A theory... One variable that would change Harry for the worst....

[aldrea279]

No: HPFGUIDX 38675

Mike:
> I disagree with that statment.  Harry said "Not Slytherin" and the 
> sorting hat asked him if he was sure.  The hat didnt say "I want to 
> put you in Slytherin, how do you feel about that?"
> 
> The real question should be "If Harry had wanted to go into 
> Slytherin, would the sorting hat have let him?"  And we really do 
not 
> know enough about the sorting hat to answer that.  There are plenty 
> of threads about the sorting hat in here. I will dig up the canon 

> when I get home.

Yes, I agree with this.  The Sorting Hat seems to be quite tricky.  
IF Harry had befriended Draco, and IF he hadn't been so against 
Slytherin, do you think the Sorting Hat would have(perhaps 
teasingly/cunningly) said You'd do great in Slytherin...?  I don't.  
I think it said that because it saw that Harry was rather warry of 
Slytherin, so it asked him for his reaction.  I wish it'd show what 
the Sorting Hat said to the others...

Ethanol:
Like you, I'm convinced that Harry
would have sailed to Slytherin if he hadn't convinced the hat 
otherwise. And
he only rejected Slytherin because of the things Hagrid and Ron have 
told
him and the way Draco acted in the dressing shop.

I don't think the Hat puts you where you WANT to go, it puts you 
where you belong.  Ooh...I just had a thought.  Perhaps the Hat saw 
that Harry himself was slightly torn about his choices?
(Gryffindor/Slytherin, good/evil, Harry doesn't seem to be that great 
of a decision maker) I guess a question was in order to figure it all 
out. I don't know, the Hat puts you into a house you will be in for 
SEVEN years...I think it has to be a rather wise hat, because people 
can change alot in seven years.  I guess it saw the conflict that 
would occur between Draco and Harry...  I wonder what all the hat 
looks at while it's on your head? It can obviously read your 
thoughts, but perhaps it can look at memories and such?  *shrugs* And 
perhaps the ONLY reason the hat even considered putting Harry in 
Slytherin is because of that lil streak of Voldemort that Harry has 
in him...   And I don't think he'd have sailed into Slytherin, Harry 
just seems perfect for Gryffindor, if you ask me.