"Haven't you heard," Harry said, his face twisted with frustration, "that little cockroach is trying to get Hagrid sacked!"
I stared at him in disbelief. "So that's why he's been laying it on this thick?"
Harry nodded grimly.
"Well, haven't you heard," I said, smirking mischievously, "I'm about to make Malfoy's life a whole lot harder."
Harry blinked. "What?"
"What? You thought I was just going to sit there for an hour every week and let him 'tutor' me like some wounded kneazle? Please."
His eyebrows shot up. "Malfoy is your tutor?!"
I laughed. "Hermione didn't tell you?"
He shook his head, clearly taken aback. "We've barely seen her lately. She's always off somewhere. We don't even walk to class together anymore."
I frowned. "Think she's pushing herself too hard?"
Harry sighed. "Ron says she's taking more classes than her timetable even allows. He's convinced there's no way she's getting to all of them normally."
I visibly cringed at Ron's name. It slipped out before I could stop it.
"What was that?" Harry asked sharply, picking up on it.
"What was what?"
"That face."
"What face?"
"Cut it, Peter. Talk to me."
I sighed. Loudly. "I just don't want to talk about him right now."
A few heads turned toward us at my outburst. "There's nothing to see here!" I snapped. The onlookers quickly pretended to be preoccupied.
"What did Ron do?" Harry asked, concerned. "He didn't tell you about—"
"No, and that's the point! He didn't say anything. If he's got a problem with me, I'd rather he just say it. I overheard him at dinner, going on about Slytherins—'not a single dark wizard who wasn't in Slytherin'—as if I wasn't even there."
Harry's face softened with understanding. "Oh. That."
He paused before continuing. "Ron doesn't have a problem with you, Peter. Really. He's just got a chip on his shoulder about Slytherins. Especially Malfoy. He was just worried about you, that's all. He didn't want you getting close to the wrong people."
I snorted. "Funny. That's exactly what Malfoy said, too."
Harry blinked again. "Well, maybe it's time you figured out who the right people are yourself."
"Heard there's trouble in Potter Paradise," came a familiar drawl.
Showtime.
"Heard you should keep your nose out of my business, Malfoy," I said, glancing sideways as she casually plopped down on the far end of the couch I'd been lounging on.
The common room was nearly empty by now, the fireplace crackling as it bathed the room in flickering orange light.
"Don't you have better things to do than stalk me all day?"
"I was busy," she said smugly, "talking to Father about that beast Hagrid calls a chicken. Doesn't look good."
My fingers twitched toward my wand, but I held back. That was what she wanted—provocation. A show.
I smiled sweetly instead. "Oh, did you mention me to Daddy dearest too? You promised, after all."
He stiffened.
"Don't forget to tell him about your little obsession with me," I added, turning on my heel.
I was halfway to the dorm entrance when I heard the rustle.
Malfoy was on me in an instant, slamming me against the wall with enough force to rattle my bones. His wand pressed into my neck, hard.
Her face was inches from mine, eyes burning. "You better not forget who you're talking to, Potter. If your brother's a disappointment, you're downright pathetic."
I didn't move. I didn't speak. My smirk evaporated.
Malfoy finally backed off, smirking with victory. Around us, the few stragglers in the common room stared, whispering. One cold glare from Malfoy sent them scuttling.
I didn't say a word. I just raised my middle finger in salute as I walked away.
Wren was sitting up in bed when I got back.
"We could hear him yelling in here," she said, wincing.
"Yeah. Plan failed."
A new voice piped up from the corner.
Pansy Parkinson.
The girl who'd never spoken to me before.
"You should leave Draco alone," she said coldly. "All he does is talk about how annoying you are."
I grinned. "Oh, does she now?"
Wren arched an eyebrow. "Sounds like someone's living rent-free in his head."