Malfoy Was Easy to Provoke / Slytherin House Was Actually Very United

That was just how he was. If someone treated him well, he didn't mind returning the favor. But if someone kept trying to control him, forcing him to do things he didn't want to do and accept what he considered complete nonsense, Harry didn't mind being a powder keg with a short fuse.

But speaking of which, Harry had to admit he was itching to complain. Professor Flitwick was such a kind, amiable little old man, yet he'd spent over a decade lecturing from behind the podium while standing on two stacks of battered books. How had nobody at this school thought to get him a little step stool?

Did the students at Hogwarts have anything on their minds besides learning magic and competing for the House Cup?

Days when he couldn't stir up trouble were dreadfully dull. Harry could only wait patiently for a chance to drop out. Then one day, he noticed that Hermione had, for once, acquired a book that wasn't for class.

Fantastic Quidditch Balls. Seeing it reminded Harry that they still had Flying Class to attend.

But honestly, even though Harry knew he'd been good at flying in the original story, he had no interest whatsoever in the Flying Class and Quidditch that everyone else talked about so enthusiastically.

He didn't have the same flying dreams as those chuunibyou kids. Besides, once he had mastered the Obscurus completely, he'd be able to unlock every kind of flying pose. He wouldn't need a broomstick.

When Wednesday's Flying Class came around, Harry kept his word and didn't get excited. He merely checked, a little, how good he was at flying now.

Then... he promptly held back.

Harry had recently realized that the sounds he'd heard before were probably the sound of magic flowing inside magical objects.

Anything made with magical materials made some kind of sound, to a greater or lesser degree. The sounds differed in all sorts of subtle ways, but their timbres could generally be divided into four categories.

Explosive, soft, lively, and deep.

And the magical objects that made these sounds all seemed to respond enthusiastically to Harry's magic. They were more than happy to be used by him.

Wands were like that, and Flying Broomsticks were no exception.

During Flying Class, Harry even had the feeling that if he wanted to, a simple "Come here" would summon every Flying Broomstick to his side!

That was exactly why Harry had to hold back. He didn't want Professor Flitwick or anyone else constantly trying to persuade him to play Quidditch.

But when he learned that Gryffindor House and Slytherin House had their first Flying Class together the next day, Harry suddenly had another idea.

The chance he'd been looking for to stir up trouble and get expelled seemed to have arrived~

On Thursday morning, Harry and Hermione were eating in the Great Hall when a small commotion broke out at another table some distance away.

Gryffindor and Slytherin rarely had classes together, so Malfoy didn't often run into Neville and Ron, whom he'd always looked down on. Now that they were in the Great Hall together, he naturally decided to pick on them.

As it happened, Neville's grandmother had sent him a Remembrall, and Malfoy promptly snatched it away.

The commotion was finally settled when Professor McGonagall intervened. Meanwhile, the Remembrall, the key piece of evidence in the incident, brought back a flood of memories from the original story and films for Harry.

So... judging by how things stood, if he wasn't in Gryffindor House, then when Malfoy picked up the Remembrall that afternoon, no one would stand up for Neville?

In that case, Harry could play the hero himself... if Malfoy dared to start trouble like he had in the original story~

"Hermione, want to visit Hagrid this afternoon?" Harry asked her, thinking of it. "He sent me a letter with Hedwig. He said he's got a Kneazle and wanted to ask me for some special food for it."

"Hagrid has a cat? That's wonderful~" Hermione didn't question Harry's explanation. "I just hope that while he's learning to look after a cat, he'll also learn to keep his house tidy. His dog Fang is always splattering drool everywhere!"

"Then it's settled. After our afternoon classes, we'll cut across the grounds. It'll save us a bit of walking~"

Harry smiled cheerfully, though inside he was already looking forward to it.

Malfoy, you'd better make this good~

After Transfiguration Class that afternoon, Harry made up an excuse, saying he had to go back to Filch's to pick something up. By the time they actually left the castle, the first Flying Class for the lions and snakes had already been going on for a while.

"Help! Please, somebody help me!"

"Oh no! That's Neville up there!"

At the shouts from the grounds, Hermione instinctively looked up. She saw Neville darting around on a Flying Broomstick. Then, by accident, he lost his grip on the broom and fell out of the sky!

"His broom's out of control. I bet he's badly hurt."

Harry hurried over with Hermione. When they reached the scene, Madam Hooch was about to take Neville away for treatment.

"I'm taking this boy to the hospital. If you don't want to be thrown out of Hogwarts before you've even had a chance to play Quidditch, you'll put those Flying Broomsticks back where they belong!"

After threatening the students gathered there, Madam Hooch didn't even have time to speak to the unexpected arrivals, Harry and Hermione. She hurried away with the sobbing Neville.

"Look! Isn't that the Remembrall the idiot Longbottom's granny sent him?"

Malfoy, with his sharp eyes, had spotted the glittering ball where Neville had fallen.

"Malfoy, put it down! That belongs to Neville!"

Malfoy held the Remembrall aloft, grinning smugly. But aside from Ron and one other girl, who dared to speak up for Neville, every other Gryffindor stayed silent.

Malfoy's grin soon froze on his face.

"Hand it over."

Harry stood a short distance away, expressionless, with one hand out.

Chapter 45: Malfoy Was Easy to Provoke

The moment Harry spoke, the atmosphere on the grounds grew tense.

Harry was the sort who dared to set the Sorting Hat on fire, while Malfoy was the representative of a Pure-blood Family. Nobody dared to ignore the two of them facing off!

"Harry, you..."

Malfoy's lips twitched, and his face flushed and paled by turns. He was clearly torn.

Harry had always been good at fighting. Every one of the several clashes between the two of them had ended with Malfoy getting beaten.

So when faced with Harry, Malfoy was willing to run his mouth, but he absolutely didn't dare throw a punch.

This time, though, Malfoy felt that Harry was sticking his nose where it didn't belong.

He was picking on Neville, a Gryffindor, and had taken Neville's Remembrall. What did that have to do with a student from Eagle House?

Harry had already had Flying Class yesterday. Why was he at the grounds today, butting in?

And... he was actually ordering Malfoy around in that high-handed tone, in front of all the new Slytherins, demanding that he hand over the Remembrall?!

Malfoy could feel those prickling stares on his back.

They came from fellow Slytherins, students from Pure-blood Families just like him. They were scrutinizing him—the leader of the first-year Slytherins!

Malfoy gritted his teeth, then suddenly grabbed a broom beside him and swung himself onto it!

That's right. He couldn't back down!

Why should he keep letting some pathetic, self-degrading loser hold him down—and even trample him underfoot?!

"Harry, I'm not handing it over to you~" Malfoy said smugly as he rose into the air on his broom. "I'll put it somewhere else and make Longbottom fetch it... Yes, how about in a tree? Maybe that idiot will fall again!"

"If I were you, Malfoy, I'd hand the Remembrall back right now and apologize to Neville."

Harry was completely unmoved by Malfoy's provocation. His attitude made one thing clear to everyone there... Harry wasn't afraid of Malfoy at all!

"Harry... Damn it! Stop acting all high and mighty and mouthing off! If you've got the guts, come up here and take it!"

Malfoy taunted Harry from the sky. He really was a decent flyer, able to hover or stop abruptly in midair. He showed off his skills to everyone around him while continuing to mock Harry.

"Harry, I bet you can't even fly!" Malfoy stopped two meters in front of him, grinning as he baited him. "What's wrong? Aren't you always so arrogant and domineering? Why have you gone quiet? Admit it, Harry. All you're good for is eating my dust!"

"Harry, don't!" Hermione clutched Harry's sleeve tightly. "Malfoy's trying to provoke you. You'll be at a disadvantage if you go up there without thinking!"

As Hermione saw it, Malfoy had clearly practiced flying before starting school, while Harry had only "managed" to circle at a height of less than three stories yesterday. There was no way he could beat Malfoy in the air!

Well, if Hermione knew that Harry had a father who'd been a Quidditch Seeker, she might not have thought that.

"I know~" Harry replied softly, his expression just a little conflicted.

How to put it... Malfoy seemed to have a screw loose.

If he'd stayed in the air, Harry would've had no choice but to follow the original story, grab a broom, and race him through the sky.

But now that he'd come down and taunted Harry himself, was Harry supposed to just let him go?

"I don't need to fly to deal with you." Harry slowly raised his palm toward Malfoy's broom. "Come here!!"

With a shout, the broom Malfoy was riding suddenly broke free of his control and flew straight into Harry's hand!

Caught completely off guard, Malfoy landed hard on his backside.

"Damn it! Harry, you bastard, what did you do to my broom?!" Malfoy sat on the ground, clutching his backside and shouting furiously.

"Nothing. Your broom just likes following my orders—just like you will in a moment~" Harry walked over to Malfoy and once again held out his hand from above. "Malfoy... hand over Neville's Remembrall."

"..." Threatened by Harry from above once more, Malfoy's expression slowly stiffened.

How many times had it been now?

Harry had knocked the stuffing out of him with ease, again and again...

Before meeting Harry, Malfoy had never imagined that as a noble Pure-blood, he'd be trampled under someone's feet time after time!

"This is the last time. Hand over Neville's Remembrall." Harry's voice dripped with mockery. "No matter how much you drag this out, you can't change what's going to happen. Malfoy, don't you get it? You think you're better than everyone else, but you're nothing but a useless good-for-nothing!"

Good-for-nothing...

Malfoy had never understood why Harry would take Neville's side, of all people. Neville was a useless idiot. But he knew he was angry now!

Furious beyond reason!!

"Why should I... hand it over?!"

Suddenly, Malfoy hurled the Remembrall to the ground and sprang up, roaring as he lunged at Harry!

"Harry Potter, who the hell do you think you are to order me around like this?!!"

Good. He'd finally lost his temper~

As Malfoy charged at him, his face twisted with rage, a hint of delight flashed across Harry's face. He didn't dodge. Instead, he kicked Malfoy and sent him sprawling on the spot!

"Bastard! Potter, you bastard! Crabbe, Goyle, what are you standing around for?!"

Feeling that Harry had "humiliated" him beyond measure, Malfoy didn't back down this time. He got up despite the pain and charged again, shouting for his two lackeys to help him gang up on Harry!

"Good grief... how did it come to this again?"

Hermione sighed and pressed a hand to her forehead, but quietly tightened her grip on her wand.

Fighting was wrong, of course. But her little brother absolutely couldn't be allowed to come off worse!

"Three of them against Harry? Those Slytherins are shameless!"

Among the Gryffindors, Ron spoke up indignantly for Harry. He wanted to rush over and help, but after taking a look at the fight, he hesitated.

Even facing three opponents, Harry's agile movements let him dodge most of Crabbe and Goyle's attacks, all while beating Malfoy without holding back... Ron honestly knew he wasn't nearly that skilled.

Harry was clearly handling things with ease. If Ron jumped in and got in the way, it could turn into a real mess.

"Damn it... Harry, you're dead! All of you, use your wands! I'll take responsibility for whatever happens!!" Once again beaten until his face was swollen and bruised, Malfoy finally drew his wand, consumed by rage!

"Harry Potter, I'm going to make you regret this today! I'll make sure you never dare look down on Draco Malfoy again! Crabbe, Goyle, get him!!"

Under Malfoy's nearly senseless threats, Crabbe and Goyle had no choice but to pull out their wands too. A childish brawl instantly became a duel between underage wizards!

But even that wasn't enough for Malfoy!

"Anyone who dares to notify a professor today will be an enemy of Draco Malfoy—and of the Malfoy family! And you... Zabini, Nott, the rest of you—don't you want to teach this bastard Harry a lesson?!"

"This guy didn't just betray the honor of wizards by throwing himself into a Muggle family. Now he wants to trample the glory of the Pure-bloods, too! Are you really going to sit by and do nothing?!!"

Chapter 46: Slytherin House Was Actually Very United

Malfoy had completely lost control.

What had happened to him in Diagon Alley, on the first day of school, and every time he'd come off worse against Harry since then—all of it finally erupted at once!

Beating Harry with his fists was no longer enough to ease the hatred in Malfoy's heart. He wanted to use his wand!

Only if he tortured Harry with spells until he was on the verge of death would he finally feel satisfied!

And Malfoy wasn't content to fight alone. He'd dragged both his lackeys and several other influential students from Slytherin into the attack on Harry!

"I think that'll work."

"Agreed~"