QLFC Finals Round 1 – Knockturn Alley;
Cannons, Captain: Write about Msaw Ætare; there is no purpose linked to this shop, so it is up to you to decide what that might be.
AN:
This is for the wonderful Sam (MissingMommy) for the Monthly One-Shot Exchange. Hope you like it :3
Thanks to Web for giving me the idea for the shop, and Bex for the mirror idea :)
Massive thanks to Bex and Amy for betaing :D
This is an AU where Draco became an Auror, so if he's slightly more accepting than in canon, you can put it down to the fact that in this version he wised the fuck up after Hogwarts.
Auror For A Week
"Weasley!"
A cold, hard voice stopped Charlie in his tracks. He vaguely recognised the voice, certain he'd heard it somewhere before, but he couldn't put a name to it. Someone from his Hogwarts days was the only guess he could come up with before the man spoke again.
"I haven't got all day, you know."
Charlie sighed as he finally recalled the name of the man the voice belonged to. As he turned around he came face to face with Draco Malfoy.
The two had only met briefly on a couple of occasions; the first at Platform 9¾ when Charlie had offered to collect Ron and Ginny at the end of Ron's sixth year, and the second was three years ago when the Auror office had reached out to him for help training the new recruits. On neither occasion had Draco been nice to him (on the second occasion Draco hadn't been as harsh, but Charlie put that down to being terrified by the dragon he was facing).
"What do you want, Malfoy?" Charlie asked, his arms folding across his chest.
"That's Auror Malfoy to you, Weasley."
"And that's Dragon Tamer Weasley to you."
Charlie's eyes met Draco's steely gaze and the pair stood facing each other, glares deepening the longer it went on. As it reached the one minute mark, Charlie realised he'd have to be the one to break the silence. He was reluctant to—giving in felt a lot like losing, and he certainly didn't want to lose to Draco Malfoy—but he realised that somebody was going to have to be the bigger man, and it wouldn't be Draco.
"Well?" he asked.
Draco glared at him for a moment later before taking a deep breath, and then another. To Charlie, it looked like whatever Draco was preparing to say was causing him great distress, causing a small smirk to spread across his face.
"I need your help."
The words startled Charlie and his mouth dropped open. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. Had a Malfoy really just asked for help from a Weasley?
It took several moments for Charlie to regain his composure, and when he looked back up at Draco, he could tell the younger man wasn't pleased with his reaction. Charlie stared back at Draco expectantly until he explained himself.
"We've had reports of a shop in Knockturn Alley that is illegally breeding dangerous creatures. It had been doing business for a long while, but previously has bred nothing more harmful than a Grindylow so the Auror department has kept their noses out. This time, however, things have escalated. I've been assigned the case as I know the area better than most others in the department, however, I'm unable to gain access to the shop as the owner no longer trusts me after I 'switched sides'. I need outside help, and you're probably the best person to ask."
"And why is that?"
"They're cross-breeding some of the most dangerous dragons known to wizardkind, and I heard…"
Charlie tuned out the rest of Draco's words as his blood ran cold. He'd heard stories of people attempting to create crossbreeds in the past, but very few had actually been successful. Those that had hadn't ended very well, for the humans or the dragons. If the Auror department was getting involved, it meant these attempts were serious, and Charlie wouldn't stand for that—he didn't want to see anyone, human or dragon, get hurt.
"What's this place called?" Charlie asked, cutting Draco off in the middle of whatever he was saying.
Draco shot him another glare before answering.
"Msaw Ætare."
Charlie paced across the entrance to Knockturn Alley. He'd only been in a couple of times before—desperate missions to find ingredients for potions for the dragons—and he hadn't enjoyed either one.
Left.
This place gives me the creeps. Do I really need to do this? I have no loyalty to Draco Malfoy.
Right.
They're breeding dragons, though. And dangerous ones by the sounds of it.
Left.
But how do I know that? I only have Malfoy's word and he isn't exactly trustworthy.
Right.
I'll never find out unless I go in.
Charlie stopped his pacing, took a deep breath, and set off down the winding path of Knockturn Alley, staring at every shop he passed to see if he could spot the one reading Msaw Ætare.
It wasn't long before he was staring up at the faded green sign of the shop. Most of the street was run down with many of the shops looking abandoned and derelict, but Msaw Ætare was worse than the rest—the windows were smashed, the sign was broken and hanging off the wall, and the wood of the door and window frames were almost entirely rotted away. Charlie had actually walked past it before realising it was a running shop.
After taking a deep breath to prepare himself, Charlie pushed open the door and strode confidently into the shop.
"Can I help you, dear?"
A voice to Charlie's right made him jump violently.
"Apologies, my dear. I did not mean to startle you." Charlie turned to face the source of the voice, an old woman hunched over a crooked walking stick. "I am Mrs Moon, I lend my services to the shop a couple of times a week. Is there anything I can help you find today?"
"I have a certain interest in winged beasts and heard this was the place to come."
Although Charlie was nervous, as he spoke, he channelled the air of importance that Draco had suggested he use. He hoped it wasn't as see-through as it had been when practising.
"Wait here," Mrs Moon said.
The old woman tottered off towards the back room moving surprisingly fast for her age, or at least the age she looked. While she was gone, Charlie finally had time to examine the interior of the shop. It looked like it was in slightly better condition than the exterior, however, the only light was coming from through the broken windows so Charlie couldn't actually see much more than a couple of bookshelves containing some questionable items.
A few moments later, Mrs Moon came back with a younger man just behind her.
"This is Damien Francis," she told Charlie. "He needs to ask you a few questions about your interest in our… wares."
The man stepped forward and extended his hand. "As I'm sure you just heard, I'm Damien Francis. A pleasure to meet you."
"The pleasure is all mine, Mr Francis," Charlie replied. "Percy Brown."
"Please, call me Damien." The man swallowed. "I have only two questions for you; what have you heard, and why are you interested?"
"I heard you're breeding dragons," Charlie said, cutting straight to the point. "I was rejected from the sanctuary in Romania despite my vast array of knowledge and deep interest in the species. I was hoping there would be an opening for me here."
The lie fell from Charlie's mouth easier than he thought it would. Thankfully, Damien looked impressed with Charlie's answers and gave Mrs Moon a small nod.
"Thank you, Mr Brown. Our... careers consultant, Mr Drake, is not in today, however, you seem adequate for the position that has opened up. If you could return at three o'clock on Saturday afternoon, Mr Drake should be overseeing the shop floor and will be able to answer any queries you may have."
As soon as Damien finished speaking, he and Mrs Moon both walked away from him into the back area of the shop leaving Charlie alone and utterly confused.
"So talk me through it again," Charlie said into the mirror.
The mirror version of Draco rolled his eyes. "Switch the voice recorder on and keep it in your pocket, cast the spell I taught you on the mirror and try and place it somewhere inconspicuous if you can, and if you can't then keep that in your pocket too because it should still record sound. All of the mirror recordings should come straight to me at the Ministry and I can organise a team to take the shop down if you get enough useful information." Mirror Draco looked at his watch. "Now quit wasting time, you're meant to be there in three minutes." There was a pause before Draco added a quiet "Good luck" and his image faded from the glass.
Charlie sighed as he did as he'd been told. He was starting to regret the decision to help Draco out, not because Draco was bossy and overbearing—he knew this going into the partnership—but because he was an awful liar usually, and he really didn't want to be the cause of Draco's first solo operation going wrong.
He strode into the shop confidently, and this time, he wasn't startled by the voice at his shoulder.
"Good afternoon, how may I help you today?"
"I have an appointment with Mr Drake," Charlie told the woman, the woman who definitely was not Mrs Moon like he'd been expecting—she was young, blonde, and batting her eyelashes at Charlie in a way he knew he was supposed to like, but in reality just creeped him out a little.
"Right this way," she told him, walking towards the back of the shop. "If you just wait at the counter, I'll go and fetch Mr Drake for you."
"Thank you," Charlie said.
While the woman was gone, Charlie tried to commit the layout of the shop to memory, taking particular note of anything interesting or unusual, which happened to be most of the shop.
"What is your availability on Tuesdays and Thursdays?" Someone asked as they walked out of the back room towards Charlie.
"I'm sorry, what?" Charlie asked, startled by the sudden appearance of the loud and overbearing man heading his way.
"Tuesdays and Thursdays. If you get the position, you'll be required to work in the shop those days."
"Ah, my apologies, you startled me, Mr… Drake, I assume?"
"Yes, that is I. And I would hope you're the young Mr Brown I was told about."
"I am indeed, sir," Charlie said, deciding that brown nosing him was not only a good way to get the inside scoop but also fitting for the pseudonym he'd chosen. "I'm currently unemployed, so Tuesdays and Thursday should cause no issues."
"Excellent! Right this way," Mr Drake ushered Charlie into the back room, which was surprisingly modern compared to the rest of the shop. At Charlie's amazed look, Mr Drake added, "Yes, it's much cleaner back here. We have to keep the front of the shop looking run down, unfortunately, so that we don't arouse any suspicion."
Charlie laughed. "Well, it certainly works. I walked past it on my first visit."
"So," Mr Drake started, running a hand through his very obviously dyed black hair, "shall we begin?"
The interview had lasted well over an hour, and by the time Charlie left, he was certain that he'd gathered enough information for Draco to organise a raid on the shop. Well, he had as long as his recording equipment had worked.
"Well?" he asked Draco the second the other man slip into the empty seat opposite.
"It worked if that's what you're asking," Draco said, waving over a waitress as he spoke. "Black Americano please, and for you, Weasley?"
"Latte, please."
"A Latte?" Draco asked. "Are you a girl?"
"You wish," Charlie said, making the waitress smile as she walked off to get their drinks.
"Anyway," Draco said. Charlie thought he saw a small blush trying to creep onto Draco's face, but he put it down to the temperature of the room—the coffee shop they were in was pretty warm. "The recordings worked, Weasley. We're planning a raid during your first shift; you let us in, show us to the back room, and we'll do the rest."
"What is it, exactly, that you're using as a reason? Which part of the evidence is damning enough to warrant a full raid? He didn't explicitly say he was breeding dragons."
"No, he didn't, but he did say they were working exclusively underground, they had to pay you cash in hand because their operation isn't exactly legal, and where they're getting their supply. I think that's enough to begin with."
Charlie stared at Draco in awe; he knew he'd got useful information, but honestly, he hadn't expected Draco to remember the specific details.
"Impressed, Weasley?" Draco asked with a smirk as he stood to leave. "I wasn't second in the year for no reason."
"No, you've got Hermione to thank for that."
"I'll take that to go," Draco told the waitress as she brought over their drinks. "See you around, Weasley."
Charlie paced the floor of Msaw Ætare.
Left.
Will this work?
Right.
Of course, it has to work. These are trained Aurors we're talking about.
Left.
But how will Draco get them into Knockturn Alley without causing a scene?
Right.
Shut up, Charlie. It's going to work.
Charlie was snapped out of his thoughts by the door opening. He sped around the decrepit bookcases and a second later was at the customer's shoulder.
"Good afternoon. How may I help you today?"
"It's time," the voice of Draco Malfoy said.
In his hurry, Charlie hadn't noticed that it was Draco followed by a team of Aurors that had entered the shop.
"Oh, err, right this way…" Charlie didn't know why he was suddenly nervous, he'd been mostly fine up until that point. "Mr Drake's office should be just through that door."
"Still haven't found out his first name?" Draco asked as his team surrounded the door.
"Unfortunately not. He's very secretive." Charlie laughed. "Not that that's a surprise, he is running an illegal business."
"I suppose not," Draco said, joining Charlie's laughter.
"It's empty!" one of the Aurors cried as soon as the door was opened.
"Fuck," Draco muttered, just as another Auror shouted, "Trapdoor!"
Draco sighed. "Well, looks like this is going to be a chase. I'll see you later, Weasley."
"Yeah, later," Charlie muttered as Draco followed his team into the back room. He didn't know where the urge had come from, but Charlie really did want to see Draco again.
"So, what happened?" Charlie asked, sliding the cup of coffee that had just arrived across the table.
"Thanks," Draco muttered before taking a sip. His eyes lit up in surprise—obviously, Draco hadn't expected Charlie to remember he drank Americanos. "It was a bit of a… what's that Muggle saying… wild duck chase?"
"Goose, I think," Charlie supplied.
"Yeah, whatever. Anyway, we caught the two assistants, Mrs Moon and the blonde girl, Amelia, but Francis and Drake got away."
"Fuck," Charlie said. "How?"
"Unlicensed portkey. We couldn't determine the location they were travelling to so we couldn't follow." Draco sighed. "We have their UK base under tight Auror control now, though. Hopefully, they'll be stupid enough to come back and we'll catch them."
"That seems unlikely," Charlie said.
Draco shook his head. "I know." He paused. "Thanks, Weasley," he added, without even a hint of the usual arrogance found in his voice. "Couldn't have done it without you."
"No problem," Charlie replied, a slightly smug feeling spreading through his body. "Call me if you need any help catching the other two. I've enjoyed playing Auror; it was a nice thrill."
"Don't you chase dragons for a living?" Draco asked with a smirk as he stood to leave. As he walked, Charlie thought he heard Draco mutter something along the lines of "bloody Gryffindors."
"Malfoy," Charlie called, stopping Draco in his tracks. As Draco turned, Charlie thought he could see a glimmer of hope in the blond's eyes, but it was gone before they were face to face. "You're not half bad, you know. Want to grab a drink sometime?"
Word Count: 2,635.
This is for:
Monthly One-Shot Exchange December – MissingMommy;
Charlie/Draco, (colour) green, romance (let me have this, please. I tried to throw in hints).