"Wardwizard Snape?  Clover Evans-Potter - "

"I know who you are, thank you," Snape says shortly.  His eyes track between them: Clover addressing him crisply and seriously, Fred and George flanking her, Millicent shifting anxiously behind her, Ron still looking daggers at Pansy Parkinson.  "I have not met all of your, mm, young acquaintances."  His eyes lock to hers, and narrow intensely.  "But I'm sure all the staff will have the dubious pleasure of getting to know them quite well in the coming weeks."

"Oi, they were the ones starting trouble, not us!"

"That's not true!" cries Pansy Parkinson.  She can do scandalized and wounded almost as well as Clover.  "I was just trying to start a conversation with Evans, and her - her lackeys called my friends a two-headed troll and threatened to hex us!"

"That's not true!" Millicent yells and stamps her foot.

"Isn't it?" Snape says.  "The Weasley twins did not insult or threaten anyone?"

"I - I mean - "  She falters.

"Wardwizard Snape," Clover says crisply, "Parkinson didn't try to start a conversation with me, she insulted my friends, entirely unprovoked.  Millicent and the entire Weasley family.  Fred and George were standing up for me and Millicent."

Snape gives her another deeply searching look.

"Be that as it may," he says, "I can scarcely imagine what sort of insult warrants two third year students ganging up to hex a child not a week into her magical education."

"They didn't - "

"Stop speaking.  Do not interrupt me again, Clover Evans-Potter.  I am sure you are quite impressed with your own ability to gather followers about yourself, and cause them to hang on to your every word, and throw their weight around in lieu of your own in petty preadolescent squabbles.  But there are people in the world who have seen all of the games you play and all of the masks you wear before, and are not much moved to be impressed by them.  Since three of the five of you seem entirely content to victimize your own House I do not imagine you will be moved by deducted points, but I will be speaking to your Heads of House and you can feel confident in your decision to schedule your future meetings around your upcoming detentions.  You will depart from Miss Parkinson and her friends now, and if you have any sense about you you will spend less time around Evans-Potter in the future as well."

He turns away from Clover, and addresses the students at large:

"The duel will be postponed until this afternoon while I attend to a matter of school discipline."  To the House Elves: "Batty, finish setting up the ward-anchor pylons, you do not need my input for the last few."

He swishes toward the castle and stalks off.

what the FUCK did he FIND HER OUT COMPLETELY SOMEHOW

"Bloody hell's his problem?"

Millicent looks Extremely Nervous to have been given detention!  She's wringing her hands a little.

"Didn't Bill talk about how Snape used to be really nasty, before McGonagall and Dumbledore set him straight?"

ABSOLUTELY CATEGORICALLY SHE IS NOT PANICKING THIS WOULD NOT MAKE CLOVER EVANS-POTTER PANIC

"She'll probably sort him out again, then," Fred says casually.  "Wish I could see her do it... I bet McGonagall yelling at old Snape is a sight."

Clover Evans-Potter would be comforting her nervous friend Millicent and not PANICKING ABOUT HOW THE HELL SNAPE DID THAT, IS HE READING HER MIND, DID HE KNOW MALEDICT AND FUCKING RECOGNIZE HER OR SOMETHING

"Millicent," she says, going for bracing, "I don't think Snape can actually set us detention on his own recognizance.  And Professor Whitlock is reasonable," is she Clover doesn't know there are other things on her mind HOW DID SNAPE DO THAT "she's not going to take Snape's side if we're honest about what's going on."

To Fred, the Slytherin Weasley: "Though it might be a good idea to find our respective Heads quickly and give them our side of the story."

Millicent nods, looking like her resolve is firming a bit.  "Yeah.  All right."

George nods seriously.  "Good thinking, Clover.  Me 'n' Ron can find McGonagall, you three handle Whitlock?"

Fred gives his twin a casual salute.

"Absolutely," she says.  She doesn't have the spare brain to figure out whether to usher Millicent to come along or set her aside to recuperate (THAT LADY COMPARED HER TO TAMSYN RIDDLE, WERE TAMSYN RIDDLE AND MALEDICT GAUNT THE SAME PERSON AFTER ALL AND SHE AND SNAPE USED TO WORK TOGETHER AND AND AND) so she decides for the time being to just follow Fred and let Millicent tag along or fade into the background as she prefers.

It's not a long walk.  Knock knock.

"Come in."

She takes the lead, more or less without consciously intending to.  "Professor Whitlock?  We need to speak with you."