Severus Snape sat at the round table in the room with the bay window. He deliberately sat with the window at his back, though it made his back itch. His instincts told him that there was someone behind him, ready to stab him in the back. He hated being vulnerable like that, but suppressed any vestige of displaying this irritation. Snape wore his good dress robes, still black, but no longer basic. Strands of midnight green and midnight purple wove themselves into complicated patterns on the black silk.

Percy Weasley bustled in, all officious and surprised/glad/happy to be asked. He was the type of student who was least trouble (despite not being talented), but he hadn't ever expected the Head of House Slytherin to call on him for anything. Unsurprisingly, he wasn't wearing dress robes. Also unsurprisingly, he'd managed to get his normal school robes scrupulously clean.

Roger Davies arrived, whisper quiet. Ravenclaws were often like that.

As Davies sat, Snape let the silence play out, for ten seconds longer than he ought. No twins. Snape thought, vaguely surprised.

"I have asked you here to invoke a long-lost binding." Snape started, glad as both Percy and Roger stiffened, going from quietly interested to sharply querulous. "There is a young Dark Lord at this school. As diverse members of the Houses of Hogwarts, I call upon thee to join in the Bright Compact."

"Your evidence, sir?" Percy asks, his normal bustle set aside. He looks almost fearful, which Snape finds a good sign.

"A blood pact, sealed with seven children." Snape gravely intoned.

"What does this Bright Compact entail?" Roger asked, and Snape suppressed a smile. When Ravenclaws got interested in the details, they were already hooked on the main course.

"We will work together to ensure that said Dark Lord does not rule." Snape said, "The situation is graver than you realize. A blood pact, of any nature, would normally land the cretin in Azkaban. That is being actively interfered with, by both the Headmaster of Hogwarts, and, I suspect, the head of the DMLE."

Percy looks personally offended by this, "That must not be allowed to stand. Sheltering Dark Lords is a heinous act."

Roger says, "What are your plans for dealing with the Dark Lord?"

Snape said, slowly, "Distractions, guidance, interference. If absolutely need be, raise an opponent."

Roger asks, "You mean a hero?"

Snape rolls his eyes, "No, I mean another Dark Lord. Allowing this Dark Lord to solidify power over England would be a disaster."

Percy asks, "If you raise another Dark Lord, do you think you could control him?"

"Obviously," Snape says, "I find poison optimal for most puffed-up poppinjays."

Roger asks, "Then why not use it on this one, and have done with it?"

Aside from my own death, Snape said, "This nightmare of a child has gotten the sole heir to a Noble House involved in his schemes."

Roger nods, "Alright. This needs doing."

Percy says, "I am at your service, so long as it involves preventing the rise of the next Dark Lord."

Leaning back into a moonlit shadow, Snape slowly smiles.

[a/n: The two children haven't realized Snape is talking about Harry Potter yet. Rumor mill about what Harry did in Snape's class hasn't gotten that far just yet.

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