This is a character piece which follows Draco Malfoy in his career post-Hogwarts.

It also shows what happened to several of his followers.

.

A Dragon's Worth

Draco sat at the head of the boardroom table, looking down at the various heads of the different companies that operated under the umbrella of the White Wing Artificers name. To his left, his mother sat making notes on the newest version of the Tanuki Tools Datascreen, a computer pad which included inbuilt video and audio recording systems as well as the ability to transfer data to and from the more common work-desks while behind him, Pansy Parkinson stood clad in what appeared at first glance to be a high-quality muggle business suit and cap, but which boasted an integrated flight set and protective runes.

Upon deciding to take advantage of the work-desks to make his job easier, Draco had managed to poach several people from Evans Enterprises who had the skills and knowledge required to check the items in question to ensure that they did not contain any form of monitoring spells (or similar) which could be used by their former employer to spy on him. The checks had all come up clean, but Draco still only used them for his fully-legitimate operations.

"…and so we are beginning to recruit for the planned expansion." The Chief Manager of Eagle's Platter concluded. "The Lily's Rest Hotels have proven that there is a very large market in the Muggle World which can be tapped and although we will have to rely mainly on non-magical staff and procedures once the expansion starts, we have recruited several half-bloods and muggleborn who have experience in the muggle world to help us bridge the cultural differences."

"Very good." Draco nodded with an approving smile and the Wizard sat down with a self-satisfied expression. "However, I must advise caution. How many new Platters were you planning on opening?"

"Ummm… four in London set within walking distance of the Leaky Cauldron in each cardinal direction."

Draco shook his head. "Spread it out more. I would recommend seven or so, one per city."

"But… I looked out of the Leaky Cauldron and…" The Wizard shrunk under Draco's gimlet stare. "…yes, sir. Which cities would you suggest?"

"The seven largest." Draco glanced at his mother, who nodded and tapped at her pad, turning it so that he could see the result. "London, Birmingham, Leeds, Sheffield, Manchester, Liverpool and Bristol. Put three in London, spread out to avoid accidently competing with each other, so at least five miles apart, preferably more. Get a Muggleborn to research the best locations for them."

"Yes sir… um, muggleborn?"

"Muggleborn." Draco confirmed."You need someone who does more then peep out of a door at the crowds."

"…yes, sir."

Draco gave the Wizard a firm look to drive his point home, then turned to the next manager. "And how is Dragonguard Warding doing?"

"Profits are up five-thousand percent." The Witch responded. "The new line of reactive Wards, while still less capable than those that Lord Potter has deployed, is a marked improvement on the previous setup. I took the liberty of promoting the wizard who came up with the idea of connecting all the counterstrike spell arrays to a single power reservoir with a special array which selects one of the response-spells at random."

"Impressive." Draco mused. "And approved."

"He also came up with a way to make the wardstones modular, so that the spell arrays can be swapped out." The witch added. "I have forwarded details to your private message pad should you wish to upgrade the Wards of Malfoy Manor."

"I shall make certain to read it fully." Draco replied. "How has Gringotts reacted to the new line?"

"They insist that their Wards are strong enough not to need replacing, but they have ordered Ward Arrays for their newer branches."

"Make certain that they get their money's worth." Draco ordered. "Word will leak that Gringotts trusts us to supply Wards…"

"…and demand will soar even further as a result." The Witch finished. "Understood."

.

"Well, I do believe that most of today's business has been dealt with." Draco sighed as the last of the managers filed out of the door. "Is anything important happening tonight?"

Pansy looked at the small display set on the inside of her left sleeve. "Your schedule is clear, sir. Did you have anything in mind?"

"I think I'll have a private dinner at the Peacock's Platter." Draco mused. "Contact Nott, I need to discuss a few things with him."

"He still holds a grudge over the Stadium, sir." Pansy reminded him and Draco shrugged.

"I know, but he also knows which side his Galleons are gilded on. No, he will come, if only to see what I want of him and how he can profit from it."

"Very good, sir." Pansy's fingers seemed to flicker as she typed and sent the message for him, then they stepped through the doors. Crabbe and Goyle, also clad in muggle-style suits but carrying umbrellas that were reinforced to the point that it would take an Unforgivable to penetrate their fabric, stopped leaning against the wall and fell into position behind them. Draco spared them a nod of acknowledgement and the duo brightened up at the indication that their boss appreciated their presence, even if they were little more than mobile shields in combat terms. "Nott has acknowledged the message and will be there in half an hour unless you wish differently."

"That's fine." Draco shrugged. "It'll be a private dinner, so put your meals on the standard expense account. My treat."

The hulking duo brightened even more and Draco hid a sigh at the proof of their lack of intelligence. It was an open secret that while the Peacock's Platter did also provide food for servants, there were several different levels of menus available. Greg and Goyle's expense accounts were the basic sort, limited to having the lowest-quality menu which was about equal to that served at the Eagle's Platter, whereas Pansy was listed as having access to the highest level of menu, one that matched that available to the regular clientele, although she generally went for the menu several steps below. The one time he had asked her why, she said it was so that when she did have the best food, it was a proper treat.

Reaching the lift-shaft, Draco and his entourage stepped into it and began to descend to the level which had the Arch linking his headquarters to his private (and highly secure) room at the Peacocks Nest, from which it would only be a quick walk down a couple of hallways before they reached the Peacock's Platter and the glorious meals available within.

.

Clad in his finest robes and meticulously groomed so that not even a single hair was out of place, Theodore Nott strode into the Peacock's Platter and came to a stop by the Greeter's podium.

"Theodore Nott. I believe that I am expected."

"Of course, sir." The Veela behind the desk smiled as a second Veela, so similar to her that they could have been sisters, stepped up. "Lord Malfoy is in the Merlin's Chamber."

"This war, sir." Marietta curtsyed, then she turned and led the way through the lavishly-decorated dining hall. Theodore followed, his eyes dropping her her shapely behind barely hidden by her gauzy robes. Marietta almost seemed to glide as she led him up the flight of stairs and to the gold-and-jewel-decorated doors set in the center of the balcony that held the various private dining rooms. Knocking once on the door, she stepped through and sank into a curtsy so deep that Nott was surprised that she had not fallen through the carpet.

"Lord Malfoy, Mister Nott has arrived."

"Theo, come in!" Draco called and Nott forced the scowl off his face as he stepped past the Veela. "Thank you, Marietta, we will call when we are ready to order."

"Very good, Lord Malfoy."

Theodore managed to hold the polite smile on his face until he heard the doors close behind him, then he glowered at the fellow Slytherin.

"Driving home how much money you've made at my expense?" He growled and Draco laughed.

"Be reasonable, Nott. You are making plenty of money yourself as a consultant for Dragonguard Warding."

Nott growled at the pointed reminder of how his current lifestyle was dependent on Malfoy's continued largess, then he dropped into the chair opposite Malfoy and glanced down at the menu.

"So, why did you want to speak to me here rather than summoning me to your office? And where's that killer of yours?"

"You still haven't forgiven her for pinning you to the floor that time you lost your temper with me, have you?" Draco chuckled as he finished emptying the bottle of Old Abe's Butterbeer into his goblet.

"She didn't even have the politeness to use magic." Theo grumbled as he picked up the goblet that had been waiting for him and took a sip. "Dirigible Plum cordial, nicely chilled too."

"You always order it, so I thought I may as well save some time." Draco shrugged. "I got you a carafe of it."

Theo glanced at the jug in question, noting the condensation beading on the sides. "…thanks."

"You're welcome." Draco chuckled, then he lowered his goblet. I have already placed my order, so make your choice, then we can talk."

.

"So, what did you want me for?" Theo asked once the door had shut behind Marietta once again.

"I wanted to consult with you about Warding." Draco said, his levity vanishing. "I need to know if an idea I have is… possible."

"What, wearable Wardstones?" Theo snorted, then he froze as he saw Draco's expression. "Wearable Wardstones? Really?"

"Really." Draco confirmed. "Explain why it cannot be done."

Theo took a sip of his cordial as he arranged his thoughts. "Well, first of all, you need to define the area of a Ward. How far it stretches, its shape… it's why most Wards are generally spherical or ovoid. It's easier to calculate where the Wardstone should be with those shapes…"

"What about cylindrical?"

"…doable, but you'd leave the upper and lower ends open." Theo mused. "You'd need extra projection definition arrays to close off the ends and the flat bit at the top would be the weak point, but… it's possible. Planning on doing a close-in Ward on a tower? Come to think of it, you could probably put a hemisphere at the top, that would work…"

"And can you blend Wards?" Draco pressed. "Have it so that when they intersect, they merge rather than clash?"

"You'd need to tune them." Theo shook his head. "I mean, sure, it's possible and Gatehouse Wards use just that, but… that's tricky stuff."

"What about Absorption Arrays?"

"As Wards?" Theo scoffed. "Hell, no. Not possible. Absorption Arrays have limited range measured in inches. They're put onto Wardstones to help protect them against direct magical attack and to boost the rate of charge, but as a protective Ward in their own right? Not unless you have a whole chain of Wardstones around your property and even then, people could just fire spells over the top."

"I see." Draco mused. "Are they directional?"

"…yes." Theo finally answered. "What are you getting at here, Draco?"

"If I wanted a gauntlet that could fire a Banishing spell, how would I be best doing that?"

"A gem engraved with the runic spell matrix would be best and if you put it in the middle of your palm, you should be able to aim it easily." Theo paused. "Huh, put an Absorption Array on a gauntlet along with a magic reservoir and you'd be able to not only block spells, but use the energy to counter-attack with minimal cost. That's cunning… the Aurors would love that."

"It's certainly an interesting concept." Draco agreed, keeping his annoyance out of his expression and voice. "I'll make sure you get part of the profits of it."

"Huh. Thanks." Theo managed. "So, what else did you wish to ask about?"

.

.

The secret door to Draco's hidden lab closed and he snarled.

"I underestimated him! He got too close to figuring out my plan and I'm going to have to give the Aurors a weapon that they may be able to use against me!"

Stamping through the hidden workshop, he came to a stop by the partially-assembled suit of armor hanging on a stand. "At least he confirmed that my idea will work. Once I apply the absorption arrays on the outside, any magical spell fired at me will simply power my own attacks."

A thought struck him and Draco grinned almost mirthlessly. "And if I apply the same thing to my minions umbrellas, they'll be able to shoot back even as they shield me. Their inability to do complex casting won't matter. Give those gloves that Theodore suggested to Pansy and I will be able to hide my own skills should we be attacked since all attention will be diverted to my bodyguards."

Stepping back, Draco gave the armor a long, satisfied look.

"Soon I will finally be a match for Potter, and then I will exceed him!"