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Characters / They Shook Hands

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They Shook Hands is a fanfic that tells the overplot of the Harry Potter series using the Slytherin characters.

May contain spoilers!

Slytherin House

They're not completely evil in this story. It really doesn't make sense that one quarter of all 11 year old children are evil. They have certain opinions about Muggles and Muggle-borns, but the House as a whole doesn't blindly follow Voldemort.

Harry Potter

Still the hero of the story. His encounter with Draco in Diagon Alley was where everything started to change for the better. Harry exchanges letters with his new friend in the month before school starts, and on the train, Draco introduces him to some other children.
  • Animorphism: When Sirius is proven innocent, Harry moves in, and Sirius teaches him to be an Animagus.
  • Big Brother Mentor: With traces of Big Brother Worship. Harry looks up to Draco's elder brother Elan, to the point he doesn't realise Elan's large faults.
  • Big Man on Campus: During the Triwizard Tournament.
  • Chick Magnet: Despite Slytherin being considered the house of Black Sheep, Harry's reputation still gets quite a boost due to the solidarity of his peers. As a result, many, many schoolgirls are actively seeking his attentions.
  • Generation Xerox:
    • Like his father, Harry is a prodigy on the broomstick.
    • Like his mother, he excels at the study of Potions and considers it one of his favorite subjects.
  • I Don't Want to Ruin Our Friendship: Harry to Tracy.
  • In with the In Crowd. Also I Just Want to Have Friends and Friendless Background
  • First Kiss: With Tracy.
  • Morality Pet: To Slytherin House
  • Muggles: Harry is encouraged by Slytherin to express how he feels about the Dursleys. While this may be psychologically healthy, it's part of Harry's fall towards the Moral Event Horizon.
  • Pet Monstrosity: In Year 2, Harry takes control of the basilisk instead of killing it.
  • "Reason You Suck" Speech: Harry to Tom Riddle
    Harry: "I don't fear you. I've seen what you are now: a pathetic shade, clinging to life by leeching off of others like a parasite. Whatever your plans are, I'm going to stop you, Voldemort. I stopped you eleven years ago, I stopped you last year, and I will stop you tonight! ... You are a failed and unworthy descendant of Slytherin. You're nothing more than a shade from a time long past. You are nothing. I am the Heir of Slytherin!"
  • Screw the Rules, I Have Connections!: Harry is more comfortable with his fame. He still doesn't like it, but he's willing to use it to get his own way sometimes.
  • Second-Act Breakup: Tracy and Harry
  • Slowly Slipping Into Evil: Though the series isn't finished, Harry has journeyed into Darkness. It remains to be seen if he'll pull himself out before he crosses the Moral Event Horizon.
  • Tell Me About My Father: Harry to Sirius.
  • Took a Level in Badass: Harry, in comparison to his canon self, learns several spells far sooner (including the Furunculus curse, which develops into his favorite). By the time the Triwizard Tournament rolls around, he is able to take the lead handily in the first two events.

Draco Malfoy

Still an obnoxious snot. He just happens to be friends with Harry. The reader can almost imagine that this is how he would have behaved had Harry accepted his offer of friendship on the Hogwarts Express in canon.

Theodore "Theo" Nott

The smart one of the group. His father is a scholar, and it's definitely rubbed off. Smug and extremely prejudiced about Muggle-borns.
  • Freudian Excuse: Theo turns into a Jerk because his Dad has been neglecting him.
  • He Who Fights Monsters: Once he recovers from the shock of suffering the Cruciatus and then killing his own father, Theo dedicates himself to fighting Death Eaters without pity or mercy, and has absolutely no scruples about torturing or mind raping anyone even suspected of supporting Voldemort's cause.
  • Mr. Exposition: Theo is the brainy one who figures things out. He correctly identifies the Beast of Slytherin as a basilisk in Y2.
  • O.C. Stand-in: Nott didn't even get a first name until the fifth book of canon.
  • Patricide: To put it mildly, Theo and his father have a disagreement about joining Voldemort's cause.
  • Took a Level in Jerkass: Theo takes several levels in Y4, because his dad has been ignoring him.
  • Slobs Versus Snobs: Theo is easily the most prejudiced against Muggle-borns. He's even worse than Draco.

Pansy Parkinson

The leader of the Slytherin girls in her year, she also exerts a powerful influence with other forms. Described as pretty enough, she's not drop dead gorgeous, but she's got the most important family (of the girls). She and Draco were betrothed an unspecified number of years ago, but neither of them seems to take it particularly seriously. She doesn't seem interested in him romantically, until Harry tells her that Draco likes her but later in the story they do date.

Tracy Davis

The Betty to Pansy's Veronica — sorta. She's the first girl to reach out to Harry and make him feel comfortable. She gives him his first hugs and invites him to talk about anything he wants to. She also tells him that he doesn't have to agree with everything they all say in order to stay friends. She develops a wicked crush on Harry, which later causes problems since he wants to just be friends.

Millicent "Millie" Bulstrode

Millie doesn't mind grubby robes and getting dirty. She rebelled against the overbearing nature of her mother the fashion designer.

Daphne Greengrass

The snarky one of the group. Daphne always has a zinger and loves to get in the last word. Definitely NOT the Ice Queen trope.

Vincent Crabbe

Often used for comic relief. A Running Gag is that he has a fat head, leading to his inevitable protestation to the contrary. Given further dimension from the canon by being good at Astronomy.

Gregory Goyle

Often thought of as Crabbe's identical twin, in They Shook Hands, he's a much more distinct character. Thinks of himself as a "Man of Action".

Laine Slater

The Slater twins are a year behind Harry. She's got a crush on Harry, but she doesn't let that get in the way of being friendly with him.
  • Alpha Bitch: Laine is the leader of the girls in her year. While they aren't a large presence in the story, she has her own Girl Posse.
  • Official Couple: Eventually becomes this with Harry. Ends up being cruelly subverted in Y5 when she is unceremoniously Killed Off for Real.
  • Original Character
  • The Social Expert: She is the one who helps Harry navigate the controversy of being named as the fourth Triwizard champion in Year 4, at least initially. She also has a knack for invoking her status as a member of a well-established and influential pureblood family to gain leverage on others.
  • Surprisingly Sudden Death: During the battle in the Department of Mysteries against Voldemort's loyalists in Year 5, she gets hit by a stunner and thrown directly into the Veil before anyone can react.
  • Yandere: She slowly becomes this while wearing Salazar Slytherin's Locket.

Blaise Zabini

Started first year in Slytherin along with Harry and rest of the gang, but is removed from Hogwarts by his mother after the troll incident, and doesn't return until year 5.

  • The Friend Nobody Likes: Due to several years of absence, and the timing of his return, he is viewed with thinly veiled suspicion by the other Slytherins.
  • My Friends... and Zoidberg: Since returning to Hogwarts, he gets only a chilly reception from the other Slytherins in his year group. This is mostly because they have molded themselves into a resistance cell to fight Voldemort, which he is not aware of.
  • Put on a Bus: Leaves Hogwarts after the troll incident in first year.

Other Students

Gryffindor House

Ron Weasley

Without Harry and Hermione as friends, Ron is a more extreme version of his canon self. He tries to make friends with Neville, but things don't work out so well. Most often seen in the company of Dean Thomas and Seamus Finnigan.
  • Big Brother Instinct: He tries to look out for Ginny, in his own way. It is not appreciated.
  • Book Dumb: He appears to lack any studious qualities, to the point where he is still unable to answer a very simple question in Potions class a full year after the first time he flubbed it.
  • Jerkass: One has to wonder if the author is going to push Ron over the cliff into Ron the Death Eater. He loses his mind fairly regularly, but it's hard to imagine him actually joining Voldemort.
  • The Load: Quickly becomes this for Gryffindor House due to the combination of his own incompetence and his overwhelming antagonism against Slytherins.
  • My Sister Is Off-Limits

Neville Longbottom

In Y1, Harry got the Slytherins to stop picking on Neville, as he is a pure-blood and to harass him goes against the Slytherin house rules. This means his only nemesis is Professor Snape and Potions class. His development is a bit different, and by the time we see him in Y4, he's a stronger character than in the canon. In Y6, Harry even invites him to join his secret society.
  • Nice Guy
  • Took a Level in Badass: Several levels, actually. He joins the duelling club in Y5 and works his butt off to improve his skills. Harry convinces him to get a new wand, and a positive feedback loop begins. In Y6, Harry actually invites him to join his friends in the Order of the Basilisk.

Chrissy Golding

One of the two missing Gryffindor girls from canon. She went with Ron Weasley to the Yule Ball. Used along with another OC, Amy Geagan, to flesh out the different elective classes shown.

Percy Weasley

  • All of the Other Reindeer: Loathed by his own House.
  • Big Brother Instinct: Towards Ginny.
  • Took a Level in Badass: After transferring to Slytherin House, he becomes significantly more well-adjusted than his canon counterpart, and earns more respect for his contributions to Ministry work as a result, culminating in him landing his boss's post as head of the Department of International Magical Cooperation as well as a healthy relationship to a girl from a well-connected family.

Hufflepuff House

Hermione Granger

Because of her rudeness to Harry on the train, the proto-Slytherins conspire to bribe the Sorting Hat to send Hermione to Hufflepuff. This is a plot device for Dethryl to push the story in a certain direction, but it does make sense because Hermione works harder than anyone (she had her schoolbooks memorized before the train). Later in the story, her suitableness for Hufflepuff does come up, and through the Sorting Hat itself, the author makes the case.

Ravenclaw House

Padma Patil

In a canon inversion, Harry asks Padma Patil to the Yule Ball. She accepts, and they have a great time.

Professors

Severus Snape

Head of Slytherin House. He tries to be a mentor to Harry. Though prepared to hate Harry for looking like James, when Harry is Sorted to Slytherin, he is forced to think again.
  • Cool Teacher: For the Slytherins, at least, who appreciate his dramatic flair and biting sarcasm.
  • Reasonable Authority Figure: Played straight, surprisingly enough. Though he still exhibits anti-Gryffindor biases as in canon, having the perspective of the Slytherin students makes it clear that while he might be more excessive at granting them house points, he does not subvert Dumbledore's authority as Headmaster, grants them neither unfair permissions or advantages, and will not hesitate to punish house members for staining their reputation.
  • So Proud of You: Tends to express this towards Slytherins who exemplify the best qualities of and bring honor to the house.
  • Stern Teacher: Students cross him at their peril. Not even Slytherins are safe should they be caught slacking in their duties.

Minerva McGonagall

Head of Gryffindor House. Her relationship with Harry is antagonistic at best, and she and the Slytherins view each other with a great deal of suspicion in general.
  • Reasonable Authority Figure: Downplayed. While she tries to moderate her biases, they are still present and tend to undermine her interactions with Slytherin students.
  • Stern Teacher: As in canon, she puts up with zero shenanigans from anyone.

Albus Dumbledore

Harry and Dumbledore don't get along. Harry has a towering resentment for being dumped at the Dursleys, and when it comes out that Dumbledore facilitated that, there's a huge row.

Septima Vector

The Arithmancy witch is a former Slytherin, and she has helped Harry on several occasions.

Dolores Umbridge

The new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher in Harry's fifth year. She is later appointed as Hogwarts chief of security and initiates a dueling club that includes a large majority of the student population.
  • Adaptational Nice Guy: Due to the Ministry fully embracing the narrative that Voldemort has returned and is actively threatening peaceful magical citizens, she is a far more reasonable and balanced figure. Harry still feels there's something off about her, though.
  • Does This Remind You of Anything?: She initiates a school-wide dueling club that is quickly revealed to be a proto-military training course for students to prepare them for action against Voldemort and his Death Eaters. It's even named Ministry Youth.
  • Politically Motivated Teacher: She was appointed Defence professor by the Ministry since the school governors could not agree to any of Dumbledore's candidates. She makes use of her position to spout Ministry war propaganda and actively recruits students to join the Aurors once they graduate.
  • Shout-Out: Her title of Security Officer is a nod to the A Very Potter Sequel.
  • Tyrant Takes the Helm: Massively downplayed, but her appointment as Hogwarts security officer and her review of other professors still has strong shades of her canon incarnation as the high inquisitor. Halfway through the year she becomes the primary voice of the faculty to the student body.
  • Well-Intentioned Extremist: She definitely has a point that Voldemort's forces should be resisted by all, and to the fullest extent possible. Her methods, on the other hand, may give one pause.

Marauders

The surviving Marauders act as a powerful counterweight to the Slytherin propaganda about Muggles and Muggle-borns. They are able to bring Harry back a bit after three years of immersion in Slytherin prejudice.

Sirius "Padfoot" Black

Harry's godfather. Due to the way the plot of Y3 was resolved, he is absolved of his crimes and able to offer Harry the proper home he's always wanted. He is teaching Harry to be an Animagus.

Remus "Moony" Lupin

Harry's former professor and friend. In addition to teaching Harry the Patronus Charm, he has also shown him the Stunning Charm.

Malfoy family

Lucius

This characterization of Lucius is definitely not typical. He's a bad man, but he may not be an evil man. He has a good side to him, but his moral code is different. Very much a Godfather sort of criminal. He's Harry's strongest positive male influence for the first three stories, and even with Sirius back in the picture, Lucius has a significant role in things.
  • Affably Evil: Lucius Malfoy treats shopkeepers and other people he does business with politely and courteously. He even gives Flourish a Galleon after his trouble dealing with the Monster Books and tells him to buy drinks with it.
  • The Don: Being a Dark family is something akin to a crime family. Lucius trades on power and influence. He arranges favors and is a very slippery fellow indeed.
  • Enemy Mine: Lucius Malfoy and Albus Dumbledore have reached this kind of alliance based on mutual hate of Voldemort.
  • Even Evil Has Loved Ones: Even in the canon, Lucius clearly loved his family and feared for their safety. Becoming a father four years earlier with the birth of his son Elan Octavio has strengthened that love.
  • Even Evil Has Standards: Lucius finds violence distasteful and prefers to accomplish his goals through more subtle measures.
  • Family Business: Though left unspecified as to the specifics. ("Don't ask me about my business." -Michael Corleone)
  • Family-Values Villain: Expects his sons to behave like decent human beings, do well in school, marry nice pure-blood girls, and continue the family line.
  • Man of Wealth and Taste:
  • Non-Idle Rich: See Family Business.
  • Not Evil, Just Misunderstood: Argues passionately and eloquently for the pure-blood ways and wizarding culture.
  • The Patriarch
  • Well-Intentioned Extremist: His idea of the Magical Child Protection Act takes Muggle-born children away from the parents at birth and puts them in an Orphanage of Fear.

Narcissa

A bit of an emotional woman, she loves her family dearly and will ruin anyone who threatens it. She's portrayed very similarly to the canon but given more depth.

Elan

The functional point of departure from the canon takes place ~1976 with the birth of Elan Octavio Malfoy. He's the leader of his peer group, and he's better with people than Draco was in the canon.

Tonks family

Harry has managed to heal the breach between Andromeda and Narcissa, to everyone's surprise. Even Ted and Lucius are friendly.

Ted

Not much is known about Ted in the canon, so the author is going to have to make up a lot given how he's brought the Tonkses into the storyline.

Andromeda

Sirius' favorite cousin. Once he is exonerated, he reconnects with her.

Nymphadora

So far, she's her canon self. We see more of her in Y5, she's prominent in Y6, and leading into Y7 she seems to have a part in a big plot.

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