Harry tried to focus on the other classes for the rest of the day, he really did. But all he could think about was his conversation with Professor Snape. How he could do things as fast as the other kids.

He briefly told Hermoine about the planned visit to Hagrid's after classes after he saw her after Potions class. That should be interesting at least.

Transfiguration began with a dense lecture from Professor McGonagall. Luckily it was verbal, so Harry was able to follow most of it. But then they were given a homework assignment to write five inches of parchment on the various transfiguration laws. Harry didn’t look forward to trying to do that one.

Herbology was alright. Professor Sprout was confused by the magical plants' aversion to Harry, as they all pressed themselves against the walls as soon as Harry entered the greenhouse. But she pivoted quickly and started explaining the various gardening methods and magical fertilizers. Luckily there was no writing in this one.

Charms had more lectures from the teacher Professor Flitwick. Unfortunately, Professor Flitwick relied much more on his board and the textbook for his lectures, so Harry only was able to understand about half of it. Before he could read something, Flitwick would already be erasing it and replacing it with something else.

Defense Against the Dark Arts was the worst by far. Professor Quirrell just had them read the textbook while he bumbled and stuttered while asking people questions. He smelt heavily of garlic and was easily startled whenever someone would make a noise. Harry didn’t even attempt to read the book. He had already read its beginning, and trying to read further would only give others the chance to see his inability.

History of Magic class was great. Professor Binns was a ghost who just verbally recited the textbook nearly word for word in a monotone. Apparently, he was so dedicated that he had died and his ghost had returned to teaching his class without noticing the difference. Harry could just listen to his words and learn everything. He almost regretted spending so much time on the history of magic textbook. He had only gotten halfway through, but if the professor continued like this Harry thought he could do well. The other students including Ron, Neville, and even Hermoine looked bored to death at the end of class, almost fleeing from the room when they were dismissed. Although that didn’t stop Hermoine from frantically scribbling notes while Ron and Neville attempted to copy her and whispered for clarification.

Harry pretended to write too, but all that came out were the shapes and swirling lines when he didn’t focus on the task. Looking at it now, it did appear rather orderly. They were with the Slytherins all day, and Draco seemed smug at Harry’s supposed punishment at Snape’s hands earlier.

Harry’s friends asked him what had happened, but he just told them that Snape said not to disrespect him again and made sure he wasn’t cheating for the potion before letting him go. It seems that the professor had forgotten that he was supposed to give Harry detention after they got sidetracked. His friends accepted that and Harry felt himself not like his actions. He didn’t want to keep information from his friends. But he also didn’t want them to call him stupid once they noticed how slow he had to write.

It was inevitable that it would happen eventually, but Harry could enjoy it when they weren’t insulting him at least. It would be unfortunate when this warm feeling in his chest went away again. He could at least delay the discovery a couple of weeks by doing his homework somewhere isolated. It would take most of the rest of his day anyway from what they had been given so far. He couldn't let himself get distracted when he was slowly writing.

Now they were going outside for flying lessons that were taught by Madam Hooch. Apparently, she wasn’t a professor? She hadn’t appreciated it very much when Harry had asked about that, thinking he meant it as an insult. Not a great start with her, Harry never did get an answer though. Wasn’t she teaching them? Harry thought that was what it meant to be a professor.

They all lined up with the brooms on the ground. Slytherins on one side and Gryffindors on the other opposite.

“Now, say it with feeling. UP!”

The broom under Madam Hooch’s outstretched hand leaped from the ground and flew into her hand. “Now you try, students.”

Most Hermoine managed it in one try with a very firm voice. Ron and the others took a few tries, but everyone else managed it in five tries or less. Harry was on his tenth attempt. The Slytherins were laughing and his friends shooting him looks of pity. Harry’s broom had barely twitched.

“Up.”

“Up.”

“Up.”

“More feeling than that, Potter! It’s like an animal, you have to be firm with it.”

“Firm?”

“Yes, you control the broom. It can feel if you're hesitant.”

Everyone was staring at them, including a snickering Draco. He was calling Harry an idiot, Harry could feel it already. What was he doing wrong? He modulated his voice like the others. How had Hermoine spoken? Her broom had leaped into her hand immediately.

“UP.”

The broom rolled over in place.

“Much better, even more feeling now." Madame Hooch said, "If you can’t get the broom to do simple things, it won’t follow your lead when you’re flying!”

Follow his lead… He should pretend it was a person, a child. Someone who should listen to him. Harry felt his instincts twinge and he spoke again.

“Up.”

The broom launched into his hand in an instant and the Slytherins stopped laughing. Everyone was giving him strange looks, and Harry panned the crowd with a slightly confused gaze. “What?”

“Well, I guess it worked." Madame Hooch said, "Just had to say some nonsense to get it to work. How odd. Well, everyone time to mount your brooms. Time to teach you some proper flying techniques!”

Madam Hooch walked off and Harry and the others promptly mounted their brooms.

He leaned over to Ron. “Why is everyone looking at me so strangely? All I did was tell the broom to go up.”

“Mate, you said some nonsense. Like in another language there. Some kind of bird cry and growling all in one. You were just telling it to go up?”

“Yes. How could I speak another language without even knowing it?” Harry said.

Harry remembered Professor Snape’s words. Was this related to Snape’s proposed curse on him? Making him speak in that language? Well, at least it worked. The broom seemed responsive to his little movements as he hovered a few inches off the ground like the others.

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Somehow, one of the boys named Seamus managed to set his broom on fire. Apparently, a Slytherin said something to him and he pulled his wand? He lost control and shot into the air. Madam Hooch shouted and flew after him, but didn’t stop him in time before he smacked into a wall full force. He fell to the floor groaning. She glared at everyone.

“Everyone off your brooms!”

Everyone dismounted. “Now, I don’t want to see anyone flying around here. I’ll be taking Mr. Finnigan to the hospital wing. Behave yourselves while I am gone.”

With that, she lifted the groaning Seamus into the air with a spell and left. Harry wondered why she wasn’t more concerned. Seamus had hit that wall pretty hard after all, the broom he had been on was in splinters.

Draco whispered with the Slytherins for a while before seeing Harry’s look and raising his voice.

“Can’t even get a broom to listen to him. Potter’s insane if you ask me. Had to growl at the thing to make it move. How pathetic is that?”

“Shut it Malfoy.”

Draco looked to Harry’s right where Ron had stepped forward.

“Oh, a Weasley has something to say? You heard Potter before. Broken in the head, I say. I mean just look at him.”

Draco pointed at Harry and he inspected himself. What was Draco referring to?

“He doesn’t even care. Look at his blank expression. Has to growl like a dog to express himself, he’s so stupid.”

Draco was just like the muggle bullies. Harry felt his chest tighten. Did others feel that way about him? Was it happening already?

“You’re wrong Draco. You just don't like that he told you how he doesn’t care what family you’re from. You think Crabbe and Goyle would follow you around between classes if your name wasn't Malfoy?”

The two large boys standing behind Draco shifted uncomfortably, which Draco noticed.

Draco’s face twisted in anger as he turned back to Ron. “Unbelievable, a Weasley lecturing ME, a Malfoy, on the use of a family’s name. Does your family even have five galleons between them? Your robes are tattered hand me downs, it's what a bunch of blood traitors like you deserve. No wonder you hang out with that mudblood girl in between classes…”

Ron leaped forward and hit Malfoy across the jaw, and everything sprouted into bedlam. Everyone pulled their wands, but they just let off ineffective shots of colored sparks. Malfoy and Ron were wrestling on the ground as the Slytherins leaped in to defend Draco while the Gryffindors tried to separate the two and held off the Slytherins. The Gryffindors as a whole seemed less eager to weigh in on the conflict but didn't leave Ron completely without support.

Harry and Neville rushed in and pushed through the thrashing crowd to the rough wrestling between Draco and Ron. Both were in the dirt rolling by this point. Draco managed to pull out his wand and muttered something and Ron twitched and fell to the side. Draco smirked as Ron began spasming on the ground. He stood and gloated over Ron as everyone fighting paused and stared at the scene in shock. Except Harry who kept moving.

“Unlike some, my family teaches us real spells in case we are attacked by a filthy blood traitor like you. My family…”

Harry tackled Draco and brought him to the ground. Harry felt his hands grow cold as Draco struggled to push him off. Harry reached over and grabbed Draco’s wand with both hands and snapped it in two in a spray of sparks as he jerked by pulling back sharply on one end. Harry's hands warmed up as the wood cracked. Everyone gasped at his actions, but before anyone could stop him Harry hit Draco hard in the jaw. Draco fell to the ground, but only seemed focused on his snapped wand and ignored the growing bruise on his face. Harry shook his hand briefly, it was stinging from the punch a little.

“You'll pay! Wait until my father hears about this!" Draco said, "This is a crime. This…”

Harry ignored Draco's protests as he brushed himself off and looked around the crowd after getting to his feet. “Does anyone know where the hospital wing is? Ron appears to be dying. Seizures can often be fatal if they last this long.”

Neville and Hermione rushed in and carried away the twitching Ron. Harry followed them and helped with the doors while Hermione gave them directions. They carried Ron through the doors where an unconscious Seamus lay in a bed with Madam Hooch and another woman casting some sort of spell over him.

The unfamiliar woman looked up and hustled forward as she saw Ron’s state. “My goodness! This is dark magic… Here, lift him into the bed.”

She cast a spell and muttered under her breath. Ron stopped moving and his breathing grew slow and regular like he was in a deep sleep.

“To think students are already resorting to such curses.”

Madame Hooch rushed over. “What happened? Is anyone else hurt?”

Hermione and Neville shifted in place, seeming unsure of how to explain what happened. Harry stepped in.

“Draco insulted me and Ron defended me. In response, Draco insulted Ron’s family and called him poor, and then they started pummeling each other. There should be some bruises from other scuffles between the Slytherins and Gryffindors fighting around them. Oh, and I hit Draco Malfoy quite hard in the face and snapped his wand. He seemed okay though, he was yelling about his father and how I would pay when we left with Ron. He was doing it rather loudly, actually.”

The two adults froze. After a moment, the unfamiliar woman who Harry realized must be Madame Pomfrey started looking through a cabinet for a potion. Madame Hooch took up the questioning, but Harry could see Madame Pomfrey was still listening with one ear. Neville looked sick for some reason as Harry mentioned snapping Draco's wand.

“You… You snapped Draco Malfoy’s wand?” Madame Hooch said.

Harry nodded. “Yes.”

Madame Hooch opened and closed her mouth, seeming unsure how to respond. Harry tried to think of why she was so shocked.

“Oh, it is expensive isn’t it?" He said, "I should probably give him the five galleons for a new one. Even if I don’t like him all that much. I would have to go to Gringotts to go get it though, I didn’t bring that much to school…”

“I’m sorry, Potter. But it is far more serious than that." Madame Hooch said with a grave expression on her face. "The bond between a wizard and their wand isn’t something that is just replaced. What you did is a serious crime. I will have to bring you to Headmaster Dumbledore to handle this.”

“Oh. That’s not good,” he replied.

Harry turned to Madame Pomfrey.

“Is Ron going to be okay? No bleeding in his brain or anything?”

She shook her head.

“No, just a series of potions and he’ll be right as rain. The curse wasn’t deadly, just very painful. This curse just makes him lose control of his muscles, and I have several potions that could heal any long-term damage he would suffer in moments. But he'll be here for a few days just for caution's sake.”

Neville and Hermione sighed in relief as Harry replied. “Oh. That's good. I think I would be sad if he were to die.”

Harry looked back to Madame Hooch. “Well, I guess we should go to the Headmaster now, right?”

“Er, Yes Potter," she replied, "you are in a lot of trouble. I’ll escort you there immediately.”

“We’ll go with him!” Neville said.

Hermione's voice wavered slightly as she joined in, “Ye- Yeah. He didn’t know how serious it was. How- How was he supposed to know?”

Madame Hooch hesitated but eventually huffed. “Fine. Granger and Longbottom, you’re coming too. You’re all wrapped in this anyways.”

The three were escorted quickly through the hallways as the people around them began murmuring at their rush. Harry whispered to the other two as they rounded another corner.

“Thanks, you two. You didn’t have to come.”

Neville awkwardly patted Harry’s shoulder as they ran. “Don’t worry Harry. We got– got your back.”

Hermione nodded. “They should have told us that first thing! I wouldn’t have thought it was so serious either before I saw Madame Hooch’s face.”

They finally reached a gargoyle stone statue. It met Madame Hooch's gaze, “Here to see the Headmaster on an urgent matter.” she said.

The gargoyle blinked but didn’t say anything for a long minute. Then finally, it curled itself inwards and began spinning in place, revealing a staircase that slowly rose until the way up was clear. Madame Hooch rushed them up the stairs and in front of an impressive pair of wooden doors. The doors opened on their own after a moment, revealing Professor Snape and Headmaster Dumbledore waiting inside. Neville and Hermione gulped as the trio approached.

Dumbledore smiled kindly as he sat behind his desk, “Now what is this all about?”