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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
- 8
- 9
- 10
Author’s Note: So, it’s been a while, but I’m still working on this. I promise. I’m just making myself stay a few chapters ahead. Thanks to Cris for the Beta work, thanks to Amanda for talking through some plot points that were irritating me and thanks to all my readers for being patient while I write. (sort of) *grin*

Chapter 9

“I think we should be there,” Ron muttered aloud for the fourteenth time that afternoon. He was so distressed he was ignoring the towering sandwich on his plate and just nibbling at a crisp every now and then when Hermione would look up at him.

“We’re not going on Harry’s date with him,” Hermione responded again as she studied the file sprawled out over the dinner table. She’d made copies of everything archives could get her on the Malfoys and brought it home so she could study it more closely.

“But Malfoy is up to something, I’m sure of it,” he sulked, poking at the sandwich layers until it toppled over.

“Probably,” she chimed. “He often is. But that doesn’t give us the right to interfere when Harry has expressly forbid it.”

“But why did he forbid it?” Ron whined. “This is supposed to be a mission. He’s acting like….”

‘Like it’s a real date,’ she thought to herself, finishing what she was sure Ron was about to say. Why indeed. That had been Hermione’s initial reaction to Harry’s tirade when they’d insisted on accompanying him to wherever Malfoy intended to bring him on their little rendezvous. She’d been hurt that he didn’t seem to trust her and it further raised her suspicions as to what was happening in her friend’s life to make him act so strangely.

“You remember what Harry said. He can take care of himself,” she placated, trying to quiet her fiancé’s fears. “Malfoy may be an unsavory character, but he’s not ignorant enough to try anything in public.”

Ron gave a scoffing laugh and rolled his eyes. “I seriously hope we’re not banking everything on Malfoy’s intelligence, Mione,” he grumbled, making her smile warmly.

“Of course we’re not,” she responded quietly. “Now, hurry and finish your lunch. We’re supposed to be at Grimmauld Place soon.”

Narrowing his eyes, Ron gave Hermione a calculating look, the kind she only caught a glimpse of from time to time. “What are you up to?”

“Nothing you need concern yourself with,” she replied, looking away from him and back to her file. There were so many ledgers here, each one more complicated than the last and she was finding it impossible to make heads or tails of it. What she could see plainly, however, were that Malfoy’s expenses were astronomical by any standards, but there was nothing in his company records to indicate he was bringing in anything near those kinds of funds. Certainly the Slytherin prat wasn’t stupid enough to burn a hole straight through his inheritance so soon. There had to be something missing, something forged, something wrong with the files the Ministry had on Malfoy.

She feared that Malfoy was exactly the man their former boss thought him to be, dealing in illegal activities of some kind, though she had no solid evidence to back her theory just yet. Maybe he was a wand for hire, he certainly had enough contacts remaining from his old Death Eater days for that, but it seemed unlikely given his inability to kill even at the behest of the Dark Lord. Perhaps he was making forbidden potions and selling them on the black market. That seemed more Malfoy’s style.

Still, what worried her most was not that Draco Malfoy was very likely an evil little git. That much she’d been fairly sure of since she was eleven. What worried her now was her friend and partner. Harry had been increasingly passionate about this case, which wasn’t completely out of the ordinary for him, but his secretiveness was. Even when she and Ron begged him to stop stalking the boy at Hogwarts and pleaded with him to shut up about Malfoy’s supposed bad deed, Harry would go on and on until they left him to his thoughts. Now he seemed almost protective over Malfoy, as if he had been assigned as the Slytherin’s personal guardian angel, even guarding him from Hermione and Ron.

She knew something was different about her friend and she was almost certain she’d pinpointed what it was, but she wasn’t sure enough to risk everything on her hunch just yet. But that didn’t mean she was willing to let her friend get hurt over misplaced loyalties either.

When she felt Ron’s gaze practically burn a hole through her skull, she looked up with an exasperated huff. ”I’m following him, alright?”

“On his date? Where he not-so-politely asked you not to interfere?” Ron asked, grinning slightly.

“Precisely,” she replied haughtily. “I’m not letting Harry get himself in a situation he can’t get out of. No matter what he says.”

“Have I ever told you how sexy you are when you break the rules?” Ron said as he got up and strolled around the table, pulling Hermione up and into his arms.

A blush stole across her cheeks. “You might have mentioned it a time or two,” she replied breathlessly before Ron took her lips in a lingering kiss.

“Thank you for always doing the right thing,” he whispered. “Even when it’s not the popular thing.”

“Hopefully Harry will appreciate it as much,” she muttered, not entirely convinced.

“Hopefully Harry won’t have a reason to know you’re there,” Ron countered and Hermione cherished his optimism. She gave a little sigh and Ron released her so they could gather up their things. Hermione compiled a book of her notes and with a flick of her wand disguised it as a trashy romance novel, stuffing it into her bag as she straightened out her dark robes. “What did you tell Ginny to get her out of the house, anyhow?”

Ron grinned smugly. “I told her I needed help choosing your wedding ring. I figured that ought to buy us a few hours at least.”

“That’s brilliant, Ron!” she exclaimed, scrunching up her nose in the very next moment. “So long as you don’t actually let her choose it. I swear your sister has the worst taste in jewelry. I’d end up with something I couldn’t even lift my hand while wearing and you’d end up spending a year’s salary.”

Ron snorted. “Give me a little credit. I bought your ring over a month ago.”

Hermione gaped. It was a rare occasion when Ron surprised her so completely, but whenever it happened it was usually a good thing. This was no exception. “Really?” she gasped, elated. “Can I see it?”

“Of course not!” he tutted and looked regretful, no doubt reading her thoughts, and she was thinking that as soon as Harry was safely home from his date, her new mission was to find this mystery ring. “Mi, please don’t. I don’t want you to see it until the day!”

“Fine,” she conceded with a sigh. She could tell it was important to him. “But you’d better hide it well. You know I won’t be able to resist snooping a little.”

He smiled ruefully and kissed her again, quickly. “Then I’d better get you out of this house now, before you start rummaging through drawers and forget all about the mission.”

+++++

Harry couldn’t stop pacing.

There was a slight path worn in the carpet beneath his feet he’d been at it so long, but as the minutes ticked by, Harry only grew more anxious. He hadn’t known for sure that he still had a date with Malfoy. The way their last meeting had ended in a terrific failure on his part, part of him assumed the blond would back out altogether. It was frustrating that he’d been arguing with everyone over this stupid date, and he didn’t even know for sure it was happening.

“Harry, would you please calm down?” Hermione sighed from the sofa nearby, not even bothering to look up from her book.

He gave a start and looked over his shoulder at her, narrowing his eyes. “You’re still here? I thought you left with Ron and Ginny.”

Hermione looked up, pity staring starkly back at him through her chocolate brown eyes. “Harry,” she said slowly, “we’ve been over this. Ron will keep Ginny out of the house to make sure she doesn’t make a scene and I’ll be here. With you. Waiting for Malfoy.”

“I really don’t need a sitter, Mi,” he pointed out, but she ignored his words as she turned back to her book. “And you being here is sort of pointless if you’re just going to read the whole time and not pay me a bit of attention,” he added curtly. Her mood toward him had been icy all week and he certainly hadn’t missed the subtle digs toward him in reference to Ginny. He knew this mission affected him more than most, but it was still just a job.

“I’m not here to bolster your mood, Harry,” she huffed. “I’m here to make sure things are what they seem.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Harry demanded, folding his arms defensively against his chest as he puffed up not entirely unlike a rooster.

Hermione looked equally irritated as she stood up, but just as she opened her mouth for some unfortunately logical retort, there was a chime at the door announcing that Harry had company. True to his word, Malfoy was here. His date was here. Why the fuck was he so nervous?

Wiping sweaty palms on his trousers, Harry shot Hermione one last scathing glance and moved toward the door, opening it just enough to peer through at his visitor. “Malfoy,” he greeted, slipping outside before Hermione could come strolling over and interrupt Harry’s mission.

Draco cocked an elegant blond brow at the way Harry hustled them away from his home and onto the sidewalk. “A less confident man would wonder why you’re so eager to keep me out of your flat, Potter.”

Harry searched for a plausible explanation that didn’t sound either ludicrous or too much like the truth and came up at a loss. “I guess it’s a good thing I’m not with a less confident man then, hm?” he offered lamely, but it seemed to quell Malfoy’s curiosity for long enough to change the subject. “So, where are we going?”

“Clearly not your place,” Draco, smirking slightly. “I made reservations at Lago’s.”

“Lago’s, as in the five star Muggle restaurant?” Harry asked, trying to sound less astounded than he actually was as they strolled further down the street and away from Grimmauld Place.

Malfoy’s lip quirked into the barest of grins and he nodded. “The food is delicious and the service is anonymous,” he mentioned casually and Harry couldn’t help the odd sinking sensation he felt in his gut. Apparently Ginny wasn’t the only one worried that someone might see him and Malfoy together.

“Right,” Harry muttered, stuffing his hands awkwardly into his pockets as they strolled into an alleyway to Apparate.

“Oh, don’t sound so offended, Potter. It’s nothing personal, but no one knows I’m gay, remember?” he whispered, shooting Harry a smoldering gaze that made his knees feel a bit wibbly. “I’m amazed you’ve managed to keep it a secret so long with the way your face seems to be in the papers for something every day.”

A blush crept up Harry’s cheeks at the statement. It was easy to hide the fact that he was gay, because he wasn’t, and now would have been the perfect time to come clean, admit what was really going on and go back to being enemies. But then Malfoy stepped forward, twining his arm around Harry’s waist and pressed in very close. “Ready?” the blond whispered, his breath ghosting warmly over Harry’s lips.

Harry swallowed. “For?” he asked, hoping the words hadn’t really come out as a squeaky as they sounded to his ears.

Draco chuckled, a deep and exuberant sound that sent gooseflesh marching up Harry’s arms. “For Apparition, of course.” His smile deepened as he leaned forward, lips terrifyingly close. “Unless….”

For a moment that seemed to stretch on forever, Harry thought Draco was going to kiss him, his lips tantalizingly parted and wet. In that moment a war raged on inside of Harry, part of him wishing the blond would kiss him, get it over with and show Harry what it felt like to be snogged by a bloke. He was sure he’d hate it and then that would make this whole ordeal a bit less confusing. Except the other part of his brain, which sounded infuriatingly similar to Hermione, pointed out that if he were really so sure he’d hate it then he wouldn’t be so conflicted in the first place.

Alas his internal battle was for nothing, because instead of feeling the press of firm lips against his own, Harry only felt the queasy tug of Apparition as the blond stole them away to an alley near the restaurant.

“Okay, so here are my theories,” Draco launched in without preamble, making Harry blink after him as they exited the alleyway and strolled toward the restaurant entrance. “Option one, She-Weasel is actually a He-Weasel after all. Option two, you’re only dating her to keep your public image as the Wizarding World’s Golden Boy pristine, or option three, and my personal favorite, she’s just a clingy roommate who you have never and will never have romantic interest in.”

Harry gulped and tried to laugh but it came out sounding false even to his own ears. “Sorry to disappoint, but she is definitely a woman,” Harry replied. “And I really don’t care what the public thinks of me. She is, however, living with me.”

“But you have no romantic interest in her,” Draco finished for him and Harry was loathe to see a spark of hope in his eyes.

Harry winced, unsure what to say. He couldn’t risk losing this relationship he’d slowly built between them somehow. It was critical to the case and to getting the proof Kingsley required to clear Malfoy’s name or damn him. He wasn’t sure which he wanted to happen anymore.

“We’ve been together since the war,” was all he could manage to say on the matter.

“I see,” Draco replied, his jaw set in the way Harry was used to seeing it after he’d won a duel of some kind against the Slytherin. “And she doesn’t mind that you’re here with me?”

“I’m not keeping it from her, if that’s what you’re getting at,” Harry replied. “She’s not thrilled about it, but I gave her little choice,” he told Draco honestly, even though he still felt like he was deceiving the blond.

If possible, Malfoy looked even more confused than before. “I’m not sure I’m following, Potter. Are you or aren’t you dating the ginger shrew?”

Harry chuckled and shook his head wryly. “Why do you care? I thought I was just some random shag.”

Malfoy pursed his lips as if caught in a trap. “I never actually said that. And besides, maybe Hell will freeze over and you’ll be brilliant in bed. I might want seconds.”

With a wince and feigned offense, Harry looked stricken. “Is it really so hard to imagine that I’d be a good lay?”

The host approached them then, leading them to a table near the back, but before Harry could take his seat, Draco leaned intoxicatingly close and whispered hotly against the shell of his ear. “If I couldn’t imagine it, we wouldn’t be here.”

Harry shivered and sat down. When had the tables turned? When had he allowed the reins to switch hands and become the one being seduced instead of the one doing the seducing? “Well,” he muttered, clearing his throat to hide the embarrassment in his voice. “At least you have some faith in my abilities.”

“Oh, I wouldn’t get too cocky, Potter,” Draco chuckled, glancing at him over his wine list. “It just means you have some lofty expectations to meet.”

Harry felt a pulse of competitive drive sear through his veins as a slow smile curled across his features. He never had been able to back down from a Malfoy-issued challenge, and it didn’t seem that now was any exception.

+++

Author’s Note: This should be fun *rubs hands together wickedly*
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