Malicious Intent - Part 5 (H/D)

[sesheta66]

Title: Malicious Intent – Part 5
Author: sesheta_66
Pairing: Harry/Draco
Word Count: 3K
Rating: Eventual NC-17
Warning: none
Summary: Harry’s world is upended when he’s asked to investigate a break-in and threats levied at Draco Malfoy. He’s never told anyone about their short-lived but intense relationship, and now, five years after it ended, doesn’t seem the time. He’s a professional, so he will investigate, find and arrest the culprit, and get on with his life. What else can he do?
Disclaimer: Harry Potter characters are the property of J.K. Rowling and Bloomsbury/Scholastic. No profit is being made, and no copyright infringement is intended.

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Malicious Intent – Part 5

Back at Grimmauld Place, Harry replayed the video he’d taken at Draco’s flat and made additional notes, particularly regarding the hidden surveillance devices. In short order, he confirmed that there had been fifteen. One was in the Malfoy family ring and three were to be sent to the Ministry. There were three that included video and the rest were spread among the main rooms, with one in the entryway. At least whoever planted them didn’t put one in the bathroom. Small consolation. What troubled him most was the age of three devices, though they no longer worked. Probably disabled over time from the magic in the flat.

He did not look forward to passing along this news. It was a terrible invasion of privacy for anyone, but for Malfoy it held the power to evoke the past. Harry knew from experience that some things are better left behind. This definitely qualified.

Putting aside his notes, he turned to the Pensieve. With confirmation that the video surveillance – presuming there hadn’t been others placed earlier and subsequently removed – had only been active since this break-in, there would be no historical pattern established. That made the job a little easier. Still, he wanted it to look natural. Hopefully it wouldn’t be needed for long – with any luck his trackers would pick up a transmission shortly – but he wanted to provide as much of a break for Malfoy as he could.

As Malfoy’s memories swirled in the Pensieve, Harry saw once more the gift he’d given Draco piecing itself together. His heart had begun to race then and it did the same now. And at once he was immersed in his own memories of that day.

Harry had grown weary of remaining holed up in Grimmauld. While neither of them was ready or willing to share their relationship with anyone, he missed the freedom such shared knowledge could provide. So he’d devised a plan. Telling Draco to set aside the full day, he had a surprise in store.

Unsure if Draco would be amenable, but unwilling to chance the alternative, he’d decided on a day in the Muggle world. London remained too much of a risk, as so many witches and wizards spent time there – besides, they’d both explored London before – so he’d decided on Wales. Cardiff specifically.

The day remained a pleasant blur of sightseeing and shopping and people watching. They had walked along the water and slipped into all sorts of shops. Harry didn’t remember what shops or restaurants they’d gone into; all he remembered was the feeling of freedom, to just walk around, hand in hand, together, without a care in the world. Even now he treasured that feeling, something he’d never been able to recapture, even with Ginny, in the wizarding world. And, he just realised, he’d never even tried spending a day with her in the Muggle world.

Cardiff castle wasn’t Hogwarts, of course, but for them it was perfect, and Draco had been particularly fascinated by the animal wall. He’d mocked Harry relentlessly for – of course – liking the lions best, and had been somewhat affronted by the lack of a snake, or at least a serpent. And why, with dragons everywhere one went in Cardiff, had there not been at least one on the wall? Harry grinned at the memory. In the end, Draco had settled on the lynx as his favourite. Harry had pointed out that a lynx, like a lion, is just a big cat, but Draco had just told him to shut up.

They’d travelled incognito, making a few tweaks to their features, just in case. It had been strange looking at Draco in disguise, and he imagined Draco had felt the same way, but neither of them had changed their eyes and they hadn’t disguised their voices, so if they just focussed on those things, they were able to immerse themselves in the day.

Later that night when they were home – Harry’s home that had quickly felt like their home – Harry’d presented Draco with his gift.

"But I didn’t get you anything," Draco’d said, though the sparkle in his eyes had told Harry he was pleased.

"I know. You don’t have to. I just ... well, I couldn’t resist." Draco had reached for it, but Harry’d held it back. "Now don’t laugh, because it’s Muggle. And really cheesy."

He’d rolled his eyes and reached out once more. "I would expect no less from you, Potter."

"It’s just ... well, I just wanted you to have something to remember our first date together, that’s all." Harry’d handed it over, just a little apprehensive now that the time had come. He’d expected to be mocked, or at the very least teased relentlessly, but Draco had surprised him. He’d simply smiled and opened it.

And, though Harry had expected derisive laughter, he’d smiled more brightly and said, "It’s brilliant."



"It’s a dragon. Like you."

Then the eyeroll had come. "Funny, but I’d managed to work that out all on my own."

"Shut up. At least I didn’t get you a red one. I figured you’d have something biting to say about it being Gryffindor colours."

But then he’d kissed Harry, like he’d never kissed him before. It had been the perfect end to the perfect day.

And then, three weeks later it was over.

And that was five years ago.

Only ... Draco had kept the dragon. And Harry had no idea what to make of that.

Harry put his fingers to his lips and swore he could still taste Draco’s kiss.

His alarm jolted him back to the present. He checked his watch; Ginny should be home soon. He needed to find another place to work if he was expected to keep the case to himself, since he couldn’t be assured of privacy in his tiny cubicle at the Ministry. If he left now, he should have just enough time to work something out before going back to Draco’s.

When he arrived back at Draco’s flat, it was awkward, to say the least. The dragon, hidden away in a drawer in Draco’s bedroom, loomed over them. And after reliving that day in Cardiff, Harry found it a challenge not to stare. He kept running his tongue over his upper lip, trying to recapture that moment. He shook his head to clear away the memories. He was with Ginny now. They’d both moved on. He couldn’t get distracted, not with Draco’s life on the line – and yes, damn it, he was definitely Draco again. But the need to know – why had Draco kept such a silly souvenir if it had meant nothing to him? – kept interrupting his thoughts.

"Were you able to complete the list of missing items?" Harry’s voice came out raspier than he’d intended.

"What?" Draco jumped, startled out of wherever he’d gone. It seemed Harry wasn’t the only one lost in thought. "Oh, right." He grabbed a paper from the table and handed it to Harry. "Here you go."

Harry took the proffered page and looked over the list. "Correct me if I’m wrong, but it looks like none of these is actually yours." At Draco’s scowl, he continued. "I mean, none of these items was purchased by you. They’re all Malfoy items handed down to you, right?"

"Yes."

"And nothing from the Black side?"

"Ah, no."

There were only three things of note: the hand of glory kept, as Harry recalled, as a reminder of stupid choices; a tome from the Malfoy library; and a jewelled box, an heirloom Lucius had valued. Draco had never shown much interest in any of them.

The items destroyed, however, seemed to have no rhyme or reason to them. An indiscriminate act of force, probably just to rattle Draco. And rattle him it had.

Harry positioned himself with his back to known cameras and motioned towards Draco’s ring. Thankfully, he got the message and excused himself to use the washroom, conveniently leaving it behind when he returned.

"I’ve a few things to go over with you, if you would come with me." Draco nodded and Harry took his arm, Apparating them to the room he’d just set up.

"Subtle, Potter," he said as he withdrew his arm from Harry’s grasp and stared at the bed, looking suddenly terrified. "Just because I kept some stupid dragon doesn’t mean I’m going to sleep with you."

"What? Wait. No!" Harry took a moment to process the scene from Draco’s point of view and felt his face burn. "Oh, for fuck’s sake." He waved his wand, transfiguring the bed into a table and chairs. "I rented the space so I can work in private. I barely had time to secure it before returning to your flat."

Draco snorted. Apparently Harry’s discomfort emboldened him. "Work, eh?" He took a step closer to Harry and grasped his tie. "Is that what we’re calling it now?"

Draco wasn’t fooling anyone with his false bravado. Harry had seen his fear when they’d landed in this room. That, more than anything, allowed him to regain his composure. "Oh, stop it. Don’t pretend this is any easier on you than it is me."

Draco shrugged. "Very well. Why have you – oh, Great and Powerful Auror Potter – dragged me to a seedy hotel room away from all prying eyes if you weren’t planning on taking advantage of my current, very vulnerable position? Whatever do you want from me?"

Harry knew this was Draco’s defence mechanism, throwing other people off their game, but knowing that didn’t prevent it from getting Harry riled all the same. Especially given the circumstances. What did he want from Draco? Right now, Harry kinda wanted to punch him in the face. Which was a good thing, really, because it made him remember that he was supposed to be pissed off with Draco, not replaying long lost memories and thinking about what might have been. This was just another case. He was an Auror and Draco was a victim. He took a soothing breath and willed himself to be objective.

"If you want to be a dick, Malfoy, you can simply Apparate home – there’s nothing preventing you – and I’ll carry on without bothering to inform you of my findings. If, however, you want to take this threat on your fucking life seriously, you’re welcome to take a seat and listen."

Despite being chastised, Draco nonchalantly collapsed onto the sofa, crossed his legs imperiously and raised his brows. "Well? Inform me."

"Right. Well, after my second round searching your flat, I confirmed the fifteen devices. There’s the one in your ring and the three barely hidden ones."

"Which leaves eleven."

"Yes. Three of the remaining ones are old."

"You mentioned that before. Just how old are they?"

"About two years old."

Malfoy shot up. "What did you say? Two years?"

"Yeah, that’s the bad news."

He shot Harry a murderous look. "And there’s some sort of good news about someone spying on me for two years?"

Harry dragged his hand through his hair and sat down on the chair facing Malfoy. "I wouldn’t call it good news, no. But it’s less bad."

"Oh, well then," Malfoy said, a hint of panic in his voice now. "Less bad is just wonderful."

"No, it’s not." Harry sensed him winding up and he wasn’t sure how to calm him down. It wasn’t as if he could take Draco in his arms and talk him through it like he used to do when a panic attack took hold. Hopefully it didn’t come down to that. "The positive part about it is that the devices aren’t working. I can’t tell you how long ago they stopped working – not without looking at them to see when the last recording was made, if it’s been preserved – but it seems safe to say it’s been a while. My best guess is that the magic in your flat, most likely your wards, caused them to break down."

"Were those the ones with video too?"

"No. That’s the other positive news. There are only three video devices and they were placed there at the same time as the note was left. One each in your bedroom, the front room and the kitchen."

Malfoy’s legs were bouncing slightly and he was wringing his hands, but otherwise he seemed to be keeping relatively calm. "So there were fifteen. Only six were left the other day, which leaves nine older ones. Three of those were really old and no longer working. That’s six more."

"Right. One is in your ring, two in the front room, one each in your entryway, kitchen and bedroom. They seem to be about four to six months old."

"Oh, God." His legs started bouncing again. "I think I’m going to be sick."

Harry panicked. Not sure what to do, he moved to sit down beside Draco, resting his leg against Draco’s bouncing one. "We’ll get whoever’s doing this. I promise."

Draco stared off into the distance, eyes glazed and unfocussed, breathing shallow and fast. Harry suspected he was back at Malfoy Manor, back when Voldemort and the Death Eaters had taken over the place and had roamed freely.

Without thinking, he pressed his hand to Draco’s thigh, to stop the bouncing, and squeezed. "Hey, Malfoy." No response. "Draco!" Draco turned to face him, looking for all the world like he was surprised Harry was even there. "Hey." Harry squeezed his leg again. "It’s going to be okay."

"I don’t – I don’t think I can go back there."

"Then don’t."

His leg began to shake under Harry’s hand again. "But what about your plan to catch them?"

Harry released his leg and grabbed him gently by the upper arms, turning him so they faced each other. "Don’t worry about that."

"But –"

"Shh. Listen to me. It’s okay. Everything’s going to be okay." Harry’s hands acted of their own accord and rubbed circles on Draco’s shoulders as he tried to talk him down. "We’ll figure it out. We might catch a break when they transmit the first time – I’ve placed a trace on them so I’ll know when something happens. Since they aren’t transmitting constantly, you don’t have to be there for now. And if we don’t catch them that way, we’ll figure out something else. Trust me."

Draco nodded, taking in shaky breaths. After a time, he calmed somewhat. "I do," he whispered. He stared at Harry like a lost child and swallowed. "I trust you."

Harry smiled. "Good. Now try to relax."

He snorted. "Yeah, sure. No problem. I’m all about relaxing."

"Can I get you something? A glass of water?"

"Sure. Yeah. Water’s good."

Harry released his arms and stood up. The moment he started to walk away, Draco wrapped his arms around his body and his legs began to bounce again. Harry quickly returned with the water. "Here you go. Drink up."

Draco took a sip while staring off into the distance again. Harry didn’t know what else to do.

"I can’t go back there," Draco said in a choked voice, looking at someplace only he could see. "Not now."

"It’s okay. You don’t have to. I can pick up whatever you need, if you want."

"No, I mean the manor. I can’t go there now, not like this."

"Okay." Once more Harry tried to settle the bouncing with a hand to Draco’s leg. Before his brain processed what he was going to say, words spilled forth, unbidden. "You can stay here. I’ve already put up wards to keep people out, and I’ve done a sweep of the room to ensure it’s secure."

"And no one’s watching?"

Harry shook his head. "No one’s watching or listening. It’s safe and secure."

"You’re sure?" He hugged himself tightly and it was everything Harry could do to resist doing the same, just taking him in his arms and telling him that he would make everything okay. That he’d protect him.

"I’m positive." He waved his wand and the table transfigured back into a bed. "Why don’t you lie down?" Draco allowed himself to be led to the bed. Harry sat him down, removed his shoes, and nudged him under the covers. "I’ll go get you some tea from the restaurant downstairs and I’ll be right back, okay?"

Draco started to laugh, for no discernible reason. Just as Harry was starting to panic, he said, "See? I knew you wanted to get me into bed again."

Harry winced. What was he supposed to say to that? He’d never wish these circumstances on anyone, least of all Draco. No matter what had gone before, he knew he’d always want to protect this man. But he couldn’t say that. Shouldn’t say that. Hell, he shouldn’t even think it. But, more to the point, he’d never take advantage of such a situation. Oh, and he was with Ginny.

Draco stopped laughing. "Sorry. That wasn’t funny."

No, it definitely wasn’t. "It’s okay." What else was he to say?

"No, it’s not." Draco pulled the covers over his shoulders and turned to face away from Harry. "I’m so, so sorry, Harry." He took a couple of ragged breaths. "Sorry for everything."

Harry stood up, not knowing what to do. "I’ll get that tea for you now." Draco said nothing, so he fled.

When he got back upstairs, Draco was sound asleep. Probably for the best. He’d had an emotionally draining day to say the least.

Harry stayed for another half hour, watching Draco sleep and wondering what the hell he was doing. Ron would have told him he was mental. Hermione would have told him he was pulling his saviour thing again. And Ginny? She’d have told him he was a sucker.

Right. Ginny. She’d be home by now. He really ought to go there too.

He pulled two coins out of his pocket and waved his wand over them. He returned one to his pocket and placed the other on the night table with a note. "Press to contact me if you need anything. H."

He read the note over and spent a few more minutes watching Draco sleep, the crease between his eyes itching to be smoothed out. Harry resisted, but only just, and he thought that Ron, Hermione and Ginny were all probably right about him. And in that moment, he just couldn’t bring himself to care.

Continued in Part 6

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