Blaise should have expected this.
He should have known really, but it still blindsided him.
It came up when Shane Williamson, the fourth-year muggle-born who had followed them to protect himself from Malfoy's rule asked a question they should have broached a long time ago during their latest brainstorming session. They were in their secret dormitory for the second half of Wednesday's afternoon, done with classes for the day. It was rare that their schedules coincided so well and they made good use of it. They had been arguing about starting to target Spencer Rowle and destabilise the Argentum court's rule further, but the different age groups had different ideas about how it should be done.
Elise and Shane, as the more vulnerable of their group, advocated for a more prudent approach while the sixth-years wanted blood, Safaa especially. Harry had given him a broad explanation when Blaise had asked why the girl who had volunteered herself to be his designated upperclassman was so angry, and the Italian prince understood her desire for revenge. The Zabinis were notoriously vindictive after all. The first years didn't have any personal stake in this and mostly wanted to go back to normal as soon as possible. They had been truly spoiled by Gemma and Terence's rule. Theo and Harry were quietly listening to everyone's opinions, and Tracey and Daphne were backing Aspen with his suggestion to engineer a situation that would force professor Snape to invoke the Rex Ex Machina clause.
"What's the end goal?" had asked Shane, worrying his lip between his teeth.
They had all paused to look at him.
"What do you mean?"
"Are we trying to get the throne back or make sure Malfoy's clique doesn't have it? If it's the former, who's going to take it? Only Terence is a good enough duellist to fight Rowle and the rules won't let him sit on the throne again. We could injure Rowle before contesting his claim but then what? A month later, Flint will curse our new rex just before another duel and it'll be the same. How do we protect ourselves from them? Because Snape is not gonna protect us."
"That's a good point." They all turned to Felix who had spoken up. "I don't want to spend all my time scared that something like this is going to happen again. We need to make sure whatever we choose is a long-term solution."
"I wonder why the Argentum court is set up this way," mused Harry. He and Blaise were sitting at the front of Theo's bed while the latter was behind them, leaning on the wall. "It's such a violent system, far from the subtletly we would expect from Slytherins. And it doesn't allow for any type of stability. The rex has too much power on the students too, I don't understand why anyone would think it was a good idea."
"Actually, I've been reading about the history of it," intervened Terence with a light in his eye Blaise hadn't seen since Gemma's petrification. He was glad to know their older friend was still capable to get passionate about History. It would have been even more concerning if he wasn't. "It wasn't always like this. The Argentum system changed over the years. At the time of Hogwarts' construction, the Heir of Salazar Slytherin automatically took the seat if they were attending. If no one shared the blood of the founder, the Head of House appointed one among the scions of Ancient and Noble Houses. It was Mortimer Gaunt who changed this in the fourteenth century. He created the duelling room and linked the throne's magic to it. But even then, contesting the rex's claim wasn't done lightly. You had to have a grievance bad enough to justify it, and the throne would weigh in to decide impartially if the duel would take place."
"What happened?" asked Tracey. "He had to have a reason to do this since the current system benefitted his family."
Terence nodded with an approving smile.
"He did. He actually wasn't the Heir at the time, his elder cousin Malachi was. He duelled and killed him for raping his younger sister before putting her on the throne. He changed the rules as her lieutenant to make sure any Slytherin in a similar situation would be in a position to demand justice in the future."
"That's so interesting," breathed out Aditya, the little first year's eyes wide with awe. It seemed they had another History passionate in their group. Blaise looked at Harry, who had been planning with Gemma to exorcise professor Binns so Terence could take his place after his Mastery. His best friend was probably thinking about it now, judging by the wistful expression on his face. "How did it end up this way then? If the position was reserved to nobles and couldn't be contested willy-nilly."
"The Gaunts started going mad," explained Aspen who was sitting in Adrian's bed, the latter sprawled out on his stomach at his side. "Some say it's because of the inbreeding but most pureblood families have ways to counter the worst of it. Their deterioration happened very quickly so I personally think it was a bloodline curse, but it's not confirmed. When was it again?" he asked Terence.
"In the eighteenth century, during the ascension of Ramsey Lestrange, the Dark Lord who precipitated the end of the Lordly Council and whose end pushed the creation of the Wizengamot in its place. There were a lot more Gaunts at the time, and a few of them were involved in that civil war, it's absolutely possible that one of them was cursed."
"A Blood Mania Curse, probably," mumbled Aspen, causing a few of the Light first years to side-eye him. Blaise smirked. Their upperclassman's interest in Dark magic could be unsettling, but he personally thought it was pretty amazing.
Aspen wasn't a good duellist because his reflexes weren't fast enough, but his curse repertoire was extensive and frankly impressive. He had taught Blaise and Theo a lot of interesting things to prepare them into being the Dark lieutenants of a healer king. It was unclear what the boy wanted to do after Hogwarts — so far they knew Terence would pursue History of Magic and Muggle History as a double Mastery, Adrian wanted to become a Maginist, Safaa was owling Potions masters to secure an apprenticeship and Gemma would balance her duties as a Lady and her study of wards with her great-uncle— but he already probably knew enough Dark spells to give a Durmstrang academic pause.
"Right. It's also during that period we lost the instructions for the throne's magic. It's unclear what happened but I'm guessing they added and removed a lot of rules. It's impossible to tell which."
"Is that why you didn't use it during your rule?" asked Blaise.
The sixth-years nodded.
"We didn't think it was worth the risk. The Gaunts were mental, what if some of them had linked their orders to blood status?"
They all conceded the point. As the discussion continued, Harry leaned towards him and murmured. Blaise took his attention away from the conversation to focus on his best friend.
"Tom Riddle was the last Gaunt to sit in that chair. He probably added his own rules without even telling his lieutenants. You were saying Nev' doesn't help me enough, right? I think—"
"How are you preparing to be the next rex, Harry?" interrupted Mafalda. Blaise stared at her in shock, jarred by the change of conversation.
Harry blinked.
"What? No, it'll be Blaise."
"What?"
Blaise exchanged looks with Tracey and Daphne who were on the bed facing Theo's. The blonde girl —whose hair was currently midnight blue— was the first to crack. Her lips twitched up and soon she was chuckling.
"Oh my." Tracey shook her head. "No one wins the bet then?"
"I said midway through second year," protested Blaise, ignoring the bemused looks the others were throwing them.
"But that was contingent on him figuring it out himself," remarked Theo. "Besides, we're halfway through March."
Blaise sighed dramatically.
"Fine. No one wins."
"What are you talking about?"
The question had come from Harry, and it wasn't said in a light tone. The Potter heir's voice sounded oddly monotone, and his expression was blank. Blaise replied carefully, his eyes staring into his best friend's.
"We betted on how long it would take you to notice we'd chosen you as our leader."
"You chose me," he repeated slowly.
As he did so, Blaise realised his mistake. He made it sound like they'd decided to be his friends to put him on the throne. He had known Harry hadn't realised the implications of Theo, Tracey and Daphne choosing to follow him at the beginning of first year —long before they became friends— but he hadn't thought about the consequences of that.
"What made you decide I would be the next rex? And what made you think I even wanted to?"
Harry slid off the bed and stood up a few steps away from it. He positioned himself so his back wouldn't be facing Theo, at the perfect angle to face the four of them. Blaise saw Terence straighten up, looking concerned. The others watched, careful not to intervene.
"You're the best Slytherin in our year, and you're from a prestigious Grey House that fits the politics of both the traditionalist and progressive factions," said Daphne flatly. "Of course, it would be you."
"Why not you?"
The Greengrass heiress scoffed.
"My strengths lie elsewhere." Daphne wasn't a duellist either, and she had no interest in politics. She had confided in Blaise and Tracey before that she had had a few arguments with her Lady Mother about choosing someone else to head the Greengrass Alliance. But the traditionalists weren't in the habit of changing their leaders frequently as the progressives did so Daphne had to bear it. It explained why she had been so eager to follow after Harry. "You've been leading us without even realising it all this time, Harry. It's always been a matter of when you would figure it out."
Sensing the discussion was growing heated, the sixth-years shuffled the others out of the door
"And what about what I want? Does it matter at all?" He turned to Blaise then, his eyes narrowed. "You're the one interested in politics. I was prepared to put you on that throne because it looked like something you wanted."
"It seems you have misunderstood something pretty fundamental about me. As your best friend, I don't know how to feel about this." Blaise paused. "My mother and I, we're kingmakers, Harry, not rulers." His best friend's eyes widened at the reference to their conversation from so long ago. "I always knew I would make someone king. I didn't plan for it to be you, it wasn't your goal after all, but you chose this path because you don't just want to heal people. You want to guide them. You always take the lead when things are happening, it comes naturally to you."
Blaise could tell everyone was thinking about the Slytherin walk-out or Harry and Malfoy's confrontation. But what was on his mind was the moment after Terence's duel against Langley, where Harry had knelt in front of his cousin and her boyfriend to support their reign. He still remembered the pulse of magic in that room, and the overwhelming thought he'd had that his friend wasn't meant to kneel. Slytherins valued power, as callous as it sounded. Harry, who carried this quiet strength but didn't realise the magnitude of it, probably couldn't fathom why they were so intent on seeing him rule. He'd grown up powerless and had been taught his magic must be kept hidden. He and Harry's other loved ones had worked hard to prove to him the Dursleys were wrong, but they had clearly not worked hard enough.
Though he probably guessed what he was referencing, Blaise's words didn't appease Harry in the slightest.
"And you knew that when you approached me last year? Or did you think my House's name was just enough for you not to be forced to suck up to Malfoy?" He looked at Tracey, Daphne and Theo in particular then.
"We didn't have to," Tracey said sharply. "I might have if I was on my own, but Daphne's influence is strong enough to counter Malfoy's. We could have stayed neutral, Theo too."
"Houses Nott and Greengrass might not be as rich as the Malfoys or the Potters but we're Ancient and Noble enough for it not to matter. We didn't need you. But you were shaping up to be a good leader so we put our trust in you. What's wrong with that?"
"The fact that you didn't talk to me about it!"
"What did you think was happening?"
"United we stand," said Theo quietly. "You thought we wanted to look less vulnerable. And in a way that's true, but we chose to follow you specifically before we were even friends because you had the qualities of a good leader. It was a mistake to wait for you to figure it out, though. I'm sorry for that." He paused. "Now I think you and Blaise need to talk."
Daphne looked like she was about to protest but Theo sent her a meaningful look. She sighed and took Tracey's hand, leaving the dorm with a last glance at Blaise. The Italian prince braced himself.
"Why are you angrier at me than you are at Daphne, Tracey and Theo?"
Harry frowned up at him.
"Because it's obvious they followed your lead."
"How so?"
The Potter heir ran a hand down his face.
"Don't play dumb. I'm not in Slytherin because of my cunning. I learnt that from you. I'm ambitious and a survivor, that's what earned me a seat at the table. You, though. You chose to sit down next to me on the day of the Sorting. Malfoy had saved you a seat, and there was another empty one next to Daphne and Tracey. I didn't think about it at the time but it was deliberate, wasn't it?"
Blaise didn't bother to deny it.
"It was. But it wasn't political. I was curious about you, like anyone else. It was a risk, you know? If you'd chased me off I would have lost the favour of the Malfoy heir and started the year badly because of it. I barely knew anyone because my mother had been married to a man no one would allow near their children. Still, I wanted to get to know the boy Malfoy was so offended by because everything he said about you showed me that you were honest. It had nothing to do with your title."
Blaise grimaced. He and Harry had talked about how much he hated Mezzogiorno's court, the fake sycophants agreeing with everything he said in hopes of securing an in into the royal family, the constant hypocrisy and lies. Even his mother was a professional liar. Sue him for wanting to meet someone who would scorn him to his face if he did something to deserve it.
Harry softened at the admission, but his shoulders were still tense.
"That still doesn't explain why you didn't include me in your little plan to put a crown on my head. And made a bet about it."
"We made a bet because it was harmless fun. We expected you to realise it, have a good laugh about it and that's it."
His friend snorted, crossing his arms with a judgemental glare like he couldn't imagine doing such a thing. But Blaise knew the truth. If Mafalda hadn't said it the way she did, there would have been no issue.
He continued speaking before Harry could interrupt.
"But let's be honest. You would have said no. You would have said no but we would still have deferred to you because we trust your decisions and you would have second-guessed everything you said to us or on behalf of our group, and we'd have no leader at all because no one but you is suited for it. You would have said no and you'd have acted as our leader anyway and I'd have ended up snapping at you because you wouldn't take responsibility for what you're doing anyway. It was easier to let you do your thing and follow until you figure it out because you're stubborn and you accept ideas better if you come up with them."
Harry sneered. "You know me so well."
"I do."
Blaise was saying this with too much arrogance not to be grating, he knew, but in this he was confident. If there was one thing he knew, it was people. Especially Harry.
His friend looked indignant, but something in Blaise's expression made him falter.
"I know you. You're my best friend. I don't know everything about you and your past because you talk so little about it but I know it's affected you in ways that make you want to hide but that's not what you are. You're always stepping forward. In front of a bloody bludger, in front of the people of our House."
The Italian prince closed his eyes briefly, measuring his words.
"I do better half a step behind you, talking to people and making things smoother. I step up as your second if it's needed, and I stop you from doing stupid things like bypassing a three-headed dog to run after your idiot of a godbrother. Theo does better in your shadows, watching and providing insight we don't always think about. Daphne and Tracey like to be on the side, giving you advice and making sure you always have support. We considered you our leader but it doesn't mean we're going to leave all the weight on your shoulders. It doesn't mean we think we're not your equals, it means we trust you to represent us. Why are you so against it?"
"I don't— I'm not. You want me to be a leader but you don't trust me enough to tell me that's what you want from me. You act like you have to work around me to get the outcome you're looking for and you're expecting me to not feel betrayed? It's not about the bloody throne!"
As he said this, Harry uncrossed his arms in a wild gesture and a spark of magic sizzled through the air. The smell of ozone and petrichor filled the room, the sting of lightning running down Blaise's arms. He winced at the sensation. Harry flinched like he'd been burnt. He turned on his heel and strode towards the door.
"Wait, Harry, you didn't hurt me, don't—"
He grabbed at his best friend's shoulder. The magic bit at his fingers but he ignored it. Harry was tense but he stopped moving.
"You didn't hurt me, promise, it just surprised me," he rushed out. "Listen, let's sit, yeah?"
They sat down on Adrian's bed, the closest to the door. Harry's breath was laboured and his hands twitched minutely in his effort to reign in his magic. Blaise waited with him, careful not to touch him more than he already was.
"I'm sorry. No matter what I thought about the way you'd react, it wasn't fair to you. You should be able to choose if you want to lead us. I didn't want to betray your trust. I'm just… I'm better at talking about useless things than serious stuff."
"I need to know the rules," whispered Harry.
"What?" asked Blaise, startled.
Harry took a deep breath.
"I need to know what the rules are. I thought I knew them but apparently, I didn't."
"What are you talking about?"
"The Dursleys," he clenched his jaw then, but ploughed on, "it took me a while to know all of their rules but they never changed them. Don't let everyone know you're a freak. Don't ask for anything. Do your chores then go back to your cupboard. Make sure you're neither seen nor heard. Don't be a bother. Don't talk back. Don't do better than Dudley. Don't expect anyone to care. And so on and so forth." He paused. "I asked Ulrich to give me rules too when I came to live with him."
There hadn't been many. Ulrich had looked sad when he'd asked, but he'd understood Harry needed them. During the first days, Harry always recited them to himself before going to bed.
Clean up after yourself.
Be polite.
Curfew at nine-thirty.
Set the table and do the dishes.
Don't leave the house without Ulrich.
Don't invite people without telling Ulrich.
Ask if you need anything.
Remember Ulrich is here to help.
Don't forget you are cared for.
The last three had been hard to understand and even more to say to himself but he'd done it dutifully, and with Healer Merrythought's help, he could believe it most days. Ulrich cared, as crazy as it sounded for the version of Harry who still felt safer inside his cupboard than out in the whole wide world.
"Ulrich told me people didn't ask for rules when they met and that they generally had to figure it out, but I still asked Gemma what the rules were for having friends. She said there weren't many. That we needed to be kind, respectful and have trust in each other. That we had to forgive each other when the other apologised because we're human and make mistakes."
Blaise made a sound of understanding, surely thinking back to all the times they'd discussed Harry's relationship with Neville and his willingness to forgive him.
"What are the rules for a friend who's also a leader? Does a leader also forgive when you apologise?" he asked harshly. "Because that hasn't been my experience with authority. So tell me, Blaise. Is being your leader different from being your best friend?"
"Terence was the Argentum Rex," protested the Italian prince, "that didn't seem to disturb you."
"He didn't want to. They had no hierarchy before Terence was forced to duel Langley, and they all put in the same amount of work. The way I see it, the only reason he was Rex is that he was good at duelling. That's what I thought we'd be. I'm not better at duelling than you, there's no reason for me to take the lead. But apparently I was wrong, so tell me. Am I supposed to treat you differently as a leader than I did as your friend?"
Blaise withdrew his hand from his shoulder.
"Is that what's bothering you? You don't want power over us?" He looked into Harry's eyes then, his brows furrowed and his golden eyes intense. "You think being a leader is going to make you like the Dursleys?"
Harry flinched.
"That's rubbish. You already have power, Harry. Look." He pointed at the magic coiling between Harry's fingers. The Potter heir watched it dance at his fingertips, mesmerised. "You have plenty of it but you've never used it to hurt anyone. That's who you are. Why would a crown change that?"
"I don't— I don't know."
"Don't be angry at me because I see you more kindly than you do. We chose you because you have power but you use it to be kind. We're self-serving assholes and since you've been Sorted in the same House as us, we expected you to be the same but you're not. We should have said that to you earlier, yes, but don't doubt that we care about you. The rules don't change, Harry. They don't."
He sighed, defeated. He ran a hand through his already dishevelled hair, exhausted.
"Okay," he murmured. "Okay."
"You forgive me?"
Harry chuckled and bumped his shoulder against his best friend's. Blaise relaxed, offering him a relieved smile.
"I do. But I've said it to Nev', I'll say it to you and to the others too. Don't make plans without me."
"Promise. And Harry?"
"Hm?"
"You'd make a good king. But if you don't want to do it, we won't force you."
Harry's shoulders slumped.
"Let me think about it, yeah?"
"Sure. But you know, even if you aren't our Argentum Rex, you'll still be our leader."
"I'm starting to understand that." He paused. "You know, this is our first fight."
"Huh," said Blaise, eyes widening. "You're right."
"And we ended up making everyone leave the dormitory because of it. We better apologise for that. But I was just thinking, we could use this."
Blaise raised an eyebrow.
"How?"
Harry smirked.
"Are you sure they'll be okay?"
Neville turned around to see Nott, Greengrass and Davies walking down the corridor. He was alone this time, having planned to join Ron and Hermione at the library later. He'd been down to the greenhouses to check on the mandrakes who still had another month and a half to mature. His two friends were currently fighting about Hermione refusing to help Ron write a particularly difficult potion essay which Neville had already done with Harry while his friend hung out with the other two boys in their dorm. While Ron was his best friend, Neville had to admit the boy might have been better suited to Dean and Seamus who had more similar interests.
Still, friendship wasn't always about common interests. It was something one had to work for to maintain, even when it came easy.
"I still don't understand why we couldn't stay," grouched Daphne.
"Harry was about to snap," said Nott quietly. "He was already overwhelmed, us four ganging up on him wouldn't have helped. We can talk again as a group later but for now it's better to let Blaise take care of it."
"Is Harry okay?" Neville couldn't help but ask.
"Ah, Longbottom," said Davies. "He's fine. We just had a fight."
Neville raised his eyebrows. Harry rarely fought with people.
"Don't worry about it."
"Right."
If his tone sounded dubious, they didn't mention it. Neville said his goodbyes and met his friends at the library. Susan and Hannah were there too, so they sat down at their table, his two childhood friends telling them about the newest rumour on Malfoy's group.
"It's Flint this time," said Hannah excitedly. "Apparently, he was trying to get Morgan Avery to date him and offered her this huge family jewel that's been in the Flint family for centuries, which is hilarious because everyone knows she's a lesbian. Apparently, it had to do with their weird House politics but still, you couldn't pay me to pretend to court someone who everyone knows would never be into me. That's so embarrassing. Avery rejected him so fast too."
"Gossiping is wrong, you know it's really—," started Hermione before blinking. "Wait, she's what?"
And that was how they ended up explaining to Hermione the wixenkind's stance on relationships between people of the same gender. Neville idly wondered if Harry knew, then he remembered that he'd probably met Daphne Greengrass' mothers.
"Cauldron babies?" shrieked Hermione. "How does that even work?"
Neville chuckled and pointed her towards the section of the library talking about conception potions. It was probably going to be the first and last time he would ever show her a library aisle she didn't know.
Later, they walked to the great hall together to have dinner.
"I wish we could eat together," sighed Susan.
"Why can't you?" asked Ron.
"Well, aren't we supposed to eat with our Houses?"
"According to Hogwarts, A History that's only mandatory during school feasts. Come sit with us!"
They ate together animatedly and Neville was happy his friends got along. He glanced at the Slytherin table and noticed he wasn't the only one doing so. Upon looking at it, two things were immediately obvious. Malfoy and his clique looked gleeful, and Harry and Blaise were carefully not looking at each other. In fact, the entire group was completely quiet. Neville frowned.
He hoped his godbrother was okay.
"The extinction of the Pendragon line and the end of the Golden Age of the kingdom of Albion are events that have been long shrouded in mystery. It is strongly believed that Mordred is the one who cast the fatal blow on his father and ended the royal line. The prophecy announcing that a child born in May would cause the end of Arthur Pendragon was never found, though it is said to have prompted the last king of Magical Britain to order the execution of children all around the continent to avoid that fate, his own son among them. He was rescued and raised by Morgana Le Fay, his half-sister and a powerful Dark witch."
"Not a Dark Lady?" asked Harry, taking notes.
Roman shook his head.
"It is a common misconception borne from a later twisting of the events by muggles who believed the events to be fictional. Dark Lordship is a title conferred to a Dark Wixen who commits acts of terrorism and attempts to take over a sovereign territory. To be declared a Dark Liege, one has to mark its followers with a slave brand and declare oneself publicly against the government. As it is, Grey and Light Lordships are lesser-known terms that also exist to designate dissidents with such magical affinities —though I believe the Ministry of Magic has an unfortunate tendency to conflate the terms and use the word Dark Lord quite liberally. Morgana Le Fay was the queen of the Island of Avalon and never claimed any followers who weren't already hers by right, though she did declare war against Arthur."
"Is Mordred considered the Dark Lord then?"
This time, it was Terence who shook his head. The prefect loved Roman Potter's lessons and had borrowed his and Lillian's portrait more than once to Harry's amusement.
"Mordred Pendragon was a squib, actually."
"Huh."
"Indeed," confirmed Roman. "Muggle sources would have him be born of incest between Arthur and Morgana, but that does not hold true for the account wixen have of the past. Arthur conceived him with a servant woman in retaliation for his wife's adultery. Morgana hid the pregnant girl upon learning of Arthur's decree and—"
Harry wondered why Arthur and Merlin were so revered in Magical Britain. It seemed to him like all the historical figures of the time were rotten people in their own right. Merlin protected muggles but abhorred anything to do with Dark magic, Arthur was a good and fair ruler but he ordered his son and countless other babies killed to keep his throne, Morgana waged war with Lady Vivian and murdered a number of the fae folk and the aforementioned Lady enslaved Merlin to her so he would be with her forever. She did it with a Light spell too.
"Why was Merlin immortal?"
"He was a cambion, born from a Greater Demon and thus blessed with longevity. He hated his father with the passion of a thousand suns though, which explains his distaste for Dark magic. He is the only known wizard to have managed to change his core affinity from Dark to Light. Now let us speak of the transition between the Round Table and the Lordly Council of Albion."
What followed was a fascinating lesson on mediaeval wixen history, after which Harry promised Terence to let him keep the portrait to ask questions to Roman about the destruction of Camelot and the disappearance of Arthur's four lost relics.
"I really wish professor Binns taught as well as he does," grumbled Terence as they left the dormitory to go visit Gemma at the infirmary.
"You and me both. And everyone in the castle," said Harry with a sigh.
The prefect chuckled. They made small talk as they walked up the stairs and Harry stared wistfully at a window with a view of Hogwarts' grounds, where his friends were spending time away from him. He knew the distance was necessary, but it was still disappointing. At least he had the sixth-years, the Weasley twins and Neville, he consoled himself. His godbrother hadn't been impressed when Harry had explained why he was pretending to be on the outs with Blaise and giving the impression that Daphne, Theo and Tracey were taking the Italian prince's side. Harry had to tell him everything about the Argentum court system —though he made him promise to keep it to himself— and Neville had been horrified by his retelling of Terence and Rowle's duel.
Still, he had readily agreed to help when Harry had told him what his idea to redress the situation was. They would be breaking a ton of rules but if Harry's idea worked, it would be more than worth it. Slytherin would hopefully no longer be a constant battlefield. Harry understood the appeal of a good duel to settle issues —he still dreamt of Malfoy's month of silence in first-year—but what happened between Terence and Safaa's ex-boyfriend was something he didn't want to see again. That, and there had been so many more duels during Rowle's reign that he'd had to be present for in order to heal the participants; while it was good practice, it infuriated him to see how silly the justifications for some of them were. Malfoy and Flint accepted just about any reason to duel without thought, using them as entertainment. It was ridiculous, and harder to bear without his friends' public support.
It was still tense between Harry and the others. The discussion with Blaise had helped but they hadn't found the time to talk about it as a group. It was both a relief and a curse; it gave Harry more time to decide on what he wanted to do about the Argentum rex situation, but it also made him unbelievably anxious.
Guessing his thoughts, Terence sent him a sympathetic smile.
"How long is your little scheme supposed to last?"
Harry sighed.
"Long enough for Malfoy to take the bait."
His cousin's boyfriend snorted.
"That's not going to take long."
"You think?"
"Mhm. If there's one thing Malfoy loves, it's stirring up trouble."