~*Chapter 10*~

Offense and Defense

As the days grew swiftly colder and Christmas break drew nearer, conversation amongst the students turned to excited contemplation of the mysterious events that would be held after the holidays.

"How are we supposed to be ready for this competition if Macmillan won't teach us any decent spells?" Al said in exasperation one afternoon, glaring at the open textbook in his lap.

It had gotten far too cold to relax out on the lawn and study as they usually did, and the library tended to be full of uptight upperclassmen studying for their end of year exams. In order to still study with Rose, Al and his friends had started meeting in the greenhouse with Neville's permission.

"Just don't touch anything," he'd warned, with a significant glance towards a shelf lined with writhing, hissing vines with teeth.

"No problem," Felicia had agreed quickly, eyes wide. All throughout their study sessions, she kept twisting around as if expecting one of the plants to dig itself out of the soil and sneak up on her. "Plants aren't supposed to move," she would mutter every now and then. "Wizards are crazy."

"You're a witch, Felicia," Andrew would remind her with fraying patience.

"Yes, but still..."

At Al's outburst about spells, Vincent raised his head from his own textbook, blinking owlishly from behind his reading glasses. Al still wasn't used to seeing him in them. Vincent was self-conscious about the thick lenses, and had only recently started wearing them around the others when they studied.

"I only need them for reading," he'd explained, scowling weakly when he saw Rose's amused expression. "I wear them in class. Fred gives me a hard time about it already, so keep your mouths shut, all right?"

"I'm sure we'll learn more spells later in the year," Rose said now. "But it's normal for first and second years to focus mostly on creatures in DADA. Or at least, that's what Molly says."

"But how are we going to stand a chance against the older students in the ICHE if we only know a handful of spells?" Al demanded.

"IHCE," Felicia and Vincent corrected.

"Whatever! I'm serious. And it's not just the students. Who knows what kind of challenges we'll be facing? If they're going to let second years participate, they should teach us more spells. That's all I'm saying." Al glared down at his book. They were reading about werewolves this week, and he was positive there would not be any werewolves in the competition. What a waste of time.

Felicia opened her mouth, then closed it again. She'd stopped asking Al about his father, but she seemed hesitant to offer her opinion to him sometimes lately, as if afraid she'd say the wrong thing and irritate him again. It made him feel lousy, but he couldn't figure out how to tell her it was all right without bringing up everything about his family again.

"They'll obviously keep in mind that not everyone competing will know that many spells," Vincent soothed. Besides, I hear you've been doing great in Charms, so it's not like you don't know any spells at all."

"Al's got a point," Andrew interjected. "We might need offensive or defensive spells to get through the events."

"It's their first attempt at this IHCE thing," Rose said. "I'm sure they'll keep it simple this time, as a trial run. Don't worry so much."

Andrew ignored her, already struck by an idea. "Hey, Al, what about your older cousins? Couldn't they show you a few tricks?"

"I wouldn't trust Roxie, Fred, or James not to teach me something that will just backfire on me," Al admitted with a wince. "They'd find that pretty hilarious. Besides, I'm sure they're hoping to compete, and they won't want to give me an edge. Dominique's so busy with her schoolwork and her new girlfriend, I barely even see her anymore, even in the halls. And Molly might think it's cheating."

Andrew turned to Vincent hopefully. "Don't you know any spells you could teach us?"

"I'm only a year above you," Vincent protested. "It's not like I know a million spells, either."

"Can't you think of just one that might help?" Andrew wheedled.

Vincent fell silent, considering. "Well... what about a protection spell?"

"I know Protego already," Al said. "I kind of had to learn it last year, with all the jinxing going on. I guess that would come in handy." He'd taught Felicia, too, though she hadn't been very good at it. He made a mental note to teach Andrew at some point. "But what about something offensive or tricky?"

Vincent removed his glasses and rubbed at his eyes, mouth pursed as he thought.

"Oh!" Rose said so suddenly that Al jumped. "I know one! I learned it from Mum." She hesitated, looking guilty. "Though... she told me it's only for emergencies, really. I don't think she wanted me teaching other people."

"Oh, come on, Rose," Andrew said. "You can't just say that and then try to back out. What's the spell? What's it do?"

Rose twisted a lock of hair around her finger over and over, practically squirming. She clearly already regretted her outburst. "It's... it's an unlocking spell."

"What use is that?" Andrew scoffed.

"Well, it could be," Vincent admitted. "What if you run across a locked gate or chest or something?"

Rose took a deep breath, glaring around at them all fiercely. "You'd have to promise you wouldn't use it for doing anything against the rules. Or the law." She looked right at Al. "And you can't tell your brother. And especially not Roxie or Fred... assuming they don't know it already. Honestly, I wouldn't put it past them."

"Fine, fine, I promise. Just tell me, already."

Rose lifted her quill like a wand and moved it in a quick tapping motion. "Alohomora."

The others repeated it carefully, with Rose occasionally correcting pronunciation or inflection. Once she was satisfied, she tucked her quill behind her ear and returned her attention firmly to her textbook. "I mean it," she muttered. "Don't you dare use it to get into trouble. You'll have to find a way to practice it- legally. But don't let anyone catch you, all right?"

Felicia kept opening her mouth, then shutting it again. Finally Al said, with as much patience as he could muster, "What, Felicia? You have an idea?"

"I just... thought it'd be a good idea if we all wrote down the spells we do know," she said quietly. "You know, everything we can think of. There's bound to be something that might come in handy."

"Do it alphabetically," Vincent agreed. "Think of every spell you know that starts with A, then move on. I'm sure you've seen or heard more than you realize."

"Good idea," Al said hastily, hoping Felicia would realize he was no longer angry at her. He found a blank sheet of parchment and dipped his quill in ink. "All right... 'A' spells. How do you spell 'alohomora'?" Rose spelled it for him, and he looked around at the others expectantly. "What else?"

"Ascendio," Vincent said after a moment's thought. "I've never used it, but I've seen it before. You can lift yourself into the air."

"That one's a little tricky, from what I hear," Rose mused. "But write it down, Al. Maybe you or Andrew will be able to cast it."

"Aren't any of you going to compete?" Andrew asked in surprise.

Rose shook her head firmly. "No way. I'm not going to be this year's guinea pig. I'll see what it's like from a spectator's point of view for now, thank you very much. Maybe next year."

"I'll do it," Vincent said. "It sounds fun."

Felicia also shook her head when Andrew turned to her. "No, half my spells either don't happen at all or fizzle out. I'm afraid I'd panic and let down my team."

"All right, any other 'A' spells?" Al asked, jotting down "ascendio" on the parchment. "No? Okay... what about 'B'?"

They spent longer than they meant to listing every spell they could think of, even the ones they knew were too advanced for them to successfully cast. By the time they'd reached the M's, it was getting dark.

"Merlin's beard," Rose swore when she finally glanced up and noticed how late it was.

"That's not a spell," Andrew laughed without looking up.

"No, you dolt." She waved towards the windows. "It's nearly dark. And we barely got any studying done! But we'd better get inside soon before we're out past curfew."

As everyone hastily gathered their things, Al carefully stacked the lists of spells together and slipped them to the bottom of his bag. There were no forbidden spells there, but there were quite a few that were considered far too advanced for beginners, and he didn't want a professor or older student finding them and possibly getting them into trouble.

"We'll try practicing some of them this weekend, right?" Andrew asked, excited at the prospect as they hustled across the grounds towards the front doors, hunching down in their robes against the cold.

"Yeah, but we'll have to find somewhere we won't be bothered." Al shook his head. "And that won't be easy."

"What's wrong with the greenhouse?"

"Are you crazy?" Felicia shuddered. "There's no way I'm risking a spell backfiring around those creepy plants! I don't want my second year marred by some Little Petshop of Horrors incident."

Rose gave her a blank look, but Vincent chuckled.

"Muggle reference," he explained when Al peered at him strangely.

"You should ask your brother," Rose suggested suddenly. "For a place to meet, I mean. Obviously he and the other 'Judges' had a pretty good hiding spot when they were having their stupid fifth House meetings."

"Of course!" Al felt like kicking himself. "The Room of Requirement! Where else? I can't believe I forgot about it. Mum and Dad mention it all the times in their stories. James even used to pester Dad for details on how to find it." He frowned. "Dad wouldn't tell him, though. He'd just laugh and either say 'maybe when you're older' or 'you'll find it if you need it'. I guess James figured it out himself somehow."

"You're right," Rose breathed, eyes alight. "That has to be it. My parents have talked about it, too."

"Wait, wait," Andrew cut them off, waving his hands to get their attention. "What in blazes are you two talking about? The Room of What?"

They slipped inside and stood stamping their cold feet for warmth for a moment as Al explained in a low voice, keeping one eye on a ghost that passed lazily overhead. "The Room of Requirement. It's a secret hidden room somewhere in the castle. Most people don't even know it's there, or how to find it. But our folks found it back when they went to school. They used it to have meetings with Dumbledore's Army."

"Do you think James will tell you how to find it?" Rose asked, looking skeptical.

Al frowned. "I don't know. He'd love having that sort of secret. A place he, Roxie, and Fred can go and goof off whenever they want... I'll try asking, though. Or maybe I can get Roxie alone and get her to tell me."

"Leave Roxie to me," Rose said firmly. "I learned a long time ago that the best way to get information out of her is to talk circles around her until she blurts something out. It's probably why Fred made sure she and I were never alone last year when we were trying to figure out what they were up to, before we knew they were Judges."

"Fred might tell me," Vincent put in. "They didn't tell me last year because they knew I thought the fifth House was garbage, but it may be different now."

"You may have to hang out with them a bit more, then," Rose said thoughtfully. "During down-time. Instead of us, I mean. The closer you are, the more likely they are to tell you."

"And miss out on your oh-so-fun study sessions?" Vincent rolled his eyes dramatically, but flashed a smile to take away the sting. "All right. The trip to Hogsmeade is this weekend. I'll ask then."

"Oh, right, you get to go this year." Al tried hard to hide his disappointment. He'd heard so many stories about the town, and was eager to see his uncle's joke shop. It was supposed to be even crazier than the one in Diagon Alley. "I wish second years could go."

"I'll bring everyone back some sweets or something, I promise." He motioned gallantly towards the stairs. "C'mon, Rose, I'll walk you to the Ravenclaw tower. Catch you guys later."

"It's not like she's going to get attacked," Andrew said in bewilderment, watching them leave. "I mean, we're inside the bloody castle. Who's going to bother her on the stairwells?"

"It's called being a gentleman, Andrew," Felicia huffed. "Take notes."

Andrew rolled his eyes at Al. "Whatever. Let's go. I'm starved, and I've got a stash of toffee in my trunk that's calling my name."

"Are you really going to ask James how to find the Room?" Felicia asked as they ascended the stairs. "I think you're right; he'd love keeping that sort of secret from you."

"I think I'll only ask if Vincent and Rose don't have any luck with my cousins," Al said. He glanced away and didn't say anything more. It had just occurred to him that he did know one other person who might know the secret to finding the Room of Requirement. Someone else whose father had spent time in it.

Scorpius Malfoy.

The problem was that Al couldn't figure out how to bring up the subject around Scorpius.

For one thing, Scorpius only seemed willing to act like a semi-civilized human being during class, when their grade depended on it and their truce was upheld.

For another, it was probably a sore subject. Draco Malfoy had been in the Room of Requirement paving the way for the Death Eaters to enter Hogwarts unseen. His treachery had gotten Dumbledore killed and several people seriously hurt. It might just make Scorpius angry if he brought it up.

And there was no way to know if Draco had even explained any of that to his son. Maybe he'd been too ashamed. If so, Scorpius wouldn't know how to find the Room, and would be furious at Al's accusations.

Regardless of whether or not Scorpius knew anything, it ended up being almost impossible to find time to bring it up. During class, they couldn't discuss anything outside of potion-making without risking the wrath of Zabini. And in DADA they sat on different sides of the room. He couldn't even corner the other boy in the library because there were always so many sixth and seventh years crowded in there lately.

Al told himself to focus on finding the time to actually talk to Scorpius, and worry about how to bring the subject up later. He began hurrying out at the end of class, hoping to catch Scorpius alone in the hall, but he was always surrounded by his Slytherin friends. Even when he sought him out right after meals, he was never alone. And whenever his friends noticed Al dawdling nearby, they closed ranks and offered dark looks until he scuttled off.

In the end, Scorpius solved his problem for him.

Al was hurrying down the empty halls towards the dining hall, hoping Andrew had saved him a seat. Someone had accidentally stepped on Trinity's tail and she'd climbed on the top of the wardrobe. It had taken forever to coax her down and soothe her with treats. And now one of the school ghosts was flying overhead, following him without saying a word. Probably making sure he wasn't off to cause mischief somewhere. It creeped Al out.

Rounding a corner, Al very nearly ran smack into Scorpius, who was waiting for him, arms crossed and eyes narrowed. "Potter," he barked, "why are you following me?"

"Wha-?" Al took two quick steps back, caught of guard. "I wasn't! I was taking care of-"

"You've been trying to sneak up on me all week." Scorpius's hand lowered towards his waist where his wand was kept. Al fervently hoped the movement was instinctive and not threatening. "What's your deal, Potter? Are you hoping to jinx me or something?" He glanced over Al's shoulder at the ghost, now circling lazily several feet away, and forced his hand away from his hip.

Al fumbled, every half-conceived conversation about the Room he'd ever considered trickling uselessly out of his brain. Instead, he stammered out the first thing that popped in his head. "I was just- Uh, I was wondering what spells you know."

Scorpius squinted at him. "What?"

"Spells. What spells do you know? Like... offensive and defensive types."

"Why is that any business of yours?"

"I was thinking about the ICHE."

"The IHCE," Scorpius said slowly, visibly trying to control his impatience. "What about it, Potter?"

"Well..." Al shifted his feet nervously. "You heard the Headmaster at the beginning of the year. Teams of four... in a cooperation event... And the Professors are going to be watching students, looking for people who might do okay together..."

Scorpius leaned away from him slightly, his mouth thinning and his brows puckering together. "What, you think they'll stick me on a team with you?"

"Well, why not?" Al demanded, stung. He'd come to just assume that's how it would work out. The possibility that it hadn't even cross Scorpius's mind offended him a bit. "It's rare for a Gryffindor and Slytherin to say two words to each other without making those words some kind of threat, right? Maybe Zabini's told the Headmaster that we kind of get along in Potions. Or that we at least don't try to poison each other."

"Who said I even wanted to be in the stupid competition, Potter?"

Al gaped at him, at a loss for words. It had not occurred to him that Scorpius might not be interested. In hindsight, he felt a little foolish for assuming. Scorpius didn't even like Quidditch. What interest would he have in any other competition? His hopes sank. What if he ended up with someone like Evaine Engleton on his team? She'd try to sabotage him for sure.

"Quit making a face like someone just kicked your puppy," Scorpius said with a grimace. "I was... thinking about it, but I hadn't made up my mind. I still don't see what this has to do with what spells I do or don't know. You really think I'd share them with you?"

"Well why not?" Al demanded. "I'd share the ones I know."

Scorpius's lifted his chin haughtily. "Aside from Protego, what useful spell could you possibly know that I don't? And I do know that one already, Potter, in case you forgot."

He did, Al remembered. But Al's shield was stronger. He'd proven that protecting the both of them last year from the jinx battle that had erupted in the hall outside the library. He decided it wouldn't help to point that out with the mood Scorpius was in right now.

"I'm really good in Charms class," he said instead. "And you're really good at Transfiguration. And me and the others were coming up with-" he stopped, nearly biting his tongue. The list of spells he and the others had been constructing was supposed to be secret. If they found out he'd mentioned it to Scorpius Malfoy of all people, Andrew would hit the roof. Even Rose might get mad.

Scorpius was eyeing him suspiciously, but before he could demand an explanation, someone called his name from down the hall.

Three Slytherins were approaching from the direction of the dining hall, and Al felt his heart sink when he realized who the girl leading them was.

Evaine Engleton herself.

She spotted Al at the same time he saw her, and her wand was out of her pocket and pointing at him in a flash.

"Scorpius! You all right?"

"I'm fine," Scorpius snapped, barely glancing back at them.

The boy beside Evaine was slowly reaching for his own wand, glaring at Al. "We were wondering what was keeping you. Is that Potter? Is he trying something funny?"

"Four against one, Potter," the other boy said menacingly. His wand was already out, as well, and he lifted it to point it at Al. "Thought you could get the drop on Malfoy, huh? Nice try."

"I wasn't doing anything," Al protested, stuffing his hand in his pocket to seize his wand. He didn't draw it, though. Evaine looked inches away from blasting him off his feet with a nasty jinx if he so much as sneezed. "We were just talking."

"Yeah, right," the second boy sneered. "About what? What's Malfoy got to say to you?"

"We were talking about Potions, Wallace, you big clod," Scorpius said coolly. He finally turned on his heel to face them, and in doing so put himself a little bit more between Al and the others. Al couldn't tell if the move was deliberate or not, but he was both surprised and grateful. "Zabini's threatened to fail me if this idiot doesn't pass his class."

The other boy's eyes had drifted up and found the silently circling ghost. His wand lowered a fraction. "Hey," he muttered out of the side of his mouth. "We're not alone."

Evaine continued to glare at Al, her wand still upheld. "It's just a ghost, Ned, don't be a ponce."

"Everyone knows half the ghosts are snitches," Ned hissed. "And isn't that one of Hufflepuff's? They're the worse ones at fetching Professors to break up fights."

At some point Scorpius had drawn his wand. He held it loosely down by his side as he turned again, this time so he could see both Al and the Slytherins at the same time. "Just get lost, Potter," he snapped. "We'll talk about how lousy you are at Potions some other time. I've got better things to do."

Al breathed a small sigh of relief and released his wand, pulling his hand from his pocket.

Evaine, however, seemed to think he was about to draw on them. Her wand made a quick flicking motion, and she lunged forward a step, screaming a debilitating jinx.

Scorpius's wand snapped up instantly.

"Expelliarmus!"

Evaine's wand jerked itself from her hand and soared through the air. Scorpius managed to catch it in his free hand at the last moment, but lowered both wands instantly. Al jumped. Evaine was gaping at Scorpius as if he'd grown two heads.

"Cut it out," he shouted. "Are you trying to lose Slytherin House points?" He turned a fierce look on Al. "I said get lost."

Al nodded jerkily and hurried past, giving the glaring Slytherins a wide berth.

He glanced over his shoulder once, and spotted the ghost still hovering over the Slytherins, still silent. Whether it was there to make sure they didn't cause any further trouble, or it had no clear purpose, he didn't know. But he could hear the Slytherins all shouting at each other, and quickened his pace to a near-run, relieved to have escaped such a tense confrontation.