THE FRIENDSHIP OF RIVALRY

Notes:

Disclaimer - I do not own the setting of Harry Potter or any of the characters; those are the property of J.K. Rowling. I have however added a few new names, given that this story is centered on the time after Harry and Draco have graduated. The plot is entirely mine.

This story is a male x male slash so please don't read it if you don't like to read these types of fanfics.

Key:

"Thoughts"/"Telepathy"

"Speech"

~Parseltongue~

-"flashback"-

Chapter 19: Muggle Magic (Harry)

Harry wasn't really surprised when Jean and Theo looked at them and then called them onto the make-shift stage the moment they saw them. "If Harold and Draconis would please assist us in our demonstration, it would be much appreciated."

Draco didn't really look happy about the whole show anymore, but Harry dragged him out anyway. He knew that Draco had only agreed with the idea of the show because he wanted to shock a whole lot of people and he also knew that Draco hadn't expected to feel like a guinea pig in a laboratory once they had to walk up to the stage with the eyes of the entire school following them.

Most of the students probably thought that they had somehow angered the two jokesters and that they were now going to be embarrassed in the worst way possible. Harry didn't know if they were really thinking that, but the expressions on their faces, told him that they though that or something similar.

He leaned towards Draco and whispered soothingly. "They have to make it seem like another prank or a punishment otherwise the students might know that they are trying to do something else. I know this isn't the type of attention that you like, but bear with it for me please?"

Draco gave him a look that clearly stated that he would have to make it up to him and Harry winked at him before smiling and leaning in close to his ear again. "If you're good, I might just give you a reward when the reveal is over."

He had to hold back a laugh as he saw a blush forming on the blond-to-be-again's cheeks. He didn't think that Draco actually knew what he was planning, but if he did then it would probably ruin the surprise. He didn't want Draco to think that they wouldn't be allowed to be together once they revealed themselves.

Harry took Draco's hand and walked up to Jean and Theo who seemed to be grinning maliciously. If he was being honest with himself, Harry would have been very worried about their fates if he hadn't know about what was about to happen. Scratch that, he thought, Jean and Theo's grinning had him thinking that he would rather face old Voldie all over again.

As he looked around for a distraction from his thoughts, he saw that McGonagall still had her wand and free movement, but the humor in her eyes told him that she probably knew about what was going to happen. He actually had to commend Jean and Theo for their craftiness on getting the Headmistress on their side.

It was quite apparent that she liked sneaky pranks now that Harry thought back on their encounters with the Transfigurations teacher. She only ever punished them severely if they had been stupid enough to get caught by her or any other teacher for that matter. The rest of the times she let them off easy if nobody could prove that they had done something.

It was surprisingly…Slytherin…of her. Harry decided to ignore the thought for now since Draco would probably stress even more if he revealed that the Headmistress had her wand handy. They stopped next to Jean and Theo who winked at them before pointing to the box.

Theo opened the box and turned it around to reveal that there weren't any other openings and that the box was empty. Jean then motioned for Harry and Draco to step inside and they did. Theo halfway closed the box so that everyone could still see them.

Jean cast a Sonorus before he began speaking. "Welcome everyone! First I would like to apologize to the teachers. The sticking spell will wear off in a few minutes…" He looked at Harry as he said this and Harry took this as his cue to release the sticking spell a few seconds before they are revealed.

Theo took over after casting his own Sonorus. "We just wanted to make sure that we have everyone's attention and that there will be no interruptions. Now we have a huge surprise for you today. You see, we have been approached by a couple of well-known figures and they are not happy with the fact that the rivalry between Gryffindor and Slytherin has escalated way past hate and straight into the realm of mindless war."

Jean nodded and looked out towards the students in the hall. "Most people would never believe that a Gryffindor could fit into Slytherin or that a Slytherin could be friends with a Gryffindor, but we have proof that both those occurrences actually happened, with great success and none of us even knew about it."

Theo and Jean walked up to the box and closed it completely before spinning it around three times. They smirked as they saw that the sticking charm had been stopped and most of the teachers were now eagerly sitting on the edges of their seats. Apparently the idea of stopping the show had completely fled their minds and made way for curiosity.

Jean and Theo stopped spinning the box around and stepped back. Together they spoke. "Now without further ado, we reveal to you the true identities behind Harold James and Draconis Malfius, who just happen to be two of our Slytherin first-years." Gasps echoed throughout the entire hall as they magically opened the box to reveal the 'students' inside.

The hall was silent for a few more seconds before chaos broke out. They couldn't hear what anyone was saying but it was clear that no one (except those who knew about them) had expected them to be there. McGonagall was about to silence the hall, but Harry winked at her before raising his hand for silence.

Most of the hall fell silent, but a few Slytherins seemed to refuse to be quiet until Draco fixed them with a glare. Harry looked at Draco, who gave him a pointed look that clearly said 'this was your idea, get on with it' and he turned back to address the students.

"I guess that you are all wondering why Draco and I masqueraded as students. The short story is that we were given a mission and it required us to go undercover. Of course we decided to disappear as soon as we finished our mission, but due to certain problems that needed to be addressed, we decided to reveal ourselves."

He looked over to the Slytherins, who suddenly seemed extremely worried and then glanced at the Gryffindor table. Some of them looked uncomfortable while the rest of their expressions ranged from smug, to happy and star struck.

It was easy to determine what the students were thinking and he decided to address the Gryffindors first. "I must admit that when I was in Gryffindor, things were different, but not by much. I was told that Gryffindors were good wizards and that Slytherin held all the dark wizards…"

His words started anger and hurt from the Slytherins and smugness as well as teasing from the Gryffindors and he held his wand up threateningly. Silence descended the Great hall and he looked crossly at the Gryffindors who suddenly cringed back as they saw his expression. The Slytherins all seemed to pick up on the fact that his anger was aimed at the Gryffindors and not at them.

"I find myself truly disappointed that Gryffindors have sunk so low as to pick on first year Slytherins that haven't even done anything to them, just because they believe that they are both stronger and superior. I was also shocked when I saw those same Gryffindors that were supposed to stand for bravery and justice, pick on the students from Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff as well while the Slytherins had to break their code of brethren by saving said houses from the tyrannous Gryffindors."

Most of the Gryffindors looked truly ashamed, but Harry could see that there were a few bullies who wouldn't be swayed. The Slytherins on the other hand looked extremely shocked that 'Harry Potter' was defending them. The Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs were shocked, but he could see that they all seemed to realize how things have turned out within their school. He heard one Ravenclaw whisper that the Slytherins have become their saviors while the Gryffindors had become a nightmare to run into.

He saw the blatant anger on one Hufflepuff's face before it was hidden and he promised himself to find out whether the student had been hurt badly by another in any way. He looked back at the Gryffindor bullies and wasn't really surprised when the lead bully stood up shaking in anger. "How are we supposed to know that you are the real Harry Potter? For all we know this could be a trick being pulled by the Slytherins in order to discredit us. The real Harry Potter would stand by his house after all and he would never in his life willingly work with death eater scum like Draco Malfoy and be sorted into Slytherin, even if it was for a mission!"

Harry felt the anger boil inside him, but at Draco's touch on his arm, he slightly calmed down. This didn't stop him from suddenly smirking maliciously however and the Gryffindor bullies paled. "You don't think that I am the real Harry Potter? Well I guess that's fair, since I disappeared from the Wizarding world for a few years. Maybe I should…" His sentence was stopped as the touch on his arm turned into a tight grip.

He rolled his eyes as he realized what Draco was trying to tell him. The look in Draco's face practically screamed 'act like a Slytherin and hide your trump cards'. He nodded slightly. He had been about to change into a phoenix in front of everyone, but Draco was right.

This had him thinking of another plan and he smirked before winking at Draco. "Well let me ask you something since you are such an expert on 'Harry Potter'." The boy nodded cockily, but narrowed his eyes as Harry's smile became wider.

"Who is the only other person that Dumbledore's phoenix Fawkes, responded to?" The murmurs in the room started up again and Harry could see Draco smirk out of the corner of his eye. This seemed to be the best option since Fawkes hadn't revealed himself again after Dumbledore's death even after the war.

Nobody knew that Fawkes had actually been hanging out at his house quite a bit after Dumbledore's death. He couldn't really understand Fawkes like he understood Leah, but that was a given since Leah was actually bonded to him. At least Leah was a good translator.

The Gryffindor bully scoffed and lifted a single brow. Harry had to admit to himself that no one could pull off the look quite like Draco and Severus, so he just shook his head before turning his attention to the open window in the roof. He then spoke loudly and clearly. "Fawkes, Leah, could you join us please?"

The hall went silent, but nothing appeared for a few minutes and the bully scoffed. "What? Did you think that Fawkes would actually heed your call just because you have a phoenix too? This is such a joke. It's not like you earned them, you said you just inherited them." The rest of the Gryffindors didn't look too sure anymore and the Slytherins looked apprehensive, but excited.

Harry smirked as he felt a slight tickle in his mind and two phoenixes suddenly swooped in through the window and dove low. Leah landed on one shoulder while Fawkes landed on the other and Harry lifted an eyebrow as he saw the two phoenixes secretly checking each other out. Was that even possible? He slightly shook his head then gazed at both of them fondly.

Phoenixes mated for life and if they chose to be together then he was sure that Leah would always be protected. Harry glanced back at the bully who now looked really alone in his argument, but still very stubborn and he sighed. The boy really reminded him of Ron's less than stellar personality traits of stubbornness and jealousy.

He walked up to the boy and his eyes widened slightly as he finally realized who the boy was. "You know Mark Dillon, I never expected you to turn into a bully after I saved you from one in your second year." Whispers started up in the hall again and Mark's eyes widened as he realized that he had actually pissed off the real Harry Potter.

The blush that spread over the boy's cheeks as he paled at the realization, intrigued Harry since he hadn't know the two processes to actually occur simultaneously. Leah and Fawkes flew over to the perch that had been placed in the Great hall as if they could sense that Harry was about to lose his temper at the stupidity of the people around him.

At least, that had been the plan until one look back at the smug expression on Draco's face, made him rethink the idea. "So Draco thinks the fact that I'm lecturing a Gryffindor, is extremely funny…? Hm, I'll show him funny."

Harry turned around and stalked back towards Draco. He took his earlier place and looked around the Great hall. "Look, this destructive rivalry and bullying has to stop immediately. During the war every house had their share of death eaters and every house had their share of heroes that gave up almost everything they had in order to survive the war."

A scoff rung out and Harry pinned a Ravenclaw student with a stare. "You may scoff all you like, but each house had their necessary traits and as such also their necessary roles to play in the war. The Ravenclaws made strategic plans, the Gryffindors did their absolute best to face the enemy head on with their bravery and the Hufflepuffs supported each group with whatever they were good at. But did it ever occur to you that most of the students in Slytherin house were either fulfilling or preparing to fulfill the most dangerous role that could be played in the war?"

A confused silence rang out in the hall and he could tell that he had everyone's attention. Even Draco was looking at him strangely. Harry faced forward and continued to speak. "Did any of you ever think what a hell it must have been to pretend to serve Voldemort?" The confused expression deepened as the students tried to figure out what he was actually trying to say.

Harry sighed loudly before revealing to everyone the pain in his eyes. "Did any of you actually know that Voldemort was very good at Legilimens? Of course you didn't since most of you don't even know what it is. Well let me explain. Legilimens is the ability to read a person's thoughts as well as their memories and as such, any conversations or meetings they might have ever had during their entire lifetime. Voldemort could learn your deepest fear by just looking into your eyes and he could rip your mind apart while doing it."

He saw fear appear as the news and its implications started to sink in. "Once your mind has been damaged, the probability of it returning to its original state becomes almost non-existent. The students of the Slytherin house had to go through numerous torture spells whenever Voldemort was feeling bored or displeased and they were required to keep their mind's shut in order to keep Voldemort from finding out any information on their allegiance."

Some students looked a little sick at this point, but Harry kept on talking. "If I were to cast a Cruciatis curse on any of you, I'm pretty sure that you would reveal your secrets within a few seconds just to have it stop. Having been under it myself a few times, I can tell you now that the nerve damage it either takes very long to heal or in most cases, it doesn't heal at all, depending on the extent of the damage. This means that the victim would never again be able to duel, since their body shakes uncontrollably for the rest of their lives. Even simple spells become difficult to do."

The fear grew in their eyes and Harry saw guilt form as well. He decided that it didn't help to explain any more. Students always followed their own heads and made up their own minds. Instead he turned towards Draco and reached out to take his hand.

The blond folded his fingers around Harry's and Harry grabbed him closer for a quick kiss. He had wanted to do this since earlier. The only thing that was stopping him from making the kiss any deeper was the fact that nothing between them was settled yet. Shocked gasps, laughs and catcalls were heard and Harry felt himself blush.

He ended the kiss and looked around the hall again. "For those of you, who didn't know or understand, Draco and I have been rivals since school and one day we just somehow realized at the same time that we actually had a lot in common. This only happened once we gave up on the ridiculous notions of being in different houses. Draco Malfoy actually saved my life during the war and after that his mother did the same."

He saw the ever-present smirk on Draco's face, but the blonde's eyes spoke other words. He hadn't expected Harry to reveal what he'd done during the war and the shocked faces reminded him that nobody, not even the teachers, would have thought that he would save his rival.

Harry found it surprising that nobody brought up Dumbledore's death, but then again, the real circumstances (minus the information on the Horcruxes) had already been published. The Slytherins, along with a few students from the other houses, now seemed to look up at Draco in awe and Harry mentally shook his head, as if the blonde really needed more of a fan-club than he already had.

Harry decided to cut things short. He still had a lot of things to prepare if he wanted to surprise Draco. "Now that that's cleared up, I believe the teachers want to get on with their classes." He dragged Draco by the hand, but the students suddenly seemed intent on swarming them so he wordlessly called out to Leah and she immediately flew over to apparate them to their room. It didn't surprise him when Fawkes followed them and he winked at the bird before telling Leah that she was free to do what she wanted for the day.

He looked at his bed and smiled when he saw that Blaine was curled up around Cyan and they were both still fast asleep. He didn't get much further with his musings however because Draco suddenly grabbed him close and as he felt their lips touch, he knew he was a goner. The world faded around them as Draco licked then lightly bit his bottom lip and Harry immediately opened his mouth to allow him entry.

Their tongues dueled and the room became heated as their hands roamed over each other. Harry groaned as Draco pulled him tightly against his muscled body and a shudder went through both of them. When they finally came up for air, they held each other close.

Harry dragged Draco by the hand and they lay down on the bed. He curled up in Draco arms and of them really felt like talking. They chose to enjoy the moment instead. Sleep soon overtook them though and Harry woke hours later to find that he still had to set things up. He cast a tempus and was shocked to find that it was already late in the afternoon. Harry tried to softly get out of bed, but Draco woke up as he moved and tightened his arms around him.

Harry could sense that Draco wanted to say something so he put his finger on the blonde's lips after slightly pulling back. "Anything and everything we have to say to each other will be spoken tonight. Meet me at the place we made peace the night Voldemort died." With that he winked at Draco and gave him another kiss before he exited the room.

Thank you for reading this fanfic.