Not all wars are black and white, as Harry learns when the second war with Voldemort seems to be painted in nothing but shades of grey. In which Harry is confused, Tonks is overwhelmed, Barty is a genius, Snape hates everyone, Dumbledore is trying his best, and Voldemort is having the time of her life. fem!Voldemort

End of second year AU. fem!Riddle. Harry is fully prepared to face the basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets to save Ginny. Unfortunately, he never gets a chance. Tammie Riddle realises that killing one student and draining the soul of another would leave too much evidence of her return. Thankfully, there's another horcrux right in her reach that she can use to hitch a ride.

The houses of Hogwarts are growing stagnant, and a certain sentient Hat is dismayed over this turn of events. It decides to take matters into its own hands, taking advantage of several obscure rules to sort students where the Hat wants them, not where heredity or their own desires want them to be. The result? A mess that gradually pulls the student body into utter chaos.