Chapter 8

The Not So Real Midnight Duel

Turns out, when Potter and Duff were sent away by McGonagall during our first Flying lesson, they were put on the Gryffindor Quidditch team, Potter as Seeker, Duff as Chaser, like her best friend.

Now I had something to use to torment Potter. I grabbed Crabbe and Goyle early one morning at breakfast and went to torment Potter, who was sitting with his Weasel sidekick.

"Well, well, well, boys, look who we've got here, the next best thing since the collapsible cauldron!" I drawled, making Potter and Weasley look up and glare at me.

"Sod off, Malfoy." Weasley snapped.

"Heard you made the Quidditch team, Potter." I said, ignoring Weasley "Guess you think that makes you special now, eh?"

"Big talk for someone who got beat up by a girl." Weasley said, playing the "Duff knocked me off my broom" card.

"And had to have his ass saved by another girl." Potter added.

I glared, then came up with a way to get Potter expelled. "I can take you on anytime alone. How about a wizards' duel? Oh, wait, you don't know what a wizards' duel is, do you, Potter?"

"Yes, he does, in fact, I'm his second, who's yours?" Weasley demanded.

I looked to Crabbe and Goyle, wondering who to pick. On one hand, Goyle could survive some hexes and jinxes that Potter threw his way, but on the other hand, Crabbe, surprisingly was good at Charms.

"Crabbe." I said "So midnight, the Charms corridor. Flitwick always keeps that locked." I added, walking off to the Slytherin table, Crabbe and Goyle on my tail.

"For the last bloody time, Pansy, no!" Hannah was saying, sighing in frustration. "The Weird Sisters aren't better than Down With Webster!"

"You're only saying that because Malfoy loves Down With Webster!" Millicent said.

"Yeah, and you love Malfoy!" Rose Yaxley said.

"Skinner, Fanelli and Faksa!" Hannah moaned "For the last bloody time, I do not!"

I cleared my throat, making Hannah stand straighter and turn around to face me. Her dorm mates giggled and muttered:

"Sure, she doesn't love him."

"Hey," Hannah said, her cheeks flushed with embarrassment "How…how much of that did you hear?"

"From the 'For the last bloody time, Pansy, no! The Weird Sisters aren't better than Down With Webster!'" I said "Oh, and I quite agree. Down With Webster is way better. I find the Weird Sisters a tad too repetitive."

Hannah paled and bit her lip before smirking "See, Pansy. Draco agrees with me. They are too repetitive."

"Aw! Lovers always agree with each other!" Clearwater said, flipping her blonde hair back.

"No!" Hannah and I shouted together.

Hannah shot up "You guys are idiots!" she said, walking over to me "I'll be with the guys if you need me. Which I hope you don't." she said, walking off "COME ON, GUYS!" she shouted.

Goyle grinned "A girl that takes charge, Malfoy. Didn't you say you loved a girl who took charge?" he asked me.

"Shut up." I ordered.

Goyle obeyed as Crabbe and him sat down across from me, who sat with Hannah.

"Thank God you guys showed up." she said, sighing as she rubbed her temples "Those girls give me headaches."

"Amen to that." I said, giving Parkinson a death look as she flirted with me from across the table. She never really got the whole "It's over" concept.

"Oi, Malfoy, who out of them would you snog at the chance?" Goyle asked.

"Dude, talk about insensitive to the ugly girls." Hannah said.

I smirked "You really are one of the guys."

Hannah nodded "Yep." she said before taking her orange juice, chugged it in one and belched to prove her point.

"Bloody hell, Han!" Goyle and Blaise shouted. "That was awesome!" they complimented, standing up to high five the tiny raven girl.

"Thank you, thank you." Hannah said smirking as she gave both Goyle and Blaise a high five and sat down. "I try very hard to be."

"So, Malfoy, exes, who'd you snog?" Goyle asked.

I shrugged, meeting Hannah's eyes and losing my train of thought. "Uh…" I said.

"I'll tell you lot who I'd snog if I was a lesbian." Hannah said, tearing her gaze away and glaring at her room mates "None! They're so god damn talkative it isn't even funny! They don't know how to shut up, and I swear to Skinner that Monique is trying to de-tomboy me. And like I said before…" Hannah finished, resting her head on her hands and kneading her temples "They give me a headache."

"Amen!" Blaise said "Girls are annoying."

"Ok, now you're just crossing the line, dude." Hannah said, turning to Blaise "I just said that they were giving me a headache, not that they were annoying. Besides, guys can be annoying too, no offence."

"Some taken!" I said, insulted.

"Sorry, Drake, it's the truth. Girls think that some guys are annoying. Guys think that some girls are annoying, it's the circle of life, dumbass."

"I'm not a dumbass!" I protested.

"Oh, right, sorry." Hannah said, feeling bad "You're just averagely dumb. Crabbe's King Dumbass." she corrected, making the guys laugh.

"What are you four laughing at?" Crabbe demanded.

"You, King Dumbass." Hannah said. "New nickname! Crabbe, from here on in, you're officially The Right Royal King of all Dumbasses, or just King Dumbass for short."

"Who's Queen Dumbass?" Blaise asked as Crabbe fumed.

"Drosie." Hannah said, laughing. "All Dumbasses are to bow to Vincent Crabbe and Annabelle Drosie!"

"Am I royalty to anything?" Goyle asked.

"Duh!" Hannah said, beaming "You're King Burp."

"Me?" Blaise asked.

"You…you're King Cleansweep." Hannah announced.

"And me?" I asked, turning to her hopefully.

"You…I see you more Slytherin Prince." Hannah announced.

"Nice!" I said. "Hear that, King Dumbass, I'm the Prince of Slytherin!" I added to Crabbe.

"What's that make Han?" Blaise asked.

"That obviously makes her the Princess of Slytherin." I pointed out.

"It's better than being Queen Dumbass. I get to rule a house, while Crabbe and Drosie rule the inter-house Dumbasses." Hannah said, starting to laugh.

"Potter, you aren't funny." Crabbe snarled.

"Sure I'm plenty funny, King Dumbass." Hannah smirked, giggling.

"URG! Enough with the King Dumbass, soon everyone will start calling me that. It's like if I called Potter 'treacle tart', then everyone will start doing it."

I shrugged, smirking at the idea Crabbe gave me "I still like the nickname, Crabbe. Treacle Tart's got a good point."

Hannah turned and glared at me, her eyes playing with a fierce fire "Do not!" she snarled.

Blaise grinned "Hey, Han, you know what we've got first?" he asked.

Hannah nodded, taking her timetable out of her midnight blue binder. "Yeah…we've got…" she groaned "History of Magic." she sighed. "That subject is so boring, it's like Binns actually wants us to care about history of magic. We're never going to use this crap!"

"You said it, Treacle Tart." I said, smirking at the use of her nickname again.

"You are skating on very thin ice with this whole Treacle Tart thing, my friend!" Hannah snapped, glaring me in the eye.

I smirked "Oh, come on, Treacle Tart, you know I'm just playing." I said.

Hannah groaned "Ugh! Enough with the Treacle Tart, it's like you're saying 'Hannah, be a love and pour this orange juice down my pants'!" she snapped, holding up her goblet and staring at me to prove a point.

"Ok, ok, I apologize." I said before mumbling "Treacle Tart."

Hannah belted me over the head angrily "I heard that!" she snapped, shooting up and walking out.

"Ha, Han's pissed with you." Blaise laughed.

"Shut up." I said, watching Hannah leave for History of Magic. "Come on, we'd better head to class or Binns is going to kill us all."

Blaise nodded, still smirking as we all stood up and went to History of Magic, me and Blaise sitting behind Hannah.

Hannah took one look at me and turned around, arms crossed with a slight "Humph!"

Blaise smirked at me. "Did you see that look in her eyes, she hates you!"

I glared at him. "That's going to change by day's end." I whispered as Binns started the lesson, leaving Blaise and I to do some girl watching.

You see, the advantage to having an illustrious history with girls is that I can read a girl like a book. Tell what they want in a guy, where they liked to be kissed, their personality, etcetera.

Today, seeing as I knew most of the girls in the class, we decided to read Hannah.

"Brushing hair from her temple, that must be a sweet spot for her." Blaise whispered.

"She has her hand over her ear, she must like pillow talk." I added, not taking my eyes off her.

She was chewing on her lip. "She's insecure." I whispered, shocked.

"Insecure? Her?" Blaise asked.

I nodded. "Watch her carefully, Blaise. She bites her lip and her eyes are lowered. Something's raging around in that head of hers, and it certainly isn't a good thing." I whispered, still watching her and ignoring Blaise.

I took note of every subtle movement she made, the way she curled a lock of hair behind her ear and when she sat up briefly to get a look at Duff's notes before scribbling some down, going back to her bored stance.

Duff whispered something to her and she giggled quietly, making me grab a piece of parchment and scrawl something, lobbing it at her as hard as I could.

As if she saw it coming, she caught it as fast as she could and whipped around, glaring at me.

"Nice try." she whispered, opening the note and giving me a look. "The hell are you talking about? I'm sorry?"

Duff whipped around. "You're what?" she asked.

"I pushed the…" I started, looking to Duff. "I'll talk to you in Herbology, where we don't have her butting in." I said, glaring at Duff.

"Yeah, Ivy, mind your business!" Hannah snapped.

"Miss Potter, is there something you wish to share with the rest of the class?" Binns asked.

"Uh, er, no, Professor." Hannah said, looking down, a pale pink blush creeping up her cheeks as she turned around, her eyes lowered as Blaise and I continued our conversation.

In Herbology, when Sprout set us to work, Hannah finally opened her mouth.

"You were saying in History?" she asked.

"I guess I annoyed you with me calling you Treacle Tart at breakfast?" I asked.

"No crap." Hannah said, rolling her eyes.

"I went too far?" I asked.

"You think?" she asked, glaring at me as she took a handful of dragon dung and laid it in the pot.

"Sorry." I said.

"Forgiven." Hannah said with a grin. "But first I'm getting you back." she said, smashing dung in my face.

"Ugh!" I said, wiping my face from the foul smelling dung. "I guess I deserve that."

"You think?" Hannah asked with a grin.

"You're evil." I snarled.

"I know." Hannah smirked, getting back to work.

After we ate lunch, Hannah and I were in my dorm, working on our Potions homework.

"I still can't believe you beat Blaise at arm wrestling again." I said as I finished up my essay, tucking it in my book bag.

Hannah smirked. "Like I said, I'm one of the guys." she said with a grin.

"Bet you couldn't beat me." I smirked, putting my book bag down and turning to her.

"Is that a challenge, Malfoy?" Hannah asked with a surprised smirk.

"Yes, Potter. Yes it is." I said, laying on my stomach and propping my arm up. "Are you taking it?"

"I don't want to hurt your ego, Draco." Hannah said, shaking her head.

"Oh, is the mighty Girl Who Lived a big chicken?" I asked, clucking at her.

"Draco…" Hannah said, fire in her eyes.

I clucked louder, flapping my arms like a chicken.

"OK, THAT'S IT!" Hannah snarled, laying on her stomach and grabbing my hand.

"Three, two, one, go!" we said together, glaring into each other's eyes as I easily overtook her.

"Who's getting a hurt ego now, Potter?" I demanded with a smirk as I was close to beating her.

Suddenly, just as I was about to slam her, Hannah grunted in pain. "Ow, ow, ow!" she said.

"You ok?" I asked, letting my guard down and propping her arm up.

Hannah smirked. "You tell me." she said, slamming my arm down on the bed and kissing her knuckle. "I think I won." she chuckled.

I glared at her. "Potter, you're a sick, twisted evil little girl!" I said. "That was a lowdown, dirty, conniving trick!"

Hannah looked down, flushing.

"And I've never been more impressed!" I praised.

She flushed redder, grinning. "Fake out, saving my backside since I was six years old." she announced, cracking her knuckles.

I grinned at her, shoving her playfully. "Come on, we got Transfiguration next." I told her.

Hannah grabbed her book bag and we left my dorm.

Transfiguration was as dull as sin that day. McGonagall was giving a lecture on proper technique.

"Boring." Hannah muttered to me with a giggle.

"Amen." I said, giving her a gentle kick to her foot.

"Hey!" she hissed, kicking mine in return.

"Knock it off!" I whispered to her, wrapping my ankle around hers.

"If you want me to stop, you stop!" she replied, bringing her other foot in and tapping my shin.

We both started laughing quietly and started foot wrestling.

"Mr Malfoy and Ms Potter, are you two quite finished playing Footsie with each other?" McGonagall asked, looking to us.

"Yes, Professor McGonagall." Hannah and I chorused together monotonously.

McGonagall turned around and Hannah and I shared an annoyed look before snickering and high fiving each other."

"I can't believe we got away with that for that long!" I admitted. "Father told me old lady McGonagall was so quick to point out disruptions."

Hannah giggled, covering her mouth.

That night at dinner, Hannah actually had the audacity to bring Duff into the Slytherin realm to eat dinner with us.

I was shooting Duff hate-filled glances as Hannah's old enemy Drosie strutted forward.

"So, Potter, it seems that being the Girl Who Lived that was in Slytherin wasn't enough, you had to go for youngest Chaser, too, eh?"

Duff stood up and glared at Drosie "Shut up. And last time we checked, you weren't invited into this conversation, Drosie." she spat.

"Tut, tut, Duff," Drosie sneered "surely a proud Gryffindor like you shouldn't be eating with the Slytherins. They're nothing but pure blooded scum!"

Hannah and I shot up out of our seats "Shut up, Drosie!" we said together.

"Oh, so Potty thinks she can take me? You are most likely nothing without your precious Dracie Poo, or Captain House Traitor here." Drosie implied, flashing Duff a dirty look at the term "House Traitor."

"I could take you in anything, Drosie!" Hannah shouted. I could have sworn I saw her eyes flash red.

"Really, Potter?" Drosie sneered "So…how about tonight, at midnight, a wizard's duel? Oh, wait! You don't know what a wizard's duel is, do you?"

"Damn right, she does, Drosie!" I snarled "In fact, Duff's her second, who's yours?"

"Malfoy!" Duff hissed, pulling me to her by the tie "What the hell are you on!"

Drosie looked at O'Neil and Vain, seizing them up "Vain. All right, Potter. I will meet you at midnight…say…the Transfiguration corridor? McGonagall always keeps that unlocked." Drosie smirked, taking a small handheld mirror from her robe's pocket.

"You are so on!" Hannah snapped waving her hand to motion her away "Now pardon the French, but you can piss off now, Drosie!"

Drosie looked taken aback at the fact that Hannah told her to 'piss off'. Truth be told, I was equally surprised. The worst swear that I had ever heard out of her mouth was "Skinner."

"Fine, Potter." she said after a while, stowing her mirror back in her back "I'll be seeing you at midnight if you think you're woman enough. Let's go, girls."

Hannah scoffed, sitting back down to finish eating and turned to me.

"What did you mean-" she started, pausing to take a bit of steak "when you said Ivy was my second?" she asked swallowing and taking a sip of pumpkin juice.

"A second-" Duff explained glaring at Draco "is someone to take over for you if you die."

Han gulped and I swore I saw her blanch in the candlelight "But…" she stammered "Drosie couldn't possibly be able to kill me…right?"

"No way!" I said, taking her hand in mine before I knew what I was thinking, earning a glare from Duff "You and her are still young yet. The worst you can do is send sparks at each other."

It was silence for a few minutes as the colour returned to Hannah's cheeks, gradually turning light pink. She bit her lip as we locked eyes on our intertwined hands, which Duff glared at.

"Malfoy," she started, taking a sip of pumpkin juice "take your bloody hand off of Hannah…now!"

We ripped our hands apart and stole a glance at each other.

Bastard. If only I could get her alone. I thought before looking away. Only to prove to the boys that I don't love her.

"So…" Han said, starting to finish off my dinner "what happens if I wave my wand and nothing happens?"

"Simple," Duff said, taking her book bag in hand "you throw your wand to Draco, and I go and punch Drosie in the face!"

Han laughed "Ivy, I love you!" she said, taking my book bag and getting up.

"Love you too."

"I hate to burst bubbles," I said, following Duff and Han out of the Hall "but I can't come to the duel. I have to do homework for Potions." I lied. I couldn't be seen after hours, I wanted Potter expelled. If I turned up in the Transfiguration corridor, Potter would murder me.

"Oh, I've finished that already." Duff said with a smirk. "Hannah, I'll come and get you for the duel tonight at say…eleven thirty?"

"Sure, Ivy." Hannah said smiling "See you then." I added, walking towards the dungeons with Draco.

That night, at eleven thirty, I woke up. Just because I was staying in the dungeons that night, it didn't mean that I was going to be staying in bed. I was going to check and make sure Han got back from the duel alright.

I stayed in the shadows until I found a figure starting down from the door, then another race upstairs with a swish of blond hair…Pansy.

How Duff got her hands on the Slytherin password, I didn't know. All I knew was that she was standing in the common room, mere feet from where I stood behind the fireplace.

Another figure came down from the girls dormitory and I paused, waiting to see who it was as she stepped into the firelight.

It was Hannah. Her hair tied into a ponytail and her wand tucked in the waistband of her track pants.

"Hey!" she whispered, shocked "Where did you get the password to the dungeons?"

"I'll tell you later." Duff whispered, waving her wand "Let's go! We have to get to the Transfiguration corridor." she added, taking hold of Han's pyjama shirt and steering her out the door.

I stayed behind the fireplace, grabbing my blanket and pillow and waiting for Hannah to return.

Around one in the morning, I was woken by the sound of feet coming down the stairs and into the common room.

I looked up, expecting Hannah and found a familiar prefect…no, not a prefect…the Head Boy next to the fireplace, almost on top of my hiding place.

I lit up my wand tip and saw him. Seventh year Cory Zabini…close relation to Blaise, but only by adoption.

"Damned bloody first years." he muttered with a smirk. "Ought to report them to Filch…but then again…it's not every night you get the chance to catch the Girl Who Lived redhanded doing something naughty." a sultry leer reached his face and I went white as I heard stone sliding into the wall.

"Oh, please!" a familiar exasperated sigh sounded as a small figure slipped into the room. "Lumos!"

Hannah's face illuminated through the light of her wand and her eyes widened when she saw the Head Boy leaning against the mantle.

"Well, hello, Potter." he said with a smirk "What are you doing out of bed?"

Hannah gasped when she saw what the boy really looked like. His shaggy brown hair fell into his green eyes, and he looked as if he could take her down with one strike. Even I wouldn't stand a chance in a fight with him…at least in a fair, bare knuckle fight.

"Uh…I…um." Hannah stammered, starting to back away to her dorms "I was just heading back to bed."

"So soon?" the boy said, grasping her upper arm. I gulped as he leaned down to whisper in her ear "Because you and me could have some fun in the Head Boy dorms."

I gasped. Hannah was a scrawny little toothpick, Zabini was as big as an ox, on top of it all he was driven by lust. Hannah didn't stand a chance by herself! I raced to grab my wand.

When I got back, Hannah was struggling to break out of his grip "Let go of me, you pervert!" she snapped.

He gagged her and pulled her flush against him. "But then, how fun would that be for me?" he asked smoothly.

Han whimpered and I thought of what would probably happen to her. Tied to the Head Boy's bed as he did unspeakable things to her immobilized, restrained body. Something that was preventable if I acted now…and so, feeling the rage I would have felt if he had raped her, I took action.

"Pretrificus Totalus!" I shouted.

The boy let go of Hannah and she fell to the ground due to the great height as I stepped forward, glaring at Zabini's body.

Hannah looked up and saw me, gasping.

"You ok?" I asked as I stowed my wand back in my robes.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just had a bit of a scare. Thanks for saving my ass and all." Hannah said as I took her hand, pulling her up to her feet and letting her dust herself off."

"Anytime. I wasn't just gonna sit by and watch a defenceless young lady like yourself get hurt." I said with a grin.

Hannah flushed and reached up to kiss my cheek. "My hero." she said.

"Well, now we're even for when you saved my ass." I said with a smirk "Now go back to bed! We have lessons tomorrow."

"Good call." Han said with a yawn "Night." she added, kissing my cheek again and heading upstairs.

I looked to Zabini and snarled. "And as for you…" I started, raising a fist.