The walk down to the dungeons was subdued as the prefects whispered happily amongst each other but the first years and new Ilvermorny students just shuffled along awkwardly behind them. The older students had all slipped away from the table a few minutes early and must already be in the common room. When they finally arrived at the common room entrance, behind a dank, stone wall, they were taught the password.
"Death Eater. It changes every fortnight so keep an eye out on the notice board." Seeing the stricken faces of some of the new students, Cam Prewett, their prefect, smirked and said, "You'll get used to our humor soon enough."
And with that he pushed open the common room door and the new students were greeted by the thumping base of electronic dance music and bodily pushed through the opening. The prefects laughed behind them as they watched the new students' eyes widen at the scene around them. The far wall was all glass looking out into the green depths of the lake and the grotesque forms of what could only be described as mermaids twisted and writhed in the water to the beat of the music. Around them, their older classmates loosened green silk ties and slipped out of unflattering green robes while knocking back shots of fire whiskey. Someone pressed a full cup into Nikki's hand and she looked at them with questioning eyes.
"Is this…?" The older student laughed.
"It's just Butterbeer. Don't worry. That won't get you drunk."
Nikki visibly relaxed and the girl laughed again.
"You're eleven! I mean I know we're kind of known for our bite but we won't suck you dry this early!" The girl winked and walked away. Nikki sipped the drink and felt a pretty warmth spread through her body.
She moved with the crowd further into the common room and lost sight of Rebecca. Some of the girls had gotten up onto the low coffee tables and were dancing together, hands clutching at each other's curves. Nikki spun away from the scene cheeks going red and tumbled over the back of a couch that was positioned behind her right into the lap of a seventh year boy with a mop of gorgeous brown hair and a bit of stubble on his chin. He laughed good naturedly, pushing the little girl out of his lap before leaning over to snort a line of white powder off the table with what Nikki recognized as a Muggle piece of money.
A small, round 7th year girl pulled her off the couch and spit at the boy, "Raven! There are children here! Put that shit away! It's supposed to be their first night with the house. It's supposed to be fun!"
The girl stood her up and examined her to make sure she was unhurt and frowned when she saw her robes sopping in Butterbeer that had been in her cup moments before.
"Cmon, let's go get you changed." She smiled down at the little girl. "You're one of us now. And we take care of our own."
The 7th year girl led Nikki to her dorm and shut the door behind them, the deep pounding of the base muffled a bit. Nikki bent down beside her trunk and pulled out a pair of pajamas. She pulled the curtain halfway around her bed and started changing behind it.
"I'm Calla by the way. Calla Nott, Head Girl" Her lips curled in a cat-like manner, clearly full of pride for her new title. "Don't mind Raven. He's a little indiscreet for a Slytherin but he's just out for a good time."
Nikki came out from around the bed and frowned down at her pajamas wondering if the unicorn print was too childish. Calla saw the look and smiled before silently waving her wand. Right under her nose, Nikki's pajamas transfigured into a silky grey camisole and silky emerald green pants. She looked up at Calla with wide eyes.
"Thanks…"
"Don't mention it," Calla's smile dropped. "It can be hard to be a Slytherin. You should know we are all on your side. All of us."
Nikki ran her small hands over the silky material and considered the words quietly.
"What about my… Do people think… What is the deal with…"
"Your blood status?" Calla said seriously.
"I mean… There was a war fought over it… Not that long ago"
Calla's eyes hardened thinking on her own heritage and she was quiet for a beat before answering.
"Slytherin is a house of purity. Where once it was a house of blood purity, now… Now it is a house of purity of purpose and, and purity of - I don't know, obviously not pure morals or intentions but… Salazar Slytherin didn't want anyone in his house to be a waffle you know? We are all here because we are going to take over the world in our own way. You are a Slytherin above all else. That means you are one of us."
Her tone was final, inviting no objection and she turned toward the door and swept back into the hall to return to the common room.
Nikki bounced on her toes a few times before following, feeling more uncertain now in her newly transfigured pajamas.
When a loud cheer went up with the crowd out in the common room, she felt a smile creep up onto her face and she felt pulled to join the merriment again. In the center of the crowd, a tall, gangly girl with tightly curled black hair was grinning wildly and bowing to the students around her.
"Thank you! Thank you! It's been my pleasure to astound you yet again with the wonders of the Weaseley's Wizard Wheezes! And just as a friendly reminder as we begin the year, the Ministry might have banned You-No-Poo but that doesn't mean I don't have my own private stock available. In short, don't fuck with me. I'm talking to you Edward!" The students laughed as the girl pointed towards a smug and smirking boy who wriggled his eyebrows at her in response.
"Roxanne Weasely, daughter of entrepreneur George Weaseley of Weaseley's Wizard Wheezes. They're a joke shop." Calla was at her side again whispering the information in her ear. She paused to see Nikki's wide eyed expression and laughed. "You will catch on soon enough. You've got it rough kid, muggle-born AND american. You've got a lot to learn."
Calla led her over to the windowseats that looked out into the murky lake where the first years who she had walked silently to the dungeons with were sitting with their hands clasped tightly in their laps, unsure of what to do. The boys seemed to be studiously keeping their eyes away from both the dancing mermaids in the windows and the dancing girls in the common room. Unfortunately that left them with nowhere to rest their eyes but on their own toes. With a light nudge on her back, Calla left her there and rejoined the older students in the depths of the party.
Nikki sat down on the edge of the nearest bench without a word. There were three other girls and four boys. The girl sitting closest to her had silvery-blond hair and unnervingly wide-blue eyes. Nikki remembered reading in some of the books she had gotten at Diagon Alley that some wizards and witches could be part Veela and she wondered if this girl might be or if she was just naturally possessed of a super-model quality beauty. Sitting on the floor, farther away was a sullen looking girl with her hair swept into her face. Her arms were crossed tightly over her already blossoming chest and a deep scowl played across her features creating a crease to form between her heavily lined eyes. The last girl was laying across a bench, already in her pajamas like Nikki was but her pajamas were a gauzy nightgown that swirled around her legs. She was stretching coyly and boy next to her seemed uncomfortable whenever she inched too close. These would be her roommates for the next 7 years. Nikki swallowed a lump in her throat in apprehension of who they might be.
She tried not to be too obvious studying the boys but one in particular caught her eye. She watched him as discreetly as she could, trying to peer up through her lashes at him and quick to avoid eye contact if he ever looked her way. He was unusually tall for an 11 year old, his posture constantly moving through different slouches as if he could shrink himself and feel normal. His hair fell in wildly long, unkempt curls all over his head. He seemed as if he wanted to speak, to make friends, to leave all these losers sitting here in the corner and join the older kids. But he just sat, and his hands fidgeted endlessly. Two other boys, one a platinum blonde with milky white skin and the other equally pale but with a mop of messy black hair sat very close together and played some strange card game while whispering and grinning amongst themselves. The fourth boy, dark skin and close cropped hair, had loosened his tie, pulled one knee up to his chest and watched the party intently with a smile.
The couch caved beneath her as an older witch plopped down beside her.
"Hey ickle firsties!" the girl's emerald hair glowed. "You guys really know how to party."
She grinned wryly as she was met with silent stares.
"You're the metamorphmagus right?" The girl who had been laying down sat up. "Neat trick."
Rebecca's grin faded to a glower at the thinly veiled insult.
"Yes, a metamorphmagus. Very powerful, very rare… You'd know that and respect it if you weren't a mu…ggleborn." Her eyes flickered to Calla on the last word.
"I think it's incredible." Nikki said, reaching her hand out towards the silky strands but pausing. Rebecca gave her a warm smile and slight nod and she went ahead and ran her fingers through her hair. As her fingers pulled through her hair, the strands fluctuated quickly through a rainbow of colors and Nikki laughed out loud in shock and glee. "That's amazing! I wish I could have emerald hair too."
"Loving the instant house pride. Maybe Shelly Superior over here can have her mom send over a box of muggle dye and we can make it happen. I mean, we could always transfigure it too, but that wears off a lot quicker than dye."
"I- She can do that. I'll write her tomorrow." The girl pursed her lips at Rebecca. "I'm Shelby."
They reached across the void and shook hands, looking each other in the eye.
"Welcome to Slytherin House, Shelby."
…
Nikki gasped loudly as she was ripped from sleep my loud bangs and green sparks shooting from wands. A dark figure that she couldn't make out in between the darkness and the strobe light quality of sparking wands ripped her bed curtains aside and screeched at her.
"Up! Out of bed you worthless little worm! Troll in the dungeons, bitches! Hop to!"
Eyes wide, Nikki scrambled out of her tangled sheets and took in the scene around her. Instead of using lumos to illuminate the room, older Slytherin girls were shooting off random green and silver sparks and running around the room screaming at the first years.
Someone grabbed her roughly by the arm and began dragging her down the stairs as she tried to wrap her sleepy mind around the situation. Her eye caught Calla sulking in a dark corner, her arms crossed, looking on the scene with disapproval. The older girls dragged them up staircases and across dark hallways with solemn expressions.
"Isn't after curfew? Aren't we all going to end up with detentions?" The sullen looking girl with heavy eyeliner, Lily, asked.
One of the older girls scoffed, "Please, the Head Girl is a Slytherin this year, we can get away with murder."
The other girls laughed. The first years did not.
The group stopped in front of the first floor girls' bathroom. They were quiet and heard moaning, a girl's voice wailing inside the bathroom.
"Wha-What is that?" Morgan, the girl with silvery hair stuttered.
"Let's find out." An older girl murmured while pushing them through the door.
It was just a regular bathroom. One of the taps dripped and the tedious noise echoed around the tiled walls but the place was empty and looked absolutely normal.
"Well, this was fun girls. As much as I loved this late night tour of the castle bathrooms, I think I will be getting back to bed." Shelby rolled her eyes and started to turn on her heel when one dark haired girl with a nasty sneer in place grabbed her my the shoulder and spun her around.
"You're not here for a tour. You're here for a test."
At that moment, the leaky faucet started gushing water and the tidal wave washed up and over the lip of the sink, sloshing onto the floor and soaking their bare feet and the hems of their pajama pants.
"Who goes there?" a squeaky, female voice intoned. The voice belonged to the entity that had sprung from the faucet along with the gush of water, a grey, transparent figure of a girl wearing the same boxy school uniform the girls standing before her were becoming familiar with.
Shaking and uncertain, Nikki looked around for Calla but she was nowhere to be found in the cluster of older girls standing between them and the door.
"What is this?" she demanded.
The older girls tittered but one strode forward, the curly haired girl from earlier, Roxanne Weaseley.
"'Enemies of the heir beware' This is time to prove your worth to Slytherin house. Are any of you enemies? And who is our greatest ally? This is a test to see who among you can open the Chamber of Secrets."
The four eleven year olds stared at their elders blankly. The words sounded familiar but to four muggleborns they meant little. One of the older girls hissed.
"This isn't as fun when they don't know to be scared!"
Roxanne punched her in the arm.
"The Chamber of Secrets was placed in the castle by Salazar Slytherin. Only his true heir can open it by speaking to it in parseltongue. So you all are going to try."
"But, since we are all American, wouldn't it be safe to assume none of us are the heir?" Nikki wondered aloud.
Roxanne growled.
"He might have had a great-great-great-great-grandaughter on the mayflower or some shit! Now stop talking and start hissing!"
The four girls were shoved up against the faucet the ghostly girl had shot out of and looked at each other in confusion. The older girls rolled their eyes and wilted a bit.
"Parseltongue is the ability to talk to snakes. Very rare. Salazar Slytherin possessed this ability. Now start hissing."
"God, this isn't any fun." Someone in the back of the group whined.
The four first years looked into the mirrors before them and started quietly making small hissing noises.
"Louder!"
"Like you mean it!"
"We are looking for Basilisk sized hisses ladies!"
The older girls egged them on, louder and louder until the first year's spittle flecked the mirrors as they hissed ridiculously and felt their cheeks burn. Suddenly, the bathroom door flew open and even more girls flooded in. A tiny girl of eleven flew into their faces and bellowed in tones that seemed impossible coming from such a slight frame, "Back! Back you green devils!"
She waved her wand uselessly, knowing no spells yet but she was in their faces and intimidating never the less. Five girls in their year flanked behind her with their own wands raised awkwardly, not knowing how to stand for a duel.
"I am here to stop you in your evil tracks in your pursuit of dark magic!"
The four young Slytherins looked bewildered and held their wandless hands up. Morgan began to cry.
"Back off you bunch of crazies." Shelby stepped forward and shoved the center girl hard. "We aren't even here by choice."
She stepped to the clear leader of Gryffindor first years who had burst in and challenged them in the first place. They stood nose to nose for a moment's silence before Shelby lifted the corners of her lips and let out a low hiss, this one sounded dangerous, not like the silly, scared, spitting noises they had emitted moments before.
"Save your breath, you disgusting snake."
Shelby pressed closer and reached up to pull the other girl's hair. The Gryffindor yelped and almost fell to the ground when the crowd of older Slytherins and Gryffindors erupted in laughter and rushed forward pulling apart the warring parties of children. Shelby and thhe Gryffindor girl- still rubbing her sore scalp- looked around with furrowed brows at the light laughter surrounding them.
"Their faces? How cute are they when they are angry?"
"I know! Such sweethearts. They were ready to brawl in defence of 'house pride'"
Another roar of laughter went up.
All around girls from Gryffindor and Slytherin were slinging arms around each other, passing flasks back and forth, hugging.
The first year girls deflated, devoid of all emotion as they didn't know what they were supposed to feel.
Rebecca had tears running down her face and her legs crossed tightly as she doubled over in laughter in front of a Gryffindor girl Nikki didn't recognize. The girl wore horn rimmed glasses, purple lipstick and had wine burgundy tips on her dark brown hair. Rebecca ran into the nearest stall to relieve her laughter induced bladder emergency and her 3rd year Slytherin friends only laughed harder at her desperation.
The burgundy hair girl's laughter faded into chuckles and she saw Nikki watching her. She approached and stuck out her hand. "Hi, I'm Amanda. Gryffindor, second year."
Nikki took her hand hesitantly. "Hi, I'm Nikki. Are you a… um… metamorphmagus too? Like Rebecca?"
Amanda laughed. "No. I wish! This?" she fingered her messy hair. "This is muggle dye. Still pretty cool though right?"
Nikki nodded and swallowed. "What… happened? What's going on?" Amanda doubled over with another wave of laughter.
"Just a good old fashioned hazing of course." Rebecca said as she returned from the stall. "Welcome to Slytherin."
Rebecca and Amanda grinned and nudged each other's arms.
"And welcome to Gryffindor," Amanda called out to her own firsties. "Now you both know the true values of your house that you must follow. Gryffindors, strive to be obnoxiously noble and heroic. Slytherins, strive to be evil, ugly snakes who spit a lot."
Rebecca punched her arm.
"Shut up, that's not what this is about."
"That's right." Calla was standing in the doorway to the bathroom. "This isn't about house rivalry or house pride or house values or any of that crap." She began moving about the room with purpose. "This is a reminder that we are all students in this school. Here together, to learn. Not to throw hexes and trade insults over the colors on our robes. We are here to become the best generation of witches and wizards this world has ever seen. And that isn't going to happen with the shadow of the past hanging over our heads. This school isn't about house rivalry anymore. It's about house unity. This isn't a place for dark and damaging battles to be fought. This place is now a garden, safe and beautiful and meant only for growth."
She paused and looked each first year in the eye.
"Tonight may have seemed like a silly hazing. But we wanted to show you what Hogwarts might have been like for you a generation ago. Ugly divisions between houses that promoted speculation, stereotypes, misunderstanding. Massive security lapses that ended with students facing true, life-threatening dangers. A war fought with child soldiers. If you want to avoid a second round of that I suggest you follow my guidance: Be friends to whoever you feel connected to, not just your house members. Do not resort to violence, magical or muggle. Stay out of the restricted section and the forbidden forest… Oh, and broom closets with boys in them. I mean it!"