The Sorting Hat, one could say, is Hogwarts' most precious spiritual legacy.
It was made approximately a thousand years ago and was originally just an ordinary hat belonging to Godric Gryffindor.
Later, in order to ensure that Hogwarts could continue to sort new students into different houses after their deaths, the four founders imbued Gryffindor's hat with thought.
From then on, the Sorting Hat came to life and became responsible for selecting and evaluating new students, sorting them into different houses.
For a thousand years, the Sorting Hat has been passed down through generations of headmasters. Except for its use during the Sorting Ceremony, it is kept in the headmaster's office most of the time as one of Hogwarts' most important magical treasures.
Before the start-of-term feast each year, the first-year students line up to be sorted.
The sorting order is based on the alphabetical order of the students' names. After a new student sits on the stool, this weathered, tattered, dirty, and patched Sorting Hat is placed on his or her head. There is a crack near the brim of the hat, which opens like a mouth when the Sorting Hat speaks or sings loudly. The Sorting Hat also speaks in a subtle voice in the wearer's ear and can read their thoughts through Legilimency and respond.
After a period of consideration, the hat will shout out its choice to everyone, and the new student will be assigned to that house.
Usually, the Sorting Hat only considers for a few seconds, but occasionally it takes longer, even up to five minutes (referred to as "Hatstall"). During the sorting process, the Sorting Hat sometimes communicates with the new student, but usually not for too long.
People may occasionally question some of the Sorting Hat's decisions, but they never question the Sorting Hat itself, because in a sense, this pointy wizard's hat represents the will of the four founders, and even the headmasters of each generation—
At least in the eyes of most wizards, the Sorting Hat, like Dumbledore, possesses a reassuring magical power.
Until this first day...
This conscientious Sorting Hat has gone mad.
Mad—
……
The hall was a sea of pointed black hats, and each long house table was filled with students, their faces shining brightly in the light of the thousands of candles floating above the tables. Most of them had looks of excitement on their faces.
"Worthy of being the Big Sister! So amazing!"
Ron Weasley exclaimed, his face full of admiration.
Beside him, the Weasley twins had the same look of praise—is this the strength of Illyana Moonlight Kaslana? She's practically a human Peeves, easily doing things they couldn't do.
"Oh," Hagrid shook his head, muttering, "This isn't a good thing."
New students at Hogwarts must wear the Sorting Hat to be sorted into their respective houses, but in Hagrid's memory, the Sorting Hat has never acted so strangely in all the years since he entered the school.
"Why? Isn't it the most wonderful thing to be able to choose your own house?"
Harry looked up at the familiar giant beside him, asking softly with some confusion.
You know, when he was sorted last year, even though he had actively filled out a "preference," the Sorting Hat specifically asked him if he had considered going to Slytherin. As far as he knew, Hermione, Neville, and others had encountered similar situations.
According to Big Sister Illyana's explanation, this often means that a student possesses multiple outstanding qualities at the same time.
"It's not the same, Harry. Although it may seem similar, it's fundamentally different."
Hermione Granger frowned slightly, looking worriedly at the white fur ball not far away.
"If it's because it can't make a decision, then the Sorting Hat should quietly ask Illyana's thoughts, even if it falls into a silence that is longer than anyone else's, it's impossible for such a strange situation to occur—in other words, from the current situation, at least one of Illyana and the Sorting Hat has a problem, and it's even possible that both of them are having problems at the same time."
"Then what do you think the problem is?"
Percy Weasley also turned his head and actively joined the conversation.
"Granger, you should be the most familiar with Illyana in the entire Hogwarts..."
Along with Hermione Granger's explanation, he also noticed something was wrong.
Especially when Professor McGonagall took the Sorting Hat off Illyana's head, and the Sorting Hat was still reciting house names on its own, most of the young wizards realized that something must be wrong.
This situation is like...
The situation that Illyana once described to them, when a computer gets stuck in a loop.
Hermione Granger looked at the hat thoughtfully, her eyes filled with more and more confusion—but the problem is how...
Just then, Professor Dumbledore suddenly stood up and strode towards the Sorting Ceremony site in front of the staff table. Although Dumbledore was old, the old man's steps were steadier and faster than most people's.
"Professor Dumbledore, the Sorting Hat, Illyana..."
Professor McGonagall clutched the "mad" Sorting Hat, a rare look of helplessness appearing on her face.
As the Deputy Headmistress of Hogwarts, McGonagall had just tried several methods, but the Sorting Hat still didn't respond. Given the Sorting Hat's special status at Hogwarts, she didn't dare to easily try some potentially dangerous spells.
And even worse, Illyana Kaslana's condition also seemed a bit off.
After Professor McGonagall took the Sorting Hat off Illyana's head, she noticed that the girl's beautiful lake-blue eyes seemed to be frozen with a layer of ice, as if she were an emotionless sculpture, with a chilling coldness and depth.
"Don't worry about the Sorting Hat for now, it shouldn't have any major problems..."
Dumbledore waved his hand, the candlelight shining on his beard, and carefully examined Illyana.
He seemed to have seen this state somewhere before—
That's right, Lemaire, Nicolas Flamel!
The human brain has its limits, especially wizards. If they suddenly recall a large number of details in a short period of time, it can easily cause pure rational thinking to occupy their entire mind, thus presenting this kind of coldness like a mechanical doll.
Even Dumbledore sometimes experiences this—the more powerful the wizard, the harder it is to forget things.
That's why Albus Dumbledore needs a Pensieve to store some important but not commonly used scattered memories from time to time, so that he doesn't get overwhelmed by all kinds of information when thinking about certain things.
As for why Illyana would also be in this state...
Dumbledore glanced at Grindelwald sitting in the staff seat, and the Sorting Hat that was temporarily in a "mad" state, a look of solemnity flashed across his face—if nothing else, it should be because of the prophetic memory?
The principle of the Sorting Hat is actually an unlimited, gentle Legilimency.
Based on the content read from the students' minds, it analyzes and judges each piece of information according to the magic left by the four giants, and then selects the house that best suits the students.
That's why the more complex and vast the emotions and experiences, the more difficult it is for the Sorting Hat, and if it is...
Dumbledore suddenly remembered the amazing analysis of the world situation that the girl made in the Slytherin common room not long after he met Illyana last year; and the storms that Illyana's subtle actions had stirred up in the non-magical and magical worlds of the former Soviet Union over the past year; and the prophecy that Illyana said that night about the end of Hogwarts...
Alas, I don't know what the poor Sorting Hat saw to cause such a situation.