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Ceremonies of Strife	By : Lomonaaeren Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male > Harry/Draco Views: 16218 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, and I am making no money from this writing.

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Chapter
Thirty-Nine�Crafty and Cunning

�� Harry
didn�t really understand the mood he�d fallen into, but he didn�t think he
needed to. What was important was his focus, the quiet, calm determination that
overcame him when he thought of Draco and Lucius. He would give Draco what he
needed to defeat his father.

�� In the face
of that, everything else could fall by the wayside. This was the immediate
challenge. Some of the things he did might have long-term consequences, but �long-term�
meant they weren�t short-term, which meant he could face them when they got
here.

�� He spread
rumors, telling everyone who asked that Draco was still sick and getting ready
to move into Portillo Lopez�s private infirmary. He lied to Ron and Hermione
with only one twinge of conscience, telling them he would have to spend a lot
of time with Draco; Portillo Lopez thought the infection could be curbed, but
only if he was under her care. He collected Draco�s work from the instructors
and nodded solemnly at their strict warnings about what would happen if Draco
missed his exams.

�� And he
thought up and discarded plan after plan for confronting Draco�s father.

�� What could they do? Lucius was more skilled
in Dark magic than either of them, and he could use Malfoy Manor�s wards
against them. He also had sole command of the house-elves, now that Narcissa
had left. He didn�t have compatible magic or Auror training, but he had enough
other advantages that that probably wouldn�t matter. And Harry wouldn�t say
they were completely trained Aurors, anyway.

�� Around and
around his mind ran, on a small, stubborn track, dreaming up wild possibilities
and more coherent ideas that always faltered for lack of something or other.

�� And then he
came up with one that made him catch his breath and smile. Yes, that would
probably work. It would depend on coaxing up Lucius�s anger and aiming it more
at himself than Draco, but Harry didn�t think that would be difficult. It
sounded like Lucius blamed him for �corrupting� Draco anyway.

�� Of course,
he would also need to explain to Draco before he put it into effect, because
otherwise he thought Draco would go mad with fear, and he really didn�t need
any more stress right now.

�� Harry
turned and stared at Draco, who was sleeping in one of Portillo Lopez�s private
beds. Even though he was deep in slumber, his lips were locked together in pain
and his brow furrowed.

�� Harry
leaned down and kissed him, moved by an intensely protective impulse. Draco
stirred, murmured, kicked sluggishly, and then returned to his rest.

�� It�ll be
all right,� Harry whispered. �I�ll make it all right. Whatever I have to do.
Whatever it takes.�

�� Such a vow
is far more likely to put you on the darker path.�

�� Harry
jumped, pulling his hand back just in time so that it wouldn�t hit Draco in the
head. Then he turned around and stared at Portillo Lopez, who had emerged from
the door to her potions lab and stood behind him. Her arms were folded. The
scarf she wore around her hair dipped low enough that Harry couldn�t see into
her eyes.

�� What do
you mean?� Harry asked harshly, trying to calm his breathing and make himself
seem less surprised than they both knew he was. A futile attempt, really, but
Harry had the vague idea that it was what Draco would have done, except he
probably would have succeeded.

�� You know
what I mean,� Portillo Lopez said. She stepped forwards, holding something out
to him. Harry focused on it, and frowned when he saw it looked like a wand, but
made of ivory. �Many necromancers began their investigations for reasons that
seemed good to them, loneliness or the desire to gain advantage for someone
else by receiving answers from the dead. But their willingness to burn anything
in their paths led them to the darkness.� She handed him the wand.

�� Harry
wasn�t interested in debating the ethics of necromancy yet again with someone
so against them as Portillo Lopez was. He turned the wand over and stared at
it. There were wave-shaped impressions in the ivory. Harry wasn�t sure what had
made them, or why the small red jewel at one end of the wand was glowing with a
dull fire.

�� What is
this?� he asked at last, staring up at Portillo Lopez.

�� The key to
my damnation and my expulsion from the Order,� Portillo Lopez said, �if you do
not return it.�

�� Harry
snorted. If you�re part of an Order, are
you required to be cryptic by definition? �That�s not actually an answer,
you know.�

�� Portillo
Lopez stared at him so long that Harry felt as though he�d been turned inside
out and had his soul scrubbed on the way. He shifted uneasily, but remained
beside Draco on the bed. No matter what she did, she wasn�t going to get him to
move from there.

�� The rod is
a device that will let you sense when powerful Dark things are near you,�
Portillo Lopez said, with a nod at the ivory. �The red jewel will glow in the
presence of the walking dead, or a being such as Nihil, or another necromancer
who has advanced far enough down the dark path to be a danger to you. Or, of
course, in the presence of a Dark creature such as a werewolf, though the glow
will be more muted then. It was truly made to detect the dead, and is truly
powerful only around them.�

�� Harry
frowned. �And your Order doesn�t like you helping people, even with this?�

�� Another
moment of silent study. Then Portillo Lopez held out her hand. Harry
reluctantly gave the wand back to her. He didn�t think they would meet many of
Nihil�s creatures in Malfoy Manor, but there could still be dead in Wiltshire,
and anything that might help him protect Draco was welcome.

�� Not with this,� Portillo Lopez said, and pressed
her fingers down on two of the wave-like carvings at the same moment as she
covered the jewel with her cupped palm.

�� The wand
made a clicking sound. The air around Harry vibrated, and he flinched, throwing
a hand across his face instinctively.

�� Something
passed him, whistling, and slammed into the wall. Portillo Lopez said a moment
later, �You were not in danger. This would not have harmed you unless you were
far more devoted to the dark path than I think you are.� She paused
reflectively, then added, �Of course, you might have fooled me, because I am
not always as wise or thoughtful as I should be. Think of this in the nature of
a final test.�

�� Harry
dropped his hand, glaring at her, and then turned around to look.

�� Nothing was
embedded in the wall, as he had thought there would be. Instead, the stone was
simply torn in a long, jagged slash, the way a piece of cloth might be. The
crack ran from the ceiling halfway to the floor and then ended. Harry stared at
the floor beneath it, and saw no sign of the weapon, either.

�� What does
it do?� he whispered.

�� It
surrounds the dead with the force of pure life,� Portillo Lopez said, and
passed the wand back to him. �The forces of growth, of decay, of change. They
cannot withstand it, and will pass.�

�� Harry
licked his lips as he wondered what �pass� meant, and then decided to ignore
that as best he could. �And how do I use it? And when?�

�� Whenever
you suspect that someone might be more, or less, than the living being they
seem,� said Portillo Lopez. She pointed with her fingers to two of the
carvings, and Harry nodded and looked down, doing his best to memorize their
appearances. �Press those, cover the jewel, and wait.�

��

�� You don�t
have to aim?� Harry looked at Draco, immediately imagining damaging him with
the weapon.

�� Portillo
Lopez shook her head. �This weapon harms only those who have some connection
with necromancy or the dead. It instinctively aimed at you, not at him, you
will notice.� A momentary smile flicked across her face.

�� Harry
stared at her. �It would have destroyed me if my connection to the dead was
strong enough,� he said. �And you didn�t care.�

�� If you
were that poisoned,� Portillo Lopez said, gaze never wavering from him, �then
it would have been a kindness to you to destroy you.�

�� Harry shook
his head. �Did you never think that necromancers might still be human?� he
demanded. �How many of the ones you destroyed were like me, normal people who
just happened to get involved in something they badly wanted but didn�t fully
understand? Do you never think about
that? Or doesn�t it matter to you?�

�� Portillo
Lopez continued to regard him. Harry had thought she would look stunned, or
remorseful, or angry. Instead, another smile crossed her lips.

�� Compared
to protecting the world from their excesses,� she said, �it doesn�t matter at
all. Rather like your friends, and the rules of the Auror program, and your own
safety, don�t matter to you next to protecting him.� She tossed her head at Draco.

�� Harry
ground his teeth, but said nothing. He could hardly accuse her of hypocrisy in
the face of that accusation.

�� Portillo
Lopez shook her head. �It did not harm you, which is a sign that you are not
yet marching down the darkest path. I will not apologize for making sure of
that before I handed the weapon to you.� She paused, then said, almost gently,
�We all have our loyalties. Mine run in different directions in yours, that is
all.�

�� Harry
clamped a hand down on the ivory wand and didn�t answer. His gaze was fixed on
Draco. He knew Portillo Lopez must have slipped out of the room at some point,
but he didn�t hear her go.

*

�� Draco
frowned at the ceiling. Why was he here? He would have expected to wake in his
bed with Harry, if�

�� And then he
remembered and shut his eyes again, clenching his hands in the sheets beside
him.

�� But this
was only to gather strength. He had remembered the full extent of Lucius�s
crimes, yes, but he had an ally now, and he was going to do his best to find
out what had happened to his mother as well as combat his father. Harry had
promised to lend his strength to this. And what Harry lent his strength to,
succeeded. Draco only had to remember the war against the Dark Lord to be
assured of that.

�� In some
ways, though, Draco feared his father more than he�d feared the Dark Lord.

�� But Harry doesn�t, he reminded himself,
and sat up. Harry was by his side in an instant, so quickly that Draco didn�t
spot the chair he�d lunged out of, only heard it ringing on the floor.

�� Are you
all right?� Harry�s question was quiet, but intense. His hand found Draco�s and
squeezed.

�� Draco
nodded. �I will be. What�s the plan?� He trusted Harry to have at least thought
about what they should do, although he�d probably come up with a plot Draco
would have to poke holes in.

�� Harry
hovered above him in silence for a few minutes, studying him with burning eyes,
as if he had to make sure that Draco was all right before he responded. Draco
could feel his face flushing under that scrutiny, but he fought the temptation
to turn his head aside. He had earned the
way Harry was looking at him. He had fought for it, argued for it, and stayed
with Harry despite a betrayal that would have broken most people apart. It was
important to remember that.

�� Something
you won�t like at first,� Harry said, �but hear me out.�

�� Draco
raised his eyebrows and nodded, which wasn�t he wanted to do. But Harry had
earned some things from Draco, too, not least of them a bit of indulgence. At
least Harry had realized he wouldn�t like this, instead of puffing up and
defending himself from the beginning.

�� Lucius
thinks I corrupted you,� Harry said, smoothing a finger down Draco�s wrist and
smiling at him. The smile made Draco blink. �If you hadn�t dated me or become
an Auror, you would still be his obedient little heir.�

�� Draco shook
his head. �It was my idea to become an Auror. I told him that before I left the
Manor.�

�� But do you
think he believed that?� Harry leaned
forwards. �Or do you think that he would have reasoned backwards to convince
himself that you would have left the Auror program when you realized how hard
it was, if not for me?�

�� Draco
hesitated. He wasn�t an expert on his father�s thought patterns anymore, since
he had emerged from Azkaban, but then again, the man he had known would never
have tried to betroth him to someone against his will. And Lucius couldn�t seem
to listen to any thoughts but his own.

�� I think he
probably believes what you say,� he admitted reluctantly. �He had a problem
giving me credit with independent thought before he went to prison, and that
seemed the one quality of his character that had increased on his return.�

�� Harry
nodded. �So I�m going to make it appear as if I�ve come up to him alone. I�ll
yell at him, the most insulting shite I can think of.
We have to lure him out from behind
the Manor�s wards, and I think the best way to do it is to kindle his temper.�

�� Why not
have me there with you?� Draco insisted. He saw at once why Harry had said that
he wouldn�t like this plan. �If he sees me kissing you, touching you, or even
standing with you, that could make him angry in the same way we need, without
risking your life.�

�� Harry
stared him in the eye. �Because you have something else to do, something else
that you need to do.�

�� Draco
narrowed his eyes back. �I�m listening.�

�� You know a
lot more Dark Arts spells than I do,� Harry said. �I suspect that you know at
least one that would strip someone of�of what makes them them, don�t you? We need you to
become so powerful that Lucius can�t threaten you, and we need to give you your
home back. Can you find a spell that would transfer the Manor�s wards and
protections and the control of the house-elves to you? I thought you would be
able to, which is why I�m volunteering as a distraction.�

�� Draco
licked his lips. His mind was blank of any spell that would fit Harry�s
description, because he was far more concerned with something else. �Why in the
world would you think that was important?� he demanded in a whisper. �Why would
you risk everything to help me get objects back that you don�t care about at
all?�

�� Harry
grasped his hands and squeezed. �Give me credit for noticing some things about
you,� he said. �Including how important those mere �objects� are to you. You�re
a Malfoy, Draco. Your heritage is important to you. Yeah, you don�t talk much
about it now, but you sure did in school, and I don�t think as much has changed
as you like to pretend. So you need your house back. You need a safe place
where you can retreat when you need to, and something to fight for. I would
still have my friends if I lost everything else, but you don�t have as many friends as I do, except for
Ventus. It would be best if you could keep your family. And if your father
turns against you as much as he has and your mother has to hide for a while,
your house is the visible symbol of that family.�

�� Draco said
nothing, but reached up and ran a hand gently down Harry�s chest. Harry blinked
at him. Draco let his hand linger for a while over Harry�s heart, then reached
up and cupped his cheek.

�� You�re
more perceptive than you let on,� Draco whispered. �More intuitive. More
intelligent. At least about the people you care for.�

�� Yeah,
well, Ron does the same thing for Hermione.� Harry turned his head away, all
the intensity and passion of a few moments before suddenly gone. �I don�t�that
is, I don�t think I could do it for anyone but you.�

�� A warmth
coalesced in Draco�s chest, and he smiled. �Then that�s another gift that you
offer me alone,� he said. �A part of you that I possess and that no one else
does.�

�� Harry
sighed and half-closed his eyes. �There�s another reason to give you Malfoy
Manor back,� he whispered. �Without a place to hide, Lucius is going to be
vulnerable to the people, like the Ministry, who could arrest him. You can
threaten him a lot more effectively if he has nowhere to retreat.�

�� Someone�s been paying attention in
Ketchum�s classes, I see,� Draco said, keeping his voice light and teasing,
because they had to get past this intimate moment and back to dealing with the
reality around them somehow.

�� Harry
opened his eyes and smiled at him. �Yes. So. Do you know a spell like that, or
am I going to have to come up with something else?�

�� Draco
frowned, closing his eyes. He could almost envision the leather-bound books in
his father�s library that would have the spell if any of them would, but he
didn�t know how recently he had read them. Besides, the perfect spell Harry was
asking for either didn�t exist or was kept locked up so that the Malfoy heirs
couldn�t use it to take control away from their parents before it was time.

�� On the
other hand, Draco knew a spell that could reveal the contents of his memory to
him like another book�if he was willing to pay the price for it.

�� Give me a
day or so,� he murmured. �I can locate it in my head, but I�ll need time and
practice.�

�� Harry
kissed his forehead. �You can have as much time as you need,� he said. �You
always can.�

�� Draco
squeezed Harry�s hand, and closed his eyes. If there was no easier method of
forcing his memory out of his head�and he would try to locate one�then he would
need rest to perform the harder spell.

�� But at
least now, he knew he would do it with Harry by his side.

*

�� I know you
aren�t really sick.�

�� Harry
jolted and put down the bag that he�d been holding. Hermione was standing in
the door to his and Draco�s rooms, where he had come back to fetch a few books
for Draco. Her hands were on her hips, her eyes so bright that Harry wondered
for a minute if she was about to start crying.

�� Of course
I�m not sick right now,� Harry said, when he could remember his lie. �But
Portillo Lopez thinks I might be, so��

�� Bollocks,�
said Hermione, and stormed into the room, slamming the door behind her. �What�s
happening? What kind of shady scheme does he
want you to be part of that means you can�t involve your friends?� Her voice was low and angry,
and Harry winced. That was worse than when she yelled. At least she had shut
the door, which lessened the chance of anyone else overhearing.

�� Nothing
shady,� Harry said. �And I came up with the scheme and the lie, not him.� He
was going to be as blunt as possible, he told himself. He understood why
Hermione would be upset, but he wasn�t going to play the game by her rules just
to keep her happy. Draco was too important.

�� Hermione
blinked, as he had thought she would. Then she shook her head. �But it�s
because of him,� she said. �What was that letter he got about?�

Harry thought quickly, never taking
his eyes from Hermione. If he was too vague, she would insist on digging into
this, and he and Draco couldn�t afford that right now. On the other hand, be
too direct, and she would insist on being involved,
and Harry thought they could afford that even less.

And he didn�t want to lose his
friends, but he didn�t want to put up with their lectures and certainty that
Draco was to blame, either.

�� All right,
listen,� he said. �The letter says that Draco�s mother is in danger. We�re
going to rescue her.� That was even the truth, in a roundabout way, since taking
care of Lucius would make things safer for Narcissa if she wanted to come back
home.

�� Hermione
blinked. �Then why can�t we be part of it?�

�� Because
you believe Draco�s evil,� Harry said. �He doesn�t want to listen to that while
we�re fighting to protect his mother, all right? And we�re only going to get
one chance at this. Portillo Lopez is arranging time away from the barracks for
us, but we won�t have long. I don�t want to be stopped or held up because you
insist on holding your wand on Draco or whispering to me on the side.�

�� Harry,�
Hermione breathed. She looked stunned.

�� Harry
stepped forwards and hugged her. Hermione accepted that, but she was breathing
hard and her arms around him in return weren�t steady.

�� I do love
you and Ron,� Harry told her softly. �I don�t want to lose you. But we�ve been
growing apart since we entered the Auror program�no, before that, when I broke
up with Ginny and you were together as a couple. I just can�t do this anymore, Hermione, where it�s the three of us against
the world. Draco is a part of this now.�

�� That
doesn�t mean you have to give up letting us help.� Hermione�s fingers dug into
his arms.

�� I know,�
Harry said. A brilliant idea had just come to him, if only Hermione would
agree. �That means you can stay here and cover for us. Deflect questions. Tell
everyone that I was sick and you saw me getting worse the last time you spoke
with me. That�s the best move.�

�� Lie?� Hermione asked in shock, recoiling
as though he had asked her to murder someone.

�� You�ve
lied before,� Harry said, rolling his eyes at her. �About how much time you
spend in your room instead of Ron�s, for example.�

�� Hermione
blushed, but said, �This would be more complicated. And I�d have to lie to a
lot of different people. I don�t know, Harry.�

�� Harry
pulled back and smiled at her. Her eyes were bright again, but not with the
tear-brightness. Her cheeks were flushed with more than embarrassment, and she
already had her lips pursed, as though she was trying to figure out the best way
to achieve something she wanted.

�� Harry
touched her shoulder. �There�s no one I would trust more than you and Ron. Or
at least you, and then Ron can listen to you,� he added more cautiously. He
wasn�t sure how well Ron would keep the secret once he realized that it
involved Draco.

�� I can get
him to listen to me,� Hermione said. She considered him solemnly. �But you need
to promise to be careful.�

�� Harry
nodded. �I will be. There�s some risk, but Draco doesn�t like me being careless
with my life any more than you do.� And that was at least the truth, although
he was leaving out a bunch of Dark Arts information.

�� It�s so
strange,� Hermione said, her hands briefly clenching on his robes, �to think
that you�re dating Draco Malfoy now,
of all people, and that you�ll probably go on dating him for a long time to
come.�

�� Harry
kissed her on the cheek. �I know. But it�s strange to think of being grown-up
and out of Hogwarts, too. And alive,� he added, as he thought of the way that
he had believed he would die in the confrontation with Voldemort.

�� Hermione
firmly embraced him. �I�ll keep your secret. Be careful. And let Malfoy know
that I�ll kill him if anything happens to you.�

�� Harry was
still smiling, despite Hermione�s threat against Draco, when he arrived back at
Portillo Lopez�s room and heard Draco�s request for a black cat.

*

�� qwerty:
Thank you!

�� rafiq: Not entirely the way they think they will right now,
let�s say that.

�� polka dot:
Well, now he does.

�� thrnbrooke: Let�s see, shall we?

�� Dragons
Breath: Thanks. This will make their relationship easier in the future, because
they are starting to get more used to each other and acknowledge that the other
one has a point.

�� layne: Thank you!

�� MewMew2:
You are right about the unicorns being an indication, but wrong about the way
Nihil will ultimately be destroyed. ;)

�� SP777: Not
that I can remember! Just the first reasonable distraction that Harry and I
could think of.

�� And thanks;
I�m glad you enjoyed it.

�� Clau: Thanks! I will admit to using the compatible magic to
speed up Harry and Draco�s friendship in the first story, but I�ve tried not to
use it for much more than that.

�� I can�t yet
give any details about why I think Parseltongue works differently than Latin,
except to say that Latin is used for light spells, as well, so I don�t think it�s
inherently a �darker� language. It would be instructive to compare it to other human
languages, though, and see if there�s one that has a higher proportion of
Darker spells than the others.

�� There will
eventually be answers about Lucius, before the end of this story, at least.
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Ceremonies of Strife