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Harry's Project	By : Lomonaaeren Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male > Harry/Draco Views: 11256 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 1
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
- 6
- 7
- 8
Thank you again for all the reviews!

Chapter Seven�Harry Is Slytherin, Draco Is Slytherin Too

�� Harry
sneezed mightily and sorted through the pile of papers in front of him. They
wanted to cling together, and then fly in all directions when he parted them.
Harry didn�t allow that. Though his fingers were by now covered with multitudes
of small paper cuts, he pried each sheet of parchment apart and stared at each
in turn, squinting in the light of the small, powerful Lumos charm on
his wand.

�� Several
times, an archivist had approached him and asked, or demanded to know, what he
was doing. And each time Harry had smiled and replied, �Research for a case.�

�� Because
that was the purpose of the Ministry archives, the archivists could
hardly interrogate him on the subject. They simply found it suspicious�and said
as much�that anyone would actually use them. But they went away with
baffled frowns, and Harry smiled blandly in their direction and went back to
sorting through the parchments again.

�� It had
occurred to him that just because he couldn�t find evidence of the transfer
that had put the Malfoy funds in the hands of Hector Ambrosius didn�t mean that
he couldn�t find evidence of other things.

*

�� Achoo!�

�� Harry
laughed as he swirled his cloak off his shoulders. �Sorry, Victoire,� he said,
and carefully cast a spell that removed the dust from the cloth. �I really
should have done that before I came in the door, huh?�

�� Bill and
Fleur�s five-year-old daughter folded her arms and scowled at him. �Yes, you should
have,� she said.

�� Harry bent
down and tickled her until she gave in and started giggling. He knew from
experience that Victoire didn�t mind sending other people tumbling into piles
of dust and dirt; she just objected to it getting on her. Already she
was a mastermind at getting her younger cousins Molly and Lucy, Percy�s
daughters, into trouble.

�� Oo ees
eet?� came the voice from beyond the doorframe, and the next moment Fleur swept
into the room with Dominique, the baby, on her arm. She brightened when she saw
Harry and leaned over to kiss his cheek. ��Arry! We �ad nearly given up �ope of
seeing you whilst thees case lasted!�

�� It�s
easing off now,� said Harry, guessing from what she said that Ron and Hermione
hadn�t told Bill and Fleur about the real reason he was spending so much
time in the Ministry archives. That was all right. It was a case, in a
way, and there would be plenty of time to get the Weasleys used to the Malfoys
after Harry had arranged for the transfer of the money and houses back to
Draco�s family.

�� If Draco
chooses to stay around.

�� Harry took
a deep breath and told himself not to act like a sop. If Draco chose not to
stay around, then he chose that. Harry wouldn�t press him, no matter how much
he wanted to.

�� No matter
how bad he felt that three days had gone by without a single owl being
exchanged between them.

�� Good.�
Fleur somehow managed to clap her hands authoritatively even whilst juggling a
sleepy Dominique. �Now, �Arry will set the table and Victoire will go clean
�erself up.�

�� It was
Uncle Harry who did this!� Victoire insisted, her voice going shrill. �Make him
clean me up!�

�� Why do
with magic what can be done with soap and water?� Fleur asked, reasonably,
Harry thought, and herded Victoire away.

�� Harry
stepped through into the dining room of Shell Cottage and hesitated, then cast
a location spell to tell him where the drawer with the cutlery was; it had been
a long time since he�d eaten here, and Fleur liked to change her kitchen up
regularly.

�� As he was
fetching out forks, knives, and, after a memory of Fleur telling him they would
have soup, spoons, Bill�s voice said from behind him, �I didn�t think we�d see
you here tonight, Harry.�

�� I
deserve that, Harry reminded himself. For a long time now, he�d had a habit
of breaking promises to have dinner with Bill, Fleur, their children, Ron, and
Hermione in favor of working on cases�because that would keep him from being
bored�or going out to dance and flirt with attractive men. He would try to be
better about that from now on, just as he was trying to be better about the way
he acted around Draco, but it would take a while to reassure his family that he
meant it.

�� He glanced
over his shoulder and smiled. Bill had had his other ear pierced since Harry
saw him last, and now a dragon�s fang and a long chain of spiders both dangled
almost to his shoulder. �I�m making more time now for the more important
things,� Harry said easily. He nodded to the spider earring. �I imagine that
thrills Ron to no end.�

�� Bill
laughed, the curious, wary expression on his face relaxing. �I enchanted them
last week and had them crawl after him. There�s something entertaining about
seeing your war hero brother who you know faced worse things than a
bunch of spiders cowering in a corner and screaming like a girl.�

�� Harry
snickered. Ron hadn�t told him about that incident, of course. Harry might
never have known about it at all unless he asked Bill.

�� See how
many things you miss when you�re too caught up in only chasing what�s exciting?
he chided himself.

�� Perhaps
tonight you can hide them in his food,� Harry suggested, snickering again as he
thought about Ron leaping out of his chair and spitting frantically.

�� Fleur
would kill me,� Bill said, probably having the same vision, but he
looked tempted.

�� Do it when
she�s out of the room.�

�� Bill rubbed
his hands together. �Done.� He clapped Harry on the shoulder. �Don�t go away
again for so long, Harry. You were missed.� Then he wandered out of the room,
humming, and already spinning the spiders on his finger.

�� Harry heard
footsteps thumping down the corridor, and hurried to set the table. Victoire
would give him hell if she found out that she had cleaned herself up,
but Uncle Harry still hadn�t managed to set the table.

*

�� More dust,
more parchment, more minute paper cuts. Luckily, Hermione had taught him a
charm that healed them, so Harry was at least not bleeding all over precious
data. He�d also learned how to cleanse his glasses and stop himself from
sneezing.

�� The
archivists who approached him were beginning to look desperate now. They
practically fawned on him, making a point of mentioning their expertise in
looking through the files. Why didn�t the famous Auror Potter return to his
nice clean office and trust them to bring up files as he needed them?

�� And Harry
would smile, and turn back to the folders and the loose stacks of parchment,
feigning even more intense interest than he was feeling until they gave up,
with muffled sobs, and went away.

�� Harry
didn�t have to feign that much interest. He knew every transaction had
two sides. He just had to find the second.

�� In the
meantime, what he was learning would make excellent blackmail material against
some of the other Aurors.

*

�� Harry
Apparated carefully to the outskirts of Hogsmeade. He had received an owl
earlier that day demanding that he come to the town but not let anyone see him.
It concerned the Malfoys, the letter said, and the only thing Harry knew for
certain was that the letter didn�t bear Draco�s handwriting.

�� If it was a
threat against them, then Harry wanted to know about it. Besides, he�d back
himself against any less well-trained person from the town�and if it were a
fellow Auror, the contest would be too interesting to pass up.

�� For long
moments, even as he looked cautiously around the small patch of trees his
correspondent had described so that he could Apparate to it, he saw no one.
Then a pale gleam of hair caught his attention from the other corner of the
glade. Harry drew his wand as he watched a tall, slender figure stride rapidly
towards him.

�� It was
Narcissa, her face every bit as ghostly as her son�s. Harry kept his wand up
anyway; her lips were bloodless, and not because of the moonlight.

�� What are
your intentions towards Draco?� she asked, halting several feet away from him.
One of her hands was clenched at her sides, hidden in her robes. Harry thought
the chances she was holding her own wand were excellent.

�� Has he
complained about them?� Harry asked, shifting his feet to be in a better
position if Narcissa attacked. He didn�t want to fight with Draco�s
mother. On the other hand, he was not about to stand here and let himself be
cut to pieces. Narcissa had reason to be paranoid and curse-happy after the
five years she�d spent under such close confinement. �Or me?�

�� No.�
Narcissa snapped out the word. �He told me what you did for us in front of the
Wizengamot a few days ago. But no one performs that kind of action without some
expectation of a reward. What is yours? If it is ancient schoolboy revenge, you
should know that I will cut you apart.�

�� The threat
was delivered in a flat tone, which made it all the more believable. Harry
nodded in appreciation, then said, �I�ve explained my motivations to Draco. I
like him, and want to be closer to him. Anything more intimate is between me
and him, and it would have to be his choice to tell you.�

�� Narcissa
stared at him. Then she shook her head and said, �Draco is much poorer than he
was five years ago.�

�� Harry
laughed aloud. �At the moment,� he said, ignoring Narcissa�s stiff tension, �I
probably have more money in my vaults than your entire family does. Believe me,
I�m not looking to profit from him.�

�� I cannot
believe your stated motivations,� Narcissa said quietly. �Why would you
come to repay your debts now and not earlier? Why do you think we will
be grateful enough for this to hand our son over to you? I would not do that
for the Dark Lord, who was much closer to me in beliefs and ideals. I will not
do it for the great Harry Potter.�

�� Draco�s a
big boy,� Harry said. �I think he can make his own decisions about handing
himself over.�

�� You have
not answered my question.� Narcissa was aiming her wand now, but it hadn�t
moved other than that. Harry kept one eye on her hand and one eye on her face.
Even if she used a nonverbal spell, the accompanying gestures would still
betray her. �Why did you not come to us earlier, when we might have believed
you were helping us out of pure goodness alone?�

�� I didn�t
know the situation was this bad,� Harry said. �And frankly, I didn�t care at
the time.�

�� That is
not a good enough answer.�

�� It�s my
answer,� Harry said. �And the only one you�ll get.� He set his feet more
firmly. He sympathized with Narcissa, he didn�t want to anger her, but there
was only so far he was willing to change, even for Draco. He wouldn�t meekly
agree with any evil assessment of his character, either. �I didn�t know. I
should have looked into the case earlier. But I didn�t, and no one made any
effort to inform me, either.� He cocked an eyebrow. �You didn�t call in the
debt I owed you.�

�� You do not
understand pure-blood pride.� Narcissa did her best to turn into an ice statue.
�You do not understand how lowering it would be to beg for help from a
half-blood.�

�� It would
make you go lower than you�ve gone already?� Harry asked incredulously.

�� Narcissa
froze even more. �You truly understand nothing.�

�� I
understand that your blood pride is one of the stupidest beliefs I�ve ever
heard of, and clinging to it when you realize blood makes no difference in how
you�ve been treated by the Wizengamot is idiotic,� Harry said. He ignored the
way her chin trembled. �You won�t matter to other people because of it. Hell,
your pure-blood friends couldn�t be bothered to help you for the past
five years, even though they share the same heritage. So, yeah, I think it�s
valueless.�

�� And if I report this conversation to Draco?�
Narcissa asked, barely moving her lips.

�� Go ahead.�
Harry lowered his wand and tucked it away in a robe pocket, ignoring the threat
implicit in her wand still being drawn. �If he lets this influence his
decision, we�re not right for each other anyway. He has to know we�re
going to disagree, and that I�ll never think my mother was a lesser
woman than you simply because her parents didn�t have magic.� Narcissa lifted
her nose. Harry snorted. �If that�s more important to him than having a partner
who would like him and challenge him and try to help him hold his head high
again is, then he�s already made his decision, and good luck to him.�

�� I suppose
you�ll stop helping us if he decides against having you, too.� Narcissa�s voice
was filled with masochistic pleasure.

�� Of course
not,� Harry said. �His throwing himself at me was never a condition of my help.
By the time I started really being attracted to him, I�d stepped beyond the
stage where boredom was my only motivation for doing this.�

�� He may not
see it that way. Or he may decide that appearing on your arm would make him too
weak, too dependent on you.�

�� That has
to be his choice.�

�� Narcissa
clenched her free hand, but the wand didn�t move, which rather relieved Harry�s
worries. �I wish I understood you,� she said, voice soft and frustrated.
�You are not the hero that you were. You do not seem to be an enemy, but
our family has had much experience with smiling faces suddenly turning hard.�

�� I�m Harry
Potter,� said Harry, and grinned at her. �Someone who can�t be reduced to one
of the shallow stereotypes you�d like to believe in. Not anymore, anyway,� he
added. �And for that, I have Draco to thank. If you want to tell him anything
about this conversation, tell him I owe him as much as he would ever owe me.�

�� I could
lie,� Narcissa said meditatively. �I could tell him that you really admitted
you only want him for his good looks.�

�� And if he
believed that lie, without making any attempt to contact me and see if it was
true?� Harry shrugged. �Then he wouldn�t survive half the things he�d have to
go through as Harry Potter�s partner anyway. Good night.� He turned away.

�� You act as
though you wish for something permanent with him,� Narcissa called.

�� I do.�
Harry didn�t bother to glance over his shoulder or slow his stride.

�� Real
lovers do not decide on each other in a few days.�

�� Maybe not
the lovers you know,� Harry responded, and vanished with a sharp crack. He was
tired of people who wouldn�t listen.

*

�� It was the
morning of his meeting with Pansy that Harry found it. He turned aside one more
piece of parchment, and there the evidence was, blinking up at him in black and
white, as obvious as Victoire with the remains of a chocolate biscuit smeared
around her mouth.

�� Harry�s
grin made an archivist fall over as he took the parchment upstairs to be
copied.

�� Here it
is, Pansy. I wonder what you�ll say to this evidence? I suppose you might have
a backup strategy prepared, but it isn�t likely; the simpler course if you knew
about this would have been to destroy it.

*

�� I need to
talk to you.�

�� Harry
looked up, blinking. This time, Draco had come to the Ministry in full daylight
and full sight of everyone else, too, including Ron, who sat slack-jawed at his
desk. No Auror escorts behind him, Harry noted in annoyance. Had he slipped
them, or had they decided that they didn�t need to protect Draco within the
Ministry itself? If the latter, Harry would be having a little talk with them.

�� All
right,� Harry said, and signaled to Ron to continue working as he followed
Draco out of the room. Ron gave him a disbelieving look, but bent over his
paperwork again�probably, Harry thought, because Hermione had threatened to
give him the silent treatment if he brought home one more report he�d
�forgotten� to write.

�� Draco cast
a swift privacy ward around them. Harry immediately cast his own privacy ward
outside that. Draco raised an eyebrow. �You don�t trust my casting?�

�� Not that,�
Harry said. �Only Aurors can use those kinds of spells in the Ministry.
Otherwise, it trips an alarm. But this way, anyone investigating will see my
ward wrapped around yours and figure it�s all right.�

�� Still
protecting me,� Draco said. His face was very blank, other than his eyes; they
were sharply appraising. It was, Harry thought, the way he might look at a
jewel or a fine horse someone was offering him, though Harry didn�t imagine he
had many such offers these days. �What if I don�t want protection?�

�� Harry drew
a deep breath. His face was hot and he felt dizzy, but he made himself speak
the words. �Then tell me to stop protecting you and go away. Tell me you prefer
to get along on your own and I�ll�stop.�

�� Draco bowed
his head. Then he said, �I don�t want you to stop protecting me. It makes me
feel like I�m worth something to someone other than my parents for the first
time in five years.� He looked up and eyed Harry again. �But I think I need you
to.�

�� Harry
licked his lips; he couldn�t really say anything, so he lifted his eyebrows,
waiting.

�� I would
depend on you too much,� Draco said, the words slow but determined, like the
trudging of a man with a heavy load on his back. �I wouldn�t want to, but
that�s what would happen. It�s so easy to let gratitude dictate the kind of
relationship we�d have. It isn�t enough to make me go to you now, but who knows
what it could become after a few months of seeing you every day and watching
you help me and my family?� He laughed without humor. �I know myself very well,
Harry. The last five years have taught me that, at least. I have a strength I
never knew existed when I was just a scared little boy at Hogwarts. But I know
the limits of that strength, too. It would be so easy to become what my
father was: a scared slave waiting for a word from his master to make him feel
good about himself��

�� I could never
be like Voldemort,� Harry said angrily.

�� Draco
flinched, and then sighed. �I know,� he said. �The fault is in both of us, but
it wasn�t the fault the Dark Lord had. You would shower me with kindness. And that�s
the problem. That�s what I�d be susceptible to. I got through a year
of the Dark Lord ordering me to torture people, and two years of believing my
parents were going to die any second. I could get through it again.� He
shuddered violently. Harry stifled the immediate impulse to reach out and
assure Draco he�d never have to suffer anything like that again as long as
Harry was alive. �But I don�t think I could get through a year of comfort and
luxury and having someone who would always battle my enemies at my side without
turning into a shadow of myself.�

�� Harry
nodded. He understood. He didn�t want to, but he understood.

�� You have
the right kind of pride,� he muttered. �Your mother came and talked to me out
of the wrong kind.�

�� Draco
closed his eyes in exasperation. �Will you believe that my parents are good
people, Harry?� he asked. �People who care about me and about each other? But
they have that stupidity of blood pride in them, and God knows if they�ll ever
get over it. I know she won�t understand my reasons for doing this; she�ll
think I�m just returning to the ideals she and Father share. But I have to
stand and struggle on my own. That�s another reason to start acting on my own,
you know, so I don�t become too much like them and stay in their shadow.�

�� Will you
let me return your money and houses to you?� Harry asked. It was difficult to
speak.

�� Draco
frowned. �The Wizengamot investigation can continue without you,� he
said, with a hint of his old asperity.

�� I don�t
think they�ll find anything, or would let themselves see it if they did.� Harry
touched his pocket, where a copy of the parchment rested. �But I have evidence
that will force Pansy to give you back your assets if she doesn�t want to
suffer a scandal.�

�� Draco�s
mouth dropped open slightly. Harry enjoyed the look on his face for a moment.
It made him look very young and very unguarded.

�� But
then, I suppose he wouldn�t really like that; he needs time to develop a guard
again.

�� Draco then
turned his dropped jaw into a small, evil smile. �I want to do the things on my
own I can do on my own,� he said. �But I don�t think even I can convince
Pansy. Yes, go and do that, Harry. Think of it as your last gift to me, since
the second-to-last is letting me walk away.�

�� The last
gift,� Harry said, and licked his lips. �The final one?� He knew he was
probably leaning a little too hard, but he needed some reassurance.

�� Draco gave
him another small smile, lips closed. �Let�s see how it goes,� he said. �When I
can reach out from a position of strength the way you�ve reached out to me,
if that day ever comes, you�ll know. In the meantime, please don�t contact me.�

�� The trust
behind that statement reassured Harry even more than the faint brush of fingers
against his jaw Draco gave just before he walked away. It didn�t make things
easy, nothing could, but it soothed the sting.

*

�� This time,
when Pansy�s house-elf showed him into the room where she waited, Harry didn�t
even speak. He simply bowed and held out the parchment to her. Pansy, a faint
pucker of curiosity appearing between her brows, opened it, perhaps thinking it
was a letter.

�� Harry
watched her face change as she read. First the pucker deepened into a frown.
Then her mouth opened slightly, and her eyes turned hard. Finally, with a wry
chuckle, she lowered the parchment to her lap and looked at him thoughtfully.

�� I suppose
you have copies in other places?� she asked, idly, like someone not really
interested in the answer to the question.

�� Of
course.� Harry bared his teeth.

�� And an
alarm system set up to alert others in case you don�t return from my house in a
specified time?� Pansy�s face and eyes were mild, now, her voice almost dreamy.

�� Harry had
no such thing, but he didn�t see any reason to admit it. He let his eyes and
his body lie for him, the way he did when he wanted to make another man believe
he was more attractive than anyone Harry had ever seen. �Of course,� he
repeated.

�� Pansy
stared at him, then sighed and fell back against the couch, staring at the
parchment in her hands. �Damn you, Hector,� she said softly.

�� Harry said
nothing. He knew too well what the parchment held. Whilst the evidence of the
Ministry�s taking the Malfoy vaults and properties away unfairly had been
covered up all too well, the evidence of Hector Ambrosius accepting those
vaults and properties still remained. In fact, that parchment contained a list
of extensive assets taken from other families, mostly imprisoned Death Eaters
or those who had been killed off so thoroughly no close relatives remained to
object. Ambrosius�s signature was on there, as well as his promise to remain
silent.

�� He had no
doubt thought it was safer in the Ministry archives than in his own homes,
Harry thought. Or maybe he really hadn�t wanted his wife to know about it.
Either way, if the information came out, Ambrosius Holdings would lose what
remained of its good reputation as well as most of its money. Pansy could keep
the money she�d made selling house-elves, but only that. And the loss of
the reputation was probably what mattered more to Pansy. She was still accepted
into society, despite the money her parents had sent to Voldemort�s cause,
because she was the widow of someone who had benefited a lot of people in the
wake of the war.

�� Pansy
glanced up at him with veiled eyes. �What do you want in exchange for keeping
this quiet?� she asked.

�� Harry came
straight to the point. �You return the Malfoy lands and money. As many Galleons
as were in their vaults when they were given to your husband��

�� Pansy�s
mouth tightened. It was an awful lot of money to lose, Harry knew.

�� Minus the
expenses you�ve taken for Edgar�s food and clothing and health care,� Harry
said.

�� Pansy blinked
at him. Harry kept still. No need to tell her he was doing this to make the
bargain a little sweeter in her eyes.

�� And why
that?� Pansy breathed. �And would you trust me simply to remove that much money
and then tell you?�

�� I�m sure
you have records of how you�ve cared for Edgar,� Harry said. �I�d like to see
them. As for why? I don�t think you should be punished for trying to provide
for your child. And Edgar was born three years ago; Hector�s only been dead for
two, so you didn�t begin breeding house-elves until after your son was
born. I can�t be sure you have enough of your own money laid by to support him
completely.�

�� Pansy
nodded slowly. �What about the other families Hector accepted money from?�

�� What about
them?�

�� Pansy
frowned. �You don�t want to avenge them, too?�

�� Harry shook
his head. �None of them are as badly off as the Malfoys. I checked,� he added,
as she started to open her mouth. That was true; most of his time between
finding the parchment this morning and now had been occupied in laying copies
of the parchment by and checking on the present status of the people whom
Ambrosius Holdings had seized money from. �None of them lost their homes, for
one thing. And none of them are hunted and persecuted. If you want to make
gestures of reconciliation and good will to them, you can. I don�t think I can
get involved on their behalf without threatening you enough that you�ll also
fight to keep the Malfoy lands and money.�

�� Draco
would be a fool to refuse you,� Pansy mused. �You�re just selfish enough to
suit him.�

�� I need
your promise that you won�t take vengeance on Draco,� Harry went on, ignoring
her.

�� What about
on you?� Pansy leaned forwards.

�� Harry bared
his teeth again. �If you think you can take me,� he said, �come on.�

�� Pansy
leaned back with a little sigh. �You have my promise,� she said. �I�ll sign on
Binding Parchment, if you like, so you can see I�m not lying. And�� She
hesitated a moment, then continued, �I think I mistook you when I called you
the jester. You�re much more like the heir apparent.�

*

�� Harry
sighed, and stared down at the parchment in his hands, Pansy�s binding promise
against any vengeance on the Malfoys. She�d also signed another parchment
promising to return the Malfoys lands and money, minus Edgar�s expenses, within
a week; that was about as long as it would take her solicitor to handle the
matter.

�� Harry
Apparated back to the Ministry, found an owl, and attached Pansy�s parchments
along with a small note of his own to Draco. My last gifts. I hope you don�t
find them presumptuous.

�� He
hesitated over the signature, then, in the end, scribbled only his first name.

�� After the
owl flew, Harry allowed himself exactly three minutes of sulking. Then he went
home to Floo Ron and Hermione and see what they might have planned.

*

�� beautifullove348:
Thank you! I hope you can still like the story, after it somewhat turned itself
around in the last chapter.

�� Mangacat: Thanks!
In this case, the Wizengamot could really only live with what they�d done as
long as they didn�t have to hear about it.

�� Lilith:
Well, Draco had Opinions about helping Harry out of mere gratitude.

�� Natwestgirl:
Thanks!

�� Yume111: As
you can see, Harry is still a bit too strong in Draco�s eyes, and needs to be
countered. Hopefully what he�s chosen will do the trick.

�� Roozette:
Thank you!

�� Thrnbrooke:
Here it is!
- 6
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Harry's Project

Chapter Seven�Harry Is Slytherin, Draco Is Slytherin Too