Disclaimer: Harry Potter belongs to JK Rowling.

Chapter 4: Grasping at Straws

A week passed and still Harry had no leads. The list Malfoy had given him included every known death eater, several Order members (himself included), and nearly every living classmate from Hogwarts, to name a few. There was also a handful of international contacts listed, including the Quidditch player, Viktor Krum.

In short, the list was useless. Harry ploughed through it anyway, scratching off anyone he knew would not kidnap a child, anyone currently in Azkaban, and anyone who had been at work at that time (quick checks in Ministry logs and in Diagon Alley confirmed the last). Then he began the laborious task of checking the rest of the list.

By the end of the week, he had narrowed the list down to about one hundred people and had sent several aurors, including Ron and Terry, to meet with them. What disturbed him most as he looked at the artist's rendering of David's memory was that no one so far matched the man in question. He did not rule out the possibility of polyjuice or glamours.

On Friday evening, Malfoy showed up at his office unannounced. He looked paler than usual and clutched a piece of parchment like a lifeline. Harry ushered him to a seat before asking his secretary to bring some tea.

"Malfoy? What happened?" Malfoy wordlessly handed him the parchment, which he opened and read.

Mr Malfoy, I am disappointed in you. I would have expected a former Death Eater to show more discretion, but to rush straight to Potter himself - you must have no pride left. How ashamed your father must be of you as he rots in Azkaban. Do not plan to see your son alive again. Good day.

Harry read the letter again, taking notes as he had before. "Most likely a death eater," he said aloud. "Perhaps a friend of your father; have you spoken with him at all?"

"I'm only allowed one visit per month and I last visited two weeks ago. I've submitted a request, but they won't even look at it until the month has passed."

"I've got contacts in Azkaban who may be able to make an exception. I'll submit a formal request to the Wizengamot as well. How is your wife?"

"None of your business."

"Currently, Malfoy, everything about you is my business. Please answer the question."

"We fight constantly, which is nothing new, and she's stopped taking meals or having sex with me since Christmas. All she wants to do anymore is spend my money, mostly on holidays on which I am not welcome. What is new is that four days ago, she began sleeping in a guest bedroom. She's angry and worried about Scorpius and she blames me entirely. She still refuses to speak with anyone from the Ministry. Happy now?"

"No, actually. Tell me more about Christmas. Was Scorpius home?"

"Yes. We all went to Turkey together, a trip my wife had begged for, but almost from the moment we arrived in Ankara, she disappeared, leaving me to try to explain to Scorpius why she had left, but I didn't know."

"Describe her relationship with Scorpius."

Malfoy shrugged. "Tolerant, I guess. Last fall, she wrote to him every week, but she never showed me the letters. Then over Christmas, she was distant enough that Scorpius chose the remain at Hogwarts for the Easter holiday. I don't know if she wrote to him at all after Christmas, but she did not seem too upset when he did not come home for Easter. She spent the week in Cyprus without me."

"Has she cared about Scorpius in the past?"

"Very much, I thought, until Christmas. Scorpius wrote me in March that he was worried about his mother. He asked if she was well and ..."

"And?"

"He was worried our marriage was falling apart."

"Was it?"

"I don't know, Potter."

"Would she speak with Albus?"

"Who?"

"My son. He asks about Scorpius every night, cries himself to sleep ... He's asked several times now if he can visit you and I wonder if your wife would be more willing to speak with a child than an adult. Also, you may want to mention to her that Ginny's having trouble keeping Scorpius' disappearance out of the Prophet."

"I thought she only wrote about Quidditch."

"She does, normally. This is a special favor for me and Albus - Albus, mostly; she thinks I should hand the case over to one of my aurors and be done with it." Malfoy frowned and Harry pushed on. "I won't, though. They are already overworked enough. Anyway, think about it. Is there anyting else you want to discuss?"

"I guess you don't have any new information."

Harry pulled out a parchment and handed it to Malfoy. "Here are the possibilities so far, after narrowing down your list. Keep it. I won't know until Monday what the aurors find out over the weekend, but I can give you an updated list that afternoon. That's all I have right now."

Malfoy closed his eyes and whispered his son's name. He rifled through his robes for a bit, pulled out an envelope, and handed it to Harry. "This might help; it's correspondance with other former death eater families spanning the last five years. You must make sure nothing in there leaks to the press. It was all given to me in strictest confidence and those who wrote it would be justified in torturing me for sharing it."

"Then why give it to me?"

"I think it can help you find Scorpius and his life is far more important to me than my health, assuming he is still alive."

"Albus swears he is. He said he will know if Scorpius dies, but I suspect that's just wishful thinking born of desperation. Anyway, I will look these over and pass on only the information that can assist the aurors."

"Thank you, Potter." Malfoy set down his teacup, stood, and left.

Harry set the envelope aside to read Monday morning and headed home for a late dinner.

~O~

24 June 2018

Dad doesn't understand, but I can't explain without telling him about the coins. I told him to tell your dad you're still alive and asked again if I can go to your house. He said he would talk to your dad and let me know. I don't know what else to write about, but I promised you I would write every day and I will.

My life is still boring. Lily turned James' hair purple in a burst of accidental magic and mum couldn't get it to turn back. Rosie and Hugo came over for the day and Rosie asked about you. She still doesn't like you, but she asked for my sake I think. That's all that happened really. Oh, dad said he spoke with your dad today and he expects to see him again Monday.

Stay strong for me, Scorpius.

Your best friend, Albus

Author's Note: Thank you to Miyako Suou for reviewing. I'm never sure if a lack of reviews is good or bad, but like most authors, I love both praise and constructive criticism.