Alright, here's chapter 4! Another dull one, but I still feel that it's necessary. I know the pace is kinda fast; that wasn't planned, it's just how things turned out. So, on with the disclaimer and the chapter!

Disclaimer: Harry Potter is the property of J.K. Rowling.

"Speech"
'Thought'
XXXXXXXX scene change

When Harry looked at the Room's interior, he was only slightly surprised. The walls were green with silver designs. If one were to look closely, they would notice that these designs almost resembled small snakes. A cream-colored carpet covered the floor. A fireplace was set in the center of the back wall. There were two black sofas and a black armchair in front of this fireplace, all made of leather.

Slowly, he maneuvered himself so that he was standing next to Draco.

"Welcome to the Room of Requirement."

Draco turned to him while Blaise and Pansy continued to admire the décor.

"The what?"

"Room of Requirement. In this room, all you have to do is think about what you need, and it will appear."

"So what was up with the pacing in front of the wall?" Blaise asked.

"That's how the room appears. You pace in front of the wall three times, thinking about what kind of room you need. This is where the D.A meetings are held, by the way."

Once he was sure no other questions were forthcoming at the moment, Harry walked over to the fireplace and sat in the armchair. After looking at one another uncertainly, the Slytherin Trio followed his lead. Blaise and Pansy sat on one couch, while Draco sat on the other.

Harry reached into his pocket and withdrew his wand once his guests were settled. Seeing this, the Slytherins tensed, preparing for an attack. Harry ignored these reactions, instead extending the handle of the wand to Draco while he held the tip. Said boy slowly grasped the proffered weapon and put it into his pocket, next to his own.

"Why did you do that, Potter?" Pansy asked once she was certain that there wasn't a threat.

"Call it a gesture of good will. By disarming myself, I'd be less capable of causing you all harm if this were a plot, which it isn't."

"Only less capable, not incapable?"

Harry shrugged. "I've been training. So, any specific questions?"

"What exactly is the D.A?" Blaise inquired. "I mean, I've heard rumors, but I don't usually believe such things."

"Well, D.A is an acronym for Dumbledore's Army. The name's kinda misleading; we only gave the club that name because Umbridge and Fudge were so paranoid about Dumbledore creating an army of students to fight the Ministry."

Anyway, the D.A is a club where students can practice Defense. I'm adding other things, though Defense is still the main subject. You know when there's gonna be a meeting with these." Harry handed each Draco, Pansy, and Blaise one of the galleons Hermione had charmed the year before.

"The date and time are written on the side. If I change mine, the others heat up and let everyone else know that there's another meeting soon."

"Who's the leader of the club?" Pansy asked.

"I suppose I am, technically. Ron, Hermione, and Ginny are kind of co-leaders. They'll be taking a more active role this year. Ron has agreed to teach strategy, Hermione will teach research skills, and Ginny will teach basic curses and hexes."

Actually, I was wondering if any of you had any special skills that you'd be willing to teach. Especially you, Malfoy."

"Why me?"

"I know for a fact that you know at least a few Dark spells; I also know from experience that you're an excellent duelist. I would be grateful if you would help me teach those subjects."

"Wait a minute!" Blaise exclaimed. "You mean to tell me that Harry Potter, Gryffindor's Golden Boy, knows the Dark Arts? And not only that, but he intends to teach them to other students?"

Harry smirked. "Yep. Dumbledore taught me a few things over the summer, including the Dark Arts. And as for that title, I'm not as "golden" as everyone believes."

Pansy looked at him suspiciously. "How do we know this isn't a trick?"

"I could do a demonstration."

"Without your wand?"

"Of course, Malfoy. How else will I convince you?"

When he received no response to this argument, Harry stood up from his seat.

'I need three glowing attack dummies," he thought to himself. No sooner had he though this than the dummies appeared in the center of the room.

"I would suggest that you three move to the corner and put up the strongest shield charms you can."

Upon seeing the dead-serious look in Harry's emerald eyes, Draco grabbed his friends and rushed to comply. When Harry was sure they were safe, he closed his eyes and extended his arms to either side of his body, palms out.

"A umbri!" he cried, voice husky with constrained power. A black, smoke-like substance began to exude from his body. The room, except for the glowing dummies, was completely engulfed within minutes.

"Cheironomia!"

The Slytherins watched in absolute shock as the shadows themselves began striking out at the dummies, leaving deep dents in the torsos. Pansy gulped as a head flew off of one of the targets, cleaving a path of light through the darkness.

After this had gone on for a few minutes, Harry decided that it was enough.

"Lumină!"

From near the center of the room, a ball of light appeared. As the light expanded, it was revealed that Harry was its source. The last of the shadows finally faded after what felt like an eternity to the Boy-Who-Lived.

The brunette swayed on his feet, worn out from the exertion of the magic he had cast. He flinched slightly as he fell, expecting to hit the ground. It was to his great surprise when a pair of strong arms caught him mid-fall. As he was gently lowered to the ground, Harry opened his eyes (which he didn't remember closing) and caught sight of none other than Draco Malfoy.

Draco was seated on the ground, Harry's head in his lap, when the shivering started. He closed his eyes in concentration, then opened them again when he heard a barely-audible 'pop.' He picked up the thick blanket that had appeared and wrapped it firmly around Harry's shaking shoulders.

"Thanks," he muttered softly, unconsciously nuzzling into the warmth of the other boy. Pansy and Blaise slowly sat down next to the pair, determinedly ignoring their friend's blush.

"I'll admit that was impressive, but I'd thought you would be able to handle it."

"I usually would be able to, but it's been about a month since I've used those kinds of spells. Almost two months since I did them without a wand."

Blaise flinched, while Draco's eyes widened. "Well if that's the case, I'm surprised you didn't pass out after the first spell!"

Pansy frowned, absorbed in her own thoughts. "Does anyone else find it ironic that there's a Dark spell for light?"

The boys blinked at her, glanced at each other, and burst out laughing. She grinned, her mission accomplished.

The comfortable silence persisted for a few more minutes, until Draco broke it.

"Potter? I've decided that I will help you teach those classes."

Blaise looked up. "If Draco's teaching, then so am I. I don't know much in the way of spells, but I could teach about different magical creatures."

"I can't teach spells, either," Pansy cut in. "I could do Herbology, though."

Harry grinned at his new allies. "Thank you, guys. A course on magical creatures is a good idea, since they'll play a large part in the War. As for Herbology, we do need a few plant specialists. However, two other people also approached me asking to teach these classes, and I told them I would allow it if I could find them partners. So both of you will be working alongside another person."

"Who?" they asked in unison.

Harry sat up slowly, still leaning on Draco for support. "Zabini will work with Remus."

"You mean our DADA teacher? Isn't he a werewolf?"

"Yes and yes. Parkinson, you're working with Neville. Before you say anything, I know he doesn't do so well in academics. The kid's a plant genius, though."

Pansy nodded after a moment of hesitation. "Fine, but I'm taking over the instant he screws up."

"So, any more questions?"

Draco tried, but he couldn't resist asking, "Why was Weasel talking to you again? I thought you'd said it'd take a week."

Harry smirked. "I wasn't factoring in the 'tragedy' of being paired with Slytherins today. Besides, he has some power over others with his position of one of my best friends. He may usually act like a Gryffindor, but he has quite a few Slytherin tendencies."

After a moment, Blaise spoke up. "I know Aurum can tell Potter if there's someone right outside the room, but what about the rest of the school?"

"I've got that covered," Harry replied as he removed a piece of folded parchment from his pocket. He unfolded it, revealing that it was blank.

"Uh, you do realize there's nothing on there?" Pansy asked skeptically.

"Not for long. My wand, Malfoy, if you please."

Draco dug into his pocket until he found the other boy's wand and handed it to him. The other three watched as he placed the tip of it on the center of the parchment.

"I solemnly swear that I'm up to no good," Harry muttered under his breath. He grinned at the Slytherins' faces as they watched the lines appear.

"So this is how you got around without being caught," Draco murmured as he stared at the moving dots.

"It was my dad's. He and his friends made it while they were at school. Anyway, we could leave now if you want; Filch is in his office at the moment, and Snape is in the Astronomy Tower."

Pansy nodded. "That sounds like a good idea."

The four stood up, Harry stumbling slightly. Draco looked slightly concerned, but made no move to help, for which Harry was grateful. They walked out of the room. After Harry had shut the door, he scooped up Aurum and rushed to catch up with the Slytherins.

XXXXXXXX

Harry grinned to himself as he walked back to the Common Room from the dungeons. Upon parting, the Silver Trio (as he'd come to call them) had informed him that they would try to recruit more Slytherins after attending a few D.A meetings themselves. Harry thought the meeting had gone very well overall; he'd set himself on the path to earning the Slytherins' trust and respect.

"Flaming phoenix," he said when he reached the portrait of the Fat Lady. As the portrait swung open, she muttered something about inconsiderate children.

Harry walked swiftly through the common room and up the stairs to the boys' dormitory, opening and closing the door as quietly as possible. He fell onto his bed, only divesting himself of his robes and glasses.

"Did your meeting go well?" a sleepy voice inquired from Ron's bed.

As Harry felt darkness envelop him, he grinned again.

"Better than I'd expected it to go, Ron," he replied softly as sleep wrapped him in its welcoming embrace.

Author's Notes: It's 12:30 in the morning, but I finished. I tried to kind of explain why Ron is on speaking terms with Harry again in this chapter. If people are still confused about the whole Ron thing, he's basically using Harry to maintain his social status. Harry knows this, but doesn't really mind at the moment.

There were a few odd words in this chapter; the meanings can be found below. I'm not going to list how the votes stand at the moment (it's getting difficult to keep track), but I am still taking them. I'm also not saying what the votes are for, since that was stated in the previous three chapters. Anyway…thanks for reading!

A umbri: Romanian for shadow

Cheironomia: Greek for shadow-boxing

Lumină: Romanian for light

These translations were found on online dictionaries, and as such may be inaccurate. I apologize if this is the case.

Thanks to the following people for reviewing chapter 3:

Gachnar
SwarmOfFanGirls
Yume Tsuki
rooftop weapon
smallvillewanabe4561
koorimechick
Xylia Luna Orion
whisper in the wind33