The students arrive at Hogwarts for the Sorting. Teachers and other first year students are introduced by name and house. Harry puts the hat on his head and we end on a cliffhanger with his house unnamed.
Title quote
You never did know what tiny event might upset the course of your master plan.
Detailed chapter synopsis
Students are being sorted. Harry scans the teachers at the head table, trying to learn about them (we learn that Flitwick has Goblin ancestry, which Harry is very curious about, genetically speaking). He meets a Ravenclaw Prefect who tries to answer his questions. Hermione is sorted into Ravenclaw, Neville into Hufflepuff, Draco into Slytherin. When Harry gets up to be sorted, Fred and George start a cheer that spreads to most of the room. He puts the hat on his head and starts to ask a bunch of questions. The hat thinks, "Oh dear, this has never happened before..." and we end on a cliffhanger.
Shout-outs
The disclaimer is a reference to the internet meme all your base are belong to us.
The Sorting Hat's song is a reference to Monty Python's [lumberjack song.
Characters
Minerva McGonagall
Album Dumbledore
Harry Potter-Evans-Verres
Hermione Granger
Draco Malfoy
Fred Weasley
George Weasley
Neville Longbottom
Severus Snape
Pomona Sprout
Professor Trewlawney
Professor Flitwick
Penelope Clearwater
Other Teachers & Students
Locations
Hogwarts, Great Hall
Magic
Sorting Hat
Rationality and science
Genetics (goblin and human interbreeding)
Author notes
When this chapter was first posted, the Weasley twins and Lee Jordan sing a song to the tune of the Ghostbusters theme for Harry. Some people reacted negatively to songs in fanfiction, so Eliezer removed it. The original chapter also didn't include the description of the professors, or the discussion of Flitwick's ancestry.
Nobody guessed what the last sentence was talking about before the next update. Eliezer has said that two people got close, and would have succeeded if they'd combined their guesses.
External links
Chapter 9 on hpmor.com.