Disclaimer: Oh yes, of course they're mine. Just as the sun is made of ice
and money grows on trees. Miss Rowling? If you wish to sue please find
someone else, I can't even afford a lawyer let alone a settlement.
Warnings: Nah, nothing you can't handle.
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.
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Blood & Nails.
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Part Seventeen. Your Father's Son.
Harry was in an even worse mood over the next few weeks and it was really starting to get to Draco. He tried to be supportive. He tried to be understanding. But it was all rather difficult as he didn't know much of what was happening now. He could guess, given what he now knew about the past murders, but it wasn't quite the same.
Another night when Harry finally came home at one in the morning, waking Draco up as the black haired man stomped around the bedroom muttering under his voice.
"Bad night, Harry?" Draco asked as gently as he could, hoping to get the other man to talk about it and stop bottling it all up. It only ever made Harry worse when that was done.
"What the fuck do you think?" Was spat back at him.
Draco let it go, but it wasn't easy. "Well, just get some sleep, maybe you'll feel better in the morning?"
"Fuck you."
Draco sighed and spoke in a tired voice. "Don't take it out on me, just try and relax."
A drawer was slammed shut and Harry turned to look at him. "Don't tell me to fucking relax! I know what I'm doing!"
"Then why are you going through your drawers? You sleep naked or had you forgotten that?"
"I'm not the one who goes around forgetting everything!"
Draco rolled his eyes. "Oh, give it a rest. Okay, so I can't fucking remember about four and a half years of my life. Not my fault."
"No! It's not is it!" Another drawer slammed and Harry leant his elbows on the top, sighing. "Sorry." He muttered softly. "I'm just tired."
"I know, come on. Come here." Draco stretched his hand out and Harry took it, allowing Draco to pull him over to the bed.
"I just wish we could get the bastard."
"Yeah, I want to get my hands on him too, well, at least throw a few hexes at his ethereal form. Probably shouldn't hurt the body he's now in. Would seem hypocritical on my part to blame the vessel."
Harry didn't say anything, just shifted to his side of the bed and took his clothes off so he could lie down. Draco again got the feeling that there was something Harry wasn't saying about Mortel, when he did speak of it anyway.
He had the nasty suspicion that Mortel had said or done something of importance to Harry before exiting and drifting off to continue his killing spree. And it was something Harry didn't want to repeat. The feeling of Harry keeping something back was getting more and more obvious and starting to grate on his patience. But Draco didn't ask, just gave him the time he needed. For now anyway,
"It's getting worse?"
Harry gave a grunt that could have been either a yes or a no.
"You don't have to spare me the details, Harry. I can handle it."
"I don't want to bother you."
"Oh come on! I've seen worse during the war."
"Seen worse than what?" Harry looked at him suspiciously. "How would you know what you might hear if I told you?"
"I went through the case files." Draco said bluntly.
Harry sat up and stared down at him incredulously. "You did what? Why!"
"Because I'm tired of being left out. You and Morgan sit around mumbling to each other, except when I walk into the room. Then you both go silent and it's really insulting. I'm not a kid Harry, I'm 21. Even if I do consider myself to be 16, I can still cope, okay?"
Harry lay back down, obviously annoyed but Draco couldn't be bothered to care right now. "You shouldn't have done that."
"Yeah, well, you shouldn't treat me like I'm a baby."
"I don't."
"Of course you do. Why else would you keep all this stuff from me?"
Harry just rolled to his side, facing away from Draco.
"How come Ron's attack wasn't in the file? It seemed to be all the things before I was arrested, but his wasn't there."
No answer.
"Harry, I'm warning you. Tell me."
"Because Ron's attack was when Mortel was apprehended. It got transferred to the trial folder as direct evidence and taken out of the Case Files." Came the reluctant reply.
"Speaking of my trial ..... "
"Can we not do this right now?"
"No, I'm awake now, so let's. Speaking of my trial, I couldn't find your copy of it, I'm sure you have one."
"I usually have it with me. It's at Hermione's right now, she needed a copy."
"Why wasn't Mortel discovered when Veritaserum was utilised?"
Harry didn't say anything.
"Harry." Draco growled out. "Why wasn't he discovered then."
"Because they didn't give you any Veritaserum. I'm going to sleep now and not answering any more of your stupid questions."
Draco stared at his back in shock and then turned his gaze to the ceiling. He didn't go back to sleep that night.
----------
"No, Mum, I'm fine. There's no need to yell. No, don't go get my father, look I just want to know one thing. Why didn't they give me Veritaserum at my trial?" Draco was lying on the kitchen counter talking to his mother on the phone. "What do you mean you don't know? How is that possible?" More yelling in his ear so he sat up. "MUM! Don't yell, I can hear you just fine if you talk normally. Yes, yes, muggle technology is fascinating. Why, what did you say as you tried to destroy my ear drum?"
"I said, darling, that they wouldn't tell us why they didn't give it to you. That's why we thought it was so unfair."
"Oh god, please don't start the 'Unfair' speech again. So they just said they weren't giving it to me, but they wouldn't say why?"
"That's about it, darling. Are you sure you don't want me to get your father?"
"It's fine mum, and don't call me darling. Look I have to go, it's my practical day at Hogwarts, I was just wondering if you knew."
"Sorry I couldn't help Draco darling, but good luck and do try and keep in touch."
"Yeah, okay, fine mum, bye." He hung up before she could start another sentence figuring he could blame in on the muggle technology if she asked about it later.
Steel purred and walked around his feet as he got everything ready for his classes. Harry, of course, was already gone. Draco scratched the cat under his chin.
"Hey boy. Wanna go back to Professor Snape? See all those lovely children?"
Steel hopped on to the bed and curled up. Draco took that as a no and smirked. He grabbed his keys as he passed the table and checked Harry had put up the ward so he could leave on of the windows open for the cat. He headed out, making a mental note to ask Snape if he wanted his cat back anyway.
----------
"Hey sir." Draco was already sitting in his chair and having a drink by the time Snape arrived at his rooms.
"Mister Malfoy, I do believe you run to get to my alcohol, that can't be a good sign."
"Well, after a whole day of students, can you blame me?" Draco handed over the second glass.
"Hardly."
"Want a cat?"
"Annoying you, is he?"
"Nah, just figured you might want him back. I've had him for months now and I'm doing much better."
"Yes, and rumour has it that your apartment isn't so lonely anymore." Snape said dryly. "From what I hear in any event."
"I don't talk about Harry that much." Draco sulked and finished off his drink. "So, do you want him? Steel that is, not Harry. You can't have him."
"How disappointing." Snape said sarcastically. "Well, I could certainly live without him for a few more weeks. It's so refreshing to not have a mass of hair leap at you when he wants to go outside to play. And he does that no matter what I'm doing at the time. Teaching, reading ......... sleeping." Snape growled out the last word and Draco snickered.
"We just leave a window open for him. I guess that could be a problem down here."
"Indeed. So, how are things going between you and Harry?" Snape poured Draco another drink.
Draco shrugged. "He's keeping things from me, I can tell. And I don't like it much either. It's been getting worse lately. Like, the more time he's with me, the less he actually tells me. It's as frustrating as hell. And I'm really sick of his 'I don't want to worry you' excuse."
"Perhaps if you went another way. Would anyone else be able to tell you what you need to know?"
"I actually wanted to ask you a few things, but didn't want to bother you."
"Ask away. I have no problems with helping you."
Draco finished his drink and looked his ex-teacher in the eye. "Do you know why the Ministry didn't give me Veritaserum for my trial?"
Snape raised an eyebrow. "He wouldn't tell you that?"
"No."
"Because in your final year at Hogwarts Dumbledore and I taught a few select students how to disable it in their system. You were one of them and the Ministry didn't trust you to not do it, so it was deemed redundant. Your trial was then based on the evidence."
"It can be beaten? I didn't know that."
"Oddly enough, the Ministry don't want that to be public knowledge. The truth serum became very popular with Voldemort, and he administered it for the slightest thing. You had to be taught of course, to help protect your place and a few of the other students needed it in case they were ever captured."
"The Gryffindors. Namely, Harry, Hermione and Ron."
"As well as Harry's roommates, the entire Weasley clan, Miss Parkinson and the younger Crabbe and Goyle. And a number of Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs were found to be very useful as well, so they were taught."
"I got a letter a few days ago from Vincent. He seems to be doing well. Funny really, when I had to make it look like they were my friends, I couldn't stand them, but they don't seem too bad now."
"Yes, forcing people to do things usually makes them hate it."
"So it wasn't all a plot against the Malfoys as my parents keep saying?" Draco smirked and refilled his glass.
"I think people are still very sensitive about the incident in your second year. That may have had something to do with it."
"Ah yes. The Heir of Slytherin. Was rather foolish of my father to send that book along to school, without knowing what it could actually do."
"Yes, but I believe the chance of both getting Dumbledore fired and embarrassing the Weasleys at the same time, overcame the small amount of common sense he actually does hold. He should have put a stop to it, though."
"Yeah, but he couldn't just stand up and say 'Whoops, sorry about that' when things started to get really bad. It wouldn't look that good. He truly does hate Dumbledore doesn't he?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
"Perhaps you should ask him that one."
"Perhaps I shall." Draco finished off his drink and stood up. "Sorry I can't stay for long today, but I should get home and yell at Harry so more. Not that it's likely he'll be back before sunrise tomorrow, so I don't know why I bother." He scowled. "Mortel's a real prick."
"Very well."
"Bye, sir! I'll give your love to Steel!" Draco heard a snort of laughter as he closed the door behind him.
To Be Continued.
Warnings: Nah, nothing you can't handle.
.
.
.
Blood & Nails.
.
Part Seventeen. Your Father's Son.
Harry was in an even worse mood over the next few weeks and it was really starting to get to Draco. He tried to be supportive. He tried to be understanding. But it was all rather difficult as he didn't know much of what was happening now. He could guess, given what he now knew about the past murders, but it wasn't quite the same.
Another night when Harry finally came home at one in the morning, waking Draco up as the black haired man stomped around the bedroom muttering under his voice.
"Bad night, Harry?" Draco asked as gently as he could, hoping to get the other man to talk about it and stop bottling it all up. It only ever made Harry worse when that was done.
"What the fuck do you think?" Was spat back at him.
Draco let it go, but it wasn't easy. "Well, just get some sleep, maybe you'll feel better in the morning?"
"Fuck you."
Draco sighed and spoke in a tired voice. "Don't take it out on me, just try and relax."
A drawer was slammed shut and Harry turned to look at him. "Don't tell me to fucking relax! I know what I'm doing!"
"Then why are you going through your drawers? You sleep naked or had you forgotten that?"
"I'm not the one who goes around forgetting everything!"
Draco rolled his eyes. "Oh, give it a rest. Okay, so I can't fucking remember about four and a half years of my life. Not my fault."
"No! It's not is it!" Another drawer slammed and Harry leant his elbows on the top, sighing. "Sorry." He muttered softly. "I'm just tired."
"I know, come on. Come here." Draco stretched his hand out and Harry took it, allowing Draco to pull him over to the bed.
"I just wish we could get the bastard."
"Yeah, I want to get my hands on him too, well, at least throw a few hexes at his ethereal form. Probably shouldn't hurt the body he's now in. Would seem hypocritical on my part to blame the vessel."
Harry didn't say anything, just shifted to his side of the bed and took his clothes off so he could lie down. Draco again got the feeling that there was something Harry wasn't saying about Mortel, when he did speak of it anyway.
He had the nasty suspicion that Mortel had said or done something of importance to Harry before exiting and drifting off to continue his killing spree. And it was something Harry didn't want to repeat. The feeling of Harry keeping something back was getting more and more obvious and starting to grate on his patience. But Draco didn't ask, just gave him the time he needed. For now anyway,
"It's getting worse?"
Harry gave a grunt that could have been either a yes or a no.
"You don't have to spare me the details, Harry. I can handle it."
"I don't want to bother you."
"Oh come on! I've seen worse during the war."
"Seen worse than what?" Harry looked at him suspiciously. "How would you know what you might hear if I told you?"
"I went through the case files." Draco said bluntly.
Harry sat up and stared down at him incredulously. "You did what? Why!"
"Because I'm tired of being left out. You and Morgan sit around mumbling to each other, except when I walk into the room. Then you both go silent and it's really insulting. I'm not a kid Harry, I'm 21. Even if I do consider myself to be 16, I can still cope, okay?"
Harry lay back down, obviously annoyed but Draco couldn't be bothered to care right now. "You shouldn't have done that."
"Yeah, well, you shouldn't treat me like I'm a baby."
"I don't."
"Of course you do. Why else would you keep all this stuff from me?"
Harry just rolled to his side, facing away from Draco.
"How come Ron's attack wasn't in the file? It seemed to be all the things before I was arrested, but his wasn't there."
No answer.
"Harry, I'm warning you. Tell me."
"Because Ron's attack was when Mortel was apprehended. It got transferred to the trial folder as direct evidence and taken out of the Case Files." Came the reluctant reply.
"Speaking of my trial ..... "
"Can we not do this right now?"
"No, I'm awake now, so let's. Speaking of my trial, I couldn't find your copy of it, I'm sure you have one."
"I usually have it with me. It's at Hermione's right now, she needed a copy."
"Why wasn't Mortel discovered when Veritaserum was utilised?"
Harry didn't say anything.
"Harry." Draco growled out. "Why wasn't he discovered then."
"Because they didn't give you any Veritaserum. I'm going to sleep now and not answering any more of your stupid questions."
Draco stared at his back in shock and then turned his gaze to the ceiling. He didn't go back to sleep that night.
----------
"No, Mum, I'm fine. There's no need to yell. No, don't go get my father, look I just want to know one thing. Why didn't they give me Veritaserum at my trial?" Draco was lying on the kitchen counter talking to his mother on the phone. "What do you mean you don't know? How is that possible?" More yelling in his ear so he sat up. "MUM! Don't yell, I can hear you just fine if you talk normally. Yes, yes, muggle technology is fascinating. Why, what did you say as you tried to destroy my ear drum?"
"I said, darling, that they wouldn't tell us why they didn't give it to you. That's why we thought it was so unfair."
"Oh god, please don't start the 'Unfair' speech again. So they just said they weren't giving it to me, but they wouldn't say why?"
"That's about it, darling. Are you sure you don't want me to get your father?"
"It's fine mum, and don't call me darling. Look I have to go, it's my practical day at Hogwarts, I was just wondering if you knew."
"Sorry I couldn't help Draco darling, but good luck and do try and keep in touch."
"Yeah, okay, fine mum, bye." He hung up before she could start another sentence figuring he could blame in on the muggle technology if she asked about it later.
Steel purred and walked around his feet as he got everything ready for his classes. Harry, of course, was already gone. Draco scratched the cat under his chin.
"Hey boy. Wanna go back to Professor Snape? See all those lovely children?"
Steel hopped on to the bed and curled up. Draco took that as a no and smirked. He grabbed his keys as he passed the table and checked Harry had put up the ward so he could leave on of the windows open for the cat. He headed out, making a mental note to ask Snape if he wanted his cat back anyway.
----------
"Hey sir." Draco was already sitting in his chair and having a drink by the time Snape arrived at his rooms.
"Mister Malfoy, I do believe you run to get to my alcohol, that can't be a good sign."
"Well, after a whole day of students, can you blame me?" Draco handed over the second glass.
"Hardly."
"Want a cat?"
"Annoying you, is he?"
"Nah, just figured you might want him back. I've had him for months now and I'm doing much better."
"Yes, and rumour has it that your apartment isn't so lonely anymore." Snape said dryly. "From what I hear in any event."
"I don't talk about Harry that much." Draco sulked and finished off his drink. "So, do you want him? Steel that is, not Harry. You can't have him."
"How disappointing." Snape said sarcastically. "Well, I could certainly live without him for a few more weeks. It's so refreshing to not have a mass of hair leap at you when he wants to go outside to play. And he does that no matter what I'm doing at the time. Teaching, reading ......... sleeping." Snape growled out the last word and Draco snickered.
"We just leave a window open for him. I guess that could be a problem down here."
"Indeed. So, how are things going between you and Harry?" Snape poured Draco another drink.
Draco shrugged. "He's keeping things from me, I can tell. And I don't like it much either. It's been getting worse lately. Like, the more time he's with me, the less he actually tells me. It's as frustrating as hell. And I'm really sick of his 'I don't want to worry you' excuse."
"Perhaps if you went another way. Would anyone else be able to tell you what you need to know?"
"I actually wanted to ask you a few things, but didn't want to bother you."
"Ask away. I have no problems with helping you."
Draco finished his drink and looked his ex-teacher in the eye. "Do you know why the Ministry didn't give me Veritaserum for my trial?"
Snape raised an eyebrow. "He wouldn't tell you that?"
"No."
"Because in your final year at Hogwarts Dumbledore and I taught a few select students how to disable it in their system. You were one of them and the Ministry didn't trust you to not do it, so it was deemed redundant. Your trial was then based on the evidence."
"It can be beaten? I didn't know that."
"Oddly enough, the Ministry don't want that to be public knowledge. The truth serum became very popular with Voldemort, and he administered it for the slightest thing. You had to be taught of course, to help protect your place and a few of the other students needed it in case they were ever captured."
"The Gryffindors. Namely, Harry, Hermione and Ron."
"As well as Harry's roommates, the entire Weasley clan, Miss Parkinson and the younger Crabbe and Goyle. And a number of Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs were found to be very useful as well, so they were taught."
"I got a letter a few days ago from Vincent. He seems to be doing well. Funny really, when I had to make it look like they were my friends, I couldn't stand them, but they don't seem too bad now."
"Yes, forcing people to do things usually makes them hate it."
"So it wasn't all a plot against the Malfoys as my parents keep saying?" Draco smirked and refilled his glass.
"I think people are still very sensitive about the incident in your second year. That may have had something to do with it."
"Ah yes. The Heir of Slytherin. Was rather foolish of my father to send that book along to school, without knowing what it could actually do."
"Yes, but I believe the chance of both getting Dumbledore fired and embarrassing the Weasleys at the same time, overcame the small amount of common sense he actually does hold. He should have put a stop to it, though."
"Yeah, but he couldn't just stand up and say 'Whoops, sorry about that' when things started to get really bad. It wouldn't look that good. He truly does hate Dumbledore doesn't he?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
"Perhaps you should ask him that one."
"Perhaps I shall." Draco finished off his drink and stood up. "Sorry I can't stay for long today, but I should get home and yell at Harry so more. Not that it's likely he'll be back before sunrise tomorrow, so I don't know why I bother." He scowled. "Mortel's a real prick."
"Very well."
"Bye, sir! I'll give your love to Steel!" Draco heard a snort of laughter as he closed the door behind him.
To Be Continued.