Chapter 06 :

Settling down on a desk in the library and swinging his legs, Harry took a cookie from Theodore's bag of snacks. The young Nott, sitting just beside him, opened the conversation :

"So, what do you want to talk about tonight ?"

"We should talk about the Triwizard tournament" sighed the young Potter. "What do you think about it ?"

"Not much. I don't really care to be honest, especially since no one under 17 years old can take part in it. And you ?"

"I have a bad feeling about it."

Nott turned all his attention toward his friend, he knew from years of observation how good Harry's intuition was. Any bad feeling of his should absolutely be taken seriously.

"What kind ?" He asked with a grim face.

"The kind that will see me competing with my life on the line..." Answered the sullen green eyed boy.

Theodore could only hold his breath : this was worst than he thought.

"But you won't enter the tournament willingly" he rightfully guessed, "so who would enter you ?"

The young Potter stayed silent an instant, his eyes darkening with dread.

"I find it really suspicious" he started, "that we got a new DADA professor the same year of the tournament..."

"Harry" deadpanned Theodore, "we get new DADA professors every year."

"Yes." Confirmed the Gryffindor before expounding. "And the first one was posessed by Voldemort, the second one was a sham trigger happy with obliviate and the third one nearly killed me -though not by choice-."

"Right" swallowed the slytherin with difficulty, "I forgot that danger follows you every year too.

"And it always involves the DADA professor" solemnly nodded the griffindor.

"That's some crazy pattern..."

The silence settled around them as they thought about their apprehension for the tournament. Already, the young Nott was making plans to help his friend. He would have to make a full stock of healing potions -and some pepper up as well, if they were to do research late at night-. Perhaps should he also create a better working spy network ? Teenagers were way too full of gossip to be reliable sometimes, and he got well along with the House Elves, who were far more discreet. As he started pondering what spells could help Harry with the tasks and how to overcome the DADA professor's magical eye to effectively spy on him, a sudden thought came to him : the contingents of Durmstrang and Beauxbatons would add even more teenagers to a school already full of teenage drama. He groaned.

"What's wrong ?" Worried Harry beside him.

"With Durmstrang and Beauxbatons coming, my current spy network is as good as dead..."

"Wait... You actually have a spy network ?!"

"Of course I have one !" Harrumphed Theodore. "How could I be a good Shadow King of Slytherin without one ?!"

"You're a real Shadow King !" Squeaked Harry in surprise. "I thought Ron was joking !"

The young Nott turned toward his friend in wonder :

"How did you manage to spend three years at Hogwart without knowing that...?"

A loud gasp echoed in the library, startling the two teenagers.

"Wha- ?"

"Hush !" Whispered Theodore. "I heard something !"

When a dozen seconds passed by them without another sound being heard, the two boys relaxed.

"Sometimes I wonder if we shouldn't be a little more discreet with our nocturnal meetings..." Mused the Gryffindor.

"It's fine. With your map no one can catch us unaware."

"I don't have it on me tonight though."

Just outside the library, frozen in shock behind the door, the professor Snape could hear everything the boys were saying. He should have been exhilarated : this was the perfect occasion to punish Potter and give him detentions til the End of Days, and yet... he didn't move, paralyzed by the horror of what he was witnesssing. Potter and Nott... Potter the Nightmare and Nott the Devil were consorting together... The damned spawn of his Arch-Nemesis was consorting with the unholy offspring of Sarcasm and Evil... ! Snape choked on his saliva and, cursing like a miffed McGonagall under his breath, silently withdrew from the crime scene : he was way too sober to deal with this.

Is Snape overdramatic ? Only time will tell...

Plew A.E