‘What did you do?’ Draco snapped, when Harry joined him back on the Quidditch field.

‘Aren’t you going to ask how I knew you’d be here?’

‘No. We always talk here. What did you do?’

‘I moved your broom a little.’

‘Why?’

‘Because you fell off?’

‘Did you listen to a word Professor Snape said?’

‘Yes. Don’t make it obvious. Did you hear Seamus say “and Harry saves Malfoy. Clearly the world has gone mad and Snape will soon be wearing pink robes and handing out chocolate frogs”? Nobody saw anything.’

‘Thanks for that image, Harry. That’s not the point, someone could have seen something.’

‘Not unless they were looking. There was nothing to see.’

‘Yes, there was.’ Hermione’s voice came across the field. Ron was being trailed behind her, still a little red from the excitement of the victory party.

‘Another example of our impeccable attempts at being covert,’ Draco muttered as she sat down beside them.

Harry smiled and looked curiously at Hermione. ‘What’s wrong?’

‘This.’ She handed him a picture.

‘What is it?’

‘The match today. Colin took it; he was showing them around at the party. I saw that one and thought maybe you should take a look.’

‘What am I looking at? It’s me diving.’

‘Look at your hand,’ she answered quietly.

‘Oh.’

‘Not, oh! What if somebody saw?’

Draco snatched the photo from Harry. ‘Give it to me.’ He looked at it for a moment, then at Hermione.

‘Did anyone else see this?’

‘Nobody saw what he did.’

The photo showed Harry diving forward, with Draco in the background. This was all normal until you factored in that it was a wizarding photo. Harry’s left hand was stretched backward, and as the picture moved, the tip of his wand crept from his sleeve and pointed at Draco.

‘Good aim,’ Ron acknowledged admiringly.

‘It was,’ Draco agreed begrudgingly, ‘but it could have gotten you killed.’

‘Only if someone saw. Which they didn’t. I was careful.’

‘Not careful enough.’

‘I should have let you fall?’

‘I wasn’t going to fall.’

‘You might have.’

‘Then, yes, you should have let me.’

‘Déjà vu.’

Draco looked at Harry irritably. ‘What?’

‘Snape said the same thing.’

‘What did you say?’

‘The same thing I’m saying now: you’re more important than that.’

‘I wouldn’t have died, Harry.’

‘You would have been hurt. And people do actually die during Quidditch.’

‘Not here.’

Harry sighed and spoke quietly, ‘What happened?’

‘What?’

‘You’ve never fallen off during a game before.’

‘First time for everything.’

‘What happened?’ Harry repeated, more determinedly.

‘My father was there,’ Draco admitted.

‘Oh.’

‘Indeed.’

‘You didn’t know?’

‘It was a surprise,’ Draco answered sardonically.

Ron spoke up, reminding Harry and Draco that they weren’t alone, ‘Did I miss something?’

‘It’s nothing,’ Harry answered quickly. Ron and Hermione looked at him disbelievingly.

Draco sighed and turned to Harry. ‘You tell them everything?’

‘I haven’t told them anything about you.’

‘I know that ... I suppose I should be grateful ... I meant everything else.’

‘Occlumency, all those things. Nothing I’ve promised not to.’

‘Gryffindor to the end.’ Draco didn’t wait for an answer. It wasn’t really a question. ‘I think they have enough to worry about without thinking I’m going to hex you into oblivion some night. And I’d rather not be hexed myself.’

‘You’re sure?’

‘No. But if I can’t trust them to keep a secret I’m on the wrong side.’ He turned to Ron and Hermione who had been watching the conversation with interest. ‘You want to know why we’re being civil?’

‘We’re curious how you went from hatred to friendship without any of the stages in between,’ Hermione corrected.

‘There were stages between. Less than there should have been because Harry has the survival instinct of a lemming.’

‘Hey!’

‘Let me see: “So Malfoy’s good now? Okay, Professor, I’ll just risk my life stopping him fall off a broom shall I?” I should have said drunken lemming.’

‘Just because I’m not an insanely paranoid Slytherin ...’

‘A little paranoia would do you good.’ Draco paused and smiled deprecatingly. ‘He says, baring his soul to two Gryffindors.’

‘About that ...’

‘Patience, Weasley. I’m getting there.’ Draco sighed. ‘What it came down to, I suppose, was that I decided Professor Snape was a better role model than my father.’

Ron blinked uncomprehendingly but Hermione’s face paled. ‘Draco.’

‘Hermione,’ he replied agreeably.

‘Professor Dumbledore can’t possibly ... It’s too dangerous ... You’re only seventeen!’

‘Harry’s seventeen.’

‘Firstly, Harry’s much too young for the things he does as well. Secondly, he’s not a spy.’

‘You’re going to take the mark?’ Ron had caught up with the conversation now and seemed more curious than upset.

‘I don’t have any other option,’ Draco replied, ‘short of going into hiding, which I won’t do. This way at least I die on the right side.’

‘What made you change your mind?’

‘About what?’

Ron watched Draco carefully as he answered, ‘Last year you were top of the list of pureblood, muggle-hating, potential Death Eater brigade. What changed?’

Harry waited for the answer about power and being in charge of your own destiny. Draco looked at Hermione thoughtfully and decided something. ‘It turns out that everyone bleeds the same colour,’ he replied cryptically.

Harry was afraid of the answer, but asked anyway, ‘What do you mean?’

Draco’s face was impassive as he answered, ‘Over the summer my father took me to a meeting. They killed two, one ... half-blood, and one Death Eater. You couldn’t tell the difference. Everybody screams, everybody bleeds red everywhere. And nobody matters to him, on either side. There’s no loyalty, no honour. No reason. And I forgot why it mattered, if everyone’s the same anyway.’

He finished, staring blankly over Hermione’s shoulder. Hermione gave a little, shuddery sigh and looked for a moment as if she might put her arms around him. Instead she noticed him shivering and cast one of her blue fires in the centre of their circle.

‘Thanks,’ Draco muttered. She shrugged helplessly.

‘So.’ Ron spoke after a few minutes of silence. ‘What now?’

Harry laughed. ‘Good point.’

‘Well you’ve been training, haven’t you?’

‘We’ve been doing Occlumency together. And some defence,’ Harry answered.

‘Of course you have,’ Hermione sighed. ‘In the middle of the night, on your own.’

‘With each other,’ Harry amended.

‘Of course.’

‘Well this is all good, but we still have a problem,’ Draco pointed out.

‘What?’ Harry asked.

‘This!’ Hermione gestured with the photograph.

‘No problem,’ Ron said confidently.

‘What?’ Draco asked. ‘If it happens again ... or something else ... Hermione or I can fix it. We’ll help Draco while everyone watches Harry. No-one watches us.’ Draco looked at Ron in surprise and Harry smiled. Hermione, who had been supporting herself with one hand, moved this hand closer to Ron.

‘Good idea,’ she said warmly.

‘Well I thought so,’ Ron answered, grinning at the laughter this remark caused.