Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry was deathly quiet. Even the whispered rumors had fallen to the side until the door to the Slytherin Common Room opened and Severus Snape stepped inside. "The world knows," he said quietly, knowing every single ear in the room would hear him. "Potter, Granger, Longbottom, Lovegood and the two Weasleys fell into the Dark Lord's trap in the Department of Mysteries, but they managed to get out, when members of the Order of the Phoenix showed up. Sirius Black has fallen through the veil at the hands of Bellatrix Lestrange. The Dark Lord himself showed up, and tried to possess Potter, but he couldn't. Every high-ranking person at the Ministry saw him before Dumbledore bested him. Every Death Eater there, besides Bellatrix and Voldemort himself, was arrested and is probably in Azkaban by now."
Every eye turned toward the three fifth years next to the fire. Draco Malfoy sat in the chair, Blaise Zabini stood beside it and Pansy Parkinson sat next to his feet. Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle were not far, but muscle wasn't needed inside the common room itself. "Once again, Voldemort is showing his obsession with Potter," Malfoy said, just as quiet as Snape had been. "We need to strategize. If you want to follow the madman, that is your choice. Personally, I could go the rest of my life without ever seeing him again. That may require some serious manuevering though, given who my father is."
Pansy looked up at him and something unspoken seemed to pass between them before she nodded. "Boyd," she said.
"Yes, Parkinson?" a younger girl said. Her auburn curls were perfect spirals and a look of mischief lingered even when her expression was somber, as it was now.
"Do you know anyone in other houses who may be useful allies? If we wish to side against our families, we will need connections."
Nerissa thought for a moment. "Actually, the Weasley girl is far more reasonable than her brother. We've spoken a few times with the Exploding Snap games. And we've been paired to work on building a tournament for next year."
"You think she may be receptive? We know her brother is unlikely," Pansy asked.
"It's possible. Do you want me to feel her out?"
"It could be worth it, Pans. Remember how she played along when I dropped the wands?" Draco said suddenly. "She could've used any number of nasty hexes, we know she knows them, but she didn't. She picked something fairly harmless, if a little gross."
"And she seemed to nod at you, with something close to respect," Zabini added. He'd been silent until now, thinking things through.
Pansy shook her head. "Why else would I agree with Nerissa's suggestion? Weasley is our best bet, she was smart enough to know that we were faking it in Umbridge's office. Nerissa, feel her out, see what you can find out."
Snape had been quietly listening as his favorite students, which he wasn't supposed to admit to having, planned to approach his most unlikely favorite. Ginevra Weasley reminded him a great deal of Lily Evans, but there was something else, likely left over from her time with Voldemort's horcrux. The fact that Lucius Malfoy had given something like that to an eleven year old girl had sickened him, and many of the other Slytherins who knew about it, including Draco. It was the reason that every single one of the house treated the girl with respect. Even when they'd taunt her, they kept it mild compared to what others got. "Miss Weasley could be a valuable ally. If she can believe you all, you may be able to work together fairly well."
"Then we'll see what can be done. I'm going to have to take charge of Father's absence and get control of the accounts. I doubt I can take full control of the Manor, but I will do what I can," Draco said. "The rest of you, make your choices, I'll understand if I don't hear from you."
Inside Slytherin House, the reticence faded away, and honesty ruled. Yes, they would scheme and plot to get what they wanted, but they also understood that they were far stronger together than apart. They were very much an 'insult one, insult all' sort of group, and even the sixth and seventh years were listening to Malfoy with respect. At first, it had been because of his father's influence, but now it was because he'd proven his gift with strategy over the years, helping them navigate the increasingly murky world they lived in, torn between their families and what they truly believed.
With a nearly-whispered "I'll leave you all to think, good night," Severus turned on his heel, robes billowing out as he stepped out of the common room and headed for his own quarters. There was every chance he himself would be summoned later, and they all knew it. Just as most of the students knew that he would do anything he could to protect them from suffering such a fate. It was his influence that had kept many of them safe at Hogwarts rather than taking the Mark early and against their will. He had convinced Voldemort that allowing them to join before they were of age could lead to resentment and actually weaken his followers. It was a logic that the Dark Lord had come to believe, though it may come to hurt him when the majority turned their backs on their parents' beliefs. Perhaps it was time to consider his own retirement from the double life, but he would not ask anyone else to walk this path either.