The first weekend at Hogwarts had been incredibly hectic. Draco had been horrified, when Harry had continued his vendetta of revenge running, but since there were no classes, and breakfast hours ran for longer, they had still been able to sleep in, a little. This had drawn the attention of his classmates, and by Sunday, Vince, Bulstrode, and a second-year named Pepper had decided to join them, although only Pepper had been able to keep up with Draco and Harry around the pitch. Draco was happy to note that his sides no longer hurt when they ran, and he could make it a full lap and a half of the pitch before he needed to slow down to a slow jog to finish off.
Draco had insisted on finishing their homework by Friday night, and Harry had agreed with minimal coercion. They had met Greengrass and Zabini in the library, and Pansy had joined them, when she realized they wouldn't help her with her own homework, if she put it off.
This meant, that they had two full days to do whatever they wanted.
Harry had happily allowed Draco to drag him into a conversation with the Slytherin quidditch team in their common room after their run, on Saturday. Marcus Flint and Cassius Warrington had continued to act as a buffer between Harry and the Slytherins who weren't happy with his sorting, and Adrian Pucey and Terrence Higgs had quickly joined in. The rest of the team had been more hesitant to declare their opinion on the Boy Who Lived publicly, but had not been actively hostile, when Draco and Harry had joined them, so Draco took that as a win.
"Wait," Harry said, counting heads, "you guys have four chasers? I thought there were only three on a team."
"Ah, well technically, I'm just an alternate," Cassius said easily. "Montague got hurt last year, so I got to play a couple games, but he's back now, and I think he'd sooner shatter my legs than let me steal his spot permanently."
"Damn straight," Montague said cheerfully, ducking as Cassius threw a pillow at his head.
"Can I be a seeker alternate this year?" Draco asked. "You know I'm good, Marcus."
Marcus rolled his eyes fondly. "They never let firsties on the team, Draco. And without your own broom, you'd either have to use a school broom or somehow convince Higgs to lend you his, if he had to bow out, and both sound like impossible tasks."
"Sorry, kid," Higgs agreed. "Nobody touches my broom but me."
Draco huffed. "It's so unfair."
"You still owe me a seeker's match," Harry said, with a sly grin.
"Name the time and place, Potter."
Higgs gave them incredulous looks. "You two think you can convince a professor to let two first-years use the school brooms to battle over the snitch? Good luck…"
Draco shook his head, emphatically. "Nah, we brought toy brooms and a training snitch for the duel. Not that we couldn't catch a real one with school brooms, no problem. If I can dodge muggle helichopters, I can catch a snitch under pressure."
"Helichopters, eh? Alright, let's see it, then," Marcus said. "Put your money where your mouth is, Malfoy. Show us what you've got."
Draco perked up. "Now?"
"Yeah, now!" Adrian said enthusiastically. "Whole team's here. We can critique you both, and show you what to practice early, so you'll be ready for tryouts next year."
"Do you even know how to fly, Potter?" Montague asked, sceptically.
"Yeah, Draco gave me a toy broom for my birthday. Been practicing ever since, haven't I?"
"Bring the training bats and bludger, if you've got 'em," Fabian Fenwick called out, as Draco and Harry scrambled to their room to grab their gear.
"And bring some galleons!" Marcus added. "We're putting money on this!"
Bets placed, bats firmly in the hands of Fenwick and Burke, and brooms firmly gripped, Marcus counted them down, and released the training snitch into the air.
Draco and Harry kicked off, driving their toy brooms as fast as they go, as they whirled around the room, chasing the little golden orb.
Harry was good! Better than Draco had thought he would be. Draco knew formalized seeker strategies and moves that Harry didn't, but Harry's instincts on a broom were very impressive.
They both swooped, and spun, and angled themselves to cut each other off, as the snitch danced teasingly out of reach. Fenwick and Burke, who had both bet on Draco to win, began targeting Harry with the soft bludger almost exclusively.
Harry laughed as he dodged the attacks.
Draco resorted to trash-talking, insulting everything from Harry's technique, to his eyesight, to his atrocious hair.
Harry sniped back, targeting Draco's spoiled entitledment, his lack of intuition, and his pointy face.
Draco felt alive. He started to push his luck, pushing past his fear of injury as he careened closer to the walls, and dove from ceiling to floor, in pursuit of the snitch.
Harry followed suit.
Draco cornered Harry, maneuvering himself between the boy and the snitch, and reached out with his far hand to catch the hovering orb, when Harry cheated.
One second, Harry was helplessly blocked out of reach, and the next, he was vaulting over Draco, as he leapt from his broom and rolled over Draco's back, catching the snitch, and falling the full height of the room to land awkwardly on the floor.
"Hey!" Draco yelled, pushing his broom steeply to the ground, "No fair; you can't do that! Are you alright, Harry?"
Harry groaned softly, then held his hand aloft, proudly, and began to giggle like a maniac. "Rules were to catch the snitch, Malfoy. I caught it; you lose. No use whining about it!"
"That was an insane move, Potter," Higgs said, helping Harry to his feet.
Draco pouted. "That never would have worked in a real match. He would have died."
Harry shrugged unrepentantly. "I used the parameters of this match to my advantage. Nothing was stopping you from doing the same, Malfoy. You're just salty that you didn't think of it, first."
The older Slytherins laughed, patting Harry on the back. They were all impressed with Harry's unconventional thinking, even though everyone but Cassius and Potter himself, had bet against him.
Marcus caught Draco in a headlock, making Draco squeal and struggle uselessly against his powerful death grip. "You let me down, little Malfoy," he said teasingly. "You're supposed to be my seeker next year, and you lost to a muggle-raised boy who's never touched a real broom before."
"I demand a rematch," Draco said, shrieking loudly when Marcus began to tickle him, then picked him up and threw him onto one of the sofas.
"You're on," Harry said, with a dangerous glint his eye.
"We may have to make this a weekly thing," Higgs admitted, with a big, goofy grin. "I owe it to the team to see my replacements properly trained before I graduate, after all."
Harry and Draco exchanged painfully wide grins.
Sunday also saw Harry and Draco usurping the common room for physical hijinks. Vince had been antsy after the morning run, but Greg hadn't felt like hunting down Gryffindors, and Draco hadn't wanted to antagonize anyone without sufficient back up. Harry had decided on a compromise, where he and Draco had a two on one wrestling match with the VInce, vaulting over and slamming down onto furniture between rolling around of the floor with alternating punches, tickling, and pillow-clubbing. Greg and Theo were eventually dragged into the fray, followed by a handful of second-years. Even Bulstrode got involved, laughing loudly as she managed to pin Theo's arm behind his back and made him cry uncle.
"Enough!" Higgs cried out with a laugh, after the common room had been properly destroyed. "Some of us have studying to do. Go cause trouble somewhere else… just don't get caught!"
"Yes, Sir, Head Boy, Sir," Harry said, with a muggle salute. Higgs grinned, but some of the other older years looked less than pleased.
"We seriously need more space down here," Draco complained, rubbing his shoulder.
"Yeah," Harry agreed, jovially.
"Is it lunch time, yet?" Vince asked, clutching at his stomach. "I'm starving."
"I highly doubt that," Draco said, with a pointed look at his gut.
"I am!" Vince insisted. "All of that running and wrestling nearly did me in. Can we go to the great hall now, please?"
"I could eat!" Harry said, with a friendly smile at Vince.
Draco scoffed. "Stop being so nice, Potter. You're a Slytherin, for Merlin's sake."
"I'm very ambitious about wanting people to like me," Harry replied, sticking out his tongue.
"Lunch?" Vince asked, hopefully.
"Lead the way, Good Sir!" Harry said, with a sweeping bow. "A bountiful meal awaits!"