On Thursday afternoon, in Potions class, something unusual happened. He and Draco had been working in a focussed silence, keeping pace with one another but otherwise completely involved in their own potion. With Umbridge absent from the class, Harry was finding it much easier to concentrate, and hadn’t relied on Draco’s elbow in his ribs to keep him on task. Around half an hour to the end of the class, Snape had drifted past their workstation. His gaze had travelled from Harry’s potion, to Draco’s, and then to Draco himself, where he paused until Draco noticed he was being watched. Draco froze, and looked up at him, and for a moment they stared at one another, until Snape spoke.