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PseudonymousEntity

Friend or Foe

"Your worst Enemy could be your best Friend, and your best Friend could be your worst Enemy." -Marley

Summary: Draco being bullied by his father really pisses Harry off. Goblet of Fire.

Characters: Harry Potter, Draco Malfoy.

Warnings: Suggestions?

AN: Comments, Thoughts, Questions, Theories and Limericks are always welcomed, in whatever order of importance you choose to give.

ANx2: We won't be getting to the camp until the next chapter. There were a few important things that needed to happen first. Think you can spot them -and their significance- all?

ANx3:

Justalinn: Harry was indeed doing so, and yes Bill caught it.

Krysania: Definitely some of that happening where Ron is concerned and this isn't the last of it.

Aquila: Our Harry is about to become quite the juggler.

Glorificade: Thank you for the awesome limerick!

Ever Yours, Pseu

"Beware! Beware! Be skeptical...the smiles, the smiles they're painted gold

Deceit so natural, but a wolf in sheep's clothing is more than a warning

Aware, aware you stalk your prey, with criminal mentality..."

-Wolf in Sheep's Clothing

Chapter ... what chapter is this?

"I was only thinking is all."

How early was it? The sun wasn't up!

"About yesterday. Or the day before now, isn't it? The thing is, I don't know if I believe you. About what you said. That it was just Malfoy attending to his responsibilities and all of that rot. He's never been responsible before now. Of course with his father involved, I could see him making a better go at it..." Ron continued to muse aloud. Harry continued to pretend to be asleep. It didn't appear Ron was buying it.

"But why wouldn't you come with us. In the forest I mean. I've been thinking about it. Looking at it in my mind." Here Harry heard the sound of Ron's bed as the redhead sat up in it. To look in Harry's general direction Harry supposed, though he wouldn't find Harry looking back.

"You didn't do it. Try to calm me down, mate. Usually, you're right there telling me why Malfoy isn't worth it. You'd have dragged me back and we would have left and you would make some comment about how he acted or what he said. But you didn't. You didn't seem much focused on me or Hermione at all, except to get rid of us. I can tell you know. I'm not stupid. You wanted me to leave because I was getting him riled up. You were trying to calm him down, trying to keep him out of trouble."

Ron paused. "Since when do we care what happens to Malfoy, mate?"

Harry flipped over, scowling briefly at the ceiling before shutting his eyes tightly, smothering the pillow over his face and sighing. "What does it even matter?" His voice came out muffled but he was certain Ron could hear him. "An opportunity presented its self, I acted. Here we are." True, actually, if very misleading.

"But why stay with him?" Came Ron's voice. "Why not come with us?"

Harry mulled over the different things he might say. What piece of information could he toss Ron's way to appease him without giving away anything he shouldn't know? Something he probably wouldn't bring up, of course. That he wouldn't think too much on. Harry pulled the pillow off his face though he continued not to look at Ron. He knew his facial expression tended to give too much away and Ron wasn't nearly as thick as he seemed most of the time. "His father asked me to get him home safely. When everything happened."

Silence. Then, "So Lucius Malfoy asked you to babysit his kid while he ran around playing Death Eater? Just wait until I-"

"No!" Harry sat up, making eye contact with Ron for the first time. "You won't say anything to anyone. Not even Hermione." The wizard could take the location of the Chamber of Secrets to his grave but one piece of information about Draco Malfoy and he was ready to call the bloody papers.

Ron frowned. "But-"

"Let it alone Ron," Harry warned. "I don't see why it matters to you so much. I'm here with you, aren't I? I chose to spend my summer with you."

"And tomorrow you'll be with them." Ron pointed out.

Harry growled lowly. This was ridiculous. "I'm going to go downstairs for a bit. A walk maybe."

He could feel Ron watching him from the other side of the room. Ignoring that Harry shoved his feet into his trainers and stood up. He needed to leave before Ron got any more information out of him. Of course as Far as Harry was concerned Ron wasn't his keeper and really wasn't any of his business why Harry was hanging around Draco. If their positions were reversed Harry would wonder if Ron had been bewitched or blackmailed. He had a hard time imagining himself ever being so nosy. At least not so blatantly. He turned and picked up the two books Draco let him borrow from the little drawer in the bedside table. Might as well get some more pureblood education in if he was going to be up anyway.

As it was he wouldn't get any more sleep tonight if he stayed in the same room as Ron.

He left Ron grumbling under his breath in favour of the far more quiet atmosphere downstairs. It wasn't the sort of quiet one would hear on Privet Drive. There was the soft creaking of the magically held together structure, the pitter-patter of the feline he often heard about and had yet to see. The sound of magical objects doing their duty, like the family clock on the wall keeping careful watch of the family members wellbeing. Harry stopped and blinked. Several people weren't in their beds. It didn't have Harry on it, he wasn't a Weasley, it did tell him that Arthur was in his shop, Percy was between work and home, and Bill and Charlie were-

The door to his right opened just as the three eldest Weasley boys' hands on the clock pointed to home. They all four stood there appraising one another. Percy rearranged the collection of books and parchment in his arms, averting his eyes. Bill found the washcloth wiping down the counters very interesting. The last Weasley smiled unrepentantly. The Twins took after Charlie a great deal Harry decided.

"Morning." Said, Harry. He turned and sat at the table, placing his own books on it to read.

With exchanging glances he could not see but suspected, the other wizards found seats at the table themselves. Percy bringing out his books and parchment to rifle through, Bill placing a suspicious assortment of vials in a case on the table, Charlie leaning back in his seat with his hands in his pockets. Smiling still. And so they all attended to their own business while managing to mind their own as well. No one asked Percy why he was at the ministry hours after he got off work. No one asked what sort of people Bill was doing business with or what was in his vials. No one asked Charlie what his Cheshire grin was about. None of them asked Harry why he was out of bed at three in the morning reading books on wizarding etiquette.

It was a fine arrangement.

The books were just as interesting as Harry remembered. Not the dry conglomeration of overly complicated phrasing he'd expected. Wouldn't Hermione be impressed he knew the word Conglomeration? He smiled briefly to himself. Still, some of it he wasn't certain he understood. He debated breaking the silence for several minutes.

Finally, "Percy? Would you mind if I borrowed parchment?" Harry was rather pleased with himself for remembering to using some of the things he was learning. He sounded very polite indeed.

Percy turned his head enough to see Harry out of the corner of his eye. The others stilled but did not look at them or otherwise give any other indication they were paying attention. Eavesdropping politely Harry guessed. Purebloodisms were popping up everywhere lately. Percy's eye glanced down at his book then back toward Harry.

"I can't say I would mind it." There! Harry crowed internally. That was purebloodism too. It wasn't a yes or a no, because Harry hadn't asked for parchment, he'd only asked if Percy would mind if he did. Harry blinked. A week ago he wouldn't have caught that.

"May I?"

Percy's lips turned upward just the slightest bit at the edges. He was amused, Harry realized. The most studious of the Weasley clan reached out a long-fingered hand to the right and picked up a small pile of parchment which he brought to his left and sat on the table. He tapped it once to indicate Harry was to take it and went back to whatever it was he was doing.

Perhaps Harry wouldn't be as hopeless at this as he sometimes thought. It was daunting when he thought about it too much. After all, everyone he would be meeting at the camp would have more likely than not grown up knowing these sort of things. Implementing them. Harry was crash coursing the morning of his entry into that world. Still, he'd always managed to pass his classes with this technique so it stood to reason he would retain enough to get by. He'd gotten by rather well just bluffing the other day as well. Combining the two should help him through if all else failed.

"Trouble?" Harry looked up.

Across from him, Bill used a tiny dropper to place a minute amount of unknown liquid from one of his vials onto a short, narrow bit of parchment Harry recognized as a test strip. Used to find or confirm certain properties within the potion or elixir. He'd never used one. Bill's hands seemed to move on autopilot.

"It's just that you've started cursing at the parchment. Wasn't sure you realized or whether it was a cry for help."

Harry felt his cheeks burn. "I...might not reject an offer of help."

Charlie openly entered himself in their conversation. "May we help?"

Harry mirrored the dragon trainers grin. "Why thank you for offering. How kind." He could swear he heard Percy let out a quick, startled laugh. Charlie leaned forward to see what Harry was writing, and Bill lifted his eyes from his bottles and vials. His hands kept on the work all on their own. A useful skill really.

"I'm on the bit about." Harry paused. "I'm reading about wizarding etiquette." There. Context. Context was good. "I'm on a bit about 'personas'. Isn't that acting though?"

Charlie tilted his head. "I'd say no, I think. You're not really acting."

Percy let out a long suffering sigh. They turned to look at him, to see the wizard carefully stacking his things. He slid over closer to Harry. "Persona is Latin in origin, it does reference masks, the sort actors used to and sometimes still do wear -physically- and the ones they wear metaphorically. Acting." Charlie shrugged, not the least bit offended at the correction. "However what the book most likely references is persona as in the aspect of someone's character that is presented to or perceived by others."

"How is that different?"

Bill answered this time. "One isn't real, while the other puts more attention on or away from specific pieces of truth. It's real, just not as real as others might assume. Through no fault of your own."

Harry was skeptical. "It sounds the same to me."

Charlie nodded at Percy. "Go for it Perce."

Percy rose from his seat and turn to sit on the table, facing toward Harry at an angle. He was still able to turn to the others but his focus was obviously Harry. The Boy Who Lived felt like he was in class suddenly.

"There are many pieces to the world and the culture of magic, and a great deal of them dealing with the British Wizarding and Magical world alone. There is one piece of it that is meant to cover everyone, regardless of your blood or your economics or your reputation. We've all got this cloak to use as we see fit. A sort of added protection to use as a shield. It is up to the individual how good they become at wielding it."

Harry pulled forward some of his notes. "I didn't see-"

Percy took them and placed them under a clean sheet of parchment. "Write down what you're learning now. It doesn't matter if you missed some things before, or didn't understand them. You're learning it now."

Huh. Feeling oddly pleased Harry started writing on the clean sheet. "How does one wield a shield?" He quipped.

"The greatest defense of one's self is one that can also strike out against the ones attacking." That was Bill. "The Goblins favour that aspect of magical customs."

"I can't imagine why." Harry drawled. Bill laughed.

Percy tapped once on Harry's notes to redirect his attention. "The number one rule in the magical world, any magical world; No one should ever know you. Not for certain. Not beyond all doubt." He paused. This pause felt like it was done on purpose. To let the information sink in maybe. "Except for whomever you choose to share your life with or other extenuating circumstances. This concerns the more likely instances you'll find yourself in. No hypotheticals if you please."

Harry nodded. "So, no one should be able to one-hundred-percent identify who you are as a person." He frowned. It still sounded...dishonest.

"Not to say you should lie to or deceive anyone," Remarked Bill. Casually.

"Unless you intend to." Added Charlie.

Percy glanced at them over his shoulder. "Quite. Generally one chooses two or perhaps three aspects of their personality, those that others tend to expect from or associate with them, to play up a bit. You emphasize those, make them more noticeable and expected, so that others are less noticed or expected." He waited for Harry to finished writing that. "Always true aspects of yourself. It's always the truth, just not all of it. How these aspects are presented and to what degree will change depending on where you are, what you are doing, why you are doing it, and whom you are with...or whom will see you doing it."

Harry mulled this over. "Alright, so I'm not lying. I'm just not revealing everything. Like Draco does."

Approving nods all around. "I imagine Draco is very good at it." Said Charlie. Because he is a Malfoy, Harry finished inside his head.

"You ought to be good at it as well." Said Percy.

Harry looked up. "Why?"

Percy looked back at him quietly. "I've witnessed you doing so myself, if accidentally. or naturally perhaps. You pick and choose the moments where you are more or less open, the moments where you do or don't smile. Most of the time, when you are on your own, you seem quiet. You're sarcastic even, if you're caught off guard or if your mouth starts going before you catch up with it. Then other people come around and you're more rambunctious like Ron."

"But still very polite. Very aware of where everyone is. How their moods are." Added Bill. His blue eyes studied Harry. "I noticed it when you came through the floo with Malfoy."

Charlie nodded. "I agree. You are not the same with our younger brothers as you are with Draco."

"See? Not so hard. I bet you could be just as good as Malfoy. You share the same blood, so it stands to reason."

Harry's head shot to Percy. "What do you mean we 'share the same blood'?"

Percy frowned and his elder brothers frowned with him. The silence that followed was far less comforting than it had been earlier this morning. He knew this sort of silence. When the adults weren't certain how much he know or ought to know. He hated that sort of silence. Percy broke it.

"No one has mentioned it?"

Pseudonymous Entity

2017

"You got a hold of me but there ain't nothing here that's holding you down... Even when you know what I know it's not stopping you now. I can hardly breathe...tell me when it's over. This scar's too large to hide. I shoulda known better."

Notes:

Comments, Questions, Theories, Suggestions, Guesses and Limericks always welcomed.

AN: Very excited for you lot to see the camp. It was a good deal of fun to design it and the locations within it I would be utilizing. Next chapter, back to the Malfoys and onward to the camp.

-Pseu