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Shots in the Dark	By : squirrelchaser Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male > Harry/Draco Views: 1768 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, nor any of the characters from the books or movies. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
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*

All
of southern England was sweltering in an end of July heat wave.

Beads
of sweat tickled as they ran down the back of his neck as Draco slouched in a
dingy, smoky Muggle pub, waiting. The Muggle hat he wore was sweltering, but without it he wasn�t
incognito. He knew that members of the Ministry were poised here too, and
Professor McGonagall, but this was his hunt, not theirs.

As
he ran his fingers around the smooth rim of the glass in front of him, Draco
pictured the grave stone: white marble, too new to have the edges worn smooth. He
was almost sure he could feel the inscription: Harry Potter, July 29,
1979 � November
1, 1997. There was
another line after that, but Draco always forgot it.

Happy
19^th birthday, Harry, he thought to himself, rather bitterly. Maybe,
before the end of tonight, I�ll finish what you never had a chance to start. I
know you�d have liked that.

It
seemed like light years ago since Draco had sat in the bowels of Hogwarts
behind a school desk, watching keen black eyes above the large nose, which
stood out in sharp relief from the rest of the thin face. Yet, as he sat
peering at his former professor, the hair was still long and greasy,
the lips were still thin and sneering. It was still Snape,
unchanged yet so unrecognizable as he sat, hunched over the small round table
on the other side of the room.

Slipping
one hand into his pocket, Draco curled one hand around the small vial, sealed
with wax, and pulled it out concealed in his fist. Motioning the bartender
over, he slid his other hand across the table top, Muggle
paper money folded between two fingers.

�Not
that I would want to trouble you,� Draco said in a low voice, leaning forward.
�But you see that man over there?�

The
bartender swiped one hand across his sweaty forehead, taking the bill from
Draco and unfolding it, peering at it in the dim light. He glanced up to where
Draco pointed, at the thin shoulders shrouded in a long black jumper despite
the heat, and gave a curt nod.

�I
own him a favor,� Draco opened his fist to reveal the tiny vial of potion. �If
you would see to it that you hand happens to slip as you prepare his next
drink,� he slid another bill across the bar counter, �You may see a few more of
these.�

The
bartender�s bloodshot eyes narrowed and Draco said coolly, �Nothing that shall
disturb you or your business, I promise you that. You may have a perfectly
clear conscience when you open the morning paper, tomorrow.�

The
man seemed satisfied, and Draco watched out of the corner of his eye as he
clanked bottles behind the counter, pouring Snape�s
next drink.

Scotch. Vermouth. A splash
of syrup. Bitters.

The
barman�s fat fingers fumbled with the tiny corked top, wax softening as he
rolled it back and forth, cork finally coming loose and letting a wisp or two
of smoke escape.

Draco
gave a nod and eyebrow raise when the barman gave him a doubtful glance.

There
was a plish and a slight hissing sound as the potion was
poured into the glass. The drink fizzed mightily for a heartbeat or two, then
the steam and foam disappeared and the surface was calm. Snape
would be none the wiser.

The
slender, pretty serve girl was aware of the tall blond boy with grey eyes, who
sat at the bar on his second round of whiskey. She knew he was watching her as
she took her next drink to a guest. Little did she know that his eyes were
fixed on the glass on her tray, not on her legs, like she thought.

Pausing,
glass nearly to his lips, Draco watched intently as Snape
took the drink, not looking at the girl, and swirled the contents before giving
it them a thoughtful sniff.

Snape turned and Draco quickly turned back around, watching instead
in the distorted reflection of his shot glass as Snape
raised his glass to the bartender, and set it back on the table. He rose as if
walking toward the door, but then another customer passed between Snape and Draco, and when they gone it was as if Snape had disappeared.

Frustrated,
Draco swore viciously, slamming his half empty glass and another fold of bills
down on the bar top. It�d taken him most of spring and all of summer to track Snape down, and he�d been counting on the anti-Disapparating spell the Ministry had sworn they�d set up around the perimeter. He couldn�t have Dissaparated�could he?

Sprinting
out the door into the night he looked around wildly, but the smooth, stone
pavement of the abandoned street left no trail.

If
I were running away to hide, where would I go? Draco hissed to himself between
his teeth, turning in a circle, and took off in the direction that seemed the
darkest, the least wise of places to go by yourself.

His
eyes skimmed the streets as he ran; the Muggle�s
street lamps were broken at the end of the road. Skidding to a halt where road
ended at a wrecked fence, Draco clenched his fist around his wand, hidden in
his pocket. He was drawn to the porch of an abandoned house, where the shadows
seemed the thickest � no, something moved -

�Expelliarmus! Accio
wand,�

A
jet of red light flashed out from the house, and Draco�s
wand went clattering to the pavement several feet away before whisking away.

�Draco, I�m disappointed in you,� the
familiar, silky smooth voice came from the deepest part of the shadow.

Draco
felt his insides turn up and he felt cold. He�d heard that tone of voice
before; it was the same tone that Snape used when he
was about to say something especially nasty to Potter and his friends, when
they were all at Hogwarts.

�Changed
faces have you? Did you not remember, my dear student, that hen�s teeth, a
vital component in this particular poison, parcipitates
into minute granules when mixed with alcohol?� Snape
sneered as he walked forward out of the shadow in the yard of the house, the
line of light running up his long figure until he stood outlined against the
moon. �Easily detectable in the bottom of any glass. Sloppy. Very sloppy.�

Snape raised his wand, but he dodged the curse and sprang forward,
snatching his wand back from one long, thin hand. Draco had Snape
by the collar, pulling him face to face so he could see the enlarged pores, the
stains on the yellow teeth beneath the curling lip. He raised his wand.

�The
Order and the Ministry are looking for you; I�ve been with them and they�ll be
here shortly. But why should I let them take you alive when I have the
satisfaction of seeing you dead?�

�Draco,�
Snape had whispered in a low, icy voice, like thin
poison curdling blood. �Draco, don�t be a fool. You don�t know what-�

Draco
cut him off with a snarl, shaking the man viciously. �I don�t know? In case you
forget, Professor, I was there. I saw
everything. And now that Voldemort is dead-�

�Ungrateful child! Dumbledore knew what you had planned, what
He had asked you to do,� Snape continued, voice heavy
with distain. �Dumbledore wanted to protect you. He made me promise to follow
through with your mission, hoping it would soften the blow when you reported
back to your master. He�d made me promise, though I tried to break it; I didn�t
want to tie my life to yours.�

�I
don�t believe you,� Draco said through clenched teeth. �Why should I believe
you?�

�Because he�s telling the truth!� Professor McGonagall�s voice cut in sharply
as she came hurrying down the empty street into view. �He�s telling the truth! Let
Severus go!�

�He�s
lying!�

�No
he isn�t!� McGonagall cried. �Let him go, Draco; you�re making a mistake!�

Hesitating,
Draco�s grip loosed for the briefest moment and Snape grasped his wrists in his long fingers and yanked
them from his throat, gazing steadily at his former pupil.

There
were shouts, growing nearer.

�Go,
quickly, Severus!� Professor McGonagall hissed. �Go!�

Snape opened his mouth but suddenly there came a blast of a wand
from behind them, white cords flying past Draco and Professor McGonagall to
bind Snape at the wrist and knees.

�Well
done, Minerva,� Diggery came into view, his face red
and puffing heavily.

�I�m so sorry, Severus,�
Professor McGonagall said quietly.

Draco
wasn�t. Spitefully he gave him a shove in the chest, watching him drop stiffly
to the ground like a felled tree. Disappointment and disbelief tasted bitter in
the back of his mouth. He�d promised Potter; this is what he�d wanted. Potter
never would have believed Snape, not for a minute.

�Yes, very good, there we are,� Dawlish and several others from the ministry came forward,
hauling Snape to his feet, to shuffle unsteadily
between them.

Snape looked resigned to his fate, but he sneered at Draco. �Tables
have turned, have they? I never would have thought you had it in you, Draco Malfoy.�

�Severus Snape, you are to be held
and tried for the murder of Albus Dumbledore��

Their
voices trailed off into the night. Professor McGonagall and Draco stood by the
wall, watching them go, Draco with a look of utmost
loathing on his face and Professor McGonagall with one of distress.

TBC
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Shots in the Dark