Harry sighed a little bit and nodded, "Yes. And the sorting hat told me that the room of requirements wouldn't be able to make an actual teacher. That solidly punctures a hole in my first choice and doesn't leave me with any other options I consider viable."
Draco frowned, "Well, we both know Dumbledore's out."
Harry snorted in amusement. "Of course he is." Though he didn't elaborate further.
Draco chewed on his lip, "I am not sure who else that leaves. We could ask Snape as our Head of House. He might agree to do it."
Harry immediately and violently shook his head no. He hated Snape, not with quite as much loathing as the headmaster or Voldemort, but Snape would never be one of Harry's favorite people. "Absolutely not. Snape is almost as much a bastard as Voldemort. I don't know where Snape's loyalties lie. I don't know his motives, and I sure as hell don't trust him. We run the risk of him running and telling Dumbledore or worse."
Harry took a moment to calm himself before continuing, "Besides, as a fighter he was a fair one, but we both know he doesn't have the necessary skills to defeat some of the better death eaters, much less the dark bastard himself. And that's what I need. I can't just hope to rely on luck this time… we saw how that worked out for everyone."
Draco sighed, it was weird for him seeing Harry like this, much less having an actual conversation. But he put that aside for later and then nodded a little bit. "As I said, that probably lets out all of the professors here." Draco's tone turned thoughtful. "You know, after Dumbledore, the people that are widely considered the best fighters are James Potter and Sirius Black."
Harry once again shook his head immediately. "No. Absolutely not."
"They're scary good. Even Lucius knows that the odds of fighting either one of them successfully is a flip of the galleon at best, much less the two of them together. We don't have to tell them everything. But we could get their help." Draco argued, though his tone wasn't very earnest. Draco could tell Harry had closed down the idea the instant it left his mouth.
"No, even if we could convince them without telling everything, anything they teach us will probably find its way to Dumbledore." Harry said. There were a multitude of reasons beyond that. He was going to stay as far away from both of them as humanly possible.
Draco sighed and then nodded. "You're right. Besides, I don't think they'd ever teach anything to a Slytherin. Anytime they've been in the castle, occasionally filling in for McGonagall or judging a dueling tournament a few years ago. They're not fond of Slytherins, they'd probably stop listening entirely at 'Malfoy'. Or they might just start tossing curses. They and Lucius don't get along."
"I wonder why." Harry said sarcastically, though he noted that Draco had referred to his father as Lucius rather than any sort of familial title.
"Because he's a bastard." Draco replied, his voice grim. When Harry made no move to reply to Draco's comment, he sighed a bit. "I'll keep thinking on it then." Harry nodded in assent and then murmured, "And if you so much as think of suggesting your Aunt, I will be forced to hurt you." Harry's tone was relatively dry, and Draco could tell it was meant to be humorous, but it didn't quite work, because there was an undercurrent of seriousness to his voice.
Draco just nodded, and turned to leave, and gestured. "I think my Aunt is probably too busy being an escapee from Azkaban and dodging aurors to give us some tutoring. Anyway I'll let you get settled in. What time are we getting up tomorrow?"
Harry tilted his head thoughtfully, "Figure on 4:30." Draco looked up slightly startled at that so Harry continued, "I'll wake you up if need be."
Draco's eyes narrowed a bit "You won't be able to get in my room." Draco frowned fully as a thought occurred to him. "That reminds me. Everyone wards their doors. Sometimes other students will attempt to break in. You'll want to protect yourself."
Harry's eyes narrowed at the implied challenge in Draco's first statement, but let it pass. "I've never heard that the students from other houses attempt to get in here." His tone was curious rather than challenging. Harry had planned on putting up defenses, it was second nature to him. He even did it at the room he slept in at the Flamel's house. Which caused Perenelle to look at him with a sad expression on her face and Nicholas shook his head and repeated "paranoid"
Draco shook his head and a momentary flash of irritation crossed his face. "Don't be naïve Pot—Ares. It's not to protect you from people outside of the house. This is the house of the cunning. You have to protect yourself at all times. Most purebloods, especially the women, come in knowing several wards, both normal and family protections. So that they can protect themselves from one another."
Harry frowned in confusion for a few moments as he pondered the implications of Draco's statement.
Draco, seeing the, confusion on Harry's face, quickly continued to explain. "It's not called the den of serpents for nothing. This isn't a safe space. According to the older students it's this way to teach you from the moment you step in that just like in the magical world, you're not safe. It's dangerous. Alliances and protection pacts are made all the time, as much for social and physical survival as anything else. Sytherins rarely have friends, because it gives someone too much opportunity to put a dagger into your back." When Harry didn't reply, Draco continued, his voice serious. "Tonight, between 2 and 3 am, the sixth and seventh years will all attempt to break into the first year's rooms. If they don't have very good protection or one of their families has protection from the families of one of the older students, the older students get through the wards and punish the first years. They almost all end up strung up and humiliated, until someone comes to release them right before breakfast. It happens every year to almost every first year. Occasionally you'll get a first year whose parents have taught them a complex enough ward that the older years can't break through or the student has enough protection through family connections for the wards to hold them off."
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