average human’s Reviews > Sectumsempra > Status Update

Draco let out a sharp laugh that he hastily covered at Narcissa’s scolding look.

“Sorry, excuse me,” he said quietly, his grey eyes still shining with mirth.

Lucius ignored him and focused on Potter. “What would you say to an exhibition after breakfast? Underage magic is not traceable in our home, due to myself, Narcissa, and the elves levels of magic.”

“Darling, is that really necessary?” Narcissa hummed. “I thought I would take the boys shopping for proper wardrobes today.”

Narcissa had been eyeing Potter’s casual wardrobe with increasing scorn. She fretted for him at night that the ‘poor boy needs a woman’s touch’. Lucius held the very private belief that if it were up to her Narcissa would adopt every orphaned child she encountered, magical or not.

He never understood how she developed such an empathetic heart, considering the family she was raised in.

Potter, who seemed to equally adore and fear his wife, hastily answered Lucius’ request, “Of course! We can duel. I’d love to see what you can teach me,” he added in a shy voice.

Lucius may have been flattered by the child’s remark if it were not for Draco’s quick look of fear that told him perhaps Potter was attempting to play him for a fool.

“Don’t hurt him, okay?” He heard Draco hiss to Potter as the three of them entered the dueling chamber.

“No promises,” Potter winked.

Lucius would have scoffed at the child’s arrogance except... Except the boy held the same casual stance that Voldemort did, before he was a Dark Lord and instead simply ruled over Slytherin. His eyes were sharp, focused on Lucius. He twirled his wand carelessly between his fingers. And he had a small smile on his face, one that was equal parts curious and bloodthirsty.

“We bow,” Lucius said.

Potter jerked his head in a semblance of a bow, never taking his eyes off Lucius but clearly refusing to subjugate himself for sport either.

“We begin,” Potter said softly, a mocking lilt to his voice and to his smile.

It did not matter what Lucius threw in Potter’s direction, the boy sidestepped, dispelled, and blocked every curse, jinx, and hex aimed for him. He pondered if James Potter had any magical creature ancestry. Potter certainly dueled with the grace of a Veela and the quickness of the Fae.

At one point Lucius saw an opening, it seemed as if Potter was distracted by creating a complex shield, and disarmed him. He was momentarily both elated to finally end the duel and disappointed that Potter had let him disarm him so suddenly after only five minutes of the child defending himself.

“Should I begin?” Potter laughed, unconcerned with his wandless state, before a flurry of multi-colored lights came flying at Lucius. He barely threw his shield up in time to avoid them and gaped at the boy.

Lucius had worried that Draco’s tales of his allies power had been exaggerated, as his son is prone to do on occasion, but he was intrigued to see that if anything, his son understated it. The publicly beloved Harry Potter seemed to use his magic as naturally as one would use their limbs.

It was as fluid as it was fierce.

He had to immediately go on the defensive, losing his ability to strike back at Potter as the boy easily threw continuous curses his way.

“I told Draco I wouldn’t hurt you, do you want to surrender?” Potter jeered.

“Malfoy’s do not surrender,” he said stiffly, both insulted and exasperated. He was losing a duel to a twelve year old child. It was mortifying.

“Sorry Draco,” Potter called over his shoulder to his son, who Lucius is sure he heard groan.

Before Lucius could blink more than twice his glimmering shield suddenly froze to a corporeal block of ice, melted to the floor, and he was stunned in place.

“The Contessa is a genius,” Potter breathed, apropos of nothing, before dancing up to him, graceful and deadly, and easily pulling both wands from his hands.

“You got off lucky,” he said softly, with a hard glint in his eyes. “Usually I don’t consider a duel over until someone bleeds.”

Lucius was momentarily relieved to be stunned, as neither boy could witness his shiver of unease at Potter’s words. The tone of voice, coupled with the grizzly facial scaring, all coming from an undersized child, made for an impressive display.

“How on Earth did you accomplish such ease in commanding your magic?” Lucius asked him once Potter released him and retuned his wand.

The boy gave him a small grin and a modest shrug. “I always knew I was special, I just didn’t know it was magic I could do, did I?”

Lucius doubted whether there had even been a wizard alive who mastered silent and wandless magic at such an age.

Special indeed.

Potter also seemed heavily interested in politics. They spent a few memorable evenings in Lucius’ office discussing the best way to build political alliances.

“It’s about who you can reasonably assist in the future when they call on you for a favor,” Lucius instructed him. “If you ally yourself solely with light or dark oriented families, then you will find yourself involved in dark or light activities.”

“What about neutral families?” Potter asked.

“There are very few officially declared neutral families. A true party of neutrality remains outside of all dark and light conflicts.”

Potter hummed for a moment, considering, as he paced in front of the wall of weaponry that Lucius decorated his office with. “What about a grey party? Wouldn’t that make a third side in any conflicts? Then you could fight for your beliefs but you wouldn’t have to stick to a specific angle.”

Lucius inclined his head at Potters train of thought. “It would be possible to have a grey alliance if there were enough interested candidates. As of now, the Wixen world is strictly divided by light and dark.”

“What if I want to build allies but I don’t want to owe any favors?” Potter mused, changing the subject now that he was apparently pleased with Lucius’ response. “How do I do that?”