Deceptions
“I can’t believe it!” Harry huffed.
“I know.” Sighed Draco. “You’re saying it for the 4th time.”
Harry gave him a dirty look before continuing rambling. “Why in the world does Umbridge have to supervise all the classes?”
“Harry, I know that she is the worst teacher ever, but the school does need improvement. A lot of our classes are worth nothing. Think of history of magic, we always have to learn the subject by ourselves.” Replied Draco.
Draco was walking Harry to his next class, Divination. Crabbe and Goyle had gone away as soon as their previous class ended, and Harry did not want to walk alone. Along their way, they had found the declaration about Umbridge’s new position.
“I know some professors suck at their job, I’m not against them being fired, especially the ghost, I’m angry because it is the worst of them that will make it happen.” Harry said.
Harry was about to add something when he saw Umbridge waiting by the trapdoor leading to the class. She was holding a somewhat book where she probably took notes in. The book was matching her outfit, a bright pink that burned eyes.
“Speaking of the devil, she had to choose my class first. Joy.” Harry whispered, rolling his eyes.
“Good morning boys.” Umbridge smiled, noticing them. “I wasn’t aware that you took this class Mister Malfoy.”
“I don’t.” He replied. “I was only accompanying Harry. I heard about your new position, congratulations.”
“Oh, why, thank you, young man.”
Just then, the ladder came down. Umbridge eyed it, disgust evident in her eyes.
“Do you always reach the class by the ladder?” The lady asked.
“Yes.” It was a simple answer, however, it was a difficult task for Harry to speak calmly. His sessions with Tracey were not always helping. Harry was already boiling and could not quite remember how to calm himself down.
The professor took out her notes and wrote down on them, not so subtilty since she was mumbling clearing to herself.
“Endanger her students by making them climb on an unsteady ladder around two or three floors high.”
She then trapped the book under her arms and began her ascension. She was slow. The two boys watched her disappear trough the trapdoor. Just when Harry was about to follow her, Draco pulled the raven by his side and whispered in his ear.
“Be nice to her. Be close to your friends but closer to your enemies. I talked about it with Blaise and figured it was the best way to start. Get to know her, make the lady trust you enough that she’ll slip and tell us something compromising.”
“Does it really have to be me?”
“We are all doing it.”
“Isn’t that suspicious.”
“Of course, it is, that’s why we’ll play our cards carefully. 10 versus 1, we are bound to win. I have to go now. Don’t do anything stupid.”
During the class, Umbridge was interrupting here and there in order to ask questions to Trelawney. Her colleague was really nervous, it was obvious. She kept rambling during the class and was always hesitating before answering a question.
At one point, the DADA teacher asked her to make a prediction. The poor lady tried to explain that it did not came on command, it was very often happening randomly. Umbridge wasn’t impress. She wrote down while mumbling; the teacher’s competency does not reach expectations. She can’t make a single prediction.
After that comment, the Divination teacher was a mess. She was looking ready to burst into tears. She spoke fast as she finished her lesson and gave them their assignement for the remaining class.
Umbridge walked around the class and asked questions to the others. She went back up to Harry.
“So, boys, what do you think of this class?” She asked them.
Before Harry had the opportunity to speak, Ernie Macmillan answered the question himself.
“The teacher doesn’t seem to recognise my efforts. I work hard and I’m 100% sure that my work is impeccable, yet my grades are so bad!”
“Maybe you’re just not intelligent enough.” Said Harry, earning a glare from Macmillan.
“What about you mister Potter, state your opinion.” Interrupted Umbridge before the other boy could retort.
“Umm, I don’t have any complaints about my grades.”
“Of course, he doesn’t.” Said Macmillan. “He probably has the highest grades here without even working. I swear, on the first class, he was making up everything!”
“So, you’re saying that he is favoritism.”
“Yeah! Exactly!”
How could he? The boy just couldn’t accept the fact that Harry was just better than him.
“Or maybe I’m just smarter.” Interrupted Harry.
Which could be true form a certain angle. Harry figured out the trick to earn good grades, which the Ravenclaw did not. He was so focused on the theory that he never caught what the Divination teacher expected him to do.
“Tut, tut, tut. Return to work and stop arguing boys, thank you for your information.”
-------
“I’m exhausted. Containing myself from exploding in Divination took all my energy.” Complained Harry.
The raven was currently sitting with Draco, Theo and Daphne on a couch of their common room.
“You did a good job though. Gregory told me everything.” Said Draco.
“Can you repeat why we are doing this?”
“Make her trust the Slytherins. Confine in her, ask her for advice and she will hopefully slip something about herself.”
“That won’t work, she’s a teacher, she’s not dumb enough to fall for this trap.” Reasoned Harry.
“We’re talking about Umbridge. She is dumb enough.” Theo added.
“Maybe we could make her so mad that she will attack us. If I remember correctly, it is illegal.” Suggested Harry.
“You would love that, wouldn’t you?” Draco mocked him.
“I would, in fact Draco. I would even love to fight back.”
“I have no doubt.”
“I wish we could find a way to spy on them.” Sighed Daphne. “It would just make everything much easier.”
-------
Harry was reading a book about spying alone in his dorm. The boy had asked his godfather to send him a book on this subject from the dark library. His conversation from earlier had given him the idea.
He had hoped that the former Slytherins would bring out the dark arts. He knew without knowing it that this type of magic had some tricks about voyeurism. From what he read so far; he was proven right.
The Slytherins were obviously careful around him. He could see the looks and the small uncomfortable silences happening from time to time. Harry figured he would just use the same strategy as the one they were using on Umbridge; making them comfortable and waiting for them to slip. He also decided to tell them after Christmas break if there was still no progress.
The teen was about to close his book when he found an interesting part.
Plenty artefacts were made for spying. They are known for being the bests and almost undetectable.
They were first used in the 600th when humans saw a witch perform an incantation. Muggles had started a purge to kill all wizards. To counter the hunt, wizards created artefacts in order to spy on them, to know what, when and where their next move was going to be in order to be ready and hide. Over the years, the wizarding world was so well hidden with their help that Muggles believed wizards were all dead. Hence, they terminated their hunt.
Most of the artefacts are still in the human world. No wizard wanted to risk a new purge, so only few of them were retrieved. They soon faded from most’s memory.
Nowadays, we can find one among the oldest dark art families. They are kept well-hidden since they were declared illegal. The ministry had feared to be spied on.
Harry’s eyes widened. He was the heir of Slytherin, the founder with the same name was known for practising dark magic. His family was from the oldest, they must have one of these artefacts.
Since he couldn’t visit Gringotts during school, he figured that he could begin by asking for an inventory to the Goblins. Then, with some reading, he would be able to decipher the purpose of every of his possessions. He could also find some things that could be handy in the future.
He eagerly went to his desk and took out a quill along with parchments. He tried several times to come out with the best letter, but it always seemed too unprofessional. He also had no idea how it was supposed to proceed. He made plenty of attempts, always ending up crumbled on the floor beside his desk.
It was how Draco found him.
“Trouble with your homework Harry?” He asked his friend.
“No, but you could help me Draco. I want to have an inventory of the Potter’s vault, but I have no idea how to proceed. I’ve never done it.”
He knew it was wrong to lie, but Harry did not want to tell them about his lordship yet.
“Have I heard correctly? Harry Potter, the ignorant boy, wants to know his worth. Am I dreaming?” Draco teased him.
“Maybe you’re starting to rub on me. You’re always talking about finances; how you will manage your investments and everything.”
Draco wrote something on a parchment before handling it to Harry.
“Here, you can copy this. Make sure that your writing is neat. Well, neater than it usually is. Also, you have to prove your identity, so prick your finger a put a small drop of blood on it. It has to be placed on the right, at the bottom.”
“Thanks Draco. I don’t know what I would have done without you.” Smiled Harry.
“You’re welcome. I have to go now; I was only here to take my homework on Ancient Runes.”
Harry eagerly copied the letter Draco had written, only changing the word Potter for Slytherin. With some afterthoughts, he also decided to ask for the inventory of his two other vaults. Who knows, it might come handy in the future.
-------
Results came back a week later while eating breakfast. Hedwig brought three parchments. At the sight, Blaise let a whistle.
“It is rare to see you receiving letters Harry. What are they? Love declarations?”
“You wish, this the inventory of the Potters’ vault.”
“And you need three parchments just for that?” Asked Pansy, sceptical.
“My family was rich and old. They must have collected a lot among the years.”
“What are you waiting for? Open it!” Eagerly said Theo.
“Not now, we have class, but later.”
That evening, Harry hid besides the lake with his response from the Goblins. He couldn’t afford to be discovered with the Slytherin inventory in hand. The boy started with this one. First, the amount of money he possessed was written. Then, it was his many houses and mansions. At last, the artefact section was written. To Harry’s dismay and disapoinment, there was none. How could the oldest family not own a single artefact?
Then, Harry went on with the Peverell family. Just like the one prior, it started with his money and followed by houses. However, there were artefacts listed in this one. The last one had no difference, the money, houses and artefacts were listed.
Harry only scanned the last sections, not bothering much He knew for a fact that these two family were from the light side, so none of them contained what he was looking for. He decided to hide the parchments in the little bag from the necklace Pansy gave him. Before heading towards the castle.
He was walking near the library when a spell hit his back. Instantly, his skin started burning more and more. The poor boy fell forwards while trying to contain his screams of agony. At some point, the pain was so unbearable that he lost consciousness.
-------
When the boy woke up, he was welcomed by a white ceiling and an uncomfortable bed. He was in the infirmary. To his surprise, he saw Draco sitting next to him. The blonde noticed he was awake and started fussing over him.
“Harry, thank god you’re awake. Are you ok? What happened? Who did this to you?”
“Slow down Draco, you’re giving me a headache. Yes, I’m ok, I was walking when a spell hit my back and I have no idea.”
“Wait a minute, I’m going to inform Madam Pomfrey that you’re awake.”
The medwitch arrived, made a quick checkup before stating, “You should be alright to be discharge mister Potter, but if you feel bad, come to me immediately. I’ve informed your head house about the incident and he will make an investigation in order to find the culprit.”
“Thank you.” Answered Harry before standing up with Draco’s help.
Their way to the dorm was quiet. Draco was glancing at Harry from time to time and he was looking around a lot, looking for possible ‘attacks’. Once they entered the common room, they were greeted by their friends.
“Harry!” Started Pansy. “I heard what happened. Are you alright?”
“We need to find the culprit.” Said Theo, at the same time.
“Let’s teach them a lesson.” Declared Gregory.
“Slow down guys, you are giving Harry a headache.” Spoke Draco, coming to Harry’s recue. “Professor Snape already started an investigation.”
“Perfect! The guy will learn his lesson. No one messes with us without consequences.” Said Pansy.
Theo sighed. “It was bound to happen sooner or later.”
“What do you mean?” Asked Harry.
Blaise was the one to answer his question. “Most students from Gryffindor and Hufflepuff are not happy with you Harry. At the beginning of the year, we intercepted a few spells towards you from them.”
“Yes, we knew that it would be repeated over and over so we kind of told them that any harms towards you and they would have to face us.” Continued Draco. “They listened to us and no one attacked you, but they must’ve taken advantage of the fact that you were alone.”
“You did what?” Exclaimed Harry. “I had no idea.”
“It’s because we did not tell you.” Said Daphne. “We knew that you were overwhelmed by your house change, so we made sure that you were not bothered by anything else.”
“That’s so sweet, thank you. It means a lot to me. Besides, we weren’t even friends back then.”
“A Slytherin always have another Slytherin’s back, whether we like each other or not.”
Harry was starting to believe that what Theo and Blaise kept repeating at the beginning of the year was true. This house was so cool! It was almost better than Gryffindor. Almost.
-------
It was Tuesday night; Harry was being tutored by Draco yet again. They had chosen to study in an abandoned classroom near the dungeons. Draco was currently trying to explain how a clean workplace has a big impact in their work.
“When your desk is dirty, ingredients are contaminated and lose their effectiveness.” He was explaining.
“Yeah, but they don’t touch the desk. They are set on a cutting board.” Riposted Harry.
“It goes the same! The cutting board must be clean. If not, a residue of Agrippa can get on some Alithosty resulting in it to be all messed up.”
“I do clean it though!” Protested Harry
“With what? Magic?”
“What do you want me to clean it with?”
“Magic works the same way as a dirty workplace Harry. It leaves traces of magic that get mixed with the ingredients. You need to use water and soap. An unscented soap.”
“Really?” Harry was incredulous. It sounded ridiculous.
“Yes really. The others and I all use this cleaning method and as you could have seen, our work is impeccable. Same goes with the Gryffindors, all of them use magic and their potions are a disaster. Well, apart from Granger’s.”
“Who told you that anyway?”
“Some of the stuff were taught by my father. He made me study like crazy every summer. I have to learn most of the year’s program the summer before. The guy believes it is for me to be the best in my year.”
“Your dad shouldn’t put so much pressure on you. You can’t exceed in everything.”
“You should tell it to my father. He even hired tutors for me, including professor Snape. He is the one who taught me how to clean after myself. I then showed the method to the others.”
“Look at that! Draco Malfoy has a heart. He actually cares about others.” Mocked Harry.
“You’re laughing now, but back then, it wasn’t because I cared. Actually, I first decided to help them in order to make allies. By helping them, they would help me back.”
“Allies? Draco, we were like twelves! How in the world did you think about making allies?”
“My father. It’s as simple as that. He clearly instructed me to make some.”
“So, since you’re helping me now, do you expect us to be allies?”
Draco chuckled. “No, I’m past that now. I’m only helping to, you know, help. It makes me happy.”
“Not even for credits and possibly becoming Headboy?” Asked Harry.
“I have to admit it, it was the only reason I agreed before. Well, that and because I was quite literally forced.”
“What made you change your mind?”
“You.”
Harry was confused. He did not see what he had done in order to change Draco’s point of view. He was about to ask his companion, but Draco must’ve seen right through him and began explaining himself.
“I had no friends before you came. Sure, I hung out with Vincent and Gregory, but we were more like colleagues. I was always jealous of you and your friendship with Granger and Weasley. But then, you changed houses and made friends with Theo and Blaise then, you started hanging out with Pansy and Daphne.”
Draco took a deep breath before continuing. “It made me feel left out. You were here for merely a week and were closer to them than me in four year. Instead of hating you more, I decided to try and make an effort to be more positive and less mean, to try and be more like you. Always joyful. It was the best decision I ever made.”
“I’m touched that you felt confident enough to tell me that.” Answered Harry, not really sure how to react to this statement.
“We are supposed to be one with our year, one big family who trust each other’s. That’s what Professor Snape told us in first year; you will have enemies here in Hogwarts, so you need each other and go through obstacles together.” “We never were, one of us was always left out. You were the one to change that, you always try to include everyone. Talking to Vincent, Gregory and Millicent even if they never seem to want to talk.”
“I think I know what you are coming with.”
“Yes, it is like we unconsciously knew that someone was missing from our group. We couldn’t function without all of us being there. You were the one to bring us together Harry and I’ll always be grateful for that.”