They're Alive?! (A Harry Potter Fanfic)

Chapter 6: The Sorting Part 2

Chapter 6

"H-Harry... Potter..."

The world seemed to stop for five people inside the room.

Two of them were Mr. and Mrs. Potter. They, like McGonagall, paled and their hold on each other's hand tightened after their former Professor uttered his name. James and Lily quickly looked at each other and they tensed, fearing what was going to happen. James squeezed his wife's hand tightly and ran his thumb over it to calm her. Lily gave her husband a reassuring squeeze in return and looked at him with a sad smile.

"He's not him..." James reminded her.

Lily nodded. "I know..."

Professor McGonagall was beyond shocked. After ten years of... of not discussing this boy... he just... shows up? She looks at James and Lily for a second and saw sadness in their features. McGonagall shook her head. 'No'. Harry Potter was dead. He died that Halloween night along with He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. This was just another child who happens to share the same name, that's all.

'But,' she looks at Lily again. 'I wonder if she will be able to accept this...'

Dumbledore... well, Dumbledore was also beyond shocked. That's all he was right now. His mouth went agape before he sat rigid in his seat and unflinching.

Harry's heart was pounding inside his chest. His name had been called. This was it.

He took small, stiff steps towards the stool beside McGonagall. All eyes, it seemed, were on him. Instead of the whispers the students did before, they became unnervingly silent. The silence sent unwanted shivers down his spine and he seemed to get goosebumps. He could feel the stares of every student that were trained on his back.

With a small sigh, Harry sat down the stool, wanting the hat to cover up his face so that this would be over with.

McGonagall slowly placed the hat over his head and stepped back to let the hat do its work. Harry waited for the hat to announce the house that he would be sorted into, like he'd seen it do with the other students who went before him.

"Hello"

Harry jumped up in surprise at the hat's sudden greeting. He hadn't expected this. He thought that the hat would just decide SILENTLY not surprise people so suddenly. No wonder the other first years seemed to flinch after McGonagall placed the hat over them.

"My, my... who do we have here? Harry Potter. My, quite a mind you have, dear boy..." the Hat said above him.

"H-How...?" Harry started to say but the Hat suddenly cut him off.

"Merlin, boy, if you start talking out loud like that people whisper. Best to keep some conversations private, don't you think?"

'Private? How am I supposed to-'

"There we go! Give yourself a pat on the back. You've managed to do it!"

Was this hat crazy? And was what it with his surprise attacks?

'No, Mr. Potter, I assure you, I am quite sane. And I think everyone knows that the element of surprise is the best. Now, let's get your Sorting underway. Don't want to keep people waiting, now do we? Let's see...'

Yep... this Hat was crazy. Harry kept his silence as he let the hat mumble to himself. Was it that hard to choose a house for him? He's been here for almost seven minutes now. He could hear someone tapping his/her foot impatiently.

"No...no... that won't do... Dumbledore's talked about him for years... no, that won't do... what about?... oh, no... wait! No..."

Finally, after what seemed like a lifetime, the Hat stopped his mumbling and cleared it's throat, no doubt about to announce his house.