While Harry waited for all of the eager students to come inside the classroom, Draco managed to find Ron and Hermione standing near the middle of the crowd. He waved at them with a smile and they waved back.
"Hi, Draco," said Hermione loudly, trying to be heard among the talking crowd.
"Hey," Draco replied, his voice just as loud.
Ron only nodded, perhaps choosing to go easy on his vocal cords.
Hemione seemed excited, her fingers fidgety. "Do you really think Harry knows so much magic?" she asked them. "I mean, even seventh-years are here, surely he cannot know more than them!" she finished, sounding scandalized.
Draco shrugged. "I think he wouldn't do this if he wasn't confident."
"Well, maybe his confidence is misplaced!" Hermione yelled just as the doors closed again, silencing the students with a loud thud.
Harry stood up from the chair he had been sitting on and eyed the massive crowd with a smile. "Welcome everyone, once again," he said, his amplified voice filling the spacious classroom.
Some of the older students were still whispering among themselves while eyeing Harry with moderate interest. Draco didn't want to be in their shoes, the Dark Lord wouldn't let teenagers disrespect him like that. Draco chose to ignore the fact that the Dark Lord himself was eleven-years-old.
"I understand that this might seem ridiculous to some of you," Harry continued, "learning magic from a mere first-year. That's why, before we start, I would like to prove something to you," he said and another wave of excited whispers erupted among the crowd.
"I defeated Lord Voldemort," he said calmly, while the students looked at him with a mixture of fear and fascination. "And none of you would stand a chance against me. Not even the Headmaster himself would stand a chance against me."
Nervous giggles escaped some of the older students. "He is delusional," one of the older Slytherins said.
"You don't have to take my word for it," Harry announced. "Let me prove it to you. If anyone here wants to duel me, just raise your hand, I will gladly assure you of my superiority. Any volunteers?" he asked with a smirk and eyed the students.
The students seemed to be frozen in their place, even the seventh-years properly intimidated. Nobody wanted to go first and risk being humiliated by a first-year.
Brave like a lion. I'm brave like a lion. I'm a Malfoy and Malfoys are never afraid.
"Oh?" Harry said in surprise as he noticed Draco's raised hand. It was shaking rather badly. "I have to say I expected someone older, but fair enough. A challenge is a challenge. Come on up here, there's a dueling platform," Harry said and Draco walked up to the front of the classroom.
Draco's legs were shaky but he tried his best to appear confident. He tried to utilize the 'I'm better than you and you're not even worth my attention' walk, taught to him by his father over the previous summer. Its effect was probably lowered by the fact that Draco was pale and sweaty, and his legs seemed to suffer from the Jelly-Legs jinx.
Using all of his concentration, Draco managed not to collapse on his way to the dueling platform and he stood alongside Harry, facing the large crowd.
"Good, you are very brave indeed, young Griffindor," Harry said and a few chuckles escaped the students.
"We are the same age, Harry," Draco said, his voice quiet and shaky.
Harry eyed him questionably. "What was that?"
Draco gulped and spoke up again. "We are the same age, Harry," he repeated, this time loud enough for everyone to hear.
Harry chuckled. "Indeed, indeed, we are. But are we the same when it comes to our skill? Stand there," Harry ordered and pointed at the opposite end of the platform.
Draco took a deep breath and walked. I'm not afraid. I am not afraid. I will show the Dark Lord that I'm good enough to be his friend. I will show them all. Draco glanced at the mostly unfamiliar faces of the students, all scrutinizing him and the Dark Lord. Hermione smiled at him, but she seemed quite concerned. Nothing to worry about, I know what I'm doing.
"Good," Harry said and eyed Draco with a smile. "We will start the duel at the count of three. You are allowed to cast any spells that you know, your goal is to either disarm me, render me unconscious, or make me fall off the platform. Do you understand?" he asked.
Draco nodded nervously. "I do," he said.
"Well then, let us duel. On the count of three," Harry said and both first-years drew their wands and stood in a dueling stance. Or, in Draco's case, in whatever felt natural. His father never actually told him how to duel and Draco started to regret it deeply. No time for regrets now. It's time to show them what I'm made of. Draco grabbed his wand tightly, aiming it at the Dark Lord's small body.
"... three!" Harry finished his countdown and Draco was quickly brought back to reality.
Before he had a chance to cast any spells, he saw Harry waving his wand delicately, and a bright light escaped the Dark Lord's wand, getting bigger and bigger until it—THUD!—Draco found himself staring at an unfamiliar ceiling, his back hurting immensely. Draco's mind was a blur.
He didn't… he didn't say anything… Ugh… The ceiling seemed to get darker and darker, quickly being swallowed by darkness. Of course, the Dark Lord can cast spells wordlessly, what did you expect you…
"Worthless imbecile," a quiet voice offered from somewhere close by.
Draco slowly opened his eyes and found himself staring at yet another ceiling, this one in a very familiar shade of white. "Ugh…" Draco groaned, his body protesting against every movement.
"Oh, are you awake Draco?" the voice of his favorite uncle greeted his ears. "Excuse the language, I was just marking an essay."
Draco chuckled and sat up in his bed. He was in the Hospital Wing again, and he curiously noticed that all of the beds were also occupied. Probably the rest of the volunteers. Draco sighed as he remembered the events of the first Harry's ARMY meeting. He must have made a fool out of himself in front of all the students… and Harry.
"Are you feeling alright?" Snape asked, scrutinizing his nephew.
Draco shrugged. "Not really. But physically, I'm okay."
Severus raised his eyebrows. "Do you… wish to talk about something, Draco?"
Draco shook his head. "No, I'll be fine, just… need some time. Thank you for checking up on me," he said with a sad smile.
His uncle eyed him with an unreadable expression. "Of course. My door is always open if you decide that you wish to talk about anything, Draco."
"Thank you," Draco said quietly.
Severus sighed. "Then excuse me, I have to go. The Headmaster wants to visit me today, so I need to buy some sweets," he said and dramatically stormed out of the Hospital Wing, his black cape following his tall form.
Draco smiled after him. Uncle always knows how to lift my spirits.