Chapter Two
Next morning, Harry came down the stairs into the common room to find Ron, Hermione, and Ginny all waiting for him.
"Did you sleep well, Harry?" Hermione asked.
"Sure," Harry replied.
"How was the dream? Did you dream anything of importance?" Ron asked his friend.
"Er, yeah. But I don't know if I want to hand in my summary. It was a kind of embarrassing dream," Harry said, leading his friends to the portrait hole.
"Harry, you have to hand it in. It's required," Hermione said.
"Can't I just make something up?"
"No!" Hermione reprimanded.
"It can't be that bad, mate," Ron said, patting Harry on the back.
"Yeah. I guess not," Harry said and walked into the Great Hall.
Harry did not look at the Slytherin table as he walked past it and was at the Gryffindor one so quickly that his girlfriend and two friends had just entered the Great Hall when he sat down on the bench and began to eat.
"Harry, why did you run?" Ginny said, as she, Ron, and Hermione finally approached the Gryffindor table.
"Were you really that hungry?" Ron said, sitting down next to Harry.
"Yes," Harry said, picking up a stack of pancakes.
"Are you sure that's all it is, Harry?" Ginny asked. "You seem pretty shaken up about your dream last night."
"I was just hungry, Ginny," Harry snapped at his girlfriend.
"What's going on in the Entrance Hall?" Ron asked, turning his head. There was commotion and noise filtering into the Great Hall from the corridor outside. Other heads in the Great Hall had started to turn towards the chaos outside. Students filed out of the Great Hall to see what was happening in the Entrance Hall; the teachers had not yet realized that something was wrong. Ron, Harry, Hermione, and Ginny were at the front of the line and could see very clearly what was going on. Harry's stomach clenched, while his heart began to pound as he realized what was taking place: Malfoy was being attacked by his fellow Slytherins.
"What's this, Malfoy? Huh?" screamed Blaise Zabini, kicking Malfoy.
"Its homework," Malfoy spat before he was punched again by Gregory Goyle. Both he and Vincent Crabbe had seemed to stop being Malfoy's bodyguards.
"Homework! The Dream potion homework? The one where the dream is your subconscious? Amazing, Draco! So now we see the real you!" Pansy Parkinson shrieked.
"You love that perfect little hero Potter, don't you? You want to really dance with Potter, don't you?" Zabini screamed at Malfoy. Beside Harry, Ginny froze.
"Answer me!" Zabini kneed Malfoy in the stomach again.
"Yes," Malfoy whimpered.
"Louder!" Zabini ordered giving Malfoy a kick again. "I don't think everyone heard."
"Yes. Yes. Yes, I am in love with Harry Potter. Okay!" Malfoy screamed at Zabini.
The crowd around the Slytherins fell deathly silent. No one moved. Ron, Hermione, and Ginny's eyes flashed to Harry whose heart was thumping madly.
Blaise Zabini, Gregory Goyle, and Vincent Crabbe all began to laugh, kick, punch, and assault Draco Malfoy. The professors still had not realized that there was a commotion in the Entrance Hall and were still eating in the Great Hall. Harry could not stand to see Malfoy going through what he was.
"STOP IT!" Harry shouted at the Slytherins, pulling out his wand and pointing it at them threateningly. Hermione, Ron, and Ginny all stood there, amazed and transfixed. The Slytherins were caught so off guard that they actually stopped attacking Malfoy.
"So, Potter, are you prepared to take what's been coming to you and your little boyfriend here?" Zabini taunted.
"Yeah, I am," Harry said, stepping forward.
"Harry, please, think about this," Hermione said, despite his shock and incomprehension.
Harry did not seem to hear his friend. Zabini kicked Malfoy again.
"Leave him alone, Zabini!" Harry said, coming even closer to Malfoy.
"Come one step closer, Potter, and you'll be right there with him on the floor."
"So be it," Harry said, now a step away from the whimpering Malfoy.
"What is going on here?" a commanding voice asked from outside the group. The crowd parted to reveal Headmistress Minerva McGonagall.
"The Slytherins were assaulting Malfoy, Professor," Hermione said from the innermost ring of the students.
"And why were you attacking Mr. Malfoy, Zabini?"
"Because – Because…" Zabini stuttered.
"Because they read Draco's homework and they didn't like what it said," Harry said. Ron, Hermione, and Ginny noticed the use of Malfoy's first name; Malfoy, too, had noticed for his head has risen at the sound of his name.
"May I see the homework?" McGonagall asked Malfoy.
Slowly, Malfoy nodded his head and closed his eyes. McGonagall walked over to Blaise Zabini and took the piece of parchment from his hand. Quickly and without conveying any emotion she read through what was written on the paper. When she was finished, McGonagall said to the crowd, "Please go to class, students. You are done here. Slytherins, you are to stay here. You too, Mr. Potter."
When the crowd had dispersed, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny included, McGonagall turned to the Slytherins and said, "I will be having a chat with Professor Slughorn. You will all receive a week of detention with me. My office every night, eight o'clock. You may go." She watched the Slytherins leave. "Here is your homework back, Mr. Malfoy. Mr. Potter, please take Mr. Malfoy to the hospital wing, tell Madam Pomfrey what happened, and then return to class." McGonagall turned and left Harry and Malfoy alone.
"Are you alright," Harry said to Malfoy who looked at Harry with pure loathing. "Right. Sorry. Bad question. Can I help you get to the hospital wing?" Harry extended a hand to Malfoy just as he had in the dream.
"Sure," Malfoy said, taking Harry's outstretched hand. When their hands met, both hearts started beating uncontrollably. Gingerly, Malfoy stood up. He almost fell again, so he grabbed onto Harry's arm for support.
"Put your arm around my neck and I will help you walk," Harry coaxed.
"Why are you doing this, Harry?" Draco croaked. "I would think that you would have been as far away from me as possible."
"I had the same dream as you did last night, Draco," Harry admitted.
Malfoy looked Harry in the eyes and could tell that he was telling the truth.
"Do your friends know?"
"Not yet. But I think I need to tell. Today. When I get to class I will tell them. But we need to get you to Madam Pomfrey first," Harry said.
"Thank you, Harry," Malfoy said.
"No problem."