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Secrets & Lies	By : Digitallace Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male > Harry/Draco Views: 14570 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or anything associated with the fandom, nor do I get paid to write or post this work.

Chapter List
- 14
- 15
- 16
Author's Note: This fic is drawing to a close (Just the one more chapter & the epilogue after this) and I appreciate the patience and support to get through it. I love you guys.

Harry rocked back and forth in the tiny blue swing, his mind a jumbled mess. He couldn't count how many times he'd come to this very place as a boy to get away, to think, or just to waste a few hours. He could see the street where he'd grown up from where he sat now in the middle of a dilapidated park. Two other developments had been crammed into the nearby area since he'd left in a whirlwind, and it seemed all the new, young families wanted to live in new, young homes, leaving old Privet Drive to fall into decay.

Not that he had the slightest inkling to check, Harry was fairly sure the Dursleys had moved away shortly after the war. He'd gotten a couple impersonal Christmas cards from Dudley over the years, and he never recognized the address. Maybe his cousin had moved out on his own, but unless he'd found someone to cook his meals and do his wash, Harry wagered he was still occupying the space just beneath Petunia's skirts as always.

Kicking at the dusty ground, Harry thought over and over on what he'd seen just scant hours ago. Shelves upon shelves of illegal goods, so many it would take Hermione weeks to catalog them all, if not months. Some of them radiated evil so potent Harry didn't even want to get near, while others bore the sheen of newness and made him wonder just how recently they'd been acquired. While it was obvious the collection couldn't have been accumulated solely in Draco's lifetime, it was also fairly clear that it had been contributed to since Lucius Malfoy was sentenced to Azkaban.

He could feel his heart breaking all over again looking over the plethora of illegal objects. It seemed monumentally clear to Harry that Draco was, in fact, carrying on his father's business. He couldn't prove that Malfoy was selling the goods, but the possession of them alone was enough to have him brought up on charges. Lucius had procured a lifetime sentence with mostly speculation and testimonies of his dastardly deeds, so Harry shuddered to think of what might happen to Draco with so much physical evidence against him.

It was his duty to turn this information over to the Ministry. This is what he was paid for, what his moral compass always pointed to, what his friends and family had grown to depend on him for. It was the exact thing this mission had been based upon all along. Fledgecraft had been right from the start and Harry had successfully completed his task without the man's assistance. People like Malfoy deserved to be punished, didn't they?

But he couldn't stand to see Draco thrown into prison…or worse…administered the Kiss.

Not for the first time that night, Harry tugged at his unruly locks, wishing things were simply black and white. Good and evil. But everything was as grey as Malfoy's arrogantly beautiful eyes and he didn't know what to do. He was afraid to tell Hermione, for fear her sense of justice would prevail and she'd go to the Minister herself. He certainly couldn't tell Ron, whose grudge against the Malfoy family had spanned generations.

No. This weight was on his shoulders alone, as so many others had been throughout Harry's brief life.

In the end the answer was clear. Harry was an Auror. He'd taken an oath to protect and serve, and as the sun slowly bathed the gloomy little park in fresh golden light, Harry knew what he had to do.

Ginny looked radiant, as usual. She was wearing a yellow sundress that made her hair seem redder somehow and her lovely freckles stood out against her skin. She was sipping a bright pink frozen drink and her eyes met Harry's immediately as he walked into the little outdoor café.

"Harry," she called, standing to meet him and pulling him into a hug. "You look….tired," she commented, touching the dark circles beneath his eyes. "Have you missed me so much you couldn't sleep?" she teased, but Harry shook his head sheepishly and took a seat across from hers.

He'd practiced this in his head a hundred times, but seeing her there now, his words seemed to stick in his throat. "We have to talk," he said at last, though, that was quite the understatement.

Her shoulders tensed ever so slightly, but her expression didn't falter. "I think you're right," she replied lightly, taking another sip of her drink before giving Harry the full weight of her gaze. "I think we should get married, Harry," she stated, as if mentioning she'd just had a lovely manicure.

"You think we should…what?" he sputtered, feeling his hands go clammy. This was not how he'd envisioned this conversation. He'd naively expected Ginny to be okay, maybe a bit cross, but could he honestly break up with her when she'd just proposed to him? Sort of.

Yes. He could. It was his obligation not to let this spiral any more out of control than it already had.

"Ginny, that's not at all what I meant," he pressed, eyes filled with warmth and regret.

"I know," she bit out, looking scorned. "You came to break things off with me, but I think you'll change your mind when you hear me out."

Harry could only blink. "Pardon?" His head was spinning, he had no idea what she was talking about, what she meant. All he could do is gape at her like a fish out of water.

"You care about me, don't you, Harry?" she asked, her voice sugary and sultry at the same time.

"Of course, but that has nothing-" he began, only to be cut off by a shake of her head.

"And you know me. You knew me before you took down Voldemort, before everyone was out for a piece of you," she pointed out. "I've never lied to you, Harry. I've never been unfaithful."

Harry's cheeks heated at those words, as they cut deep into his soul. "Ginny," he breathed, his heart wrenching in his chest. This was all very nice, but he couldn't listen to it anymore. He couldn't lie to her, to himself. He wanted something she just couldn't give him and it wasn't her fault, just the truth.

"I like our life together," she continued without much pause. "And I could make you like it more as well, if you'll just marry me, Harry. We could be content together. I could give you the loving family you've always wanted. Children, grandchildren. You'd never have to worry about a thing. I could keep our house and you could fight your fights and you could come back to me and we could be happy."

Harry bit the inside of his cheek and shook his head. "Gin, I want more than contentment," he said at last. "I didn't even know if there was more to life than what we shared, but there is. There is so much more and I want a chance at that. And you deserve that too. You deserve to find a man who will take you to balls and appreciate your gowns and pamper you and give you all the things you desire."

"I want you to be the man to give me those things," she bristled, keeping her voice low. "What have you been doing since I've been gone? Did you…find someone else?" she demanded coldly.

"No," Harry blurted. "And yes. Maybe. I just…I can't possibly explore it until you and I…Ginny, I need you to understand. We can be friends, but anything more is impossible for me. You and I as a couple will just never work."

Tears pricked the corners of her eyes but she shook her head. "Whoever she is, she's no good for you, Harry. I know you. We know each other. She couldn't understand what you've done, what you've been through, not like I can."

Harry winced and shook his head. "That would probably be true of just about anyone else. But not him."

"But not….him?" she whispered, mouth forming a tight, angry line, her posture frozen. "Malfoy. You can't be serious. You've fallen for Malfoy?"

Her voice was cold and dangerous and sliced through Harry like a knife. "It's not what you think. This mission…we've gotten close. I find myself more attracted to him than I've ever felt toward anyone."

"It's a spell," she scoffed. "A potion. Some game of his. It has to be!"

"Trust me," Harry snorted to himself. "I've thought of that. It's not. I genuinely want him. And it would be cruel of me to hold onto you when I want to pursue Draco. I'm not even certain that I will…in fact, given recent events, I doubt things could possibly work out, but either way, this thing between you and I is over. It has been for longer than I've been willing to admit."

Ginny went silent, her mind obviously working through everything, her drink sitting neglected on the table. "What if I let you have your little boy on the side," she said, her voice cracking and her words taking Harry completely by surprise. "Plenty of pureblood couples have such arrangements. You can get your rocks off with Malfoy, if you must, and then come back to me."

Harry looked at her as if she had suddenly sprouted a couple extra heads. "Ginny, that's insane. I will not live like that and neither should you. Why would you submit yourself to being someone's second choice?"

"I've been in love with you since I was ten years old, Harry!" she snapped, fear, grief and hate all mingled in her sharp gaze.

With a deep, trembling sigh, Harry shook his head. "You weren't in love with me, Gin. You were a girl with a crush on the boy you'd seen in papers. You were my biggest fan…."

"Everything I ever did was to get you to notice me - dating those other Gryffindor boys, fighting with Dean, joining the Quidditch team, everything. Do you think I enjoyed watching you moon over Cho fucking Chang? I joined the DA to be close to you, and all you did was watch her. Then finally, finally I get you to notice me, and you run off with Ron and Hermione looking for Horcruxes. You know, Ron owled me when he left the two of you, and I had to spend weeks wondering if you were fucking Hermione!"

Harry gaped at her stream of admissions, his heart sinking as he realized more than ever, he had no idea who this beautiful girl was in front of him. "I wasn't. For the record," he said, shaking his head. "But I did sleep with Draco last night, and I shouldn't have. I should have done this first, but I'm an arse and I'm sorry."

Her bottom lip trembled and she stood, giving him a haughty sniff. "You're a coward, Harry Potter. I don't know why I ever loved you," she said before storming off, leaving him with a hollow heart, the dredges of her fruity drink and the tab.

Draco paced his expansive parlor, wondering how long he was expected to wait until he went after Harry. He wanted more of him. More of his witty banter, more of his distinct flavor, more of his companionship. Just more. He'd gotten an owl from Blaise that morning and read it over tea. Everything was going accordingly to plan. Ownership of the illegal goods in his basement was set to be transferred elsewhere by the end of the week, upon which he was assured they would be destroyed. Part of him mourned the loss of such magical heirlooms, illegal or not, they carried stories and history with them, but he knew Harry would go ballistic if he knew they were out there somewhere in less capable hands.

And he'd have to tell Harry everything. Once the items were all safely relocated, of course. He'd already been concocting a plan that would get them both out of town for a bit while Blaise made the switch. Besides, what could be hotter than sex on the Riviera? A slow smile crept over his features and he couldn't remember the last time he'd been this excited about anyone.

When he felt the ward shiver, his excitement only grew. Not to appear too eager, Draco took his time answering the door, but was met with a guest he hadn't been expecting. "You're not Harry," he chimed, a sadistic smile creeping up.

"No. I'm not," Ginevra Weasley bit out, her body clad in a sweet canary yellow dress that made him positively sick to his stomach.

"Pardon any offence," he began formally, "but what the fuck are you doing here?"

He watched her bristle. "I have something you might want to know. About Harry."

Draco laughed, a low, genuinely amused sound. "Oh, I'll bet you do. Let's hear it then."

"You might want to sit down for this one, Malfoy," she sneered, just as good as any Slytherin he'd seen. "May I?" The Weasel bitch gestured toward the door and the parlor beyond, and although he detested the idea, he couldn't think of a single reason not to entertain whatever ludicrous accusations she came up with. At the very least it should provide comical fodder for his next party.

Shutting the door behind her, Draco strode into the parlor and made himself a mimosa, inclining his head to see if the Weasel queen would join him in a drink. She nodded demurely and Draco did everything in his power to keep from poisoning her beverage. "I know that Harry's seeing you," he said bluntly, the moment he handed her a glass and took a seat. "If that's what you came here to tell me you're wasting your breath."

Draco had to give her credit; Ginevra's features were almost perfectly schooled. He only saw a brief hint of annoyance flash across her eyes before she pursed her lips and smiled at him cruelly. "Is that something you do often, Malfoy? Prey upon straight, attached men?"

Something akin to a snort escaped Draco's lips before he shook his head. "Oh, sweetheart if you think Harry's straight, I'm not sure you've ever even seen an angle. He was certainly bending all kinds of ways for me last night." He gave her a smug grin, knowing his words would irritate her about as much as her presence irritated him.

She bristled under his gaze, his words obviously striking a chord with her. "I came to tell you," she began, as if spitting the words through gritted teeth, "that Harry's been lying to you."

"About?" Amusement colored Draco's features, his smug grin still firmly in place. He doubted there was anything this gold-digging witch could tell him that he hadn't already learned on his own. He and Harry weren't serious enough yet for him to start demanding complete truths from him, but he hoped to fix that next he saw him.

"You know Harry's an Auror, right?" she asked, looking far too superior in Draco's opinion.

"Of course I know he's an Auror," he scoffed, rolling his eyes. "Really Ginevra, if that's all you have…."

He glared at her as she cut him off. "Did it ever occur to you that perhaps his attentions were a ruse? Part of an investigation?"

"You honestly expect me to believe that the Ministry condones its Aurors fucking suspected criminals? That's preposterous," he pointed out, but a sinking feeling filled the pit of his stomach at her accusation.

She merely smiled that sadistically sweet smile so many women had and extracted a thick file from her miniscule bag, setting it gently on the ottoman in front of him. "Harry didn't go after you because he wanted you. He went after you because the Ministry was paying him to catch you doing something illegal in whatever way he had to. Even if that meant sleeping with the enemy." Her face seemed to split in two, she was smiling so wide. "It was all a lie."

Draco just blinked down at the heavy file in front of him as she stood and stalked out of the manor, leaving her devastation behind.

Author's Note: That bitch!
- 14
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- 16
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Secrets & Lies