Word count: 4,262
Disclaimer:
I'm not J.K Rowling and thus I don't own Harry Potter nor do I get paid for any of this.


- CHAPTER ONE -
{ The Change }


"Potter!" Someone screamed from a slight distance. Harry didn't turn, knowing who it was just by the underlying tone and he didn't plan on spending time with that person. "Ignorant twat," the voice continued to mutter, this time a lot closer to him than before.

A sigh left the black-haired boy's lips as he came to a halt, turning his head to spot white locks. "Malfoy." An eyebrow was raised at the sudden contact. "So he does understand English, marvelous." The boy remarked. Irritated at the sassy remark Harry rolled his eyes and continued on his way.

"Or maybe he doesn't…" Draco continued. "Not that much of a surprise, I must say."

"What do you want, Malfoy?" Harry snarled without stopping in his tracks. "Honestly, I might just be bored," the other replied, probably actually being honest. Taking notice of that, Harry halted and turned with mixed feelings. "You what?"

"I'm bored and enjoy nagging others, thought that was obvious by now?" He tilted his head a little.

Harry didn't really know how to respond to that, let alone had the will to do. He simply shook his head with a sigh and turned back around again - he really had to find Ron or Hermione to help him after all.

Draco decided there was only one thing he could do to get attention. As Harry walked away, he ran after him, dropped himself onto the floor and started rolling around dramatically. "Pottaaah!"

Flushing as all the attention was drawn to them at once, Harry picked the other from the ground. Well, he tried - keyword 'tried'. "Stop it. You're embarrassing," he hissed. "Fuck if I care, unlike you I know how to talk myself out of stuff. So, I guess you're the only one being affected by this," he smirked.

As usual, the Boy Who Lived felt that tension of being frustrated and powerless, the embarrassed not adding on to any good. He just wanted to fall into a hole or sit in a corner so no one would bother him. Which had been Draco's goal, even Harry knew that. He tried to regain his senses and push his feelings away. He stood up with a deep sigh. "Can someone get a broom? I dropped some trash."

Draco gasped. "Savage, Potter."

"No," he stated, "you're garbage."

"You wish, but unfortunately for you, I'm not." the blonde replied, still not getting up, and actually looking pretty comfortable. Harry's eye twitched. That guy was infuriating. "Well, good luck down there." He turned around on his heel, robe flying after him, as he continued on his track.

As Harry walked away, Draco got up. "THAT'S WHAT SHE SAAAID." "Oh my, Malfoy. I didn't know you knew muggle memes, how interesting~" Harry grinned, making sure he kept walking. He was wasting time with this childish behavior.

"Why's the fact that unlike you, I know stuff, interesting?"

"Shut up, Malfoy." Harry turned to find Draco's eyes. "How about you go to your daddy and cry 'cuz you failed to get people's respect?" He knew he was rambling, but without Ron or Hermione, he barely had any impulse control. "Well… I would… He hasn't got the time to reply every time though. Especially not when it's about some jerk called Potter." He replied.

Silence fell between them as the students around them silently muttered to one another. Harry felt his anger fly out the window as if someone just used Expelliarmus on it. "I mean… He's very busy… Very important…" Draco added to his previous words.

Man, this was sad. Tracing his teeth with his tongue before scratching his head, Harry contemplated what to do or say. Should he ask him to come along with them to Hogsmeade? He was Draco Malfoy after all… Plus Hermione wouldn't let him see another day if he did.

"And I mean… At least my father's not dead," the blond boy hissed, desperate to cover this sign of weakness up. The pang of guilt Harry had felt almost immediately disappeared. How did he dare to talk like that, and to bring his dad up? He knew Draco was taunting him and thus just continued to walk away.

He'd said it to protect himself, but when he looked back at it, it was a bit… well, very rude actually. Maybe that was really just the thing that'd put him into Slytherin. He thought about apologizing but didn't. Potter wasn't worth his effort, right?

The other had secretly hoped that the blonde would have come after him, but obviously, that guy only cared about himself. He walked towards the library, that potion homework wouldn't write itself.

Draco slipped back into his usual cold posture and tidied his robes, which had been wrinkled due to his little dramatic display a few minutes ago. Maybe he shouldn't have done that after all. As he walked back towards the Slytherin dorms, it dawned on him that he'd spoken badly about his father. Not only that, but he'd also shown a very vulnerable side of himself. In front of Potter. Malfoy didn't agree with his father, but he did respect him. He was grateful for the protection he offered. Speaking ill about him in front of all those students…

Draco never reached the dorms. Instead, he went to the library. He told himself it was because of his Arithmancy homework, but even he knew better. He'd seen Potter walk off in that direction. It wasn't like he wanted to be around him, but he did want to make sure he would keep his mouth shut about what happened.

Potter was sitting at one of the tables in the back of the library when Draco strode in, wearing a grim expression and ignoring the other students. He leaned on one of the chairs and cleared his throat to indicate his presence. Harry allowed his eyes to slowly slid away from the potions book to find Draco Malfoy looking down at him. God, if there was anyone he didn't want to see right now… His eyes narrowed. "What do you want this time Malfoy?"

It was clear Potter wasn't in the mood to talk, but he cared little about that. "I want you to forget what happened just now." That surprised the Gryffindor. Forget what he just said? Well, that little- "I'm not sure what you're talking about Malfoy." He let a silence linger to give the blond time to form an answer before cutting in. "Or you must be talking about the way you had been rolling around the floor? I mean, I knew you were in Slytherin but that it would mean you would just up and go act like a snake all the way?"

"I want you to forget about it. The whole conversation." He deliberately didn't answer Harry's question, because he couldn't. Just a moment he'd probably regret for the rest of his life. However, instead of being ashamed of it, it made him bitter. Angry, almost.

The request had put the other off. Draco sounded so serious about this. But why did he ask such a thing? Was he ashamed about his actions after all? Nah, no way. He had said it himself, he was not the kind of person to be affected by such trivial things. Something about Draco's posture and the look on his face was off though. "Is that all?" he simply asked. "I suppose it is," Draco replied, taking his hands off the chair he'd been leaning on and straightening up. There wasn't much else he could say about it.

That stuck up brat. "And after how you spoke to me about my father, you actually think I would just go ahead and listen to that request?" Draco raised one eyebrow as if Harry had just said something entertaining. "I thought the Gryffindor in you would naturally do the right thing, we'll see what that is. I'm just here because asking you to forget about it is a lot easier than asking a group of people to forget about it. It's a matter of efficiency, I'm not depending on you."

He was so tired. He hadn't slept that well last night and Draco being this pompous jerk really didn't help him out. With one heavy sigh, he tried to get rid of all the negativity in him. "You know what, fine. I'll act as if you're not some kind of drama queen. Now, if you would please let me work."

"Great." Draco stepped back but hesitated. Potter seemed very agitated. It'd be a shame to let that go to waste. "That potion requires a boomslang skin, not bloodroot," he remarked while scanning the list of sloppily written words beneath the other boy. "As much as I enjoy watching Snape roasting you over the tiniest mistakes, I can't stand stupidity."

Harry's fist clenched tightly around the feather in his hand. That guy sure struck a nerve. Mission accomplished for mister Malfoy. Taking deep breaths, he looked up to the other. "It looks more as if you have a soft side to me, Malfoy," he asserted.

"You must be very dense then," he sneered back. Malfoy had been pestering Potter since year one because of one simple reason: he was incredibly easy to anger. Draco always got the reaction he wanted, it was honestly the most entertaining thing.

"Hmm, you might be right. How could I even think about that? I mean, that your dad doesn't write back didn't even bother you the slightest bit. How could I even think you had something even close to likable in you. Thanks for confirming things," he countered.

"I don't intend to be likable towards you, I thought you'd know that by now." Again, he ignored Potter's remark, but his posture had become a bit tense. Affronted, Harry stopped writing altogether and put his things down. "You know, Malfoy. There's a brief moment when you first wake up, where you have no memories. A blissful blank slate, a happy emptiness," Harry almost enunciated. "Whenever I see your face, I wish I could just stay in that moment." With that, he picked the feather back up and continued taking down his notes.

"Very philosophical," the blonde replied dryly. "Though I believe that if you want an empty mind, you should go to Weasley, he's got one. Must be very quiet in there."

"Leave Ron out of this, Malfoy," Harry mumbled, trying to concentrate on the words he was writing down. "Does it anger you?" A small smirk spread across Draco's face. "I am merely displeased with your words," came his response to the blonde. He didn't feel like looking up, knowing that the Slytherin probably had a smirk plastered on his face. "Now, I do believe your business with me is done, so if you just leave and let me do my stuff. I'm sure you have another letter to write to your father."

He did want to go. He didn't like hanging around this arrogant twat. The boy who lived. The young Malfoy was still convinced he didn't deserve the fame. He hadn't achieved it, he'd just rolled into it. To Draco, a Slytherin, this had always seemed very unfair. However, not liking Potter meant that he'd do anything to annoy him. If the boy asked him to leave, he simply wouldn't. "You'll fail potions, you know. With an essay like that…"

Harry looked up for a second before looking down on his notes again. "I would say 'be as kind as to help me then' but then again, you're a Malfoy. Slytherin to top." He was silent for a while as it dawned on him that he had actually written quite some nonsense on his paper and tried to ignore the heat that sprawled to his cheeks. "Don't you have anything better to do, anyway?"

He probably did, but that wasn't as satisfying as nagging Potter. Or rather, a lot less entertaining. Right now he wasn't joking, the essay didn't make sense. As much of a drama queen as he could be, Draco did strive for good results. He wasn't as pushy with it as Granger, but it did grant him good grades. Potions wasn't an exception. He was very suitable to help Potter, but why would he do that? Maybe if there were something to gain…

"I'm a businessman Potter," he said. "I'll do it if you've got something interesting to offer me in return."

That turned around quite quickly. But did he want the other to do his homework for him? Surely, Snape would put him in detention or give him a load of extra work to do if he messed this assignment up. Yet, what could he even offer the Slytherin? He would have to do it on his own. Or, well…
"Like what?" he dared to ask.

"Can be anything, as long as it interests me," Draco replied. There wasn't a specific thing he wanted. Proposing a deal like this was ridiculous anyway, but he still wasn't backing away. Maybe he'd expected Potter to react a lot more offended, or angry.

Not sure what had gotten into him, he already started to list down things in his head. A bag of candy? Nah, Draco didn't seem like the guy to accept work for sweets. Maybe a muggle pen? It lasted longer than the ink of their feathers. But then again, he knew about the 'that is what she said' thing… There was no harm in trying though. He searched through his stuff in hope of finding one, looking almost victorious when he found one "What about this?"

Draco sniffed, not entirely uninterested. "I've seen some Ravenclaws carry those around… An enhanced quill, right?" "It actually is-nevermind. An enhanced quill alright. It takes quite some while to run out of ink. Very useful if I say so." He moved it somewhat closer to the blonde in hope of sealing the deal. He didn't really know what else to offer him.

It was honestly a ridiculous situation. Draco Malfoy, offering that damn golden child help with his homework in exchange for a quill. What would his parents say if they knew? What would his friends think? What would his past self think? Certainly not what happened next. Draco nodded and took the pen, examining it for a bit, before nodding. "That'll do then."

Harry didn't know who to thank first. God? Dumbledore? His parents? Maybe Lucius? He was just glad that the other took up on his offer, it would have been quite some trouble to find something else the blonde would have deemed 'worthy' for this exchange.

After Draco accepted the deal, his hands moved to close his stuff up. Well, how eager. He handed the assignment to his… rival? What the heck was his relationship with the young Malfoy anyway? They always seemed like they couldn't stand one another but now they just made this ridiculous deal. He just hoped Draco would actually do as he said…

Draco merely gave him a confused look. "I meant helping you… not… doing it completely…" Had he been clear enough about that? Maybe not, but it was worth mentioning. He'd keep his word, which unlike his untrustworthy image, was part of his loyal personality.

Oh, bloody hell, that made so much more sense. Although, that would mean they had to spend more time with each other, didn't it? Harry wasn't too sure if he liked that. He coughed and put his stuff down again. Oh gosh, that was pretty awkward. Think Harry. "You know… You could have just simply said you wanted to spend time with me instead of offering me help with homework after repeatedly telling me how to not do it." Did that sound weird?

Draco's eyes widened as he made a very offended noise. "You… How dense… That's not how it is at all." For Merlin's sake, where were the words when you needed them? "You think spending time with me will be fun? You're forgetting that any time we spend together is filled with arguments and curse words, I don't see that changing anytime soon, not even for an essay."

'Someone. If you hear this, please send help.' Harry wanted to slam his head against the table and-THUD. Oh no, he just couldn't control himself now, did he? He groaned, feeling his forehead tingle. That hurt. "I didn't mean it in such a way necessarily," he mumbled while rubbing his head. "Take a joke, Mal." He shifted in his seat and- oh shit... He did not.

"Getting uncomfortably friendly, I see?" The blond boy responded, refraining from looking too surprised. Hiding behind disgust and irritation, his to-go escape plan. He and Potter weren't friends, where'd that idea even come from? Utterly stupid… right…?

"Anyway," he resumed, "should we get it over with right now or can't you bear any more of me at the moment?" Still rubbing the sore spot on his head Harry huffed and turned to the other, unable to stop a small smile to form on his lips. "Oh yeah, duh. I always bang my head on tables in hopes to become friends." Once again he shifted in his seat, this time to open his books.

"I should just get this done and over with or else I might forget it and die anyway - though I doubt you'll care about that part." He flipped through the pages, stopping on the page he had left off, before spinning in his seat towards the blonde. "Now, explain."

Draco neatly sat down beside him, keeping his distance, but being close enough to look at the book and explain it. Yes, he was actually doing this. What a disgrace…. "Right, first of all, the information you've already have. You can completely discard that." He took a new roll of parchment and spread it out on the desk. He then continued to explain what was wrong, and what it should be. He could've done that with kind words, but he decided to put it as it was: harsh and clear.

Harry didn't really appreciate the tone of how the blonde spoke to him, but he guessed it could be worse. It was quite weird how he had the blonde help him instead of Hermione, though. But, what freaked him out more was that he finally understood what this stuff was all about. Draco explained it in such a natural way that it just clicked. Oh gosh, why didn't he have a Hermione who could just repeat this the same way?

After a while, Draco was done talking. He'd explained what needed to be explained, and it was Potter's job to write it down. He couldn't become too kind towards his rival now, right?

"I mean… this was discussed during class, but you're usually busy with anything but the class, so, this doesn't surprise me." He stopped for a bit. "Snape isn't exactly the kindest either, he doesn't reward students in the right way. It should be based on knowledge, not houses." It sounded like a thing a Slytherin would never say, but it still fits with one of the main Slytherin traits: wanting to achieve things. Some preferred to do that by cheating, but most purebloods actually played fair game.
Honestly, he was turning into Granger. He let out a slightly irritated sigh and leaned back in his chair.

That had surprised Harry quite some bit and he stalled his writings to look back at the blonde who had leaned back in his chair. Okay if this was some weird daydream due to his fatigue it might as well end now. He shifted back to his work before the other would notice his staring, trying to keep the words fresh in the back of his mind so he wouldn't have to ask the guy to repeat himself.

It was too quiet. Too peaceful. They should be fighting, not sitting together in peace. It wasn't like them at all… But it was nice, for a change. Kind of. It certainly was a lot less exhausting. "Doesn't Granger help you out with this stuff?" Draco asked. They were chatting anyway, so he just went with it.

"Yes, Hermione does," he hummed, "but it's not as easy to understand." He kept writing, not minding the silence that fell back. He would have been surprised by the guy asking about Hermione if he wasn't concentrating on his work.

The reason why Draco even acknowledged Granger to be a living being, was because she was a top student. This meant they were often competing for the highest grade, and Gryffindors were bloody competitive. Slytherins were too. A combination made in hell meant to clash from time to time. Malfoy, for the first time in forever, let Potter do his work without interrupting. This was mainly because he'd have to explain it again if the essay turned out to be crap. Besides, the silence wasn't uncomfortable.

This went on for a few minutes until the boy got stuck. Oh no. No, no, no. Not happening. He scratched the back of his head while taking a deep breath. Malfoy just explained this, didn't he? Oh man, maybe he shouldn't have questioned himself about their situation and just shut it all out to just focus on what the guy told him.

It wasn't hard to notice, really. "Stuck already?" He asked, keeping back a sigh. Ah, he was obvious as hell it seemed. He slowly turned, biting on his lip and raising an eyebrow. "Maaaybe?" Malfoy instantly decided Potter wasn't allowed to make that kind of face again. "Right. Where?"

Harry allowed the other to come closer as he simply pointed at it. "Uhm, like right here. After the part on how not to use Fairy Wing in it."

"After that, the potion should turn green," Malfoy began. "If it doesn't, add more mushroom. Easy as that. I hope you do know what comes after that?" He looked up to the other, searching for a sign that told him he didn't have to repeat his whole explanation again. After that explanation, the rest came back to him and his mouth shaped in a small 'o'. "Yes, yes. My bad," he grinned. He picked up his quill, dipped it in the ink and continued writing.

Malfoy leaned back again. Something about all of this satisfied him. Teaching someone, and then seeing the result was quite satisfying. Maybe that's why people became teachers. He continued to kind of look around, lost in his thoughts.

He started to whistle as he came to the end of his essay. It had been quite nice to actually sit back and not yell at one another. They should do this-ohhhhh no. NO. Stop. Right. There. Harry, keep your head cool. After this, they would just split up again and that was it… He guessed…

A nice and quiet thing like this couldn't last forever, which became clear when Draco noticed a black haired girl walking up to them. Several alarm bells in his head started to ring, pushing him back into his normal behavior instantly. Pansy couldn't catch him hanging out with Potter, especially not this peacefully.

"I believe we're done, I've better not wasted my time here, try to get a decent grade would you." He got up from his chair and pushed it back to the table. He'd done it just in time, because seconds later the girl was standing next to him, wearing a slightly confused expression. Draco didn't bother to explain, if she wanted to know, she'd ask him later.

Harry wore a confused expression as well until he spotted the girl coming in view. Naturally. He gave a curt nod. "Keyword; try."

"Trying might not even be the right way to say it. No failure allowed." He spoke short and quick. He wanted to wrap this up before Pansy would notice they hadn't been swearing at each other yet. "Come on, let's go," He muttered to the girl. Draco had never felt bad after annoying Potter. Not once. But this time, he felt strangely rude to leave just like this. However, he wasn't allowed to think about this too much. It was better to pretend like nothing had happened to their usual rivalry. Surely, everything would be back to normal tomorrow, he thought as he walked down the library.

"Prick…" Harry muttered under his breath.

It had been nice, the quiet undramatic moment just before that girl had come. He wondered if tomorrow things would be back to old. He kinda wished he didn't have to endure the next day with Draco challenging him again and the like.

The last few days he couldn't sleep all that well and he hadn't quite figured out yet why that was. Although the idea was nice enough, he was pretty sure Malfoy would be desperate to keep his reputation up and would start their usual routine back up tomorrow. With a sigh, he rubbed his eyes. He should head towards the Gryffindor dorm. He could use some more rest.

He made sure that he gathered all his belonging and yawned as he walked off. It had been quite problematic to get back as he attention was all over the place. The stairs had moved halfway and he started talking to the small painting in front of him. So much for getting more rest.

"Merlin, let me wake up on time," he mumbled as soon as he had finally arrived on the side of his bed. "I don't need both Snape and Malfoy breathing down my neck."


A/N:
This story is a collaboration between me and an old classmate. We've written about 100 000 words in our spare time - rarely in our breaks due the noise. Anyway, the story ain't even finished yet we really enjoyed writing this. We have had written this in a kind-of roleplay in which we wrote it, like the story above, in third person. While they focused more on Draco, I did focus on Harry - some of our friends even joked about us being them when I wore green and she wore red ("though you should swap clothes in this occasion")
Also, we might have put in a reference towards the 'A Very Potter Musical' at the start...

Hopefully, you enjoyed this chapter.