Chapter 10 - Malfoy Involvement

"There's nothing like the smell of quidditch sweat wafting down the corridor."

James turned around to see the slightly smirking face of his most hated arch-enemy. "You know," the Slytherin added, "most players take a shower after practice."

James practically spat his one word reply, "Scorpius."

"You do know what that term is?" Scorpius continued leeringly. "I've heard that some Gryffindors are unclear on the concept of bathing."

James bristled. "I don't need some jumped-up, serpent worshiping daddy's boy to tell me how to shower."

"Good," Scorpius said. "I'll leave you on your way to the baths, then. But before you go, do you know where your brother is?"

"What do you want with my brother?" James asked snidely.

"Now, now, no need to be rude," Scorpius said back haughtily. "I wanted to talk to him about The Siren - he'll at least listen with an open mind and not dismiss my words immediately."

James caught the alluded message - Scorpius told them about this new dark figure well before she was making the news, and James didn't believe it then. This apparently had James stymied, and before he could come up with a new direction to approach from, Scorpius said, "So, do you know where Albus is at?"

James scowled. "I think I know where he's at, but if you think I'm going to leave you alone with him, you're daft. You'd probably curse him or nick his stuff."

Scorpius merely smiled, and gestured for the Gryffindor to lead the way.

Albus was trying to get his Transfiguration homework to make sense. They were supposed to figure out how much stuff weighed when you transformed it into a different substance, and so far, his math said that changing a mouse into solid gold would make it weigh negative 73 pounds. "Ugh," he groused. "I think I'm going to have to pester Rose abo..." He looked up from talking to himself to see the most unlikely pair approaching him.

"Hello, Albus," Scorpius said, taking a seat a few feet away from him. James sat as well, and was visibly trying to put himself a bit between the two of them - something which only seemed to amuse the Slytherin. "I was wondering if we could talk about The Siren?"

"Absolutely," Albus said, not so much because he wanted to talk about it, but because he was tired of homework.

"My father and I," Scorpius started out, "have been following what's been going on pretty well - you father seems to be acquitting himself pretty well, far better than his coworkers."

"Thanks for the approval," James said, shaking his head with a disgusted look.

"However, you probably don't know this, but taking her captive is more difficult than simply disarming her. The ministry doesn't want this to get out, but your father actually managed to stun her."

"What?" Albus said, confused. "Then I don't understand - she should've been caught then!"

"Yes, she should have," Scorpius said, nodding. "But as she fell, her body seemed to just shrink away to nothing - absorbed into a trinket she wears. A leaf of some sort, I believe, which somehow defied any magic your father sent its way."

James snorted. "Even if all of this is true, what good is it telling us?"

"Patience. Now, the ministry seems to think it's on the right track with merely trying to confront her, but unless they have a non-magical way of preventing that leaf from blowing away, running into her and even disarming her isn't going to do a bit of good. My father, however, has figured out a way past it, but it will need your help - both in relaying a message to your father, and spreading a bit of gossip around the school."

"Gossip?" Albus asked. This was an odd request from the Slytherin to say the least.

"Yes," Scorpius continued. "I want you two to start spreading some rumors that my family isn't doing very well financially."

"But, why?"

And to Albus' surprise, James answered. "I get it! You're going to put up something from your estate up for sale."

Scorpius seemed just as astounded. "That's right. Somewhat soon, we're going to announce a private antiquities auction - with some things on the block that would probably make The Siren salivate. Only my father will arrange the location very carefully and enable it to be shut completely off from the rest of the world with a flick of a wand."

James and Albus shot each other looks, not knowing what to say. Both felt the idea was passable, but, well, this was Scorpius. James, in particular, was worried at the fact that Draco Malfoy would, in effect, be shutting their father out from the rest of the world. What did that mean - and what happened if they couldn't get back out?

"So, all we have to do is spread some rumors that you guys aren't doing so well with money?"

"And tell your father to be at Hawthorne Suite north of Buxton three weeks from this Thursday, at 6:00 PM."

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