The Half-Blood Princess

Lockhart's Dueling Club

Being older, Harley didn't get as involved with Harry's friends' escapades, though no student could escape the fear that permeated the school once Mrs. Norris had been found Petrified. Who was Slytherin's heir, and how many students would be Petrified before someone closed the Chamber Of Secrets back up again? What if someone died?

The second years (particularly that brat Malfoy) were convinced that Harry was the heir, which was ridiculous. Despite his recent revelation that he could speak Parseltongue (and Harley was quite envious of that), there was no way he opened the Chamber. Being as famous as he was, someone would have seen him. It had to be someone more under the radar. Someone no one would notice or ever think poorly of.

In the older classes, Harley overheard Slytherins gossiping that she, Harley, was the heir. She understood why people were thinking that: she showed up out of the blue after being Concealed with an unknown Slytherin father. But she wasn't, and after a while the whispering got on her nerves.

"I'd like to use Expelliarmus and send them flying all the way across the school," she muttered during lunch, sitting between the twins.

"Look, they're trying to get a rise out of you after Snape announced you were the only one who got a perfect score on that potion last week," Fred commented. "They're jealous that he's favouring a Gryffindor over them."

"At least someone likes me. McGonagall watches me like I'm going to jump up and put an Unforgivable Curse on her," Harley said with a sigh.

"Hey, what am I? Chopped liver?" Fred asked, pretending to be offended.

"Exactly," George said, Transfiguring Fred's plate of chips into liver.

"Hey!"

Harley smiled as the twins squabbled around her. Despite their childish dispositions, Harley liked them. Especially Fred, with whom she studied and spoke more. He was charming in his own, unique way. Funny, a prankster, but never cruel. She had been the victim of too many cruel pranks to ever befriend anyone who committed them. There was a fine line between a jester and a bully, and Fred never once crossed it.

On the way out of lunch, Hermione ran up to Harley and pulled her aside. "Hey, you know Fred really likes you."

"I had hoped he didn't detest me," Harley said sarcastically.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "You are older than me but you're so thick in some areas. He likes you. Like, really."

"Oh!" Harley hadn't thought about that. Certainly, he was handsome but romance was not something she ever concerned herself with. This would require some serious thought.

She did not have much time to think about it, because Lockhart's Dueling Club was about to begin for the fourth years. Having heard about the fight between Harry and Draco, she was interested to see what would happen this time around.

Harley stood around the raised dais with the others, watching as Snape glowered at Lockhart as the foolish wizard began telling tales of famous duels he had supposedly won. Harley was extraordinarily bored.

"Now, since you're older, I don't think you need Professor Snape and I to demonstrate very much aside from duelling formalities, do you?"

You just don't want him knocking you across the Great Hall again, Harley thought, wishing she had been there to see that.

Lockhart called the twins up to duel each other, and Harley was very impressed. Their form was off, but their spells were clever. They wound up in a stalemate, winning Gryffindor no extra points from Professor Snape. After that were a Ravenclaw and Slytherin Harley didn't know. The Ravenclaw lost, and Slytherin was awarded five points from Snape. Then there were two Hufflepuffs, whose spells were not as impressive but well executed. Snape gave a grudging five points to their House.