Jerry pushed open the door to the Slytherin Private Lounge, the bronze door knocker leaving the chill of its snakescale pattern against his palm. Malfoy, Goyle, and Crabbe had been waiting there for quite some time.
"I thought I'd find a gathering of new recruits." Jerry's leather boots crossed the flowing silver patterns in the floor tiles. The winding serpentine designs gleamed coldly beneath the moonstone chandelier. "Why is it just you three?"
"Without your permission, Jerry, how could I bring them into this Private Lounge?" Malfoy replied.
"Go and fetch them all. I want to meet the people you've chosen!"
At Jerry's words, Malfoy gave Goyle and Crabbe a look, sending them off to fetch the others.
Before long, Pansy Parkinson and Daphne Greengrass walked in, lifting the hems of their dark green silk skirts. Three boys followed behind them.
"My goodness, this legendary Private Lounge is much bigger than I imagined!" Pansy Parkinson said in surprise.
"Merlin's beard! This is my first time here!" Daphne Greengrass gazed up at the domed ceiling, where an emerald-studded star chart shimmered with a mysterious halo in the ghostly blue candlelight. Even she, a pure-blood from a prominent family among the Sacred Twenty-Eight, was stunned by the lavish decor.
"Ahem!" Malfoy cleared his throat twice, a reminder to the two first-time visitors.
"Jerry, let me introduce everyone," Malfoy continued. "This is Pansy Parkinson, and this is Daphne Greengrass. They're in our year, so I'm sure you know them."
"Good evening, ladies." Jerry inclined his head slightly, a gracious smile on his face.
"Good evening, Mr. Green." Pansy Parkinson had barely finished her polite greeting when Daphne nudged her aside. "A pleasure to meet you, Mr. Green. I'm Daphne Greengrass, the eldest daughter of the Greengrass family."
"We're all schoolmates. There's no need