AN: Look its Wednesday! At least for a few more minutes. This ones a little break from the action but I believe that's always a bit necessary. Hope you guys enjoy!

Chapter 9

Call me Tobias

Monday morning dawns cool and crisp finding two pale figures walking the manor gardens. "What brings you down so early this morning?" Narcissa asks as her son walks up to meet her.

"I wanted to ensure that you would be content while I went into the shop today."

"Must you go in today? I'm sure Mr. Mulpepper would understand if you were to call off. You've barely rested since the incident the other evening."

"I'm fine Mother," Draco responds with a smile. "Working at the apothecary is calming for me."

"You always were obsessed with your potions," Narcissa laughs before turning back to kneel before her roses. "Severus was always so proud to see your latest concoctions during his visits. Well," she states gesturing for him to join her, "the least you can do before you run off is help your dear mother with the garden. Merlin knows you haven't been caring for it in my absence."

"Cibney ensures it is watered and that the weeds do not overgrow your flowers."

"Cibney has other tasks that require her attention. The garden grows best when you use a personal touch. Magic can only do so much. Flowers need tenderness and care to grow properly. Without it they grow wild and are prone to follow paths that could be detrimental to their prosperity."

"Mother," Draco sighs, kneeling down beside the older woman.

"Of course, no one can fault you for not understanding the true beauty of the personal touch. That fault is my own, I'm afraid."

Draco smiles fondly over at his mother, resting his hand on her shoulder, "Mother, I'd like to think you did quite well with raising me."

"But I didn't, did I? We left your care to Cibney for the majority of your formative years while your father worked and I followed his lead. If I had only stood up to your father, perhaps none of this would have happened."

Draco scoffs, grabbing his mother by the shoulders and turning her toward him, "If you had stood up to Father all of this still would have happened. The only thing that would have changed is that you wouldn't be here. I wouldn't be here. If you had fought back the Dark Lord would surely have killed you. It's true, Cibney was in charge of my care for as far back as I remember but that doesn't erase our picnics in the garden when Father wasn't home, or the way you'd read to me in the library after lessons.

"I know this isn't the life you envisioned for me, Mother, but I would do it all over again a million times if it kept you safe." Pulling his mother to her feet, Draco lightly dusts the dirt off of his trousers before pulling the older woman in for a brief embrace. "Now, before I have to head out for the day, how about we have some breakfast. I'm feeling rather famished." He turns toward the manor, pausing only long enough for the woman to accept his offered arm before heading back inside.

"Good morning, Mr. Mulpepper," Draco calls out as he closes the door to his lab behind him.

"Ah good morning, dear boy. However, I do believe I asked you to call me Tobias."

"Tobias," Daraco amends with a laugh.

" I trust you had a relaxing weekend?"

"As relaxing as can be expected," Draco responds with a smirk, "my Mother is in town."

"I remember your mother. Quite the strong will in that one."

"Yes sir."

"Do be sure to pass on my greetings. Will she be staying with you long?"

"For the foreseeable future. She's visiting from France and feels the need to catch up on all the goings on in my life."

"Let me know if you'll be needing any time away to spend with her. Time with family is important, you know."

"She's managed to find things to keep her occupied while I'm away. I don't foresee the need for any time off but I will be sure to let you know should anything come up."

"Splendid." He stands from the desk, tucking his quill behind his ear. "I've already taken the liberty of checking your stores and creating today's supply list. I'd like us to begin your training in the front of the store today."

"Are there no potions that need restocking?"

"You made us more than enough on Friday."

Draco nods, removing his satchel and setting it in its place near the door. "What are we starting with?"

"This week we are going to work on getting you used to interacting with the customers." He lets out a hearty laugh at the look on Draco's face as he speaks. "Yes, I know, throwing you right in there. Might as well get the most difficult bit over with, I say. I believe the paperwork and day to day running of the place is going to be what comes easy for you. Getting you to be comfortable being approachable is going to take us some time."

"I've never been good with people." Draco admits following the elderly man through the door.

"I can tell. That mask you wear may have served you well during the war, my boy, but it's high time you retired it and let people see the man I get to see every day." Draco stares at him blankly and he sighs before continuing, "Come on now, give us a smile then."

Tobias leans against the counter, staring at him expectantly.

"Are you serious?"

"I promise it won't hurt." He smiles over at the younger man for a moment. "See, completely painless." Draco laughs softly, shaking his head. "There we are. See, didn't hurt a bit."

"Now one of the most important aspects of the job is knowing what someone needs even when they don't. This should come relatively easily for you since you're so well versed with potions. Knowing how potions react with each other, the ingredients needed, and even what sorts of things can be substituted for others is a large part of my day to day. We'll also be spending time getting you familiar with the layout. If there's anything that you feel should be rearranged be sure to let me know. You need to feel comfortable with the space when you take over for me."

"I have been curious as to your thought process in how you chose to display your items," Draco cut in as he surveyed the neatly laid out shelves around him. "It's obvious that you decided to store the premade potions together alphabetically but what made you decide to do it that way instead of by purpose? And your raw ingredients? How did you decide how to order them?

"I used to keep the potions in order by use but as I aged it became much simpler to remember them when I kept them as they are now. The ingredients are ordered the same way. The ones that do not interact well with magic are kept separate so that I don't forget and ruin the whole batch."

"That's understandable."

"Once you've adjusted to work up here, we can reorganize them. You sit down sometimes and plan it all out and we'll get her all set for you."

Draco smiles at the older man, "I truly appreciate this opportunity, sir."

Tobias waves him away as he takes his seat behind the counter, "Now its almost time to open. You take a few minutes to look around and then go unlock the door."

The day flies by much more smoothly that Draco could have anticipated. The nerves he had felt about being in close proximity with the store's customers has nearly vanished by mid-afternoon and he finds himself able to relax into his role. He feels Tobias' eyes on him as he walks a young woman over to pick out a pain potion and turns to look in his direction, giving the older man a nod and smiling slightly.

A shock of red hair catches his eye across the store and he tenses, staring at the man who has just walked in.

"Draco," the voice when it comes sounds faint, almost as though he were attempting to listen through a warded door. "Draco." When it comes again, it's louder and he feels a hand gripping tightly to his shoulder. "You alright there lad?"

He blinks owlishly down at Tobias before shaking his head roughly. "My apologies, I'm afraid I'm not sure what happened." His eyes scan the room, landing once more on the face of the familiar redhead.

"No problem at all my boy," Tobias replies with a smile, glancing between the two younger men. "Why don't you take a moment in the back to clear your head. I'll finish up with this young lady and then we'll have a chat. I believe we could do with some more of that burn salve."

"Yes, sir." He turns back to the woman who now stares at him curiously. "My apologies, ma'am. Mr. Mulpepper here will help you get what you need." Without waiting for her response, he turns and walks quickly into the back room, shutting the door quietly behind him before leaning against it and closing his eyes. "Bloody Weasleys," he whispers to himself before pushing away from the door and moving to the comfort of his work bench.

He pauses momentarily when he hears the door open and then begins pulling the necessary ingredients off of the shelves.

"Would you like to talk about it?"

"I'm afraid I'm unsure what you are talking about," Draco mutters as he begins to measure out blackthorn berries. A hand grabs his wrist as he reaches for the adder's tongue and he turns to look down at the man before him.

"You've worked here for a while, and I've never seen you shut down like you did when you saw that young man in the store."

"My apologies, sir."

"I'm not here to lecture you, young man. Clearly something about the gentleman bothered you. He's in here quite often buying things for his shop down the street. Never caused any trouble. Didn't seem to have issue with seeing you either."

"You'll understand if I have trouble believing that, sir," Draco responds, pulling his wrist out of the other man's grasp, grabbing the jar off the shelf and spinning it slowly in his hands. "He used to have a twin, you see."

"And you had something to do with the reason there's a used to in that sentence." Tobias frowns at the younger man but nods in understanding. "Were you the one that had to do it then?"

"No," Draco exclaims, nearly dropping the jar. "No, of course not, but…"

"Ah, stood by and just watched the poor lad as he passed then. Was it quick at least?"

"No, I wasn't there when it happened, at least not in that hallway, but I heard…"

"Then what did you have to do with it?" he cut in. "You didn't kill the boy. You didn't see him die. If you weren't there. What do you expect to have done to stop it then?"

"I don't...if I hadn't...you don't understand," Draco stuttered, eyes lowered to the floor. "I'm the reason the Dark Lord was even able to attack Hogwarts. If Dumbledore had still been alive…"

"Albus Dumbledore was a very powerful man but Voldemort was a madman. He'd have tried to take the school eventually even if the old man was still around. You are not to blame for the actions of others my boy, only for your own and you've been working quite hard to make up for those mistakes."

"I'm sorry sir, but you don't understand…"

"No, I supposed I can't understand the mind of a terrified child whose own mother was under threat of torture and death. I haven't been there, but I do believe that you are owed a little bit of grace for what you've been through." He pulls the jar out of Draco's grasp and sets it gently on the bench beside them before placing a hand gently on his shoulder. "You've come a long way lad, you'll make it the rest of the way through. I'm sure of it. Now," he wraps the knuckles of his free hand twice on the bench before pulling away, "I do believe that's enough sentimentality for today. You get to work on that salve and I'll get back to the shop."

"Yes, sir," Draco replies softly, not managing to look back over at the other man, his eyes instead focused on the ingredients before him.

"Good lad."

He feels the older man pat him lightly on the back before he walks away and sighs, turning his attention back to his careful dissection of the plant before him.

Draco carefully finishes the final labels before sealing the jars with a muttered spell. Surveying his workbench with a small smile as his mind mulls over the conversation he had had only hours before. Waving his wand over the jars, he sends them quickly to the counter at the front of the store and begins cleaning up for the night.

He catches movement out of the corner of his eye and turns toward the door to the alley. He jumps to his feet, his stool crashing to the ground as a pale, white mist begins to form just inside the door.

AN: As always, thank you guys so much for sticking with me this far. I don't think I can properly describe how much it truly means to me. Reviews are always appreciated!