AN: Well, here's the third chapter. Enjoy.

Felix out-

Chapter 3- Rumour, Legend, Mystery

Draco grabbed a Daily Prophet from the stall outside of the Three Broomsticks, tossing the man running it a sickle. The headline declared the same thing it had for a few days now;

Sirius Black Looking For Long Lost Godson.

Rita skeeter really laid it on thick, spinning a tragedy of a child, Heir to Minister Dumbledore, lost in the confusion of the evacuation of Hogwarts, which still sat abandoned. The castle loomed over the small village, even at the distance it was. Unlike just a decade ago, there were no lights twinkling in the windows. Some said even the giant squid seemed to have left.

After that fateful day when Voldemort killed off Minister Dumbledore and half of his followers, no one had stepped foot back in except to recover anything personal and bodies of the lost.

But now Sirius Black was looking for Harry Potter. It was a stretch; anyone who had been at the ball could tell you that Voldemort had sworn to kill off all of them. But Draco had shown them out of the castle that day. They had made it out just minutes before Voldemort was said to have been sealed in the lake.

He had snuck in to the castle that day, flooing to the Three Broomsticks and making the long trek to the castle in the chilly December air. He knew the secret passages of Hogwarts like the back of his hand, and few ever knew he was there. When he had pushed open the side passage to see Lord Black (whom he recognized from pictures his mother had) running with none other than Harry Potter (who everyone recognized), he had hesitated only a second before beckoning them. He had known some of what his father was planning, and his teen rebellion had started a few years early.

Draco made his way back to the Hog's Head, humming a random tune and flicking through the paper. Every page was plastered with the story of how the old ways were cast out.

Horace Slughorn, his partner in crime (literally), was in a room in the back. The pub had a notorious reputation for being the center of the black market in Hogsmeade.

All the rumours were correct.

Horace sold hot merchandise, anywhere from pilfered potions to an array of knick knacks and baubles. There were also a few less than legal potions ingredients and whatnot. Draco helped acquire them, and got half of everything. Between them, they could talk a cloak off of a man's back if they put their heads to it.

"Horace, when do the next batch of auditions come in?" He asked.

"An hour yet, m'boy." Horace was a large man. Many said he looked like a walrus, as well. He was short and squat, with a moustache. He was also starting to go bald.

Draco, on the other hand, was tall and lean. His platinum blond hair fell around his face fashionably, softening his sharp aristocratic features. He also had piercing silver eyes. It helped when trying to swindle people. Draco was handsome and charming, and Slughorn looked unsuspecting. A deadly tag team.

Draco sat in an old armchair, snapping open the paper. "We'll find someone convincing, Horace, trust me. Then we'll snag the reward and we'll be at the top of the world! No more dirty alleyways, and dusty back rooms. I'll buy Malfoy Manor back from the Ministry and get a few house elves. It'll do my mother good to see that her son is where he belongs."

Draco had lost the manor when it was found out that his father had helped bring down Dumbledore. He had had no part of it, but that didn't stop the Ministry from leaving him and his mother almost penniless, taking almost all they had for reparations. They had moved in with his aunt Andromeda Tonks, her husband Ted and their daughter, Nymphadora (who hexed you a new arsehole if you dared call her such a thing, she preferred Tonks thank you very much).

It had been alright, but it was far from what he had been used to.

It's where he learned how to be sneaky. His mother had never liked it, but he had learned how to steal and hustle and swindle by the age of eleven. While Narcissa had found a job at a little cafe in Diagon Alley, he had made a few galleons selling an array of things to less than trustworthy people in Nockturn.

Draco pulled a box from his pocket. It looked like a jewelry box, but he couldn't open it, and it obviously contained no jewelry, for when he shook it there wasn't a sound. But it had belonged to Harry, and if the imposter had it then it might help their case. He had almost gotten them caught to retrieve it, after all. He had found it out in the snow after the fact, abandoned and forgotten, just out of reach of the womping willow. He figured it had fallen out of his pocket in his haste, and it hadn't made a sound as it hit the snow so Harry was none the wiser.

"Oh M'boy, such big dreams, such ambition!" Horace waved his wand, the dust on his chair disappearing. He settled in with a glass of firewhiskey.

Horace had always taken people with ambitions under his wing. Of course, he only chose the ones who could get there. He wanted a cut.

"And they will be realized in due time. With Harry Potter." He took his own glass and they cheered to changes to come. All the while, he was staring at the picture of the boy in the paper. He used his wand to cut out the picture of the boy with his family. He couldn't shake the feeling that something was off about everything. Where was Harry Potter?

AN: if you have any ideas for scenes, I may just add them, so don't be afraid to send me a PM or a review.

Felix out-