Punishment

Chapter One – Best Enemies

Malfoy slumped back at the chair and sighed. There was nothing he could do about it. Nothing. Goodbye Hogwarts. He felt like crying and for the first time he wished his father wasn't dead so that he could sue Dumbledore. But he was dead and so was Voldemort so…he had to do this. He watched helplessly as Harry tried to make Dumbledore change his mind or make only him do it or for him to change the punishment.

"Please, Professor! Not this! Anything is alright, but not ―"

"Harry, please." Dumbledore said, putting a hand up. "I'm very sorry but I expected a more maturity from you. Ogkabot lamron!" He said, holding his wand to Malfoy's hair and instantly, it became the normal silverish blonde once again. "And I'm very much sure that Mr. Malfoy" ―Malfoy looked up― "will need your help in getting used to the Muggle world as I am sure he is not very familiar with it. And I assure you, Mr. Potter, this will be exactly the same as your school days before Hogwarts."

Harry slumped back on his chair. "That's what I'm afraid of, Professor."

"Yes, well, things, I assure you, will be a little more different now that Mr. Malfoy will be with you…"

"If you didn't perceive, professor," Malfoy piped up suddenly, "Potter, here," he glared at Harry, "gave me mammary glands."

"Oh, dear me, Mr. Potter, I advise you not to do this again or else I will be forced to expel you." He pointed point his wand at Malfoy's chest. "Yawas Tsaerb!" And the breasts disappeared. "Now off you trot!"

Reluctantly, the two stood up and left. They made their way out and went back down again.

"This is your fault, Potter." Malfoy, accused as they were walking to the Great Hall. They were going to the Muggle World for a whole school year, might as well enjoy normal food now.

"Oh, please, Malfoy! Honestly, can't you shut up for just one fucked up moment?!" Harry said, speeding up.

"But it really is your fault." Malfoy said, refusing to obey Harry. He tried to catch up.

"It's not my fault! If you didn't blow Neville's cauldron again, I wouldn't have―"

"Why are you always so fucked up about everything, mmm, Potter? Is this really your 'Gryffindor' spirit doing this or are you really just … plain stupid?"

"If there's anyone here who's fucked up and stupid, it would be bloody well you, Malfoy. Why are you so mean to Neville anyway? I mean, he hasn't really done anything to you, has he?" Harry snapped.

Malfoy raised his eyebrows in an unbelieving sort of way. "You know how I am with Mudbloods, Potter. That's how I am with squibs. The irony of irony. So close, yet so far. Shut it, Potter." He added, seeing Harry's open mouth.

Harry closed his mouth then there was silence. That didn't stop then from walking though.

A pause. Then…

"Neville's not a s―"

"No, he isn't. But he's as good as. Potter, if brains were gold, Longbottom would be poorer than Weasley."

"Don't talk about Ron that way! You've no right―"

"Oh Potter. Potter, Potter, Potter. When will you accept that I abhor Weasley? Since he laughed at my name ― no even before that ― my father told me all I needed to know about wizarding families and the Weasleys did not have my vote."

"Well, if you think about it, you do have a ― unique ― name, Malfoy."

Malfoy rolled his eyes, and then, to Harry's surprise, smiled but, not surprisingly, in a sinister way. "Not as ― unique, as you may call it ― as your name Potter. Look at your name! Your first name, Harry, means to harass! And do you know what Potter means? Loiter, Potter! Potter means to dawdle. Just think of the message you're sending out to people, to your fans with your name? It's like your telling them that you go dawdling around, harassing people!" he sneered.

"True." Harry agreed, to Malfoy's surprise. "You should have it Malfoy. I'd give it to you any day."

"Thanks, I'm sure that comes from the deepest and the interior of your heart, wherever it is."

"It's to be found here, Malfoy." Harry said placing his hand on the left of his chest. "Unlike yours, which is located there…" Harry said, pointing outside to the window.

"Ha-ha-ha," Malfoy said sarcastically.

***

They neared the Great Hall and decided that they would split up and one of them would go first and the other one would go later. Now what could possibly go wrong with this plan?

"Potter!"

"Malfoy, I'm insisting that you go on first! Now go!" Harry said, pointing in the direction of the doors that led to the Great Hall.

"I came up with the plan! I should be able to choose which of us goes first!" Malfoy pointed out.

"Oh and I wonder which of us you'll pick." Harry said rather dryly.

"Three guesses, Potter. First two don't count." Malfoy said giving Harry one of his trademark smirks.

"Oh, is that supposed to be a joke?" Harry asked. "Well, ha-ha-ha." he repeated Malfoy.

"Fine, Potter! I'll go then! I've had enough of these. I'm quite sure we're going to have more of these when we get…you know…there…on the other world. I mean we will be living under the same roof." Malfoy said and then he swiftly turned and went to the Great Hall.

"WHAT?!?!?!"

***

"Dumbledore didn't say that!!" Harry shouted and at once the whole of Great Hall turned, silenced and stared. Harry and Malfoy weren't aware; of course, they had their own thing to mind.

"No, he didn't but it's a god forsaken chastisement, Potter!" Malfoy turned and waved his hands in exhaustion.

"He's not that pitiless! And he knows how much I hate you and how much you hate me, as in, how much we hate each other, so―"

"It's just nature that that will be what is going to happen to us! It's a punishment, Potter! What in Merlin's name can't you comprehend?!"

"I can't comprehend?! It's you who can't comprehend!!"

"Really?! Well, Potter, ―"

***

"Do you have any idea whatsoever as to what this is about, Ron?" Hermione asked, her eyes wide. "I've never seen Harry blow up like that! And if I did, I wouldn't imagine it would be here in the Great Hall…" She spoke in a whisper.

"No, no I don't, Herm. But, honestly, you'd think the two of them could've found somewhere else to fight, but no, they had to ruin our dinner!" Ron spoke in a whisper, too. But a whisper to Ron wasn't really a whisper to anyone else. He was taken by surprise when―

"Really, Weasley? Did we ruin your nice little dinner?" Malfoy said, choosing to go after Harry's friends rather than him. "I don't blame you. Well, I bet a fast food outlet would be Heaven for you and your brothers, oh, but wait! You don't have enough money to buy even just a Popsicle stick without the Acid Pop, can you, Weasley?!"

Malfoy walked to the table in front of the one was sitting in. He picked up a handful of the food on the nearest plate, which was Ernie McMillan's, and tossed it. Ron was standing up already, about to hex him to oblivion, when something shocked everyone in the Great Hall. The food stopped in mid-air.

"Impendimenta!" Harry cried.

When the food slowed down, he cast "Wingardium Leviosa!" on it. Harry, of course, did that with a swish and a flick then he sent it down on the space in front of him, aware that all eyes in the Great Hall were following this.

"Alis!" And at once the food vanished. He neared Malfoy and Ron.

"Get away from him, Malfoy." He said softly yet so firmly it sounded dangerous.

"Make me." Malfoy said, narrowing his eyes at the sound of each word. Potter had taken the limelight away from him. He would pay.

"Expelliarmus!"

Malfoy flew back and his wand was sent flying to Harry. Even he was surprised he hadn't been able to think of a counter-curse to send to Harry.

"Ouch!" Malfoy yelled as he hit the space in front of the Teacher's Table.

Harry caught his wand, but he didn't smirk, he didn't show any sign of joy or triumph to see his enemy hit the floor butt-first. The whole Hall laughed of course, but Harry shut them up with A Look. If looks could kill, actually, the people in the Great Hall would've all been in coma.

He walked up to Malfoy who was rubbing his head. He looked scathingly up at Harry.

"Get up." Harry commanded.

"I don't take orders from Gryffindorks, Potter." The Gryffindor table all looked daggers at Malfoy. "Sod off." He spat firmly, his voice hardening every word.

"Well, Malfoy," he spit his enemy's name out viscously, "I don't particularly enjoy holding a Silverfish's wand." The Slytherin table hissed angrily. "Now, get up."

Malfoy got up. "Good boy." Harry said patting Malfoy's platinum blond hair that, despite the crash, didn't look a tad bit different.

"Shut it, Potter." Malfoy said, batting Harry's god forsaken hand off his perfect hair. "Now give me back my wand."

"Only if you say 'please'."

The Gryffindor, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw tables roared with sudden laughter. Ron sent Harry a thumbs-up sign to which Harry replied with a smile. Of course, Ron didn't know their punishment yet, so he was happy. Cho sent Harry one of her killer smiles and a thumbs-up. Justin Flinch-Fletchley sent Harry five claps and three nods. Professor Snape, on the other hand, was about to launch Harry a hex when Dumbledore stopped him. He looked at the old man in shock.

"Give the fucking wand here, Potter." He said firmly. "Or else."

"Or else what, Malfoy?"

"Or else…" he walked to Harry slowly. "You'll regret it."

Harry smirked. "You'll have to do better than that if you want your wand back, Malfoy." He said in a sing-song voice.

Malfoy scowled at Harry in the most evil way that he could and Harry sort of jumped, something that he would have later denied.

"Potter," Malfoy spat his name out. "Give it here."

"No." Harry said just as firmly.

***

"When do you think he's gonna give it back?" Seamus whispered to Ron.

"Who cares?" Ron replied, careful to be just as quiet this time. "Harry's on a role!"

"Yeah, I've never seen him like this. He's usually the quiet type."

"True…" Ron said, scratching his chin thoughtfully.

"Hey, Harry! Where are you going?!" Said a female voice beside him.

Ron looked up, he was thinking too hard about this. So hard that he didn't really notice when Harry had already left. He followed Harry with his eyes and looked back to the teacher's table, where he expected to find Malfoy. Instead, he saw Professor Dumbledore leading Snape and McGonagall to a door near the left of the teacher's table. He looked at Hermione who was staring after Harry, too. He followed her gaze and saw Malfoy mid-gaze and stopped, he was standing in front of Gryffindor table. Why the nerve of him! He was about to tell him off until he heard words Malfoy mumbled.

"Filthy…no good…sodding bastard…damn him…" and then he swiftly left, all eyes glued on his back.

"What happened?" he whispered to Hermione. But she didn't answer. "Hermione, what happened?"

"Harry…he…he didn't…"

Ron looked at Hermione with a confused expression. "Seamus," he said, giving up on Hermione. "What happened?"

"I dunno," Seamus said. "Why are you asking me?"

"Because it seems Hermione here," he gestured to Hermione. "Doesn't want to speak in complete sentences, much less five words or above."

"Well, I don't really know what happened. Harry…just left. And as to why Hermione's like that, I seem to recall her asking Harry where he was going and him not answering."

Ron's eyes widened. "Uh-oh."

He grabbed Hermione's hand, which was stone-cold, and dragged her out of the Great Hall. The hairs on the back of his neck standing up because all eyes were now on him.

***

"Potter, where are you going?!"

"What do you care?"

Malfoy grabbed hold of Harry's hand and jerked him around face him. "Oh, I don't know, really. I mean you only have my wand and I'm just going to be stuck with you the whole of the next bloody school year. So I don't really know why I care, Potter." Malfoy's voice was coated with more icy sarcasm than usual.

Harry glared. "So, if you don't know, stop. Asking. Me. Questions. Okay?"

"Potter," Malfoy said, giving out a glare to match Harry's. "I believe you've heard of the term, sarcasm, have you not?"

"Why, yes, actually I have." Harry said behind gritted teeth.

"Well, then, make what you know useful and stop being a git."

Harry's glare didn't cease, but after thirty seconds, he stopped and sighed. "You're right, Malfoy." He said, to Malfoy's surprise. "Here." He held out his wand. "You can get it now."

Malfoy raised an eyebrow, thinking that it was only a trick. "Right. No, Potter."

"Malfoy, you're right okay. I was a git. I'm sorry I blew up like that in the Great Hall, I'm sorry I stole your limelight, I'm sorry for casting Expelliarmus on you, I'm sorry for humiliating you in from of the Great Hall, I'm sorry for calling your house Silverfish, I'm sorry for getting your wand. But most of all," Harry said the last sentence more to himself than to Malfoy. "I'm sorry for sinking to your level. Now get it," Harry thrust his hand forward harder. "Before I change my mind."

Malfoy, rather surprised that anyone could say anything that fast in one breath and quite convinced that Harry was indeed telling the truth now, got his wand and muttered a small, but heartfelt, "Thanks."

Harry smiled and turned, he went on his way.

"Hey, Potter…" Malfoy said, not taking his eyes off his wand.

"Yeah?" Harry said, not bothering to turn.

"D'you ― d'you think we could…umm…that is to say ― d'you think we could like be, well, at least be…" With each fragment, it seemed that his grip on his wand in his hand was getting tighter and tighter and his eyes grew more shut. He was trying to say if they could be friends, and to say the least, he found saying that hard.

"Sure," Harry said as he turned to Malfoy, he was quite certain and yet not really certain what Malfoy was trying to say. So close, yet so far as Malfoy said.

"Really?" Malfoy's eyes flew open and his whitening knuckles had gotten the color back in them almost instantly.

"Umm, yeah, sure. Why not?"

Malfoy smiled and approached Harry. His smile was warm, genuine and soft. Harry was indeed quite sure that Malfoy was happy about something and that's when he regretted saying yes. Malfoy chuckled a bit.

"Thanks…" he said, unsure what to say. "Thanks, Harry."

***