The next morning, Bloom and Harry are good to go to class and get told to go to the great hall for some dueling club.
When they get in there, to their utter delight, they find Snape and Lockhart on a long table facing off against one another.
Bloom thinks Harry, I'd pay good money to see this duel - I can't believe we get to watch it for class!
Harry mentally laughs and answers Yeah, but my bet's on Snape. He can actually cast a spell, Potions teacher or not. Lockhart can't do anything.
As if to prove his point, Lockhart suddenly goes flying from Snape's spell.
Lockhart tries to salvage his nonexistent reputation with the students by saying how it was an easy spell and an easier one to block.
Snape all but corners him with his next reply by suggesting they show the students how to block spells.
Lockhart manages to get out of this next duel by saying "Excellent suggestion, how about some volunteers. Bloom and Weasley perhaps?"
Shock ripples between Bloom and Harry, Lockhart is not seriously doing this!
They don't have a choice though, at least Bloom doesn't.
Snape says "Weasley's wand is too unstable, it'll put half the room in the Hospital wing in a matchbox. How about someone from my own house, Malfoy perhaps?"
Malfoy steps up semi-confidently, still remembering how Bloom decked him hard enough to make him taste his own blood and how she got up moments after getting hit with a curse that should have knocked her out.
He doesn't wait for three to take a cheap shot that knocked Bloom to her knees with one hand on her injured side.
She takes a few pained breaths, and Harry winces as her pain slowly subsides - Draco got lucky and hit the hole that's still in her side.
Unlucky for Draco, that barely keeps her down for a minute, and she gets up with fire in her eyes - Harry can feel her mounting anger, he just hopes blasting Draco a few times will satisfy it for now.
"So, that's how it's going to be then? Fine, Repulso!"
Her spell is even stronger than Snape's was, and Draco lands on his back in a sore heap.
Snape yanks him back up with a disapproving look on his face - which only deepens when he loses his footing as Snape lets go.
The students start laughing now, they had only just managed to stifle it before.
Boom taunts "Well, where's all that superiority now? Seems the 'great' Draco Malfoy isn't really all that great. What, you can't stand up to a Gryffindor? Or a girl?"
Draco's face goes bright red as she calls him out on everything he's been bragging about, and he yells "Incendio!"
He makes the mistake of shooting a fireball at Bloom, and only remembers the night in the forest a moment too late.
The fireball hits her in the chest and pushes her back a few feet - and she absorbs it and uses it to fuel her own fireball that shoots out of her wand without a word from her.
All the students gasp, but Draco's thud when he hits the wall is louder than that.
He's a smoking pile of scorched robes, nobody can believe the teachers paired Draco and Bloom together in a duel and expected it to end at disarming each other.
Draco views Harry as sort of a school rival - Bloom seems like his arch enemy in school, especially since all through first year and on she's been an absolute natural at magic of all kinds.
Draco groans and tries to get up - and everyone sees his face and hair are covered in soot.
Everyone but the teachers burst out laughing, even Bloom sputters out a laugh at the sight.
Draco gets mad and summons a snake to get her - she just raises an eyebrow at the highly-poisonous looking serpent and points her wand at it.
The snake bursts into flames and turns to ashes in seconds, and now Draco's gone pale and eying her warily while everyone else watches in shock.
She wordlessly casts Expelliarmus, and Draco's wand is knocked into the crowd.
Snape looks very disappointed at Draco, he's basically the Potions teacher's star student in Slytherin house and he gets beaten by Bloom.
Draco was bragging to everyone about how much better at everything he is than any Gryffindor, and how he'd never get beaten by a girl in particular, and now the best of the Gryffindor house, who's a girl, beats him in a few spells.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione high-five her when she gets down from the table, and everyone gives her a slightly wider berth now.
Harry whispers "I think I know something of what's been attacking and petrifying students and Filch's cat. Come on, not here though."
Bloom nods, and they all make their way through the crowd before any of them can get called for another fight and make it to a deserted hallway.
Harry says "I think it was some kind of snake, the one Draco summoned was speaking a similar language - not exactly the same though."
Bloom adds "Also, something called the Chamber of Secrets was opened this year, and it's been opened before apparently. We heard it as Professors McGonagall and Dumbledore brought the latest kid who'd been petrified into the Wing last night."
Hermione says "Well, we'll have to be sure about the snake theory. I bet someone in Slytherin would know about the 'heir of Slytherin' - and I bet that someone is Draco."
All three look at her in shock, and Bloom asks "So, we have to interrogate Draco Malfoy without me blowing something up by accident?"
Hermione says "Yes, we'll need to use the Polyjuice Potion though. It's complicated, and requires time to make, but it'll allow us to look like someone else and question Draco without him even knowing it."
Bloom says "Well, I actually don't need it. One of the spells I learned recently was an illusion spell. I tried it out on a few small things, and it's worked fine. I'll try it on myself for this, it should work perfectly - and it won't wear off suddenly like a potion would."
Ron asks "Why don't you go on your own and pump him? You can use the Invisibility spell you used before to get around, and the disguise spell to get Malfoy talking!"
Bloom stares at him for a second, then says "I can't stand him! Ron, you know that! Exactly how am I supposed to get him talking when I can hardly listen to two words out of his mouth before getting angry?"
Harry says "You guys haven't seen what happens when she gets angry enough guys. It's not a good idea, not if Draco's going to say something about us that gets Bloom angry enough for something to happen."
Hermione says "Well, I understand that completely. But you were showing me that book of spells of yours, wasn't one of them a spell to get someone to say whatever you wanted to know if they know it?"
"Yeah, but…"
Harry prompts "But?"
"But I promised myself a long time ago I wouldn't use magic on people who can't protect themselves from it unless I have no other choice! People like the Dursleys get to me enough that stuff happens, and given the fact that Vernon doesn't bother playing gentle when he's angry with Harry, I can forgive myself that - but something like this is entirely different."
They can see the conflict in Bloom's eyes, this isn't an easy choice for her.
If she doesn't do this, someone will eventually die.
If she does, she'll be manipulating someone without their knowledge or consent - even if it is Draco she'd be controlling.
Harry takes her hand and says "Bloom, if Draco's the heir to Slytherin, or even knows who it is, then we have to know. It's not like you'll be walking him into the Dark Forest, you'll just be getting him to talk about something he'd probably love to brag about in the first place."
Ron says "And besides, it looked like he could use magic well enough when he blasted you to the ground earlier. He can defend himself fine, and he's an arrogant prat anyway."
They all agree on that description, and Bloom closes her eyes and takes a deep breath.
"Alright, I'll do it. Just don't ask what I did afterwards, and don't breathe a word of this to anyone."
They all nod, and Harry gives Bloom's hand a squeeze in support and thanks.
They go around the corner, only to find another Petrified student - this one's a kid named Justin.
Filch, and a few other teachers and students file in just as Hermione is checking to see if Justin is alright.
Filch says they're caught in the act this time, and Professor McGonagall reluctantly takes them to Professor Dumbledore.
He believes them when they say they're innocent, after they watch his Phoenix, Fawkes, burst into flames and be reborn.
Bloom instantly likes the bird, and tries to pet him - he gets closer to her finger and lets her stroke his back.
Omigosh Harry, this little guy is adorable. After we finally get away from the Dursley's I vote we find one of our own.
Maybe in a few years Bloom. After we are out of the Dursley's control and Voldemort is no longer a problem.
AN: Would anybody be getting scared right about now if they were in Draco's shoes? I know I'd stop trying to pick on the girl who can wordlessly cast spells far before she should be able to if she's a normal witch. And I just love the idea of Bloom having a Phoenix, it's and adorable image in my mind.