Harry went straight to the slytherin common room. Once there, he sat down and began to write out a letter to Sirius.

Snuffles, his quill scratched out.

So, I hope my friends haven't already sent out a letter. Things are happening the same as they did before... Except there's something new too. We got resorted into our houses, though the Ministry messed with the hat. It can't take our opinions into account. 

Those two are still in gryffindor. But I'm in slytherin. Harry felt awful writing the last sentence. It felt like a betrayal. I'm okay. None of the slytherins have tried to attack me yet. 

My hot headed friend and I had a row earlier today. They both think that I should go to Dumbledore, and that he'll fix everything. They don't understand that Dumbledore can't fight the Ministry. And, I hate to say it, but I think it might be better that I'm in slytherin.

With what I have to do... I couldn't keep it from them forever. They'd eventually cotton on. I don't want to risk them. Besides, if I'm surrounded by a horde of slytherins who don't care, I don't have to worry about it. It'll be easier to keep my friends safe.

I actually just got out of dada... I had some words with Umbridge. I don't think you can quite fathom how deeply I despise this woman... Maybe one day I can show you in a pensieve. I'm pretty certain that I have a week of detention with her.

Harry grimaced; while he knew he'd be alright, he still wouldn't enjoy the detention. Harry looked at the back of his left hand, absent of the phrase 'I must not tell lies'. It wouldn't be that way for much longer.

The hat did mention that something I am looking for is in the library here. Trick is, I'm not sure what I'm looking for. Precisely. And it's not a small library. Plus, the books get incredibly dusty.

Harry hoped Sirius picked up that he was meaning in the restricted section.

I hope you don't get too lonely. Tell you what- when this is through, we'll make it nice there. How great would that be? Like a huge middle finger to the folks who lived there before. 

For a moment, Harry wondered if Sirius even knew what the middle finger was. Then he remembered that he was talking about Sirius. Harry would eat every bad flavor of Bertie Bott's at once if Sirius didn't know it.

"Who're you writing to?" One of the slytherins asked him.

"Voldemort himself." Harry said, not bothering to look up.

The slytherin snorted, before walking off.

I know it might seem like being stuck in slytherin is a bad thing... But it's not the worst that could happen. I can take care of myself. I've got three years on these blokes.

I'm sending this one with Hedwig, but in the future, use a different owl if you have to send something.

-H

PS: Be nicer to Kreacher. If you do, he'll warm up to you. I know from experience. It's better to have him work with you than against you.

Then Harry took his letter and headed for the owlery. He ended up taking Hedwig from the owlery and went outside, spending time playing around with her. She was rather excited to get to stretch her wings out. 

Harry found himself laughing. He lost track of time. They somehow started a game of owl fetch. Then Hedwig found it amusing to dive at Harry, making a game of how long he'd last before he jumped out of the way. Harry was used to making quick movements like that on a broom, and several times he wasn't as fast as he thought he would be.

Hedwig however, was far faster, and didn't crash into him fully. She would playfully bat her wings in his face, and nibble on his ears. And on the one time they had collided, she had squacked indignantly at him while she stood on his chest. Harry had groaned on the ground, having been knocked over.

"Defeated by an owl, Potter?" Malfoy called out. 

Harry turned his head to look, just barely managing to get Malfoy in his line of sight. After all, glasses didn't work to the sides of your face, just in front. It was rather annoying at times, though seeing at all was better than seeing blobs and blurs.

Malfoy was leaning against a pillar, arms crossed, a smirk across his face. Harry didn't know how long he'd been there.

"She's quite fearsome." Harry grinned. "A truly worthy opponent."

"I heard a couple Hufflepuffs talking about you in the hallway. I can see they were right, you are acting like a nutter." Malfoy said.

Hedwig took off into the air. Harry stood up, brushed the dirt off of his robes, and checked for twigs in his hair.

"You're making us slytherins look bad." Malfoy said.

"You make yourselves look bad." Harry said. 

"You say that like you're not one of us." Malfoy smirked.

Harry sighed. "What do you want?"

"That was quite the speech you made." 

Harry looked up, watching Hedwig circle up above. "It needed to be said."

"Did you have to get yourself detention, though?" Malfoy asked. 

"It'll be worth it." Harry said.

"You don't even know what she'll have you do. What if you're set to clean the toilets? Without magic?" Malfoy asked.

"I'll be doing lines, I believe." Harry said.

Malfoy narrowed his eyes. "How did you know what she was going to do?"

"Well, I have to keep some secrets, don't I?" Harry asked, and then whistled two notes. He held his arm out, and Hedwig landed on it gracefully. He gave her his letter and whispered Sirius' name to her, and she took off.

"You have her trained like a dog." 

"She's an owl," Harry said. "You can tell by the feathers, beak, eyes, and talons. And she isn't trained. I just know how to talk to her."

"You talk to your owl?"

"Her name is Hedwig, if you must know." Harry said.

"Nutter."

"Git."

"You offend me."

"I wasn't even trying, you must be quite sensitive." Harry said, walking over. "I apologize."

Why was Harry talking to him like he was the young man he'd known in eighth year? This was fifth year Draco Malfoy, who hadn't been given an assassination order. This wasn't the Malfoy who'd saved his life.

"I think you're the sensitive one." Malfoy replied.

Harry shrugged. "We're both."

"Did you spend the entire time playing with your owl?" Malfoy asked, walking back into the castle.

"Uh, I think so." Harry said, following him.

Malfoy sighed. "You're going to fail your OWLs if all you do is fool around."

"I'll be fine."

"You need to control that temper of yours." Malfoy said. "It'll get you into trouble."

Harry laughed.

"What do you find so amusing?"

"I was controlling my temper," Harry said. "It was very difficult not to hex her on the spot."

Malfoy raised a brow, but Harry didn't elaborate.

~~~

Harry walked with Malfoy back to the slytherin common room, where he sat down and worked on his homework. It went by quicker than it should have normally, but it was basically review for him. He didn't remember everything, but it was all familiar and therefore easier.

His housemates raised a brow at him when he finished his first assignment. Harry'd just shrugged.

"Please tell me you actually tried on that." Malfoy scowled.

"I did."

"Really?"

"I might be oblivious sometimes, but I'm not stupid." Harry said.

They snorted. Harry sighed. It wasn't like he could tell them he'd done all this before. 

Word of his match with Umbridge had spread by the time he got to dinner. Harry ate as quickly as he could get away with, and slipped back to the slytherin common room. He didn't want to deal with the rumour mill right now, he didn't want to get in another row with Ron and Hermione.

When Malfoy and Zabini got back from dinner, Harry was already finishing his second assignment at the coffee table.

"There's no way you finished that too." Zabini exclaimed.

"Almost finished." Harry corrected him.

"What are you wearing?" Malfoy asked, nose scrunched.

"Pajamas." Harry blinked back.

"They're hideous." Malfoy said.

"I didn't pick them." Harry said, "And we can't all wear fine silks, Malfoy."

"I thought the golden boy gets everything he wants." 

"If I got everything I wanted," Harry snapped, "I'd have a family and some bloody peace."

Malfoy's brows raised. "Well, that would be a miracle. Unfortunately, those are quite expensive, more so with the high demand and limited supply."

Harry sighed. "I know."

"But seriously," Zabini said, "Who got those clothes for you?"

Harry blinked. "They're hand-me-downs."

"Hand-me-downs?" Zabini's eyes went wide.

"Yeah."

"Why on earth would you wear hideous hand-me-downs?" Malfoy asked.

"Besides my robes, and what Mrs. Weasley knits, they're all I've got."

"All you've got?" Malfoy frowned. "Surely you have enough money to buy yourself some clothes-"

"The Dursleys just gave me Dudley's old clothes." Harry said. "As long as I wasn't nude, it was fine." 

"Looking like a hobo from a madhouse is not fine-"

"Malfoy, would you stuff your silver spoon in your mouth?" Harry said. "Or just your silk socked foot will do."

Zabini's mouth made an 'O' shape, and he panned to look from Harry to Malfoy, and then between them. 

"Goodnight. I'm going to try to get some sleep, because tomorrow will be awful." Harry said. "Please leave me alone. I know jinxes that will make you miserable."

"You don't realize it, Potter," Zabini said, "But you're fitting in quite well with slytherin. Goodnight."

~~~

Harry didn't sleep well. Whether it was the green curtains or the nightmares, a good rest evaded him. It was early in the morning when Harry had had enough of it, and quietly got up and dressed. 

After a moment's hesitation, he grabbed the Marauder's Map and his invisibility cloak. It was far too easy to slip into the restricted section. Probably due to experience. Harry took to the dusty shelves, looking for one about time travel.

He found several books. About things involving time, but not the travel through it. The passing of time in relation to herbology, how time affects personality signs, best times to enchant and brew... 

He hadn't found anything useful by the time students were up. Harry slipped out, and headed back for the common room. He started heading towards gryffindor tower by habit, before realizing his mistake and turning back.

He managed to get to his dorm without suspicion. Once he was in there, however, Zabini was sitting on his own bed, Malfoy in the bathroom.

"Hey, Potter's back." Zabini said.

Malfoy stepped into the doorway, pausing mid hair routine. His platinum locks fell loosely to the side of his face, oddly highlighting the cheekbones and sharp jawline. His silver grey eyes looked at Harry in curiosity. 

"Where'd you disappear off to?" Malfoy asked.

Harry cleared his throat. "Um. Why d'you need to need know? It isn't any of your business." 

"I'm slytherin prefect, Potter." Malfoy said, smirking. "You're in slytherin."

"I hadn't forgot." Harry said.

"That means it's my job to make sure you don't get into trouble." Malfoy said. Harry thought that could be taken in different ways. "So, where were you?"

"Library." Harry replied, walking to his trunk and shoving his things in as quickly as he could without either of them seeing. Then he snatched up his book bag and slammed his trunk closed.

"You seem awfully invested in your schoolwork." Zabini said. "Maybe we judged you wrong."

Malfoy glared at Zabini. Zabini rolled his eyes.

"What did you need in the library?" Malfoy asked, going back to fixing his hair. For a moment, Harry thought it looked better the way it was. 

"A book." Harry said. "Did you forget what libraries are for?"

"We haven't been assigned anything that requires sources other than our standard textbooks." Malfoy said.

"Curse a man for reading, why don't you." Harry said, and walked out of the room.

Harry did his best to ignore the other students' conversation over breakfast.

"Harry. Can I talk to you?" Hermione asked softly, having walked over to him on his way out of the Great Hall.

"Why not." Harry said dully. 

Hermione walked with him to a spot out of the way. "Are you okay?"

"Hermione." Harry said.

"I don't know what to do, Harry." Hermione said. "You're saying strange things, you're acting odd. You look awful-"

"Thanks."

"-It's true, you look like you haven't slept in days." Hermione said. "Harry, I've never known you to give up on something. Why are you giving up now?"

"I'm not giving up. I'm letting go." Harry said. "Did you notice the Sorting Hat's song this year? It talked about unity. Maybe it will help if I can prove that slytherin isn't the worst-"

"-But, slytherin is-"

"-Is a house where the children of Dark wizards and witches tend to get shoved into, and subjected to prejudice." Harry said. "They aren't all Dark, Mione. Some of them just have to pretend to be. They have to pretend to be okay with things that aren't okay."

With a slight start, Harry realized he was more slytherin than he thought. He'd had to pretend around the Dursleys, he'd had to put up a facade so many times... It wasn't just a recent development.

"Harry." Hermione said softly. "When did you... Get all wise? Know so much?"

Harry smiled softly. "I have a lot of responsibility. I've just had enough of putting it off. The sooner I get it over with the sooner I can relax."

"Are you really going to be okay? In slytherin?" Hermione asked, her brows scrunched in worry.

"Yeah. I will be." Harry said.

"I'm allowed to worry, right?" Hermione asked. "You aren't exactly the best at staying safe."

Harry smiled, and pulled her into a hug. "You can worry." He said, and pressed a kiss to her temple. "I can take care of myself. But, do watch out for Ron. He needs you, especially."

Hermione nodded, and Harry released the embrace. It was only after he was walking away that he realized this Hermione wasn't used to those displays from him. 

It was a post war habit he'd developed- assuring himself that they were all real, and okay. He'd gotten teased a little bit at first, but the girls had stood up for him. They thought it was sweet. The boys didn't get temple kisses, but he had other gestures for them. 

For a moment, Harry felt his heart in his gut. That was another thing that was gone. That sense of family- just gone. Harry realized that there was a price for getting to save those he lost- he'd lost what he already had.

A/N

Yay, chappie.

Just want to tell you all to stay safe, and be careful. The spike in cases is from family and friends spreading it to each other, not passing strangers at the store. Plus Halloween gatherings and weddings and such... Just, please be very careful. 

Just this Monday I got to see my friends for the first time since March- and the four of us wore masks the whole time- except when we were six feet apart outside to have our drinks. It was really, really great to see them. But I wanted to point out that being safe and wearing a mask isn't rude. It's considerate.

My dad saw a facebook post that said something along the lines of: "Before you cancel your thanksgiving or christmas, just remember that it might be the last one with those relatives." 
Here's what I have to say about that, sue me if suits your fancy, but I think it needs to be said:  Yeah, it very well could be a relative's last thanksgiving. But it could be their last thanksgiving because someone passed COVID to them. Ever heard of a self- fulfilling prophecy?

One of my step-sister's relations got COVID and passed it to his grandmother. She didn't make it.
One of my mom's friend's daughter had a wedding. One of the guests had COVID and didn't know, they passed it to other guests and the Pastor, who spread it to his entire household and extended family.

News Year's eve, my parents are getting married. My maternal grandparents won't be here. They live in a different state, so not only would they drive up north, but masks. Papa is a transplant recipient, meaning he's on a f**kton of immune suppressants. Gramma and Papa wear N-95 masks whenever they leave the house. We don't want them to die.

Sometimes the polite and considerate thing is uncomfortable. But I know I'd rather wear a mask than get someone I care about killed. Please be cautious.