Slytherins could've been so much more. They were more than what was shown. We were shown one side, but where was the other side? Why did the Slytherins not do much? There were muggleborns in that house, there were half-bloods. Not all were prejudiced, biased wizards and witches. There were some who were against Voldemort and they weren't going to stand up.
This is a story about the kids who stood tall with their chins up. About the children who dared others to talk about them. It's about how kids were soldiers and spies and fought. It's about how somewhere in between they became adults in their own right. It's about how the students of Hogwarts came as children and left as adults. It's about how they could bend, and keep bending, but never broke. No, they wouldn't break. This is about the students who refused to back down despite what everyone else said.
You call us prejudiced, bias, discriminatory.
You call us future Death Eaters, future killers, future murderers.
You say we dabble in the dark arts. You say we shy from light.
You call us evil.
But listen here, and listen close. You judge us by our worst. You look no further than the surface.
You call us prejudiced? Bias? Discriminatory? Look at yourself in the mirror. You are no better.
You call us future Death Eaters, future killers, future murders. Look at us! We are children!
You say we dabble in the dark arts. We need to know what we're defending ourselves against.
You say we shy from light. Why would we put ourselves in the line of attack?
You call us evil. Yet when have we ever wanted anything but peace?
Stay away from Slytherins. Be wary of Slytherins. This is what you tell those in your house.
Slytherins, we will tell you this, stay aware. Slytherins stay prepared. Slytherins protect your back.
There are no friends out there.
In my first year, Draco Malfoy lorded over our year. He had Crabbe on his left, Goyle on his right, Pansy at his ear and most of Slytherin at his disposal. Draco had the blood. He had the power. He had the threats. He had the will. Despite the fact he lorded over us, he did not know all of us. He did not see all of us.
We are the muggleborns, the half-bloods, those who were against the Dark Lord. We are the ones who dared to be different. We are the ones who decided that we were not going to follow in the footsteps of our ancestors. We are the ones who decided that we would not be known for our bullying, our attacks. We are Slytherins.
Slytherins are ambitious. Slytherins are cunning. Slytherins are dark hearted.
This is what you say. You call these our main traits. However, you are not in Slytherin, you cannot know.
Kinship is prized above all else. Survival is important. Life is precious. You should protect it.
These are the untold, unspoken, characteristics we hold dear.
Slytherins bully. They are willing to do anything to get their way and survive.
If you never look past the basics of what you see, then you will never know.
Slytherins stay wary. You are fighting a war you never wished to see.
Second year was surprising, with our group multiplying. Our numbers increased, and we started leaving the shadows. Shadows we had hidden in, shadows we called our friends. Therefore, when the Chamber of Secrets opened, it was us who were at greatest risk. We stepped forward and moved in pairs or more. We held our wands high and prepared ourselves for the guaranteed petrification or death.
Yet we learnt of the basilisk's fall, and our numbers stayed strong. We stood tall, and we started our patrols. We were the ones who hid in the shadows, at day or at night; we walked the corridors and dungeons. Any bullying, done by Slytherin or other, was viscously corrected. We were the ones who protected the weak. We are Slytherins.
They say we have had more than our fair share of dark wizards.
This surprises you, but your treatment is the cause.
Merlin, one of the greatest wizards, was a Slytherin, proud and pure.
Gryffindors, Ravenclaws, and Hufflepuffs too, you all have your dark wizards.
Slytherins stay strong. Slytherins stand tall. Slytherins keep your cards to your chest.
A danger might have passed, but your story is far from over.
Third year brought about the dangers of a running criminal – Sirius Black, Gryffindor to the core. Nevertheless, our patrols doubled as our group size grew. We would attempt to keep everyone out of the fire. Slytherins are used to being attacked, being betrayed.
We were many but we were small. We were not the ones who were betrayed, so we stood tall. We hid our thoughts. We ignored your posturing. We reminded ourselves that dark wizards could come from any house. That our house wasn't full of dark wizards, as in the end we all sometimes need to be reminded. When the dementors came, there were many who felt faint, but their will held them steady. With the danger so close to home, we learnt to defend others and ourselves.
Gryffindors, brave and courageous, stay in the spotlight.
Ravenclaw, intelligent and witty, help from the sidelines.
Hufflepuff of yellow and black, friendly and loyal, stick with friends.
Slytherin, cunning and resourceful, plot from the shadows.
This is what most say, these are the stereotypes of Hogwarts.
Welcome to the halls of this school.
Be welcomed or be hated, there is no in between.
For we judge by what we see and not what may be.
Four year came and we all knew something was on the wind. The Triwizard Tournament came to Hogwarts, and two schools brought students to join us. Everyone was quick to make judgements, and new students were pulled to different houses and hoarded carefully. Draco Malfoy controlled the Slytherins, hinting at things to happen and pulling all those powerful and power-hungry to his side.
We added another job to our patrols, no longer would we be stopping people from bullying, but we would help them get to class and get to wherever they needed to be. We would show them the kitchens and get a cup of hot chocolate if needed. We were now the ones who stepped out to talk to a crying, homesick first year.
Four year ended with the Slytherins suddenly withdrawing. It ended with the common room as a war-torn place. It ended with heavy hearts and the knowledge that things were going to go bad. It ended with a war on the horizon and secrets tucked away.
'So Hogwarts worked in harmony for several happy years,
But then discord crept among us feeding on our faults and fears.'
'Oh, know the perils, read the signs,
The warning history shows for our Hogwarts is in danger, from external, deadly foes.
And we must unite inside her, or we'll crumble from within.'
The Sorting Hat sings a song each year.
Yet, when has this Hat called for Hogwarts to be united?
When has Hogwarts faced such an enemy that the Hat calls us out on our prejudiced behaviour?
The Ministry of Magic invaded Hogwarts halls, causing fear and causing harm. This was when everyone started noticing us, for we were the ones to step in front of another student and pretend we did something horrible. Umbridge, a horrible woman who cannot be called a Professor, stalked the corridors and attempted to hurt anyone who stood out from the crowd.
She formed the Inquisitorial Squad, handpicking members from Slytherin who were on her side. Slytherins, though, had thought ahead and the members who were handpicked had really decided to be handpicked. Thus, we were able to have our own members on the Inquisitorial Squad and manipulate Umbridge in our own way. However, we weren't the only ones who had thought of this, and Draco held Umbridge tightly in his grasp.
With an incompetent teacher and a secret Defence Against the Dark Arts group for all the other houses, we rose to the challenge. Secret rooms and passageways were found and opened to Slytherins and all we helped. When we learnt of You-Know-Who's rise we retreated to our hidden place. We discussed, we spoke, and we decided to change. After all, good wizards come from Slytherin too.
Voldemort (You-Know-Who) (Dark Lord) was out there.
A Slytherin, one of our worst, and as such defined us.
We were not going to hide. We were not going to bow down.
We would stand tall. We would be proud of our house, our family.
We were Slytherins. We would not deny that.
We were Slytherins, brothers and sisters by sorting.
The family we had been given, trustworthy or not.
At Hogwarts, we were alone, so we made our own house.
We are Slytherins, standing tall.
We are Slytherins, a family of our own.
He was back and the whispers were everywhere. The danger was everywhere, and almost everyone thought we were – would be – Death Eaters. We would prove them wrong; we would fight their ideals with everything we had. We would not conform to what they said we should – would – be. We are still children, but less naïve than we once were. We have not killed, yet you say we will, you say we have.
We will be what we will be, but you should let us have time to grow to become adults, before you say who we are. They say Hogwarts is the safest place due to Dumbledore. Yet when has it ever been safe for the Slytherins? We who are forced to move in groups, to protect each other's backs and watch for the enemies. We were never ones to be dissuaded. We stood up for all, for our own and for everyone else. We are Slytherins, but to be pureblood does not always mean to have magical parents.
We never asked for this, we never had a destiny. We were not born to save the world or to ruin it. They are choices we make. The choices we make are not easy, for we are going against everything that we should be. We are going against what you say and what everyone else says. We made our way through ash and dust. We clawed our way up from the hell you had put us into.
When the Death Eaters came, it was not the teachers who cast the first defensive spell. Dumbledore was the first to fall, but students – Slytherin students – were the first to protect. After all, we had been protecting others for years, seen and unseen.
Lost to the darkness, Hogwarts was a dangerous place.
Gryffindors, brave and courageous, learnt to tread carefully and when to pick a fight.
Hufflepuffs, friendly and loyal, learnt to be wary and pick friends carefully.
Ravenclaws, intelligent and witty, learnt to blend in and not talk.
Slytherins, cunning and ambitious, learnt nothing. They had been walking a battleground for a while now.
My seventh year was fraught with danger, more so than usual. At least this time, we weren't besieged from all sides. Students were too wary, too nervous to attack us now. They were learning how to walk on a battlefield. They were learning how to survive on enemy grounds. We didn't need to learn this; we had walked this battlefield for far too long.
There was a rebellion, Gryffindors standing up and fighting, Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs joining in. What of us though? We were Slytherins, cowardly, weak, evil. However, we weren't and we had shown this for seven years. We had helped and we had protected. We had stood up to bullies and adult ones were just a larger form.
For once, we did not just defend. For once, we attacked as well. We had walked Hogwarts halls for years. We had made friends with portraits and ghosts alike. The students were not the only ones unhappy with the treatment we received. In Peeves, we found a kindred spirit, someone made of mischief that was almost on the side of meanness.
We ran, we raced, we cursed, we shielded. We were the Slytherins who stood up and refused to break, refused to bend and conform. Hogwarts opened itself up to us. Hidden passageways and rooms appearing when we needed to get away for brief moments. Portraits came to us, asking for help before taking us to where we needed to be.
Then we were approached, hesitantly, by one Gryffindor. We were offered another hiding place, where the ones who refused to leave but couldn't stay in the open hid. We took the offer and brought the ones we had saved, many too young to have haunted looks in their eyes that existed nonetheless.
In my seventh year, we lorded over the Slytherins. We had each other by our sides and our backs. We had students from all houses at our call, graduated and not. Draco Malfoy may have had the power, the blood, the threats, and the will. Yet he was not here now, so we took care of everyone. We had the power, the will, the threats, but not the blood. We knew, though, we knew that it was not the magic in your veins that made you pure. It was the kinship you had for all of Slytherin.
Then came the call, Harry Potter was back. The Boy-Who-Had-Lived, saviour of the wizarding world.
He was not our saviour, he never would be. He was the figurehead, a person just like us.
We had fought for years. We had protected. We had attacked.
This is a story about the kids who stood tall with their chins up.
About the children who dared others to talk about them.
It's about how kids were soldiers and spies and fought.
It's about how somewhere in between they became adults in their own right.
It's about how the students of Hogwarts came as children and left as adults.
It's about how they could bend, and keep bending, but never broke.
No, they wouldn't break.
This is about the students who refused to back down despite what everyone else said.
We were gathered in the great hall, all students of Hogwarts. We had fought for years; we had protected them for years. Still, they looked at us with distrust. Pansy Parkinson, a friend of Draco and afraid for her parents who Voldemort held in his grip, stood up and called on us to grab Harry Potter for Voldemort. The other houses stood up, and we were asked to leave.
We refused; we stood up and took off green robes revealing normal clothing. We were not Death Eaters and we refused to be treated as such. We were no longer children, but battle-tried adults who had been fighting for years. We knew the school the best and we would defend it with everything.
We lost much in the battle, relatives, friends, students, and families. We attacked to incapacitate, not kill, for we were fighting those we knew. We lined them up on the floors of the great hall, seeing blank eyes staring up at a roof covered with magic.
We knew what would happen, we had known for years. We would not break under the stress, the fear, the grief. We were strong. We would fight on. We were Slytherins. We would not break. We would stand tall with chins up. We would run forward with wands in hand. We would cry and we would yell, we would mourn and we would grieve. This was not the time, though, and we knew it. We would fight until everything was gone, and even past that point.
You called us prejudiced, bias, discriminatory.
You called us future Death Eaters, future killers, future murders.
You said we dabbled in the dark arts. You said we shied from light.
You called us evil.
We told ourselves to stay aware, stay prepared, and protect your backs.
We told ourselves that there were no friends out there.
We have waged a war for a long time.
We have been distrusted, betrayed, and called names.
We ask one thing of ourselves now.
Slytherins, find it within yourself to forgive, to protect, and not attack.
Slytherins reach out. Find friends.
Slytherins your war is over, we have fought it, and we have won.
It might not be the best victory, but it is a start.
For everyone else, we ask for one thing.
Look past history and look at who we are.
We never caused a war. It's all on you.
Slytherins be brave, be courageous, be loyal, be friendly.
Slytherins be intelligent, be witty.
Slytherins be cunning, be resourceful, and remember that Slytherin is a family first, house second.
Let us rest; we are now weary veteran soldiers.
We fought battles so you don't have too.
Now live, and feel no need to guard your backs.
You have friends out there.
Book title is completely inspired by the song Hope For The World by Ray Toro.