(AN: This is my first fanfic, everyone!l I hope you all like it!l!

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and all characters and settings thereof belong to J. K. Rowling. This fic is not being published for profit.)

Headmistress McGonagall sat in her office, sipping, to calm her nerves, on a cup of tea. Earl Grey, hot.

Snape and Dumbledore were snickering to each other from their portraits on the wall. "I can hear you, you know!", she said sharply.

It was the beginning of the first new term at Hogwarts since the Second Wizarding War had ended.

And the Sorting, rather than providing a reassuring return to normalcy, had produced total chaos.

It had started with the first child called to the podium. His name was Robert Reginald Aberdeen. He strode boldly down the hall, glowing with anticipation. He had waited for this moment his whole life, and he knew where he was going.

"SLYTHERIN!" the Hat called out.

Robert Reginald Aberdeen stood still, shock on his face. As the Slytherin table erupted in cheers, he whispered frantically to McGonagall:

"I … can't be in Slytherin! There's been some mistake!"

Was there a policy on this, McGonagall wondered? She'd never heard of anyone refusing the Sorting Hat's decision before, presumably because the Hat took anything that would provoke such a reaction into account in the first place. But she simply put her hand on the eleven-year-old's shoulder and gestured towards the Slytherin table, saying "It's not a bad thing to be in Slytherin, I promise." Did she really believe that? Snape and Slughorn had proved themselves ultimately loyal, of course, but she had a suspicion that the House had tipped Dark wizards over the edge who could have been saved by simply … not being in Slytherin.

The next child called was Clara Bailsley. She walked calmly to the podium, looking more curious than hopeful. When the Hat called out "SLYTHERIN!" she thought for a moment, then nodded and began to walk.

By the third call of "SLYTHERIN!" there were murmurs coming from the other tables. McGonagall cocked her head but said nothing; it was possible that the first three students in the alphabet could all be Slytherins simply by chance …

By the sixth call, it was clear that the chance of this all happening by chance was very, very small. As Darcey Dormington walked to the Slytherin table, a chorus of boos erupted from Gryffindor. At that, the Slytherins cheered louder.

"Quiet, everyone! Let the Sorting continue in peace!" McGonagall proclaimed. A few people quieted, but there was tension in the air.

Then …

"BUT PROFESSOR! IT'S SOME KIND OF PLOT! THEY'RE TRYING TO TURN EVERYONE TO THE DARK SIDE!"

The Hall filled with angry murmurs again. It was Andy Gorbrowner, sixth-year Gryffindor, a decent student when he tried but with a tendency to … rush into things. She remembered him being bitterly disappointed that he wasn't allowed to fight in the Battle of Hogwarts. He was probably spoiling for some kind of grand fight, one that his year could fully participate in.

"EXCUSE ME!" came another voice, this time from the Slytherin table. It was Marcus Bell, a current seventh-year prefect. He was standing on a chair. "I WOULD LIKE TO SAY SOMETHING!"

The Hall did quiet down a little more.

Bell continued, in a somewhat more normal voice:

"There is no Slytherin plot! We're not evil! I returned to this school to defend it in the Battle of Hogwarts! And many sitting at this table with me did the same! What more do you want to prove we don't all love You-Know-Who?"

There was more murmuring around the room for a second.

"WHAT DID YOU DO TO THE SORTING HAT, THEN?" It was Gorbrowner again. Oh, dear. This was really turning into a problem. was standing on his own chair now, and many of the older Gryffindors and Slytherins had gotten out of their chairs and were glaring menacingly at each other.

And that was quite enough. "THAT'S ENOUGH!" shouted Minerva McGonagall, Headmistress of Hogwarts, Transfiguration Prodigy, Order of Merlin First Class, etc. This time she did a quick little spell and amplified her voice so that it echoed around all the corners of the room. Everyone turned their heads to her, truly quiet for the first time.

"For now I would like you all to trust that myself and the Professors here are not stupid, and that if something is going on with the Sorting Hat, we will get to the bottom of it. Now, please stop shouting and attempting to threaten the Slytherins, who obviously could not all have been the one who bewitched the Hat. This is shameful behavior on the very first day of school!"

A number of heads at the Gryffindor table looked at her guiltily.

After that no one interrupted the Sorting again.

But when it was over, no one was happy. And none of the Professors knew quite what to do.

Because every last student had been Sorted into Slytherin.