Spur of the Moment

Chapter 4

Harry walked into Potions the next day and barely managed to make himself stop gaping. Neither Ron nor Hermione had waited at lunch to walk down to the dungeons with him, causing him to enter the Potions classroom alone.

Upon entering, he immediately saw that some people had changed seats. As the potions they made that year were more volatile and dangerous, they had been placed at tables of two instead of the old three. Harry and Ron had been at one table with Hermione and Neville Longbottom next to them, and Dean Thomas and Seamus Finnigan on the other side.

Now, however, things had changed. Ron and Hermione were at Ron and Harry's table, Parvati Patil was with Neville at Neville and Hermione's table, and the only spot left was with Draco Malfoy. He didn't mind being Draco's partner as they had become...not yet friends, but school rivals instead of sworn enemies. Draco had made it clear he was on the side of the Light when he managed to get to the Ministry of Magic in June and saved both Harry's and Neville's lives.

Draco had been in the Hospital Wing with Harry and they had declared a truce. They were back to the friendly rivalry they had had back in first year, except they got along. There was still the usual throwing of insults and pulling of pranks, but it was all just for fun now and not meant to hurt.

Shrugging, Harry walked to the front of the room and sat next to Draco, placing his bag on the floor beside the table.

Draco raised an eyebrow. "What's up, Potter? Friends ditch you?"

"Pretty much," Harry said, and Draco glanced back at Ron and Hermione.

"They're dating, aren't they?" Draco assumed.

"Yep. Happened in Hogsmeade yesterday except they won't tell me they're dating for some reason despite the fact I told them to start dating before they went to the village." Harry nodded.

"Idiots," Draco muttered just as Snape swept into the room.

They saw Snape briefly raise his eyebrow at the new seating arrangements. "Today, we will be beginning Veritaserum. It takes a week to brew and, when done correctly, will cause the drinker to only tell the truth for some time. We will be sampling these so get it right unless you'd rather be poisoned by your own creation. Work with your partner and brew one cauldron. Begin," Snape told the class in his usual cold voice and everyone scrambled to get started.

"Here. Start slicing four daisy roots," Draco said as he lit a fire under their cauldron and added two cups of water. He pulled the Valerian root close and began dicing it. "So, what's been going on? We haven't really talked for a couple weeks."

"Yeah, I've been busy. I have to work with your godfather," Harry said, putting his thin slice in the cauldron two at a time.

"Really?" Draco raised an eyebrow with a smirk.

"Shut up, Draco. He hates me. Us working together is hardly going to end well," Harry said, letting eight drops of mermaid blood drip into their cauldron. He had told Draco about not hating Professor Snape as much as he used to and, while Draco teased him mercilessly about it, he supported it and had threatened to force them together if Harry didn't do something.

"He does not hate you," Draco said, stirring the potion until it turned yellow as Harry measured out the powdered asphodel.

"Why do people keep saying that?" Harry said in exasperation as he sprinkled the asphodel on the surface of the potion.

"Who else has said it?" Draco asked.

"Dumbledore, Madam Pomfrey, McGonagall, Hagrid, Ivory," Harry listed those that continuously told him the Potions Master didn't hate him.