Draco couldn't believe that Harry Bloody Potter was going to be giving him competition in his grades this year. When he walked into Arithmancy he thought he had walked into the wrong class, but when Professor Vector had announced that he got a perfect score he was shocked. He had come in second to Granger by missing half a point and Granger was shy of perfection by missing seven points. The look on her face to be beaten out of first place was priceless. He would have to thank Harry for that later. They were on their way down to the dungeons for potions and he could tell that Harry was trying to avoid Granger and just barely succeeding so in true Slytherin fashion he decided to intervene.

"Hey Po-Black." He yelled and watched Harry turn around and Granger practically run straight into him.

"Harry, do you want something Draco?" said Harry as he was trying to keep a frustrated Granger at bay, Draco noticed.

"Harry I... was hoping you would walk with me to Potions I was wondering what time you would like the girls to meet at our room tonight." He said as he watched Granger turn on him and glare.
"Well I am not sure of my dinner plans yet but I should be free no later than seven o'clock. If you want the girls could come over then and we could ..."He was cut off when a hand grabbed his shoulder and roughly turned him around.

"Sod off, Malfoy we need to talk to Harry," a very angry Ron said.

It happened in a second and Draco didn t know what was funnier at that point, the scared look on Weasley s face as Nisha had wrapped herself around Ron s wrist poised to bite or the stunned look on the Gryffindorks behind him.

Nisha he will not hurt me little one. Harry hissed as all eyes landed on him.

But this one tries to cause harm and insults Draco master. The little snake responded and slithered her way back up her master's arm.

He will not harm me and if he does I will take care of it little one. He said as he stroked her smooth scales as she settled around his neck once again. Will you be alright until lunch or would you like to return to our chambers.

I am fine I wish to see this Potions Master that Severus is disgusted by... this Slughorn. She hissed into his ear as she settled herself back around his neck with her tail wrapped around his arm.

Alright little one but I may send you back if he gets to curious about you. He may and try to take your venom and I do not wish you to be bothered.

Thank you master.

Draco watched the conversation between Harry and his familiar trying not to be bothered by the hissing. He was sure now that the Gryffindorks had not realized the snake s relationship with Harry. He also had to admit watching and seeing Harry speaking parseltounge made him quite attractive. Many of the onlooker s eyes seemed to be glazing over and they were drawing a crowd as they traveled through the corridor to the potions lab.

"Ron, Hermione I told you before that we could speak at dinner. Right now we have classes we should worry about and I shouldn t have to warn you about how protective familiars are and that is what Nisha is. She will not bite unless commanded to or if she feels the need to protect me. Since she has not met and been introduced to you yet I would be careful how you address me. Above all else you are still my friends but this is not the time or place to discuss everything." Harry said and Draco watched as the faces of Potter s friends fell when he stepped next to him to continue on to class.

When they entered the Potions lab he immediately took his usual seat and watched as Harry sat down next to him. It was a few moments later that Slughorn entered. Looking around the class he noticed that all the house seem to sit together except for the Pavarti twins who sat next to each other. Ron and Hermione shared a table as well as the two other Gryffindor girls he could not remember. Three Hufflepuffs shared a table together and the remaining four Ravenclaws broke off into pairs.

"Welcome back, I have made a list of potions on the board, I would like you all to choose one of the potions listed and work on it individually. You have the remainder of the class to work on it and may leave after a finished vial is on my desk and I would like a two foot essay on the aspects of the potion and individual ingredients due at the start of next class you may began."

Draco pulled out his Potions text book and looked at the potions in question. He noticed that Harry had already gone to the supply cupboard, he assumed that he took his book with him since it wasn t lying on his work station. After choosing the Draught of Living Death he too went to get his ingredients. Upon returning to his work station he watched as Harry was already adding ingredients to his caldron.

"If I am not mistaken Harry don't you need instructions for this class," he asked.

"You do if you don t know how to make the potion already."

"You can't be serious. You... you actually took the time to memorize potions."

"If you had my tutors you would too, besides it is only a calming draught, and I think that a few of our classmates are going to need it today." He said as he looked over to his friends table.

"Agh, Harry my boy I heard that you have an Indian Krait, very rare they are."

"Yes, Professor. This is Nisha Professor." Draco watched in amusement as the little snake lifted up her head and eyed Slughorn. He could tell that she was a lot more intelligent than people believed her to be. She was also something more than Harry let on, her green eyes seemed to glow and were calculative at times.

"What a beautiful specimen. I would love some of her venom, for strictly academic purposes of course."

"Sorry Professor, but she is still much too young for that she is only a few months old and I feel it would upset her." And with a wave of his hand Draco watched as Nisha vanished from her spot around Harry s neck. "Sorry she wanted to return to our rooms she was getting a chill and the fumes were upsetting her Professor." Draco couldn't believe it he had just witness Harry preform wordless and wandless magic as if it were nothing and then return back to his potion as a dismissed and stunned Professor walked around the class to inspect the rest of the students potions. They continued to work in silence and every now and then Harry would give him a tip on his potion which Draco noted. His potion was coming along a lot faster than it had before and it was perfect thanks to this new Slytherin at his side.

There was a half-hour left of class as he watched Harry bottle up his potion and placed it on Slughorn s desk, he too was just finishing his and he noticed that Granger didn t look too far behind. Harry was just returning to their table as he started to bottle up his potion to turn in. He noticed that not only was Harry grabbing the remainder of his ingredients up but was picking up his as well and then went to return them to the supply cupboard as he took his own potion up to Slughorn.

"Mister Malfoy very well done indeed."

"Thank you Professor." He said as he turned to return to his seat but stopped when he watched Harry clean their work stations with a wave of his hand then put their supplies into their individual school bags and pick up his school bag to give to him.

"We need to talk," Harry whispered to him as he accepted his bag from him. "Follow me."

Draco, followed Harry out of the dungeons and up to the entrance way. Draco walked quietly beside Harry as they continued out the Entrance Hall and slowly found themselves by the Black Lake. Harry went and sat under a Hawthorn tree.

"Look I know I have asked a lot of you already and that you deserve answers. I will try to answer as many as I can but you must know that some things and answers are not mine to give and I will at least try to answer those the best I can." Harry said. Draco looked at him and noticed that Harry seemed nervous.

"Well lets start with the obvious. What happened to you this summer to make you change so much besides the whole parent thing but I am guessing that it is part of it." Draco asked as he took a seat next to Harry.

"Well..." he said as he unbuttoned his robe and leaned back against the tree. "The morning after Voldemort's defeat a goblin from Gringotts showed up in my room and insisted I come with him. It was there that I was read my parents will and the man I thought of as my godfather's will as well. I found out that Lily Evans was not my mother, but that she carried me for my fathers, James Potter and Sirius Black. I found out that I had been lied to yet again my entire life by people that I looked up to. The Weasleys are the only ones that are still alive that knew about it and they didn t even tell me. So I guess that I kind of decided that I was going to be true to myself. I dropped the glamour that I had on myself and I dropped the Harry Potter act. I always thought that I had to play a role, the role of savior. Being Ron and Hermione s friend I had to play the role of na ve wizard and play down my intelligence. I will tell you something that they don t even know. The Sorting hat first year wanted to put me in Slytherin and I talked it out of it partly because of you being a prat to the first and second friend I have ever had and the fact that all I heard about them was bad."

"You talked your way out of being in Slytherin, Professor Snape would have been proud."

"He was actually when he found out, I think I gained some of his respect then. But let me finish well I went to a muggle doctor and got my eyes fixed after I moved into Potter Manor. Then got new clothes and my tattoos, grew out my hair and basically hide away from the magical world all summer. Even went to a gay club in London one night. Not sure how to tell Ron that part yet. I studied a lot, took my owl in Arithmancy and Ancient Runes and passed then took all the exams Professor Vector and Professor Babbling had assigned after I had owled them. Then read up on all sorts of Pureblood traditions and etiquette so that I would no longer make a fool of myself. I think that explains my summer, except appending time with my godson and his grandmother."

"So you really are a true Slytherin, hiding your intelligence and cunning to benefit yourself. I am impressed. But you haven t explained the whole wandless wordless magic I might add or the disappearing trick." Draco purposely skipped over the gay club thing not wanting to get his hopes up but he hoped maybe Harry would explain eventually.

"The magic I have been able to do wandlessly since sixth year. I had private tutoring and when I can into my inheritance I could do it wordlessly as well it is effortless for me now. The disappearing will have to save for another time it is not mine to entirely tell. When I can I promise you will be the first that I tell."

They were interrupted at that moment as a beautiful black owl with a letter. Draco watched as it landed on Harry s outstretched legs and as he took the letter which he quickly read then placed it into his robes.

"Sorry that was from Andromeda. She was just letting me know that I would be seeing her and Teddy soon." Harry turned to the owl Artemis, "Apollo has missed you go find him." And with that Draco watched as Artemis took flight towards the Owlery.

"I guess Harry that really just leaves me with one question. Why are you being so nice to me?"

He watched as Harry began to chuckle then turned to face him. "I thought that was obvious Draco," he said as he leaned in towards him. Draco could feel his breathe on his face when he finally finished "I like you." With a stunned look on his face he watched Harry grab his bag and march off into the Forbidden Forest.

This is going to be a very interesting year he thought as he grabbed his bag and headed to the Great Hall for lunch.