A/N: sorry I haven't been writing..I've been really busy. Anyway here's chapter 17.

Chapter 17

Harry was walking towards the Great Hall the next morning when he saw a small knot of people gathered around the notice board, Hermione and Ron included.

"Hi Ron, hi 'Mione," Harry sheepishly looked down.

"They're starting a Dueling Club, Harry!" Ron said excitedly.

"That's great! When?" Harry exclaimed, all guilt fading away.

"Tonight at eight. Ron and I were just going to ask-"

"If I wanted to come? Yeah! It sounds brilliant!"

So, at eight that evening the three headed back to the Great Hall.

"I wonder who'll be teaching us?" asked Hermione as they edged into the chattering crowd. "Someone told me Flitwick was a dueling champion was young-maybe it'll be him."

"As long as it's not-" Harry began, but he ended with a groan: Gilderoy Lockhart was walking onto the stage, resplendent in robes of deep plum and accompanied by none other than Severus Snape, wearing his usual black.

"Aww man, it's Lockhart," Ron groaned.

Hermione's eyes narrowed as she glared at Lockhart.

Lockhart waved an arm for silence and called, "Gather round, gather round! Can everyone see me? Can you all hear me? Excellent!"

Harry had to resist the urge to slap his forehead with his palm.

"Now, Professor Dumbledore has granted me permission to start this little dfueling club, to train you all in case you ever need to defend yourselves as I myself have done on countless occasions-for full details, see my published works."

"Yeah, right. Probably the only thing he knows how to defend himself against is a bad hair day," Ron muttered quietly.

Harry snorted, and Hermione covered her mouth to muffle her giggles.

"Let me introduce my assistant, Professor Snape," Lockhart continued, flashing a wide smile. "He tells me he knows a tiny little bit about dueling himself and has sportingly agreed to help me with a short demonstration before we begin. Now, I don't want any of you youngsters to worry-you'll still have your Potions master when I'm though with him, never fear!"

Harry, Ron, and Hermione rolled their eyes in unison.

"He'll have Lockhart in the hospital wing in no time. I'll bet all my money on it," Harry whispered to the others.

They nodded.

Severus's upper lip was curling. Harry wondered why Lockhart was still smiling; if Severus had been looking at him like that he'd have been running as fast as he could in the opposite direction

Lockhart and Severus turned to face each other and bowed; at least, Lockhart did, with much twirling of his hands, whereas Severus jerked his head irritably. Then they raised their wands like sword in front of them.

"As you can see, we are holding our wands in the accepted combative position," Lockhart told the silent crowd. "On the count of three, we will cast our first spells. Neither of us will be aiming to kill, of course,"
"I wouldn't bet on that," Harry muttered, watching Severus baring his teeth.

"One-two-three-"

Both of them swung their wands above their heads and pointed them at their opponent; Severus cried: "Expelliarmus!" There was a dazzling flash of scarlet light and Lockhart was blasted off his feet: He flew backwarc off the stage, smashed into the wall, and slid down it to sprawl on the floor.

"Do you think he's alright?" Hermione gasped.

"Who cares?" Ron and Harry exclaimed in unision.

Lockhart was getting unsteadily to his feet.

"Well, there you have it!" he said, tottering back onto the platform. "That was a disarming charm-as you see, I've lost my wand-ah, thank you Miss Brown-yes, an excellent idea to show them that, Professor Snape, but if you don't mind my saying so, it was very obvious what you were about to do-"

"Sure it was," Ron sniggered.

"-If I'd wanted to stop you it would have been only too easy-however, I felt it would be instructive to let them see..."

Severus was looking murderous. Prehaps Lockhart had noticed, because he said, "Enough demonstrating! I'm going to come amongst you and put you all in pairs. Professor Snape, if you'd like to help me-"

"Draco! I didn't expect to see you here!" Lockhart squealed, clapping his hands together and bouncing on the balls of his feet like a child. "Why don't you join Harry?"

"Oh, bloody hell," Ron groaned.

"Harry, Draco here is going to be your partner!" Lockhart was still smiling, even when Harry gave him an "are you insane?" glare.

Lockhart skipped away happily.

"He's bloody mad," Ron said in an undertone.

"I think for once, you and I are in agreement, Weaslebee," Draco sneered.

"Face your partners!" called Lockhart, back on the platform. "And bow!"

Harry and Malfoy barely inclined their heads, not taking their eyes off each other.

"Wands at the ready!" shouted Lockhart. "When I count to three, cast your charms to disarm your opponents-only to disarm them-we don't want any accidents-one...two...three-"

Harry swung hios wand hig, but Malfoy had already started on "two": his spell hit Harry so hard he felt as though he'd been hit over the head with a saucepan. He stumbled, but everything still seemed to be working, and wasting no more time, Harry pointed his wand straight at Malfoy and shouted, "Rictumsempra!"

A jet of silver light hit Malfoy in the stomach and he doubled up, wheezing.

"I SAID DISARM ONLY!" Lockhart hsouted in alarm over the heads of the battling crowd, as Malfoy sank to his knees; Harry had hit him with a Tickling Charm, and he could barely move for laughing. Harry hung back, with a vague feeling it would be unsporting to bewitch Malfoy while he was on the floor, but this was a mistake; gasping for breath, Malfoy pointed his wand at Harry's knees, choked, "Tarantallegra!" and the next second Harry's legs began to jerk out of his control in a kind of quickstep.

"Stop! Stoop!" s creamed Lockhart, but Severus took charge.

"Finite Incantatem!" he shouted; Harry's feet stopped dancing, Malfoy stopped laughing, and they were able to look up..

"I think I'd better teach you how to block unfriendly spells," said Lockhart, standing flustered in the midst of the hall. He glanced at Severus, whose black eyes glittered, and looked quickly away.

"Let's have a volunteer pair-Longbottom and Finch-Fletchley, how about you-"

"A Bad idea, Professor Lockhart," said Severus, gliding over like a large and marvelous bat. "Longbottom causes devastaion with the simplest of spells. We'll be sending what's left of Finch-Fletchley up to the hospital wing in a matchbox."

Neville's face went pink.

"How about Malfoy and Poter?" Severus suggested.

"Excellent idea!" said Lockhart, gesturing Harry and Malfoy into the middle of the hall as the crowd backed away to give them room.

"Now, Harry," said Lockhart. "When Draco points his wand at you, you do this."

He raised his own wand, attempted a complicated sort of wiggling action, and dropped it. Severus smirked as Lockhart quickly picked it up, saying, "Whoops-my wans is a little overexcited-"

Harry looked up nervously at Lockhart and said, "Professor, could you show me that blocking thing again?"

"Scared?" Malfoy muttered, so that Lockhart couldn't hear him.

"You wish," said Harry out of the corner of his mouth.

Lockhart cuffed Harry merrily on the shoulder. "Just do what I did, Harry!"

"What, drop my wand?"

But Lockhart wasn't listening.

"Three-two-one-go!" he shouted.

Malfoy raised his wand quickly and bellowed, "Serpensortia!"

The e3nd of his wand exploded. Harry watched, aghast, as a long black snake shot out of it, fell heavily onto the floor between them, and raised itself, ready to strike. There were screams as the crowd backed swiftly away, clearing the floor.

"Don't worry," Severus sighed, "I'll get rid of it..."

"Allow me!" shouted Lockhart. He brandished his wand at the snake and there was a loud bang; the snake, instead of vanishing, flew ten feet into the air and fell back to the floor with a loud smack. Enraged, hissing furiously, it slithered straight toward Justin Finch-Fletchley and raised itself again, fangs exposed, poised to strike.

Harry wasn't sure what made him do it, He wasn't even aware of deciding to do it. All he knew was that his legs were carrying him forward as though he was on casters and that he had shouted stupidly at the snake, "Leave him alone!" And miraculously-inexplicably-the snake slumped to the floor, docile as a thick, black garden hose, its eyes now on Harry. Harry felt the fear drain out of him. He knew the snake eouldn't attack anyone now, though how he knew it, he couldn't have explained.

He looked up at Justin, grinning, expecting to see him looking relieved, or puzzled, or even grateful-but certainly not angry or scared.

"What do you think you're playing at?" he shouted, and before Harry could say anything, Justin turned and stormed out of the hall.

Severus stepped forward, waved his wand, and the snake vanished. Thwn he turned to look worriedly at Harry.

"Come on," Ron hissed, pushing him towards the door.

"What is wrong with everyone?" Harry asked. "Why were they all looking so scared? I just told the snake to leave Justin alone-"

"Oh, that's what you said to it!" Ron exclaimed.

"Yeah, you were there! You heard me-"

"I heard you speaking Parseltongue, mate, you know? Snake language,"

"I-I spoke a different language? But I didn't even know I was speaking Parseltongue!" Harry exclaimed.

"Yeah, well anyway, it sounded like you were egging the snake on or something," Hermione whispered quietly.

"But I wasn't!" Harry exclaimed.

"We know, Harry, we know," Hermione said.

"But I bet everyone can speak Parseltongue, right?" Harry asked.

"No, Harry. Knowing Parseltongue isn't a good sign at all. The reason everyone's so scared is because Salazaar Slytherin can talk to snakes. That's why the serpent is the Slytherin symbol. And now everyone's going to think you're the heir, Harry. It's not good, not good at all." Hermione whispered, shaking her head.