Disclaimer: Look! Look! *points gleefully* It's the official document
saying that I own them all! Look, it's right there! That pig with wings has
it in his mouth!
Warnings: Nothing bad, just my annoying habit of not explaining anything. :)
.
.
.
Smoke & Mirrors.
.
Part One. Home, Sweet Tomb.
The smoke slid out from between Draco's parted lips, swirled around his head and drifted up, seeming to dance and spin in the light from the torch on the wall. Caught in a small breeze from the open patio doors, it lazily blew back and forth across the ceiling, before thinning and dissipating. He lifted the cigarette to his lips again.
All was quiet in the house, the only sounds the young man could hear was the low crackle of the torch and the breeze that was starting to pick up outside. There weren't even any insects rustling outside. Draco sat quietly in his chair, bathed in soft moonlight and staring out the window, in his bedroom, on the fourth floor of his spacious country house, at least five kilometres away from the nearest person. In his left hand he held his cigarette, in his right he held his glass.
Which he found to be empty when he next raised it to his lips. The chair creaked as he stood but his mind didn't really register the noise. He walked to his cabinet and placed the Old Fashioned on the top. The ice went in with much clinking, one piece sliding over the top of the cabinet after it bounced off the lip of the glass. He free poured the cognac, then the same with the Bénédictine. He spun the glass around carefully by swivelling his wrist, swishing the contents as a form of mixing while he walked back to his chair.
His cigarette had burnt out in the ashtray by this point, so Draco simply lit another one. He wasn't sure of the exact amount of time that he had been sitting in his room, slowly making his way through two bottles of alcohol and a good portion of a carton of cigarettes. He conceded it had to have been at least five hours, the fact that the sun was starting to rise was a good clue to that. He had returned home from his parents place a little after midnight and had headed straight into his room and begun this ritual of staring out the window and sipping his drink until he had to pour himself another.
By his count, he'd only had enough when he couldn't make the walk and so far, he still could.
He'd already had a few drinks at his party, his parents throwing it for him this year. It hadn't been too bad, better than what he'd thought it would be when he first heard about it. It had meant to be a surprise but Draco knew Morgan didn't stand a chance of withholding information from him. Not when he smiled so nicely at the poor boy. Morgan always caved when he did that.
Draco turned his head slightly as the ball of hair sleeping on his bed snorted a little and shifted, obviously trying to get comfortable. He smiled slightly and then returned to staring at the stars. The night had been okay, but he had noticed it wasn't the best. Everyone had carefully avoided the subject for the most part though.
~~~~~~~~~~
"This is not a good idea, Morgan. I'm really not in the mood for a party."
"If you bail, they'll know I said something. And please, please, please, act surprised. Your mother will kill me if she even suspects that you know."
"Well, that will certainly liven the party up."
"Shut up, Saria."
"No."
"Yes."
Draco sighed. "Guys."
"See, Morgan, you're getting on his nerves."
"I am not. He'd much rather have just me around than you."
"Oh yeah? Then why did he choose me as his new trainee?"
"Wasn't much choice now was there. All of the good trainees were already assigned."
"Hey at least I didn't get a pity vote like what he did for you."
"That's NOT what happened, what would you know anyway?"
"I know plenty!"
Draco smacked his fist on the door. "Both of you shut up, or I'll poison your drinks."
The three were standing on the doorstep of Lucius and Narcissa's large manor, waiting for the door to be answered. As normal, Draco stood between his bickering companions, Morgan on his right, Saria on his left. The two had only known each other since Saria had joined them, about five months ago, and things had not really improved yet. Saria always wanted to know why Morgan insisted on acting like he was one of her trainers as well, Morgan was always asking Draco what possessed him to choose such an annoying drama queen for a recruit.
Draco knew that most of it was just left for show by now, he could tell they were okay with each other, in a strange way. But he was getting rather sick of all this nonsense. He gave each of them a look and then put on an innocent smile as the door started to open.
"Draco, darling. So glad you could all come for dinner. We're having all your favourites." Narcissa waved them in.
"Thanks for all this, mum. I hadn't really had much time to organise anything for myself. This should be a nice break from sorting through my things." Draco chose to ignore how the three gave each other a look at the indirect mention of it.
"Well, just come through to the dining room, and we'll get started shall we?" Narcissa patted her hair and smiled, turning to leave and just expecting to be followed. She led them up the main staircase and to the left, heading for the dining room that was used during the summer. The three guests filed in obediently as she held the door open. It was pitch black.
Draco prepared himself for his performance and then broke the silence. "Isn't it rather dark, mother? Surely the food doesn't look bad enough to warrant this?"
"Lumos." The unmistakable sound of Lucius' voice.
The room lit up in a blaze, all thirty two torches flashing to life at the same moment. Draco blinked and then let his mouth open without making any noise. There had to be at least sixty people in the room, standing under a large banner that reached from each side of the room. Decorations were bordering on intrusive, with streamers from the ceiling and various balloons and paper figurines. Still with his mouth slightly open he turned his head to look at Morgan, the perfect look of confusion starting to cross his face.
"Surprise." Morgan said brightly.
Draco nodded, making an affirmative hum. He looked at his mother and then gave her an almost reprimanding look. "Honestly, mum, I'm hardly in a respectable enough appearance to greet all these people."
She beamed, clearly convinced that he was genuinely surprised. "Oh rubbish darling, you look fine. And besides, it's your birthday we're all celebrating, you can look however you wish."
He stepped forward and begun they hand shaking and hellos. His parents had obviously wanted him to have a good time. There were old friends and school mates, co-workers, even some long since seen relatives. He greeted Crabbe and Goyle, warmly. He allowed Naida to give him a hug and to fix his hair. Everyone was wishing him well.
It was starting to get a little overwhelming.
Morgan spotted this and intervened about halfway through his greetings, saying that the birthday boy needed a drink and that they should get straight to the food. "We did come here, expecting dinner. I'm starved."
Draco let himself be hurried through the rest as they made their way to the table. "That wasn't necessary." He hissed once they made it. "I was doing well."
"Yes, but it's so boring to watch you welcome forty thousand people and besides, we can't eat until you do." Morgan stuck his tongue out as Draco snickered.
"Looking like a splendid bash so far, boy."
"Naida, I've asked you not to call me boy. Just because you're ancient."
"Well, honestly. The cheek of young people these days, wandering around and commenting on the age of a lady."
Draco gave one of his most charming smiles. "I can assure you, I have never commented on the age of a *lady*."
Naida would have said something in reply except that Saria finally arrived next to Draco, having been pulled away and scolded by Lucius for something. "That father of yours can be a right prat." She leant over and snatched up a sandwich. "It's not like I knew spilling that potion would have started a fire."
"What *are* you talking about?" Draco said as he allowed Morgan to start loading his plate up with food.
"Just a little accident yesterday with the 'Happy Birthday' banner." She pointed to one corner and snorted. "You can't even see the burn marks anymore."
Draco looked and was rather sure that he could, but chose not to say so. "I see Hermione didn't make it."
Morgan coughed. "Er no. She said she had a case to work on."
"That's always her excuse."
"Well, she may have said something about not wanting to look like she was playing favourites."
"And yet she still works with him." Saria butted in and then scurried off to get a drink after Morgan gave her a look.
"That girl ... "
"Oh, let it go, Morgan. It doesn't matter." Draco sniffed at a suspicious looking rissole. "Go see if my mum will put some music on. I'm going to mingle."
Morgan went off quickly and Draco headed over to where Crabbe was standing, clearly arguing about something to Goyle. "Hello boys. Long time, no hunt."
"Draco! Yeah, well, when your mum sent us an owl saying that she wanted a few old faces for your party, we couldn't turn her down now could we?"
"Well, I could have, but Goyle was absolutely delighted at the idea of free food."
"Leave it off, you fat bastard. You're only here to get drunk."
"You're both still pathetic." Draco said good-naturedly.
"I'll drink to that."
"I'll eat to that."
All three laughed and they moved to some of the chairs, talking about the old days.
"I still say you shot me with that crossbow on purpose, Malfoy." Crabbe stated loudly as Morgan walked up.
"He shot you?"
"Shh, Morgan, listen to nothing that these lunatics tell you." Draco made a face. "They're drunk."
"I'm not." Goyle defended himself.
"No, but you always get delusions when you're on sugar."
Morgan smiled at the three men and then remembered why he'd come over to interrupt. "Um, there's this weird guy, hiding in the shadows. Your mum said I was to tell you."
Draco looked to where Morgan was pointing, out the door at the other end of the hall. He saw some slight movement which he supposed was his mysterious visitor. He bid his old school friends goodbye and then headed over. A man was leaning on the opposite wall, mostly hidden in the dark of the corridor. "Hello?" Draco saw a flash and quickly caught the object that had been thrown at him. It was a present.
"Couldn't miss your birthday, blondie. That would have been rude." The other whispered and then started to walk away.
Draco grinned into the dark. "Thanks ... prick."
The retreating figure laughed quietly and then turned out of view. Draco walked back to the part of the table holding the presents and placed the new one down.
"Who was that?" Saria asked still looking at the door as if the person was coming back.
"Just someone I knew. Never you mind who."
"I thought you hated your schoolmates?" Saria had an annoying habit of following you around and asking questions some times. Draco was slowly getting used to it. "You seemed to be really hitting it off with them."
"We mostly sorted our problems out during seventh year, we ended up having a lot of fun."
"And how about ... "
"Saria! It's a party, go have fun, get drunk, do something. You're not working now."
A few times during the night Draco had to introduce a couple of the guests to each other but most had sorted it all out before hand so things went smoothly. Then it came to the wind up of the evenings events. The opening of the presents.
Draco wasn't sure that he'd ever seen so many ties, shirts, trousers and cloaks in one place. Almost everyone seemed to had settled on the 'safe' kind of gift. Luckily for the blonde none were overly offensive to his taste and he thanked everyone individually after the opening.
His mother had given him a beautiful lamp. His father had settled with an heirloom sword to go with his collection. Crabbe and Goyle had bought him a crossbow with some beautifully crafted silver bolts. He gave them a look at that and they smirked.
"Open ours next!" Saria said cheerfully. She'd been drinking a fair bit by now and wasn't as surly as she usually became while in a social situation. She and Morgan walked out and then came back quickly, carrying a box with holes.
Draco gave it a suspicious look and shifted in his chair as they placed it in his lap. Narrowing his eyes at Morgan's inane grin, he lifted the lid. "Er, okay." He pulled the present out and let the cardboard box fall to the floor.
"We wanted to call her Chainsaw or something cute like that, but thought you should be the one to give her a name." Morgan smirked and reached over the pat the puppy.
"Guys, it's great, it really is, but you need a license to own a crup." The dog in question was wriggling like mad in Draco's hands.
"Yeah, but we talked to a few friends and managed to convince them that the little escapade two months ago in Hackney clearly shows that you can handle it."
Draco smiled as it tried to bite his fingers. "Well, it is kinda cute."
Saria plonked herself down next to him in the other chair. "So, she needs a name. I'm still pushing for Chainsaw."
"Do you even know what that is?"
"Yeah, Morgan described one to me. Sounds like fun."
Draco's smile widened. "How about Cujo?"
Morgan snickered behind his hand as Saria and quite a few other guests frowned in confusion.
"Why is that amusing?" Narcissa had obviously missed the reference as well.
Draco waved his hand in dismissal of the question. "Never mind. Just some god awful, Muggle movie that Morgan made me watch one time." He placed the puppy on the floor. "Rabies, froth, all that kind of fun stuff."
Saria disdainfully regarded 'Cujo' who was currently licking one of the enchanted paper butterflies that had lost some of its magic and had drifted almost to the floor. "Well, so long as it's not Fluffy or some crap."
"Okay, so you've just got the mystery guest's present." Morgan handed it over.
"You've been waiting for me to open this one haven't you?"
"Well, it's rather rude you won't even tell me who it is. Unless it was ... "
"It wasn't Harry." Draco interrupted harshly as he pulled the wrapping paper off and then opened the box. His smile came back full force as he lifted out what looked like a large black marble.
"What's that." Saria slurred, sipping at her drink.
"It's a Dooresk. It's for recording sounds and such. Like conversations and everything. Good for making sure that nobodies talking about you. I used to live with one of these things."
"Paranoid much?"
Draco sent her a wink. "I was back then."
The ending of the presents was basically everyone's cue to leave. Draco stayed and thanked them all as they left, accepting their well wishes with patience. By the time he was able to leave it was past midnight and therefore is actual birthday.
~~~~~~~~~~
And now he was back home, though he didn't really like to call it that. Sitting on his own, miles from anyone else, watching the sun slowly rise as he drank himself into unconsciousness and smoked towards an early grave. He looked around the room, wondering how it came to this. Wondering what the hell had been so wrong that Harry had to call for a divorce. He exhaled, causing another cloud of smoke to form odd shapes in the light. "Happy birthday to me." He muttered softly with a touch of bitterness.
"Draco?"
He flicked his head around to see Morgan standing in the doorway. "Morgan? Hey, what's up?"
The young man shifted on his feet uncomfortably. "You'd better come in to the office."
"It's my birthday, Morgan. No Auror works on their birthday anymore. So unless you're arresting me for something ... " Draco trailed off and smirked.
Morgan took a deep breath. "Draco, I'm telling you. You want to come in. There's something you have to see."
To Be Continued.
Warnings: Nothing bad, just my annoying habit of not explaining anything. :)
.
.
.
Smoke & Mirrors.
.
Part One. Home, Sweet Tomb.
The smoke slid out from between Draco's parted lips, swirled around his head and drifted up, seeming to dance and spin in the light from the torch on the wall. Caught in a small breeze from the open patio doors, it lazily blew back and forth across the ceiling, before thinning and dissipating. He lifted the cigarette to his lips again.
All was quiet in the house, the only sounds the young man could hear was the low crackle of the torch and the breeze that was starting to pick up outside. There weren't even any insects rustling outside. Draco sat quietly in his chair, bathed in soft moonlight and staring out the window, in his bedroom, on the fourth floor of his spacious country house, at least five kilometres away from the nearest person. In his left hand he held his cigarette, in his right he held his glass.
Which he found to be empty when he next raised it to his lips. The chair creaked as he stood but his mind didn't really register the noise. He walked to his cabinet and placed the Old Fashioned on the top. The ice went in with much clinking, one piece sliding over the top of the cabinet after it bounced off the lip of the glass. He free poured the cognac, then the same with the Bénédictine. He spun the glass around carefully by swivelling his wrist, swishing the contents as a form of mixing while he walked back to his chair.
His cigarette had burnt out in the ashtray by this point, so Draco simply lit another one. He wasn't sure of the exact amount of time that he had been sitting in his room, slowly making his way through two bottles of alcohol and a good portion of a carton of cigarettes. He conceded it had to have been at least five hours, the fact that the sun was starting to rise was a good clue to that. He had returned home from his parents place a little after midnight and had headed straight into his room and begun this ritual of staring out the window and sipping his drink until he had to pour himself another.
By his count, he'd only had enough when he couldn't make the walk and so far, he still could.
He'd already had a few drinks at his party, his parents throwing it for him this year. It hadn't been too bad, better than what he'd thought it would be when he first heard about it. It had meant to be a surprise but Draco knew Morgan didn't stand a chance of withholding information from him. Not when he smiled so nicely at the poor boy. Morgan always caved when he did that.
Draco turned his head slightly as the ball of hair sleeping on his bed snorted a little and shifted, obviously trying to get comfortable. He smiled slightly and then returned to staring at the stars. The night had been okay, but he had noticed it wasn't the best. Everyone had carefully avoided the subject for the most part though.
~~~~~~~~~~
"This is not a good idea, Morgan. I'm really not in the mood for a party."
"If you bail, they'll know I said something. And please, please, please, act surprised. Your mother will kill me if she even suspects that you know."
"Well, that will certainly liven the party up."
"Shut up, Saria."
"No."
"Yes."
Draco sighed. "Guys."
"See, Morgan, you're getting on his nerves."
"I am not. He'd much rather have just me around than you."
"Oh yeah? Then why did he choose me as his new trainee?"
"Wasn't much choice now was there. All of the good trainees were already assigned."
"Hey at least I didn't get a pity vote like what he did for you."
"That's NOT what happened, what would you know anyway?"
"I know plenty!"
Draco smacked his fist on the door. "Both of you shut up, or I'll poison your drinks."
The three were standing on the doorstep of Lucius and Narcissa's large manor, waiting for the door to be answered. As normal, Draco stood between his bickering companions, Morgan on his right, Saria on his left. The two had only known each other since Saria had joined them, about five months ago, and things had not really improved yet. Saria always wanted to know why Morgan insisted on acting like he was one of her trainers as well, Morgan was always asking Draco what possessed him to choose such an annoying drama queen for a recruit.
Draco knew that most of it was just left for show by now, he could tell they were okay with each other, in a strange way. But he was getting rather sick of all this nonsense. He gave each of them a look and then put on an innocent smile as the door started to open.
"Draco, darling. So glad you could all come for dinner. We're having all your favourites." Narcissa waved them in.
"Thanks for all this, mum. I hadn't really had much time to organise anything for myself. This should be a nice break from sorting through my things." Draco chose to ignore how the three gave each other a look at the indirect mention of it.
"Well, just come through to the dining room, and we'll get started shall we?" Narcissa patted her hair and smiled, turning to leave and just expecting to be followed. She led them up the main staircase and to the left, heading for the dining room that was used during the summer. The three guests filed in obediently as she held the door open. It was pitch black.
Draco prepared himself for his performance and then broke the silence. "Isn't it rather dark, mother? Surely the food doesn't look bad enough to warrant this?"
"Lumos." The unmistakable sound of Lucius' voice.
The room lit up in a blaze, all thirty two torches flashing to life at the same moment. Draco blinked and then let his mouth open without making any noise. There had to be at least sixty people in the room, standing under a large banner that reached from each side of the room. Decorations were bordering on intrusive, with streamers from the ceiling and various balloons and paper figurines. Still with his mouth slightly open he turned his head to look at Morgan, the perfect look of confusion starting to cross his face.
"Surprise." Morgan said brightly.
Draco nodded, making an affirmative hum. He looked at his mother and then gave her an almost reprimanding look. "Honestly, mum, I'm hardly in a respectable enough appearance to greet all these people."
She beamed, clearly convinced that he was genuinely surprised. "Oh rubbish darling, you look fine. And besides, it's your birthday we're all celebrating, you can look however you wish."
He stepped forward and begun they hand shaking and hellos. His parents had obviously wanted him to have a good time. There were old friends and school mates, co-workers, even some long since seen relatives. He greeted Crabbe and Goyle, warmly. He allowed Naida to give him a hug and to fix his hair. Everyone was wishing him well.
It was starting to get a little overwhelming.
Morgan spotted this and intervened about halfway through his greetings, saying that the birthday boy needed a drink and that they should get straight to the food. "We did come here, expecting dinner. I'm starved."
Draco let himself be hurried through the rest as they made their way to the table. "That wasn't necessary." He hissed once they made it. "I was doing well."
"Yes, but it's so boring to watch you welcome forty thousand people and besides, we can't eat until you do." Morgan stuck his tongue out as Draco snickered.
"Looking like a splendid bash so far, boy."
"Naida, I've asked you not to call me boy. Just because you're ancient."
"Well, honestly. The cheek of young people these days, wandering around and commenting on the age of a lady."
Draco gave one of his most charming smiles. "I can assure you, I have never commented on the age of a *lady*."
Naida would have said something in reply except that Saria finally arrived next to Draco, having been pulled away and scolded by Lucius for something. "That father of yours can be a right prat." She leant over and snatched up a sandwich. "It's not like I knew spilling that potion would have started a fire."
"What *are* you talking about?" Draco said as he allowed Morgan to start loading his plate up with food.
"Just a little accident yesterday with the 'Happy Birthday' banner." She pointed to one corner and snorted. "You can't even see the burn marks anymore."
Draco looked and was rather sure that he could, but chose not to say so. "I see Hermione didn't make it."
Morgan coughed. "Er no. She said she had a case to work on."
"That's always her excuse."
"Well, she may have said something about not wanting to look like she was playing favourites."
"And yet she still works with him." Saria butted in and then scurried off to get a drink after Morgan gave her a look.
"That girl ... "
"Oh, let it go, Morgan. It doesn't matter." Draco sniffed at a suspicious looking rissole. "Go see if my mum will put some music on. I'm going to mingle."
Morgan went off quickly and Draco headed over to where Crabbe was standing, clearly arguing about something to Goyle. "Hello boys. Long time, no hunt."
"Draco! Yeah, well, when your mum sent us an owl saying that she wanted a few old faces for your party, we couldn't turn her down now could we?"
"Well, I could have, but Goyle was absolutely delighted at the idea of free food."
"Leave it off, you fat bastard. You're only here to get drunk."
"You're both still pathetic." Draco said good-naturedly.
"I'll drink to that."
"I'll eat to that."
All three laughed and they moved to some of the chairs, talking about the old days.
"I still say you shot me with that crossbow on purpose, Malfoy." Crabbe stated loudly as Morgan walked up.
"He shot you?"
"Shh, Morgan, listen to nothing that these lunatics tell you." Draco made a face. "They're drunk."
"I'm not." Goyle defended himself.
"No, but you always get delusions when you're on sugar."
Morgan smiled at the three men and then remembered why he'd come over to interrupt. "Um, there's this weird guy, hiding in the shadows. Your mum said I was to tell you."
Draco looked to where Morgan was pointing, out the door at the other end of the hall. He saw some slight movement which he supposed was his mysterious visitor. He bid his old school friends goodbye and then headed over. A man was leaning on the opposite wall, mostly hidden in the dark of the corridor. "Hello?" Draco saw a flash and quickly caught the object that had been thrown at him. It was a present.
"Couldn't miss your birthday, blondie. That would have been rude." The other whispered and then started to walk away.
Draco grinned into the dark. "Thanks ... prick."
The retreating figure laughed quietly and then turned out of view. Draco walked back to the part of the table holding the presents and placed the new one down.
"Who was that?" Saria asked still looking at the door as if the person was coming back.
"Just someone I knew. Never you mind who."
"I thought you hated your schoolmates?" Saria had an annoying habit of following you around and asking questions some times. Draco was slowly getting used to it. "You seemed to be really hitting it off with them."
"We mostly sorted our problems out during seventh year, we ended up having a lot of fun."
"And how about ... "
"Saria! It's a party, go have fun, get drunk, do something. You're not working now."
A few times during the night Draco had to introduce a couple of the guests to each other but most had sorted it all out before hand so things went smoothly. Then it came to the wind up of the evenings events. The opening of the presents.
Draco wasn't sure that he'd ever seen so many ties, shirts, trousers and cloaks in one place. Almost everyone seemed to had settled on the 'safe' kind of gift. Luckily for the blonde none were overly offensive to his taste and he thanked everyone individually after the opening.
His mother had given him a beautiful lamp. His father had settled with an heirloom sword to go with his collection. Crabbe and Goyle had bought him a crossbow with some beautifully crafted silver bolts. He gave them a look at that and they smirked.
"Open ours next!" Saria said cheerfully. She'd been drinking a fair bit by now and wasn't as surly as she usually became while in a social situation. She and Morgan walked out and then came back quickly, carrying a box with holes.
Draco gave it a suspicious look and shifted in his chair as they placed it in his lap. Narrowing his eyes at Morgan's inane grin, he lifted the lid. "Er, okay." He pulled the present out and let the cardboard box fall to the floor.
"We wanted to call her Chainsaw or something cute like that, but thought you should be the one to give her a name." Morgan smirked and reached over the pat the puppy.
"Guys, it's great, it really is, but you need a license to own a crup." The dog in question was wriggling like mad in Draco's hands.
"Yeah, but we talked to a few friends and managed to convince them that the little escapade two months ago in Hackney clearly shows that you can handle it."
Draco smiled as it tried to bite his fingers. "Well, it is kinda cute."
Saria plonked herself down next to him in the other chair. "So, she needs a name. I'm still pushing for Chainsaw."
"Do you even know what that is?"
"Yeah, Morgan described one to me. Sounds like fun."
Draco's smile widened. "How about Cujo?"
Morgan snickered behind his hand as Saria and quite a few other guests frowned in confusion.
"Why is that amusing?" Narcissa had obviously missed the reference as well.
Draco waved his hand in dismissal of the question. "Never mind. Just some god awful, Muggle movie that Morgan made me watch one time." He placed the puppy on the floor. "Rabies, froth, all that kind of fun stuff."
Saria disdainfully regarded 'Cujo' who was currently licking one of the enchanted paper butterflies that had lost some of its magic and had drifted almost to the floor. "Well, so long as it's not Fluffy or some crap."
"Okay, so you've just got the mystery guest's present." Morgan handed it over.
"You've been waiting for me to open this one haven't you?"
"Well, it's rather rude you won't even tell me who it is. Unless it was ... "
"It wasn't Harry." Draco interrupted harshly as he pulled the wrapping paper off and then opened the box. His smile came back full force as he lifted out what looked like a large black marble.
"What's that." Saria slurred, sipping at her drink.
"It's a Dooresk. It's for recording sounds and such. Like conversations and everything. Good for making sure that nobodies talking about you. I used to live with one of these things."
"Paranoid much?"
Draco sent her a wink. "I was back then."
The ending of the presents was basically everyone's cue to leave. Draco stayed and thanked them all as they left, accepting their well wishes with patience. By the time he was able to leave it was past midnight and therefore is actual birthday.
~~~~~~~~~~
And now he was back home, though he didn't really like to call it that. Sitting on his own, miles from anyone else, watching the sun slowly rise as he drank himself into unconsciousness and smoked towards an early grave. He looked around the room, wondering how it came to this. Wondering what the hell had been so wrong that Harry had to call for a divorce. He exhaled, causing another cloud of smoke to form odd shapes in the light. "Happy birthday to me." He muttered softly with a touch of bitterness.
"Draco?"
He flicked his head around to see Morgan standing in the doorway. "Morgan? Hey, what's up?"
The young man shifted on his feet uncomfortably. "You'd better come in to the office."
"It's my birthday, Morgan. No Auror works on their birthday anymore. So unless you're arresting me for something ... " Draco trailed off and smirked.
Morgan took a deep breath. "Draco, I'm telling you. You want to come in. There's something you have to see."
To Be Continued.