Chapter 23: Whispers in the Snake Pit
While it was good for the Evil Overlord project that Tom was acknowledging the strength of the non-magical population, since, you know, there were several billion non-magical people in the world versus maybe a few million wizards…
It was a shame that the rest of the Purebloods didn't think the same way. Not the end of the world, since Tom still had the other good chunk of Hogwarts to work with, but extremely irritating.
He couldn't have everything in the world, at this point. The only way to get the important Slytherins to really start worshipping him as their leader was behaving like them – and that, of course, would put him under Professor Dumbledore's radar.
With Professor Dumbledore, it was different. Much, much, different. He knew Professor Dumbledore wouldn't hesitate to cut ties with a young man he believed to be going down the wrong path, or, even worse, stick his nose even further into their business. At least Malfoy and Black would continue to associate with him even with his "goody-two-shoes" "make-friends-with-all-the-commoners-yay" act.
And that was where the dilemma truly lay. If he made himself more political in nature, then he would earn himself an unwanted watcher – but as long as he remained "nice" enough to make himself popular with the less powerful majority, they would never take him seriously.
Well, seriously enough. When there wasn't anyone around to watch except for other Slytherins (after a few weeks Tom realized that as stupid as some of the Slytherins were, they knew how to keep secrets where it counted), Tom made sure to let everyone know that he was a right bastard. (Not literally, because his mother was married to his father. Maybe.)
It was only the fact that he openly associated with "commoners" like Minerva, Filius, and Pomona, rather than sneering down at them like he was supposed to, that kept him from moving past the glass ceiling.
Even after he explained that Minerva, despite her Scottish accent (which Lestrange found laughable and liked to use to elevate his own status before other Slytherins, mainly to no avail), was a very talented witch who, with the assistance of her Head of House, could very well be teaching generations of their children one of the core subjects one day.
As was Filius, even though he was half-goblin, and Pomona, who was, well, a Hufflepuff.
Sometimes logic got through to the "real" powers like Malfoy and Black…and sometimes it just didn't.
They understood supporting a boy like him, who was deserving of his placement in Slytherin. But that was as far as their generosity and open-mindedness would extend.
Because Minerva and Filius were just like him. Talented. Intelligent. And, in a true meritocracy, would rise to the top of society.
But Minerva and Filius were half-bloods (like that made a difference), and her magical side was rather obscure anyway, so she would never have the gold to buy her way into politics.
And, as long as Tom, the orphaned Slytherin, continued to associate with "riff-raff" like them, rather than abandoning his heritage to associate with the "real" wizards, he would only ever be "riff-raff". Polished trash, but still, trash.
So the choice was: did he want to keep himself in Professor Dumbledore's good books and look like a weakling before the powerful purebloods? Or did he want to assert himself in the snakepit and garner distrust?
According to Jerry, getting on Professor Dumbledore's bad side was much more dangerous.
And Tom had to agree. Because regardless of "weakness", Tom was still a strong and charismatic young man. Even if Malfoy and Black considered him below them, he would still be fit to associate with them. They knew he was useful – and as long as he let them think that they were using him, he could use them just as well.
His talent was a commodity, and it would always remain separate from his morality. Regardless of how he acted, he would always be wanted on some level. If he shifted his morality to their side, he could become their leader.
But Tom didn't need to be their leader – at least, not openly. He could control them just as well, by pretending to be a follower.
Now, all he had to do was hike up the demand for a perfect follower, all the while lowering the supply, until he was the only commodity on the market suitable enough for their purposes left, and thus gain a monopoly on the whole favors business that was so prosperous in Slytherin House.
Hence, Master Plan 1a.
"Oh, and I mean Orion Black, by the way – not to be confused with his nine other cousins."
If someone said something mean about you, you'd want me to tell you, right?
"Black – "
"Oh, we're friends, Tom. Call me Orion."
"Funny you should say that, Orion, because Abraxas Malfoy has been insinuating that you can't tell any of the Blacks apart."
"Oh, really?"
"Something along those lines."
"Well, Tom, do you happen to know what Malfoy has been up to lately? We have some very pressing matters we need to discuss."
He wants to hang out tonight, but he told me not to tell you.
"I think he has been excluding you from some private occasions. I am not certain how important they really were, but I remember he was talking to Rosier, Dolohov, Greengrass, and Yaxley on the last Hogsmeade trip, without you around." (Two important pureblood heirs talking to each other in private, not a problem. But five of them conversing, and leaving out the Blacks of all families, was little more than a direct insult.)
"Why, that – "
"Tom, just exactly what did Orion Black say about me?"
He says everybody hates you because you're such a slut.
"He said everybody hates you because you're such a – "
Wait – what's a slut?
"Because I'm such a what?"
Jerry!
"Hmmm?"
"What did Orion Black say about me?"
"Oh, I shouldn't repeat it."
"Oh, please do."
JERRY!
What?
Jerry! What are we going to tell Malfoy?
Hmmm…
What's a slut?
I can't tell you that just yet.
Oh, for Christ's sake –
"Well? Riddle? What did Orion Black say about me?"
"He said – "
Yes, driving a wedge between Black and Malfoy was all too easy, and it wasn't a month into term before the family feud had reached unprecedented levels.
It was known that all the Pureblood families jockeyed against one another for power and prestige, but never before had such animosity actually become public.
"He said that?"
"You didn't hear it from me."
"Why, that – "
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