A Potions Mishap

When the eighth years return to the newly rebuilt Hogwarts to finish their NEWTs, a lot of things have changed. The Wizarding World is finally at peace and the looming threat of Voldemort diminished forever. But there's still a year left to go through. And it's already off to a rocky start.

Harry Potter is showered with praise and celebrated as the one who saved the Wizarding World. But with the wounds of the war scarring deep and a heartbreak to handle, he doesn't feel ready to step into the role the world designed for him.

A problem Draco Malfoy can only dream of. Spending the summer cut off from the world in his childhood home, the only thing he wants is to flee its tight grasp. Yet, Hogwarts isn't the same it once has been and has nothing to offer the former Death Eater but cold shoulders and dark corners, where he is supposed to linger unnoticed.

But everything changes with a terrible potions mishap. They are forced to pretend to be the other. A task already difficult enough, yet they soon find themselves tangled in a web of lies and facing a threat regarding nothing less but the safety of Hogwarts.

To escape the effects of the potion and solve the mystery of the attacks, they have no choice but to trust the one they had every right to be wary of for the past seven years. Each other.

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(mostly compliant with canon; enemies to friends; implied drarry; no smut; mentions of past trauma; descriptions of violence and injuries; body swap; slow paced)

started: July 2024
finished: February 2026

~190k words