A/N: Actually, double update! I forgot that I was already done with this chapter compared to the last ones. Anyways, I won't hold you guys up.

WARNING: Isaac's Rudeness. (I swear I'm sorry if Isaac's rudeness would offend anyone.)

VI

HIGHWAY TO HELL, I MEAN, HOGWARTS

Isaac always thought the experience to be mundane as he had been seeing the famous Hogwarts Express and the platform nine and three-quarters through his visions; not to mention read all about it. And it pains him to admit that he was right.

It all started when he journeyed to Diagon Alley; he didn't even blink an eye. Like the shifting rocks were something he had seen before (which he did, in a dream and in real life), and the goblins, and pretty much everything else. Well, he was irritated when he was being measured for his robes when Madame Malkin just kept on telling him how small he was.

Okay, lady! He knows that he is short. And when he grows up, he will still be short. Although, he prayed to whoever deity that he wouldn't be so.

There were only two things he enjoyed in that trip. First was the roller-coaster ride at the wizard bank; second was his wand choosing at Ollivander's because who wouldn't find that exciting?

Pretty much that was it. And yeah, the ice cream was okay, but he isn't really a sweet tooth. So, why would anything be different on the train from that in the goddamn alley?

Is it because he gets to go through a wall? Sheesh, he's been through enough walls. Some were more painful and not at all magical, and some were pretty much the trick on the eye. To be honest, nothing seems to surprise him anymore—well anything magical so far anyways. He huffed, looking out from the window of their compartment. The landscape was green and he was getting sick of it. Sometimes he liked basking in the feeling of being right, but there were those moments that just bites him back in the ass.

"I did not think it would end up like this." He muttered under his breath.

"End up like what?" Merlin's head snapped up, looking at his curly-haired companion.

Isaac gave him an irritated look before gesturing around the compartment with his hands waving around. "THIS!" he cried out, sinking into his seat. "I'm honestly disappointed."

The curly-haired seer sulked on his chair. He had been looking forward for this year, but he didn't think that his first time would be a bust.

His companion set his book down next to him, clasping his hands together and leaning forwards. "Couldn't you just wait until we actually got to the school?" Merlin asked.

He huffed. "You know me—I ain't patient for this shit. And honestly, this is supposed to be a memorable experience—but it just manages to disappoint me. Dear God, what's happened to me?!" He stood up, moved around, jumping randomly at times. This just made Merlin confused yet amused on his antics.

"What are you doing?"

"Trying to do something!" he said loud enough to make Merlin flinch at the volume.

Boredom never sat well with Isaac especially when he's away from his gadgets and toys that an eleven year old such as him shouldn't be playing with. And honestly, Isaac doesn't like it when you referred to it as a toy—unless it's an actual toy. And Merlin knew how much this meant to Isaac, and it honestly was sad to see him in a plain blank face, absent with the usual happy ones of the usual first years. Then again…Isaac wasn't your usual eleven-year-old.

Merlin had tried to calm the boy down and it was only when the candy trolley came into view he shut up. A smiling, dimpled woman slid back their door, and said, "Anything off the cart, dears?"

Isaac smiled happily, thinking of the magical sweets he never tasted yet. He went out the corridor and bought for himself, knowing Merlin didn't want any.

Merlin thanked the old lady, helping Isaac carry them all inside. There were Berttie Bott's Every Flavor Beans, Drooble's Best Blowing Gum, Chocolate Frogs, Pumpkin Pasties, Cauldron Cakes, Licorice Wands, and pretty much all the candies and sweets that existed in that cart. Merlin didn't want any of the sweets preferring a more natural blend of muggle chocolate that he packed.

He looked to find Isaac munching on the Cauldron Cakes and taking down notes. Notes on what subject however seemed vague. The time came and went with Merlin continuing to read and Isaac just writing and munching on the purchased food.

"Holy shit!" Isaac exclaimed with his mouth full.

Merlin looked up to find a chocolate frog card in the palm of his hand. He looked questioningly at him, although grimacing as Isaac mercilessly bit the head off the enchanted chocolate frog. The frog spazzed before it died. Even Merlin had wondered what would happen when you actually eat a Chocolate Frog and looking at it now, it doesn't seem nice.

"I got you." Isaac said, showing him the card; a big grin in place.

Merlin took the card from his hand, flipping it to see a portrait of Dragoon the Great. He sighed, remembering all his escapades as the old man. He had grown accustomed to that frail and old body even if he had been annoyed by the aching feeling around his body. It was the price of old age, wasn't it?

"You look ridiculous." Isaac remarked, cringing at a particular flavour from Bertie Bott's Beans.

"At least, I didn't look like a dried-up dwarf when I turned old." Merlin commented.

Isaac spluttered. "That was an aging spell! It doesn't count!"

"Just keep telling yourself that."

The warlock went back to his book, smirking at Isaac's grumblings. The seer just went back to his note-taking, but brought out his headphones and cassette Walkman. He brought out his cassette box and picked his The Best of David Bowie Vol. 1 mixtape, and listened to the song Space Oddity.

The countryside was becoming wilder, and forty-one Bowie songs, and four cassette tapes had passed and the first song in the Best of Queen, Bohemian Rhapsody, was now playing. And Merlin had to ignore Isaac's constant head bobbing with the song that he played or even the random times he would sing along. This didn't irritate him, but amuse him. Isaac was an enigma wrapped in a burrito with a personality and a mind-set you wouldn't have expected at all.

The young seer would sing some of the lines out aloud with one of them being the first start of the song: "Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy?"

In all honesty, Merlin quite liked the songs Isaac listens too. Merlin, believe it or not, prefers are a more classical upturn with Mozart, Beethoven, and Bach, but Isaac wanted him to know the wonders of rock. And he was surprised, he was still alive after that "psychedelic" experience ( Ergo they just sat in a room full of vinyl discs and heavily incense candles, and then they listened until they dropped.)

Just at the iconic Do let me go! part was done, there was a knock. And Merlin lifted his head up from his book to see a girl slide open the door accompanied with a round-faced boy. The girl already wore her Hogwarts robes.

"Has anyone seen a toad? Neville's lost one." She said with a kind of bossy voice. The girl had bushy brown hair, creamy complexion, and rather large front teeth.

Merlin shook his head and looked at Isaac, who was currently unaware of the people that were in their compartment. The curly-haired boy just continued to hum and bob his head to the music while writing something down.

"What is that on his head?" the boy asked, looking shyly at the headphones on Isaac's head.

As if on cue, Isaac took his headphones, letting them hang around his neck. He smiled before looking up; his smile fell.

"Did I miss something?" he asked, looking around as if to check if the compartment wasn't on fire.

"Are those headphones?" the bushy-haired girl said, pointing at them.

"Of course," Isaac said, looking at her with a raised brow.

"What are 'head phones'?" the round-faced boy asked curiously.

"It's a muggle listening device." Merlin explained, casting him a smile.

"You know, you can't bring muggle devices to Hogwarts." The girl said. The girl seemed confident; very law-abiding kind of girl.

"Really?" Isaac asked sarcastically, although was not clear to the bushy-haired girl.

"Yes, besides electronics won't work in Hogwarts grounds."

"Why is that so?" Isaac asked, leading her on with a smile.

Merlin rolled his eyes at Isaac. He was going to break that girl for sure.

"They all go haywire around Hogwarts, there's too much magic in the air." She said in-a-matter-fact voice.

The warlock could see the seer resist rolling his eyes at her.

"Okay," he said. "Which one are you referring to? Electricity or Electronics?"

The girl opened her mouth to answer, but Isaac interrupted.

"I'm sorry, but if you are referring to electricity," He said. "I must say that it's impossible for electricity not to work."

The girl looked offended at him, but did not interrupt him.

"If electricity didn't work, then the universe literally won't exist as we know it's due to the fact that electricity is streams of electrons. And without electrons, compounds, thus most of matter wouldn't exist." Isaac explained. "The universe would not exist since EM, which stands from Electromagnetic. forces are an integral component of the standard model. And not to mention the fact that our brains run on electrical impulses through synapses.

"If you were referring to electronics then it is possible that it might be a localized limitation of EM field functions. An example would be the suppression of high-energy-density electrical items versus lower density items such as bio-electricity. In it, not only electricity but also gunpowder, steam engines, and etcetera would not work, but the key difference being the level and density of the electrical or heat energy being artificially produced. Do you understand?"

His whole explanation was spoken fast and true, leaving the three inhabitants in the room surprised. Even Merlin since he never got a full science lesson from Isaac. The curly-haired seer clapped his hands together.

"To speed things up, no we haven't seen your toad. And it's called science and I read a lot." Isaac said with a smile. "Now shoo!"

The bushy-haired girl was broken from her stupor of (probably) broken pride, and had dragged the awestruck Neville out of the compartment to the next one.

Isaac rolled his eyes. "You know, even if that does happen. My electronics would still work because it's part of my Lifestream gift."

"I know it will." Merlin said, smiling at his friend.

His friend went back to listening to his music and just writing down. It was then that he wished that Isaac and the girl wouldn't end up in the same house. If they did, all hell would break loose. They were back to their peace and quiet state. When it seemed they were almost there to Hogwarts, Merlin and Isaac took off their jackets and pulled on their long black robes that fitted them nicely enough.

"I feel like I stole Dominik, I mean, Dad's drapes." Isaac muttered under his breath. He replaced his headphones with a set of earphones, so he could easily hide it. It hung around his neck and still connected to the Walkman attached to his hip. He had asked Madame Mankin to leave a space for the wire to pass easily and also to control the Walkman as well.

A voice echoed through the train: "We will be reaching Hogwarts in five minutes' time. Please leave your luggage on the train; it will be taken to the school separately."

Isaac placed all the uneaten sweets inside his bag along with his other belongings. Once that was done, they joined the crowd thronging the corridor. The train slowed right down and finally stopped. And people pushed their way toward the door and out onto the tiny dark platform. Isaac followed Merlin as they headed towards a giant bearded man named Hagrid.

Slipping and stumbling, they walked down the steep, narrow path. It was so dark on either side of them, but training in the dark may have made this easier. Nobody spoke much—in fact Isaac was still listening to a myriad of songs from Brian Eno this time.

There was a loud "Oooooh!"

The narrow path had opened suddenly onto the edge of a great black take. Perched atop a high mountain on the other side, its windows sparkling in the starry sky, was a vast castle with many turrets and towers. Isaac didn't pay any mind since he was busy listening to Dead Finks Don't Talk.

Merlin remembered all the times he attended the school. Year after year Merlin would change his name. However, he would always pick something that started with an M. On the registration forms he would fill in his parent's names, though varying it between the names of his friends back in Camelot.

In order to fit in, Merlin would perform an aging spell, though this time in reverse making him younger. This was the part Merlin hated the most because despite his size, Merlin was still a fully developed sorcerer. His magical ability succeeded any witch or wizard, and was now forced inside an eleven year old body. Containing his magic was difficult. And now, that he is young again but by different circumstances, it felt different. It might be the work of the Lifestream, making it bearable for him.

Merlin nudged Isaac as they sat inside a boat with two other girls. One had silky honey blond hair and the other had a short brown bob.

"Everyone in?" shouted Hagrid, who had a boat to himself. "Right then—FORWARD!"

And the fleet of little boats moved off all at once, gliding across the lake, which was as smooth as glass. Everyone was silent, staring up at the great castle overhead. Isaac let his hand wade through the water, listening to the serene music of Brian Eno's Zawinul/Lava. The cool water went through the spaces of his fingers like liquefied hair. It towered over them as they sailed nearer and nearer to the cliff on which it stood.

"Heads down!" yelled Hagrid as the first boats reached the cliff.

They all bent their heads and the little boats carried them through a curtain of ivy that hid a wide opening in the cliff face. They were carried along a dark tunnel, which seemed to be taking them right underneath the castle, until they reached a kind of underground harbour, where they clambered out onto rocks and pebbles.

Both of them helped the two out of the boats, earning them small smiles. Thankfully, the round-faced boy had finally found his toad. And when that was done, they clambered up a passageway in the rock after Hagrid's lamp, coming out at last onto smooth, damp grass right in the shadow of the castle. They walked up a flight of stone steps and crowded around the huge, oak front door.

The door swung open at once. A tall, black-haired witch in emerald-green robes stood there with a very stern face which is the first sign of warning to not mess with her. Isaac stopped the music immediately, seeing the woman would see his earphones.

"The firs' years, Professor McGonagall," said Hagrid.

"Thank you, Hagrid. I will take them from here."

She pulled the door wide. The entrance hall was so big, but not as big as the hall of the Wolfsbane castle on another side of Scotland (owned respectively by the Redfords). The stone walls were lit with flaming torches like the ones at Gringotts, the ceiling was too high to make out, and a magnificent marble staircase facing them led to the upper floors. They followed Professor McGonagall across the flagged stone floor. Isaac could hear the drone of hundreds of voices from a doorway to the right—the rest of the school must already be here—but Professor McGonagall showed the first years into a small, empty chamber off the hall. They crowded in, standing rather closer together than they would usually have done, peering about nervously.

"Welcome to Hogwarts," said Professor McGonagall. "The start-of-term banquet will begin shortly, but before you take your seats in the Great Hall, you will be sorted into your houses. The Sorting is a very important ceremony because, while you are here, your house will be something like your family within Hogwarts. You will have classes with the rest of your house, sleep in your house dormitory, and spend free time in your house common room…"

The professor went on and on explaining everything to the first years. Merlin and Isaac didn't need to listen to them since the rules were almost embedded in their minds. The warlock had met eyes with the professor that stared at him curiously.

"I shall return when we are ready for you," said Professor McGonagall. "Please wait quietly." She left the chamber.

Merlin walked as she left, feeling confused and curious. She had looked at him with some kind of recognition, but Merlin was sure that he had never ever met her. Maybe it was because of Anastasia and Dominik.

"How exactly do they sort us into houses?" he heard someone ask.

"Some sort of test, I think. Fred said it hurts a lot, but I think he was joking."

Isaac snorted besides as he listened to music with only one bud, keeping one ear alert. Hurtful tests for first years? Obviously, it was a lie.

It was always like this. Merlin looked around and saw that everyone else looked terrified, too. No one was talking much except that bushy-haired girl that Isaac had explained a piece of science to, who was whispering very fast about all the spells she'd learned and wondering which one she'd need.

Out of all of them, Isaac and Merlin were not nervous at all. Suddenly, several people behind them screamed. They turned around to see about twenty ghosts that had just streamed through the back wall. Pearly-white and slightly transparent, they glided across the room talking to one another and hardly glancing at the first years. They seemed to be arguing. Merlin smiled at the sight.

He had remembered them from all the centuries that he had attended. In his days from before, His only solace was seeing the ghosts at Hogwarts, who remembered him year after year. They didn't know his true identity, but Merlin was sure they suspected. They respected him as many knew him to be their elder. He was able to share laughs with them.

The Fat Friar appeared before them smiling, catching the eye of Merlin. They knew of his act and they went along with it.

"New students!" said the Fat Friar, smiling around at them. "About to be Sorted, I suppose?"

A few people nodded mutely.

"Hope to see you in Hufflepuff!" said the Friar. "My old house, you know."

"Move along now," said a sharp voice. "The Sorting Ceremony's about to start."

Professor McGonagall had returned. One by one, the ghosts floated away through the opposite wall.

"Now, form a line," Professor McGonagall told the first years, "and follow me."

Merlin got behind Isaac, who stood behind a ginger boy. They walked out of the chamber, back across the hall, and through a pair of double doors into the Great Hall.

Once Merlin arrived in the Great Hall he took a deep breath. It was exactly how he remembered it. It was decorated for the welcoming ceremony with flags hovering over tables addressing each house. Candles gleamed brightly and the ceiling was lit by glowing stars. It was beautiful and spectacular.

Every student had their eyes trained on them, but it did not matter. His eyes looked across to the faculty table, where staff was seated. Each teacher sat at the head, a symbolization of their authority. It was the founder's idea that the faculty should sit at the head of the room, for it was important that the students respect their leaders.

Merlin sighed. He had already left when they designed this room. Unlike the founders, Merlin believed the students would have more respect if the faculty sat with them. It was a view Arthur had influenced and so did the round table when it was created.

Arthur had explained how the kings had used the round table to symbolize the equality of all. It emphasized this as no man could be placed above another. It wouldn't matter where one would sit for they would all have equal positions. The round table gained the king his people's admiration. Feasts and celebrations had always been festivities that highlighted the nobles and knights, but with this round table it was no longer a select few but the kingdom that was celebrated, all people included.

Arthur had been a good leader. He understood that people chose to follow him because they believed in the way he ruled. To be a good king he must rule in favor of the people, for it was the people that truly gave him his power.

Merlin had guided him in the foundation of his beliefs; however, it had been Arthur that expanded on his views allowing him to become an accepting and benevolent ruler. It was through his views of equality that he gained support of not only his people, but those from other kingdoms. Through this, he united Albion and established peace.

He had ruled his kingdom through his people's trust and loyalty, unlike his father who ruled through fear and force. With Uther, there was chaos because there were always those that felt the need to rise up against him. However with Arthur, there was peace because he gave the people no reason to feel oppressed.

Merlin knew that the founders had the best intentions for the school, but he couldn't help but think. When students are in a classroom they sit behind the teacher because the knowledge of that one is greater than their own. Yet, for dining arrangements what is the purpose of the head if not to declare one's superiority?

What if students began to see the hypocrisy of how the school preaches equality and defies itself through a mere seating arrangement? No matter how old or young, every individual has a purpose in the world. Whether they are written in a greater plan or not, everyone plays a part that will influence another. Any part is significant, and no matter how small it may seem, the result is the same and for this no individual should be valued greater than another no matter what.

Everyone is equal.

Merlin knew that if the issue were to be brought up it would be deemed 'inappropriate'. He knew it would be rejected and overlooked, and for this reason he never voiced his opinion on the matter. If Merlin had had his way, the round table would be implemented, and teachers would not only sit with the students, but the students would sit together.

The division within the school was the cause of prejudice and misconceptions. It wasn't just the teachers from the students, but it was the division of the houses. The school itself was segregated. Merlin didn't mind the fact that students were placed in houses that would benefit them more than another, but it was the isolation that irked him.

They stopped as they watched Professor McGonagall silently place a four-legged stool in front of the first years. On top of the school, she put the sorting hat on its place. Merlin did a double take. That sorting hat just kept getting uglier and uglier. The hat twitched and it sang.

The whole hall burst into applause as the hat finished its song. Merlin looked at Isaac, who did not pay attention at all.

Professor McGonagall now stepped forward holding a long roll of parchment. "When I call your name, you will put on the hat and sit on the stool to be sorted," she said.

"Abbott, Hannah!" A pink-faced girl with blonde pigtails stumbled out of line, put on the hat, which fell right down over her eyes, and sat down.

A moment's pause—

"HUFFLEPUFF!" shouted the hat.

And the cycle began.

This was absolutely boring.

Isaac couldn't stand waiting like a customer on hold. It quenched it a little bit with each of the students' expressions—like one looked white as a printing sheet, and another looked like he was about to explode with either excitement or nervousness. He couldn't even tell with all that was happening up there.

Although, he chose not to look like an uninterested dick, but actually smiled and had the decency to look like he didn't see it coming from a mile away which was bruising his ego quite a bit. Geez, it was easy acting nervous with all the children around him excluding Merlin. This guy had been through this quite a few times. He had the right to look like he didn't give a shit, but Merlin wasn't an asshole. Merlin was that sweet little cinnamon bun that makes him want to throw up.

Isaac knows he's being a bit of a downer at the moment, but come on! Cut him some slack! He'd rather read his physics textbooks than be here right now, but curiosity and his duty forced him to be here.

Back to the point of all this, one thing was clear; some of his batch mates did have some damn ridiculous names. Susan Bones? The name just sounds like it came out of a murder book. Terry Boot? Geez, he has more luck with the ladies getting made into shoes.

Don't get him started on Brocklehurst! Jesus. It sounded like someone just handed him a new German dish, full of lamb's intestines, pork guts, and hopeless dreams. And then, there's Lavender Brown. Who thought it was a good idea to combine two colours together? Next thing Isaac knew she has a sister named Pink Canary, or Navy McViolet. On the plus side, the name might sell if it was a beauty product.

Bulstrode? That's bullshit. The bull never fucking strode, it charged; charged the hell out of it that the bull just kebab'd el señorita to say adiós to her amigos. Then Crabbe went on and turned out to be in Slytherin which surprised Isaac. Next, Finch-Fletchley…Can this not sound more British than it actually is? (God, Isaac's gonna die somewhere in these grounds.)

After some Irish kid named Finn-wats-it said aloha to the lion hearts, it was his turn.

"Gabor, Icarus!"

The seer looked up, giving McGonagall a smile; almost saying, Yes, dear?

God, how embarrassing would that be! He sighed, noting the silence in the room. Isaac walked up to the stool, glad that the wire of his earphones was hidden. He sat on the stool with his hands clasped together. And the stern professor had placed the hat on his head. This was one of those days since his letter that was truly nerve-racking.

"Difficult. Very Difficult, indeed…"

"Do you mean that in a good way or a bad way?"

Isaac smirked.

"You are friends with Emrys, correct?"

"Yes. And do people really call him that?"

"Well, yes. That is his name that was given to him since the dawn of time."

"It reminds me of a pair of shoes I found that were called Emrys."

"Strange, you are."

"Indeed, I am."

"You are brave, loyal, and determined."

"Stop it! You're making me blush."

"Interesting choice of jest."

"Well, it's sort of how I am."

"You are very intellectual in many fields. Very curious."

"Okay, can we cut the crap and announce my House? I already have an idea what it is."

"Alright then."

"SLYTHERIN!"

A cheer broke out and Isaac proudly marched down to the Slytherin table. He didn't miss his sight of Merlin clapping for him happily, giving him one of those goofy smiles. Dear lord, help Isaac make it through the year with that dork. He cast a glance at Draco, who was pleased, clapping for his friend. Blaise also clapped, giving him a smile when Isaac looked his way.

He met up with his new housemates and was surprised to be in the Green House. The house was actually quite polite as he sauntered towards them, taking a seat near Crabbe, who clapped his back roughly.

It all when silence and the process began again.

After him came the bushy dame of glory under the limelight, Hermione Granger. Well, he expected her name to be more…boring and bossy since it would match her personality quite well. (He jests). Isaac had to admit she might be Granger Danger when it equivocates to the knowledge of magic, but Granger Danger could be Zero Nature when it comes to science. Or maybe she isn't, he wouldn't know, but since she's a muggle-born, she might surprise him with some muggle knowledge up her sleeve.

Although, pretty much her sorting into Gryffindor and not to Ravenclaw surprised the heck out of him that he just asked his conscience if he was going crazy. Apparently, he wasn't after the polite applause from the Gryffindor house.

Next was Alicia Gordon sounds cool—maybe it's because her last name is Gordon. It would bring Isaac so much delight if her father's name is Jim Gordon. Come on! Gotham's crime-catching detective could be out there as a muggle or a wizard.

Note: Goyle is a Slytherin. WTF?!

Anyways next is that shy round-faced boy which happened to be named Neville Longbottom. You cannot believe the pity that is going through Isaac's mind or the actuality of cringing if he ever owned that name. It was one thing to be named Neville, but it was another to have the last name Longbottom. That certain innuendo will haunt him for life. Isaac's not kidding anymore; his name would be sexual joke of a lifetime like Biggerstaff or something. Not to mention reading the hobbits smoke Longbottom leaf would never be the same again. Although other than that, he seemed like a nice dude with hidden potential especially when he got sorted to Gryffindor.

The seer shrugged off the name, moving to the next poor bastard. And apparently that poor bastard happened to be Morag MacDougal. He had to choke down the laugh he was about to give but muffled it with biting his cheeks. Jesus Christ! Morag MacDougal? That must be the worst one yet! MacDougal is something he could ride with in their magical rollercoaster of school, but Morag? What was going on in her parents' mind when they named her that? The girl's name sounded like a desolate planet in the outer rim of the solar system no one would visit.

"Draco Malfoy."

It was getting harder to remain poker faced especially when he "swaggered" to the stool. Isaac could hardly keep it together. When the hat shouted Slytherin, Isaac clapped, grinning like a maniac for Draco. The Mini-Dom (yes, he still calls him that) sat beside him, grin still in place.

There were a bunch of semi-normal other names that included: Mary-Anne Mordo, Theodore Nott, Pansy Parkinson, two Indian twins named Patil, Sally-Anne Perks, and then the man of the hour.

Harry freaking Potter.

The boy wonder stepped forward as skinny as a stick he found lodged between his neighbour's eye sockets (True story). Almost immediately and expectantly, the whispers broke out, making him feel a little insane. Many craned their neck to see such a celebrity—even the hyper nuts besides him which tempted him Isaac to push them down, but he had to admit that he was curious. Potter sat on the stool and the hat was on his head.

And then, they waited.

It took almost forever for the sorting hat to announce that Harry is to be in—

"GRYFFINDOR!"

The boy took off and the lion hearts just went berserk. It was like a house on fire with them yelling like they won a football match. The silence took over again and then, Merlin's name was called.

"Redford, Marcus!"

Everyone looked at Merlin next to a freckly ginger. There were whispers around the hall. Apparently, the Redford name was just as well known in Hogwarts. And Isaac found himself thinking what Merlin was thinking.

Merlin confidently walked up the stairs. It wasn't an arrogant walk, but one that is determined. It made have sent the Houses into a whispering spree which made him wonder why. For Harry Potter, it was expected, but with him, not exactly. It would if they knew who he truly was, but they don't know. The whispering stopped when he had sat on the stool and the hat was put on his head.

"AH!" the hat exclaimed. "Very interesting!"

Merlin tried not to roll his eyes. The sorting hat always liked to make those watching think some serious mental search was being conducted. And it paid off very well, all of them (except Isaac) were surprised, considering this was the first time the hat ever spoken up out loud since his little song aside from the Houses. Little did they all know that the real question was not what house he would be placed in but what house he would choose for him to be in?

Everyone watched the hat, intrigued by its immediate response. Merlin struggled not to laugh, knowing the hats game.

"So we meet again Emrys."

"I told you not to call me that."

"I call you by your name."

"My name is Merlin."

"Ah, but you ARE Emrys."

Merlin rolled his eyes. This happened every time.

"Are you sure you can't place me this time? Can't I know at least where you would place me if you could?"

"I am sorry Emrys, but it is not my place to judge you so. You must choose for yourself."

"I am not sure where I should be."

"You come with a purpose, you are not merely here to spend your time."

"No… I must protect Harry."

"So Gryffindor?"

"I don't know. Is it possible to protect him while in another house? Would I really have an option to go anywhere else?"

"You are Emrys. Though it may be difficult I have no doubt you could find a way."

Merlin thought about this for a moment. The hat had faith, but trusting a hat would do him little good. He had to find the answer within himself. And so he thought, searching through his mind and sorting through memories, recent and old.

If he was in Gryffindor, then he would always be close to Harry, able to protect him. Yet, this might appear suspicious. If he were in a different house, would he be able to protect him? Merlin thought. Slytherin had combined classes with Gryffindor for the most part. Slytherin was, after all, his first House, but the way it was now, wasn't the same Slytherin he joined all those years ago. Yet the promise he made long ago to Salazar clung to his mind. He made him a promise to help those within his house.

Merlin never broke his promise.

Thinking more on the matter, Merlin realized something else. Salazar was right. He was a man on a mission. He knew what he wanted and all he needed to do was figure out how to get it. No matter how much Merlin wanted to be pure, and good… No matter how loyal and brave he was for those he cared about… And no how head strong and wise Merlin could be, he was more than anything, a man lead by destiny. While he may be a pawn, he made his own choices. He may be a tool of the Old Religion, but he had his own reasons for doing the things he did. Merlin was a man on a mission, and he wouldn't allow anything or anyone to stand in his way, no matter what the cost.

Merlin was destined for greatness. He was put on a path he could not control, but he could make it his own. And he could show others that this could be their choice too.

"I know what it has to be."

"Very well."

The hat called it out and everyone had been quite shocked to hear the outcome.

"SLYTHERIN!"

Isaac watched as it took a few good minutes before the hat could announce Merlin's House. It was surprisingly (and unsurprisingly) Slytherin. Surprising since the dude could hardly hurt a fly if it didn't do anything wrong. He's a sweet cinnamon roll that's been given to a roughhouse. Unsurprising since Merlin is slick and sly like a fox on an icy floor.

It wasn't like Isaac blames the hat or Merlin. It's probable that Merlin was thinking what strategic position he would have for him to become close to the Boy-who-lived. And it was said that the Great Merlin was a Slytherin, and why not be a Slytherin again?

The House had proudly cheered with Isaac and Draco. Merlin sat opposite of Isaac and Draco, grinning one of those goofy smiles. The roll call went on until Blaise was called, entering Slytherin.

This year might not be so bad.