Good!Daphne AU.
and so it goes
"Right," Harry shouted, "on three, everyone! One...two...three!"
The Room of Requirement erupted in chaotic shouts as the members of Dumbledore's Army began practicing the Rictusempra spell. Zacharias Smith had scoffed at the idea as usual, but once Harry had explained its usefulness in disarming a foe without harming them, the skeptical Hufflepuff had backed off.
"Rictusempra!" Colin cried, brandishing his wand at brother Dennis, who immediately collapsed into a fit of giggles as if being tickled by an imaginary hand.
"Good one, Colin!" Harry said, performing the counter-spell on Dennis as he passed. Colin's face turned pink at the praise.
Next, Harry passed partners Ernie and Justin, who were arguing over who should cast the spell first.
"I say I should go first," Ernie was saying, "because I didn't get as much practice in last time."
"Just let him go first," Harry muttered to an exasperated-looking Justin, who nodded and squared his shoulders.
A flash of green caught the D.A. leader's eye, and he looked to see where it had come from. His stomach did a funny flip-flop when he realized that it must have been Daphne Greengrass's house tie.
The fifth-year Slytherin had been a surprising addition to the group, but she was apparently sympathetic to the cause. Most of the D.A. had been reluctant to trust her at first, believing her to be a mole sent to spy on them by persons unknown, but Daphne had proven herself to be loyal and discreet. She had helped them outsmart and get back at the Inquisitorial Squad on several occasions, and she had offered to report back on members of her own house, too.
Harry was quite impressed by her bravery in particular, but he couldn't deny that she was also very pretty. She had long, dark hair and striking blue eyes that often seemed to be focused on him. He found himself glancing over at her whenever he had a spare moment—she intrigued him the way a Slytherin never had before.
Today, she was paired with Terry Boot, who looked vaguely terrified of her. "Rictu—Rictusempra!" he stuttered, causing little more than a hair ripple.
"A little more conviction next time, Terry," Harry said bracingly. He turned to Daphne. "Would you care to demonstrate?"
Terry turned very pale and let out a small squeak.
"Erm, how about you just try it on me?" Harry suggested instead.
Daphne raised her wand. "Rictusempra!"
Harry felt himself get blasted off his feet. There were several cries of alarm and more than half the group converged on their leader to make sure that he was okay. Luckily, he had fallen onto a thick vermilion cushion that softened the blow, but his glasses had flown off and landed some feet away.
"Harry! Are you alright?" Ron demanded.
Harry blinked. "I'm fine, mate, I just need my—"
Someone pressed his glasses into his hand and he gratefully put them on.
"Glasses," he finished, before realizing that Daphne was the one who had returned them. He quickly turned to the rest of the group. "I'm fine!"
His peers scattered, but Daphne stayed by his side, looking worried. "I'm so sorry about that," she said quietly.
"I'm fine," Harry repeated, nervously flattening down his hair. "Erm, thanks for returning my glasses."
"No problem." Her eyes were still full of concern, however. "Are you SURE you're alright?"
"Yeah," Harry said quickly. "You did great, Daphne, really. You're a very powerful witch."
Her cheeks seemed to redden slightly, though Harry wondered if that was just wishful thinking on his part. "Thanks, Harry."
"So I see that Terry is now practicing with Padma and Michael," Harry said, nodding at the Ravenclaw trio, "so I guess that leaves you partnerless. Would you, ah, want to partner with me?"
To his disappointment, Daphne shook her head. "I should let you walk around and make corrections. After all, that's why you're here. Maybe Hannah will let me practice with her, though."
"Right," Harry said, feeling foolish. "Good idea."
...
An hour later, Harry decided it was time to end the meeting. Everyone had shown much improvement—particularly the younger members and Neville—and he was very pleased with their progress.
Several students bid him goodnight as they exited the room in their small groups. Finally, it was just him, Ron, Hermione, and Daphne.
"Er, you two go ahead," Harry told his friends. "I'll go with Daphne, make sure she gets back to her common room safely."
Ron looked as though he was going to say something, but Hermione elbowed him and ushered him away, leaving Harry and Daphne alone.
Harry moved towards the brunette. "Do you—would you like me to walk you to the Slytherin common room?"
"Hm?" Daphne turned to him and shook her head. "Oh, no, I'll be perfectly fine. Thank you, though."
"Right." Harry shifted his weight from one foot to the other, unsure of what to say next. "Erm, goodnight, then, Daphne."
"Goodnight, Harry," Daphne said. "I'll see you at the next meeting?"
"Or we could meet up at Hogsmeade," Harry blurted out. He blushed. "I mean...if you wanted to."
Daphne tucked a strand behind her ear and smiled, causing Harry's stomach to turn over again. "I'd like that."
Word count: 870
