5 September 1992, Hogwarts
Of course, Harry's streak of normality was unfortunately about to come to a rather screeching halt, when a grinning Malfoy, followed by his lackeys, made his way to him. The Potter scion suppressed a groan; he just knew that this wouldn't go well.
Harry hadn't spoken a word to the blonde for months, ever since June really. After he had scared the crap out of the boy last year, Malfoy did his best to avoid Harry as much as possible. Although the Potter scion had seen him in Diagon Alley once or twice, he didn't really see the point of talking to Malfoy of all people, especially since he was more interested in the boy's father and Tom Riddle's Diary.
Still, the blonde was very frightened of him and left Harry alone, which was exactly what he wanted. Unfortunately, Draco had somehow returned from the summer holidays with a bit more confidence than usual. Honestly, Harry was too preoccupied with not dying at the hands, well at the gaze, of a giant thousand-year-old snake.
That seemed to motivate the Malfoy scion for some reason. Perhaps he thought that Harry was intimidated for some reason. He didn't really know what went on in the boy's head, and he didn't really care about it.
The boy walked up to him with a smug grin on his face and Harry suppressed a groan. What now?
"Potter," the boy greeted. His two minions Crabbe and Goyle grunted in greeting as well. The Potter scion didn't know why anyone would like to act like a bodyguard when they're twelve, or why anyone would follow every order from someone their age. It was probably something their families asked of them, or if their actual families still practised vassalage, even if it's been technically abolished for centuries.
Well, before the Statute of secrecy, lords from lower houses swore themselves to High Lords as their vassals. Technically speaking, with the abolishment of nobility, these oaths were declared null and void. However, if someone was a blood purist who wanted to show how much they hated giving up their lands and titles to the muggles during the Statute of Secrecy, Harry could see them imitate the vassalage system somewhat just to prove a point. And it's not like it was servitude, the High Lords provide their vassals with protection and sometimes even financial aid for their loyalty. It is an antiquated concept that would only make sense if there still were Magical Lords and Wizarding Nobles.
The Malfoys were one of the wealthiest families out there who lost a lot when the Statute was put in place. A lot of their business was in muggle markets, and they held a rather large amount of land, all of which they needed to give up. It was logical why this family in particular would resent the muggles who took away much of their power.
Harry gave the Malfoy scion and his friends a soft smile, "Draco, Gregory, Vincent, it's nice to meet you. Did you have a nice summer?"
For some reason, the young Malfoy was confused by his tone, but his two minions relaxed, "We went to the Quidditch Season finale. Puddlemere united against the Holyhead Harpies. Puddlemere won, the game was almost three days long. They had to change the team around a lot so that the players could sleep."
"That sounds fascinating. I hope you all had fun there," Harry replied.
Crabbe answered this time, "Yeah, we did. It was nice, even if my mother didn't really like it."
Draco seemed to get redder and redder as Harry talked and just exploded, "Potter, we didn't come here to talk about our Summer Holidays."
"You didn't? Then why did you bring it up, then?" Harry asked with a confused tone.
"I didn't. You're the one who talked about it," Malfoy said.
"Oh, right, I did. Well, this was nice. We never really talk, do we? I'll catch up to you later," Harry pretended like the conversation was over and that he was leaving.
"We're not done!" the young Malfoy exclaimed.
"We're not?"
"Of course, we're not. Why do you think I came here to talk to you?"
"If I had to guess," Harry mused out loud, "I'd say you were here to talk about our Summers. But didn't you say you didn't really want to talk about it? You're really giving away mixed signals, Draco dear."
"No! I didn't want to talk about my summer!" the blonde protested.
"Then why did you bring it up, then?"
"I already said that I didn't!" the boy was so red Harry was starting to get worried about him. It was honestly hilarious, and he wished that his friends were there to see it.
"Oh, right. What were you talking about again?"
"We didn't even get started!" Draco Malfoy yelled.
"Really, we've been talking for a while now. You really should go to the infirmary; you're looking awfully red, and that kind of temper isn't normal. Did someone curse you? I'll admit to knowing very little about curses, but I can try to help you if you want. I would still recommend you go to the infirmary though."
The boy seemingly had enough because he yelled, "I GOT INTO THE QUIDDITCH TEAM!"
.....
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