“So that is why you have been avoiding me this term

“So that is why you have been avoiding me this term? You have feared my interference? You realize that, had anybody else failed to come to my office when I had told

them repeatedly to be there, Draco—”

“So put me in detention! Report me to Dumbledore!” jeered Malfoy.

There was another pause. Then Snape said, “You know perfectly well that I do not wish to do either of those things.”

“You'd better stop telling me to come to your office then!”

“Listen to me,” said Snape, his voice so low now that Harry had to push his ear very hard against the keyhole to hear. “I am trying to help you. I swore to your

mother I would protect you. I made the Unbreakable Vow, Draco—”

“Looks like you'll have to break it, then, because I don't need your protection! It's my job, he gave it to me and I'm doing it, I've got a plan and it's going to

work, it's just taking a bit longer than I thought it would!”

“What is your plan ?”

“It's none of your business!”

“If you tell me what you are trying to do, I can assist you ...”

“I have all the assistance I need, thanks, I'm not alone!”

“You were certainly alone tonight, which was foolish in the extreme, wandering the corridors without lookouts or backup, these are elementary mistakes—”

“I would've had Crabbe and Goyle with me if you hadn't put them in detention!”

“Keep your voice down!” spat Snape, for Malfoy's voice had risen excitedly. “If your friends Crabbe and Goyle intend to pass their Defense Against the Dark Arts

O.W.L. this time around, they will need to work a little harder than they are doing at pres—”

“What does it matter?” said Malfoy. “Defense Against the Dark Arts—it's all just a joke, isn't it, an act? Like any of us need protecting against the Dark Arts—”

“It is an act that is crucial to success, Draco!” said Snape. “Where do you think I would have been all these years, if I had not known how to act? Now listen to me!

You are being incautious, wandering around at night, getting yourself caught, and if you are placing your reliance in assistants like Crabbe and Goyle—”

“They're not the only ones, I've got other people on my side, better people!”

“Then why not confide in me, and I can—”

“I know what you're up to! You want to steal my glory!”

There was another pause, then Snape said coldly, “You are speaking like a child. I quite understand that your father's capture and imprisonment has upset you, but—”

Harry had barely a second's warning; he heard Malfoy's footsteps on the other side of the door and flung himself out of the way just as it burst open. Malfoy was

striding away down the corridor, past the open door of Slughorn's office, around the distant corner, and out of sight.

Hardly daring to breathe, Harry remained crouched down as Snape emerged slowly from the classroom. His expression unfathomable, he returned to the party. Harry remained

on the floor, hidden beneath the Cloak, his mind racing.