involved in all the scheming and infighting in Slytherin.

Sensing how utterly bewildered he was, the Sorting Hat's tone turned cheerful again. "Deep down, you've got the ambition to become the strongest, and the determination to see things through no matter what. On top of that, your ancient magic is purer than Salazar's and Godric's. If Salazar were still alive, he'd be on his knees begging you to be his student!"

Tom gritted his teeth. A natural-born Slytherin? Since when am I so nasty? This stupid Hat is slandering me!

"Sorting Hat, doesn't the Sorting depend on what the student wants? I strongly request Ravenclaw!"

"Denied!" The Sorting Hat replied briskly. "Don't hold up my work. There are more young wizards waiting. If you really want to talk, come find me in Dumbledore's office. I charge two Galleons a session, no exceptions."

Tom refused to give up and tried to flatter himself. "Then Hufflepuff would be fine too! Look at me: I'm Muggle-born, kindhearted, and always happy to make friends. I'm practically a natural-born Hufflepuff!"

The Great Hall was eerily quiet. Everyone watched Tom "duke it out" with the Sorting Hat, completely bewildered.

After a long while, the Sorting Hat finally spoke, its voice tinged with resignation and gentle persuasion. "Child, a person can lack talent, and a person can lack connections, but they mustn't lack self-awareness. Promise me you'll face up to who you are, all right?"

"Stupid Hat, I'll sew your mouth shut one of these days!" Tom cursed it viciously in his mind.

The Sorting Hat caught the thought as soon as it crossed his mind and immediately shouted again, "Slytherin! Slytherin! Tom Riddle has to go to Slytherin!"

Professor McGonagall couldn't take it anymore. She took the Hat off his head, her voice tinged with helplessness. "Mr. Riddle, the Sorting Ceremony is over. If you have a problem, you can bring it up with Headmaster Dumbledore later."

Tom forced a smile that looked worse than crying, gave Professor McGonagall a slight bow, then dragged his feet toward the Slytherin table.

At first, no one applauded. Everyone was so baffled by his putting the Hat back on that they wondered if he thought the Sorting had been too quick and wanted to enjoy it a little longer. The young wizards were all muttering to themselves.

It wasn't until Daphne came to her senses, beamed sweetly, and clapped her hands enthusiastically that a few scattered claps rose from the Slytherin table.

Tom took the seat beside Daphne, looking completely dejected. "Tom, I never thought you'd come to Slytherin!"

Daphne leaned in excitedly and lowered her voice, her eyes shining with delight. "This is wonderful! We can go to class together and eat in the Great Hall together from now on!"

"Yeah. I didn't expect it either," Tom replied listlessly. He didn't even have the energy to lift his eyelids, and in his mind he cursed the Sorting Hat eight hundred times.

After he sat down, the last few students were sorted in turn. The final student sorted into Slytherin was Blaise Zabini.

Tom glanced at him and immediately perked up. Wasn't this the idiot who'd believed Professor McGonagall's nonsense, treated Hogwarts like his own home, and even dared to argue with a professor about eating first?

Their eyes met. Each saw the same disdain in the other's gaze, and they both looked away at the same time without saying a word.

"We need to talk." Snape stared at Tom's back, his brow furrowed so deeply it could crush a mosquito. The more he thought about it, the less right it seemed.

Could this Tom Riddle have been reincarnated by Voldemort using some kind of dark magic?

He knew better than anyone that the speed of the Sorting Hat's decision didn't indicate a wizard's potential. But it could certainly reveal a young wizard's personality and true nature.

In all his years, he'd never seen a student sorted into Slytherin so quickly. Only Salazar Slytherin himself, if he came back to life, might receive such treatment.

What did that mean? It meant this boy was an astonishingly good fit for Slytherin.

Even as Slytherin Head of House, he didn't think this was something to celebrate. After all, the last person who'd been such a perfect fit had become Voldemort, hated by everyone.

But Dumbledore didn't pay the slightest attention to Snape's look.

Once Blaise Zabini had taken his seat, Dumbledore rose with a beaming smile and cleared his throat. "Welcome, new students and returning students, to Hogwarts, and to the start of a new school year."

After a pause, he said, "Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak! Thank you!"

With that, he gave a slight bow and slowly sat back down. Thunderous applause erupted across the Hall, and Tom joined in, clapping quite enthusiastically.

"What did he mean by that?" Andros was completely baffled in the Study Space, his face a picture of confusion. "I didn't understand a single word. Why is everyone applauding?"