Chapter Six

(yeah…it does take an angry mob to get me to update.)

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"That's disgusting. A fucking filthy habit."

"Yeah, I know. But damned necessary."

"No, what's damn necessary is for you to put your fucking cigarette out. It'll take 20 years off your life."

"Didn't know you cared, Draco. Can't say I've got much to live for anyway." Harry said, taking a long drag on his cigarette and blowing the smoke in Draco's direction.

"Don't be maudlin. You've got a coffee shop."

Harry snorted.

"That's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard." He said, grinning at the flickering TV screen, but putting his cigarette all the same.

Draco and Harry were sitting on Harry's big, fluffy, slightly worn out couch, and having put their faith in late night TV, they were watching a cheesy movie. Each was nursing their third bottle of beer.

There was silence except for the corny lines of the made for TV movie.

"Aren't you going to ask me why the fuck I'm here?" Draco finally snapped. He still trying to process how he ended up with Harry Potter curled at the opposite end of the couch and smelling like coffee beans.

"Was planning on getting you smashed first, figured it might be easier." Harry said, his eyebrows raised and the neck of his beer bottle resting at the side of his mouth, looking rather out of character.

"Ah, always the gentleman, our Harry Potter."

"So I've heard."

"You gonna tell me, or what?"

"More alcohol first, the story takes quite a bit of telling."

Harry glanced at the clock. It was only 10:30.

"I've got time."

"Since we've got that settled, I suppose my quasi-epic…"

At this point Harry interrupted.

"What, like, the diet coke of epics? Just one calorie of a story? Not even en--"

A large pillow to the head cut Harry off.

"You gonna let me finish? This isn't fucking easy for me, you know? Its not like I'll tell this to anyone who'll listen. Its…hard."

"I'm sorry, I know it's hard. Just…have another beer okay? I'm listening, really."

"Okay well. I guess the story of how I ended up in your living room…I guess it starts in our 7th year."

Harry had to interrupt one more time.

"Yeah well, that's when everything started, isn't it?"

But Draco's eyes were glazed over, staring at things Harry couldn't see. As if speaking for another world, Draco told his tale.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Christmas Eve, Six years ago. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ *Ripple dissolve…commences flashback*

"Good morning, Draco. Could you perhaps drop by my office around lunchtime? I know that's when you have a free period and I'd like to discuss something with you."

Damn twinkling eyes, Draco could not stand Albus Dumbledore and he could not stand those twinkling eyes.

"Erm. Yessir." Draco said, doing his best at sounding cowed. What he was really saying was "Yeah and hell will freeze over. I'll be gone after my forth class. Good-bye Hogwarts, hello Death Eaters."

Dumbledore didn't look convinced.

"Thank you. I'm sure Professor Snape will be glad to escort you there after your charms class, right before lunch."

/Blast it all. Foiled again by Albus fucking Dumbledore. Suppose I had better owl Mother, telling her I won't be able to make it. Oh that's just bloody fucking brilliant. Snape was probably the one that snitched to Dumbledor about the initiation ceremony that was scheduled for tonight. Of course Dumbledore won't let me go without sharing a few of his little life altering jewels of wisdom first. / Thought Draco heatedly.

"Is it mandatory?" Draco had to ask... this was his future he was playing with, after all.

"Its mandatory."

And that was that.

Draco walked away without saying good bye and spent the rest of the morning in a huff. He didn't notice the sympathetic stares most of the student body was throwing at him, and didn't hear or see the loud lamentations of Pansy Parkinson, or the fact the Vince and Greg hadn't said a damn thing except for a gruff "I'm sorry," in place of a morning greeting.

But the Slytherins were a complicated lot and Draco was a little preoccupied on the what the consequences were going to be once Voldemort found out that he wasn't getting initiated quite yet, so he didn't think anything was particularly out of whack. (A/N Ack. So many run-on sentences.)

Professor Snape was waiting for him outside the Charms classroom. The normal heavy creases in his forehead seemed deeper and more defined.

Draco took this all in stride. Snape was always a little…off.

"Hello, Draco." He said, curtly.

"Morning, Professor."

Snape turned and headed down the Charms corridor, with Draco following reluctantly. The people in the portraits whispered and pointed, students avoided his gaze, and Draco was waiting for someone to yell "DEAD MAN WALKING!"

"Chocolate Covered Pixie Wings."

"Excuse me, what?" Draco balked.

"Dumbledore's password." Snape said, looking at Draco like he'd grown a second head.

"Uhm…right." Mumbled Draco as the gargoyle leapt aside and the winding staircase made itself known.

"I'll uh...see you in the Common Room tonight, Professor."

Professor Snape nodded, but as Draco started to climb the stair he was sure he heard a quiet "I doubt it."

Looking back, Draco wished he'd asked what Snape he had meant.

He could have been a different person. He could have led a different life.

If only, if only…

When Draco finally reached the top of the stairs he found Dumbledore through a set of wooden doors and behind an oaken desk.

"Welcome."

"Squawk!" (No, this wasn't Draco's reply. Fawks would be attending this meeting too.)

"Right." (This is what Draco's reply was. The presence of the phoenix was unsettling.)

"Please sit down."

Draco complied immediately. Dumbledore's most commanding voice can act like an Imperious between the eyes.

"Do you know what this is?" Dumbledore asked, throwing an envelope down on his desk.

"It's a letter." Draco said flatly, beginning to bristle slightly.

"No." Dumbledore corrected, "This your get out of jail free card."

Draco didn't catch the Muggle reference, but he did catch Dumbledore's drift.

"I'm listening."

"This letter was written to Mr. Thomas Riddle on the night of November 6th. It contains information that could bring Voldemort's whole operation to its knees. The only problem is its in code. And there are only three people in the world that can break it. Voldemort, Lucious Malfoy and…"

"Me."

"That's right."

"So you want my help."

"Yes."

"What's in it for me?"

"We can give you protection."

"So can Voldemort."

"Oh, Mr. Malfoy, you know that isn't true."

"Do I?"

"Voldemort didn't protect your mother, did he?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Don't you read the papers?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Draco, your mother…your mother is dead."

"What…what are you talking about?"

"She was…Draco I'm so sorry. The Dementors killed your mother. She was trying to break your father out of jail."

"No. She wouldn't do anything that stupid. I know my mother."

"She would under Imperious. The Death Eaters did it to her."

Draco pushed his chair back from the desk so fast it fell over. He stood up and began pacing.

He was clenching and unclenching his jaw so hard Dumbledore could sees the muscles working from several feet away.

"My mother, my own mother. I can't believe this. How could they put it in papers? Why didn't anyone tell me?"

"I'm sorry Draco."

"Oh I bloody fucking bet you are! You're such a bastard, using my own mother's death against me. I'll crack your fucking codes you bastard, but don't you dare think I'm working for you."

"I can't risk you going to Voldemort. You must pledge your allegiance, or no one will trust you."

"I'm not doing this for you, Dumbledore. If Voldemort got my mother killed, then I will help even you and your little Saint Potter bring him down. This is for her. She didn't deserve dying like she did."

"Can you start tonight? This is very important, Hogwarts is at risk. You're exempt from all your classes, until further notice, if you will."

"Show me the letter, and whatever else needs to be deciphered."

end flashback

"Okay."

"Yeah, but how does that bring you here?"

"Well, you see, Voldemort was always very paranoid and he knew that his luck would run out eventually. So he made a spell to bring him back, no matter what. But he wrote it in code…"

"The Riddle Code."

"Yeah, that's right. The code only I can decipher. So Voldemort's supporters have been tracking me, ever since they found the document. I met Kolo when I was hiding out in a bar. He said that I could lay low at his place for a while. I couldn't believe that such kind people like him could exist. I swear, that man is an angel."

"So they found you? Were they at your house when you got home?"

"Not quite. I saw one poking around, didn't want to take any chances, so I left."

"So you came here?"

"No. I-I was a little distraught, so I came to Kolo's house. But he doesn't live here anymore and I remember you saying that you lived in the apartment above…so I just walked up the stairs and hoped you were home. Besides, you're Harry Potter…you never could resist a hopeless case."

"Did you Apperate?"

"No."

"Why not?

"Tracking Spells. They'd be able to find me in a second if I used magic. But…that doesn't explain why you don't use magic. Your house doesn't have any wards. I can sense them."

"I'm afraid that is a story for another time."

"Ah well, I'll stick around till you come out of your hole. I'm patient."

"You're spending the night then?"

"If you're offering?"

"I'm offering you my couch, if that's what you mean."

"Thank you." Harry could tell he meant it.

"You wanna watch another movie?" Movies solved everything.

"Yeah, okay." Draco seemed to agree. After a beat, he asked

"In the morning, I'm gonna need your help."

"Uh…defeating Death Eaters?" How was Harry going to explain that he got out of that business long ago?

"No. Making scones."

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Years later, Harry often wondered how he wound up with Draco's head on his shoulder, surrounded by morning sunlight and empty beer bottles. They had fallen asleep halfway through whatever movie they had been watching.

"Draco, walk up. We've got work."

"Mmmm…one more minute." Draco was drooling.

"Don't you have scones to make?"

Draco's eyes flew open.

"Shit!" He exclaimed, and fell off the couch, taking Harry with him.

Harry landed on top of Draco with an "Oomph!"

"Well…this is comfy." Draco sneered, as Harry's elbows dug into his ribs.

"Yes."

"Mmm."

"Uh…scones?"

"Right."

Draco didn't like the loss of warmth that Harry's absence caused.

"Come on then." Harry said, pulling Draco up off the floor.

"I hope you have enough flour."

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Roughly an hour and a half later Draco and Harry were on an empty subway car (a rare occasion in London.) Harry was sitting on the bench and Draco was standing over him, both his hands on the upper hand rail that hung from the car roof, standing between Harry's knees.

The subway car was older than most and the lights flickered on and off, while blue and white lights flashed in from the walls of the tube.

If you were watching from a distance you would see a blond man lean down and kiss a dark hair man, but you'd only see it in snatches, like fragments of a dream.

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A/N

Well okay then. Thank you thank you thank you to my wonderful reviewers! Hope that answered a few of your questions. Ohh…but Harry's still go his secrets! And the coffee shop has only been open for a day! Hope I didn't take their relationship too fast…but…they've been around each other for over a month…and they've got history so ya know…

Anyway. Working on a new story. Its gonna be good. It's a Draco/Neville (yeah I know…but you read Lust Over Pendle and not have them be your OTP!) Wherein Draco burns down Malfoy Manor under some very mysterious circumstances…and winds up living in London for a summer…and with some interference from Dumbledore (and a trail…) he has to work at St. Mungo's. There he sees a different side of Neville. Sounds pretty bad, but it really isn't. I'm quite excited about it! Called "English Summer Rain" so keep your eye open for it!

As for updates…ASAP… I suppose…the next chapter won't be as long as this one, I dun think…but I'll have it up… soon-ish.

Oh yeah and the title of this will CHANGE! "Cup of Joe, Spot of Tea by Dark Phoenix" will become "Happenstance Coffee by Amen" on October 31st! Okay? Good. Oh and…I dun own anything you recognize. Really.