Harry

The cemetery was a half a mile from where the Portkey dropped them, so after Harry caught his breath, he started to walk towards the sidewalk where people bustled about their day. Many carried umbrellas with them since it was scheduled to storm again in the evening.

"Potter, don't be daft," Malfoy called to him from behind, his voice sounding groggy as if he'd just awoken from a nap. He pulled out his wand. Even from a foot away, Harry still felt the magic of Malfoy's Hawthorn wand call to him. He'd used it during the war and returned it to Malfoy after his trial cleared him. It seemed the wand still liked him. He often wondered if Malfoy hated that his wand had worked for Harry.

"What?" Harry asked in a whisper. There were plenty of people that could see Malfoy with his wand. It was bad enough that they were still in their robes; they didn't need to stand out anymore.

"Merlin, I thought Granger was kidding when she said you Muggle-raised sometimes forget to use magic since you grew up without it."

Harry blanched. He hadn't forgotten about the charm, not really, he just didn't think of it since he knew casting it wouldn't be possible. Thankfully, Malfoy supplied him with the perfect excuse for his odd behavior. "What do you mean?"

"Honestly." Malfoy shook his head and with a flick of his wrist, he cast a Disillusionment Charm, and Harry felt the magic settle over them. Even that felt like a caress along his spine, and he shivered under the warmth of Malfoy's magic.

"I wasn't thinking," Harry lied. Usually he would have said something defensive, hurled an insult Malfoy's way, but the potion and the Succubus' words had him off kilter. That, and Malfoy's annoyingly rosy cheeks.

Malfoy sucked in his bottom lip and sighed with what looked like great effort. "You were, but you were thinking about the Succubus, not about the small technical stuff. Subtlety isn't really your strong suit, is it?"

"Not really, no," he admitted, shocking himself. He blamed the potion because it picked that moment to make him notice the sharp angle of Malfoy's jaw and the pale slope of his neck that Harry wanted to drag his lips across. He had to swallow the groan that threatened to rise up out of him.

"Then it's lucky that it is mine." Malfoy sounded smug, but Harry saw the look of shock on his face, brief as it was, before he replaced it with a cocksure smirk.

"Suppose so," Harry agreed, and turned to the busy sidewalk, feeling comforted by Malfoy's magic all around him, and replaying the Succubus' words.

The sun broke through the clouds just as they made it to the entrance of the cemetery. For a moment, Harry let the sun warm his face, eyes shut, then he took in the area around them.

The cemetery was old. That much was apparent from its grandiose stone and iron gateway. It was also one of the few wizarding cemeteries in the middle of London, so the fact that it was a nexus of Ley Lines wasn't at all surprising. The stone was covered in ivy, giving the whole thing a gothic, mystic feel. Staring at the gate, Harry almost felt like once he stepped through them, he would be stepping into another realm. There were all manner of tombstones, some newer made from granite or slick stone, but most were made from old stone and had partial names and faded dates on them.

"I see someone who looks like they work here." Malfoy pointed to a man in a green jumpsuit who was pulling up some weeds near one of the newer graves. "We should ask him if he's seen anything odd. Narrow down a location where the Succubus might be hiding out while she completes activating the Ley Lines. She'd stay close by."

"What makes you say that?"

Malfoy shrugged. "That's what I would do if I was collecting ambient magic on a nexus. I wouldn't want to be too far from all that power."

Harry nodded. "Good point."

Malfoy's mouth hung open like a fish's. "Thanks?"

The iron gate creaked when they pushed it open. Harry had to ignore the surge of lust that hit him when Malfoy's elbow brushed against his as they stepped through, but since he was expecting it now, he managed to lean into the feeling, making it a little more manageable.

The weeding man looked up at the noise and smiled. "Can I help you?" His voice was sweet, soft. It matched the smile he wore. The man looked a bit older than them, maybe in his late thirties. He was starting to go gray around his hairline, but it suited his face.

Malfoy was the one who answered. "Yes, you work here, correct?" He extended a hand for the man, who stood up and removed his work glove to take Malfoy's hand.

If the touch affected Malfoy at all, Harry couldn't tell, and that sort of bothered him. Here he was a live wire, and Malfoy was fine all of a sudden? Hardly seemed fair.

The man shook once and released. "I'm Ned. I tend the grounds here. And you two are Aurors then?"

"We are," Malfoy said, with a hint of amusement in his voice. "What gave it away? The ghastly robes?"

Ned smiled his soft smile at Malfoy. "That and the whole walking in like you own the place. Aurors tend to do that. Plus, I'm a Squib. No magic myself, but I can spot a wizard a mile away just fine." He ended with a wink that was both charming and innocent.

"Well then, Ned, I'm pleased to make your acquaintance. I am Auror Malfoy and this is my partner, Auror Potter. We were hoping you could help us."

Ned whistled. "Malfoy and Potter. 'Course you are. Should have known with that hair of yours. I've read about you both in the papers. Big shots, both of you. I read that article they wrote about you and your mother's work with the endangered magical species charity. Great piece on you, and Auror Malfoy, I must say, the pictures they print of you barely do you any justice at all."

"Thank you...I think. Anyway, as I said, we could use your help. Have you noticed anything odd around the last month or so?"

Ned watched Malfoy intently, and for a moment Harry wondered if he could get away with hexing this guy's smile off his stupid face. Harry clenched his jaw while he watched Ned's eyes rake up and down Malfoy's body. Tension coiled around Harry's gut, and he clenched his wand. He was being ridiculous, wasn't he? This guy could flirt with Malfoy. What did he care?

Except that he did, he really did. Merlin, he did? Parkinson's potion was really messing with him because he felt like he should be the only one allowed to look at his partner like that, only he couldn't remember exactly when he'd started feeling that way. Had it been before the Succubus? Before the potion?

"Strange how?" Ned finally answered, his eyes still glued to Malfoy.

"Strange as in strange." Malfoy turned to face Potter and raised his eyebrows as if to say 'do something.'

"Has anything shown up dead that isn't supposed to be here?" Harry asked, clarifying Malfoy's point.

Ned turned to him as if he'd just realised Harry was there. "You mean like critters?"

Harry nodded. "Yes, like that. Or is there a section of grass that you can't seem to keep green? Anything like that."

Ned looked back and forth between Malfoy and Harry. "Back by the mausoleums there's been an unusual amount of dead birds falling from the trees, if that's what you mean."

It was clear Ned was interested in Malfoy, and Harry hated it. He was five seconds away from grabbing Malfoy by the arm and tugging him away from that man's stupid gaze. It was pure willpower that kept him from acting on his impulse.

"Thank you, we're going to go check that out," Malfoy said.

Ned put a hand up to block Malfoy from passing him. "Wait, uh, this is going to sound very forward, and it is, but how would you react if I asked you out?"

Malfoy looked like a deer in headlights. He blinked furiously for a moment and then his brain seemed to catch up with him. "Was that you asking me out?"

Ned smiled. "It sounded much smoother in my head."

Malfoy sucked in a deep breath. "Sorry, no. Thank you, but I..." He turned his head slightly toward Harry.

"Already have someone," Ned finished for him, eyeing Harry from over Malfoy's shoulder. "I should have figured as much. Someone as gorgeous as you couldn't be single."

Malfoy smiled at Ned. "Have a nice evening," he said, moving around the caretaker and taking off towards the stone path that led to the mausoleums at the back.

When Malfoy was out of earshot, Ned said to Harry, "Sorry, I didn't realise you two were...well hey, you miss all the shots you don't take. Hope you find what you're looking for, Auror Potter."

Harry swallowed hard. "Umm, thanks," and then nodded to Ned as he went back to his weeding. Malfoy was pretty far ahead, so Harry jogged to catch up. Ned's words spinning around in his head like a merry-go-round only added to the already dizzying revelations he was having courtesy of one demon-witch and one Pansy Parkinson.