Uncomfortable Truths

Chapter Eighty-Five - Life Continues

The Hogs Sty, April 1999

Hogwarts Reign of Terror by Michael Corner

Attending Hogwarts these last few months has been an exercise in resilience. Every week brings the O.W.L.'s, N.E.W.T.'s and graduation closer. However, studying for exams is not the problem, it is what we are here for, and what one might say it is par for the course.

The problems, and yes, there are multiple problems, that Hogwarts is facing lay in the hospital wing, it flies through the air, it's printed in the papers. Are all these problems related? The answer is, no, of course not. Has anything been easy this year?

Should these problems be examined individually or as a whole? Our paper will look at these problems individually. I will start with the most urgent, which is, the school is frightened. The school has seen fear, a war was fought here less than a year ago. The school knows fear; the students and faculty know how to face fear.

The problem with this fear is the unity of the school. One might ask why school unity would be a cause for fear. Isn't school unity what Hogwarts has been striving for since before our parents attended? For the first time our school is truly united. United in fear, but that is only recent. I, for one, love this new unity. The friends I've made this year will last far into adulthood; but my opinions are not relevant. Nor is the unity the actual problem.

The problem is the fear. Fear for the Slytherins, fear for the Ravenclaws, and fear for the Gryffindors. Fear for our friends lying in the hospital, fear for who might be next, and the fear that the victims show. Is it the fear keeping even the brave Gryffindors from naming the culprit that is hurting them and their classmates? Or is it something else? I believe the culprit is a student here at Hogwarts. Too many victims found too deep in the castle for anyone but staff and student to have access.

Why have I not claimed fear for the Hufflepuffs? That answer is simple, they are the best of us. Except Ernest Macmillan who is a thieving scoundrel, but again, my opinion is irrelevant. The Hufflepuffs have yet to have a single victim; does that mean we should search for the culprit amongst their house? Obviously not, they are the best of us (except Macmillan, he is a rogue).

Then where should we search? Let us examine the victims, I will not include the names of these students, as most are still minors and their privacy should be respected. Instead, we shall examine house by house.

Slytherin house, the cunning and ambitious, have the most students laid up in the hospital. They also have the most released. Now, dear reader, you may say that is a good thing. Not having the most victims, because you are not cruel. No, you would say having the most released, but you are mistaken. They have the most released from the hospital because it all started with them. Many of the victims that were found in the beginning of this reign of fear were from Slytherin and many have been sent on to St. Mungo's.

The heartless among us would say, good, the first victims were evil gits. Some are children of Death Eaters. Many believe that the first victims were the ones to invite our unwanted guests from January. The Slytherin welcome party that ended in disaster; landing fourteen students in the infirmary. I cannot confirm nor deny those accusations, but as an attendee of the party in question, I can confirm that none of those Slytherins were present for the battle.

It may sound accusatory, but I am not accusing anyone. I am stating the facts. The fact that most of the victims were 6th and 7th year Slytherins with ties to that organization is fact. I am not saying they invited them, because I truly believe that they did not. I believe the Death Eaters were invited, but invited by a select few students. It is possible that those few were the first to succumb to the culprit, they are still in the hospital wing or were sent to St. Mungos.