The following story is a compilation by FleetingMoment and BlackWSSnapeBSwan. FleetingMoment devised much of the plot and Draco Malfoy's character development based on JK Rowling's original character, Draco Malfoy, as well as some editing. BlackWSSnapeBSwan created and developed Lara Collins. Nathan Kelley is an original character by FleetingMoment, shadowed extraordinarily well by BlackWSSnapeBSwan. Dan Barker is an original character by FleetingMoment and developed in the story by FleetingMoment. All other minor original characters are created by either FleetingMoment or BlackWSSnapeBSwan. Obviously we don't own Harry Potter, but we are such fans (clearly) lol. Please enjoy! :)

"What do you mean you won't publish it?" a young man in his early twenties shot back at the middle aged man sitting behind a large polished oak desk.

"Who would buy it?" the representative replied, almost chuckling, "Are you being serious or just pulling my leg here, Malfoy?"

"Did you even read them?" Draco questioned, his pale grey eyes flashing defiantly.

"Sure, I read them" Mr. Pellew answered smugly, "For starters, poems aren't very popular these days. Secondly, the author... I mean, Malfoy, come on! I'm sure your talents are better spent in a different industry..."

Draco flushed slightly in embarrassment, but quickly recovered, his pride requiring him to bite back hard, "Fine, then I'll self publish!"

"More power to you," Mr. Pellew laughed, "I'll leave it to you to convince bookstores to buy up your book. Your work is cut out for you."

"You'll be completely cut out!" Draco warned, his voice rising.

"Cut out of the debt, yes. Good luck, Mr. Malfoy. I have other clients waiting," Mr. Pellew replied pleasantly.

Draco stormed out of the office without a word. Once outside of the building, Draco was able to silently drown himself in the grief for his own hurt pride and all of his hard work that had come to nothing just like anything else he had tried to do. There was literally no option left at this point. It wasn't that he couldn't support himself. His father had made sure that he would be taken care of, but it certainly wouldn't last all his life. Eventually the money would run out, and he needed to plan early to continue to afford the lifestyle he had grown accustomed to. He was already occupying a very small flat in order to cut back on costs. And now the months spent toiling away on poems that were like a piece of him went down the drain. He sat down at the edge of the street, flipping open his book of seventy-five poems to a poem at random.

"Tch..." Draco sighed, "So cliche..."

He tossed the book down the storm drain knowing he could never convince local bookshops to carry his book. Not knowing who it had come from. Besides, it probably wasn't even that good. Not good enough to be published regardless of who he was. Each word was meticulously chosen and carried a small piece of emotion that he had felt at some point. A good third was about a woman he had seen following him lately, most likely from the Ministry. However, each time he drew closer to her, she seemed to fade back even further away from him. He didn't even know her name and it drove him mad. He supposed it might be similar to Stockholm syndrome. He knew that she was holding the wand that would take his last breath should he make any wrong move. That was the condition of his release, to be fair. He had agreed to Ministry cooperation. However, he didn't know they would be tailing him and spying on him constantly. The only place he felt safe was his own flat, which was probably very stupid of him. The moment he left, he could bet they were wiring it up with all sorts of magical devices to listen in on his conversations... with what? Himself? He sighed miserably. His life was a complete wreck and he blamed the Ministry bitterly. They had effectively scared off any friends he might have made and cornered him away from the rest of the magical community, who wasn't thrilled about dealing with him in the first place.

Draco stood up and started walking down the street in a pit of anguish. As he walked a few witches and wizards had bumped into him as the crowds grew. He never used to get bumped into when his family was in power. These days, he felt as if it might have even been on purpose. Some sort of statement they were making. After a good distance, he halted to a stop, staring at his feet as people passed around him. In that moment of solitude in the middle of a heavy crowd, he had an epiphany. Regardless of whether they wanted him there or not, he was there. He was standing and they had to take notice of him. The moment didn't last long as someone much bigger than him forcibly pushed him out of the way and into the side of the building he was standing beside. His eyes shot to the stranger in a flash of anger, his fists clenched, but there was nothing he could do. He received an amused smirk in return. Great. Everyone else was aware that he was under the Ministry's thumb and had no recourse. He leaned back against the building helplessly as he watched the crowds pass with witches and wizards gawking at him, the strange man just standing there. Anxiety built and he dashed into the crowd, disappearing within them and with a new purpose. He wanted more than anything to just return home. He would be safe there. Away from prying eyes, taunting smiles, muffled whispers.

"Surprised to see you here so early," an older man serving in the Leaky Cauldron spoke, handing out dragon steaks to some of the regulars.

"Yeah, well, I'm starting early today," a woman with a gentle face replied, "Malfoy..."

"No explanation necessary. Here," the man replied, ducking behind the bar and swooping up a well-loved plastic container. "Luckily for you we prepare them early."

The woman accepted the container with a budding smile and a 'thank you.' She slipped off her backpack and opened it up as she did every day.

"Y'know I don't know what I'd do without this bag.. it works a charm." The girl couldn't have looked more pleased with herself as she awaited a reaction. "Get it?"

"Just as funny as every other time you tell it," the owner grunted.

"Hmm."

After fastening her grey rucksack with coral buckles, she swung it back over her shoulders. The bag was practical. Being an auror, she was at constant risk of being chased or even drawn into a fight. She had to be prepared to go, and the bag served that purpose. Capacious extremis, the Undetectable Extension Charm; it really was her best friend. She could carry anything she liked and still have room for whatever her work deemed necessary. For example: her lunch. Every day, those at the Leaky Cauldron were ready and waiting for her to collect one of their famous corned beef sandwiches, and then at the end of the day she'd return the empty container to then be washed and refilled. Simple. The charm also meant that whatever she was carrying for Ministry reasons, if in the hands of the wrong people, couldn't be accessed without the correct incantation. The bright eyed young witch headed out the door one galleon poorer, but money wasn't an issue for her, and at least she had her delicious food to keep her going throughout her work.

"See you later, Lara," the owner called after her.

With an earlier start, she would have more of the evening free to do whatever she pleased, but even when she wasn't on duty her mind was. Draco Malfoy... yes, everyone had heard of him. There were many mixed opinions when it came to the outcome of his trial, but in Lara's eyes he had gotten a raw deal. Malfoy was practically disgraced and from what she had heard and observed for a long time. He didn't seem to take to well to it. Lara's long dark hair fluttered behind her, settling by her waist as she made her way down the streets, stopping abruptly to find her bearings. Another tool of the trade was her tracker. Part of the conditions of Malfoy's release required him to wear a tracking device that emitted a magical signal within a reasonable distance. The idea was to alert security when a high risk person (acquitted after the war) entered the vicinity. The aurors used these trackers for their own purposes, and Lara's directive was to keep eyes on Malfoy during her shift while keeping enough distance to stay out of sight. Normally she found her work tedious, but there was something different about Malfoy. Something intrigued her. Of course they had never spoken. She was an observer, and so far he hadn't given the Ministry any reason to physically interfere, only watch at all times.

'Beep, Beep!'

Lara was distracted by what she hoped was a melted white chocolate and not a result of somebody's owl on the bottom of her right boot, when she heard her tracker go off.

"Shit!"

What a great start to the day, rule one was almost broken - getting too close. Malfoy was running her way so she managed to make more distance. Her shift began now. She could tell Malfoy was unsettled when she saw him move through the crowd. On some level she understood. Having grown up with very over protective parents during the reign of Voldemort, Lara used to feel that she couldn't breathe, unable to escape from the pressure of their constant and close observation. It was her job though, and one she was damn proud of. Not that she was ever filled in completely with everything going on, being a relatively new auror (8 months roughly,) but she knew enough to be wary. Lara stood with a firm grip on her wand as she always had, and as they were taught when dealing with dangerous people, especially death eaters and those associated with them. Though there were many other aurors, timetable changes meant not all of them were active at the same time. Still, she knew she wasn't alone, there was someone waiting for him back home, maybe even someone opposite to her, an equal distance from him as she was. She had to regularly remind herself that he was a bad man. The things he had done, his family, and most importantly his involvement with Voldemort was damning evidence against him. Lara would often get caught up in pity. Being too kind for her own good at times was what would get her killed the Ministry often reminded her. So she stood with her head held high, emotions as neutral as she could manage, and watched down on him. Though "down" wasn't an accurate description; more like up at him - due to her height.

Day by day, Lara would do this and report back to the Ministry. Lately they had been demanding more. She and the other aurors would have to set up new cameras, listening devices, and other objects. She wasn't sure why they were doing it, but questioning the Ministry would be the last mistake a witch or wizard would ever make. Besides, she trusted them so there was no reason to question their decisions. Whatever they wanted, there would be a valid reason. Perhaps it was the lack of information, the mystery, that drew her into this 'case' more. Whatever it was, it was almost seductive. Lara loved the rush a chase would give and enjoyed all the training immensely. At times she felt her talents were a waste, keeping watch when she could be out actually catching other bad people or Death Eaters, but she had to be patient and have faith that day would come. It was probably mandatory for aurors to do this job for at least the first year anyway, or so she told herself to make herself feel better. Either way, there was more to the story: the promise of danger with Malfoy, that's what interested her.

As Draco ran, he could have sworn he had heard a strange beeping noise just up ahead. He had heard the sound before, but had never determined its source. This time would be different. He ran faster, weaving through disgruntled people crowding the streets until he saw that familiar head of long dark hair. It was her. He knew it was her. And she was running in the same direction he was, which felt a bit like deja vu. He darted into one of the dark alleys and watched her silently from his brief sanctuary. He had wondered to himself whether she was cowardly or whether she knew that she was driving him crazy by staying just out of range. His brows furrowed as he wondered how to coax her to draw closer to him. She was with the Ministry. That much he felt confident of. She was required to watch him for a wrong move... since then, he had never made a wrong move. He had never raised his wand to anyone. That would change. His shaky hand reached into his front jacket pocket for his wand. Slowly he brandished it, holding it out in the open. Already, the crowds out on the main street that were in view of him were looking nervous and starting to shift away from him. He had never given anyone any reason to fear him since the trials, not after all the shoving and looks and obscenities that had been thrown at him. He had always kept his cool. His pale grey eyes sought out the woman from the Ministry, finally locking his eyes on hers. Draco smirked slightly before disappearing further into the alley.

Something seemed different. He seemed different. Lara watched him watch her, and her eyes never left his as he took his wand out of his pocket. As uneasy as the crowd had been (those who noticed,) they were even more so when Lara, a known auror also raised her wand; a potential duel. What suddenly changed inside him that made him draw out his weapon? She and many others had watched him for months, ever since the trials, and not once did he attempt anything. Surely now he wasn't stupid enough to do so. She was calm, on the outside that was. Though there were little nerves, which made her excellent for the job; she was brave and relentless, her brain was clouded by the rushing feeling she was getting, sealed by his smirk. Lara couldn't help smile to herself. Finally something. This was not to be taken lightly. Draco was dangerous and armed with more than just his foul mouth now. She had to make sure everyone was safe; she had to follow him. Maybe even catch him. Malfoy slipped away to somewhere she couldn't keep sight of, and with him showing signs of being a danger, she had to get closer and not just watch from a distance. It was time for what she had wanted from the start: some action.

Thinking quickly, Draco removed his jacket, tossing it to the side by some boxes before he stood behind the boxes and raised his wand and whispering "Cave inimical". So long as she didn't walk directly into him, he would be completely hidden from her. If everything went according to plan, she would see the jacket and inspect it while he could get a good look at her. He wasn't sure if he was brave enough to approach her or try to talk to her, however. But coaxing her closer to him was a good first step. He was convinced he could continue to manipulate her until he might be able to disarm her someday and force her to at least admit that she was spying on him. Though... that sounded... anticlimactic. And rather stupid. Right. Wait and watch... plan later.

Draco took a deep breath and focused on relaxing so that his heartbeat could slow and his breath wouldn't be quite so audible. Once he was set, he watched the entrance to the alleyway desperately hoping that she would soon approach. Lara was foolish enough to turn her tracker off once it beeped. She was aware that if it beeped again it would signal to the Ministry that she was failing at part of the task and she couldn't risk that. Now however, she had to track him. Thankfully they were trained in that without having to rely on magic.

"Everything's okay, continue on." She smiled sweetly to those watching and worrying. At first she was a little skeptical, but the more she acted and didn't think, the braver she was. Heading into the dark alley, she didn't know what to expect, but her wand was ready to 'Protego' anything coming her way. She was unsurprised that he might have finally snapped.