A/N: This fic is a gift to the amazing nottheonlyfanaround (AJ)! I hope that you like the fic. I don't own Harry Potter; it solely belongs to J.K. Rowling!
The silence in the cold corridors of Hogwarts was eerie and creepy. The only sound that could be heard was that of the Potions master's footsteps, as he made his way deeper into the dungeons, and towards the Slytherin Common Room. This was Professor Snape's routine - he would always check upon his snakes, before calling a night.
Within no time, he reached his destination and quietly spoke the password, "Pureblood." As always he expected the students to either be in their dorm rooms or sitting calmly in the common room, minding their own business. He never expected Draco's frustrating voice to reach his ears, as soon as the gate to the room opened.
"I said C-sharp, Crabbe! How difficult is it for you to understand?" Snape was left baffled as the Malfoy boy's voice echoed through the walls. The boy he was yelling at, seemed scared for his life and was actually shivering in fright.
"Everyone, from the top, again," Draco shouted and backed away a little so he could observe everyone. Snape's eyes too scanned the room and was thoroughly confused as to what were the snakes up to, especially at this late hour of the night.
He saw Daphne and Theo almost knocked out in the corner, Pansy was yawning, Blaise was annoyed as hell, the first years were petrified of their senior, while other years seemed they could strangle the life out of Draco at any given opportunity. Professor Snape didn't have to wait much longer, though, to see the reason behind all the commotion, as horrifying unsynchronised voices of his students starting resonating.
"Weasley cannot save a thing,
He cannot block a single ring,
That's why Slytherins all sing,
Weasley is our king.
Weasley was born in a bin
He always lets the Quaffle in,
That's why Slytherins all sing,
Weasley is our king."
"Greengrass! Wake up! Who gave you the permission to sleep?" Draco's booming voice raged again, interrupting Daphne's sweet sleep and making her fall on the ground with a large 'thud.' She groggily opened her eyes and found Draco's face much closer to hers than she would have liked. On instinct, she squeaked and punched him hard on the face.
"Ow!" He fell back holding his nose and blinking away the rapid tears. Theo, who had woken up too, started laughing.
"Daphne! What is wrong with you? First, you fall asleep, and now you're attacking me!" Malfoy said as he glared daggers at her. The others, however, seemed to be having a good time.
"I'm sorry. It wasn't intentional, but instinctive. You just came in front of me, and I panicked, and my body reacted accordingly." Daphne defended herself with a defeated sigh when she realised that Draco was still making them practise for that stupid song.
"Come on, Draco! Leave us all be, now. Everyone is tired and just want to rest." Blaise came forward to stop the madness and rescue his peers from Heir Malfoy's obsession to constantly ridicule the Weasley family.
"No one asked about your opinion, Zabini. Besides, what if they screw up in between tomorrow's match? Do you know how embarrassing that could be for our house?"
"But why do you wanna do any of this, anyway? Why do you always want to pick on fights with Potter, Weasley and Granger?" Theo asked in a frustrated tone. Honestly, this rivalry with the Gryffindors now seemed meaningless and a total waste of time, especially when they had bigger issues to ponder over. Snape decided that he had seen enough melodrama, and decided to intervene.
"What is going on here?" he said as he moved further into the room. The potions master could sense everyone relaxing a bit, now that he had finally interjected the conversation.
"Professor Snape!" Draco exclaimed, moving towards his HoH.
"Why are you all not in your dorm rooms? Don't you all have classes tomorrow?" He looked at everyone with a deadly stare and raised his eyebrows in question when no one answered, "Well?"
"Draco made a song on Weasley and wants the whole house to sing it during tomorrow's Quidditch match," Daphne spoke up. Snape turned his attention to the now grinning Malfoy and rolled his eyes at his stupidity. Draco's face fell at this gesture.
"Everyone knows that I'm biased towards Slytherins because the other houses consider us 'evil'. But I won't help you in this crazy act of yours and defend you if anything goes wrong," Snape's tone left finality and gave no space for any kind of doubt or questions.
"But, Professor! You can't!" Draco exclaimed, horrified that he won't get the support of his teacher.
"No, Draco. I think you should understand the fact that I'm your teacher, not your father. It is my duty not just to teach you potions, but also prepare you for your life ahead. And one important lesson is that you never insult someone on the basis of his/her family status, no matter how much you hate that person." Snape turned his attention back to the others, "This applies to each and every one of you. This time, I won't help you. Remember that. Off to bed now; I don't want to hear any of the teachers complaining about you getting late to classes. Go now."
It didn't take even ten seconds for the students to scurry away and to their rooms. No one was left in the common room except Draco, who now had a thoughtful expression on his face. Snape paid him no heed, however, and left the common room with his robes swishing behind him. It was time for his snakes to come out of his shadows and face the world on their own.