AN: Hey again everyone! I'm sorry there was a delay with this chapter… I know what plot points I want to hit, but I'm having trouble doing it in a way I'm happy with. Hope you enjoy this anyway, and thanks for waiting!
If one wanted to start some of the most chaotic rumors in the history of Hogwarts, Harry thought himself qualified to give good advice. He would say you might want to lay a solid foundation for seven years or so by being linked to a horrifying dark wizard, disappear for a year mysteriously before killing said wizard, and saving the school repeatedly. Top it off by being a star Quidditch player and having an incredibly obvious rival, making the animosity between you clear to everyone. Then, one day, show up late to a meal the entire castle is attending, standing next to your long-time enemy with twin bruises on your faces.
Harry would never have believed there could be a higher level of gossip at the school than that which he had already been met with. Yet, here he was. The rumors and questions were not as unfriendly as the ones he had faced after Cedric's death when he had claimed the return of Voldemort, but they were far more relentless. It began from the moment he headed down the Great Hall to take a seat among his friends, with the exclamations of "Harry!" and "Are you ok?" and "What happened?" flying from all sides. From there, it grew to upset accusations such as, "You and Malfoy?" or, "That Death Eater is still fighting you?" and, "You can't seriously be hanging around him." Harry had simply kept out of it by replying with an extraordinarily vague truth.
"Slytherins are being attacked by other students," was all he ever said in response to pressing questions. "It has to stop."
After a week rumors were just as persistent. Students were still running up to Harry and asking questions, to which his reply never changed. He assumed it was happening to Malfoy as well, but it seemed that neither of the two cared to correct anybody's guesses; what people decided had happened between them changed every day. One day the student body claimed Draco was trying to start a new generation of Death Eaters and Harry was on to him, the next they had instead decided the two were secretly in love and wanted to throw people off their trail, and the following everyone was convinced the pair had been fighting over Quidditch and Malfoy's new broom.
Harry had, unfortunately, made a case for the Slytherin seventh-year to his friends. It wasn't a particularly passionate one, but at lunch immediately after his arrival at the Great Hall that day he had insisted he really believed the blond had good enough intentions and just wanted to be happy for once. The reason this was particularly unfortunate was that by the end of the day- and every day since- it seemed as though Malfoy was intent on proving Harry wrong. The pair had quickly gone back to their habit of arguing and constantly fighting; every chance they got to antagonize or insult each other, they took. Naturally, this didn't help to dull the interest in their relationship.
To Harry the arguments and little fights were familiar and reassuring, also conveniently providing an outlet for any of his frustrations. The difference this time around was that they didn't actually mean any harm; their actions were no longer fueled by malintent. This key fact, however, seemed to have gone unnoticed by everyone who witnessed their interactions.
"I can't believe he's after you again," Hermione sighed one evening in mid-November when Malfoy had tried to jinx Harry into tripping as they passed each other in the hall. The small smile and slightly devious look the pair exchanged had yet again slipped invisibly past all other eyes. Harry had simply shrugged and readjusted his glasses, having learned quickly that it would be useless to suggest Malfoy didn't mean anything by it. He certainly would never admit to anyone that he had started looking forward to seeing the other boy around the castle.
x
It was in Defense at the beginning of the following week that things took a turn. Professor Malfoy had not mentioned the suspiciously simultaneous absence of his son and Harry Potter the week before, nor had he so much as raised an eyebrow at the pair's equally colorful faces. The class the two had missed had been dueling practice, and the following two that week were demonstrations and practice with arresto momentum, a theoretically basic spell which proved to be rather difficult to execute properly.
Their professor had demonstrated this spell by launching a rather large rock up into the air, and moving to stand underneath it as though his goal was to have it come crashing into his head. As it came down, however, he raised his wand straight up and spoke the words. The rock had begun to slow as though it were moving through syrup rather than air. At the last moment, centimeters above Lucius' head, it had slowed to a stop. He stepped out from under it and allowed it to fall to the ground. Harry knew he owed his life to the spell on multiple occasions in the past, and figured it was about time to learn to use it well himself.
Having spent far more time on in-class practice than usual the previous week, this Monday morning the class was back to being dedicated to dueling. They were yet again outside in the gloomy weather, and Harry's hope that he had gotten away with his absence without punishment was shattered.
"Before we begin today," Lucius' cold drawl grabbed their attention, "I do believe Mr. Malfoy and Mr. Potter have volunteered to give us a little demonstration."
It took Harry a moment to realize what was going on, but thankfully he put it together before he could say anything stupid in reply. Trying not to cringe, he stepped forward and at the edge of his vision saw Malfoy do the same.
"Spread out as usual, and duel as you see fit," their instructor directed them, gesturing towards the open part of the field. "A few minutes should do, and we will have a discussion afterwards about your techniques." He addressed the rest of the class in a very serious tone, "Pay close attention."
Harry was used to being punished by Snape, and in comparison this was very well thought out. Usually instructors gave out boring detentions or insults, and Snape had always tried to attack Harry's character. He could stand things like that, and it didn't really upset the Gryffindor at all anymore. Professor Malfoy, it seemed, had a far more clever idea; he was going to make Harry uncomfortable in a way the class could benefit from by putting his techniques and ability in the spotlight for critique. Harry thought it was so well planned that he forgot for a moment to be concerned as he headed over to take his position.
Looking at the Slytherin he had been tasked with dueling, the situation was vaguely reminiscent of their second year. It felt quite different, though, and not only because Harry wasn't being instructed by a flamboyant fraud this time. It was suddenly apparent to the Gryffindor how much they had both grown. Malfoy no longer looked like a cruel child with something to prove, but instead almost an adult who was looking forward to putting himself to the test.
The dark and fierce look in the other's eyes as he raised his wand to the ready sparked an equal determination in Harry. Characteristically, before Harry could raise his wand in return, the blond stepped forward and shot his arm out quickly.
"Everte Statum," the Slytherin shouted fiercely.
Harry was quick to defend himself, and raised a shield. He gasped quietly as the spell almost threw him backwards anyway as it made impact. Stumbling back a few steps, Harry shot a stunning spell in return, which rebounded off of Malfoy's disarming one. Draco shot a blast of white light that Harry didn't recognize his way, but the Gryffindor swiftly bounced it right back at the blond. The Slytherin didn't even flinch as he threw up a guard that sent the spell rebounding off into the trees. One caught on fire, but neither of them gave it a second thought, as they knew their professor would deal with it for them as he always did.
Draco stepped closer and levitated a stone from the ground to shoot at Harry, who yelled "bombarda!" Just in time, the rock blew to bits in the air, though a few shards cut Harry's face and arm as they flew past. Before he knew it, a stunner from their professor that was originally aimed at Draco had been reflected his way. It grazed his left shoulder enough to burn and stop it moving, but not enough to paralyze him completely. Harry grimaced as he tapped his shoulder with his wand to reverse the stunning spell and revive it.
Malfoy continued his attack relentlessly, and Harry was taken aback each time with how powerful the spells felt. Every one hit either Harry or his shields with a silent scream of strength behind it, which resonated through the air. If he believed his opponent was truly an enemy, the sensation would have made him terrified for his life. It had only been a couple minutes and Harry was already fighting as hard as he could, barely able to pay attention to anything else and almost entirely forgetting his audience. He decided he wouldn't be able to get a break as long as Malfoy could see where he was, and pointed his wand at the ground in front of the Slytherin.
"Expulso," he commanded, causing a massive explosion of grass and dirt to fly up into the air. Not allowing himself to dwell on his surprise when he noticed how absolutely massive the crater it had caused was, Harry had taken advantage of the chaos to run to a new location. When the dust settled, it seemed he wasn't the only one who had thought things through. Malfoy had also moved behind the wall of earth, and they both hesitated to find each other for a moment. Harry was quicker, however, and his attack hit first.
"Alarte Ascendare!" Draco went flying straight up into the air. So high, in fact, that Harry worried for a moment he had gone too far.
The fear was cast aside rather quickly, though, as he saw the Slytherin twist in the air strategically. Not a moment later, Harry caught a glimpse of something blasting his way. At the last possible second, he managed to get a shield about three-quarters of the way around him. A massive explosion of flames engulfed him and threw him to the ground. His right leg and left hand had not been protected enough, and he felt them burn.
He had just rolled painfully back up on to his knees in time to see Malfoy slowly coming down from out of the fall, landing nowhere nearly as quickly or as hard as he should have. Arresto momentum, Harry realized, of course. They were both crouched on the ground, preparing to attack again when their professor interrupted.
"Enough," he said calmly, but with finality.
The words ripped Harry back to reality, and the two lowered their wands. Harry relaxed, not having realized how tense and focused he had been. He saw Malfoy's expression soften similarly and his grey eyes glinted with the familiar devilish light they often held in the moments they fought with each other in the corridors. Both their chests were heaving as they panted from exertion, and Harry felt the burns sting as they set deeper into his skin.
"Ten points to Gryffindor," Lucius announced casually, "for Mr. Potter's demonstration of skill." The Gryffindor students smiled happily at Harry, who gave them a thumbs-up. "And twenty," Professor Malfoy continued, "to Slytherin, for Mr. Malfoy's equal efforts and excellent use of the previous lesson."
The Slytherin students joined their classmates in smiling, though not with nearly as much outward enthusiasm. Nobody could argue with the decision, as it was perhaps the most dramatic one-on-one duel they had ever seen between students. Harry and Malfoy nodded at each other, barely able to contain their smiles, before heading back over to join the class. Their professor saw to Harry's burn, and the Gryffindor noticed Draco take a moment to do something with his ankle. When everything was fixed back up, Lucius silenced the class.
"Thoughts on that performance?" he asked them.
Hands shot up into the air.