Sinister Outlook

Chapter One
Beyond These City Streets

The night grew darker, the silence strung out through the city streets.

The rustle of dull feet echoed below the rough concrete of the ground, and shadows fled through the sewers with racing hearts and nimble tongued footing.

Heavier steps pursued them, as they ducked and weaved through thin waters and garbage, muck and sludge aiding and abetting those who were used to it, thwarting those who came for the kill. Three figures pressed themselves against a darkened alcove and stilled their breathing, waiting until their pursuers passed them by and all fell into silence once more.

Peeling themselves off the wall, they walked with velvet feet a few hundred meters back to a large pipe set half way up the wall and levered themselves into it. When they emerged from the other end, they spilled into a room full of shallow light, a fire in a barrel burning brightly in the middle of the room.

There were several thick curtains hung for privacy and to conceal the heavily stacked bunks where this regiment of the Sewarians lived. Brick-brown eyes raised up to greet the three figures, a coarsened smile dancing at the sight of a dozen rats spilling out of a grubby casing by the smallest of the three Sewarians.

"You've done well tonight. We shall feast!" The steady gaze never once drifted from the three slim figures of the young Sewarians. "And what is the news from above?"

The sandy-blonde boy, with hazel eyes, shuffled from foot to foot. "Harry's back. He came into the city an hour before nightfall. Lisa was on front gate duty, saw him and reported it to us just as we were heading back here. He was heading straight for The Leaky Cauldron."

"Harry Potter, back with us again," Murmured Remus Lupin, his greying hair seeming greyer all of a sudden at the mention of Harry, the brown eyes seeming darker in the low light. "If so, we shall have a longer month. The Moon shall not show her face while he is within these walls." He was silent for another moment, before relaxing his shoulders to a more mundane topic.

"Come," he beckoned his people. "We shall eat."

Colin, Seamus and Oliver exchanged sharp looks between them, as they stoked the fire and more figures plunged into the room from the pipeline as the smell of cooking rats drew them like honey to bees.

"You should have said something about Malfoy!" hissed Colin.

"No," Oliver spoke calmly, his tone strangely commanding. "He does not need to know that yet, it will just cause too much worry and concern."

Seamus wisely said nothing.

~~ ~~~ ~~

Meanwhile, Harry was having problems of his own.

This was mainly because his jaw was still on the floor as he regarded the slender blonde man who rose from his chair with all the fluid grace of his aristocratic and spying profession.

"Malfoy?" he repeated, dumbly.

"It's nice to see that all those eloquence classes paid off, Potter." Sneered Draco in his usual fashion.

Albus Dumbledore regarded them in his usual, laid-back manner, before motioning Harry to a chair. "Have a seat, Harry. We have much to discuss."

Harry sat, with forbearance, and scowled at Draco, who smirked once more, for good measure. "I will leave you to it, Dumbledore."

"No, Draco, please stay. This will save having to get you both together again at a later date. Now, Harry, you have the disk?"

Harry carefully reached into his robes and extracted a slender waterproof and heatproof case from his inside pocket, clipping it open to reveal a microchip disk, which he held out for Dumbledore to inspect.

"Ah, excellent! The wheels can begin to turn. Draco, you have contact with Hermione Granger I believe?" Draco nodded sharply. "Excellent. Please give this to her poste haste. She will be expecting it."

"Hermione Granger?" queried Harry.

"She's an electronics expert and the only person I can think of who has the sheer logical ability to de-code the information on this disk, Harry. She's quite reliable, and loves a challenge." Albus handed the disk to Draco who ferreted it away somewhere on his slender person.

There was a sudden knock on the door and a polite face peered into the room. "I'm sorry to disturb you, Albus, but I bring urgent news from Minerva and the Visionaries."

Albus stood up, tucking his long beard into his belt. "I'll come now, Parvati." He turned to the two young men still glaring at each other with mixed feelings. "Make sure there's no blood on the carpet when I return. The stuff stains and is absolutely terrible to remove." He gave them a genial smile and swept, impressively, from the room.

Harry snorted and relaxed deeply into his chair, turning his head, away from Malfoy and all his arrogance.

"Is that how you're going to be, Harry?" Came the mocking tone.

"Fuck you, Malfoy."

"As much as I'd enjoy it, not right now, thank you. Albus could come back at any moment and I don't particularly want to be bent over his desk when he does come."

Harry flushed deeply.

"You're ears are turning red," purred a golden voice near Harry's ear. "Did I embarrass you, Harry? I'm sorry."

"Like hell you are." Growled Harry. "You've never been sorry before in your life, Malfoy."

The pause that followed was so pregnant that it must have been having quadruplets and Harry's nerves snapped. He turned his head sharply, a bitting comment hovering on his lips, before all thoughts were chased away by an unbearably soft mouth.

All thoughts fled as Harry gave into the hard kiss, his neck muscles tightening under the rough caresses of mouth and long fingers on his collar. He surrendered, artlessly, and had just started to get into the rhythm, reaching up to bind his hands within the blonde tresses when the hot pressure was gone, and he was left, panting, staring into shadowed silver-blue eyes.

"You're right, I'm never sorry." Draco stated, slipping out of his chair effortlessly and walking to examine the pictures on the far wall, his eyes trailing over the gallery hung there.

Harry, through the burning of his lips and confusion, could still make out the picture of his mother and father cuddling each other, with the wrapped bundle of himself as a baby, snug as a bug in a red-and-gold blanket with Harry emblazoned on one corner. They had died shortly after in a terrible accident, Harry escaping injury except for a lightning bolt shaped scar on his forehead, a blunt reminder of the price you pay for unconditional love.

~~ ~~~ ~~

Something was awake in the darkness, something that lived on fire and ate the wretched souls of the living, it was awake and alive and breathing.

It was coming to get Him.

Coming and nothing could stop it.

~~ ~~~ ~~

Harry slumped back to his room. His meeting with Dumbledore, after he had returned, had been a short de-brief, Malfoy staring at pictures the entire time, standing there quietly while Harry answered Dumbledore's routine questions. When he was released, he brushed off his Godfather, begging off due to sheer exhaustion and collapsing onto his bed in a small, but clean, room.

His head was still whirling from his return, seeing Draco again, having Draco kiss him again.

For the longest time, Harry had considered their relationship to be a thing of the past. Relationship? Could you really call that a relationship? Supplied his consciousness. It had ended sixth months ago, two weeks before Harry had left for his mission to the North, amongst arguments and natural tears. Harry had never approved of Draco's profession, Draco didn't appreciate Harry's Bounty Hunter escape tales, as if they were some kind of badge around his neck, a trophy in a case.

So they had ended it, stormily, with many heated words exchanged, and then, Harry had left without a word, a backwards glance.

Harry had not been sorry it ended.

Now he was.

He must have drifted off into a half-sleep when there was a sudden, urgent banging on the door, and his eyes flew open. He vaulted off the bed and grabbed his silver knife out of his long jacket as a precaution, and slowly opened the door.

~~ ~~~ ~~
To Be Continued…
~~ ~~~ ~~

Amy's Notes:

My sincerest thanks go to Kasi, for her excellent and thorough beta and her patience with me taking so long with it. Instead of this being a chapter every month or so, it's turned into every two months. It's definitely a side project at the moment, so please be patient with it! I won't give up on it, it's far too interesting right now.

Warmest thanks to all my reviewers (and loyal fans: Sara, Sheron, Kit, Ishuca - you all know who you are!), you're interest in this little sideline piece has been warm and comforting to me. And you all know what to do with this chapter as well: hit review! *laughing*

Next Chapter:

Who is behind that door? Will Hermione be able to decode the information on that disk? Who is trying to get Him, and more importantly, who is Him? What crazy thing will Draco do next? What was the news from the Visionaries? Will a certain Bounty Hunter finally make an appearance?

Find out in the next chapter of A Sinister Outlook!

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