Harry had just sat down for lunch with Hermione and Neville, taking bites of his food in lulls of conversation among the trio. Thus far, this had proven to be the most peaceful second term he had yet experienced at Hogwarts!

He had at first thought that Ron would be… more something… irritated, perhaps? But in truth, he'd hardly seen hide or hair of his first friend. He'd heard rumors, of course, of him trading favors with his siblings, but there was nothing conclusive regarding to what ends.

Malfoy was another surprise. The blond ponce hadn't said anything directly to Harry since the revelation of Sirius's innocence.

Well, until he spoke from behind him.

"Potter… might we have a moment to discuss our… turbulent… relationship?"

The trio turned to face their serpentine counterparts, only to be shocked at the sight of Draco alone. No sneer or scowl, not even a smug grin.

"Where are the bookends, Malfoy?"

The prince of house Slytherin scoffed.

"Back on the shelf. I seek no quarrel today. Merely a word."

Harry looked to Hermione, who eyed Draco with suspicion, and Neville, who squinted at him.

"Alright… I'll be right back guys."

Hermione opened her mouth, then closed again and nodded.

Gryffindor's golden boy and his equal in green walked out of the great hall and into an alcove in the corridors outside.

"Potter, I would like to… I want… damn it all. I want to end the hostilities between us."

Harry was (at least within his mind) justifiably shocked and skeptical.

"What's your angle, Malfoy? What do you gain from buddying up to me?"

Draco made a face.

"Firstly, I'm not asking to be friends, just that we stop ripping into each other at every opportunity. Secondly, I've been given an… opportunity to be honest and truthful regarding my beliefs."

He raised his hand, cutting off Harry's response.

"Don't mistake my meaning here, I still believe that you, Granger, Weasley, and Longbottom are all disgraceful towards the terms 'witch' and 'wizards.'"

"Oi, Hermione's a great witch, and both Ron AND Neville are more powerful than you give them credit for!"

"Do you really think that it's about power? If it were that simple, Granger alone could be queen of this castle! No, she's a good sorceress, not a good witch."

That… was wholly unexpected.

"But you're always insulting her and implying that she's no better than a muggle!"

"Because she completely lacks any sense of decorum or protocol!"

"What?"

Draco sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, mumbling under his breath.

"I knew you were obstinate, but dense as well?"

"Well excuse me for not knowing the depths of wizarding culture! It's not MY fault no one told me anything until I was eleven!"

Draco looked stunned.

"Wait… NO ONE taught you any of this? You? The bloody 'Boy-Who-Lived?'"

Now, Harry was just surprised at Draco's apparent horror.

"No… I've lived with my muggle relatives since I was orphaned. They hate magic."

"Oh… my god… I might actually be a moron…"

Draco began repeatedly planting his forehead against the smooth stone walls.

"All this time, I thought you were just snubbing traditions and culture, but all this bloody time you have just been uneducated. Meaning you can't educate Granger either, and Longbottom wouldn't think to tell either of you…"

Draco stood up, a glint of determination in his eyes.

"Right. Come on. We need to fetch Granger."

Harry was just baffled at this turn of events.

As they strode back into the hall with purpose, Harry found his voice again.

"Wait, where are we going? What's Hermione to do with this?"

"Granger, come on, we're going to the library. We've to make a proper witch of you."

Ignoring her squeak of indignation, the Slytherin lead them into the library and back to a rather dusty section.

"Whatever is this about, Malfoy?! What are you trying with Harry and I?"

Grunting as he tried to pry an old looking tome from its shelf, Draco responded.

"Trying… to educate you… so that… you might… merit… some… respect!"

He finally pulled the book free, revealing its cracked cover and yellowed pages, with the faded title, "Social Etiquette for the Sorcerer."

Hermione, at seeing this, carefully opened the tome.

"Published in 1605?"

"Oh, so it IS the later edition!"

Harry and Hermione both looked at Draco in shock, his smug grin firmly in place.

"The first edition was published in 1492, but this should be the complete version. If you two study this, I guarantee you will have a much easier time in the wizarding world. You might even manage to be respectable."

Hermione was already flipping through.

"Wait, wizards don't like to share knowledge and techniques?"

"Nope."

"But we're in a school?"

"Wizards and witches are prideful, not stupid. They can't live forever, so they share the basics so they get some credit. And so that no one can steal their achievements."

"Like Lockhart?"

"That rumor was true, then? Good riddance to bad rubbish. Yes, the magical world is full of opportunists who would jump at the chance to advance their station. There's at least one reporter in the Prophet that my father keeps on his payroll. But it keeps the family name out of the mud, as does his 'donations' to the ministry."

"Wonderful. Copyright infringement, libel and slander, and bribery running rampant. The muggle world isn't perfect, but at least we have laws to give credit where credit is due."

"What is 'copyright?' I've never heard of it."

"'Copyright' is the legal protection of intellectual property. Essentially, any publicized information, be it research notes or a novel, legally belongs to the author or publisher. The information can still be cited by others, but credit must be given, and sometimes royalties must be paid. Depending on federal laws, copyright protection can extend beyond the lifetime of the author, ownership being given to their estate so that their family might still be supported. Then, the family can renew the copyright protection, sell it to the highest bidder, or allow it to enter the public domain, at which point anyone can use it freely."

"That's brilliant! But how is it enforced?"

"Publications are regularly screened, and plagiarism comes with very heavy fines. In terms of academia, plagiarism often leads to loss of credit, suspension, expulsion, or even legal action."

"Hm… maybe you ought to aspire to be a law-witch, Granger."

At the looks of shock, Draco sighed.

"Yes, yes, I've said something moderately kind to Granger, how very shocking. Let's move on and actually get the two of you to snuff."