Chapter 087

Harry chuckled. "I suppose I can understand, though considering Astronomy lasts until one o'clock, that might not have been the wisest move."

Terry grimaced a bit, the blush on his face becoming more prominent. "Don't remind me."

"So Hannah was telling us that you know how to handle a broom," Neville said, bringing a change in topic. Harry. He was probably seeking the other boy's advice. Terry seemed grateful for the subject change.

"I've flown on occasion," Terry admitted. "When I was nine, my dad bought me a cleansweep and taught me how to fly. Mum wasn't too pleased with him, but decided I could learn so long as we were safe and flew where muggles couldn't see us."

"Do you have any tips?"

Terry proceeded to speak with Neville about flying, offering what tips and information he could. Neville hung on his every word, listening with a rapt attention that he usually reserved for when Harry gave out his own brand of wisdom. He looked like he wished he had a piece of parchment and a quill so he could take notes.

While the conversation on flying went on between the two, Harry started his own conversation with the others. For most of that time, Hannah seemed to dictate the conversation, speaking about anything and everything that took her fancy. This was not very surprising as she was the most talkative of the three girls. Despite this, Harry made sure to allow Susan and Lisa to get a word in edgewise by directing questions and statements towards them. He didn't want Hannah hogging all the conversation to herself.

It was nearing the end of breakfast when a barn owl bearing a package flew into the Great Hall and landed in front of Neville. It stretched out its leg and Neville took the package, opening it up eagerly while the others looked on.

Inside was a glass ball large enough to fit in the palm of ones hand. The white smokey substance inside of it was constantly in motion, roiling around like a storm cloud. It vaguely reminded Harry of those crystal balls he saw at fortune teller stalls at certain theme parks.

"A remembrall?" Harry raised an eyebrow in curiosity. He knew what they were, having seen them in a 'novelty' shop at Diagon Alley. Remembralls were items that were used to help someone remember something they had forgotten. To activate that particular feature, the remembrall is held in the palm of the hand, and if someone has forgotten something it turns red. Harry thought the whole thing was a bit of a waste. After all, it may inform you that you have forgotten something, but it never tells you what it is you have forgotten. "I take it that's from your gran?"

"Yeah, gran knows how forgetful I can be and bought me this to help," Neville said. "When the remembrall is held like this it will turn red if you've forgotten... some... thing?" As Neville trailed off everyone else looked at the remembrall as it turned a bright red. "Oh..."

"Looks like you've forgotten something," Harry said, frowning, wondering what the boy had forgotten this time. Last time he had forgotten where Trevor was. It would be something similar, Harry was sure. That toad always seemed to be skipping off to somewhere.

"Did Trevor disappear again, Neville?" Susan asked in a not unkindly way, her eyes showing compassion for the forgetful boy.

"I don't think so..."

As Neville scrunched his eyes in thought, trying to remember what he had forgotten, Malfoy came up behind him and snatched the glass orb out of the boy's hand.

Harry turned his head to look at the boy. Crabbe and Goyle were standing behind the blond trying to look menacing and doing a poor job in his opinion. Malfoy was looking at the remembrall with something akin to mocking amusement.

"What's this? A remembrall?" he sneered at Neville who quailed under the look. "You really are pathetic, aren't you? Needing something like this to help you remember where you left that disgusting toad of yours. But then, I guess a squib like you needs all the help he can get."

Harry's frown deepened. This was only the second time he had the displeasure of meeting Draco Malfoy up close. More and more the boy reminded him of his cousin, Dudley Dursley, and that was never a good thing.

Neville shrank in upon himself. The other boy's words were like steel barbs, painful and damaging.

"Why don't you go back to your den of snakes, Malfoy!" Hannah spoke with more than just a little vitriol. Terry and Lisa scowled at the boy. A hushed silence descended around the Gryffindor table, and many of Neville's housemates glared daggers at the blond. Not that Malfoy seemed to notice. "No one wants you here!"

Malfoy produced his own scowl, though it looked closer to a sneer. "Still don't know how to speak to your betters I see. Filthy little half-blood."

Before things could get ugly, Harry stood up, gathering the attention of those around him and most of the hall, who had grown silent to watch the confrontation. Over by the Professor's table, Professor McGonagall stood up and began making her way toward the confrontation in the hopes of defusing the situation before it got ugly.

"Heir Malfoy," Harry intoned, and the words had Draco instinctively stiffening as he was called by his formal title as the heir to a powerful pureblood family. "You would do well not to insult my friends, especially if you have any hope of gaining my allegiance." Harry had no plan of forming an alliance with the blond boy. He was too arrogant and too set in his way for Harry's taste, but that did not mean he would not use the alliance trump card to make the boy back off.

"You should also know that the families of Potter and Longbottom have been allied with each other since sixteen-fifty-two," Harry continued. "Our families have forged a powerful alliance, and any slight against the heir to the Longbottom name will be seen as a slight against me. Do remember that in the future." He watched as Malfoy's face grew pale everywhere except his cheeks, which turned red with either embarrassment or rage; Harry didn't know. Maybe both. Harry held out his hand. "Now, hand over the remembrall and I will forget this incident ever happened."

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