Haruno Sakura and the War of Two Worlds

By Inner Self

Hey, I'm back! I haven't given up yet so I (90 percent) most likely won't. I had something awesome planned to say, but my data got erased. This won't be as catch as it was on the first try (aren't I the pessimist?) Anyway, I couldn't think of a title. Everyone who reviews has a week to... um... review with a title suggestion. ::sigh:: I really do hate my computer right now. Or , if i want to get technical.

Fun Fact: My lab partner in physiology was the Chosen One! Message me if you care to learn more!

"Bold." I am blatantly copying J. K. Rowling text-NOT MUCH! And the Hogwart's song. It's just because the fifth book is where my story diverges from the original.

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. I did, however, buy the Harry Potter movies.

Chapter 4: "Nefariousness, for lack of a better title"

When Draco opened the "Golden Trio's" cabin door, the Potter boy was already looking expectantly in his direction. Draco was not joking about his dramatic entrances apparently. Although the Potter boy thought he ws prepared for the episode, he did not expect the pink-haired girl who trailed Draco inside the cabin. Draco leaned smugly against the doorway. His new female lackey distanced herself (thank heavens), signaling a platonic relationship but strengthening a sense of fellowship.

"What do you want?" said Harry, one part aggression, another part exasperation. He did not want to let his schoolboy nemesis gain an edge in their first conflict of the year.

"Manners, Potter, or I'll have to give you a detention." drawled Malfoy, whose sleek blond hair and pointed chin were just like his father's. "You see, I, unlike you, have been made a prefect, which means that I, unlike you, have the power to hand out punishments."

Yeah," said Harry, "but you, unlike me, are a git, so get out and leave us alone."

Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and Neville laughed. Malfoy's lip curled.

"Tell me, how does it feel being second-best to Weasley, Potter?" he asked.

"Shut up, Malfoy," said Hermione sharply.

"I seem to have touched a nerve," said Malfoy, smirking, "Well, just watch yourself, Potter, because I'll be dogging your footsteps in case you step out of line."

"Get out!" said Hermione, standing up.

Sakura pursed her lips, filling into her role of the haughty Slytherin royal. "My, my, Miss Granger. Is that the kind of hospitality your parents taught you?" She sighed as if pitying her fellow prefect. Hermione glared at her but said nothing. Sakura turned her game to Mr. Pain-in-Draco's-Backside Potter. "Aha, if is isn't Harry Potter. Encantada," Sakura said, filled with enthusiasm. Just the type of person Harry disliked encountering, even more than Malfoy. Malfoy he could hex within reason.

Harry's brows knotted up in confusion and dismay. Sakura sauntered over to Harry's seat and squeezed in (gracefully) between Harry and the red-headed poppet (Weaslette). She motioned to casually yet flirtatiously move Harry's messy bangs out of his face, like she had seen Anko do before on missions, but Harry flinched away. Sakura corrected her posture to a more reserved position.

"Surely you know how to pour tea for a lady?" Sakura probed.

Ron scowled. "All the ladies in this compartment just finished tea." Sakura ignored him easily. She rests her arm on the head cushion, elbow ben with hand behind head and back to the red-heads.

"Do you know the proper way to pour tea, Harry Potter? Well, I suppose you do not in this country. Eastern men on occasion will pour in the presence of ladies. Here. Let me."

Curious as much as she was studious, Sakura had taken the liberty of learning how to summon tea and table with magic the night before. It had assuaged her homesickness somewhat.

Draco shook his head. Sakura had conjured the water as well as heated it up. She was taking ground green tea leaves out of a bag in her robe pocket to add to the cauldron-like pot. Draco finally drawled, "What are you doing, Sakura?"

The hosts almost forgot that the dastardly Slytherin was there. Their looks of content turned into frowns of annoyance once more. It was too good to be true that the leader would relieve them of his presence without at least the one follower trailing in his wake. Sakura looked up from her preparations, smiling innocently. "Keep your friends close and your enemies closer, Draco." The Gryffindors all scowled at her, possibly feeling betrayed in the few seconds they'd started to get attached to their new acquaintance.

Luna surprisingly replies dreamily, "That was beautiful. You should consider writing an article for The Quibbler on the virtues of anonymous quotes. My favorite is 'Wherever you go, there you are'. Such inspiring, sage words."

Sakura politely nods. The glares have been replaced by incredulous looks. Draco, utterly bored he would have said, abandons his bad boy pose aside the cabin doorway. "Have it your way, Sakura. I for one do not intend to spend another minute in Scar-Head's foul presence. 'To each his own'." He makes a face of revulsion/at-your-own-peril and exits.

Silence lasted until Sakura pushed a cup of tea into Ron's hands. She serves the others gracefully. After staring at it, Ron drops it and sputters, "What are you guy's doing? It could be poisoned!" he added desperately, "Don't drink that, Harry! She's a Slytherin!"

Harry and Hermione experienced feelings of indecision. The pink-haired witch was most likely a snobby new girl who liked to show off her superior talents. Hmm...did that sound familiarly like someone else? Nah. Hermione, Harry, and the rest of the gang looked down at their tea. Luna sniffed it.

"Your prefect friend happens to be correct. While likely that the tea is harmless, there is always a possibility of poison. I do not begrudge him after what I quoted earlier. That quote was just for a lark," she said. To convince her audience of her inoffensive intentions. "See?"

Luna took a sip. "It shows no trace of poison yet."

Sakura nearly choked on her tea (a smidgen ungracefully). "Are you insane?" she asked Luna worriedly. "Is that how you people test for toxins?"

Ginny commented dryly, "Ron is the only one in this room taking the whole poisoning thing seriously."

Harry grins bemusedly. "We love him anyway."

The happy bunch laughed. Ron blushed, not knowing whether to be embarrassed or humbled. When the laughter died, Sakura informed them of a trick to use in common poison detection. Hermione nearly died of shock. "Dead serious," promised Sakura, "Toss a grain of rice into any liquid substance. If it colors, it's poisonous." (Note: I got that from another fanfiction, one of Lady Hanaka's I believe, a long time ago).

"Oh, if only the aurors knew!" Hermione gushed. "That's absolutely brilliant-so simple yet brilliant!"

Sakura smirked. "I know."

Throwing in an unrelated topic, Ron asked, "Does this or does this not look like a horned-toad pimple cure-all potion, Harry?" He was referring to the moderately concentrated green tea.

Harry grimaced, thinking of the days to come. "Urgh, I nearly forgot how much I hated potions."

"Yeah," Ron said, commiserating.

"Oh, snap out of it," Hermione implored them. "You two will do fine, better than last year if you turn in all your assignments and put extra effort into studying." She added in for Sakura, "I think you will do just as well. I can even help you study. I can help you make solid grades. Afterall, I received top marks last year." The way she said it was not meaningfully snobbish.

"Oh, that will not be necessary, Miss Granger," said Sakura cooly, feeling prideful of her own talents yet happy for the consideration. It was an odd mix. She amounted it to the conversation she had heard between the Gryffindor prefects during the meeting. Besides, if Hermione were to be a rival, Sakura would feel obliged to never accept assistance from her. "I will be taking that top spot for myself. I know I can surpass you in potions. As for the other courses, we will just have to see." She smiled, challenge in her eyes. "Slytherin ambitions. I'm sure you understand."

Sakura gave a pointed look to the group. "I came here to declare my rivalry against the Gryffindor Trio. It will be official starting tomorrow. I wanted to make a formal declaration." She took out a folded cloth, merely a mint green handkerchief sans curlicues, and tossed it lightly unto the conjured table.

Their expressions rapidly turned to anger. Harry glowered, "How can you simply decide to bully us? Malfoy is the only wanker who never bloody leaves us the hell alone! Why you, too?"

Ron added justly, "Yeah, he's just a bloody wanking son of a Deatheater."

Hermione crossed her arms. "Honestly, it's his father and others like him that we bother ourselves with. Malfoy and his misdeeds are not worth our time."

"Hold on, Hermione. He's a Deatheater-to-be. We all know it's inevitable. Don't let it take that girl by surprise. One day he'll kiss arse to Voldemort just like his father and all the other pureblood extremists. If anybody is going to be dogging anybody, it's you and Ron. He's the one that's always up to no good." Harry glanced at Sakura. "I'll just continue doing what it is that non-prefects do."

Sakura stared pensively at Harry.

"Why are you still here?" asked Hermione, glaring pointedly at Sakura. "We like to hold our enemies at a distance-get out."

"I was just curious as to why Draco would start a rivalry against an unkempt boy like yourself," she said to Harry. "What makes you so special?" she wondered, eyes glistening with intrigue.

Before the cabin could be thrust into dumbfounded silence, Ginny blurted, "Are you an idiot? It's because he's the Boy-Who-Lived! Harry is only the youngest hero that the Wizarding World has ever seen. Where have you been?"

The group laughed, Hermione and Luna drawing upon herd instinct. Harry's serious gaze locked unto Sakura's undisguised curious ones.

"This is why," he said authoritatively as he swept his hair out of his face. Curious, Sakura sad back down to get a better angle. Underneath his growing fringe was a lightningbolt-shaped scar.

"My, my, that's a nasty one; unnatural," Sakura murmured the comment audibly. Then she noted, 'It looks fresh. Old scars are white.'

"Voldemort gave me this scar when I was but an infant. He killed my parents and left me orphaned," said Harry. His tone grew hoarse just from talking about it.

Her eyes shaded. Her voice was cool when she asked softly, "I suppose you want revenge now, too?"

His eyes glowed heatedly, "You're bloody right I do. Voldemort's back"-the others flinched at this-"I saw him with my own eyes. The Prophet is lying. I'll make sure the Wizarding World knows about Voldemort's return"-they flinched again, less severely-"and make sure he gets taken down. The people will believe me and they will side with good."

Sakura broke the eye contact and stood up. She looked at Hermione, "Miss Granger, the wandwork using in the dismissal of conjured objects escapes me. I trust you can do away with it when you are finished? Everyone, enjoy the tea."

She slid the cabin door open. Looking back, eyes dark emerald in contemplation, she called, "And Potter, any foolish plans for revenge, feel free to leave everyone else out of them."

Sakura worked her way to Draco's compartment. She skimmed a glance at cabin occupants on either side of her. It was more difficult to locate Draco than locating Potter had been. The sun had finally gone down behind the rolling hills. With the formal black schoolrobes shadowing his form, all she had to search by was the faint glow of blond hair here or there. Sakura felt the train slow down. Off in the distance, a lighted community came into view. Taking a break from her search, Sakura watched the houses and lamplights come closer and closer.

The Hogwarts Express stopped at a station set on the edge of the glowing, sleepy town. Sakura thought it strange that most of the townspeople appeared to have turned in for the night, and yet, their town was kept so well lit. The streetlamps shone the brightest on an ascending forest trail, which led around a great blackwater lake. Situated above the lake was a dozing castle: Hogwarts. Sakura immediately called it to mind.

A door slid open down the hallway, its occupant perhaps in a hurry. "Oh, good, there you are," said a boy in a signature drawl. Draco. Sakura sighed in relief.

"Goyle has my carry-on and my eagle owl familiar. Pansy is not the most pleased with you and makes for terrible company right now so we will go ahead," he explained.

"Do you not want to stay with your friends regardless?" She queries, just for information.

"I am above their power struggles. Pansy and Queenie's gang does nothing but get on my everlasting nerve as a whole. Together they are sirens; ceaseless, sniping sirens. I would rather get stuck in a room for days with only Potter to keep the silence at bay, Kiss-Arse, Never-Do-Wrong Potter," he answered, tone dripping with revulsion.

Sakura wisely stayed silent.

... ... ... ... ...

Draco pointed out that ("Thankfully!" exclaimed the nearby First Years collectively) the students would get to the castle by carriage and that the First Years went by boat. Frankly, Sakura would have preferred the a boat ride. She did her best to avert her gaze from the silver eyes of the phantom horse creatures. They seemed docile and obedient, but when she locked gaze with one, she drew up memories of deaths she had witnessed. Thankfully, they were old, dulled memories, and her most present experience was excluded from recall. Restraining a shiver at their general creepiness, Sakura got on the carriage and rested her head against the pane. A couple of Ravenclaws got on with them and they silently, comfortably rode towards the school.

"Why did you not change?" asked Draco when they were scaling the steps of Hogwarts. The great doors opened when Professor McGonagall taped the knocker with her wand.

Sakura glanced at her appearance. Everybody else wore economic, standard black robes, most likely the dress code. She shrugged. "I did not feel like changing. These are more comfortable. Thank-you for suggesting them, Draco." Actually, her others were being washed pre-use by the house elves.

He acknowledged her gratitude and strolled onward. He thought Professor McGonagall would take Sakura aside, but Sakura continued to follow him. She would then be introduced during the feast. He made sure to sit next to her at the Slytherin House table. Pansy was somewhere down the table with her pose, having arrived last. Crabbe and Goyle managed to lumber into seats on the other side of Draco and Sakura.

Suddenly, the great hall doors from the entrance hall opened. Professor McGonagall appeared once more, leading a cared group of children, obviously the first years that Sakura, Draco, and all the other prefects would shepherd that night. She was carrying a stool, and on the stool sat the sorting hat. She swiftly brought the stool to the fron of the hall. She set it before the staff table, magical hat set atop the stool.

Sakura felt a little mused at the terrified looks on the children's faces. 'They must believe they are being given a preliminary test. It's funny, but a bit cruel. I bet Kakashi-senpai would find it utterly hilarious.'

Silence befell the great hall. The anticipation was great. Professor McGonagall retrieved the new student list and waited patiently. The brim of the sorting hat opened up. It exhuberantly went into song:

"In times of old when I was new

And Hogwarts barely started

The founders of our noble school

Thought never to be parted:

United by a common goal,

They had the selfsame yearning,

To make the world's best magic school

And pass along their learning.

'Together we will build and teach!'

The four good friends decided

And never did they dream that they

Might someday be divided,

***for were there such friends anywhere

As Slytherin and Gryffindor?***

Unless it was the second pair

Of Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw?

So how could it have gone so wrong?

*How could such friendships fail?*

Why, I was there and so I can tell

The whole sad, sorry tale.

Said Slytherin, 'We'll teach just those

Whose ancestry is purest.'

Said Ravenclaw, 'We'll teach those whose

Intelligence is the surest.'

Said Gryffindor, 'We'll teach all those

With brave deeds to their name,'

Said Hufflepuff, 'I'll teach the lot,

And treat them all the same.'

These differences caused little strife

When first they came to light,

For each of the four founders had

A House in which they might

Take only those they wanted, so,

For instance, Slytherin

Took only pure-blood wizards

Of great cunning, just like him,

And only those of sharpest mind

Were taught by Ravenclaw

Wile the bravest and the boldest

Went to daring Gryffindor.

Good Hufflepuff, she took the rest,

And taught them all she knew,

Thus the Houses and their founders

Retained friendships firm and true.

So Hogwarts worked in harmony

For several happy years,

But then discord crept among us

Feeding on our faults and fears..."

It was beautiful poetry. Sakura was pulled in by the broken friendship of Slytherin and Gryffindor. In her tale, only the Gryffindor remained. She killed the Slytherin. Sakura never wondered until now what Naruto would think of her actions. She took the easy way out. She seduced her friend and put a swift end to his rampage. The only casualty for Konoha had been Danzo. Naruto always said that he could not be hokage if he could not manage to keep his friends safe. What would he do now? Sakura put an end to his first problem and ended up missing as well.

When the sorting hat finished and became motionless, the great hall broke out into applause, interspersed with mutterings and whispers from every table, a little less from Slytherin. Sakura almost questioned Draco about the sorting hat's advisory tone when a scorching look from Professor McGonagall swept quickly over the entire hall. She unwound the list of first year names and began reading it immediately.

She started with Euan Abercrombie, who was sorted into Gryffindor. He received a thunderous applause from his new housemates.

"I see Dumbledore finally got rid of that oaf Hagrid. His classes were a joke I tell you. The fool nearly got me murdered in Third Year," whispered Draco, hoping Sakura would conspire with him. Sakura was busy catching glares from Miss Pansy Parkinson, so she only listened halfheartedly.

When Zeller Rose was sorted into Hufflepuff, Professor McGonagall put away her name scroll. She took up the sorting hat and the stool and marched them out of the great hall. Professor Dumbledore took her departure as his queue and rose to his feet.

"Anyway, the new Care for Magical Creatures professor is Professor Grubbly-Plank. She will be announced by the old codger"-Dumbledore-"The professors never sit anywhere new. She has Hagrid's old chair," Draco explained."Our head of house is on her right, in the corner. You can hardly see him with all the shadows he casts," Draco informed. Indeed he was. Professor Snape looked as if he was staring down one student especially hard. His arms were folded over his chest (again) as per usual when he appeared at social gatherings.

"To our newcomers," said Dumbledore in a ringing voice, his arms stretched wide and a beaming smile on his lips, "welcome! To our old hands-welcome back! There is a time for speech making, but this is not it. Tuck in!"

Professor Snape unfolded his arms and took his gaze off the Gryffindor table when the feast abruptly came into vision. He ate properly with as much grace and as little noise as possible. The Headmaster occasionally roped him into a conversation.

Sakura was drawn from her observations by her own food in front of her. Someone reached for it. She grabbed her chopsticks and slapped them down swiftly on the back of Goyle's hand. 'Wait a minute,' she paused and looked down at the eating utensils. 'Chopsticks?' She looked to Professor Dumbledore. He was looking at her, with what she believed was a twinkling eye. Her first course was made specially to remind her of home. It was a beautiful gesture. Sakura offered to share with the people around her. Everyone but Crabbe and Goyle declined. They practically dove for her meal. Disgusted, she allowed them to finish it off and tried some more of the foreign specialties instead. She forwent the pumpkin juice. Thankfully, the bears sitting across form her spared the plum tea. She sipped it pensively.

When the laughter and conversation started picking up, Dumbledore decided that the students had finished supper. He rose again to give a speech worthy of being called a speech. The noise level that had been escalating steadily through supper dropped immediately. All eyes turned toward the Headmaster. To Sakura, they all appeared to be glazed over. 'Looks like this is conidered late for some students.'

Professor Dumbledore began the start of term notices. Sakura saw Draco doing his best to keep from resting his head on the table and to keep his elbow off of it as well. The Headmaster warned the first years that the forest was out of bounds. he hinted the same to some mysterious delinquents. Draco informed Sakura that the Headmaster was referring to Potter and his sidekicks. Sakura wondered just how the sidekicks became prefects. Sh saw the trio exchange conspiratorial smirks.

"Mr. Filch, the caretaker, has asked me, for what he tells me is the four hundred and sixty-second time, to remind you all that magic is not permitted in the corridors between classes, nor are a number of other things, all of which can be checked on the extensive list now fastened to Mr. Filch's office door." Draco and Sakura shared a laugh of their own. That number was bound to go up because of loud Gryffindor retaliations.

"A good Slytherin can get away with it," said Draco cockily.

Professor Dumbledore then explained the new changes to the staff. The students were lost to enthusiasm by then but clapped anyway. Sakura saw the trio share slightly panicked looks at the mention of... the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. She resembled one of Naruto's failed toad summons. Only pinker. She wore a big, black bow on her head to offset all the pink. That did not help the mental image. All the pink made Sakura want to go to Hogsmeade and alter her hair.

Sakura snapped out of her musings when she heard her name announced. Draco decorously rushed her out of her seat. She stood elegantly poised at his side. Sakura waved to the student body. She was hard to miss. She was the only student out of dress code. Of course now they thought she thought herself above the school dress code. Wonderful.

Sakura and Draco sat back down.

Professor Dumbledore was making his way to the last announcement. He was giving the date of quidditch tryouts just as the amphibious new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher interrupted him. Dumbledore held his surprise better than the other staff members. They did their best to feign attention. 'She needs to learn her place,' growled Inner Sakura, simmering with annoyance. Sakura did her best to follow the new teacher's speech, from the condescending introduction to the underlying ominous tones in the conclusion. Her brows knitted together. She looked to the Potter boy again. His friend Granger had listened to the whole thing as well.

When it was over and Umbridge seated herself, Dumbledore clapped. The teachers reluctantly followed his good example. Sakura gave three solid hand claps and decided those were enough. Draco had succumbed to sleep and was resting his head in his hand. 'It's too bad the Gryffindors have to deal with him when he's awake,' she mused, "he's so kawaii when he's asleep.'

Professor Dumbledore thanked Umbridge on her "illuminating" speech. His eyes held no twinkling particles. Sakura thought his choice word interesting. She was thinking "informative". They were synonymous. Professor Umbridge was a ministry employee, working under the craven, crowd-pleasing Minister Fudge. Umbridge's arrival might have been Sakura's fault. She could be monitoring the educational system and ensuring it was up to Sakura's standards (if she had any or cared in the least). Or perhaps the woman was sent to enforce the peaceful atmosphere of a proper boarding school. Sakura thought she was a poor choice.

"That had to be the dullest speech I ever heard of a professor," said one of the prefects gathered int he entrance to the great hall. Dumbledore had given the signal for them to depart after Umbridge's speech. They were all waiting for the students to break up into their years and form a buddy system. Then the prefects would take them back to the dormitories with minimal difficulties.

"Look underneath the underneath, Ernie," Sakura replied, using the same ambiguous murmur her Kakashi-senpai would.

Because she was a prefect, Ernie MacMillan only shot her a glare. The two Ravenclaw prefects gave her an entirely different glare. She could almost hear the sniped comment: Ministry dog. They would be keeping their prefect business out of Sakura's earshot.

She glared back at them knowingly. "I would like to enjoy my years here. I could just as easily been sorted into your house. Then one of you would not have your position. Even then, do you think you would share such hostility to me so openly?" Their glares let up reluctantly. It was unwise to pick fights. They left quarreling to the Gryffindors, the back-stabbing to the Slytherins. Sakura reminded herself not to make anymore enemies aside from the Gryffindor Trio.

Dumbledore sent them a casual wave. The seventh year prefects, Head Boy, and Head Girl took turns calling to their flock. Slytherin and Hufflepuff were guided down to the dungeons, brightly lit so as to ease the first years into the dark, dank atmosphere. The sixth year prefects brought up the rear. The fifth year prefects watched for any stragglers as the great hall emptied.

"No Slytherin firsties, as it should be," Draco said, hinting pride. Draco smirked, "That's good for them. Any Slytherin that falls behind or forgets the password gets a stinging hex. Our house believes in discipline." He started walking out of the great hall. Sakura fell into step accordingly. "Now, let's go get the password from the sixth year prefects. I hope you have something to barter with." Sakura promised the sixth year prefect girl a five minute miracle massage. The female upperclassman tried to barter for more time, but Sakura assured her that the miracle massage was a matter of technique, not time. It was guaranteed to obliterate all snipey tendencies a week or your money back.

... ... ... ... ...

Pansy did her absolute best to be atrocious to Sakura. She failed. (Well, that's because Sakura's kunoichi. Even Chuck Norris fears kunoichi.) Pansy tried to bully Sakura, and that was all that mattered. She gave Sakura the bed under the dripping ceiling stone. The House-Elves, taking note that someone was going to use the bed, conjured a protective canopy and air-dried the matress. Even the sheets and pillow coverings were changed out for fresh ones. Sakura hardly registered their presence, just like the time in the library. She called out "thank-you", but the house elves were long gone.

Pansy also "misplaced" Sakura's brush the next morning. When Sakura had come out of the loo, she caught Pansy make it vanish magically. Sakura pretended to look for it while the girls left. They made sure to slam the door. Sakura thought it unreasonable and immature. Pulling out her wand, Sakura summoned Pansy's brush. It bit her. Restraining her irritation, Sakura took a deep breath. She grabbed her charms book from under her bed and spent the next ten minutes learning how to make a "simple household item" reappear.

When she got to the common room, Draco was nowhere to be seen. Of course Pansy and pose would tell him that womanly woes were inconveniencing her. That she would catch up. Thankfully, she remembered how to get to the great hall.

Knowing how to get to the great hall was the easy part. Stealthily passing by Peeves, who so happened to be the resident poltergeist, was another matter. She managed to only get hit by the first water balloon. She scolded herself. She should be more alert.

Sakura was able to munch down two banana nut muffins with tea after receiving her schedule from Draco, given to him by the Deputy Headmistress McGonagall. Draco and she then went to the first class of the day-potions. Draco spotted Harry standing out of his friends' way, who seemed to be trifling about something positively inane.

Draco, of course, launched into a confrontation. The Slytherin girls stood off to Draco's side, silently cheering him on. No doubt they'd pin today's episode on Sakura if they could, ensuring Draco's innocence. Alas, the Draco-Harry feuds were well-known to all Hogwartians (hog-WART-yans).

"By my ears," Draco began in mock surprise, "Is it true what they say? Potty has gone nutty?"

"What do you want, Malfoy?" Harry demanded.

"Surely you of all people don't believe the prophet," Ron said angrily, clearly referencing to the student body of his father's alleged allegiance to the Dark Lord. How could Lucius Malfoy, widely known philantropist, be a loyal servant of a dead man?

"Your barking, Potter," Draco sneered, lip curled maliciously. "You should be locked up."

On cue, Hermione and Ron grabbed hold of Harry to restrain him. They were the only two who expected such a strong reaction, out of all the times Draco had taunted them. Sakura took an authoritative step forward, for what, she did not know. In Konoha, shinobi commonly settled disputes with one-on-one sparring matches. Take Ino and she as the perfect example. Or better yet, Naruto and... ahem. She did not want to think of that.

"One more animal reference out of you and you'll regret it, Malfoy," Harry growled, and spat Draco's name.

Draco sneered. "Ten points from Gryffindor, Potter, for your bitching."

Harry ripped his arms loose and swung out at Draco. Sakura let him. The hit landed to the side of Draco's porcelain face. A bit of everywhere on that side, really. Sakura grabbed him by the collar of his uniform before his head could smack against the cobblestone dungeon floor. Blood pooled in Draco's mouth and dribbled down his lip. Harry's hand would be feeling the recoil once the adrenaline wore off. Harry was still in range for a second shot. Sakura gripped Draco's upper arm in one hand. With the other, she forcefully shoved Harry out of range. "Cool it."

The doors swung open. Harry's friends yelled at him, although a couple of the boys did not sound willingly negative. The red-headed boy almost sounded supportive of the act. "What is going on here?" Professor Snape started to reprimand Harry in his cold, hard tone.

The Gryffindors were surprised when they did not nave to defend themselves.

Sakura spoke, assuaging his anger. "It's alright, Professor Snape. Draco should have blocked it. I'll have him healed up immediately. Luckily it's a muggle wound." The students eyed her curiously, even gawkingly. Some had sense to fear for her safety. No matter how crazy the new girl may be, no one lived up to Professor Snape's horrible reputation. Although she was a Slytherin, allowing Sakura control of the situation denied Snape of his favorite pasttime.

Sakura wasted no time and began pooling calming chakra into Draco's skin. He would have been itching for immediate retaliation otherwise. Without the adrenaline rush, he started to moan from the pain. The students and-though he would never admit-the professor were stunned into silence. Snape broke up the gawking when he barked, "This is not healing magic 101...GET TO CLASS-INSIDE!"-and trailed off when the doors shut behind him-"You dunderheads will be taking your potions O.W.L.s this year. I expect high performances from this lot..."

When Sakura and Draco walked into the classroom, they were already five minutes behind, ten by the time they accumulated the required ingredients for the day's potion, the Draught of Peace ("Of all potions," she heard Draco grumble). Feeling out of it and lacking in enthusiasm, Draco handed his text over to Sakura.

"It's just like cooking. The secret is that if you pay attention and follow directions, the potion is brewed sucessfully," he said sarcastically, making sure Harry heard him. "Scar-Head has spent four years and counting trying to figure that one out." Sakura ignored the domestic comment. He was just trying to relate the subject to something she was (maybe) familiar with.

She set to work quickly and did her best to catch up. She started out slow, deciding to prepare the ingredients first. It would help her in the long term. She could focus more on what the directions called for specifically then. She chopped, diced, powdered, ground, skinned, and minced as specifically as possible. She made a few heads turn to the sounds of her potion-making frenzy. "Make sure to double-check me, Draco. The first thing I learned about magical potions was how easily they combust. I don't need a demonstration." Draco nodded unenthusiastically.

Professor Snape called when there were ten minutes left for the on-time potions. "A light silver vapor should be rising from your potion." Draco and Sakura's was blue, paling by the minute, and bubbling. Draco brought down the heat and told her she was clear for the final process.

She was about to add the last ingredient before Draco grabbed her wrist. He whispered harshly, "Not yet!" he cooled down. "You have to give it a few minutes."

Sakura released a breath she was holding. To think she almost made a mistake.

Draco and Sakura still needed a couple minutes to complete the potion, but Draco assured her that Professor Snape was understanding with his students. Of course his students were understandably of the House of Slytherin.

Professor Snape berated Harry for misreading the third line of instructions. It was an easy mistake. Still, mistakes were not made as often when one had to earn the right to learn potion-making. Sakura was starting to think that the majority of the Hogwarts population took magical education for granted.

Snape instructed everyone except for Harry to bring a sample of their potions up to his desk for testing and gave out an assignment on the properties of moonstone. To Draco and Sakura, he said, "You two may finish. You have ten minutes. Ten points to Slytherin for bringing unusual, unexpected talent to the student body." Sakura blushed at the compliment (again). She knew she was on Snape's good side, despite how she took charge in the Harry-Draco incident. Well, she was his appointed/requested healer. The Granger girl smirked. Would Ino be jealous of her new rivals?

Adding the last ingredient, Draco snickered, "Poor bookish Granger. She'll never get House points in this class."

Sakura laughed with him. He got up to turn in the sample. Something from one of the passing student's ingredient trays fell. Sakura grabbed it four inches from the rim of her cauldron. Pansy! Sakura looked up. It was some other Slytherin. He apologized. His hand had slipped. Sakura could tell he meant it. Yet, Pansy was walking right behind him. Sakura pretended not to notice her, picked up her own tray, and headed for the disposal bin and cleaning station.

... ... ... ... ...

Right after dinner, Sakura told Draco that she wanted some alone time. He understood, just like she understood the day on the train. She hoped Pansy would take the opportunity to chat him up (incessantly, not that it was her problem) and absolve her jealousy towards Sakura. Sakura strolled along the castle corridors. In general, she was taking the time to be a kid again, exploring and experiencing new wonders. She journeyed to every tower, excusing the Gryffindor and Ravenclaw ones past their portraits, and bypassed the dungeons, her new home. When Sakura got the final frontier, the DADA tower, she stepped lightly. Sakura knew to be cautious around Minister Fudge's eyes and ears. One unsanctioned move could land her in the legendary, feared prison of Azkaban, tried under her ex de facto breach of the International Statute of Secrecy.

The door suddenly opened. Sakura concentrated her chakra in her feet and jumped unto the high wall, just below the ceiling. She squeaked. Sakura hurriedly snatched at her robes to cover her lower half. A boy had walked out (moodily, she noted perceptively) from Umbridge's classroom. he was clasping his hand with the other.

'Ah. It's the Potter boy,' she thought deviously. Harry's friends were not with him. His thoughts had him preoccupied so he had not been alerted to Sakura's presence. He descended the tower staircase in search of a place to be alone. Or so it seemed. Would anyone so moody go in search of others? Sakura decided to ruin that plan. She eyeballed the torches that lighted the staircase. She'd have to use a genjutsu to hide her shadow. Or... she could do it the "muggle way", in honor of her new favorite word. The object of Sakura's game was to move methodically when his back was to her position. Anyone coming up the stairs would see her though, she and her overly cast shadow. She applied chakra to her palms as well to make her maneuvers more efficient.

Sakura won her little game. Harry reached the bottom without detecting her. Sakura grinned ('Shannaro!') and pumped her fist into the air. For bonus points, she jumped off the wall and over Harry's head. She landed in front of him, arms spread wide, and exclaimed, "BOO!"

Startled, Harry jerked back, pulled out his wand, and shouted, "STUPIFY!"

Wide-eyed, Sakura hurriedly rolled sideways to avoid the powerful defensive spell.

Realizing what he'd done, Harry yelled, "What the bloody hell do you think you were doing?"

Sakura eyed him curiously. "You are an impulsive one. Not very likeable for that trait specifically, but impulsive none the less."

"Like I care what you think, Haruno," he said aggressively, not so caught up in the thought of harming an innocent, helpless student anymore. He clenched and unclenched his hands in anger. Not the best move. He gasped, "Can't you see I'm in pain?"

Sakura looked at his hands. There was not any blood on them, a good sign, but there were fresh scars, faintly visible, forming on his wand hand. Sakura clinically reached out for his hand. He maneuvered out of her reach.

"Give me your hand, Potter," she demanded, oozing the professional authority. "I am going to heal it."

Harry sneered, "No thanks. I'd rather not."

"On my oath, Potter, I will do my best to help you. I cannot let you walk away if I can heal you. Madame Pomfrey has enough patients to tend to as it is, I'm sure," she replied stubbornly, not letting go of her creed. Harry slowly yielded. Sakura applied medical chakra into his palm and ran diagnostics. "Unbelievable," she remarked. The wound had a magical substance in it preventing the healing process. It would leave eventually, but if Sakura did not intervene, kill it per se, the scarring would be permanent, as fresh looking as the day it was etched into his skin.

"Sit down, Potter. This could take a while," said Sakura. Harry did not argue, stunned into silence like their potions class had been that morning. Mesmerized, he watched her work. She numbed his hand (after warning him, to which he made a "hm" sound) and got to work.

"How did this happen?" asked Sakura. In detail, Harry explained that Umbridge preferred to use a mild form of torture in hopes of brainwashing children to her beliefs. That was the dark nature of her detentions.

"That's so cruel. Is that allowed here?" Sakura asked, concerned. Harry gave her a look. "Right...dumb question..." she mumbled. She nodded her head. She did not know why she was nodding. Consenting to silence, perhaps.

"Why are you helping me?" Harry asked after a certain amount of time lapse.

"What do you mean? It's what I do," she replied.

"If it's what you do," he retorted, "then why do you hang with Malfoy and pick fights with me? Only to heal me for something completely different?"

She shrugged. She responded, "I like fighting. It's invigorating." She looked up from her work when her answer was met with silence. "What? Oh, come on. You're a boy. You should understand. I do heal the loser afterwards."

A smirk slowly spread across Harry's mouth. "You just called Malfoy a loser."

Sakura paused, mouth open, taking back a response. She realized what she said. She pouted and said, "I did, indirectly. Well, he did lose."

Sakura returned all her attention to the healing process. She'd reached the next step. She held fast to the poison with her left hand. Practice and application had made her ambidextrous in all but writing. She took out her wand and got an empty bamboo container from her pack. "Aguamenti." The container filled half-way with water. She set the container between Potter and herself.

"Umbridge will use this fear tactic again and again to scar the student body, to make them submit to her will. You cannot fight a fair fight with her, Potter. Surely you know this," she said and sighed, "oh, then why would I be telling you? Potter, she out ranks you. She has friends in high places."

"I have to do what I can, Haruno," he said stubbornly.

"Then do what you can-efficiently. Has anyone ever taught you the word undermine? Sabotage?" She asked. He glared at her, but did not act upon his will as she was treating him. Sakura sighed again. "Right. Not a Slytherin. Forget I said anything then." Despite her words, Sakura smiled.

Sakura captured the water in her hand. She pressed her palm over the one covering his injured hand. Her glowing, green healing chakra output doubled. It flowed into his hand. As the green chakra seeped into his skin, prepared to regenerate his cells, Sakura pulled out the magical ink. The magical ink got trapped in the orb of water. With her right hand, she took the water encasing the ink and placed it back in the bamboo container.

"What are you going to do with that?" asked Harry, trying not to sound suspicious.

"Umbridge is authorized by the Ministry to give out these detentions in any manner that pleases her. So she will. I will make an antidote," she answered him. "Perhaps I can acquire one of the quills for further testing. I need to go to the dungeon labs now."

Harry blinked. "What about my healing?"

Sakura mouth formed a small 'o'. Then she smirked. "Oh, that. I finished about a minute ago. See?" she pointed to his good as new wand hand. "Skin cells are fairly fast at regenerating since they have backup layers underneath. Owl me if anybody else needs healing. I must fulfill my oath and get more samples for antidotes." Sakura stood up and said, pointing at Harry's hand, the numbness should wear off on your walk back to Gryffindor tower."

"Thanks," he said, humbled.

Sakura started to skip away but turned around, remembering. "Oh, Potter?" she called. He looked up, and she winked.

"We're still rivals!"

... ... ... ... ...

Insert Harry's anime vein pop here. muhaha. So I was thinking, an fmv on youtube might up the readers, but I'm just so tech challenged!

Anyway, I forgot what I wanted to say. What a waste of a footnote! Oh yes, I'm tired. I've been exercising/training to create my ultimate move (Tae-Kwon-Do stuff). I'm really tired right now, but I'm glad I managed to get this posted.

Please Read and Review.