The Stubborn Old Headmaster

30

Ah, it's you,' the Sorting Hat sighed. 'Frankly speaking I have no idea where to sort you. You'd fit well in all the Houses.'

'I'm afraid you'll have to decide. I've been waiting for this long enough,' Harry thought impatiently.

'My, aren't you rude to an old man like me. Let's make a deal. You may choose... let's say two houses, as long as you promise not to tell the headmaster about it.'

'I may choose two houses?' Harry asked, incredulously. 'All right then, can you tell me into which house you're going to sort Teddy? I'd love to be in the same house as him.'

'No, I'm sorry, but I have to speak with him first before I know which house he'll be in,' the Hat replied, sounding annoyed.

'I'll choose my parents' houses then, Gryffindor and Slytherin,' Harry decided.

"Gryffindor and Slytherin," the Hat shouted aloud, and Harry sighed in relief when his mother took the crazy old artefact off him.

"Just sit where you like, Harry, and come to see Dad and me after dinner, so that we can discuss what we are going to do about you being in two houses," Minerva said gently, watching as Harry sat down at the Gryffindor table where the Weasley twins hurriedly made space, so that he could sit between them.

"Harry, what was that for a Sorting?" Fred asked half in surprise half teasingly.

"Looks like he couldn't decide with both of your parents as heads of house," George added.

"Apparently this has never happened before, at least according to 'Hogwarts: A History'," a first year girl with bushy brown hair, who was sitting opposite of them, spoke up. "The Sorting Hat always chooses one House for a student, because Godric Gryffindor has charmed it to do so."

"Maybe it's drunk..."

"... or sick..."

"... or just didn't know..."

"... what to do with our Harry..." the twins chanted in a chorus.

"Have you read the whole 'Hogwarts: A History' book?" Harry asked in amazement. 'Of course I've read it many times over the years, but she has to be muggleborn considering that I've never seen her before,' he mused.

"I know it by heart," the girl replied. "It's my favourite book."

"Shouldn't the Hat have sorted you into Ravenclaw then?" Fred smirked.

"Well, it wanted to sort me into Ravenclaw, but I talked it out of it, because I wanted to be in Gryffindor."

"And why might that be?" George enquired curiously.

"I liked the teacher, McGonagall, who brought us in, and somebody told me that she was the head of Gryffindor," the girl admitted. "Of course I've read about her in 'Hogwarts: A History', but I was confused since she seems to be much younger than I imagined her to be."

Harry blushed deeply, and the twins quickly filled Hermione in about what had happened to Minerva a few years ago.

"Harry!" Seamus suddenly called from two seats down from Hermione. "Are you going to remain in Gryffindor?"

"That's Seamus," he introduced his friend from primary school to the new girl. Harry shrugged. "I've no idea. Mum told me to come to see her and Dad after dinner to talk about it."

"I'm Hermione Granger by the way," the girl introduced herself.

"Harry McGonagall-Snape," Harry mumbled, "and these two are Hogwarts' greatest mischief makers, Fred and George Weasley."