"Potter, Harry!" Professor McGonagall called. Harry walked forward and sat on the stool in front of every student at Hogwarts. He knew he'd be sitting at one of the four tables in the room in just a few minutes, his fate at the school decided for him. Harry only caught one glance of all the faces whispering to each other before the Sorting Hat was pulled over his eyes.
"Harry Potter..." a voice whispered in his ear. "This is a tough one. You have lots of courage, but also a need to prove yourself."
Not Slytherin, Harry thought desperately. All he could think about were the snide comments from the blonde boy in Diagon Alley, who had been sorted into Slytherin a few minutes earlier. He thought of Hagrid's words. "There's not a single witch or wizard who went bad who wasn't in Slytherin. You-Know-Who was one."
I won't let that be me, Harry thought determinedly. I am not a bad person. I am not Dudley, or my aunt, or my uncle.
"It doesn't really matter what you think though, does it?" the voice asked tauntingly. "I get to choose your house. I decide based on my assessment of your values. You can't change who you are, Harry Potter. You may wish that you valued bravery and chivalry, but I can see that your life has made you cold. You have goals, and you don't care who you hurt to achieve them. Sure, you can be brave. But all those years with Dudley have made you selfish."
I don't want to believe that, Harry thought. But he just may be right. It's not like I've been brave protecting anyone else all my life. I've just been running from Dudley. Why should it be my job to protect everyone else? Courage for the sake of anyone but yourself is a waste of time. No one at my old school would protect me from Dudley's gang.
"Now you see," the Sorting Hat said. "You want to be a Slytherin. You're being a coward, and you won't admit it. You're scared of what other people think and of who you might turn out to be. That makes you even less of a Gryffindor, which is the only other house you have even a little affinity for."
Slytherin, Harry thought, mulling the idea over. The house isn't necessarily a guarantee that I'll turn out rotten. And I don't want to waste any time on people who don't care about me. The Gryffindors could be a whole lot of showoffs, like Dudley, and look at where being around him got me. Unbeknownst to him, Harry's face had set under the hat. The students in the Great Hall leaned forward in anticipation. This sorting was taking unusually long.
"Now you see how it is," the Sorting Hat said. "You belong in Slytherin!" He shouted this last word for all the students in the school to hear. As the hat was whipped off his head, Harry saw the disgust on students' faces at three particular tables. He made eye contact with Ron, who looked comical with surprise, but Harry soon looked away. If Ron was a Gryffindor like his brothers, Harry would probably never become real friends with him. Instead, Harry set his eyes on the Slytherin table, where everyone was hooting and hollering, ecstatic at the announcement.
Harry's face broke out into a smile. That's exactly where I belong, he thought. They're ambitious, and now I can finally get somewhere. That's all I've ever wanted, after all. Now I'm away from the Dursleys, and I'm going to make a whole new life here.
Harry jumped off the seat and strode to the Slytherin table, where everyone was happy to welcome him. Draco Malfoy grinned at him from down the table. "Harry Potter, huh?" he called. "Welcome to Slytherin!" Harry grinned back. "Welcome yourself. I can't wait to dig in. This is a celebration, after all."