"Snape, Severus" Deputy Headmistress McGonagall's voice rang clear in the hall, and most students didn't blink an eye. Severus Snape, heir of the Snape legacy. The only darker family was the Malfoys. Even the Blacks hadn't been as publicly dark as the Snapes.
The hat nestled itself comfortable on his head and, instantly, Severus could feel, almost instinctively, something going through his thoughts and memories. So, he decided to think back.
'Hello?'
'Hello young Master Snape. It is interesting to finally meet you."
'Thank you, I think.'
"You see, I am the thinking cap, and I almost single-handedly can determine your future. You are an interesting case however.'
'What do you mean interesting?' Severus knew the answer before it was said.
'You have much ambition, yes, but also a tremendous amount of courage, not to mention a good mind. You would do well in Ravenclaw, Gryffindor, and Slytherin.'
'What? I have to be in Slytherin. Mum and Dad would kill me if I wasn't. It's about Family Honor!' Severus was very worried at this point, sure that his parents would disown him of he were in any other house.
'Yes, they might disown you, Young Snape, but I sense a fierce desire for friendship. Alas I see that might not happen if you are in Slytherin, but Gryffindor…'
'I don't care what you think; I HAVE to be in Slytherin!' Snape's mind was practically screaming at the hat.
'Do you?'
'What, are you saying that I shouldn't?'
'Shouldn't what?'
'Be in Slytherin.'
'It is my belief that you would be happier in Gryffindor, it would verily change your life'
'Change my life?'
'Yes, change your life. I can see things you know, many things, things to come, things that have passed. I see you in Slytherin and powerful, but alonel. I see you in Gryffindor and happy, surrounded by friends. I see you in Ravenclaw and rich, a businessman.'
'Why do my parents want me to be in Slytherin?'
'Sadly, since they have last seen me, their views on the world have narrowed. It grieves me to see of them what I do now.'
'See what?'
'You know of what I speak; the nights you have to stay in the corner or in your room, hiding from him. She has to hide too. It grieves me deeply.'
'How can you see such things?'
'I am the combined mind of all the founders. I can see many things. But we must sort you Young Snape.'
'What house will I do best in?'
'If you, like your parents, desire power, then Slytherin is for you. But if friendship is in your heart, than Gryffindor should be your choice.'
'But it is my choice?'
'It never was not your choice, Young Snape. Your future is in your hands.
Severus thought of the four boys on the train and how he wished he could have been friends with them.
And, less than ten seconds later, the hat shouted…
