The children had been let into this morning's meeting, it had been deemed not too "scarring". Harry bitterly thought that their experiences (theMirrortheShardhisHeadwasCryingred) were more scarring than the stories being told, but never mind that.
Voldemort's actions hadn't been affected by Harry's time travel, he was still in the shadows, still silent.
Then Snape stood up, "We should talk about Potter's idea. Loath as I am to admit, the boy has a point. We need to consider faking Voldemort's attacks, only to make the people be aware of the actual danger."
It really was awful that Harry's most enthusiastic support was Severus Snape, but he would take what he was given. Harry stood up too, "Look, right now, our only forward movement is Snape's infiltration into the Death Eaters. We have made NO progress in dismantling Voldemort's support base in terms of other beings, we have made NO progress in terms of getting Death Eaters out of the road, and we CERTAINLY have made NO progress when it comes to actually killing the man himself. We need more people involved, and if we have to manipulate the population, so be it."
No one seemed convinced. (No-onecaredNo-onecaredaboutTomHarryHarryTom)
Then Dumbledore walked in. Wearing his customary ridiculous brightly coloured robes, "With the support of significantly more of the Order, it seems like we WILL be going forward with Severus' idea."
He began handing out roles, telling people rumours to spread, and Harry was struck with the terrifying realisation that this behaviour, behaviour that Harry had admired in his previous life, that he admired now, was the mindset that had led Harry to be raised as a pig for slaughter(Dumbledoredidn'tCareaboutTomHarrydidn'tHelp). And horrifyingly, Harry found that he still found the ability to play the world as a chess board as one to be envied, one he wanted to copy. Wasn't that just remarkably Slytherin?
Harry slipped out of the room. He could feel Sirius' eyes burning into his back. He ignored it.
Around 10, they were all called together to go to Diagon Alley, which was a bit awkward seeing as Ron, Harry and Hermione had gone just the day before, but they hadn't bought any school supplies, so Harry supposed it was okay.
He went through the floo, and for the first time in his life, he said Diagon Alley properly, falling out near the end of the row of floo fireplaces. He was hurrying along to the patch of red hair he saw a few fireplaces down, when he heard Draco Malfoy, "Pansy, I'm telling you, I saw Potter in Knockturn Alley."
Alarmed, Harry activated the amulet around his neck, letting the disguise wash over him, turning him into the pale skinned freckled boy he had designed the day before. Seeing as his luck was extraordinarily great, he then walked into Malfoy. And fell on the ground. Lovely.
Malfoy yanked him up, "Hello. You decided to walk into me… why?"
He sounded like Shan Shunpike. Harry said the same thing, "It wasn't on purpose."
"Really?!"
"Yes really. What do you think people just walk around the floo entrance falling into people?"
Malfoy looked deeply and utterly offended. What a drama queen. "Who do you think you are?! Do you even know who I am?!"
Harry did. Obviously. But that wouldn't be particularly funny, "One of those stuffy purebloods, who would have died of inbreeding if not for magic?"
Malfoy still looked deeply and utterly offended. He then proclaimed this statement.
Harry wasn't very much affected.
Parkinson looked like she was holding back a laugh.
"I am of the noble house of Malfoy - "
Harry pressed a finger to the boy's lips, "And I don't care."
"You SHOULD!"
Harry looked at Malfoy, so stubborn in his beliefs, of his blood making him SPECIAL, and then he thought of Dumbledore, that presence of knowledge and righteousness that made you believe he was right, no matter what bullshit he was spreading. So he said, voice as level as he could, "I have places to be. We can argue later. The Knockturn entrance near Burkes, 11."
Malfoy didn't look like he was willing to waste time arguing with some random Wizard he met on the street. Unfortunately, for Malfoy at least, Malfoy also possessed qualities that Harry would undoubtedly classify as Gryffindorish. Which meant Harry just had to say, "Unless you're scared you're wrong." Lean in.
And lo and behold, Malfoy was saying, "See you there."
Malfoy stalked off. Parkinson looked at Harry, clearly trying not to burst into laughter. Then she was gone too.
Harry hurried to the Weasleys. School shopping was blissfully uneventful, which let Harry run on autopilot as he thought of various ways to get to Knockturn and enjoy time pissing Draco Malfoy off.
Eventually, he said some bullshit about seeing a store on Divination and wondering if it had something to do with his visions. It didn't. Though, as an unrelated matter, Harry supposed he really should go to that store at some point, that matter with the drawing of himself really was… disturbing him.
Taunting him.
Haunting him.
Not leaving his mind alone. Alone. Alone.
He hadn't thought about it since Malfoy.
He went to the entrance. He found Malfoy. He turned the glamour on. He tapped Malfoy on the shoulder.
"What do you think makes you special?"
Malfoy whirled around. Grey eyes stared into green.
"I'm not going to say 'my blood' you know?"
"Okay. What do you think makes you special?"
"I'm not answering this. It's clearly a trick."
"What do you think makes you special?"
Malfoy didn't answer. He just said, "Wix have a culture, or had, most of us don't follow muggle religions, we were pagan, or karmic or something like that. Then the muggleborns came. Now the closest we've got to celebrating anything of MAGIC was the Yule Ball."
Harry knew none of this. He tried not to let it show, "Well first, the muggleborns shouldn't have to change their beliefs for you. And muggleborns are expected to know any of this how? They sparked this, how?"
Malfoy looked at him as if he was stupid, "They kept complaining they felt left out of tradition."
Harry felt overwhelmed by the stupidity of purebloods society, "Malfoy, then you include them in tradition."
Malfoy looked like this was scandalous, "But they're mudbloods."
Harry didn't have the energy to point out Malfoy's word usage, "Firstly, you'd prefer your culture be wiped out?! Secondly, that implies you DON'T hate muggleborns for making Hogwarts stop celebrating pagan holidays."
"They have tried to KILL us, they still would like to kill us."
Malfoy really was out of the loop, "Of course there are some muggles who hate us, my aunt and uncle, case in point, but MOST, as evidenced by the majority of muggleborns' parents, arent exactly eager, to go on a murder rampage. The government might be scared of you, but muggles aren't monsters."
They glared at each other for a moment. Then Malfoy said, "Anyway, we can argue later. What's your name?"
This was a problem.
Mainly because this face, did not have a name. So Harry, with all the eloquence of the teenage boy he was, said, "um… Bye!"
Then he ran back to the Weasleys. He told them the Divination store had not been helpful
