The next day, the answer to the Slytherin Seeker problem fell, almost literally, into his lap.
Harry slept poorly, just like he knew he would. Stupid, interfering professors and their stupid interfering nurses. One good thing had come of the whole ordeal, though. At least he didn't have to hide to take a shower the next morning, as his bruises were mostly gone. Zabini was as snotty as usual, making some remark about how Harry must have finally gotten over being shy, but Harry ignored him. It was easiest to do so. He didn't know what the other boy's problem was, but he'd known bullies aplenty back in Little Whinging, so he wasn't unused to the concept.
At breakfast, surprisingly, Millicent sat on one side of him, while Teddy sat on the other. She gave him a shy smile, which he returned, but didn't say anything, so he returned that, too.
"We've got flying lessons this afternoon," Teddy said after swallowing a mouthful of eggs. "You ever been on a broom before?"
Harry shook his head. "Raised by Muggles, remember?" He was, himself, trying to forget it. But last night had put paid to that possibility. "Have you?"
Teddy gave him one of his half-smiles. "Yeah. But don't worry about it. Half of the Gryffindorks haven't been up yet either."
Harry snickered a little over the nickname; it was fairly lightweight compared to some things he'd heard in the Slytherin common room. "We're to have our lesson with them?"
Teddy nodded, as his mouth was full of bacon. Then he pointed at the bottle of blue sludge still sitting by Harry's plate, untouched, where it had appeared soon after they sat down, and swallowed. "Who's sending you potions?"
"Madam Pomfrey," Harry admitted with a shrug, figuring a lie was pointless, and if he could act casually enough about it, Teddy wouldn't see how upset the whole thing made him. "She thinks I need extra nutrition or something. I had to go see her the other day, remember?"
Teddy nodded. "Looks disgusting."
"It is," Harry agreed fervently. "I'm trying to figure if I can mix it with something to improve the taste."
"Not potions, you don't want to mess about with that. You could ask our Head. He's the Potions Master, after all."
Harry wasn't going to be asking him anything. Ever, if he could help it. "Nah, that's okay. I'll choke it down. It'll just take me a minute."
"Good luck," Teddy said with a smirk.
"Gee, thanks."
Teddy laughed quietly, and Harry plugged his nose again before taking up the bottle. He didn't even want to smell the awful odor of it first this time. The potion was just as bad as the one last night, and again, Harry had to try and keep it down by force of will. He hurriedly drank a whole glass of pumpkin juice right after, to wash away some of the taste. Blech.
Millicent was giving him a concerned look as he put his glass down. "Don't choke or nothin,'" she said. "Who'll help me in study group, else?"
"Aww, you just want me for my Charms, then?" he teased.
She laughed. "Got it in one."
Across the table, Draco snorted through a mouthful of juice, making the rest of them laugh as he mopped his face. "Thanks, I didn't know you cared," he groused.
From the other end of the table, several Prefects growled at them to mind their manners, making Harry and the others sit straighter and school their laughter and expressions to something less raucous. Harry chanced a look at the Head Table, and was disconcerted to find Snape watching him. Again.
Hadn't he done enough already?
He glared back at Snape, then cocked his head toward the empty bottle, so the interfering git could see he'd already drunk the nasty gunk down, before he turned back to his toast.
The mail arrived soon after, and Harry was glad that no owl swooped down to him, for once, to give him detention or infirmary directives. Draco, though, got a big package of sweets from home. After a minute's cajoling, he handed some of them out to the other first years. Harry got treacle fudge and munched happily on it; it did wonders for driving the taste of Blue Yuck from his mouth. After they finished breakfast, Draco brought the rest of his sweets back to the dorms, with Crabbe and Goyle alongside him as always, and the rest of the first years made their way to Transfigurations.
Draco and his two "body guards," looking flushed, got there just before the door closed.
"Long trip?" Harry asked as Draco slid into the seat beside him.
"Something like that. I'll show you later." He smirked and took out his quill as McGonagall got started with her lecture.